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Fitch assigns BBB- rating to Mexichem's proposed US$350M senior unsecured notes issuance due 2019, says outlook stable
October 19, 2009
– Fitch Ratings has assigned a 'BBB-' rating to Mexichem, S.A.B. de C.V.'s (Mexichem) proposed US$350 million senior unsecured notes issuance due 2019. The rating incorporates the assumption that the proceeds from the proposed issuance will be mainly used to complete a potential acquisition which will be integrated into Mexichem's production chains. Fitch believes that in the absence of the aforementioned transaction, funds from the proposed issuance will be used in a large proportion to repay debt.
In addition, Fitch has affirmed the following ratings for Mexichem:
--Issuer default rating (IDR) at 'BBB-';
--Local currency IDR at 'BBB-';
--National scale long-term rating at 'AA-(mex)';
--MXP2,500 million Local Certificados Bursatiles issuance MEXCHEM 09 due in 2014 at 'AA-(mex)'.
The Rating Outlook is Stable.
Although the proposed senior notes issuance will increase Mexichem's total indebtedness, Fitch believes the company will be able to absorb and rapidly integrate the expected new operation into its business platform, given the strategic fit with Mexichem's operating structure and its management's success in the past in integrating prior acquisitions. Fitch assumes that this transaction will be consistent with the company's vertical integration strategy focused on adding value to its raw materials' strategic position. Fitch expects that Mexichem's leverage will remain consistent with management's long-term target of Net Debt to EBITDA below 2.0 times (x). If the final terms of the acquisition result in higher levels of leverage, the company's credit quality could be affected.
Mexichem's ratings are supported by the company's business profile as a leading vertically integrated chemical and petrochemical company in Mexico, with important market shares and presence in Latin America, which in turn translates into geographic revenue diversification. The ratings are also supported by Mexichem's competitive cost structure and solid financial profile.
Mexichem segments its operations into three production chains: chlorine-vinyl, fluorine, and transformed products (basically polyvinyl chloride-PVC pipes and fittings), which mainly target the construction, agricultural and industrial sectors. The company benefits from its vertical integration which serves different segments along the value chain and allows it to focus its development toward value-added products. In addition, these factors create barriers of entry to other market participants.
Balanced against this is the company's relatively aggressive expansion program, which has included in recent years the acquisition of complementary operations, competitors and new business lines in order to add value to its main production chains. These transactions have been financed mainly with debt and, in a lower proportion, equity and asset sales. Fitch expects that in the following years Mexichem's capex program will be limited to maintenance, modernization and replacement of current installed capacity, at levels similar to annual depreciation and amortization charges. Future acquisitions financed with increased indebtedness could pressure the company's credit quality.
Mexichem's revenues are closely linked to the U.S. dollar: 40% of consolidated sales are denominated and paid in U.S. currency, 40% is referenced to the dollar and paid in local currencies, and 20% is domestic. As of June 2009, 80% of Mexichem's US$213 million cash balance is in U.S. dollars. Mexichem has gained economies of scale and geographic scope, and to date exports its products to over 50 countries and has manufacturing facilities in 14 countries. In addition, Mexichem has developed in-house technology and has a low production cost given that its manufacturing facilities benefit from [[[favorable???]]]labor and geographic conditions.
Mexichem cash flow generation is strong and is reflected in its relatively stable credit metrics, despite unfavorable economic conditions. Pro-forma total debt to EBITDA after the proposed senior notes issuance could rise to 2.6x. , Fitch's expectation, however, including the potential acquisition's operating results, is that during 2010 the company will return to levels close to 2.2x, similar to those observed in June 2009. Moreover, the company should be able to fund its maintenance and replacement capex with internally generated cash flow. For 2009, management has been actively implementing initiatives to optimize working capital and has kept strict control over costs and expenses. For the latest 12 months (LTM) ended June 30, 2009, EBITDA coverage of interest was 10.1x compared to 9.1x in fiscal 2008 and 8.0x in fiscal 2007. Total debt to EBITDA for the same period was 2.2x, compared to 2.4x at the end of 2008 and 2.0x in 2007. EBITDA margin was 19% for the LTM at June 2009 versus 16.8% in fiscal 2008 and 18.9% in fiscal 2007. The recent improvement in margins reflects lower input costs and relatively stable prices.
Mexichem's liquidity risk has improved. At June 30, 2009, the company had a total debt balance of US$993 million, where 30%, or US$299 million, is short-term. At the same date, the company had cash and equivalents equal to US$213 million. During the third quarter of 2009 Mexichem carried out an equity rights offering to its shareholders for US$173 million. Proceeds were used to prepay US$50 million of debt related to the Tubos Flexibles acquisition and the remaining balance will be used to fund pending acquisitions. In conjunction with this, Mexichem issued certificados bursatiles in the local market for approximately US$188 million, which were used mostly to refinance short-term debt, which now represents approximately 15% of total debt.
© 2021 Business Wire, Inc., All rights reserved.


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The National Federation Party (NFP) has called for the immediate dismissal of Ashwin Raj from his post as Chair of the Media Industry and Development Authority (MIDA) and Director of the Fiji Human Rights and Anti-Discrimination Commission (FHRADC), because of his suggestions to stifle freedom of speech on national television.
Following is the statement issued by Professor Biman Prasad, Member of Parliament and Leader of the NFP.
The suggestions by Mr Raj on Sunday, April 2, 2017 on FBCTV Current Affairs Show ‘For the Record,’ urging the State to pursue the regulation of social media are shocking and must be condemned in the strongest terms.
Chilling and Unconstitutional
The NFP strongly condemns these suggestions to the State by Mr Raj, which we know are all being said under the pretext of “responsibility. It is chilling, unconstitutional and could be easily wielded as an instrument to again stifle the voices of the people of Fiji.
What we find further disturbing are his pointed attacks on political parties and then the further justification of these attacks, to bring in regulation over social media.
The NFP sees this as a blatant attempt to stifle the voices of political parties in the lead-up to elections next year.
Fiji already has in place a heavily regulated media industry, with draconian laws, and penalties. There is no need to introduce further laws to stifle civil liberties. There is instead a great need to repeal these laws.
Our citizens had taken to Mr Raj himself their complaints on communal antagonism against FBCTV for the programme ‘Wasea Basha.’
However, Mr Raj merely brushed these off as not meeting the ‘threshold for inciting communal discord.’
It seems that he has conveniently changed his mind on what such a ‘threshold’ constitutes when this has concerned the State and its representatives.
We are also appalled with the false accusations and political commentary that have emerged from Mr Raj in defending the statement of Fiji’s Ambassador to Geneva, Nazhat Shameem at the 34th Session of the Human Rights Council.
His statement was based on an inaccurate lengthy version of the Ambassador’s statement, which the Fiji Mission in Geneva continued to have on its website and furthermore made some serious political commentary and opinion of what he thinks is true.
Photo Caption: Ashwin Raj

domain: law


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Some time ago, we traveled to Palm Springs for a long weekend. Palm Springs is an easy vacation trip from L.A. – always warm and sunny, plenty of cool midcentury rentable houses with pools ready for lounging, and only a couple hours outside the city.
One of the days, the group split up to entertain themselves (ourselves?) during the day until the debauchery (fireside drinking and board games – we’re real party animals) began at night. Some stayed and hung out by the aforementioned pool, a few went off to the movies, and a small group of us decided to check out some of the weirder sights that the Palm Springs area had to offer.
We set off in a giant car and drove the hour or so to the Salton Sea. The Salton Sea, charmingly described in one article as “a beach made of death,” was at one time a hot destination for the crème de la crème of Southern California, a sort of Malibu in the desert with yacht clubs and big houses and private jets flying in and out. However, the salt content of the sea began to kill off the fish that lived there, and as the smell of dead fish grew and recurrent flooding damaged the resorts and homes, the place cleared out. Now, the “town” near the Salton Sea is basically The Hills Have Eyes come to life – in fact, one of the decrepit building hulls literally had that written on it (another one said “abandon hope all who enter here.” Fun.).
The sea itself is an eerily large body of water in the middle of a barren desert, surrounded by a “beach” of ground-up fish bones and littered with beautiful-ugly-haunting debris. It is…an experience. And a stark comparison to the manicured resorts of Palm Springs proper.
From the Salton Sea, we continued on to Salvation Mountain, a historic Folk Art monument created by one very determined Jesus-loving individual, Leonard Knight. Basically, the man painted a mountain, and if Dr. Seuss had really really liked God (and maybe he did, I don’t know), this would be a real-life version of that. It’s cool and weird and also a bit creepy. And crawling with tourists.
Should you take it upon yourself to one day visit these two oddities of the desert (and I think it truly depends on your personality as to whether you think it would be worth it – I was glad to have gone, but I don’t think they’d be everyone’s cups of tea), I would give you some advice: bring water and food/snacks. Pee before you go. And probably don’t go inside that “abandon all hope” building. That doesn’t seem safe.
Both attractions are free of charge.
The Salton Sea
The Sea is very large, but we stopped at Bombay Beach.
Niland, CA 92257

domain: geography


LAS VEGAS (February 05, 2020) – This week at World of Concrete, International Truck is showcasing several vehicles from its vocational product lineup, including an International® HV™ Series featuring the Hendrickson HAULMAAX EX suspension, an upgraded suspension offering for the HV™ and HX® Series lineup. The truck also features Hendrickson COMPOSILITE EXS lift axles which are a new offering from International.
“Our customers remain at the center of everything that we do, and we are constantly focused on providing them with the very best product offerings available,” said Mark Stasell, vice president, Vocational Truck Business, International Truck. “We are extremely excited to offer the optimized Hendrickson HAULMAAX EX suspension for our customers, which adds to the superior suite of options our customers have to tailor our industry leading products to their business’ needs.”
The Hendrickson HAULMAAX EX suspension offers several key features that are beneficial for many vocational applications, including a progressive load spring system for improved stability, a lightweight design that removes unnecessary weight, optimized geometry for increased durability and redesigned bolster and auxiliary springs for exceptional ride quality. The suspension also offers increased tire clearances for 315-millimeter tires and improved strength as evident in its increased site ratings. The Hendrickson COMPOSILITE EXS lift axles are available today, and the Hendrickson HAULMAAX EX suspension will be available from International in the fall.
In addition, International Truck is showcasing its recently launched fleet service communications platform, International® 360. Displayed in a unique, 360-degree theatre within the booth, International 360 offers seamless, transparent communication for the International service network, with a comprehensive, easy-to-use interface that supports all-makes fleets. The platform offers a simple, single tool that improves visibility throughout the process.
The HAULMAAX EX suspension is the second update that International has announced for the HV Series in the last few months. In October, the company introduced a high visibility, set-back axle option for the AWD HV Series that features improved maneuverability and increased visibility.
Customers looking to learn more about the advantages available through International’s vocational vehicles can visit International Truck’s booth at the 2020 World of Concrete show in Las Vegas. The International Truck booth is located at C6426.
# # #
Navistar International Corporation (NYSE: NAV) is a holding company whose subsidiaries and affiliates produce International® brand commercial trucks, proprietary diesel engines, and IC Bus® brand school and commercial buses. An affiliate also provides truck and diesel engine service parts. Another affiliate offers financing services. Additional information is available at www.Navistar.com.


Globe Slicer Repair Guide for Technicians
Initially, meat slicers were simple and worked on hand cranks, but new meat slicers operate with a motor system. Globe is an international company, and they provide a wide variety of meat slicers. Globe slicers are primarily used in commercial restaurants on a larger scale. But as it's an electrical device, it can malfunction with time. That's why we're here with Globe Slicer repair guide for technicians.
In this article, we'll go through some common issues a technician may get a complaint about, and we'll guide you on how to repair those issues.
Globe Slicer Regular Issues and Repair Guide
If the Globe slicer stops working or not working at all, there can be some problems that the technician needs to address.
Slicer Won't Start
- First of all, check if the power plug in the switch is placed in tightly. Then check the main power box and change the fuse if found broken.
- A Knife cover is usually present in all 3600 models except C9/10/12 and GC9/10 models. When the slicer is not working in all models, a light starts blinking, a notification of the underlying problem. If the light flashes, it might be due to the knife cover being removed or not installed correctly. Then you need to reinstall the cover and make sure to tighten up the release knob carefully.
- Some of the models of the Globe slicer range, including C9 / C10 / C12, can go out of function due to the motor reset button, which can trip down itself. Search for the button underneath the slicer and press it down to rest the motor function.
- In models 3600, 3850, and 3975, the lever present for the function of auto engage can move into the automatic position itself. If it is found so, change the position to manual to start proper setup
Slicer Is Making a Ragged Cut at Meat
If the slicer produces irregular and abrupt cuts on meat, it can happen due to the following reasons:
- Ragged cuts on meat can be due to a dull and uneven knife. Check the blade and sharpen it; also, make sure that the stones and knives are thoroughly clean. Practice cleaning knives and stones regularly.
- If the slicer knife is chipped and broken from the edges, it can cause marks on meat pieces. So, if you find that the blade is chipped, try to sharpen it and make its surface even. In the worst cases, the knife should be reinstalled.
- In some models, the knife of the globe slicer is too small, as a result, it won't cut properly and make the meat cutting ragged. To repair this issue of Globe slicer, we recommend installing a new big-sized knife.
- If the gap between the slicer table and the knife is a little too much, it can also cause uneven cuttings. In that case, you should have to adjust the position and distance of the slicer table.
Slicer Knife Is Being Rubbed with Meat
If the meat is found rubbing with the surface of the slicer knife, it can be due to the following reasons.
- The knife can get loose and start rubbing with meat, so check for knife cover, tighten it up and release the knob.
- Food chutes in a slicer keep the junk meat at a distance from sliced meat. If the knife got rubbed with meat, it could be due to a poorly installed food chute. Tighten up the food chute and its knob so the slicer can function normally.
- Knife rubbing can happen due to the broken end weight. If it is found broken, replace it carefully, following the proper process.
- Knives can start rubbing with meat if the slicer table is not adjusted correctly. Check out the difference after readjusting the slicer table.
Slicer Knife Is Too Hard to Sharpen
If the slicer of the knife is found hard to sharpen, you can repair this issue of Globe Slicer by the following methods:
- If knives are too hard to sharp again, check for the condition of the stones. If they are wet, clogged, or any dirt accumulated on stones, clean the stones from top to bottom by using warm water and cleaning brushes and towels. Once you have cleaned the stones, dry them naturally in the air. When stones get dry, lubricate them by using special lubrication oil from Globe.
- If stones of slicer get old, torn, and wear out, they would not be able to sharpen the knives; the only solution to this problem is replacing old stones with new ones.
- If the alignment of stones is not according to the proper adjustment, the stone set cannot hold the knife tightly and correctly. It should be adjusted carefully.
- If stones in the slicer cannot rotate in a pleasing pattern, the knives cannot sharpen. The rotation of stones can be blocked due to increased friction between stones. To facilitate stone rotation, lubricate the stones with Globe special lubricating oil.
- If the knife edges are not properly cleaned and are dirty, they cannot get sharpened. Try sharpening the knives after cleaning them properly.
Slicer Isn't Pushing Chute
- If it is found too hard for the slicer to push the chutes, there must be a need to lubricate the related area, including stones, food chutes, and rods present at both sides. For lubrication purposes, never use vegetable oil or any other alternate oil. Always use Globe special lubricating oil.
Slicer Stops Running (Chef Mate Series)
- The slicers from the Chef mate series, including models c9 /C10 / C12, can stop functioning due to overheating the slicer's motor. If it happens, shut down the slicer, give the motor 10 to 15 minutes to cool, and restart again. If the problem is continuous, look for some other factors that can get involved in overheating the system.
Other resources: Globe Slicer cleaning procedure


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Over the next few weeks, TBS will be taping upcoming installments of its “Drop The Mic” series.
The March 18 taping will have a pro wrestling slant.
Adhering to a “PRO vs. GLOW” theme, the episode will feature members of the WWE roster and stars of Netflix’s “GLOW” series.
Nikki Bella, Brie Bella, Carmella, and Alicia Fox will represent WWE, while Kate Nash, Jackie Tohn, Sunita Mani and Britney Young will appear on behalf of the Netflix show.
The episode will air as part of the forthcoming second season; the specific airdate has not yet been revealed.
Based on the sketch from “The Late Late Show With James Corden,” TBS’ “Drop The Mic” invites celebrities to participate in rap battles.

domain: news


The MX88 music synthesizer is the complete solution for the modern piano player, aspiring music producer or live performer. Boasting a realistic piano touch — thanks to over 100 years of piano manufacturing experience — MX88 features an 88-note weighted keyboard, modern synthesizer technology and easy connectivity to computers and iOS devices.
- The 88-note, GHS weighted action is heavier in the low keys and lighter in the high keys, just like an acoustic piano
- Class-compliant USB audio/MIDI for true “plug and play” connectivity without installing any drivers
- Motif sound engine: layer, zone, switch, cycle, randomize and control up to 8 elements within a single voice
- Virtual circuitry Modeling (vcm) re-creates the sound and behavior of vintage effects and signal processors
- 128 notes of polyphony ensures dropout-free performance playing live or with full 16-track sequences


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California court officials plan to let those with traffic tickets across the state appear in court without paying up front.
The new rule, expected to win approval from the state Judicial Council at a special telephone meeting Monday, is viewed by policymakers as a preliminary move in a broader effort to expand access to the court system.
It was spearheaded by Chief Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye, who pushed for the change on an urgency basis in response to concerns about disparities in how courts notify defendants and handle bail when someone challenges a citation in court.
While many counties, including Sacramento, San Francisco and Los Angeles, generally do not require payment to contest a ticket, some do. Marin County, for example, tells motorists they must post the full bail, considered a guarantee of appearance, before a trial date will be set. El Dorado County requires motorists to first post bail, according to its website. If found not guilty, motorists are refunded the amount in four to six weeks.
Presiding Judge Marsha Slough of San Bernardino Superior Court described the traffic rules for fines, fees and trials as “complex and convoluted.” The new rule, developed in weeks rather than the usual months, would establish a standardized policy and take effect immediately. It provides for certain exceptions and requires courts to give traffic defendants notice of their options in written instructions or other materials.
“Our goal is to let people have their day in court,” Slough said.
Neither Slough nor a spokeswoman for the council could provide information on how many counties would be affected.
Robert Sherman, the assistant court executive officer in Ventura, said the rule would have virtually no effect on operations there, save for some possible adjustments to the notices it sends.
“That should be the case in the majority of the courts around the state,” he said.
The proposal comes amid renewed debate about how to lessen the financial blow of mushrooming government fees and fines, particularly on the poor. More than 4 million Californians have had their driver’s licenses revoked for failure to pay traffic fines or appear in court, state records show, with the number rising during the economic recession. That has inspired state amnesty legislation, and a similar proposal by Gov. Jerry Brown, to help clear the years-old suspension backlog.
California court officials said they were motivated by a recent analysis from legal aid and civil rights groups that found low-income residents are being disproportionately affected by laws and procedures relating to license suspensions. The report, which came out in April, noted that some counties require bail for anyone who wants a court date on their citation.
About 1.7 million of 4.75 million California traffic infractions were contested in 2012-13, according to most recent statistics available from the Judicial Council.
“If you have money, you can get a trial, as is your constitutional right,” it states. “If you cannot afford to pay to get into court, you could be stuck with no driver’s license and hundreds or thousands of dollars in fines – even if you are innocent.”
Elisa Della-Piana, a co-author of the report and program director of the East Bay Community Law Center, said she was initially excited to hear that the courts were moving swiftly to take up the issue. However, she and others from the Western Center on Law & Poverty, Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights and Bay Area Legal Aid said they were disappointed that the change would not deal with the broader problem of motorists who incur substantial costs after failing to appear.
The group wants motorists who miss their first court date to have a second chance to appear without making the payment.
In a Friday letter to the Judicial Council, they wrote that the proposed change “would continue (a) two-tiered system of justice.”
“With this requirement, people who missed their original court date will still bear the burden of paying all of their fines, fees and assessments before being able to appear before a judge,” the letter states. “... we see that the principal problem is with exactly that group of people who missed their original court date and cannot get in front of a judge because they cannot afford the $300 assessment for failure to appear.”
Worse, Della-Piana said, the new rule may actually serve as a setback of sorts because counties where officials seemed amenable to doing things differently may now feel bound by a statewide policy.
“Requiring a few less people to pay is a small step. And to the extent we should celebrate every step, even the small ones, that’s great,” she said in an interview. “But without addressing the 4.4 million people with suspended licenses, the Judicial Council is turning a blind eye to the rampant injustice across the state.”
Slough, chair of the trial court presiding judges advisory committee, countered that the change demonstrates Cantil-Sakauye is committed to advancing reforms.
She and judges have become increasingly aware of the roadblocks that have “inadvertently and unintentionally” caused difficulties for people “who are just trying to get in a car and get to work or find a job,” Slough said.
She noted that the chief justice’s Futures Commission is also diving into larger issues of access, including the impact of all fines, fees and court penalties.
“My hope is that people view the chief’s direction as a significant first step,” Slough added. “It’s unprecedented in the speed in which this is being implemented, and we recognize it not as the solution, but a large piece in a complex puzzle of which all three branches hold corner pieces.”


- Special Sections
- Public Notices
Two Lancaster residents were not harmed after someone shattered their glass front door during an apparent drive-by shooting May 3.
Police raced to the 1800 block of Pardue Street about 11:35 p.m. after receiving a 911 call that someone fired between five and six gunshots in that area, according to a Lancaster Police Department incident report.
Officers arrived to find a large crowd in the area and also noticed a shattered screen door at a nearby apartment, the report said.
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21 August 2020
We all know that power disruptions can occur at any time and not just during normal business hours. Across the greater New York area, large-scale business operations like refineries and factories author, manage, and practice their power strategic management plans so that they are prepared when power contingencies strike. Very often, those strategic plans include portable generator solutions from American Spot Cooling & Power Rental.
Rental generators are a fundamentally important aspect of every emergency management plan. During power interruptions, our generators are either automatically or physically energized to power up life-safety items and that includes lights, fire protection, security, and other emergency-related equipment. We deliver transfer switch solutions that will bring up each of these groups of equipment in a preset order specific to the situation. The process of repowering the plant is different and on a case-by- case basis in every site. The plan’s specifics will depend on the facility's needs and depending on the order of which the personnel will be needed at that very instant while the operation is ongoing. Renting a portable generator will enable you to use different generators that will best match different situations.
The sudden halt of business operations during a power outage will result not only in costs of lost opportunity but can threaten personnel and machinery alike. Therefore, partnering with a rental power professional such as Mobile Air and Power Rentals is simply a smart business decision. We exist to protect your business with real emergency power strategies and solutions. Contact Mobile Air & Power Rentals today.
19 August 2020
Power outages here in New York can happen anytime and for all kinds of reasons. Everyone experiences power failure at some point. The question is how much comfort and/or lost revenue will you suffer when unprepared. Business owners find their production processes grind to a halt when not prepared with an electrical contingency management plan. Some owners subject themselves not only to inconvenience but some also subject themselves in the New York summer to very real health risks. So business owners and homeowners alike need a power contingency management plan that includes portable power generation.
The importance of generators is self-evident in many commercial environments such as hotels, assisted living facilities, medical, and other industries where the comfort and safety of the occupants is non-negotiable. In commercial establishments, retailers must ensure that their patrons, employees, and their products are safe during any type of power failure. There are countless businesses here in New York that depend on our portable power generation services as an absolute critical element of their business plan. We can help you be as ready for the next power disaster as they are.
Let us help you improve your residential or commercial comfort via our highly affordable rental portable generator services. For information on how to do this, contact American Spot Cooling & Power Rental.
24 July 2020
Portable power generators are a perfect power source for commercial, industrial and construction industries. They facilitate uninterrupted commercial operations in the event of power disruptions that can be a recurring thing here in NYC. You and your business can save on operations costs and limit costly work interruptions by incorporating portable generators within your business operations plan.
Portable generators are normally installed at facilities where any loss of utility power will result in an unacceptable delay. For emergency backup power needs, they are designed to start automatically upon electrical utility failure and deliver uninterrupted power for sustained business operations. Of course, portable generators are an essential support element for business operations in remote areas where power grid services are either unattainable or unreasonably far to reach.
The key to establishing a power continuity plan is to team up with power professionals to conduct a comprehensive requirements analysis, so that you can be guaranteed to fully power your operation in the event of an emergency, or to power a subsection of your operation that is off the grid. Our specialty is delivering power analyses and solutions that ensure your business stays running 24/7 guaranteed in spite of sometimes questionable NYC electrical utility continuity.
When you want guaranteed electrical continuity, contact American Spot Cooling & Power Rental.
13 April 2020
Unstable public utility power service takes its toll on profitability. Those who have calculated the lost man-hour labor cost, lost product cost, and a host of other costs associated with unscheduled and un-planned for outages know the value of rental power generation services. The reasons for renting portable generations are both strategic and reactive in nature. We just covered the strategic readiness reasons to rent backup power generation capability, but for decades now the greater New York City-area businesses have turned to us for such reasons as scheduled power outages, fire, and other disasters, and to provide the short-term extra power required for plant expansion. Our portable power generator are quiet and powerful enough to solve virtually any company’s industrial need.
Being a years-long trusted NYC generator rental power provider, our history proves an ability to meet and exceed both the power and demand of our NYC customers. We are much more than equipment providers, we are your consultant who considers you as much of a partner than a client. Let’s discuss our role as power consultants.
Safety, of course, is the top priority. Ventilation, accessibility, and numerous other things factor into both the generator location and the distribution system engineering plan. One of the most important considerations, therefore, is where to locate your rental power equipment. Noise and ensuring the shortest cable run possible are factors that must be considered.
Whether your power generation need is emergency readiness or for an immediate and sustained power requirement, we’re here for you. For more information on our comprehensive service plans, contact American Spot Cooling & Power Rental.
6 April 2020
Negative air machines or "air scrubbers" are compact air filtering devices that effectively eliminate detrimental airborne contaminants such as pathogens, allergens, mold spores, and chemicals from the air. These machines are important in environments that require particularly clean air. Such environments include manufacturing clean rooms, hospitals, health centers and nursing homes. Negative machines are also employed in construction sites and commercial properties for applications including mold remediation, water extraction and sewage removal.
American Spot Cooling & Power Rental offers negative air rental solutions across the greater NY area. We carry negative air machine in different sizes and filtration capacities. These lightweight and portable negative air machines and air scrubbers produce up to 2000 CFM of filtered air movement to efficiently improve indoor air quality. Developed to improve IAQ, HEPA filters effectively remove contaminants such as bacteria, allergens, mold and sub-micron sized dust. HEPA filters capture 0.3 microns and larger at a 99.97% rate.
We offer full service air quality solutions to include delivery and set up at your job site. Contact American Spot Cooling & Power Rental for additional details.
29 March 2020
As the unprecedented Coronavirus pandemic is spreading, the state of emergency is changing every aspect of American personal and business life. With due attention being focused on the spread of Coronavirus, there are proactive measures that can and should be taken. Having an HVAC system capable of filtering and scrubbing the air will help avert the spread of the virus.
It is very important to know that Coronavirus is not the only airborne threat out there. The quality of indoor air affects health in countless ways. Indoor air quality when left untreated is much worse than outdoor air. Inside air can recirculate dust, mold, mildew, and yes, dangerous and deadly virus. Unclean inside air causes colds to stay longer and allergies to be more severe. It is from this respiratory disease that the virus will stick or easily transfer. Renting a portable air conditioner for your home or business improves air quality by constantly exchanging the indoor air with fresh outdoor air that is also filtered for the best quality possible. More and more businesses are adding a rented HVAC system into their facility and commercial spaces to control polluted air.
In times like these, when people are so sensitive and everyone is concerned about the hazardous virus, a reliable HVAC system will provide the best support and full protection. Quality maintenance, good hygiene and proven best practices such as improved indoor air quality, focusing on source control for contamination and maintaining a clean place are the keys to successfully directing current health issues.
Contact American Power Rental if you need a mobile turnkey solution for your facility.
23 March 2020
With the increasing number of COVID-19 confirmed cases, there's an in dire need for temporary healthcare sites to accommodate incoming patients. Amidst this crisis, know that American Spot Cooling & Power Rental can assist in the set-up of an effective healthcare facility extensions.
One of the primary needs of a tented health center is power. This is where American Spot Cooling & Power Rental team can help. We are ready and equipped to provide you with the right size portable generators that will deliver upon whatever electrical requirement necessary to power up and sustain essential medical devices, HVAC units, and lighting inside your tented facility. Our rental generators are safe to use and complete with all necessary accessories. We can even secure you with fuel tanks as extra fuel storage for long term needs.
Aside from generators, we also carry other necessary equipment for the tented facility such as rental negative air machines/air scrubbers, rental heaters, chillers and dehumidifiers in different sizes and capacity. We will deliver and maintain all this equipment to you on a priority basis.
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13 March 2020
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9 March 2020
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29 February 2020
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The nation's banks Monday lowered their prime rate to 10 percent from 10.5 percent following the Federal Reserve's aggressive move to boost the sluggish economy.
Florida's major financial institutions, including Southeast National Bank and Amerifirst Federal Savings & Loan, were among those joining the parade.
Chase Manhattan Bank and Citibank moved late Friday immediately after the Fed's announcement that its discount rate, the rate it charges financial institutions for short-term borrowings, would be 7.5 percent effective Monday, down from 8 percent and the lowest in almost six years.
Virtually all of the nation's largest banks, trendsetters for the industry, adopted the 10 percent prime Monday.
"The banks reacted to what was a surprisingly aggressive cut in discount rate in the sense that the Fed moved to 7.5 percent before the federal funds (overnight) rate and other key market rates were below 8 percent," said David M. Jones, economist at Aubrey G. Lanston & Co. "That is a sign that the Fed means business."
The Fed said it acted out of concern for the general weakness in the economy. Although the most recent government indicators show some recovery from the sluggish first quarter, some sectors, including industrial and agriculture, continue to languish.
Reflecting this weakness, Jones said the prime rate could come down to 9 percent by year-end.
For large businesses, banks long have negotiated borrowing rates tied to commercial paper and other market instruments, but for small and medium-sized businesses whose loans are pegged to prime, the lower rate is good news indeed.
"Mortgage rates could come down fairly soon," Jones said. "But the last people to benefit will be consumers, who will continue to pay relatively high rates. Banks have tended to keep consumer rates unusually high because of the need to provide large amounts of reserves for bad loans in other sectors, such as to less developed countries and domestically in the energy, real estate and agriculture areas."


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domain: finance


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Celebrity Big Brother housemates Farrah Abraham and Jenna Jameson fear what may be shown of them following the weekend's twist.
In last night's show the pair found out the truth about the weekend's fake eviction and secret room twist as it was revealed the joke was on them.
Having spent the weekend slagging off their fellow housemates after getting wound up by their attempts to get themselves nominated, Farrah and Jenna claimed their own reactions had been perfectly "normal".
But they worried that BB might just show them doing nothing but bitching.
Speaking in the bedroom yesterday, the pair admitted they had been surprised by just how "back stabbing and evil" the show was.
Farrah said: "I'm like whatever but I'm not going to like that s**t get to me, it's like f**ked up."
Jenna speculated: "I wonder what's been shown, probably just us saying loads of really offensive stuff."
Farrah suggested: "I feel like whoever is viewing this would be like 'They were told this for the challenge and they reacted' and I think our reactions are normal."
Meanwhile Chloe-Jasmine became the target of a mass bitching session between almost all of the other housemates.
Even the likes of Gail and Sherrie were involved as the group branded Chloe a "lapdog" of Janice.
Celebrity Big Brother airs nightly on Channel 5 with the latest show tonight at 9PM with a live double eviction.


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|The pair of shoes we entered for the competition.|
We didn't win but I still have the shoes because I love it =)
Since then, I've always liked painting shoes and told myself that when my girl was older, I was going to buy a pair of white kids shoes and get her to design and paint it herself.
I got a pair of white shoes from one of those heartland shops in Toa Payoh for just S$10 and also bought fabric paint from my favourite art store Art Friend.
|Different brands of fabric paint|
Next, I drew the design on the shoes based on what my girl wanted (she finds it difficult to draw it herself because the surface was not flat; if your child has no issues with that, you can let them draw on it as well).
Once that was done, it was time for my girl to paint them!
|Diligently painting her shoes|
|Making sure that the paint does not go over the lines|
|Close up of her work|
|Very pleased with her what she has done so far|
It took her about 2 hours (with breaks in between) but she managed to finish painting them. I did some touch-ups for her after (you know, correct mistakes and all) and viola!
|The finished pair of shoes|
Truth be told, if I had my way, I would probably not have designed her shoes this way. But she was quite clear what she wanted so this design was all her. I'm glad I gave her free reign to be creative and do whatever she liked with it =)
|Her very own shoes that she designed herself!|
She was so proud of her shoes that she wears them to school everyday to show off to all her friends and teachers!
Try it with your kids and let me know what you think in the comments =)
This post is part of my Mad-Made Art series that documents our artistic creations!
You can also see more on Instagram via the hashtag #madpsychmumart!

domain: design


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Scot found this article by Sean Orr in Scout a good read: “Art in the Sixties / Urban Renewal: Ghost Traps, Collage, Condos, and Squats”
In the 1960s, it was asserted that this city led the nation in experimentation and the embrace of new ideas in the arts. We do not need to examine the speciousness of that claim, nor why it would be made of such a small provincial city. One celebrated factor was Vancouver’s “West Coastness” in a world that was taking the pulse of California’s hippie cultural rebellion. The counter-culture of consciousness raising, Tibetan Buddhism, faux agrarianism, wilderness worship, LSD, and sexual exploration found its biggest Canadian colony in Vancouver.
This “West Coast Thing” was a social and aesthetic context for Vancouver art in the 1960s. It is remarkable, despite the growing — or abiding — interest in the 1960s all over the world, that so much artistic work from this period in Vancouver is lost and, cruel to say, how many sixties artistic careers subsequently entered the twilight. This is especially odd in a city whose artistic community’s boosterism seems to know no limit and where the 1960s are forever recalled as a golden time of artistic freedom in lived and transmitted memory. This contribution includes a discussion of several key works from the sixties and a description of the counter-cultural context from which they are not easily divorced.
[Image: La Melancolie de la Rue, by Ian Wallace]

domain: library


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PHILADELPHIA, Dec. 29, 1847.
Destructive Fire- The Fugitive Slave-Effect of Anthracite Gas-Nude Model Artists.
Your readers were advised of the escape of Samuel Smith, the alleged fugitive slave, from the pursuit of his master, by the telegraphic despatch published this morning, and I need therefore only allude to the facts which induced Judge Kane to discharge him from custody. The counsel for the master, James W. Wroth, was prepared to show his ownership by parole evidence; but as his title was derived from a written document of the Orphan's court of Cecil county, Maryland, David Paul Brown, Esq., the talented counsel for the alleged fugitive, contended that this document should be properly exemplified by the authorities of the county, and this being sustained by the court, the discharge was ordered. Samuel Smith was then taken into custody by Mr. Passmore Williamson, a wealthy abolitionist, who had gone bail for his appearance as a witness against Alderman Braxeo, and his officer, for an alleged conspiracy to consign him to slavery, by arresting him on a false charge of larceny, made under a wrong name. - This was, of course, a ruse, to enable the fugitive to escape, as his security would willingly sacrifice the amount, if the recognizance should be sued out, for the pleasure of freeing the slave from a renewal of his bondage. Of course he is on his way to Canada, by the underground railroad, long before this. This conspiracy case was to have had another hearing this morning before alderman Elkenton, but no prosecutors appearing, the suit was dismissed. The colored population, as well as the abolitionists, are quite elated at the success of their plans, and view it as a triumph to compare with the last case, in which the black was freed by the use of the writ de humine replegiando.

domain: history


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Major sports retailer to takeover vacant unit at Bucks shopping centre
and live on Freeview channel 276
A new Sports Direct store is opening in one of Buckinghamshire’s biggest shopping centres.
Frasers Group plc has revealed plans to open a new Sports Direct store inside the Eden Shopping Centre in High Wycombe.
Representatives from the global clothing company are promising a bigger Sports Direct outlet than the one currently operating in the town. Another Sports Direct shop in High Wycombe in Octagon Parade is in the process of closing permanently.
Frasers Group plc has announced plans to open the new shop in spring of this year, and says the new store will cover 12,000 sq ft. Within the Sports Direct store will also be areas dedicated to other brands owned by the retail group including USC and GAME.
Centre director, Andrew Norton, said "This is great news for sports and sporting apparel fans in the area. Sports Direct's commitment to High Wycombe is evident and Eden has been able to provide the desired quality of location that fits with the brand's store elevation strategy. This is one of the many new retailers that Eden will welcome this year."
A number of stores have recently closed in the town centre’s shopping hub.
A spokesperson for Frasers Group added: “We are pleased to be opening a new, elevated retail destination in High Wycombe’s Eden Shopping Centre. The Sports Direct store will give High Wycombe customers access to the world’s best sport and lifestyle brands, as well as bring other brands from the Frasers Group ecosystem, including USC and GAME, to the location”

domain: economics


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Kathleen Nelson, LMSW, ACSW, GC-C
“You can’t go back and change the beginning, but you can start where you are and change the ending.”
I bring a unique, personal, yet professional, experience to my work with clients. I believe each of us has the strength to move beyond what is holding us back, but sometimes a little support and guidance is needed. I am here to support, guide, help my clients find their path and direction.
My goal as a therapist is to work with you to establish a relationship built on trust and safety. I blend my approach techniques for each client in a way that will best address their needs. My approach is focused on where the client is and where they want to go; it is collaborative and incorporates family systems, cognitive-behavioral and problem-solving strategies. The integration of the mind-body-soul is explored.
Having graduated from the University of Michigan, I have over 22 years in the clinical field working with children, individuals, families, and supervising new social workers.
License & Certification:
Licensed by the State of Michigan as a clinical and macro social worker since 1995.
Academy of Certified Social Workers since 2012
Certified Grief Counselor through The American Academy of Grief Counseling.

domain: psychology


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The Swan Maiden is a mythical creature who shapeshifts from human form to swan form. Despite the name, males are found in a small number of legends. The key to the transformation is usually a swan skin, or a garment with swan feathers attached.
In folktales of this type, the hero spies the maiden typically by some body of water (usually bathing), then snatches away the feather garment (or some other article of clothing), which prevents her from flying away (or swimming away, or renders her helpless in some other manner), forcing her to become his wife.
There are parallels around the world, notably the Völundarkviða and Grimms' Fairy Tales KHM 193 "The Drummer". The parallels do not necessarily feature a swan per se, she may be a selkie or mermaid.
Folklore motif and tale types
Established folkloristics does not formally recognize "Swan Maidens" as a single AT tale type. Rather, one must speak of tales that exhibit Stith Thompson motif index "D361.1 Swan Maiden", which may be classed AT 400, 313, or 465A. Compounded by the fact that these the tale types have "no fewer than ten other motifs" assigned to them, the AT system becomes a cumbersome tool for keeping track of parallels for this motif. Seeking an alternate scheme, one investigator has developed a system of five Swan Maiden paradigms, four of them groupable as a Grimm tale cognate (KHM 193, 92, 93, and 113) and the remainder classed as the "AT 400" paradigm. Thus for a comprehensive list of the most starkly-resembling cognates of Swan Maiden tales, one need only consult Bolte and Polívka's Anmerkungen to Grimm's Tale KHM 193 the most important paradigm of the group.
The folktales usually adhere to the following basic plot. A young, unmarried man steals a magic robe made of swan feathers from a swan maiden so that she will not fly away, and marries her. Usually she bears his children. When the children are older they sing a song about where their father has hidden their mother's robe, or one asks why the mother always weeps, and finds the cloak for her, or they otherwise betray the secret. The swan maiden immediately gets her robe and disappears to where she came from. Although the children may grieve her, she does not take them with her.
If the husband is able to find her again, it is an arduous quest, and often the impossibility is clear enough so that he does not even try.
Animal wife motif
AT 402 ("The Animal Bride") group of folktales are found across the world, though the animals vary. The Italian fairy tale "The Dove Girl" features a dove. There are the Orcadian and Shetlandic selkies, that alternate between seal and human shape. A Croatian tale features a she-wolf. In Africa, the same motif is shown through buffalo maidens. In East Asia, it is also known featuring maidens who transform into various bird species. In Russian fairy-tales there are also several characters, connected with the Swan-maiden. In the Japanese legend of Hagoromo, it is a heavenly spirit, or Tennin, whose robe is stolen.
Another related tale is the Chinese myth of the Cowherd and Weaver Girl, in which one of seven fairy sisters is taken as a wife by a cowherd who hid the seven sisters' robes; she becomes his wife because he sees her naked, and not so much due to his taking her robe.
One notably similar Japanese story, "The crane wife", is about a man who marries a woman who is in fact a crane (Tsuru no Ongaeshi) disguised as a human. To make money the crane-woman plucks her own feathers to weave silk brocade which the man sells, but she become increasingly ill as she does so. When the man discovers his wife's true identity and the nature of her illness, she leaves him. There are also a number of Japanese stories about men who married kitsune, or fox spirits in human form (as women in these cases), though in these tales the wife's true identity is a secret even from her husband. She stays willingly until her husband discovers the truth, at which point she abandons him.
According to Julien d'Huy, such a motif would also have existed in European prehistory and would have a buffalo maiden as a heroine. Indeed, this author finds the motif with four-legged animals in North America and Europe, in an area coinciding with the area of haplogroup X.
The swan maiden has appeared in numerous items of fiction, including the ballet Swan Lake, in which a young princess, Odette and her maidens are under the spell of an evil sorcerer, Von Rothbart, transforming them into swans by day. By night, they regain their human forms and can only be rescued if a young man swears eternal love and faithfulness to the Princess. When Prince Siegfried swears his love for Odette, the spell can be broken, but Siegfried is tricked into declaring his love for Von Rothbart's daughter, Odile, disguised by magic as Odette, and all seems lost. But the spell is finally broken when Siegfried and Odette drown themselves in a lake of tears, uniting them in death for all eternity. While the ballet's revival of 1895 depicted the swan-maidens as mortal women cursed to turn into swans, the original libretto of 1877 depicted them as true swan-maidens: fairies who could transform into swans at will. Several animated movies based on the ballet, including The Swan Princess and Barbie of Swan Lake depict the lead heroines as being under a spell and both are eventually rescued by their Princes.
Pop culture appearances include modern novels of the fantasy genre such as Three Hearts and Three Lions and television such as Astroboy Episode 5. And recently, swan-men in the Anita Blake series, including Kaspar Gunderson. They are also called swan mays or swanmays in fantasy fiction and Dungeons and Dragons. In the Mercedes Lackey book, Fortune's Fool, one swan maiden (named Yulya) from a flock of six is kidnapped by a Jinn. Elven princess Earwen in The Silmarillion by J.R.R. Tolkien was referred to as the "swan maiden of Alqualonde".
- "Literary Sources of D&D". Archived from the original on 2007-07-21. Retrieved 2007-02-23.<templatestyles src="Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css"></templatestyles>
- "The Swan Maiden" (PDF). Retrieved 2007-02-23.<templatestyles src="Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css"></templatestyles>
- Thmpson (1977), p. 88.
- Thompson (1977), 88, note 2.
- Thompson (1977), p. 88.
- Thompson (1977), p. 90.
- Miller (1987), p. 55.
- Bolte & Polívka (1918), Anmerkungen von KHM, vol. 3, pp.406–417.
- Miller (1987), p. 57.
- Julien d'Huy (2011). « Le motif de la femme-bison. Essai d'interprétation d'un mythe préhistorique (1ère partie) », Mythologie française, 242, pp. 44-55; et Julien d'Huy (2011). « Le motif de la femme-bison. Essai d'interprétation d'un mythe préhistorique (2ème partie) » Mythologie française, 243, pp. 23-41.
- Wiley 1991, p. 321
- Miller, Alan L. (1987), "The Swan-Maiden Revisited: Religious Significance of" Divine-Wife" Folktales with Special Reference to Japan", Asian folklore studies, Vol. 46 (No. 1): 55–86<templatestyles src="Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css"></templatestyles> JSTOR 1177885
- Thompson, Stith (1977), The Folktale, University of California Press, p. 88–93, ISBN 0520035372<templatestyles src="Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css"></templatestyles>
- Bolte, Johannes; Polívka, Jiří (2014) . "193. Der Trommler". Anmerkungen zu den Kinder- und Hausmärchen der Brüder Grimm (in Deutsch). 4. Dieterich. pp. 406–417 (416).<templatestyles src="Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css"></templatestyles>
- Wiley, Roland John (1991). Tchaikovsky's Ballets.<templatestyles src="Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css"></templatestyles>
|Wikisource has original text related to this article:|


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We need to stop gun violence. This petition aims to spread awareness of the shocking number of people killed, injured and affected by gun violence. We need to replace the current - and ridiculous - gun laws. Help us, your family, your friends, your country.
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Formed as a collegiate act in the late 1960s in Tuskegee, Alabama they were originally The Mystics and briefly The Jays until William King opened a copy of People magazine and stumbled over the Commodores word. Their debut album featured the instrumental title track “Machine Gun” and sold well throughout 1974 and 1975 thanks to a hybrid of crafted funk and no dross – this was a lean and hungry introduction. At this stage Milan Williams was penning much of the material but they also took on board the Gloria Jones cut “Assembly Line” and hit the dance floor on “The Bump” and in “Rapid Fire” - R&B gems both.
Caught in the Act (1975) is equally fine with Richie, Williams, King, Thomas McClary, Walter Orange and Ronald LaPraed revealing them to be splendid musicians who could incorporate brass and punchy riffs into killer tracks like “Slippery When Wet” and the lengthy “You Don’t Know That I Know”. Their second made in ’75 disc, Movin’ On took them out of strictly R&B territory and onto the Billboard Pop 100 charts thanks to “Sweet Love” and the nifty “Cebu” but it’s Hot On The Tracks that really gets their commercial act into gear as Richie begins to find the magic formula that will provide hit after hit with “Just to Be Close to You” and the club anthem “Let’s Get Started” making resistance futile.
1977’s self-titled Commodores (aka Zoom in the UK) switched many more folk on once the sexually charged “Brick House” and the Southern country ballad “Easy” did their thing. Meanwhile sold right out European and American tours made them household names and media favourites. “Zoom” is on here of course and most would imagine that it was a single in its own right whereas in fact it was a radio smash and did indeed zoom the attendant album to Number One on the US R&B chart. This disc also provides others with countless sample lifts – Snoop Dog and R. Kelly, YoYo and Geto Boys all owe this album plenty. No one was surprised when their sixth album, Natural High, hit the top slot in the mainstream charts because the immortal “Three Times a Lady” was instant gold while the template of funk, balladry and bedroom capers all passed muster again. If all their albums to date are unreservedly recommended it would be unwise to write off the often-overlooked Midnight Magic as once again the Lionel effect hits pay dirt on the shimmering “Still” and Thomas McClary keeps it real on “Sexy Lady”. Incidentally Destiny’s Child paid homage to the Commodores when they covered “Sail On’ in 1998.
Eight albums in and the soulsters are still working it with producer James Anthony Carmichael at the controls – effortlessly in charge of their groove and on top of their mojo throughout. Hence, Heroes (1980) is brave enough to introduce a fair dash of pure gospel. In The Pocket (1981) is the last album to feature Lionel’s dulcet tones but he left them with a gift – “Oh No”, another smash and returned the band’s sound to the funkier strains of their early work as much of the album took them back home to some roots in Atlanta, Georgia. Working without Richie might have been deemed problematic but the Commodores knuckled down to work on 13 and produced this one themselves. McClary left thereafter and made a solo album for Motown but the other fellows didn’t flinch.
“Nightshift” the single (1985) won them that elusive Grammy and paid dues to heroes Marvin Gaye and Jackie Wilson who had both died the previous year. In terms of soul power this album is as good as anything in their canon and the introduction of Dennis Lambert, a gifted writer/artist and producer and a larger cast of specialists like Jerry Hey, Peter Wolf and Paulhino da Costa broadens their horizons at a time of flux when hip hop is challenging the old order. They didn’t wilt.
Milan Williams came to the fore again on United, which gives us the memorable hit “Goin’ to the Bank” while he will leave after 1988’s Rock Solid, featuring the vocal talents of J.D. Nicholas. Obviously a band of this calibre is also blessed with fine compilations that do more than give one a flavour of their funk and groove. Greatest Hits and All The Great Love Songs are perennial sellers and just about the handiest soul music to go for those on the move wishing to progress with a spring in the step and a smile on the face. Or as they sing on their fine album The Commodores Live! – “Too Hot ta Trot”. It’s all great modernist soul from the second generation of Motown. Timeless classics are everywhere and the albums are always far more than the sum of their single parts. We salute The Commodores.
The Commodores' early years were spent on the Southern funk circuit, where their energetic, catchy tunes, and keyboard-oriented funk made them both a college and a radio staple. They scored seminal hits with "Brick House" and "Slippery When Wet," although it became apparent quite early that lead vocalist Lionel Richie also had a bright future as a solo balladeer, with such tunes as "Easy" signaling his future on adult contemporary and Quiet Storm/urban contemporary radio. This collection highlights early up-tempo and ballad hits.
Words: Ron Wynn
Before the Commodores started having major adult contemporary hits like "Three Times a Lady," "Easy," and "Still," they were happy to be a full-time funk/soul band. The Southerners became increasingly pop-minded in the late '70s, but when their debut album, Machine Gun, came out in 1974, their music was unapologetically gritty. This was, without question, a very promising debut -- Lionel Richie and his allies really hit the ground running on sweaty funk items like "Young Girls Are My Weakness," "The Bump," "Gonna Blow Your Mind," and the single "I Feel Sanctified." These songs aren't funk-pop or sophisticated funk -- they're hardcore funk. What you won't find on Machine Gun are a lot of sentimental love ballads. In the late '70s, the Commodores became as famous for their ballads as they were for their funk and dance material, but believe it or not, there are no ballads to be found on this consistently funky, mostly up-tempo debut. As much as this LP has going for it, Machine Gun isn't the Commodores' best or most essential album. Machine Gun is rewarding, but their subsequent albums Caught in the Act (1975), Movin' On (1975), and Hot on the Tracks (1976) are even stronger.
Words: Alex Henderson
The Commodores' sixth studio album, Natural High, is best known for the ballad "Three Times a Lady," which became a staple of adult contemporary radio and reached number one on both the pop and R&B charts. "Three Times a Lady" was their first number one pop hit, and Lionel Richie was being recognized as a major crossover star. Not everyone liked "Three Times a Lady" -- some people found the song to be much too sappy, and R&B purists argued that The Commodores were watering their music down. But even if "Three Times a Lady" isn't your cup of tea, Natural High still has a lot to offer R&B fans. "X-Rated Movie," "Such a Woman," and "I Like What You Do" are exhilarating examples of hardcore funk, and those who appreciate artists like Heatwave and the Brothers Johnson will find a lot to admire about "Fire Girl" and "Flying High" (both of which are sleek examples of the sophisticated funk style). Meanwhile, "Say Yeah" (featuring Richie) is a first-rate R&B slow jam. Whatever your opinion of "Three Times a Lady" -- whether you love it or hate it -- the fact is that Natural High has more plusses than minuses and was a generally respectable, if imperfect, addition to The Commodores' catalog.
Words: Alex Henderson
Hot on the heels of their 1977 self-titled LP -- which included studio versions of the classics "Brick House" and "Easy" -- Commodores Live! was issued as a seasonal offering the same year. The band wisely included extended readings of not only its most recent hits, but also a healthy sampling from its previous four studio albums, as well as the track "Too Hot ta Trot," which had been featured in the motion picture Thank God It's Friday. The six-man original Commodores were a powerful and self-contained unit that could effortlessly alternate between turning over mean and serious funk jams or a slow, sexy power ballad. Heralded as the Black Beatles, the Commodores were able to fuse a more traditional pop music headlong into the funk stylings of their contemporaries: Parliament, the Ohio Players, and Earth, Wind & Fire. However, instead of being propelled by seemingly endless -- and often aimless -- jams, William King (trumpet), Thomas McClary (guitar), Ronald LaPread (bass), Walter "Clyde" Orange (drums), Lionel Richie (alto saxophone), and Milan Williams (keyboards) were able to tighten up their arrangements and make them more potent in the process. From right out of the gate, the opening trio of "Won't You Come Dance With Me," "Slippery When Wet," and "Come Inside" pounce and bounce around with undeniably hardcore funk grooves -- replete with distorted and screaming electric lead guitar lines, emphatic accents from the horns, and an authoritative rhythm section that James Brown would have been proud of. The mellower side of the band is equally represented by several key Lionel Richie ballads. "Just to Be Close to You" shimmers and is notable for Richie's extended vocal interlude. "Easy" -- an audible audience favorite -- swings with an urgency and passion conspicuously lacking in the more familiar studio version. Milan Williams' tasty keyboards are also a highlight as they lightly soar above the rest of the band. Without a doubt it is the ten-plus-minute version of "Brick House" that allows the band to reach a funkified critical mass. Ronald LaPread's rubbery basslines adhere themselves around "Clyde" Orange's Latin-tinged percussion inflections. The searing Richie and William King sound more akin to a full-fledged horn section than the hard-workin' duo behind their wall of solid brass. Commodores Live! is overall one of the finest R&B concert albums of the '70s -- of which there are far too few.
Words: Lindsay Planer
The Commodores made one final stab at regaining R&B glory when Lionel Richie and producer/arranger James Anthony Carmichael both left in the mid-'80s. J.D. Nicholas became their lead singer, and Dennis Lambert assumed production duties. They rebounded temporarily, when "Nightshift" leaped out of an otherwise ordinary album to become a Grammy-winning R&B and pop smash. It stayed atop the R&B charts for a month, and peaked at #3 on the pop chart. Unfortunately, it was also the end for Thomas McClary, who left the group once the album had run its course. It was their next-to-last hit, and basically the end for the band, although they continued for a couple more years.
Words: Ron Wynn
When the Commodores' seventh studio album, Midnight Magic, came out in 1979, one could safely assume that the LP would contain at least one adult contemporary ballad. And sure enough, Midnight Magic contains the ballad "Still," which was a number one pop hit (as well as a number one R&B hit) and became a staple on adult contemporary radio. The sappy ballad (which features Lionel Richie) wasn't without its detractors, who felt that the Commodores had become too much of a slick crossover act. But even if "Still" doesn't excite you, the rest of the album isn't bad. "Wonderland" (a number 21 R&B hit) is an enjoyable R&B slow jam, and fans of sophisticated funk (as opposed to hardcore funk) should appreciate "You're Special," "Gettin' It," and the disco-minded title song. "Sexy Lady" is the only thing on the LP that can honestly be described as hardcore funk; most of the up-tempo tunes favor the type of sophisticated funk that the Brothers Johnson, Rufus/Chaka Khan, and Heatwave were known for in the late '70s. Next to "Still," the album's best-known track is "Sail On," which reached number eight on Billboard's R&B singles chart (and number four on its pop single chart) despite the fact that it is essentially a pop-country song. Some R&B purists saw "Sail On" as a blatant example of how watered down the Commodores had become, but it's still a charming and likable tune -- one that wouldn't have been out of place on a Dolly Parton or Glen Campbell LP. Midnight Magic isn't one of the Commodores' essential releases, and R&B purists are advised to stick to the band's pre-1977 albums. Nonetheless, this is a generally decent, if uneven, record that has more strengths than weaknesses.
Words: Alex Henderson
1976's Hot on the Tracks was the Commodores' fourth album, and it was also the last album they recorded before becoming a major crossover act. From 1977 on, the Commodores were as big among pop and adult contemporary audiences as they were with R&B audiences. That isn't to say that pop fans ignored them before 1977; "Just to Be Close to You," the single that Hot on the Tracks is best known for, reached number seven on Billboard's pop singles chart as well as number one on its R&B singles chart. The album itself made it to number one on Billboard's R&B albums chart, while climbing to number 12 on its pop albums chart. Nonetheless, this is an R&B record first and foremost, and the Commodores never sound like they're going out of their way to be pop. R&B purists should have no problem with "Just to Be Close to You," which is very much a soul ballad and doesn't have the adult contemporary appeal of subsequent hits like "Three Times a Lady," "Easy," and "Still." Nor should they have any problem with hardcore funk treasures such as "Fancy Dancer" (a number nine R&B hit), "Come Inside," "Let's Get Started," and the quirky "Quick Draw." For those who prefer the Commodores' hardcore funk and soul over their crossover material, Hot on the Tracks is recommended without hesitation.
Words: Alex Henderson
Part of the brilliant Universal Soul Legends series comes housed in a digipak with simple yet eye-catching artwork and includes brief sleevenotes. The track listing not only features some of the artist's biggest hits but also a handful of rarities and album tracks. 19 tracks including rare single versions of Commodore classics like 'Too Hot Ta Trot', 'Sweet Love' and 'Flying High' and hits like 'Brick House' and 'Easy'. Also features Lionel Richie solo hits as well including 'Endless Love', his duet with label-mate Diana Ross. 2006.
There were essentially two Commodores -- the funk machine of the early '70s that kicked out such classics as "Machine Gun" and "Brick House," then the Lionel Richie-led smooth soulsters that glided to the top of the charts with such cuts as "Easy" and "Three Times a Lady." Motown's 2001 double disc collection Anthology very nearly splits those two phases in half, with the funk on the first disc and the balladeering on the second, with the important flaw of "Easy" showing up as the final number of the first disc. This is a bit of a hiccup in sequencing, but if the collection is just seen as sheer music, this satisfies, since it contains all the big hits -- both pop crossovers and R&B smashes -- along with some lesser-known sides and album tracks. For some, it may be a bit much, but for the serious fan, this is the set to get.
Words: Stephen Thomas Erlewine

domain: artistic


text:
Downstairs, All Ages
DOORS: 7:00 PM // SHOW: 8:00 PM
ON SALE NOW!
Thursday February 28, 2019
On January 25, William Tyler returns with Goes West, his follow-up to 2016’s Modern Country. Listen to first single “Fail Safe” now, and pre-order Goes West on CD, LP, and limited-edition translucent green Peak Vinyl, the latter of which includes a 24” × 36” full-color foldout poster of the Robert Beatty cover art. All pre-orders will receive Dispatches from Echo Magic, an 8-song bonus CD available only in the Merge store or with the purchase of Goes West at your local independent record store, while supplies last. Recorded with Scott Hirsch at Echo Magic West in Ojai, CA, the CD features early versions of five songs from Goes West plus three other tracks from the session that are only available here.
An excerpt from the M.C. Taylor-penned bio:
William and I bonded early in our relationship over Barry Hannah, a hellraising writer from Mississippi who practically reinvented the way that words could be assembled on a page. Like Hannah, William Tyler knows the South—as a crucible of American histories and cultures, an entity capable of expansive beauty and incomprehensible violence, often in the same beat—as his native place, the place that holds him and that he runs from. In the music of William Tyler, the South is not apart from America; the South is America condensed. And like Hannah—and this part is important—William moved to California, where Goes West was written. We don’t know how long William will stay—Hannah lasted just a couple of years, writing in the employ of director Robert Altman—but the change of scenery seems to suit him.
Goes West marks a sort of narrowing of focus for William’s music; it sounds as though he found a way to point himself directly towards the rich and bittersweet emotional center of his music without being distracted by side trips. Perhaps this is down to the fact that William only plays acoustic guitar on the album, a clear and conscious decision considering that he is one of Nashville’s great electric guitarists. The band that performs Goes West alongside William—including guitarists Meg Duffy and Bill Frisell, bassist and producer Brad Cook, keyboardist James Wallace, drummer Griffin Goldsmith, and engineer Tucker Martine—is the best and most sympathetic group of players that William could have assembled to play these songs.
Rosali is the solo incarnation of Philadelphia-based musician, Rosali Middleman. Through songwriting and performances, Rosali shares resonant emotions and the authenticity of being, unveiling herself to connect with broad audiences. Rosali’s songwriting realizes life as rich and alluring melodies within the framework of traditional popular songwriting. Her 2016 debut album, Out of Love (Siltbreeze), shimmers with open expression. The ten songs on Out of Love weave intimate words, strong melodic and rhythmic structures, and mellifluous singing while hanging onto the free nature of the songs’ origins. Her music is all at once ethereal, familiar, unearthing, and expansive. Rosali’s full band, Rosali & the Middlemen, is a natural expansion of her psychedelic and enveloping sound. Out of Love was one of Uncut Magazine’s top 100 records of 2016, and Magnet Magazine hailed the debut as essential new music. You can also see Rosali as guitarist for Philadelphia trio, Long Hots. Her forthcoming sophomore album is out later this year.


text: This thesis deals with various legal aspects concerning the servus fructuarius in classical Roman law. Slavery was an important and essential part of everyday?s life in ancient Rome. Slaves were ?res? and ?personae? at the same time. Therefore it was possible to establish a usus fructus on slaves. A servus fructuarius was a slave, on whom another person, not the owner, had a usus fructus. The first part of the thesis deals with the possibility of the usufructuary to acquire through the servus fructuarius. Everything which is acquired by the slave ex re fructuarii or ex operis servi belongs to the usufructuary. Furthermore some contentious cases - in which it was not clear who acquire though the slave - should be shown. Moreover the thesis deals with a possible noxally liability of the usufructuary. Finally the cases of the servus fructuarius fugitivus (a servus fructuarius, who ran away), the servus fructuarius manumissus (a servus fructuarius, who was freed by his owner) and the servus fructuarius subreptus (a servus fructuarius, who was stolen by another person) will be discussed.


text:
On the 5th of November two dams burst in Brazil, more precise in Minas Gerais, a south eastern state at the north of Rio de Janeiro, causing one of the worst, if not the biggest, ecological disaster of the country. The huge flood consisting of 60m cubic metres of toxic mud (which is equal to 25,000 Olympic swimming pools or the volume carried by about 187 oil tankers) has caused the death of a yet undetermined number of people. Rescue operations are still in action. Until now, nine people have been found dead and 19 are still missing; almost 600 people lost their homes and are temporarily hosted in hotels without any certainty about their long term accommodation. 250.000 people living in nearby villages do not have access to drinking water. As reported by Greenpeace, the city of Governador Valadares near to Rio Doce is completely paralysed, with schools and shops closed and the army distributing water, since tap water is dirty and probably contaminated.
The iron mines where the dams burst in the little village of Bento Rodrigues belong to Samarco Mineração, a joint venture owned half by the Brazilian mining corporation Vale SA and half by the Anglo Australian BHP Billiton. On 17 November an agreement was signed according to which the two companies cited above will pay a fine of $ 263 million divided in two tranches: the first of $ 132 million within ten days, to help the immediately affected population and to clean the region and the second tranche within 30 days. The Brazilian Institute of Environment and Renewable Natural Resource has imposed another fine of 65 million dollars and, once the entity of the damage will be assessed more clearly, the amount of the total sanctions will certainly increase. All activities of the mining company in the State of Minas Gerais have been suspended, apart from emergency operations.
The death of a river
Although the two corporations insist that the mud is not toxic, the ecological damage appears to be serious. The flood has reached Rio Doce, polluting 600 km of its 853 km of total length. According to a laboratory analysis commissioned by Serviço Autônomo de Água e Esgoto (SAAE), Rio Doce has been completely contaminated. The water samples taken by SAAE at Valadares contain particles of heavy metals such as lead, aluminium, iron, barium, copper, boron and mercury. More specifically, the iron content is 1,366,666% more than tolerable for treatment, manganese levels, toxic metal, exceed the tolerable at 118,000%, and the aluminium presents a concentration 645,000% greater than the potential for treatment and distribution to residents. According to Luciano Magalhães, director of SAAE, it is as if the entire periodic table has been poured into the river. He summarised the catastrophe in two words : rio morto; the river is dead, the water no longer has any use, being unfit for irrigation and animal and human consumption. Moreover, according to environmentalists, there is the concrete risk that most of endemic biodiversity (Rio Doce is a nesting area for sea turtles in danger of extinction) has been destroyed, buried and suffocated by the mud. Given that the economy of the region is mostly based on coffee, spas and mining, the economic and social impact will be huge. The Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff, who flew over the affected area some days ago, compared the incident to the environmental disaster in the Gulf of Mexico caused by the oil platform of British Petroleum in 2010; others even speak of a ‘Brazilian Fukushima’.
Private responsibility and political inadequacy
Until now, responsibilities and dynamics have not been clearly assessed, however, investigations are ongoing to determine whether what happened has been an accident or rather (as seems more likely) the result of poor control and inadequate preventive measures. Suffice to say that apparently, once the dams collapsed, no alarm went off inside the mine. In the meantime the State Environmental Prosecutor Carlos Eduardo Ferreira Pinto has declared that it was not an accident. Yet, the catastrophe cannot solely be blamed on the negligence of private companies, but just as much on the lack of a strict legal and normative framework dealing with natural resources and environment. As underlined by Adriana Ramos, coordinator of ISA (Instituto Socio Ambiental) and by Maurício Guetta, advocate of ISA, prevention is fundamental to avoid this kind of catastrophes and it is necessary to review and enforce legal tools for environmental management and control. A conclusive system of environmental licensing should be introduced, according to which entrepreneurs have to strictly respect and follow specific criteria before starting economic activities with potentially significant ecological effects. However, in Brazil economic and political forces seem to push exactly in the opposite direction. There is even a law proposal, 654/2015, by Senator Romero Juca (Partido do Movimento Democrático Brasileiro), according to which ‘strategic infrastructure projects regarding national interest’ such as highways, railways, waterways, ports, airports, power projects and any other that regard the exploitation of natural resources, would actually follow a shorter and easier procedure to be eligible for Environmental Licensing. In other words, as emphasised by Guetta, the situation is moving into a direction where the higher the risk of potential environmental damage, the less is the level of control and prevention required. This proposal may appear absurd, but it is actually perfectly in line with current European and US American positions, for instance with respect to TTIP. I pointed out in another post, TTIP originally featured a proposal to introduce a tribunal where companies can sue States in case national laws damage their profits. The general tendency currently is to privatise national resources, as water in Italy, and dismantle regulations devoted at protecting environment and human life. The argumentation is always the same, based on the specious and unfounded idea that deregulation and privatisation would favour development and growth. The truth is that not only would an improvement of the legal framework increase certainty and security for business activities, but it is just as essential for preserving the safety of our environment and the wellbeing of the global population, which are threatened by political and economic pressures of corporations essentially guided by profits and dangerous incentives, and not only in developing countries as the Volkswagen scandal has shown.
There is a video showing some members of the indigenous tribe of the Krevas (which have been living along the river) shedding bitter tears about the death of Rio Doce. If the river dies, we all die is what they say. The river, in its yellow unnatural colour, reminds us of the black liquid mass of oil invading the Gulf of Mexico five years ago; both images symbolically reflect our society, suffocated by the toxic mud of pollution, profits and wars.
Despite the recent terrible events in Paris, the climate international conference COP21 will still be held in the French capital, from 30 November till 11 December. This could be also an opportunity to highlight the necessity of stricter regulation, such as environmental licensing, to prevent ecological disasters like that of the Rio Doce in Brazilian. Instead, the conference will probably result in evasive agreements on climate change, as pointed out by EJOLT (The Environmental Justice Organisation, Liabilities and Trade), a global research project that composed an environmental justice atlas documenting and cataloguing social conflict around environmental issues. The list of this type of conflicts is constantly growing. Still, COP21 offers an opportunity and an obligation for the European Union to step up its own climate and environmental ambition, encourage other countries to increase theirs and help prevent future ecological disasters.
Click here to download this article in PDF-format.


text:
Skulls of the Shogun
beat the E3 rush with a trailer
that premiered late last week. Keeping the buzz going, 17-BIT has released some screens for their upcoming samurai strategy title for XBLA.
• Accessible, gridless, simple interface married with deep, layered tactical strategy and wildly variable battle outcomes.
• Beautiful hand-drawn 2D high resolution art, inspired by a mash up of classic 1960's anime and modern urban vinyl character design.
• Save your game at any point during the deep, immersive Drop-in and drop-out anytime with co-op and competitive multiplayer gameplay, save-game at anytime, as well as an engrossing original story and deep single player experience.
• Amazing soundtrack influenced by classic Samurai Films, dub music and high drama created by world class Tokyo DJ Makyo of Dakini Records.
Despite it's showing at E3, the release date for Skulls of the Shogun
is still TBA.

domain: hobby


text:
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portal. We do business in all 50 states and overseas. Below are
some the places we do business:
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Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina,
South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington,
West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming


text:
University of Helsinki researchers have identified a genetic mutation which renders carriers susceptible to particularly impulsive and reckless behavior when drunk. More than one hundred thousand Finns carry this mutation.
Many Finns know somebody whose behavior becomes excessively strange and erratic when drunk. They are said to be unable to "hold their liquor," and others are surprised at how inebriated they become from just a small amount of alcohol. Since the trait seems permanent, it can be assumed that there are underlying biological factors.
Led by researcher and psychiatrist Roope Tikkanen, PhD, a new study has now demonstrated that a point mutation in a gene of serotonin 2B receptor can render the carrier prone to impulsive behavior, particularly when drunk. Published in the journal Translational Psychiatry (Tikkanen et al., 2015), the discovery follows an original observation from 2010 on the mutation of serotonin 2B receptor among Finns (Bevilacqua et al., 2010).
"The results also indicate that persons with this mutation are more impulsive by nature even when sober, and they are more likely to struggle with self-control or mood disorders," Tikkanen explains.
Little is known of the function of the serotonin 2B receptor in humans, but it is thought to be linked to impulsivity, which occurs with a number of mental health problems. The mutation identified in the study is present in 2.2% of the population, meaning that more than 100,000 Finns are carriers.
"The impact of one gene on complex phenomena is typically minor. But it is possible to identify the impact of such a genetic mutation in the Finnish population, as our historical isolation has led to a relatively homogenous gene pool," Tikkanen states.
If these results prove significant in larger clinical samples of individual patients who suffer greatly from difficulties in impulse control, several preventive measures could be taken. The most important measure would obviously be controlling the consumption of alcohol. Other measures would include attempting to achieve control over behavior through cognitive-behavioral psychotherapy or medication.
Apart from the putative effect on the health of Finnish population, the discovery of this biological mechanism may be groundbreaking in understanding the role of the serotonin 2B receptor in humans. Novel neurobiologic research is becoming increasingly aware of the fact that the expression of a gene -- that is, the gene's production of proteins -- can be affected in various ways. The findings may elucidate the role of the serotonin 2B receptor in the health of any given population. Moreover, increasing knowledge of the function of the serotonin 2B receptor may lead to new pharmacological innovations, since no medications specific to it are presently available.
The research took advantage of the unique data on impulsive sufferers of alcoholism and their relatives, compiled by Matti Virkkunen, Professor Emeritus of Forensic Psychiatry at the University of Helsinki. The discovery is based on long-term research cooperation between the University of Helsinki Psychiatry Clinic and the Dr David Goldman's laboratory of neurogenetics at the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism in the United States.
University of Helsinki.
ScienceDaily, 17 November 2015.
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domain: biology


text:
CML Microcircuits has released a Function Image Update for the high-performance CMX7164 Multi Mode Modem.
Function Image 7164FI-1.x adds the use of GMSK/GFSK modulation and is the latest in a roadmap of function enhancements available through CML’s FirmASIC component technology. These updates are designed to add to the device’s functions and features, increasing its flexibility and facilitating in-the-field upgrades.
The incorporation of FirmASIC technology allows the product’s function and feature set to be easily configured via special Function Image™ data files. These are uploaded during device initialisation, either automatically from an external serial memory or via a host microcontroller over the built-in C-BUS serial interface.
The 7164FI-1.x supports GMSK/GFSK modulation with BT=0.5, 0.3, 0.27 or 0.25 and up to 20kbps, zero IF (I/Q) Rx and two-point modulation or I/Q modulation Tx. Flexible bit rates support a wide range of applications requiring a selectable flexible bit rate and robustness.
The GMSK/GFSK data is over-air compatible with the FX/MX909B and the CMX7143FI-1.x.


text:
Auto news updates for EAST and WEST in English/ Hindi/ Telugu along with TV, Radio, Newspaper, Newsbites
This TV, That TV, Our TV, Your TV - But we can see all TV & Paper News Entertainment Here!
Video Details(Views : 18)
Published Date: 2019-08-14 17:16:13, Category: News (395306)
Time: 02:16 min, View Count= , Rating=
Title: New shooting hits home hard for survivor
shooting hits home hard survivor
The nation’s latest mass shootings were a devastating new emotional blow to a woman who survived close-range gunshots in a shooting attack in Cincinnati nearly one year (August )


text: Antibody drug conjugates (ADCs) are becoming an increasingly common approach for drug therapy. To date, three ADC drugs have been approved by the U.S. FDA. Another 10 ADCs in the pipeline are in late-stage clinical development. From a safety and efficacy perspective, ensuring the integrity of antibody-cytotoxin conjugate during drug development and production is critical. Among the several types of conjugation chemistries, enzyme-based site-specific modification shows great potential by eliminating the interruption of the antibody-antigen interaction and provides a highly reproducible and modular conjugation system when compared to standard lysine and cysteine conjugation. Here we report the characterization of ADCs with enzymatic labeled antibody N-glycans using the Q Exactive Plus MS and Orbitrap Fusion mass spectrometers.

domain: literature