A new robot developed by a Disney research team is an impressive feat of robotics,media The Verge reported. Gizmodo reports that the new robot can mimic human facial movements, especially winking and subtle head movements.
Sensors in its chest area alert the robot when to turn face-to-face before its eye movements change from direct eye contact to fast eye movements known as sacs. It also moves slightly up and down, mimicking breathing.
The robot was developed by engineers from Walt Disney Fantasy Engineering, Disney’s research division, and robotics researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and the California Institute of Technology.
Although most humanoid robots generally focus on a person’s face and stay there, it does not interact with each other. The Disney team explained in its paper, “Real and Interactive Robotic Gaze.”
Gaze has proven to be a key social signal that shapes perceptions of interactive partners. For example, people who make more eye contact with us are perceived to be similar to us and to be smarter, more serious, more sincere, and more trustworthy. In addition, the eye seems to convey complex social and emotional states.
Given the importance of gaze in social interaction and its ability to communicate state and shape perception, it is clear that gaze can be an important tool for interactive robot roles. Therefore, the purpose of this work is to develop a system to simulate human-like mutual gaze.
It’s not hard to imagine how Disney might use the technology, for example, for animated characters at its theme parks. The company’s research department has been working to create more realistic robots; in 2018, it launched the Stickman robot, which can be flipped in mid-air “to get close to the height of a human stuntman with its arms raised above its head.”


Packaging materials for high pressure thermal sterilisation
- How does it work?
- What can it be used for?
- What can it not be used for?
- Related Facilities
- Further Information
|Key words||High pressure sterilisation, packaging material, multilayer film, barrier|
How does it work?
|Primary objective||Packaging material which is resistant to the specific conditions of high pressure thermal sterilisation (high pressure and temperature)|
|Working principle|| High pressure thermal sterilisation is a novel preservation process where the packaged food and chamber is preheated to temperatures between 60 and 90°C. Temperatures can reach 90°C to 130°C during compression at pressures of 600 MPa or greater. The integrity of the packaging materials during this process is of critical importance to the safety and shelf life of the food product. Only a few packaging materials (namely nylon, EVOH, PET, PP, aluminum oxide (AlOx) coating, and Al or metalized layer ) can survive this process. Several multilayered films produced from these materials are commercially available and have been characterized and evaluated for suitability to the high pressure thermal sterilisation.
Another aspect to consider about a packaging material is its behavior as a barrier to heat. The headspace left inside the package as well as internal stresses from the vacuum created are additional factors that affects heat and mass transfer. During preheating and cooling steps, the packaging material constitutes an intermediate barrier in the transfer of heat from the heating medium into the product and from the product to the cooling medium. During the pressurization stage, packaging material such as polypropylene has been shown to act as an insulating barrier. It prevents heat loss from the product and slows down the heating rate of the product .
High pressure thermal sterilisation increases the seal strength of foil-laminated pouches. However it does not significantly contribute to changes in seal strength of plastic-laminated pouches. It can alter also the oxygen barrier of the composite packaging materials [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7].
|Additional effects||Possibility of migration and scalping effect for some compounds (e.g. aroma compounds- 2-hexanone, ethyl butanoate, ethyl hexanoate, d-limonene) and materials (low density polyethylene (LDPE), polylactate (PLA)) [8, 9]|
|Important process parameters|| temperature, pressure
Packaging conditions: headspace left inside the package, internal stresses after the vacuum packaging
|Important product parameters|| thermal diffusivity, thickness, seal strength, overall integrity, oxygen permeability and water vapour, max. temperature, light permeability for light sensitive products
The thickness of the material, as well as its thermal diffusivity, can affect the rate of heat conduction to (or from) the product during preheating (or cooling).
What can it be used for?
|Products||All products which can be processed by high pressure thermal sterilisation ( none commercially thus far)|
|Operations||Packaging of products|
|Solutions for short comings||There is a need for materials with good barrier and mechanical properties for high pressure thermal sterilisation|
What can it NOT be used for?
|Products||Products with sharp shape which can damage the packaging material|
|Other limitations|| Some type of packaging foil materials can separate or delaminate under temperature or pressure stress (e.g. between the PP and Al layers);
they can also partly loose its oxygen barrier ability . Increasing of gas permeability can be caused by thermal damage occurring during preheating
|Risks or hazards||There is a possible risk for migration of compounds from the packaging material (e.g. alkanes, alkenes, benzene compounds etc.).|
|Maturity||There exist some packaging materials which have been tested for high pressure thermal sterilisation. New types of packaging materials with better properties are still developed. The high pressure thermal sterilisation operation itself is not mature and still under development.|
|Modularity /Implementation||Special type of heat seal vacuum equipment is required for closing of some pouches|
|Consumer aspects||There is a growing demand for safer food products of higher quality. The packaging material (delamination etc.) plays also a major role for the appearance of the product.|
|Legal aspects||No legal aspects|
|Environmental aspects|| Directive 2004/12/EC2
Although the individual components of laminates and metallized films are technically recyclable, the difficulty in sorting and separating the material precludes economically feasible recycling.
Facilities that might be interesting for you
|Institutes||UMII - IATE, UNINA - DSA, CSIRO, IIT|
|Companies||Sealed Air Corp., Amcor Flexibles, Tefeng plastic, EVAL Europe|
|References||  Koutchma Tatiana; Song Yoonseok; Setikaite Ilona; et al. (2010): PACKAGING EVALUATION FOR HIGH-PRESSURE HIGH-TEMPERATURE STERILIZATION OF SHELF-STABLE FOODS, JOURNAL OF FOOD PROCESS ENGINEERING, 33 (6): 1097-1114
 Koutchma, T. and Marcotte, M. (2009): High hydrostatic pressure processing of foods: challenges for pasteurization and sterilization. 8th World Congress of Chemical Engineering, Montreal, Canada, 23–27 August.
 Bull M. K.; Steele R. J.; Kelly M.; et al. (2010): Packaging under pressure: Effects of high pressure, high temperature processing on the barrier properties of commonly available packaging materials, INNOVATIVE FOOD SCIENCE & EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES , 11 (4): 533-537
 Huseyin Ayvaz (2010): Influence of Packaging Material and Storage Conditions on the Quality Attributes of Pressure-Assisted Thermally Processed Carrots, Electronic Thesis or Dissertation , Ohio State University  Fairclough J. P.A., Conti M. (2009): Influence of ultra-high pressure sterilization on the structure of polymer films, Packaging Technology and Science, 22 (5): 303–310
 Hartmann, C., and Delgado, A. (2003): The Influence of Transport Phenomena During High-Pressure Processing of Packed Food on The Uniformity of Enzyme Inactivation, Biotechnol. Bioeng. 82(6):725–735.
 Barbosa-Cánovas, G.V. and P. Juliano. (2008): Food Sterilization by combining High Pressure and Thermal Energy. In: Food Engineering: Integrated Approaches, G.F. Gutiérrez-López, G.V. Barbosa-Cánovas, J. Welti-Chanes, E. Parada Arias, pp. 9-46.
 Mauricio-Iglesias M, Jansana S, Peyron S, Gontard N, Guillard V.(2010): Effect of high-pressure/temperature (HP/T) treatments of in-package food on additive migration from conventional and bio-sourced materials, Food Addit Contam Part A Chem Anal Control Expo Risk Assess, 27(1):118-27.
 Mauricio-Iglesias M., Peyron S., Chalier P., Gontard N. (2011): Scalping of four aroma compounds by one common (LDPE) and one biosourced (PLA
temperature, pressure Packaging conditions: headspace left inside the package, internal stresses after the vacuum packagingwarning.png"temperature, pressure Packaging conditions: headspace left inside the package, internal stresses after the vacuum packaging" cannot be used as a page name in this wiki. thermal diffusivity, thickness, seal strength, overall integrity, oxygen permeability and water vapour, max. temperature, light permeability for light sensitive products
The thickness of the material, as well as its thermal diffusivity, can affect the rate of heat conduction to (or from) the product during preheating (or cooling).warning.png"thermal diffusivity, thickness, seal strength, overall integrity, oxygen permeability and water vapour, max. temperature, light permeability for light sensitive products
The thickness of the material, as well as its thermal diffusivity, can affect the rate of heat conduction to (or from) the product during preheating (or cooling)." cannot be used as a page name in this wiki. High Pressure equipment 2.2.2, 2.2.5 physical stabilizing, packaging other Web of science: Packaging materials high pressure sterilisation - 22 articles were found, no all are relevant, also sources from internet (Google) were used. WikiSysop :Template:Review document :Template:Review status


text:
3rd Annual Hope For Santa Monica Summer BBQ
What an amazing success!!
We would like to especially thank everyone who partnered with us, who volunteered and who donated! As you know it is our goal to help those who may feel lost and hopeless feel LOVED. Even if it's through a simple act of kindness, like providing a hot meal and a listening ear.
Thank you for helping us make this all possible.

domain: sociology


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A number of jobs are going to be created in the banking sector in the coming days. This will happen as the government and Reserve Bank of India push the initiative to increase financial inclusion in India. Much of the growth of banking sector will now take place in rural areas as lack of financial inclusion is maximal in the rural parts of the country.
Therefore banks will give preference to those candidates who are willing to work in the rural parts. The rural parts of the country suffer from many infrastructural bottlenecks such as shortage of electricity. Those who have grown up in cities often find it difficult to work in rural parts because of these infrastructural problems. On the other hand those who have grown up in rural areas are well-adjusted to living in these areas. Candidates coming from the rural parts, therefore, have a big opportunity for getting hired in the banking sector in the near future.
Recently, the Reserve Bank of India gave two new banking licenses. One of these licenses was given to Bandhan. Bandhan, headquartered in Kolkata, is already the country’s biggest Microfinance Institution (MFI). An MFI gives small loans, usually in the range of Rs 100 to Rs 10000, to poor customers without asking for any security. In turn the MFI charges a slightly higher interest rate than banks, to cover the risk of lending to poor people, without any security.
Bandhan has been extremely successful as an MFI. Its MFI business is now worth more than Rs 10000 crore. Now as Bandhan graduates to a full bank, it has said that its focus will remain on the rural markets. Its core competency now lies in operating in the rural parts, as it understands well the challenges of these parts of the country. Bandhan will open majority of its banking branches in these rural parts. It is in the process of hiring more people who are willing to work in its bank branches in the rural parts.
In such a scenario knowledge of banking & financial services operations is a very valuable skill. Those coming from the rural parts can increase their employability quotient by getting trained in the operations of banking & financial services.

domain: news


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Peekskill's winter parking restrictions are in force
The Westchester Diner, an institution in Peekskill for decades, said on Facebook that it expects to close. Wochit
PEEKSKILL - The city's winter parking restrictions are in effect through April 15.
Parking is banned on city streets from 8 p.m. until 8 a.m., except for areas posted with signs for winter alternate side of the street parking, according to the city's website.
Among other things, alternate street parking for street sweeping is suspended during the Dec. 1 to April 15 winter parking rules,
Violating the parking restrictions carries a fine that starts at $50.
If a state of emergency is declared, such as for winter weather, a fine rises to $150.
Vehicles may also be towed at owner's expense anytime a vehicle interferes with snow plowing and removal.


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Good fats vs Bad Fats. Educate yourself on healthy fats vs unhealthy fats. Don't be afraid to have fats in your diet!
Leopard vs. Eagle vs. Lion vs. Hyena - YouTube
Watch Browns vs Eagles NFL Football LIVE
Patriots vs Cardinals live stream more :: https://livestream.com/accounts/21451030
What makes Thanksgiving football even better? A Big Sean performance! The rapper was the star of the halftime show at the Detroit Lions vs. Philadelphia Eagles game Nov. and he absolutely rocked it!
Welcome to Get Access Online Coverage Lions vs Jets Live Stream. NFL Full Season Directly On Your PC, Laptop and Mobile. Here you can watch easily between L
Carolina Panthers vs Houston Texans Live Stream. You can watch Carolina Panthers vs Houston Texans Football Game Live Stream this match on TV channel ABC, N
Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs Jacksonville Jaguars football live. streaming online. You can watch Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs Jacksonville Jaguars football live strea
Snow Bowl - Lions Vs. Eagles: December 8
Be over happy ever before by looking at this match 49ers vs Lions live. How to look at exciting NFL soccer 49ers vs Lions live on-line Stream? As my thinking that each soccer lovers area unit waiting to watch todays…Read more ›

domain: entertainment


text: Aims Some asthma patients remain symptomatic despite using high doses of inhaled corticosteroids (ICS). combination with dexamethasone significantly improved cytokine inhibition compared with either drug only (< 0.001) in all groups. This effect was higher in corticosteroid NBR13 insensitive compared with sensitive individuals. There were significant synergistic dose-sparing effects (< 0.05) for the combination treatment on inhibition of TNF, IL-6 and CXCL-8 in all organizations. There was also significant effectiveness enhancing benefits (< 0.05) on TNF and IL-6. Conclusions p38 MAPK inhibitors synergistically enhance effectiveness of corticosteroids in macrophages from asthma individuals. This effect is definitely higher in corticosteroid insensitive asthma individuals, suggesting that this class of drug should be geared to this individual phenotype. ramifications of corticosteroids on cytokine creation from alveolar macrophages are low in sufferers with serious asthma 7,10. This insensitivity to the consequences of corticosteroids mirrors the scientific circumstance where many sufferers with serious asthma respond badly to ICS. The assessment of alveolar macrophages may be a surrogate for the clinical response to corticosteroids. Such biomarkers of medication response may be useful within a individualized medication strategy, where treatment is normally tailored regarding to specific specific features 11. p38 MAPK inhibitors decrease cytokine creation from individual alveolar macrophages 12C14. p38 MAPK activation in alveolar macrophages is normally corticosteroid insensitive. Corticosteroids haven't any influence on the phosphorylation of p38 MAPK or its downstream focus on, heat shock proteins 27, in lipopolysaccharide (LPS) activated alveolar macrophages 14. It really is known that merging corticosteroids and p38 MAPK inhibitors causes better anti-inflammatory results on alveolar macrophages and peripheral bloodstream mononuclear cells from asthmatics weighed against either drug by itself 15,16. Nevertheless, to see whether this mixture impact is normally additive or synergistic correctly, it's important to perform complete dosage?response curves with both medicines alone and with the medicines combined 14,17. We've used this strategy to show that corticosteroids and p38 MAPK inhibitors possess additive and synergistic results on cytokine creation from COPD alveolar macrophages 14. The purpose of this paper was to recognize corticosteroid insensitive individuals with asthma also to study the anti-inflammatory great things about p38 MAPK inhibition in these individuals. We utilized alveolar macrophages like a biomarker of corticosteroid level of sensitivity and studied the consequences of merging a p38 MAPK inhibitor with corticosteroids. We've looked into whether an additive or synergistic discussion happens between these medicines in corticosteroid insensitive and delicate macrophages through the use of full dosage?response curves with both medicines alone and with the medicines combined Otamixaban (FXV 673) manufacture 14,17. Strategies Study subjects Individuals with a earlier physician analysis of asthma had been recruited. All topics were necessary to become lifelong nonsmokers. Individuals were classified into GINA organizations predicated on treatment; brief performing -adrenoceptor agonist only use (GINA stage 1; = 8), ICS make use of (GINA stage 2; = 10), and ICS and lengthy performing 2-adrenoceptor agonist (LABA) make use of (GINA stage three or four 4; = 12). Individuals performed spirometry for dimension of FEV1 and reversibility to inhaled salbutamol (200?g), the asthma control questionnaire (ACQ), pores and skin prick tests using house dirt mite, kitty and grass things that trigger allergies and exhaled nitric oxide (eNO) in 50?ml?s?1 (Niox, Aerocrine, Sweden). All topics gave written educated consent. The analysis was authorized by the neighborhood study ethics committee NRES Committee Otamixaban (FXV 673) manufacture North Western C Greater Manchester South (Primary REC REF: 06/Q1403/156). Bronchoscopy Bronchoscopies had been performed as previously referred to 18 with a complete instilled level of 480?ml. Broncho-alveolar lavage Otamixaban (FXV 673) manufacture (BAL) fluid was placed on ice. Cytospins were prepared by cytocentrifugation at 7000?< 0.05 was considered significant. I> 0.05 for all comparisons; see Figure?S1). LPS increased the secretion of these proteins, with no difference between groups observed (anova > 0.05 for all comparisons; Figure?S1). Effects of dexamethasone Dexamethasone significantly reduced LPS stimulated secretion of TNF, IL-6 and CXCL-8 from alveolar macrophages in a concentration-dependent manner in all three GINA groups (Figure?1). The top of the dose?response curve was observed by 300?nm. The magnitude of cytokine inhibition at this concentration (maximal inhibition) was reduced in GINA 3/4 patients compared with GINA 1 and GINA 2 patients as shown in Table?2, e.g. IL-6 maximal inhibition was 87%, 71% and 47% in GINA 1, 2 and 3/4, respectively. The drug effect was significantly lower in GINA 3/4 patients compared with GINA 1 and GINA 2 for TNF (= 0.02 and = 0.03, respectively), weighed against GINA 1 for CXCL-8 (= 0.005) and getting close to significance weighed against GINA 1 for IL-6 (= Otamixaban (FXV 673) manufacture 0.05). Another evaluation of maximal inhibition using the installed dosage?response curves also showed a big change between organizations for TNF (= 1.14 10?8), IL-6 (= 3.03 10?8) and CXCL-8 (= 3.31 10?8). The.

domain: literature


The Olympic Club Becomes First Golf Club in North America to Publish a Corporate Social Responsibility Report
January 5, 2017
One of America's oldest private athletic clubs redefines what it means to be a top 100 clubDemonstrates 89% recycled water use, 76% waste diversion rate, and more than $600,000 in corporate giving in 2015
SAN FRANCISCO, CA (January 4, 2017) The Olympic Club, based in San Francisco, host of five U.S. Opens and one of America’s oldest athletic clubs, released its 2016 Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) report today, sharing its progress toward environmental, social, and economic sustainability. The report, developed in collaboration with IMPACT360 Sports, a women-owned independent third party, marks the first comprehensive CSR report in North America within the golf industry, redefining what it means to be a top 100 course and athletic club.
The Olympic Club ranked 33rd on Golf Digest’s “America’s 100 Greatest Courses” list in 2015 and has attained ranking every year since 1966. With today’s announcement, The Club elevates its status as the first U.S. course to publish a CSR report showing transparency in operations related to the environment, community, and economy – while exhibiting the aesthetics, performance, and playability of a top 100 course.
“We hope to display leadership in the sports industry, and golf industry in particular, to be good stewards of the environment, while promoting community engagement, and making a positive economic impact,” said The Olympic Club General Manager Pat Finlen.
“We want to grow the game of golf and our 17 other sports within the Club; and we are committed to doing it in a sustainable manner.”
According to the Golf Course Superintendents Association, recycled water accounts for 25 percent of all water used on golf courses in the United States. The Olympic Club reports that recycled water accounts for 89 percent of water used at its athletic club and golf courses combined, with recycled water accounting for 97 percent of water used at its golf course alone.
“Our Board is proud of the connected culture we have at The Olympic Club, which includes our 10,440 members, 450 employees, and partners,” said The Olympic Club Board President John A. Espiritu. “It takes all of us working together to achieve 89 percent recycled water use and a 76 percent waste diversion rate, while helping more than 100,000 children in our communities.”
With golf re-entering the Olympics in 2016 and a growing opportunity to engage the millennial market segment, there is a heightened focus on the environment and increasing diversity within the sport worldwide.“With more than 15,000 courses in the United States, The Olympic Club is elevating its commitment to the environment, diversity, and community within an industry that needs to embrace sustainability to grow the game,” said IMPACT360 Sports Co-Founder Aubrey McCormick. “As a former professional golfer, I am particularly proud of The Olympic Club. Fans and future golfers are going to align with athletes and courses that share their values. CSR reporting and sustainability will be increasingly important.”
Read the full press release here. (https://www.impact360group.com/news/2016/12/27/olympic)


Data Compression and Encryption Algorithms
The algorithms for balancing splay-trees, a form of self-adjusting binary search tree invented by Dan Sleator and analyzed by Bob Tarjan, can be adapted to the job of balancing the trie used within a prefix code. This was reported in the paper Applications of Splay Trees to Data Compression by Douglas W. Jones in Communications of the ACM, Aug. 1988, pages 996-1007.
The following C code implementing this algorithm is available:
The final piece of code listed above is roughly comparable to the commonly used UNIX compress and uncompress utilities based on LZW compression. The user interface is largely compatable, and it compresses about as well, although not quite as quickly.
Splay compression performs unexpectedly well on images! It typically performs as well as the LZW model used in the GIF image format, while consiming considerably less memory. This is because the algorithm is locally adaptive. Scanning images along a Hilbert curve instead of along a conventional raster improves the performance by allowing more effective local adaption. The following software was used to demonstrate this:
The splay-compression utility is actually a subset of a more interesting utility that contained some additional cryptographic features. That code cannot (as far as I know) be exported from the United States. The basic idea of the cryptographic features (an idea used by Lotus in their product Ami Pro) is to condition the initial code tree used for data compression by the successive characters of the encryption key before use.
The Lotus Ami Pro version of the algorithm is insecure (deliberately, in order to allow export). In addition to conditioning the initial code tree with the password, they also include the password (encoded as a string of two digit decimal numbers) as a prefix on the data to be compressed and encrypted. As a result, if the password is purely alphabetic (and therefore doesn't mess up the encoding of the digits), the decimal form of the password can be inferred fairly easily. The situation is modestly more complex if the password is partially numeric. The weaknesses (and details) of the Lotus Ami Pro encryption scheme were reported to me by Paul C. Kocher (firstname.lastname@example.org).
The weakness of Lotus's approach can be patched by removing the password from the head of the string being encrypted, and replacing it by a randomly chosen prefix. This makes known plaintext attacks difficult by using the random prefix to "stir up the tree" prior to the occurance of any known data.
Splay encryption is vulnerable to a chosen plaintext attacks! There are sequences of bytes that will expose the current state of the tree to someone who examines the compressed data, thus allowing any following data to be decoded. It may be possible to patch this weakness by a combination of run-length encoding and the insertion of random data at periodic points in the string to be encrypted, where these points must be spaced sufficiently closely to break the chosen plaintext string into short segments. More detail on thiese suggestions is available.
None of the comments about patching the weakness of splay-tree based encryption should be taken as any assurance that the patched result is very secure! It is only an accident that splay trees are useful for encryption, and the security of variants on the algorithm is still largely an open question.
A full version of the splay-tree compression program, including the cryptographic features stripped from the version released over the Web, is available by E-mail from the author.
The comp.compression FAQ is a good general source of references on this entire subject area. There is also an excellent list of compression pointers on the web, sorted by author and by substance.
In the spring of 1993, I taught 22C:16, Introduction to Programming in Pascal. Every semester I've taught this course, I try to find a "theme" around which to organize my programming assignments. For the spring of 1993, I decided to use some very elementary cryptography as the subject matter for programming assignments.
Machine problem zero was, not surprisingly, to run a program I gave them that printed "Hello World". Machine problem one was also unrelated to the theme, but all following machine problems revolved around real (although trivial) cryptographic problems.


Snap launches Spectacles.com, an e-commerce site where shoppers can buy sunglasses with a built-in camera.
Black is back this year and its use by online consumers in connection with the day after Thanksgiving is growing, says web measurement firm Hitwise. But that doesn’t necessarily mean increased sales for e-retailers.
Black is back this year and its use by online consumers in connection with the day after Thanksgiving is growing, but that doesn’t necessarily mean increased sales for e-retailers, web measurement firm Hitwise says.
The term Black Friday-synonymous with the day after Thanksgiving-is evolving from a retailing insider phrase to one commonly understood by online consumers, says Heather Dougherty, director of research for Hitwise. Traffic to web sites dedicated to promoting Black Friday sales, such as Bfads.com and BlackFriday.info was up 58% last week, after growing 48% during the week before Thanksgiving last year, says Dougherty. However, 36% of shoppers leaving such sites next visit the web sites of retailers that Hitwise says mainly sell in stores. “These deal sites mainly cater to the brick-and mortar channels,” she says.
The top retail web sites visited by consumers coming from Black Friday sites were Walmart.com, Sears.com and CircuitCity.com, Hitwise reports.
But that doesn’t mean e-retailers should stop using the term in their online promotions. Hitwise found 1,700 variations of the term “Black Friday” entered in search engines in the week before Thanksgiving week, up 47% over pre-Thanksgiving week last year. And, more consumers are combining the terms with retailer names, entering such phrases as “Black Friday Wal-Mart,” she adds. In 2006, 40% of searches containing the phrase Black Friday included retailer names; last year that figure rose to 51% she says. Data for this year is not yet available. While traffic to retail web sites overall is flat compared to the week before Thanksgiving last year, according to Hitwise, the news is not all doom and gloom for e-retailers. Most online consumers still plan to do at least some shopping on the web during the holidays and more plan to turn to the internet for the majority of their holiday purchases, according to a new survey from comparison shopping engine PriceGrabber.com.
The PriceGrabber poll of 2,641 online consumers found 97% plan to shop on the web for holiday gifts this year and 55% plan to do more than half their holiday shopping online, up 10% from last year. 37% surveyed say online shopping appeals to them because it makes it easier to compare products and find the lowest price, and 24% percent say they like being able to shop anytime and anywhere.
Online consumers also are being more cautious about how they spend their dollars. 37.6% of shoppers in the PriceGrabber study say they will use comparison shopping web sites to find the best deals and 61.2% say they are making a concerted effort to cut back on spending this year.
For those e-retailers still gearing up for the holiday rush, they have until exactly 10:25 a.m. on Friday, Nov. 28, to brace for the masses. That’s the minute payment card issuer and processor Retail Decisions predicts will be the busiest of the for online holiday shopping season. The busiest hour will occur from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. that day. Runner-up will be the Monday after Thanksgiving, between 9 a.m. and 10 a.m., Retail Decisions says.


text:
Libraries are magical -- their scent alone is of a higher order -- and certainly canít be replicated in the digital age, despite the wonders of the iBooks app for the iPad. The Morgan Library & Museum on Madison Avenue, as if celebrating the recent restoration of its Charles Follen McKim-designed High Renaissance-style library building, is now presenting a small exhibition entitled "Great European Libraries: Photographs by Massimo Listri," Dec. 10, 2010-Jan. 9, 2011. These 23 large-format color Lambda prints, all made between 1989 and 2009 by the accomplished Florence-based architectural photographer, take you right inside each of these galleries, momentarily at least, and it is hard to resist taking a deep breath in hopes of being able to smell the spaces as well.
The Morgan Library itself is not among these photographs, of course, which include 12 in Listriís native Italy. Books are kept below pew-like desks flanking a central nave in the Malatestiana Library in Cesena, Sicily, a space completed in 1454, with white-washed walls, a web-vaulted ceiling and a cool, terracotta-titled floor. Though the library has scant decoration, each row of desks bears the Malatesta coat of arms.
In contrast, in the lavish Rococo library at the Monastery of St. Gall in Switzerland, completed in 1767 and designed by Peter Thumb, decor and books are equally on display. This bi-level space boasts a gilded and painted ceiling depicting, among other ecclesiastical conclaves, the council of Nicea. As one of the worldís foremost monastic libraries, St. Gall holds upwards of 2,000 manuscripts from the 8th through 15th centuries, including no fewer than 1,500 books printed before the year 1500.
Other legendary subjects include the home of the Book of Kells, the revered Trinity College Library in Dublin, with its barrel-vaulted ceiling and busts of famous literary figures at the entrance to each alcove, and the Library of the Hospital of the Innocents in Florence, designed by Filippo Brunelleschi in 1419.
Strangely, while Listriís photographs celebrate the great libraries of Europe, they also hold hidden signs of their obsolescence -- or, at least their transition into monuments of history. Now, if only Listri had been around to take a picture of the Library of Alexandria before that fatal fire.
BEATRICE THORNTON is a contributor to the Magazine Antiques and Modern Magazine.

domain: library


text:
Abercrombie & Fitch Co (ANF.N)
25 Apr 2017
* Arrowstreet Capital, Limited Partnership reports 3.7 percent passive stake in Abercrombie & Fitch as of March 17 versus 5.3 percent stake as of Dec 31 - SEC filing Source text for Eikon: Further company coverage:
March 2 Teen apparel retailer Abercrombie & Fitch Co said it expected its brands to perform better in 2017 and reported the first rise in quarterly comparable sales in a year at its Hollister brand, sending the company's shares up 14 percent.
BRIEF-Abercrombie & Fitch on conf call- Q1 will remain challenging as we sort through assortment issue
* On conf call- in Hollister guys, had strong performance in denim, knit tops and outerwear in Q4
* Q4 earnings per share view $0.75 -- Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S
March 2 U.S. teen apparel retailer Abercrombie & Fitch Co reported a 7 percent drop in quarterly sales on Thursday - the 16th straight quarterly decline - and said a competitive retail environment drove it to promote more.
Feb 16 Ralph Lauren Corp named a Vice Media executive to the newly created role of chief marketing officer and hired Tom Ford International's chief operating officer as a brand president, weeks after the surprise resignation of CEO Stefan Larsson.
* Abercrombie & Fitch Co- board of directors declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.20 per share on class A common stock Source text for Eikon: Further company coverage:
* Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership reports 5.3 percent passive stake in Abercrombie & Fitch Co as of Dec. 31, 2016 - SEC filing Source text (http://bit.ly/2l04Xc4) Further company coverage:
Feb 1 Abercrombie & Fitch Co said on Wednesday that Fran Horowitz, the company's merchandising head, has been promoted to chief executive at the teen apparel retailer.
Nov 22 Urban Outfitters Inc's quarterly comparable sales missed analysts' estimate as fewer shoppers visited its Anthropologie and Free People stores despite higher discounting.
|Gap Inc (GPS.N)||$25.92||+0.05|
|Aeropostale Inc (AROPQ.PK)||$0.03||-0.00|
|American Eagle Outfitters (AEO.N)||$13.96||-0.26|
|Nordstrom, Inc. (JWN.N)||$47.15||-0.08|
|L Brands Inc (LB.N)||$50.60||-0.09|
|Urban Outfitters, Inc. (URBN.OQ)||$23.31||-0.13|
|Guess?, Inc. (GES.N)||$11.37||-0.02|
|Pacific Sunwear of California, Inc. (PSUNQ.PK)||--||--|

domain: economics


Jerry Petherick, managing director for G4S Custodial and Detention Services, said: "The mobilisation of any prison is a complex and challenging operation but the size and scale of Oakwood - the largest prison in the country - made this even more acute.
"As well as the logistical hurdles in new establishments, prisoners test the regime as well as the members of staff, who may be new to prison life.
"We have already taken steps to make improvements, appointing a dedicated task-force to address problem areas, such as the prevalence of drugs, while providing additional funding where necessary. This is starting to yield results."
More top news
21 people died after bombs exploded in two Birmingham pubs in November 1974. Can you help us tell their story?
Julie was 11 when she lost her big sister but has spent her life seeking justice for Maxine and the other 20 victims of the pub bombings.
Brian Davis believes his sister Jane would have gone on to great things if her life hadn’t been cut short in the Birmingham pub bombings.


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Talking with providers can seem intimidating - we get it! Many of us have been taught that the provider has all the power and asking questions might be disrespectful or make them feel bad. A lot of us have also had bad experiences with providers when we ask questions. Our providers have been specially trained to partner with you and listen to your needs. Your voice is important. If you feel uncomfortable asking questions to a provider, try practicing before the appointment. It might seem silly, but try testing them out with another person, in the mirror, or with your pet before your visit. Asking practice questions out loud can help you feel more comfortable when you’re meeting with our provider.
Once you're at your appointment, don't be afraid to ask questions. Your care provider is there to give you advice, guidance, and support right from the start. If any of the answers are not clear, or you have follow-up questions, it’s ok to ask your provider to explain things in a different way or to repeat something.
If you forget to ask something during the appointment, that’s ok! We’ve all had those moments where we thought “AH!!! I can’t believe I forgot to ask about…..” You can always message us with any questions to make sure all your concerns are fully addressed.
It is okay to bring along a friend or loved one who will help you feel more comfortable. It may help to have them learn about our services and how we’re helping you on your recovery journey. To help with your care, we’re going to ask questions about your drug use and medical history so make sure you bring someone who you can be open and honest around.
Have an open discussion and be honest about your drug use and history so that your care provider can give you advice that really helps you and develop a well-informed treatment plan. You have nothing to be ashamed of.
Conversations with your care provider at Confidant Health are confidential, which means that you can comfortably talk about your past.
Getting a lot of information at one time can feel very overwhelming, and there’s no way to remember everything. It can be helpful to take notes of the main points to help follow along. At the end of a visit, many people find it helpful to review the main points or action items (order naloxone kit) to make sure you and the provider are on the same page. It can also be a way to help clarify something you may not understand (“I remember you mentioned ____, what is that for again?”) Again, our support continues after the visit, and we’ll help answer your questions or problem solve things that may come up.

domain: medical


The trigger is the primary interface between a firearm and the person operating the firearm, and is one of the main variables that can determine whether a gun is considered “good” or “bad”. A good trigger can greatly enhance the overall shooting experience and make it much easier to shoot fast and accurately. The common qualities that discerning shooters look for in a good trigger are a desired trigger weight (usually around 5 lbs or more for duty weapons and as low as 2 lbs for competition guns), minimal trigger creep (defined as rearward trigger movement with no sear engagement), a clean break and a short reset. Different types of firearms will have different style of preferred triggers, for the purposes of this review i will be talking only about the AR-15 modern sporting rifle trigger.
The standard mil-spec AR-15 trigger works just fine in my opinion. It is a single stage trigger that usually breaks at about 7 lbs or more of pressure. However it can be gritty and heavier sometimes which is simply par for the course for a mass-produced mil-spec AR-15. Aftermarket triggers improve on the standard mil-spec trigger in several ways that really enhance the feel and performance of the gun. For instance, smoothing out and reducing the weight of the trigger pull makes it easier to shoot without disturbing the sight alignment, and reducing the creep of the trigger should help the shooter know exactly when the trigger will break the shot. Some shooters prefer two-stage triggers over single-stage triggers, but it really comes down to personal preference and how you intend on using the rifle.
I have the most trigger time behind ARs using standard mil-spec triggers, but I do run a 3.5 lb two stage trigger in my competition rifle and i can attest that a lighter trigger makes shooting accurate rapid strings or controlled pairs much easier. The trade off is the risk of accidental discharge when you weren’t intending on firing, which is not something you would want in a duty/service rifle when human lives are at stake, but is well worth the risk of a simple DQ during competition (of course an accidental discharge is always a failure of good personal safety protocols). A smooth, creep-less trigger pull and crisp break is the next best enhancement that a standard AR-15 trigger can benefit from, as it can help with accuracy and shooting rapid strings because you can more easily feel where the break is and accomplish a good clean cadence.
This is where my review of the HIPERTOUCH EDT3 begins. This offering from HIPERFIRE is designed to be the ultimate trigger upgrade for service rifles, and according to the official product page “designed for the broader high performance shooting market typified by three segments: Law Enforcement, NRA-type long-range competition shooting, and the multi-purpose sport, hunting and home defense rifle”. Its important to note that this trigger meets the minimum trigger pull weight requirements of 4.5 lbs for law-enforcement duty rifle and NRA service rifle-type competition. Click here to purchase Your purchase from our affiliate supports Spotter Up!
The Specifications of this trigger are as follows:
- – Drop-In “AR15” Fire-Control for .223/5.56 NATO, 300 BLK, 6.5/6.8 w/ US Primers
- – Enhanced Duty Trigger
- – 2 User-Adjustable Trigger Weights of 4½+ and 5½+ lbs
- – Single Stage, Semi-Auto
- – For Standard AR Lower Receivers Using Small Pins of 0.154-inch Diameter
- – “Hint” of Creep, Slightly Shorter Travel to Break from Moment of Reset
- – Clean Break, Best-In-Class Fast/Positive Reset
- – Faster Hammer Lock-Up than Stock, MIL-spec Strike Energy
- – Heat-Treated Alloy Steels
- – Installs without Removal of the Safety Selector
- – US Patent 9,175,917, Others Pending
- – Made Entirely in the USA by Americans
Additional engineering innovations of this trigger according to the HIPERFIRE product page include: an improved mechanical advantage* and improved hammer and sear design, which allows the trigger weight to be reduced while maintaining a heavy hammer fall, giving this trigger the added reliability and versatility of being effective for heavier cartridges such as .308 Winchester. The trigger design also include a self cleaning feature that allows debris or fouling to fall through the bottom of the disconnector and away from the mechanism, reducing the possibility of trigger failure under adverse environmental conditions. You can read more about the thoughtful and deliberate design features of the EDT series of triggers on the HIPERFIRE website here: https://www.hiperfire.com/product/hipertouchedt/.
*definition of mechanical advantage: the ratio of the force produced by a machine to the force applied to it, used in assessing the performance of a machine
While it wasn’t necessarily designed with run and gun competition shooting in mind, I decided to install this trigger (with the 4.5 lb hammer spring) on my 3 Gun competition rifle in order to put it through its paces and see how well i could run it under the pressure of competitive timed fire. Installation of the trigger was simple and included the standard trigger and hammer assemblies and their respective pins. However, HIPERFIRE made it easier by including a drift pin tool that holds the assemblies in place while you push the pins into position. This was a nice addition and i was grateful for this small simple tool during the installation process.
I ended up putting about between 400-500 rounds through the rifle in two weeks using this trigger, starting with zeroing a variable power scope and doing some distance precision shooting from 200-300 yards on steel, then moving on to movement drills and rapid fire strings between 10-25 yards. Finally i competed in a 3 Gun competition that included 6 timed stages of mostly CQB and some 50 yd small target shooting.
While shooting, the EDT3 performs like the perfect duty trigger. The pull really does have a “hint of creep”, which translates to practically no creep, then there is a clean break with no over travel and a short-but not too short-reset. It takes the feel and mechanics of a standard mil-spec AR trigger and enhances them to as near perfection as you could ask for from this type of trigger.
It definitely does not have the delicate lightweight pull of some of the competition triggers I’ve used, and i found that my trigger pulls had to be more deliberate to find a proper cadence when shooting rapid strings or controlled pairs. This seems like exactly what you would want for tactical shooting scenarios with a duty weapon. For slow precision shooting this trigger really shines. The lack of creep and a clean break means that your trigger pull starts at the wall, and you simply apply direct rearward pressure to break the shot with no other unnecessary movement. The simple, consistent and smooth single stage action is a great compliment to the AR-15 in a designated marksmen rifle (DMR) role.
The most noticeable design feature for me was the “duplex trigger bow”, which is designed to give the shooter two options for “tactical” or “precision” shooting. The curved upper portion of the trigger feels like a traditional AR trigger and will give a slightly heavier trigger pull weight for tactical applications. The flat tip of the trigger will yield slightly lower trigger pull weights and is better suited for breaking slower precision shots. I think this is a really cool design and i made sure to try both aspects during bench rest precision shooting and competition. Using the curved portion of the trigger bow was instinctive when shooting fast CQB style on close targets, but when i had to catch my breath after running the length of a 50 yard bay and line up precise shots on small targets, it made sense for my finger to find the flat tip of the trigger to break the slower precise distance shots (which i shot clean). I really love this elegant and effective trigger design.
Overall i think that this is an excellent upgrade for a duty rifle, and i will be permanently installing it into my training/defensive carbine where it is perfectly suited for tactical/defensive shooting. This trigger is a definite performance enhancement for those looking to get the most out of their duty rifles affordably (MSRP $99), while maintaining trigger pull characteristics similar to the standard mil-spec AR-15 trigger.
Material Disclosure: I received the trigger from Spotterup and was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have shared are my own.


The federal carbon tax rises by ten dollars a ton today.
The price on pollution is now 40 dollars a ton.
As a result many Canadians will have to pay more at the gas pump or simply to heat their homes, but they will also get a bigger tax rebate cheque from Ottawa when they file their taxes next year.
The yearly increase is part of a national plan introduced by the government of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in 2018 to combat climate change.
Under the Greenhouse Gas Pollution Pricing Act, the federal government introduced the carbon pricing system for provinces which do not have an adequate carbon pricing model of their own, it was also recently held up by the Supreme Court of Canada after being challenged for it’s constitutionality by Saskatchewan, Alberta and Ontario.
The tax started at 20 dollars per ton in 2019 and will rise ten dollars per ton each year until reaching 50 dollars per ton in 2022.


text:
Pulmonology is the specialty that deals with diseases of the respiratory tract and respiratory disease. It is called as chest medicine or respiratory medicine which often involves evaluation of the upper respiratory tract (nose, pharynx and throat) as well as the lung.
Due to increasing urbanization, pollution is also increasing and the incidence of smoking is on the rise. This leads to an increased rate of people suffering from lung diseases.
Fortunately, outlook for people with this disease has been improving, due to more awareness, newer diagnostic modalities and more effective medical treatments.
Marengo CIMS Hospital Pulmonary Medicine department deals with all kind of lung problems from simple to complex. It deals primarily with following diseases:
- Allergic rhinitis
- Bronchial asthma – from simple to resistant Asthma
- COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease)
- Pulmonary tuberculosis – simple, MDR and XDR TB
- Interstitial lung diseases
- Pulmonary embolism
- Pneumonia – simple as well as serious pneumonia
- Occupational lung diseases
- Pleural diseases
- All kind of critically ill patient with respiratory problems
- Lung cancer
- Snoring and sleep apnea syndrome
- Any other rare, undiagnosed and complicated lung disease
Procedure / Facilities Available
- PFT-Basic as well as advanced PFT which is essential for early diagnosis of lung diseases
- Interventional Bronchoscopy Center-It is one of best centers for bronchoscopy in India. Our doctors have extensive experience of bronchoscopy. They are also very good at interventional procedures like Transbronchial biopsy, Bronchial & Tracheal dilatation and Endobronchial stenting
- Medical Thoracoscopy-Marengo CIMS Hospital is one of the few centers where medical thoracoscopy with rogid thoracoscope is performed for diagnosis and therapeutic purposes.
- Sleep Laboratory-Marengo CIMS hospital have the technologically world’s best sleep laboratory for diagnosis of sleep apnea and other sleep disorders.
- Routine Pulmonary Procedures –Intercostal drainage tube insertion, Pleural fluid aspiration and pleurodesis
- Pulmonary Critical Care –Marengo CIMS Hospital ICU is Class 100 ICU with very low infection rate and very good survival rate for pulmonary critical care Patients
- Pulmonary Rehabilitation – Our pulmonary rehabilitation programme is specially designed for increasing the lung capacity of advanced lung diseases.
Photo: Asthma; Sleep Apnea; Bronchoscope; Sleep Laboratory; Sleep Study, Theracoscope
Academic / Research
Pulmonary department is organizing a yearly conference dedicated to pulmonology wherein India’s and world’s best doctors are invited to deliver lectures. In this conference, the latest modalities of the treatment in pulmonary medicine is discussed. Our doctors also go to attend and deliver lectures in various state, national and international conferences.
Pulmonary Medicine department also conducts clinical trials of promising medicines for benefit of patients.
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Marengo CIMS Hospital has received several awards and recognitions for its outstanding healthcare services and quality of patient care. The hospital has been consistently recognized for its commitment to delivering high-quality healthcare services and has been awarded as the best hospital in Gujarat for 2019 by the International Health Care Awards.
The hospital has also received several other awards, such as the best hospital for quality in service delivery award at the ABP News presents Healthcare Leadership Awards 2015, held in Mumbai. This award highlights the hospital's dedication to providing high-quality healthcare services to its patients.
Marengo CIMS Hospital is also recognized as the Times Health Icon 2018 for being the best hospital for Oncology and Critical Care. This recognition is a testament to the hospital's expertise in treating critical diseases and its exceptional care for cancer patients.
Furthermore, Marengo CIMS Hospital was rated as the best multispecialty hospital in Gujarat at the International Healthcare Awards 2018 held in Delhi. This recognition highlights the hospital's commitment to delivering world-class healthcare services and providing quality treatment to patients with various medical conditions.
Marengo CIMS Hospital is a 350-bedded, multi-super specialty hospital, and is regarded as one of the best multi-specialty hospitals in Ahmedabad, Gujarat. The hospital offers a range of diagnostic and treatment services and is a leading heart hospital in Ahmedabad, Gujarat. The hospital provides world-class treatment and healthcare services, with one of the highest success rates in India.
Marengo CIMS Hospital's recognition as the best hospital in Gujarat for 2019 by the International Health Care Awards, and several other awards and recognitions, showcases the hospital's commitment to delivering high-quality healthcare services and providing exceptional care to its patients.
Toll Free Number : 1800 309 9999
Medical Helpline +91 70 69 00 00 00
Phone: 079 4805 1200 or 1008
+91 79 2771 2771 or 72
Fax: +91 79 2771 2770
Mobile: +91 98250 66664 or +91 98250 66668
Ambulance: +91 98244 50000
Email: firstname.lastname@example.org | email@example.com
CIMS Hospital Private Limited
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Nr. Shukan Mall, Off Science City Road, Sola, Ahmedabad – 380060
CIN No: U85110GJ2001PTC039962

domain: health


text:
Political dignitaries, family and friends are gathering Friday to honor the late Joe Lieberman at a funeral service in Stamford, Connecticut, the hometown of the four-term U.S. senator who grew up as the son of a liquor store owner and came within hundreds of votes of becoming the first Jewish vice president in 2000.
Lieberman died Wednesday in New York City from complications from a fall, according to his family. He was 82.
Services will be held at Congregation Agudath Sholom in Stamford. For Lieberman, a self-described observant Jew who followed the rules of the Jewish Sabbath from sundown Friday to sundown Saturday, the congregation played a key role early on in his life.
He once recalled how the congregation’s former synagogue building was “a place that gave me the first sense of religion; a very special uplift,” according to a posting on the congregation’s website.
“I feel very lucky — my adherence to the Jewish tradition is really an asset,” he said. “Religious Catholics and Protestants find a bond of common value with my beliefs and stand. It is this that makes me so proud of being an American.”
Former Vice President Al Gore, who tapped Lieberman as his 1980 presidential running mate, was expected to attend the services Friday morning along with top Connecticut Democrats including former Sen. Chris Dodd, Sens. Richard Blumenthal and Chris Murphy and Gov. Ned Lamont, Lieberman’s one-time rival for the Senate seat. A second public memorial is expected to be held at a future date.
Lieberman, a former state Senate leader and attorney general, was known for his pragmatic, independent streak. A moderate Democrat who ended up running as an independent to win a fourth term in the Senate, Lieberman came close to becoming Republican John McCain’s running mate in 2008. However, conservatives balked at the idea of tapping Lieberman, who was known for supporting gay rights, civil rights, abortion rights and environmental causes while taking a hawkish stand on military and national security matters.
President Joe Biden on Thursday called Lieberman a friend, someone who was “principled, steadfast and unafraid to stand up for what he thought was right.”
“Joe believed in a shared purpose of serving something bigger than ourselves,” Biden, who served 20 years in the Senate with Lieberman, said in his statement. “He lived the values of his faith as he worked to repair the wounds of the world.”
Lieberman came tantalizingly close to winning the vice presidency in the contentious 2000 presidential contest that was decided by a 537-vote margin victory for George W. Bush over Gore in Florida after a drawn-out recount, legal challenges and a Supreme Court decision. He was the first Jewish candidate on a major party’s presidential ticket.
Over the last decade, Lieberman helped lead No Labels, a centrist third-party movement that has said it will offer as-yet-unnamed candidates for president and vice president this year. Some groups aligned with Democrats oppose the effort, fearing it will help presumptive Republican nominee Donald Trump win the White House.
Lieberman and his wife, Hadassah, have four children.


text: In 2013, she graduated with honors in Jewellery Design BA at Central Saint Martins in London, the same year that she founded her own brand and studio in Milan. She presented her first collection, No Rice, No Life in 10 Corso Como during Milan Fashion Week in September 2014. Bea’s inspiration stems from her fascination with East Asia and by the personal experiences she had while visiting these regions. She incorporates the visual language and knowledge she gained during her travels with her deep passion for pop culture and her western flair. The focus that Bea has is more of jewellery as an art form and her concept is the pivotal aspect of her design process. Each piece functions as a miniature fantasy world for the wearers to immerse themselves in. In December 2014, Bea had a solo show with contemporary jewellery gallery, Galleria Antonella Villanova, in the Design section of Art Basel: Miami Beach. The gallery also exhibited her work in the 2015 edition of MiArt and it will also be shown in the next Design Basel in June 2015. In July 2015, she presented Endless? a capsule jewellery collection with Toiletpaper Magazine. In November 2015 Bea Bongiasca won the first “Premio Giovani Imprese - Believing in the Future” for the Jewellery category.

domain: artistic


text:
LA Black workers and anti wage theft activists have joined forces to demand that the city take action on Black workers' economic plight.
While the economy added jobs, the workers barely added to their paychecks.
Labor leaders presented real plans and logical solutions for creating clean jobs that sustain the labor movement and reduce or eliminate harm to the environment.
It was to shine a light on how working families are affected negatively by the high cost of living in the city and the lack of livable wages.
Union labor will build the housing in an economically targeted investment program in all five boroughs.
"The union movement should join with others who are saying 'instead of building more prisons, we should be creating more jobs and offering more job training.'"
"Far too many people are still killed on the job -- 13 workers every day taken from their families tragically and unnecessarily."
The workshop on full employment at the 45th Annual Legislative Conference of the CBCF was the most important one of all.
Walmart suddenly closed five stores giving its employees only a few hours notice and laying off an estimated 2,200 workers.
"A war on worker rights to come together and fight for a voice on the job is being waged by corporations that HRC asks the LGBT community to celebrate."


text:
Blogs by Ann Massey
Sweetest Things Turn Sourest By Their Deeds
1/5/2011 7:59:45 PM
[ Flag as Spam or Inappropriate ]
When I first started to think about a title for my first novel Amah',one of the ideas I jotted down was 'Lilies that Fester,with its connotations of rot and decay, met with universal dislike from my long suffering family and friends who have been marvellous about reading my drafts - offering encouragement while showing restraint in the advice department - so I felt I had no choice than to drop my notion of giving my 'first born' a literary name.
Anyway there's no two ways about it, I was reaching high for a sordid story about self-centred girls behaving badly.
For interest,the quote is from the Shakespearean sonnet about corruption, a personal favourite. The final powerful lines are spot on. I do believe the tall poppies of the world should lead by example. The greedy, corrupt practices of high flyers like Alan Bond, Steve Vizard, Martha Stewart and Ray Williams leave a bad smell as does Crystal aka Tuff, the anti-hero of The White Amah, as I ultimately christened my newborn.
'The summer's flower is to the summer sweet,
Though to itself, it only live and die,
But if that flower with base infection meet,
The basest weed outbraves his dignity:
For sweetest things turn sourest by their deeds;
Lilies that fester, smell far worse than weeds.'
I wasn't being original in looking to the sonnets for inspiration. H.E. Bates did the same when he called his novel about the wonderful Larkin family: The Darling Buds of May. 'Rough winds do shake the darling buds of may,
And summer's lease has all too short a sway.'
Set in the idyllic Kentish countryside, the fresh facedfarm girls are as far removed from Tuff as Raggedy Ann is to a Bratz Doll. But then, the Larkins lived in the fifties, at a time when television programs reflected values like honour, respect, love, trust and self sacrifice. Bland by today's viewers' standards, programs like Skippy, Ivanhoe, Leave it to the Beaver and Dixon of Dock Green modelled old fashioned values. Robin Hood might have worn tights but no one ever doubted Maid Marion was still virgin intacto, along with the greater part of the single female audience.
There has been an about face from the saccharine programs of the fifties to gritty realism accompanied by a decline in old fashioned values. Is repeated exposure to men and women behaving badly a major factor? Think of Survivor that promotes winning at any cost and rewards bullies and betrayers; consider housemates on Big Brother openly copulating on national television and the foul mouths of the doll- faced ladettes and then look around you. Am I wrong in thinking that the media normalises bad behaviour and encourages a cult of self interest?
I would be interested in your thoughts.
Til next time,
Post a Comment
More Blogs by Ann Massey
Free Kindle eBook: SALVATION JANE by Ann Massey - a Christmas Gift of hope and goodwill to all men - Thursday, December 04, 2014
Special Announcement - Monday, August 25, 2014
Salvation Jane Reviewed By Janet Walker of Bookpleasures.com - Wednesday, August 28, 2013
What's the single biggest influence on contemporary literature? - Saturday, August 17, 2013
Pest Control- different pest, same solution - Friday, August 16, 2013
Random Reviews - Wednesday, August 14, 2013
Book Review: Salvation Jane - Tuesday, August 06, 2013
Cultivation of micro-organisms on the International Space Station - Thursday, August 01, 2013
Books That Defy Genre Labels - Tuesday, July 30, 2013
The Author As Social Commentator - Sunday, July 28, 2013
Ban the beggars: Tough strategies proposed in Miami and Melbourne - Thursday, July 18, 2013
NEW RELEASE - Tuesday, July 16, 2013
The most remarkable woman I ever met - Sunday, July 14, 2013
Mental Illness - the link between schizophrenia and homelessness - Wednesday, July 10, 2013
Con-men & Cheats: Men who Prey on Vulnerable Women - Sunday, July 07, 2013
Serious commentary on Social Conditions Disguised as Chick-Lit - Tuesday, July 02, 2013
LOW SELF ESTEEM: LEADING CAUSE OF TEEN SUICIDE - Monday, July 01, 2013
Human rights abuse inspired Ann Massey to write Salvation Jane - Saturday, June 15, 2013
Australia's new homeless: the working poor - Saturday, May 25, 2013
Plants light up on the International Space Station - Tuesday, May 07, 2013
Biocide Conspiracy in Syria - Monday, May 06, 2013
My Success Story - Saturday, April 27, 2013
Going for Gold - Saturday, April 27, 2013
Bingo: Thirteen Lucky for Some - Saturday, April 27, 2013
Hacked - Monday, April 15, 2013
UK- style riots in Australia - not so far-fetched - Wednesday, August 10, 2011
Does anything supernatural actually exist - Wednesday, March 09, 2011
Nothing's so much fun as simply messing about in boats but ... - Friday, March 04, 2011
Tattoos more than a fashion statement - Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Shopping Can Be perilous: shopoholics in need of a fix put their lives in danger - Saturday, February 05, 2011
The Strangest and Most Interest Person I Met on Public Transport - Tuesday, February 01, 2011
The strange and amazing people you meet on public transport. - Tuesday, February 01, 2011
Bioliogical Weapons Convention Ignored - Thursday, January 27, 2011
And the Winner is … - Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Bilogical Warfare : Is it ever justified? - Saturday, January 22, 2011
Multiple Births: a blessing or a blight? - Thursday, January 20, 2011
Thou shall not wash dishes - Saturday, January 15, 2011
Enter Miss Miri - Thursday, January 13, 2011
Click to Save the Rain Forest - Wednesday, January 12, 2011
Borneo's Tropical Rainforest is Disappearing Fast ... So What! - Saturday, January 08, 2011
Sweetest Things Turn Sourest By Their Deeds - Wednesday, January 05, 2011


text:
Clinical Practice: Original Paper
Estimated and Measured GFR Associate Differently with Retinal Vasculopathy in the General PopulationEriksen B.O.a,d,g · Løchen M.-L.b · Arntzen K.A.c, e · Bertelsen G.c, f · Winther Eilertsen B.-A.g · von Hanno T.c, i · Herder M.b, h · Jenssen T.G.a, j · Mathisen U.D.d · Melsom T.d · Njølstad I.b · Solbu M.D.d · Mathiesen E.B.c, e
aMetabolic and Renal Research Group, Departments of bCommunity Medicine and cClinical Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, UiT The Arctic University of Norway, dSection of Nephrology, Departments of eNeurology and Neurophysiology, fOphthalmology, gClinical Research and hRadiology, University Hospital of North Norway, Tromsø, iDepartment of Ophthalmology, Nordland Hospital, Bodø, and jOslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway
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Article / Publication Details
Background/Aims: Estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) is used extensively in epidemiological research. Validations of eGFR have demonstrated acceptable performance, but the dependence of creatinine and cystatin C on non-GFR factors could confound associations with disease. Few studies have investigated this issue in direct comparison with measured GFR (mGFR). We compared the associations between eGFR and mGFR and retinal vasculopathy, a marker of systemic microvasculopathy. Methods: Iohexol clearance and retinal photography were examined in the Renal Iohexol Clearance Survey in Tromsø 6, which consists of a representative sample of middle-aged persons from the general population. A total of 1,553 persons without self-reported kidney disease, cardiovascular disease or diabetes were investigated. Three eGFR equations based on creatinine and/or cystatin C from the Chronic Kidney Disease Epidemiology Collaboration were studied. Differences between eGFR and mGFR were analyzed with seemingly unrelated regression methods. Results: mGFR in the lowest quartile was associated with an increased multivariable-adjusted odds ratio of retinopathy (OR 1.86, 95% CI 1.16-2.97), but not with retinal artery or vein diameters. eGFR based on cystatin C (eGFRcys) was consistently biased relative to mGFR in its associations with retinal vessel diameters across different models. eGFR based on creatinine (eGFRcrea) and eGFR based on both creatinine and cystatin C were also biased in several of these models (p < 0.05). For retinopathy, the differences between the 3 eGFR and mGFR measurements were not statistically significant. Conclusions: Low mGFR is associated with retinopathy in the general population. eGFR based on creatinine and/or cystatin C are not valid substitutes for mGFR in studies of the relationship between the retina and kidney function in healthy persons.
© 2015 S. Karger AG, Basel
Article / Publication Details
Copyright / Drug Dosage / DisclaimerCopyright: All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be translated into other languages, reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, microcopying, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Drug Dosage: The authors and the publisher have exerted every effort to ensure that drug selection and dosage set forth in this text are in accord with current recommendations and practice at the time of publication. However, in view of ongoing research, changes in government regulations, and the constant flow of information relating to drug therapy and drug reactions, the reader is urged to check the package insert for each drug for any changes in indications and dosage and for added warnings and precautions. This is particularly important when the recommended agent is a new and/or infrequently employed drug.
Disclaimer: The statements, opinions and data contained in this publication are solely those of the individual authors and contributors and not of the publishers and the editor(s). The appearance of advertisements or/and product references in the publication is not a warranty, endorsement, or approval of the products or services advertised or of their effectiveness, quality or safety. The publisher and the editor(s) disclaim responsibility for any injury to persons or property resulting from any ideas, methods, instructions or products referred to in the content or advertisements.


FUNN ZIPPA BASH GUARD 26-32T
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A tough, light alloy and thermoplastic bash guard designed to protect your drivetrain in rough terrain. Mounts to your ISCG05 mounts. The Zippa Bash Guard's modular design allows it to be paired with a matching chain guard. Suits 26-32T chainrings.


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- 22 Recensioner
- Religion & Spiritualitet
The Essence of RumiFörfattare: John Baldock E-bok
Get drunk on Love, for Love is all that exists. Unless you make Love your business, you will not be admitted to the Beloved.' (Divan-i Shams-i Tabriz 455:A1:54)
The thirteenth-century saint Jalaluddin Rumi has been called the greatest mystical poet of any age, and his work compared to that of Dante and Shakespeare. Over a period of 25 years he composed over 70,000 verses of poetry on the subjects of divine love, mystic passion and ecstatic illumination.
Rumi was also a master story-teller, as this comprehensive exploration of his work so rewardingly reveals. Primarily an introduction to Rumi and the path of self-surrender, it is arranged in such a way that it guides the reader from the poet's outer, historical world to the inner, spiritual essence of his teaching.
The Essence of Rumi offers us the opportunity to overcome the limitations of our human view of the world and transform our sensory eye into the poet's all-seeing Ocean of Reality.


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AGCO/Fendt is market leader from 0 HP in Germany
Despite the Corona pandemic the tractor market in Germany has developed. In 2019, the number of all registered tractors was 28.979 tractors, and in 2020, 3.058 additional tractors were registered. Thus, the number of registrations was 32.037 tractors.
AGCO/Fendt reaches a market share of 21,3 % for tractors starting at 0 HP
„In 2020 one in five new registered tractors was a Vario”, says Andreas Loewel, Director of Fendt Sales Germany. “The increase in our market share by 1,6 percentage points compared to 2019 is an outstanding achievement by Fendt’s German sales team as well as our dealers. Without the flexibility and continued work of the sales partner in the special Corona year 2020, such a terrific result would not have been possible”, explains the German sales director.
With the new generation of the Fendt 200 Vario, the Fendt 200 V/F/P and the Fendt 300 Vario, each with the new FendtONE operating concept, Fendt presented no less than three new series in the lower output classes. This also led to increased customer interest.
27,2 % market share for AGCO/Fendt starting at 51 HP
Fendt achieved a new record in the 51 HP and above performance class. Here, the brand achieved a market share of 27,2 percent, an improvement of 1,7 percentage points on the previous year’s figure of 25,5 percent. The gap to the runner-up widened further by 9,3 percentage points.
“2020 was a really special year for me. Not only did I take up the position as Chairman of the AGCO/Fendt Management Board, but the global pandemic also hit us as a company directly in the first half of the year”, says Christoph Gröblinghoff, Chairman of the AGCO/Fendt Management Board. “Due to delivery problems of components from our suppliers, we also had to shut down tractor production in Marktoberdorf for five weeks. It was only through the commitment and effort of the entire Fendt team- from purchasing to production to sales – that we were able to make up for the downtime and thus supply our customers. For this reason, I would also like to sincerely thank everyone for their extraordinary commitment”, says the Fendt boss.
New record in France
The Corona pandemic hit France and also the French agricultural market particularly hard. With a total of 24.271 standard tractors registered in 2020, the overall market declined by 7,5 percent compared to the previous year. “Despite a difficult year, Fendt was able to increase its market share in tractors with 51 HP and above to 14,9 percent”, said Christoph Gröblinghoff, Chairman of the AGCO/Fendt Management Board. “Our dedicated Fendt team in Europe’s largest agricultural market has been doing a great job for many years.”
Within the last ten years, Fendt has continuously increased its market share. In 2020, the market share of Fendt tractors from 51 HP improved by 1,3 percentage points. 10 years ago, Fendt had a market share of 8,03 percent in France. In the special tractor category, the Fendt 200 V/F/P Varios are even the market leader in France with a market share of 19,4 percent.
Fendt took 1st place in the French Dealer Satisfaction Barometer 2020
Data from the French Dealer Satisfaction Barometer 2020 for France was published at the same time as the market shares. This year, Fendt was once again voted into first place. With a total of 13,5 points, this puts Fendt 0,8 points ahead of the runner-up and also represents an improvement of 0,8 points on the previous year. In the survey, French dealers rated tractor manufacturers in a total of 14 categories and could award up to 20 points.


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Two 12-year-old boys have been charged with the aggravated sexual assault of a female student at a primary school on Sydney's northern beaches.
The six-year-old girl reported the incidents herself, Fairfax Media has been told.
It is understood she was raped on two separate days at school in mid-August.
Both boys were allegedly present during both incidents but only one of the boys raped her in the second incident, police allege.
The primary school immediately notified the Department of Education, which immediately notified the NSW Police's Child Abuse Squad.
After a two-week investigation, the two boys were arrested at Chatswood police station on Tuesday.
One boy has been charged with four counts of aggravated sexual assault and two counts of sexual intercourse with a child under 10.
The second boy was charged with two counts of aggravated sexual assault and sexual intercourse with a child under 10.
Both have been granted bail and will appear in a children's court over the next two months.
"Parents and carers of students at the school are in the process of being notified, and police request the community respect the privacy of the young people involved," police said in a statement on Thursday.
It is understood a letter has been sent to parents.
"NSW Police Force works closely with the Dept of Education and Family and Community Services to ensure the safety of all students, and additional support has been made available at the school," the police statement said.
"The Child Abuse Squad is comprised of detectives who are specially trained to investigate crimes against children, including sexual assault, physical abuse and serious cases of neglect."


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Holiday themed travel mugs: These travel mugs hold 16 ounces of liquid and feature a variety of festive holiday designs.
Jumbo glass sports mugs: These high-quality glass mugs are perfect for any sports fan. They hold 26.4 ounces of liquid
Kids' brightly colored Peruvian hats: These hats are super fashionable and come in a variety of colors, including black, red, pink, and blue
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Craft kits: Dollar Tree has a wide variety of craft kits available, including everything from painting and drawing kits to jewelry-making kits. These kits are perfect for kids and adults who love to be creative
Gift baskets: Put together your own gift baskets using items from Dollar Tree. You can create baskets for any occasion, such as birthdays, holidays, or just because


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'It's water under the bridge': Gary Barlow 'ends 10 year feud' with Simon Cowell ahead of Walk The Line... after bitter swipes and Take That star's claims he was BUGGED on X Factor
- Gary Barlow and the music mogul have 'mended their strained' relationship
- The pair are said to have cleared the air over the weekend after a '10-year feud'
- This week it was announced Simon has been replaced by Gary on Walk The line
- Simon praised Gary in a statement, saying he will 'do a fantastic job'
- It was previously reported that the duo had exchanged bitter swipes and Gary even alleged that his dressing room was bugged during his X Factor days
Gary Barlow has reportedly 'ended his decade-long feud' with Simon Cowell following rumours of ructions between the duo.
According to The Mirror on Tuesday, Simon, 62, cleared the air with the former Take That star, 50, over the weekend with their 'strained relationship' a thing of the past.
The report comes after it was announced that Simon has been replaced by Gary on his new show Walk The Line, with Simon branding him 'the best man for the job'.
Gary has previously taken a series of swipes at Simon, including angry responses to claims Simon branded him 'wooden' during his stint on The X Factor and even making accusations about his dressing room being 'bugged' on the show.
'It's water under the bridge': Gary Barlow (left) has reportedly 'ended his decade-long feud' with Simon Cowell (right) as the former Take That star replaces him on Simon's new show Walk The Line
Speaking about their renewed relationship, an insider said: 'It was a really constructive and great conversation between both men who have moved on and are excited for the future. It's all water under the bridge now'.
MailOnline has reached out to Simon and Gary's representatives for comment.
It has long been reported that pair have a 'notoriously strained relationship' that stemmed from when Gary replaced Simon as a judge on the US version of the X Factor in 2011.
The source also alleged that Gary was livid over comments made in Tom Bower's biography on Simon Cowell, where the music mogul reportedly told Tom how Gary's performance on the X Factor was 'wooden'.
Claims: 'It was a really constructive and great conversation between both men who have moved on and are excited for the future. It's all water under the bridge now,' a source reportedly told the publication. Simon, 62, is pictured in September
Tom also wrote in the Sweet Revenge biography how Simon was none too happy about Gary receiving an OBE in 2012.
In 2017, reports also surfaced that Gary faced legal action from Simon - with the Syco owner reportedly consulting lawyers over fears Gary's new show Let It Shine would infringe his rights.
After releasing solo album Since I Saw You Last in 2014, Gary returned to TV to hunt for young, theatre talent on Let It Shine, alongside Dannii Minogue and Martin Kemp.
Fearing the series was too similar to the X Factor, Simon was said to have put a team of staff on standby to monitor Gary's eight-week series.
Tense? The Mirror claimed the pair had a 'notoriously strained relationship' that stemmed from when Gary replaced Simon as a judge on the US version of the X Factor in 2011. Gary, 50, is pictured right on the UK version of the X Factor in 2011
However at the time, Gary was quick to dispel these rumours - revealing to The Mirror that he had not received any legal documents and was simply focusing on his new project, which he believed to be completely different.
Meanwhile earlier this week Simon stepped down from the judging panel of upcoming ITV musical game show Walk The Line, with Gary as his replacement.
The music mogul, 62, will now be replaced by Gary Barlow, someone he's confident 'will do a fantastic job.'
The anticipated six-part series is set to air later this year and will present an opportunity for musical variety acts to win a life-changing sum of money.
Change-up: It was announced this week that Simon is stepping down from Walk The Line and will be replaced by Gary. The music mogul is pictured April 2020
The show was set to represent Simon's return to primetime TV judging after the plug was pulled on The X Factor earlier this year - but the star has confirmed his role will be limited to behind the camera.
According to reports in The Sun, Simon's decision to step down comes with hopes he will be able to spend more time with his partner Lauren Silverman and their seven-year-old son Eric.
Despite not appearing onscreen - a contrast to what UK and US audiences have become accustomed to over the past two decades - Simon will take on the role of executive producer.
Family first: According to reports in The Sun, Simon's decision to step down comes with hopes he will be able to spend more time with his partner Lauren Silverman and their seven-year-old son Eric. Simon is pictured with Lauren and Eric in 2018
The entrepreneur told the publication: 'This is a situation where I have decided it is right for me to focus on my role as the Creator and Producer as we build up to the hugely exciting launch.
'Gary's musical pedigree is second to none – and we have known each other a long time now - so I am delighted he is picking up the baton for me for the first series of Walk The Line. I know he will do a fantastic job.'
Simon previously made headlines back in August last year when he was involved in a electric bike accident at his Malibu home which resulted in him breaking his back.
The incident may have contributed to his decision to step back on Walk The Line.
Gary said in an official statement that he was 'so excited to be involved.'
Recovering: In August 2020, Simon was involved in a electric bike accident at his Malibu home which resulted in him breaking his back


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Amy’s Kitchen employees get free legal help in fight against Teamsters Local 665April 25, 2022
Amy’s Kitchen employees in California and Oregon are now getting free legal help in their fight against Teamsters Local 665, which is seeking to gain union control of their workplace.
The National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation (NRWLDF) has taken on their case after being contacted by multiple employees.
Local news reports have shown clashes between factory workers at the southwest Santa Rosa, California, food processing site. Some have filed complaints about working conditions and the union and some workers have called for a boycott of the company’s products. The union also filed a complaint with OSHA alleging “serious violations of health and safety regulations” in January, claiming “workers continue to get injured.”
Amy’s Kitchen is the sixth largest U.S. maker of frozen meals in the U.S. and the largest producer of organic vegetarian packaged foods, the North Bay Business Journal reports.
“Amy’s Kitchen is non-union, however, there is an active organizing campaign with Teamsters Local 665, in response to egregious working conditions, high rates of injuries, and ongoing exploitation,” Tony Delorio, principal officer of the Teamsters Local Union No. 665, wrote in the complaint. “Despite organizing efforts, we want to reiterate that hazards workers face require immediate attention from Cal/OSHA and continue to lead to injuries and possible fatalities every day.”
In a lengthy Instagram post last month, Amy’s Kitchen co-founder Andy Berliner explained how the company brought in third-party auditors, reviewed internal practices and safety record, and met with over 500 employees. After talking with them, he wrote, “what I found was not what is being said.” Much of what was claimed about the work environment “was just not true,” he said, and gave examples of how the workplace meets OSHA regulations.
“It has been said that we are union busters,” he added. “This couldn’t be further from the truth. I have told every one of our employees who has asked that unionization is their choice – whether yes or no. And what was resoundingly clear is that our employees are not asking for boycotts and in fact are saddened and scared by this negative campaign led by the union.”
Amy’s Kitchen also issued a statement, saying, “We are disappointed the union is calling to boycott the very products that our employees cook with such care.”
The company has invested millions of dollars in safety equipment and practices and has a plan to invest another $50 million in safety-related projects over the next five years, Berliner says. Its “safety rate in Santa Rosa is twice as good as our industry standard,” he added, and the company remains committed to the safety of its workers.
A tactic being used against the company, the sister organization of NRWLDF, the National Right to Work Foundation (NRWF), said is an attempt by the union to have employees sign union “authorization cards.” The cards indicate support for the union, which the union then counts as a vote by employees to unionize without actually having an election. Under NLRB rulings, if union officials have enough union cards, 50% plus one employee, they can bypass the secret-ballot election process and gain power in a workplace simply by submitting the cards to an employer.
The approach being taken to unionize at Amy’s Kitchen is “a classic example of a Big Labor corporate campaign,” the NRWF said in a statement. Instead of gaining the voluntary support of workers in a secret-ballot vote, union organizers “attack an employer with the goal of having the company assist in imposing the union on the workers, usually via a coercive ‘card check’ scheme,” it argued.
But there’s a bigger issue at play, NRWF said. Amy’s Kitchen employees fighting the union may be in the crosshairs of a larger union objective to bring back a decades old precedent called Joy Silk, established in a 1949 Joy Silk Mills decision. It allows a union to be recognized if a majority of workers sign union cards and without a secret-ballot vote even if employees want one. The method was rejected by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) and federal courts roughly 50 years ago.
NLRB General Counsel Jennifer Abruzzo filed a brief April 11, calling on the NLRB to reinstate Joy Silk. If it were implemented, such a move would be “a monumental change that would move a barrier for unions to organize new workplaces,” Bloomberg Law reported. However, it would be challenged in court.
Since Abruzzo has the authority to choose which cases come before the board, if Amy’s Kitchen were one of them, it’s widely believed Abruzzo would use it to resurrect Joy Silk.
“If Teamsters officials and their allies truly respected the free and un-coerced choice of the Amy’s Kitchen workers for whom they are claiming to speak, they would not be using such aggressive tactics to try to impose union control from the top down on workers,” NRWF president Mark Mix said in a statement. “Unfortunately, such tactics are being greenlighted by President Biden’s handpicked Big Labor cronies at the National Labor Relations Board, who in their effort to expand forced union dues ranks want to deprive workers of the protection against union intimidation tactics afforded by a secret-ballot vote.”
The NRWLDF has issued a special legal notice in English and in Spanish to help Amy’s Kitchen employees understand their rights. It states that employees have a legal right to not sign union authorization cards and to revoke any authorization cards they may have signed. They can also sign and circulate a petition against monopoly union representation.
It’s unlawful for Teamsters bosses to threaten or coerce employees to sign such cards, the NRWLDF adds.
This article was originally posted on Amy’s Kitchen employees get free legal help in fight against Teamsters Local 665


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Change can be hard. Having the courage to reach out and discuss your inner pain and anxiety is the first step.
I am Licensed Mental Health Counselor from Syracuse, New York. I received my Masters Degree from Canisius College in 2011. I have worked with clients from residential facilities, inpatient, outpatient, and in the community for the last seven years. I have experience with: Women’s Issues, Suicidal Ideation, Self-Harming, Creating better coping skills, Codependency, Career Counseling, Anger Management, and Addiction.
I believe each person has their own pace, and am willing to find therapies and strategies that work for you. My approach is open minded and down to earth. I find that it is important to meet people where they are at, and develop a safe therapeutic relationship. My specialty is Cognitive Behavioral, Person Centered, integrating healing and other holistic models.
I started my career in psychology and counseling when I experienced a suicide in my family. It gave me the courage to make changes for myself, and help people around me who were also suffering grief, loss, and depression. I'm an advocate of mental health issues, and support American Foundation for Suicide Prevention each year.
When I'm not with clients I enjoy: traveling, taking photos, musical theater, concerts, and watching movies at home with my cat.
I am glad you are taking this step towards change. I look forward to working with you.
- Stress, Anxiety
- Anger management
- Coping with life changes
Addictions , LGBT , Family conflicts , Trauma and abuse , Sleeping disorders , Parenting issues , Self esteem , Career difficulties , Bipolar disorder , Depression , Compassion fatigue , Adoption and Foster Care , Attachment Issues , Codependency , Family of Origin Issues , Forgiveness , Impulsivity , Isolation/Loneliness , Mood Disorders , Narcissism , Posttraumatic Stress , Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) , Self-Harm , Social Anxiety and Phobia , Women's Issues , Young Adult Issues Read more...
Client-Centered Therapy, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), Mindfulness Therapy, Motivational Interviewing, Narrative Therapy, Solution-Focused Therapy, Trauma-Focused Therapy
LMHC #006462 (Expires: 2023-05-01)
LCMHC #15567 (Expires: 2022-06-30)
She alway’s shares her insight with respect, and care. Very open to listen to what you have to say, and gently suggests fixes to your problems. She also sends you some homework, and readings to look through on your own time, which I love. Learning about yourself is the best part of this journey, and Emelia makes that easy
Emilia was very helpful with helping me figure myself out. I’ve been going through a hard time and she was there for me whenever I needed support. It’s nice to have someone listen to your problems without judging you and give professional advice on it.
Emelia and I are still in the early part, but she's been great thus far: thoughtful, compassionate and willing to listen. I'm looking forward to continuing our dialogue.
Finally I can empty my tons of garbage on my head, there's a lots of it! Thank you Emelia for patience and understanding!

domain: psychology


Loudhailer: 40mm (diameter) Frequency range: 20-20,000 khz Sensitivity: 110dB Impedance: 32O S.P.L at 1 khz Maximum power input: 100mw Plug (mm): 3.5mm stereo Cable length: approx 1.5m Accessories: volume control Havit fashion headphones has a stylish appearance, comfortable to wear Big Ear pad Thick decompression ear cushions that enhance the wear comfort, large ear cushions and wide headbands to bring mellow sound quality. Havit Headphones reduces the noise of outside surroundings, providing enjoyment of pure music. The design is also teeming with modern aesthetic beauty.
- Frequency Response:20 Hz to 20000MHZ
- Cord Length:1.5m
- Plug Type:3.5mm


Sorry for not being around too much lately. I've been innundated by hacktards.
Our local pool supply warehouse called in with no A/C so I went out to see what's up. The manager/owner was giving me a quick tour of what was where. He said he thought it was the contactor and had replaced it himself. He didn't know what the wire left over was for (start cap common for compressor). The first picture shows the inside of a fully closed greenhouse. (remember this) Do you see the condenser? I don't.
The coil had no access whatsoever and was completely soild with crap. Thats a Ruud from 1982 by the way.
Here's the view of the unit under the deck from the cellar window.
And the beauty of furnace that runs the whole works. Love the condensate pump collector pan and the pool hose condensate line!
He decided on a new unit on the roof after replacing the t-stat, circuit board, and installing the correct contactor wired the way it's supposed to be.
Oddly enough, the Ruud runs like a champ. Just doesn't cool really well.


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New rules aimed at protecting viewers of streaming platforms from “harmful” material such as misinformation and pseudoscience could be introduced by the Government.
A Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) said a new consultation could result in streaming platforms such as Netflix, Amazon Prime Video and Apple TV+ becoming subject to stricter rules.
Unlike broadcasters such as the BBC or Sky, streaming platforms are not subject to Ofcom’s Broadcasting Code, which sets out standards for content in areas including offensive material, accuracy, fairness and privacy.
The consultation could mean “audiences – particularly children – receive a consistent level of protection on video-on-demand services as they do on traditional broadcasters”, DCMS said
The department said some streaming platforms have taken “welcome” steps to introduce their own standards and procedures “but the extent of these measures varies across services”.
“Age ratings are also inconsistent and sometimes non-existent,” the statement added.
Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden said: “We want to give UK audiences peace of mind that however they watch TV in the digital age, the shows they enjoy are held to the same high standards that British broadcasting is world-renowned for.
“It is right that now we have left the EU, we look at introducing proportionate new rules so that UK audiences are protected from harm.”
The Government is also currently consulting on plans to privatise Channel 4.

domain: politics


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Pensioners’ welfare could be put at risk
New report challenges Government over proposed pension changes
A new report published this week seriously challenges the Government’s proposals to remove the requirement for defined contribution personal pension scheme members to annuitise their pension fund by the age of 75.
The report, jointly authored by Professor Ian Tonks from the Business School, highlights a number of risks to both individual pensioners and to the public purse from the planned changes.
The key conclusions suggest that individuals, as a consequence of low levels of financial literacy, poor understanding of longevity risk, poor investment decisions or a deliberate strategy may run down their retirement assets too quickly and thus become entitled to means-tested benefits.
The consequences for tax payers could be devastating. Not only could there be a huge increase in claims for means-tested benefits but also a demand from those in defined benefit schemes, including public sector workers, to have their pension as a lump sum rather than as an income. There may also be new opportunities to use the pension system to create tax loopholes and there is likely to be a fall in demand for long-term bonds, including government bonds, which will occur at precisely the time that the government is issuing debt to plug the hole in the nation’s finances.
Professor Tonks comments “The most important benefit of annuitisation is that annuities protect individuals against outliving their resources. Our report focuses on the unintended repercussions of the Government’s proposals. We conclude that the current arrangements provide the most cost effective and secure system for protecting people’s quality of life in old age as well as protecting the public purse from potentially enormous additional expenditure.”
The authors of the report are David Blake, Director of the Pensions Institute and Professor of Pensions Economics at Cass Business School; Edmund Cannon, Reader in Economics at the University of Bristol and Fellow of the Pensions Institute; Ian Tonks, Professor of Finance in the Xfi Centre for Finance and Investment in the University of Exeter Business School and Fellow of the Pensions Institute.
Date: 2 August 2010

domain: finance