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Oren Kriegel
25<|fim_middle|> West discarded a diamond on the last spade, so I was able to drive out the ♦K and claim, without having to cross to dummy's ♣A. That was a cool +620 and 13 IMPs, when my teammates beat 4♠ two tricks at the other table. | . UChicago Class of 2016.
Read more by Oren Kriegel
One from the Seamon Junior USBC
by Oren Kriegel Dec. 28, 2017
(Page of 4)
One of the downsides of living up north is that travel during the winter can be dicey. I was visiting my parents over Christmas in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, and I was going to fly to Atlanta on the 26th to start play in the Michael Seamon Junior USBCon the 27th.
The temperature was well below 0 that morning—the thermometer in the car got as low as 20 below on the ride to the airport—and the wind chill hovered around -30. The bad weather, plus some mechanical troubles, meant that I didn't get out on the 26th. Fortunately, I was on a six-handed team (Adam KAPLAN, Christian Jolly; Zach Grossack, Oren Kriegel; Ben Kristensen, Kevin Rosenberg), so my presence wasn't completely necessary.
I went back to the airport on the 27th, when it was much warmer (up to around -10), and I was able to make it to Chicago (a balmy 0 degrees), where I connected to Atlanta.
I made it in time to play the second half of the round robin. My teammates had done well in the morning, putting up three big wins. We scored a near-blitz in the fourth match, and despite losing the fifth, we had more or less locked up first place in the round-robin. The last match of the day was mostly for practice, and luckily, an opportunity arose.
On the second board of the match, I picked up a decent hand as South:
East passed, I opened 1♠, and West overcalled 2♥. Partner, Zach Grossack, bid 3♥, upgrading his ♥K and ♠Q109. Even with those nice features, 3♥ seems awfully pushy to me, but hey, it's junior bridge—bid 'em up. East bid 4♥, and I bid 4♠, ending the auction.
West led the ♥A, then guessed to shift to the ♦7. That didn't hurt my feelings at all, especially when it rode to my ♦8.
How would you play?
It looked like West had started with ♦KJ97, along with five or six hearts. That didn't leave a lot of room for spades, and given that West had shown up with the ♥A and, presumably, the ♦KJ, I decided to play East for the ♠K. I led a spade: low, ♠10, king.
East shifted to a club, which I won in hand with the ♣K. I played another trump and won West's ♠J with dummy's ♠Q.
West appears to be 2=5=4=2 or, less likely, 2=6=4=1. How do you plan to avoid losing two more diamonds?
I cashed the ♠9, as West discarded a heart, then ruffed dummy's ♥8 without cashing the ♥K. (Overtaking the ♠9 is equivalent.)
Next, I cashed the ♠A. If West indeed had begun with no more than two clubs, he was going to be squeezed. After taking the ♠A, I would play a club to the ♣A, leaving this four-card ending:
If West has kept all his diamonds, I would cash the ♥K and throw West in with a diamond. If West discarded a diamond at any point, I could just set up a diamond trick, while dummy retained the ♥K.
In practice, | 789 |
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Moments #1: Brian Smith Jr - Having Confidence in Your Ability to Figure Things Out
Brian Smith Jr: And the key, again goes back to you, right? Everybody's painting this picture of the perfect career on LinkedIn. I was doing the opposite because I knew I needed help. That's one thing I'm not afraid to admitting. It's hard for me to ask for help. It's not hard for me to admit that like I'm struggling.
Kyle Vamvouris: Brian, how's it going?
Brian Smith Jr: Good, man. How are you?
Kyle Vamvouris: I'm doing well. I'm excited to get to chat with you. We haven't really spoken before. I've seen you on LinkedIn and this is going to be a lot of fun.
Brian Smith Jr: Yeah, absolutely. Absolutely.
Kyle Vamvouris: So, I think what's worth kicking this off. I did a little bit of digging before we had this conversation, but I'm not an investigative journalist. So, why don't you walk me through a little bit of your background and how you ended up in sales specifically?
Brian Smith Jr: Oh man. What a journey, let me, I'm just trying to think through. So, it was a little bit of a, I fell into it, but also you know, like most college grads I owe the government a lot of money and I went to school to be a teacher and a coach, realized that I wanted to have a family. That was not paying the bills at the time. And like most people search for a different avenue. Heard about, hey, there's this job where if you can convince people to take a meeting, we'll pay you for it. And I thought I'm a coach. I have a teaching background. I think I've got a little bit of charisma. I think I convinced people to take a meeting, I'm like, "You're going to pay me for it?" Sounds like a gimmick, like right. Sounds like a setup. Can't be true. Came up here to Atlanta and applied to a couple different companies once I heard about the job, thinking it was a joke, got a phone call my way back home. They wanted me to turn back around and interview. Got the job and not knowing what to expect outside of I was going to make money for people taking meetings, convincing people to take meetings. And it just took off from there, introduced me to an entire world of SAS MarTech. The list goes on. Right. So, that's how I ended up here, man. Honestly, it was kind of by chance.
Kyle Vamvouris: So, that first role, what was the day to day like? Are you cold calling a ton? Are you sending emails? What was the workflow?
Brian Smith Jr: It was miserable. Absolutely miserable. It was a miserable but needed. Right?
Kyle Vamvouris: Sure.
Brian Smith Jr: My first boss, she worked at a company called Sebiana. I think they're now Birch communications. They were super old school, like knock on doors on business doors, B2B still, but like knocking on business doors, literally showing up at their office to see the CEO or whomever they were trying to reach out to. So, she was very like in your face type sales person. So, it gave me the guts to cold call people. Like she instilled that into me. So, all day cold calling, emailing really wasn't too big, I think at the time, like I started getting there. But man, it was lots of cold calls, lots of cold pitches very little research and some emails and different things.
Kyle Vamvouris: Yeah. Isn't it funny how, I mean that's the world I grew up in too? It was like a hundred, 120 calls a day, zero research. And it's funny when I see on LinkedIn and people talking about like, make sure you do your research, research so important. I was like, I can call somebody not knowing their name and get a meeting, you know, it's a whole different world.
Brian Smith Jr: Exactly. There's that perfect world scenario. Right message, right medium, right person, right time. You know, that's a lot of the game and yeah. Eventually, like I realized it was going to be tough to survive off of only that. So, I was probably an early adopter in that first company of like LinkedIn navigator and utilizing social to help me, I guess, rise above the rest of my colleagues. So, yeah, it was a good time though, man, I wouldn't trade it. I would trade the money I made that year, but I wouldn't trade the experience.
Kyle Vamvouris: Yeah. I think it does really callous you. It makes you a lot more, gives you a lot more grit, because when you're making that many calls and it's so inefficient and you're like, this is, and I'm sure, correct me if I'm wrong. This is before like outreach and all of that. It's a little bit harder back then than it was now to make calls.
Brian Smith Jr: It's funny. So, outreach and sale, I don't think outreach has started just yet, or maybe they were right getting ready to start. I know Sales Loft was around. So, we were actually Sales Loft customers. We're here in Atlanta.
Kyle Vamvouris: Oh, okay.
Brian Smith Jr: So, got to kind of be committed to the home team. Right? Sales Loft had just started. And so, my company was actually a Sales Loft, I think one of their first 30 customers, I think so yeah, you're right. Like it had just become a thing like the cadence tool. So, yeah, it was interesting man. Like we were just hearing about that. It wasn't a big thing as it is now.
Kyle Vamvouris: Yeah. Yeah. I mean, I remember Tout app had just launched. Do you remember Tout app?
Brian Smith Jr: Yes. Yeah.
Kyle Vamvouris: I think they got acquired. I don't know what happened with Tout app, but we at the company I was at and we were one of their testers, so we decided to do a little pilot with them. They were really, really young company and I was actually asked to be one of the people to test out sending emails and how crazy does that sound, right? Because now like emails is everything. But back then it was like let's test it.
Brian Smith Jr: That's crazy.
Kyle Vamvouris: Yeah that was.undefined
Brian Smith Jr: The early days, man. The good old day.
Kyle Vamvouris: I know. I love it. I love talking about that stuff. Now you're still in Atlanta, right?
Brian Smith Jr: Yeah. Still here in Atlanta currently.
Kyle Vamvouris: Yeah. I was just in Atlanta. Gosh, in April, right before the COVID situation blew up. I was in Atlanta. I went from Atlanta. I went to, gosh. So, it was Atlanta, Georgia then out on the coast, Savannah, I went to Savannah and then I also went to Charleston, South Carolina. So, I did that big loop and, man, I ate some great food, great food.
Brian Smith Jr: You come to the South man. That's what it's about. I'm not going to lie, like very few. I mean you got, we have the sports, again if you're on the coast, you've got the water. Right. But California has the Pacific. It's a little bit warmer on this side, but it's all about the food man. It's all about the food.
Kyle Vamvouris: Yeah. Well I saw you, you're a pit master over there.
Brian Smith Jr: Wait how'd you figure? Oh, I guess I'm posted on LinkedIn a couple of times.
Kyle Vamvouris: I'm the sneaky guy. Yeah. On your LinkedIn, you have a link to your Instagram and I checked it out and I think I saw you were holding up some beef ribs and then I went down the rabbit hole and you have brisket out there. I mean you're going deep. I bought some of your dry rub. Tell me about the barbecue stuff.
Brian Smith Jr: Yeah, man. So, growing up, my dad is a terrible griller. He just, he hasn't figured it out over the last 30 years.
Kyle Vamvouris: Oh no.
Brian Smith Jr: But he loves to do it. And that smell of like, I'm going to get real nerdy here with that smell of fat caramelizing dripping on lot of fire. They call it my artery action where fat starts turning into sugar. And that's just where all the magic happens. That smell, when I smelled that, man, it's just like home. It's like the early days of no responsibility, freedom. So, that's like my safe Haven man, when I have like bad days, bad weeks, like I get out and cook. And part of that too, that my whole brand is a Good life barbecue and people always ask me, "Why do you name it Good life barbecue?" And I was just made it very few times have I ever been with a bunch of people eating good food and life just wasn't good at that moment. And growing up I had some struggles growing up with my family. I went through foster care for a couple of years.
Kyle Vamvouris: Oh really.
Brian Smith Jr: I've always been a search for community. So, I felt like community saved my life. It kept me on the right track. People in my community helped me graduate, helped me get my first gig in sales. So, I've always been big in that. And so, I love that cooking aspect, being a Pit master or just putting tons of meat over fires is what I like to call it. It just brings people together. It's a good way to bring people together.
Kyle Vamvouris: Yeah, I totally agree. I'm like one of the only, I shouldn't say this, but I'm one of the few people I know who actually does low and slow Southern style barbecue here in California. And man, when I got to go to Atlanta, it was an unbelievable experience because I've only been to the South a few times. I've been to Texas, had barbecue there and getting to go to, get some Atlanta barbecue. You know, obviously you guys do like whole hog roast out in Georgia and you guys have a lot of great barbecue cultures to<|fim_middle|> that's how I became an early adopter. I probably wasn't the best cold caller and I knew that immediately. Like I just could not ever get in a groove, besides in my mind, I thought, okay, what am I good at? Okay. I went to school for speech rhetoric and communication. So, I love wordsmithing stuff. I love the power of delivering rhetoric and formulating words that are impactful. I was like, okay, I'm a decent copywriter. So, what tools can I find to help me elevate that and not automate, but accelerate that. Right.
Brian Smith Jr: So, that's how I became an early adopter. Just being aware of myself, watching patterns of other people and then initiating it and showing the use case or proof of concept.
Kyle Vamvouris: Yeah. Well, I think the overall theme of probably this entire conversation is this almost scrappiness, the thought that like, I need to figure it out and whatever it takes to figure it out, I'm willing to do. But what my experience has been at least talking to you over the past, what is it? 40 minutes. Is, you are, you have a high amount of confidence in your own ability to figure it out? And I think that's going to be a takeaway for a lot of people. It is for me. And I think that's confidence is what drove your success. Even through past failures, it's through adversity. I think that confidence and your ability to figure it out, is it really what got you here is probably what's going to take you to the next level and beyond.
Brian Smith Jr: I appreciate that, man. I'm a big guy now, but back in the day, playing football and stuff, I was a pretty little guy. I think just growing up, I was always just not good enough to be the first pick on the kickball team. Maybe the third or fourth pick. Not big enough to get a D1 scholarship, but enough to a couple of D2, D3 to talk to me. And so, I always had to augment like what we're doing right? And football defense alignment could sit there with a 350-pound guy and just hold them and wait for the ball to come and tackle them. I was like 220 trying to play defense in line and going up against guys that were 330. So, I knew I could beat them off the ball quicker, faster. So, like I proved to my coach, I got to have a different strategy than Billy because Billy's 290.
Kyle Vamvouris: Right. Right.
Brian Smith Jr: Down here trying to hold the same guy he's holding. So, I think that, I don't know, I guess that drive or that ability to figure it out. It's just always been a part of my life. Right. Foster care, not knowing how to get into college. There's so much stuff I can dig in, not knowing how to get into college. Not realizing that there was a test that I had to take to even get into college, like finding about that late. Right. And then scrambling like the last year to study for it and take it so I can get into college. So, I think part of that is just the way I grew up also.
Kyle Vamvouris: Yeah, absolutely. Well, you know, it's, it's funny you look at, whenever I talk to somebody that has a very diverse background where it's like, oh, I, you know, had some pretty extreme stuff happened in my life. I didn't know this. And then people were able to shape me, guide me. And I was able to capitalize on that advise or that mentorship in my experience, they do have this really strong level of confidence in their ability to figure it out. And that obviously has a huge impact on your life and definitely is going to have an impact on all of the people you touch because that's infectious, that kind of, that mentality of let's figure this out, no excuses. That is infectious. And it really, I think that's what pulls people out of really terrible situations.
Brian Smith Jr: Yeah, for sure. Let me ask you something. This is your podcas.undefined
Kyle Vamvouris: No, it's not a podcast, just like a web interview.
Brian Smith Jr: Yeah web interview.
Kyle Vamvouris: Whatever it is.
Brian Smith Jr: Whatever it is. The people having conversations, right. About why, real world problems.
Brian Smith Jr: What would be your advice for someone who has that, you know, willingness to just figure it out? What type of career should they get into?
Kyle Vamvouris: Sales.
Brian Smith Jr: Perfect.
Kyle Vamvouris: We are in the greatest career and I don't know if people fully stepping back and taking a look at this. Sales is the single greatest career on this planet. I get it, curing cancer is cool. But other than those types of like really intense stuff, sales is phenomenal. We get paid like doctors and lawyers and we don't even have to go to college. Are you kidding me? That's Unbelievable. I dropped out of college to do standup comedy. I didn't even finish junior college man. And I'm making doctor money. Come on, man. I was supposed to be digging ditches. And my story is not a unique one. There's a lot of people who didn't go to college, who ended up doing amazing things in the sales profession, because someone took a chance on them. So, you have that ability to go, hey, I need to figure it out. I'm scrappy. I'm willing to make it happen. There's someone who's going to hire you. There's also a bunch of clowns who won't because you don't have a line on your resume that says you got ABC degree for some goofy college, but the people who do take the risk and say, hey, let's get this guy or this girl, because she's super motivated. That's the person who's going to reap the rewards. And if you can build an entire team of those people, sky's the limit.
Brian Smith Jr: Love it. I absolutely love it. And you know, you hit the nail on the head. I have a buddy, who's a doctor and he's still in residency. I was the guy that I was supposed to get married last, have kids last, find his career last. Like, and I am leading the pack all because of the career I chose. Right. So, sky is the limit man. Sales. I think Jay [Inaudible41:54] says it best. Like it's the best thing in the world when it's clicking right. And it's the worst thing in the world when it's not clicking right. So, but the biggest thing is it's up to you. And that's what I love.
Kyle Vamvouris: Me too. But that's because you and I are people who have confidence in our ability to figure things out. And that's why we love this career so much. And anybody else who has that bone in them or that grit and that drive, what rewards it better.
Brian Smith Jr: It's powerful, man. It's powerful.
Kyle Vamvouris: It's good stuff. Anyway. Well, hey, I appreciate the conversation here today. Who knows what this is? This might be a podcast. It might just be a conversation between two pals, but I've enjoyed it immensely. And I loved learning about your background.
Brian Smith Jr: Thanks man, I appreciate this.
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The Right Way to Ask Questions on a SDR Job Interview | blast for me to go through and check that out, eat hash, all that kind of thing.
Brian Smith Jr: Yeah. One day I want to, I haven't done a whole hog roast just yet. It's coming though. It's pretty tough to do whole hog. Yeah, it's tough. And it's kind of scary because some things just can go wrong when you're dealing with that big of meat. If you're not cooking it at a right temperature, it drops too lo and all that good stuff. But one day, one day.
Kyle Vamvouris: Yeah, one day it's definitely a big project that's for sure. So, you talked about community. I want to dive a little deeper into that. You said community saved you and helped you get through school, helped you do all that. Tell me more about the community aspect.
Brian Smith Jr: Yeah, man. It's just a mantra. I think as humans, like even if you just look at mammals in general, they typically travel in pods. Like most mammals, when you look at them, they it's just always a ton of them. And so, I just always had that mindset. Like if you want to be successful, if you want to accomplish goals, like to drop, try to be a lone wolf, typically doesn't work out. And if it does work out, it's so lonely at the top that you don't want any more, the things you work for no longer matter. So, you know, when I first got into sales, it felt like that a lot, it felt like, oh man, I'm on this Island. Like this is not fun. Why can I not tell you what's working for me? And you tell me what's working for you, and we both win. Like I get we're competing. But like the ultimate goal is to help grow the company, let's share resources. So, Morgan Ingram and I, a couple years back started the enterprise sales forum chapter here in Atlanta and we just started building community, man, anybody that need access to the resources, ideas, we did it for free. We didn't charge, got sponsors, brought food, always had food, right. It was just a great day, man. It was a great thing to do for our city. You know, that was the biggest thing is we wanted to be a solid resource for our city. Then obviously careers take off, his career really took off. And so, we had to pass the baton. But yeah, man community is a way to success for sure. In life.
Kyle Vamvouris: Yeah, I think so. And you know what, a lot of, I mean, young salespeople now might not fully get in that competitive nature because it's not as common now as it used to be. But I remember back in the day it was, people were a lot more secretive about what was working.
Brian Smith Jr: Oh yeah. For sure.
Kyle Vamvouris: So, how did you... Sorry, go ahead.
Brian Smith Jr: Yeah, when I first got in, it was almost like a don't show, don't tell, like, and I'm a guy again, like I'm student in all things I did. Right? You were saying you were going down my Instagram, you can see pretty quickly. Like I want to learn about every single thing, how it cooks, the heat with cooking, right? The placement of the meat. If it's cooked this way, it ends up one way. If it cooks this way, it ends up. So, like I'm a student and everything I do. So, I always ask the questions. And I think when I realized, when I was trying to ask all these questions that weren't getting the answers. I was like, this has got to change. So, sorry. You were about to say something.
Kyle Vamvouris: Yeah. Well I'm actually wondering, so, you just start, you start in this job that you do feel like a lone wolf, or you feel a little isolated at least. How long were you there and that sort of isolated state?
Brian Smith Jr: Well, that's a good question. I think typically the ramp period, you know, after the ramp period, you know, everybody is somewhat hands on during the ramp period. I think after the ramp period, I'm just thinking that started in February. I would say February to maybe July, August when I started hitting my stride it was because eventually, I just abandon ship. It was like, if I'm going to have success, I got to figure this out on myself. And that's when I think, I don't even think LinkedIn navigator was a big thing back then. Like if I remember correctly. Yeah. I actually convinced I found it or heard about it, that it was possibly a thing. I reached out to a rep and was like, hey, I got a team of like 10 people. I want to utilize this tool. I don't have the money to pay you just drawing the money, pay you, let me get a free trial. I don't know if they still get free trials, but can I get a free trial, I'll show my boss the success I have. We got our entire team on it. Fast forward 60 days later, people were like, "What is Brian doing? Like What is he doing that's working?" And I would hit stuff, hit stuff. And my friends that I'm still with from that company, we get together we talk about a time, like you kept telling us like, hey, this is working, this is work. And to eventually it was like very evident, like, okay, what is he doing?
Kyle Vamvouris: Wow.
Brian Smith Jr: So, I think it was like that probably until like the fall. So, I started February, August I kind of hit that stride at that peak where it was just like, okay, the quote is 20 appointments a month. I was hitting 18, 18, 19, 20 and 26. So, there was just like what? So, I think from February to August, it was pretty much lone wolf.
Kyle Vamvouris: Wow. Wow. So, yeah, I want to, I'm very curious about the early adopter and this is very interesting. You're like, "Hey, LinkedIn seems like it's something that could work" And you sort of made it work, but before that. I want to get into that, but what I want to do before is just always like what I find when I have conversation with people is that especially a similar type of story where there's like there's adversity and things are, you know, they're not in their comfort zone, lone wolf and you like community, there's a mixed match mismatch there. Usually there's two things that people tend to do when they're in those kinds of situations. So, I actually write about this in my book, but I think the best way to illustrate it is an effort at an output. So, for example, when you're in a situation where things aren't very comfortable, you don't feel like you're getting the resources you need.
And it seems like whatever you're trying to attain is unattainable with what you have in front of you. People typically have two responses. One response will be to give a hundred percent go all in, be an early adopter, which is probably the case in your story. And they'll go all in. And even if the risk of failure is really high, they still will put everything they have into trying to make it work failure or success. The other option is to give 50% effort. So, just totally dial it back as the decks stacked against you. And you're going to guarantee failure, but at least you never tried, so, you kind of preserved that ego. And I'm curious for you, if there was a moment where you felt that sort of like I got to figure something out and you decided to double down, or if like you developed that sort of idea of, I have to make things work and you rely on yourself, you have confidence in your ability to figure it out.
Brian Smith Jr: Yeah, I think I've always been... So, I got to give context before I give that answer. Right. I think because of the way I grew up my culture going through foster care. It's really like, hey you've got to make happen for yourself. Don't rely on anyone else. I fell into that trap and then got away from that as I started graduating school because so many people had helped me onto that point. So, I went from so many people being supportive to being dropped in the business world. It was just like, yeah, there's no holding hand, pat on your back, like this is corporate America, we're here to make money. Like it's a business. So, at that moment, when that clicked for me and the question was like, when did, I guess that switch kind of flip? The moment it didn't show up in my paycheck, the idea that I had in my mind of what my paycheck should look like based on somebody they telling me, "Hey, you can set up a meeting and get paid for it" When it wasn't, I was married. So, I had even more stuff to take care of at home.
So, my paycheck started coming in and then I realized health insurance was really expensive. The mind said go big or go home was just, it just set in immediately. It was kind of like that fight or flight. And I couldn't really run because that a family, had moved away from my home town. So, I couldn't move back, because then I'd be considered a failure. Right? Like and just the sheer, like grit to wanting to prove that I was capable of doing this. Swing big or like go home. I was always swinging for the fences. And I think that's why when I look back at my career, why it's played out the way it's played out, because I've very much done that. When I win, I win big, but when I fail, it's, it's pretty ugly. There's a couple of companies in there where like, it just didn't work out because I was swinging for the fences. And the time that I had is just wasn't enough time. So, I think that that switch flipped immediately when expectation didn't meet reality.
Kyle Vamvouris: Yeah. And I think you touched on a really important piece here where you win, you win big, when you fail it's ugly. Well, fortunately less people see the failure, especially in this world. I mean, in some cases LinkedIn's going to be a lot like Instagram, where we're constantly portraying the perfect image that it's not reality. It's doctor, and we might not be Photoshopping images of ourselves, but we're Photoshopping the language that we're publishing out there and people don't see the failure, but in my experience, I'd be curious if it's the same for you. And that's where the growth really sinks in.
Brian Smith Jr: Yeah, absolutely. The whole mindset of, if you fail, fail fast, I think that's a small-minded way of thinking. Like I really do. Not to hurt anybody's feelings, if you believe that that's okay, but where I'm at my journey, like, I don't know, a failing fast truly teaches you the lesson that you're supposed to learn. Because it's really accepting defeat, which is a part of it.
Kyle Vamvouris: Right.
Brian Smith Jr: But the move the fail fast and then move on. Like, did you really evaluate enough on what you were supposed to do? And so, I'm not saying you have to dwell in it, but take some time. But I have [ Inaudible20:10] failed. I have, I could tell you right now, like my success I'm having in my job right now, well not right now I'm kind of in a slump. But up until this point was because I got my butt kicked at the last two companies. Like straight up that's the reality.
Kyle Vamvouris: And was there something specific that you learned from getting your butt kick that helped you? Like how did you actually identify, this is a question and this is, I think a good question for people is sometimes when you're failing, fast, slow or irrelevant, you're so caught up in the things, just falling around you and things, not falling is what place specifically where a lot of people at least in my observation, have trouble actually getting the takeaway.
Brian Smith Jr: Yeah.
Kyle Vamvouris: Do you struggle with that? Is that a conscious thing? Or do you think that you just sort of absorb it and then it becomes a part of you?
Brian Smith Jr: That's a really good question. I would like to say no, like when everything's crashing down, I'm perfect. I embrace it. I think what I would say to speak to that is you got to have a lot of internal reflection and the reason why you have to have that is because, and this comes into the importance of community, having a coach, having a mentor, that coach and mentor isn't any good, unless you could tell them what you need.
Kyle Vamvouris: Yes. You need to self-awareness.
Brian Smith Jr: Yeah. Like you got to be able to internalize like what you're going through in order to communicate to somebody that's close to you of what you need or what to teach you or even show you. Like, I don't know if I came to glimpse what the problem was, you know, wherever I failed, I don't know if I figured that out more than talking to someone within my community about it. And they showed me.
Kyle Vamvouris: Yes. You foundundefined community.
Brian Smith Jr: Yeah. Like they didn't tell me like, oh, this is what you did wrong. It was like, "Hey Brian, have you thought about this?" And then it sent me down a rabbit hole. And I started thinking about this. I'm just like, eventually I got to a point was like, ah, I was swinging big. And the problem with swinging big is you fail really hard when it doesn't work. Like there's a reason why people criticize LeBron James for missing a final game buzzer than somebody like, I don't know, Kyle Kuzma. LeBron's always swinging big. And so when he misses, it's really bad. So, I hope that's a good analogy.
Kyle Vamvouris: No. Yeah. It definitely makes sense. I mean the mentorship thing is really interesting to me, because everybody talks about the importance of having a mentor. It sounds like communities is big for you, but also have you had mentors for a long time or how did you go about finding your mentors?
Brian Smith Jr: I'm terrible at this, honestly. Here's why. It's a gift and a curse. I love community, so the minute I find somebody that's like, yeah, I'll mentor you. It's like, yes, but I don't ever take the time to really see like, are you really the best mentor for me? So, in my personal life, there's always been mentors around me. That looked different than me. They have a different background than me. They're in different careers than me. So, yes, I've always in my personal life for some reason in my career, whether it was because I acknowledged that the sales realm, when I first started might have been a lone wolf type thing. I'd never reached out to anyone. Recently, I mean, candidly, I just got my mentor after doing this for like five years.
Kyle Vamvouris: You wish you did that earlier?
Brian Smith Jr: That is such a good question. I want to make sure I answer it honestly. That's tough because the heartache is what got me here. I wish I would have done it earlier from the aspect of having the blueprint of the way success is in the sales game and your career. I wish I would've had that person earlier for the blueprint, not to save me from the failure. If that makes sense.
Kyle Vamvouris: No, that makes perfect sense.
Brian Smith Jr: Yeah, for sure.
Kyle Vamvouris: It's an interesting thing because you're right. You learn so much from the downfalls. And the question is, is really, if you have a mentor early on as a prevent downfalls and I'm not sure if it does, it might, you know, I don't actually have an opinion on that. It definitely gives you guidance. It probably helps you through those times of immense failure, but here's the thing. And this is something that I think is really an interesting maybe thought experiment. But a lot of times when people have incredible failure, they don't do what you do, which is pick themselves back up, dust them off and start swinging for the fences again. A lot of times that big failure that I swung that one time and I gave it my all, and I fell flat on my face. That either becomes the reason why they don't swing big ever again, or it's the reason why they, I'm trying to think of like the most polite way of saying this. It becomes a reason why they're not willing to ever put themselves out there period. And they hold that within. That is the key difference between I think you and then somebody who falls into the camp that I just described. A mentor probably would have helped that person because the confidence wouldn't be shattered. That makes sense?
Brian Smith Jr: Yeah. And I did a post a while back about learning about imposter syndrome. So, I went through that bad, right. The guy who like big shot Bob who had done some little cool things, haven't really done anything big. Like I wasn't a big shot Bob anymore. I've been technically fired, let go from two jobs. And the key again goes back to right. Everybody's painting this picture of the perfect career on LinkedIn. I was doing the opposite because I knew I needed help. That's one thing I'm not afraid to admitting. It's hard for me to ask for help. It's not hard for me to admit that like I'm struggling. That makes sense?
Kyle Vamvouris: Yeah. undefined
Brian Smith Jr: And I don't know if that comes from just my upbringing or what but I'll tell you some of the best leaders have drawn to that. Because some of the best leaders want people that are coachable, that are teachable and that are willing to learn from their mistakes. So, when that was happening to me, I don't know how it happened, but a lot of people like Scott Leese, Becc Holland. I really don't know how it happened to this day, but they like kind of came around me. And perfect example, like I was ready to quit sales. Again, like you said, most people just don't swing big anymore. I was that person for a little bit. I was done. Like, I was like, I don't want to do this anymore. This is hard. This is miserable. I'm not making the money that everybody else seems to be making that's for sure. It doesn't look like it. And maybe that's my fault.
I don't know. Like, but Becc Holland asked me to jump on the Flip the script tour with her out of nowhere. And you know, that leg from Atlanta to Denver being around those salespeople that were still passionate about it, like wanting to help other salespeople, it just reignited that fire for me, that community aspect. Right? Like that's what I got for that week. Like left my wife, my toddler kid and got on a freaking bus that like go on this North American tour. And I share that because you know of what you said, like most people bow out. It's okay to process those things like, is this really what I'm supposed to be doing? But the correct thing to do is like reach into that network, reach it through that community. They'll tell you for sure. And what they told me was, Becc, the PG version was basically, "I dare you to get out of sales. Like watch what I do if you get out of sales" you know,the same thing, was just like, no, like you belong here. You know, Scott Barker was another guy, was like, "No, we need you" So, those people give you that confidence, that swagger back. And so, that's why I stepped back up to the plate. You know, when other people tell you they're believing in you, it gives you a reason to keep fighting.
Kyle Vamvouris: Right. But you needed to be vulnerable to allow that experience to happen.
Brian Smith Jr: It would have never happened if I wasn't vulnerable. I could have kept my chest poked out and lived off the past success. But none of that would have happened.
Kyle Vamvouris: Yeah. And what's a unique element to this. And we haven't even got into is the kid, you have a young kid and I have two kids myself. So, I understand the trying to balance that work and being in that grind, especially in a career, a sales career where it's very stressful and having to manage not only trying to do an incredible job at work, but also when you get home. And I imagine that's probably a big motivator for you, right?
Brian Smith Jr: Yeah. You know, the scary thing is it's embarrassing to say, but I was so consumed in succeeding in my job that at home was, I wasn't even using at home as a factor at one point. I was so burnt out that I, like at home wasn't even a motivating factor to succeed. And that might've contributed to the [ Inaudible30:59] for success, right? Now every call I get on in my mind is, this is how I feed my family. And at the end of the day, this is a business transaction. You need to use me as best as you can, to make sure you are successful in your role in the same way I need to use you so that I'm successful in my role. And that's how I started approaching things. And a community guy, obviously, like I love people. I'm a community guy. So, sometimes in the sales process, I tend to, what's the word? I tend to become apologetic. And I think being apologetic makes you subjective. And this role, you need to be very objective, very objective, right? If this works great, if not, no hard feelings. Right?
Brian Smith Jr: So, lately the family and maybe... My wife's pregnant now, and we're expecting number two in January. So.
Kyle Vamvouris: Congrats.
Brian Smith Jr: Thanks. The baby. That's why it's kicked in now, because I'm like, okay, like [Inaudible32:04] you know just, I can handle it, but now it's like it's a family of four.
Kyle Vamvouris: Yeah.
Brian Smith Jr: Might be a little different.
Kyle Vamvouris: Yeah. It might be a little different. I can tell you, it's very different.
Brian Smith Jr: I'm getting ready for that man. But all is good.
Kyle Vamvouris: Yeah, that's phenomenal. That's great. Yeah. I think kids have a very unique impact. And you said it best earlier where you were like, I had a family, I can't run, you know, it's so much, there's almost like a freedom and just being able to shrug it off and just do something else completely different where their risks are really low. When you have people who rely on you, you don't have that option. You don't have that rip cord that you can pull, you know?
Brian Smith Jr: Right, right.
Kyle Vamvouris: I think that's a, that's powerful. So, I'm curious. The, probably the last thing I really wanted to talk to you about was this early adopter stuff seemed like an area that is repeated itself, a hopping on LinkedIn when you did and seemed like way earlier than most people were. Tell me what motivated that.
Brian Smith Jr: What motivated being an early adopter? That's a good question. You know, there's a couple of things come to mind. I'm thinking about all the people that may listen to this. Because I'm a big proponent of when you share knowledge, make sure you give context. Because context is key.
Kyle Vamvouris: Totally.
Brian Smith Jr: I think its kind of natural for me to be the rebel. So, some of it's just like intuition. The second part is I'm a big, like I watch more than I speak typically, very much aware of what's happening. And I'll tell you, in 2000, its 2020, so 2016, when I was searching for help in my role, because it felt like a lone wolf. I couldn't find any content on what it was like to be an SDR. I'm not kidding. My boss said, "Why don't you start doing it?" And this is an old school boss who was knocking door to door. She's like, "If, you know, if you don't find it, why don't you start writing about it?" I was like, "That's the dumbest thing I ever heard of my entire life" My job is to, you know, sell and hit this quota. She kept telling me to do. And I was like, no, no. Finally, I decided to try and do it. I was like, let me just research to see if there's anybody out there that is doing this already.
In comes Morgan J Ingram. He had just started the SDR Chronicles. I was like, "Oh wow. This guy has got some good stuff. He's my age in the same type of role as me also" And I pay attention to patterns. This is what made me successful in sales. And what I always noticed from that moment on, I reached out to Morgan, him and I have been friends since. One thing he did in any of the people who are influencers in our industry, they're always early adopters. I can tell you right now, like Morgan and I were talking about video and voice memo two years ago. Now, what he's great at, is he's full on like, he's like early, early adopter. Like I'm not that brave, just to be honest, like I'm a guy like, hey, you jumped in first, I'm going to be the next one, but for the next four. But like, I got to see you go first. Morgan's like, it's okay.
Like, I'll go over the top of the Hill when we're in war, everybody will shoot at me and then I'll come back and let you all know that, hey, they're still over there. Like, that's the type of person he is. I would have figured out a strategy. Like, okay. They shot at Morgan when he went to the top of the Hill, that means they're right. I'm probably going to do this. Right. So, I think watching from people who are having success and then making it your own, I think | 5,842 |
MENAbytes Live
MENAbytes
How employees of UAE Tech Startups rate them as employers
By Zubair Naeem Paracha
Posted on July 12, 2017 - Like & Follow Us Follow @MENAbytes
Seven out of the ten best places to work for in 2016 were technology companies; most of which did not even exist fifteen years ago. These are not the only ones, many tech startups in Silicon Valley have built the reputation of being employer of choice. We don't really have similar rankings for this region. There is Great Place to Work that ranks best places to work for in UAE and some other countries from the region but their approach is not even close to employees' choice rankings. There's not much data available anyway when it comes to performance of startups as employers.
But many of regional startups have received reviews on their Glassdoor pages. We've tried to pull some of those reviews and ratings together to give you an idea about how employees of these startups rate<|fim_middle|>, the management itself keep on saying for over 3 years that "we will not hesitate when it comes to firing people"!! how that will affect the employees loyalty."
"They (the upper management) spent tens of thousands on their trip to Lebanon to set some sort of a management camp so they can have a meeting to discuss the cost reduction plan."
"The HR department is one of the worst i've ever seen. Not professional at all, and not taking the employees' sides. They keep promising without delivering, and if you feel wronged they'll never help you."
Fetchr
Fetchr is one of the most promising startups to come out from the region. Founded by Idriss Al Rifai & Joy Ajlouny in 2012, the Dubai-based startup has already expanded into many other regional markets and continues to grow. It happens to be one of the best funded regional startup as well.
Fetchr has an overall rating of 3.6 out of 5 from 15 reviews it has received on Glassdoor. Only 68% of these reviewers suggest that they're likely to recommend Fetchr to their friends. Their rating trends below suggest that employees are extremely dissatisfied with the work/life balance at the company.
Out of the 15 total reviews, 9 are from Fetchr's employees in UAE with an overall rating of 3.4 out of 5 which is slightly lower than overall rating of 3.6 out of 5 from all Fetchr employees.
Employees have expressed great learning environment as one of the biggest pros of working at Fetchr and location of the company's offices as a con.
Quotes from 4 & 5 Star Reviews"Idriss Al Rifai is a great mentor, with plenty to learn from."
"Performance based culture with clear goals / objectives."
"Joy and Omar are very motivational, they always motivate their employee."
"Great place to work when I started they promised me that I would grow with the company I worked really hard and spent many nights in the office until late but it paid of I was promoted. They said if I took ownership and worked hard it would pay off and it did."
"The culture does not promote taking initiative. (specifically the 1 co-founder)."
"There are many people who don't work hard and hold the company back. It makes it hard for the ones who do work hard to see them slacking off. They complain that they get reprimanded but the truth is they ruin for the rest of us who do work hard and want fetchr to succeed."
"Being shouted at is the norm. Guys beware , the co-founder gets sadistic pleasure in humiliating employees."
"Treat employees as slaves."
"Cant sustain a month even if you are not favor to your managers."
Namshi is known as a startup which has achieved great things and numbers without making much noise. They've quietly become leading fashion ecommerce retailer of the region and now have become a part of Alabbar's business empire after he acquired 51% stake in the company.
With total of 13 reviews, Namshi's overall rating on Glassdoor is 3.3 out of 5. Only 63% of its employee are likely to recommend the startup to a friend as an employer. The trends below reflect that employees at Namshi are not very happy about their compensation and benefits and the senior management.
Work/Life Balance: 3 .1
Apart from UAE, Namshi has offices in India as well. But the rating doesn't really change as its UAE employees (only) also have rated it as 3.3 out of 5 in 7 reviews.
Discussing the pros and cons of working at Namshi, employees have mostly complained about the compensation and benefits and praised the working environment and culture.
"Great Work Atmosphere,Facilities & you can learn a lot.
"The management knows how to appreciate the work of the people who deserves it, working is enjoyable and at the same time a learning experience."
"Friendly and helpful colleagues, founders and managers."
"Flexible working hours."
"Flat structure."
"Racists higher management , discrimination based on ethnicity , rude staff , very unprofessional , long hours , cuts pay for even 10 mins delay , no leaves allowed even in case of emergency , staff has no knowledge of work and keeps delegating , senior staff mixed personal and professional life . The dress code of the company is a bit too casual , Hr has no knowledge of hr duties."
"Salary is low , your salary can increase from 25%-50% on average if you move to "Any" other E-commerce , More than 20 of the best Employees moved to the competition already in 2016 alone., i don't want to mention over time rates , it's a joke."
"There's No Reward system , people who work harder are the same as people who are just getting by . they have something called rock star of the month you basically get colored certificate and couple of movie tickets that's it , so you get excited after getting it for the first time only , if you get it again it's like "OK" thanks ^^ ."
"There is this weird situation where some of the employees have Namshi visa ,and others have visa on outsource company , so you get this situation where you have colleague sitting next to you have better salary , policies etc."
"They are very Cheap if anything not working properly like your chair , keyboard , mouse or your 3 years old Laptop breaks forget about replacement or getting things fixed properly , you are stuck with it."
Having seen these reviews by employees of different tech startups in UAE, its obvious that most of these startups have a lot of room to improve. They could learn a thing or two from Bayt.com about how they've been able to build a great organization for their employees.
Zubair Naeem Paracha
Founder at MENAbytes
A tech and startup enthusiast based in Lahore, Pakistan. Zubair apart from leading MENAbytes is also building Qraar, a career discovery and development platform for millennials in MENA. He can be reached on Linkedin, Twitter or zubair [at] menabytes [dot] com.
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MENAbytes covers tech and digital media stories from Middle East North Africa
We are trying to bring you all the latest happenings from startups to influencers, everything in tech and digital media from the region.
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Copyright © 2017 MENABytes | them as employers. We have made sure that each of these startups have atleast ten reviews. You may argue that its too small of a sample size to reflect performance of these startups as employers but that's all we have right now.
Overall Rating: 3.6 out of 5
UAE Rating: 4.3 out of 5
Careem is undoubtedly the hottest startup in the region right now which happens to be the first and only unicorn as well from MENA. They've been hiring for more than fifty positions across their offices all around the region and for the engineering office they've open in Germany as well.
As of now, Careem has total of 12 reviews on Glassdoor which give company an overall rating of 3.6 out of 5 and 89% of these employees are likely to recommend the company to a friend. The breakdown of all these 12 reviews is as follow:
Culture & Values: 4.1
Work/Life Balance: 3.2
Senior Management: 3.4
Comp & Benefits: 3.1
Career Opportunities: 3.6
The overall rating of 3.6 gets even worse if we limit it to reviews of full-time employees. Those 8 reviews rate Careem as 3.3 out of 5. However the rating improves significantly if we filter the reviews by Careem's UAE office(s) only. The 4 reviews rate Careem as 4.3 out of 5.
The reviews highlight culture and environment as biggest pros of working at the company and discrepancies in salaries, absence of work-life balance and lack of processes as cons.
Quotes from a 5-Star Review:
"Great Leadership at the top. They sit and mingle with their staff."
"Great Culture. Truly Multi Cultural."
"Great Fun. Great Office."
"Some very smart people."
"Bureaucratic, political minefield where egos and top management pursue their personal interests at all costs."
"The business is a disaster and it's a CHEAP company – money is wasted in ineffective campaigns (e.g. A/B testing no existent, data was not available nor really consulted if it was, etc) yet costs were cut on things like napkins and (horrible, usually out of service) coffee in the office, or post-its became more scarce."
"They migrated the company FROM Gmail TO Outlook #truestory – good example of the type of mentality running the company."
"The technology is super broken – data architecture is a disaster so you cannot pull data you need, regular platform outrages etc"
Bayt.com is one of the oldest 'startups' from the region that is still going very strong. Started by Rabea Ataya, Dan Farha, Akram Assaf, Mona Ataya in 2000, the startup was profitable from second year of its operations and generates tens of millions of dollars in revenue every year.
It has total of 24 reviews on Glassdoor with an overall rating of 4.2 out of 5 which is the best among tech startups of the region that have atleast 10 reviews. The likelihood of these reviewers for recommending Bayt.com as an employer to their friends is 80%. The rating trends below reflect that people are most satisfied with Culture & Values of the company rating it 4.8 out of 5.
Work/Life Balance :4.4
Career Opportunities :4.3
Only 8 of these 24 reviews are from UAE but even with these 8 reviews, the rating by UAE employees is almost the same at 4.3 out of 5. The best part of these reviews is that Rabea Ataya who is the CEO of Bayt.com has 100% approval rating so all these employees who have reviewed Bayt.com as an employer have shown great confidence in their CEO.
Even though most of the reviews don't highlight any cons of the company but those who have shared the cons have complained about lack of growth and low salaries. Great work environment and work/life balance were highlighted as pros of working at Bayt.com by the reviewers.
Quotes from 4 & 5 Star Reviews:
"High level of learning and competition"
"Bonuses on quarterly and yearly bases."
"Flexible working environment."
"Overtime and achievement celebrations."
"A company with a great corporate culture. It felt like a family! Rabea, our CEO was so approachable, something which is a rarity in any other large organization.
We would celebrate 'fiestas' ever quarter where sales and non-sales achievers were publicly recognized. Regular monthly brownbag session are held, where speakers from all walks of life are invited – a great opportunity for learning.
Very open culture – if you have a great idea, pitch it to the management and they will give it a good listen."
"Bad work environment, micro-management, salaries below the market range."
"Leadership in the office is lacking and management is sitting ducks."
"Lebanese dominated management (arab mentality / local feel still there."
"Salaries are below average and commission is not very motivating."
"High turn over and all the good ambitious stars leave."
Souq.com
The largest ecommerce website of the region, Souq.com was recently acquired by Amazon for $580 million. Co-founded by Syrian entrepreneur Ronaldo Mouchawar in 2005, the website has more than 23 million visitors every month.
Souq.com has total of 71 reviews on Glassdoor with an overall rating of 3.3 out of 5. Only 65% of Souq.com's employee are likely to recommend it to a friend as an employer according to these reviews. The breakdown of these ratings below reflect senior management as a problem area with rating of 2.6.
The overall rating from 18 reviews of UAE employees is 3.9 out of 5 which is a great improvement from 3.3-rating by Souq.com employees all around the region and beyond.
Sharing pros and cons of the company, the employees have highlighted good working environment as a pro and top management and weak HR department as cons.
Quotes from 4 & 5 Star Reviews
"Attractive Environment and Having a Very Good Experience form the number of daily transactions and heavy requests and huge scale inside SOUQ + you got both experience in legacy Monolithic application that contains very thing and building micro-services architecture and They don't mind what the exact technology you use if achieve the performance.
"Very Good Salary and Flexible Working Hours."
"Great place to start and build a career. I can't imagine comparing the experience you get at SOUQ.COM compared to industry. If you're willing to work hard, the sky is the limit."
"Souq is such an amazing place to work at, people are friendly, young, and very much a dynamic environment. you can learn a lot and develop in your career."
"They still have a startup merit in their approach to problems. The CEO is great entrepreneur and you will learn alot if you work directly with him."
"A very political environment that will prevent you from being creative at all."
"It's the least professional company I ever worked with, there aren't clear laws for much, HR can determine your fate""No proper time for lunch break. They will make sign documents saying your not performing well in order for them not to pay 3-months if ever they'll terminate u. They'll terminating employee every week. Giving warning every other day. NO matter how long you're working in the company."
"The company is managed by investors, they're only thinking about exiting with an IPO in a couple of years, so they dont care about building anything sustainable."
"Bad career development, unorganized team structures, double employee's work for unclear vision, no overtime pay & a lot of overtime work."
"Every aspect of management is absent | 1,616 |
I like to set aside an hour or two every day for reading and writing. Throughout the winter months, things were going great. I scheduled time to research and write blog posts, I participated in several book clubs, and I was able to maintain a digital journal. But in early March, I moved 1,000 miles away and took on new work and established new routines — and completely abandoned my good habits.
I think all writers struggle with this at some point. Even when you feel like you're bursting with things to say, it can be hard to find the grit<|fim_middle|> resonated with me. When I am overwhelmed by my own thoughts, writing is the one thing that helps me find solid ground again.
Every article I found listed "make writing a priority," but this one lists it twice — and then follows up with the very important advice to write down why you want to write daily. Clarifying the motivation for a goal makes it much easier to stick with it on the tough days.
I do not have ADHD, but I think the advice in this article can be applied to anyone who has struggled to focus on a writing project. I like to do some of my weekly writing at the local library or coffee shop, so I especially love the idea of having a dedicated writing bag with all of my gear together and organized and ready to go. That would eliminate one of the biggest mental hurdles keeping me from getting out the door.
My favorite advice from this article is to create a writing plan. As I said before, I stopped writing because my life got unusually busy, but I also stopped writing because I didn't like the topic themes I had chosen for March or April. I knew I didn't like the themes when I created my annual blogging calendar in December, but I hoped the issue would solve itself. (Does that ever happen?) To avoid that problem in the future, I now have a monthly reminder to look at upcoming themes and change them if they no longer appeal to me. Knowing what I want to write (and when) eliminates another huge mental hurdle. | and determination to sit down and write on a regular basis.
If you're in the same boat, I encourage you to check out the articles below. They inspired me to get back in the saddle, and I hope they will do the same for you.
How does a daily writing habit make a difference? "Writing clarifies your thinking." The article lists several other reasons, but that one that strongly | 80 |
South Africa's beaches span 4 areas, each with its own personality.
Amidst<|fim_middle|> the world. | South Africa's natural wonders are a series of beaches with striking turquoise waters and sparkling white sandy shores. The beaches span 4 distinct areas, each with its own personality.
South Africa is known for its great game reserves and the Big 5 -- the buffalo, elephant, lion, leopard and rhino. But amidst the natural land-locked wonders are a series of beaches with striking turquoise waters and sparkling white sandy shores.
The KwaZulu-Natal Coast beckons visitors with nice weather and miles of sandy shores. Many beaches in the area boast 320 days of sunshine each year.
Durban is the main hub of activity in KwaZulu-Natal with the best amenities for a beach vacation. South Beach is the place to be along Durban's Golden Mile, with resorts and sunbathing on the sandy golden shores. New Beach is playing host to football fanatics as one of the official hosts of Fan Fest for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. If you can't score tickets to the event, take in a match on the big screen with thousands of other revelers.
South Africa is known for its amazing safari encounters with the Big 5, but the uShaka Marine World offers a different wildlife experience. This park consists of Sea World, an aquarium filled with dolphins, seals, penguins and fish, as well as water rides at Wet 'n Wild and a large beach area with activities including jet-skiing, paddle boats and beach rugby.
Over on KwaZulu-Natal's south coast, Margate is a great family beach with soft golden sand lined with coconut palm trees. The gentle surf is ideal for swimming and boogie-boarding and kids will love the nearby water park and coves, perfect for a rock pool treasure hunt.
The beaches on the Eastern Cape range from the family-friendly surf spots around Port Elizabeth to the craggy Wild Coast. Located in Algoa Bay along Port Elizabeth's Sunshine Coast, Hobie Beach has prime real estate in South Africa's water-sports capital. The water is clear, calm and warm, ideal for swimming, but also for boardsailing, kite-surfing, windsurfing and jet-skiing. There's adventure underwater as well with shipwrecks and coral reefs teeming with fish. The fun doesn't end on the sand -- the nearby Boardwalk Casino and Entertainment World is a complex of hotels, restaurants and gaming venues.
Serious surfers flock to Jeffreys Bay for first-rate surfing. The best waves roll in between June and August and the area is most crowded during the on-site Billabong Pro world surfing championship every July.
The Wild Coast is a series of secluded beaches bordered by milkwood trees. Mdumbe Beach is an unspoiled gem near Coffee Bay that has great views. The beach is quiet and often empty save some wandering cows that may pass by the surfers on the beach. The Coffee Shack hostel in Coffee Bay is a friendly spot to spend the night when exploring the area.
The Cape Peninsula juts out into the Atlantic Ocean on the far southwestern reaches of South Africa. The capital, Cape Town, is part of this peninsula as are a number of beaches popular with locals and tourists. Cape Town's most popular beach is the swanky stretch of sand at Clifton Beach. This area is actually divided by large granite boulders into 4 distinct beach areas. The most popular is 4th beach where families play in the sand and beautiful sunbathers doze in rented chaise lounges. Head to 1st beach to join the athletic crew for a game of volleyball.
Camps Bay Beach in Cape Town is South Africa's version of St. Tropez with beautiful people frolicking on the manicured seashore. The water is a bit cold for swimming, but the tiny swimsuits on parade are more for show than water sports. Competing for attention with the sun-drenched sunbathers are the astonishing views of the mountains at Lion's Head and the 12 Apostles.
Located in Simon's Town, just over the mountains from Cape Town, Boulders Beach is easily recognized by the large granite boulders that create beachside nooks and tide pools. But the real draw to this beach is the colony of jackass penguins. These African penguins earned their unusual nickname because they make braying sounds similar to those of a donkey.
It's a challenge to visit Grotto Beach in Hermanus between May and November and not see a whale in the waters of Walker Bay. This quiet and unspoiled beach hosts Southern Right whales who visit in the summer and early fall to play, mate and have babies. And the best part is that visitors can take this in without a trip out to sea as this area is said to have the best land-based whale watching in the world.
Visitors can spot Muizenberg Beach from a distance thanks to the brightly colored row of beach huts lining the shore. Muizenberg has the warmest water and the longest break in the Cape peninsula. The town became a popular seaside getaway in the 1800s. Today, there's a wide range of no-frills hotels and cozy inns that cater to a variety of tourists from multigeneration families to hip young surfers.
The Garden Route lies between Cape Town and Port Elizabeth on the southern Cape coast. A great starting point for a visit to the area is Plettenberg Bay, a popular holiday spot with great beaches at Robberg and Lookout. Beachgoers play in the water and relax on the beach enjoying spectacular views of the Outeniqua and Tsitsikamma mountains.
About 20 miles from Plettenberg is Noetzie Beach, a secluded getaway that is accessible by a gravel road and a steep climb down a flight of cliff-side steps. The Knysna Castles are a trio of castles that were built on the beach in the 1930s. Today adventurous travelers may stay at 2 of the castles and enjoy luxe rustic accommodations in a turret high above the sea.
At the northwest tip of South Africa's Cape Peninsula lies the swanky coastal gem Clifton Beach, a haven for international hipsters and jet-setters.
Life's a beach in Morocco, and we'll show you where to live it up.
See the weirdest spa treatments in | 1,302 |
1937 Studebaker Dictator Coupe - The NB Center Collection
SKU: NBC06
MAKER: Studebaker
COLOR: Grapetone Maroon
MEASURE: 120mm or 4 ¾ inch
DECADE: 30
Guaranteed safe checkout Power by stripe Shopify secure Aes 256bit Paypal Visa Mastercard Discover network American express Mcafee secure
Studeb<|fim_middle|>s in the 1969 Trans Am series. The bodywork was stripped and acid dipped then fitted...
B06B 1969 Ford Mustang Boss 302 Trans-Am - Parnelli Jones | aker entered the automotive business in 1902 with an electric vehicle designed by Thomas Alva Edison and in 1904 with gasoline vehicles, all sold under the name 'Studebaker Automobile Company.' Over the next 3 decades, the company established an enviable reputation for quality and reliability, but the early thirties saw Studebaker in troubled times. The Pierce Arrow Motor Company that had been purchased some years before was draining all the money. The Rockne brand, created in 1932 in an attempt to enter the low price segment, was a huge loss, while the purchase of White Truck Company put a huge dent in Studebaker capital. In 1933 the Company was placed into receivership. Scraping together the last funds available, a large advertising campaign was launched, explaining how things were going and asking for loyalty from old customers. "Studebaker carries on" was the title of this campaign, and literally saved the company. Pierce Arrow was sold for one million dollars, the Rockne division was closed, and the White stock was sold off. With fresh money, and complete redesign of all models, the business took off. The model lines were just two, the economical Dictator six and the more upscale President eight.
For 1936 the engine was a powerful 218 cubic inches six cylinder that could generate 90 horsepower. The styling was very pleasant, with many art deco touches both in the interior and exterior. Sales were very good, with almost 100,000 cars sold, almost double in comparison with the previous year. 1937 saw a heavy facelift on the front end, with a one-piece hood that opened from the firewall . The body was virtually unchanged, save for some added features and options, like the 18 gallon fuel tank, dual defroster on the windshield, rotary door latches with safety catches, hill holder and independent front suspension. Sales were very good for the first nine months of the model year, but fell dramatically in the last part of 1937, due to a sudden strong economic recession. For 1938 sales fell to only 53,000 units, with a loss of 1.7 millions of dollars. The name Dictator had been introduced in 1927, meaning that the car would "dictate the standard for their class" on how a car should be built. The name, however, would take on a new meaning when the political situation in Europe deteriorated in the late 1930s, Studebaker decided to drop the Dictator name. The 1938 Dictator equivalents would be called 'Commander' models. In 1939, Studebaker introduced the Champion as the new budget model, and it would save the company from another bankruptcy.
This 1/43 model is an exact replica of the car at the NB Center, Allentown, USA.
1942 Desoto Deluxe 4-Door Sedan - The NB Center Collection
The history of DeSoto began in 1926, when Walter P. Chrysler, motivated to expand his Chrysler Corporation into a full-line auto company, made a bid to buy the Dodge Brothers organization. This would not only give him a lower-medium priced...
1946 Pontiac Torpedo
"A car for every purse and purpose." That was how Alfred P. Sloane. General Motors President and eventual CEO described the pricing structure of General Motors brands beginning in the 1920's. Pontiac was a value brand, originally slotted just above...
B06B 1969 Ford Mustang Boss 302 Trans-Am - George Follmer
BODY TYPE: Racing Car
Ford provided Shelby American Racing and Bud Moore Engineering with factory developed lightweight cars, engines and suspension parts and cash to run the fastback Mustang | 819 |
Hotel Klein is an exceptional work, which offers sole possibility due to its historical environment to joint history with a luxury experience from the stay in the newly reconstructed castle.
Wellness & spa hotel Sidonie offers luxurious accommodation in total eleven double rooms and suites providing sufficient space for a comfortable stay. The so called "sub-castle" is a heart of the whole resort and it offers also a wide spectrum of services provided within the wellness and spa or sauna world, there is an in-door swimming pool as well.
Sport & family hotel Josef will be<|fim_middle|> The hotel will be finished in the second half of the year 2017.
Albert brewery is a castle brewery with up-to-date accommodation for smaller as well as higher groups of guests and styled alehouse. Bear of the top quality is brewed up here for consumption in all our units. | the most suitable place for an active relaxation for whole families indeed. | 13 |
Delaware IP Law Blog
<|fim_middle|> Robinson rules on summary judgment motions and motions to exclude
Delaware IP Law Blog, Website Powered by WordPress.com. | Judge Andrews dismisses direct infringement claims in part, finds induced infringement claim survives motion to dismiss
Posted byYoung Conaway Staff April 17, 2014 Posted inRichard G. Andrews
In Andrulis Pharmaceuticals Corp. v. Celgene Corporation, C.A. No. 13-1644-RGA (D. Del. Apr. 10, 2014), Judge Richard G. Andrews considered defendant's motion to dismiss plaintiff's direct and induced infringement claims for failure to state a claim. As to direct infringement, plaintiff alleged both "undivided" direct infringement and joint infringement. Id. at 1.
Judge Andrews dismissed plaintiff's undivided direct infringement claim, which alleged that plaintiff itself directly "administers the patented method." Id. at 1-2. Plaintiff argued that dismissal was inappropriate because the pleading "complies with Form 18." Judge Andrews explained, however, that compliance with Form 18 is "not limited to whether the form was simply parroted." Id. Rather, Judge Andrews found that "notice and facial plausibility," were required, which were both found to be lacking with respect to the undivided direct infringement claim. Id. Additionally, in response to plaintiff's argument that "dismissal would require construing the claims, which is inappropriate at the pleadings phase," Judge Andrews acknowledged in a footnote that "I am always hesitant to engage in claim construction without a Markman hearing." Id. at 2 n.1. In this case, however, Judge Andrews found occasion to note that "the claim at issue is a method claim that cannot possibly be read to make direct infringers out of anyone other than the medical personnel who treat patients." Id.
Judge Andrews next considered plaintiff's joint direct infringement claim, which alleged that "physicians administer the patented method under [defendant's] direction and control." Id. at 2. Finding these claims to survive the motion to dismiss, Judge Andrews explained that plaintiff "has pled more than enough factual allegations describing the relationship between prescribing doctors and Celgene" that would plausibly support the inference that defendant "direct or controls" the "doctors' performance of the claimed method." Id. at 3.
Judge Andrews also found plaintiff's induced infringement claim to survive the motion to dismiss. Id. at 3-4. Defendant argued that "disseminating publications about an unapproved use of a product does not serve as evidence of intent that the product be used for that unapproved use because the FDA guidelines allow for dissemination of these materials." Id. Judge Andrews found, however, that "[j]ust because the FDA labels materials as 'non-promotional' does not mean that doctors do not view these materials as promoting off-label uses." Id. at 4. Accordingly, as Judge Andrews explained, "[t]he fact that [defendant] was aware of the patent and disseminated materials which it knew might be viewed as promoting that use is sufficient at this stage." Id.
Andrulis Pharmaceuticals Corp. v. Celgene Corporation, C.A. No. 13-1644-RGA (D. Del. Apr. 10, 2014)
Judge Stark grants motion to transfer to the Northern District of California.
Judge | 677 |
UK, American Breweries Show How The Craft Beer Industry Should Be Handling Trademark Issues
Funniest/Most<|fim_middle|>6th - 22nd
This Week In Techdirt History: June 9th - 15th
Anonymous Coward, 2 Jun 2019 @ 8:45pm
You'd think that given how pure, how righteous the cause of intellectual property is, the industries in question wouldn't have to try and get away with so much. Seriously, installing pro-copyright judges, plagiarizing reports, using Prenda Law...
It's almost like the basis of IP was built on a foundation of raw sewage and dog shit!
[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
5.1 The Third Circuit Joins The Ninth In Excluding E-Commerce Platforms From Section 230's Protection
5.1 The FTC And Facebook: Why The $5 Billion Fine Is Both Too Little And Too Much
The Grand Unified Theory On The Economics Of Free | Insightful Comments Of The Week At Techdirt
This Week In Techdirt History: May 26th - June 1st
from the twas-ever-thus dept
Sat, Jun 1st 2019 12:00pm — Leigh Beadon
Five Years Ago
This week in 2014, there was a back-and-forth between Ed Snowden and the NSA, starting with the former explaining in an interview how he tried to raise concerns internally through the "proper channels". James Clapper responded by publishing an email from Snowden that was not about his concerns as counterevidence, but Snowden insisted that was not the only email and, more importantly, explained why that's missing the point anyway.
Meanwhile, one former official was excoriating Snowden for making other countries angry, Bruce Schneier was suggesting that the leaks actually help with the cracking of terrorist encryption, the White House itself accidentally revealed the identity of a top CIA spy in Afghanistan and... the House of Representatives happily reauthorized intelligence community funding with no new oversight, whistleblower protections, or anything else.
This week in 2009, a Canadian nonprofit released a deceptive report calling for stronger copyright laws that turned out to be largely plagiarized, eventually leading to three reports being recalled. The BSA would have been on their side though I'm sure, since it was also painting a grim picture of Canadian piracy based mostly on hunches. In Sweden, the judge who was to determine whether the original judge in the Pirate Bay trial was biased was himself removed for bias — and this wasn't even the last twist of the week, as Sweden's cultural minister then apparently fell afoul of local laws about commenting on ongoing litigation by saying she supported the original ruling. Meanwhile, the EFF was trying to counter the RIAA's propaganda in schools, the CEO of Sony Pictures was standing by his belief that there's nothing good about the internet at all, and a guy amusingly sued Guinness when it made him the world record holder for most lawsuits filed.
Fifteen Years Ago
This week in 2004, the RIAA was adding another sympathetic and apparently innocent target to the list of people it harassed for money with legal threats, while it was also taking a cue from the MPAA and demanding a broadcast flag for digital radio. Clear Channel bought up a patent on selling instant recordings of live shows and started shaking down bands, while record labels were betting it all on ringtones while jacking up the price (great plan). There were, of course, plenty of legal download sites around by now. Over 100 in fact. Some might say too many.
We also heard one of the earliest rumblings of an innovation that today seems... well, not exactly mundane, because I personally still find Google Street View to be pretty incredible, but much more common than it did in 2004, when it was hard to envision it as more than a specialty product for certain industries: a company planning to drive around in a camera-laden van and map everything with photos.
Filed Under: history, look back
This Week In Techdirt History: July 7th - 13th
This Week In Techdirt History: June 30th - July 6th
This Week In Techdirt History: June 23rd - 29th
This Week In Techdirt History: June 1 | 708 |
Jennifer Lawrence knows which Kardashian would<|fim_middle|> 'Fly, Eagles, Fly' Chant on a Plane Ahead of Super Bowl: Watch! | make a great secret agent.
ET's Carly Steel caught up with the 27-year-old actress during a Red Sparrow round table, where she revealed the Keeping Up With the Kardashians family member that could take on her role as a lethal Russian spy.
"She reads people, she knows how to shut people down," she added. "And she could totally be a sparrow."
During the sit down, Lawrence also dished on Amy Schumer's surprise wedding to chef Chris Fischer that took place on Tuesday.
"It was beautiful," Lawrence revealed to ET, adding that the groom wrote his own vows. "It was very sudden, but it was, I was sobbing the whole -- his vows were stunning. It's when two people really love each other and they really mean it, it shows, and it was a beautiful ceremony and an amazing time. I couldn't be happier for them."
Hear more details in the video below.
Jennifer Lawrence Leads | 191 |
July 2018ManufacturingPast Issues
LITO (Sora Motorcycles) – Creating the wave
LITO (Sora Motorcycles)
Creating the wave
Business View Magazine interviews Jean-Pierre Legris, President of LITO, as part of our focus on best practices in the Canadian transportation sector.
We have all seen electric cars, and many of the more exotic car companies are even making luxury electric racers and roadsters. But what about an electric motorcycle? LITO out of Quebec, Canada is dominating the field with its luxury bike.
LITO spent two and a half years testing prototypes before releasing the first Sora in 2014, which features an electronically adjustable seat that converts the cruiser to a sportier café racer. The bike also has a continuously variable transmission and a regenerative braking system that allows it to recover power during stop-and-go driving.
The Sora is all<|fim_middle|> A legacy of... | torque – 70 ft. lbs at the motor, to be exact, delivered instantaneously, which allows it go from zero to 60 mph in 3.2 seconds. Without the rattle of an internal combustion engine, the Sora delivers a smoother ride that is more stable than a standard gas-powered cruiser in turns and at high speeds. The hand-assembled 18 kWh lithium-ion battery, which can be charged via a standard household electrical outlet, produces 90 kW. The bike can reach over 120 mph and has a range of 100 highway miles and 180 miles around town. With a chassis made from carbon fiber and aluminum, the Sora features a convenient Safe Range Mode that helps prevent running out of battery power. Riders can input their destination into a touch screen GPS and the bike automatically sets the maximum speed and power usage needed to arrive at the given location.
"I incorporated the business in 2009 but I started working on this particular project in 2008," says Jean-Pierre Legris, President of LITO, "and after working for major automotive manufactures around the world, I fell in love with the automotive innovation I had found there. So when I came back here to Canada, I thought to myself, 'How can I recreate this kind of environment in a company here in Quebec?' And back in those days, we couldn't imagine that there was anything electric on two wheels except the scooters and very low-speed vehicles. But on the other side, in the car industry, all the debate was already done, in my point of view. We saw all those who were planning to go to hybrid, plug-in hybrid, and pure electric, but we didn't see that for the motorcycle industry.
"So, back in 2008, I saw a tremendous business opportunity, developing an electric motorcycle. My goal was not to become a boutique; it was to become an international player and a major leader in the electric motorcycle industry. So, in 2009, I started the business from a small office in my basement, working full-time for another job. I did that for about a year and then I jumped full-time into LITO at the beginning of 2010, where I hired the first team of engineers and designers to complete development of the first product that was put on the road as a prototype in 2012. We got all the major certification from Transport Canada and NHTSA, EPA, and everything in the States. It was granted all the certification in 2013/2014 and that's when we started the manufacturing of the first batch. We delivered the first Sora to customers in 2014."
Having positioned the Sora in the high-end market, LITO now has a few dozen units sold. Marketed as one of the highest quality motorcycles out there, whether in the electric or gas powered category, there is no compromise in terms of innovation, quality, or power. Of course, as Legris points out, high-end quality means high-end customer and, ultimately, high-end price. The base model starts at $77,000 US and the signature series costs $104,000.
"It's just not viable to sell those motorcycles at, let's say, 20 grand or 30 grand, which is quite expensive for a standard Kawasaki or a Harley Davidson," Legris goes on to point out, "but we have made a choice of making it the best possible. There is an electric seat that you can adjust while riding. There is a 5.7″ touch screen GPS that you have on the motorcycle. You have the quality in terms of carbon fiber framing. The motorcycle has all the high-end compliments and accessories and in terms of performance, it's an electric motor. So, it's quick to start. And right now, the limit of acceleration is the grip of the rear tire. So, it's a fun ride!"
The research and development, as well as all of the manufacturing, are done by a few dozen employees out of Quebec, but all of the sales and marketing operations are managed through the company's base in Los Angeles.
"We cannot go through conventional motorcycle dealerships," Legris explains, "because right now, how it works when you want to buy a motorcycle is that you're comparing the models over the internet, you're making your own choice, and the final step is looking for a place to purchase it. So, if the dealer is nice with you, he might end up with a sale. So right now, when you're entering a motorcycle dealership, 80 or maybe 90 percent of the job's already done. So, we figured out it's not a good place for us to distribute our motorcycle. Instead of that, we team up with exclusive, high-end car dealerships. For example, we sold a model through McLaren/Beverley Hills. That is the type of partnership we're looking at. So, instead of paying $100,000 in a $20,000 motorcycle showroom, we're a $100,000 motorcycle in over a million dollar car showroom."
And the reaction has been totally crazy. When Legris rides his own motorcycle to downtown Montreal people stop to stare. "There's not a day that I'm riding this motorcycle that there aren't ten thumbs up and each time we stop at a crossroad or something like that," he quips, "or that the car next to us is just opening his window and is like, 'What the hell is that?!' So, this motorcycle is creating more reaction than any high-end super car that you see on the street. That's why the McLaren dealership wants us to share their showroom."
Right now, LITO has a complete platform that it adapts on a few different models. For example, it was able to create a special police version for a city that wanted to showcase the cycle. Legris and his team are working on a model for next year that's going to be even more powerful. The company truly wants to push the limit and the boundary of innovation with the electric motorcycle and because of that it has found a very good niche market.
"We have customers right now from around the world," says Legris. "We have customers in Canada, the United States, Germany, France, Switzerland, and there's a guy in Kazakhstan riding our motorcycle. So, we have been selling around the entire world – more as a pull than a push of product. Customers are calling in and want to buy our product and we never say no. But what is very good about LITO, right now, is that we signed a major financial partnership at the end of last year and now we are having the means to do things properly. So, we are planning a major push for our product in North America for next year and after that, maybe in two years from now, we will expand our other market."
"In terms of the customer perspective," he continues, "we are everything regarding innovation, quality, and power. That is what is defining our product. In terms of business and, let's say, milestone or a visionary stake, we are the first electric vehicle manufacturer for personal mobility in Canada. So, I mean, when you go back to 2014, getting a motorcycle on the road, where at that time you just have the Tesla Roadster coming out and all that stuff, we were there at the beginning of the wave. We're not just following the wave, we are creating the wave.
"I think there will be room for everybody in the near future and my goal here is not to compete against Honda or Kawasaki or Yamaha because those guys will come out with an electric motorcycle a few years from now that will advertise to maybe this market. And they will be able to cut down on price, adding plastic here, some plastic there, and they'll be able to maybe do a good job. But, right now, if you're looking for an affordable electric motorcycle, you have zero choice. I believe that right now for the car industry, there's a place for Mercedes, there's a place for Bentley, there's a place for Rolls Royce, and there's a place for Toyota and Ford and all those guys. And I'm sure that in the future in the electric motorcycle industry, it'll be the same. So for us, right now, it's important to position the brand in terms of innovation, quality, and power. And if we were coming out with the $20,000 motorcycle, that $20,000 motorcycle will still have the three-word taglines of innovation, quality, and power."
Check out this handpicked feature on Werner Electric Ventures, LLC – Solution, Supply, Support.
WHO: LITO (Sora Motorcycles)
WHAT: A manufacturer of electric motorcycles
WHERE: Longueuil, Quebec
WEBSITE: www.soraelectricsuperbike.com
New Era Electronics – www.neweraelectronics.com
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Edgewood Health Network – State-of-the-art addiction treatment
Coastal Carolina Regional Airport – A topnotch facility
The Chester County G.O. Carlson Airport – Number three in GA traffic
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best practicesCanadian Transportation SectorElectric MotorcyclesJean-Pierre LegrisLITOLongueuilManufacturer of Electric MotorcyclesQuebecSora Motorcycles
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ATCO Wood Products – | 2,024 |
The cultural bankruptcy of working for tips
CultureFood & DrunkLife
By Joshua Davidson Oct 16, 2014 Oct 16, 2014
We humans love our traditions. Some have persisted for valid reasons. Others? Well, I think on some level, we just enjoy the drug of empty repetition.
I've long been an eager proponent of the history, rituals, and heritage of the meal. But sometimes, we confuse the latter concepts. Some traditions are really just calcified habits – long grown irrelevant. To find their rightful place as a cultural and an economic force, restaurants need to transcend the "tradition" of front-line staff, working for tips.
Now, I realize that I'm treading on dangerous ground. Thou shalt not criticize the 20% gratuity, especially here in La Belle Province. But after years of experiencing both sides of the gratuity system, the situation has become as clear as day to me.
The compensation methods, and hence the respect for and the job security of the server has not kept up with its rapid professionalization.
A restaurant bill in the US showing gratuity charges. Commensurate salaries and gratuity charges are common in many parts of Europe and Asia and have been shown to correlate to better overall wages, more job security, increased professional development opportunities and better employee engagement.
Despite a sharp hike in gastronomy's cultural currency here in North America, we still cling to the quaint tradition of "tipping the service what it's worth."
There are college degrees for restaurant service now, for God's sake, not to mention mixology, tableside prep and food service theory. (More on the odd tension of these degrees in a future article).
Artful dining and drinking are finally entrenched as legitimate "cultural fields" here in North America. The wealth of highly skilled servers has long outweighed the pretenders. It's time to shake off the cobwebs and allow the industry to occupy its rightful place.
Where else are consummate professionals still legally encouraged to work for well under minimum wage?
The consumer's echo? How unfair. I'll just leave a bigger tip.
Well, I do that, and I used to get tips both big and small. That's the problem. Instead of thinking beyond the issue, everyone just screams out to increase tips. We are perpetuating a system that is ultimately harmful to servers, restauranteurs, and eaters.
Why,<|fim_middle|>how much to tip in canadahow much to tip in montrealhow much to tip in quebecNightliferestaurantTiptipping in montrealtipping in restaurantsTipsWageWaiterWaitress
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Joshua Davidson http://mealscape.wordpress.com
is a weekly columnist on food culture in Montréal. Previously, he explored the hidden culinary corners of the city in The Link Newspaper's weekly food column. He also writes for Mealscape blog and has contributed work on the topic to academic journalsGastronomica and Food, Culture & Society. By day, he works in web communications for Concordia University. Twitter: @JoshDavidson
There's finally good coffee in Pointe St-Charles. Just don't go telling everyone, okay?
By Joshua Davidson Jan 13, 2014 Jan 14, 2014
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By Jessica Alley Jul 16, 2013 Jul 16, 2013
Nuit Blanche 2013 Survival Guide
By Naakita Feldman-Kiss Mar 1, 2013 Mar 1, 2013 | in this one industry alone, are all the tried and tested responsibilities of the owner — adequate compensation for skilled employees, evaluation of roles and performance — deflected so heavily to the customer?
Tradition? Job instability, high turnover, and an uncomfortable and unnecessary dynamic for the client. That's a tradition! An ineffable part of restaurant culture. But who is really winning from this tradition? And do we realize it's predominantly a North American addiction?
I'm continually amazed by how rarely we compare the resto to similar cultural experiences. For some reason, we blindly accept that over-regulation and unquestioned traditions can utterly stifle in this one case — for no real reason other than the resistance to change. I've ranted in the past about how utterly counterproductive it is for this province to outlaw restaurant tickets, or to let people pay for reservations.
When it comes to working for spare coins, this old, logic-defying current prevails: Servers are inherently different from workers in cognate industries.
The problem is, that is just not true.
Perhaps we just feel guilty about being served food? Does it seem too much of a luxury to be compensated like a normal part of the economy? Try this offhand analogy: riding by plane is luxurious, yet I don't hear of passengers being asked to invent a rate for the pilot once they'd safely landed.
Servers are not a special class. They are simply skilled people with jobs. Their skills and experience are as valid as any other profession.
Yet there is some weird mystique to the profession that fogs our view. The latter is one of the nasty byproducts of an empty tradition. It goes something like this: My server is akin to a street performer, s/he should have to surprise and delight me if I am to allow him/her to make ends meet.
Firstly, such expectations are not consistent with those we have for other services, and other skilled professionals. Customer satisfaction, typically, revolves around the expectation that the person we deal with is competent — hopefully decent — in their role. In most situations, this is easily enough for us to expect someone to be fairly compensated.
Second, a server is also not a freelancer in a public place. A server is an employee generating revenue for a government-sanctioned business. The restaurant industry is one of the most heavily legislated in the province, which is about the the furthest thing (on the surface) from an emergent street economy.
Why not just start paying servers like everyone else, which is to say paying servers based on normal principles of compensation? I'm no expert on the latter, but from my own life, it usually involves one's prior levels of experience and performance year over year.
Some say serving is a sort of performance. Fine. Yet unless they are being defrauded or willingly gigging for free, even, say, actors and musicians know to a much higher degree than servers the terms of their contract before performing the actual work.
Because when it comes to a server's core earnings (tips), the contract is wholly unkonwn. The real contract is not with their boss. It's with their diner. And they do not have permission to interview diners before the first glass of water is brought to the table.
The problem, therefore, is not the tip itself. People should always tip in life if they feel compelled, and cash is only one (albeit efficient) vehicle to acknowledge one's actions, or to express gratitude.
But regular wages — eventually salaries — are the only way to keep servers and restaurants stable and relevant in today's economic and cultural sphere. In no one's fantasy is the restaurant still an economic or cultural experiment. Rather, it's an institution, for whom structural change is long overdue.
So how can restos afford to pay servers real wages? Maybe increase booze markup, add a service charge, hike menu prices; in other words, let us diners absorb the cost of a newly stable profession. Because in many ways, we already are.
food culture | 812 |
The Summer Garden blanket has been gracing the window for a couple of weeks now: but you might not have noticed it while your were running into the shop to escape the snow/hail/rain! It's taken me a while to put together the necessary photos and instructions for this blog: there are a lot of photos and lots of words!
Many thanks to test crocheter Denise for working out the yarn requirements. I confess that because I have unlimited access to lots of delicious yarn, I simply roamed the shop and picked up all the yummy things I needed without giving much thought to how much I used. Denise went that extra mile and worked out measurements and requirements and wrote them up for me. So a big shout out for Denise!!!
If you want to make your own blanket you'll need six 50g balls of double knitting for your flower yarn, eighteen 50g balls for the main shade (cream in my blanket), joining and edging, and four 50g balls of a contrast (in my case it's the spring green inside the squares). This will make a blanket bigger than the original, which is a wee bit too narrow and a smidgen too short to use as a single bed blanket. Denise suggests that the amounts specified will make a 126 square blanket (final proportions estimated to be about 40 x 60 inches or about 1 x 1.5 metres.
Please note that these amounts and measurements are approximate. Different yarns have different yardages and different crocheters have differing tensions when they crochet.
To make the project affordable, a good quality acrylic/wool mix in 100g balls is ideal for your main shade, the flowers are great for using up oddments in your stash (if you don't have strict ideas regarding your colour palette!), the contrast yarn is designed to 'pull it all together' so it's probably the most vital colour decision.
For double knitting yarn you'll need a 4mm hook, darning needle and scissors.
(An aran weight yarn would be an equally good choice – it would make a quicker-to-complete project too. If you fancy changing your yarn: make a test square in the yarn of your choice and measure it, then out how many squares you'll need for the blanket. If you then weigh the square on digital scales and multiply that by the number or squares required you should get some sort of idea of total yarn requirements).
I completed the blanket in about 3 months, I think it took about 2 months to crochet the squares and a month to sew in the ends – joking! To reduce the pain of sewing in a million ends, I suggest you weave ends in as you go along.
Each block needs your main shade, your contrast and your two of your flower colours.
Some people like to batch these projects: completing all the flower centres first then going on to complete the petals then the granny squares. I did each flower in one go, but that meant that I risked ending up with more of one colour combination than the others. In the end its down to you and your way of working.
1. Make a circle by a. using a magic loop, or 4 chains slipped together. I sometimes make 4 chains then work subsequent stitches into the furthest chain away from the hook, you can't tighten up the loop however.
2. Make 8 double crochet (dc) into your circle. And then<|fim_middle|> there are plenty of videos on YouTube to check out various techniques – just go to YouTube – find the search box (it has a magnifying glass symbol in it) and type in your requirements – for example *changing yarn colours in crochet.
Any comments or questions? Email me at village woolly@gmail.com. | slip stitch into the first dc made to complete the circle.
3. Change your yarn* colour and make 3 chains into one of dc. (this counts as your first treble), into the same dc, work 5 more trebles (tr).
4. Then take your hook out of the last treble you made and insert it into the 3 chain you made at the beginning, then pick up the last loop, yarn over the hook and pull it through both the loop and the chain stitch. This is your first petal. Make 2 chains.
5. Make 7 more petals using the seven dc. Instead of using the chain space you'll use the top of the first treble and the last loop to close the petal.
6. When all your petals are completed, make the last 2 chains and then slip these to the back of the first petal (bad photograph alert, but you should get the idea).
7. In one of the 2 chain spaces, join in your main shade, and make 3 chains – this counts as your first treble. Then make 2 tr, 3 ch, 3 tr into the same chain space. This creates the corner of your first granny square round.
8. In the next chain space make 3 trebles only.
9. Then make 3 tr, 3ch, 3 tr into the next chain space – you now have two corners and one completed side. Repeat 1 side (3 trebles only) and then 1 corner (3 tr,3 ch, 3tr), and then a side until you are back where you started. Slip stitch into the top of the 3 chains you made to finish the round.
10. Make 3 chains to start your next round: into space directly underneath, make two trebles – this completes a side cluster. Then make 3 tr, 3 ch, 3tr into the next corner as shown.
11. Complete the next round of the granny square as set – each side space has a 3 treble cluster, each corner has a 3 tr, 3 ch, 3 tr cluster. Slip stitch to complete the square.
12. Join in your contrast yarn and work 1 chain. Work a row of double crochet around the square – 1 dc into each treble and the top of each space and 3 into each corner.
13. Re-join your main yarn – chain 2 and then work a row of half-treble (htr) around the square – one htr in each double crochet and 4 in the corner – that is 1 htr into the first dc, 2 htr into the second dc, and one htr into the last dc of the corner. Slip stitch to close the round. This completes the square.
Notes: As this is already a LONG blog post, I have assumed a level of knowledge (e.g.. that you know the basic stitches, and simple methods used in this blanket. If you're stuck, | 626 |
Glide through the treetops on traditional zip-lines or, why not?, in a hammock! Enter the depths of the earth in underground paths full of stalactites and stalagmites, or<|fim_middle|> purchase.
Reservations cancelled more than two days in advance of the date of visit are subject to a 10% administration fee. Reservations cancelled in 2 days or less before the visit date, or in case of a no-show, are non-refundable. | explore the Mayan jungle in fun amphibious vehicles. If the hunger of a caveman takes hold of you, you will enjoy unlimited food and beverages at the buffet. Definitely, this park on the outskirts of Playa del Carmen is what your adventurous spirit is looking for.
Open Monday to Saturday from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Two circuits with seven zip-lines each (2.4 mi total distance), which include the tallest in Riviera Maya.
Amphibious vehicle to drive through the jungle and flooded caves.
Paddling with special hand paddles along an underground river.
Unlimited snacks and non-alcoholic beverages (oatmeal cookies, fruit, smoothies, and flavored fresh waters).
Only the use of sunblock and sunscreen containing titanium oxide and zinc oxide are allowed in the park.
Children over 4.5 ft but under 12 years of age, must present an ID to verify their age at the park's ticket booths.
Certain park activities are not recommended if you suffer from a heart condition, fear of heights, back pain; or if you are recovering from a recent surgery or if you get dizzy easily.
For the zip-lines, a minimum height of 3.6 ft is required. The minimum weight required is 88 lbs and the maximum is 300 lbs. The circumference capacity of the harness belt is 51 in (130 cm) and 27 in (70 cm) for the legs. In the case of children, the harness must fit properly. If it doesn't, for their own safety, they won't be able to perform the activity.
Transportation from Cancun, Playa del Carmen and Riviera Maya is included if you add it at the moment of | 364 |
When we think of a theatrical show, we often think in the big picture -- of moments, tableaux, and scenarios. But when we think of characters, what most often comes to mind is, of course, the people themselves. That mental image of the face, the hair, the costume, and the way in which the performer uses those elements in performance. Take, for instance, the Phantom and how the makeup created by the production designer perfectly creates a balance of monster and man -- the polished hair, arched brow, and glimpse of a debonair cheekbone, paired against the bone-white mask and the terrible red disfigurement beneath.
Hair and makeup designers can have a powerful impact on character and production impact -- where would Sweeney be without his white, shadowed face, or the Phantom without his scars, or those famous dancing cats without their feline features?
Like costume designers, hair designers must analyze the work in question and then create the hairstyles appropriate to the era, setting, and style.
Hair designers will typically work with the director and costume designer to create an appropriate style for each character, as well as working with the performers in question on what they're willing to change. Will they cut or change their style drastically for the part? What hair colors might be most appropriate to the character?
It's hard to imagine Queen Elizabeth, for instance, without her fiery red locks. Or a Nellie Forbush, from South Pacific, without her adorable short, tousled blonde hair.
For some looks, the hair designer may utilize wigs, hairpieces, false mustaches, beards, or sideburns, or hair extensions, which then may be further<|fim_middle|> then recreate the looks themselves before each performance, or their hair and makeup will be taken care of by specialized hairdressers and makeup artists with the production. | styled or altered to meet the demands of the show.
Makeup designers face unique challenges in any production, both creative and practical.
The makeup designer must first and foremost create a look that is appropriate to the style of the work being staged, and which meets the vision of the director.
On a more practical level, the makeup designer must also ensure that the look being created will be as effective from the last row as it is from the first (and vice versa) and that if needed, the performers themselves will be able to regularly and accurately recreate the look for each performance.
To create a particular character, makeup designers and artists must not only consider the practical questions of lighting and color (and how the two will interact), but also the age and circumstance of the character. Makeup artists are typically therefore extremely comfortable with the use and application of prosthetics. Prosthetics can enlarge or alter facial characteristics, add the appearance of age, wounds, or scars, and more. Prosthetics are typically created from foam or latex, although more recently, they can also be made out of silicone or gelatin-based materials. Prosthetics are most commonly applied with spirit gum, which is a stubborn and time-honored adhesive that will keep the prosthetic in place.
Makeup artists are typically extremely comfortable with demonstrating makeup application and technique to performers and are also invaluable resources for choosing the appropriate products for the performance at hand. Makeup artists for theater, dance, and other performance typically work with specialized theatrical makeup, once known as greasepaint, which is specially built to last even under the rigors and hot lights of performance, and major brands include such names as Kryolan, Mehron, Ben Nye, and Graftobian.
The work process for both the hair and makeup designers typically involves analysis of the script, creative discussion with the director and costume designer, and then research, sketching and note-taking on design. The designer will then meet with the performer to create a look for the show that, once approved by the director, will serve as a template for all performances. The designers will often document this template look or style in photos from several angles, as well as step by step through the styling or application process.
Depending on the size of the production, the performers will | 458 |
Kodiaks march into ACAC Women's Soccer semis
LETH
LETH (2-0-0, 2-0-0) 1 1 2
TKU (0-2-0, 0-2-0) 1 0 1
1st - 13:00 - Sydney Hope (LETH)
1st - 25:00 - Aimee Tiemstra (TKU)
2nd - 36:00 - Vicki Noronha (LETH)
Sh: 3 Players (#10, #12, #14) - 1
Sv: Brittany Klein - 2
G: Aimee Tiemstra - 1
Sh: 3 Players (#7, #9, #13) - 1
Sv: Hannah Kui - 1
CALGARY, ALTA. (Oct. 26, 2018) - The Lethbridge College Kodiaks women's soccer team ended a long drought Friday morning.
Vicki Noronha scored off a free kick from just outside the box in the 81st minute to give her Kodiaks a 2-1 victory over the King's University Eagles in their Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference (ACAC) Women's Soccer Championship quarter-final match - giving the post-secondary their first post-season win in 26 years.
Lethbridge will now move to Saturday morning's semifinal game against the host SAIT Trojans at 9:3<|fim_middle|> Kodiaks who struck first after being awarded a penalty kick following a play when one of their players was tripped up in the box. Sydney Hope took the ensuing penalty, and beat King's goalkeeper Hannah Kui.
Twelve minutes later, the roles were reversed as it would be King's who would awarded a penalty kick after one of their players was found to be taken down in the box.
Aimee Tiemstra made no mistake to tie the game.
Lethbridge controlled much of the play in the second half, and finally scored the go-ahead goal when Noronha deposited a free kick into the top right corner of the net.
Kodiaks goalkeeper Brittany Klein was named Player of the Game after making a handful of key saves. Tiemstra earned the Eagles' Player of the Game nod. | 0am at Cohos Commons Field.
In their season series this past year, the Kodiaks fell to SAIT in both games - falling 3-0 on Sept. 8 and 4-1 on Sept. 30.
In Friday's game, it was the | 57 |
Stacey Abrams: It Is 'Wrong' To Compare Her Refusal To Concede With Trump's Stolen<|fim_middle|> problematic behavior."
Key to Abrams' strategy is targeting what she calls "persuasion voters," people who need to be convinced to show up, not of who to vote for. She credits these voters with delivering for Democrats in 2020 and 2021.
"We are leaning in and saying that our path to victory, our playbook, works, but we can't believe it will just magically happen," Abrams said. "These voters deserve the same assiduous attention, the same investment, and the same support as any other voting bloc."
Abrams said her campaign will focus on turnout and encouraging people to vote early, but added that she is concerned about the potential impact of the state's new voting laws.
"The people who are supposed to be responsible for protecting the right to vote are manipulating that right," Abrams said. "The failure to commit treason does not mitigate their active engagement in denying democracy. When it becomes a partisan issue, what gets lost are the people who get hurt."
Originally published by The 19th
Published in Featured News and Politics
concede
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Is Washington Listening? – Young Farmers Can Help The US Meet Its Climate Goals | Election Rhetoric
ATLANTA — Stacey Abrams on Monday cautioned against conflating her refusal to concede in the 2018 Georgia governor's race with former President Donald Trump's false claims of a stolen election, calling the latter wrong and dangerous for democracy.
"I will never ever say that it is OK to claim fraudulent outcomes as a way to give yourself power," Abrams said. "That is wrong. I reject it and will never engage in it. But I do believe that it is imperative, especially those who have the platform and the microphone, to talk about the access."
Abrams acknowledged her loss to Kemp days after the 2018 election. But she attributed that defeat — by less than 1.4 percentage points — to efforts by Kemp, then the secretary of state, to suppress voter turnout. Kemp denied the allegations.
"The issues that I raised in 2018 were not grounded in making me the governor," Abrams told The 19th's Editor-at-Large Errin Haines at a Monday event. "Not a single lawsuit filed would have reversed or changed the outcome of the election. My point was that the access to the election was flawed, and I refuse to concede a system that permits citizens to be denied access. That is very different than someone claiming fraudulent outcome."
Abrams, who will face Kemp in the November midterm elections, has made voting rights a cornerstone of her priorities as an elected official, first as a legislative leader in the Georgia legislature and as the now two-time Democratic nominee for governor. She has also highlighted health care needs and economic issues as she seeks a rematch against Kemp.
But in the years since her first bid for the highest office in the state, Republicans have repeatedly pointed to her actions in 2018 as the original "Big Lie."
Abrams emphasized in her remarks Monday that words matter, and her 2018 speech was carefully planned.
"The challenge is that people are always going to cherry pick the language that they want to make the points that they need," Abrams told Haines. "… And I apologize that people can only listen to four seconds of a speech and not the whole 15 seconds. But what I think is absolutely critical is that we not allow ourselves to conflate access and outcome."
Recent polling shows Kemp with a slight lead over Abrams. Abrams emphasized that if potential voters like Black men turn out, she can win. She also indicated that she would welcome key Democrats to stump for her, such as President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, who Abrams campaigned for in 2020.
"There is no reticence on my part," Abrams said. "I know people will try to spin up stories where they don't exist. I welcome President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris to come to Georgia because that's one of the ways we show Georgia what the Democrats have delivered for our state."
With 50 days to go until Election Day and less than a month to go until the start of early voting in Georgia, Abrams said her goal is to win the election outright and avoid a runoff. In some ways, Abrams said the election feels familiar to 2018, but 2022 also feels different.
"This is an evenly divided state," Abrams told The 19th in an interview ahead of the event, noting that 1.6 million voters have been added to the rolls since 2018, more than half of them Democratic leaning. "Victory is completely contingent on turning out voters, especially those who feel marginalized or distrustful of the system. And it also requires navigating voter suppression that's been architected by former secretary of state, now Gov. Kemp."
Kemp signed a bill into law in 2021 that made sweeping changes to Georgia's voting rules, including new requirements for absentee voting, reduced drop boxes in the state and statewide oversight of local election boards. Kemp, whose campaign did not respond to a request for an interview, has defended the law and his general approach to voting policy. In recent weeks, he has pointed to rising inflation and its effect on the economy to tie Abrams to national Democrats.
Abrams said her candidacy is complicated by her parallel efforts to ensure that voters are able to cast their ballots safely and securely in November. That work has been made harder, she said, by her opponent and Georgia Republicans, who have passed voter restrictions in the wake of the 2020 election.
"My job is to protect democracy, regardless of whether my name is on the ballot," Abrams said. "That said, I also want to be governor so that we don't have to keep litigating and relieving this | 958 |
Photo by Mike Schumann / The Daily Hoosier
Indiana Basketball Edges Its Way Into the National Rankings
December 10, 2018 Mike Schumann IUBB 0
For Indiana fans, it has been a long time coming. For the first time in nearly two years (January of 2017), the Indiana University men's basketball program finds itself back in the national rankings.
To be sure, it is a tenuous spot in the polls at best — but you take what you can get after such a long drought. Indiana is in a three-way tie at<|fim_middle|>2) in a tie with Syracuse (7-2) and Kansas State (6-2).
After an ugly loss at Duke, three consecutive wins over reputable programs surely helped IU's cause in eyes of the national media.
For the season, Indiana has four wins over opponents rated in the KenPom Top 50 — Marquette (35), Northwestern (47), Penn State (42) and Louisville (40).
Indiana is one of six Big Ten teams ranked this week including:
No. 5 Michigan
No. 9 Michigan State
No. 15 Ohio State
No. 16 Wisconsin
No. 22 Iowa
Nebraska and Maryland are the next two teams listed among the other programs that also received votes.
Indiana is also ranked No. 25 at KenPom, and the Hoosiers come in at No. 21 in the NCAA's NET ranking system, which is one of the primary tools the NCAA Tournament committee will use to evaluate at-large teams.
Indiana will have until Saturday to relish their new found home in the national poll. The Hoosiers face Butler at 3:45 at Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. The Bulldogs (7-2) are not ranked but received votes in the latest AP poll.
IU is still in the "other teams receiving votes" group in the latest USA Today Coaches Poll. They are effectively ranked 31st in that poll.
The IU women's program is also still in the "other teams receiving votes" group, despite a 9-0 start and a 15-game overall winning streak.
Want to receive all of our content via one e-mail in your inbox every day? It's free. Join our daily mailing list here.
Please consider supporting The Daily Hoosier by shopping on Amazon via this link to the Amazon home page or through the ad below. | No. 25 in the latest AP poll released today. The appearance in the poll marks the first time under head coach Archie Miller that Indiana has earned a national ranking.
Indiana (8-2) sits at 25th in the AP poll (8- | 54 |
Sanity Solutions Named to the 2020 Tech Elite 250 by CRN®
Posted on March 30, 2020.
Denver, CO, March 30, 2020 — Sanity Solutions, Inc. announced today that CRN®, a brand of The Channel Company, has named Sanity Solutions, Inc. to its 2020 Tech Elite 250 list. This annual list acknowledges the top tier of North American IT solution providers that have earned the highest number of advanced technical certifications from leading technology suppliers, scaled to their company size. These organizations have differentiated themselves as premier solution providers, earning multiple, top-level IT certifications, specializations, and partner program designations from the industry's most prestigious technology providers.
Each year, The Channel Company's research group and CRN editors work together to identify the most customer-centric technical certifications in the North American IT channel. Solution providers that have earned these elite designations — enabling them to deliver exclusive products, services, and customer support — are then selected from a pool of online applicants.
"Training and education remain a permanent focus for our team. We continue to build upon our strong foundation of knowledge and insight into the industry, leading products and the inevitable "next wave" of developments. Sanity prides itself on being a true partner and delivering the highest levels of expertise is a principal factor in building lasting relationships." – Jason Cherveny, President and CEO Sanity Solutions, Inc.
"Solution providers that continue to pursue vendor certifications and extend their skill sets across various technologies and IT practices are proving their commitment to delivering the greatest business value to their customers through an incomparable level of service," said Bob Skelley, CEO of The Channel Company. "Our CRN Tech Elite 250 list recognizes leading solution providers with expansive technical knowledge and esteemed certifications for exactly that reason."
"Our team is particularly honored to be listed as a Tech Elite 250 member because it showcases the knowledge and expertise we bring to the table for our clients. It helps distinguish us as a trusted partner and thought leaders who are truly invested in our customers' success." – Chris Gross, Vice President of Technology, Sanity Solutions, Inc.
Coverage of the Tech Elite 250 will be featured in the February issue of CRN, and online at www.CRN.com/TechElite250.
About Sanity Solutions, Inc.
Sanity Solutions, Inc. is a privately held data management solutions provider headquartered in Denver, Colorado and operating offices in Minnesota and Utah. We focus on understanding our client's needs and developing a solution that will adapt and address the data management needs present and future. As a five-time winner of the CRN Triple Crown, and Dell Technologies Titanium level partner, we have established ourselves in the industry as a trusted adviser, innovative<|fim_middle|> LLC. All rights reserved.
The Channel Company Contact:
Jennifer Hogan
The Channel Company
jhogan@thechannelcompany.com | partner and market leader. We believe in delivering a legendary experience professionally and personally.
Follow Sanity Solutions: Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook
Kimberly James
Sanity Solutions, Inc.
Marketing@SanitySolutions.com
About The Channel Company
The Channel Company enables breakthrough IT channel performance with our dominant media, engaging events, expert consulting and education and innovative marketing services and platforms. As the channel catalyst, we connect and empower technology suppliers, solution providers and end users. Backed by more than 30 years of unequalled channel experience, we draw from our deep knowledge to envision innovative new solutions for ever-evolving challenges in the technology marketplace. www.thechannelcompany.com
Follow The Channel Company: Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook
©2020 The Channel Company, LLC. CRN is a registered trademark of The Channel Company, | 171 |
While once workplaces sought management skills in their employees, today the focus is unfailingly on leadership. The differences are subtle but, in general, leading a team today is more about inspiration and guidance than handling technical minutiae.
If you want to progress your career with your current employer, or you<|fim_middle|>. | 're ready to take the next step with a different organisation, you should seek to demonstrate your leadership abilities.
Successfully leading a team relies heavily on communication. And that doesn't just mean talking a lot! It's about having advanced communication skills, where you can flex your approach in different situations. As a manager you'll come across a variety of challenging people situations: the way you conduct a difficult conversation can have a major effect on the outcome.
This is partly about how you keep your team up to date and conduct yourself in one-to-one situations. But it's equally about how you interact with your own manager and senior leaders within the organisation.
In any job interview, make sure you talk about the importance of communication, with examples of how you implement regular updates and conversations with your team and line manager.
A key part of leadership is inspiring your team to deliver on their objectives, even when times get tough. Negativity in a team is highly contagious, so seeing and communicating the good in a challenging situation is an important skill. Companies are seeking positive people that will come to them with solutions rather than problems, and keep their teams performing through praise, reward and an optimistic attitude.
Listen to how you speak at work and the kinds of words you use. Are you positive? What could you could do to bring more positivity into how you work?
As we progress at work we gain experience and expertise in our chosen field. But as you move into management you need to leave the day to day work to others. Your role is often to oversee and guide, rather than do the work yourself.
Surprisingly high numbers of managers struggle with this and get too involved with the delivery of projects or initiatives. Your role is set clear expectations for each member of your team and help them to deliver. You're also there to advise and support when problems or challenges arise.
Following on from successful delegation is accountability. A good leader will assign the work to their team while taking full responsibility for their successes or failures – never blaming others.
Accountability is about delivering on your promises and flagging up the challenges or issues. Business owners see accountability as someone being reliable.
Demonstrate your accountability by never giving up, by seeking feedback and support to deliver your objective, and by showing that you're motivated by the task at hand.
Resilience is an enormously helpful quality both in and outside of work. It's your ability to take a deep breath and move on, no matter what pressures or issues you've been facing.
Many jobs involve fairly frequent periods of stress or intensity, and sometimes extreme pressure. As a leader that takes accountability, you need to be able to keep things in perspective, remain calm and keep your team on track.
Resilience can be a difficult thing to demonstrate in a job interview. It's a good thing to mention when asked about the skills or qualities that you bring to a role, ideally with an example that brings your statement to life.
If you feel you need to focus on one or more of these qualities to reach the next level at work, discuss it with your manager. Seek their feedback too – it may be that they have a different perception. Finding a mentor or coach is a great way to learn more about yourself at work and your leadership strengths, to help you on your leadership journey | 660 |
Van Halen – Darien Lake PAC, Corfu NY – August 25, 2015
Review/ photos By Thomas S. Orwat, Jr.
Darien, NY – The mighty Van Halen, featuring guitar legend, Eddie Van Halen, David Lee Roth – vocals, Alex Van Halen – drums and Wolfgang Van Halen – bass, returned to the WNY area, and performed in front of 11,000 music loving fans on a rainy and unseasonably cool late summer evening. The band is currently touring in support of their recent live record, 'Tokyo Dome.' But, for a few days, this concert was in jeopardy of even happening. Van Halen had reluctantly cancelled their previous concert on Sunday at Hershey Park, due to lead singer, David Lee Roth, being advised by doctors not to perform and rest his voice because he had the flu. However, miraculously, he quickly bounced back, and became healthy enough again for the band to perform this evening, and continue their tour. While some may of expected him to give a sub-par performance because of his illness, David Lee, showed no signs of being ill. He was energetic, performing a solid two hour performance, and was… well he was David Lee Roth!
Van Halen hit the stage at 8:45, and kicked the evening off with die-hard fan favorite, "Light Up The Sky." Eddie and Roth met center stage, both smiling, and embraced. It was mostly likely the first time that they saw each other all day long. It is no secret that they travel separately and keep their distance off stage. But, in watching them perform, you would think Roth and Eddie were best friends; the way in which they interacted, smiling and hugging. You would also think a man with a concert canceling "flu" would be wise to curtail the hugs to fellow band members.
But, as Roth would allude to later in the evening, during his storytelling segment, preceding the song,"Ice Cream Man," sick or not, they still rock for the common cause, "the team." Certainly, the most interesting aspect of the current Van Halen live performance is the oddball chemistry between the musical brilliance of the Van Halens, and the showmanship (and sometimes pitchy vocals) of Roth. Although Roth, now 60 years of age, has toned down his zaniness from previous tours, he still has that element of being unpredictably corny at times, sometimes<|fim_middle|> who is still the star of the show. He is in a great place right now; focused and playing as good, if not better, than ever before. He was spot on perfect all night: "Hot for Teacher," "Chinatown," and of course, his 10-minute spotlight guitar solo towards the end of the evening. He is absolutely a living legend, and one of the most influential guitarists in rock history.
The evening ended with two of the band's most popular songs (both from their multi-platinum release '1984'), "Panama" and "Jump." Many in the audience left wondering if it would be the last time they would ever see this line-up again. The future of the band seems to be uncertain after this tour. But, if this was indeed the last Van Halen show in WNY with David Lee Roth, it certainly was one in which they went out in style. Just like any other Van Halen concert, you had to see it to believe it.
For more on Van Halen, visit www.vanhalen.com
Light Up the Sky
Runnin' With the Devil
Romeo Delight
Drop Dead Legs
Feel Your Love Tonight
Somebody Get Me a Doctor
She's the Woman
I'll Wait
Drum Solo
Little Guitars
Dance the Night Away
In a Simple Rhyme
Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love
You Really Got Me
Rock, rock music, Van Halen
Alex Van Halen, David Lee Roth, Eddie Van Halen, Wolfgang Van Halen
ZZ Top – Avalon Ballroom Theater, Fallsview Casino, Niagara Falls, ONT – August 20, 2015
J. Geils Band / Ian Hunter and the Rant Band – Artpark, Lewiston, NY – Sept 8, 2015 | coming across as funny, or, at other times – like during the song, "Dirty Movies," when he exposed half of his tattooed buttocks – cringe worthy.
Roth also always has some interesting comments between songs. During "Dance the Night Away," he told the audience how he use to emulate James Brown, The Temptations and Mick Jagger, in front of his mirror when he was a child.
In the middle of "Ain't Taking About Love," he explained that his parents told him when he was young, that if he misbehaved at the dinner table, they were going to sell him back to the Indians. He said it had the opposite effect, and he told his parents, "please do." "I'll just be another Jewish Indian."
While seated at center stage before playing "Ice Cream Man," Roth mentioned how he had lived in an apartment in Japan for the last two years. He also played some very impressive harmonica and slide guitar on an acoustic during this segment as well.
No matter how hard Roth tries to steal the spotlight – and it's really difficult to take your eyes off of him – it is Eddie Van Halen | 238 |
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All season long, grapes from California are advertised across a mix of national mediums for broad exposure to motivate consumer purchase. Grapes from California are advertised with the Food Network, in both the<|fim_middle|>90 grape varieties grown, California grapes come in three colors—green, red and black—and are in season from May through January.
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Noncommercial | print magazine and on television, with the Cooking Channel on television and with Chatelaine and Canadian Living print magazines in Canada. Print ads and television commercials can be viewed here. Additionally, there are a number of other ways that incentives and information are provided to retailers to boost grape sales. Customized retail promotional programs are available. For more information, contact info@grapesfromcalifornia.com.
ABOUT California TABLE GRAPES
Californians have been cultivating grapes for more than two centuries. Today, 99 percent of U.S. table grapes are produced in California's warm, dry climate that is ideal for grape growing. With more than | 131 |
This entry was posted in Book review, Botany, Garden Books, Gardening, Horticulture, Plants and tagged biowall, book review, books, Giveaway, Green Wall, Grow a Living Wall, living wall, Shawna Coronado, Vertical gardening, Winner. Bookmark the permalink.
← Interesting facts about<|fim_middle|> challenges, so the spare time I have will go to photography. I am hoping to see more of the parks and festivals around town!
Thank you Jean, maybe we could share it around the world? Hmmmmm that might be fun.
Congratulations to Boomdee! We have a living wall in Norwich, the city near to where we live. It looks good all year round. A local brewery has also had a new building covered in a green roof which also looks fabulous.
I think it is absolutely wonderful that more and more green roofs and living walls are cropping up everywhere – I hope it's a trend that continues! A practical and beautiful way to use space! | cow parsnip.
woohoo to Boomdee. She herslef is very generous and has organized many give aways ( I was on the receiving end on one of them!) So I am very happy this lovely girl won a price herself!!!
Holy toledo ! What a beautiful way to end the weekend. Thank you so kindly Sheryl. I will look forward to it ! We worked in the yard all day yesterday. I planted all the annuals I went crazy for at Wallish's Greenhouse. A local favourite of mine. Such a busy time but we wait so long thru winter….it's all hands on deck. Cheers!
This is truly the most wonderful time of the year, isn't it? You're way ahead of me…I still haven't done much planting. Lots of bed preparation so maybe I'll get to actually putting some plants in this weekend. Happy gardening!
The weather is so beautiful at this time of year for working in the yard. Sunny and Mild with a breeze, have fun!
Woo Hoo!!! I'm so delighted Boomdeeadda won!!! She will make good use of it it, I'm sure.
Mine is an obsession. 🙂 I'm always afraid if I don't get the book now, it won't be there when I want to read it. It's like fabric. They make just so many bolts that are distributed and when they are gone, no more to be found. Hugs.
Did you see the paper boxes we made on my retreat post? I think the paper was 12×12.
We have a living wall in our airport baggage claim area. It's very restful.
That's a fantastic place to have a living wall! I haven't seen too many of them in public spaces here yet – but I think that will change.
I hope we get more here, too.
I love the idea of a living wall, and I have wondered about "vertical gardening" for Calgary, but I don't think I am going to have time too get it organized this year!
Australia for a couple of weeks in June, other than that we will be staying close to home. I started a new full time job, exciting new | 447 |
Perspective is often a very under-appreciated topic in photography, but it is a very important concept to master. Although it is complicated, learning perspective will transform a boring image into a very interesting photo!
Perspective can be defined as the relationship between objects in a frame. This can include several things including: their sizes, their placements, and the space between these objects.
Because photography is two-dimensional, good perspective can create the illusion of a three-dimensional image. Cameras are always creating some perspective in any given image. Because of this, many new photographers<|fim_middle|> perspective, but focal length merely changes the angle of view (how much of a scene that the camera records). For instance, a wide angle lens will show a larger portion of a scene, while a telephoto lens narrows the angle of view. However, you can gain a new perspective by combining a lens change with a position change.
Perspective as a compositional tool is an effective way to improve your photography. No matter what camera you are using, perspective can have a powerful impact on your images! | don't grasp the importance and value of learning the art of perspective. When correctly used, perspective can produce an accurate rendition of the subject's form and shape as well as create a sense of volume, space, depth, and distance. Deciding where to position yourself to take a photo is a very important decision. Any photographer who understands perspective has the freedom to be creative with this sense of scale and make the decision to create more three-dimensional or flat photographs.
Here, I've listed some of the most common types of perspective.
Linear Perspective describes any scene in which parallel lines extending from a given viewpoint appear to converge at the horizon, creating a vanishing point. Examples of this are common and often include railroad tracks or city streets.
Overlap perspective is an effective way to add depth. When subjects within the picture are on approximately the same line of sight, those objects closer to the camera will overlap more distant objects and partially hide them. The more this is repeated, the more the image will give the illusion of depth.
Rectilinear perspective is what the human eye typically sees and all lines will appear straight. Fisheye lenses will produce the opposite perspective and create curved lines and false perspective. Most lenses will portray images using rectilinear perspective.
Dwindling size perspective shows a repetition of similar sized objects in a row moving away from the camera, for instance, a row of trees or a fencepost line. The first fence post will appear largest while the last fencepost will be significantly smaller.
Birds eye perspective is an aerial view of what you would normally view from an eye level perspective. Worms eye is the opposite in which you would view an image from the ground looking up.
As we've found, simply changing perspective can completely transform a photo! The most effective way to learn is to practice! Move around when taking photos and experiment with different angles on a subject. Changing the position you are in can bring a creative angle to an ordinary subject; get low, get high, step to the right or left.
When taking pictures around Roanoke, Virginia, Brett encouraged me to practice experimenting with perspective. The goal was to take 3 different photos of the same subject, each photo with a new perspective. By photographing different angles, I was able to find the most creative and effective way to portray a subject.
An important thing to consider when discussing perspective is focal length. Many people confuse focal length for a change in | 489 |
Handful To Start Manufacturing in Oregon; Will "pretail" on Crowd Supply in mid-May
(Tigard, OR) May 1, 2013– Handful, Inc., a four-woman bra company based in Tigard, OR, began manufacturing the original flatter, not flatten™ Handful Bra with removable pads six years ago in China. As a loyal fan base has grown, and the desire to innovate new products to satisfy their diverse customer base made up of fitness enthusiasts and breast cancer survivors has increased, the company is now looking to bring its business to the US.
An Oregon manufacturing partner has been secured, but in order to complete the transition<|fim_middle|>O Young Professionals Events & News
Featured In: A&O News
Previous: PSU unveils new A&O certificate program Next: Amer Sports Expands Portland Design Center | and repatriate the production, Handful is partnering with Portland's recently launched Crowd Supply to use "pretail" sales to finance the move. The campaign is scheduled to launch in mid-May, and while die-hard fans can pre-purchase the Made in the USA bras before they come off the production line, new fans–including men–will be able to support the effort by buying t-shirts that reflect the company culture where a sense of humor is required. The first bras to be made in Oregon will be, appropriately, a Freshly Squeezed Orange and a Get'n Lucky Green. If you aren't a Beaver or a Duck, Booya Black will be the third color option from the first Oregon production run.
SOURCE: Handful, Inc.
Handful's Crowd Supply page can be found here- http://www.crowdsupply.com/handful/made-in-the-usa-handful-bra
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Jean Bullant (* um 1520 in Bournazel; † 13. Oktober 1578 ebenda) war ein französischer Architekt und Architekturtheoretiker.
Als einer der wichtigsten Vertreter der Renaissancebaukunst Frankreichs zählt er neben Pierre Lescot und Philibert Delorme zu den Begründern jener klassizistischen Formensprache, die die französische Architektur des 16. und 18. Jahrhunderts geprägt hat.
Leben
Bullant lernte sein Handwerk in Rom, wo er einige Jahre verbrachte. 1545 kehrte er nach Paris zurück und trat in den Dienst des Connétable Anne de Montmorency, in dessen Auftrag er die Schlösser in Fère-en-Tardenois (um 1537–40), Écouen (um 1540<|fim_middle|>gle générale d'Architecture (1563) und Petit Traicté de Géométrie (1564) tritt Bullant auch als einflussreicher Architekturtheoretiker hervor.
Literatur
Jean-Pierre Babelon: Le Chateau de Chantilly, Paris 2008, S. 42–53
Weblinks
Architekt (Frankreich)
Franzose
Geboren im 16. Jahrhundert
Gestorben 1578
Mann
Wikipedia:Geburts- oder Sterbeort unbekannt | –53) und Chantilly (um 1560) errichtete. 1557 zum "Contrôleur des bâtiments du roi" ernannt. Nach dem Tod des Connétable im Jahr 1567 tritt Bullant in den Dienst der Königinwitwe Katharina von Medici. In deren Auftrag übernimmt er um 1576 die Leitung am Ausbau des Schlosses Chenonceau. 1571 bis 1574 überträgt ihm König Heinrich III. die Bauleitung an den Schlössern Fontainebleau und Chambord. Mit seinen Schriften Rè | 146 |
Garo<|fim_middle|> the terroir, but with freshness and ambition. | 'vin - 'Lunatic' Vin de France Blanc 2016
Lunatic is 100% Chenin Blanc, fermented in old oak for 10 months, lending an almost satiny texture and vinous aromatic character to the wine. Yet at the end of this all, it's still purely Chenin, with honey, orange blossoms, and a wildly vibrant acidity.
Cedric only has one vineyard of Chenin, and it's sort of a new child for him, but we share his excitement and absolutely love his work with this varietal.
We only import a few cases into Hong Kong per year, and most of it is tied up with our restaurant friends. But you can order a few bottles that we keep aside here for our online customers to drink at home. Take your time with the wine in a big glass, and don't rush. It's cleaner than the 2014, yet still as round and voluptuous.
Annual Production: Less than 1,000
Blend: 100% Chenin Blanc
Terroir: Clay and Schist soil
Viticulture: Biodynamic
Winemaking: Aged in old oak for 10 months
Cedric Garreau is one of the first producers that we've exclusively imported, and there's a reason why his wines are Cork Culture Classics. He owns and works from just under 3 hectares of vines around Beaulieu-sur-Layon, and makes mainly Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon from his winery just near the vineyards, although he is also a master of Chenin Blanc.
He's an impossibly talented young winemaker who only started making wine a few years ago, but his label can now be seen across in the world in France, the US, Tokyo, and now of course Hong Kong. All these wines are naturally made, but with such precision and cleanliness. There's so much varietal character as well, and that's what distinguishes him to us from amongst all the other young vignerons in the Loire. Cedric really brings out | 440 |
Brothers Barney and Bo have always been pretty tight — a dynamic duo ready to take on life and all of its challenges. They were brought to the Sanctuary together from a humane society in Indiana, where staff members wanted nothing more than to give them the very best chance at normal, healthy lives.
Both brothers were born with feline leukemia (FeLV), a virus that weakens cats' immune systems and makes them susceptible to secondary infections. Kittens with FeLV are extremely vulnerable in their first year of life, and many don't make it past their third birthdays. But here at the Sanctuary, Cat World caregivers and the Best Friends veterinary team<|fim_middle|>.
Barney and Bo aren't the oldest cats in their room. (Cats who get FeLV later in life have a much better chance at longevity, since their immune systems have had a chance to develop, allowing them to fight off infections better than kittens.) But they've been there the longest. In fact, they're the ones who take new cats under their wing and show them the ropes when they arrive at Calmar.
Become a Best Friends member.
The way they jump right in to help other cats is truly touching. But perhaps the most remarkable thing about the brothers is how perfect (and how perfectly ordinary) they are. Just like any other cats, they want to play and be loved. When they're not wrestling or playing with Da Bird toys, Barney and Bo can often be found cuddled up, "purring like little doves," Amy says.
They get to explore the world around them and interact with visitors, too. Both cats are sleepover favorites with volunteers who visit the Sanctuary and, although Bo is a little less adventurous than his brother, Barney likes to go for walks so much that he'll even go outside in the snow.
Of course, keeping the boys healthy and safe is a top priority for their caregivers. Recently, Barney had a small cancerous growth on his back. Since caregivers found it right away, it was removed and now Barney's doing just fine. And, with a little luck and a lot of great care, he and Bo will continue to thrive.
Find out about Cat World at Best Friends. | have plenty of experience caring for cats like Barney and Bo.
With the help of that special care, the brothers are enjoying good health and are beating the odds. Now three years and eight months old, the "B brothers" live together in Calmar , the building in Cat World dedicated entirely to cats with FeLV. And they've not only adapted to life in Cat World, they are thriving | 79 |
Malleable surgical ablation instruments
Malleable surgical ablation instruments are disclosed for creating lesions in tissue, including cardiac tissue for treatment of arrhythmias and other diseases. The hand held instruments are especially useful in open chest or port access cardiac surgery for rapid and efficient creation of curvilinear lesions to serve as conduction blocks. The malleable instruments disclosed are well adapted for use in or around the intricate structures of the heart. In one example, the distal end of the instrument can have a malleable shape or be in the shape of an open loop so as to allow the loop to be placed around at least one a pulmonary vein or artery. Such instruments can incorporate various ablative elements such as ablative radiation, RF heating, cryogenic cooling, ultrasound, microwave, ablative fluid injection and the like.
Sinofsky, Edward L. (Dennis, MA, US)
CARDIOFOCUS, INC. (Norton, MA)
606/27, 606/33, 606/21
A61B18/22; A61B18/24; A61M25/01; A61B17/00; A61B17/22; A61B18/00; A61B18/14; (IPC1-7): A61B18/20; A61B18/04
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JOHNSON III, HENRY M
NUTTER MCCLENNEN & FISH LLP (BOSTON, MA, US)
1. A surgical ablation instrument comprising: a housing having at least one lumen therein and having a distal portion that is at least partially malleable; and an ablation element disposable within the lumen of the housing and adapted to ablate tissue at a target site.
2. The instrument of claim 1, wherein the distal portion of the instrument has an open loop shape so as to allow the loop to be placed around at least one pulmonary vein.
3. The instrument of claim 1, wherein the distal portion of housing can be shaped into a loop having a diameter between about 10 and 50 mm.
4. The instrument of claim 1, wherein the instrument further comprises at least one malleable strip element disposed at the distal portion of the housing.
5. The instrument of claim 1, wherein the ablation element comprises a resistive electrical heating element.
6. The instrument of claim 1, wherein the ablation element comprises a cryogenic cooling element.
7. The instrument of claim 1, wherein the ablation element comprises an acoustic energy generating element.
8. The instrument of claim 7, wherein the ablation element comprises an ultrasound generating element.
9. The instrument of claim 1, wherein the ablation element comprises a microwave generating element.
10. The instrument of claim 1, wherein the ablation element comprises a penetrating energy delivery element.
11. The instrument of claim 10, wherein the energy delivering element further comprises a light transmitting optical fiber adapted to receive ablative light from a light source and a light emitting tip at a distal end of the fiber for emitting diffuse light.
12. The instrument of claim 11, wherein the light delivering element further comprises a light transmitting optical fiber adapted to receive ablative light from a light source and a light emitting tip at a distal end of the fiber for emitting defocused light.
13. The ablation instrument of claim 12, wherein the housing has a curved distal portion with at least one lumen therein and the light delivering element is disposable within the lumen of the curved portion for delivering ablative light to form a curvilinear lesion at a target tissue site adjacent to the housing.
14. The instrument of claim 12, wherein the light delivering element is slidably disposed within the inner lumen of the housing and the instrument further comprises a translatory mechanism for disposing the tip of the light delivering element at one or more of a plurality of locations with the housing.
15. The instrument of claim 12, wherein the light emitting tip comprises: a hollow tube having a proximal end joined to the light transmitting optical fiber, a closed distal end, and an inner space defining a chamber therebetween; and a light scattering medium disposed within the chamber to distribute light propagating through the fiber through the transmissive region of the housing toward a target site in an elongated pattern.
16. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the light scattering medium comprises a polymeric or liquid material having light scattering particles incorporated therein.
17. The instrument of claim 16, wherein the light scattering particles are chosen from the group consisting of alumina, silica, and titania compounds and mixtures thereof.
18. The instrument of claim 15, wherein the distal end of the tube includes a reflective end such that the scattering medium and the reflective end interact to provide a substantially uniform axial distribution of light over the length of the housing.
19. The instrument of claim 12, wherein the light emitting tip further comprises at least one reflector for directing the light through the transmissive region of the housing toward a target site.
20. The instrument of claim 12, wherein the light emitting tip further comprises at least one defocusing lens for distributing the light in a pattern.
21. The instrument of claim 12, wherein the light emitting tip further comprises at least one longitudinal optical element such that the light distributed by the tip is confined to desired angular distribution.
22. The instrument of claim 12, wherein the instrument further comprises a light source for generating photoablative radiation at a desired wavelength ranging from about 800 nm to about 1000 nm
23. The instrument of claim 12, wherein the instrument further comprises a light source for generating photoablative radiation at a desired wavelength ranging from about 915 nm to about 980 nm.
24. The instrument of claim 12, wherein the instrument further comprises a light source for generating photoablative radiation at a wavelength of about 915 nm.
26. A method of ablating cardiac tissue, comprising: positioning a distal end of a photoablation instrument in proximity to a target region of cardiac tissue, the instrument having a hollow housing and a malleable distal portion; activating an ablation element in the distal portion to ablate tissue at the target region.
27. The method of claim 26, wherein the method further comprises bending the distal portion into a desired shape prior to activation of the ablation element.
28. The method of claim 26, wherein the distal portion of the instrument has an open loop shape and the method further comprises placing the loop around at least one a pulmonary vein.
29. The method of claim 26, wherein the distal end of the instrument is malleable and the method further comprises shaping the distal end into a loop having a diameter between about 10 and 50 mm.
30. The method of claim 26, wherein the method further comprises: repeating the steps of positioning and exposing until a composite lesion of a desired shape is formed.
31. The method of claim 30, wherein the instrument is curved and the method further comprises forming a curvilinear lesion.
32. The method of claim 26, wherein the step of activating an ablative element further comprises activating an ablative element chosen from the group consisting of resistive electrical heating elements, cryogenic cooling elements, acoustic energy generating elements, microwave generating elements, ablative fluid releasing elements and light emitting elements.
33. The method of claim 32, wherein the step of activating an ablative element fuirther comprises activating a light emitting element.
34. The method of claim 32, wherein the step of activating an ablative element further comprises activating a light emitting element to distribute radiation in a pattern.
35. The method of claim 34, wherein the method further comprises distributing the photoablative radiation in an elongated pattern.
36. The method of claim 34, wherein the method further comprises generating photoablative radiation at a desired wavelength ranging from about 800 nm to about 1000 nm.
37. The method of claim 34, wherein the method further comprises generating photoablative radiation at a desired wavelength ranging from about 915 nm to about 980 nm.
38. The method of claim 34, wherein the method further comprises generating photoablative radiation at a wavelength of about 915 nm.
[0001] This application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/924,393, filed on Aug. 7, 2001, which is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/616,777, filed on Jul. 14, 2000, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,558,375. This application is also a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/382,615, filed on Aug. 25, 1999.
[0002] The present invention relates to surgical ablation instruments for ablation of tissue for the treatment of diseases and, in particular, to surgical instruments employing penetrating energy. Methods of ablating tissue using penetrating energy are also disclosed. The instruments can be used, for example, in the treatment of cardiac conditions such as cardiac arrhythmias.
[0003] Cardiac arrhythmias, e.g., fibrillation, are irregularities in the normal beating pattern of the heart and can originate in either the atria or the ventricles. For example, atrial fibrillation is a form of arrhythmia characterized by rapid randomized contractions of the atrial myocardium, causing an irregular, often rapid ventricular rate. The regular pumping function of the atria is replaced by a disorganized, ineffective quivering as a result of chaotic conduction of electrical signals through the upper chambers of the heart. Atrial fibrillation is often associated with other forms of cardiovascular disease, including congestive heart failure, rheumatic heart disease, coronary artery disease, left ventricular hypertrophy, cardiomyopathy or hypertension.
[0004] Various surgical techniques have been proposed for the treatment of arrhythmia. Although these procedures were originally performed with a scalpel, these techniques may also use ablation (also referred to as coagulation) wherein the tissue is treated, generally with heat or cold, to cause tissue necrosis (i.e., cell destruction). The destroyed muscle cells are replaced with scar tissue which cannot conduct normal electrical activity within the heart.
[0005] For example, the pulmonary vein has been identified as one of the origins of errant electrical signals responsible for triggering atrial fibrillation. In one known approach, circumferential ablation of tissue within the pulmonary veins or at the ostia of such veins has been practiced to treat atrial fibrillation. Similarly, ablation of the region surrounding the pulmonary veins as a group has also been proposed. By ablating the heart tissue (typically in the form of linear or curved lesions) at selected locations, electrical conductivity from one segment to another can be blocked and the resulting segments become too small to sustain the fibrillatory process on their own. Ablation procedures are often performed during coronary artery bypass and mitral valve replacement operations because of a heightened risk of arrhythmias in such patients and the opportunity that such surgery presents for direct access to the heart.
[0006] Several types of ablation devices have recently been proposed for creating lesions to treat cardiac arrhythmias, including devices which employ electrical current (e.g., radio-frequency "RF") heating or cryogenic cooling. Such ablation devices have been proposed to create elongated lesions that extend through a sufficient thickness of the myocardium to block electrical conduction.
[0007] These devices, however, are not without their drawbacks. When cardiac surgery is performed "on pump," the amount of time necessary to form a lesion becomes a critical factor. Because these devices rely upon resistive and conductive heating (or cooling), they must be placed in direct contact with the heart and such contact must be maintained for a considerable period of time to form a lesion that extends through the entire thickness of the heart muscle. The total length of time to form the necessary lesions can be excessive. This is particularly problematic for procedures that are performed upon a "beating heart" patient. In such cases, the heart itself continues to beat and, hence, is filled with blood, thus providing a heat sink (or reservoir) that works against conductive and/or resistive ablation devices. As "beating heart" procedures become more commonplace (in order to avoid the problems associated with arresting a patient's heart and placing the patient on a pump), the need for better ablation devices will continue to grow.
[0008] Moreover, devices that rely upon resistive or conductive heat transfer can be prone to serious post-operative complications. In order to quickly perform an ablation with such "contact" devices, a significant amount of energy must be applied directly to the target tissue site. In order to achieve transmural penetration, the surface that is contacted will experience a greater degree of heating (or freezing). For example, in RF heating of the heart wall, a transmural lesion requires that the tissue temperature be raised to about 50° C. throughout the thickness of the wall. To achieve this, the contact surface will typically be raised to at least 80° C. Charring of the surface of the heart tissue can lead to the creation of blood clots on the surface which can lead to post-operative complications, including stroke. Even if structural damage is avoided, the extent of the lesion (i.e., the width of the ablated zone) on the surface that has been contacted will typically be greater than necessary.
[0009] Ablation devices that do not require direct contact have also been proposed, including acoustic and radiant energy. Acoustic energy (e.g., ultrasound) is poorly transmitted into tissue (unless a coupling fluid is interposed). Laser energy has also been proposed but only in the context of devices that focus light into spots or other patterns. When the light energy is delivered in the form of a focused spot, the process is inherently time consuming because of the need to expose numerous spots to form a continuous linear or curved lesion.
[0010] In addition, existing instruments for cardiac ablation also suffer from a variety of design limitations. The shape of the heart muscle adds to the difficulty in accessing cardiac structures, such as the pulmonary veins on the anterior surface of the heart.
[0011] Accordingly, there exists a need for better surgical ablation instruments that can form lesions with minimal overheating and/or damage to collateral tissue. Moreover, instruments that are capable of creating lesions uniformly, rapidly and efficiently would satisfy a significant need in the art.
[0012] Surgical ablation instruments are disclosed for creating lesions in tissue, especially cardiac tissue for treatment of arrhythmias and the like. The hand held instruments are especially useful in open chest or port access cardiac surgery for rapid and efficient creation of curvilinear lesions to serve as conduction blocks. The instruments can be applied to form either endocardial or epicardial ablations, and are designed to create lesions in the atrial tissue in order to electrically decouple tissue segments on opposite sides of the lesion.
[0013] In one aspect of the invention, surgical ablation instruments are disclosed that are well adapted for use in or around the intricate structures of the heart. In one embodiment, the distal end of the instrument can have a malleable shape so as to conform to the surgical space in which the instrument is used. The instruments can include at least one malleable strip element disposed within the distal end of the instrument body or housing so that the distal end can be conformed into a desired shape. In addition, the instruments can also include a clasp to form a closed loop after encircling a target site, such as the pulmonary veins. Such instruments can be used not only with penetrating energy devices but also with other ablation means, such as RF heating, cryogenic cooling, ultrasound, microwave, ablative fluid injection and the like.
[0014] In another aspect of the invention, hand-held and percutaneous instruments are disclosed that can achieve rapid and effective photoablation through the use of penetrating radiation, especially distributed radiant energy. It has been discovered that penetrating energy, e.g., microwave or diffused infrared radiation, can create lesions in less time and with less risk of the adverse types of tissue destruction commonly associated with prior art approaches. Unlike instruments that rely on thermal conduction or resistive heating, controlled penetrating radiant energy can be used to simultaneously deposit energy throughout the full thickness of a target tissue, such as a heart wall, even when the heart is filled with blood. Distributed radiant energy can also produce better defined and more uniform lesions.
[0015] It has also been discovered that infrared radiation is particularly useful in forming photoablative lesions. In one preferred embodiment, the instruments emit radiation at a wavelength in a range from about 800 nm to about 1000 nm, and preferably emit at a wavelength in a range of about 915 nm to about 980 nm. Radiation at a wavelength of 915 nm or 980 nm is commonly preferred in some applications because of the optimal absorption of infrared radiation by cardiac tissue at these wavelengths. In the case of ablative radiation that is directed towards the epicardial surface, light at a wavelength about 915 nm can be particularly preferably.
[0016] In yet another aspect of the invention, surgical ablation instruments are disclosed having a housing with at least one lumen therein and having a distal portion that is at least partially transmissive to photoablative radiation. The instruments further include a light delivery element within the lumen of the housing that is adapted to receive radiation from a source and deliver radiant energy through a transmissive region of the housing to a target tissue site. The radiant energy is delivered without the need for contact between the light emitting element and the target tissue because the instruments of the present invention do not rely upon conductive or resistive heating.
[0017] The light delivering element can be a light transmitting optical fiber adapted to receive ablative radiation from a radiation source and a light emitting tip at a distal end of the fiber for emitting diffuse or defocused radiation. The light delivering element can be slidably disposed within the inner lumen of the housing and the instrument can further include a translatory mechanism for disposing the tip of the light delivering element at one or more of a plurality of locations with the housing. Optionally, a lubricating fluid can be disposable between the light delivery element and the housing. This fluid can be a physiologically compatible fluid, such as saline, and the fluid can also be used for cooling the light emitting element or for irrigation via one or more exit ports in the housing.
[0018] The light emitting tip can include a hollow tube having a proximal end joined to the light transmitting optical fiber, a closed distal end, and an inner space defining a chamber therebetween. The light scattering medium disposed within the chamber can be a polymeric or liquid material having light scattering particles, such as alumina, silica, or titania compounds or mixtures thereof, incorporated therein. The distal end of the tube can include a reflective end and, optionally, the scattering medium and the reflective end can interact to provide a substantially uniform axial distribution of radiation over the length of the housing.
[0019] Alternatively, the light emitting tip can include at least one reflector for directing the radiation through the transmissive region of the housing toward a target site and, optionally, can further include a plurality of reflectors and/or at least one defocusing lens for distributing the radiation in an elongated pattern.
[0020] The light emitting tip can further include at least one longitudinal reflector or similar optical element such that the radiation distributed by the tip is confined to a desired angular distribution.
[0021] The hand held instruments can include a handle incorporated into the housing. An inner lumen can extend through the handle to received the light delivering element. The distal end of the instrument can be resiliently deformable or malleable to allow the shape of the ablation element to be adjusted based on the intended use.
[0022] In one embodiment, a hand held cardiac ablation instrument is provided having a housing with a curved shape and at least one lumen therein. A light delivering element is disposable within the lumen of the housing for delivering ablative radiation to form a curved lesion at a target tissue site adjacent to the housing.
[0023] In another aspect of the invention, the light delivering element can be slidably disposed within the inner lumen of the housing, and can include a light transmitting optical fiber adapted to receive ablative radiation from a radiation source and a light diffusing tip at a distal end of the fiber for emitting radiation. The instrument can optionally include a handle joined to the housing and having an inner lumen though which the light delivering element can pass from the radiation source to the housing.
[0024] In another aspect of the present invention, the light diffusing tip can include a tube having a proximal end mated to the light transmitting optical fiber, a closed distal end, and an inner chamber defined therebetween. A light scattering medium is disposed within the inner chamber of the tube. The distal end of the tube can include a reflective end surface, such as a mirror or gold coated surface. The tube can also include a curved, longitudinally-extending reflector that directs the radiant energy towards the target ablation site. The reflective surfaces and the light scattering medium interact to provide a substantially uniform axial distribution of radiation of the length of the housing.
[0025] In other aspects of the present invention, a hand held cardiac ablation instrument is provided having a slidably disposed light transmitting optical fiber, a housing in the shape of an open loop and having a first end adapted to receive the slidably disposed light transmitting optical fiber, and at least one diffuser chamber coupled to the fiber and disposed within the housing. The diffuser chamber can include a light scattering medium disposed within the housing and coupled to the slidably disposed light transmitting optical fiber.
[0026] The present invention also provides methods for ablating cardiac tissue. One method of ablating cardiac tissue, comprises positioning a distal end of a photoablation instrument in proximity to a target region of cardiac tissue, the instrument having a hollow housing and a light delivering element coupled to a source of photoablative radiation and disposed within the distal end, the distal end being transmissive to a selected wavelength of ablative radiation and curved to permit the distribution of radiation by the light emitting element in an elongated arcuate pattern; activating the light emitting element to transmit radiant energy through the housing to expose the target region and induce an curvilinear lesion; and, optionally, repeating the steps of positioning and exposing until a composite lesion of a desired shape is formed.
[0027] In another method, a device is provided having a light delivering element coupled to a source of photoablative radiation and configured in a curved shape to emit an arcuate pattern of radiation. The device is positioned in proximity to a target region of cardiac tissue, and applied to induce a curvilinear lesion. The device is then moved to a second position and reapplied to induce a second curvilinear lesion. The steps of positioning and reapplying can be repeated until the lesions are<|fim_middle|> position, as shown in FIG. 5, and the laser energy source 50 is activated to transmit light. The first lesion is preferably about 4 cm in length, as determined by the length of the light diffusing tip 36. Since the distance around the pulmonary veins is about 10 cm, the light delivering element 32 is moved forward about 4 cm to a second position 60, shown in phantom in FIG. 5, and the tissue is ablated to create a second lesion. The procedure is repeated two more times, positioning the light delivering element 32 in a third position 62 and a fourth position 64. The four lesions together can form a lesion 48 around the pulmonary veins, for example.
[0064] In another aspect of the invention, the instruments of the present invention are particularly useful in forming lesions around the pulmonary veins by directing radiation towards the epicardial surface of the heart and the loop configuration of distal end portion of the instruments facilitates such use. It has been known for some time that pulmonary veins can be the source of errant electrical signals and various clinicians have proposed forming conduction blocks by encircling one or more of the pulmonary veins with lesions. As shown in FIG. 6, the instrument 10 of the present invention is well suited for such ablation procedures. Because the pulmonary veins are located at the anterior of the heart muscle, they are difficult to access, even during open chest surgery. An open loop distal end is thus provided to encircle the pulmonary veins. The open loop can then be closed (or cinched tight) by a clasp, as shown. (The clasp can also take the form of suture and the distal end of the instrument can include one or more holes to receive such sutures as shown in FIG. 2.) The longitudinal reflector structures described above also facilitate such epicardial procedures by ensuring that the light from the light emitting element is directed towards the heart and not towards the lungs or other adjacent structures.
[0065] Endocardial applications, on the other hand, are typically performed during a valve replacement procedure which involves opening the chest to expose the heart muscle. The valve is first removed, and then the hand held cardiac ablation instrument 10 according to the present invention is positioned inside the heart as shown in FIG. 7. In another approach the instrument 10 can be inserted through an access port as shown in FIG. 8. The ablation element 20 can be shaped to form the desired lesion, and then positioned at the atrial wall around the ostia of one or more of the pulmonary veins. Once shaped and positioned, the laser energy source 50 is activated to ablate a first portion of tissue. The light delivering element 32 can then be slidably moved, as described above with respect to the epicardial application, or alternatively, the entire device can be rotated to a second position to form a second lesion.
[0066] The term "penetrating energy" as used herein is intended to encompass energy sources that do not rely primarily on conductive or convective heat transfer. Such sources include, but are not limited to, acoustic and electromagnetic radiation sources and, more specifically, include microwave, x-ray, gamma-ray, and radiant light sources.
[0067] The term "curvilinear," including derivatives thereof, is herein intended to mean a path or line which forms an outer border or perimeter that either partially or completely surrounds a region of tissue, or separate one region of tissue from another. Further, a "circumferential" path or element may include one or more of several shapes, and may be for example, circular, annular, oblong, ovular, elliptical, or toroidal. The term "clasp" is intended to encompass various types of fastening mechanisms including sutures and magnetic connectors as well as mechanical devices. The term "light" is intended to encompass radiant energy, whether or not visible, including ultraviolet, visible and infrared radiation.
[0068] The term "lumen," including derivatives thereof, is herein intended to mean any cavity or lumen within the body which is defined at least in part by a tissue wall. For example, cardiac chambers, the uterus, the regions of the gastrointestinal tract, the urinary tract, and the arterial or venous vessels are all considered illustrative examples of body spaces within the intended meaning.
[0069] The term "catheter" as used herein is intended to encompass any hollow instrument capable of penetrating body tissue or interstitial cavities and providing a conduit for selectively injecting a solution or gas, including without limitation, venous and arterial conduits of various sizes and shapes, bronchioscopes, endoscopes, cystoscopes, culpascopes, colonscopes, trocars, laparoscopes and the like. Catheters of the present invention can be constructed with biocompatible materials known to those skilled in the art such as those listed supra, e.g., silastic, polyethylene, Teflon, polyurethanes, etc.
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Next Patent: Surgical needle with laser target | joined together to create a composite lesion (e.g., a closed loop encircling one or more cardiac structures).
[0028] In another embodiment, methods of ablating cardiac tissue are provided. A device is provided having a housing in the shape of a hollow ring or partial ring having at least one lumen therein and at least one open end, and a light delivering element slidably disposed within the lumen of the housing for delivering ablative radiation to form a circular lesion at a target region adjacent the housing. The methods include the steps of positioning the device in proximity to the target region of cardiac tissue, applying the device to the target region to induce a curvilinear lesion, advancing the light delivering element to a second position, reapplying the device to the target region to induce a second curvilinear lesion, and repeating the steps of advancing and applying until the lesions are joined together to create a composite circumferential lesion.
[0029] The invention will be more fully understood from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which like reference numerals designate like parts throughout the figures, and wherein:
[0030] FIG. 1 is a schematic, perspective view of a hand held surgical ablation instrument in accordance with this invention;
[0031] FIG. 1A is a partially cross-sectional view of the hand held surgical ablation instrument of FIG. 1;
[0032] FIG. 2 is a schematic, perspective view of another embodiment of a hand held surgical ablation instrument in accordance with this invention;
[0034] FIG. 3 is a schematic, side perspective view of a tip portion of an ablation instrument in accordance with this invention illustrating a light delivery element;
[0035] FIG. 3A is a schematic, side perspective view of a tip portion of another ablation instrument in accordance with this invention;
[0036] FIG. 4 is a schematic, cross sectional view of the light delivery element of FIG. 3;
[0037] FIG. 4A is a schematic, cross sectional view of another embodiment of a light delivery element;
[0038] FIG. 4B is a schematic, cross sectional view of another embodiment of a light delivery element surrounded by a malleable housing;
[0039] FIG. 5 is a schematic, cross sectional top view of a surgical ablation element of according to the invention, illustrating the different ablating positions of the light delivering element;
[0040] FIG. 6 is a schematic, perspective view of a human heart and an instrument according to the invention, showing one technique for creating epicardial lesions;
[0041] FIG. 7 is a schematic, perspective view of a human heart and an instrument according to the invention, showing one technique for creating endocardial lesions; and
[0042] FIG. 8 is a schematic, perspective view of a human heart and an instrument according to the invention, showing another technique for creating endocardial lesions.
[0043] The present invention provides a hand held cardiac ablation instrument that is useful, for example, for treating patients with atrial arrhythmia. As shown in FIG. 1, the hand held ablation instrument 10 generally includes a handle 12 having a proximal end 14 and a distal end 16, an ablation element 20 mated to or extending distally from the distal end 16 of the handle 12, and an energy source 50. The energy source 50 can be a source, for example, of electromagnetic radiation, e.g., coherent light, which can be efficiently and uniformly distributed to the target site while avoiding harm or damage to surrounding tissue. In one use, the instrument can be employed to perform cardiac ablations and can be applied either endocardially or epicardially, and is effective to uniformly irradiate a target ablation site.
[0044] The handle 12 of the cardiac ablation instrument 10 is effective for manually placing the ablation element 20 proximate to a target tissue site. While the handle 12 can have a variety of shapes and sizes, preferably the handle is generally elongate with at least one inner lumen extending therethrough. The proximal end 14 of the handle 12 is adapted for coupling with a source of phototherapeutic radiation, i.e. a laser energy source 50, and the distal end of the handle 16 is mated to or formed integrally with the ablation element 20. In a preferred embodiment, the handle 12 is positioned substantially coaxially with the center of the ablation element 20. The handle 14 can optionally include an on-off switch 18 for activating the laser energy source 50.
[0045] One circumferential ablation element 20 is shown in more detail in FIG. 1A, and includes an outer housing 22 having an inner lumen extending therethrough, and a light delivering element 32 disposed within the inner lumen of the outer housing 22. The outer housing 22 can be flexible, and is preferably malleable to allow the shape of the outer housing 22 to be adapted based on the intended use. As shown in FIG. 2, the outer housing 22 can be in the shape of a hollow ring (or partial ring) forming an opening loop having leading and trailing ends 24, 26. The open loop-shape allows the circumferential ablation element 20 to be positioned around one or more pulmonary veins. While an open loop shape is illustrated, the outer housing 22 can also be formed or positioned to create linear or other shaped lesions.
[0046] The housing can be made from a variety of materials including polymeric, electrically nonconductive material, like polyethylene or polyurethane, which can withstand tissue coagulation temperatures without melting. Preferably, the housing is made of Teflon® tubes and/or coatings. The use of Teflon® improves the procedures by avoiding the problem of fusion or contact-adhesion between the ablation element 12 and the cardiac tissue during usage. While the use of Teflon® avoids the problem of fusion or contact-adhesion, the hand held cardiac ablation instrument 10 does not require direct contact with the tissue to effect a therapeutic or prophylactic treatment.
[0047] The outer housing 22 can optionally include a connecting element for forming a closed-loop circumferential ablation element 20. By non-limiting example, FIG. 1A illustrates a connecting element 30 extending from the leading, distal end 24 of the outer housing 22. The connecting element 30 has a substantially U-shape and is adapted for mating with the trailing end 26 of the outer housing 22 or the distal end 16 of the handle 12. The connecting element 30 can optionally be adapted to allow the size of the circumferential ablation element 20 to be adjusted once positioned around the pulmonary veins. For example, the connecting element 30 can be positioned around the trailing end 26 of the outer housing 22 after the circumferential ablation element 20 is looped around the pulmonary veins, and the handle 12 can then be pulled to cause the ablation element 20 to tighten around the pulmonary veins. While FIG. 1A illustrates a U-shaped connecting element, a person having ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that a variety of different connecting elements or clasps 30 can be used such as, for example, a hook, a cord, a snap, or other similar connecting device.
[0048] The light delivering element 32 which is disposed within the outer housing 22 includes a light transmitting optical fiber 34 and a light diffusing tip 36. The light transmitting optical fiber 34 is effective for delivering radiant energy from the laser energy source 50 to the light diffusing tip 36, wherein the laser energy is diffused throughout the tip 36 and delivered to the target ablation site. The light delivering element 32 can be slidably disposed within the outer housing to allow the light diffusing tip 36 to be positioned with respect to the target ablation site. A lever 52 or similar mechanism can be provided for slidably moving the light delivering element 32 with respect to the handle 12. As shown in FIG. 1A, the lever 52 can be mated to the light delivering element 32 and can protrude from a distally extending slot 54 formed in the handle 12. Markings can also be provided on the handle for determining the distance moved and the length of the lesion formed. A person having ordinary skill in the art will readily appreciate that a variety of different mechanisms can be employed to slidably move the light delivering element 32 with respect to the handle 12.
[0049] Another embodiment of the surgical ablation instrument 10A is shown in FIG. 2, where a rotatable lever 82 can be used to control the positioning of a light delivery element in the distal tip of the instrument. The lever 82 turns a translatory mechanism 80, as shown in more detail in FIG. 2A. In this embodiment, a portion 84 of the handle is separated from the rest of the housing 88 such that it can rotate, and preferably is sealed by O-rings 90 and 91, or the like. The rotatable segment 84 has internal screw threads 92. Within this segment of the handle, the light delivering fiber 32 is joined to a jacket 93 that has an external screw thread 94. The threads 94 of jacket 93 mate with the threads 92 of rotatable segment 84. The lever 82 is affixed to rotatable segment 84 (e.g., by set screw 86) such that rotation of knob 82 causes longitudinal movement of the fiber 32 relative to the housing 88.
[0050] The inner lumen of the outer housing 22 in FIGS. 1 and 2 can optionally contain a lubricating and/or irrigating fluid to assist the light delivering element 32 as it is slidably movable within the outer housing 22. The fluid can also cool the light delivering element 32 during delivery of ablative energy. Fluid can be introduced using techniques known in the art, but is preferably introduced through a port and lumen formed in the handle. The distal end 24 of the outer housing 22 can include a fluid outflow port 28 for allowing fluid to flow therethrough.
[0051] As shown in FIG. 3, the fluid travels between the light delivering element 32 toward the leading, distal end 26 of the outer housing 22 and exits the fluid outflow port 28. Since the port 28 is positioned on the distal end 26 of the outer housing 22, the fluid does not interfere with the ablation procedure. Suitable cooling and/or lubricating fluids include, for example, water and silicone. While FIG. 3 illustrates the fluid outflow port 28 disposed on the distal end 24 of the outer housing 22, a person having ordinary skill in the art will readily appreciate that the fluid outflow port 28 can be disposed anywhere along the length of the outer housing 22.
[0052] In FIG. 3A another embodiment of a light delivery element according to the invention is shown. As illustrated, fiber 34 terminates in a series of partially reflective elements 35A-35G. (It should be appreciated that the number of reflective elements can vary depending on the application and the choice of six is merely for illustration.) The transmissivity of the various segments can be controlled such that, for example, segment 35A is less reflective than segment 35B, which in turn is less reflective than 35C, etc., in order to achieve uniform diffusion of the light. The reflective elements of FIG. 3A can also be replaced, or augmented, by a series of light scattering elements having similar progressive properties. FIG. 3A also illustrates another arrangement of exit ports 28 in housing 22 for fluid, whereby the fluid can be used to irrigate the target site.
[0053] With reference again to FIG. 3, the light transmitting optical fiber 34 generally includes an optically transmissive core surrounded by a cladding and a buffer coating (not shown). The optical fiber 34 should be flexible to allow the fiber 34 to be slidably moved with respect to the handle 12. In use, the light transmitting optical fiber 34 conducts light energy in the form of ultraviolet light, infrared radiation, or coherent light, e.g., laser light. The fiber 34 can be formed from glass, quartz, polymeric materials, or other similar materials which conduct light energy.
[0054] The light diffusing tip 36 extends distally from the optical fiber 34 and is formed from a transmissive tube 38 having a light scattering medium 40 disposed therein. For additional details on construction of light diffusing elements, see, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,908,415, issued on Jun. 1, 1999.
[0055] The scattering medium 40 disposed within the light diffusing tip 36 can be formed from a variety of materials, and preferably includes light scattering particles. The refractive index of the scattering medium 40 is preferably greater than the refractive index of the housing 22. In use, light propagating through the optical fiber 34 is transmitted through the light diffusing tip 36 into the scattering medium 40. The light is scattered in a cylindrical pattern along the length of the light diffusing tip 36 and, each time the light encounters a scattering particle, it is deflected. At some point, the net deflection exceeds the critical angle for internal reflection at the interface between the housing 22. and the scattering medium 40, and the light exits the housing 22 to ablate the tissue.
[0056] Preferred scattering medium 40 includes polymeric material, such as silicone, epoxy, or other suitable liquids. The light scattering particles can be formed from, for example, alumina, silica, or titania compounds, or mixtures thereof. Preferably, the light diffusing tip 36 is completely filled with the scattering medium 40 to avoid entrapment of air bubbles.
[0057] As shown in more detail in FIG. 3, the light diffusing tip 36 can optionally include a reflective end 42 and/or a reflective coating 44 extending along a length of one side of the light diffusing tip 36 such that the coating is substantially diametrically opposed to the target ablation site. The reflective end 42 and the reflective coating 44 interact to provide a substantially uniform distribution of light throughout the light diffusing tip 36. The reflective end 42 and the reflective coating 44 can be formed from, for example, a mirror or gold coated surface. While FIG. 3 illustrates the coating extending along one side of the length of the diffusing tip 36, a person having ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the light diffusing tip 36 can be coated at different locations relative to the target ablation site. For example, the reflective coating 44 can be applied over 50% of the entire diameter of the light diffusing tip 36 to concentrate the reflected light toward a particular target tissue site, thereby forming a lesion having a relatively narrow width.
[0058] In one use, the hand held ablation instrument 10 is coupled to a source of phototherapeutic radiation 50 and can be positioned within a patient's body either endocardially or epicardially to ablate the tissue. The radiation source is activated to transmit light through the optical fiber 34 to the light diffusing tip 36, wherein the light is scattered in a circular pattern along the length of the tip 36. The tube 38 and the reflective end 42 interact to provide a substantially uniform distribution of light throughout the tip 36. When a mirrored end cap 42 is employed, light propagating through the light diffusing tip 36 will be at least partially scattered before it reaches the mirror 42. When the light reaches the mirror 42, it is then reflected by the mirror 42 and returned through the tip 36. During the second pass, the remaining radiation encounters the scattering medium 40 which provides further diffusion of the light.
[0059] When a reflective coating or longitudinally disposed reflector 44 is used, as illustrated in FIG. 4, the light 58 emitted by the diffusing tip 36 will reflected toward the target ablation site 56 to ensure that a uniform lesion 48 is created. The reflective coating or element 44 is particularly effective to focus or direct the light 58 toward the target ablation site 56, thereby preventing the light 58 from passing through the housing 22 around the entire circumference of the housing 22.
[0060] In another embodiment as illustrated in FIG. 4A, the light emitting element can further include a longitudinally extended lens element 45, such that light scattered by the scattering medium 40 is not only reflected by reflector 44 but also confined to a narrow angle.
[0061] In yet another embodiment of the invention, illustrated in FIG. 4B, the housing 22 that surrounds the light delivery element includes or surrounds a malleable element 47, e.g., a soft metal bar or strip such that the clinician can form the distal end of the instrument into a desired shape prior to use. Although the malleable element 47 is shown embedded in the housing 22, it should be clear that it can also be incorporated into the light delivery element (e.g., as part of the longitudinally extended reflector) or be distinct from both the housing and the light emitter.
[0062] Although illustrated in the context of light delivering surgical instruments, the malleable structures disclosed herein are equally adaptable for use with other sources of ablative energy, such as such as RF heating, cryogenic cooling, ultrasound, microwave, ablative fluid injection and the like. RF Heating devices, for example, are described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,690,611 issued to Swartz et al. and herein incorporated by reference. Cryogenic devices are similarly described, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 6,161,543 issued to Cox et al. and herein incorporated by reference.
[0063] Epicardial ablation is typically performed during a by-pass procedure, which involves opening the patient's chest cavity to access the heart. The heart can be arrested and placed on a by-pass machine, or the procedure can be performed on a beating heart. The hand held ablation instrument 10 is placed around one or more pulmonary veins, and is preferably placed around all four pulmonary veins. The connecting element 30 can then be attached to the distal end 16 of the handle 12 or the proximal, trailing end 24 of the outer housing 22 to close the open loop. The handle 12 can optionally be pulled to tighten the ablation element 20 around the pulmonary veins. The light delivering element 32 is then moved to a first | 4,278 |
Death of The Animal
In case you missed the<|fim_middle|> and warmhearted. You saw him and smiled.
I've met a fair number of wrestlers who wrestled, did drugs, ate a lot, chased women—then died. That wasn't Steele. He played the Swedish wrestler "Tor Johnson" in "Ed Wood." He was, pre-injury, a lineman at Michigan State. He battled dyslexia and, later, Crohn's Disease. He was a devout Christian who attended church weekly. He was a father of three. The punk bank Half Japanese wrote a song about him.
He was 79 at his passing. | news, George "The Animal" Steele died yesterday.
In case you missed the news because you don't know who George "The Animal" Steele was—he was a wrestler.
But that's far too simple.
Steele (real name: Jim Myers) was a masterful performer; perhaps the best the ol' WWF once had. In the ring, he was this grunting, mumbling buffoon. Hairy, scary, a bit deranged. Athletically limited, but a dazzling character. Outside the ring, he worked as a teacher and coach at Madison High School in Madison, Wisconsin. He actually earned a master's degree from Central Michigan University, and was inducted into the Michigan Coaches Hall of Fame.
Steele was hairy, and bald, and big. Really big. You saw him and shuddered.
He was also gentle, and kind, | 180 |
Home » Blog » Tech Trends » Firefox Reality Launches on the Oculus Quest
Firefox Reality Launches on the Oculus Quest
by Alice | posted in: Tech Trends |
Browsing the web is about to get a whole lot more immersive.
"Mozilla has taken advantage of the Quest's higher performance capabilities to deliver the best VR web browsing experience to date," says Janice Von Itter, Staff Program Manager at Mozilla.
This follows from the release of the Firefox Reality browser for other <|fim_middle|> Tweet
The burden of due diligence, according to the Mozilla ethos, needs to shift from the consumers to the companies whereby the complexity of privacy settings shouldn't be placed on users to figure out. The approach taken by Firefox is beautifully simple: align your product with customer expectations rather than the other way around. They are now rolling out enhanced tracking protection on the browser, so that new and existing Firefox users will have much stronger privacy protection on their default settings from the moment they install. The hope is that by setting a new standard they will force the tech industry at large to also change and put the user's interest first, because, as they put it, "consumers deserve better."
After Cambridge Analytica and other debacles over recent months and years, I don't think many people can disagree with that.
Tech Trends offers a broad range of Digital Consultancy services to guide companies, individuals and brands in effectively leveraging existing and emerging technologies in their business strategy.
Alice Bonasio is a VR and Digital Transformation Consultant and Tech Trends' Editor in Chief. She also regularly writes for Fast Company, Ars Technica, Quartz, Wired and others. Connect with her on LinkedIn and follow @alicebonasio on Twitter.
AR, Augmented Reality, Data, data privacy, Data Protection, Firefox, Mixed Reality, mozilla, Tech Trends, Technology, Tracking, Virtual Reality, VR, Web Browsing
Building the Metaverse Community
By Caspar Thykier, Co-founder and CEO of Zappar It's been a week now since the... | 6DoF (Six Degrees of Freedom) headsets including the HTC Vive Focus Plus and Lenovo Mirage.
Firefox Reality is available in 10 different languages, including Japanese, Korean, Simplified Chinese and Traditional Chinese, with more on the way Click To Tweet
Firefox Reality is available in 10 different languages, including Japanese, Korean, Simplified Chinese and Traditional Chinese, with more on the way. Voice search is also enabled to make browsing faster and easier.
Voice search is also enabled to make browsing faster and easier Click To Tweet
Whether you're watching immersive video or meeting up with friends in Mozilla Hubs, Firefox Reality takes advantage of the Oculus Quest's boost in performance and capabilities to deliver the best VR web browsing experience.
You can now try the new featured content on the FxR home page or build your own to see what you can do in the next generation of standalone virtual reality headsets.
Firefox Reality takes advantage of the Oculus Quest's boost in performance to deliver the best VR web browsing experience Click To Tweet
Like all Firefox browser products, Firefox Reality is available for free and users can get it now from the Oculus Quest store. In the coming months Firefox will also be rolling out support for the nearly VR-ready WebXR specification, multi-window browsing, bookmarks sync, additional language support and other exciting new features.
Like all Firefox browser products, Firefox Reality is available for free Click To Tweet
Enhanced Tracking Protection on the Firefox Reality browser automatically blocks sites from tracking you, and the icing on the cake is that all these protections work unobtrusively in the background and actually make the browsing experience faster.
"To protect our users from the pervasive tracking and collection of personal data by ad networks and tech companies, Firefox Reality has Enhanced Tracking Protection enabled by default. We strongly believe privacy shouldn't be relegated to optional settings," says Von Itter.
This is part of a broader move by the company to make all of its browser versions much more privacy (and user) friendly and set a new standard for the industry where it come to protecting our data Click To Tweet
"What if I told you that on nearly every single website you visit, data about you was transmitted to dozens or even hundreds of companies, all so that the website could earn an additional $0.00008 per ad!" asks Peter Dolanjski. Product Lead, Privacy & Security at Firefox, who says their research has shown that Firefox users are seeking out privacy protection, particularly through the use of Firefox's Private Browsing mode. In fact, nearly 25% of web page loads in Firefox take place in a Private Browsing window. The good news for these users is that Firefox's Private Browsing mode has long put users first by blocking tracking. Yet privacy features such as Chrome's Incognito mode do not actually prevent third-party tracking, and a recent study found that users don't understand this and think their data is being protected, when it is, in fact, anything but.
The hope is that by setting a new standard they will force the tech industry at large to also change and put the user's interest first Click To Tweet
This approach will not come as a surprise to anybody familiar with Mozilla. A while back Tech Trends covered a story about The Glass Room – Mozilla's Black Mirror-like installation in London – which used a range of creative installations to force users to confront their complex relationship wth data, privacy and identity, and to open their eyes to how closely the companies they interact with are monitoring their every move.
The burden of due diligence, according to the Mozilla ethos, needs to shift from the consumers to the companies Click To | 734 |
Don Jr. & Vanessa Trump's Divorce Will Be Finalized After They Resolve One Major Issue
By Monica Hunter-Hart
Donald Jr. and Vanessa had their first divorce hearing on Thursday and are close to getting the split finalized<|fim_middle|> on their marriage have nothing to do with politics."
Vanessa and Don Jr. married in 2005 at Mar-a-Lago after dating for around two years. At the time of their divorce filing, they had been married for 12 years. The couple has five children together. | . The couple seemed to work out questions of child custody during the hearing, but some additional issues remained. Reports indicate that "financial conflicts" must be resolved before Don Jr. and Vanessa's divorce is finalized.
Norman Heller, Don Jr.'s lawyer, said he hoped that these conflicts could be settled quickly because there were "only a few issues left." State Supreme Court Justice Michael Katz told the couple that he could "help resolve those issues" and "bridge any of those gaps."
It's not clear exactly what the financial conflicts are, but they seem to be the reason that their divorce is listed as contested after originally being uncontested. This label doesn't mean that Don Jr. is trying to stop Vanessa's filing altogether, but rather that they don't yet agree on all of the terms of the split.
It's possible that the disagreement centers on the enormous windfall that Vanessa recently inherited from an investment her late father made in Rao's Speciality Foods. Page Six called the fortune "life changing." In May, a report in The New York Daily News found that Don Jr. was looking into how much money Vanessa was getting from the investment.
Win McNamee/Getty Images News/Getty Images
It's unlikely that he'll have claim to any of the inheritance — as a divorce attorney told PEOPLE, the "money you get from third parties directly is not included in a marital pot" — but that figure is still an important piece of information about Vanessa's assets. The couple's individual net worths will help the court figure out how much they should each pay in child support, for example.
Besides these unresolved financial issues, the divorce appears to be proceeding smoothly. USA Today reports that Don Jr. and Vanessa seemed "relaxed," even smiling several times in court on Thursday, and that Justice Katz praised them for their adept handling of custody concerns.
"I very much would like to commend both of you for working out whatever differences you may have had regarding those issues and committing to co-parenting with each other," said Katz. "You have prioritized your children and taken steps to shield them from what could have been an invasive litigation process. Not everyone is able to do that."
Brian Ach/Getty Images Entertainment/Getty Images
In a joint statement after their split was first announced in March, the couple said: "After 12 years of marriage, we have decided to go our separate ways. We will always have tremendous respect for each other and our families. We have five beautiful children together and they remain our top priority. We ask for your privacy during this time."
The reasons for their split are unclear, but a spokeswoman for Vanessa told Page Six, "Decisions that she and Don have made | 543 |
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At Whole Life Dentistry, we emphasize prevention along with timely, conservative treatments to achieve the results you want. We only recommend the treatments you actually need, and will never perform a service that's not right for you. By focusing<|fim_middle|> advanced technology with our years of experience to deliver the best in dental care throughout the North East Ohio and Cleveland area.
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It's the dental care you deserve, from the experts you trust, at the practice you respect. The doctors and staff at Whole Life Dentistry invite you to contact our office for a consultation and more information about any of our dental services. Your smile and your health are important. Let us help today! | on preventive dentistry, we help ward off bigger dental issues which can become costly if left untreated.
Our dentists have a strong background in the dental industry, which results in experience you can trust. We combine | 42 |
This April, World Duty Free are launching the fantastic new Omorovicza Peachy Micellar Cleans<|fim_middle|> contain rose flower water, known to soothe and regenerate even the most sensitive of skins.
• Natural olive oil ester delivers a micellar technology, creating micelles to draw out dirt and oil from pores.
• Damask rose flower water known for its soothing, softening and skin regenerating properties.
• Uplifting patchouli & peach fragrance.
• Omorovicza's patented Healing Concentrate™ delivery system leaves skin firmer, more supple and younger-looking. | ers at its UK airport duty-free shops.
Soaked in a super gentle yet effective natural micellar solution, the Peachy Micellar Cleanser discs are the most convenient way to cleanse. In one sweep, each disc removes daily grime, oil and make-up (including waterproof products). Skin is left instantly refreshed and perfectly clean with no need to rinse. Scented with a delicious peach and patchouli fragrance, the discs also | 88 |
ERROR: type should be string, got "https://apnews.com/article/elon-musk-twitter-inc-technology-entertainment-business-61cb431325991db18e4320bbd4831caf\nBarbara Ortutay\nTechnology writer covering social media and the internet\nBarbaraOrtutaybortutay@ap.org\nTwitter users can soon get blue check for $7.99 monthly fee\nBy BARBARA ORTUTAYNovember 6, 2022 GMT\nPeople walk outside Twitter headquarters in San Francisco, Friday, Nov. 4, 2022. Employees were bracing for widespread layoffs at Twitter on Friday, as new owner Elon Musk overhauls the social platform. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)\nSAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Twitter has announced a subscription service for $7.99 a month that includes a blue check now given only to verified accounts as new owner Elon Musk works to overhaul the platform's verification system just ahead of U.S. midterm elections.\nIn an update to Apple iOS devices available in the U.S., Canada, Australia, New Zealand and the U.K., Twitter said users who \"sign up now\" for the new \"Twitter Blue with verification\" can receive the blue check next to their names \"just like the celebrities, companies and politicians you already follow.\"\nBut Twitter employee Esther Crawford tweeted Saturday that the \"new Blue isn't live yet — the sprint to our launch continues but some folks may see us making updates because we are testing and pushing changes in real-time.\" Verified accounts did not appear to be losing their checks so far.\nIt was not immediately clear when the subscription would go live. Crawford told The Associated Press in a Twitter message that it is coming \"soon but it hasn't launched yet.\" Twitter did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment.\nAnyone being able to get the blue check could lead to confusion and the rise of disinformation ahead of Tuesday's elections, but Musk tweeted Saturday in response to a question about the risk of impostors impersonating verified profiles — such as politicians and election officials — that \"Twitter will suspend the account attempting impersonation and keep the money!\"\nMusk, top Biden aides meet in Washington, talk electric cars\nTesla says its 4Q profit rose 59%, expects strong demand\nElon Musk's tweeting style seizes spotlight in Tesla trial\n\"So if scammers want to do this a million times, that's just a whole bunch of free money,\" he said.\nBut many fear widespread layoffs that began Friday could gut the guardrails of content moderation and verification on the social platform that public agencies, election boards, police departments and news outlets use to keep people reliably informed.\nThe change will end Twitter's current verification system, which was launched in 2009 to prevent impersonations of high-profile accounts such as celebrities and politicians. Twitter now has about 423,000 verified accounts, many of them rank-and-file journalists from around the globe that the company verified regardless of how many followers they had.\nExperts have raised grave concerns about upending the platform's verification system that, while not perfect, has helped Twitter's 238 million daily users determine whether accounts they get information from are authentic. Current verified accounts include celebrities, athletes and influencers, along with government agencies and politicians worldwide, journalists and news outlets, activists, businesses and brands, and Musk himself.\n\"He knows the blue check has value, and he's trying to exploit it quickly,\" said Jennifer Grygiel, a social media expert and associate professor of communications at Syracuse University. \"He needs to earn the trust of the people before he can sell them anything. Why would you buy a car from a salesman that you know has essentially proved to be chaotic?\"\nThe update Twitter made to the iOS version of its app does not mention verification as part of the new blue check system. So far, the update is not available on Android devices.\nMusk, who had earlier said he wants to \"verify all humans\" on Twitter, has floated that public figures would be identified in ways other than the blue check. Currently, for instance, government officials are identified with text under names stating they are posting from an official government account.\nPresident Joe Biden's @POTUS account, for example, says in gray letters it belongs to a \"United States<|fim_middle|> really powerful tool to connect with people, so I appreciate that and I try to use it as that and not as something that's veering me off course of the journey that I'm on in life,\" he said.\nThe announcement comes a day after Twitter began laying off workers to cut costs and as more companies are pausing advertising on the platform as a cautious corporate world waits to see how the platform will operate under its new owner.\nAbout half of the company's staff of 7,500 was let go, tweeted Yoel Roth, Twitter's head of safety and integrity.\nHe said the company's front-line content moderation staff was the group the least affected by the job cuts and that \"efforts on election integrity — including harmful misinformation that can suppress the vote and combatting state-backed information operations — remain a top priority.\"\nTwitter co-founder and former CEO Jack Dorsey took blame for the job losses.\n\"I own the responsibility for why everyone is in this situation: I grew the company size too quickly,\" he tweeted Saturday. \"I apologize for that.\"\nMusk tweeted late Friday that there was no choice but to cut jobs \"when the company is losing over $4M/day.\" He did not provide details on the daily losses at Twitter and said employees who lost their jobs were offered three months' pay as severance.\nHe also said Twitter has already seen \"a massive drop in revenue\" as advertisers face pressure from activists to get off the platform, which heavily relies on advertising to make money.\nUnited Airlines on Saturday became the latest major brand to pause advertising on Twitter, joining companies including General Motors, REI, General Mills and Audi.\nMusk tried to reassure advertisers last week, saying Twitter would not become a \"free-for-all hellscape\" because of what he calls his commitment to free speech.\nBut concerns remain about whether a lighter touch on content moderation at Twitter will result in users sending out more offensive tweets. That could hurt companies' brands if their advertisements appear next to them.\nU.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk on Saturday urged Musk to \"ensure human rights are central to the management of Twitter.\" In an open letter, Türk said reports that the company's whole human rights team and much of the ethical AI team were laid off was not \"an encouraging start.\"\n\"Like all companies, Twitter needs to understand the harms associated with its platform and take steps to address them,\" Türk said. \"Respect for our shared human rights should set the guardrails for the platform's use and evolution.\"\nMeanwhile, Twitter cannot simply cut costs to grow profits, and Musk needs to find ways to raise more revenue, said Dan Ives, an analyst with Wedbush. But that may be easier said than done with the new subscription program for blue checks.\n\"Users have gotten this for free,\" Ives said. \"There may be massive pushback.\"\nHe expects 20% to 25% of Twitter's verified users to sign up initially. The stakes are high for Musk and Twitter to get this right early and for signups to work smoothly, he added.\n\"You don't have a second chance to make a first impression,\" Ives said. \"It's been a train-wreck first week for Musk owning the Twitter platform. Now you've cut 50% (of the workforce). There are questions about just the stability of the platform, and advertisers are watching this with a keen eye.\"\nAP Business Writer Stan Choe in New York and Associated Press Writer Jenna Fryer in Charlotte, N.C., contributed to this story." | government official."
Seven-time Formula One champion Lewis Hamilton, who has 7.8 million Twitter followers, told the AP, "I could actually just delete my Twitter account, I never use it. I find it really healthy to delete social media from my phone for periods of time."
"But it's also a | 62 |
EFDN.org<|fim_middle|> | Revoke cookies |
STEM Education in London and Newcastle
Thousands of primary and secondary schoolchildren have the tools to lead a sustainable future following a three-day event for the next generation of leaders in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). A total of 45 children from three Kingston-based schools were invited to our Cobham training ground for the Chelsea Foundation's Digital Blue event.
Newcastle United Foundation
The inspirational STEMFest Net Zero education exhibition welcomed more than 3,000 young people to St. James' Park as a flagship event for Newcastle United Foundation's NU Futures programme.
Through five themed zones, more than 50 North East organisations leading the way in sustainability provided interactive opportunities for nine to 13-year-olds to learn more about climate adaptation, business and industry, buildings and construction, transport, and power and natural resources. The major education showcase highlights the region's response to climate change and plans to cut greenhouse gas emissions to as close to zero as possible with the next generation playing an integral role in protecting the planet for the future.
STEMFest Net Zero has been an important introduction for thousands of young people to connect with career opportunities in the future based here in the North East.
"As a Foundation, we are committed to providing life-changing opportunities for young people through programmes like NU Futures which is set to support 12,000 children, teenagers and young adults over the next decade to help connect them with their future careers. […] "Using fun and interactive tasks to engage young minds, STEM sector organisations from across the region have helped us create an inspiring environment, encouraging our young guests to look towards the future where STEM plays a huge part in the way our world moves forward." […] "We would like to say a huge thank you to every single business which has shown their shared commitment to improving the lives of the next generation at STEMFest Net Zero and we look forward to hosting many more educational events together soon."
Dawn Barber, Business Network Manager at Newcastle United Foundation
Chelsea Foundation
The Digital Blue programme centers on delivering STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) events for the local communities surrounding Cobham and Stamford Bridge. The event focused on various activities promoting the upcoming 2022 Women's Euros using some of the club's international stars. Activities ranged from fun football sessions to coding challenges within which the students were tasked with programming electric Sphero robots in order to play robot football. Schools education manager Sam Mardle, who was leading the event, explained the purpose of the relaunch of Digital Blue.
"We've run the Digital Blue programme through Premier League funding since 2017, although it was disrupted during Covid,' says Sam. 'We are treating this event as a relaunch, with the main theme focus on this year's Women's Euros. Not all the boys and girls here are interested in football, but the variety of activities available to them allows them to feel immersed and get behind what we are trying to do."
Schools education manager Sam Mardle
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If one thing is for certain, it's that Wolf Hoffmann is a man who knows how to achieve the goals he sets for himself.
Jonathan Graham
German metal pioneers, Accept are back with a brand new album, 'The Rise of Chaos'. To mark the occasion, lead guitarist and co-founder, Wolf Hoffmann took some time out during his recent visit to London to chat exclusively to Jonathan Graham about the new studio release, their Wacken Open Air 2017 performance and more in this issue's cover feature.
If one thing is for certain, it's that Wolf Hoffmann is a man who knows how to achieve the goals he sets for himself. As a teenager, he quickly developed his<|fim_middle|> 'Balls to the Wall' (1983) which earned them critical and commercial success worldwide.
The band split in 1997, and apart from a very short-lived reunion in 2005, Accept lay dormant until reuniting again in 2009 with new frontman, Mark Tornillo. Since then, the band have released their three highest charting albums to date; 'Blood of the Nations' (2010), 'Stalingrad' (2012) and 'Blind Rage' (2014). The latter would mark a first for the band, as they reached the number one spot on the album charts in Germany.
Their latest album, 'The Rise of Chaos', will be released on August 4, 2017, via Nuclear Blast, making it Accept's fourth collaboration with the independent record label as well as respected producer Andy Sneap.
The cover artwork was created by the Hungarian artist Gyula Havancsák and portrays the band's previous stage set-up destroyed. "Like After a catastrophe", explains Hoffmann.
Right from the opening track, 'Die By the Sword' | skills on the guitar and dreamt of establishing a band that would help take him around the world. By his mid-twenties, those dreams would granted (and exceeded) as Accept would become household names in their native Germany and circle the globe multiple times over. Later, during Wolf's break from music he would even become a successful and well-respected photographer. So when he decided in 2009 to reform Accept and planned to make the band even bigger and better than ever before was there ever going to be any doubt?
Accept's beginnings can be traced back to the late 1960s but was officially formed in the mid-1970s by Wolf Hoffmann, former vocalist Udo Dirkschneider and bassist Peter Baltes. Although moderately successful in Germany from the outset, it was during the early to mid-1980s when the band shot to fame thanks to the release of their fifth studio album | 194 |
Tutorial: Respond to security incidents
Security Center continuously analyzes your hybrid cloud workloads using advanced analytics and threat intelligence to alert you to malicious activity. In addition, you can integrate alerts from other security products and services into Security Center, and create custom alerts based on your own indicators or intelligence sources. Once an alert is generated, swift action is needed to investigate and remediate. In this tutorial, you will learn how to:
Triage security alerts
Investigate further to determine the root cause and scope of a security incident
Search security data to aid in investigation
To step through the features covered in this tutorial, you must be on Security Center's Standard pricing tier. You can try Security Center Standard at no cost. To learn more, see the pricing page. The quickstart Onboard your Azure subscription to Security Center Standard walks you through how to upgrade to Standard.
Contoso recently migrated some of their on-premises resources to Azure, including some virtual machine-based line-of-business workloads and SQL databases. Currently, Contoso's Core Computer Security Incident Response Team (CSIRT) has a problem investigating security issues because of security intelligence not being integrated with their current incident response tools. This lack of integration introduces a problem during the Detect stage (too many false positives), as well as during the Assess and Diagnose stages. As part of this migration, they decided to opt in for Security Center to help them address this problem.
The first phase of this migration finished after they onboarded all resources and addressed all of the security recommendations from Security Center. Contoso CSIRT is the focal point for dealing with computer security incidents. The team consists of a group of people with responsibilities for dealing with any security incident. The team members have clearly defined duties to ensure that no area of response is left uncovered.
For the purpose of this scenario, we're going to focus on the roles of the following personas that are part of Contoso CSIRT:
Judy is in security operations. Their responsibilities include:
Monitoring and responding to security threats around the clock.
Escalating to the cloud workload owner or security analyst as needed.
Sam is a security analyst and their responsibilities include:
Investigating attacks.
Remediating alerts.
Working with workload owners to determine and apply mitigations.
As you can see, Judy and Sam have different responsibilities, and they must work together to share Security Center information.
Security Center provides a unified view of all security alerts. Security alerts are ranked based on the severity and when possible related alerts are combined into a security incident. When triaging alerts and incidents, you should:
Dismiss alerts for which no additional action is required, for example if the alert is a false positive
Act to remediate known attacks, for example blocking network traffic from a malicious IP address
Determine alerts that require further investigation
On the Security Center main menu under DETECTION, select Security alerts:
In the list of alerts, click on a security incident, which is a collection of alerts, to learn more about this incident. Security incident detected opens.
On this screen you have the security incident description on top, and the list of alerts that are part of this incident. Click on the alert that you want to investigate further to obtain more information.
The type of alert can vary, read Understanding security alerts in Azure Security Center for more details about the type of alert, and potential remediation steps. For alerts that can be safely dismissed, you can right click on the alert and select the option Dismiss:
If the root cause and scope of the malicious activity is unknown, proceed to the next step to investigate further.
Investigate an alert or incident
On the Security alert page, click Start investigation button (if you already started, the name changes to Continue investigation).
The investigation map is a graphical representation of the entities that are connected to this security alert or incident. By clicking on an entity in the map, the information about that entity will show new entities, and the map expands. The entity that is selected in the map has its properties highlighted in the pane on the right side of the page. The information available on each tab will vary according to the selected entity. During the investigation process, review all relevant information to better understand the attacker's movement.
If you need more evidence, or must further investigate entities that were found during the investigation, proceed to the next step.
Search data for investigation
You can use search capabilities in Security Center to find more evidence of compromised systems, and more details about the entities that are part of<|fim_middle|> do not plan to continue or wish to return to the Free tier:
Return to the Security Center main menu and select Security Policy.
Select the subscription or policy that you want to return to Free. Security policy opens.
Under POLICY COMPONENTS, select Pricing tier.
Select Free to change subscription from Standard tier to Free tier.
If you wish to disable automatic provisioning:
Select the subscription that you wish to disable automatic provisioning.
Under Security policy – Data Collection, select Off under Onboarding to disable automatic provisioning.
Disabling automatic provisioning does not remove the Microsoft Monitoring Agent from Azure VMs where the agent has been provisioned. Disabling automatic provisioning limits security monitoring for your resources.
In this tutorial, you learned about Security Center features to be used when responding to a security incident, such as:
Security incident which is an aggregation of related alerts for a resource
Investigation map which is a graphical representation of the entities connected to a security alert or incident
Search capabilities to find more evidence of compromised systems
To learn more about Security Center's investigation feature see:
Investigate incidents and alerts | the investigation.
To perform a search open the Security Center dashboard, click Search in the left navigation pane, select the workspace that contains the entities that you want to search, type the search query, and click the search button.
Other quickstarts and tutorials in this collection build upon this quickstart. If you plan to continue on to work with subsequent quickstarts and tutorials, continue running the Standard tier and keep automatic provisioning enabled. If you | 87 |
Smoking at the Marina is prohibited.
Fishing from the docks is prohibited.
Swimming off of the dock or launch ramp is prohibited.
Feeding wildlife of any type is prohibited.
Charcoal BBQ type cooking is allowed only in authorized areas. Propane BBQ cooking is allowed on boats.
The Marina operators will provide an on site resident manager for security; however because of accessibility from the water, slip holders are asked to participate in dock security whenever present.
Motorized vehicles, bicycles, roller skates, skateboards & similar items must not be ridden on the docks, walkways, sidewalks or bridges (bicycles may be walked in these areas). Use in other areas of the marina will be at the discretion of the marina management. Riders must adhere to all state and local traffic and safety laws and regulations.
No live-aboard allowed on Lake Sonoma.
Members are responsible for their guest's safety, actions and adherence to all Rules & Regulations. Please advise your guest that they may be questioned by Marina Management regarding their being on Marina property and/or their use of Marina Facilities.
Children are defined as dependents under the age of 18. Slip holders are responsible for their children. Children under the age of 12 must be accompanied by an adult at all times.
A one-time, non-transferable slip membership fee is<|fim_middle|> discharge of boat sewage to the marina office or appropriate agency.
Marine holding tanks should always be used properly.
Boaters should use environmentally sensitive cleaning supplies in order to help alleviate gray water concerns.
Boaters should never pump out any holding tank inside the three nautical mile limit.
Dirty oil can be recycled, cleaned and used again. Recycled used motor oil can reduce the threat of its entrance into storm drains and pollution of ground water and water bodies and/or it being poured into the ground or tossed into trash receptacles and polluting the soil. Adequate storage and disposal facilities are important if the used oil and variety of liquid materials boaters use and store on their vessels are to be kept out of the environment.
Dispose of used oil and filters in an approved collection station on shore.
Use oil-absorbent pads to soak up oily bilge water and dispose at an approved collection station.
Check for traces of oil before pumping out bilge.
Encourage boaters to encase replaced oil in a ridged container, oil filters in plastic bags, and use drip pans and absorbent pads while doing these replacements.
Clean bilges and remove loose containers of paint and oil based products before hauling vessel.
Know where the marina's spill response equipment is stored.
There is no on site fish cleaning. Dispose of unwanted bait offshore. Clean fish using proper fish cleaning practices.
Hazardous wastes generated by recreational boaters are considered household hazardous waste. Dispose of household hazardous waste in properly marked containers if provided by the marina or at the nearest appropriate site.
The following marina policies are intended for the benefit of all slip holders and are to be exercised by all. | charged to all slip holders, unless a Lifetime Membership has been purchased. Price depends on membership type.
All boat storage fees are charged in full. A monthly billing option is available for an additional billing fee. Monthly slip rental charges will be billed in advance. All payments are due prior to the 10th of each month. Accounts not paid in full will incur a late fee of 1.5% of the amount due. Slip holders whose accounts are 45 days or more overdue are subject to termination, being sent to collections, or being locked up. Fees will be as per billing schedule. Rates are subject to change without notice.
Use of any berth, other than the one assigned to you is prohibited. If a boat is found in a spot other than their own, that boat will be moved without notice.
Annual Membership – Lake Sonoma Resort Area offers an Annual membership; terms are a minimum of 12 consecutive months. Occupancy is not required for the full term but signing of the Berthing License Agreement acknowledges consent for slip payment for one full year. A Lifetime Membership is required. Our lifetime membership excludes you from any membership fees for a lifetime. This membership is applied to the person, not the boat. If the boat is sold, the lifetime membership is non-transferable.
Members with an active annual membership have first right to any slips should they want a slip that a seasonal or short term member is occupying. At that point, that seasonal/short term member will be given the opportunity to upgrade to keep that spot or be asked to move.
This membership includes the standard 5% discount on store purchases and also includes lake side slip holder parking.
Seasonal Membership – Lake Sonoma Resort Area offers a Seasonal Membership; terms are a minimum of 6 consecutive months. A returning 6 month member will have the first right to the slip they occupied in the previous season assuming that an annual member did not take it. At that point, the seasonal member will have an opportunity to upgrade to 12 months to keep that spot or be asked to move.
A 6 month member has first right to a slip occupied by a month to month member. At that point, the month to month member will be given the opportunity to upgrade to keep that spot or be asked to move.
Short Term Membership – Lake Sonoma Resort Area offers a short term "month to month" membership which can start any month of the year. This membership is required to be paid in full upon signing a contract.
Placement of a month to month membership is based only on what's available on the contracts start date. A short term member may be asked to move should a 6 or 12 month member request their slip. At that time, the short term member will be given the opportunity to upgrade to match the membership of the requesting party in order to keep that spot or be asked to move. If no other spot can be agreed upon or if there are no other spots available, that short term member will be refunded the amount of the remaining time left in their contract.
This contract does not include the standard 5% discount on store purchases. Also no parking or membership passes will be assigned. A temporary parking pass will be given on the first date of the contract.
Member Passes - Each member is to be issued (1) one Parking Pass and (1) one Membership Pass per slip. These passes are only valid for the term of the agreement. Additional parking and membership passes can be purchased with authorization from a Marina manager for an additional $10 per pass. The parking pass and any additional are required to be on display in the vehicle while on Lake Sonoma Resort Area property otherwise a Day-Use ticket may be issued. Tickets are to be paid at the marina office. The parking pass allows for unlimited use of the private Lake Sonoma Resort Area launch ramp, only while agreement is valid, only to customers listed on both the agreement and the boat insurance. Only one car per slip is included at no additional cost per visit, any additional vehicles will be charged a day use fee.
Personal gear or any gear found on the dock or head walks other than authorized by the berthing agreement will be removed at the owner's expense. A removal fee will be charged as authorized by law. Any items requiring special handling will be subject to a charge in addition to removal fees.
Plastic tarps are prohibited and will be removed by Marina management. All boat covers must be canvas or other marine approved material.
Boarding steps can not be more than ½ the width of the dock finger. They must be made of light weight material. Steps used will be subject to approval by Marina management.
Slipholders are not allowed at any time to store paint and cleaning supplies on the docks. All supplies must be stored on the boat.
Fuel or fuel containers and other volatile items are not allowed to be stored on the dock.
Fueling or fuel transfers in the Marina are prohibited by law. All fueling must be done at the fuel docks.
Slip holders are allowed to perform maintenance and repairs dockside. Large scale construction or repair operations will be restricted to the boat service area.
No boat maintenance or repair contractors are allowed on Marina property unless approved by Marina management. Outside contractors will only be allowed to work between the hours of 8:30am & 5:30pm, Monday through Friday unless authorized in advance by Marina management.
It is understood and agreed that all work performed by contractors for members, is the responsibility of the member. Marina or marina employees do not endorse or recommend any contractor nor are a party to any agreement between boat owner and contractor. All outside contractors must have insurance to cover any accidents that may occur from the maintenance/repair of a member's boat.
Pump-out facilities are located at the Marina. Emptying portable toilets (port-o-potties) in the marina restrooms is prohibited and will subject the offender to a fine.
In-water hull cleaning is prohibited. Only hand washing is authorized. Cleaning products used must be phosphate free and biodegradable. No cleaning products containing ammonia, chlorinated solvents, petroleum distillates or lye are allowed to be used in the Marina.
Oil absorbing Materials for bilges are required. You can obtain them for free if you ask the Marina management.
Detergents and Emulsifiers are not to be used for fuel spills.
Registration must be kept current or members may receive a citation from the Sheriff.
Proof of insurance coverage as required by the Berthing Agreement must be given to Marina Management at the time of initial berth rental and at the time of each insurance renewal or insurance must be kept current.
Quiet hours are from 10:00pm to 8:30am. Loud or disturbing noise will not be tolerated at any time. Inconsiderate individuals will be asked to leave Marina property.
Restrooms are for the convenience of members and guests. Restroom sinks are not to be used for washing clothes, dishes, or other personal property.
All feminine products should be disposed of in the trash, not through septic system.
Trash containers are provided in various areas of the marina for your use. No household dumping is allowed. Containers requiring special handling such as batteries, paint, petroleum products, toxic chemicals, etc. must be disposed of as required by law. Members must not place these items in trash containers. All such items must be removed from Marina property by the member.
A number of situations may occur in a marina that requires immediate response. Without pre-planning, important steps can be overlooked and without a quick reference guide, the best of intentions may not produce the best actions for solving the occasional, but intense problem.
Keep a serviced fire extinguisher available.
Make sure engines and fluids are cool before working in the bilge to avoid burns.
Avoid storing excess fuel, or other flammables, aboard the vessel.
Fuel can be easily spilled into the surface waters from the fuel tank air vent while fueling a boat, and oil can be easily discharged during bilge pumping. Gasoline spills can be a safety problem because of gasoline's flammability. Hydrocarbons are dangerous to aquatic plants and animals both at and below the water surface.
Fill fuel containers on land to reduce the chance of fuel spills in the water.
Perform all major engine maintenance away from surface water. Any maintenance work on engine must be done in compliance with rules and regulations governing the marina.
Do not fuel boat from portable fuel containers while in the marina. Fueling can only occur at the fuel dock.
In case of fuel, do not use detergents and/or emulsifiers on the spill.
Use petroleum absorption pads while fueling to catch splash back and the last drop(s) when the nozzle is transferred back from the boat to the fuel dock.
Keep engines properly maintained for efficient fuel consumption, clean exhaust, and fuel economy. Follow all manufacturers' specifications.
Routinely check for fuel leaks and use a drip pan or absorbent pads under engines.
Do not pump any bilge water that is oily or has sheen. Use materials that either capture or digest oil in bilges. Examine these materials frequently and replace as necessary.
Exchange used oil absorption pads if possible, or dispose of them in accordance with petroleum disposal guidelines.
Report oil and fuel spills to the Marina Office and the National Response Center immediately.
Use of solvents, paints and varnishes for in-slip boat maintenance can contribute to pollution entering the water. The best way to protect the water is to perform only small maintenance jobs in the slip. Use of a variety of boat cleaners, such as detergents, teak cleaners and fiberglass polishers can also contribute to pollution and nutrients entering the water.
Ask the dock manager, or refer to you Rules and regulations as to what type of maintenance projects are allowed in the slip.
Tackle boat projects in the water only if they involve less than 25% of the surface above the water line.
Ask the dock manager about rules for do-it-yourself work, contractors or vendors working in the marina.
Drape vessel with tarps to catch waste from projects.
Cover the water between the boat and the dock with visquine or tarps.
Use a dust-containment bag with sanding equipment.
Sweep or vacuum all residual sanding dust and debris.
Ventilate your space to prevent the accumulation of flammable or noxious fumes.
Use eye protection and a respirator when there is the possibility that dust and debris could damage eyes or lungs.
Remove oil, debris and clutter from your immediate work area.
Do not sand with steel wool.
Do not sand with a heavy breeze.
Mix all solvents, paints and varnishes over a tarp or on land.
Avoid spills in the water of all solvents, paints and varnishes.
Use or ask your topside maintenance service to use environmentally friendly cleaning products. Carefully read labels to ensure the products are phosphate free and biodegradable. Use products in moderation, since more of the cleaner product does not automatically mean your topside is cleaner.
Avoid cleaners that contain ammonia, lye, sodium hypochlorite, chlorine or petroleum distillates.
Consider allowing teak to fade to grey and rinse it occasionally with salt water to remove dirt; or, for the look of freshly sanded teak, scrub teak decks with salt water and let the sun bleach them.
Use teak cleaners sparingly and avoid spilling them of fiberglass polishers in the water.
Consideration should be given to using bottom paints that do not pollute our environment. Frequent underwater hull cleaning can enhance vessel performance and protect it from the elements such as BMPs that will clean a vessel in such a way as to protect and preserve the bottom while causing minimal impact to the environment.
Ensure hull paint is properly applied and maintained to protect the hull from fouling organisms and thus improve your boats performance.
Wait 90 days after applying new bottom paint before underwater cleaning.
Schedule regular hull cleaning and maintenance to reduce the build up of hard marine growth and eliminate the need for hard scrubbing.
Regularly scheduled gentle cleaning will also increase the effectiveness of the antifouling hull paint and extend its useful life.
Use, or ask your hull cleaning/maintenance service to use, underwater hull cleaners' best management practices. Ask your service to monitor the work of the divers that they hire or subcontract to ensure they are using BMPs.
Repair paint bonding problems at haul out to avoid further chipping and flaking paint in the water.
Use, or ask your diver to use, non-abrasive scrubbing agents, soft sponges or pieces of carpet to reduce the sloughing of paint and debris.
Boaters are encouraged to use boat hull cleaning companies and individuals that practice environmentally friendly methods.
Boater should notify hull cleaner as to what type of bottom paint was used and when the bottom was last painted.
Proper waste handling and disposal are an integral part of the good housekeeping practices that must be implemented at all marinas. Waste should be managed in designated areas that are covered where feasible and/or designated to limit run-on and run-off and/or be located away from the storm water conveyance system. Wastes should also be stored in covered, leak-proof containers.
Boaters can prevent overboard disposal by returning everything not eaten to shore for disposal.
Boaters should remember what is put into the water should be something they would not mind swimming with.
Do not dump plastic or any other trash into the water.
Use dumpsters, trash receptacles and other approved containers to dispose of garbage and other waste.
When conducting in water hull or bottom cleaning, bring or ask your diver to bring the old zinc anodes to the shore for disposal or recycling.
Use of marine sanitation holding tanks in an improper manner can result in sewage entering the water. Both improperly installed marine sanitation devices and improper disposal practices (pumping overboard within three nautical miles of the nearest land) are illegal. Sewage from boats is more concentrated than that from either combined sewer overflows or sewage treatment plants because marine sanitation systems use little water for flushing. Boaters and marinas have a vested interest in clean waters, since the livelihood of marinas and recreational benefits boaters derive from the use of the waters are clearly linked to clean water.
Boater should report any illegal | 2,912 |
<|fim_middle|> priority over other calls without ESA. | SAVE MONEY. SAVE ENERGY. SAVE TIME. SAVE STRESS.
The Energy Savings Agreement (ESA) is a preventive maintenance plan designed to keep your HVAC system running at peak performance to save you money and energy. It also reduces the risk of non-performance.
We manage the maintenance on your HVAC system and save you money, time and aggravation.
Our program consists of a series of Precision Tune Ups scheduled approximately six months apart. We thoroughly clean and service your HVAC system. See the Precision Tune up Procedures list below.
Our technician will carefully check your entire system and will advise you if there are any repairs needed to your system that are not covered under the maintenance plan. Discovering a problem early reduces the chance that you will be without heating and cooling and in many cases saves you money on repairs. ESA repairs performed on covered equipment will be discounted by 15%.
Customers covered by our Energy Savings Agreement are considered priority customers, and when service is needed on their HVAC system they are given | 198 |
Hi friends! Spring is here (or somewhat depending on where you live) and Summer is just around the corner! I always look forward to this time of year, Sun shining, Flowers blooming and the latest spring and summer fashion trends popping up on my social media feed! My favorite one that I just so happened to receive an email about was in regards to my favorite kid's shoe brand, Freshly Picked! Since my babes were born, I always had a sweet pair of Freshly P<|fim_middle|>! Think of it as like a savings account for your FRESHLY PICKED obsession! Not to mention, you will receive early access to all promotions and new releases!! It's pretty awesome and something you should definitely consider if you love this brand as much as we do!! | icked Moccasins waiting on them and loved how they protected their feet in the sweetest way. Now that they are all grown up to the ripe old age of 5 and 2 (I knowI'm a little dramatic), their moccs have definitely seen better days, however thanks to the genius behind the brand, Mompreneaur Susan Peterson - Freshly Picked just launched their new line of gorgeous gender neutral leather sandals for small babes all the way up to Big Kids! These sandals are not only beautiful they come with an amazing feature that ALL moms will appreciate!! Keep Reading....It gets good!
Freshly Picked is known for the innovative construction of the modern day moccasins for baby and toddlers, so it when it came time to create their new summer style shoe they did not disappoint! These sandals are made with PREMIUM leather (what FP is known for) allowing the straps to fit comfortably around your child's little feet. They are water-risistant so that our kiddos can still be kids!! They are constructed with a soft padded premium leather insole and cushioned sole for added comfort. My favorite feature that will have every mom reading this raising their hands singing Hallelujah! is the prong-free buckles???!!! Can I Get An AMEN! Yes you read that right, see video below for demonstration and proof!
Is this not the best thing since sliced bread? When we received our Freshly Picked Sandals, I could not wait to try them on my littles, amazed at how incredibly easy and stable this buckle truly is. No worries about it coming loose or kid's who are sized in between buckle holes. You just slip through and go!! And the strap lays flat and comfortable on my kiddos ankles, so no irritation or rubbing. These are truly FANTASTIC! This past Saturday, We went to our local SnoCone Shop Snopocalypse to take advantage of the nice day we were having and it was so nice to be able to slide them on, buckle and go without the hastle!
Wait! There's More!! For All My Freshly Picked Fans there is a special club just for us!! It's called THE FRINGE - have you heard of it? It's a membership that is only $10/month where you will get 20% off EVERY TIME you shop their website and you will also receive FREE SHIPPING on every order - no minimum required! If you don't happen to purchase a particular month, your credit rolls over to the next month | 517 |
The Round Hill Society
The home site of the Round Hill Society, a community group of the residents of Round Hill in Brighton, England. The site contains information about the area, latest news and reflections on life in Round Hill.
Containers for displaying the page logo.
Gardens & wildlife
Please see our site directory for an index of pages or use the search box below to find key words. You can also view the most recent updates to the site.
Follow RoundhillSoc on Twitter
E-mail us with your ideas or articles for the Round Hill Reporter
Facebook Group: Round Hill Community Noticeboard
Minutes of our meetings
Past issues of The Round Hill Reporter
Song thrushes and slow-worms
Spare a thought for your feathered, furry, and fluttering friends…..
I woke up this morning to the bleak sound of chainsaw working its way through a tall evergreen tree. For the last two years I have watched song thrushes nesting in the very same.
Our seasons are changing and songbirds are nesting earlier and earlier. It is really important that they can find both food and shelter in these early spring days. Evergreen bushes and trees can<|fim_middle|> rubbish, in compost heaps, under sheds etc; slow worms hibernate in compost heaps and in flower beds in slow worm 'nests'.
Even some butterflies overwinter in this country! So don't be surprised by dazed looking tortoiseshell butterflies appearing from sheds and outhouses.
In the spring, birds may be making nests in trees and will abandon their eggs and young if they become frightened.
We are lucky enough to harbour at least two endangered/protected species in the Round Hill area. The first is the song thrush and the second are slow worms (which are lizards, not snakes!).
Both of these species are protected by the 1981 Countryside and Wildlife act. This law makes it an offence to injure or kill any protected bird or animal. It also criminalises the disturbance of bird nests, whether occupied or vacant. Under the law it is also essential to avoid disturbing any other protected animal when residing in nests, burrows and garden hiding holes!
If you are interested in learning more about how you can help our local wildlife, the following websites include information on helping all sorts of wildlife in your garden.
www.wildaboutgardens.org
www.rspb.org.uk/gardens
It can also be useful for sightings of protected species to be recorded. The Sussex Biodiversity records centre has information on how this can be done at
www.sxbrc.org.uk (bottom right, under 'Get Involved').
Enjoy the spring!
This page was last updated by Ted on 20-Nov-2013
(Registered users | Amend this page)
The Round Hill Society, Brighton, England
Contact us | Log in | RSS | provide a vital refuge for birds trying to nest when all other cover is bare.
If you are considering a spot of gardening as the days lengthen and the sun begins to shine, it is easy to forget the wildlife your garden may be harbouring.
Some species may be hibernating: hedgehogs spend their winters under piles of garden | 68 |
PHENYLEPHRINE (fen il EF rin) acts as a decongestant for the eyes. It is used to treat several different eye problems. This medicine is also used in the eye to widen your pupils, so they won't respond to light during diagnostic procedures.
This medicine is only for use in the eye. Do not take by mouth. Follow the directions on the prescription label. Wash hands before and after use. Tilt your head back and pull your lower eyelid down to form a pouch. Squeeze the prescribed number of<|fim_middle|> the tip of the dropper to your eye, fingertips, or other surface. Do not use your medicine more often than directed.
Store between 2 and 27 degrees C (36 and 80 degrees F). Do not freeze. Protect from light. Do not use if solution is brown or contains a precipitate. Throw away any unused medicine after the expiration date.
Tell your doctor or healthcare professional if your symptoms do not start to get better or if they get worse. Do not use this medicine for longer than directed by your doctor or health care professional.
You may get blurred vision. Do not drive, use machinery or do anything that needs clear vision until you know how this medicine affects you.
If this medicine make your eyes sensitive to light, wear sunglasses and avoid bright sun or other bright lights. | drops into the pouch. Do not blink for 30 seconds. Close the eye for a few moments to spread the drops and apply gentle finger pressure to the inner corner of the eye for 1 to 2 minutes. Try not to touch | 49 |
MILFORD — Talks have begun about<|fim_middle|> 17, at 7 p.m.
"I would like to see a sewer system in Milford," said Stamapis. "It would be the best thing to ever happen in this town." | installing a modern sewer system that would connect Westfall and Milford townships while replacing antiquated tanks that put a burden on local businesses.
Westfall enacted an ordinance to investigate a new sewer system that would connect its current system to Milford's along a portion of the Route 6 and Route 209 corridor, the road between Milford township and borough. Gary Williams, Milford Township's vice chair and roadmaster, said Westfall sponsored the agreement because it owns the sewage treatment plant.
"Everyone is in discussion and discovery about what this would mean for the township, especially where costs are concerned," Williams said.
Costly and inefficient septic tanksThe Milford Diner, which relies on an antiquated septic system installed in 1921, pays $1,600 a month to have its tank cleaned, says diner co-owner Chris Stamapis. He said any business that serves large numbers of customers, and draws a lot of water into its bathrooms and kitchens, is burdened by the old system.
The septic system is basically a hole in the ground, Stamapis said, and it's "not acting the way it's supposed to."
He said there are 12 wells underneath the diner's parking lot. When he and a partner bought the business more than four years ago, they installed a 4,000-gallon grease trap that prevents grease from seeping underground and clogging the area.
Belle Reve Senior Living Center in Milford pays at least $4,800 a year to pump its septic tanks, a job done twice annually, said executive director Travis Martin.
"We have two septics," he said. "One runs the first and second floors, and one runs the third floor. Our tanks are full when we have them pumped. There are times we have to have them pumped more frequently, depending on what is going on."
When a problem arises, like a pump breakdown, costs escalate.
"We had a pump go down, and the cost of the pump was about $2,500," he said.
Martin said each tank has two pumps, so there's always a backup. When one pump malfunctions, another kicks in. The tanks are aerated by a blower system.
"Preventative maintenance prevents costly repairs and increased pumping cost fees," he said.
Attracting new businessesMike Sullivan, executive director of the Pike County Development Authority, said a new sewer system would be good for business.
"A new agreement would allow Westfall Township to more fully utilize their sewer system," he said. Furthermore, he said, "expansion of businesses with large numbers of employees could be located on existing parcels in Milford Township."
Current septic systems are elevated mound systems known as "turkey mounds," he said, which are inadequate for commercial facilities that serve large numbers of people.
"Whole classifications of businesses could relocate in Milford if a municipal sewer system were available," he said.
Sullivan emphasized that he is not a participant in the municipal talks, but fully understands how a sewer system would benefit the Milford business community.
Sizing up costs and flowsWestfall has the capacity to treat additional sewage collected by extensions. It first needs to determine the cost of building the extension and the size of the flows that would be generated if the townships were hooked together.
The project's feasibility study would either be funded by grants or shared by the municipalities involved. The townships and the borough are now in discussions to determine the feasibility of any agreement.
Penny Luhrs, the Milford Township supervisor, and Anthony McNaughton, the Milford Township solicitor, were among those who met with officials from the borough and the Milford water authority at the commissioners' office on Dec. 5 to discuss a possible agreement, Williams said.
The next meeting of the Milford Township Supervisors is scheduled for Monday, Dec. | 794 |
Little Boy Obsessed With His Mom's Oven Gloves
"It's so funny and sweet watching him interact with the oven gloves or what he calls 'ubben guvs'."
By Simona Kitanovska August 22, 2022
Little Rupert Hall and his oven glove in an undated photo. Rupert doesn't care for teddy bears or toys but has become attached to his mom's oven gloves. (Tanya Hall, SWNS/Zenger)
Meet the little boy who doesn't care for teddy bears or toys but has become attached to his mom's oven gloves.
Little Rupert, three, and his identical triplet brothers – Austin and Ethan – received lots of soft toys after being born in April 2019.
But Rupert isn't interested in typical toddler toys and has taken a special liking to a kitchen item – his mother's oven gloves.
The child kept pointing to the oven gloves and his mom, Tanya Hall, 33, eventually gave in and let him have them.
Rupert takes his beloved oven gloves everywhere he goes – and even cuddles up with them at bedtime.
Tanya – who works in research and development – from Hessle, Yorkshire, in northern England, in the United Kingdom, said: "It's so funny and sweet watching him interact with the oven gloves or what he calls 'ubben guvs'.
"We have to take them absolutely everywhere with us they really are his comfort.
"One night [when] they lost them and couldn't find them anywhere.
"We looked all over the house, we searched the place up and down and could not find them.
"Rupert kept asking for them over and over again, but we didn't know where they were.
"We had already searched underneath and behind the changing table, but it turns out the gloves were wedged down the side.
"Of course, he was so over-the-moon to be reunited with them – he's obsessed."
Tanya added: "People joke and say one day he'll grow up to be a chef."
Little Rupert Hall and his oven glove in an undated photo. Rupert doesn't care for teddy bears or toys but has become attached to his mom's oven gloves. (Tanya Hall, SWNS/Zenger)
The family even had to take the gloves on vacation to an island resort in Mallorca, Spain, and received some very strange looks when they fell out of<|fim_middle|>self Couple Saves $35,000 Remodeling Home And Offers Tips | Tanya's bag at the security queue.
The other boys both have their soft toy bunnies, and Austin is fixated with books.
Their dad, Kris Hall, 43, who works in healthcare research and development, added: "It's funny how they are all so different in personality even though they're identical.
"You can definitely tell which one is the eldest, which one is the middle, and which one is the youngest – even though they were born only four minutes apart."
Tanya – who conceived triplets naturally against 200 million to one odds- didn't have an easy ride with her pregnancy but remained positive the entire time.
The babies were born six weeks early on April 26, 2019, at Lancashire Women and Newborn Hospital in Lancashire, England.
Austin arrived first weighing 4 pounds 1 ounce, Ethan was next weighing 2 pounds 9 ounces, and Rupert was last weighing 2 pounds 11 ounces.
Tanya said: "After their difficult start to life, I am so grateful they are all healthy and happy and can live a fantastic life together."
Produced in association with SWNS.
Raw Eggs And Beer Diet Saves Woman Just Hours From Death»Next Post
Do-It-Your | 260 |
NASA's Hubble Space Telescope has found water on five giant alien worlds, according to new studies. The discovery marks the first time scientists have been able to compare water signatures across several planets at once.
The celestial bodies are some 1,000 light years away and all ultra-hot, Jupiter-sized worlds orbiting closely their several host stars, with the planet having the most 'puffed-up' atmosphere also showing the strongest signs of water, the space agency reported.
NASA's Avi Mandell, who authored the paper outlining the findings, told reporters that the team are "very confident" about seeing traces of water on multiple planets at once.
"This work really opens the door for comparing how much water is present in atmospheres on different kinds of exoplanets, for example hotter versus cooler ones," Mandell added.
The new studies were part of an exoplanet census by L. Drake Deming of the University of Maryland in College Park, the process involving the use of Hubble's Wide Field Camera 3 to measure light absorption by the water candidates' atmospheres.
To do this the scientists needed to use different wavelengths, which allowed them to see the change in light and allowing then to establish each planet's absorption profile based on the light's shapes and intensities.
Deming, whose team was responsible for finding water on two of the planets, explained that "to actually detect the atmosphere of an exoplanet is extraordinarily difficult. But we were able to pull out a very clear signal, and it is water."
His team used longer exposure times while shooting the planets,<|fim_middle|> Based on this, Heather Knudson of the California Institute of Technology, who co-authored Deming's study, says that "these studies, combined with other Hubble observations, are showing us that there are a surprisingly large number of systems for which the signal of water is either attenuated or completely absent… this suggests that cloudy or hazy atmospheres may in fact be rather common for hot Jupiters."
Hubble has continued to wow its own scientist user-base with how it still manages to offer groundbreaking results in the midst of all the new equipment available to us for studying the universe. The telescope's Wide Field Camera 3 is among a small number of devices capable of studying the characteristics of an object located trillions of miles away.
To this day our most reliable method for measuring this is the dimming of the light from a host star at a time a celestial object passes in front of it. The dip in the star's light allows us to study the planet's size, for example, while gases can be identified by the varying dimming when seen through different wavelengths. | which allowed for much finer measurements.
There is a suspected layer of dust in the atmospheres of all the planets – something NASA believes has caused the water signatures to appear less prominent. The intensity of the light has been reduced by that haze, thus somewhat clouding the intensity of all the elements in the atmosphere.
There was surprise at first that all the water candidates shared a hazy atmosphere, but based on other recent studies, this could be a common occurrence. | 92 |
Prevost to sponsor ABA's Bus Industry Safety Council
March 29, 2018 • by MET Staff
Manifested as Zero Accident Vision, Volvo's definitive goal of its all-encompassing safety initiative is to ensure no Volvo vehicle is ever involved in an accident.
Prevost reached an agreement to sponsor the Bus Industry Safety Council (BISC) in the interest of advancing overall bus safety for all operators and bus and coach passengers.
Under the umbrella of the American Bus Association (ABA), BISC is a collective of safety-minded individuals who embody every role of the bus and coach industry, addressing every safety concern from shop safety, driver training to vehicle technology and regulatory compliance.
Similarly, as part of the Volvo Group, Prevost heralds its safety mission as a core value and guiding principle. Building on its legacy, the Volvo 9700 coach continues to set the highest safety standards possible. Advanced systems for driver assistance, high-efficiency brakes, seat belts, and world-class protective structures are standard Volvo safety features.
RELATED: Prevost adds<|fim_middle|> Prevost brings to this sponsorship," says ABA President/CEO Peter Pantuso. "Prevost will not only help BISC grow its membership and reach new heights, the company will further establish itself as one of the pre-eminent safety leaders in the motorcoach industry."
Read more about American Bus Association bus Prevost safety | 3 parts & service centers to network
Manifested as Zero Accident Vision, Volvo's definitive goal of its all-encompassing safety initiative is to ensure no Volvo vehicle is ever involved in an accident. "We have always put safety first, as do the members of BISC," said Michael Power, VP, marketing, at Prevost & Nova Bus. "It is in our DNA to plan and design vehicles that lead the industry in safety and protection. Our hope for our sponsorship of BISC is to help instill all bus and coach operators with a similarly robust safety philosophy."
ABA founded BISC in 1999 as a forum for bus and coach operators, safety directors, and maintenance supervisors, as well as OEMs, vendors, and government agencies to focus on advancements in safe bus and motorcoach operations.
"Speaking for all BISC members, we greatly appreciate this tremendous boost Prevost brings to our efforts through its sponsorship," says BISC Chairman, Alan Smith safety director, Greyhound Lines in Dallas. "Not only do we have the backing and support of a truly, quality company that shares our vision, BISC is now in a position to grow and develop from Prevost's vast safety research and resources."
RELATED: Gens of 'Lessons Learned' Helps Holiday Tours Thrive
He says through this partnership, the industry can expect more action from BISC with proven results on very specific safety issues; particularly those involving the ever-changing advancements in vehicle safety technology.
"We appreciate the commitment and foresight | 307 |
HomeAboutJoshua Ault
Joshua Ault
Joshua K. Ault is an assistant professor of global entrepreneurship at Arizona State University's Thunderbird School of Global Management. He holds a PhD from the University of South Carolina, a Master of Science from the University of Utah, and an MBA from Baylor University. Professor Ault joined the Thunderbird faculty in 2016 after spending 5 years as the research chair for the Centre for Social and Sustainable Innovation at the University of Victoria in Canada.
Professor Ault studies entrepreneurship in emerging and developing countries. He explores how national differences in this setting impact the long-term survival of new ventures, and subsequently<|fim_middle|> has taught entrepreneurship at the undergraduate, master, and PhD levels. He has won numerous awards for his teaching, including the Thunderbird Outstanding Faculty Award, the University of Victoria Commerce Student Society Outstanding Teacher Award, and the University of Victoria Commerce Student Society Award. | how entrepreneurship in these countries impacts development goals, such as poverty alleviation. He examines these questions in the context of microfinance, a global industry dedicated to bringing banking services to the world's poorest individuals. Professor Ault has published his research in some of the world's top business journals, including Strategic Management Journal, the Journal of International Business Studies, Research Policy, and Asia Pacific Journal of Management.
Dr. Ault | 84 |
National union blames hospitals for staffing crisis; hospitals point to pandemic challenges
Kelly Gooch - Monday, August 30th, 2021 Print | Email
The nation's largest union and professional association<|fim_middle|> have never been more evident, which is why their safety, protection and well-being, including mental health, remain a top priority," she said.
13 states experiencing workforce shortages in at least 25% of hospitals; 23 anticipate it
Caring for caregivers: How to address healthcare's mental health crisis
Connected Healthcare Consumer Report: Trust in a New Era of Health
The Becker's Hospital Review website uses cookies to display relevant ads and to enhance your browsing experience. By continuing to use our site, you acknowledge that you have read, that you understand, and that you accept our Cookie Policy and our Privacy Policy. | of registered nurses is blaming hospitals for creating a staffing crisis. However, hospitals are disputing the claim and pointing to challenges workers are facing amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
In an Aug. 26 news release, National Nurses United alleges there is a shortage of nurses willing to work in the unsafe and unsustainable conditions that it says hospitals impose on healthcare workers.
The union, which reports a nationwide membership of more than 175,000 nurses, claims hospitals are driving nurses away from direct patient care by refusing to staff its units with enough nurses to provide such care safely and optimally.
Furthermore, National Nurses United contends hospitals often cancel or "call off" contracted nurses who are scheduled to work, will send nurses home who have reported for their scheduled shifts, are not hiring or are hiring at a slow pace and will end contracts with travel or agency nurses.
"Many nurses have made the difficult decision to stop providing hands-on nursing care in order to protect themselves, their nursing licenses, their families and their patients," the union wrote.
Overall, the union, which has supported minimum nurse-to-patient staffing ratios, said it wants hospitals to hire more staff and improve working conditions so nurses will return to direct care.
Hospitals refute the union's accusations, which did not name any particular organization.
In an Aug. 27 statement, Federation of American Hospitals President and CEO Chip Kahn said the union "must be experiencing a different reality than the rest of us. All over the country stressed front-line caregivers, including nurses, are performing valiantly in the face of an ongoing tragedy. But the truth is these heroes are in short supply."
Mr. Kahn said hospitals are making every possible effort to ensure they are providing the best care for patients, as well as meeting the challenge to ensure adequate staffing and necessary protective equipment and supplies.
"But, to deny the headwinds we are facing with staffing reflects a regrettable lack of understanding of the unimaginable stresses the COVID-19 pandemic continues to place on caregivers, hospitals and the patients that depend on us," he said.
In a separate statement, Robyn Begley, DNP, RN, the American Hospital Association's senior vice president and chief nursing officer, and the CEO of the American Organization for Nursing Leadership, said hospital and health system leaders have used various approaches to recruit, retain and support their workforce, and have advocated that Congress and federal officials prioritize programs such as scholarships and loan repayment for nurses and nursing faculty.
She also pointed to the work of healthcare employees during the last year and a half.
"Along with clinical and administrative leaders in our field, they [the workers] have worked tirelessly and courageously day in and day out to care for patients in their communities. They have taken on unimagined challenges and have risen to the occasion time and time again, all while confronting numerous challenges outside the control of hospitals and health systems, including changing variants of the virus like the delta variant, an underfunded public health infrastructure, changing guidance from authorities, and the politicization of masking and vaccines, to name just a few examples," said Dr. Begley.
Amid the latest pandemic wave, "our healthcare workers' crucial life-saving roles | 648 |
Whether you are heating or cooling your home, ensuring that your system is as efficient as possible is one of the most important things you can do to make sure that you are getting the most value for your energy dollars. There are some great tips to consider that will definitely help you save money.
If your home is in the process of being designed, you may want to consider having your ducts installed within the conditioned spaces in your home rather than under the floors. This is because even the most well-insulated and properly constructed ducts are going to leak some heated or cooled air and it is best to make use of this air in your home rather that under it. Oftentimes, ducts can be installed in drop ceilings and even in the corners of rooms. This minimizes the aesthetic effect while helping to reduce wasted energy dollars.
The next thing that you can do to help improve your furnace or air conditioner's efficiency is make sure that the vents themselves are not being blocked. Though this seems simple, having a large piece of furniture close to a vent blocks a significant portion of the air that you are paying to heat or cool. Move sofas, draperies and more out of the way of these vents to realize more savings. Similarly, it is important to vacuum your vents from time to time to remove debris. This is as simple as it sounds as long as your vacuum cleaner has a hose attachment.
Older homes and those which have the ductwork installed under the floors often suffer from trouble with heating or cooling one or two rooms. While this can certainly cause discomfort to the occupants of those rooms, the fix isn't always difficult. In fact, simply installing a new return air grille or undercutting the door to allow for more airflow can fix these problems. Next, homeowners should take the time to ensure that their walls are properly insulated and that windows are sealed when shut to prevent heated and cooled air from escaping.
If the ducts in your home are located under the floor, it is<|fim_middle|> air that you are paying to heat and cool inside your home where it belongs. When it loses energy as it travels through the ducts, it becomes inefficient and costly. For an evaluation of your ductwork, don't hesitate to contact us here at A Superior Air Conditioning. Our friendly professionals will evaluate your situation and provide you with the answers you need.
Previous Post Help your Montego Bay Friends!!! | always worthwhile to have them insulated. This way, you are not losing energy to the outdoor air as heated and cooled air passes through the ducts. Typical insulation will do the job, but if you aren't up for the task then it can certainly be performed professionally. Many homeowners are shocked by the amount of money they can save when they invest in new insulation for their ductwork.
All in all, saving money is about keeping the | 87 |
UN OFFICIAL LAUDS TURKEY'S HELP FOR SYRIA
Wednesday, 19 August 2015 -<|fim_middle|>16:42 WIB
YEAR 2015 TERMED 'DEADLIEST FOR REFUGEES' CROSSING SEA
Sunday, 21 February 2016 - 03:29 WIB
Turkey Conducts Fresh Shelling On YPG Positions In Syria | 18:01 WIB
Author: kurnia
Iraq's Abadi pledges to protect oil companies (Photo: Anadolu Agency)
Istanbul, 4 Dhulqo'dah 1436/19 August 2015 (MINA) – A UN official has lauded Turkey's efforts to deal with the humanitarian crises in Syria and elsewhere, calling it an "important partner and actor" as well as a "generous donor".
Speaking to Anadolu Agency in Istanbul on Tuesday, Gwi-Yeop Son, the corporate programs director of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, said: "We hope that other international community members will emulate the model that Turkey has set and be part of the community to help share humanity."
Turkey is home to nearly two million Syrian refugees, the UN reported. Anadolu Agency quoted by Mi'raj Islaic News Agency (MINA) as reporting.
Noting that Turkey's contribution to humanitarian crises was one of the largest, especially in Syria, Son said: "We rely on Turkey's partnership and financial support."
"Turkey has been providing a very important role in this regard and we hope that through this strong partnership together we will be able to make changes in the area we have been working," she added.
The Syrian civil war, now in its fifth year, has resulted in the deaths of at least 250,000 people and made the country the world's single-largest source of refugees and displaced people, according to the UN.
Around 100 million people most of them women and children are in dire need to humanitarian aid around world, Son said, adding that the UN needed $18.8 billion to respond to crisis in those regions.
Son was in Istanbul as part of events to mark the UN World Humanitarian Day on August 19, the anniversary of a suicide bombing in Baghdad that killed 22 aid workers in 2003.
Next year in May Istanbul is expected to hold the first ever World Humanitarian Summit. (T/PO2/RO6)
Tags: crises humanitarian important partner Syria Turkey's UN
Sunday, 6 December 2015 - 22:56 WIB
GERMANY TO JOIN ANTI-ISIL BATTLE IN SYRIA
Wednesday, 6 January 2016 - | 493 |
François-Marie Arouet (; 21 November 169430 May 1778) was a French Enlightenment writer, historian, and philosopher. Known by his nom de plume M. de Voltaire (; also ; ), he was famous for his wit, and his criticism of Christianity—especially of the Roman Catholic Church—and of slavery. Voltaire was an advocate of freedom of speech, freedom of religion, and separation of church and state.
Voltaire was a versatile and prolific writer, producing works in almost every literary form, including plays, poems, novels, essays, histories, and scientific expositions. He wrote more than 20,000 letters and 2,000 books and pamphlets. Voltaire was one of the first authors to become renowned and commercially successful internationally. He was an outspoken advocate of civil liberties and was at constant risk from the strict censorship laws of the Catholic French monarchy. His polemics witheringly satirized intolerance, religious dogma, and the French institutions of his day. His best-known work and magnum opus, Candide, is a novella which comments on, criticizes, and ridicules many events, thinkers, and philosophies of his time.
Early life
François-Marie Arouet was born in Paris, the youngest of the five children of François Arouet (1649–1722), a lawyer who was a minor treasury official, and his wife, Marie Marguerite Daumard (), whose family was on the lowest rank of the French nobility. Some speculation surrounds Voltaire's date of birth, because he claimed he was born on 20 February 1694 as the illegitimate son of a nobleman, Guérin de Rochebrune or Roquebrune. Two of his older brothers—Armand-François and Robert—died in infancy, and his surviving brother Armand and sister Marguerite-Catherine were nine and seven years older, respectively. Nicknamed "Zozo" by his family, Voltaire was baptized on 22 November 1694, with , and Marie Daumard, the wife of his mother's cousin, standing as godparents. He was educated by the Jesuits at the Collège Louis-le-Grand (1704–1711), where he was taught Latin, theology, and rhetoric; later in life he became fluent in Italian, Spanish, and English.
By the time he left school, Voltaire had decided he wanted to be a writer, against the wishes of his father, who wanted him to become a lawyer. Voltaire, pretending to work in Paris as an assistant to a notary, spent much of his time writing poetry. When his father found out, he sent Voltaire to study law, this time in Caen, Normandy. But the young man continued to write, producing essays and historical studies. Voltaire's wit made him popular among some of the aristocratic families with whom he mixed. In 1713, his father obtained a job for him as a secretary to the new French ambassador in the Netherlands, the , the brother of Voltaire's godfather. At The Hague, Voltaire fell in love with a French Protestant refugee named Catherine Olympe Dunoyer (known as 'Pimpette'). Their affair, considered scandalous, was discovered by de Châteauneuf and Voltaire was forced to return to France by the end of the year.
Most of Voltaire's early life revolved around Paris. From early on, Voltaire had trouble with the authorities for critiques of the government. As a result, he was twice sentenced to prison and once to temporary exile to England. One satirical verse, in which Voltaire accused the Régent of incest with his daughter, resulted in an eleven-month imprisonment in the Bastille. The Comédie-Française had agreed in January 1717 to stage his debut play, Œdipe, and it opened in mid-November 1718, seven months after his release. Its immediate critical and financial success established his reputation. Both the Régent and King George I of Great Britain presented Voltaire with medals as a mark of their appreciation.
He mainly argued for religious tolerance and freedom of thought. He campaigned to eradicate priestly and aristo-monarchical authority, and supported a constitutional monarchy that protects people's rights.
Arouet adopted the name Voltaire in 1718, following his incarceration at the Bastille. Its origin is unclear. It is an anagram of AROVET LI, the Latinized spelling of his surname, Arouet, and the initial letters of ("the young"). According to a family tradition among the descendants of his sister, he was known as ("determined little thing") as a child, and he resurrected a variant of the name in his adult life. The name also reverses the syllables of Airvault, his family's home town in the Poitou region.
Richard Holmes supports the anagrammatic derivation of the name, but adds that a writer such as Voltaire would have intended it to also convey connotations of speed and daring. These come from associations with words such as (acrobatics on a trapeze or horse), volte-face (a spinning about to face one's enemies), and volatile (originally, any winged creature). "Arouet" was not a noble name fit for his growing reputation, especially given that name's resonance with ("to be beaten up") and (a débauché).
In a letter to Jean-Baptiste Rousseau in March 1719, Voltaire concludes by asking that, if Rousseau wishes to send him a return letter, he do so by addressing it to Monsieur de Voltaire. A postscript explains: "", ("I was so unhappy under the name of Arouet that I have taken another, primarily so as to cease to be confused with the poet Roi.") This probably refers to Adenes le Roi, and the 'oi' diphthong was then pronounced like modern 'ouai', so the similarity to 'Arouet' is clear, and thus, it could well have been part of his rationale. Voltaire is known also to have used at least 178 separate pen names during his lifetime.
Career
Early fiction
Voltaire's next play, Artémire, set in ancient Macedonia, opened on 15 February 1720. It was a flop and only fragments of the text survive. He instead turned to an epic poem about Henry IV of France that he had begun in early 1717. Denied a licence to publish, in August 1722 Voltaire headed north to find a publisher outside France. On the journey, he was accompanied by his mistress, Marie-Marguerite de Rupelmonde, a young widow.
At Brussels, Voltaire and Rousseau met up for a few days, before Voltaire and his mistress continued northwards. A publisher was eventually secured in The Hague. In the Netherlands, Voltaire was struck and impressed by the openness and tolerance of Dutch society. On his return to France, he secured a second publisher in Rouen, who agreed to publish La Henriade clandestinely. After Voltaire's recovery from a month-long smallpox infection in November 1723, the first copies were smuggled into Paris and distributed. While the poem was an instant success, Voltaire's new play, Mariamne, was a failure when it first opened in March 1724. Heavily reworked, it opened at the Comédie-Française in April 1725 to a much-improved reception. It was among the entertainments provided at the wedding of Louis XV and Marie Leszczyńska in September 1725.
Great Britain
In early 1726, the aristocratic chevalier de Rohan-Chabot taunted Voltaire about his change of name, and Voltaire retorted that his name would win the esteem of the world, while Rohan would sully his own. The furious Rohan arranged for his thugs to beat up Voltaire a few days later. Seeking redress, Voltaire challenged Rohan to a duel, but the powerful Rohan family arranged for Voltaire to be arrested and imprisoned without trial in the Bastille on 17 April 1726. Fearing indefinite imprisonment, Voltaire asked to be exiled to England as an alternative punishment, which the French authorities accepted. On 2 May, he was escorted from the Bastille to Calais and embarked for Britain.
In England, Voltaire lived largely in Wandsworth, with acquaintances including Everard Fawkener. From December 1727 to June 1728 he lodged at Maiden Lane, Covent Garden, now commemorated by a plaque, to be nearer to his British publisher. Voltaire circulated throughout English high society, meeting Alexander Pope, John Gay, Jonathan Swift, Lady Mary Wortley Montagu, Sarah, Duchess of Marlborough, and many other members of the nobility and royalty. Voltaire's exile in Great Britain greatly influenced his thinking. He was intrigued by Britain's constitutional monarchy in contrast to French absolutism, and by the country's greater freedom of speech and religion. He was influenced by the writers of the time, and developed an interest in English literature, especially Shakespeare, who was still little known in continental Europe. Despite pointing out Shakespeare's deviations from neoclassical standards, Voltaire saw him as an example for French drama, which, though more polished, lacked on-stage action. Later, however, as Shakespeare's influence began growing in France, Voltaire tried to set a contrary example with his own plays, decrying what he considered Shakespeare's barbarities. Voltaire may have been present at the funeral of Isaac Newton, and met Newton's niece, Catherine Conduitt. In 1727, he published two essays in English, Upon the Civil Wars of France, Extracted from Curious Manuscripts and Upon Epic Poetry of the European Nations, from Homer Down to Milton. Voltaire also published a letter about the Quakers after he attended one of their services.
After two and a half years in exile, Voltaire returned to France, and after a few months in Dieppe, the authorities permitted him to return to Paris. At a dinner, French mathematician Charles Marie de La Condamine proposed buying up the lottery that was organized by the French government to pay off its debts, and Voltaire joined the consortium, earning perhaps a million livres. He invested the money cleverly and on this basis managed to convince the Court of Finances of his responsible conduct, allowing him to take control of a trust fund inherited from his father. He was now indisputably rich.
Further success followed in 1732 with his play Zaïre, which when published in 1733 carried a dedication to Fawkener praising English liberty and commerce. He published his admiring essays on British government, literature, religion, and science in Letters Concerning the English Nation (London, 1733). In 1734, they were published in Rouen as Lettres philosophiques, causing a huge scandal. Published without approval of the royal censor, the essays lauded British constitutional monarchy as more developed and more respectful of human rights than its French counterpart, particularly regarding religious tolerance. The book was publicly burnt and banned, and Voltaire was again forced to flee Paris.
Château de Cirey
In 1733, Voltaire met Émilie du Châtelet (Marquise du Châtelet), a mathematician and married mother of three, who was 12 years his junior and with whom he was to have an affair for 16 years. To avoid arrest after the publication of Lettres, Voltaire took refuge at her husband's château at Cirey on the borders of Champagne and Lorraine. Voltaire paid for the building's renovation, and Émilie's husband sometimes stayed at the château with his wife and her lover. The intellectual paramours collected around 21,000 books, an enormous number for the time. Together, they studied these books and performed scientific experiments at Cirey, including an attempt to determine the nature of fire.
Having learned from his previous brushes with the authorities, Voltaire began his habit of avoiding open confrontation with the authorities and denying any awkward responsibility. He continued to write plays, such as Mérope (or La Mérope française) and began his long researches into science and history. Again, a main source of inspiration for Voltaire were the years of his British exile, during which he had been strongly influenced by the works of Isaac Newton. Voltaire<|fim_middle|> on this theme, though completed only the poem Mahomets-Gesang ("Mahomet's Singing").
Drama Mahomet
The tragedy Fanaticism, or Mahomet the Prophet () was written in 1736 by Voltaire. The play is a study of religious fanaticism and self-serving manipulation. The character Muhammad orders the murder of his critics. Voltaire described the play as "written in opposition to the founder of a false and barbarous sect."
Voltaire described Muhammad as an "impostor", a "false prophet", a "fanatic" and a "hypocrite". Defending the play, Voltaire said that he "tried to show in it into what horrible excesses fanaticism, led by an impostor, can plunge weak minds". When Voltaire wrote in 1742 to César de Missy, he described Mohammed as deceitful.
In his play, Mohammed was "whatever trickery can invent that is most atrocious and whatever fanaticism can accomplish that is most horrifying. Mahomet here is nothing other than Tartuffe with armies at his command." After later having judged that he had made Mohammed in his play "somewhat nastier than he really was", Voltaire claims that Muhammad stole the idea of an angel weighing both men and women from Zoroastrians, who are often referred to as "Magi". Voltaire continues about Islam, saying:
In a 1745 letter recommending the play to Pope Benedict XIV, Voltaire described Muhammad as "the founder of a false and barbarous sect" and "a false prophet". Voltaire wrote: "Your holiness will pardon the liberty taken by one of the lowest of the faithful, though a zealous admirer of virtue, of submitting to the head of the true religion this performance, written in opposition to the founder of a false and barbarous sect. To whom could I with more propriety inscribe a satire on the cruelty and errors of a false prophet, than to the vicar and representative of a God of truth and mercy?" His view was modified slightly for Essai sur les Moeurs et l'Esprit des Nations, although it remained negative. In 1751, Voltaire performed his play Mohamet once again, with great success.
Hinduism
Commenting on the sacred texts of the Hindus, the Vedas, Voltaire observed: The Veda was the most precious gift for which the West had ever been indebted to the East.
He regarded Hindus as "a peaceful and innocent people, equally incapable of hurting others or of defending themselves." Voltaire was himself a supporter of animal rights and was a vegetarian. He used the antiquity of Hinduism to land what he saw as a devastating blow to the Bible's claims and acknowledged that the Hindus' treatment of animals showed a shaming alternative to the immorality of European imperialists.
Confucianism
Works attributed to Confucius were translated into European languages through the agency of Jesuit missionaries stationed in China. Matteo Ricci was among the earliest to report on the teachings of Confucius, and father Prospero Intorcetta wrote about the life and works of Confucius in Latin in 1687.
Translations of Confucian texts influenced European thinkers of the period, particularly among the Deists and other philosophical groups of the Enlightenment who hoped to improve European morals and institutions by the serene doctrines of the East. Voltaire shared these hopes, seeing Confucian rationalism as an alternative to Christian dogma. He praised Confucian ethics and politics, portraying the sociopolitical hierarchy of China as a model for Europe.
With the translation of Confucian texts during the Enlightenment, the concept of a meritocracy reached intellectuals in the West, who saw it as an alternative to the traditional Ancien Régime of Europe. Voltaire wrote favourably of the idea, claiming that the Chinese had "perfected moral science" and advocating an economic and political system after the Chinese model.
Views on race and slavery
Voltaire rejected the biblical Adam and Eve story and was a polygenist who speculated that each race had entirely separate origins. According to William Cohen, like most other polygenists, Voltaire believed that because of their different origins, Black Africans did not entirely share the natural humanity of white Europeans. According to David Allen Harvey, Voltaire often invoked racial differences as a means to attack religious orthodoxy, and the Biblical account of creation. Other historians, instead, have suggested that Voltaire's support for polygenism was more heavily encouraged by his investments in the French Compagnie des Indes and other colonial enterprises that engaged in the slave trade.
His most famous remark on slavery is found in Candide, where the hero is horrified to learn "at what price we eat sugar in Europe" after coming across a slave in French Guiana who has been mutilated for escaping, who opines that, if all human beings have common origins as the Bible taught, it makes them cousins, concluding that "no one could treat their relatives more horribly". Elsewhere, he wrote caustically about "whites and Christians [who] proceed to purchase negroes cheaply, in order to sell them dear in America". Voltaire has been accused of supporting the slave trade as per a letter attributed to him, although it has been suggested that this letter is a forgery "since no satisfying source attests to the letter's existence."
In his Philosophical Dictionary, Voltaire endorses Montesquieu's criticism of the slave trade: "Montesquieu was almost always in error with the learned, because he was not learned, but he was almost always right against the fanatics and the promoters of slavery."
Zeev Sternhell argues that despite his shortcomings, Voltaire was a forerunner of liberal pluralism in his approach to history and non-European cultures. Voltaire wrote, "We have slandered the Chinese because their metaphysics is not the same as ours ... This great misunderstanding about Chinese rituals has come about because we have judged their usages by ours, for we carry the prejudices of our contentious spirit to the end of the world." In speaking of Persia, he condemned Europe's "ignorant audacity" and "ignorant credulity". When writing about India, he declares, "It is time for us to give up the shameful habit of slandering all sects and insulting all nations!" In Essai sur les mœurs et l'esprit des nations, he defended the integrity of the Native Americans and wrote favorably of the Inca Empire.
Appreciation and influence
According to Victor Hugo: "To name Voltaire is to characterize the entire eighteenth century." Goethe regarded Voltaire as the greatest literary figure of modern times, and possibly of all time. According to Diderot, Voltaire's influence would extend far into the future. Napoleon commented that till he was sixteen he "would have fought for Rousseau against the friends of Voltaire, today it is the opposite ... The more I read Voltaire the more I love him. He is a man always reasonable, never a charlatan, never a fanatic" (though he later criticized Voltaire's work Mahomet during his captivity on Saint Helena). Frederick the Great commented on his good fortune for having lived in the age of Voltaire, and corresponded with him throughout his reign until Voltaire's death. On May 12, 1760, Frederick wrote: "For my part I shall go to Hades and tell Virgil that a Frenchman has surpassed him in his own art. I shall say as much to Sophocles and Euripides; I shall speak to Thucydides of your histories, to Quintus Curtius of your Charles XII; and perhaps I shall be stoned by these jealous dead because a single man has united all their different merits in himself." In England, Voltaire's views influenced Godwin, Paine, Mary Wollstonecraft, Bentham, Byron and Shelley. Macaulay made note of the fear that Voltaire's very name incited in tyrants and fanatics.
In Russia, Catherine the Great had been reading Voltaire for sixteen years prior to becoming Empress in 1762. In October 1763, she began a correspondence with the philosopher that continued till his death. The content of these letters has been described as being akin to a student writing to a teacher. Upon Voltaire's death, the Empress purchased his library, which was then transported and placed in The Hermitage. Alexander Herzen remarked that "The writings of the egoist Voltaire did more for liberation than those of the loving Rousseau did for brotherhood." In his famous letter to N. V. Gogol, Vissarion Belinsky wrote that Voltaire "stamped out the fires of fanaticism and ignorance in Europe by ridicule."
In his native Paris, Voltaire was remembered as the defender of Jean Calas and Pierre Sirven. Although Voltaire's campaign had failed to secure the annulment of la Barre's execution for blasphemy against Christianity, the criminal code that sanctioned the execution was revised during Voltaire's lifetime. In 1764, Voltaire successfully intervened and secured the release of Claude Chamont, arrested for attending Protestant services. When Comte de Lally was executed for treason in 1766, Voltaire wrote a 300-page document in his defense. Subsequently, in 1778, the judgment against de Lally was expunged just before Voltaire's death. The Genevan Protestant minister Pomaret once said to Voltaire, "You seem to attack Christianity, and yet you do the work of a Christian." Frederick the Great noted the significance of a philosopher capable of influencing judges to change their unjust decisions, commenting that this alone is sufficient to ensure the prominence of Voltaire as a humanitarian.
Under the French Third Republic, anarchists and socialists often invoked Voltaire's writings in their struggles against militarism, nationalism, and the Catholic Church. The section condemning the futility and imbecility of war in the Dictionnaire philosophique was a frequent favorite, as were his arguments that nations can only grow at the expense of others. Following the liberation of France from the Vichy regime in 1944, Voltaire's 250th birthday was celebrated in both France and the Soviet Union, honoring him as "one of the most feared opponents" of the Nazi collaborators and someone "whose name symbolizes freedom of thought, and hatred of prejudice, superstition, and injustice."
Jorge Luis Borges stated that "not to admire Voltaire is one of the many forms of stupidity" and included his short fiction such as Micromégas in "The Library of Babel" and "A Personal Library." Gustave Flaubert believed that France had erred gravely by not following the path forged by Voltaire instead of Rousseau. Most architects of modern America were adherents of Voltaire's views. According to Will Durant:
Voltaire and Rousseau
Voltaire's junior contemporary Jean-Jacques Rousseau commented on how Voltaire's book Letters on the English played a great role in his intellectual development. Having written some literary works and also some music, in December 1745 Rousseau wrote a letter introducing himself to Voltaire, who was by then the most prominent literary figure in France, to which Voltaire replied with a polite response. Subsequently, when Rousseau sent Voltaire a copy of his book Discourse on Inequality, Voltaire replied, noting his disagreement with the views expressed in the book:
Subsequently, commenting on Rousseau's romantic novel Julie, or the New Heloise, Voltaire stated:
Voltaire quipped that the first half of Julie had been written in a brothel and the second half in a lunatic asylum. In his Lettres sur La Nouvelle Heloise, written under a pseudonym, Voltaire criticized Rousseau's grammatical mistakes:
In reviewing Rousseau's book Emile, Voltaire dismissed it as "a hodgepodge of a silly wet nurse in four volumes, with forty pages against Christianity, among the boldest ever known." He expressed admiration for the section titled Profession of Faith of the Savoyard Vicar, calling it "fifty good pages ... it is regrettable that they should have been written by ... such a knave." He went on to predict that Emile would be forgotten within a month.
In 1764, Rousseau published Lettres de la montagne on religion and politics. In the fifth letter he wondered why Voltaire had not been able to imbue the Genevan councilors, who frequently met him, "with that spirit of tolerance which he preaches without cease, and of which he sometimes has need". The letter continued with an imaginary speech in the voice of Voltaire, acknowledging authorship of the heretical book Sermon of the Fifty, which the real Voltaire had repeatedly denied.
In 1772, when a priest sent Rousseau a pamphlet denouncing Voltaire, Rousseau responded by defending his rival:
In 1778, when Voltaire was given unprecedented honors at the Théâtre-Français, an acquaintance of Rousseau ridiculed the event. This was met by a sharp retort from Rousseau:
On 2 July 1778, Rousseau died one month after Voltaire. In October 1794, Rousseau's remains were moved to the Panthéon near the remains of Voltaire.
Louis XVI, while incarcerated in the Temple, lamented that Rousseau and Voltaire had "destroyed France".
Legacy
Voltaire perceived the French bourgeoisie to be too small and ineffective, the aristocracy to be parasitic and corrupt, the commoners as ignorant and superstitious, and the Church as a static and oppressive force useful only on occasion as a counterbalance to the rapacity of kings, although all too often, even more rapacious itself. Voltaire distrusted democracy, which he saw as propagating the idiocy of the masses. Voltaire long thought only an enlightened monarch could bring about change, given the social structures of the time and the extremely high rates of illiteracy, and that it was in the king's rational interest to improve the education and welfare of his subjects. But his disappointments and disillusions with Frederick the Great changed his philosophy somewhat, and soon gave birth to one of his most enduring works, his novella Candide, ou l'Optimisme (Candide, or Optimism, 1759), which ends with a new conclusion of quietism: "It is up to us to cultivate our garden." His most polemical and ferocious attacks on intolerance and religious persecutions indeed began to appear a few years later. Candide was also burned, and Voltaire jokingly claimed the actual author was a certain 'Demad' in a letter, where he reaffirmed the main polemical stances of the text.
He is remembered and honored in France as a courageous polemicist who indefatigably fought for civil rights (such as the right to a fair trial and freedom of religion) and who denounced the hypocrisies and injustices of the Ancien Régime. The Ancien Régime involved an unfair balance of power and taxes between the three Estates: clergy and nobles on one side, the commoners and middle class, who were burdened with most of the taxes, on the other. He particularly had admiration for the ethics and government as exemplified by the Chinese philosopher Confucius.
Voltaire is also known for many memorable aphorisms, such as "" ("If God did not exist, it would be necessary to invent him"), contained in a verse epistle from 1768, addressed to the anonymous author of a controversial work on The Three Impostors. But far from being the cynical remark it is often taken for, it was meant as a retort to atheistic opponents such as d'Holbach, Grimm, and others.
He has had his detractors among his later colleagues. The Scottish Victorian writer Thomas Carlyle argued that "Voltaire read history, not with the eye of devout seer or even critic, but through a pair of mere anti-catholic spectacles."
The town of Ferney, where Voltaire lived out the last 20 years of his life, was officially named Ferney-Voltaire in honor of its most famous resident, in 1878. His château is a museum. Voltaire's library is preserved intact in the National Library of Russia at Saint Petersburg. In the Zurich of 1916, the theatre and performance group who would become the early avant-garde Dada movement named their theater the Cabaret Voltaire. A late-20th-century industrial music group later adopted the same name. Astronomers have bestowed his name on the Voltaire crater on Deimos and the asteroid 5676 Voltaire.
Voltaire was also known to have been an advocate for coffee, drinking it at every turn: fifty times a day, according to Frederick the Great; three times a day, said Wagniere. It has been suggested that high amounts of caffeine stimulated his creativity. His great-grand-niece was the mother of Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, a Catholic philosopher and Jesuit priest. His book Candide was listed as one of The 100 Most Influential Books Ever Written, by Martin Seymour-Smith.
In the 1950s, the bibliographer and translator Theodore Besterman started to collect, transcribe and publish all of Voltaire's writings. He founded the Voltaire Institute and Museum in Geneva where he began publishing collected volumes of Voltaire's correspondence. On his death in 1976, he left his collection to the University of Oxford, where the Voltaire Foundation became established as a department. The Foundation has continued to publish the Complete Works of Voltaire, a complete chronological series expected to reach completion in 2018 with around 200 volumes, fifty years after the series began. It also publishes the series Oxford University Studies in the Enlightenment, begun by Bestermann as Studies on Voltaire and the Eighteenth Century, which has reached more than 500 volumes.
Works
Non-fiction
Letters on the Quakers (1727)
Letters concerning the English nation (London, 1733) (French version entitled Lettres philosophiques sur les Anglais, Rouen, 1734), revised as Letters on the English (circa 1778)
"Le Mondain" (1736)
Sept Discours en Vers sur l'Homme (1738)
The Elements of Sir Isaac Newton's Philosophy (1738; 2nd expanded ed. 1745)
Dictionnaire philosophique (1752)
The Sermon of the Fifty (1759)
The Calas Affair: A Treatise on Tolerance (1762)
Traité sur la tolérance (1763)
Ce qui plaît aux dames (1764)
Idées républicaines (1765)
La Philosophie de l'histoire (1765)
Questions sur les Miracles (1765)
L'Ingénu (1767)
La Princesse de Babylone (1768)
Des singularités de la nature (1768)
Les Dialogues d'Evhémère (1777)
History
History of Charles XII, King of Sweden (1731)
The Age of Louis XIV (1751)
The Age of Louis XV (1746–1752; published separately 1768)
Annals of the Empire – Charlemagne, AD 742 – Henry VII 1313, Vol. I (1754)
Annals of the Empire – Louis of Bavaria, 1315 to Ferdinand II 1631 Vol. II (1754)
Essay on Universal History, the Manners, and Spirit of Nations (1756)
History of the Russian Empire Under Peter the Great (Vol. I 1759; Vol. II 1763)
Novellas
The One-eyed Street Porter, Cosi-sancta (1715)
Micromégas (1738)
The World as it Goes (1750)
Memnon (1750)
Bababec and the Fakirs (1750)
Timon (1755)
Plato's Dream (1756)
The Travels of Scarmentado (1756)
The Two Consoled Ones (1756)
Zadig, or, Destiny (1757)
Candide, or Optimism (1758)
Story of a Good Brahman (1759)
The King of Boutan (1761)
The City of Cashmere (1760)
An Indian Adventure (1764)
The White and the Black (1764)
Jeannot and Colin (1764)
The Blind Judges of Colors (1766)
The Princess of Babylon (1768)
The Man with Forty Crowns (1768)
The Letters of Amabed (1769)
The Huron, or Pupil of Nature (1771)
The White Bull (1772)
An Incident of Memory (1773)
The History of Jenni (1774)
The Travels of Reason (1774)
The Ears of Lord Chesterfield and Chaplain Goudman (1775)
Plays
Voltaire wrote between fifty and sixty plays, including a few unfinished ones. Among them are:
Œdipe (1718)
Artémire (1720)
Mariamne (1724)
Brutus (1730)
Éryphile (1732)
Zaïre (1732), inspiration for Zaira, opera by Vincenzo Bellini (1829)
Alzire, ou les Américains (1736), inspiration for Alzira, opera by Giuseppe Verdi (1845)
Zulima (1740)
Mahomet (1741)
Mérope (1743)
La princesse de Navarre (1745)
Sémiramis (1748), inspiration for Semiramide, opera by Gioachino Rossini (1823)
Nanine (1749)
L'Orphelin de la Chine (1755)
Socrate (published 1759)
La Femme qui a Raison (1759)
Tancrède (1760), inspiration for Tancredi, opera by Gioachino Rossini (1813)
Don Pèdre, roi de Castille (1774)
Sophonisbe (1774)
Irène (1778)
Agathocle (1779)
Collected works
Oeuvres complètes de Voltaire, A. Beuchot (ed.). 72 vols. (1829–1840)
Oeuvres complètes de Voltaire, Louis E.D. Moland and G. Bengesco (eds.). 52 vols. (1877–1885)
Oeuvres complètes de Voltaire, Theodore Besterman, et al. (eds.). 144 vols. (1968–2018)
See also
Boulevard Voltaire
List of liberal theorists
Mononymous persons
Voltaire Human Rights Awards, Australia
Voltaire Foundation
Voltaire Prize for Tolerance, International Understanding and Respect for Differences, University of Potsdam, Germany
References
Informational notes
Citations
Sources
Further reading
App, Urs. The Birth of Orientalism. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2010 (hardcover, ); contains a 60-page chapter (pp. 15–76) on Voltaire as a pioneer of Indomania and his use of fake Indian texts in anti-Christian propaganda.
Besterman, Theodore, Voltaire, (1969).
Brumfitt, J. H. Voltaire: Historian (1958) online edition .
Davidson, Ian, Voltaire: A Life, London, Profile Books, 2010. .
Gay, Peter, Voltaire's Politics, The Poet as Realist, Yale University, 1988.
Hadidi, Djavâd, Voltaire et l'Islam, Publications Orientalistes de France, 1974. .
Knapp, Bettina L. Voltaire Revisited (2000).
Mason, Haydn, Voltaire: A Biography (1981) .
Muller, Jerry Z., 2002. The Mind and the Market: Capitalism in Western Thought. Anchor Books. .
Quinones, Ricardo J. Erasmus and Voltaire: Why They Still Matter (University of Toronto Press; 2010) 240 pages; Draws parallels between the two thinkers as voices of moderation with relevance today.
Schwarzbach, Bertram Eugene, Voltaire's Old Testament Criticism, Librairie Droz, Geneva, 1971.
Torrey, Norman L., The Spirit of Voltaire, Columbia University Press, 1938.
Wright, Charles Henry Conrad, A History of French Literature, Oxford University Press, 1912.
The Cambridge Companion to Voltaire, ed. by Nicholas Cronk, 2009.
In French
Korolev, S. "Voltaire et la reliure des livres. Revue Voltaire. Paris, 2013. No. 13. pp. 233–40.
René Pomeau, La Religion de Voltaire, Librairie Nizet, Paris, 1974.
Valérie Crugten-André, La vie de Voltaire
Primary sources
Morley, J., The Works of Voltaire: A Contemporary Version (21 vol.; 1901), online edition
External links
Gabrielle Émilie Le Tonnelier de Breteuil Marquise du Châtelet, School of Mathematics and Statistics, University of St Andrews, Scotland
The Société Voltaire
An analysis of Voltaire's texts (in the "textes" topic)
Complete French ebooks of Voltaire
Institut et Musée Voltaire, Geneva, Switzerland
Works by Voltaire edited at athena.unige.ch
Internet Encyclopaedia of Philosophy on Voltaire
Complete listing of current published editions of Voltaire's works
Online Library of Liberty – The Works of Voltaire (1901). Some volumes, including mostly the unabridged Dictionnaire philosophique, translated by William F. Fleming
Voltaire's works: works: text, concordances and frequency list
Voltaire's writings from Philosophical Dictionary. Selected and Translated by H.I. Woolf, 1924
Voltaire, his work in audio version
1694 births
1778 deaths
18th century in Geneva
18th-century French dramatists and playwrights
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World historians | strongly believed in Newton's theories; he performed experiments in optics at Cirey, and was one of the promulgators of the famous story of Newton's inspiration from the falling apple, which he had learned from Newton's niece in London and first mentioned in his Letters.
In the fall of 1735, Voltaire was visited by Francesco Algarotti, who was preparing a book about Newton in Italian. Partly inspired by the visit, the Marquise translated Newton's Latin Principia into French, which remained the definitive French version into the 21st century. Both she and Voltaire were also curious about the philosophy of Gottfried Leibniz, a contemporary and rival of Newton. While Voltaire remained a firm Newtonian, the Marquise adopted certain aspects of Leibniz's critiques. Voltaire's own book Elements of the Philosophy of Newton made the great scientist accessible to a far greater public, and the Marquise wrote a celebratory review in the Journal des savants. Voltaire's work was instrumental in bringing about general acceptance of Newton's optical and gravitational theories in France, in contrast to the theories of Descartes.
Voltaire and the Marquise also studied history, particularly the great contributors to civilization. Voltaire's second essay in English had been "Essay upon the Civil Wars in France". It was followed by La Henriade, an epic poem on the French King Henri IV, glorifying his attempt to end the Catholic-Protestant massacres with the Edict of Nantes, which established religious toleration. There followed a historical novel on King Charles XII of Sweden. These, along with his Letters on the English, mark the beginning of Voltaire's open criticism of intolerance and established religions. Voltaire and the Marquise also explored philosophy, particularly metaphysical questions concerning the existence of God and the soul. Voltaire and the Marquise analyzed the Bible and concluded that much of its content was dubious. Voltaire's critical views on religion led to his belief in separation of church and state and religious freedom, ideas that he had formed after his stay in England.
In August 1736, Frederick the Great, then Crown Prince of Prussia and a great admirer of Voltaire, initiated a correspondence with him. That December, Voltaire moved to Holland for two months and became acquainted with the scientists Herman Boerhaave and Willem 's Gravesande. From mid-1739 to mid-1740 Voltaire lived largely in Brussels, at first with the Marquise, who was unsuccessfully attempting to pursue a 60-year-old family legal case regarding the ownership of two estates in Limburg. In July 1740, he traveled to the Hague on behalf of Frederick in an attempt to dissuade a dubious publisher, van Duren, from printing without permission Frederick's Anti-Machiavel. In September Voltaire and Frederick (now King) met for the first time in Moyland Castle near Cleves and in November Voltaire was Frederick's guest in Berlin for two weeks, followed by a meeting in September 1742 at Aix-la-Chapelle. Voltaire was sent to Frederick's court in 1743 by the French government as an envoy and spy to gauge Frederick's military intentions in the War of the Austrian Succession.
Though deeply committed to the Marquise, Voltaire by 1744 found life at her château confining. On a visit to Paris that year, he found a new love—his niece. At first, his attraction to Marie Louise Mignot was clearly sexual, as evidenced by his letters to her (only discovered in 1957). Much later, they lived together, perhaps platonically, and remained together until Voltaire's death. Meanwhile, the Marquise also took a lover, the Marquis de Saint-Lambert.
Prussia
After the death of the Marquise in childbirth in September 1749, Voltaire briefly returned to Paris and in mid-1750 moved to Prussia at the invitation of Frederick the Great. The Prussian king (with the permission of Louis XV) made him a chamberlain in his household, appointed him to the Order of Merit, and gave him a salary of 20,000 French livres a year. He had rooms at Sanssouci and Charlottenburg Palace. Life went well for Voltaire at first, and in 1751 he completed Micromégas, a piece of science fiction involving ambassadors from another planet witnessing the follies of humankind. However, his relationship with Frederick began to deteriorate after he was accused of theft and forgery by a Jewish financier, Abraham Hirschel, who had invested in Saxon government bonds on behalf of Voltaire at a time when Frederick was involved in sensitive diplomatic negotiations with Saxony.
He encountered other difficulties: an argument with Maupertuis, the president of the Berlin Academy of Science and a former rival for Émilie's affections, provoked Voltaire's Diatribe du docteur Akakia ("Diatribe of Doctor Akakia"), which satirized some of Maupertuis's theories and his persecutions of a mutual acquaintance, Johann Samuel König. This greatly angered Frederick, who ordered all copies of the document burned. On 1 January 1752, Voltaire offered to resign as chamberlain and return his insignia of the Order of Merit; at first, Frederick refused until eventually permitting Voltaire to leave in March. On a slow journey back to France, Voltaire stayed at Leipzig and Gotha for a month each, and Kassel for two weeks, arriving at Frankfurt on 31 May. The following morning, he was detained at an inn by Frederick's agents, who held him in the city for over three weeks while Voltaire and Frederick argued by letter over the return of a satirical book of poetry Frederick had lent to Voltaire. Marie Louise joined him on 9 June. She and her uncle only left Frankfurt in July after she had defended herself from the unwanted advances of one of Frederick's agents, and Voltaire's luggage had been ransacked and valuable items taken.
Voltaire's attempts to vilify Frederick for his agents' actions at Frankfurt were largely unsuccessful, including his Mémoires pour Servir à la Vie de M. de Voltaire, published posthumously, in which he also explicitly made mention of Frederick's homosexuality, when he described how the king regularly invited pages, young cadets or lieutenants from his regiment to have coffee with him and then withdrew with the favourite for a quickie. However, the correspondence between them continued, and though they never met in person again, after the Seven Years' War they largely reconciled.
Geneva and Ferney
Voltaire's slow progress toward Paris continued through Mainz, Mannheim, Strasbourg, and Colmar, but in January 1754 Louis XV banned him from Paris, and he turned for Geneva, near which he bought a large estate (Les Délices) in early 1755. Though he was received openly at first, the law in Geneva, which banned theatrical performances, and the publication of The Maid of Orleans against his will soured his relationship with Calvinist Genevans. In late 1758, he bought an even larger estate at Ferney, on the French side of the Franco-Swiss border. The town would adopt his name, calling itself Ferney-Voltaire, and this became its official name in 1878.
Early in 1759, Voltaire completed and published Candide, ou l'Optimisme (Candide, or Optimism). This satire on Leibniz's philosophy of optimistic determinism remains Voltaire's best-known work. He would stay in Ferney for most of the remaining 20 years of his life, frequently entertaining distinguished guests, such as James Boswell, Adam Smith, Giacomo Casanova, and Edward Gibbon. In 1764, he published one of his best-known philosophical works, the Dictionnaire philosophique, a series of articles mainly on Christian history and dogmas, a few of which were originally written in Berlin.
From 1762, as an unmatched intellectual celebrity, he began to champion unjustly persecuted individuals, most famously the Huguenot merchant Jean Calas. Calas had been tortured to death in 1763, supposedly because he had murdered his eldest son for wanting to convert to Catholicism. His possessions were confiscated, and his two daughters were taken from his widow and forced into Catholic convents. Voltaire, seeing this as a clear case of religious persecution, managed to overturn the conviction in 1765.
Voltaire was initiated into Freemasonry a little over a month before his death. On 4 April 1778, he attended la Loge des Neuf Sœurs in Paris, and became an Entered Apprentice Freemason. According to some sources, "Benjamin Franklin ... urged Voltaire to become a freemason; and Voltaire agreed, perhaps only to please Franklin." However, Franklin was merely a visitor at the time Voltaire was initiated, the two only met a month before Voltaire's death, and their interactions with each other were brief.
Death and burial
In February 1778, Voltaire returned for the first time in over 25 years to Paris, among other reasons to see the opening of his latest tragedy, Irene. The five-day journey was too much for the 83-year-old, and he believed he was about to die on 28 February, writing "I die adoring God, loving my friends, not hating my enemies, and detesting superstition." However, he recovered, and in March he saw a performance of Irene, where he was treated by the audience as a returning hero.
He soon became ill again and died on 30 May 1778. The accounts of his deathbed have been numerous and varying, and it has not been possible to establish the details of what precisely occurred. His enemies related that he repented and accepted the last rites from a Catholic priest, or that he died in agony of body and soul, while his adherents told of his defiance to his last breath. According to one story of his last words, when the priest urged him to renounce Satan, he replied, "This is no time to make new enemies." However, this appears to have originated from a joke in a Massachusetts newspaper in 1856, and was only attributed to Voltaire in the 1970s.
Because of his well-known criticism of the Church, which he had refused to retract before his death, Voltaire was denied a Christian burial in Paris, but friends and relations managed to bury his body secretly at the Abbey of Scellières in Champagne, where Marie Louise's brother was abbé. His heart and brain were embalmed separately.
On 11 July 1791, the National Assembly of France, regarding Voltaire as a forerunner of the French Revolution, had his remains brought back to Paris and enshrined in the Panthéon. An estimated million people attended the procession, which stretched throughout Paris. There was an elaborate ceremony, including music composed for the event by André Grétry.
Writings
History
Voltaire had an enormous influence on the development of historiography through his demonstration of fresh new ways to look at the past. Guillaume de Syon argues:
Voltaire's best-known histories are History of Charles XII (1731), The Age of Louis XIV (1751), and his Essay on the Customs and the Spirit of the Nations (1756). He broke from the tradition of narrating diplomatic and military events, and emphasized customs, social history and achievements in the arts and sciences. The Essay on Customs traced the progress of world civilization in a universal context, rejecting both nationalism and the traditional Christian frame of reference. Influenced by Bossuet's Discourse on Universal History (1682), he was the first scholar to attempt seriously a history of the world, eliminating theological frameworks, and emphasizing economics, culture and political history. He treated Europe as a whole rather than a collection of nations. He was the first to emphasize the debt of medieval culture to Middle Eastern civilization, but otherwise was weak on the Middle Ages. Although he repeatedly warned against political bias on the part of the historian, he did not miss many opportunities to expose the intolerance and frauds of the church over the ages. Voltaire advised scholars that anything contradicting the normal course of nature was not to be believed. Although he found evil in the historical record, he fervently believed reason and expanding literacy would lead to progress.
Voltaire explains his view of historiography in his article on "History" in Diderot's Encyclopédie: "One demands of modern historians more details, better ascertained facts, precise dates, more attention to customs, laws, mores, commerce, finance, agriculture, population." Voltaire's histories imposed the values of the Enlightenment on the past, but at the same time he helped free historiography from antiquarianism, Eurocentrism, religious intolerance and a concentration on great men, diplomacy, and warfare. Yale professor Peter Gay says Voltaire wrote "very good history", citing his "scrupulous concern for truths", "careful sifting of evidence", "intelligent selection of what is important", "keen sense of drama", and "grasp of the fact that a whole civilization is a unit of study".
Poetry
From an early age, Voltaire displayed a talent for writing verse, and his first published work was poetry. He wrote two book-long epic poems, including the first ever written in French, the Henriade, and later, The Maid of Orleans, besides many other smaller pieces.
The Henriade was written in imitation of Virgil, using the alexandrine couplet reformed and rendered monotonous for modern readers but it was a huge success in the 18th and early 19th century, with sixty-five editions and translations into several languages. The epic poem transformed French King Henry IV into a national hero for his attempts at instituting tolerance with his Edict of Nantes. La Pucelle, on the other hand, is a burlesque on the legend of Joan of Arc.
Prose
Many of Voltaire's prose works and romances, usually composed as pamphlets, were written as polemics. Candide attacks the passivity inspired by Leibniz's philosophy of optimism through the character Pangloss's frequent refrain that circumstances are the "best of all possible worlds". L'Homme aux quarante ecus (The Man of Forty Pieces of Silver) addresses social and political ways of the time; Zadig and others, the received forms of moral and metaphysical orthodoxy; and some were written to deride the Bible. In these works, Voltaire's ironic style, free of exaggeration, is apparent, particularly the restraint and simplicity of the verbal treatment. Candide in particular is the best example of his style. Voltaire also has—in common with Jonathan Swift—the distinction of paving the way for science fiction's philosophical irony, particularly in his Micromégas and the vignette "Plato's Dream" (1756).
In general, his criticism and miscellaneous writing show a similar style to Voltaire's other works. Almost all of his more substantive works, whether in verse or prose, are preceded by prefaces of one sort or another, which are models of his caustic yet conversational tone. In a vast variety of nondescript pamphlets and writings, he displays his skills at journalism. In pure literary criticism his principal work is the Commentaire sur Corneille, although he wrote many more similar works—sometimes (as in his Life and Notices of Molière) independently and sometimes as part of his Siècles.
Voltaire's works, especially his private letters, frequently urge the reader: "", or "crush the infamous". The phrase refers to contemporaneous abuses of power by royal and religious authorities, and the superstition and intolerance fomented by the clergy. He had seen and felt these effects in his own exiles, the burnings of his books and those of many others, and in the atrocious persecution of Jean Calas and François-Jean de la Barre. He stated in one of his most famous quotes that "Superstition sets the whole world in flames; philosophy quenches them."
The most oft-cited Voltaire quotation is apocryphal. He is incorrectly credited with writing, "I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it." These were not his words, but rather those of Evelyn Beatrice Hall, written under the pseudonym S. G. Tallentyre in her 1906 biographical book The Friends of Voltaire. Hall intended to summarize in her own words Voltaire's attitude towards Claude Adrien Helvétius and his controversial book De l'esprit, but her first-person expression was mistaken for an actual quotation from Voltaire. Her interpretation does capture the spirit of Voltaire's attitude towards Helvétius; it had been said Hall's summary was inspired by a quotation found in a 1770 Voltaire letter to an Abbot le Riche, in which he was reported to have said, "I detest what you write, but I would give my life to make it possible for you to continue to write." Nevertheless, scholars believe there must have again been misinterpretation, as the letter does not seem to contain any such quote.
Voltaire's first major philosophical work in his battle against "" was the Traité sur la tolérance (Treatise on Tolerance), exposing the Calas affair, along with the tolerance exercised by other faiths and in other eras (for example, by the Jews, the Romans, the Greeks and the Chinese). Then, in his Dictionnaire philosophique, containing such articles as "Abraham", "Genesis", "Church Council", he wrote about what he perceived as the human origins of dogmas and beliefs, as well as inhuman behavior of religious and political institutions in shedding blood over the quarrels of competing sects. Amongst other targets, Voltaire criticized France's colonial policy in North America, dismissing the vast territory of New France as "a few acres of snow" ("").
Letters
Voltaire also engaged in an enormous amount of private correspondence during his life, totalling over 20,000 letters. Theodore Besterman's collected edition of these letters, completed only in 1964, fills 102 volumes. One historian called the letters "a feast not only of wit and eloquence but of warm friendship, humane feeling, and incisive thought."
In Voltaire's correspondence with Catherine the Great he derided democracy. He wrote, "Almost nothing great has ever been done in the world except by the genius and firmness of a single man combating the prejudices of the multitude."
Religious and philosophical views
Like other key Enlightenment thinkers, Voltaire was a deist. He challenged orthodoxy by asking: "What is faith? Is it to believe that which is evident? No. It is perfectly evident to my mind that there exists a necessary, eternal, supreme, and intelligent being. This is no matter of faith, but of reason."
In a 1763 essay, Voltaire supported the toleration of other religions and ethnicities: "It does not require great art, or magnificently trained eloquence, to prove that Christians should tolerate each other. I, however, am going further: I say that we should regard all men as our brothers. What? The Turk my brother? The Chinaman my brother? The Jew? The Siam? Yes, without doubt; are we not all children of the same father and creatures of the same God?"
In one of his many denunciations of priests of every religious sect, Voltaire describes them as those who "rise from an incestuous bed, manufacture a hundred versions of God, then eat and drink God, then piss and shit God."
Christianity
Historians have described Voltaire's description of the history of Christianity as "propagandistic". His Dictionnaire philosophique is responsible for the myth that the early Church had fifty gospels before settling on the standard canonical four as well as propagating the myth that the canon of the New Testament was decided at the First Council of Nicaea. Voltaire is partially responsible for the misattribution of the expression Credo quia absurdum to the Church Fathers. Furthermore, despite the death of Hypatia being the result of finding herself in the crossfires of a mob (likely Christian) during a political feud in 4th-century Alexandria, Voltaire promoted the theory that she was stripped naked and murdered by the minions of the bishop Cyril of Alexandria, concluding by stating that "when one finds a beautiful woman completely naked, it is not for the purpose of massacring her." Voltaire meant for this argument to bolster one of his anti-Catholic tracts. In a letter to Frederick II, King of Prussia, dated 5 January 1767, he wrote about Christianity:
In La bible enfin expliquée, he expressed the following attitude to lay reading of the Bible: It is characteristic of fanatics who read the holy scriptures to tell themselves: God killed, so I must kill; Abraham lied, Jacob deceived, Rachel stole: so I must steal, deceive, lie. But, wretch, you are neither Rachel, nor Jacob, nor Abraham, nor God; you are just a mad fool, and the popes who forbade the reading of the Bible were extremely wise.
Voltaire's opinion of the Bible was mixed. Although influenced by Socinian works such as the Bibliotheca Fratrum Polonorum, Voltaire's skeptical attitude to the Bible separated him from Unitarian theologians like Fausto Sozzini or even Biblical-political writers like John Locke. His statements on religion also brought down on him the fury of the Jesuits and in particular Claude-Adrien Nonnotte. This did not hinder his religious practice, though it did win for him a bad reputation in certain religious circles. The deeply Christian Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart wrote to his father the year of Voltaire's death, saying, "The arch-scoundrel Voltaire has finally kicked the bucket ..." Voltaire was later deemed to influence Edward Gibbon in claiming that Christianity was a contributor to the fall of the Roman Empire in his book The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire:As Christianity advances, disasters befall the [Roman] empire—arts, science, literature, decay—barbarism and all its revolting concomitants are made to seem the consequences of its decisive triumph—and the unwary reader is conducted, with matchless dexterity, to the desired conclusion—the abominable Manicheism of Candide, and, in fact, of all the productions of Voltaire's historic school—viz., "that instead of being a merciful, ameliorating, and benignant visitation, the religion of Christians would rather seem to be a scourge sent on man by the author of all evil."
However, Voltaire also acknowledged the self-sacrifice of Christians. He wrote: "Perhaps there is nothing greater on earth than the sacrifice of youth and beauty, often of high birth, made by the gentle sex in order to work in hospitals for the relief of human misery, the sight of which is so revolting to our delicacy. Peoples separated from the Roman religion have imitated but imperfectly so generous a charity." Yet, according to Daniel-Rops, Voltaire's "hatred of religion increased with the passage of years. The attack, launched at first against clericalism and theocracy, ended in a furious assault upon Holy Scripture, the dogmas of the Church, and even upon the person of Jesus Christ Himself, who [he] depicted now as a degenerate." Voltaire's reasoning may be summed up in his well-known saying, "Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities."
Judaism
According to Orthodox rabbi Joseph Telushkin, the most significant Enlightenment hostility against Judaism was found in Voltaire; 30 of the 118 articles in his Dictionnaire philosophique dealt with Jews or Judaism, describing them in consistently negative ways. For example, in Voltaire's A Philosophical Dictionary, he wrote of Jews: "In short, we find in them only an ignorant and barbarous people, who have long united the most sordid avarice with the most detestable superstition and the most invincible hatred for every people by whom they are tolerated and enriched." Telushkin states that Voltaire did not limit his attack to aspects of Judaism that Christianity used as a foundation, repeatedly making it clear that he despised Jews.
On the other hand, Peter Gay, a contemporary authority on the Enlightenment, also points to Voltaire's remarks (for instance, that the Jews were more tolerant than the Christians) in the Traité sur la tolérance and surmises that "Voltaire struck at the Jews to strike at Christianity". Whatever anti-semitism Voltaire may have felt, Gay suggests, derived from negative personal experience.
Arthur Hertzberg, a Conservative Rabbi, claims that Gay's second suggestion is also untenable, as Voltaire himself denied its validity when he remarked that he had "forgotten about much larger bankruptcies through Christians". However, Bertram Schwarzbach's far more detailed studies of Voltaire's dealings with Jewish people throughout his life concluded that he was anti-biblical, not anti-semitic. His remarks on the Jews and their "superstitions" were essentially no different from his remarks on Christians.
Voltaire said of the Jews that they "have surpassed all nations in impertinent fables, in bad conduct and in barbarism. You deserve to be punished, for this is your destiny." He further said, "They are, all of them, born with raging fanaticism in their hearts, just as the Bretons and the Germans are born with blond hair. I would not be in the least bit surprised if these people would not some day become deadly to the human race."
Some authors link Voltaire's anti-Judaism to his polygenism. According to Joxe Azurmendi this anti-Judaism has a relative importance in Voltaire's philosophy of history. However, Voltaire's anti-Judaism influenced later authors like Ernest Renan.
Voltaire did have a Jewish friend, Daniel de Fonseca, whom he esteemed highly, and proclaimed him as "the only philosopher, perhaps, among the Jews of his time".
Voltaire had also condemned the persecution of Jews on several occasions including in his work Henriade, and never advocated violence or attacks against them. According to the historian Will Durant, Voltaire had praised the simplicity, sobriety, regularity, and industry of Jews, however subsequently, Voltaire became strongly anti-Semitic after some regrettable personal financial transactions and quarrels with Jewish financiers. In his Essai sur les moeurs Voltaire had denounced the ancient Hebrews using strong language; a Catholic priest had protested against this censure. The anti-Semitic passages in Voltaire's Dictionnaire philosophique were criticized by Isaac De Pinto in 1762. Subsequently, Voltaire agreed with the criticism of the anti-Semitic passages and stated that De Pinto's letter convinced that there are "highly intelligent and cultivated people" among the Jews and that he had been "wrong to attribute to a whole nation the vices of some individuals"; he also promised to revise the objectionable passages for forthcoming editions of the Dictionnaire philosophique, but failed to do so.
Islam
Voltaire's views about Islam were generally negative, and he found its holy book, the Quran, to be ignorant of the laws of physics. In a 1740 letter to Frederick II of Prussia, Voltaire ascribes to Muhammad a brutality that "is assuredly nothing any man can excuse" and suggests that his following stemmed from superstition; Voltaire continued, "But that a camel-merchant should stir up insurrection in his village; that in league with some miserable followers he persuades them that he talks with the angel Gabriel; that he boasts of having been carried to heaven, where he received in part this unintelligible book, each page of which makes common sense shudder; that, to pay homage to this book, he delivers his country to iron and flame; that he cuts the throats of fathers and kidnaps daughters; that he gives to the defeated the choice of his religion or death: this is assuredly nothing any man can excuse, at least if he was not born a Turk, or if superstition has not extinguished all natural light in him."
In 1748, after having read Henri de Boulainvilliers and George Sale, he wrote again about Mohammed and Islam in "De l'Alcoran et de Mahomet" ("On the Quran and on Mohammed"). In this essay, Voltaire maintained that Mohammed was a "sublime charlatan". Drawing on complementary information in Herbelot's "Oriental Library", Voltaire, according to René Pomeau, adjudged the Quran, with its "contradictions, ... absurdities, ... anachronisms", to be "rhapsody, without connection, without order, and without art". Thus he "henceforward conceded" that "if his book was bad for our times and for us, it was very good for his contemporaries, and his religion even more so. It must be admitted that he removed almost all of Asia from idolatry" and that "it was difficult for such a simple and wise religion, taught by a man who was constantly victorious, could hardly fail to subjugate a portion of the earth." He considered that "its civil laws are good; its dogma is admirable which it has in common with ours" but that "his means are shocking; deception and murder".
In his Essay on the Manners and Spirit of Nations (published 1756), Voltaire deals with the history of Europe before Charlemagne to the dawn of the age of Louis XIV, and that of the colonies and the East. As a historian, he devoted several chapters to Islam, Voltaire highlighted the Arabian, Turkish courts, and conducts. Here he called Mohammed a "poet", and stated that he was not an illiterate. As a "legislator", he "changed the face of part of Europe [and] one half of Asia." In chapter VI, Voltaire finds similarities between Arabs and ancient Hebrews, that they both kept running to battle in the name of God, and sharing a passion for the spoils of war. Voltaire continues that, "It is to be believed that Mohammed, like all enthusiasts, violently struck by his ideas, first presented them in good faith, strengthened them with fantasy, fooled himself in fooling others, and supported through necessary deceptions a doctrine which he considered good." He thus compares "the genius of the Arab people" with "the genius of the ancient Romans".
According to Malise Ruthven, as Voltaire learned more about Islam his opinion of the faith became more positive. As a result, his book, Fanaticism (Mohammad the Prophet), inspired Goethe, who was attracted to Islam, to write a drama | 6,573 |
Maná Adds Sixth Show at the Forum on November 24
MANÁ Adds A SIXTH Show At THE FORUM In Los Angeles,
As Record Demand Continues To Make MANÁ's Upcoming
"RAYANDO EL SOL TOUR" The Strongest On Sale Of Their Career.
The November 24th Show Will Go On-Sale This Friday, March 15th at 10:00am PT via: LiveNation.com
Since The Famed Venue's 2014 Renovation & Reopening, MANÁ Will Notch A Record-Setting 10th Overall Show At THE FORUM (The Most For ANY Artist), And Equal Just The Eagles & Kanye West For Six Shows On One Tour.
Latin Rock superstars Maná are set to become the reigning kings of THE FORUM, with another date for their highly anticipated "Rayando El Sol Tour" just added to meet continued fan demand. The November 24th date (going on-sale this Friday, March 15th) will make for a sixth date at THE FORUM on the band's upcoming tour, a feat only previously accomplished by the EAGLES and Kanye West ) since the famed venue's 2014 renovation & reopening. And when added to performances in the building during the band's previous Latino Power Tour, Maná will soon have 10 dates at THE FORUM to their credit, the most for ANY artist (regardless of language) in that same time period. The accomplishment adds another chapter to Maná's record-setting Los Angeles concert legacy, as they previously set single tour and career records at STAPLES Center, and have now sold over 40 Amphitheatre, Arena or Stadium dates in the city.
Named after Maná's critically acclaimed single, "Rayando El Sol," the Live Nation produced tour will now make at least 29 stops across the U.S., kicking off September 4th in Corpus Christi, TX with visits to Houston, San Diego, Chicago, Miami, Brooklyn and more, before wrapping November 30th at the Oracle Arena in Oakland, CA. See the full list of tour dates below.
Having formed in Guadalajara, Mexico in 1986, the quartet of Fher Olvera, Alex González, Sergio Vallín and Juan Calleros have gone on to be global envoys for the Latin Rock genre, while selling over 40 million albums. Here in the United States, Maná holds an impressive nine #1 albums and ten #1 singles -more than any other band in the history of Billboard's "Hot Latin Songs" chart. Maná is also unquestionably the top-drawing all-Spanish language concert band in the U.S. with The New York Times declaring the group has: "Redefined 'Crossover' in Latin Pop… with its mix of love songs and more pointed political material<|fim_middle|> "Let's Rock" Tour Coming to the Forum November 19 → | about immigration and the environment, …Maná has a mass appeal nearly unrivaled in the Latin pop world."
MANÁ: RAYANDO EL SOL TOUR 2019 DATES:
Wed Sep 04 Corpus Christi, TX American Bank Center
Fri Sep 06 Houston, TX Toyota Center
Sat Sep 07 Dallas, TX American Airlines Center
Wed Sep 11 El Paso, TX UTEP Don Haskins Center
Fri Sep 13 Phoenix, AZ Talking Stick Resort Arena
Sat Sep 14 Las Vegas, NV MGM Grand Garden Arena
Fri Sep 20 Inglewood, CA Forum
Sat Sep 21 Inglewood, CA Forum
Sun Sep 22 Inglewood, CA Forum
Fri Sep 27 San Jose, CA SAP Center
Sat Sep 28 San Jose, CA SAP Center
Sun Sep 29 San Diego, CA North Island Credit Union Amphitheatre
Wed Oct 09 Denver, CO Pepsi Center
Fri Oct 11 Chicago, IL Allstate Arena
Sat Oct 12 Chicago, IL Allstate Arena
Thu Oct 17 Toronto, ON Scotiabank Arena
Sat Oct 19 Brooklyn, NY Barclays Center
Sun Oct 20 Greensboro, NC Greensboro Coliseum
Fri Oct 25 Miami, FL AmericanAirlines Arena
Fri Nov 08 Houston, TX Toyota Center
Sat Nov 09 Dallas, TX American Airlines Center
Sun Oct 27 Atlanta, GA Infinite Energy Arena
Fri Nov 15 San Antonio, TX AT&T Center
Sun Nov 17 Phoenix, AZ Talking Stick Resort Arena
Fri Nov 22 Inglewood, CA Forum
Sat Nov 23 Inglewood, CA Forum
Sun Nov 24 Inglewood, CA Forum
Wed Nov 27 Sacramento, CA Golden 1 Center
Sat Nov 30 Oakland, CA Oracle Arena
About Live Nation Entertainment:
Live Nation Entertainment (NYSE: LYV) is the world's leading live entertainment company comprised of global market leaders: Ticketmaster, Live Nation Concerts, and Live Nation Sponsorship. For additional information, visit www.livenationentertainment.com.
About the Forum:
The award-winning "Fabulous" Forum, located in Inglewood, CA, is the largest indoor performance venue in the country designed with a focus on music and entertainment, in addition to select sporting events. The interior of the bowl features flexible seating that ranges from 17,500 seats to 7,000 seats, enabling the venue to attract a wide variety of premier events. Fans at the Forum enjoy approximately 8,000 square feet of event level hospitality offerings, including merchandise, along with food and beverage options from some of SoCal's most celebrated brands. A tinted glass wall separates this concession area from the arena, ensuring fans do not miss a moment of the performance. A 40,000 square foot outdoor terrace surrounds the perimeter of the building and offers food and beverage options, as well as comfortable furnishings, to further elevate guests' enjoyment. The Forum delivers a one-of-a-kind experience for all thanks to its superior acoustics, intimate ambiance and state-of-the-art facilities. Designed with entertainers and performers in mind, the venue includes nine, star-caliber dressing rooms that provide unparalleled comfort. The Forum is part of The Madison Square Garden Company's portfolio of iconic venues, which also includes: New York's Madison Square Garden, the Hulu Theater at MSG, Radio City Music Hall, the Chicago Theatre, the Boch Center Wang Theatre, and the Beacon Theater. For more information, please visit www.fabulousforum.com.
Maná Media Contact:
John Reilly, jreilly@rogersandcowan.com
Sylvia Bedrosian, Sbedrosian@rogersandcowan.com
Live Nation U.S. Concerts Media Contacts:
Emily Bender, emilybender@livenation.com
Monique Sowinski, moniquesowinski@livenation.com
The Forum Media Contact:
Maxie Solters, Scoop Marketing, msolters@solters.com
Posted by: Scoop Marketing // Press Releases // March 11, 2019
← Maluma 11:11 World Tour Coming to the Forum September 8 The Black Keys | 911 |
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Award winning Amy arrives at university in style!
Amy Mason A first year student at Bangor University who was named her county's 'Student of the Year' has arrived in style at her Halls of Residence in her competition prize - a brand-new Fiat Panda!
<|fim_middle|> skill to raise money for a good cause. I now donate part of anything I earn through performing to the hospice."
Amy is now looking forward to her first year at university and is enjoying living in Neuadd John Morris-Jones Halls of Residence. She said, "I'm settling in really well and I've made a lot of new friends. It's great having a car and it'll definitely make it easier to head back home for the holidays!"
Amy hopes to join the University orchestra and continue performing whilst at Bangor.
Bangor University, Bangor, LL57 2DG
Email: marketing@bangor.ac.uk | Amy Mason, 18 from Merthyr Tydfil who was head girl at her former school, Ysgol Gyfun Rhydywaun, beat 17 other students from across Rhondda Cynon Taf to the prize, which was jointly sponsored by the local council and Griffin Mill garages.
Amy is now settling in to life in Bangor where she is studying Welsh and French. She was shocked to discover that she had won the award, "I faced tough competition from the other students and I really didn't expect to win. It came as a real surprise!" she remarked.
Each secondary school within Rhondda Cynon Taf nominated a pupil for the award, which recognises outstanding achievement in three fields: educational standard, community involvement and voluntary work.
Amy's musical talent and her dedication to helping Tŷ Hafan children's hospice impressed the competition judges. An accomplished harpist, Amy performed for Prince Charles at Tŷ Hafan's 10 year anniversary event.
Amy said, "My mum has worked for Tŷ Hafan since it first opened, which is how I first got involved with the organisation. I've been volunteering for the hospice for the past seven years and as I play the harp, I thought why not use that | 267 |
Grosse Pointe Woods — School officials in the Grosse Pointe Public School System are recommending the closure of either Poupard or Mason elementary schools in the north end of the district and the closure of Maire or Trombly elementary schools in the south end.
No decisions were made Thursday night about school closures, but officials presented their ideas to a Blue Ribbon Committee of parents, school officials and local taxpayers as the group and district attempt to help the school board address long-declining enrollment.
Jon Dean, deputy superintendent of educational services, said because two other north-end elementary schools, Ferry and Monteith, each can hold 600 kids, the district does not recommend closing those schools because there is not enough room in the other elementary schools to move students.
"Poupard or Mason must be closed," Dean said.
If Poupard, located in Harper Woods, is closed, the district recommends providing transportation to those students to new schools.
"It is our only Title 1 school," Dean said.
At the end of the meeting, the committee took an informal survey about the suggested closures.
About 74.5% recommended closing Mason while 25.5% wanted to close Poupard. Nearly 59% wanted to close two schools in the south end while 41.2% advocated closing one school there.
About 67% wanted Kerby turned into an early childhood center while 33.2% wanted Barnes to expand its current center.
The discussions to close schools comes after 15 years of declining enrollment and a move to right-size the district without opening its doors to Schools of Choice students.
Lynn Weber said she has come to every meeting held by the district related to school closures and reconfigurations. Weber has two elementary-age children and said she is glad she came to Thursday's meeting.
"To see the names is pretty scary," Weber said. "No one is going to be happy. I don't think they have done their due diligence. This is the first time I have had a piece of paper with information and numbers on it."
Superintendent Gary Niehaus said the district would provide operational savings, bond savings and projected land value for each school under consideration to close.
The goal is to have at least $1 million a year in savings and be at least 80% capacity at as many schools as possible, Niehaus said.
Niehaus told the crowd of about 100 people Thursday that whenever a district adds or subtracts from its building stock, school boundaries change.
"If the boundaries change, we may have saved a school but you may not be in the same attendance boundary as before, Niehaus said.
Members of the Blue Ribbon Committee also were asked to consider where to place an expanded early childhood center, with the district recommending Kerby or Barnes.
Each of the proposed options detailed new school configurations, including where students from a closed school would be routed and financial savings including land value, bond savings and operational savings.
The land value of any buildings closed ranges from $3.9 million to $6.4<|fim_middle|> board of education also will not consider Schools of Choice, an option to open its doors to neighboring school districts' students and their per-pupil foundation grant from the state, school officials said.
The Grosse Pointe Public School System is holding town hall meetings in April and May to discuss its reconfiguration proposals. All begin at 6:30 p.m. | million. Operations savings range from $1.3 million to $1.9 million, and bond savings range from $9.1 million to $15.5 million.
Declining K-12 enrollment has translated into financial losses for the affluent Metro Detroit district, school officials said. With each student equal to around $10,000 in school revenue, the district's average 100-student drop per year is $1 million lost.
Grosse Pointe's schools are not alonel. Statewide K-12 student enrollment has been on the decline for years. Enrollment is forecast to drop another 10% through 2025 in southeast Michigan.
But after years of watching enrollment drop in their own district, Grosse Pointe parents, taxpayers and school officials now are grappling with how to balance the district and set a deadline for June 30 so the school system can save between $1 million and $2 million annually.
The idea of closing elementary schools and moving fifth-grade students into middle school buildings, two concepts under consideration by school officials, has produced emotional and often caustic debate in the community and across social media.
Savings would come from closing buildings and fewer staff, school officials said.
The district's peak population in recent years was in the 2004-05 school year, when about 8,930 students attended. About 7,600 students are enrolled this school year across 14 school buildings.
The district will host more town halls through May to gather community input on the reconfiguration work of the committee.
Building closures or grade reconfigurations will not occur before the 2020-21 school year.
School board president Brian Summerfield said maintaining the nine elementary schools, three middle schools, two high schools and one early childhood center will not be considered.
A K-6 and 7-12 configuration also will not be considered, Summerfield said. Neither high school will be closed and high school boundaries will not change.
Summerfield said the district might be the last "mature district" in Metro Detroit to go through the painful process of closing schools due to a declining student population.
The board will consider many factors when deciding whether to close a school, Summerfield said, such as location and size.
A building analysis by the district said capacity ranges from 55% to 85% at the nine elementary schools, from 69% to 86% in the three middle schools and 54% to 73% at the two high schools.
The | 532 |
Charles J. Fisher
Historian 4 hire
Arwyn Manor
Arwyn Manor, photo by Charles J. Fisher, 2006
Arwyn Manor Neon. photo by Charles J. Fisher, 2006
Arwyn Manor, Los Angeles Historic Cultural Monument #878
Built: 1928 Declared: 07/17/2007
This brick and steel frame apartment building is an<|fim_middle|> in design, yet it is built with a steel frame, which is unusual for apartment buildings of the period. The building shows Power's abilities in both its design and its execution. It was advertised as a most modern building and attracted long term tenants who were both upwardly mobile and established. One example was Walker, president of the California Drilling Company, who lived there for many years before his death in 1949. The building has not only retained its original design, but has been a very visible landmark in its neighborhood its construction.
Charles J. Fisher Proudly powered by WordPress | excellent intact example of the style that was built in Los Angeles from before World War I until the early 1930s. The original owner, David Haves, appears to have been a local developer. Haves was to retain ownership for a number of years. Ben Kagan is listed as the contractor on the building permit, with C. Waldo Powers as the architect. The Arwyn Manor apartment building displays a high degree of integrity in its design, and is a fine, well-maintained building that gives a solid reference to its time and place. The neon roof sign is of particular importance. It was installed shortly after the completion of the building by Electrical Products Corporation. The sign, that glows blue at night, was re-lit through the Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs LUMENS Project several years ago.
The building has undergone Section 88 seismic retrofit. The work was done in such a manner that it retained the architectural integrity of the building. C. W. Powers, who was both an architect and an engineer, was the designer of many of the large apartment buildings constructed during the building boom of the 1920s that was a direct result of the sudden population growth in Los Angeles after World War I. Powers was only in his 20s, but he was getting many of the large commissions of that period. His name was frequently cited in the Southwest Builder and Contractor for his work. He was born in Los Angeles in 1900 to a Swedish Father and a native California Mother who was also of Swedish descent. His designs went through a variety of styles from Beaux Arts to Zigzag Moderne. The Arwyn Manor is one of his largest apartment projects. The building is classic Italian Renaissance | 356 |
Olin does a phenominal job managing our Cambridge office. While he has to wear many hats and can find that a challenge from time to time, he consistantly seems to read his bosses mind! At first glance you would pick up on his no nonsense, just get the job done approach, but look a little further because underneath he is a very caring teddy bear, although rumor has it that he "needs" to eat on time!! A devoted father and grandfather, Olin proudly displays their many pictures on his desk and participates in many family activities.
Olin is a very loyal, devoted<|fim_middle|>'s fullest. He's young, energetic, and eager to meet his clients' needs. Justin is in full gear! | employee, who will do whatever is asked of him...even when it might not be exactly his idea of a day in paradise! Heavily influenced by family and Christian beliefs, Olin services our clients with the same values that have been instilled in him by his parents and he is ready to go above and beyond to help them.
Kim joined our SVS team in August of 2016 after previously working for the Farm Service Agency for 26 years. We were looking to hire and train a Crop Insurance Assistant Specialist and Kim's experience with Farm Subsidy Programs made her the perfect fit for the job. Kim was born and raised in Dorchester County where she took an interest in farming family history. Her friendly nature and passion for helping others has proven to be her strength. We joke that she is the "Chatty Kathy" of our SVS team.
Kim recently became a grandmother to her grandson born on Halloween Day October 31, 2018. In her spare time she enjoys spending time with her family, reading, antiquing, football, and is quite the baker!
Justin was born and raised here on the Eastern Shore and he brings a laid-back sales approach that our local clients love! He is knowledgeable and professional, meeting with business owners on a daily basis.
Justin has come aboard bringing with him many new products to offer our long time clients. He offers individual policies for Accident, Dental, Critical Care, and Cancer policies. He will offer Business Owner's Employee Disability, Vision, Dental, and Income Replacement products.
Whether hunting, fishing and boating, Justin enjoys the shore to it | 330 |
Full clear glass front door, no voils or nets on windows, not a problem if you are not directly opposite other people so we spent most of our stay in the cottage with the curtains closed. Most people wouldnt mind this but some like ourselves don't like to be 'on show'. There was a small amount of cleaning spray but no cloths (we left some there) and only one bin liner. Other than that it was comfortable and clean in a<|fim_middle|>.
Enter into the modern kitchen and then into the open plan living area with a comfortable double bed in which you can wake up to lovely views.
The apartment is very tastefully furnished with a sitting area to sit and chat or catch up on a favourite movie together.
There's a dining area if you choose to have a hearty breakfast or a quiet night in.
The en-suite shower room is very nicely finished to complete the overall effect of an upmarket boutique hotel suite.
The cobbled farmyard out to front is a great place to sit in the sun and survey the wildlife and farm animals in the neighbouring pastures.
There are great walks all around, and the very best of the region is all within easy reach such as the magnificent Chatsworth House, Bakewell, Matlock and Matlock Bath all just a 20 minutes drive away, meaning there's plenty to enjoy wherever you choose to go.
All ground floor. Open plan studio accommodation with double bed, dining area and sitting area with electric coal effect stove. Kitchen. Shower room with shower, basin and WC.
Chesterfield 4.5 miles; Matlock 7.5 miles; Chatsworth House 8.5 miles; Bakewell 10 miles.
Holymoorside is a small, rural village situated close to Chesterfield, on the edge of the Peak District National Park and within driving distance of the stunning Chatsworth House. This lovely village is located in peaceful countryside and has three churches and two pubs. Just ten miles away is Bakewell, an attractive little market town retaining a delightful rural atmosphere and offering a good selection of shops, restaurants and pubs, as well as frequent local farmers' markets. There is also a 17th century market hall in the town centre and a modern leisure centre with swimming pool. The nearby town of Chesterfield has much to offer visitors. The town is famous for its 14th century church with 'crooked spire', twisting curiously from its true centre, while the frequent bustling market days are ideal for exploring the many different specialist shops and stalls which line the old Market Hall and charming Shambles beyond. Holymoorside is the perfect spot for a host of other attractions within easy reach and is an interesting base for a varied break in a fantastic location. | tranquil place.
the location of the cottage and the friendliness of the owners and the local community made our visit very enjoyable.
The booking process was simple and staff were friendly. The owners emailed us a few days before our stay with clear instructions for arrival. The cottage was clean, cosy and well presented. We were really impressed with the location, the surroundings were peaceful and relaxing with a short walk into the village where there was a pub and restaurant. The cottage was perfect for us, we would definitely book again!
It had all of the amenities and was in a beautiful quiet area of the countryside. I liked the toiletries in particular! My only comment is that it's more of a small studio flat rather than a one bedroom, as the lounge isn't separate. So for the price I thought it was a little expensive, but it was the bank holiday weekend so that's why. We really enjoyed our stay though and were very comfortable. It's nice that the place accepts dogs as our dog had a nide holiday too.
The decoration is well done in a traditional English style. We had no problem parking or using the internet.We would have liked to have an electric coffee machine, the meals are in the room and there is carpet on the floor which is not very practical for cleaning.
The herd of horses in the field next door was the icing on the cake.
Perfect for a cosy trip away.
The cottage is decorated to a very high standard and bed was incredibly comfy. Even with temperatures being very low nearly freezing the cottage was warm with a fan heater for extra warmth. The owners are very friendly but also leave you to the space so not invasive and we're kind enough to buy us a drink in the local pub one night too. Unfortunately we had to leave a day early as heavy snow was forecast Sunday didn't want to get snowed in. The only negative I could say is the WiFi isn't great but I don't think that's their fault its just part of living so rural. Was fine for getting on Internet an emails. But when I tried using Netflix it wouldn't work. There was 4g on ee though so we used that as i get plenty of data.
Had an amazing stay. The cottage is decorated to a very high standard and bed was incredibly comfy. Even with temperatures being very low nearly freezing the cottage was warm with a fan heater for extra warmth. The owners are very friendly but also leave you to the space so not invasive and we're kind enough to buy us a drink in the local pub one night too. Unfortunately we had to leave a day early as heavy snow was forecast Sunday didn't want to get snowed in. The only negative I could say is the WiFi isn't great but I don't think that's their fault its just part of living so rural. Was fine for getting on Internet an emails. But when I tried using Netflix it wouldn't work. There was 4g on ee though so we used that as i get plenty of data.
Pretty central of activities in the area, and not far from supermarkets. Quality of equipment, furnishings, decorations, very good, central heating, so warm and comfy. A quite steep incline from the village, so strong legs or some transport a requirement. The hosts are on hand, helpful, but not intrusive, and obliging.
The views are beautiful. Would book this property again.
An annexe to the owners' farmhouse conversion, this is a lovely ground floor studio apartment with lovely uninterrupted elevated views of the surrounding countryside, on the edge of the village of Holymoorside.
Perfect for a couple looking for a quiet getaway or base from which to explore the many wonders of the Peak District National Park | 748 |
Patty Murray and Public Health
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Healthcare Topics Public Health, COVID-19, Department of Health and Human Services, Food and Drug Administration, ACA, COVID-19 Testing, Coronavirus, CDC, Medicaid, Medicare, AMA, Surprise Medical Bills, Infect<|fim_middle|> system, it is more important than ever that we work to make reproductive health care accessible regardless of income or zip code,'Au ... | ious Disease, Health Equity, Reproductive Health, Mental Health, NIH, Telehealth, Coronavirus Vaccine, Surprise Billing, Operation Warp Speed, National Institutes of Health, Occupational Safety and Health Administration, Surprise Medical Billing, Maternal Mortality, Medical Billing, American Hospital Association, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Digital Health, Kaiser Family Foundation, Surprise Billing Legislation, 21st Century Cures Act, Individual Health Insurance Market, COVID-19 Vaccine, Vaccine Distribution, National Cancer Institute, Community Health, Medicare Advantage
Companies Pfizer, TeleTracking, Modern Health, Cerner, Microsoft Health, CVS Health, Push Health, CVS
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1/11/2022 Senators grill Biden administration about confusion over CDC guidance, testing shortages 'Äì FOX13 News Memphis WASHINGTON 'Ai The nation'Aos top public health officials testified before a Senate committee Tuesday about the federal government'Aos response to the Omicron variant.They faced criticism over testing shortages and confusion about the ... isolation and quarantine guidance confusing and frustrating,'Au said Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.).'AuI'Aom not questioning the science,'Au said Sen. Richard Burr (R-NC). 'AuI'Aom glad you refrain from testing mandates ...
1/11/2022 Senators grill Biden administration about confusion over CDC guidance, testing shortages - NewsBreak WASHINGTON 'Ai The nation'Aos top public health officials testified before a Senate committee Tuesday about the federal government'Aos response to the Omicron variant.They faced criticism over testing shortages and confusion about the ... isolation and quarantine guidance confusing and frustrating,'Au said Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.).'AuI'Aom not questioning the science,'Au said Sen. Richard Burr (R-NC). 'AuI'Aom glad you refrain from testing mandates ...
8/20/2021 US extends border restrictions with Canada, Mexico through Sept. 21 ... The extension comes just 12 days after Canada opened its border to vaccinated Americans on Aug. 8. 'AuIn coordination with public health and medical experts, DHS continues working closely with its partners across the United ... lawmakers like Congresswoman Suzan DelBene and Senators Maria Cantwell and Patty Murray have been lobbying DHS to open the border or make exemptions for places like Point Roberts, but their efforts have apparently failed with ...
8/20/2021 US extends COVID-19 border restrictions with Canada, Mexico through Sept. 21 | 9news.com ... public health and medical experts, DHS continues working closely with its partners across the United States and internationally to determine how to safely and sustainably resume normal travel,'Au DHS said in a statement.Many Washingtonians and businesses, especially those in the northern part of the state, will be disappointed by the news .Washington lawmakers like Congresswoman Suzan DelBene and Senators Maria Cantwell and Patty Murray have been lobbying DHS ...
8/20/2021 US extends COVID-19 border restrictions with Canada, Mexico through Sept. 21 | cbs8.com ... public health and medical experts, DHS continues working closely with its partners across the United States and internationally to determine how to safely and sustainably resume normal travel,'Au DHS said in a statement.Many Washingtonians and businesses, especially those in the northern part of the state, will be disappointed by the news .Washington lawmakers like Congresswoman Suzan DelBene and Senators Maria Cantwell and Patty Murray have been lobbying DHS ...
8/20/2021 US extends COVID-19 border restrictions with Canada, Mexico through Sept. 21 ... public health and medical experts, DHS continues working closely with its partners across the United States and internationally to determine how to safely and sustainably resume normal travel,'Au DHS said in a statement. Many Washingtonians and businesses, especially those in the northern part of the state, will be disappointed by the news. Washington lawmakers like Congresswoman Suzan DelBene and Senators Maria Cantwell and Patty Murray have been lobbying DHS ...
8/11/2021 Senator Murray Statement on Historic Budget Resolution US Senate ... Better through the budget reconciliation process Murray pushes forward historic investments in child care, paid leave, affordable housing, higher education, public health, climate action, and the care economy Sen. Murray: 'AuBy adopting this budget resolution ... part of our state.'Au (Washington, D.C.) Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, hailed the Senate'Aos passage of a budget resolution as ...
8/9/2021 Senator Murray Outlines Priorities for Budget Resolution US Senate ... released the text of the budget resolution that the Senate is expected to vote on later this week, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), the Chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee ... pandemic and an economic crisis shouldn'Aot we rebuild our public health departments? Shouldn'Aot we rebuild our economy? Shouldn'Aot we address the deep-seated inequities that have made things so much worse for ...
8/3/2021 Senator Murray Statement on New CDC Eviction Moratorium US Senate ... public health.'Au For more information on how to access federal rental assistance see more from the U.S. Department of Treasury and Washington State Department of Commerce Tenants and landlords can also use the CFPB'Aos new locator tool to find out where they can apply for emergency rental assistance. Washington, D.C. 'Ai Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee ...
7/28/2021 After Pandemic Missteps: Senators Seek Lessons for Future Emergencies Members of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee played the blame game for false steps during the pandemic. At a hearing on Tuesday, HELP committee chair Patty Murray (D-Wash.) said the nation was ill-equipped to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic because of a weak and underfunded public health infrastructure. She called for an end to the pattern of 'Aucrisis and complacency'Au in public ...
7/27/2021 After Pandemic Missteps: Senators Seek Lessons for Future Emergencies Members of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee played the blame game for false steps during the pandemic.At a hearing on Tuesday, HELP committee chair Patty Murray (D-Wash.) said the nation was ill-equipped to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic because of a weak and underfunded public health infrastructure. She called for an end to the pattern of "crisis and complacency" in public health ...
6/9/2021 Senator Murray: President Biden's Health Department Budget Offers 'ÄúRoadmap for Progress'Äù US Senate ... Murray: President Biden'Aos Health Department Budget Offers 'AuRoadmap for Progress'Au Jun 09 2021 Budget proposes increased investments in public health, biomedical research, health equity, mental health and substance use disorders, women'Aos health ... years to come.'Au (Washington, D.C.) 'Ai Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) chaired a hearing of the Senate Labor, Health, and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies (LHHS) Appropriations Subcommittee focused on President ...
4/13/2021 Merkley Leads Colleagues in Push to Support West Coast Fishermen and Seafood Processorsst Fishermen and Seafood Processors US Senate ... Merkley is leading a group of nine lawmakers'Aiincluding U.S. Senators Ron Wyden (D-OR), Alex Padilla (D-CA), and Patty Murray (D-WA), and Representatives Peter DeFazio (D-OR-4), Earl Blumenauer (D-OR ... of USDA commodity purchasing programs.'AuAs you know, the ongoing public health crisis related to the COVID-19 pandemic has caused an economic disaster throughout the U.S. economy. These economic disruptions have been particularly acute ...
4/12/2021 Press Release | Press Releases | News | U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley of Oregon US Senate ... Merkley is leading a group of nine lawmakers'Aiincluding U.S. Senators Ron Wyden (D-OR), Alex Padilla (D-CA), and Patty Murray (D-WA), and Representatives Peter DeFazio (D-OR-4), Earl Blumenauer (D-OR ... of USDA commodity purchasing programs.'AuAs you know, the ongoing public health crisis related to the COVID-19 pandemic has caused an economic disaster throughout the U.S. economy. These economic disruptions have been particularly acute ...
4/8/2021 A conversation on the future of US health care with Sen. Patty Murray A conversation on the future of US health care with Sen. Patty Murray Michael Goldberg April 8, 2021Any health care bills that make it to President Biden'Aos desk will first need to go ... has jurisdiction over proposed legislation and matters related to health, public health, aging, and a broad range of other issues. The Morning Wire: Keeping you informed on politics, policies, and personalities of Washington State.With ...
3/31/2021 Senator Murray Emphasizes Importance of Vaccine Equity with Washington State Public Health Experts, Discusses Key Provisions of American Rescue Plan US Senate Senator Murray Emphasizes Importance of Vaccine Equity with Washington State Public Health Experts, Discusses Key Provisions of American Rescue Plan Mar 31 2021 Last week, Senator Murray announced 27 community health centers in Washington state ... OF THE EVENT HERE Seattle, WA 'Ai Today U.S. Senator Patty Murray, Chair of the Senate health committee, hosted a roundtable with local public health officials from across Washington state to hear about the state ...
3/26/2021 COVID isn't over, but Congress is starting prep for the next pandemic PBS ... together on legislation that will 'Aumake sure nothing like [COVID-19] ever happens again,'Au as the influential Democratic Sen. Patty Murray (Wash.) put it. They will work, too, to diagnose the problems and important ... the clearest indication yet that the coronavirus pandemic may, as public health advocates hope, snap lawmakers out of a longstanding pattern of funding public health programs in a panic, then letting dollars lag over time ...
3/25/2021 Press Releases | Press | Chair's Newsroom | Chair | The U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor & Pensions US Senate ... Murray, Ranking Member Burr Seek Input from Stakeholders on Workforce Policies (Washington, D.C.) 'Ai Today, at the direction of Chair Patty Murray (D-WA) and Ranking Member Richard Burr (R-NC), the Health, Education, Labor ... working families'Aiwhich means investing in job-creating priorities like public health and transportation infrastructure, child care, and the health care workforce'Aibut also, making sure workers have the training to take on jobs in ...
3/25/2021 Rachel Levine confirmed as assistant health secretary MSN ... was also former president of the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO) 'Ai a nonprofit that represents the public health agencies of all 50 states, U.S. territories, D.C. and the three freely associated ... chief Michael Regan and U.S. trade envoy Katherine Tai .Senator Patty Murray of Washington tweeted after the vote, ". @SecretaryLevine has been on the frontlines of this pandemic, which is why she knows firsthand what our ...
3/25/2021 Rachel Levine confirmed as assistant health secretary Yahoo News ... was also former president of the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO) 'Ai a nonprofit that represents the public health agencies of all 50 states, U.S. territories, D.C. and the three freely associated ... chief Michael Regan and U.S. trade envoy Katherine Tai .Senator Patty Murray of Washington tweeted after the vote, ". @SecretaryLevine has been on the frontlines of this pandemic, which is why she knows firsthand what our ...
3/25/2021 Dr. Rachel Levine is the new assistant health secretary 'Äî and the first openly transgender person to be confirmed by the Senate - CBS News CBS News ... was also former president of the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO) 'Ai a nonprofit that represents the public health agencies of all 50 states, U.S. territories, D.C. and the three freely associated ... chief Michael Regan and U.S. trade envoy Katherine Tai .Senator Patty Murray of Washington tweeted after the vote, ". @SecretaryLevine has been on the frontlines of this pandemic, which is why she knows firsthand what our ...
3/25/2021 ICYMI: Murray & Rubio: Make Daylight Saving Time Permanent US Senate LockTheClock. Make Daylight Saving Time Permanent By U.S. Senators Patty Murray (D-WA) and Marco Rubio (R-FL)March 25, 2021 USA Today Were you one of the hundreds of millions of people who woke ... in your house, year-round DST would also offer notable public health benefits. Spending more standard work hours in sunlight would likely reduce rates of seasonal depression , while not having to juggle time changes could ...
3/25/2021 Vivek H. Murthy Confirmed As New Surgeon General ... working with him to address this pandemic and the underlying health inequities it has made way worse,'Au tweeted Sen. Patty Murray, head of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, calling Murthy a ... doctor.'AuHe typically serves as a prominent spokesperson on public health issues but has a limited role in policymaking.Murthy, who had previously served the same role in the Obama White House, will have ...
3/25/2021 Representatives Lee, DeGette, Schakowsky, Pressley Joined with Senators Duckworth, Murray, and Hirono to Reintroduce the EACH Act & Repeal the Harmful and Discriminatory Hyde Amendment US House of Representatives ... the EACH Act. A companion bill was also introduced in the U.S. Senate, led by Senators Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Patty Murray (D-WA), and Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI).This legislation would repeal the ... crisis that has pushed millions into poverty and strained out public health | 3,060 |
I've had mash-ups in the back of my head ever since Sunday<|fim_middle|> song seem that much better.
All in all, I can remember only finding a few mash ups that I really liked during that time period, and then they quickly began to seem gimmicky and boring. In my memory, it was a super-brief phase where I listened to just a few songs. In Grace's, it was me listening to a LOT of mash-ups. | when Grace and I were at Word in Greenpoint and somehow the subject came up. Specifically, Grace said to me "You used to listen to a lot of mash-ups, didn't you?"
It's funny how memory works. I wouldn't say I ever listened to a LOT of mash-ups, but I definitely went through a phase where I was relatively fascinated by them.
The very first time I heard anything like a mash-up was the opening scene of the movie "Blue Crush" and they had juxtaposed some hip hop song I was unfamiliar with with "Cruel Summer" by Bananarama. I wasn't a huge fan of either song, but it was easily the most memorable part of the movie as far as I was concerned.
I sat there in disbelief, thinking "wow, they just combined those two songs and it totally works!" I wanted more - but there wasn't anything more that I could find. The term "mash-up" wasn't in my vocabulary yet.
It didn't get there until 2003, when Grace and I started dating. One thing we were both really into was music, and we began exchanging a lot of it. I made her a CD which had a mash up of "Eye of the Tiger" by Survivor, and "Work It" by Missy Elliot. That track was amazing!
I think I maybe found one or two others at the time, but nothing that I liked as much as that one. Probably because the combination of the songs was so original and they way they were woven together made each | 317 |
Risk Mitigation & Resilience
Work & Income
Overcoming the Odds: 6 Challenges Farmers Face
By Heifer International
Farmers juggle myriad demanding tasks and challenges every day. There's all that goes in to working the fields and tending to livestock, but there's also the trials of building and running a sustainable business — no easy feat amid a changing climate and increasingly unpredictable market systems.
Success requires innovation, resourcefulness and care.
Helping farmers turn obstacles<|fim_middle|>agar, the well now provides water year-round, allowing her to lead a more resilient, dignified life.
"Rain patterns can either make or break us," Tara said, recalling a recent dry spell that killed her chili plants and the days she'd spend praying to rain gods, hopeful for a cloud or two. "Water is so precious. I could not make a living if the rains were delayed."
Embracing Innovation: How Heifer Farmers Are Harnessing Tech
By Aimée Knight | January 18, 2022
In Heifer's project areas, farmers are using tech — both cutting edge and commonplace — to hone their production, grow their incomes and lift...
More Related to Work & Income
Seeds of Resilience: A Young Mother Builds a Better Life
Goma's Journey from Farm to Office
'Everything Is Possible': Lessons for Success from a Kenyan Farmer | into opportunities is core to our mission at Heifer International. Here are six common challenges farmers face, and how we support them in finding the solutions they need to lead more resilient and dignified lives.
1. Building Profitable Businesses
Montoo and his wife, Janki, feeding their chicken flock in their home village of Budara, in India's Odisha state. Photo by Pranab K. Aich/Heifer International.
Small networks and limited access to markets are just some of the many challenges of building and growing a successful business in rural agricultural communities. For farmers, like Montoo Naik in India, the lack of opportunity forces many to migrate to cities in search of other forms of employment.
Heifer supports farmers with the training and tools they need to keep their enterprises close to home. During the pandemic, Montoo decided to return to his home village in Odisha state, where Heifer trained him to start a poultry farm. Now, at the helm of a thriving business, he's already earning nearly 20% more than he did as a migrant worker.
"If you want to stay back in your village, you can start small and earn through it," Montoo said. "You don't always have to move. ... Opportunities exist here also."
2. Improving Animal Well-being
Kusu Maya Malla cleans her hands before setting off to vaccinate and inspect local farmers' livestock. Photo by Narendra Shrestha/Heifer International.
Small livestock are a lifeline for farming families living in rural communities, and vital for food security in places where poverty runs deep. But limited access to veterinary services, such as vaccinations and medications, holds many back from reaping the potential benefits.
When the pandemic struck, Heifer launched an online training to help women become community vets, like Kusu Maya Malla, a mother of three living in central Nepal. Kusu took the 35-day online course to become certified as an animal health service provider, learning everything from diagnosing diseases to growing nutritious fodder, and now helps over 600 local farmers keep their animals healthy and their livelihoods' safe.
"With this single training, I have realized that I am not only capable of providing service as a technician making income, but I can be recognized in my community as well in a wider scope," she said. "People know me as a fine vet technician with a successful goat farm."
3. Protecting the Environment
Irma Carrion Paz and her son in the greenhouse she uses to grow produce for her island, constructed with support from Heifer Ecuador. Photo by Isadora Romero/Heifer International.
As the climate changes and becomes increasingly unpredictable, so do farmers' chances of growing a healthy crop. To help protect their yields and ensure a successful season, farmers are often forced to resort to using chemical inputs.
On the Galápagos Islands, Heifer is helping farmers feed their communities without harming the environment, by building greenhouses. These climate-controlled spaces allow farmers to grow food year-round, cutting back on the region's over-reliance on imported food. And for many, like farmer Irma Carrión Paz, the greenhouse has been life-changing.
"Until recently, I depended on my husband's work," said Irma, whose husband travels daily to work on a larger farm to supplement their household income. "Now, with this greenhouse, I have income that covers food, electricity and the phone."
4. Finding Secure Employment
Jeanne d'Arc Musanganyimana, right, conducts bookkeeping at COVIFALIRU with a co-worker. Photo by Jacques Nkingzingabo/Heifer International.
Finding secure and meaningful work opportunities isn't easy, especially for youth living in rural areas where most jobs revolve around agriculture.
Around the world, Heifer's support connects young people like Jeanne d'Arc Musanganyimana to cooperatives and job opportunities. A young mother living in Rwanda, Jeanne turned her life around when she was hired as an accountant by an agrovet company started by Heifer-trained veterinary workers. Before this job, she spent three years doing irregular work and barely making ends meet.
"Before joining this company, I didn't have any source of income apart from working [in] casual construction, which was not regular," said Jeanne. "When I got this job and started getting a salary, life started getting better."
5. Accessing Financial Tools
Victorine Odero is the manager of Siaya Seed Savings and Credit Cooperative in Kenya. Photo by Gaitano Productions.
Financial literacy, savings and loans are critical links to growth for smallholder farmers. But for many, financial skills and resources are out of reach. To address the gaps, Heifer supports farmer-run savings and credit cooperatives to connect farmers to the tools they need to realize a stronger financial future.
In Kenya, for example, Heifer supported Victorine and the savings and credit cooperative she runs to expand into the poultry business and broaden its scope of services to local poultry farmers. The group offers loans to members at reasonable rates and provides financial literacy, savings and finance management training.
"I've seen a woman come from not having any shelter and living in a deteriorating condition to, after two or three years, becoming empowered because of [our] support," Victorine said. "I wake up each day to ensure more people are empowered."
6. Sourcing Water for Irrigation
Tara Devi Mohato uses water from a shallow well to irrigate her vegetable fields in rural Nepal. Photo by Narendra Shrestha/Heifer International.
Many smallholder farmers depend on rainfall to irrigate their crops. But as droughts and delayed rains become increasingly common, the consequences for food producers are huge: without rain, production drops, prices rise and farmers struggle to make a Sustainable Living Income.
In Nepal, Heifer is installing wells to build farmers' resilience and bring water to the waterless. For Tara Devi Mahato, a vegetable farmer in the southeastern village of Pashupatin | 1,234 |
Paleolithic human exploitation of plant foods during the last glacial maximum in North China
Li Liu, Sheahan Bestel, Jinming Shi, Yanhua Song, and Xingcan Chen
PNAS April 2, 2013 110 (14) 5380-5385; https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1217864110
Li Liu
aDepartment of East Asian Languages and Cultures, Stanford Archaeology Center, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305;
For correspondence: liliu@stanford.edu
Sheahan Bestel
bInstitute of Archaeology, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, Beijing 100710, China;
Jinming Shi
cShanxi Museum, Taiyuan 030024, China; and
Yanhua Song
dDepartment of Archaeology, Shanxi University, Taiyuan 030006, China
Xingcan Chen
Edited by Dolores R. Piperno, Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History and Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Fairfax, Washington DC, and approved February 11, 2013 (received for review October 18, 2012)
Three grinding stones from Shizitan Locality 14 (ca. 23,000–19,500 calendar years before present) in the middle Yellow River region were subjected to usewear and residue analyses to investigate human adaptation during the last glacial maximum (LGM) period, when resources were generally scarce and plant foods may have become increasingly important in the human diet. The results show that these tools were used to process various plants, including Triticeae and Paniceae grasses, Vigna beans, Dioscorea opposita yam, and Trichosanthes kirilowii snakegourd roots. Tubers were important food resources for Paleolithic hunter–gatherers, and Paniceae grasses were exploited about 12,000 y before their domestication. The long tradition of intensive exploitation of certain types of flora helped Paleolithic people understand the properties of these plants, including their medicinal uses, and eventually led to the plants' domestication. This study sheds light on the deep history of the broad spectrum subsistence strategy characteristic of late Pleistocene north China before the origins of agriculture in this region.
ancient starch
late Paleolithic China
plant processing
usewear analysis
stone tool function
It has long been argued that foragers at the end of the Pleistocene broadened their resource base to encompass a wide array of plant and animal foods and that this "broad spectrum revolution" entailed the transition to farming (1). New studies have shown that human exploitation of an extensive range of plant foods can be traced back to much earlier dates in late Paleolithic times in southwest Asia, suggesting a long history of intensive foraging for plants before domestication (2).
Usewear traces and plant residues on grinding stones can provide crucial information for understanding the plant-foraging strategies of ancient people. By applying these methods, several projects have shown evidence of widespread plant use, including wild cereals and tubers, by late Paleolithic populations in many areas of the world, dating to a period between ca. 30,000 and 23,000 y ago, including the Near East (3), Europe (4), and Australia (5).
In China, the earliest grinding stones have been uncovered from several Paleolithic site clusters distributed on the Loess Plateau region along the middle Yellow River valley. These include Longwangchan in Shaanxi (6) and Shizitan and Xiachuan in Shanxi (7⇓–9), dating to ca. 25,000–9000 calendar years before present (cal. B.P.). A study of usewear traces and starch residues on grinding stones from Locality 9 (S9 hereafter) in the Shizitan site cluster (ca. 12,700–11,600 cal. B.P.) has demonstrated that people used these tools to process various plant foods, including grasses, tubers, acorns, and legumes (10). Among the grass starch granules uncovered at this site, some from Panicoideae may have been the wild ancestors of domesticated millets (Panicum miliaceum and Setaria italica ssp. italica). Therefore, it is important to investigate the use of plants in an earlier period in this region, to trace possible continuity in a putative plant procurement strategy that may have eventually led to domestication. In this study, we demonstrate usewear patterns and residues on three grinding stones (ca. 23,000–19,500 cal. B.P.) excavated from Locality 14 (S14 hereafter) in the Shizitan site cluster (9), which disclosed the exploitation of Triticeae and Paniceae grasses, Vigna beans, Dioscorea opposita yam, and Trichosanthes kirilowii snakegourd roots.
Sites and Environmental Contexts
S14 (110°32′40″ E, 36°02′11″ N; 655 ± 5 m in altitude) is among a series of more than 50 late Paleolithic localities (ca. 25,000–9,000 cal. B.P.), referred to as the Shizitan site cluster, distributed along the Qingshui River, a tributary of the Yellow River in southern Shanxi (Fig. 1). All of these localities are characterized primarily by small flaked tools and a microlithic technology, with no pottery, dwelling structures, human burials, or storage facilities found, suggesting that the occupants were mobile hunter–gatherers (7⇓–9, 11). The long time span of human occupation with abundant material remains provides a wealth of data for study of the transition from the late Paleolithic to the early Neolithic in the middle Yellow River valley.
Site location and artifacts analyzed. (A) Major localities of the Shizitan site cluster in Jixian, Shanxi. (B) Grinding stones analyzed and sampling locations on the tools.
Excavations at S14 in 2000, 2003, and 2005 revealed three continuous cultural strata (II, III, and IV) within a depth of 50–100 cm in an area of 25 m2, dating to a time period of ca. 23,000–18,000 cal. B.P. (Table S1). Material remains uncovered include 1,643 lithic artifacts and 2,776 animal bone fragments, in addition to 17 ash and burnt surface areas (fireplaces). Several grinding tools (slabs) have been found near fireplaces in all strata (refs. 8 and 9; ref. 12, p. 20), and three of them (all made of sandstone), analyzed here (Fig. 1), were uncovered from Strata III and IV (ca. 23,000–19,500 cal. B.P.).
The site is situated in a mountainous region with a temperate climate and a diversity of flora resources today. Pollen data obtained from Shizitan suggest that vegetation coverage in the region was dominated by grasses from 35,100–9,400 B.P. (dating by thermoluminescence analysis) (13). During the last glacial maximum (LGM), the climate was dry and cold, featuring a steppe environment. During the period of ca. 18,500–13,200 cal. B.P., this region experienced the last deglaciation, characterized by a mild and arid or semiarid steppe environment with a small amount of deciduous and broadleaf species. This episode was then followed by a dry and cold period dating to 13,200–13,000 cal. B.P. before another era of improved climatic conditions (ref. 12, p. 167).
We collected usewear and residue samples from three grinding stones (GS1, GS2, GS3), which were kept in the Shanxi Museum after excavation. To compare used tools with unused natural stone, we also took samples from a sandstone rock (SS1) in a noncultural deposit near the site (Table S2).
Usewear Analysis.
Polyvinyl siloxane (hereafter PVS or peel) was applied to the Shizitan grinding stones to provide portable and durable records for microscopic analysis. Previous research, using PVS on usewear patterns from grinding stones in China (10, 14, 15) and other parts of the world (16⇓⇓–19) established valuable reference data for the study of ancient tools. In recent years, we have also conducted a series of experimental studies on grinding stones (20) to produce references for processing seeds, tubers, nuts, wooden objects, minerals, shells, and stone implements. Based on these studies, the analytical variables examined in the current project include: stage of polish development (low, medium, high), polish reticulation pattern, polish topography, striations (furrow, sleek, fine), pitting and pecking, and surface microtopography (Table S3). The results of the analysis of the three grinding stones (GS1–GS3) are as follows.
GS1.
GS1 is a fragment of a slab (weight, 0.74 kg), and both sides show microscopic traces of use, mainly small areas of polish. On the top side, the microscopic surface is relatively flat, and higher plateau areas show more polish than lower valley areas. In some areas, very fine striations run multidirectionally on the high level of the grain surface; in other areas, crystal grains are clearly flattened with polish (Fig. 2, 1 and 2). Based on our experimental study, similar polish and very fine striations appear on grinding slabs after processing dry tubers (Dioscorea opposita yam, Trichosanthes kirilowii snakegourd root, and Pueraria lobata kudzu-vine root) for 1 h or longer (Fig. S1, 5 and 6).
Usewear patterns from S14 grinding stones. (Magnification: 200×) (1 and 2) GS1, fine striations running diagonally and a polished crystal surface, resembling tuber processing. (3) GS2, small pitting (right), short furrows (lower left), and very fine and faint striations running vertically (upper left), likely related to pounding small, hard objects, abrading stone objects, and processing plants, respectively. (4) GS3-P1, a medium level polished area, similar to tuber processing. (5) GS3-P2, sleeks running vertically, similar to dry bean or large seed processing. (6) Uneven surface of natural crystals on an unused sandstone, for comparison with used tools.
GS2 is a small slab (weight, 0.25 kg), and the top surface is slightly concave. Three PVS peels taken from the top surface show similar usewear traces: the microscopic surface is relatively flat, and the high plateau areas show more polish than the lower valley areas. On slightly lower areas, striations are sometimes visible, mostly very fine, faint, short, and running in different orientations (Fig. 2, 3). These patterns are consistent with those from processing plants, including dehusked wheat and millet, in our reference data (Fig. S1, 2 and 3). Grinding movements were multidirectional, probably including linear bidirectional (back-and-forth) and circular motions. Pitting is visible in some areas, probably caused by processing hard-shelled seeds or nuts. In rare situations, some wide angular striations (furrows) are present (Fig. 2, 3), resembling the traces of stone-on-stone abrading done in our experimental study (Fig. S1, 1). These furrows, however, may have been caused by unintentional contact with hand stones.
GS3 (weight, 5.64 kg) is the largest one in the assemblage. It was found face-up on top of GS2, situated above a fireplace. Two PVS peels were taken from the used surface. The microscopic surface is rather flat with a few polished areas, and striations are rare. On peel one (P1), some crystal grains show medium-level polish without striations, and on P2, small areas of shallow striations with U-shaped cross-sections (sleeks) are present (Fig. 2, 4 and 5). Compared with the references in our experimental studies, the polish is similar to that from tuber grinding, and the striations resemble traces from large seed processing, such as with beans (Fig. S1, 4).
Summary.
Three slabs examined all show usewear traces, which clearly differentiate them from unused stone surfaces (Fig. 2, 6). These slabs were apparently used to process various plant foods, such as seeds, tubers, and nuts. To understand exactly what plants were involved here, we have to rely on residue analysis.
Residue Analysis.
Ten residue samples were extracted from the three tools either by applying a small amount of distilled water to the tool and then extracting the sample with a pipette or by removing sediment adhering to the tool surface (21, 22).
Phytolith remains on the S14 grinding implements were minimal and mostly not diagnostic (Supporting Information and Table S4). Grass husk phytoliths were not recovered, suggesting that these grinding stones were probably not used to dehusk cereals. Charcoal and/or burnt phytoliths were present on all three tools, perhaps reflecting the location of the implements near fireplaces or food processing areas.
Six of the 10 residue samples yielded a total of 136 starch granules. In general, samples taken from used surfaces tend to produce more starch residues than those from unused surfaces. Two sediment samples (GS1-3 and GS3-4) and one water sample (GS2-3), all taken from unused surfaces, contained no starch. GS1 and GS2 revealed only 10 starch granules (7.4% of the total), likely because the tools were washed after excavation, a situation that apparently affected the survival rate of starch residues. In contrast, 92.6% of total starch granules were found in the samples from GS3, which was unwashed before sampling. Sixty-five granules (48% of the total) show characteristics of damage, many resembling starch granules after grinding, as seen in previous studies (23) and our reference data. The samples taken from a natural rock contain a small number of starch granules with no sign of damage. These observations suggest that the profiles of starch residues recovered from used surfaces of ancient grinding stones are most likely associated with tool function rather than with the enclosing soil matrix, an inference consistent with several previous studies (e.g., refs. 10 and 24⇓–26).
Among over 900 specimens in our modern reference collections, we specifically analyzed those starch-rich and economically important samples relevant to the research area, including 156 samples belonging to 83 species in 45 genera of 18 families. Of the 136 starch granules uncovered from S14, 121 (89% of the total) are identifiable compared with our references. The ancient starch granules are classified into six types on the basis of their morphology and size. The unidentifiable starch granules (15; 11%) lack diagnostic features comparable to available references (Table S5). Because the starch remains from grinding stones are likely to have derived from ground plants, we compared them with starch extracted from ground seeds/tubers in our modern reference samples (Supporting Information).
Type I Starch.
Type I starch granules (n = 45; 33% of the total starch) are round or oval in shape and relatively large in size (14.56–39.21 µm). The surface is rather flat, the hilum is centric, lamellae are visible on large granules, and the extinction cross is shaped as either "×" or "+." Most of the type I granules appear damaged (33; 74%), showing broken edges, deep fissures, pronounced lamellae, and/or a dark central area on the extinction cross (Fig. 3, 1–4). These starch granules, in morphology and size, resemble many taxa in the Triticeae tribe of the grass family indigenous to north China and still found in Shanxi today (27). This includes many genera of Agropyron, Elymus, Roegneria, and Leymus in our references, as well as those reported in other studies (ref. 28, figure 4). The characteristics of damaged granules are also consistent with those found in ground Leymus and Agropyron from our references (Fig. 4, 1–4).
Starch grains uncovered from Shizitan S14, compared with tuber starch grains from Shizitan S9, Shigu, and Egou (under DIC and polarized filters). (1–4) Type I starch (Triticeae), showing damages (3 and 4). (5–8) Type II starch (Vigna sp.), showing damages (7 and 8). (9–14) Type III starch (Paniceae), showing damages. (15–18) Type IV starch (D. opposita). (19–21) Type V starch (T. kirilowii). (22 and 23) Type VI starch (T. kirilowii). (24 and 25) Type VI starch from Shizitan S9. (26–28) Types V and VI starch from Peiligang culture sites at Shigu (26) and Egou (27 and 28). Panels 26–28 are reproduced with permission from ref. 14. (Scales bars: 9–14 and 19–28, 10 µm; others, 20 µm.)
Modern starch references (under DIC and polarized filters). (1) Leymus secalinus (ground). (2) A. cristatum (ground). (3 and 4) A. desertorum (ground). (5 and 6) V. radiata. (7 and 8) V. unguiculata (ground). (9) S. italica ssp. viridis, showing undamaged granules. (10) P. miliaceum (wild), showing undamaged granules. (11 and 12) S. italica ssp. viridis (ground), showing pronounced fissures. (13) S. italica ssp. viridis (ground), showing central depression with a protrusion. (14) E. crusgalli (ground), showing central depressions on most granules. (15 and 16) D. opposita (wild). (17–20) T. kirilowii. (Scale bars: 9–14, 10 µm; others: 20 µm.)
It is possible that type I starches belong to more than one genus in the Triticeae tribe, although the large granules are particularly similar to Agropyron cristatum and Agropyron desertorum in form (Fig. 4, 2 and 3) and size (Fig. 5, 1).
Ancient starch types I–VI compared with modern references after grinding (all reference samples are wild forms unless indicated as domesticated).
Type II Starch.
Type II starch granules (n = 20; 15% of the total starch) are irregularly oval or nearly kidney-shaped and relatively large in size (17.31–40.76 µm). Fissures and lamellae are visible in most cases, and the extinction cross often exhibits many arms. Seven granules (35%) are damaged, characterized by broken edges and/or a large dark area at the center (Fig. 3, 5–8), consistent with bean starch granules damaged by grinding (23). Type II granules resemble beans in the Phaseoleae tribe, particularly Vigna species, in shape and size (Figs. 4, 5–8 and 5, 2), such as Vigna angularis, Vigna unguiculata, and Vigna radiata. It is difficult to identify type II starch to the level of species.
Type III Starch.
Type III starch granules (n = 18; 13% of the total starch) are characterized by small sizes (8.95–18.81 µm) and polygonal shapes. The hilum is centric, with star or Y-shaped fissures often radiating toward the periphery, whereas extinction crosses are mostly "+"-shaped with straight arms. Most starch granules (13; 72%) in type III are damaged, showing a large central depression with or without a small circular protrusion in the middle, pronounced fissures, widened extinction cross, and/or visible lamellae on part of the granule (Fig. 3, 9–14). Type III starch granules are similar in shape to several genera within the Paniceae tribe. Some genera in our reference samples, such as Setaria, Panicum, Echinochloa, Pennisetum, and Digitaria, all exhibit both faceted and spherical granule shapes, the presence of fissures, a centric hilum, and straight cross shape, similar to type III starch granules. However, the damaged type III granules particularly resemble, in morphology, those from green foxtail grass (S. italica ssp. viridis), which is the wild ancestor of domesticated foxtail millet (S. italica ssp. italica), and barnyard grass (Echinochloa crusgalli) Fig. 4, 9–14).
In general, wild Paniceae starch granules (approximately <14 µm) are smaller in size range than those from domesticated millets (ref. 10, figure 4; refs. 28⇓–30). However, type III starch granules from S14 show sizes greater than 14 µm in half of the cases examined (9 of 18). These large granules only overlap well with the size ranges of domesticated foxtail millet and a ground green foxtail sample from Zhengzhou (Henan) in our references (Fig. 5, 3).
Based on our experimental study, starch granules from several wild and domesticated Paniceae species become larger in size after grinding, with the maximum length of granules increasing 27–56% among several reference samples of Echinochloa, Panicum, and Setaria spp. It is known that milling can cause structural change in starch granules (31), and in several cases, ancient Paniceae starch granules from grinding stones appear larger than those from the modern corresponding species (ref. 28, p. 254). Given that grasses taken from 23,000-y-old tools at S14 are unlikely to be domesticated species, it is possible that some type III starch granules belong to wild Paniceae grasses, including Setaria and other genera, and that their large sizes may have been caused by grinding (Supporting Information).
Type IV Starch.
Type IV starch granules (n = 24; 18% of the total) are characterized by a large granule size range (19.33–59.05 µm), irregular triangular or oval shapes, an extremely eccentric hilum, the presence of lamellae in most cases, and an extinction cross with bent arms (Fig. 3, 15–18). One granule appears to be damaged, showing broken edges, rough surface, and a dark area in the center of the extinction cross. These starch granules most resemble the D. opposita yam, which has many cultivated and wild variations in north China (Fig. 4, 15 and 16). Among five D. opposita samples we collected from Henan, the domesticated ones show smaller granule size ranges (8.83–33.16 µm, 14.01–53.16 µm, 11.16–48.22 µm) than those of two wild ones (16.27–63.08 µm, 22.9–70.62 µm). Type IV starch is more comparable with wild yam in morphology and size (Fig. 5, 4).
Types V and VI Starch.
Type V starch granules (n = 4; 3% of the total) are characterized by a bell shape, medium size (14.75–22.96 µm), an eccentric hilum, absence of lamellae, and an extinction cross with bent arms (Fig. 3, 19–21). Type VI starch granules (n = 11; 8% of the total) are regularly round or regularly oval in shape, and medium in size (11.47–29.72 µm). The hilum is eccentric in most cases, lamellae are visible on large granules, and the extinction cross has bent arms (Fig. 3, 22 and 23). One granule appears damaged, as indicated by its broken edges.
Types V and VI starch are most comparable in morphology and size with the root of snakegourd (T. kirilowii in the Cucurbitaceae family) in our reference data. Starch granules from modern T. kirilowii are varied in shape, and include spherical, oval, bell-shaped, and polygonal morphologies. The hilum is eccentric in most cases, fissures in various forms are sometimes present, lamellae are visible on some large granules, and the extinction cross often has bent arms (Fig. 4, 17–20). When sizes are compared, types V and VI also fall into the range of T. kirilowii (Fig. 5, 5). Types V and VI particularly resemble the large granules in T. kirilowii, which are often regularly oval and bell-shaped.
The recovery rates of starch from the three tools are uneven, partly relating to whether or not the artifact was washed in the postexcavation process. GS3 (unwashed) yielded the most starch granules (126) with all six types present. Taken as a whole, the S14 starch assemblage is dominated by Triticeae grasses (33%), followed by yam (18%), beans (15%), Paniceae grasses (13%), and snakegourd root (11%). Although the percentage of starch granules from certain plants cannot be used to determine the proportion of plant use in the foraging strategy, they help us to understand, in a broad view, the components of starchy food in the hunter–gatherers' diet.
Among the damaged starch granules, a majority comes from seeds (grasses and beans), and granules with apparently enlarged sizes occur mostly in Paniceae tribe grasses. These observations are consistent with our experimental grinding of plants, in which Paniceae starches demonstrate the highest percentages of damaged granules and greatest increase in granule sizes among various seeds and tubers after grinding (Tables S6 and S7).
The presence of a high percentage of grass starch (46% of the total) on S14 grinding tools, as the direct evidence for human use of these grasses for food, is consistent with the grass-dominated ecosystem of the region suggested by pollen analysis (13). Paniceae starch on S14 grinding stones constitutes the earliest direct evidence for human consumption of these types of grasses. Starch granules identifiable to Panicoideae subfamily grasses also have been found on grinding stones from Shizitan S9 (10), suggesting a tradition of foraging these small seeds long before their domestication during Neolithic times in the region.
Triticeae starch residues on grinding stones have also been found in the late Paleolithic site at Shizitan S9 (10). Despite a long history of exploitation of Triticeae grasses in northern China, these plants have never gone through a domestication process in this part of the world.
Legume starch granules, including Vigna sp., have been found on grinding stones in many sites along the Yellow River region, including the Late Paleolithic site at Shizitan S9 (10), and Neolithic sites at Egou (14) and Shangzhai (32). Beans appear to have been one of the earliest plant foods used by hunter–gathers in north China, but their taxonomy cannot be determined to the level of species based on starch data only. The earliest known macrobotanic remains of Vigna beans in China have been identified as Adzuki (V. angularis), dating to the late Neolithic in Shandong (33). Beans rich in starch from genera other than Vigna have not been found in the archaeological contexts in prehistoric north China. However, the use of Vigna for food before 2,500 BC in China still awaits confirmation by macrobotanic discovery in the future.
The most interesting funding of this study is the presence of starch from two taxa of tuber (yam and snakegourd root), with a significant percentage in the starch assemblage (together 29%). Tubers rarely survive identifiably in macrobotanic remains; therefore, starch analysis is the most effective method by which to recover them from their archaeological contexts. Starch granules identifiable to Dioscorea yam have been uncovered from chipped stone tools dated to as early as 28,000 cal. B.P. (34), and from grinding stones (10, 14), and pottery vessels (35) found across north China, dating from the late Paleolithic, through the Neolithic, to the Bronze Age. This plant was apparently widely used very early as an important source of food.
The presence of starch from snakegourd root provides the earliest evidence to date that this tuber was used for food in China. Starch granules from this tuber have previously been found from grinding stones in a late Paleolithic site at Shizitan S9 (10), as well as in early Neolithic sites at Shigu and Egou in Henan (ref. 14, figures 7D and 8 F and H), but they were unidentifiable at the time of discovery, because of a lack of comparative references (Fig. 3, 24–28). Like yam, snakegourd root seems to have been widely foraged by both hunter–gatherers and early farmers in the middle Yellow River region.
Yam and snakegourd today are distributed widely in north China, and both are used as traditional medicine (ref. 36, pp. 218 and 244–245; ref. 37, pp. 103–105). Whereas yam has been commonly cultivated and cooked as food, snakegourd root has not been regularly consumed in north China except when used as famine food. The traditional method of processing and cooking snakegourd root can be found in Jiuhuang Bencao (Herbal for Relief of Famines), written by Zhu Su (1361–1425). Snakegourd roots were skinned, cut into slices, and soaked in water for 4 to 5 d, with the water changed each day. The roots were then ground with tools and sieved with textile to produce very fine flour. Alternatively, the roots were dried and ground before being leached more than 20 times to make very fine flour. The flour then could be used to make cakes or noodles (ref. 38, pp. 64–65). It is important to note that snakegourd root needs to be ground to flour for consumption, a scenario in line with the starch found on grinding stones in ancient sites. We can now trace the use of snakegourd root back to 23,000 y ago, and such a long tradition of use may have helped people to recognize its medicinal properties long before the historical period. We are currently unable to distinguish cultivated yam and snakegourd from wild ones, based on starch. This is a topic worthy of further research.
When both usewear patterns and starch residues found on these tools are compared, they provide supporting evidence for one another in most cases. It is particularly interesting to note that starch granules from yam and snakegourd root occur in high frequency on the used surface of GS3. Usewear traces from this surface (GS3-P1) show a unique polished pattern, resembling tuber grinding in our experimental study.
Usewear traces on GS2 include pitting, probably related to processing seeds with hard shells; however, we did not uncover any starch from nuts, such as acorn. Given the absence of broadleaf trees in the pollen profile during the LGM in the region (13), it is possible that nonstarchy shelled seeds other than acorn were processed on this tool.
Around 23,000–18,000 y ago during the LGM, the Qingshui River valley appears to have been an area with a wide range of faunal and floral resources, which attracted small hunting-gathering groups. In addition to hunting, people collected and processed many types of plants, including grass seeds of Triticeae and Paniceae, Vigna beans, D. opposita yam, and T. kirilowii snakegourd roots, among others.
All of these plants from S14 seem to have been continuously exploited by hunter–gatherers for the next few millennia to the beginning of the Holocene in the Shizitan area (S9), as well as by early farmers in Neolithic times over a much broader region. The major difference between the starch assemblages of S14 and other later sites is the presence of Quercus starch in the latter, likely resulting from the onset of the Holocene, when broadleaf trees began to be distributed in the region. Acorn needs to be processed by grinding and leaching before human consumption (39). Such food-processing techniques appear to have developed much earlier, as shown by this study's demonstration that the consumption of certain tubers such as snakegourd root, which requires grinding and leaching, can be traced back to 23,000 y ago.
Northern China is considered the area where foxtail and broomcorn millets were first domesticated (40, 41). Recent studies on macro- and microbotanical remains from Donghulin (Beijing) have suggested that millet cultivation/domestication may be traced back to ca. 11,000–9,450 cal. B.P. at this site (30, 42). The presence of starch likely from Setaria and other Paniceae seeds at S14 suggests that these wild grasses were probably used for at least 12,000 y before their cultivation/domestication recognizably affected seed morphology.
A broad-spectrum subsistence strategy was already practiced by people at Shizitan during the LGM. The intensive exploitation of Paniceae grasses and tubers for more than 10 millennia before the Neolithic would have helped people to develop necessary knowledge about the properties of those plants, which eventually led to millet's domestication and medicinal uses of tubers.
PVS samples were taken from different locations on the tool to document both used and unused surfaces. The PVS peels were examined under a compound (reflected light) Olympus microscope at magnifications of 50×, 100×, 200×, and 500×. Images were collected with a Zeiss Axiocam ICc3 digital camera and Zeiss Axiovision software Version 4.7.
Residue samples were processed for starch and phytolith extraction using the heavy liquid sodium polytungstate (in a specific gravity of 2.35). Extractions obtained from residue samples were mounted in 50% (vol/vol) glycerol and 50% (vol/vol) distilled water on glass slides and scanned under a Zeiss Axio Scope A1 fitted with polarizing filters and differential interference contrast (DIC) optics. Images were taken using a Zeiss Axiocam MRc5 digital camera and Zeiss Axiovision software Version 4.7.
Most images of usewear and starch from modern references used in this research were also produced with the same microscopy to make the ancient and modern samples comparable.
We thank Ofer Bar-Yosef and two reviewers for their constructive comments. This work was supported by the Stanford Archaeology Center, the Australian Research Council, and the Shanxi Provincial Cultural Relics Conservation and Scientific Research Project.
↵1To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: liliu{at}stanford.edu.
Author contributions: L.L. and X.C. designed research; L.L., S.B., J.S., Y.S., and X.C. performed research; L.L. and S.B. analyzed data; and L.L. and S.B. wrote the paper.
This article contains supporting information online at www.pnas.org/lookup/suppl/doi:10.1073/pnas.1217864110/-/DCSupplemental.
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Warwick Valley High School junior Benjamin Samberg been very successful playing the cello for the past eight years.
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ANAS and the Academy of Sciences of Bulgaria signed an agreement on cooperation in the field of science and technology Apr 11, 2017 | 11:21 / Important events
The delegation headed by the president of the Azerbaijan National Academy of Sciences (ANAS), Academician Akif Alizadeh, visited Bulgaria.
Within the framework of the visit, the president of ANAS met with the president of the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences (ANB) Julian Revalsky, the leadership of the Sofia University "St. Clement of Ohrid", as well as at the Faculty of Geology and Geography of the same university. The delegation also visited the Museum of Paleontology and Historical Geology, functioning at the university.
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Academician A.Alizadeh in a meeting with the Vice-Rector for Doctorate and International Relations of Sofia University named after St. Clement of Ohrid, Professor Maria Stoycheva reported on the establishment of a master's degree of education at ANAS in order to create the unity of science and education and the training of young scientists. He noted the possibility of exchanging young undergraduates between ANAS and Sofia University named after St. Clement of Ohrid. A.Alizade spoke about a possible model of cooperation in a trilateral format between ANAS, the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences and the Sofia University of St. Clement of Ohrid.
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Author: United Press<|fim_middle|> reviews plan for evacuees
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HARRISBURG, Pa. (UPI) – Engineers worked around a troublesome valve and began operations today aimed at reducing the small leak of radioactive gases from the Three Mile Island nuclear power plant.
The process was pumping gases from an auxiliary building into the radiation-proof dome around the crippled reactor. Nuclear Regulatory Commission officials said it should make a significant reduction of all gases leaving the plant.
The degassing operation was stalled for a while early today by a valve that would not open. Engineers worked around that by switching to a second gas source and planned to deal with the valve later.
BECAUSE OF THE continuing release of very low levels of radiation from the plant, officials continued to advise pregnant women and young children to stay out of a five mile radius around the site.
Engineers, meanwhile, proceeded slowly in their efforts to bring the reactor to a safe cold shutdown condition. The final shutdown was expected late next week.
Robert Bernaro, an NRC technical specialist, said it took plant operators 18 hours to stabilize the reactor March 28 when the accident occurred, but he said the situation was never out of control.
"That implies people had no means with coping with the deterioration," Bernaro told UPI. "I don't think that was the case at all. They had a number of things they could do."
President Carter, referring to the Pennsylvania nuclear crisis, told the American people in a nationally broadcast speech on energy Thursday night: "You deserve a full accounting and will get it."
Carter said he would appoint an independent presidential commission to investigate what the Nuclear Regulatory Commission calls the worst accident at a commercial nuclear power generator in American history.
TENS OF THOUSANDS of the estimated 200,000 people who fled to other parts of Pennsylvania and even to other states have returned home, but some still stayed away, waiting for clearer signs the danger had passed.
At a hearing in Washington Thursday, a Congressman and a power company lawyer disagreed over whether the consumers served by the Metropolitan Edison Co., operator and 50 percent owner of the plant, should bear the costs of the accident – estimated to range into the millions of dollars.
Rep. Eugene Atkinson, D-Pa., said rather than the consumer, the power companies – and possibly the federal government, too – should pay for repairs and the replacement of power lost to the accident.
But Gerald Charnoff, a power industry lawyer, said large costs could bankrupt even an electric utility.
That was when officials declared there was a chance of a reactor core meltdown, a nuclear catastrophe that would have threatened the very lives of area residents and ravaged the rolling central Pennsylvania dairy farm countryside.
Gov. Dick Thornburgh said late Thursday he would not lift his recommendation that pregnant women and pre-school children stay outside of a five-mile radius of Three Mile Island because they are particularly vulnerable to its dangers.
"THE NEWS remains encouraging, "Thornburgh said in a statement. "It appears that we may not be close to the time when the women and children who left their homes a week ago can return."
The governor also said schools in the area would remain closed until further notice. Classroom doors were shut last Friday.
Federal and state health officials said radiation levels still were not high enough to cause harm to public safety. Tests indicated milk produced on numerous farms around the plant has not been adversely affected.
Carter cautioned Americans against overreacting to the Three Mile Island crisis.
Earlier, Carter administration officials said the country could not afford to drop nuclear power as a source of energy. Thirteen percent of U.S. energy comes from nuclear generators.
At the plant, meanwhile, engineers took the first steps Thursday leading to a shutdown of the reactor that went haywire last week.
Harold Denton, the NRC's operations chief at the Susquehanna River site, said the 10-day cool-down process began with the gradual removal of gases from the water around the uranium fuel core. This action was to avoid the reformation of a dangerous gas bubble when pressure is lowered.
The high pressure in the reactor kept gases dissolved in the water, like the gas in a bottle of champagne before it is uncorked.
DENTON SAID approval was given to a plan to pump radioactive gases from an auxiliary building into the radiation-filled dome around the reactor. This, he said, should reduce by at least 30 percent the slight level of radiation escaping from the island plant.
The cooling plan now being followed will use in a few days the same natural circulation process Henry Ford used to cool the Model T engine half a century ago.
Hot water from the reactor will flow into a steam generator filled with cooled water. The hot water will become cooler and thus sink and push already cooled water ahead of it back into the reactor to take away more heat from the core. The process will continue without the need for pumps, which might fail.
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We stayed in the hotel Alay in the center, it was not too good, but the location and the price were more than satisfactory.
In the same evening, we had a dinner consisting from lagman (Central Asian soup), beer, and water melon, all of which we really missed. There is a lot of food in Osh<|fim_middle|> former president of Kyrgyzstan who stole a lot of money and ran away to Belarus (taken good care of by Lukashenko now).
In Jalal-Abad we had tabaka chicken: for that we had to wait for the cafe to open, since this was during the fasting month, when the Muslims do not eat (and drink) between the sunrise and sunset.
We planned to see the surrounding sights the next day, but our plans changed by chance. This was for the better! | – that is why it is often recommended to shop for food there before going to Pamir.
We started the next day with sightseeing. The city is not too rich with sights (still it is better for relaxing), yet, you may try.
For instance, the city park here is much more pleasant than in Dushanbe: it has a lot of shooting ranges, with prizes too. The guns are quite specific and not easy to point.
In the park, there is also an old Yak-40 plane: they still fly between the Tajik capital Dushanbe and the capital of Pamir Khorog.
Yet, the center of Osh life is the sacred mountain Sulayman too which has been included into UNESCO heritage list (entrance fee 20 soms). It opens a great view on the city.
History museum is situated here too (entrance fee 20 soms, yet, in our case it was closed for lunch. It is said that it is nothing special though).
There are seven caves situated at Sulayman mountain, Chakka Tamar and Tepeunkur being the most famous.
On the top of the mountain there is a mosque Tahty Sulayman which was exploded in 1963 and restored based on the archival materials and schemes in 1991. At the foot of the mountain, there is another mosque, Ravat-Abdulahanna which was first built in the 16th century, destroyed and restored later.
If you still want to visit the museum, there is another possibility in the center of the city – the three-storey urt ethnographic museum.
At this point we finished sightseeing in Osh and went for another destination – smaller town of Jalal-Abad.
Minibuses depart for Jalal-Abad from the bus station every half an hour till 6 pm, they are quite new. Passengers in a hurry sometimes take the ride standing, yet, you may wait for the next, empty vehicle. The road between Osh and Jalal-Abad is quite new, but there are many cars, and the bus driver even said that there are more cars than dwellers there. That is why they sometimes overtake each other in a dangerous way.
It took us about an hour and a half to reach Jalal-Abad: as usually, the bus station was beyond the city center, several kilometres away from the marketplace. The driver showed several hotels to us: one was terribly ugly (next to the bus station, for 700 soms), another one behind the gas station cost 1100 soms. We chose the third one – 1000 soms for a room with shower, toilet, TV and fan. All the hotels are based along the main road, so you may choose on your way. There are even better ones, but more expensive.
You may reach the market by Tico cars – that is how the locals name taxis the majority of which are Daewoo Ticos – for 15 soms. There is also a rare minibus nr. 105. On your way you may observe sights and people.
From the market you may reach the Jalal-Abad resort. An elderly driver agreed to drive us there for 100 soms, but since we knew little about the place, he cheated us by bringing to the lower parking lot (while the price is fixed for the upper parking). That is why we had to take another car. The resort is famous for its mineral spring, stinking yet healing mud and mineral showers. Unfortunately, we came too late: usually mineral baths are open till 5, but on this day they closed at 4. Newlyweds come to the park to take photos.
Some cultural experience: when Kyrgyzs learned that we are from Belarus, everyone wanted to send his or her ironic greetings to Bakiev, the | 813 |
The term 'soft landings' refers to a strategy adopted to ensure the transition from construction to occupation is 'bump-free' and that operational performance is optimised.
In September 2012 the Cabinet Office announced that by 2016 all centrally-funded projects should be delivered in accordance with Government Soft Landings (GSL) as part of the public sector adoption of Building Information Modelling (BIM).
The government describes GSL as '...the process of aligning the interests of those who design and construct an asset with the interests of those who use and manage it. It aims to improve client and user experiences, with reduced re-visits, and to give a product that meets and performs to client expectations.' The creation of GSL was driven by the Government Construction Board, and it is now developed by the GSL Stewardship Group.
The BSRIA Soft Landings Framework is developed by the BSRIA Soft Landings Group. It is an open-source framework intended to '…smooth the transition into use and to address problems that post-occupancy evaluations (POEs) show to be widespread'. It was first published in 2009 and was updated in 2014 to align with the RIBA 2013 work stages. It can be downloaded at http://www.softlandings.org.uk.
In August 2015, BSRIA published Soft Landings & Government Soft Landings, A Convergence Guide For Construction Projects. It was authored by Ashley Bateson on behalf of the BSRIA Soft Landings Group. The briefing note provides an overview of GSL and compares it with the BSRIA Soft Landings Framework.
In very broad terms, the BSRIA Soft Landings Framework encourages increased collaboration and awareness of outcomes through stakeholder workshops and design reviews, with programme and format defined by the Soft Landings Champion. GSL on the other hand, is more prescriptive in relation to the BIM process being checked against project targets.
GSL recommends the appointment of a departmental Soft Landings Champion, whereas the Soft Landings Framework recommends both the client and the project delivery team have a Soft Landings Champion.
GSL is aligned with BIM, (although it does not require it) whereas the Soft Landings Framework does not refer to BIM (although it<|fim_middle|> be used).
GSL provides a mechanism for monitoring costs, whereas the Soft Landings Framework does not (although cost can be included as an objective).
GSL sets targets at RIBA stage 0 / 1, whereas the Soft Landings Framework sets targets at stage 2. | can | 1 |
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Hard X-rays can penetrate solid objects, and their largest use is to take images of the inside of objects in diagnostic radiography and crystallography.
The roentgen (R) is an obsolete traditional unit of<|fim_middle|> photostimulated luminescence (PSL), pioneered by Fuji in the 1980s. The PSP plate can be reused, and existing X-ray equipment requires no modification to use them. For many applications, counters are not sealed but are constantly fed with purified gas, thus reducing problems of contamination or gas aging.
Some materials such as sodium iodide (NaI) can "convert" an X-ray photon to a visible photon; an electronic detector can be built by adding a photomultiplier. This process produces an emission spectrum of X-ray frequencies, sometimes referred to as the spectral lines.
The intensity of the X-rays increases linearly with decreasing frequency, from zero at the energy of the incident electrons, the voltage on the X-ray tube. A second image is then taken of the same region after iodinated contrast material has been injected into the blood vessels within this area. The contrast compounds have high atomic numbered elements in them that (like bone) essentially block the X-rays and hence the once hollow organ or vessel can be more readily seen. In modern hospitals a photostimulable phosphor plate (PSP plate) is used in place of the photographic plate.
The spectral lines generated depend on the target (anode) element used and thus are called characteristic lines.
These two images are then digitally subtracted, leaving an image of only the iodinated contrast outlining the blood vessels. Photographic film largely replaced these plates, and it was used in X-ray laboratories to produce medical images.
In the pursuit of a non-toxic contrast material, many types of high atomic number elements were evaluated.
After the plate is X-rayed, excited electrons in the phosphor material remain "trapped" in "colour centres" in the crystal lattice until stimulated by a laser beam passed over the plate surface. Electrons accelerate toward the anode, in the process causing further ionization along their trajectory. The radiologist or surgeon then compares the image obtained to normal anatomical images to determine if there is any damage or blockage of the vessel.
In more recent years, computerized and digital radiography has been replacing photographic film in medical and dental applications, though film technology remains in widespread use in industrial radiography processes (e.g. For example, the first time the forefathers used contrast it was chalk, and was used on a cadaver's vessels. This process, known as a Townsend avalanche, is detected as a sudden current, called a "count" or "event". When the film is developed, the parts of the image corresponding to higher X-ray exposure are dark, leaving a white shadow of bones on the film.
Photographic plates are mostly things of history, and their replacement, the "intensifying screen", is also fading into history. The metal silver (formerly necessary to the radiographic & photographic industries) is a non-renewable resource. Thus it is beneficial that this is now being replaced by digital (DR) and computed (CR) technology. Where photographic films required wet processing facilities, these new technologies do not.
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Search a cell phone location for free powered by Wordpress. Wordpress theme design Design Blog. | exposure, which represented the amount of radiation required to create one electrostatic unit of charge of each polarity in one cubic centimeter of dry air. The rad is the (obsolete) corresponding traditional unit, equal to 10 millijoules of energy deposited per kilogram. The sievert (Sv) is the SI unit of equivalent dose, which for X-rays is numerically equal to the gray (Gy). X-rays are generated by an X-ray tube, a vacuum tube that uses a high voltage to accelerate the electrons released by a hot cathode to a high velocity. In crystallography, a copper target is most common, with cobalt often being used when fluorescence from iron content in the sample might otherwise present a problem. X-ray fluorescence: If the electron has enough energy it can knock an orbital electron out of the inner electron shell of a metal atom, and as a result electrons from higher energy levels then fill up the vacancy and X-ray photons are emitted.
So the resulting output of a tube consists of a continuous bremsstrahlung spectrum falling off to zero at the tube voltage, plus several spikes at the characteristic lines.
In medical diagnostic applications, the low energy (soft) X-rays are unwanted, since they are totally absorbed by the body, increasing the dose. To generate an image of the cardiovascular system, including the arteries and veins (angiography) an initial image is taken of the anatomical region of interest. A specialized source of X-rays which is becoming widely used in research is synchrotron radiation, which is generated by particle accelerators.
The most commonly known methods are photographic plates, photographic film in cassettes, and rare earth screens. Before the advent of the digital computer and before invention of digital imaging, photographic plates were used to produce most radiographic images. Since photographic plates are sensitive to X-rays, they provide a means of recording the image, but they also required much X-ray exposure (to the patient), hence intensifying screens were devised.
Areas where the X-rays strike darken when developed, causing bones to appear lighter than the surrounding soft tissue. Contrast compounds containing barium or iodine, which are radiopaque, can be ingested in the gastrointestinal tract (barium) or injected in the artery or veins to highlight these vessels. An increasingly common method is the use of | 473 |
An exhibition so big that it spans four venues, the Oh, Canada exhibit is turning the city into one giant art venue.
Taking place at the Glenbow Museum, Esker Foundation, Nickel Gallery and the Illingworth-Kerr Gallery, the show represents Canadian art at its finest, with pieces from over 62 outstanding artists from our home and native land<|fim_middle|> is plenty of time to visit one of the four galleries as the show runs until April 26. For more information on artists and pieces visit ohcanadayyc.com.
Previous story What happened to Responsibella? | .
Curator Denise Markonish, who spent three years criss-crossing Canada to find the perfect art for the show, made careful choices and consulted with artists, gallery owners, museums and studios.
"What started out as a quest to find art has turned into an exploration of a whole country," Markonish said to the Glenbow.
Markonish says this Canada-only exhibition has been molded into one of the most talked about art shows in Calgary's history.
On the website for the giant showing you can view the artists whose works are featured and filter them by location.
The amazing part about the decision process for who would house these pieces, when each gallery (and museum) put in their request, was that there were no overlaps, no disagreements and every gallery wanted different pieces, which would represent their gallery and the show the best.
With four distinct venues coming together and over 100 different pieces, it is remarkable that there was no conflict in the decision making process.
With each space putting in their request, the separate spaces have pretty distinct works at each. The more craft-based art is at the Illingworth-Kerr Gallery, while the Glenbow stays true to its museum quality housing most of the history pieces. Nickle galleries at the University of Calgary is housing a lot of the media-based work and the Esker foundation has no shortage of sculptural pieces for art lovers to gawk at.
This exhibition is truly Canadian down to its roots. It has true culture running through it and something for everyone to enjoy. There | 310 |
Welcome to the dental care you've always wanted.
At Sulens Dental, new patients are always welcome to our practice! We'd like you to know up front that our entire team is committed to providing comprehensive dental care that<|fim_middle|> are a part of our own family.
We believe you'll quickly fall in love with the care you receive at Sulens Dental. Our friendly team will help you feel at ease during your appointment, and Dr. Sulens treats you with his undivided attention. During your visit, you will be able to ask questions, see the results of your digital x-rays, and learn about your unique dental health assessment.
Our modern, gentle and personal approach to dentistry ensures that we deliver the best dental care you'll find. If you're looking for a new place to call your dental home, we would love to have you! | exceeds your expectations. Before you visit us, we'd like to cue you in on what you can expect from us.
As you first arrive, you'll be greeted by one of our friendly receptionists who will help check you in, complete any necessary paperwork, and answer any questions that you may have about your appointment. Our waiting area and exam rooms are designed with your comfort and experience in mind, and our goal is to create a relaxing and comfortable environment for you.
To minimize the time spent during your first-visit check-in, please feel free to access our online registration forms here.
Your first exam will take a little over an hour.
You will be treated as if you | 136 |
No Limit Agency leveraged targeted social media ads to build strong momentum for Famous Toastery grand openings.
Client: Famous Toastery
When Famous Toastery first started with No Limit Agency back in 2014, it was at the very beginning of its franchising journey. Nearly a decade after launching its better breakfast concept in 2005 in Huntersville, Charlotte, the brand decided to expand to communities across the country by partnering with local business owners. But Famous Toastery knew that in order to be successful on the national level, it needed to get the word out about its business ownership opportunity. That's why NLA didn't waste any time getting to work on social media ads.
Understanding and recognizing the unique challenges facing emerging franchise concepts, No Limit Agency created a plan to boost Famous Toastery's brand awareness through a combination of PR and targeted digital and social media ads campaigns. With a goal of increasing the brand's visibility among both consumers and prospective business owners, NLA started weaving together a full brand biography for Famous Toastery to explain why it stands out in the increasingly crowded restaurant industry.
Right off the bat, members of NLA's media relations team hit the phones to tell the story of Famous Toastery's fresh food and "Every Server is Your Server" mentality. Content producers and editors for 1851 Franchise also got to work interviewing the brand's team members and first franchisees to share the professional journeys that led them to the Famous Toastery brand. That strategy then created a new narrative surrounding the brand, and people started to catch on.
As more franchisees joined Famous Toastery's growing system, No Limit Agency worked with the brand to develop a strategy surrounding grand openings. To ensure that consumers in the area surrounding a new restaurant were aware of the business entering their community, NLA's design and social media experts teamed up to create compelling digital and social media ads.
"Our goal is to give people a reason to check out Famous Toastery's new restaurants before they even open their doors for business. That's why we start rolling out social media ad campaigns months in advance," said Brigit Larson, No Limit Agency's Digital Executive. "By using a comprehensive, three-pronged approach to targeted Facebook campaigns , we're ensuring that Famous Toastery's grand openings are celebrated with tons of excited and enthusiastic customers."
That three-pronged approach starts with building general brand awareness. In order to introduce local customers to the Famous Toastery brand, NLA creates a campaign that explains what the brand's all about that's hosted on the new restaurant's individual location Facebook page. This phase also includes countdowns on social media to the grand opening in order to create awareness for the official launch date, with posts available to be boosted at Famous Toastery's discretion. Next, No Limit Agency's social media team rolls out gift card giveaways to give customers a reason to see the new restaurant for themselves while also increasing engagement in the form of comments and likes. The final step is to then launch Facebook offers, including 10 percent off deals and "Buy One Get One"<|fim_middle|> was then pushed to a core audience of potential customers and potential franchise candidates through the agency's proprietary AMPD program. The media buying strategy, which is a blend of social, news and PPC buys that drives the right target audience to a brand's content and website, then builds on the momentum behind traditional social ads.
By repeating this process for every one of Famous Toastery's openings, No Limit Agency is able to increase the brand's awareness on the national level. It's clear that this unique approach to creating a brand biography is working—with nearly 20 locations up and running and plans to sign another 15 deals in 2017 for a total of 75 units, the brand is achieving its initial goal of rapidly expanding through the franchising business model.
"What makes No Limit Agency so unique is its ability to combine traditional PR with a strong digital presence. By bringing media relations, social media ads, design, and digital marketing elements to the table in one consolidated package, we're able to promote Famous Toastery's grand openings on all fronts," Larson said. "Our familiarity with all aspects of a brand's media outreach efforts puts us in a position to secure bigger wins for our clients as they continue to grow." | coupons.
To ensure that these campaigns go off without a hitch, NLA's digital team oversees activity on Famous Toastery's individual location pages. By working within the brand's budget and boosting these ads, No Limit Agency is able to geographically target the right fans—and potential customers. Content on each page is then ramped up before each grand opening to achieve maximum engagement and generate additional buzz as the launch date gets closer. And No Limit Agency continues to monitor and create content for these Famous Toastery pages even after the grand opening is complete, seeing the process all the way through.
To capitalize on this strong digital presence and drum up even more awareness surrounding Famous Toastery's grand openings, No Limit Agency's creative team works together to make the narrative public through a variety of different mediums. In addition to creating social ads for the brand's new location in Eaton, Pennsylvania, for example, NLA's media relations team also worked to secure press in local publications like the Philadelphia Business Journal about the grand opening. 1851 also spoke to the franchisee behind the location for a feature profile, which | 222 |
Hole lotta trouble: Road crews try to keep pace…
Hole lotta trouble: Road crews try to keep pace with pothole repairs as rain returns
Los Angeles County has, since January, filled close to 9<|fim_middle|> has also been able to absorb the spike in pothole repairs pretty well so far, said Ted Semaan, public works director. From Jan. 1 to March 1, crews filled 106 potholes – last year it was just 25.
If the pace were to ramp up, the repairs might start to affect other projects more, he said. "One thing gives to the other."
Interstate and state routes, which are managed by Caltrans, have also taken a beating across Southern California, Caltrans spokeswoman Van Nguyen said.
Statewide, pothole repair orders for Jan. 1 to Feb. 25 are up 80 percent compared with the same period in 2018 – there were more than 38,000 repairs this year.
Caltrans' District 7, which is responsible for some 1,173 miles of freeway in Los Angeles County and 300 miles in Ventura County, saw close to four times the number of service requests for potholes in the first two months of this year compared to the same time last year.
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Alicia Robinson
Alicia Robinson covers cities and local government for the Orange County Register. She has also reported at the Press-Enterprise in Riverside, the Daily Pilot in Costa Mesa, and at small daily and weekly papers in the midwest, before she became an honorary Californian based on hours spent in traffic. Besides government and policy, she's interested in animals both wild and domestic, people who try to make the world better, and how things work.
Follow Alicia Robinson @ARobWriter
Heather McRea
Heather McRea is the North Orange County city editor and has been covering communities in that region since 2003.
Pasadena finds new company to lock up parks after previous vendor failed to pay the minimum wage
West Covina removes interim from city manager's title, but permanence remains uncertain
Covina police to houses of worship: Here's what you need to know about mass shootings | ,000 potholes on the roads it maintains, about double a typical year, a spokeswoman said.
The city of Los Angeles has seen a spike in requests for pothole repairs. (Photo by Jennifer Cappuccio Maher, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)
By Alicia Robinson | arobinson@scng.com and Heather McRea | hmcrea@scng.com | The Orange County Register
PUBLISHED: March 1, 2019 at 5:55 pm | UPDATED: March 2, 2019 at 10:34 am
The wet weather of recent weeks has left Southern California with two bumper crops: fields full of Instagram-worthy wildflowers, and roads full of rage-inducing potholes.
Around the region, agencies seeing a spike in maintenance requests are scrambling out road crews to address the problem of pockmarked streets and highways.
On recent dry day, a city of Whittier seven-man crew filled more than 300 potholes by the end of their shift, Street Manager Howard Miller said.
"I'm kinda of just scattering guys all over the city," he said. "For the most part I feel our streets are in pretty good shape. When these rains come, some of the asphalt streets are affected."
The city of Los Angeles is planning a "pothole blitz," spending at least $250,000 on a four-week campaign to start March 9 to send crews out across the city to find and fill holes not already reported – probably about 1,200. It's street crews have already been busy filling the holes the city has been alerted to through its MyLA311 reporting tool – to the tune of more than 7,700 in February compared to 1,962 in February 2018.
And Los Angeles County has, since January, filled close to 9,000 potholes on the roads it maintains, about double a typical year, a spokeswoman said.
It's a widespread problem. A 2016 survey by AAA found nearly 30 million drivers around the U.S. that year had pothole damage to their cars that required repairs, at costs typically ranging from $250 to $1,000, Auto Club of Southern California spokesman Jeffrey Spring said. Automakers have been shifting away from including full-size spare tires, or any spare at all, so more drivers who hit potholes may need a tow.
The drought years had probably helped cities, Miller said, by causing less wear to the roads overall and buying time before they would need big repair jobs again.
"Potholes are something I can take care of in-house with city forces," he said.
Long Beach has seen a 40 to 50 percent bump in calls from the community about potholes that need attention and has been using dry weekends to have crews of about 20 work overtime to fill them in, said Art Cox, the city's public service bureau manager.
"We fortunately have money set aside just for that purpose," he said.
Redondo Beach | 653 |
Attractive veterinary students and adorable animals? We think this is something we can definitely get on board with.
Every year, Omega Tau Sigma veterinary fraternity at Cornell's College of Veterinary Medicine creates a calendar featuring a few of their students posing with some very cute animals. The 2015 edition of the Men of the Vet School calendar -- which benefited a Patient Assistance Fund to help owners who can't afford medical care for their pets -- was recently released and has already sold out.
"We have great-looking men and adorable animals ... these men love these animals a great deal or else they wouldn't have worked so hard to make it to vet school," Kira Purdon, 23, a calendar chair told The Huffington Post in an email. "It's a really unique and special dynamic that's shows in the calendar."
The calendar has become a student body favorite over the years, but can be a challenge to create.
"<|fim_middle|> shot!" Purdon told HuffPost. "It's so easy to have everyone posed and then a dog isn't looking. It definitely made the shoots more interesting with lots of whistling and treats!"
As for the fraternity members, they say that they had a blast working on the project, and plan on continuing the crowd-pleasing tradition for years to come. | Animals can either be perfect or ruin the whole | 10 |
David Minter
David Minter is one of the principals who lead Denver-based Minter + Reid, an idea-development group focused on bottom-line revenue generation for public and private companies in the areas of entertainment, media, retail, restaurant, food, and new technology.
Throughout his career, Minter has worked with high-growth companies to bring new ideas to the marketplace. Minter began his career at Motorola Inc., where he was responsible for product planning and competitive analysis. He then joined Dole Food Company, where he managed the analysis of international market information and was responsible for new business development.
Minter has spent much of his career working with Blockbuster, Inc. during the company's high-growth years. Minter was a senior marketing executive responsible for directing all consumer research, with specific expertise in entertainment, technology, and retail. Over the course of four years, he worked directly with H. Wayne Huizenga to open at least one store per day, increase market share, and unearth innovative consumer products and experiences for all business units, including Blockbuster Video, Blockbuster Music, Spelling Entertainment Corp., Republic Pictures, Blockbuster Park, Discovery Zone, Soundsational, the Florida Marlins, and the Florida Panthers. During the period that Blockbuster was majority owned by Viacom, Inc., Minter worked with other Viacom companies including Showtime Networks, MTV, and Nickelodeon.
Milestones include the introduction of videogames; expansion into the retail music business; investment into new entertainment ventures; and market introductions for DVD, video on demand, online rentals, and DirecTV pay-per-view. Minter was awarded Blockbuster's first patent. His work with Blockbuster, now in its second decade, has contributed to multibillion-dollar revenue growth and expansion from 500 stores to 8,500 stores.
In 1995, Minter relocated to Denver to help found Einstein-Noah Bagel Corporation,<|fim_middle|> awarded his second patent, which addresses commercializing Internet radio advertising. He earned his bachelor of business administration and master of business administration degrees, cum laude, from Florida Atlantic University, and lives with his wife and son near Denver, Colorado. | where he served as vice president of research and concept development. He was responsible for garnering consumer input for store design, product development, and brand management. Minter's contributions helped the company grow from zero to four hundred units in two years, and a successful IPO in 1996.
In addition to his role as principal of Minter + Reid, Minter is president of Minter & Associates, a marketing advisory and research consultancy he founded in 1997 that conducts high-level research work for clients throughout the U.S. and internationally. David also serves as VP-Marketing for Denver-based start-up company SmartCare Family Medical Centers. Minter was recently | 137 |
The premise of the Then and Now series is to pair up historic photos of a town with modern shots taken from as close to the position of the original as possible. Hoylake Then & Now is Jim O'Neil's contribution to the format.
Each double page spread shows a large version of the older image, together with a smaller modern shot and a couple of brief paragraphs comparing the two.
Jim O'Neil is an authority on Hoylake, having lived there for over 35 years and written such books as West Kirby to Hoylake, giving local history talks in his spare time. I think it's because of this that the book comes across as really personal. There's a love of the place which comes through on each page, born from a close personal connection.
There are those times when he gets a little over-excited about current events and projects "this year", and these phrases will<|fim_middle|>. It doesn't add anything to a historian's understanding of the area, especially as such a change is seen across the town.
O'Neil's own modern shots, which were all taken on one "enjoyable and amazingly instructive" sunny day are also of a high quality. Despite the bright sunlight the pictures have come out well, and are easy to compare to the older ones, which O'Neil also compliments for their quality. I've seen many an amateur historian's poor attempts to create their own illustrations (to be honest, I've been there myself…), so it's good to see that this wasn't a problem here.
Hoylake changed from a well-to-do rural retreat in 1800 to a popular seaside town in 1900 and beyond. It was part of a group of Wirral and Lancashire towns which played this key role in history, as people's leisure time and health concerns developed. The book therefore is a useful addition to the library of anyone who is interested in the wider context of Liverpool's history during this period, together with other titles in the Then & Now series (such as Daniel K. Longman's Liverpool Then & Now).
Hoylake Then & Now is available on Amazon, or directly from The History Press.
Note: History Press supplied me with a complimentary copy of the book for the purposes of this review. | date the book's text quickly. They're often not directly relevant to the pictures being discussed, but they don't ultimately detract from the book's great interest to anyone researching Hoylake or the Wirral's history.
The best shots here are those which take in a large area, such as a row of shops receding into the distance or the roundabout on Market Street which comes up frequently in the first few pages. These images show how buildings have been remodelled over time, as well as mapping changes to the roads (and their white and yellow lines). These photos also show how some scenes have become dominated by the trees which were mere shrubs in the Victorian period. It proves how bland some of the changes have rendered the buildings: shopping arcades which once had ornate iron and glass canopies (such as those which survive on Lord Street in Southport) have become flat-fronted betting shops and supermarkets.
Other shots show how the Victorians loved their formal planting schemes on central reservations and roundabouts. These too have gone, and despite the continuing efforts of the Friends of Hoylake and Meols in Bloom (p.62) it's a shame that less attention to detail is paid to modern streetscapes. This is just one of the key changes highlighted by this book.
There are a lot of church shots, which is perhaps to be expected in a small town of Hoylake's age. However, these images are closer to their subject than the street scenes, and so the areas have generally changed little since the older photos were taken (assuming the church is still standing). The main change that has occurred is that the whole building has become obscured by large trees. One shot of Holy Trinity Church is little more than trees and a small stone wall | 355 |
Theatre review: The Boys in the Band
15 February, 2017 15 February, 2017 Danny Polaris
Danny Polaris
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Theatre review: The Boys in the Band - 15 February, 2017
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The iconic 'Boys in the Band' is in the West End right now for a limited run, before a UK tour then back to London in the autumn.
A lot has changed in 50 years, but some things never change
Highly controversial at its time in 1970, the film adaptation of the off-Broadway stage play was one of the first major American films to focus on gay characters and relationships. It was also the firm mainstream film to use the word 'cunt'.
Almost 50 years later, the LGBT community has transformed, so The Boys in the Band's controversial edge has been smoothed to a nostalgic portrait of a lost world – when gay men would gather around for cocktails and dinner rather than fire up Grindr for some H&H action. Perhaps I'm being overly cynical, but what was once the norm is now arguably the exception.
Everything has changed, but everything is still the same – and it's this quasi-queer-paradox that makes The Boys in the Band so captivating. This is enjoyable fly-on-the-wall theatre with a broad range of same sex male relationships being explored with characters that are more hysterical, gorgeous and hateful than anyone in your phone book now.
Mark Gatiss' Harold (The League of Gentlemen, Nighty Night) first appears to be the archetypal vile queen over 40 that hates everything – but his sharp-tongued honesty and openness about his own many flaws makes him immensely likeable. I wish that my own vile friends were as upfront as he is.
RELATED ARTICLE Preview: I Went to a Fabulous Party at King's Head Theatre, London
John Hopkins' Alan is a 'straight', married-probably-closeted (but we never really find out) man with a fuckload of issues, genuinely homophobic – as in, genuinely scared of<|fim_middle|> with laughter.
Other performances of note are Jack Derges' 'Cowboy' – the hottest and most stupidest stud you're likely to come across, and Ben Mansfield's understated yet evocative Larry.
'Show me a happy homosexual and I'll show you a corpse,' says one of the boys. Sadly, even with so much positive change in terms of equality, self-hatred and internalised homophobia are still a massive issue in the LGBT community – 'masc4masc', 'straight-acting', 'no camp' are all sickeningly common phrases.
The Boys in the Band are, for the most part, pretty horrible to each other. It's often funny, but as the drama at Harold's party spins out of control, it gets darker and nastier to the point where we're not sure if we should be laughing anymore.
At the Vaudeville Theatre until 18 February.
Cowboy gay love gay theatre Jack Derges London Theatre mark gatiss The Boys In The Band Vaudeville Theatre
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Copyright © 2022 Vada Magazine. All rights reserved. | anything that's camp and effeminate. He's a pot of sad passion that simmers and boils over repeatedly throughout. The contrast between his and Emroy's (James Holmes) level of 'masc', with all the others coming somewhere in between, put a giant flaming question mark over what it really means to be a man, and what it really means for a man to love.
Emroy's hysterical entrance feels like the real 'start' of the play – his one-liners are timeless. To be fair, this is a play with a hefty number of brutal one-liners that left us rocking | 124 |
Catalog » Browse by Author: M » Lori McKenna (song<|fim_middle|> togetherness.
Now available for preorder. All preorders will ship on or before March 2, 2021. | lyrics)
Lori McKenna (song lyrics)
Home and the people who make it have captivated LORI McKENNA for years. Over the last three decades, as she became a wife and mother of five, she has also emerged as one of the most respected, prolific singer-songwriters in popular music. Her 2016 release The Bird and the Rifle netted three GRAMMY nominations, along with Americana Music Association nods—all firsts for McKenna as an artist. Then, she made history: In 2016, she became the first woman ever to win the Country Music Association's Song of the Year two years in a row thanks to cowriting Little Big Town's "Girl Crush" and penning the number one hit song "Humble and Kind." Both songs also clinched back-to-back GRAMMY awards for Best Country Song. In 2017, she became the Academy of Country Music's first female Songwriter of the Year. The Tree, her much-anticipated eleventh studio album, was released on July 20, 2018, on CN Records via Thirty Tigers. Produced by Dave Cobb, The Tree, a 2019 Americana Awards Album of the Year nominee, takes one of McKenna's signature themes—family—and builds a tapestry of experiences she has lived and overheard, been told and dreamed up, to create a stunning ode to life's defining relationships.
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Humble and Kind
By: Lori McKenna (song lyrics) and Katherine Blackmore (illustrator)
Forthcoming: 3/2/21
Award-winning songwriter Lori McKenna's iconic song—as popularized by Tim McGraw—is the perfect basis for a picture book that celebrates family and | 365 |
Tag Archives: Deer Lodge County Courthouse
Anaconda's public landscape
Posted on March 8, 2016 by carrollvanwest
The public landscape of Anaconda has already been touched on in this blog–places like Washoe Park, the cemeteries, or Mitchell Stadium for instance. Now I want to go a bit deeper and look at public buildings, both government and education in this smelter city.
Let's begin with the only building in Anaconda that truly competes with the stack for visual dominance, the imposing classical revival-styled Deer Lodge County Courthouse. When copper baron Marcus Daly created Anaconda in the 1880s it may have been the industrial heart of Deer Lodge County but it was not the county seat. Daly was not concerned–his hopes centered on gaining the state capitol designation for his company town. When that did not happen, efforts returned to the county seat, which came to Anaconda in 1896. The courthouse was then built from 1898-1900.
Daly didn't have the state capitol but he did have a county courthouse worthy of landmark status: their architects, Charles E. Bell and John N. Kent were also the architects for the Montana State Capitol in Helena. What truly sets this county courthouse apart from many
in Montana is the lavish interior of the central lobby and then the upper story dome. The decorative upper dome fres<|fim_middle|>The long, lean facade of Lincoln Elementary School (1950) began the trend. Its alternating bands of brick punctuated by bands of glass windows was a classic adaptation of International style in a regional setting. The modernist bent continued in 1950-1952 with the Anaconda Central High School, the private Catholic school, now known as the Fred Moody middle school, only a few blocks away. Except here the modernist style is softened by the use of local stone, giving it a rustic feel more in keeping with mid-20th century sensibilities and the Catholic diocese's deliberate turn to modern style for its church buildings of the 1950s and 1960s (see my earlier post on College of Great Falls).
The celebration of symmetry in a factory-like style advocated ed by some mid-20th century modernists is no better stated than in the Anaconda Senior High School, the public high school completed in 1954-1955 and designed by the Montana firm of J. G. Link and Company.
If anyplace in Montana better conveys the post-World War II turn in public education to resemble the corporate ethos beginning to dominate American culture it is this high school building. From the railroad depot, at the bottom of Main Street, one catches a glimpse of the long horizontal facade, and immediately think–there's a corporate office, maybe a factory, up the street. This is one interesting building.
So too is a very different building as to purpose but not to style, the National Guard Armory. Appropriated by Congress in 1960 and built in 1961 for an estimated $66,000, the armory is a functional concrete building that speaks well to the style of modernism so often associated with military buildings of the Cold War era.
Posted in Montana historical landscape | Tagged Anaconda Montana, Bell and Kent architects, Classical Revival, Consolidated Artists of Milwaukee, Deer Lodge County Courthouse, Deer Lodge County Montana, Fred Willson architect, Interior decorative painting, International style, J.G. Link and Company architect, Montana classicism, Montana modernism, Montana public buildings, Montana public landscape, Montana schools, Shanley and Baker architects | Leave a reply | coes come from a Milwaukee firm, Consolidated Artists. Newspaper accounts in 1900 recorded that the completed courthouse cost $100,000.
The bombastic classicism of the courthouse was at odds with the earlier more High Victorian style of City Hall, built 1895-1896, and attributed to J. H. Bartlett and Charles Lane. But classicism in the first third of the 20th century ruled in Anaconda's public architecture, witness the Ionic colonnade of the 1931-1933 U.S. Post Office, from the office of Oscar Wenderoth.
Public schools in the first third of Anaconda's development also reflected Victorian traditions, such as the understated Collegiate Gothic of the Junior High School, 1927-1928, from the Great Falls architectural firm of Shanley and Baker.
Once Anaconda, bursting at the seams following the boom of World War II, chose to upgrade its public schools, it took a decided turn away from traditional European influenced styles and embraced modernism, as defined in Montana during the 1950s.
| 241 |
Gold Coast natural environment
We have one of Australia's most biodiverse cities. Let's explore, celebrate and work together to protect it for the future.
The Gold Coast is world famous for its beaches, waterways and hinterland. Our diverse natural landscapes, including our coastal and marine areas, our wetlands and waterways, our bushland, catchments and reserves are all critical to the overall health and success of the City, its inhabitants and visitors.
Our natural environment faces constant pressure from development and population growth.<|fim_middle|>, and how you can play your part.
Explore our Gold Coast waterways and how we can keep them healthy and clean.
We manage 25,000+ hectares of bushland within our city boundaries. See what we are doing to control pests and weeds in these areas, revegetate degraded bushland and protect against bushfire risk.
Explore vegetation types and native plant species, obtain information on tree removal, tree disputes and how to obtain free trees from us.
Find out more about our conservation areas, natural trails, tree planting, bushland restoration and bushfire.
Environment facts and figures
Gold Coast flora and fauna
Nature Conservation Assistance Program
Natural asset network maps
Our Natural City Strategy
Federal Government Department of Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population & Communities
Gold Coast & Hinterland Environment Council
QLD Government Department of Environment & Heritage Protection
QLD Government Department of National Parks, Recreation, Sport & Racing
Regional Ecosystem Maps
Wildlife Preservation Society of QLD
Projects & strategies | In a little over 200 years, approximately 50 per cent of the City's land area has been cleared of native vegetation.
City of Gold Coast recognises that protecting our natural assets is vital to our future economic, environmental and social sustainability. We are committed to ongoing conservation and maintenance of the city's natural landscapes for residents, visitors and wildlife. The City has set a target that 51% of the city land area will be covered in native vegetation by 2020.
Find out more about our work to protect the Gold Coast's landscapes and how you can help:
Learn what we are doing to ensure our beaches are clean, healthy, safe and accessible now and into the future.
Understand how we're protecting our catchments | 153 |
Adams and Reese Legislative Update – 5-1-2022
Posted on May 4, 2022 June 6, 2022 by carol
CURTAIN CLOSES ON 2022 TENNESSEE LEGISLATIVE SESSION
The 112th General Assembly adjourned sine die Thursday 4/28 at 3:38 p.m., ending what has been a marathon legislative stretch with three different sessions over an eight-month span. With so much legislative activity packed into such a comparatively short period of time, many lawmakers expressed burnout and fatigue very early in the 2022 regular session, with many confiding that, combined with the special sessions that took place in the fall, it felt like they never really left Nashville in the first place. Layer that with the dynamic of having new legislative boundaries – that in some cases created dramatically different districts – and most lawmakers hoped for an early adjournment to allow them
ample time to return home to regroup and prepare for the August primaries<|fim_middle|>Bean Station).
District 52: Mike Stewart (D-Nashville).
District 59: Jason Potts (D-Nashville).
District 61: Brandon Ogles (R-Franklin).
District 63: Glen Casada (R-Franklin). Former Speaker; running for Williamson County Clerk.
District 67: Jason Hodges (D-Clarksville).
District 69: Michael Curcio (R-Dickson); Chairman, House Criminal Justice Committee.
District 71: David Byrd (R-Waynesboro).
District 75: Bruce Griffey (R-Paris). Running for circuit judge.
District 79: Curtis Halford (R-Dyer); Chairman, House Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee.
District 91: London Lamar (D-Memphis). Appointed to Senate vacancy and running for the upper chamber.
Current Senate members not seeking reelection:
District 9: Mike Bell (R-Riceville); Chairman, Senate Judiciary Committee.
District 19: Brenda Gilmore (D-Nashville).
District 31: Brian Kelsey (R-Germantown); Former Chairman, Senate Education Committee.
Bill Tracking Report Update: The Slate Gets Wiped Clean
Finally, a note about the bill tracking reports — since 2022 is the final year of a two-year legislative session, any bill that did not pass in the 112th General Assembly is dead and will not carry over to the 2023 session. The 2023 session will be the first year of the 113th General Assembly, and will begin with a clean legislative slate, therefore any initiative from 2022 that did not pass will need to be reintroduced at that time.
On behalf of the Tennessee Government Relations Team at Adams and Reese, it has been an honor and a privilege to serve you before the Tennessee General Assembly, and we wish you and yours good health and a relaxing remainder of spring and summer. For our part, we will quickly turn the page to focus on fundraising season and preparing for the 2023 legislative session, so we will look to stay in touch as we move into the summer months. Best regards. | . That may have also impacted the volume of legislation filed and the relative lack of contentious, high-profile bills that flowed through committees.
Looking back at the high points of 2022, Governor Bill Lee was able to close out the final legislative session of his first term by revamping the state's educational funding model for the first time in three decades while also seeing most of his legislative agenda pass without much hand-wringing. Lawmakers passed a once-in-a-decade redistricting plan that looks to preserve GOP supermajorities in the state house while also giving the GOP one additional congressional seat. In its one Constitutionally-required task, the General Assembly passed a balanced, $52.8 billion state budget that managed to contain more than $418 million in tax cuts – always popular in an election year. Lawmakers will now return home and
in most cases will prepare for campaigns, as half of the Senate and all of the House seats are up for reelection. Moreover, with many legislators having to play get-to-know-you with entirely new communities and counties in their districts and many also having challengers in the August primaries, there is plenty of incentive to quickly flip the switch to campaign mode and hit the ground running.
Redistricting Drama: Republican Plans Spur Litigation, Supreme Court Appeal
There was no easing-in process when the General Assembly reconvened in January, as it quickly had to address its first order of business – the finalization and approval of Tennessee's new legislative districts. Redistricting is a once-in-a-decade process that takes place upon conclusion of the census, and the majority party is given the privilege of running that process, thus ultimately controlling how the district lines are redrawn. In Tennessee, the GOP looked to capitalize on its supermajority in Tennessee and create an even greater numerical advantage over the Democrats. Immediately upon the release of the draft versions of Republican-drawn districts, Democratic leaders leveled harsh criticism at their
counterparts, arguing that the draft plans were illegal and unfair. Legislative Democrats noted that many Democratic incumbents had been drawn into the same districts, and alleged that the Republicans had engaged in gerrymandering. Other Democratic leaders alleged that the new districts reflected discrimination. The Democrats characterized their own draft plans as more fair, especially for Tennessee's major metropolitan areas. Not surprisingly, Republicans denied these claims. They continuously defended their proposals as transparent and legal while also citing various times throughout history where both Davidson and Shelby counties have been split into multiple districts. In the end, the final Republican-drawn plans passed easily along party lines.
The redistricting process took on an even greater sense of urgency given the razor-thin margins that currently exist in Washington and the notion that every state and every seat counts. That dynamic played out in plain view in Tennessee's congressional redistricting process, as the GOP currently enjoys a 7-2 advantage, but would very much like to expand that to 8-1. The Fifth Congressional district, which is currently held by Rep. Jim Cooper (D-Nashville) was creatively transformed to make the seat likely to fall into the hands of the Republicans, a move that drew harsh criticism from Democrats and also resulted in Cooper's announcement that he would not run for re-election. The drama did not stop there however, as the creation of a likely-Republican seat with no sitting incumbent drew Congressional hopefuls out of
the woodwork, creating a field that seemingly grew by the week and resulting in both state legislation and state Republican Party maneuvering that became a national story, as noted below.
It is not uncommon to see redistricting spur litigation, and this year's effort was no exception. A lawsuit was filed in late February, backed by the Tennessee Democratic Party. The suit argued that the General Assembly unconstitutionally drew House and Senate maps to further entrench the Republican supermajority by dividing more counties than necessary in the House map and numbering Senate districts nonconsecutively. The lawsuit particularly focused on four districts in Davidson County, which were previously consecutively numbered. In early April, a three-judge panel – a new, legislativelycreated concept designed to handle election cases, Constitutional matters and cases where the state is a
party — blocked the General Assembly from enforcing the state Senate redistricting plan, ordering the body to fix issues with the map within 15 days. The decision shocked Republican leadership and led to an emergency appeal directly to the Tennessee Supreme Court due to the decision's potential impact on filing deadlines and the election itself. In the appellate brief, Attorney General Herbert Slatery argued that the injunction could "wreak electoral chaos," specifically noting the fact that it had been issued on the eve of the candidate filing deadline. The majority opinion of the Supreme Court agreed with that point of view, taking the position that in ordering the injunction, the three judge panel "failed to
adequately consider the harm the injunction will have on election officials who are detrimentally impacted by the extension of the candidate filing deadline, as well as the public interest in ensuring orderly elections and avoiding voter confusion." Thus, the Republican plan was upheld, with the only real impact being a modest extension in the candidate filing deadline.
Legislators Approve $52.8 Billion Budget
Last week, the General Assembly passed a $52.8 billion budget, which is the largest in state history and a significant bump for Tennessee standards from last year's $42.6 billion. Most of Governor Lee's budgetary proposals, issued initially in February and capped by a proposed budget amendment in late March, emerged largely unscathed from the legislative process. The budget will go into effect on July 1.
The final budget contains a $250 million investment into the state's Rainy Day Fund, which serves as Tennessee's savings account to withstand economic downturns, raising the fund to an all-time high level of $1.8 billion. Another highlight, which reflects Tennessee's historically fiscally conservative approach, is the $1.3 billion of Tennessee's $3 billion revenue surplus that is set aside for future use. The budget also uses the surplus for many one-time expenditures to prevent the growth of state government while still providing resources and relief to important initiatives. The budget includes upwards of $400 million in tax cuts – important in an election year – including breaks designed to help Tennesseans battle rising inflation. It includes a one-year slash to the $35 license plate registration fee beginning July 1 and an
elimination of the tax on food items in the month of August. Gov. Lee has previously stated, "As Americans see their cost-of-living skyrocket amid historic inflation, suspending the grocery tax is the most effective way to provide direct relief to every Tennessean. Our state has the ability to put dollars back in the pockets of hardworking Tennesseans, and I thank members of the General Assembly for their continued partnership in maintaining our fiscally conservative approach." The professional privilege tax – a $400 tax to attorneys, doctors, financial advisors and lobbyists – was cut, but only for physicians, thereby leaving the other professions in the tax to pay the full amount. The budget also featured a $68
million cut for a sales tax reduction on broadband supplies as well as a $3 million cut for agricultural machinery and equipment.
Education was a top priority for this year's budget, as it includes the largest increase in K-12 education funding in the history of Tennessee. With an additional $1 billion in K-12 funding, Tennessee is investing a total of $6.5 billion in K-12 education. This includes $750 million for the Tennessee Investment in Student Achievement Act (TISA), along with $125 million to increase teacher salaries. Improvements for higher education include $200 million for TCAT infrastructure improvements, $500 million to career and technical education grants for high school and middle school students, $66.3 million for a 4% salary increase within higher education, and $88 million for GIVE and HOPE scholarship expansions, bringing the scholarship award to $5,700 per year for juniors and seniors and $4,500 per year for freshman and
sophomores.
There was also the issue of a new domed stadium for Nashville, which emerged late in the closing weeks of session and required extensive negotiation and drawn out debate. In the end the House and Senate compromised and included a $500 million bond appropriation for a new facility, to be built on the East Bank of the Cumberland River in downtown Nashville, right next to Nissan Stadium. As is the case with most stadium proposals, the plan drew both passionate support and criticism, with opponents criticizing such a large taxpayer investment designed to largely benefit Nashville. Meanwhile, supporters maintain that a new stadium will dramatically transform the East Bank, especially paired with the new Oracle campus that is being built just north of the stadium. Supporters also argue that with Nashville's emergence as a worldwide destination, a new stadium is necessary to host events such as Super Bowls, Final Fours, and the College Football Playoff. Early estimations project that the overall cost will fall somewhere in the $2 billion range, meaning that both the Titans organization and the City of Nashville will also need to contribute substantial sums to the effort.
Governor's Education Funding Reform Passes Both House and Senate; Headed to Governor's Desk for Signature
In what marked as perhaps the crowning legislative achievement of his first term in office, Governor Bill Lee's K-12 education funding formula — known as the Tennessee Investment in Student Achievement (TISA) Act – received its final approval on the last day of session. The current formula stems from a decades-old Basic Education Program, which has been criticized as being outdated and not properly in line with students' needs. The new funding plan is the culmination of months of engagement that began in October with numerous education stakeholders convening to provide input to various committees.
Beginning in the 2023-24 school year, the TISA formula will invest $9 billion in total education funding, including state and local funds, and includes $1 billion in new recurring state funds and $750 million in one-time state funds this year. Under the new funding formula, local education districts will receive more funding than they do under the current BEP formula, and the total local contribution will not increase for four more years. The exact increases will depend on the student population being served in each district.
The plan features a base funding rate of $6,860 per student, weighted for districts with higher need students, such as those who are economically disadvantaged or have unique learning needs. TISA also includes a direct funding component that provides additional dollars for high-impact programs, such as K-3 literacy efforts, CTE courses and public charter schools.
As for price tags, the TISA formula allocates $6.6 billion for base funding for every K-12 public school student; $1.8 billion in additional funding allocated based on weights to address specific student needs; $376 million in direct funding to support learning opportunities beyond the classroom, like tutoring; and $100 million in outcomes funding to be awarded based on student achievement. Under this formula, $125 million will be allocated to fund an increase in existing teacher salaries this fiscal year, which will carry over to the TISA base component for salaries moving forward. This particular funding change aims to address a major frustration with the current BEP formula, which makes it difficult to provide
additional funding allocations specifically for teacher salary increases. TISA also allocates additional education funding for fast-growing school districts with at least 2% growth from the school year prior. Fiscal capacity will be calculated at the county level using the current 50/50 split between the TACIR and University of Tennessee CEBER models. The state board will periodically monitor whether additional changes to the fiscal capacity calculation are needed. TISA also has reporting and district accountability requirements, including an annual report prepared by the Department of Education to be delivered to the General Assembly that details academic analysis, accountability report cards, local district TISA
review requests, and a review by the state Comptroller. Additionally, local school boards will have an opportunity to provide input on student achievement each school year and describe how the local budget and expenditures enable districts to progress student outcomes. In a statement released yesterday, Governor Lee said, "Today is a tremendous day for Tennessee students. After months of engagement with thousands of Tennesseans, our state will have a new,
innovative K-12 funding formula that improves public education by putting our kids first."
Smith Resigns and Pleads Guilty; Multiple Members Subpoenaed to Appear Before Grand Jury
In March, around the high-water mark of legislative activity, Capitol Hill was rocked by the stunning resignation and subsequent plea bargain of Rep. Robin Smith (R-Hixon), who pled guilty to federal wire fraud charges. Smith, a former House Insurance Committee Chair, had seemingly been a target in an FBI investigation since January, 2021, when federal agents raided her Chattanooga-area home and her office in Nashville, along with a few other lawmakers and legislative staff.
Smith's resignation and guilty plea stemmed from her involvement and cooperation with a political consulting firm that is alleged to have been fronted by a former Chief of Staff for then-Speaker Glen Casada. The staffer, Cade Cothren, was alleged to have been operating the firm under the assumed name and identity of "Matthew Phoenix" and accused of offering campaign consulting and mail services for legislators – even though no legislator actually met "Phoenix" in person — in addition to acting as an approved vendor for the General Assembly's mailing service program. It is alleged that the firm profited from taxpayer funds.
While the charging document against Smith identifies both Casada and Cothren as conspirators in the scheme, neither has been charged to date. Two legislative staff members that had been put on paid leave as a result of the investigation were terminated in the days after the Smith plea bargain was announced.
In conjunction with her guilty plea, Smith said in a statement, "There are no excuses. I intend to cooperate fully as a witness with the federal government and do whatever I can to assist the government in this regard. I have resigned as Representative of the Tennessee House. I did so out of respect for the honor of Tennesseans, my commitment to public service over the last several decades, and of course, my Christian faith. I believe in forgiveness and I hope to earn yours over time." In Smith's plea deal, prosecutors agreed to recommend a lesser sentence if she "provided substantial assistance to the government in the investigation and prosecution of another person who has committed an offense,"
though the court is not bound to follow the prosecution's recommendation.
On the heels of Smith's resignation, a number of lawmakers were subpoenaed to appear before a federal grand jury as part of an ongoing FBI investigation into Capitol Hill corruption. The list included House Speaker Cameron Sexton (R-Crossville), who stated he was called to give factual information and is not a target of the investigation. Sexton added that he has been cooperating with federal agents since he won election to the Speaker's post in the fall of 2019 following Casada's resignation, but has declined to reveal details about his testimony.
Fifth District Drama Becomes National Story
Despite the court battle over state level maps, the epicenter of the redistricting issue has been the 5th Congressional District, which is currently held by a Democrat, Jim Cooper. The old 5th District, which was largely comprised of Nashville/Davidson County – frequently described as an island of blue in a sea of red – is now divided into three parts. A large portion of the county is now combined with strong Republican suburbs such as Williamson County (Brentwood; Franklin) and Wilson County (Mt. Juliet; Lebanon), along with rural and conservative counties such as Lewis, Maury, and Marshal. With these changes, Democrats will have a tall task gaining a Congressional seat in the foreseeable future, subject of course to further population growth in the Nashville metropolitan area. The potential consequence is
that Republicans could dilute partisan support from their districts and open the door for a competitive and possibly losing race for them, as has happened before in states like Georgia, specifically in the districts surrounding Atlanta.
The announcement that the 5th Congressional district would be broken up – which was quickly followed by Cooper's announced retirement – set off a feeding frenzy among Republican hopefuls. Several threw their hats into the ring in the following weeks. Some had well-known track records, such as former House Speaker Beth Harwell and retired Army Reserve Gen. Kurt Winstead. Others were either newcomers or relative unknowns, such as former U.S. State Department spokeswoman Morgan Ortagus, businessman Baxter Lee, and music video producer Robby Starbuck. Ortagus was immediately thrust into the spotlight, receiving an endorsement from President Trump before she even formally
entered the race, and quickly became a target of critics. Some labeled her as a "carpetbagger" given her newcomer status in Nashville, a charge that gained steam following a radio interview where Ortagus could not identify the interstates that run through Nashville or identify Tennessee's legendary former football coach, General Robert Neyland.
Newcomers Ortagus and Starbuck faced their first major hurdle when the legislature passed a bill that imposed residency requirements on congressional candidates that would have knocked both out of the race, but that bill was not signed into law by Gov. Lee prior to the filing deadline for candidates – perhaps intentionally — and could not apply retroactively. Then last week, in a move that has drawn national attention and may have far-reaching consequences, the Tennessee Republican Party State Executive Committee voted to bar Ortagus, Starbuck and Baxter Lee from the race on a technicality. The TNGOP deemed them ineligible to run as Republicans for failing to meet the eligibility requirement of
having voted in three of the last four statewide Republican primaries. With the three removals, Harwell, Winstead, and Maury County Mayor Andy Ogles are among the most prominent remaining candidates. Current state Senator Heidi Campbell (D-Nashville), has entered her name into the ring on the Democratside.
It remains to be seen whether there will be any fallout from the decision to bar Lee, Ortagus and Starbuck, but it is possible. The move has been widely criticized by Republicans at the national level, including Donald Trump, Jr. With Nashville being a leading contender for hosting the 2024 Republican National Convention, it is possible that the move will impact Nashville's prospects. Indeed, South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham said in a tweet, "I can't imagine having the 2024 Republican National Convention in a state that would allow this type of corrupt politics."
Lawmakers Pass Legislation Raising Nashville Hotel-Motel Tax
Current negotiations have the state contributing $500 million in bonds, the Titans paying $700 million, and the city of Nashville contributing $700 million. The $500 million in bonds was passed as part of the budget, and the Adams Family, owners of the Tennessee Titans, are essentially investing everything that they have to come up with their $700 million to cover their share. As a way to help foot the bill for Metro Nashville's share of the new stadium, state and local lawmakers have passed a bill raising Nashville's hotel-motel tax, a move that has been supported by the hospitality community. Rep. Bill Beck (D-Nashville) has been leading the charge in this effort, which would pave the way for Nashville's Metro Council to raise the tax from 6% to 7%, a move which would likely generate an additional $10- $20 million in revenue. The tax increase would be largely paid for by tourists and work hand in hand with other funding streams, covering most if not all of Metro's estimated $700 million contribution over an extended period of time.
Team officials hope to have renderings and designs by this fall, which will determine whether the stadium will feature a fixed roof or retractable roof along with the number of seats and a final estimate. The Titans are targeting an opening by the 2026 NFL season. The economic impact for a domed stadium is estimated at $30 billion over the next 20 to 30 years, according to a Finance and Administration report, with sales taxes in and around the stadium projected at $400 million.
"Truth in Sentencing" to Become State Law
As the session reached the closing weeks, a criminal justice initiative that was labeled "Truth in Sentencing" began to attract considerable attention. The bill provided that individuals convicted of a number of felonies serve 85% to 100% of their sentence before release. Criminals convicted of nine different offenses including first-degree murder, criminally negligent homicide, aggravated vehicular homicide, and especially aggravated kidnapping would have to serve 100% of their sentence undiminished by any sentence reduction credits for which the person is eligible or earns, although a
person convicted of one of these nine offenses could still earn credits that can be used for increased privileges, reduced security classification, or for any purpose other than the reduction of the sentence imposed by the court. While very popular with the legislature, the bill stirred strong concerns with Governor Lee and other criminal justice reform advocates, and there were rumors that the Governor might veto the measure. That led to discussion that the session might need to extend into May to give the legislature an opportunity to override any possible veto. In the end the sides were able to compromise and the bill gained successful passage and made it into the budget. There are still concerns
about the price tag, as the Tennessee Department of Correction estimate it will cost $96 million over the next decade.
Other High-Profile Issues
A number of high-profile bills saw their fate determined this session. Those include the following:
• COVID-19 Vaccination Policy: Status: Passed. Requires an employer with a mandatory COVID-19 vaccination policy to grant exemptions for medical or religious reasons to any who files a request.
• Campaign Finance: Status: Passed. Requires 501(c)4 groups to report any campaign expenses of more than $5,000 within 60 days of an election.
• Critical Infrastructure: Status: Passed. Preempts local governments from taking action that would prohibit fossil fuel pipeline development or expansion. It does not prohibit local officials from taking action when there's a conflict with a program administered or approved by the state, including groundwater and drinking water protections.
• Name/Image/Likeness for College Athletes: Status: Passed. Revises last year's NIL law to, among other things, allow coaches and other college officials to take a greater role in developing NIL opportunities for athletes, including direct coordination with entities that serve to benefit a university's athletic program. Also allows for group licensing.
• Transgender Pronouns: Status: Passed. Allows public school teachers to refuse to "use a student's preferred pronoun" if the pronoun is "not consistent with the student's biological sex."
• Transgender Athletes: Status: Passed. Bans transgender athletes at the college level from participating in women's sports in Tennessee.
• Tobacco Use: Status: Passed. Allows any municipality in a county having a population of more than 180,000 to prohibit bars and restaurants from permitting smoking. The bill exempts cigar bars.
Looking Ahead: Lee Looks to Have Smooth Sailing for Second Term; Multiple New Faces in General Assembly Following Resignations and Retirements
With the April qualifying deadline in the rearview mirror, candidates will quickly move into campaign mode, raising money for the primary and general campaigns and in many cases becoming familiar with their newly-reconstituted districts. Many legislators have primary opponents, which heightens the sense of urgency.
One candidate that looks to have a more relaxing summer this time around is Governor Bill Lee, who finds himself in a very strong position as he prepares to campaign for a second term, and will not face a primary opponent. For Lee, that is a welcome departure from the hotly-contested 2018 gubernatorial primary, where Republican candidates engaged in a spirited campaign and shelled out a combined a combined $49 million. Lee served as a dark-horse candidate in that primary, taking on the likes of wellknown figures such as U.S. Rep. Diane Black, House Speaker Beth Harwell, and Knoxville entrepreneur Randy Boyd, only to mount a stirring rally in the final weeks to score a victory that was seemingly
improbable at the beginning of the summer.
Four years later, Lee enjoys high approval ratings, a track record of leadership based upon his handling of the pandemic, a strong economy with tax revenues well exceeding budgeted estimates, and the enviable status of leading one of the top states in the country for economic development. Lee can point to worldwide brands such as Amazon and Oracle now building major headquarters facilities in Nashville and bringing thousands of high-paying jobs, not to mention a Ford electric-truck plant being built outside of Memphis that will be unprecedented in its size and scope. Lee has amassed a large campaign war chest that will only grow larger in the coming months, prepping him for November's general election, where he will take on the victor from a field of relatively-unknown and lightly-funded Democratic candidates. Those candidates include community leader Carnita Atwater, Nashville physician Dr. Jason Martin, and Memphis City Council member JB Smiley Jr. To illustrate the scope of the challenge facing the Democratic nominee, according to April 11 campaign finance disclosure reports, Lee has 56 times more cash in the bank than the rest of the candidates in the field.
Tennessee's congressional delegation looks to be relatively unchanged, with the exception of the Fifth Congressional district discussed above. Look for the GOP to increase their 7-2 advantage in the delegation to 8-1, a margin that still causes longtime political observers to shake their heads, recalling a time not long ago when the Democrats were Tennessee's dominant party. Indeed, in 1993 the Democrats had a strong legislative majority, enjoyed a 6-3 advantage in Tennessee's Congressional delegation, and also occupied both U.S. Senate seats as well as the Governor's mansion. By November, the GOP will likely have every one of those positions, with the exception of a lone Congressional seat,
and have long held a supermajority in the legislature.
For its part, the General Assembly heads into election season with an abnormally high number of members having announced that they will not be seeking reelection, either in pursuit of other positions or retirement from politics altogether. The number of departures from the legislature is believed to be unprecedented, and along with new district maps, will present an interesting campaign season, as well as more than a few new faces for the 113th General Assembly.
Current House Members not seeking reelection:
District 18: Eddie Mannis (R-Knoxville);
District 24: Mark Hall (R-Cleveland). Running for the state Senate.
District 32: Kent Calfee (R-Kingston).
District 35. Jerry Sexton (R- | 5,613 |
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Teen Challenge Ranch for Boys admits troubled boys from St. Louis, Missouri. Learn more about this unique ranch. – boarding schools with therapy and all boys homes.
Therapeutic Schools for Boys in St. Louis, Missouri
Home | Therapeutic Schools for Boys in St. Louis, Missouri
A Therapeutic School for Boys Who are Struggling, Offering Adventure-Based Learning and Therapy that is Surprisingly Affordable When Comparing It to Other Therapeutic Boarding Schools Near St. Louis, Missouri
Teen Challenge Adventure Ranch for Boys enrolls boys from St. Louis, Missouri on its Northwest Arkansas Campus. It has addiction treatment and private bedrooms for each of the boys, an exciting wilderness adventure program, as well as mission trips, and equine therapy.
For teen boys with anger, emotional issues, depression, behavioral problems, legal problems, or minor substance abuse, hope exists. An opportunity for a new direction is available through Teen Challenge Adventure Ranch. We lovingly train wayward boys to choose a different path in life, leading them to be godly and upright young men.
If you would like to find therapeutic boarding schools or boys ranches in or near St. Louis, Missouri, take into account that Teen Challenge Adventure Ranch may be exactly what you are interested in. Located in Northwest Arkansas, it is obviously a distance from St<|fim_middle|>10 U.S. Census. The Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) population of 2,812,896 is the 18th-largest in the country. The Greater St. Louis combined statistical area's (CSA) population of 2,878,255 made it the 16th-largest metropolitan area in the country, the fourth-largest in the Midwest, and the largest in the state. However, the city of St. Louis itself is the second largest city in the state, behind Kansas CityU.S. Census Bureau (2010)]
The city of St. Louis was founded in 1764 by Pierre Laclde and Auguste Chouteau, and after the Louisiana Purchase, it became a major port on the Mississippi River. Its population expanded after the American Civil War, and it became the fourth-largest city in the United States in the late 19th century. It seceded from St. Louis County in 1876, allowing it to become an independent city and limiting its political boundaries. In 1904, it hosted the 1904 World's Fair and the 1904 Olympic Games. The city's population peaked in 1950, after which began a long decline until the beginning of the 21st century.
The economy of St. Louis relies on service, manufacturing, trade, transportation of goods, and tourism, and the region is home to several major corporations, including Cassidy Turley, Express Scripts, Enterprise Rent-A-Car, Graybar Electric, Scottrade, Anheuser-Busch, Edward Jones Investments, Emerson Electric, Energizer, and Monsanto. St. Louis is home to three professional sports teams, including the St. Louis Cardinals, one of the most successful Major League Baseball clubs; the hockey St. Louis Blues and football St. Louis Rams. The city is commonly identified with the Gateway Arch, part of the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial in downtown St. Louis.
Excerpt about therapeutic schools in St. Louis, Missouri, used with permission from Wikipedia.
therapeutic boarding schools for your teenage boy in or near St. Louis, Missouri.
Should you need help finding troubled teen ranches, schools for troubled teens, private therapeutic schools or therapeutic ranch, please let us know. Teen Challenge Adventure Ranch is a Christian therapeutic boarding school and boys home. Boys come to our therapeutic school and home in Northwest Arkansas from across the United States. We help at-risk boys who struggle with behavioral issues. Therapeutic boarding schools and boys homes like Teen Challenge offer behavioral therapy and a rehab for troubled teen boys with teen counseling for boys. It is an affordable therapeutic ranch for at-risk teenage boys, boys with anger, oppositional defiant disorder (ODD), attention deficit disorder (ADD), and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) or rebellion. If you are searching for alternative schools or residential treatment centers for boys, addiction treatment for teens, troubled youth homes, troubled teen schools or troubled teen boarding schools, you have found one. A top therapeutic school and addiction treatment centre for boys, we may also be referred to as a "school for troubled teens". Troubled teen schools and residential treatment programs for addicted teens provide troubled pre-teen and teenage boys with counseling and addiction treatment.
Teen Challenge Ranch for Boys admits troubled boys from St. Louis, Missouri. Learn more about this unique ranch. | . Louis, Missouri, but that may be a good thing. Consider this: For teens in need of intervention, time spent away from your hometown — away from the negative impact of friends and familiar places — away–away from the effect of friends and familiar places—could be precisely the right thing to cause a big change. Parents from across the country, including St. Louis, Missouri, select Teen Challenge Adventure Ranch for their sons.
Strong Reputation for Healing and Hope for Hundreds of Boys
As the very first residential Teen Challenge program for boys, Teen Challenge Adventure Ranch has been serving families for more than five decades. We believe that a relationship with Jesus Christ is the primary avenue for healing in the lives of the teenage boys we serve. Every significant component of our program is biblically based. We believe that centering our program on Christ explains why numerous teenage boys have realized success here, even where other programs have failed.
Several factors set Teen Challenge Adventure Ranch apart from other therapeutic boarding schools:
MORE STAFF — First, we keep student-to-staff ratios low to ensure boys get a lot of supervision and personal attention. Our staff are highly trained and most have bachelor or master's degrees in their area of work.
MORE FAMILY VISITS — Residents are allowed to make visits to home on normal scheduled breaks.
EXTENSIVE AFTERCARE PROGRAM — After completion of Teen Challenge Adventure Ranch, boys go home with a strong aftercare program to help them continue to grow. Aftercare is included in our tuition package.
Academics mean a lot to us at Teen Challenge Adventure Ranch for Boys, because we find that education forms a foundation for future success. In our private Christian school with fully accredited classes, boys study courses led by certified teachers, with individual tutoring available to aid those who need it. We offer a GED option for students with too many missing credits to complete senior high school on time. Credits earned can transfer to public or private schools at home. Boys may also study basic vocational skills like woodworking, basic electrical, construction and carpentry, shop skills, basic automotive, and others. After graduating from Teen Challenge Adventure Ranch, many boys choose to continue their classwork at home through dual enrollment with Alpha Omega Academy distance learning.
Teens at Teen Challenge Adventure Ranch engage in a variety of recreational activities, both on and off campus. We operate an adventure program. Besides being fun and physically challenging for the boys, it teaches them about reaching goals, communicating and dealing well with others.
Many teens have turned their lives around and have gone on to make a difference for Christ after completing the program at Teen Challenge Adventure Ranch. We would be happy to talk with you to see if our boarding school is the right fit for your son. Whether you choose Teen Challenge Adventure Ranch, a school in St. Louis, Missouri, or another alternative, we hope your family can experience the transformation that Christ can bring. Please read the rest of our website and use our inquiry form or call us today.
We are glad you chose to look at Teen Challenge Adventure Ranch as you search for therapeutic boarding schools in or around St. Louis, Missouri.
More about therapeutic schools in or near St. Louis, Missouri:
St. Louis IPAc-en is an independent cityMissouri QuickFacts from the US Census Bureau.] on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 20 | 702 |
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The Wood Group is one of the UK's most successful international engineering companies serving the oil and<|fim_middle|>7DP. Developed by Mercurytide | gas sector. It is a global business with divisions in Russia, the United States, Venezuela, the Middle East and Asia.
Sir Ian Wood has steered the business since taking over his father's fishing boat repair company in Aberdeen in the 1970s.
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Merck and AAAS<|fim_middle|>ck CEO Raymond Gilmartin to lecture at NJIT
7. Protein tyrosine phosphatases to be topic of ASBMB-Merck Award lecture
8. Almac Diagnostics announces pioneering genetic research on ductal carcinoma in situ
9. ESA announces 2007 award recipients
10. President Bush announces 2005 and 2006 Laureates of National Medals of Science and Technology
11. 2007-2008 Genzyme/ACMGF Clinical Genetics Fellowship In Biochemical Genetics award winner announced | announce 2007 winners of Outstanding Undergraduate Research Programs
SAN FRANCISCO -- Fifteen colleges and universities across the nation are winners of the 2007 awards for the Merck/AAAS Undergraduate Science Research Program (USRP), sponsored by the Merck Institute for Science Education (MISE) and the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). Each award provides up to $60,000, paid over three years, for joint use by the biology and chemistry departments at each recipient institution.
This year's winners are Augustana College, Rock Island, Ill.; Calvin College, Grand Rapids, Mich.; Davidson College, N.C.; Lawrence University, Appleton, Wis.; Pomona College, Claremont, Calif.; Rhodes College, Memphis, Tenn.; St. Lawrence University, Canton, N.Y.; The College of New Jersey, Ewing; Truman State University, Kirksville, Mo.; University of Dayton, Ohio; University of Evansville, Ind.; University of Richmond, Va.; University of St. Thomas, St. Paul, Minn.; University of Wisconsin, Oshkosh; Wellesley College, Mass.
USRP is a competitive program available in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. Up to 15 awards are made annually. Launched in 2000 as a national competition, the 10-year, $9 million initiative is funded by MISE and administered by AAAS. The program is open to qualified institutions in the United States and Puerto Rico that offer an American Chemical Society-approved program in chemistry and confer 10 or fewer graduate degrees annually in biology and chemistry combined.
Its goals are to:
enhance undergraduate education through research experiences that emphasize the interrelationship between chemistry and biology;
encourage students to pursue graduate education in chemistry and life sciences; and
foster undergraduate programs and activities that bridge chemistry and biology.
Contact: Lonnie Shekhtman
lshekhtm@aaas.org
1. Harvard Medical signs agreement with Merck to develop potential therapy for macular degeneration
2. Merck and AAAS announce 2006 winners for Outstanding Undergraduate Research Programs
3. Researchers gain support from Merck Sharp & Dohme for novel area of diabetes research
4. Nobel Laureate Sydney Brenner receives 2005 UCSD/Merck Life Science Achievement Award
5. Merck / AAAS announce 2005 winners for outstanding undergraduate research programs
6. Mer | 520 |
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After spending Saturday morning exercising, I rallied when the family<|fim_middle|> rolling hills, the wet footing. Celebrating being of healthy mind and spirit. Of overcoming fear. Of being alive.
Thank you for reading some of what I wrote this year. My hope for 2019 is that we live a little (or a lot) less cautiously. Happy New Year or is it New Years?
This entry was posted in Fitness and Triathlon, Modernization, Spirituality, Sports and tagged boldness, courage, crime, Olympia, risk, risk taking, running, safety, Watershed Park by Ron Byrnes. Bookmark the permalink. | proposed a hike in Olympia's Watershed Park, a beautiful 1.4 mile trail in the heart of a dense, fern-filled Pacific Northwest forest.
By the time we began, daylight was fading into dusk. In a steady rainfall we began our clockwise loop. A few minutes later, a young athletic woman materialized in front of us, maybe 18 to 20 years young, hair wet, holding her phone, listening to music. Her warm smile suggested this was a better than average run. Fifteen minutes later, she reappeared. Impressed, I said, "Man, you are really getting after it." "Yeah," she acknowledged, smiling even more exuberantly.
The Good Wife, Eldest, Youngest, her, and I all got to our parked cars at the same time. She split before I could thank her.
I would've liked to thank her for daring to be different. Or more simply for being daring. A lot of people, scratch that, nearly everyone, would say she was crazy to be running alone, near dusk, in the rain, in a park where a person or two have been accosted previously. By focusing on the one or two tragic episodes over the last 10-20 years, people would forget that in between, thousands of runners have joyously run the 1.4 mile loop unscathed.
Our semi-dark, rain drenched hike was great fun, but based on her radiant smile, I bet her run was even more exhilarating. One she'll remember fondly.
Close in age to my daughters, I thought to myself, what would I think if I was her dad or if my daughters chose to run alone in Watershed at dusk in a steady rain. I would've felt better if she had a friend or dog with her and told me her plan, but I'd much rather her (and them) error on the side of running alone in the elements, than not.
Why? Because when we try eliminating risk from our lives, we're not really living. We're most safe when sitting on our sofas, but if we spend too much time on our sofas out of fear of what could go wrong if we venture outside, we forego adventures, new friendships, and positive memories of having successfully taken calculated risks alone or with others.
Calculated risks like running in Watershed in a steady rain, in the almost dark. Negotiating the | 495 |
Maybe you know more or less about ZCodeSystem. Actually it has actually been around since 1999. Back then, its results weren't too accurate. Like most well-oiled machines, it requires time to tweak the very best system<|fim_middle|> personally. As a skeptic of any betting system, zcodesystem, I needed to help keep it calm to get a bit prior to getting too excited. If this system was going to work, I would definitely make money, and I was going to tell people regarding it. The same went for if I lost. So here I am, and it's really time to the results. Try this as soon as possible. | possible and soon you get the results you desire. I usually bet on several games simultaneously, and that is a system I'm satisfied with, when I tried the Z Code expert picks under the same formula I've always used. All in all, I bet on 21 games within one week. I have a fairly large bankroll, so starting it with a modest $50 per game was the low end for me | 85 |
[<|fim_middle|> my eyes long enough to see it. | embed]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H3F3KSxHsUg[/embed] For in the hour of our darkest day, we will not tremble. We won't be afraid. Hope is rising like the light of dawn. Our God is for us, He has overcome.
I love this song. I can identify with what it means to walk through dark days. There have been times in my life where I have lived moment to moment. To even think about tomorrow was too overwhelming a task. I've lived out stretches of time where it seemed like nothing would get better and hope seemed like a foreign concept. Deep dark depression and discouragement seemed to swallow me whole and in those times I hated myself and was unsure of God's love.
Something remarkable happened in those dark days. Jesus always came through. He always loved me and stood by my side through it all. And with each dark season I have walked through, He has caused me to become a little stronger and I have been able to see His love and His provision through my circumstances a little more clearly.
Each of these experiences has shaped me into the woman I am today. I have become determined to see the hand of God at work in all my circumstances, including the rough times. My friends tell me that I'm too positive sometimes, that I'm too optimistic and that I need to be more realistic and less naive. It's because I'm always looking for the silver lining. I know that even in the hardest situation I can find God's hand at work, if I can just open | 319 |
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Founded in 2019 by Charlotte Keith and Stephanie Greenwood, Very Rascals aims to produce new writing by female-identifying and non-binary theatre professionals that spotlights social issues focused on communication.
Charlotte and Stephanie met in an acting class and quickly became friends after bonding over their mutual love for tea. In the summer of 2019, Stephanie took her one-woman show to the Edinburgh Fringe and was delighted but terrified when asked to transfer it to the Tristan Bates. Charlotte boldly stepped in to help with producing and - thus - Very Rascals was born.
After a five-star run at the Tristan Bates Theatre, Very Rascals is excited to move on to their next projects. We are accepting submissions for our future monthly spotlights. You<|fim_middle|> is currently writing her newest work A Cocktailer's Guide to Surviving a Pandemic, which was one of the Award winners for Sam Heughan's Write Start Competition.
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Stephanie Greenwood - Artistic Director
Stephanie was born in London and spent her childhood in South Africa and then France, before going to the US to study theatre and politics at Dartmouth College. Upon graduation, she moved back to London - bringing her life full circle - and began the perilous, exciting, sometimes very dull and boring life of being an actor, writer, and eventually (because she is an older sibling and likes to be in charge) producer.
In 2018, she toured with Jonathan Lewis' production of Soldier On as ensemble and understudy, staying with the production during its West End transfer to The Other Palace. She also revisited her award-winning honours thesis It's Beautiful, Over There. After a workshop during the 2018 Camden Fringe, she took the production to the 2019 Edinburgh Fringe Festival. The production then transferred to the Tristan Bates Theatre at the Actor's Centre at the start of 2020 - marking this company's inaugural production and the beginning of a wonderful partnership with Charlotte (see more HERE).
She is currently based in Glasgow where she is completing her MFA in Acting Classical & Contemporary Text at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland.
Other acting credits include: Fill Fill Fill Fill Fill Fill Fill (Royal Conservatoire of Scotland); As You Like It (Royal Conservatoire of Scotland); Twelfth Night (Shakespeare's Globe/Royal Conservatoire of Scotland); Revolt. She Said. Revolt Again (Blue Stocking Effigy, The Space Theatre).
(she/her)
Charlotte Keith - Company Director
Charlotte is an actor, writer and producer who splits her time between London and Hull. Originally she started out in Musical Theatre, training at Italia Conti Academy. Soon after graduation, she joined the National Youth Theatre where acting started to pique her interest. She is now studying on the BA Acting program at RADA. Falling into producing after lending a hand on Steph's first play, she has never looked back!
Charlotte loves to develop new work, taking a physical approach to acting and facilitating. Over the past year she has been producing for Gutter Street Theatre Company on their 2022 new writing series and has produced three new plays by first time writers at The Etcetera Theatre.
A history nerd and an avid book reader, most of her writing work touches on people not in mainstream history but who have incredible stories to tell. When not producing you will find her in the air trying to climb colourful plastic walls or hanging upside down from silks. Her proudest achievement… she can lick her elbow.
Meghan de Chastelain - Associate Artist
Meghan is a Canadian-British artist and educator currently living in Glasgow. She studied at the University of Windsor in Canada, where she holds a BFA in Acting and spent five years working professionally across Ontario as an actor and creator. With a passion for teaching and working with young people, Meghan also Assistant Directed at the Stratford Festival's Shakespeare School for several years and worked with students with special needs and English language learners in school environments. She first visited Scotland in 2019, when she toured as an Assistant Director for Judith Thompson's Watching Glory Die, which made its international debut at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. It was then that she developed a love for Scotland, and she returned in 2021 to complete her MFA in Directing Classical & Contemporary Text at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland.
Theatre directing credits include: The Virgin Trial (Director, The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland); A Benevolent Alliance of Mourners and Feral (Director, emerGENce Theatre); A Midsummer Night's Dream (Assistant Director, Bard in the Botanics); and Absolute Bowlocks!, Milkshake and The Ticket Meister (Assistant Director, A Play, A Pie And A Pint).
Performance credits include: Angel Street, Bloomsday, and The Importance of Being Earnest (Lost and Found Theatre); The Land Grabber (Toronto Irish Players); Pygmalion (Burl Oak Theatre Group); For the Love of Austen, Clytemnestra, and Cataloguing the Stars (Newmarket National Ten-Minute Play Festival); and Othello (Theatre Kraken).
As a creator, Meghan co-devised Bus Stop To (K)nowhere, which won the Multicultural Council of Windsor and Essex CINA Award and | 934 |
Montecorvino Rovella (Campanian: ) is a town and comune in the province of Salerno in the Campania region of south-west Italy.
History
In 269 BC the Romans defeated the Picentes from the Adriatic Coast and founded a colony transplanting them forcedly in Campania, in the town of Picenza. After a rebellion in 89 BC, and the subsequent Roman victory, the Picentini survivors were forced to not rebuild a single town, but a series of villages, easily controllable in case of further riots. One of them was Montecorvino (Mons Corvinus). Until 1820 it included the village of Pugliano and, until 1990, the frazione of Bellizzi.
In 1970, an early medieval church of Sant-Ambrogio, dating to the ninth century, was rediscovered. It is currently being studied by a project based in the Universities of Birmingham (UK) and Salerno (Italy)
Geography
Montecorvino is a hilltown surrounded by the Picentini mountain range, included into the Monti Picentini Regional Park. It borders with the municipalities of Acerno,<|fim_middle|>.
See also
Tusciano
References
External links
Official website
Astronomic Observatory of Montecorvino Rovella
Cities and towns in Campania | Battipaglia, Bellizzi, Giffoni Valle Piana, Montecorvino Pugliano and Olevano sul Tusciano.
Transport
The town is served by the state highway SS 164 and by several provincial roads. Nearest motorway exit (12 km south) is "Montecorvino Pugliano" on the A2. Nearest railway station (11 km south) is "Montecorvino-Bellizzi", originally named only "Montecorvino Rovella", located in the town and former frazione of Bellizzi. Montecorvino is also 15 km north of Salerno-Pontecagnano Airport.
Notable people
John of Montecorvino (1247-1328), Franciscan missionary, traveller and statesman.
Luca Gaurico (1475-1558), astrologer, astronomer and mathematician.
Robert Picardo (born 1953), American actor and singer with Italian heritage, with his father's family originating from Montecorvino and his mother's parents originally from Bomba, in Abruzzo | 259 |
At Ada S. Mckinley we transform lives and strengthen communities. We are seeking talented individuals who will join us in furthering the mission of the agency which is to serve and bring lasting positive change to underprivileged communities in the Chicago area.
Our staff is our most valued asset and as such we offer competitive compensation and excellent benefits (medical, dental, vision,<|fim_middle|> readiness as contained in the Head Start Child Development and Early Learning Framework.
Conduct a minimum of 8 observations daily and 40 observations weekly addressing all nine domains of school readiness. Enter observations daily in teaching Strategies Gold.
Plan and implement activities designed to promote physical, mental, and social development, such as games, arts and crafts, music, storytelling and class projects, field trips, visits by guest speakers or other experiential activities based on best practices in early childhood development and early learning.
This position requires individuals to make home visits and/or to attend out-of-center meetings/trainings. If the person uses a personal vehicle, they must provide a valid driver's license, a motor vehicle report acceptable to the agency's insurance broker and verification of insurance coverage. | LTD, retirement, life insurance, PTO, paid holidays, and tuition reimbursement).
OVERVIEW: We currently have an opportunity available for a Lead Teacher with our Child Development and Youth Services division. Under the supervision of the Site Director the Lead Teacher will take the initiative for role in planning, organizing, and implementing an integrated curriculum for each student in his or her classroom that addresses all domains of school | 79 |
Worlein Funeral Home
Send Flowers for Adeline
Adeline Frey
Adeline Dorothy (Wurst) Frey, age 92 of Blooming Prairie, MN, passed away on December 31, 2021, at Prairie Manor Nursing Home, in Blooming Prairie, MN. Adeline was born on July 7, 1929, on a farm in the Blooming Prairie area, to Joseph, Sr., and Anna (Jirele) Wurst. She attended Blooming Prairie schools and graduated from BPHS in 1947. She married John Haubenschild in 1949 and they later divorced. She married Donald Frey, in May 1977, in Watertown, South Dakota. They spent 21 happy years together making their home in Bixby, MN, and later moved to Blooming Prairie until Don passed away in October, 1998. A few years later, Adeline moved back to Owatonna, MN. She was employed at Owatonna Tool Company, the Steele County Auditors Office and lastly, Steele County Social Services until her retirement in 1987. Adeline was a bowler for over 60 years. She belonged to various bowling leagues in Blooming Prairie and Owatonna. She bowled many city, state, and national tournaments. In 1964, her team from Owat<|fim_middle|> Rushford, MN; Mary Frey (Jim) Sauter, Victoria, MN; and Vicky Frey Makky, Minneapolis, MN. She is also survived by many great and great-great nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her parents; husband Don; brothers Fred (Majorie), Edmund, Wilfred, and Joe Wurst Jr.; sisters Evelyn (Joe) Balzer, Albina (Bill) Stebbins, and Helen (Kermit) Nelson; nieces Sharon Schultz and Deanna Wurst; nephew Bud Frey; and special friend Don Hofius.
Memorial Service will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, January 22, 2022, at First Lutheran Church in Blooming Prairie, with visitation one hour prior. Burial will be at the Union Cemetery, Bixby, MN, following the ceremony and luncheon at the church. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Prairie Manor Nursing Home or Heather Haus in memory of Adeline (Addie). Worlein Blooming Prairie Funeral Home is assisting the with funeral arrangements. Condolences may be expressed to the family online at www.worlein.com.
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© 2022 Worlein Funeral Home. All Rights Reserved. Funeral Home website by CFS & TA | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | onna, placed 8th in the nationals held in Minneapolis, MN. Addie also belonged to the Owatonna 600 Club, having rolled several 600 games in the 1970's. In her later years, while living in Owatonna, she bowled in a local seniors league and a traveling league. Adeline loved spending time with family and friends. She was "the hostess with the mostest" for holiday family dinners (especially Christmas) and the larger family gatherings on the 4th of July. She was gifted at cooking, baking, sewing, and crotcheting. She also enjoyed fun times playing cards; dances at Zeiner's Ballroom, in Bixby; traveling; and watching the Twins, Vikings, Timberwolves, Lynx, Gophers, NASCAR racing, and PBA Bowling.
She is survived by her sister, Berniece (Jerry) Loew; and sisters-in-law, Loretta Wurst and Shirley Wurst, all of Blooming Prairie, MN. She is also survived by her niece and family, Jeanne (Jeff) Ihrke, Rochester, MN; great nephews: Will (Amber) Ihrke, Osage, IA, and Tom Ihrke and Valerie Busse, Kasson, MN, and great-great niece, Ila Ihrke, Osage, IA. Other surviving nieces and nephews are: Lawrence Wurst, Owatonna, MN; Janet Wurst, Woodbury, MN; Fred (Karen) Wurst, Ottertail, MN; Robert (Gail) Wurst, Bluffton, MN; Corrine Wurst, Apple Valley, MN; Joanne Stebbins, Lanesboro, MN; Larry (Ellen) Stebbins and Ed Wurst, Blooming Prairie, MN; Mary (Mike) Sagedahl, Willmar, MN; David (Kerrie) Wurst, Lake Worth, FL; Doug (Barb) Nelson, Coal Valley, IL; Kay (Rick) Emery, Corcoran, MN; Carolyn (Steve) Beseke, Apple Valley, MN; Heidi (Dave) Hindt, Prior Lake, MN; Randy Wurst and Tim (Tammy) Wurst, Blooming Prairie, MN; Dani (Barb) Wurst, Faribault, MN; Sheryl (Ken) Gorman, Austin, MN; Shirley Frey (Dennie) Darr, | 513 |
Gary Chapman Is a well-known author, some of his books are a fascination<|fim_middle|> novia y mi novia dice que es una gran maravilla de libro.Yo no solo se lo recomendaría a matrimonios, sino a noviazgos con el deseo de querer casarse. | for readers like in the Los Cinco Lenguajes del Amor Para Solters book, this is one of the most wanted Gary Chapman author readers around the world.
Aunque el estilo de predicador americano es insoportable, la teoría que defiende el autor es interesante y creo que hasta útil. Lo recomiendo, aunque haya que hacer un esfuerzo por no ponerse nervioso con tanto infantilismo y tanto ejemplo tonto.
A lot of people told me about this book before i bought it. I highly recommend it! The book makes you think about other love perspectives and it can help you improve your relationship with others.
Very good book. It is important to know the love languages of the people who is around you. I reccomend it.
Se lo compré como regalo a mi | 173 |
piston wrote: What's your preference?
Mmm. I must be getting less creative with my questions.
The songs and the opera are from a relatively young Debussy, surely more "romantic" in orientation than in his Etudes or nearly all his chamber works.
piston wrote: Mmm. I must be getting less creative with my questions.
Sonata for flute, viola, and harp: Oui.
There's magic in his late chamber music, to be sure. A much more personal Debussy than the impression creator.
Oddly, this is the ONE PIECE of Debussy that I cannot take. I grew up with the Ansermet recording of the work, which has been hailed as among the best. Still ... no can do.
If I had to select just one, it would be PIANO music. But I'll bet you knew that! Secondly, it would be his songs.
Lance wrote: Oddly, this is the ONE PIECE of Debussy that I cannot take. I grew up with the Ansermet recording of the work, which has been hailed as among the best. Still ... no can do.
The only other work that leaves me tepid is the set of Études though I like #11 (Pour les Arpèges composés).
Above all, the piano music. The Images, Preludes, Etudes, Estampes, Pour le piano, Isle Joyeuse, Masques. And En Blanc et Noir. To me, the best works composed for the piano after Beethoven.
The chamber music has not the same quality. I think that the string Quartet is a minor work. But the three Sonatas are very beautiful, my preferred being the Violin/piano Sonata. Let's not forget Sirinx, a delightful work for flute solo.
In the orchestra, an extraordinary masterpiece, La Mer. Then, the more abstract Images, the strange ballet Jeux, the sensual Après-midi d'un faune and one of the true impressionist works of the master, Les Nocturnes.
The songs are not among my favorite - excepting Bilitis and Noel des enfants qui n'ont plus de maison - and I think that, in this case, Ravel was very superior.
Le Martyre de Saint Sebastian doesn't interest me much, except for the extraordinary symphonic excerpts, recorded by<|fim_middle|> The complete piano work of Debussy by Alain Planes (by Harmonia Mundi). | Monteux and Cantelli.
The opera: Pélleas et Melisande is a miracle of poetry. The orchestra is subtle and, even with an impossible libretto, Debussy gives life, humanity to his characters.
Me too, though I've lost count. If limited to one Debussy work, this would be it. If I could have all I wanted, though, I'd take 'em all.
Which ones are your favourite recordings and what do you think of Maazel's rendition?
The Rhapsody for clarinet and piano and the Danses sacrée et profane (harp, 2 violins, viola, cello and bass) are not shabby either!
Less frequently performed is about ten minutes of incidental music to Chansons de Bilitis, for two flutes, two harps, and celesta.
oh sorry, that's not what I meant to say.
and the Danses sacrée et profane (harp, 2 violins, viola, cello and bass) are not shabby either!
Debussy had this infuriating tendency to label something as "first" and then never write a second. He also gave the "premiere" designation to his string quartet*. The Premiere Rhapsodie is such a beautiful piece, and durnit I want a second one!!
* (ok, so I can't get too cross at him for only doing it twice).
My library recently aqiured the Maazel Pelleas and I liked it very much .
Also, this December, Simon Rattle is scheduled to make his Met debut with this opera.
I wasn't that fond of Pelleas in the past, but with repeated hearings it's grown on me.
Debussy had this infuriating tendency to label something as "first" and then never write a second.
Less Debussy's peculiarity than a curse of modernism, I think.
val wrote: Above all, the piano music. The Images, Preludes, Etudes, Estampes, Pour le piano, Isle Joyeuse, Masques. And En Blanc et Noir. To me, the best works composed for the piano after Beethoven.
Agree completely. However, I also admire many of his works for orchestra, for voice, and for chamber group--and think his string quartet is superb.
THEHORN wrote: My library recently aqiured the Maazel Pelleas and I liked it very much .
That's great! Is there anything in particular you liked or did not like about that recording?
John Francis, what am I missing in not liking this opera when I enjoy so much else of Debussy? Maybe I'm listening to it wrong. If all I am hearing is the music (following the libretto, of course), can you advise me what to look for, what to hear, what it is that so attracts you to this music? Figuring the work was completed by 1902, it is like nothing else (operas) of a decade or two before Debussy's opera came forth. So, another question might be: what do we compare this opera to time-wise?
Lance wrote: can you advise me what to look for, what to hear, what it is that so attracts you to this music?
That's a challenge, as I love pretty much all of it - and not just the music, the drama as a whole. Maeterlinck's play is certainly weighed down with a burden of symbolism that nowadays may seem less like profundity than mystification, but at the heart it is a love triangle that turns out as violently as anything in "normal" opera. Whatever, it inspired Debussy to write music that is not only beautiful in itself (to my ear anyway) but moving in its identification and sympathy with the characters and their plight.
Where to start? The very beginning and the very end, perhaps. For me, the first scene from the brief prelude through to the orchestral interlude was the key that opened the door, because despite the opera's reputation as arcane, rather precious, and definitely one of a kind, I was hearing music that was so closely related to "Boris Godunov" and even "Parsifal" as to be uncanny. Also, Debussy uses musical motifs in a way quite similar to Wagner's Leitmotifs, with each of the main personages briefly and aptly characterized in a theme of his/her own. Able to connect "Pelléas" with other operas I knew and cared about, I could relax and go with it wherever it wanted to take me.
And at the very end, with everything said and done, Debussy has the last word with a coda of twelve bars in the orchestra. First comes the descending two-note motif, minor 6th -> dominant, which as Deryck Cooke says "is the most widely used of all terms of musical language: one can hardly find a page of 'grief' music by any tonal composer of any period without encountering it several times." (Wagner uses it throughout the Ring cycle as a Leitmotif, first when Alberich sings "Wehe, ach wehe" - woe is me.) Debussy repeats it, then draws it out into a long woeful passage of softly descending minor seconds that gets to me every time. A final pp statement of the Mélisande theme in the flutes and muted trumpet; and finally, after a preparation in slightly dissonant arpeggios, the long-held ethereal C major cadence, ppp in the flutes and high strings. Not a dry eye in the house.
Obviously this isn't a piece that plays itself, and frankly I haven't got nearly as much out of performances and recordings by French singers and conductors as some say they do. The Germans and Germanophiles have my vote. Karajan's EMI recording is the most beautifully played and sung of the commercial recordings, and with Richard Stillwell, Frederika von Stade, and José van Dam in the lead roles, the characters are vividly present. Even better, though only in the opera house and not on records, have been James Levine's frequent revivals at the Met from 1977 to 2005 with different casts; his phrasing of that orchestral coda adds even more pathos to its sadness. Unfortunately he may have conducted it for the last time, as next season's revival will be taken by Simon Rattle.
There is one recording with a French pedigree that I've liked, conducted by André Cluytens, not incidentally an important Wagnerite. It's the first version I owned, mainly because of Victoria de los Angeles and Gérard Souzay; I can put up with Jacques Jansen, long a famous Pelléas but not my type. Cluytens's approach is forthright, unprecious, and not particularly French, which suited me well enough at the time. But since the Karajan version appeared, I haven't played the Cluytens again.
The piano works would be my favorite of his.
I have not listened to many of the orchestral works: La Mer, Prelude to the afternoon of Faun, and Dances Sacred and Profane are about it. I purchased a 4 disc box set of the complete orchestral works a while back and have yet to make my way through it. I hope to rectify that in the near future.
Debussy is my favorite composer. Of all his works, my favorite would probably be his piano music. In fact, his piano music are probably among the few works that I collect performances. My favorite piano pieces are L'Isle Joyeuse, Images 1 and 2, the 24 preludes, Suite Bergamasque, the two arabesques and so on. I still have to investigate the Etudes (believe it or not).
His orchestral music is superb in my mind. I think that it is Pierre Boulez who said that Debussy opened a new era in music when his Preludes a l'apres-midi d'un faune were first performed.
I must say that his last three chamber works are amazing. People tend to prefer the Cello Sonata but I always had a special place in my heart. Specially the first movement.
You mentionned the Chanson de Bilitis. That is a very interesting work. I have always like the musical part of it composed by Debussy. Very interesting indeed. As for the words in this work...well I find of them to be not disturbing but almost.
piston wrote: The Rhapsody for clarinet and piano and the Danses sacrée et profane (harp, 2 violins, viola, cello and bass) are not shabby either!
Now if you will excuse me all, I have to go to listen to my latest purchase. | 1,848 |
We are so fortunate to live near such beautiful coastline. We have such diverse beaches and sometimes you are very lucky to enjoy a beach all to yourself! We enjoyed a piece of this coastline last year with a trip to Craster and Low Newton.
Craster is a small fishing village and has a very traditional feel. There are some beautiful seaside cottages available to rent (on my bucket list to do this!), one friendly pub, a cafe and the famous smokehouse with adjoining restaurant and shop. There is only one car park (£2 per day) which is where the tourist information site is located.
We began our visit with a trip to the beer garden at The Jolly Fisherman pub. If you are lucky to get a table here you definitely should. The views are spectacular. A pint of real ale, a freshly brewed cuppa and 3 juice's set us back just over a fiver. Very good value for money.
Next we paid the famous smokehouse a visit.
<|fim_middle|> sandy beach. This picture is taken on the walk from the car park down to the pub.
It was a warm but overcast day when we visited The Ship Inn. I would hate to see it in the height of summer!! It is the busiest pub I have ever seen! All of the tables were taken inside and out so we joined a handful of other families and sat on the grass outside - it probably worked out better that way as the kids had freedom to run around while we waited.
The menu has a strong emphasis on locally sourced food (in particular seafood) but I did find the children's menu very limited - just one choice (a children's picnic at £3.95 which does not include a drink). The food was absolutely delicious though, all home cooked and plentiful and was very good value for money. There is also a micro brewery on site!
We thoroughly enjoyed our trip along the Northumbrian coast and are already planning to return in the Autumn. Our eldest wants to take some ropes and hooks so he can climb parts of the rocks he couldn't reach today!!!!
We stayed at Low Newton this Summer and had a wonderful holiday. We had to go to Craster for kippers. Very beautiful part of the world.
Please can I come in your suitcase???
Fantastic - I must get to Northumberland before too long!
It sounds lovely and I'm gobsmacked at how cheap everything is - £2 to park and you can transfer the ticket? £5 for a beer, tea and three soft drinks? We go on holiday to Padstow, where the beer would cost nearly £5 in itself!
Good luck in the BiBs!
The Ship in Low Newton is brilliant, one of our pre-children faves. Did you spot any seals in the bay?
Sounds like good beer and good food, put that together with beautiful scenery and you have a perfect day out! Thank you for sharing with me on Country Kids.
I loved going to Northumberland when I was little, must go back with my kids, your pictures make me want to!
I like the sound of Craster a lot! I'm going to venture north for our holiday next year and thinking Northumberland is where we will go for some castle and coastline exploring.
oh yes - Northumberland is home to no less than 45 castles! | If you go at the right time of day, the kids can watch the fishermen at work. You can also see the smoke working it's magic and the smell is very enticing! The staff in the shop are very knowledgable and happy to answer any questions. We bought 4 famous Craster kipper fishcakes, some kipper pate and 2 large scallops. Yum!
Next it was time to enjoy the lovely coastal walk - it is 1.5 miles to Dunstanborough castle. We normally walk about half way and back with 3 sets of little legs to consider! The views of the castle are fantastic and there is a lot of coastline to explore. Wish we had remembered our nets and buckets!
After our walk, We headed back to the car and popped into the visitor centre. The staff here were so friendly and giving lots of people advice. We gave the kids £3 pocket money each to spend for being well behaved and they were very happy with a toy unicorn, feather quill and wind up penguin! Easily pleased!
I had heard lots of great things about The Ship Inn at Low Newton but had never visited myself. It is only 5 miles from Craster and our car parking ticket could be used in the car park at Low Newton too. So off we went.
The coastline here is again, absolutely beautiful. It is completely different to rocky and rustic Craster though - Low Newton is a never ending perfect | 296 |
Home > Chinese Horoscope 2023
What are Chinese Zodiac Signs?
Shengxiao, or the Chinese zodiac signs, are the repetitive cycles of 12 years. Moreover, every year is represented by an animal according to Chinese Astrology. The 12 animals are Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Sheep, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, and Pig.
The Story Behind the Chinese Zodiac Signs:
In its true essence, Chinese astrology has its roots dug thousands of decades ago. At the beginning of the advent of this form of astrology, the first 2000 years of its existence, there was no clear boundary between categorising astrology and astronomy. Thus, these 12 signs were placed in their particular order during its foundation based on the dynamic legend, Jade Emperor's Race. These signs are placed in an order followed by their most dynamic legend, the Jade Emperor's Race. The story behind this pertains to the Chinese Emperor, who once held a race. This race was held to analyse which 12 lucky animals would be bestowed with the honour of making it to the calendar. Amongst them, the rat ended up in first place and claimed the first year of the repetitive 12-year cycle. Thus, they have designated areas on the calendar so on.
Chinese Astrology says that 2023 will be the year of the Water Rabbi. The new year will begin on 22nd January 2023, and Rabbit falls in fourth place on the list of animals in the Chinese Horoscope. The Chinese Horoscope 2023 is here, and let's see what it has to say about how things will turn out for people in the year of the Water Rabbit.
Rat Chinese Horoscope 2023
(Birth years 1924, 1936, 1948, 1960, 1972, 1984, 1996, 2008, 2020)
The Rat Chinese Horoscope 2023 predicts that the year 2023 will be promising. It will be<|fim_middle|> south. Nevertheless, this year can be great for you if you choose to live healthily and maintain a good body and mind.
Rabbit Chinese Horoscope 2023
(Birth years 1963, 1975, 1987, 1999, and 2011)
The Chinese Horoscope for 2023 predicts that the Year of the Water Rabbit will be good for the Rabbit natives, and things that seemed like hurdles for the past two years will finally fall into place. Many aspects of your life will take a turn for the better, and your constant efforts will reap great fruits. You should be focused on your goals this 2023 and watch as your life unfurls beautifully. Rabbit natives will see their love lives achieve a new dimension this 2023. You will gain understanding in your romantic relationship, and married couples will finally cross hurdles in their marriage together. For singles, your love life will be fun and full of passion, and you might finally find your one true love. Thus, try to live every moment with your partner to the fullest and don't be afraid of spontaneity in love. As for your career, the year will be in your favour. You will go on to build useful connections and succeed in your chosen field, which means 2023 may not be the best time for a career shift. You should also support your spouse in their work life and motivate them to reach great heights. Regarding health, remember not to overexert yourself in pursuit of new adventures and remember that a healthy body leads to a good life.
Dragon Chinese Horoscope 2023
The Chinese Horoscope 2023 suggests that this year will bring lots of luck for Dragon natives in almost all spheres of life. Your finances will improve and lead to a better lifestyle, and you will be resilient this year. You are bound to achieve the goals you've set for yourself and watch many things align for you. You should not be hesitant towards change and embrace it this year. However, you should avoid making rash choices and weigh all your options first. For married natives, this year will be smooth sailing and perfect. This year may inspire you to bring new members into the family. People who may be in blooming relationships might face disappointment and would need to realise that looks are not all that matter. The singles should have a jolly time but must push themselves out of their shells and explore the romantic life. Career-wise, a promotion may be in the books for you. This would be a good year to reflect on what you want to do and follow your passions. Finally, do not neglect your health this year; focus on taking care of your body. Getting good sleep is very important for a healthy body and soul.
Snake Chinese Horoscope 2023
Snake natives will face lots of changes in their lives this 2023. Chinese Horoscope predicts that 2023 will be a year of transition for the Snakes. Your hard work and efforts will pay off and reveal great results. You will be surrounded by positivity in many aspects of life. Do not doubt yourself and work towards your goal completely undeterred. You are your best judge and know what would be best for you. You will discover new passions this year and see your life unfold magnificently. This year would be a good time to get married for those already engaged. This 2023 will be blissful and full of love and light for Snake natives. You will get to spend quality time with loved ones and enjoy each moment for what it is. Some natives may end long-term relationships, but that would be best for your self-discovery. People at your workplace might not be the most supportive, but do not let the negativity discourage you from achieving your set targets. If you own a business, 2023 is a year where you will truly bloom. Do not neglect your health like always, and take time to look after your needs instead of just the needs of the people around you. You should take care of your mental health and bring peace to your life by discovering yourself fully.
According to the Chinese Horoscope 2023, the Year of the Water Rabbit will be a promising year for Horse natives in terms of health and finances. Money will not be an issue this year, and you will discover new income channels to sustain a good lifestyle. However, your tendency to focus on the negative will take away all the good things about the year, and thus your focus for 2023 should be on maintaining a positive attitude. You should surround yourself with people and things that bring you joy. Grab opportunities as they come, and you are bound to reap the fruits of these adventures. Your understanding of your partner will improve your romantic relationship, and 2023 will be a good year to expand the family. Things will also align for the single Horse natives, and your love life will be comforting and peaceful. As for your career, you will experience changes for a better future. Working towards your goals will help you achieve that promotion and put you over scheming co-workers. You should also allow yourself to follow your passions and discover new things. Finally, you should take care of your mind and body and give yourself a break sometimes. Do not dive your head first into every adventure that comes your way. And, it is okay to sit back calmly and unwind once in a while.
Sheep Chinese Horoscope 2023
The Year of the Rabbit may bring some difficulties for the Sheep natives. But these challenges are not meant to scare you. Instead, these hurdles will only prove useful and help you discover your full potential. Your life will be peaceful due to your efforts, and every stepping stone this year will only make you stronger. Your finances might change for the better, and you will prosper due to your hard-working spirit. This year is all about self-discovery, so spending too much time with your partner may start to feel suffocating. For those in marriages, taking time for your spouse is of utmost importance, and building an understanding yet breathable space with your partner will help. The single natives should be cautious and enter a relationship only if they see potential and a genuine connection, as 2023 may not be the best year for anything casual. Your career will see lots of success and recognition from superiors. Your leadership qualities will come into the limelight and help you advance your career. Supporting your partner's career and providing support is as important as your work for both of you to prosper together. Natives who are into a lot of physical activities must beware of accidents and consult a doctor for minor concerns. In addition, you should try to inculcate healthier choices to lead a better lifestyle.
Monkey Chinese Horoscope 2023:
Chinese Horoscope for 2023 predicts this will be a blissful year without many complications for the Monkey natives. You will receive endless support from those you love, motivating you to work harder towards your goals. The harder you work, the more you shall grow and thrive this year. You should let go of your inhibitions and explore your full potential in 2023. The Year of the Rabbit will see you making major changes in your work-life balance as you find the right fit for yourself. You and your partner will work on the relationship and establish healthy communication and a supportive environment. The singles will not see much love this year and must continue their search for "the one". You should not rush into anything, especially a romantic relationship you aren't sure about. Natives in a relatively newer relationship will experience a wonderful year full of passion. You may have been slacking off on the career end, but the year of the Water Rabbit will instil your passion for achieving new heights. You should stop doubting your capabilities and put your mind to your goals. This newfound seriousness about your career will lead you to many positive results in the work sphere. You are advised to take care of every minor issue related to your body and eat food that keeps you fit and ready to take on an exciting year.
Rooster Chinese Horoscope 2023
The year of the Water Rabbit will not be very smooth for the Rooster natives. It will be a dynamic year, with its ups and downs. Some parts of life will feel positive, and some may feel upturned. You should be ready for whatever life looks like this year and take all situations in your stride. Many changes happening at once might feel overwhelming, but forming relationships with people you can fall back on will help you through this patch. This is the year for retrospection and nurturing pre-existing relationships in every aspect of life. Spending too much time on your career can hinder your romantic relationships, so make sure to take time for your partner. Expanding your family will depend on a good work-life balance and help fix rifts in your relationship. Singles might stumble upon their person this year, so don't lose hope for love. This year may not be the best time for a career change. Instead, try to focus on what you do best right now and improve upon your skills. You should learn to be a team player at work, and building connections in the job sphere will only help you advance your goals. Health this year should not be an issue for the Rooster natives, but remember to not let hardships get you down and take care of your mental well-being.
Dog Chinese Horoscope 2023
According to Chinese Horoscope 2023, Dog natives will find lots of luck in the Year of the Rabbit. Many aspects of your life will undergo positive changes and bring joy into your life. Keep your loved ones close and cherish all their support. You should work on your skills this year and try to discover your hidden talents. Do not be limited by your current skills. Instead, try and develop new ones to help you succeed in life. You should grab every opportunity that comes into your life and make the most out of it. Your love life holds a lot of potential this year, so don't be afraid to express yourself and explore romantic relationships. Spend time with your beloved and go on new adventures that nourish your relationship. Shower your partner affectionately, and don't hesitate to show them your appreciation. The single natives might not find "the one" yet, but it is completely okay to focus on yourself this year and not get swayed into relationships not worth your time and effort. If you own a business, it is expected to bloom this year and bring profits. Female natives might face problems reaching their goals, but patience is key. Males may face problems while dealing with seniors and authority figures. Confidence in your work is the key to success this year, and do not let anyone undermine your efforts. You need to take absolute care of your health this year and bring changes into your daily life that will help you sustain a better lifestyle.
Pig Chinese Horoscope 2023
Chinese Horoscope 2023 says that this year will be extremely blissful for the Pig natives. All your wishes will slowly come true, and pieces will start falling into place. Stay focused on your work and get rid of unnecessary distractions. There might be some hurdles along the way, but losing hope won't help and maintaining a positive state of mind is key to your success. Your year will be full of growth and self-realisation, and you will prosper in many spheres of life. Focus on the romance this year, and sustain your relationship with your partner. You should not be afraid to express yourself and remind your partner how much you appreciate them. Single natives will also find love this year and should not rush into a relationship without understanding the dynamic first. Your professional life will be prosperous, and you will be on good terms with co-workers. Your finances may improve due to your efforts and lead to your desired lifestyle. The stars do not seem aligned for a career change, so putting that on the back burner won't hurt. You will be engulfed in a lot of change this year, so your health should be the top priority. Do not let your life's whirlwind affect your mental and physical health, and learn to take care of yourself and your needs.
Is 2023 a good year to get married for people born in the year of sheep?
Yes, the year 2023 is favourable for those awaiting a marriage.
Which is the luckiest Chinese zodiac of 2023?
Rabbit, Pig and Rat will be the luckiest Chinese zodiacs this year.
What will 2023 be like for those born in the year of Rabbit?
The year will be favourable for those born in the year of Rabbit, and success will follow them. Moreover, their lives will be brimming with romance, and those looking for a relationship will find one this year.
What are the 12 animals in the Chinese zodiac signs?
The 12 animals in the Chinese zodiac signs are Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Sheep, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, and Pig.
Which are the yin signs in the Chinese Horoscope?
The yin signs are Rabbit, Pig, Snake, Rooster, Ox, and Goat. | a year that brings good luck in many aspects of your life. Your career should take off, and things in your romantic life will work out. The year 2023, according to Chinese Horoscope, will be a year of transition for the Rat Horoscope natives, and you will go on to achieve many of your set goals. You may face hurdles and negativity, but do not let them get you down and keep a positive mindset this coming year. You should take time for the people and things you hold close to your heart and surround yourself with positive energy. For the Rat natives already in relationships, the year of the Water Rabbit will be healing and loving. For those seeking relationships, love will find its way to you but do not rush into anything. Your career will introduce you to new people and places, and your hard work is bound to yield significant returns. If a career change is already on your mind, the year 2023, according to the Chinese Horoscope, will be the perfect time for you to explore other interests. You must not forgo your health to pursue your goals and keep a healthy body and mind to make it your year.
Ox Chinese Horoscope 2023
(Birth years 1949, 1961, 1973, 1985, 1997, 2009, 2021)
The Ox Chinese Horoscope for 2023 predicts that this year will be a year of balance for the Ox natives. The Horoscope reveals that things for the Oxen will start to fall into place, and everything you've been working towards will yield results. This year, you are destined to reach your highest potential and must not stop working hard towards your goals. For Ox natives already in committed relationships, your bond with your chosen partner will grow stronger. You will be able to trust your partner and work towards a healthy and trusting relationship. Your feelings of love will be at their highest, and the year will be near perfect in this sphere of life. The Horoscope predicts that the single native will remain as such, but that may not be such a bad thing as you will get time to practice self-love and know more about yourself. You may face some challenges in your career, but your hard-working spirit will carry you through the year. You may feel like changing jobs is the right choice, but do not make hasty decisions and weigh all your options. In 2023, you will achieve good health, but if you believe something feels wrong, don't hesitate to consult a professional and prioritise yourself.
Tiger Chinese Horoscope 2023
(Birth years 1938, 1950, 1962, 1974, 1986, 1998, 2010, 2022)
According to the Chinese Horoscope 2023, Tiger natives will be blessed with good luck in their lives. This year will prove to be better than before, and things will finally start falling into place. You must not give up this year and drive forward with a positive mindset. You will finally realise your true skill set, and your career will turn for the better. This year the Tiger natives will be strong and confident individuals. The year is predicted to start on a high note, and you will see positivity in many aspects of your life. The year of the Water Rabbit foretells that Tiger natives already in a relationship will enjoy a smooth year with their partners. You will create a more trusting relationship that will reassure your partner and lead to a happy year. For those seeking relationships, 2023 will be an interesting year. Your love story with someone you already know may unfold beautifully and bring you peace. However, Tiger natives in marriages may face hurdles this year. Some will also find the strength to end abusive relationships and work on improving their lives. 2023 is also a year for you to make connections and meet new people in the sphere of your career. You are sure to be acknowledged by authoritative figures in your job for all your hard work and skill. Tiger natives with respiratory problems may face minor challenges in health this year and should consult a doctor if things go | 886 |
Thinking about moving yourself because you just don't want the hassle? Are you going to be moving any time in the next year? Meet Zootly, a new company taking the moving world by storm.
Zootly is a new on-demand moving service that helps you find a moving truck near you, especially handy if you're moving at the last minute. Once you've found the truck, you can book it and be assured that a licensed, insured and experienced mover with at least two trained movers will help you<|fim_middle|> been very positive. "We have taken all the early feedback from our customers and applied that feedback to the Zootly app, bringing an even stronger user experience to our customers," Colwell said.
The only issue with Zootly is that currently, it's only available within a 100-mile radius of New York City, but Colwell said they plan on adding another 13 states within the next six to eight months, making a "U" around the US, from New York, south to the Carolinas, west through Texas to California and then up north to Oregon and Washington. Their goal is to have 30-percent of the country covered by that time.
The Zootly app is free for download on the App Store and on Google Play. For more information on Zootly, you can visit their webpage as well. | get your things moved with the least amount of fuss and muss possible. It's all done through their mobile app, which also lets you track where the truck is through GPS. Want to know when your truck will be there on either end of the move? You can get an ETA through the app as well.
Zootly contracts with partner moving companies, who they then vet to make sure they meet Zootly's high standards. All partner movers are booked through Zootly, which is licensed and insured themselves; it definitely gives you a little breathing room to take the worry out of an already stressful situation.
One of the biggest advantages of using Zootly to book a move is that, rather than needing at least a week before they can move you, Zootly can get it done on very short notice. Their software is the most up to date and they are constantly reviewing their partner movers to make sure quality doesn't slip.
Zootly was first launched in New York and so far, the results have | 205 |
Kabir by Abida - Gulzar Presents
BEGUM ABIDA PARVEEN: Unquestionably brilliant, the rightful heir to the legacy of Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan and the reigning queen of Sufi music, witness Begum Abida Parveen once again as she takes the listeners into a spiritual trance, this time with some of the most beautiful works of mystic poet Kabir.
A disciple of Ustad Salamat Ali Khan,... Read More
Code : TDIGH 011C
Artists : Abida Parween, Gulzar
Suno Zara - Devaki Pandit
Abida: Ghazal Ka Safar - Vol. 1
Abida: Hazrat Shah Hussain
Abida: Mere Dil Se
Shubha Mudgal - Chaahat
Rudram
Shiv Shambho
Shri Ram
A disciple of Ustad Salamat Ali Khan, Abida primarily sings the structured, poetic Kafi as also the soulful ghazal genre of singing and improvisational qawwali style. Each rendition exudes an energy that sends the audience in raptures and takes them into a state of that what is truly divine. Singing raw and robust takes them on a journey of rhythmic and melodious nuances. With her effortless renditions she paints a musical picture of surreal beauty out of the timeless poetry of Kabir. It has been often said, that to experience Abida is to experience life itself. Here then is another taste of life, by the sub-continents only Sufi Diva, Begum Abida Parveen.
KABIR: By profession he was a weaver and perhaps that is how Kabir wove simple words into something so wonderful as his poetry. Picking situations that surrounded our daily lives made his poetry eternally relevant. Thus even today, his poetry has a major influence on both the social and the spiritual context.
Characterized by a free use of the vernacular, his lyrics were unfettered by the grammatical bonds of his day. It is this quality which has made his philosophy accessible to generations of Indians. Today Kabir ranks among the world's greatest poets and is perhaps the most quoted authors, attributing to the fact that his work had a universal appeal. The social and practical manifestation of Kabir's philosophy has rung through the ages and across religions. It is a synthesis of Hindu and Muslim concepts, while at the same time it is widely accepted by the Sikhs as well. From Hinduism he accepted the concept of reincarnation and the law<|fim_middle|> - Gulzar Presents | of Karma. From Islam he took the affirmation of the single God and the rejection of caste system and idolatry and thus went around in his quest for the ultimate religion, with an approach that was straightforward and honest. He believed that all life is interplay of two spiritual principles, the soul (Jivatma) and the God (Paramatma). Salvation then, is the process of bringing into union these two divine principles. Born more than six hundred years ago, mystic poet Kabir is said to have lived for 120 years and finally relinquished his body in 1518.
GULZAR: Poet, lyricist, writer, filmmaker Gulzar has created some of the most beautiful moments for all of us to enjoy. His poetry paints pictures of pain and loneliness, love and life; it deals with the multitude of emotions present in the realm of human relationships. In 'Abida Sings Kabir' he takes a moment to introduce and explain each piece of poetry and the following rendition, in his flawless style, thus enhancing our experience of the album as a whole.
Please enter your correction for Kabir by Abida | 236 |
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