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Main challenges faced by multinational companies when planning human resources in Venezuela
|Human Resources Planning has been in consider a key factor for the development of companies and its success is highly reflected in the markets nowadays. Such planning may varies from country to country and therefore, the aim of this research paper is to explore whether Human Resources Planning can still be consider of relevance within Multinational companies in Venezuela given the main challenges faced when planning its operations in this country. The influence of external factors prevailing in Venezuela, such as legal restrictions and socioeconomic problems in the Human Resources Planning has been analyzed in detail through this paper in both the academic and the field perspective. As a result, this study lead us to understand that even though planning plays an important role for Multinational companies, the skill of improvising and being flexible with said planning has an important role in particular environments such as the ones currently present in Venezuela. It is shown that due to the existence of those particular challenges, global policies and practices should be adapted in order to fulfill the reality of this country. In addition, it was evidenced that recruiting and retaining the right people has become a hard task in Venezuela as a consequence of the increasing brain drain that affects the country.
|Rios, T. (2013). Main challenges faced by multinational companies when planning human resources in Venezuela. Masters Thesis, Dublin Business School.
|Dublin Business School
|Items in Esource are protected by copyright. Previously published items are made available in accordance with the copyright policy of the publisher/copyright holder.
|Copyright: The author
|Main challenges faced by multinational companies when planning human resources in Venezuela
|MBA in Business Management


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What happens when significant heritage value meets risk to public safety? This was a question the Environment Court was tasked with answering in View West Limited v Auckland Council - an appeal against a decision by Auckland Council refusing consent to demolish the 133 year old St James Sunday School Hall in Mt Eden.
The hall was built in approximately 1885 and a church was constructed on the site a short time later. The whole of the site is identified in the Auckland Unitary Plan as an historic place; and both the church and hall are identified as heritage buildings with significant heritage values.
In 2012 the hall was identified as a dangerous building under section 121 of the Building Act 2004. A dangerous building notice was issued in respect of the hall and it has not been used by the community nor the congregation since.
The church, however, was not subject to the notice and has continued to be used for regular services. In 2016 Auckland Council granted consent for the modification, restoration and partial demolition of the church, involving strengthening works, replacing portions of the church and reutilising and adapting the building for use as four apartments.
Shortly after this consent was granted, an application was made for the total demolition of the hall. By this time, it had been sitting unused for some four years. The Council concluded that there were insufficient circumstances to support the demolition of the hall and declined to grant consent.
That decision was appealed to the Environment Court who identified a failure on the part of the Council to consider the condition of the building, which had deteriorated further to the point where collapse was imminent. The Court concluded that the physical resource, the hall, was no longer fit for purpose. It was structurally unsound and posed a danger to people and the surrounding properties. Therefore, doing nothing was not an option.
In an attempt to demonstrate that demolition was not necessary, the Council developed an alternative proposal which would provide for the adaptive reuse of most of the existing structure and the retention of some of the heritage values of the hall.
There was no dispute as to the significant heritage values of the hall and the Court was satisfied that the demolition of the hall would constitute a significant loss of heritage value. Nevertheless, the Court rejected the Council’s alternative proposal on the basis that it was economically unfeasible, uncertain as to weather consent could be obtained, and raised nearly as many safety issues as retaining the current building.
The Court considered the legal maxim salus populi suprema lex esto, or “the highest purpose of the law is the safety of the people” and noted that while heritage values are an important consideration, public safety is paramount. In applying the purpose of the RMA – sustainable management – the Court concluded that the best outcome would be the safe removal of the hall and substitution with a new resource fit for purpose. The significant adverse effects on heritage values were, in this case, overwhelmed by the public interest in maintaining safe structures.
In December 2018, nearly three years after the application was lodged and over six years after the dangerous building notice was issued, the Court concluded that the building should be demolished, and set down a timeline for finalising conditions.
Before the conditions could be finalised and the consent issued, things took an unexpected turn. Some two weeks after the decision, emergency services were called to the site after a fire broke out under suspicious circumstances. Badly damaging the hall and the Church, some parts of the buildings were immediately demolished. The blaze is being investigated by the police.
The conditions for demolition have recently been finalised and the property, including what little remains of the of the two historic buildings, have been placed on the market for sale. It remains to be seen what will ultimately become of the site.
  NZEnvC 237

domain: law


DJ Selex – Best Of Kizz Daniel Mixtape
Year 2023 DJ Mix – Latest Best of Kizz Daniel Mix
Dj selex latest mix, dj selex mix, dj selex latest best of kizz daniel mix 2023, latest dj selex latest mix. Gifted Nigerian disc jockey, DJ Selex drops another mixtape which he tags, Best Of Kizz Daniel. DJ Selex dished out this mix after he gave us, Best of Davido, which is still blasting speakers and having good steaming on digital stores. Not just up to one week, Kizz Daniel released his project, Barnabas. Dj Selex decides to create this mixtape, which contains all Kizz Daniel songs, both singles and collaboration from music conception till date. You will surely get excited when you listen to this mixtape. DJ Selex is one of the Nigerian growing disc jockeys working very hard, to ensure he achieves his desire for music.
Download & Enjoy Latest Best of Kizz Daniel Mix By Dj Selex


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I’ve written several times about the current drive to rename plant and animal species, usually on the grounds that their common or scientific names reflect somebody in the past who did something bad, like owning slaves. (Most of this drive has involved bird names.) In general I’m not a huge fan of changing common names, but I don’t care nearly as much about changing common names as I do about changing scientific names, also known as Latin binomials. For example, “Audubon’s oriole” is the common name of a bird species, but its scientific name is Icterus graduacauda. So if you want to change the common name because (as one scientist notes), Audubon was “a bit of a monster”, I don’t much care. But you can’t change the scientific name (which doesn’t contain Audubon’s name), because the official body that assigns scientific names won’t let you.
This becomes problematic in a case like Audubon’s warbler, whose scientific name is Setophaga auduboni, in which both the common and scientific names are eponyms. You can change the common name, but you wouldn’t be allowed to change the scientific name, so you couldn’t completely expunge Audubon. (The common name has in fact already been changed, with the warbler now called the “yellow-rumped warbler.”) In many cases a person’s name will appear in both common and scientific names, but you can’t change the latter.
Ed Yong’s latest piece in The Atlantic describes the political, moral, and ideological fights brewing around changing animal (and plant) names. It’s a good descriptor of the kerfuffle about naming, but fails on several counts.
To read it, click on the screenshot below, or if it’s paywalled I found the piece it archived here.
This is a good overview of the fracas. But there are two problems with it, the first more worrisome:
1.) Yong seriously downplays the fact that every animal has at least two names, as I indicated above. The common name can vary from place to place, but the scientific name is constant throughout the world, as it’s used by scientists to identify animals. Yong does mention the two-names issue in one place, only in passing:
Whether common ones such as giraffe or scientific ones such as Giraffa camelopardalis, names act first as labels, allowing people to identify and classify living things.
But there’s a huge difference between changing common names and changing scientific ones. Doing the former, like changing the name “Audubon’s warbler”, in which the scientific name isn’t eponymous, doesn’t affect much except the labels that bird aficionados give to the species. But changing the scientific name of a species is a big deal, because those are the names used throughout the entire scientific literature to identify species and to link biological information about that species, like Panthera leo as the scientific name of the lion. If you change the scientific name, it affects the entire scientific literature around that species, potentially causing mass confusion from Linnaeus’s time until today.
This is why the body concerned with the scientific names of animals, the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature (ICZN), has refused to change the scientific names of any animal except in a few special cases that involve biology and taxonomy—but not ideology or politics (see below). (As far as I know, the equivalent botanical body hasn’t weighed in yet.) So if you want to change “bad” animal names, as Yong appears to favor, you have to make it clear whether you want both common and scientific names changed, or just the common ones. Yong appears to favor changing both names for eponymous animals like Audubon’s warbler, but also seems to think that’s just as easy as changing common names. It is not, and that’s why the ICZN won’t do it.
2.) Yong doesn’t present both sides of the controversy, especially when he floats the newest idea: that the names of all eponymous animals should be changed. I wouldn’t really agree with that, but as one of Yong’s interviewers says, “only birders over 40” oppose renaming every animal named after a person. In general, Yong seems to favor the idea that not only birds named after bad people like Audubon and John Bachman should be renamed, but that all animals bearing people’s names should be changed. Of all the many people he quotes who favor name-changing, only one, Thomas Pape (head of the ICZN), says that it’s not his “mandate” to change scientific names. But even Pape says, well, scientists do it all the time, so his position is really a bit waffle-y.
The reason I think Yong takes sides in this controversy is that he quotes only those who favor changing names, including scientific ones, even quoting someone as saying that only old people—geezers like me over 40—are conservative about changing names. If you present only one side of a controversy—and yes, it is a controversy, even among the young—it can be assumed you are on that side.
Although there are several reasons to oppose the willy-nilly changing of common names, Yong gives none. Thus the article is one-sided, and even favors what nearly all biologists oppose: the changing of scientific names on ideological, political, or moral grounds. Yet from my private conversations with birders, I know that there are many who oppose this drive to change names. You won’t hear from them, because the drive is designed to be “inclusive”, and if you oppose it you could be called a racist.
Let me give the list of reasons why people are favoring renaming animals (I’m not going to distinguish between common and scientific names because Yong doesn’t), and then I’ll give a few reasons why we should be wary about changing even common names. (Again, I’m dead set against changing scientific names.) Quotes from Yong’s article are indented.
a.) Immorality: bad people like Audubon, who did bad things, should not have animals named after them. If they did some good stuff, like Darwin (even though Yong mentions his racism), this doesn’t necessarily hold. Any species with the name darwinii is presumably okay. Here’s the argument (“eponyms” are organisms named after people):
Many other eponyms present similar cases for change, although none have been altered yet. John Kirk Townsend, whose name still graces two birds and almost a dozen mammals, dug up the graves of Native Americans and sent their skulls to the physician Samuel George Morton, who wanted to prove that Caucasians had bigger brains than other people; those remains are still undergoing a lengthy process toward burial or repatriation. John Bachman was a practitioner and defender of slavery, reasoning that Black people, whom he compared to domesticated animals, were so intellectually inferior to Caucasians as to be “incapable of self-government”; Bachman’s sparrow was named by his friend, John James Audubon. And Audubon, the most renowned—and, more recently, notorious—figure in American ornithology and the namesake of an oriole, a warbler, and a shearwater, also robbed Native American graves for Morton’s skull studies, while casually buying and selling slaves. “People have been singing his praises for 150 years, but in the last 15 years, he has turned out to be quite a monster,” says Matthew Halley, an ornithologist and historian, who has also found evidence that Audubon committed scientific fraud by fabricating a fake species of eagle that helped launch his career. In light of Audubon’s actions, several local chapters of the National Audubon Society have renamed themselves, as has the society’s union. In March, though, the national society’s board of directors voted to keep the name, on the grounds that it would allow the organization to “direct key resources and focus towards enacting the organization’s mission.”
Would you call the Audubon society racist because it’s keeping his name?
At any rate, if you’re going to change an animal name because the person involved was “problematic,” I’d use Coyne’s Criteria for Renaming (also good for deciding when to take down statues, though I favor contextualizing them rather than removing them):
- Is the name given because of something good the person did?
- Was the person’s life a net good for the world’s well being?
If the answer to both of these is “yes,” you should keep the name. And if you’re giving a scientific name to a new species, the answers should both be “yes” as well.
b.) Most names were given by Europeans, who were both colonialists and also carried invasive species with them.
For some scientists, the eponym problem is about more than the egregious misdeeds of a few individuals. As Europeans spread to other continents, they brought not only invasive species that displaced native ones but also invasive nomenclature that ousted long-standing native terms for plants and animals. In Africa, the scientific names of a quarter of local birds, reptiles, amphibians, and mammals are eponyms, mostly from Europe. On the biodiverse Pacific island of New Caledonia, more than 60 percent of plant eponyms honor French citizens. Countless species around the world have been named after European scientists whose travels were made possible by imperial ventures aimed at expanding territories or extracting natural resources. “We have romantic ideas of these explorers going around the world, seeing beautiful things, and naming them, and we forgot how they got there to begin with,” Natalia Piland, an ecologist at Florida International University, told me.
Such naming patterns still continue. Piland and her colleagues found that since 1950, 183 newly identified birds have been given eponyms, and although 96 percent of these species live in the global South, 68 percent of their names honor people from the global North. In 2018, the Rainforest Trust, an American conservation nonprofit, auctioned off the rights to name 12 newly discovered South American species, leading to a frog named after Greta Thunberg and a caecilian named after Donald Trump. (A similar auction in 2005 landed a Bolivian monkey with the name of the internet casino GoldenPalace.com.) The beloved British naturalist David Attenborough has more than 50 species named after him, most of which live in Africa, Asia, Australia, and South America. That is not to begrudge Attenborough, Thunberg, or Trump; having a species named after you is widely considered a great honor, but globally, such honorees are still disproportionately people of European descent—a perpetuation of colonialism through taxonomy.
This of course doesn’t take into account that European name-giving may hold for scientific names but not for common ones, which often differ from culture to culture. As Ernst Mayr discovered when he tried to correlate bird names in New Guinea with scientific names, New Guinea birds are given names in New Guinea languages.
c.) Animal names ignore indigenous people who may live in the same area.
Some scientists have proposed reinstating Indigenous names for animals wherever possible. But many species live across the territories of different Indigenous groups, or migrate across national or continental divides, making it hard to know whose names to prioritize. And if native names are applied without native consultation, the result can smack of cultural appropriation. Emma Carroll from the University of Auckland took on both challenges in naming a recently identified species of beaked whale. Carroll spent a year consulting Indigenous groups in countries where the new whale’s specimens had been found. In South Africa, the Khoisan Council suggested using the word //eu//’eu, which means “big fish” and is now immortalized in the scientific name Mesoplodon eueu. For the common name, Carroll asked a Māori cultural expert in New Zealand to draw up a shortlist, which she then ran past a local council. She eventually named the creature “Ramari’s beaked whale” after Ramari Stewart—a Māori whale expert whose work was pivotal in identifying the new species, and who has been “working to bridge Western science and mātauranga [Maori knowledge] for decades,” Carroll told me. Fittingly, ramari also means “a rare event” in the Māori language, and beaked whales are famously elusive.
But this raises the issue, as Yong says, of the re-namers engaging in cultural appropriation! And if you rename an animal after a local indigenous person, such as “Tamanend’s bottlenose dolphin” (named after a Native American), that raises another problem: that of “ownership, as if an individual could lay claim to an entire species—a fundamentally colonial way of thinking, no matter whether the honoree is an Indigenous woman or a European man.” Yes, the woke can sniff out problems within problems within problems.
Yong then floats what I think is his own favored solution:
By that logic, the issue with eponyms isn’t that some of them honor people who did vile things. It’s that animals shouldn’t be named after people at all. That is:
d.) Naming animals after people “dishonors the organism”. I’m not kidding.
Others argue that, more importantly, the act of honoring a person through an organism’s name dishonors the organism itself. It treats animals and plants as inanimate objects like buildings or streets, constructed and owned by humans, instead of beings with their own lives and histories. “It doesn’t sit well with me to think of an individual human becoming the signifier of an entire species,” Piland said. A more descriptive name, meanwhile, is a chance to tell a creature’s story. Joseph Pitawanakwat, an Anishinaabe educator, notes that many of his people’s bird names are layered with meaning—onomatopoeias that mimic calls, and descriptions of habitat and behavior, all embedded in a single word that could have been coined only through a deep understanding of the animals. English names could be similarly descriptive: Thick-billed longspur tells you something about the bird that might help you recognize it in a way that McCown’s longspur does not.
Now I agree that if you’re going to change a common name, perhaps you should do something that describes the animal, though sometimes that’s hard. But changing names because it “dishonors the organism” is a claim that carries little weight with me. It’s a descriptor, and the organism doesn’t care what it’s called. Nor does this argument change anything substantive: renaming Audubon’s warbler will not lead to more intensive appreciation of the bird, more effort to conserve of the bird, nor draw more diverse people into birding. Renaming pretends to be “inclusive”, but it doesn’t clearly foster inclusion. This is one of the issues with the whole endeavor: it’s basically performative virtue signaling, and changing names, an easy job, is a way to signal your virtue without having to do very much. That’s why people are keener on changing animal names than doing the hard work of conserving the organism.
One more issue before I sum up. Pape, the ICZN head, is not allowed to change scientific names because of the reasons I gave, but his quote is still ambiguous:
But, though [Pape] argues that set names are important for allowing scientists to unambiguously communicate about the organisms they study, Pape also admits that “it’s strange that we keep talking about stability when we keep changing names.” Scientific names change frequently, when a species is reclassified or split into several new ones. They can also change because scientists uncover an alternative name that was assigned first and then forgotten, or because they violate Latin grammar. There are also routes for changing scientific names through societal force of will. Pape cites the case of Raymond Hoser, an Australian amateur herpetologist who has assigned hundreds of new names to questionably defined species and genera of reptiles—often on shaky scientific grounds, usually in his own self-published journal, and in many cases honoring his family members and pets. Other taxonomists are simply refusing to use his names; if that continues, “it might be possible for the ICZN to rule that those names should not be used,” Pape told me.
According to the ICZN, though, changes in scientific names can occur only under those specific circumstances, which are not that common. Importantly, many of the names that get changed under these circumstances keep the eponym, which is usually the species name and not the genus name. If Audubon’s warbler were found, for example, to comprise several species, one of them would still be named after Audubon. Reclassification usually involves changing the genus name if it’s changed at all, not the species name. And if a species is found to have been described earlier under a different name, then the rules mandate that the older one be the valid name, regardless of whether it is named after a bad person.
As for cases like Hoser, these are very rare, and aren’t worth discussing here: zoologists and ultimately the ICZN decide if they’re kosher. But note that the rules do not mandate that scientific names be changed for any of the four reasons given above. They are changed only to clear up taxonomic errors, misclassifications, or in light of further biological knowledge..
To sum up, Yong lays out the case for changing common names (without giving opponents a say, because we’re too old!), but fails to seriously tackle the huge issue of changing scientific names. In fact, under current rules of nomenclature, they cannot be changed for political or ideological reasons
Here are a few arguments for retaining common names, though, as I said, I’m not all that opposed to changing them, except that it’s laborious and also creates certain confusion in the literature.
a.) It is largely performative, doing little except to flaunt the virtue of the renamers. It’s an easy way to pretend to effect social change.
b.) It doesn’t effect much social change. This drive is largely done by privileged people who think they are doing something good for the world, but really, do you think the world would be a better place if every species named after a person (or only a “bad” person) were changed? Would bigotry be palpably eroded?
c.) Changing common names does cause confusion in communication, though not as much as changing the scientific name would.
d.) Who gets to decide which names are good and which are bad? Is “auduboni” a bad species name but “washingtonii” not? After all, both men kept slaves! At any rate, there’s no “official” list of common names, though the American Ornithological Society keeps a list of common names. And renamings are still ignored. I know people, for example, who still use the term “gypsy moth” out of continuity in the literature, even though, because it was considered bigoted, the creature been renamed the “spongy moth.”
In the end, the renaming of birds and other animals is one of the more striking cases of performative wokeness that I know of. As I said repeatedly, I don’t much care if common names are changed, but you can’t monkey around with the name of the beetle Anophthalmus hitleri (yes, named after Adolf), for it’s a scientific name. And really, is renaming a beetle now bearing Hitler’s name going to get rid of neo-Nazism or racism? Will it suddenly bring a flood of Jews into entomology—Jews who avoided the field because it contained a beetle named after Hitler? I doubt it.
Yong is an excellent science writer—one of my favorites—but I can’t let it go by when he slips up—as I think he did here. He should have given the article more balance and talked to the opponents of renaming (who might have chosen anonymity!). And, most important, he fails to recognize the reason why the ICZN will not bow to ideological pressure to change animal names.
h/t: Susan, Phil

domain: biology


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Here is the List of WORLD’S HIGHEST PAID MUSIC ARTISTS
After Forbes’ released their list of the highest paid musicians in 2015, it became quite evident that live music is the key to money-making. 9 out of the 10 musicians on this list toured extensively, which is why despite another artist raking in millions through selling albums, it is often the live performers who earn a spot on the highest-paid list. Given below are the ten musicians who were paid the most the past year:
1. Katy Perry
Earning an astounding $135 million last year, Katy Perry is not only the first person on this list, but she is also the third richest celebrity in the world. After making an approximate of $2 million per city during her world tour, the I kissed a girl hitmaker has amassed a generous amount of money over the course of her career.
2. One Direction
The No.1 boy band in the world, One Direction needs no introduction. With one of the largest, most loyal fan followings for any group of musicians in the world, it is no surprise that One Direction made an astounding $130 million last year- mostly through their earnings on their 74 stop tour.
3. Garth Brooks
Ethan Miller, Getty Images
This country-music sensation delivered well on his long-promised concert tour and made $90 million while doing it. With earning an approximate of $1 million per stop, his tour continued well into 2016 as well, this might result in him returning to this list next year as well.
4. Taylor Swift
America’s sweetheart, Taylor Swift, made $80 million last year from the sales of her album, 1989 as well as the tour that followed its release. Often called the Number 1 musician in the music industry in the current times, Taylor Swift seems to do no wrong as she continuously delivers hits like Blank Space and Wildest Dreams.
5. The Eagles
© Getty Images
One of the greatest rock bands of all time, The Eagles are managing to maintain their success despite not having a No.1 single in several years. Thanks to their constant tours and numerous shows, the band made $73.5 million last year and earned a spot in the top 5 of this list.
6. Calvin Harris
Earning a shocking $66 million through ungodly amounts of DJ fees and contracts with companies like Giorgio Armani, Calvin Harris is not only one of the highest paid musicians in the world, but he and Taylor Swift are also the highest paid couple in the industry as well.
7. Justin Timberlake
The former NSYNC star has been a pop culture icon for years now. As a solo artist and actor, Justin Timberlake made $63.5 million last year– mostly through the 59 tour dates he played during his tour. He also has several endorsement deals, which add greatly to his bank account.
8. P. Diddy
Making $60 million last year, Sean Combs (known better by his stage name P. Diddy or Puff Daddy) is one of the world’s foremost hip-hop recording artists. He is the only one on this list who did not amass his wealth from touring extensively. Instead, he earns a constant income from several other ventures like his clothing line Sean John.
9. Fleetwood Mac
Despite being a band which reached its highest peak of popularity in the 1990s, Fleetwood Mac is still earning millions. Making $59.5 million through its tour On With The Show, the band played a staggering amount of 86 concerts during its travels.
10. Lady Gaga
Last, but most definitely not the least, is Lady Gaga. The eccentric and multi-talented musician has always remained in the forefront of the music industry- whether it was through her hit singles like Poker Face or her outrageous meat dress. Thus, it is only fitting that the singer made $59 million last year, from her tour as well from various endorsements from the likes of Versace.
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domain: entertainment


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Our Services include the drilling of the domestic and industrial tube wells and ensuring that it meets the requirements and specifications of the client. Our efficient engineers are able to assist in other aspects such as concrete piling, tube wells repairing, maintenance and providing other needed spare parts and accessories
Our experienced team of engineers will consider a number of factors in their geo-investigation such as the direction of water flow, the slope of the group , the type of soil and its condition. They will also look into the surrounding wells in the neighbourhood and other essential factors and social and cultural factors that may affect the tube well project.
Here are some factors that should be considered in the geo-investigation.
The direction of the flow of water and the type of soil and its condition.
The neighbourhood and surrounding wells that are near the project.
Any exposure the well may find hazardous E.g: Cemeteries , factories
Other sociological or cultural factors that may affect the project.
Details of Groundwater Investigation
After a thorough surveillance of the ground and approval is given. The next step is the construction of the tube wells will commence. Using state of the art technology a drilling process will take place to find the water if needed and the water flow and output is monitored and exacted according to the clients requirements.
Here are some kinds of tube wells that we construct
Tube wells for factories and industries.
Tube wells for domestic purposes.
Tube wells for farming and agricultural use.
Tube wells for irrigation and waterways.
Tube Wells for drinking purposes.
Job Order for Construction of Tube Well
Before the well is put into service, over-pumping (pumping at a higher rate than the design rate) can improve the packing’s effectiveness by pulling in more tiny particles. The flow of water can be enhanced by back-flushing at a higher rate when the surrounding ground contains more fine particles. Developing the tube well is the process of over-pumping and back-flushing.
Development serves following functions
It unclogs the water-bearing formation that has been blocked by muck during the drilling process.
It makes the tube well structure stable by causing the gravel pack and surrounding formation to settle and compact against the screen.
It makes the well more efficient by breaking down sand grain bridging over the screen openings and in the surrounding gravel pack and aquifer formation.
By stabilizing the sand buildup surrounding the screen, it aids in obtaining sand-free water.
It aids in the reduction of head losses close to the screen.
It reaches the well's full capacity, which means the most yield is possible with the least amount of drawdown.
It determines the required qualities of a pump and power unit to be installed and provides a measure of available water supply.
It extends the screen or strainer's functional life.


For an overview of the generations, see Volkswagen Golf. This article needs additional citations for verification. Mk4 jetta service manual pdf help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources.
Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. The Volkswagen Golf Mk2 is a compact car, the second generation of the Volkswagen Golf and the successor to the Volkswagen Golf Mk1. Exterior design, developed in-house by VW design director Schäfer, kept the general lines of its Giugiaro-designed predecessor, but was slightly more rounded. 3 million second-generation Golfs were built.


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DAY TOURS, ACTIVITIES & EXCURSIONS:
Swakopmund and Walvis Bay offer a variety of exciting activities and excursions, know as the "action adventure centre of Namibia" – something to suit every taste - from sedate and peaceful to adrenaline pumping action.
TOURS & EXCURSIONS:
(09H00 – 12H30)
Cruise the harbour and trawler boat areas in ski boats. Cut across the lagoon to Pelican Point, while a large seal colony and schools of dolphins swimming alongside the boats provide entertainment. Alight just beyond the lighthouse at an old shipwreck, where fresh and grilled oysters and mussels with cold South African sparkling wine are served (for groups of 10 or more only; on scheduled cruises, fresh oysters and sparkling wine are offered on board the boat). Return to Walvis Bay Yacht Club around 12h30.
Sandwich Harbour Tour:
(According to tide)
Via the Walvis Bay Lagoon, Bird Paradise, salt pans, Kuiseb Delta and dramatic desert shoreline drive to Sandwich harbour. This is an ecological, ornithological and scenic phenomenon, which played and intriguing role in Namibia’s whaling history. One of the most difficult to reach places in the country and one of the most memorable.
Wonders of the Desert Tour:
(9H00 - 13H00 \ 14H00 - 18H00) The tour takes you through the Swakop River, a dry riverbed that seldom flows. Then to the Moon Valley, allowing time to explore this area of deep chasms and interesting geological features, before continuing to "Welwitschia Valley", where literally thousands of Welwitschia plants litter the ground. The plant was discovered in 1859 by Dr Friedrich Welwitschia and has been recorded as living to 1500 years and considered to be the Paradox of the Namib. You will also visit the Namib Naukluft Park to study the interesting lichens before returning to Swakopmund.
Rocks & Gemstones Tour:
Special Interest Tour (08H00 - 13H00) A 4x4 excursion along, the Swakop River for sightseeing of historic base metal and crystal mining claims. Namibia’s exciting mining past and interesting geological features are discussed and there is opportunity to collect your own specimens of rocks and minerals. Back in town see the largest quartz crystal cluster in the world (1.4 tons), which took five years to excavate.
(09H00 - 13H00 \ 13H30 - 17H00) This concentrates on the Nama speaking population, birdlife and history of the Walvis Bay area. Here an abundance of aquatic bird species and strange desert-dwelling creatures and plants can be found. Also visit the community of the Topnaar Namas to experience their frugal, yet interesting lifestyle. Their rich cultural heritage and community life offers an insight into Namibia’s past not to be missed. Choose between morning and afternoon departures.
Living Desert Tour:
(09H00 - 13H00 \ 14H00 - 17H00) Ever seen the White Lady Spider roll down a dune to escape and dance at the bottom in defence or marvelled at the transparent Palmato Gecko or the Desert Sidewinder lying in ambush for an Aporasaura Sand Diving Lizard? Ever heard of fishmoths, roaring dunes and the endangered Damara tern? Join us on this Desert Magic excursion into the Namib and let us show you that it’s anything but a ‘place of emptiness’. Choice of morning and afternoon 4x4 departures – times may vary with seasons.
Desert Magic Tour:
Ever seen the White Lady Spider roll down a dune to escape and dance at the bottom in defence or marvelled at the transparent Palmato gecko or the Desert Sidewinder lying in ambush for an Aporasaura Sand Diving Lizard? Join us on this excursion into the Namib.
Rocks & Gemstones Tour:
A 4x4 excursion which takes one along the Swakop River for sightseeing of historic base metal and crystal mining claims. Back in town; see the largest quartz crystal cluster in the world (1.4 tons) which took five years to excavate.
Wonders of the Desert Tour:
Travel through the Swakop River, a dry riverbed that seldom flows, to the “Moon Mountains” allowing time to explore this area of deep chasms before continuing to “Welwitschia Valley” where hundreds of these fascinating plants litter the ground.
Birding Tour in Walvis Bay Lagoon:
The lagoon is regarded as one of the most important wetland areas in Namibia. These are rich feeding grounds with altogether some 80 000 wading birds, including flamingo’s and rare white pelicans.
Cape Cross Tour:
In addition to being of historical interest, Cape cross has a breeding colony of Cape Fur seals, the largest breeding colony of these seals along the coast of South Africa and Namibia.
(View the Cape Fur Seals in our gallery)
A Champagne & Oyster Sundowner can be added to any of these Excursions:
Round off the day’s experiences with an unforgettable sundowner in the oldest desert. This option can also be offered at any other time of the day, as it is sundowner time somewhere in the world.
Quad Biking - the thrill of riding a four-wheeled motorbike through Namibia’s shifting sand dunes.
Sand boarding - stand up or belly down!, the Namib is reputed to house some of the largest sand dunes, experience these wonders in an environmentally friendly way by zooming down on a traditional Swakopmund Sand board.
Sea Kayaking - experience the wetlands and offshore coastal areas from the unique vantage of a sea kayak.
Parasailing - is the way to surmount the shifting sand of the Namib. Experience the timeless desert and dunes from a unique vantage point 50m up in the air.
Tandem Sky Diving - for the adrenaline junky, magnificent views of the desert and Atlantic Ocean.
Horse Riding – the route covers the dry riverbed to the Mini Moon landscape. Moon-lit rides can be arranged.
Camel Riding - the ancient way to experience the desert...
Golfing - Desert Classic!
(All trips depart and return to Swakopmund airfield)
Sossusvlei Scenic Flight:
Often described as “the flight of a life time”, we take you along the Kuiseb River bed, shortly the awe-inspiring dunes at Sossusvlei come into sight. Over-fly the forbidden Diamond area where remains of old diamond camps and shipwrecks can still be seen.
Sossusvlei Full Day Excursion:
As described above, land at Sesriem. Accompanied by a guide you will be driven in a 4x4 vehicle into Sossusvlei for time at leisure. Transfer to the landing strip and continue our flight as described above.
The Desolate Diamond Coast Excursion:
A diminutive of the premier flight. Take-off from Swakopmund flying over the ‘sea of sand’ approaching the shore at Conception Bay you soar along the coastline flying over the shipwrecks north to Sandwich Harbour and over Walvis Bay.
Fun Flip Flight:
A ‘sunset cruise’ which gives guests an aerial impression of the surrounding area, enjoy a sundowner in the sky. Head southward to Sandwich Harbour, over-fly the harbour of Walvis Bay, soaring along the coast and with the setting sun, land at Swakopmund.
Fish River Canyon & Luderitz Day Trip:
Head towards Sossusvlei then Eastwards to Keetmanshoop and the Fish River Canyon where we land. A short drive takes one to the viewpoint with a spectacular view of the canyon. Lunch at the lodge before the flight continues as below, but excludes the stop over in Luderitz
Flying low-level in the canyon, our flight continues over towards the coastal town of Luderitz where we land. Enjoy a guided city tour and visit Namibia’s most famous ghost town, Kolmanskop. The return flight is along the desolate coast, passing shipwrecks, Sandwich Harbour, and Walvis Bay.
Coast of Loneliness Scenic Flight:
Head inland, over the Spitzkoppe Mountains, the majestic Brandberg, to the Uniab river bed. As we near the coastline, the sand dunes form intriguing ripple patterns, fly over Toscanini and continue to Palgrave Point, Cape Cross and Henties Bay.
Skeleton Coast Day Trip with stop over at Cape Cross Lodge for lunch:
Flight as per above but includes a stop over at Cape Cross Lodge for lunch.
Himba Day Trip:
Head inland, over the Spitzkoppe Mountains, the majestic Brandberg to Opuwo. Accompanied by a guide and translator visit the Ovahimba tribe. After lunch, take off and continue your flight back to via the treacherous Skeleton Coast.
Fly to Windhoek and on to a Guest Farm, situated in the Kalahari Desert where you visit the Naro Bushmen. The flight continues over the dunes at Sossusvlei, to the coast. Soaring along the coastline we fly over various shipwrecks, Sandwich Harbour and Walvis Bay.
INTRODUCTION TO SWAKOPMUND:
In 1884, South West Africa – the future Namibia – was declared a German Protectorate. By 1907 Swakopmund had the largest European population of any German colony in Africa, the town pulsated with life – a quaint town had emerged out of the desert!
Today this curious desert town, nestled between the dunes and the ocean is perfectly situated to spend a few days relaxing in the cool climate, browsing through the galleries, bookshops, craft markets and jewellers. Take part in adrenaline sports; view the dunes from balloon, aircraft or parachute; get close up to our marine life – on foot, by boat or kayak. Explore the desert with expert guides; wander through the town to admire the beautiful architecture or relax and soak up the ambience of the quaint desert town.
WHAT TO DO IN SWAKOPMUND:
This museum offers an excellent insight to a variety of subjects – the contrasting life in the Namib Desert and the Atlantic Ocean; Namib flora; archaeological and entomological collections; mineral and mining displays; pioneer transport and a wonderful collection on the cultures of Namibia’s indigenous peoples. The museum is open daily (including Sunday) from 10h00 - 13h00 and from 14h00 - 17h00.
NATIONAL MARINE AQUARIUM
Meet Namibia’s marine life. Wander through the glass tunnel and get seriously close to ragged tooth sharks; rock lobsters; deep-sea red crabs and blue stingrays. The aquarium is open Tuesday to Sunday from 10h00 – 16h00. Open on all public holidays except Christmas Day.
WOERMANN HOUSE GALLERY & TOWER
A landmark on the Swakopmund skyline Woermann House was built in 1894. The tower served as a water tower and navigation point for the ships of the Woermann Line. It now houses the public library, art gallery and the offices of Namibia Wildlife Resorts (permits for the Welwitschia Drive). Climb Woermann Tower for wonderful views and good photographic opportunities of the town with the dunes as a backdrop. Collect the key for the tower from the library or the gallery from Monday to Saturday. Best views mid morning as the fog lifts and the light shines on the dune fields.
For anybody with an interest in geology, crystals and semi-precious stones – be prepared to spend several hours in this fascinating gallery that houses the largest known crystal cluster in the world. Dig around in the scratch patch for semi-precious stones, wander through the cave – a replica of the original Otjua Tourmaline mine with its crystal and tourmaline studded walls; watch jewellers at work and browse through the shop. The gallery also has a coffee shop, where you can enjoy a light lunch or just take a break. Open Monday to Saturday from 09h00 - 17h00. Closed on public holidays.
Looking for that special momento of Namibia? Then visit Jenny Carvill and her team of dedicated weavers who bring Namibia to life on the loom. This team of men and women (including disabled persons) form a close and talented team. Not only is training in the skilled craft of weaving given, but also training in office, computer, management and design skills are incorporated. The team has even started a housing project. Enjoy a guided tour and watch the carding, spinning, dyeing and weaving of pure karakul wool into beautiful rugs and wall hangings. All this and a great team of Namibians working together for a better future.
Looking for a unique, good quality pair of sandals or boots. Perhaps a leather bag or wide brimmed hat? Visit the Swakopmund Tannery for a pair of unique “Swakop Vellies” - perfect for exploring the vast Namib. Open Monday to Friday from 08h00 - 13h00 and 14h00 - 17h00. Saturdays from 08h00 - 12h30.
SAVE THE RHINO TRUST
Heading into Damaraland or maybe you’ve heard about our unique population of Black Rhino? A visit to the Save the Rhino Trust (right next door to Karakulia) offers a wonderful insight into the life and struggles of this magnificent animal. Meet the dedicated people, who strive to protect the Rhino and work to promote community development through conserving natural resources. An outlet for the rural Crafts for Conservation you can browse through the shop in search of an unusual gift – vegetable ivory carvings, handmade Himba & Herero dolls, seed necklaces, crystals, paintings, recycled products, sand candles, wooden pipes pots and carvings. The centre is open Monday to Friday from 08h00 - 13h00 and 14h00 - 17h00. Saturdays from 09h00-13h00.
OTAVI-BAHNHOF ARTS & CRAFTS CENTRE
This was the original railway station and the west coast terminal of the narrow-gauge railway line to/from the copper mine at Tsumeb. Built in 1906, it now houses an arts and crafts centre. The centre is open Monday to Friday from 10h00 - 13h00 and 15h00 - 17h00. Saturdays from 10h00 - 13h00.
PALM BEACH ART
A large, informal open-air craft market with crafts and curios from all over Africa. Spend some time browsing and bargaining!

domain: travel


Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear has claimed, falsely, that all ObamaCare expenses for the next two years are covered by the federal government. Federal law states very clearly that no federal funds can be used for ObamaCare exchange operations after December 31, 2014.
A funny thing has happened: a Rhode Island official claims that state asked for and will receive federal funding in 2015 for their state-run exchange. If that's true ("Christine Ferguson, director of HealthSource RI, said federal officials have agreed to let the state use federal dollars through the end of calendar year 2015 — one year longer than planned.") and Rhode Island has gotten some kind of special dispensation in violation of federal law, Kentucky should pursue the same thing.
Four states that signed up to run their own exchanges have recently defaulted to the federal exchange already, of the original fourteen who took Obama's bait. Rhode Island is likely to do the same despite their special law-breaking situation because their state Obamacrats are still looking for more state money to spend and the likelihood that they will get it is going down by the day.
Beshear's situation is further complicated by the fact that once he starts admitting to having lied about funding, he may be forced to admit that he doesn't have legal authority for ObamaCare and no state funding source. Given his track record, expect Beshear to continue to just muddle along illegally and expensively, hoping against hope he can continue to ignore reality for a little while.


So.many.holiday events. Get festive with Lyft.
Plus, get $5 off your first two Lyft rides using code LYFTWITHAGENDA.
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 23
Holidays in the Garden at Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden: Daniel Stowe’s annual Holidays in the Garden event kicks off this weekend and will run until Jan. 6, 2019. It includes about a mile of lights – some synchronized with music – a Christmas village display, visits from Santa and more. Explore the gardens and then sit by a fire pit to roast marshmallows and sip on something warm. 5-9 p.m. Varies. Details.
Black Friday Food Trucks at Blakeney: Food trucks will be available on-site at Blakeney Shopping Center for shoppers to enjoy during Black Friday. As select retailers open their doors at 6 a.m., The Breakfast Catering Company & Food Truck will be available to dish out breakfast fare while Rollin’ Roast Mobile Coffee Bar will provide coffee. The first 25 people to post on social media from the event with #ShopBlakeney will get free food from one of the trucks. 6-10:30 a.m. Free admission. Details.
Hoppy Holidays Release at NoDa Brewing Company: NoDa is releasing its holiday IPA and is celebrating with live music, the TIN Kitchen food truck and brewery tours. Hoppy Holidays has 6.5% ABV and is brewed with spruce for an extra festive flare. Noon to 10 p.m. Free admission. Details.
WinterFest at Carowinds: Expect more than 5 million lights, a 70-foot Christmas tree, live shows, performers, festive foods and more. You can also skate on Flake Lake for an additional cost or ride some of the 16 open rides. 5-10 p.m. Varies. Details.
Black Friday Blow Out at Resident Culture: Take care of your turkey hangover with $6 glasses prosecco and mimosas, music, 25 percent of Resident Culture merchandise and a can drop from their stash. Noon to 11 p.m. Free admission. Details.
That’s What She Said Improv Comedy Show at Charlotte Comedy Theater & Training Center: See this all-female comedy troupe perform live. 8-9:30 p.m. $10. Details.
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 24
Inaugural Tree Lighting Ceremony at The Ballantyne: Celebrate the beginning of the holiday season with The Ballantyne at its inaugural tree lighting in the lobby while enjoying caroling, hot chocolate, cider and cookies and visiting with Santa. The complimentary event is a way to thank the community for its support and commemorate a monumental year for the hotel on the heels of its inspiring redesign. 5-6:30 p.m. Free. Details.
South End Small Business Saturday at South End: There will be three pop-up markets where you can shop from local businesses and vendors. You don’t have to worry about driving from spot to spot, they’ve got a free shuttle to take you to each market. 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Free admission. Details.
South End Tree Lighting After Party at Sycamore Brewing: After the 5:30 p.m. tree lighting at Atherton Mill, head to Sycamore to sip on seasonal brews or Wild Blossom Cider and lounge by the fire pits. Gyro Twins Truck will also be there. 6-11 p.m. Free admission. Details.
Santa’s Workshop at Blakeney: Get your photo taken with Santa and visit his workshop. 1-6 p.m. Free admission. Details.
Pie & Cider Pairing at Red Clay Ciderworks: Let the pros walk you through four different pairings of cider and pie. 7:30-9 p.m. $19. Details.
Small Business Saturday at Lenny Boy: Drink local beer while you shop from local artists and vendors. 1-6 p.m. Free admission. Details.
SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 25
Hot Stuff Pop-Up Market: Holiday Edition at Petra’s: Shop from local vendors and artisans selling anything from pottery to kombucha. Lady Go-Go’s food truck will also be there, and there will be Bloody Marys and mimosas. 11:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Free admission. Details.
Carolina Panthers vs. Seattle Seahawks at Bank of America Stadium: Cheer on the Panthers as they take on the Seahawks. 1 p.m. $62+. Details.
Pet Photos with Santa at SouthPark Mall: This is your last chance to bring your furry friend for photos with Santa. 7-9 p.m. Free. Details.
Header photo by Craig Neil McCausland and via Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden.


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In this edition of our annual NDC Survey we once again find optimism and confidence about progress made on Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) planning and implementation. Based on responses from 97 policy makers and experts across 92 countries, we discuss how updated NDCs show progress, how they are linked to long term strategies, and which persistent challenges remain. Our survey findings confirm that we have come a long way since the 2015 Paris Agreement. However, we cannot ignore the fact that progress is too slow, pledges are insufficient, and action is not convincing: not on reducing current emissions, not on climate finance, and not on credible and detailed long-term plans to full decarbonisation. It is time to pull the emergency brake: all actors, including national and subnational governments, need to put forward bold climate pledges, carefully consider socioeconomic impacts, and back up commitments with concrete plans and real action.
Survey respondents communicated significant progress of their countries’ updated NDCs - but collective ambition remains insufficient. Almost all (95%) indicated that their country has added or strengthened greenhouse gas GHG) emissions targets (see Figure 1). Most progress can be observed in the grounding of NDCs, especially at the sector level: countries added new sector-specific targets, developed sector-level plans, or secured political support from line ministries. Respondents indicate slower progress in obtaining sufficient buy-in from the private sector and securing funds for NDC implementation. As in previous editions, financial barriers remain a major obstacle to raising climate ambition.
The development of long-term strategies (LTSs) faces substantial delay in many countries. As of October 2021, only 33 countries (17% of Parties) have communicated an LTS to the UNFCCC. Of our respondents, only a quarter stated that their country is currently developing an LTS. This suggests that many countries have no imminent plans to develop one, risking a disconnect between their NDC and long-term commitments.
SUBNATIONAL ACTORS: ACHIEVING MORE FASTER
The role that subnational actors, such as local and regional governments, play in climate change mitigation and adaptation action is critical to achieve the global goals of the Paris Agreement. Only if all actors across all levels of government significantly increase their climate ambition, can the Paris temperature goals remain within reach. Momentum for subnational climate action is building up around the world. This is reflected in an increasing number of initiatives created alongside the UNFCCC process, promoting stronger collaboration between all actors to jointly push the climate agenda. Recent analyses point out that the contribution of subnational governments to more ambition and faster action can be substantial – far beyond what is currently achieved by national governments alone.
For most respondents (80%) it is clear that subnational governments play an important role in NDC implementation. For more and more countries this acknowledgement is matched by actual involvement of subnational governments in NDC planning (75%). Many of our respondents state that subnational governments have put climate targets in place to support NDC implementation (60%) (see Figure 2).
There are several governance aspects that need to be better understood to fully harness the potential of subnational actors. Effective climate action by subnational governments depends heavily on the powers and capacities they have to act in and across sectors. While governance structures can boost or limit climate ambition top-down and bottom-up, there are opportunities for national and subnational governments to iteratively support each other in their efforts to ratchet up.
Looking forward, increased transparency and accountability for subnational climate action can drive ambition and dynamism in the NDC process. Concepts like Regionally and Locally Determined Contributions hold the potential to localise and further align the climate and sustainable development agendas.
BEYOND THE SMOKESCREEN: IT’S ACTIONS THAT MATTER
Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, governments have responded by injecting vast sums of money to get economies back on track as quickly as possible. Narratives around co-benefits of climate action suggested an overwhelmingly strong case for a green recovery and leaders committed to building back better. We argue that these narratives can indeed be powerful but should not be used as a smokescreen to cover up inaction or delay; it’s actions that matter.
Many linkages between climate actions and development outcomes can be positive, in which case objectives are mutually reinforcing, but the two are not always neatly aligned and they may involve difficult trade-offs or unrecoverable costs. We are running out of time and no longer have the luxury to focus only on win-win propositions or postpone decisions on climate action until innovation brings down the costs. Where there are trade-offs, sometimes hidden, across aspects of development (i.e. SDGs), between groups of stakeholders, or across current and future generations, these need to be well-managed to ensure a just transition.
Our survey results show that alignment of SDGs and NDCs is stronger than in previous editions. However, despite mounting evidence of co-benefits, it is not straightforward to turn this evidence into higher ambition and faster action. Looking ahead, we expect co-benefits analyses to be especially relevant for NDC implementation through local climate action, for assessing interactions with resilience and adaptation, and for planning inclusive and fair transitions.
PERSPECTIVES ON THE ROLE OF SUB NATIONAL ACTORS IN IMPLEMENTING NDCs
The successful implementation of (updated) NDCs will require efforts by all stakeholders – especially from subnational actors closer to the local context. Guest contributions cover the need to turn pledges into deeds (WRI), technical assistance provided to national governments to integrate subnational actors (NDC Partnership), recommendations on the type of support that national governments can provide to regional governments (ICLEI World Secretariat), and how better exchange between national and regional governments can raise national climate ambition (Under2 Coalition). The last two contributions focus at city-level climate action: BUND makes the case that several cities are front-runners in climate action and GIZ discusses the need of financial support to implement city-level climate measures. The NDC Update Report series is part of the AmbitionToAction project.

domain: news


By Dean Murray via SWNS
A 100-meter sprint record has been broken by a robot.
The robo-runner, named Cassie, has established a Guinness World Record for the fastest 100 meter by a bipedal robot.
Invented at the Oregon State University (OSU) College of Engineering, and produced by OSU spinout company Agility Robotics, Cassie clocked the historic time of 24.73 seconds.
The feat, at OSU’s Whyte Track and Field Center, saw Cassie starting from a standing position and returning to that position after the sprint, with no falls.
The 100-meter record builds on earlier achievements by the robot, including traversing 5 kilometers in 2021 in just over 53 minutes.
Cassie, the first bipedal robot to use machine learning to control a running gait on outdoor terrain, completed the 5K on Oregon State’s campus untethered and on a single battery charge.
Cassie was developed under the direction of Oregon State robotics professor Jonathan Hurst with a 16-month, $1 million grant from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, or DARPA.
The robot has knees that bend like an ostrich’s and operates with no cameras or external sensors, essentially as if blind.
Since Cassie’s introduction in 2017, in collaboration with artificial intelligence professor Alan Fern, OSU students funded by the National Science Foundation and the DARPA Machine Common Sense program have been exploring machine learning options in Oregon State’s Dynamic Robotics and AI Lab.
“We have been building the understanding to achieve this world record over the past several years, running a 5K and also going up and down stairs,” said graduate student Devin Crowley, who led the Guinness effort.
“Machine learning approaches have long been used for pattern recognition, such as image recognition, but generating control behaviors for robots is new and different.”
The Dynamic Robotics and AI Lab melds physics with AI approaches more commonly used with data and simulation to generate novel results in robot control, Fern said.
Students and researchers come from a range of backgrounds including mechanical engineering, robotics and computer science.
“Cassie has been a platform for pioneering research in robot learning for locomotion,” Crowley said.
“Completing a 5K was about reliability and endurance, which left open the question of, how fast can Cassie run? That led the research team to shift its focus to speed.”
Cassie was trained for the equivalent of a full year in a simulation environment, compressed to a week through a computing technique known as parallelization – multiple processes and calculations happening at the same time, allowing Cassie to go through a range of training experiences simultaneously.
“Cassie can perform a spectrum of different gaits but as we specialized it for speed we began to wonder, which gaits are most efficient at each speed?” Crowley said.
“This led to Cassie’s first optimized running gait and resulted in behavior that was strikingly similar to human biomechanics.”
The remaining challenge, a “deceptively difficult” one, was to get Cassie to reliably start from a free-standing position, run, and then return to the free-standing position without falling.
“Starting and stopping in a standing position are more difficult than the running part, similar to how taking off and landing are harder than actually flying a plane,” Fern said.
“This 100-meter result was achieved by a deep collaboration between mechanical hardware design and advanced artificial intelligence for the control of that hardware.”
Hurst, chief technology officer at Agility Robotics and a robotics professor at Oregon State, called the Guinness-recognized accomplishment “a big watershed moment.”
“This may be the first bipedal robot to learn to run, but it won’t be the last,” he said.
“I believe control approaches like this are going to be a huge part of the future of robotics. The exciting part of this race is the potential. Using learned policies for robot control is a very new field, and this 100-meter dash is showing better performance than other control methods.
"I think progress is going to accelerate from here.”
Stories and infographics by ‘Talker Research’ are available to download & ready to use. Stories and videos by ‘Talker News’ are managed by SWNS. To license content for editorial or commercial use and to see the full scope of SWNS content, please email email@example.com or submit an inquiry via our contact form.
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For years, it was the Port Townsend-Keystone ferry. But as the Washington State Ferries’ upcoming fall sailing schedule shows, the Keystone ferry terminal is now officially the Coupeville terminal.
The ferry between Port Townsend and Whidbey Island doesn’t actually land in Coupeville, a town of about 1,900 on Central Whidbey Island. Coupeville is about four miles north of Keystone Harbor, where the terminal is located. Locals know the harbor name and the Keystone Spit, but there is no Keystone zip code.
The state Transportation Commission voted in July to rename the terminal after the idea was proposed by the Central Whidbey Chamber of Commerce.
Coupeville Mayor Nancy Conard says it’s all about helping travelers find their way.
“We know what Keystone means here. But travelers who are new to the area use the Internet to find out about their destination. Google “Keystone” and you won’t find anything that connects you to the community you’re trying to get to,” she said.
“You’ll find paint companies and furniture stores. Then if you Google “Coupeville,” you’ll find everything you need.”
Changes to the state ferry system’s website will start next week, according to a weekly update from WSF director David Moseley. There will be new signs at the terminal, a new highway sign, and changes in new printed schedules.
The state ferry system needed $41,000 to cover the cost of renaming the terminal. Coupeville applied for a federal transportation enhancement grant and it came through, Conard said.
The fall sailing schedule says “Port Townsend/Coupeville” with an asterisk to explain the terminal’s former name.
“We’re trying to make this an easy transition for customers,” WSF spokeswoman Joy Goldenberg said.
The Port Townsend-Coupeville (Keystone) run is waiting to get a new ferry this year. The 64-car Chetzemoka — the first new state ferry in more than a decade — is expected to make an inaugural sailing in October. The vessel has been undergoing sea trials during which crews discovered a vibration in the propulsion system. The problem has since been fixed.
The Chetzemoka will be joined in 2011 by a sister ship, the Salish, which is under construction.
The Whidbey News Times had a story on the name change last month, including some history on how ferry terminal adopted the Keystone name. From the story:
According to Roger Sherman, a Coupeville resident and amateur historian, the name Keystone was created by Island County government as a promotional logo for the Alaskan-Yukon-Pacific Exposition, an event similar to the world’s fair, held in Seattle in 1909. The idea was to capitalize on sea traffic that could only enter Puget Sound via the Strait of Juan de Fuca, which goes right past Whidbey. The full logo read, “Whidbey Island, the keystone of the Northwest.”

domain: geography


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On August 12th, residents of the Indian-controlled Kashmir region ushered in a major festival, the Muslim Gulben Festival. To this end, the Indian government slightly relaxed the tight control of the region last weekend, and there was a long-lost popularity in the local market. But is the situation in Kashmir really eased? On the 10th, a number of foreign media exposed the largest demonstrations since the military blockade on the 9th in Kashmir. In response, the Indian authorities rushed to blame, saying that the so-called “10,000-person parade” was nothing. Public opinion generally believes that the return of life is only due to the arrival of the Eid al-Adha festival, and does not mean that the public’s anger against the Modi government is eliminated.
According to the “India Times” reported on the 11th, as of the 10th, many cities in the Jammu-Kashmir region relaxed restrictions on people’s travel. Some public institutions such as schools and hospitals have resumed operations. The Slyaga government in the capital has also advanced wages of 3 billion Indian rupees (about 298 million yuan) in advance for public officials. Local residents who suppressed many days also flocked to the streets on the 10th to purchase a large amount of life and holiday supplies. There was a long-lost busy scene in the market. The business of noodle shops, meat restaurants and clothing stores was booming, and Srinagar was once caught in traffic congestion. However, such a scenario only lasted for one day. The Hindustan Times reported on the 11th that the Indian military had strengthened its control over Srinagar later that day. People were told to go home quickly and all the shops were closed again. The local residents said, “This is a Don’t dare to shop for the Gulben Festival.”
According to Agence France-Presse reported on the 11th, the connection between the Srinagar people and the outside world is still limited, and the two external telephone lines open to the public in the local government building are the only channels. According to the report, there are long queues in front of these two phones every day. Each user only has two minutes of talk time, and they have to accept the search before the call. It is precisely because of the information occlusion that recent rumors about India-controlled Kashmir have been rumored, and many foreign media, including the British “Daily Mail”, claimed that a large-scale mass demonstration took place in the area last Friday, and demonstrators and military police occurred. Intense conflict. On the 10th, the Indian Ministry of the Interior rushed to blame, saying that there were only sporadic protests during the control period, and the media reported that it was “purely fabricated.”
At the same time, a large-scale network public opinion war is also being staged vigorously. In the past few days, the social media in India and Pakistan have frequently appeared on the hot topic label “The 370th article of the Constitution has been abolished” and “Kashmir is in the same place”. The netizens of the two countries have debated this. The Wikipedia page on “Kashmir” has also become a battleground for online public opinion, and some key words have been frequently tampered with, so that administrators have to turn off guest editing rights. Pakistan’s “Dawn” said that Pakistan’s resistance to India is rising, and many industry representatives have recently voiced their voices to support the country’s suspension of trade with India.

domain: politics


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Keith Richards won’t miss his rock rivalry with Elton John when the veteran singer retires from performing.
The British stars feuded for years, and have often exchanged insults in the press – with John, 70, once saying Richards, 74, looked like a “monkey with arthritis.”
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Although their relationship has thawed somewhat in recent years, The Rolling Stones rocker tells Britain’s Daily Telegraph newspaper that he won’t miss the Rocket Man musician “at all” when he retires from live performances after a final three-year tour. He also thinks that John’s departure from the live music scene means there’s “more room” for his band.
Mocking his rival’s dramatic announcement that he will play gigs all over the world before quitting to spend time with his family, Richards says, “After three years on the road with Elton, you would want to retire, too. I’ll take his word for it.”
However, he did say of his longtime rival, “He’s a lovable old dear. He’s softening with age.”
John’s harshest words towards Richards came in 1997 after Richards criticized him for re-recording his 1973 tribute to Marilyn Monroe, Candle in the Wind, in memory of Princess Diana.
“I’m glad I’ve given up drugs and alcohol,” he told the New York Daily News. “It would be awful to be like Keith Richards. He’s pathetic, poor thing. It’s like a monkey with arthritis, trying to go onstage and look young. I have great respect for the Stones but they would have been better if they had thrown Keith out 15 years ago…I just think he’s an a–hole and I have for a long time.”
Richards has now given up alcohol himself, and tells the Telegraph he and bandmates Mick Jagger, Charlie Watts and Ronnie Wood, who are preparing to tour the U.K. and Europe, haven’t considered retiring themselves.
“There’s never ever been a word about it muttered among ourselves,” he explains. “I guess the day’s obviously going to come, some day. But not in the near future. We’re all looking forward to doing what we’re doing, especially back in Blighty (Britain).”


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In a challenging tennis season full of disruptions, winning this year’s United States Open and French Open back to back looks like the ultimate challenge.
Naomi Osaka will not be attempting it.
Fresh off her stirring run to the U.S. Open title last week, Osaka has announced that because of a lingering hamstring injury she will not play the French Open, which is set to begin in Paris on Sept. 27.
“My hamstring is still sore so I won’t have enough time to prepare for the clay — these 2 tournaments came too close to each other for me this time,” Ms. Osaka, 22, wrote in a message posted on Twitter late Thursday night. “I wish the organizers and players all the best.”
Osaka, who rose to No. 3 in the rankings this week on the strength of her latest title, injured her left hamstring during the Western & Southern Open, the tournament in New York that preceded the U.S. Open. She withdrew from the final but was able to manage the injury during the U.S. Open by skipping hitting sessions on her days off between matches. She played each of her seven rounds at the Open with the left hamstring tightly taped, including her three-set, comeback victory against Victoria Azarenka in the final.
“The hamstring was bothering her the entire tournament,” said Lindsay Davenport, a former No. 1 who is now a Tennis Channel analyst. “I actually thought in the final it was not good, especially at the beginning. She wasn’t moving great.”
After winning the title on Saturday, Osaka, who has had injuries to the same hamstring in the past, expressed uncertainty about being able to play in the French Open, the final Grand Slam tournament of 2020.
“I guess I’ll see what happens or how it feels when I get a rest,” she said.
The problem at this stage of this year’s disrupted season is that there is so little time to rest between majors. The French Open was moved from its usual dates in May and June because of high rates of coronavirus infection in France. The shift left only 13 days between the end of the U.S. Open and the start of the French, which gave those who advanced to the later rounds in New York little time to recover.
Some have plunged back into competition immediately. Azarenka, for example, is already in Rome, where she has won three matches and advanced to the quarterfinals of the Italian Open. On Thursday, she rolled past her doubles partner Sofia Kenin, the reigning Australian Open champion, 6-0, 6-0.
“It was always going to be a challenge for those who did really well in New York,” Davenport said. “Vika is making it look easy, coming straight to Rome, switching surfaces in a day and continuing to battle and compete.”
Rest is a priority for most. Of the four men and four women who reached the semifinals in singles at the U.S. Open, only Azarenka and the Spanish men’s player Pablo Carreño Busta chose to play in the Italian Open. Dominic Thiem, who won the U.S. Open men’s title and is typically comfortable with a tightly packed schedule, does not plan to play until the French Open.
“He needs to recover,” said Nicolas Massu, Thiem’s coach. “The most important thing now is to be smart with the calendar, because this is a different year.”
The transition from hard courts to clay is not straightforward for some players, requiring different tactics and footwork, including frequent sliding. Osaka’s best results have come on hard courts, including her three Grand Slam singles titles: two at the U.S. Open in 2018 and 2020 and another at the 2019 Australian Open. She has yet to advance past the third round at the French Open in four appearances and has a middling 18-14 career singles record on clay.
With Osaka’s withdrawal, two of the top three women’s players are now out of the French Open field. No. 1 Ashleigh Barty, the reigning French Open champion, already has withdrawn because of concerns about traveling during the coronavirus pandemic. Bianca Andreescu, ranked No. 7, is also unlikely to play because of a foot injury. But seven of the top 10 women are still expected to play in Paris: compared with only four of the top 10 at the U.S. Open.
The French Open also will be missing more spectators than it had expected. In July, tournament organizers announced ambitious plans for as many as 20,000 spectators per day, but the French Tennis Federation has repeatedly had to scale back those plans. With coronavirus infection rates rising again in the Paris region, it did so again this week.
On Thursday, the federation announced that only 5,000 fans will be permitted each day, and only on the main Philippe Chatrier court, which has a normal capacity of more than 15,000.
Not everything will be unusual at Roland Garros this year, though. Rafael Nadal, who has won a record 12 men’s singles titles, still intends to return. So does Thiem, who lost to Nadal in the last two French Open finals.
But while Nadal skipped the U.S. Open to train on clay in Europe, Thiem was pushing himself to the limit in New York: winning his first Grand Slam title in a fifth-set tiebreaker over Alexander Zverev.
Thiem, 27, has the skill set and love of clay to win in Paris, too. But Nadal, even at age 34, should be fresher, and the world No. 1 Novak Djokovic should be even hungrier than usual after his shocking disqualification in the fourth round in New York.
A Paris-New York double is quite a feat in any year, but all the more so when it is a New York-Paris double with so little breathing room in between.
“I’ll try everything,” Thiem said in an interview on Monday. “Everything to be 100 percent competitive and 100 percent ready. I love coming back on clay. It’s coming back home for me. I love the sliding, love grinding it out.”


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German-born US physiologist who showed that the passage of a nerve impulse is associated with the release of a chemical at the nerve endings. This chemical, acetylcholine, was later isolated by Dale, and Loewi and Dale shared the 1936 Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine.
After obtaining his medical degree at the University of Strasbourg (1896), Loewi studied chemistry, physiology, and pharmacology and was appointed professor of pharmacology at Graz University in 1909 – a position he held until he was expelled by the Nazis in 1938. He emigrated to the USA and in 1940 became a research professor at New York University's College of Medicine.
Loewi's most important findings, in 1920, were concerned with the mechanism of nerve impulse transmission. By electrically stimulating the nerves of a frog's heart, he slowed its rate of contraction. The fluid bathing this heart was then allowed to perfuse a second heart, which was not electrically stimulated. However, the contraction rate of the second heart was also decreased, demonstrating that a chemical released by the first heart into the perfusing fluid was responsible for this action. The chemical was later identified as acetylcholine – the first substance demonstrated to be a chemical neurotransmitter.
Subjects: Contemporary History (Post 1945) — Science and Mathematics.

domain: medical


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Deluxe Hay Bar Small
This Deluxe Hay Bar Small is a hay feeding system with an integrated litter tray, which can be lined with hay or your preferred bedding matter.
This is ideal for guinea pigs as this keeps the hay fresh, while containing the poops at the same time.
Your guinea pigs can also be kept entertained while searching and rearranging the hay to find the best piece, along with the hidden treats you can bury in the hay.
The lid lifts of for re-filling.
It allows you to easily monitor the amount of hay being fed.
Tray available in 3 colours – Pink, Silver, Blue
Deluxe Hay Bar Small Aprox dimension
420 mm Wide
470 mm Deep
250 mm high at the back
60 mm high at the front

domain: agronomy


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SERVING THE COMMUNITY FOR 27 YEARS
Seven Seas Marine Construction has earned a reputation for delivering the highest quality Marine Construction and Dock Building services - a reputation backed by more than 27 years of servicing the Grand Strand in South Carolina, stretching from Little River to Winyah Bay.
Providing exceptional customer satisfaction is the foundation of our business. Our builders are industry experts and take pride in providing unparalleled craftsmanship. We only use premium quality building materials, marine-grade PVC, corrosion-resistant aluminum, and IPE hardwood that offer superior durability. Our marine constructions projects are built to outlast the competition.
Professional Marine Construction
We offer residential and commercial Marine Construction and Dock Building solutions from start to finish. As a fully licensed South Carolina General Contractor and Marine Contractor, we’ll obtain the for all your projects. You’ll have peace of mind knowing our organization is covered by general liability and workman's compensation insurance. Seven Seas Marine Construction has the expertise and knowledge to ensure your maritime project is built with precision and proficiency.
What We Do
We specialize in custom Marine Construction and Dock Building projects to preserve your shoreline and prolong the life of your marinecraft. We offer custom dock building and marine construction solutions in boat docking systems, deck building, boat lifts, plummer boatlift, drive on boat storage, boardwalks, dock walkways, deck and dock building accessories, rip rap, vinyl bulkhead, redi rock, custom seawalls, dredging, pilings, retaining wall building, watercraft, and jet ski docks and much more.
Which Areas Do We Serve?
We look forward to earning your business and providing you with the best service in the industry. Areas we serve in Horry County, SC, and Georgetown County, SC, include:
North Myrtle Beach
Contact Seven Seas Marine Construction for a Free Estimate
Let us make your shoreline vision a reality; call us today to discuss your waterfront project and receive a free estimate.
Is to provide our clients with guaranteed quality work, excellent service, and establish an ongoing business relationship.
What We Do
We custom build docks, drive-on boat storage, boat lifts, decks, ramps, dock walkways, seawalls, bulkheads, redi-rock, dredging, piling, and erosion control.
We take pride in our work, carefully planning, implementing, and delivering satisfaction to our clients.
I am a General Unlimited Building Contractor in Horry and Georgetown counties of South Carolina. I have used Seven Seas Marine Construction and Caleb Clark for the last 12 years or so. Caleb and his company have done outstanding marine construction each time I have needed his services.
I would highly recommend him for any marine construction that may be needed.
W. Jack Singleton, Jr.
We have retained Mr. Caleb Clark with Seven Seas Marine Construction for several jobs. Mr. Clark and his company are reliable and their work is impeccable. We are pleased with their performance and professionalism.
We would recommend Mr. Clark and Seven Seas Marine Construction to anyone who would ask.
Michael Chaffin, President
I am truly appreciated in finding a Myrtle Beach Marine Contractor that delivers custom dock building on time with match
expectations! The dock and 2 boat lifts are a thing of beauty and hopefully will be a joy forever.
Our goal is to provide our clients with guaranteed quality work, excellent service, and establish an ongoing business relationship. We have been in the marine construction business since 1994 serving Horry County, Georgetown County and surrounding areas. Seven Seas Marine Construction is a family owned business, license contractor and we are an equal opportunity employer.


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Harley-Davidson Other description
2013 Harley Davidson FLHX Yellow Street Glide P12688---- for more details and access to pics, click on the POSTED link below "Autos Near Buy".....
Harley-Davidson Other for Sale
Moto blogThu, 25 Jul 2013 00:00:00 -0700
Harley-Davidson reported a net profit of $271.7 million for the second quarter ended June 30, 2013, up from the profit of $247.3 million reported in the same period in 2012. For the first half of 2013, Harley-Davidson has recorded $495.9 million in profit, compared to $419.3 million reported in the opening six months last year. “Harley-Davidson again drove strong financial performance in the second quarter, reflecting the many improvements in operations we have made throughout the Company over the past few years as well as our brand strength globally,” says Keith Wandell, chairman, president and chief executive officer of Harley-Davidson, Inc.Wed, 30 Jul 2014 00:00:00 -0700
Harley-Davidson is kicking off the 74th Annual Sturgis Motorcycle Rally in the Black Hills of South Dakota with a full arsenal of activities and events that will electrify all motorcycle enthusiasts. The highly anticipated rally runs from Saturday, August 2 through Saturday, August 9. With activities, rides and demos scheduled throughout the week, Harley-Davidson created a free mobile app to help attendees navigate all the action.Thu, 23 Feb 2012 00:00:00 -0800
Harley-Davidson is adding a new factory tour program offering visitors a personal look at the company’s York production facility. For years, the M has been offering free factory tours of its operations in York, Pa., Kansas City, Mo., Tomahawk, Wis., and Menomonee Falls, Wis., facilities. In 2009, Harley-Davidson introduced a premium tour that takes guests into “employee-only” areas called the “Steel Toe Tour” at its Menomonee Falls location.
Harley-Davidson Other by State
Harley-Davidson Other by City
Harley-Davidson Other by Color


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We can only be friends if you’re kind of an asshole. Not full blown asshole because that’s no fun. And if you’re not an asshole at all then that won’t work either. A halfway asshole. Those are my kind of people.
Fact: The human brain makes you see yourself as 5 times more beautiful than you really are.
Me: Well fuck
guys i’m literally so out of shape like internet explorer could probably run faster than me
danisn0tonfire: so i heard internet addiction is now an official mental disorder and you can go to rehab for it but im only going if theres wifi
mermaidsandmisandry: things i dont need in my life: wasps those stringy things on the banana commercials on youtube
IN THE UNITED STATES
lolsofunny: dannybriereisaliferuiner: owning a gun is a right having healthcare is a privilege (lol here!)

domain: psychology


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This girls weekend I partnered with Custom Ink to commemorate our trip with fun custom t-shirts, so even though we’ll be miles a part we can wear them and think of each other!
From birthdays to bachelorettes, family reunions to girlfriend getaways, and everything in between, Custom Ink makes the customization process fun and easy with innovative design tools, caring customer service, creative design inspiration, and high-quality merchandise. Y’all they even offer shirts from Gap! How cool is that? With Custom Ink it was fun to make your own tees and easy to find the right product and create the perfect design for my girlfriends.
A few weeks before my girl’s trip, I headed back to Texas for my sister’s graduation and while I was home I popped in a Custom Ink store, so I could have an expert help me with my design. I knew what I wanted it to look like in my head, but needed a little help to get to finish product. The Custom Ink team was super knowledgeable about t-shirts and helped me to choose the right style and fit for my girls trip shirts. It was also very helpful to see the colors of the tees, feel the fabric and see how they fit in person. When it came time to customize my girls weekend shirts they provided recommendations on art and font that was on trend and will make us look great! It was easy to have my idea in my head become a reality.
I went with the phrase “Weekends are for the girls” as a play of the saying “Saturday’s for the boys”. I wanted to something the girls could wear and still be cute and fun without being cheesy like “Girls Weekend 2018”. I also wanted the colors to vary a little!
Once I left the store, my girls trip t-shirts arrived at my door about two weeks later with free shipping! The girls were so surprised and loved how they turned out. I also love how each of my friends styled the tees to really reflect their personality.
If you are in the market for a custom tee for a girls trip, bachelorette party, family reunion, whatever it may be I highly recommend check out Custom Ink to design your own tee!
This post was sponsored by Custom Ink but all opinions are my own. Posts like these make Thrifty Pineapple possible!

domain: design


COVENT-Tester (COVID-19 VENTilator Tester) is a low-cost and open source ventilator tester developed to calibrate the output of medical ventilators, including tidal volume, inspiratory pressure, and oxygen concentration. Currently, there are several open-source ventilator testers, however, existing open-source ventilator testers are unable to measure oxygen concentration. Conversely, commercial ventilator testers with the capacity to measure tidal volume, inspiratory pressure, and oxygen concentration, are very costly. The COVENT-Tester was therefore designed to be low-cost, by using Commercial Off-The-Shelf (COTS) components, to assist the open source community for rapidly manufactured pandemic ventilators. In addition, the COVENT-Tester measurement's validation results show the tester has good accuracy.
|Publication status||Published - Apr 2021|
- 3-D print
- Medical hardware
- Open source
- Ventilator tester


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A health worker in Alaska suffered a severe allergic reaction after receiving the COfID-19 Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine and is now in the hospital but stable, a report said Wednesday.
The New York Times reported that the man received their bullet Tuesday, and Pfizer confirmed he was working with local authorities to investigate the incident.
Allergic reactions were similar to two health workers in Britain, causing the government there to tell people not to get the bullet if they had a history of severe allergies.
The U.S. regulator issued an emergency agreement with the warning that people who were familiar with allergies to ingredients within the vaccine should avoid it.
“We do not have all the details of the report from Alaska of a possible adverse allergic reaction but we are actively working with local health authorities to evaluate,” a Pfizer spokesperson said. .
“We will monitor closely all reports of adverse allergic reactions following immunization and update billing language if necessary.”
Volunteers for a Pfizer clinical trial of 44,000 people were banned if they had a history of allergic reactions to vaccines or components of the COVID-19 vaccine.
Overall, the trial found no adverse safety issues, but regulators and the company continue to monitor for adverse events after receiving the vaccine.
The U.S. is vaccinating around three million people this week with the vaccine, and hopes to reach 20 million people this month if another vaccine, developed by Moderna, is approved.
Follow the latest news on coronavirus behavior (COVID-19)
© 2020 AFP
Citation: US health worker is adversely affected by Pfizer vaccine (2020, December 16) on December 17, 2020 retrieved from https://medicalxpress.com/news/2020-12-health-worker-allergic-reaction- pfizer.html
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