text:
Intercargo: inclusion in ETS ignores collaboration calls
(Posted on 22/09/20)
INTERCARGO believes that the inclusion of shipping in the EU Emissions Trading System (ETS), which European lawmakers have recently supported, has ignored their calls and calls from the industry as a whole, for collaboration and adapted solutions to achieve the much needed reduction in Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions for greener shipping. Far from being a meaningful contribution towards meeting those objectives, this move is, instead, a confirmation of how distanced the thinking of European decision-makers is from the global dimensions of the shipping sector, said INTERCARGO is a statement.
INTERCARGO (The International Association of Dry Cargo Shipowners) represents the interests of quality dry bulk shipowners, with close to 2,400 registered ships out of more than 11,000 ships in the global dry bulk fleet, corresponding to over 25% of the global dry bulk fleet basis deadweight.
INTERCARGO’s statement continues: Global challenges and problems require global handling and solutions: The International Maritime Organization (IMO) works to ensure a level playing field globally unlike European or other regional regulations. The latter have proven ineffective, as they create distortions and multi-tier markets, or even trade tensions. A thorough impact assessment on the inclusion of shipping in EU ETS is imperative.
The EU ETS risks causing trade retaliation, an increase in emissions and the decline of European ports. There is a danger that trans-shipment centres will be set up just outside EU borders and served by large, efficient bulk vessels. Smaller, less GHG efficient ships will then transport cargoes to EU ports which will lose efficiencies gained through technology and size. In short, carbon leakage will take place.
The challenge to decarbonise shipping is enormous. IMO’s initial strategy and the adoption of the GHG Roadmap focuses on the implementation of short, medium, and long-term measures. Shipowners have responded responsibly to the challenge by putting forward the USD 5bn R&D fund proposal as a much needed longer-term complementary contribution to set in motion the chain of innovation, investment, production, and adoption by the marketplace of innovative technologies and energy carriers.
“The industry needs fuel/energy suppliers, engine manufacturers, shipbuilders and charterers to achieve IMO’s objectives,” said INTERCARGO Secretary General Kostas Gkonis. “Bringing these key stakeholders aboard has arguably been the greatest challenge for IMO. One more challenge has now been added: changing the thinking of narrow-minded regional decision-makers and persuading them to see the broader picture. The inclusion of shipping in EU ETS is basically a money collection mechanism, fundamentally disconnected from the work at IMO, and risks undermining a global GHG solution.”
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text:
On August 29th, 2019, My Mother and her friend took me to Mayo Clinic for a hell of a long day of scans, blood work, and sonograms. I started at 8am and didn’t leave until about 5pm. Talk about exhausting. Then, I had a 4 hour trek home, but luckily I passed out in the back seat. I found out that there were lesions that lit up like a christmas tree on my right femur. I also found out that the lymph nodes in my neck are okay for now but eventually I am going to have to start Levinitab. At this current time, I rather not take medication if it isn’t urgent or necessary at this time. MY TSH is still elevated and so is my TGAB AND TG ESSAY, which is a special test they get done in Rochester, NY. Watching the new lymph nodes every two months is fine right now. My doctor will tell me when I need it. I asked if I would have to start it eventually. The answer is YES. Usually for results like this you wait a week to get a call. Scans and treatment options take time which is understandable. I get it but it is also very hard, especially when something new you weren’t expecting to show up happens. It’s almost like being punched in the gut 1000x. The waiting game is very difficult. I am sure my Doctor understands. This time around was extremely hard for me. I kept panicking after she told me the news. Maybe the machines are broken on all three machines? Maybe the Radiologist Doctor read this incorrectly? Maybe they have the wrong person, you know? One could only hope that this is not happening.
Maybe this is all a complete freaking nightmare! I will wake up completely fine. How ironic, because last year after my third recurrence and right neck dissection, I kept having more leg pain than usual. Since 2011, I have had peripheral neuropathy and nerve damage in my upper and lower extremities. Yes, for years I have been in a wheelchair for them. But all of a sudden my right thigh a year ago started throbbing and pulsing to the point where I can’t even walk now at all. I can slide my leg with my walker but it is so damn hard. I am pretty much immobile now. The less pressure I put on my bad leg the better. Funny how my right side is always the bad side. Think about how crazy that is. After multiple surgeries, my right leg has always been the worst. God, what more can I take? HOLY CRAP! This is the last thing I need right now. You know I was getting along fine except for the pain. How crazy is it that pain medication such as Tramadol doesn’t even help me. The only thing that helps my pain is Morphine when I go to the hospital. The worst part is the meds, believe it or not, the 4mg through IV only last about a half hour for me. People think I am crazy! Don’t forget I am allergic to every narcotic in the book too. I am not a drug addict. I am just looking for pain relief and it’s been many months. I do not know what it is like to be pain free. Very rarely do I have that feeling and that’s when I am in the damn hospital for Morphine. It is not way to live life. I told my Doctor when I saw her. I can’t deal with this pain.
The next step is to wait for a call from my wonderful new Doctor to go over the next steps and plan.
To be continued.

domain: medical


Over there: “U.K. Prime Minister David Cameron cut short his summer vacation to return to London and chair urgent meetings on the threat posed by ISIS in Iraq and Syria, calling the video ‘shocking and depraved.’”
President Obama went back to his vacation on Martha’s Vineyard Tuesday evening following less than 48 hours in Washington, leaving people puzzled over why he came back in the first place.
Obama’s two days in Washington were mostly quiet, and concluded with the president receiving his daily national security briefing in the morning, and joining Vice President Biden to huddle with members of his economic team in the afternoon.
Administration officials have insisted for weeks that the president just wanted to return to the White House for a series of meetings, but the explanation was met with a healthy dose of skepticism, since Obama rarely interrupts his vacations.
Lead item on Whitehouse.gov right now: HUD Secretary Julian Castro is sworn in.
No statement yet from the president on the not-quite-confirmed-but-not-disputed Foley murder video.


text:
Last week, we looked at a set of corpora that in part allow one to ask questions about language's changes over time -- today I'm going to talk about a similar tool, the Google N-gram Viewer. The N-gram Viewer has been around for a while, and not without controversy, which I hope to lay out for anyone interested in using it. The N-gram Viewer allows you to search for a word or a phrase across an extremely large corpus of books across 400 years of publishing history -- something like 4% of all books published, as Google tells it. The result is rather like the "chart" function in Davies' corpora -- a graph of a word's popularity over four centuries.
Theoretically, there should be a lot to learn here about the popularity of certain terms and concepts over time. Like my example of tobacco's rise within early modern texts as it rose in dominance as a crop, the frequency with which a term occurs within printed discourse is a reasonably good indicator of its cultural importance. When you open up the N-gram Viewer, it helpfully supplies the search results for three culturally iconic figures: Frankenstein, Sherlock Holmes, and Albert Einstein, as if to invite you to stage little cross-century popularity races.
There are issues, however, with taking the N-gram Viewer at its word. Unlike Davies' corpora, the N-gram Viewer does not allow you to access the source texts of its results. Therefore, there is no way to see the context in which the searched word or phrase turned up, and no way to assess whether or not the data is useful or applicable. The type of text a word appears in is important, as is having a sense of what kinds of books make up the corpus, and whether their demographics, too, change over time. If, for example, the early English books in the corpus are all philosophical in nature, and the more contemporary books have more scientific texts, as scientific discourses and disciplines have proliferated in the contemporary era, then the results for a word like "courage," unlikely to be used in science writing, may trend distressingly downwards over time but may not be a reflection of a culture that increasingly has no use for the brave so much as an inconsistent set of data skewing results.
I am also somewhat skeptical of the implication that sheer instances of a word in print is at all indicative of its cultural capital, especially across 4 centuries, and especially when limited to a corpus of books. Some people and things are written about extensively in newspapers, but less so in books. Some might be written about extensively and in large numbers but by a relatively small, super-engaged constituency.
Google N-gram Viewer is certainly more extensive in its corpus than the corpora I wrote about last week, but with its millions of texts come some tradeoffs, that I suspect makes the tool less than useful for anything other than putting in things you're mildly curious about. Like hey, check it out -
Sylvia's on the rise again!

domain: library


Thousands of churches and synagogues across the country have moved their regular services from meeting together in one facility to gathering “together” via Internet teleconferencing. It’s a suitable approach for coping with a temporary problem.
But what if the problem becomes more long-lasting, with official directives banning gatherings of 10 or more people continuing past the end of April and well into … well, who knows how long? That’s when things could get very complicated and when that happens, Congress almost always gets involved.
PJMedia Managing Editor Paula Bolyard has a thoughtful, accessible look at why the situation is a challenge for Bible-based congregations now and a warning of what could be coming down the road.
Bolyard’s title sets the context: “Should Church Violate Shutdown Orders? The Answer Is More Complicated Than You Might Imagine.” That’s why Hill staffers need to know this stuff, regardless of whether they are followers of any particular denomination or faith, or none at all.
Bolyard provides a succinct description of the four positions currently being advanced among Christian and Jewish leaders, and does so in the context of the recent arrests of pastors in Florida and Missouri.
She closes with this worrisome thought:
“But what if this drags on for months on end? What if we’re still battling COVID-19 in September? In December or beyond. Then what? At some point the church, if it is to remain a church and be obedient to scripture, must meet together in person and participate in the sacraments of baptism and communion, whether or not the government approves.
“Millions of Christians have been martyred since Pentecost, when the Church Age began, because they refused to obey orders to stop meeting, stop preaching, stop talking about Jesus. Untold numbers of Christians huddle in underground churches in China and N. Korea, risking death and imprisonment because they choose to obey God rather than men.”
Boomers who recall the civil disobedience from the days of the civil rights movement may see such scenes replayed. And younger readers could witness dramatic illustrations of the courage required then and perhaps again.
First Liberty Institute’s “Guidance for Churches and Religious Institutions Facing Coronavirus Restrictions on Gathering.”
Alliance Defending Freedom: “The COVID-19 Response Affirms the Dignity of the Sick and Elderly, Contradicting These State Laws.”


text:
TNo melting mozzarella here.
Lepreno Foods, the world’s largest mozzarella maker, was forced to close in a family dispute that has been litigated in a Denver court for the past two weeks. But the jury sided with Leprino Foods and its billionaire owner, James Leprino, who is accused by two of his nieces of closing in on financial deals.
“The truth has come out in the last two weeks of this trial,” said Cliff Stricklin, a lawyer with Denver-based King & Spalding who represents Leprino Foods and its majority shareholders. “Within three hours they returned a verdict: rejecting the claims in their entirety. It ensures the future of Lepreno Foods and the legacy of James Lepreno.
The privately held manufacturer dominates the pizza cheese industry, supplying Domino’s, Pizza Hut and Little Caesars, among others. 85% of all pizza cheese comes from Lepreno, like most of the country’s whites. Lepreno Foods owns more than 50 patents and sells more than 1 billion pounds of cheese annually for $3.5 billion in annual revenue.
Until the trial, Leprino had not been photographed in public since 1978. The 85-year-old attended the trial in a wheelchair every day and stood up when the verdict was announced. As Stricklin approached Lepreno after the win, he gave an intangible cheesemaker a thumbs up and said, “OK.”
Leprino and his two daughters, Terri Leprino and Gina Vecchiarelli, together own $4.4 billion, or more than three-quarters of Leprino Foods. Forbes He estimated Leprino’s fortune at $1.9 billion. The total value of Lepreno Foods is $5.5 billion, the court said.
The remaining 25% of the stock is historically owned by James’ older brother, Mike, a successful independent banker and real estate developer. In the year When Mike Leprino died in 2018, his share went to his three daughters — Nancy and Mary Leprino, who led the lawsuit, as well as Laura, who is not a member of the legal complaint. The trial court estimated that Nancy and Mary Leprino’s stock was valued at $950 million. That’s a discount because they don’t have any control over the business.
The lawsuit was filed in 2020. Leprino has consistently maintained that the legal complaint is nothing more than an attempt to force minority shareholders to buy back their inherited stock or otherwise extract their shares and cash.
Leprino took over the family business in 1958 and turned his family’s grocery store in Denver’s Little Italy into a cheese empire. Lepreno, the youngest of five children born to Italian immigrants who could neither read nor write English, sold hand-rolled mozzarella balls with his family at his parents’ grocery store. After graduating high school in 1956, Leprino began working full-time at a grocery store with his father, and when the business struggled, Leprino learned that his friends spent their free time at neighborhood pizza joints. Local pizzerias were buying 5,000 pounds of cheese a week.
As I remember in 2017 Forbes Profile, “I thought, ‘This is a good market to continue in.’ I did too.

domain: news


text:
Becoming a homeowner is still a facet of the American Dream that most young adults or blossoming families strive to reach by a particular stage in life. For many Americans, however, the milestone of signing off on your first home is more unattainable than ever. If you’re pinching pennies left and right each year, but somehow, the down payment on a property in your desired neighborhood is always out of reach, even if just slightly, you’re not the only one. An analysis of mortgage payments compared to rents by The Economist calculated that for 89% of Americans, renting a two-bedroom place is cheaper than buying a similar property. That’s a hefty figure, especially when it was 16% as little as three years ago.
What does the data say?
While the economy previously favored homeowners from 2011 to 2020, when the average monthly mortgage payment on a home was 12% less than rent, it’s not likely that homebuying will produce such an advantage again anytime soon. Why? House prices have increased by around 40% since 2020, while mortgage rates climbed from 3.1% to 7.3%. Mortgage payments have also more than doubled since the same year, yet rents rose by merely 20%.
It’s not to say that homebuying is soon to shift to an archaic practice forever left behind in the 2010s, but that it’s not going to get any easier on your wallet unless a few things happen in the market: house prices drop by one-third, or average mortgage rates decrease to 3.2% or less. Furthermore, in an unwelcome turn of events, rental costs could rise by at least 50%, which would essentially revert the economy to the decades when renting costs more in the long haul than purchasing. Unfortunately, experts predict none of these outcomes will happen within the coming year.
Navigating the Housing Market
Banking firm Goldman Sachs forecasts that housing prices will skyrocket by 1.9% in 2024 and 2.8% in 2025. Meanwhile, mortgage rates will enter a slow decline of 7.1% by the end of 2024 and 6.6% by the end of 2025. Nonetheless, with new apartments popping up throughout the country, renters have almost unlimited choices, making for weak demand and steady prices—allowing renting to remain the most affordable option.
Of course, new homebuyers could always pick an area where houses have always been relatively cheap. Despite this strategy, the mortgage rates offered to borrowers will still be much more expensive than the ones of current owners. So ultimately, whether buying or renting is right for you is a personal decision. Regardless of market shifts, with a strict budget and financial plan, you can still meet your goals and get the keys to your forever home.
- 1It’s Black Business Month, So Let’s Go Shopping and #BuyBlack!
- 2These Home Decor Items Will Instantly Make Your Space Look Outdated
- 3Black-Owned Home Decor Stores To Support Across the United States
- 4A Look Inside Elon Musk's Tiny $50,000 House
- 57 Black and Multicultural Designers To Follow For Design Inspo
Home is a safe place where relationships flourish and the cornerstone of neighborhoods. We believe it’s the setting that surrounds your phenomenal story.
by Arielle Clay | January 19, 2023
Whether it’s luxury or ease, every area of your home should be as fabulous and unique as you.
FOLLOW ALONG ON INSTAGRAM
Find us on social for more home inspiration where culture, personal style, and sophisticated shopping intersect to help you create a home where you love to live.

domain: finance


STOMP it anytime, anywhere.
Download the new STOMP app today.
A 41-year-old man allegedly molested a beer lady at a coffee shop in Woodlands by using his left hand to slap her buttocks.
The police told Stomp in response to queries that they were alerted to a case of alleged outrage of modesty at Block 304 Woodlands Street 31 on May 18, at 9.49pm.
Chinese national Yu Zhiyong was charged on Thursday (May 23) with one count of using criminal force on the 30-year-old woman, intending to outrage her modesty, reported Lianhe Zaobao.
A video circulating on Facebook shows Yu, who was in a red shirt, sitting down while police officers responded to the scene.
Another man, believed to be Yu's friend, can be seen using his phone to take a video of the police.
Meanwhile, someone filming the entire incident can be heard telling Yu's friend: "I tell you ah, I am recording this. You are not respecting Singapore's laws, I will definitely upload this."
According to Zaobao, Yu's friend had also accompanied the accused to court.
Yu is currently out on a $5,000 bail and plans to apply for a lawyer under the Criminal Legal Aid Scheme. He will return to court on May 30.


As hype builds for the Rolling Stones’ 50th anniversary – the rock dinosaurs’ first gigs in five years take place in London later this month, and recent single ‘Doom and Gloom’ marked their first new music in seven – this release has been uncharacteristically overlooked. Arguably the most famous gig in Chicago blues club history occurred on November 22 1981 at the Checkerboard Lounge, when the Stones made an ‘impromptu’ appearance with blues legend Muddy Waters and his band at the joint that Buddy Guy opened nine years earlier (so ‘impromptu’ that a multi-camera film crew was on hand).
The concert was loose and fun, offering glimpses into the personalities of Waters, the Stones and the club itself. An oft-bootlegged fan favourite, this first official release provides a rare peek at the rock legends relaxing on stage rather than strutting around a stadium.
From the moment Mick’s tentative vocals open ‘Baby Please Don’t Go’, the recording harks back to an era before internet downloads and burned CDs. The magic here is that this belated release feels precious, dangerous and special, like a classic, mysterious bootleg LP.


China's military power may surpass the US's faster than you think, thanks to 6 shrewd strategies
- China's military is well on its way to besting the US's technologic edge, due to rapid economic and military development.
- By stealing already-extant weapons technology, China is developing advanced weapons at a rapid pace. It's also figuring out how to disrupt the US's battlefield systems, working on long-range weapons, and leading the way on artificial intelligence.
- China is also developing highly secretive weapons which might include, "directed energy weapons, advanced space weapons, electromagnetic railguns, high-powered microwave weapons, or even more exotic arms," according to former Deputy Secretary of Defense Robert O. Work.
- Visit Business Insider's home page for more stories.
China's military power is quickly becoming the greatest threat to US military primacy. From posturing in the South China Sea to damaging hacking campaigns, the Chinese government is investing more time and resources into its military strategy, and it shows.
A June report from the Center for a New American Security, co-authored by former Deputy Secretary of Defense Robert O. Work, outlines the ways China's strategy and technology threaten to best the US in a great power struggle - and what the US can do to maintain its military primacy.
1. The Chinese government is hacking its way to new technology.
2. China is breaking down US systems.
3. Strike early, strike hard.
4. China hides its hand.
5. China leads in artificial intelligence.
6. Their economy is a juggernaut and its technology could readily be translated into mass producing world-class military systems.
What can the US do?
- Not hard, not soft, the earliest dino eggs may have been of a 'leathery' texture to protect against damage: study
- Don't need to go big to go home: Australia is turning to sustainable 'tiny houses' to fix their housing crisis!
- Affordability levels to buy homes hit in last 2 years; to improve in 2024 on likely repo rate cut: JLL
- Carbon tax turns into climate fight at COP28
- Market to focus on macro data, global trends: Analysts


text:
Antimicrobial performance of mesoporous titania thin films: role of pore size, hydrophobicity, and antibiotic release
Received 28 August 2015
Accepted for publication 30 November 2015
Published 10 March 2016 Volume 2016:11 Pages 977—990
Checked for plagiarism Yes
Review by Single anonymous peer review
Peer reviewer comments 3
Editor who approved publication: Dr Lei Yang
Saba Atefyekta,1 Batur Ercan,2,3 Johan Karlsson,1 Erik Taylor,2 Stanley Chung,2 Thomas J Webster,1,4 Martin Andersson1
1Department of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Chalmers University of Technology, Gothenburg, Sweden; 2Department of Chemical Engineering, Northeastern University, Boston, MA, USA; 3Department of Metallurgical and Materials Engineering, Middle East Technical University, Ankara, Turkey; 4Center of Excellence for Advanced Materials Research, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
Abstract: Implant-associated infections are undesirable complications that might arise after implant surgery. If the infection is not prevented, it can lead to tremendous cost, trauma, and even life threatening conditions for the patient. Development of an implant coating loaded with antimicrobial substances would be an effective way to improve the success rate of implants. In this study, the in vitro efficacy of mesoporous titania thin films used as a novel antimicrobial release coating was evaluated. Mesoporous titania thin films with pore diameters of 4, 6, and 7 nm were synthesized using the evaporation-induced self-assembly method. The films were characterized and loaded with antimicrobial agents, including vancomycin, gentamicin, and daptomycin. Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa were used to evaluate their effectiveness toward inhibiting bacterial colonization. Drug loading and delivery were studied using a quartz crystal microbalance with dissipation monitoring, which showed successful loading and release of the antibiotics from the surfaces. Results from counting bacterial colony-forming units showed reduced bacterial adhesion on the drug-loaded films. Interestingly, the presence of the pores alone had a desired effect on bacterial colonization, which can be attributed to the documented nanotopographical effect. In summary, this study provides significant promise for the use of mesoporous titania thin films for reducing implant infections.
Keywords: mesoporous titania, antibacterial, drug delivery, implant coating
When implants are used to restore body functions, they provide a susceptible situation for microbial colonization. This is due to the fact that the body’s defense systems are much weaker in the presence of a foreign material and that the surface of the implant generally is unable to suppress bacterial growth.1–3 These microbial colonization-derived infections, often referred to as biomaterial associated infections (BAI), are some of the most common causes of implant failure.4–7 For example, it has been observed that BAI occurs in 1.5%–2.5% of primary hip and knee replacements, which in 3.2%–5.6% of cases result in surgical revisions.8
The key pathogenic factor responsible for infection is the development of bacterial colonies embedded in a matrix, consisting of proteins, polysaccharides, and DNA, called a biofilm on the implant surface.9–11 Such adhesive biofilms are very resistant toward the body’s defense mechanisms and antibiotic treatments.1,12 The eradication of infections after the formation of a biofilm often necessitates removal and replacement of the implant, which results in high costs and trauma for the patient.13–15 Moreover, biofilms increase resistance to antibiotic treatments and raise the need for increased dosages to combat infection, something that has been reported to cause a series of toxic side effects and cell injuries during treatment.16
One of the most practical strategies to fight infection would be to apply an implant coating onto medical devices that has the capability to release antimicrobial substances.17–19 This would result in local antibiotic administration at the surgical site, which is supposed to be an efficient treatment with low risk for systemic side effects. In addition, reduction of bacterial adhesion to biomedical devices without the use of drugs only by manipulating surface properties is also an attractive method for hindering infections.1,20 For example, decreased adhesion of Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa on Ti films has been reported when the nanoroughness was increased.21
An effective approach to prevent BAIs would be to combine an antimicrobial release coating with a low bacterial adhesive material, for example, by introducing a specific nanoroughness.22 One promising coating in this respect is mesoporous thin films, since they have roughness values in the nano regime combined with the ability to host and deliver antimicrobial drugs. The use of mesoporous coatings on medical devices has also been highlighted in previous studies for improving osseointegration using local administration of osteoporosis-reversing drugs.23 Tunable textural properties, high surface area, and pore volume are typical properties of mesoporous materials, which make them suitable candidates for drug-delivery purposes.24–30 For example, a sustained release of cephalothin from mesoporous titania-coated implants in vitro has recently been reported.31 Moreover, Se Park et al have demonstrated that the sustained release of high dosages of cephalothin and amoxicillin from mesoporous titania surfaces reversed the functions of five different bacterial species.32
The aim of the present study was to evaluate how mesoporous titania thin films coated onto titanium substrates affect the formation of bacterial biofilms. The mesoporous films were loaded with antibiotics and the role of film thickness and pore size were evaluated in vitro. More specifically, mesoporous titania thin films, with thicknesses ranging from 250 to 700 nm and pore diameters of 4, 6, and 7 nm were formed by the evaporation-induced self-assembly method. The surfaces were loaded with the antimicrobial agents: vancomycin, gentamicin, and daptomycin (molecular structures of the drugs are shown in Figure 1). The mesoporous film effectiveness against S. aureus and P. aeruginosa biofilm formation, which are two of the most frequent pathogenic species among the detected microbial species responsible for BAI, was evaluated. Chemistry, crystallinity, morphology, existence of long range order, surface energy, and topography of the mesoporous titania surfaces were examined using various characterization methods. The drug uptake and delivery from the mesoporous surfaces were studied using quartz crystal microbalance with dissipation monitoring (QCM-D) and were correlated to the bacterial attachment analysis. The effect of wettability or hydrophilic vs hydrophobic surfaces on bacterial function was also investigated here.
Figure 1 Molecular structures of the antibiotics used.
Materials and methods
All chemicals used in this study were purchased from Sigma-Aldrich Co. (St Louis, MO, USA). Milli-Q water (18.2 M Ω) was used for all the preparations.
Preparation of mesoporous titania substrates
Cubic mesoporous titania with pore sizes of 4, 6, and 7 nm were formed using the evaporation-induced self-assembly method. The two amphiphiles, Pluronic® P123 (triblock copolymer EO20PO70EO20) and cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) (CH3 (CH2)15N (Br) (CH3)3) were used as structure-directing agents. P123 has previously been used for the preparation of mesoporous titania films.33,34 Larger pores were provided by the aid of an organic additive, polypropylene glycol (PPG, Mn ~4,000), which was used as a swelling agent.
A titania precursor solution was prepared by adding 2.1 g titanium (IV) ethoxide (20%) to 1.6 g concentrated hydrochloric acid (37%) under vigorous stirring, forming a homogenous solution. The amphiphile (0.5 g) was separately dissolved in 8.5 g ethanol under vigorous stirring followed by mixing with the precursor solution. The final solution was left to stir overnight to achieve a homogenous mixture. To obtain uniform thin films of mesoporous titania, 100 μL of the final solution was spin-coated (7,000 rpm) for 1 minute on glass slides (2×2 cm), titanium discs (8 mm diameter and 3 mm thickness) and Ti-coated QCM-D sensors using a Spin150 spin coater. The coated substrates underwent aging for 1 day at room temperature to obtain complete self-assembly. When the swelling agent was used, a moderately humid environment (RH=54%) was provided by a saturated KNO3 aqueous solution in a refrigerator (T=4°C±1°C) during the aging process.35,36 Finally, the films were calcinated by heating with a heating ramp of 1°C/min to 350°C, at which temperature they were left for 4 hours to remove the template and to cross-link the titania. Nonporous titania thin films were formed as control samples using the same procedure, but without the addition of amphiphiles.
To lower the surface energy of the mesoporous titania thin films, they were treated in a 5 wt% dichlorodimethylsilane (DCDMS) solution for 1 hour. To ensure a sufficient amount of hydroxyl groups on the titania surface, samples were pre-treated in water baths at 25°C for 45 minutes. The glass slides were then placed in a DCDMS solution for 15 minutes and thereafter flushed with chloroform to wash off the unreacted silanol groups from the surface, followed by another 45-minute treatment in DCDMS.37,38 The modified films were dried using nitrogen gas.
Immobilization of antibiotics
Mesoporous titania films were loaded with antibiotics by immersing the substrates in antibiotic solutions for 1 hour. Vancomycin and gentamicin were dissolved in water (1 wt%) and daptomycin was dissolved in methanol (1 wt%). DCDMS-treated mesoporous thin films were used to load daptomycin, and the non-treated surfaces were used for gentamicin and vancomycin.
Transmission electron microscopy (TEM)
TEM was used to visualize the pores in the mesoporous titania films. A JEOL-1200EX II microscope (JEOL, Tokyo, Japan) operating at 120 kV was used. To image the material, mesoporous titania films were scraped off from coated glass slides and dispersed in ethanol. One microliter of the dispersion was placed onto TEM grids (Carbon 300 mesh, Capilor AB, Helsingborg, Sweden) and left to dry before the TEM investigation.
Scanning electron microscopy (SEM)
A Leo Ultra 55 electron microscope (Carl Zeiss Meditec AG, Oberkochen, Germany) operating at 5 kV was used to analyze the morphological properties of the mesoporous titania thin films. The pore size, pore direction, and film thickness were measured on coated titanium discs and glass microscopy slides. No additional sputtering was needed.
Small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS)
The structural phase and the existence of long-range order in the mesoporous materials were explored by SAXS measurements. Well-ground powders of mesoporous titania were inserted into SAXS sample holders. The measurements were performed at MAX-lab in Lund, Sweden; beam station 1911. Data were collected with a q-range:
q=4π sin θ/λ
of 0.1–3.0 nm−1. The wavelength was 0.91 Å, with a beam size of 1.2×1.2 Å.
X-ray diffraction (XRD)
Crystallinity of the TiO2 films was evaluated by XRD. The X-ray diffractometer used was a Bruker D8 advance (Bruker Corporation, Billerica, MA, USA) with a radiation wavelength of 1.5405 Å (Cu Kα1 radiation). Powders were collected from glass substrates and were ground prior to analysis. Analysis was performed at a 2θ scanning range of 20°–60°, with a step size of 0.05°. The average crystalline sizes were estimated using the Scherrer equation – Equation 2, where D is the mean size of the crystalline domains and β is the full width at half maximum of the peak at 2θ=25.4° at the wavelength, λ, of 1.5405.39
X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS)
Chemical analysis of the mesoporous films before and after loading of the antibiotics and with and without the surface modification was performed by XPS. The equipment used was a Quantum 2000 scanning microscope (Physical Electronics, Inc., Chanhassen, MN, USA) with a 100 μm point diameter at a 5 nm analysis depth.
Static contact-angle measurements were performed on unmodified and DCDMS-treated mesoporous titania surfaces using Milli-Q water (ɣ=72.8 mN m−1, n=3). The instrument used was an Attension Theta optical tensiometer (KSV, Helsinki, Finland).
Atomic force microscopy (AFM)
Semi-contact or intermittent AFM mode was used to measure the surface topography of mesoporous films at two different scan sizes (1 and 0.5 μm). A conical tip with a length of 200 nm and a radius of 5 nm attached to an NT-RTESPA cantilever was used to scan the samples. The AFM used was an NT-MDT model (Moscow, Russia).
Pore volume measurement
The water-accessible pore volume was measured by H2O/D2O exchange experiments using QCM-D (Q-sense E4, Biolin Scientific, Stockholm, Sweden). Mesoporous titania thin films were formed on Ti QCM-D sensors according to the procedure described earlier under “Preparation of mesoporous titania substrates”. A stable base-line was obtained by adding a flow of Milli-Q water onto the surfaces. Then the flow was exchanged to D2O to replace the H2O absorbed in the pores. The changes in the frequency (Δf) were recorded, which are due to the difference in density and viscosity between H2O and D2O. As a control, the experiments were also carried out on nonporous thin films. In the calculations, the contribution originating from the difference in viscosity between H2O and D2O was correlated by subtracting the mass increase obtained for the nonporous surface. The obtained Δf was used to calculate the mass change utilizing the Sauerbrey equation – Equation 3, where C is the mass sensitivity constant (17.7 ng·Hz−1·cm−2) and n the overtone number.40
Using these data together with film thickness obtained from SEM, the specific pore volume of the mesoporous titania thin films was calculated.
Drug uptake and release
The uptake and release of antibiotics from the mesoporous titania surfaces were investigated in situ by QCM-D (Q-sense E4). Titanium QCM-D discs (QSX 310, Q-sense) were coated with mesoporous and nonporous titania. For the experiments performed with vancomycin and gentamicin, Milli-Q H2O was used as the solvent (1 wt% antibiotic) and the rinsing liquid. In the daptomycin experiments, DCDMS-treated sensors were used and methanol was used as solvent (1 wt%) and rinsing liquid. All QCM-D experiments were performed under a constant flow of 50 mL min−1. The mass of the adsorbed drugs (ng cm−2) were calculated from the measured frequency changes using the Sauerbrey equation (Equation 3).40
S. aureus (ATCC 25923 [American Type Culture Collection, Manassas, VA, USA]) and P. aeruginosa (ATCC 35984) were used to assess bacterial growth on the mesoporous titania with varied pore sizes both with and without incorporated antibiotics. One day before the experiments, a sterile 10 μL loop was used to withdraw a single isolated colony from cultured agar plates of each bacterium to inoculate a centrifuge tube with 5 mL of tryptic soy broth. The inoculated cells were cultured in a shaking incubator at 200 rpm for 18 hours at 37°C until they reached stationary phase for bacterial growth.
The optical density of the bacterial suspension was adjusted to 0.52 at 620 nm (estimated to give 109 colonies) using a plate reader (Spectramax M3 Multimode Microplate Reader; Molecular Devices LLC, Sunnyvale, CA, USA). Then, each bacterial solution was diluted at a ratio of 1:100 using simulated body fluid (adapted from Oyane et al)41 supplemented with 1% fetal bovine serum (FBS), and 1 mL of the diluted solution was seeded onto each mesoporous titania sample. Bacteria were then cultured for 1 hour under standard culture conditions (5% CO2/95% air at 37°C) to promote the attachment of the bacteria onto the titania surfaces. After 1 hour of culture, media containing the unattached planktonic bacteria was aspirated. The samples were rinsed once with PBS and fresh media (simulated body fluid +1% FBS) were placed onto each sample. Samples were cultured for another 47 hours and at the end of this time period, they were rinsed three times with PBS. Each sample was placed inside a sterile 15 mL centrifuge tube filled with 2 mL of PBS. Samples were vortexed at 3,000 rpm for 2 minutes to release adherent bacteria into the PBS solution. Afterward, each bacterial solution was diluted twice, 1:10, and then each dilution was plated as five 10 μL spots onto sterile tryptic soy broth agar plates. Agar plates were allowed to dry and were then placed inside an incubator at 37°C and 5% CO2 to allow colonies to grow. Once the colonies grew to a point permissive to visual counting (~18 hours), agar plates were taken out of the incubator and individual colonies were counted. From this number, the total number of colonies per milliliter of vortexed solution was calculated and converted to colony- forming units per milliliter.
The numerical data from counting the colony-forming units were presented by the mean value with the standard deviation. All the experiments were conducted three times with three replicates used for each experiment. Statistical significance was considered at P<0.05.
SEM micrographs of the coated titanium surfaces showed that the mesoporous titania films were evenly distributed and fully covered the substrate, Figures 2 and S1. A well-defined porous structure was revealed, which had accessible pores facing out from the surfaces. Cross-sections of the coatings were also visualized by SEM (Figure 3), which provided film-thickness estimations. The film thickness was ~200 nm for the films synthesized with the template P123 and CTAB, while a thicker coating of ~700 nm was obtained for the films when the swelling agent PPG was added. The mesoporous titania was also investigated using TEM, Figure 4. The average pore diameter and the pore density per surface area were calculated directly from the SEM and TEM micrographs and are presented in Figure 5 and Table 1. From the measured pore sizes, it is clear that the pore diameters correlated well with the size of the template, that is, larger templates resulted in larger pores.
Table 1 Estimated average pore sizes measured from SEM and TEM images
Results from the SAXS measurements are presented in Figure 6. Visible Bragg peaks emerged at different positions, with various intensities demonstrating long-range periodicity in the porous structures. Nonporous samples did not show any peaks in the SAXS results, as expected.
Figure 6 Synchroton small angle X-ray scattering diffractograms of mesoporous titania.
XRD results showed the formation of crystalline anatase TiO2 with no significant difference among the different samples, including the nonporous titania. In Figure 7, a representative diffractogram for the titania films is shown. The peak positions for anatase (mincryst#191) are also included in the figure. The crystal size was calculated to be ~6 nm using the Scherrer equation (Equation 2). The pore volume of the titania films was calculated from the QCM-D data obtained from H2O/D2O exchange experiments using the mass difference between water and heavy water, Table 2.
Figure 7 A representative X-ray diffractogram obtained from mesoporous titania powders.
Results from XPS are shown in Table 3 as the surface chemical composition given in atomic percentage. No significant differences could be observed between the different surfaces.
Table 3 The atomic percentage of the chemical composition on the mesoporous titania thin films
In Table 4, the obtained average surface roughness values of the films for two different scan sizes are shown. From the results, only small variations in surface roughness values (Ra) could be observed for the different mesoporous films. The nonporous films were shown to have a smoother surface compared to the porous surfaces. The surface with a 6 nm pore size was shown to have a slightly rougher surface than the other two pore sizes.
Table 4 Average roughness (Ra) obtained by atomic force microscopy (AFM) from mesoporous titania surfaces in two different scan sizes
The measured static contact angles were less than 5° for all unmodified mesoporous titania films. After surface modification with DCDMS, significantly higher contact angles were obtained (Table 5).
Table 5 Contact-angle results before and after DCDMS modification
Drug uptake and delivery from mesoporous titania surfaces
The drug uptake and delivery from the mesoporous thin films were monitored using QCM-D. The results clearly demonstrated the loading capacity as well as the release profile for the three antibiotics from the investigated films. In Figure 8, the amount of drug (ng/cm2) as a function of time is presented. The experimental procedure was as follows: first the drug solution was injected and the drug loading could be determined; second, the surfaces were rinsed with pure solvent and the release was monitored. As can be seen in the figure, the drug-loading capacity increased with increasing pore size. Relatively fast release of the drugs was observed, especially for daptomycin. For gentamicin, no observable difference could be seen between the mesoporous surface having a pore size of 4 nm and the nonporous, indicating that 4 nm is too small for gentamicin to penetrate into the porous network. No considerable changes were observed in the dissipation (ΔD) during the loading and releasing of all drugs during the QCM-D measurements. XPS measurements were performed on the drug-loaded surfaces to confirm the presence of drugs. In Table 6, the identified elements are presented as atomic %. The presence of nitrogen indicates the occurrence of drugs.
The results from bacterial adhesion of S. aureus and P. aeruginosa are shown in Figure 9. There was a significant decrease in the attachment of colonies for both types of bacteria on the antibacterial loaded surfaces for all antibiotics used. Surfaces with larger pore sizes and loaded with antibiotics gave rise to less colony forming units on the surfaces. Less bacterial attachment was observed on the hydrophobic surfaces and the lowest bacterial adhesion was on hydrophobic substrates loaded with daptomycin (Figure 9).
Furthermore, the presence of the pores alone had a desirable effect on the bacteria without the presence of the drugs, Figure 10.
Mesoporous titania thin films with pore diameters of 4, 6, and 7 nm were successfully formed as shown by TEM and SEM analysis. According to SEM, uniform films with pores accessible from the surface, which according to SAXS had a long-range order, were formed. Relatively broad peaks appeared in the SAXS data, indicating that the degree of order was relatively low, which is probably a result of the spin-coating technique used. When dip coating was used instead of spin coating, a higher degree of ordering was often observed; however, less homogeneous films were then formed.42,43 The ordering of the material was not considered to be of high significance in this particular application; however, the fact that the pores are present on the outer surface is a prerequisite for these coatings to function as drug-delivery matrices. When PPG was used as a swelling agent, thicker coatings (700 nm instead of 200 nm) were obtained, which is probably due to the viscosity increase for the PPG-containing solution used in the spin-coating process. The crystalline structure of all the formed films (according to XRD) was anatase TiO2. However, a large degree of amorphous titania is also to be expected. The Bragg peaks were broad, indicating that the crystal size was small (6 nm), which correlates well with previous studies.43 XPS showed that the surface chemistry was similar on all the formed films, including the nonporous films, and consisted of carbon, oxygen, and titanium. The surface roughness values, as obtained from AFM, showed that the films were smooth, with no major changes in the roughness for the different pore sizes. This shows that the cantilever tip was too broad to reach inside the pores and hence scanned above the porous structure. The use of narrower cantilevers, less than 5 nm in width, was tested; however, these also failed to provide measurements of the actual pores. The only considerable difference in surface roughness could be observed between the porous and nonporous surfaces; however, all were still considered to be smooth on a micrometer length scale. The surface energy of the films was examined using static contact-angle measurements, which showed that all surfaces were hydrophilic or even super hydrophilic. After surface modification with DCDMS, the surface energy drastically decreased, forming hydrophobic (contact angles above 90°) or close to hydrophobic surfaces. This provides clear evidence that the polar hydroxyl groups had been substituted with the non-polar methylene groups of the DCDMS.
The water-accessible pore volume was examined using QCM-D. As expected, the volume increased with increasing pore size and increased film thickness. The fact that the volume increased with film thickness, is a strong indication that the pores are accessible throughout the whole film, and thus makes it possible to tune the available drug-loading capacity by altering films thickness, which is achievable through changes in the spin-coating speed as well as other parameters. The DCDMS modified films showed a small decrease in pore volume compared to their non-treated counterparts. This shows that, although the surfaces were hydrophobic, water could still penetrate into the small pores.
All the different material characterizations performed here clearly demonstrated that the chemistry and physical properties of the different porous materials were similar or in some cases even identical, which provides a possibility to explore the effect of the pore size alone on drug loading and release as well as antibacterial properties.
Antibiotic loading and delivery from mesoporous titania thin films
A key parameter in creating a suitable drug delivery coating is the loading capacity. According to the obtained results, the loading behavior of each drug corresponded well with the volume of the pores as measured by H2O adsorption. The larger pore sizes had the ability to host larger amounts of drugs per surface area of the coating, which was demonstrated by the QCM-D results when the mesoporous thin films were loaded with, for example, vancomycin (Figure 8). The size of vancomycin is ~3 nm, allowing it to be successfully loaded into all the explored pore-sizes.44 For gentamicin, a successful loading was observed for the mesoporous titania with pore sizes of 6 and 7 nm followed by a sustained-release pattern, Figure 8. For the 4 nm pore size, however, no difference compared with the nonporous surfaces could be observed, indicating that gentamicin could not access the 4 nm pores. This is explained by the fact that gentamicin is believed to have an affinity to titania that may create blockage of the pore walls upon adsorption. When comparing the release data of vancomycin and gentamicin, a difference in the release kinetics could be observed. Vancomycin had a faster release, indicating that the drug had only a low adherence to the pore walls and, instead, was highly dissolved in the water within the pores; hence the measured frequency difference between water and the vancomycin solution was due to the difference in density between the two. The third antibiotic used was daptomycin, which is a larger molecule compared to the other two antibiotics. It also has a low water solubility; thus, DCDMS-modified surfaces were used for this drug. According to Figure 8, a trend in the loading was observed, which followed the expected tendency with increasing drug amount as the pore size increased. Upon rinsing with methanol, a relatively fast release was observed. Apart from key parameters, including pore size and the available surface area, the characteristics of the drugs (such as size and polarity) clearly played an important role. The dissipation (ΔD) did not change noticeably during the loading and releasing of drugs as a function of time. This observation indicates that there were no viscoelastic films formed due to adsorption of drugs onto the mesoporous thin films.
It should be noted that all drug-release studies were monitored upon constant rinsing with the solvent, water or methanol, at a rate of 50 mL min−1. Compared to an in vivo situation, for example in bone tissue, this is a much faster exchange of surrounding media resulting in a much faster release and, consequently, the present release profiles cannot be directly transferred to the clinical situation and should be considered highly accelerated.
Bacterial cell culture
Early clinical failure of implants often arises from improper tissue integration. This failure is often caused by the development of a bacterial biofilm and chronic infection at the site of surgery. Previous studies have emphasized the possible fabrication of antimicrobial surfaces using nanotechnology; although applying nanotechnology to create roughness values in the nanometer regime on the implant surfaces needs to be further addressed.45–47 Results from this present study showed that applying a mesoporous thin coating on surfaces, apart from their function as an antibiotic-delivery system, can reduce the adhesion of bacteria only by the presence of nano-sized pores. S. aureus showed a reduced bacterial attachment on surfaces with smaller pore sizes, 4 and 6 nm, and a trend in the reduction of P. aeruginosa was observed with reducing pore size. Looking at the measured material characteristics (including surface energy, surface roughness, and surface chemistry), in an effort to find a reasonable explanation for the observed bacterial behavior, no obvious connections could be found. For both bacteria, the smallest pore size had the lowest bacterial adhesion; however, this material did not exhibit any unique material characteristics, except for the change in pore size. A possible explanation for the observed trend is that protein adsorption and bioactivity are affected by the changes in the nanotopography caused by changing the pore width. Moreover, the distribution of the pores (pore surface coverage shown in Table 1) and consequently the pore wall thickness differs due to the changes in pore width. It is known that the 3D conformation of proteins, which is present in the bacterial growth media, can be altered by changes in the nanotopography, which can potentially have an effect on bacterial adhesion.48 Similar behavior of bacterial attachment responses by changing the nanotopography have previously been observed regarding the use of carbon nanotubes and nanostructured gold surfaces.23,49 Moreover, the formed mesoporous materials have a long-range order, something that has been previously shown to affect cell responses.50 This implies that apart from the traditional means of characterizing biomaterials, both when it comes to tissue integration properties as well as antimicrobial behaviors, studies should be performed with respect to ordering and size of nanostructured domains.
According to the results obtained from counting colony forming units, the best surfaces to reduce bacterial attachments without the presence of antibiotics was the hydrophobic mesoporous titania with 4 nm pore sizes showing that the bacterial attachment was lower when the surface energy of the substrate decreased. It is not clear whether it is the surface free energy of the substrates that directly controls the bacterial adhesion or the fact that adsorption of the FBS, present in the culture medium, is affected, thus reducing bacterial adhesion. Similar behavior has been observed with BSA, which decreases bacterial attachment on hydrophobic polystyrene substrates.51 Moreover, it has previously been shown that the presence of FBS in the culture medium has a negative effect on the adhesion of cells on hydrophobic surfaces.52
When the mesoporous titania was loaded with antibiotics, a predictable pattern was observed. According to Table 2, the pore volume increased with increasing pore size and the results from QCM-D measurements clearly showed that the amount of antibiotics followed the same trend. These observations correlated well with the bacterial adhesion results, which showed clear differences in the adhesion of bacteria when different antibiotic loadings were used. Regardless of the type of antibiotic and the bacteria, an expected decreased attachment was observed with increased amounts of antibiotics. These observations confirm that the mesoporous titania substrates can act as an efficient drug release coating on implants to fight bacterial adhesion and potential infection caused by the formation of biofilms. The amount of antibiotic loaded in the coating can be regulated by varying the pore size and the thickness of the mesoporous titania film.
As mentioned earlier, the use of mesoporous titania thin films as implant coatings has previously been shown to have promising effects on the osseointegration of titanium implants.53 The integration of such implants was further improved using osteoporosis drugs, alendronate and raloxifene, which were administrated locally from the mesoporous film.23 Both the mechanical stability and the amount of formed bone were shown to increase. The results from this present study also showed an additional favorable property of the mesoporous films, that is, that they also decreased bacterial adhesion, both with and without the use of antibiotics. This is a highly desirable property, which clearly demonstrates that the use of nanostructural surface design is important when the “race for the surface” is of the essence; here providing a means for tissue growth and a reduced risk for BAIs. The use of drugs in implantology, especially when the implant functions as a drug-delivery device, is still in its infancy, something highly driven by the regulatory legislation; however, as demonstrated by us and others, could be highly beneficial. The use of local drug administration is a way to decrease the amount of drugs used and to obtain site-specific efficient treatment. The occurrence of a possible negative side effect might also be hindered, although this needs to be further investigated.
Mesoporous titania thin films with well-defined pore sizes of 4, 6, and 7 nm were successfully obtained. Both the films with and without antimicrobial agents, including gentamicin, vancomycin, and daptomycin were evaluated with respect to bacterial attachment. The mesoporous titania films were shown to have a desired property in reducing bacterial attachment and a declining trend was observed as a function of pore size. The antibiotic loading was shown to improve antimicrobial behavior for all surfaces and the effect correlated well with the amount of the released drug. Moreover, the present hydrophobic modification of the mesoporous titania films decreased the adhesion of bacteria.
The Wallenberg Foundation is acknowledged for financial support through their Wallenberg Academy Fellow Program (MA). Northeastern University is also acknowledged for financial support. Katherine Y Santizo is acknowledged for the AFM measurements.
The authors report no conflicts of interest in this work.
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If you’re looking for eye candy, this striking beauty refuses to be ignored.
Bolivian Sunset Gloxinia has tubular orange blossoms and glossy dark green leaves. It grows in clumps that can reach 24 inches tall. During late autumn and winter, it brightens up shady areas by putting on a show with its fiery exquisiteness. If you prefer to grow Gloxinia in full sun, be sure to keep its soil moist with regular irrigation and apply a thick layer of mulch.
When this lovely plant is kept watered, it will spread wider with each passing year without becoming invasive.
Plant this show-stopper to attract butterflies!
When Canna lilies bloom, they are the jewels of every landscape. They are fast growers that can become 6 feet tall. Their flower colors range from vivacious reds, oranges, and yellows to delicate pinks and whites.
These prolific bloomers love direct sunlight and need lots of water, so be sure to keep your irrigation system properly maintained. It’s always a good idea to check your irrigation system every so often to make sure it’s working correctly.
If you’re not sure your system is running like it should, call us or complete our request service form and we’ll be happy to take a look, so your plants stay healthy.
When you see this daisy-like annual blooming in your yard, you’ll understand why it’s Florida’s official state flower.
Coreopsis is a butterfly magnet that beckons to them with bold shades of yellow, gold, orange, red, and pink. Some even produce double blooms! This amazing plant comes in several varieties that flower at different times, so plant a few types in your landscape to enjoy their beauty throughout the year.
Coreopsis can handle both full sun and part shade. They require well-draining soil and need plenty of water. They’re somewhat drought tolerant once they’re established, but it helps to give them a drink a couple times a week.
Evolvulus aka Blue Daze
This attractive groundcover has stunning flowers that can chase away anyone’s blues.
Evolvulus, or Blue Daze, produces a true-blue flower that is rare in the gardening world. This gorgeous perennial is perfect for the borders of garden beds and in containers where it can imitate a waterfall as it flows over the edges. Be sure to enjoy its flowers in the morning hours because they fold up by noon.
This prolific bloomer grows well in both full sun and part shade and gets just 6 inches tall. Keep Evolvulus watered well until it’s established, then irrigate it once or twice a week depending on the heat. If your irrigation system is on the fritz, don’t worry. If Blue Daze starts to wilt, it will spring back to life once its roots meet water.
Gerbera aka Gerber Daisy
Gerberas add bold eye-catching colors to every garden bed. They’re perfect for bouquets, too!
Beloved by pollinators, Gerber daisies are a must-have for every Orlando homeowner’s landscape. They stand about knee high with foliage that forms dense, dark green mounds. During the spring and summer, they bloom their little buds off in full sun or partial shade so long as their roots moist. In Orlando, they behave as perennials, so you can enjoy them year after year without replanting.
In addition to keeping Gerberas properly irrigated, be sure to fertilize them regularly.
This gorgeous perennial will be a true conversation piece when added to shady spots in your landscape.
Heuchera is a favorite among Central Florida gardeners. Standing just 12 inches tall and 12 to 18 inches wide, this moisture loving perennial comes in several varieties that bloom in a range of colors. Its thick, mounding foliage can also be found in different hues.
“Bressingham Hybrids’ and ‘Melting Fire’ grow best in Orlando.
If you want a plant that blooms non-stop and attracts hummingbirds and butterflies, look no further!
Pentas are practically maintenance free and grow like a dream in Central Florida gardens. There are several varieties available that come in a wide range of different colors and sizes. Enjoy their vibrant blooms in full sun or part shade. Be sure to keep them watered well until they’re established, then leave it to your irrigation system to give them a drink a couple times a week to keep them healthy, perky, and full of nectar.
Keep Your Orlando Garden Full of Blooms by Properly Irrigating
Central Floridians with irrigation systems have the luxury of growing the most beautiful flowers that attract a plethora of pollinators!
While the above list is just a small sample of flowering plants that thrive with proper irrigation, there are several others that would look stunning in your Orlando landscape. When deciding what to plant, consider the beneficial insects and birds they’ll attract.
Before adding them to your landscape or container garden, plan how you want your landscaping to look. Take note of each plant’s light requirements, bloom color, and mature height.
When you start planting, taller varieties naturally belong in the rear of the beds and consider alternating plant varieties and colors. Once you’ve finished planting, add mulch and saturate the area by running your irrigation system. Soon, your yard will be bursting with vibrant flowers!


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Tysons art and learning center is founded by two sisters, who share the same passion.
The art classes are delivered by Mrs. K, who has been an artist for all her life. After graduating from Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City she moved to Virginia and taught fine art classes for more than 10 years. She encouarges structured in a creative way to bring improvements in the area of art.
The academic classes are taught by Ms. K who finished her undergrad at NYU and Master's degree from Columbia Univiersity. She is currently teaching at a Fairfax County Public School. With her 10 years of experience in Public and Private schools, she offers high quality and highly individualized lessons.
Our art teacher Jessica Boone graduated with a Bachelors of Fine Arts from the Art Institute of Washington D.C. She is a well rounded artist that specializes in digital arts. Jessica has over six years of experience in the Video Game industry encompassing such skills as digital paitning, 3D modeling, and graphic design. You can find examples of her work and learn more at her website; http://www.jboone3d.com/

domain: artistic


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This article is from the Anime FAQ, by Steve Pearl with numerous contributions by others.
The first animated KOR ever made was an OVA based on a story from volume 5 of the manga with a beach resort being used instead of a skiing resort. For the KOR TV series that followed, the animation company and character designer were retained, but the voice actors were changed.
In episode #46 of the TV series ("Okinawa Vacation"), the same story was used as for the first OVA, but the setting was changed back to a skiing resort.
Most people consider KOR OVA #1 to be "White Lovers".


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Increased security measures on the Amsterdam to Paris high-speed Thalys train were very much in evidence as it pulled into Brussels main station on
Increased security measures on the Amsterdam to Paris high-speed Thalys train were very much in evidence as it pulled into Brussels main station on Monday.
Nathalie Pierard, a spokesperson for SNCB, Belgium’s national rail company, said passengers can also expect to have their bags checked.
“Random luggage searches will be carried out on international trains. So it might take a little time and travellers should know that boarding trains might take more time and that their luggage could be searched,” she said.
Passengers are being urged to be patient. But most are happy to comply with the security measures.
“We have already accepted that and much more for air travel, so I don’t see why it should be different here,” one man told Euronews as he boarded the train.
International travellers from Brussels can take the train to a European member state without any luggage search or identity check. The only exception is the United Kingdom, as it is not part of the Schengen zone.
At the moment, European citizens can move freely within the 26 member states of the Schengen area. The European Commission aims to increase security without compromising this freedom of movement.
“For the police checks, it is important that they do not have the equivalent effect of border controls, so they need to be targeted,” said Commission spokesperson Christian Wigand.
The Belgian government insists that the principle of open borders is not being undermined. It is simply putting in place planned exceptional measures, according to the country’s Transport and Mobility minister:
“When there’s a threat to public or national security, there are measures that can be implemented, temporary measures, notably in relation to identity checks,” said Jacqueline Galant.
The Belgian, French and German Transport Ministers are expected to meet in the coming days to discuss improving cooperation between border police forces.


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US: The Netflix original series Stay Here debuted this week, focusing on the vacation rental industry.
The show features interior designer and TV personality Genevieve Gorder and real estate expert Peter Lorimer showing short-term rental owners how to update their properties and increase their profits.
Lorimer is the CEO and broker behind PLG Estates, a firm in Beverly Hills, California with a self-described “punk rock” approach to real estate and who specialises in short-term rentals. The agency lists 12 high-end properties available for rent around the Los Angeles area from $550 to $5,625 per night.
In the eight-episode season, the pair travel to properties around the US, ranging from a Seattle houseboat in episode one to a vineyard cottage in episode five and a DC firehouse in episode eight. They help “vacation rental owners transform their one-star disappointment to a five-star stay,” Gorder says in the show’s introduction.
The hosts introduce each city with a brief history of its rental market or tourism landscape and vacation rental data from AllTheRooms, including total rental units, average nightly rates, and annual revenues.

domain: economics


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19th August 2016
20:00 – 22:00
at the Michel Montecrossa Rock Vision Diner
in the Filmaur Multimedia House
Danziger Str. 1
82131 Gauting (near Munich)
Phone ++49-89-850 8555
Michel Montecrossa with his band The Chosen Few plays the ‘Willkommens Kultur Tanzparty’ Concert for Friendship and Integration on 19th August 2016 at the Michel Montecrossa Rock Vision Diner in the Filmaur Multimedia House presenting stimulating and joyful New-Topical, Cyberrock and Electronica Songs.
Before the concert you can see the DEEP BRAIN ART Exhibition of 212 new Michel Montecrossa paintings and drawings.
Michel Montecrossa says about the ‘Willkommens Kultur Tanzparty’ Concert:
“The ‘Willkommens Kultur Tanzparty‘ Concert is the next big party of humanity and forward-looking intelligence.”


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In 1848, a group of outspoken, super smart women gathered for the first ever women's rights convention in Seneca Falls, NY. Over two days, they discussed the betterment of women's lives. Historians point to Seneca Falls' Declaration of Sentiments, which demanded equal social status and legal rights for women; including the right to vote, as the kickoff of the women's rights movement worldwide. From Seneca Falls to a presidential nomination, women have made enormous contributions to the world, making it a better, fairer, all-around more awesome place.
With some coffee, tea, or cocoa, this charming mug it’s the perfect way to jump-start your day. Comes gift boxed for easy gift-giving. This ceramic mug is not microwave safe and is hand-wash only. Holds 12 oz.

domain: sociology


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Monday, February 11, 2013
In Dispute Over Ray Charles Songs, Family Gains Victory in Court; New York Times, 1/30/13
Ben Sisario, New York Times; In Dispute Over Ray Charles Songs, Family Gains Victory in Court: "A dispute between the children of Ray Charles and the foundation to which he left most of his money is the latest battleground in one of the entertainment industry’s most contentious issues: the “termination rights” that allow artists and their families to recover the copyrights to their work from third parties like record companies or publishers. Last week a federal judge in California ruled that the Ray Charles Foundation cannot interfere with the efforts of seven of Charles’s 12 surviving children to recover the music publishing rights to about 60 of his classic songs, like “I Got a Woman,” “Hallelujah I Love Her So” and “Mary Ann.”... The case combines the drama of a family fight over a celebrity’s legacy with a detail of United States copyright law that poses a threat to the entertainment industry. An amendment to the law that took effect in 1978 let artists recover rights to their work after 35 years; the rule also applied to works copyrighted before 1978, but after a maximum of 56 years. Artists can do this by officially “terminating” the agreements that had transferred the work to other parties."

domain: law


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This gorgeous Coyote fetish is carved by Zuni artist Stewart Alonzo out of Dolomite.
This is one of the best batches of Dolomite we have seen in years!
Coyote is the Hunter God and Hunting animal of the West. The Master Trickster, often tricking themselves. Represents Humor, Foolishness, Laughter, and the ability to Laugh at one's Mistakes. Although arrogant and self-serving, they teach us to recognize our bad habits. Brings the gifts of Survival Skills, Reversal of Fortune, and Adaptation to the unpredictable nature of Life, and to live in the Moment.
This Coyote stands 2.4 inches tall, 1.4 inches long and .75 inches wide.


Intarsia Lace Fishnet Tights
Meant to spark everyone's eyes as you saunter in, these intarsia lace tights are your best accessory.
- Size: One Size, Queen Size
- One Size Height: 5'-5'1, Weight: 100-175lbs
- Queen Size Height: 5'5-6'1", Weight: 150-250lbs
- Style #: 168YD040
- Composition: 88% Nylon 12% Spandex
Care: Hand wash in warm water using mild soap.Do not bleach. Drip dry in shade. Do not tumble dry.Do not iron.
Note: Picture of Packaging for the Perfect Gift!


Fantastic Four #7 is out this week from Dan Slott and Aaron Kuder, as we catch up with Marvel’s first family and tinpot dictator, Doctor Doom, who’s ready to take on Galactus in one Hell of a showdown. Will Reed, Sue and company team-up with Victor to save the day? Stranger things have happened.
• In a battle between Doctor Doom and Galactus, who would you favor…
• A man who is trying to be a hero to his beloved nation or an unstoppable cosmic force of nature?
• It’s a simple choice, unless you’re Mister Fantastic.
• This dilemma, plus a strange new development in the life of the Human Torch.
• And a long-forgotten threat from the Fantastic Four’s past resurfaces…
Fantastic Four #7 is out Wednesday, February 27th from Marvel Comics.


Limp Bizkit Postpones U.K. and Europe Tour Due to Fred Durst’s ‘Health Concerns’
According to a message posted on Sunday, this decision was based on the singer’s “medical advice” that “the attending physician should take a break from the tour immediately.” “
View this post on Instagram
n preparation for the 2022 summer tour in the UK and Europe, we decided to do some tests to make sure we were in good shape and everything was normal,” he says. “And to my surprise, my doctor decided to send me a letter at this point that I didn’t want to go on tour and stay for further examinations.”
Thanks for reading our article.


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If you would like more information about the profile please click
. You will be directed to a new page where you will need
to provide some information about yourself/your business cooperation needs and submit
your expression of interest in the profile . A Network Partner will then contact
you to discuss your interest in greater detail.
A Polish company that specializes in distribution of nuts, seeds and dried fruits for B2B sector and HoReCa would like to establish co-operation agreements with new producers/suppliers of these products under distribution services agreement
The Polish company has been active on foodstuffs wholesale market since 2006. The company is a direct importer and distributor of nuts, seeds and dried fruits. The most important items out of these assortment groups are: walnut kernels, almonds, dessicated coconuts, Brazil nuts, roasted and salted pistachios, cashew nuts, dried prunes, raisins, dried cranberries, dried aprocots, banana chips, dried apples, dried peaches, pumpkin kernels, blue poppy seeds, linseeds, hulled sesame seeds, hulled sunflower kernels, white poppy, almond slivered, almond sliced, sesame paste, ground poppy seeds and ground linseeds.
In addition to the distribution the company offers innovative services such as optical and laser sorting, stabilization, sterilization and roasting food products. These processes minimizes the risk of microbiological contamination in the product and provides product without hard contaminations, product of equal seeds calibration, regular seeds shapes, repeatability of production and high quality.
The company operates in B2B market, by supplying its goods to top bakeries and HoReCa sector of Western, Central and Eastern Europe as well as of Baltic countries and Russia. One of the company's strategic principles is raw materials procurement directly from the selected producers in Poland and abroad.
The company is interested in constantly expanding its assortment to become more competitive on world markets and now is looking for new producers/suppliers of nuts, seeds and dried fruits under distribution services agreement. The company is also looking for new suppliers with more competitive prices.
Through the implementation of innovative ideas and technologies the company supplies dried fruits, nuts and seeds which distinguish them from other companies. In order to satisfy company's customer needs, the company has implemented health safety system HACCP and ISO 22000 procedures. The company makes quality control at every stage of a production process.
The company offers innovative services such as optical and laser sorting, stabilization, sterilization and roasting food products.
The company is looking for only approved and certified high-quality products that meet health safety standards. All quality products are sourced from producers who have HACCP or ISO as a minimum requirement. Before deciding to cooperate the Polish SME always make an audit in the producers host.
The company is looking for business partners (SMEs, large enterprises) operating in the field of nuts, seeds and dried fruits sector. The company would like to expand their products assortment and is looking for new producers/suppliers of nuts, seeds and dried fruits under distribution services agreement.
The company is interested in high quality food raw materials, procurement directly from the selected producres.

domain: food


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Which World Cup Teams Might Houstonians Root For? [Map]
The U.S. plays its first game of the 2014 World Cup today against Ghana. Of course, Houston is in the good old US of A, and the Americans will have Houstonians rooting for them.
But this is one of the most diverse cities in the country (maybe even the world). With that in mind, we decided to look at what countries, other than the United States, will have fans rooting for them in the World Cup. Thanks in part to Rice sociologist Michael Emerson, we charted what World Cup-competing countries are represented here by using 2010 Census data to find the foreign-born populations in the Houston metropolitan area.
Use the map below to see the foreign-born populations in Houston's metro area of the different countries.
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domain: geography