text:
My Dad, Doug Powell
My dad didn’t tell me how to live a life of courage and integrity. He showed me, in how he lived his.
When I was nine, and my siblings four and fourteen, he left the appliance service company he worked for to go into business for himself. With a wife and three kids to support, it took a lot of guts to forego a predictably steady income to branch out on his own, but he thought he could make a success of it and he did. He loved fixing appliances, but he wouldn’t do it evenings or weekends. Those times were for his family. He ran “Powell Appliance Service” out of our station wagon, with my stay-at-home mom acting as his answering service. He earned his customers’ loyalty by dealing with them honestly and with respect. He could have earned more than he did on the calls he made to their homes, but he wasn’t about making as much money as possible, just doing the best job he could (of everything he undertook to do), and he earned enough to provide his family with a good home, a cottage, and opportunities for a little travel.
My dad’s example helped give me the courage to make a go of living the financially unpredictable but independent life as a freelance writer. His area is things mechanical and mine words, but his example of learning by doing – some I witnessed and some I heard about in the stories he told of his life before I came along – taught me that I could do that too, learn by doing. So I could say that he’s at least partly responsible for the fact that my body of work spans many genres.
My dad was handy around the house when we were growing up, and after my sister and I married men who were not, he continued doing odd jobs for us: fixing our appliances, of course, or a leaky tap, installing a dimmer switch, or building a deck. He still takes being a helpful dad seriously. Just the other day, he came to my house and replaced a kitchen tap. He’ll be 84 years old this spring, but there he was, on his back with his head under my sink, reaching up into the dark with his tools while I held the flashlight. If only my ability to write could be of some use to my kids! (Well, they have been featured in some of my books; perhaps that’s something?)
Still living independently, my dad volunteers for the Red Cross, delivering Meals on Wheels to shut-ins twice a week, sometimes three times a week when they need someone to fill in on short notice. He has been doing that for thirteen years. Golf season is about to start up soon and he’s keen to get back out on the course. I hope that when I’m in my eighties, I’ll be as resourceful, active, and as unselfish as he is.
Part of his being a good dad to me and my sibs was being a good husband to our mother. In one of my favourite photos of them together, they are dancing and laughing. (Was it on the occasion of my brother’s wedding, when I didn’t know yet that I was expecting my first child, and their first grandchild, who would later be born on my father’s birthday? I think so.) When my mother’s health began to fail, he took care of her in their home for as long as he could. She lived in a chronic care facility for the last seven years of her life, most of them in a private room. This meant, for my dad, living pretty frugally and eventual concern about whether his savings would support him through his old age, but he wouldn’t have had it any other way.
After my mom died, my dad had the good fortune to have a wonderful friend and companion to share his days with, a lovely Scottish woman who made him laugh again and kept him young. Sadly, he lost her to cancer last year, but he was her best friend and he kept her company on her long and difficult journey. He faced that loss, too, with courage because “you have to”.
It seems I have not inherited my dad’s patience with the frail or ailing, but I am hoping, still, to learn it from his example. And I hope that as I face more and more the loss of loved ones, that I can do it with the same strength of spirit that helps my dad go on living his life.
I used to think my dad would live forever. I began to face the reality that he won’t three years ago, when he had his first small stroke. He has lived and is still living a good life, a life he can be proud of. He embraces life fully each day, especially on days when the morning sun streams into his apartment, but the thought of passing in his sleep does not frighten him. I wish for my dad a peaceful passing when his time comes, but I hope his health will hold and he’ll be with me for a good long time yet. I take comfort in knowing that in some ways, he will be with me always.
Kathy Stinson is the author of the classic Red Is Best and the award-winning The Man with the Violin. Her wide range of titles includes picture books, non-fiction, young adult fiction, historical fiction, horror, biography, series books, and short stories. She has met with her readers in every province and territory of Canada, in the United States, Britain, Liberia, and Korea. She lives in a small town in Ontario.
What a great picture! And a beautiful tribute! I'm jealous as my own dad died when he was only 65 (I was 43). Hope you'll have a chance to create lots more memories together – nice visual re the plumbing/flashlight.
Thanks Jan. The pic was taken about 20 years ago. I'm lucky to be able to see my dad pretty regularly and we're looking forward to some more time at PJ this summer. I'm sorry you lost your dad when he was so young, and hope my post reminded you of some of your fondest memories of him.
Lovely portrait of a loving family man.
Thank you, Sharon.
Love to you, Kathy, as you begin this next stage of life without your dad present on earth. This story of admiration and appreciation reveals the love you and your dad shared. This beacon of being that he lived and modelled to you and your siblings is an amazing guide, and look at how he has tremendously influenced you! Thank you for telling this story of your dad, your family, as it provides encouragement and a reminder of how magnificently profound, yet simple, being kind and having loving kindness for self and others is, to relating and being a decent human being. Beautiful tribute to your father.
Thank you for taking the time to read this, Sandy, and for your lovely comment. Thanks. All best to you.
This is a lovely tribute to your dad. How lucky you have been to have your father in your life for so long. I was only 26 when I lost mine Kathy. The memories remain strong today just as they will for you too. May I offer my condolences for your loss! Your gift is painting pictures with your words. Cherish them!!
Thank you for taking the time to read this, Hilde. I’m glad to know your memories of your dad remain strong, even after so many years without his physical presence in your life. And thank you for your kind words too. All best to you.
A beautiful tribute. thinking of you.
Thank you for reading it, Allan, and for your thoughts.
Dear Kathy, you have given us all beautiful moments with your father. You speak of his teaching by doing, and I think you have taught us the same way. I send you lots of love in this difficult time.
Peggy, thank you for reading and responding as you have. What you’ve said means a lot to me.
My deepest sympathy to you and your family, Kathy. This is a wonderful tribute. Your father’s courage and patience are inspiring.
Indeed they are. Thank you, Sarah.
I see I commented originally, all those years ago, but I enjoyed this even more with your dad’s recent passing. I still tear up thinking about my dad, 15 years later. Fathers are so important to daughters! Hope you and Peter are well.
Thanks for reading this again, Jan. I’m glad you still think of your dad. I know mine will be with me too, for years to come, even in his absence.
He sounds like a very special father. I’m sorry for your loss, Kathy.
Thank you Zoom. (I wonder who you really are. I have a feeling I should know.)


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|Reviews for skin|
| Little girl Big world chapter 1 . 8/6/2009
"of getting our of my car and facing you,"
-our is supposed to be out
I really liked this piece. Very raw and real emotions displayed in this.
| mezzie chapter 1 . 7/30/2009
The battle of desire and disgust in this is very nice. You somehow manage to make it serious and just tinged with the edge of hurt and yet still humourous and frustrated. I love the realism and that there's no shying from writing the truth as you see and feel it.
| KelaBelle chapter 1 . 7/29/2009
Lovely Poem XOXO

domain: artistic


As the UK walks away from the EU I feel a tinge of sadness at how this unnecessary breakup managed to materialise.
Having collaborated on behalf of the UK public sector with EU counterparts for many years I look back at that period with a degree of satisfaction knowing that member countries benefited greatly from our efforts. Lives were saved in more ways than one.
But the UK has spoken, Boris Johnson has acted and now we move on.
Well done Nigel Farage and the media fraternity for pulling off this British caper. Tony Blair, this BREXIT drama is on you due to your stubbornness as PM. Now the UK’s fortunes is in the hands of Donald Trump.
But what I would say to CARICOM (Caribbean Community) leaders is that the UK’s exit from the EU could be a blessing. CARICOM leaders should seriously consider lobbying the EU to become associate members; just as the likes of Israel, Tunisia and a host of other nations have successfully done.
The Commonwealth has long been a glorified talk shop where the UK, Canada, New Zealand and Australia have been dismissive of the other members’ interests. Time for CARICOM to take steps to strengthen links with the EU that benefits both parties.
This is a fitting moment for CARICOM leaders to look beyond the usual US, UK and Canadian belt for greater access to free movement of goods, services, capital and people.
As we have seen recently the Trump administration continues to play mind games in the region to divide CARICOM over policies relating to Cuba and Venezuela.
Such a lobbying approach by CARICOM to the EU may seem far-fetched but you just never know. If CARICOM leaders can charm the key personnel in Brussels, Paris and Bonn then some form of progressive deal could be in the works.
Remember, CARICOM’s Guyana has oil and gas; lots of it and that could be a useful bargaining chip going forward.


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Latest Clinical research Stories
Phase 3 Clinical Trial in Uncontrolled Persistent Asthma Underway TARRYTOWN, N.Y. and PARIS, May 18, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
COSTA MESA, Calif., May 18, 2015 /PRNewswire-iReach/ -- California CRO WCCT Global recently completed a study on elderly subjects
PHILADELPHIA, May 18, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Lannett Company, Inc. (NYSE: LCI) today announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire privately held, Silarx Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
Long-term OFEV treatment in the INPULSIS® extension study reinforces the safety and tolerability profile for up to 33 months in patients with IPF RIDGEFIELD, Conn., May 18, 2015 /PRNewswire/
ROCKVILLE, Md., May 15, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- TissueGene, Inc. announced today that it has reached an agreement with the U.S.
SOUTH PLAINFIELD, N.J., May 15, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- PTC Therapeutics, Inc.
Essential Compliance Services Provide Regulatory Teams with Expert Consulting, Deep Data on 52 Nations, Individual Country Reports, Database Access and E-Learning PRINCETON, N.J., May 15, 2015
BETHESDA, Md., May 14, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Parenteral Drug Association (PDA) today is pleased to announce that Robert Califf, MD, U.S.
Conference call to be held on Thursday, May 14, 2015 at 4:30 p.m. Eastern Time BOTHELL, Wash.
The role of the patient - and user-friendly technology at the point-of-care - are becoming increasingly important to industry's transition to value-based care, says chief medical officer DUBLIN,
- Stoppage; cessation (of labor).
- A standing still or idling (of mills, factories, etc.).

domain: news


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The books in the Great Planet Earth series bring to life the most dramatic and diverse natural landscapes on Earth. Great Barrier Reef tells you all about the geography, people, climate and wildlife of this rich and fascinating coral habitat, and highlights the conservation work that is being done to keep it as wonderful as it is.
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Thales Expands Biometric Screening Program at Madrid Airport
Thales is increasing the scope of its biometric screening pilot at the Adolfo Suarez Madrid-Barajas Airport in Madrid. The company first launched the pilot in November of 2019, allowing Iberia Airlines passengers to pass through security checkpoints with only a facial recognition scan. That pilot was carried out in collaboration with Iberia, IECISA, and Gunnebo, as well as the AENA airports authority, which operates the Adolfo Suarez Airport.
Thales Expands Biometric Screening Program at MAD Airport.
The expanded program, on the other hand, is a collaboration between AENA, Iberia, Thales, and Inetum, the latter of which acquired IECISA in April of 2020. Thales will be providing the facial recognition technology for the trial, while Inetum will act as the system integrator and AENA will be the go-between for the airline and the biometric engine itself.
The goal is to streamline the passenger journey while reducing the need for physical contact at airport checkpoints. Doing so will improve the travel experience and lead to better health and safety outcomes for passengers and airport staff during the COVID-19 pandemic.
To that end, airport operators will use mobile tablets to perform biometric scans of Iberia passengers. Those tablets have been outfitted with an improved facial recognition algorithm that can identify people wearing masks, so passengers will not need to remove their masks (and risk COVID-19 exposure) to complete the screening process. Meanwhile, the fact that the tablets are portable means that the airport will be able to move the tablets around to cover more gates with a smaller number of devices.
The various parties are also planning to use the trial to conduct research and development. In that regard, the project has the backing of Spain’s Industrial Technology Development Centre (CDTI), which is hoping that it will lead to the creation of new technologies that can support the country’s ongoing digital transformation. Any features that do emerge from the project will eventually be consolidated into a single application to deliver a unified screening process.
Thales has previously argued that airports should use facial recognition to enforce social distancing guidelines. The company has also partnered with NHS Scotland to test temperature detection technology that can spot people with a fever in a crowd.


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By NS Desk | Health News | Posted on : 12-Apr-2020
Imphal/Guwahati, April 12 (IANS) There is good news from Manipur, where a 23-year-old woman, who had returned from the UK last month and become the first positive coronavirus case in the entire northeastern region, was now declared completely free of the dreaded virus and returned home from the hospital on Sunday.
Chief Minister N. Biren Singh, in a tweet, said : "Thank God.Thanks to all the doctors and staff of JNIMS with folded hands. The first COVID-19 infected girl (name) of Imphal has been discharged from hospital today (Sunday). Let's stay safe, let's stay at home."
The woman underwent treatment of around three weeks at the Jawaharlal Nehru Institute of Medical Sciences in Imphal.
Manipur Health and Family Welfare Department's Additional Director and spokesperson Khoirom Sasheekumar Mangang told IANS over phone that the woman would be put under home quarantine for next 14 days.
"Her family members, especially the father were counselled by a team led by a State Surveillance Officer," the official said.
Mangang said that 19 close contacts of a person, who left Manipur on March 12 and tested positive in Bengaluru on April 8, are tested negative in Imphal's Regional Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS).
Besides the 23-year-old woman, another 65-year-old man from Lilong, near Imphal, had tested positive for nCoV and is undergoing treatment now at the RIMS. The man had attended the Tablighi Jamaat event at the Nizamuddin Markaz in Delhi.
The Manipur Chief Minister earlier announced that the state government was actively considering cash incentives or awards to those who are working in the frontline, including doctors and nurses.
Of the total 34 positive cases, found so far in five northeastern states -- Assam (28), Manipur (2), Tripura (2), Mizoram (1) and Arunachal Pradesh (1), 28 took part in a Tablighi Jamaat meet in Delhi last month.
A Mizoram man tested positive last month after he returned from the Netherlands while a 52-year-old trader in Assam's Kamrup (Metro) district has also tested positive for coronavirus. Both of them undergoing treatment in medical colleges in Aizawl and Guwahati respectively.
Are you an Ayurveda doctor? Download our App from Google PlayStore now!
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Image Gallery: 2009 g8
Update indicator in the Search Console is now clicklable
The users have noticed that the update indicator in Google Search Console report became clickable.
Under indicator we should understand the vertical line with the word «Update».
From now on when one clicks on «Update» button the user will be moved to the Data Anomalies section that contains information about the update. Before, in order to find out the details of update, you had to go to the Help Search Console, find the page and the right section, focusing on the change date.
Google works on narrowing the fake news given in the search results
Google is working on improving the algorithm, where the block "Breaking News" in the search results is based. The company's goal is to promote better news resources and deleting phishing web news.
Earlier this month, the head of Google, Sundar Pichai, was interviewed by BBC and he told that the search engine aims to reduce the probability of dissemination of untrue news to zero.
About two years ago Google made an access to the block of the main news for all publishers, not just Google News sources. As a result, the publications of Twitter, Reddit, YouTube, Hacker News, and low quality content blog started appearing in the search results. After starting the AMP the access became even easier since these websites are adopting the new format so fast, therefore more and more news appear in the search results.
Although the websites are approved by Google News, they quite often publish low quality content, that do not meet certain criteria. At the same time the "Breaking News" block does not require any criteria.
We should remind you that in October Google News began to mark the checked articles.
Another executive leaves Twitter
Twitter Vice President in partnership with Rishi Jaitly said he is leaving the company. He was in charge for such regions as Asia-Pacific, Middle East and North Africa.
According to Jaitly, the reason why he is leaving is his desire to "move towards new opportunities."
The top manager commented on Twitter:
"We are so grateful to Rishi Jaitly for his contribution to the entrepreneurial spirit and leadership he demonstrated during the 4 years working for Twitter. Thanks to him we were able to enter the fast-growing Indian market. Jaitly helped to launch and develop Twitter in the new countries. He has also successfully developed partnerships with the media in the Asia-Pacific region and the Middle East."
Before becoming a part of Twitter Jaitly was the head of the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, and served as director of development of relations with partners in the Google India.
We should remind you that earlier this year other four executives announced their resignation: the Product vice president Kevin Weil, Vice President of Engineering Alex Rotter, the head of media Katie Stanton and Vice-President of Human Resources Brian Schipper.
It became known that another two key executives are leaving Twitter: the vice-president of global business development and platform Jana Messerschmidt and vice president of Commerce Nathan Hubbard.
Twitter again lost its Product CEO in June.
In July it became known that the vice president of media partnership in North America, Kirstin Stewart, is also planning to leave the company.
Seo Facts #134
Facebook reports 45+ million small and medium businesses using Facebook Pages as of Q3 2015. (Source: TechCrunch)
Seo Facts #36
30% of companies outsource their paid search advertising, and 28% do so for display advertising. (MediaPost)
Seo Facts #135
Facebook had 167 million daily active users (DAUs) in the US and Canada as of Q3 2015, with 1.01 billion daily users worldwide. (Source: TechCrunch)


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Steven Warner and Keisa Monterola are crowned as conference champions in 60-meter hurdles and pole vault, respectively
Both the Eastern Washington University men’s and women’s 4x400 relay teams had record-breaking days Saturday (Feb. 25) as the Big Sky Conference Indoor Track and Field Championships concluded at the Walkup Skydome in Flagstaff, Ariz. Individually, Steven Warner and Keisa (KAY-suh) Monterola – who won Most Outstanding Athlete honors -- won titles as EWU’s men finished third and the women placed eighth.
The men’s team of Collin Green, Michael Okoro, Brad Michael and Brad Wall broke the 22-year-old school record en route to a conference championship with a time of 3:11:04. The women’s relay team of Whitney Leavitt, Nicole Nida, Angelica Rodriguez and Chelsea Lawhead finished in second place, breaking the women’s 12-year-old EWU record, with a time of 3:46.77.
“Both relays shined bright today,” said men’s head coach Stan Kerr, who also saw Michael and and Wall finished 2-3 in the individual 400 finals. “Brad Michael just put on a display of talent that shows the caliber of athletes we’re starting to attract. Brad Wall is the guy who came in and really helped get our 400-meter program established. Other athletes saw what he was doing and it caused a snowball effect to get other athletes here to run. I think it has worked out quite well for us.”
The men’s team finished third overall, with a school-record 88 points. The women finished in eighth place, scoring 45 points.
Senior Steven Warner, seeded fifth going into the championships, earned himself a conference championship in the 60-meter hurdles with a time of 8.07, winning by just one-hundredth of a second. His time also places him second all-time in Eastern history.
“Steven is someone who has been pretty fragile since the Candy Cane meet back in December, but thanks to our athletic trainer, Steven was ready to go,” said Kerr. “Steven is an extremely determined individual who wants to win. His energy and enthusiasm helps our team do the same. He’s got that golden smile to match his new medal.”
Monterola continued her Big Sky record-breaking dominance in the pole vault, as she was crowned the women’s pole vault champion, breaking the conference championship record with a jump 14-2. Monterola’s jump beat out previous record holder Elouise Rudy of Montana State (14-1 1/4, 2008). Her performance earned her the women’s Most Outstanding Performer award. Eastern teammate Robin Taylor also scored in the women’s vault, as she placed sixth with a jump of 12-05 1/2.
“Keisa's victory, meet record and award were great honors for her and our program,” said women’s head coach Marcia Mecklenburg.
Michael improved on the school record he set in the 400 in Friday’s preliminaries, as he placed second in the finals with a time of 46.97. Wall finished third in 47.07. Michael also earned all-conference honors in the 200, finishing third with a time of 21.63.
Senior Kersee Lind was named all-conference after placing third in the heptathlon, as he broke his own school record for the third time this season, scoring 5,222 points.
“Kersee has been in that record-breaking mode all season,” said Kerr. “He had two extremely talented guys he had to compete against, but he did a great job. His record will hold for a long time.”
Phillip Puccino also gave an all-conference performance, as he placed third in the triple jump with a distance of 46-10.
Leavitt scored in both the 60- and 200-meter dashes, placing sixth and fifth, respectively.
Other scorers include Okoro (fifth in the 200), Cody Fishel (sixth place in the high jump), Tim Armstrong (seventh in the heptathlon), Marlyn Anderson (sixth in the shot put), Kyle King (fourth in the 3,000), Morena Mannucci (seventh in the triple jump) and Shene Davis (eighth in the triple jump).
“Eighth place by our team was pretty disappointing, but the school record in the women's relay was a huge performance for our crew,” said Mecklenburg. “It was a great way to end the indoor championship.”
“It was a tremendous team effort from all the event areas,” added Kerr. “It’s that collective effort you always talk about and hope for, and to see it come to life is amazing. I love what we did and who we did it with. It’s a joy to be with this group and see this kind of performance.”


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Somebody Else *Harry One Shot*
“Hey Kourtney and Betty, I love your page!! I was just wondering if you could write a little something with the storyline of The 1975’s Somebody Else please? Think it would be a good concept. Thank youuu”
I haven’t wrote anything in a while so please be patient until I get back into writing! But I hope this one isn’t too shit but I hope you like it! Please send me requests if you have any ideas for my next one shot xxx
The last time I had seen Y/N was last year when we broke up, and something was always in my mind about her, did I regret leaving her? Absolutely. She was the only person who could read me like a book and show me what it is like to be normal and not someone who is famous. Y/N was my everything and to me losing her was the worst thing that could have ever happened to me. When I got this role in the movie I felt like it was wrong for her to stay with someone that has a boyfriend that she wouldn’t see for most of their relationship. But leaving her was killing me but I knew that’s what I had to do. I could never tell Y/N how I felt because I know it would of hurt her more. It still kills me to think that she is hurting and knowing that I was the one that broke her heart, I just cant deal with that emotion.
It was my dads birthday party at home, and I always make sure I am there for it regardless of where I’m at in the world, I always take time out for family 100%, but it was something that me and Y/N done every year together and I couldn’t imagine seeing her today and not being the girl that I used to know and love. It will kill me. And if she has moved on with someone else that makes her happy, that’s all I want.


Here's a comparison video that illustrates what we're talking about. What we've done here is to capture the Xbox 360 and the PC builds, both running at 1080p. The difference is obvious - the 360 is upscaling its 608p output up to 1080p. Indeed there are two scaling processes in effect: first up, the native resolution gets scaled to 720p, the HUD elements are added and then the Xenos GPU upscales everything again, this time to 1080p. The PC version operates differently of course, rendering the whole scene at the native resolution.
As our video player isn't happy processing a 1080p image, here are the 1080p captures from both machines cropped down on each side to give us a 720p image, but without any downscaling - one pixel in this video is one pixel on your display. As with the console vs. PC resolution comparison, we switch between each version and provide some head-to-head action too.
The Call of Duty games are all about providing a certain type of gameplay experience, and in the case of the console versions this is delivered through compromise. By and large the cut-back elements are handled skilfully and the games are still very satisfying to play, but the ability to power past the limitations of the console games transforms the quality of the game campaign. Even if you've completed it on console, it's a highly worthwhile experience to do so again on a high-power PC. You can't help but feel that this is the way the game should be played.
However, we're not kidding when we talk about a "high power PC", with respected benchmarking sites claiming that a 2.66GHz Core 2 Quad or AMD Phenom II X4 920 is required to get a decent performance level. In terms of graphics cards, our GTX480 is clearly overkill for the game, but anything from a Radeon HD 4890 or NVIDIA GTX 260 should give good performance on high quality settings up to 1680x1050. To sustain 60FPS at 1080p, a GTX 460 or Radeon HD 5850 looks to be the best bet.
Split-screen aside, the PC version of Black Ops does everything the console games do, but when it comes to the multiplayer side of things, it is fair to say that the game is enjoying mixed fortunes. The good news is that Infinity Ward's disastrous flirtation with P2P gaming on PC has rightfully been given the heave-ho - for COD purists, the option to run with dedicated servers is back. Treyarch has opened up the multiplayer side of things this time and the "you'll get what you're given" approach Infinity Ward took with Modern Warfare 2 is thankfully a thing of the past.
The bad news is that there's a sense that multiplayer performance wasn't effectively tested before the game shipped - dual and some quad core owners got a virtually unplayable experience on the launch day, and it took Treyarch a couple of days to patch some of the issues. For us, powering through the game on a Core i7 CPU, this wasn't really an issue, but it's genuinely surprising that the biggest game of the year should be effectively broken for much of the userbase on launch day.
Another element worth bearing in mind is that Black Ops on PC is built around Valve's Steam framework. You don't need to buy the game from Steam, but you will need the client installed in order to the run the game. On the plus side, this does mean that you get access to the Steam cloud system for syncing game saves and it also means that an Achievement system is in place that mirrors the 360 and PS3 accomplishments.
Multiplayer unpleasantness aside, the PC version of Call of Duty: Black Ops delivers what we really want - the ability to enjoy the game to its fullest extent without being held back by the technical constraints of five-year-old console technology. It may well be a "console port" as some of the more vocal members of the userbase are saying, but it's one of the few multi-platform games we've seen where the developer has rewarded the player for his investment in top-end gaming hardware with core assets that easily surpass the quality of the console equivalents, and the single-player campaign mode in particular benefits greatly from the upgrades.


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Quadros de borboletas Malm drawer update - Grey stripe to match accent wall color or a shade lighter. For malm 6 drawer high chest, top drawers white with stripe as above, remaining drawers solid Grey (only drawer front)
Creative and Beautiful Wood and Mirror. This is an interesting use of wood which is twinned with a mirror. This is taking a different view to wood and allows it to merge differently within the interior.

domain: design


Student Information System Implementation Guiding Principles
The Purpose of the Guiding Principles:
- Provide direction and guidance for the implementation of student systems;
- Define the approach for delivering student information systems;
- Establish the standards of organizational behavior to support the strategic goals for student information systems.
- Decisions regarding Information systems to support student administration will be strategic business decisions, not technology driven projects. The need for technology driven projects remain and will be prioritized and supported. (e.g. upgrade to an operating system)
- All projects will be prioritized with enterprise direction and operational needs established by the governing bodies.
- Project will leverage current University investment before considering an alternative vendor or custom development.
- No modifications will be made to vendor provided base code without approval by the Executive Sponsors.
- The use of standard business processes will be implemented across campus (where possible, when fit, etc)
- When utilizing vendor solutions, the vendor provided best practices will be implemented unless the process identified provides the University a competitive advantage.
- Data will:
- be considered an asset;
- be standardized and commonly defined;
- maintain integrity across interfaces (field sizes, code values, etc)
- be captured once and quality validated at the source;
- be accessible to University staff as appropriate;
- be protected from external intrusion or unauthorized internal use.
- All ‘bolt-on’ solutions must have a cost benefit analysis completed and be evaluated by the governing bodies for implication to all project plans currently in progress or under consideration.
- The project will eliminate shadow systems when the core student system can be utilized.
- Information systems will focus on service to our customers and will maximize self-service functionality.
- Testing is a critical step in system implementations and will not be overlooked.
- Work to implement information system strategic goals will be done in a ‘silo free’ environment.
- Issues will be resolved quickly and roadblocks escalated and removed.
- Appropriate resources will be committed.
- Non participation or no response to information presented in team meetings implies agreement.
- E-mail requests to team members will include a reasonable response time (e.g. 2 working days) in the text of the email. No response implies agreement.
- All project decisions will be documented and distributed to all team members.
- Upgrades & maintenance to system modules will be completed as necessary.
- Project schedules must be met.


Dance gets a new home in Los Angeles this weekend with the first-ever Bootleg Dance Festival! The funky eastside theater housed in a 1930s warehouse is already known for its progressive plays and indie rock offerings — now it brings its cutting-edge ethos to bear on a curated lineup of contemporary choreographers.
The eclectic lineup runs the gamut from Jamie Benson’s “Mass Transit,” inspired by real-life experiences on the L.A. Metro system, to Antics Performance’s “Illuminated Manuscript,” which combines hip-hop street movement with interactive video projections. Of course, alternative rock bands will jam in the lobby lounge after each show!
Read more in my article that appears in the Los Angeles Times today!
Photo of “Mass Transit” dancers courtesy of Emily Marchand


text:
Ace Combat: Assault Horizon Latest Updates
List compiled of Games for Windows Live titles stripping client, others uncertain
While Microsoft's Games for Windows Live client is in its death rows there are many futures left uncertain, like all those GFWL infested games still out there. What becomes of them once the beast is slain? A list has been compiled by Joystiq on what's happening with various titles by publishers and studios. The future is bright for some, not so blinding for others.
Ace Combat: Assault Horizon coming to PC Q1 2013
Namco Bandai is bringing the flight arcade action of Ace Combat: Assault Horizon to PC early next year, with singleplayer, co-op and online dogfights. This is the first time it takes flight on desktops. They'll also be re-releasing Ace Combat: Assault Horizon digitally via Xbox Live and PlayStation Network. The PC version is an Enhanced Edition with controls and graphics "optimized specifically".
Rayman 3 HD, Space Marine head this week's PSN releases
This week, Rayman 3 HD, Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine and Warriors Orochi 3 head the list of games hitting PlayStation Network, along with a metric ton of downloadable content for Ace Combat: Assault Horizon.
Ace Combat Assault Horizon DLC arriving 29th November
Namco Bandai has announced that some new downloadable planes will be available next week on the 29th November for Ace Combat: Assault Horizon. The DLC contains two new planes and two reskinned planes. Each of the planes must be purchased separately.
Forza Motorsport 4 unseats FIFA 12 in UK chart, PES 2012 fifth
Last week saw a handful of new releases but Xbox 360 racer Forza Motorsport 4 left the rest of the UK all format chart in the dust as it launched first place. FIFA 12 came second with sales down 62% in its third week. Just Dance 3 entered 3rd, PES 2012 5th, and Beenox's Spider-Man: Edge of Time came 39th.

domain: game


text:
To find new talent, cast the net internationally
Streaming platforms have given people the chance to experience a more varied selection of music, TV and film. So, asks Adrienn Major, Founder at POD LDN, shouldn't advertising have a more global outlook when it comes to talent?
Across culture, audiences are tuning in to new talent from around the globe. The rise of music streaming platforms - largely Spotify and Amazon - have played a leading role in this, and it’s levelling the playing field for emerging stars.
From K-pop to Afrobeat, US audiences are now streaming non-English language music at unprecedented rates, a report by Luminate found. On Netflix, too, more international shows such as Squid Game, Lupin and Alice in Borderland are being consumed by audiences in more than 190 countries worldwide, and fresh talent is being found and propelled to global fame.
To find the best new talent, it helps to go global.
It’s all signalling that, to find the best new talent, it helps to go global, and that goes for post production too. As post has shifted focus with remote solutions becoming the norm, it’s made it easier than ever for agencies to talent-hunt internationally and access the global pool of emerging artists and technical crew.
Above: Streaming platforms have meant audiences have been exposed to more international content and talent.
When scouting, agencies often stay within the territories they know. This makes sense, of course, but I also think it’s driven by an idea that bigger markets mean better people. But that’s not true. Cultural talent is international now, so post production people should be too, and that starts with giving young people their first step on the ladder.
There are plenty more reasons why brands and agencies should be looking internationally for up-and-coming talent, such as brining fresh eyes and new viewpoints, and increasing diversity within teams (though there is still a huge lack of women training and joining the industry, but that’s a whole other topic). It also gives junior people, and those who might be fresh from studying, a way to build their portfolio with global agencies and clients.
It makes sense to cast the net wide. But where do you start to look?
So, it makes sense to cast the net wide. But where do you start to look? Well, from Egypt to Turkey to Brazil, there are young, highly-skilled people to be found in smaller markets. India, too, is a hotbed for post production skills, with both Framestore and MPC setting up shops there in recent years.
If you want to source fresh talent internationally, then you’ll need a plan. At POD LDN we scout for new talent far and wide, going to events, checking out reels on TikTok, YouTube and Instagram, and using Behance to find new portfolios. LinkedIn is a huge resource, too. We’ve also built connections with universities across multiple countries to find talented graduates looking to build their experience. And now, researching online helps you find artists credited on creative work in a couple of clicks, in ways you just couldn’t do before, and this also helps in our search.
Above: Brexit has changed the landscape of the UK and made it harder to start a career there, but not impossible.
A big elephant in the room to all of this is Brexit, which has changed the landscape in the UK. Many artists had to leave, and it’s now harder to start a career here. I grew up in Hungary and, 17 years ago, I was able to up sticks to London to start my career. For creative graduates now, in a post-Brexit world, that’s way more complex, with visas and layers of bureaucracy.
So, at least there are more options for grads to work remotely, and still have access to the worldwide industry. But you’re never going to benefit from the networking, connections and experience of being in an office that are so crucial when you’re starting out.
A big elephant in the room to all of this is Brexit, which has changed the landscape in the UK.
Of course, it’s not just about finding and hiring junior artists, it’s about supporting them too. When a young artist comes on board, we hand-hold, explaining the process, the steps and terminology – all of which is more crucial when English isn’t someone's first language. Before they begin a project, they get onboarding, so when it goes live, they're ready.
In the day-to-day, alongside the obvious platforms like Zoom, collaborative tools like Dropbox, Slack and frame.io, are useful. They weren’t great 10 years ago but have now really changed the game. Using technology to stay connected and allocate tasks can keep projects on track, allowing for real-time feedback and file sharing among junior and senior team members working across competing time zones.
So, for post production outfits thinking about new talent, why not cast the net wider? It could bring much needed fresh perspectives to your work and help emerging voices get a much needed first start.

domain: geography


text:
Richard William Watts, 58, apparently drowned this past Sunday afternoon after swimming in the ocean at 34th Street. Citizens on the beach saw the victim and tried to rescue him from the water.
Emergency medical crews responded to the scene, at 34th Street and Atlantic Avenue, and attempted to revive him; he was taken to a local hospital, where he died.
Also, on Sept. 26, the body of Luis Martin Mijares Acero was found at Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek Fort Story, reports PilotOnline.com. Mijares Acero, 26, went missing at the Virginia Beach Oceanfront on Sept. 22.


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Bram Fischer Airport Store Directory
Early at the airport and need some last minute stuff?
We have a few stores at Bram Fischer Airport which make last minutes essentials easy for you.
At Bram Fischer we have facilities to make your life easier. Need money? We have ATM’s available. Need to have quick snack? We have Mugg and Bean or Sweets From Heaven at your service. Bram Fischer Airport offers Medical assistance when needed, conference rooms, prayer room’s restrooms, parking and free wifi for business as well as leisure.
We are committed to providing world-class facilities that meet the needs of all airport users. We focus on ensuring existing and new facilities within our airports meet the particular needs of disabled travelers and airport users as well as giving passengers access to shops and making last minute needs possible.
We have a Vodacom shop to assist with making calls internationally or just for your browsing.
At Bram Fischer Airport there are lifts, ramps and reserved parking for disabled passengers. Passengers who require assistance to board and disembark from the aircraft can make arrangements when booking their flight. We embark on assisting passengers as soon as you enter our airport. We make your travel needs and flight more comfortable for you.
Bram Fischer Airport have registered porters are available in the terminal building. They are recognizable by their Airports Company South Africa, uniform and will assist you with your luggage at any time.
Getting a few snacks for your flight or before your flight is easy as we have shops available to assist you with your buying requirements.
Passengers requiring additional assisting for flights and accommodation can easily get help at our friendly Information Help Desk. At Bram Fischer Airport we also have a viewing deck where you can view the flights arriving and departing.
All you need for before or after your flight in one place for your convenience!

domain: travel


|feature story / editorial / local
/ business |
Words and Photos by Thomas Tomczyk
Utila seems to attract eccentric characters from
everywhere. Visionaries, artists and characters have looked to Utila
as an escape to make their impact on the world. Some of them
succeeded, many failed, but all left a mark.
One of the most fascinating sights on Utila is a
semi-deserted group of structures overlooking Sandy Bay from between
giant oak trees. It is just a shadow of the fruits of the labor of
dozens of people who have tried and failed to create the premiere
hotel of the Caribbean. What remains is a folly, still dominating
enough to make anyone wonder about its original visionary: Bradford
Welcome to Duncan's folly. The seven-building compound
was planned so that the to-be Crown Colony Hotel would be
independent for power, water and sewage disposal. There was a power
generator building, with a 60-foot concrete shaft well. The shaft is
so deep that Kurt Halverston, an American businessman coordinating
the clean-up and management of the site, had to use a scuba tank to
clean the bottom. A three bedroom apartment now sits on top of the
"With foot-thick concrete walls it feels like a
World War II bunker," said Halverston. The walls are not only made
of extremely strong concrete mix they are reinforced with half inch
steel rebar. "He [Duncan] said he didn't mix cement. he made
concrete," said Richard Del Olmo, Duncan's stepson.
has independent septic, electric and water systems. According to Del
Olmo, the eight round septic wells set in a curve on the site were
filled with stones, gravel and sand to filter black water before it
was released into the ocean. "He [Duncan] was very concerned about
the environment. He would tell us not to hunt lobster. To pick-up
garbage," said Del Olmo.
The taller, five-story building was
later partially finished by Spurgen Bush,
Each story was
subdivided into two apartments, with unique floor plans, shower and
baths, overlooking the site.
The structures were wired for
telephone and computers, quite ahead of its time for 1970 and 1980s
way of thinking. The plumbing was run inside the concrete walls and
according to Halverston, because of decades of abandonment, it
cannot be used.
A reception building sits in the lower part of
the site. An elevator would bring guests from the street
Now only the upper part of the elevator shaft is visible.
The eight foot square shaft has been filled with debris over time
and no one seems to know where the ornate, gilded elevator cage has
With all the complexity of design there are no
existing drawings of how the entire hotel complex was envisioned.
"The [working drawings] don't exist. They were all in his [Duncan's]
head," said Halverston.
|Bradford Duncan in front of his modest home in
Born on February 9 in Tuscon, Arizona in 1915, Bradford
Duncan spent World War II as an aircraft technician on the US
mainland. He received his BS in Structural Engineering, managed
construction of a 40 story building in Mexico City and traveled all
over the world.
Duncan was an assistant to Frank Lloyd Wright at
Taliesin, Arizona. He carried the architect's briefcase and ran his
errands. "He was the most exciting employment," said Duncan. There
are some similarities between the two personalities. Both had gray
hair, a boyish enthusiasm and determination to follow their dreams.
In a way, the young Arizonan inherited more than just the experience
from the legendary American architect, he inherited the youthful
attitude of the relentless pursuit of his dreams, and settling for
little less then perfection.
Following a pattern of knowing
famous personalities, in 1950s Duncan came in contact with Michael
Rockefeller, a philanthropist and adventurer who disappeared in
Papua New Guinea in 1961. "We enjoyed each other because we were
'brains'," Duncan said about Rockefeller. "I was knee deep in
relationship with him." In fact Duncan helped with the search for
the millionaire explorer.
Duncan built and run "Gambola Cay," a
large restaurant in Galveston, Texas. After hearing a customer
mention Utila in a story, he traveled to the island in 1975. A year
later Duncan sold the restaurant, moved his entire family and
settled on the island. Every Christmas and summer his children would
visit their father as he pursued a dream of building a five-star
hotel of the future.
According to Kelsey Cooper, an old-time
Utila native, there were only a handful of foreigners living on
Utila back then. There was a Russian, an Englishman (AKA Lemon),
Uncle Oak from the States, and Austrian Gunter Kordovsky who still
calls Utila his home.
For a number of years, Duncan was the
biggest employer on the island. "Everything was run according to the
budget. Even a pack of matches would be entered in the books," said
Del Olmo. For two years, he hired two sculptors, Dimitrio and Cezar,
from Trujillo to create 52 doors and wood columns that were to
support an outdoor restaurant. Many of these columns now rest
scattered across the island. Some just rotted away.
himself like King Solomon living in the trees," said Del Olmo. His
business cards a described his position as "Governing Overlord of
Utila." Duncan created a larger than life persona that radiated
thought the entire community. At the same time he remained
approachable and down-to-earth.
Still, with all his bravado and
larger than life personality Duncan never hesitated to work hands-on
on his projects. "He would mash his finger up with a hammer
two-three times and still be working," said Richard Del Olmo. He was
humble enough to sweep the city's streets and give an example to his
neighbors. "He fell from a scaffolding once. I thought he was dead,
but he just got up went home for a while and came back the next day
with a blue back," Kelsey Cooper. In short, Bradford Duncan was a
truly original character.
Visiting Utila in 1990 a traveler
describes meeting Duncan: "a distinguished looking old gentleman
dressed in shabby, white pants, colorful shirt and a wide brimmed
straw hat. It turned out that he had been a very successful
architect in New Orleans, had visited Utila [and] fell in love with
the island. (.) Duncan, is now obviously broke, but is happily
remarried to a very young local Caribbean woman, has three children
under the age of 10 - and best of all, is still able to laugh at his
Duncan came to the island with several million
dollars in lifetime savings and no one knows exactly how much he put
into Utila over the years. "I am a victim of trust," Duncan
describes himself. Many people do say he was too generous, too
trusting for his own good. The project lasted years, went over
budget and seemed incomprehensible to many locals. "If you don't
finish a project on time, no wonder some partners will pull-out,"
said Lynn Duncan.
Duncan was a victim in a bus accident in La Ceiba that almost cost
him his life. He never quite recovered from the trauma. By the early
1990s Duncan felt too pained to continue living on Utila. He met
Gertrudis Cardona, who worked at "Hotel Gran Paris" in La Ceiba and
a few years later, in 1992, they were married. His wife, whom he
affectionately calls Tulita, is now all he has. "Who would take care
of me if it wasn't for Tulita," says Duncan.
Three decades after
coming to Honduras Duncan is no longer as stately as he once was.
Life and circumstances have caught up with Duncan. He has difficulty
standing up and shuffles his feet as he moves to the bench in front
of the front door. Duncan has no regrets about coming to Utila and
Honduras. "I extended my life 10 years. I had no pressure, no tax
collector knocking on my door," said Duncan.
travels to the US for medical reasons and sometimes visits his
stepson and a few friends on Utila. Life is difficult as Duncan
lives off a social security check forwarded every month by his
the hotel buildings now serves as quarters for watch
sometimes hard to understand, his mind falls in and out of reality
and the present. An occasional wink from his pale blue eyes brings
an image of a charismatic, extravagant character immediately back to
life. Tears form in his eyes as he speaks of his three sons serving
in the US military. Two serve in the US Marines and one in the US
Navy. His daughter from the previous marriage, Lynn, lives in
Houston and his son in New Jersey.
The hotel wasn't the only
project Duncan involved himself on Utila. He built a three story
concrete ENE power plant building. It now stands empty and abandoned
yet is an example of strong solid concrete construction. Duncan's
other work includes the construction of the brick community clinic
building, the foundations of Captain Roy's Hotel, Sandy Bay street
gutters, the foundations of the Methodist College and he was
responsible for leveling-off the old airport runway.
proceedings between Duncan and his third wife, Utilan Rachel
Esperanza Moreno, caused him much trauma and anxiety. "All the
turbulence in his life made him take chaotic and rushed steps," said
Del Olmo. Duncan lost his house to his wife and many of his
possessions ended up scattered in homes across the entire island.
Several people around Utila have the wood carvings, tiles, stained
glass windows, mahogany wall panels, rugs, paintings, old bottles,
stamp collections, photographs, documents. Duncan's collection of
Utila artifacts has also disappeared.
Most of his
artifacts seem to have ended up in possession of Spurgen Bush,
Duncan's ex-business partner and one time Utila mayor. "They just
took everything he had. They used the law to leave him on the side
of the road," said Del Olmo.
Things got even
more complicated when in 1995 Spurgen Bush died and decided to be
buried outside of Utila's only public cemetery. on the old Duncan
property. The locals have two explanations for this action: Spurgen
felt even after death he will claim the property, or that after a
"life of sin" he didn't feel worthy laying inside the
According to Halverston, in 1985 Jim Crockett (AKA Jim
Money) bought the 7.8 acre property for "pennies on the dollar."
Spurgen Bush became the general manager of the property. Bush
supervised some work on the property, including framing wood floors
in the five story hotel building.
By 1993 the hotel building
filled with people, some of them paying symbolic rent to Spurgen
Bush, others just squatters. One of the renters, paying $50 a month,
was Ted Danger, a long time Utila resident. "I was the one who
installed the electricity in the building," said Danger. "We were
living like kings," remembers Danger, who in the early 1990s ran a
pirate radio station from the building's rooftop. K-BUD 107.0 FM
broadcasted a 100 Watt signal as far as La Ceiba.
Hurricane Mitch brought down some huge trees, the site is dominated
by 120' oaks and 100' royal palm trees. A 10' long, iron Spanish
galleon anchor, supposedly found off Utila's Blackish point, sits
resting against a tree. "It was like a jungle out here," says Kurt
Halverston who first looked at the site in 1995.
For over a
decade the site lay abandoned. "Families used to come here to make
BBQs and play," said Ernest Rubi, 13, who lives not far from
Duncan's folly. Ernest remembers playing cowboys and Indians on the
site, which some Utilans grew to consider "haunted."
"It took me
over a year to remove all the squatters out of a building," said
Halverston. According to Halverson the property is owned by a
corporation "Desarrollos de Utila," a partnership between him, an
American foreign investor and another long time foreign Honduran
resident. Halverston says that the site, incorporating the existing
design, will be developed into townhouses and condos.
posses the unique ability of reinventing themselves wherever they go
and no matter what they do. Duncan's vision of reinventing himself
and reinventing Utila was both ahead of its time and a work of sheer
Caribe Crown Colony, a five star hotel, was a
vision from the future. "My father had a vision. He was ahead of his
times. He would tell everyone, 'Tourism is coming! Tourism is
Coming!' but nobody was listening," said Del Olmo.
concrete and imported California Redwood lumber and mahogany Duncan
wanted to create a marvel, a jewel that would awe visitors and
locals alike. He has failed at creating his vision, but he leaves an
example for all of us of how to live a life without compromises.
Goethe once said "What counts is not what you leave behind, but
how you inspire others through the life you led." Duncan is a
perfect example of that. For Utilans, he left a foundation of an
ambitious project, for many others he is setting an example of an
uncompromising life of vision and passion for doing,
the original carvings damaged by time and
|feature story /
______________back to top|
|Jihad This by Thomas
terrorist attacks have been taking place for 1,400 years, only
the methods have changed. The carnage of the recent bombings
in London and Egypt and Baghdad brought a few reflections of
the phrases we have been hearing and leaving unchallenged.
Well, let me do the controversial job of analyzing the code
is a religion of peace."
Few seem to ever challenge the
notion even though we are surrounded by events and facts to
the contrary. The statement is wishful thinking and does not
reflect the reality. If it was true then Buddhists, Hindus,
Jews, Zaorastians, Sikhs, Christians and Mormons would be
blowing themselves up on busses every day. Certainly they
aren't claiming to be a part of "religion of peace." A fox in
a hen house can claim he is a hen all night long. Only the
foolish hen will accept his attempts. The reality is that
Islam isn't a peaceful religion and never was. It is a
religion that at its core has the goal of seeing the whole
world become Muslim. by whatever means possible. That notion
is much more radical than what Christianity, Buddhism or
Zoroastrianism have produced.
Still, the majority of
Muslims are "good people."
As far as I know probably
Osama Bin Laden is a good person. He is a caring father to his
34 children and responsible husband to his four wives,
generous to the needy and destitute. The thing is, it is not
relevant how good, or bad he is, or how bad the "majority of
muslims are." Osama Bin Laden is a leader of an Islamic
movement fighting non-Islamic societies and values. He follows
in the footsteps of Sudan's Mahdi, Tamerlain and Turkey's
Ataturk. Most wars are conducted by small portion of a
society, yet the armies depend on the continual support of the
society as the whole. So is the current Jihad. Most Muslims
never condemned the events of 9/11 and many applauded the
defeat of the "great Satan nation." Most are in denial about
Muslim responsibility for any atrocities. They see Osama Bin
Laden and Dr. Khan, the mastermind behind the Pakistani atomic
bomb, as heroes.
The terrorists are "Islamic fundamentalists" and not
It is not just semantics. The
terrorists or jihadists reflect the core values of the
expanding Islam and are not concerned about displaying them.
"Fundamentalism" isn't a bad word. It is only a reflection of
fact and the fact is Islam is a fundamentalist religion. In
fact most Muslims are fundamentalist in their practices and
beliefs. Muhammad was a fundamentalist, as was Jesus, or
Zarahustra. And how can you deny Mohammad the title of a "true
"Islamic terrorism rises from poverty and
One has little to do with the other; the
connection is irrelevant. Most terrorists of the XX and XXI
centuries are well educated and sometime sophisticated
individuals. Sometimes the Palestinians terrorist bombers will
use the mentally handicapped, brainwashed or destitute, but
that is the exception. Most terrorists are highly motivated,
well educated and sophisticated individuals. Wealth of Islamic
terrorists, as in the case of Osama Bin Laden, doesn't make
them rational and secular, but only allows them to achieve
"It's all our fault. Muslims
are just reacting to the unfair treatment by the
Christians seem to be shrouded in apologist
sentiment. They are apologizing for Crusades, bombing of
Kosovo, apathy about Chechnya, flushing of Koran down the
toilet, everything. Muslims apologize for nothing. Everyone
heard of people converting to Islam: Cassius Clay, Cat
Stevens, Karim Adbul Jabbar. Did you ever heard of a Muslim
converting to Christianity or Buddism, or anything?
"The Muslim struggle reflects their disapproval of
The fact is Muslims aren't happy with
anyone else's values, no matter if it they are western, Hindu,
Buddhist, or atheist. Westerners seem to be extremely
egocentric. It is all about them. Well, it is not. For 1,400
years Islam has been fighting, converting and terrorizing
people of all kinds of religions and civilizations. In fact
the majority of conflicts today are between Islam and
non-western cultures. There are major Muslim terrorist
activities in Thailand, China, India, Philippines, Indonesia,
Sudan, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Chechnya, Georgia, Israel, and so
who forget history deserve whatever awaits them."
is not a myth. The recent conflict hasn't grown out of
nothing. It is a continuation of a 1,400 year-long struggle of
the world of Islam to make Islam the universal religion. The
Islamic conflict is as old as Islam itself. London, Madrid and
New York have followed in the footsteps of cities like
Constantinople, Barcelona and Athens. Even United States has
faced Islamic conflict in piracy targeting non-Muslim merchant
ships in the Mediterranean and Atlantic. All that maybe long
forgotten but not lost.
Adios Tatuajes, a non-profit organization started in San
Pedro, has begun to offer tattoo removal services on Roatan. The
organization offers a second chance at life for people who want to
leave the gang life behind.
Mirna Banegas, 29, is coordinator of
Adios Tatuajes in La Ceiba's San Isidro parish. In four years of
working for the organization in La Ceiba she has helped 250 people;
around 220 of them were involved in gangs at one point in their
life. 12 of the patients came from Roatan, and Banegas saw the
growing demand for the treatment on the island: Adios Tatuajes is
now coming once a month to Coxen Hole Catholic Church. On July 2,
Banegas had appointment with 10 new Roatan patients, two of them
involved at some time with gangs.
The atmosphere is relaxed, but
the new patients are apprehensive. "Go after him. He might not come
back after seeing the procedure," said deacon Freddy Ventura, a
Claritin novice from Coxen Hole's church, who coordinates the
The tattoo removal process using infrared light takes 3-4
treatments that could take as long as four months. As antiseptics
are used the process isn't painful, but requires following strict
hygienic procedures by the patient. This procedure offers minimal
scarring and is relatively inexpensive.
Adios Tatuajes started in
2000 in Chamelecon district of San Pedro Sula by the Maryknoll
Fathers & Brothers, a non-profit missionary society. Now the
organization has offices in Tegucigalpa and La Ceiba. It also opened
clinics across Central America: in Guatemala, El Salvador,
Nicaragua, and is starting a program in Panama.
inception Adios Tatuajes treated 19,000 persons in Honduras, 4,000
in Guatemala, 2,500 in El Salvador and in Nicaragua more than 2,000
youths have been treated. There aren't sufficient machines to meet
The work is done on volunteer basis and the cost of
medications and machines is donated by local hospitals, church and
private donations. The patients are asked to pay a symbolic fee of
Lps. 30 per tattoo removed. The one condition of tattoo removal
treatment is that the ex-gang members have left the gangs for at
least a year and are attending church regularly. "We never had any
problems with the gangs. Probably because we don't force anyone to
have a tattoo removed," said Benegas.
Ex-gang members have
problems finding work and most often spend that time supported by
their family. "They [gangs] will accept a member leaving them if he
or she will stop drinking, start going to church, but it all depends
on the chief of the gang," said Banegas.
This is not an easy task
as in Honduras, people with tattoos are typically suspected of
involvement with gangs. They have difficulty finding work as a
medical exam, required at most places of work, will reveal the
tattoo and cause suspicion from the employer. Another issue of
having potentially gang-related tattoos is harassment by the
anesthetic is placed under the patient's skin to before infra red
ray treatment can begin.|
According to Banegas, since the introduction of anti-gang
laws in Honduras many new gang recruits no longer tattoo themselves
to stay less conspicuous with law enforcement. "Not all the crimes
committed are by the gangs. It is easy to blame them," said Banegas.
Even when they leave the gangs, young men with tattoos remain
targets for other gang members and shadowy "social cleansing" squads
- which, according to a 2002 United Nations report, often include
Honduran police officers.
Two decades ago, gangs were rare in
Central America. But in the mid-1990s, the United States stepped up
deportations of criminals. Honduran citizens are shipped home under
an immigration policy that Central American governments insist has
helped spread the deadly gang culture throughout the
Today, gangs are Central America's number one crime
problem. More than 35,000 youths are members of gangs in Honduras;
El Salvador has approximately 30,000 gang members and Guatemala has
The two major gangs, or pandillas, active in Central
America are the MS (Mara Salvatrucha) and 18 (from the 18th street
in Los Angeles). According to Banegas, many of the gang members have
parents working in the US and were left to the care of other family
members. Gangs become a place where young people can count on
emotional, physical and financial support from the group.
Gonzales (assumed name at request of interviewee), 27, came to
Roatan six months ago from Santa Barbara. From the age of 13 until
25 he was involved with members of Pandilla 18, but he claims not to
be a member. One of these friends made two tattoos on both arms that
Gonzales wants to now remove. "It's difficult to get a job with
tattoos," said Gonzales, who currently works for the Roatan
According to Banegas a few ex-gang members trying to
stay out of the gang influence look at Roatan as a place relatively
free from the pressures of some of the gang leaders. The number of
ex-gang members is small, but growing. "I've seen six people on
Roatan that were, or are belonging to gangs," said Gonzales who
lives in the El Swampo area of Coxen Hole.
My Cove? Your Cove? No, It's Dixon
A twenty-year-old land dispute in
Dixon Cove creates havoc for a local family and property
Who has become the owner of this 27 acre property since 1985
depends on who you ask. The registry of property shows Dulce Maria
Duarte as owner and Municipal's catastro has Melva Orfilia Allen.
But the paper trail has many twists and turns and there is a
disagreement about the property delineation and right-of-way.
1994 Melva Orfilia Allen tried, but failed to evict the Aceitunos,
who claim to have lived there since 1986, from the property. Soon
after Allen sold the property to her son Clinton Everett, current
Bay Islands' governor. After years of going through legal channels
to regain control of the property Everett finally gave up and
decided to sell. "It was a way of getting rid of a headache and the
buyer (Bob Waring) knew the problems," said Everrett.
Everett has sold his rights to the property, he wasn't able to get
rid of a headache. His name is mentioned often in the current
dispute. "It's a political year and it easy to get sympathy about
being mistreated by a governor," said Everett.
"This could have
happened to anybody. I have a little more land than most people so
the odds weren't in my favor," said Waring, owner of Roatan
Properties, a Roatan real estate company. Well, not exactly. Waring
was aware of the ongoing problems with the land and decided to
purchase it anyway.
from there does anything bad. The people are peaceful," said
Freddie Torres, 36, a security guard from Los Fuertes who
along with Marco Del Cid, 32, and two other guards who were
contracted by Waring to guard the property for over two weeks.
The Aceituno family was given access to the property to use
bathrooms and gather plantains.|
Waring made a calculated bet that where Melva Orfilia Allen
failed, he would succeed. After being in the Roatan real estate
business for many years, he had the capacity and experience to
handle such crisis. After purchasing the property in August 2004,
Waring waited till June 2005 to take action.
stand-off began on June 30 when at 10:30am three Preventiva police,
three lawyers representing Waring and several moving helpers entered
the property executing an eviction order. Within a few hours the
family was camped with all their possessions on the side of the road
in Dixon Cove. Soon the site swelled with the arrival of family,
friends and the curious.
According to Rita Aceituno, a
forty-nine-year-old homemaker living and maintaining the property
for at least 14 years, a written contract was made with Dulce Maria
Duarte to maintain the property. Aceituno has no copy of the
agreement, but says that for five years she was paid Lps. 3,000 a
month to manage the property and support herself.
Duarte's ownership is being disputed by some, but in 2004 the case
complicated itself further as Edward Allan, a person who in 1985
acquired the original document about purchasing the 27 acre
Over the years the family grew and along with her common-law
husband Mercedes Del Cid, 52, there are now 12 people living on the
property. Working with wood and scrap materials the family built two
houses in a small valley off the main road in Dixon Cove, only 50
meters from the sea. A year ago Del Cid started a plantain
plantation on the property and Aceituno began selling souvenirs to
tourists on the side of the road.
So far one break for the
family came from Hurricane Emily on July 16. The family pleaded with
two security guards guarding access to the property north of the
road, and by claiming that their property could be destroyed during
the hurricane gained access to the property. Hurricane Emily passed
200 miles to the north and Aceituno family gained access to their
A month after the stand-off began the family is dependent
on the help of friends for buying food and covering travel and legal
expenses. "She's lucky she has the support of patronatos and
churches," said Cristobal Leiba, a family friend and vice president
of the patronato Mount Pleasant. With bags under her eyes, Aceituno
is visibly stressed by the situation.
The family continues to
live in stress and fear of eviction and violence. "We saw Waring
stop his car, lower the window and point his hand shaped like a gun
at me," said Aceituno. The incident on July 24 was confirmed by
several other witnesses. Waring, on the other hand, denied making
any such gestures. "If anybody should be afraid it should be me.
There are sometime 100 people out there," said Waring whose home and
office are within 200 meters of the disputed site.
has affected other family members as well. Two of Aceituno's sons
left their jobs to stay with the family and her three-month-old
granddaughter has been hospitalized, according to Aceituno due to
dust and stressful conditions of living on the side of the road.
"We take turns in staying with the family, in case someone comes
to harm them," said Leiba. There are always at least 10 and as many
as 100 people who stay around the property. Some of them just sit
and watch, others talk to the family and help with their chores.
They have different motivation, agendas and sometime little
relationship, or knowledge of the Aceitunos.
contracted a local lawyer and filed a denouncement with the human
rights office in Tegucigalpa. On July 22, following a visit and
threats of eviction from a Preventiva Police official, around 50-100
supporters of the Aceituno family staged a protest in front of
Roatan Municipal and Municipal Courts. The family was left on the
According to Aceituno she was offered $4,000 by Bob
Waring to move from the property. She refused. Aceituno said that
she is not interested in receiving any compensation in exchange for
leaving the property. She said that she wants to determine the
rightful owner of the property and her due "prestaciones," or other
entitlements. "Only a person who lives peacefully on a property for
20 years has a right to file for its ownership," said
Even though Waring said he did offer financial
compensation to Aceitunos several times and even purchased a lot for
them, he is torn about the decision. "I'm afraid it will set
precedence that if someone invades someone else's property, they
will feel obliged to pay them off," said Waring.
pay-off offer, assisted by a committee formed at a CANATURH-BI
meeting on July 18, has risen to $15,000. Aceituno, for now at
least, has refused to accept a cashier's check paid by Waring.
Things might still change further when on August 8 a human rights
delegation from Tegucigalpa is scheduled to arrive on Roatan to
assess the matter.
Conflicts over land are fact of making a
living on the Bay Islands and Roatan. "There is a great deal of
conflict over land on Roatan. There are people who take advantage of
lawyers who are not exactly ethical," said Carlos Barrios, lawyer
and assessor of municipal justice on Roatan. "There is a practice of
bringing in a sworn declaration about the ownership of a given
property on base of which catastro ownership is changed."
Barrios said that the only way to limit the land dispute
problems is to link catastro and registry of properties and
investigate thoroughly each case of sworn ownership declaration
brought in to the municipal.
/ editorial /
by Jaime Johnston|
Magda Garcia has been in the lotto business for
20 years. She is one of the many men and women around the islands
who sell numbers for a living. These lotteries operate on a local
level and are not sanctioned by the government as per Honduran law.
Even so, business is booming on Roatan as sellers sit with their
hand-written notebooks on Coxen Hole streets surrounded by buyers
hoping to hit it big. "I've played the same number as long as I've
known myself," said Marie Ebanks, 41, of Coxen Hole. Ebanks plays
number 64 for her birth year. She claims to win at least Lps. 5,000
yearly and guesses she invests about Lps. 60 each week into her
lotto hopes. Her investment alone totals over Lps. 3,000. Like most
players, Ebanks enjoys the suspense of buying lotto.
"I have some
people who buy the same number every week. Some people switch it up
because of a dream or on superstitions, but they all seem to want to
play," said Garcia, a Sandy Bay resident. When she began selling
lotto, Garcia's jackpot totaled just over Lps. 10,000. Now, after
two decades of fine-tuning her business, she boasts a jackpot of
Lps. 154,000 each week. The lotteries sell numbers from 1-100. For
each number, there is a maximum amount of pieces or shares sold.
Each lottery operator sets their own maximum as their finances
allow. Garcia sells 7,000 pieces per number, with a 50-piece
purchase minimum. According to Garcia, this is one of the largest
lotteries on Roatan. Some operators sell only 500 pieces per number.
The seller can sell different share amount of numbers to different
buyers. For example, if one purchases 50 pieces of winning number
20, they would win Lps. 1,100. If they held all 7,000 pieces, they
would win Garcia's jackpot. Currently, 50 pieces sell for Lps. 15.
An average of twice per year, Garcia increases her piece
maximum by 500, as long as sales continue to cover her payouts. "I'm
taking a chance selling and you're taking a chance buying. I have to
make sure I cover myself or someone's winnings will come out of my
pocket," said Garcia who recently paid out Lps. 132,000 to a winner
on Mother's Day.
Roatan's weekly lotteries use the
national "chica" lottery drawing number as their winning number. The
busiest times are on Saturdays, the day before the weekly drawings.
The drawing is broadcast on local cable at noon on Sundays. Some
lottery sellers canvass neighborhoods door-to-door and some sit on a
corner and wait for business.
|Elicia Bodden of Coxen Hole has been in the lotto
business for eight years. It is her first business and she is
often found talking to customers on the city's Main Street.
There are many lotteries from which to choose. Several
operators sell tickets for daily drawings, using the Belize daily
lottery's winning number. The Honduran government manages three
lotteries: daily, weekly and monthly. The national lotteries are
drawn in Tegucigalpa and licensed by the government. The Loteria
Menor de Honduras is the weekly drawing based on one number from
1-100. The jackpot is Lps. 1,000. There is a secondary series of
numbers on the Loteria Menor ticket. If a ticket winner holds both
the winning number and the winning series, then they would win Lps.
50,000. Tickets for the Menor lottery, known as the chica, sell for
Lps. 20. The Loteria Nacional de Honduras is drawn monthly with a
six-digit winning number. The jackpot varies each month. For May, it
stood at Lps. 4,000,000. Angus Watler has operated a vendor stand
outside of H.B. Warren's for the last 25 years. His stand is one of
two places to buy national lottery tickets in Coxen Hole. "We get a
lot of people buying from the national lottery, mostly people from
the mainland who live here now. Sometimes we run out of tickets,"
New Arsenal Coach Seeks Island Talent by Thomas
Jose Gabriel Sanchez, 47, is Arsenal's new coach. In
mid-June, Sanchez took over from Jose Tejeda, who coached the French
Cay team for eight months and continues his career with La Ceiba's
Sanchez spent the last five years as assistant
coach and coach of Real Sociedad of Tocoa. Last year he took his
team to division championship before being eliminated in the second
phase of the qualifying tournament. "The Real Sociedad board of
directors wasn't interested in advancing to first division," said
Before his time at Real Sociedad ,Sanchez worked as a
technician at Union Arenese of Tocoa and a high school football
coach in the US.
"I'm looking for tall, physical players," said
Sanchez who has currently 24 players on his Arsenal roster. The team
has four players that are from the coast, and ten come from island
league teams. "Maybe five new players will make it to the Arsenal
base squad," said Coach Sanchez. According to the Arsenal coach, the
team plans to have an all-island squad in two seasons. "They have
strength, stature, speed, but they lack technical aspects," said
coach Sanchez about prospective island players.
"No one knows
how much talent we have on the island. What they need the most is
motivation," said the Arsenal coach. According to Sanchez the team's
best new find is an 17-year-old ex-Bahia player "Chanen." "He is 195
cm tall and has good control of the ball. He can only get better,"
said Sanchez about "Chanen".
The Arsenal coach sees a connection with
national football strategy and local talent availability. "We need
pilot centers so that we can teach players discipline they need in
the second division," said Sanchez.
Sanchez has already begun to
establish a rapport with his Roatan players. "He knows how to treat
a player well. He knows how to talk to you and understands when you
have a problem," said Rigoberto Hernandez, a defenseman playing for
one season with Arsenal. For economical reasons Hernandez plans to
leave Arsenal for Real Sociedad of Tocoa.
Arsenal will play its
first game of the season in late August.


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Techniques for computing wave frequency-direction spectra are evaluated using wave buoy data recorded on the North West Shelf of Australia. Frequency-direction spectra are computed by each of four techniques and compared with the wave directionality expected at the measurement location, based on the meteorological conditions prevailing at the time. Particular emphasis is placed on the wave conditions occurring during tropical cyclones. Such sea states show strong directional bimodality, consisting largely of a cyclone-generated swell component and a local wind sea. The cyclone swell can be expected to have a narrow beam width when the cyclone is several hundred kilometers from the location. It is found that the bimodality is well indicated by a unimodal/bimodality parameter; and of the four techniques for computing the frequency-direction spectrum, the maximum entropy method is best at reproducing the directional bimodality while maintaining the narrow directional spreading in the cyclone swell.
Estimating Bimodal Frequency-Direction Spectra From Surface Buoy Data Recorded During Tropical Cyclones
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Ewans, K. C., and van der Vlugt, T. (August 1, 1999). "Estimating Bimodal Frequency-Direction Spectra From Surface Buoy Data Recorded During Tropical Cyclones." ASME. J. Offshore Mech. Arct. Eng. August 1999; 121(3): 172–180. https://doi.org/10.1115/1.2829562
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text:
Harry Potter star Emma Watson revealed a bit more of herself than she'd anticipated at Tuesday's Half-Blood Prince premiere in London.
The wind at the rain-swept event kicked up the flowing dress worn by the young actress, exposing some skin—and Watson's underwear—to the cameras. And TV host David Letterman couldn't help but rib the starlet for the incident on Wednesday night's Late Show.
Think You Know Harry Potter? Take the Quiz!
But the allegedly Ivy-League bound Watson (she's rumored to be attending Brown University in the fall) merely blushed and quipped, "This was a small wardrobe malfunction that happens. At least I'm wearing underwear."
On July 15, Watson hits the big screen with co-stars Daniel Radcliffe and Rupert Grint for the sixth time in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.
See Pics From Emma Watson's Parade Photo Shoot
(scroll to keep reading)

domain: celebrity


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PUBG Mobile Season 14, called Spark the Flame, is concluding on 13th September, i.e., tomorrow. Once the current season ends, the RP section of the game will be locked, and the ranks of all the players will be reset accordingly. After a few hours, the developers will release a small patch update for the game to roll out Season 15.
If you're not already aware, PUBG Mobile Season 15 is officially releasing on 15th September. In addition to the commencement of a new season, the game will witness a brand new Royale Pass, featuring many exciting and fresh rewards.
As always, before any PUBG Mobile update arrives globally, several data miners and leakers put out leaks related to the upcoming content. This time too, numerous Season 15 content update leaks have been showcased, and here's a look at some.
PUBG Mobile Season 15 latest Royale Pass leaks
#1 Whitestar Outfit
The Whitestar Outfit, available at the first level of the Season 15 Royale Pass, is a welcome reward for players who will purchase the upcoming Premium Elite Pass. It will instantly be unlocked and can be claimed without accomplishing any mission.
The outfit comes with a white jacket with by a golden color border, as you can see in the image below.
#2 Shadow Assassin Outfit
The upcoming Season 15 will bring a Shadow Assassin set. It includes a costume, headgear, and weapon skin. The outfit set of Shadow Assassin can be obtained at level 30 of the Royale Pass, while the headgear will unlock at level 35.
#3 Samurai Oops Outfit
PUBG Mobile is going to feature a phenomenal outfit known as the Samurai Oops Outfit. Players can grab this after reaching level 100 in Season 15's Royale Pass.
The outfit will only be made available for the Elite Upgrade and Elite Upgrade Plus versions of the Royale Pass, which will cost 600 UC and 1800 UC, respectively.
PUBG Mobile Season 15 free Royale Pass leaks
RP 20 - Sad Emote
RP 30 - Samurai Ops Parachute
RP 50 - Silver Plate - VSS
As per speculations, the size of the Season 15 update should be around 5 to 10 MB. On 15th September, the developers will roll out a small patch update to unlock the Royale Pass section of the game. Moreover, the servers might not be taken down for this season's release.
Head over to our main PUBG Mobile page for more quick updates.Published 12 Sep 2020, 20:48 IST

domain: entertainment


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Calm Effects: The Beginning!: Unique Cannabis Cookbook
Unique and wonderful recipes that include cannabis. A full body high, unlike smoking it. It’s a great way for those that need cannabis for medication that cannot smoke it. A great start for anyone who is interested in cooking in medicinal foods. For the professional and the beginning cook. Over 70 very unique recipes that anyone interested in this type of cooking will enjoy to learn and experiment with. Each recipe comes complete with nutritional facts and serving size. this book is the first of a five book series.
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Calming Ice Cream
Calming Muﬃns And Breads
Calming Old Time Favorites
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1/2 cup cannabutter 1/2 cup sugar 1/2 tsp salt 12 Nutrition Facts 2000 calorie diet 24 Nutrition 350 degrees almonds Amount Per Serving Apple bowl brown sugar cake pan calculated from recipe Calories From Fat candy thermometer cannabis cannabutter 1/2 cup Cholesterol 0mg cinnamon coﬀee comes out clean cook cookie sheet crust cup brown sugar cup cannabutter softened cup chopped walnuts cup heavy cream cup unsalted butter cups bread ﬂour Daily Intake RDI Daily Value Total daily values based diﬀerent egg yolks Fiber 0g golden brown Grease lightly manufacturer’s marijuana marshmallow milk chocolate minutes Nutrition Facts Serving Nutrition information calculated nuts ounces oven to 350 Percent daily values pie ﬁlling Potassium Procedure Preheat oven Protein pure vanilla extract recipe ingredients Reference Daily Intake Saturated Fat saucepan Serving Calories smooth Sodium Tbsp Total Carbohydrates tsp baking powder tsp baking soda tsp pure vanilla Value Total Fat whipped cream wire rack

domain: food


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MILTON >> A Milton man has been charged with second-degree murder in the beating death of his girlfriend’s 2-year-old son, state police said Thursday.
Kenneth M. “Kenny” Stahli, 26, of 16 Walnut Park Lane, Milton, was booked for “murder/depraved indifference” at 11:45 p.m. Wednesday, according to information posted on the state police website.
Police said their investigation found the child, Mason L. Decosmo, was the victim of physical abuse over the course of several days at the hands of Stahli.
The child’s death – at the home Mason and his mother, Katlin Wolfert, shared with Stahli – was reported to police in a 911 call about 4 p.m. Tuesday. Town of Marlborough police and emergency medical workers arrived at the scene and started cardiopulmonary resuscitation. Mason then was taken to Vassar Brothers Medical Center in Poughkeepsie, where he was pronounced dead, police said.
An autopsy conducted Wednesday determined Mason died of blunt force, and the Dutchess County Medical Examiner’s Office ruled the death a homicide, police said.
State police Senior Investigator Chris Thorpe said Mason’s mother was not home when the child died. Thorpe did not know, however, if she was home during any of the period when Stahli allegedly abuse the toddler.
Police have not said who made the 911 call on Tuesday.
Stahli was not related to Mason or to another infant who lived in the home, said Ulster County District Attorney Holley Carnright.
Milton, where the home is located, is a hamlet in the town of Marlborough, in southern Ulster County.
Stahli was arraigned in Marlborough Town Court and sent to the Ulster County Jail without bail.
Thursday afternoon, a fundraising effort was underway on YouCaring.com to help pay for Mason’s funeral.
“Two-year-old Mason Decosmo was the victim of a horrible act of deadly violence and was taken from this world far too soon,” read a posting on the site, next to a photo of Mason and his mother. “Please support his single mother, Katlin, in affording the funeral costs.”
The post described Mason as “a precious little boy who was full of all the energy, laughter, love and happiness that a two-year-old-should have.”

domain: sociology


text:
It solves the problem of delayed reporting and eliminates the possibility of generating inaccurate data.
As described in the drawing, the wearable device will track the 3-D movement of the limb of the patent and signals thereof are received by the controller, which is connected to a database on the cloud. Web application on the cloud can generate the tremor profiling of the patient. Charts can be directly accessed by the patient and the doctor. This will help the doctor to understand the intensity, spread, frequency, duration of the tremor and to decide upon the right kind of drug and planning physiotherapy. Further, the doctor can also get to know the anxiety level of the patient.
Link: The neuro surgeon would be able to get accurate data viz., the time, intensity, spread and frequency of the tremor suffered by the patients of Parkinson’s disease. It will in turn help the surgeon to take right decision on physiotherapy planning and the dosage of the medicines to be administered to the patient.
Manufacturing Capacity: a) Turnkey solution, f) Any other:

domain: medical


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CLERMONT COUNTY, OH (FOX19) - Work on eastbound State Route 32 will finish a day early, according to the Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT).
As a result, work on westbound S.R. 32 will take place Tuesday, Oct. 1 and Wednesday, Oct. 2.
Beginning at 8 p.m. on both days, single lane closures will be in place on westbound S.R. 32 at the Eastgate Boulevard Bridge. Starting at 10 p.m., westbound S.R. 32 will be closed from Gleneste Withamsville Road to Old S.R. 74 until 6 a.m. both days as well.
ODOT officials say access to I-275 will remain open by way of Gleneste Withamsville Road to Old S.R. 74.
The ramp from North Access Road to S.R. 32 will be closed with traffic detoured to Gleneste Withamsville Road to Old S.R. 74 to access westbound S.R. 32.
The closures will be in place both Tuesday and Wednesday from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. only.


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Celebrating Niamh Sharkey Laureate na nÓg and Illustrators Ireland
16 April - 10 May 2014
Niamh Sharkey is one of the leading names for illustration in Ireland and beyond, and has been a driving force for contemporary illustration art in Dublin since her first book in 1995. Following a host of accolades and awards Niamh was elected as the first Irish Children's Laureate, Laureate Na NÓg in 2012 and has worked tirelessly over the past two years to promote books, reading and illustration. Our own association with Niamh stretches back over a decade, and we celebrate her years as the Laureate with this retrospective exhibition as her time in this role reaches is conclusion. A broad range of her work will be on show reflecting her enduring talent and skill seen in a variety of books and animation produced over recent years.Read more
Drawn to Drawing The Art of John Vernon Lord
2 - 12 April 2014
Drawn to Drawing - The Art of John Vernon Lord
Celebrating the book launch of John's new publication about the art of drawing, with Nobrow publishing this showcase exhibition highlights to imaginative and sometimes crazy world of this truly iconic artist and illustrator ...
Artist event on Saturday 12 April.
Afternoon event celebrating the publication on Drawn to Drawing published by Nobrow in March 2014. Book signing with John Vernon Lord on Saturday 12 April, 2.30pm - 5.00pm
Sticky Ends Tony Ross & Jeanne Willis
19 - 29 March 2014
Illustrated by TONY ROSS, Written by Jeanne Willis, published by Andersen Press.
Have you heard the tale of Felicity Finch who was prone to pinch? Or the one about Vince the Mince, the vegetarian dog who took his sprouts far too seriously...
This hilarious collection offers a grisly mix of gruesome cautionary verses, in which assorted characters meet the stickiest of ends!
The Art of Chris Riddell> featuring Goth Girl and the Ghost of a Mouse
5 - 15 March 2014
The Art of Chris Riddell:
Showcasing Chris Riddell - fresh from his award win at the COSTA BOOK AWARD 2014 (Children's Books Category) for Goth Girl Chris Riddell continues to go from strength to strength.
A two week showcase exhibition culminates in a book signing at the gallery of GOTH GIRL on Saturday 15th March 3pm onwards.
Artist event: Saturday book signing with Chris Riddell: 15th March, 2.30 - 5.30pm


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I keep having this urge to update my blog, but keep having writer's block, not on how to write, but on what to write. Sometimes I have 10 topics in mind, but then after repeating them several times in my mind, I dismiss all of them and my blog never gets updated. So I came up with a solution. I am going to write about my favorite thing in the world - Food. I am going to make this into a food blog that will have recipes, criticism and all info that is food. I love cooking and eating out. When given a choice, I always go for the cooking shows on TV. So here it goes.....
Last weekend we went to this restaurant named SOHO/TUSCANA situated in a very popular area of Pune. Here is a gist of our experience -
SOHO(North Indian cuisine) and TUSCANA(Italian Cuisine) are 2 restaurants in the same place and you can order from either of them.
Ambience - Was Okay. What I loved is, it is a huge place with lots of distance between the tables which gave us lots of space to park our stroller and when my little one cried there was even space for us to push the stroller around the table. It was supposed to be a high end restaurant, although I would have preffered nicer chairs and plates.
Order - We ordered Vegetable Kebabs(starter), Vegetable Kadai, Garlic Naan and from Tuscana we ordered Putanesca sauce in spaghetti.
Taste - Everything came with a boat load of butter, so naturally it was tasty. The kebabs were very dry and I would not order them again. The vegetable kadai was really good. It didnot have the usual tomato sauce(I am tired of this), which was a welcoming change. It did have a variety of vegetables. The naans were dipped in butter, other than that, they had lots of garlic and it was a good combination of soft and crispy. It was not burnt like naans in most of the other places. Coming to the pasta, I had great doubt in the standards of an italian dish in India. But I was proven wrong. The spaghetti was cooked right and the sauce was delicious. I knew Putanesca sauce meant lot of olives and since I am not a big fan of olives, I ordered it with hesitation. But it was great. It had just the right amount of olives and herbs. The best part was that there was a lot of sauce for the spaghetti. I hate it when the sauce is too less for the pasta. I like it when there is extra sauce for every mouth. Even my 5 year old, who is a very very picky eater loved this meal.
I would have enjoyed it if it had a little less butter and a little more in quantity.
To sum up, It was a great restaurant and I wouldn't mind frequenting it.
Family of Engineers
6 years ago