Intel’s Clear Linux distribution looks like it could be the best operating system to run on cheap AMD hardware, with benchmarks showing it outperforms Windows 10 and Ubuntu on a $199 laptop with a budget AMD Ryzen 3200U processor.
The Phoronix website ran a series of benchmarks on a super-cheap AMD laptop from Walmart, and found that Intel Clear Linux beat popular Linux distros Fedora and Ubuntu for 78% of the tests.
Not only is it remarkable that a relatively unknown Linux distro is so easily outperforming established operating systems, the fact that Intel is the company behind the distro is particularly ironic.
As you can imagine, Clear Linux is optimized for Intel processors, but it seems like it works brilliantly on AMD hardware as well.
Clear Linux beat the others in audio and video encoding, graphics benchmarks and battery life tests, amongst others.
Impressively this also meant that Clear Linux outperformed Windows 10 Home, which was pre-installed on the laptop.
One of the easiest ways to eke out better performance from old or under-powered devices is to replace Windows 10 with a lighter Linux distro, and it looks like for the maximum performance gains on cheap AMD hardware, Intel’s Clear Linux is the surprise winner.
- These are the best Linux distros of 2020


text:
Welcome to DCMUN
Excellence. It is the foundation of everything we do.
DCMUN is a student-run organisation under Mrs. Joanne Conly's directorship. The club hosts Model United Nations conferences on an annual basis to encourage secondary school students to participate in public speaking, debating and resolution writing.
DCMUN conferences have succeeded in boosting the confidence of a number of delegates and increasing awareness on important global issues, in a parliamentary atmosphere. It is a club that has something for everyone, For example, it encourages the participation of students who are interested in foreign affairs, politics, the environment, culture and more. DCMUN proudly carries THIMUN affiliation, which has crafted the format of debate and has also enabled Doha College students to meet a variety of other MUNers from all around the world.

domain: sociology


text:
6 Tips to Prevent Maskne in 2020
Welcome to 2020. Where I give you advice on the proper skincare for under your mask and my tips on how to prevent mask acne. It’s a thing. We’re calling it “Maskne” and it’s the worst. Just having your hot, steamy circulating breath under your mask for hours at a time cannot be sanitary.
My face would know, she’s breaking out like crazy lately, but only in the mask area. Specifically where it hits my nose, my chin, and by my mouth. Occasionally I’ll get one where the string hits the side.
I asked my go-to Clinical Aesthetician Alethea who owns Bella Med Spa in Atlanta to send me her best tips to prevent maskne.
Alethea is super qualified. She’s my go-to in Atlanta and the only person I trust with my skin. She graduated from the Atlanta Institute of Aesthetics in 2005, continued her education acquiring Laser Certification by Candela, Cynosure, Aesthera, and apprenticed under two medical doctors for three years before starting her own practice. Her knowledge and passion for skincare are unparalleled in Atlanta.
So let’s get to it so your skin doesn’t end up like mine. I’m doing overtime to try to balance my face again, keep it clean and sanitary, and get rid of these maskne breakouts with minimal damage.
So, how is maskne caused?
Maskne is caused by sweating and breath humidity inside of the trapped air in a face mask for an extended period of time. Plus, the constant rubbing of the mask against your skin creates small tears that help bacteria and dirt clog up our pores. Sexy, huh? To top things off, some people also experience rashes and dehydration along with peeling skin…eek! Dehydration is a major factor as well because people don’t drink as much masked up. I recommend stocking these best-sellers in your car, bag, pantry to have on hand for immediate hydration!
Top Tips To Prevent Maskne
1.Pick the right mask
You should try to use a cloth facemask whenever possible. Dermatologists suggest 100% cotton as a good compromise because it allows your skin to breathe but it’s also effective when protecting you against the virus. Avoid synthetic and medical facemasks are shown to cause more skin irritation due to bleach and synthetic irritants!
2.Wash your mask frequently
Your mask is like your underwear these days. You need to wash them frequently! Oil, dirt, and sweat get caught up on the cloth. You definitely don’t want that sitting there when you re-apply your face mask.
3. Lavender essential oil is your new BFF
Apply one very small drop of high-quality lavender essential oil inside of the facemask to be worn daily. Lavender essential oil has been clinically proven to kill bacteria and even some viruses. Plus, it has an antiseptic quality.
Want to go a little harder? You can spray a Salicylic Acid (2.0%) spray that treats and prevents breakouts right into your mask. Let it dry before putting it on and voila. Breakout protection!
4. Avoid wearing makeup or lotions under the mask
A positive side to wearing face masks is that we get to give our skin a break from makeup because, well, no one can see half of our face, right?!
Stay natural under that mask for the time being and have fun focusing your makeup efforts on your eyes instead – don’t be afraid to get extra and make the most out of that 2020 aesthetic!
A little sneaky tip I do is to wear a pimple patch over my sensitive areas to keep them clean and bacteria-free. So if you see me out and about with my mask on, just know I probably have a pimple patch underneath. I swear by these.
5. Drink lots of water!
Staying hydrated our #1 skincare tip ever since before face masks were even a thing, and it still very much applies today.
Buy a water bottle that really speaks to you – something brightly colored and sparkly that you’ll be happy to carry around everywhere you go. That way, you’ll drink more water throughout the day as you’ll always have a reminder.
Bonus tip: Add a little bit of lemon as it revs up your digestion and metabolism – two birds with one stone!
I’d also recommend adding a collagen supplement to your routine if you haven’t already. Especially if you’re over 28. I’m obsessed with this collagen creamer and have at least 3 jars in my pantry.
6. Perform a weekly at-home calming facial treatment
Set a day every week to indulge in some self-care and create a relaxing skincare routine. First, wash your face with cool water and apply a gentle creamy cleanser. Then, use a toner and apply some lavender essential oils.
You can also cold roll your skin to soothe it if your skin has been irritated. To finish, apply a jelly sheet mask to soothe your skin and hydrate it.
And voila! Not only is this routine super relaxing, but it will also help prevent possible maskne outbreaks.
Use Bella’s Be Glowy
Our Be Glowy serum is a wonderful way to nourish and hydrate your skin and impart a smooth complexion and instant correction. With just a few drops, your skin will stay moisturized for the entire day and its blend of antioxidants and humectants will help your skin stay young, hydrated, and super glowy!
How to handle a maskne outbreak
Unfortunately, maskne outbreaks are bound to happen, but as always, I’ve got your back! If you’re currently experiencing one, follow the trick of three: take a Benadryl pill at night, apply Cortizone cream 1%, and apply an ice pack to the affected area for five minutes. Typically, the inflammation will resolve within twenty-four hours with this simple trick!
Head to Bella Med Spa in Atlanta
I frequent Bella Med Spa and have for years. I’ve tried other places in Atlanta, as a blogger, it’s kind of my job, but I always head back to Bella Med Spa when I need to really take care of my skin.
Anyone can do a facial but for the deep down and dirty, skin cell turnover, extreme change, clean out those clogged pores, fix those pick marks laser work… I only trust Alethea. She is the ONLY person I’ve found that does a layered laser approach. One that’s so good she actually teaches it to others. She takes care of my skin when other spas and cosmetic dermatology practices have literally sent me home with skincare products and said to come back in 6 weeks.
Alethea is not afraid to work on my melasma or open wounds on my face. For real. Plus I love that Bella Med Spa is privately owned, by Alethea, so I know she stands behind what she does.
Here’s what Alethea has to say.
View this post on Instagram
Let’s talk #maskne, one of our biggest skincare concerns this year! Who would’ve thought?!⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ I recently published a blog spot with lots of tips to treat mask-induced acne, but this is my #1 tip to prevent it from appearing in the first place!⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Has #maskne been a problem for you this year?
In-Office Treatments to beat Maske like a total pro
If at-home solutions aren’t doing the trick for you, remember that Bella is always here for you! We’ve had lots of success treating stubborn maskne on our patients using some of our existing treatments.
A few examples of treatments that are doing the trick are our Hydrafacial and Laser Genesis. Our Hydro Jelly Mask has done wonders, too! Combined, they’re the perfect trifecta to soothe your maskne woes. They rebalance and stimulate collagen production, kill bacteria, as well as soothe and heal your skin.
When to get facials?
We recommend getting them done once a month or as needed. Moreover, our Ouchless Acne Laser is an amazing way to prevent acne and help you get rid of existing acne scars that may have resulted from past outbreaks.
If you’re not sure what’s the best treatment for your skin, or you’re also interested in battling other skin concerns during your visit, remember that our consultations are always free, so don’t hesitate to get in touch with us at [email protected] or call us at 678-908-3491 to schedule a quick visit so we can assess and recommend the best treatment for you.
See you soon!
*sponsored by Bella Med Spa in Atlanta but all opinions are my own*

domain: medical


What happens if an EULA is violated
What is an End User License Agreement (EULA)?
End User License Agreements (EULA) are probably the most frequently concluded, but least read, contracts in the world. Let's be honest: Usually the average software user just impatiently presses the button or the checkbox for “I have read and I agree…”, right? We explain here whether this is a good idea or whether it is perhaps worth taking a look at the EULA.
An end-user license agreement usually applies to different types of software and not to physical goods, although it can also apply to non-software products. It is used for one-time-sale products (not for subscriptions). He creates an agreement between the software developer or company, the licensor or seller and the consumer regarding the use of the software.
What are End User License Agreements?
The EULA is a contract that gives a person or company the right to use software in certain ways (usually after paying for it). The term "use" is important here. Because: EULAs do not grant any ownership rights to the software. The creator retains control and ownership at all times, as the software is his intellectual property (IP).
In the past, the EULA was usually a “weld-in license”. Consumers had to buy the software and then first open the shrink-wrapped packaging to get to the software and the printed terms and conditions and restrictions on use.
This was fraught with legal issues as consumers could not read the EULA before purchasing the software.
Nowadays it is more common to download software directly from the web and to complete transactions online. The EULAs must be approved before the installation can be completed. Typically, this requires the consumer to click an “Agree” button on the screen. Most of the time there is also a link to the EULA and other conditions - and when the transaction is concluded, you agree to these conditions and contracts.
As a result of the move to online software purchases and users' digital consent to the terms, the EULA has become known as the "Click-Wrap" license. This means that if the consumer does not agree, he or she cannot use the software or buy the product. We now agree to EULAS on computers, telephones, tablets or game consoles - in principle on every device running software.
What is the purpose of EULAs?
The EULA specifies:
- Who is the creator / owner
- Who the user is
- What rights the creator and the user have with regard to the software
- How the user can / can use the software
- Circumstances under which the user license may be restricted or revoked
- Rights of recourse by the author if the user violates the EULA
- Exclusions or limitations of liability for the creator
The EULA is usually created by the software manufacturer or distributor. The crucial role of the EULA is to protect the rights of the author and to set rules and expectations for user behavior and software use.
The EULA defines what the user can and cannot do with the software. For example, download, install, and play the game? Yes. Copy the game? No. Install updates or fixes provided by the manufacturer? Yes. Modify or reverse engineer the game? No.
The EULA defines the rights of the manufacturer in relation to the software if the user violates the terms. As a rule, manufacturers are also released from liability if the software causes damage. The user essentially agrees to use the software at their own risk.
Sometimes EULAs specify how the software must be used. For example, the user must agree to use all parts of the software or he must agree to accept automatic updates for the software.
What should be in EULAs?
In general, an EULA contains the following:
- Identification of the business
- Rules for using and accessing the software
- Use restrictions
- applicable copyright license (e.g. proprietary, open source, etc.) and IP rights
- Disclaimer of Warranties and Limitation of Liability
- License Termination Terms
The main goal of EULAs is that the creator / licensor retains full ownership of his product and that no legal problems arise. However, should a legal problem arise, the EULA should also help to resolve the issue.
An EULA can also contain these or other clauses:
- Introductory section that explains who and what the contract applies to
- Assistance on how to return the software if you do not agree to the terms
- Reference to other licenses or agreements that are applicable in connection with the EULA when using the software
- Differentiation between different forms of access or use, e.g. B. Multiple user / account levels
- Conditions for trading or selling between users via the software and payment facilities
- Consumer privacy rights and disclosure of data usage
- specific definitions relevant to the software or its use
- Applicable law, e.g. B. Does only United States law govern the terms of the EULA?
In short, the creator / licensor of a software product who:
- want to keep control of their technology
- would like to be protected against possible misuse of the product
- want to earn money licensing the software
It can be an individual, but in many cases it is a company.
The EULA can protect the software manufacturer on two fronts. Primarily in the agreement with the end user, but also in the relationship with third parties, such as app platforms through which the software is accessed.
What happens if an EULA is violated?
An EULA does not contain some of the typical requirements that make a contract legally binding. However, that does not mean that they are not enforceable. It can also be a legal question whether a breach of an EULA constitutes a breach of contract or a copyright infringement, since EULA under German law are more likely to be regarded as general terms and conditions.
Terms and conditions are contractual terms that are pre-formulated for a large number of contracts and that one contracting party, namely the user, provides to the other contracting parties when concluding a contract (Section 305 I BGB).
The most common problem in the context of EULAs is that they are usually only provided after the purchase and it is therefore a matter of dispute whether and to what extent they are effective. However, EULA in Germany are subject to the content control of the terms and conditions, according to which clauses in particular could be ineffective that unreasonably disadvantage the signatory.
The limited scope of the EULA
EULAs are intended to define the obligations of users. They are not really given choices. EULAs also lack contract specifics, such as B. addressing identifiable buyers or setting a time frame for the purchase. You can also violate federal or state laws.
If a user copies and sells the software, for example - a common breach of EULA terms - the manufacturer can seek redress. The license to use the software can be revoked. The user's account can be locked out to prevent access. The creator can sue for damages.
Even if the license to use the software has been revoked, the user can still access things that were created with the software, such as: B. Pictures or videos, as long as they were not saved exclusively in the now blocked account.
Can an EULA be bad for users?
Some provisions of EULAs may be of concern about user privacy. Some software includes monitoring for digital rights management (DRM) violations. Or requires the user to consent to automatic monitoring. Both of these require the software to access the users' systems and connect to third-party networks, usually without notifying the user. Learn more about personally identifiable information.
There is no way for users to know how safe these third parties are, how much user data they can access, or what they could do with it. Some EULA agreements allow third-party software to be downloaded onto users' devices without the need for separate agreements or consent.
Some EULA terms preclude users from publicly criticizing the product. This can mean that the user cannot publicly complain if the software is not working or causing damage.
It can also mean users are checking the results of tests such as: B. performance comparisons, are not allowed to pass on. Or even that public discussions about the software, such as B. independent test reports are not allowed. Whether this violates the right to freedom of expression is under discussion.
United States federal law allows "reverse engineering" of software and physical products. It is legal to take things apart to learn how they work and is considered "fair use". However, reverse engineering is usually prohibited by EULAs.
This means that products cannot be adapted to the preferences or needs of the user, which could include improved accessibility for people with disabilities. Upgrades that could stimulate further innovation and competition are also not allowed.
Users may not be able to repair defective software even if the creator introduced bugs. You cannot turn off features or functions that you do not need or want or that are causing problems. You cannot make the software interoperate with other software or devices that they own.
EULAs usually require that the software be used as it is, even if that state is faulty, out of date, or incompatible. In combination with the exclusion of warranty and the limitation of liability, such EULAs are definitely to the benefit of the creator, not to the benefit of the user.
EULA vs. other agreements
The End User License Agreement can go under several other names:
- License agreement
- Software license agreement
- Shrink-wrap / Click-wrap / Browse-wrap license
- End User License Agreement for the Licensed Application
There are agreements that are similar to EULAs, such as: B. Terms of Service (TOS) or Service Level Agreements (SLA). They are often used in conjunction with EULAs. If there is no licensing, then only TOS and no EULA are required.
Terms of Service can also have a number of other names:
- Terms and Conditions (T&C)
- User Agreement
An Acceptable Use Policy can be part of the TOS or a separate agreement. There may also be terms of sale and / or guidelines for user-generated content, depending on what the website, product or service is about.
Terms of Service are the basis of a legally binding contract that is concluded between a company and a user. Like an EULA, they help to avoid or solve legal problems that result from the (incorrect) use of the product. The TOS cover a lot more conditions than an EULA, which is why an EULA often refers or links to the TOS.
Users typically need to agree to the TOS before signing up for an account on a website or making an online purchase. They typically include the following:
- What it is i.e. a contract / agreement
- Who they include, typically a company and all relevant parent, subsidiary or affiliated companies as well as the users
- How to register for an account
- What the user can and cannot do with their account
- How users can interact with each other through the website or service
- Under what circumstances an account can be terminated
- Disclaimer of liability with regard to the information published on the website or which can be accessed by clicking on links to third parties
- Applicable law and place of jurisdiction
- The company's contact details in case of questions or problems
A Service Level Agreement (SLA) is another contract, and it is common to have an SLA along with the terms and conditions. SLAs can be even more detailed than a TOS. They define service levels when customers need consistency and reliability, and guaranteed support and recourse when service does not meet the first two criteria.
EULAs have become so commonplace that we rarely think about them. However, they have a significant impact on the use of software and can also violate data protection laws. If you understand how EULAs are structured and for whose benefit they are formulated, you can get better information not only as a consumer but also as a company.
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08-03-2020 08:25 AM - edited 08-03-2020 08:25 AM
It's possible the Geomedia WebMap Mobile 16.6 consume NMEA data from an external GPS connected to a tablet?
The idea is that the GWMM does not use the GPS of the tablet but an external GPS of better precision.
Solved! Go to Solution.
08-03-2020 09:33 AM
GeoMedia WebMap Mobile 2020 Service pack 1 support Leica Zeno devices. I supose that may work with others devices, and is good to know if there's some exception when trying with others than Leica.
08-03-2020 09:47 AM
Many thanks for your answer.
It's include in the mobile application to configure the device, com-port and baudrate?
Similar to the GPS Plug in to the GSM?


text:
Wish Bracelet - A Little Wish For Peace and Protection
This handmade wish bracelet would make a perfect positive little gift as the recipient will feel the comforting energies of the protection stone Lapis Lazuli.
The lapis lazuli beads also help organise and quiet the mind
The text on the card reads; Simply close your eyes and make a wish, then tie this bracelet on your wrist. When it falls off or wears through, that is when your wish comes true.
Each handmade bracelet comes tied onto a craft card (approx. 105 x 148mm) which is 100% recycled and is individually presented in it's own little self seal bag.
The lapis lazuli beads are tied onto a 1mm black wax cord

domain: design


text:
I look out the window and it definitely feels like autumn in Seattle. Wind and rain arrived blowing leaves throughout. Who isn’t tempted of photographing their feet on a pile of colorful leaves? Yes, I admit it. Me too.
I love autumn.
I am also still editing the images from my last Basque Country workshop. I shall share those soon as well.
In the meantime, I wanted to tell you about my upcoming trips to the East Coast.
I will be hosting an autumn dinner on October 10th at 6pm at one of my favorite shops in the world – Terrain at Glenn Mills, PA. The dinner will be part of their Terrain Table series and held at their fantastic restaurant. There are only a small number of tickets and they are $165. You can read more details here.
terrain Cheese Platter house made pickles, preserves & gluten free crackers
Baked Farm Eggs doe run hummingbird cheese, duck prosciutto, cherry tomatoes
Black Quinoa Salad roasted brussels sprouts, acorn squash, baby beets, honeycrisp apple, spiced pumpkin seeds, red beet puree
Diver Scallops fennel & brown butter risotto, fried parsnip chips, parsnip & apple puree
Red Wine Short Ribs roasted potatoes, caramelized onions, honey roasted root vegetables, smokey blue cheese butter
Chocolate & Hazelnut Pot de Creme
On October 5th at 1pm, I will also be signing books and hosting a macarons baking demo at Williams-Sonoma in NYC (59th & Lexington). Here are the details. This event is free to the public so if you are in NYC, please come say hi!
See you soon.

domain: food


text:
Henry Francis BRIGGS
Eyes brown, Hair brown, Complexion fresh
Harry Briggs – He Took Things As They Came
Can You Help to Identify Harry?
Harry had led his Machine Gun Company to the forward trenches during the battle at Fromelles, but there are no records of his body being recovered or buried. There still is a chance he might be identified, but we need your help.
A mass grave was found in 2008 that the Germans had dug for 250 bodies they had recovered after the battle. 166 of these soldiers have been identified and given proper burials and recognition through finding family DNA donors. 84 soldiers remain and some identifications are highly likely. We just need to find DNA donors.
Harry did not have any family in Australia that we know of, but it is clear that he had strong ties to his family back in Brighton, Sussex, UK. If you know anything of Harry’s contacts here in Australia or his relatives in England, we would like to hear from you.
See the DNA box at the end of the story for what we do know about his family.
We have a second identification request in relation to the photo published in October 1916 (above) as we do not know for certain that it is “our” Harry Briggs. The name and timing of the “missing” report and the rank of Lieutenant match with our Harry’s story but the reference to Parramatta does not fit what we know of him. We cannot identify any other records of similarly named soldiers who it might be. Can you help confirm who is in this photo?
Henry Francis Briggs (Harry), born on 25 February 1891 in Brighton, England, was the fourth of William and Florence (nee Hill) Briggs’ five children. His siblings were Florence, Edith (Ede), Frederick (Fred) and John. The family was obviously close, based on letters to his parents that he sent during the War. Typewritten extracts of these letters dated between March 1915 and July 1916 were obtained by the Australian War Memorial in 1928 and are a wonderful insight into Harry’s war service.
The Briggs lived in the Hanover area of Brighton where Harry’s father worked as a gas and hot water fitter. As he was growing up, Harry attended the Finsbury Road Board School, about half a mile from his home.
After his schooling, Harry did not follow his father into the building trade, as his brother Fred had done. Instead, he worked as salesman for a ‘gent’s outfitter’. He also showed an interest in the military and served in the Royal Field Artillery Territorial Force.
While it would seem he was quite well settled, at 21 he decided to head to Australia, departing the UK on 22 November 1912 and arriving in Sydney on 2 January 1913.
Similar to what he was doing in the UK, he found work as a salesman at Murdock’s Outfitters in Sydney.
Off to Fight for King and Country –to Gallipoli with the 3rd Battalion
Even though he had changed countries, his allegiances were strong and Harry was among the very first to enlist after War was declared. He enlisted as a private on 17 August 1914 and became a part of the first intake for the AIF’s newly formed 3rd Battalion. His regimental number was 63.
Training for the recruits was at several camps near the Randwick Racecourse area and it was both very basic – equipment issue, a lot of marching and some musketry practice - and very short. Two months after he had enlisted, Henry left Australia aboard HMAT A14 Euripides, headed for Egypt and arrived in Alexandria on 3 December 1914.
As planned, more extensive training continued at the Mena Camp outside Cairo. Reorganizations were also underway and Harry was assigned to the Machine Gun Section and on 22 January 1915 he headed to Abbassia for machine gun training.
In his letters home, Harry was obviously proud to be serving and of the quality of his newfound mates.
With now several months of training completed, they were headed to Gallipoli. On 5 April 1915, the 1060 soldiers of the 3rd Battalion boarded the Derfflinger. Harry had been proving himself capable with his move to the Machine Gunners and he was promoted to Corporal on 7 April.
They sailed to the island of Lemnos, arriving on 8 April and the next days were spent on boat drills, practising for the landing on the Gallipoli beaches. Orders to leave were received on 24 April with the 3rd Battalion to be in the second and third waves of the landing force.
They arrived on 25 April at 4.00 am, began disembarking 5.30 am under heavy fire, and were ashore by 8.30 am. As part of the Machine Gunners, Harry described his landing experience as a bit more ‘complicated’ than the typical infantryman:
“I stepped from the boat into a deep hole and went under straight away. I was carrying a box of mechanism weighing thirty pounds, besides rifle and equipment. So all I could do was to walk ashore along the bottom like a diver.”
Harry’s positive attitude, given the absurdity of his situation, was also starting to be seen as he added, “It had its funny side.”
The Australians took the second ridge shortly after landing. However, according to the 3rd Battalion War Diaries [AWM], altogether the day’s battle was in favour of the Allies but the preliminary tally for the 3rd Battalion was “90 wounded, 20 killed, missing was impossible to calculate”. The battle raged on for the next two days “but the men hung out bravely and again showed their superiority of fire and discipline” and “we kept the enemy at bay despite the fact that we had been so insidiously shelled”. At midnight on the 28/29th they were relieved. “Our men were completely exhausted having been 4 days and 4 nights under the strain of a fierce battle.”
With all the confusion of the landing and ensuing battle, Harry’s family had been advised that he had been killed, but he found out about this and quickly sent a cable home that he had made it through. While he was OK, his “Three Lucky Escapes” as described to his father well and truly describe what a touch-and-go situation all the soldiers were in.
Having a cool head in stressful situations must have been noticed and Harry was promoted to Sergeant on 18 May 1915. The 3rd Battalion remained in the area, rotating in and out of the front lines until early August. They continued to lose both officers and gunners and Harry was put in charge of his unit for more than a month.
The next major action for the 3rd Battalion was the attack on Lone Pine in early August.
At 2.00 pm on 6 August 1915, they moved to their rendezvous point, with the 4th Battalion on their left and the 2nd on their right. At 5.30 pm, they rushed straight on and into the Turk’s trenches. After only an hour the Australians had captured the Turkish positions but suffered very heavy casualties.
Heavy counter attacks from the Turks began at 5.30 the next morning. The Australians had captured two Turkish machine guns and were able to use one of them against the Turks. Harry wrote home on 6 September 1915:
“You would have laughed when we first opened fire with it. At the first burst of lead there was absolute silence from Enemies lines for about 5 minutes, when they suddenly discovered they were receiving a dose of their own medicine.”
The trenches that were taken were filled with hundreds of dead bodies and the stench was awful. It took until 12 August to remove 137 bodies. Even with this fierce battle and the horrible aftermath Harry’s positive attitude shone through, “… why turn Grey over it.”
Eventually on 14 September 1915, the 222 men that were left in the Battalion departed for Lemnos for a well-earned rest. They stayed until the end of October and then returned to Anzac Cove but there was no further major action.
In the middle of November, Harry became ill and had to be sent to Heliopolis for treatment. The Battalion left Gallipoli on 21 December, returning to Egypt just after Christmas. Harry was able to rejoin his unit on 30 December 1915 at Tel-el-Kebir.
The Western Front with the 14th Australian Machine Gun Company
Major reorganisations were underway in Egypt to accommodate the heavy losses from Gallipoli and to integrate the large number of new recruits coming in from Australia. Harry was initially reassigned to the newly formed 55th Battalion on 13 February 1916, but recognizing his Gallipoli experience, he was sent to the 14th Australian Machine Gun Company on 11 March 1916.
On 12 March he was promoted to 2nd Lieutenant, no doubt in recognition of the personal strengths and leadership he demonstrated in Gallipoli.
Harry spent April in officer training in Ferry Post and additional machine gun training and Zeitoun. Preparations for the Western Front continued for all of the new units.
The 14th Machine Gun Company left Egypt in two groups. Harry’s group departed on 19 June 1916 on HMT Canada and arrived in Marseille on the 25th. They then boarded trains for a more than 60-hour ride to Thiennes, 30 kilometres from Fromelles. It was noted that their “reputation had evidently preceded them” as they were well received by the French at the towns all along the route.
By 10 July they were in into billets at Sailly, just behind the lines. While he knew the battle was looming, Harry kept his positive outlook, but he seemed to be in a contemplative mood when he wrote home on 12 July, just a week before the battle.
On 16 July they moved into position near Pinney’s Avenue. This was a particularly difficult location as there was a formidable German machine gun emplacement on the nearby Sugar Loaf salient. An attack was planned for the 17th, but it was postponed due to the weather.
All night on the 18th, bombardment was severe by both the British Expeditionary Force and the Germans, readying for an attack on the 19th.
Four waves of infantry began going forward at 5.43 pm on 19 July and they were to be followed by ten machine guns from the 14th Machine Gun Company. The first waves did not immediately charge from the Australian line, but went out into No-Man’s-Land and laid down, waiting for the British bombardment to lift.
At 6.00 pm, the Germans were rushed, their front line captured and the Australians headed for the second line under heavy fire.
As reported by Private William Duckett (4789), Harry had been leading his unit in the advance on the German trenches when he was shot in the head and killed. Harry had also told Private Duckett:
“that he would never be taken prisoner as long as he had a revolver.”
There was another report from Private Harold Baker (5340) who stated that he saw Harry fall in No-Man’s-Land and that two men had told him that they had carried Harry back to the Australian trenches, but they were not sure if he was dead or alive.
The battle continued through the night, and while there had been significant advances, by the morning of the 20th the Australians were forced to retreat to their lines.
Harry was reported as “Missing in Action”.
No News for Harry’s Family
The family were advised he was missing but, unsurprisingly, no further detail was available.
With no information from the Army, Harry’s father contacted the Red Cross in January and in early May 1917 asking for information and whether he might have been taken prisoner or not. They were dismayed that there was no communication, particularly as they noted that Harry had been a regular writer.
The Red Cross expressed their sympathy but had little to offer. A reply in early May even advised that there was one unofficial report from a soldier that said Harry was in the 2nd Auxiliary Hospital in Southall, but the overall message from the Red Cross was that:
“it is so long after he disappeared that we very much fear he must have been killed.”
It was not until 26 Sept 1917 that a Court of Enquiry in the Field declared Harry as “Killed in Action”. His body has never been found.
Harry was awarded the 1914-15 Star, the British War Medal, the Victory Medal, a Memorial Scroll and a Memorial Plaque. His name was commemorated on:
- Australian War Memorial, Canberra, Panel number 177;
- Australian National Memorial, Villers-Bretonneux, France and now moved to
- Panel 23, V.C. Corner Australian Cemetery and Memorial, Fromelles, France
The War was not yet done with the Briggs family, however. They also lost their son Fred, who was with the Queen's (Royal West Surrey) Regiment, 6th Battalion, regimental number G/69273. He died of wounds on 18 August 1918 leaving a wife and two children. Fred is buried in Daours Communal Cemetery, France.
The youngest son, John Charles Briggs, also served during the war as a driver in France from December 1914 with the Army Service Corps (service number 571). Fortunately, he survived the war and returned home to England in 1919.
Still Hope to Identify Harry?
As described at the start of this story, it is possible that Harry is one of the yet to be identified soldiers from the mass grave that was dug by the Germans and only discovered in 2008. We just need to find DNA donors.
If you know anything of Harry’s contacts in Australia or in England we would like to hear from you.
DNA samples are still being sought for family connections to
|Soldier||Henry Francis BRIGGS 1891-1916|
|Siblings||Florence Mary 1883-1967|
|Edith Emma 1884-1966 (m Herbert W. BRIGGS 1890-1969)|
|Frederick William 1889–1918 (m Mary F. BLUNDELL 1894-1980)|
|John Charles 1896-1990 (m Hilda STOTER)|
|Parents||William James BRIGGS 1858-1918 and Florence HILL 1858-1941|
|Paternal||William BRIGGS 1809-1873 and Mary HARDS 1821-1886|
|Maternal||Daniel HILL and Mary Ann HOLLGUTH|
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domain: history


text:
Riteish Deshmukh is a Maharashtrian Hindu, while Genelia D’souza is a Mangalorean Catholic. The wedding happened in tradition Maharashtrian way. Genelia look adorable in a red lehenga, heavy jewellery and green bangles.
Vidya Balan was seen in a very simple avatar at her wedding. She wore a red saree with simple jewellery. The wedding ceremony was a hush hush affair, but later in front of the media, the couple posed for cameras. She looked adorable in yellow saree at her mehndi ceremony.
Bipasha Basu and Karan Singh Grover’s marriage was done in Bengali style. Bipasha looked beautiful in red lehenga. Even during her sangeet, Bipasha wore a baby pink lehenga.
Raveena wore a maroon velvet gota-patti lehenga with a heavy jewellery, chuda and mangtika for her big day.
Esha Deol was looking like the perfect south Indian bride. She wore a red and golden lehenga with white and red chuda.
During her wedding with Saif Ali Khan, Kareena designed a beautiful lehenga from Manish Malhotra. But to family tradition she has wore mother in laws, dress and jewellery on the special day.
Karisma Kapoor broke the stereotype as she rocked in bright pink.
Preity Zinta married Gene Goodenough in a hush-hush ceremony. In attendance of close friends and families, she wore a red lehenga at her wedding.
Mira Rajput looked like a Rajputani at her wedding with Shahid Kapoor. She also broke the stereotype of red colour and wore a light pink lehenga.
Soha Ali Khan
Soha Ali Khan chose a bright colour. She wore a cream colour lehenga with orange dupatta. Soha is from Pataudi families and at her wedding she looked royal.
Kajol was seen in a traditional Maharashtrian look, wore a navvari green saree paired with a nath and gajra.
‘Rehna Hai Tere Dil Main’ fame actress Dia Mirza exuded beauty in green and cream colour lehenga with gold jewellery.
Urmila Matondkar wore a red Manish Malhotra lehenga and an ivory lehenga at the reception.
Shilpa Shetty Kundra
Shilpa looked like a perfect Southern bride in a red embroidered sari with kundan jewellery at her wedding.

domain: celebrity


text:
'I was saved by wild water': How a passion for wild swimming kept one writer afloat when he was struck down by depression
Family trauma and grief led to writer Andrew Fusek Peters suffering severe depression – but his passion for wild swimming helped to keep him afloat
Andrew at Walcot Hall lake, Shropshire
At 6ft 8in tall, Andrew Fusek Peters has never been someone who could fade into the background. But it is not just his height that makes him a larger-than-life presence. A children’s author and performance poet, he is also a self-styled ‘writer-in-education’ who is adept at holding classrooms full of potentially mutinous teenagers spellbound with a dynamic stand-up routine (‘You’re funnier than Russell Howard,’ reads just one of the appreciative reviews on his website.)
At home – a converted chapel in a remote corner of Shropshire that he shares with his wife Polly and their two children – he is barely less ebullient. ‘When Dad is in the room, you know he is in the room,’ explains his sanguine 18-year-old daughter Rosalind. Not so long ago, however, the ready laughter that seems to punctuate every one of Andrew’s thought-provoking sentences fell silent. Despite Polly’s gentle protestations, he could barely rouse himself from bed, and Rosalind and her 13-year-old brother Asa watched helplessly as their father became a trembling shell of the man they loved.
'Swimming is so much about feeling alive - as soon as I'm in the water my fear has gone'
Andrew had sunk into a deep depression – the same illness that had led to the suicide of his father and indirectly to the death of his once heroin-addicted brother. For months, from the spring of 2011 through to early 2012, he feared that it would also claim his own life. ‘I was here, but not here,’ he says, glancing towards the grey sofa in the middle of their sitting room where he would lie immobile for up to 11 hours a day. ‘I was aware of what I was putting Polly and the children through, but it was as if I was detached from my own body. When you are depressed, you are in hell. That is why you want to die – you are desperate for relief.’
Andrew at Rhaeadr Mawddach waterfall, North Wales
Andrew credits the love and unstinting support of his family, the expertise of two psychiatrists and the miracles of modern medication with bringing him back from the brink. But in a poignant new memoir, Dip: Wild Swims from the Borderlands, he reveals how he also found succour by immersing himself in nature. Andrew is a wild swimmer, for whom no country walk is complete without an alfresco bathe. He scours Ordnance Survey maps for dots of blue and carries trunks and a towel in his knapsack ‘just in case. Some say I am bonkers brave, but there is nothing like plunging in water for bringing you back to an exhilarating right-here, right-now moment,’ he says.
The idea of escaping what wild swimmers describe as ‘chlorinated captivity’ is not new – the Swallows and Amazons did it before breakfast, the Bloomsbury set did it after tea and Andrew has been doing it since childhood. Some of his happiest memories in an often troubled upbringing are centred on the days when he and his elder brother Marc leapt into a river, lake or hidden pool. ‘We didn’t call it wild swimming back then – to us it was just swimming,’ he says. ‘But wild water has often been balm to my overloaded mind.’
Andrew, 48, was born in Germany, the son of Frederick, a geologist, and Vera, a former actress. His American-born father had been a child prodigy and brilliant athlete, but he also had a history of depression, as did his father before him. When Andrew was two and Marc was six, Frederick took his own life. ‘He had been unwell and had come out of a psychiatric unit and the day it happened he took himself to the woods near our home and electrocuted himself. My mother knew where he’d be and she found him.’
'One second, everything in my world was safe, and the next, all was chaos'
Widowed and traumatised, Vera, who came from a family of naturalised British Czech refugees, brought her sons to the UK in the hope of giving them a fresh start and a good education. They settled in North London but struggled to cope. A child psychotherapist recommended both be sent to boarding schools to give them structure and stability but for Andrew, who was gangly and sensitive and ‘had “target” written on my forehead’, being bullied added to his angst.
Marc, too, clearly floundered. By the age of 13 he was self-medicating with drink and drugs and by 17 he had a heroin habit. ‘I wanted to emulate my big brother, so I started using too,’ says Andrew. ‘It was the era of punk rock – of glue, acid, speed. I had always felt the outsider but the moment I had drugs or drink in my system, I felt all right.’
Marc was expelled from school and dropped out of the education system. Andrew moved to the highly academic Westminster School but had his first serious breakdown when he was 16, which set him back a year. But then, remarkably, both boys began to turn their lives around. Marc, who was diagnosed and successfully treated for manic depression, got clean at the age of 21 with the help of Narcotics Anonymous and Alcoholics Anonymous. He moved to the US and put himself through university before developing a career as a writer and poet.
At the age of 18, Andrew also stopped using and drinking – he has touched neither drugs nor alcohol for 30 years. On leaving school, he won an exhibition to Oxford to read English but at the end of his second year, another bout of depression hit. After seeking professional help, he quit his studies and moved to Bristol where a community of recovering addicts took him under its wing. A few months after joining a local poetry group, he was invited to organise a school workshop. ‘I discovered that I had a skill for working with young people – I was good at storytelling and stand-up comedy,’ he says. He also met Polly, who was an English and drama teacher in one of the schools he visited, and they were married within a year.
Andrew with his wife Polly and daughter Rosalind
Marc was Andrew’s best man and the wedding was a day of joyous celebration, but there was a dark cloud on the horizon. Two years earlier, in 1989, Marc had fallen in love with a girl he met through his recovering addict community. ‘He had been clean for almost a decade, she had stopped using, and they didn’t use condoms – but it was the 1980s and she was carrying HIV.’ Marc died in 1993, aged 33, after developing Aids (his girlfriend also died).
‘I miss him,’ Andrew says, gulping back sudden tears. ‘Of the two of us, Marc was the proper poet. I did the funny stuff and he was always asking when I was going to get serious. Then he died and my writing became something else. It was as if he was standing behind me, resting his hands on mine as I typed.’
Grief is often likened to waves that ebb and flow – and for a long time, Andrew seemed able to hold back the tide. As a tribute to his brother, he compiled a book of Marc’s poems, which was published to critical acclaim. Then Polly gave birth to Rosalind, followed five years later by Asa. Polly gave up teaching and she and Andrew set up a phenomenally successful writing partnership – to date, they have co-authored more than 110 children’s books which have been published in 17 languages.
The only daughter of a vet father and bacteriologist mother, Polly is the calm yin to Andrew’s exuberant yang. She was used to his peaks and troughs of mood and when he had the occasional off-day, she trusted that he would bounce back. ‘With Andrew, things were often either brilliant or rubbish, but that is what you get living with an artistic temperament.’
But beneath the surface, Andrew was starting to struggle. He was haunted by the loss of Marc, who, as well as becoming gaunt and unable to swallow, suffered from Aids dementia and personality changes. ‘It was as horrendous as you could ever imagine,’ he says of his brother’s death.
'My children got to see me very ill, but they've also seen me get better'
As well as missing Marc, Andrew also began to have flashbacks to the long-suppressed memories of his father’s death. While attending an Alexander technique class to ease a bad back, he experienced a vivid recollection. ‘Suddenly, I was back at our home in Germany. One second, everything in my world was safe, and the next all was chaos. People said I had been too young to know my dad or be affected by his death but in that moment I realised that losing him was the central defining element of my life.’
Around Easter 2011, anxiety and insomnia began to compound Andrew’s back pain. Polly noticed him becoming more withdrawn. By September, he was refusing to leave the house and he now admits that he was having suicidal thoughts. ‘I felt unsafe – as if all the bandages were being ripped from me and someone was saying, “This is what you are Andrew – you are a gibbering wreck because of what your father did.”’
With the help of their GP and a crisis team, Polly organised for Andrew to spend eight weeks in a psychiatric hospital. And then she sat down with their children and told them what was happening. Their son, who was 11, received a simplified outline and was told he could use any swear word he wanted to for the next ten minutes. Rosalind, who was 16, was more aware of the nuances.
Andrew and his brother Marc, 1990
She has written the Afterword for Dip and in it she says: ‘Depression took all that my dad loved and lived for and warped it.’ She remembers sobbing during conversations with her mother on her way home from sixth-form college. ‘College was my escape, but coming home it would hit me that I was going to walk through the door and he would be on the sofa, present but absent. It was the emptiness in his eyes that got to me. I’d try to talk to him about books I had been reading and maybe get a sentence back, and later, as he started to get better, those conversations became a marker of his recovery. It was like, “Wow, Dad cracked a joke today.”’
Polly remembers feeling ‘furious with the illness, but not with Andrew – I knew I had to separate the two’. She developed coping strategies, including accepting the support of family – Andrew’s mother, who had lived through the depression of her own husband as well as that of her sons, was a ‘lifeboat’ – and friends, especially those who were prepared to cook a meal, drive Andrew to an appointment and send a thoughtful text.
After taking professional medical advice, she adopted a tough-love approach, insisting that Andrew got out of bed in the morning and cooked supper for the family, as he had always done. ‘It is hard being catapulted from partner to carer. You have to take charge of the ground rules and one of the hurdles is working out what you fight for and what you let go.’ Keeping Andrew cooking became one of Polly’s requisites. ‘The meals were often flavourless because he couldn’t taste anything, but I had the feeling that if we had let that go, we would have lost him completely.’
Polly also had to ensure that she was not too tough on herself. ‘I tried to be there each day for the children, but I also tried not to be all things to everybody. Creating safe family time was important. We played a lot of board games to create a semblance of normality. I found that listening to music helped – especially when I turned it up really loud. And it was important to remind ourselves to laugh.’
One afternoon in February 2012, Rosalind suggested to her father that they go for a short walk and, to her surprise, he roused himself from the sofa. A few weeks later, Andrew felt well enough to hop in the car and drive to the Kerry Ridgeway. With Rosalind and Polly, he headed down a track to the site of a 1941 bomb crater that is now a hidden pool and took his first dip in almost 12 months. ‘The water was freezing and he squealed – he’s such a drama queen when he swims,’ Rosalind says. ‘That was the moment we knew the old dad was back with us.’
Throughout Dip, Rosalind features as her father’s wild swimming companion. Rarely entering the water – ‘I tend to stick to warmer climes’– she took photos, and offered encouragement and a towel as he emerged exhilarated. ‘Those days were about the trips and reclaiming lost time. And having the project of the book added an extra spark to our moments together.’
Two years on, Rosalind is at Oxford studying English. ‘During those long winter months, working for my A-levels was the one thing I could control. The family joke is that I am there to finish the degree my father started.’ She also has a modelling contract and a publishing deal – after winning an award under her pen name Rosalind Jana, she is working on a book about what it is to be a teenager.
Meanwhile, alongside Dip, Andrew has also written a children’s book, The Colour Thief, telling the story of depression from a son’s perspective (which will be published in August), and together with Polly he has composed The Man Who Turned Into A Sofa – a play to be aired on Radio 4 in May.
Many people who suffer from mental illness find writing cathartic, but Andrew resists the notion in his case. ‘I write because that is what I do,’ he says. For him, the real lesson learned is that it is important to grieve, but also to live. ‘Swimming is about feeling alive – whatever fear is in my head, as soon as I am in the water, it has gone, slam-splash-dunked. So my children got to see me very ill, but they’ve also seen me get better. I didn’t do what my dad did. I broke the pattern.’
Dip: Wild Swims from the Borderlands by Andrew Fusek Peters will be published by Rider on Thursday, price £16.99. To order a copy for £14.99, with free p&p, contact the YOU Bookshop on 0844 472 4157, you-bookshop.co.uk
‘We dive into the water, daring to go deeper’: An extract from Dip
I stand on the lip of Ludlow Weir, my clothes piled on the concrete bank behind me, near to some teenagers drinking cans of cider. I’m hoping they don’t nick my stuff. However, they seem intrigued by the middle-aged beanpole in trunks, preparing to embark on a curious activity: swimming in a river.
I dive. The water is cool balm. This is going to be a proper, long swim, upstream, all the way out of Ludlow. In the park, children stare at the funny man splashing rhythmically past. I have swum in the Teme many times, but never this far. What lies beyond? It’s the same urge that drives on the walker, the climber, the explorer. And at this moment, anything could lie just beyond my sightline.
In Shingle Street, Suffolk, my brother Marc and I once scrunched up the pebble beach, tracing the route up the River Ore. We began at the river mouth where it ran fast and tight, then followed the flow, backwards. As I drift and swim, Marc is still alive and we are young men again. We dive into the water, daring to go deeper, where the current is a hungry, propelling thrust. We scream with feral joy.
We were young, unwise. It was perfect. It’s this moment I want for remembering, but he is swept away by the 20 years since I was last with him, when he was gaunt, dying of Aids, so thirsty but not able to swallow; his only relief a cotton bud soaked with water and held to his lips. The savage irony of it: of us two water boys, of Marc who loved life.
I love the river and the river loves me. I loved my brother, my only sibling. I miss him, his playfulness and daring. So I carry him with me back downstream. For if I am the one who has to live on, then he is under me, my water wings, his words seeping into mine.

domain: literature


text:
The albatross is one of the most efficient travelers in the animal world. One species, the wandering albatross, can fly nearly 500 miles in a single day, with just an occasional flap of its wings. The birds use their formidable wingspans, measuring up to 11 feet across, to catch and ride the wind.
Observers have noted for centuries that these feathered giants keep themselves aloft for hours, just above the ocean surface, by soaring and diving between contrasting currents of air, as if riding a sidewinding rollercoaster—a flight pattern known as dynamic soaring.
Now engineers at MIT have developed a new model to simulate dynamic soaring, and have used it to identify the optimal flight pattern that an albatross should take in order to harvest the most wind and energy. They found that as an albatross banks or turns to dive down and soar up, it should do so in shallow arcs, keeping almost to a straight, forward trajectory.
The new model, they say, will be useful in gauging how albatross flight patterns may change as wind patterns shift with changing climate. It also may inform the design of wind-propelled drones and gliders which, if programmed with energy-efficient trajectories for given wind conditions, could be used to perform long-duration, long-range monitoring missions in remote regions of the world.
“The wandering albatross lives in the Southern Ocean, which is…


text:
The law, which lays down regulations on shipping along the increasingly popular Arctic route, states that the route in the west officially stretches from the eastern coast of the Novaya Zemlya, the Kara Gate and the straits between the mainland and the island of Vaigach. In the east, the route includes the areas from the Russian-U.S. sea border and the latitude of the Cape Dezhnev, the easternmost point on Russian territory, RIA Novosti reports.
The regulations, consequently, do not include the Barents Sea and the Pechora Sea, both of them waters, which are expected a hike in shipping and industrial activities over the next years. Both Murmansk and Arkhangelsk, Russia’s two main Arctic cities, are located outside the new definition of the Northern Sea Route territory.
The new law, which was adopted by the State Duma in a third reading Tuesday, will come into force in 2013.
Among the rules for vessels operating in the area are new insurance requirements, which are to enhance ship owners’ responsibility for possible environmental damage and pollution. The law also outlines the level of shipping fees, although not very concretely, saying that the rates on icebreaker assistance will be provided based on the “extent of the services offered”.
Included in the law is also the establishment of a new Northern Sea Route administration, which is to manage icebreaker and sailing master services, as well as provide radio communication and hydrographic information, organize search and rescue operations and prepare preparedness meaures on emergency situations. According to Bellona.ru, the Russian Finance Ministry is allocating 27 million RUB (€660.000) for the new administration.
The new law is a long-awaited and much-needed piece of legislation. However, critics say that it insufficiently addresses the environmental challenges in the vulnerable area. According to Igor Kudrik from the Bellona Foundation, a major oil spill in the remote area will have huge environmental consequences for nature, and financial consequences for the shipping company. “If the shipping operators are to bear all costs related to spills, the route might ultimately not be so popular, after all”, he says.
A step-by-step increase up to SEK 5,5 billion will be added to the annual defense budget following the Ukraine crisis. The cash will partly come by cutting spending on environment and nuclear safety cooperation with Russia.
The president warns against hostile action and terrorism in the Arctic and says regional oil installations must be protected. At the same time, he signs a law, empowering oil companies to establish their own armed forces.
MURMANSK: Ecological groups gathered on Kola Peninsula fear that Barents nature will be the looser after Oslo decided to call off the environmental minister’s Moscow meeting in response to Russia’s annexation of Crimea.
TROMSØ: Since the first five specimens of snow crab were found in the Barents Sea in 1996, the population has exploded. There is now ten times as much snow crab than king crab in the area, and scientists are just starting to find out how this new species has adopted to life in the Barents Sea.
More than 900 reindeer die of hunger on the Russian Arctic island of Kolguyev following a critical lack of available local pasturelands. The reindeer stocks in the area are too badly managed, regional authorities admit.
Three days processing of visa-applications is history. “Always apply at least 15 days prior to scheduled departure. Our processing time is 10 days,” says Marit Egholm Jacobsen, head of the visa section at Norway’s Consulate General in Murmansk.
Board member Amund Trellevik in the press network fears entry-denial of Kremlin’s controversial propaganda-journalist Dmitry Kiselyov could be retaliated by refusing Norwegian journalists access to Russia.

domain: geography


A new photo of the Cybertruck hints at upcoming functionality
A recent Cybertruck photo revealed that Tesla will let drivers access the video feed from the vehicle's front bumper camera. The picture surfaced on Reddit that shows the center screen of the Cybertruck displaying a view from what can only be a front bumper camera.
Enhancing Parking and Navigation
Not only does the image on Reddit confirm that Tesla is introducing a front bumper camera on the Cybertruck, but they already have the software developed to access the new camera feed. The new camera could greatly enhance parking and navigation. This front view adds a new dimension to vehicle awareness, particularly in tight spaces, complex urban environments, or when pulling as far forward as possible in the garage.
Front Bumper Camera Software
The partial image of the Cybertruck's screen shows the front bumper camera streamed on the vehicle's display. The front camera appears to be displayed using the vehicle's existing camera app, which is to display the backup camera.
Our first glimpse at the front bumper camera UI and previous comments by Elon Musk may reveal just how the updated Camera app will work.
Today, the camera app displays the reverse camera on top, and if enabled, the fender, or repeater cameras are shown underneath.
However, this new photo appears to illustrate something much more helpful. We can see the front bumper camera on top and smaller, thumbnail-like camera views underneath it. These narrower thumbnails lead us to believe that Tesla will have three thumbnails underneath the main camera instead of two. You'll have access to the front, reverse, left, and right fender views.
Looking further back, we may just see where Tesla is headed with this new feature.
In 2020, Tesla added the ability to display the left/right fender camera views when using the reverse camera.
Right after the side repeater cameras were made available, a Tesla owner asked Musk whether it would be possible to enlarge the side-view cameras when backing up. In his unmistakable style, Elon replied, "Yes, coming soon."
Based on Musk's comment and the UI in the spy photo, it looks like Tesla is doing just that. You will likely be able to tap on any of the camera views in the app to enlarge them, allowing you to seamlessly switch between the front, rear, and repeater camera views.
This layout is similar to what Tesla already provides in their Sentry Mode viewer, which allows you to tap on various camera views to enlarge them on the screen.
Tesla may even go one step further and automatically switch between the front and rear-facing cameras depending on whether you're moving forward or backward.
Adding a front bumper camera could significantly reduce the blind spot issue that became more apparent when Tesla removed the sensors from the front bumper. Tesla's decision to remove the ultrasonic sensors (USS) in late 2022 sparked debates and left several questions unanswered. Many were concerned about the effectiveness of the Tesla Vision system in replacing the USS.
As soon as the new vehicles were in the wild, Tesla owners were keen on testing the accuracy of Tesla Vision. It became clear that there was a blind spot directly in front of the bumper. This new camera location would correct that issue, though it does not provide the 360º view that some owners and critics call for. The Reddit image does not indicate that this has been implemented, leaving room for speculation and possibly future enhancements.
The Model 3 Highland Connection
In connection with the Cybertruck's front bumper camera, there is growing excitement regarding the Tesla Model 3 Highland refresh. The newly designed bumper shape and smoother front end, combined with redesigned headlights, provide opportunities for more technology implementation. Trusted sources have confirmed that a front bumper camera will indeed be part of the Highland update, reinforcing the connection between these two vehicles and the company's forward-thinking approach.
While the Reddit revelation of the Cybertruck's front bumper camera view is fascinating, it's worth noting that this innovation may lead to further discussions and considerations within the Tesla community and the automotive industry. Including a front bumper camera on the Cybertruck and possibly the Model 3 Highland aligns with Tesla's continuous advancements in design and technology, marking a significant development for the company and its consumers. It represents a tangible step in solving real-world driving challenges, enhancing the driving experience without drastically changing the vehicle's aesthetic appeal.
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Tesla introduced a wrap-around ambient lighting strip to its new Model 3
If you look up ambient lights for Tesla, you'll see several ads for third-party light kits. Perhaps this is why Tesla added its own Ambient Lights feature to the new Model 3. So, let's get enlightened.
Tesla's ambient lights are thin light strips that are embedded in each of the vehicle's doors near the top edge. It also curves around the dashboard near the windshield, giving passengers a near 360-degree light effect.
Tesla new ambient light feature is available on the new Model 3 (2024+), and will be available on the Cybertruck in a similar manner. With a refresh ongoing for the Model Y, known as Juniper, it will likely also have ambient lights. That just leaves out the most luxurious flagship vehicles, the Model S and X, for now.
The Model S and Model X could be due for a minor refresh that would not only add ambient lighting, but also include a front-bumper camera that the Cybertruck has and the new Model 3 is expected to have in the near future.
Tesla introduced a wrap-around ambient lighting strip to its new Model 3
The ambient light settings allow you to light up the interior in a color that reflects your mood or preference. Under Controls > Lights > Accent Lights, you are handed the freedom to choose virtually any color to adorn the interior of your Tesla.
You have control over whether the ambient lights are on, off, or set to an "Auto" setting, though not fully clarified, seems to promise intelligent lighting adjustments akin to our control over dome lights, offering a reduction in reflections during drives.
While the ability to control the brightness level seems missing, Tesla did include color presets, letting you curate a series of your favorite colors.
It should be noted that the changes are confined to the light strips on the doors and dash, steering clear of the footwell lights and other interior lighting.
With Tesla, we can be assured there will be enhancements to this feature in a future update. In fact, the Tesla community is already busy coming up with useful suggestions. Some owners thought Tesla should take advantage of the lighting to provide driver feedback, such as automatically changing the ambient lighting to a red hue when there's a vehicle in your blind spot. Tesla could also glow the light strip on a door if it's not closed properly, or use the lighting to provide feedback when Sentry Mode is enabled.
Other uses could be more fun, such as cycling the light through various colors when the 'Rainbow Road' easter egg is activated.
Ambient Lighting in Action
While the possibilities are endless and Tesla engineers will surely have fun coming up with creative uses for the feature, the biggest improvement we can hope for in the near future is the ability to adjust the light intensity.
Tesla's new Model 3 received a host of exterior and interior upgrades
Tesla outdid itself with the refreshed Model 3, known as the Highland. Despite all the fantastic upgrades, something is missing - the Performance version or perhaps the Plaid. The letter "T" has shown up on vehicle certificates in Europe, and despite Elon Musk's sense of humor, it is unlikely this is a Mr. T reference.
Deciphering the 'T'
A new document shows the new Model 3 Performance will have a dual motor
eivissacopter / X
Diligent scrutiny of the European Type Certificate, issued by the Dutch vehicle authority RDW and shared on the TFF Forum, revealed a subtle yet pivotal alteration — including the letter 'T' in the eighth digit of the Model 3 Performance's VIN.
This seemingly minor detail, indicative of the vehicle's motor/drive unit type, sparked curiosity and speculation on the forum. Could it be a tri-motor setup to usher in a new Plaid version of the Model 3? This vehicle has already got endless amounts of zip, but three motors? May The Schwartz Be With You!
This could also explain the Model 3+ badging that was spotted during the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) in China inspection of the refresh. However, the regulatory filings highlighted just two distinct variants of the car: a rear-wheel drive (RWD) with a 194 kW motor and an all-wheel drive (AWD) dual-motor setup that combines to deliver a formidable 331 kW of maximum power.
Initial conjectures leaned towards the possibility of a tri-motor setup, drawing parallels with the Plaid variants of the Model S and Model X. However, a deeper dive into the certification document clarified that the Model 3 Performance retained its Dual Motor setup, dispelling the possibility of a tri-motor upgrade.
Strategic Enhancements: A Glimpse into Potential Upgrades
Given the documented specifications, it becomes plausible that Tesla has strategically enhanced one of the dual motors, potentially aligning it with the advanced motor found in the Model S/X Plaid. This modification is poised to augment the top-end speed and acceleration of the Model 3 Performance, addressing its comparative limitations in extended races against traditional gas-powered supercars.
Meanwhile, the Model 3 refresh has become the new Bigfoot of the roads of North America, with rare sightings posted on social media. However, it appears the continent is excluded from the initial launch of the Model 3 Highland. Internal communications within Tesla suggest North American enthusiasts might have to exercise patience until 2024.
TeslaFi is a service that logs your drives and charging sessions so that you can later refer back to them. We highly recommend checking them out if you use your car for business trips and would like to keep track of reimbursements, if you like to see how much you spend on charging or if you just love statistics. View their about us page and see everything they have to offer!
The EV Universe newsletter reports distill more than 100 EV news sources into a 10-minute read every week. We cover both Tesla and the rest of the EV industry. Join over 3,000 EV geeks like us and subscribe to the free weekly newsletter here.
Tesla Android Project enables you to run Android apps in your Tesla. The platform is Open Source and you can deploy it on your own Raspberry Pi 4. Consider supporting the initiative by donating or purchasing the Compute Module 4 Bundle that delivers the best experience. Get $20 off by using the code: NotATeslaApp


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KARNAL: Citizens of Karnal and children of Tagore Bal Niketan on Sunday remembered Karnal born first Indian-American woman astronaut Kalpana Chawla at her first death anniversary. A two minute silence was observed at a meeting organised in Tagore Bal Niketan where Kalpana had her early education.
Wing commander Rakesh Sharma, the first Indian to go in space released a book titled India's First Women Astronaut written by Dalip M Savli to mark the occasion. Both Sharma and deputy commissioner RS Doon who presided over the function and paid floral tributes at Kalpana's portrait. Sharma, while addressing citizens, regretted that the Columbia mission was an unfortunate failure. Otherwise, on two earlier occasions, its missions in space had succeeded.

domain: news


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You are currently browsing the daily archive for May 22, 2009.
They look different and they seem to stand for different views.
They spoke from different places: one from the bowels of a think tank, the other with a facsimile Constitution as backdrop.
They seemed to accuse each other.
Bot those two are cousins and in the end, they both stand for the same things: the imperial presidency
Who said this
he was thinking about “the long game” — how to establish a legal system that would endure for future presidents.He raised the issue of preventive detention”
If you guessed Cheney, you were wrong.
If ever there was a snow job on the American people, these two fighting cousins delivered today.
One said: “We were right to do what we did”
The other said: “Let’s not look at what they did, who cares? We only look forward”
One said: “We did what we did because of the war on terror”
The other said: I’ll do what they did (imprison people indefinitely and keep military tribunals) because of the war on terror”
One said: “We kept you safe, so be grateful for what we did”
The other said:”Keeping you safe is the cover for doing what they did”
In the end what we are left with is more of the same. Concludes Glenn Greenwald
Ultimately, what I find most harmful about his embrace of things like preventive detention, concealment of torture evidence, opposition to investigations and the like is that these policies are now no longer just right-wing dogma but also the ideas that many defenders of his — Democrats, liberals, progressives — will defend as well. Even if it’s due to perceived political necessity, the more Obama embraces core Bush terrorism policies and assumptions — we’re fighting a “war on terror”; Presidents have the power to indefinitely and “preventatively” imprison people with no charges; we can create new due-process-abridging tribunals when it suits us; the “Battlefield” is everywhere; we should conceal evidence when it will make us look bad — the more those premises are transformed from right-wing dogma into the prongs of bipartisan consensus, no longer just advocated by Bush followers but by many Obama defenders as well.
True. And makes me think is Cheney didn’t deliberaletly help make torture, permanent war a “centrist” issue by his bogus opposition. He simply played the Goldilocks game for the naive, making it appear that Obama’s transgressions are “just right”


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He says that his two nominations for the 2014 awards ceremony are 'patronising'
Kanye West has laid into the Grammy Awards during a gig in Phoenix, Arizona.
The rapper played the US Airways Center last night (December 10) and during the show spoke about his disappointment with the US awards body for not including ‘Yeezus’ in their Album of the Year category. He went to say that the nods ‘Yeezus’ has received for Best Rap Album and ‘New Slaves’ for Best Rap Song are “patronising”. He commented – in a fan-shot video that you can watch above: “People come to me and they congratulate me on those two nominations. Fuck those nominations!”
Earlier in his speech, West stated: “I’m 36 years old and I have 21 Grammys. That’s the most Grammys of any 36-year-old. Out of all of those 21 Grammys, I’ve never won a Grammy against a white artist… So when the Grammys nominations come out, and ‘Yeezus’ is the top one or two album on every single list, but only gets two nominations from the Grammys, what are they trying to say? Do they think that I wouldn’t notice? Do they think that, some way, that I don’t have the power to completely diminish all of their credibility at this moment?”
The 56th annual Grammy Awards will take place on January 26, 2014 at the Staples Center in LA. In the Album Of The Year category Daft Punk’s ‘Random Access Memories’ is up against Kendrick Lamar’s ‘Good Kid, MAAD City’, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis’ ‘The Heist’, ‘The Blessed Unrest’ by Sara Bareilles and ‘Red’ by Taylor Swift.
Meanwhile, Kanye West has said that his next album will contain just “eight songs”. In a recent interview, the rapper revealed that he plans to release the follow-up to this year’s ‘Yeezus’ in the summer of 2014. Now, during a talk with architect Jacques Herzog at the Moore Building in Miami, as a part of the city’s Art Basel conference, he’s added more info on his new album plans.
“I think my next album is going to be eight songs,” he said. “It’s just reducing down the amount of information that you need. People say a design is the point where you can’t take anything else away. [Yeezus] was very, very designed.”


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1972 Lenham Le Mans GT is a little wonder
Fifty years ago, Lenhams were head-turners and pretty good on the track. Simon de Burton has found an example that’s ‘as new’
The Lenham Motor Company was born during the 1960s when such ‘boutique’ marques that built interesting specials based on mainstream models were springing up all around Britain.
The foundations of the business date to 1962 when Julian Kingsford-Booty and David Miall-Smith set-up The Vintage and Sports Car Garage behind the Dog & Bear Hotel in The Square, Lenham, Kent. Although they were initially focused on restoration and repairs, the pair’s skills were recognised by a customer who unexpectedly commissioned them to create a hardtop roof to turn his damaged Austin-Healey ‘Frogeye’ Sprite into a coupé.
The well-executed result was hand-formed from aluminium, with the sleek look prompting further enquiries from Sprite owners that resulted in the duo designing glassfibre moulds from which aerodynamic body kits could be laid up.
The kits became more sophisticated with the arrival of the later Sprite and MG Midget models with their wind-up windows, resulting in a design called the Lenham Le Mans GT which proved sufficiently popular for the firm to abandon restoration work, move into larger premises and register the Lenham Motor Company Ltd in 1967.
Soon Lenham was offering a whole range of fastback designs, bonnets and hardtops for models including the Triumph Spitfire, MGB and even the Jaguar E-type – but it was the ‘Spridget’ conversions that worked the best, not least since the weight-saving glassfibre turned tuned versions of the small-engined cars into useful track weapons (one of the most famous being the Lenham GT Midget in which John Britten won 14 races in the 1966 season to take the Peter Collins Memorial Trophy for ‘most promising newcomer’).
As the Lenham marketing material revealed, the kits were ‘engineered for speed, with comfort and safety’ – and, as can be seen from the example here, they did a great deal to improve the aesthetics of the standard Spridget, too.
The car on offer has been the subject of a meticulous rebuild by a leading (but anonymous) figure in the historic racing world and was created using the engine and mechanicals from a Spridget-based Ashley sports car that was damaged beyond repair during a Silverstone practice session. After being stripped to the bare bones, every original component of the Lenham that was salvageable was refurbished to ‘as new’ condition before the car was fitted with the Ashley’s fully rebuilt 1293cc engine – which has never since been used on track – along with a new clutch and gearbox.
Rebuilt suspension, a full rollcage, plumbed-in fire system and road registration complete the picture of what is, essentially, a showroom-fresh Lenham Le Mans.
What vendor Bob Cranham hadn’t appreciated before the rebuild, however, was that his 6ft 3in frame doesn’t actually fit inside the stylish fastback – hence the search for a slightly shorter buyer.
1972 Lenham Le Mans GT
On sale with Bob Cranham, Surrey, 01737 224175


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According to Zacks, “Iqiyi Inc. provides online entertainment service. The Company offer movies, television dramas, variety shows and other video contents. Iqiyi Inc is based in Haidian, China. “
A number of other analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. Loop Capital initiated coverage on shares of TENCENT HOLDING/ADR in a research note on Monday, June 3rd. They issued a buy rating on the stock. HSBC cut shares of easyJet to a hold rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. Finally, Tigress Financial initiated coverage on shares of YY in a research note on Friday, March 15th. They issued a buy rating on the stock. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. IQIYI has a consensus rating of Buy and a consensus target price of $27.14.
IQIYI (NASDAQ:IQ) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 16th. The company reported ($0.35) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.52) by $0.17. IQIYI had a negative net margin of 38.72% and a negative return on equity of 52.01%. The company had revenue of $6.99 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.89 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.31) EPS. The business’s revenue was up 43.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that IQIYI will post -1.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in IQ. Hillhouse Capital Management Ltd. boosted its position in IQIYI by 1,633.8% in the fourth quarter. Hillhouse Capital Management Ltd. now owns 34,313,024 shares of the company’s stock valued at $510,235,000 after buying an additional 32,333,917 shares in the last quarter. WT Asset Management Ltd acquired a new position in IQIYI in the first quarter valued at about $53,067,000. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its position in IQIYI by 240.9% in the fourth quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 2,444,498 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,350,000 after buying an additional 1,727,430 shares in the last quarter. Ardevora Asset Management LLP acquired a new position in IQIYI in the first quarter valued at about $36,813,000. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in IQIYI in the fourth quarter valued at about $21,687,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 19.44% of the company’s stock.
IQIYI Company Profile
iQIYI, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides online entertainment services under the iQIYI brand in China. It operates a platform that provides a collection of Internet video content, including professionally-produced content licensed from professional content providers and self-produced content.
See Also: Bond
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North Korea ‘neither fears war nor wants to avoid it,’ says country’s UN missionWorld April 26, 20:37
Russia’s Emergencies Ministry to continue helping Serbia in mine clearance in 2017Military & Defense April 26, 20:20
Putin says Russia, China maintain relations at 'unprecedentedly high level'Russian Politics & Diplomacy April 26, 20:02
Polls shows number of happy Russians at record-breaking historic highSociety & Culture April 26, 19:27
IS recruiting Taliban fighters in Afghanistan — Russia’s General StaffMilitary & Defense April 26, 18:49
Coffin with presumed remains of 19th century Russian general dug up in TurkeySociety & Culture April 26, 18:26
Russian envoy says enacting nuke ban treaty will lay basis for stable strategic tiesRussian Politics & Diplomacy April 26, 18:13
Tokyo to draw up cooperation plans for South Kurils and heed locals’ opinionsBusiness & Economy April 26, 17:37
Who runs the world? Berlin's W20 women's summit reveals whoWorld April 26, 17:03
TVER, November 23 (Itar-Tass) — Top executives from the Redkino Experimental Plant, whose Director Yevgeny Kurbatov has been missing since Friday after his helicopter got lost in the Tver region, promised to pay 300,000 roubles to anyone who finds the man, a plant spokesman told journalists on Wednesday.
The sixth day of search started with a prayer served by the Father Alexei Frolov, the senior priest of the Church of the Nativity of Christ in the settlement of Rozhdestveno.
Meanwhile, the search has yielded no result so far. The search operation involves about 400 rescuers and aircrafts. The area of the search has been further expanded up to the neighboring Nizhny Novgorod region.
“According to estimates, the helicopter had fuel enough to cover a distance of 650 kilometers. The territory of the Nizhny Novgorod region is within this radius,” the spokesman for the Nizhny Novgorod emergencies administration told Itar-Tass.
The Robinson R44 departed from the settlement of Gorodnya in the Konakovo district on Friday evening. It was supposed to fly to Orshinskiye Bolota and back. The pilot made no contact with the tower. The helicopter emergency buoy activated at 19:15 Moscow time. According to preliminary data, the helicopter had only one person aboard, Redkino Experimental Plant Director Yevgeny Kurbatov, 47. His whereabouts are yet unknown.


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Squirtle slippers for adults
Enjoy some warmth for this winter by donning this pair of Squirtle slippers for adults as padded as they are aesthetic and wear them like a real Pokemon collector.
Ideal for enthusiasts who like the idea of carrying their companion at heart as slippers in the house.
These Squirtle slippers for adults hold within them the power of a real blastoise in the making.
If you love this water starter and are a fan of foam and hydrocanon attacks, then this pair is for you.
Characteristics of these slippers
- One size : suitable for sizes 5.5 in to 9 in
- Grippy sole that protects against falls
- Plush model with original Pokemon design
- Organic cotton slipper for more softness
- FREE STANDARD DELIVERY
Click now on " Add to cart " and receive your Pokemon slippers as soon as possible to wear them at will.

domain: hobby


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Brooks Hall, 2nd Floor Conference Room
1560 University Avenue Charlottesville, VA
Book Artist and Resident Fellow with Virginia Foundation for the Humanities, Frank Brannon, will discuss his work to support Cherokee language revitalization through letterpress printing and share recently completed pieces by student printmaking artists from Southwestern Community College, NC.
The Cherokee written language, known as Cherokee Syllabary, was developed in the 19th century and literacy in the syllabary spread rapidly across the community. Several years after its inception, the language was adapted for letterpress printing with the foundation of the Cherokee Phoenix, an indigenous language newspaper. The paper, which operated out of present day Georgia, was shut down during the events leading to the infamous trail of tears when the Georgia guard seized the printing press the accompanying metal type. Brannon worked with the Cherokee community to recreate the lost type and restore the lost art of Cherokee letterpress to the region.

domain: artistic


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Tirico Replacing Hammond As NBC's Horse Racing Host Report: ESPN Talent Eyes Pay Cut To Avoid Layoffs Stanley Cup Viewership Up On Canadian Outlets Social Studies: Toyota Racing's Jeff O'Keefe NBC's Lead NHL Team Earning Kudos Browns, FS Ohio Reach Multiyear TV Agreement Media Notes NFL Loads Primetime Schedule With Top Draws Jaguars Find New Stations To Show Preseason Games WBZ Tops WEEI In Battle Of Boston Radio
Upcoming Conferences and Events
May 31 - Jun 1
PENGUINS, FOX TRADE BARBS OVER IMPENDING TV RIGHTS SUIT
Published April 23, 1998
The Penguins and Fox Sports Pittsburgh (FSP) execs "are bulking up for a postseason brawl over broadcasting rights," according to Jon Schmitz of the PITTSBURGH POST-GAZETTE. In a court document filed this week, the Penguins "accused Fox of trying to defraud the team and the [NHL] of fees owed for TV rights." Fox officials contend the Penguins are trying to break a contract that gives FSP broadcast rights to Penguins games through the 2008-09 season in order to form their own network, Marino Sports Network. Fox Sports Senior VP/Media Relations Vince Wladika said that the net "felt betrayed" by the Penguins "after bailing the team out of financial binds on several occasions in recent years." Wladika said that FSP "lent" the Penguins $11M in '94, "helped arrange" a $31M loan from Bank of America to the team in '95, and guaranteed a $5M loan in '96 when the Penguins "lacked the credit-worthiness." Wladika said that the team's "financial situation was in such disarray that the network sent its payments for rights fees directly to the bank rather than to the Penguins." In the court document, the Penguins alleged Fox "intentionally" and "deceitfully" underreported the numbers of outer market subscribers to minimize fees it owed. Fox puts the amount in dispute at less than $600,000, but Penguins Dir of Business Development Bill Craig, a former FSP exec, said the fee owed by Fox "might be twice" that. Wladika: "Not even remotely true." As for the loans to the team, Craig said they were "cold, hard" business deals: "Fox is not noted for being in the social welfare business. To portray this as some benevolent act on their part is absurd" (PITTSBURGH POST-GAZETTE, 4/22). The case is scheduled for trial June 29 (David Brown, Pittsburgh TRIBUNE-REVIEW, 4/22).


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Breakfast is worth getting up for! Help your family start the day off right by eating breakfast. If you don't have time, get breakfast foods ready the night before or try getting up 15 minutes earlier.
Are your mornings so hectic that you or your family skip breakfast? Do you know that children who eat breakfast tend to be more alert and learn better in the classroom than children who do not eat breakfast? Here are some tips to help your family start the day off with a healthy breakfast:
- Get breakfast foods ready the night before
- Get up 15 minutes earlier to give yourself time to prepare breakfast
- Offer foods that you can prepare quickly such as fruit, cereal, toast, toaster waffles, milk, and yogurt
- Heat up last night's dinner leftovers
- If you are short on time, grab a cereal bar and a piece of fruit or cup of yogurt on your way out the door.


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April 22, 2013, Ann Arbor, MI—Dzanc Books is pleased to announce that Joshua R. Helms is the winner of our 2012 poetry award. Helms’ manuscript, Machines Like Us, was selected by contest judge, C. Dale Young, from more than 100 submissions. This collection will be published in September 2014.
C. Dale Young notes: "Machines Like Us is a dark and deeply obsessive book. It is almost impossible to forget the three primary characters in this collection after witnessing their twisted and repetitive attempts to connect, after witnessing the fact they cannot separate acts of love from acts of harm."
"I’m so very excited to have my first collection of poetry chosen by C. Dale Young and published by Dzanc,” Helms reacted. “I have great respect and admiration for the books Dzanc produces and I’m beyond honored to be among the authors they publish. I’m extremely happy that my collection has found a home with such a wonderful press."
ABOUT JOSHUA R. HELMS
Joshua R. Helms lives in Tuscaloosa, where he’s an MFA candidate at the University of Alabama. His poems have appeared in Copper Nickel, DIAGRAM,Phoebe, and Sixth Finch, among others. Machines Likes Us is his first collection of poetry.
ABOUT C. DALE YOUNG
C. Dale Young is the author of three collections of poetry, the most recent beingTorn (Four Way 2011). A recipient of fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts, the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation, and the Rockefeller Foundation, he practices medicine full-time, edits poetry for the New England Review, and teaches in the Warren Wilson MFA Program for Writers.


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Again, not much done this week because of wedding planning and job stress. ^^;
However, I got through 3 chapters of A History of Western Philosophy:
- The Rise of Science
- Francis Bacon
- Hobbes’s Leviathan
(and a little bit into Descartes but I’ll leave that for next time…)
“The Rise of Science” summarizes the work of Copernicus, Kepler, Galileo, and Newton. It talks about how Protestantism led the way for the rise of science because it broke up of the Roman Church into national churches, which weakened the Church so it was less able to suppress science. Continue reading
I’ve been following Charlie Jane Anders’ career for a couple of years now, and so I was super excited when I heard that she released a science fiction/fantasy novel. She was a writer and editor at i09, a science, science fiction, and pop culture news blog. Charlie Jane Anders is also the host of Writers with Drinks, a cross-genre reading series which you should definitely go to at least once if you like science fiction or literature and live in the San Francisco Bay Area. Before All the Birds she published two short stories for Tor, a coming-of-age novel about a choir boy, and a humorous guide to casual crossdressing for men and transwomen (The Lazy Crossdresser).
Since i09 and Writers with Drinks are both crossgenre mashups, it’s not surprising that All the Birds in the Sky follows suit, sitting directly on the line between science fiction and fantasy and refusing to be pushed to either side. The structure of the story weaves the two threads of magic and technology together as well as is probably possible (the plot does have a couple of holes, I’ll get into those later). It’s about a girl named Patricia who’s a witch and a boy named Laurence who is a computer wizard. The story starts with the main characters in middle school, skips a few years, and then picks up their story again when they are young adults living and working in San Francisco. Continue reading
Another week, another, uh… 25 pages.
Oy this book goes slow!
I’ve been reading A History of Western Philosophy by Bertrand Russell, slowly, a couple of pages every morning. It’s kind of relaxing but I wish I could read faster and I don’t know how much of it will stick. I’m taking notes and I’m planning to go back through them and type them up at the end (and probably post them here as a kind of very informal, personal Cliff’s Notes).
Anyway, I got 25 pages into the Modern Philosophy section, though the chapters on “The Italian Renaissance”, “Machiavelli”, “Erasmus and More” (Thomas More), and “The Reformation and Counter-Reformation”. In these chapters, Russell points that the corruption of the Church in Renaissance Italy and the strife over religion during the Reformation pushed people towards secular modes of thought. Continue reading
It’s not dead, it just looks that way…
I realize I haven’t posted in a while, and this is for two reasons:
- Life Stuff – I’m engaged! And we bought a house! Unpacking boxes + decorating has taken a significant chunk out of my reading time. Also Fanime happened and my parents came to visit and…
- I’ve been reading one very long somewhat dry book that I started the summer of 2013 and have been reading off and on. It’s A History of Western Philosophy by Bertrand Russell.
I really love Bertrand Russell’s writing style. He never shies away from making a statement and he peppers his history with bits of dry snark (not so much that it distracts from the subject matter… maybe every 25, 50, 100 pages). Continue reading
If you’ve ever studied Japanese at university or you’ve applied to a job that involved knowledge of Japanese, you’ve probably been asked some variation of this question: “Why did you decide to study Japanese?” On its face it seems like a simple question, but as most people who have taken Japanese in school know, the majority of Westerners learning Japanese are doing so in order to watch anime or read manga in the original language. You could give the honest answer: “I am learning Japanese because I like manga and anime”, but this brands you with the stigma of otaku. You don’t want your interviewer to think you are lazy, annoying, or anti-social, but unfortunately this the impression most people have of otaku. So how do you answer the question honestly while sounding like a professional?
You can tell a story, like “My best friend in 3rd grade was from Japan and we used to watch Doraemon and other Japanese shows together” or “I’ve been interested in Japanese art and culture since I learned how to make paper cranes in middle school.”
If some of your family is Japanese, you can give that as a reason, or talk about family vacations in Japan or plans to visit Japan in the future.
But what if you don’t have any friends or family who speak Japanese? Continue reading

domain: library


Winter Storm Watch
Statement as of 2:49 AM CST on December 04, 2013
... Winter Storm Watch in effect from Friday morning through
The National Weather Service in Memphis has issued a Winter Storm
Watch... which is in effect from Friday morning through Friday
* Snow/sleet/ice accumulations... one quarter to one half of an
inch of ice accumulation. Less than one inch of snow and sleet
* Timing... 9 am Friday morning through 9 PM Friday evening.
* Impacts... very hazardous travel. The potential for some down
tree branches and power lines... that may lead to scattered power
A Winter Storm Watch means there is a potential for significant
snow... sleet... or ice accumulations that may impact travel.
Continue to monitor the latest forecasts.
Nearby Radar Stations