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View From The Dowling Street Steps – Buy
Leaving Burlington Street, I headed along Moray Place before turning left into Princes Street and shortly thereafter I came to Dowling Street. To my left, the street quickly headed down hill to more or less where I had just come from, whereas on my right, I found the Dowling Street steps which gave access to the streets on the hill above. This was to be my next stop on my unplanned, self guided tour of the inner city.
I remember once reading a description of the Dowling Street steps that said ‘the area can attract less desirable attention at night.’ This is code for; if you want to get wasted on cheap liquor in the chilly Dunedin night air, this is the place to be. During the day, it’s a wonderful spot to look into the backyards of buildings along Princes Street. It also provides a view of the tops of people’s heads as they stroll purposefully to meetings, appointments and other places of importance.
My main reason for waiting to visit these steps was to see the spot where a disarmed World War 1 field gun once stood. It was placed there after the steps were built in 1927 and stayed in place until World War II. Then, people started to fear that the gun might attract the attention of the Japanese Military on a bombing raid so it was taken down in 1943.
Back in 1927 when the original steps were built to provide a pedestrian thoroughfare, they were also used as an outdoor arena for public addresses. After all, there really is nothing better when you’re giving a rousing public speech than having a WW1 German field gun as a visual aid!


Manchester United are chasing Fiorentina midfielder Sofyan Amrabat, and are actively pursuing a deal.
Italian journalist Alfredo Pedulla has provide an update on Sofyan Amrabat’s stance over a move to Manchester United.
Pedulla reports Sofyan Amrabat is ‘still confident’ of achieving a last gasp deal to sign with Manchester United before the transfer deadline.
He claims Amrabat has ‘total agreement’ with Manchester United over personal terms, and has done for weeks.
READ: Confirmed Manchester United transfers in, out, loans, releases, youth for 2023/24
Manchester United working on Amrabat deal
The Athletic reported Manchester United are working on a deal to bring Sofyan Amrabat to Old Trafford, after weeks of speculation.
A loan deal is currently being worked on, but it is unclear if this works for Fiorentina.
Amrabat’s contract expires in 2024, so he would have to agree an extension, in order for Fiorentina to get value for him next summer via an option or obligation to buy condition of a loan.
MORE UNITED STORIES
Amrabat snubbed other offers
Amrabat is so determined to sign with Manchester United that he has snubbed multiple offers.
Alfredo Pedulla reports Amrabat has rejected approaches from Saudi Pro League clubs, in addition to Liverpool and Atletico Madrid.
The latest approach came from Nottingham Forest, who offered Amrabat a ‘major contract’, however, he only wants Manchester United.
Fabrizio Romano stated on YouTube that Amrabat would fight to join Manchester United, and it certainly looks like he is doing so.
Now it is time for United to show they are as serious as he is.


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Luxure Global Citizen, a Mayfair-based concierge and rewards service for the ultra-wealthy, is launching its own cryptocurrency.
The organisation offers a cross between Nectar points for billionaires and lifestyle management services like Quintessentially.
The company states that subscribers can earn 5% cash back when they buy from partner organisations ranging from car companies including Lamborghini and Rolls Royce to watch and jewellery brands such as Piaget, Cartier and Patek Philippe.
The business said in September last year that it has over 750,000 customers who purchase goods worth over £1 billion per year from over 300 luxury brands.
For luxury watches, the firm says: “Members can enjoy the benefits of raising new special orders, priority access to exclusive items and get complimentary boutique appointment services”.
LGC first announced in September last year that it would be launching its own cryptocurrency that can be used to buy the next top end timepiece although the timing of that ICO has been thrown into doubt this month after LGC split from Populous World Ltd, which had been announced as the platform partner for its “LGC-Coins”.
In a statement this week, the group said it terminated its arrangement with Populous on February 1st 2018, and anybody who had secured LGC-Coins with Populous World prior to February should contact LGC directly.
“Luxure Global Citizen sympathises with those who have been affected by the unauthorised Populous World Ltd announcement of September 2017,” the statement reads. “As a result of this inconvenience, Luxure Global Citizen will offer all those affected our forthcoming “LGC-Coin” at the initial private sale in the coming weeks. This is a goodwill gesture from Luxure Global Citizen and the date of this private sale will be announced via email.”

domain: finance


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It’s Time To Make Your Life Less Stressful With These Personal Finance Tips
Without a sound understanding of managing one’s personal finances, it can be difficult to make it from one paycheck to the next. Fortunately, there are many things you can do to ensure that your spending and saving decisions are handled responsibly. This article offers a variety of ideas and inspiration to help you cope with money matters.
Save money by packing your lunch for work instead of going out to a restaurant. You can easily spend $10 to $15 per meal every time you go out for lunch. That can add up to a significant amount of money every month. If you pack your lunch, you would be surprised at how quickly you can save up for that big expense item.
If you’re looking to improve your financial situation it may be time to move some funds around. If you constantly have extra money in the bank you might as well put it in a certificate of depressor. In this way you are earning more interest then a typical savings account using money that was just sitting idly.
Write down numbers for contacting service providers such as your credit cards and bank in the event of loss or theft. With these toll-free numbers at hand, reporting and canceling will be much easier. They will also help if you need to find locations to get cash quickly. Store these numbers in your phone as well, but keep a written copy in case of phone issues.
A major indicator of your financial health is your FICO Score so know your score. Creditors use the FICO Scores to decide how risky it is to give you credit. Each of the three major credit bureaus, Transunion, Equifax, and Experian, assigns a score to your credit record. That score goes up and down depending on your credit usage and payment history over time. A good FICO Score makes a huge difference in the interest rates you can get when buying a home or car. Check out your score before any major purchases to make sure it is a true reflection of your credit history.
Coffee is something that you should try to minimize in the morning as much as possible. Purchasing coffee at one of the most popular stores can set you back 5-10 dollars per day, depending on your purchasing frequency. Instead, drink a glass of water or munch on fruit to give you the energy you require.
Protection from identity theft is something that you should insure yourself against, especially if you do a lot of work on your computer. Make sure that all of your information is password protected and that you have a solid anti-virus protection program. This will reduce hacking and protect your financial information.
Taking a job at a store that carries many thing that are of interest to you can be a great decision. Not only will you earn a paycheck for working at that store, but will also receive an employee discount that can be used to save money on things bought there, providing two benefits to your personal finances.
Make a budget and stick to it. Write it down with a pen and paper and make sure you are specific about how you plan on your money to be spent. Review your budget often to see if there are any changes that need to be made. This will help you get organized and save money.
With the ideas from this article, you can now be a more informed and responsible person. Learning how to spend and save wisely can make an enormous difference in the quality of life for yourself and your entire household. Use these tips to make the most of your hard-earned money, for life.


One of the biggest debates in the foodie world is which state has the best pizza. Although there have been a plethora of articles and even television shows talking about the topic, one major national publication recently released an article naming the Top 50 Pizzerias in the United States and a pizzeria in North Carolina made the list. In this article, we will reveal which pizzeria in North Carolina made the list as well as others around the country that made the list.
In June 2021, finedininglovers.com published an article ranking the Top 50 Pizzerias in the United States. It should come as no surprise that New York dominated the list with 11 pizzerias making the list, as they are known as the Pizza Capital in the United States. However, North Carolinians should be proud to know that a city in North Carolina cracked the list! The name of the pizzeria is "Mission Pizza Napoletana" located in Winston-Salem! They were ranked #29 on the list!
According to their website, Mission Pizza Napoletana opened in January 2014 and was conceived and founded by Peyton Smith. The website also stated that the pizzeria "honors the centuries-old tradition of pizza makers in the birthplace of pizza; Naples, Italy".The pizzas are baked in their handmade Stefano Ferrara oven at 900+ degrees and are topped with fresh ingredients!
Other pizzerias that made the list were: Tony's Pizza Napoletana located in San Francisco ranked #1 in the United States, Brick Fire Tavern located in Honolulu ranked #34, and Robert's Pizza and Dough Company located in Chicago ranked #50.


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- The Phase 2 clinical trial will assess the safety and efficacy of ZYIL1 in Amyotrophic
Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) patients [ClinicalTrials.gov ID: NCT05981040]
- ALS is a rare, progressive and fatal neurodegenerative disease, with an average life
expectancy of 3 to 5 years from the time of symptom onset.
Ahmedabad, India, October 25, 2023 : Zydus, a leading discovery-based, global pharmaceutical company, announced today that it has received permission from CDSCO, India, to initiate the Phase II clinical study of NLRP3 inhibitor “ZYIL1” in patients with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS).
Mr. Pankaj R. Patel, Chairman, Zydus Lifesciences Ltd. said, “Zydus has always aimed at improving the quality of life of patients through its life changing discoveries. This study is a positive step in this direction to address very high unmet medical needs of patients suffering with ALS. By targeting neuroinflammation and neurodegeneration with ZYIL1, we hope to open up new possibilities in treating ALS.”
ALS patients experience neuroinflammation and rapid neurodegeneration leading to steady loss of the ability to move, speak, eat and eventually breathe. ALS results in loss of motor neurons in the brain and spinal cord which controls voluntary muscle movement.
ALS affects approximately 31,000 people in the U.S.A and on average 5,000 new patients are diagnosed every year with this disease in USA as per statistics from Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). More than 30,000 people are estimated to be living with ALS
in Europe (European Union and United Kingdom), while India has an estimated 75,000 people living with ALS. People living with ALS have a median survival of approximately two years from diagnosis.
The Phase II clinical trial will study safety, tolerability, pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics in patients with ALS. The change from baseline in the Revised Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Functional Rating Scale (ALSFRS-R) score will be measured at week 4, week 8 and week 12, as the trial’s primary endpoint is the placebo-controlled, randomised, double-blind Phase 2 clinical trial. The trial will also evaluate Key Secondary
Endpoints including Slow Vital Capacity (SVC), a predictor of functional loss in ALS and neurofilament levels at week 4 and week 12.
ZYIL1 is a novel oral small molecule NLRP3 inhibitor. Studies have demonstrated that ZYIL1 is highly potent in human whole blood assay and can suppress inflammation caused by the NLRP3 inflammasome. ZYIL1 was found distributed in the brain and CSF of various nonclinical species including mice, rats and non-human primates. The efficacy of ZYIL1 has been established in several validated pre-clinical models of neuroinflammation, Parkinson’s disease, Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) and Multiple Sclerosis (MS). The candidate, ZYIL1, has an acceptable ADME profile, with a good safety margin. In Phase I studies, ZYIL1 was found to be safe and well-tolerated [NCT04731324, NCT04972188].
Zydus has established the Phase 2 proof-of-concept in CAPS patients [NCT05186051] and has now published the data in Clinical Pharmacology in Drug Development. The USFDA has granted Zydus an ‘Orphan Drug Designation’ for ZYIL1 to treat patients with Cryopyrin Associated Periodic Syndrome (CAPS), a rare auto-inflammatory disease.
1. ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT04972188 A Phase I, Prospective, Open Label, Multiple Dose Study of ZYIL1 Administered Via Oral Route to Investigate The Safety, Tolerability, Pharmacokinetics And Pharmacodynamics In Healthy Adult Subjects
2. ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT04731324 A Phase 1, Prospective Open Label, Single Dose, Single Arm Study of ZYIL1 Administered Via Oral Route to Investigate the Safety, Tolerability, Pharmacokinetics and Pharmacodynamics in Healthy Adult Human Subjects
3. ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT05186051 A Phase 2a, Prospective, Open-Label Study to Evaluate the Safety, Tolerability, Pharmacokinetics and Pharmacodynamics of ZYIL1 in Subjects With Cryopyrin Associated Periodic Syndromes (CAPS)
4. Safety, Tolerability, Pharmacokinetics and Pharmacodynamics of the Oral NLRP3 Inflammasome Inhibitor ZYIL1: First-in-human Phase 1 studies (Single Ascending Dose and Multiple Ascending Dose), Clinical Pharmacology in Drug Development, 2022. DOI: 10.1002/cpdd.1162
5. Safety, Tolerability, Pharmacokinetics and Pharmacodynamics of ZYIL1 in Three Patients with Cryopyrin-Associated Periodic Syndromes, Clinical Pharmacology in Drug Development, 2023, 0(0) 1–8. DOI: 10.1002/cpdd.1318.
The Zydus Group with an overarching purpose of empowering people with freedom to live
healthier and more fulfilled lives, is an innovative, global lifesciences company that
discovers, develops, manufactures and markets a broad range of healthcare therapies. The
group employs nearly 25,000 people worldwide and is driven by its mission to unlock new
possibilities in lifesciences through quality healthcare solutions that impact lives. The group
aspires to transform lives through path-breaking discoveries.

domain: medical


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All the Acorns on the Forest Floor
Alex and Jake are delighted they’re pregnant – until they learn the child is at risk for Lou Gehrig’s disease. Dina, a childless Labor and Delivery nurse, daydreams about stealing a baby from her floor. Alyssa Delgado is distraught her English professor fathered her unborn child and arranges an adoption. Kim Hooper’s All the Acorns on the Forest Floor weaves a complex web of heartbreak to promote contemporary motherhood. Although most of her protagonists desire children, not all of them achieve – or are allowed to achieve – their goal. Hooper may very well achieve hers, however. Her unconventional plot challenges what it means to be a modern woman.
Unlike stereotypical would-be moms, none of Hooper’s protagonists are religious. They’re all independent, and most have successful careers. They represent diverse backgrounds. And yet these empowered women feel empty without children. While several prefer biological children, others adopt. Some try IVF or even use egg donors. Not every woman in Acorns wants a child, however, and these alternative characters expand the novel’s relevance. Hooper invites us to imagine modern women who embrace motherhood – even obsess over it – without forcing us to become them. But whether we empathize or only sympathize with Acorn’s yearning mothers, Hooper’s point is unmistakable: A woman’s right to choose works both ways.
|Buy this Book

domain: artistic


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LISTEN: CBS News Business Analyst Jill Schlesinger’s Summer Reading ListJill Schlesinger has a list of books to read over the summer that explain how we got where we are today in the financial world.
U.S. Market Opens With 1,000-Point DropThe opening bell just rang in the U.S. market, and people are sweating it out over whether to hang in there, or sell before it goes lower.
Total Information PM: How Is The St. Louis IKEA Coming Along?How is the building of the new IKEA store going? Joseph Roth with IKEA tells us.
The Fed Finally Makes A MoveBye, bye bonds says the Fed.
The Mark Reardon Show - 7/30/14 - Randy Murdick, Rick Stream, Tony Pousosa, Jill Schlesinger, Richard Linklater
Mark Reardon: Columnist George Will & Missouri House Speaker Tim JonesSyndicated columnist George Will discusses his latest piece, "The 20116 Presidential Candidate We Need." Will has also written a book about the Chicago Cubs.
Total Information PM: AT&T Buys DirecTVAT&T says it is buying DirecTV for $49 billion. The deal would marry the satellite content provider with the telecom giant. How will this affect customers? CBS News Business Analyst Jill Schlesinger tells us.
Total Information PM: Mark On Movies & CBS News Business Analyst Jill SchlesingerPaul Hall of Common Guy Films and Mark Reardon review the new movies "Her," "August: Osage County" and "Lone Survivor."
Total Information PM: What Sort Of Winter Will St. Louis Have?What sort of winter will we have? The Old Farmer’s Almanac is now out. Editor Janice Stillman joins us.
Mark Reardon: Reardon Roundtable & Actor Gabe BassoActor -- and St. Louis native -- Gabe Basso talks about his new film "Kings Of Summer."
Mark Reardon: Proposition P PassesThe Arch-Parks tax -- Proposition P -- passes in St. Louis City and St. Louis County. What happens now? Ryan McClure is with the group City Arch River.
Total Information PM: Mark On Movies & "The Twilight Saga"Paul Hall of Common Guy Films and Mark Reardon review "Jack the Giant Slayer."

domain: news


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The Federal government collected more tax and other revenue in April than in any other month on record, the Treasury department reported Friday.
April, which is typically the highest revenue month in any year, saw $407 billion flow into the government’s coffers. The closest figure previously recorded was April 2008 when the government collected $403 billion.
The recession and payroll tax holidays led to $318 billion in April 2012 and $245 billion in April 2010.
A Treasury official confirmed that April was the best month for revenue in nominal dollar terms on record.


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On Tuesday, May 17, 2022, the Okaloosa Board of County Commissioner unanimously approved a Planned Unit Development (PUD) on 10 acres on the south-side of Highway 98, west of Hurlburt Field.
The proposed Forest Shore Villas development will consist of 53 single-story, multi-family residential units (for rent). Each unit will be a separate building and configured on the site similar to a traditional single-family subdivision. Each unit will be 16 feet wide by 58 feet deep.
The units will be accessed from an internal roadway which is connected to US Highway 98, according to county documents. Each unit will have two dedicated parking spaces and there will be 22 additional parking spaces located throughout the development for visitors and guests.
- There are approximately 2.93 acres of wetlands on the site, of which, 2.25 acres are located within a conservation easement.
- Approximately 0.49 acres of the wetlands are proposed to be filled to construct the proposed development, according to the county.
What’s unique about this project is that the entire neighborhood is to be owned by a single entity. The homes won’t be sold, but will be rented out. This unified-ownership also prolonged the process of getting in front of the Board of County Commissioners because of the definition of “multi-family.”
- For Okaloosa County, multi-family is defined as structures that have 4 dwelling units or more.
According to Commissioner Nathan Boyles, the engineer who developed the project expressed frustration that it took the project over a year to make it to the commission for approval. He says it was driven entirely by the requirement for the creation of a PUD which would not have been required if the lots were being sold individually.
“After approving the project, the Commission unanimously directed staff to start the process of reviewing the current definition of “multi-family” within the code,” said Boyles. “With the goal of clarifying that a subdivision meeting all normal provisions of the land development code not be treated as a multi-family project (like apartments) just because the lots will initially be under unified ownership.”
Go deeper: If this project sounds familiar, that’s because the exact same type of subdivision and homes are being built in Niceville, near the new Aldi. This block of 35 homes will be rented out by the builder as a long-term investment.

domain: law


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There’s certainly been a lot of talk in the news lately about pirates, and it’s somewhat comical to think that pirates actually exist. The reason, of course, is because we’re used to seeing pirates portrayed as having a peg leg, an eye patch, and parrots on their shoulders.
Thus, it’s a bit surprising to see an emaciated Somalian boy referred to as a “pirate.” With the recent news about pirates, I started thinking about pirates in movies, where they are stereotyped for the audience’s liking. After the jump, take a look at 10 of the most memorable swashbucklers from the big screen. Note: one pirate per movie/series! Arrrrrrrr!!!! Scurvyyyy!!!!! OK, I’ll stop.
Captain Jack Sparrow – Pirates of the Caribbean Movies
Immortalized by Johnny Depp, Captain Jack Sparrow is memorable from his very first appearance in the first Pirates of the Carribbean movie. He’s crafty and resourceful, and comes off as (a not sober) Keith Richards with a dash of Steven Tyler and sprinkles of a homeless person. Still, he’s cool enough to flirt with Keira Knightly and can get away with wearing eye shadow. As bad as the sequels were – and they were effing BAD – Jack Sparrow was still worth watching.
Steve the Pirate – Dodgeball
Even though he didn’t have a pirate ship or a peg leg, Steve the Pirate could “Arrrr!” with the best of them. It was a shame that he lost his pirate getup at the end of Dodgeball; it must have been a real treat for his fellow gym members to bench press next to a pirate doing preacher curls. Alan Tudyk is a great actor and impossible not to like in Firefly and Serenity.
Dread Pirate Roberts/Wesley – The Princess Bride
Princess Buttercup believes that her love, Wesley, was attacked and killed by the Dread Pirate Roberts, and so she agrees to marry Prince Humperdinck. Wesley was not killed, however, after telling Roberts about his love for Buttercup. Roberts was so impressed that he made Wesley his apprentice and eventually passed to Wesley his name and rank of captain. Wesley, it should be noted, is just filthy with a sword.
Douglas “Dawg” Brown – Cutthroat Island
Played by Frank Langella, Dawg is the evil uncle of female pirate Morgan Adams. They both seek to find three pieces of a treasure map that leads to treasue on…Cutthroat Island. If this sounds stupid, it’s because it is: the movie was a ginormous flop. Still, Langella rules. The guy has played Skeletor, Nixon, and a pirate.
Captain Hook – Peter Pan, Hook
With apologies to Jack Sparrow, Captain Hook is perhaps the most memorable pirate of all time. He loathes the boy who won’t grow up, Peter Pan, and generally terrorizes the citizens of Neverland. The hook that has replaced the Captain’s hand and surely formed the Captain’s moniker was bitten off by a crocodile. Sure, there are saltwater crocodiles, but wouldn’t a shark have made a bit more sense?
Long John Silver – Treasure Island
It’s kind of sad that Long John Silver is a legendary character born from the genius of Robert Lewis Stevenson, and whenever I see his name, I don’t think “Treasure Island.” I think about seafood and, to a greater degree, Long Dong Silver.
Captain Blood – Captain Blood
Made in 1935, Captain Blood is the story of Dr. Peter Blood, a man convicted of treason and sentenced to slavery in Port Royal. During a raid on Port Royal, Blood steals a Spanish ship and decides, “Hey, I’m an escaped slave and I just stole a ship, so I guess there’s really just one course for me…piracy!” Kind of like the available options for this destitute Somalian kid – and he’s going to be tried as an adult?
John Silver – Treasure Planet
There are a couple of things that make John Silver a particularly unique pirate. The first is that he serves as a father figure to young Jim, the protagonist of Treasure Planet. The second is that he is a f*cking cyborg.
Captain Thomas Batholomew Red – Pirates
Played by Walter Matthau, Captian Red finds himself stranded on a raft with his first mate at the beginning of Roman Polanski’s “Pirates.” Before being picked up a Spanish ship, Captain Red tries to eat Frog. The two mates form a mutiny on the Spanish ship, but by the movie’s end, find themselves in the same situation – stranded, with Captain Red thinking about eating his buddy.
Yellowbeard – Yellowbeard
“Yellowbeard” doesn’t have the same menacing sound that “Blackbeard” and “Redbeard” do, which is part of the reason why this movie works so well as a comedy. I mean, whoever heard of a pirate being tried for tax evasion? Graham Chapman of Monty Python fame played Yellowbeard.
Any pirates from movies that didn’t make it into this article? Hit me up in the comments section and let me know. And remember – one pirate pre movie/series! “Davy Jones” posted in the comments section in 3…2…1…

domain: entertainment


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The La Quinta Inn & Suites Secaucus Meadowlands is ideally situated just 12 miles from Newark International Airport and only four miles from the excitement of mid-town Manhattan. Relax in the sparkling heated i...
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With a stay at Red Roof PLUS+ Secaucus - Meadowlands - NYC in Secaucus, you'll be convenient to Meadowlands Hospital Medical Center and Izod Center. This motel is within close proximity of Mill Creek ...
Pet Travel Club
Receive advance notice of pet friendly hotel & travel deals, the TWP e-newsletter, and exclusive member-only offers - like 10% OFF at the TWP Store!

domain: travel


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MYA MX 2000 – Bigger. Bolder. Bubblier.
Standing proudly at 34 inches, the MX 2000 is a sleek yet towering example of a modern MYA. Like the MX 4000, this colossal narghileh features a multi-hose valve system, a three-chambered plate, and a diffuser that cools the smoke as it travels through the water. The MYA MX 2000 has multiple base options, our most colorful stem collection to date, and includes MYAs new silicone hose complete with a solid brass handle.
Click here to try the new Custom MX Hookah Builder!
Get involved to be in the know about our latest products and other cool stuff!
The new MX 2000 Hookah stands 34″ inches tall. Includes a sleek solid-colored base, all brass stem, three chamber burner plate, multi-valve system, and the new MYA silicone hose.
*SALE limited to color availability*

domain: design


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The star is said to be upset by reports critics at the Sundance festival walked out of a screening of her movie
Katie Holmes is said to be ‘very upset’ over reports critics walked out of her latest film, The Son of No One, during a screening at the Sundance Film Festival.
Earlier this week, onlookers claimed there was a ‘exodus’ of critics leaving the first showing of the movie ‘well before the end,’ prompting talk Katie’s acting talents weren’t up to scratch.
‘The negative response went beyond the walkouts,’ one insider revealed. ‘One viewer’s attempt to begin applause after the lights came up drew almost no takers.’
Now, director Cassian Elwes has rushed to Katie’s defence, revealing she was ‘very upset’ after hearing the reports.
‘She loves the film and she’s great in it,’ he told Us. ‘She’s very upset by this attack.’
And far from leaving the screening due to the quality of the film, Elwes said it was technical glitch which led to several people walking out, adding a projectionist accidentally turned the lights on, several scenes before the film had come to an end.
‘There wasn’t a mass exodus,’ Elwes added. ‘The people who did see it, liked the film.
‘Despite Katie’s few scenes, she was fantastic in the role! We’ve already received three offers on the film. We’re 100 percent behind her and the entire cast’s performances in this film.’
Will you be first in line to see Katie’s latest film when it hits screens? Let us know your thoughts in the box below.


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Baby Luke Video Online!
Click on the Image above to watch the
sweetest video you ever saw.
BabyLukeEaster2006.mp4 (25.6 MB MP4 file)
NOW ALSO AVAILALE as an MOV QuickTime file. (16.7MB)
Tech Note: Created simply with iPhoto. Choose your images – hit slide show – choose song – click ‘export’ as video – share. Done. ENJOY! (Another Beautiful Mac Thing)


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1.1. Identify the different reasons why people communicate?
The reasons for People communicating are as follows:
•to express needs and wishes
•to share ideas and information
•to express feelings and/or concerns
•to build relationships and socialise
•to ask questions
•to share experiences
1.2. Explain how communication affects relationships in the work setting.
2.1. Demonstrate how to establish the communication and language needs, wishes and preferences of individuals.
2.2. Describe the factors to consider when promoting effective communication.
Factors to consider when communicating could be:
•Is the environment adequate for the communication( well lit, quiet, confidential etc.) •the person have the abilities to understand (dementia, mental health, learning disability) •adapting your communication for the individual (speak louder, use hand gestures etc.) •Does the person need an interpreter or family member to be present •How is the person going to respond to the communication
•Are you invading the individuals personal space
•Do you need to write down questions, for the individual to understand better •Are you sure of the facts, that you are communicating
Example of “communication methods I use with a client”.
Describe an individual you currently work with:
How long have you known them?
Describe the problems they have with communication
How did you find out about this person’s ability to communicate?
I find out communication needs by:
Describe how you do the following?
ActionAn example of how I did this
An example of how I did this
2.3. Demonstrate a range of communication methods and styles to meet individual needs....

domain: psychology


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Uplifting ❤ Relaxing ❤ Contemplative ❤ Sensual ❤ Meditative.
"EARTH RISE" is my debut album for Solo Guitar of Classical & Jazz Infusion amid Rich Orchestrations, Piano & World Rhythms.
As a composer of many styles and influences, it is a challenge to fit my style into one of the known genres: a bit New Age, a bit Classical, a bit Jazz and a bit World Rhythms, Ii am toying with the genre name: "Modern Alternative Music."
French composer ✌Claude Debussy is my favourite classical composer and one of my most profound influences with his depth of rich harmonies and expressive melodies. Brazilian composer ✌Heitor Villa-Lobos is a powerful influence in my guitar playing with his inventive harmonies and Latin rhythms. ✌Peter Gabriel is one of my favourite contemporary composer/musicians with his dynamic infusion of world rhythms and inventive rock.
Ii play classical and electric guitars, with my own style being an infusion of classical, jazz & rock. Primarily self-taught at keyboards & synthesizers, Ii love to play piano as well, especially to improvise. Earth Rise is primarily composed and mixed on Logic Pro 9 with all of its rich sampled (EXS) orchestral and world instruments. The piano is a Bösendorfer from Logic Pro 9. My electric guitar is an Ibanez and Ii use many of my own custom designed amps that Logic offers.
♬ Brief History:
Ii began playing guitar at the age of 9, and quickly was steered into playing classical music by my teachers. In High School Ii played solo guitar performances in variety shows along with other musical venues.
Entering college at the University of Minnesota, Ii decided to declare my music major beginning as a guitar performance major, but shifted to a composition major by my junior year. Ii just had something else to say, and needed to say it through the music playing from within me. It was at University that Ii studied counterpoint & private composition with ✌Paul Fetler. His most inspiring message to me about composition was 'compose what is in your Heart, and then use all the knowledge you have to make it the best version possible.' 'For in the end it is the expression that remains.'
As a tenor in the University Symphonic Chorus Ii was able to sing some great choral works like Beethoven's 9th Symphony and Verdi's Requiem with the Minnesota Orchestra and Robert Shaw guest conducting.
In the early '90s Ii formed a jazz/rock/vocal fusion band with myself as frontman & songwriter. The band consisted of 5 musicians | guitar, bass guitar & Chapman stick, jazz drummer & percussion, keyboards & synthesizers, and myself on lead vocals and some keyboards. We, "Tain Reimei" played several venues throughout Minneapolis including the famed 7th street entry at First Avenue.
Ii began photography around 2002, first as a means to shoot interior spaces Ii was designing for my clients from my career of 26yrs as an interior designer/artisan. However, once you get the "shutter-bug" in you, it will take you places you can never imagine. Nature is so powerfully healing and is resplendent with vistas to enjoy from the very large to the micro small.
My passions turned to sharing & producing Fine Art Images where we could surround ourselves with; thereby encouraging and reinforcing Well-Being within our lives on a daily basis.
Light is a powerful signal to enhance our condition for wellness. New Science now shows that signals of Light & Sound are "dynamic triggers" affecting the very course of our reading & re-reading our own DNA; thus, determining the continuous restructuring of our cells, thereby determining which new conditions we will foster and replicate as our bodies.
Wow! All this from just taking in the good views and listening to pleasant sounds.
As with all creative processes there are many twists and turns. Getting comfortable following roads with endless turns is one of the great creative challenges of all; so let Heart be your guide as you "Follow Your Bliss", and whatever roads you travel, you will always Be in your Bliss.
~~~ enJoy ~~~


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Wireless networks come in force into the market of computer communications. Unfortunately, several standards coexist (e.g., IEEE 802.11, Bluetooth, HomeRF, HIPERLAN), leading to various types of products. The purpose of this article is to present an overview of those standards and to establish a comparative evaluation. We mainly focus on the medium access control protocols and their ability to support the quality of service required by multimedia applications. Those protocols generally support two modes of operation, a random access mode for asynchronous traffic and a polling mode for real-time synchronous traffic. This article analyzes each protocol's ability to support user QoS requirements.


The Glock vehicle sear works by launching a binary dynamite that locks in the chamber when the slide is kept back. When the hammer comes out, the trigger then follows the bolt forward and releases. The weapon is not totally automated unless you have actually set the gun to complete auto. Who Is Glock.
Adjustments to semi-automatic guns
Adjustments to semi-automatic weapons are not without controversy. They are essentially the exact same firearms that were prohibited in 1989.
In the past few years, there have been a number of prominent attacks including automatic weapons. A police officer in Houston was killed by an illegally transformed weapon.
The Uzi style and the AK47 design are 2 examples of weapons that have undergone modifications to satisfy sporting purposes. Both of these firearms are semiautomatic weapons based on the designs of military attack rifles. Modifications to these weapons are legal in some jurisdictions, however might be unlawful in others.
Modifications to semi-automatic weapons have actually been prohibited in some nations for different factors. For example, the restriction of semi-automatic rifles has impacted the competitive shooting sports, and the ban has affected the economy. The ban also limits using attack rifles for sporting functions, such as searching.
It was the very first vote on this problem in a number of years and has been unlikely to pass. Still, the costs has produced a heated argument and reflects the varying positions of the candidates on weapon rights. The restriction would use to about 200 types of semi-automatic rifles, semi-automatic handguns, and other similar high-powered weapons.
The Glock automobile sear has a special safety mechanism that keeps the weapon from mistakenly shooting. It utilizes a proprietary substance called Tannerite, a titanium-like alloy. It also has a selector switch that restricts the type of ammunition that can be used with the gun. This safety mechanism is planned to make the gun easier to utilize and safer to manage.
The shooting pin is placed in a ramped lobe, which contacts the rearmost horizontal section of the trigger bar. It is then forced outward by a spring-loaded sear. This system operates in combination with the trigger spring and slide housing to prevent accidental discharges. While this system is handy, it does not avoid every unexpected discharge.
The Glock auto sear consists of a cross-shaped protrusion at the back. The safety system avoids accidental discharges and makes sure the weapon is safe to utilize. Who Is Glock.
To eliminate the Glock auto sear, you need to eliminate the slide lock. There are numerous ways to separate the slide from the frame, however the Glock Armorer ‘s Manual suggests that you use a strong hand method.
When you fill a Glock auto sear, the weapon will not fire unless the safety mechanism is engaged. By preventing pre-travel, you can make the trigger pull short. It likewise prevents the firing pin from mistakenly engaging unless you pull the trigger. This safety prevents the gun from accidentally releasing the preliminary. This makes it very hard to accidentally discharge a single round. In contrast, other semiautomatic handguns have an external security gadget, which can be set with a flick of the thumb.
The Glock vehicle sear includes two receivers 20 and 21. They are engaged by the slide 13 of the Glock vehicle sear.
A Glock handgun is a semiautomatic handgun with a vehicle sear attached. This device transforms the weapon into a tiny gatling gun that can fire 20 rounds per second. Made of plastic or metal, car sears can do extraordinary damage. These weapons are frequently utilized in criminal activities. A recent VICE News investigation discovered a number of gun-related occurrences including automobile sears, including murders, burglaries, and even extremist attacks.
The ATF has actually released an examination into the use of auto sears. The ATF has identified a number of firearms customized with automobile sears, including a variety of Chinese-made guns that can fire totally automatic. Some of the modified guns have actually been cost hundreds of dollars each.
A Glock automobile sear is an extremely dangerous adjustment to a handgun. This device can turn a legal pistol into a deadly weapon in 2.3 seconds if utilized by bad guys. In one case, an ATF representative took a modified Glock that fired 30 bullets in less than 2 seconds. This type of speed makes it tough to objective and control, and it can put innocent spectators in risk.
Illegality of converting semi-automatic weapons to totally automated weapons
A conversion device, known as a vehicle sear, is a little square device about the size of a thumbnail that can transform a semi-automatic gun into a fully automatic weapon. Sanders purchased the gun in Indiana for less than $25.
Considering that 1986, it is illegal for civilians to purchase totally automatic weapons and sell them without a federal authorization or registration. A little number of completely automatic guns are still for sale in the pastime market, and can offer for 10s of thousands of dollars.
ATF representatives recently seized more than two-thousand plans of conversion devices. These devices convert semi-automatic Glock handguns into totally automated weapons. Federal law thinks about these conversion gadgets machine guns, and they were not made by Glock.
While the conversion devices are relatively simple to install, they are exceptionally hazardous. These gadgets have actually been sold online for as little as $20. The costs would crack down on prohibited gun modification devices and stop their expansion. It would also require the Attorney General to consist of data on unlawfully modified weapons in its yearly guns trafficking report.
A semi-automatic handgun has a high rate of fire, however the rapid fire in the videos of the shooting in Las Vegas might have been a totally automated weapon. The ATF ‘s National Firearms Act prohibits using fully automatic weapons in civilians, but this ban has substantial loopholes.
Who Is Glock
Transforming a semi-automatic gun to a completely automated weapon is not a simple job. You require to register the weapon with the US Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, and pay a special tax. If you wear ‘t comply, you might deal with severe charges.
Converting a semi-automatic gun to a totally automated weapon requires a license. The federal weapon windows registry restricts the ownership of a totally automatic gun unless the owner has a license. In the meantime, the automobile sear is a growing pattern in the black market and has caused many crimes and homicides.
The Glock vehicle sear has a special safety mechanism that keeps the gun from unintentionally shooting. When you pack a Glock vehicle sear, the weapon will not fire unless the security mechanism is engaged. A conversion gadget, understood as a car sear, is a little square device about the size of a thumbnail that can transform a semi-automatic weapon into a totally automatic weapon. Converting a semi-automatic gun to a totally automatic weapon requires a license. The federal gun pc registry restricts the belongings of a fully automatic gun unless the owner has a license. Who Is Glock.


MedPage Today — Dr. Milton Packer recounts two very different experiences
You may have read recently about the death of a 25-year-old nurse who suffered a pulmonary embolism during a flight. After she passed out in the bathroom, a physician who was also a passenger on the flight pleaded unsuccessfully with the pilot to divert the plane. The nurse suffered anoxic encephalopathy and died several days later. Reading about this tragic incident stirred my memories of being the “doctor on the plane.” I have played this role on several occasions, and two of my experiences are worth recollecting. Both occurred in the 1980s, when I was a front-line cardiologist facing cardiac emergencies on a daily basis.


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We CAN Do Hard Things – Including Quitting
Quitting and course-correcting is hard. And, among other inner resources, it requires a lot of self-forgiveness. But with the right attitude and the right reminders, we CAN do hard things. Let’s take it from Glennon Doyle and Bozoma Saint John.
Be a Quitter!
Sometimes, the way to encourage yourself is to…discourage yourself! Among so many reminders to “keep on going”, we also need reminders to quit the thing that’s wrong for you. This article and podcast episode are exactly that: a kind reminder that you can allow yourself to quit the things that don’t serve you anymore. You…


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When she was born, ladies couldn’t vote. At 103, she watched a Black girl like her grow to be vice chairman.
Jan. 20 was a giant day for Laura Franklin, and never simply because it was her 103rd birthday. Ms. Franklin, who was born a yr earlier than American ladies gained the suitable to vote, obtained to look at Kamala Harris, a Black girl like her, sworn in as vice chairman of the United States.
“Best birthday ever!” stated her daughter, Kathleen Leonard, 68. They celebrated collectively on Wednesday, Ms. Franklin toasting Ms. Harris on the tv display screen at her home in Houston, together with her birthday deal with: a bottle of Corona beer.
Ms. Franklin was born in Portsmouth, Va., greater than a yr earlier than Congress handed the 19th Amendment on June four, 1919, and greater than two years earlier than it was ratified by the states, enshrining ladies’s suffrage within the Constitution. She confronted each day discrimination for each her race and her gender as she made her means by way of a profession as a lab technician on the University of Chicago Comer Children’s Hospital.
When she grew to become an educator, she recalled, ladies had been anticipated to depart educating once they grew to become pregnant. To get a bank card required her husband’s signature, she stated, though she was a working skilled, together with serving because the assistant principal of a public highschool in Chicago.
“So a lot has occurred, and many great issues have occurred,” because the period of her beginning, Ms. Franklin stated on Wednesday. “Getting the vote, ladies could possibly be unbiased, that ladies may management their very own lives,” she stated. “They used to must depend upon their husband or some male determine to inform them what to do.”
She stated she grew misty-eyed when Ms. Harris was sworn in, and chuckled on the time period for Ms. Harris’s husband, Douglas Emhoff, now the second gentleman: “It’s form of cute,” she stated.
Growing up with out Black ladies in positions of energy as a mannequin, Ms. Franklin stated, made it unattainable for her to conceive that such a ladies could possibly be elected to nationwide workplace. “I don’t know that I ever actually thought that it could occur, I’m simply so glad it did and I’m so glad she’s there,” Ms. Franklin stated. “It simply by no means occurred to me, as a result of issues had been so tough years in the past.”
For her daughter, Ms. Harris’s ascendancy was not a victory on the finish of a protracted highway, however a starting that might guarantee her grandchildren, and her mom’s great-grandchildren, would have these fashions to look as much as.
“They won’t ever know that there wasn’t a Black president, and they’re going to by no means know that there wasn’t a feminine vice chairman and Black vice chairman,” Ms. Leonard stated. “Someone who appears to be like like them; that’s so large.”
Finishing up her birthday beer, Ms. Franklin joined in: “It’s a type of issues that goals are product of,” she stated.


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…omotes profit above all else is comparable to the Holocaust but Squeeze the Avocado makes the case. “Capitalism, like the Holocaust, is made of the ideologies of people.” Everything begins as an ideology but few ends in the genocide of people. As far as history is conce…
Everything Comparable to the Holocaust According to Medium Writers
Yes, the ideology that innovation is borne from competition is exactly like the ideology that Jews are an infestation that need to be exterminated. Totally samesies.

domain: history


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Netflix's "Sabrina" reboot has found its Harvey — and oh my Greendale, he's a perfect fit
Netflix’s highly anticipated reboot of Sabrina the Teenage Witch is slowly coming together, and now the streaming platform has finally cast Sabrina’s lovable boyfriend. Austin & Ally star Ross Lynch will fill the role of Harvey Kinkle, opposite Kiernan Shipka’s Sabrina, and we couldn’t be more excited about this announcement.
Like his predecessor in the ABC sitcom, it seems Lynch’s Harvey will be blissfully unaware of the magical happenings around him — at least, at first. According to Entertainment Weekly, Netflix’s Harvey is, “the son of a coal miner, a dreamboat and a dreamer, completely unaware of the dark forces conspiring to keep him and Sabrina apart.”
And while Lynch is best known for lighthearted projects like Teen Beach Movie, the actor recently shed his Disney Channel roots to play serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer in My Friend Dahmer. So he’s definitely no stranger to going dark. Which will come in handy here.
The still untitled Sabrina series will be a major departure from the sitcom, instead following the Chilling Adventures of Sabrina comics.
The show, which has previously been described as being “in the vein of Rosemary’s Baby and The Exorcist” — yes, really — is being helmed by the same creative mind behind Riverdale: Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa is writing, directing, and executive producing the series. While the series was originally being shopped to The CW as a companion series for Riverdale, Netflix eagerly scooped it up, giving it an immediate two season, 20 episode order.
Lynch joins Wonder Woman‘s Lucy Davis who has already been tapped to play Aunt Hilda, while Homeland’s Miranda Otto will play Aunt Zelda. And for those worried about the appearance of a particular black cat, Aguirre-Sacasa has already reassured fans that Salem will definitely be in the Netflix series. *Phew*
While the series is from the same people responsible for beloved teen-noir drama Riverdale, we have a feeling Sabrina is going to be just a bit more terrifying.
According to the press release, the series is a “dark coming-of-age tale that traffics in horror, the occult and witchcraft“and will follow Sabrina as she struggles to understand her “dual nature as a half-witch, half-mortal while fighting the evil forces that threaten her, her family and the daylight world humans inhabit.”
Netflix has yet to announce a release date for the series but when it does, we may be watching this one with the lights on.


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Wind power has had a rather mixed press lately. More than 100 MPs signed a letter seeking a reduction in subsidies, and the Chairman of the National Trust told the Daily Telegraph that he regarded wind farms as a “menace”. In December they provided 5% of our electricity. But as the Government’s lead scenario is for renewable energy to meet 30% of our needs by 2020, we can expect a lot more of them.
My attitude to wind farms is like that of a poorly child faced with some unpleasant tasting medicine. I know they’re good for me, but I wish I didn’t have to have them. The massive structures seem utterly incompatible with the fine grain of the English landscape. But I’ve often wondered whether I might be converted if I got to know one personally.
So let me take you back two weeks. There is snow on the ground and the thermometer reads -6oC. I am setting off on foot for a fifteen mile walk across Romney Marsh on the Kent – Sussex border, through the Little Cheyne Court wind farm to Dungeness. There is barely a breeze, but from my starting point at the Ypres Tower in Rye I can see through the early morning haze that the turbines down on the marsh are moving. There are 26 of them at Little Cheyne Court. It is the largest on-shore installation in the south of England, and has for me the great added benefit of a public footpath right through the middle of it.
Romney Marsh is dead flat, steadily reclaimed from the sea over the last 1500 years. East Guldeford level, where I start my walk, was the last to be drained, around 500 years ago. An empty landscape of sheep, dykes and, today, ice and snow, it’s easy to visualise it as the shallow sea it once was, with the higher ground of Rye and the Isle of Oxney forming the “coastline”. And like being out at sea there isn’t a lot to navigate by. Particularly this morning. The footpaths are obscured under the snow, and there are rarely footprints to guide me.
I make a little detour to visit East Guldeford church, a 16th century building all alone on the marsh, and realise that I’m now on the wrong side of the dyke. I see two young foxes trot across the white landscape ahead of me, maintaining stride as they cross the frozen ditch confidently and continue on the other side. But I’m not sure the ice would hold my weight. I need to find a footbridge. I spot one a bit further along, and in the end they become my main navigational aids. These substantial wooden bridges are quite a recent addition. The traditional plank bridges would have been much harder to see.
The wind farm didn’t look very far away when I started out, but after I’ve been walking for an hour I still haven’t reached it. My brain must be struggling to make sense of the size of the things. Even the pylons carrying the power lines from Dungeness nuclear power station, which were until recently the tallest structures on the marsh, appear like Lilliputian contraptions beside them. But as I navigate by eye from one footbridge to the next, the steadily rotating turbines seem silent and benign, unheard above the traffic on the A259, the firing from the army ranges at Lydd and the crunch of my boots on the snow.
Out here on the marsh the turbines are perhaps less intrusive than in a more conventional landscape. In fact Little Cheyne Court is almost like an offshore installation, far from any sizeable settlement, and generally only experienced from a distance. It is only when I am 400m away that I start to become aware of any noise. The footpath meanders right under the turbines, and I sit beneath one for a few minutes and listen. The rush of the blades is (unsurprisingly) reminiscent of a windmill, and the turbine itself hums quietly. The strangest thing is the shadows from the rotating blades. They are enormously long in the low winter sun, creating a strobe effect across the walls of a farmhouse almost half a mile away. I hope they are only hitting outbuildings, rather than somebody’s living room window.
Close up the wind turbines are absolutely huge, but I find a certain beauty knowing that each one is generating enough carbon-free electricity for over 1000 homes. Then with a sudden roar the nearest one brakes and comes to a stop. The noise and movement cease, and I realise that close up the turbines dominate my sensory experience. But 400m further on, as I walk towards Lydd, they are again silent.
In Lydd I get into conversation with a pub landlord about the wind farm. He is sceptical, putting his faith in wave and tidal power as a more efficient long-term solution. His main concern is not the visual impact but how little electricity wind power generates for the cost. Little Cheyne Court provides power for 33,000 homes. Dungeness B can supply about 1.5 million. We do a rough calculation and agree that you would need to cover most of Romney Marsh with wind turbines to replace the generating capacity which will be lost when the nuclear power station closes in 2018.
I suppose that might be possible. With nothing in the way the wind must be pretty reliable, and England’s lands reclaimed from the sea – Romney Marsh, the Fens and the Somerset Levels – are not nationally protected landscapes. So the only restriction that Government planning guidance places on more capacity is the need to take the “cumulative impact of wind generation projects in particular areas” into account. And I don’t know how often that reason for refusal has been upheld on appeal.
I leave Lydd and continue south tracking the power lines to Dungeness. One of the great joys of walking on footpaths is that I can feel the geology changing under my feet. Dungeness is a shingle spit beyond the reclaimed marsh, and I soon find that I have two miles of pebbles to walk across to get to the power station. It’s hard work but explains why the Government has decided against replacing Dungeness B. It is essentially a nuclear reactor built on a beach, and the shingle spit isn’t really stable enough.
The power station dominates the view at Dungeness, if you choose to look that way. But the little groups of wooden summer homes perched on the beach in front of the nearby lighthouse have a character all their own – more like a Scandinavian holiday community than part of England. Any minute I expect Sarah Lund to turn up and start investigating a gruesome murder. For the amount of power generated Dungeness has far less impact on the appearance of the landscape than Little Cheyne Court – but then again there are no recorded instances of radiation leaking from a wind turbine.
And anyway it’s an unfair comparison. We aren’t installing wind power because it’s less visually intrusive – but because it’s carbon neutral and secure. And offshore, or on the broad flat acres of a remote part of Romney Marsh, it appears benign and unobjectionable.
But two days later as I drive up the nearby Elham Valley, I try and visualise 115m high wind turbines there, and shudder at the thought. Of course it won’t happen, as the Elham valley is part of the Kent Downs Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, but the charm of the English landscape isn’t easily corralled by lines on maps. Much of our “unprotected” countryside has a similarly fine grain, which I fear wind farms would change for ever. So getting up close and personal with Little Cheyne Court hasn’t really worked after all. I still don’t want to take my medicine.

domain: geography


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05 Aug Book Review of The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafón
When Daniel Sempere turns ten, his father, a bookstore owner, takes him to a secret place. It’s called “The Cemetery of Forgotten Books,” an immense labyrinthine library preserving thousands of old forgotten titles. According to tradition, initiates to the secret place are allowed to take one book. Once chosen, the initiate must protect that book for life.
Daniel selects a book called The Shadow of the Wind, by Julian Caráx. He reads it that day and becomes enthralled with it. Afterwards, he searches for additional works by this unknown author.
To his surprise, he finds that no copies exist. Then, he learns that a man calling himself Laín Coubert, the name of a character in the book, has been seeking out Carax’s books for decades. His purpose is to buy and then burn them all.
Determined to protect the book and find other works by Caráx, Daniel is drawn to the mystery of the author’s past. He learns that several aspects of Carax’s life parallel his own. He’s even told he resembles the author in his youth.
Fermín Romero de Torres Provides Comic Relief
In the course of his search, Daniel discovers a tragic love story between Julian Caráx and Pénelope Aldaya. It resulted in the disappearance of the lovers over thirty years ago, in 1919. He recruits the help of his mentor and sidekick, Fermín Romero de Torres to help him get to the heart of Caráx’s disappearance.
Fermín is a former spy in the civil war, who has now become a beggar. Daniel rescued him from the streets and persuaded his father to employ him in the bookstore. This flamboyant character often inserts moments of humor into the narrative. These usually appear through sarcastic expressions of disdain for the corruption of the current regime, or in the form of unsolicited advice to Daniel about his love life. Fermín’s antics create comic relief to an otherwise suspenseful and foreboding story.
Set in Barcelona at the end of the Spanish Civil War, this story-within-a story unravels in a city pock-marked by war. Daily life grinds on in an atmosphere of fear and death. Survivors hang on with little expectation of better times among the ruins of bankrupt dynasties and corrupt secret police.
Within this gothic world of shadows and darkness, Zafrón shines his creative light on a large and varied cast of memorable characters. I’ve mentioned Daniel, the main character, and his friend Fermín, in their quest to find out what happened to Caráx.
Opposing and threatening them at every step is the despicable Francisco Javier Fumero, the arch protagonist. Fumero, the murderous police inspector, shares a past with Caráx–a past not completely revealed until the end of the story.
The interactions and complex relationships among the characters create the tension that carries the plot forward and makes the novel a page turner. That is, until the last third of the book when the point of view changes. A lengthy letter then carries the story almost to its ending. However, if the reader can hang on through this rather tedious section, the reward is a satisfying conclusion.
In creating the mood of this foreboding mystery, the author virtually personifies cold and dark and shadow and light as additional characters. His technique, while mostly effective, is sometimes overdone. I consider the following examples among the more effective ones:
A cold, slashing breeze swept the streets, scattering strips of mist in its path. The steely sun snatched copper reflections from the roofs and belfries of the Gothic quarter.
Shadows spread around Julian, and soon they would close in on him.
Slowly, almost ritualistically, I followed the trail of the candles and lit them one by one, conjuring up a halo of amber light that seemed to float in the air like a cobweb trapped between mantles of impenetrable darkness…
When I got out into the streets, it seemed as if darkness were creeping along the paving in pursuit of me.
A number of observations by, as well as descriptions of characters in the book, rise to the level of quotable quotes. A few of my favorites are:
Years of teaching had left him with that firm and didactic tone of someone used to being heard, but not certain of being listened to.
Antoni Fortuny was a man who felt he could talk openly only about hats. He locked his deeper feelings in the prison of his heart for months on end, until they became hopelessly embittered. He grew ever more bad-tempered and irritable. He found fault with everything…
One, Mrs. Aldaya has the mental age of a twelve-year-old; two, she suffers from a chronic narcissism that makes it impossible for her to see or understand anything that is not what she wants to see or believe, especially if it concerns herself.
When everyone is determined to present someone as a monster, there are two possibilities: either he’s a saint or they themselves are not telling the whole truth.
Sometimes we think people are like lottery tickets, that they’re there to make our most absurd dreams come true.
Making money isn’t hard in itself, he complained. What’s hard is to earn it doing something worth devoting one’s life to.
Bea says that a book is a mirror that offers us only what we already carry inside us, that when we read, we do it with all our heart and mind, and great readers are becoming more scarce by the day.
International Best Seller
The intricate and clever plot; the author’s mastery of language; his ability to weave disparate characters into an intriguing story–all of these elements explain why the book is an international best seller. The weakness of the last section notwithstanding, the novel is definitely worth taking the time to read.
This book is on the reading list for the Book Marks Book Club. For more information see http://bit.ly/2neJ4Id.
For additional book reviews, see http://bit.ly/2OgFh8P.

domain: literature


The very first baby monitor was designed in the 30s, accompanying the growing medium of radio broadcasting. It began as a humble, audio only system that consisted of a mic, transmitter, and speaker. By the 70s, 2-way intercoms were developed; and by the early 2000s, it had evolved into video-capable units. With the introduction of a growing number of technologies, the baby monitors came to accommodate complex innovations into their designs.
Now, there are baby monitors that range from only sound to high definition video recording apparatuses, with innovative features like temperature sensing, humidity tracking, crypto safety, and recorded lullabies and/or white noise makers. The task then becomes how to filter out the”fluff” while ensuring that it does exactly what it is created to do: enable you to check your baby’s safety and comfort without difficulty, at any given time of the day or night.
From the abundance of choices available, we’ve singled out one product that seems to have gotten it right, and has gotten it right for several years now. Infant Optics DXR-8 captured our attention for getting the right mix of functionality, durability, reliability, and innovation. Following are some comparisons with other top competitors.
Infant Optics DXR-8 vs Eufy SpaceView Ibaby Monitor M6s vs Infant Optics Dxr-8
Possibly the only other baby monitor that comes close to the Infant Optics DXR-8 baby monitor is the one from Eufy SpaceView. At roughly the same price range, they have been elbowing one another for the top spot on reviewers’ lists since 2019. Make no mistake however, Infant Optics DXR-8’s track record for recognition remains currently unbeatable, with awards for the best baby monitor since 2017, including “Best Baby Monitor Of All Time” by New York Magazine.
It has earned the name “Mighty DXR-8” by doctors and expert tech reviewers because of its simple interface and dependability. It’s no surprise that it continues to be the best-selling variant of baby monitors in the current market, with an average of 16,000 units sold monthly on Amazon, and more than 500,000 sales since its introduction into the marketplace. Ibaby Monitor M6s vs Infant Optics Dxr-8
Both baby monitors are preferred by consumers for their ease of use in the home. Their local-only audio and video feed provides the utmost security, giving parents extra peace of mind — no need to worry about hackers infiltrating their private space! Aside from using frequency-hopping spread spectrum (FHSS) technology that makes both baby monitors virtually decrypt-proof, they also don’t connect to the Internet, reducing risks of unwanted data transmission.
Infant Optics DXR-8’s edge over the Eufy SpaceView are its variety of interchangeable lenses. The normal lens is most suitable for night or low-light viewing, the wide-angle lens is ideal for viewing the whole nursery, and the telephoto lens can zoom into your baby for greater detail. While Eufy’s night vision needs to be manually switched off and on, Infant Optics DXR-8 can detect low-light conditions and automatically switches to its invisible infrared. Ibaby Monitor M6s vs Infant Optics Dxr-8
Battery is also an issue with the Eufy SpaceView, as it can’t be replaced (and it is a frequent fact that infant monitors tend to burn their batteries out due to prolonged hours powered on). Infant Optics DXR-8 is run on lithium-ion batteries and can be substituted. While a complete charge claims to last 12 hours, it’s been noted to run up to 15.5 hours. Eufy, on the other hand, may work better plugged in to last through the night.
Last, the Infant Optics DXR-8 seems sturdier overall. The Eufy’s kick-stand feels fragile, and even looks off-kilter, if we’re nitpicking; and its antennae aren’t that stable. Inversely, Infant Optics DXR-8’s screen looks like it may fall from a table and still be okay.
Infant Optics DXR-8 vs Motorola MBP36XL
Generally cheaper than the Infant Optics DXR-8, the Motorola MBP36XL also makes a consistent presence on lists of best baby monitors, albeit at the lower ranks. While many of the features are quite similar (because how far can you deviate from a baby monitor?), there is 1 specification that makes the Motorola stand out: its 1,000-ft range. Other than that, Infant Optics DXR-8 trumps most of its other attributes.
Ibaby Monitor M6s vs Infant Optics Dxr-8
Concerning installation, Infant Optics’ easy installation cannot be beat, while the Motorola unit requires a screwdriver just for inserting the battery.
On the topic of batteries, the Motorola MBP36XL uses a NiMH rechargeable type for power, which explains the issues we have with it. Charging typically takes 10-12 hours, almost triple the time necessary for Li-ion batteries. NiMH batteries lose a percentage of their charge each month, so expect to need replacements frequently, because overcharging (or keeping the device plugged in) is not encouraged. Extreme temperatures also cause the NiMH voltage outputs to fall, while Li-ion batteries are more tolerant to temperature changes. To make the point more succinct, the Infant Optics DXR-8 uses Li-ion batteries, adding to its reliability.
With respect to video feed, the Motorola baby monitor has a slightly larger screen, but the view is quite limited and has to be mounted fairly far in the baby if you would like to see the whole room. While both Infant Optics and Motorola have tilting and panning, there’s some noise when the Motorola MBP36XL is being corrected.
No Unnecessary Features Ibaby Monitor M6s vs Infant Optics Dxr-8
Although the Motorola boasts of having the ability to play 5 lullabies, it was really a rather counter intuitive function for a baby monitor; the music has a tendency to conceal the baby’s sounds, and will not have the ability to tell what’s happening unless the monitor is installed somewhere very close to the child.
Overall, you really get what you pay for (or don’t, in this instance ).
Infant Optics DXR-8 vs Arlo Baby by Netgear
Features Ibaby Monitor M6s vs Infant Optics Dxr-8
How can the Infant Optics DXR-8 compare to some of the more current releases on the market? Arlo Baby by Netgear is one such competitor that really resembles the shiny new toy of baby monitors. In customizable character outfits such as bunnies, kittens, and puppies, and features like HD recording, night light, and lullabies, it’s tough to dismiss this new kid on the block. Ibaby Monitor M6s vs Infant Optics Dxr-8
But for all its flashy new tricks, how well does it deliver what we really need in a baby monitor? It is true that at 1080p resolution, you get a much clearer image of your baby, but unless you’re planning to make vlogs from your footage, it doesn’t really seem that necessary.
The Infant Optics DXR-8 baby monitor has many of the same features for a much older model. It has temperature monitoring, which can show in either Celsius or Fahrenheit; two-way talk capability, which allows you to talk to your baby from another room; digital zoom of up to 2x, to check out what your baby is playing with; and night vision, for observing changes in your child throughout the night. Plus, the monitor can fit nicely in your back pocket!
Remote Camera Access and Cry LED Alert
For all of its technological advances, there are 2 things the Arlo Baby didn’t include. One is panning and tilting remotely, which the much simpler Infant Optics DXR-8 offers. This feature is particularly useful for monitoring larger kids that have a lot more mobility than in-crib babies. The next is a vibration or LED light awake if the baby-end monitor picks up quite loud noises (for example, extreme crying), which is beneficial for consumers that are hard of hearing.
Ibaby Monitor M6s vs Infant Optics Dxr-8
As can be expected from a gadget with several features, in addition to a WiFi-enabled device, the Arlo Baby may be more challenging to set up for the technologically challenged. It definitely needs more steps to connect the baby monitor to a network, calibrate it with an app that you need to download, etc. As mentioned previously, Infant Optics’ fool-proof setup is one reason why parents still prefer it over fancier options.
Connected devices such as the Arlo Baby are more prone to hacking or transmission difficulties, endangering your family’s security. Since it’s dependent on your phone and an Internet connection, problems like connectivity and feed consistency may be a problem. Infant Optics DXR-8’s radio frequency or end-to-end picture and sound doesn’t have the exact same security problems nor the reliance on having to go online.
It may look like the Arlo Baby is packed with terrific features, and we’re not denying that it truly does, but for the functions of a baby monitor and the price it goes for, you’re probably better off using the tried and tested Infant Optics DXR-8. Some of the functions, like night lights and lullabies, you may already have at home or are much more soothing if sung by a parent consecutively. With a hefty price gap, we are pretty sure the far cheaper Infant Optics does the same job without hurting your pocket.
Conclusion Ibaby Monitor M6s vs Infant Optics Dxr-8
All these baby monitors are the current top choices, but as we’ve established, Infant Optics DXR-8 is still the obvious choice as a one-time investment. However, as parents, you will still be the better judge of what you and your child or family need. It will still depend on your living conditions, your budget, how busy your baby is (or how busy you are for that matter), and if you want to use it to communicate with family scattered around your home. At the end of the day, all it must do is to enable you more mobility through the day, and some much deserved rest at night, whilst keeping an eye on your prized one. Their security and your peace of mind is the top priority.
If you’re settled on getting the Infant Optics DXR-8 after reading these comparisons, click here to buy now.


Modern Engine Sensors
As I mentioned in the first post in this series, tuning a car when I was a teenager meant that you got out your timing light, a couple of hand tools and you asked your old man to show you how to loosen the distributor and you would twist it a bit, then make a turn or two on the carburetor. Unfortunately, everything on the modern engine is electronic and your old man can’t figure out how to use the TiVo. Electronics means computers. Computers need information. The car’s computer will get all the information from the multitude of sensors that litter your engine bay.
Modern engines use these electronic sensors to feed information into their “brains” or Engine Control Unit (ECU) and make calculations based on those figures. The sensors that have some importance are:
- Mass Air Flow (MAF)
- Intake Air Temperature (IAT)
- Manifold Temperature
- Coolant Temperature
- Throttle Position Sensor (TPS)
- Manifold Absolute Pressure (MAP)
- Crank Position Sensor
- Cam Position Sensor
- Oxygen Sensors
- Knock Sensors
- Voltage Sensors
I’m not going to go into a lot of detail here about what each of these sensors does, but I made a link to some info about a few of them. I will limit the info here to the main/important points of some of them.
Mass Air Flow – Measures the air coming into the engine. Basically, a little wire heats up, air passes over the wire and cools the wire in relation to the mass of air that passes over it.
Intake Air temperature (IAT) – Measures the temperature of the air as it enters the engine.
Manifold Temperature – The manifold temperature sensor provides a reading of the heat soak in the intake manifold, because that heat can change the density of the air going into the engine (because this is right before the air enters the cylinder). The idea here is that an added adjustment can be made to compensate for this heat soak.
Coolant Temperature – Precisely what it says.
Throttle Position Sensor (TPS) – The throttle position sensor tells the system not only where your foot is on the pedal, but how fast you are making a change in either direction; faster or slower.
Manifold Absolute Pressure (MAP) – Measures the pressure of the air in the manifold, which can be used to calculate air mass if you have other known figures (like temperature). I imagine at this point you are starting to notice that everything is about the mass of air and the quantity of fuel to add to such mass to make things go.
Crank Position Sensor – Tells the ECU how fast the crank is spinning.
Cam Position Sensor – Monitors where in the stroke cycle #1 piston is located. This way the engine knows which cylinder will have the fuel injected at the correct time.SIDE NOTE: If you are unfamiliar with what a cam is or does, take a look at this animation. A “cam” is a mechanical linkage that makes rotating motion convert into linear motion. If you watch the animation, you notice that while the round portion of the cam is rotating against the lever the valve does not open, but when the oblong portion reaches the lever, the valve opens.
Oxygen Sensors (O2) – Give us a measure of the amount of oxygen that is exiting in the exhaust. If there is excess oxygen in the exhaust, we can assume that more fuel can be burned.
Knock Sensors – Pick up sounds caused by detonation.
Try to think of all these sensors as a loop. They feed information to the ECU (the brain) and as calculations are made the settings change and new information is received. The O2 sensors are in the exhaust, the others are in front of the cylinder. The sensors in front of the cylinder send the information to the ECU, the ECU makes an educated guess as to where things should be, then the O2 sensors read the outcome and determine how well the ECU made it’s guess.
In part III of this tuning series we will take a look at some basics of fuel and ignition systems


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Please click here to download the release in full for distribution.
PCI Pal, the secure payments solution provider for contact centers, has appointed senior channel leader, Darren Gill, as VP of Channels for North America. Gill joins the business from Genesys and will leverage his in-depth understanding of the contact center market to drive PCI Pal’s channel partnerships in North America. Darren will report to Grafton Potter, SVP of Sales for North America.
PCI Pal COO, North America, James Barham, comments, “We are extremely excited by the addition of Darren to our highly-focused team of experienced industry experts in the US. Channel is key to our focus as a business not only in North America, but globally and Darren brings a wealth of regionally-specific experience, combined with global insights and deep industry knowledge that will rapidly add value to our business, channel partners, and end user customers.”
Founded in the UK, PCI Pal expanded into the US market in 2017, opening its first office in Charlotte, North Carolina. In the past year, the team has seen consistent growth, evolving its product set and migrating its PCI DSS solutions to become the only true cloud provider able to deliver global PCI services for contact centers. As part of an increased focus on partner expansion, the creation of this new, channel-focused role is a key element of the business’ global growth strategy.
Gill explains his move: “As the only true cloud player at the forefront of industry innovation, the decision to join the PCI Pal team was an easy one. Our industry is at an inflection point here in North America and PCI Pal is perfectly positioned to guide businesses through the regulatory and compliance challenges ahead. I am excited to have the opportunity to work with and grow our VAR, BPO and MSP channels, leveraging my in-market relationships to help build the PCI Pal business globally.”


Multi-modal Acoustic Power Characterisation of Ducted Elements
B2 Noise Source Location
Methods and guidelines for acoustic source power characterization of elements in circular ducts with flow are presented. Acoustic pressure measured by microphones is used as source data for this study conducted above plane wave propagation. Thus, a multi modal approach is considered including azimuthal and radial modes for forward and backward directions. These in-duct propagating modes are decomposed from the acoustic pressure field with the matrix of modes evaluated at the positions of the microphones for the entire frequency range considered. Mode amplitudes are then obtained by inversing this matrix and used to obtain acoustic power of propagating modes. Because of the non-intrusiveness constraint, the conditioning of the microphone-mode matrix can be bad. It is minimized by optimizing microphone positions with a Genetic Algorithm (GA). Satisfactory results are obtained for the entire frequency range considered.
To validate the modal decomposition, an analytic model is developed. Straight cylindrical ducts closed with a rigid wall on an end and porous materials on the other modelized with a Johnson-Champoux-Allard (JCA) model are considered. Between both extremities, a plane acoustic source is placed on the duct and further a measurement section with the optimised positions of microphones. Amplitudes of propagating modes are calculated in the air domain and compared to the ones calculated from acoustic pressure measurement on a test-bench.
A parametric study is conducted to evaluate the impact of the uncertainty induced by the measurement chain but also from the turbulent boundary layer noise with a Corcos model on the modal acoustic power. The acoustic power for each propagating mode in an infinite and rigid cylindrical duct is calculated from synthesized data with and without perturbation. The study shows that the measurement chain uncertainty has small impact on the calculated acoustic power. A denoising method based on pressure correlation is also included in the parametric study.


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Photography is my connection to the world that keeps me engaged and in motion. My photos often have a reflective quality, playing with light, contrast, and the energy given off by a wide range of subjects. Rather than limiting myself to a certain focus, I give in to the inspiration that strikes in the unlikeliest places.
For me, that’s the beauty of photography, its spontaneity — you never know when the perfect shot will arrange itself before your eyes. That unpredictability reflects the randomness of our daily life, captured in a single still. There’s something truly magical about sharing that moment through a fine art print. By seeing, touching, and consuming the photo, it comes to life and connects you with a moment that otherwise would have faded with my own memory.
My venture into photography is strictly a passion project by design. For that reason, I donate all the proceeds from the sale of my photos to the Old Brewery Mission in Montreal. If you're interested in any photo as a print please contact me. Or check out my Instagram for more photos.
Wrong or no access token.
Interested in a print, or to see more photos check out my instagram feed.
© 2022 Vincent Scotti unless otherwise stated.


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This fantastic floor plan is what you've been searching for! The spacious, new construction residence boasts a large great room with 9 ft. vaulted ceilings that open to a brightly lit kitchen with custom cabinets, upgraded granite countertops & a large walk-in pantry. The natural flow of the well-designed home highlights a tucked away master suite with a beautiful attached bathroom - furnished with dual vanities, a large soaker tub, separate stand-up shower and oversized walk-in closet with built-in shelving. Additionally, this finely constructed home highlights 2 added main floor bedrooms and a spacious utility/mud room. An additional 1800+ sq. ft. of space is found in the unfinished basement - with space to complete a family room, an additional 3 bedrooms, a full bath and open storage space. This incredibly well-planned residence is packed with beautiful upgrades, comes with central A/C & is waiting for you to choose the finishing touches! *Estimated completion date 9/9/19.
Listing courtesy of Keller Williams Realty East Idaho.


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Winter-weary northerners take heart: There’s actually a silver lining to all this record snow, ice and bone-chilling cold.
Portions of the Midwest and the East Coast extending up to Canada pummeled by a few rounds of polar vortexes stand to see cold weather-related benefits everywhere from the produce aisle to their pocketbook.
As The Great Lakes approach record levels of ice cover, The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is anticipating a 13-inch rise in water levels when the frozen stuff finally melts that could ultimately translate into a $40 million in savings for consumers.
Roy Deda with the USACE told CBS Chicago higher water levels means ships can make fewer trips by carrying more cargo. Deda said less water “ends up increasing [stores’] costs because they are not able to carry as much in the ship due to the low lake levels.”
For more, click here.


The Defence and Security Accelerator (DASA) has launched a new Market Exploration called Hybridisation of the Naval Fleet, which aims to identify hybrid powertrain technologies for Royal Navy (RN) and Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) ships.
This Market Exploration is being run on behalf of the UK Ministry of Defence (MOD) Naval Ships Support Central Engineering Team and seeks hybrid powertrain technologies to explore options that will implemented by 2030, to aid the defence environmental sustainability strategy to reduce carbon emissions by 2050.
Proposals submitted to this Market Exploration should be at Technology Readiness Levels (TRLs) 5-9.
Using hybrid engines to reduce the emissions of Royal Navy and Auxiliary ships hybrid powertrain solutions for RN and RFA ships could reduce emissions by 20-40% by 2030. The MoD says it wants to understand the hybrid powertrain market for ships that meet the capability requirements for Defence Equipment and Support (DE&S), as solutions will be retrofitted to ships.
It is seeking solutions per vessel, based around electrification (AC as well as DC) and electrical storage. Solutions will be able to be retrofitted to current vessels and will not have a negative impact on their individual operational capability. Preferable solutions will be weight saving or neutral.
What kind of ships will solutions need to be implemented on?
- mass of 65,000 Tonnes at a speed of no less than 25 Knots
- mass of 6,900 Tonnes at a minimum of 26 Knots
- mass of 7,350 Tonnes at a minimum speed requirement of 32 Knots
Do you have an in-depth understanding of emerging capabilities, technologies, initiatives and novel approaches that may help better our understanding of the hybrid powertrain market? Submit an idea here!


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From a Newtown Literary contributor: Kimberly Reyes
Kimberly Reyes's poetry is featured in issue #16 of Newtown Literary. She is an award-winning poet and essayist and the author of three books: Warning Coloration (dancing girl press 2018), Life During Wartime (Fourteen Hills, 2018), and Running to Stand Still (Omnidawn, 2019). A native of Forest Hills, Kimberly currently lives in Cork, Ireland as a Fulbright fellow studying Irish literature and film. For more on Kimberly, you can follow her on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and read more on her website.
When you think of Queens, what first comes to mind?
Scraping my knees on asphalt and concrete as a kid. Flushing Meadows park. My bike, my skateboard. My beloved New York Mets who is miss terribly right now. Many buses and trains to get anywhere and everywhere.
How does Queens influence your writing?
Well it’s my reference point of “home” and all that means. Growing up in a “two-fare zone” meant I was always in transit. I went to high school in the Bronx and when I moved back home after college, I worked in Manhattan so I got used to long commutes and being in my own head daydreaming and listening to music. A professor once told me my work was all about movement and it’s true. I think my state of constant transit, metaphorically and literally, has a lot to do with this.
What is the last piece of writing you read that made you laugh or cry (or just especially moved you)?
I watched Ava Duvernay’s “When They See Us” and then a friend suggested I read a 1990 Joan Didion essay about the case called “Sentimental Journeys.” Well, I say it’s about the case but it’s an indictment of America and its brutality and I had to keep stopping to breathe. I think it should be required reading in every nonfiction and history class.
What inspires you?
Quiet. I didn’t have it at all growing up but moving away from New York City showed me how essential it is for my writing and just my all-around mental health.
How did you come to write your new book, Running to Stand Still?
It started as the chapbook Warning Coloration. Then I thought: wait, there’s a through line here. There’s this girl, who may or may not be you at this point, with a lot more to say about her journey.
Music seems to play a large role in Running to Stand Still. Can you tell us about how that came to be? Do you listen to music while you write? If so, was there any particular kind of music or specific songs you found yourself returning to while writing the poems found in this collection?
Music is EVERYTHING to me. It was my first poetry. A lot of us who grew up in NYC know that poetry isn’t exactly an essential subject taught in public schools. But my body craved it, so I found my poetry in song. It took a long time to come to poetry but since my main poetic influences are songwriters, I wanted to stay true to that journey. I actually just started taking songwriting classes here in Ireland, virtually, with talented artists around the island. I write songs and my partners set them to music. I also just bought a guitar! I feel like I’m finally coming home to something.
I usually write in silence. I’ll put music on if I’m on a plane or train and need to drown out other noise but otherwise it’s a bit too distracting.
The songs I quote to divide the sections of Running to Stand Still are the songs that I had in my head while putting the manuscript together.
What is your writing process and how has it changed (if at all) in the last few months?
Well I’m actually writing, like A LOT, so that’s a nice change! The one good thing that has happened in all of this is that those of us lucky enough to not have to go to work have had a CRAZY amount of time at home to read and write. I’m on fire and so is the rest of the world, finally.
What writing project(s) are you currently working on?
Since I’m in Ireland getting a master’s degree in Irish Literature and Film, I’m working on my thesis. I’m also beginning to lay the groundwork for my next book of poems and completing work on a nonfiction book of essays.
When you’re not writing, what do you like to do?
Now it’ll be learning the guitar. Condolences to my neighbors.


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Recíprocamente informs that the IDB, the OECD and the World Bank recently published a new report on pensions in Latin America. We selected some elements of this text that seems particularly relevant :
“The biggest pension policy challenge faced by most countries in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) today is low coverage of formal pension systems, both in terms of the proportion of workers participating in pension schemes and the proportion of the elderly receiving some kind of pension income. Efforts to close the coverage gap, for example, through non-contributory pensions, are therefore at the heart of the pension policy debate in the region”.
“Active coverage, i.e. contribution payments of workers to mandatory pension schemes, is low in LAC countries. On average in the region, only 45 in 100 workers are contributing to or affiliated with a pension scheme, a share that has not changed much in the last decades, despite significant structural pension reforms”.
“A key determinant of pension coverage in LAC is the type of employment. On average, 64 out of 100 salaried workers contribute to a pension scheme in LAC compared to only 17 out of 100 self-employed workers”.
“A large share of older people in LAC will have to rely on other sources of income than contributory pensions, such as work income, assets such as housing, transfers, social pensions and informal family support”.
“The role of social pensions in LAC is expanding and, in some countries, they are already a major element of the pension system”.
“In sum, a two-pronged approach will be needed in order to deal with the coverage gap. It is important to increase formal labour market participation, especially for women, so that people can build future pension entitlements in their own right. To the extent possible, workers should be integrated into the contributory systems to boost pension savings and ensure pension adequacy. At the same time, the role for non-contributory (social) pensions is increasing throughout the region and can be a powerful tool for improving the economic well-being of the elderly”.


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The frameworks, tools and development platforms are constantly evolving and emerging with the growing needs of the end customers. To build highly scalable applications you require high capability servers, high bandwidth network and a good infrastructure. This significantly adds to the cost of development activities. To overcome this significant challenge the simplest solution is to move the applications and their infrastructure to the Cloud. The organizations are now moving from their traditional on-premise and hosting environments to the emerging public and private cloud.
The most popular cloud platform today is the Windows Azure offered by Microsoft. The Windows Azure Development enables the developers to build, deploy and manage applications using Microsoft managed data centers. Moreover, the application can be built using any language, platform or tool. But ASP.Net is emerging as the most popular framework that allows the developers to build dynamic web applications and websites. When the web applications are deployed in the Windows Azure data centers, the storage services are easily available and accessible from the application.
In this post, let’s learn how Windows Azure enables development of modern ASP.Net solutions for enterprises and organization of all sizes.
Support for .Net Framework 4.5
Developing an asp.net solution that will run on cloud has certain advantages. The application needs to be coded in a way that it can be scaled easily and after the web application is developed it should be published to the cloud. The additional support for .Net Framework 4.5 allows developers the freedom to use all kinds of features while developing the web application. But the most important feature that asp.net 4.5 offers the developers is the new asynchronous methods which enables them to easily build highly scalable and high-performing web applications with zero hassles that are normally associated with asynchronous programming.
Easy Availability of the Development Tools
The Microsoft enterprise developer centers offer all the required tools to the developers in one download who are willing to take advantage of it. The Microsoft Web Platform Installers installs the Windows Azure SDK for .Net that contains Windows Azure SDK, Azure Tools for Visual Studio and Windows Azure Client Libraries for .Net.
But the most important tool that developers require for developing ASP.Net solutions using Windows Azure is the Windows Azure Developer Emulator which enables development of cloud applications on local workstations. Also, the developers can experience a seamless integration with Visual Studio using this core tool.
Seamless Testing & Debugging of the Application
As compare to Blockchain Software, Once the developers have a thorough understanding of the emulator, roles and instances in Windows Azure then the development process is quite easy and hassle free. The service project consists of configuration files that configure the roles and number of instances that the hosted service will use in the datacenter. It also contains links to the Visual Studio project that contain the asp.net application. The Windows Azure service project enables the developers to seamlessly test and debug their application in the Windows Azure Developer Emulator using the standard “F5” debug experience.
The cloud service provides many capabilities that are unavailable with the traditional on premise hosting. Also, there are various advantages of Windows Azure that the asp.net developers can leverage to build highly scalable and secured web applications.
So, what are you thinking on? Contact us today to hire azure developers for Windows Azure Development Services…!