Duke Energy is asking the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) to assign a low-risk classification for the Belews Creek Steam Station ash impoundment in its final risk classifications which are set to be released in on May 18.
In a written comments submitted to the DEQ on April 18 the company argues that a medium or high risk classification would require the impoundment to be closed through excavation, a requirement which the company says could have more dangerous environmental impacts than draining the ash pond and capping it in place.
“We want to do what is needed to protect the environment but not create broader safety or environmental impacts if it’s not truly necessary,” said Duke spokeswoman Zenica Chatman. “In many respects, closing basins on plant property with a protective cap better protects the local and broader environment. It eliminates the need for new disposal locations, lowers transportation emissions, reduces community impacts and minimizes safety concerns. For example, it would take over 650,000 truck trips to move all the material at Belews Creek, if there’s not enough on-site disposal space. Imagine those trucks rumbling past neighborhoods for two decades. Capping also accelerates how quickly we can complete the work. Removing the water from a basin and capping it can occur in months and years, while excavation would require decades for some of these basins. Even working aggressively, excavation would take about 20 years at some of our larger sites.”
The company argues that the DEQ has not fully taken into account all nine factors required by the Coal Ash Management Act (CAMA) in creating its initial risk assessments of coal ash facilities across the state.
“The Department failed to include in its proposed risk rankings the ninth statutory factor—any other factor relevant to establishment of the risk,’ the company argues in its written comments. “This consideration is essential to proper classification of Duke Energy’s CCR surface impoundments. Importantly, NC DEQ failed to consider the net environmental impacts/benefits associated with the two primary coal combustion residuals (CCR )surface impoundment closure methods—closure-by-removal and cap-in-place.
“Excavation is simply not the safest, most practical, or best ash basin closure method,” argues Duke. “Technical and/or scientific reasons prompted the Company to recommend excavation at the Cape Fear, H.F. Lee, and Weatherspoon Plants; however, those conditions are not present at all other sites. At some of the Company’s larger CCR surface impoundments, it literally would take two to three decades to close a basin by excavation, and closure-by-removal would present myriad adverse environmental, community, and safety impacts.”
The written comments note that a low-risk classification would not preclude closure by excavation, if the science determined that was the best solution, but would also not require it as higher risk ratings would.
The company claims that groundwater modeling results have shown little benefit could be achieved through a complete excavation of the site.
In its April written comments, Duke Energy notes that if water supplies are impacted from ground water migration the “most prudent course of action is to plan for an alternate water supply and/or aggressive groundwater remediation, in combination with a closure design protective of groundwater, which may or may not involve ash excavation.”
The company also argues that ongoing improvements on the ash pond dam will resolve any dam safety considerations.
Duke cites a number of other power companies throughout the country who are closing ash basins through a cap-in-place method, frequently referencing a draft environmental impact statement by the Tennessee Valley Authority, and notes that closure by excavation will result in greater costs for the company.
“Proper consideration of the net environmental impacts of excavation, combined with the fact that closure-by removal costs dramatically more with little to no measurable environmental benefit, supports a final low-risk classification for all impoundments identified by the Department in the Proposed Classifications document,” reads the comments.
Duke estimates that the Belews Creek ash impoundment contains over 12 million tons of coal ash and could take between 12 and 24 years to fully excavate. Please visit thestokesnews.com on May 18 to see the final DEQ risk classifications for the Belews Creek Steam Station.
Nicholas Elmes may be reached at 336-591-8191 or on Twitter @NicholasElmes.


Currently a new experiment is being built for the measurement of the neutron
electric dipole moment at PSI called n2EDM.
Compared to its predecessor, many improvements will be made not only to
the apparatus itself, but also to the supervisory control and data acquisition
For nEDM it is essential to not only record, but also to influence the
experiment automatically which incorporates decisions that are based on
The concept is completely modular, thus development can be done in
parallel, and new devices can be added easily - even while the
experiment is running.
The modules are connected via network using Standard Commands for
Programmable Instruments (SCPI) over TCP for messaging.
Data sampling and recording is done simultaneous. Synchronization is
achieved via Precision Time Protocol (PTP).
Multiple control stations are possible and any graphical user interface
is separated operation and recording.
A simple command language for arbitrary sequences, loops and conditional
execution is available.
While the framework is clearly optimised for an nEDM measurement, it may
be used for other experiments with similar scale and measurement procedure.


YASS is having a big Highway 67 Clean-up Thursday
I interviewed Coach Sanford Mouton and a number of others with YASS today on the Kickin' Wake-Up call and we talked about the big Clean-Up tomorrow.
We talked about ASU Students and Staff involved with and the mission of YASS.
Coach Mouton explained why tomorrow's project is taking place and how it will work.
I also had the opportunity to visit with four members of YASS, some of them very well known names and let them tell everyone why they are involved in the program and what it means to them.
Coach Mouton gave us contact information if you would like to know more or to become involved in the YASS program.
For the full story, check out the above video from this morning's interview on Kickin' Country 103.1.


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Cupressus sempervirens L. cv. Cereiformis Rehd. [C. sempervirens var. stricta Aiton, C. pyramidalis Targ-Tozz., C. sempervirens L. var. pyramidalis (Targ-Tozz.) Nyman, C. sempervirens L. f. pyramidalis (Targ-Tozz.) Holmboe], Cupressaceae family, is a monoecious and evergreen aromatic tree, up to 30 meters high which grows in different parts of many countries including Iran. Its Persian name is “Sarve Naz” [1-4]. Although there have been some reports on phytochemical and biological studies of Cupressus sempervirens L. [5-8] there are no previous reports on phytochemical and biological studies of this cultivar.
As a part of a systematic research on the chemical composition and antimicrobial properties of Iranian conifers, the present work reports on Cupressus sempervirens L. cv. Cereiformis Rehd. essential oils content of fruits and terminal branchlets with adherent leaves. In addition, the defatted ethanolic extracts of these organs were investigated qualitatively for the presence of alkaloids, flavonoids, saponins and tannins.
2. Materials and Methods
2.1. Plant material
The fruits and leaves of Cupressus sempervirens L. cv. Cereiformis Rehd were collected (October 2002) from Eram Garden of Shiraz, Fars, southern Iran. The collected materials were stored at -20 ºC in order to avoid unfavorable changes in the chemical components . The plant was authenticated by the late Prof. Karim Djavanshir, Forestry Department, Faculty of Natural resources, Tehran University.
2.2. Isolation and analysis of non-volatile components
The fruits and leaves of the plant (500 g) were dried at 50 °C and then were powdered separately. Each powder was defatted with petroleum ether (BP 40-60 ºC) using soxhlet apparatus for 6 h. The chemical components of defatted powders were extracted by maceration with 70% ethanol for 4 times. The ethanolic extracts were concentrated at reduced pressure and analyzed for the presence of alkaloids, flavonoids, saponins and tannins [10-13].
2.3. Isolation and analysis of volatile components
The volatile oils were isolated from fresh plant material by wet steam distillation for 4 h. The essential oils were separated from the aqueous layer and were dried over anhydrous sodium sulfate.
2.4. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometric analysis
The GC-MS apparatus consisted of a Varian 3400 gas chromatograph equipped with a fused-silica column (DB-5, 30 m ? 0.25 mm i.d., film thickness 0.25 mm; J & W Scientific Inc.), and interfaced with a quadruple mass spectrometric detector (Incos 50, Finnigan). The operating conditions were: oven temperature 60-280 ºC with the rate of 3 ºC/min; injector mode: split injection ; with the carrier gas, He ; flow rate 2 ml/min; ion source, 70 eV; ionization current, 750 mA; scan range, 40-300 µ.
Identification of the components was performed by comparison of their RRT and mass spectra with those of authentic samples, literature data and computerized MSdata bank (Saturn version 4). The peak area method was followed for quantitative determination of different constituents; the percentages were calculated relatively.
2.5. Antimicrobial activity determination
The antimicrobial activity of each essential oil obtained from different parts of the plant was determined using five standard strains of microorganisms from the Persian Type Culture Collection (PTCC) . The following microbial strains were used:
Bacillus subtilis (PTCC 1023), Staphylococcus aureus (PTCC 1112), Escherichia coli (PTCC 1038), Pseudomonas aeroginosa (PTCC 1074) and Candida albicans (PTCC 5027). Minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) were determined using the agar dilution method . Muller Hinton agar medium (Oxoid, France) was prepared and sterilized by autoclaving for 20 min at 121 ºC. The medium was cooled to 50 ºC and two-fold serial dilutions of the parent solution (essential oil plus 30% Dimethyl Sulfoxide, v/v) in adequate melted (50 ºC) agar medium (1 ml) were added to 24-well plates (Greiner, France). The medium was allowed to solidify and then it was inoculated with the previously prepared microorganism suspension using the quadran streak method. For each tested strain, the adequacy of growth conditions, the effect of positive controls (gentamicin for bacteria and clotrimazole for fungus), and the sterility of the medium were tested in two wells. Plates were incubated for 24 h at 37 ºC for bacteria and 48 h at 25 ºC for C. albicans.
The amount of non-volatile components (from defatted ethanolic extracts) of the fruits and leaves of Cupressus sempervirens L. cv. Cereiformis Rehd are summerized in Table 1. The essential oils, isolated separately from fruits and leaves of Cupressus sempervirens L. cv. Cereiformis Rehd, were pale yellow with a strong odor. The fruits and leaves of the plant yielded 0.12% and 0.2% (v/w) of volatile oils, respectively.
Table1. Major non-volatile components of fruits and leaves of Cupressus sempervirens L. cv. Cereiformis Rehd.
* Average content was rated from - to ++++
Identification of the components of the essential oils by GC-MS revealed the existence of thirteen components the oils of leaves and fruits (Table 2). The essential oils of both leaves and fruits were tested for their possible antimicrobial activity against five strains of pathogens, as mentioned in materials and methods. However, we did not see any significant antimicrobial effect of the essential oils, and the MIC for all of the tested microorganisms were higher than 100 mg/ml (data not shown).
Table2. Chemical composition of the volatile oil of Cupressus sempervirens L. cv. Cereiformis Rehd. fruits and leaves.
t = trace ( 0/ 1 %)
The fruits and leaves of Cupressus sempervirens L. cv. Cereiformis Rehd were investigated for the presence of non-volatile components (from defatted ethanolic extracts). As it can be seen in Table 1, the leaves and fruits of this plant are quite rich in tannins and flavonoids but they are free from alkaloids and low in saponins.
The analysis of the essential oils isolated separately from fruits and leaves of Cupressus sempervirens L. cv. Cereiformis Rehd by GC-MS lead to the identification of thirteen components which were fairly simi- lar in the leaves and the fruits. Monoterpene hydrocarbons represented the most abundant constituents of the oil of the fruits and leaves (79.4% and 73.3%, respectively). The leaves are rich in sesquiterpene hydrocarbons (10.5%), while the fruits contain only 1.7% of sesquiterpene hydrocarbons. Oxygen- containing monoterpenoids were at relative- ly low levels in both oils (6.6% for leaves and 7.3% for fruits). Although there is some oxygenated sesquiterpenoids in the leaves (4%), there is not a significant amount of these compounds in the fruit oil. No nonter- penic constituents were detected in the essential oils. The main components of both fruits and leaves essential oils were ?-pinene (39%, 30%), ∆-3-carene (24%, 24%), ?-ter- penyl acetate (5.6%, 6.6%) and terpinolene (4.3%, 6.6 %) respectively.

domain: biology


Senior Israeli defense officials said Monday that Syrian President Bashar Assad’s regime used chemical weapons in two attacks in Damascus 10 days ago, according to a report in The Times of Israel.
Officials said that the chemical agents used in these attacks were nonlethal, but were used to incapacitate opposition fighters. The two chemical attacks were carried out on March 27 in the Harasta neighborhood of Damascus, and the effects of the chemicals lasted for several hours.
According to officials, the chemical compound used in the attacks was not among those listed that Syria committed to dispose of when it signed an agreement in September 2013 to give up its chemical weapons.
The report is consistent with accusations from Syrian opposition groups, which last month claimed that Assad loyalists had used chemical agents in attacks.
Following international outrage over an Assad chemical attack which killed hundreds in August of last year, Syria agreed to have its ample supply of chemical weapons removed from the country. However, the process is taking longer than planned. According to Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon, 60 percent of Syria’s chemical weapons have been removed from the country in recent months in accordance with the agreement. Some 1,300 metric tons of chemicals remain to be removed and destroyed by the June 30, 2014 agreement deadline
According to Ya’alon, Israel is keeping a close eye on the removal process, specifically in order to ensure that none of the chemical agents are transferred to the Hezbollah terror group.
Though there had been rumors for many months of their use, Israeli intelligence exposed the Assad regime’s chemical weapons attacks last year. In April 2013, Israeli army military intelligence analyst Itai Brun declared publicly that Assad was using nerve gas against rebel forces: “To the best of our professional understanding, the regime has used lethal chemical weapons,” he said at the time, and specified that the IDF believed the toxic element was sarin. He noted then that it had been used on more than one occasion, including in an attack on March 19, 2013.
His assertion was subsequently accepted by US and other officials.


WHITEFISH – Following a lengthy and impassioned public hearing, the Whitefish City-County Planning Board approved a housing project on East Second Street after developers reconfigured the site plan for a third time in an effort to address residents’ acute concerns about density, neighborhood aesthetic and public safety.
The contentious project, called the 2nd Street Residences, had twice been reviewed and tabled by the planning board in the months prior to its most recent monthly meeting on July 18. The proposal finally moved forward despite public resistance to the revised site plan, which has been pared back to quell opposition from neighborhood residents.
In its third iteration, the development has undergone significant revisions but continued to elicit strong opposition from a packed chamber at Whitefish City Hall. Only a handful of residents, along with the members of the development team, voiced support for the project during a four-hour meeting that was beset by fervent public comments.
Still, planning board members commended the development team led by Sean Averill and Will MacDonald, of Community Infill Partners, LLC, praising their perseverance and flexibility in delivering a project that adds an element of affordable housing to a market characterized by a dearth of low-cost rentals. Their efforts to work with neighbors, address public concerns and remedy problems also drew kudos, though residents insisted the final revision falls short of responsible development as defined by zoning statutes and the Whitefish Growth Policy.
Some board members remained apprehensive about pedestrian safety and increased traffic volume, the solutions to which remained vague, but ultimately voted 5-1 in favor of the project.
The Whitefish City Council will take up the issue at its Aug. 19 meeting.
Planning board member Mary Vail cast the lone vote in opposition to the project, saying she wished to address a slate of lingering concerns before moving the project forward with a recommendation for approval.
“I just feel like we should have all of our ducks in a row before we make a decision,” Vail said to a roomful of applause. “I don’t feel like I have all the information.”
Residents living adjacent to the project site said the the plan, which calls for 143 units – down from the original proposal’s 174 units – was still too dense for a residential area with a traditionally rural, agricultural character, and the uptick in traffic would pose a safety threat to bikers and pedestrians.
Located on East Second Street east of Cow Creek and north of the intersection with Armory Road, the three parcels are at 100 Wild Rose Ln. and 1500 E. Second St.
“We’ve been listening to the residents of the neighborhood and we have whittled the density down to address those residents’ concerns,” Aaron Wallace, the principal architect, said.
The residents said they were not “anti-development” but “anti- bad development,” and that even after three revisions the project, which the developers touted as responsible infill, did not fit the rural character of the neighborhood.
“We are not anti-growth. Never were, never are, and we will not be with regard to this project,” Bob Horn, an urban planner and neighborhood resident, said. “We just want to see growth that respects our neighborhood. We appreciate the developers working with us. I’m just sorry that a favorable plan did not come to fruition.”
The project also does not comply with current zoning designations, and will require blending the densities of two zoning designations across the project’s 23 acres. The re-zoning designation prompted sharp criticism from residents who decried it as “spot zoning” and said it deviates from the city’s growth policy.
The developers are proposing 143 units, including 92 apartments in 29 buildings, 20 attached condominiums in nine buildings and 16 single-family homes with fifteen accessory, or “mother-in-law,” apartments.
Phyllis Quatman, a resident living on nearby Johns Way, said the project fulfills a need in the community by applying infill to accommodate the city’s expansive growth and by providing an affordable housing component. But it ultimately misses the mark, she said.
“Yes, we do need affordable housing and, yes, infill is a good idea. But this is not the lot to put in high-density housing. No one supports this,” Quatman said.
Averill, the developer, said his team has taken painstaking steps to resolve the concerns of residents and while he realizes it’s unlikely to receive broad support in the immediate future it will be a boon to the community.
“There is a need for affordable rentals in this community. We can’t make everybody happy but we think we’ve done a very good job,” Averill said. “This is a project we are proud of.”
A series of pedestrian trails will run through the development, connecting buildings to one another and to public streets, while nearly 70 percent of the development is designated open space and protects swaths of forest.
“The proposal locks these forests in protection. Not only are they being protected but this plan proposes a public trail, which will preserve this area as an amenity,” board member Greg Gunderson said.
“The first time we didn’t feel like we were there, and the second time we didn’t feel like we were there, either. But with these improvements I feel there’s a huge step in the right direction,” Gunderson added.
The overall density of the project is 6.02 dwelling units per acre, down from the originally proposed density of 7.31 units per acre, while the number of apartments was trimmed back from 164 to 92.
A traffic study stood out as another major point of contention, and planning board member Chad Phillips, who supported the project, agreed that infrastructure changes to Armory Road must happen immediately if the neighborhoods is to experience a significant uptick in traffic volume. He offered a friendly amendment to expedite construction of a sidewalk, a measure that planning officials said was unlikely given the backlog of projects, or, in the alternative, a multi-use path system.
“I can’t in good conscience vote for this without offering” Armory Road residents some timeline for the construction of a sidewalk or multi-use path, Phillips said.
“It’s already unsafe,” he said. “I can’t imagine adding 1,000 additional [vehicle] trips per day.”
As the meeting dragged on into the night, none of the board members arrived at a decision easily, but finally agreed to recommend the project for approval by city council.
“I’ve really struggled with this. But I believe it is totally in compliance with the growth policy,” board member Ken Meckel said.
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We all think bacteria is gross and bad but did you know that some bacteria is actually good for you and a necessary part of your body functioning properly? Because our diets are not perfect and our immune systems sometimes aren’t enough to fight off bad bacteria, our digestive tracts are often lacking in the good bacteria to fight off the bad stuff.
The good bacteria in our digestive tracks is called probiotics, and the most proven form of probiotics for immune, digestive and overall health is call Lactobacillus GG.
Culturelle is a company that has probiotic supplements for adults and children and the only bacteria contained in Culturelle is Lactobacillus GG.
Kids digestive tracts are especially susceptible to imbalance and because of their daily interactions at school their immune systems are frequently being challenged by bad bacteria. Culturelle has addressed this with their Probiotics for Kids!
KIDS’ IMMUNE SYSTEMS ARE CONSTANTLY BEING CHALLENGED
Between school, the playground, the bus and even at home, kids constantly face a myriad of bad bacteria. Culturelle for Kids contains Lactobacillus GG, one of the most clinically studied probiotic, or “good bacteria”, in the world. The good bacteria safely and naturally displace the bad bacteria, supporting kids’ natural defense systems, and reducing digestive upset.
Culturelle for Kids is one of the very few probiotics available that is 100% dairy and gluten free.
CULTURELLE IS THE #1 PEDIATRICIAN RECOMMENDED PROBIOTIC BRAND
Culturelle’s LGG probiotic has been extensively studied for safety in children of all ages, including neonatal and infants, and those studies have proven that Culturelle given to children:
- Supports their still-developing immune system*
- May help reduce upset stomach*
- Helps to reduce occasional diarrhea*
- Helps reduce the length and severity of antibiotic-associated diarrhea*
We recently had the opportunity to try Culturelle for Kids. My kids are always getting sick and always complaining that their tummy hurts, even when they are not sick. So we tried the Culturelle for Kids for over a week.
First off, using it was easy. The box contains 30 individual servings packets that you simply pour out and mix into a drink. My kids didn’t even notice and didn’t taste it either. I gave them each a packet every morning in their juice or milk.
It’s hard to say for sure something like this is working, especially after only a week or so. But I am inclined to think it is. First of all, there has not been a single complaint about “my tummy hurts” and I used to hear that daily from at least one of them. Second, they both seem to be more “regular.” While there has been a cold going around here, it didn’t seem to be as bad as they have gotten sick in the past.
I think the clinical results about the benefits of probiotics and the positive improvements I have seen already (plus the benefits of Culturelle over others) are enough to keep me using this product for the long term.
“I wrote this review while participating in a Mom Central Consulting blog tour on behalf of Culturelle. I received a Culturelle for Kids product sample and a gift card to thank me for taking the time to participate.”
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WEST SACRAMENTO (CBS13) — West Sacramento police are now investigating the death of a 60-year-old woman found at a bus stop as a homicide.
The woman was found dead near the Raley’s on West Capitol Avenue on Jan. 19. Police say she suffered traumatic injuries.READ MORE: Homemade Pipe Bomb Found In Front Of South Sacramento Elementary School
On Thursday, West Sacramento said the victim’s death is now considered a homicide. Investigators are now asking for help identifying a person who is considered an “investigative lead.” Police say the subject was seen in the area at the time of the woman’s death.
They released surveillance video of the person walking with a bicycle through the DOCO area. They are wearing bright red pants and a gray sweatshirt.READ MORE: Sutter Health Short On Vaccines As Blue Shield Takes Over Distribution
Officials believe the woman was homeless. Her identity has not been released.
Anyone with information about the subject is asked to contact West Sacramento police at 816-747-8188 or email firstname.lastname@example.org.MORE NEWS: Evacuations Ordered In Response To Hazmat Situation In North Sacramento
More from CBS Sacramento:

domain: news


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Summer will come again. It will! It will!
Photos by my pedalpal Helen Lane.
Today I rode out into the countryside to a Tree of Life to photograph it before the buds grew into too many leaves, too thick to see the branches giving it shape. I’ll put the photographs aside to use as inspiration for a painting I’ll make in the winter.
You may ask why I don’t paint it on the spot. Simple. That field, on which the grass and small flowers look so smooth, is in fact incredibly rough under the grass, so there’s nowhere level to put up an easel, and that is if you don’t first turn or break an ankle just walking the half-mile or so up the length of the field. But that isn’t the worst. The tree stands on the edge of a valley, and the wind howls over that field; it’s uncomfortable and cold. And it is most definitely not an alla prima painting, so a studio job it is.
So many amazing vistas in Ireland, so little time to paint them.
West Cork: a Place Apart is a book that haunts me, and it isn’t about some far-off, distant place, it is about the place where I live.
Jo Kerrigan is a local West Cork girl who went away and made an international reputation, then returned to write for the Irish Examiner and the Evening Echo and make all our lives better. “Winding green lanes and chuckling streams, mysterious lake dwellings and secret valleys, drowned forests and misty mountains: this, surely, is the region JRR Tolkien had in mind when he created Middle Earth.”
That’s prose you want to lick, because it is so true. I live among all this beauty, look out on it from my front door, from my study window, and cycle in it daily — but Jo makes it new for me.
Richard Mills arrived in West Cork from France when he was sixteen, and became the Examiner’s distinguished photographer. He is an international prize winner in several disciplines for his photographs of the landscape, flaura, fauna and people of West Cork. If there is a scene of Ireland that haunts your memory, chances are it was planted there by a photograph Richard took. I shan’t stick my neck out and pretend to know what makes a photograph by Richard Mills better: he has a different way of seeing that grabs hold of you, and creates an image so poignant it won’t let go again. You look at a photograph by Richard of a landscape you know, you look up at the view, and it is a new scene, with a different light shining on it. It’s a form of artistic magic.
A book of lovingly selected photographs by Richard Mills is already an occasion for the cognoscenti, but enriched by Jo’s equally evocative prose, it becomes so enticing, you want to get close enough to wrap yourself around it. West Cork: a Place Apart is a book so luscious, it is good enough to eat.

domain: artistic


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sunny. Highs in the mid 90s. South winds 10 to 15 mph. sunny. Highs in the mid 90s. South winds 10 to 15 mph. .TUESDAY NIGHT.Mostly clear. Lows in the lower 70s. south winds 5 to 10 mph. .WEDNESDAY.
HOUSTON, TX / ACCESSWIRE / September 16, 2019 / Camber Energy, Inc. (NYSE American: CEI) (“Camber” or the “Company”) based in Houston, Texas, announced today its recently acquired subsidiary Lineal.
Find a local Houston, TX mortgage loan officer in your area using our locator tool.
Hostile design breeds more hostility." Howdy Modi is a community summit hosted by Texas India Forum ( TIF ) for Indian Prime.
How To Get Approved For Fha Loan How to Get Approved for an FHA Loan Published on Dec 05, 2013 07:05 am The federal housing administration (fha)’s mortgage insurance program, which dates back to the New Deal, helps moderate-income americans buy houses.
To help consumers locate local Banks, Credit Unions and other lenders offering Personal Loans in Houston, ERATE provides this list. Very few online sources offer such an extensive network of Local lending sources as ours covering the Houston area. We are not responsible for the performance of these financial institutions.
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Austin and Fort Worth had the biggest home price gains in Texas in August, while the Dallas-area and Houston lagged.
Houston Federal credit union houston federal credit union has been servicing customers since 1960. It offers personal loans without any fees and an APR relying on the borrower’s credit. The lowest rate is currently 8.85% with a credit score of 730 or higher, and borrowers need at least a 600 credit score to take out $1,000 or more.
Score Needed For Fha Loan For people who want to get an fha mortgage loan with only a 3.5% down payment, you will need to have at least a 580 credit score to be considered. If you have a credit score below 580, you still can get a loan; you will just need to come up with a bigger down payment.

domain: economics


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Microsoft Windows 10 Devices: Everything You need to know
Hey Nerdz, missed the Microsoft Windows 10 Devices event earlier this month? No worries check out the details ABC New’s Alyssa Newcomb lays out about the whole event and each new device!
Microsoft’s grand finale captured the most attention, so we’ll give it to you first.
The software company released what it is calling its first-ever laptop, the Surface Book, a 13.5-inch screen with 6 million pixels.
“We have the best engineers who understand portability and performance,”
“Ounce for ounce, pound for pound, this is the fastest 13-inch laptop ever made.”
“..Surface Book is twice as powerful as the MacBook Pro.
It features a 12-hour battery life, company officials said. It starts at $1,499 and will be available Oct. 26.
It weighs 1.6 pounds and is 7.7 mm thin. It’s essentially a clipboard, making it easy to show someone something on your screen.
Surface Pro 4
Microsoft has continued to up its game when it comes to making devices that function as both tablets and laptops.
The Microsoft Surface Pro 4 made its debut today, boasting a 12.3-inch screen with 5 million pixels, making the resolution even higher with an even thinner screen.
The release of the Surface Pro 4 comes as Apple and Google recently unveiled their latest entries into the 2-in-1 device category, with the iPad Pro and the Google Pixel C.
The Surface Pro 4 starts at $899, and will be available Oct. 26. It also comes with new accessories that will work with the Surface Pro 3 as well, including a docking port and a new light touch keyboard complete with a finger print sensor, letting power users take advantage of the biometric security in Windows 10.
New Flagship Smartphones
Microsoft’s Lumia 950 has a 5.2-inch screen while the Lumia 950 XL will appeal to large phone lovers with its 5.7-inch screen.
“This is supposed to be the most productive phone you’ve ever picked up,”
Panos Panay, head of devices at Microsoft, told the crowd. A demonstration showed how continuum, a feature from Windows 10, allowed users to seamlessly shift between their computer screens and their Lumia smartphone.
Windows Hello, which works with an iris scanner to recognize a device’s user and instantly unlock it, is available in beta for the new phones.
Microsoft’s new phones also come with a sharp camera and a fifth-generation optical image stabilization system making it perfect for smartphone photographers.
“I don’t care if the image is moving or I’m moving, it’s going to be clear,”
Both devices use the USB-C charging standard and include up to 32 GB of internal storage. They’ll be available beginning next month, with the Lumia 950 starting at $549 and the Lumia 950 XL starting at $649.


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The Entropia Universe is for real. Read more Play Total Domination now! Andy co-founded, raised money and led both a startup and a small cap public company Games to life inception through growth and successful exits. He is a successful entrepreneur who ran startups before getting into blockchain investments.
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domain: hobby


text:
'Sarah Burton made Kate’s fantasy a reality for everyone': Sarah Jessica Parker sings designer's praises as she is voted one of world’s most influential people by Time magazine
18:32 GMT, 19 April 2012
It has been almost a year since the iconic moment Kate Middleton unveiled her fairytale wedding dress to the world.
But the Alexander McQueen gown continues to make headlines today – propelling designer Sarah Burton to unimaginable heights of fame.
And now Burton, who took over as creative director of the British label in 2010, has been voted one of Time Magazine's 100 most influential people in the world – joining the likes of Barack Obama, Hilary Clinton and footballer Lionel Messi.
Grand designs: Sarah Burton has been voted one of Time Magazine's 100 most influential people in the world
The 37-year-old is the only fashion designer to make the list.
And singing her praises for the magazine is Sex and the City star Sarah Jessica Parker, who has been a fan of the label for many years.
Parker labeled the Royal Wedding job as a 'burden and privilege' and commended Burton for creating a dress that 'lived up to an impossible dream.'
The actress wrote: 'She is a young woman who shouldered an enormous burden and privilege with dignity, heart and strength.
Moment of a lifetime: Burton designed the Duchess of Cambridge's wedding dress, now an iconic gown with a place in fashion history
Sarah Jessica Parker, pictured with Alexander Lee McQueen in 2006, has been a fan of the label for years
'And she did the undoable. A royal wedding dress that could never live up to the impossible dream. But it did.
'The whole world gasped in astonishment and sighed in reverie as she made
one young woman's fantasy a reality for everyone.
'She is now, at 37, a designer the elder statesmen of fashion marvel at, who is spoken of as the real thing.
Parker went on to praise Burton's low-key character.
'But you have to restrain her to make her hear that. She is busy working and never intended to find herself spoken of in headlines or chatter.
'She never imagined photo shoots or interviews.
'She thinks about women and art and stories, weaves her tale into the future of fashion.
the runway she is inspired. And she creates the most beautiful and
complex layers and simple, perfect lines. And a waist. Keeping up the
'Lee would be so proud.'
Burton's confidentiality agreement from
Buckingham Palace prevented her from revealing details of the dress ahead of the
Royal couple's wedding eve.
Burton's challenge was long and drawn
She told Vogue: 'I remember standing in Westminster
Abbey thinking, “This is unreal”.
'It was like a fairy tale. And all I
could think was, “I hope I don't trip over”.
'I didn't realise the
enormity of it until much nearer the wedding day. It was a magical
Big secret: Sarah Burton said she designed wedding-dress style for her Spring/Summer 2011 gowns to throw people off

domain: entertainment


text:
Mark P. Frissora was the Chief Executive Officer and President of Caesars Entertainment. Mr. Frissora has 42 years of business experience spanning all levels of managerial and functional roles. He joined Caesars in February 2015 and previously served from 2000-2014 as Chairman and CEO of two Fortune 500 companies, Hertz Global Holdings and Tenneco, Inc.
Mark has a 20-year track record of consistently generating stakeholder/shareholder value at highly leveraged companies in both private equity and public markets. Over the 65 quarters these three Fortune 500 companies were public, expectations were met or exceeded over 92% of the time through two significant recessions. He led two of these companies through successful IPOs and Caesars out of bankruptcy and through a reemergence listing on NASDAQ in 2017.
Frissora was Chairman and CEO at Tenneco from November 1999 to July 2006. During his tenure, Tenneco’s shareholder value more than tripled and revenue rose 39%. Additionally, Tenneco earned two top Automotive Industry shareholder awards for delivering the highest one-year and three-year shareholder returns of any automotive supplier.
While at Hertz, Frissora served as Chairman and CEO from July 2006 through September 2014. During this time, shareholders received a 3.6 times return on their shares held from the time the company went public in November 2006 through his departure in September 2014. Additionally, a special dividend was paid to shareholders of $1.32 per share after the launching of the IPO in November 2006.
As President and CEO of Caesars Entertainment, he drove performance by strengthening a culture focused on customer-centricity, diversity and employee engagement. From 2015 to Q2 2019, Mark led initiatives which increased EBITDA $812M or 55% on a same-store basis and EBITDA margins increased 930 bps from 18.4% to 27.6%. Furthermore, $12.5B of value was created from the pre- to post-bankruptcy time period (from 12/31/2014 to 10/6/2017).
Mr. Frissora currently serves as Chairman of Arencibia Associates Inc. The company specializes in gas purification system design and recovery technology. He previously served on the Board of Directors of Caesars Entertainment Corporation and Aptiv (formerly Delphi). At Aptiv, he served on the Nomination and Governance Committee and was Chairman of the Compensation and Human Resources Committee. Additionally, he previously served on the Boards of Walgreens Boots Alliance, FMC Corporation, and NCR Corporation. While at Walgreens, he was Chairman of the Finance Committee for 6 years and also served on the Audit Committee. Additionally, while on the board of NCR, he was Chairman of the Compensation Committee.
Mark holds a B.A. degree from The Ohio State University and has completed executive development programs at both Babson College and the Thunderbird International School of Management.

domain: finance


text:
Do your students love animals and pets? Would they enjoy entering a virtual pet shop, pet vet, and pet resort to work on goals such as listening comprehension, synonyms, antonyms, inferences, problem gauging and solving, verbs, and more? This is the ultimate receptive and expressive language bundle for your virtual or face-to-face classroom! There is continuity between the four units that will be included in this bundle for students to work seamlessly on multiple goals.
Here's what is and will be included in this bundle:
NO PRINT All About Pets Pet Shop Volunteer
(Listening Comprehension as a virtual Pet Shop Volunteer)
NO PRINT All About Pets Pet Shop Vocabulary and Inferences
(Comparative Vocabulary, Synonyms, Antonyms, and Inferences in a Pet Store Theme)
NO PRINT All About Pets Pet Vet Problem Gauging and Solving
(Gauge & Solve problems while collecting tools for a virtual medical bag)
NO PRINT All About Pets Pet Resort Specialist
(Regular & Irregular Past Tense Verbs and more with a virtual Pet Resort Theme)
Please ask any questions you may have before purchasing.
If you download, use, and enjoy this product, please share your thoughts! Thank you!
-Angela Hancock, MSP, CCC-SLP

domain: pet


text:
The question of a video referee was raised again on Sunday, following a controversial All-Ireland semi-final between Dublin and Mayo on Saturday.
Match referee Conor Lane came under scrutiny from fans and pundits alike after Mayo ended Dublin’s 45-match unbeaten streak, most notably surrounding an incident involving Eoin McLoughlin and John Small.
While many have suggested that it should have been a red card, others were merely concerned for the wellbeing of McLoughlin after the hit.
While further sanctions may still happen, the on-field repercussions of the incident have caused a lot of debate, as a red card in that instance could have affected the outcome of the match.
This has brought forward questions as to why the GAA do not use video referees akin to the TMO in rugby or VAR in football.
Speaking on the Sunday Paper Review, the Irish Independent’s Colm Keys suggested that the idea has been brought up before, but rejected by Croke Park.
“It has been on the table in recent years, but it has been rejected out right,” Keys said.
“I remember the former director general Padraig Duffy was very much against because, and he quoted Nigel Owens, the former international rugby referee, that rugby was becoming a far too elongated game because of resorting to video.
“As we saw in the Lions series, those fears have really come to pass for rugby.
“There were seven minutes of extra time last night. If you are reverting to video, how long does a game of Gaelic football become?”
Keys suggested that the previous calls for a video referee were surrounding points and penalties as opposed to acts of foul play and player safety.
“There have been attempts by counties, namely Limerick, to try and introduce the use of video,” Keys said.
“But so far it has been rejected on the grounds of, what are you going to use it for? Every incident in the game?
“That is the fear from the GAA. While it would be a great aid, and referees are really for it certainly in terms of scores and around penalties, but as regards discipline there isn’t really a view out there.
“It would be a great aid for the referee to be able to call in somebody else to have a quick look at what everybody at home was able to see.”
The inclusion of a video referee has to be about player welfare
For broadcaster Ryle Nugent, who joined Keys on the Paper Review the idea of bringing in a video referee should not be solely based on the length of the game.
“I absolutely get those concerns,” Nugent said. “In a lot of ways, the video referee and VAR in football have caused issues for both games, and I have no doubt that bringing in any sort of video referee is going to cause an issue. It requires a change of approach.
“My issue comes back around to player welfare and asking a referee to see something in a way that we all see it in a split second when there are so many other things going on isn’t realistic.
“Where does it come in? If somebody takes the head off somebody and the referee is blindsided, it needs to be sanctioned and it needs to be stamped out of the game. Use the video referee to do that.”


For the 2015MY, the GMC Sierra will receive new Carbon Editions, for those who want to stand out and make a strong statement. The new Carbon Edition is based on the 2015 GMC Sierra 1500 and is offered in three different versions in order to suit you better.
Offered on both Serra SLE double- and crew cab models, the 2015 Sierra Carbon 22 Edition arrives with carbon fiber graphics on the hood and up the tailgate panel, black painted grille, body-coloured door handles and new mirror caps.
In addition, the Carbon 22 Edition includes 22-inch black alloy wheels, fog lamps, remote keyless start, Universal Home Remote, a 110-volt power outlet and dual-zone climate controls as well as four-inch black tubular side assist.
On the Sierra SLE double cab, the Carbon 20 Edition adds the same painted grille and carbon fiber appearance accents but receives 20-inch aluminum alloy wheels.
Moreover, the standard Sierra Carbon Edition is available on the standard Sierra 1500 double cab and gets the same cues available on the Carbon 22 and 20 Edition models. According to GM, the Carbon Edition receives a black painted grille, carbon fiber graphics, body-coloured trim, remote keyless entry and a 110-volt power outlet and light-emitting diode or LED, cargo box lightning.
As standard, the 2015 GMC Sierra Carbon Editions are available with 4.3-liter EcoTec3 V6 engine two- or four-wheel drive, as well as two- and four-wheel drive. The 4.3-liter EcoTec3 V6 engine produces 285 hp and 305 lb-ft of torque, returning an EPA highway rating of up to 24 mph. As an option, GM offers the 5.3-liter EcoTec3 V8.
The 2015 GMC Sierra Carbon Edition is priced at $33,075, while the Carbon 20 Edition starts at $38,275. The 2015 GMC Sierra Carbon 22 Edition is priced at $42,270.
If you want one, you’d better know that GM dealers are already taking orders for the double-cab 2015 Sierra Carbon Edition models, while the Crew cab models will be available for order early next month. P.S. Pricing includes destination charge but excludes tax, title, license, dealer fees and optional equipment.


text:
Cheerful drive pop rock with positive excited electric guitar solo. Fast, frisky and powerful. Good for comedy / teen pop culture movie scenes.
Perfect soundtrack for promotional videos, TV commercials, presentations or any video project background music.
Style: pop rock, indie rock
Instruments: electric guitar, bass, drums
Mood: energetic, positive, motivational


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Phone: +976 8909-2759


text:
Log in Help Post an ad free. Women Seeking Men. Create your own ad in Earth Women Seeking Men. It's easy and free! Personals Categories. Feeling the love of the right partner When you realize you want to spend the rest of your life with somebody, you want the rest of your life to start as soon as possible.
Women Seeking Men in Florida, Florida Women Personals
But before we get into the specifics of that, the easiest way to find women searching for older men is the same as finding anything else:. Additionally, a lot of young guys like to date older women. But I was really surprised to learn that many younger women like older men. So that is pretty cool — older women seeking older men and young women seeking older men. Studies that span cultures find that men of every age typically prefer younger partners.
Using the anonymous nature of the web so find women looking for sexual relationships could be a great idea… But are their really that many women online looking for casual sex in the first place? You have given up going out to avoid the disappointment of seeing so many successful happy young people dancing the night away. These places you frequent in the weekends only have very few attractive women and any that come in are accompanied by a few burly men. How does a guy that is shit out of luck in the appearance department find some casual sex? Are women my age even interested in this sort of thing?

domain: sociology


text:
Well, I've taken the plunge and opened a little Etsy store.
The store is called SewManyYears. Most of the stock will be things I've made with a few vintage items now and again. It's a bit of an experiment. Pop over and tell me what you think. I'm always grateful for suggestions. Everything is priced with domestic shipping included. I'm willing to ship internationally but couldn't quite figure out a fair way to include that shipping in the price.


Huawei has played a central role in New Zealand’s telecommunications infrastructure for a decade. The company’s New Zealand deputy managing director, Andrew Bowater, says it started working with 2degrees four years before the telco’s network was switched on in 2009.
The 2degrees partnership played a crucial role when in 2013, Telecom, now Spark, chose Huawei’s hardware to power its 4G mobile network. Bowater says; “We wouldn’t have won that without 2degrees, we wouldn’t be here today without them.”
Huawei’s relationship with Spark went deep. The two worked together to break new ground, they were the first to use 700 MHz spectrum for a 4G mobile network. New Zealand got that ahead of the world. Likewise, they were early getting 4.5G technology to market.
A Commerce Commission investigation into mobile market competition is underway. The carriers think they’ve seen enough regulation, with some justification. And yet there are areas where New Zealand’s mobile market does not work as well as it might.
Spark managing director Simon Moutter has a point when he says New Zealand’s mobile market is competitive.
On the most obvious level, the mobile market works well. Prices for monthly accounts, calls and texts have fallen. Consumers pay less and get more.
New Zealand is no longer an expensive place to own a mobile phone. Cellular voice and text prices are in line with those in comparative overseas markets.
2degrees not lobbying for regulation
It speaks volumes that 2degrees is not asking for further market structure changes. The third carrier is profitable and continues to put price pressure on Spark and Vodafone.
2degrees CEO Stewart Sherriff says his company invented competition in New Zealand. His company has certainly made the mobile phone sector price competitive in a way that it wasn’t before.
Prices from the larger carriers didn’t start to fall in earnest until 2degrees got market traction. Sherriff’s company is often the first to move on price. 2degrees is innovative and aggressive when it comes to pricing bundles of mobile services.
In Moutter’s eyes, the tough price competition at this level is enough to prove the market works. Yet we could do better.
Where the market doesn’t work
There is one clear way New Zealand’s mobile market competition isn’t functioning as well as it might. Customer service is, at best, indifferent. Often it is appalling.
If the market was truly competitive, carriers would not be able to get away with leaving customers on hold for hours or failing to solve trivial technical problems.
That’s not something the Commerce Commission can address in a direct way. Complacency about customer service is a clear sign a market could be more competitive. We replaced a monopoly with a duopoly and then an oligopoly. From a consumer point of view: worst, worse and not good.
Areas the Commerce Commission should address
There are three areas the Commerce Commission needs to address in its mobile market review. All three have the potential to improve competition.
First, New Zealanders still pay too much for mobile data.
Second, there are warning signs of collusion between carriers that should worry the regulator.
Third and top of the list is the lack of diversity in mobile phone service retailers.
“I note that submitters raised concerns about the effectiveness of regulation at the wholesale level, particularly with regard to the provision of Mobile Virtual Network Operator (MVNO) services. In other countries, these services are an important part of the mobile ecosystem, and the widespread availability of such services has led to better outcomes for consumers.”
It is theoretically possible there are no MVNOs in New Zealand because the market competition is already so perfect and the incumbents look after customer needs so well that there is no room for them.
That argument doesn’t stand up for a moment.
When is an MVNO not an MVNO?
New Zealand’s biggest MVNO isn’t really an MVNO at all. Spark’s Skinny business exists to give the nation’s largest telco a budget brand without cannibalising its core market. Skinny is not a true MVNO because its parent company owns the network.
Skinny is Spark lite. Today Skinny customers get almost the same product as Spark customers but without the value-adds like Wi-Fi hotspots and Spotify. Otherwise, the plans are a few dollars less each month than equivalent Spark plans.
In effect, Skinny is another Spark mobile product line.
New Zealand’s next biggest MVNO is the 2degrees-Warehouse tie-up. It is price competitive but hasn’t caused any waves in the market. The number of customers would be a rounding error on the numbers for the three big players.
The Warehouse isn’t pushing hard with its mobile option. If you walk into a store you’ll have to hunt to see where you can buy it and sales staff don’t seem motivated to emphasise it.
Vocus is New Zealand’s fourth largest telco. Unlike the three bigger telecom companies it doesn’t own a mobile network.
There are some Vocus MVNO customers, but not many. You could probably fit them all in a room. Vocus doesn’t make much money, if any from them and, like The Warehouse, it isn’t marketed.
Full telco service
In most other western countries a business like Vocus would be able to partner with a carrier and offer its customers a full telecommunications service including mobile. It would be able to bundle services and offer keen prices.
That’s not the case in New Zealand. Likewise, you can imagine other smaller telcos and even companies that dabble in telco like, say, TrustPower, would love to offer mobile as an add-on to power and broadband.
MVNOs perform two vital market functions. First, they often serve more specialist customer needs not catered for by the bigger players.
MVNOs are about choice
Second, they act as a pressure valve for the market. Many disgruntled customers leave one carrier only to find their new choice is just as annoying. The MVNOs give consumers a new set of choices.
Until MVNOs make up about ten percent of the market, preferably more, New Zealand does not have true mobile competition.
The Commerce Commission needs to look at the barriers to entry for MVNOs. If these are structural, then there is a need for new rules.
We pay a lot for mobile data. This is especially true when you look at data-only plans. We pay a lot more than, say, Australia.
On the other side of the Tasman, you can pay A$65 a month for 50GB of mobile data. In the UK £25 buys 100GB of mobile data. That’s around NZ$50.
At the time of writing the best deal in New Zealand is 2degree’s 25GB for NZ$70. That’s roughly twice the price Australians pay and, depending on exchange rates and taxes, around five times the UK price.
Economy of scale
While you can argue that Australia and the UK have economies of scale, it’s hard to imagine scale means the cost of supply in New Zealand is twice that in Australia or five times that in the UK.
It is significant that the Australia data deal quoted above is from Amaysim, a MVNO. These smaller MVNO players have put huge pressure on the prices charged by the network owners for data.
There’s another way you can look at New Zealand’s mean mobile data caps. The competitive pressure in other countries means carriers dedicate their spectrum to satisfying the needs of mobile customers. If they don’t, someone else will.
Fixed wireless broadband
Spark mobile customers share the company’s cellular bandwidth with 100,000 fixed wireless broadband customers. If the mobile market was competitive, Spark could not afford to risk degrading the mobile data experience.
How Spark manages its resources is the company’s own affair. It is certainly possible to run fixed and mobile broadband on the same networks without disappointing either group of users — that happens in lots of countries. It’s possible there is enough spectrum to satisfy both groups.
Spark may have a good explanation why 100,000 fixed wireless customers downloading gigabytes each month have nothing to do with mobile market competition. But it’s something the Commerce Commission investigation needs to take into account.
Is there a cartel?
A third area the Commerce Commission needs to consider is something from left field. The three carriers have banded together to build a rural mobile network with shared infrastructure.
The Rural Connectivity Group is an intelligent and innovative solution to what looks like a tricky problem: delivering broadband to small remote communities and filling in the mobile blackspot on country roads.
While it makes sense for rivals to co-operate on a project of this nature, it isn’t without risk. In his book The Wealth of Nations Adam Smith wrote:
People of the same trade seldom meet together, even for merriment and diversion, but the conversation ends in a conspiracy against the public, or in some contrivance to raise prices.
Smith was no tin-foil hat conspiracy theorist, he is recognised as the father of modern capitalism. His name is forever tied to the ideas of free markets.
Rural Connectivity model
The danger with the RCG is that it could become the model for the next generation of mobile networks throughout New Zealand. There have already been whispers of the carriers considering acting together to build a 5G network.
When Chorus recently floated the idea of creating a UFB-style open access 5G mobile network the carriers were quick to shoot it down. A line hidden in a media statement from Vodafone could be interpreted as suggesting the carriers are thinking of building a shared 5G network:
There is no question that industry-wide collaboration makes sense in some instances, and the industry has already demonstrated working models for this.
You could see this as getting the regulator and others used to the idea of industry collaboration when it comes to 5G.
Moutter takes the argument further. He starts by saying Spark can build a 5G network on its own:
No industry amalgamation was required for the transition from 3G to 4G, and none is required from 4G to 5G. Based on our current analysis, we think the investment for 5G will be manageable, as we will be able to leverage our existing 4G and 4.5G physical infrastructure.
Which sounds reasonable. He then goes on to say:
That’s not to rule out sensible infrastructure sharing where that can speed up deployment or address visual pollution issues that might come from the deployment of more network sites – we are supportive of those models. But to jump straight to a conclusion that we need a monopoly network would be crazy.
Which could be another subtle softening up of the idea of a shared infrastructure. When you run a large partly vertically integrated business “sensible” can take on a lot of meanings.
As 5G networks are understood at the moment, they will need many more towers than today’s networks so the deployment issues and visual pollution he mentions are a given.
None of this is to say the carriers are planning to build a shared 5G network, nor is it to say the network structure will be inherently anticompetitive. It is something for a market regulator to consider and watch.
Competition or cartel?
It’s not the Commerce Commission’s job to second guess an as-yet-unsettled technology. Nor can it speculate about plans that may only be written on the back of paper napkins.
Yet it strains credulity to think the three carriers put their heads together to plan the RCG without at least mentioning how such a collaboration might work in the future.
At this point the Wikipedia definition of a cartel is useful:
A cartel is a group of apparently independent producers whose goal is to increase their collective profits by means of price fixing, limiting supply, or other restrictive practices. Cartels typically control selling prices, but some are organised to control the prices of purchased inputs.
No-one would suggest any of this is happening at present, but allowing the three carriers to build a shared network would be a step on the path to a potential cartel-like arrangement.
The levy is, in effect, an extra and, somewhat discriminatory, tax on telecommunications companies imposed by the outgoing National government. It adds up to a roughly one percent increase in telecommunications prices.
As in previous years Spark and Vodafone are the biggest contributors paying 35 and 26 percent. Chorus and 2degrees are three and four.
The big four players will pay more than 90 percent of the total levy. Another eleven companies will pay about eight percent of the TDL between them.
There’s a double whammy for Chorus investors. Not only does the company not get any of the TDL money back in the form of contracts, but unlike the telcos, Chorus can’t raise prices to fund the tax because most of its rates are regulated.
What the TDL says about the industry
Only companies with telecommunications revenue of more than $10 million pay the TDL. When deciding how much each should pay, the Commerce Commission extracts a number it calls qualifying revenue. This figure can often be well below $10 million.
The commission adds all the qualifying revenue. Then companies pay a share of the $50 million TDL based on their share of qualifying revenue.
You could look at the way the share changes as a crude, yet effective, measure of relative performance.
The total pool of qualifying revenue changed little between this year’s determination and last year’s. In both cases it comes to a little over $4.2 billion.
In other words, taken as a whole, New Zealand telecommunications industry growth is flat. Taking inflation into account, that means it is actually in gentle decline.
Spark still dominates, but falling
Spark remains the largest contributor to the TDL. In the 2016-2017 year its share was a fraction over 35 percent of the total. That’s down from almost 38 percent a year ago, a fall of around 2.5 percent.
Vodafone barely shifted position in the year at a little over 26 percent. Its share of the TDL total climbed by 0.1 percent. You could see this as closing the gap on Spark. In very round numbers Spark is around a third of the total market and Vodafone is a quarter.
Chorus saw its share of the total grow by half a percent. It remains the third largest telco with getting on for 23 percent of the total.
2degrees is a climber. Its share of the total grew from 7.25 percent to 8.38 percent. This reflects the company’s strong performance in the market. While it is still a long way behind Vodafone and Spark, to be almost a third the size of Vodafone after seven years in the market is a major achievement.
The five largest telcos collectively account for almost 96 percent of the total TDL in this year’s determination. That’s down one percent from last year.
This is because of fibre and the rise of the regional fibre companies. Ultrafast Fibre, Enable and Northpower saw their total share climb from less than one percent of the total to about 1.6 percent.
This happens because as customers move from the copper network to UFB fibre some of the money those customer pays switches from Chorus to the regional fibre company. As more sign up for fibre these companies will continue to grow their share of the TDL, but at some point they will stabilise.
Most of the other changes are down to what scientists might call noise in the numbers. Although there is a newcomer in the TDL list this year, Now only accounts for 0.13 percent of the total.
Earlier this year Communications Minister Simon Bridges wrote to the Commerce Commission asking it to investigate competition in the mobile market.
Last Friday the Commerce Commission confirmed the study will go ahead.
The Commerce Commission says study aims to “better understand how mobile markets are developing and performing, particularly around the competitive landscape and any emerging competition issues”.
In his letter, Bridges noted that, unlike many other countries, New Zealand does not have thriving mobile virtual network operators.
Mobile virtual network operators
MVNOs are a feature of many mobile markets around the world. They can account for a large slice of the market. In Australia MVNOs are about 10 percent of the mobile market.
Often run by well-known consumer brands, MVNOs buy wholesale services on existing mobile networks. They then sell them to customers without needing to invest in infrastructure.
MVNOs can increase competition and give consumers greater choice. They also tend to reduce prices and squeeze margins.
New Zealand’s mobile carriers are not impressed. Spark, in particular has spoken out. The company says there is no case for new mobile regulation.
The company’s general manager regulatory affairs John Wesley-Smith is quoted in a notice to the NZX on the study. He says: “We have three world-class networks delivering prices that are well below OECD averages and three mobile network operators that are ploughing significant investment into an intensely competitive market.”
This is largely true. Seven years ago before 2degrees entered the market, New Zealand mobile prices were high by international standards. Today prices are a touch below international averages.
Moreover, margins have dropped. While the mobile networks are solid businesses, they are not awash in profits. It took until this year for 2degrees to make its first profit.
That alone tells you the market is competitive.
It also speaks volumes that 2degrees, the relative newcomer and the smallest mobile carrier, is not calling for more regulation. In the past it has been the beneficiary of intervention.
You could argue, the carriers almost certainly will argue, that consumers are well served by the existing competition. From this point of view the market settings appear to be right.
And yet not everyone is happy. Last month the NBR carried a report saying Vocus general manager, consumer Taryn Hamilton believes his company cannot grow its mobile business without regulatory intervention.
Vocus has an MVNO agreement with Spark. The Vocus brands, Callplus, Slingshot and Orcon offer mobile services. There is also a 2degrees MVNO agreement with The Warehouse.
In market terms these deals are a freak show. The existing MNVOs don’t add up to more than about one percent of the total mobile market. And that estimate may be generous.
Elsewhere in the world MVNOs can be seen as a positive by carriers.
Often the customers who choose an MVNO are the ones who would already be looking to move away from their existing accounts. If they choose an MVNO on the carrier’s network, the bulk of the revenue they generate stays with the carrier. There’s churn, but not churn to a rival carrier.
A new kid on the block
The other carrier-point-of-view argument in favour of boosting MVNOs in New Zealand is that it would keep out a fourth network. None of the existing carriers would welcome a new competitor.
In the past that may have seemed unlikely in a small market like New Zealand. However the market dynamics have changed.
New Zealand has four sizeable telcos: Spark, Vodafone, 2degrees and Vocus.
Vocus’ parent company faces challenges at the moment and is focused elsewhere. However, Vocus has been an aggressive investor in the past. It could be again.
Unlike smaller telcos, Vocus can buy spectrum. It could bid for new spectrum licences. It could build a fourth mobile network.
If the company decides mobile is straegic and can’t get what it considers to be a reasonable MVNO agreement with existing carriers, this is a plausible strategy. Let’s face it, mobile is stratgic for every sizeable telco.
Given this, Spark, Vodafone and 2degrees might do well to see the Commerce Commission study in a more positive light. Being forced by the regulator to offer more generous MVNO agreements would be preferable to facing a new rival.
2degrees has signed a multi-year backhaul contract with Chorus. The deal replaces a mix of services from providers including Spark and Vocus.
The network will connect UFB points of presence and data centres to the international network. 2degrees says it now has a fully diverse and highly resilient network that transports voice and data worldwide.
Mark Petrie, 2degrees chief fixed officer says: “By combining 100Gbps links into our network we’re future proofing our ability to support the ever-increasing data demands of the country’s largest enterprises, for whom having this capability is critical.”
The deal marks the first national customer to sign for Chorus’ 100Gbps nation-wide fibre backbone network. Chorus’ chief commercial officer, Tim Harris describes 2degrees as an important strategic partner for Chorus.
While it is an important business win for Chorus, there’s an even greater significance. It marks the national wholesale network provider’s move away from regulated monopoly services into a more competitive space. This gives Chorus a route away from settling down as a mere utility provider into more commercial areas.


text:
Small Town Saturday Night
Just days before Rhett (Chris Pine) is leaving for Nashville to pursue a lifelong dream of being a singer/songwriter, his girlfriend Samantha (Bre Blair) realizes that "his" future may not be "their" future. This news comes as a shock to Rhett, and he is faced with having to choose between following his dream and staying in his hometown in order to be with the woman he loves.Small Town Saturday Night featuring Shawn Christian and Chris Pine is available for rent or purchase on Google Play, available for rent or purchase on Prime Video, available for rent or purchase on Microsoft Store, and 2 others. It's a drama and thriller movie with a less than average IMDb audience rating of 5.4 (1,247 votes).
Where to Watch Small Town Saturday Nighti
Cast & Crew
Reelgood Watch Guide
Available to rent or buy from $3.99 on 5 services (Google Play, Prime Video, Microsoft & 2 others).
Not available to watch free online.
Not available to stream on a subscription service.
Not available to stream on a TV everywhere service.
Small Town Saturday Night has a less than average IMDb audience rating of 5.4 (1,247 votes). The movie is not at all popular with Reelgood users lately.


Summary: Great sound, worked well on long flight, but the plastic is very brittle. Very well taken care of but the area around the earpiece requires some reengineering. Nice and portable, cut out 90% of flight engine noise. Will try another brand with hinges that allow the headphones to fold.
Summary: The sound, and especially the noise cancelling, amazes me every time I use the headphones...and that's pretty much every day. The "white noise" at the office completely disappears and I can actually turn the volume way down on the music - better for my ears. :) I find the headphones very comfortable and I can wear them for hours - something I've never been able to say about other on-the-ear headphones (I have a big head - literally!).
Summary: The sound was fine. I have no problems with the audio abilities. They fold up small and would be good for travel. If they were just standard headphones, I would be happy with them. The problem I have is the sound cancelling doesn't seem to make much of a difference at all. I tested them against the range fan, vacuum cleaner, fridge fan and I even played a sound effect of a jet interior wondering if they were tuned to that specific frequency.


text: Methotrexate exhibits poor cutaneous bioavailability when administered topically using conventional vehicles. It is recommended for the treatment of skin-related diseases but its systemic side effects hamper application. The aim of this work was to formulate methotrexate in nanostructured lipid carriers using biocompatible lipids, and to investigate their potential for topical drug delivery. Methotrexate-loaded nanostructured lipid carriers were prepared via a hot ultrasonication method. Nanocarriers were evaluated for size, polydispersity, surface potential and entrapment efficiency. Shape and surface morphology of the produced lipid carriers confirmed their spherical shape. After 10 h ca. 50% of methotrexate was released in vitro from the lipid nanocarriers following Peppas–Korsmeyer release kinetics. Moreover, methotrexate-loaded nanocarriers were stable at least for 3 months and less toxic towards fibroblasts and human keratinocytes than the free drug. Methotrexate within lipid nanocarriers was able to pass the experimental keratinocyte epidermal barrier at a flux rate of 2 μg cm−2 h−1. Results demonstrated that lipid nanocarriers constitute a suitable approach for application of methotrexate in skin-related diseases topical therapy.

domain: chemistry


The Standstills highly anticipated full length album “Badlands” is about defining their craft and broadening their horizon. “It’s a mix of what we love, sexy psychedelic, guitar driven, outlaw rock and roll” lead singer and guitarist Jonny Fox declares. Drummer and singer Renee Couture defines the record as “If wild west Clint Eastwood had a sound”. The Canadian rock duo is off to a great start with their first single “Wild”, the quickest charting top ten on rock radio in Eone record label history.
This record follows the success of their 2015 EP “From The Devil’s Porch featuring “Orleans” which reached #4 on BDS active rock charts in Canada and “Rise of the Fall” also reaching top 10 in Canada. As a result, The Standstills were awarded Best New Rock Group at the Canadian Radio Music Awards. The album also received over 1.4 million streams globally. As a result, The Standstills successfully performed on their first arena tour across Canada supporting Our Lady Peace and I Mother Earth.
The Standstills have since taken steps into the international market performing at a sold out performance in one of Europe’s most prominent music festivals, Reeperbahn held in Hamburg Germany. There is much to look forward to from this masterful duo, as their unique style of rock speaks volumes in today’s vast musical landscape.


text:
Wigan has joined Huddersfield in the bid to become the host of Rugby League’s national museum.
It’s claimed the proposed attraction, which would be based at Robin Park, close to the DW Stadium, would be “world class”.
A joint initiative has been launched by Wigan Council and Wigan Warriors, whose Chairman Ian Lenagan (pictured) said: “Wigan is the best-known name in Rugby League worldwide and it’s right the museum should be here.”
The Wigan bid includes interactive experiences detailing the sport’s origins and history aimed at engaging a new, younger fanbase for Rugby League.
The town wanted to set up the museum four years ago, but Bradford was chosen.
However, after little progress, Rugby League Cares announced that the application process would be reopened.
An independent panel will decide the location.
Kirklees Council is bidding to create the museum at Huddersfield’s historic George Hotel, the birthplace of Rugby League, which has stood empty since 2013.
In March, Kirklees Council agreed a deal in principle to purchase the grade two-listed building.
The hotel was built in 1851, and in August 1895, was the venue for the meeting at which the Northern Union (later the Rugby Football League) was formed.
Both Huddersfield and Wigan were founder clubs.
Creating the National Rugby League Museum is part of Kirklees Council’s ten-year £250m ‘Huddersfield Blueprint’ town-centre regeneration scheme.
The University of Huddersfield already stores an extensive Rugby League archive at its Heritage Quay facility.
Former Dewsbury and Great Britain player and Sky Sports pundit Mike Stephenson created a personal museum at the George Hotel, but that ended with its closure.

domain: history


text:
Simultaneous Information and Power Transfer under a Non-Linear RF Energy Harvesting Model
Paper in proceedings, 2017
In the design of simultaneous wireless information and power transfer (SWIPT) systems, it has been typically as- sumed that energy conversion efficiency is independent from the level of the input power at the energy receiver. On the other hand, in practice the energy conversion efficiency exhibits a non- linear behavior and highly depends on the input power. This leads to a discrepancy between the practical energy harvesting (EH) hardware available and the resource allocation designs made for the SWIPT systems. This work is concerned with this issue. In particular, we propose a practical quadratic model for the power conversion efficiency in EH circuitry. Comparisons with the constant efficiency models used in conventional SWIPT system design as well as another non-linear model proposed in the literature are made. With its convexity properties together with the good match it provides for the measurement data from practical EH circuitry, the proposed model is shown to be a promising alternative to the existing EH approaches. Using the proposed model, the problem of resource allocation for a multi- user Orthogonal Frequency-Division Multiple Access (OFDMA) system is investigated. The performance improvement due to the usage of the proposed non-linear model is illustrated.

domain: literature


In a corner of this ruined city, a group of British soldiers paused from their peacekeeping duties to remember their fallen compatriots who had come to conquer decades ago.
About 100 British soldiers looked on today while an honor guard lay poppy wreaths before the graves of soldiers killed during the British Empire's futile efforts to subdue the Afghans in the 19th and 20th centuries.
The ceremony was rich in historical paradox, with the invaders returning as peacemakers, and the peacemakers summoning a nostalgia for the days when their military prowess secured them a foothold in nearly every corner of the globe.
A Gurkha band played magisterial tunes, a pair of chaplains blessed the honored dead, and none other than Maj. Gen. John McColl of Britain, the head of the multinational force trying to preserve order here, gave a stiff salute. Local Afghans, shut outside the cemetery, peered over the high walls and from windows and rooftops, sitting in silence as the British prayed aloud and sang ''God Save the Queen.''
''I wouldn't dwell on the irony,'' General McColl said. ''I would focus on the peace and the progress that allows us, as Christians, to be here. I would dwell on the tolerance and freedom that we've achieved here that allows each to go about his own business.''Continue reading the main story
Many of those who were recalled today, like would-be conquerors before and after them, died violently at the hands of the Afghans, whose victories in the First and Second Anglo-Afghan Wars in the 19th century helped cement their reputation as a fierce and unconquerable lot. After several tries the British gave up.
The cover of the program for today's ceremony showed a lithograph of an exhausted and bedraggled Dr. William Brydon, the only survivor from a force of 17,000 British troops who tried to retreat from Kabul in January 1842. The Afghans slaughtered the rest, firing at them from crags and passes lining the route.
The Kabul graveyard formed part of the British military cantonment between 1839 and 1842, during the First Anglo-Afghan War.
Only 158 of the British who died during the Anglo-Afghan Wars are buried in the cemetery here, known locally as the ''White Graveyard'' for the exclusive presence of Western dead. A handful of the gravestones, cracked and broken during a hard freeze in 1978, were reassembled and set against the cemetery's southern wall. One of them read, ''In Memory of Cecil H. Gaisford, Lieut. 72nd Highlanders, Killed in Action in Asmai Highlands, Dec. 1879.''
Unlike many countries, Britain frequently left its soldiers who were killed in foreign wars buried in the countries where they fell. Each year, the British government spends considerable sums to maintain military cemeteries overseas, mainly for soldiers killed in the two world wars.
Since arriving here in December, the British have begun refurbishing the White Cemetery, digging a new well to water the dying grass and paying the impoverished custodian, Rahimullah, for the first time in years. The cemetery was hit by rockets during the long years of civil warfare here, and it is greatly in need of repair. To help defray some of the costs, soldiers took up a collection at the ceremony; in a few minutes a British military beret was stuffed with American dollars.
Despite the political sensitivity of its current mission to Afghanistan, the British soldiers allowed themselves to indulge in a bit of nostalgia, with readings from a text about the Afghan wars that seemed written in an era when the imperialist enterprise was unburdened by self-doubt.
One passage concerned Sgt. J. A. Drummond and Lt. S. T. John Forbes, who were killed on Dec. 13, 1879, by Afghan warriors known as ghazis.
''The sergeant was shot down, and Lieutenant Forbes rushed forward to save his body from mutilation,'' one of the soldiers at the ceremony read aloud. ''After cutting down a ghazi, he was overpowered and killed before the Highlanders could save him. Not a man of the ghazis who turned back escaped; they were shot and bayoneted on the rocks.''
Sergeant Drummond and Lieutenant Forbes are buried in the Kabul cemetery.
A Ghurka bugler played ''Last Post'' and reveille, and the assembled crowd was silent for two minutes to remember the dead. Much of the service involved in bestowing upon the living and the dead a holy sanction for their efforts. The two chaplains, one Catholic and one Anglican, read aloud prayers and inspirational texts blessing those at hand.
One of the most moving came not from the Bible but from high fantasy. The Rev. David Steele, the Anglican chaplain, read a passage adapted from ''The Lord of the Rings,'' extolling the soldier's thankless task of protecting his country. The speech seemed to resonate with the soldiers assembled in the graveyard, who are working to hold together this fractious city after so many years of anarchy and death.
''Lord God, we are soldiers in order to protect peace and freedom; the nation would have known them little but for us,'' Mr. Steele said to the group. ''What safety could there be in quiet lands, or in the homes of simple men at night, if we soldiers were all asleep or gone?''
An article on Feb. 23 about a memorial service held by British peacekeeping troops in Kabul, Afghanistan, to honor compatriots killed during the British Empire's futile efforts to subdue the Afghans in the 19th and 20th centuries misstated the number of British troops who died in an infamous retreat in 1842. It was about 4,500 British and Indian soldiers, not 17,000. (The 12,500 others who died were civilians.) Readers' e-mail reported the error in February, but the correction was delayed for interviews and research.


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Super women: Female-led funds on topBY ALLY SELBY | FRIDAY, 6 MAR 2020 12:35PM
Super funds with female trustees and female leaders can boost their member's super by $100,000 over their working life.
Read more: Women, Rainmaker Information, Alex Dunnin, APRA, CareSuper, Catholic Super, CBA Group Super, CSC, EquipSuper, Kim Farrant, OECD, Sandra Buckley
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See trends that matter | Global Healthcare
Australian asset managers are the fourth-fastest growing of their global peers, clocking in 11.9% in compounded annual growth over the last five years, says a new report from Willis Towers Watson.
The head of QSuper's advice unit has departed after the superannuation fund restructured its financial-advice offering to members.
BlackRock has won a passive investment strategy mandate from AMP New Zealand for an undisclosed amount.
APRA and ASIC have published the latest data on life insurance claims and disputes, demonstrating the difference financial advisers make when it comes to TPD and trauma claims.
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