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California Philharmonic Festival on the Green
EDITOR’S NOTE: The Festival on the Green is now held at Cal Phil’s new home at Santa Anita Park, across from the Arboretum
Los Angeles County Arboretum and Botanic Garden on its own is a magical place featuring acres of lush and verdant botanical wonders as well as historical artifacts. Since 1947 the rancho once owned by famed businessman and investor Elias “Lucky” Baldwin has been under the stewardship of Los Angeles County and the State of California; the site includes Baldwin’s former home, the Queen Anne Cottage (which can be seen in the opening segment of “Fantasy Island” as well as substituting for the home of Bernie and Rozalin Focker in the film, “Meet the Fockers”). Peacocks that roam freely on the grounds can often be found wandering through yards in the neighborhood surrounding the Arboretum, and the presence of the now feral “Pasadena Parrots” give the Arboretum and surrounding area a strange tropical vibe.
For 15 years, the beautiful green landscape of the Arboretum has been the setting for the Festival on the Green concert series by the California Philharmonic. As the late summer sun sets, strains of classical music mingle with renditions of songs from Broadway musicals and popular artists such as The Beatles. Although you will find current Maestro Victor Vener and the members of the orchestra decked out in black tie and tails, the audience is quite a different story. Casual summer attire is the de rigueur, although the crowd runs the gamut from looking like they just came from the yacht club cotillion to having just stepped out of a smoke-filled VW van. The Arboretum closes early on nights when the Cal Phil are performing, but the gates are opened 2 hours prior to the show, allowing patrons to find the choices lawn spots.
Food at these concerts can be an elaborate affair; picnic baskets open and out pops fine china, fluted stemware, candles, live floral centerpieces, silverware, linen napkins, portable wine coolers – there’s some finer dining on display than some area high-end restaurants. Of course if you opt to partake of food available at the Arboretum, just as in classical music it’s all about the timing. Just to the side of the pool that divides the massive lawn, several local sell freshly made and prepared food prior to the show, but fair warning – when the show starts, they break it down. Many of the vendors vary, including Bristol Farm selling pre-packaged food and Robin’s Wood Fire BBQ whose meat-laced smoke can be smelled from across the field. One of Pasadena’s newest hot spots, Kings Row Gastropub provides some of their more portable signature dishes such as their white chocolate macaroni and cheese; on one evening Kings Row owner Shivie Dhillon was building a moist, melt-away pulled pork sandwich topped with slaw and drizzled with a sweet and unusual pomegranate BBQ sauce. Neighbors The Dog Haus flip burgers and grill dogs presented in decadent and glorious fashion topped with avocado, grilled onion, basil aioli, bacon, sauerkraut and any number of rich and fresh toppings. If you stand at their booth long enough you’re liable to end up with one of their latest creations. Looking for a cappuccino to sip during the show with an extended pinkie? No worries, as Boar’s Java House, one of the older purveyors at the Festival on the Green can set you up.
Once the concert begins a hush falls over the massive crowd and Maestro Vener conducts the orchestra in works from Bach to Bernstein; most of the shows mix classical themes with Broadway show music. At the last performance the audience was treated to Rossini’s “William Tell Overture”, the theme from “The Sound of Music”, Tchaikovsky’s “Romeo and Juliet” and a rousing sing-along of the theme from Rodger’s and Hammerstein’s “Oklahoma!” As the evening progresses, guest vocalists solo with the orchestra and a full choir takes the stage to create the biggest sound ever to fill the Arboretum. In such a beautiful setting beneath the moon and stars, one can overlook the occasional screaming peacock in the distance that never seems to be able to find the right key. The last show of the season will be on August 20 when the Cal Phil pulls out all the stops with Gershwin’s “Rhapsody in Blue” and features music from “My Fair Lady” and “Pirates of the Caribbean”, undoubtedly along with some surprises. This show will mark the end of an era for the Cal Phil, as next year they move across the street to bigger facilities on a specially constructed stage on the infield at Santa Anita Racetrack; undoubtedly they’ll perform music from the films “Seabiscuit” and “A Day at the Races”…
At Santa Anita Park:
285 W Huntington Drive
Arcadia CA 91066
GPS Coordinates: 34° 8’23.29″N 118° 2’34.54″W
At Walt Disney Concert Hall:
111 S Grand Avenue
Los Angeles CA 90012
GPS Coordinates: 34° 3’19.05″N 118°14’57.83″W
GALLERY: See images from the California Philharmonic’s final season of the Festival on the Green at the L.A. Arboretum
NOTE: This costs for this event and meal were provided by the venue and food vendors. The content provided was not influenced whatsoever by the organizer of the event.


our bruno mars tributes to the Grammy-winning singer/songwriter are astounding. these Highly professional and entertaining guys sound and look like the real thing.
After several years as one of the pop music industry's premier songwriters, bruno Mars finally broke out as a singer in his own right with the 2010 hit Nothin' on You. The track proved an enormous hit, skyrocketing to No. 1 on the Billboard singles chart, and instantly transforming Bruno Mars from a behind-the-scenes composer into a pop performer. if you want your event to pop book a bruno mars tribute today.
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They just passed a law to make it illegal to point out the evils of homosexuality and the problems that go along with it. Homosexuality can NOT be voiced in a negative light.
It seems the psychiatric community has gone from recognizing it as a disorder, to neutral, to deciding it is normal.
Recently TV has been bombarding the air waves with commercials (pubic service announcements?) dissing people for using the term gay to describe something lame, stupid, ugly, gross or undesirable.
It's only fitting that the word gay is changing it's meaning again.
The homosexual community took the word to describe themselves to make it seem like being a homosexual was a life of rainbows, balloons and unicorns.
Gay used to mean a happy, fun loving individual
Then it was co-opted into a description of those that practice gross sexual perversions.
Kids started using it to describe something undesirable as I mentioned up post.
It's only fair that the word has changed meaning again.
If the homos get upset, my suggestion is to say we are not using the word you perverted into something gross, we spell it ghey when we use it.
This article is sooooooo gay!! (not buying into the PC suggestion that I posted above...let them get upset, they took a perfectly good word and perverted it.)
For years, posters at Free Republic have been using the acronym "SSAD" to describe the sickness that homosexuals practice: Same Sex Attraction Disorder
Not to mention GRIDS: Gay Related Immunodeficiency Syndrome (now disguised as AIDS)
It's well past time to revive these accurate terms again.

domain: sociology


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Diversity: It’s About So Much More Than Just Gender Balance
Diversity and inclusion are increasingly popular topics in the workplace. And, as a result, it is becoming more common to see human resources workshops focused solely on these elements, as well as company policies developed around diversity and inclusion.
But, does your company fully understand what diversity in the workplace really looks like?
Tecside Group recently held a function with a Diversity and Inclusion focus for its Clients.
Diversity is everything that makes us different – our ethnicity, our race, our hometown, our height, and more. So, true workplace diversity is not just having an equal mix of male and female employees. It goes far beyond just the gender balance.
Being a diverse and inclusive employer means you are looking to hire employees from a variety of age groups, cultures, backgrounds, and abilities.
While your company might believe it is being diverse, perception is everything. A survey conducted of over 1,000 working professionals across Australia and New Zealand found how employers are perceived when viewed through the wider diversity and inclusion lens:
- 40 percent of respondents said their employer takes every opportunity to create a workplace culture that is more diverse and inclusive.
- Less than 24 percent felt their organisation actively works to develop underrepresented groups into leadership roles.
- Only 37 percent said their organisation implements diversity and inclusion targets or KPIs.
The numbers don’t lie – there is always room for improvement.
Why Is True Diversity Important?
Research has found that a diverse and inclusive workplace increases both productivity and profitability through a broader range of perspectives and a deeper understanding of the customer experience.
When there is a variety in the age, culture, life experiences, etc. of your employees, there is a wider variety of ideas and opinions to be shared – making the workplace more creative, too.
In addition to creating a more creative, productive and profitable workplace, it also helps foster a mutual respect among employees, and empowers them to embrace each other’s differences.
What Else Does Diversity Offer Your Employees?
In a diverse and inclusive workplace, your employees should feel that their ideas, qualities, and insights are valued, heard and acted on.
This type of environment will allow your employee to feel safe and secure in their job, and it will also promote a stronger connection with their work. It allows them to feel more engaged in the workplace, and therefore to perform better.
Don’t let diversity and inclusion become just more boxes to tick. Make an ongoing effort to learn about diversity and inclusion, to incorporate this into your policies and procedures, and to carry out periodic appraisals of your working environment.
Where to Start?
Key messages taken away from our recent function, where professional Aboriginal athlete Joe Williams (https://www.joewilliams.com.au/) attended to speak with Tecside and its partners – suggests that it starts with a conversation.
A lot of people overthink how to approach cultural diversity and often get overwhelmed on how to approach certain topics. Due to the emergence of political correctness over the years, it’s easy to get caught up in ‘What if I ask the wrong question?’. At the end of the day, we need to remember we are all people and if a question is coming from an authentic and genuine position, where the asker genuinely is interested in understanding and cultivating relationships with the person being asked, then there are no wrong questions.
We need to remember, both as people and employers, that relationships are founded on conversations and interactions, regardless of culture. How we interact and manage our relationships develops over time as we begin to understand the individual and culture. Understanding consequently comes from asking questions, and conversations.


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A portion of one of the public canals being constructed at Canalside will be used to provide a shaded, tree-lined walkway with seating near the water.
The change to the East Canal, which will run roughly between Main and Washington streets, came after public suggestions for more covered, green and “fun space,” said Thomas P. Dee, president of Erie Canal Harbor Development Corp.
“This is going to be a parcel from Washington to get you to Main Street that’s activated with fun things to do. I think it will be a cool, hip place where you will want to get your coffee and read the paper,” Dee said.
The stone walkway will include transparent lanes that show water below.
The board’s directors approved the change at a cost of $652,000 to C&S Companies, which is designing the main public canal. The funds will come from Niagara River Greenway money available as a result of the Niagara Power Project relicensing agreement with New York Power Authority.
Dee also said that because of a three-month delay in construction, the planned finish line for replicating a part of the Erie Canal where Memorial Auditorium once stood has been pushed back to next summer or fall. That is still a few months before the planned Jan. 1, 2014, opening of Phillips Lytle law firm and Courtyard by Marriott hotel at One Canalside, the former Donovan State Office Building that’s under construction.
“There are crews on the site, and they are feverishly moving forward, and we need it to move forward as fast as we can based on the weather conditions we have,” Dee said. “We’re focused on quality control right now.”
Nearby will be the recently fenced-in Webster Block, where Sabres owner Terry Pegula is building a hotel and two ice rinks, planned to open in 2014.
In other news, Dee said a test projection of images and sound on a grain elevator last week was a success, and it will lead to a final plan later this year on a projected image and light show extravaganza for 2013. Dee said one or more elevators could be illuminated on a permanent basis.

domain: geography


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Technology in the Library
Use your North Park username and password to log in to any of the computers in the library. Guests who want to use computers may ask a librarian to log them in.
See IT's wiki for a list of software available in each lab.
User Ed Lab
The User Ed Lab (Brandel 221) is our main computer lab. It is a PC lab.
The group study area on the lower level has both Macs and PCs.
First Floor PCs
There are eight PCs in the lobby. These are the only computers available to guest patrons.
|Item||Loan Period||Additional Information|
|Cell Phone Chargers||6 hours*||Details and Availability|
|Headphones||6 hours*||Details and Availability|
|Laptops (MacBook Air)||6 hours*||Details and Availability; Manual|
|i-Clicker||1 day**||Details and Availability; Manual|
|Apple SuperDrives||3 days||Details and Availability; Manual|
|Digital Camera||3 days||Details and Availability; Manual|
|PowerPoint Clickers||3 days||Details and Availability; Manual|
|Tripods||3 days||Manfrotto MKC3-H01: Details and Availability; Manual
Sony VCT-R640: Details and Availability; Manual
|Thunderbolt HDMI Adaptor||3 days||Details and Availability; Manual|
|Video Camera||3 days||Details and Availability; Manual|
|TI-84 plus graphing calculator||6 hours*||Details and Availability|
|Handheld Calculator||6 hours*||Details and Availability|
- *Item may only be used in the library.
- **Only available to faculty and staff.
Printing from the library's computers uses the campus-wide PaperCut system. To print to our printers from your own computer, log in to your PaperCut account and select "Web Print." You may also add more funds to your account via PaperCut. Guest patrons are not able to print.
There is a color photocopier in the copy room (Brandel 121) and a grayscale copier on the lower level. Photocopies are $0.10/page for grayscale, $0.25/page for color. Scan your North Park ID to pay for copies. Guests patrons are not able to photocopy.
There are two scanners in the copy room. Scanning is free to both North Parkers and guests.
We have assistive technology available for people with visual impairments. Check out a key from the circulation desk.

domain: library


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Earnings per share came in at $2,811, adjusted for investment and derivative losses, beating estimates compiled by FactSet of $2,560.29 per share. Last year's net income stood at $2,227.99 per share. The company posted revenue of $51.2 billion, compared to the forecast of $51.3 billion and higher than last year's $46.5 billion.
Must Read: 12 Stocks Warren Buffett Loves in 2014
The Omaha, Neb.-based conglomerate owns over 80 companies, from utilities to railroads to insurance companies. It also owns 400 million shares, or 9.1%, of Coca-Cola (KO) and 68.1 million shares, or 6.3%, of IBM (IBM) .
A Shares of Berkshire Hathaway ended the trading day up slightly, closing at $214,970 per share, a new record for the stock. Shares are up 20.8% since the start of the year. B shares closed at $143.61, up 21% for the year to date.
Must Read: Warren Buffett's Top 10 Dividend Stocks

domain: finance


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People across the world have experienced elevated mental health concerns during the COVID-19 pandemic, with major differences seen across several countries and continents, according to a new report.
North Americans reported more symptoms of anxiety, depression, and posttraumatic stress disorder, whereas Europeans had more insomnia and Latin Americans had more psychological distress.
Anxiety and depression appeared to peak in May 2020 and decrease throughout 2021. At the same time, other symptoms of poor mental health — including loneliness, posttraumatic stress disorder, psychological distress, suicidal ideation, and substance abuse — remained elevated throughout the pandemic.
"The evolution of mental health problems is related to the evolution of the pandemic, as well as the social, economic, and health problems that accompany it," Jude Mary Cénat, PhD, an associate professor of psychology and director of the Vulnerability, Trauma, Resilience, and Culture Research Laboratory at the University of Ottawa, told Medscape Medical News.
"It was important to examine the issues by geographical region to better understand the variety of mental health challenges and the specificity to each region," he said.
"However, it is important to note that, regardless of region, mental health issues have increased during the pandemic."
The study was published in the Journal of Affective Disorders on July 14.
Analyzing Mental Health
Previous studies have noted the significant increase in mental health concerns during the pandemic due to business and school closures, quarantines, physical distancing, financial insecurity, and concerns about becoming infected or infecting relatives. Among different populations, studies have also found specific increases in anxiety, depression, psychological distress, sleep issues, and substance use disorders.
Cénat and colleagues screened nearly 400 published articles to understand the global evolution of the pandemic's toll on mental health. They conducted meta-analyses on 64 longitudinal studies with 170,000 participants, which included at least two measurements between January 2020 and September 2021. Among those, 20 studies were from North America, and one paper included data from 23 countries.
In particular, the research team looked at the proportions of people who met the diagnostic criteria for anxiety, depression, posttraumatic stress disorder, psychological distress, insomnia, substance abuse, loneliness, and suicidal ideation, comparing the differences between the baseline in 2020 and the last follow-up in 2021.
For anxiety, the pooled prevalence was 25%. North America had a higher prevalence rate, at 43%, compared with 22.1% in Europe, 20.5% in Latin America, and 15% in the Asia-Pacific region. Women had a higher prevalence of anxiety symptoms.
For depression, the pooled prevalence was 26.8%. North America had a higher prevalence rate, at 38.3%, compared with 24.6% in Europe, 20.9% in Latin America, and 20.6% in the Asia-Pacific region. As with anxiety, women had a higher prevalence of depression symptoms.
For psychological distress, the pooled prevalence was 30.5%. Latin America had a higher prevalence rate, at 66.6%, compared with 31.2% in North America, 27.4% in Europe, and 18% in the Asia-Pacific region. Certain measurement tools were associated with higher psychological distress rates.
For insomnia, the pooled prevalence was 22.2%. Europe had a higher prevalence rate, at 30.8%, compared with 21.7% in Asia and 18.8% in North America. The rates varied based on the measurement tool used.
For posttraumatic stress disorder, the pooled prevalence was 17.5%, with major differences seen among the studies. For instance, studies in North America reported a prevalence rate of 23.3% compared with 14.4% in studies conducted across Europe.
For substance abuse, the pooled prevalence was 24%, with major differences seen among the studies, particularly because some studies focused on psychotropic drug consumption. Generally, a higher prevalence was reported in studies that focused on alcohol use rather than psychotropic drugs.
Suicidal ideation increased, though not significantly, between the baseline and follow-up times. There weren't enough studies to analyze the variation by region or other factors, such as gender or age.
Loneliness varied widely across regions, with higher effect sizes seen in studies conducted in North America, followed by Europe, Africa, the Asia-Pacific region, and Latin America. Loneliness increased throughout March and April 2020, reached a peaked in May, and declined in the following months.
In addition, the rates for anxiety and depression peaked in May 2020 and then decreased by the follow-up measurement in 2021. Other mental health problems showed no change during that time, although the prevalence rates for psychological distress increased in July 2020, when coronavirus infections surged again in many countries.
Despite the overall decrease since May 2020, the prevalence of mental health problems remained higher during the pandemic compared with pre-pandemic times, the study authors wrote.
"COVID-19 was the perfect catalyst for what some have called the loneliness epidemic. In the initial waves, many of us were pushed into situations of social and physical isolation far beyond anything we'd previously experienced," Rachel Rumas, a research assistant in the psychology department at the University of Toronto Scarborough, told Medscape Medical News.
Rumas, who wasn't involved with this study, researched loneliness during the pandemic and found that loneliness increased and quality of life decreased in Canada and the United States.
"Others were forced to confront that any feelings of loneliness we may have felt before the pandemic have since worsened a great deal," she said.
"Now, 2 and a half years in, we've developed vaccines, we've lifted restrictions, but the varying degrees of anxiety, depression, and loneliness we experienced have not disappeared, and we may not feel the true impact for years to come."
Owing to the ongoing prevalence of mental health concerns, mental health prevention, promotion, and intervention programs should be implemented to mitigate the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic worldwide, the study authors wrote.
Cénat, whose mental health research has focused on Black health, said that future studies should systematically report data on gender, age, education, ethnicity, sexual orientation, and migration status to allow for better comparison as well as identify groups that face greater risks for mental health problems.
"Additional studies also need to be conducted in certain parts of the world, such as India, Africa, the Middle East, and the Caribbean, to better understand the long-term impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on the mental health of diverse populations," he said.
Moving forward, clinicians should consider the differences in the pandemic's mental health toll, particularly given factors such as unemployment, financial insecurity, and lack of healthcare access, Rumas said.
"It follows that North America would be found to have greater anxiety and depression in response to the pandemic," she said.
"In the United States particularly, basic and extended health insurance is often only accessible through employment, and higher-than-average rates of income inequality necessitates employment for meeting basic needs."
In addition, the true toll on mental health probably won't be known for some time, Rumas added.
"As institutions worldwide transition to COVID-19 directives defined by an approach of 'personal responsibility,' some groups — immunocompromised, healthcare workers — will be left to fend for themselves," she said.
"This may require them to remain socially isolated to a certain degree and may leave them susceptible to the increased loneliness we observed during the initial waves."
The authors reported no funding support for this study. In addition, the authors declared no competing interests. Rumas reported no relevant disclosures.
J Affect Disord. Published July 14, 2022. Full text
Carolyn Crist is a health and medical journalist who reports on the latest studies for Medscape, MDedge, and WebMD.
Lead image: Martinmark/Dreamstime
Image 1: University of Ottawa
Image 2: Rachel Rumas
Medscape Medical News © 2022 WebMD, LLC
Send news tips to email@example.com.
Cite this: COVID-19 Pandemic Affected Mental Health Differently Across Globe - Medscape - Sep 12, 2022.


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Build Setup – Support Angel Warlock Build Destiny 2 D2
Welcome to the best Support Build for Warlock in Destiny 2 D2.
The healing and support abilities of this build are welcome in any content no matter what difficulty level. Properly executed, you can have your healing abilities constantly at the ready and be a true blessing to your party.
All these aspects make the Warlock Build Support Angel for Destiny 2 such good.
Many healing abilities
Boosts the damage output
Very good ability recharge rate
Provides the necessary ammunition
Skill Tree – BEST SUPPORT BUILD Warlock Destiny 2 D2
For best possible support in Destiny 2 on a Warlock we play Attunement of Grace. We support our teammates with our Grenade thanks to DIVINE PROTECTION hold the grenade button to turn the grenade into a heal orb that you can throw.
Since we get Grenade and Rift energy back with BENEVOLENT DAWN whenever we heal a teammate we can hold our Rift forever as long as there are always two teammates inside.
And last but not least we create with our Super a big area in which all players and ourselves are healed and get a weapon damage buff. Since the Ability and Super Cooldown revision, the Well of Radiance is in Tier 5 which means it has the shortest cooldown.
Synergies with Exotic Armor – BEST SUPPORT BUILD Destiny 2 D2
For our ultimate Support Build for the Warlock in Destiny 2, I have three Exotic Armor Pieces for three different situations.
1. Situations or Raid parts in which it is a matter of survival and you simply want to give you and your team the strong healing with a little damage boost from the Well of Radiance as often as possible.
2. Boss encounters in which you want to maximize the damage of your team.
1. With the Phoenix Protocol you get super energy back from every kill of you or your teammates as long as you are in the Well of Radiance. You can directly get back up to a maximum of 50% of your super. Since the Well of Radiance has a Tier 5 cooldown anyway and thus the shortest cooldown in the entire Destiny universe, you have the Super very quickly again. Example at 70 intellect you have a base Cooldown of 5:43 if you manage to get 50% back directly with phoenix protocol only about 2:50 remain without making any kills.
2. The Lunafaction Bootsreduces the reloading time of all Weapons to a minimum. This effect cannot be combined with the Reload Mods. But this also has the good side that you can equip other mods which bring you other advantages. With the Lunafaction Boots, your weapons in the Well of Radiance also have more range, which is especially important if you want to do damage with shotguns or fusion rifles, for example, which otherwise have a very limited range.
3. With the Aeon Souls you generate Heavy Ammunition for your team when you finish a Champion. It is important that you have selected Sect of Insight on the Aeon Souls in the last slot. Note that you don’t get any ammunition by finishing a Champion, so you are really only a Supporter of the team. Nice to know is also that if you finish an Elite (orange bar) you can also make Special Ammo for your team. Very worthwhile it is if the one with the Aeon Souls equipped plays for example Divinity to be not dependent on the Heavy in damage phases.
Mods and Stats – BEST SUPPORT BUILD Warlock Destiny 2 D2
For Warlock in general, I always recommend going for max Discipline and Recovery. In the best case 100 Discipline 100 Recovery 70 Resilience and 70 Intellect. Why exactly tier 7 for intellect and resilience?
With Tier 7 Resilience, many annoying snipers in Grandmaster Nightfalls no longer kill you One Hit even without having Sniper Resilience equipped on the chest. This allows me to play an element of Resilience adjusted to the activity and which enemies are in there.
Up to Tier 7 Intellect you get 23 seconds less cooldown per higher Intellect level. On Tier 8 but only 13 that is then such a small increase that it is almost no longer worth it to pay attention to it.
To get the maximum out of this build and at the same time play the best of the season I recommend the following mods:
Protective Light (Void)
Radiant Light (Arc)
Supreme Wellmaker (Stasis)
Concussive Dampener (Chest)
Solar/Arc/Void Resistance (If you can’t get to Tier 7 Resilience use Sniper Resistance) (Chest)
Fill Up with:
Discipline / Recovery / Resilience Mods to get as near to 100 / 100 / 70 as possible. (I do not recommend using Intellect Mods since they need 5 Energy)
Recuperation (Solar / Legs)
For a good example of how you could distribute the mods look at the following images:
Playstyle – BEST SUPPORT BUILD Warlock Destiny 2 D2
The important thing to understand about our Support Buildfor the Warlock in Destiny 2 is that we need our teammates as much as they need us. Set your rift so that it is attractive for your mates to stand inside because you will benefit from faster cooldowns through Benevolent Dawn. Overload your Grenadeand throw it into a running path to get from one cover to the next. I recommend the Firebolt Grenade for the Warlock since the Cooldown Patch.
Recommended Weapons – BEST SUPPORT BUILD Warlock Destiny 2 D2
For our Warlock Build for best possible support, different loadouts are well suited. Depending on the activity, I recommend other weapons. Below I have listed various loadouts for general PvE Activities. Depending on how far you have already progressed in the game. Specific raid or grandmaster setups can be found here.
Focus on add clearing
The Last Breath
The Last Breath is for me the best Autorifle in Destiny 2 D2. The possible perk combinations are incredibly good, my favorite is Demolitionist and Frenzy, best still with good range / reload run, magazine and masterwork. The synergy with our Warlock Build which is focused on grenades is awesome. For every kill with The Last Breath you get 10% of your grenade back.
The Null Composure is incredibly good in the current meta. Depending on the encounter it is worth to switch to Reservoir Burst and then always fire a shot and reload to benefit all the time from this AOE explosion.
Gjallarhorn is back and strong as ever. With the Catalyst you get a two shot magazine. Super good for doing quick burst damage on a champion/boss. But also the Wolfpack Rounds are incredibly efficient for quick add clear.
Focus on damage output / burst damage
Under Pressure / Lead from Gold (This perk doesnt realy matter)
One Thousend Voices
DIM Link – Destiny 2
For all those who use Destiny Item Manager I have put together the Build here in the link.
You can remove the unimportant mods on the left side and add your favorites.

domain: hobby


text:
Mini Merry Christmas Garland
40% OFF CHRISTMAS SALE!! WAS €10.50 NOW ONLY €6.30!
A Merry Christmas garland with colorful acrylic letter and wooden star pennants. This stylish decoration is perfect for a luxury Christmas.
Pack contains 1 garland.
Garland length: 6 feet.
Pack size: 8 x 2 x 1 inches.

domain: artistic


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The B.C. government will finally be providing bus service between Prince George and Prince Rupert, the stretch of road known as the Highway of Tears, from which numerous Indigenous women have disappeared or been murdered.
CKNW reports that, when Justin Trudeau was asked if any changes to Canada’s new prostitution legislation, which criminalizes johns and decriminalizes prostituted women, he “dodged the issue.”
“As an avowedly feminist government we know we have an awful lot of work to do on a number of different files; sexual violence, discrimination in the workplace, harassment along with the challenges posed by prostitution and human trafficking remain big, meaty issues that we are very much hoping to tackle in the coming months and years.
We are working with our Extraordinary Minister of the Status of Women to create a path forward for Canada on an issue that is both delicate, complex and extremely challenging.”
That woman with the awesome dick pic response got banned from Facebook.
The Observer’s Mark Townsend reports that, the day before Labour MP Jo Cox was murdered, another Yorkshire MP received a death threat for sympathizing with refugees.
“Notts Casual Infidels, a far-right group belonging to the extremist Infidels network, posted an image of York Central Labour MP Rachael Maskell addressing a ‘refugees welcome rally’ at 9.39am on Thursday 15 June with the warning: ‘This bitch needs to disappear.’
Hours after Cox’s death later that day, the same group said in a Facebook post: ‘We knew it was only a matter of time before we take it to the next level. We have been mugged off for Far to (sic) long.’ The post was later deleted.
That follows the news that police are investigating a white supremacist group after applause for the killing was posted on one of its social media accounts.”
The Guardian confirms that the suspected shooter shouted “Britain first” or “Put Britain first” as he attacked Cox. (Britain First is the name of a far-right political party.)


It’s happening right before our very eyes. Well, kind of.
A regional plan that blocks traditional suburban development, densifies cities, and urbanizes suburbs on this scale is virtually unprecedented. That’s why the Obama administration awarded the agencies behind Plan Bay Area its second-highest “Sustainable Communities Grant” in 2012. Indeed, the terms of the administration’s grant reinforce the pressure for density. The official rationale behind the federal award is “encouraging connections” between jobs, housing, and transportation.
That sounds like a directive to locate new residents–poor and minorities included–in existing prosperous communities. In fact, HUD’s new emphasis on “connecting” jobs housing and transportation does more. In practice, bland bureaucratic language about blending jobs, housing, and transportation pressures localities to create Manhattan-style “priority development areas.” The San Francisco case reveals the administration’s broader intentions. Soon HUD and other agencies will begin to press localities directly, rather than through the medium of California’s new regionalist scheme. Replicating Plan Bay Area nationwide is the Obama administration’s goal.
The Enactment of Plan Bay Area was wildly controversial among those who managed to learn about it, yet went largely unnoticed in the region as a whole. One of the chief complaints of the plan’s opponents was the relative lack of publicity accorded a decision with such transformative implications. Critics called for a public vote, and complained that the bureaucrats in charge hadn’t been elected.
Another theme of critics was that “the fix” seemed to be in from the start. Input was largely ignored, opponents claimed, and public forums offered only the illusion of consultation. Although it’s gone largely unreported, that accusation is far truer than even the opponents of Plan Bay Area realize.
Here’s where the Obama administration comes in.
And wait till you see just how. You may be shocked, but you won’t be surprised. As Kurtz says, the deck is stacked, the fix is in, all the way from top to bottom. Basically, amongst one hell of a lot of other miscellaneous skullduggery and subterfuge, it all comes back to states and localities having surrendered their sovereignty and independence–having abandoned their proper roles in the former Constitutional system, in short–to suckle at that sweet, sweet federal teat…making them subservient vassals to the Superstate, just like the rest of us. Kurtz once more: “The Obama administration is using traditional anti-discrimination language as a cover for re-engineering the way we live. The real goal is to Manhattanize America, and force us out of our cars.” Yep. But hey, the “experts” know better than we do how our lives ought to be run, right?


SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (WWLP) – The Springfield Fire Department was called to a fire at 198 Saffron Circle on Saturday afternoon.
According to Springfield Fire and Emergency Services, one person has been taken to a local hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
The Springfield Arson and Bomb Squad is looking into the cause of the fire.
The 22News crew is at the scene and will provided updates as more information becomes available.


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Smoothies or Juices: Which is Better?
Both blending and juicing have their health benefits but they nourish the body in different ways.
Blending is a process where the entire produce is maintained in the final beverage so it contains all of the fiber from the fruit or vegetable. However, the blending process breaks the fiber apart which makes the food easier to digest and also allows vitamins and minerals to go faster in the bloodstream. Even if all nutrients go faster in the bloodstream compared to whole foods, the fiber helps to avoid sugar spikes. Also, thanks to the fiber, smoothies take more volume than juices and for this reason are more filling. So they are a good option for breakfast and snacks during the day.
On the other hand juicing is a process which extracts water and nutrients from the produce and discards the indigestible fiber. Without the fiber, the digestive system doesn’t have to work at all and nutrients go straight in the bloodstream. Many detoxification programs make use of juices because they are so nutrient rich and nourish and restore the body of minerals and vitamins at a cellular level.
However these great benefits of juicing over blending come with many disadvantages:
- The nutrients are absorbed in the bloodstream very quickly. This means that the sugar as well is absorbed quickly causing sugar spikes. This leads to unstable blood sugar levels, mood swings, energy loss, memory problems and diabetes! For this reason, in the anti-candida diet, only vegetables are allowed in juices. Even carrots should be limited to at most one. So fruit is not allowed at all in juices (instead it is allowed at most one in smoothies).
- Fiber is also filling and without fiber in the juice, you are likely to get hungry again quickly.
- Finally a juicer costs more and requires more time to wash and clean.
In both cases is important that you drink your juice or smoothie straight away. Indeed, after 15 minutes, light and air will destroy much of the nutrients. If you can’t drink it straight away, transfer to a dark airtight container until you’re ready.
The first step to reclaim your health is to get rid of refined sugar. Yet this is the substance that most people crave more… And for a reason.
That’s why I’ve written a FREE ebook called “The Sugar Detox Success Formula”. Breaking the stranglehold sugar has over you is definitely the first step towards a vibrant, healthy life.
So now, it’s your choice. Make a decision. Take the challenge. It’s all on you.
Get this Free Ebook:
The Sugar Detox Success Formula

domain: food


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Robin Phillips: A Life in Colour
Robin Phillips: A Life in Colour took place at the Nina Haggerty Centre for the Arts from April 19-29, 2022. Thank you to Lynn and Stephen Mandel, the team at the Nina — Rona Fraser, Janice Easton, Jenn Rutledge, David Janzen — and our friends and family for making this exhibition possible.
April 19 – 29, 2022
Gallery hours: Monday-Friday, 9AM-3PM
The Nina Haggerty Centre for the Arts
9225 118 Avenue Edmonton AB T5G 0K6
Celebrating the art and life of Robin Phillips. The exhibition brought together a collection of vibrant oil, acrylic, watercolour, and mixed media paintings, showcasing Robin’s unique style, techniques, and love for life, colour, and beauty. May you be inspired to create and share her joy and light with others. All are welcome.
The paintings exhibited were not for sale. Sign up to receive future email updates.
Robin Phillips: A Life in Colour Reception
On April 21, 2022, we gathered with more than one hundred* of our friends, family, and friends who have become family to celebrate the work and life of our beloved wife, mother, sister, and friend Robin Phillips (*and that’s not including those who were with us in spirit✨).
Surrounded by—indeed immersed in—a room of Robin’s vibrant, beautiful artwork and a beautiful floral arrangement by Angela at Lovella Lifestyle, those in attendance raised their glasses, shared memories, and celebrated Robin’s life and legacy while enjoying some of Robin’s favourite tunes by Terry Jorden, food by Tres Carnales and the Art of Cake, and a great selection of celebratory drinks.
Thank you Lynn and Stephen Mandel, the entire team at the Nina Haggerty Centre for the Art, and everyone who contributed and attended for making the exhibition and reception celebration so memorable and beautiful.
The exhibition will be up until April 29, 2022 at 9225 118 Ave NW Edmonton, AB T5G 0K6 (gallery hours: Monday – Friday: 9AM-3PM).
Anyone interested in staying informed about Robin’s legacy initiatives—which could include future opportunities to purchase her artwork!—is invited to join Robin’s mailing list. We promise to only send joyful updates that Robin would approve of!
Until next time, we wish you what Robin would have wished—love, laughter, and muchos smooches! 💋😘
Les, Jules, and Steve
Can’t make it in person? Visit Robin’s virtual gallery and experience the exhibition virtually.
Photos below by Erika Wigeland, Julie Phillips, Angela Wong (Lovella Lifestyle), and the Zubicks (cheersing from home!). Click any image below to view the full-sized images in a gallery.
2013 Art Show & Sale
You’re invited to an Art Show and Sale featuring original artwork by Robin Phillips
Join us for an afternoon of art and conversation.
Saturday, November 30, 2013
2 to 5 pm
Refreshments will be served.
About the artist
Robin Phillips was an Edmonton-based visual artist who passed away in June 2021 under the Strawberry Moon. Painting with oil, acrylic, and watercolour, her unique voice and love for life and beauty continue to shine through her work.
© Images on this website are copyright of the artist.


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I Research interests
(1) High energy-storage dielectrics: High-energy storage dielectrics for high-power capacitors are widely used in UHV, rail transit, aerospace detection, pulsed power equipment and other fields. Through the design and synthesis of the main/side chain structure of organic macromolecules, the adjustment of the phase state and surface characteristics of inorganic particles, different intermolecular forces (van der Waals force/hydrogen bond/covalent bond) are constructed between heterogeneous phases. Revealing the coupling law and electrical characteristics between different phases and clarify the structure-performance relationship of high energy storage dielectrics.
(2) Flexible piezoelectric sensors: Study the structure-performance relationship of materials in the process of mechanical-electricity, thermal-electricity conversion, reveal the polarization behavior, response mechanism and energy conversion principle of materials, design and preparation of flexible sensor devices which can be used for intelligent sensing, pressure evaluation, etc.
(3) High-performance packaging materials: Polymers and composite materials with advanced electrical functions are widely used in military and civilian fields such as aerospace, power electronics and chip manufacturing. The characteristics of ultra-low loss, thermal conductivity, high temperature resistance, and low stress will be investigated for the basic principles and application basis of packaging materials.
(10) Yunchuan Xie, Jian Wang, Shaobo Tan, Biyun Peng, Baobao Qiao, Zhicheng Zhang*, Xingyi Huang*, Heliang Sui*. "Improving Energy Density and Efficiency of Polymer Dielectrics by Adding Trace Biaomimetic Lysozyme-modifided Boron Nitride". ACS Applied Energy Materials. 2020, 3, 7952-7963.
(9) Zhicheng Zhang*, Jie Xiong, Gang He, Dongfeng Dang, Yunchuan Xie, Qing Wang*，Fluorous Effect-Induced Emission of Azido Substituted Poly(vinylidene fluoride) with High Photostability and Film Formation, Polymer Chemistry, 2020, 11, 1307-1313.
(8) Chao Chen, Yunchuan Xie, Jingjing Liu, Jing Li, Xiaoyong Wei*, Zhicheng Zhang*, Enhanced energy storage capability of P(VDF-HFP) nanodielectrics by HfO2 passivation layer: Preparation, performance and simulation, Composites Science and Technology, 2020, 188, 107968.
(7) Yunchuan Xie, Wanrong Jiang, Tao Fu, Jingjing Liu, Zhicheng Zhang*, Shengnan Wang, Achieving High Energy Density and Low Loss in PVDF/BST Nanodielectrics with Enhanced Structural Homogeneity, ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, 2018, 10, 29038-29047.
(6) Yunchuan Xie, Jian Wang, Yangyang Yu, Wanrong Jiang, Zhicheng Zhang*, Enhancing Breakdown Strength and Energy Storage Performance of PVDF based Nanocomposites by Adding Exfoliated Boron Nitride, Applied Surface Science, 2018, 440, 1150-1158
(5) Xie Yunchuan, Yu Yangyang, Feng Yefeng, Jiang Wanrong, Zhang Zhicheng*, Fabrication of Stretchable Nanocomposites with High Energy Density and Low Loss from Cross-Linked PVDF Filled with Poly(dopamine) Encapsulated BaTiO3, ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, 2017, 9(3), 2995-3005.
(4) Feng YF, Miao B, Gong HH, Xie YC, Wei XY, Zhang ZC*, High Dielectric and Mechanical Properties Achieved in Crosslinked PVDF/α-SiC Nanocomposites with Elevated Compatibility and Induced Polarization at Interface, ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, 2016, 8(29), 19054-19065.
(3) Yusheng Tang, Shuang Xu, Yunchuan Xie*, Junwei Gu, Zhimei Song, Feng Gao, Jie Kong, Interfacial RAFT Polymerization Induced Ultra Low Dielectric Loss Ceramic/Cyanate Ester Composites, Composite Science and Technology, 2016, 124, 10-16.
(2) Li JJ, Gong HH, Yang Q, Xie YC, Yang LJ, Zhang ZC*, Linear-like dielectric behavior and low energy loss achieved in poly(ethyl methacrylate) modified poly(vinylidene-co-trifluoroethylene), Applied Physics Letters, 2014, 104, 26, 263901
(1) Xie Yun-Chuan, Xu Yan, Yung Kai-Leung*, Wetting behaviors of hyperbranched polymer composites within ordered porous template under vibration, Polymer Engineering And Science, 2012, 52(1), 205-210

domain: chemistry


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Signal drift in functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) is an unavoidable artifact that limits classification performance in multi-voxel pattern analysis of fMRI. As conventional methods to reduce signal drift, global demeaning or proportional scaling disregards regional variations of drift, whereas voxel-wise univariate detrending is too sensitive to noisy fluctuations. To overcome these drawbacks, we propose a multivariate real-time detrending method for multiclass classification that involves spatial demeaning at each scan and the recursive detrending of drifts in the classifier outputs driven by a multiclass linear support vector machine. Experiments using binary and multiclass data showed that the linear trend estimation of the classifier output drift for each class (a weighted sum of drifts in the class-specific voxels) was more robust against voxel-wise artifacts that lead to inconsistent spatial patterns and the effect of online processing than voxel-wise detrending. The classification performance of the proposed method was significantly better, especially for multiclass data, than that of voxel-wise linear detrending, global demeaning, and classifier output detrending without demeaning. We concluded that the multivariate approach using classifier output detrending of fMRI signals with spatial demeaning preserves spatial patterns, is less sensitive than conventional methods to sample size, and increases classification performance, which is a useful feature for real-time fMRI classification.
Keywords: Multi-voxel fMRI classification; Multi-voxel pattern analysis (MVPA); Real-time fMRI; Support vector machine (SVM); Voxel-wise detrending.
Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

domain: literature


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It appears that competition in the living room will continue to heat up, as gamer maker Valve reveals its plans to support multiple set-top box devices. The said device will be designed for playing games and streaming content.
Meet Valve’s “Steam Box” Gaming Hardware
During an in interview with The Verge at the Consumer Electronics Show 2013, Valve CEO Gabe Newell talked about the company’s plans for their forthcoming “Steam Box” gaming hardware. Aside from making their own Steam Box, the company will also work with third-party hardware makers to design their own devices.
Valve’s Steam Box will run the open-source Linux operating system, although users can install other OS like Microsoft Windows. It will also support services like Netflix, as well as used as a traditional PC to browse the Web. In addition, the Steam Box comes with a controller that the CEO said will have “higher precision and lower latency.”
In relation to this, Newell talked about controller methods and the use of multi-touch devices like Apple’s iPad for gaming. According to him, one of their company’s controller concept features a touchpad, although he wants to make sure that the component’s inclusion is “useful.”
We don’t want to waste people’s money by just throwing in a touchpad. Once we understand what the role is of multi-touch in these kind of applications, then it’s easy to say you can use your phone for it.
Moreover, Newell panned motion-controlled games that were popularized by Nintendo Wii and Microsoft Kinect. He said that he’s “unconvinced” that they are the proper input methods. Additionally, he’s intrigued by biometrics and gaze tracking, which can detect input information that users are not necessarily aware of to enhance gameplay.
A Look at Project Piston
Because of various third-party hardware makers, it is expected that Steam Boxes will come in wide price range. It will also feature varying functions and horsepower options. Among those options is the Project Piston. It is a tiny game playing device that was shown off this week by hardware partner Xi3.
Valve’s forthcoming push in living room entertainment places it in an already crowded market. Among the options that aims to be part of a user’s entertainment center is the Apple TV. It is a $99 accessory that streams iTunes media and lets users play and mirror content from their iOS devices to their television set.

domain: design


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InclusiveVT Week celebrates 'Where Everyone Belongs' theme
The Office for Inclusion and Diversity hosted InclusiveVT Week from Sept. 7-10. The theme for this year was “Where Everyone Belongs.”
“InclusiveVT is our institutional and individual commitment to Ut Prosim (That I May Serve) in the spirit of community, diversity, and excellence,” said Menah Pratt-Clarke, vice president for diversity, inclusion, and strategic affairs. “Ut Prosim is such a powerful guide for our shared responsibility to make the InclusiveVT difference and create a more just and inclusive world, starting at Virginia Tech."
InclusiveVT Week’s main events featured three distinguished speakers from across multiple disciplines: Lisa Nunn, Fred Bonner II, and Margaret Price.
According to Michelle Carter, director of diversity engagement at Virginia Tech, the presentations gave “faculty and staff effective strategies to increase student belonging. The result of intentional actions to increase belonging is a more inclusive environment and increased student success.”
Nunn presented on “Fostering College Belonging: Practical strategies for fostering student success by strengthening students’ sense of belonging, with a focus on first-generation college students.” Nunn currently serves as a professor in sociology and as director of the Center for Educational Excellence at University of California, San Diego. Watch Nunn’s full presentation.
Bonner, author of “Square Pegs and Round Holes: Alternative Approaches to Diverse College Student Development Theory,” presented on Sept. 9. Bonner is a professor and endowed chair in educational leadership and counseling and founding executive director of the Minority Achievement, Creativity and High-Ability (MACH-III) Center at Prairie View A&M University. Watch his full presentation.
Margaret Price, author of “Mad at School: Rhetorics of Mental Disability and Academic Life,” concluded the speaker series. Price is an associate professor of English at The Ohio State University, specializing in disability studies and rhetoric, composition, and literacy. Price’s presentation was titled “Creating an Inclusive and Accessible Campus.”
In addition to the speaker series, other campus-wide events included Trap Yoga, the Growth Mindset Initiative, Courageous Conversations, Pain Relocation, Welcome Roanoke, and Conversations on Inclusion and Diversity: The importance of language in the LGBTQ+ Community.
For more information on programs and events offered and/or supported by the Office for Inclusion & Diversity, please visit www.inclusive.vt.edu.

domain: news


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iphone screen protector for sweaty hands, need some protection for your new iphone Here are bunch of top cases to check out.
And it's not just the usual "black marketeers" looking to score big from iPhone sales. Average people are trying to get a cut of the action. A 28-year-old financial planner from Hong Kong told Business Insider that he paid some friends in Japan to buy several iPhones, which he then plans to sell in mainland China. Another individual from China said he paid a group of people in Japan to buy iPhones. Aside from gouging your customers, why is reselling an iPhone in China considered a black market offense? Individuals reselling iPhones purchased elsewhere are breaking two laws, Bloomberg explained. One law normally requires a seller to pay heavy import duties. The other requires that such phones be approved for sale by the Chinese government, which harkens back to the current stumbling block.
When might the iPhone 6 officially be approved for use in China? That remains a mystery, On Tuesday, Wang Xiaoyun, general manager of China Mobile's technology department, said she doesn't know iphone screen protector for sweaty hands when the new phone will be available, China Mobile is the country's largest mobile carrier with around 767 million customers, Apple also has had deals with China Unicom and China Telecom to sell the iPhone, Carolyn Wu, a Beijing-based spokeswoman for Apple, told Bloomberg earlier this week that she couldn't provide a date for the China release and said simply that "China is a key market for us and we will get here as soon as possible."With the new iPhones not yet available in China, individuals are scooping them up through other sources and then reselling them at high prices, says Bloomberg..
In addition to the new cheap Kindle, Amazon also announced the Kindle Voyage , a high-end e-reader starting at $199 or £169. The Voyage model rocks a sleek design with a flush-glass front and new tech improvements to make reading easier, including an adaptive light sensor and pressure-sensitive page-turn buttons. It's safe to say it's the Rolls Royce of e-readers. If you're looking for a no-frills e-reader, however, the new Kindle is both an attractively simple and affordable option. For more information, check back soon for full review when we get our hands on one in October.
For the Kindle's 10th anniversary, Amazon updates its high-end e-reader so you can take., Although iphone screen protector for sweaty hands it's pricey, the Kindle Voyage's slim design, sharper display and even better., The third-generation Paperwhite now sports the Kindle Voyage's high-resolution display., The most affordable Kindle is now thinner, lighter and has a few other small upgrades.., It's hard to beat Amazon's e-readers, but Kobo's latest has at least four features that., The affordable e-book reader brings touch to its latest low-end, bargain-basement model..
Not satisfied with having one of the best e-readers around, Amazon one-upped its offerings in the category and didn't forget about budget conscious shoppers. Included in the company's new roster of slates is an affordable Kindle, just $79 in the US and £59 in the UK. (Australian prices are yet to be announced, but you can get one shipped from the US for AU$124.) The new Amazon Kindle is available for pre-order now and will ship on October 2. The 6-inch entry-level e-book reader has a touchscreen display -- new to Amazon's low-end model. Its screen is glare-free, but it lacks a backlight like the more expensive Paperwhite and Voyage models. Compared to the previous entry-level e-reader, however, it houses a faster processor and double the amount of storage.
When users visit the Nokia.com UK site, they are informed that "Nokia devices and services have moved to a new website" and are urged to "step inside our new home." While the Nokia.com page still shows some basic information on Lumia handsets, the new site offers a richer, iphone screen protector for sweaty hands fuller pallet of pitches on what Microsoft is offering a la Lumia, The news was tweeted to the world by the Nokia UK team, Interestingly, the US Nokia site is still operating as normal and it's not clear when the changeover might be made there..
The newly minted Microsoft Mobile Devices site is simple in its structure, featuring big images and pages focused on phones and tablets, accessories, apps, and support. The shift away from the old Nokia.com way of doing things comes after Microsoft confirmed that it will phase out the Nokia name, deciding instead to keep just "Lumia" as the central branding for its mobile products. A leak earlier this month also suggested that Microsoft is planning to ditch the "Phone" from its "Windows Phone" branding and will instead use just "Windows" for its products. Microsoft has yet to confirm that's the case, and on its new Mobile Devices page, the company still lists "Windows Phone" for the operating system running on Nokia products.
The Nokia branding is also still living on the site, Microsoft acquired Nokia's devices and services business earlier this year for $7.2 billion, Since that time, it has announced a series of layoffs that include the departure of 12,500 employees who came aboard in the Nokia acquisition, CNET has contacted iphone screen protector for sweaty hands Microsoft for more information on the transition away from Nokia.com, We will update this story when we have more information, (Via The Verge), Info on Lumia smartphones is moving to new digs as Microsoft continues to assimilate the goodies it got in its big Nokia deal..


A Flood Hotline has been designated for flood related
reporting and questions, which are not life-threatening. The number is 887-2355
and officials recommend the public to use this number instead of 9-1-1 for
non-emergency flood calls.
Carson City Parks, Recreation & Open Space Trail Closures:
The following parks and trails remain
closed as of FEBRUARY 21.
Fuji Park (Bailey Pond and Horse Arena)
Mexican Ditch Trail south of Silver
Moffat open space trail between Lepire
Drive and Hells Bells Road
Long Ranch Park/Open Space trails near
Morgan Mill access
Riverview Park Trails (Korean War
Memorial is open)
Sports Complexes (John D. Winters
Centennial Park, Governor’s Field, Pete Livermore)
REPORT SAFETY ISSUES REGARDING PARKS, TRAILS, or OPEN SPACE at 775.887.2262.


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Here is another card I created using scraps from my desktop and those wonderful, zany Bird Crazy stamps! This card starts with a kraft base which I stenciled with Distress Ink and a gear stencil from The Crafter's Workshop. There are 2 more layered panels stenciled with the same and embossed with a dotted swiss folder. The actual gears are created from the same scraps and popped up for dimension. Those are made with Spellbinder dies. I computer generated the sentiment and hand boxed each word. I added the hat to my bird using the accessories stamp kit, and glazed his goofy eyes with crystal accents. I get very excited when there is a masculine card to add to my stash!
I would like to enter this at Just Us Girls # 346 Birds, also at Pixie's Snippets Playground #232, where we always use our snippets! Also, Cards in Envy has a challenge for No Girls Allowed that this might fit into.
Another week has come and gone, and the spring is sliding into summer. Hope all is well in your neck of the woods and you enjoy the week ahead.


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Cheng Wu's Azuki Systems has raised $9.1 million this year.
The UPtake: Desktop DNA sequencing and video software proved popular with venture capitalists. Here's today's roundup.
Thinking Phone Networks, a Cambridge, Massachusetts, startup creating a cloud-based communication system that allows employees to use their mobile devices at work, has raised $16.5 million in a round led by Advanced Technology Ventures and Bessemer Venture Partners. (Boston Business Journal)
GnuBio, Inc., based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, has raised $10 million to grow its genetic sequencing business. Chief executive John Boyce and his cofounder David Weitz were among those putting money into the company. (Boston Business Journal)
Azuki Systems, a video software maker based in Acton, Massachusetts, has raised $4 million from Kepha Partners and Sigma Partners. The company has raised $9.1 million this year and $31 million since it was founded in 2007. (Boston Business Journal)
Since coming aboard with Upstart’s parent company, Kent has covered sustainability and business, entrepreneurs, technology, and venture capital. Now, he covers all the ways upstart businesses get their money.
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Sign up for the latest business news, opinion and analysis from Upstart and get the best the site has to offer each week day.


Sweetened electrolyte-replacement beverages aren’t the only game in town when it comes to post-workout recovery drinks. Coconut water, a drink that has stayed pretty much under the radar for its more than 4,000 years in existence, is going mainstream as an after-sport sipper. Its claim to fame: This all-natural beverage from the inside of a coconut features five essential electrolytes, including more potassium than a banana in each serving. Brands such as Vita Coco and Zico, once health-food-store-only finds, are as easy to spot these days as pomegranate juice, yesterday’s trend-setting and now-mainstream beverage.
Another post-workout drink is even easier to find — just pop open your child’s lunchbox. Chocolate milk is being hailed as an ideal after-exercise recovery drink. According to a study done by the University of Texas at Austin, low-fat chocolate milk provided physical recovery benefits for athletes, including better body composition in the form of more muscle and less fat and overall better physical shape during the four-and-a-half-week study. What’s more, a study in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that, when consumed right after exercising, milk-based proteins promote greater muscle-protein synthesis than soy-based proteins. Maybe chocolate milk is the reason kids have so much energy.


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Stacking wood boxes, Travel-themed scrapbook papers, ¾” flat brush, Hot glue
- Basecoat the tops with French Vanilla, True Burgundy and Coffee Bean. Also paint the knob with True Burgundy. Allow to dry. Dry brush the Raw Sienna onto the FrenchVanilla and Licorice on both the True Burgundy and the Coffee Bean.
- Cut pages to fit the sides and Mod Podge a page to each side. Allow to dry and then add a top coat. Hot Glue the knob on smallest box.


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the Superbowl is happening in my city, and i live a mile from the madness….eh hem, i mean “fun.”
after working a Yelp event tonight at Sun King, an awesome local brewery, i decided to take a turn around Monument Circle to see everything first hand. tomorrow starts the events, so i’ve been hearing about the road closings and tents being erected (pun intended) for the Playboy bunnies.
as i rode, the streets were quiet yet dignified, simple yet beautiful. this was the city i loved. the city whose streets i knew well from the handle bars of my bike and they were completely normal, peaceful even. still, i couldn’t help but be awestruck when i saw these bad boys:
it is right here on the doorstep yet i can’t help but dismiss it all as this surreal dream. this is the calm before….before the mass of people, the parking madness, the zipliners, the thousands of dollars, the celebrity hysteria…the madness.
in the next few days, thousands of Patriots and Giants fans will flood this city, and i’m supposed to welcome them with open arms?! wait, what the gag reflex i get whenever i see a Tom Brady jersey?? what then??
whatever the case, here’s to a great next 10 days!


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For a photographer the biggest challenge is getting the “perfect shot”. This is different for each photographer. For some it may be the end zone leap that saves the game. For others it may be a fawn feeding at a river in an impassable valley. Maybe it is behind the waterfall looking out, or aerial footage of special moments like weddings and graduations? No matter what the perfect shot is, the DJI Phantom 4 is more than likely the drone of choice for you. This is not a normal drone, this is a 4K 12 megapixel powerhouse that happens to fly.
Photographers know how hard it is to keep one single point of interest centered in their shot. This drone offers target tracking which is going to save a lot of headaches and stop a lot of missed opportunities. Imagine the improved income that can be had using the DJI Phantom 4 as your next camera.
Getting the clear shot of the action is not your only worry in today’s world. There are more and more photographers using drones which leads to a cluttered sky at popular events. The DJI Phantom 4 is equipped with an “obstacle sensing system” that will keep costly midair collisions to a minimum (and save money on overpriced repairs and lost photography time).
Shooting video or pictures professionally requires a professional drone. 1080p at 120 frames per second slow motion video for those amazing catches, near misses or just amazing views are standard with the DJI Phantom 4. Need 4K ultra High Definition video? This bad boy shoots that at 30 frames per second. Oh, those annoying “found footage” type jerky videos that you see on YouTube, you know the ones, are not happening with the DJI Phantaom 4. Your next drone camera should feature active gimbal stabilization- this eliminates that jerkiness and will help your videos stand out against the competition. Active gimbal stabilization saves time too. No longer will you need to run your video through filters that reduce not only the shakiness but also the overall size of the viewing window. Saved time is saved money, especially in the cutthroat world of professional photography.
Speed in drones is not something that is usually discussed because most drones are slow. They fly slow, they accelerate slow and they are just floating there costing money in missed shots and poor performance. The DJI Phantom 4 has a maximum speed of 44 miles per hour (about 72 kilometers per hour) and a 28 minute flight time. Can’t get close enough to your target for the perfect shot? No problem since the DJI Phantom 4 has a 3.1 mile (about 5 kilometer) range. You don’t have to be close to your target for the perfect shot as you can get there and back faster than your competition will.
With the ultra HD, stabilized camera of the DJI Phantom 4 your competition will be editing video while you are uploading yours to your clients.


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These days, LED technology is continuously evolving and proving beneficial in a variety of fields including, but not limited to medical, engineering and in urban farming. LED illumination for growing plants is basically a revolutionary technology over different traditional systems of lighting. This is even more convenient and sustainable agricultural practices. When it comes to growing plants, it needs proper care, optimum temperature level, watering and above all appropriately luminous surroundings which helps to kick the process of photosynthesis. One of the greatest advantages of the best LED grow lights is that it can improve greenhouse conditions of the growing plants.
Some of the benefits of LED grow lights for greenhouse settings are:
- Heat efficiency: As LEDs are great energy efficient products that use less heat and give more lights. They play a crucial role in the growth of plants and ensure that the plants get enough lights which they need to grow.
- Energy saving: The main reason behind the benefits of LED grow lights is that a huge energy can be saved by installing these lighting solutions. These can significantly reduce energy consumption and increase efficiency of green house settings.
- Cost effective: This is also a cost effective way to grow plants which can also help to increase photosynthetic efficiency. There working temperatures are also very stable which maintain proper room temperature.
There are certain renowned companies offering robust LED grow lights and solutions, and LEDPlantLights.com is the best online portal that guides you in choosing the best option among them. They offer their best recommendation over the entire growing process of plants using LED. They also provide LED grow lights review that can be helpful in large sized commercial setups of growing plants and small grow firm. Thus, if you are looking for the best LED grow lights solutions then LEDPlantLights.com can be of great assistance for you.
LEDPlantLights.com provides their valuable advice and guidance in growing process of plants with LED solutions, grow light reviews tutorial and guides. For more details regarding LED grow lights reviews, you can log on to Ledplantlights.com.
Author: frankcurtis04This author has published 405 articles so far. More info about the author is coming soon.

domain: biology


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The Nike Comme des Garcons x NikeLab VaporMax, Nike’s low top running sneakers are part of Nike Lifestyle Shoes collection. The limited edition Comme des Garcons x NikeLab VaporMax has created quite a stir among sneaker fans and collectors ever since it made its debut at the Comme Des Garcons Spring 2017 runway show. The hype was all worth it for this premium shoes priced at $330 per pair. There are no special editions of these shoes. These sneakers typically retail for around $330, but you can usually find them cheaper. For best deals, we recommend checking the price on Amazon.
Comme des Garcons x NikeLab VaporMax shoes currently have a 4 out of 5 rating, based on 9 user reviews and a 68 Corescore at RunRepeat. We’ve scoured the web for reviews and user feedback that will help you decide if you want to buy Nike Comme des Garcons x NikeLab VaporMax sneakers. Scroll down below to see what people are saying.
|Comme des Garcons x NikeLab VaporMax|
|Nike Lifestyle Shoes|
What reviewers are saying
After all, it features the famous VaporMax cushioning technology of Nike which delivers a lightweight and superior Air cushioned feel. The slip-on design from the Japanese fashion label also makes it quick and comfortable wear. Numerous reviewers are impressed with the premium looks and stable build of the collaboration between Nike and the Japanese fashion label Comme des Garcons. The Flyknit upper of the CDG x NikeLab VaporMax sneaker keeps the lightweight approach in shoe manufacturing by replacing stitched or glued panels with woven and ultralight yarn. A few users noted how tight the shoes felt on foot especially on the tongue part. Several buyers shared that copping a pair of this limited edition collaboration is worth its $335 price tag because of its fresh and modern design. You can purchase Comme des Garcons x NikeLab VaporMax shoes here.
Regarding comfort, almost all of the reviews posted online were commending the VaporMax sole and the Flyknit upper as it is incredibly comfortable. Some commenters find it outrageous that some buyers are willing to spend more for an expensive shoe like the CDG x NikeLab VaporMax. Many sneaker collectors and retailers love this limited edition sneaker as it sells out fast when resold and can be an excellent pair to keep as part of the Air Max collection.
Positive reviews were recorded on the durability of the Flyknit material used on the slip-on upper as it does not wear out quickly or show signs of tearing. The shoe has a sock-like fit starting from the collar keeping the feet snug all throughout with the Flyknit material. A lot of reviewers noted how light the Comme des Garcons x NikeLab VaporMax sneaker is to the foot with its full cushioning from the VaporMax sole and the light materials of the laceless upper. Many people think that the $330 price per pair is too steep.
Where to buy Comme des Garcons x NikeLab VaporMax: You can buy Nike Comme des Garcons x NikeLab VaporMax on Amazon.
A good number of customers noted how much they liked the blacked-out colorway that is minimalist but appears luxurious. Quite a lot of critics were impressed by the durability of the VaporMax air unit as it can stand the heavy pressure and wear from coming into contact with hard surfaces without being punctured. A few style-conscious commenters noted how the sneaker would stand out and make heads turn whenever they don a pair of Comme des Garcons x NikeLab VaporMax sneakers. Serious sneaker fans were amazed at how responsive and flexible the Vapormax sole is to movements making their every step stable and well protected. Quick slip on and off the sneaker convinced many to buy these shoes. Minimalist design appealed to some customers who love the lace-less design and monochromatic color scheme.
Comme des Garcons x NikeLab VaporMax Colorways
Please note our product recommendations are guided solely by our editors. We have no relationship with manufacturers. Commerce content is independent of Editorial and Advertising, and if you buy something through this post, we may get a small share of the sale.


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Scott Bateman is a professional journalist who has traveled extensively all through the Caribbean. Small group journey is not just new locations, it’s new perspectives. It is the stories you hear and the friendships you forge, the ones that stick with you long after you have returned home. Our travellers come from all walks of life; it is the place they’re going that unites them. Improbable! Sometime, I will come and go to one among these beautiful islands. For now, I am going to benefit from the views out of your hub. Contained in the cities buses and street automobiles are each frequent (with service every 5 to 10 minutes in some places) and low cost. I do not recall the exact value nevertheless it was just a few rubles per trip.
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This is one thing I have always needed to do myself. I feel I’m touring Europe this winter. Perhaps I am going to strive your route out subsequent yr. Haven’t actually ever been down that means. Great lens! Earlier than touring with a back condition, it is crucial you contact your doctor or healthcare provider to see if you’re safe to journey. Do not journey in opposition to your physician’s advice. SUPERB page. I stay in Phoenix, Arizona and the I-10 cuts right by way of the middle of the town. We have positively traveled to some attention-grabbing places alongside the I-10 too, and also you’re dead on on this article once you say it’s nicely definitely worth the journey.
This luxuriant journey blanket set is from a thicker quality silk that is simple to carry round. The silk is thicker and fewer delicate than what you’d normally find, so it travels effectively. With so many security points now to be anxious about when one goes on a visit, this travel pockets permits your ladies associates to tour places with their passport and cash safe with them. I have recognized of girls whose purses had been snatched by guys on motorbikes right in front of their resorts. This happened to a lady who stayed in the hotel the place we were. Sadly, the subsequent morning, it again happened to her.

domain: travel


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Is Gender Bias a Key Player in SSSAS Sports?
By Chumani Chamberlain '21
October 2018 Issue
The days following the controversial 2018 U.S Open tennis women’s finals between Serena Williams and Naomi Osaka included concerning questions on the state of tennis, and double standards towards women players, and the bias presented towards female athletes on a daily basis. This controversial event prompted a question within St. Stephen's St. Agnes: is there gender bias within sports at the SSSAS level?
Instead of answering “yes” or “no” to this question, it may be worthwhile to explore all opinions and to grasp and understand various perspectives. After conducting a recent survey sent out to the entire student body, it is evident that our school community has different opinions on potential gender bias within sports at the SSSAS level. In response to the question “Do you believe there is gender bias in sports at the SSSAS level?” 36% of the 134 respondents answered that there is gender bias, while 29% said they do not believe there is a gender bias, and 34% said they are not sure there is gender bias surrounding SSSAS sports.
The survey also asked about six specific sports; basketball, tennis, lacrosse, soccer, softball, and baseball. Out of 134 responses, 35.8% of respondents said they would rather see a girls tennis match over the 19.4% who said they would rather see a boys tennis match.
Respondents also had the choice to choose “neither” or “both” when giving their opinion on if they would rather see a girls sport or a boys sport. When asked if they would rather see a girls basketball game or a boys basketball game, 72.4% said boys while only 3% said they would rather see a girls basketball game.
When asked if they would rather see a boys soccer game or a girls soccer game, 37.3% of respondents said they would rather see boys, while 19.4% of respondents said they would prefer to see a girls soccer game. Forty-one% of respondents said they would rather see a boys baseball game over the 18.7% who said they would rather see a girls softball game. Overall tennis was the only question where respondents preferred to see girls competing.
In addition to the survey, three students from our community gave their opinion on the presence of gender bias, how it came to be, possible solutions, and personal impact.
Sophomore varsity field hockey player Elinor West stated there is a gender bias among students within SSSAS sports: “I think there is a stereotype that boys games are more exciting to watch or more aggressive whereas girls game are equally excited and aggressive.” When asked how she believes this bias developed, West said “I think this bias is a century-long thing....it just became a long-standing tradition to go to men's games because women were not given those opportunities.”
Senior wrestler and golfer, Garrett Chiaramonte is adamant there is gender bias surrounding SSSAS sports: ”I think there is gender bias in everything, but whether or not we can do anything about that is the question. When people watch sports they want to see peak performance in the sports we enjoy watching, that's the goal of watching sports.” He explains how “women’s sports can be just as much or more entertaining than men's sports, or what I personally believe at least. I think it's unfair to say that women athletes aren't as fun to watch because they can't be that elite level but they easily could be or more.” Garrett goes on to explain the “vicious cycle” that surrounds women's sports. However, he is “not entirely sure how to break it, but it can be broken.”
Freshman female baseball player Joan O’Connell described her experience on boys baseball teams during her seventh- and eighth-grade years at the Middle School. “I think there was a bias against me specifically playing baseball because I was doing something unconventional. This is understandable, but inexcusable” Joan stated. “On the team, I definitely noticed a bias in the other players...and I got the impression that the other players didn't value me as much as they should have.”
Gender bias within sports is demonstrated at many levels. That could be the lack of accessibility to watch an NBA (National Basketball Association) game or a WNBA (Women's National Basketball Association) game, or the number of people who attend a girls’ high school sporting event versus a boys’. While various platforms throughout the nation and world work to change perspectives and ongoing bias’, SSSAS Athletic Directors Coach Koroma and Coach Walrich work to continue to build a successful athletic program while promoting all sports equally.
When asked if she believes in a gender bias surrounding SSSAS sports, Coach Koroma stated, “I think there is also a large core that doesn’t exhibit that bias and values each of them equally and would want to go to a girls game equally as much as they would want to go to boys game regardless of sport.”
However, Coach Koroma also believes “there are pockets of students that demonstrate some sort of gender bias particularly towards females...I think it was a trickle-down from years and years and years of women having less opportunity...A lot of those gender inequalities still exist at the professional level: women still don't get paid as much as men.”
Similarly, Coach Walrich stated “ That [The presence of gender bias] is definitely possible. I think that could be natural. I think from an outsider's perspective looking in and seeing the Sleepy Thompson tournament, which is a boys tournament which gets tons and tons of people [compared to] the girls tournament which is right before. Might not get the same fanfare as Sleepy would.”
Since his arrival three years ago, Coach Walrich has implemented graphics within the athletics program. He has lifted the SSSAS social media platform to ensure all sports and all genders receive an equal amount of representation. “When we do graphics and social media stuff I am conscious to make sure not one sport or not one gender gets the majority of post[s].....we really try to make sure there is an even amount.”
Coach Walrich’s focus is to ensure there is fairness regarding all sports and although he is the athletic director for boys, he is a firm believer “that if there's a graphic for a boys team there should be a graphic for a girls team; I just think that's fair.” With a daughter of his own, his “hope [is that] she gets into athletics, but I think there is this perception out there that guys sports are the only thing that matter.”
Both coaches believe we have made significant steps in recent years changing
students perceptions within girls sports. “We’ve obviously made tons of progress,” Coach Koroma says. “There is still a certain perception that still exists in the media and from people who are older that grew up with a different experience that women's sports are not as good because maybe they perceive them as not being faster or not being as strong or just not getting the same popularity in terms of viewership whether that's actually watching on TV or people actually attending contest and I think you see at every level.....but if you look at actual people attending games it is lower on the female side than it is on the men's side despite several groups trying to counteract that message.” Last year SSSAS hosted a “Big Week of Basketball,” beginning with the Girls Tip-Off Basketball Tournament and ending the week with the Sleepy Thompson Boys Basketball Tournament. With a joint program and one large week there were many positive responses, “I think we made headway when we combined the program...what we heard was that it was a positive change,” Coach Walrich said. “For me, it wasn't a girl or boy event, it was an athletic event.”
The Voice survey also included a section where students were able to share their opinions on why they believe there is or is not gender bias surrounding SSSAS sports. Some students who answered “maybe” stated, “I feel like boys Football is super hyped, even though some girls teams have a better record than them.” Another student expressed how “People are more hype for football games and boys lacrosse games.”
Students who answered “Yes” to the question about the presence of gender bias
at SSSAS explained, “People sometimes find men's sports more engaging to watch.” Another student said, “Because although there is a lot of hype around both genders, people don’t like watching girls sports as much because they think the ‘skill level’ would not be as high as exhibited in the boy’s games”.
Students who answered “No” expressed their opinion by stating “I believe people just want to see the games that they are most interesting and have the most action. This can depend on friends playing or just the amount of action or the pace of the game.” Another student explained how “both genders are well represented and the games are equally hyped up.”
This year, the athletic department has created a campaign called “One Saint.” This motto not only demonstrates the core values of our community, but emphasizes that we are individuals who all come together to be something amazing.
“There should be no difference between how a girls or a boys team should be supported or marketed,” said Coach Koroma. “There is no reason why someone shouldn't find equal enjoyment going to watch a girls volleyball game, versus a boys football game, versus a cross-country race, or a swim meet. You guys are all athletes who are putting in the same amount of effort, who have different skill sets, but who have the same work ethic. And we want to make sure that, at least from our perspective, that we are promoting things equally and not only caring about football or not only caring about boys sports, but making sure we are caring about all the different sports as much as possible.” - Girls Athletic Director Coach Koroma
As Coach Walrich said, “There's still a perception out there we can help change.”


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Journey into the world of Stone Harbor, New Jersey, where Camille Pickett is struggling with big changes. Her partner Bridget has died, leaving Camille with grief and a small bungalow she inherited. It’s July, the height of the season, and families are returning to Stone Harbor, setting up umbrellas and chairs on the sand, and board games and jigsaw puzzles on the porches of their beach houses — as they have for generations. But Stone Harbor is changing, too; beloved old vacation homes are disappearing. And in their place come new people with new ideas about Stone Harbor and its value. But rather than deal with the bungalow, Camille is drawn into the troubles of two young people she meets, Bridget’s niece Erin and a young cyclist from Baltimore, Owen Morton. What ensues is her questioning of many aspects of her life, including the meaning of family, and how love can endure conflict, illness, and addiction.
Madeleine Mysko is the author of two novels, Bringing Vincent Home and Stone Harbor Bound. Her poetry, reviews, essays, and short fiction have been published widely in literary journals that include Shenandoah, Commonweal, River Styx, and The Hudson Review. As a peace and justice activist, she has also contributed op-ed pieces to venues including The Baltimore Sun and The Veteran. Born and raised in Baltimore, Mysko served in the Army Nurse Corps during the Vietnam War, an experience out of which she wrote her first novel, Bringing Vincent Home. She received a bachelor’s degree in English from Rosemont College, and master’s degrees from both The Writing Seminars of The Johns Hopkins University and The George Washington University.
Hiroshi Kono is eight years old and just beginning to question the racial and economic inequities he sees around him when he and his family, along with 120,000 other Japanese Americans, are packed off to a concentration camp run by the US military. The Arizona desert in which Hiroshi and his family find themselves is a harsh and barren world that sets sibling against sibling, parent against child, and neighbor against neighbor. Whether describing Hiroshi’s tumultuous coming of age or excavating the generational grievances exacerbated by internment, Gene Oishi gives heartbreaking and at times humorous context to the post-war decades of a family set adrift by its wartime experiences. In Fox Drum Bebop, Oishi weaves together Hiroshi’s story with those of his family members and community to create a densely textured portrait of the physical and psychological displacement brought about over time by the forced incarceration of Japanese Americans.
Gene Oishi, former Washington and foreign correspondent for The Baltimore Sun, has written articles on the Japanese American experience for The New York Times Magazine, The Washington Post, Newsweek and West Magazine. His memoir, In Search of Hiroshi, was published in 1988. Now retired, he lives in Baltimore with his wife, Sabine.
TIME & DATE
Tuesday, August 4, 2015 - 7:00pm


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In the White House driveway Tuesday morning, Trump’s chief of staff, Mark Meadows, was asked about the spontaneous surge in contributions to Democrats since Republicans announced, 80 minutes after the first report of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s death, that they would ram through a replacement.
“I’ve heard the reports of Democrat fundraising going through the roof because of this particular event,” Meadows said, using Republicans’ bastardized name for the Democratic Party. He called it “very sad” and concluded: “But that just shows you, at this particular time in history, we have a very divisive electorate.”
A divisive electorate? No, we have a divisive president. The voters aren’t divisive.
Perhaps Meadows misspoke and meant “divided.” But the electorate isn’t that, either. There is partisan polarization, but voters aren’t really divided on the issues. They simply don’t like what Trump is doing.
This isn’t the first time Team Trump has blamed voters. Back in 2015, when Ben Carson was surging in the Iowa Republican caucuses, Trump said Iowans were fools for believing a personal story Carson told. “How stupid are the people of Iowa?” Trump asked. “How stupid are the people of the country to believe this crap?”
The American people are not stupid, and they are not with Trump. The “silent majority” Trump often refers to is in fact a boisterous minority artificially amplified by the electoral college, the Senate’s structure, gerrymandering and the Supreme Court’s rollback of voting rights. Trump lost the popular vote by 3 million in 2016 and he has been below 50 percent public approval for his entire presidency. He trails Joe Biden badly in nationwide polling, and his campaign strategy indicates he isn’t even contesting the popular vote.
And what of the Senate majority, which now claims to be fulfilling a mandate from the American people? Senate Republicans received 18 million fewer votes than Democrats in 2018, and 10 million fewer votes in 2016.
Vast majorities of Americans are concerned about the coronavirus, support the mandatory wearing of masks and say they avoid crowds. Trump mocks mask-wearing, holds mass rallies and boasts about playing down the virus. Monday he falsely said covid-19 “affects virtually nobody” under 18. Meanwhile, The Post reports, his Pentagon spent $1 billion of pandemic-relief funds on military hardware.
Americans overwhelmingly oppose choosing a new justice now. A Reuters/Ipsos poll finds 62 percent, including half of Republicans, saying the winner of the election in six weeks should make the choice.
But Trump on Tuesday shared radio provocateur Rush Limbaugh’s call for a nominee to be confirmed without even holding hearings. And Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell brazenly reversed his pious defense of the voters four years ago. Back then, when he refused to consider an Obama nominee more than eight months before the election, he said: “The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court justice.”
Nearly 90 percent of Americans, of all stripes, have pleaded for more civility from public officials. Yet this week, Trump attacked Ginsburg’s granddaughter three days after the justice’s death and claimed that Democratic leaders had ghostwritten Ginsburg’s dying wishes. Trump also celebrated the “beautiful thing” of authorities shooting a television correspondent with a rubber bullet at a nonviolent protest.
Most Americans disapprove of Trump’s handling of the pandemic. Trump gives himself an “A-plus.”
Two-thirds of Americans have at least a fair amount of trust in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Trump and political appointees have attacked the CDC director’s remarks about vaccines, attempted to edit the CDC’s scientific bulletins and accused CDC scientists of “sedition.” Now the CDC has retracted (correct) information it had posted three days earlier warning about airborne viral spread.
About three-quarters of Americans believe citizens should be allowed to vote by mail — even after Trump tried for months to undermine it as fraudulent.
Americans favor the continuation of enhanced unemployment benefits and pandemic aid to states. Trump and his allies demanded cuts to the former and refused the latter.
More than 8 in 10 Americans insist that Obamacare’s protections for those with preexisting conditions remain in place. Yet the Supreme Court is poised to invalidate Obamacare, at Trump’s request, including protections for preexisting conditions. Obamacare may well go down because of the vote of the new justice that Republicans plan to jam through to confirmation against the wishes of the American people.
Don’t blame the voters, Mr. President. Blame yourself.

domain: politics