proba float64 0.5 1 | text stringlengths 16 174k |
|---|---|
0.996323 | What is a fire sprinkler?
Fire sprinklers, also known as: multi-function sprinklers, forest fire engines, fire water vehicles, belonging to civilian fire truck series. Fire sprinkler is one of the sprinkler series products. It is a multifunctional sprinkler that combines fire fighting and water spraying. It is a special car between professional fire trucks and ordinary sprinklers. Fire sprinklers are generally suitable for landscaping, fire sprinkler, firefighting, firefighting, mine dustfall, living area firefighting, and can also be used for spraying pesticides when needed.
Sprinkler is a kind of sanitation vehicle series, which consists of a second-class chassis, rust-proof tank body, power take-off device, drive shaft, special self-priming sprinkler pump, pipe network, spray outlet and working platform. Sprinklers are generally suitable for landscaping spraying, highway maintenance, road flushing dust, and can also be used for pesticide spraying when necessary, and can be used for fire fighting in emergency.
What is the difference between a fire sprinkler and an ordinary sprinkler?
1, the configuration is different: simply put, fire sprinklers than ordinary sprinkler more special fire pumps, fire PTOs, fire cannons, fire protection interface, fire hose, and other professional configuration; but the fire sprinkler relative to the professional fire engine, There will be fewer fire equipment boxes and no national standard fire equipment and tools. On the other hand, fire sprinklers can only be used to fight fires of general materials, and fire engines can choose foam, dry powder and other fire extinguishing media to rescue oil and flammable substances.
2. The difference in range and flow rate due to the power-recovery method: In essence, the fire sprinkler and the sprinkler are mainly differentiated in the internal power output system. The sprinkler adopts the side-mounted gears to engage the occlusal installation and the power is transmitted through the drive shaft. Transfer to the self-priming sprinkler pump to complete the entire power transfer and output. The fire sprinkler is equipped with a sandwich-type full power take-off device and the fire pump delivers power. Sandwich PTO is far better than the way of taking power from the gear, which forms a fire sprinkler that can be the only one in terms of function although the appearance of the fire sprinkler and the sprinkler is not much different.
3, the use of different: fire sprinklers are particularly suitable for townships without professional fire brigade, or factories, companies own standby fire vehicles, for temporary emergency fire extinguishing, extinguishing small-scale fires for special vehicles. Sprinklers are suitable for landscaping, municipal sanitation departments, road maintenance units and so on.
4. Different prices: The price of fire sprinklers is of great concern to us. The price of fire sprinklers at the same tonnage is only one-half of the price of professional fire engines, and is 23,000 yuan more than the price of sprinklers. Fire sprinklers have a wide range of uses, low prices, and economical features.
Understanding the differences among the above fire trucks, fire sprinklers, and sprinklers will help customers to correctly judge and select the models they need according to their actual conditions, and to spend the least money on more affordable fire sprinklers. |
0.999067 | I have just discovered my .com domain name has the same name as a book that was published several years ago.
I would rather keep the name private, so let's just say for now that the name is "www.idealworld.com" and the book has the same name "Ideal World"
The theme for my site is essentially Life Coaching/Self-Development and the book theme is similar.
What are the relevant copyright/IP issues that I need to consider?
Generally speaking titles of books alone are not subject to copyright. There are many titles which are duplicated either by accident or design. Assuming that the words in the title and your URL are pretty common ones (as in your example) then there shouldn't be any real IP issues. It is possible that the author of the book (or their publisher) might view your action in obtaining the URL as cyber-squatting, but that is subject to a different resolution process - see the Wikipedia article here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cybersquatting.
There could be a problem if you had a URL like harry_potter_and_the_philosophers_stone.com as this couuld be viewed as passing off, and the author JK Rowling is well known for protecting her "brand" (and also has the financial resources to do something about it). |
0.999744 | What’s Next for the Shipping Industry?
Technology is changing our lives so fast that it’s impacting every part of our human experience. The breakthroughs that took 40-50 years are now happening much faster, because learning and adaptation of new technologies are exponential, rather than gradual.
What it took to transform an industry in 30 years, is now happening in a couple of years.
Use of advanced materials: Metals are the most widely-used materials of a ship’s structure, and due to advancements in nanotechnology, we will see new materials used, such as carbon-fiber composites. These materials will not only protect vessels from corrosion, but also make them more efficient.
Communications: Just like smart homes, where all electronic devices in homes will be connected to, and communicate with, each other, the same thing is expected with ships where Wi-Fi and 5G technologies will see the connected ship come to fruition. Not only will smart ships constantly monitor their own engines and other parts, but autonomous operation without a captain is coming, and will be something quite interesting.
Power and propulsion technologies: Just as we have hybrid engines and renewable energy used in cars, we should expect the same with a new generation of ships, too. Climate change is a hot topic that is gaining momentum, and over the next 10-15 years, with rising costs of fuel and more regulatory environment, we should expect testing of new technologies like diesel-electric engines and hybrid propulsion in vessels.
To summarize and give an example, the next generation of vessels will made from advanced materials, such as graphene, to make the vessels lighter; it will have sensors, where it will constantly detect pollutants and emissions; it will have onboard analytical computers where it will navigate itself; it will communicate with its parts and do necessary maintenance by utilizing robotics on board; and, it will have hybrid LNG marine diesel fuel, mixed with biofuels, as its main drive for propulsion.
It might seem like a distant future right now, but exponential advancements in technology may make these vessels standard in less than 10 years. |
0.98964 | This review is spoilerific. If you intend to play this game and take in its full impact, come back later.
Spec Ops: The Line is a game about games.
If Journey was the most spiritual game I’ve ever played, Spec Ops: The Line is definitely the most intellectual. It is a self-reflexive critique of violence in video games and a demythologization of the military shooter, achieving meaning by existing as a violent video game itself. This game is in no way, shape, or form, meant to be taken as an escapist fantasy into a fantastical world, but rather as a mirror to be used for self-reflection.
There are two ways to read Spec Ops: The Line: as a game, and as a metaphorical art piece. As a game, Spec Ops isn’t very good. The simple combat, while functional and smooth, feels indescribably lacking, failing to evolve over the course of the game and growing repetitive by the end of the first few levels. That said, if read as an art piece, Spec Ops’ gameplay deficiencies are an integral part of its thematic and narrative meaning, making it one of the most important games of the year.
If I am to use language from my film studies class, Spec Ops: The Line can be described as a uniquely modernist shooter, exhibiting an “alternative gaming” attitude that disregards commercialization. It takes a multitude of experimental risks to ask an uneasy question of its players: “Aren’t you all a little fucked up to enjoy all this violence?”. It exists as a darkly cynical subversion of the military shooter, a critique of video-game violence, and a prompt for introspection on part of its players. Spec Ops: The Line is highly self-aware and willingly goes against the cultural norms maintained by games as a whole. There are four ways that Spec Ops conveys its message, through its fixed narrative, its visual design, its gameplay, and its subversion of player expectations.
As Spec Ops’ story is surrealistic and open-ended, players will leave with their own interpretations of what happens in the game’s campaign. The game begins in media res with Captain Walker making a daring escape from a ruined Dubai whilst being chased by helicopters, a mysterious sandstorm comes out of nowhere and crashes his team’s vehicle. The game then implicitly cuts back to several hours ago, as Walker and his team are making an entrance into the ruined city to evacuate Colonel John Konrad and his 33rd Battalion, which entered the city six months ago and were never seen again.
As they explore the city, it becomes apparent that the 33rd Battalion has become an occupying force, intimidating the locals into submission. Going against pleas to bring in a third party, Walker continues into the city, under the impression that the 33rd Battalion has been exploiting the citizens, he fires white phosphorus on them. When he discovers that innocent civilians, most notably a woman and her child, were among those killed in the attack, Walker blames Konrad and swears to take revenge on those who died, dedicating his existence to bringing him to justice. Walker obtains a radio to communicate with Konrad, exchanging taunts and threats throughout the course of the game.
After a number of adventures, Walker arrives at Konrad’s tower to find him painting a scene of the white phosophorus strike. At first, Konrad seems as menacing and mysterious as he was throughout the entire game, until Walker discovers his desiccated corpse slouched on an office chair like a throne. Konrad existed only as a figment of Walker’s imagination, a traumatic hallucination to somehow scapegoat or justify the atrocities he committed and witnessed throughout the course of the game. In a fourth-wall smashing conclusion, Konrad’s projection manifests itself in front of Walker, telling him, and by extension the player, that he explicitly had the option of leaving Dubai and turning off the game, instead, he pushed on out of a misplaced desire to feel like a hero, oblivious to the abyssal gap between his intentions and the actual impact that he has on Dubai. The projection then raises a gun to Walker’s head and starts counting down. The player is then given the option to kill the projection or have Walker commit suicide.
Over the course of the game, it becomes increasingly clear that Walker is suffering from hallucinations, or in some way, the events that one sees depicted onscreen are not real. In one memorable sequence, a heavy trooper seems to teleport throughout a destroyed shop, upon being shot, the trooper vanishes, revealing that it was only a store mannequin. At times, the world flashes into a hellish, fiery landscape, Konrad’s tower giving off a menacing glow. One popular interpretation of the game is that Walker died in the initial helicopter crash in the prologue, and the events of the game represent his experience in Purgatory.
No matter your interpretation of the game’s events, it is evident that the game’s events are not realistic or intended to be perceived to be reality (whatever that means in the context of video games). Rather, the game’s narrative aims for surrealism, an irrational juxtaposition of gameplay and story to convey a message. Military shooters of all stripes aim for ultrarealism in both their graphical fidelity and their physical simulation of combat, ArmA, Call of Duty, Battlefield, the list goes on. Considering that Spec Ops goes against the grain of the shooter genre, it is subversive in both how its narrative is framed and the unreliable way that narrative is presented.
The second way that Spec Ops demyths the military shooter comes out of its visual design. The game does this in two ways: in the overall surrealistic look of the game’s world and its pastiche of visual elements from other shooters.
The famous Moon scene of The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask loosely resembles Spec Ops‘s ruined Dubai. Light bounces surreally off sandy cliffs thousands of feet high, lending the world an eerie, dreamlike glow. Thirty story buildings are buried underneath many tons of sand, necessitating a large number of rappels as the player descends deeper into the city. Reality and Walker’s subconscious projections continuously intermingle throughout the course of the campaign: did you see that white stag run off into the distance? Wasn’t that dead tree rife with green just a moment ago? Did the face on the billboard just change? The game’s visual surrealism accents Spec Ops‘s critique of how military shooters aspire to achieve realism.
More obvious however, is Spec Ops‘ pastiche of visual tropes common to military shooters. This is especially evident in the game’s second act as Walker approaches and ascends Konrad’s imposing tower at the center of the city. This plays off a visual trope common to works from Lord of the Rings to Half Life 2 to Journey: the hero’s Odyssey towards his ultimate goal visible in the distance, the build-up towards the final confrontation in the villain’s imposing citadel. Spec Ops upholds this visual trope by having the citadel tower over the player as a visible goal for the latter half of the game, even going so far to have the tower glow ominously like the Eye of Sauron in one hallucinatory sequence. When the player finally arrives there, this trope is subverted. There is no final battle. The nine surviving members of the 33rd Battalion line up and simply surrender Dubai to Walker. After a short elevator ride to the villain’s lair, Walker discovers that his enemy was imaginary and commits suicide. If the whole “villain’s citadel” trope is intended to build up towards a “storming the castle” moment, then Spec Ops effectively subverts this trope by removing any element of oppositional violence from this concluding sequence.
All this becomes more interesting when we consider that Spec Ops‘s final moments mockingly parody the final battle of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3. In Modern Warfare 3, Captain Price assaults a luxury hotel in Dubai to hunt down Makarov in hopes of avenging his friend Soap. Both of these sequences are structurally identical to each other, revolving around a confrontation with the enemy’s remaining forces in the lobby, a climactic ascent in an elevator, and an epic final clash with the enemy on the tower’s roof. Spec Ops condescendingly mocks Call of Duty by maintaining an identical visual structure but removing all the bombast.
While Modern Warfare 3‘s final sequence features a challenging shootout with the remnant’s of Makarov’s forces as they make their last stand, the remnants of Konrad’s army simply surrender to Walker. While the elevator ascent in Modern Warfare 3 featured a battle with a helicopter and a striking backdrop of Dubai, the elevator ascent in Spec Ops is brief, quiet, and uneventful. The final confrontation with the antagonist in Modern Warfare 3 ends with Price overcoming Makarov and avenging Soap, while Spec Ops ends with the Walker’s death. This derisive imitation of a successful military shooter accents Spec Ops’ condescending tone towards the genre as a whole.
The most daring subversion the game makes comes out of the mundanity of its combat. This game gets repetitive quickly and contains gameplay warts such as respawning enemies and a dearth of weapon variety that would have been acceptable five years ago. The only gameplay evolution seen throughout the course of the campaign is a substantial escalation in the brutality of the execution moves, otherwise, Spec Ops’s gameplay stays the same throughout the entirety of its narrative. This is all done purposefully though, as it brings into question the player’s motives for playing the game. If the gunplay is repetitive and fails to evolve, what reason does the player have to continue playing except to watch increasingly grisly executions? The game’s ending proposes that Walker had eschewed the choice to leave Dubai, thereby implying that to stop playing the game midway through was a legitimate ending that players could choose.
This is where Spec Ops moves its metaphorical crosshairs from the military shooter genre to the player him/herself. If our participation in the game’s world will inevitably lead to its further destruction, what motive do we as players have to continue playing? The game does not reward continued play with new gameplay mechanics and the game’s plot grows increasingly hostile and depressing as it progresses. Why would we want to play until the end? This question is answered in Konrad’s final monologue, where he addresses the player directly: “You’re here because you wanted to feel like something you’re not: a hero”. In one elegant swoop, Spec Ops challenges our acceptance of violence in video games, going against everything that we’ve come to expect from this medium.
By now, it goes without saying that Spec Ops demythologizes the military shooter and questions fundamental precepts of the interactive medium. The final, and most brutal, method that Spec Ops utilizes to achieve meaning is by its subversion of player expectations. During its ad campaign, 2K and Yager attempted to depict the game as a generic military shooter, and given the game’s unfortunate title, promotional trailers, and boxart, it effectively disguises itself as a crappy knockoff of much better games. For its opening chapters, Spec Ops effectively holds this guise, the opening chapters are rife with poorly written dialogue and Walker and his crew seem to be no more than cardboard cutouts of Gears of War characters. The first few levels are intended to leave a bad impression on the player, initially leading them to question why they bought the game and why they’d continue playing in light of much better games like the aforementioned Gears. All this makes the game’s attack on the player’s motives all the more devastating.
Perhaps the most interesting scene where player expectations are subverted comes during the aforementioned white phosphorus scene. When Walker and his team are searching for a group of civilians held by the 33rd Battalion, they come across a large number of guards patrolling a courtyard. Walker finds a mortar loaded with white phosphorus rounds, and uses it to clear the area. In order to facilitate better aiming, he launches a camera into the sky and operates the mortar from a computer.
At this point, the game transitions to a black & white birds-eye view reminiscent of the AC-130 level from Call of Duty 4. Having being trained by similar games, the player is subconsciously led to want a high bodycount and feel a sense of excitement and gratification when s/he sees an explosive vehicle or a large group of enemies bunched up together to make the next victim of an aerial strike. Imagine the excitement the player would experience when he sees a group of 30-40 guys bunched up together. Trained by other games to view this as a good thing, the player pulls the trigger and fires an air strike.
Which leads to perhaps Spec Ops‘ most shocking and uncomfortable moment. That large group of “enemies” bunched up together that you saw from the bird-eye view? Those were the civilians that you were trying to liberate. The 33rd Battalion perceived you as a threat and brought them here to protect them from you. Knowing player’s expectations from the genre, Spec Ops is conscious of what players expect as positive and negative feedback, making the revelation that they just caused great harm in the game’s world that much more devastating.
Spec Ops is a game that anyone interested in the art-game movement should play. It is in no way, shape, or form, a happy game, and most players will come out of it feeling awful. But there’s no denying that this game is important. For a game to critique its own genre, medium, and audience shows that games have matured substantially, and Spec Ops uses the uniqueness of the interactive medium in unique and effective ways.
My high-school theology teacher once said to me that evil appears when people and institutions fail to question themselves. While Spec Ops’ harsh indictment of such a foundational principle as simulated conflict in video games is unsettling and uncomfortable, it is necessary as video games mature. If Spec Ops, Journey, The Walking Dead, FTL, The Unfinished Swan, and Hotline Miami are a sign of things to come in gaming’s future, we’re all in for one hell of a ride. |
0.999842 | Family-oriented archaeology fairs are a fun way to bring archaeology, history, and cultural heritage to the public. At a fair, local archaeologists, museums, historical organizations, student groups, and re-enactors present hands-on activities and provide demonstrations of ancient technologies.
Fairs are generally free-flowing and run like an open house. All presenters are at their tables/booths for the allotted time and talk to visitors as they move around the fair.
Note: the following schedule assumes about a year of lead time and attempts to spread out the work as much as possible. This schedule can be condensed as needed.
Celebrating 10 Years of the AIA-MOS Archaeology Fair!
AIA Celebrates 9th Annual AIA-MOS Archaeology Fair!
Celebrating Archaeology with the 8th Annual AIA-MOS Archaeology Fair!
The 7th Annual AIA-MOS Archaeology Fair: Celebrating Another Great Year of Archaeology! |
0.999999 | What is meant by the Heisenber Uncertainty Principle?
The Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle, is a statement that was said by a German physicist named Werner Heisenberg. He said that the position and velocity of and object cannot be both exactly measured at the same time, even if it is in theory. |
0.999724 | The definition of material adverse impact varies by entity size and situation.
1 What Are the Consequences of Overstating Your Accounts Receivable?
3 What Will Happen if Sales Are Overstated or Expenses Are Understated?
For a business, shoddy record-keeping is always counterproductive, as is the overstating or understating of accounts receivable in financial statements. As a result, top leadership typically sets comprehensive policies and procedures to monitor transactional data, train bookkeepers and constantly ascertain the accuracy and completeness of performance information summaries, such as balance sheets and income statements.
Accounts receivable -- or customer receivables -- represent cash a business expects from clients, and the term typically pertains to credit transactions -- not cash-on-delivery deals. When finance people say a company has overstated its accounts receivable, they mean the business has recorded more receivables than customers owe. The opposite holds true for accounts receivable understatements. The terms “understatement” and “overstatement” generally fall under the concept of misstatement, which might invite the scrutiny of regulators as diverse as the Internal Revenue Service, the Treasury Department and the Securities and Exchange Commission.
When an organization overstates its customer receivables, the “short-term assets” section of its balance sheet goes up. This results in a statement of financial position -- an identical term for a balance sheet -- that’s incorrect and not in line with generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) and international financial reporting standards (IFRS). Alongside customer receivables, elements such as cash, merchandise and prepaid expenses constitute short-term resources. Long-term assets range from equipment and real property to production machinery and cars.
Overstating customer receivables goes hand in hand with overstating sales revenue, which is integral to a statement of profit and loss -- also referred to as an income statement, P&L or report on income. This discrepancy makes it look like the reporting business made more money during a given period, leading to higher revenues and net income. Aside from revenue items, a statement of profit and loss displays expenses as varied as shipping, rent, litigation, materials and labor.
When financial managers prepare a statement of cash flows, they translate an overstatement of the customer receivables account into a decrease in the cash account, subtracting the increase in receivables from net income. To understand this, think of the opposite scenario: An organization’s receivables go down when it receives money from customers; therefore, a increase in receivables means more income but less cash in operating coffers.
An overstatement of the customer receivables account positively affects retained earnings, which are profits a business has kept in its operations vaults over the years. An increase in retained earnings translates into an increase in the corporate equity statement because accumulated profits -- a similar phrase for retained earnings -- are integral to the report.
Codjia, Marquis. "The Impact of Overstating Accounts Receivable on Financial Statements." Small Business - Chron.com, http://smallbusiness.chron.com/impact-overstating-accounts-receivable-financial-statements-24824.html. Accessed 24 April 2019. |
0.999999 | Who is Jimmi Simpson? How old is Jimmi Simpson?
Jimmi Simpson is an American actor who was born on November 21, 1975, in Hackettstown, New Jersey, in the United States. Simpson grew up with his two older brothers and attended Hackettstown High School. He went on to attend Bloomsburg University where he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in theater. Simpson went on to perform at the Williamstown Theatre Festival in Massachusetts. His film debut came in 2000 when he appeared in the comedy film "Loser". He quickly began securing roles on various television shows including the Stephen King miniseries "Rose Red", "24", "NYPD Blue", "Cold Case", and "Carnivale". Simpson also appeared in several films including "Herbie: Fully Loaded" with Lindsay Lohan, "Seraphim Falls" with Liam Neeson, and "Zodiac" in 2007.
The following year, Simpson landed a starring role as Philo T. Farnsworth in the Broadway play "The Farnsworth Invention" with Hank Azaria. Simpson's performance earned him a Theatre World Award. In 2001, Simpson began dating his co-star from "Rose Red" Melanie Lynskey and in 2005 they got engaged. Simpson and Lynskey were married in a chapel in Queenstown, New Zealand on April 14, 2007. Lynskey filed for divorce on September 25, 2012, citing irreconcilable differences and by May of 2014, the divorce was finalized. |
0.99561 | Bad: Steep learning curve as software can be robust.
Bottom Line: IBM Cognos Analytics offers users access to a wide range of business analytics functionality to help them make well-informed decisions faster.
IBM Cognos Analytics is a cloud and on-premise-based business intelligence solution that offers users access to a wide range of business analytics functionality to help them make well-informed decisions, faster. It offers a full complement of essential analytics functions, including advanced dashboarding, data integration, reporting, exploration and data modeling.
Cognos Analytics recently underwent a complete facelift, adding an augmented intelligence-infused AI Assistant that allows users to ask questions and get answers in natural language. It also recommends new visualizations and joins in data allowing users to unearth connections they might not anticipate. In addition, the user interface has been completely redesigned, allowing line of business employees the self-service capabilities that are increasingly in demand.
Representing a new level of depth and clarity combined with ease of use, Cognos Analytics is accessible to businesses of every size.
IBM has a comprehensive customer support system that includes training and certification courses, and customer service available for users of their Business Intelligence programs, such as Cognos.
They offer training that can be individualized based on specific roles within a company, and can be implemented both online and in-person. They also offer private courses, and specialized certifications to reflect expertise that aid in career advancement.
Online tech support provides customers with access to IBM specialists that can address questions or potential problems with software.
IBM Cognos has a free trial where users get the full product capacity for 30 days. Then, there are two pricing plans: Premium and Enterprise.
Enterprise – This plan includes the full capability of Cognos Analytics, such as 500 GB user storage and backup. Pricing is not publicly available, so you’ll have to contact IBM directly for a quote. Users can optionally purchase cloud throughput capacity and an additional 250 GB user storage.
Some users have reported that IBM Cognos Analytics tends to have a steep learning curve as the software is robust.
IBM World Trade Corporation, a company of over 380,000 employees globally, is based in Armonk, New York. It specializes in the creation and marketing of computer hardware and software around the world. It also offers general consulting services in areas such as mainframe computers and nanotechnology. |
0.996722 | This section deals with the process of civil divorce (known as "Dissolution of Marriage" ) under Israeli law between "mixed couples" i.e. those where husband and wife have different religious affiliations.
I have heard a lot of gossip about changes being made in Israeli law regarding mixed marriage couples and divorce . Have there been changes, and if so, what are they ?
Yes, changes have been made and became law on 10th August 2005. The changes deal with the private international aspects of civil divorce , clarifying and streamlining the cumbersome and often time-consuming process in Israel.
Under the previous law, the Jurisdiction in the Matter of Dissolution of Marriage (Special Cases) Act of 1969, the process of civil marriage consisted of two stages. The first stage was at the Supreme Court in Jerusalem, where, upon application ,the President there decided which court had jurisdiction to rule on the dissolution of the couple's marriage, where it was a "mixed religious marriage" - a religious court, or the family court, upon receipt of legal opinion from the relevant religious court, if applicable. The second stage was proceedings at the court having actual jurisdiction.
The amendments to the law have changed the title of the appropriate legislation to the Jurisdiction in the Matter of Dissolution of Marriage (Special Cases & International Jurisdiction ) Act of 1969. The amended legislation now defines the international jurisdiction of the family court in Israel, giving seven alternative situations in which it has jurisdiction, and also refines the instructions about the applicable substantive law. Initial application is now made to the family court, and the vice-president there will apply in writing to the appropriate religious court if necessary, in order to ascertain which court has jurisdiction over the divorce, and a reply must be given within three months unless an extension is requested and granted. If jurisdiction lies with the religious court, the application for dissolution of marriage will be dealt with there. Otherwise the family court will deal with it, and also where no reply has been given within three months and no extension sought.
Basically the amendments are designed to define, simplify and streamline the civil divorce , or dissolution of marriage , process between mixed couples, which was often very lengthy.
The new law applies to cases pending when the amendments came into force, and also now prevents the binding of issues like custody to dissolution of marriage where jurisdiction lies with a religious court.
Which courts have jurisdiction to deal with civil divorce in Israel ?
Firstly, civil divorce – correctly called "Dissolution of Marriage" can be dealt with either by a family court, or a religious court, according to the Jurisdiction in the Matter of Dissolution of Marriage (Special Cases & International Jurisdiction ) Act of 1969, which was amended in 2005. Secondly, the family court's deputy-president decides whether jurisdiction to dissolve the marriage lies with the family court or a religious court.
Finally, according to an order given by the Minister of Justice in 2005 the family courts in the following places have jurisdiction to deal with the dissolution of marriage: Eilat, Ashdod , Beersheva, Hadera, Haifa, Tiberias, Jerusalem, Kfar Saba, Nazareth, the Haifa Bay, Kiryat Gat, Kiryat Shmona, Rishon Le Zion and Ramat Gan (Tel Aviv & Central District Family Court).
How long should it take to end a mixed marriage in Israel ?
No clear answer can be given – anything from a few months to two years, and occasionally even longer, depending on the circumstances.
Several factors can shorten or lengthen the process considerably. A major factor which speeds it up is mutual consent. Under Israeli civil law this is a recognised ground for divorce. If both parties are willing to divorce and submit a joint application to end their marriage to the family court, which is usually held to have jurisdiction over mixed marriages, this will be advantageous, especially if they attach a written agreement to this effect.
Another major factor which can shorten or lengthen the process concerns legal opinions of the relevant recognised religious faiths that the parties may belong to. If a party belongs to one of the faiths recognised in Israel under vestiges of legislation from the British Mandate period, then the Deputy President of the family court where the process of dissolution of marriage now begins will require a legal opinion from the relevant religious court before it decides which court should have jurisdiction to dissolve the parties’ marriage. If one of the parties belongs to a religion which is not recognised in Israel – such as the Protestant or Anglican faith - then there will be no need to submit a legal opinion for him/her, which will save time. If neither party belongs to a recognised religion, or has no religion at all (such as an atheist) , then no legal opinions will be needed which will save even more time.
Often, where one of the parties is an immigrant to Israel and belonged to a church of one of the recognised religions abroad, the process can become very slow because of the need to obtain documentation relating to overseas baptism/ marital records . Additionally, the requirement of affidavits concerning a party’s religious affiliation proves time-consuming. The Roman Catholic Church is the most stringent about its documentation requirements. Unlike most of the other recognised faiths, it will not accept affidavits instead of baptism certificates and considerable time can be taken up obtaining the correct documentation from churches abroad.
In more complicated applications, where the divorce is contested and the parties belonged to different recognised religions, it is not uncommon for a party wanting a divorce to have to wait one or two years, and sometimes even longer, for the dissolution of marriage process to be completed.
Amendments to the law made in 2005 have, however, shortened the initial process – concerning which court has jurisdiction to rule on the matter – by a considerable extent.
Is the practice whereby the rabbinical court can declare a marriage between a Jew and a non-Jew a non-starter and register its cancellation at the Interior Ministry actually valid ?
No ! The Supreme Court of Justice finally put an end to this bizarre and invalid practice in September 2006 . The long-awaited ruling was one of the last judgments with Justice Aharon Barak as its President, before his retirement. It stated quite categorically that the rabbinical court has no jurisdiction whatsoever regarding marriage and divorce where one of the parties is not Jewish. It said that the Rabbinical Courts' Jurisdiction (Marriage & Divorce ) Act of 1953 does not empower the rabbinical courts to hear applications for dissolution of marriage where one or both of the parties is non-Jewish.
Previously rabbinical courts in Israel had often dealt with such applications and the Ministry of Interior had registered the cancellation of such marriages as a result. This practice is now categorically declared illegal. The procedure for ending mixed marriages is via a civil process, with the initial application now being made to the vice-president of the family court.
What legislation covers civil divorce in Israel ?
The 1969 Jurisdiction in Dissolution of Marriage (Special Cases & International Jurisdiction ) , which was streamlined in 2005. Under Israeli law, the only ground for civil divorce is mutual consent, but in certain situations the laws of the country where the marriage was performed will apply, and the divorce case can be decided in Israel, based on these.
Can a court in Israel give a judgment declaring a "mixed marriage" couple divorced – if they both consent – without them having to attend a hearing ?
Yes, this is possible, in certain circumstances . In January 2004 Haifa Family Court gave a divorce judgment without either the husband , who was Jewish, or the wife, who was non-Jewish, being present. Both parties , who had married in a civil ceremony in Cyprus, wished to divorce and had given irreversible powers of attorney to a lawyer concerning the matter. The court had already authorized a divorce agreement between the couple , who had one child, in their presence.
My wife and I married in a civil ceremony abroad. When the marriage didn’t work out I suggested to my wife that we got divorced. She agreed. We both signed an agreement saying that we wished to divorce and would co-operate in every way needed to obtain the divorce. We began the process of dissolution of our marriage by making a joint application . It was held that the family court had jurisdiction over our case ( I am Jewish and she is not) . Now my wife has ‘changed her mind’ about agreeing to divorce – basically she is trying to extort money from me in return for her consent. Can I still divorce her without giving in to her blackmail ?
Yes, providing a relevant ground for divorce can be proved according to the laws of the country where the marriage ceremony took place . If a joint plea for the dissolution of marriage is made and then one of the spouses no longer wishes to divorce , the other party can still proceed with the divorce process, by making an independent plea for divorce. The plea should be based on one of the grounds recognised according to the laws of marriage and divorce in the country where they married. The Attorney General will be a respondent , in addition to the spouse defending the action. The spouse wishing to divorce will need to submit a legal opinion of an expert on matrimonial law in that country regarding the recognised grounds for divorce – and will have to prove that grounds actually exist. The party contesting or defending the divorce plea can also submit a legal opinion supporting his/her case and countering the other side’s, as part of his/her defence. Supporting evidence will also be required .
How strict will a court be about documentation before granting an ‘ex-parte’ divorce ?
Very strict. Unless there is an irreversible power of attorney from one party giving a lawyer permission to act on his/her behalf to end the marriage, even without his/her presence at a court hearing, the court will be extremely cautious. In May 2003 Jerusalem District Court rejected an appeal against a family court ruling refusing to grant an ex-parte divorce to the wife who claimed that her husband had given a ‘special power of attorney’ to her in which he consented to ‘do her a favour’ and divorce, but would not attend any hearing. Proof that the husband had been invited to the hearing had been requested by the family court – but this was not provided, despite excuses, and Ministry of Interior records showed that he had actually left the country before the date of the alleged ‘special power of attorney’ and affidavit. The District Court said it was impossible or highly unlikely that the husband had signed these two documents in Israel at the time stated, and demanded that proof of service regarding a hearing be provided.
Civil Divorce – Wife Resident , Husband "Disappeared"
What legal steps must a wife who is Jewish, and who moved to Israel, but who has not yet become a citizen, take to divorce her husband, who is non-Jewish, whom she married abroad in a civil ceremony, and with whom she has no contact at all ?
Firstly, the fact that the woman has not become an Israeli citizen is irrelevant. She can still begin the process of civil divorce ("dissolution of marriage") against her non-Jewish husband, as her status in Israel is not the key factor. What is important is for her to ascertain whether her husband is in Israel or not. She can do this at the Ministry of Interior and get details of his entries and exits from Israel. If it transpires that he is in Israel, and his whereabouts within the country are unknown, she can apply to court for "substituted service" of the legal documents via publication in the written press. She can continue the process this way.
Can an ex-parte decision regarding dissolution of a foreign marriage be granted if a notice, ordered by an Israeli court, has been published in a newspaper in the country where the couple married , about the opening of divorce proceedings, but the respondent does not react ?
Not unless the plaintiff submits an opinion of a legal expert showing that grounds exist for divorce under the law of the country in which the couple were married. In September 2003 Haifa Family Court refused to grant an ex-parte decision dissolving a marriage performed abroad without first receiving an expert opinion proving that the plaintiff was entitled to divorce under the laws of the country where she married. Service of the application to dissolve the marriage had been made via notices in the press ("substituted service") . The husband had not filed any defence, and the plaintiff had asked the court to grant an ex-parte decision without submitting a legal opinion. It refused.
In such a situation, the Plaintiff has to submit an opinion of an expert on foreign law to show that there are grounds for divorce, under the laws of the country where the couple married.
Can a marriage between two people of different religions who married abroad but live in Israel be ended if one of them suffers irreversible brain damage in a car accident accident ?
Yes, the marriage may be ended if certain conditions relating to the process of dissolution of marriage which governs unions between spouses of different religions, are met.
The party wishing to end the marriage must start proceedings at the family court. The Deputy President there will decide which court has jurisdiction to end the marriage, after consulting the relevant religious courts, if necessary. It is likely that jurisdiction to dissolve the marriage will lie with the family court. The other party will be appointed a legal guardian regarding the matter if they lack legal capacity.
Several possibilities exist regarding grounds for ending the marriage if expert opinion is accepted regarding the irreversibility of the injured party’s condition. One is that the guardian-in-law appointed can give consent to end the marriage . Another if there is no such consent is that the injured party’s state is sufficient grounds for ending the marriage under the law of the country where they married. The court will need the written legal opinion of an expert in the relevant foreign law that supports this thesis before it passes judgment ending the marriage.
In April 2001 the Tel Aviv Family Court dissolved the marriage of a Protestant woman from Holland whose husband, an Israeli Jew, had become a permanent 'vegetable’ following a stroke. The guardian-in-law appointed to represent him gave consent to the dissolution of marriage and it was also proved that grounds existed for ending the marriage according to the law in Holland, where the couple had married in a civil ceremony.
I am Jewish and have Israeli and American citizenship. I married a non –Jewish American guy in Ohio , U.S.A., his home town. We registered the marriage at the Ministry of Interior in Israel. We lived in Israel for a while but our marriage did not work and he returned to Ohio. I think he wants to end everything, too. Where can we get divorced ?
In Israel or in Ohio, U.S.A. The wife could start dissolution of marriage proceedings in Israel resulting in an ex-parte judgment if her husband co-operates as mutual consent is grounds for divorce under Israeli civil law. There would be no need for the husband to fly to Israel. Alternatively, divorce proceedings can initiated in Ohio under the Revised Ohio Code by a party who is resident there at least six months prior to filing i.e. the husband . There are no-fault based grounds such as living separately for a year and incompatibility, providing this is not denied by either party.
If the husband obtained the Ohio divorce first, this could be registered at the Ministry of Interior in Israel. |
0.997044 | The marginal perk up in wholesale prices from 3.2% to 3.4% was unexpected as it reversed a steady three-month fall in wholesale inflation. This is rather surprising because wholesale food prices has even fallen by a marginal 0.7% for the first time in almost 16 months. But this obviously did not have much of an impact as food prices account for a bare 15% of the wholesale price index which is substantially lower than its share in the consumer price index where it accounts for more than half the total weight.
The price scenario on the food front seems quite comfortable. Prices of most commodities like vegetable and fruits are either stagnant or even falling sharply. High value foods like milks, eggs, meat and fish are now hovering in the 2-4% range. The trends on the cereals front is however a little uncomfortable. Though prices of rice continue to soften after a good khariff harvest that of wheat has gone up in double digits for the second consecutive month with the pickup even accelerating to 12.8% in the most recent month.
Q.1. Wholesale price index which is substantially lower than its share in the?
Q.2. Why did wholesale food prices were ‘fallen’ not have much impact?
(A) As food prices account for a bare 15% of the wholesale price index.
(B) As cost push impact on the price levels.
(C) As food prices have even started picking up again.
(D) As recent trends show that food prices are not going to get the high pace.
Q.3. What was unexpected about wholesale prices?
(B) The marginal perk up in them from 3.2% to 3.4%.
(C) The marginal perk up in fuel and power sector.
(D) The marginal reduction in them from 3.4% to 3.2%.
Q.4. What did the wholesale price-rise reverse?
(A) Due to the sharp fall in energy prices.
(B) Due to steady three months fall in wholesale inflation.
(C) Due to an inflation hike from1.6% to 8.7%.
(D) Due to steady five months fall in wholesale deflation.
Q.5. What would be the suitable title of the given passage?
Q.6-8. In the questions given below, choose the word most opposite in meaning to the given word and mark your answer.
Q.9-10. In the following questions, sentences are given with blanks to be filled in with an appropriate word(s). Four alternatives are suggested for each question. Choose the correct alternative out of the four and mark your answer.
Q.9. The meeting had to be put ____ due to huge absenteeism.
Q.10. Traffic on the 300-km long arterial Jammu-Srinagar national highway, was suspended _____ a few hours. |
0.999999 | What is the smoking ban?
In 2006, parliament voted to ban smoking in all workplaces, on public and work transport, in pubs, clubs, membership clubs, cafes, restaurants and shopping centres in England and Wales.
The smoking ban came into force in Scotland on March 26th 2006. In Wales, it was enforced from April 2nd. In Northern Ireland, the ban came into effect on April 30th. England followed suit on July 1st 2007, with the entire UK now officially smoke-free in public places.
Although smoking is known to cause lung cancer, the effect of passive smoking has proved harder to quantify. A 2002 report by the International Agency for Research on Cancer suggested that regular exposure to passive smoke increases the risk of lung cancer by 20 to 30 per cent. According to the British Medical Association, it increases the risk of heart disease by between 25 and 35 per cent and doubles the risk of a stroke.
The majority of workplaces, shops, public transport and other public environments had banned or at least restricted smoking as a matter of policy by the mid 1990s, but it remained legal to smoke in most licensed premises.
However, in the years leading up to the ban, there was an increase in support for more restrictions on smoking in public places. Although this partly reflected the decline in the numbers of smokers, it also reflected the greater assertiveness of non-smokers, many of whom were less prepared to tolerate smoking.
In November 2004, the government published the white paper on public health, detailing its intention to introduce a partial ban, which would make it illegal to smoke in enclosed public spaces in England and Wales. However, an exception would be made for licensed premises such as bars, private clubs and pubs where no food was served. There would be a complete ban on smoking in the bar area of licensed premises, to protect staff.
Legislation to this effect was introduced in October 2005, as part of the health improvement and protection bill. The ban was intended to come into force in 2007.
By this point, the Scottish Executive had already voted to introduce a complete ban on smoking in enclosed public spaces in Scotland, which came into force in 2006.
In 2003, New York City had also banned smoking in all public bars and restaurants, with only a few exceptions. Many towns and cities in California have also done this, and a few also banned smoking on their beaches and in public parks.
In March 2004, Ireland became the first European country to institute an outright ban on smoking in the workplace. Many advocates of a ban in England and Wales favoured this wording, because it emphasised the need to protect those who do not have a choice over their exposure to second-hand smoke, namely those working in smoky environments such as pubs and bars.
Italy and Norway then followed suit, introducing a total ban on smoking in bars and restaurants.
Mainstream debate in the UK has yet to call for an outdoor ban on smoking, but calls for smoking bans in indoor public places increased to such a point that the government's plans for a partial ban on smoking were broadly welcomed in 2005.
However, many campaigners argued that the proposals did not go far enough, saying they would still leave workers in private members' clubs and pubs not serving food at risk from the dangers of second-hand smoke.
They also argued it would cause confusion, while the British Beer & Pub Association argued pubs would feel under pressure to take food off of their menus, turning them into 'drinking dens', in order to avoid the commercial damage that might be done by a ban.
These arguments were boosted in the lead up to the introduction of the health improvement and protection bill by an apparent split in the cabinet about how far the smoking ban should go. Health secretary Patricia Hewitt was apparently in favour of switching to a total ban on smoking in public places, but was forced to back down by opposition from her ministerial colleagues.
In the meantime, more and more companies and even towns were banning smoking in public places altogether. In August 2003, Pizza Hut announced that all 500 of its branches would become non-smoking and in January 2005, the JD Wetherspoons pub chain announced it would be following suit. A number of councils were also considering public smoking bans, led by Liverpool city council, which introduced a bill into the House of Commons seeking the power to enable it to do this.
Critics of a ban disputed the claim that passive smoking increases the risk of lung cancer, and organisations representing the tobacco industry and smokers also argued that ventilators could be used to remove smoke from bars and pubs, negating the need for a ban. However, the medical profession has claimed that ventilators do not protect the public from the risk of lung cancer.
In the lead up to the ban on smoking in the workplace in Ireland, there were also concerns that the ban would negatively impact on bars and pubs, as smoking customers would be driven away. While there has been a decline in trade since the ban was introduced, the Irish government has argued this was caused by a range of economic factors already in place before the ban came into force. Similar concerns were also expressed about moves to introduce a ban in the UK, and a report by the Restaurant Association before the move was approved suggested it could cost restaurants £346 million and 45,000 jobs.
Opponents of a smoking ban also rejected the idea on civil liberties grounds, arguing that it was not the state's role to determine what people do to their bodies. Supporters of a ban, however, made virtually the same point, arguing that they should not be made to breathe other people's smoke.
In the end, support for a smoking ban outweighed the opposition, to the point that the government was forced to allow a free vote in parliament where MPs had the opportunity to back a complete ban on smoking in public places. In February 2006, the House of Commons voted by a majority of 200 to introduce a blanket ban on smoking in England and Wales from summer 2007. A ban on smoking in all NHS and government buildings was introduced in January that year.
In the wake of that decision, the government announced it would raise the age at which people could buy cigarettes from 16 to 18 from March 2007 in Scotland and from October 2007 in England and Wales. In Northern Ireland the age of sale for tobacco products was raised to 18 in September 2008.
A review of the impact of smoke-free legislation, published by the Department of Health in March 2011, concluded that there had been "a significant impact". Studies in England revealed findings similar to those in other countries where smoke-free laws had been implemented. There had been benefits for health, changes in attitudes and behaviour and no clear adverse impact on the hospitality industry.
A significant body of UK and international evidence now exists which demonstrates that smoke-free laws are effective in reducing exposure to secondhand smoke (SHS).
A study of barworkers in England showed that their exposure reduced on average between 73% and 91% and measures of their respiratory health significantly improved after the introduction of the legislation.
A study found that between 1996 and 2007, SHS exposure among children declined by nearly 70%. The reductions were greatest in the period immediately before the introduction of smoke-free legislation, coinciding with national mass media campaigns around the dangers of SHS.
In England, the legislation resulted in a statistically significant reduction (−2.4%) in the number of hospital admissions for myocardial infarction (MI). This amounted to 1,200 emergency admissions for MI in the year following the introduction of smoke-free legislation.
"When non-smokers breathe in second-hand smoke - also known as passive smoking - it can be harmful. Research shows that non-smokers who live with smokers have a greater risk of heart disease than those who don’t." |
0.930532 | Book reviews of my recommendations for useful books for fine and gross motor and cerebral palsy.
As the mother of a adult child with mild cerebral palsy, I found working with a physical therapist when he was younger was extremely helpful in helping him develop strength and coordination. It also helps with his attention and fine motor abilities. Even as an adult, doing gross motor activities (including long walks, his version of swimming and exercises provided by a physical therapist) is still very helpful to his overall functioning. Below are some of the resources I have found over the years. Fine motor continues to be a problem and certainly was in school where he had less adaptations. I include some resources for fine motor activities here as well. I also found this list of fine and gross motor skill toys to be especially effective.
e best resource for parents for all aspects of cerebral palsy in children and babies. Highly recommended. Covers a range of ages (from baby to adult) and range of severity (impaired to handicapped). A large portion of the book is dedicated to questions and answers regarding the three major forms of cerebral palsy: diplegia, hemiplegia and quadraplegia. Includes an overview of child development; medical issues; psychological, and social development; and financial and legal information.
Heartwarming children's picture book about children with special needs and disabilities, written from the point of view of their siblings. A lovely display of high quality photographs is the main feature of each story, showing brothers and sisters happily interacting together, as they play and go about their normal day together. Informative and upbeat, this exceptional children's picture book stars children with Cerebral Palsy, Congenital Amputation (missing a limb), and other disabilities. I highly recommend this special needs children's book for libraries, schools, doctors, therapists, or home.
The only book I know of for children who have difficulties with motor coordination. For elementary age children, this book provides a way of understanding motor coordination problems and provides hints to improve skills.
Basic suggestions for researching cerebral palsy (e.g. finding guidelines on diagnosis, treatments, and prognosis) are followed by a number of topics, including organizations, associations, or other patient networks dedicated to cerebral palsy. Also includes resources for research dedicated to cerebral palsy such as contact names, links via the Internet, and summaries.
Activities for preschoolers so they will use their bodies in a variety of ways and increase large motor skills. Aimed at teachers, but parents might find the ideas useful as well.
A book of of a variety of fine motor activities for young children. It goes beyond the usual writing and drawing exercises, to encompass a mix of fine motor activities. Directed at teachers, but useful for parents who are looking for ideas.
This introductory book provides an guide as you go through the emotions of finding out your child has cerebral palsy. Provides an overview of risk factors, types of cerebral palsy, what to expect and how to work with your child. Filled with many positive photographs and easy to understand charts and language.
A useful and comprehensive handbook for parents or therapists who wish provide fun exercises for children to develop fine motor skills. Focuses on Down Syndrome but the play and exercises would be useful to many children with fine motor difficulties with their hands.
An excellent handbook for parents or therapists who wish to provide fun exercises with any special needs child needing to develop gross motor skills (large muscles). |
0.930695 | If the cooler is covered with something opaque, such as a sleeping bag, does the shiny aluminum material make any difference for keeping the interior cold? IOW, does the reflector help, even if the cooler isn't in the direct rays of the sun?
If it reflects infrared as well as visible light then, yes.
The foil can only be helpful if it reflects some rays that strike the cooler, which would make the cooler hotter if not reflected. Since the sleeping bag is opaque, any such rays won't be transmitted by the sleeping bag, but as the sleeping bag heats up, it could emit infrared rays which would heat up the cooler, if not reflected by the foil. But the problem with this is that the cooler would also be heated conductively by the sleeping bag and the small air pocket between the cooler and the bag, and my guess is that this conductive heating would swamp any reflective effect of the foil. So, I'm saying no, the foil will not help keep the cooler cool when it's covered up by the sleeping bag.
Al, underneath the sleeping bag the layer of bubble wrap will act as insulation and assist in keeping the contents cool. I don't think the reflective foil will help if it isn't on the surface to reflect sunlight.
I retract what I said above. I read a little on this page, The physics of foil: how radiant barrier stops heat gain & loss in buildings., on the use of foil in insulation, and it now seems to me that the foil between the cooler and the sleeping bag would be analogous, and would have an insulating effect.
I never thought I could think such a thing but I believe it is time for you to go back to work Al.
If you want to keep things cool, add the insulation to the bottom. Cold sinks. Added insulation on top will make little difference.
That's true for convection, but I think radiation and conduction are relevant here as well. If you put a hot pancake on a bunny's head, he/she will feel the heat. Or if you put your hand on the top of a block of ice, it will feel cold.
Note that this reflectix stuff that I bought is meant to go in walls. So it either reflects heat, or is a scam. OTOH, the Internet tells me that "Infrared radiation can only travel through empty space or transparent objects."
Anyway, it probably won't make much difference, but I've always been curious about this. The cooler will be surrounded by pillows and sleeping backs, etc.
The cooler will be surrounded by pillows and sleeping backs, etc.
Sure, heat will travel (conduct, convect and radiate) down and cold will travel up. But they travel one way at a far higher rate than the other. In true engineering fashion, you want to optimize the use of limited resources. For cold, apply most of your resources (insulation) to the bottom.
A typical cooler (not all) has no insulation in the lid, since it is meant to keep things cool. Beer brewers often use these coolers as a 'mash tun', where the grain and water are kept at ~150F for an hour, and they want to maintain that temperature very closely (within a few degrees) over that time. They end up shooting the lid full of foam (Great Stuff type) and that helps a lot.
The dark colored tape might absorb some light, and creat heat. They make some very good foil tapes used for HVAC duct work that you might want to consider instead.
Ok lets start out with some definitions.
A) Heat flows from hot to cold, not the other way. This is the second law of thermodynamics. Don't break it, there are unintended consequences.
Conduction: this is heat transfer thru a medium be it solid, liquid or gas. The rate of heat flow thru solid > liquid > gas. This is why double/triple thermopane windows lose less heat than single panes.
Radiation: I'll let a physicist explain it, prepare for equations. Suffice to say all bodies above 0K, including you, emit radiant energy. When this energy falls on a surface three things can happen. The energy can be absorbed by the surface, it can be reflected or it can be transmitted thru.
So you have your bubble wrap with the reflective coating covered by a blanket or pillow. There is essentially no convection at the Al/blanket interface. The incident solar radiation will mainly be absorbed and a small amount will reflected by the blanket. The absorbed energy will result in an increase in temperature in the blanket's surface. This heat will be conducted thru the blanket to bubble-wrap. However, the blanket itself and the bubble-warp with or without the Al foil coating will act as insulators especially if the blanket is a quilt, think of all the air pockets where the conduction is low.
The minor effect of the radiation shield provided by the Al (that's another lecture but a simple equation) will be overshadowed by the insulating affect of the blanket and bubble-wrap.
If you really want to super-cool your cooler I suggest salt. 1 small bag of ice chilled to about 4F in the freezer, about 1 cup of salt, 2 cups water to form a slurry, stir and mix. Toss in 6 bottles of room temp Heineken, stir every few minutes (convective cooling). The Heinies will freeze in about 20 minutes. Throw in a small coke as a canary, it will start to solidify first. But who wants frozen beer anyway.
In addition to what has already been said: The bubble wrap has two "foils" separated by the plastic bubbles. The top foil face (directly against the sleeping bag) will not serve as an effective heat reflector--the heat will flow from the sleeping bag fabric to the foil very effectively by conduction, which will be the primary heat transfer mechanism. Now, the back side of that piece of foil is shiny, so it is not a good radiator of heat (i.e. it has low emissivity, which is just the opposite of reflectance in most cases and most wavelengths). The bottom foil is also shiny on the insde, so it's not going to pick up much of the radiated heat. The top foil will give up heat to the other foil face via conductance (through the walls of the plastic bubbles) and convection (through the air in the bubbles). IIRC, with Reflectix this low inter-foil heat transfer is worth about an R-2. The bottom side of the bottom foil also has low emissivity, but it's right up against the cooler lid, so again direct conductance is the primary heat transfer mechanism and the shininess doesn't buy you any benefit. If you could get a small air space there it would help.
Wouldn't it be simpler to just add more ice?
Just drink that 6 pack in the cooler before you start out. End of physics problem.
Do you know how much ice costs? What, 99 cents for ten pounds or something exorbitant like that?
This is Al we're talking about.
Spend money on ice, pshaw.
Imagine what he would be up to if he hadn't spent the last week chopping down a national forest into kindling!
Yeah, I think you engineering types should all get a life, too! Or stop speculating and test the hypothesis!
Well, the objective is to not have to get ice as often (dig out the cooler, pour off the water, repack). Also, sometimes getting ice might mean an extra trip into town or an extra stop on the highway. Sometimes ice simply isn't available.
I think you might have better luck creating a perfect vacuum in the cooler - perhaps via a bicycle pump. |
0.999948 | In November 2014 for the first time in history a robotic probe was landed on the comet 67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko. The data received by the Rosetta mission of the European Space Agency inspired Ekaterina to create a set of works of the comet.
It was discovered that water on this comet (ice) is very different from the water on Earth. In her studio the artist generated water that is similar in composition to the water found on 67P by concentrating the level of HDO, using electrolysis (blog). She uses this water to paint the artwork.
Through art Ekaterina studies a relationship between humans and the Universe, understanding the connection, the influence and the effect on each other. She pays close attention to the achievements of scientists in Space study. That's why Rosetta mission is very important to the Ekaterina.
The paintings are based on the photography taken by the instruments on board of the spacecraft (OSIRIS, Nav. cam.). The focus of these paintings is the water of the comet, which helps to understand how did the water come on the planet Earth. To paint comet’s jets of vapor Ekaterina uses splashing technique, vaporizing watercolor paint before it hits the paper, this allows her to create an effect of mist, little droplets of water streaming with a strong force to the dark vacuum of space. Painting most of the work without touching paper with a brush, with 30 to 40 layers, helps to achieve complex textures on the painting.
- point the camera to this image.
70"x52". Study of the vapor.
Scientists from the European Space Agency's Rosetta mission are honoring their deceased colleague, Claudia Alexander of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, by naming a feature after her on the mission's target, comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko. Alexander, who died in July 2015 at age 56, was the project scientist for the U.S. portion of the mission.
67P VII. 70"x52". Vapor study.
ESA’s Rosetta spacecraft is set to complete its incredible mission in a controlled descent to the surface of Comet 67P/C-G on 30 September 2016. This painting depicts the landing site of Rosetta.
67P XII. 70"x52". Vapor study, spectrographic view.
67P II. Rock Study 70"x52"
67P I. 70"x52". Vapor study.
80"x52". Study of the vapor.
Comet 67P. Creating the artwork. |
0.999191 | What are the various Bible Versions up till 1611?
My initial research suggests that a Bible Translation has to do with translating the Bible from one language into another. However, I have been asked to find out how many Bible Versions there were prior to the publication of the King James Version of the Bible (in 1611).
The King James Authorized Version was translated from the Masoretic Text of the Old Testament, and the Textus Receptus family of the Greek New Testament (which is known as “The Received Text”).
I found the answer to this question helpful: Most accurate version of the Bible?
However, I'm still unclear as to what differentiates a Bible Version from a Bible Translation. Why is the King James called a Version when it appears to be a Translation? Please don't be unkind because I am not a scholar and I can't find a straightforward answer. That's why I've come to Bible Hermeneutics.
Edit: Please note that my original question was What are the various Bible Versions up till 1611? My question has been changed without my permission.
"Translation" is the process; "Version" is the result of the process. However, in modern speech, these words are used almost interchangeably.
Before the KJV there were almost 100 English versions of the Bible or parts of it. I will only list the highlights below and allow the reader to delve further. The dates for some of these is uncertain.
An unknown monk or monks penned an interlinear gloss in the Lindisfarne (Latin) Gospels about 800 AD in Old English.
The most important Bible version (judging by its theological and political effect) is easily that of Wycliffe, first produced about 1384 in Middle English and translated from the Latin overly literally. It was revised by John Purvey into good fluent middle English and completed about 1395 after Wycliffe's death. While this Bible was not printed at the time (moveable type printing was invented in 1455) it has been printed often ever since.
Tyndale's NT of 1526 in "modern" English and quite different from the middle English of only 150 years earlier. It is the first printed Bible and established English as we largely know it today (just as Luther's Bible did for German). Translated from the Greek.
Matthew Bible of 1537 using Tyndale's NT and 1st half OT plus Coverdale's 2nd half of the OT.
Geneva Bible; NT in 1557 and complete Bible in 1560 translated entirely from the original languages but still used much of Tyndale's phraseology.
Rheims-Duay Version translated from the Latin; NT in 1582; complete Bible in 1609 or 1610.
numerous other version after 1611, including "Haak", "Bishop Lloyd's", "Wells Version", etc.
The KJV was revised numerous times correcting numerous grammatical and spelling errors; the final version (as we have it now) was produced by Blayney in 1769.
The typical dichotomy that is debated in Translation Studies and Comparative Literature is between translation and adaptation. The presumed goal of a “perfect translation” (which can never exist) is to render a text in one language into a precise and accurate equivalent in another language. In other words, the goal of a translation is to avoid making changes beyond what the change of language requires. The presumption of an adaptation is that changes are being made intentionally. Since all translations require some adaptation and all adaptations are translations of a sort (usually from one medium to another), the debate is sometimes a bit like trying to determine if the glass is half empty or half full.
The word “version” (like “adaptation”) emphasizes the change in a text, while a translation aspires to resist changing the text. Although every translation is necessarily a version, pointing out that a translation is a version is a mild insult, in essence pointing out that all translations are in some degree failures (words that rhyme in one language don’t rhyme in another, some jokes are funny in one language but don’t work in another, the connotations, associations and ambiguity of some words cannot be translated, etc).
The distinction is significant as you seem to intuit.
In order to be considered a "translation" there would have to be an original in a source language. But there isn't one. Each version committee first decides on the source text they will use and then they create the target version. If there were an original "Bible" then it would be a "simple" process of translating from A to B. But there is no original Bible, only various scattered manuscripts that have to be assembled.
And there is a mistaken assumption by many that there is only one KJV version. The 1611 version of the KJV contained the "apocrypha", books that were removed by the Reformers/Protestants in versions made 40 years later.
The KJV was the first version of the Bible built on the Textus Receptus, which first appeared in the beginning of the previous century. It has some readings that are not found in any other manuscripts, some of which appear to be Trinitarian manipulations, such as the Johannine Comma which make the text especially appealing to Trinitarians.
So because there is no original to translate directly and because the resulting texts vary, every Bible is ultimately a "version" not just a "translation".
Coverdale 1535, Matthew's 1537, Great Bible 1539, Geneva 1560 and Bishop's Bible 1568.
Note that the KJV used now is the 1769 translation.
This list misses out the Douay Rheims Bible (NT 1582/OT 1609) from Jerome's Vulgate (not the Clementine Vulgate, which is later). Challoner revised the translation of the D-R in 1750.
The word 'version' has been applied in the past to the various translations (into Latin, Syriac and other languages) which were completed in the first and second centuries. As well the codices, in Greek (uncial and cursive), were the 'versions'.
So there is some overlap in the way the two words 'translation' and 'version' have been used and are now used. What matters is : the text underlying a bible and the way in which the text is rendered in a language other than the underlying text.
Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged kjv bible-versions or ask your own question.
Most accurate version of the Bible?
In Psalm 22:21 is the Bible speaking of “unicorns”?
What language are people translating the Bible from?
In 1 Timothy 1:4, why does the King James Version have “edifying” rather than “dispensation”?
Heb. 2:16 — Is the translation of the KJV accurate?
In 2 Tim. 3:16, what is the meaning of the phrase “for correction”?
What was the logic behind changing “firmament” to “sky”?
Greek Septuagint in KJV? Old Testament or New Testament?
Is “theos” of the Textus Receptus of 1 Timothy 3:16 the original reading?
What is the origin of the paragraph markings in the King James Version? |
0.998285 | user warning: Expression #6 of SELECT list is not in GROUP BY clause and contains nonaggregated column 'pcp_drupal.term_data.name' which is not functionally dependent on columns in GROUP BY clause; this is incompatible with sql_mode=only_full_group_by query: SELECT DISTINCT(node.nid) AS nid_1, node.nid AS nid, node.type AS node_type, node.vid AS node_vid, node.title AS node_title, term_data.name AS term_data_name, term_data.vid AS term_data_vid, term_data.tid AS term_data_tid, node.created AS node_created, COUNT(node.nid) AS node_nid, node_counter.totalcount AS node_counter_totalcount, node_counter.timestamp AS node_counter_timestamp, node_counter.daycount AS node_counter_daycount FROM node node LEFT JOIN term_node term_node ON node.vid = term_node.vid LEFT JOIN term_data term_data ON term_node.tid = term_data.tid LEFT JOIN node_counter node_counter ON node.nid = node_counter.nid WHERE ((term_node.tid IN (758, 1001, 1002)) AND (node.nid != 299888) AND (node.nid != 299888 OR node.nid IS NULL)) AND ((node.status = 1) AND (node.type not in ('agenda', 'mini_dossier')) AND (node.language in ('en')) ) GROUP BY nid_1 ORDER BY node_nid DESC, node_counter_totalcount DESC, node_counter_timestamp DESC, node_counter_daycount DESC, node_created DESC LIMIT 0, 4 in /home/pcp/public_html/sites/all/modules/views/plugins/views_plugin_query_default.inc on line 1191.
The PCP strongly condemns the barbaric massacre carried out for weeks by Israel against the demonstrators of the "Great March of Return", which caused on May 14 alone, more than 50 Palestinians dead and thousands wounded.
The criminal nature of the leaders of Israel is clear in their calculated option of marking the 70th. anniversary of the creation of their State with a new massacre of the Palestinian people, confirming that the 70-year Catastrophe (Nakba) - which expelled from their homes and land more than 750,000 Palestinians - continues to this day.
A heinous crime whose responsibility lies equally on the United States of America and the provocations of its President, Donald Trump, and also on all those who have systematically covered Israel's Zionist policy, living with its continuing insult to international legality and ensuring impunity for its crimes.
The PCP stresses that yesterday's serious events were not “a confrontation” between “two parties”, as some have tried to have us believe, but a deliberate massacre in which unarmed Palestinian demonstrators were coldly shot by Israeli forces. Palestinians who rightly claim respect for the right of their people to an independent homeland and the return of refugees, inalienable rights that have been recognised for more than seven decades by numerous UN resolutions but which remain unfulfilled - given the Zionist policy of “Great Israel“, which refuses the two state solution, turns Gaza into a prison and is violently seizing the territories of the West Bank and East Jerusalem.
The present seriousness is not resolved with statements which, by concealing the massacre and covering its perpetrators, back and hide their connivance with Israel's systematic violation of international legality - a path which, if not stopped, will lead to a disaster of even greater proportions in the Middle East. The Portuguese Government has the duty to raise the voice of Portugal in the denunciation and straightforward condemnation of this inadmissible situation.
On the 70th. anniversary of the 1948 "Nakba", the PCP, highlighting the public event held yesterday in Lisbon and that is taking place today in Oporto, reaffirms its long-standing solidarity with the heroic and martyred Palestinian people and their struggle for the legitimate aspirations to an independent, sovereign and viable state with capital in East Jerusalem, and ensuring the right of return of refugees, in accordance with the numerous UN resolutions. |
0.864617 | The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) is one of several stock market indices created by Wall Street Journal editor and Dow Jones & Company founder Charles Dow. Dow compiled the index as a way to gauge the performance of the industrial component of America's stock markets. It is the oldest continuing U.S. market index.
Today, the average consists of 30 of the largest and most widely held public companies in the United States. The "industrial" portion of the name is largely historical—many of the 30 modern components have little to do with heavy industry. To compensate for the effects of stock splits and other adjustments, it is currently a weighted average, not the actual average of the prices of its component stocks.
When it was first published, the index stood at 40.94. It was computed as a direct average, by first adding up stock prices of its components and dividing by the number of stocks. In 1916, the number of stocks in the DJIA was increased to twenty, and finally to thirty in 1928. By November 14, 1972 the average closed above 1,000 (1,003.16) for the first time.
The largest one-day percentage drop in the Dow occurred on "Black Monday" in 1987 when the average fell 22.6%. The largest one-day point drop occurred on September 17, 2001, the first day of trading after the September 11, 2001 attacks, when the Dow fell 684.81 points or 7.1%. By the end of the week of September 17th, the Dow had fallen 1369.70 points, or 14.3%.
Some people criticize the DJIA because it is a price-weighted average, which gives relatively higher-priced stocks more influence over the average than their lower-priced counterparts. This can produce misleading results, as a $1 increase in a lower-priced stock can be negated by a $1 decrease in a much higher-priced stock, even though the first stock experienced a larger percentage change. Additionally, the inclusion of only 30 stocks in the average has brought on additional criticism of the average, as the DJIA is widely used as an indicator of overall market performance. Because of these issues, the S&P 500 is becoming more widely quoted and used as a more realistically broad market-performance indicator.
The individual components of the DJIA are occasionally changed as market conditions warrant. They are selected by the editors of The Wall Street Journal. When companies are replaced, the individual weightings are adjusted so that the value of the average is not directly affected by the change.
On November 1, 1999, Chevron, Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company, Sears Roebuck, and Union Carbide were removed from the DJIA and replaced by Intel, Microsoft, Home Depot, and SBC Communications. Intel and Microsoft became the first two companies traded on the NASDAQ exchange to be listed in the DJIA. On April 8, 2004, another change occurred as International Paper, AT&T, and Eastman Kodak were replaced with Pfizer, Verizon, and AIG. |
0.999939 | ¿Tienes alguna pregunta sobre Ara Malikian en San Sebastian. The Incredible World Tour of Violin? Contáctate con Violin On Tour A.I.E. |
0.939129 | In 1644, the Manchus took over China and founded the Qing dynasty. The Qing Dynasty weren't the worst rulers; under them the arts flowered (China's greatest novel, a work known variously as The Dream of the Red Chamber, A Dream of Red Mansions, and The Story of the Stone, was written during the Qing Dynasty) and culture bloomed. Moreover, they attempted to copy Chinese institutions and philosophy to a much greater extent than then the Mongols of the Yuan Dynasty. However, in their attempt to to emulate the Chinese, they were even more conservative and inflexible than the Ming Dynasty. Their approach to foreign policy, which was to make everyone treat the Emperor like the Son of Heaven and not acknowledge other countries as being equal to China, didn't rub the West the right way, even when the Chinese were in the moral right (as in the Opium Wars, which netted Britain Hong Kong and Kowloon).
To live during the Qing Dynasty was to live in interesting times. Most importantly, the Western world attempted to make contact on a government-to-government basis, and, at least initially, failed. The Chinese (more specifically, the ultra-conservative Manchus) had no room in their world-view for the idea of independent, equal nations (this viewpoint, to a certain degree, still persists today). There was the rest of the world, and then there was China. It wasn't that they rejected the idea of a community of nations; it's that they couldn't conceive of it. It would be like trying to teach a Buddhist monk about the Father, Son, and the Holy Ghost. This viewpoint was so pervasive that Chinese reformers who advocated more flexibility in China's dealings with the West were often accused of being Westerners with Chinese faces.
The attitude of the Western powers towards China (England, Russia, Germany, France, and the United States, were, more or less, the primary players) was strangely ambivalent. On the one hand, they did their best to undermine what they considered to be restrictive trading and governmental regulations; the best (or worst, depending on your point of view) example of that was the British smuggling of opium into Southern China. Other examples included the 'right' for foreign navies to sail up Chinese rivers and waterways, and extra-territoriality, which meant that if a British citizen committed a crime in Qing China, he would be tried in a British council under British law. Most of these 'rights' came into being under a series of treaties that came to be known, and rightly so, as the Unequal Treaties.
On the other hand, they did do their best to prop up the ailing Qing, the most notable example being the crushing of the Boxer Rebellion in 1900 by foreign troops (primarily U.S. Marines). What the Western powers were interested in was the carving up of China for their own purposes, and that, paradoxically, required keeping China together.
But two things happened to prevent that. First, in 1911, the Qing dynasty collapsed and China plunged headlong into chaos. Second, in 1914, the Archduke Ferdinand told his driver to go down a street in Sarajevo he shouldn't have, and Europe plunged headlong into chaos.
© 2005 ChinatownConnection.com, Houston Chinatown Web Portal. Qing Dynasty. All Rights Reserved. |
0.99988 | Jewelry from the collections of the Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam The Rijksmuseum has a dazzling collection of jewelry. It spans the history of Dutch jewelry from the 11th to the late 20th century,with international highlights of the jeweler’s art providing a context for Dutch developments. The collection includes exquisitely ornate pieces as well as simpler designs. |
0.969785 | I’ve moved into a new house and the landscape is overgrown. I don’t know what to keep or what to remove.
Don’t do anything major for one year to give yourself time to decide how you want to use the space. Observe the natural light / shadows during the different seasons. Is some of your yard in full sun? Partial sun? Full shade? Examine your need for privacy and also your views of neighbors. Do you want to hide an air conditioner or other large object? Remember to take a moment to assess how you want to use your space. Consider your overall goals and use for your garden.
If your property has mature trees, consult a landscape designer to help you decide which tree should stay or go depending on your goals. The designer may be able to identify those that may have disease or pest problems. You’ll need to hire an arborist to determine the specific health of the trees, and what it will cost to maintain, treat or remove them.
If you know what plants you want to remove, tag them with tape and hire an inexpensive outfit that is insured to remove plants and their roots. Be cautious of removing plants near retaining walls as removing too many roots may impact the stability of an old wall. |
0.97636 | Why is Apache Spark is faster than MapReduce?
Why is Apache Spark getting all the attention when it comes to the Big Data space? Why is Apache Spark 100x faster than MapReduce and how is it possible is the question for many in this space. This blog post is my way to answer this question.
Why is Apache Spark getting attention in Big Data Space?
Well, the answer is, for the scenarios where parallel processing is required and have many interdependent tasks, Apache Spark in memory processing offers the best big data processing platform. Hence the attention.
Why is Apache Spark faster than MapReduce?
Data processing requires computer resource like the memory, storage, etc. In Apache Spark, the data needed is loaded into the memory as Resilient Distributed Dataset (RDD) and processed in parallel by performing various transformation and action on it. In some cases, the output RDD from one task is used as input to another task, creating a lineage of RDDs which are inter-dependent on each other. However, in traditional MapReduce, here is an overhead for reading and writing data on disk after each subtask.
Hence Apache Spark is always faster than traditional MapReduce. |
0.999988 | Oh vacation plans. It seems like a fun easy enough thing to do but having now to consider vacation days as a finite entity is motivating to make the most of it. Our original plan for this year was to head back to our Australian home for the holidays and see family, especially since our twins there are growing up so fast that I am afraid they will forget my name. Partly due to our extended home search we put that plan on pause for now. Instead, we seem to have a wedding attending kind of year. For the first time in my life we are able to say yes to a few of them. We had a lovely Polish wedding in Toronto, we were invited to an Italian/English wedding in Sardinia and an upcoming family wedding in Florida. We already missed two beautiful events, one in Kenya and one in Australia, so when we received the invitation of our Mancunian friends for their Italian nuptials we put our planning hats on. We managed to set up a trip to see family, friends and reserve a bit of time for ourselves.
First part of the trip was to our adoptive country, England.
A lot of thought was put into if we are ready to go back to Manchester, and although every other day I have The Smiths in my ear, I thought it was too soon; which is a bit disappointing since we could not see some very dear friends of ours this time. The scenario that describes the best how I feel about it is a break up while you still have feelings for each other. It is better not to see each other for a while until we are ready to move on to the next phase of our relationship. I know Manchester will be part of our lives in one way or another but for now we needed the distance; there is still chemistry there.
We landed in the morning and enjoyed a very odd day London. We had such a full on week preceding the trip and with no sleep from the flight I felt a bit like a zombie. We spent the day visiting work friends and being escorted around by Mr. E, a regular wander companion, one of our favourite partners in travel adventures. My first blog post with travels had a feature of him. We also had a bit of a half a day to spend on our way from Italy and it was worth mentioning that Mr. E took us to see Warhorse an impressive play with some amazing puppetry. I also have to brag a bit about Mr. E, as he is not just a loud laughing/sneezing pretty face. Oh no, no he is also a smart one and he works with, be ready for it, Hydrogen Fuel Cells. Yes people, he is on the cusp of very interesting research work which of course, makes me look very good. I can work it in conversations and spin it, maybe even bring up Mr. H and G biking around the world and dinner conversations will be impressed everywhere. Here is a video to see what he does.
We may have not made it to Australia, but we are lucky enough to have family a bit closer, so most of our time in UK was spent with my sister-in-law and her husband (S & P), on a trip in Norfolk, to remind us why we love UK. It was a lovely three days spent in green wonderland, with exquisite food, some nice walks and some happy family time. It is an easy yes to any suggestion coming from S & P, we blindly trust their choice of places to see and food to eat.
Our homebase in Norfolk was Cley next the Sea.
We stayed in a cute, welcoming cottage Sky Blue Cottage, where a Victoria Sponge Cake awaited us. Enough said. Within walking distance was the beach, with a classic windmill, the Cley Towermill to be admired on the way. One of my birthday gifts included a book called ‘The Norfolk Mystery’ by Ian Sansom, a cute little murder mystery to accompany me, and make me chuckle everytime I recognize the name of a place.
The Blickling Hall, a gorgeous location, at some point owned by the Boleyn family. What spectacular grounds, and garden. We were lying on the grass embracing the beauty of it all and imagining how much work and how many gardeners are needed to maintain it.
I can imagine this place being an absolutely breathtaking to walk through during blooming spring season. A bit late in the game, our walk was lovely nonetheless with a bit of rain and lots of cute dogs along the way.
We visited the seaside here and it was one of those unique times when the tide was all way out and we were walking on the long, looong beach. A bit of an odd experience to see it like this and think you are walking on land rightfully belonging to the sea.
There is never shortage of good places to eat in London. We tried to make it to the good ol’ Koya but we found it closed, so instead we ended up at Princi. It is a challenge to find something you don’t like there, even if you just look at the colors of their food and you are happy. We started there and on our departure day we had a lovely breakfast at Caravan.
The highlight was the delicious sea food we had in Norfolk. A home dinner with seafood from Cookie’s Crab shop, a third generation owned place in Salthouse. A second delicious seafood lunch from Wiveton Hall Café with a beautiful crab salad and for dessert scone with an amazing raspberry jam. Cley had some lovely locally sourced shops with both Picnic Fayre and Cley Smokehouse.
Of course I bought something to bring home. Although the temptation was high with a great ceramic store in Cley, I only bought books on this trip. The Bickling Estate has a lovely bookshop, selling old books to help support the estate, here I bought ‘Diary of a Nobody’ by George and Weedon Grossmith from the Folio Society. Meanwhile in Cley there is another lovely shop Crabpot Books, where I purchased a fun pair of books by Milan Kundera and Oscar Wilde. From previous posts you may have noticed our obsession with buying unreasonably difficult items to transport such as bowls or plates. I paced myself this time and started the trip with books, heavy at least they are not breakables.
We ended our trip with dreams of future plans for family travels and until next time we are back in our adoptive country we shall buy overpriced Jaffa Cakes from the British Goods store in Toronto.
This entry was posted in The Wanderer and tagged Arcola Energy, Blickling Estate, Cley, Cley next the Sea, Cookie's Crab shop, London, Norfolk. Bookmark the permalink. |
0.913224 | Tokyo is the capital of Japan and one of the world's largest cities. Besides being the political center of Japan, Tokyo is also the financial, cultural, and industrial center of Japan and a major international financial center. Tokyo is situated on the Pacific Ocean side of central Honshu, Japan's main island, amidst the Kanto Plain, the largest tract of low-lying terrain in the country. To the west and north sides of Tokyo are volcanic mountain ranges, including Mount Fuji, the highest mountain in Japan. The city center includes the Imperial Palace, which overlooks the traditional central business district around Tokyo Station. On the south side of the Palace is the government district, which houses the parliament, or Diet, the Supreme Court, and the foreign, finance, and other ministries.
The earliest mention of Tokyo is found during the 15th Century, when "Edo", what is now modern-day Tokyo, is mentioned. In 1590, a powerful military leader, Tokugawa Ieyasu made Edo his base, and when the nation was unified, Edo became the capital. Edo remained the capital of the Tokugawa, and in 1868, the Meiji emperor conquered Edo, and renamed it "Tokyo" or "eastern capital." The first half of the 20th Century saw rapid modernization in Tokyo, even though it sustained an earthquake in 1923 estimated to have killed 100,000 people, and the sustained barrage of air raids during World War II. After the war, a steady stream of construction and renovation projects helped get Tokyo back on its feet. These efforts were culminated with the 1964 Tokyo Olympic Games. Today, Tokyo is a world-class city of over 11 million residents and stands as a leading center for finance, commerce, and culture. |
0.942956 | Laura Leggett Linney (born February 5, 1964) is an American actress and singer. She is the recipient of several awards, including two Golden Globe Awards and four Primetime Emmy Awards, and has been nominated for three Academy Awards and four Tony Awards.
Linney made her Broadway debut in 1990 before going on to receive Tony Award nominations for the 2002 revival of The Crucible, the original Broadway productions of Sight Unseen (2004) and Time Stands Still (2010), and the 2017 revival of The Little Foxes. On television, she won her first Emmy Award for the television film Wild Iris (2001), and had subsequent wins for the sitcom Frasier (2003–04) and the miniseries John Adams (2008). From 2010–13, she starred in the Showtime series The Big C, which won her a fourth Emmy in 2013, and in 2017 she began starring in the Netflix crime series Ozark.
Linney is also an established film actress. She made her film debut with a minor role in Lorenzo's Oil (1992) and went on to receive Academy Award nominations for the dramas You Can Count On Me (2000), Kinsey (2004), and The Savages (2007). Her other films include Primal Fear (1996), The Truman Show (1998), Mystic River (2003), Love Actually (2003), The Squid and the Whale (2005), The Nanny Diaries (2007), Hyde Park on Hudson (2012), Mr. Holmes (2015), Sully (2016), and Nocturnal Animals (2016).
Linney was born in Manhattan. Her mother Miriam Anderson "Ann" Perse (née Leggett) was a nurse at the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, and her father Romulus Zachariah Linney IV (1930–2011) was a playwright and professor. Linney's paternal great-great-grandfather was Republican U.S. Congressman Romulus Zachariah Linney. She grew up in modest circumstances, living with her mother in a small one-bedroom apartment. She has a half-sister named Susan from her father's second marriage.
Linney is a 1982 graduate of Northfield Mount Hermon School, an elite preparatory school in New England for which she currently serves as the chair of the Arts Advisory Council. She then attended Northwestern University before transferring to Brown University, where she studied acting with Jim Barnhill and John Emigh and served on the board of Production Workshop, the university's student theater group. During her senior year at Brown, she performed in one of her father's plays as Lady Ada Lovelace in a production of Childe Byron, a drama in which poet Lord Byron mends a taut, distant relationship with his daughter Ada.
Linney graduated from Brown in 1986. She went on to study acting at the Juilliard School as a member of Group 19 (1986–90), which also included Jeanne Tripplehorn. She received an honorary Doctor of Fine Arts degree from Juilliard when she delivered the school's commencement address in 2009.
Linney first appeared in minor roles in a few early 1990s films, including Lorenzo's Oil (1992) and Dave (1993), She was then cast in a series of high-profile thrillers, including Congo (1995), Primal Fear (1996) and Absolute Power (1997).
She made her Hollywood breakthrough in 1998, praised for playing Jim Carrey's on-screen wife in The Truman Show.
In 2000, she starred Kenneth Lonergan's You Can Count On Me alongside Mark Ruffalo and Matthew Broderick. The film was met with highly positive reviews from critics with an approval rating of 95% on Rotten Tomatoes, the consensus reading, "You Can Count On Me may look like it belongs on the small screen, but the movie surprises with its simple yet affecting story. Beautifully acted and crafted, the movie will simply draw you in." Linney was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance.
In 2003, Linney appeared in Clint Eastwood's Mystic River alongside Sean Penn, Tim Robbins and Marcia Gay Harden. The film received a 88% on Rotten Tomatoes with the critics consensus reading, "Anchored by the exceptional acting of its strong cast, Mystic River is a somber drama that unfolds in layers and conveys the tragedy of its story with visceral power." Linney received a BAFTA Award nomination for her performance.
That same year she also starred in the popular holiday film Love Actually alongside Hugh Grant, Emma Thompson, Alan Rickman, Colin Firth, and Liam Neeson.
She also appeared in Alan Parker's The Life of David Gale (2003) alongside Kate Winslet, and Kevin Spacey.
In 2004, she reunited with her Love Actually co-star Liam Neeson in Kinsey, as the title character's wife. She was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, Screen Actors Guild Award, and Golden Globe Award.
In 2005, Linney starred in Noah Baumbach's the comedy-drama The Squid and the Whale alongside Jeff Daniels, and Jesse Eisenberg. It received rave reviews from critic's earning a 93% on Rotten Tomatoes with the consensus reading, "this is a piercingly honest, acidly witty look at divorce and its impact on a family." She received a Golden Globe Award nomination for her performance.
She also appeared in Tamara Jenkins' The Savages with Philip Seymour Hoffman. She received a third Academy Award nomination for her performance.
In 2012, she starred in Roger Mitchell's Hyde Park on Hudson alongside Bill Murray as Franklin D. Roosevelt. The film also starred Olivia Colman, Olivia Williams and Samuel West. Murray won nominated for a Golden Globe Award for his performance.
In 2015, she starred in Bill Condon's Mr. Holmes alongside Ian McKellen. The film received rave reviews, earning a 89% on Rotten Tomatoes with the consensus reading, "Mr. Holmes focuses on the man behind the mysteries, and while it may lack Baker Street thrills, it more than compensates with tenderly wrought, well-acted drama."
In 2016, she appeared in Clint Eastwood's Sully with Tom Hanks. The film was a critical and box office success making almost 0 million at the box office.
She starred in Genius (2016) alongside Colin Firth, Jude Law, Nicole Kidman, Guy Pearce and Dominic West. She appeared briefly in Tom Ford's critical hit Nocturnal Animals alongside Amy Adams, Jake Gyllenhaal, and Michael Shannon. The film is Certified Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes with consensus "Well-acted and lovely to look at, Nocturnal Animals further underscores writer-director Tom Ford's distinctive visual and narrative skill."
It was announced she will be starring Sally Potter's Molly, alongside Javier Bardem, Salma Hayek, Elle Fanning, and Chris Rock. The film starting filming in New York City in 2019 and is set to be released in 2020.
In 1994, Linney starred in the television adaptation of Armistead Maupin's Tales of the City as Mary Ann Singleton. She returned as Mary Ann Singleton in 1998 in More Tales of the City and in 2001 in Further Tales of the City. She will return again in the 2019 miniseries Tales of the City.
In October 1994, Linney guest-starred in an episode of Law & Order (episode "Blue Bamboo") as Martha Bowen. She played a blonde American singer who successfully claimed "battered woman syndrome" as a defense to the murder of a Japanese businessman.
In 2002 she starred in Wild Iris alongside Gena Rowlands and won her first Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie.
In 2004, she had a recurring role in the critically acclaimed comedy series Frasier as Charlotte, the final love interest of Frasier Crane (Kelsey Grammer). She won her second Primetime Emmy Award for Guest Actress in a Comedy Series.
Since 2009, Linney has served as host of the PBS television series Masterpiece Classic, She became a popular meme and vine for her introductions when saying, "Hi, I'm Laura Linney and this is Masterpiece Classic".
In 2010, Linney returned to television in Showtime's half-hour series about cancer, The Big C. She served as both an actress and executive producer on the show. She starred as a suburban wife and mother who explores the emotional ups and downs of suffering cancer, and the changes it brings to her life and her sense of who she is. In 2011, She won a Golden Globe Award for her performance. In 2013, she won her fourth Primetime Emmy Award for the final season of the series.
In 2017, she joined Netflix's crime drama series Ozark alongside Jason Bateman. She has been nominated for the Screen Actors Guild Award for her performances in both season's one and two.
Linney's extensive stage credits on Broadway and elsewhere include Hedda Gabler, for which she won the 1994 Joe A. Callaway Award, and Holiday in December 1995 through January 1996 (based on the 1938 movie starring Cary Grant and Katharine Hepburn).
In 2002, she starred in the Broadway revival of The Crucible alongside Liam Neeson at the Virginia Theatre which ran from March 2002 through June 2002. She received a Best Actress Tony Award nomination for her performance.
In 2004 she starred in the Broadway production of Sight Unseen at the Biltmore Theatre which ran from May 2004 through July 2004. She earned her second Tony Award nomination for her performance.
In 2008, she starred as La Marquise de Merteuil in the Broadway revival of Christopher Hampton's play Les Liaisons Dangereuses alongside Mamie Gummer and Benjamin Walker at the Roundabout Theatre Company's American Airlines Theatre.
In 2010, Linney starred in the Broadway production of Time Stands Still by Donald Margulies alongside Brian D'Arcy James and Alicia Silverstone at the Cort Theatre from January 28, 2010, through March 27, 2010. She received her third Tony Award nomination for her performance. The play returned to Broadway with most of the original cast in September 2010 and closed on January 30, 2011.
In 2017, she starred in the Broadway revival of The Little Foxes alongside Cynthia Nixon at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre which opened officially on April 19, 2017 and closed on July 2, 2017. She alternated the roles of Regina and Birdie with Nixon. She received her fourth Tony Award nomination for her performance.
In 2002, Linney appeared on Sandra Boynton's children's CD Philadelphia Chickens alongside Meryl Streep, Kevin Kline and Patti LuPone. Linney sings the song "Please Can I Keep It?".
Linney married David Adkins in 1995; they divorced in 2000. In 2007, she became engaged to Marc Schauer, a real estate agent from Telluride, Colorado. On her wedding day in May 2009, actor Liam Neeson walked her down the aisle. On January 8, 2014, Linney gave birth to a son, Bennett Armistead Schauer. Linney was a guest and presenter at the We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration at the Lincoln Memorial on January 18, 2009.
^ "Laura Linney Biography (1964–)". Filmreference.com. Retrieved April 25, 2010.
^ "Laura Linney Biography – Yahoo! Movies". Movies.yahoo.com. Retrieved April 25, 2010.
^ "Laura Linney". All Movie Guide. The New York Times. Retrieved April 7, 2012.
^ "Alumni News". The Juilliard School. September 2007. Archived from the original on November 11, 2011. Retrieved April 7, 2012.
^ "Laura Linney to Deliver Commencement Address and Receive Honorary Doctor of Fine Arts at Juilliard's 104th Commencement Ceremony". Press Release. The Juilliard School. May 2009. Archived from the original on March 21, 2011. Retrieved April 7, 2012.
^ "You Can Count On Me (2000)" – via www.rottentomatoes.com.
^ "Mystic River (2003)" – via www.rottentomatoes.com.
^ Gans, Andrew (January 20, 2004). "Ian McKellen and Laura Linney Among BAFTA Nominees". Playbill.
^ Bowman, Sabienna. "Laura Linney's 'Love Actually' Comments Will Make You Feel Better About Sarah's Story". Bustle.
^ "The Squid and the Whale (2005)" – via www.rottentomatoes.com.
^ "The Squid and the Whale - IMDb" – via www.imdb.com.
^ "Linney Opens The Nanny Diaries". Cinemablend.com. March 14, 2006. Retrieved April 25, 2010.
^ "Philip Seymour Hoffman's Next is The Savages". Comingsoon.net. Retrieved April 25, 2010.
^ "Mr. Holmes (2015)" – via www.rottentomatoes.com.
^ "Sully (2016) - Box Office Mojo". www.boxofficemojo.com.
^ "Nocturnal Animals (2016)" – via www.rottentomatoes.com.
^ Wiseman, Andreas; Wiseman, Andreas (December 10, 2018). "Javier Bardem, Elle Fanning, Salma Hayek, Chris Rock & Laura Linney Set For Sally Potter Pic; HanWay & Bleecker Street Aboard".
^ "NYC What's Filming: 'Molly' Starring Javier Bardem + Elle Fanning". www.backstage.com. January 25, 2019.
^ "Laura Linney". Television Academy.
^ "John Adams". Television Academy.
^ Bryant, Adam (August 27, 2009). "Showtime and Laura Linney to Tackle Cancer in New Series". TVGuide.com. Retrieved August 27, 2009.
^ Petski, Denise (July 27, 2016). "Laura Linney To Star In Jason Bateman's Netflix Drama Series Ozark". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved August 3, 2017.
^ Smith, Liz (March 13, 2008). "Watch the hot actress thrive!". Nypost.com. Archived from the original on April 17, 2009. Retrieved April 25, 2010.
^ "Cynthia Nixon Takes Home Her Second Tony Award for The Little Foxes". Broadway.com.
^ "Children's Book Review: Philadelphia Chickens [With CD] by Sandra Boynton, Author, Michael Ford, Composer Workman .95 (64p) ISBN 978-0-7611-2636-2". Publishersweekly.com. October 14, 2002. Retrieved March 22, 2019.
^ "Laura Linney: The great pretender". The Independent. November 25, 2005. Retrieved October 1, 2015.
^ Heller, Corinne. "OTRC: LAURA LINNEY, 49, WELCOMES FIRST CHILD WITH HUSBAND MARC SCHAUER". KABC-TV. Retrieved October 1, 2015.
^ "Laura Linney Is Engaged". People.com. August 20, 2007. Retrieved April 25, 2010.
^ "Liam Neeson walked Laura Linney down the aisle". nymag.com. July 28, 2010. Retrieved December 30, 2010.
^ "Surprise! Laura Linney Welcomes a Son". People.com. January 17, 2014. Retrieved January 17, 2014. |
0.999421 | 10 Tips to manage morning sickness at work.
Congratulations, you are pregnant. Pregnancy is a joyous thing but it's a package that comes with morning sickness, nausea, mood swings, tiredness and in some cases some associated health complications ,though symptoms at times varies from person to person. Morning sickness is very common in the first trimester; this is due to the high levels of hormones present, this is usually accompanied by nausea or vomiting or a combination of both. The morning sickness settles when the placenta takes over the supply of nutrients to the foetus between 12 to 14 weeks. The following tips would help you manage morning sickness at work.
• Have a bottle of water on your desk and take a sip when your mouth is dry or when thirsty.
• If your desk is not close to the bathroom, have plastic grocery bags or freezer plastic bags handy if you need to vomit and wouldn't make it to the bathroom just on time. Make sure to check for holes if using a grocery bag as many you don't want to make a mess on the floor .
• Make sure you have a personal dirt bin close enough preferably a metal bin which should be emptied every day .
• If you commute to work and has been sick on the way, freshen up at work .
• A cold rag wrapped around the neck or on fore head could relieve nausea .
• Keeping a toothpaste and brush in the handbag could be handy for freshening up after being sick or after food, you can choose to use fruity flavor toothpaste .
• Having healthy nibbles like fruits keeps the energy levels up before meal breaks and relieves nausea .
• Dressing smartly to work may help boost your confidence, appearance and relieve morning sickness .
• Breathing and relaxation exercises have been shown to be useful in combating morning sickness .
• Keeping a slice of lemon close by on your desk and sipping lemon juice or gingered tea is very helpful .
• Telling your boss about the pregnancy though not compulsory before 26 weeks in most places in the UK, you need to check the policy and procedures for pregnant women in your workplace for this information. Informing your boss early enough could make life easier at work as many work places have procedures to evaluate and assess risk based on your job and take you off jobs that are too physically demanding and could affect the pregnancy .
• Telling your colleagues could be helpful in some cases . |
0.99979 | Vor 85 Jahren, am 4. April 1931, brach Citroën zur legendären „Croisière Jaune“ – der „Gelben Kreuzfahrt“ – auf. 315 Tage lang war die Expedition mit Kégresse-Kettenraupen durch die Wüste Gobi unterwegs; am 12. Februar 1932 erreichte sie Peking und damit ihr Ziel. Was mit einem außergewöhnlichen Abenteuer begann, wurde zu einer wahren Erfolgsgeschichte: Heute ist das Reich der Mitte mit über 300.000 Zulassungen in 2015 wichtigster Absatzmarkt für die Marke mit dem Doppelwinkel.
Die Geschichte von Citroën in China begann vor 85 Jahren mit einer einzigartigen Reise. Fünf Jahre nach der „Croisière Noire“ organisierte das Unternehmen im Jahr 1931 mit der „Croisière Jaune“ erneut eine große Expedition, die diesmal ganz Asien durchqueren sollte. Zwei Teams bestehend aus Spezialisten wie Archäologen, Geologen und Experten aus China machten sich mit den eigens konstruierten Citroën-Halbkettenfahrzeugen „Kégresse“ am 4. April 1931 auf den Weg nach China – Fotografen, Journalisten und Filmemacher nahmen ebenfalls teil, um über das Abenteuer berichten zu können.
Im Laufe der Expedition bezwangen die Teams nahezu unüberwindliche natürliche Hindernisse: die Wüste Gobi, die Höhen des Pamir-Gebirges und die Berge des Himalaya. Oftmals drohte der Untergrund unter den Halbkettenautos wegzurutschen, teilweise waren die Wege so schmal, dass die Fahrzeuge in 30 Kilogramm schwere Einheiten zerlegt und mehrere Kilometer weit getragen werden mussten. Die extremen klimatischen Bedingungen stellten die Teams und ihre Fahrzeuge vor zusätzliche Herausforderungen. So wurden Mensch und Maschinen mehrfach bis an ihre Grenzen gebracht. Nachdem sie 315 Tage lang Kälte, Schnee, Steilhänge und Abgründe auf insgesamt 12.115 Kilometern überwunden hatten, erreichten die Expeditionsteilnehmer am 12. Februar 1932 ihr Ziel: Peking.
Die „Croisière Jaune“ war eine clevere und ausgefallene Marketingaktion des Firmengründers André Citroën, welche die Leistungsfähigkeit der Fahrzeuge mit dem Doppelwinkel unter Beweis stellen sollte. Gemeinsam mit Georges-Marie Haardt plante er das außergewöhnliche Abenteuer, das der Marke nicht nur zu mehr Ruhm und Aufmerksamkeit verhalf, sondern vor allem belegen sollte, dass sich ein starkes und solidarisches Team mit dem entsprechenden „Equipment“ selbst übertreffen kann. Mut, Kreativität und Anspruch gehörten bereits damals zu den wichtigsten Markenwerten.
85 years ago, on April 4th 1931, Citroën started the legendary „Croisière Jaune“ – the „Yellow Cruise“. During 315 days, the expedition went on „Kégresse“ half-tracked vehicles through the Gobi Desert. The trip ended on February 12th 1932 in Beijing. What began being an extraordinary adventure, turned out to be a true success story: Today, China is with over 300,000 registrations in 2015 the most important market for the brand.
The story of Citroën in China began 85 years ago with a unique trip. Five years after the „Croisière Noire“, the company organized in 1931 with the „Croisière Jaune“ again a great expedition, this time passing through the whole of Asia. Two teams consisting of specialists such as archaeologists, geologists and experts from China went on the trip using the specially constructed Citroën half-tracks „Kégresse“ on April 4th 1931 on their way to China – photographers, journalists and filmmakers also attended to report about this unique adventure.
During the expedition the team conquered almost insurmountable natural barriers: the Gobi desert, the heights of the Pamir Mountains and the mountains of the Himalayas. Often threatened the subsoil under the half-track car it sliding, partially the roads were so narrow that vehicles needed to be dismantled into heavy units up to 30 kilograms and had to be taken over these passes for several kilometers. The extreme climatic conditions posed an additional challenge for the teams and their vehicles. So both man and machine were repeatedly brought to their limits. Having 315 days long overcome cold, snow, steep slopes and precipices to total 12,115 kilometers, the expedition reached on 12 February 1932 its final destination: Beijing.
The „Croisière Jaune“ was a clever and unusual marketing campaign of the founder André Citroën which again should prove the the outstanding performance of vehicles with the „double chevron“ logo. Together with Georges-Marie Haardt he planned the extraordinary adventure that not only helped the brand to achieve more fame and attention. But especially it should prove that a strong and mutually supportive team with the corresponding „Equipment“ can surpass themselves. Courage and creativity were already at that time some of the main brand values.
The famous „Great Wall“ offered more than half a century later the stage for a unique marketing campaign of Citroën in which the sparkling small car „AX“ was the first Western model to see the symbol of China – a spectacular appearance which caused worldwide attention. One year earlier, the brand had been participating in the first automobile exhibition in Shanghai and thus approached the rather young Chinese automotive market.
The successful marketing campaign under the slogan „Révolutionnaire!“ during the 1980s was following in the 1990s the expansion of economic relations in China. In 1992, Citroën started a joint venture with the Chinese car manufacturer Dongfeng. The establishment of „Dongfeng Citroën Automobiles Company“ (DCAC) with an investment of seven billion French Francs meant at that time the second largest French investment in China. From this point onwards, the Citroën ZX was built at the sites Xiang Fan and Wuhan with supplied parts from France. In 1998, Citroën presented with the „Fukang 988“ the first model which was developed specifically for the Chinese market.
At the beginning of the new millennium, Citroën expanded its production in China significantly. For this purpose, the cooperation between PSA Peugeot Citroën and Dongfeng was intensified and the „Dongfeng Peugeot Citroën Automobiles“ (DPCA) was established as a new joint venture from 2002 onwards.
With numerous new models and further collaborations, Citroën continuously sets the course for growth in China to this day: In the meantime the brand has more than 500 dealerships. Citroën currently sells about a quarter of all produced cars in the People’s Republic of China. This is the most important market for the „double chevron“ brand.
Citroën in China – a success story for 85 years! |
0.946778 | In order to explain this mysterium, one must make a trip into the history of the Jazz guitar: The Archtop Jazz guitar was invented and conceived by Orville Gibson and perfected by his technician Lloyd A. Loar. The first Archtops were Gibson guitars of the model series L-1 to L-4, built between the turn of the century and approximately 1930, with round or oval sound holes and carved top and back. The top had to be reinforced against the string tension and to achieve this Orville Gibson introduced a system of two bars, glued in parallel underneath the top. But since the sound hole was cut into the top at the end of the fingerboard, the most reasonable arrangement was to use a system of two cross braced bars, supporting the top left and right side of the sound hole.
When Lloyd Loar introduced the new archtop model L5 to the market in 1924, a new possibility for a bar system arose as a result of the new arrangement of the sound holes, which now were shaped like violin f-holes and cut into the top laterally to the bridge. Now a system of two paralell bars could also be glued to the top, running in between the f-holes. Initially Gibson used both bracings. But after about 1940 the Gibson company preferred the parallel system and starting shortly after the end of war Gibson exclusivley used the paralell system.
Finally there was still another company, which used a third system: The Boston based company of Stromberg. This manufacturer built guitars, which had only one beam underneath the top. This was diagonally positioned. In the course of the history of guitar building however the parallel system was given advantage to the cross braced.
Other manufacturers such as John D'Angelico or Epiphone always used both systems. D'Angelico e.g. constructed his guitars to the needs of his customers. And thus we are now on topic: Which sound differences arise as a result of the two different bracing systems?
Basically the reason it is quickly avowed: Due to my experience a brighter, finer sound results in the case of a parallel bracing, while a cross bracing gives rather a more mellow, perhaps also somewhat darker sound. These differences arise as a result of the fact that the top becomes stiffer with the use of a parallel system. While the top is softer with the use of a cross system. Thus we have the rule of thumb: The more rigid the cover is, the more brightly becomes the sound. But that is, mind you, only one rule of thumb. Because there still are many factors that affect the sound added when building. These must also be considered by the guitar maker. |
0.943299 | 1. Charlie's only son is either Sam or Alex.
2. Jordan's sister is either Alex or Charlie.
3. Jordan is either Sam's brother or Sam's only daughter.
Who is the opposite gender from the other three?
Charlie is the opposite gender.
If Jordan is Sam's only daughter, then Jordan cannot have a sister. Therefore, Jordan must be Sam's brother and a male.
If Jordan's sister is Alex, then fact 1 tells us that Sam is Charlie's only son. But since Jordan is Sam's brother, Sam cannot be Charlie's only son. Therefore, Charlie must be Jordan's sister.
Since Sam is Jordan and Charlie's sibling, Alex must be Charlie's son. Now we know that Alex and Jordan are male, while Charlie is female. |
0.994454 | Create a checklist of things to do before you do anything else and obviously that includes getting your new roof. Any time you are engaged in a good size project, getting everything prepared for the big day is simply the smart approach. And do not rely on the contractor to tell you everything you need to know. You may not know this, but your state has dedicated offices and people who oversee contractors.
A solid visual once-over of your roof prior to work starting is advised, and the reason for this is to uncover possible issues. Sometimes anything that is amiss can be fixed during the installation of new shingles, but you really never know with these things.
You’ll be guaranteed to not be happy if you ignore the inspection and hear about it from the contractor. Once roofing contractors start removing the old shingles, the very last thing they want is to have to halt work because of something they’ve discovered. And you may not be in a position to afford the added cost of repair work.
So then your very first step that’s the easiest is doing online research, and in this case it’s how to choose a good roofing contractor. It’s really true that they’re not all the same with some being more professional, competent, and honest than others. This is the stuff none of us are born knowing, obviously, and the only way for you to discover it is by online research and asking questions.
Do an inspection in your attic and determine if there’s any type of insulation, anywhere. No matter how you get this done, it’s important that it is performed so get assistance if needed. The reason for this is to find out and then have it installed with the new roofing, plus you can insulate the roof inside your attic as well as the attic flooring. Maybe you have heard of the spray type applicators that are foam and expand, and you can go with that or another kind. Creating a thermal barrier is easy to do, and this is done with wood planks on the floor and on the wall struts. While it’s great to think you can trust any roofing contractor for your new roof, that’s not the case at all. Just go online and do some reading about this, and you’ll come across some pretty bad stories. |
0.99996 | Can shoveling snow off a roof prevent ice damming?
One option homeowners often consider to prevent ice damming is to go up on the roof and shovel the snow off before it has a chance to melt and form a dam. This practice should be avoided as much as possible and only done if no other option is available. Any activity involving walking on the roof has the strong potential to damage the roof, rip or tear the shingles and scrape off the shingles’ protective topcoat. |
0.999985 | When does recurrent connectivity improve neural population coding?
Neural systems contain many cells, and an important problem is to understand if and how those neurons work together to form a functioning system. In sensory neuroscience -- which is our focus -- this function is to encode information about a stimulus so that it can be transmitted to other brain areas. An experimentally accessible, and hence popular, way to assess collective behavior is to measure the trial-to-trial covariability in the responses of multiple neurons over repeats of the same stimulus, called noise correlations. Repeat presentations of the same stimulus yield different responses on each trial, and that variability is typically correlated across different neurons [1, 2] (although, see for one counterexample).
In the past two decades, the impact of these noise correlations on population coding has generated great interest. While nothing can add more information about the stimulus than was contained in the inputs (the data processing inequality), noise correlations determine the extent to which noise in the neural system degrades the amount of information that a neural population conveys about a stimulus (for example, see [4–6]).
There are two main ways in which these noise correlations can be generated: the cells may receive common (noisy) input from (some of) the same upstream source(s), or the cells may be (recurrently) coupled to one another. At the same time, most work on noise correlations and population coding (with a few notable exceptions, including [7, 8]) ignores their mechanistic origins. Interestingly, the few studies that have considered the mechanistic origins of noise correlations [7, 8] have concluded that recurrent connectivity tends to hinder population coding, or has little overall effect: even though recurrent coupling can “sharpen” neural tuning curves, this advantage is more than offset by the fact that it generates harmful noise correlations. This begs the question of when -- if ever -- recurrent coupling can improve population coding, and of whether noise correlations with different mechanistic origins have different impacts on coding performance?
To address these issues, we are investigating models in which groups of cells with, and without, recurrent coupling are driven by noisy inputs. The cells themselves are then noisy spike generators, and we are varying the fraction of shared inputs to the cells (which modifies the noise correlations due to common input), and the inter-neuronal connectivity, and computing the coding capacity of the resultant networks. Preliminary results indicate that, in some cases – similar to those discussed in – recurrent coupling can combat the cell-intrinsic variabililty enough that the population’s coding performance is improved even though the noise correlations the are generated by that coupling do themselves hinder that coding performance. We are in the process of expanding and generalizing on this work.
Support for this work came from NSF grants DMS-1122106, and CRCNS DMS-1208027 and a Burroughs- Wellcome Fund Career Award at the Scientific Interface to ESB. |
0.998946 | El sábado 27 de junio en el zócalo capitalino se reunieron más de 75,000 personas para presenciar algo nunca antes visto en el mundo. Los dos pilotos de la escudería Infiniti Red Bull trajeron a sus dos pilotos estelares, Daniel Ricciardo y Carlos Sainz Jr. para calentar el interés del público por el Gran Premio de México el 1 de Noviembre.
Desde las 6:00 am hubo gente sentada y parada a un lado de las vallas para tener el mejor lugar a la hora de presenciar un espectáculo cargado de adrenalina. Los motores de los monoplazas de Red Bull, utilizados en el 2011 y adaptados para las condiciones topográficas de la pista improvisada, hicieron recordar a muchos de la última vez que la Máxima Categoría del automovilismo hizo parada en territorio azteca hace 23 años.
Al parecer, México es buen lugar para traer a los coches campeones del mundo. En el 2007, la escudería Renault realizó una exhibición en el Circuito de Reforma con el coche con el que Fernando Alonso ganó el campeonato mundial en el 2006. Ahora, ocho años después, el mismo monoplaza con el que Sebastian Vettel ganó en el 2011, se hizo presente en la capital mexicana.
Los pilotos obviamente no llegaban a desarrollar velocidades muy altas debido a lo corto de las rectas. Lo que si podían hacer era pasar muy cerca de los aficionados sin poner en riesgo a los presentes. Aprovecharon para hacer trompos frente al Palacio Nacional, frente a Catedral y donde hubiera espacio. Lo impresionante fue verlos hacerlo con una sola mano.
También hubo exhibición de otros autos de Infiniti y Renault. Este último es el proveedor del motor para los autos de la escudería Red Bull que hasta hace dos años era amo y dueño de los campeonatos tanto de pilotos como de constructores. Ahora, ese dominio le está perteneciendo a Mercedes y Red Bull no logra encontrar el ritmo que lo hizo dominador.
A pesar de los problemas, Carlos Sainz pudiera llegar a ser considerado el Novato del Año en la Fórmula 1. A muchos veteranos les llama la atención la cabeza fría con la que el joven de apenas 22 años de edad se comporta dentro de las pistas. Dicho temple quedó en evidencia al verlo manejar por las calles del Zócalo su RB7.
El otro piloto que estelarizó la mañana en el Zócalo Capitalino fue Tavo Vildosola. El mexicano que compite en carreras de off-road puso sus habilidades a prueba para asombrar a chicos y grandes en su Trophy Truck. Un auto con muy buen agarre pero extremadamente sensible a los cambios de dirección y superficie en el camino.
A final de cuentas todo fue una fiesta en el corazón de la Ciudad de México. Para los pilotos fue grato el ver cuanta gente se dió cita, para las autoridades fue una muestra de que México quiere un Gran Premio de Fórmula 1 y para todos una sensación de que lo que se viene a finales de octubre y principios de noviembre en el Autódromo Hermanos Rodriguez será una gran fiesta.
El australiano de la sonrisa eterna, Daniel Ricciardo y el hombre sensación de la Fórmula 1 Carlos Sainz Jr. se llevaron muy buenas impresiones de nuestro país, a quienes les brindaron un espectáculo de casi tres horas. Antes de irse se pasearon por el Zócalo una última vez ondeando la bandera de México, esperando contar con su apoyo para el Gran Premio.
It was on June 10, 2014 when Oscar Sports had its first article published. The World Cup was approaching and I was desperately looking for a job. I saw that blogging was becoming a pretty big deal everywhere I looked and that the World Cup in Brazil was probably a good time to get my first words in. One year ago today, a dream became a reality in both English and Spanish.
OscarSports.com was created not only to inform but also to challenge the regular media outlets that in countries like Mexico talk about soccer the whole time. They only give 10% of their time or less to other athletes in other disciplines. As someone that has lived through that, it was my way of saying, there is a lot of ground to cover and it’s not just all about soccer.
Since that day, I can probably count with one or two hands the amount of posts related to soccer, while the other 60 or so have been about everything but soccer. From the Mexico City Marathon to the United States Formula 1 Grand Prix, I’ve tried to cover as much ground as possible for one writer that still has other things to do. It is nice to see that people read what comes out in this site and that there hasn’t been more than three days in a full year where there is traffic in this website. So far, there have been 72 posts in this website and that number will exponentially grow next year.
Take into consideration that I don’t get paid for this, just yet. This project was born after fighting against many other media companies that felt I wasn’t ready for them. I’ve always believed I am ready for wherever life takes me, and this website is going with me. I wouldn’t like doing something without a purpose. This is my way to say I’m here, hope you are interested.
I’m not opposed to the idea of taking OscarSports to a FIFA World Cup. I would just focus on everything that goes around it, and not in the actual games. The amount of planning, logistics and expenses that derive from such type of events is beyond anyone’s imagination, which takes me to my next point.
I’m looking to create a space for people to understand the importance of other sports. How big athletes not only go by the names of Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. We also have Dez Bryant (it was a catch), Roger Federer, Lewis Hamilton, Lebron James, Jordan Spieth, and the list goes on and on. Heroes don’t always chase a soccer ball. The swing bats, put on tennis shoes, hit a golf ball, drive a very fast car. Some of them have a very humble background and no matter how good they get, their salaries barely ever match their greatness.
I look at athletes like you and me, that may not ever make it big, but that want to enjoy what they do. In a marathon only 3% of the runners are widely known, the others are there to prove no one but themselves that they can do it. Amateur events keep growing in size and that is something you may start seeing more and more of in the future here at OscarSports.
As I said, this was not only a year to test the waters. With over 4,000 viewers in the first 365 days, I am more convinced than when I started about how big this can turn out to be. I will increase my presence in national and international events. With your help, this will keep growing. Some plans even include live broadcasts from events. Short and long stories in video format about every event that OscarSports gets to be at. Formula 1 in Mexico City, I’m going for you. There will be more people that will collaborate with the content. All I ask for you is to keep coming back, so I can keep this dream alive for as long as possible.
In the world of a sports reporter, this past weekend was almost as good as it gets. In less than 48 hours we had a new Champions League king, two Roland Garros champions, a Triple Crown winner, an exciting race of Formula 1, the start of the Women’s Wolrd Cup and the NBA Finals to top it all off.
Ever since 1978 that a jockey and his horse did not win the Triple Crown. The wait to see someone else accomplish that feat seemed to take on forever, but it was the Mexican Victor Espinoza who made history just outside of New York City by winning the Belmont Stakes. To win the Triple Crown, you must win the Kentucky Derby, the Preakness and the Belmont Stakes. Last year, Espinoza won the first two but failed to do so at Belmont. This year, despite a rough start, Espinoza lead his horse, American Pharoah to victory not just of the race but of the triple crown. We may have to wait another 37 years or more to see something similar happen again. To celebrate, he got to throw the first pitch of a MLB game at Yankee Stadium on Sunday.
Saturday was a day that fans of horse-riding were waiting for almost 40 years.
On the men’s side Novak Djokovic was the clear favorite to win Roland Garros for the first time. He has won every other major tournament including the Australian Open this year. He won the first set on Sunday but after that, Stanislas Wawrinka assumed every risk possible to come out with the win. The Swiss man that has already won in Australia before, became what Rafael Nadal was to Federer for many years. The man that just would not let his swiss colleague win on clay. It took four sets for Wawrinka to claim the crown in France 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 6-4.
Stan the Man beat Nole in what was predicted as an easy win for the Serbian player.
Formula 1 made a stop on one of its fastest circuits, Gilles Villenueve in Montreal, Canada. The 4.361-kilometer track allows for a lot of overtaking and no one did it better than Sebastian Vettel. He started in last place and made up some ground quickly. It was impossible to think about him getting on the points, but he made it look easy. After 70 laps, the 4-time World Champion and new driver for Ferrari finished in fifth. Lewis Hamilton won the race from start to finish and his teammate Nico Rosberg came in a close second. Valterri Bottas wrapped up a great race day for Williams, a team that had many problems over the weekend and in Monaco as well. Seein Bottas back on the podium was a nice sight for the English team.
Hamilton made it look easy to win another race in Formula 1 after the Monaco incident.
The National Basketball Association is wrapping up its 2015 season with Cleveland Cavaliers taking on the Golden State Warriors. The latter one had won the first game of the series that is decided by winning four games. Game 2 on Sunday was another thriller that proved just how good Lebron James can be and that there is no clear favorite in this series. With Kyrie Irving out for the rest of the series with an injury, all the weight of the Cavs hopes lie on the former Miami Heat star. He has averaged41.5 points, 12 rebounds, and 8.5 assists and that has the series tied at one win per team. Now they will travel to Cavs territory for game three and the odds are in nobody’s favor. Stephen Curry is the MVP and the leader of the Warriors.
It has been an interesting week and not for the right reasons in Track and Field. Alberto Salazar, one of the world’s best coaches is under investigation for a case in which he allegedly gave steroids and illegal substances to some of his athletes. Mo Farrah, who is one of them, was expected to participate in the Diamond League competition in Birmingham but the outside distractions got the best of him and he decided to withdraw. Bernard Lagat set a Masters Mile record of 3:41, just as Adam Gemili broke the 10-second barrier in the 100 meters, becoming the sixth British man to do so. A few days earlier in the Golden Gala in Rome, Ruth Veitia Vila became the oldest woman to clear two meters in the high jump.
Farah and Alberto will meet to discuss the allegations and if they should continue working together.
The Chicago Blackhawks have made it a tradition lately to make it all the way to the last series of the tournament. After two games they are tied 1-1 with Tampa Bay Lightning. Game three could give us a good hint of who can take it all. 80% of the time, the team that wins Game 3 after the series is tied, ends up winning the other two games it needs. Something that may go against them, is the fact that it is Tampa who carries a stronger momentum into the third game of the finals after winning the second game by 4-3.
Tampa Bay and Chicago are keeping hockey fan on the edge of their seats.
A new champion was to be crowned in Berlin after Real Madrid failed to reach the final. A lot of speculation surrounded soccer’s most important game at the club level. One team has been the most dominant club in the last decade, and the other was a big surprise to many despite its dominance in Italy. Lionel Messi was poised to become the first player to score in three UCL finals, but destiny had better plans for Neymar Jr. The Brazilian won his first Champions League title after scoring a brace El Pistolero Luis Suarez scored the other goal in a 3-1 victory where Alvaro Morata temporarily tied the game. Xavi Hernandez now leaves the club with 25 titles and four Champions League titles. Barcelona became the first European team to win the treble twice. At 35, Andrea Pirlo might have played his last game for Juventus and probably his last match with an Italian team.
Neymar won his first Champions League title after his second season with Barcelona.
Last year, the summer belonged to the men’s World Cup in Brazil. This year, it belongs to those who will be in Canada for the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup. The tournament kicked-off in Edmonton with a game between Canada and China. The host nation was about to settle for a scoreless draw when a penalty in their favor gave them the chance to get their first three points of the competition. On Sunday, Germany (ranked #1) beat Ivory Coast by 10-0 and no player scored twice. Now, the United States will make their debut against Australia, aiming to reach the final and win the tournament for the first time in 16 years.
Christine Sinclair scored the late goal in the opening game of the Women’s World Cup. |
0.999998 | What’s the difference between being “needy,” and having your needs met?
It boils down to respect: for yourself, your partner, and your relationships.
I often hear of people in romantic relationships being very concerned about coming off as too “needy,” or of seeming to require too much from their partner. As a result, they often find themselves putting aside their own values and desires for the sake of keeping their relationship afloat. When this happens, some individuals may find that they are not being true to who they are, or being clear about what they believe they deserve, when it comes to fueling their relationship. These individuals will sometimes classify themselves as “needy,” and can experience a sense of guilt if they are to vocalize their relationship standards.
When people describe themselves as “needy,” they sometimes indicate that this is a bad thing in their relationships. Having needs in a romantic relationship is by no means a negative thing, though: it’s often healthy, and signifies that you have respect for yourself. Just as you have basic physiological and safety needs to survive in the world (think Abraham Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory), you also have corresponding emotional needs.
This is not to say that your partner should fulfill every “need” you have, though. Striking the right balance of having your own passions, hobbies, friends, and activities can fulfill your needs, and can also do so for your partner.
If you or your partner are making the other feel bad for having emotional needs when it comes to your relationship, healthy communication is advised. Tapping into the respect that you have for yourself can help you in discussing these concerns, and is useful in coming to a place of openness and understanding with your partner. If you find that healthy communication is extremely difficult with your partner, or if you believe that safety or health is being compromised in your relationship, contacting a mental health professional is advised. |
0.816192 | Earl Russell Browder (1891–1973) was from Wichita, Kansas. He was an American political activist, functionary and leader of the Communist Party USA (CPUSA). Browder is best remembered as the General Secretary of the CPUSA during the 1930s and first half of the 1940s.
During World War I Browder served time in federal prison as a conscientious objector to conscription and the war. Upon his release Browder became an active member of the American Communist movement, soon working as an organizer on behalf of the Communist International and its Red International of Labor Unions in China and the Pacific region.
Following the removal of Jay Lovestone as head of the CPUSA in 1929 and a short interregnum during which the party was headed by former Lovestone factional associate Max Bedacht, Browder was made General Secretary of the CPUSA. For years thereafter Browder was the most recognizable public figure associated with American Communism, authoring dozens of pamphlets and books, making numerous public speeches before sometimes vast audiences, and running for President of the United States in 1936 and 1940.
Browder also took part in clandestine activities on behalf of Soviet intelligence in America during his period of party leadership, placing those who sought to convey sensitive information to the party into contact with Jacob Golos, one of the Soviets' primary handlers of such material.
In the wake of public outrage over the 1939 Nazi-Soviet pact, Browder was indicted for passport fraud. He was convicted of two counts early in 1940 and sentenced to four years in prison, remaining free for a time on appeal. In the spring of 1942 the U.S. Supreme Court affirmed the sentence and Browder began what proved to be an 14 month stint in Federal prison. Browder was subsequently released in 1943 as a gesture towards wartime unity.
Browder was a staunch adherent of close cooperation between the United States and the Soviet Union during World War II and foresaw continued cooperation between these two military powers in the postwar years. Coming to see the role of American Communists to be that of an organized pressure group within a broad governing coalition, in 1944 he directed the transformation of the CPUSA into a "Communist Political Association." However, following the death of President Franklin D. Roosevelt, a Cold War and internal red scare quickly sprouted up. Browder was expelled from the re-established Communist Party in 1946, due largely to a refusal to modify these views to accord with changing political realities and their associated ideological demands.
Browder lived out the rest of his life in relative obscurity at his home in Yonkers, New York, attempting with little success to influence American government policy and public opinion as the author of numerous books and pamphlets.
Earl Browder was born in Wichita, Kansas on May 20, 1891, the eighth child of an American-born father sympathetic to populism.Theodore Draper, The Roots of American Communism, pg. 308 He joined the Socialist Party of America in Wichita in 1907 at the age of 16 and remained in that organization until the party split of 1912, when many of the group's syndicalistically oriented members exited the organization in response to the addition of an anti-sabotage clause to the party constitution and the recall of National Executive Committeeman William "Big Bill" Haywood. Historian Theodore Draper notes that Browder "was influenced by an offshoot of the syndicalist movement which believed in working in the AF of L (American Federation of Labor)." This ideological orientation brought the young Browder into contact with William Z. Foster, founder of an organization called the Syndicalist League of North America which was based upon similar policies and James P. Cannon, an IWW adherent from Kansas.
Browder moved to Kansas City and was employed as an office worker, entering the AF of L union of his trade, the Bookkeepers, Stenographers and Accountants union. In 1916 he took a job as manager of the Johnson County Cooperative Association in Olathe, Kansas. |
0.95914 | How to color randomly drawn dots within a circle?
Using answers based on previous (somewhat similar) questions, I was able to create the following plot.
However, I have no clue how to color the dots inside the circle in red (I have a vague idea that involves basic geometry and ifelse by checking every dot if it is placed inside the circle... does that make sense?).
i.e. they are less than r away from the center of the circle. If you use <=, then points on the border still count as "inside", if you use <, they won't.
If you don't mind working in points, then the TikZ math library may be helpful. Here, points are rejected if they would lie on the border of the circle.
Metapost is also very good at this sort of diagram.
Sets the circle whose center defines the coordinate center, with a radius \ra (expressed in pt).
A \foreach loop that creates 200 random points, but you can change the number.
A measurement is done between center and each dot point.
Using an \if statement, if the length is above 50pt, dots will be standard black, otherwise, they'll be colored red. |
0.999974 | CSS Background-image Property. Value Description; url('URL') The URL to the image. To specify more than one image, separate the URLs with a comma: none: No background image will be displayed.
SVG Images As CSS Backgrounds. SVG images as CSS backgrounds. background-image: url (svg-css-background.svg); background-size: cover;} Creating SVG images that will fit any container. |
0.782714 | In General, samurai society was dominated by men, but history records that the female members of the samurai clans often displayed a fighting spirit and a concern for honour and duty matching that of the men.
Women were trained in the martial arts and, in time, many became highly skilled, especially in the use of naginata.
Tales of courageous and devoted samurai women abound in the epic "Heike Monogatari". A chief among these women was Minamoto Yoshinaka's wife, Tomoe Gozen, but the period produced numerous other heroic samurai women, including Hojo Masako, the wife of Minamoto Yoritomo, who was known as "the general in nun's habit" (on her husbands death, she became a Buddhist nun, the traditional fate of samurai widows). Masako was a prominent political player in the early years of the Hojo regency that succeeded her husband, at one point engaging in open conflict with her father. From her new position as a Buddhist nun, she successfully bullied the samurai class into standing by the shogunate.
These stories reflect the relatively strong position women held in samurai society at the time. Laws governing the shogun's court in the early 13th century allowed women equal rights of inheritance with brothers and the right to bequeath property. Samurai and bushi wives had high status in the household. They controlled household expenditure, managed servants, and were called upon to defend the home in times of war. They were also responsible for raising their children to the samurai ideas of contempt, death and unquestioning loyalty to their lord.
"A creature of... no importance"
Over the centuries that followed, the practice of using daughters as pawns in the marriage market (a crucial tool in the struggles of the period) and the influence of neo-confucain philosophy, combined to reduce the status of female samurai. The ideal of fealess devotion was gradually replaced by one of quiet passive obedience, a change reflected by the introduction of the new words for wife: Kani and okusan (person in the innermost recesse of the house).
By the 17th century, many samurai felt that while women were necessary to bear children, they were not really fitting companions for warriors. A cult of homesexuality developed amoung some warriors and, despite repeated prohibiton, many adult samurai formed close relationships with men. In 1687, Ihara Saikaku published his famouse book "Nanshoku okagami" ("The Great Mirror of Manly Love"), which took the homosexual activities amoung the samurai as its theme. "Woman is a creature of absolutely no importance', he wrote, "but sincere pederastic love is true love".
Samurai women were still expected to show contempt for death when it came to defending their husbands honour. A wife's sacrifice of herself, or her honour, for the sake of her husband was a common theme in Japanese drama. Self-renunciation was an imperative for women and remained so even at the end of the 19th century, despite the popularity of western ideas.
Inanzo Nitobe, writing in 1905, devoted one chapter of his book "Bushido: The soul of Japan"
to "The Training and position of women". This underlines the inferior role accorded to women, telling us that: "In the ascending scale of service stood woman, who annihilated herself for a man, that he might annihilate himself for the master, that he in turn might obey Heaven'.
However, the fighting sprit of the female samurai still managed to show itself on occasion. Their martial prowess was demonstrated during the Satsuma Rebellion of 1877, when the women of Kagoshima fought against the imperial army. In 1868, the fighting between suporters of the shogunate and those supporting the imperial restoration provided another such display.
Samurai of the Aizu clan, supporters of the shogunate, were left to defend their stronghold of wakamatsu Castle without any hope of outside assistance. Heaviley out-numbered by an army of 20,000 men, the 3,000 Aizu samurai mobilized anyone who could use a weapon. A group of 20 women formed a unit that fought on the front line.
One women, Nakano Takeko, was highly skilled in the use of the naginata, and during the fighting she rushed into enemy lines and cut down many men. Eventually she was shot in the chest. To aviod the disgrace of capture, she told her sister Yuko to remove her head and take it home.
A monument to her was erected in the Hokai temple in Aizu Bangemachi, Fukishima province. |
0.960826 | Seagrasses are aquatic flowering plants that form ‘meadows’ in near-shore brackish or marine waters, in temperate and tropical regions. Australia has approximately 51,000 km2 of seagrass meadows, comprising the most diverse array of seagrass species in the world1. Coastal seagrasses are particularly diverse, and can be found in subtidal and intertidal environments2. Seagrass meadows are very productive, support complex food webs and are valued as a habitat and refuge for a number of organisms3.
Changes in seagrass areas indicate major changes in environmental characteristics, and are an important indicator for State of the Environment reporting4. (e.g. Indicator 2.9 in the Estuaries and the Sea volume).
Photo 1. A Zostera meadow (photo supplied courtesy of CSIRO Land and Water).
What causes seagrass areas to change?
Seagrasses respond to natural variations in light availability, nutrient and trace element (iron5) availability, grazing pressure, disease6, weather patterns, and episodic floods and cyclones1. The dynamic nature of seagrass meadows in response to natural environmental variation complicates the identification of changes caused by humans1.
Seagrasses have high minimum light requirements (e.g. 4.4 – 29% of surface irradiance)7 because: (i) they have a high respiratory demand to support a large non-photosynthetic biomass (e.g. roots, rhizomes)8; (ii) they lack certain pigments and therefore can utilise only a restricted spectral range9; and (iii) they must regularly oxygenate their root zone to compensate for anoxic sediment10. The most widespread and pervasive cause of seagrass decline is a reduction in available light11. Processes that reduce light penetration to seagrasses include pulsed turbidity events during floods, enhanced suspended sediment loads, and elevated nutrient concentrations12. Phytoplankton and fast-growing macroalgae are also better competitors for light than benthic plants, and their biomass can shade seagrasses during progressive eutrophication (Figure 1)5.
Water column nitrate enrichment13 and trace metal contamination14 can exert direct toxic effects on some seagrass species. Seagrasses are able to bioaccumulate the trace metals and this can have ramifications for grazers such as dugongs14.
Seagrasses are susceptible to fishing pressures such as commercial and recreational harvesting of fish and shellfish1. For example, trawling and hauling gear, and boat, vehicular and foot traffic cause direct damage to plants1. The removal of forage or predator species can also have detrimental effects that cascade through food chains1.
Some introduced marine pests and pathogens have the potential to damage seagrass meadows15.
Seagrass meadows can change in response to chemical (e.g. salinity and pH), thermal, structural and biological disturbances caused by freshwater extraction1 and changes in water movement due to coastal developments (including ports and marinas). Seagrass meadows may also contract when mangrove areas expand in response to increased suspended sediment loads1. This process is called ‘narrow banding'1. Extraction, filling, dredging and sand mining activities also cause direct damage to seagrass areas1.
Figure 1. Nutrient loading effects on seagrass systems (From Butler (1999) 1 ). Reproduced with permission of the Fisheries Research and Development Corporation).
Seagrasses are an important link in the “critical chain” of habitats required for sustainable fisheries production15. Seagrasses are extremely productive, have a high biodiversity, and provide nursery habitat for an abundance of fish, crustaceans and molluscs, including many commercially valued species3. With the exception of sea turtles and dugongs which graze directly on seagrasses (Figure 2), most of the carbon fixed by seagrasses enters the food web via detritivores rather than through direct consumption. Seagrasses bind sediment and help to stabilise shorelines against erosion1. The baffling effect of seagrasses on water movement causes the deposition of suspended sediment and organic matter1. Baffling can also impede the mixing process which destabilises water column stratification, thereby influencing the dissolved oxygen status of bottom waters16.
A wide range of nutrient cycling processes occur in coastal seagrass communities, and these vary according to seagrass species and the extent of grazing12. Seagrasses can support high rates of nitrogen fixation17, denitrification18 and sulfate reduction17. Uptake of nutrients by seagrasses (and other benthic plants and algae) can also change the status of sediment from a nutrient source to a nutrient sink19. Seagrass meadows also have the potential to influence physical and chemical parameters in the water column. Dissolved oxygen saturation values commonly exceed 130% in Ruppia meadows in salt lakes, and photosynthetic consumption can lower water column partial pressures of carbon dioxide by ~160 times20.
Figure 2. The ecological role of seagrass meadows (From Dennison and Abal (1999)21). Reproduced with permission of Healthy Waterways Library.
Aerial photography, satellite imagery and systematic towed video surveys can be used to map the extent of seagrass coverage in some coastal waterways, although ground truthing to the genus level by local agencies is advised. High levels of turbidity can complicate seagrass mapping in tide-dominated coastal water waters (e.g. deltas, estuaries and tidal creeks). Chapter 4 of ‘Seagrass in Australia: Strategic Review and Development of an R & D Plan1 reviews existing literature on the monitoring and assessment of seagrasses, and suggests recommendations for future directions. A new book (2001) entitled “Global Seagrass Research Methods” (Eds F.T. Short and R.G. Coles) is also a useful resource. Other usefuls chapters can be found in the recent edition (2007) of Seagrasses: Biology, Ecology and Conservation (Larkum, Anthony W.D.; Orth, Robert J.; Duarte, Carlos M. (Eds.)).
Detection of Changes in Seagrasses Composition in Wallis Lake, New South Wales.
Moreton Bay is a complex coastal embayment, supporting large seagrass beds, with variations in water clarities evident across the Bay and at different times of the year. Creating accurate, reliable and cost-effective maps of seagrass properties in these environments is a challenging procedure. An integrated approach was used to create a seagrass cover map from multiple data sources collected by natural resource management agencies and volunteer programs2223) (Figure 3). Field survey data such as spot check (direct observation and via video) and photo-transects in combination with, Landsat 5 Thematic Mapper satellite imagery, were collected and analysed by several agencies during July-September 2004. Field data were used to: (1) train seagrass cover mapping algorithms applied to areas of Moreton Bay where the bottom was visible; and (2) to manually digitize seagrass cover for the remaining areas where it was too turbid or deep to see the bottom. The resulting seagrass cover map included the entire Bay. The collaborative and integrative method used serves as a model for integrating activities of multiple government, scientific and volunteer agencies to map and monitor a natural resource.
Figure 3. Seagrass cover map of the seagrass in Moreton Bay, Australia, resulting from a combination of field data collected in July 2004 (by natural resource management agencies and volunteer programs) and Landsat TM5 satellite image acquired 8th August 2004 of Moreton Bay, South East Queensland9.
The National Intertidal/Sub-tidal Benthic Habitat Classification scheme (NISB) habitat classes include: mangroves, saltmarsh, seagrass, macroalgae, coral reef, rock-dominated, sediment-dominated and filter feeders (such as sponges). These habitats occur between the approximate position of the highest astronomical tide mark and the location of the outer limit of the photic benthic zone (usually at the 50 to 70 metre depth contour). High spatial resolution polygons with thematic attributes based on NISB are available in the NRM Reporting module, together with national, state and regional summary maps for each habitat.
A strategic review and development of an R&D plan for Australian seagrasses was commissioned by the Fisheries Research and Development Corporation1 (FRDC) and follows from ‘The Fisheries Habitat Review'15. A document summarising the research is available from theSeagrass Research: Priorities for Seagrass Reasearch in Australia Community-based seagrass monitoring programs, for example Seagrass-Watch, exist in some states. The Ecosystem Health Monitoring Program provides information on the distribution and depth range of seagrasses in Moreton Bay since 1992 and is a useful resource. The influence of environmental factors on seagrass biomass and depth ranges can be explored in the Simple Estuarine Response Model developed by CSIRO. The Department of Environment and Water Resources (Australia) provides guidelines for State of the Environment reporting. In the recent edition (2007) of Seagrasses: Biology, Ecology and Conservation (Larkum, Anthony W.D.; Orth, Robert J.; Duarte, Carlos M. (Eds.)), experts in 26 areas of seagrass biology present their work in sections that relate to taxonomy, anatomy, reproduction, ecology, physiology, fisheries, management, conservation and landscape ecology. There is also a detailed chapter on the remote sensing of seagrass ecosystems.
Maps of the coastal environment are needed for inventory, monitoring and management. Remote sensing instruments on various platforms (boat, aircraft and satellite) and processing techniques can be used to collect appropriate image data and convert them into maps of relevant properties. Remote sensing provides an opportunity to produce maps that can be: accurate, reliable and cost-effective. There is a continually expanding array of boat, airborne and satellite based image types and processing approaches to choose from for mapping and monitoring coastal environments. A web based instructional toolkit has been created to inform managers, scientists and technicians working in coastal marine environments how images collected from satellites and aircraft can be used to map and monitor changes to indicators of coastal ecosystem health24.
Queensland Government – Department of Agriculture & Fisheries (CHRIS) has an interactive map facility that enables users to make detailed vegetation maps for the Queensland coast (see coastal wetland layers) in including various densities of seagrass beds (Figure 4).
Figure 4. Screen dump showing detailed vegetation map for tidal creeks near the Fitzroy Estuary and Keppel Bay based on CHRIS. |
0.99993 | A 3,mile 5,km coastline contained nearly harbors and navigable river mouths, and Texas shared an open border with Mexico - features that rendered a truly crippling Union blockade nearly impossible.
Basically, in that period of time there was a great man named ALexander Bahr, He is the creator of all that it bad in the U. No control over disputes between states. The Union won for a simple reason: When the Civil War commenced, neither army had mechanisms in place to handle the amount of death that the nation was about to experience.
Northern railroad mileage totalled nearly 22, compared with just over 9, in the Confederacy, and the northern roads generally were more modern and better maintained. To restore the Union the Federal forces would have to conquer the Confederacy.
In the South, a smaller industrial base, fewer rail lines, and an agricultural economy based upon slave labor made mobilization of resources more difficult.
Explain the strengths and weaknesses of the articles of confederation? Approximately one in four soldiers that went to war never returned home. They could declare war.
They knew ifthey failed to achieve this goal, the South would be ruined becauseof the war. For many Southerners, the end came as a relief. During the war, the CSA desperately hoped for military aid from European powers.
What are strengths and weaknesses of a credit Union? They wanted to be independent from the US. They could reaise armies. In the East, General Ulysses S.
Many of these bills set the course for the United States to emerge by war's end as a nation with enormous economic potential and poised for a massive and rapid westward expansion.
The South also had a great nucleus of trained officers.
Hill, Richard Ewell and John B.First, the Union had a huge advantage in population. The population of the Union during the Civil war was about 22 million. The Confederate States of America (CSA) consisted of eleven states that seceded from the Union before or after the inauguration of Abraham Lincoln in and They were: Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Arkansas and.
Strengths and Weaknesses: North vs. South As early as Septemberthe CSA began issuing national currency, promising to pay the bearer the face amount —. The Confederate States of America consisted of eleven states that seceded from the Union before or after the inauguration of Abraham Lincoln in and They were: Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Arkansas and Texas.
What were the Union advantages? Strengths and Weaknesses - pg. agronumericus.com were the Confederate advantages? Strengths and Weaknesses - Confederate Army of Northern Virginia? Biography - pg. Print › Study Guide: The Civil War | Quizlet |.
Welcome! This website is designed to teach you the basics of the strengths and weaknesses of the North and South during the American Civil War.
Don't forget to explore the photo gallery, extra visuals, and blog! |
0.943662 | Some people think it's a strategic mistake for prominent Democrats to try to make Rush Limbaugh the leader of the Republican Party. A few of the reasons: 1) The controversy lines Limbaugh's pockets; 2) The controversy increases the number of minds poisoned by Limbaugh's vitriol; 3) Limbaugh benefited enormously after the Clinton White House took him on.
Some of these things are undoubtedly happening. More people are listening to Limbaugh and some of those people who started to listen will become "ditto-heads." However, the benefits of making Limbaugh the face of the GOP outweigh any disadvantages. Before I discuss the overwhelming benefits, I'll first discuss why the Clinton administration failed and why Democrats and progressive now will succeed.
When Bill Clinton won the 1992 presidential election, the response by Limbaugh and other talk radio jocks was swift and decisive: Limbaugh and the various Rush clones went on the warpath. When Deputy White House Counsel Vince Foster committed suicide in 1993, Limbaugh and talk radio were an integral part of what journalist Trudy Lieberman called "the Vince Foster Factory," a group of prominent right-wing media people who were putting forth conspiracy theories that Bill and Hillary were responsible for Foster's death (years after several investigations debunked the right's theories, Limbaugh has continued to act as if the Clintons had murdered Foster).
How did the Clinton administration respond to this wing-nut onslaught? They put Lanny Davis on it. The Clinton administration didn't know what hit it. That's understandable but they did very little to counter the media wing-nuts. In fact, during the 1990's, the only effective hits on Limbaugh were by Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting and a former Saturday Night Live writer, but these efforts were too little, too late. The Clinton administration's fecklessness and ineptitude are no big surprise. I have written about how the Clintons dealt with the Unification movement (here and here). It also didn't help that much of the mainstream media has been clueless about Limbaugh (e.g., here and here).
The year 2009 is a lot different from 1993. For one thing, in 1993, the right had a powerful media apparatus and noise machine and progressives were way behind (for a discussion of this inequality, read Robert Parry's thoughtful analysis). That has changed since 2000. A few quick reasons: 1) The emergence of Media Matters for America in 2004. In the 1990's Limbaugh benefited because there was no paper trail because people weren't recording and transcribing Limbaugh's radio show. When I started this blog, I listened to Limbaugh and transcribed many outrageous things Limbaugh said (e.g., a racist parody commercial that Limbaugh aired). When Media Matters was established, its staff could not only monitor Limbaugh's radio show, but they had the ability to monitor Hannity, Savage, O'Reilly and other right-wing talkers. 2) The rise of the progressive blogosphere. 3) The rise of progressive commentators such as Keith Olbermann, Rachel Maddow and the increase in popularity of Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert.
Sure, there has been a recent increase in listeners but also an increase in people researching Limbaugh on the Internet. As I have pointed out, the net is the bane of movements and people who seek to control others. The more people who research Limbaugh on the net, the more people dislike him. It also doesn't help Limbaugh that in the past few years,the following have occurred: 1) Limbaugh problems with hillbilly heroin have emerged; 2) Wife Number 3 left Limbaugh; 4) The infamous mocking of Michael J. Fox's Parkinson's symptoms became a national story. The upshot is that the more Americans know about Limbaugh, the less they like him, namely because he is an unlikable person.
As Ruy Texiera and John B. Judis pointed out a few years ago, demography favors the Democrats. The GOP has depended on the Southern strategy to become a white Southern party. The US is increasingly becoming a non-white society; the GOP has overplayed its hand and has become, to use the words of Zell Miller, "a national party no more." There's a strong generational component also. The real and latent bigotry as well as the terminal unhipness of the Republican right has made Limbaugh and the GOP anathema to younger voters. To an 18 to 30-year-old, Limbaugh must seem like the oldest man in the world. Polling research by Stanley Greenberg indicated that Limbaugh had an approval rating among American younger than 40 of 11 percent. Eleven percent! Having Limbaugh as the face of the GOP will accelerate the party's "death spiral."
Right-wing talk radio is a vast wasteland. An example of this is the 3 to 6 PM EST weekday time slot . The radio hosts with the largest audiences are Michael Savage (née Weiner) and Mark Levin. Both Savage and Levin are raging lunatics (I had written about Savage when his first political book came out--also here). Don't believe me: listen to these two men rant on their radio shows. For instance, today on their radio shows, Savage called President Obama as a "dictator in the making" and Levin referred to Media Matters and similar progressive groups as "brownshirts."
The recent Limbaugh controversy is great not only for the reason I've listed but because it is dividing the hard right. Some rational right-wingers like David Frum are being attacked not only by Limbaugh but by other wing-nuts such as Levin. The other day, Frum, who has written a couple scathing articles about the campaign to elevate Limbaugh as the nominal leader of the GOP, responded to attacks by Levin by calling the show--listen to the call here--it's priceless.
Also, having a unhinged wing-nut like Savage being the third most influential radio talk show host is great for dividing the right because less rabid right-wingers know what a nut Savage is (though it amuses me to no end that an unhinged Levin routinely attacks Savage as a nut).
A case in point, before George W. Bush left office in January, he invited several prominent right-wing radio hosts for a meeting in the White House. According to radio host Neal Boortz, when the radio hosts were together before Bush arrived, one topic of discussion among the hosts was how Savage will sooner rather than later "implode."
It's fun when they eat their own.
UPDATE I: Just a few more thoughts on Limbaugh. David Frum's description of Limbaugh ("A man who is aggressive and bombastic, cutting and sarcastic, who dismisses the concerned citizens in network news focus groups as “losers.” With his private plane and his cigars, his history of drug dependency and his personal bulk, not to mention his tangled marital history, Rush is a walking stereotype of self-indulgence") is spot on. I've listened to Limbaugh since first hearing about him when 60 Minutes did a story on him. Limbaugh has a huge ego (that obviously he uses to try to mask his massive insecurities). That ego has been bad for the GOP. It's hilarious when we watch Michael Steele and other prominent Republicans apologize and grovel before Limbaugh, but more importantly, it reinforces the view that the modern Republican Party is a cult of fear in which people like Harry Whittington and John Dilulio are forced to apologize when they did nothing wrong. . . The essence of the post was to underscore how the media rules of the Clinton years don't apply now. During the Clinton years, mainstream journalists were either cowed or looked the other way when Limbaugh pushed his Vince Foster conspiracy theories or made racist comments. With Media Matters, The Daily Show, the blogosphere, and MSNBC, Limbaugh is, at long last, accountable for what he says due to prominent commentators who review what he says. Not only that, but he's becoming increasingly accountable for what he has said in the past. There are now consequences for what Limbaugh says.
UPDATE II: TPM has more on Stanley Greenberg's survey research on Limbaugh. One key point of the survey research: although Limbaugh is overwhelmingly unpopular with Americans, 63 percent of Republicans think Limbaugh has too little or the right amount of influence over the Republican Party. Sam Stein has more analysis of the polling data.
UPDATE III: Eating their own update. I don't regularly listen to either Mark Levin's or Michael Savage's radio shows. Before I wrote this post, I knew they were not just competitors but two men who hated each other. I've never heard Savage slam Levin on his radio show but I have heard Levin rub it in concerning media markets in which his show has higher ratings than Savage's. Levin also refers to Savage's show not as "Savage Nation" but "Weiner Nation." I just did a little googling and found some hilarious stuff. This YouTube video has Savage doing an apoplectic rant (go to about 3:00 on the video). Here's another video slam of Levin.
UPDATE IV: With the help of Drudge, Hannity, Malkin and other members of the right's media infrastructure, Mark Levin's book Liberty and Tyranny: A Conservative Manifesto is now ranked #1 on Amazon.com.
UPDATE V: Michael Alan Weiner (also known as Michael Savage), along with others such as Amir Siddique and Fred Phelps, are banned from Great Britain. |
0.987501 | Follow the below given instructions to setup the 123 HP envy 4506 printer wireless network. You can select either the Windows operating system . HP Envy 4506 Wireless Printer Setup for either the Windows operating system or the Mac operating system.
Gather some important details to get started with the HP Envy 4506 Wireless Printer Setup. Switch on the printer and computer. Gather the information like network name or the Service Set Identifier(SSID), network password or the WEP key or WPA security passphrase, a computer connected on wireless network. It is recommended to have a broadband internet access like cable or DSL for getting regular updates on printers.
Follow the below instruction to perform HP Envy 4506 Wireless Printer Setup on your printer. Press the wireless icon on the printer control panel and press the button . Press the down arrow to scroll the wireless setup wizard and click OK. The wizard searches for the available network and press the down arrow to find the name of your network. Click OK.
Follow the instructions that appear on the screen to complete the HP Envy 4506 Wireless Printer Setup and driver installation. Complete the printer registration and activation by returning to the HP home page in your web browser.
The important requirements for beginning the HP Envy 4506 Wireless Printer Setup are network name or Service Set Identifier(SSID), network password called the WEP key or WPA security passphrase, a computer connected to wireless network and an internet connection. The broadband internet connection is recommended by HP.
Follow the below instruction to perform HP Envy 4506 Wireless Printer Setup on your printer. You should press the wireless icon on the printer control panel and press the button . Press the down arrow and click OK to scroll to the Wireless Setup Wizard. The wizard will search for the available networks. Press the down arrow to scroll to find your network name and click OK.
Follow the instruction that appear on the screen and complete the printer setup successfully and click Done. Before beginning with HP Envy 4506 Printer Wireless Printer Setup on your Mac, download the most current version of your printer software from the HP website. |
0.89682 | Student: Hello, I am _________ (student name). May I please speak to Ms./Mr. _______?
Teacher: Good morning/good afternoon, this is Ms./Mr. ________. How can I help you?
You asked to see me earlier.
I have finished my homework and I want to hand it in.
Teacher: Okay, please wait a moment. I will come out as soon as possible. |
0.999858 | I read this article and found it very interesting, thought it might be something for you. The article is called Book Review: Nervous States – William Davies and is located at https://www.totallydublin.ie/more/print/book-review-nervous-states-william-davies/.
Trump, Brexit and populism have sent shockwaves through our politics. Many have attempted to account for these advents, but few will achieve the lucidity and depth of analysis that Davies has brought to bear in Nervous States.
Winding his way through the history of things such as statistics, expertise and communication, Davies charts the evolution of such categories, demonstrating the historic role each has played in sustaining a model of reality that has produced peace and political consensus. However, it is by placing these histories into dialogue with the political anxieties of the present that Davies succeeds at demonstrating how the practical functions of these categories have become encumbered.
Globalisation, Davies argues, has shifted the distribution of wealth within national boundaries. GDP, a traditional means of measuring a nation’s prosperity, is incapable of articulating the paradox of increased national prosperity underpinned by the decline of real wages for half the labour force. The spectre of populism emerges when the dominant models of reality can no longer encompass the complexities of the present, producing a fractious gulf between expertise and lived experience.
Nervous States, then, draws on the history of ideas to explain the contemporary economies of feelings of fear and distrust. It is a siren call, redirecting our focus to the deeper, tectonic underpinnings of our culture. |
0.87138 | I have been going to Disneyland every year since 1962. After reading your article, I am sure that there are literally millions of other Disney aficionados like me who are wondering what the leadership at Disney was thinking by altering the maintenance program to save money.
How many more people need to die before people like me completely turn their back on the Disney brand? Walt Disney must be turning over in his grave. These needless deaths have definitely had an effect on Disneyland's claim of being "The Happiest Place on Earth." |
0.996861 | Hire the right real estate agent.
Sellers clearly have an advantage in the current market. Housing inventory is low and home prices are soaring.
Be realistic about what you can afford and what amenities come with that budget.
Buyers need to be open-minded about the location, size and condition of the home they want to buy.
Another strategy: Look for an older home in a well-established neighborhood. Resales typically cost less than brand-new homes.
When you’re up against stiff competition, working with an experienced real estate agent who knows the local market is key.
Look for an agent who specializes in the neighborhoods you’re interested in. Savvy agents should be able to answer your questions about neighborhood amenities, local schools, crime and nearby home values.
A good buyer’s agent shines when it comes to negotiating the deal and writing a strong offer letter backed with solid data. Your agent can suggest certain strategies to win in a competitive market, such as limiting contingencies or writing a personal letter.
Buyers who sacrifice location for affordability can find themselves in a neighborhood far from major job centers with a long daily commute and expensive transportation costs.
Sometimes that trade-off makes sense, but not always.
An offer must have a loan preapproval accompany it.
A letter from you on your desire, ability and love of the house can help. |
0.999998 | Cite this article as: Prasad S, Banez JD, Bompolaki D, Hart Y. Optimizing Anterior Implant Outcome Immediately after Implant Placement and Grafting by using Patient’s Extracted Teeth: A Case Report. J Dent Oral Biol. 2017; 2(1): 1022.
Optimizing anterior implant outcome using patient’s extracted teeth.
Successful implant treatment in the anterior maxilla is predicated on providing a functional and esthetically acceptable outcome. As well, achieving a predictable ideal emergence profile and soft tissue contour is expected. Placing immediate provisional restorations utilizing the patient’s modified extracted teeth can facilitate initiate facial soft tissue contouring while precluding undue pressure on the surgical site during the early healing phase. This allows for a one stage surgical procedure, fixed provisionalization and ideal tissue contouring.
This clinical report presents the use of a patient’s modified extracted permanent teeth as bonded fixed provisional restorations placed immediately after implant placement and bone grafting. The gingival-lingual and cingulum tooth structure was recontoured to allow no contact with the implant or bone graft material. A combination of cement and screw-retained definitive restorations were fabricated with contours reflecting the tissue contours established by the interim restoration.
Restoring maxillary anterior teeth with implants is challenging due to high esthetic expectations and the fact that the maxillary anterior ridge often presents with minimal facial bone thickness requiring hard and soft tissue grafting [1-3]. Patients presenting with a high smile line, thin biotype and limited mesiodistal space, further add to the challenge . Therefore, providing esthetic anterior maxillary implant restorations may be more difficult to accomplish than achieving implant osseointegration.
Traditional anterior implant placement requires extraction of non-restorable teeth and grafting with a healing period of 3-4 months [5,6]. Following healing, surgical implant placement is performed and an additional healing time allowed for osseointegration. This protocol requires multiple surgical appointments and extended treatment time [5,6]. Immediate implant placement (IIP) protocol which allows placement of implants and bone grafting simultaneously, shortens treatment time, reduces the number of surgical procedures, and increases patient compliance [7- 11].
Providing a provisional restoration during the healing phase of an IIP procedure is important for anterior implants for several reasons, patient acceptance being one of them [4,12,13]. The anterior implant site can be provisionalized using either a fixed, removable, or an implant supported prostheses . Provisionalization using a removable partial denture has the potential of placing undesirable pressure on the healing site . A fixed tooth supported provisional restoration addresses this issue but still does not provide for emergence profile and soft tissue maturation .
An immediate implant provisional restoration (IIPR) has significant benefits when compared to the traditional delayed protocol. These include establishing an ideal emergence profile with maximum tissue volume, preserving mid-facial gingiva and enhancing patient comfort and acceptability [10,12,14-17]. IIPR serves as a guide for designing an esthetic definitive restoration which facilitates adequate hygiene [12,18]. Therefore, IIP together with IIPR helps develop the desired esthetics for anterior implant restorations .
A number of published articles have shown that survival rates with IIPR are comparable to those achieved with traditional protocols [16,18-20]. However, Atieh et al. determined that IIPR with IIP increases the risk for implant failure. Lateral forces and small diameter implants further negatively affect implant survival of immediately loaded implants . Khzam et al. suggested the possibility of unpredictable soft and hard tissue healing with IIPR. Some authors have suggested that in order to maximize the chance of success, IIPR should be performed along with IIP only when primary stability can be achieved [7,8]. Also, IIPR should not contact the opposing dentition in centric and eccentric occlusion [1,18,24]. When bone grafting is performed concurrently with IIP, IIPR is not indicated due to the risk of implant failure . Instead, a two-stage protocol is to be followed to allow for uneventful healing of the grafted site without any pressure from the overlaying provisional restoration. Patients’ extracted teeth have been used as provisional restorations after implant placement without concurrent grafting . However, utilizing a patient’s extracted teeth as provisional restorations to contour soft tissue in cases where bone grafting is performed concurrently with IIP has not been documented.
The purpose of this clinical report is to describe the technique and clinical steps necessary to provide immediate implant provisionalization (IIPR) after IIP and bone grafting. This technique precludes allowing pressure on the implant and grafted bone site while safely and predictably contouring the peri-implant soft tissue necessary for fabricating an ideal definitive restoration.
Figure 1: Pre-operative view: Malformed permanent maxillary right and left lateral incisors.
Figure 2: Pre-operative radiograph: Radiograph of maxillary left lateral incisor showing short clinical root.
Pre-operative radiograph: Radiograph of maxillary right lateral incisor showing short clinical root.
A 20-year-old woman presented to the pre-doctoral clinic with a chief complaint of two mobile front teeth. Intra-oral examination revealed malformed permanent maxillary left and right lateral incisors with Class II mobility (Figure 1). Radiographic examination revealed short clinical roots of the maxillary lateral incisors (Figure 2 and 3). The lateral incisors were diagnosed to have a poor prognosis based on the clinical and radiographic examination. Treatment options were discussed with the patient. These included: extraction of the maxillary lateral incisors and restoration with implant-supported crowns or, extraction and restoration with a conventional fixed dental prosthesis. The patient chose the treatment plan that included extraction of the maxillary lateral incisors and implant supported single crowns. A diagnostic wax-up was performed to obtain ideal contours of the maxillary lateral incisors. Cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) was performed to evaluate the teeth and surrounding structures. CBCT imaging revealed inadequate alveolar ridge width at the proposed implant sites. It was decided to follow an immediate implant placement protocol with grafting to augment the alveolar ridge width. A surgical guide was fabricated based on the diagnostic wax-up to guide the implant placement in a proper 3-dimensional orientation.
On the day of the surgery, extraction of the malformed maxillary lateral incisors was performed and two endosseous implants (3.3 × 12 mm NC SL Active, Straumann USA) were placed using the surgical guide. The implants were torque to 35Ncm and healing abutments were placed (NC Healing abutment, 3.6 × 3.5 mm Straumann USA). Concurrent allogenous bone grafting was performed to achieve adequate ridge anatomy and bone thickness. Post-surgery, the patient’s extracted teeth were used to fabricate bonded restorations to restore the missing lateral incisors. Modifications to the patient’s teeth were made. The roots of the extracted teeth were sectioned and the palatal and cingulum surfaces of the crowns were removed. The remaining intact cervicofacial facades were shaped to mimic ovate gingival contours to aid in facial soft tissue contouring (Figure 4). The distal surfaces of the left and right central incisors were then etched with 32% phosphoric acid (Unietch, Bisco Inc.) and primer and adhesive were applied (Optibond FL, Kerr.) The contoured lateral incisors were bonded to the central incisors with flowable resin (Synergy D6 Flow, Coltene) (Figure 5 and 6). The bonded extracted lateral incisors did not apply pressure to the newly placed implants or grafted sites. The bonded restorations were taken out of occlusion and the teeth remained bonded throughout the healing period without complications. This technique allowed early facial soft tissue contouring and uneventful healing of the implants and graft sites.
Eight weeks post-surgery the bonded provisional restorations and healing abutments were removed and a fixture level impression was made with open tray impression copings (NC Impression post, Straumann) and poly vinyl siloxane impression material (Aquasil Ultra LV and monophase, Dentsply Caulk). The tray was removed after the impression was set and the healing abutments were replaced and the extracted lateral incisor interim restorations were re-bonded. The implant-level impression was poured in Type 5 dental stone (Jade Stone, Whipmix Corp) to obtain a working cast. Screw retained provisional restorations were fabricated in acrylic resin (SNAP, Parkell) using a pull down matrix of a cast of the diagnostic wax-up and temporary abutments (NC Temporary Abutment, Straumann) screwed to place in the working model. An ideal emergence profile was developed in the provisional screw-retained restorations which were placed in the patient to finalize the surrounding soft tissue healing (Figure 7). The provisional restorations were torque to 15 Ncm and the screw channels filled with cotton and Teflon tape and sealed with flowable resin. Centric and lateral occlusal contacts were eliminated to minimize non-axial loading. Oral hygiene instructions were given to the patient.
Two weeks later the screw- retained provisional restorations were removed from the right and left lateral incisors to evaluate soft tissue healing. The position of the free gingival margin was assessed in relation to the desired definitive restorations. Measurements were made from the implant to the free gingival margin to evaluate the amount of soft tissue contouring that would be possible without violating the biologic width. A soft tissue laser (AMD Picasso Lite Diode Laser, DENTSPLY) was used to contour the facial gingiva to correct the discrepancies between central and lateral incisors while maintaining 3mm of soft tissue height around the implants. The screw-retained provisional restorations were relined with flowable resin and screwed to place, torque to 15Ncm and the screw channels resealed.
After three weeks, stability of the soft tissue was determined (Figure 8) and the fabrication of the definitive restorations was initiated. An open-tray impression was made with custom impression copings (Figure 9) to capture the created emergence profile . The impression was poured in Type 5 dental stone to obtain a new working cast. Custom titanium abutments (NC Variobase abutment, Straumann) and all-ceramic crowns (Lava, 3M ESPE) were fabricated. The crowns were luted to the custom titanium abutments extra orally (Figure 10). The screw-retained abutment- crown assembly was then tried in intra-orally. Radiographs were taken to confirm the seating (Figure 9 and 10) and occlusion was checked with articulating paper (Articulating paper, Henry Schein) and shim stock (Shimstock, Bausch). The definitive restorations (Figure 11 and 12) were torque according to the manufacturer’s instruction and the screw channels were filled with Teflon tape and composite resin (Z250, 3M ESPE). Oral hygiene instructions were given and the patient was placed on a 3-month recall.
Shaped extracted lateral incisor: The root of the extracted lateral incisor was sectioned and the palatal surface of the crown was trimmed. The remaining intact cervicofacial facade was shaped to mimic an ovate gingival contour to aid in soft tissue contouring.
Bonded extraction teeth in place: Frontal view of bonded extracted lateral incisors immediately after implant placement.
Bonded extraction teeth in place: Occlusal view of bonded extracted lateral incisors immediately after implant placement.
Screw-retained provisional restorations: 8-week post placement, screw-retained provisional restorations inserted to finalize surrounding soft tissue healing.
Mature peri-implant soft tissue: Healed peri-implant soft tissue with ideal emergence profile.
Implant impression: Capturing molded soft tissue profile with custom impression copings.
Definitive restorations with ideal contour and emergence profile: All-ceramic crowns were luted extra orally to the custom titanium abutment (Variobase) and the screw-retained abutment-crown unit was then placed intra orally.
Post –operative radiograph: Radiograph of definitive restoration of maxillary left lateral incisor taken on the day of insertion.
Post-operative radiograph: Radiograph of definitive restoration of maxillary right lateral incisor taken on the day of insertion..
Follow up frontal view: Six-month follow up frontal view with definitive restorations in place.
IIP along with bone grafting is often performed as a 2-stage procedure . The implants are uncovered in a second surgical procedure after osseointegration. Healing abutments are placed on the implants before soft tissue contouring is initiated . The present technique describes a protocol for immediate provisionalization using a bonded fixed restoration fabricated from the patient’s modified extracted teeth, placed immediately after implant placement and grafting. This enables a 1-stage procedure allowing early contouring of the peri-implant soft tissues without undue stress on the grafted and implanted sites. This procedure provided the natural cervicofacial contours of the extracted teeth for development of ideal emergence profiles. Thus, the early initiation of soft tissue contouring led to a predictable and stable esthetic outcome even when implant placement and grafting were performed concurrently (Figure 13 and 14). It reduced the number of surgical procedures and the treatment time required to deliver definitive restorations.
An impression for the definitive restorations was made after finalizing the soft tissue contours. Proper design of the definitive restoration was crucial for a positive long-term prognosis. Definitive restorations were fabricated using a customized titanium one-piece abutment (NC Variobase abutment, Straumann) that captured the molded contours of the soft tissue surrounding the implant. In addition, it allowed the definitive restorations to be cleansable and retrievable.
This clinical report presented the use of the patient’s modified permanent extracted teeth as immediate provisional restorations during the initial healing phase immediately following the single stage procedure of implant placement and bone grafting. The cervical contours of the extracted teeth were used to influence the initial soft tissue remodeling and healing. As well, it described the clinical procedures involved in fabricating the definitive restorations reproducing similar ideal soft tissue profiles. A combination of cement and screw-retained definitive restorations was described.
Priest G. Esthetic potential of single-implant provisional restorations: selection criteria of available alternatives. J Esthet Restor Dent. 2006; 18: 326-338.
Becker W, Goldstein M. Immediate implant placement: treatment planning and surgical steps for successful outcome. Periodontol. 2000. 2008; 47: 79-89.
Becker CM, Wilson TG, Jr., Jensen OT. Minimum criteria for immediate provisionalization of single-tooth dental implants in extraction sites: a 1-year retrospective study of 100 consecutive cases. J Oral Maxillofac Surg. 2011; 69: 491-497.
Schoenbaum TR, Klokkevold PR, Chang YY. Immediate implant-supported provisional restoration with a root-form pontic for the replacement of two adjacent anterior maxillary teeth: A clinical report. J Prosthet Dent. 2013; 109: 277-282.
Albrektsson T, Branemark PI, Hansson HA, Lindstrom J. Osseointegrated titanium implants. Requirements for ensuring a long-lasting, direct bone-to-implant anchorage in man. Acta Orthop Scand. 1981; 52: 155-170.
Branemark PI. Osseointegration and its experimental background. J Prosthet Dent. 1983; 50: 399-410.
Becker W, Becker BE, Israelson H, Lucchini JP, Handelsman M, Ammons W, et al. One-step surgical placement of Branemark implants: a prospective multicenter clinical study. Int J Oral Maxillofac Implants. 1997; 12: 454-462.
Barone A, Rispoli L, Vozza I, Quaranta A, Covani U. Immediate restoration of single implants placed immediately after tooth extraction. J Periodontol. 2006; 77: 1914-1920.
Hammerle CH, Chen ST, Wilson TG, Jr. Consensus statements and recommended clinical procedures regarding the placement of implants in extraction sockets. Int J Oral Maxillofac Implants. 2004; 19: 26-28.
Esposito M, Grusovin MG, Polyzos IP, Felice P, Worthington HV. Interventions for replacing missing teeth: dental implants in fresh extraction sockets (immediate, immediate-delayed and delayed implants). Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2010; CD005968.
Harvey BV. Optimizing the esthetic potential of implant restorations through the use of immediate implants with immediate provisionals. J Periodontol. 2007; 78: 770-776.
Wohrle PS. Single-tooth replacement in the aesthetic zone with immediate provisionalization: fourteen consecutive case reports. Pract Periodontics Aesthet Dent. 1998; 10: 1107-1114.
Schoenbaum TR, Han TJ. Direct custom implant impression copings for the preservation of the pontic receptor site architecture. J Prosthet Dent. 2012; 107: 203-206.
De Rouck T, Collys K, Cosyn J. Single-tooth replacement in the anterior maxilla by means of immediate implantation and provisionalization: a review. Int J Oral Maxillofac Implants. 2008; 23: 897-904.
De Rouck T, Collys K, Cosyn J. Immediate single-tooth implants in the anterior maxilla: a 1-year case cohort study on hard and soft tissue response. J Clin Periodontol. 2008; 35: 649-657.
Kan JY, Rungcharassaeng K, Lozada J. Immediate placement and provisionalization of maxillary anterior single implants: 1-year prospective study. Int J Oral Maxillofac Implants. 2003; 18: 31-39.
Cochran DL. The evidence for immediate loading of implants. J Evid Based Dent Pract. 2006; 6: 155-163.
Salama H, Rose LF, Salama M, Betts NJ. Immediate loading of bilaterally splinted titanium root-form implants in fixed prosthodontics--a technique reexamined: two case reports. Int J Periodontics Restorative Dent. 1995; 15: 344-361.
Randow K, Ericsson I, Nilner K, Petersson A, Glantz PO. Immediate functional loading of Branemark dental implants. An 18-month clinical follow-up study. Clin Oral Implants Res. 1999; 10: 8-15.
Tarnow DP, Emtiaz S, Classi A. Immediate loading of threaded implants at stage 1 surgery in edentulous arches: ten consecutive case reports with 1- to 5-year data. Int J Oral Maxillofac Implants. 1997; 12: 319-324.
Atieh MA, Payne AG, Duncan WJ, Cullinan MP. Immediate restoration/loading of immediately placed single implants: is it an effective bimodal approach? Clin Oral Implants Res. 2009; 20: 645-659.
Vandeweghe S, Nicolopoulos C, Thevissen E, Jimbo R, Wennerberg A, De Bruyn H. Immediate loading of screw-retained all-ceramic crowns in immediate versus delayed single implant placement. Int J Prosthodont. 2013; 26: 458-464.
Khzam N, Arora H, Kim P, Fisher A, Mattheos N, Ivanovski S. Systematic Review of Soft Tissue Alterations and Esthetic Outcomes Following Immediate Implant Placement and Restoration of Single Implants in the Anterior Maxilla. J Periodontol. 2015; 86: 1321-1330.
Saito H, Chu SJ, Reynolds MA, Tarnow DP. Provisional Restorations Used in Immediate Implant Placement Provide a Platform to Promote Peri-implant Soft Tissue Healing: A Pilot Study. Int J Periodontics Restorative Dent. 2015; 36: 47-52.
Margeas RC. Predictable periimplant gingival esthetics: use of the natural tooth as a provisional following implant placement. J Esthet Restor Dent. 2006; 18: 5-12. |
0.92379 | The viral etiology and the transmission by mosquitoes were discovered in the 20th century. Population movements during World War II spread the disease globally. The first epidemic of dengue hemorrhagic fever (DHF) was described in Southeast Asia, Manila in 1953. After that, outbreaks of dengue fever became more common. In the 1950s, 9 countries reported dengue outbreaks. Epidemic dengue has become more common since the 1980s. By the late 1990s, dengue was the most important mosquito-borne disease affecting humans after malaria, with around 40 million cases of dengue fever and several hundred thousand cases of dengue hemorrhagic fever each year (see figure 1). Significant outbreaks of dengue fever tend to occur every five or six months. DHF epidemics occur yearly, with major outbreaks occurring approximately every 3 years. This pattern has repeated itself as dengue fever has spread to new regions.
Figure 1. Countries and areas at risk of dengue transmission (orange). Note that mainly subtropical and tropical regions are at risk (Source: World Health Organization).
Although initial epidemics were located in urban areas, increased dengue spread has involved suburban and rural locales in Asia and Latin America. The only continents that do not experience dengue transmission include Europe and Antarctica. Dengue transmission spread from Southeast Asia into surrounding subtropical and tropical Asian countries, southern China and southern Taiwan, the Indian subcontinent and Sri Lanka, and down the island nations of Malaysia, the Philippines, New Guinea, northeastern Australia, and several Pacific islands, including Tahiti, Palau, Tonga, and the Cook Islands (see figure 1). Nepal has not reported dengue transmission. Hyperendemic transmission is reported in Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia, Pakistan, India, Malaysia, and the Philippines. Dengue continues to extend its range.
Note that the reported cases of dengue are an under-representation of all cases when accounting for subclinical cases and cases where the patient did not present for medical treatment.
DHF is one of the leading causes of hospitalization and death in children in many Southeast Asian countries, with Indonesia reporting the majority of dengue hemorrhagic fever cases. In Indonesia, young adults in Jakarta and provincial areas make up a larger percentage of infected patients. During the 2000 epidemic in Bangladesh, up to 82% of hospitalized patients were adults, and all deaths occurred in patients older than 5 years. Since 1982 in Singapore, more than 50% of deaths have occurred in individuals older than 15 years. In Singapore, there are 4,000–5,000 reported cases of dengue fever or dengue haemorrhagic fever every year. In the year 2004, there were seven deaths from dengue shock syndrome. In 2013 there was a major outbreak in Singapore with a total of 21,324 cases by the end of the year.
The dengue case load in the Philippines for the first quarter of 2011 was some 5% higher than the preceding year, at 18,885 cases and 115 deaths. Some 52,008 cases of dengue fever were recorded in Thailand in 2012, with 50 deaths. In 2014, dengue deaths have tripled in Malaysia over 2013, after tripling 2013 over 2012. In tropical and subtropical Asia, nearly all nations had reported explosive increases.
In Pakistan, in the summer of 2011, more than 300 people died of Dengue fever. The prevalence of the disease was over 14,000. The outbreaks occurred mostly in the Lahore area, Punjab, Pakistan. In 2013, in Guangdong, China, there was a 15-fold increase over last year and 5-fold increase of mosquitos has left the normally lightly hit region stunned. Likewise Taiwan also had a 10-fold increase in cases in 2013. In 2015, China's caseload has plunged to less than a tenth of the prior year due to massive releases of sterilized mosquitos.
There was a serious outbreak in Rio de Janeiro in February 2002 affecting around one million people and killing sixteen. On March 20, 2008, the secretary of health of the state of Rio de Janeiro, Sérgio Côrtes, announced that 23,555 cases of dengue, including 30 deaths, had been recorded in the state in less than three months. By April 3, 2008, the number of cases reported rose to 55,000. An epidemic broke out in Bolivia in early 2009, in which 18 people have died and 31,000 infected. In the same year there was a dengue outbreak in Argentina in the northern provinces of Chaco, Catamarca, Salta, Jujuy, and Corrientes, with over 9673 cases reported as of April 11, 2009 by the Health Ministry. Some travelers from the affected zones have spread the fever as far south as Buenos Aires.
Major efforts to control the epidemic in Argentina are focused on preventing its vector from reproducing. This is addressed by asking people to dry out all possible water reservoirs from where mosquitoes could proliferate. Previously, dengue epidemics were rare in South America because the mosquitoes had been eradicated from most of the region through coordinated vector-control efforts. Systematic spraying was halted in the early 1970s because of environmental concerns. By the 1990s, Aedes aegypti mosquitoes repopulated most of the countries in which they had been eliminated. Hyperendemic circulation of all four dengue serotypes is now present in the northern countries of South America. Brazil, Colombia, and Venezuela report the most cases of dengue and dengue hemorrhagic fever. In 2010, Latin America alone reported a sum of 1.5 million cases. In only 7 weeks in 2013, in Brazil some 205,000 cases of dengue were reported. In Peru, nearly 400 cases have been reported until March 2013 of whoch two of them were fatal. Since the beginning of 2013, in Paraguay 35 people have died after contracting dengue fever and almost 70,000 are still infected. Argentina is registering a Dengue fever outbreak in late January 2016 with 13 of 24 provinces affected.
In 1981, the first DHF epidemic in the Caribbean occurred in Cuba and involved serotype 2 dengue (DENV-2). Previously, serotype 1 dengue (DENV-1) was introduced into a largely susceptible population in Cuba in 1977. Serosurveys indicated that more than 44% of the population was infected, with only mild disease reported. With the introduction of serotype 2 dengue, hundreds of thousands of cases of dengue in both children and adults were reported, including 24,000 cases of DHF, 10,000 cases of dengue shock syndrome (DSS), and 158 reported deaths. Significant outbreaks of dengue have been reported in 2005 and 2006 in Puerto Rico, the US Virgin Islands, the Dominican Republic, Barbados, Curacao, Guadeloupe, and Martinique. Outbreaks have been reported in Puerto Rico since 1915 and large island-wide epidemics have been documented since the late 1960s. The most recent island-wide epidemic occurred in 2007, when more than 10,000 cases were diagnosed. In Puerto Rico, and most of the Caribbean Basin, the mosquito is abundant year-round. In 2010 there was on outbreak occurring in Puerto Rico with 5382 confirmed infections and 20 deaths.
The epidemiology of dengue fever in Africa is more poorly characterized. The mosquito is present in a large portion of the Middle East and sub-Saharan Africa. Dengue fever is present in 19 countries on the African continent. In a 1993 epidemic in the Comoros, an estimated 60,000 persons were infected with dengue. However, no major dengue hemorrhagic fever epidemics have occurred in Africa, despite the fact that all 4 dengue serotypes circulate in the continent.
An outbreak of dengue fever was declared in Cairns, located in the tropical north of Queensland, Australia on 1 December 2008. As at 3 March 2009 there were 503 confirmed cases of dengue fever, in a residential population of 152,137. Outbreaks were subsequently declared the neighbouring cities and towns of Townsville (outbreak declared 5 January 2009), Port Douglas (6 February 2009), Yarrabah (19 February 2009), Injinoo (24 February 2009), Innisfail (27 February 2009) and Rockhampton (10 March 2009). There have been occurrences of dengue types one, two, three and four in the region. March 4 2009, Queensland Health had confirmed an elderly woman had died from dengue fever in Cairns, in the first fatality since the epidemic began last year. The statement said that although the woman had other health problems, she tested positive for dengue and the disease probably contributed to her death.
Nearly all dengue cases reported in the 48 continental states were acquired elsewhere by travelers or immigrants from Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Samoa and Guam, which are endemic for the virus. Because contact between the mosquito Aedes aegypti and people is infrequent in the continental U.S., these imported cases rarely result in secondary transmission. The mosquito is currently seasonally abundant in some areas of the southwestern and southeastern United States, including Texas, Arizona, New Mexico, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, and mid to south Florida. Aedes aegypti has also been reported sporadically in portions of North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Arkansas, Maryland, and New Jersey. The last reported continental dengue outbreak was in south Texas in 2005. A small dengue outbreak occurred in Hawaii in 2001. Dengue appeared in the Hawaiian Islands in late 2015, with at least 190 cases confirmed by year end. Most cases were reported on the island of Hawaii.
Europe does not have an appropriate mosquito population to allow further spread of dengue from viremic patients returning from other countries. Therefore, dengue fever does not naturally occur in the European Union and in continental Europe. As such, the disease is not statutorily notifiable in most member states. However, dengue does occur in several overseas territories of European Union members. In recent decades, reports of dengue infections in long-term expatriates, aid workers, military personnel, immigrants, and travelers returning from the tropics and subtropics have been increasing. |
0.999769 | I love to study algorithms, in particular if it involves drawing lots of pretty pictures when designing them. Specifically, I am interested in graph drawing, computational geometry, and algorithms for planar graphs.
My first research work was in Graph Drawing . We are given a graph for which we want to create a "nice" drawing. This has applications in many areas of computer science, such as software engineering, databases, decision support systems, as well as in other sciences such as biology and chemistry. Part of the problem is to define what is meant by a "nice" drawing. During my graduate studies I developed a number of results for orthogonal graph drawing, i.e., the style in which the graph is embedded into a rectangular grid. Since then, I have focused more on three-dimensional graph drawing, and other graph drawing styles. However, orthogonal graph drawings continue to haunt me (to the point that I sometimes believe that my brain is wired orthogonally).
Some people claim that graph drawing is a subfield of Computational Geometry. I don't want to voice an opinion of this, but regardless, this is also a field I'm interested in. Geometrical problems are frequently solved by converting the continuous geometrical structure into a discrete problem, which can then be formulated as a graph problem, and solved with graph algorithms. In particular, I have studied areas of Computational Geometry that involve origami-type questions (in particular, folding of linkages and surfaces) and motion planning.
I enjoy working with graphs, in particular planar graphs, and developing Graph Algorithms. Lately, I have been studying problems of the following type. Every planar graph has a 4-coloring of the vertices. From this 4-coloring, a number of interesting features can be obtained. For example, every planar graph has an independent vertex set of size n/4, every bridgeless 3-regular graph has a perfect matching, and every planar graph can be made bipartite by deleting at most m/3 edges. The 4-coloring of a planar graph can be found in O(n2) time, but the algorithm is not very practical, since the constants involved are huge. Which of the derived (and weaker) properties of a planar graph can be obtained without computation of a 4-coloring, and ideally in less time? In particular, I am interested in matching problems and independent sets.
In my spare time, I also like to think about Computational Biology, Data Structures, and VLSI design. |
0.935028 | Can uncontested elections be done by acclamation? There is disagreement in the legal community about whether ballots must be sent out if the election is uncontested, i.e., the number of candidates is less than or equal to the number of open seats.
Notwithstanding any other law or provision of the governing documents...election and removal of directors... shall be held by secret ballot in accordance with the procedures set forth in this article.
2. Arguments For Acclamation. Those who believe that balloting is not necessary point out that the law does not require idle acts nor does it favor form over substance. (Civ. Code §3532; Civ. Code §3528; Letitia V. v. Superior Court (2000) 81 Cal.App.4th 1009, 1016.) Moreover, Civil Code §5100(a) requires balloting only if an election requires a vote. If the election is uncontested, there is no need for a vote. The purpose of secret balloting is to protect voting privacy in contested elections not uncontested elections.
Under Robert's Rules of Order, if there is no opposition there is no need for a formal vote. The matter is decided by "acclamation" or by "unanimous consent." However, unanimous consent or acclamation cannot be used if the bylaws require the election to be by ballot. (Robert's Rules, 11th ed., p. 443.) Therefore, (i) if an association's governing documents require that membership meetings be held in accordance with Robert's Rules of order and (ii) if the association's bylaws require that its election be done by balloting, the bylaws should be amended to dispense with balloting in uncontested elections.
Term of Office: If counting the ballots affects the outcome in some fashion, i.e., it determines who receives a 1-year term and who receives a 2-year term, then ballots should be mailed and counted so as to determine who receives which seat.
Recommendation: Dispensing with balloting in uncontested elections makes the most economic sense. To remove any ambiguities, associations should amend their bylaws to dispense with balloting in uncontested elections (along with write-ins, floor nominations, quorum requirements, proxies and cumulative voting). |
0.992096 | "How can I tell if my dog had a stroke?" That is a question some owners ask when their dog displays some classic symptoms associated with strokes in humans. Learn the signs of a stroke as well as a few conditions that produce symptoms similar to a stroke.
A stroke is a condition that interrupts the normal blood flow in the brain, and it can be caused by a ruptured vessel or a blood clot. This results in the death of brain cells, and it can affect your dog in many ways. However, the first thing you need to know is that strokes are far rarer in dogs than they are in people. In most cases, the symptoms that may appear to be caused by a stroke are actually due to some other condition. The good news is that dogs often recover from a stroke far more easily than most people, so it's not a totally hopeless situation if your dog actually does have a stroke.
The following signs could be indicators that your dog has had a stroke. Keep in mind that you'll need a proper diagnosis from your vet to determine exactly what's wrong with your pet.
Sluggishness - Your dog may suddenly seem too tired to respond to you or perhaps unable to move.
Lack of bladder control - A dog may release urine involuntarily during the stroke and remain unable to control his bladder after the event.
Lack of bowel control - Similar to a loss of bladder control, a dog may not even be aware that he is releasing his bowels due to a lack of muscle control brought on by brain damage from the stroke.
Unable to keep balance - The dog may list to one side or another, or he may be weak and wobbly and even fall over when trying to walk.
Head tilt - The dog appears to have its head cocked as though listening with one ear. However, the animal is suffering from a loss of equilibrium, so the head tilt it usually associated with circling and a loss of balance.
Paralysis - Dogs often experience some measure of paralysis with a stroke. The dog may lose the use of one or more legs, keeping it from being able to walk. There may also be some facial paralysis that causes drooping of an eye or the jaw, but this symptom is far more common in people than in dogs.
Impaired vision - This can be anything from eye problems like blurry vision to complete blindness.
If you suspect your dog has had a stroke, the first thing you need to do is take him to the vet for an examination. Your vet will first give your dog a physical exam and make a list of any outward signs. If the signs appear to point toward a possible stroke, your vet will then move on to a neurological exam. This can include an MRI or a CT scan to get a look at what's going on inside your dog's brain. The vet is looking for signs of a blocked artery or an internal bleed.
While the signs and symptoms of these conditions can mirror that of a stroke, the only way to tell for sure which is affecting your dog is through imaging tests. Your veterinarian will perform CT scans, MRIs, electrocardiograms, x-rays, and ultrasounds among other tests to make a correct diagnosis.
There is actually very little the vet can do to treat a canine stroke once the damage is done. Therefore, vets look for the initial cause of the stroke and treat that cause in order to prevent future strokes from happening. According to the American Animal Hospital Association, most dogs who have suffered from a stroke "have a good outcome" and the quicker you can get your dog to a vet, the more likely they will have a positive result. The prognosis for your individual dog will depend on a variety of factors such as their age, overall health, underlying medical conditions and the intensity of the stroke incident. The majority of dogs that make it through the initial few days of treatment are likely to have a full of close-to-full recovery, although it may include some physical deficits that can be handled through physical therapy and supportive care. You may also notice some neurological and behavioral changes that could be permanent but do not necessarily impact your dog's quality of life.
Some veterinarians may suggest the use of aspirin for dogs that have suffered from a stroke. A low-dose of half a milligram per kilogram weight of the dog may be used in some situations to prevent blood clots from forming. However, you should discuss this carefully with your veterinarian as the use of aspirin in dogs for stroke is not widespread and does not have much research to back it up at this time.
The list of symptoms above can help you answer the question, "How can I tell if my dog had a stroke?" You'll really need your vet's help to get an official diagnosis and follow up care, so make sure you get your dog to the vet right away. |
0.998156 | Did you know that there’s a natural antidepressant in soil? It’s true. Mycobacterium vaccae is the substance under study and has indeed been found to mirror the effect on neurons that drugs like Prozac provide. The bacterium is found in soil and may stimulate serotonin production, which makes you relaxed and happier. Studies were conducted on cancer patients and they reported a better quality of life and less stress.
Mycobacterium antidepressant microbes in soil are also being investigated for improving cognitive function, Crohn’s disease and even rheumatoid arthritis.
Antidepressant microbes in soil cause cytokine levels to rise, which results in the production of higher levels of serotonin. The bacterium was tested both by injection and ingestion on rats, and the results were increased cognitive ability, lower stress and better concentration on tasks than a control group. |
0.897602 | Cinnamon is a common spice to have during the holidays, but did you know it also has a lot of health benefits? Cinnamon is not only loaded with vitamins and minerals, but it can be really good for serious illnesses.
Many people are surprised when they learn of all the nutrients from this simple spice. Cinnamon has no fat, protein or sugar, and a small number of calories. It is a good source of fiber, vitamin K, iron, manganese, and calcium. It also has some antioxidant abilities, which as you know helps to fight off certain illnesses and infections. Since the cold and flu are both common during the holiday season, it is good to add to your different snacks and treats during this time of year.
There are a lot of medical conditions that cinnamon helps with, and among them is type 2 diabetes. It won’t help to prevent or even cure diabetes, but it can be good at helping to manage the disease. Cinnamon has a positive impact on blood pressure, so by reducing blood pressure, it helps to avoid any complications that are common with this type of diabetes. Cinnamon is also good at reducing insulin resistance, so someone with diabetes might have better blood sugar levels.
While technically a spice, cinnamon can also be considered a natural herb to help with anti-aging. For your skin, cinnamon provides those precious anti-inflammatory compounds in many of the herbs and other natural remedies for anti-aging. The cinnamon can also protect your body in other ways, including arthritis and with things like tooth disease and bacteria in the body. This helps reduce stress on the body, which also helps reduce stress on your face.
Another important benefit of cinnamon is the fact that it contains excellent anti-inflammatory capabilities. Inflammation can affect many things going on in your body, from arthritis of your joints, to brain function, heart disease, and even cancer. There are flavonoid compounds in cinnamon, which is why they are good at fighting inflammation, particularly dangerous inflammation that leads to cardiovascular issues and serious diseases.
As mentioned already, cinnamon is really good for your cardiovascular health. At any age, it is important to protect your heart and related functions. Whether you are a high risk for heart problems or not, adding a little cinnamon to your diet never hurts. It has a lot of nutrients as well, so this is just an added bonus.
High cholesterol can have a devastating impact on the health. It can lead to atherosclerosis, which clogs up the arteries, reducing blood flow and increasing the risk of heart disease. Therefore, it’s no wonder health experts stress the need for us to watch our cholesterol levels.
Cinnamon is known to reduce the levels of LDL(bad) cholesterol, while also increasing the levels of HDL (good) cholesterol. So, if you’re looking to combat high cholesterol, you’ll want to start adding cinnamon to your daily diet.
So by using this spice you can help lower your cholesterol and blood pressure, both of which are risks for heart disease. Sprinkle cinnamon on your coffee, have some cinnamon cake for breakfast, or add it to your smoothie and you will benefit from it.
If you’re looking to give your brain a little boost, cinnamon can help. It’s said to improve memory, eliminate nervous tension and boost cognitive function.
So, if you’ve got a test you need to study for, or you’re worried your memory isn’t what it used to be, you may want to start adding cinnamon to your diet.
Antioxidants are required by the body to fight off illnesses and combat the damage caused by free radicals. Now, many foods contain antioxidants, but cinnamon has one of the highest contents of any food, including super foods such as garlic.
In particular, it contains polyphenol antioxidants. These are known to help slow down the progression of Diabetes, cardiovascular diseases and even cancer. Put simply, cinnamon is one of the best foods you can add to your daily diet to keep the body healthy.
There’s been a few studies which have shown cinnamon can have beneficial effects of Neurodegenerative diseases. Perhaps the most common types of these diseases are Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s Disease.
It’s reported that cinnamon contains two compounds which are able to prevent the tau protein from building up; a protein linked to Alzheimer’s disease.
However, the studies so far have been conducted on mice with Neurodegenerative diseases so further research is required on humans.
Cinnamon’s main active ingredient “Cinnamaldehyde”, has the potential to fight a range of infections. Respiratory infections for example, have been known to be treated by cinnamon oil.
It has also shown to have the power to prevent particularly nasty bacteria such as Salmonella and Listeria from developing.
Those suffering from tooth decay and bad breath may also benefit from cinnamon’s antimicrobial effects. For this purpose, cinnamon powder would be most beneficial.
If you’re looking to gain the health benefits of cinnamon, you may be wondering which form you should be investing in.
When most people think of cinnamon, they think of either the ground or the stick varieties. However, there’s actually numerous different forms available. Below, we’ll look at the various forms on offer and how they’re typically used.
Out of all of the different forms of cinnamon available, cinnamon oil is the one many people have never heard of. It contains a very high antioxidant content which makes it ideal for medical use.
Although classed as an essential oil, it is possible to digest small amounts of cinnamon oil. For example, it can be used in cooking, placed into a cup of tea, or even placed onto the toothbrush. It’s worth noting here that with any of these methods, you’re only using 1-2 drops, so it’s not something you can consume in large quantities.
It’s said to boast many health benefits including the promotion of circulation, it boosts oral health, it acts as a natural aphrodisiac and helps to maintain a healthy immune system.
Cinnamon sticks are pretty common and they can be used in a variety of ways. They’re used to add flavor to foods and drinks and they also release a beautiful aroma.
You can add them to soups, tea, rice and mulled wine for a mouth-watering flavor. Alternatively, they can also be used for non-cooking purposes such as a foot wash. Adding 2-3 cinnamon sticks into hot water is said to relieve conditions such as Athletes foot.
This is potentially the most well-known form of cinnamon and it’s most commonly used in baking. It’s also referred to as ground cinnamon, so if you see “Cinnamon powder” in one store and “Ground Cinnamon” in another, they’re basically the same thing.
Like other forms, the powder can be used for a range of other purposes including a hair mask, a bath powder and even as an ant repellent.
Finally, you’ll come across cinnamon pills. These are basically supplements, designed to give you the health benefits of cinnamon, without the overpowering taste. Compared to other varieties, they’re the easiest to digest.
As you can see, there’s lots of different forms of cinnamon out there and each has its own unique use. When choosing the right form for you, take into account what you’re using the cinnamon for and how you want to use it.
Many people have no idea there’s many different species of cinnamon as it’s often associated as a universal spice.
Each type has a slightly different flavor and they also offer their own unique benefits and potential side effects. Here, you’ll discover the most popular types of cinnamon and the differences between them.
Ceylon has the strongest flavor and scent and tends to be best used for baking. Saigon cinnamon originates from Vietnam and it has a slightly sweeter taste, yet still retains a powerful scent and flavor. Cassia cinnamon is otherwise referred to as Chinese cinnamon and it’s often used in Chinese medicine. Out of the different types, Cassia cinnamon is much poorer quality.
The Saigon, Cassia and Korintje are often grouped together and classified simply as Cassia cinnamon, due to their strong similarities.
Out of the four commercial varieties, Ceylon is the most popular, as well as the most beneficial types available. Referred to as “True Cinnamon”, it’s much softer and more brittle than the others. It also has a lower Coumarin content, which can be potentially dangerous to the health.
Coumarin is a substance which has links to liver damage. All of the Cassia types of cinnamon contain high levels of Coumarin so it’s important to limit your consumption.
In some cases, Coumarin can lead to total liver failure. It’s for this reason the German Government actually decided to ban the sale of Cassia type cinnamon at one point. Many people are unaware of the dangers these types of cinnamon come with and are drawn to them for their cheaper price.
It is worth noting that if liver damage does occur due to an excessive Coumarin content, experts claim it is reversible. However, with Ceylon cinnamon readily available, it makes sense to avoid the risk entirely and simply opt for this low Coumarin variety.
It’s definitely worth being aware of the different types of cinnamon available. While Cassia varieties tend to be cheaper, they do contain high levels of Coumarin which you need to be wary of. If you’re opting to include cinnamon in your daily diet for its health benefits, you’d be better off sticking to Ceylon cinnamon.
Which Cranberry Type is Better? Is There a Difference in Nutrition?
Which Cranberry Type is Better?
Like many other foods, cranberries come in a variety of forms. As well as the standard fresh cranberries found in grocery stores, you can also take them in extract, dried and juice formation.
Is There a Difference in Nutrition?
The question is, if you’re looking to experience the benefits cranberries have to offer, which form is better?
Although all forms of cranberry are good for the health, some do contain stronger health benefits than others.
If you’re looking to gain maximum benefits, you’ll want to stick to either fresh whole cranberries or cranberry extract. This is because both of these types have been largely unaltered and cranberries in their natural state have the highest concentration of antioxidants.
However, it’s worth noting not all cranberry extracts contain the same amount of benefits. You’ll need to make sure you’re choosing a high-quality, well-known extract if you want to experience maximum benefits.
Dried cranberries do offer some nutritional value, but they also contain a lot of natural and added sugar. So, they’re largely advised as a healthy snack.
Similarly, cranberry juice can have a lot of added sugar and it’s also not as concentrated as other forms. So, its nutritional content is again limited.
Another thing to keep in mind when you’re choosing which form of cranberry to include in your diet, is the potential side effects.
Fresh, whole cranberries don’t typically have side effects unless you’re consuming an unhealthy amount. They don’t have anything added, so if you’re looking for the most natural and safest way of adding cranberries to your diet, you’ll want to invest in the fresh ones.
Dried cranberries and cranberry juice on the other hand, can cause numerous health issues. Due to the added sugar content, they can prove detrimental to blood sugar levels and be potentially dangerous for those with Diabetes.
The added sugar also isn’t great for those watching their weight. So, if you’re on a diet and you’re looking for a healthy snack, be wary of consuming too many dried cranberries.
Cranberry extract should also be taken with caution. While high-quality extracts can be really beneficial, in the long-term they can lead to problems such as kidney stones.
Cranberries do have a lot of health benefits, but only if they’re consumed correctly. Fresh, whole cranberries cannot be beaten in terms of nutrition and health benefits. So, if you’re looking for the best type of cranberry to add to your diet, fresh is definitely the way to go.
Whitening your teeth can be a costly process. In order to commit to a professional tooth whitening routine, you have to pay for routine visits to your dental office. If you want to do it from home, you may end up purchasing several kits. Both of these options use chemical bleaches of some kind, and both are far from natural options. If you want to avoid the chemicals and keep your cost budget friendly, you may want to go with some natural teeth whitening methods.
Here are a few homemade options to consider.
Baking soda is a natural option for many things around your home from cleaning to even being used as a way to stop odor. You can use it in an oral care routine by simply using it to make a natural toothpaste. Take two parts coconut oil, one part baking soda, a few drops of your favorite flavored essential oil. Use this in place of your normal toothpaste. The oil helps cut down on the harsh abrasiveness of baking soda alone and helps to hydrate the gums. The baking soda will help to work away plaque and toxins and to help you remove them from your teeth and whiten the enamel.
One of the benefits of using a coconut oil pulling routine is the whitening effect it offers.This does take time and is not as quick or evident as using baking soda, but it also does not have an abrasive behavior either.
When you use an oil pulling method you are breaking down the toxins and bacteria that can build up on teeth and cause staining. This means that you are, in effect, whitening your teeth through the process. You then brush away the remaining oil residue and rinse away anything else. This cleans, removes toxins, and leaves you with whiter teeth over time without causing sensitivity or breakdown of the enamel.
Charcoal is not something you may normally think of when you think of tooth whitening.The truth is, it can help greatly. The charcoal powder can be used directly on your toothbrush and applied to your teeth. Simply brush as normal and rinse. It will break up toxins, bacteria, and stain causing agents and remove them from your teeth. You will need to do a long rinse after this to remove all the charcoal powder from your mouth and teeth.
Keep in mind, this will stain clothing as well as your brush so do be careful when using it.
Also keep in mind that you need to focus not only on whitening your teeth, but keeping an eye on your teeth as well.
Make sure you are taking notice if you start to feel a sensitivity to cold or warm foods, if you notice inflammation of the gums, or if you notice other issues. Stop your routine and seek a dental professional if any of these issues occur.
You might love the taste of honey, but don’t forget about all the benefits it has for the skin!
Here are five different ways you can use it on your face.
The first way you can use honey for your skin is to clean with it. This might seem counter productive, but the properties of raw honey can actually really help to cleanse your skin and keep those pores clear. Just make sure you are using raw, locally-sourced honey, and not the sugar-laden honey you find in grocery stores. Since honey is very thick, it is hard to cleanse with it by itself. Mix the honey with a healthy oil like coconut oil until you can spread it on your face, then massage it and rinse off.
One of raw honey’s natural health benefits is that it works as an antibacterial. If you are either prone to skin infections or you already have an infection starting, you can treat it with a little bit of raw honey. An easy way to use honey as an antibacterial is to make honey compresses with some honey on a damp cloth, dabbing it on your skin, letting it sit there, then rinsing it off.
If you suffer from oily skin, you can use raw honey to help prevent breakouts. It is best that you make yourself a little mask that uses honey and some other natural ingredients.
You want something with salicylic acid that is more natural than what you find in drug stores, so strawberries are a good option. You can combine mashed strawberries with honey on their own, or add in a little baking soda to turn it into a scrub.
As you know, exfoliating your skin helps to cleanse it while also removing dead skin cells. There are many products you can use, both store-bought and homemade. Honey is an excellent choice for making your own exfoliator, by combining raw honey with some baking soda and a little bit of jojoba oil or coconut oil. Scrub gently on your face and rinse with cool or tepid water.
Do you have a lot of acne? This might not only be caused by extra oils on your skin, but from bacteria that is clogging your pores. Use honey to treat pimples and other acne on your face by putting some raw honey directly on the areas. Let it sit about 10 minutes, then rinse off.
If you want to detox your skin, it isn’t all about what you put on your skin, but what you put inside your skin. Water is one of the best things for your skin, especially when you add more nutrients to it.
This is where infusing water with fruits, vegetables, and herbs comes in. Below are some amazing infused water combinations to drink to help detox your skin.
you can add lemon slices to it.
you can choose an herb as well, like basil or mint.
you can add in some strawberries and lemon slices as well.
Gingivitis is marked by swelling of the gums. There are several factors that play into what causes this issue. Overall, it can be a very painful oral care issue to take care of. You can end up with bleeding gums, pain in your mouth, and ongoing issues with tooth pain and decay.
You may be wondering how you can reverse gingivitis. You have a few options, which include medications and medicated oral care products.
Another option is to go with a natural remedy. Below are a few of the natural options you may want to try.
One of the ways that you can combat gingivitis is to start a coconut oil pull routine.
chemicals and you are still getting the area clean.
noticeable issue of gingivitis is the swelling and inflammation of the gums.
certain parts of the mouth. Your jaw may hurt, a specific tooth may ache, and so on.
that spot if it is still hurting after your oral care routine.
organic products but truly natural plant-based ones as well.
When you are researching the use of spirulina in your daily routine, you may first look at the benefits. After you have done that, you will likely look at the ways you can use it and what you should do for specific goals.
What many people skip over are the possible side effects. These may not be severe, but they are something to consider if you are new to superfoods since some may have side effects that are startling but normal.
Here are a few of the possible side effects of spirulina to consider.
When you first start using spirulina, and before you work out a routine that works best for you, you may notice some constipation.This can be as mild as gas and some mild constipation and inflammation. It can also be severe, requiring you to take laxatives to help break up the constipation. This is an easily fixed side effect to spirulina and only requires adjusting your intake. Instead of using spirulina daily, you can cut it down to every other day or just a few times a week.
The dosage of spirulina is usually 3 grams. If you want to keep taking it daily, you can lower the amount to 1 gram instead.
Unfortunately, since blue green algae in capsule or powder form is considered to be unregulated by the FDA, you may not be getting the ideal purity you are looking for. This means that some of the spirulina may be contaminated. This can cause illness or in severe cases liver disease or failure. To avoid this, make sure you are buying your spirulina from a reliable source such as a local health food store that has regular and reputable suppliers.
If you are not used to taking a large amount of minerals and vitamins a day, then you may experience mild levels of an increased heart rate. This is due to the burst of energy you may be getting as well as the boost of minerals and vitamins. This is normal and should not be taken as alarming. If it continues, lower your amount to 1 gram and then increase it as needed.
By keeping these side effects in mind, you will know what to expect if one of them does occur. This may mean a slight change in your routine, dosage, or use may need to change to counteract the side effect. If you are having severe side effects, stop the use of the superfood and seek professional assistance to determine if there is an allergy. |
0.97286 | So here’s the question, if Steven wants to control the number of pages no more than P, what’s the maximum font size he can set? Note that paragraphs must start in a new line and there is no empty line between paragraphs.
Input may contain multiple test cases. The first line is an integer TASKS, representing the number of test cases. For each test case, the first line contains four integers N, P, W and H, as described above. The second line contains N integers a1, a2, … aN, indicating the number of characters in each paragraph. For all test cases, There is always a way to control the number of pages no more than P.
For each test case, output a line with an integer Ans, indicating the maximum font size Steven can set. |
0.999064 | The long Memorial Day weekend is around the corner which means Summer is almost here!! Memorial Day is the unofficial start of Summer, even though it doesn't actually start until June 21st.
Here in the Los Angeles area, the weather forecast says the high will be in the low 80's. A welcome change from the 100 degree weather we've been having.
If you are looking for fun and free things to do this holiday weekend (actually on any weekend), I've come up with at least 10 fun (mostly) outdoor activities that require little to no money at all.
1. Head To The Beach - pack up a cooler with food and drinks and head to the nearest beach. Leave early so you can get good parking for free.
2. Visit Farmers Markets - check out a few farmers market within your neighborhood. Sample a taste or two of some of the fresh fruits or drinks the vendors are offering.
3. Pack A Picnic - Go to your nearby park with picnic basket in tow filled with yummy food, drinks & treats. Enjoy a leisurely day under a shady tree while listening to cool music.
4. Play Sports Outdoors - whether it's a game of basketball, tennis, tag football or frisbee ... the important thing is that you are amongst friends and having fun!
5. Stroll Art Festivals & Street Fairs - make a day out of of browsing through local artist's arts and crafts as well as other interesting vendor wares.
6. Check Out Flea Markets - explore local swap meets or flea markets and discover truly one-of-a-kind treasures.
7. Host A Potluck - instead of going out to a restaurant, get together with your favorite people and have a potluck at someone's house. You can rotate who will host the party next time amongst everyone.
8. Tour Open Houses - pick a neighborhood that you might want to move to someday. Pick up a few ideas on how you might decorate your own home.
9. Go For A Walk - whether it's a walk along the beach or the park, enjoy every sight along the way.
10. Plan Your Next Trip - it's never too early to start planning your next vacation. You not only save time, but money too! Plus, it gives you something to look forward to. |
0.989005 | Let's talk about health care, capitalism and socialism. First, a little math. Think about 10 people you know. Then think about how many have health care that is in some way subsidized or administered by the government. Probably four or more. The most recent U.S. Census report (2017) found that about 40 percent of Americans have coverage through Medicare, Medicaid or the military. This same report found that between 2016 and 2017, the number of people with health insurance increased by 23 million (www.census.gov). That's a lot more people with insurance.
Now some history. I'm a registered nurse, and have been in health care for 30 years, in both administrative and clinical jobs. I have seen Medicare evolve from a program that paid doctor's bills based on "area rates" to an enormous and complex program that calculates reimbursements based on very complicated formulas. This is to contain costs and ensure that our senior citizens get the health care they need. This is socialism. The government runs the program, sets the rates, we pay taxes to finance this program. It's a huge bureaucracy.
What about the Affordable Care Act or "Obamacare." This is a program modeled after the one that Republican Mitt Romney came up with when he was the governor of Massachusetts.This 2006 law mandated that nearly every resident of Massachusetts obtain a minimum level of insurance coverage, provided free health care insurance for residents earning less than 150 percent of the federal poverty level, and mandated employers with more than 10 "full-time" employees to provide healthcare insurance. It was an attempt to work within the capitalistic economic structure and yet achieve coverage for all. People buying insurance in a marketplace environment = capitalism. People getting health care coverage from the government = socialism. Pretty simple.
Well what about drug users and insurance? A study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association in 2016 found that there was a six-fold increase in opioid abuse in Medicare beneficiaries as compared to people on other insurance plans (verywellmind.com). So six times as many people on Medicare were diagnosed as drug abusers ... and the government is paying for it. Some folks think these drug abusers should pay more for their health care coverage, shouldn't they?
Anyone who supports Medicare supports the idea of socialized medicine run by the government, even if they don't realize it. Anyone who supports Obamacare supports a capitalist plan for health care, even if they don't realize it. What's the answer? Time.com reported in 2018 that the American Medical Association supports a single-payer plan (like Medicare for all) as the best fix for our broken medical system. These same doctors believe that health care is a universal human right.
In sum, people over the age of 65 are no more entitled to government-sponsored health care than anyone else. They have the largest increase in drug abuse of any insured population. They are benefitting from an essentially socialistic program. So, should we argue against socialized medicine including Medicare? Or perhaps listen to those who actually provide medical care and come up with a fair plan that provides basic health care to everyone, something that will reduce costs for all? Be careful what labels you apply to health care programs. They may not be what you think. |
0.999814 | First of all, we should remember that in the English language, there are three types of sentences according to the purpose statement: narrative (declarative sentences), imperative (imperative sentences) and question (interrogative sentences). Interrogative sentences in the English language contains a specific question to obtain the necessary information. The order of words in interrogative sentences depends on the type of question (type of question) and by a predicate (predicate). But the basic principle — a statement of question words (question word) — if present — and the auxiliary verb (auxiliary verb) in the beginning of the sentence. In total, we are five types of questions in English.
Typical questions in English a few, and we look at each separately.
Question to the subject (question to the subject).
What happened to us? — What happened to us?
What makes you feel upset? — What makes you sad?
A common question (general question).
Does she like knitting? — She loves to knit?
Do you play computer games? — Do you play computer games?
Is this his book? — This is his book?
Are you at home? — Are you at home? Or Was he at the cinema yesterday? — He was at the theater last night?
Where are you going to move? — Where are you going to move?
What would you like to read? — What would you like to read?
When did you leave the house? — When you left home?
They finished writing the article at 5 pm — They finished writing an article at 5pm.
Did they finish writing the article in the morning or at night? — They finished writing an article in the morning or the evening?
Did they finish writing or reading the article? — They finished write or read the article?
Separating the issue (tag-question / disjunctive question).
Offer negative, brief question is yes.
My mother prefers meat to fish, does not she? — My mother prefers fish to meat, is not it?
I am a pessimist, is not / are not I? — I’m a pessimist, does not it?
You can cook this dish, can not you? — You can prepare this dish, is not it?
She does not go to the church, does she? — She did not go to church, do not you?
Here are all the types of questions in English. Explore ways of their construction, you can easily formulate any interrogative sentences in the English language to any statement. |
0.982615 | I'm fat and I'm an athlete. You shouldn't be surprised.
It's race day and after flying from Vancouver to San Francisco to run my first half-marathon, I am already tired from the anticipation. I get up at 6:00 a.m., brush my teeth and, with insane nervousness, lace up my shoes. I hail a cab to Golden Gate Park where they are hosting the 30th anniversary 5K and Half-Marathon Race. When I arrive, I feel the excitement immediately; there is a buzz of race anticipation coming from the crowd, loud talking and laughter as thousands of people move towards the big archway that marks the start and gateway to what will be one the most physically challenging days of my life. A calm comes over me and the little voice inside my head says on repeat: "You can do this, you can do this." I start buying it.
I inch closer, towards the long rows of tables bustling with volunteers and runners. I find a young man behind the table who's handing out race packages. It's this moment that may seem subtle but speaks volumes about where our societal compass sits when it comes to the perception of larger bodies and fitness.
I give him my name and he repeats it under his breath. He looks up at me, and instantly reaches for the 5km race packages, making the assumption, without asking, that I am participating in the shorter distance. The representation of my body size communicates to him an unspoken message that I am not physically capable of running the event's longer distance.
If this were an isolated incident, this article wouldn't exist. However, it happens at every event I am a part of and that others like me participate in. It might be an out of line comment, a surprised reaction or the articulation of an assumption about what my body is capable of. More commonly comes the perplexed look of confusion when I tell people I am a personal trainer and I own a fitness business. The well intentioned "good for you" calls echoing from the sidelines in a tone championing a toddler in potty training further stand to signify that people consider my participation an anomaly.
I correct this young man immediately. "I am here to run the half-marathon," I say sharply. With surprise and embarrassment he says, "Oh!", and quickly fumbles for my race package in the other box. I take my number and the event branded race shirt that is three sizes too small, and walk over to my husband and stand off to the side. My excitement and the little voice cheering me on have dissipated. We stand silently waiting for the race to begin. I can't help feeling defeated in that moment -- like an impostor or someone who didn't just train for months and for hundreds of miles. I try to remain positive, as I know this is an integral part of a successful race.
Truthfully, I don't blame the young man for taking the visual cue of my body and neatly categorising me with the 5k'ers (which is also a very respectable distance, by the way). Why would he believe that my plus-size body is capable of running 21 long kilometres when there aren't any visual cues presented in society to tell us this is possible?
There are no plus-size athletes adorning the glossy pages of magazines, very few fitness books speak on this subject, and in movies fat people are commonly portrayed as dorky and comedic, not strong and capable. Seldom in advertising do we see products and services aligning themselves with body diversity. In fact, the only visual cues we receive that include plus-size representation in workout gear are generally the "before" pictures in weight loss or gym advertising. Despite study upon study demonstrating that fit can also be fat, most of society can't see past the media cues that are put in front of us by advertisers. As a result, athletes who fall outside of the athletic "norm" take the brunt of society's assumptions when attending races and working out in gyms. In spite of this, we continue to participate and pioneer a change in public perception.
Triathlete Wendy Welsher has felt the judgement too.
"It's always intimidating walking into mainstream gyms as a plus-size girl. Everything changed for me after I found my personal trainer, Rossanna. She has pushed me to be an athlete and has only looked at me for my potential, not my size. She has then encouraged me to become a personal trainer so I can now help girls like me." It was when Wendy finally found the appropriate support that her athleticism excelled.
Cyclist and runner, Natalie Dzepina, also recalls people pointing at her and laughing during races. "I was called 'Fatso' a few times. I think seeing a fat chick running makes people uncomfortable. Like her place should be on a sofa with a bag of chips. It's never bothered me as long as I'm out running."
While these experiences of judgement and discrimination are disappointing, the moral of this story isn't to be a victim, but to raise awareness around size diversity in athleticism. You see, judgement is rampant and this creates insurmountable barriers for the plus-size population who live in a diet culture of "move more, eat less" advice every time they see their physician, turn on the TV or read a magazine. Many of these individuals want to be active, but can't face the vulnerability of putting themselves out there to be judged. When we talk about a worldwide health crisis, this is it. It is not 'obesity' but how we respond to it.
Krista Henderson is a seasoned triathlete and writer of the popular blog dedicated to plus-size athleticism, 'Born To Reign'.
She writes, "Healthy and unhealthy bodies come in all shapes and sizes. It's unfortunate the media has created such an unrealistic image of what health looks like, with sculpted bodies and 6-pack abs. The fitness industry is so heavily influenced by the beauty culture."
While many people assume that fat automatically equals unfit, there's a growing number of highly respected researchers and agencies that say otherwise.
Steven Blair is a renowned exercise researcher at the Arnold School of Public Health at the University of South Carolina. His research shows that excess weight is not "the enemy". Not getting enough exercise and being cardiovascular unfit are much greater contributors to poor health than any extra poundage can be. Blair stands firmly by his research that fit, fat people outlive thin, unfit people.
In 2012, The National Cancer Institute also backed this by reporting that physical activity is "associated with greater longevity among persons in all BMI groups: those normal weight, overweight and obese."
Another study, published in the European Heart Journal, showed that when obese people are metabolically healthy -- with healthy blood pressure, cholesterol and blood sugar -- they are at no greater risk of dying from heart disease or cancer than those who are of normal weight.
Despite the research and increasing numbers of plus-size athletes lacing up, we still see judgement and discrimination even for athletes at an elite level.
In the media, emerging stories on plus-size professional athleticism spark a body image controversy. Eighteen-year-old tennis player Taylor Townsend caused a media wave when she beat 21st ranked Alize Cornet and advanced to the third round in the French Open. She is the youngest US female to advance to that level. Yet, three years earlier, in spite of her rising success, the US Tennis Association tried to keep her out of competition at the US Open. It was reported that until she lost weight, they would not support her.
Recently, Yahoo Shine published an article about Major League Baseball pro Prince Fielder and the cover he did for ESPN, featuring his naked, powerful, body.
If you are not familiar with Fielder, he has played Major League baseball since 2002. He is a five-time All-Star, positioning himself as an elitist among the elite. Yet, to my disappointment, the article's headline read: 'This Male Athlete Is Getting Fat-Shamed'.
This negative exposure is disheartening. As I, and other plus-sized athletes like me, continue to suit up and show up at races and in the gyms, we must look around and ask why others don't? If elite athletes are the subjects of public-scrutiny despite highly ranking athletic achievement, then what message does that give to the novice who sits on the sidelines hoping to be active one day? People are fearful of fitness and rightly so.
We can't harp on people to move their bodies when we live in a society that shames and judges us for our attempts.
That day in Golden Gate Park, I ran my heart out. I ran for 2 hours and 51 minutes. I pushed myself towards the finish line, elated in tears that I was going to make it. I wanted to quit but I knew my husband, my biggest supporter, was waiting for me at the finish line. I often think to myself, what if everyone had this kind of support from loved ones or, just as importantly, from strangers?
I've gone on to run and cycle many more long-distance races and I never care what people think, anymore. I want to be in the game and inspire others to live their athletic dreams.
We are athletes daring greatly to change the landscape of athleticism for everyone, if society will step back, ponder this article, and give us a chance.
Louise Green is a globally recognised “fit and fat” voice at the forefront of the Body Advocacy movement. She is a successful plus-size athlete, personal trainer and the Founder of Body Exchange; a fitness platform dedicated to plus-size women. Follow Louise Green on Twitter at @bodyexchange. |
0.999508 | What would you like to do in your holidays? If you like trekking rather than go shopping with friends or join in a party, then the White Cloud Mountain and Mount Everest should be recommended for you. They are the most attractive mountains in China. Plan your trekking tours China!
It is a perfect itinerary route for you to travel to Tibet after traveling Guangzhou. You can take in the sights of the beautiful scenery on the way while you are in the train from Guangzhou to Tibet. When you arrive the Tibet, trekking to Mount Everest is one of the exciting things to do in Tibet. To be honest, Tibet trekking will be unforgettable.
Guangzhou, also called as Canton, it is very prosperous in tourism and dining. Guangzhou shows much attraction through its famous sights such as the Five Ram Statue in Yuexiu Park, Pearl River and White Cloud Mountain. Entering Tibet you will feel as though you've entered an entirely different world after traveling Guangzhou. The traditional Tibetan culture is still very strong here over several centuries. You will find many train tours from WindhorseTour such as Beijing to Tibet: Beijing-Lhasa-Ganden-Samye trekking-Gyantse-E.B.C.-Kathmandu.
White Cloud Mountain (Baiyun Mountain), also called as "the First Peak under the Southern Sky", is located 15 km. (9 mi.) north of downtown Guangzhou and is made up of 30-odd peaks. The forming of a white cloud over its range is the reason why the mountain called as "White Cloud Mountain". Moxing Peak is the highest peak standing in the center of the mountain. It is about 380 m. (1,246 ft.) in height above sea level.
White Cloud Mountain, a peak with natural hills and waters, is an ideal sightseeing place and summer resort. With a development history of over 1,000 years, it is one of the famous mountains in China. The White Cloud Mountain has gorgeous scenery and abundant historical relics among the past and present Eight Sights including "Wind Soughing in the Pines on White Cloud Mountain" and "Pujian Spring". The easiest way for sightseeing in White Cloud Mountain is taking a cable car. The cable cars will pass through some famous scenic spots such as Initial Probe into the Cloudy Valley, Pu Valley and Nengren Temple. The limitless scenery of the Goat City is right before your eyes when gazing into the distance.
Mount Everest, the Earth's highest mountain, means "mother goddess of the universe" in Tibetan. Mount Everest which is part of the high Asian Himalayas is located on the border between Tibet and Nepal with the peak at 8,848 m. (29,028 ft.) above sea level. Mount Everest can be seen from hundreds of kilometers away and appears as a shining silver pyramid in the distance. Covered by the snow all year round, the Mount Everest is known as a sacred mountain in Tibet. It has inspired artists and drawn Buddhist pilgrims for centuries and is revered by all Tibetans. Please look at China Highlights and Tibet Train Tour for more information.
The magical and unique Mount Everest attracts lots of trekkers every year. If you intend to trek here, the Rongbuk Monastery is the best for dinning and accommodation. It is located at the foot of the Mount Everest and is the highest temple in the world. It also is the best place from which to view Mount Everest. If you are interested in Tibetan tours, you can look at China Tibet Adventure Tour to Kathmandu for more information. Trekking in mountains is one of the popular things to do in Tibet. |
0.995037 | The World Cup of 1958 was held in Sweden and was won by Brazil. Sixteen teams qualified for the tournament, playing thirty five matches in twelve venues over twenty two days from 8 to 29 June.
The total attendance for all matches was 819,810 and 126 goals were scored in all. This was the sixth staging of the World Cup after the competition was founded in 1930 by FIFA (the International Football Association) and held every four years thereafter, except for 1942 and 1946 when it was cancelled due to World War Two and its aftermath.
The sixteen national teams that qualified for the finals came from three of the five world football federations. UEFA (Europe) provided twelve finalists: Austria, Czechoslovakia, England, France, Hungary, Northern Ireland, Scotland, the Soviet Union, Sweden, Wales, West Germany and Yugoslavia.
From CONMEBOL (South America) came Argentina, Brazil and Paraguay.
CCCF/NAFC (North America) was represented by Mexico. Sweden qualified automatically for the finals as did West Germany, the latter as reigning world champions from 1954 and Sweden as the host nation. 1958 is the only World Cup for which Wales has qualified for the finals and it also marks the only time all four home nations of the United Kingdom have been present at the finals.
In addition to Wales, Northern Ireland and the Soviet Union made their debuts at the 1958 competition. The participating teams were divided into four equal-sized groups or mini-leagues with two from each group going into the next round, the quarter finals, when the tournament began its knockout phase.
Brazil lifted the World Cup trophy for the first time when it defeated the host nation Sweden in the World Cup Final on 29 June 1958. The match finished 5-2, five being the highest number of goals ever scored by a finalist before or since, and was played in front of a crowd of 49,737 people in the Råsunda Stadium in Solna, a suburb of Stockholm.
In the winning team, that day was a seventeen-year-old named Edson Arantes de Nascimento, better known as Pelé. Pelé scored two goals and still holds the record for the youngest goalscorer in a World Cup final.
At the beginning of the tournament, Brazil was involved in the very first goalless draw in World Cup history when it played England in a group match. The eventual champions won its other two group matches, against Austria and the Soviet Union, and topped the group with no goals conceded.
In the quarter-finals Wales was eliminated 1-0, a goal scored by Pelé, and in the semi-finals Brazil triumphed over France 5-2, a winning score to be repeated against the Swedes in its next match and which included a hat-trick from Pele.
The group stage saw the elimination of two strong European footballing nations in England and Hungary, but recent events had weakened their squads. England had lost three internationals in the Munich Air Disaster in February whilst some of Hungary’s best players had fled after the unsuccessful uprising against the communist government in 1956.
So it was that both teams lost out in playoffs against teams finishing with the same number of points in their respective groups, England 0-1 against the Soviet Union and Hungary 1-2 against Wales. The teams who qualified for the quarter-finals with the Soviets and the Welsh were Brazil, France, Northern Ireland, Sweden, West Germany and Yugoslavia.
In the quarter-finals, together with the Brazilians’ victory over Wales, France beat Northern Ireland 4-0, Sweden defeated the Soviet Union 2-0 and West Germany overcame Yugoslavia 1-0 which meant that whilst Brazil faced France in one semi-final Sweden took on West Germany in the other.
Sweden defeated the reigning champions 3-1 and so advanced to play Brazil. West Germany lined up against France in the match for third place to be played the day before the final.
France defeated West Germany 6-3 with four goals coming from forward Just Fontaine, the team’s star player. In all Fontaine scored thirteen goals in the 1958 World Cup finals, a feat which no player has come close to equalling before or since.
To date Brazil’s victory in the final means that it is the only non-European national team to win a World Cup held in Europe. As well as Pelé other notable names in the squad included Garrincha and Mário Zagallo, but it was Pelé who became a world superstar. He was voted best young player of the tournament and his rise to prominence in Sweden in 1958 and subsequent achievements have led many to consider him the greatest footballer of all time. |
0.590259 | The total ϕ at a point in a field due to two or more source masses is the scalar addition of the individual ϕ due to each mass at that point, i.e. .
Showing how the gravitational potential varies between the surface of the Moon and the surface of the Earth along the line joining the centres.
7.3.8.6.2 Escape Speed Is it true that 'what goes up must come down'?
It is only accurate to say that 'what goes up may come down'. There is a critical speed at which an object can be launched such that it can escape the Earth permanently. Such a critical speed is termed as the escape speed.
7.3.8.6.2.1 Example Determine an expression for the escape speed, v, of a rocket of mass m launched from the surface of Earth of mass M and radius R.
By conservation of energy, assuming at r = ∞, the minimum speed is 0.
Therefore, to escape from Earth, it implies that the projectile must have a minimum launch velocity of v = 1.12x104 m/s .
To understand the escape velocity concept, the following steps could be used as an inquiry approach to experience escape velocity in the context of the simulation.
Select from the drop-box menu the option Earth Surface view MoonEarth (Left to Right), and notice the test mass (red) is placed on the surface of the Earth on the right side.
Key in on the vtest, velocity of the test mass (magenta) say -10000 m/s (negative as the velocity points to the left of the Cartesian coordinate system)), and click play to observe the effects of launching a projectile at this speed. You could record your observation as "unable to escape from Earth's gravity pull.
Similarly, design an experiment to discover the minimum theoretical speed to escape from Earth's pull.
Can you conclude that any velocity lesser than v = 1.12x104 m/s cannot allow the projectile to escape from Earth's pull?
Can you conclude that any velocity greater than vescape Earth = 1.12x104 m/s allow the projectile to escape from Earth's pull?
Similarly, you can derive the theoretical escape velocity from Earth's Moon surface and test it on the simulation.
Given molar gas constant R = 8.31 J K−1 mol−1, molar mass of water is Mm H20 = 18x10-3 kg/mol , T is temperature in Kelvin, using the minimum theoretical speed from Moon, suggest the surface temperature of Moon at some point in its history which resulted in the Moon's surface not having water now.
With this limited information, this data seems to suggest at some point of Moon's history, it could have been very hot (T = 4.2x103 K) which causes water molecules to escape then. As the Moon cools, not enough water molecules was able to form on the Moon's surface to form oceans like what we have on Earth. |
0.999836 | What are the benefits of custom installed marine air conditioning?
Providing climate controlled comfort for you and your guests is the most often cited reason for installing marine air systems; however the benefits don’t end with the obvious. Heat and humidity are not only a nuisance, they also wreak havoc on your boat. As minimal ten degree temperature fluctuation can increase condensation and humidity levels, creating the ideal growth conditions for mold and mildew, as well as corrosion and rust. Air filtration and humidity control help remove odors and reduce the occurrence of these problems. |
0.688005 | Radio broadcasting is a one-way wireless transmission over radio waves intended to reach a wide audience. Stations can be linked in radio networks to broadcast a common radio format, either in broadcast syndication or simulcast or both. Audio broadcasting also can be done via cable radio, local wire television networks, satellite radio, and internet radio via streaming media on the Internet. The signal types can be either analog audio or digital audio.
My radio station is better than yours! |
0.933737 | What are your thoughts about data protection, privacy, and computing security?
* 1. Who do you think should be responsible for your computer’s security?
* 3. Who do you think should be responsible for data security on your mobile device (phone, tablet)?
* 5. Do you feel confident how data protection and information security is handled on your computer?
* 6. Do you feel confident how data protection and information security is handled on your mobile device?
* 7. What do you use to keep your computer secure?
* 8. What do you use to keep your mobile device secure?
* 9. Do you trust your bank has protections in place (fraud monitoring, data security, etc.) so you wouldn’t be a victim of identity theft?
* 10. Do you trust that the online stores where you shop have various forms of data protection in place and are fairly secure?
* 11. When you create an account at Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Dropbox or other similar sites, who do you believe owns the information you put there?
* 12. Do you trust these organizations are doing their best not to get hacked?
* 13. Do you use the same passwords (or a variation on a version) on every site? |
0.966595 | Phil Querin Q&A: Applicant Pays Application Fee - Can Landlord Also Charge a Move-In Fee?
Question: I am confused about all the rules regarding applicants for tenancy. For example, after an applicant is charged an application fee, has been accepted and is about to move in to the home, does the landlord have the right to charge the new resident a "move-in" fee?
Answer: This question involves 90.297, which provides as follows: • Except as permitted in ORS 90.295 (fees for tenant screening charges) a landlord may not charge a deposit or fee, however designated, to an applicant who has applied to a landlord to enter a rental agreement for a dwelling unit. • A landlord may charge a deposit, however designated, to an applicant for the purpose of: o Securing the execution of a rental agreement, after approving the applicant’s application but prior to entering into a rental agreement. o Is so, the landlord must give the applicant a written statement describing: • The amount of rent and the fees the landlord will charge and the deposits the landlord will require; and • The terms of the agreement to execute a rental agreement and the conditions for refunding or retaining the deposit. • If a rental agreement is executed, the landlord shall either apply the deposit toward the moneys due the landlord under the rental agreement or refund it immediately to the tenant. • If a rental agreement is not executed due to a failure by the applicant to comply with the agreement to execute, the landlord may retain the deposit. • If a rental agreement is not executed due to a failure by the landlord to comply with the agreement to execute, within four days the landlord shall return the deposit to the applicant either by making the deposit available to the applicant at the landlord’s customary place of business or by mailing the deposit by first class mail to the applicant. • If a landlord fails to comply with these rules, the applicant or tenant, as the case may be, may recover from the landlord the amount of any fee or deposit charged, plus $150. Based upon the above, it is my opinion that it would be improper to charge a “move-in fee,” unless it was designed to secure the execution of the rental agreement before the applicant took occupancy. If the rental agreement is already signed, there is nothing to “secure” and the fee would be inappropriate. |
0.952568 | You will need: 1 qt beef broth, 6 12" tortillas, 1 pound ground beef (canned or cooked fresh), 1 large onion diced, 1 or 2 pints canned black beans, 1/4 cup butter, 1/4 cup flour, 4 oz shredded cheese, black pepper, cilantro, cumin, chili powder, paprika, and garlic.
The Filling: If you have fresh ground beef, cook it and drain off any fat. Mix it with your black beans and diced onion. You can also add some cooked rice if you like. Season with 1 tsp black pepper, 1 tsp cilantro, 1/2 tsp cumin, 1 tsp chili powder, and 1 tsp paprika. Stir together and heat through, then spoon into tortillas and roll. Place your rolled enchiladas into a casserole dish.
The Sauce: On medium high heat, combine 1 qt beef broth with 1/4 cup butter, 1/4 cup flour, 1 tsp each of paprika, chili powder, cilantro, cumin, and pepper. Stir until butter is melted and ingredients are combined, then pour over enchiladas in the casserole dish.
Sprinkle with shredded cheese. Cover casserole dish with tinfoil and bake for 30 minutes at 350F. To brown the cheese, remove the tinfoil for the last 5 minutes of baking. I don't like my cheese browned, so I skip this step.
It's a tasty, filling dinner that doesn't cost a fortune and can be made quickly from canned ingredients. You can add avocado, tomatoes, and rice if you like. |
0.999453 | First, let’s take a brief look at the state of primary care today. Patients often feel rushed when visiting their primary care physicians, and that’s unlikely to get better. In fact, the Association of American Medical Colleges now expects there to be a shortage of 91,500 doctors by 2020, which means that doctors will have more patients to see in a day’s time, further shortening the time they can spend with each one.
Then there’s the whole issue of health care insurance, with premiums increasing and the status of the Affordable Care Act being fiercely debated. Not surprisingly, a percentage of primary care physicians are seeking a better way to provide care, with two models gaining attention: direct primary care and concierge medicine. Here’s an overview of each.
There are multiple methods of providing concierge care, but they typically focus on a patient paying a monthly fee to their doctor to ensure direct access to him or her. Doctors following the concierge model of medicine also accept insurance, which means that the challenges associated with insurance today are part of a typical concierge medicine experience.
This is usually a non-insurance model, one where doctors keep their practices small. Practices that don’t contract with health insurance companies eliminate the need for collecting copays, filing the paperwork and so forth. This reduces the need for and expense of medical office staff whose primary job is dealing with the requirements of insurance companies.
Some direct care patients find extra financial value through purchasing a less expensive, high deductible insurance plan for hospitalizations and catastrophic events while others just simply find value in the personal service and high quality care.
This is comparable to paying for a gym membership. You pay a monthly fee and then use the gym’s facilities and equipment without worrying about hidden charges or extra fees. You can also compare direct care to auto insurance. You use your auto insurance, for example, if you are involved in an accident, but not for typical vehicle maintenance such as changing your wiper blades and/or oil, or routine fixes such as with a flat tire. Can you imagine how complicated it would get if your auto insurance company decided how much of this routine maintenance is covered, what brand of wiper blade replacement blades you can use and so forth?
I really appreciate you helping me learn more about their differences. It really helped when you said that the doctors following the concierge model of medicine also accept insurance. I'd be interested to learn more about for future use. |
0.957965 | Can someone explain to me why DC-based publication The Hill persists in the uber-shallow exercise of publishing an annual list of the “50 Most Beautiful People” in Washington?
Not only does it make the paper’s publishers look like a bunch of cliquey high school girls — no offense, high school girls — but it just drives home the fact that, well, congressional staffers aren’t all that attractive. And as hard as DC may try, it not only isn’t Hollywood, it ain’t even Fresno. |
0.997061 | Principles of Finance Featured: Boundless: "Finance: Chapter 6, Section 4: Understanding Bonds"
Boundless: "Finance: Chapter 6, Section 4: Understanding Bonds"
A bond is an instrument of indebtedness of the bond issuer to the holders. Duration is the weighted average of the times until fixed cash flows of a financial asset are received. A bond indenture is a legal contract issued to lenders that defines commitments and responsibilities of the seller and buyer. Bond credit rating agencies assess and report the credit worthiness of a corporation's or government's debt issues.
A bond is an instrument of indebtedness of the bond issuer to the holders.
A bond is an instrument of indebtedness of the bond issuer to the holders. The issuer owes the holders a debt and, depending on the terms of the bond, is obliged to pay them interest (the coupon) and/or to repay the principal at a later date, termed the maturity.
Bonds provide the borrower with external funds to finance long-term investments, or, in the case of government bonds, to finance current expenditure.
Bonds and stocks are both securities, but the major difference between the two is that (capital) stockholders have an equity stake in the company (i.e. they are owners), whereas bondholders have a creditor stake in the company (i.e. they are lenders).
A municipal bond is a bond issued by an American city or other local government, or their agencies.
A corporate bond is a bond issue by a corporation. It is a bond that a corporation issues to raise money effectively in order to expand its business.
A United States Treasury bond is a government debt issued by the United States Department of the Treasury through the Bureau of the Public Debt, with a maturity of 20 years to 30 years.
A bond is an instrument of indebtedness of the bond issuer to the holders, as such it is often referred to as a debt instrument. A bond is a debt security, under which the issuer owes the holders a debt and, depending on the terms of the bond, is obliged to pay them interest (the coupon) and/or repay the principal at a later date, termed the maturity. Interest is usually payable at fixed intervals (semiannual, annual, sometimes monthly).
Bonds are issued by public authorities, credit institutions, companies, and supranational institutions in the primary market. Both individuals and companies can purchase bonds.
However, very often the bond is negotiable, i.e. the ownership of the instrument can be transferred in the secondary market .
The main categories of bonds are corporate bonds, municipal bonds, and U.S. Treasury bonds, notes, and bills, which are collectively referred to simply as "Treasuries. " Two features of a bond - credit quality and duration - are the principal determinants of a bond's interest rate. Bond maturities range from a 90-day Treasury bill to a 30-year government bond. Corporate and municipal bonds are typically in the three to 10-year range.
A bond is a form of loan: the holder of the bond is the lender (creditor), the issuer of the bond is the borrower (debtor), and the coupon is the interest. Bonds provide the borrower with external funds to finance long-term investments, or, in the case of government bonds, to finance current expenditure. Certificates of deposits (CDs), or short term commercial papers, are considered to be money market instruments and not bonds: the main difference is in the instruments length of term.
Bonds and stocks are both securities, but the major difference between the two is that (capital) stockholders have an equity stake in the company (they are owners), whereas bondholders have a creditor stake in the company (they are lenders). Another difference is that bonds usually have a defined term, or maturity, after which the bond is redeemed, whereas stocks may be outstanding indefinitely. An exception is an irredeemable bond, such as Consols, which is a perpetuity, that is, a bond with no maturity.
Duration is the weighted average of the times until fixed cash flows of a financial asset are received.
A good approximation for bond price changes due to yield is the duration, a measure for interest rate risk.
The Macaulay duration is the name given to the weighted average time until cash flows are received and is measured in years. It really makes sense only for an instrument with fixed cash flows.
The modified duration is the name given to the price sensitivity and is the percentage change in price for a unit change in yield. It really makes sense only for an instrument with fixed cash flows.
The modified duration is a derivative (rate of change) or price sensitivity and measures the percentage rate of change of price with respect to yield. The concept of modified duration can be applied to interest-rate sensitive instruments with non-fixed cash flows.
As interest rates change, the price does not change linearly, but rather is a convex function of interest rates. Convexity is a measure of the curvature of how the price of a bond changes as the interest rate changes. Specifically, duration can be formulated as the first derivative of the price function of the bond with respect to the interest rate in question, and the convexity as the second derivative.
The yield to maturity (YTM) of a bond or other fixed-interest security, such as gilts, is the internal rate of return (IRR, overall interest rate) earned by an investor who buys the bond today at the market price, assuming that the bond will be held until maturity and that all coupon and principal payments will be made on schedule.
In finance, the duration of a financial asset that consists of fixed cash flows, for example a bond, is the weighted average of the times until those fixed cash flows are received. When an asset is considered as a function of yield, duration also measures the price sensitivity to yield, the rate of change of price with respect to yield, or the percentage change in price for a parallel shift in yields. Since cash flows for bonds are usually fixed, a price change can come from two sources: The passage of time (convergence towards par) which is predictable and a change in the yield.
The yield-price relationship is inverse and investors would ideally wish to have a measure of how sensitive the bond price is to yield changes. A good approximation for bond price changes due to yield is the duration, a measure for interest rate risk. For large yield changes convexity can be added to improve the performance of the duration. A more important use of convexity is that it measures the sensitivity of duration to yield changes.
The dual use of the word "duration" in the Macaulay duration and the modified duration, as both the weighted average time until repayment and as the percentage change in price, often causes confusion. The Macaulay duration is the name given to the weighted average time until cash flows are received and is measured in years.
The Macaulay duration is the name given to the weighted average time until cash flows are received and is measured in years.
Where: i indexes the cash flows, PVi is the present value of the cash payment from an asset, ti is the time in years until the payment will be received, and V is the present value of all cash payments from the asset.
The Modified duration is the name given to the price sensitivity and is the percentage change in price for a unit change in yield.
Where: k is the compounding frequency per year (1 for annual, 2 for semi-annual, 12 for monthly, 52 for weekly, and so on), y is the is the yield to maturity for an asset.
When yields are continuously-compounded the Macaulay duration and the modified duration will be numerically equal. When yields are periodically-compounded the Macaulay duration and the modified duration will differ slightly and in this case there is a simple relation between the two. The modified duration is used more than the Macaulay duration.
The Macaulay duration and the modified duration are both termed "duration" and have the same (or close to the same) numerical value, but it is important to keep in mind the conceptual distinctions between them. The Macaulay duration is a time measure with units in years and really makes sense only for an instrument with fixed cash flows. For a standard bond, the Macaulay duration will be between 0 and the maturity of the bond. It is equal to the maturity if and only if the bond is a zero-coupon bond.
The modified duration, on the other hand, is a derivative (rate of change) or price sensitivity and measures the percentage rate of change of price with respect to yield. The concept of modified duration can be applied to interest-rate sensitive instruments with non-fixed cash flows and can thus be applied to a wider range of instruments than can the Macaulay duration. For everyday use, the equality (or near-equality) of the values for the Macaulay duration and the modified duration can be a useful aid to intuition.
A bond indenture is a legal contract issued to lenders that defines commitments and responsibilities of the seller and buyer.
Terms of indentures include the interest rate, maturity date, repayment dates, convertibility, pledge, promises, representations, covenants, and other terms of the bond offering.
A bond indenture is held by a trustee. If the company fails to live up to the terms of the bond indenture, the trustee may bring legal action against the company on behalf of the bondholders.
The offering memorandum, also known as a prospectus, is a document that describes a financial security for potential buyers.
Quality of a bond that allows the holder to convert into shares of common stock in the issuing company or cash of equal value, at an agreed-upon price.
A public debt offering is the offering of debt securities of a government, a company or a similar corporation to the public.
A bond indenture (also called a trust indenture or deed of trust) is a legal contract issued to lenders. The specifications given within the bond indenture define the responsibilities and commitments of the seller as well as those of the buyer by describing key terms such as the interest rate, maturity date, repayment dates, convertibility, pledge, promises, representations, covenants, and other terms of the bond offering. Failure to meet the payment requirements calls for drastic penalties, including liquidation of the issuer's assets .
Bond indenture (also trust indenture or deed of trust) is a legal contract issued to lenders.
Because it would be impractical for the corporation to enter into a direct agreement with each of the many bondholders, the bond indenture is held by a trustee - usually a commercial bank or other financial institution - appointed by the issuing firm to represent the rights of the bondholders. The issuer of a bond will use the indenture to describe detail about the issuer and the bond trustee for interested investors to research the background of the bond issue. This is to ensure that the bondholder has a clear idea of when to expect interest payments, as well as whom to contact if he or she has questions or concerns. If the company fails to live up to the terms of the bond indenture, the trustee may bring legal action against the company on behalf of the bondholders.
When the offering memorandum is prepared in advance of marketing a bond, the indenture will typically be summarized in the "description of notes" section. This offering memorandum, also known as a prospectus, is a document that describes a financial security for potential buyers. A prospectus commonly provides investors with material information about mutual funds, stocks, bonds, and other investments, such as a description of the company's business, financial statements, biographies of officers and directors, detailed information about their compensation, any litigation that is taking place, a list of material properties, and any other material information.
In the United States, public debt offerings in excess of $10 million require the use of an indenture of trust under the Trust Indenture Act of 1939. The rationale for this is that it is necessary to establish a collective action mechanism under which creditors can collect in a fair, orderly manner if default takes place (like that which occurs during bankruptcy).
Bond credit rating agencies assess and report the credit worthiness of a corporation's or government's debt issues.
Ratings play a critical role in determining how much companies and other entities that issue debt, including sovereign governments, have to pay to access credit markets; for example, the amount of interest they pay on their issued debt.
The ratings are assigned by credit rating agencies such as Moody's, Standard & Poor's, and Fitch. Ratings to have letter designations (such as AAA, B, CC), which represent the quality of a bond.
A bond is considered investment-grade (IG) if its credit rating is BBB- or higher by Standard & Poor's, or Baa3 or higher by Moody's, or BBB(low) or higher by DBRS. Bond ratings below BBB/Baa are not considered to be investment grade; such bonds are called junk bonds.
A credit rating agency (CRA) is a company that assigns credit ratings to issuers of certain types of debt obligations, as well as to the debt instruments themselves.
In investment, the bond credit rating assesses the credit worthiness of a corporation's or government's debt issue. The credit rating is analogous to a credit rating for individuals. The "quality" of the issue refers to the probability that the bondholders will receive the amounts promised on the due dates.
The credit rating is a financial indicator to potential investors of debt securities, such as bonds. Ratings play a critical role in determining the amount that companies (and other entities that issue debt, including sovereign governments) have to pay to access credit markets; for example, the amount of interest that must be paid on issued debt. The ratings are assigned by credit rating agencies, such as Moody's, Standard & Poor's, and Fitch Ratings, and are given in letter designations (AAA, B, CC), which represent the quality of a bond. Generally they are bonds that are judged by the rating agency as likely enough to meet payment obligations; banks are thus allowed to invest in them. ""
A bond is considered investment-grade, or IG, if its credit rating is BBB- or higher by Standard & Poor's, or Baa3 or higher by Moody's, or BBB(low) or higher by DBRS.
Bond ratings below BBB/Baa are not considered to be investment-grade; these bonds are called junk bonds. Junk bonds are also called high-yield bonds. These are bonds that are rated below investment grade by the credit rating agencies. As these bonds are more risky than investment grade bonds, investors expect them to earn a higher yield. The threshold between investment-grade and speculative-grade ratings has important market implications for issuers' borrowing costs.
The risks associated with investment-grade bonds (or investment-grade corporate debt) are considered significantly higher than those associated with first-class government bonds. The difference between rates for first-class government bonds and investment-grade bonds is called "investment-grade spread. " The range of this spread is an indicator of the market's belief in the stability of the economy. The higher these investment-grade spreads (or risk premiums) are, the weaker the economy is considered.
Until the early 1970s, bond credit ratings agencies were paid for their work by investors who wanted impartial information on the credit worthiness of securities issuers and their particular offerings. Starting in the early 1970s, the "Big Three" ratings agencies (S&P, Moody's, and Fitch) began to receive payment for their work by the securities issuers for whom they issued ratings, which led to current charges that these ratings agencies can no longer always be impartial when issuing ratings for securities issuers. Securities issuers have been accused of "shopping" for the best ratings from S&P, Moody's, and Fitch, in order to attract investors, until at least one of the agencies delivers favorable ratings.
◄ Boundless: "Finance: Chapter 6, Section 5: Advantages and Disadvantages of Bonds" |
0.938111 | The Cretaceous ( /krɪˈteɪʃəs/, kri-TAY-shəs) is a geologic period and system that spans 79 million years from the end of the Jurassic Period 145 million years ago (mya) to the beginning of the Paleogene Period 66 mya. It is the last period of the Mesozoic Era, and the longest period of the Phanerozoic Eon. The Cretaceous Period is usually abbreviated K, for its German translation Kreide (chalk, creta in Latin).
The Cretaceous as a separate period was first defined by Belgian geologist Jean d'Omalius d'Halloy in 1822, using strata in the Paris Basin and named for the extensive beds of chalk (calcium carbonate deposited by the shells of marine invertebrates, principally coccoliths), found in the upper Cretaceous of Western Europe. The name Cretaceous was derived from Latin creta, meaning chalk.
As with other older geologic periods, the rock beds of the Cretaceous are well identified but the exact age of the system's base is uncertain by a few million years. No great extinction or burst of diversity separates the Cretaceous from the Jurassic. However, the top of the system is sharply defined, being placed at an iridium-rich layer found worldwide that is believed to be associated with the Chicxulub impact crater, with its boundaries circumscribing parts of the Yucatán Peninsula and into the Gulf of Mexico. This layer has been dated at 66.043 Ma.
A 140 Ma age for the Jurassic-Cretaceous boundary instead of the usually accepted 145 Ma was proposed in 2014 based on a stratigraphic study of Vaca Muerta Formation in Neuquén Basin, Argentina. Víctor Ramos, one of the authors of the study proposing the 140 Ma boundary age sees the study as a "first step" toward formally changing the age in the International Union of Geological Sciences.
In northwestern Europe, chalk deposits from the Upper Cretaceous are characteristic for the Chalk Group, which forms the white cliffs of Dover on the south coast of England and similar cliffs on the French Normandian coast. The group is found in England, northern France, the low countries, northern Germany, Denmark and in the subsurface of the southern part of the North Sea. Chalk is not easily consolidated and the Chalk Group still consists of loose sediments in many places. The group also has other limestones and arenites. Among the fossils it contains are sea urchins, belemnites, ammonites and sea reptiles such as Mosasaurus.
Stagnation of deep sea currents in middle Cretaceous times caused anoxic conditions in the sea water leaving the deposited organic matter undecomposed. Half the worlds petroleum reserves were laid down at this time in the anoxic conditions of what would become the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Mexico. In many places around the world, dark anoxic shales were formed during this interval. These shales are an important source rock for oil and gas, for example in the subsurface of the North Sea.
Though Gondwana was still intact in the beginning of the Cretaceous, it broke up as South America, Antarctica and Australia rifted away from Africa (though India and Madagascar remained attached to each other); thus, the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans were newly formed. Such active rifting lifted great undersea mountain chains along the welts, raising eustatic sea levels worldwide. To the north of Africa the Tethys Sea continued to narrow. Broad shallow seas advanced across central North America (the Western Interior Seaway) and Europe, then receded late in the period, leaving thick marine deposits sandwiched between coal beds. At the peak of the Cretaceous transgression, one-third of Earth's present land area was submerged.
The Cretaceous is justly famous for its chalk; indeed, more chalk formed in the Cretaceous than in any other period in the Phanerozoic. Mid-ocean ridge activity—or rather, the circulation of seawater through the enlarged ridges—enriched the oceans in calcium; this made the oceans more saturated, as well as increased the bioavailability of the element for calcareous nanoplankton. These widespread carbonates and other sedimentary deposits make the Cretaceous rock record especially fine. Famous formations from North America include the rich marine fossils of Kansas's Smoky Hill Chalk Member and the terrestrial fauna of the late Cretaceous Hell Creek Formation. Other important Cretaceous exposures occur in Europe (e.g., the Weald) and China (the Yixian Formation). In the area that is now India, massive lava beds called the Deccan Traps were erupted in the very late Cretaceous and early Paleocene.
The cooling trend of the last epoch of the Jurassic continued into the first age of the Cretaceous. There is evidence that snowfalls were common in the higher latitudes and the tropics became wetter than during the Triassic and Jurassic. Glaciation was however restricted to high-latitude mountains, though seasonal snow may have existed farther from the poles. Rafting by ice of stones into marine environments occurred during much of the Cretaceous but evidence of deposition directly from glaciers is limited to the Early Cretaceous of the Eromanga Basin in southern Australia.
After the end of the first age, however, temperatures increased again, and these conditions were almost constant until the end of the period. The warming may have been due to intense volcanic activity which produced large quantities of carbon dioxide. Between 70–69 Ma and 66–65 Ma, isotopic ratios indicate elevated atmospheric CO2 pressures with levels of 1000–1400 ppmV and mean annual temperatures in west Texas between 21 and 23 °C (70-73 °F). Atmospheric CO2 and temperature relations indicate a doubling of pCO2 was accompanied by a ~0.6 °C increase in temperature. The production of large quantities of magma, variously attributed to mantle plumes or to extensional tectonics, further pushed sea levels up, so that large areas of the continental crust were covered with shallow seas. The Tethys Sea connecting the tropical oceans east to west also helped to warm the global climate. Warm-adapted plant fossils are known from localities as far north as Alaska and Greenland, while dinosaur fossils have been found within 15 degrees of the Cretaceous south pole.
Nonetheless, there is evidence of Antarctic marine glaciation in the Turonian Age.
A very gentle temperature gradient from the equator to the poles meant weaker global winds, which drive the ocean currents, resulted in less upwelling and more stagnant oceans than today. This is evidenced by widespread black shale deposition and frequent anoxic events. Sediment cores show that tropical sea surface temperatures may have briefly been as warm as 42 °C (108 °F), 17 °C (31 °F) warmer than at present, and that they averaged around 37 °C (99 °F). Meanwhile, deep ocean temperatures were as much as 15 to 20 °C (27 to 36 °F) warmer than today's.
Flowering plants (angiosperms) spread during this period, although they did not become predominant until the Campanian Age near the end of the period. Their evolution was aided by the appearance of bees; in fact angiosperms and insects are a good example of coevolution. The first representatives of many leafy trees, including figs, planes and magnolias, appeared in the Cretaceous.
At the same time, some earlier Mesozoic gymnosperms continued to thrive; pehuéns (monkey puzzle trees, Araucaria) and other conifers being notably plentiful and widespread. Some fern orders such as Gleicheniales appeared as early in the fossil record as the Cretaceous and achieved an early broad distribution. Gymnosperm taxa like Bennettitales and hirmerellan conifers died out before the end of the period.
On land, mammals were generally small sized, but a very relevant component of the fauna, with cimolodont multituberculates outnumbering dinosaurs in some sites. Neither true marsupials nor placentals existed until the very end, but a variety of non-marsupial metatherians and non-placental eutherians had already begun to diversify greatly, ranging as carnivores (Deltatheroida), aquatic foragers (Stagodontidae) and herbivores (Schowalteria, Zhelestidae). Various "archaic" groups like eutriconodonts were common in the Early Cretaceous, but by the Late Cretaceous northern mammalian faunas were dominated by multituberculates and therians, with dryolestoids dominating South America.
The apex predators were archosaurian reptiles, especially dinosaurs, which were at their most diverse stage. Pterosaurs were common in the early and middle Cretaceous, but as the Cretaceous proceeded they declined for poorly understood reasons (once thought to be due to competition with early birds, but now it is understood avian adaptive radiation is not consistent with pterosaur decline), and by the end of the period only two highly specialized families remained.
Insects diversified during the Cretaceous, and the oldest known ants, termites and some lepidopterans, akin to butterflies and moths, appeared. Aphids, grasshoppers and gall wasps appeared.
Tyrannosaurus rex, one of the largest land predators of all time, lived during the late Cretaceous.
In the seas, rays, modern sharks and teleosts became common. Marine reptiles included ichthyosaurs in the early and mid-Cretaceous (becoming extinct during the late Cretaceous Cenomanian-Turonian anoxic event), plesiosaurs throughout the entire period, and mosasaurs appearing in the Late Cretaceous.
Baculites, an ammonite genus with a straight shell, flourished in the seas along with reef-building rudist clams. The Hesperornithiformes were flightless, marine diving birds that swam like grebes. Globotruncanid Foraminifera and echinoderms such as sea urchins and starfish (sea stars) thrived. The first radiation of the diatoms (generally siliceous shelled, rather than calcareous) in the oceans occurred during the Cretaceous; freshwater diatoms did not appear until the Miocene. The Cretaceous was also an important interval in the evolution of bioerosion, the production of borings and scrapings in rocks, hardgrounds and shells.
A scene from the early Cretaceous: a Woolungasaurus is attacked by a Kronosaurus.
The impact of a large body with the Earth may have been the punctuation mark at the end of a progressive decline in biodiversity during the Maastrichtian Age of the Cretaceous Period. The result was the extinction of three-quarters of Earth's plant and animal species. The impact created the sharp break known as K–Pg boundary (formerly known as the K–T boundary). Earth's biodiversity required substantial time to recover from this event, despite the probable existence of an abundance of vacant ecological niches.
Despite the severity of K-Pg extinction event, there was significant variability in the rate of extinction between and within different clades. Species which depended on photosynthesis declined or became extinct as atmospheric particles blocked solar energy. As is the case today, photosynthesizing organisms, such as phytoplankton and land plants, formed the primary part of the food chain in the late Cretaceous, and all else that depended on them suffered as well. Herbivorous animals, which depended on plants and plankton as their food, died out as their food sources became scarce; consequently, the top predators such as Tyrannosaurus rex also perished. Yet only three major groups of tetrapods disappeared completely; the non-avian dinosaurs, the plesiosaurs and the pterosaurs. The other Cretaceous groups that did not survive into the Cenozoic era, the ichthyosaurs and last remaining temnospondyls and non-mammalian cynodonts were already extinct millions of years before the event occurred.
Coccolithophorids and molluscs, including ammonites, rudists, freshwater snails and mussels, as well as organisms whose food chain included these shell builders, became extinct or suffered heavy losses. For example, it is thought that ammonites were the principal food of mosasaurs, a group of giant marine reptiles that became extinct at the boundary.
Omnivores, insectivores and carrion-eaters survived the extinction event, perhaps because of the increased availability of their food sources. At the end of the Cretaceous there seem to have been no purely herbivorous or carnivorous mammals. Mammals and birds which survived the extinction fed on insects, larvae, worms and snails, which in turn fed on dead plant and animal matter. Scientists theorise that these organisms survived the collapse of plant-based food chains because they fed on detritus.
In stream communities, few groups of animals became extinct. Stream communities rely less on food from living plants and more on detritus that washes in from land. This particular ecological niche buffered them from extinction. Similar, but more complex patterns have been found in the oceans. Extinction was more severe among animals living in the water column, than among animals living on or in the seafloor. Animals in the water column are almost entirely dependent on primary production from living phytoplankton, while animals living on or in the ocean floor feed on detritus or can switch to detritus feeding.
The largest air-breathing survivors of the event, crocodilians and champsosaurs, were semi-aquatic and had access to detritus. Modern crocodilians can live as scavengers and can survive for months without food and go into hibernation when conditions are unfavorable, and their young are small, grow slowly, and feed largely on invertebrates and dead organisms or fragments of organisms for their first few years. These characteristics have been linked to crocodilian survival at the end of the Cretaceous.
^ The term "Cretaceous" first appeared in English in: Henry Thomas De La Beche, A Geological Manual (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: Carey & Lea, 1832). From page 35: "Group 4. (Cretaceous) contains the rocks which in England and the North of France are characterized by chalk in the upper part, and sands and sandstones in the lower."
^ Glossary of Geology (3rd ed.). Washington, D.C.: American Geological Institute. 1972. p. 165.
^ Renne, Paul R.; et al. (2013). "Time scales of critical events around the Cretaceous-Paleogene boundary". Science. 339 (6120): 684–688. Bibcode:2013Sci...339..684R. doi:10.1126/science.1230492. PMID 23393261.
^ Vennari, Verónica V.; Lescano, Marina; Naipauer, Maximiliano; Aguirre-Urreta, Beatriz; Concheyro, Andrea; Schaltegger, Urs; Armstrong, Richard; Pimentel, Marcio; Ramos, Victor A. (2014). "New constraints on the Jurassic–Cretaceous boundary in the High Andes using high-precision U–Pb data". Gondwana Research. 26 (1): 374–385. Bibcode:2014GondR..26..374V. doi:10.1016/j.gr.2013.07.005. Retrieved 16 January 2016.
^ Jaramillo, Jessica. "Entrevista al Dr. Víctor Alberto Ramos, Premio México Ciencia y Tecnología 2013" (in Spanish). Si logramos publicar esos nuevos resultados, sería el primer paso para cambiar formalmente la edad del Jurásico-Cretácico. A partir de ahí, la Unión Internacional de la Ciencias Geológicas y la Comisión Internacional de Estratigrafía certificaría o no, depende de los resultados, ese cambio.
^ a b Kazlev, M.Alan. "Palaeos Mesozoic: Cretaceous: The Berriasian Age". Palaeos.com. Archived from the original on 20 December 2010. Retrieved 18 October 2017.
^ Alley, N. F.; Frakes, L. A. (2003). "First known Cretaceous glaciation: Livingston Tillite Member of the Cadna‐owie Formation, South Australia". Australian Journal of Earth Sciences. 50 (2): 139. Bibcode:2003AuJES..50..139A. doi:10.1046/j.1440-0952.2003.00984.x.
^ Frakes, L. A.; Francis, J. E. (1988). "A guide to Phanerozoic cold polar climates from high-latitude ice-rafting in the Cretaceous". Nature. 333 (6173): 547. Bibcode:1988Natur.333..547F. doi:10.1038/333547a0.
^ Nordt, Lee, Stacy Atchley, and Steve Dworkin. "Terrestrial Evidence for Two Greenhouse Events in the Latest Cretaceous." Baylor University, 6 Oct. 2003. Web. 10 Nov. 2012.
^ Bornemann, Norris RD; Friedrich, O; Beckmann, B; Schouten, S; Damsté, JS; Vogel, J; Hofmann, P; Wagner, T (Jan 2008). "Isotopic evidence for glaciation during the Cretaceous supergreenhouse". Science. 319 (5860): 189–92. Bibcode:2008Sci...319..189B. doi:10.1126/science.1148777. PMID 18187651.
^ "Warmer than a Hot Tub: Atlantic Ocean Temperatures Much Higher in the Past" PhysOrg.com. Retrieved 12/3/06.
^ "Introduction to the Bennettitales". University of California Museum of Paleontology. Retrieved 30 May 2014.
^ Halliday, Thomas John Dixon; Upchurch, Paul; Goswami, Anjali (29 June 2016). "Eutherians experienced elevated evolutionary rates in the immediate aftermath of the Cretaceous–Palaeogene mass extinction". Proc. R. Soc. B. 283 (1833): 20153026. doi:10.1098/rspb.2015.3026. PMC 4936024. PMID 27358361. Retrieved 18 October 2017 – via rspb.RoyalSocietyPublishing.org.
^ a b "Life of the Cretaceous". www.ucmp.Berkeley.edu. Retrieved 18 October 2017.
^ "EVOLUTIONARY/GEOLOGICAL TIMELINE v1.0". www.TalkOrigins.org. Retrieved 18 October 2017.
^ Wilf, P; Johnson KR (2004). "Land plant extinction at the end of the Cretaceous: a quantitative analysis of the North Dakota megafloral record". Paleobiology. 30 (3): 347–368. doi:10.1666/0094-8373(2004)030<0347:LPEATE>2.0.CO;2.
^ Kauffman, E (2004). "Mosasaur Predation on Upper Cretaceous Nautiloids and Ammonites from the United States Pacific Coast". PALAIOS. 19 (1): 96–100. doi:10.1669/0883-1351(2004)019<0096:MPOUCN>2.0.CO;2. Retrieved 17 June 2007.
^ a b Shehan, P; Hansen, TA (1986). "Detritus feeding as a buffer to extinction at the end of the Cretaceous". Geology. 14 (10): 868–870. Bibcode:1986Geo....14..868S. doi:10.1130/0091-7613(1986)14<868:DFAABT>2.0.CO;2. Retrieved 4 July 2007.
^ Aberhan, M; Weidemeyer, S; Kieesling, W; Scasso, RA & Medina, FA (2007). "Faunal evidence for reduced productivity and uncoordinated recovery in Southern Hemisphere Cretaceous–Paleogene boundary sections". Geology. 35 (3): 227–230. Bibcode:2007Geo....35..227A. doi:10.1130/G23197A.1.
^ Sheehan, PM; Fastovsky, DE (1992). "Major extinctions of land-dwelling vertebrates at the Cretaceous–Paleogene boundary, eastern Montana". Geology. 20 (6): 556–560. Bibcode:1992Geo....20..556S. doi:10.1130/0091-7613(1992)020<0556:MEOLDV>2.3.CO;2. Retrieved 22 June 2007.
Ovechkina, M.N.; Alekseev, A.S. (2005). "Quantitative changes of calcareous nannoflora in the Saratov region (Russian Platform) during the late Maastrichtian warming event" (PDF). Journal of Iberian Geology. 31 (1): 149–165. Archived from the original (PDF) on August 24, 2006.
"Cretaceous System" . Encyclopædia Britannica. 7 (11th ed.). 1911. pp. 414–418. |
0.998014 | I am a novice sewer and this is my first sewing machine. What are some things I can do to ensure my sewing success?
First, be sure to use good quality, polyester covered thread. An old or inferior thread can cause skipped stitches and thread breakage.
Threading your machine correctly is the difference between success and frustration. When threading the top of your sewing machine, follow the thread path illustrated in your instruction manual. Thread the machine with the presser foot in the "up" position so that the thread falls into the tension disc. Check to be sure thread is feeding freely off the spool pin and the needle is threaded from front to back.
The bobbin must be loaded in the bobbin case correctly. To check this, on a front-loading bobbin, hold the bobbin case in your hand, with the bobbin facing you. Pull on the thread. The bobbin should turn clockwise. If it turns counterclockwise take it out, flip it over and re-position it in the bobbin case.
The bobbin case should click into place as you place it into the bobbin shuttle.
Sometimes my machine sews 4 or 5 stitches then jams. When I remove the fabric from the machine, I notice thread bunched underneath the fabric. What's the problem?
When you notice thread bunching under the fabric or in the bobbin case area it appears to be the bobbin thread that is the culprit. It is actually excess top thread.
If you were to thread the top of your machine with red thread and the bobbin with blue thread, you would see lots of red thread under the fabric or in the bobbin area. This is an indication that there is not sufficient tension on the top thread. Rethread the machine with the presser foot up and make sure the thread is lodged in the tension disc. Be sure the bobbin case is in the correct position.
If this does not solve the problem you may need to increase the upper tension setting. Note the number that the tension dial is set on and increase it by one number and test the stitching. Continue to increase the setting and test stitch until the problem is solved.
Check to be sure the top is threaded correctly and that the bobbin case is in the correct position.
My stitches are inconsistent and skipping, what causes this?
Skipped stitches may be caused by a burr or nick in the needle, a poor quality thread, or the particular type of fabric you are using may not be compatible with the needle point you are using. Change to a new needle. Be sure to insert it with the flat side to the back. Use the correct needle point for the type of fabric you are sewing on.
A ball point needle is best for knits and most stretch fabrics. Use a sharp needle for woven and fine fabrics. The universal point needle works for knits as well as woven.
Use good quality polyester or polyester covered cotton thread to ensure smooth even stitches.
Loose stitching happens when there is not enough tension on the upper thread.
Note the number on the top tension dial located on the upper left hand of your sewing machine. Increase it by one number and test the stitching. Continue to increase the setting and test stitch until the problem is solved.
Check to be sure the upper thread is correctly threaded, and that the bobbin case is in the correct position.
Help! My stitching looks inconsistent.
The upper and lower looper thread should interlock right over the cut edge of the fabric. The needle threads should form a straight row of stitches on the topside and be barely visible on the backside.
If fabric is puckering or the threads appear to be pulling, that is an indication that tension settings are too tight. Loosen the tension dials, one at a time, by turning to a lower number.
If the thread is too loose and hanging off the edge of the fabric you may need to tighten the looper settings. However, it is normal for the threads to hang off the edge slightly when using a narrower stitch width setting. When your stitch width is at its widest the threads will interlock right over the edge of the fabric.
If your seam looks as if it were about to come apart, this is a symptom of loose needle tension. The needle tension/s will need to be adjusted. If using two needles, gradually tighten your left needle tension (orange). The right needle tension should be set 1 or 2 numbers lower than the left needle tension. |
0.999544 | Thank you so much to everyone who has donated to the atheist bus campaign. As I write this, the total has just broken £83,000 (without Gift Aid) – a truly amazing amount to raise in just two days (even the donation website, JustGiving, told us they've never experienced this much support for a campaign before!). You've helped us hit the national news headlines, give atheists more of a voice, and generate debate on TV, radio and newspapers throughout the world. It couldn't have happened without you, and we're extremely grateful for all your support.
There's been an exciting level of debate about the campaign. Lots of you have asked why the word "probably" is included in the ad slogan, and stated that you'd prefer the wording to read "There's no God". While I fully understand this view, there's a vital reason for the "probably"'s inclusion: as with the Carlsberg ads, it's likely to get us around the advertising regulations (specifically points 3.1, 3.2, 5.1, 8.1, 9.1 and 11.1 in the general rules of the CAP Code, which regulates non-broadcast adverts in the UK). In my view, neither version of the slogan breaches the code, but CAP has advised that "the inclusion of the word 'probably' makes it less likely to cause offence, and therefore be in breach of the Advertising Code."
There's another reason I'm keen on the "probably": it means the slogan is more accurate, as even though there's no scientific evidence at all for God's existence, it's also impossible to prove that God doesn't exist (or that anything doesn't). As Richard Dawkins states in The God Delusion, saying "there's no God" is taking a "faith" position. He writes: "Atheists do not have faith; and reason alone could not propel one to total conviction that anything definitely does not exist". His choice of words in the book is "almost certainly"; but while this is closer to what most atheists believe, "probably" is shorter and catchier, which is helpful for advertising. I also think the word is more lighthearted, and somehow makes the message more positive.
Many people have asked how the extra funds are going to be used. While everyone on the campaign team is elated at the amount raised, we genuinely never expected the campaign to skyrocket like this, and had only planned to use any extra money to buy small ads inside buses. We're hoping to run the campaign throughout the UK, but outside London we may have to think about using billboards and trains instead of buses, since the company Stagecoach runs many regional bus services and may not accept our adverts as its owner, Brian Souter, is an evangelical Christian.
Whatever happens, every penny of the total is going directly towards the atheist adverts. If you have an innovative idea about how we could advertise more effectively outside London, an atheist advertising slogan you like which we could use in future campaigns, or a thought about where we should take the campaign from here, please let us know – we'll read every comment.
Lastly, thank you once again to everyone who has given to the campaign, commented in a debate, blogged about it, linked to a site or story about it, joined the Facebook group, forwarded links to friends, or posted a funny, kind or supportive comment on the JustGiving page. Atheists have truly pulled together to make ourselves heard, and it's exciting to imagine what we could achieve in the future. The sky's the limit, and as one comment on the donation page said: "I hope this is just the beginning."
To donate to the atheist bus campaign, please visit here. |
0.999994 | Both Samsung Galaxy A3 and A5 are now official. After weeks, even months of leaks this Korean giant finally made them official. Both of these handsets feature unibody metal construction and look really sleek because of it. They're extremely thin and look a lot alike, though, of course, their internals are different. Let's see take a closer look at what Samsung included in one of those devices, this time around we're covering the Galaxy A5.
Galaxy A5 features a 5-inch 72op (1280 x 720, 294ppi) Super AMOLED display along with 2GB of RAM for multitasking and 16GB of expandable internal storage, you can expand it via MicroSD card up to 64GB. Just like the Galaxy A3, Samsung Galaxy A5 is powered by a quad-core chip (Samsung didn't share the model or brand details) clocked at 1.2GHz. On the back of the device, you'll find a 13-megapixel AF camera and an LED flash while there's a 5-megapixel shooter on the front side of this device for selfies and video calls.
As far as connectivity is concerned, this device is equipped with Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.0 (BLE, ANT+), NFC (only in LTE version of the phone) and A-GPS / GLONASS. As you can figure out from the previous sentence, there are two versions of the device, the 3G version and a 4G LTE version: 3G: HSPA+ 42.2/5.76Mbps ; 4G: LTE Cat4 (150/50Mbps). The device comes with an integrate 2,300mAh battery which should provide you enough juice to get through the day. The following sensors are also included: Accelerometer, Proximity, Geo-magnetic, RGB ambient light and a Hall Sensor.
When it comes to software, Samsung Galaxy A5 comes with Android 4.4 KitKat pre-installed along with Samsung's own skin on top of it. This handset brings along a ton of software features, like Ultra Power Saving Mode, Changeable Theme (Natural, Classic, Casual, Romantic), Private Mode, Multi Screen and Quick Connect. Wide Selfie, Rear-cam Selfie and Beauty Face Features are also included as part of Galaxy A5's camera software offerings. 139.3 x 69.7 x 6.7mm are this device's measurements while it weighs 123 grams, which makes it thinner, but not lighter than the Galaxy A3.
Galaxy A5 will be available starting November in select markets, China included, just like its smaller brother. Samsung didn't give us any information regarding the pricing of either of these handsets at the moment nor did they share the exact launch dates, we should get more soon though. |
0.99965 | The understanding of how semantic similarities between object concepts are reflected in the brain is a fundamental issue in cognitive neuroscience [1, 2].fMRI studies have provided evidence that similar objects are grouped or clustered together into categories along a number of semantic features including visual, functional, tactile, sound, smell, taste and action features[3, 4].
Traditionally, the relation between brain regions have been represented as graphs, where nodes denote brain regions and edges denote functional or structural connections between them.Neuroimaging studies have implicated a number of these regions, known as modality-specific areas, as representing specific knowledge of objects.These knowledge includes a number of visual ,functional and encyclopedic features. These features are of a particular interest because they allow people to make comparison between objects. Like brain networks, semantic similarities between objects may be represented as graphs; in that case, nodes represent objects and links represent the presence of a common feature. However, it is not possible to retrieve what constitute the meanings of these links.
In this study, we propose to represent semantic similarities between objects with the mathematical model of hypergraph, a generalization of the graph model. The benefits of using hypergraphs for representing object similarities are threefold. First, links between objects, called hyperedges, connect a set of nodes and not just binary nodes as in graphs, such that the complexity of the similarities between objects can be preserved. Second, and unlike in graphs, links in hypergraphs keep their semantic, such that the semantic path between the similarities can be traced. Third, in a hypergraph, the clusters of objects overlap, because one category can share one or more of its semantic features with one or more categories and, by extension, a group of categories. We build a hypergraph for objects and their features based on the results available in neuroimaging studies including 1)-studies that have addressed the issue of how semantic similarities between object concepts are reflected in the brain [1, 2], 2) studies that have examined how object concepts of different categories are organized in the brain [3, 4, 6], and also 3)-studies that have investigated the differences and similarities for processing object-related nouns and action-related verbs in the brain.
To summarize, hypergraphs provide an important approach for representing similarities between objects in the brain from the semantic perspective and provide a useful structure for representing clusters-based similarity. |
0.999924 | Jasbina Ahluwalia asks Sanjit Singh: author of Are You Indian? There is also the case where some Indian guys will date American women, or non-Indians, and over time they realize that they really do want to marry someone from their own background. _____ The above is an excerpt from Jasbina’s interview with Sanjit Singh The entire interview transcript is at: Sanjit Singh Interview – Are You Indian?
A Humorous Guide to Growing up Indian in America: That is a really good point with respect to the culture. Then they break up with them, date someone else and marry an Indian woman. Get to know what their expectations and values are. His mom might be putting a lot of pressure on him to marry an Indian girl and you’re non-Indian. Listen to the entire interview on: Intersections Match Talk Radio – Jasbina’s Lifestyle Show Listen to the entire interview on Blog Talk Radio: Conversation with Author, Sanjit Singh Listen to the entire interview on i Tunes _____ The uniqueness of Intersections Match comes from the life experiences of its Founder, Jasbina Ahluwalia.
Both men and women can benefit from understanding these cultural differences before going on that first date.
(Radio.com) Rumors are circulating that Oasis' Liam and Noel Gallagher will reunite to perform at the Ariana Grande Manchester benefit concert, One Love Manchester, this weekend (June 4).
Its a free service that tons of people use each day so I decided to give it a try myself and come to my own conclusion. |
0.946501 | Deuteronomy is the last book of the Pentateuch (Greek for "Fivebook") or of the Thora (Hebrew word for "law"). The unity of the Pentateuch and the fact that Moses is the author of it have often been denied since the 19th century. Criticism has especially focused on the book of Deuteronomy as it is said to have been written only at the time of Josiah, or even later.
Starting from 2 Timothy 3:16 : "All scripture is given by inspiration of God" we can see in the Old as well as in the New Testament that Moses is considered to be the author of Deuteronomy and therefore the time of writing is confirmed. In Deuteronomy 31:9; Deuteronomy 31:24-26 it is testified that Moses wrote the book and that he gave it to the Levites to keep it. In Joshua 8:32-35 explicit reference is made to Deuteronomy 27:8-12 as "all that Moses the servant of the Lord had commanded before". While mentioning the law of Moses (Thora) in 2 Chronicles 34:14 and Nehemiah 8:1 the book of Deuteronomy is included as well.
Sometimes the question is being raised as to who was the author of Deuteronomy 34 where we find the death and burial of Moses. It probably was Joshua, the friend and successor of Moses (Deuteronomy 34:9) who under the guidance and inspiration of the Holy Spirit added this short appendix to the whole work of his predecessor.
The events of Deuteronomy happen during the time of the first day of the eleventh month in the 40th year after the exodus out of Egypt (Deuteronomy 1:3). The place of these events are the "plains of Moab" on the east side of Jordan.
The name "Deuteronomy" for the fifth book of Moses means "second law". But the book is more than a simple repetition of the laws contained in Exodus, Leviticus and Numbers, which God had given the people of Israel at Mount Sinaï. Out of the generation who were older than 20 years of age at the Exodus out of Egypt only Moses, Joshua and Caleb were still alive (Numbers 14:29-30). Therefore a renewed repetition of the law for the whole people after such a long time was quite appropriate and necessary. But the main purpose of the book is the preparation of the people of Israel for the passage through Jordan and the entrance into the land of Canaan that had been promised by Jehovah.
The subject of Exodus and Leviticus was meeting God in His sanctuary. The purpose of Deuteronomy is the preparation of the people for the blessings, which Jehovah wanted to give them in the (promised) land. Obedience therefore plays an important part in this book. Obedience to God's laws brings blessing but disobedience will draw after curse and judgment.
In the New Testament the Epistle to the Philippians corresponds to the book of Deuteronomy. The people of Israel had been pointed to the blessings in Canaan while yet in the wilderness and similarly Paul was occupied with Christ the Lord in glory while still on earth.
a) In the New Testament we will find more than 30 verbal references out of Deuteronomy as well as many hints at facts that only occurred in this book. After the Psalms and the Prophet Isaiah Deuteronomy belongs to the most referred to books of the Old Testament.
b) The words "the place which the Lord your God shall choose" (for the place of worship) appears 21 times from chap. 12:5 onwards. This place was Jerusalem although the name of the city does not appear in the Pentateuch. Four hundred more years would have to pass until David and Solomon would find this place of worshiping God and would prepare it (1 Chronicles 21:30; 1 Chronicles 22:1; chap. 28).
c) When the Lord Jesus was tempted of the devil in the wilderness He three times replied: "It is written." (Matthew 4:4; Matthew 4:7; Matthew 4:10). Each time He refers to a verse of Deuteronomy (Deuteronomy 8:3; Deuteronomy 6:16; Deuteronomy 6:13). These are divine proofs for the authenticity of Deuteronomy. |
0.978578 | Biography Editor vs. Memoir Editor: What's the difference?
A biography editor looks at the entirety of a lifetime.
Do You Need a Biography Editor … or a Memoir Editor?
That depends on whether you’re writing about the subject’s entire lifetime, or an event in the subject’s life.
Note that you may see biographies and memoirs under the same category on Amazon and Barnes & Noble. For instance, Joe DiMaggio: The Hero’s Life by Richard Ben Cramer is listed on Amazon as Books › Biographies & Memoirs › Arts & Literature. Yes, biographies and memoirs are often lumped together.
However, there is a distinction. Editors and publishers treat biographies and memoirs differently. It’s good to know the distinction between the two as you navigate the world of authorship. You see, biographies can be a full-span birth-to-death nonfiction book, while memoirs address an important event in someone’s lifetime.
If the author is writing about his or her own life, that, of course, is an autobiography.
Some readers may associate biographies with well-known people, such as media icons or celebrities or sports figures. Many of these high-profile biographies are ghostwritten, meaning they were written and compiled by a third party who most likely remained nameless. As a ghostwriter myself, I can attest to the amount of collaboration it takes to ghostwrite a biography. It’s a great honor when someone entrusts me with their life’s journey, as you can imagine.
While it’s true that celebrities do get a lot of buzz, airtime, and media coverage, seemingly ordinary people can also have extraordinary life stories. A community hero who went from local or viral (Captain “Sully” Sullenberger comes to mind) might also want a biography written.
More often, I’m a biography editor, which means I edit nonfiction books after they’ve been written. I’m hired to put an expert eye on the story arc as well as the conventions of English usage. As I examine the unfolding tale, my eyes search for missing nuances, or clarifications in the chronology, or fact checking dates and times in history. The goal is to elevate the manuscript to its best version.
Imagine that an author has an adoption tale with stunning twists and turns, or was born in a foreign country and had to assimilate, or has numerous sets of twins or triplets, or is living with a debilitating disease. His or her memoir highlights a more specific slice of life and is limited in scope.
And yes, memoirs need editing too. A second pair of eyes makes all the difference.
Contact me for a biography editing or memoir editing quote.
Are You Looking for a Faith-Based Book Editor? |
0.999696 | Ten-year-old Nicki Fleming is about to start fifth grade. She has spent the summer on her Colorado ranch working with Sprocket, the service dog she has been training, and helping her mother, who is expecting twins. In addition, Nicki's best friend Becca was away all summer, and Nicki has gotten to be close friends with Kris, one of the new girls at their school.<br /> The start of a new school year is usually an exciting time for Nicki, but this year it's laced with sadness because it means that Sprocket will soon leave for advanced training and eventual placement with a person with special needs. Starting school is also more challenging this year because it means trying to maintain close friendships with both Kris and Becca, who don't know each other very well. Can Nicki find a way to let Sprocket go <i>and</i> to keep both Kris and Becca close? |
0.998945 | At Fastway Couriers, Gold Coast we provide a highly professional and efficient national service but we’re also a local family owned and run business.
At Fastway Couriers, Gold Coast we offer a unique approach to courier services; specialising in economically priced, personalised courier delivery and pick-up services for businesses, large and small.
Locally owned and operated by Regional Franchisees, Steve Curtis & Kerry Noyes, our Gold Coast team of Courier Franchisees offer a reliable and friendly courier service.
Our service area includes the greater Gold Coast region, including (but not limited to) Nerang, Sorrento, Coomera, Tweed Coast, Broadbeach, Southport, Surfers Paradise, Robina, Miami, Murwillumbah, Currumbin and Burleigh Heads.
We're proud to be associated with Give me 5 for kids and Daffodil Day for over 10 years. We sponsor Southport Yacht Club Youth Sailing, Southport Yacht Club Off the Beach Catamaran Sailing Division, Mudgeeraba Show and Gold Coast Show. |
0.99994 | Make a simple penguin from two Oreos and a candy corn. All you have to do is twist open one Oreo. Leave one half with the frosting side up and then break the other half in half. Place one piece frosting side down on each side of the other cookie to make wings. Use the whole Oreo for the head and place a candy corn on top for the penguin’s beak. What a cute penguin!
Chocolate chips, 4 regular and 4 mini 1. First, frost the top, sides, and bottoms of both a regular-size cupcake and a mini cupcake with white frosting. For each cupcake, frost the bottom first; then use a fork stuck into the bottom to hold the cupcake while you frost the rest of it.
2. Roll the cupcakes in shredded coconut; then, working on waxed paper, set the cupcakes on their sides with the top of the smaller cupcake stuck to the bottom of the larger one to form the bear’s head.
3. Add 2 horizontal slices from a large white gumdrop for ears, a Junior Mint candy for a nose, and 2 chocolate chips for eyes. For each cub, frost a mini cupcake and a large gumdrop, then roll them in coconut and arrange them on their sides as shown. Add 2 horizontal slices from a small white gumdrop for ears, a chocolate chip nose, and 2 mini chocolate chip eyes.
I used this snack when talking about icebergs.
You will need: 3 3/4 cups boiling water, 5 packages (4 servings) blue gelatin mix, 2 1/2 cups cold water, ice cubes, whipped topping.
Mix together gelatin and boiling water; stir until gelatin is completely dissolved.
Add ice cubes to cold water to measure 6 1/4 cups. Add ice mixture to gelatin mixture. Stir until gelatin begins to thicken. Remove any un-melted ice.
Divide thickened gelatin equally among clear plastic cups. Chill until set.
Spread whipped topping over each serving to represent a layer of ice and snow. |
0.999993 | From Anion A of Switzerland, to Fuller's Earth of the U.S. Midwest, to Argiletz's French Green clay in France, to the fine glacier clays of Canada, to the Dead Sea Muds of the middle east, to the vibrant green bentonites of Wyoming, to the pale grey bentonites of Death Valley, montomorillonite, bentonite, illite, and zeolite have held a long standing reputation for curative powers in natural medicine.
What is Bentonite? And Montmorillonite?
Bentonite is a name given to a particular clay that was originally found in Fort Benton, Eastern Wyoming. The name was given by W.C. Knight in 1898. Previously, it was called Taylorite, which was named after William Taylor, who first began to draw attention to the clay deposits.
Geologists often describe bentonite as a clay mineral containing Montmorillonite, which poses a rather curious problem, as Montmorillonite is a name of a particular clay that was discovered in Montmorillon, France, named by Mauduyt in 1847.
"The name montmorillonite is used currently both as a group name for all clay minerals with an expanding lattice, except vermiculite, and also as specific mineral name. Specifically it indicates a high-aluminia end member of the montmorillonite group with some slight replacement of Al3+ by Mg++ and substantially no replacement of Si4+ by Al3+. MacEwan suggested the term montmorillonoid for the group name to avoid confusion with montmorillonite as a specific mineral name, and Correns suggested Montmorin as the group name. Neither of these names has found favor. The name smectite suggested as a group name by the Clay Minerals Group of the Mineralogical Society of Great Britain at the outset met strong opposition, particulary by many American mineralogists, but it is becoming widely accepted."
(R. E. Grim: Clay Mineralogy 2nd edition, McGraw-Hill Book Company, New York (1968) 41).
"Sodium bentonite is the name for the ore whose major constituent is the clay mineral, sodium montmorillonite. Montmorillonites are three-layer minerals consisting of two tetrahedral layers sandwiched around a central octahedral layer (Figure 1). Oxide anions at the apices of the tetrahedral subunits are directed inward where they surround interior aluminum, iron and magnesium cations, thereby forming the octahedral subunits of the octahedral layer. Bonding, between the shared interior oxide anions and the cations in both the tetrahedral and the octahedral layers, links the layers together and yields the unique sheet structure characteristic of clay minerals. For montmorillonite, the total negative charge contributed to the structure by the sum of all the oxide anions (O2-) is somewhat in excess of the total positive charge contributed by the sum of all the structural cations (Si+4, Al+3, Fe+2, Fe+3, Mg+2) and imparts a slight overall negative charge to the surfaces of the clay sheets. This slight excess negative charge on the sheets is counterbalanced by free-moving (exchangeable) cations which exist between them. These three layers in each sheet comprise individual bentonite platelets which are typically 1 nm in thickness and 0,2-2 microns in diameter. Dry platelets of sodium bentonite are most commonly grouped together in a face-to-face arrangement, with exchangeable cations and small amounts of adsorbed wares in an interlayer region between each platelet. The thickness of the interlayer region is variable depending on the amount of water adsorbed between the platelets."
"High-purity, air-classified sodium bentonite, selectively-mined, consisting of micronized particles and supplied as a free-flowing powder. This high-purity montmorillonite is typically used where small particle size is required in pesticide and fertilizer applications... A Hydrous aluminum silicate, air purified to concentrate the finest montmorillonite fraction from the bentonite ore. Contains traces of feldspar, quartz, calcite, and gypsum."
We wanted to add the above paragraphs due to the common misconception that, somehow, bentonites and montmorillonites are two different types of mineral classes. In other words, we've talked to people who didn't want bentonite, but instead montmorillonite, and those who have rejected montmorillonite because it wasn't labelled as bentonite.
Bentonites (and montmorillonites) are further classified by their dominant cation (the element in the clay that has the highest potential for ion exchange).
Some sources state that there are only two primary types (sodium and calcium) of bentonite. However, magnesium bentonite (http://www.gsaresources.com/bentonite.htm), calcium magnesium bentonite, and potassium bentonite (http://vulcan.wr.usgs.gov/LivingWith/VolcanicPast/Places/volcanic_past_indiana.html), while less common, are unique forms of bentonite, just like the calcium and sodium bentonites.
Healing Clay has been used in France, Australia, the Americas, the Middle East and Europe for centuries in native natural medicine arts.
Actually, now that you mention it, yes I do!
That quote was a copy/paste from Cetco, and was either a typo by them or a mistake by me.
I will change it, thanks for noticing and letting me know!
Bentonites (and montmorillonites) are further classified by their dominant anion (the element in the clay that has the highest potential for ion exchange).
Wouldn't they be classified by the dominant CATION? i.e. sodium (Na+), calcium (Ca+2), etc??
Thank you for catching that typo. You are absolutely correct! I have made the correction.
Thank you for taking the time to point it out.
Can you add sources for Sodium bentonite/?
that will be much helpful for those looking to source sodium bentonite. |
0.983081 | The beach has an easy access near the Castle. The currents are easy, but the waves are not very clean. But there is almost always swell and powerful waves.
English (Translate this text in English): The beach has an easy access near the Castle. The currents are easy, but the waves are not very clean. But there is almost always swell and powerful waves. |
0.938353 | (Wikipedia) - Ali (Redirected from Imam Ali) For other persons named Ali, see Ali (name). For other uses, see Ali (disambiguation).
`Alī ibn Abī Ṭālib (Arabic: علي بن أبي طالب, translit.: ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib, Arabic pronunciation: ; 13th Rajab, 22 or 16 BH – 21st Ramaḍān, 40 AH; September 20, 601 or July 17, 607 or 600 – January 27, 661) was the cousin and son-in-law of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, ruling over the Islamic Caliphate from 656 to 661. A son of Abu Talib, Ali was also the first male who accepted Islam. Sunnis consider Ali the fourth and final of the Rashidun (rightly guided Caliphs), while Shi`is regard `Ali as the first Imam after Muḥammad, and consider him and his descendants the rightful successors to Muhammad, all of whom are members of the Ahl al-Bayt, the household of Muhammad. This disagreement split the Ummah (Muslim community) into the Sunni and Shi`i branches.
Shi`is sources state that `Ali was born in the Kaaba sanctuary in Mecca, the holiest place in Islam. His father was Abu Talib and his mother was Fatima bint Asad, but he was raised in the household of Muhammad, who himself was raised by Abu Talib, Muhammad''s uncle and `Ali''s father. When Muhammad reported receiving a divine revelation, `Ali was the first male to accept his message and first to convert to Islam at the age of 12, dedicating his life to the cause of Islam.
Ali migrated to Medina shortly after Muhammad did. Once there Muhammad told `Ali that Allah had ordered Muhammad to give his daughter, Fatimah, to `Ali in marriage. For the ten years that Muhammad led the community in Medina, Ali was extremely active in his service, leading parties of warriors in battles, and carrying messages and orders. Ali took part in the early caravan raids from Mecca and later in almost all the battles fought by the nascent Muslim community. Ali was appointed Caliph by the Companions of Muhammad (the Sahaba) in Medina after the assassination of the third caliph, `Uthman ibn Affan. He encountered defiance and civil war during his reign. In 661, `Ali was attacked one morning while praying in the Great Masjid of Al-Kufah, and died two days later.
In Muslim culture, `Ali is respected for his courage, knowledge, belief, honesty, unbending devotion to Islam, deep loyalty to Muhammad, equal treatment of all Muslims and generosity in forgiving his defeated enemies, and therefore is central to mystical traditions in Islam such as Sufism. Ali retains his stature as an authority on Quranic exegesis, Islamic jurisprudence and religious thought. Ali holds a high position in almost all Sufi orders which trace their lineage through him to Muhammad. Ali''s influence has been important throughout Islamic history.
`Ali''s father Abu Talib was the custodian of the Ka`bah and a sheikh of the Banu Hashim, an important branch of the powerful Quraysh tribe. He was also an uncle of Muhammad. `Ali''s mother, Fatima bint Asad, also belonged to Banu Hashim, making Ali a descendant of Isma`il Ishmael, the son of Ibrahim (Abraham). Many sources, especially Shi`i ones, attest that `Ali was born inside the Kaaba in the city of Mecca, where he stayed with his mother for three days. According to a tradition, Muhammad was the first person whom Ali saw as he took the newborn in his hands. Muhammad named him Ali, meaning "the exalted one". Muhammad had a close relationship with Ali''s parents. When Muhammad was orphaned and later lost his grandfather Abdul Muttalib, Ali''s father took him into his house. Ali was born two or three years after Muhammad married Khadijah bint Khuwaylid. When Ali was five or six years old, a famine occurred in and around Mecca, affecting the economic conditions of Ali''s father, who had a large family to support. Muhammad took Ali into his home to raise him.
Acceptance of Islam See also: Identity of the first male MuslimAmbigram depicting Muhammad (right) and Ali (left) written in a single word. The 180 degree inverted form shows both words.
The second period of Ali''s life begins in 610 when he declared Islam at age 10 and ends with the Hijra of Muhammad to Medina in 622. When Muhammad reported that he had received a divine revelation, Ali, then only about ten years old, believed him and professed to Islam. According to Ibn Ishaq and some other authorities, Ali was the first male to embrace Islam. Tabari adds other traditions making the similar claim of being the first Muslim in relation to Zayd ibn Harithah or Abu Bakr. Some historians and scholars believe Ali''s conversion is not worthy enough to consider him the first male Muslim because he was a child at the time. Shia doctrine asserts that in keeping with Ali''s divine mission, he accepted Islam before he took part in any pre-Islamic Meccan traditional religion rites, regarded by Muslims as polytheistic (see shirk) or paganistic. Hence the Shia say of Ali that his face is honored — that is, it was never sullied by prostrations before idols. The Sunnis also use the honorific Karam Allahu Wajhahu, which means "God''s Favor upon his Face."The reason his acceptance is often not called a conversion, is because he was never an idol worshipper like the people of Mecca. He was known to have broken idols in the mold of Abraham and asked people why they worshipped something they made themselves. Ali''s grandfather, it is acknowledged without controversy, along with some members of the Bani Hashim clan, were Hanifs, followers of a monotheistic belief system, prior to the coming of Islam.
For three years Muhammad invited people to Islam in secret, then he started inviting publicly. When, according to the Quran, he was commanded to invite his closer relatives to come to Islam he gathered the Banu Hashim clan in a ceremony. According to al-Tabari, Ibn Athir and Abu al-Fida, Muhammad announced at invitational events that whoever assisted him in his invitation would become his brother, trustee and successor. Only Ali, who was thirteen or fourteen years old, stepped forward to help him. This invitation was repeated three times, but Ali was the only person who answered Muhammad. Upon Ali''s constant and only answer to his call, Muhammad declared that Ali was his brother, inheritor and vice-regent and people must obey him. Most of the adults present were uncles of Ali and Muhammad, and Abu Lahab laughed at them and declared to Abu Talib that he must bow down to his own son, as Ali was now his Emir This event is known as the Hadith of Warning. During the persecution of Muslims and boycott of the Banu Hashim in Mecca, Ali stood firmly in support of Muhammad.
In 622, the year of Muhammad''s migration to Yathrib (now Medina), Ali risked his life by sleeping in Muhammad''s bed to impersonate him and thwart an assassination plot so that Muhammad could escape in safety. This night is called Laylat al-Mabit. According to some hadith, a verse was revealed about Ali concerning his sacrifice on the night of Hijra which says "And among men is he who sells his nafs (self) in exchange for the pleasure of Allah."
Ali survived the plot, but risked his life again by staying in Mecca to carry out Muhammad''s instructions: to restore to their owners all the goods and properties that had been entrusted to Muhammad for safekeeping. Ali then went to Medina with his mother, Muhammad''s daughter Fatimah and two other women.
Ali was 22 or 23 years old when he migrated to Medina. When Muhammad was creating bonds of brotherhood among his companions, he selected Ali as his brother. For the ten years that Muhammad led the community in Medina, Ali was extremely active in his service as his secretary and deputy, serving in his armies, the bearer of his banner in every battle, leading parties of warriors on raids, and carrying messages and orders. As one of Muhammad''s lieutenants, and later his son-in-law, Ali was a person of authority and standing in the Muslim community.
In 623, Muhammad told Ali that God ordered him to give his daughter Fatimah Zahra to Ali in marriage. Muhammad said to Fatimah: "I have married you to the dearest of my family to me." This family is glorified by Muhammad frequently and he declared them as his Ahl al-Bayt in events such as Mubahala and hadith like the Hadith of the Event of the Cloak. They were also glorified in the Quran in several cases such as "the verse of purification".
At the beginning they were extremely poor. For several years after his marriage, Fatimah did all of the household work by herself. The shoulder on which she carried pitchers of water from the well was swollen and the hand with which she worked the handmill to grind corn was often covered with blisters. Fatimah vouched to take care of the household work, make dough, bake bread, and clean the house; in return, Ali vouched to take care of the outside work such as gathering firewood, and bringing food. Their circumstances were akin to many of the Muslims at the time and only improved following the Battle of Khaybar when the wealth of Khaybar was distributed among the poor. When the economic situations of the Muslims became better, Fatimah gained some maids but treated them like her family and performed the house duties with them.
Their marriage lasted until Fatimah''s death ten years later. Although polygamy was permitted, Ali did not marry another woman while Fatimah was alive, and his marriage to her possesses a special spiritual significance for all Muslims because it is seen as the marriage between two great figures surrounding Muhammad. After Fatimah''s death, Ali married other wives and fathered many children.
Arabic calligraphy which means "There is no brave youth except Ali and there is no sword which renders service except Zulfiqar."
Ali was prominent at the Battle of Uhud, as well as many other battles where he wielded a bifurcated sword known as Zulfiqar. He had the special role of protecting Muhammad when most of the Muslim army fled from the battle of Uhud and it was said "There is no brave youth except Ali and there is no sword which renders service except Zulfiqar." He was commander of the Muslim army in the Battle of Khaybar. Following this battle Mohammad gave Ali the name Asadullah, which in Arabic means "Lion of Allah". Ali also defended Muhammad in the Battle of Hunayn in 630.
Ali beheading Nasr ibn al-Hareth in the presence of Muhammad and his companions.
Muhammad designated Ali as one of the scribes who would write down the text of the Quran, which had been revealed to Muhammad during the previous two decades. As Islam began to spread throughout Arabia, Ali helped establish the new Islamic order. He was instructed to write down the Treaty of Hudaybiyyah, the peace treaty between Muhammad and the Quraysh in 628. Ali was so reliable and trustworthy that Muhammad asked him to carry the messages and declare the orders. In 630, Ali recited to a large gathering of pilgrims in Mecca a portion of the Quran that declared Muhammad and the Islamic community were no longer bound by agreements made earlier with Arab polytheists. During the Conquest of Mecca in 630, Muhammad asked Ali to guarantee that the conquest would be bloodless. He ordered Ali to break all the idols worshipped by the Banu Aus, Banu Khazraj, Tayy, and those in the Kaaba to purify it after its defilement by the polytheism of the pre-Islamic era. Ali was sent to Yemen one year later to spread the teachings of Islam. He was also charged with settling several disputes and putting down the uprisings of various tribes.
According to hadith collections, in 631 an Arab Christian envoy from Najran (currently in northern Yemen and partly in Saudi Arabia) came to Muhammad to argue which of the two parties erred in its doctrine concerning Jesus. After likening Jesus'' miraculous birth to Adam''s creation, Muhammad called them to mubahala (conversation), where each party should bring their knowledgeable men, women and children, and ask God to curse the lying party and their followers. Muhammad, to prove to them that he was a prophet, brought his daughter Fatimah, Ali and his grandchildren Hasan and Husayn. He went to the Christians and said "this is my family" and covered himself and his family with a cloak. According to Muslim sources, when one of the Christian monks saw their faces, he advised his companions to withdraw from Mubahala for the sake of their lives and families. Thus the Christian monks vanished from the Mubahala place. Allameh Tabatabaei explains in Tafsir al-Mizan that the word "Our selves" in this verse refers to Muhammad and Ali. Then he narrates that Imam Ali al-Rida, eighth Shia Imam, in discussion with Al-Ma''mun, Abbasid caliph, referred to this verse to prove the superiority of Muhammad''s progeny over the rest of the Muslim community, and considered it the proof for Ali''s right for caliphate due to Allah having made Ali like the self of Muhammad.
Ghadir Khumm Main articles: Hadith of the pond of Khumm and Hadith of the two weighty thingsThe Investiture of Ali, at Ghadir Khumm (MS Arab 161, fol. 162r, AD 1309/8 Ilkhanid manuscript illustration).
Taking Ali by the hand, he asked of his faithful followers whether he, Muhammad, was not closer (awlā) to the Believers than they were to themselves; the crowd cried out: “It is so, O Apostle of God!”; he then declared: “He of whom I am the mawla, of him Ali is also the mawla (man kuntu mawlāhu fa-ʿAlī mawlāhu)”.
Shia''s regard these statements as constituting the designation of Ali as the successor of Muhammad and as the first Imam; by contrast, Sunnis take them only as an expression of close spiritual relationship between Muhammad and Ali, and of his wish that Ali, as his cousin and son-in-law, inherit his family responsibilities upon his death, but not necessarily a designation of political authority. Many Sufis also interpret the episode as the transfer of Muhammad''s spiritual power and authority to Ali, whom they regard as the wali par excellence. On the basis of this hadith, Shia say that Ali later insisted that his religious authority was superior to that of Abu Bakr and Umar.
After uniting the Arabian tribes into a single Muslim religious polity in the last years of his life, Muhammad''s death in 632 signalled disagreement over who would succeed him as leader of the Muslim community. While Ali and the rest of Muhammad''s close family were washing his body for burial, at a gathering attended by a small group of Muslims at Saqifah, a close companion of Muhammad named Abu Bakr was nominated for the leadership of the community. Others added their support and Abu Bakr was made the first caliph. The choice of Abu Bakr was disputed by some of the Muhammad''s companions, who held that Ali had been designated his successor by Muhammad himself.
Following his election to the caliphate, Abu Bakr and Umar with a few other companions headed to Fatimah''s house to force Ali and his supporters who had gathered there to give their allegiance to Abu Bakr. Then, it is alleged that Umar threatened to set the house on fire unless they came out and swore allegiance with Abu Bakr. Fatimah, in support of her husband, started a commotion and threatened to "uncover her hair", at which Abu Bakr relented and withdrew. Ali is reported to have repeatedly said that had there been forty men with him he would have resisted. Ali did not actively assert his own right because he did not want to throw the nascent Muslim community into strife. Other sources say that Ali accepted the selection of Umar as caliph and even gave one of his daughters, Umm Kulthūm, to him in marriage.
18th century mirror writing in Ottoman calligraphy. Depicts the phrase ''Ali is the vicegerent of God'' in both directions.
This contentious issue caused Muslims to later split into two groups, Sunni and Shia. Sunnis assert that even though Muhammad never appointed a successor, Abu Bakr was elected first caliph by the Muslim community. The Sunnis recognize the first four caliphs as Muhammad''s rightful successors. Shias believe that Muhammad explicitly named Ali as his successor at Ghadir Khumm and Muslim leadership belonged to him which had been determined by divine order.
According to Wilferd Madelung, Ali himself was firmly convinced of his legitimacy for caliphate based on his close kinship with Muhammad, his intimate association and his knowledge of Islam and his merits in serving its cause. He told Abu Bakr that his delay in pledging allegiance (bay''ah) as caliph was based on his belief of his own prior title. Ali did not change his mind when he finally pledged allegiance to Abu Bakr and then to Umar and to Uthman but had done so for the sake of the unity of Islam, at a time when it was clear that the Muslims had turned away from him. Ali also believed that he could fulfill his role of Imam''ate without this fighting.
Another part of Ali''s life started in 632 after the death of Muhammad and lasted until the assassination of Uthman Ibn Affan, the third caliph in 656. During those 24 years, Ali neither took part in any battle or conquest, nor did he assume any executive position. He withdrew from political affairs, especially after the death of his wife, Fatimah Zahra. He used his time to serve his family and worked as a farmer. Ali dug a lot of wells and planted gardens near Medina and endowed them for public use. These wells are known today as Abar Ali ("Ali''s wells").
Ali compiled a complete version of the Quran, mus''haf, six months after the death of Muhammad. The volume was completed and carried by camel to show to other people of Medina. The order of this mus''haf differed from that which was gathered later during the Uthmanic era. This book was rejected by several people when he showed it to them. Despite this, Ali made no resistance against standardized mus''haf.
At the beginning of the Abu Bakr''s caliphate, there was a controversy about Muhammad''s endowment to his daughter, especially Fadak, between Fatimah and Ali on one side and Abu Bakr on the other side. Fatimah asked Abu Bakr to turn over their property, the lands of Fadak and Khaybar. But Abu Bakr refused and told her that prophets did not have any legacy and that Fadak belonged to the Muslim community. Abu Bakr said to her, "Allah''s Apostle said, we do not have heirs, whatever we leave is Sadaqa." Together with Umm Ayman, Ali testified to the fact that Muhammad granted it to Fatimah Zahra, when Abu Bakr requested her to summon witnesses for her claim. Fatimah became angry and stopped speaking to Abu Bakr, and continued assuming that attitude until she died.
''Aisha also said that "When Allah''s Apostle died, his wives intended to send ''Uthman to Abu Bakr asking him for their share of the inheritance." Then ''Aisha said to them, "Didn''t Allah''s Apostle say, ''Our (Apostles'') property is not to be inherited, and whatever we leave is to be spent in charity?''".
According to some sources, Ali did not give his oath of allegiance to Abu Bakr until some time after the death of his wife, Fatimah in the year 633 AD. Ali participated in the funeral of Abu Bakr.
He pledged allegiance to the second caliph Umar ibn Khattab and helped him as a trusted advisor. Umar particularly relied upon Ali as the Chief Judge of Medina. He also advised Umar to set Hijra as the beginning of the Islamic calendar. Umar used Ali''s suggestions in political issues as well as religious ones.
Ali was one of the electoral council to choose the third caliph which was appointed by Umar. Although Ali was one of the two major candidates, the council''s arrangement was against him. Sa''d ibn Abi Waqqas and Abdur Rahman bin Awf, who were cousins, were naturally inclined to support Uthman, who was Abdur Rahman''s brother-in-law. In addition, Umar gave the casting vote to Abdur Rahman. Abdur Rahman offered the caliphate to Ali on the condition that he should rule in accordance with the Quran, the example set by Muhammad, and the precedents established by the first two caliphs. Ali rejected the third condition while Uthman accepted it. According to Ibn Abi al-Hadid''s Comments on the Peak of Eloquence Ali insisted on his prominence there, but most of the electors supported Uthman and Ali was reluctantly urged to accept him.
Uthman Ibn Affan expressed generosity toward his kin, Banu Abd-Shams, who seemed to dominate him, and his supposed arrogant mistreatment toward several of the earliest companions such as Abu Dharr al-Ghifari, Abd-Allah ibn Mas''ud and Ammar ibn Yasir provoked outrage among some groups of people. Dissatisfaction and resistance openly arose since 650–651 throughout most of the empire. The dissatisfaction with his rule and the governments appointed by him was not restricted to the provinces outside Arabia. When Uthman''s kin, especially Marwan, gained control over him, the noble companions, including most of the members of elector council, turned against him or at least withdrew their support, putting pressure on the caliph to mend his ways and reduce the influence of his assertive kin.
At this time, Ali had acted as a restraining influence on Uthman without directly opposing him. On several occasions Ali disagreed with Uthman in the application of the Hudud; he had publicly shown sympathy for Abu Dharr al-Ghifari and had spoken strongly in the defense of Ammar ibn Yasir. He conveyed to Uthman the criticisms of other Companions and acted on Uthman''s behalf as negotiator with the provincial opposition who had come to Medina; because of this some mistrust between Ali and Uthman''s family seems to have arisen. Finally, he tried to mitigate the severity of the siege by his insistence that Uthman should be allowed water.
No one was more temperate toward our master than your master.
Ali was caliph between 656 and 661, during one of the most turbulent periods in Muslim history, which also coincided with the First Fitna.
Uthman''s assassination meant that rebels had to select a new caliph. This met with difficulties since the rebels were divided into several groups comprising the Muhajirun, Ansar, Egyptians, Kufans and Basntes. There were three candidates: Ali, Talhah and al-Zubayr. First the rebels approached Ali, requesting him to accept being the caliph. Some of Muhammad''s companions tried to persuade Ali in accepting the office, but he turned down the offer, suggesting to be a counselor instead of a chief.
Talhah, Zubayr and other companions also refused the rebels'' offer of the caliphate. Therefore, the rebels warned the inhabitants of Medina to select a caliph within one day, or they would apply drastic action. In order to resolve the deadlock, the Muslims gathered in the Mosque of the Prophet on June 18, 656 to appoint the caliph. Initially Ali refused to accept simply because his most vigorous supporters were rebels. However, when some notable companions of Muhammad, in addition to the residents of Medina, urged him to accept the offer, he finally agreed. According to Abu Mekhnaf''s narration, Talhah was the first prominent companion who gave his pledge to Ali, but other narrations claimed otherwise, stating they were forced to give their pledge. Also, Talhah and Zubayr later claimed they supported him reluctantly. Regardless, Ali refuted these claims, insisting they recognized him as caliph voluntarily. Wilferd Madelung believes that force did not urge people to give their pledge and they pledged publicly in the mosque.
While the overwhelming majority of Medina''s population as well as many of the rebels gave their pledge, some important figures or tribes did not do so. The Umayyads, kinsmen of Uthman, fled to the Levant or remained in their houses, later refusing Ali''s legitimacy. Sa''ad ibn Abi Waqqas was absent and Abdullah ibn Umar abstained from offering his allegiance, but both of them assured Ali that they would not act against him.
Ali inherited the Rashidun Caliphate—which extended from Egypt in the west to the Iranian highlands in the east—while the situation in the Hejaz and the other provinces on the eve of his election was unsettled. Soon after Ali became caliph, he dismissed provincial governors who had been appointed by Uthman, replacing them with trusted aides. He acted against the counsel of Mughira ibn Shu''ba and Ibn Abbas, who had advised him to proceed his governing cautiously. Madelung says Ali was deeply convinced of his right and his religious mission, unwilling to compromise his principles for the sake of political expediency, and ready to fight against overwhelming odds. Muawiyah I, the kinsman of Uthman and governor of the Levant, refused to submit to Ali''s orders; he was the only governor to do so.
When he was appointed caliph, Ali stated to the citizens of Medina that Muslim polity had come to be plagued by dissension and discord; he desired to purge Islam of any evil. He advised the populace to behave as true Muslims, warning that he would tolerate no sedition and those who were found guilty of subversive activities would be dealt with harshly. Ali recovered the land granted by Uthman and swore to recover anything that elites had acquired before his election. Ali opposed the centralization of capital control over provincial revenues, favoring an equal distribution of taxes and booty amongst the Muslim citizens; he distributed the entire revenue of the treasury among them. Ali refrained from nepotism, including with his brother Aqeel ibn Abu Talib. This was an indication to Muslims of his policy of offering equality to Muslims who served Islam in its early years and to the Muslims who played a role in the later conquests.
Ali succeeded in forming a broad coalition especially after the Battle of the Camel. His policy of equal distribution of taxes and booty gained the support of Muhammad''s companions, especially the Ansar who were subordinated by the Quraysh leadership after Muhammad, the traditional tribal leaders, and the Qurra or Quran reciters that sought pious Islamic leadership. The successful formation of this diverse coalition seems to be due to Ali''s charismatic character. This diverse coalition became known as Shi''a Ali, meaning "party" or "faction of Ali". However according to Shia, as well as non-Shia reports, the majority of those who supported Ali after his election as caliph, were shia politically, not religiously. Although at this time there were many who counted as political Shia, few of them believed Ali''s religious leadership.
A''isha, Talhah, Al-Zubayr and Umayyad, especially Muawiyah I and Marwan I, wanted Ali to punish the rioters who had killed Uthman. They wanted Ali to arrest Uthman ibn Affan''s killer and not to fight Muawiyah I. They encamped close to Basra. The talks lasted for many days and the subsequent heated exchange and protests during the parley turned from words to blows, leading to loss of life on both sides. In the confusion the Battle of the Camel started in 656, where Ali emerged victorious.
However some historians believe that they used this issue to seek their political ambitions because they found Ali''s caliphate against their own benefit. On the other hand, the rebels maintained that Uthman had been justly killed, for not governing according to Quran and Sunnah, hence no vengeance was to be invoked. Historians disagree on Ali''s position. Some say the caliphate was a gift of the rebels and Ali did not have enough force to control or punish them, while others say Ali accepted the rebels'' argument or at least did not consider Uthman just ruler.
Combat between the Bani Umayya led by Muawiyah I and the armies of the Rashidun Caliphate led by Ali, during the Battle of Siffin.
Under such circumstances, a schism took place which led to the first civil war in Muslim history. Some Muslims, known as Uthmanis, considered Uthman a rightful and just Caliph (Islamic leader) till the end, who had been unlawfully killed. Some others, who are known as party of Ali, believed Uthman had fallen into error, he had forfeited the caliphate and been lawfully executed for his refusal to mend his way or step down; thus Ali was the just and true Imam and his opponents are infidels. This civil war created permanent divisions within the Muslim community regarding who had the legitimate right to occupy the caliphate.
The First Fitna, 656–661, followed the assassination of Uthman, continued during the caliphate of Ali, and was ended by Muawiyah''s assumption of the caliphate. This civil war (often called the Fitna) is regretted as the end of the early unity of the Islamic ummah (nation).
Ali appointed ''Abd Allah ibn al''-Abbas governor of Basra and moved his capital to Kufa, the Muslim garrison city in Iraq. Following the Roman-Persian Wars and the Byzantine–Sasanian wars that lasted for hundreds of years, there were deep rooted differences between Iraq, formally under the Persian Sassanid Empire and Syria formally under the Byzantine Empire. The Iraqis wanted the capital of the newly established Islamic State to be in Kufa so as to bring revenues into their area and oppose Syria. They convinced Ali to come to Kufa and establish the capital in Kufa, in Iraq.
Later Muawiyah I, the governor of Levant and the cousin of Uthman, refused Ali''s demands for allegiance. Ali opened negotiations hoping to regain his allegiance, but Muawiyah insisted on Levant autonomy under his rule. Muawiyah replied by mobilizing his Levantine supporters and refusing to pay homage to Ali on the pretext that his contingent had not participated in his election. Ali then moved his armies North and the two armies encamped themselves at Siffin for more than one hundred days, most of the time being spent in negotiations. Although Ali exchanged several letters with Muawiyah, he was unable to dismiss the latter, nor persuade him to pledge allegiance. Skirmishes between the parties led to the Battle of Siffin in 657.
English historian Edward Gibbon wrote: "The Caliph Ali displayed a superior character of valor and humanity. His troops were strictly enjoined to wait the first onset of the enemy, to spare their flying brethren, and to respect the bodies of the dead, and the chastity of the female captives. The ranks of the Syrians were broken by the charge of the hero, who was mounted on a piebald horse, and wielded with irresistible force his ponderous and two edged sword." Of the estimated casualties, Ali''s forces lost 25,000, while Muawiyah''s forces lost 45,000. Appalled by the carnage, Ali sent a message to Muawiya and challenged him to single combat, saying that whoever won should be the Caliph. In Gibbon''s words, "Ali generously proposed to save the blood of the Muslims by a single combat; but his trembling rival declined the challenge as a sentence of inevitable death."
After a week of combat was followed by a violent battle known as laylat al-harir (the night of clamor), Muawiyah''s army was on the point of being routed when Amr ibn al-Aas advised Muawiyah to have his soldiers hoist mus''haf (either parchments inscribed with verses of the Quran, or complete copies of it) on their spearheads in order to cause disagreement and confusion in Ali''s army. Ali saw through the stratagem, but only a minority wanted to pursue the fight.
The two armies finally agreed to settle the matter of who should be Caliph by arbitration. The refusal of the largest bloc in Ali''s army to fight was the decisive factor in his acceptance of the arbitration. The question as to whether the arbiter would represent Ali or the Kufans caused a further split in Ali''s army. Ash''ath ibn Qays and some others rejected Ali''s nominees, ''Abd Allah ibn ''Abbas and Malik al-Ashtar, and insisted on Abu Musa Ash''ari, for his neutrality. Finally, Ali was urged to accept Abu Musa. Amr ibn al-As was appointed by Muawiyah as an arbitrator. Seven months later the two arbitrators met at Adhruh about 10 miles north west of Maan in Jordon in February 658. Amr ibn al-As convinced Abu Musa al-Ashaari that both Ali and Muawiyah should step down and a new Caliph be elected. Ali and his supporters were stunned by the decision which had lowered the Caliph to the status of the rebellious Muawiyah. Ali was therefore outwitted by Muawiyah and Amr ibn al-As.
When the arbitrators assembled at Daumet-ul-Jandal, a series of daily meetings were arranged for them to discuss the matters in hand. When the time arrived for taking a decision about the caliphate, Amr bin al-A''as convinced Abu Musa al-Ashari into entertaining the opinion that they should deprive both Ali and Muawiya of the caliphate, and give to the Muslims the right to elect the caliph. Abu Musa al-Ashari also decided to act accordingly. According to Poonawala, it seems that the arbiters and other eminent persons, with the exclusion of Ali’s representatives, met on January 659 to discuss the selection of the new caliph. Amr supported Muawiyah, while Abu Musa preferred his son-in-law, Abdollah ibn Omar, but the latter refused to stand for election in default of unanimity. Abu Musa then proposed, and Amr agreed, to depose both Ali and Muawiyah and submit the selection of the new caliph to a Shora. In the public declaration that followed Abu Musa observed his part of the agreement, but Amr declared Ali deposed and confirmed Muawiya as caliph.
Ali refused to accept the verdict of him stepping down and for an election to be held and found himself technically in breach of his pledge to abide by the arbitration. Ali protested, stating that it was contrary to the Qur''an and the Sunnah and hence not binding. Then he tried to organize a new army, but only the Ansar, the remnants of the qorra led by Malek Ashtar, and a few of their clansmen remained loyal. This put Ali in a weak position even amongst his own supporters. The arbitration resulted in the dissolution of Ali''s coalition and some have opined that this was Muawiyah''s intention.
This put Ali in a weak position even amongst his own supporters. The most vociferous opponents in Ali''s camp were the very same people who had forced Ali into the ceasefire. They broke away from Ali''s force, rallying under the slogan "arbitration belongs to God alone." This group came to be known as the Kharijites ("those who leave"). They considered everyone to be their enermy. In 659 Ali''s forces and the Kharijites met in the Battle of Nahrawan. Feeling that Ali could no longer look after their interests Also fearing that if there was peace, they could be arrested for the murder of Uthman they broke away from Ali''s force, rallying under the slogan, "arbitration belongs to God alone." The Qurra then became known as the Kharijites ("those who leave"). The Kharijites then started killing other people. They also started killing Ali''s supporters. They considered anyone who was not part of their group as an unbeliever.
In the Shadow of the sword, The Battle for Global Empire and the End of the Ancient World, Tom Holland writes "The Kharijites argued a true believer would have trusted his fate not to diplomacy but to ongoing warfare and God will decide." Even though they them selves had put forward their representative and become a party of them selves, so that the negotiations could go in their favor and satisfy their own political and economic interests. Tom Holland says that "they then condemned Ali as an unbeliever, as the man who had strayed from the Strait Path. The fact that he was Muhammad''s nephew only confirmed them in their militancy of their egalitarianism; that the true aristocracy was one of piety and not blood. Even a Companion of the Prophet, if he did not pray until he developed marks on his forehead. If he did not look pale and haggard from regular fasting, if he did not live like a lion by day and a monk by night, ranked in the opinion of the Kharijites as no better than an apostate." They then developed even more twisted views. Tom Holland writes "Other Kharijites, so it was reported, might go out and with their swords into the markets while people would stand around not realizing what was happening; they would shout "no judgment except God!" and plunge their blades into whom ever they could reach and go on killing until they them selves were killed.
In 659 Ali''s forces finally moved against the Kharijites and they finally met in the Battle of Nahrawan. Although Ali won the battle, the constant conflict had begun to affect his standing. Tom Holland writes "Ali won a victory over them as crushing as it was to prove pyrrhic: for all he had done, in effect was to fertilise the soil of Iraq with the blood of their martyrs. Three years later, and there came the inevitable blowback: a Kharijite assassin.".
While dealing with the Iraqis, Ali found it hard to build a disciplined army and effective state institutions to exert control over his areas and as a result later spent a lot of time fighting the Kharijites. As a result, on the Eastern front, Ali found it hard to expand the state.
At about the same time, unrest was brewing in Egypt. The governor of Egypt, Qais, was recalled, and Ali had him replaced with Muhammad ibn Abi Bakr (the brother of Aisha and the son of Islam''s first caliph Abu Bakr). Muawiyah allowed ''Amr ibn al-''As to invade Egypt and ''Amr did so successfully. Amr had first taken Egypt eighteen years earlier from the Romans but had been dismissed by Uthman. Muhammad ibn Abi Bakr had no popular support in Egypt and managed to get together 2000 men but they dispersed without a fight.
In the following years Muawiyah''s army occupied many cities of Iraq, which Ali''s governors could not prevent, and people did not support him to fight with them. Muawiyah overpowered Egypt, Hijaz, Yemen and other areas. In the last year of Ali''s caliphate, the mood in Kufa and Basra changed in his favor as Muawiyah''s vicious behaviour in the war revealed the nature of his reign. However, the people''s attitude toward Ali differed deeply. Just a small minority of them believed that Ali was the best Muslim after Muhammad and the only one entitled to rule them, while the majority supported him due to their distrust and opposition to Muawiyah.
What shows Ali''s policies and ideas of governing is his instruction to Malik al-Ashtar, when appointed by him as governor of Egypt. This instruction, which is considered by many Muslims and even non-Muslims as the ideal constitution for Islamic governance, involved detailed description of duties and rights of the ruler and various functionaries of the state and the main classes of society at that time.
Infuse your heart with mercy, love and kindness for your subjects. Be not in face of them a voracious animal, counting them as easy prey, for they are of two kinds: either they are your brothers in religion or your equals in creation. Error catches them unaware, deficiencies overcome them, (evil deeds) are committed by them intentionally and by mistake. So grant them your pardon and your forgiveness to the same extent that you hope God will grant you His pardon and His forgiveness. For you are above them, and he who appointed you is above you, and God is above him who appointed you. God has sought from you the fulfillment of their requirements and He is trying you with them.
Since the majority of Ali''s subjects were nomads and peasants, he was concerned with agriculture. He instructed to Malik to give more attention to development of the land than to the collection of the tax, because tax can only be obtained by the development of the land and whoever demands tax without developing the land ruins the country and destroys the people.
On the 19th of Ramadan, while praying in the Great Mosque of Kufa, Ali was attacked by the Kharijite Abd-al-Rahman ibn Muljam. He was wounded by ibn Muljam''s poison-coated sword while prostrating in the Fajr prayer. Ali ordered his sons not to attack the Kharijites, instead stipulating that if he survived, ibn Muljam would be pardoned whereas if he died, ibn Muljam should be given only one equal hit (regardless of whether or not he died from the hit).
Ali died a few days later on January 31, 661 (21 Ramadan 40 A.H). Hasan fulfilled Qisas and gave equal punishment to ibn Muljam upon Ali''s death.
BurialThis mosque in an-Najaf, Iraq, is widely considered by Shias to be the final burial place of Ali.Rawze-e-Sharif, the Blue Mosque, in Mazari Sharif, Afghanistan – where a minority of Muslims believe Ali ibn Abu Talib is buried.
According to Al-Shaykh Al-Mufid, Ali did not want his grave to be desecrated by his enemies and consequently asked his friends and family to bury him secretly. This secret gravesite was revealed later during the Abbasid caliphate by Imam Ja''far al-Sadiq, his descendant and the sixth Shia Imam. Most Shias accept that Ali is buried at the Tomb of Imam Ali in the Imam Ali Mosque at what is now the city of Najaf, which grew around the mosque and shrine called Masjid Ali.
After Ali''s death, Kufi Muslims pledged allegiance to his eldest son Hasan without dispute, as Ali on many occasions had declared that just People of the House of Muhammad were entitled to rule the Muslim community. At this time, Muawiyah held both the Levant and Egypt and, as commander of the largest force in the Muslim Empire, had declared himself caliph and marched his army into Iraq, the seat of Hasan''s caliphate.
War ensued during which Muawiyah gradually subverted the generals and commanders of Hasan''s army with large sums of money and deceiving promises until the army rebelled against him. Finally, Hasan was forced to make peace and to yield the caliphate to Muawiyah. In this way Muawiyah captured the Islamic caliphate and in every way possible placed the severest pressure upon Ali''s family and his Shia. Regular public cursing of Imam Ali in the congregational prayers remained a vital institution which was not abolished until 60 years later by Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz. Muawiyah also established the Umayyad caliphate which was a centralized monarchy.
Umayyad highhandedness, misrule and repression were gradually to turn the minority of Ali''s admirers into a majority. In the memory of later generations Ali became the ideal Commander of the Faithful. In face of the fake Umayyad claim to legitimate sovereignty in Islam as God''s Vice-regents on earth, and in view of Umayyad treachery, arbitrary and divisive government, and vindictive retribution, they came to appreciate his honesty, his unbending devotion to the reign of Islam, his deep personal loyalties, his equal treatment of all his supporters, and his generosity in forgiving his defeated enemies.
As for theosophy and dealing with matters of divinity, it was not an Arab art. Nothing of the sort had been circulated among their distinguished figures or those of lower ranks. This art was the exclusive preserve of Greece, whose sages were its only expounders. The first one among Arabs to deal with it was Ali.
In later Islamic philosophy, especially in the teachings of Mulla Sadra and his followers, like Allameh Tabatabaei, Ali''s sayings and sermons were increasingly regarded as central sources of metaphysical knowledge, or divine philosophy. Members of Sadra''s school regard Ali as the supreme metaphysician of Islam. According to Henry Corbin, the Nahj al-Balagha may be regarded as one of the most important sources of doctrines professed by Shia thinkers, especially after 1500AD. Its influence can be sensed in the logical co-ordination of terms, the deduction of correct conclusions, and the creation of certain technical terms in Arabic which entered the literary and philosophical language independently of the translation into Arabic of Greek texts.
Ali was also a great scholar of Arabic literature and pioneered in the field of Arabic grammar and rhetoric. Numerous short sayings of Ali have become part of general Islamic culture and are quoted as aphorisms and proverbs in daily life. They have also become the basis of literary works or have been integrated into poetic verse in many languages. Already in the 8th century, literary authorities such as ''Abd al-Hamid ibn Yahya al-''Amiri pointed to the unparalleled eloquence of Ali''s sermons and sayings, as did al-Jahiz in the following century. Even staffs in the Divan of Umayyad recited Ali''s sermons to improve their eloquence. Of course, Peak of Eloquence (Nahj al-Balagha) is an extract of Ali''s quotations from a literal viewpoint as its compiler mentioned in the preface, while there are many other quotations, prayers (Du''as), sermons and letters in other literal, historic and religious books.
In addition, some hidden or occult sciences such as jafr, Islamic numerology, and the science of the symbolic significance of the letters of the Arabic alphabet, are said to have been established by Ali through his having studied the texts of al-Jafr and al-Jamia.
WorksOne of the first Qurans ever transcribed in the Islamic world by Ali ibn Abi Talib.
Nahj al-Balagha (Way of Eloquence) contains eloquent sermons, letters and quotations attributed to Ali which is compiled by ash-Sharif ar-Radi (d. 1015). Reza Shah Kazemi states: "Despite ongoing questions about the authenticity of the text, recent scholarship suggests that most of the material in it can in fact be attributed to Ali" and in support of this he makes reference to an article by Mokhtar Jebli. This book has a prominent position in Arabic literature. It is also considered an important intellectual, political and religious work in Islam. Masadir Nahj al-Balagha wa asaniduh, written by al-Sayyid ‘Abd al-Zahra'' al-Husayni al-Khatib, introduces some of these sources. Also, Nahj al-sa''adah fi mustadrak Nahj al-balaghah by Muhammad Baqir al-Mahmudi represents all of Ali''s extant speeches, sermons, decrees, epistles, prayers, and sayings that have been collected. It includes the Nahj al-balagha and other discourses which were not incorporated by ash-Sharif ar-Radi or were not available to him. Apparently, except for some of the aphorisms, the original sources of all the contents of the Nahj al-balagha have been determined. There are several Comments on the Peak of Eloquence by Sunnis and Shias such as Comments of Ibn Abi al-Hadid and comments of Muhammad Abduh.
Supplications (Du''a), translated by William Chittick.
Ghurar al-Hikam wa Durar al-Kalim (Exalted aphorisms and Pearls of Speech) which is compiled by Abd al-Wahid Amidi (d. 1116) consists of over ten thounsads short sayings of Ali.
Nuzhat al-Absar va Mahasin al-Asar, Ali''s sermons which have compiled by Ali ibn Muhammad Tabari Mamtiri.
Divan-i Ali ibn Abu Talib (poems which are attributed to Ali ibn Abu Talib).
The historical tomb of Hasan ibn Ali in Al-Baqi'' was destroyed in 1925.
Husayn ibn Ali''s name in Islamic Calligraphy.
Abbas ibn Ali at the Battle of Karbala, (Mughal era miniature).
Ali initially married Fatimah, who was his most beloved wife. After she died, he got married again. He had four children with Fatimah, Hasan ibn Ali, Husayn ibn Ali, Zaynab bint Ali and Umm Kulthum bint Ali. His other well-known sons were al-Abbas ibn Ali, born to Fatima binte Hizam (Um al-Banin), and Muhammad ibn al-Hanafiyyah. Muhammad ibn al-Hanafiyyah was Ali''s son from another wife from Hanifa clan of Central Arabia named Khawla bint Ja''far.
Hasan, born in 625 AD, was the second Shia Imam and he also occupied the outward function of caliph for about six months. In the year 50 A.H., he was poisoned and killed by a member of his own household who, as has been accounted by historians, had been motivated by Mu''awiyah.
Husayn, born in 626 AD, was the third Shia Imam. He lived under severe conditions of suppression and persecution by Mu''awiyah. On the tenth day of Muharram, of the year 680, he lined up before the army of the caliph with his small band of followers and nearly all of them were killed in the Battle of Karbala. The anniversary of his death is called the Day of Ashura and it is a day of mourning and religious observance for Shia Muslims. In this battle some of Ali''s other sons were killed. Al-Tabari has mentioned their names in his history: Al-Abbas ibn Ali, the holder of Husayn''s standard, Ja''far, Abdallah and Uthman, the four sons born to Fatima binte Hizam; Muhammad and Abu Bakr. The death of the last one is doubtful. Some historians have added the names of Ali''s other sons who were killed in Karbala, including Ibrahim, Umar and Abdallah ibn al-Asqar.
His daughter Zaynab—who was in Karbala—was captured by Yazid''s army and later played a great role in revealing what happened to Husayn and his followers.
Ali''s descendants by Fatimah are known as sharifs, sayeds or sayyids. These are honorific titles in Arabic, sharif meaning ''noble'' and sayed or sayyid meaning ''lord'' or ''sir''. As Muhammad''s only descendants, they are respected by both Sunni and Shia.
Except for Muhammad, there is no one in Islamic history about whom as much has been written in Islamic languages as Ali. In Muslim culture, Ali is respected for his courage, knowledge, belief, honesty, unbending devotion to Islam, deep loyalty to Muhammad, equal treatment of all Muslims and generosity in forgiving his defeated enemies, and therefore is central to mystical traditions in Islam such as Sufism. Ali retains his stature as an authority on Quranic exegesis, Islamic jurisprudence and religious thought. Ali holds a high position in almost all Sufi orders which trace their lineage through him to Muhammad. Ali''s influence has been important throughout Islamic history.
Shia Main article: Shia view of AliZulfiqar with and without the shield. The Fatimid depiction of Ali''s sword as carved on the Gates of Old Cairo, namely Bab al-Nasr.
The Shia regard Ali as the most important figure after Muhammad. According to them, Muhammad suggested on various occasions during his lifetime that Ali should be the leader of Muslims after his death. This is supported by numerous Hadiths which have been narrated by Shias, including Hadith of the pond of Khumm, Hadith of the two weighty things, Hadith of the pen and paper, Hadith of the Cloak, Hadith of position, Hadith of the invitation of the close families, and Hadith of the Twelve Successors.
According to this view, Ali as the successor of Muhammad not only ruled over the community in justice, but also interpreted the Sharia Law and its esoteric meaning. Hence he was regarded as being free from error and sin (infallible), and appointed by God by divine decree (nass) through Muhammad. It is believed in Twelver and Ismaili Shī‘ah Islam that ‘aql, divine wisdom, was the source of the souls of the Prophets and Imams and gave them esoteric knowledge called ḥikmah and that their sufferings were a means of divine grace to their devotees. Although the Imam was not the recipient of a divine revelation, he had a close relationship with God, through which God guides him, and the Imam in turn guides the people. His words and deeds are a guide and model for the community to follow; as a result it is a source of sharia law.
Shia pilgrims usually go to Mashad Ali in Najaf for Ziyarat, pray there and read "Ziyarat Amin Allah" or other Ziyaratnamehs. Under the Safavid Empire, his grave became the focus of much devoted attention, exemplified in the pilgrimage made by Shah Ismail I to Najaf and Karbala.
Sunni Main article: Sunni view of AliA representation of the sword of Ali, the Zulfiqar in an Ottoman emblem.
Sunni Muslims regard Ali with great respect as one of the Ahl al-Bayt and the last of the Rashidun caliphs, as well as one of the most influential and respected leaders in Islam. Also, he is one of the Al-Asharatu Mubashsharun, the Ten Companions of Muhammad whom the Prophet of Islam promised Paradise.
Almost all Sufi orders trace their lineage to Muhammad through Ali, an exception being Naqshbandi, who go through Abu Bakr. Even in this order, there is Ja''far al-Sadiq, the great great grandson of Ali. Sufis believe that Ali inherited from Muhammad the saintly power wilayah that makes the spiritual journey to God possible.
Eminent Sufi''s such as Ali Hujwiri claim that the tradition began with Ali and Junayd of Baghdad regarded Ali as the Sheikh of the principals and practices of Sufism.
Sufi''s recite Manqabat Ali in the praise of Ali. In South Asia various forms of Hamd, Naat and Qawwali are also recited in the praise of Ali.
Ali is recorded in some traditions as having forbidden those who sought to worship him in his own lifetime.
Some groups such as the Alawites (Nuṣayrī Arabic: نصيرية) believe that Ali is a deity in his own right or he was God incarnate. They are described as ghulat (Ar: غُلاة) "exaggerators" by the vast majority of Islamic scholars. These groups have, in traditional Islamic thought, left Islam due to their exaggeration of a human being''s praiseworthy traits.
In Ali-Illahism a syncretic religion centers on the belief that there have been successive incarnations of their Deity throughout history, and reserves particular reverence for Ali, the son-in-law of the prophet Muhammad, who is considered one such incarnation.
The Druze believe that God was incarnated in human beings, especially Ali and his descendants, including Al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah.
Edward Gibbon (British 18th century historian) The zeal and virtue of Ali were never outstripped by any recent proselyte. He united the qualifications of a poet, a soldier, and a saint; his wisdom still breathes in a collection of moral and religious sayings; and every antagonist, in the combats of the tongue or of the sword, was subdued by his eloquence and valour. From the first hour of his mission to the last rites of his funeral, the apostle was never forsaken by a generous friend, whom he delighted to name his brother, his vicegerent, and the faithful Aaron of a second Moses.
Washington Irving (American author and essayist) He was of the noblest branch of the noble race of Koreish. He possessed the three qualities most prized by Arabs: courage, eloquence, and munificence. His intrepid spirit had gained him from the prophet the appellation of The Lion of God; specimens of his eloquence remain in some verses and sayings preserved among the Arabs; and his munificence was manifested in sharing among others, every Friday, what remained in the treasury. Of his magnanimity, we have given repeated instances; his noble scorn of everything false and mean, and the absence in his conduct of everything like selfish intrigue.
Thomas Carlyle (Scottish historian, critic, and sociological writer) As for this young Ali, one cannot but like him. A noble-minded creature, as he shows himself, now and always afterwards; full of affection, of fiery daring. Something chivalrous in him; brave as a lion; yet with a grace, a truth and affection worthy of Christian knighthood.
Sir William Muir (Scottish scholar and statesman) Endowed with a clear intellect, warm in affection, and confiding in friendship, he was from the boyhood devoted heart and soul to the Prophet. Simple, quiet, and unambitious, when in after days he obtained the rule of half of the Moslem world, it was rather thrust upon him than sought.
Dr. Henry Stubbe (Classicist, polemicist, physician, and philosopher) He had a contempt of the world, its glory and pomp, he feared God much, gave many alms, was just in all his actions, humble and affable; of an exceeding quick wit and of an ingenuity that was not common, he was exceedingly learned, not in those sciences that terminate in speculations but those which extend to practice.
Simon Ockley (British Orientalist and Professor of Arabic at the University of Cambridge) One thing particularly deserving to be noticed is that his mother was delivered of him at Mecca, in the very temple itself; which never happened to any one else.
Khalil Gibran (poet) In my view, ʿAlī was the first Arab to have contact with and converse with the universal soul. He died a martyr of his greatness, he died while prayer was between his two lips. The Arabs did not realise his value until appeared among their Persian neighbors some who knew the difference between gems and gravels.
Jesuit Henri Lammens held a negative view of Ali and all of Islam.
The primary sources for scholarship on the life of Ali are the Quran and the Hadith, as well as other texts of early Islamic history. The extensive secondary sources include, in addition to works by Sunni and Shī‘a Muslims, writings by Christian Arabs, Hindus, and other non-Muslims from the Middle East and Asia and a few works by modern Western scholars. However, many of the early Islamic sources are colored to some extent by a positive or negative bias towards Ali.
There had been a common tendency among the earlier western scholars against these narrations and reports gathered in later periods due to their tendency towards later Sunni and Shī‘a partisan positions; such scholars regarding them as later fabrications. This leads them to regard certain reported events as inauthentic or irrelevant. Leone Caetani considered the attribution of historical reports to Ibn Abbas and Aisha as mostly fictitious while proffering accounts reported without isnad by the early compilers of history like Ibn Ishaq. Wilferd Madelung has rejected the stance of indiscriminately dismissing everything not included in "early sources" and in this approach tendentiousness alone is no evidence for late origin. According to him, Caetani''s approach is inconsistent. Madelung and some later historians do not reject the narrations which have been complied in later periods and try to judge them in the context of history and on the basis of their compatibility with the events and figures.
Until the rise of the Abbasid Caliphate, few books were written and most of the reports had been oral. The most notable work previous to this period is The Book of Sulaym ibn Qays, written by Sulaym ibn Qays, a companion of Ali who lived before the Abbasid. When paper was introduced to Muslim society, numerous monographs were written between 750 and 950 AD. According to Robinson, at least twenty-one separate monographs have been composed on the Battle of Siffin. Abi Mikhnaf is one of the most renowned writers of this period who tried to gather all of the reports. 9th and 10th century historians collected, selected and arranged the available narrations. However, most of these monographs do not exist anymore except for a few which have been used in later works such as History of the Prophets and Kings by Muhammad ibn Jarir al-Tabari (d.923).
Shia of Iraq actively participated in writing monographs but most of those works have been lost. On the other hand, in the 8th and 9th century Ali''s descendants such as Muhammad al Baqir and Jafar as Sadiq narrated his quotations and reports which have been gathered in Shia hadith books. The later Shia works written after the 10th century AD are about biographies of The Fourteen Infallibles and Twelve Imams. The earliest surviving work and one of the most important works in this field is Kitab al-Irshad by Shaykh Mufid (d. 1022). The author has dedicated the first part of his book to a detailed account of Ali. There are also some books known as Manāqib which describe Ali''s character from a religious viewpoint. Such works also constitute a kind of historiography.
Praise of Ali from the Mughal Empire.
Rashid al-Din Muhammad al-Balkhi al-Vatvat (AD 1182), regarding the "One Hundred sayings of Ali"
^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae af Nasr, Seyyed Hossein. "Ali". Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. Archived from the original on October 18, 2007. Retrieved 2007-10-12.
^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x "Alī ibn Abu Talib". Encyclopædia Iranica. Retrieved 2010-12-16.
^ Al-Haj Salmin, Muhammad Ali. Ali The Caliph. p. 3 & 6. Qassim Ali Jairazbhoy Publishers; 1931 1st Edition.
^ Abu Mikhnaf, Lut bin Yahya. Kitab Maqtal Ali (144 AH / 761 CE). Hashami, Ibrahim bin Sulayman. Kitab Maqtal Amir Al-Muminin (183 AH / 799 CE). Al-Kalbi, Hisham ibn Muhammad. Maqtal Amir ul-Muminin (201 AH / 817 CE). Reference: I.M.A.M. (Imam Mahdi Assoc. of Marjaeya) Publication (Muharram-Safar 1427 AH), Vol. 2-Issue 5.
^ Shad, Abdur Rahman. Ali Al-Murtaza. Kazi Publications; 1978 1st Edition. Mohiyuddin, Dr. Ata. Ali The Superman. Sh. Muhammad Ashraf Publishers; 1980 1st Edition. Lalljee, Yousuf N. Ali The Magnificent. Ansariyan Publications; Jan 1981 1st Edition.
^ a b c d e f Diana, Steigerwald. "Alī ibn Abu Talib". Encyclopaedia of Islam and the Muslim world; vol.1. MacMillan. ISBN 978-0-02-865604-5.
^ See:* Ashraf 2005, p. 6* "Khalifa Ali Ibn Abu Talib". witness-pioneer.org. 2004-11-05. Archived from the original on December 8, 2008. Retrieved 2008-12-19.
^ * See also:**Ibn Majah in Sunan ibn Majah, Ibn Majah, al-Sunan, Vol. I, p. 44;**Hakim al-Nishaburi in Al-Mustadrak alaa al-Sahihain, al-Hakim, al-Mustadrak, Vol. III, p. 112;** Ibn Hisham in As-Sirah an-Nabawiyyah, Ibn Hisham, al-Sirah, Vol. I, p.245.
^ Tabatabaei, Sayyid Mohammad Hosayn. "Tafsir al-Mizan, Volume 3: Surah Baqarah, Verses 204–207". almizan.org. Retrieved 2010-11-25.
^ "Hasan ibn Ali". Encyclopædia Iranica. Retrieved 2014-01-01.
^ a b Vaglieri, Veccia. "Fatima". Encyclopedia of Islam. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill. p. Vol. 2 844–850. ISSN 1573-3912.
^ Khatab, Amal (May 1, 1996). Battles of Badr and Uhud. Ta-Ha Publishers. ISBN 978-1-897940-39-6.
^ Ibn Al Atheer, In his Biography, vol 2 p 107 "لا فتی الا علي لا سيف الا ذوالفقار"
^ Abu Khalil, Shawqi (1 March 2004). Atlas of the Prophet''s biography: places, nations, landmarks. Dar-us-Salam. p. 233. ISBN 978-9960897714.
^ Tabatabaei, Sayyid Mohammad Hosayn. "Tafsir al-Mizan, v.6, Al Imran, verses 61–63". almizan.org. Retrieved 2010-11-25.
^ Veccia Vaglieri, Laura. "G̲h̲adīr K̲h̲umm". Encyclopædia of Islam, Second Edition. Brill Online. Retrieved 2013-03-28.
^ Gleave, Robert M. "Ali ibn Abi Talib". Encyclopaedia of Islam, THREE. Brill Online. Retrieved 2013-03-29. |
0.999998 | Securities law is the area of law dealing with securities, which is the generic term for shares of stock, bonds and debentures issued by corporations and governments to evidence ownership and terms of payment of dividends or final pay-off. They are called securities because the assets and/or the profits of the corporation or the credit of the government stand as security for payment. However, unlike secured transactions in which specific property is pledged (like a mortgage or car), securities are only as good as the future profitability of the corporation or the management of the governmental agency.
Both federal and state laws regulate securities. Federal securities laws are generally administrated by the Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) which was established by the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. The other two main federal laws are the Investment Company Act of 1940 ("Investment Company Act"), and the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 ("Advisers Act").
In addition to the federal laws, there are also state laws that govern securities. These laws are commonly known as Blue Sky Laws, which typically give the investor who loses money or is defrauded in the securities markets far greater protections than are available under the federal laws.
What provisions are provided under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934?
The Securities Exchange Act of 1934 requires that issuers, subject to certain exemptions, register with SEC if they want to have their securities traded on a national exchange. Issuers of securities registered under the 1934 Act must file various reports with SEC in order to provide the public with adequate information about companies with publicly traded stocks. The 1934 Act also regulates proxy solicitation and requires that certain information be given to a corporation's shareholders as a prerequisite to soliciting votes. The 1934 Act permits the SEC to promulgate rules and regulations to protect the public and investors by prohibiting manipulative or deceptive devices or contrivances via mails or other means of interstate commerce.
What provisions are provided under the state securities laws?
Typical provisions of the state securities "Blue Sky Laws" include prohibition against fraud in the sale of securities, registration requirements for brokers and dealers, registration requirements for securities to be sold within the state, and sanctions and civil liability. A majority of states, with the exception of New York and California, have adopted the Uniform Securities Act, at least in part.
Complaints against brokers hit an all-time high of 8,945 in 2003 as a result of the industry's scandals, inclucing shoddy Wall Street research, accounting shenanigans, illegal fund trading schemes, fund breakpoint failures and questionable mutual fund sales practices. The SEC is in the midst of a complete examination of how funds are sold and how firms and their brokers are compensated. The NASD is currently investigating the appropriateness of fee-based accounts and variable annuities sales. This trend is not due to change anytime soon. As a result of the increasing numbers of complaints and regulations constantly changing to enforce compliance, stock brokers, brokers, brokerage firms and others in the securities industry should retain the services of a securities law attorney whether or not you are facing a legal situation. Investors should also retain the services of a securities lawyer to advise them on their legal rights in investing before considering an investment. Use the State Lawyers Directory to find a securities law attorney that's right for you and your legal situation. |
0.852278 | Does French bee (BF) allow the transport of your pet?
Yes and no. Each country that French bee serves has specific rules regarding the transportation pets. Pets are not allowed on flights to and from Papeete, Tahiti. On other flights only cats and dogs are allowed. Please consult the French bee website for detailed information regarding types of transport, regulations, and pricing. |
0.999998 | Are We at the End of the InsurTech Cycle?
With a desire to maximize efficiency, squeeze out savings, and provide convenience to insureds, a number of InsurTech companies have been making their way into the market. The influx of InsurTech companies in the property and casualty space started about five years ago, and some of the more popular InsurTech startups include Trov, Goji, and Lemonade. These companies streamline the insurance process and allow consumers to quickly receive insurance quotes, acquire policies, and file claims all by using their mobile devices.
It's no wonder that the ease of doing business with InsurTech companies has caused some of the traditional insurance carriers to question their own business models. However, given their heavy reliance on data to make swift underwriting decisions, will we look back on the InsurTech days as just being a short-lived fad?
As of 2018, there are approximately 1,200 InsurTech companies in the market. While most of these companies originally focused on personal lines and health insurance, the latest research reveals that 39 percent of InsurTech companies specialize in property and casualty insurance.
However, instead of trying to directly compete with some of the larger insurance carriers, a trend that we're seeing is that many of the startup InsurTech companies are directing their efforts towards providing insurance carriers with InsurTech technology. They're identifying problems with the traditional insurance process and are providing solutions through technology to streamline workflows and make it more seamless for people to procure insurance.
Some examples of ways that we're seeing InsurTech companies partner with traditional insurance carriers to minimize insurance risk, enhance the underwriting process, and provide a better customer experience is through drone usage, smart home devices, and connected vehicle initiatives. It's not unusual to visit an InsurTech company's website and see several larger insurance carriers listed as customers on the bottom of the page.
Are InsurTech Companies Here to Stay?
To best address the answer to the question that the title of this article asks, while the influx of InsurTech companies initially created direct competition for traditional insurance carriers, the way that the InsurTech industry is evolving is now creating a different type of competition for the property and casualty insurance industry. In order for carriers to stay on top of insurance risk and demonstrate that they're with the times, it's become more and more important that they integrate technology into their business models. Therefore, we're not at the end of the InsurTech cycle; instead, we can expect to see more carriers continue to partner with InsurTech providers going forward to mitigate insurance risk, streamline processes, and provide a better customer experience.
Our team at Insurance Risk Services has been partner with property and casualty insurance carriers for more than 35 years to provide them with accurate underwriting support. Contact us to learn how we're using the latest technology to help our insurance carrier partners best determine which risks are worth taking. |
0.997511 | Prompt: School trips. We all go on them. What trip do you remember the most? Where did you go? Who was with you? How did you get there? Have you ever been back?
I don't like to go on field trips. I'll just get that right out there into the open. Field trips in elementary school almost always reminded me that I didn't fit in.
For one thing, I always wore hand-me-down clothes that my mother got from various people. Those clothes never felt quite right on my body, so I remember feeling awkward all the time.
I fell down a lot.
I was tactile defensive. As in, don't touch me, for I will punch you right in the face.
As an Army brat, I was almost always the new kid.
I also never knew what to say to people in unsupervised situations; I can remember other kids looking at me like I was an alien species.
In the logic of the herd mentality that was elementary school, I should have been chased out of the collective, forbidden access, so that the lions would eat me.
But the real reason that I hated field trips was that I never got enough time to actually look at what the class was there to see. Field trips were usually a large group crammed onto as few buses as possible. The places we visited did not welcome our arrival. The zookeepers happily envisioned the boa constrictors in the reptile house having a particularly obnoxious child or two for a meal. The museum docents cringed at the thought that one of us would actually touch a priceless piece of art, or worse, break off a piece. Oh, these people put on a good show, but it was always clear to me that they all heaved a sigh of relief when the buses finally drove out of the parking lot.
Consequently, the museum/zoo/exhibit people, as well as the teachers, tended to rush us all through whatever exhibit we were there to see, and by the time I had a chance to look around, we were already back on the bus heading back to school. Once back at school we had to write a paper about what we saw, and all I ever saw was a blur.
I discovered during all these blurs that I am a browser. When I am in a museum, I like to read the little description of the painting/sculptor. I like to hear a story about the artist and the times in which he/she lived. I like to sit back and contemplate the painting. At the zoo, I like to read about the animal, where it is from, etc. It's not really such a bad thing, to be a browser, especially when the world is moving so very fast. I realize that now, but back then when I tried to fit in, my browsing ways did not sit well with anybody, including me.
Probably the only field trip I remember enjoying was in fourth grade, when I went to Hamlin, Germany, with my mother as a chaperone(don't get too excited--we were living in Nurnburg at the time). My memories are pleasant, if faded. My roomie was a cute blonde girl who wore her hair in two braids. I had an awful orange pants set outfit thing that my mother made me wear. We all stayed in a youth hostel(sans any cutting instruments, co-eds, or Eli Roth), someone's bra ended up at the top of a flag pole, and we rode in a boat. No Pied Piper sightings, however.
I lived in Germany for a part of 4th grade, too. And, I too remember the rush and anxiety of field trips. |
0.751053 | The year is early, but there have already been significant movements in the regulatory landscape. It was already known that manufacturers of pharmaceutical products sold in Russia would need to be in compliance with the recently-announced serialization and aggregation regulations by 1st January 2020, but at the end of 2018, Russia published an update to Federal Law No. 425-FZ. This update included guidance for producers of the 12 Nosologies, specifying an earlier deadline of 1st October, 2019. This gives manufacturers of these products very little time before they must be in complete compliance with the new serialization requirements.
What are the 12 Nosologies?
The 12 Nosologies products are medications which are used in the treatment of rare medical conditions with significantly expensive treatments: haemophilia, cystic fibrosis, pituitary dwarfism, Gaucher disease, myeloid leukaemia, multiple sclerosis, immunosuppressive therapy for organ transplant patients, Hemolytic-uremic syndrome, juvenile arthritis with systemic onset and Mucopolysaccharidosis type I, II and VI. Any and all medicines falling under these categories must be labelled, serialized and reported in order to be compliant.
As with most Track & Trace initiatives, it is important that products must be accounted for at every step of their journey – starting at production and ending at distribution to patients. These recorded events must also be transmitted to both trade partners and the Federal State Information System for Monitoring Drug Circulations (FSIS MDC). Unlike existing regulations (for example, from the EU's FMD and the DSCSA in the United States), the Russian regulations require a broader range of product movements to be recorded. These recorded events must also be transmitted to both trade partners and the Federal State Information System for Monitoring Drug Circulations (FSIS MDC).
On top of that, there are requirements for additional information to be displayed on each individual unit. The regulations call for the inclusion of a crypto key and code, along with the information which is required by U.S. and European regulations (a GTIN and serial number). In addition, the Russian regulations require aggregation of all units, which also needs to be recorded and reported in the same manner as all individually serialized products. The aggregation process does not require the addition of a crypto code or key, but it does require that any activities such as a unit pack and unpack need to be documented and reported. There are, all told, a total of 36 possible "compliance events" which can occur to a package that must be recorded and reported – a significant increase from the requirements of other pharmaceutical regulations.
What Products must be Serialized?
Unlike the EU's regulations, which are primarily concerned with high-value medications and prescription drugs, the Russian regulations cover a much wider range of pharmaceutical products, including over-the-counter medicines. What this means is that pharmaceutical manufacturers who have perhaps not had to implement a serialization program now find themselves in the position of having to implement one, and implement it quickly.
With a short timeline to compliance deadlines, and a framework that is considered to be more complex than other similar regulations, it is vital for manufacturers to work with a partner who has a firm understanding of the requirements and experience with rolling out Track & Trace programs at any scale quickly and efficiently. Our experts have followed the development of Russia's regulations closely and we are ready to help bring your production lines into compliance.
A complete interactive tour of the Track & Trace process at METTLER TOLEDO partner R-Pharm's facility. |
0.999994 | Oil prices have dropped around 30 percent since summer highs, raising fears among producers across the globe. Yet, many oil majors are relatively diversified, with large holdings downstream. For example, ExxonMobil and Chevron have been insulated in the third quarter because of their large holdings in refining. Steep declines in oil prices may hurt their production sectors, but with lower priced oil as an input, big oil's refining assets become more profitable.
For the third quarter, ExxonMobil reported a 3 percent rise in earnings compared to quarter three in 2013. That was largely driven by the Texas-based oil giant's refining assets, which saw its profits rise by more than 70 percent from $592 million to $1.02 billion. Chevron's refining program succeeded in quadrupling its profits in the third quarter, more than offsetting the hit the company has taken from the slide in oil prices.
Other companies that are not as large or integrated across various subsectors of the oil industry are not as shielded from the current soft price environment. And there are signs that a slowdown is beginning to take shape.
Oil services firm Baker Hughes reported another drop in the active rig count in early November, with oilrigs declining by 14. With 1,568 rigs in operation, the oilrig count is now at its lowest level since August and down 49 rigs since a peak in October. Rigs could decline to 1,325 in 2015, according to some projections.
While some companies appear undaunted, vowing to maintain or even increase production, others are beginning to pare back spending plans. Continental Resources, a major oil producer in North Dakota's Bakken play, has stated that it will not deploy more drilling rigs next year. Pioneer Natural Resources, with large holdings in the Eagle Ford and Permian basin, has hinted at plans that are more modest for 2015 due to lower oil prices.
The companies that service the oil producers are also on the frontlines, often feeling the brunt of a pullback in drilling activity quickly. Transocean, a major offshore oil drilling contractor, reported a nearly $2.8 billion impairment charge during the third quarter, which was "due primarily to the decline in the market valuation of the company's contract drilling services business." In other words, lower oil prices hurt demand for Transocean's drilling rigs.
Transocean's 29 ultra-deepwater drilling rigs had accumulated 296 combined days of being out of service in the third quarter. That was an enormous increase over the previous two quarters – 110 days of out-of-service days in quarter two, and just 98 days in the first quarter. Even worse, the company expects the rigs to be inactive for a total of 435 days in the fourth quarter.
Short sellers are even stepping up their positions against oil field service companies as they sense an opportunity. Reuters reported on several European firms that are starting to come under fire from short sellers.
Nevertheless, the selloff in oil prices could be overdone. OPEC's Secretary-General Abdullah al-Badri tried to ease concerns, speaking at a conference in Abu Dhabi on November 10. "Please do not panic, things will fix itself," he said. On its face, that response would seem to suggest that OPEC thinks prices have bottomed out. On the other hand, Kuwait's Oil Minister suggested that OPEC will not cut its production target, and echoing al-Badri's comments, he said, "prices will settle down once surplus oil is absorbed.
No decision has been made yet, and OPEC will meet at the end of November in Vienna to decide its next move. Merely allowing the market to sort itself out while maintaining current production levels will almost certainly spark a negative reaction in the oil markets.
That would put greater pressure on oil producers and oil service companies around the world, potentially forcing further cutbacks in production plans with the weakest players and the highest cost regions feeling the worst of it. |
0.996479 | Recommend the CarFit program. CarFit is an educational program created by the American Society on Aging and developed in collaboration with the American Automobile Association (AAA), AARP and the American Occupational Therapy Association. The program is designed to help older drivers find out how well they currently fit their personal vehicle, to highlight actions they can take to improve their fit, and to promote conversations about driver safety and community mobility. A proper fit in one’s personal vehicle can greatly increase not only the driver’s safety but also the safety of others.
Seat belt usage is among the most important habits for older adults to practice. If a senior is hesitant to wear a seat belt because of discomfort at the neck or the fact it is too hard to reach, you can explore solutions at CarFit and discuss concerns with an occupational therapist.
As the coordinator for a senior center and the daughter of two octogenarians, I know well how difficult this issue can be to navigate. I have done a great deal of research into this - in addition to the CarFit program, which is a great tool, I have found that AARP offers a program on when and how to have "the talk" with older drivers about whether they should be driving. I also discovered that IDriveSmart (largely known for its bright yellow driver's education cars) also offers an evaluation of senior drivers to gauge their driving abilities. They will even pick the senior up at home, in their yellow cars, to do this! |
0.988838 | Among the 44 senators who remained after the Southern states seceded at the start of the Civil War, Jesse Bright of Indiana was the Senate's most senior Democrat. A senator since 1845, Bright was noted for his grasp of Senate rules and precedents and for his frank manner. He was willing to take firm positions on sensitive issues, regardless of the long-term consequences of his stands. Bright's colleagues regarded him as capable of unswerving friendship to those who shared his proslavery views and as "an enemy who knew how to inflict punishment" to those who did not. His principal Senate antagonists were abolitionists Charles Sumner (R-MA) and Morton Wilkinson (R-MN). In recognition of his seniority, Bright had served as the Senate's president pro tempore in 1854, 1856, and 1860. During his tenure in that position, Bright saw to it that Sumner received no committee assignments.
Allow me to introduce to your acquaintance my friend, Thomas B. Lincoln of Texas. He visits your capital mainly to dispose of what he regards a great improvement in fire-arms. I recommend him to your favorable consideration as a gentleman of the first respectability, and reliable in every respect.
In the following months before the Senate convened for the second session of the 37th Congress, Washington was rife with speculation as to Bright's likely fate at the hands of his Republican Senate colleagues. Over the years, he had denounced those who equated abolitionism with loyalty to the Union. He believed that the rupture in the Union would be only temporary and that military force would have little effect in healing the break. Clearly, Bright was vulnerable in a Senate whose majority feared the influence of Southern sympathizers in the national government.
On December 16, 1861, shortly after the Senate opened its new session, Morton Wilkinson introduced a resolution to expel Bright on the basis that the letter to Jefferson Davis was evidence of disloyalty. The Senate promptly referred the resolution to the Judiciary Committee, which then consisted of five Republican and two Democratic members.
In his own defense, Bright argued that, although he had written the letter, he did not specifically remember doing so because he frequently wrote such commendations on behalf of his friends and constituents. Early in his career, Bright had served as Thomas Lincoln's attorney and, in 1861, he felt it was only natural to introduce his friend to his former Senate colleague, Jefferson Davis. Bright contended that, in addressing his letter to "His Excellency, Jefferson Davis, President of the Confederation of States," he had simply followed the conventions of the day, using a polite form of address customary between two gentlemen and using the title Davis claimed at the time. At the heart of Bright's defense was the question of the state of relations between the Union and Confederacy on March 1, 1861, the date of the letter. He argued that no fighting had yet occurred and the break was then considered by no means irrevocable.
This was the weakest point in Bright's case. His opponents pictured Jefferson Davis as the arch traitor who, in March 1861, was busily assembling arms for his April attack on the federal garrison at Fort Sumter. For Bright to introduce an arms merchant to Davis was, in their view, clearly an act of treason. They also focused on the wording of his letter, underscoring its subservient tone with references to "His Excellency" and "your capital." Where Bright's defenders asserted that he was guilty only of bad timing and indiscretion, his opponents charged that he had violated his oath to defend the Constitution against foreign and domestic enemies.
The Judiciary Committee reported to the Senate on January 13, 1862, that it found the charges were not sufficient to justify expulsion. One committee member, Lafayette Foster (R-CT), subsequently changed his mind and supported expulsion. He explained that in voting against expelling Bright for a letter written on March 1, 1861, he had followed the precedent set by the Senate when it failed on March 14 to expel Jefferson Davis and other senators from the seceding states and decided simply to declare their seats vacant, although he himself thought they should have been expelled.
Debate in the Senate began on January 20 and continued intermittently until February 5, 1862. The most dramatic and damaging speech was made by Charles Sumner, who demanded that the Senate purge itself of traitors. The decisive vote occurred on February 5, with members of both houses filling the chamber and the gallery overflowing with onlookers. During the proceedings, which lasted for five hours, Bright summarized his case. "From the hour this war actually commenced," he asserted, "I have had in view . . . one single object—the reunion of these States." Noting with resignation that the Republican caucus had undoubtedly already made the final decision, he declared that he was speaking only to set forth his case for posterity. Upon completing his address, Bright gathered his belongings from his desk and walked out of the chamber. Moments later, the Senate, by a vote of 32 to 14, expelled him. He thereby became the fourth non-Southern senator, after Breckinridge, Johnson, and Polk, to be expelled during the war.
Bright returned to Indiana and sought reelection to the balance of his Senate term, but the state legislature, although under Democratic control, refused to return him to Washington. Bright then moved to Kentucky and was elected to that state's legislature. In 1874 he moved to Baltimore, where he died in 1875.
Source: U.S. Senate Historical Office, United States Senate Election, Expulsion and Censure Cases: 1793-1990 (Washington: Government Printing Office, 1995), pp. 106-108. |
0.982329 | Thayer David (born David Thayer Hersey; March 4, 1927 – July 17, 1978) was an American film, stage and television actor. He was best known for his work on the cult ABC serial Dark Shadows (1966–71) and as the fight promoter Miles Jergens in the 1976 film Rocky. He also appeared as Count Arne Saknussemm in the film Journey to the Center of the Earth in 1959. His raspy distinctive voice narrated many voice-overs in commercials and instructional films.
Thayer David was born March 4, 1927, in Medford, Massachusetts. His father, Thayer Frye Hersey, was an executive in the paper pulp industry. David attended Harvard University in the 1940s but did not graduate, concentrating instead upon a career on the stage. With financial support from his father, he co-founded the Brattle Theater Company (1948–1952) in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and established himself in the professional theatre.
He went on to act in The Relapse 1950 (Sir Tunbelly Clumsey);The Taming of the Shrew 1951 (Grumio); The Way of the World 1954 (Petulant); The Carefree Tree 1955 (The Sixth Son); King Lear 1956 (Duke of Cornwall); Mister Johnson 1956 (Gollup); Saint Joan 1956 (The Inquisitor); Protective Custody 1956 (Dr. Steidl); Oscar Wilde 1957 (Oscar Wilde); The Golden Six 1958 (Tiberius); A Man for All Seasons 1961 (Cardinal Wolsey); La Belle 1962; Andorra 1963 (pub keeper); The Seagull 1964 (Sorin); The Crucible 1964 (Danforth); Baker Street 1965 (Moriarty); The Royal Hunt of the Sun 1965 (Miguel Estete); Ring Round the Moon 1966 (Messerchann); Those That Play the Clowns 1966 (Henning); Breakfast at Tiffany's 1966 (Rusty Trawler); The Sorrows of Frederick 1967; The Bench 1968 (Phillipi); Uncle Vanya 1971 (Serebryakov); The Jockey Club Stakes 1973 (Sir Dymock Blackburn); The Dogs of Pavlov 1974.
David played Count Saknussem in the film Journey to the Center of the Earth (1959). From 1966 to 1971, David portrayed various characters on ABC's daytime phenomenon Dark Shadows. His many roles on Dark Shadows included Matthew Morgan, Ben Stokes, Professor T. Elliot Stokes, Sandor Rakosi, Count Petofi, Timothy Stokes (PT), Mordecai Grimes, and Ben Stokes (PT).
On the big screen, he played Reverend Silas Pendrake in Little Big Man (1970). He also played the afflicted spymaster Dragon in The Eiger Sanction (1975) with Clint Eastwood, and fight promoter Miles Jergens in Rocky (1976).
He played numerous characters on different TV series including The Wild Wild West, The Rockford Files, Columbo, Ellery Queen, Kojak, Petrocelli, Charlie's Angels, Hawaii Five-O, and The Amazing Spider-Man.
David appeared in TV movies as Nikita Khrushchev in Francis Gary Powers: The True Story of the U-2 Spy Incident (1976) and The Amazing Howard Hughes (1977), as well as miniseries such as Roots, The Rhinemann Exchange, and Washington: Behind Closed Doors.
In 1977, David played the title role in Nero Wolfe, Paramount Television's made-for-TV movie based on the Rex Stout novel The Doorbell Rang. David portrayed the corpulent detective Nero Wolfe, who took on clients grudgingly and solved mysteries dazzlingly. Intended to be the pilot for a series, the film was shelved by ABC. It eventually aired December 18, 1979, 17 months after David's death. He also played an important role as the lead antagonist, Mr. Edward Byron in the made-for-TV film Spider-Man (1977), which served as the pilot for the 1978 TV series The Amazing Spider-Man.
A resident of Manhattan, Thayer David collected walking sticks, 18th-century European landscape paintings and Victorian furniture. "He was the most widely educated and best-read actor I've ever encountered," said Frank D. Gilroy, who wrote and directed the 1977 TV movie Nero Wolfe. His fellow cast members on Dark Shadows remembered him as a "walking encyclopedia" around the studio.
He was married to and divorced from film and television actress Valerie French.
Thayer David died July 17, 1978, from a heart attack in New York City at the age of 51. He and his former wife Valerie French had been planning to remarry.
^ Lavery, David (2009). The Essential Cult TV Reader. Louisville: University Press of Kentucky. p. 87. ISBN 9780813125688.
^ Rainey, Buck (1998). Western Gunslingers in Fact and on Film: Hollywood's Famous Lawmen and Outlaws. Jefferson, NC: McFarland. p. 214. ISBN 9780786403967.
^ Kibbey, Richard D. (2011). Pat Boone: The Hollywood Years. Mustang, Oklahoma: Tate Publishing & Enterprises. p. 156. ISBN 9781613461341. |
0.999994 | Context. Arp 220 is the prototypical ultra luminous infrared galaxy (ULIRG). Despite extensive studies, the structure at MHz-frequencies has remained unknown because of limits in spatial resolution. Aims: This work aims to constrain the flux and shape of radio emission from Arp 220 at MHz frequencies. Methods: We analyse new observations with the International Low Frequency Array (LOFAR) telescope, and archival data from the Multi-Element Radio Linked Interferometer Network (MERLIN) and the Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array (VLA). We model the spatially resolved radio spectrum of Arp 220 from 150 MHz to 33 GHz. Results: We present an image of Arp 220 at 150 MHz with resolution 0.̋65 × 0.̋35, sensitivity 0.15 mJy beam-1, and integrated flux density 394 ± 59 mJy. More than 80% of the detected flux comes from extended (6''≈ 2.2 kpc) steep spectrum (α = -0.7) emission, likely from star formation in the molecular disk surrounding the two nuclei. We find elongated features extending 0.3'' (110 pc) and 0.9'' (330 pc) from the eastern and western nucleus respectively, which we interpret as evidence for outflows. The extent of radio emission requires acceleration of cosmic rays far outside the nuclei. We find that a simple three component model can explain most of the observed radio spectrum of the galaxy. When accounting for absorption at 1.4 GHz, Arp 220 follows the FIR/radio correlation with q = 2.36, and we estimate a star formation rate of 220 M⊙ yr-1. We derive thermal fractions at 1 GHz of less than 1% for the nuclei, which indicates that a major part of the UV-photons are absorbed by dust. Conclusions: International LOFAR observations shows great promise to detect steep spectrum outflows and probe regions of thermal absorption. However, in LIRGs the emission detected at 150 MHz does not necessarily come from the main regions of star formation. This implies that high spatial resolution is crucial for accurate estimates of star formation rates for such galaxies at 150 MHz. |
0.987905 | Eaves, 32, registered 17 points (11-6=17) in 54 regular-season games with Dallas in 2015-16. He ranked fifth on the Stars with five power play goals. Dallas was 9-0-0 in games in which he scored a goal, and 13-1-0 in games in which he tallied a point. On Feb. 11, he became the second player in franchise history to record a hat trick in the first period in a victory against Chicago. During the 2016 playoffs, the winger recorded 6 points (3-3=6) in 9 games.
The 11-year veteran has earned 190 points (99-91=190) in 545 career regular-season contests for Ottawa, Carolina, Detroit, Nashville, and Dallas. In two seasons with the Stars, Eaves has amassed 44 points (25-19=44) in 101 games. The forward has made seven Stanley Cup Playoffs appearances, recording 19 points (9-10=19) in 76 career postseason games.
"Patrick is extremely versatile and fills a number of roles on our team," said Nill. "He is a team-first player that makes whoever he's playing with better."
Representing the United States, he won the gold medal at the World Jr. Championships in 2004.
The 6-foot, 200-pound native of Calgary, Alberta was originally selected by Ottawa in the first round (29th overall) of the 2003 NHL Draft. |
0.955843 | The NATO bombing of Yugoslavia was the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation's (NATO) military operation against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY) during the Kosovo War. The air strikes lasted froThe NATO bombing of Yugoslavia was the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation's (NATO) military operation against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY) during the Kosovo War. The air strikes lasted from March 24, 1999 to June 10, 1999. The official NATO operation code name was Operation Allied Force; the United States called it Operation Noble Anvil, while in Yugoslavia the operation was incorrectly called "Merciful Angel", as a result of a misunderstanding or mistranslation. The bombings continued until an agreement was reached that led to the withdrawal of Yugoslav armed forces from Kosovo and the establishment of United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK), a UN peacekeeping mission in Kosovo. |
0.980498 | Fires burn on a boulevard near the Pratunam intersection in downtown Bangkok.
Bangkok, Thailand (CNN) -- Arwut Siripanich's wife and daughter begged him to leave their home in the Bangkok neighborhood close to the site where anti-government protesters have camped out for days.
Instead, he placed steel barricades and potted plants out on their street to keep anti-government protesters out and settled in for the long haul.
Siripanich, a 64-year-old landlord, is hunkering down with nine other people -- five men who work for him, their partners and children. The men rotate on guard duty throughout the night.
Siripanich said he trained the women how to fight back if any of the demonstrators, known as "Red Shirts," try to break in.
They have been holed up for a full week now.
"It's natural to be afraid," Siripanich said, but he is most concerned about providing for his family and his property -- he owns the five-story building.
"I want the soldiers to clear everything up," he said, irritated at just what is happening outside but also at the political unrest nationally. "I just want to have a normal life again."
Siripanich's crew buys food daily at a market downstairs, but they must show their identification documents to soldiers to get in and out of the building.
Protesters have piled up a large number of tires on his street. When Siripanich peeked out a few days ago, he saw two big boxes. Worried they could be bombs, he warned everyone to stay away. They could hear gunfire "all day, all night," he said.
Somsong Chareonsuk, 46, and a friend have holed up in a home where Chareonsuk works as a housekeeper near the violence. She was told by her employer to stay and look after the house and their dogs.
The pair bought food and water in advance. They watch television to pass the time. They hear gunfire crackling every night and big blasts.
"I don't know when the bombs are going to explode -- I'm most scared about not knowing," she said. "I'm also scared the buildings around our house might catch fire. Tires are being burnt nearby."
At the end of each day, the Red Shirts have a meeting outside the house, but Chareonsuk doesn't want to interact with them.
"We don't sleep at night. We stay up guarding the house until 4 a.m. every day. At night, it's so quiet that even small sounds from outside make us jump," she said.
Chareonsuk is glad that soldiers pushed the Red Shirts farther up the street Wednesday.
"Even though things are calmer outside, I still can't leave -- the road is still blocked," she said.
Back at Siripanich's building, they hear the fighting may end soon -- hopeful news for a group who wants their lives to get back to normal.
"I don't feel safe and it's affected my life -- I feel depressed," said Rachaet Sanging, 36, who works for Siripanich. |
0.95122 | We propose an alternative generator architecture for generative adversarial networks, borrowing from style transfer literature. The new architecture leads to an automatically learned, unsupervised separation of high-level attributes (e.g., pose and identity when trained on human faces) and stochastic variation in the generated images (e.g., freckles, hair), and it enables intuitive, scale-specific control of the synthesis. The new generator improves the state-of-the-art in terms of traditional distribution quality metrics, leads to demonstrably better interpolation properties, and also better disentangles the latent factors of variation. To quantify interpolation quality and disentanglement, we propose two new, automated methods that are applicable to any generator architecture. Finally, we introduce a new, highly varied and high-quality dataset of human faces. |
0.999666 | Have Warning Signs: All security companies offer signs without the purchase of an alarm system. These signs are important because they suggest that you have an alarm system even if you don't. Burglars don't want to target homes that obviously have security systems in place. You can get signs for the yard, to place in your windows, and to put on your fence. You can even hire professionals to come out to your home to provide the best places for these signs to be placed where they will easily be noticed should an intruder come lurking.
Give the Feeling of Being Watched: What many people don't realize is that you can set up security cameras without them actually video recording anything or being hooked up to a monitoring system. The benefit of this is that it makes burglars feel as if they are being watched. Putting a camera on your front porch so that it's obviously seen can quickly deter anyone looking to break in. However, you can also have the video cameras that actually work, which is an even better way to protect yourself.
Address the Person: Many burglaries happen when someone rings the doorbell to check if someone is home, and if no one answers, then they begin to look for an entryway. When you install a video doorbell, you can prevent this from happening by making it appear that you are home. The video doorbell will notify you on your smartphone when someone has rung your doorbell. You can check the camera to see who it is and address them. If it's someone you don't know just say, "sorry, not interested." This is a great way to make it appear as if you are home.
With these three simple ways to deter burglary, you can easily avoid a situation where your home is broken into. Don't forget to talk with specialists to hook up all the equipment you need to protect your home in the best way for you. While you can implement these simple things, it's always better to go further and set up alarms and other protective features to ensure full safety and protection. |
0.999856 | ILL: Except Child. 1967 May;33(9):637-42.
Can somebody help me locate the following article: Behavior modification of an adjustment class: a token reinforcement program.ILL: Except Child. 1967 May;33(9):637-42. |
Subsets and Splits
No community queries yet
The top public SQL queries from the community will appear here once available.