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About us
Hammer & Sickle is Minneapolis' vodka bar featuring Eastern European and Russian comfort food with an American twist. With over 70 different vodkas in our collection (including six house-made infusions) and a full wine and beer selection, there is a little something for everyone.
Cuisine
At Hammer & Sickle, the flavors of the Old Country are served up in modern, creative interpretations of classic comfort food dishes. All of our cooking is done in-house from scratch, and that includes the myriad of house-made pickles. Nothing pairs better with a flight of vodka than homemade pickled cucumbers, grapes, or garlic. We urge you to come in and try our food so you realize there is a whole lot more to Eastern European and Russian food than pickles and potatoes (but we've got that too!)
Service
We are open until 2am seven days a week. We know that when you are out having drinks with friends, sometimes it's a good idea to grab a couple of bites to eat before having another beer or three. If you work nights, you won't have to hit the drive through on the way home, stop by Hammer & Sickle where the lights will be on until 2am every day. With a relaxed atmosphere and friendly service, you are always welcome here whether you want an intimate dinner in front of our open kitchen or you just want to catch the score of the game while sipping on an after-work cocktail.
Cocktails
The perfect complement to our tantalizing bites from the kitchen are the fabulous cocktails mixed up by our talented bartenders. Check out our vodka list and you will find vodkas sourced from all over the world; as far away as Japan (Kissui), and as neighborly as Princeton, MN (Prairie). We have six different house infused vodkas that are outstanding and change regularly. If liquor drinks aren't your thing, we have a great wine selection as well as thirty different beers to try. No matter your potion of preference, Hammer & Sickle has something for you, we recommend you try The Drago…
Late Night
Our staff is the soul of our restaurant and we know that it shows through our customer service. We all work together as a family, and this translates to how we treat our guests. Work in the service industry? Then sign up for our Proletariat card and receive Happy Hour drinks specials all day any day.
Directions
Choose the Hammer & Sickle location to see where we are, and for your convenience please view our closest parking location. Click on each icon for more details. | 2024-05-08T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/9542 |
The City of Taft is suing the State of California and the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation over the Community Correctional Facility, alleging breach of contract.
The city is seeking reimbursement for the unemployment benefits it has had to cover and is trying to prevent the CDCR from taking over the CCF in the future and paying the city just $1 per year.
The suit was filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court.
The complaint says the city has already paid out nearly $500,000 in unemployment benefits and that the state is obligated by the contract under which the CCF operated to cover those costs.
City Attorney David Prentice discussed the suit in public for the first time at Tuesday Night's Taft City Council meeting.
The issue arose when Ben Mangum, a candidate for city treasurer, asked the council how they intended to repay the city's general fund with the money being loaned to the CCF to cover unemployment costs.
"The city is involved in a lawsuit to recover that money," Prentice told Mangum.
The suit has been served but the state has not responded, the attorney said.
The city contends the contract requires the state to cover all closing costs, including the unemployment benefits.
Tuesday night, the council approved another loan of $120,000 from the general fund to cover the CCF unemployment costs for the second quarter of 2012.
Prentice said the city has asked the state to cover the cost but it has so far refused.
The CCF operated until Nov. 30, 2011 under a contract that was supposed to run until 2017 with the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.
The city is alleging that, when the contract was terminated, it ended the state's right to lease the facility for $1 per year.
That has become a bone of contention between the city and the CDCR, the suit alleges.
"An actual controversy has arisen and now exists between the Plaintiffs and Defendants concerning whether Defendants have the continuing right to lease the CCF following the end of the term of the Contract in 2017," the city's complaint states. The city is seeking unspecified financial compensation and a judicial opinion in its favor saying the state has no right to lease the CCF starting in 2017. | 2024-01-10T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/5357 |
The effects of applied electric fields on Micrasterias. I. Morphogenesis and the pattern of cell wall deposition.
Applied electric fields of approximately 14 V/cm have profound effects on the morphogenesis of the unicellular green alga, Micrasterias denticulata. This field corresponds to a potential drop of 15-40 mV across lobes oriented perpendicular to the applied field. These lobes show a galvanotropism toward the cathode. Lobes growing parallel to the field are stunted to varying degrees, depending on their orientation. As shown by other investigators, most cell wall material is normally deposited at the tips of growing lobes. If, however, cell expansion is osmotically inhibited in electric fields, wall material also accumulates along the cathode-facing (CF) sides of lobes oriented perpendicular to the field. Similarly, in cells growing under the influence of an applied field, radioactively labelled glucose and the methyl groups from methionine are incorporated along the CF sides of lobes as well as the lobe tips. This is also true when the label is added immediately after cells are removed from the fields, indicating that the wall-depositing machinery itself has been temporarily altered by the field. These results demonstrate that applied electric fields can be a valuable tool in elucidating the mechanisms of growth localization in Micrasterias cells. | 2023-11-14T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/4185 |
India's Largest Forex Marketplace
Darjeeling – Your Destination This October
The pace of Darjeeling is as calming as the activity of lovingly plucking tea leaves. So be it witnessing the gorgeous sunrise bathing the twin peaks of Kanchenjunga on the Tiger hills or enjoying the Himalayan toy train ride, everything here is serenely slow and relaxing.
September to November is a great time to pay a visit to Darjeeling owing to the cool pleasant weather around this time of the year. The other great months to visit this hill station would be the months from March to May.
If you are a nature lover then Darjeeling is the right place for you. Darjeeling has a fine assortment of activities to reconnect with nature and enjoy its bounties. The Singalila National Park apart from its diverse wildlife has a bonus stunning view of the Himalayan Peaks.
The Padmaja Naidu Zoo is the only location in India boasting of housing Siberian tigers and other exotic animals like the Red Panda and Snow leopard also are sheltered here. You can also enjoy Darjeeling’s unique tea tourism on your stay.
You will be housed in a tea garden Bungalow and relax in the serenity of the tea garden and might I add attain Nirvana on the slopes of the Kanchenjunga! Here you can witness the tea manufacturing, the plucking of tea leaves and engage in activities like trekking, golfing and rafting.
Be sure to visit the Japanese Peace Pagoda and other monasteries of Darjeeling to get a taste of their culture. If you end up missing the city life and crave a bit of touristy shopping, then you have got traditional arts and crafts and of course tea to spend on.
With Tibet, Nepal, West Bengal and India melting together in the valleys of Darjeeling, the cuisine here has a touch of all the cultures it takes root from. So there is something for every palate here.
Be sure to try out the authentic Darjeeling momos. And it would be blasphemous if I spoke of Darjeeling cuisine without paying respect to the world famous tea. The Champagne of teas, as it is deservingly called, will cost you the earth but is well worth it. So maybe this holiday you splurge on the little goodness of life that is the Darjeeling tea. | 2024-01-02T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/6367 |
1. Introduction {#sec1-pathogens-09-00327}
===============
Tomato is one of the most consumed vegetables, grown worldwide in the field or greenhouse and has potential health benefits \[[@B1-pathogens-09-00327]\]. It is significant cash crop for medium-scale and small land holders. Tomatoes are recognized as healthy food and considered as important source of vitamins. Therefore, cultivation acreage, production, and consumption of tomatoes were substantially increased in worldwide \[[@B2-pathogens-09-00327]\]. Due to perennial growth on a large scale; tomato is susceptible to various biotic and abiotic factors which adversely affect the plant growth, crop yield, different biochemical changes and physiological processes in plants \[[@B3-pathogens-09-00327]\]. Among biotic factors the bacterial diseases are one of the major constraints in tomato production. *Ralstonia solanacearum* a Gram-negative bacterium, considered to be one of the most devastating plant pathogens having global distribution and significant economic impact worldwide \[[@B4-pathogens-09-00327]\]. It causes bacterial wilt disease in many plants and is particularly devastating to tomato \[[@B5-pathogens-09-00327],[@B6-pathogens-09-00327]\], leading to substantial losses in tropical and other regions with warm temperature. It has a huge genetic diversity which affects tropical, subtropical, and warm temperate region \[[@B7-pathogens-09-00327]\].
*Ralstonia solanacearum* can survive in plant debris, infected plants host weeds and spread from one field to another by irrigation or flood water, soil, farm equipment, workers and weeds which usually grow along waterways and it is difficult to manage due to complication in biology, nature of infestation and wide host range \[[@B8-pathogens-09-00327]\]. Its management involves the use of resistant varieties and chemical control \[[@B9-pathogens-09-00327],[@B10-pathogens-09-00327]\]. However, the use of resistant varieties has not always been successful and shows a negative correlation between resistance and yield \[[@B11-pathogens-09-00327]\]. In addition, the resistance of these varieties is often strain-specific, there were reports of bacteria developing resistance to the chemicals \[[@B12-pathogens-09-00327],[@B13-pathogens-09-00327]\]. Therefore, integrated approach combining host plant resistance, cultural and biologic control measures seems effective. Although excellent attempts were made in management of R. solanacearum, still there is great opportunity to contribute to this problem for a stable solution. Varied chemical, cultural, agronomical, biologic, biotechnological and biochemical approaches, etc. were used in addressing problem of Ralstonia with different levels of success \[[@B14-pathogens-09-00327]\].
Soil amendment with organic matter having antimicrobial activity is one of the potential approaches for the management of soil borne pathogens. This technique also improves the chemical, biologic and physical properties of soil and regulates the growth and development of the plant. After degradation in the soil, encapsulated antibacterial organic matter releases some natural chemicals that have various inhibitory properties \[[@B15-pathogens-09-00327]\]. This technique was used successfully for the control of *R. solanacearum* both in vivo and in vitro. Soil amendment with dried powder or green manure of different medicinal plants or weeds such as *Withania coagulans*, *W. somnifera*, *Xanthium strumarium* resulted in significant reduction in bacterial wilt disease in tomato plants \[[@B16-pathogens-09-00327],[@B17-pathogens-09-00327],[@B18-pathogens-09-00327]\]. Their aqueous extracts effectively inhibited the growth of *R. solanacearum* which indicates the presence of antibacterial compounds in these plants. In this study we used the dried powder of *Conyza canadensis* for the management of bacterial wilt disease in tomato. *C. canadensis* (syn. *Erigeron canadensis* L.), known as 'Canadian fleabane' or 'horseweed', is native throughout of North America and is also widespread in Europe and Asia. It is an annual plant, erecting with one to several sparse hairy stems reaching 10--180 cm high \[[@B19-pathogens-09-00327]\]. Several studies reported the antibacterial, antifungal and antiviral potential against human pathogen \[[@B20-pathogens-09-00327],[@B21-pathogens-09-00327],[@B22-pathogens-09-00327],[@B23-pathogens-09-00327],[@B24-pathogens-09-00327],[@B25-pathogens-09-00327]\], however its potential to control plant pathogens and especially plant pathogenic bacteria has not been evaluated yet. The aim of this work was to evaluate the antibacterial potential of *C. canadensis* in vitro and the study also was extended to investigate the effect of different dried powder doses of *C. canadensis* against bacterial wilt disease in tomato under greenhouse conditions.
2. Results {#sec2-pathogens-09-00327}
==========
2.1. In Vitro Antibacterial Evaluation {#sec2dot1-pathogens-09-00327}
--------------------------------------
Ethanol extracts of *C. canadensis* in different concentrations showed significantly different growth inhibition of R. solanacearum ([Figure 1](#pathogens-09-00327-f001){ref-type="fig"}). The first three concentrations i.e., 50, 100 and 150 mg/mL did not show activity while the concentrations 200, 250 and 300 mg/mL showed increasingly higher inhibition zones. The highest concentration 300 mg/mL produced inhibition zone of 16.3 ± 1.6 mm that was similar to inhibition zone (16.6 ± 1.2 mm) produced by positive control streptomycin. Negative control treatment methanol showed no activity ([Figure 2](#pathogens-09-00327-f002){ref-type="fig"}).
2.2. Morphologic Observation of Bacterial Cells {#sec2dot2-pathogens-09-00327}
-----------------------------------------------
Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis of treated and untreated bacterial cells showed clear morphologic changes in bacterial cells. Micrographs of bacterial cells treated with ethanol extracts of *C. canadensis* exhibited severe cell disruptions ([Figure 3](#pathogens-09-00327-f003){ref-type="fig"}B). As compared to control cells, the cell membrane and cell wall of treated cells were broken; cell shape was deformed and degraded while untreated bacterial cells showed normal cell morphology without any disruption ([Figure 3](#pathogens-09-00327-f003){ref-type="fig"}A).
2.3. In Planta Antibacterial Evaluation {#sec2dot3-pathogens-09-00327}
---------------------------------------
### 2.3.1. Experiment 1: Application Time and Dose Effect {#sec2dot3dot1-pathogens-09-00327}
Results on plant parameters showed that different application times and doses of dried plant powder significantly affected the plant height, root length and fresh biomass of tomato plants transplanted in artificially inoculated soil with *R. solanacearum* ([Figure 4](#pathogens-09-00327-f004){ref-type="fig"}). It was noticed that increase in application time and dose of dried plant powder resulted in enhancing the plant height, root length and fresh biomass. Maximum plant height (74.3 ± 4.7 cm), root length (34.0 ± 2.5 cm) and fresh biomass (58.3 ± 4.3 g) were achieved by the highest dose (24 g) of the plant powder applying at 16 DBT ([Figure 5](#pathogens-09-00327-f005){ref-type="fig"}) followed by 16 g of dried plant powder applying at 8 DBT while after control (un-amended soil; 0 g) the lowest dose (10 g) of dried plant powder gave the minimum values for plant height, root length and fresh biomass of tomato plants
### 2.3.2. Experiment 2: Plastic Mulch Duration and Dose Effect {#sec2dot3dot2-pathogens-09-00327}
Plant growth parameters significantly affected by the application of different duration of plastic mulching and doses of dried plant powder. Highest dose of the dried plant powder and plastic mulching for longer duration effectively increased the plant growth parameters ([Figure 6](#pathogens-09-00327-f006){ref-type="fig"}). The combination of 24 g dried plant powder and plastic mulching for 10 days gave maximum plant height (78.3 ± 5.8 cm), root length (39.6 ± 3.2 cm) and fresh biomass (65.6 ± 4.9 g) ([Figure 7](#pathogens-09-00327-f007){ref-type="fig"}). The application of 16 g dried powder and 5 days plastic mulching was ranked as second-best treatment combination while 8 g dried plant powder gave the lowest values for plant growth parameters after control (0 g).
2.4. Effect of Plant Powder, Application Time and Plastic Mulching on Soil Population of R. solanacearum {#sec2dot4-pathogens-09-00327}
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Different doses of dried plant powder, application timings and plastic mulching duration significantly reduced the pathogen population in the soil. Increase in reduction of bacterial population was achieved by increasing the dose of dried plant powder, application time and mulching duration. In case of application time and dose effect the highest reduction (1.52 log~10~) was achieved by the application of 24 g dried plant powder applied 16 DBT while for plastic mulching duration effect the 24 g dried plant powder and 10 days plastic mulching (DPM) gave highest reduction (1.59 log~10~) in soil population of pathogen than other mulching durations. This treatment was followed by 16 g dried plant powder applied at 8 DBT and 5 DPM. The lowest reduction (0.64 log~10~) and (0.78 log~10~) were noted with 0 g, 0 DBT and 0 g, 0 DPM treatment combinations respectively ([Figure 8](#pathogens-09-00327-f008){ref-type="fig"}).
2.5. Effect of Plant Powder, Application Time and Plastic Mulching on AUDPC {#sec2dot5-pathogens-09-00327}
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Disease progress over time was quantified by determining AUDPC. As obvious from the results, AUDPC values were significantly affected by different doses of dried powder applied at different timings and different duration of plastic mulching. The smallest AUDPC value was obtained by using 24 g dried powder applied at 16 DBT which was followed by 16 g and 8 DBT. In case of plastic mulching duration and doses, longest plastic mulch duration 10 DPM and highest dose 24 g dried powder gave minimum AUDPC value. Control (un-amended soil) treatments i.e., 0 g dried powder, 0 DBT and 0 DPM exhibited highest AUDPC values ([Figure 9](#pathogens-09-00327-f009){ref-type="fig"}).
2.6. Comparison of Application Time (16 DBT) without Plastic Mulching and 10 Days Plastic Mulching Effect {#sec2dot6-pathogens-09-00327}
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To compare the effect of *Conyza canadensis* dried powder with or without plastic mulching the results of the best treatments i.e., 24 g/kg from two experiments were compared through one-way ANOVA following LSD test. No significant difference was observed in plant height and AUDPC while application of 24 g/kg *Conyza canadensis* dried powder with ten days plastic mulching significantly enhanced the root length, fresh biomass and caused more decrease in soil pathogen population than application of 24 g/kg *C. canadensis* dried powder applied at 16 DBT without plastic mulching in [Figure 10](#pathogens-09-00327-f010){ref-type="fig"}.
3. Discussion {#sec3-pathogens-09-00327}
=============
Utilization of plant-based materials---being an environment-friendly, easily biodegradable and relatively non-phytotoxic technique---is a potentially effective and attractive component of integrated disease management (IDM) against bacterial wilt \[[@B26-pathogens-09-00327],[@B27-pathogens-09-00327],[@B28-pathogens-09-00327]\]. Results of this study showed strong antibacterial activity of methanol extract of *C. canadensis* against bacterial wilt pathogen *R. solanacearum* which suggested the potential use of its powder for the management of bacterial wilt disease in tomato plants. It was noticed that antibacterial potential of *C. canadensis* extract was dose dependent. The antibacterial activity could be attributed to different antimicrobial secondary metabolites produced by *C. canadensis*. A number of phytochemical studies reported that *C. canadensis* contains several bioactive secondary metabolites having antibacterial, antifungal and antiviral activities \[[@B20-pathogens-09-00327],[@B21-pathogens-09-00327],[@B22-pathogens-09-00327],[@B23-pathogens-09-00327],[@B24-pathogens-09-00327],[@B25-pathogens-09-00327]\]. Plant bio-active secondary metabolites damage bacterial cells by different mechanisms including membranes disruption \[[@B29-pathogens-09-00327],[@B30-pathogens-09-00327],[@B31-pathogens-09-00327],[@B32-pathogens-09-00327],[@B33-pathogens-09-00327],[@B34-pathogens-09-00327],[@B35-pathogens-09-00327]\]. Rupturing of cell membranes of *R. solanacearum* cells treated with *C. canadensis* extracts was observed in SEM analysis which supports our *in vitro* studies. These findings are in line with previously reported results by different researchers. Cell wall of *Pseudomonas aeruginosa* and *Staphylococcus aureus* was found broken and cells appear shrunken when treated with methanol extracts of *Ocimum basilicum* L and observed in SEM. In another study reported ruptured and misshapen cell walls of *Staphylococcus epidermidis* by aqueous extracts of *Aquilaria crassna* was reported \[[@B36-pathogens-09-00327]\].
Along with other factors, the effectiveness of a plant product to control a plant disease also depends upon the amounts, time and method of application of the plant to be used as organic amendment. Results of our in-planta studies indicated that soil mixing of dried powder of *C. canadensis* at different rates and applied at different times significantly suppressed BW, declined the pathogen count in soil and enhanced the plant growth characters. Application of higher dose (24 g kg^−1^ soil) of dried powder applied 16 DBT was found to be superior to the lower doses applied fewer days before transplanting. Higher amount of the dried powder obviously has more antimicrobial compounds and longer exposure time helps in more thorough decomposition of the organic amendment, releasing more plant bio-active compounds. Moreover, the *R. solanacearum* present in the infested soil had more exposure to the toxic substances in case of 16 DBT than in 8 DBT. This decreased the pathogen populations in soil which resulted in less disease and enhanced plant growth characters. Other researchers also reported similar results for the management of bacterial wilt in tomato as well as other plant disease. For example, using dried powder (40 g kg^−1^ potted soil) of *A. vasica* and *Calotropis procera* suppressed BW significantly and enhanced plant growth and yield in tomato plants \[[@B37-pathogens-09-00327]\]. Mulching of flowering-stage of Brassica species released thiocyanates, isothiocyanates and nitriles which infected population of *R. solanacearum* in soil \[[@B38-pathogens-09-00327]\]. Likewise, release a volatile compound thymol in soil by decomposition of Thymus plants was effectively managed BW of tomato \[[@B39-pathogens-09-00327]\]. Dried powders \[[@B37-pathogens-09-00327],[@B40-pathogens-09-00327],[@B41-pathogens-09-00327],[@B42-pathogens-09-00327]\] as soil organic amendments prepared from plants with bio-active compounds have been demonstrated to be effective against different plant diseases. A correlation was found between the decrease in nematode population in tomato roots and increasing plant material doses \[[@B41-pathogens-09-00327]\]. Higher doses of green manures release more anti-microbial chemicals, and therefore achieve greater control of plant diseases.
Release of bio-active compounds by decomposition of applied plant powder in soil may either act as elicitors to induce systemic acquired resistance (SAR) in host plants or damage the pathogens directly \[[@B42-pathogens-09-00327],[@B43-pathogens-09-00327]\]. Plants having activated SAR can protect themselves better against pathogens which resulted in reduced disease levels \[[@B44-pathogens-09-00327],[@B45-pathogens-09-00327]\]. Aqueous extracts of *Punica granatum*, *Eucalyptus globulus* and *Hibiscus sabdariffa*, were found to be able to induce SAR against bacterial wilt in potato plants \[[@B46-pathogens-09-00327]\].
In case of plastic mulching effect, the application of plastic mulching (10 DPM) significantly increased plant growth and decreased disease severity than without plastic mulching (0 DPM). Our results of reduction in disease severity through longer duration of plastic mulching i.e., for 10 days could be explained on the basis of quicker decomposition of *C. canadensis* powder under increased solar heat (because of plastic mulching) and quicker and more release of anti-microbial compounds. This practice decreased the soil populations of *R. solanacearum* because bacterium is heat-sensitive \[[@B47-pathogens-09-00327]\]. It is killed when wet soil temperatures reach 45 °C or above for 2 days. Furthermore, plastic mulching could trap the volatile compounds released by the fast-decomposing dried powder under high temperature conditions \[[@B48-pathogens-09-00327]\]. This further decreases the soil populations of the bacterium which results in low disease severity of BW. Many areas of China which grow tomatoes commercially are hot during later part of the summer and spring. Therefore, through plastic mulching the target temperature of 45 °C could be easily achieved. Taking the advantage of cheap local labor, the dried powder could be applied to individual tomato plants in a target-application manner for reducing the in-put costs. Comparison of the effect of highest dose 24 g/kg applied 16 DBT without plastic mulching and with 10 days plastic mulching revealed that 10DPM was superior in terms of suppressing soil pathogen population, root length and plant fresh biomass. Though the other two parameters i.e., AUDPC and plant height were not affected by plastic mulching application but still plastic mulching can be considered as effective treatment because of taking less time i.e., 10 DPM than 16 DBT without plastic mulching. Hence, through the application of plastic mulching we can manage the bacterial wilt disease more effectively in less time (10 days) than 16 DBT without mulching. To sum up, the results of this study suggest that the mixing of dried *C. canadensis* powder into the soil could act as ecofriendly, low-cost and effective disease management tool for BW in tomato grown in pots and green houses. Obviously, it will also be helpful in field and possibly for other crops which should be evaluated for conformation.
4. Materials and Methods {#sec4-pathogens-09-00327}
========================
4.1. Bacterial Culture and Preparation of Inoculum {#sec4dot1-pathogens-09-00327}
--------------------------------------------------
*R. solanacaerum* was obtained from the phyto-pathogenic bacterial culture collection of the School of Life Science and Engineering, Southwest University of Science and Technology, Mianyang China. The bacterium was sub-cultured on LB medium. The bacterial inoculum was produced by growing the pathogen for 48 h on LB medium at 27 °C. Sterile distilled water (SDW) was poured on LB plates containing bacterial growth. With the help of sterile cotton swabs, the bacterial growth was scrapped off the surface of plates and re-suspended in 0.85% saline (salt) solution \[[@B49-pathogens-09-00327]\]. Using spectrophotometer, the suspension was adjusted to 10^8^ cfu/mL (OD~600~ = 0.3) \[[@B50-pathogens-09-00327]\] and then used for the in vitro and in planta experiments.
4.2. Collection of Plant and Extract Preparation {#sec4dot2-pathogens-09-00327}
------------------------------------------------
Plants of *Conyza canadensis* were collected from the sub-mountainous dry-lands of Sichuan Province, P.R. China. The plants were authenticated by a botanist (School of Life Science and Engineering, Southwest University of Science and Technology, China). The green top part of *C. canadensis* was dried in shade (for 2 weeks) after watery washed, disinfected, and rinsed with sterilized distilled water. The dried plant material was then grounded to make a fine powder that can pass through 100 mm sieve. The dried fine powder was soaked in ethanol (50 g/200 mL) and kept for stirring for 48 h. After 48 h it was filtered through double layers of muslin, centrifuged for 10 min at 9000 rpm and filtered again through Whatman filter study No. 41 to obtain a clear filtrate. Using rotatory vacuum evaporator, the filtrate was evaporated and dried at 40 °C under reduced pressure. The extracted yield stored in a small bottle in fridge at 4 °C and checked for in vitro anti-bacterial activity in different concentrations.
4.3. Evaluation of Anti-Bacterial Activity {#sec4dot3-pathogens-09-00327}
------------------------------------------
The antibacterial activity of ethanol extract of *C. canadensis* was examined against *R. solanacearum* by agar well diffusion \[[@B51-pathogens-09-00327]\]. The dried extract of *C. canadensis* was dissolved in methanol to get the concentration of 50, 100, 150, 200, 250 and 300 mg mL^−1^ and used for antibacterial activity. At first, 25 mL LB medium containing 0.5 mL bacterial suspension (10^8^ cfu) was poured in each plate and allowed to cool. Using sterilized 2 mm diameter borer, total of 8 wells were punched in each plate. Six wells each was poured with 10 µL extract with increasing concentration, one well with 10 µL of methanol (negative control) and one with 10 µL of ampicillin @ 4 mg mL^−1^ (positive control). The plates were incubated at 28 °C for 24 h. Antibacterial activity was estimated by the size (diameter in mm) of growth inhibition zones \[[@B52-pathogens-09-00327]\]. Completely randomized design (CRD) with five replications was used. The experiment was repeated once. Data of the two experiments were compared using t-test and pooled together after finding no significant difference between the treatments of both experiments.
4.4. SEM Studies {#sec4dot4-pathogens-09-00327}
----------------
The bacterial cells after treated with *C. canadensis* extracts were subjected to SEM analysis for the observations of morphologic alterations. The method for preparing the bacterial cells for SEM analysis was used as described by \[[@B36-pathogens-09-00327]\]. Briefly, from the relevant inhibition zones (treated and control) small agar pieces were cut out and fixed in 2.5% glutaraldehyde solution for one hour at 4 °C. Next, these pieces were fixed in 1% osmium tetroxide for two hours after washing with phosphate buffer. This was followed by washing for ten minutes in phosphate buffer and dehydration with the help of graded ethanol. Fully dried pieces coated with gold sputtering were subjected to SEM analysis.
4.5. Green House Experiment {#sec4dot5-pathogens-09-00327}
---------------------------
The *C. canadensis* plants were shade dried for two weeks, grounded into fine powder and used for in planta antibacterial evaluation against bacterial wilt disease in tomato under greenhouse conditions.
### 4.5.1. Experiment 1: Application Time and Dose Effect {#sec4dot5dot1-pathogens-09-00327}
To find out the influence of application time of dried *C. canadensis* powder, four different doses (0, 8, 16 and 24 g) were applied separately in three different timings viz. 0 days before transplanting (DBT), 8 DBT and 16 DBT. Briefly, plastic pots of 15 cm diameter each were filled with 1 kg steam-sterilized soil. Four different doses i.e., 0 g, 8 g, 16 g and 24 g were mixed with 1 kg steam-sterilized potted soil at three different application times 0, 8 and 16 DBT. After mixing the dried powder with sterilized potted soil, each pot was then inoculated with 20 mL of the bacterial suspension (OD~600~ = 0.3 corresponding to 108 cfu/mL). The bacterial inoculum was poured at the center of the pot \[[@B50-pathogens-09-00327]\]. After inoculating the soil, healthy and uniform size tomato seedlings were transplanted to these pots (1 seedling/pot). Plants were watered and fertilized according to horticultural recommendations. Completely randomized design with two factorial (application times and doses) arrangement was used. Each treatment was replicated 4 times. The data on different parameters were taken 60 days post-transplanting. The experiment was repeated once. Data of the two experiments were compared using t-test and pooled together after finding no significant difference between the treatments of both experiments.
### 4.5.2. Experiment 2: Plastic Mulching Duration and Dose Effect {#sec4dot5dot2-pathogens-09-00327}
To find out the influence of plastic mulching duration and different doses of dried *C. canadensis* powder, four different doses were applied separately with different plastic mulching duration i.e., 0, 5 and 10 days. Briefly, plastic pots of 15 cm diameter each was filled with 1 kg steam-sterilized soil. Four different doses i.e., 0 g, 8 g, 16 g and 24 g were mixed separately with 1 kg steam-sterilized potted soil in three groups of pots. After mixing the dried powder with sterilized potted soil, each pot was then inoculated with 20 mL of the bacterial suspension (OD~600~ = 0.3 corresponding to 10^8^ cfu/mL). One group of pot was plastic-mulched for 5 days, one for 10 days and one for 0 day (without mulching) and transplanted with healthy and uniform size tomato seedlings (1 seedling/pot). Remaining experimental procedure was same as above for experiment 1. Polyethylene plastic bought from local market was used for mulching and applied to cover the soil surface.
4.6. Data Parameters and Statistical Analysis {#sec4dot6-pathogens-09-00327}
---------------------------------------------
The experiment was brought to end after 60 days of transplantation. Data were recorded on different parameters such as (i) severity of the disease using AUDPC, (ii) length of shoot (cm), (iii) length of root (cm), (iv) fresh bio-mass of plant (g) and (vi) bacterial population cfu/g soil. For shoot and root lengths data, main shoot and root of each plant were measured using clear plastic ruler and for fresh biomass data, weight of the entire plant was taken using electronic balance. For AUDPC and bacterial population the following procedure was used.
4.7. Area Under Disease Progressive Curve (AUDPC) {#sec4dot7-pathogens-09-00327}
-------------------------------------------------
A particular scale of wilting of plant was used for the measurement of disease severity. Different scale categories indicated different stages of plant wilting such as: 1 = no symptoms, 2 = less than half of the foliage wilted, 3 = half of the foliage being wilted; 4 = all of the foliage being wilted; 5 = whole plant wilted and dead. Percent disease severity was calculated for each treatment by using the formula \[[@B53-pathogens-09-00327]\]. $${DSI}\% = \frac{\sum n}{5N} \times 100$$ where, ∑n = summation of ratings of all plants scored i.e., ∑ (1A+2B+3C+4D+5E) where A, B, C, D and E are the number of the plants of categories 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 respectively; N = the total number of plants used, and 5 = biggest category of the scale. The percent disease severity data taken at two-week interval were converted to AUDPC values \[[@B54-pathogens-09-00327]\]. $${ADPC} = \sum_{i = 0}^{n}\left( \frac{X_{i + 1} + X_{i}}{2} \right)(T_{i + 1} - T_{i})$$ where, n = Total number of assessments, T~i~ = Time at ith assessment and X~i~: Infection expressed in quantity at the ith assessment.
4.8. Population Dynamics of R. solanacearum {#sec4dot8-pathogens-09-00327}
-------------------------------------------
To know the changes in bacterial population in the soil under the influence of different treatments, three soil cores were taken using 10 mm diameter cork borer from the root's vicinity at the depth of 12 cm per replicate. All the soil cores from all the replicates of the same treatment were mixed to get a composite sample \[[@B55-pathogens-09-00327],[@B56-pathogens-09-00327]\]. Three subsamples from the composites sample was taken and serially diluted up to 10^−7^ separately. Suspension of 100 μL each from three serially diluted 10^−7^ subsamples were poured on TZCNA selective medium plate separately \[[@B57-pathogens-09-00327]\]. After incubating the plates at 28 °C for 48 h, off-white bacterial colonies with a red center were counted and cfu/g of soil was calculated.
4.9. Statistical Analysis {#sec4dot9-pathogens-09-00327}
-------------------------
All the data were presented as mean ± standard deviation of six replicates. Statistical analysis was done by means of IBM SPSS Statistics for Windows, Version 20.0. (Armonk, NY: IBM Corp.). In vitro data were analyzed by applying CRD while data from greenhouse experiments were analyzed by applying CRD with two factorial arrangements. Treatment means were compared using Fisher's Protected LSD test and separated by lower case lettering \[[@B58-pathogens-09-00327]\].
5. Conclusions {#sec5-pathogens-09-00327}
==============
Soil amendment through dried powder of *Conyza canadensis* clearly reduced the soil population of *Ralstonia solanacearum*, caused reduction in disease severity and enhanced plant growth parameters. In vitro evaluation of *C. canadensis* extract and morphologic observation of treated bacterial cells also confirmed its direct antibacterial effect against *R. solanacearum*. To sum up, our findings suggest that the use of dried powder of *C. canadensis,* by limiting chemical use, could act as low-cost and effective disease management measure for BW in tomato grown and possibly other crops.
K.C. and W.C. conceptualized the experiment and critically review the manuscript for intellectual content. K.C. and R.A.A.K. performed the experiment and prepared original draft. M.L. collected and analyzed the data and prepared figures. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.
This work was supported by Sichuan Science and Technology Program (2019YFN0151), undergraduate innovation and entrepreneurship training program of Sichuan Province (S201910619111)
The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.
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| 2024-05-31T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/3110 |
Introduction {#Sec1}
============
In recent decades, ornamental horticulture has become the major introduction pathway of naturalized and invasive alien plants^[@CR1]--[@CR3]^. A plant introduced for ornamental value, which has become a worldwide invader is *Kalanchoe* × *houghtonii* D. B. Ward \[≡ *Bryophyllum* × *houghtonii* (D. B. Ward) P. I. Forst\], an artificial hybrid obtained by the eminent horticulturist A. D. Houghton in the mid-1930s at his California greenhouses^[@CR4]^, from the crossing of two species from the genus most frequent in cultivation, *Kalanchoe daigremontiana* Raym.-Hamet & H. Perrier and *Kalanchoe tubiflora* (Harv.) Raym.-Hamet. Both species are endemic to Madagascar but are today naturalized in many parts of the world with warm climates^[@CR5]^. Despite this, it has been stated that this hybrid "arises spontaneously wherever these two species \[*K*. *daigremontiana* and *K*. *tubiflora*\] occur together"^[@CR6]^ and Ward^[@CR7]^ wrote "*Hybrida naturalis putativus*" in the protologue. However, we are still not aware of any explicit reports of spontaneous hybridization, despite the two parentals are often co-inhabiting. Indeed, we only know a few places where the three species can be found growing together (or separated by a few dozen to a few hundred meters): the historic downtown of Camagüey, Cuba (Pedro A. González-Gutiérrez, pers. observ.); the village of Catarroja in Spain^[@CR8]^; the city of Bizerta, Tunisia^[@CR9]^; and Lightning Ridge, Australia (see <https://www.ala.org.au>). Furthermore, according to the genetic data reported by Guerra-García *et al*.^[@CR10]^, natural hybridization between *K*. *tubiflora* and *K*. *daigremontiana* in central Mexico would not have occurred despite a sympatric existence.
*Kalanchoe* × *houghtonii* is a perennial erect herb, generally monocarpic, that may reach up to 1.5 m (Supplementary Fig. [S1](#MOESM1){ref-type="media"}). The leaves are opposite (or 3-verticillate), petiolate, with the leaf blade simple, from triangular to narrowly lanceolate, serrate, and mottled. It forms corymbiform inflorescences of often more than one hundred, pendulous, tetra- or penta-meric, dark-red flowers. It is distinguishable from the parental species by the leaf morphology and by the capacity of bulbil production (Supplementary Fig. [S2](#MOESM1){ref-type="media"}). It has been reported that there were originally two clones of *K*. × *houghtonii* in cultivation, a fertile tetraploid and a sterile triploid^[@CR11]--[@CR13]^. It seems, however, that the original plants were triploid (2*n* = 51), as expected from the crossing between a diploid (*K*. *daigremontiana*, 2*n* = 34) and a tetraploid (*K*. *tubiflora*, 2*n* = 68) plant^[@CR14]^.
Originally, the hybrid was named as *Bryophyllum tubimontanum* by Houghton^[@CR4]^, however this name was not validly published. The taxon was also known as *Kalanchoe hybrida*^[@CR15]^, an invalid name that has been widely used in horticulture (as *Kalanchoe* 'Hybrida') until the taxon was properly described in 2006^[@CR7]^ (see Supplementary Text 1 for nomenclature details). The lack of proper nomenclature for the plant until very recently, in addition to its strong morphological resemblance with one of its parentals (*K*. *daigremontiana*), has allowed this plant to go unnoticed. Confusions between *K*. *daigremontiana* and *K*. × *houghtonii* have often been reported^[@CR16]--[@CR18]^ yet, even in modern studies the confusion continues such as in Venezuela where it is erroneously reported as *K*. *daigremontiana*^[@CR19],[@CR20]^). Misidentifications may even go further as *K*. × *houghtonii* is sometimes confused with the other parental (*K*. *tubiflora*), a situation relatively common in some sources of information such as iNaturalist website (<https://www.inaturalist.org>). Even within the Chinese Academy of Sciences sponsored Plant Photo Bank of China (PPBC), many pictures that belong to *K*. × *houghtonii* have been placed under the morphologically distant *K*. *serrata* Mannoni & Boiteau. Therefore, the current distribution of *K*. × *houghtonii* is unknown and its invasive status could be much more serious than thought, with only two countries having declared this taxon as invasive (Australia and the United States). For instance, in Spain, where it is behaving as a very aggressive invader, this plant is neither included in the local floras nor listed in the national catalogue of alien invasive species. Only recently in Italy, this hybrid has been listed as naturalized in the national checklist of alien vascular flora^[@CR21]^.
Despite its recent origin, *K*. × *houghtonii* is showing a tremendous invasive capability, probably resulting from some of the traits common to the genus, such as their drought-tolerance and easy propagation. New plants can be produced from almost any part of the mother plant, especially via means of clonal growth through the bulbils that arise from the leaf margins^[@CR6]^ which, in suitable open locations (such as rocky or sandy places), quickly form dense stands, hence the popular name "mother of millions" or "mother of thousands". Sexual reproduction seems to be rare in the nothospecies^[@CR7],[@CR19],[@CR20],[@CR22]^, in accord with genetic data (one multilocus genotype has been found in all studied populations in central Mexico^[@CR10]^). Where sexual reproduction exists such as in Cerro Saroche (Venezuela), it shows low success^[@CR19],[@CR20]^. The successful spread of *K*. × *houghtonii* worldwide is, therefore, probably due to human transportation, which is closely linked to its growing use as a valued ornamental plant (^[@CR8],[@CR19]^; J. López-Pujol *et al*., pers. obs.).
*Kalanchoe* × *houghtonii* can grow in a variety of habitats. These include all kind of urban and peri-urban environments; roofs, building façades, pavement cracks, roadsides, tree bases, waste grounds. They are also found in semi-natural and natural habitats such as sandy beaches, dry riverbeds, riparian areas, cliffs and rocky areas, shrublands, arid zones, forests and in some cases, it has even been identified as having an epiphytic habit (Supplementary Fig. [S3](#MOESM1){ref-type="media"}). Our knowledge about the potential impact that *K*. × *houghtonii* could generate in these habitats is limited. Only at an arid zone in Venezuela, it has been reported that *K*. × *houghtonii* generates negative impact on cacti native richness^[@CR23]^ and modify C and N pools in the soil^[@CR24]^. This species could generate similar impacts in others habitats, which makes it a harmful invasive species. To suggest management options and predict vulnerable areas it is extremely important to detect which areas provide the most suitable habitats. Ecological niche modelling (ENM) represents one of most extended and useful quantitative methods to answer these issues^[@CR25],[@CR26]^, especially considering its successful application to other invasive plant or animal studies^[@CR27]^. An additional advantage of ENM is that models can be projected to several future climate change scenarios under the assumption of niche conservatism^[@CR28]--[@CR31]^. These spatial suitability models would be used as a basis to: (1) detect regions where sampling information gaps occur^[@CR32],[@CR33]^; (2) allocate conservation efforts in currently occupied ranges^[@CR34]--[@CR36]^; or (3) identify areas at higher invasion risk through predictive modelling using present and projected future environmental conditions to allow preventive conservation measures^[@CR37]--[@CR40]^.
For invasive species studies with ENM it is very important that an accurate occurrence database for the target species is created^[@CR26]^. For the specific case of *K*. × *houghtonii*, there has been no comprehensive compilation of occurrence data which has in turn contributed to our lack of knowledge. This is likely due to several factors; its recent origin (mid-1930s) and description (2006), its taxonomic parental confusion, and its recent emergence as an ornamental plant at a global scale which is helping to its spread into many regions^[@CR8]^. These factors have hindered the true extent of *K*. × *houghtonii*'s geographical distribution despite the many sources of gathered biodiversity spatial data that are currently available (see Fig. 1 in^[@CR41]^). Key sources such as the occurrence data provided by citizen science databases, have been found to contain many spatial, environmental, temporal, and taxonomic biases^[@CR42],[@CR43]^. The most common type of errors found in biodiversity data sources are: (1) duplicate records; (2) georeferenced occurrence points lacking precision (i.e. a low number of decimal places) or inaccurate occurrence points (i.e. datum was incorrectly specified); (3) geographic coordinates errors like switched latitude-longitude, sign confusions or mistakes amongst decimal/sexagesimal degrees; and (4) records outside continental ranges for terrestrial species; amongst others. Correcting these errors represents a critical point, since the creation of an accurate occurrence database for the target species has been reported to significantly change spatial inferences performed in biodiversity distribution studies (e.g.^[@CR44]--[@CR46]^).
The aims of this study were the following: (1) to explore the geography pattern of the distribution of *K*. × *houghtonii* globally, gathering all the occurrences, both published in standard publications and available from other sources; (2) to track its spatial and temporal colonizational history; (3) to predict the potential distribution of the nothospecies through ENM; (4) to test the contribution of the human activities to the ENM; (5) to test the impact of using different levels of occurrence data accuracy on ENM reconstructions; and (6) to predict how the distribution of this hybrid taxon is going to progress according to different scenarios of climate change.
Methods {#Sec2}
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Localities search and validation {#Sec3}
--------------------------------
The distribution range of *K*. × *houghtonii* was estimated by an extensive literature search that included: (1) major regional taxonomic works, checklists, lists and catalogues of naturalized and invasive plants; (2) research articles; (3) grey literature (e.g. technical reports); (4) major databases and information systems, including citizen science projects and digitized herbaria; (5) personal communications; and (6) personal blogs and other non-scientific websites (see Supplementary Text 2).
All citations were thoroughly validated one by one, keeping only those where an image was available showing the individuals in the wild or on herbaria sheets due the considerable confusion found between the hybrid and its parents, especially with *K*. *daigremontiana*. The only exceptions were citations published by taxonomic experts in the genus where correct identification could be ensured. Therefore, in addition to searching for citations under the name *K*. × *houghtonii* or any of its synonyms, it was necessary to check citations for the two parental species. Supplementary Table [S1](#MOESM1){ref-type="media"} includes all the names found in the original sources. It should be noted that 47.5% of occurrences were originally determined under other names or without proper indication of the species. In cases where geographic coordinates were not available, but a site description or a map location was provided, the first were inferred using Google Earth or a similar tool (e.g. Baidu Maps in the case of China). Localities with inaccurate descriptions or with geographic coordinates that offer very little precision (unable to discern with certainty the cell of 2.5 arc-min where the locality occurs, which is the selected spatial resolution of the variables used for ENM; see below) were not considered.
A total of 644 occurrences were gathered and validated in the first instance, which we regarded as the "Final" dataset. For all the occurrences, we collected the original determination of the plant, the country, the year of occurrence, and the primary source of the information (see Appendix). Where we found two or more occurrences for the same locality, we took only the information of the oldest occurrence to avoid duplication and because the oldest occurrence gave us the information of the first time the plant was recorded in a given site. Where no temporal occurrence data were available, we recorded the available publication date of the document or the website (and the "received date" for the specific cases of scientific papers).
To minimize the sampling bias effect for the ENM analysis, we followed the spatial filtering approach proposed by Kramer-Schadt *et al*.^[@CR47]^, by retaining only one occurrence record within a buffer area of 20 km for the oversampled regions of *K*. × *houghtonii*: Mexico; Florida; eastern Iberian Peninsula; southern-central Italy; and Hong Kong. This spatially filtered dataset comprised 392 verified occurrences (hereafter "Final 20 km filtered" dataset).
Environmental data and Ecological Niche Modelling (ENM) {#Sec4}
-------------------------------------------------------
In order to evaluate the potential distribution for *K*. × *houghtonii* we used the maximum entropy algorithm implemented in MaxEnt v.3.3.3k^[@CR48]^, which only requires known species' presence data and has proven to be a robust approach in comparison with other methods^[@CR49],[@CR50]^. A set of 19 bioclimatic variables from WorldClim (<http://www.worldclim.org/>) v.1.4 at 2.5 arc-min (i.e. ca. 5 km) resolution covering the whole planet was used. Whilst finer resolutions are available (30 arc-sec), these may not be appropriate given uncertainties associated with geo-referencing approximate localities (a common situation for older herbarium records, especially for remote areas) or with geo-reference errors. In addition, we added the Human Footprint (HF), due to the fact that the establishment and spread of *K*. × *houghtonii* is often facilitated by human disturbance^[@CR10]^. The variable HF is based on the anthropogenic impacts on the environment^[@CR51]^, and created from nine global data layers covering human population pressure (population density), human land use, and infrastructure (built-up areas, night-time lights, and land use/land cover), and human access (coastlines, roads, railroads, and navigable rivers). A pairwise Pearson correlation analysis was conducted to retain six relative uncorrelated variables (*r* ≥ \|0.85\|), using the "SDM Toolbox" extension for ArcGIS^[@CR52]^: maximum temperature of the warmest month (bio5); minimum temperature of the coldest month (bio6); mean temperature of the wettest quarter (bio8); precipitation of the wettest quarter (bio16); precipitation of the driest quarter (bio17); and precipitation of the coldest quarter (bio19). Variables were selected based on their relative contribution to the model (values of percent contribution, permutation importance, and jackknife regularized gaining train), and an exploration of curve response shape after running a "preliminary" model with MaxEnt. For this preliminary model we used all the occurrences of *K*. × *houghtonii*, all the variables (i.e. the 19 bioclimatic variables plus HF), 10 replicates, and 20% of the localities randomly selected to test the model.
The potential distribution for *K*. × *houghtonii* was estimated using two model sets, one for current conditions (1950--2000) and the second for future climatic conditions (year 2070). Climatic layers for the year 2070 were also downloaded from WorldClim database at the same resolution of 2.5 arc-min. In the first set of present conditions, we have distinguished between models that include the variable HF and those that do not (hereafter "with HF" and "without HF", respectively) to test the contribution of human impacts on the potential distribution of this nothospecies. For the year 2070, we used three general circulation models that showed excellent performance among those that participated in the 5^th^ Coupled Model Inter-Comparison Project (CMIP5) experiment^[@CR53]^: (1) the Community Climate System Model v.4 (CCSM4^[@CR54]^); (2) the NOAA Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory Coupled Model 3 (GFDL-CM3^[@CR55]^); and (3) the New Earth System Model of the Max Planck Institute for Meteorology (MPI-ESM-P: <http://www.mpimet.mpg.de/en/science/models/mpi-esm/>). In addition, projections of the three future models have been made with the two extreme scenarios of Representative Concentration Pathway (RCP), RCP 2.6 and RCP 8.5 (the first represents the most "benign" scenario, assuming a likely increase of 0.3--1.7 °C for ca. 2081--2100, whereas the latter or worst-case scenario predicts an increase of 2.6--4.8 °C^[@CR56]^). Therefore, a total of six future models have been obtained corresponding to the different scenarios forecasted for 2070.
Definitive models were carried out in MaxEnt under "subsample" method (with 25% of localities randomly selected to test the model), using the final 20 km filtered dataset (392 records) as occurrence input, and with 100 replicates to ensure reliable results and a random sample of 10,000 background points. Model performance was evaluated using AUC (area under the curve of the receiver operating characteristic curve) values^[@CR57]^ that ranges from 0.5 (no predictability) to 1 (perfect prediction)^[@CR58]^, with values above 0.8 indicating a strong prediction^[@CR59]^. In addition, we also calculated the true skill statistic (TSS) to validate the performance of the models. Values with a TSS higher than 0.5 are considered as optimal results in terms of power prediction^[@CR60]^. To calculate the geographically suitable areas, the maximum sensitivity plus specificity (MSS) logistic threshold was used, a metric recommended for being very robust with all types of data^[@CR61]^; MSS was used as the "cut-off" value to transform the continuous value outputs of MaxEnt to binary maps (absence/presence). The proportion of correctly predicted presence records (sensitivity) was calculated using this MSS threshold. Resulting models were visualized and processed using the software ArcGIS v.10.2.2 (ESRI, Redlands, California, USA). In order to track possible changes of the potential distribution of *K*. × *houghtonii* under climate change conditions, we geographically and climatically characterized the gained or lost areas in respect to future and present distributions. Such work was mainly carried out by intersecting binary maps (with the intersect ArcGIS tool), with the climatic values for each variable of the new layers obtained (overlap, lost, and gained) being extracted and plotted in a boxplot format with the ArcGIS graph tool.
Occurrence data accuracy and its impacts upon potential distribution {#Sec5}
--------------------------------------------------------------------
To test the impact of using different levels of occurrence data accuracy in the performing ENMs, we prepared two different input datasets. The first, referred to as "Raw GBIF occurrence dataset", was created by directly extracting species' records deposited in Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF; <http://www.gbif.org/>) under the names *Kalanchoe* × *houghtonii* and *Bryophyllum* × *houghtonii*, with consideration for all relevant data uploaded to the platform until June 2018. GBIF is the largest biodiversity data network in the world, containing hundreds of millions of species occurrence records, and it is the most used (and often the only) database to get occurrence records for ENM studies^[@CR62]^. From the total records, only those with geographic coordinates were retained for further analysis (128 records). The second and "Final dataset" (644 records) had been previously checked by data quality, refined and compared to other data sources (see above how the data were extracted and validated). Both datasets were used as input records to perform the ENM analyses for present conditions using the same parameters specified above. For each occurrence dataset, two analyses were run; one using the six uncorrelated climatic variables and another adding the HF layer.
Results {#Sec6}
=======
Global occurrences of *Kalanchoe × houghtonii*: standard sources vs. citizen science {#Sec7}
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A close look at Fig. [1](#Fig1){ref-type="fig"} and Supplementary Table [S2](#MOESM1){ref-type="media"} reveals that using exclusively "standard" sources (biodiversity web portals, herbaria, scientific publications, personal observations, and personal communications) allowed us to compile about 62% of the total occurrences (*N* = 644). Huge geographical regions and many countries are now included within the distributional range of *K*. × *houghtonii* due to "newer" sources, especially the citizen science web portals which provided 29.5% of the total occurrences (Fig. [1B](#Fig1){ref-type="fig"}; Supplementary Table [S1](#MOESM1){ref-type="media"}). Truly non-scientific sources such as photo-upload tools (3.7%), social media platforms (0.2%), discussion forums (1.7%), general newspapers (0.3%), and even personal blogs (2.8%) have also provided valuable species occurrence data. Utilizing these newer sources, we found occurrences in several regions that would otherwise appear as "blank": sub-Saharan Africa; the Indian Subcontinent; large parts of southern China; Japan; Philippines; large parts of both North (e.g. California, NW Mexico, Yucatán Peninsula, Dominican Republic) and South America (Peru and parts of Colombia, Ecuador, and Brazil); and also some parts of Europe (France and Greece).Figure 1Geographic representation of occurrence records of *Kalanchoe* × *houghtonii* directly extracted from GBIF (**A**) and the Final dataset (**B**). Non-scientific resources include personal blogs, photography web portals, forums, newspapers and social media (see Supplementary Table [S2](#MOESM1){ref-type="media"}).
Temporal and geographic expansion of *Kalanchoe* × *houghtonii* {#Sec8}
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Intercontinental colonization history of *K*. × *houghtonii* is shown in the Fig. [2](#Fig2){ref-type="fig"}. The first confirmed records of the hybrid were located as late as 1970 in Australia (that is, more than three decades after its obtainment). The only other records of *K*. × *houghtonii* from the 1970s were from the Bahamas and Venezuela (Fig. [2A](#Fig2){ref-type="fig"}). In the 1980s only a few new occurrences were registered, being located in nearby countries (New Zealand, Florida in the United States, Anguilla in Lesser Antilles, Nicaragua, and Ecuador; Fig. [2B](#Fig2){ref-type="fig"}). The species did not "jump" to other continents (Africa and Europe) until the 1990s, although the number of occurrences was still very small (until 1999, only 5.4% of the total records were registered; Fig. [2A--C](#Fig2){ref-type="fig"}). With the new millennium a great increase of the *K*. × *houghtonii* occurrences were observed, with all continents colonized except Antarctica (Fig. [2D](#Fig2){ref-type="fig"}). The largest increase in the distribution range of *K*. × *houghtonii* should be placed, however, during the most recent decade (2010--2019), providing up to 76.7% of the total records. The nothospecies is now reaching sub-Saharan Africa and the Indian Subcontinent, and thus now being present in most of the major tropical and subtropical latitudes of the world (Fig. [2E](#Fig2){ref-type="fig"}).Figure 2Geographic representation of the temporal evolution of occurrences recorded for *Kalanchoe* × *houghtonii* since 1979 to present with the indication of the accumulative percentage of occurrences for each decade.
Current potential distribution based upon climatic and anthropogenic pressures {#Sec9}
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The potential *K*. × *houghtonii* distribution model exhibited a strong predictive performance, as shown by the high AUC scores recovered (\>0.95; Supplementary Table [S3](#MOESM1){ref-type="media"}) and also TSS values (\>0.79; Supplementary Table [S3](#MOESM1){ref-type="media"}). This corresponds with the high percentage of occurrences correctly estimated inside suitable areas (sensitivity \>90%; Supplementary Table [S3](#MOESM1){ref-type="media"}).
The most explanatory variables to the models were in general equivalent for the different present occurrence datasets (Supplementary Table [S3](#MOESM1){ref-type="media"}). When only climatic data were considered to perform the models, the variables with most influence in order of contribution according to the jackknife tests were bio6 (min. temp. of the coldest month), bio5 (max. temp. of the warmest month), and bio19 (precipitation of the coldest quarter). When HF data was used to perform the models, this variable showed the highest model contribution weight, even with scores above 50% regarding percent contribution (and above 20% regarding permutation importance; Supplementary Table [S3](#MOESM1){ref-type="media"}). Current occurrences were, nevertheless, similarly well predicted inside suitable areas for both types of models, with HF (94.1%) or without HF (90.8%) (Supplementary Table [S3](#MOESM1){ref-type="media"}).
Our results indicated that *K*. × *houghtonii* presents a large temperature tolerance, although with a lower limit that generally does not fall below 0 °C during the coldest month and does not exceed 38 °C during the warmest month according to actual occurrence data (Fig. [3](#Fig3){ref-type="fig"}). The two most explanatory climatic variables were temperature extremes (bio5 and bio6; Supplementary Table [S3](#MOESM1){ref-type="media"}), which highlight the sharp temperature tolerance limits of *K*. × *houghtonii*. Regarding precipitation, the nothospecies generally occurs in regions with low rainfall values, both in the driest and coldest quarters (bio17 and bio19, medians of approximately 100 mm and slightly higher than 100 mm, respectively; Fig. [3](#Fig3){ref-type="fig"}) but also in the wettest ones (bio16, medians around or slightly higher than 300 mm; Fig. [3](#Fig3){ref-type="fig"}).Figure 3Boxplots representing values of the selected variables to construct the ENM models according to the three different categories of occurrence records datasets used. *N* = number of occurrences.
The maps depicted in Fig. [4](#Fig4){ref-type="fig"} showed how the occurrence probability is distributed globally. In general, suitable areas were located around Mediterranean and subtropical regions, from 20° to 40° of both northern and southern latitudes, although some tropical latitudes were also included. We detected that the model performed without HF predicted around 25% more suitable ranges than the model with HF (18.7 × 10^6^ km^2^ vs. 14.0 × 10^6^ km^2^; Table [1](#Tab1){ref-type="table"}). These additional areas predicted as suitable can represent geographic regions with adequate climatic conditions for the nothospecies establishment (see red areas in Fig. [5](#Fig5){ref-type="fig"}), but with low human disturbances. Otherwise, we also detected some regions in the model with HF that can present appropriate human related requirements but are not recovered with the model exclusively using climate variables (see green areas in Fig. [5](#Fig5){ref-type="fig"}). Thus, it seems reasonable to consider that the most probable regions to be colonized are those with high suitability values using the two model types (with and without HF; see blue areas in Fig. [5](#Fig5){ref-type="fig"}), and could be regarded as possible invasion hotspots or "red alert" areas (see red areas in Fig. [6A](#Fig6){ref-type="fig"}).Figure 4Potential distribution areas of *Kalanchoe* × *houghtonii* under present climatic conditions (**A**) including Human Footprint (HF) or (**B**) not including HF to perform the models. The input occurrence dataset used was the final 20 km filtered (392 records). In the legend, \"th\" means the selected threshold (see Methods for details). Table 1Extension of suitable predicted areas of *Kalanchoe* × *houghtonii* for each model. The overlap area between present (without considering Human Footprint variable; HF) and respective future models, and the lost and gained area for future predictions with respect to present models are also presented. Note that models were performed with the final occurrence dataset spatially filtered by 20 km (see text for details), which is composed by 392 presence points.ModelPredicted area in km^2^Difference with respect to present (model 1) in km^2^ (%)Overlap with present (model 1) in km^2^ (%^a^; %^b^)Lost area in the future with respect to model 1 in km^2^ (%)Gained area in the future with respect to model 1 in km^2^ (%)1. Present 20 km filtered (without HF)18,682,228------------2. Present 20 km filtered (with HF)13,989,4774,692,751 (−25.12)11,425,388 (61.16; 81.67)------3. 2070 CCSM (RCP 2.6)16,674,4082,007,820 (−10.75)14,504,213 (77.64; 86.98)417,8015 (22.36)2,170,195 (11.62)4. 2070 CCSM (RCP 8.5)11,467,6577,214,571 (−38.62)9,124,976 (48.84; 79.57)9,557,252 (51.16)2,342,681 (12.54)5. 2070 GFDL (RCP 2.6)12,555,1416,127,087 (−32.80)10,679,457 (57.16; 85.06)8,002,771 (42.84)1,875,684 (10.04)6. 2070 GFDL (RCP 8.5)9,611,9279,070,301 (−48.55)6,086,913 (32.58; 63.33)12,595,315 (67.42)3,525,014 (18.87)7. 2070 MPI (RCP 2.6)15,576,0573,106,171 (−16.63)13,222,720 (70.78; 84.89)5,459,508 (29.22)2,353,337 (12.60)8. 2070 MPI (RCP 8.5)8,713,3609,968,868 (−53.36)7,308,407 (39.12; 83.88)11,373,821 (60.88)1,404,953 (7.52)^a^Percentage of overlapped area with respect to the area predicted with model 1.^b^Percentage of overlapped area with respect to the area predicted with each assayed model (from 2 to 8).Figure 5Comparison of potential distribution areas at present between models including Human Footprint (HF) variable (with HF) or not (without HF), showing overlapped ranges (blue), ranges only suitable with the model without HF (green), and ranges only suitable with the model with HF (red). The input occurrence dataset used was the final 20 km filtered (392 records).Figure 6Representation of climatically potential suitable hotspot areas of *Kalanchoe* × *houghtonii*. (**A**) Overlapping regions of models performed with and without the Human Footprint (HF) variable. (**B**) Overlapping regions amongst all eight constructed models, showing the most suitable areas for the species at current and future time. Blue dots represent all the presence points currently known of the species, corresponding to the Final dataset (644 records).
These "red alert" areas should be considered, thus, new broad potential distribution regions over the five habitable continents where *K*. × *houghtonii* has not been cited so far (Fig. [6A](#Fig6){ref-type="fig"}). On the American continent, we found that suitable regions are mainly located around currently known species presence in North and Central America and the Caribbean. Whilst in South America large swathes of land, especially in the Atlantic Brazilian range, appear as potentially adequate zones where the nothospecies is currently absent. On the European continent, coastal areas of Mediterranean Basin showed high likelihood of occurrence, although in the northern Africa or eastern Mediterranean regions the nothospecies is not yet widely extended. Interestingly, some Atlantic coastlines in France and the UK exhibited suitable conditions, even though no specimens have been recorded to date. Eastern and Southern Africa proved to be one of the largest suitable regions detected yet contained a very low number of registered and confirmed presences. East Asia, especially Taiwan, south-central and south-eastern China, showed appropriate habitat suitability, even though the nothospecies presence is only verified in a narrow range. Notably, whilst there are no documented records in Malaysia, Indonesia, and Papua New Guinea, our models indicated suitable areas patchily distributed across the region. Finally, western, eastern and southern regions of Australia were all predicted as suitable despite the nothospecies almost exclusively being found in the eastern regions.
Impact of occurrence data accuracy on potential distribution {#Sec10}
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The comparison of the extracted climatic and HF values for the different occurrence datasets used (Raw GBIF with 128 presences, Final with 644, and Final 20 km filtered with 392) did not reveal considerable differences, with extreme values being very similar (Fig. [3](#Fig3){ref-type="fig"}). The ENMs performed with Raw GBIF and Final occurrence datasets (Supplementary Figs. [S4](#MOESM1){ref-type="media"} and [S5](#MOESM1){ref-type="media"}) highlighted large proportions of overlapping ranges (see blue areas in Fig. [7](#Fig7){ref-type="fig"}), representing intersections of 73.4--86.2% for models without HF and 63.3--73.6% for models with HF (data not shown). This may confirm the relatively low uncertainty and high robustness that the current models presented, since a 6-fold increase in the occurrence data did not greatly modify the global pattern of climatic suitability for *K*. × *houghtonii*. Additionally, 87.4% (model without HF) and 90.5% (model with HF) of final occurrences from a total of 644 (Table [2](#Tab2){ref-type="table"}) were located inside suitable regions of Raw GBIF models; that is, even the poor and uncleaned occurrence dataset (128 records) was able to correctly predict most of the potential suitable areas where the species is confirmed to presently inhabit.Figure 7Comparison of potential distribution areas considering two input occurrence datasets: Final dataset (multi-source searching and verified; 644 records) and Raw GBIF dataset (directly downloaded from the platform; 128 records). Ecological niche models were performed at present for two input variable datasets (**A**) including Human Footprint (HF) or (**B**) without HF. The color ranges indicated: in blue, the overlapped areas between final and raw GBIF datasets; in green, suitable areas in models of final dataset; and in red, suitable areas in models of raw GBIF dataset.Table 2Numeric comparisons of models performed with two combinations of input datasets: including the Human Footprint variable (with HF) or not (without HF); and using the occurrences of *Kalanchoe* × *houghtonii* of the Final dataset (multi-source searching and verified; 644 records) or the Raw GBIF dataset (directly download from the portal; 128 records).Input variable datasetInput occurrence datasetTotal predicted area (km^2^)Overlap in predicted area Raw GBIF vs. Final (km^2^)% of area that is not predicted by the other occurrence dataset model% of final occurrences predicted in suitable area of Raw GBIF modelsWithout HFRaw GBIF15,339,71413,229,14513.887.4Final18,028,86626.6 ---With HFRaw GBIF11,725,3018,631,87726.490.5Final13,636,49836.7 ---
However, the inspection of the suitable areas for *K*. × *houghtonii* recovered with the models employing the final dataset (both with and without HF) but that were not predicted using the Raw GBIF dataset (green ranges in Fig. [7](#Fig7){ref-type="fig"}; see also Table [2](#Tab2){ref-type="table"}) gave somewhat unexpected results. Firstly, we observed suitable areas from equatorial climatic zones (according to the Köppen-Geiger classification; <http://koeppen-geiger.vu-wien.ac.at/>) in north-eastern South America, Africa, India, and SW Asia (Fig. [7](#Fig7){ref-type="fig"}). These areas, whilst not having any records in the Raw GBIF dataset, include some occurrences in the Final dataset (although these were very few). Accordingly, the Raw GBIF models may have ignored an outlier climate type where the species can also inhabit, in favor of an overrepresentation of subtropical and Mediterranean climates in warm temperate regions (<http://koeppen-geiger.vu-wien.ac.at/>). Secondly, tracking the source origin of the hybrid's records located in these areas and in general for equatorial climatic zones, we realized that they were mostly gathered from citizen science portal websites like iNaturalist (see Fig. [1B](#Fig1){ref-type="fig"}), and not yet incorporated to GBIF.
The models performed with the Raw GBIF dataset also detected some regions not recovered with the Final dataset (red areas in Fig. [7](#Fig7){ref-type="fig"}; see Table [2](#Tab2){ref-type="table"}). Indeed, these could be misleading areas, for which the Final occurrence models did not show positive signals of habitat suitability.
Future potential distribution {#Sec11}
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Under future climate scenarios (year 2070) our ENMs estimated a considerable reduction in the potential distribution area of the nothospecies with an average loss of 33.5% (±17.0%) or 6.3 × 10^6^ km2 (±3.2 × 10^6^ km2) with respect to present scenario data. The total predicted area decreased about 10.8--32.8% and 38.6--53.4% for RCP 2.6 (softest scenario) and RCP 8.5 (hardest scenario) models, respectively (Table [1](#Tab1){ref-type="table"}; Supplementary Figs. [S8](#MOESM1){ref-type="media"}--[S10](#MOESM1){ref-type="media"}). When the current suitable areas were overlapped with those inferred in future projections, losses were even higher (22.4--42.8% in RCP 2.6 and 51.2--67.4% in RCP 8.5; Table [1](#Tab1){ref-type="table"}). Consequently, a high number of known occurrences were located outside suitable areas under future conditions (11.2--30.9% in RCP 2.6 and 24.3--56.5% in RCP 8.5; Supplementary Table [S3](#MOESM1){ref-type="media"}). In contrast, we identified some ranges that would be gained in the future (areas in green in Fig. [8](#Fig8){ref-type="fig"}; 10.0--12.6% in RCP 2.6 and 7.52--18.87% in RCP 8.5; Table [1](#Tab1){ref-type="table"}).Figure 8Comparison of potential distribution areas between present with future models, showing overlapped ranges (blue), gained ranges in future respect present model (green), and lost ranges in future respect present model (red). The input occurrence dataset used was the final 20 km filtered (392 records).
Discussion {#Sec12}
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Global occurrences: standard sources vs. citizen science {#Sec13}
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Using exclusively "standard" sources including biodiversity web portals, herbaria, scientific publications, personal observations, and personal communications to search for documented locations would lead to large distributional biases. Indeed, using exclusively standard sources would imply that more than one third of them would be lost. Our results emphasize the role that citizen science plays in collecting biodiversity data, as generally agreed^[@CR63],[@CR64]^. Citizen science web portals such as iNaturalist provided a large quantity of location data for *K*. *× houghonii* (Fig. [1B](#Fig1){ref-type="fig"}; Supplementary Table [S1](#MOESM1){ref-type="media"}). Subsequently, such databases might constitute a primary source for biodiversity knowledge when high-quality photographs allowing for identification of the species and habitat or other voucher-essential data (collector, date, collection locality, and geographic coordinates) are provided to ensure the plant is wild and not cultivated.
Colonization history: temporal and geographic expansion {#Sec14}
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It is significant that *K*. × *houghtonii* has reached a nearly worldwide distribution in just 80 years, being present on all the continents except Antarctica. Its creator, A. D. Houghton, already noted its potential as an experimental plant for genetic, commercial, and horticultural purposes^[@CR4]^. Indeed, it seems that the plant was already common as a horticultural plant in the United States during late 1940s together with other species of the genus^[@CR14]^. Experimental studies in *K*. × *houghtonii* outside of the United States were reported soon after, as those of F. Resende and colleagues carried out in Portugal in the 1950s aimed to study the consequences of hybridization^[@CR11],[@CR12]^. From the 1980s, studies relating to their toxicity and medicinal potential started to be published (e.g.^[@CR65],[@CR66]^). The first escapees of this plant into the wild are likely to have originated from research centers or horticultural greenhouses. In recent years, however, domestic gardens are the most apparent source of incursions into the wild, particularly due to its popularity as a garden plant, at least in North America^[@CR7]^, Australia^[@CR67]^, and Europe^[@CR8],[@CR16]^. For example, in Spain and Italy, *K*. × *houghtonii* has become a serious and invasive problem, likely stemming from its popularity as an ornamental plant owing to its low maintenance (C. Gómez-Bellver and A. Stinca, pers. obs.). More recently it has become popular in China where it is commonly sold in markets (J. López-Pujol *et al*., pers. obs.).
Notwithstanding *K*. × *houghtonii*'s probable first escape from cultivation in the United States, the first recorded escapee(s) of this hybrid were from 1965 in Byrnestown (Queensland, Australia), albeit from an herbarium sheet without leaves (G. Brown, Queensland Herbarium, pers. comm.), so with uncertain identification as *K*. × *houghtonii*. The first record of the hybrid that we can confidently state as occurring in the wild is also from Australia, in this case from New South Wales collected in 1970 (Appendix). Although slightly earlier records may exist, as there are a few specimens dating from 1966--1969 also from Queensland, these were on loan at the time when we requested for scanned specimens. In Australia, *K*. × *houghtonii* soon became a serious invader and, by the late 2000s, it was already widespread throughout the eastern part of the country, reaching as far as southern regions (Fig. [2](#Fig2){ref-type="fig"}). At present it is listed as an invasive species in Australia^[@CR67]--[@CR69]^, where it often produces large infestations that can be accompanied by cattle poisoning episodes^[@CR65]^. It has been present in New Zealand since at least the mid-1980s, but exclusively affecting the northern tip of the archipelago (Fig. [2B](#Fig2){ref-type="fig"}). The presence of the species is also confirmed in other parts of Oceania, including Micronesia (Wake Island) and Polynesia (Tonga, French Polynesia, and Hawaii; Fig. [2](#Fig2){ref-type="fig"}).
In addition to Oceania, America is the only region with occurrences confidently assigned to *K*. × *houghtonii* before the 1990s (Fig. [2B](#Fig2){ref-type="fig"}). The first recorded wild locality is from the Bahamas in 1975, as shown in a specimen preserved in the Steere Herbarium (NY 1515254; Appendix). Surprisingly, the first confident observation in the United States is as late as 1988 in Florida, although according to Mild^[@CR70]^ the nothospecies would have been present in Harlingen (Texas) since the 1960s. Until the 2000s all occurrences were restricted to Florida, with its hypothetical expansion out of (but also within) this state having occurred in recent years. These increases appear to have coincided with its expansion in other parts of the world (Appendix; see also below). In Florida, this spread has merited its recent inclusion in the Florida Exotic Pest Plant Council Invasive Plant List^[@CR71]^. In Venezuela, there are several records for the period 1979--1984 (Appendix). The presence of such ornamental plants escaping from cultivation in this country should not be regarded as exceptional, given the correlation between consumption of ornamental plants and gross domestic product (GDP) per capita^[@CR72]^. Until the early 1980s, Venezuela was regarded as one of only four Latin American countries with an upper-middle-income economy^[@CR73]^, with a GDP per capita higher than those of Portugal or South Korea (<https://data.worldbank.org/>). Although in some places of Central and South America (Anguilla, Colombia, Ecuador, Guatemala, Nicaragua, and Puerto Rico) the nothospecies was recorded before the year 2000, *K*. × *houghtonii* apparently had an "outbreak" in recent years (Appendix). Such an apparent explosion could have been due more to sociological reasons such as the rise in citizen science data collection and an increase in the use of ornamental plants in recent years throughout South America, rather than ecological or climatic ones. In Mexico, second only to the USA in the number of confirmed occurrences, all recorded localities of *K*. × *houghtonii* are much more recent (2012--2018), and are certainly linked to the launch of iNaturalist, with 66 out of 70 occurrences taken from this source (Appendix).
*Kalanchoe* × *houghtonii* did not apparently reach the Old World until more recently, with the first confirmed record in Europe being in 1996 from eastern Spain (Fig. [2C](#Fig2){ref-type="fig"}). Since then, the number of records in Europe and particularly on the Iberian Peninsula have increased exponentially (Appendix), partly because of the extensive network of local botanists but also due to its popularity in horticulture. However, this hybrid is not listed in the Spanish catalogue of invasive alien species. In Africa, the nothospecies would likely have arrived shortly after those to Spain, with the first observations being from Madeira Island in 1999, whilst the first occurrences for continental Africa coming almost a decade later, in Tunisia (Appendix). It should be noted the greater abundance in observations coming from the Portuguese (Madeira Archipelago) and Spanish (Canary Islands) outermost regions, in contrast to the scarcity of records for continental Africa. Such a disparity is likely due to the lower level of botanical knowledge on the African continent and particularly throughout sub-Saharan Africa^[@CR74],[@CR75]^, combined with the low consumption of ornamental plants.
According to our data, Asia would be the last continent where *K*. × *houghtonii* spread to. All gathered Asian localities have been recorded since 2006 with a single exception; a population in Taipei, Taiwan Island (Fig. [2C](#Fig2){ref-type="fig"}; Appendix). The fact that many of the Chinese localities are from Hong Kong and Taiwan is not surprising, as these areas can be regarded as gateways for the introduction of alien species in China; being the primary places of first detection for many non-native species^[@CR76],[@CR77]^.
Although a study aimed to discern whether the ecological niche of *K*. × *houghtonii* is broader than those of its parental species is underway, our field observations in Spain, where the three species are present, seems to suggest it; populations of *K*. × *houghtonii* are usually larger and more common than those of the parentals. Certainly, the nothospecies can produce large infestations, that in some cases may derive into dense monospecific phytocoenosis. Under favorable conditions (open, sunny areas under relatively dry or even semiarid conditions, on sandy or rocky soils; see below), densities may reach 1000--2000 individuals/m^2^ when plantlets and seedlings are produced^[@CR19],[@CR22]^ (Supplementary Fig. [S3E](#MOESM1){ref-type="media"}). These conditions probably mirror those of the parental species in Madagascar, where they grow on granite, sandstone or limestone outcrops, or coastal and inland unconsolidated sands^[@CR5],[@CR78],[@CR79]^. In Cerro Saroche, Venezuela, a semiarid site with a typical xeric environment composed of spiny scrubs and thorny forests, the nothospecies has spread over an area of ca. 20 ha thanks to a very vigorous population growth (rate of growth, λ = 4.06), potentially allowing the population to quadruple in size every year. Such estimates are based on recruitment of asexual plantlets, due to the asexual plantlets ability to reproduce in less than one year. In contrast, sexual seedlings require a minimum of three years to reproduce^[@CR19]^. According to Herrera *et al*.^[@CR19]^, this strategy allows quick population growth during the initial phases of invasion, when populations are more susceptible to Allee effects or to post-introduction demographic bottlenecks. This strategy increases the probability of establishment and reduces the opportunities for effective control of *K*. × *houghtonii*. Similar results have been obtained for a population from Barranca de Metztitlán in Mexico, although for this population no sexually reproduced specimens were observed, and growth rates are lower than in Venezuela but still high (λ = 1.36)^[@CR22]^. Thus, such a demographic strategy may have allowed the considerable global establishment of *K*. × *houghtonii*, as also occurs in other plants with a vegetative propagation strategy^[@CR80],[@CR81]^.
Potential distribution at present: climatic conditions and geographic regions where the species could inhabit {#Sec15}
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The most suitable conditions for *K*. × *houghtonii* are warm and dry climates. Low cold-tolerance is one of the most limiting factors of Crassulaceae and in general all succulent species with a CAM (Crassulacean Acid Metabolism) photosynthetic strategy. The lowest tolerance temperatures detected for this group of plants are −10 °C for *Opuntia ficus-indica* (L.) Mill. and −24 °C for *O*. *streptacantha* Lem.^[@CR82]^. These two species, however, present special adaptations related to sugar accumulations that are necessary to prevent the intercellular ice crystal formation^[@CR82]--[@CR84]^, a set of specialized physiological traits that has not been observed in *K*. × *houghtonii*. The lack of sub-freezing acclimation during the coldest year periods (as bio6 showed; Fig. [3](#Fig3){ref-type="fig"}) could indeed be the most hindering factor for *K*. × *houghtonii* to reach higher latitudes, and greater altitudes.
*Kalanchoe* × *houghtonii* has a low water demand for its survival (Fig. [3](#Fig3){ref-type="fig"}). This is in accord with its ecophysiological traits, since CAM plants are highly tolerant and adapted to periodic droughts, salinity, or even elevated temperatures^[@CR85],[@CR86]^. In fact, the stomatal opening during night-time instead of daytime offers a lower transpirational water loss^[@CR84]^, which is a clear evolutionary adaptive advantage of increased water use efficiency and maintenance of considerable internal water reserves. However, it should be noted that the nothospecies would not be able to survive in geographic regions showing extremely irregular seasonal rains with extended periods of drought (e.g. semi-desert or desert). CAM plants need regular precipitation throughout the year or, at least, rains that are periodical and predictable; if they lose more than 50% of their total water reserves, they would perish^[@CR84],[@CR87]--[@CR89]^. Locations with too-high humidity (e.g. in tropical wet climates) would not be suitable for *K*. × *hougthonii* either, due to the stem and leaf cells being unable to release water fast enough into the atmosphere under such conditions. Once the maximum capacity of water storage is reached, plant cells may burst due to excesses of turgor pressure. Such an effect is well-described in succulent gardening when plants are over-watered, and their leaves may have a water-soaked, translucent appearance^[@CR90]^. Nevertheless, precipitation of the coldest quarter (bio19) is the most important factor regarding the rainfall regime delimiting the potential distribution of *K*. × *hougthonii*. As this nothospecies does not have the sugar-mediated osmoregulation mechanism to control freeze dehydration of some low-temperature acclimated cacti^[@CR82]^, a high-precipitation regime would produce the lowering of intracellular osmotic pressure, thus promoting the diffusion of intracellular water into the apoplastic spaces where ice crystals are formed^[@CR82]^. The effects of cellular freeze dehydration is also a well-known phenomenon in succulents gardening---"weather that is most threatening to succulents is rain followed by frost"^[@CR91]^. This is also the reason why watering should be restricted during winter in *Kalanchoe* spp. cultivation^[@CR6]^.
Antropogenic pressures impacting potential distribution {#Sec16}
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To our knowledge, *K*. × *hougthonii* shows the highest weight for HF in niche models (Supplementary Table [S3](#MOESM1){ref-type="media"}) for any invasive plant; permutation importance in invasive plants is generally below 10%^[@CR92]^. Such a high percentage is, however, not surprising given the species' low dispersal capabilities; the overwhelming predominance of clonal growth through bulbils making the spread of *K*.× *hougthonii* a process strongly linked to humans. Undoubtedly, anthropogenic pressures influence the distribution of alien species in their non-native ranges along the several invasion stages (transport, introduction, establishment, and spread^[@CR93]^), usually enhancing their expansion directly (e.g. deliberate or accidental releases^[@CR94]^) or indirectly (e.g. via urbanization and land-use change^[@CR95]^).
Initially, we expected the addition of the HF variable to ENMs would increase the suitable areas for *K*. × *houghtonii*, as previously detected for other cases such as *Acacia farnesiana* (L.) Willd^[@CR96]^. In contrast, this expectation was not fulfilled in our case (the model performed without HF predicted around 25% more suitable ranges; Table [1](#Tab1){ref-type="table"} and Fig. [5](#Fig5){ref-type="fig"}). The presence of *K*. × *houghtonii* may be limited to the origin foci (mostly in private, and less-frequently, in public gardens) and adjoining areas, while climatically suitable regions far from human influence would not likely to be invaded. It should be noted that *K*. × *houghtonii* seems to be unable to disperse long distances, since sexual reproduction is quite unsuccessful: only a small proportion of produced seeds are viable (17.9%), with very low germination success (11.9%), and the survival rates of sexually-produced seedlings is also extremely low (10%^[@CR20]^). In addition, the propagules mostly germinate *in situ*, just beneath or very near the mother plant. Indirect estimates of dispersal rates in Cerro Saroche (Venezuela) suggest that dispersal distances are generally limited^[@CR20]^, although episodic floods that are produced during the rainy season can disperse the plantlets to relatively longer distances (I. Herrera, pers. obs.). Overall, the addition of HF variable to ENMs allowed us to obtain much more refined models for the potential distribution of the nothospecies (Fig. [5](#Fig5){ref-type="fig"}), which highlights the need to include this input element when distribution modelling for invasive species. The representation of *K*. × *houghtonii* occurrences on the map of "red alert" areas (Fig. [6A](#Fig6){ref-type="fig"}) suggests that the nothospecies could largely expand its current range.
How do different levels of occurrence data accuracy influence ENM? Is it really necessary a multi-source search of occurrence data and an accurate filtering step to perform ENM? {#Sec17}
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In general, results shown in Table [2](#Tab2){ref-type="table"} suggest that a direct use of GBIF records could be appropriate without an extensive exploration of other sources and a taxonomic expertise validation process in covering the realized environmental species niche requirements. Nevertheless, it could be highly dependent on the target taxonomic group, as for primates, the comparison of datasets without or with expert knowledge resulted in the recovering of a higher number of outliers in non-expert group^[@CR97]^.
Unexpectedly the ENMs performed with Raw GBIF and Final occurrence datasets resembled greatly (Table [2](#Tab2){ref-type="table"} and Fig. [7](#Fig7){ref-type="fig"}). In short, the resulting ENMs does not seem to be largely influenced by the occurrence data used, which might be due to the fact that species like *K*. × *houghtonii* and most Crassulaceae have a "very defined" interval range of climatic conditions; i.e. the tolerance to temperature and precipitation out of the optimal range is very low (see Fig. [3](#Fig3){ref-type="fig"}), and the shape of the response curves of bio17 and bio19 variables is more or less flat-topped and decline abruptly towards the margins (Supplementary Figs. [S6](#MOESM1){ref-type="media"} and [S7](#MOESM1){ref-type="media"}). Conversely, in a study that tested the effect of spatial bias in GBIF records of Eurasian butterfly, the authors reported a decline of model quality with increased spatial bias^[@CR44]^.
Careful observation of Fig. [7](#Fig7){ref-type="fig"} shows, however, that there are areas not predicted using the Raw GBIF dataset (green ranges in Fig. [7](#Fig7){ref-type="fig"}), especially from equatorial climatic zones. This may be due to the fact that *K*. × *houghtonii* records located in these areas and in general for equatorial climatic zones are mostly gathered from citizen science websites (like iNaturalist; Fig. [1B](#Fig1){ref-type="fig"}) and not yet incorporated into GBIF. The lack of records from equatorial climatic zones on GBIF may simply respond to the nature of GBIF itself, as it is a research infrastructure funded by the world's governments. Therefore, biodiversity data uploaded greatly depends on the node of every country. Many countries located in equatorial zones are non-participating countries in GBIF. This may be attributed to being low-income economies, although other reasons may apply (e.g. political). However, as noted by Amano and Sutherland^[@CR98]^, even in participant countries, the amount of data provided may be low because the number of GBIF records per square kilometer depends greatly on GDP per capita (i.e. economic wealth), the number of English speakers, and country's level of security. All these parameters rank generally very low in equatorial countries, which have hampered access to adequate funding for research centers and the work of researchers itself. Additionally, even in the case that citizen science portal websites are working well in a given country by providing lots of occurrences (e.g. PPBC in China), these data may not reach GBIF if there are no nodes submitting or endure long delays if nodes are not working properly.
Our results also show an overprediction of the nothospecies' range with the Raw GBIF dataset (red areas in Fig. [7](#Fig7){ref-type="fig"}). Other studies comparing unfiltered vs. filtered presence datasets reported similar results. For example, false levels of species richness were recovered on large ecoregions for the plant tribe Cinchoneae (Rubiaceae)^[@CR99]^ or wider elevational extents for three species of *Phaedranassa* (Amaryllidaceae)^[@CR100]^.
A multi-source search and expert verification of presence records, aimed to avoid taxonomic (i.e. misidentifications) and spatial (i.e. georeferencing errors) biases, is generically regarded as critical to research focused on identification of current species location^[@CR101]^ and evaluation of the conservation status of a given species (e.g.^[@CR102]^). On the contrary, considering the results found here, one may think that these previous processes would not be necessary in ENM studies with a biogeographical global focus, as the "big picture" using Raw GBIF and final datasets is similar. Graham *et al*.^[@CR103]^ also concluded that ENMs are particularly robust to moderate levels of errors in occurrence databases. Nevertheless, using exclusively GBIF data as a way to reduce time and money is only relatively justified for species distributed across well explored large-scale ranges and regions containing GBIF data providers. It should be noted that ENM approaches conducted for those species distributed in areas that do not provide data to GBIF, or that do not do it promptly, could be more susceptible to produce biased results. In addition, a detailed inspection of Fig. [7](#Fig7){ref-type="fig"} shows that large regions of countries and even entire countries were not predicted as suitable using the Raw GBIF dataset, which eventually would have serious effects on the future management of *K*. × *houghtonii* in case of invasion; for example, regions or countries not suitable for the species would not implement policies of early detection/early warning. This suggests that making a complete multi-source location search, particularly including citizen science and other online databases, followed by a refining step is of critical importance in ENMs with management or conservation ends.
Effects of climate change on global potential future distribution {#Sec18}
-----------------------------------------------------------------
A considerable reduction of *K*. × *houghtonii*'s current range (Table [1](#Tab1){ref-type="table"}) could occur due to the lack of adequate climates, including many locations (Supplementary Table [S3](#MOESM1){ref-type="media"}). The geographic regions predicted to be lost with respect to present scenarios is presented in Fig. [8](#Fig8){ref-type="fig"} (red coloration). As a general pattern, it was observed that: (1) the lower the latitude, the more areas lost; and (2) most of the lost areas are continental, whereas many coastal areas are maintained. The latter observation agrees with multi-species studies of plant invaders in the United States (896 spp.)^[@CR104]^ and Australia (72 spp.)^[@CR105]^, and probably reflects that continental areas would tend to undergo more severe climatic changes than coastlines.
On the other hand, new suitable areas are predicted under future climate scenarios, which are mainly located in higher latitudes on both northern and southern hemispheres (Fig. [8](#Fig8){ref-type="fig"}). One clear example where the species cannot survive under present conditions is northern Europe, which would become climatically suitable. Such predicted latitudinal migration, with a poleward shift for *K*. × *houghtonii*, is interestingly following one of the most typical and well documented effects of climate change on species distribution^[@CR106],[@CR107]^. High similarities were detected between results found here and other global assessments of future distributions of the top 100 worst invasive species performed by Bellard *et al*.^[@CR108]^. According to these authors, tropical regions at low latitudes would experience the greatest decrease in potential number of invasive species, while the expanded ranges were in temperate regions such as northern Europe. In agreement with this, a recent study of 783 ornamental alien species planted in European gardens but not yet naturalized, observed that under a warming climate the hotspots of naturalization and invasion risk would considerably increase in northern and eastern parts of the European range^[@CR109]^.
Considering the marked invasive behavior and the relatively wide temperature and precipitation ranges shown by the species (Fig. [3](#Fig3){ref-type="fig"}), one might expect future increase in its distribution range. On the contrary to this expectation, future projections suggest that the plant would be negatively affected by the ongoing climate change. Other global plant invaders have also shown potential future range contractions, for example a 32% reduction was observed for the grassland weed *Nassella neesiana* (Trin. & Rupr.) Barkworth due to increases in temperature leading to lethal heat stress^[@CR110]^. As far as we know, the present study is the first estimate of global range shifts under a scenario of climate change not only for a Crassulaceae species but also for CAM species. Studies carried out at local or regional levels have yielded equivocal results: some show a range expansion such as *Kalanchoe* × *houghtonii* in NW Spain^[@CR16]^ and *Echinocereus reichenbachii* (Terscheck ex Walp.) J. N. Haage in the United States^[@CR111]^, whilst for others a range reduction was detected, e.g. *Kalanchoe tubiflora* and *Pereskia aculeata* Mill. in eastern Australia^[@CR112]^ or *Coryphantha werdermannii* Boed. in northern Mexico^[@CR113]^. Looking towards future research projects, it would be interesting to test whether a decrease in potential habitats might constitute a general pattern for Crassulaceae and CAM plants.
Shrinkage of potential areas for the year 2070 compared to the present in *K*. × *houghtonii* might be related to its ecophysiological traits. The extraction of climatic values of lost and gained areas in respect to future/present ranges revealed that *K*. × *houghtonii* would tend to be displaced to regions with low precipitation values. Inversely, regions with high rainfall values would be abandoned (see bio16, bio17, and bio19 in Supplementary Fig. [S11](#MOESM1){ref-type="media"}). In contrast, the temperature ranges where it inhabits at present, both for minimum and maximum limits, would be maintained without significant modifications in the year 2070 (see bio5, bio6, and bio8 in Supplementary Fig. [S11](#MOESM1){ref-type="media"}). As noted previously it seems that *K*. × *houghtonii* would not be able to withstand extended long wet periods, particularly during cold annual intervals. The combination of water storage saturation and freezing temperatures may injure succulent plants^[@CR82]^. Thus, at least for *K*. × *houghtonii*, climatically suitable areas for the year 2070 are significantly reduced, because part of the current potential ranges would become unsuitable due to an excess of rainfall. This is in accordance with global trend changes, of which a significant rise in extreme periods of prolonged wet cycles have been estimated^[@CR114],[@CR115]^.
Ultimately, we explored where the most likely potential invasion hotspots over present and future time slices could be located. This was achieved through the intersection of the eight ENMs performed which consisted of present scenario with and without HF plus six future scenarios (Fig. [6B](#Fig6){ref-type="fig"}). With this approach, firstly we observed that the main current presence locations of *K*. × *houghtonii* would still appear as suitable (e.g. Florida, Río de la Plata region, the Mediterranean Basin, the Chinese province of Guangdong, Taiwan Island, and western Australia). Secondly, we observed several areas where the species has not been documented to date but potentially have a high success rate of invasion. These areas could be regarded as "red alert areas", and include California, central Chile coastline, most of the Atlantic coast of Brazil, Uruguay, northern Argentina, north-western Iberian Peninsula, the Atlantic coast of France, Corsica, Azores Islands, Crete, East African mountains, parts of Madagascar, South Africa, southern continental China, southern Australia, Tasmania, and New Caledonia (Fig. [6B](#Fig6){ref-type="fig"}).
Conclusions and future prospects {#Sec19}
--------------------------------
In this study, we analyzed for the first time the global geographic distribution of the invasive plant *Kalanchoe* × *houghtonii*. The main conclusions drawn from this study are as follows: (1) a multi-source data compilation process was key in allowing us to infer the fast and complex expansion patterns shown by this hybrid; (2) the results of ENM (to our knowledge, the first one carried out with a CAM taxon on a worldwide scale) indicate that *K*. × *houghtonii* could expand largely on Mediterranean and subtropical regions of the planet; (3) the HF variable included in the modelling showed strikingly high contribution weights (even with scores above 50%), highlighting its close relationship with anthropic environments; and (4) a general reduction of the potential range of *K*. × *houghtonii* for the year 2070 can be anticipated. Considering the strong association with HF shown by *K*. × *houghtonii*, particular attention should be paid to the highly humanized regions to control potential invasion progress of this plant. Finally, this study paves the way to future research aiming to understand whether the hybridization process broaden the ecological niche of *K*. × *houghtonii* compared to its parental species.
Supplementary information
=========================
{#Sec20}
Supplementary Material. Appendix.
**Publisher's note** Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
These authors contributed equally: Sonia Herrando-Moraira and Daniel Vitales.
Supplementary information
=========================
is available for this paper at 10.1038/s41598-020-60079-2.
We are very grateful to the staff of all herbaria that have kindly provided scanned or photographed specimens, including AD, AK, ASU, BRI, CANB, HUAL, MA, MADJ, MEL, MGC, MO, NSW, NY, PORUN, QCA, SEV, SI, US, USCH, and VEN. We are also grateful to all professional botanists, naturalists (including those contacted through iNaturalist and other citizen science platforms), or simply plant lovers that have provided pictures, information, or other kinds of help (over one hundred people has provided data). The English has been reviewed by Robert Turner from Bangor University. This study received financial support from the "Proyecto Intramural Especial, PIE" (grant no. 201630I024) from the CSIC (Spain) and from the "Ajuts a Grups de Recerca Consolidats" (grants nos. 2014-SGR514-GREB and 2017-SGR1116) from the Generalitat de Catalunya (Spain).
D.V., J.L.-P. and S.M. designed the study, A.S., C.G.-B., D.G., D.S., I.H., J.L.-P., N.I., N.N., P.A.G.-G., P.C.-F., S.M. and Z.W. collected the data, J.L.-P., N.N., S.H.-M. analyzed the data; C.G.-B., D.V., J.L.-P., N.I., N.N., S.H.-M. led the writing of the manuscript; A.S., D.S., I.H., P.A.G.-G. contributed to the writing. All authors read and reviewed the final manuscript.
The authors declare no competing interests.
| 2023-09-03T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/5891 |
/*
* nghttp2 - HTTP/2 C Library
*
* Copyright (c) 2013 Tatsuhiro Tsujikawa
*
* Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining
* a copy of this software and associated documentation files (the
* "Software"), to deal in the Software without restriction, including
* without limitation the rights to use, copy, modify, merge, publish,
* distribute, sublicense, and/or sell copies of the Software, and to
* permit persons to whom the Software is furnished to do so, subject to
* the following conditions:
*
* The above copyright notice and this permission notice shall be
* included in all copies or substantial portions of the Software.
*
* THE SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED "AS IS", WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND,
* EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE WARRANTIES OF
* MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND
* NONINFRINGEMENT. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE AUTHORS OR COPYRIGHT HOLDERS BE
* LIABLE FOR ANY CLAIM, DAMAGES OR OTHER LIABILITY, WHETHER IN AN ACTION
* OF CONTRACT, TORT OR OTHERWISE, ARISING FROM, OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION
* WITH THE SOFTWARE OR THE USE OR OTHER DEALINGS IN THE SOFTWARE.
*/
#ifndef SHRPX_DOWNSTREAM_TEST_H
#define SHRPX_DOWNSTREAM_TEST_H
#ifdef HAVE_CONFIG_H
# include <config.h>
#endif // HAVE_CONFIG_H
namespace shrpx {
void test_downstream_field_store_append_last_header(void);
void test_downstream_field_store_header(void);
void test_downstream_crumble_request_cookie(void);
void test_downstream_assemble_request_cookie(void);
void test_downstream_rewrite_location_response_header(void);
void test_downstream_supports_non_final_response(void);
void test_downstream_find_affinity_cookie(void);
} // namespace shrpx
#endif // SHRPX_DOWNSTREAM_TEST_H
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Passau Cruise Port
Port of Passau: An Overview
Arriving in Passau for the first time, you could be forgiven for thinking you'd landed in Italy instead of Germany. The city has a very Italian atmosphere that's led to its nickname, Venice on the Danube. And indeed, Passau was part of the Roman Empire for more than 400 years. When most of the city was destroyed by fire in 1662, it was rebuilt in Italian Baroque style, reflected in the vast cathedral, churches, squares and former homes of wealthy merchants. Today, as you stroll through the pretty streets, you'll notice a plethora of pizza and pasta restaurants rubbing shoulders with eateries that serve up hearty German fare.
While Passau has an undeniably touristy feel, it's a very attractive destination boasting a legacy of wealth built on the salt trade and, during Renaissance times, the crafting of knives and sword blades. The city occupies a unique location on the confluence of the rivers Danube, Inn and Ilz in southeastern Germany, close to the Austrian border, and so it's also known as the City of Three Rivers. But the rivers haven't always been the city's friends: Passau has repeatedly been flooded by Alpine water swept along the Inn. High water marks on the side of the town hall bear witness to the flooding; the highest date back to 1501, 1595 and 1954, the latter marked at more than 10m (32 feet).
Packed on a thin strip of land, Passau is easy to get around -- a major plus for visitors -- thanks to its small size. Beyond the long riverside promenade walk, lined with lookalike souvenir shops and some decent eateries, lies the picture postcard old town, with traffic-free narrow streets made for meandering and many of the main sights. The sightseeing high spot, in more ways than one, is St. Stephen's cathedral, high up in the Old Town, home to the world's largest cathedral organ. Dominating the Danube side, opposite the dock, is the Veste Oberhaus fortress, which is now a multiple-choice castle containing a museum, youth hostel and restaurant.
Typically, riverboats dock in Passau after breakfast for a morning sightseeing tour, and passengers can opt to return for lunch back onboard or stay in town and have a meal independently in one of the many restaurants. River cruisers are then allowed free time to explore on their own before sailing in the late afternoon.
Port Facilities
There is a tourist information center and four public toilets on the dockside. For visitors who don't want to venture too far afield, there are plenty of shops and a wide choice of restaurants across the street, plus attractions that include the Glass Museum, with dazzling exhibits of European glass including Baroque, Rococo, Art Nouveau and Art Deco pieces; and the 17th-century St. Paul's Church.
Don't Miss
You can pull out all the stops at St. Stephen's Cathedral at Residenzplatz 8 in the Old Town, where the world's biggest cathedral organ boasts 17,974 pipes and 233 stops. Rousing recitals take place on weekdays at noon and Thursdays at 7:30 p.m. (for a fee). Free entry to the lunchtime concert is included on many guided walking tours.
Hollgasse is Passau's best-known cobbled street. In the heart of the Old Town, the traffic-free lane is the place to find beautifully maintained medieval houses, art shops, galleries and jewellers, and to watch artists and craftspeople at work. There are also plenty of places to stop off and enjoy a restorative glass or two of Bavarian beer.
The imposing Veste Oberhaus fortress was built in 1219 by Passau's Prince-Bishops to keep a check on commerce on the three rivers. History buffs will enjoy the permanent exhibitions in the museum that chart Passau's timeline; it's also well worth the climb up the 130 steps to the viewing platform in the tower for panoramic views over the city. (Open daily from mid-March to mid-November from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday to Friday and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on weekends.)
Discover the treasures of Passau's past, when it was capital of the largest diocese of the Holy Roman Empire at the Museum of the Treasure of the Cathedral. Housed in the New Bishop's Residence in Residenzplatz, a palace built in the early 18th century, the museum features ornate Rococo staircases and a fresco of the Gods of Olympia. (Open from May to October from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.)
Located in one of the Old Town's most beautiful houses on the bank of the Danube, the Museum of Modern Art showcases international works from the 20th and 21st centuries in a changing program of exhibitions. (Open daily, except Mondays, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.)
The Baroque town hall fronting the Danube dates back to the 14th century and is open to visitors free of charge. Visitors crane their necks to look at huge wall and ceiling paintings depicting scenes from the "Nibelungen," an epic German poem from the Middle Ages. (Open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. unless the town hall is being used for official business.)
When it's time to dig more deeply into Passau's past, visit the Roman Museum to see the foundations of the Roman fort Kastell Boiotro. The remains of the fort, with five defense towers and walls more than 3m (12 feet) thick, were unearthed in 1974 by workman excavating a 17th-century church. Pottery, lead figures and other artefacts from the area are housed in the museum at the edge of the site. (Lederergasse 43. Open from March to November, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.)
The art of brewing flourished in the Baroque period, and Passau has four breweries. Soak up the local heritage on a "Beer and Baroque" excursion through the old town, ending in a brewery with the all-important tasting accompanied by Bavarian snacks. The three-hour tours are bookable through the dockside tourist information office, and they're available Monday to Thursday.
Step back in time at the Bavarian Forest Museum Village, located 20km (12.5 miles) from Passau. More than 100 old buildings -- including farmhouses, a mill and chapel -- have been painstakingly reconstructed at the open-air museum that also has rare breeds of farm animals, including sheep, cattle and poultry, and displays of rural crafts. Half-day excursions are bookable in Passau.
While most people head straight to the cathedral, take a peek at the cream and pink Church of St. Paul, the city's oldest parish church. Northwest of the cathedral and located by the north gate of the Old Town in Rindermarkt, the church dates back to the 11th century and was rebuilt after the city fires.
Pilgrimage Church Mariahilf, across the bridge on the Inn side of town at Mariahilfberg 3, is reached by a "heavenly ladder," a covered staircase of 321 steps where pilgrims kneel and pray on each step. According to legend, anyone who scales the stairs this way while praying can expect their wishes to be granted. Skeptical? Well, Austrian Emperor Leopold I took three days to climb up on his knees and beg assistance in the fight against the Turks who were besieging Vienna, and it worked for him in 1683. While the interior of the church is quite plain and simple, there is a beautiful golden high alter dating back to the 18th century and ecclesiastical silver treasures in the old sacristy that is now a small museum.
Getting Around
On Foot: The old town, the main tourist hub, is directly opposite the waterfront and easily walkable.
By Bus: The City Bus service is cheap, and the Central Bus Station, on the western side of the Old Town, serves outlying districts. From March to November, a shuttle bus runs from the town hall to the Veste Oberhaus every half hour from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. The Passau Card, available at the tourist information center on the dock, provides free public transport and entry to museums within a 24-hour period.
By Taxi: There are taxi stands around the town, and you can call Taxizentrale Passau at 0851-5 73 73.
Food and Drink
Passau has plenty of international and regional restaurants to suit most tastes. The local Bavarian cuisine is noted for its rib-sticking qualities. Think of large, salty pretzels served as appetizers, sausages accompanied by sweet mustard and schweinsbraten (a national dish of pork, gravy and dumplings), followed by apple strudel -- and you begin to get the idea.
With the longest brewing tradition in the world, Bavaria is home to half of all German breweries. On average, Bavarians consume 150 litres (40 gallons) of beer a year, and Passau's bars and beer gardens provide a wonderful opportunity to soak up this great tradition.
With daily specials from 11 a.m., the Bayerischer Lowe, or Lion Tavern, is a 10-minute walk from the dock at Dr.-Hans-Kapfinger-Strasse 3. With a large, covered beer garden, it serves local specialities and is one of the rare breeds of German restaurants that pays a nodding acquaintance to vegetarian dishes. It's open all day, so cruise passengers can drop by at any time.
If you've got a head for heights, you can enjoy coffee, cakes and light bites at Cafe-Lounge Diwan, on top of the Passau business tower at the end of the pedestrian area at Nibelungenplatz 1. It serves up the best views in town. (Open daily from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday to Thursday, until midnight on Friday and Saturday, and 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Sunday.)
Tuck into a pork fest at Hacklberger Braustiberl, a restaurant and beer garden specializing in Bavarian cuisine. An inexpensive, fixed-price lunch is served daily from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. The main menu includes sausages in all kinds of guises and a choice of schnitzels influenced by nearby Austria. Located in Brauhausplatz 7, it's a 20-minute stroll from the town center, or you can get there by public transport.
Where You're Docked
River cruise vessels dock at the 14 moorings on Donau Lande, the main waterfront area that is within easy walking distance of the Old Town and main shopping streets.
Good to Know
Some steep, cobbled streets and flights of uneven steps lead down to the Inn River, a popular stop on many guided walking tours, so anyone with disabilities or walking difficulties should check first before setting out. For wheelchair users, the tourist office has produced a map of accessible streets.
Currency & Best Way to Get Money
Germany's currency is the euro. For current currency conversion figures, visit www.oanda.com or www.xe.com. The nearest ATM's are a five- to 10-minute walk from the point, in the pedestrian street Ludwigstrasse and at the corner of Heuwinkel and Rosstranke. All major credit cards are accepted in shops, restaurants and cafes.
Language
German is the official language. English is widely spoken at shops, restaurants and tourist attractions.
Shopping
Feather-trimmed Bavarian hats and -- for the truly brave -- Lederhosen, traditional German breeches, featured largely in the souvenir shops lining the river cruise port and old town make good souvenirs, and CDs of organ recitals at St. Stephen's Cathedral provide lasting musical memories. The open-air markets held on Tuesdays and Fridays in front of the cathedral are great places for picking up crafts and local produce, and from November 29 to December 23, the square is the place to find one of Bavaria's largest Christmas markets, with stalls selling charming wooden toys, tree decorations and gifts.
First time river cruiser (have done 2 ocean cruises, 1 Carribean, 1 Mediterranean).
Really loved the ability to walk right into town/city and partake of everything, and Hermod had excellent port locations in each place.
Hermod's staff were ... Read more
The embarkation and disembarkation was smooth.
The ship was exquisite.
We enjoyed our meals with the other guests. The food was delicious and the dining room staff was so much fun to be with. I cannot compliment them enough.
We really ... Read more
We were in Germany for our daughters wedding and wanted to do something different to see more of Europe while we were there. Our first river cruise was everything we hoped it would be and more. We were a little apprehensive, as we had never been on ... Read more
Castles and Legends had been on our radar for a few years since seeing the first TV advertisement. The views, were as beautiful as the service was extraordinary. I can not think of a better way to see the wonderful and enchanting countryside in ... Read more
This cruise was a birthday gift and anniversary celebration in one, from my wife.
We arrived a day early in Nuernberg to meet family and got to see the old city. I am glad we did, because, the river was low and the boat could not travel up to ... Read more
Please note that our family has lived overseas on three different continents, and we traveled a great deal in each area, usually on our own with children. We decided on this small cruise for several reasons: friends joined us, the area interested ... Read more
This is the perfect trip if you want to see different parts of Europe in that it is a 12-day cruisetour (8-day cruise); 5 countries; 7 ports; and adds 2 additional cities by land. The staff and crew on the Viking Hermod take exceptional care of all ... Read more
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If you have any questions about how our community is moderated, please address them to our Community Manager via e-mail at community@cruisecritic.com. Please do not post on the boards. | 2023-12-09T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/6049 |
/*-------------------------------------------------------------------------
*
* ipci.c
* POSTGRES inter-process communication initialization code.
*
* Portions Copyright (c) 1996-2019, PostgreSQL Global Development Group
* Portions Copyright (c) 1994, Regents of the University of California
*
*
* IDENTIFICATION
* src/backend/storage/ipc/ipci.c
*
*-------------------------------------------------------------------------
*/
#include "postgres.h"
#include "access/clog.h"
#include "access/commit_ts.h"
#include "access/heapam.h"
#include "access/multixact.h"
#include "access/nbtree.h"
#include "access/subtrans.h"
#include "access/twophase.h"
#include "access/undolog.h"
#include "access/undorequest.h"
#include "access/undoworker.h"
#include "commands/async.h"
#include "miscadmin.h"
#include "pgstat.h"
#include "postmaster/autovacuum.h"
#include "postmaster/bgworker_internals.h"
#include "postmaster/bgwriter.h"
#include "postmaster/postmaster.h"
#include "replication/logicallauncher.h"
#include "replication/slot.h"
#include "replication/walreceiver.h"
#include "replication/walsender.h"
#include "replication/origin.h"
#include "storage/bufmgr.h"
#include "storage/dsm.h"
#include "storage/ipc.h"
#include "storage/pg_shmem.h"
#include "storage/pmsignal.h"
#include "storage/predicate.h"
#include "storage/proc.h"
#include "storage/procarray.h"
#include "storage/procsignal.h"
#include "storage/sinvaladt.h"
#include "storage/spin.h"
#include "utils/snapmgr.h"
/* GUCs */
int shared_memory_type = DEFAULT_SHARED_MEMORY_TYPE;
shmem_startup_hook_type shmem_startup_hook = NULL;
static Size total_addin_request = 0;
static bool addin_request_allowed = true;
/*
* RequestAddinShmemSpace
* Request that extra shmem space be allocated for use by
* a loadable module.
*
* This is only useful if called from the _PG_init hook of a library that
* is loaded into the postmaster via shared_preload_libraries. Once
* shared memory has been allocated, calls will be ignored. (We could
* raise an error, but it seems better to make it a no-op, so that
* libraries containing such calls can be reloaded if needed.)
*/
void
RequestAddinShmemSpace(Size size)
{
if (IsUnderPostmaster || !addin_request_allowed)
return; /* too late */
total_addin_request = add_size(total_addin_request, size);
}
/*
* CreateSharedMemoryAndSemaphores
* Creates and initializes shared memory and semaphores.
*
* This is called by the postmaster or by a standalone backend.
* It is also called by a backend forked from the postmaster in the
* EXEC_BACKEND case. In the latter case, the shared memory segment
* already exists and has been physically attached to, but we have to
* initialize pointers in local memory that reference the shared structures,
* because we didn't inherit the correct pointer values from the postmaster
* as we do in the fork() scenario. The easiest way to do that is to run
* through the same code as before. (Note that the called routines mostly
* check IsUnderPostmaster, rather than EXEC_BACKEND, to detect this case.
* This is a bit code-wasteful and could be cleaned up.)
*/
void
CreateSharedMemoryAndSemaphores(int port)
{
PGShmemHeader *shim = NULL;
if (!IsUnderPostmaster)
{
PGShmemHeader *seghdr;
Size size;
int numSemas;
/* Compute number of semaphores we'll need */
numSemas = ProcGlobalSemas();
numSemas += SpinlockSemas();
/*
* Size of the Postgres shared-memory block is estimated via
* moderately-accurate estimates for the big hogs, plus 100K for the
* stuff that's too small to bother with estimating.
*
* We take some care during this phase to ensure that the total size
* request doesn't overflow size_t. If this gets through, we don't
* need to be so careful during the actual allocation phase.
*/
size = 100000;
size = add_size(size, PGSemaphoreShmemSize(numSemas));
size = add_size(size, SpinlockSemaSize());
size = add_size(size, hash_estimate_size(SHMEM_INDEX_SIZE,
sizeof(ShmemIndexEnt)));
size = add_size(size, BufferShmemSize());
size = add_size(size, LockShmemSize());
size = add_size(size, PredicateLockShmemSize());
size = add_size(size, ProcGlobalShmemSize());
size = add_size(size, XLOGShmemSize());
size = add_size(size, CLOGShmemSize());
size = add_size(size, UndoLogShmemSize());
size = add_size(size, CommitTsShmemSize());
size = add_size(size, SUBTRANSShmemSize());
size = add_size(size, TwoPhaseShmemSize());
size = add_size(size, BackgroundWorkerShmemSize());
size = add_size(size, MultiXactShmemSize());
size = add_size(size, LWLockShmemSize());
size = add_size(size, ProcArrayShmemSize());
size = add_size(size, BackendStatusShmemSize());
size = add_size(size, SInvalShmemSize());
size = add_size(size, PMSignalShmemSize());
size = add_size(size, ProcSignalShmemSize());
size = add_size(size, CheckpointerShmemSize());
size = add_size(size, AutoVacuumShmemSize());
size = add_size(size, ReplicationSlotsShmemSize());
size = add_size(size, ReplicationOriginShmemSize());
size = add_size(size, WalSndShmemSize());
size = add_size(size, WalRcvShmemSize());
size = add_size(size, ApplyLauncherShmemSize());
size = add_size(size, SnapMgrShmemSize());
size = add_size(size, BTreeShmemSize());
size = add_size(size, SyncScanShmemSize());
size = add_size(size, AsyncShmemSize());
size = add_size(size, PendingUndoShmemSize());
size = add_size(size, UndoLauncherShmemSize());
#ifdef EXEC_BACKEND
size = add_size(size, ShmemBackendArraySize());
#endif
/* freeze the addin request size and include it */
addin_request_allowed = false;
size = add_size(size, total_addin_request);
/* might as well round it off to a multiple of a typical page size */
size = add_size(size, 8192 - (size % 8192));
elog(DEBUG3, "invoking IpcMemoryCreate(size=%zu)", size);
/*
* Create the shmem segment
*/
seghdr = PGSharedMemoryCreate(size, port, &shim);
InitShmemAccess(seghdr);
/*
* Create semaphores
*/
PGReserveSemaphores(numSemas, port);
/*
* If spinlocks are disabled, initialize emulation layer (which
* depends on semaphores, so the order is important here).
*/
#ifndef HAVE_SPINLOCKS
SpinlockSemaInit();
#endif
}
else
{
/*
* We are reattaching to an existing shared memory segment. This
* should only be reached in the EXEC_BACKEND case.
*/
#ifndef EXEC_BACKEND
elog(PANIC, "should be attached to shared memory already");
#endif
}
/*
* Set up shared memory allocation mechanism
*/
if (!IsUnderPostmaster)
InitShmemAllocation();
/*
* Now initialize LWLocks, which do shared memory allocation and are
* needed for InitShmemIndex.
*/
CreateLWLocks();
/*
* Set up shmem.c index hashtable
*/
InitShmemIndex();
/*
* Set up xlog, clog, and buffers
*/
XLOGShmemInit();
CLOGShmemInit();
UndoLogShmemInit();
CommitTsShmemInit();
SUBTRANSShmemInit();
MultiXactShmemInit();
InitBufferPool();
PendingUndoShmemInit();
/*
* Set up lock manager
*/
InitLocks();
/*
* Set up predicate lock manager
*/
InitPredicateLocks();
/*
* Set up process table
*/
if (!IsUnderPostmaster)
InitProcGlobal();
CreateSharedProcArray();
CreateSharedBackendStatus();
TwoPhaseShmemInit();
BackgroundWorkerShmemInit();
/*
* Set up shared-inval messaging
*/
CreateSharedInvalidationState();
/*
* Set up interprocess signaling mechanisms
*/
PMSignalShmemInit();
ProcSignalShmemInit();
CheckpointerShmemInit();
AutoVacuumShmemInit();
ReplicationSlotsShmemInit();
ReplicationOriginShmemInit();
WalSndShmemInit();
WalRcvShmemInit();
ApplyLauncherShmemInit();
UndoLauncherShmemInit();
/*
* Set up other modules that need some shared memory space
*/
SnapMgrInit();
BTreeShmemInit();
SyncScanShmemInit();
AsyncShmemInit();
#ifdef EXEC_BACKEND
/*
* Alloc the win32 shared backend array
*/
if (!IsUnderPostmaster)
ShmemBackendArrayAllocation();
#endif
/* Initialize dynamic shared memory facilities. */
if (!IsUnderPostmaster)
dsm_postmaster_startup(shim);
/*
* Now give loadable modules a chance to set up their shmem allocations
*/
if (shmem_startup_hook)
shmem_startup_hook();
}
| 2023-11-08T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/3684 |
declare module "repl" {
import { Interface, Completer, AsyncCompleter } from "readline";
import { Context } from "vm";
import { InspectOptions } from "util";
interface ReplOptions {
/**
* The input prompt to display.
* Default: `"> "`
*/
prompt?: string;
/**
* The `Readable` stream from which REPL input will be read.
* Default: `process.stdin`
*/
input?: NodeJS.ReadableStream;
/**
* The `Writable` stream to which REPL output will be written.
* Default: `process.stdout`
*/
output?: NodeJS.WritableStream;
/**
* If `true`, specifies that the output should be treated as a TTY terminal, and have
* ANSI/VT100 escape codes written to it.
* Default: checking the value of the `isTTY` property on the output stream upon
* instantiation.
*/
terminal?: boolean;
/**
* The function to be used when evaluating each given line of input.
* Default: an async wrapper for the JavaScript `eval()` function. An `eval` function can
* error with `repl.Recoverable` to indicate the input was incomplete and prompt for
* additional lines.
*
* @see https://nodejs.org/dist/latest-v10.x/docs/api/repl.html#repl_default_evaluation
* @see https://nodejs.org/dist/latest-v10.x/docs/api/repl.html#repl_custom_evaluation_functions
*/
eval?: REPLEval;
/**
* If `true`, specifies that the default `writer` function should include ANSI color
* styling to REPL output. If a custom `writer` function is provided then this has no
* effect.
* Default: the REPL instance's `terminal` value.
*/
useColors?: boolean;
/**
* If `true`, specifies that the default evaluation function will use the JavaScript
* `global` as the context as opposed to creating a new separate context for the REPL
* instance. The node CLI REPL sets this value to `true`.
* Default: `false`.
*/
useGlobal?: boolean;
/**
* If `true`, specifies that the default writer will not output the return value of a
* command if it evaluates to `undefined`.
* Default: `false`.
*/
ignoreUndefined?: boolean;
/**
* The function to invoke to format the output of each command before writing to `output`.
* Default: a wrapper for `util.inspect`.
*
* @see https://nodejs.org/dist/latest-v10.x/docs/api/repl.html#repl_customizing_repl_output
*/
writer?: REPLWriter;
/**
* An optional function used for custom Tab auto completion.
*
* @see https://nodejs.org/dist/latest-v11.x/docs/api/readline.html#readline_use_of_the_completer_function
*/
completer?: Completer | AsyncCompleter;
/**
* A flag that specifies whether the default evaluator executes all JavaScript commands in
* strict mode or default (sloppy) mode.
* Accepted values are:
* - `repl.REPL_MODE_SLOPPY` - evaluates expressions in sloppy mode.
* - `repl.REPL_MODE_STRICT` - evaluates expressions in strict mode. This is equivalent to
* prefacing every repl statement with `'use strict'`.
*/
replMode?: typeof REPL_MODE_SLOPPY | typeof REPL_MODE_STRICT;
/**
* Stop evaluating the current piece of code when `SIGINT` is received, i.e. `Ctrl+C` is
* pressed. This cannot be used together with a custom `eval` function.
* Default: `false`.
*/
breakEvalOnSigint?: boolean;
}
type REPLEval = (this: REPLServer, evalCmd: string, context: Context, file: string, cb: (err: Error | null, result: any) => void) => void;
type REPLWriter = (this: REPLServer, obj: any) => string;
/**
* This is the default "writer" value, if none is passed in the REPL options,
* and it can be overridden by custom print functions.
*/
const writer: REPLWriter & { options: InspectOptions };
type REPLCommandAction = (this: REPLServer, text: string) => void;
interface REPLCommand {
/**
* Help text to be displayed when `.help` is entered.
*/
help?: string;
/**
* The function to execute, optionally accepting a single string argument.
*/
action: REPLCommandAction;
}
/**
* Provides a customizable Read-Eval-Print-Loop (REPL).
*
* Instances of `repl.REPLServer` will accept individual lines of user input, evaluate those
* according to a user-defined evaluation function, then output the result. Input and output
* may be from `stdin` and `stdout`, respectively, or may be connected to any Node.js `stream`.
*
* Instances of `repl.REPLServer` support automatic completion of inputs, simplistic Emacs-style
* line editing, multi-line inputs, ANSI-styled output, saving and restoring current REPL session
* state, error recovery, and customizable evaluation functions.
*
* Instances of `repl.REPLServer` are created using the `repl.start()` method and _should not_
* be created directly using the JavaScript `new` keyword.
*
* @see https://nodejs.org/dist/latest-v10.x/docs/api/repl.html#repl_repl
*/
class REPLServer extends Interface {
/**
* The `vm.Context` provided to the `eval` function to be used for JavaScript
* evaluation.
*/
readonly context: Context;
/**
* The `Readable` stream from which REPL input will be read.
*/
readonly inputStream: NodeJS.ReadableStream;
/**
* The `Writable` stream to which REPL output will be written.
*/
readonly outputStream: NodeJS.WritableStream;
/**
* The commands registered via `replServer.defineCommand()`.
*/
readonly commands: { readonly [name: string]: REPLCommand | undefined };
/**
* A value indicating whether the REPL is currently in "editor mode".
*
* @see https://nodejs.org/dist/latest-v10.x/docs/api/repl.html#repl_commands_and_special_keys
*/
readonly editorMode: boolean;
/**
* A value indicating whether the `_` variable has been assigned.
*
* @see https://nodejs.org/dist/latest-v10.x/docs/api/repl.html#repl_assignment_of_the_underscore_variable
*/
readonly underscoreAssigned: boolean;
/**
* The last evaluation result from the REPL (assigned to the `_` variable inside of the REPL).
*
* @see https://nodejs.org/dist/latest-v10.x/docs/api/repl.html#repl_assignment_of_the_underscore_variable
*/
readonly last: any;
/**
* A value indicating whether the `_error` variable has been assigned.
*
* @since v9.8.0
* @see https://nodejs.org/dist/latest-v10.x/docs/api/repl.html#repl_assignment_of_the_underscore_variable
*/
readonly underscoreErrAssigned: boolean;
/**
* The last error raised inside the REPL (assigned to the `_error` variable inside of the REPL).
*
* @since v9.8.0
* @see https://nodejs.org/dist/latest-v10.x/docs/api/repl.html#repl_assignment_of_the_underscore_variable
*/
readonly lastError: any;
/**
* Specified in the REPL options, this is the function to be used when evaluating each
* given line of input. If not specified in the REPL options, this is an async wrapper
* for the JavaScript `eval()` function.
*/
readonly eval: REPLEval;
/**
* Specified in the REPL options, this is a value indicating whether the default
* `writer` function should include ANSI color styling to REPL output.
*/
readonly useColors: boolean;
/**
* Specified in the REPL options, this is a value indicating whether the default `eval`
* function will use the JavaScript `global` as the context as opposed to creating a new
* separate context for the REPL instance.
*/
readonly useGlobal: boolean;
/**
* Specified in the REPL options, this is a value indicating whether the default `writer`
* function should output the result of a command if it evaluates to `undefined`.
*/
readonly ignoreUndefined: boolean;
/**
* Specified in the REPL options, this is the function to invoke to format the output of
* each command before writing to `outputStream`. If not specified in the REPL options,
* this will be a wrapper for `util.inspect`.
*/
readonly writer: REPLWriter;
/**
* Specified in the REPL options, this is the function to use for custom Tab auto-completion.
*/
readonly completer: Completer | AsyncCompleter;
/**
* Specified in the REPL options, this is a flag that specifies whether the default `eval`
* function should execute all JavaScript commands in strict mode or default (sloppy) mode.
* Possible values are:
* - `repl.REPL_MODE_SLOPPY` - evaluates expressions in sloppy mode.
* - `repl.REPL_MODE_STRICT` - evaluates expressions in strict mode. This is equivalent to
* prefacing every repl statement with `'use strict'`.
*/
readonly replMode: typeof REPL_MODE_SLOPPY | typeof REPL_MODE_STRICT;
/**
* NOTE: According to the documentation:
*
* > Instances of `repl.REPLServer` are created using the `repl.start()` method and
* > _should not_ be created directly using the JavaScript `new` keyword.
*
* `REPLServer` cannot be subclassed due to implementation specifics in NodeJS.
*
* @see https://nodejs.org/dist/latest-v10.x/docs/api/repl.html#repl_class_replserver
*/
private constructor();
/**
* Used to add new `.`-prefixed commands to the REPL instance. Such commands are invoked
* by typing a `.` followed by the `keyword`.
*
* @param keyword The command keyword (_without_ a leading `.` character).
* @param cmd The function to invoke when the command is processed.
*
* @see https://nodejs.org/dist/latest-v10.x/docs/api/repl.html#repl_replserver_definecommand_keyword_cmd
*/
defineCommand(keyword: string, cmd: REPLCommandAction | REPLCommand): void;
/**
* Readies the REPL instance for input from the user, printing the configured `prompt` to a
* new line in the `output` and resuming the `input` to accept new input.
*
* When multi-line input is being entered, an ellipsis is printed rather than the 'prompt'.
*
* This method is primarily intended to be called from within the action function for
* commands registered using the `replServer.defineCommand()` method.
*
* @param preserveCursor When `true`, the cursor placement will not be reset to `0`.
*/
displayPrompt(preserveCursor?: boolean): void;
/**
* Clears any command that has been buffered but not yet executed.
*
* This method is primarily intended to be called from within the action function for
* commands registered using the `replServer.defineCommand()` method.
*
* @since v9.0.0
*/
clearBufferedCommand(): void;
/**
* Initializes a history log file for the REPL instance. When executing the
* Node.js binary and using the command line REPL, a history file is initialized
* by default. However, this is not the case when creating a REPL
* programmatically. Use this method to initialize a history log file when working
* with REPL instances programmatically.
* @param path The path to the history file
*/
setupHistory(path: string, cb: (err: Error | null, repl: this) => void): void;
/**
* events.EventEmitter
* 1. close - inherited from `readline.Interface`
* 2. line - inherited from `readline.Interface`
* 3. pause - inherited from `readline.Interface`
* 4. resume - inherited from `readline.Interface`
* 5. SIGCONT - inherited from `readline.Interface`
* 6. SIGINT - inherited from `readline.Interface`
* 7. SIGTSTP - inherited from `readline.Interface`
* 8. exit
* 9. reset
*/
addListener(event: string, listener: (...args: any[]) => void): this;
addListener(event: "close", listener: () => void): this;
addListener(event: "line", listener: (input: string) => void): this;
addListener(event: "pause", listener: () => void): this;
addListener(event: "resume", listener: () => void): this;
addListener(event: "SIGCONT", listener: () => void): this;
addListener(event: "SIGINT", listener: () => void): this;
addListener(event: "SIGTSTP", listener: () => void): this;
addListener(event: "exit", listener: () => void): this;
addListener(event: "reset", listener: (context: Context) => void): this;
emit(event: string | symbol, ...args: any[]): boolean;
emit(event: "close"): boolean;
emit(event: "line", input: string): boolean;
emit(event: "pause"): boolean;
emit(event: "resume"): boolean;
emit(event: "SIGCONT"): boolean;
emit(event: "SIGINT"): boolean;
emit(event: "SIGTSTP"): boolean;
emit(event: "exit"): boolean;
emit(event: "reset", context: Context): boolean;
on(event: string, listener: (...args: any[]) => void): this;
on(event: "close", listener: () => void): this;
on(event: "line", listener: (input: string) => void): this;
on(event: "pause", listener: () => void): this;
on(event: "resume", listener: () => void): this;
on(event: "SIGCONT", listener: () => void): this;
on(event: "SIGINT", listener: () => void): this;
on(event: "SIGTSTP", listener: () => void): this;
on(event: "exit", listener: () => void): this;
on(event: "reset", listener: (context: Context) => void): this;
once(event: string, listener: (...args: any[]) => void): this;
once(event: "close", listener: () => void): this;
once(event: "line", listener: (input: string) => void): this;
once(event: "pause", listener: () => void): this;
once(event: "resume", listener: () => void): this;
once(event: "SIGCONT", listener: () => void): this;
once(event: "SIGINT", listener: () => void): this;
once(event: "SIGTSTP", listener: () => void): this;
once(event: "exit", listener: () => void): this;
once(event: "reset", listener: (context: Context) => void): this;
prependListener(event: string, listener: (...args: any[]) => void): this;
prependListener(event: "close", listener: () => void): this;
prependListener(event: "line", listener: (input: string) => void): this;
prependListener(event: "pause", listener: () => void): this;
prependListener(event: "resume", listener: () => void): this;
prependListener(event: "SIGCONT", listener: () => void): this;
prependListener(event: "SIGINT", listener: () => void): this;
prependListener(event: "SIGTSTP", listener: () => void): this;
prependListener(event: "exit", listener: () => void): this;
prependListener(event: "reset", listener: (context: Context) => void): this;
prependOnceListener(event: string, listener: (...args: any[]) => void): this;
prependOnceListener(event: "close", listener: () => void): this;
prependOnceListener(event: "line", listener: (input: string) => void): this;
prependOnceListener(event: "pause", listener: () => void): this;
prependOnceListener(event: "resume", listener: () => void): this;
prependOnceListener(event: "SIGCONT", listener: () => void): this;
prependOnceListener(event: "SIGINT", listener: () => void): this;
prependOnceListener(event: "SIGTSTP", listener: () => void): this;
prependOnceListener(event: "exit", listener: () => void): this;
prependOnceListener(event: "reset", listener: (context: Context) => void): this;
}
/**
* A flag passed in the REPL options. Evaluates expressions in sloppy mode.
*/
export const REPL_MODE_SLOPPY: symbol; // TODO: unique symbol
/**
* A flag passed in the REPL options. Evaluates expressions in strict mode.
* This is equivalent to prefacing every repl statement with `'use strict'`.
*/
export const REPL_MODE_STRICT: symbol; // TODO: unique symbol
/**
* Creates and starts a `repl.REPLServer` instance.
*
* @param options The options for the `REPLServer`. If `options` is a string, then it specifies
* the input prompt.
*/
function start(options?: string | ReplOptions): REPLServer;
/**
* Indicates a recoverable error that a `REPLServer` can use to support multi-line input.
*
* @see https://nodejs.org/dist/latest-v10.x/docs/api/repl.html#repl_recoverable_errors
*/
class Recoverable extends SyntaxError {
err: Error;
constructor(err: Error);
}
}
| 2023-10-19T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/3012 |
Jimmy's Palace
After the customary visit to the Fort and the Church of St Lawrence, we saw a board that pointed towards the Central Jail and decided it would be worth a look-see.
The road curved and narrowed as we drove uphill on the side of a cliff and suddenly we were at a beautiful entrance comprising of some very nice landscaping, a domed gazebo with pillars in a lovely pink-and-white combination and some very nice flowers! Also a friendly solitary guard.
We asked him if this was the Central Jail (wondering to ourselves how Goa had such a fancy jail) and were told the more likely sounding theory - this was Jimmy's house. Jimmy who? we asked... Jimmy Gazadar said the guard. Can we see the home per chance, we asked? No, said the guard - boss is visiting. Can we take a photo? No, said the guard :-(
Well we decided to drive further down and realized the entire property is along the cliff face facing the ocean. At the end of the path is the central jail from where you can see the property and the ocean next to it.
It is a most beautiful house and a wonderful setting - straight out of the Mediterranean and also straight out of a James Bond movie!
This amazing property has been designed by Gerard Da Cunha, one of Goa's most famous architects. Rarely photographed from inside, it's owned by Jamshed Gazdar a.k.a Jimmy and has been known to host some amazing parties here. Jamshed was a Parsi gentleman from Mumbai and ran a large business in the logistics space. No no more, his son Cyrus is the current owner. | 2023-09-11T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/3486 |
Q:
Iterating over a dictionary and creating new one inside a for loop preserving order
I have code that is opening a file and reading a dictionary that is inside a dictionary. I want to take all the values from the key "time" and all the values from the key "close" and join them together as a key:value pair in a separate dictionary. My code achieves this however, I need the resulting dictionary to be ordered the same way it was from the dictionary i'm pulling from since they are dates. For some reason after the 3rd iteration the dates begin to get scrambled inside the new dictionary i've created. Any way to fix this?
Here's the sample
import json
import datetime
dict={}
def parsehistory():
file = json.load(open('histoday.json')) #open file
for i in range(len(file["Data"])): #iterate through subdictionaries
time = file["Data"][i]["time"] #get all values from key "time"
close = file["Data"][i]["close"] #get all values from key "close"
convert = datetime.datetime.utcfromtimestamp(time).strftime('%m-%d-%Y') #convert time from unix to UTC
dict[convert] = close #join values
print(dict)
Here is a sample of the output which is clearly not ordered by date like which it came {'02-05-2018': 6937.08, '02-03-2018': 9251.27, '02-06-2018': 7701.25, '02-21-2018': 10481.66,}
Any help is appreciated
A:
python dictionnaries are not ordered by default. You can create an OrderedDict if you want to remember the order of insertions.
Just replace your initialization of dict with:
dict = collections.OrderedDict()
The dictionnary will however be ordered by insertion order, not by date.
| 2023-09-26T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/5074 |
Oncology Volunteers: The Effect of a Personal Cancer History on Compassion and Psychological Well-Being.
The impact of support work on volunteers with a personal history of cancer has rarely been examined, despite the possibility that supporting distressed individuals may become a psychological burden for someone who has faced a life-threatening disease themselves. The purpose of this study is to compare compassion, self-compassion, self-coldness, and psychological well-being of oncology volunteers to the general population and clinical samples. Volunteers completed questionnaires on demographic and volunteer work-related characteristics, the Compassion Toward Others Scale, the Self-Compassion Scale, and the Psychological General Well-Being Index. Overall, volunteers indicated higher levels of self-compassion and psychological well-being and lower levels of self-coldness than clinical and community samples. Peer volunteers were less satisfied with their volunteer work and reported worse general health and psychological well-being than volunteers without a cancer history. | 2024-07-04T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/3446 |
First group ready to make bid on Sabres
'Sherry Bassin, owner of the Ontario Hockey League's Erie Otters, is less than a week away from formally submitting an offer on the NHL team, Bassin's partner Alan Maislin told a number of Buffalo media outlets on Friday.' | 2023-09-07T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/8279 |
Mother seeks PM's nod to let suffering daughter die
She has survived an amputation and numerous operations, though barely. But two years on, it's the trauma of government apathy that has left 12-year-old Sairabano, of Dankaur in Greater Noida, and her family, scarred the most.Purusharth Aradhak | TNN | Updated: December 01, 2015, 09:02 IST
either they project Modi as the face of the general election campaign or they adopt a lofty stand that the party is more important than any individual.Greater Noida: She has survived an amputation and numerous operations, though barely. But two years on, it's the trauma of government apathy that has left 12-year-old Sairabano, of Dankaur in Greater Noida, and her family, scarred the most.
TOI had reported the story of the girl on January 17 this year. Trapped under a 11,000-volt high tension wire on January 20, 2013, while studying on the roof of a mosque in Dankaur, Sairabano lost her vision and was left with a gaping hole in her face and burn wounds all over her body. On Monday, mother Nafeesa told TOI that fed up with government apathy, they had decided to demand the state's permission for her daughter to end her life, as they could not bear the expenses of her treatment any further. "We made all attempts to save her. We can't see her die slowly. I now feel my daughter should have died in the incident, as she wouldn't have to undergo such mental and physical trauma then," she said.
Her family has requested Prime Minister Narendra Modi and UP chief minister Akhilesh Yadav to intervene on behalf of their daughter, or allow her to commit suicide. Over the past two years, the family has mortgaged their home to borrow Rs 4.5 lakh for Sairabano's treatment. Doctors at a private Delhi hospital are now apparently demanding Rs 5 lakh for further surgery. But with neither police nor administration taking up the case since the accident, the family was forced to eventually approach the city court, which directed police to lodge an FIR in the case. Even that happened after TOI carried a story.
"I wanted to continue studies and serve the country as an IAS. But my physical condition won't allow me to achieve the goal," Sairbano said.
On the fateful morning of January 20, 2013, Sairabano was studying on the terrace of a mosque at Usmanpur village in Dankaur. As she got up to relieve herself, a high tension wire fell on her. The hot wire cut through her flesh even as it trapped her under its weight. "I got trapped under the wire and fainted," she said, recollecting the incident with horror. Half an hour later, she woke up writhing in pain from the burns and unable to see.
Over two years later, Sairabano has no vision in either eye and the wounds still hurt. "I pray that nobody has to go through the trauma we faced. As her mother, I felt helpless. Her screams still haunt me," said Nafeesa, a housewife. Sharafat, Sairabano's father, is a labourer who barely manages to make ends meet with an income of Rs 3,500 a month. The couple have two other children, Naushekh (14) and Rajbano (4).
But the family's ordeal was not over. To file the police complaint, they had to jump through hoops. When they approached Dankaur police station a few days after the accident, the policemen refused to register the complaint. Eventually, they approached the district court and managed to find a lawyer who was ready to help them file a case seeking for relief for Sairabano, and action against officials responsible for the accident.
After being turned away for six months, they had given up all hope of assistance. Then on September 30, 2013, the district court passed an order asking the police to lodge an FIR against the power department lineman and other officials, under appropriate sections, and probe the case. "The district court order gave us a ray of hope. We took the court order to Dankaur PS, but the station in-charge demanded Rs 10,000 as bribe to lodge an FIR. I approached senior police and administration officials, but in vain. Police lodged an FIR only after TOI did a story, but the accused are still at large," said Nafeesa.
With no government aid available, the family took loans and visited hospitals across Delhi-NCR for Sairabano's recovery. "When we did not get any government aid, despite our BPL status, we decided to provide Sairabano the best treatment possible ourselves. We borrowed money. We managed to save her life, but for what?" | 2024-04-10T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/3111 |
Effect of E-Beam Irradiation on Microbial Load, Stability of Active Components, and Anti-Inflammatory Activity of Cnidii Rhizoma and Alismatis Rhizoma.
To reduce microbial loads in medicinal herbs, Cnidii Rhizoma and Alismatis Rhizoma were subjected to electron-beam (e-beam) irradiation at doses (≤10 kGy) as permitted by the Korean Food Code. The effects of e-beam irradiation on the microbial load, stability of the active components, and anti-inflammatory activity of medicinal herbs were determined. We observed that the total aerobic bacteria (TAB; 4.0-7.0 log CFU/g), yeasts and molds (Y&M; 3.3-6.8 log CFU/g), and coliform counts (CC; 3.2-3.8 log CFU/g) in both herb samples were effectively reduced in a dose-dependent manner, resulting in acceptable levels of <3.0 log CFU/g in TAB and Y&M and negative in CC at 10 kGy irradiation. The concentration of the active components (0.87-4.22 mg/g) of Cnidii Rhizoma, including z-ligustilide, chlorogenic acid, senkyunolide A, and ferulic acid, in order of prevalence and those (0.86-2.76 mg/g) of Alismatis Rhizoma, including Alisol B acetate and Alisol B, were not changed at irradiation doses of ≤10 kGy. The extracts of e-beam irradiated Cnidii Rhizoma and Alismatis Rhizoma showed a reduced production of inflammation-related factors, such as nitric oxide, prostaglandin E2, interleukin (IL)-1β, and IL-6, in a concentration-dependent manner, which was induced by lipopolysaccharide in RAW 264.7 cell. However, there was no significant difference observed at e-beam irradiation doses of 0, 1, 5, and 10 kGy. Thus, we confirm that e-beam irradiation up to 10 kGy was effective for the control of microbial load in Cnidii Rhizoma and Alismatis Rhizoma without causing considerable changes in their major active components and anti-inflammatory activity. The results show the potential of e-beam application for sanitization of medicinal herbs. | 2024-04-23T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/4112 |
-- +migrate Up
UPDATE %%PREFIX%%_tree set leaf = 0 where leaf is null;
UPDATE %%PREFIX%%_tree set etag = "" where etag is null;
UPDATE %%PREFIX%%_tree set size = 0 where size is null;
UPDATE %%PREFIX%%_tree set mode = "0" where mode is null;
ALTER TABLE %%PREFIX%%_tree MODIFY COLUMN `leaf` TINYINT(1) NOT NULL DEFAULT 0 AFTER `name`;
ALTER TABLE %%PREFIX%%_tree MODIFY COLUMN `etag` VARCHAR(255) NOT NULL DEFAULT "" AFTER `mtime`;
ALTER TABLE %%PREFIX%%_tree MODIFY COLUMN `size` BIGINT NOT NULL DEFAULT 0 AFTER `etag`;
ALTER TABLE %%PREFIX%%_tree MODIFY COLUMN `mode` VARCHAR(10) NOT NULL DEFAULT "" AFTER `size`;
-- +migrate Down | 2024-06-07T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/9378 |
Radial mycotic aneurysm complicated with infective endocarditis caused by Streptococcus sanguinis.
Peripheral mycotic aneurysm is a rare complication of infective endocarditis. We herein report the case of a 61-year-old man with a mycotic aneurysm in the left brachial artery, that appeared during treatment with antibiotics against infective endocarditis caused by Streptococcus sanguinis. After confirming the collateral blood flow on arteriography, we resected the aneurysm and performed valvuloplasty, annuloplasty and coronary artery bypass grafting. The patient has been in good condition without complications, such as motor dysfunction or neuropathy. | 2024-04-11T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/6379 |
package io.cattle.platform.servicediscovery.process;
import static io.cattle.platform.core.model.tables.ServiceTable.*;
import io.cattle.platform.core.constants.CommonStatesConstants;
import io.cattle.platform.core.constants.InstanceConstants;
import io.cattle.platform.core.model.Instance;
import io.cattle.platform.core.model.Service;
import io.cattle.platform.core.model.ServiceExposeMap;
import io.cattle.platform.engine.handler.HandlerResult;
import io.cattle.platform.engine.handler.ProcessPostListener;
import io.cattle.platform.engine.process.ProcessInstance;
import io.cattle.platform.engine.process.ProcessState;
import io.cattle.platform.lock.LockCallbackNoReturn;
import io.cattle.platform.lock.LockManager;
import io.cattle.platform.object.process.StandardProcess;
import io.cattle.platform.process.common.handler.AbstractObjectProcessLogic;
import io.cattle.platform.servicediscovery.api.dao.ServiceExposeMapDao;
import io.cattle.platform.servicediscovery.deployment.impl.lock.ServiceInstanceLock;
import io.cattle.platform.servicediscovery.service.ServiceDiscoveryService;
import io.cattle.platform.util.type.Priority;
import io.github.ibuildthecloud.gdapi.condition.Condition;
import io.github.ibuildthecloud.gdapi.condition.ConditionType;
import java.util.List;
import javax.inject.Inject;
import javax.inject.Named;
@Named
public class SelectorInstancePostListener extends AbstractObjectProcessLogic implements ProcessPostListener,
Priority {
@Inject
ServiceDiscoveryService sdService;
@Inject
ServiceExposeMapDao exposeMapDao;
@Inject
LockManager lockManager;
@Override
public String[] getProcessNames() {
return new String[] { InstanceConstants.PROCESS_START };
}
@Override
public HandlerResult handle(ProcessState state, ProcessInstance process) {
final Instance instance = (Instance) state.getResource();
List<Service> services = objectManager.find(Service.class, SERVICE.ACCOUNT_ID, instance.getAccountId(),
SERVICE.REMOVED, null, SERVICE.SELECTOR_CONTAINER, new Condition(ConditionType.NOTNULL));
for (final Service service : services) {
if (sdService.isSelectorContainerMatch(service.getSelectorContainer(), instance)) {
lockManager.lock(new ServiceInstanceLock(service, instance), new LockCallbackNoReturn() {
@Override
public void doWithLockNoResult() {
ServiceExposeMap exposeMap = exposeMapDao.createServiceInstanceMap(service, instance, false);
if (exposeMap.getState().equalsIgnoreCase(CommonStatesConstants.REQUESTED)) {
objectProcessManager.scheduleStandardProcessAsync(StandardProcess.CREATE, exposeMap,
null);
}
}
});
}
}
return null;
}
@Override
public int getPriority() {
return Priority.DEFAULT;
}
}
| 2023-09-19T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/5458 |
Cosatu’s failure to govern
Mamokgethi Molopyane
Supporters of the Congress of South Africa Trade Unions (Cosatu) and affiliate unions march through Johannesburg, 27 September 2017, in a show of force against corruption and state capture. The placards read: "Zuma must go". Thousands marched through the Johannesburg CBD and were joined by colleagues in all nine provinces. Picture: Michel Bega
How will Sdumo Dlamini spin himself out of this one?
You’d think for its historical robustness, organised labour in South Africa, particularly Cosatu, would be preoccupied with bettering working conditions, ramping up the fight for living wages or negotiating for reselling of retrenched workers.
One wonders how they can remain blind to the past ten years’ decline in the union membership. One would have thought that common sense would lead unions to return to the basics by championing and protecting workers’ interests.
This is said, while recognising the difference unions can make in the broader political economy given labour’s ability to wield influence on economic and political levers alike.
Yet this weekend a City Press article alleged that Cosatu president Sdumo Dlamini’ accepted a payment for apparently helping to facilitate a meeting that resulted in the president Jacob Zumba retaining Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Minister Senzeni Zokwana in his Cabinet post the 2016 local government elections. If true this points to a union leader whose intentions are not altruistic.
In recent times Dlamini’s reputation has taken a knock. This followed the unpopular expulsion of Numsa and his support for former president Jacob Zuma. Allegations that he received a R300 000 bribe, which is now part of the Hawks investigation into Zuma, could be his undoing. I cannot see how he will dance, sing or spin his way out of this one.
What afflicts Dlamini also afflicts Cosatu. There is, after all, an intricate link between his personal troubles (being accused of accepting bribery) and the outside issue he has no control over – the Hawks investigation of Zuma.
I wonder therefore, if Cosatu finds itself stuck in the middle of what American socialist C Wright Mills called personal troubles and public issues. Public issues in the sense that allegations of corruption, greed and pursuit of money are seen as culture within the arena of world politics. The tripartite alliance is no exception. And personal troubles in that leaders and politicians are individuals who can be corrupted, who are driven by money and greed, are immoral and easily bribed, and use their positions to accumulate wealth and advance self-interest.
This is as much a problem for Dlamini as it is for Cosatu. There is no doubt that these allegations will ‘bring the federation into disrepute’. Was it not the case that personal troubles were among the charges (that brief encounter with subordinate female staff) that undid Zwelinzima Vavi’s reign and saw him facing disciplinary action? And it’s public knowledge that some of its affiliated unions are embroiled in factional battles, poorly-managing investment arms, irregularities involving workers’ money and weakened structures. The current leadership nationality crisis in Satawu being the most prominent.
It would be wrong to simply dismiss the fresh allegations as part of a smear campaign, at least on the part of Cosatu. South Africa’s political culture, especially within the tripartite alliance, has the uncanny ability to quickly move on from matters that should be attended to.
It should be no surprise, then, that Cosatu’s governance institutions have failed or are failing to uphold their rules and laws. That gap has been quickly filled by cunning individuals who are emboldened into committing acts that bring leaders into disrepute within the organisation because they know there’s nothing or no one to hold them accountable.
This is not just a Cosatu problem, it runs throughout the tripartite alliance, in fact it is a global issue. When organisational institutions that are meant to enforce laws and norms fail, new informal laws and norms take over. This is neither the first time, nor will it be the last time a union leader is accused of being on the wrong side of the law while they’re supposed to be representing workers.
However, Cosatu that has always been loud about public and private sector, individual and organisation corruption, and supported a president of their alliance partner who made cleaning up, accountability and new dawn his theme. Inaction on their part amounts to failing to do what’s good for the workers – not that they have done so recently. The last ten years have shown us while its leaders have been up to something, putting workers’ interests first hasn’t been on the agenda. | 2023-10-10T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/7387 |
Treatment of hypercholesterolemia with the HMG CoA reductase inhibitor, simvastatin.
We report the results of a two center study on the use of the HMG Co A reductase inhibitor, simvastatin, in 44 patients suffering from familial hypercholesterolemia or from primary hypercholesterolemia of unknown etiology. The study included two separate phases: Phase I was part of a multicenter, 4-week, placebo-controlled trial; phase II was a 6-month, open extension trial, the object of which was to reduce low density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol levels to below the 50th percentile by increasing the dose of simvastatin, by the use of additional lipid-lowering medication, or both. Our phase I results were commensurate with those reported for the entire international cohort of 272 patients, indicating a clear dose-response relationship, with approximately 75% of the maximum reduction in LDL-C levels being achieved with 20 mg/day and over 90% of the maximum being achieved with 40 mg of simvastatin per day. In the open extension trial, the results from the 2 centers were essentially similar. Total cholesterol fell by 29% on the 20 mg/day dose and by 34% on the full dose of 40 mg/day. LDL-C levels were reduced by 40% on the 40 mg/day schedule, and triglycerides also fell to between 20% and 40% below baseline values. HDL-C concentration rose by 14% and 17.6%. The effects of simvastatin were uniform, both within and between the two cohorts. The addition of cholestyramine caused a further substantial reduction in LDL-cholesterol to below 55% of the initial value in four patients, whereas bezafibrate further enhanced the fall in triglycerides and the increase in high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, but had only a slight effect on LDL-C levels.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS) | 2024-04-12T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/4421 |
Lymphoblastoid alpha-interferon in the prevention of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in high-risk HbsAg-positive resected cirrhotic HCC cases: a 14-year follow-up.
Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a leading cause of death worldwide. It is also a common long-term complication of chronic hepatitis B or C infections, with cirrhosis as a risk factor for premalignant development. Natural lymphoblastoid alpha-interferon (alpha N1-IFN) has been widely used in treating chronic HBV and HCV carriers. To investigate its long-term beneficial effect in reducing the development of HCC, 20 hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) positive resected cirrhotic HCC patients who have undergone chemotherapy followed by long-term treatment of 3MU alpha N1-IFN daily for 10 days every 3 months were analyzed in a 14 year follow-up. Results indicated that these patients survived and remained free of HCC. In contrast, 10 other patients receiving chemotherapy alone after resection eventually had HCC recur. Similar recurrence of HCC was seen in patients who had either reduced dosage of alpha N1-IFN or stopped interferon therapy or received 30MU dose at 6-month intervals. Our findings indicate the therapeutic potential and long-term safety of alpha N1-IFN in suppressing the development of HCC in high-risk patients. | 2023-11-30T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/3255 |
Expression of p16 in lymph node metastases of adjuvantly treated stage III colorectal cancer patients identifies poor prognostic subgroups: a retrospective analysis of biomarkers in matched primary tumor and lymph node metastases.
The objective of identifying protein biomarkers for patients with stage III and IV colorectal cancer is to improve risk stratification and, thus, to identify patients in the postoperative setting who may benefit from more targeted treatment. The objective of the current study was to determine the prognostic value of 19 protein markers assessed in primary tumors and matched lymph node (LN) metastases from patients with stage III and IV colorectal cancer. Matched primary tumors and LN metastases from 82 patients with stage III and IV colorectal cancer were mounted onto a multiple-punch tissue microarray and were stained for 19 protein markers involved in tumor progression (β-catenin, E-cadherin, epidermal growth factor receptor, phosphorylated extracellular signal-regulated kinase [pERK], receptor for hyaluronic acid-mediated motility, phosphorylated protein kinase B, p21, p16, B-cell lymphoma 2, Ki67, apoptotic protease activating factor 1, mammalian sterile 20-like kinase 1, Raf kinase inhibitor protein, vascular endothelial growth factor, ephrin type-B receptor 2, matrix metalloproteinase 7, laminin5γ2, mucin 1 [MUC1], and caudal-related homeobox 2). The prognostic effects of biomarkers in both primary tumor and positive LNs were assessed. MUC1, pERK and p16 in LN (P=.002, P=.014, and P=.002, respectively) had independent prognostic value. In patients with stage III disease who received adjuvant treatment, negative p16 expression was associated with highly unfavorable outcomes overall (hazard ratio [HR], 0.26; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.1-0.6; P=.005) when the analysis was stratified by pathologic tumor classification (HR, 0.25; 95% CI, 0.1-0.7; P=.005), age (HR, 0.23; 95% CI, 0.1-0.6; P=.004), and LN ratio (HR, 0.26; 95% CI, 0.1-0.7; P=.007); and, in multivariate analysis, it was associated with performance status and the receipt of folic acid treatment (HR, 0.29; 95% CI, 0.09-0.89; P=.03). The loss of p16 in LN metastases contributed to adverse outcomes in adjuvantly treated patients with stage III colorectal cancer independent of pathologic tumor classification, age, LN ratio, performance status, or folic acid treatment. The current results support the investigation of p16 as a prognostic and potential predictive biomarker for future randomized trials of patients with stage III colorectal cancer. | 2024-04-15T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/8512 |
It is common in many industries that various materials or mixtures of materials require drying at some stage of processing. One example is the drying of (i.e. the removal of water from) coal and coal wash fines in the mining industry. Traditionally, industrial drying has been accomplished through application of heat to bring a moisture laden material to elevated temperatures so that the moisture will evaporate and/or boil away from the material. This approach, however, requires large amounts of energy to produce and apply the heat. This energy is usually derived from the burning of fossil or other fuels, which is not very efficient, is not generally eco-friendly, and in fact is a pollution generator in its own right. At least partially for these reasons, the burning of fossil fuels in the coal mining industry to dry material such as coal wash fines is strictly regulated.
In addition to drying needs, there are industrial needs for transitioning a substance with a vapor pressure threshold from one phase to another phase. Examples include, distilling, mixing, desalinating, recovering oil from oil shale and oil sands, recovering purified distilled water from contaminated water, distilling alcohols from a mash or other mixture, and many others. Desalinization of seawater to produce potable water is one example of a desalinating application. Traditional techniques for desalinizing seawater have tended to require large amounts of externally generated energy in the form of heat, which, again, usually involves the burning of fossil fuels, is exceedingly inefficient, and generally is not eco-friendly. Artificial snow-making also is an industry where the making of artificial snow from water is energy intensive and inefficient, and produces a poor substitute for natural snow. Pond evaporation is another example of an industry that consumes large amounts of energy to produce heat for boiling water or other substances, pollutes the atmosphere, and is generally inefficient. The above examples represent only a few throughout various industries.
A need exists for methods and systems to perform these and many other related industrial tasks more efficiently, using much less energy, requiring the addition of little or no externally generated heat or thermal energy, and in a manner that produces little or no harmful atmospheric emissions and thus is eco-friendly. It is to the provision of such methods and systems that the present disclosure is primarily directed. | 2024-03-29T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/1861 |
Community Gardens
A community garden can draw people together around two common focal points: beauty and good food. Positive garden activity creates safer communities.The criminal element can be driven out of a neighborhood by turning a trash-strewn vacant lot that is home base for illegal activity, into a place of beauty filled with positive activities.
When neighbors walk by a community garden and see their neighbors gardening, they have common interests to talk to each other about. This can lead to the formation of relationships, connectedness, safer and more positive feelings about where they live and to the development of a community where people look out for each other. | 2024-01-28T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/9166 |
i had a look at your link Mark, and wonder how many people actually do what they say about subwoofers:"In eastern Massachusetts a grinder is a toasted sub, for example the sub is toasted in a pizza oven"
i would not do that with mine, even with the promise that sound would be improved.
i suspect this is another audio myth.i would prefer to throw a pinch of salt towards the sub for good luck (and better sound). | 2023-12-30T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/7634 |
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Monthly Archives: March 2014
Given all the information on doshas and imbalances, on the six tastes, and on various food qualities, how do we ultimately decide what food is best for us? While it is true that a person with a particular mind/body balance is most likely to over-accumulate the dosha that predominates, this is not always the case.
Due to our modern lifestyle, filled with so much sensory stimulation, computers, travel, stress, multi-tasking and irregular sleep habits, a large percentage of people end up with some kind of Vata imbalance. So while it is true that a Vata dominated type will most likely develop Vata imbalances, Pitta and Kapha types can also find themselves with Vata imbalances.
Those trying to lose weight often assume that they should avoid Kapha-type foods. But in fact it could easily be that an underlying Vata or Pitta imbalance is causing poor digestion, triggering food cravings and comfort eating, thus leading to weight gain. Eating light salads, raw vegetables and other light, cold foods (and in some cases spicy foods) would only serve to aggravate these imbalances and work against weight loss. In creating an Ayurveda weight loss program or any other kind of targeted health regime, it is recommended to see an expert in Ayurveda pulse assessment before committing to a particular diet.
It is important to defer, initially, to an intellectual understanding of recommended foods. Suppose you are craving chocolate. The taste of chocolate is both bitter and sweet. When we get cravings it usually means our body requires the nutrients naturally provided by foods with those tastes (especially the bitter taste which tends to go missing in our western diet). Rice and spinach provide sweet and bitter tastes and are probably the kinds of foods that what the body is actually looking for. But the mind turns that craving for sweet and bitter into a craving for chocolate. Bad habits can create “false” desires. Sometimes retraining the mind/body is necessary before we can trust our instincts to lead us to the proper diet. Once we develop truly natural eating habits, the body itself becomes the best Ayurvedic authority.
There are two different approaches to diet: balancing and purifying. A balancing diet includes all six tastes but favors more of those that will help pacify the one or two doshas that are out of balance. A purifying diet targets the build-up of ama in the system. Ama is the end product of poorly digested food. It is said to be at the basis of the vast majority of illnesses and disorders. Because ama contributes to the early stages of so many diseases, reducing ama and enhancing digestion is a critical part of the Ayurvedic understanding of balanced health. Next week we’ll look at an ama-reducing diet and how we can promote ideal digestion.
( Picture of Ayurveda food. Source: Google Advance Image Search. Creative Commons. The image is used under the terms of Googles Creative Commons rules:http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en. This photograph and credit do not constitute an endorsement of this blog or products mentioned.)
Last week we looked at the Ayurveda principle of including all six tastes in every meal in order to assure balanced nutrition — and balanced doshas. This week we will explore the building blocks of both the doshas and the six tastes: the five “mahabhutas” or primordial elements of creation. These elements are earth (prithivi), water (jala), fire (tejas), air (vayu) and space (akasha). These elements combine in different ways to make up the three doshas and the six tastes.
Doshas
Vata is a combination of space (akasha) and air (vayu).
Pitta is a combination of fire (tejas) and, in lesser amounts, water (jala)
As an example, we can see how vata, being made of the combination of air and space, would be aggravated by the bitter taste, which is dominated by air and space, as well as by the pungent and astringent tastes, which both contain the element of air. Qualities are increased by similar qualities and reduced by their opposites.
There are also additional pairs of food properties that can affect the balance of our doshas. These pairs are: heavy and light, cold and hot, and oily and dry.
Heavy and Light:
Heavy foods increase kapha and reduce vata
Light foods increase vata and reduce kapha
Cold and Hot
Cold foods increase kapha and vata and reduce pitta
Hot foods increase pitta and reduce vata and kapha
Oily and Dry
Oily foods increase kapha and reduce vata
Dry foods increase vata and reduce kapha
Not only do these qualities affect the doshas, they can also be natural signals regarding the nutritional value of the food. For example, heavier foods are harder to digest than lighter foods. If a person has a low digestive capacity, that person should take care to favor lighter foods. In the same way that a large log can snuff out a fire, too much heavy food can overload even a normal digestive system. This will result in the creation of ama, or impurties in the body. Common heavy foods include meat and oil and fatty foods.
Next week we will look into improving digestion, avoiding ama, and look at the difference between balancing and purifying diets. Ideally an Ayurveda consultation with an expert in pulse assessment will allow you to pinpoint the tastes and qualities of food that are best suited to balance your doshas and to enhance your digestion.
Find more information at The Raj Ayurveda Health Spa and Treatment Center:
One of the most basic principles in Ayurveda is that all of the six tastes should be included in every meal. This helps to assure that the food we are eating gives us complete nutrition, that our diet is balancing all three doshas, and that our food gives us a sense of satisfaction. Eating all six tastes has also been said to stimulate the proper sequence of the digestive process.
If you repeatedly omit some of the six tastes you may develop food cravings or find yourself searching the cupboards for “something more”. This can lead to weight gain or binging. The simple step of making sure you have included all of the tastes can help to overcome unnatural eating habits, often leading to easy and natural weight loss.
The six tastes are: sweet, sour, salty, bitter, astringent (dry and puckering) and pungent (spicy). If you have one or more doshas that are out of balance or that tend to go out of balance you will want to include greater quantities of certain tastes in order to balance your individual constitution. Different combinations of tastes bring different doshas into balance. For instance, vata dosha is balanced by increased amounts of salty, sour and sweet tastes. Pitta is reduced by bitter, sweet and astringent tastes. And kapha is balance by pungent, bitter and astringent tastes.
Next week we’ll look at the six tastes and their connection with the five “mahabhutas”—the primordial elements of creation (earth, water, fire, air and space). This week we will review the six tastes one by one:
Sweet foods, because they are cold and heavy, increase kapha. If eaten in excess they can cause weight gain, a dull or sleepy mind, and congestion. Vata types benefit from sweet foods because sweet adds steadiness and physical energy. Sweet can also help pacify pitta because it cools the body.
Sour foods enhance digestion and increase thirst. Excessive thirst is a pitta characteristic, but because sour foods trigger the desire for more water, they can also make your body heavier (more kapha). Too much sour food can create sharp, acidic problems such as ulcers, blood chemistry imbalances, acne and rashes, and heartburn. Vata types benefit from eating sour food because it stimulated digestion.
Salty foods include: Salt, soy sauce, seaweed, and kelp
Salt is hot and spicy, increasing Pitta in the body. It also attaches itself to water molecules, making tissues heavier—a kapha function. Too much salt can lead to pitta disorders, such as inflammation, acne and overeating. Kapha disorders, such as becoming overweight, are also aggravated by too much salt. Salt is a good taste for balancing vata b because it stimulates and steadies digestion.
Because of their light, cool, dry quality, too much bitter foods can put vata out of balance, diminishing the appetite and causing weight loss, headaches, unsteadiness, dry skin and weakness. Like sweet tastes, bitter foods cool the body and are therefore pitta pacifying.
Pungent foods are hot and spicy. For kapha imbalances, pungent foods are ideal for heating up your body and clearing congestion. Too much spicy food can cause excessive thirst, irritation, or anger in pitta types or in anyone during hot weather.
One simple option is to use “churnas”, special spice mixtures that are formulated to include all six tastes. However this shortcut has its drawbacks. Getting the bitter taste from spices is not going to give your the same exposure to the health-creating vitamins, minerals, and cancer-fighting components contained in foods such as brussel’s sprouts and kale.
A consultation with a Vedic expert can help you determine which tastes should predominate in your meals in order to provide optimum balance. For more information on consultations at The Raj Ayurveda Health Spa and Treatment Center, visit
(Photo of vegetables. Source: Google Advance Image Search.
Creative Commons. The image is used under the terms of Googles Creative Commons rules:http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en. This photograph and credit do not constitute an endorsement of this blog or products mentioned.)
Just as specialists such as meteorologists and auto mechanics have special tools to help them in their field, Ayurvedic experts use “nadi vigyan” (pulse assessment) to evaluate your mind/body make-up and to pin-point potential weaknesses in the physiology.
When an Ayurvedic expert takes your pulse, he or she does not count the beats per minute. Rather, the expert places three fingers on the artery of your wrist and detects patterns and rhythms that signal your body’s state of health.
“What we feel in the pulse is the direct reflection of the physiology where consciousness first sprouts into matter,” says Mark Toomey, head of the Vedic Health office at The Raj Ayurveda Health Spa and Treatment Center. “From this level our assessment has maximum value.”
With this ancient tool, experts can determine your “prakriti” (existing mind/body balance) and detect your “vikriti” (any area that is out of balance and which, if left untreated, may sprout into disease or disorder.)
Equally important is the identification of vikriti. Vikriti refers to any accumulation of the three doshas that is not natural or appropriate for the individual. Imbalance in the doshas can be caused by a variety of reasons, including stressful activity and wrong diet or routine for one’s particular body type (prakriti).
Taking the pulse allows the Vedic expert to determine not only which dosha is imbalanced but also the exact location of that imbalance in the body. This is done by analyzing the five subdivisions, or “subdoshas”, of vata, pitta and kapha.
For instance, you may have an imbalance of apana vata, the subdivision of vata located in the colon and lower abdomen. This could cause gas, constipation, or even lower back pain. Or you might have an imbalance in tarpika kapha, the subdosha of kapha located in the sinus cavities, head and spinal fluid. This is linked to sinus conditions, hay fever, and sinus headaches.
Once these imbalances are identified, specific dietary and lifestyle changes, herbal remedies and Ayurveda treatments can be recommended to treat the subdoshas that are out of balance.
“Detecting and treating imbalances at this early stage can help prevent illness,” says Toomey. “This makes pulse assessment a powerful tool for promoting and maintain health and vitality.”
To schedule an appointment for an Ayurveda Pulse Assessment or to learn more about the Ayurveda approach to health, contact The Raj:
Like this:
I’ve never understood why brussels sprouts have such a bad reputation. Smothered in butter and sprinkled with salt, they have always been one of my favorites. Lately I’ve switched to olive oil and still love them. Given their long list of amazing health benefits, brussels sprouts are vegetables that should be added to everyone’s grocery list.
I’ve come across a few tips for cooking brussels sprouts to get the most out of their health-improving benefits and the most out of their flavor. You’ll find them down at the end of the blog. But first, let’s look at what this wonderfood does for us.
1. Researchers now believe that brussels sprouts have a unique ability to protect DNA. Daily consumption of 1.25 cups of brussels sprouts was linked with the improved stability of DNA within white blood cells.
2. Brussels sprouts help fight cancer. They beat out kale, broccoli, cauliflower, and cabbage (all part of the cruciferous vegetable group) in providing glucosinolates. Glucosinolates are the chemical starting points for a variety of cancer-protecting components. Two examples:
–Sinigrin is a glucosinolate that prompts pre-cancerous cells to “commit suicide” – a natural process called apoptosis. According to scientists at the Institute of Food Research in Norwich, the effect is so powerful that even the occasional meal of brussels sprouts can destroy precancerous cells.
–Sulforaphane (another glucosinolate in brussles sprouts) has been proven to trigger the liver to produce enzymes that detoxify the body of cancer-causing chemicals. They have also been shown to inhibit chemically induced breast cancers in animal studies. Research published in the Journal of Nutrition shows that sulforaphane can halt the proliferation of breast cancer cells, even in the later stages of their growth.
3. Brussels sprouts, especially when steamed, can help lower cholesterol levels. Apparently steaming the mini-cabbages allows them to better bind with bile acids in the digestive tract. This makes it easier for bile acids to be excreted from the body. The result is a lowering of cholesterol levels.
4. Protein! While many vegetables contain small amounts of protein, brussels sprouts have enough to make them a meat-substitute.
5. Brussels sprouts are full of things that we need: Vitamin A helps the body fight against infection (and promotes a glowing complexion). With three times the amount of vitamin C as oranges, this super-vegetable helps maintain healthy tissues and organs. The vitamin D in brussels sprouts aids in the absorption of calcium and phosphate, allowing for stronger bones. It also supports brain cell functioning. The vegetable is also an excellent source of vitamins B6 and K and contains iron, copper, manganese, magnesium, phosphorous and potassium.
6. Brussels sprouts boost fertility in men and women due to their high levels of folic acid. Folic acid helps line the womb with the proper nutrients, thus raising sperm survival chances. Folic acid has also been associated with increased sperm levels.
The Washington Health Foundation recommends eating 1 1/2 cups of brussels sprouts two to three times a week. They also recommend adding additional cruciferous vegetables twice a week and upping their amount to 2 cups.
Here’s a more expanded list of health-promoting cruciferous vegetables:
Overcooking brussels sprouts has two disadvantages. Not only do you lose much of their nutritional value and taste, they also begin to have an unpleasant odor. To get the most out of the vegetable, cut each sprout in quarters and let them sit for 5 minutes, then steam for an additional 5 minutes. (There is a whole science behind letting them sit after you chop them — some even suggest adding lemon juice at this stage. For now lets just say it helps activate healthy enzymes). Or chop and add to a stir-fry mix. Or, if you really don’t like the taste, chop them into tiny pieces and sprinkle over a salad. While raw brussels sprouts won’t yield the vegetable’s full nutritional value, you will still get a great deal of the benefits of this wonder-food.
To take a dosha test and find out what vegetables best support your body type, visit The Raj Ayurveda Health Spa website: | 2024-06-06T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/7687 |
Q:
App crashes if app is closed using Push service: parse.com
I replace receiver in manifest to mine:
<receiver android:name="com.myparse.app.MyReceiver"
android:exported="false">
<intent-filter>
<action android:name="com.parse.push.intent.RECEIVE" />
<action android:name="com.parse.push.intent.DELETE" />
<action android:name="com.parse.push.intent.OPEN" />
</intent-filter>
</receiver>
This is my MyReceiver:
public class MyReceiver extends ParsePushBroadcastReceiver {
@Override
protected void onPushReceive(Context mContext, Intent intent) {
// super.onPushReceive(arg0, arg1);
if (intent.hasExtra("com.parse.Data")){
String jsonString=intent.getExtras().getString("com.parse.Data");
//-------------
}
public void onPushOpen(Context context, Intent intent) {
//To track "App Opens"
ParseAnalytics.trackAppOpenedInBackground(intent);
//Here is data you sent
Log.i("", intent.getExtras().getString( "com.parse.Data" ));
Intent i = new Intent(context, MainActivity.class);
i.putExtras(intent.getExtras());
i.setFlags(Intent.FLAG_ACTIVITY_NEW_TASK);
context.startActivity(i);
}
}
All works fine
But if I close the app , and then sending a push notification-> the app crashes with following logs:
11-09 21:13:11.621: E/com.parse.PushService(23087): The Parse push service cannot start because Parse.initialize has not yet been called. If you call Parse.initialize from an Activity's onCreate, that call should instead be in the Application.onCreate. Be sure your Application class is registered in your AndroidManifest.xml with the android:name property of your <application> tag.
11-09 21:13:11.626: E/AndroidRuntime(23087): FATAL EXCEPTION: main
11-09 21:13:11.626: E/AndroidRuntime(23087): java.lang.RuntimeException: Unable to start service com.parse.PushService@4203adb0 with Intent { act=com.google.android.c2dm.intent.RECEIVE flg=0x10 pkg=com.myparse.app cmp=com.myparse.app/com.parse.PushService (has extras) }: java.lang.RuntimeException: applicationContext is null. You must call Parse.initialize(context, applicationId, clientKey) before using the Parse library.
11-09 21:13:11.626: E/AndroidRuntime(23087): at android.app.ActivityThread.handleServiceArgs(ActivityThread.java:2782)
11-09 21:13:11.626: E/AndroidRuntime(23087): at dalvik.system.NativeStart.main(Native Method)
11-09 21:13:11.626: E/AndroidRuntime(23087): Caused by: java.lang.RuntimeException: applicationContext is null. You must call Parse.initialize(context, applicationId, clientKey) before using the Parse library.
11-09 21:13:11.626: E/AndroidRuntime(23087): at com.parse.Parse.checkContext(Parse.java:606)
A:
I experienced the same problem, and solved it by adding
android:name=".MyApplication" to the application tag in the Android manifest, and then creating a new class that looks like this:
public class MyApplication extends Application
{
@Override
public void onCreate() {
Parse.initialize(getApplicationContext(), myAppId, myClientKey);
}
}
Previously I'd put the Parse initialisation call in the onCreate() method of my main Activity, but as the error message you posted suggests, the subtleties of the Android lifecycle mean you can't do that.
| 2023-10-16T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/8180 |
Roger Rees -- a Tony-winning theater star also widely known for his TV roles, including in "The West Wing" and as Robin Colcord on "Cheers" -- has died, his representative Rick Miramontez said Saturday.
An anti-abortion group released a controversial online video Tuesday purportedly showing a top official at Planned Parenthood talking about body parts of aborted fetuses. The group contends the video is proof that Planned Parenthood sells organs and tissues according to a news release from the Center for Medical Progress. | 2024-01-16T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/5258 |
At this moment being "correct" on the history and theology—and feeling guilty about Christianity's role in supporting Jew hatred—will not suffice.
Plaque of quote from Martin Niemoeller from Wikipedia.
Religion Dispatches has moved back home to religiondispatches.org . You can also find Rewire News Group’ religion coverage here
“[T]he old covenant has been fulfilled and ended and a new and better way of relating to God is now available to us.” – Andy Stanley, Christianity Today, October 19, 2018
Liberal Christians—my tribe—have the kind of complex and loving relationship with Jews and Judaism that prompts us to grieve and to show up in solidarity when something like the Pittsburgh shooting happens. We’ve studied the grisly history of Christian anti-Judaism. We see the connection between, say, the Gospels’ collective blaming of Jews for the death of Christ and the deep stain of anti-Semitism running through the entire history of European Christianity. We quote our Martin Niemoeller’s “First they came for…” poem with abandon, even though it’s not clear that Niemoeller actually said what is commonly attributed to him.
We do not believe in supersessionism—the belief that Christians have replaced Jews as God’s people, a belief so widely understood as a major contributor to anti-Semitism that numerous Christian denominations rejected it after the Holocaust—and we complain about the vast majority of our fellow Christians who do, as articulated in the epigraph above from the most prestigious evangelical publication in the US.
And then what?
This moment of terror for American Jews calls for a little more soul searching and a lot more action. Being “correct” on the history and theology—and feeling guilty about Christianity’s central role in supporting Jew hatred—will not suffice.
We might ponder this paradox: How is it that Judaism is both the most admired major faith and the most reviled? Is there a a deep and dangerous sibling rivalry at work here—a weird resentment that lurks even in the hearts of those of us who think we’ve completely uprooted all traces of anti-Semitism from our consciousness?
Further, in thinking about the resurgence of white nationalism, do we see clearly how it’s an insistence on white Christian supremacy that most accurately characterizes the powerful poison in the body politic? That was true in the KKK’s revival during the 1920s, and it’s still true now. The haters have a very specific idea about who is entitled to be “white,” and in their minds Jews will never qualify.
On the action tip, what are we prepared to do beyond the statements and the solidarity vigils now taking place? If ever there were a moment to rededicate ourselves to working for radical inclusion, this would be that moment. Those of us who have pulpits or other platforms should say clearly, Yes, we are internationalists—and here is what that means. No, we will not tolerate a politics that treats anyone as “lesser than” or less deserving of justice and dignity. And every single time we see marginalization and injustice happening we will speak up and show up.
What has been a long-running culture war is rapidly morphing into what looks to be, effectively, even without the gunfire, actual civil war—or at the very least the moral equivalent. That’s deeply sobering, of course, and it should make us deeply sad. But if that is indeed our situation, we have no choice but to commit everything we’ve got to prevailing. | 2023-08-06T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/7790 |
Dwolla scores first big-bank partner for real-time payments
The payment network Dwolla has launched "the most important partnership we've had to date."
That's how founder and CEO Ben Milne describes his company's new deal with BBVA Compass, a subsidiary of BBVA Group. While the parent company is headquartered in Spain, BBVA Compass is based in Birmingham, Al., and is one of the 25 biggest commercial banks in the U.S. by deposit market share. Beginning on Wednesday, BBVA Compass customers can send and receive money instantly over Dwolla's payment network. (The feature uses FiSync, which is Dwolla's secure payments protocol specific to financial institutions.) The partnership was first announced last October, when BBVA Compass opened up its network to Dwolla, but it took until today for the planned capability to become reality.
The idea of real-time payments is exactly what it sounds like: money sent from one party to another is accessible to the recipient instantly, as though it was handed off in person, without the standard three- or four-day processing delay of the Automated Clearing House, and without the usual fees. (Dwolla charges no fee for transactions below $10, and 25 cents if it's above that.) The new partnership makes BBVA Compass the largest financial institution to use Dwolla.
Dwolla launched in 2010, but it has taken many years to roll out some of its products due to regulatory headaches, Milne says. The company is headquartered in Des Moines, Iowa, with 20 of its 75 employees based in Silicon Valley.
Related
BBVA Compass, meanwhile, is the result of a series of acquisitions by BBVA, including Laredo National Bank, Texas State Bank, State National Bank, and the $9.1 billion acquisition of Compass Bancshares in 2007. It is Spain's second-largest bank, and its U.S. operations are largest in Texas, where it has 341 of its 672 branches and 58% of its U.S. deposits. BBVA's digital ambitions are no mere talk: in 2011 it opened BBVA Ventures, a tech center in Silicon Valley, and in 2013 pledged to invest $100 million in fintech startups. It has aggressively ramped up tech partnerships and investments (like its 2012 investment in Ribbit Capital) and made acquisitions, like purchasing the banking startup Simple for $117 million last year. In 2014, BBVA Compass had $2.9 billion in revenue.
For Dwolla, this collaboration is big news, and the first sign that traditional banking giants could partner up and adopt its platform, rather than seek to duplicate it on their own. For BBVA Compass, it's a way to offer its clients a new service, but also get good optics and look like a nimble innovator among peers that are often docked for being big and slow.
"Companies in Silicon Valley have been coming to us for three years saying, 'We understand Dwolla, we understand real-time, we want access to FiSync, how can we get it,'" says Milne. "Now we can finally say, 'It's ready. Go to BBVA Compass, they've got it.' I also think this will create a standard that other people can look at, including even the Fed, which is trying to create a real-time infrastructure in the next five to 10 years."
The partnership with Dwolla came out of an initial connection made, unsurprisingly, at the South By Southwest festival two years ago. And it has involved everyone from BBVA Compass's chief executive to its BBVA Ventures team in San Francisco. "We feel like in order to be successful as a bank, we need to be a successful digital bank," says Chad Ballard, the bank's director of mobility and new business technology. "We are trying to be digital-first in everything we do. We've gone through a major overhaul of our digital technologies, and when you look at the technology expansion in banking, and where BBVA is in that transformation, I think we're a leader, ahead of a lot of the big financial institutions."
Dwolla has peers and competitors in established payment networks like Square, as well as in digital currency startups. One of the main appeals of bitcoin, for example, is that it can be sent between two parties instantly, securely, anonymously, and with negligible fees. "Over time," Milne says, "we see Dwolla as a network belonging right besides Visa and Mastercard, and things like Square and PayPal and Google Checkout. Visa and Mastercard already offer the luxury of speed, but you suffer the cost. Now you can have the speed, without the cost of the infrastructure." As for cryptocurrencies like bitcoin, he predicts that eventually, payment networks won't distinguish between them: "The way we perceive all virtual currency is that by its nature, it is now simply currency. But our focus should remain on the largest underserved market in the world for real-time, and that's the U.S. dollar."
Does this partnership solve any urgent need for most banking customers? The average consumer likely isn't complaining much about the delay in sending funds. But Milne cites a wide range of use cases, from a company needing to pay all of its contractors at once, to a tenant sending the rent check and not eager or able to have to send the money a few days in advance, to a parent sending emergency money to a child in another state. He uses what he calls the "grandma scenario." Milne says that if he were explaining real-time payments to his grandmother, he would say, "This is probably not relevant to you right now, but when something pops up and you need me to send you $1,000 right away, I can, and it won't take three days."
If you are not a BBVA customer, you can still use Dwolla to send payments, but you would need to deposit money directly into a Dwolla account, as opposed to the process being seamless for customers of BBVA or Dwolla's other future banking partners.
Milne also has hopes that developers will continue to build on top of Dwolla's open network to create point-of-sale applications, which will raise acceptance by merchants. "Over time," he says, "I think we'll see developers building applications that allow you to pay with things like Dwolla, or bitcoin, or anything else, at locations that want to get paid in whatever way the customer wants to pay."
BBVA is hoping this partnership will make it a leader for other banks to follow. "I think bringing real-time payments to the U.S. is a badly needed thing," says BBVA Compass chairman and CEO Manolo Sanchez. "So who are the players that could develop this? Some players could have done this and it hasn't happened. Banks have been a bit of a laggard. Our bank wants to be a partner to disruptors that can use our rails and our infrastructure. If you want to take advantage of the disruption that's happening in financial services by nontraditional bank companies, you have to be willing to work with them." | 2023-11-28T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/5564 |
Trek
Crockett 7 Disc
Details
Crockett 7 Disc is the Swiss Army knife of cyclocross bikes. Ride it to a cross race, podium, then comfortably take the gravel roads back home - all on a bike with a high-quality build that can stand up to any other bike on the course. If you're looking for a cyclocross bike that does it all and does it well, you're in the right place.
It's right for you if...
You appreciate versatility, quality, and a great value. You care about the parts that make a big difference in performance, like better wheels, better brakes, and a better drivetrain, and want a race-worthy cyclocross bike that's also suited to gravel grinders and fast commutes. | 2023-10-10T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/3323 |
Q:
Swift Protocol Function: returning the same type of conforming class
I want to know if something java-like (or c++) can be done in Swift:
I have a protocol:
protocol Prot1 {
func returnMyself() -> Prot1
}
And a class conforms the protocol Prot1.
Can I force the return type of the function returnMyself() to be the same type of the class like below?
class MyClass: Prot1 {
public func returnMyself() -> MyClass {
return self
}
}
Is it possible?
A:
Just use Self into your protocol
protocol Prot1 {
func returnMyself() -> Prot1
}
Here's an example
protocol Animal {
func mySelf() -> Self
}
class Feline: Animal {
func mySelf() -> Self {
return self
}
}
class Cat: Feline { }
Feline().mySelf() // Feline
Cat().mySelf() // Cat
About protocol extensions
You can also use Self inside a protocol extension like this
protocol Animal {}
extension Animal {
func mySelf() -> Self {
return self
}
}
Now a class just need to conform to Animal like this
class Feline: Animal { }
class Cat: Feline { }
class Dog: Animal {}
and automatically gets the method
Feline().mySelf() // Feline
Cat().mySelf() // Cat
Dog().mySelf() // Dog
Update
protocol ReadableInterval { }
class Interval: ReadableInterval { }
protocol ReadableEvent {
associatedtype IntervalType: ReadableInterval
func getInterval() -> IntervalType
}
class Event: ReadableEvent {
typealias IntervalType = Interval
func getInterval() -> Interval {
return Interval()
}
}
A:
protocol Prot1
{
associatedtype T
func returnMyself() -> T
}
class MyClass : Prot1
{
typealias T = MyClass
func returnMyself() -> T
{
return self
}
}
| 2023-08-12T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/2410 |
Q:
Is this a DTO or a POCO or a combination of the two C#
So below I have a class I created as an example of what I have been seeing and actually even started using this pattern myself as it tends to be quite useful for me. The problem is I have been calling it POCO but yet I believe a POCO really shouldn't have actual Data access included. I believe that is more for DTOs. So the question here is this DTO, POCO, a combination of the two or neither?
namespace MAINAPP.DAL
{
public class SomeModel
{
public int SomeModelID { get; set; }
public String Name { get; set; }
public static bool DeleteSomeModel(int SomeModelID)
{
bool returnstatus = true;
int statusint = 0;
try
{
using (SqlConnection sc = new SqlConnection(ConfigurationManager.ConnectionStrings["SomeDBString"].ConnectionString))
{
sc.Open();
StringBuilder query = new StringBuilder();
query.Append("DELETE FROM SomeModels WHERE SomeModelID = @SomeModelID");
using (SqlCommand comm = new SqlCommand(query.ToString(), sc))
{
comm.Parameters.Add(new SqlParameter("@SomeModelID", SomeModelID));
statusint = comm.ExecuteNonQuery();
comm.Dispose();
}
sc.Close();
sc.Dispose();
}
}
catch (SqlException se)
{
var exceptionresult = se.Message;
}
if (statusint > 0)
{
returnstatus = true;
}
else
{
returnstatus = false;
}
return returnstatus;
}
}
}
A:
That is not a POCO nor is it a DTO.
A POCO is a Plain old CLR object, meaning that it has no dependencies and no base class derivations. The object you presented has a dependency on System.Data.
A DTO is traditionally used as a data contract only. DTO means that it really shouldn't have behavior because that behavior is not serializable. If someone were to consume the object from a WSDL definition and didn't have your class representation, they could not reproduce the DeleteSomeModel method.
If you want POCO classes, I'd suggest using the Repository pattern for your data access or use something like Code First in Entity Framework.
Here is an example using the repository pattern
public class SomeModel
{
public int SomeModelID { get; set; }
public String Name { get; set; }
}
public class SomeModelRepository
{
public void Delete(int id)
{
// delete logic here
}
}
| 2024-05-28T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/4875 |
N-acetylprocainamide induced changes in refractoriness and monophasic action potentials of the dog heart in situ.
The major metabolite of procainamide (PA) is N-acetylprocainamide (NAPA). The effect of this drug on the electrophysiology of the right ventricle was studied in the dog heart in situ by means of programmed electrical stimulation and monophasic action potential (MAP) recordings. A decrease in the beat interval caused a progressive decrease in refractoriness and MAP duration. Intravenous injection of NAPA 50 mg.kg-1 body weight increased refractoriness to a greater extent than MAP duration at shorter, while the opposite was observed at longer beat intervals. These observations are compatible with delayed recovery of excitability. On the basis of these findings, it is concluded that NAPA belongs to antiarrhythmic drugs of type I according to Vaughan Williams' classification, and NAPA may be an alternative drug for treatment of cardiac arrhythmias. | 2023-11-18T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/3053 |
Dynamical scaling of single chains on adsorbing substrates: diffusion processes.
We study the dynamics of tethered chains of length N on adsorbing surfaces, considering the dilute case; for this we use the bond fluctuation model and scaling concepts. In particular, we focus on the mean-square displacement of single monomers and of the center of mass of the chains. The characteristic time tau of the fluctuations of a free chain in a good solvent grows as tau approximately N(a), where the coefficient a obeys a=2nu+1. We show that the same coefficient also holds at the critical point of adsorption. At intermediate time scales single monomers show subdiffusive behavior; this concurs with the behavior calculated from scaling arguments based on the dynamical exponent a. In the adsorbed state tau(perpendicular), the time scale for the relaxation in the direction perpendicular to the surface, becomes independent of N; tau(perpendicular) is then the relaxation time of an adsorption blob. In the direction parallel to the surface the motion is similar to that of a two-dimensional chain and is controlled by a time scale given by tau(parallel) approximately N(2nu(2)+1)L(-2Delta(nu/nu)), where nu(2) is the Flory exponent in two dimensions, nu is the Flory exponent in three dimensions, and Deltanu=nu(2)-nu. For the motion parallel to the surface we find dynamical scaling over a range of about four decades in time. | 2024-03-27T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/4665 |
Immediate and delayed life history effects caused by food deprivation early in life in a short-lived lizard.
Detailed studies of the mechanisms driving life history effects of food availability are of prime importance to understand the evolution of phenotypic plasticity and the capacity of organisms to produce better adapted phenotypes. Food availability may influence life history trajectories through three nonexclusive mechanisms: (i) immediate and long-lasting effects on individual quality, and indirect delayed effects on (ii) intracohort and (iii) intercohort interactions. Using the common lizard (Zootoca vivipara), we tested whether a food deprivation during the two-first months of life influence life history (growth, survival, reproduction) and performance traits (immunocompetence, locomotor performances) until adulthood. We investigated the underlying mechanisms and their possible interactions by manipulating jointly food availability in a birth cohort and in cohorts of older conspecifics. Food deprivation had direct immediate negative effects on growth but positive long-lasting effects on immunocompetence. Food deprivation had also indirect delayed effects on growth, body size, early survival and reproduction mediated by an interaction between its direct effects on individual quality and its delayed effects on the intensity of intercohort social interactions combined with density dependence on body size. These results demonstrate that interactions between direct and socially mediated effects of past environments influence life history evolution in size-structured and stage-structured populations. | 2023-11-05T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/4896 |
WASHINGTON — The World Bank on Monday named as its next president Jim Yong Kim, a global health expert and the president of Dartmouth College, a widely expected appointment that continues the longstanding tradition of an American leading the Washington-based development institution.
While the selection of Dr. Kim by the bank’s 25-member executive board was no surprise, the board had, for the first time, considered more than one candidate for the job, a reflection of the increasing clout of emerging market nations on the global stage.
That increasing clout will be one of the major dynamics Dr. Kim will have to negotiate when he takes the helm of the bank on July 1. In a statement, Dr. Kim said he promised to “seek a new alignment of the World Bank Group with a rapidly changing world” during his tenure as president.
Cash-rich emerging economies like China, Brazil and India are driving much of the world’s growth in the wake of the global recession. They are becoming major investors in and lenders to poorer developing economies. Moreover, major charitable groups like the Gates Foundation have become increasingly powerful in some of the World Bank’s core areas, like global health. | 2024-03-12T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/7357 |
Targeted immunotherapy. An update with special emphasis on ovarian cancer.
An overview of antibody-guided immunotherapy for neoplasia is presented. The diversity of the antibody molecule is highlighted, through the many sophisticated strategies proposed and employed, to overcome a number of problems impeding successful targeting. An update of radioimmunotherapy of ovarian cancer is presented and the exciting concepts that are introduced to the field of targeted cancer therapy by molecular biology and genetic engineering are addressed. | 2024-01-13T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/8627 |
Yang Y, Han C, Guo L, Guan Q. High expression of the HMGB1--TLR4 axis and its downstream signaling factors in patients with Parkinson\'s disease and the relationship of pathological staging. Brain Behav. 2018;8:e00948 <https://doi.org/10.1002/brb3.948>
1. BACKGROUND {#brb3948-sec-0005}
=============
Parkinson\'s disease (PD) is a common neurological disorder in the elderly, with the basic pathological feature of the loss of substantia nigra and striatum dopaminergic neurons and the clinical manifestations of resting tremor, bradykinesia, muscle rigidity, and abnormal posture and pace (Zesiewicz, Sullivan, & Hauser, [2017](#brb3948-bib-0023){ref-type="ref"}). The pathogenesis of PD has not been entirely clarified. Previous research has shown that PD is significantly associated with genetic factors, environmental factors, aging factors, and the depletion of mitochondrial function (Pfeiffer, [2006](#brb3948-bib-0017){ref-type="ref"}). In recent years, neuritis has been found to play an important role in the development and progression of PD (Kones, [2010](#brb3948-bib-0010){ref-type="ref"}; Rees et al., [2011](#brb3948-bib-0018){ref-type="ref"}). As an extracellular high‐mobility group family protein, high‐mobility group box 1 (HMGB1) protein not only initiates and increases the inflammatory immune response but also plays an important role in brain tissues (Cheng et al., [2017](#brb3948-bib-0002){ref-type="ref"}).
HMGB1 in the nucleus is transferred to receptor for advanced glycation end products (RAGE) through passive release and active release to extracellular target cells (Herold et al., [2007](#brb3948-bib-0007){ref-type="ref"}). RAGE expressed on endothelial cells, monocytes, macrophages, and other cells surfaces. After combining with HMGB1, it mediated the activation of NF‐kB, JAK/STAT, and MAPK family. The main receptors of HMGB1 on the surface of macrophages have been found to be TLR2 and TLR4, and TLR4 played an important role in neural disease (Ohtsu et al., [2017](#brb3948-bib-0015){ref-type="ref"}). High HMGB1 expression promotes the activation of astrocyte RAGE--MAPK signaling, which in turn promotes the expression of chemokines, cyclooxygenase 2, matrix metalloproteinase 9, and many other bioactive molecules (Karuppagounder et al., [2014](#brb3948-bib-0008){ref-type="ref"}), especially those involved in neuroinflammation (Karuppagounder et al., [2014](#brb3948-bib-0008){ref-type="ref"}). A previous study showed that HMGB1 induced the expression of interleukin (IL)‐6 and other inflammatory cytokines in brain tissues (Kiiski et al., [2017](#brb3948-bib-0009){ref-type="ref"}). Expression of this neuroinflammatory cytokine promotes neuron apoptosis and increases the development and progression of neurodegenerative disease in the central nervous system. And HMGB1 also regulated the release of excitatory neurotransmitters. Pedraai suggested (Pedrazzi et al., [2006](#brb3948-bib-0016){ref-type="ref"}) that HMGB1 also promotes the release of endogenous glutamic acid and D‐aspartic acid in vitro from glial cells. In the study of AD, the expression of HMGB1 was coexisting with the senile plaques induced by β‐amyloid peptide (Aβ). It can promote the binding of Aβ and inhibit the phagocytosis and removal of microglia (Frank et al., [2015](#brb3948-bib-0003){ref-type="ref"}). In summary, the expression of HMGB1 is found in the brain. At present, HMGB1 is found to play an important role in many kinds of nervous system diseases, but rarely reported in PD. This study evaluated the relationship between the expression of HMGB1 and its receptor, toll‐like receptor 4 (TLR4), and the development and progression of PD.
2. MATERIALS AND METHODS {#brb3948-sec-0006}
========================
2.1. Case selection {#brb3948-sec-0007}
-------------------
A total of 120 patients who visited and were diagnosed with PD in our hospital (The Second Affiliated Hospital of Jiaxing University, Jiaxing 314000, China) between June 2015 and June 2017 were included in this study. The inclusion criteria for the patients with PD were as follows: (1) had bradykinesia---slow initiation of voluntary movement and progressive reduction in speed and amplitude of repetitive motion once the disease had progressed; (2) had one of the following symptoms: muscle stiffness, resting tremor (4--6 Hz), and postural instability (not due to primary vision, vestibular, cerebellum, or ontological sensory dysfunction).
The exclusion criteria were as follows: (1) had repeated strokes accompanied by stepwise progression of PD; (2) had a history of brain injury; (3) symptoms occurred due to psychotropic medication; (4) had unilateral symptoms 3 years after the disease onset; (5) had signs of a cerebellar lesion; (6) had Babinski\'s and other pathological signs (+); (7) had brain tumor(s) and other organic lesion(s) screened by computed tomography (CT) or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI); and (8) did not respond to high‐dose levodopa treatment.
Patients with PD included in the study also had at least three of the following auxiliary diagnoses: (1) unilateral onset; (2) resting tremor; (3) progressive disease; (4) asymmetries of the symptoms, more severe on the side of disease onset; (5) significant curative effect of levodopa (70--100% efficacy); (6) severe levodopa‐induced dysplasia; (7) levodopa effect lasted more than 5 years; and (8) more than 10 years of the disease course. All PD patients were ranked in accordance with the Hoehn and Yahr scale, confirming 40 patients at Stage I, 35 patients at Stage II, 35 patients at Stage III, 10 patients at Stage IV, and 0 patients at Stage V.
2.2. Control group {#brb3948-sec-0008}
------------------
For this study, 100 healthy volunteers were selected from the physical examination center in our hospital during the same period as the normal controls, excluding those with infectious disease(s) and consumption of immunosuppressive agent(s) and hormone(s). All research subjects or their family members signed written informed consent forms before participating in the study (involving data and blood sample collection). The research protocol of this study was approved by the Ethics Committee.
2.3. Sample collection and detection {#brb3948-sec-0009}
------------------------------------
All patients with PD and healthy volunteers were fasted for 12 hr after hospital admission to collect 2 ml peripheral venous blood from each participant. The blood sample was then stored at room temperature for 30 min and centrifuged for 20 min to collect serum from the upper supernatant. All serum samples were preserved at −80°C for later experiments. A double‐antibody sandwich enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was used to detect the serum HMGB1--TLR4 axis, myeloid differentiation factor 88 (MyD88), nuclear factor kappa B (NF‐κB), and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF‐α) protein expression via the absorbance (A), measured at a 450 nm wavelength by a microplate reader. The HMGB1 Elisa Kit (Shino‐Test Corporation, Kanagawa, Japan, batch number: A18521), The TLR4, MyD88, NF‐κB, TNF‐α Elisa Kit (MSK Corporation, WUHAN, China, batch number: A1852115241, 17241, 25432, 17254).
The protein contents were calculated according to the standard curve using the curve fitting equation, with the standard concentrations on the *x*‐axis and corresponding A in each concentration of the standards on the *y*‐axis. The protein contents are presented in ng/L throughout the paper.
2.4. Statistical analysis {#brb3948-sec-0010}
-------------------------
SPSS 21.0 software (SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL) was used to analyze the data using an independent sample *t* test and Pearson\'s correlation analysis. *p *\<* *.05 was considered statistically significant.
3. RESULTS {#brb3948-sec-0011}
==========
3.1. Comparing general information between PD and control groups {#brb3948-sec-0012}
----------------------------------------------------------------
The general information of the patients with PD (PD group, *n* = 120) and healthy volunteers (control group, *n* = 100), including age group, gender, underlying health problems, smoking history, and body weight, is shown in Table [1](#brb3948-tbl-0001){ref-type="table-wrap"}. There was no significant difference between the groups (*p *\>* *.05).
######
Comparison of the general data of the patients with Parkinson\'s disease (PD)
General data PD group (%) Control group (%)
------------------- -------------- -------------------
Age (years) 67.5 ± 4.2 65.3 ± 5.1
≤60 32 (26.7) 29 (29)
\>60 88 (73.3) 71 (71)
Gender
Male 70 (58.3) 57 (57)
Female 50 (41.7) 43 (43)
Body weight 72.5 ± 7.3 71.3 ± 6.2
Smoking history 53 (44.2) 45 (45)
Hypertension case 73 (60.8) 58 (58)
Diabetes case 50 (41.7) 43 (43)
PD stages
Stage I 40 (33.3)
Stage II 35 (29.2)
Stage III 35 (29.2)
Stage IV 10 (8.3)
Stage V 0 (0)
John Wiley & Sons, Ltd
3.2. Comparing serum HMGB1 and TLR4 levels between PD and control groups {#brb3948-sec-0013}
------------------------------------------------------------------------
The HMBG1 level in the peripheral blood was significantly higher in the PD group (5.96 ± 2.1) than in the control group (1.3 ± 0.18, *p *\<* *.05); similarly, the TLR4 level in the peripheral blood was significantly higher in the PD group (2.56 ± 0.78) than in the control group (0.87 ± 0.12, *p *\<* *.05; Table [2](#brb3948-tbl-0002){ref-type="table-wrap"}). There was a correlation between HMGB1 and TLR4 expressions in the peripheral blood of patients with PD (*r *=* *.7578; Figure [1](#brb3948-fig-0001){ref-type="fig"}).
######
Comparison of serum HMGB1 and TLR4 levels in patients with Parkinson\'s disease (PD) and healthy volunteers (mean ± standard deviation, ng/L)
Group Cases HMGB1 TLR4
--------------- ------- ------------ -------------
Control group 100 1.3 ± 0.18 0.87 ± 0.12
PD group 120 5.96 ± 2.1 2.56 ± 0.78
*t* value 22.7 21.2
*p* value \<.0001 \<.0001
John Wiley & Sons, Ltd
{#brb3948-fig-0001}
3.3. Comparing serum HMGB1 and TLR4 levels of PD patients at different stages of the disease {#brb3948-sec-0014}
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The serum HMGB1 levels of the patients with PD at Stages I, II, III, and IV were 3.53 ± 1.01, 6.41 ± 0.87, 7.16 ± 0.68, and 8.44 ± 1.12, respectively, which were significantly higher than those of the healthy volunteers (*p *\<* *.05). The serum TLR4 levels of the patients at Stages I, II, III, and IV were 1.67 ± 0.40, 2.57 ± 0.51, 3.11 ± 0.42, and 3.89 ± 0.61, respectively, which were also higher than those of the healthy volunteers (*p *\<* *.05). The serum HMGB1 and TLR4 protein expressions increased with increasing PD stages, suggesting that HMGB1 and TLR3 expressions reflect the disease progress and severity of PD to some extent (Figure [2](#brb3948-fig-0002){ref-type="fig"}).
{#brb3948-fig-0002}
3.4. Relationship between serum HMGB1 and TLR4 levels and the clinical classification of PD patients {#brb3948-sec-0015}
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
We divided the clinical manifestations of the 120 patients with PD into mixed (*n* = 48), tremor‐dominant (*n* = 38), and akinetic‐rigid (*n* = 34) subtypes. PD patients with the mixed subtype mainly had the clinical manifestations of limb tremor and muscle rigidity, with serum HMGB1 and TLR4 levels of 5.12 ± 1.07 and 2.43 ± 0.87, respectively. PD patients with the tremor‐dominant subtype mainly had the clinical manifestation of limb tremor without obvious muscle rigidity and had serum HMGB1 and TLR4 levels of 5.08 ± 0.96 and 2.52 ± 0.72, respectively. Patients with PD in the akinetic‐rigid subtype mainly had the clinical manifestation of muscle rigidity, with serum HMGB1 and TLR4 levels of 5.18 ± 1.37 and 2.38 ± 0.80, respectively. No significant difference in HMGB1 and TLR4 expressions was found between groups (*p *\>* *.05), suggesting that HMGB1 and TLR4 expressions have no correlation with the clinical manifestation of PD (Table [3](#brb3948-tbl-0003){ref-type="table-wrap"}).
######
Correlation between serum HMGB1 and TLR4 expressions and clinical classification of patients with Parkinson\'s disease (mean ± standard deviation ng/L)
Group Cases HMGB1 TLR4
------------------------- ------- ------------- -------------
Mixed subtype 48 5.12 ± 1.07 2.43 ± 0.87
Tremor‐dominant subtype 38 5.08 ± 0.96 2.52 ± 0.72
Akinetic‐rigid subtype 34 5.18 ± 1.37 2.38 ± 0.80
*p* \>.05 \>.05
Comparison between groups, *p* \> .05.
John Wiley & Sons, Ltd
3.5. Correlation between serum HMGB1 and TLR4 expressions and the efficacy of PD drug therapy in PD patients {#brb3948-sec-0016}
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
All 120 patients with PD received combination therapy of dopaminergic agents and their inhibitors:(The dopaminergic agents used medopa which included levodopa 200 mg and benserazide 50 mg or sinemet which included carbidopa 25 mg and levodopa 100 mg. The inhibitors used selegiline or entacapone. The medopa made in Shanghai Roche Pharmaceuticals Ltd, the sinemet made in Hangzhou MSD Pharmaceuticals Ltd, the selegiline and entacapone made in Orion Corporation of Finland, and all of drugs were got from the hospital). Eighty‐three patients were well controlled by the drugs and 37 patients were not, showing disease progression. After analyzing the serum HMGB1 and TLR4 expressions, the PD patients with good therapeutic outcomes (effective group) were found to have serum HMGB1 and TLR4 expressions of 4.25 ± 0.65 and 2.31 ± 0.87, respectively, which were significantly lower than those of the PD patients with poor therapeutic outcomes (refractory group), who had serum HMGB1 and TLR4 expressions of 6.43 ± 1.14 and 3.10 ± 0.93, respectively (*p *\<* *.05, Table [4](#brb3948-tbl-0004){ref-type="table-wrap"}).
######
Serum HMGB1 and TLR4 levels and drug treatment effectiveness in patients with Parkinson\'s disease (mean ± standard deviation, ng/L)
Group Cases HMGB1 TLR4
------------------ ------- ------------- -------------
Effective group 83 4.25 ± 0.65 2.31 ± 0.87
Refractory group 37 6.43 ± 1.14 3.10 ± 0.93
*t* value 8.3 6.7
*p* value \<.0001 \<.0001
John Wiley & Sons, Ltd
3.6. Relationship between serum HMGB1 and TLR4 expressions and the disease duration of PD patients {#brb3948-sec-0017}
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
All 120 patients with PD were classified based on the duration of PD. There were 52 patients with \<4 years of PD, 46 patients with 4--8 years of PD, and 22 patients with \>8 years of PD. The serum HMGB1 and TLR4 expressions of the patients with \<4‐year PD were 3.87 ± 0.85 and 1.85 ± 0.49, respectively. The serum HMGB1 and TLR4 expressions of the patients with 4--8 years of PD were 5.41 ± 0.76 and 2.52 ± 0.63, respectively. The serum HMGB1 and TLR4 expressions of the patients with \>8‐year PD were 6.13 ± 1.12 and 3.13 ± 0.86, respectively. Significant differences in HMGB1 and TLR4 expressions were found between the groups (*p *\<* *.05), suggesting that the prolonged duration of PD was positively associated with increased serum HMGB1 and TLR4 expressions (Table [5](#brb3948-tbl-0005){ref-type="table-wrap"}).
######
Correlation between serum HMBG1 and TLR4 expressions and disease duration of patients with Parkinson\'s disease
Group Cases HMGB1 TLR4
---------------------------- ------- ------------- -------------
\<4‐year disease duration 52 3.87 ± 0.85 1.85 ± 0.49
4--8‐year disease duration 46 5.41 ± 0.76 2.52 ± 0.63
\>8‐year disease duration 22 6.13 ± 1.12 3.13 ± 0.86
*p* \<.05 \<.05
Comparison between groups, *p* \< .05.
John Wiley & Sons, Ltd
3.7. Expression of HMGB1--TLR4 axis downstream factors MyD88, NF‐κB, and TNF‐α in the sera of PD patients {#brb3948-sec-0018}
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The serum MyD88, NF‐κB, and TNF‐α levels of the healthy controls were 518.2 ± 63.4, 985.3 ± 114.6, and 207.3 ± 27.4, respectively, which were significantly higher than those of the patients with PD (879.2 ± 85.3, 1453.4 ± 184.6, and 415.3 ± 46.7, respectively; *p *\<* *.05), suggesting that HMGB1--TLR4 axis downstream signaling was positively associated with the high expression of the HMGB1--TLR4 axis (Figure [3](#brb3948-fig-0003){ref-type="fig"}).
{#brb3948-fig-0003}
4. DISCUSSION {#brb3948-sec-0019}
=============
HMGB1 is a non‐histone chromosome‐binding protein expressed in eukaryotic cells. It was first found to express in the brain and extensively express in heart, liver, spleen, lung, and kidney tissues (Gupta, Ghosh, & Nagarajan, [2013](#brb3948-bib-0006){ref-type="ref"}; Wang, Ward, & Sama, [2014](#brb3948-bib-0021){ref-type="ref"}). The extracellular HMGB1 is first found in the brain tissue, which is mainly related to immunoregulation. A variety of cells can release HMGB1, HMGB1 combined with the RAGE which expressed on the surface of macrophages and nerve cells to stimulate downstream signals. In‐depth research on HMGB1 has shown that HMGB1 is associated with TLR4‐mediated inflammatory response and a variety of diseases, such as sepsis and gliomas (Wang et al., [2015](#brb3948-bib-0022){ref-type="ref"}). The HMGB1--TLR4 axis is key to the inflammatory response; damaged cells and activated macrophages actively or passively release HMGB1, which induces the secretion of TNF‐α, IL‐6, and other inflammatory cytokines through signaling pathways. Early proinflammatory factors and HMGB1 itself promote the release of HMGB1 to form a loop, which amplifies the inflammatory response (Nair, Ebenezer, Saini, & Francis, [2015](#brb3948-bib-0014){ref-type="ref"}). TLR4 is the recognition receptor on the cell surface that identifies endogenous HMGB1. Activation of TLR4 recruits the adaptor protein MyD88, which can interact with IL‐1 and other receptor‐related kinase family proteins to form a complex that can eventually enable NF‐κB to enter nuclei and play regulatory roles (Wang et al., [2015](#brb3948-bib-0020){ref-type="ref"}; Zhang et al., [2005](#brb3948-bib-0024){ref-type="ref"}).
There are many external factors that induce PD and damage astrocytes and microglia in the human brain to stimulate the release of HMGB1 (Gao et al., [2011](#brb3948-bib-0005){ref-type="ref"}). The activated astrocytes or neurons stimulate HMBG1--TLR4 signaling through autocrine or paracrine signaling. An HMGB1‐based neuroinflammation study found HMGB1 to have a neurotrophic factor‐like effect (Li et al., [2016](#brb3948-bib-0011){ref-type="ref"}). Intracerebroventricular injection of HMGB1 was found to promote TNF‐α and IL‐6 expressions in mouse brain tissues (Fujita et al., [2016](#brb3948-bib-0004){ref-type="ref"}). The injection of HMGB1 into the mouse parietal lobe resulted in the partial elevation of iNOS and IL‐1β mRNA expressions 24 hr later. In addition, a study of Alzheimer\'s disease showed that HMGB1 stably binds to amyloid‐beta (Aβ) peptides to suppress Aβ phagocytosis by microglia (Mallama, Mccoysimandle, & Cianciotto, [2017](#brb3948-bib-0013){ref-type="ref"}). Therefore, HMGB1 plays a major role in promoting neuritis. NF‐κB, one of the downstream factors of HMGB1--TLR4 signaling, induces the expression of IL‐6 in macrophages. IL‐6, a pleiotropic proinflammatory factor, plays an important role in chronic inflammation and neuritis; TNF‐α is also involved in the inflammatory response by inducing NF‐κB activation. MyD88 mediates the activation of IL‐6 by activating a variety of toll‐like receptors (Liu et al., [2017](#brb3948-bib-0012){ref-type="ref"}). Therefore, the expressions of MyD88, NF‐κB, and TNF‐α reflect the severity of neuritis and the expression of the HMGB1--TLR4 axis.
This study examined the expression of the HMGB1--TLR4 axis and its downstream MyD88, NF‐κB, and TNF‐α factors in 120 patients with PD and 100 healthy volunteers to evaluate its relationship with PD staging, PD duration, and PD drug therapeutic outcomes. The expression of the HMGB1--TLR4 axis was significantly higher in the patients with PD than in the healthy volunteers, suggesting that the HMGB1--TLR4 axis plays an important role in PD pathogenesis. HMGB1 and TLR4 expressions increased with increasing PD stages. Higher PD staging indicated faster PD progress and higher severity, suggesting that sustained high‐level expression of the HMGB1--TLR4 axis was directly associated with the progression of PD. In addition, PD patients with poor PD‐drug therapeutic outcomes had significantly higher expression of the HMGB1--TLR4 axis than PD patients with good PD‐drug therapeutic outcomes. A previous study showed that injection of HMGB1 into the mouse brain increased p‐glycoprotein (p‐gp) expression in brain tissues (Chen et al., [2015](#brb3948-bib-0001){ref-type="ref"}). As a drug‐resistant protein, p‐gp may be one of the causes of poor PD‐drug therapeutic outcomes. Moreover, *in vitro* experiments have shown that HMGB1 can be used as one of the inflammatory cytokines to promote neuronal damage. Sathe, Mustafa, Martin, Tracey, & Teismann ([2010](#brb3948-bib-0019){ref-type="ref"}), which directly confirms the neurotoxicity of HMGB1. In this study, we also found that the HMGB1--TLR axis downstream signaling factors, MyD88, NF‐κB, and TNF‐α, were highly expressed in the sera of patients with PD, indicating a connection between the upstream and downstream signaling of the HMGB1--TLR4 axis that plays an important role in the neuritis of PD.
5. CONCLUSION {#brb3948-sec-0020}
=============
In this study, we found high expression of the HMGB1--TLR4 axis and its downstream signaling factors in patients with PD, which was positively associated with PD staging and duration and correlated with PD‐drug therapeutic outcomes. In addition, the expression of the HMGB1--TLR4 axis upstream signaling factors was increased. High HMGB1--TLR4 axis expression promoted the development of neuritis, which may be one of the important factors in PD progression. This study provided a new reference target for the treatment of PD in the future. Our findings also showed that patients with longer PD duration have higher expression of the HMGB1--TLR4 axis.
| 2023-09-22T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/9195 |
2013 World Junior Curling Championships
The 2013 World Junior Curling Championships were held from February 28 to March 10 at the Ice Cube Curling Center in Sochi, Russia. Sochi is also scheduled to host the curling tournament at the 2014 Winter Olympics.
Men
Teams
The teams are listed as follows:
Round Robin Standings
Final Round Robin Standings
Round Robin Results
All draw times are listed in Moscow Time (UTC+4).
Draw 1
Thursday, February 28, 9:00
Draw 2
Thursday, February 28, 19:30
Draw 3
Friday, March 1, 14:00
Draw 4
Saturday, March 2, 9:00
Draw 5
Saturday, March 2, 19:00
Draw 6
Sunday, March 3, 14:00
Draw 7
Monday, March 4, 9:00
Draw 8
Monday, March 4, 19:00
Draw 9
Tuesday, March 5, 14:00
Draw 10
Wednesday, March 6, 9:00
Draw 11
Wednesday, March 6, 19:00
Draw 12
Thursday, March 7, 13:00
Playoffs
1 vs. 2
Friday, March 8, 19:00
3 vs. 4
Friday, March 8, 19:00
Semifinal
Saturday, March 9, 19:00
Bronze Medal Game
Sunday, March 9, 9:00
Gold Medal Game
Sunday, March 9, 9:00
Women
Teams
The teams are listed as follows:
Round Robin Standings
Final Round Robin Standings
Round Robin Results
All draw times are listed in Moscow Time (UTC+4).
Draw 1
Thursday, February 28, 14:00
Draw 2
Friday, March 1, 9:00
Draw 3
Friday, March 1, 19:00
Draw 4
Saturday, March 2, 14:00
Draw 5
Sunday, March 3, 9:00
Draw 6
Sunday, March 3, 19:00
Switzerland ran out of time in the tenth end, and conceded the game to the United States.
Draw 7
Monday, March 4, 14:00
Draw 8
Tuesday, March 5, 9:00
Draw 9
Tuesday, March 5, 19:00
Draw 10
Wednesday, March 6, 14:00
Draw 11
Thursday, March 7, 8:30
Draw 12
Thursday, March 7, 17:30
Tiebreakers
Friday, March 8, 14:00
Playoffs
1 vs. 2
Saturday, March 9, 12:00
3 vs. 4
Saturday, March 9, 12:00
Semifinal
Saturday, March 9, 19:00
Bronze Medal Game
Sunday, March 9, 13:00
Gold Medal Game
Sunday, March 9, 13:00
References
External links
World Junior Curling Championships
Category:World Junior Curling Championships
Category:International curling competitions hosted by Russia
World Junior Curling Championships
Category:Sports competitions in Sochi
World Junior Curling
World Junior Curling
Category:2013 in youth sport
Category:21st century in Sochi
Curling | 2024-07-03T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/9299 |
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23033: Ideography niè : lip6 nip6
23034:
23035:
23036: zhān Ideograph
23037: แนวคิดของ lograph
23038:
23039:
2303A:
2303B: Ideograph shǔ
2303C:
2303D:
2303E: fh
2303F:
23040:
23041:
23042:
23043:
23044: ไอเดียกราฟฟิค
23045:
23046:
23047:
23048:
23049: อุดมการณ์
2304A:
2304B: Ideograph mei4
2304C:
2304D: dào
2304E:
2304F:
23050:
23051:
23052: Ideograph shī
23053:
23054: Ideograph
23055:
23056: กราฟิค
23057: แนวคิดการออกแบบ
23058:
23059:
2305A:
2305B:
2305C: màn
2305D:
2305E:
2305F: ไอดีโอ
23060:
23061:
23062: อุดมการณ์
23063:
23064:
23065:
23066: Idean pan : pun4
23067:
23068: โยโย่
23069:
2306A:
2306B:
2306C:
2306D: Ideograph jiū
2306E:
2306F: Ideograph guō
23070: สื่อความหมาย
23071:
23072: Ideograph
23073: Ideograph wò
23074: อุดมการณ์qià
23075: โปรแกรม Ideograph
23076:
23077: ไอเดียกราฟ
23078:
23079: Ideograph jio
2307A:
2307B: ไอเดียกราฟ
2307C:
2307D: Ideograph fui1
2307E: Ideograph dau2
2307F:
23080:
23081: tiāoอุดมการณ์
23082:
23083: Ideograph
23084: Ideograph guō
23085:
23086: พหุนาม
23087: อุดมการณ์qiāo
23088:
23089: ไอดีโอ
2308A: ไอเดียกราฟฟิค
2308B: Ideograph
2308C:
2308D:
2308E: Ideograph mun5
2308F:
23090:
23091:
23092: อุดมการณ์
23093:
23094:
23095:
23096: ไอเดียกราฟฟิค
23097: Ideograph xīn
23098:
23099:
2309A:
2309B:
2309C: Ideograph xīn
2309D: Ideograph xiàng
2309E: ความคิดแบบluǒ
2309F:
230A0:
230A1:
230A2:
230A3:
230A4: Ideograph bēng
230A5: tiāoอุดมการณ์
230A6:
230A7:
230A8:
230A9:
230AA:
230AB:
230AC: Ideograph xiào
230AD:
230AE: dōu Ideograph
230AF:
230B0:
230B1:
230B2:
230B3: ความคิดสร้างสรรค์
230B4: การออกแบบกราฟฟิค
230B5: Ideograph zhuàn
230B6:
230B7: Idean kan4
230B8:
230B9:
230BA:
230BB: ōuอุดมการณ์
230BC: Idean kan4
230BD: Ideograph wò
230BE:
230BF:
230C0:
230C1:
230C2:
230C3:
230C4: Ideograph xīn
230C5: Ideograph ruǎn
230C6:
230C7:
230C8: Ideograph zhuó
230C9: ความคิดสร้างสรรค์
230CA:
230CB:
230CC:
230CD: อุดมการณ์
230CE:
230CF:
230D0:
230D1: Ideograph zhuó
230D2:
230D3:
230D4:
230D5:
230D6:
230D7: ความคิดริเริ่ม
230D8: แนวคิดการออกแบบ
230D9:
230DA: Ideograph hong4
230DB:
230DC:
230DD: ไอเดียกราฟฟิค
230DE:
230DF:
230E0:
230E1:
230E2:
230E3: Ideograph
230E4: Ideograph
230E5:
230E6:
230E7: ไอเดียกราฟฟิค
230E8:
230E9:
230EA:
230EB:
230EC:
230ED:
230EE:
230EF:
230F0:
230F1: Ideograph
230F2: Ideograph
230F3: ไอเดียกราฟฟิค
230F4:
230F5: Ideograph zhèn
230F6:
230F7:
230F8:
230F9:
230FA: Ideograph
230FB:
230FC:
230FD: Ideograph nuǒ
230FE: yan
230FF:
| 2024-03-14T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/1886 |
Q:
What are the powers of mayors in the US?
I know very little about US government and state system and only in general.
I heard that, for example, US town mayor also rules town police and can change taxes. Is it true? The fact about ruling police impressed me. In my country, for example, police is in under federal commandment from minister, and it is logical, I think.
If it is, isn't this overpowering? Because he becomes a small king if it is so. Or are there some limits?
For example, we have a small town in Texas. What can its mayor do? How much does it differ from state to state if any?
A:
First off, to clarify: the executive of a town/city in USA is typically called a "mayor", not a "governor".
The powers of a mayor may vary from state to state and city to city, BUT:
Yes, mayors usually control local law enforcement (police).
This is not a new concept - local law enforcement was a feature of British system - although at a regional, rather than town, level (remember the infamous Sheriff of Nottingham of Robin Hood fame). City authorities had local law enforcement responsibilities in many cities in late medieval and early modern Europe.
Overall, the political system - which heavily features separation of powers - is designed in USA on a fractal level (meaning, it looks the same for Federal, state and municipal level) - each level has a separation of powers (executive, legislative, judiciary) and law enforcement is (almost) always a function of executive branch in USA; be it FBI in federal level or state police on state level or town police in the town.
No, mayors do not (typically) control almost any tax levying:
A vast majority of non-property taxation in USA is levied on the federal level (federal income tax and corporate tax, gas tax etc....); some on state level (especially sales taxes and state income taxes); and a very very minuscule amount on local level (some - larger - cities like NYC may have a municipal income tax but most smaller cities do not. Some have sales tax, but most use state sales tax).
The only taxes that are mostly at municipal level are property taxes - and these are only paid by people who own property (land and buildings/houses).
Importantly, as with most other taxes in USA, they aren't levied by the executive branch - but by legislative (in the municipal level, usually City Council); following the same exact fractal version of separation of powers discussed above. What the Mayor is responsible for is to spend the collected taxes; in a way decided on by City Council. In other words, Mayor runs the police, but City Council votes on Police budget; as well as laws governing what Police does.
So, no, a mayor cannot be "like a king", no more so than a President can (far less so, since aside from having their powers limited by separation of powers, they are ALSO limited by what state and federal level imposes).
However, they can amass a ton of effective power, in theory, especially if corrupt. For most striking examples, see:
Tammany Hall in New York City (although one can quibble that it was a general political machine that owned the mayors, not the mayor that owned the political machine)
Corrupt mayors of Chicago (especially Daly I suppose, but I know relatively little of detailed Chicago history)
A:
It depends...
Even within a single state, there may be different governing structures for different cities. When a city gets large enough, it gets a "charter" that describes the nature of the government. Different cities' charters can be very different.
Most cities have either a "strong mayor" or a "weak mayor" government. In a "weak mayor" government, the mayor is pretty much a city-wide city councilor. The weak mayor form usually delegates most management to a strong "city manager" that is responsible to the "city council" (the city's legislature).
Though Wikipedia says that "Most major and large American cities use the strong-mayor form of the mayor-council system", that's not always true. Dallas (a very large city in Texas), uses a weak mayor system with a strong city manager.
One other key difference between US cities has to do with how the city councils are elected. In some cities, each councilor represents a neighborhood. In other cities, the council is elected "at-large" (every citizen votes for all positions on the council). There are also hybrid models where some positions are by neighborhood and some are at-large. Since this is the US, the racial history of the town can figure into how councilors are elected (by-neighborhood councilors are more likely to include minority representatives)
A:
One important thing to understand is that power is decentralized in the American system. Power is pushed to lower levels as much as possible. The federal, national government has very limited powers. States and cities have more power.
Because it is not centralized, there is not one answer to your question. There are a variety of levels smaller than the state, and in each state they work differently. New York has counties that contain towns that contain villages. Virginia has counties and cities - cities are not contained in counties. Connecticut has no counties at all, only towns. California has counties that contain cities, but some areas are in a county but not in a city (unincorporated areas).
The leaders of these levels of government vary as well. I would point out here that another important concept is separation of powers. At the national level there is executive (President), legislative (Congress), and judicial (courts). These smaller levels of government also have separation of powers. In smaller cities there may be a council of 3-10 people who are the executive, rather than a single Mayor. And the legislature can be ~300 elected citizens, or even the entire voting population. So many citizens do not live under a mayor.
And separation of powers prevents any one person becoming a king. Taxes are not changed by the mayor, but by the local legislature. Cities usually only collect one kind of taxes, taxes on land/property. The city only provides a few services. And a tax increase often has to be approved by voters first, limiting how much they can collect. The police do work for the mayor, but their budget is set by the legislature, and their conduct is reviewed by the courts. In almost every city this works well enough to prevent major corruption or autocracy.
In some larger cities the city provides many more services, and collects more tax dollars. With increased money and power, the chances for corruption increase. That is why in several historical examples you see a "small king" developing, like in New York City and Chicago in the 20th century.
The conduct of mayors is reviewed by higher levels of government, so it is possible for truly corrupt mayors to be arrested by the state government and go to jail. New York and Illinois have both sent high level politicians to jail.
| 2023-08-11T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/6452 |
Mistake or miracle: New evidence on the effects of microcredit
Nolberta Melara sews an apron at her house in the Salvadorean city of San Marcos on Oct. 13, 2006. To support her family financially, Melara makes aprones and then sells them in markets across the country. The 51-year-old woman saw her life transformed through a $30 loan from the Support for the Microbusiness Centre, a non-governmental organization based on the Grameen Bank.
For years microfinance, the practice of making small loans to the poor, has been lauded as a promising solution for eradicating poverty in the developing world. The idea is that a small loan could enable some poor people to invest in business opportunities that could improve their income.
For example, a poor woman might be given a loan to buy goats to produce milk or a sewing machine to make clothing. The hope is that microloans have the potential to generate enough income for the recipients that they can both improve their lives and repay the loans with interest.
Enthusiasm for microfinance reached its peak in 2006 when Muhammad Yunus won the Nobel Peace Prize. Yunus helped develop the concept as an academic and then began to apply in Bangladesh through the now famous Grameen Bank. Since then, a growing stream of criticism has fed a furious debate about the effectiveness and side effects of offering credit to the extremely poor. A recent study by a group of economists from MIT and Northwestern on microfinance in Hyderabad, India, provides new evidence that access to credit does not increase income. However, the same study suggests that microloans may be improving lives in other ways, such as giving people in poverty the opportunity to make better long-term financial decisions.
Controlled study
Despite the fierce debate, until recently rigorous data on microfinance has been surprisingly sparse, said Cynthia Kinnan, assistant professor of economics at Northwestern University in Chicago. Part of the problem is that little data has been gathered on people who qualify for microloans but don't actually participate. Without such a comparison group, it is difficult to draw meaningful conclusions about the causal effects of microfinance, Kinnan said.
Kinnan, along with her colleagues at MIT, Abhijit Bannerjee, Esther Duflo and Rachel Glennerster, are determined to find a more precise way of evaluating microfinance. Their proposal is to use randomized controlled trial techniques (the same approach used by the medical industry to test the effectiveness of medications) to identify how microcredit programs are actually working. This would allow them to compare borrowers to non-borrowers in a more precise way.
These researchers conducted a three-year study in Hyderabad. The team selected neighborhoods to observe based on two criteria, absence of financial institutions and residents who were desirable potential borrowers — "poor, but not the poorest of the poor," Kinnan said. Loans were offered through an organization called Spandana, which unlike other microfinance providers, does not require borrowers to start a business to qualify for a loan. Spandana charges a 24-percent annual interest rate, which while high by American standards, is less than what local moneylenders charge.
The findings, published in an April 2013 report, show that "at the highest level and in the broadest terms both claims (about microcredit) are true," said Kinnan. While it hasn't cured poverty just yet, that doesn't mean it is an entirely useless program.
Affect on income
One of the first things that jumps out in the summary of findings from the Hyderabad study is that the demand for microloans wasn't robust. "By the end of our three-year study, only 38 percent of households borrowed," Kinnan said, "and this is among households selected based on their relatively high propensity to take up microcredit. These are neighborhoods that are booming, so if there is any place people have investments that would yield a 24-percent (return on investment), it would be Hyderabad," she added.
If microcredit helps people get out of poverty, as proponents argue, why didn't more people use it?
Kinnan suspects part of the reason is that most households don't have a project that will yield a rate of return to make borrowing worth their while. "If they borrow 10,000 rupees at the beginning of the year, they need to have 12,400 rupees at the end of the year," Kinnan said. This is difficult for anyone in their first year of business "but particularly so in competitive markets where the profit margins are slim," Kinnan said.
Among those who borrowed money, businesses were started and expanded, but in most cases this industry did not free borrowers from lives of grinding poverty. Monthly consumption, the best indicator of overall welfare according to Kinnan, did not change. Business profit in the vast majority of cases did not increase either.
Kinnan and her colleagues found no evidence in the short or long run that access to microcredit has a positive impact on education outcomes, health or women's empowerment in the short run or long run. Overall, it doesn't "paint a picture of dramatic changes in basic development outcomes for poor families," said Kinnan.
Improved spending
At first glance these findings make microcredit programs seem like a complete failure, but Kinnan and her colleagues are quick to point out some important benefits. Although microcredit doesn't increase overall consumption, it does appear to impact the kinds of things people buy. With a lump sum of money families can invest in durable goods like a tin roof, a television or a sturdy cooking pot. These goods provide long-term benefits that result in higher overall welfare when compared to the purely temporary purchases that the poor might be forced to make without access to credit.
Kinnan and her team found that borrowers were much less likely to spend their money on temptation goods such as dining out, gambling, cigarettes and alcohol. When asked why they weren't spending as much on these things, borrowers said that regular meetings where everyone in the area repaid their loans made it easier to resist the lure of luxuries. No one wanted to be the family that shows up for the meeting without their payment.
A change in what people buy may have a significant impact on their well being. "Different types of spending have different utility," Kinnan said. For example, if someone buys a tin roof that lasts 50 years they can avoid continuously spending money to fix a thatched roof. Even if the roof doesn't provide additional income it can be a wise investment that allows the family to increase spending on unrelated goods. Avoiding temptation purchases in favor of saving money may also have a positive psychological impact on people. In essence overall consumption might not change, but that doesn't mean they aren't doing better.
For Esther Duflo, one of Kinnan's co-authors on the study, the real problem with microcredit is that expectations about how quickly and completely microcredit would lift people out of poverty are unreasonable. In an interview with Philanthropy Action, Duflo put it this way: "If microfinance suddenly doesn't make all babies do calculus by the age of 5, it is deemed a failure." If we expect microfinance to instantly change people's lives, anything less will seem inadequate, she added. Duflo warned that people should not to be too quick about passing judgement on the efficacy of microloans because we aren't satisfied with the rate of change. "The fact (is) that results are showing (microcredit) is doing some reasonably good things."
Eradicating poverty is complex and tedious, Duflo said, mostly because we don't really know what works.
"We don't really have the levelers to make everything work. ... I think a few things worked, (but) it takes time," she said.
Study co-author Abhijit Banerjee agrees that a realistic time frame for addressing this problem is crucial.
"Poverty has been with us for thousands of years. If we have to wait another 50 to 100 to eradicate it, so be it," he said. | 2024-01-11T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/2186 |
/**
* Copyright Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates. All Rights Reserved.
* SPDX-License-Identifier: Apache-2.0.
*/
#include <aws/sagemaker/model/ListCodeRepositoriesRequest.h>
#include <aws/core/utils/json/JsonSerializer.h>
#include <utility>
using namespace Aws::SageMaker::Model;
using namespace Aws::Utils::Json;
using namespace Aws::Utils;
ListCodeRepositoriesRequest::ListCodeRepositoriesRequest() :
m_creationTimeAfterHasBeenSet(false),
m_creationTimeBeforeHasBeenSet(false),
m_lastModifiedTimeAfterHasBeenSet(false),
m_lastModifiedTimeBeforeHasBeenSet(false),
m_maxResults(0),
m_maxResultsHasBeenSet(false),
m_nameContainsHasBeenSet(false),
m_nextTokenHasBeenSet(false),
m_sortBy(CodeRepositorySortBy::NOT_SET),
m_sortByHasBeenSet(false),
m_sortOrder(CodeRepositorySortOrder::NOT_SET),
m_sortOrderHasBeenSet(false)
{
}
Aws::String ListCodeRepositoriesRequest::SerializePayload() const
{
JsonValue payload;
if(m_creationTimeAfterHasBeenSet)
{
payload.WithDouble("CreationTimeAfter", m_creationTimeAfter.SecondsWithMSPrecision());
}
if(m_creationTimeBeforeHasBeenSet)
{
payload.WithDouble("CreationTimeBefore", m_creationTimeBefore.SecondsWithMSPrecision());
}
if(m_lastModifiedTimeAfterHasBeenSet)
{
payload.WithDouble("LastModifiedTimeAfter", m_lastModifiedTimeAfter.SecondsWithMSPrecision());
}
if(m_lastModifiedTimeBeforeHasBeenSet)
{
payload.WithDouble("LastModifiedTimeBefore", m_lastModifiedTimeBefore.SecondsWithMSPrecision());
}
if(m_maxResultsHasBeenSet)
{
payload.WithInteger("MaxResults", m_maxResults);
}
if(m_nameContainsHasBeenSet)
{
payload.WithString("NameContains", m_nameContains);
}
if(m_nextTokenHasBeenSet)
{
payload.WithString("NextToken", m_nextToken);
}
if(m_sortByHasBeenSet)
{
payload.WithString("SortBy", CodeRepositorySortByMapper::GetNameForCodeRepositorySortBy(m_sortBy));
}
if(m_sortOrderHasBeenSet)
{
payload.WithString("SortOrder", CodeRepositorySortOrderMapper::GetNameForCodeRepositorySortOrder(m_sortOrder));
}
return payload.View().WriteReadable();
}
Aws::Http::HeaderValueCollection ListCodeRepositoriesRequest::GetRequestSpecificHeaders() const
{
Aws::Http::HeaderValueCollection headers;
headers.insert(Aws::Http::HeaderValuePair("X-Amz-Target", "SageMaker.ListCodeRepositories"));
return headers;
}
| 2024-04-09T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/9989 |
This application claims the priority of German patent document 100 35 756.3, filed Jul. 22, 2000, the disclosure of which is expressly incorporated by reference herein.
The invention relates to a fuel cell system and to a method for operating a fuel cell system.
In fuel cell systems used to generate electrical energy from chemical processes, a plurality of individual fuel cells are combined to form a stack in order to achieve significant electric power. A fuel cell system of this type generally includes an anode space and a cathode space, which are separated from one another by a proton-conducting membrane, a cathode feed line for feeding oxygen-containing gas (such as air) to the cathode space, a cathode exhaust-gas line, and an anode line for feeding and discharging an operating medium to the anode space. In general, hydrogen is used as operating medium of a fuel cell and is ionized with a release of electrons. The resulting hydrogen ions are passed into the cathode space through the membrane, and converted into water with the oxygen supplied. The hydrogen to be supplied may be produced, for example, by reforming hydrocarbons.
In what are known as direct methanol fuel cells (DMFCs), by contrast, a liquid operating medium (methanol)/coolant mixture is passed to the anode space of the fuel cell system. If water is used as the coolant and methanol as the operating medium, a carbon dioxide gas which is enriched with water and methanol is formed at the anode outlet. After the carbon dioxide has been separated off, these products can be recirculated to the anode inlet, it being necessary to meter methanol from a reservoir into this circuit in order to ensure a constant methanol concentration. A fuel cell system of this type is disclosed in German patent document DE 198 07 876 A1.
If, by way of example, a fuel cell system is to be used to provide electric power in a vehicle, antifreeze properties and ability to achieve cold starts are significant criteria for the day-to-day suitability of a system of this type. In the direct methanol fuel cells mentioned, there is a risk of freezing, in particular when the fuel cell is not operating, on account of the use of water in the anode circuit and on account of the water produced at the cathode outlet. The freezing point of the water/methanol mixtures which are customarily used is xe2x88x921 to xe2x88x924xc2x0 C. Therefore, at lower temperatures the system has to be preheated, resulting in a long cold start phase.
In a German patent application which was submitted by the present applicant (reference number 100 00 514.4), it is proposed to monitor the temperature in the anode circuit and if it falls below a predetermined threshold, to increase the methanol concentration. This lowers the freezing point of the mixture in the anode circuit. Furthermore, the methanol permeability of the membranes used in these systems causes methanol to diffuse into the cathode space, so that here too the freezing point is lowered. At the same time, when the fuel cell is started, air is introduced into the cathode space; the oxygen which is present in the air undergoes a strongly exothermic reaction with the methanol in the cathode space, so that the cold start process is significantly accelerated.
Since, in operation, the methanol permeability of existing membranes diminishes the efficiency of the fuel cell, the intention is to reduce drastically or eliminate the methanol permeability of the membrane materials. In this case, the methanol permeability, which is advantageous for antifreeze properties and for the cold start process, can then no longer be exploited.
Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide a fuel cell system and a method for operating such a system which ensure good cold start performance and sufficient antifreeze properties on the part of the fuel cell system, even if the methanol permeability of the membranes used therein is absent or drastically reduced.
This and other objects and advantages are achieved by the fuel cell system according to the invention, which includes a device for determining a representative temperature, as well as a device for metering and feeding operating medium to the cathode space as a function of the determined temperature. It is appropriate for the representative temperature used to be the ambient temperature, the temperature in the interior of the anode line, of the cathode space or of the cathode feed line or cathode exhaust-gas line. When using the ambient temperature, it should be taken into account that, during and for a long time after operation of the fuel cell system, this temperature differs considerably from that inside the fuel cell system, since the operating temperatures typically lie in the range from 80-120xc2x0 C.
Since, in the fuel cell system according to the invention, the methanol permeability of the fuel cell membrane is negligible and methanol is introduced only in a temperature-controlled, metered fashion into the cathode side in order to obtain antifreeze properties, the efficiency of the system when it is operating normally is improved relative to the known systems with antifreeze properties as described above.
The measure according to the invention makes it possible to prevent freezing even down to temperatures of xe2x88x9235xc2x0 C. At the same time, the cold start performance is improved considerably, since after the supply of air to the cathode side has been started, the operating supplied medium (methanol) is catalytically oxidized, and thermal energy is released. The advantages described above can, of course, also be achieved with operating media other than methanol.
Operating medium may be fed to the cathode space in different ways. The operating medium may be introduced from a dedicated reservoir into the cathode feed line or directly into the cathode space. The metering of methanol or of a methanol/water mixture into, for example, the air stream flowing into the cathode space is also conceivable. Finally, the operating medium may be supplied from the anode circuit to the cathode space. This configuration has the advantage that an operating medium/coolant mixture is already present in the anode circuit and can be used immediately.
The metered supply of operating medium may take place continuously as a function of the determined temperature, in which case the metering of operating medium is expediently commenced only when the temperature falls below a predetermined temperature threshold. Furthermore, it is possible to stipulate further temperature thresholds, in order to adapt the antifreeze properties in steps to the actual temperature. It is advantageous for the antifreeze system according to the invention for the cathode side to be combined with an antifreeze system for the anode side, as described in the abovementioned German patent application (ref. 100 00 514.4) in the name of the applicant. In that document, a temperature sensor is provided in the interior of the anode line for the purpose of determining the temperature. This temperature sensor may also be used in the present case to control the device according to the invention for metering and supplying operating medium to the cathode space. It can be assumed that, in particular when the fuel cell system is switched off, the temperatures on the anode side will differ little from those on the cathode side.
Naturally, the temperature may also be determined independently of the temperature on the anode side, for the cathode side alone, by providing a temperature sensor in the cathode space or in the interior of the cathode feed line or cathode discharge line.
It is advantageous to use a combined concentration and temperature sensor, in order to be able to detect the prevailing operating medium concentrations as well as the temperature.
Other objects, advantages and novel features of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of the invention when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. | 2023-10-27T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/6291 |
Unless this ruling is overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court, a year’s worth of NLRB decisions could be invalid, and the agency would lack a quorum to make any new rulings until members are confirmed by the Senate.
That’s a victory for business groups, who contend the NLRB has become biased in favor of labor unions under Obama.
“The NLRB’s activist agenda has gone unchecked resulting in numerous actions that have overturned decades of precedent to establish micro-unions and deny employers due process rights,” said Bill Hughes, senior vice president for government affairs for the Retail Industry Leaders Association.
Under the president’s administration, the NLRB has been transformed from a neutral arbiter of labor law disputes into an activist organization whose only goal is to promote the special interests of politically powerful unions, said Geoff Burr, vice president of federal affairs for Associated Builders and Contractors.
“The president’s decision to bypass the U.S. Senate and appoint pro-union activist members to the NLRB was a political, partisan act that had to be challenged,” he said.
The president cited his powers to make appointments while the Senate is in the recess when he named three members to the NLRB last January. Republicans had blocked the Senate from confirming these officials.
But the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit ruled that Obama overstepped his powers because the Senate wasn’t technically in recess. Instead, Republicans forced the Senate hold to “pro forma” sessions during this holiday time period, in order to prevent Obama from making recess appointments.
Industries:
Comments
If you are commenting using a Facebook account, your profile information may be displayed with your comment depending on your privacy settings. By leaving the 'Post to Facebook' box selected, your comment will be published to your Facebook profile in addition to the space below. | 2023-08-14T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/8154 |
Capturing the antiaromatic (#6094) C68 carbon cage in the radio-frequency furnace.
Although all fullerenes do not satisfy the classical aromaticity condition, as a result of their nonplanar nature, they experience effective stabilization due to extensive cyclic π-electron delocalization and exhibit pronounced "spherical aromaticity". This feature has raised the question of the opposite phenomenon, that is, the existence of antiaromatic carbon cages. Here the first experimental evidence of the existence of antiaromatic fullerenes is reported. The elusive (#6094)C(68) was effectively captured as C(68)Cl(8) by in situ chlorination in the gas phase during radio-frequency synthesis. The chlorinated cage was separated by means of multistage HPLC, and its connectivity unambiguously determined by single-crystal X-ray analysis. Halogen-stripped pristine (#6094)C(68) was monitored by mass spectrometry of the chlorinated C(68)Cl(8) cage. Quantum chemical calculations reveal the highly antiaromatic character of (#6094)C(68), in accordance with all geometric, energetic, and magnetic criteria of aromaticity. Chlorine addition leads to substantial stabilization of the cage owing to aromatization in the resulting C(68)Cl(8), which explains its high abundance in the primary fullerene soot. This work provides new insights into the process of fullerene formation and better understanding of aromaticity phenomena in general. | 2024-06-08T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/1321 |
Q:
Batch: How to append the name of a variable instead of the value of that variable
I am trying to append strings to a text file. So far, my code looks like this:
echo -%appointment% >>C:\Users\Evan\Desktop\Programming\Events.txt
echo set /a h=(%hours%*3600)+(%minutes%*60) >>C:\Users\Evan\Desktop\Programming\Events.txt
echo set /a i=%day%-%dbf% >>C:\Users\Evan\Desktop\Programming\Events.txt
echo if %g% leq %h% if %b% equ %day% echo %appointment% %time% Today >>C:\Users\Evan\Desktop\Programming\Events.txt
echo if %b% lss %day% if %b% geq %i% echo %appointment% %time% %date% >>C:\Users\Evan\Desktop\Programming\Events.txt
The problem is, the variables %b% and %g% are dependent on the specific occurance. %b% and %g% change with date, so while their values will be accurate when I append them into the text file, their values will NOT be accurate when I actually want to convert the text file into a batch file and use it. How do I literally append the variable %b% as text and not its current value so that it can change every time I run the text file as a batch? If I try to append "%b%" in code with those quotations, in the occuring file, it is simply output as "".
Thank you.
A:
Double the % for the % you wish to output literally.
% escapes % (ie causes it to be interpreted as an ordinary, not a special character.)
^ escapes most awkward characters like | - but not %
| 2024-06-19T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/7551 |
Robin van Persie and Wayne Rooney: Providing Manchester United's cutting edge
Sir Alex Ferguson was initially reluctant to use the pair in tandem following Van Persie's arrival from Arsenal last summer, with Rooney often asked to fill a wider role.
The England international became frustrated at being asked to play out of position, leading to him requesting a move away from Old Trafford.
He has, however, been deployed down the middle under new boss David Moyes and he and Van Persie - following a goal apiece in a 3-2 win over Stoke City on Saturday - have now found the target 14 times between them this term.
On a productive strike unit, which also includes Javier Hernandez, Van Persie said: "Wayne's a great player. In my opinion good players can always play together and I think we showed that against Stoke.
"We showed it last season, we showed it earlier this season and hopefully we can keep showing that because we do want to play together.
"But don't forget Chicharito because he's a great player. He's a real role model to all footballers. He works so hard, I'm a really big fan of his. We will need all of our strikers."
Van Persie has also paid tribute to an emerging star in United's attacking ranks, with Adnan Januzaj having burst onto the Old Trafford scene this season to earn himself a new long-term contract.
"Over the years I've seen so many young players, and I can honestly say that of all the youngsters I've seen he is right up there in the top one or two," said Van Persie.
"He's a special player. He will give Man United a great bunch of goals and great games. He's confident in a good way. He's not too bothered with the whole occasion or the pressure of the games."
Van Persie was returned to United's starting XI over the weekend after being rested for UEFA Champions League duty against Real Sociedad, and the Dutchman admits he is nursing a few knocks - with toe and groin complaints having forced Moyes to handle him with care.
He added: "To be fair, I've felt better.
"The last couple of weeks, it's been quite tough for me. I've been sore in a couple of places and I want to play through that." | 2023-11-21T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/9103 |
/var/log/ryu/ryu.log {
daily
missingok
compress
delaycompress
notifempty
}
| 2023-08-03T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/2924 |
Sonic-FX Toothbrush with UV Sanitizer
Sonic technology
33,000 strokes per minute
Varying bristle lengths provide more effective cleaning
Ultra-lightweight
Three different speeds
UV sanitizer
4 brush heads
Multiple colors
How to get your goods: by purchasing this Groupon and providing your name and shipping address, your order is complete!
For questions pertaining to this deal, please visit the deal Q&A on this page. For post-purchase inquiries, please contact [Groupon customer service](http://gr.pn/zmfvIT).
View the [Groupon Goods FAQ](http://gr.pn/HN9b1l) for additional information. | 2024-07-09T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/3730 |
Your Contact
Description of Santona Condominium #A42
Description of Unit
BEAUTIFULLY UPDATED 2/2 WITH UNIQUELY LARGE LAYOUT IN SOUTH GABLES. WALKING DISTANCE TO METRO RAIL, UNIVERSITY, PUBLIX AND DOWNTOWN SOUTH MIAMI. TERRACE WITH GREAT TREE TOP VIEWS. EXCELLENT FOR UM STUDENTS, SINGLES, COUPLES OR OLDER PERSON THAT WANT TO BE WITH-IN WALKING DISTANCE TO SHOPPING AND METRO RAIL STATION.
Information presented on this website is believed to be accurate but is not warranted. Oral representations should not be considered valid. Information presented on this site (and in generated reports) may contain listings from both Brown Harris Stevens and other brokers who cooperate with Brown Harris Stevens. The content on this webpage (including drawings, photos, text and other materials) may have been provided by developers, third parties or others, and may have been extracted from a developer's marketing materials. Brown Harris Stevens does not warrant the accuracy of such information. You should consult your Purchase Agreement, Contract and Condominium Documents for accurate information. Brown Harris Stevens is an independent broker and has no developer affiliation, unless otherwise noted. | 2024-03-07T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/4559 |
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<packages>
<package id="AutoMapper" version="7.0.1" targetFramework="net45" />
<package id="EntityFramework" version="6.3.0" targetFramework="net45" />
<package id="EntityFramework6.Npgsql" version="6.3.0" targetFramework="net45" />
<package id="Npgsql" version="4.0.10" targetFramework="net45" />
<package id="System.Buffers" version="4.4.0" targetFramework="net45" />
<package id="System.Memory" version="4.5.3" targetFramework="net45" />
<package id="System.Runtime.CompilerServices.Unsafe" version="4.5.2" targetFramework="net45" />
<package id="System.Threading.Tasks.Extensions" version="4.5.2" targetFramework="net45" />
<package id="System.ValueTuple" version="4.5.0" targetFramework="net45" />
</packages> | 2024-01-23T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/2387 |
Q:
MySQL UPDATE statement is not updating the associated table
I have the following code:
$query = "UPDATE jobs SET `ipt` = '$ipt', `prejobform` = '$prejobform', `fileddate` = '$fileddate' WHERE `job_id` = '$jobid'";
$result = mysql_query($query);
if (!$result) {
//ERROR LOGGER HERE
echo mysql_error();
}
else {
header('Location: view_job.php?jobid='.$jobid);
}
This code is redirecting like it is behaving correctly, but when I check the database, the fields have not been updated. I'm sure the problem is something simple that I'm missing, but I'm at a loss to find the problem.
A:
For an UPDATE query, mysql_query returns true if the query succeeded (was parsed and executed correctly), not only if it did really update any rows.
If the underlying table is InnoDB and you have started a transaction earlier, the query won't commit transaction implicitly and it will roll back when you exit the script or disconnect.
| 2023-10-23T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/2931 |
Student Programs
It Starts With You
The UGA Alumni Association creates unique opportunities for students through the Student Alumni Association. Building a culture of student philanthropy, preserving the traditions that make UGA special and forging connections between students and alumni starts with you. | 2024-04-02T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/8423 |
2BR charming apt in best location
2BR charming apt in best location
Great check-in experience · 90% of recent guests gave this home’s check-in process a 5-star rating.
Indoor fireplace · This is one of few homes in this area that has this feature.
This is definitely the safest and most comfortable location you'll find in Bogota. It's five blocks away to the Parque 93, one block away from the Transmilenio stop and on world's longest bike path (bikes available upon request).
Amenities
Free parking on premises
Wireless Internet
Kitchen
Washer
Indoor fireplace
Shampoo
Sleeping arrangements
Bedroom 1
1 double bed
Bedroom 2
2 single beds
House Rules
No smoking
No parties or events
Not safe or suitable for infants (Under 2 years)
Check-in is anytime after 3PM
Check out by 11AM
Self check-in with building staff
Accessibility
Lift
Availability
157 Reviews
Accuracy
Communication
Cleanliness
Location
Check-in
Value
Tanya
April 2017
Felipe was an excellent host. Really responsive and very helpful. The apartment is great. Beds super comfy. Beautiful art
Karla
March 2017
Felipe's place is a great apartment, located in a great spot. It was easy to walk to restaurants, supermarkets and everything else you needed. The apartment was very clean. I would recommend taking warm clothes, as it was a bit chilly in the bedrooms. We only had two people so co…
Sara
December 2016
x
Geoff
August 2016
Great apartment in superb location, but lacking basic amenities like TV, kettle, toaster etc.
Kitchen utensils not up to scratch.
All up we enjoyed our stay.
Alex
October 2015
Unfortunately I didn't get a chance to stay with Felipe however my two friends stayed with him and loved it. Felipe invited them out for dinner and was an amazing host. They said the place was great and a good spot to explore the city from.
Alexander
April 2018
Excellent location, close to many restaurants, supermarkets and any essential places you may need for your stay. We felt safe at every moment during our stay. The area is quite good and there are always people walking around the neighborhood. 24-hour security at the entrance also…
Hosted by Felipe
Bogota, Colombia · Joined in May 2014
202 Reviews
Verified
I am a design studio founder based in Bogota but have lived in various cities around the world and have an affinity for traveling. Have been an Airbnb guest since 2014 and I've liked it so much I couldn't wait to become a host myself.
Often Airbnb has become a great excuse for…
Languages:English, Español, Français
Response rate:100%
Response time:within an hour
Always communicate through Airbnb · To protect your payment, never transfer money or communicate outside of the Airbnb website or app. | 2024-01-25T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/1106 |
Q:
How can I fix these SockJS ssl errors?
With vue-cli 3, I've got a vue app whirring away in development mode. I call npm run serve, and I see...
DONE Compiled successfully in 431ms
16:26:43
App running at:
- Local: http://localhost:8080/mobileapp/v/
- Network: http://172.18.55.202:8080/mobileapp/v/
(The path /mobileapp/v/ comes from a baseUrl config variable. The domain notilusdev.dimosoftware.com/mobileapp points to a vdir in iis, and requests to /mobileapp/v/ are reverse proxied to webpack-dev-server)
In the browser, the app fires up no problem. Then it starts firing off requests to https://172.18.55.202:8080/sockjs-node/info?t=1529072806971. These requests fail, because there's no ssl on that port. I don't even want the ip as the public address of the site. How does Webpack (or sockjs) construct this url? Why does it think there's ssl on this port when it's just given me a straight http link? If it's basing the protocol on the address-bar protocol, why is it ignoring the address-bar host-name. What can I configure to get these requests to succeed?
A:
This was a struggle, but it's working now...
Add a public property to the devServer object in vue.config.
The property I needed was public, not publicPath, and the clincher was learning that vue will ignore config changes in configureWebpack{ devServer: {. You need to use the top level devServer property.
So my working vue.config.js is...
module.exports = {
baseUrl: process.env.NODE_ENV === 'production'
? '/production-sub-path/'
: '\/mobileapp\/v\/',
devServer :{
public : 'notilusdev.dimosoftware.com',
host : '0.0.0.0',
disableHostCheck : true
}
}
Then I needed to reverse-proxy https and wss:// requests through express, terminating the ssl in express, but that's another story.
| 2024-03-09T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/1573 |
/*
* Copyright (C) 2017 The Android Open Source Project
*
* Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License"); you may not use this file
* except in compliance with the License. You may obtain a copy of the License at
*
* http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
*
* Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software distributed under the
* License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS, WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY
* KIND, either express or implied. See the License for the specific language governing
* permissions and limitations under the License.
*/
package com.android.systemui;
import static com.android.systemui.util.leak.RotationUtils.ROTATION_LANDSCAPE;
import static com.android.systemui.util.leak.RotationUtils.ROTATION_NONE;
import static com.android.systemui.util.leak.RotationUtils.ROTATION_SEASCAPE;
import android.animation.Animator;
import android.animation.AnimatorListenerAdapter;
import android.animation.AnimatorSet;
import android.animation.ObjectAnimator;
import android.content.Context;
import android.provider.Settings;
import android.util.AttributeSet;
import android.view.Gravity;
import android.view.View;
import android.view.ViewGroup;
import android.view.ViewOutlineProvider;
import android.view.ViewTreeObserver;
import android.widget.LinearLayout;
import com.android.systemui.tuner.TunerService;
import com.android.systemui.tuner.TunerService.Tunable;
import com.android.systemui.util.leak.RotationUtils;
/**
* Layout for placing two containers at a specific physical position on the device, relative to the
* device's hardware, regardless of screen rotation.
*/
public class HardwareUiLayout extends MultiListLayout implements Tunable {
private static final String EDGE_BLEED = "sysui_hwui_edge_bleed";
private static final String ROUNDED_DIVIDER = "sysui_hwui_rounded_divider";
private final int[] mTmp2 = new int[2];
private ViewGroup mList;
private ViewGroup mSeparatedView;
private int mOldHeight;
private boolean mAnimating;
private AnimatorSet mAnimation;
private View mDivision;
private HardwareBgDrawable mListBackground;
private HardwareBgDrawable mSeparatedViewBackground;
private Animator mAnimator;
private boolean mCollapse;
private int mEndPoint;
private boolean mEdgeBleed;
private boolean mRoundedDivider;
private boolean mRotatedBackground;
private boolean mSwapOrientation = true;
public HardwareUiLayout(Context context, AttributeSet attrs) {
super(context, attrs);
// Manually re-initialize mRotation to portrait-mode, since this view must always
// be constructed in portrait mode and rotated into the correct initial position.
mRotation = ROTATION_NONE;
updateSettings();
}
@Override
protected ViewGroup getSeparatedView() {
return findViewById(com.android.systemui.R.id.separated_button);
}
@Override
protected ViewGroup getListView() {
return findViewById(android.R.id.list);
}
@Override
protected void onAttachedToWindow() {
super.onAttachedToWindow();
updateSettings();
Dependency.get(TunerService.class).addTunable(this, EDGE_BLEED, ROUNDED_DIVIDER);
getViewTreeObserver().addOnComputeInternalInsetsListener(mInsetsListener);
}
@Override
protected void onDetachedFromWindow() {
super.onDetachedFromWindow();
getViewTreeObserver().removeOnComputeInternalInsetsListener(mInsetsListener);
Dependency.get(TunerService.class).removeTunable(this);
}
@Override
public void onTuningChanged(String key, String newValue) {
updateSettings();
}
private void updateSettings() {
mEdgeBleed = Settings.Secure.getInt(getContext().getContentResolver(),
EDGE_BLEED, 0) != 0;
mRoundedDivider = Settings.Secure.getInt(getContext().getContentResolver(),
ROUNDED_DIVIDER, 0) != 0;
updateEdgeMargin(mEdgeBleed ? 0 : getEdgePadding());
mListBackground = new HardwareBgDrawable(mRoundedDivider, !mEdgeBleed, getContext());
mSeparatedViewBackground = new HardwareBgDrawable(mRoundedDivider, !mEdgeBleed,
getContext());
if (mList != null) {
mList.setBackground(mListBackground);
mSeparatedView.setBackground(mSeparatedViewBackground);
requestLayout();
}
}
private void updateEdgeMargin(int edge) {
if (mList != null) {
MarginLayoutParams params = (MarginLayoutParams) mList.getLayoutParams();
if (mRotation == ROTATION_LANDSCAPE) {
params.topMargin = edge;
} else if (mRotation == ROTATION_SEASCAPE) {
params.bottomMargin = edge;
} else {
params.rightMargin = edge;
params.leftMargin = edge;
}
mList.setLayoutParams(params);
}
if (mSeparatedView != null) {
MarginLayoutParams params = (MarginLayoutParams) mSeparatedView.getLayoutParams();
if (mRotation == ROTATION_LANDSCAPE) {
params.topMargin = edge;
} else if (mRotation == ROTATION_SEASCAPE) {
params.bottomMargin = edge;
} else {
params.rightMargin = edge;
}
mSeparatedView.setLayoutParams(params);
}
}
private int getEdgePadding() {
return getContext().getResources().getDimensionPixelSize(R.dimen.edge_margin);
}
@Override
protected void onMeasure(int widthMeasureSpec, int heightMeasureSpec) {
super.onMeasure(widthMeasureSpec, heightMeasureSpec);
if (mList == null) {
if (getChildCount() != 0) {
mList = getListView();
mList.setBackground(mListBackground);
mSeparatedView = getSeparatedView();
mSeparatedView.setBackground(mSeparatedViewBackground);
updateEdgeMargin(mEdgeBleed ? 0 : getEdgePadding());
mOldHeight = mList.getMeasuredHeight();
// Must be called to initialize view rotation correctly.
// Requires LayoutParams, hence why this isn't called during the constructor.
updateRotation();
} else {
return;
}
}
int newHeight = mList.getMeasuredHeight();
if (newHeight != mOldHeight) {
animateChild(mOldHeight, newHeight);
}
post(() -> updatePaddingAndGravityIfTooTall());
post(() -> updatePosition());
}
public void setSwapOrientation(boolean swapOrientation) {
mSwapOrientation = swapOrientation;
}
private void updateRotation() {
int rotation = RotationUtils.getRotation(getContext());
if (rotation != mRotation) {
rotate(mRotation, rotation);
mRotation = rotation;
}
}
/**
* Requires LayoutParams to be set to work correctly, and therefore must be run after after
* the HardwareUILayout has been added to the view hierarchy.
*/
protected void rotate(int from, int to) {
super.rotate(from, to);
if (from != ROTATION_NONE && to != ROTATION_NONE) {
// Rather than handling this confusing case, just do 2 rotations.
rotate(from, ROTATION_NONE);
rotate(ROTATION_NONE, to);
return;
}
if (from == ROTATION_LANDSCAPE || to == ROTATION_SEASCAPE) {
rotateRight();
} else {
rotateLeft();
}
if (mAdapter.hasSeparatedItems()) {
if (from == ROTATION_SEASCAPE || to == ROTATION_SEASCAPE) {
// Separated view has top margin, so seascape separated view need special rotation,
// not a full left or right rotation.
swapLeftAndTop(mSeparatedView);
} else if (from == ROTATION_LANDSCAPE) {
rotateRight(mSeparatedView);
} else {
rotateLeft(mSeparatedView);
}
}
if (to != ROTATION_NONE) {
if (mList instanceof LinearLayout) {
mRotatedBackground = true;
mListBackground.setRotatedBackground(true);
mSeparatedViewBackground.setRotatedBackground(true);
LinearLayout linearLayout = (LinearLayout) mList;
if (mSwapOrientation) {
linearLayout.setOrientation(LinearLayout.HORIZONTAL);
setOrientation(LinearLayout.HORIZONTAL);
}
swapDimens(mList);
swapDimens(mSeparatedView);
}
} else {
if (mList instanceof LinearLayout) {
mRotatedBackground = false;
mListBackground.setRotatedBackground(false);
mSeparatedViewBackground.setRotatedBackground(false);
LinearLayout linearLayout = (LinearLayout) mList;
if (mSwapOrientation) {
linearLayout.setOrientation(LinearLayout.VERTICAL);
setOrientation(LinearLayout.VERTICAL);
}
swapDimens(mList);
swapDimens(mSeparatedView);
}
}
}
@Override
public void onUpdateList() {
super.onUpdateList();
for (int i = 0; i < mAdapter.getCount(); i++) {
ViewGroup parent;
boolean separated = mAdapter.shouldBeSeparated(i);
if (separated) {
parent = getSeparatedView();
} else {
parent = getListView();
}
View v = mAdapter.getView(i, null, parent);
parent.addView(v);
}
}
private void rotateRight() {
rotateRight(this);
rotateRight(mList);
swapDimens(this);
LayoutParams p = (LayoutParams) mList.getLayoutParams();
p.gravity = rotateGravityRight(p.gravity);
mList.setLayoutParams(p);
LayoutParams separatedViewLayoutParams = (LayoutParams) mSeparatedView.getLayoutParams();
separatedViewLayoutParams.gravity = rotateGravityRight(separatedViewLayoutParams.gravity);
mSeparatedView.setLayoutParams(separatedViewLayoutParams);
setGravity(rotateGravityRight(getGravity()));
}
private void swapDimens(View v) {
ViewGroup.LayoutParams params = v.getLayoutParams();
int h = params.width;
params.width = params.height;
params.height = h;
v.setLayoutParams(params);
}
private int rotateGravityRight(int gravity) {
int retGravity = 0;
int layoutDirection = getLayoutDirection();
final int absoluteGravity = Gravity.getAbsoluteGravity(gravity, layoutDirection);
final int verticalGravity = gravity & Gravity.VERTICAL_GRAVITY_MASK;
switch (absoluteGravity & Gravity.HORIZONTAL_GRAVITY_MASK) {
case Gravity.CENTER_HORIZONTAL:
retGravity |= Gravity.CENTER_VERTICAL;
break;
case Gravity.RIGHT:
retGravity |= Gravity.BOTTOM;
break;
case Gravity.LEFT:
default:
retGravity |= Gravity.TOP;
break;
}
switch (verticalGravity) {
case Gravity.CENTER_VERTICAL:
retGravity |= Gravity.CENTER_HORIZONTAL;
break;
case Gravity.BOTTOM:
retGravity |= Gravity.LEFT;
break;
case Gravity.TOP:
default:
retGravity |= Gravity.RIGHT;
break;
}
return retGravity;
}
private void rotateLeft() {
rotateLeft(this);
rotateLeft(mList);
swapDimens(this);
LayoutParams p = (LayoutParams) mList.getLayoutParams();
p.gravity = rotateGravityLeft(p.gravity);
mList.setLayoutParams(p);
LayoutParams separatedViewLayoutParams = (LayoutParams) mSeparatedView.getLayoutParams();
separatedViewLayoutParams.gravity = rotateGravityLeft(separatedViewLayoutParams.gravity);
mSeparatedView.setLayoutParams(separatedViewLayoutParams);
setGravity(rotateGravityLeft(getGravity()));
}
private int rotateGravityLeft(int gravity) {
if (gravity == -1) {
gravity = Gravity.TOP | Gravity.START;
}
int retGravity = 0;
int layoutDirection = getLayoutDirection();
final int absoluteGravity = Gravity.getAbsoluteGravity(gravity, layoutDirection);
final int verticalGravity = gravity & Gravity.VERTICAL_GRAVITY_MASK;
switch (absoluteGravity & Gravity.HORIZONTAL_GRAVITY_MASK) {
case Gravity.CENTER_HORIZONTAL:
retGravity |= Gravity.CENTER_VERTICAL;
break;
case Gravity.RIGHT:
retGravity |= Gravity.TOP;
break;
case Gravity.LEFT:
default:
retGravity |= Gravity.BOTTOM;
break;
}
switch (verticalGravity) {
case Gravity.CENTER_VERTICAL:
retGravity |= Gravity.CENTER_HORIZONTAL;
break;
case Gravity.BOTTOM:
retGravity |= Gravity.RIGHT;
break;
case Gravity.TOP:
default:
retGravity |= Gravity.LEFT;
break;
}
return retGravity;
}
private void rotateLeft(View v) {
v.setPadding(v.getPaddingTop(), v.getPaddingRight(), v.getPaddingBottom(),
v.getPaddingLeft());
MarginLayoutParams params = (MarginLayoutParams) v.getLayoutParams();
params.setMargins(params.topMargin, params.rightMargin, params.bottomMargin,
params.leftMargin);
v.setLayoutParams(params);
}
private void rotateRight(View v) {
v.setPadding(v.getPaddingBottom(), v.getPaddingLeft(), v.getPaddingTop(),
v.getPaddingRight());
MarginLayoutParams params = (MarginLayoutParams) v.getLayoutParams();
params.setMargins(params.bottomMargin, params.leftMargin, params.topMargin,
params.rightMargin);
v.setLayoutParams(params);
}
private void swapLeftAndTop(View v) {
v.setPadding(v.getPaddingTop(), v.getPaddingLeft(), v.getPaddingBottom(),
v.getPaddingRight());
MarginLayoutParams params = (MarginLayoutParams) v.getLayoutParams();
params.setMargins(params.topMargin, params.leftMargin, params.bottomMargin,
params.rightMargin);
v.setLayoutParams(params);
}
@Override
protected void onLayout(boolean changed, int left, int top, int right, int bottom) {
super.onLayout(changed, left, top, right, bottom);
post(() -> updatePosition());
}
private void animateChild(int oldHeight, int newHeight) {
if (true) return;
if (mAnimating) {
mAnimation.cancel();
}
mAnimating = true;
mAnimation = new AnimatorSet();
mAnimation.addListener(new AnimatorListenerAdapter() {
@Override
public void onAnimationEnd(Animator animation) {
mAnimating = false;
}
});
int fromTop = mList.getTop();
int fromBottom = mList.getBottom();
int toTop = fromTop - ((newHeight - oldHeight) / 2);
int toBottom = fromBottom + ((newHeight - oldHeight) / 2);
ObjectAnimator top = ObjectAnimator.ofInt(mList, "top", fromTop, toTop);
top.addUpdateListener(animation -> mListBackground.invalidateSelf());
mAnimation.playTogether(top,
ObjectAnimator.ofInt(mList, "bottom", fromBottom, toBottom));
}
public void setDivisionView(View v) {
mDivision = v;
if (mDivision != null) {
mDivision.addOnLayoutChangeListener(
(v1, left, top, right, bottom, oldLeft, oldTop, oldRight, oldBottom) ->
updatePosition());
}
updatePosition();
}
private void updatePosition() {
if (mList == null) return;
// If got separated button, setRotatedBackground to false,
// all items won't get white background.
boolean separated = mAdapter.hasSeparatedItems();
mListBackground.setRotatedBackground(separated);
mSeparatedViewBackground.setRotatedBackground(separated);
if (mDivision != null && mDivision.getVisibility() == VISIBLE) {
int index = mRotatedBackground ? 0 : 1;
mDivision.getLocationOnScreen(mTmp2);
float trans = mRotatedBackground ? mDivision.getTranslationX()
: mDivision.getTranslationY();
int viewTop = (int) (mTmp2[index] + trans);
mList.getLocationOnScreen(mTmp2);
viewTop -= mTmp2[index];
setCutPoint(viewTop);
} else {
setCutPoint(mList.getMeasuredHeight());
}
}
private void setCutPoint(int point) {
int curPoint = mListBackground.getCutPoint();
if (curPoint == point) return;
if (getAlpha() == 0 || curPoint == 0) {
mListBackground.setCutPoint(point);
return;
}
if (mAnimator != null) {
if (mEndPoint == point) {
return;
}
mAnimator.cancel();
}
mEndPoint = point;
mAnimator = ObjectAnimator.ofInt(mListBackground, "cutPoint", curPoint, point);
if (mCollapse) {
mAnimator.setStartDelay(300);
mCollapse = false;
}
mAnimator.start();
}
// If current power menu height larger then screen height, remove padding to break power menu
// alignment and set menu center vertical within the screen.
private void updatePaddingAndGravityIfTooTall() {
int defaultTopPadding;
int viewsTotalHeight;
int separatedViewTopMargin;
int screenHeight;
int totalHeight;
int targetGravity;
boolean separated = mAdapter.hasSeparatedItems();
MarginLayoutParams params = (MarginLayoutParams) mSeparatedView.getLayoutParams();
switch (RotationUtils.getRotation(getContext())) {
case RotationUtils.ROTATION_LANDSCAPE:
defaultTopPadding = getPaddingLeft();
viewsTotalHeight = mList.getMeasuredWidth() + mSeparatedView.getMeasuredWidth();
separatedViewTopMargin = separated ? params.leftMargin : 0;
screenHeight = getMeasuredWidth();
targetGravity = Gravity.CENTER_HORIZONTAL|Gravity.TOP;
break;
case RotationUtils.ROTATION_SEASCAPE:
defaultTopPadding = getPaddingRight();
viewsTotalHeight = mList.getMeasuredWidth() + mSeparatedView.getMeasuredWidth();
separatedViewTopMargin = separated ? params.leftMargin : 0;
screenHeight = getMeasuredWidth();
targetGravity = Gravity.CENTER_HORIZONTAL|Gravity.BOTTOM;
break;
default: // Portrait
defaultTopPadding = getPaddingTop();
viewsTotalHeight = mList.getMeasuredHeight() + mSeparatedView.getMeasuredHeight();
separatedViewTopMargin = separated ? params.topMargin : 0;
screenHeight = getMeasuredHeight();
targetGravity = Gravity.CENTER_VERTICAL|Gravity.RIGHT;
break;
}
totalHeight = defaultTopPadding + viewsTotalHeight + separatedViewTopMargin;
if (totalHeight >= screenHeight) {
setPadding(0, 0, 0, 0);
setGravity(targetGravity);
}
}
@Override
public ViewOutlineProvider getOutlineProvider() {
return super.getOutlineProvider();
}
public void setCollapse() {
mCollapse = true;
}
private final ViewTreeObserver.OnComputeInternalInsetsListener mInsetsListener = inoutInfo -> {
if (mHasOutsideTouch || (mList == null)) {
inoutInfo.setTouchableInsets(
ViewTreeObserver.InternalInsetsInfo.TOUCHABLE_INSETS_FRAME);
return;
}
inoutInfo.setTouchableInsets(
ViewTreeObserver.InternalInsetsInfo.TOUCHABLE_INSETS_CONTENT);
inoutInfo.contentInsets.set(mList.getLeft(), mList.getTop(),
0, getBottom() - mList.getBottom());
};
private float getAnimationDistance() {
return getContext().getResources().getDimension(
com.android.systemui.R.dimen.global_actions_panel_width) / 2;
}
@Override
public float getAnimationOffsetX() {
if (RotationUtils.getRotation(mContext) == ROTATION_NONE) {
return getAnimationDistance();
}
return 0;
}
@Override
public float getAnimationOffsetY() {
switch (RotationUtils.getRotation(getContext())) {
case RotationUtils.ROTATION_LANDSCAPE:
return -getAnimationDistance();
case RotationUtils.ROTATION_SEASCAPE:
return getAnimationDistance();
default: // Portrait
return 0;
}
}
}
| 2024-07-13T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/9386 |
import numpy
from chainer import distributions
from chainer import testing
from chainer import utils
@testing.parameterize(*testing.product({
'shape': [(2, 3), ()],
'is_variable': [True, False],
'sample_shape': [(3, 2), ()],
}))
@testing.fix_random()
@testing.with_requires('scipy')
class TestGamma(testing.distribution_unittest):
scipy_onebyone = True
def setUp_configure(self):
from scipy import stats
self.dist = distributions.Gamma
self.scipy_dist = stats.gamma
self.test_targets = set(
['batch_shape', 'entropy', 'event_shape', 'log_prob', 'mean',
'sample', 'support', 'variance'])
k = utils.force_array(
numpy.random.uniform(0, 5, self.shape).astype(numpy.float32))
theta = utils.force_array(
numpy.random.uniform(0, 5, self.shape).astype(numpy.float32))
self.params = {'k': k, 'theta': theta}
self.scipy_params = {'a': k, 'scale': theta}
self.support = 'positive'
def sample_for_test(self):
smp = numpy.random.gamma(
shape=5., size=self.sample_shape + self.shape
).astype(numpy.float32)
return smp
testing.run_module(__name__, __file__)
| 2024-01-26T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/4646 |
Tag: discipline
To the mom of the “naughty” child, I see you trying to get him to hold still and listen during story time. I see you giving her “the look” when she speaks out of turn during swimming lessons or t-ball practice. I see the hurt in your eyes when someone says “He sure is naughty”.
Share this:
I’ll be the first person to admit that I am not a perfect mom, not even close. I sometimes lose my cool and fly off the handle, especially since the twins were born. The stress of raising the twins 24/7/365 without a break and essentially no adult contact other than my husband is overwhelming at | 2024-07-07T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/8902 |
This story contains certain key spoilers regarding the events of "Avengers: Endgame"
(CNN) One would imagine that as the screenwriting duo of Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely began to tackle their sixth and, for now at least, final film set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, "Avengers: Endgame," they would've walked into the assignment with all the swagger of Tony Stark, or the resolute righteousness of Steve Rogers.
But one would be wrong. Even after the wild box office successes and critical praise of their previous efforts in the MCU -- including all three "Captain America" films, "Thor: The Dark World" and "Avengers: Infinity War," the penultimate episode in the ten-year interconnected superhero saga -- the pair was very aware that the highly anticipated concluding chapter was as much theirs to screw up as to win the day.
"You're on a high wire falling on your face, where it's going to either get bogged down in such a sense of your own importance that you forget to make an entertaining movie, or you're so busy dotting the I's that you forget to grip people emotionally during the run of the movie," Markus told CNN of their initial "Endgame" jitters. "It was a constant sort of calibrating and rejecting and going over it and making sure that we weren't just taking a victory lap. Because that is death."
Their commitment, of course, would pay off in spades: "Endgame," which has already made its debut on digital download and bows on physical home media on Tuesday, was instantly embraced by both fans and critics, becoming the top-grossing film of all time.
'Avengers: Endgame'
"I guess maybe Marvel makes it look easy, because they are fun [movies], but when Chris and I took the job, we did it very carefully knowing that it was going to take a lot out of us and it was going to be the biggest puzzle that we ever faced," said McFeely. "The amount of plates we're juggling, the amount of storylines, being able to bring them to the conclusion, and yes, making sure that we're honoring 20-ish other movies in the process, was rather complicated."
Read More | 2024-01-19T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/2310 |
Burger King Launching AT&T Wi-Fi in All U.S. Locations
Burger King today announced it is putting AT&T’s Wi-Fi Ready Zone access points in all of its U.S. locations.
Blessed with the tasty name “Whopper Wi-Fi,” the AT&T hotspots are promising an “easier to use and more robust experience” for Burger King customers.
Burger King says it’s the first large-scale customer to deploy AT&T’s Ready Zone, a plug-and-play, managed Wi-Fi access point that covers up to 2,000 square feet.
AT&T says it already has 32,000 Wi-Fi hotspots up and running in the U.S. AT&T has moved its branded Wi-Fi into other restaurants including McDonald’s. AT&T had previously been in Starbucks locations but the last year coffee chain switched its Wi-Fi service to Google.
The upgrade to Burger King’s in-restaurant wireless comes shortly after the nationwide chain announced plans for a mobile application pushing coupons and special offers. Burger King said the app could eventually allow customers to place orders and to pay from their smartphones. | 2024-04-28T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/6660 |
Regulatory agencies such as the Environmental Protection Agency and the Engine Manufacturers Association require strict emission requirements for heavy-duty diesel engines. One method used to reduce emissions of engines is an Exhaust Gas Recirculation ("EGR") system. The EGR system controls the amount of exhaust gas that is introduced into the engine's air intake system by a valve that adjusts the flow rate based on various engine operating parameters.
In addition to the normal operation of the EGR system, most EGR systems also have a fail-safe mode that drives the EGR valve either fully closed or fully open, depending on the design of the EGR system. Typically a spring is added to the EGR system to move the EGR valve when in fail-safe mode. The spring, however, is permanently affixed, and continuously exerts a biasing force on the EGR valve, i.e., during both normal and fail-safe operation. This places a large and unnecessary load on the actuator during normal operation. The additional load increases the likelihood of the actuator overheating, or requires a more powerful actuator than would otherwise be needed.
Further, because of the high powered actuators, conventional EGR systems typically use hydraulic or pneumatic powered actuators to adjust the position of the EGR valve. Both hydraulic and pneumatic systems are, however, susceptible to leaking. | 2023-11-27T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/3429 |
The Deep South RCMAR will serve as research-based and mentoring investment in the process of closing the health disparities gap between African American and non-minority older adults. In addition, the Deep South RCMAR will increase the number of researchers with the capacity to conduct independent, peer-reviewed research related to minority aging and health disparities. The RCMAR will focus on health problems that are particularly prevalent among older African Americans, and will give special attention to issues related to rural elders;intervention research addressing exercise, diet, or preventive health strategies;and studies addressing socio-economic, discrimination, trust, and bioethical issues impacting both measures of both physical and mental health. The Deep South RCMAR will create research infrastructure for the following objectives: (1) establish a mechanism for mentoring research careers;(2) enhance cultural diversity of the professional workforce conducting research on the health of older persons;(3) conduct research on and disseminate strategies for recruiting and retaining African American older adults in research;(4) facilitate innovative strategies to support enduring research careers in minority health, and/or encourage the recruitment of established researchers to undertake research on minority aging health;(5) improve the research methods and tools necessary to conduct rigorous and comparable research on diverse populations;(6) advance scientific knowledge leading to a decrease in health disparities;and (7) disseminate to scientific and non-scientific communities research results addressing the resolution of health disparities through the improvement of minority health, particularly for older African Americans. The Deep South RCMAR will be composed of three interacting and collaborative cores (administration, investigator development, and community liaison) created by and built upon the unique strengths of four partnering institutions (Morehouse School of Medicine, Tuskegee University, University of Alabama, and University of Alabama at Birmingham). The cores will provide an infrastructure to provide training and mentoring programs, fund three pilot projects per year, and nurture community relations needed to meet the stated objectives. The Deep South RCMAR will ultimately become not only a regional, but also a national resource for expertise related to the mechanisms of health disparities between older African Americans and whites. | 2024-04-03T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/8743 |
News
Cyclist critical after Drakes Broughton crash
A CYCLIST is in a critical condition with multiple injuries following a crash with a lorry.
The man, believed to be in his 60s, had to be anaesthetised at the roadside by doctors before being airlifted to a major trauma centre following the incident at the B4084 Worcester Road in Drakes Broughton, near Pershore, shortly after 7am.
A West Midlands Ambulance Service spokesman said: “Upon arrival ambulance staff found a cyclist, a man believed to be in his 60s, who had been involved in a collision with a lorry.
“The medical team began a full assessment and quickly found he had sustained serious head, chest and pelvic injuries as well as fractures to his lower leg.
"Due to the nature of the man’s injuries, the doctors decided to anaesthetise him to help stabilise his condition.
"The man was then immobilised with a neck collar, spinal board, pelvic splint and limb splints before he was airlifted to Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham, a regional trauma centre, for further emergency treatment.
“Upon arrival at hospital, the man was said to be in a critical condition.
“The driver of the lorry was uninjured.”
A spokeman for West Mercia Police said: "It is being investigated and we are very keen to hear from any witnesses in the area that have not yet spoken to the police."
Two ambulances, a Mercia Accident Rescue Service (MARS) BASICS doctor and the Midlands Air Ambulance from Cosford with a MERIT trauma doctor on board attended the scene.
Anyone with information should call the police, quoting incident 75S110414, on the non-emergency number 101. | 2024-07-31T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/8226 |
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Description
Chaos must bring out the best in the Pied Piper guys, who are closer than ever to real fame and fortune as 'PiperNet' approaches its debut in Season 5 of the hit HBO comedy series. While Richard (Thomas Middleditch) struggles with the responsibilities of being a CEO, Dinesh (Kumail Nanjiani) and Gilfoyle (Martin Starr) adjust to a growing team, Jared (Zach Woods) works to hold everything together, Big Head (Josh Brener) continues to stumble into good fortune, and Jian-Yang (Jimmy O. Yang) proves there's nothing he won't do to make some fast cash. Meanwhile, at Hooli, reinstated CEO Gavin Belson's (Matt Ross) desire to stay relevant threatens to consume him as he seeks to destroy the competition. Continuing to mine the over-the-top world of Silicon Valley for humor and poignancy, this season sees Pied Piper facing higher stakes, greater competition...and even more opportunities to screw it all up.
Silicon Valley, Season 5
Description
Chaos must bring out the best in the Pied Piper guys, who are closer than ever to real fame and fortune as 'PiperNet' approaches its debut in Season 5 of the hit HBO comedy series. While Richard (Thomas Middleditch) struggles with the responsibilities of being a CEO, Dinesh (Kumail Nanjiani) and Gilfoyle (Martin Starr) adjust to a growing team, Jared (Zach Woods) works to hold everything together, Big Head (Josh Brener) continues to stumble into good fortune, and Jian-Yang (Jimmy O. Yang) proves there's nothing he won't do to make some fast cash. Meanwhile, at Hooli, reinstated CEO Gavin Belson's (Matt Ross) desire to stay relevant threatens to consume him as he seeks to destroy the competition. Continuing to mine the over-the-top world of Silicon Valley for humor and poignancy, this season sees Pied Piper facing higher stakes, greater competition...and even more opportunities to screw it all up. | 2024-07-11T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/4492 |
New Delhi: Film, television and digital content conglomerate Viacom18 Media Pvt Ltd announced a major management restructuring on Tuesday. The rejig, the company said in a statement, was aimed at consolidating its growing portfolio play as it prepares to further enhance performance through focused content innovation and collaboration across brands.
Manisha Sharma, formerly associated with the company’s television brand Colors, has now been elevated to chief content officer, Hindi mass entertainment. In her new role, Sharma will head content for the entire Hindi Mass Entertainment cluster, including TV channels Colors and Rishtey.
In a first for the organization, Viacom18 has unified all revenue across the network under the leadership of Raj Nayak, Chief Operating Officer. This means Nayak will be responsible for advertising sales across the network.
Former head of the children’s cluster, Nina Elavia Jaipuria’s role has been expanded to Head – Hindi and Kids TV Network. Her mandate now includes channels across the Kids and Hindi Mass Entertainment clusters, including Colors and Rishtey.
Ravish Kumar, and Ferzad Palia will continue to lead the regional and youth segments.
Ajit Andhare, will now take on the expanded role of Chief Operating Officer, Viacom18 Studios, as he drives Viacom18 Motion Pictures’ forays into national and regional cinema and builds Tipping Point as a brand for digital content production.
Saugato Bhowmik will continue to lead Integrated Network Solutions, building homegrown IPs in experiential entertainment and driving the licensing business under Viacom18 Consumer Products.
All these executives will report into Sudhanshu Vats, group CEO and managing director-designate, Viacom18. “The first decade of Viacom18 marked the hyper-growth phase for us with ~50X growth in topline. In order to make Viacom18 future-ready and dial up growth across different lines of business, it is imperative to drive synergies, leverage scale and build content capabilities across screens," Vats said in a statement.
“Integrating our revenues and building content engines to cater to multiple screens across India, under the above leaders, is an important step towards a forward-looking organization," he added. | 2023-12-18T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/2465 |
[Hypernatremic dehydration associated with breast-feeding].
During the last 10 years the number of publications reporting a rise in the incidence of hypernatremia in children who are exclusively breast-fed has increased. To report the results of a series of cases detected in a district hospital in the last 6 years in order to better delineate the clinical characteristics of infant hypernatremia, its optimal treatment and preventive measures. The selection criteria for our study included all neonates aged less than 30 days with serum sodium concentrations equal to or greater than 150 mEq/mL who were exclusively breast fed. Cases were identified through the departmental database. Twelve newborns were identified who presented the following characteristics: mean gestational age of 39.5 weeks, mean birth weight of 3440 grams, mean percentage of weight loss from birth 13.7 % and mean serum sodium value 152.75 mEg/mL. Five neonates (42 %) were admitted from the maternity unit and seven (58 %) from the emergency department. The presenting complaints included weight loss in nine infants, irritability in six, fever in six, poor feeding in five and jaundice in two. Most of the neonates had more than one symptom. Ten of the mothers (83.33 %) were primiparous and two (16.67 %) were secundiparous. Hypernatremia due to breast-feeding is a consequence of inadequate breast-feeding technique in inexperienced mothers. A possible solution would be for health professionals to provide mothers with greater support. | 2024-04-17T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/2433 |
---
abstract: 'Recent experiments have shown that when a near-hemispherical lipid vesicle attached to a solid surface is subjected to a simple shear flow it exhibits a pattern of membrane circulation much like a dipole vortex. This is in marked contrast to the toroidal circulation that would occur in the related problem of a drop of immiscible fluid attached to a surface and subjected to shear. This profound difference in flow patterns arises from the lateral incompressibility of the membrane, which restricts the observable flows to those in which the velocity field in the membrane is two-dimensionally divergence free. Here we study these circulation patterns within the simplest model of membrane fluid dynamics. A systematic expansion of the flow field based on Papkovich–Neuber potentials is developed for general viscosity ratios between the membrane and the surrounding fluids. Comparison with experimental results \[C. V[é]{}zy, G. Massiera, and A. Viallat, [*Soft Matter*]{} [**3**]{}, 844 (2007)\] is made, and it is shown how such studies could allow measurements of the membrane viscosity. Issues of symmetry-breaking and pattern selection are discussed.'
bibliography:
- 'vesicleshear.bib'
date: ' and in revised form ??'
title: 'Shear-Driven Circulation Patterns in Lipid Membrane Vesicles'
---
Introduction {#sec:introduction}
============
One of the defining features of plant cells is the vacuole, an organelle filled with water that acts as a nutrient storehouse for the cytoplasm. The vacuole is contained within the vacuolar membrane, a lipid bilayer structure known also as the tonoplast. It is a nearly ubiquitous feature of plants that the cytoplasm, the thin fluid layer surrounding the vacuolar membrane, is in constant motion through the phenomenon of cytoplasmic streaming [@Lubicz2010] in which motor proteins move along filaments and entrain fluid. Dating back to important work by @Pickard72 it has been suggested that the shear created in the cytoplasm is fully transmitted through the tonoplast into the vacuolar fluid, a conjecture supported indirectly by recent whole-cell measurements of the streaming velocity profile in large plant cells [@vandeMeent2010].
In considering the dynamics of shear transmission across the tonoplast, ideas may be drawn from the large body of work on the response to flow of lipid vesicles. These are closed bilayer membrane structures enclosing fluid, whose membrane is generally in the ‘fluid’ phase with zero shear modulus. These studies constitute a highly active area of research complementing the well-established understanding of membranes in thermal equilibrium [@Seifert1997]. The first insights into vesicle motion under flow were made when @Keller1982 described prototypical ‘tank-treading’ and ‘tumbling’ behaviour. Further developments were quickly made in the context of red blood cell dynamics; @BarthesBiesel1985 used a visco-elastic membrane model to understand the observed tank-treading behaviour, and @Feng1989 provided detailed insights into the precise structure of the area-preserving membrane flow patterns. However, it is more recently that advances have been made in understanding the full three-dimensional behaviour of nearly-spherical vesicles [@Seifert99], revealing a rich phase space of both stable [@Misbah06; @Lebedev2007; @Deschamps2009; @Zhao2011] and unstable [@Kantsler2007] behaviours.
Less well-studied has been the hydrodynamics of vesicles when constrained to lie stuck to a surface. Such problems arise as the natural extension of considering the flow of these objects near to walls, since adhesion can occur upon the vesicle coming into contact with the surface [@Abkarian2008]. Indeed, the elementary problem of an immiscible fluid droplet in contact with a no-slip plane immersed in a bulk flow, absent the interfacial membrane of a vesicle, is one that has attracted detailed study. @Dussan1987 performed a comprehensive theoretical study of the behaviour of shallow droplets in such situations, deriving a flow pattern whereby the droplet flows with the applied shear on the surface and recirculates back underneath inside. @Sugiyama2008 considered a perfectly hemispherical droplet with similar conclusions. The presence of an interfacial membrane disallows such flows, since they are not area-conserving and the membrane is unable to flow back through the vesicle, and so a qualitatively different flow pattern is guaranteed simply by the inclusion of the membrane.
@Lorz2000 studied the weak adhesion of vesicles and observed a tank-treading type behaviour of the membrane under shear flow, with symmetric recirculating regions on either side of the vesicle midline. To further quantify the membrane hydrodynamics, @Vezy2007 studied adhered vesicles in shear flow with varying contact areas, and observed the same symmetric doubly-recirculating pattern of motion of the membrane in all cases. These experiments have yet to be complemented by any theoretical modelling and calculation of the expected membrane and bulk flow patterns in such geometries. Therefore, as a first step towards understanding these observations we formulate here a simplified theory for a vesicle adhered to a flat substrate subjected to shear flow. The vesicle is assumed to be an axisymmetric spherical cap, and the membrane to be an impermeable, two-dimensional, incompressible Newtonian fluid, where we approximate the bilayer structure of the membrane as a single layer by assuming zero inter-layer slip. On the phenomenological length scales of this problem ($\sim 1-100\;\umu\text{m}$) the inter-layer dissipation is low [@Seifert1993], and so this simplification is justified. We will also assume that the vesicle adheres sufficiently strongly to the surface so that we may neglect any shear-driven deformations allowed by remaining excess area. (Typical experimental shear rates fall in the range $1-10\;\text{s}^{-1}$; see @Vezy2007). Throughout we work in the Stokes regime ${\mbox{\textit{Re}}}\ll 1$ for all fluids.
Theory
======
Problem formulation
-------------------
The vesicle is a spherical cap of radius $R$ and origin $x=y=0, z=H$, adhered to the plane $z=0$. Let $(r,\theta,\phi)$ be spherical polars centred on $x=y=z=0$, and similarly let $(s,\psi,\phi)$ be centred on the origin of the adhering vesicle. The vesicle then has a maximum extent $\psi=\alpha$ at $\theta=\upi/2$, where $\alpha = \upi - \arccos(H / R)$. Figure \[fig:coordinates\] illustrates the geometry. We solve for three velocity fields: the flow ${\boldsymbol{u}}^-$ inside the vesicle $s<R$, the 2D flow ${\boldsymbol{u}}^m$ on the membrane $s=R$, and the flow ${\boldsymbol{u}}^+$ outside the vesicle $s>R$ which we will write as ${\boldsymbol{u}}^+ = {\boldsymbol{U}}^+ + \dot\gamma z\hat{\boldsymbol{x}}$, where here and henceforth hatted quantities denote coordinate system basis vectors. To these fluids we associate respective viscosities $\eta_-$, $\eta_m$, $\eta_+$.
![Geometry of the problem.[]{data-label="fig:coordinates"}](fig1-coords.png)
In what follows we non-dimensionalise space by $R$, velocities by $R\dot\gamma$ and volume pressures by $\dot\gamma^2 \rho R^2$. Boundary conditions are then applied on $s=1$ and the imposed shear rate is unity. We also define $h \equiv H/R$, the effective height in this scaling. The external flows obey the unforced Stokes and incompressibility equations, $$\begin{aligned}
\kappa_\pm \nabla^2 {\boldsymbol{u}}^\pm - {\boldsymbol{\nabla}}p^\pm = {\boldsymbol{0}}, \qquad
{\boldsymbol{\nabla}}{\boldsymbol{\cdot}}{\boldsymbol{u}}^\pm = 0,\end{aligned}$$ where $\kappa_\pm = \eta_\pm / \dot\gamma \rho R^2$. We impose far-field asymptotics, planar no-slip and radial no-penetration: $$\begin{aligned}
{\boldsymbol{u}}^+ \sim z\hat{\boldsymbol{x}}& \text{ as } r \rightarrow \infty, \label{eq:bulk_asymptotic} \\
{\boldsymbol{u}}^\pm = {\boldsymbol{0}}& \text{ on } \theta=\upi/2, \label{eq:bulk_plane_noslip} \\
{\boldsymbol{u}}^\pm {\boldsymbol{\cdot}}\hat{\boldsymbol{s}}= 0 & \text{ on } s=1. \label{eq:bulk_radial_nopen} \end{aligned}$$ All three velocities must be continuous across the membrane, $$\begin{aligned}
{\boldsymbol{u}}^+ = {\boldsymbol{u}}^m = {\boldsymbol{u}}^- & \text{ on } s=1, \label{eq:all_continuous}\end{aligned}$$ which, along with , implies the planar no-slip condition ${\boldsymbol{u}}^m = {\boldsymbol{0}}$ at $\psi=\alpha$.
In the absence of the membrane, we would only impose continuity of the bulk fluids’ normal stresses at the interface, but since membranes can support tension, the bulk stresses may be discontinuous. By assumption the membrane satisfies the Stokes equations and incompressibility constrained to the surface $s=1$. For a planar membrane this is simple [[e.g. ]{} @Lubensky1996], but curvature induces an extra term. @Henle2010 [see also @Henle2008] formulate the Stokes equations in terms of covariant derivatives on an arbitrary manifold, from which the membrane tension (equivalent to a two-dimensional pressure) may be eliminated by taking the curl, as in the familiar derivation of the vorticity equation. In our notation, $$\begin{aligned}
\hat{\boldsymbol{s}}{\boldsymbol{\cdot}}{\boldsymbol{\nabla}}\times [ \hat\nabla^2 {\boldsymbol{u}}^m + {\boldsymbol{u}}^m ]
+ \hat{\boldsymbol{s}}{\boldsymbol{\cdot}}{\boldsymbol{\nabla}}\times \left[ \frac{2 {\boldsymbol{e}}^+_\parallel}{r_+} - \frac{2 {\boldsymbol{e}}^-_\parallel}{r_-} \right]_{s=1} = 0,
\quad
\hat{\boldsymbol{\nabla}}{\boldsymbol{\cdot}}{\boldsymbol{u}}^m = 0, \label{eq:membrane_stressbc_noexpansion} \end{aligned}$$ where ${\boldsymbol{e}}^\pm_\parallel = e_{s \psi} \hat{\boldsymbol{\psi}}+ e_{s \phi} \hat{\boldsymbol{\phi}}$ are the bulk fluids’ in-plane normal rates-of-strain, $\hat{\boldsymbol{\nabla}}$ denotes the gradient operator constrained to the surface $s=1$, and we define $$\begin{aligned}
r_\pm \equiv \frac{\eta_m}{R \eta_\pm}.
\label{eq:sdlengths}\end{aligned}$$ These are the non-dimensional form of the ‘Saffman-Delbr[ü]{}ck’ lengths $\ell_\pm \equiv \eta_m/\eta_\pm$ [@Saffman1975; @Saffman1976; @Henle2010], and are the parameters with which we control the membrane dynamics. Using the typical values $\eta_\pm \sim 10^{-2}\;\text{Poise}$ (water), $\eta_m \sim 10^{-7}-10^{-5}\;\text{Poise cm}$ [@Camley2010] and $R \sim 1-100\;\umu\text{m}$, we find relevant experimental ranges to be $r_\pm \sim 10^{-3}-10$.
Solution method {#sec:solution_method}
---------------
We will first construct a set of basis functions for the bulk fluids such that the planar no-slip condition is automatically satisfied. A common approach to solving Stokes flow problems is to use Lamb’s solution [@Happel1991], and @Ozarkar2008 showed that it is possible to write down a no-slip image system for each individual Lamb mode in the manner of the original solution of @Blake1971 for a simple Stokeslet. However, this becomes algebraically unwieldy, and we adopt a slightly different approach.
A method similar to using a Lamb expansion is to write down the solution in terms of Papkovich–Neuber potentials [@TranCong1982]: if $\nabla^2 {\boldsymbol{A}}={\boldsymbol{0}}$ and $\nabla^2 B=0$, $$\begin{aligned}
{2}
{\boldsymbol{v}}& = {\boldsymbol{\nabla}}( {\boldsymbol{r}}{\boldsymbol{\cdot}}{\boldsymbol{A}}+ B ) - 2{\boldsymbol{A}}, &\quad p & = 2\eta {\boldsymbol{\nabla}}{\boldsymbol{\cdot}}{\boldsymbol{A}}, \label{eq:pn_soln}\end{aligned}$$ is a solution to the incompressible Stokes equations $\eta\nabla^2 {\boldsymbol{v}}= {\boldsymbol{\nabla}}p$, ${\boldsymbol{\nabla}}{\boldsymbol{\cdot}}{\boldsymbol{v}}= 0$. This reduces the problem to one of solving the vector and scalar harmonic equations. @Shankar2005 uses this representation to solve for Stokes flow inside a circular cone using three harmonic basis functions, one scalar and two vector. The scalar harmonic is the usual solution to Laplace’s equation in spherical coordinates, $$\begin{aligned}
B({\boldsymbol{r}};\nu,m) = r^\nu e^{{\mathrm{i}}m \phi} P^m_\nu(\cos \theta),\end{aligned}$$ where $\nu \in \mathbb{R}$ (since the solution need not be analytic in $z<0$) and $m \in \mathbb{Z}$, and $P^m_\nu$ are the generalised associated Legendre functions. Two independent vector harmonics can then be derived from $B$ as ${\boldsymbol{A}}_1 = \hat{\boldsymbol{r}}\times {\boldsymbol{\nabla}}(rB)$ and ${\boldsymbol{A}}_2 = B \hat{\boldsymbol{z}}$, which evaluate to $$\begin{aligned}
{\boldsymbol{A}}_1({\boldsymbol{r}};\nu,m) &= -r^\nu e^{{\mathrm{i}}m \phi} [ m \csc \theta P^m_\nu(\cos \theta)\hat{\boldsymbol{\theta}}+ {\mathrm{i}}{P^m_\nu}'(\cos \theta) \hat{\boldsymbol{\phi}}], \\
{\boldsymbol{A}}_2({\boldsymbol{r}};\nu,m) &= r^\nu e^{{\mathrm{i}}m \phi} [ \cos\theta P^m_\nu(\cos \theta)\hat{\boldsymbol{r}}- \sin\theta P^m_\nu(\cos \theta)\hat{\boldsymbol{\theta}}],\end{aligned}$$ where primes indicate differentiation with respect to $\theta$. Since the only non-zero imposed velocity is simple shear flow we only need the $m=1$ mode, and can take the real part of all basis functions, whose $m$-dependence we henceforth omit. We also write ${\mathcal{P}}_\nu(x) \equiv P^1_\nu(x)$.
The next step is to find combinations of these harmonics such that the no-slip condition is satisfied. In @Shankar2005 this is done by evaluating the velocity field on the cone using one unit of $B({\boldsymbol{r}};\nu+1)$, $a$ units of ${\boldsymbol{A}}_1({\boldsymbol{r}};\nu)$ and $b$ units of ${\boldsymbol{A}}_2({\boldsymbol{r}};\nu)$. However, the case of a flat plane is a special one and solutions with no contribution from $B$ are possible, so here we must take an arbitrary $c$ units of $B({\boldsymbol{r}};\nu+1)$; then gives
\[eq:v\_cpts\] $$\begin{aligned}
v_r &= r^\nu \cos\phi \left[ c(\nu+1){\mathcal{P}}_{\nu+1} + b(\nu-1)\cos\theta\,{\mathcal{P}}_\nu \right], \label{eq:v_r_cpt} \\
v_\theta &= r^\nu \cos\phi \left[c{\mathcal{P}}'_{\nu+1} + 2a \csc \theta \,{\mathcal{P}}_\nu + b\left\{\sin\theta\,{\mathcal{P}}_\nu +
\cos\theta\, {\mathcal{P}}'_\nu\right\}\right], \label{eq:v_theta_cpt} \\
v_\phi &= -r^\nu \sin\phi \left[c \csc\theta\, {\mathcal{P}}_{\nu+1} + 2a {\mathcal{P}}'_\nu + b \cot \theta\, {\mathcal{P}}_\nu\right]. \label{eq:v_phi_cpt}\end{aligned}$$
(From here on, where unspecified the argument of ${\mathcal{P}}_\nu$ is $\cos\theta$.) It is simple to find that demanding ${\boldsymbol{v}}={\boldsymbol{0}}$ at $\theta=\upi/2$ leads to two possible conditions: $$\begin{aligned}
{4}
\text{Either} &\quad& 2a+b-(\nu+2)c = 0 &\quad& \text{and} &\quad& {\mathcal{P}}_{\nu+1}(0) &= 0, \\
\text{or} && a=c=0 && \text{and} && {\mathcal{P}}_\nu(0) &= 0.\end{aligned}$$ The condition ${\mathcal{P}}_\nu(0) = 0$ has solutions $\nu = 0,2,4,\ldots$ and $\nu=-1,-3,-5,\ldots$. (Note that ${\mathcal{P}}_0 \equiv {\mathcal{P}}_{-1} \equiv 0$.)
With this basis the general solution with no-slip on $z=0$ can be written $$\begin{aligned}
{\boldsymbol{v}}(r,\theta,\phi) = \sum_{\nu=-\infty}^\infty r^\nu [a_\nu {\boldsymbol{F}}_\nu(\theta,\phi) + b_\nu {\boldsymbol{G}}_\nu(\theta,\phi) + c_\nu {\boldsymbol{H}}_\nu(\theta,\phi)],\end{aligned}$$ where the functions ${\boldsymbol{F}},{\boldsymbol{G}},{\boldsymbol{H}}$ may be read off from as the coefficients of $a,b,c$ respectively. The coefficients must satisfy $$\begin{aligned}
{3}
2a_\nu + b_\nu - (\nu+2)c_\nu = 0 && \text{ for } && \nu &= 1,3,5,\ldots, \nu = -2,-4,-6,\ldots, \\
a_\nu = c_\nu = 0 &\,& \text{ for } &\,& \nu &= 2,4,6,\ldots, \nu = -3,-5,-7,\ldots.\end{aligned}$$ These constraints can be incorporated directly into the expansion by writing $$\begin{aligned}
{\boldsymbol{v}}(r,\theta,\phi) = \sum_{\substack{\nu=2,4,6,\ldots \\ \nu=-3,-5,\ldots}} r^\nu b_\nu {\boldsymbol{G}}_\nu(\theta,\phi)
+ \sum_{\substack{\nu=1,3,5,\ldots \\ \nu=-2,-4,\ldots}} r^\nu [ a_\nu {\boldsymbol{F}}^{(1)}_\nu(\theta,\phi) + c_\nu {\boldsymbol{F}}^{(2)}_\nu(\theta,\phi) ]
\label{eq:v_full_expansion}\end{aligned}$$ where ${\boldsymbol{F}}^{(1)}_\nu = {\boldsymbol{F}}_\nu - 2{\boldsymbol{G}}_\nu$ and ${\boldsymbol{F}}^{(2)}_\nu = {\boldsymbol{H}}_\nu + (\nu+2){\boldsymbol{G}}_\nu$.
We now expand ${\boldsymbol{u}}^-$ and ${\boldsymbol{U}}^+$ in this fashion. Requiring regularity of ${\boldsymbol{u}}^-$ at $r=0$ implies that $a^-_\nu,b^-_\nu,c^-_\nu$ are non-zero only for $\nu > 0$. Similarly, for ${\boldsymbol{u}}^+ = z\hat{\boldsymbol{x}}+ {\boldsymbol{U}}^+$ to satisfy the asymptotic condition we must have ${\boldsymbol{U}}^+ \rightarrow 0$ as $r \rightarrow \infty$ and so $a^+_\nu,b^+_\nu,c^+_\nu$ are non-zero only for $\nu<0$.
We now turn our attention to the flow on the membrane surface $s=1$. In @Henle2010 it is shown that the surface flow ${\boldsymbol{u}}^m({\boldsymbol{r}})$ can be decomposed into a sum of incompressible shear modes ${\boldsymbol{w}}(\psi,\phi;\mu) = {\boldsymbol{s}}\times {\boldsymbol{\nabla}}\Phi(\psi,\phi;\mu)$ where the scalar functions $\Phi(\psi,\phi;\mu)$ are eigenfunctions of the Laplacian, $\nabla^2 \Phi(\psi,\phi;\mu) = -\mu(\mu+1) \Phi(\psi,\phi;\mu)$. For the same reasons as in the bulk flow, we may take $\Phi(\psi,\phi;\mu) = \cos\phi {\mathcal{P}}_\mu(\cos \psi)$, whence $$\begin{aligned}
{\boldsymbol{w}}(\psi,\phi;\mu) = \frac{2}{\sin \psi} {\mathcal{P}}_{\mu}(\cos \psi) \cos \phi \,\hat{\boldsymbol{\psi}}- 2 {\mathcal{P}}'_{\mu}(\cos \psi) \sin \phi \,\hat{\boldsymbol{\phi}}.\end{aligned}$$ Given a mode spectrum $\{\mu_n\}$, expand the velocity as ${\boldsymbol{u}}^m(\psi,\phi) = \sum_n A_n
{\boldsymbol{w}}(\psi,\phi;\mu_n)$. Incompressibility is satisfied for each mode by construction. Then the membrane dynamics become [@Henle2010] $$\begin{aligned}
\sum_n A_n [2 - \mu_n(\mu_n+1)] \mu_n(\mu_n+1) \Phi(\psi,\phi;\mu_n)
+ \hat{\boldsymbol{s}}{\boldsymbol{\cdot}}{\boldsymbol{\nabla}}\times \left[ \frac{2 {\boldsymbol{e}}^+_\parallel}{r_+} - \frac{2 {\boldsymbol{e}}^-_\parallel}{r_-} \right]_{s=1} = 0. \label{eq:membrane_stressbc}\end{aligned}$$
There still remains the question of which modes $\mu$ to sum over. The ideal basis set would satisfy no-slip at $\psi=\alpha$ in the same way as the bulk fluid basis functions. For the membrane basis there is not enough freedom, so we can only choose one component to automatically be zero. We choose to set $u^m_\psi(\alpha,\phi;\mu)=0$ for all $\phi$, which implies $$\begin{aligned}
0 = {\mathcal{P}}'_\mu(\cos \alpha) = (1+\mu) \cot\alpha {\mathcal{P}}_\mu(\cos \alpha) - \mu \csc\alpha {\mathcal{P}}_{\mu+1}(\cos \alpha).\end{aligned}$$ We can also take $\mu > 0$ by the identity ${\mathcal{P}}_{-(\mu+1)} \equiv {\mathcal{P}}_\mu$. For the case $\alpha=\upi/2$, [i.e. ]{}a perfect hemisphere ($h=0$), this equation has exact solutions $\mu = 1,3,5,\ldots$; if $\alpha > \upi/2$, this must be solved numerically by a method such as Newton–Raphson to obtain the spectrum of allowed modes. Figure \[fig:possible\_surface\_flows\] shows streamlines of three different recirculatory modes for the hemispherical case, demonstrating the increase in number of circulation centres as the mode number increases. The same qualitative patterns persist for $h>0$.
![Streamlines of recirculating modes for $h=0$, projected onto the $z$-plane.[]{data-label="fig:possible_surface_flows"}](fig2-streams.png)
We now have seven sets of coefficients to solve for in the expansions: $a^\pm_\nu, b^\pm_\nu, c^\pm_\nu$ for ${\boldsymbol{u}}^\pm$, and $A_n$ for ${\boldsymbol{u}}^m$. These will be determined by satisfying the simple boundary conditions and , and the stress boundary condition . Each component of each boundary condition will only have $\phi$ dependence in the form of an overall factor of $\sin \phi$ or $\cos \phi$, so we may factor these out and need only satisfy boundary conditions for the $\psi$-dependent factors.
The complexity of the system does not lend itself easily to significant analytic progress, and so we choose to proceed via numerical methods to determine the coefficients. Our chosen solution method is the least-squares error minimisation procedure as outlined by @Shankar2005. The velocity expansions are truncated at orders $N_1$ and $N_2$ for the bulk and membrane velocities respectively – note that use of least-squares minimisation is crucial here, since any attempt to solve exactly for a finite set of coefficients will yield poorly-determined systems. The boundary conditions are to be satisfied on $0 \leq \psi \leq \alpha$. Divide the interval $[\epsilon,\alpha]$ ($\epsilon \ll 1$) into $M$ equal subintervals, separated by points $\{\psi_k\}$. For each boundary condition ${\mathcal{C}}_i$ to be enforced, write $\varepsilon_{ik}$ for the error in satisfying that condition at $\psi_k$. Minimising $E^2 = \sum_{i,k} \varepsilon_{ik}^2$ with respect to $a^\pm_\nu, b^\pm_\nu, c^\pm_\nu, A_n$ then gives a linear system which can be solved for the coefficients. As $N_1,N_2,M \rightarrow \infty$ the coefficients quickly approach limiting values. (In what follows, we typically use magnitudes $N_1,N_2,M \sim O(100)$.) Care must be taken in satisfying the stress condition , since the stress becomes divergent in the neighbourhood of $\psi=\alpha$ due to the discontinuous geometry. To avoid this we truncate the collocation points $\{\psi_k\}$ a small distance before $\psi=\alpha$ for this condition.
Due to the choice of origin for the bulk fluid expansion, the system quickly becomes numerically unstable as $h$ increases due to divergences in $r^\nu$ for $\nu>0,r>1$ and $\nu<0,r<1$ in evaluating the velocity expansions on $s=1$. However, if the bulk velocity were expanded about the origin of the vesicle we would no longer have a basis set satisfying planar no-slip, and would have to enforce boundary conditions along the entire $y=z=0$ line as well, which would also possess highly divergent coefficients.
Results and discussion {#sec:results}
======================
![Streamlines for $r_+ = r_- = 0.01, h = 0$. (a) Top view of membrane. (b) External flow, with closed streamlines in red. (c) Internal flow; brighter red indicates faster flow.[]{data-label="fig:flow_streamlines"}](fig3-flow.png)
Figure \[fig:flow\_streamlines\]a illustrates the typical flow induced on the surface of the vesicle. The closed, two-lobed symmetric recirculating patterns as observed by @Vezy2007 are clearly reproduced, indicating a dynamical preference for motion rather than remaining stationary. The same structure persists for non-zero values of $h$ and for varying viscosity ratios $r_\pm$. The recirculatory flow of the membrane induces a flow inside the vesicle appearing to possess entirely closed streamlines, as illustrated in figure \[fig:flow\_streamlines\]c. Similarly, the external flow shows regions of recirculation on either side of the membrane which also appear to contain closed streamlines (figure \[fig:flow\_streamlines\]b).
The qualitative difference seen between this problem and that of an immiscible hemispherical droplet [@Sugiyama2008] is due to the presence of the membrane. As described in §\[sec:introduction\], simple droplet flow permits both a surface-compressible structure and mass exchange with the interior. Due to the membrane structure, adhesion and incompressibility here, no such globally circulatory flow is possible.
The dynamical insistence on motion can be understood by the following argument. Consider the related problem of a free, spherical vesicle in uniform, unidirectional flow, for which it is known no membrane motion occurs. This problem is axisymmetric about the flow direction, and so the membrane experiences a tension constant along ‘lines of latitude’ perpendicular to the flow direction. Such a tension has no shearing component, and so the membrane is able to remain stationary. When the symmetry is broken by the introduction of the adhesive wall and the application of shear flow, the tension on the membrane is no longer uniform across ‘lines of latitude’. The membrane is unable to support this shear, forcing it to flow. The same symmetry-breaking effects have been observed in vesicle membrane flows driven by electric fields [@Staykova2008] where a small field inhomogeneity develops shear stresses, causing the membrane to flow.
It should be noted that many surface-incompressible patterns are possible whilst remaining consistent with the symmetries of the problem; figure \[fig:possible\_surface\_flows\] shows the first three recirculatory modes of the membrane flow basis constructed in §\[sec:solution\_method\]. We observe that the flow adopts a pattern containing only two circulation centres rather than four or more, and pose the explanation that this is a consequence of dissipation reduction: the membrane is adopting the fewest number of topological ‘defects’ while still minimising dissipation within the bulk fluids.
![Dependence of the surface stagnation point angle on $r_\pm$ and $\alpha$. (a) $\alpha=\frac{\pi}{2}$, $r_+=r_-$, $10^{-3} \leq r_\pm \leq 10$, log scale in $r_\pm$. (b) $r_+=r_-=10^{-2}$, $0<h<0.3$.[]{data-label="fig:stagnation_shift"}](fig4-stagangle.png)
As the membrane viscosity is increased through the physical range, the angle $\psi_0$ of the stagnation point from the vertical (see figure \[fig:flow\_streamlines\]b) on either side shifts downwards, illustrated in figure \[fig:stagnation\_shift\]a. The locations seen here are close to those observed by @Vezy2007 (where their variable $\theta$ is equivalent to our $\frac{\pi}{2}-\psi$) for small values of $h$ (their $L/2R$ close to unity). We also observe that for $0<h<0.3$ the stagnation angle appears to scale linearly with the base angle $\alpha$, as might be expected (figure \[fig:stagnation\_shift\]b).
![Linear dependence of $1/v_0$ on $1/r_-$ and $r_+$, at fixed values of $r_+$ and $r_-$, respectively. Top to bottom, (a) $r_+ = 10,5,3.33,2.5,2$, (b) $r_- = 0.3,0.4,0.59,1.11,10$.[]{data-label="fig:membrane_viscosity_scaling"}](fig5-viscosityfit.png)
We now turn to the problem of experimentally determining the membrane viscosity $\eta_m$. Due to the order of magnitude of the physical constants involved, this is a difficult measurement to achieve. @Dimova1999 proposed a method based upon measuring the fluctuations of a spherical particle stuck on or penetrating through a vesicle’s surface. While this method has been experimentally verified, and is perhaps simpler to initiate than encouraging vesicles to strongly adhere to substrates, it requires difficult measurements of microscopic parameters. An added benefit of the calculations presented here is a possible complementary method of membrane viscosity measurement based solely on the vesicle flow profiles, provided that the vesicle itself has not been affected by the adhesion process. Such velocities can be measured either by the defect-tracking method of @Vezy2007 or by tracking small phase-separated patches of a second lipid species. Figure \[fig:membrane\_viscosity\_scaling\] suggests a fit of the apex velocity $v_0 \equiv | {\boldsymbol{v}}^m(\psi=0) |$ (see figure \[fig:flow\_streamlines\]b) with $r_\pm$ of the form $$\begin{aligned}
v_0 = \frac{r_-}{Ar_+ + Br_+ r_- + Cr_-}\end{aligned}$$ for a hemispherical membrane ($h=0$). Therefore given known bulk viscosities $\eta_\pm$, vesicle radius $R$ and measured apex velocity $v_0$, it would be possible to solve the above relationship and so predict the membrane viscosity $\eta_m$. Using $40\times 40$ regularly-spaced datapoints $(r_+,r_-) \in [0.25,10]^2$ we find an excellent fit for parameter values $A = 2.054$, $B = 4.718$, $C = 5.803$, with root mean square error on the order of $10^{-4}$ and 95% confidence intervals $\sim\pm0.001$. We expect such a relationship to persist for $h \neq 0$.
Conclusions {#sec:conc}
===========
We have effected the theoretical solution of the problem of near-hemispherical lipid vesicles adhered to a flat substrate as experimentally investigated by @Vezy2007. We demonstrated the presence of symmetric recirculating regions on the membrane and explained the qualitative difference from the membrane-less case. Additionally, the existence of closed streamlines both inside and outside the vesicle was shown. We then used knowledge of this system to suggest a new method for estimating membrane viscosities.
Throughout this work we have assumed the membrane remains spherical. For low shear rates, this assumption is valid; however, behaviour at higher shear rates is unlikely to remain stable. @Li1996 numerically studied the deformation of adhered immiscible liquid drops in shear flow and found a regime where the droplet would continue to deform over time. It is reasonable to suggest such deformations could occur in the case studied here, though the more complex surface and internal flow structure may lead to a different parameter phase space of deformations and instability.
Understanding the membrane flow has implications for other lipid membrane systems. One particular area where knowledge of the hydrodynamic behaviour of attached vesicles under shear flow is of importance is in the study of transient vesicle adhesion. If a vesicle loaded with binders comes into contact with a surface to which it may adhere, then the evolution of the contact area over time is dependent on the forcing experienced by the vesicle. @BrochardWyart2002 developed a dynamical adhesion force model based on the diffusion of binders on the membrane. However, if the vesicle is subjected to shear then free binders will be advected by the membrane flow which may significantly enhance or impair adhesive effects.
Possible future work in this area includes a more complex numerical study in order to accommodate all sizes of spherical cap (i.e. larger $h$), and experimental studies using the proposition of §\[sec:results\] to estimate membrane viscosities. It would also be interesting to study shear rates higher than those in @Vezy2007 to understand whether buckling and deformation occur.
It is a pleasure to offer this contribution in honour of Tim Pedley’s 70th birthday. We thank P. Khuc Trong, P. Olla and J. Dunkel for helpful discussions and S. Ganguly for insights at an early stage of this work. This work was supported in part by the EPSRC and the European Research Council Advanced Investigator Grant 247333.
| 2024-03-30T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/5988 |
Effects of Laparoscopic Sleeve Gastrectomy on Quality of Life Related to Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease.
Purpose: Effects of laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (LSG) on gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) symptoms are controversial. Our aim is to evaluate the effects of LSG on GERD symptoms in obese patients using a validated quality-of-life questionnaire. Methods: Records of 100 patients (median body mass index [BMI] 44.4 kg/m2, range 35-63.6) without hiatal hernia or severe GERD were analyzed. GERD symptoms were evaluated by GERD Health-Related Quality-of-Life (HRQL) questionnaire before and after surgery. Weight loss and comorbidity resolution were recorded. Results: Median GERD-HRQL scores decreased from 7 (range 0-44) to 3 (0-34) (P = .025) (median follow-up 56 months [range 7-136]). GERD-HRQL scores improved in 55 patients and worsened in 21; de novo GERD was observed in 10; no change occurred in 14 patients (differences being statistically significant: P = <.0001). On multilinear regression analysis, total preoperative GERD-HRQL score and postoperative BMI were independent variables for overall postoperative GERD-HRQL score: higher total preoperative GERD-HRQL score was associated with improved postoperative GERD-HRQL scores, whereas higher postoperative BMI was associated with worse total postoperative GERD-HRQL score. Resolution of diabetes, hypertension, and sleep apnea syndrome occurred in 84.4%, 68%, and 89.7% of patients, respectively. Conclusions: In obese patients, although LSG was associated with statistically significantly improved postoperative GERD-HRQL scores at mid-term follow-up in 55% of patients, only preoperative GERD-HRQL score and postoperative BMI were independent predictors of GERD after LSG. Higher overall preoperative GERD-HRQL score was associated with improved postoperative GERD-HRQL score. However, further research is needed to assess how to predict GERD outcome. | 2024-03-21T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/6561 |
2014 YEAR IN REVIEW:It was a mixed bag for the New York Giants on special teams in 2014. The Giants finished 3rd in the NFL in field goal percentage, but 22nd in net punting (including allowing a blocked punt for a touchdown). The Giants were 2nd in the NFL in covering kickoffs, but 27th in covering punts (also allowing one punt return for a touchdown).
The Giants scored no special teams touchdowns and had the two aforementioned scored against them, both in losses.
The best Giants player on special teams in 2014 was Josh Brown, who made 24-of-26 of his field goals (92.3 percent) with one of the misses being blocked.
ADDITIONS/SUBTRACTIONS: The Giants signed street free agent punter Robert Malone and street free agent place kicker/punter Chris Boswell in January to compete with punter Steve Weatherford and place kicker Josh Brown.
The big signing was the the 5-year, $17.5 million contract given to special teams stud Dwayne Harris from the Dallas Cowboys. Because Harris does it all on specials, returning and covering both punts and kicks, he is arguably the best special teams player in the game. Harris has three “NFC Player of the Week” awards to his credit.
No longer in the picture are linebackers Spencer Paysinger and Jacquian Williams, as well as returners Quintin Demps and Michael Cox.
TRAINING CAMP STORY LINES: Most eyes will focus on Dwayne Harris and his impact on not only the return game but on special teams coverage units. The $17.5 millon the Giants gave to Harris puts a lot of pressure on Special Teams Coordinator Tom Quinn to fix issues in the return game and punt coverage unit. The Giants also gave a lot of money to linebackers J.T. Thomas (3 years, $10 million) and Jonathan Casillas (3 years, $8 million) to help out on coverage units. Quite a few of the defensive backs on the team are or should be good special teams players too, including Mike Harris, Landon Collins, Bennett Jackson, Cooper Taylor, Nat Berhe, and Mykkele Thompson.
ON THE BUBBLE:Though he will probably make the team, Mark Herzlich (2-year, $2.6 million contract) could be pressed by rookie free agent linebacker Cole Farrand. The signing of Dwayne Harris also could reduce the special teams value of wideout Preston Parker.
FROM THE POSITIONAL COACH: Tom Quinn on Dwayne Harris: “He is going to be a ‘big four’ player, so he will be on all four of the teams and he will make a very good contribution. His coverage skills are equal to his return skills, so that is the nice thing about getting this kind of player.”
Quinn on what makes Harris a good returner: “He is decisive. There isn’t a lot of wasted movement. He is physical. He has a good understanding of the return schemes and what is needed for each one. There is no hesitation. If he is catching the ball and you are running it to the right, he is going to get it to the right, which sets up all the blockers for him. They know where he is going to be. A lot of times when you are blocking, (the returner) is supposed to be over here, but the returner is running the wrong direction or in the middle and now your block is not set up for that. He is very decisive. He is a strong runner.”
Quinn on new acquisitions who could help out: “We got some new acquisitions at the linebacker spot and we got some safeties in, which are nice, and getting Bennett Jackson back has been pleasing. The young kid from Texas, (Mykkele) Thompson, has done some good things; he is long and has real good speed, so I think he can be pretty versatile for us. Obviously Landon (Collins) has done a nice job in what he have asked him to do, so (I) am pleased with the overall group.”
PREDICTIONS: Punt returns and punt coverage have been a problem under Tom Quinn for quite some time. From 2010-14, the Giants have finished 31st, 29th, 30th, 26th, and 19th in punt return average with no punt return touchdowns during that five-year span. During the same period, the Giants have finished 31st, 17th, 15th, 30th, and 27th in punt coverage with six punt return touchdowns allowed. The kick return game has been pretty bad too except for David Wilson’s performance in 2012.
This is not so much a prediction, but a gnawing fear. Despite bright moments in the 2007 and 2011 playoffs, the Giants special teams have been a sore spot for years. Yet Tom Quinn has somehow avoided the executioner. If the special teams unit under-performs again in 2015, costing the team in the win-loss column, Tom Coughlin may find himself being the one receiving a pink slip because of his decision to stick with Quinn.
FINAL DEPTH CHART: It would be a pretty major upset if Josh Brown, Steve Weatherford, and Zak DeOssie do not remain the team’s place kicker, punter, and long snapper, respectively. Dwayne Harris should be the kickoff and punt returner. There are some good athletes at defensive end (Owamagbe Odighizuwa and Damontre Moore), linebacker (Devon Kennard, J.T. Thomas, and Jonathan Casillas), and safety (Landon Collins, Bennett Jackson, Nat Berhe, Cooper Taylor, and Mykkele Thompson) who should be special teams assets. The Giants also think Geremy Davis could be a special teams weapon.
Will Beatty Tears His Pectoral Muscle, Out At Least Five Months: According to various press reports, New York Giants left tackle Will Beatty tore his pectoral muscle while lifting weights. He is undergoing surgery today and is expected to miss at least five-six months.
Am told Will Beatty just went in for surgery on torn pec at HSS. Recovery said to be 5 months. That's back on the field around November.
While there were some bright spots, the special teams of the New York Giants continued to under-perform in many key statistical areas in 2014. Consider the following:
Field Goals: The Giants finished 3rd in the NFL as place kicker Josh Brown converted on 24-of-26 attempts for a 92.3 average. This is all the more remarkable when you consider one of those misses was blocked. Brown also hit all 44 extra point tries. Unfortunately, the only real miss by Brown was a factor in the 1-point loss to Jacksonville in November.
Punting: Steve Weatherford, who was impacted by an early-season ankle injury, finished 16th in the NFL in gross average (45.5 yards per punt) and 22nd in the NFL in net average (40.1 yards per punt). He was middle-of-the-pack with punts in the 20-yard line with 25 and touchbacks with six. The Giants also allowed a blocked punt for a touchdown against the Eagles.
Kickoff Returns: The Giants finished 18th in kickoff returns, averaging 23.3 yards per return. They did not return a kickoff for a touchdown and the longest return was only for 45 yards.
Punt Returns: The Giants finished 19th in punt returns, averaging 7.7 yards per return. They did not return a punt for a touchdown and the longest return was for only 25 yards (which was 26th in the NFL). The Giants were 5th in the NFL in fair catches with 27.
Opposing Kickoff Returns: The Giants were very good at covering kickoffs as opposing teams averaged only 18.3 yards per return (2nd best in the NFL), with a long of 33 yards. Forty-six of Josh Brown’s 82 kickoffs resulted in touchbacks (56 percent).
Opposing Punt Returns: The Giants were not as strong covering punts as opposing teams averaged 10.6 yards per return and the Giants allowed a punt return to go 71 yards for a touchdown against the Cardinals. In addition, the Giants finished 23rd in the NFL in opposing fair catches with 17.
With the additions of Trindon Holliday, Quintin Demps, and Odell Beckham, plus the expected return of David Wilson, the return game was supposed to be a strength for the Giants in 2014. However, Holliday missed the bulk of camp with a hamstring injury as was placed on Injured Reserve. David Wilson re-injured his neck in training camp and retired. Beckham kept injuring his hamstring and was not a factor in the punt return game until later in the season. Demps never really flashed on kickoff returns like he did in Kansas City.
Steve Weatherford tore ligaments in his left ankle in September and was hobbled with the injury for much of the season. He finished 18th in the NFL in punting average (45.5 yards per punt) and 25th in net punting average (38.6). Twenty-five of Weatherford’s punts were downed inside the 20-yard line and only six resulted in touchbacks. He did suffer his first blocked punt of his career. Before coming to the Giants, Weatherford played for the Saints (2006-08), Chiefs (2008), Jaguars (2008), and Jets (2009-2010). He is a good directional punter with average length strength.
In his 12th season, Josh Brown had his finest season, making 24-of-26 of his field goals (92.3 percent) with one of the misses being blocked. He made all 44 extra point attempts. And 45 of his 82 kickoffs resulted in touchbacks. Brown was originally drafted in the 7th round of the 2003 NFL Draft by the Seattle Seahawks. Before coming to the Giants as a free agent in 2013, he kicked for the Seahawks (2003-07), St. Louis Rams (2009-11), and Bengals (2012). Brown now owns the Giants records for both single season and career field goal percentage. In his two seasons with the Giants, Brown has succeeded on 47-of-52 field goal attempts (90.4 percent).
Zak DeOssie is one of the NFL’s most consistent and better long snappers, being voted to the Pro Bowl in 2008 and 2010. DeOssie was drafted as a linebacker by the Giants in the 4th round of the 2007 NFL Draft. He is now strictly a special teams player. Aside from his long snapping duties, DeOssie also excels in punt coverage.
Giants Sign 11 Players to Reserve/Future Contracts: The New York Giants have signed 11 players to Reserve/Future contracts. Nine of the 11 were on the team’s Practice Squad:
FB Nikita Whitlock
WR Julian Talley
WR Juron Criner
WR Chris Harper
OT Michael Bamiro
DE Jordan Stanton
LB Unai Unga
CB Josh Victorian
S Thomas Gordon
The team also signed CB Bennett Jackson, who was on the Practice Squad/Injured List with a knee injury and street free agent P Robert Malone.
The Giants signed Nikita Whitlock to the Practice Squad in December 2014. Whitlock, who played defensive tackle in college, was originally signed by the Cincinnati Bengals as a rookie free agent after the 2014 NFL Draft. He was cut by the Bengals in their final round of cuts and then signed by the Dallas Cowboys to their Practice Squad. The NFL suspended Whitlock in November for violating the league’s policy on performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs) and the Cowboys terminated his Practice Squad contract. Whitlock was converted to fullback by the Bengals and he flashed in the preseason as a lead blocker with good size.
Julian Talley was originally signed as an undrafted rookie free agent by the Giants after the 2012 NFL Draft. He did not make the team, but the Giants brought him back for another go in 2013 and 2014. Talley spent most of the 2013 season on the team’s Practice Squad, but was signed to the 53-man roster in mid-December. He played in two games in 2013 but did not have a catch. Talley is a tall, thin receiver with good overall athletic ability. He lacks ideal speed, but is smooth and fluid with decent hands.
Juron Criner was signed to the Practice Squad in September 2014. Criner was originally drafted in the 5th round of the 2012 NFL Draft by the Oakland Raiders. The Raiders waived him on August 26. In 13 games with the Raiders, Criner has caught 19 passes for 183 yards and a touchdown. He is a big receiver with good overall athleticism, but he needs to develop better technique and consistency.
Chris Harper was signed to the Practice Squad in October 2014. Harper was originally drafted by the Seattle Seahawks in the 4th round of the 2013 NFL Draft. Harper did not make the team and has since spent time with the 49ers (2013) and Packers (2013-14). Harper played in four games with the Packers in 2013 and was cut by the team in August. Harper has a nice combination of size (6’1”, 230lbs) and athletic ability. He is a tough, physical receiver with good speed and hands.
Michael Bamiro was signed to the Practice Squad in November 2014. Bamiro was originally signed as an undrafted rookie free agent by the Philadelphia Eagles after the 2013 NFL Draft. He spent the 2013 season on the Eagles’ Practice Squad before being waived in August 2014. Bamiro is a very raw player with an intriguing combiation of size (6’8”, 340 pounds) and overall athleticism.
Jordan Stanton was signed to the Practice Squad in August 2014, cut, and then added to the Practice Squad again in December 2014. Stanton was originally signed by the Giants as an undrafted rookie free agent after the 2014 NFL Draft. Stanton earned All-Colonial Athletic Association accolades for recording 56 tackles, 11.5 for loss, 8 sacks in 2013. Stanton has decent size and flashes some ability, but he did not really standout in the 2014 preseason.
Uani Unga was signed to the Practice Squad in late December 2014. Unga suffered a serious injury to his right knee (ACL, MCL, and meniscus) his last year in college in 2013. Unga lacks ideal size and overall athleticism but he is a smart, instinctive, physical, and competitive football player who plays the run well.
Josh Victorian was signed to the Practice Squad in November 2014. Victorian was originally signed as an undrafted rookie free agent after the 2011 NFL Draft by the Baltimore Ravens. Since then, he has spent time with the Patriots (2011), Saints (2012), Steelers (2012-13), Texans (2013), and Lions (2014). He has played in 12 NFL games, four for the Steelers with one start in 2012 and eight for the Texans in 2013. Victorian has average size and lacks ideal overall athleticism, but he is a hard working, instinctive football player.
Bennett Jackson was signed to the Practice Squad in August 2014 and placed on the Practice Squad/Injured List in October 2014 with an undisclosed knee injury. The Giants drafted Jackson in the 6th round of the 2014 NFL Draft. Jackson converted to cornerback from wide receiver at Notre Dame and could project to safety. He has good size and decent speed for a corner, but may lack ideal quickness for the position. He is a good hitter and tackler. Jackson was a team captain at Notre Dame and a good special teams player.
Thomas Gordon was signed to the Practice Squad in December 2014. Gordon was originally signed by the Giants as an undrafted rookie free agent after the 2014 NFL Draft, but the team waived him in August. Gordon lacks ideal height, but he is well-built and a decent athlete. He is a good run defender who hits and tackles well. He started 38 games at Michigan.
Robert Malone played 31 games for Tampa Bay, Detroit, and the Jets from 2010-13. He has 157 career punts for a 44.5-yard gross average and a 37.8-yard net average.
Giants Place Peyton Hillis on IR; Sign Justin Anderson to 53-Man Roster: The New York Giants placed running back Peyton Hillis on season-ending Injured Reserve on Saturday. Hillis suffered a concussion in the Giants-Seahawks game last Sunday. Hillis also suffered a concussion against Seattle last season.
Hillis is the 14th Giant to end up on season-ending Injured Reserve.
To fill that vacant roster spot, the Giants signed linebacker Justin Anderson to the 53-man roster from the team’s Practice Squad. Anderson was originally signed by the Giants as an undrafted rookie free agent after the 2014 NFL Draft. The Giants waived/injured him with a hamstring issue in August but signed him to the Practice Squad in October.
The Giants received relatively good news on Schwartz, who was being examined by Dr. Robert Anderson on Monday. Schwartz will not need surgery to repair his dislocated right big toe. Schwartz will be in a boot for 7-10 days before beginning a rehabilitation program. After that, he availability will be determined on a week-to-week basis.
“This is just a minor setback,” said Schwartz. “I plan on attacking the rehab program so I can get back on the field as soon as possible with my teammates and help us win games.”
“He is very optimistic and hopefully it is going to mean the recovery is going to be as fast as possible,” said Head Coach Tom Coughlin. “You know how I am. I hear the news and I say, ‘Okay, let’s see how this goes.’ Obviously you can’t rush him back but it sure would be good to get him back ASAP rather the other way around. It is not going to be easy for him. He is a big man.”
“I hope (Mosley returns soon),” said Coughlin. “He is up and moving, so that is a good sign…All I know is that hopefully (Mosley and Brewer) both will be back as soon as possible. They both feel better today.”
Brandon McManus Traded to Denver Broncos: The Giants announced Tuesday morning that they had waived PK Brandon McManus, along with making 14 other roster moves. However, before that paperwork was finalized, the Denver Broncos made the Giants an offer and traded for McManus. Though not officially announced, the pick is believed to be a conditional 7th round selection in the 2015 NFL Draft.
“I think Brandon will kick in this league,” said Head Coach Tom Coughlin. “He’s a very powerful young man. Needs a little bit of work on the finer kicks, but certainly he demonstrated his ability to kick it through the back of the end zone.”
August 26, 2014 Tom Coughlin Press Conference: The transcript and video from Tuesday’s press conference with Head Coach Tom Coughlin are available at Giants.com.
August 26, 2014 New York Giants Player Media Q&As: Transcripts and video of Tuesday’s media Q&A sessions with the following players are available at Giants.com:
August 4, 2014 New York Giants Injury Report:As reported earlier today, RB David Wilson’s NFL career with the New York Giants is over. Doctors have advised Wilson to never play football again. The Giants will place him on season-ending Injured Reserve.
“You naturally feel bad, you feel down,” said Head Coach Tom Coughlin. “It is just a natural thing. I have to say when David came in and we sat and talked, he is such an up-beat young man. He is so positive. The smile is still on his face, even though he has received this kind of news…The way he expressed it was, ‘God must have something in mind for me. I want no pity. I want no one feeling sorry for me. I am not going to be down about this. No one will catch me in that frame of mind.’…I thought that was a wonderful thing for him to say and a great lesson for all of us.”
“Once a Giant, always a Giant,” said Coughlin. “He heard it earlier in the week and it is true. He’s a Giant. He’ll always be a Giant.”
The Giants did survive an injury scare to TE Daniel Fells, who is battling for a starting spot. It was thought Fells had sprained his knee or worse, but Coughlin said the injury is a bone bruise to the knee.
August 4, 2014 Tom Coughlin Conference Call: The transcript from Monday’s conference call with Head Coach Tom Coughlin is available at BigBlueInteractive.com.
August 3, 2014 Tom Coughlin Post-Game Press Conference:Video of Head Coach Tom Coughlin’s post-game press conference on Sunday night is available at Giants.com.
New York Giants Post-Game Player Media Sessions: Video clips of the post-game media Q&As on Sunday night with the following players are available at Giants.com:
Wasn’t that some play by that kid? He has done that in practice a couple of times, where he has done some things that were pretty spectacular that got our attention – one as a gunner, just flat-out running and splitting the double-team and then moving on down the field to make a play on the punt returner. He did that in practice and was recognized and very noticeable, and he has made some of those catches here on the practice field, where he has gone up over the top of people and caught the ball.
The Giants will return to practice on Tuesday from 5:40-7:50 at the Quest Diagnostics Training Center. The workout is closed to the public because of the One Direction concert at MetLife Stadium.
12 New York Giants Don’t Make Trip to Canton: Twelve injured New York Giants did not make the trip to Canton, Ohio on Saturday to play the Buffalo Bills in Sunday’s Hall of Fame Game. The Giants not traveling with the team include:
Head Coach Tom Coughlin was asked if it was a little disappointing that Beckham has not practiced yet at camp. “It’s more than that,” replied Coughlin. “You’re trying to put a team together. We saw too much of that in the spring. It’d be nice to get him back practicing. He actually looks pretty good moving around, catching the ball, not favoring anything. I’m just hoping it’s a real short amount of time.”
“(The trainers are) not going to let him go if he’s in the danger of hurting himself,” said Coughlin. “That’s all there is to it. I can stand there and fight all I want, but it’s not going to happen. When they feel he can go and not risk any recurring injury, they’ll let him go…I think there has been (some improvement).”
Coughlin on Holliday: “He did something catching a punt. Hopefully, it’s not much.”
Coughlin on Grimble: “Minor hamstring strain a couple of days ago.”
July 27, 2014 Tom Coughlin Press Conference: The transcript and video from Sunday’s press conference with Head Coach Tom Coughlin are available at Giants.com.
July 27, 2014 New York Giants Player Media Q&As: Transcripts and video clips of Sunday’s media Q&A sessions with the following players are available at Giants.com:
Historical Photo Album
Part of the USA Today Sports Media Group
BigBlueInteractiveSM provides news, analysis, and discussion on the New York Football Giants. The site is owned and operated by Big Blue Interactive, LLC. If you
have any questions or comments about this website, please see our contact information page. | 2024-02-03T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/7915 |
538 F.2d 326
U. S.v.Rinehart
No. 76-1406
United States Court of Appeals, Fourth Circuit
7/26/76
1
N.D.W.Va.
AFFIRMED
| 2023-11-12T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/2644 |
Friday, August 15, 2014
Self Esteem Advice Column: Depression
Question:I have had depression for 3 years now and my parents don't know. I don't know how to tell them I feel like it has been so long and I am only in high school. I just got out of a bad relationship and I feel as alone as ever. I've built up such a big wall to stay away from everyone, but I am still scared of myself. I don't know how to protect myself. I feel lost and like I'm drowning. Sometimes I get so worried about my depression or other things that I feel like I can't breath and I don't know what to do to calm down. And then I start crying and I just don't know what to do. I am LDS and so I pray, but I feel unworthy and I feel so lost and forgotten. I have had a feeling to get a blessing. but I don't know who to get one from. I have a trust issues and I don't trust anyone anymore. I know my depression is genetic because my dad has depression. I am so scared that my parents will find out and will freak out. I have so many secrets that I have kept from my parents with this depression. It has just become worse and worse. I can't handle anymore. I just feel ugly and unwanted. Please, if you have any advice for me I need it.
Lilly
Answer:
Because you are LDS, I am going to answer you from an LDS perspective. I don't know you personally, but how I wish we could have a very deep heart-to-heart, one-on-one in person because you are so loved and so precious and I want you to know that and feel it deep within your heart.
My heart ached as I read your email. I hurt for you, as you are going through so much pain and such a hard time in your life. You are worth SO MUCH MORE than these thoughts that you have. The first advice I can offer you is to separate the negative thoughts that you have from the positive thoughts that you have. I can promise you with all my heart, might, mind and soul that every negative thought, every insecurity, doubt, fear, inadequacy, self pity, lack of motivation and all depression comes from Satan. He is the master of lies.
There are two reasons he wants you to feel these feelings.
1. He is miserable right now and wants you to feel that as well (2 Nephi 2:27)
2. He knows the influence you would have, the impact you would make and the lives you would change if you fully believed in yourself. So he wants to stop you. If he can convince you that you don't matter and your failed attempts are what define you, then he has done his job in keeping you from having the most incredible impact ever!!
You are absolutely incredible. Of course he is going to work on you, because he recognizes your worth. He knows that you have talents, words, power and abilities in your heart that can influence everyone in your circle when they shine through, so he is going to make you think you have nothing to offer.
On a note with your parents finding out, I always think it's best to tell parents what is on your heart because they are there for guidance and protection over your body & your spirit, however, I don't know your parents and maybe your situation is different. If you feel really uncomfortable talking to your parents, talk to your bishop instead! He will be able to offer you the guidance you need at this time in your life. Turn to him and trust him, he will not share anything that you don't want shared.
About three years ago, changes were happening in my life that I wasn't ready for. I let doubt and fear creep in and eventually it started to take over my mind. For a time period every thought I had was fear and feeling like I wanted to run away from the world. I felt I didn't have anything to offer. This lead me farther away from God, giving Satan more power to take over my thoughts.
Thankfully one day, something just clicked. I knew I wanted to connect to heavenly father, but how? I started using a prayer journal. I would write down questions I wanted to ask Heavenly Father. At this point in my life, my prayers were very simple. I would say "Heavenly Father, what is one thing I can change to draw closer to thee?" "Heavenly Father, how can I get rid of my doubts?" "Heavenly Father, I want to believe, but I don't fully right now Please help me to see the truth and what I have to offer."
I would then write down the thoughts that came to my mind after the prayers. I started noticing that all the thoughts to the questions were things I knew in my heart all along and Heavenly Father helped me to start seeing the light again.
My point with this story is the closer we draw to God, the more we can view our infinite worth that has been there all along. In fact, your spirit has known your worth all along. YOUR SPIRIT KNOWS THAT YOU ARE WORTH MORE THAN ANYTHING YOU CAN IMAGINE AT THIS MOMENT. The struggle is getting our mind to believe what our spirit already knows.
Overcoming self-depreciation is a process, but absolutely one that is attainable! It will come through diligence in studying out your divine nature and the spiritual gifts that Heavenly Father has blessed you with.
Please know that Heavenly Father loves you so much and if you are having a hard time feeling that, I believe in the power of priesthood blessings. I have had to receive a few in my life to be reminded of my own worth.
I pray that something I said struck you & inspired you to see a different perspective. | 2024-03-20T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/1816 |
Uber, Lyft Poised to Lose Fight Against CA Bill to Label Drivers Employees - drkimball
https://www.wsj.com/articles/uber-lyft-poised-to-lose-fight-against-california-bill-to-label-drivers-employees-11568069041?mod=rsswn
======
jbarberu
I don't understand why the term ride-sharing is even used when talking about
Uber and Lyft. Has anyone ever gone with a driver who wasn't just driving an
unlicensed cab? Or is it referring to multiple riders sharing one car?
~~~
tenebrisalietum
All the Ubers/Lyfts I've used (between 30 and 40 as rough estimate) are people
in what looks like their own cars. There's never been any cab insignia
anywhere on them.
~~~
jbarberu
Unlicensed cab as in: driving people from point A -> point B with the purpose
of making money, without having a taxi license.
------
birdyrooster
The opponents of this bill claim that they would need to institute shifts. Why
so? Why can't they just be part-time employees with flexible schedules?
~~~
rockinghigh
If all drivers are employees and all show up to work at 10AM when there is
little demand, you can’t pay all of them minimum wage. The companies would
have to predict demand and ask just enough driver employees to match the
demand.
~~~
ergothus
Why does "employee" equate to "show up at 10AM" ? Why cant they work the same
hours and style they do now, but with the title of "employee"?
That's an honest question, I know employment laws are complex and likely didnt
include these concepts, but I'm also interested in facts over speculation.
~~~
birdyrooster
You are correct. They could. This comes down to offering a minimum income to
people who work for Uber and Lyft and giving them benefits that they would
otherwise never qualify for like paid health insurance.
------
carlmr
While I like better prices through competition, I think the employees should
be treated fairly.
~~~
Gibbon1
At some point the race to the bottom to exploit workers has to stop.
------
villgax
So all freelancing companies also should follow the same route?
~~~
Traubenfuchs
With the kind of freelancing you are probably referencing, the deal is that
you get a much higher hourly rate with the drawback that you have less long
term job security and need to actively manage your engagements, contracts,
taxes, etc.
Ride sharing drivers usually get less money than "normal" drivers, to the
point where legislators around the world want to protect them.
| 2024-04-27T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/9032 |
Predictors of self- and caregiver-rated quality of life for people with dementia living in the community and in nursing homes in northern Taiwan.
Factors affecting quality of life (QOL) ratings for people with dementia (PWD) have been well studied, but few studies have examined the effect of residence on PWD- and caregiver-rated QOL for PWDs. We designed this study to determine the factors related to PWD- and caregiver-rated QOL in dementia as well as factors related to the discrepancy in these ratings. For this cross-sectional study, we analyzed data from a convenience sample of 106 PWD-family caregiver dyads (58 community-dwelling dyads and 48 nursing-home dyads). PWDs' data included socio-demographic variables, QOL (assessed by the Quality of Life-Alzheimer's Disease [QOL-AD] scale), cognition, dementia severity, depression, comorbidities, and quality of the dyadic relationship. Caregivers' data included socio-demographic variables, depressive symptoms, and mutuality of the dyadic relationship. QOL-AD scores were lower when rated by caregivers than by PWDs. The key factors positively related to both PWD- and caregiver-rated QOL for PWDs were fewer PWD depressive symptoms and higher quality of the PWD-caregiver relationship. The key factors related to the discrepancy in PWD- and caregiver-rated QOL in dementia were PWD residence in a nursing home and lower dementia severity, as well as higher caregiver depression, being an adult child caregiver, and lower caregiver-PWD mutuality. Caregiver-rated QOL for PWDs and the discrepancy in rated QOL were significantly associated with PWD residence. If caregiver-rated QOL is needed, the effect of residence of PWD should be taken into consideration. Caregivers' depressive status and mutuality with PWD must be also carefully assessed. | 2023-09-25T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/9641 |
/*
* Copyright (c) Facebook, Inc. and its affiliates.
*
* This source code is licensed under the MIT license found in the
* LICENSE file in the root directory of this source tree.
*/
package com.facebook.imagepipeline.platform;
import android.graphics.Bitmap;
import android.graphics.BitmapFactory;
import android.os.MemoryFile;
import com.facebook.common.internal.ByteStreams;
import com.facebook.common.internal.Closeables;
import com.facebook.common.internal.DoNotStrip;
import com.facebook.common.internal.Preconditions;
import com.facebook.common.internal.Throwables;
import com.facebook.common.memory.PooledByteBuffer;
import com.facebook.common.memory.PooledByteBufferInputStream;
import com.facebook.common.references.CloseableReference;
import com.facebook.common.streams.LimitedInputStream;
import com.facebook.common.webp.WebpBitmapFactory;
import com.facebook.common.webp.WebpSupportStatus;
import com.facebook.imagepipeline.nativecode.DalvikPurgeableDecoder;
import java.io.FileDescriptor;
import java.io.IOException;
import java.io.OutputStream;
import java.lang.reflect.Method;
import javax.annotation.Nullable;
/**
* Bitmap decoder (Gingerbread to Jelly Bean).
*
* <p>
*
* <p>This copies incoming encoded bytes into a MemoryFile, and then decodes them using a file
* descriptor, thus avoiding using any Java memory at all. This technique only works in JellyBean
* and below.
*/
@DoNotStrip
public class GingerbreadPurgeableDecoder extends DalvikPurgeableDecoder {
private static Method sGetFileDescriptorMethod;
private final @Nullable WebpBitmapFactory mWebpBitmapFactory;
@DoNotStrip
public GingerbreadPurgeableDecoder() {
super();
mWebpBitmapFactory = WebpSupportStatus.loadWebpBitmapFactoryIfExists();
}
/**
* Decodes a byteArray into a purgeable bitmap
*
* @param bytesRef the byte buffer that contains the encoded bytes
* @param options the options passed to the BitmapFactory
* @return the decoded bitmap
*/
@Override
protected Bitmap decodeByteArrayAsPurgeable(
CloseableReference<PooledByteBuffer> bytesRef, BitmapFactory.Options options) {
return decodeFileDescriptorAsPurgeable(bytesRef, bytesRef.get().size(), null, options);
}
/**
* Decodes a byteArray containing jpeg encoded bytes into a purgeable bitmap
*
* <p>Adds a JFIF End-Of-Image marker if needed before decoding.
*
* @param bytesRef the byte buffer that contains the encoded bytes
* @param length the length of bytes for decox
* @param options the options passed to the BitmapFactory
* @return the decoded bitmap
*/
@Override
protected Bitmap decodeJPEGByteArrayAsPurgeable(
CloseableReference<PooledByteBuffer> bytesRef, int length, BitmapFactory.Options options) {
byte[] suffix = endsWithEOI(bytesRef, length) ? null : EOI;
return decodeFileDescriptorAsPurgeable(bytesRef, length, suffix, options);
}
private static MemoryFile copyToMemoryFile(
CloseableReference<PooledByteBuffer> bytesRef, int inputLength, @Nullable byte[] suffix)
throws IOException {
int outputLength = inputLength + (suffix == null ? 0 : suffix.length);
MemoryFile memoryFile = new MemoryFile(null, outputLength);
memoryFile.allowPurging(false);
PooledByteBufferInputStream pbbIs = null;
LimitedInputStream is = null;
OutputStream os = null;
try {
pbbIs = new PooledByteBufferInputStream(bytesRef.get());
is = new LimitedInputStream(pbbIs, inputLength);
os = memoryFile.getOutputStream();
ByteStreams.copy(is, os);
if (suffix != null) {
memoryFile.writeBytes(suffix, 0, inputLength, suffix.length);
}
return memoryFile;
} finally {
CloseableReference.closeSafely(bytesRef);
Closeables.closeQuietly(pbbIs);
Closeables.closeQuietly(is);
Closeables.close(os, true);
}
}
private synchronized Method getFileDescriptorMethod() {
if (sGetFileDescriptorMethod == null) {
try {
sGetFileDescriptorMethod = MemoryFile.class.getDeclaredMethod("getFileDescriptor");
} catch (Exception e) {
throw Throwables.propagate(e);
}
}
return sGetFileDescriptorMethod;
}
private FileDescriptor getMemoryFileDescriptor(MemoryFile memoryFile) {
try {
Object rawFD = getFileDescriptorMethod().invoke(memoryFile);
return (FileDescriptor) rawFD;
} catch (Exception e) {
throw Throwables.propagate(e);
}
}
private Bitmap decodeFileDescriptorAsPurgeable(
CloseableReference<PooledByteBuffer> bytesRef,
int inputLength,
byte[] suffix,
BitmapFactory.Options options) {
MemoryFile memoryFile = null;
try {
memoryFile = copyToMemoryFile(bytesRef, inputLength, suffix);
FileDescriptor fd = getMemoryFileDescriptor(memoryFile);
if (mWebpBitmapFactory != null) {
Bitmap bitmap = mWebpBitmapFactory.decodeFileDescriptor(fd, null, options);
return Preconditions.checkNotNull(bitmap, "BitmapFactory returned null");
} else {
throw new IllegalStateException("WebpBitmapFactory is null");
}
} catch (IOException e) {
throw Throwables.propagate(e);
} finally {
if (memoryFile != null) {
memoryFile.close();
}
}
}
}
| 2024-03-17T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/2036 |
Deep Space Capable of Creating Linked Pairs of Amino Acids –Essential Building Blocks of Life
A new experiment simulating conditions in deep space reveals that the complex building blocks of life could have been created on icy interplanetary dust and then carried to Earth, jump-starting life. Chemists from the University of California, Berkeley, and the University of Hawaii, Manoa, showed that conditions in space are capable of creating complex dipeptides – linked pairs of amino acids – that are essential building blocks shared by all living things.
The discovery opens the door to the possibility that these molecules were brought to Earth aboard a comet or possibly meteorites, catalyzing the formation of proteins (polypeptides), enzymes and even more complex molecules, such as sugars, that are necessary for life.
“It is fascinating to consider that the most basic biochemical building blocks that led to life on Earth may well have had an extraterrestrial origin,” said UC Berkeley chemist Richard Mathies, coauthor of a paper published online last week and scheduled for the March 10 print issue of The Astrophysical Journal. | 2023-08-23T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/3315 |
I see you used to be on the team here. Maybe you would consider making brazilian/portuguese language packs once the next release is out? All the buttons are now done with CSS so there's no need to make new buttons which will make it far easier for translating. | 2024-06-14T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/9306 |
[The effect of a caldesmon fragment with a mol. weight of 38 kDa and calponin on the capacity of actin to form a "strong" form of binding with myosin heads].
Effect of calponin and 38 kD actin-binding proteolytic fragment of caldesmon on actin structure alterations, initiated by decoration of thin filaments by N-ethylmaleimide-modified skeletal myosin subfragment-1 (NEM-S1) and by phosphorylated smooth heavy meromyosin (pHMM), has been studied by polarized fluorimetry. F-actin of myosin-free ghost fiber was labeled with fluorescent probe fluoroscein-5-maleimide. Both the actin-binding regulatory proteins have been demonstrated to inhibit conformational changes of actin typical for the "strong" binding of myosin head to actin. Tropomyosin weakens the inhibitory effect of calponin and markedly increases the effect of the 38 kD fragment of caldesmon. The results indicate similarity of molecular mechanisms of the regulation of muscle contraction by calponin and the actin-binding fragment of caldesmon. It is proposed that the regulation of smooth muscle contraction by calponin and caldesmon is carried out via the inhibition of the formation of the stage AM in ATP hydrolysis cycle. | 2024-01-21T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/4523 |
Q:
Java Modulus and division
Will someone please explain why this code returns whatever is entered in as x
public static void calc(int x)
{
if((x / 10) != 0)
{
calc(x / 10);
}
System.out.print(x % 10);
}
A:
Your calc method is a recursive method.
If the result of performing an int division is not 0, i.e. if the number is at least 10, then divide by 10 and call itself.
Eventually, you will reach a number that is less than 10. The if condition will be false, and x % 10 will be x itself. But what is x at this point? It's the first digit of the number.
Then the base case finishes, and the recursive calls all call x % 10 to print. At each level, another digit is printed, until the original call prints the last digit.
Example:
calc(456)
x is 456.
x / 10 is 45, not 0. Call calc(x / 10)
calc(45)
x is 45.
x / 10 is 4, not 0. Call calc(x / 10)
calc(4)
x is 4.
x / 10 is 0.
Print x % 10, or 4.
Print x % 10, or 5.
Print x % 10, or 6.
456
| 2024-06-02T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/3931 |
A mesoporous silica nanocomposite shuttle: pH-triggered phase transfer between oil and water.
With a simple protocol, we synthesize a novel mesoporous silica nanocomposite shuttle that can reversibly transfer between an organic phase and water in response to the pH, due to the switchable surface hydrophobicity/hydrophilicity. Our synthesis protocol allows the phase transfer ability to be tuned in a controllable fashion. This nanocomposite shuttle exhibits a good ability to load various cargoes such as Pd(OAc)2, Pd nanoparticles, and organic molecules. The built-in properties of the nanocomposite shuttle lay the foundations for many innovative applications. As a proof of concept, we successfully demonstrate its application in separating and recycling Pd nanoparticle catalysts. The composite shuttle can take Pd nanoparticles to an organic phase for catalyzing hydrogenation of olefins and come back to an aqueous phase at the end of reaction, making in situ separation and recycling of nanocatalysts possible. This pH-driven round trip for catalysis can be repeated several times. Our investigations not only supply a novel nanocomposite shuttle with controllable properties but also open an innovative avenue to in situ separation and recycling of nanocatalysts, which can address the obstacles of the conventional methods such as centrifugation and filtration. | 2024-07-31T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/8757 |
The development of the Forensic Early Warning Signs of Aggression Inventory: preliminary findings toward a better management of inpatient aggression.
"Early warning signs of aggression" refers to recurring changes in behaviors, thoughts, perceptions, and feelings of the patient that are considered to be precursors of aggressive behavior. The early recognition of these signs offers possibilities for early intervention and prevention of aggressive behaviors in forensic patients. The Forensic Early warning Signs of Aggression Inventory (FESAI) was developed to assist nurses and patients in identifying and monitoring these early warning signs of aggression. The FESAI was developed by means of qualitative and quantitative strategies. One hundred seventy six early detection plans were studied to construct a list of early warning signs of aggression. Inventory drafting was done by merging and categorizing early warning signs. Forensic nursing professionals assessed face validity, and interrater agreement was tested. The investigation of early detection plans resulted in the FESAI, which contains 44 early warning signs of aggression subdivided into 15 main categories. The face validity of the form was very good, and the interrater agreement was satisfactory. Preliminary findings indicate that the FESAI provides a useful listing of early warning signs of aggression in forensic patients. It may facilitate the construction of early detection plans for the prevention of aggressive behaviors in forensic psychiatry. | 2024-03-24T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/7737 |
790 A.2d 15 (2002)
367 Md. 571
Clarence CONYERS, Jr.,
v.
STATE of Maryland.
No. 26, Sept. Term, 2001.
Court of Appeals of Maryland.
February 5, 2002.
*17 Robert W. Biddle (Bennett & Nathans, LLP, Baltimore; Nancy M. Cohen, Towson), on brief, for appellant.
Annabelle L. Lisic, Asst. Atty. Gen. (J. Joseph Curran, Jr., Atty. Gen. of Maryland, on brief), Baltimore, for appellee.
Argued before BELL, C.J., ELDRIDGE, RAKER, WILNER, CATHELL, HARRELL and BATTAGLIA, JJ.
*16 HARRELL, Judge.
This is an appeal by Clarence Conyers, Jr. (Petitioner) from the denial by the Circuit Court for Wicomico County of post conviction relief in his capital case.[1]See Maryland Code (1957, 1996 Repl.Vol., 2000 Supp.), Article 27, §§ 645A-J (Maryland's Uniform Post Conviction Procedure Act),[2] and Maryland Rules 4-401 through 4-408,[3] and 8-306.[4] This is the third time Petitioner has sought this Court's review regarding the convictions and sentences in this matter.
In January 1996, following a jury trial in the Circuit Court for Wicomico County, Petitioner was convicted, with respect to the victim, Wanda Johnson, of premeditated murder, felony murder, first-degree burglary, robbery with a deadly weapon, attempted robbery with a deadly weapon, robbery, attempted robbery, and use of a *18 handgun in the commission of a crime of violence. In the same proceeding, Petitioner was convicted of premeditated murder of, and use of a handgun in the commission of a felony against Lawrence Bradshaw, his alleged accomplice in the crimes against Ms. Johnson. The same jury sentenced Petitioner to death for the murder of Ms. Johnson.[5] Petitioner received life without possibility of parole for the murder of Lawrence Bradshaw.[6]
In the initial direct appeal, this Court reversed the burglary conviction, affirmed the murder and other convictions, and vacated the death sentence, finding with regard to the latter that the trial court committed reversible error in admitting a portion of the pre-sentence investigation report referring to Petitioner's prior juvenile charges that had not resulted in a finding of delinquency. See Conyers v. State, 345 Md. 525, 575, 693 A.2d 781, 805 (1997) ("Conyers I"). The case was remanded to the Circuit Court for Wicomico County for a new sentencing proceeding relating solely to the murder of Ms. Johnson.
In January 1998, a new capital sentencing proceeding was conducted before a jury in the Circuit Court for Wicomico County.[7] Petitioner, represented by different trial counsel, was sentenced again to death for the murder of Wanda Johnson.[8] On the second direct appeal, this Court affirmed. See Conyers v. State, 354 Md. 132, 200, 729 A.2d 910, 946, cert. denied, 528 U.S. 910, 120 S.Ct. 258, 145 L.Ed.2d 216 (1999) ("Conyers II"). The U.S. Supreme Court denied further review. See Conyers v. Maryland, 528 U.S. 910, 120 S.Ct. 258, 145 L.Ed.2d 216 (1999).
On 7 March 2000, pursuant with the provisions of Maryland's Uniform Post Conviction Procedure Act, Md.Code (1957, 1996 Repl.Vol., 2000 Supp.), Art. 27, §§ 645 A-J and Md. Rules 4-401 through 4-408, and 8-306, Petitioner, through yet different trial counsel, filed a petition for post conviction relief[9] in the Circuit Court for Wicomico County, alleging, among other things, due process violations, ineffective assistance of counsel, and various trial court errors. After an evidentiary hearing, *19 the Circuit Court[10] denied Petitioner post conviction relief by an Order dated 30 January 2001. The court found Petitioner's allegations of due process violations unsupported by the evidence. As to the ineffective assistance of counsel claim, the court concluded Petitioner's assertions were without merit. The court dismissed Petitioner's contentions of trial and sentencing court errors, finding the actions to be proper. Finally, the court rejected Petitioner's challenges to Maryland's death penalty procedure and method of execution.
On 28 February 2001, pursuant to the provisions of Md.Code (1957, 1996 Repl.Vol.), Art. 27, § 645-I and Md. Rule 8-306, Petitioner filed with this Court an application for leave to appeal denial of post conviction relief. The application was granted on 11 May 2001. We shall reverse the Circuit Court's denial of Petitioner's petition for post conviction relief and remand this case to the Circuit Court for Wicomico County for a new trial.
Factual Background
Prior to the recitation of the issues presented for our consideration here, we set out the underlying facts regarding Petitioner's convictions, as recounted by the post conviction hearing judge.[11]
At approximately 9:35 p.m., on Friday, October 21, 1994, Petitioner's estranged girlfriend, Monica Wilson, went to visit her mother, Wanda Johnson, at the home Ms. Johnson shared with her husband, Elwood Johnson. Ms. Wilson had just spoken with her mother at 9:00 p.m. that evening, and her mother had agreed to babysit for Ms. Wilson's son. Arriving with Ms. Wilson at the Johnson home was her cousin, Carla Clinton.
As the two women approached the Johnson home, they saw someone looking outside through a second floor bedroom window. The women knocked on the door, and, as they waited for someone to open it, they saw through a window a man walking down the stairs. The women saw this man turn off the lights inside the house and duck down as if to avoid being seen. The two women walked to a back door and knocked on it. The women heard sounds of a struggle, described as a "commotion," "tussling" and "fighting," coming from inside the house. Then Ms. Johnson began to scream, and a window on the second floor broke over the women's heads.
The two women fled to the home of a relative who lived nearby and called the police. On the way to the relative's house, Ms. Wilson noticed a car parked across the street from her mother's house. The car resembled one that Petitioner sometimes borrowed from his former girlfriend and mother of his child, Debra Meyers. Upon returning to the Johnson home, Ms. Wilson was informed by the police that her mother was dead.
There were no signs of forced entry into the Johnson home. Wanda Johnson's body was found in the master bedroom. She had been shot three times in the head, once in the back, and once in the arm. It was Ms. Johnson's custom to keep a small amount of money in her *20 wallet. Furthermore, when Ms. Wilson spoke to Ms. Johnson earlier that evening, at approximately 9:00 p.m., Ms. Johnson said that she had twenty dollars. Ms. Johnson's open wallet was found atop her dresser in the master bedroom; there was no money in the wallet. In the den, a door to a closet had been forced open, revealing a safe. The closet door had a hasp and a lock on it for security, but the hasp and lock had been pried out of the door jamb to gain access to the closet. Pulling the hasp out of the door jamb had caused splinters to fall on the floor around the closet. The safe inside the closet was closed. Mr. Johnson opened the safe the day after his wife's murder; it contained fifteen dollars.
The next day, Ms. Clinton worked with a police artist on a sketch of the man she had seen on the staircase inside the Johnson home the evening before. Ms. Wilson was asked to look at the sketch that had been made based on Ms. Clinton's description. Petitioner, who had come to the police station to keep Ms. Wilson company, took the sketch away before Ms. Wilson had a chance to see it, telling the police that the sketch would upset her. When Ms. Wilson finally had a chance to see the police sketch, she did not immediately identify Lawrence Bradshaw as the man depicted in the sketch. She made a photo identification of another man, who was arrested and incarcerated for a brief time as a result. Ms. Wilson later agreed, however, that the police sketch looked like Lawrence Bradshaw.
Shortly after 1:00 a.m. on October 23, 1994, approximately 27 hours after the murder of Ms. Johnson, Lawrence Bradshaw was shot in the 4300 block of McDowell Lane. This street is located in the Lansdowne area, near Debra Meyers's home. Mr. Bradshaw had been shot three times in the head, once in the back, once in the arm, and once in the finger. Mr. Bradshaw was taken to Shock Trauma, where he died the following day. Conyers I, 345 Md. at 534-36, 693 A.2d at 785-86.
As to Johnson, Petitioner was convicted of premeditated murder, felony murder, first-degree burglary, robbery with a deadly weapon, attempted robbery with a deadly weapon, robbery, attempted robbery, and use of a handgun in the commission of a crime of violence, and sentenced to death. With respect to Bradshaw, Petitioner was found guilty of premeditated murder and use of a handgun in the commission of a crime of violence, and sentenced to life without parole.
On appeal, the Court of Appeals found the evidence was insufficient to sustain Petitioner's conviction for the burglary of Johnson's home, but sustained the remaining convictions. Regarding sentencing, the Court of Appeals held that certain portions of Petitioner's juvenile record that were contained in the pre-sentence investigation (PSI) report should not have been presented to the jury because the material was considered" inflammatory and highly prejudicial." Conyers I, 345 Md. at 563, 693 A.2d at 799. Consequently, Petitioner was granted a new sentencing hearing.
At the second capital sentencing hearing,[12] during the State's case, Charles Johnson (no relation to the victim, Wanda Johnson, or her husband) testified *21 that while he was Petitioner's cellmate [13] at the Baltimore County Detention Center in October-November of 1994, Petitioner discussed the robbery at [Wanda] Johnson's home. Charles Johnson stated Petitioner told him that he and a person named "Molek"[14] went to Wanda Johnson's house and Petitioner went upstairs to rob a safe. Charles Johnson testified:
"During the robbery, someone came to the door. At that point, Ms. Johnson yelled out ... her daughter's name or something of that nature. And Clarence panicked, because, I guess, they would recognize him is what he said, and as a result, he wound up shooting Ms. Johnson."
Charles Johnson went on to state that Petitioner told him that while both he and "Molek" were upstairs at first, when they heard noise, "Molek" ran downstairs. After [Wanda] Johnson was shot, "Molek" ran but Petitioner waited until no one was outside before he left.
Wanda Johnson's husband, Elwood Johnson, testified that Petitioner was a frequent visitor to their home. He also described the layout of the home, providing specific details about a spare bedroom that contained a safe in a closet. The safe, which contained personal papers and petty cash, had a combination lock and the closet was secured with a lock and hasp. Mr. [Elwood] Johnson stated that earlier in the day, the safe and closet were in normal condition but when he returned after the shooting the closet had been forced open and the hasp was broken. Furthermore, his wife's wallet was lying open on a dresser in their bedroom, which normally would have been inside her purse and placed in a cabinet or dresser drawer.
Wilson, the victim's daughter, basically recapped her trial testimony, describing her past relationship with Petitioner, her arrival at her mother's home with her cousin and son, hearing noise and her mother's screams, fleeing the scene and going for help down the street, and finally being informed of her mother's murder. Wilson also testified to Petitioner's efforts to prevent her from seeing the composite sketch of Bradshaw that her cousin helped develop and to keep her from reading or viewing any news related to the murder. Wilson stated Petitioner knew about the safe in her parents' spare bedroom and that he was aware her mother was not normally home on Friday evenings. Wilson knew that Petitioner owned a .38 caliber pistol, the type of weapon used to kill her mother.
Carla Clinton, Wilson's cousin who was with her at the crime scene, also repeated her trial testimony as to going to the Johnson house, seeing someone downstairs, hearing noise and her aunt's screams from inside the house, and finally assisting the police in the development of a composite sketch of the person she saw in the house.
Also during the State's case, a stipulation was presented to the jury regarding the recovered cartridges and the fact that they were all fired from a .38 caliber handgun. In addition, Victoria Gibson, *22 the victim's sister, testified as a victim impact witness, describing her sister's nature and personality and the warm relationship she had with her entire family. Furthermore, Petitioner's PSI report, which was redacted to the satisfaction of both the State and defense, was introduced into evidence.
During the defense's case, Arthur Rogers testified that he was incarcerated with Charles Johnson during October 1994 and at one point he discovered Johnson "rifling through my charging documents." Ventura McLee testified that he was incarcerated in October 1994 with Petitioner and Charles Johnson. During this period, Charles Johnson showed McLee indictment papers, police reports, and photographs relating to Petitioner's case. Timothy Wren testified that while he was incarcerated with Charles Johnson during August and October 1994, Charles Johnson told him that he had seen Petitioner's charge papers, that he had heard Petitioner talk about the case in his sleep, and that Petitioner had confessed his guilt. Eric Spencer, who resided in the cell next to Charles Johnson and Petitioner in October 1994, testified that he never heard Petitioner discussing his case with Charles Johnson.
Testifying as mitigation witnesses were Petitioner's parents, Clarence Conyers, Sr., and Eleanor Conyers, as well as Reverend William Felder. Petitioner exercised his right of allocution, stating that he "had no involvement in this crime whatsoever."
Additional facts will be provided as relevant to the respective issues we shall consider.
Petitioner's Issues
Petitioner asserts two instances of prosecutorial misconduct based upon the State's failure to disclose material impeachment evidence, that he was entitled to receive, concerning an important State's witness,[15] Charles Johnson (no relation to the victim, Wanda Johnson). First, Petitioner contends that the State failed to disclose, at trial or sentencing, evidence that Johnson sought a benefit relative to a pending charge when he met with police on 23 November 1994,[16] at which meeting he provided incriminating information on Petitioner. Moreover, Petitioner asserts, the State persisted in its deception regarding the complete circumstances surrounding Charles Johnson's coming forward by presenting at sentencing, without correction, the false testimony of Johnson, and corroborating testimony of Detective Phillip Marll, regarding the absence of such solicitation by Johnson, and then misled the jury in its closing arguments concerning Johnson's unselfish motives in coming forward and his credibility as a witness. Second, Petitioner contends that the State failed to provide documentation contained in its files of unsuccessful efforts by the police to verify the accuracy of a number of statements Johnson provided the police during the 23 November 1994 meeting, and instead offered Detective Marll's false testimony at sentencing that the police had verified "each and every" statement made by Johnson.[17]
*23 Petitioner argues that the lack of disclosure, aggravated by the presentation of false testimony, in each instance, was a violation of Petitioner's due process rights under Brady v. Maryland, 373 U.S. 83, 83 S.Ct. 1194, 10 L.Ed.2d 215 (1963) and its progeny.[18] Petitioner also asserts an ineffective assistance of counsel claim citing numerous instances of deficiencies of trial and sentencing counsel, trial court error, and additional claims of error. Petitioner presents a total of nineteen (19) questions for our review.[19] We have consolidated them into fourteen (14) questions, grouped according to whether they pertain to the guilt/innocence phase, the sentencing proceeding, or the post conviction hearing.
Guilt/Innocence Phase Errors
I Did the post conviction court err in finding that the State did not deny Petitioner due process in the guilt/innocence phase of trial by withholding certain material, impeachment evidence pertaining to the testimony of its key witness, Charles Johnson, in conjunction with the presentation of false testimony by and about Charles Johnson relative to such evidence, along with the State's misleading closing arguments commending Mr. Johnson's credibility, in violation of Brady?
II Did the post conviction court err in concluding that Petitioner was not denied the effective assistance of counsel at the guilt/innocence phase of trial with respect to the testimony of Charles Johnson?
III Did the post conviction court err in concluding Petitioner was in no other respect deprived of the effective assistance of counsel at the guilt/innocence phase of trial?
IV Did the post conviction court err in finding that Petitioner suffered no prejudice from the omission of certain jury instructions at the guilt/innocence phase of trial?
V Did the post conviction court err in finding that cumulative ineffective assistance of counsel error does not require a new trial?
VI Did the Circuit Court properly deny Petitioner's claim that the State's summations at the guilt/innocence phase of trial violated due process where the State implied in the trial summation that the jurors should be afraid of Petitioner?
VII Should this Court consider three claims denied by the post conviction court, which were included solely to preserve the record for future federal review? *24 Sentencing Errors
VIII Did the post conviction court err in finding that the State did not deny Petitioner due process at sentencing by withholding certain material, impeachment evidence pertaining to the testimony of its key witness, Charles Johnson, in conjunction with the presentation of false testimony by and about Charles Johnson relative to such evidence, along with the State's misleading closing arguments commending Mr. Johnson's credibility, in violation of Brady?
IX Did the post conviction court err in concluding that Petitioner was not denied the effective assistance of counsel at sentencing with respect to the testimony of Charles Johnson?
X Did the post conviction court err in concluding Petitioner was in no other respect deprived of the effective assistance of counsel at sentencing?
XI Did the post conviction court err in finding that the sentencing form properly consolidated the jury's finding regarding the robbery and attempted robbery aggravators into one item where the evidence of the robbery predicate was legally sufficient to find the defendant guilty?
XII Did the post conviction court err in finding that the Supreme Court's recent holding in Apprendi v. New Jersey, 530 U.S. 466, 120 S.Ct. 2348, 147 L.Ed.2d 435 (2000), had no applicability to the present case?
XIII Did the post conviction court err in finding that cumulative ineffective assistance of counsel error does not require a new sentencing?
Post Conviction Error
XIV Did the post conviction court improperly quash Petitioner's subpoena to the Department of Corrections to obtain testimony and documents pertaining to methods of execution where such subpoena was essential to proving that Maryland's lethal injection method of execution is cruel and unusual punishment violative of the Eighth Amendment?
The State's Waiver Argument
As a preliminary matter, the State asserts that, pursuant to the provisions of Md.Code (1957, 1996 Repl.Vol., 2000 Supp.), Art. 27, § 645A(c)(2),[20] Petitioner's *25 Brady claims (I and VIII) were waived, having been raised for the first time in the post conviction proceeding. Petitioner counters that, in fact, it is the State's waiver argument that has been waived in accordance with Md. Rule 8-131(a),[21] as it was not presented to the Circuit Court during the post conviction proceedings, and, accordingly, was not addressed by the hearing judge in his opinion of 30 January 2001. Moreover, Petitioner asserts the State's waiver claim fails on its merits, as the factual predicate for the State's violations did not become apparent until Detective Marll's testimony during the evidentiary hearing on the post conviction petition, at which point Petitioner filed a timely supplement to his amended petition for post conviction relief to include the newly discovered Brady claims.[22] We agree with Petitioner's arguments.
A. Factual Background
Petitioner's claims of Brady violations relate to the examination of Charles Johnson, and related corroboration testimony of Detective Marll, stemming from Johnson's meeting with Detectives Marll and Tincher on 23 November 1994. During that meeting, Johnson provided the detectives with non-public information concerning the murders of Ms. Johnson and Bradshaw that allegedly only the murderer would know. Johnson's statement indicated that he had not been promised any favors in exchange for the information in his statement. The statement was silent as to whether he asked for any favors.
On 14 December 1994, Petitioner's then trial counsel asked the State to provide all Brady material.[23] The State complied on 9 February 1995 by making available to Petitioner its file containing allegedly all relevant documents,[24] stating that "[a]t the present time, there is no information known to the State which is exculpatory, in any manner to the Defendant." Likewise, in the State's 11 December 1995 response to Petitioner's motion to compel the State to comply with Md. Rule 4-263(a)(1),[25] the *26 State reiterated its open file policy, explaining that "[t]he State has not put itself even in the position of determining what could be exculpatory," and furthermore claiming that its actions taken in this regard were "well beyond the discovery requirements of Maryland Rule 4-263." None of the documents in the State's files indicated that Johnson at any time sought a personal benefit for his cooperation, nor was there documentation indicating that there had been any unsuccessful attempts by the police to verify the information Johnson provided them at the 23 November 1994 meeting.
Charles Johnson first testified on 18 January 1996 at a suppression hearing regarding Petitioner's alleged jailhouse confession to Johnson. Johnson stated that his intention in contacting the police initially was to speak with them on Petitioner's behalf.[26] When asked if he requested a deal for the information, Johnson responded that he "didn't right out ask for a deal.... [He] didn't feel as though [the police] could offer [him] a deal." Petitioner's counsel nonetheless challenged Johnson's motive in contacting the police, relying on his known 13 January 1995 plea agreement with the State on a pending robbery charge. Johnson responded:
[T]he only thing they have done is, well, I was found guilty on the charge that I was charged with, and as far as I know, I haven't been sentenced to anything, but I believe that my armed robbery charge was reduced to a robbery, because I wasn't involved in the robbery.[27]
Similarly, at trial, Johnson testified that his sole motivation in contacting the police was to "speak on [Petitioner's] behalf that [Petitioner] didn't intentionally go in there with the intent or premeditation to kill Miss Johnson, that it happened because he panicked...." At the sentencing proceeding, Johnson denied Petitioner's counsel's accusation that he intended, from the outset, to lie about Petitioner's alleged confession in order to seek a deal on his pending charges.
Detective Marll denied at trial that any inducements had been offered to Johnson in exchange for the information. On direct examination, the prosecutor pointedly asked Detective Marll about any agreement between Johnson and the police:
[State:] Had you or Detective Tincher made any promises to Mr. Johnson concerning any information that he would provide you?
[Detective Marll:] No, sir, we did not.
During Petitioner's sentencing hearing on 27 January 1998, Detective Marll was questioned on direct examination by the State about his interview with Johnson:
[State:] [D]uring the course of your conversations with [Charles Johnson] and then obtaining a written statement from Mr. Johnson, did he at any time ever ask you for any promises or favors in return for the information he was giving you?
[Detective Marll:] No, sir, he did not. *27 Detective Marll also testified that the police had verified "each and every" non-public statement that Johnson had provided them at the meeting.
In its initial closing argument at trial, the State argued Johnson's credibility as a witness to the jury and his altruistic motives in contacting the police:
Mr. Johnson told us the truth .... he came in here and told the truth because it was the right thing to do.
In the State's rebuttal closing, the prosecutor again emphasized Johnson's credibility as a witness, and reinforced the fact that he had no deal when he provided the police with his statement. The prosecutor stated:
[Charles Johnson] walked in here and said the truth, he complied with his plea agreement .... he's telling you the truth.
[I]t's untrue that anyone went to Charles Johnson and said, hey, let's cut you a deal so you can tell us some info. No, Charles Johnson went to the police and gave them information about Clarence Conyers. And there was no deal when he told the police, November the 23 rd of 1994 he gave them a seven-page statement about what he knew and what Clarence Conyers had told him. No deals at that time. He told them what he knew.
In the sentencing phase, the State commented again on Johnson's credibility as a witness, noting that Johnson's statements were "all true .... all accurate," and that he "came in [to court] and told [the jurors] the truth...."
Petitioner's counsel nonetheless argued, at both trial and sentencing, that Johnson was simply a lying jailhouse snitch, motivated by self-interest in obtaining his subsequent plea agreement with the State regarding his robbery charges. Petitioner underscored the benefit Johnson received from the State, which allowed him to reduce a potential, maximum jail term of 244 years on the nineteen count indictment for robbery, to a recommended sentence of one to six years, for, inter alia, his guilty plea to a one count misdemeanor charge of conspiracy to commit robbery, and his agreement to testify "truthfully" at Petitioner's trial.[28]
While Johnson's testimony was addressed by this Court in other contexts in the two prior direct appeals,[29] Petitioner *28 never raised there a claim relative to the State's failure to disclose potential impeachment evidence concerning Johnson or the State's use of assertedly not fully accurate testimony.
On 2 October 2000, Detective Marll again testified at the post conviction hearing about his 23 November 1994 meeting with Johnson. On this occasion, however, Detective Marll indicated that indeed Johnson had queried the detectives about a possible deal. When Detective Marll informed Johnson that the police did not have the authority to commit to a deal, but would refer his inquiry to the State's Attorney's office, Johnson declined to sign his written statement, electing instead merely to initial the pages. Detective Marll also revealed, for the first time, that several statements Johnson provided the police during the 1994 meeting either were disproved subsequently by the police or were found by them to be unverifiable.
On 26 October 2000, Petitioner filed a timely supplement to the amended petition for post conviction relief raising, for the first time, the claim that the State denied Petitioner due process, and specifically, that (a) the State failed to disclose that Johnson had requested a benefit, that he refused to sign his statement absent a commitment to receive a benefit, and that Detective Marll agreed to pass along Johnson's request to the State's Attorney's office; (b) the State failed to correct Johnson's and Detective Marll's prior testimony denying that Johnson initiated an inquiry regarding receipt of a benefit for his cooperation at both the trial and sentencing proceedings; (c) the State failed to provide to the defense documentation in its possession indicating that there had been any unsuccessful attempts by the police to verify the non-public information Johnson provided in his 1994 meeting with police; and, (d) the State failed to correct Detective Marll's sentencing testimony that he had verified "each and every" non-public statement made by Charles Johnson during the 1994 meeting.
Petitioner's claims of Brady violations were addressed and argued on the merits in Petitioner's Memorandum of Law Supporting Post Conviction Relief, filed 4 December 2000, and the State's responsive Memorandum of Law Opposing Post Conviction Relief, dated 21 December 2000. The State did not argue waiver of the Brady claims during the post conviction proceedings, and, accordingly, the hearing judge did not address waiver in his opinion of 30 January 2001. The State first raised the waiver claim in its Response in Opposition to Application for Leave to Appeal from Denial of Post Conviction Relief in a Capital Case, filed with this Court on 19 April 2001.
B. Analysis
Ordinarily, an argument not raised in the proceedings below is not preserved for appellate review. See Md. Rule 8-131(a). See also Ware v. State, 360 Md. 650, 692-93, 759 A.2d 764, 786 (2000) (holding that appellant's argument relating to the inadequacy of a jury instruction was waived where there had been "no timely objection" in the lower court), cert. denied, 531 U.S. 1115, 121 S.Ct. 864, 148 L.Ed.2d 776 (2001); Conyers II, 354 Md. at 148, 729 A.2d at 918 (acknowledging that Md. Rule 8-131(a) limits appellate review to those issues "raised in or decided by the trial court"); Walker v. State, 338 Md. 253, 262, 658 A.2d 239, 243 (1995) (stating that "[W]e ordinarily will not review an issue that was not presented to the trial court."); State v. Bell, 334 Md. 178, 187, 638 A.2d 107,112 (1994).
*29 This Court, in limited circumstances, however, may review an argument not made and preserved in the lower court. See Bell, 334 Md. at 188-89, 638 A.2d at 113 (noting that use of the word "ordinarily" contemplates circumstances where appellate review of issues not previously raised is appropriate); Richmond v. State, 330 Md. 223, 236, 623 A.2d 630, 636 (1993) (recognizing that there are limited circumstances in which an appellate court may consider arguments not raised in the court below). Appellate review under these exceptional circumstances is discretionary, not mandatory. See Bell, 334 Md. at 188, 638 A.2d at 113. See also, e.g., Md. Rule 4-325(e) (conferring discretion on an appellate court acting "on its own initiative or on the suggestion of a party ... [to] take cognizance of any plain error in the [jury] instructions, material to the rights of the defendant, despite a failure to object"); Rubin v. State, 325 Md. 552, 587, 602 A.2d 677, 694 (1992) (noting that "as the cases hold with respect to errors of law generally, an appellate court may in its discretion in an exceptional case take cognizance of plain error even though the matter was not raised in the trial court") (citation omitted); Robeson v. State, 285 Md. 498, 502, 403 A.2d 1221, 1223 (1979) (discussing exceptions to the general principle that an appellate court will not ordinarily consider an issue not previously raised).
We often have stated that the primary purpose of Rule 8-131(a) is "`to ensure fairness for all parties in a case and to promote the orderly administration of law.'" Bell, 334 Md. at 189, 638 A.2d at 113 (quoting Brice v. State, 254 Md. 655, 661, 255 A.2d 28, 31 (1969) (alteration in original) (citation omitted)). The State had an opportunity to raise its waiver claim during the post conviction proceedings, but instead chose to argue Petitioner's Brady claims on the merits. As a result, the post conviction court did not address waiver in connection with these arguments. While this Court may decide, in its discretion and under exceptional circumstances, matters not raised in the proceedings below, the State's contention does not merit exceptional treatment here. Nor has the State referred us to any legal authority that would support exempting the State from any of the general waiver rules in the present case.
Moreover, the State's assertion that Petitioner's Brady claims were waived pursuant to Art. 27, § 645A(c)(2), is misguided. In pertinent part, § 645A(c)(2), states:
When an allegation of error could have been made by a petitioner before trial, at trial, on direct appeal (whether or not said petitioner actually took such an appeal),... in a prior petition under this subtitle, or in any other proceeding actually instituted by said petitioner, but was not in fact so made, there shall be a rebuttable presumption that said petitioner intelligently and knowingly failed to make such allegation. (Emphasis added).
The fundamental question the State advances here is whether Petitioner's allegations of prosecutorial misconduct relating to the testimony of Charles Johnson have been waived by his failure to challenge the violations at trial or in the direct appeals. Petitioner argues that it is axiomatic that you "cannot waive what [you] could not reasonably know." We agree with Petitioner.
Inherent in the language of § 645A(c)(2) is the presupposition that an opportunity to raise the challenge existed at the time of the lower court proceeding. See, e.g., Hunt v. State, 345 Md. 122, 142, 691 A.2d 1255, 1265 (1997) (noting that "defense counsel's acceptance of the jury panel was *30 sufficient to bar any subsequent objection thereto"); Oken v. State, 343 Md. 256, 271, 681 A.2d 30, 37 (1996) (recognizing that Oken's counsel's decision not to raise the adequacy of the voir dire on appeal was a deliberate one); Walker v. State, 343 Md. 629, 647, 684 A.2d 429, 437-38 (1996) (noting that petitioner's post conviction challenge to a jury instruction was waived by his failure to raise it when it was given). See also, e.g., Wyche v. State, 53 Md.App. 403, 407, 454 A.2d 378, 380 (1983) (noting that if a right alleged to have been violated is a non-fundamental right, "waiver will be found if it is determined that the possibility existed for the petitioner to have raised the allegation in a prior proceeding, but he did not do so"). (Emphasis added). In each of these instances the factual basis for the defendant's claim was available to the defendant, but was not properly preserved. That is not the circumstance in the case sub judice.
Petitioner's trial and sentencing counsels, surmising from the known fact of the plea bargain, argued inferentially that Johnson's testimonial motivation, rather than the truth for its own sake, was entirely self-interest. The discrepancies between Johnson's testimony denying he requested a favor (when he did) and Detective Marll's corroborating testimony, however, were not revealed until Detective Marll's post conviction testimony. Similarly, there was no apparent discrepancy concerning police verification, vel non, of Johnson's 1994 statements regarding non-public information regarding the crimes until Detective Marll's post conviction testimony revealed otherwise.
The State cannot frustrate trial counsel's access to the factual basis for making a Brady claim, then cry foul when Petitioner does not raise such a challenge on direct appeal. This Court is satisfied from review of the relevant portions of the record that the factual predicate underlying Petitioner's Brady claims relating to the testimony and examination of Charles Johnson did not arise until the post conviction evidentiary hearing, at which point Petitioner properly raised these issues. Indeed, the State provides no evidentiary support for its bald allegation that Petitioner waived his claim under the waiver provision of § 645A(c)(2). Accordingly, we shall review Petitioner's Brady claims on the merits.
The Brady Issues (I and VIII)
A. Brady Requirements
As indicated above, Petitioner's flagship contentions are that he was prejudiced by the State's violations of its constitutional obligations to Petitioner under Brady. We begin our analysis by identifying the essential elements Petitioner must establish to succeed on a Brady challenge. As we recently explained in Wilson v. State, 363 Md. 333, 345-47, 768 A.2d 675, 681-83 (2001):
The Supreme Court made clear in Brady v. Maryland, 373 U.S. 83, 83 S.Ct. 1194, 10 L.Ed.2d 215 (1963), that "the suppression by the prosecution of evidence favorable to an accused upon request violates due process where the evidence is material either to guilt or to punishment, irrespective of the good faith or bad faith of the prosecution." [Brady, 373 U.S.] at 87, 83 S.Ct. 1194, 1196-97, 10 L.Ed.2d 215. In order to establish a Brady violation, Petitioner must establish "(1) that the prosecutor suppressed or withheld evidence that is (2) favorable to the defenseeither because it is exculpatory, provides a basis for mitigation of sentence, or because it provides grounds for impeaching a witnessand (3) that the suppressed evidence is material." Evidence that is obviously favorable must be disclosed *31 even absent a specific request by the defendant.
Impeachment evidence, as well as exculpatory evidence, is "evidence favorable to an accused." [C]f. Napue v. People of Ill., 360 U.S. 264, 269, 79 S.Ct. 1173, 1177, 3 L.Ed.2d 1217 (1959) (holding that the prohibition against the use of false testimony applies even when the evidence goes only to the credibility of the witness because the jury's assessment of credibility can be determinative of guilt or innocence).
The failure to disclose evidence relating to any understanding or agreement with a key witness as to a future prosecution, in particular, violates due process, because such evidence is relevant to witness's credibility. The Supreme Court explained in Giglio [v. United States, 405 U.S. 150, 154-55, 92 S.Ct. 763, 766, 31 L.Ed.2d 104 (1972)] that, when the government depends almost entirely on the testimony of a key witness to establish its prima facie case and the witness's credibility, therefore, is an important issue, "evidence of any understanding or agreement as to a future prosecution would be relevant to his credibility...." See id. (emphasis added). This Court underscored the same point in Ware [v. State, 348 Md. 19, 702 A.2d 699 (1997)] when we concluded that "the prosecutor's duty to disclose applies to any understanding or agreement between the witness and the State." Ware, 348 Md. at 41, 702 A.2d at 710. (emphasis in original).
The standard for measuring the materiality of the undisclosed evidence is strictest if it "demonstrates that the prosecution's case includes perjured testimony and that the prosecution knew, or should have known, of the perjury." In [United States v.] Agurs, [427 U.S. 97, 103, 96 S.Ct. 2392, 2397, 49 L.Ed.2d 342 (1976)] the Supreme Court explained that "a conviction obtained by the knowing use of perjured testimony is fundamentally unfair, and must be set aside if there is any reasonable likelihood that the false testimony could have affected the judgment of the jury." In cases where there is no false testimony but the prosecution nonetheless fails to disclose favorable evidence, the standard for materiality, in the language of the Supreme Court, is whether "there is a reasonable probability that, had the evidence been disclosed to the defense, the result of the proceeding would have been different. A `reasonable probability' is a probability sufficient to undermine confidence in the outcome." [S]ee... Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668, 104 S.Ct. 2052, 80 L.Ed.2d 674 (1984).3 Materiality is assessed by considering all of the suppressed evidence collectively. The question, therefore, "is not whether the State would have had a case to go to the jury if it had disclosed the favorable evidence, but whether we can be confident that the jury's verdict would have been the same," which is determined in reference to the sum of the evidence and its significance for the prosecution.
3 This Court has interpreted the reasonable probability standard from Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668, 104 S.Ct. 2052, 80 L.Ed.2d 674 (1984), to mean a "substantial possibility that ... the result of [the] trial would have been any different." State v. Thomas, 325 Md. 160, 190, 599 A.2d 1171, 1185 (1992). See [Thomas, 325 Md.] at 190 n. 8, 599 A.2d at 1185 n. 8; Bowers v. State, 320 Md. 416, 426-27, 578 A.2d 734, 739 (1990).
(Some citations omitted).
Applying the above analysis in Conyers's case, we must determine whether (1) the State suppressed or withheld evidence that was (2) favorable to the Petitioner and (3) *32 whether the suppressed evidence was material.
B. Charles Johnson's Request for a Benefit
1. State Suppression
The State argues that the post conviction hearing judge correctly found that Charles Johnson did not seek a benefit in exchange for the information he provided the police on 23 November 1994; accordingly, so the argument goes, the State could not have suppressed evidence of such a request. For that same reason, the State contends the hearing judge correctly concluded that Johnson and Detective Marll testified accurately and truthfully in the lower court proceedings when they denied that Johnson requested a benefit in exchange for the incriminating information against Petitioner.
Moreover, the State asserts Johnson's receipt of a benefit, i.e., the plea agreement relative to the robbery charges, in exchange for his later testimony, was known by Petitioner.[30] The State invites this Court to accept the post conviction judge's rationale that reconciled Detective Marll's post conviction testimony with his prior testimony by drawing a meaningful distinction between Johnson's willingness to provide the police with the incriminating information in 1994, gratis, and his subsequent successful negotiation with the State for a benefit in exchange for his 1996 and 1998 testimony against Petitioner. We decline the invitation.
It is well settled that this Court will not disturb the factual findings of the post conviction court unless they are clearly erroneous. See Wilson, 363 Md. at 348, 768 A.2d at 683; Oken, 343 Md. at 299, 681 A.2d at 51; Gilliam v. State, 331 Md. 651, 672, 629 A.2d 685, 696 (1993). Finding that Charles Johnson did not seek a benefit in the course of his 1994 meeting with police, the post conviction hearing judge stated:
Charles Johnson willingly provided information to the police with no prearranged agreement or deal. He apparently elected not to sign the written statement he willingly provided in the hope that he could arrange an agreement with the State's Attorney's Office in exchange for his testimony at trial. Charles Johnson was telling the truth when he said that "he didn't right out ask for a deal [of the police]." He correctly didn't feel the police could offer a deal. Detective Marll was telling the truth that Charles Johnson didn't ask "for any promises or favors in return for the information" he gave to the police. This is verified by the fact that he did give the information to the police with no agreement or deal.
Charles Johnson did want an agreement in exchange for his "testimony." He knew and/or was told that the police could not accomplish that.
The only evidence which could refute the initial motivation is his subsequent act of securing an agreement to testify for the State in exchange for a benefit for him. This information was provided by the State to all counsel for the Petitioner and was the primary subject of cross-examination.
Having reviewed the entire record regarding the alleged Brady suppression of Johnson's full negotiations for a benefit, we find the post conviction court's factual findings are not supported by the record, and we disagree with its conclusions of law.
*33 The State's duty to disclose exculpatory evidence as enunciated in Brady is to ensure that a defendant receives a fair trial. Brady, 373 U.S. at 87, 83 S.Ct. at 1197, 10 L.Ed.2d 215 (noting that "[s]ociety wins not only when the guilty are convicted but when criminal trials are fair."). See also United States v. Bagley, 473 U.S. 667, 675, 105 S.Ct. 3375, 3380, 87 L.Ed.2d 481 (1985) (stating that "[t]he Brady rule is based on the requirement of due process.... [T]he prosecutor is ... to disclose evidence favorable to the accused that, if suppressed, would deprive the defendant of a fair trial...."). Evidence will be deemed to be suppressed within the meaning of Brady if it is "`information which had been known to the prosecution but unknown to the defense.'" Spicer v. Roxbury Corr. Inst., 194 F.3d 547, 557 (4th Cir.1999) (noting the prosecutor acknowledged withholding evidence pertaining to inconsistent statements of its key identification witness to defendant's counsel) (quoting Agurs, 427 U.S. at 103, 96 S.Ct. at 2397, 49 L.Ed.2d 342); Ware, 348 Md. at 39, 702 A.2d at 709 (stating that the necessary inquiry is "whether the defendant knew or should have known facts that would have allowed him to access the undisclosed evidence").
There is no question that the State knew that Johnson was seeking a benefit when he met with police in 1994. Detective Marll's post conviction testimony revealed that Johnson asked what could be done for him, albeit subsequent to his providing the police with a written, but unsigned, statement of Petitioner's alleged confession to him. The following exchange took place between Petitioner's counsel and Detective Marll at the post conviction hearing:
[Counsel:] Did Mr. Johnson ask you or mention anything in any way in the first hour and a half of his interrogation about his pending charges?
[Detective Marll:] I don't recall....It seems to me that once the written statement was done, obviously, because there was a question about Mr. Johnson not signing the bottom of the form that he brought up that basically he wanted something done in his behalf by the State's Attorney's Office, and that's why he initialed the form in our presence.
We have no doubt that Detective Marll understood the implications of Johnson's request, as Johnson refused to sign his statement without a commitment for a benefit, choosing instead only to initial the pages. In that regard, Detective Marll testified:
At that time, I asked if he would sign the bottom of the statement form, and he said he didn't want to, he didn't feel comfortable signing it, but he said he would put his initials there, and he did, he wrote them on each page in front of us and placed his initials on each line next to the signature block area, and at that time, we were done.
It is equally clear that Detective Marll ostensibly offered to act as an intermediary between Johnson and the State's Attorney's office. Detective Marll testified:
After these seven pages were done, what I asked Mr. Johnson to do was to review and sign each one of them, and that's when the question came up about hishe would have hadwhatever charge it was that he had that he wanted to know what can be done for him.
And at the time, we said we don't make any deals, we can't make any promises. The only thing we can do is take the statement to the State's Attorney Office, and they can get in touch with your attorney and anything along that line can be done by them. We stay entirely out of it.
Facts known to the police will be imputed to the State for Brady purposes. See *34 Strickler v. Greene, 527 U.S. 263, 280-81, 119 S.Ct. 1936, 1948, 144 L.Ed.2d 286 (1999) (noting the Brady rule "encompasses evidence `known only to police investigators and not to the prosecutor'") (quoting Kyles v. Whitley, 514 U.S. 419, 438, 115 S.Ct. 1555, 1568, 131 L.Ed.2d 490 (1995)); Boone v. Paderick, 541 F.2d 447, 451 (4th Cir.1976) (attributing the knowledge of the police to the Government, the Court noted, "`[t]he police are also part of the prosecution, and the taint on the trial is no less if they, rather than the State's Attorney, were guilty of the nondisclosure.' ") (quoting Barbee v. Warden, 331 F.2d 842, 846 (4th Cir.1964)).
It is undisputed that the substance of Detective Marll's testimony concerning the commencement and course of Johnson's negotiations for a benefit was withheld from Petitioner until the post conviction hearing. Petitioner's pretrial requests for disclosure of Brady material, discussed supra, failed to elicit any documentation concerning Johnson's negotiations for a deal. Petitioner reasonably relied upon the State's open file policy as fulfilling the prosecution's duty to disclose the evidence he requested. See Strickler, 527 U.S. at 283 n. 23, 119 S.Ct. at 1949 n. 23, 144 L.Ed.2d 286 (stating that "if a prosecutor asserts that he complies with Brady through an open file policy, defense counsel may reasonably rely on that file to contain all materials the State is constitutionally obligated to disclose under Brady."). The reasonableness of Petitioner's reliance was confirmed by the State's statement that it had "well "exceeded the requirements of Brady by providing Petitioner with all pertinent portions of its files.
We shall not entertain the State's hair-splitting in honoring form over substance. The record demonstrates that Petitioner's counsel attempted, based on the plea bargain alone, to persuade the jury that Johnson sought a favor for his allegedly fabricated testimony regarding Petitioner's alleged confession.[31] Petitioner's various counsel were understandably unsuccessful in uncovering on their own the full *35 circumstances precipitating the ultimate plea bargain. The sole basis offered by the State, and accepted by the post conviction judge, for resisting disclosure of the full extent of the negotiations was the State's arbitrary and circumscribed interpretation of Petitioner's cross-examinations of Johnson and Detective Marll concerning the matter. Indeed, Johnson and Detective Marll nimbly sidestepped complete and accurate responses by interpreting the questions posed to them in terms of "promises or favors" in exchange for Johnson's 1994 "information," rather than for his later testimony. In effect, these witnesses intellectually bifurcated the pertinent course of events in order to make the nice distinctions offered at the post conviction hearing as explanations for why their earlier testimony was not incomplete or perhaps simply false.[32] The State's lack of candor was never more apparent as when, at sentencing, the State pointedly asked Detective Marll if Johnson had "at any time" during the course of their conversations ever asked him for "any promises in return for the information "that he provided, eliciting Detective Marll's categorical response, "No sir, he did not." (Emphasis added).
It is clear to us that the State's and the witnesses' deceptive approach was intended to evade the thrust of Petitioner's questioning. We find the commencement of Johnson's negotiations leading up to the plea agreement for his testimony against Petitioner, and the fact that he declined to sign the written statement because no immediate commitment for a benefit was forthcoming, to be inseparable conceptually from his initially apprising the police of the incriminating information. After all, Johnson's unsigned, written statement would be of limited or no value to the State without his consistent in-court testimony.[33]*36 We find that the evidence concerning Johnson's initial request for a benefit and his refusal to sign the written statement when such a benefit was not immediately forthcoming was within the exclusive control of the State, and the State's failure to disclose this evidence upon request consequently constituted a "suppression" within the meaning of Brady.
2. Evidence Favorable to the Petitioner
To succeed on a Brady claim, Petitioner also must establish that the suppressed evidence was favorable to his defense. As indicated above, favorable evidence encompasses not only exculpatory evidence, but also evidence that may be used to impeach the credibility of a witness. See Wilson, 363 Md. at 345-46, 768 A.2d at 681-82. The Court has recognized the importance of impeachment evidence, noting that "`if disclosed and used effectively, [impeachment evidence] may make the difference between conviction and acquittal.'" Spicer, 194 F.3d at 556 (quoting Bagley, 473 U.S. at 676, 105 S.Ct. at 3380, 87 L.Ed.2d 481). See also Strickler, 527 U.S. at 282 n. 21, 119 S.Ct. at 1949 n. 21, 144 L.Ed.2d 286 (recognizing that Brady's disclosure requirements "extend to materials that, whatever their other characteristics, may be used to impeach a witness"). Cf. Napue, 360 U.S. at 269, 79 S.Ct. at 1177, 3 L.Ed.2d 1217 ("The jury's estimate of the truthfulness and reliability of a given witness may well be determinative of guilt or innocence, and it is upon such subtle factors as the possible interest of the witness in testifying falsely that a defendant's life or liberty may depend.").
It is well established that the State's failure to disclose the existence of a plea agreement with a key witness violates Brady standards, because the terms of the agreement might provide evidence regarding the witness's motivation to testify. See Giglio, 405 U.S. at 154-55, 92 S.Ct. at 766, 31 L.Ed.2d 104; Wilson, 363 Md. at 348, 768 A.2d at 683; Ware, 348 Md. at 50, 702 A.2d at 714 (recognizing that evidence of a plea agreement between the State and a witness is "powerful impeachment evidence" that "enables a defendant to attack the motive or bias of a witness ...." and must be disclosed to the accused); Marshall v. State, 346 Md. 186, 198, 695 A.2d 184, 190 (1997) (recognizing that a jury is entitled to know the terms of a plea agreement between a State and its witness so that it may assess whether the witness's testimony "has been influenced by bias or motive to testify falsely"); cf. Napue, 360 U.S. at 270, 79 S.Ct. at 1177, 3 L.Ed.2d 1217 (holding that the failure of the prosecutor to correct the false testimony of a witness relating to the absence of an inducement *37 by the State for his testimony was prejudicial for impeachment purposes).
Recently, under the dictates of Brady, this Court, in Wilson v. State, 363 Md. 333, 768 A.2d 675 (2001), reversed a petitioner's conviction where the State failed to disclose the specific terms of its written plea agreements with two key codefendant witnesses, even where the jury had been apprised of the existence of the agreements through the testimony of the State's witnesses. Wilson, 363 Md. at 356, 768 A.2d at 687. We rejected the State's argument that its disclosure was sufficient, determining that the specific terms of the written plea agreements were favorable to Wilson's impeachment strategy and should have been disclosed. Wilson, 363 Md. at 349, 768 A.2d at 683-84. This was particularly true, the Court noted, where the witnesses' testimony concerning the terms of the agreements were inaccurate, and were then further mischaracterized by the State in closing arguments. Wilson, 363 Md. at 356, 768 A.2d at 687. Wilson is instructive in the present case.
Here, while Petitioner and the jury were aware of the existence of Johnson's plea agreement in return for his testimony, the State withheld arguably related circumstances leading up to its consummation, namely, that Johnson, indeed, requested a favor, and that he refused to sign his written statement absent such a commitment. This was evidence that disputed Johnson's later testimony (and the State's trial arguments), which information would have strengthened Petitioner's assertion that Johnson had fabricated Petitioner's alleged confession in an effort to garner a benefit on outstanding charges.
The State argues that Johnson's self-interest was "more than adequately" presented to the jurors, and that they were presented with a "full picture" of Johnson through his testimony. We disagree. Defense counsel was entitled to explore and argue from all of the pertinent evidence as to Johnson's bias and credibility. Suppression of this evidence deprived the jurors of a full opportunity to evaluate the credibility of Johnson's testimony, and Detective Marll's corroborating testimony, and deprived Petitioner of potentially valuable impeachment evidence. The difference in potential impeachment value of this information increased during the sentencing phase, as we discuss further infra, because of Johnson's position as the key witness to Petitioner's principalship in the murder of Wanda Johnson.
Similar to Wilson, the value of the suppressed information as impeachment evidence was confirmed by the State's efforts to conceal it from Petitioner. The State offered, without correction, Johnson's testimony asserting his altruistic motives in contacting the police and repeated denials of his solicitation of a quid pro quo for the information. The State persisted in this tact by placing a police detective on the witness stand to bolster indirectly Johnson's testimony, both as to motive in giving it and in substance. The State's conduct continued in its closing arguments, at trial and sentencing, in which it extolled Johnson's credibility as a witness, knowing its own sins of omission.
While it is true that Petitioner vigorously cross-examined Johnson in an attempt to discredit his testimony, and argued by inference a link between Johnson's motive in coming forward and the plea agreement, that does not necessarily vitiate any error caused by the State's failure to disclose this impeachment evidence. See Wilson, 363 Md. at 351, 768 A.2d at 684 (stating that cross-examination of a witness regarding inducement "to testify does not substitute for adequate disclosure"); Boone, 541 F.2d at 451 (noting that "[n]o matter how good defense counsel's argument may have been, it was apparent to *38 the jury that it rested upon conjecturea conjecture which the prosecutor disputed."). See also Martin v. State, ___ So.2d ___, ___, 2001 WL 1520631, 2001 Ala. Crim.App. Lexis 298, 21 (Ala.Crim.App. 2001) (likening defendant to a "fighter with one hand tied behind his backthe fact that he was able to land a few punches in cross-examination with one fist did not make the match a fair one"). Under the facts of this case, the State's failure to disclose the impeachment evidence violates Brady principles.
3. Material Evidence
Petitioner's final obstacle in establishing a Brady violation is materiality. As this Court explained in Wilson, discussed supra, there are two different materiality standards[34] that may be applied to the analysis of suppressed exculpatory evidence. The strictest, and more defendant-friendly, Napue/Agurs standard applies in those cases where "`the prosecution's case includes perjured testimony and ... the prosecution knew, or should have known, of the perjury.'" Wilson, 363 Md. at 346-47, 768 A.2d at 682 (quoting Agurs, 427 U.S. at 103, 96 S.Ct. at 2397, 49 L.Ed.2d 342). The Supreme Court explained in Agurs that "`a conviction obtained by the knowing use of perjured testimony is fundamentally unfair,'" accordingly, it "`must be set aside if there is any reasonable *39 likelihood that the false testimony could have affected the judgment of the jury.'" Id. (quoting Agurs, 427 U.S. at 103, 96 S.Ct. at 2397, 49 L.Ed.2d 342). See Napue, 360 U.S. at 272, 79 S.Ct. at 1179, 3 L.Ed.2d 1217.
A different standard of materiality applies in those cases where there is no perjured testimony, but there is prosecutorial failure to disclose exculpatory evidence. Under the Brady/Bagley materiality standard, evidence will be deemed material if "`there is a reasonable probability that, had the evidence been disclosed to the defense, the result of the proceeding would have been different. A `reasonable probability' is a probability sufficient to undermine confidence in the outcome'" of the case. Wilson, 363 Md. at 347, 768 A.2d at 682 (quoting Bagley, 473 U.S. at 682, 105 S.Ct. at 3383, 87 L.Ed.2d 481 (opinion of Blackmun, J.)). See also Kyles, 514 U.S. at 433-34, 115 S.Ct. at 1565, 131 L.Ed.2d 490. This Court has interpreted the Strickland "reasonable probability" standard to mean a "`substantial possibility that ... the result of [the] trial would have been any different.'" Wilson, 363 Md. at 347 n. 3, 768 A.2d at 683 n. 3 (quoting State v. Thomas, 325 Md. 160, 190, 599 A.2d 1171, 1185 (1992)). See also Thomas, 325 Md. at 190 n. 8, 599 A.2d at 1185 n. 8; Bowers v. State, 320 Md. 416, 426-27, 578 A.2d 734, 739 (1990). This standard applies to "the `no request,' `general request,' and `specific request' cases of prosecutorial failure to disclose evidence favorable to the accused." Bagley, 473 U.S. at 682, 105 S.Ct. at 3383, 87 L.Ed.2d 481 (opinion of Blackmun, J.).[35]See Ware, 348 Md. at 48, 702 A.2d at 713 (noting that under Bagley, the Court "no longer distinguish[es] for purposes of determining the standard of materiality among cases in which the defense made a specific request as opposed to a general request or no request at all").
Petitioner asserts that the stricter standard of materiality enunciated in Napue applies under the facts of this case, arguing that the State affirmatively presented perjured testimony. Accordingly, Petitioner contends, a new trial, or at least a new sentencing, is required because there was a "reasonable likelihood that the false testimony could have affected the judgment of the jury." Wilson, 363 Md. at 347, 768 A.2d at 682 (citation omitted). Petitioner alternatively argues that he is entitled to a new trial or sentencing because he meets the Brady/Bagley standard of materiality, as there was a "substantial possibility" that the outcome of the trial or sentencing would have been different had the withheld information been disclosed. See Wilson, 363 Md. at 347 n. 3, 768 A.2d at 683 n. 3. (citations omitted). While the Napue standard of materiality is not indicated in the present case, supra note 32, we are satisfied that Petitioner has met the stricter standard of showing materiality under Brady/Bagley. The record supports our conclusion that, had the evidence relating to Johnson's complete negotiations for a benefit been disclosed, there was a substantial possibility that the outcome would have been different.
*40 We base our conclusion on several factors this Court has used to assess materiality for purposes of suppressed impeachment evidence. See Wilson, 363 Md. at 352-55, 768 A.2d at 685-87.[36] First, Johnson was a key State's witness as to Petitioner's principalship in Wanda Johnson's murder. Principalship directly governs Petitioner's eligibility for the death penalty. See Md.Code (1957, 1996 Repl. Vol., 1998 Supp.), Art. 27, § 413(e)(1) (restricting the death penalty only to persons convicted of first degree murder as a principal in the first degree). A principal in the first degree is "`one who actually commits a crime, either by his own hand, or by [an] inanimate agency, or by an innocent human agent.'" Gary v. State, 341 Md. 513, 520, 671 A.2d 495, 498 (1996) (quoting Johnson v. State, 303 Md. 487, 510, 495 A.2d 1, 12 (1985) (alteration in original) (citation omitted)). Johnson's testimony concerning Petitioner's alleged confession affirmatively and directly cast Petitioner, rather than his alleged accomplice (Bradshaw), as the actual perpetrator of her murder.[37]
Second, a determination of the relative significance of the suppressed evidence requires an understanding of the evidence that was presented at trial and sentencing. See Wilson, 363 Md. at 353, 768 A.2d at 685 (noting that the testimony of a codefendant witness provided the "only direct link between Petitioner and the crime"). The State disputes that Johnson's testimony at trial and sentencing was the only evidence of Petitioner's involvement or, as to Ms. Johnson's death, his principalship, respectively, in the murders. While that may be so, the other evidence to which the State refers is circumstantial. As indicated supra, the sentencing testimony, other than Johnson's, placed only Lawrence Bradshaw in the victim's home at the time of her murder. While there was circumstantial evidence adduced during the guilt/innocence portion of the trial that would permit a reasonable jury to conclude that Petitioner was a participant in her murder, it is less apparent that, absent belief of Johnson's testimony, the evidence would have been sufficient to find, beyond a reasonable doubt, Petitioner was the principal. If Johnson's testimony is to be believed, there are no inferences that need be drawn from the circumstantial evidence, either at trial or sentencing, in order to conclude that Petitioner was involved, or the shooter, in both murders. We should not be understood to hold, however, that the circumstantial evidence at trial and sentencing, exclusive of Johnson's testimony, necessarily was constitutionally insufficient for a reasonable jury to convict or render a sentence of death. We hold only that the taint of the Brady suppression matters on this record so undermines our confidence in the murder convictions and death sentence that a new trial is in order.
We reject the State's argument that the jury was provided with a "full picture" of *41 Johnson through the testimony at both trial and the sentencings, referring to vigorous efforts by Petitioner's lawyers to portray Johnson as a jailhouse snitch out to get a deal. For the reasons discussed supra, we cannot say that if the jury was informed of the totality of the circumstances leading up to Johnson's ultimate plea agreement, there would not be a substantial possibility that the outcome would have been different had the withheld information been disclosed. See Wilson, 363 Md. at 353, 768 A.2d at 686 (noting that Wilson's trial counsel's attempt to cross-examine the State's key witnesses "was far less effective than it would have been" had he possessed the written agreements that specified the terms).
Finally, the State was an active participant in the `smoke and mirrors' effort to mislead the Petitioner and jury as to the full circumstances preceding and precipitating Johnson's plea agreement. As previously noted supra, the prosecutor at sentencing expressly asked Detective Marll if Johnson had "at any time ever ask[ed][him] for any promises or favors in return for the information he was giving [him]," deliberately eliciting Detective Marll's denial. In closing argument at trial, the prosecutor trumpeted Johnson's version of why he contacted police by claiming Johnson told the truth "because it was the right thing to do." In both proceedings, the State emphasized Johnson's credibility as a witness. The importance of Johnson's credibility was evidenced by the State's efforts to argue his credibility in its last words to the jury. See Wilson, 363 Md. at 355, 768 A.2d at 687 (recognizing that "the `likely damage' of the State's suppression of evidence in this case `is best understood by taking the word of the prosecutor... during closing argument.'") (quoting Ware, 348 Md. at 53, 702 A.2d at 715 (citations omitted)).
Applying the final test of materiality pertinent to these facts, we conclude that the State suppressed material impeachment evidence of Johnson's negotiations for a benefit. Accordingly, we reverse, based on the Brady claims, the lower court's judgment denying Petitioner post conviction relief. We remand this case to the Circuit Court for Wicomico County for a new trial. We shall not reach Petitioner's remaining issues.
JUDGMENT OF THE CIRCUIT COURT FOR WICOMICO COUNTY REVERSED; CASE REMANDED TO THE CIRCUIT COURT FOR A NEW TRIAL; COSTS TO BE PAID BY WICOMICO COUNTY.
Dissenting opinion by CATHELL, J. in which WILNER, J., joins
I respectfully dissent. The majority's opinion in this third examination of Conyer's conviction (Conyers III, I suppose) is a result looking for justification that, in actuality, does not exist.
The majority's reversal is based solely on the Brady[1] issue. It does not address the remaining issues (other than those relating to waiver with which I do not take issue). The majority states:
"[W]e must determine whether (1) the State suppressed or withheld evidence that was (2) favorable to the Petitioner and (3) whether the suppressed evidence was material."
I agree that if the evidence of Johnson's attempts to obtain favorable treatment in return for his testimony had been suppressed by the State, it was both favorable to the petitioner and material. The problem is, regardless of the majority's massive dumping of legal authority in its opinion *42 and the discussion of perjury by the majority in a footnote, that the evidence was not suppressed or withheld in the first instance.
I have no dispute about the application of Brady. The extensive discussion of that case and its progeny in the majority's opinion serves primarily to obfuscate the weakness of its factual determination in the case. The majority's reversal is based not upon the law but upon its interpretation of the facts.
What is clear is that the purpose of the whole line of Brady cases is to insure that the trier of fact has before it any material impeachment (in this case) evidence. The impeachment evidence in this case was that Johnson, the witness at issue, received benefits for his testimony by way of a favorable plea bargain in respect to unrelated charges he was facing.
The majority states:
"Here, while Petitioner and the jury were aware of the existence of Johnson's plea agreement in return for his testimony, the State withheld arguably related circumstances leading up to its consummation, namely, that Johnson, indeed, requested a favor, and that he refused to sign his written statement absent such a commitment."
The favor Johnson requested was the plea agreement he received from the State and that plea agreement was made known to the jury. It is almost, I would suggest, universally understood that plea bargaining constitutes favors. Additionally, the very use of the general term "bargain" implies a give and take procedure where things are withheld and other things offered; some are accepted, some are rejected. When the jury was informed of the plea agreement, it, impliedly, was informed that a give and take process for Johnson's testimony had been undertaken and been consummated.
Additionally, the majority's reasoning is, in my view, sophistic in nature. Parsed of extraneous material, the majority is holding that because the detective's and Johnson's testimony about their prior communications was the type of testimony that could tend to obscure the existence of a beneficial plea bargain for Johnson on his unrelated charges, the case must be reversed under Brady, even though the beneficial plea bargain was, in fact, fully disclosed to the jury. The jury was fully apprised of the possible motive of Johnson to fabricate his testimony.
The purpose of the Brady holding (as applied in the impeachment context) is to insure that the jury is made aware of the motive for fabrication on the part of the witness, not to mandate that every nuance of the process from which the motive to fabricate originates be remembered and/or disclosed.
Had Johnson's plea bargain not been disclosed to the jury, the dictates of the Brady line of cases would not have been met and I would join the majority. In my view, however, the requirements of Brady were met.
The majority does not address the other issues. Nonetheless, were I writing for the majority of the Court, I would affirm on all issues presented.
Judge WILNER has authorized me to state that he joins in this dissent.
NOTES
[1] The petition for post conviction relief arose out of State v. Conyers, Case Nos. 96CR0458 and 96CR0460 in the Circuit Court for Wicomico County. Charges were filed originally against Petitioner in the Circuit Court for Baltimore County because the murders occurred in Baltimore County. The case was transferred to the Circuit Court for Wicomico County for trial.
[2] Maryland's Uniform Post Conviction Procedure Act, Maryland Code (1957, 1996 Repl. Vol., 2000 Supp.), Article 27, §§ 645A-J, provides for and regulates the post conviction proceedings of certain persons who have been convicted of crimes.
[3] Maryland Rules 4-401 through 4-408 specify the procedures to petition for post conviction relief.
[4] Maryland Rule 8-306 applies to appellate review in the Court of Appeals in capital cases, including application for leave to appeal from a judgment granting or denying relief in a post conviction proceeding.
[5] Pursuant to the provisions of Md.Code (1957, 1996 Repl.Vol.), Art. 27, § 413 (concerning the sentencing procedure upon a finding of guilty of first degree murder), the jury found, beyond a reasonable doubt, that Petitioner was a principal in the first degree in the murder of Ms. Johnson, and that the murder was perpetrated in the course of committing or attempting to commit a robbery. At least one or more, but fewer than all, of the jurors found, by a preponderance of the evidence, the existence of two non-statutory mitigating circumstances, specifically, family ties and a loving family. Finding, by a preponderance of the evidence, that the aggravating circumstance outweighed the mitigating circumstances, the jury unanimously determined the sentence to be death.
[6] The State did not seek the death penalty for the murder of Mr. Bradshaw.
[7] Unless indicated otherwise, all further references to the sentencing proceeding in this opinion will be to the second sentencing proceeding in January 1998.
[8] In accordance with the provisions of Md. Code (1957, 1996 Repl.Vol., 1998 Supp.) Art. 27, § 413, the jury found, beyond a reasonable doubt, that Petitioner was a principal in the first degree in the murder of Ms. Johnson and that the murder was committed in the course of committing or attempting to commit a robbery. The jury did not find, by a preponderance of the evidence, the existence of any mitigating circumstances. The jury unanimously sentenced Petitioner to death.
[9] Supplemental amended petitions were later filed. For purposes of this Opinion, the original and amended petitions will be considered as a whole and collectively referred to as "petition."
[10] Although the same judge presided over all trial court proceedings prior to the filing of the post conviction petition, a visiting judge presided over the post conviction proceedings.
[11] The statement of facts concerning the crime and subsequent events recounted in the post conviction court's Memorandum Opinion was taken from Conyers v. State, 354 Md. 132, 143-47, 729 A.2d 910, 915-18, cert. denied, 528 U.S. 910, 120 S.Ct. 258, 145 L.Ed.2d 216 (1999) ("Conyers II").
[12] Charles Johnson's testimony during the sentencing stage was essentially a reiteration of his earlier testimony given during the guilt/innocence phase of Petitioner's January 1996 trial.
[13] Charles Johnson was awaiting trial on charges of armed robbery of a Wendy's Restaurant at the time he was Petitioner's cellmate.
[14] Debra Meyers, Petitioner's former girlfriend and the mother of his child, testified during the guilt/innocence phase of the January 1996 trial that Mr. Bradshaw was introduced to her as "Molek" by Petitioner upon arriving at her home in the early morning hours of 23 October 1994, shortly before Mr. Bradshaw was shot.
[15] Charles Johnson was the State's key witness in the sentencing proceeding regarding Petitioner's principalship in the murder of Ms. Johnson.
[16] Charles Johnson met with police for the first, and only, time on 23 November 1994. The meeting was held at Johnson's request. Detectives Phillip Marll and James Tincher conducted the police interview.
[17] The State emphasized in its closing argument at sentencing that "all" of Johnson's statements had been verified by the police.
[18] We shall refer to this in the opinion as the "Brady claims." In Brady v. Maryland, 373 U.S. 83, 83 S.Ct. 1194, 10 L.Ed.2d 215 (1963), the Supreme Court held that "suppression by the prosecution of evidence favorable to an accused upon request violates due process where the evidence is material either to guilt or to punishment, irrespective of the good faith or bad faith of the prosecution." Brady, 373 U.S. at 87, 83 S.Ct. at 1196-97, 10 L.Ed.2d 215.
[19] Ordinarily, we would simply repeat the questions presented or arguments in Petitioner's brief. We are unable to do that here, with complete confidence, because Petitioner framed the issues in a most confusing way. In Petitioner's brief, in the Table of Contents, he frames arguments, numbered one (1) through twelve (12), some with subparts (a total of nine (9) subparts, two (2) of which have three (3) sub-subparts each). In the main body of the brief, however, he frames nineteen (19) Questions Presented. For clarity of presentation in this opinion, we express our understanding of a melding of Petitioner's issues.
[20] Article 27, § 645A(c) concerns matters of waiver under Maryland's Uniform Post Conviction Procedure Act, and provides that:
(c) When allegation of error deemed to have been waived.(1) For the purposes of this subtitle, an allegation of error shall be deemed to be waived when a petitioner could have made, but intelligently and knowingly failed to make, such allegation before trial, at trial, on direct appeal (whether or not the petitioner actually took such an appeal), in an application for leave to appeal a conviction based on a guilty plea, in any habeas corpus or coram nobis proceeding actually instituted by said petitioner, in a prior petition under this subtitle, or in any other proceeding actually instituted by said petitioner, unless the failure to make such allegation shall be excused because of special circumstances. The burden of proving the existence of such special circumstances shall be upon the petitioner.
(2) When an allegation of error could have been made by a petitioner before trial, at trial, on direct appeal (whether or not said petitioner actually took such an appeal), in an application for leave to appeal a conviction based on a guilty plea, in any habeas corpus or coram nobis proceeding actually instituted by said petitioner, in a prior petition under this subtitle, or in any other proceeding actually instituted by said petitioner, but was not in fact so made, there shall be a rebuttable presumption that said petitioner intelligently and knowingly failed to make such allegation.
[21] Maryland Rule 8-131 concerns the scope of appellate review. Rule 8-131(a) provides in pertinent part,
[o]rdinarily, the appellate court will not decide any other issue unless it plainly appears by the record to have been raised in or decided by the trial court, but the Court may decide such an issue if necessary or desirable to guide the trial court or to avoid the expense and delay of another appeal.
[22] Petitioner's counsel filed a Supplement to Amended Petition for Post Conviction Relief on 26 October 2000.
[23] Specifically, Petitioner requested in his demand for discovery that "the State's Attorney disclose to the Defendant any material or information which tends to negate the guilt of the Defendant as to the offense charged or would tend to reduce the punishment therefor, or would be of assistance in impeaching the credibility of a State witness."
[24] The State purported to provide "open file" discovery to Petitioner's counsel. While the precise definition of an "open file" policy may vary by jurisdiction, it is clear in this case that the prosecutor's use of the term meant to communicate that no discoverable matters were concealed in any way from Petitioner's counsel, noting that the State had provided Petitioner "a copy of the entire file of the State excluding internal documents and work product notes."
[25] Maryland Rule 4-263(a)(1) concerns discovery in circuit court, and in pertinent part states: "(a) Disclosure Without Request. Without the necessity of a request, the State's Attorney shall furnish to the defendant: (1) Any material or information tending to negate or mitigate the guilt or punishment of the defendant as to the offense charged...."
[26] Specifically, Johnson testified:
And I did tell [Petitioner] that I would speak with the officers more or less, it was more or less in his favor ... if he didn't intend on [murdering Wanda Johnson], we were under the assumption that, you know, it wasn't a premeditated murder, that it happened as a result of panic or something of that nature.
[27] Johnson's robbery charge stemmed from his participation as the `getaway' driver in the Wendy's robbery. See supra note 13. His testimony was that he was not present inside the Wendy's Restaurant at the time of the hold-up.
[28] Charles Johnson was indicted on nineteen counts stemming from his involvement in the robbery of a Wendy's Restaurant. The charges included four counts of robbery, four counts of robbery with a deadly weapon, one count of conspiracy to commit robbery with a deadly weapon, one count of conspiracy to commit robbery, four counts of assault, one count battery, two counts of handgun violations, one count possession of a handgun, and one count theft. On 13 January 1995, Johnson signed a plea agreement with the State in which he agreed to plead guilty to a misdemeanor charge of conspiracy to commit robbery, for which the State would nol pros the balance of the charges and recommend a sentence of one to six years in accordance with sentencing guidelines for that crime. An additional term of the agreement required Johnson to "testify truthfully" and completely at Petitioner's trial as well as against his co-defendant on the robbery charges. Johnson ultimately served eighteen months at the Baltimore County Detention Center, and was released, for time served, two days after testifying at Petitioner's trial.
[29] For example, this Court, in Conyers II, discussed whether Detective Marll's testimony, that he "knew upon hearing [certain statements] from [Charles] Johnson to be truthful...," was improper opinion testimony as to the credibility of Johnson as a witness. Conyers II, 354 Md. at 153, 729 A.2d at 921. This Court held that Detective Marll was not offering an opinion as to Johnson's credibility as a witness, rather he was testifying as to the results of the verification efforts by the police regarding the information Johnson provided police concerning Petitioner's involvement in Wanda Johnson's and Bradshaw's murders. Conyers II, 354 Md. at 154, 729 A.2d at 921.
[30] Johnson's plea agreement with the State was in place less than two months following his meeting with police.
[31] The Dissent, at 42, suggests that it is "universally understood that plea bargaining constitutes favors," and therefore, when the jury was "informed of the plea agreement, it, impliedly, was informed that a give and take process [an exchange of favors] for Johnson's testimony had been undertaken and been consummated." Assuming that to be an accurate abstract generalization, the State, in this case, attempted to counter such a notion by implying, at both trial and sentencing, that Johnson received nothing more nor less in terms of a bargain on his pending charges than what was commensurate with his participation as the getaway driver in the Wendy's Restaurant robbery. In its closing at trial, the State claimed:
We have this incredible exaggeration of what [Johnson's] participation was in [the Wendy's robbery], and the basis for this plea agreement.... We know that he was a getaway driver in a robbery, that's why he didn't know how many victims there were, he wasn't inside the place....
We know that the sentencing guidelines for the crime that he plead guilty to are between one and six years incarceration. And what's the State asking for? The sentencing guidelines of one to six years incarceration. He plead guilty to conspiracy to commit the crime of robbery, and that is supposed to be the motivation for him to walk in here and lie....
In its sentencing closing argument, the State said:
And this great deal that the defense tells you he got, he stated all these hundreds of years. Well, in fact, Mr. Charles Johnson had to plead guilty, did plead guilty to conspiracy to commit robbery, and the State recommended a sentence of one to six years, which is what the guidelines were, the regular guidelines for a person that committed that offense. For all of that, that man is going to come in and lie about a first degree murder in a death penalty case? So much for that great deal.
[32] In describing the offense of perjury in Brown v. State, 225 Md. 610, 616, 171 A.2d 456, 458 (1961) (citations omitted), this Court said:
The offense consists in swearing falsely and corruptly, without probable cause of belief; not in swearing rashly or inconsiderately, according to belief. The false oath, if taken from inadvertence or mistake, cannot amount to voluntary or corrupt perjury.... That the oath is wilful and corrupt must not only be charged in the indictment, but must be supported on trial. An oath is wilful when taken with deliberation, and not through surprise or confusion, or a bona fide mistake as to the facts, in which latter cases perjury does not lie.
See also Md.Code (1957, 1996 Repl.Vol.), Art. 27, § 435 (defining, in pertinent part, the crime of perjury as "[a]n oath or affirmation, if made willfully and falsely in any of the following cases ... all cases where false swearing would be perjury at common law....").
While we shall not find that the State offered perjured testimony, we cannot condone the Brady violations apparently employed to enhance the credibility of Johnson.
[33] Absent Johnson's testimony at trial, the State would have been unable to offer his unsigned, written statement of 23 November 1994 as substantive evidence of Petitioner's guilt, as it does not fall within any exception to the Maryland Rules on hearsay, Rules X-XXX-X-XXX.
On the other hand, in accordance with Md. Rule 5-802.1(a)(3), the initial portion of Johnson's handwritten statement recounting the facts surrounding Petitioner's alleged confession might be successfully admitted as substantive evidence of Petitioner's guilt if Johnson, called by the State as a witness and subject to cross-examination, testified inconsistently with this prior statement. Md. Rule 5-802.1 provides in pertinent part:
Hearsay exceptionsPrior statements by witnesses.
The following statements previously made by a witness who testifies at the trial or hearing and who is subject to cross-examination concerning the statement are not excluded by the hearsay rule:
(a) A statement that is inconsistent with the declarant's testimony, if the statement was (1) given under oath subject to the penalty of perjury at a trial, hearing, or other proceeding or in a deposition; (2) reduced to writing and signed by the declarant; or (3) recorded in substantially verbatim fashion by stenographic or electronic means contemporaneously with the making of the statement....
In Stewart v. State, 342 Md. 230, 674 A.2d 944 (1996), this Court observed in dicta that prior inconsistent, unsigned written statements are not admissible under Md. Rule 5-802.1(a)(3) as substantive evidence "unless they are recorded substantially verbatim by a reliable stenographer or electronic means contemporaneously with the making of the statement," further noting that "an unsigned statement taken down in a police officer's `shorthand' is not substantive evidence" under Md. Rule 5-802.1(a)(3). Stewart, 342 Md. at 238, 674 A.2d at 948. As the portion of Johnson's statement concerning Petitioner's alleged confession was transcribed in his own handwriting, this portion of the statement might have satisfied the reliability requirements of Md. Rule 5-802.1(a)(3), allowing its possible admission as substantive evidence. If Johnson took the stand and refused to testify, however, the State would be unable to introduce the statement as a prior inconsistent statement, as refusal to testify is not deemed "inconsistent" with prior testimony. See Tyler v. State, 342 Md. 766, 777, 679 A.2d 1127, 1133 (1996).
[34] In his dissent in Strickler v. Greene, 527 U.S. 263, 298-300, 119 S.Ct. 1936, 1956-57, 144 L.Ed.2d 286 (1999) (Souter, J., dissenting), Justice Souter provided an instructive review of the evolution in the Supreme Court of the materiality standard imposed by the Brady rule:
Brady itself did not explain what it meant by "material" (perhaps assuming the term would be given its usual meaning in the law of evidence, see United States v. Bagley, 473 U.S. 667, 703, n. 5, 105 S.Ct. 3375, 3394, n. 5, 87 L.Ed.2d 481 (1985) (Marshall, J., dissenting)). We first essayed a partial definition in United States v. Agurs, [427 U.S. 97, 96 S.Ct. 2392, 49 L.Ed.2d 342 (1976)], where we identified three situations arguably within the ambit of Brady and said that in the first, involving knowing use of perjured testimony, reversal was required if there was "any reasonable likelihood" that the false testimony had affected the verdict. Agurs, [427 U.S.] at 103, 96 S.Ct. at 2397 (citing Giglio v. United States, 405 U.S. 150, 154, 92 S.Ct. 763, 766, 31 L.Ed.2d 104 (1972), in turn quoting Napue v. Illinois, 360 U.S. 264, 271, 79 S.Ct. 1173, 1178, 3 L.Ed.2d 1217 (1959)). We have treated "reasonable likelihood" as synonymous with "reasonable possibility" and thus have equated materiality in the perjuredtestimony cases with a showing that suppression of the evidence was not harmless beyond a reasonable doubt. Bagley, [473 U.S.] at 678-80, and n. 9, 105 S.Ct. at 3381-83, and n. 9 (opinion of Blackmun, J.). See also Brecht v. Abrahamson, 507 U.S. 619, 637, 113 S.Ct. 1710, 1721, 123 L.Ed.2d 353 (1993) (defining harmless-beyond-a-reasonable-doubt standard as no "`reasonable possibility' that trial error contributed to the verdict"); Chapman v. California, 386 U.S. 18, 24, 87 S.Ct. 824, 828, 17 L.Ed.2d 705 (1967)
(same). In Agurs, we thought a less demanding standard appropriate when the prosecution fails to turn over materials in the absence of a specific request. Although we refrained from attaching a label to that standard, we explained it as falling between the more-likely-than-not level and yet another criterion, whether the reviewing court's "`conviction [was] sure that the error did not influence the jury, or had but very slight effect.'" [Agurs,] 427 U.S. at 112, 96 S.Ct. at 2401 (quoting Kotteakos v. United States, 328 U.S. 750, 764, 66 S.Ct. 1239, 1248, 90 L.Ed. 1557 (1946)). Finally, in United States v. Bagley, [473 U.S. at 682, 105 S.Ct. at 3383-84], we embraced "reasonable probability" as the appropriate standard to judge the materiality of information withheld by the prosecution whether or not the defense had asked first. Bagley took that phrase from Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668, 694, 104 S.Ct. 2052, 2068, 80 L.Ed.2d 674 (1984), where it had been used for the level of prejudice needed to make out a claim of constitutionally ineffective assistance of counsel....
[35] In Bagley, Justice Blackmun found the "Strickland formulation of the Agurs test for materiality sufficiently flexible to cover the "no request," "general request," and "specific request" cases of prosecutorial failure to disclose evidence favorable to the accused...." Bagley, 473 U.S. at 682, 105 S.Ct. at 3383, 87 L.Ed.2d 481 (opinion of Blackmun, J.). See also supra note 34, discussing Justice Souter's dissent in Strickler, 527 U.S. at 298-300, 119 S.Ct. at 1956-58, 144 L.Ed.2d 286 (Souter, J., dissenting) (reviewing the evolution of the Brady rule).
[36] The Court in Wilson recognized several factors to which courts have looked to assess materiality for the purposes of suppressed impeachment evidence, which we apply in the instant case:
[T]he closeness of the case against the defendant and the cumulative weight of the other independent evidence of guilt, the centrality of the particular witness to the State's case, ... whether and to what extent the witness's credibility is already in question, and the prosecutorial emphasis on the witness's credibility in closing arguments.
363 Md. at 352, 768 A.2d at 685 (citations omitted).
[37] Judge Raker, in her dissent in Conyers II, recognized Charles Johnson as the State's primary witness on principalship, noting that "his credibility was central to the question of whether [Petitioner] was eligible for the death sentence." Conyers II, 354 Md. at 204, 729 A.2d at 948 (Raker, J., dissenting).
[1] Brady v. Maryland, 373 U.S. 83, 83 S.Ct. 1194, 10 L.Ed.2d 215 (1963).
| 2024-03-30T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/9520 |
Leader cemented for FSU decommit Bellamy
Just a few days ago, ESPN 300 defensive end Davin Bellamy (Chamblee, Ga./Chamblee) had a good idea of where he might want to go. Tuesday night, things had changed for the 6-foot-4, 235-pound pass-rusher.
Kipp Adams/ESPN.comDavin Bellamy was all smiles when he committed to Florida State in August. Now he might be wearing a red Bulldogs jersey.
Late Tuesday, Bellamy announced his decision to decommit from Florida State, where he had been committed since last August.
“I felt like I did not need any more on my plate, because I already have a tough decision,” Bellamy said. “I think we mutually parted ways some time ago, because I could not build that same relationship like I had with Dameyune Craig. It just got to a point where I did not want Florida State to not be able to go out and find another defensive end.” | 2023-12-12T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/1373 |
This Thursday, May 3, is the 67th Annual National Day of Prayer. The theme this year is "Love One Another," which couldn't be a better one when it comes to praying for others.
The National Day of Prayer has been an annual observance since 1952, inviting people of all faiths to pray for the nation and world. It was created by a joint resolution of the United States Congress, signed into law by President Harry S. Truman, and annually observed by presidents ever since on the first Thursday of May. Its approval flew through the Congress almost seven decades ago as a way to help separate America as a country with a godly heritage and to aid her success against atheistic communism. (In 1956, the motto "In God We Trust" was also universally printed on all U.S. currency for the same basic reasons.)
Despite that the U.S. Supreme Court affirmed the right of state legislatures to open their sessions with prayer in the case of Marsh vs. Chambers (1983), critics try to oppose the National Day of Prayer's constitutionality by saying it didn't exist prior to 1952 as a national observance. But all one must do is go back to the founders and framers of the Constitution to understand that, whether one looks at Creator-language in such pivotal documents as the Declaration of Independence or the role religion played in establishing ethics and morality even in political arenas, not one justice or government official back then would oppose a national day of prayer. In fact, they would be advocates for it.
The NDP website explained, "The National Day of Prayer is a vital part of our heritage. Since the first call to prayer in 1775, when the Continental Congress asked the colonies to pray for wisdom in forming a nation, the call to prayer has continued through our history. ..."
Recently I read another excellent article by historian David Barton at the Wallbuilders website, titled, "Founding Fathers on Prayer." In it, Barton details many of our founders' ponderings and passions about prayer. Let me give you a small sample.
In 1789, after being urged by Congress on the same day they finished drafting the First Amendment, President Washington issued a thanksgiving proclamation stating, "It is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and humbly to implore His protection and favor."
President John Adams declared that America's independence "ought to be commemorated, as the Day of Deliverance, by solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty."
Benjamin Franklin was particularly eloquent on the power of prayer in government, as he addressed those who attended the Constitutional Convention:
In the beginning of the contest with Britain, when we were sensible of danger, we had daily prayers in this room for the divine protection. Our prayers, Sir, were heard; and they were graciously answered. All of us, who were engaged in the struggle, must have observed frequent instances of a superintending Providence in our favor. To that kind Providence we owe this happy opportunity of consulting in peace on the means of establishing our future national felicity. And have we now forgotten that powerful friend? Or do we imagine we no longer need its assistance? I have lived, Sir, a long time; and the longer I live, the more convincing proofs I see of this truth, That God governs in the affairs of men. And if a sparrow cannot fall to the ground without his notice, is it probable that an empire can rise without his aid? We have been assured, sir, in the Sacred Writings, that "except the Lord build the House, they labor in vain that build it." I firmly believe this; and I also believe that without His concurring aid we shall succeed in this political building no better than the builders of Babel. … I therefore beg leave to move that henceforth prayers imploring the assistance of Heaven, and its blessings on our deliberations, be held in this Assembly every morning before we proceed to business.
Franklin's question still needs to ring from the corridors of Congress to the halls of our public schools and homes: "And have we now forgotten that powerful friend?"
James Madison, the so-called father of the Bill of Rights as the drafter of the ratified ten amendments, agreed: "It is impossible for the man of pious reflection not to perceive in [America's founding] a finger of that Almighty Hand which has been so frequently and signally extended to our relief in the critical stages of the Revolution."
Even Thomas Jefferson, who is often pitched by progressives as the secularist among the founders, said in 1808 near the end of his second term as president: "Fasting and prayer are religious exercises; the enjoining them an act of discipline. Every religious society has a right to determine for itself the time for these exercises, and the objects proper for them, according to their own particular tenets; and right can never be safer than in their hands, where the Constitution has deposited it."
(To understand more about our founders' views on everything – especially their often-overlooked or misunderstood religious views and practices – and to keep up to date on current trends and culture wars, I highly encourage you to check out the resources at Wallbuilders. In addition, listen regularly to Wallbuilders Live, an excellent historical and political commentary show hosted by former Texas State Representative and constitutional expert and educator Rick Green and historian David Barton, who interview great patriots and culture warriors every week.)
The NDP website gives these "fun facts" about prayer and politics:
There have been 146 national calls to prayer, humiliation, fasting and thanksgiving by the president of the United States (1789-2017). There have been 69 presidential proclamations for a National Day of Prayer (1952-2017). Gerald R. Ford (1976), George H. Bush (1989-91), Barack H. Obama (2012), and Donald J. Trump (2017) are the only U.S. presidents to sign multiple National Day of Prayer Proclamations in the same year. Every president since 1952 has signed a National Day of Prayer proclamation. Thirty-five of the 45 U.S. presidents have signed proclamations for National Prayer. Three of the presidents who did not sign a proclamation died while serving in office. Two presidents, not included in the count – William Howard Taft and Warren Gamaliel Harding – signed Proclamations for Thanksgiving and Prayer. Records indicate there have been 1,526 state and federal calls for national prayer since 1775 and counting.
The NDP website added, "In 1988, the law [for a national day of prayer] was amended and signed by President Reagan, permanently setting the day as the first Thursday of every May. Each year, the president signs a proclamation, encouraging all Americans to pray on this day. Last year, all 50 state governors plus the governors of several U.S. territories signed similar proclamations."
The NDP website also explained the significance of this Thursday this way:
The National Day of Prayer has great significance for us as a nation as it enables us to recall and to teach the way in which our founding fathers sought the wisdom of God when faced with critical decisions. It stands as a call for us to humbly come before God, seeking His guidance for our leaders and His grace upon us as a people. The unanimous passage of the bill establishing the National Day of Prayer as an annual event, signifies that prayer is as important to our nation today as it was in the beginning. Like Thanksgiving or Christmas, [the National Day of Prayer] has become a national observance placed on all Hallmark calendars and observed annually across the nation and in Washington, D.C. Every year, local, state, and federal observances were held from sunrise in Maine to sunset in Hawaii, uniting Americans from all socio-economic, political and ethnic backgrounds in prayer for our nation. It is estimated that over two million people attended more than 30,000 observances – organized by approximately 40,000 volunteers. At state capitols, county court houses, on the steps of city halls, and in schools, businesses, churches and homes, people stopped their activities and gathered for prayer.
For all the above reasons, I urge every American to locate and join a group in your local community on this National Day of Prayer, and bow your head in prayer with millions across the country, beseeching God to protect, forgive and heal our land, as well as submit us to His rule and reign as our founders did. You can find a local NDP event in your area here. Also, click here for NDP promotional tools or to livestream the National Observance in Washington, D.C.
Again in the words of President George Washington, let us remind everyone we know with our words and actions: "It is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and humbly to implore His protection and favor." | 2024-07-31T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/9405 |
Previous GeneCards Identifiers for MAST4 Gene
Summaries for MAST4 Gene
Entrez Gene Summary for MAST4 Gene
This gene encodes a member of the microtubule-associated serine/threonine protein kinases. The proteins in this family contain a domain that gives the kinase the ability to determine its own scaffold to control the effects of their kinase activities. Alternative splicing results in multiple transcript variants encoding different isoforms. [provided by RefSeq, Mar 2014]
GeneCards Summary for MAST4 Gene
MAST4 (Microtubule Associated Serine/Threonine Kinase Family Member 4) is a Protein Coding gene.
GO annotations related to this gene include transferase activity, transferring phosphorus-containing groups and protein tyrosine kinase activity.
An important paralog of this gene is MAST2.
Primer Products
No data available for
mRNA differential expression in normal tissues ,
Protein tissue co-expression partners and
Phenotype-based relationships between genes and organs from Gene ORGANizer
for MAST4 Gene
Relevant External Links for MAST4
No data available for
MalaCards ,
UniProtKB/Swiss-Prot and
Genatlas
for MAST4 Gene
Publications for MAST4 Gene
Prediction of the coding sequences of unidentified human genes. VII. The complete sequences of 100 new cDNA clones from brain which can code for large proteins in vitro.(PMID: 9205841)Nagase T. … Ohara O.(DNA Res. 1997)23464 | 2024-03-18T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/1452 |
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#define DEFAULT_SCALE 0.6
#define DEFAULT_COLOR Image::RGBA::pack(0x00, 160, 220, 0xff)
#define DEFAULT_FILL_COLOR Image::RGBA::pack(0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00)
namespace VideoStitch {
namespace Core {
ExprProcedure* ExprProcedure::create(const Ptv::Value& config) {
double scale = DEFAULT_SCALE;
uint32_t color = DEFAULT_COLOR;
uint32_t bgColor = DEFAULT_FILL_COLOR;
if (Parse::populateDouble("ExprProcedure", config, "scale", scale, false) == Parse::PopulateResult_WrongType) {
return NULL;
}
// parse colors.
if (Parse::populateColor("ExprProcedure", config, "color", color, false) == Parse::PopulateResult_WrongType) {
return NULL;
}
if (Parse::populateColor("ExprProcedure", config, "bg_color", bgColor, false) == Parse::PopulateResult_WrongType) {
return NULL;
}
std::string value;
if (Parse::populateString("ExprProcedure", config, "value", value, true) != Parse::PopulateResult_Ok) {
return NULL;
}
Util::Expr* expr = Util::Expr::parse(value);
if (!expr) {
Logger::get(Logger::Error) << "ExprProcedure: Cannot parse expression '" << value << "'." << std::endl;
return NULL;
}
return new ExprProcedure(expr, scale, color, bgColor);
}
ExprProcedure::ExprProcedure(Util::Expr* expr, double scale, uint32_t color, uint32_t bgColor)
: scale(scale), color(color), bgColor(bgColor), expr(expr) {}
void ExprProcedure::getDisplayName(std::ostream& os) const { expr->print(os); }
ExprProcedure::~ExprProcedure() { delete expr; }
namespace {
class AContext : public Util::Context {
public:
AContext(const int frame, const readerid_t inputId) : frame(frame), inputId(inputId) {}
Util::EvalResult get(const std::string& var) const {
if (var == "cFrame") {
return Util::EvalResult(frame);
} else if (var == "inputId") {
return Util::EvalResult(inputId);
} else {
return Util::EvalResult();
}
}
private:
const int frame;
const readerid_t inputId;
};
} // namespace
void ExprProcedure::process(frameid_t frame, GPU::Buffer<uint32_t> devBuffer, int64_t width, int64_t height,
readerid_t inputId) const {
// First fill with bg color.
if (bgColor & 0xff000000) {
Render::fillBuffer(devBuffer, bgColor, width, height, GPU::Stream::getDefault());
}
Util::EvalResult evalResult = expr->eval(AContext(frame, inputId));
if (!evalResult.isValid()) {
return;
}
const int numberToDraw = (int)evalResult.getInt();
int numDigits = 1;
for (int i = 10; i <= numberToDraw; i *= 10) {
++numDigits;
}
#define INTERDIGIT_MULT 1.1f
// Use as much as scale of the space, vertically or horizontally.
const float totalWidth =
std::min((float)(scale * (double)width),
(1.0f + INTERDIGIT_MULT * (float)(numDigits - 1)) *
Render::NumberDrafter::getNumberWidthForHeight((float)(scale * (double)height)));
Render::NumberDrafter drafter(totalWidth / ((float)numDigits * INTERDIGIT_MULT));
const float left = ((float)width - totalWidth) / 2.0f;
const float top = ((float)height - drafter.getNumberHeight()) / 2.0f;
int curDigit = numDigits - 1;
if (numberToDraw == 0) {
drafter.draw0(devBuffer, width, height, left, top, color, GPU::Stream::getDefault());
} else {
for (int tmp = numberToDraw; tmp != 0; tmp /= 10, --curDigit) {
drafter.draw(tmp % 10, devBuffer, width, height, left + ((float)curDigit * totalWidth) / (float)numDigits, top,
color, GPU::Stream::getDefault());
}
}
GPU::Stream::getDefault().synchronize();
}
Status ExprProcedure::process(frameid_t frame, GPU::Surface& surf, int64_t width, int64_t height, readerid_t inputId,
GPU::Stream& stream) const {
Util::EvalResult evalResult = expr->eval(AContext(frame, inputId));
if (!evalResult.isValid()) {
return {Origin::PreProcessor, ErrType::InvalidConfiguration, "Invalid expression in preprocessor"};
}
const int numberToDraw = (int)evalResult.getInt();
int numDigits = 1;
for (int i = 10; i <= numberToDraw; i *= 10) {
++numDigits;
}
#define INTERDIGIT_MULT 1.1f
// Use as much as scale of the space, vertically or horizontally.
const float totalWidth =
std::min((float)(scale * (double)width),
(1.0f + INTERDIGIT_MULT * (float)(numDigits - 1)) *
Render::NumberDrafter::getNumberWidthForHeight((float)(scale * (double)height)));
Render::NumberDrafter drafter(totalWidth / ((float)numDigits * INTERDIGIT_MULT));
const float left = ((float)width - totalWidth) / 2.0f;
const float top = ((float)height - drafter.getNumberHeight()) / 2.0f;
int curDigit = numDigits - 1;
if (numberToDraw == 0) {
drafter.draw0(surf, width, height, left, top, color, stream);
} else {
for (int tmp = numberToDraw; tmp != 0; tmp /= 10, --curDigit) {
drafter.draw(tmp % 10, surf, width, height, left + ((float)curDigit * totalWidth) / (float)numDigits, top, color,
stream);
}
}
return Status::OK();
}
} // namespace Core
} // namespace VideoStitch
| 2024-03-22T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/8293 |
Q:
Javascript function not called when used with IF statement
My checkforZeroQuantity function is not getting called if I use it with if. Following is the sample code
function myButtonClicked() {
if (checkforZeroQuantity()) {
alert("checked");
}
}
function checkforZeroQuantity() {
var x = 1;
if (x == 0) {
return false;
} else {
retrun true;
}
}
A:
This is because you have spelling mistake near as shown below
else {
retrun true; // it should be return
}
correct the spelling and try again.
| 2024-05-04T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/5381 |
Quick Facts
Nonprofits having a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education
Others - Applicants are limited to nonprofit organizations (including tribal nonprofit organizations) with a documented history of providing comprehensive, evidence-based reentry services, and federally-recognized Indian tribes. Nonprofit organizations with a history of providing evidence-based reentry services are encouraged to apply. Applicants may choose to partner with other community-based agencies for provision of some reentry services including the mentoring component.
Program Description
There are currently over 2.2 million individuals serving time in federal and state prisons, and millions of people cycle through local jails every year. Of those in state and federal prison, approximately, 95 percent will be released and return to communities across the nation. A majority of these individuals have needs that, if unaddressed in prison, during the reentry process, and after release, will negatively impact their ability to live productive, prosocial, crime-free lives in the community. These needs include housing and employment challenges, relationship and family issues, and substance abuse and mental health problems.
The Second Chance Act of 2007 (Pub. L. 110-199) helps to address these significant challenges by providing comprehensive responses to the significant number of incarcerated adults who are returning to communities from prison, jail, and juvenile residential facilities. Programs funded under the Second Chance Act help to promote public safety by ensuring that the transition individuals make from prison and jail to the community is successful. Section 211 of the Act authorizes grants to nonprofit organizations and federally recognized Indian tribes that may be used for comprehensive wrap-around services/programs which incorporate the use of trained mentors to promote the safe and successful reintegration into the community of adults who have been incarcerated.
Eligible Applicants
Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized)
Nonprofits having a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education
Others - Applicants are limited to nonprofit organizations (including tribal nonprofit organizations) with a documented history of providing comprehensive, evidence-based reentry services, and federally-recognized Indian tribes. Nonprofit organizations with a history of providing evidence-based reentry services are encouraged to apply. Applicants may choose to partner with other community-based agencies for provision of some reentry services including the mentoring component.
Contact Information
Office: Office of Justice ProgramsAddress: Bureau of Justice AssistanceFor technical assistance with submitting an application, contact the Grants.gov Customer Support Hotline at 800-518-4726 or 606-545-5035, or via e-mail to support@grants.gov. Grants.gov Support Hotline hours of operation are 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, except federal holidays.Technical Application Support | 2024-04-16T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/4019 |
There has been much talk in Westminster over the past few weeks about the government's room for manoeuvre in responding to the disappointing state of the economy.
Apparently, George Osborne had lots of it. And if he chose to make use of it - as we might expect him to in the Autumn Statement at the end of November - such a mid-course "correction" was not, under any circumstances, to be confused with Plan B.
But Monday's Financial Times brought some bad news for the chancellor, that the slow growth of the economy has opened a "black hole" of £12bn (it always seems to be £12bn) which his own targets may require him to fill.
The FT used the Office for Budget Responsibility's (OBR) own model to reach this conclusion.
So, assuming no big change in their approach between now and November, we have to expect the director, Robert Chote, to be delivering some bad news to Mr Osborne in the coming weeks.
Fiscal rule
But there is another, less gloomy, way of looking at the past few months, which Mr Chote will also surely be considering.
Bad news first. The £12bn overshoot in borrowing that the FT is talking about relates to the structural - ie "permanent" - part of the deficit, not the cyclical part that will supposedly disappear by itself as the economy recovers.
That matters enormously to Mr Osborne, because his first fiscal rule dictates that he balances the structural current deficit over five years. He does not have to balance the cyclical piece of the budget, or at least not under that rule.
That, in fact, is a key part of his celebrated room for manoeuvre, in the face of this very weak recovery.
In the jargon, he can "let the automatic stabilisers operate in full". Or to put it another way, if borrowing overshoots purely due to slow growth, he doesn't have to find any new spending cuts or tax rises to compensate. He is allowed to borrow more and support the economy.
Productivity constraint
But there is another reason why borrowing might overshoot. It might be because the OBR has overestimated the amount of spare capacity in the economy.
The current forecasts, drawn up in March, assumed that the economy would have nearly 4% of GDP in spare capacity in 2011-12. That was the room it reckoned that the UK had to grow, before encountering supply constraints and causing extra inflation.
I've talked before - and at length - about the vexed question of Britain's slow productivity growth during this recovery. It is a key part of this discussion.
This combination of outcomes - according to the FT - will force the OBR to revise down the amount of economic slack available, to 2.6% of GDP. And this, in turn will force them to revise up their estimate of the structural deficit. On that reading, a good chunk of the extra borrowing this year will be labelled structural, not cyclical.
So Mr Osborne can't be relaxed about it. To meet his targets he might actually have to tighten further, to cut spending even more, in the middle of this oh-so-fragile recovery.
Early success
I said it was bad news. But two pieces of good news for you, before you go off to cry in a darkened room.
Firstly, the chancellor is meeting his structural deficit target a year early, on his previous forecasts. So even if the structural deficit has risen by £12bn, he doesn't need to tighten by the full amount.
He might not need to tighten at all, although he would not be leaving any room for further errors.
He was due to run a structural current surplus of 0.8% of GDP in 2015-16. By my reckoning, that gives him more than £12bn to play with, if he chooses to meet his target more slowly.
It's also worth noting that he has to balance the budget over a five-year "rolling" period.
In other words, he always has to balance the budget in five years' time. The target doesn't say anything about what you do if you missed the target for the five years before. (Put like that, it sounds "flexible" enough to be one of Gordon Brown's golden rules. But I digress.)
Different story
The second, and much more important piece of good news is that the FT and the OBR, and everyone else who thinks that Britain's growth potential has been permanently and significantly damaged by the crisis, could be wrong.
If they are wrong, if what Britain - and other advanced economies like the US - are suffering from is not a shortage of supply, but a prolonged and self-perpetuating shortage of demand, the whole story looks very different.
Bill Martin, professor of the Centre for Business Research at Cambridge, has made this argument very forcefully, in a paper published in the summer. Briefly, he thinks the slowdown is being misinterpreted in the UK, with potentially costly implications for all of us.
There is no space here to do justice to his arguments. The paper is well worth a read if you want to feel more cheerful about the state of the UK economy.
His bottom line is that, on past history, the UK would now have not 2-3% of GDP spare capacity, but more than 10% of GDP.
He says the crisis might have robbed us of some of that economic slack, but there is nothing in the recent data, including the productivity numbers, to suggest that it has permanently destroyed as much of our potential as the OBR and others suggest.
In his view, which has some prominent supporters, it is not a lack of supply, but a fall in real wages which has helped maintain employment and profits in an environment of slow demand.
So the problem is in the low real wages and low level of demand, not a lack of available supply.
This is not a universally supported view. Far from it. But nor is it crazy. Reading the FT this morning, Mr Osborne might be hoping that the OBR has read Professor Martin's paper as well. Otherwise his Autumn Statement will be grim reading indeed. | 2024-06-27T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/3561 |
{
"Tuesday": [
[
{
"classNo": "2",
"lessonType": "Tutorial",
"weeks": [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13],
"day": "Tuesday",
"startTime": "1100",
"endTime": "1200",
"venue": "COM1-0208",
"moduleCode": "CS2108",
"title": "Introduction to Computer Networks",
"colorIndex": 7
},
{
"classNo": "1",
"lessonType": "Lecture",
"weeks": [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13],
"day": "Tuesday",
"startTime": "1400",
"endTime": "1600",
"venue": "LT15",
"moduleCode": "CS3235",
"title": "Computer Security",
"colorIndex": 0
}
]
],
"Friday": [
[
{
"classNo": "2",
"lessonType": "Tutorial",
"weeks": [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13],
"day": "Friday",
"startTime": "1000",
"endTime": "1100",
"venue": "COM1-B113",
"moduleCode": "CS3235",
"title": "Computer Security",
"colorIndex": 0
}
]
],
"Wednesday": [
[
{
"classNo": "A19",
"lessonType": "Tutorial",
"weeks": [3, 5, 7, 9, 11],
"day": "Wednesday",
"startTime": "1000",
"endTime": "1200",
"venue": "AS1-0207",
"moduleCode": "GER1000",
"title": "Quantitative Reasoning",
"colorIndex": 2
},
{
"classNo": "1",
"lessonType": "Lecture",
"weeks": [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13],
"day": "Wednesday",
"startTime": "1200",
"endTime": "1400",
"venue": "i3-Aud",
"moduleCode": "CS2100",
"title": "Computer Organisation",
"colorIndex": 4
}
]
],
"Monday": [
[
{
"classNo": "J1",
"lessonType": "Sectional Teaching",
"weeks": [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13],
"day": "Monday",
"startTime": "1000",
"endTime": "1300",
"venue": "BIZ2-0509",
"moduleCode": "ACC1006",
"title": "Accounting Information Systems",
"colorIndex": 6
},
{
"classNo": "1",
"lessonType": "Lecture",
"weeks": [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13],
"day": "Monday",
"startTime": "1400",
"endTime": "1600",
"venue": "i3-Aud",
"moduleCode": "CS2108",
"title": "Introduction to Computer Networks",
"colorIndex": 7
}
]
],
"Thursday": [
[
{
"classNo": "1",
"lessonType": "Lecture",
"weeks": [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13],
"day": "Thursday",
"startTime": "1300",
"endTime": "1400",
"venue": "i3-Aud",
"moduleCode": "CS2100",
"title": "Computer Organisation",
"colorIndex": 4
}
]
]
}
| 2024-01-01T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/6670 |
Monday, January 07, 2013
In all of the many discussions about how to control healthcare costs, there’s one topic that you almost never hear about: maternity care.
Maternal and newborn care together represent the largest single category of hospital expenditures for most commercial health plans and state Medicaid programs. That means that if there are ways to reduce maternity care costs, insurance premiums for employers could be reduced and Medicaid coverage could be more affordable for taxpayers.
Nobody wants to cut spending on maternity care if it’s going to harm mothers or babies, but there is at least one aspect of maternity care that’s not only expensive but bad for both mothers and babies, and that’s the high rate of Cesarean sections. One-third of the 4 million babies born in the U.S are delivered by C-section rather than vaginal delivery. That’s a 50% increase in the past decade. In some states, the C-Section rate went up by 70 or 80%.
How much do all those C-sections cost?
A lot. If the rate of C-sections were reduced back down to 15% (the rate recommended by the World Health Organization), it would save about $5 billion, based on data in a new report released today called The Cost of Having a Baby in the United States. For commercially insured patients, the report shows that the average cost of a birth by C-section was $27, 866 in 2010, compared to $18,329 for a vaginal delivery. Medicaid programs paid nearly $4,000 more for C-sections than for vaginal births.
The report also shows that there is significant variation in costs for each type of delivery both within states and across states, which means there are additional opportunities for savings. The average payment by commercial insurers for a vaginal birth (not including newborn care) was $10,318 in Louisiana and $11,692 in Illinois, but payments were nearly 50% higher in California ($15,259) and Massachusetts ($16,888). The average payment for a c-section was $13,943 in Louisiana and $15,602 in Illinois, but $20,620 in Massachusetts and $21,307 in California. There is also significant variation in costs for births even within individual states. For example, although the average maternal cost for vaginal birth in Massachusetts was $16,888, 25% of vaginal births cost more than $19,000 and 25% cost less than $13,000. (Although the study was not designed to determine the causes of this variation, other studies have shown that variation is due to different prices charged by different hospitals and clinicians as well as different needs of women and babies.)
Other findings in the report include:
Increases in the cost of care. The cost of maternal care (not including newborn care) increased by over 40% between 2004 and 2010 for commercially insured women.
High costs for newborn care. Total commercial payments for care of newborns were $5,809 for babies delivered vaginally and $11,193 for cesarean births. Total Medicaid payments for newborn care were $3,014 for vaginal births and $5,607 for cesarean births. Reducing the rate of prematurity among infants could significantly reduce these costs.
High charges for the uninsured. Uninsured parents could be charged over $50,000 for a baby born by c-section and over $30,000 for a baby born by vaginal birth. Average provider charges for a c-section in 2010 were $51,125, but commercial insurance plans only paid $27,866, 55% of what an uninsured patient could be asked to pay.
High costs of hospital-based delivery.The largest share of all combined maternal-newborn costs goes to pay for hospital or other facility costs regardless of the type of birth. 59% of total maternal and newborn care costs for vaginal births are used to pay facility fees, and 66% of costs for c-sections are for facility fees. Similarly, the hospitalization phase of childbirth consumed from 70% to 86% of all maternal and newborn care costs, depending on payment source and type of birth. (Consequently, increasing the use of birth centers for women who want to use them can greatly reduce procedure use and healthcare spending while improving quality.)
There are many examples of physicians, midwives, hospitals, and birth centers around the country that are reducing maternity care costs in ways that improve quality and outcomes for both mothers and babies, a win-win for both payers and patients. However, a major barrier to changes in care delivery is the current healthcare payment system. Instead of being on what achieves the best outcomes for mothers and babies, payments today are based on what specific procedures were used. Fortunately, there are better ways to pay for maternity care, such as paying a single amount for a delivery (regardless of the method used). More information on payment reform and delivery redesign opportunities in maternity care are available from CHQPR’s website, and comprehensive information on how to improve maternity care is available from Childbirth Connection’s Transforming Maternity Care website.
Improving maternity care should be a priority for every state and region in the country. It will both save money and improve outcomes for hundreds of thousands of mothers and babies every year. What bigger win-win opportunity could there be?
Comments
[…] in the United States is uniquely expensive, and maternity and newborn care constitute the single biggest category of hospital payouts for most commercial insurers and state Medicaid programs. The cumulative costs […]
[…] Childbirth in a United States is singly expensive, and maternity and baby caring consecrate a single biggest category of sanatorium payouts for many blurb insurers and state Medicaid programs. The accumulative costs […]
[…] in the United States is uniquely expensive, and maternity and newborn care constitute the single biggest category of hospital payouts for most commercial insurers and state Medicaid programs. The cumulative costs […]
[…] in the United States is uniquely expensive, and maternity and newborn care constitute the single biggest category of hospital payouts for most commercial insurers and state Medicaid programs. The cumulative costs […]
[…] in the United States is uniquely expensive, and maternity and newborn care constitute the single biggest category of hospital payouts for most commercial insurers and state Medicaid programs. The cumulative costs […]
[…] in the United States is uniquely expensive, and maternity and newborn care constitute the single biggest category of hospital payouts for most commercial insurers and state Medicaid programs. The cumulative costs […]
[…] in the United States is uniquely expensive, and maternity and newborn care constitute the single biggest category of hospital payouts for most commercial insurers and state Medicaid programs. The cumulative costs […]
[…] cost of maternal care for a vaginal birth is 30% lower than for a cesarean delivery. The Center for Healthcare Quality and Payment Reform has estimated that reducing the rate of US cesarean deliveries to the 15% recommended by the World […]
Is it possible to make healthcare costs more transparent as the NY Times has done today? Procedures, but administrative costs, need to be brought to the attention of the consumer. Empowering the consumer with knowledge is very significant to having some pressure to bear upon CEO’s to be more responsible. TY mkk
Comment by Mary Kirkpatrick — August 4, 2013 @ 5:24 pm
There are some providers and some states that make their prices and quality publicly available. See, for example, Spectrum Health in Grand Rapids, Michigan (www.spectrumhealth.org/averageprices) and the State of New Hampshire (www.nhhealthcost.org). Transparency can be counterproductive, though, if it isn’t accompanied by a value-based benefit design that provides an incentive for the patient to use lower-price/higher-quality providers. Under most health insurance plans, you pay the same cost-sharing amount regardless of where you get an expensive procedure (such as labor and delivery or major surgery); if consumers believe a higher price means higher quality, then telling them who is the most expensive provider can cause them to use the higher-priced provider more often.
[…] Health Analytics analysis for the New York Times. Maternal and newborn care make up the largest category of hospital payouts for most insurers and state Medicaid programs. Our country's approximate four […]
[…] in the United States is uniquely expensive, and maternity and newborn care constitute the single biggest category of hospital payouts for most commercial insurers and state Medicaid programs. The cumulative costs […]
[…] in the United States is uniquely expensive, and maternity and newborn care constitute the single biggest category of hospital payouts for most commercial insurers and state Medicaid programs. The cumulative costs […] | 2024-03-19T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/2688 |
U.S. forces conducted an airstrike against Taliban fighters in Helmand, Afghanistan , Wednesday, the first such strike since the two sides signed a historic peace deal.The airstrike was conducted as a "defensive" measure as Taliban fighters were "actively attacking" an Afghan government checkpoint, Colonel Sonny Legget, the spokesman for American forces in Afghanistan, said.Taliban forces carried out 43 attacks on Afghan government checkpoints on March 3, despite their promises to the international community to reduce levels of violence, the spokesman said."Taliban leadership promised the int'l community they would reduce violence and not increase attacks," Leggett posted on Twitter . We call on the Taliban to stop needless attacks and uphold their commitments. As we have demonstrated, we will defend our partners when required."The airstrike came just a day after President Trump spoke to Abdul Ghani Baradar, the co-founder and a senior leader in the Taliban, by phone, in the first known conversation between a U.S. president and the militant group After the phone call, Trump told reporters that his relationship with Baradar was "very good" and that the Taliban "want to cease the violence." According to the Taliban, Trump told Baradar that "the withdrawal of foreign forces from Afghanistan now is in the interest of everyone."Despite the assertion that the Taliban were looking to reduce levels of violence, the group released a statement Monday saying they would resume attacks on Afghan government forces.On Saturday, U.S. negotiators led by Zalmay Khalilzad concluded a year-and-a-half long process by signing a bilateral agreement with the Taliban which lays out a full U.S. withdrawal from the country. The withdrawal is conditional on the militant group engaging in a peace process with the Afghan government and preventing the country from being a safe haven for terror groups.Doubts about the Taliban's commitment to peace have surrounded the agreement. Wednesday's airstrike is the first on Taliban forces since the signing last weekend, and the first in 11 days."To be clear- we are committed to peace, however we have the responsibility to defend our #ANDSF partners," Leggett said on Twitter . "#Afghans & US have complied w/ our agreements; however, Talibs appear intent on squandering this opp. and ignoring the will of the people for #peace." | 2023-11-19T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/6328 |
[HPLC separation and characterization of tick-borne encephalitis and equine Venezuela encephalomyelitis viral proteins].
Homogeneous (according to PAGE) capsid and surface viral proteins were isolated from concentrated purified suspensions of tick-borne encephalitis and Venezuelan equine encephalomyelitis viruses by one-stage reversed-phase HPLC. The amino acid composition and the sequences of their N-terminal parts were determined. | 2023-10-08T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/6898 |
Tempe Mayor Hugh Hallman and His Ruthless Censorship of the Word "Suck"
The word "suck" is apparently too offensive for Tempe Mayor Hugh Hallman to utter -- at least in the middle of a city council meeting.
At last night's meeting of the Tempe City Council, Hallman presented two Phoenix New Times "Best of Phoenix" awards to the city-owned Ken McDonald Golf Course. Hallman read the blurbs written by New Times staffers attached to the awards, and in one, he replaced the word "suck" with the apparently less-offensive "stink."
Hallman probably didn't anticipate a New Times writer to be in the crowd to call him on his malicious censorship of our work, but we just happened to be there for other reasons and noticed the switcheroo.
The portion of our original blurb for the award given to the course for having the "Best Winter Golf Course" reads: "We all love to play the pro courses, and in the Valley there's no shortage of great greens. The problem, however, is that if you want to play them in the winter, you may have to find a second job. That's why summer golfers at Troon North or TPC Scottsdale often find their way to the public courses once the rates go up. Public courses -- for the most part -- suck." | 2024-03-05T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/5137 |
Abnormalities of chromosome 1 and loss of heterozygosity on 1p in primary hepatomas.
Cytogenetic analysis of eight human hepatoma-derived cell lines and one primary hepatocellular carcinoma biopsy revealed multiple chromosome abnormalities; however, only chromosome 1 was consistently affected by rearrangements. Pseudopolysomy 1 as well as chromosome 1 deletions and/or translocations that resulted in loss of the distal 1p region from at least one copy of chromosome 1 were observed in all but one of the cell lines analysed. Molecular analyses of tumor-derived and normal genomic DNA from six cases of hepatocellular carcinoma and from two of hepatoblastoma, using a panel of chromosome 1p-specific DNA probes indicated allelic loss in the distal 1p region in five of the six hepatocellular carcinomas but not in either hepatoblastoma. These results suggest the location of a gene in the distal 1p region whose functional loss may be involved in hepatocellular carcinogenesis. | 2023-09-23T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/1075 |
Q:
Neural network Graph (one and two hidden layers)
I apologize for the question, but I have been struggling for 5 hours and I am not doing well at all. I know there are other questions in this regard, I tried to use tikz, but when I take an example from this site and try to remove / add nodes the result does not look good at all.
\begin{tikzpicture}[
shorten >=1pt,->,
draw=black!1000,
node distance=\layersep,
every pin edge/.style={<-,shorten <=1pt},
neuron/.style={circle,draw,minimum size=17pt,inner sep=0pt},
input neuron/.style={neuron},
output neuron/.style={neuron},
hidden neuron/.style={neuron},
annot/.style={text width=4em, text centered}
]
% Draw the input layer nodes
\foreach \name / \y in {1,...,3}
% This is the same as writing \foreach \name / \y in {1/1,2/2,3/3,4/4}
\node[input neuron, pin=left:Input \#\y] (I-\name) at (0,-\y) {};
% set number of hidden layers
\newcommand\Nhidden{2}
% Draw the hidden layer nodes
\foreach \N in {1,...,\Nhidden} {
\foreach \y in {1,...,2} {
\path[yshift=0.5cm]
node[hidden neuron] (H\N-\y) at (\N*\layersep,-\y cm) {};
}
\node[annot,above of=H\N-1, node distance=1cm] (hl\N) {Hidden layer \N};
}
% Draw the output layer node
\node[output neuron,pin={[pin edge={->}]right:Output}, right of=H\Nhidden-3] (O) {};
% Connect every node in the input layer with every node in the
% hidden layer.
\foreach \source in {1,...,3}
\foreach \dest in {1,...,2}
\path (I-\source) edge (H1-\dest);
% connect all hidden stuff
\foreach [remember=\N as \lastN (initially 1)] \N in {2,...,\Nhidden}
\foreach \source in {1,...,3}
\foreach \dest in {1,...,3}
\path (H\lastN-\source) edge (H\N-\dest);
% Connect every node in the hidden layer with the output layer
\foreach \source in {1,...,3}
\path (H\Nhidden-\source) edge (O);
% Annotate the layers
\node[annot,left of=hl1] {Input layer};
\node[annot,right of=hl\Nhidden] {Output layer};
\end{tikzpicture}
This code is for the second graph... and the result is:
A:
The first neural graph ---original code Published 2006-12-07 | Author: Kjell Magne Fauske-- texample.net/tikz/examples/neural-network
\documentclass{article}
\usepackage{tikz}
\begin{document}
\pagestyle{empty}
\def\layersep{2.5cm}
\begin{tikzpicture}[shorten >=1pt,->,draw=black!50, node distance=\layersep]
\tikzstyle{every pin edge}=[<-,shorten <=1pt]
\tikzstyle{neuron}=[circle,fill=black!25,minimum size=17pt,inner sep=0pt]
\tikzstyle{input neuron}=[neuron, fill=green!50];
\tikzstyle{output neuron}=[neuron, fill=red!50];
\tikzstyle{hidden neuron}=[neuron, fill=blue!50];
\tikzstyle{annot} = [text width=4em, text centered]
% Draw the input layer nodes
\foreach \name / \y in {1,...,3}
% This is the same as writing \foreach \name / \y in {1/1,2/2,3/3,4/4}
\node[input neuron, pin=left:Input \#\y] (I-\name) at (0,-\y) {};
% Draw the hidden layer nodes
\foreach \name / \y in {1,...,3}
\path[yshift=0.0cm]
node[hidden neuron] (H-\name) at (\layersep,-\y cm) {};
% Draw the output layer node
\node[output neuron,pin={[pin edge={->}]right:Output}, right of=H-2] (O) {};
% Connect every node in the input layer with every node in the
% hidden layer.
\foreach \source in {1,...,3}
\foreach \dest in {1,...,3}
\path (I-\source) edge (H-\dest);
% Connect every node in the hidden layer with the output layer
\foreach \source in {1,...,3}
\path (H-\source) edge (O);
% Annotate the layers
\node[annot,above of=H-1, node distance=1cm] (hl) {Hidden layer};
\node[annot,left of=hl] {Input layer};
\node[annot,right of=hl] {Output layer};
\end{tikzpicture}
% End of code
\end{document}
edit--the second neural graph
\documentclass{article}
\usepackage{tikz}
\begin{document}
\pagestyle{empty}
\def\layersep{2.5cm}
\begin{tikzpicture}[shorten >=1pt,->,draw=black!50, node distance=\layersep]
\tikzstyle{every pin edge}=[<-,shorten <=1pt]
\tikzstyle{neuron}=[circle,fill=black!25,minimum size=17pt,inner sep=0pt]
\tikzstyle{input neuron}=[neuron, fill=green!50];
\tikzstyle{output neuron}=[neuron, fill=red!50];
\tikzstyle{hidden neuron}=[neuron, fill=blue!50];
\tikzstyle{annot} = [text width=4em, text centered]
% Draw the input layer nodes
\foreach \name / \y in {1,...,3}
% This is the same as writing \foreach \name / \y in {1/1,2/2,3/3,4/4}
\node[input neuron, pin=left:Input \#\y] (I-\name) at (0,-\y) {};
%--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
% Draw the input layer nodes
\foreach \name / \y in {1,...,2}
% This is the same as writing \foreach \name / \y in {1/1,2/2,3/3,4/4}
\node[hidden neuron] (J-\name) at (\layersep,-\y cm) {};
%------------------------------------------------------------------------------
% % Draw the hidden layer nodes
\foreach \name / \y in {1,...,3}
\path[yshift=0.0cm]
node[hidden neuron] (H-\name) at (2*\layersep,-\y cm) {};
%
% % Draw the output layer node
\node[output neuron,pin={[pin edge={->}]right:Output}, right of=H-2] (O) {};
%
% % Connect every node in the input layer with every node in the
% % hidden layer.
\foreach \source in {1,...,3}
\foreach \dest in {1,...,2}
\path (I-\source) edge (J-\dest);
%
\foreach \source in {1,...,2}
\foreach \dest in {1,...,3}
\path (J-\source) edge (H-\dest);
% % Connect every node in the hidden layer with the output layer
\foreach \dest in {1,..,2}
\foreach \source in {1,...,3}
\path (H-\source) edge (O);
%
% % Annotate the layers
\node[annot,above of=H-1, node distance=1cm] (hl) {Hidden layer};
\node[annot,left of=hl,xshift=-2.5cm] {Input layer};
\node[annot,right of=hl] {Output layer};
\end{tikzpicture}
% End of code
\end{document}
| 2024-02-26T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/6280 |
//
// Generated by class-dump 3.5 (64 bit) (Debug version compiled Sep 17 2017 16:24:48).
//
// class-dump is Copyright (C) 1997-1998, 2000-2001, 2004-2015 by Steve Nygard.
//
#import <MMCommon/MMObject.h>
@interface WCSiriDataReporter : MMObject
{
}
+ (id)genReportLog:(id)arg1;
+ (void)reportSiriOperations;
+ (void)reportSiriAuthStatus:(int)arg1;
@end
| 2023-10-23T01:27:13.970301 | https://example.com/article/1471 |
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