Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday requested people to join the 'Janata curfew' to make the fight against the coronavirus a success, commencing an unprecedented shutdown commenced across.
Modi had proposed a self-imposed 'Janata curfew' on Sunday between 7 am and 9 pm as part of social distancing to check the spread of the deadly virus.
"In a few minutes from now, the #JantaCurfew commences. Let us all be a part of this curfew, which will add tremendous strength to the fight against COVID-19 menace," the prime minister wrote on Twitter.
He said the steps to be taken now will help in the times to come. "Stay indoors and stay healthy," he said.
As the 'Janata curfew' got underway at 7 am, people largely kept themselves indoor as part of the social distancing exercise to stop the spread of the virus and bare number of public transport vehicles plied on nearly empty roads.
All markets and establishments except those dealing in essential goods and services will be closed for the day.
In the national capital, the roads were deserted with barely some private vehicles and buses plying. Vendors were off the roads in the morning hours with people confining themselves to their homes. The metro was closed by the Delhi government while unions decided to keep their autorickshaw and taxis off the streets.
Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had said that 50 per cent of the buses will ply on Delhi roads on Sunday considering some people may have to travel due to an emergency.
In Mumbai, the usually bustling western and eastern express highways and other arterial roads looked empty as people stayed in their homes to support the curfew.
Same was the situation at the suburban train stations which normally see thousands of commuters jostling to get inside the overcrowded trains.
Cutting across party lines, chief ministers and others leaders have urged the people to follow the self-imposed curfew, noting that "social distancing" was key to breaking the chain of transmission, as the number of coronavirus cases rose to 283 after 60 new cases were detected on Saturday, the highest so far in a day.
States like Maharashtra, Odisha, Rajasthan and Bihar have announced either complete or partial lockdown till month-end.
No passenger train will originate from any railway station in the country from midnight to 10 pm on Sunday while all suburban train services will be reduced to a bare minimum as well. Metro services, including in Delhi, Hyderabad and Mumbai, will remain suspended for the day.
Air carriers like GoAir, IndiGo and Vistara have announced that they will be curtailing domestic operations on Sunday.
Traders' body Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) has announced that they will keep their establishments shut across the country for the 'Janata curfew'.
From suspending regular prayers involving large gatherings in shrines of various faiths, including Sunday mass, to disallowing jail inmates from meeting their families on the day, organisations and institutions in every sphere have announced restrictions.
Modi had on Thursday called for the 'Janata curfew' saying no citizen, barring those in essential services, should get out of their houses, and asserted that it will be a litmus test to show India's readiness to take on the coronavirus challenge.
Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla has asked chief secretaries of all states to ensure that the 'Janata Curfew' is observed properly and to see that local bodies, fire services, police and civil defence blow sirens or ring bells on Sunday evening to express gratitude towards those involved in tackling the disease.
"We are looking for unity in isolation," Joint Secretary in the Ministry of Health Lav Agarwal had said.
Describing it as the need of the hour, Union Home Minister Amit Shah had asked everyone in the country to support the step.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath had also appealed to the people of the state to stay indoors on Sunday.
"Metro trains, roadways buses and city buses will not operate on Sunday," the statement said on behalf of the chief minister.
For in-depth, objective and more importantly balanced journalism, Click here to subscribe to Outlook Magazine


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ya I went through those long time ago thanks :)I just wanted to understand how the system works out of curiosity
All I know is when testing my application on a Mac the game runs at 30fps when full screen, but at 60fps when I have a smaller window!
I don't understand this! Surely there must be a way to get it to run at 60fps at full screen!
HenerzH - don't post the same question in multiple threads. Also, please have more patience, getting a response often isn't immediate. Wait at least a few hours.
Wow thanks for the help, I'm desperately trying to find an answer.
I didn't know if some threads weren't being used anymore. This is so frustrating because in the manual it clearly says Window Size makes no difference to performance, but it evidently does. If I had used a small window size from the beginning the game would have run fine on the MAC.
I don't know why it works like this, it shouldn't increase the resolution to have it full screen. If you have a small window full screen, the resolution still looks just as good but it runs the game much better, even though the actual game objects are the same resolution in both situations!
I also don't understand how C2's scaling works and how GPU intensive is ...
So I work with Window size of 1280x720 and with high-resolution sprites (if I need a sprite of 50x50, I will use one of 100x100).
How will it scale at 1920x1080 regarding visual quality and GPU with and without HighQuality ? (compared to 1280x720)
Also how will the performance be at 640x360 ? It is the same as 1280x720 or will use less resources ?
The 'Window size' project property is poorly named. It should be called the 'Viewport size'. (I don't think we will change it because other expressions and a lot of documentation refer to the same name.) It just sets how much of the layout you can see.
When the game is actually displayed at runtime, the size it ends up on your screen is the display size. For example you could have a 'window size' of 854x480 and use letterbox scale mode to display it at 1920x1080. In that case the viewport to the layout is 854x480 and the display size is 1920x1080.
In 'High quality' fullscreen mode, in practice only the display size affects performance. Note if you run a game in a browser window, you can resize the browser smaller and notice it's running faster. This is because the display size is smaller, so there's less GPU work. The project viewport is still the same (i.e., the project 'Window size' property has not changed, even though you resized the browser window. I do regret choosing that name for the project property!)
In 'Low quality' fullscreen mode, the game is rendered at the 'Window size' in project properties, and the result simply stretched up to fit the screen. Usually the stretch is fast and the performance impact can be ignored, so the display size is effectively the same as the viewport size. Since the viewport size is usually smaller than the display size, this improves performance.
In no case has the memory use changed. The viewport and display size do not affect the textures that are loaded to memory, which are always fully decompressed images at their original size they appear in the image editor.
Use "low quality" mode if you won't no difference between window/fullscreen.
Develop games in your browser. Powerful, performant & highly capable.
Thanks for all this information I was wondering too. I'm still trying to be sure of some details :
If low resolution isn't a problem, I read you can improve memory using very small textures for sprites, let's say 8x8.
And lets say we use a small window size (fullscale quality low) and they appear big on screen, with low resolution.
Small textured sprites 8x8 reduce loading at start, for sure, but will it also improve the CPU / FPS, or is it just a matter of number of elements ?
Also, according on how are working plugin like custom movement, will it be exactly the same if I use a 320x200 window size + 320x200 layout, with 8x8 sprites (and globaly reduced pixel values)
or a 1600x900 window size / layout with the same 8x8 textures but sprites resized to appear big ?

domain: hobby


Take a look at the beta version of dw.com. We're not done yet! Your opinion can help us make it better.
Missing hard drives from a British Royal Air Force base held information about drug use and the sex lives of senior officers, according to media reports.
The military has refused to comment on the nature of the missing data
There is concern that the private information, which vanished in September 2008 from the RAF base at Innsworth, could be used to blackmail employees, according to a BBC report on Monday. Both the BBC and Britain’s Guardian newspaper say the stolen hard drives contained details on a variety of vices involving about 500 employees, including senior officers.
The data had reportedly been gathered during background checks on military personnel and on people applying for positions with the military.
The missing hard drives contained sensitive information, including answers to questions about drug abuse, extramarital affairs, criminal inquiries and contact with prostitutes.
Britain's defense ministry has refused to confirm the precise details of the lost data but says it is looking into how to protect officers deemed at risk.
Not the first scandal of its kind
The reported data mishap comes on top of the government's loss last year of data on the banking details of millions of people who receive child support payments.
More recently, plans for a secret police sting against suspected Islamists were seen protruding from the brief case of Britain's anti-terror chief and captured on film by reporters in front of the prime minister's office in Downing Street.


The 22 Best and Worst TV Series Finales Ever
As NBC's "The Office" and The CW's "90210" end their runs this week, we're thinking back to the classic TV series finales that ended on the perfect note… and those that nearly ruined the whole show for us. Here are the grand finales we're still talking about, good or bad.
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The Mary Tyler Moore Show
The Mary Tyler Moore Show. Mary Tyler Moore as Mary Richards in "The Last Show". Episode # 168. Air date: March 19, 1977. Copyright CBS Worldwide Inc. All Rights Reserved. Credit: CBS Photo Archive.


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Back in 1968, a book titled “How to Build a Working Digital Computer” claimed that the sufficiently dedicated reader could assemble their own functioning computer at home using easily obtainable components. Most notably, the design utilized many elements that were fashioned from bent paperclips. It’s unclear how many readers actually assembled one of these so-called “Paperclip Computers”, but today we’re happy to report that [Mike Gardi] has completed his interpretation of the 50+ year old homebrew computer.
The purist might be disappointed to see how far [Mike] has strayed from the original, but we see his embrace of modern construction techniques as a necessary upgrade. He’s recreated the individual computer components as they were described in the book, but this time plywood and wheat bulbs have given way to 3D printed panels and LEDs. While the details may be different, the end goal is the same: a programmable digital computer on a scale that can be understood by the operator.
To say that [Mike] did a good job of documenting his build would be an understatement. He’s spent the last several months covering every aspect of the build on Hackaday.io, giving his followers a fantastic look at what goes into a project of this magnitude. He might not have bent many paperclips for his Working Digital Computer (WDC-1), but he certainly designed and fabricated plenty of impressive custom components. We wouldn’t be surprised if some of them, such as the 3D printed slide switch we covered last month, started showing up in other projects.
For a little over a year now we’ve been covering the incredible replicas [Mike Gardi] has been building of educational “computers” from the very dawn of the digital age. These fascinating toys, many of which are now extremely rare, are recreated using 3D printing and other modern techniques for a whole new generation to enjoy and learn from.
He’s picked up a trick or two building these replicas, such as this method for creating bespoke slide switches with a 3D printer. Not only does this idea allow you to control a custom number of devices, but as evidenced in the video after the break, the printed slider sounds absolutely phenomenal in action. Precisely the sort of “clunk” you want on your front panel.
So how does it work? One half of the switch is a track is printed with indents for both reed switches and 6 x 3 mm disc magnets. The other is a small shuttle that itself has spaces for two of the same magnets. When it slides over the reed switches they’re activated by the magnet on one side, while the magnet on the other side will be attracted to the one embedded into the track. This not only gives the switch detents that you can feel and hear while moving it, but keeps the shuttle from sliding off the intended reed switch.
[Mike Gardi] credits his professional successes in the world of software development on the fact that he had access to logic-based educational games of a sort that simply don’t exist anymore. Back in the 1960s, kids who were interested in electronics or the burgeoning world of computers couldn’t just pick up a microcontroller or Raspberry Pi. They had to build their “computers” themselves from a kit.
One of those kits was the GENIus Almost-automatic Computer (GENIAC), a product which today is rare enough to essentially be unobtainable. Using images and documentation he was able to collect online, [Mike] not only managed to create a functioning replica of the GENIAC, but he even took the liberty of fixing some of the issues with the original 60-odd year old design.
Fundamentally, the GENIAC is composed of rotary switches which feed into each other to perform rudimentary logical functions. With banks of incandescent bulbs serving as the output, users could watch how placing the switches in different positions would influence the result.
This might seem a little silly to modern audiences, but thanks to a well written manual that featured a collection of compelling projects, the GENIAC managed to get a lot of mileage out of a couple light bulbs and some wire. In fact, [Mike] says that the GENIAC is often considered one of the first examples of an interactive electronic narrative, as the carefully crafted stories from the manual allowed players to go on virtual adventures long before the average kid had ever heard of a “video game”. A video about how one of these stories, “The Uranium Shipment and the Space Pirates“, can be seen after the break. Even today it would be an interesting enough toy, but back in 1955 it would have been mind-blowing.
Construction of this replica will require access to a laser cutter so you can approximate the original’s drilled Masonite backing and rotors. From there, [Mike] has produced an array of 3D printable components which are attached to the board to serve as contacts, spacers, and various other pieces of bric-a-brac. Some of the parts he couldn’t find pictures of, so he was forced to come up with his own designs. But considering the finicky nature of the original, he thinks his printed parts may actually be better than what the toy shipped with.
When you write a program for your computer, whether it is a desktop machine, a microcontroller, or a supercomputer, the chances are that you use software tools to help you get the job done. High level languages, compilers, linkers, assemblers, debuggers, and code libraries have become so integrated that in many cases you will barely be aware of their existence. To all intents and purposes this huge toolchain will be the computer. But the first computer programmers had none of these luxuries. They had to hand assemble their own binaries, check them by hand, and debug them by guessing what had happened when they failed.
EDSAC (Electronic delay storage automatic calculator) was the first computer operated by the University of Cambridge in the UK and one of the first few computers in the entire world when it was built in the late 1940s. It is the subject of the 1951 film you’ll find embedded below. Originally produced for a conference, the video sports a 1976 introduction and narration from the machine’s creator Professor Maurice Wilkes. It doesn’t take us through the design of the machine itself, instead it concentrates on the workflow required to program it.
The Paper-Heavy Process of Programming EDSAC
To illustrate the programming process, a committee of people who would now call themselves computer scientists, but probably then called themselves mathematicians, breaking a formula into subroutines before the code is laboriously hand assembled. The linking process is performed manually too by the secretary who types the code into a teletype for transfer to a punched tape. When a library function is required she reaches into a filing cabinet for the roll of tape containing it before running it through a tape duplicator to add it to the program. Finally the completed tape is checked and added to a job queue that consists of a row of hooks on the wall. Never complain that your toolchain is unwieldy again!
The original EDSAC was decommissioned in the late 1950s after serving the university and spawning a commercial version, the LEO, which became the first ever computer manufactured for use in commerce. That was not the end of the EDSAC story though, because in this century a team at the National Museum of Computing at Bletchley Park set about recreating EDSAC as an exhibit. And as luck would have it a member of that team was at the recent Electromagnetic Field hacker camp to give a talk about their work which you will also find below.
Building a Faithful Reproduction of EDSAC
Tony Abbey gives us both a history of the machine and a description of its architecture, followed by a run through their efforts in rebuilding it. You may be surprised by some of the unexpected facts from the talk. For instance, while all the tubes used in the EDSAC are still available, their bases are not. Equivalents were sourced from China, but team members had to modify them with dental drills.
They also needed to manufact the 1940s-style tube chassis, and the solution to that problem happened to be just down the road. Bletchley is part of modern-day Milton Keynes, a post-war new town that is also home to another famous name: Marshall amplifiers. Tube amps are built in a surprisingly similar way, so they took on the manufactured challenge. Not all the parts of the new EDSAC are original though. The memory used mercury delay lines in 1949, but for 2018 recreation the computer has a delay line using nickel wire and modern components. Tony admits that even that has caused problems, and there is a simulator using a microcontroller.

domain: design


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During the height of this year’s monstrous Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, we watched the oil move, and considered what the grim fate of the complex coral ecosystems a mile deep on the Gulf’s floor might be. We couldn’t see at that point what had happened to the the living creatures deep in the Gulf at that point, however, because submersible craft weren’t being sent down to bring us that sort of picture.
Now, the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration’s Lobelia II expedition has returned to the Gulf of Mexico. What they’ve found is not heartening. The expedition has come across a huge area of dead and dying corals, southwest of the Deepwater Horizon offshore drilling disaster site. Amidst the corals are brittle stars, which would normally have their arms outstretched to catch food particles in the water, tightly clenched around coral skeletons.
This isn’t a disaster just for the animals of the deep. It’s a disaster for the fishermen who make a living off of trawling the depths of the Gulf of Mexico as well.
What do the American people make of all this? Not much, apparently. Less than half a year after the biggest single environmental disaster in the history of the United States, in many districts, voters chose to send candidates to Washington D.C. who dismiss the gravity of the risks of offshore drilling, and push for more and more oil drilling, wherever it can be done.

domain: geography


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We asked Miranda and Ari a few questions regarding their wedding in Iceland.
Why would you recommend Iceland as a destination for weddings?
We have traveled around the world quite a bit but Iceland was like nothing we had experienced before. Even prior to the wedding day we had done a lot of research, followed a number of tourism pages on Instagram and we had immersed ourselves in it so much that we were worried that the real Iceland would be a let down after all the amazing photos we had seen. But even from the first moment, we looked out the tiny plane window it was incredible! Such a rugged untouched landscape that you feel like you’re actually on another planet altogether. We spent 9 days traveling around Iceland and I couldn’t get enough of just staring out the bus window at the ever-changing landscape. Back to the question, everyone we spoke to asked us “why Iceland???” – especially given that we’re from sunny Australia – and our response was always “why not!”. Iceland provided us the exact adventure we were looking for to start our married life together. As all of our guests said, this is a wedding that will be remembered forever. We are already planning on going back to Iceland, in summer this time!
What was the best thing about your trip to Iceland?
Of course the landscape, but also the people. Everyone we met was so warm and friendly. Luxwedding helped us with not only our wedding but the 9-day tour for our whole group of 23 people. Everything about Iceland and the tour exceeded our expectations.
We are already planning on going back to Iceland
Do you have a favorite place that you visited?
We can’t go past our wedding day and location – driving on top of Langjokull glacier in the super jeep and arriving at the ice cave was a great experience. Hotel Husafell was also beautiful and incredibly accommodating to our wedding party. The other unexpected highlight for us was actually a crater next to Kirkjufellsfoss, it seemed insignificant compared to the other main attractions, but our group had so much fun battling the blizzard weather and high winds on top of the crater as we looked out to see the never-ending black and white landscape – it was otherworldly!
Was getting married in Iceland somehow different from what you expected?
It was better! A standard wedding with hundreds of guests was never what we wanted. We wanted something that represented us; that was full of adventure, excitement, and the unknown. We also wanted to be able to share this experience with our nearest and dearest. Iceland proved to be the perfect combination of this. The great thing was that we were able to keep the whole wedding day events a secret from our guests, even throughout the whole day we kept surprising them with the next activity – thank you to everyone involved for keeping their lips sealed! The best comment we had was from my mum who, after the whole surprise, said: “This is so Miranda and Ari”.
exceeded our expectations
Do you have any planning tips for those who would like to get married in Iceland?
Call/email Vigdis! We contacted Vigdis 1.5 years before our wedding. The brief was: we want to get married in Iceland in March/April 2018, we want to invite a small group of our closest family and friends, we want to see the northern lights, we want the wedding to be an adventure, we want to see as much of Iceland in the shortest time possible. She then worked so hard for the next 1.5 years on making our dreams come true. So, do a bit a research and make sure you have a list of the key things that are most important to you, but Luxwedding will honestly walk you through everything and make sure your dreams become reality.
dreams become reality, Ice cave wedding in Iceland
Why would you say having a planner is important?
We ourselves had never been to Iceland so it was really important to us to use locals who know what Iceland has to offer, this included our photographer, videographer, and officiant. We were apprehensive at the start given that we have to put a lot of trust and money prior to the wedding and would only meet everyone when our plane landed in Iceland. These fears were quickly put to rest when we saw Vigdis’ smile, she had so kindly come along to welcome us at the airport.
I thought I was organized, but when it came to the wedding, Vigdis was always the one to follow up with me. I don’t think I’ve sent as many emails to someone as I did to Vigdis. It was great to have someone on the ground in Iceland to use their connections, to meet all the providers, to organize all the details that you wouldn’t have even thought of, and even plan our whole 9 day Iceland tour! I cannot speak more highly of Vigdis, she personalized everything for us and truly went above and beyond, she became more than just our wedding planner, she became a friend.
truly went above and beyond
What would you say is a must-do in Iceland?
Do everything you possibly can! Try and see the northern lights (staying up all night is worth it, no matter how exhausted you are). We also couldn’t get enough of the glaciers that we went as far as getting married in one, having snow fights on one, snowmobiling on top of one, hiking on one, and just staring at all of them from a distance. Travel around Iceland as much as possible, see the sights, take it all in – because it will change in the blink of an eye. It’s a country like no other and we hope everyone gets to experience it at least once in their lifetime.!
Plan your ice cave wedding in Iceland with our help!
us for more information on weddings in Iceland.
We look forward to hearing from you!


|Where the Rain Falls|
Can understanding rain enable change?
Global study explores links between climate change, food and livelihood security and human mobility
- Global Policy Report (via Where the Rain Falls site)
- Global Policy Report (direct link to document)
- Case Study - Bangladesh
- Case Study - India
- Case Study - Peru
- Case Study - Tanzania
- Case Study - Thailand
- Case Study - Vietnam
Where the Rain Falls is a three-year programme of research, advocacy, and adaptation activities on changing weather patterns, hunger and human mobility.
Where the Rain Falls aims to enable a range of stakeholders, including global, national and local policy-makers and southern civil society organisations, to better understand and effectively address the relationship between changing weather patterns, food security, social inequalities, and human mobility, in addition to empowering these stakeholders to influence policies, plans and practical interventions at an international, national, and local level.
The field research phase in eight countries in Asia, Africa, and Latin America was completed in 2012, with findings launched at the United Nations' Climate Change Conference (known as UNFCCC COP18) in Doha. Results have subsequently been shared at events in France, the U.S., Bangladesh (CBA7), and seven research countries. Building on the results of the research, and with support from the AXA Group and the Prince Albert Foundation, community-based adaptation projects have been designed and are now being implemented in collaboration with communities in Bangladesh, Thailand, Peru, India and Tanzania to make an immediate contribution toward reducing their vulnerability to worsening agro-climatic risks.
Watch: Where the Rain Falls - Can understanding rain enable change?


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With multiple resorts opening this last weekend, we can finally say resort season has started. So far I have gotten to hit SolVista and Winterpark for their opening days and both have been a blast.
If you haven't already heard, James has been working at SolVista building new trails and enhancing the existing. With a fresh addition of flow and some fun new jumps, this place is going off. With the recent opening of Winterpark you should expect to see the crowds here begin to dwindle.
The trail crew at Winterpark has also been busy. Many of the trails have been refreshed and some new ones have been built.
The addition of a new road at the bottom of the resort disrupted Boot Camp (lower half is still closed) and Beall Ucanb. Beall Ucanb has seen some major changes on the lower half of the trail. The step up has been moved slightly and now leads into a drop zone. You have the choice of a rollable drop which you can send to make about a 10 footer or you can take a large 15' drop on the left.
The other major change was the addition of the new trail, Cruel and Unusual. This is an advanced trail with multiple features that are back to back.
With the lack of moisture, expect dry and loose conditions.
First Ride: Cruel and Unusual Trail at Trestle Bike Park - More Mountain Bike Videos


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Healthy Food Fail
Healthy Food Fail is free HD wallpaper. This wallpaper was upload at November 21, 2018 upload by admin in .You can download it in your computer by clicking resolution image in Download by size:. Don't forget to rate and comment if you interest with this wallpaper.
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domain: food


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This material must not be used for commercial purposes, or in any hospital or medical facility. Failure to comply may result in legal action.
Hypothyroidism in Pregnancy
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW:
Hypothyroidism is a condition that develops when the thyroid gland makes little or no thyroid hormone. Thyroid hormones help control body temperature, heart rate, growth, and how you gain or lose weight.
WHILE YOU ARE HERE:
is a legal document that explains the tests, treatments, or procedures that you may need. Informed consent means you understand what will be done and can make decisions about what you want. You give your permission when you sign the consent form. You can have someone sign this form for you if you are not able to sign it. You have the right to understand your medical care in words you know. Before you sign the consent form, understand the risks and benefits of what will be done. Make sure all your questions are answered.
You may need to rest in bed for a period of time. Your healthcare provider will tell you when it is okay to get out of bed. Call your healthcare provider before getting up for the first time. If you feel weak or dizzy, sit or lie down right away.
This is also called an ECG or EKG. Sticky pads placed on your skin record your heart's electrical activity.
Intake and output
may be measured. Healthcare providers will keep track of the amount of liquid you are getting. They also may need to know how much you are urinating. Ask healthcare providers if they need to measure or collect your urine.
You may need any of the following:
- Heart medicine: This medicine is given to strengthen or regulate your heartbeat. It also may help your heart in other ways. Talk with your caregiver to find out what your heart medicine is and why you are taking it.
- Thyroid hormone: You are given this medicine to bring your thyroid hormone level back to normal.
Tests and monitoring:
You may need any of the following:
- Blood tests: Blood is taken to learn how well your thyroid is working. These tests tell healthcare providers how low the thyroid hormone levels are in your blood. This information may also be used to see how well any treatments are working.
- Fetal ultrasound: This test uses sound waves to show pictures of your baby (fetus) inside your uterus. Jelly-like lotion is put on your abdomen, and a small handle is gently moved through the lotion. As this is done, pictures of your baby can be seen on a TV-like screen. Caregivers can learn the age of your baby, and see how fast he is growing. The movement, heart rate, and position of your baby can also be seen. Caregivers can see your placenta, and can tell if you have more than one baby.
Pregnancy causes an increased need for thyroid hormone and iodine in the body. Low thyroid hormone levels may cause serious health problems. You may continue to gain weight. You may have body pains, and think, move, and talk slowly. You may also develop myxedema, which is a dangerous condition. Myxedema may cause swelling in your legs, ankles, lungs, or around your heart. You may have seizures, or go into a deep coma and die if you do not get medical care quickly. You may have increased blood pressure and have vomiting, blurring of vision, and very bad bleeding in your womb. Your child may be born with birth defects, have a low birth weight, or even die inside the womb. You may also give birth earlier than expected.
CARE AGREEMENT:You have the right to help plan your care. Learn about your health condition and how it may be treated. Discuss treatment options with your caregivers to decide what care you want to receive. You always have the right to refuse treatment.
Learn more about Hypothyroidism in Pregnancy (Inpatient Care)
IBM Watson Micromedex
Medicine.com Guides (External)
Always consult your healthcare provider to ensure the information displayed on this page applies to your personal circumstances.

domain: medical


I would give this 4 1/2 stars. “Jailbreak” is better (harder and more refined), but there is sone nice work on this album. Some songs seem raw – Roslie is better on “Live and Dangerous”. “Spirit Slips Away” is a beautifully done slow song, and “Kings Vengance” has some pushing drums and guitar. The highlight of this album is the guitar duet(dual?) at the end of “Suicide”. This studio version of the song is great; the guitars are graceful and smooth, sounds fantastic(some of their best work).


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The National Museum of Mexican Art is pleased to announce the opening of its 37th annual Day of the Dead exhibition on Friday, September 22nd in the Main Gallery.
Entitled Día de Muertos, Living Presence, this year’s exhibition remembers the thousands of people who died in the February 2023 earthquakes in Turkey and Syria. The exhibition will also memorialize women around the world who have been violated, disappeared, or murdered, with a large installation by eighteen local artists. With flowers, food, and drinks, we await the return home of loved ones who no longer walk this Earth. Join us and experience this age-old tradition of honoring the lives of lost loved ones through captivating altars, beautiful folk art, and evocative fine art.

domain: news


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Studia i Materiaïy, 1/2017 (23): 37– 47 ISSN 1733-9758, © Wydziaï ZarzÈdzania UW DOI 10.7172/1733-9758.2017.23.4
Success Factors and Benefits of Social Franchising as a Form of Entrepreneurship
Marta Zió ïkowska*
This paper is a conceptual study on the essence of social franchising as a business model and form of entrepreneurship. Social franchising has been utilised by the social sector in a variety of ways, yet franchising as a form of social entrepreneurship context is a new area of research.
Despite the increasing popularity of social franchising to scale and replicate social enterprises, there has been little research on this topic. There is a need for a better understanding of the basics of the phenomenon and clarification of its fundamental meaning. The essence of social franchising as an organisational form with huge potential has been presented. The paper exa- mines social franchising by showing the model and analyses of its benefits and success factors in comparison to commercial franchising. Moreover, the study provides basic characteristics and knowledge for future in-depth research with regard to this topic.
Keywords: social franchise, non-profit, third sector, entrepreneurship, social enterprise.
Submitted: 12.08.2016 | Accepted: 09.10.2016
Czynniki sukcesu i korzyĂci franczyzy spoïecznej jako formy przedsiÚbiorczoĂci
Artykuï to konceptualne studium na temat istoty franczyzy spoïecznej jako modelu biznesu ibformy przedsiÚbiorczoĂci. Franczyza spoïeczna jest wykorzystywana przez trzeci sektor róĝno- rodnie, lecz franczyza w kontekĂcie formy spoïecznej przedsiÚbiorczoĂci jest nowym obszarem badawczym. Pomimo wzrostu popularnoĂci franczyzy spoïecznej by skalowaÊ i replikowaÊ przedsiÚbiorstwa spoïeczne niewiele jest badañ na ten temat. Istnieje potrzeba lepszego zro- zumienia podstaw i wyjaĂnienia fundamentalnego znaczenia tego zjawiska. Zaprezentowano wbartykule istotÚ franczyzy spoïecznej jako formÚ organizacyjnÈ o duĝym potencjale. Wbarty- kule zbadano franczyzÚ spoïecznÈ, prezentujÈc model oraz analizÚ korzyĂci i czynników suk- cesu wbporównaniu z franczyzÈ komercyjnÈ. Ponadto opracowanie dostarcza podstawowej charakterystyki i wiedzy do dalszych pogïÚbionych badañ w niniejszej tematyce.
Sïowa kluczowe: franczyza spoïeczna, non-profit, trzeci sektor, przedsiÚbiorczoĂÊ, przed- siÚbiorstwo spoïeczne.
Nadesïany: 12.08.2016 | Zaakceptowany do druku: 09.10.2016
* Marta Zióïkowska, PhD – Warsaw School of Economics, Institute of Management, Unit of Corporate Management.
Mailing address: Warsaw School of Economics, Institute of Management, Unit of Corporate Management; Al. NiepodlegïoĂci 162; 02-554 Warsaw; e-mail: email@example.com.
Nowadays, there seems to be an increased tendency to apply practical, innovative and supportable approaches to addressing the current most pressing problems, while using the existing resources most effectively and simultaneously.
Abnew type of enterprise has emerged and has been diffused throughout the world.
Abterm that has become associated with this development is social entrepreneurship.
Social entrepreneurs – in a similar manner to entrepreneurs in the business sector – act as change agents for society. Social business models1 are enabling organisations to tap into new sources of funding and organise governance and accountability structures in a way that resonates with the mission of the organisation. Social enterprises operate in the market to achieve social goals. Nevertheless, the majority of decision-makers from the so-called third sector were, for a long time, reluctant to use business tools (Ahlert, 2008, p. 11).
There was a clear distinction between for- profit and non-profit sectors. The increased acceptance of the importance of social entrepreneurship can be interpreted as abparadigm shift. The process also includes the application of commercial tools to increase the impact of projects and to make them more lasting (Ahlert, 2008, p. 11).
Franchising that can be used to solve social problems is social franchising, which involves the application of business-format franchising (commercial franchising) to achieve social benefits. Nevertheless, there is little knowledge about social franchising within the ecosystem of social enterprises. The goal of this paper is to deepen the knowledge of social franchising and conceptualise the main definitions and characteristics through an overview of the benefits and success factors of this organisational form from a commercial franchise perspective. This paper addresses the gap in the current literature and research by presenting the advantages, success factors and problems of using social franchise to satisfy social needs in the economy. The paper is conceptual in nature and is based on an overview of literature available on the subject, as well as on the analysis of accessible data.
It examines franchising in the non-profit
sector by discussing the benefits of and limitations to social franchise usage as well as success factors through the traditional versus social franchising analysis.
The author would like to focus strictly on social franchising as an organisational form. Given the comprehensive literature on traditional franchising, the author limited the definitions and references to commercial franchising in this paper apart from the identification of similarities and differences of both forms – commercial and social.
2. Essence of Social Franchising as a Form of Social
While franchising has been around for a rather long time, social franchising is abrelatively new phenomenon. Traditional2 franchising is a system of doing business which allows the franchisor to transfer the system of know-how, intellectual property in return for royalties (Alon, 2005, 2010).
It is known as business format franchising and product franchising and has a long history worldwide, which dates back to the 19th century. During the 1940s and 1950s, franchising was a business model innovation for that time Franchising has a well- documented track record in the developed world as a very effective organisational form. The business-in-a-box model reduces risk and makes replication relatively simple.
It is assumed that franchising accounts for 10–25% of GDP among OECD member nations (Mukherjee, 2008). Franchising has been an effective strategy for replicating successful concepts for over 80 years in the commercial world, but it has as yet not been so popular in the non-profit sector.
The history of franchising usage in the non- profit sector dates back to the early 1990s (Sadowska, 2009).
However, to conduct research it is necessary to understand the fundamentals of the practice of franchising in the social enterprise context. Social franchising is primarily a method for transferring knowledge from one established social enterprise to another that wants to achieve the same social and financial goals. Social franchising is a method in the process of social innovation dissemination and a type of replication of social enterprise possible
to develop in today’s economy. The idea of social franchising is to use a successfully developed business system method to support social needs.
Given that social franchising is ab rela- tively new area of research, the term is used in many different ways and there is no obvious definition. There is a diversity of perceptions of what is meant by the term social franchising but no consensus on the final definition (Crawford-Spencer, 2015).
There is a need for a better understanding of the various forms of the phenomenon and clarification of its fundamental meaning. The prior research work that took into consideration social franchising within the healthcare and educational context in the developing world mostly focused on health aspects (Alur, 2011; Bishai et al.;
Bishai et al., 2008, 2012; Ngo et al., 2010).
Tracey and Jarvis (2007) were the first to attempt to analyse social franchising.
Their research concluded that agency and resource scarcity theories are insufficient to conceptualise this new format.
Basically, social franchising is an adaptation of commercial franchising in which the developer of a successful social concept (franchisor) enables others (franchisees) to replicate the model using a proven system and a brand name to achieve social benefit. Social franchising can be defined as a system of contractual relationships that uses the structure of ab commercial franchise to achieve social goals (Tracey and Jarvis, 2007). Social franchise emerges with the objective to make a social impact by tackling pressuring social issues such as unemployment, social exclusion of groups, poverty, social cohesion, protection of the environment, health, and education.
Nevertheless, social franchising is the use of a commercial franchising approach to replicate and share proven organisational models for greater social impact. The use of franchising to solve social problems is based on the essential feature of that kind of business – replication. Social franchise facilitates the scaling up of the business to fulfil social needs. Schuhen (2004, pp. 156–
157) suggests a more functional definition:
‘Social Franchising is the non-profit form of vertical or horizontal cooperation with the aim of replicating social programmes and services as well as governing and linking
social organizations’. Consequently, social franchising must also be considered a form of cooperation between equal partners. As such, social franchising is also a matter of cultivating partnership, joining forces and benefitting from cooperative organisations.
More specifically, social franchising can be understood as contract-based cooperation of decentralised entrepreneurial units with a central support unit, uniform quality standards and supported by a common philosophy (Braun and Lotter, 2004, p. 9).
The interest in social franchising is gaining momentum around the world, as it may be structured in many different forms, including sole proprietors, for-profit and non-profit firms, non-governmental organisations, youth groups, community organisations, and more. It is worth mentioning that a social franchise operates in both the non-profit and the commercial sector. A common feature differentiating social franchising from other forms is the aim to satisfy social needs and use franchising as a scalable form of venture. Moreover, a social franchise promotes entrepreneurship and helps to instil entrepreneurial behaviours among excluded groups of people (disadvantaged people). Social franchising is a method that allows the replication of proven success whilst retaining local ownership (see Figureb1).
A social franchise has the following key attributes. Firstly, there is a legally binding franchise agreement between the social franchisor and independent social franchisees under a common brand.
Secondly, the franchisor replicates the proven business model and shares its knowledge and resources by providing training and support for partners in the operations manual. It covers all the know- how, procedures and techniques for how to operate a franchise unit as well as issues connected with quality and performance standards. Moreover, a core thing in franchise cooperation is that training is provided in the start-up phase and continued during the business relation.
The social franchise agreement is defined by a quality assurance system, including performance monitoring. The franchisor is obliged to ensure financial feasibility and donor support (if applicable) for the franchise system. Through replicating
proven concepts, franchising leverages existing resources, instead of creating ab new service at a high cost. Because the decentralised units are based on a tested prototype, the initial start-up risks are reduced. Furthermore, franchisors provide their franchisees with a whole concept of how to run the non-profit project. This allows franchisees to focus on their core competences, thereby implementing, rather than administering and developing, the system.
Social franchising enables independent entrepreneurs to become franchisees to deliver services to end-customers (see Figure 2). The model of social enterprise creates infrastructure and empowers businesspersons (or disadvantaged persons) to satisfy social needs when there is a lack of distribution of social services. The social franchise represents different ways of doing business but the common goal is the same – satisfaction of social needs.
However, the most well-known examples of social franchise are: Komosie’s De Kringwinkel (Flanders) recycling shops and
refurbishment business, CAP supermarkets (Germany) and LeMat hotels (Italy) (European Social Franchise Network).
Moreover, there are a few well established social franchise ventures in the UK: Green Works charity recycling furniture (Sharpen, 2006), The School for Social Entrepreneurs (SSE) and FareShare (FareShare) charity supporting communities to relieve food poverty by tackling both food poverty and food waste. Social franchising is growing in Poland with representation in this sector.
There is a successful example of the social franchise development model – Barka (Sadowska, 2009). The aim of Barka is to support disadvantaged people. Other cases are: K-Lumet (production of kindling) and Klubo-kawiarnia ‘Spóïdzielnia’
(supporting social events, trainings and education for disadvantaged people) (Franczyza spoïeczna). Moreover, there exist some international social franchises operating in Poland such as: Aflatoun (education) (Bloom, 2012), Specialisterne (employs people with autism) (Specialisterne).
Figure 1. Attributes and elements of social franchising
Source: own work based on M. Zióïkowska, Franczyza nowoczesny model rozwoju biznesu, CeDeWu, Warszawa 2010.
Key attributes and elements
of Social Franchising knowledge
training and support
independent social franchisee
franchise agreement operations
common brand proven
of Social Franchise Formats and the Differences
from Commercial Franchising Potential social franchise formats range from commercial franchises with intended social effects to non-profit replication systems with franchising elements. Three formats can be identified in principle. The first one is a commercially organised franchise system for achieving social benefits. The sole difference from commercial franchising is the focus of the system as a whole on social benefits and the absence of the primary goal of generating profit for private individuals.
The second is a subsidised franchise system that makes services available at a lower cost than commercial solutions. This may include profit-making entrepreneurs at the franchisee level. The final one is a non- profit replication system which includes the core elements of franchising, but without the classical fee and profit elements.
Most of the core elements of social franchising are similar to commercial franchising. The common issues in social and commercial franchises are: a proven model, easily learned and scalable (duplicable), high levels of upfront development and ongoing involvement
and obligations, with which high costs are associated. Moreover, an important feature is a common, shared identity, which means that there is a risk for the franchisor.
Both business models are based on ablegal agreement, and the licences granted under the agreement are used in particular territories and set out the fee payments.
Nevertheless, there are some differences between the franchise systems in the commercial and in the non-profit sector (Smith, 2002). First of all, there is a different objective. The main objective in the third sector is not to maximise profit, but rather to maximise social impact. This means that the franchisor might be less commercial in recruiting and managing its franchisees.
Furthermore, franchising disciplines may be harder to implement and to control. The second issue is a different target group.
In social franchising, the ‘client base’ is different. A non-profit organisation on the whole serves beneficiaries rather than customers.
There is an additional player in a social franchise who guarantees financial support.
This is the case during the start-up phase, but also in order to remain sustainable. This adds a further player to the equation – the donor. The donor most likely has its own policies and programmes. This might lead to a conflict of interest for the franchisor
Figure 2. Model of social franchise creation
Source: own work based on A. Du Toit, Social Franchising as an Organizational Format – An Overview.
In: I. Alon (ed.) Social Franchising, Palgrave Macmillan 2014.
Creation of social franchising
Empower entrepreneurs in sustainable businesses Deliver services to
end customer Lack of distribution
of social service Social need
Economic growth Satisfy need
for service Create jobs
and the franchisees who have to take the preferences of the donors into account.
A crucial problem applies to fees.
Franchisees in a social franchise system might not be able to pay franchise fees, as they cannot always expect a return on investment. Therefore, the franchisor should be willing to accept the payment of reduced fees or alternatives to monetary compensation. The ‘payment’ could, for example, entail the allocation of important data or quality information that the franchisor can use for the development of its project (Schuhen, 2004).
Moreover, there are also some diffe- rences in franchisee selection between commercial and social ventures. Com- mercial franchisees can quite often be individuals rather than organisations. This is less likely in social franchising, given the type of products and services being replicated. In social franchising, franchisees must share all of the objectives of the franchisor, including not only the financial ones but also the social objectives that flow from the organisation’s mission. This will often form a key part of the selection criteria for franchisees in social franchising.
Nevertheless, social franchisors may be more likely to put emphasis on the values and culture that underpin their approach, and make this a key part of the selection criteria and training of franchisees. The social franchisor should provide detailed support, training and advice for the franchisees. A pilot project that is developed by the franchisor is replicated by a number of franchisees subject to defined guidelines.
A significant difference from traditional franchising is the objective to serve customers in order to satisfy their various needs, whereas, for commercial franchises, the importance to maintain customer loyalty is paramount. As with social enterprises, it is not only measuring the financial bottom line that is important in commercial franchising, but also measuring the social impact. Social franchises should ensure that an evaluation framework for measuring social impact is established before replication, as it will form part of the systems utilised by franchisees. This emphasis on shared evaluation also helps ensure that the focus remains on achieving social impact (the original reason for replication) and there is a system for continuous improvement.
The approach to profits differentiate the two presented formats. A social business venture generates profits, but rather than return those profits to shareholders, like commercial ventures, it reinvests those profits to further the social venture and provide the resulting social benefits.
Ab distinguishing characteristic of a social venture versus a commercial venture is the primacy of its objective to solve social problems and bring social benefits. A social venture may generate profits, but that is not its focus. Profits are rather a possible means to achieve sustainability in providing social benefits. The problems addressed by social ventures cover the range of social issues, including poverty, inequality, education, the environment, and economic development. The context in which social ventures operate is very complex as they are trying to bring about solutions where markets or governments may have failed or actually impede solutions (Osberg et al., 2007).
4. Success Factors of Social Franchising
Social franchising has a number of success factors (see Figure 3). Due to the limited length of this paper, the author focused on analysing the success factors of social franchising at the macro level and from the franchisor perspective. First of all, a proven and replicable social business model is a success factor. The starting point of social franchise development is a well- established business concept when the pilot phase is finished. Success is measured both by success in reaching social goals and by the ability to demonstrate profitability.
That it is replicable means that it has been possible to describe and standardise the most critical processes in the enterprise so that someone else can follow them.
Secondly, social value is an added value, with a focus on service delivery. Ab social enterprise must, in the first instance, deliver quality services or products to its customers. Whatever the activity, a social enterprise must be able to compete with any other company in its sector. The fact that a social enterprise has social goals creates added value for customers.
Careful selection of franchisees is an extremely important issue in social franchising. Regardless of how good the
franchise is, wrong entrepreneurs can cause the business to fail. A franchisor exerts the greatest influence on the future outcome of the business during the choice of franchisees. For this reason, franchisors must have a clear picture of the type of franchisees they want, as well as know how to guarantee that the franchisees are entrepreneurs capable of taking action.
Since replication leads to increased cooperation and more contracting in the non-profit sector, it is essential to have workable franchisees. The most ideal franchisees are a type of ‘entrepreneur-lite’:
they must have the drive and skills to lead and own their own business, but cannot be so entrepreneurial and opportunistic that they are not able to follow the franchise system they have signed up to. Research shows that non-profit projects organised by franchise systems grow twice as fast as other systems (Wei-Skillern and Anderson, 2003, p. 12).
The development of social franchise requires access to financial resources. The franchisor must have financial resources in order to develop the concept. A crucial factor is to remain true to the social mission of the social enterprise. It is easy to lose sight of social goals when an enterprise expands. As demands from employees, financiers and other stakeholders increase,
so many other aspects become important for survival. Franchisors are required to create a platform to exchange knowledge within the system. To be successful in franchising, franchisors need to facilitate the exchange of experience between the franchisees to use the synergy effect.
To sum up, it is worth mentioning that generally the success factors indicated that social franchises are similar to commercial franchises. Those elements are largely extrapolated from franchising in the commercial sector, as social franchising is still in the incipient stage with limited examples to draw conclusions.
5. Benefits and Problems of Social Franchising
Social franchising therefore brings a considerable number of benefits (see Figure 4). Benefits and problems in this part concern the social franchise as a system (whole organisation) and franchisors as creators of this business concept.
First and foremost, the potential benefits for the social franchisor are the rapid expansion of social impact and concept.
The benefits of franchising, including expansion with reduced capital and the replication of a proven business system, are attractive to practitioners in the non-profit
Figure 3. Success factors of social franchising
Source: own work based on diffused sources.
Proven and replicable social business Success factors
Social value with a focus on service delivery
Careful selection of franchisees
Access to ﬁnancial resources
Social mission commitment
Exchange of knowledge
sector. Practitioners in this market refer to social enterprises as ‘profit-making, not profit-taking’ (Du Toit, 2014, p. 12). All the characteristics of social franchising and social enterprise refer to the achievement of social goals. However, the pursuit of social goals does not negate the importance of running these businesses on commercial principles to ensure their continuity and longevity. Most social franchise businesses need to make enough profit to achieve sustainability and social franchises need to operate on commercial principles, but not for commercial goals.
Secondly, social franchisors need less managerial and other staff compared to abwholly owned expansion system. They can benefit from economies of scale and local knowledge. All the above mentioned issues are exactly the same as for the traditional franchisor operating in the commercial market. Some authors (Asemota and Chahine, 2016) list other common benefits for social and traditional franchisors such as fewer financial sources required for expansion compared to a wholly owned company. This presents a misunderstanding of the social franchising idea. It is worth mentioning that in social franchising most franchisors are responsible for providing funds needed for system expansion. They can use their own resources, government support, donors’ assistance or other forms offering money for social ventures. The source of funding in social franchising is different to that in traditional franchising.
The general idea in social franchising is that financial resources come from the franchisor to franchisees. This is opposite to traditional franchising where franchise fees are paid by franchisees to the franchisor.
Moreover, social franchisees’ benefits
and risks are relatively similar to those of franchisees operating in the commercial market.
An important issue is that social franchisors make it easier and safer for social entrepreneurs (franchisees) to set up enterprises, providing them with a proven business model and access to trade-specific support. The core concern in the long-term commitment is that social franchisors are a market-driven trade-specific business support structure that will only survive if it effectively supports the establishment of successful social franchisees. Thus the social franchisor will only work with people who think that they can succeed over the long term.
Another benefit is the creation of entrepreneurship at the local level. Social franchising is built on the creation of successful locally controlled enterprises.
Compared to a multi-national global company, they contribute more to the local economy and ensure that jobs are not outsourced to other areas or countries.
Despite the many advantages that social franchising offers as a replication model, various problems may nonetheless prevail.
First of all, there is a risk of changing the initial mission. Adapting it to local peculiarities might alter the original mission created by the franchisor. Additionally, the franchisees’ goals might differ from those presented by the franchisor, as well as those of other franchisees. Franchisees do not have to provide start-up capital, because the initial investments are usually made by the franchisor or a donor. Consequently, because franchisees fear less capital loss, they might behave opportunistically and their motivation to adhere to the system might be lower.
Figure 4. Benefits and problems of the social franchising operation
Source: own study based on diffused sources.
• market innovators
• meeting local needs
• easy and safe social start-up
• long-term commitment
• built on creation of successful local enterprise5
• risk of changing the initial mission
• negative reputation
• monitoring and evaluation difﬁculties
• competition and fundraising Limitatons
Furthermore, the risk of negative reputation can be another drawback of social franchising. Operating under the same name, the various units in ab social franchise system are perceived as one organisation. Consequently, the reputation of one affiliate has an impact on the organisation as a whole. Franchisees might present themselves in ab way which is inconsistent with the central unit.
Therefore, the franchisor has to ensure an appropriate level of control over the franchisees.
Consequently, another difficulty can be found in the standardisation of the system, which is an important element.
Standardisation is a core element of any social franchise system. However, because the essential knowledge and skills are often tacit, the standardisation of non-profit projects can be difficult. Also, the success of an initiative is often dependent on specific geographic or cultural peculiarities.
Excessive standardisation might therefore lead to inflexibility, making it more difficult to adapt the project at other locations. It is thus important to find the right balance between standardisation and flexibility.
In comparison, the potential limitations are exactly the same for social and traditional franchisors. First of all, there is the risk of insufficient alignment of the mission and organisational culture to effectively replicate results and the risk of inadequate selection of franchisees. Nevertheless, social franchisees have to consider some risks consistent with operating under a franchise agreement. From the point of view of the social franchisee, potential risks are the same as in a traditional franchise agreement and cover amongst others risks in the area of financial, organisational and cultural issues. Financial risk is connected with sharing abpart of percentage revenues and profits with the franchisor where applicable.
Secondly, there is the risk of inconsistency of the franchisor’s standardised procedures with existing internal systems and organisational culture; hence the risk that the franchise system will not prove to be as effective in the local context.
The main theoretical contribution of the paper was the analysis of success factors and benefits of social franchising. The
author offered the characteristics of social franchising derived from investigating the differences between social and traditional franchising and provided the main descriptions of the social franchise characteristics. It is worth mentioning that franchising is a successful strategy of systematic replication in the commercial sector and entails an effective concept that has been tried and tested, being implemented by largely independent franchisees at other locations within ab common framework and supported by a contractual agreement. There is the potential of adapting franchising to the social environment.
The complexity of success factors impacting the outcome of social franchising has already been clearly highlighted.
Success factors are variable and depend on the exact nature of the business and social impact model. However, the key factors for success are cross-cutting and include the timing of the decision to franchise, selecting the right franchisee, drawing up an appropriate franchise agreement, and continuous evaluation of the franchise network (Berelowitz, 2012). Benefits and success factors of social franchising would determine the future development of this form. Moreover, the study has shown that there are some similarities of typical franchise elements such as an agreement on longer-term cooperation between the franchisor and the franchisee based on ablegal contract and the interplay between control and entrepreneurial freedom in the partners’ relationships.
Considering the benefits and success factors of the social franchise, there are several reasons why a franchising approach to replication might be attractive to social enterprises. For example, it creates social impact in line with the mission, but without expanding an organisation in a traditionally hierarchical way that creates distance from the frontline. The social franchise shares existing knowledge, making it quicker and easier to start up, and allows for local ownership, flexibility and tailoring to context and circumstance. Franchising shares successful models in a way that combines social and financial goals and ensures social impact and financial sustainability.
Nevertheless, when transposed into social entrepreneurship, it is different from
commercial franchising. Moreover, the most important modification to traditional franchises concerns the ultimate goal of social franchising. Social franchises strive to achieve the highest possible social profit, not the commercial one. The motivation of social franchisees is strongly connected with commitment to the social mission, not to financial profits.
To summarise, social franchising could appear as a promising solution to tackle both the problems of unemployment, social exclusion of groups, and poverty as well as the problems of unsatisfied social needs that the public sector and NGOs are facing, and to provide the necessary tools to the formation, financial sustainability, and growth of social enterprises. Social franchising could also appear as a solution to the structural and behavioural problems that inter-organisational alliances and business format franchising are facing.
This study provides foundational findings for future research in the nascent area of social franchising. Research is needed to better understand the possibilities for social franchising to give an opportunity to solve social problems and encourage disadvantaged people to be active in the field of entrepreneurship, analyse which forms of social franchises as a form of entrepreneurship are implemented in the market as well as to understand the risks and benefits of social franchising for participants in different contexts. The further stage of the research should involve comparing the benefits and limitations as well as the success factors for social and commercial franchises, with a division into the franchise system, franchisor and franchisee. The next step is an exploratory study of growth possibilities for social franchising and its possible usage in governmental policy to create an environment to counteract social problems.
Concerning practical implications, the outlined benefits and success factors can encourage entrepreneurs together with non-entrepreneurs to expand social ventures using franchise relations. Social franchising can open up business options to disadvantaged people representing various groups of people from former prisoners to single parents. Exploiting franchise for satisfying social needs can resolve some social problems in the society. For this reason, social franchising should be taken
into consideration by policy makers and country governments as they are seeking systematic solutions to achieve social objectives.
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Schuhen, A. (2004). Franchising: ein Modell für den Nonprofit-Sektor? In: H. Kötz, P. Rawert, K.bSchmidt and W.R. Walz (eds.), Non Profit Law Year- book 2003, 151–166. Köln: Carl Heymanns Verlag.
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In: A. Fayolle and H. Matley (eds.),bHandbook of Research on Social Entrepreneurship (pp. 157–181).
Cheltenham UK, Northampton MA USA: Edward Elgar Publishing.
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Zióïkowska, M. (2015). Franczyza – nowoczesny model rozwoju biznesu [Franchise – modern model of business development]. Warszawa: CeDeWu.

domain: sociology


text:
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
By Jan Lopatka
PRAGUE (Reuters) - Czech businessman Karel Komarek's European lottery group Allwyn Entertainment will list on the New York Stock Exchange in combination with blank check acquisition company Cohn Robbins Holdings Corp, the companies said on Friday.
The transaction will put the combined firm's enterprise value at approximately $9.3 billion, they said in a statement.
Allwyn, known as Sazka Entertainment until last year, operates lotteries in the Czech Republic, Italy, Austria, Greece and Cyprus. It is also bidding for a lottery licence in Britain.
Cohn Robbins (CRHC), set up by Gary Cohn, former economic adviser to U.S. President Donald Trump, and investor Clifton S. Robbins, raised $828 million from investors in September.
The deal will support Allwyn's growth strategy including potential acquisitions and licence tenders in Europe and the United States, Allwyn said.
Komarek is one the wealthiest Czech entrepreneurs, with Forbes putting his net worth at $5.3 billion. His KKCG investment vehicle is focused mainly on the entertainment business but also has activities in gas and oil, information technology and real estate.
"It is an opportune time for Allwyn to take this exciting step. Jurisdictions in Europe and North America should have higher expectations for the innovations their lotteries can deliver," said Allwyn Chief Executive Robert Chvatal.
Allwyn forecast $810 million in adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) from around $1.7 billion in gaming revenue in 2022.
Current Allwyn equity holders will retain approximately 83% of ownership and no new investor will have a stake of more than 5% after the transaction.
CRHC shareholders who do not redeem their shares will be offered 6.6 million shares at a slightly lower enterprise value of $8.7 billion, the statement said.
Investors have committed to purchase over $350 million in equity of the combined company. The deal is expected to close in the second quarter, subject to CRHC's shareholder and regulatory approvals.
Allwyn's main operating unit reported consolidated gross gaming revenue of 876 million euros ($992 million) in the third quarter of 2021, up 14% year-on-year, and adjusted consolidated EBITDA up 40% year-on-year to 285.1 million.
Funds managed by Apollo Global Management agreed in 2020 to invest 500 million euros https://www.reuters.com/article/sazka-apollo-global-idUSL8N2HW2BY into Sazka.
($1 = 0.8828 euros)
(This story removes erroneous reference to possible use of proceeds toward debt refinancing, in paragraph 5).
(Reporting by Jan Lopatka; Editing by Kenneth Maxwell and David Goodman)


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Gifts and donations
A South African resident with a resident spouse or life partner (whether same or opposite sex) can transfer funds to his/her spouse or life partner without incurring any donations tax (levied at 20/25%) or capital gains tax (a maximum effective rate of 18%). This assumes the sole purpose of the donation was not to reduce, postpone or avoid tax.
Another situation in which you wouldn’t attract donations tax is if your funds are used to cater for the reasonable living expenses of your child or loved one. A bona fide contribution made towards the maintenance of any person that the Commissioner of the South African Revenue Service (SARS) considers reasonable, would be exempt for donations tax purposes. There are, however, limitations on this exemption.
Gifts to any other person, including children, or an entity, would attract donations tax and could be subject to capital gains tax as well. Furthermore, in certain instances, the income and/or capital gain that the donee earns could become taxable in the hands of the donor.
Advancing a loan
Instead of an outright donation, you could consider advancing a loan. Lending to fellow South African tax residents is treated differently when compared with lending to non-tax-residents.
Loans between South African tax residents
If a loan is made between two South African tax residents, the loan can, in certain instances, be made on an interest-free basis. It’s important that the agreement is put down in writing, and that the loans are dealt with in your will. The loan would be an asset in your estate for estate duty purposes. Estate duty is currently levied at 20/25% on the dutiable value of your estate, subject to certain exemptions, for example, between spouses.
Loans between a South African tax resident and a non-tax resident
If interest-free loans are advanced to non-residents, a whole host of onerous tax provisions may be applicable. Therefore, generally, interest-free loans are not advisable and the transaction should be undertaken on arm’s length terms (in other words, both parties should be acting independently and in their self-interest). Tax advice must be obtained if you are considering lending to a non-resident.
What about loans between you and a trust structure?
At the risk of oversimplifying matters, lending funds to a trust (whether local or offshore), should be done in an arm’s length manner, in general.
Should you not charge interest on loan funds advanced to a trust, a host of tax provisions would become applicable. For example, you would need to consider section 7C of the Income Tax Act No.58 of 1962. In terms of 7C, if you do not charge interest on the loan advanced to your trust or underlying company, the interest that you should have charged would be deemed a donation, taxable at 20/25%. Furthermore, the so-called “attribution rules” contained in the Act could attribute income and/or capital gains generated by the trust, back to you, making it taxable in your hands. These attribution rules are ‘switched on’ when transacting with the trust gratuitously (i.e. when donating into a trust or not charging interest on a loan). If you are transacting with an offshore trust, transfer pricing rules also come into play.
When transacting with a trust, it is imperative that tax advice is obtained.
The overarching importance of estate planning
It’s crucial to ensure that your executors and the trustees have flexibility and understand how to deal with any loans once you are no longer around. Your will needs to be drafted in a manner in which your estate administrators can elect how best to deal with the loan.
For example, if you have a loan owing to your domestic trust, the loan may need to be repaid. This would require sufficient liquidity in your estate. As an alternative, your heirs could effectively step into your shoes and take over the loan liability. On the other hand, if you have a loan owing to you, you may want to leave this asset to the borrower in terms of your will, depending on the estate duty implications, as well as the ability of your loved one(s) to repay the loan.
We recommend that your estate plan is reviewed regularly to ensure that any transactions you enter into are done in the most tax-efficient manner.
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domain: economics


text:
Every Third Thursday throughout the school year at 3:15 p.m. is a special craft time for kids in kindergarten through 6th grade. Crafts are often seasonal, always fun,and a snack is provided. Younger children are allowed to attend with parental supervision.
Thursday, Mar. 27, 5 - 6:30 p.m. Colton Branch Library
Andrea Hergert will be at the Colton Library to show people how to download Overdrive so they can check out audiobooks and e-books for free from the library. People can get help with devices such as Kindles, ipads, ipods, and Nooks - just bring the device with you to the class!

domain: library


text:
The survey used in this study assessed the community’s
declarative knowledge of the measles disease and vaccination by asking about
its symptoms and complications. Analysis of the demographic characteristics of
the participants in the present study showed that the majority of the sample
perceived to have intermediate knowledge in regards to Measles. Similar to
other studies conducted within the region1, participants (89.7%)
correctly identified that measles is much more common in children compared to
other age groups. Moreover, 88.1 % of the sample recognized that measles is a
very contagious infection. However, less than half of the participants (45.7%)
were able to distinguish the possibility of mortality associated with measles
infection. This shows parallelism with another study in which only 29.9% of the
participants recognized death as a complication of measles2.This signifies
the importance of raising awareness in regards to the complications and
fatalities attributed to this disease.
An extensive majority of the respondents were able to
identify typical non-specific symptoms of measles such as rash and fever.
However, very few could correctly recognize any further clinical features, or potential complications owing to the disease. They
perceived that lung infections and brain infections were not associated with
measles, 91.4 and 83.5 respectively. In comparison to another article2 ,
in which 10.4 % of their sample acknowledged pneumonia as a complication and 33.3%
of them recognized brain infection as a consequence. The results demonstrate
that there is clearly an underestimation of measles and that there is
limited knowledge of the disease among individuals and raises the question as
to whether they are sufficiently informed by their physicians about the disease.
There was a dilemma in
regards to the mode of transmission associated with measles. Almost Half of the
participants(48.4%) did not pick direct contact/touch as a form of transference.
Conversely, cough and sneeze were picked by 65.7% of the participants.
Moreover, 77.8 percent of the population were unaware of blood contamination
being a course of contamination. Concerned parents often look to friends and
family members as a source of information, rendering them susceptible to false
information. This reinforces the importance of the role of health care
providers as educators. Understanding a patient’s knowledge is likely to
facilitate communication and informed decisions making, ultimately leading to
Assessment of the parents’ knowledge in the current study showed
positive inclination to childhood immunization. The majority of them knew that
measles is a preventable and controllable disease. Following onto this point,
participants then recognized that immunization is the best preventative measure
for measles. This coincides with several studies in other parts of the world134.
Generally the administration of vaccines may be associated
with common local reactions like pain, swelling, and redness at the injection
site 6. The majority of the participants (79.7%) are aware of the
side effects caused by the vaccination most commonly being fever. Ina different
survey, nearly 20% of the interviewed participants considered an association
between vaccine administration and undesirable effects like allergies and
asthma. Hence, Parents must be educated about these side effects. Nnenna et al.
5 discovered that one of the recruited mothers disagreed to
continuing immunization should their own child suffer any adverse reaction.
While a large percentage of the participants (66.8%)
correctly acknowledged that measles vaccination has no significant correlation
to autism, a handful of respondents (29.4) were unable to reply. This
contributes to the fact that a large sector of the population have suboptimal
knowledge. This study showed a similar finding2.
The results of the present research revealed significant
association between educational level and knowledge and attitudes about Measles.
Higher educational level, of no doubt, aids individuals to understand the
educational messages. This finding coincides with the results of another
In conclusion, the present survey
showed that parents had good knowledge and positive attitudes on some aspects
related to Measles. However, some gaps were identified. It is important that health
groups and primary healthcare providers seek to address these concerns to minimize
the burden of non-immunizers on the community. Better means of public education
need to be developed. The findings suggest the need to organize information and
prevention campaigns. Well-oriented information and physician involvement are
key points that should be considered by policy-makers at the time of
vaccination campaigns. Education programmes that target paediatric
immunization, accessibility, and follow-up should be established and available
to the whole community.


‘Twin Cases’: Second inmate dies in Jefferson County Jail in days
A prisoner at the Jefferson County jail died Friday while en route to the hospital, marking the second death of an inmate in just a matter of days.
The Texas Rangers are investigating the death of Christopher Lee, a 45-year-old Beaumont man, following a similar incident that occurred Wednesday involving a Port Arthur man.
Lee was in the jail’s infirmary “due to an pre-existing medical condition” when he said he wasn’t feeling well, and told another inmate to call a nurse, according to the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office.
He later “became unresponsive and medical personnel began CPR,” according to a statement released by department spokesperson Crystal Holmes.
He died on the way to the hospital, despite lifesaving efforts, according to the statement.
The incident came three days after Jeremy Scott, of Port Arthur, was “experiencing medical issues” when he was taken to the infirmary and became unresponsive, according to information from the sheriff’s office.
Scott, 36, was taken to a nearby hospital where he was pronounced dead.
Jefferson County District Attorney Bob Wortham said his office is concerned about the back-to-back deaths, which he said are “almost like twin cases,” and wants to “find out what the problem is.” He noted that before the autopsies are returned, there won’t be any additional information.
“Both cases are very similar in nature,” Wortham said. “They were brought into jail. and in jail they both became ill,” he said. “They were then taken to the hospital, and that is where they died.”
Wortham said officers and EMT’s did exactly what they were supposed to.
“There’s nothing else to really know at this point,” he said. “Nothing to do but to sit and wait.”
Lee was arrested on Thursday for a probation violation, and is the 6th inmate to die at the custody of the jail since January of 2015.
Wortham said there was no indication as of Wednesday evening toward a cause of death.
An autopsy has been ordered, and Rangers are conducting investigations into both deaths.


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By far, our new kitchen appliance that we have put the most miles on in our few short weeks of marriage is our Panini Press. There is just something magical about a machine that toast bread, melts cheese, and warms the inner ingredients all in one step. In my opinion, a panini is certainly not just another sandwich. Sure, before it goes onto the Panini press it is in actuality just a sandwich, but the transformation that occurs in those 4-6 minutes on the press is amazing. Lucky for us, there are a ton of really creative panini recipes available. We have tried several over the last couple of weeks and although this isn't our favorite - it is the only one we have made since I started blogging. This recipe is really good if you are a mushroom lover. And of course, you have to like goat cheese as well (which we both love, love, love it). I have to admit however that I didn't pick out this recipe because it contained goat cheese or mushrooms. The reason I decided to make this particular panini is because it called for truffle oil. And as some of you may know, truffle oil is ridiculously expensive. I had foolishly purchased it for a recipe a couple of months back and have been trying to find a reason to use it again to justify the cost. Ladies, this is the culinary equivalent of buying a really expensive outlandish pair of shoes that match absolutely nothing in your closet and having to go out and purchase outfits that will go with them (now are you with me?). So I figured this sandwich was a good shot at using more of that truffle oil that has been sitting untouched in my pantry for months.
Don't disregard this recipe if you dont' have a panini maker, I have read about several other ways to make a panini if you don't have an actual panini press (losers - just kidding). So I have listed them below:
- Use a grill pan and place a brick wrapped in foil (or another pan) on the top of the sandwich to press it.
- Use a griddle and the same brick technique above (you won't get grill marks on your bread this way , but you will still get the pressed effect)
- And although I have never read of this technique - before I had a panini machine I used to use my George Foreman grill to prepare panini recipes. This approach usually smooshes the inards of the sandwich out - so it isn't as pretty, but desperate times call for desperate measures. (And if a girl wants a melty gooey sandwich, she will find a way to get it!)
Recipe courtesy Tyler Florence
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
3 tablespoons fresh thyme, chopped
1 pound mixed mushrooms, such as button, cremini, shiitake or oyster
1/2 pound fresh goat cheese, or other soft fresh cheese
2 tablespoons truffle oil*, optional
1 small focaccia loaf
1 small bunch arugula
*Can be found at gourmet and specialty food shops.
Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a saute pan over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and 2 tablespoons thyme and cook for 1 minute. Add the mushrooms and cook, stirring frequently, until they are browned and soft, about 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and let them cool for about 15 minutes. Put the mushrooms into a food processor and pulse a few times until they are finely chopped. (Alternately, you can chop them on a board with a knife.) Scrape them into a bowl. Crumble in the goat cheese and add the remaining thyme. Pour in the truffle oil, if using, and mix well to combine.
Cut the focaccia into 4 pieces, slice them horizontally, and drizzle with some olive oil. On the bottoms place 1/4 of the mushroom mixture and top with some arugula. Put the tops on and gently press each sandwich to flatten it slightly. Drizzle some more olive oil over the tops. (Picture below is before it is placed on the press and it is still "just a sandwich")
Place each sandwich on a preheated panini press and grill until the bread is toasted and the cheese begins to melt, about 5 minutes. Serve immediately.
FYI - I decided after this recipe that I don't even really like Truffle Oil, so I am chalking up that $12 as a loss and I won't be making any more recipes that require the modern culinary ingredient.


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15 people, including two government officials, have been arrested in Uttar Pradesh for their alleged involvement in a massive wedding fraud.
The scam was unearthed after a video showing brides at the event garlanding themselves went viral on social media. Visuals also show some men dressed as grooms hiding their faces.
The community wedding was held on January 25 in the Balia district of Uttar Pradesh.
Officials say about 568 couples got married at the event, however, later it was found that several were paid to pose as brides and grooms.
A local alleged that both men and women were paid between Rs 500 and Rs 2,000 for posing as brides and grooms. “Some Women had no one. They were wearing the varmala (garland) themselves. We came to know that people are being paid between Rs 500 to Rs 2,000,” Vimal Kumar Pathak said.
A 19-year-old man told NDTV that he was offered money to pose as a groom. “I went there to see the wedding. They made me sit there. They said that they will give me money. Many were being made to sit,” said Vimal Kumar Pathak.
BJP MLA Ketki Singh was the Chief Guest at the community wedding.
On being asked about the involvement of the government officials in the alleged fraud, MS Singh said, “They informed me just two days before the event. I had suspected there was something fishy. But now a complete investigation is being done” she said.
According to the government website, the government provides Rs 51,000 under this scheme, of which Rs 35,000 goes to the girl, Rs 10,000 for purchasing matrimonial materials and Rs 6,000 for the event.
Officials said this scam was unearthed before any money could be transferred to the accused. “We immediately formed a three-member committee to investigate the matter and verify all the beneficiaries. Till the time the complete investigation is not done, no benefits will be transferred to beneficiaries,” they said.