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Despite what your dispenser will tell you, glass lenses are still available in this country. Plastic lenses are not really "safer" than glass lenses, but they're a hell of a lot more profitable - eyecare "professional" my ass.
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Random Thoughts Of Indy
After a good night’s sleep Sunday night, we drove back to Nashville. The first thing I did was flick on the DVR and watch the race. Now that I’ve experienced the televised version as well as being there live, I’ve come up with a few thoughts that probably appear to be a little random. Actually they ARE random, but these are my observations of the 2009 Indianapolis 500.
First, on the negative side…Sunday night after the race, I said that the first half was boring. After watching the replay, I’ll amend that to say that the first two-thirds were boring. Yes there were some hard crashes in the first hundred laps to satisfy the crash-hungry fans, but the passing at the front of the field was limited to whoever was in second getting the leader on a restart.
This is a rant that I’ve covered before and will in more detail later this week; but with the cars being the same, the only “X” factor is now the performance of the pit crews. The lack of passing near the front is so apparent, the Indianapolis 500 now resembles a Formula One race where your best chance to pass somebody is in the pits. Witness Danica Patrick – whose pit crew gained her four spots in the first two stops only to be given back when she slid through her pit box later. At least her pit score was dead even.
The Target team wasn’t so lucky. Scott Dixon and Dario Franchitti both had the field covered for the first half of the race. They both suffered miscues in the pits that doomed the chances of either of them becoming two-time winners. Gone is the day when a driver can depend on their right foot and skill to recover from a mistake. With the parity that is the IRL these days, one misstep in the pits and you’re through. The fate that Sam Hornish suffered in the pits in 2006 would have relegated him out of the top ten in Sunday’s race. Just like the latter stages in Kansas back in April, the last twenty laps had no passing at all. The cars were so equal; the running order remained completely static — therefore totally boring.
Another negative was the failed attempt by IRL officials to prevent Helio from climbing the fence. What were they thinking? Is this the NFL, where celebrating is frowned upon? Here the IRL has a chance to create a photo-op to be re-run on Sport Center and be printed in every Monday paper across the country, and the IRL tries to thwart it. Whoever came up with the idea to try and steer Helio straight into Victory Lane should be sentenced to spending next year’s race in the infield of turn three, where I parked my car (which will be another subject for later this week).
Had any other winner tried to do some fence climbing, the IRL should have tackled them. Can anyone really imagine E.J. Viso creating a fan base by imitating Helio? But given the fact that Helio had already done it twice before, plus the nightmare he had emerged from just last month…Castroneves had earned that right. And a little heads-up for the future—should Helio go on to become the fourth four-time Indy winner, he’s probably going to try it again. My advice to the Speedway is to let him.
This is a picky complaint, but I realize there will never be another Tom Carnegie on the PA. Since Carnegie’s retirement, Dave Calabro has done a nice job — probably because he is understated and seems to know he is not Tom Carnegie. This year, Ralph Sheheen was introduced on the PA. He spelled Calabro for a great portion of the race and it wasn’t pretty. Sheheen has always been decent on various radio broadcasts, but this wasn’t radio. He was way over the top in his long narratives of everything going on. His voice went up a couple of octaves if anyone looked like they might attempt a pass. If the Speedway uses him in future years, he needs to tone it down.
There were also many positives about the weekend. First of all, we went to the track on Saturday and made the obligatory trip to the museum – always an annual must. As we were walking out I spotted one of my idols, Donald Davidson. He was understandably very busy, but he took the time to chat with me and allowed me to have my picture taken with him. He is as cordial in person as he is with callers on the radio. Over the years, I’ve met most of the big name drivers and have gotten sort of immune to seeing them up close. I’ll have to admit…with Donald, I was a little star-struck.
Another positive for the race was the performance of the Delphi Safety Crew. On a far too busy day, this crew did a superb job. They were upon Kanaan’s car before the car had come to a halt. The safety crew and the medical team in this series are the absolute best. NASCAR should be green with envy. Whenever they get around to having a crew like this they’ll of course, claim that they invented it.
Unlike some, I was pleased with the selection of Alex Tagliani for Rookie of the Year. Granted, he didn’t qualify for the race but that doesn’t disqualify him from consideration. It wasn’t his fault that he didn’t qualify, rather it was a boneheaded non-move by his car owner, Eric Bachelart, that prevented him from qualifying. I thought Bruno should have stayed in the car, but this wasn’t Tag’s fault. Moving from thirty-third to finish eleventh more than proved his worthiness.
The yellow-shirts seemed a little more intent on keeping the crowd under control. If I were eighteen, I would probably put this in the negative column but at my advanced age…it’s a plus. For the first time ever, I saw some rowdy loons being hauled off in handcuffs. I like to have as much fun as anyone, but if you’ve ever been to Indy, you probably know what I’m talking about.
Another plus was the Speedway’s emphasis on what Memorial Day is truly about. They’ve always done a nice job with this but they seemed to step it up this year. The fired volleys before the playing of taps was a nice touch. I’ll also give credit to the fans. They all removed their hats and stood in silent reverence, showing respect – of course, it was early before too much alcohol had been consumed.
But to me, the biggest plus was seeing Helio Castroneves finish off the perfect month in fine fashion. Aside for the troll that sat near me who kept calling Helio a criminal – this was a very popular win at the Speedway. Helio is sincere and likeable – plus he can sure drive a racecar. His run reminded me of Rick Mears. He led. He fell back. He stayed within striking distance while working with the car. Then when it was time, he made his move. Classic Mears and classic Penske.
When Al Unser won his fourth, I wasn’t thrilled to see anyone join AJ Foyt as a four-time winner. When Mears did it, I was OK with it. Not only am I ready to see Helio join that elite club; I hope to see him become the first five-time winner. While the Indianapolis 500 struggles to regain its identity, it needs Castroneves just as much as Helio needs Indy. They are both very good for each other.
6 Responses to “Random Thoughts Of Indy”
The parity of the IRL was painfully apparent as ABC repeatedly went to the onboard camera in Danica’s car. She drove a good, steady race (other than over-running her pit) but when she was trying to pass Ed Carpenter she had to try several times, before she could get around him.
As you have mentioned before, the engines are so reliable now that engine failure is nearly unheard of. As I recall, only Oriol Servia went out with an engine problem (fuel pump). The only other mechanical related failure was Tony Kanaan, and I never did understand exactly what broke, but it was obvious that something gave way in his right rear suspension or drive train to throw him into the wall like that.
Solid recap, and I totally agree with you about the ridiculousness of trying to prevent Helio from climbing the fence. He’s one of two drivers known outside of the core fan base, and the other one hasn’t won the Indy 500.
If/when he wins a FOURTH Indy 500, I don’t care if he wants to climb the Pagoda, they gotta let him go. It’s not just a photo op, it’s what the fans expect to see.
Good job, George. I attended the 500 for quite a few consecutive years, and can relate to your comment on the removal of a few rowdy fans. Once saw a naked drunk pour some beer on the windshield of a new El Dorado being driven into the parking area by a well-dressed man and his wife. When the big guy got out of the car, I realized how lucky the drunk was to have escaped. He might have gotten away with even less than his clothes, if the guy had caught him.
Excellent job on your article and comments. You should be writing for one of the major newspapers.
Great post, George. I, too, was quite happy about Helio’s victory and was pretty dismayed by the attempt to keep him from doing his celebration. Good thing he was able to do it.
As far as the cars, I cringed when I heard that the IRL would likely keep with the current package through 2011. Given that, what do you think should be done in the meantime? Should the focus be on the cars or on the tracks?
My only thought after reading your recap was “Why wasn’t I there to see it in person?” Oh well, maybe next year!!!!!
I hope someone finally admits to issuing the order to keep Helio in the car and off the fence. And at that point, their employment should be terminated — for lack of judgement or just plain stupidity. With the IRL needing every bit of positive publicity it can get, they nearly botched a bonanza. I’m not sure how many photos and videos I’ve seen of Helio scaling the fence but there have been hundreds.
Thanks again for such a great article. To a relatively new IRL fan, your posts are quickly becoming my required history lesson!
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Broadcast 2907 Hotel Mars with Rand Simberg
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Guests: John Batchelor, Rand Simberg, Dr. David Livingston. Topics: Deep Space Mining, space resources, OST, property rights. You are invited to comment, ask questions, and discuss the Space Show program/guest(s) on the Space Show blog. Comments, questions, and any discussion must be relevant and applicable to Space Show programming. Written Transcripts of Space Show programs are not permitted without prior written consent from The Space Show (even if for personal use) & are a violation of the Space Show copyright. We do not permit the commercial use of any Space Show program or part thereof, nor do we permit Space Show programs to be edited, placed on YouTube, or other private channels & websites. Space Show programs can be quoted in news articles, papers, academic & research work but must be cited or referenced in the proper citation format. Contact Dr. Livingston for questions about our copyright and trademark policies which we do enforce. This program is archived on The Space Show website, podcasting, and blog sites with permission from John Batchelor. Please visit the John Batchelor Show website for more information about this fine program, www.johnbatchelorshow.com. Remember, your Amazon Purchases Can Help Support The Space Show/OGLF (www.onegiantleapfoundation.org/amazon.htm. Please note that audio and transition issues are a result of copying the John Batchelor broadcast & are not within my control as they originate in the Batchelor studio.
John Batchelor and I welcomed back Rand Simberg to discuss the deep space mining, space resource utilization, property rights under the Outer Space Treaty (OST), robotic exploration, AI and more. Rand also talked about the property rights implications of moving an asteroid close to our Moon or Earth. He said the usual definition of a celestial body per the OST was that the celestial body had to be in a natural orbit. Thus, if you move the item to an orbit close to our Moon or Earth, it is no longer a celestial body as defined by the OST so property rights and ownership would be possible. This of course is an untested legal theory but as you will hear, it has widespread support.
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Crocodile cracking
Crocodile cracking, also called alligator cracking and perhaps misleadingly fatigue cracking, is a common type of distress in asphalt pavement. The following is more closely related to fatigue cracking which is characterized by interconnecting or interlaced cracking in the asphalt layer resembling the hide of a crocodile. Cell sizes can vary in size up to across, but are typically less than across. Fatigue cracking is generally a loading failure, but numerous factors can contribute to it. It is often a sign of sub-base failure, poor drainage, or repeated over-loadings. It is important to prevent fatigue cracking, and repair as soon as possible, as advanced cases can be very costly to repair and can lead to formation of potholes or premature pavement failure.
It is usually studied under the transportation section of civil engineering.
Causes
Fatigue cracking is an asphalt pavement distress most often instigated by failure of the surface due to traffic loading. However, fatigue cracking can be greatly influenced by environmental and other effects while traffic loading remains the direct cause. Frequently, overloading happens because the base or subbase inadequately support the surface layer and subsequently cannot handle loads that it would normally endure. There are many ways that the subbase or base can be weakened.
Poor drainage in the road bed is a frequent cause of this degradation of the base or subgrade. A heavy spring thaw, similarly to poor drainage, can weaken the base course, leading to fatigue cracking.
Stripping or raveling is another possible cause of fatigue cracking. Stripping occurs when poor adhesion between asphalt and aggregate allows the aggregate at the surface to dislodge. If left uncorrected, this reduces the thickness of the pavement, reducing the affected portion's ability to carry its designed loading. This can cause fatigue cracking to develop rapidly, as overloading will happen with loads of less magnitude or frequency.
Edge cracking is the formation of crescent-shaped cracks near the edge of a road. It is caused by lack of support of the road edge, sometimes due to poorly drained or weak shoulders. If left untreated, additional cracks will form until it resembles fatigue cracking. Like wheel-path fatigue cracking, poor drainage is a main cause of edge cracking, as it weakens the base, which hastens the deterioration of the pavement. Water ponding (a buildup of water which can also be called puddling) happens more frequently near the edge than in the center of the road path, as roads are usually sloped to prevent in-lane ponding. This leads to excess moisture in the shoulders and subbase at the road edge. Edge cracking differs from fatigue cracking in that the cracks form from the top down, where fatigue cracks usually start at the bottom and propagate to the surface.
Development
Fatigue cracking manifests itself initially as longitudinal cracking (cracks along the direction of the flow of traffic) in the top layer of the asphalt. These cracks are initially thin and sparsely distributed. If further deterioration is allowed, these longitudinal cracks are connected by transverse cracks to form sharp sided, prismatic pieces. This interlaced cracking pattern resembles the scales on the back of a crocodile or alligator, hence the nickname, crocodile cracking.
More severe cases involve pumping of fines, spalling, and loose pieces of pavement. The most severe cases of fatigue cracking often occur with other pavement distresses, but are exemplified by: potholes, large cracks(3/8" or larger), and severely spalled edges.
Measurement and quantification
There are many different ways to measure fatigue cracking, but in general a pavement distress manual or index will be used. For example, the Pavement Condition Index is widely used to quantify the overall level of distress and condition of a section of road. Measurement of fatigue cracking specifically (and pavement distress in general) is necessary to determine the overall condition of a road, and for determination of a time-line for rehabilitation and/or repair. There are many other rating systems, and many rating systems currently in use are based on the AASHO Road Test.
There are two important criteria to take into account when measuring fatigue cracking. The first is the extent of the cracking. This is the amount of road surface area which is affected by this pavement distress. The second criterion is the severity of the cracking. Severity, which has been discussed above, refers to how far the cracking has progressed, and is often directly a function of crack width. Severity may be rated numerically, or given a rating from "low" to "severe". The rating may be entered into a pavement management system, which will suggest a priority and method for the repair.
Systems have been developed that detect fatigue cracking and other types of pavement distress automatically. They measure the severity and frequency of alligator cracking on the road-path. One such machine is the road surface profilometer, which is mounted on a vehicle and measures the profile of the road surface while it is moving down the roadway.
Prevention and repair
Preventing fatigue cracking can be as simple as preventing the common causes. For example, reducing overloading on an asphalt pavement or improving drainage can prevent fatigue cracking in many cases. Prevention primarily depends on designing and constructing the pavement and subbase to support the expected traffic loads, and providing good drainage to keep water out of the subbase.
A good strategy to prevent overloading, which is a main cause of fatigue cracking, is to increase the depth of the asphalt layer. According to certain researchers, pavements that exceed a certain minimum strength or thickness can hypothetically handle infinitely many loads without showing structural defects, including fatigue cracking. These pavements are called perpetual pavements or long-term performance pavements (LTPP).
When repairing pavement affected by fatigue cracking, the main cause of the distress should be determined. However, often the specific cause is fairly difficult to determine, and prevention is therefore correspondingly difficult. Any investigation should involve digging a pit or coring the pavement and subbase to determine the pavement's structural makeup as well as determining whether or not subsurface moisture is a contributing factor. The repair needed also differs based on the severity and extent of the cracking.
In the early stages, sealing cracks with crack sealant limits further deterioration of the subgrade due to moisture penetration. Small areas may be repaired by removal of the affected area, and replacement with new base and asphalt surface. Once the damage has progressed or the affected area is large and extensive, a structural asphalt overlay or complete reconstruction is necessary to ensure structural integrity. Proper repair may include first sealing cracks with crack sealant, installing paving fabric over a tack coat, or milling the damaged asphalt. An overlay of hot mix asphalt is then placed over the completed repair.
See also
Alkali–silica reaction: distress in concrete with a cracking pattern ressembing this of crocodile cracking
Bleeding (roads)
Cracking pattern
Road texture
Rut (roads)
Notes
Category:Pavement engineering
Category:Road infrastructure
Category:Mechanical failure modes
Category:Patterns
Category:Fracture mechanics
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Test yourself with the Visio Racing Game
Alexander Matyushenko is a Product Marketing Manager on the Microsoft Visio team.
Think you know Visio? Test your knowledge with the Visio Racing Game. Whether you’re a beginner or a veteran user, during your next break from work take a couple of laps in the Visio car and brush up on fun facts.
As you drive, you’ll check your knowledge of the new Visio. When you answer questions correctly, you can upgrade your car to get an edge on the competition.
You can unlock up to 8 different upgrades to your car, such as lights, tires, and even turbo! With a few right answers you’ll have everything you need to get to the top of our leader board.
Don’t worry if you don’t know the right answer, just keep racing and we’ll show you all the correct answers after you cross the finish line.
You also can challenge your colleagues and friends to test their knowledge. Finish the race and then send an invitation to your opponent. When they accept, they’ll race against your best score.
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The Hornady M-2 tumbler is a high quality medium sized vibratory case tumbler which does a great job of cleaning and polishing brass cases to a brilliant like new finish. This tumbler will hold about 500 .38 Special size cases or 200 30-06 size rifle cases.
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Hybrid navigation
Hybrid navigation is the simultaneous use of more than one navigation system for location data determination, needed for navigation. By using multiple systems at once, the accuracy as a whole is improved. Especially for self-driving cars, the exact and continuous knowledge of the navigating object's location is essential.
Function
GPS or other satellite based systems (GLONASS, GALILEO, BEIDOU, QZSS) provide a way to learn one's location, but these methods require free field conditions in order to receive the radio signal. Various satellite systems are subject to switching-off or reduction of data precision by the company or government that runs them. They are also prone to intentional or unintentional disturbances. Even passing through a tunnel or a garage interrupts the data flow. In situations where the signal cannot be received reliably, alternate sources of location data are needed. Combining GPS with other methods can avoid these limitations, but each method has its own specific limitations. A hybrid system provides fault tolerance for each underlying method and improves the overall precision of the result.
The hybrid system needs to decide how to choose among the different methods at any given time. One solution is a triple configuration, allowing 'result voting' for data collecting systems.
Alternate systems that supply navigational data include:
Inertial navigation systems. This system determines location by summing the movement vectors from start of the trip or some other waypoint whose location is well-defined.
Incremental sensors. This system uses vehicle speed data supplied by a Fleet Management System.
Differential GPS. This system uses terrestrial radio transmitters with well-defined locations that broadcast information about how accurate the GPS signals are at identifying the locations of these transmitters.
See also
Automotive navigation system
Navigation Data Standard
External links
Homepage of 'Deutschen Gesellschaft für Ortung und Navigation (DGON)'
Wildau Video
References
Category:Mobile technology
Category:Communication
Category:Navigational equipment
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Welcome to the best KC Chiefs site on the internet. You can view any post as a visitor, but you are required to register before you can post. Click the register link above, it only takes 30 seconds to start chatting with Chiefs fans from all over the world! Enjoy your stay!
The way Clark reacted with going tI serif before he could see anyone else makes me think about the reports when PM was cut by the colts last season and they said an owner/GM showed up at the Indy airport to talk to him. I wonder if it was Clark/Pioli? Oh well, glad our future appears brighter. Let's get a solid GM who can really evaluate talent in here and were ginna be peaking right about the time Manning is retiring!
The rumor was that Clark, Romeo and Pioli flew to meet Manning, but for whatever reason, he wasnt interested in us.
2. The Chiefs will be converting on defense AGAIN, back to a 4-3, which now means keeping Glenn Dorsey is vital to the success of that defensive front and outright releasing Tyson Jackson will probably come to fruition.
3. Reid likes to move around during draft day. This is VERY big news for the Chiefs who have been hemorrhaging value in the draft for the better part of a decade. Understanding WHO you want in the draft and WHERE they should be drafted is one of the biggest keys to sustained success in the NFL.
4. Reid runs a version of the West Coast Offense, which is all about dink and dunk passes, screens, and then accurate long-balls with very few mid-range passing. Add to the fact that this is the same guy who drafted a mobile QB in Donovan McNabb and then signed another one in Mike Vick can only lead you to believe that Geno Smith is going to be the next QB of the Kansas City Chiefs. Smith was very successful in this type of offense.
5. There seems to be a defensive blind-spot in Andy Reid's vision of the NFL. He is going to need to bring in a 4-3 defensive guru if the Chiefs are going to successfully convert a solid 3-4 defense into a better 4-3 defense. Monte Kiffen does not seem like the right guy for the job to me.
geno really??
2. The Chiefs will be converting on defense AGAIN, back to a 4-3, which now means keeping Glenn Dorsey is vital to the success of that defensive front and outright releasing Tyson Jackson will probably come to fruition.
3. Reid likes to move around during draft day. This is VERY big news for the Chiefs who have been hemorrhaging value in the draft for the better part of a decade. Understanding WHO you want in the draft and WHERE they should be drafted is one of the biggest keys to sustained success in the NFL.
4. Reid runs a version of the West Coast Offense, which is all about dink and dunk passes, screens, and then accurate long-balls with very few mid-range passing. Add to the fact that this is the same guy who drafted a mobile QB in Donovan McNabb and then signed another one in Mike Vick can only lead you to believe that Geno Smith is going to be the next QB of the Kansas City Chiefs. Smith was very successful in this type of offense.
5. There seems to be a defensive blind-spot in Andy Reid's vision of the NFL. He is going to need to bring in a 4-3 defensive guru if the Chiefs are going to successfully convert a solid 3-4 defense into a better 4-3 defense. Monte Kiffen does not seem like the right guy for the job to me.[/quote]
Although I'm not sold on Reid 100% - a red flag for me is the fact that Eagles fans aren't complaining about his dismissal - I do think that the Chiefs' front office is heading in the right direction. Our passing offense needs some help, and we're getting a coach that has a good history of developing QB's. And he's getting the #1 draft pick.
Well, I think one thing about that is how high he set the BAR. After years of winning, two losing seasons and the fans have soured on him.
I don't recall many Chiefs Fans being upset Marty left either, but many of us realize now what we lost.
I'm not so hip on this fire I really wish they would've got somebody younger and more hungrier than he is. We will see what happens but I don't have high hopes for a Chiefs
I think we got someone who has lit of experience (playoffs included) who prob has a bit of a chip on his shoulder and wants to prove he can do it again somewhere else. And I think a fresh start somewhere new for him will be a good thing for both parties involved.
For the record, I was against the very idea of hiring Pioli, let alone the actual act. The biggest reason was because I knew he was going to try and come in here and "rebuild" a team that had just undergone a rebuild. He tried to force this defense into a 3-4 when they had no business doing so considering the Chiefs had just spent so many resources building a 4-3. It's frustrating to see the Chiefs go back to a 4-3 after spending resources on a 3-4 defense like Jackson and Poe. While Poe can transition to a 4-3, there's not much room for Tyson Jackson who will be on track to make 14mil this season. Additionally, the DL may lose Glenn Dorsey. Kinda sucks. Not to mention, we don't have a true DE opposite Hali. Houston will probably stay at OLB.
You could just see Pioli's first 4 or 5 years would be an absolute waste. If the Chiefs has stayed with the 4-3 and directed their resources to upgrading the offense and building off what they already had in place on defense, we wouldn't be talking about another rebuild coming in the form of Andy Reid.
Pioli will go down as one of the worst decisions in the history of the organization... not because he was incapable, but because of what he tried to do with the team he inherited.
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Here’s what you need to know about the new 1099-MISC filing date
Payments reported on Form 1099-MISC, Box 7 (non-employee compensation), have a new filing deadline of Jan. 31, 2017.
As we approach 2017, a new tax filing deadline looms for some taxpayers.
Certain payments of $600 or more made in the course of a trade or business must be reported on Form 1099-MISC. For payments reported on Form 1099-MISC, Box 7 (non-employee compensation), the new deadline for filing with IRS is January 31, 2017. In previous years, the deadline for providing Form 1099-MISC to the payee was Jan. 31, with a filing deadline of Feb. 28 for paper returns, and March 31 for electronic filers.
The following types of payments are reported on Form 1099-MISC, Box 7:
• Payments for services performed by someone who is not your employee.
• Payments to attorneys (of any amount).
• Cash payments for fish you purchase from someone engaged in the business of catching fish.
• Certain prizes or awards.
• Payments for professional fees to accountants, engineers, contractors, etc.
• This list is not inclusive, for more information visit www.irs.gov.
For other types of payments reported on Form 1099-MISC, the filing deadline remains the same as previous years – Jan. 31 to furnish the Form 1099-MISC to the payee, Feb. 28 to file paper returns with IRS, and Mar. 31 for electronic filing.
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Thoughts My Anxiety Causes On A Daily Basis
I have regularly talked about my anxiety maybe not a lot on the blog, how I have struggled with it, but also what I’ve done to allow myself to move forward and try to combat my mental illness, I do have a few coping mechanisms but you can’t control what thoughts you have on a daily basis, and sometimes they just get the better of you, and that is okay, but know what is true and what isn’t. So what are the things that go through my brain on a regular basis when i'm at home or in public!
Am I Good Enough?
I am the type of person that has never felt good enough for anyone, and honestly that is something I’ve always battled, and to this day. So when it comes to online and being open, I still struggle, I think, am I doing enough? Am being a good friend, sister, daughter or grand daughter? Am I working hard enough at my blog? Am I working hard enough to be part of society? Even though I have lots of compliment about how supportive and what a good person I am, I just don't believe it most of the time. I am my own worst enemy because yet again I still feel I am not good enough. Or at least I'm getting there.
Feeling Anxious About Being Anxious.
I always feel anxious about being anxious, what if I end up being anxious when I go out and have a panic attack, what if when I go out, I get so anxious that I don’t ever want to go out again? Although i do like going out i just worry that i won't be able to, if you get what i mean. What if I end up making the people around me anxious because they’re worried about me getting anxious and freaking out?
What If People Don’t Like Me?
This isn't my greatest fear as such but i do get worked up about it, if people don’t like me, I know I shouldn’t be worried about what people think of me, but unfortunately it can be my biggest downfall. I don’t need to be liked by people, I want to be liked because I want to be able to support others on their journey through life or whatever journey they are facing. Not only that if people don’t like me, I feel like I am doing something wrong or I'm just too much! I know I can’t please everyone and I can’t be everyone’s cup of tea but I just like to have a good group of people around me I can talk to, is that so bad? I think I'm getting better where i have 'I DON'T CARE WHAT YOU THINK ABOUT ME' days bit by bit
Not Being Able To Control The Future.
I always end up worrying about something, but not being able to control what might happen. Or some days i take in my stride, I know this is not only time consuming and actually stops me from living my life to the full, which honestly isn’t the great because I could be doing something great and productive, but instead I’m worrying about what could happen and how I can’t control it. And what i can do to gain control, I like to be in control.
What If I Offend Someone?
I'm pretty out spoken ( i say what i feel and think) and this scares me sometimes, to the point where I have to usually over think everything I say and then worry if I've said something that's hurt someones feelings. If I say something and they don’t reply back or they're taking a while to reply to the message, I end up thinking, did I say something in the wrong way or was I trying so hard not to offend them that I actually offended them anyway? Do they not like me or do i annoy them?
Do you suffer with anxiety or are there certain things that make you anxious? What are some of the thoughts you struggle with on a daily basis?
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About Me
Simone/UK/Creative Writing and Journalism Student/Wannabe Disney Princess/ Unicorn Enthusiast/ Mental Health Fighter Welcome to my little space on the internet! The BeautifulxImperfections Journal is a lifestyle/personal blog where I share my musings, ramblings and everything in between of a 20 - something, hearing impaired girl trying to navigate through life.
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"♪♪" "Tracy?" "Hey, sorry i'm late." "It took me 40 minutes to park, And then the store was a madhouse." "Tracy?" "♪♪" "Hey." "♪♪" "Why aren't you cooking?" "Scott and meryl will be here in an hour." "I was late." "Late?" "There's only one stripe." "That means you're not pregnant." "Don't look so happy." "I'm not." "I" "Look, you were the one who said that" "You didn't want to have a baby until we were able to move." "Ok." "So, let's go." "let's get out of here." "Let's go somewhere where we can have some space" "And, you know, see some trees." "You know, that'd be great, but how are we going to do that?" "All i know is that i want to have a baby," "And i don't want to raise it here." "The suburbs." "are you sure?" " No." " uh, no." "We're just going to check it out." "What about the commons?" "Oh, don't." "Don't put them through that." "Why?" "What is it?" "A couple of years ago, we started looking," "Found this place-- fell in love with it." "A bunch of uptight snobs." "Incredible schools, the best sports programs," "And the homes are amazing." "So what happened?" "They loved us." "and scott thinks i'm crazy," "But i swear they lost interest" "Whene started blabbing that we didn't want to have a second child." "Excuse me for being honest, you know?" "Go ahead and check it out." "I wouldn't live there now if you paid me." "The commons, huh?" "I have a really good feeling?" "Even after what scott and meryl said?" "It wasn't right for them." "That does not mean it won't be right for us." "Maybe." "I just can't get used to living in the suburbs." "Keep an open mind." "You may end up loving it." "This must be it." "Now what?" "Is there a doorbell or something?" "Ok. that's weird." "I guess that means we go in." "Sync:" "FRS@¹âÏË" "fear itself S01 ep07" "The commons was created on the basis of a growing need For family values." "Now, i'm sure you grew up in a neighborhood like we did" "Where neighbors look out for one other" "And crime is something that happens in another part of town." "These ideals are the cornerstone Of what we're all about." "That sounds amazing." "So why'd the previous owners leave?" "business." "he was transferred." "Here we are." "come on." "Hey." "Don't get your heart set on this, ok?" "Come on." "Did i mention, the previous owners Couldn't take their furnishings," "So if you like it, comes with the house." "Take your time." " explore." " Thanks." "Look. look at this kitchen." "Look at this kitchen!" "Bet you the closet space is just amazing!" "There's fireplace!" "Look!" "Come on." "Sit." "Sit." "We do not belong here." "Yeah." "That's right." "Ok." "I'm going to call you later." "They're coming back." "Well, what did you think?" "I'm sorry, but i think we've wasted your time." "we were just wondering if maybe there was something a little bit smaller." "I'm afraid this is the only home available." "You guys are, what, 25?" "26?" "No kids, but you want to start a family someday?" "Yeah, that's why we're here." "But it's-- this is just too much." "We've helped a lot of couples buy new homes here," "Couples just like you." "Do me a favor?" "fill out an application." "What have yotsu elgoft to lose?" "Tracy, i'm home." "We did it!" "we got the house!" " ?" " Yes!" "Yes!" "It's going to be so amazing." "It's going to be amazing." "Wait a sec." "These great loans," "Way more house than we could afford anywhere else." "What's the catch?" "Ok, bobby, what are you doing?" "Oh, no, no." "It's ok." "i understand." "Buying your first home is a little scary," "Buyers jumping through hoops And eryone making a quick profit." "We'll make our profit, too." "But buying a house is not about money." "It's about security And comfort and family." "You want a catch, bobby?" "here it is:" "We can't survive without people like you investing in our carom imutsnieltyf." "And that investment is the life you create here." "Now, here's a socioeconomic breakdown of our residents." "When i said this was a planned community, it was an understatement." "We are a finely tuned microcosm" "Based on hundreds of years of research In communal living," "From african tribes to medieval villages To the american suburb." "The commons has thrived for the last 20 years" "Because we know precisely what it takes to make a community work." "And right now, that's you." "Based on 73 separate criteria," "You as a couple meet our needs 97%." "So if we don't do this right now," "What are the chances of us meeting your needs again?" "You're more likely to be struck by lightning" "While holding a winning lottery ticket." "Are you sure this is what you want?" "I want this for us." "Welcome to your new home!" "We're happy to call you neighbor." "thank you!" " Ready?" " yeah!" "Hi!" "Think they'll do this every day?" "Well, here we go." "Listen!" "do you hear that?" "No." "What is it?" "Nothing." " Isn't it great?" " yes." "We did it." "it's our house." "?" "I'm going to go put my thing in." "Ok?" "i'll be right back." "what?" "What are you doing?" "Trying to make a baby with my wife." "Are you sure?" " Yes?" " yeah." "Hello?" " Hey!" " hi!" "Oh, see?" "They did keep the furniture." "Now i'm second-guessing my gift." "Well, they'll prably return it anyway." "Who cares?" " Hi." " hi!" "We're the fabers, your next-door neighbors." "Try to say that after a few martinis." " Stop it." " a mew fartinis." "Stop it!" "Hi, i'm debra, and this smart aleck is phil." "I'm bobby." "this is my wife, tracy." "Hi." "You think we looked that young and cute when we moved in?" "Well, i did." "How long have you guys lived here?" "12 years august." "Worst 12 years of my life." "Philip, stop it!" "They don't know you well enough yet." "Oh, come on, honey, they know i'm just kidding." "I'm not kidding." "Well, bobby, you got a beer?" "no, i don't, sorry." "It's still a little early for us." "Have one of mine." " Come on in." " come on in." "Thank you!" "Hey." "You pay whatever you want" "One of the little perks of the commons." "I'm leaving." "Sit here." "ok." "my goodness." " This place is amazing." " I'm spoiled rotten." "Arlene." "Hi." "I'm tracy." "we just moved in yesterday." "I know." "You getting settled?" "yeah." "I mean, i already feel like i belong." "Any kids?" "You want mine?" "she's house-broken." "I'm joking." "Well, i got to go." "I'm in charge of our subdivision's residents committee," "So i'm going to hit you up to volunteer soon." "Please." "please, do that." " Great." "Bye!" " ok." "Bye." "Ok." "Bye!" "see you tomorrow!" "Wave at the nice lady." "?" "She's beautiful." "Bye!" "I think you've had enough." "My love, there's never enough." "You play golf, bobby?" "it's been years." "When it gets warmer, we'll get you out there." "Hey." "hey." "How's it going?" "You having a good time at the party?" " I'm all right." " yeah?" "But i think i got to make a liquor run." " These people drink a lot." " You can dress it up, but it's rotten and stinking to the core." " Will you please be quiet?" " no, i won't be quiet!" "What, do you want to cut my balls off?" " Will someone stop him?" " They're all just afraid to say anything." "They had no right!" "Don't worry, kids." "Uncle phil's is okey-doke." "Let me help you up." "It's ok, bobby." "We know how to take care of him." "Hi, debra." "oh, sorry." "I just haven't seen you and phil since the party." "How's he doing?" "i thought you knew." "his brother died." "He had tgo take care of it." "Oh, no." "Well, give him our best." "You're so beautiful, sandra." "Hey, isn't that sandra from across the street?" "What is this?" "sandra!" "Oh, god!" " How could you be so stupid?" " ?" " Do you realize what you've done?" " I'm sorry!" "No!" "No!" "Hey, you see that?" "What's going on here?" "♪♪" "?" "In a while." "We're wondering how you're doing over there in yuppie heaven." "Give us a call." "Hi, tracy. it's arlene." "I got you an appointment with my ob." "She's amazing." "I told her all about your problems conceiving, so..." "Call me back!" "Tracy, arlene just left you a message." "Why are you sharing our sex life with your friends?" "Because they're my friends?" "I don't know. they're moms." "They've been through this." "why are you asking me this?" "Because, i don't need their judgment." "We've only been trying for 3 months." "♪♪Un let's just keep it between us, ok♪" "I think you're being a little sensitive." "I'm going for a run." "Oh, wait." "I forgot to tell you that candace called." "You've got a meeting with the resident's group tonight." "Ron and sandra, What we do is arbitrate." "We offer solutions to everyday problems." "It's how villages and tribes have functioned for thousands of years." "And it's what community is all about." "Trust her." "it won't happen again." "Everyone in town saw her." "We can't just ignore it, ron." "That wouldn't be fair to everyone." "Infidelity rips at the very fabric The commons is created from." "What divides a single couple divides us all." "Now, in cases like this," "The offending spouse is sentenced by the partner From a prescribed list." "Ron, do you understand that?" "I choose her punishment." "Hold on." "what are we doing here?" "This is between sandra and ron." "We're not talking about someone who left their garbage cans out." "Why is this any of our business?" "Because we're their neighbors." "And we care." "Make me want to puke!" "Harlot!" " Whore!" " Disgusting!" " just a whore!" " Why does she have to stand there?" "She broke a rule, sweetie." "She's in a grown-up time out." "was it worth it?" "Hey, how can you let this happen?" "This is sick." "this is medieval." "It's only for a few hours." "What would you do if you caught your wife screwing around?" "Divorce her?" "Kill her?" "pretend it didn't happen?" "We'd deal with it privately." "They will, too." "But first, she's has to deal With what she's done to the rest of us." "Her neighbors will help her through it." "And it'll strengthen the community." "And i guaran-damn-tee she won't screw around again." "This is how you chose to punish your wife?" "No." "She chose it." "I'm so sorry, sandra." "No!" "Don't interfere. please!" "Bobby, stay out of this!" "Bobby." " Sandra?" " i just wanted to say" "If the community hadn't stepped in when they did," "Our marriage would be over." "Bless you." "And you two keep trying." "Don't give up on that baby." "Thanks." "Tracy?" "I just ran into ron and sandra" "Heather and candace came by." "We like to check in?" "After they've been here a while to see how they're adjusting." "Oh, and we're doing great, aren't we?" "Yeah, great." "It's obvious." "your house is wonderful." " ?" "Pride of ownership." " absolutely." "Ok." "I don't mean to be rude," "But if you want something from me" "You want me to volunteer for another committee" "They're concerned about us." "Because?" "Because we haven't gotten pregnant yet." "There's no need to panic." "It happens to lots of couples." "We just want you to know that we can help." "Oh, we don't want your help." "Our private life is none of your business." "We really are fine." "I know. i just want you To explore every possibility." "We have fertility specialists." "We have donors." "Ok." "You need to leave." "Now." "We truly want to help." "Now, i suggest you take a look at the resident's agreement That you both signed." "We have every right to be concerned." "Your house is lovely." ""child shall be conceived within a period of up to and including, but not to exceed," ""6 months from the first day of residency." ""failure to do so will result In the foreclosure of your property-- "" "♪♪Can they do that♪" "I don't want to leave." "I don't either." "But..." "They're trying to control us." "Tell us when to have a baby?" "C'mon!" "I-- i know, but that's why we're here," "To raise a family in a safe environment." "They made that possible." "Look at their success rate." "It obviously works." "It does!" "i want this for us." "What are we going to do?" "We want to do everything we can to uphold the contract." "But what if we're unable to conceive?" "Oh, well, that's highly unlikely given your combined genetics," "But you would be in default." "You'd lose the house, any equity," "Your credit would be damaged for years." "It would be unpleasant." "What if we had a miscarriage, Or we just wanted to move?" "Sorry, no." "That's all covered in your agreement." "So, basically, we're trapped here," "Expected mate on demand." "No." "You make it sound like it's a zoo." "You're saying that every couple for the last 20 years" "Has spit out babies on your schedule" "And lived happily ever after?" "It's a delicate biosocial balance." "We have singles." "We have couples without children." "We've never asked anyone to conceive" "Who wasn't already planning on doing so." "Now, in the application that you signed," "You stated that you wanted to become pregnant Within 6 months." "I can show you, if don't rember." "That's ok." "We've been doing this a long time." "We're very good at choosing our neighbors." "We have faith in you." "Yeah, i'm looking at this contract." "Why would you sign this?" "Why didn't you call me first?" "Is it legal." "It's a legal document." "It's a ridiculous breach of civil liberties," "But you sign it." "I just want some control." "Move." "I mean, there'd be consequences." "No, we can't." "tracy doesn't want to go." "She doesn't know i'm doing this." "But if we have a baby, we're stuck in this place." "Tell me what you want me to do." "Help me find the previous owners." "Run a credit check." "get a number." "They got out." "i want to know how." "I can't believe we may lose this." "All i want to do is raise a family here." "Don't give up." "it's all worth it." "Once you feel your baby growing inside of you," "You know you're not just living for yourself anymore." "Your priorities change completely." "I love my house, but what's important," "Why we're really here, is for our kids." "And unless your kid's a complete freak," "They'll be offered the best schools, the highest-paying jobs." "It's an unwritten rule of the commons." "We're not just neighbors in here." "We're neighbors anywhere we go." "20 years of ex-residents" "Highly placed in virtually every sector of government and industry." "Connections from this little neighborhood run scary deep." "Realize how lucky you are to be here." "And girl, do whatever you can to hold onto it." "No." "He's not feeling well." "I just need to ask him a few questions." "I'm sorry about your brother, phil, but i need to know" "What happened to the couple who owned our house?" "Leave him alone, bobby." "This agreement we signed, we didn't realize" "It's insane, and i need to know how that family got out." "Phil." "what happened to you?" "Go home." "we can't help you." "He disappeared." "What do you mean he disappeared?" "All his credit accounts, his bank accounts, closed." "It's like your previous owner fell off the planet." "What do you think that means?" "Eithere's dead, or he's pretending to be." "Why would he do that?" "What the hell's going on over there, bobby?" "We're worried about you two." "We're ok." "Don't let meryl say anything to tracy." "Thanks, scott." "Hey." "hey." "What's that?" "I got you something." " Can i open it?" " Yes.?" "I got 2 stripes." "Bobby, i love you so much." "We did it." "Yeah." "I mean, i want to, you know, get officially checked out by the ob," "But arlene, she said that these ings are pretty much foolproof." " So, i think that we're ok." " You told her before you told me?" "I know." "I just didn't want to tell you over the phone," "And i had to-- no." "Hey, listen." "Don't get mad, ok?" "This is our dream, and it's happening," "So let's just enjoy it, ok?" "you know what?" "I think it's my parents calling." "Hello?" "I know!" "It's so exciting, isn't it?" "Yeah. he just can't wait." "He's-- he's thrilled." "Look." "Yeah." "Oh-- check it out." "But yeah. this is, um..." "That's a photo of our baby." "You're so beautiful." "I think i'm going to like this pregnancy thing." " ?" "You know so?" " yeah." "No." "Sandra!" "What" "She jumped in front of the car!" "I saw it." "She was definitely drunk." "No, no, no!" "she was terrified." "She wanted help." "Someone was chasing her." " Did you see?" "She was" " No." "She jumped in front of the car." "It was suicide." "we all saw it." " These people are insane." " Oh, my god." "What do you mean that thedisappeared?" "'Cause candace, she said-- she said that they" "Candace lied, ok?" "Something is very wrong here." "Will you just please, stop?" "please, stop?" "Because you're scaring me." "You should be scared because" "'Cause why..." "Come on.?" "Phil, debra!" "open up!" " Hello?" " Tell us what's happening." "We're scared. ?" "out of this?" "We have a daughter." "leave us alone!" "Is that what they do?" "they go after your family?" "Phil-- phil, what happened to your brother?" "What did they do to you?" "I'm sorry, honey." "Everyone needs to find out on their own." "Actually, it's kind of liberating." "We're all in this together." "did i tell you about gracie's report card?" "She did great." "I'm so proud of her." "The teachers want to put her into the advanced learning classes." "She's already reading at the fourth grade level." "And she's the best speller in the class." "Bobby, get the hell out of there." "No." "I have to get tracy and the baby safe first" "Hide them, get them new identities." "They'll come after us." "they won't stop." "They own us." "How can we help?" "I have an idea." "We're going to need meryl." "We should call your doctor." "Oh, no, no." "It's probably just heartburn." "I just need to rest." "I promised arlene i'd help her organize tomorrow." "I'm so excited about this fundraiser." "The school library's going to throw a dinner for all the volunteers." "We need as many people to contribute as possible." "I think we need about 10 volunteers to work the phones." "Tracy, you look pale." "Do you want something?" "yeah." "Maybe i should just get some water." "Well, i'll take care of the emailing," "And make sureteod." "?" "the baby!" " Someone call 911!" " No, no, no. just, please" "Just call bobby. please.." "Just call bobby." "One of us will go with you." "No, that's ok." "I'll call you just as soon as i can." "Ok, meryl." "ok." "How you doing, meryl?" "nervous." "?" "Here we go." "If the tv cuts to you, just cover up, ok?" "We can't let them recognize you." "Hello?" "Hi, arlene." "Yeah, no, tracy and the baby are fine." "She's just confined to the bed for a little while." "No, no, no." "no visitors." "Thanks." "Bye." "Just stay covered." "Thank you." "thanks." "I'll give tracy your kind words." "Just let us know." "They're suspicious." "We've been on tv for 2 days straight." "Why hasn't scott called?" "Tracy and her parents should be reaching the cabin at any time." "They'll let scott know, and as soon as he calls us," "We're out of here." "Maybe that's him." "Hey, scott." "Hey." "she's better." "No, no, no." "no visitors tonight." "Ok. we'll give you a call." "Tonight." "Let's go." "?" "Bobby." "Who the hell are you?" "where's your wife?" "Run!" "get out of here!" "It'll be ok, meryl." " No meryl, it won't." " bobby!" "And you can thank your friend bobby for that." "Where's tracy?" "♪♪" "Where is she?" "You can kill me, but tracy and the baby are safe." "And everyone will know what happens here." "Kill you?" "Why would we kill you?" "You're our neighbor." "We just want you to be happy." "But your family and friends," "They may have a little accident, like meryl." "What is that?" "Something to help you talk." "Don't worry, bobby." "We're your friends." "Welcome back." "You've had quite the nap." "You must feel horrible." "i'm sorry." " Are you up for a ride?" " Where?" "♪♪" "To see tracy." "she came back." "You're lying." "she wouldn't." "Where's bobby?" "I'm going to knock some sense..." " ...into that son of a bitch." " Will somebody get him out of here?" "Come on, phil." "bobby's ok now." "What, he's ok?" "Bobby's staying?" "Bobby's staying!" "Oh, bobby, you're staying." "That's so great." "That's great that you're staying." "That's so great." "This is for you." "Ron, will you do something about this?" "What are you doing?" "Oh, my god!" "Candace!" "run!" " Hey!" " run!" "Bobby?" "Bobby!" "♪♪" "Come on back!" "Bobby!" "Bobby!" "Bobby?" "Bobby!" "Bobby?" "Bobby?" "Bobby!" "It's me!" "Hey, bobby!" " Bobby?" " bobby, it's scott!" "Tracy!" " bobby!" " What are you doing?" "you were safe." "I had to come back for you." "♪♪" "They've got meryl." "we have to get out of here." "No." "Bobby." "Bobby." "i love you so much." "I am doing this for us." "?" "Scott." " ?" " It's an amazing house, bobby." "The schools are incredible." "We're going to be neighbors." "It's going to be great." "No!" "No!" "No, no!" "No!" "No!" "No!" "?" "Stop!" "It really is a lovely community." "Everybody watches out for each other." "and if you're planning on having kids," "There's no better place to raise a family." "That's why we're here." "he's adorable." "He's a handful." "So, i'm looking forward to meeting your husband." "Yeah. he's working right now." "there he is." "So why'd the previous owners leave?" "Business." "he was transferred." "We feel so fortunate to be here." "It really is a wonderful community." "Bye." "♪♪"
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Q:
Calculate expected value of piece-wise pdf
I have the following PDF of a random variable:
$f(x)=\begin{cases}
1 & \text{if}\ \ \ 0<x<\frac{1}{2} \vee 1 < x < \frac{3}{2}\\
0 & \text{otherwise}.
\end{cases}$
How can i do to calculate the expected value?.
A:
You could use ProbabilityDistribution.
d = ProbabilityDistribution[
Piecewise[{{1, 0 < x < 1/2}, {1, 1 < x < 3/2}}, 0],
{x, -\[Infinity], \[Infinity]}]
Mean[d]
(* 3/4 *)
Or alternatively MixtureDistribution.
d2 = MixtureDistribution[{1, 1}, {UniformDistribution[{0, 1/2}],
UniformDistribution[{1, 3/2}]}]
Mean[d2]
(* 3/4 *)
Since these are distributions all sorts of functions work with them. For example, you can easily compute other expected values using Expectation.
Expectation[Log[x], Distributed[x, d]]
(* 1/2 (-2 - Log[2] + Log[27/8]) *)
A:
Just use $E(X)=\int^{\infty}_{-\infty}x \, PDF(x)\, dx$
f[x_] := Piecewise[{{1, 0 < x < 1/2 || 1 < x < 3/2}, {0, false}}]
ExpectedValue=Integrate[x f[x], {x, -Infinity, Infinity}]
yields 3/4.
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Nomenclature
============
*C~p~*
: specific heat (kJ/(kg K))
*r*
: radial coordinate (m)
*x*
: axial coordinate (m)
*D*
: diffusivity (m^2^/s)
*g*
: gravity acceleration (m/s^2^)
*h*
: specific enthalpy (J/kg)
*h~fg,i~*
: latent heat of water vapour at the interface (kJ/kg)
*L*
: length of the pipe (m)
$\overset{˙}{m}$
: mass flow rate (kg/s)
*P*
: pressure (kPa)
$q^{''}$
: heat flux (kW/m^2^)
$\overset{˙}{Q}$
: sensible heat (kW)
*Re*
: Reynolds number
*Sc*
: Schmidt number
*r~i~*
: tube inner radius (m)
*r~o~*
: condenser tube outer radius (m)
*T*
: temperature (°C)
*U*
: axial mean velocity (m/s)
*V*
: radial mean velocity (m/s)
*u*
: velocity (m/s)
*y*
: lateral position (m)
*E*
: internal energy (J/kg)
*R*
: universal gas constant (=8.314 J/(mol K))
*M*
: molar mass
*Y*
: mass fraction
*S*
: source terms
*J*
: mass flux of species (J/m^2^ s)
```{=html}
<!-- -->
```
*δ*
: thickness of condensate film (*m*)
*ɛ*
: energy dissipation rate (m)
*κ*
: kinetic energy (J/kg)
*μ*
: dynamic viscosity (kg/(ms))
*ρ*
: density (kg/m^3^)
*α*
: under-relaxation factor
*τ~g~*
: interfacial shear stress (N/m^2^)
*λ*
: thermal conductivity (W/(mK))
```{=html}
<!-- -->
```
*f*, *i*
: film interface
*f*
: film
*l*
: liquid
*x*
: axial direction
*v*
: vapour
*av*
: air--vapour
*w*
: water
*0*
: inlet
*i*
: index for species
*T*
: temperature
*m*
: mass
1. Introduction {#s0005}
===============
Condensation of water vapour in the presence of non-condensable gases has many applications such as air conditioning, electricity generation, refrigeration, reactor safety, aerospace, desalination and some heat exchangers. However, a detailed understanding and our capability of predicting it, especially in cases of high mass fraction of water vapour, are still lacking. As a result, we need to enhance our understanding on the physics of water vapour condensation in the presence of non-condensable gases and to develop techniques to predict the heat and mass transfer involved numerically for industrial applications.
The analysis by the heat and mass transfer analogy in situations with water vapour condensation in the presence of non-condensable gases has been described by many researchers. Colburn and Hougen [@b0005] were the first to develop a theory for condensation mass transfer which was controlled by the mass concentration gradient through the non-condensable layer. They described the heat transfer process as the sum of sensible heat and latent heat flows. Dehbi and Guentay [@b0010] derived a theoretical prediction of heat and mass transfer in a vertical tube condenser from steam and non-condensable gas mixture. An algebraic equation for the film thickness was derived. The mass and heat transfer analogy was invoked to deduce the condensation rate. Munoz-cobo et al. [@b0020] developed a theory for turbulent vapour condensation in vertical tubes when non-condensable gases are present and the condensate film thickness was calculated using an approximate method. Che, Da and Zhuang [@b0015] used the method of Colburn and Hougen [@b0005] to analyse the heat and mass transfer process for the condensation of water vapour from moist air in a tube. They conducted experiments and found that the convection--condensation heat transfer coefficient is 1.5--2 times higher than that of forced convection without condensation. There have been several experiments performed to study condensation of vapour--gas mixture in vertical tubes. Siddique [@b0025], Kuhn [@b0030] and Kuhn et al. [@b0035] studied steam condensation in the presence of air flowing downwards in vertical tubes and cold water flowing upwards inside cooling jackets.
Many of the theoretical predictions of vapour condensation and heat transfer in the presence of non-condensable gas have focussed on the gas and vapour mixture. The cooling of the gas--vapour mixture is normally calculated by assuming a constant wall temperature or a constant heat flux at the wall. In condensers, this wall temperature or heat flux at the wall is in general not known a prior, and the temperature of the cooling fluid (e.g. water) has normally been used as an approximation for the wall temperature. This may be a valid approximation when the mass flow rate of the cooling water is much larger than that of the gas--vapour mixture or when the mass fraction of the water vapour in the gas--vapour mixture is low. However, a better approach is to solve the heat and mass balance of the condensers including the cooling water and the gas--vapour simultaneously. Recently, Li, Saraireh and Thorpe [@b0040] have undertaken the predictions of vapour condensation and heat transfer in the presence of non-condensable gases involving water vapour condensation in gas--vapour mixture flows with water as the cooling fluid. The equations, in combination with many theoretical models for heat and mass transfer for the gas--vapour mixture, were solved numerically and the predictions were found to compare favourably with available experimental results from the literature.
Recently, modelling of water vapour condensation in the presence of non-condensable gases has been conducted using computational fluid dynamics (CFD). The advantages of using CFD include the ability of predicting water vapour condensation in complex geometries and of less assumptions in modelling the mass and heat transfer involved. Revankar and Pollock [@b0045] predicted the laminar film condensation in a vertical tube in the presence of non-condensable gas and the predictions were compared with experimental data. Rao et al. [@b0050] presented the convective condensation of water vapour in the presence of a non-condensable gas of high concentration in laminar flow in a vertical pipe. They predicted the local and average values of the condensation Nusselt number, condensate Reynolds number, gas--liquid interface temperature and pressure drop. Bucci et al. [@b0055] used a commercial and an in-house CFD code to evaluate the heat and mass transfer occurring over a flat plate exposed to an air--vapour stream with uniform bulk stream mass fraction and temperature conditions at the wall. Benelmir, Mokraoui and Souayed [@b0060] conducted a numerical analysis of film-wise condensation in a plate fin-and-tube heat exchanger in the presence of non-condensable gas. Moukalled et al. [@b0065] used CFD to predict and optimize the performance of an air-conditioning equipment. In these CFD simulations of vapour condensation in the presence of non-condensable gas, the condensate film is neglected and the vapour condensation is modelled as a sink term for the mass conservation and species conservation. Mimouni et al. [@b0070] used CFD to model the wall steam condensation using two-phase flow approach and compared the predictions with that using a homogeneous flow approach.
Yuann [@b0075], Panday [@b0080] and Groff et al. [@b0085] solved the governing conservation equations in both the liquid film and the vapour--gas mixture and linked them with interfacial boundary conditions. In Groff et al. [@b0085], the cylindrical coordinate system was transformed such that the interface between the gas mixture and liquid condensate is at a constant *η* = 1 and a set of seven boundary conditions was supplied at the liquid--mixture interface. To solve the conservation equations numerically, the number of grids in both the liquid region and the mixture region were set at the same order of magnitude. Given the large difference in densities between the liquid region and gas mixture region, the thickness of the condensation film is in general three orders of magnitude less than the tube diameter or channel width of the condenser. Using such a large number of grids in the liquid region shows the challenge of this approach in CFD modelling of vapour condensation in condensers.
Laaroussi, Lauriat and Desrayaud [@b0090] studied the effect of variable density for film evaporation on laminar mixed convection in a vertical channel. They have studied the buoyancy effect due to temperature and mass fraction variations using the Boussinesq approximation. They have found that both thermal buoyancy force and solutal buoyancy force need to be considered. They considered only laminar flows and the maximum mass fraction of vapour was up to 50%. In many industry applications, much higher vapour content can be found.
As in those cases of simple theoretical predictions of vapour condensations in the presence of non-condensable gas, all the CFD simulations mentioned above model heat and mass transfer inside the condenser tubes or channels with a constant wall temperature or constant heat flux at the wall. On the other hand, in nearly all the experiments conducted and industrial applications, vapour condensation cannot exist by itself. The condensers are in general cooled by coolant in the cooling jackets. As the results of Li et al. [@b0040] showed, in case of high mass fraction of water vapour inside the condensers, both the condenser wall temperature and heat flux can vary significantly. Also, as a prediction method, the wall temperature and heat flux should be the consequence of predictions rather than input boundary conditions. Saraireh, Thorpe and Li [@b0095] attempted to predict the vapour condensation of a whole plane condenser using ANSYS FLUENT® for low vapour content and encountered many difficulties.
In this paper, we present the results of modelling the water vapour condensation in the presence of non-condensable gas from medium to high vapour content and the heat transfer in the cooling jacket using FLUENT® in vertical cylindrical tubes. Inside the condenser tubes, we model both the gas mixture region and the liquid film. The modelling of the liquid film is undertaken by using the Nusselt approximation rather than solving a set of conservation equations to save computer resources. We also model the buoyancy effect from the variation of temperature and vapour content without using the Boussinesq approximation.
2. Governing equations, turbulence modelling and problem formulation {#s0010}
====================================================================
We consider a vertical condenser tube with an annular cooling channel. [Fig. 1](#f0005){ref-type="fig"} shows a schematic diagram of the condenser system with defined coordinate systems and quantities. Here we assume that the homogeneously mixed air and water vapour mixture enters the condenser tube from the top and the cooling water (coolant) enters the annular channel from the bottom. It is assumed that the condensate forms a thin film on the inner surface of the condenser wall and the film thickness *δ~f~* = 0 at *x* = 0. In addition, we also assume: (1) the flow is statistically steady and axisymmetric; (2) the condensate film is impermeable to non-condensable gas; (3) the thickness of the condensate film is extremely thin and much less than the radius of the condenser tube, *δ~f~* \<\< *r~i~*; (4) the air and water vapour--gas mixture is an ideal gas and its thermodynamic properties vary with temperature; (5) condensation occurs only at the interface between the liquid film and the gas mixture; and (6) the cooling channel is surrounded by an adiabatic wall.
2.1. Conservation equations {#s0015}
---------------------------
The conservation of mass or continuity equation can be written as:$$\frac{\partial}{\partial x}(\rho U) + \frac{\partial}{\partial r}(\rho V) + \frac{\rho V}{r} = S_{m}$$where *S~m~* is the source terms of total mass. The equations for momentum conservation are$$\begin{aligned}
& {\frac{\partial}{\partial x}(\rho\mathit{UU}) + \frac{1}{r}\frac{\partial}{\partial r}(r\rho\mathit{UV})} \\
& {\quad = - \frac{\partial P}{\partial x} + \frac{\partial}{\partial x}\left\lbrack {\mu_{\mathit{eff}}\left( {2\frac{\partial U}{\partial x} - \frac{2}{3}(\nabla \cdot \overset{\rightarrow}{u})} \right\rbrack} \right)} \\
& {\qquad + \frac{1}{r}\frac{\partial}{\partial r}\left\lbrack {r\mu_{\mathit{eff}}\left( {\frac{\partial U}{\partial r} + \frac{\partial V}{\partial x}} \right)} \right\rbrack + \rho g + S_{U}} \\
& {\frac{\partial}{\partial x}(\rho\mathit{UV}) + \frac{1}{r}\frac{\partial}{\partial r}(r\rho\mathit{VV})} \\
& {\quad = - \frac{\partial P}{\partial r} + \frac{\partial}{\partial x}\left\lbrack {\mu_{\mathit{eff}}\left( {\frac{\partial U}{\partial r} + \frac{\partial V}{\partial x}} \right)} \right\rbrack} \\
& {\qquad + \frac{1}{r}\frac{\partial}{\partial r}\left\lbrack {r\mu_{\mathit{eff}}\left( {2\frac{\partial V}{\partial r} - \frac{2}{3}(\nabla \cdot \overset{\rightarrow}{u})} \right\rbrack} \right\rbrack - 2\mu_{\mathit{eff}}\frac{V}{r^{2}}} \\
& {\qquad + \frac{2}{3}\frac{\mu_{\mathit{eff}}}{r}(\nabla \cdot \overset{\rightarrow}{u}) + S_{V}} \\
\end{aligned}$$Here *S~U~* and *S~V~* are the source terms for momentum in *x* and *r* directions, respectively, and$$\nabla.\overset{\rightarrow}{u} = \frac{\partial U}{\partial x} + \frac{\partial V}{\partial r} + \frac{V}{r}$$
The conservation of energy in statistically steady cylindrical coordinate systems are$$\frac{\partial}{\partial x}(U(\rho E + P)) + \frac{1}{r}\frac{\partial}{\partial r}(\mathit{rV}(\rho E + P)) = \frac{\partial}{\partial x}\left( {\lambda_{\mathit{eff}}\frac{\partial T}{\partial x} - \sum h_{i}J_{\mathit{ix}} + {({\overline{\overline{\tau}}}_{\mathit{eff}}.\overset{\rightarrow}{v})}_{x}} \right) + \frac{1}{r}\frac{\partial}{\partial r}\left( {r\lambda_{\mathit{eff}}\frac{\partial T}{\partial r} - \sum h_{i}J_{\mathit{ir}} + {({\overline{\overline{\tau}}}_{\mathit{eff}} \cdot \overset{\rightarrow}{v})}_{r}} \right) + S_{h}$$where ${\overline{\overline{\tau}}}_{\mathit{eff}}$ is the turbulent shear stress tensor (2D), $\overset{\rightarrow}{v}$ is the velocity vector and *S~h~* is the source term for energy.
In the above equation$$E = h - \frac{P}{\rho} + \frac{\left( {U^{2} + V^{2}} \right)}{2}$$where *h* is the sensible enthalpy and for compressible flows it is defined as:$$h = \sum\limits_{i}Y_{i}h_{i}$$and $h_{i} = \int_{T_{\mathit{ref}}}^{T}C_{p\text{,}i}\mathit{dT}$ with the reference temperature *T~ref~* = 298.15 K is used.
For the annular channel flow of cooling water, only water liquid is flowing. The fluid can be considered as incompressible and$$E = h + \frac{\left( {U^{2} + V^{2}} \right)}{2}$$
For the gas mixture flow inside the tube condenser, the mass fraction of the water vapour satisfies the following equation$$\frac{\partial}{\partial x}\left( {\rho\mathit{UY}_{v}} \right) + \frac{1}{r}\frac{\partial}{\partial r}\left( {r\rho\mathit{VY}_{v}} \right) = - \left( {\frac{\partial J_{v\text{,}x}}{\partial x} + \frac{1}{r}\frac{\partial(\mathit{rJ}_{v\text{,}r})}{\partial r}} \right) + S_{v}$$$$\begin{aligned}
& {J_{v\text{,}x} = - \left( {\rho D_{v\text{,}m} + \frac{\mu_{\mathit{eff}}}{\mathit{Sc}_{t}}} \right)\frac{\partial Y_{v}}{\partial x} - \frac{D_{T\text{,}v}}{T}\frac{\partial T}{\partial x}} \\
& {J_{v\text{,}r} = - \left( {\rho D_{\mathit{vm}} + \frac{\mu_{\mathit{eff}}}{\mathit{Sc}_{t}}} \right)\frac{\partial Y_{v}}{\partial r} - \frac{D_{T\text{,}v}}{T}\frac{\partial T}{\partial r}} \\
\end{aligned}$$where *S~v~* is the source (sink) term for the water vapour, *Sc~t~* is the turbulent Schmidt number, *D~v~*~,~*~m~* is the mass diffusivity of water vapour and air, and *D~T~*~,~*~v~* is the thermal diffusivity. The conservation equations are completed by the ideal gas law for the gas mixture$$\begin{aligned}
& {\rho = \frac{\mathit{PM}}{\mathit{RT}}} \\
& {Y_{a} + Y_{v} = 1} \\
\end{aligned}$$and the molar mass of the mixture *M* is calculated from$$\frac{1}{M} = \left( {\frac{Y_{v}}{M_{v}} + \frac{Y_{a}}{M_{a}}} \right)$$
2.2. Turbulence modelling {#s0020}
-------------------------
The realizable *k*--*ɛ* model [@b0105] was used to model turbulence in the present simulation. The governing equations for the turbulent kinetic energy *k* and the dissipation rate *ɛ* are$$\begin{aligned}
& {\frac{\partial}{\partial x}(\rho\mathit{Uk}) + \frac{1}{r}\frac{\partial}{\partial r}(r\rho\mathit{Vk})} \\
& {\quad = \frac{\partial}{\partial x}\left\lbrack {\left( {\mu + \frac{\mu_{t}}{\sigma_{k}}} \right)\frac{\partial k}{\partial x}} \right\rbrack + \frac{1}{r}\frac{\partial}{\partial r}\left\lbrack {r\left( {\mu + \frac{\mu_{t}}{\sigma_{k}}} \right)\frac{\partial k}{\partial r}} \right\rbrack} \\
& {\qquad + G_{k} + G_{b} - \rho\varepsilon + S_{k}} \\
& {\frac{\partial}{\partial x}(\rho U\varepsilon) + \frac{1}{r}\frac{\partial}{\partial r}(r\rho V\varepsilon)} \\
& {\quad = \frac{\partial}{\partial x}\left\lbrack {\left( {\mu + \frac{\mu_{t}}{\sigma_{\varepsilon}}} \right)\frac{\partial\varepsilon}{\partial x}} \right\rbrack + \frac{1}{r}\frac{\partial}{\partial r}\left\lbrack {r\left( {\mu + \frac{\mu_{t}}{\sigma_{\varepsilon}}} \right)\frac{\partial\varepsilon}{\partial r}} \right\rbrack} \\
& {\qquad + \rho C_{1}S\varepsilon - \rho C_{2}\frac{\varepsilon^{2}}{k + \sqrt{\nu\varepsilon}} + C_{1\varepsilon}\frac{\varepsilon}{k}C_{3\varepsilon}G_{b} + S_{\varepsilon}} \\
\end{aligned}$$In these equations, *G~k~* represents the generation of turbulent kinetic energy due to the mean velocity gradients and *G~b~* is the generation of turbulence kinetic energy due to buoyancy. The contribution of the fluctuating dilatation in compressible turbulence to the overall dissipation rate has been neglected. *S~k~* and *S~ɛ~* are user-defined source terms. In the above equations,$$C_{1} = \max\left\lbrack {0.43\text{,}\ \frac{\eta}{\eta + 5}} \right\rbrack\text{,}\quad\eta = S\frac{\varepsilon}{k}\text{,}\quad S = \sqrt{2S_{\mathit{ij}}S_{\mathit{ij}}}$$
In the turbulence modelling,$$\begin{aligned}
& {\mu_{t} = \rho C_{\mu}\frac{k^{2}}{\varepsilon}} \\
& {\mu_{\mathit{eff}} = \mu + \mu_{t}} \\
\end{aligned}$$
The special feature of realizable *k*--*ε* model is that *C~μ~* is not a constant, rather it is calculated as$$C_{\mu} = \frac{1}{A_{0} + A_{s}\frac{\mathit{kU}^{\ast}}{\varepsilon}}\text{,}\quad U^{\ast} = \sqrt{S_{\mathit{ij}}S_{\mathit{ij}} + {\overset{\frown}{\Omega}}_{\mathit{ij}}{\overset{\frown}{\Omega}}_{\mathit{ij}}}\text{,}\quad{\overset{\frown}{\Omega}}_{\mathit{ij}} = \Omega_{\mathit{ij}} - 2\varepsilon_{\mathit{ijk}}\omega_{k}\quad\Omega_{\mathit{ij}} = {\overline{\Omega}}_{\mathit{ij}} - \varepsilon_{\mathit{ijk}}\omega_{k}$$Here ${\overline{\Omega}}_{\mathit{ij}}$ is the mean rate of rotation tensor viewed in a moving frame with angular velocity *ω~k~* and$$\begin{aligned}
& {A_{0} = 4.04\text{,}\quad A_{s} = \sqrt{6}\cos\ \varphi} \\
& {\varphi = \frac{1}{3}\cos^{- 1}(\sqrt{6}W)\text{,}\quad W = \frac{S_{\mathit{ij}}S_{\mathit{jk}}S_{\mathit{ki}}}{{\widetilde{S}}^{3}}\text{,}\quad\widetilde{S} = \sqrt{S_{\mathit{ij}}S_{\mathit{ij}}}\text{,}\quad S_{\mathit{ij}} = \frac{1}{2}\left( {\frac{\partial u_{i}}{\partial x_{j}} + \frac{\partial u_{j}}{\partial x_{i}}} \right)} \\
\end{aligned}$$
The model constants are$$C_{1\varepsilon} = 1.44\text{,}\quad C_{2} = 1.9\text{,}\quad\sigma_{k} = 1.0\text{,}\quad\sigma_{\varepsilon} = 1.2$$
2.3. Source terms {#s0025}
-----------------
In simulating the flows in the condenser system as that shown in [Fig. 1](#f0005){ref-type="fig"}, various source terms exist at the interface between the gas mixture and condensate film. These need to be specified during the CFD simulation.
### 2.3.1. Source term for mass {#s0030}
The source terms for the total mass and the water vapour are due to the condensation of water vapour at the interface between the gas mixture and the condensate film and is calculated using$$S_{m} = S_{v} = \left( {\frac{\rho D_{v\text{,}m}}{1 - Y_{v}}\frac{\partial Y_{v}}{\partial r}} \right|_{r = r_{i}}\frac{\delta A}{\delta V}$$where *δA* is the surface area and *δV* is the cell volume next to the interface. Here we assume that the gas mixture is extended to the inner surface of the condenser tube and the thickness of the condensate film is negligible. The mass fraction of the water vapour at the interface is calculated by assuming that the gas mixture--liquid film is in thermodynamic equilibrium and is related to the partial pressure of water vapour at saturation condition by$$\left( Y_{v} \right|_{r = r_{i}} = \frac{M_{v}}{M_{a}}\frac{P_{\mathit{sat}}\left( T_{\mathit{fi}} \right)}{P - \left( {1 - \frac{M_{v}}{M_{a}}} \right)P_{\mathit{sat}}(T_{\mathit{fi}})}$$where *P* is the local total pressure, *P~sat~*(*T~fi~*) is the saturation vapour pressure at the interface temperature and is calculated as [@b0050]$$P_{\mathit{sat}}(T) = \left( {\exp(77.3448 + 0.005713T - 7235/T)}/ \right.T^{8.2}$$
### 2.3.2. Source term for momentum {#s0035}
Because of the large variation of temperature and mass fraction of water vapour, the density of the gas mixture will vary significantly within the condenser tube. The first consequence of this is that the flow inside the condenser tube cannot be assumed to be incompressible which requires constant density. The large variation of density across the flow field also results in large buoyancy forces. As discussed by Laaroussi et al. [@b0090], both thermal and solutal buoyancy forces exist in the condensation and evaporation of gas mixture with high vapour content. In Laaroussi et al. [@b0090], the buoyancy forces were modelled as source terms in the *x* direction momentum equation using Boussinesq approximation, even though this approximation is valid only for small temperature differences, and the thermo-physical properties of the mixture were evaluated at reference temperature and mass fraction (vary with the vertical channel) given by the 1/3 law from the expression given by Fujii et al. [@b0100].
When using the Boussinesq approximation for the problem involving concentration variation as well as temperature variation, the density of the mixture is approximated by a double Taylor expansion (Bird, Stewart and Lightfoot [@b0110]) as$$\begin{aligned}
& {\rho(T\text{,}Y_{v}) = \overline{\rho} + \left( \frac{\partial\rho}{\partial T} \right|_{\overline{T}\text{,}{\overline{Y}}_{v}}(T - \overline{T}) + \left( \frac{\partial\rho}{\partial Y_{v}} \right|_{\overline{T}\text{,}{\overline{Y}}_{v}}\left( {Y_{v} - {\overline{Y}}_{v}} \right) + \cdots} \\
& {\quad \approx \overline{\rho} - \overline{\rho}\overline{\beta}(T - \overline{T}) - \overline{\rho}\overline{\zeta}(Y_{v} - {\overline{Y}}_{v})} \\
& {\overline{\beta} = \left( {- \frac{1}{\overline{\rho}}\frac{\partial\rho}{\partial T}} \right|_{\overline{T}\text{,}{\overline{Y}}_{v}}} \\
& {\overline{\zeta} = \left( {- \frac{1}{\overline{\rho}}\frac{\partial\rho}{\partial Y_{v}}} \right|_{\overline{T}\text{,}{\overline{Y}}_{v}}} \\
\end{aligned}$$
Under this approximation, the momentum equation can be written as (Bird et al. [@b0110])$$\frac{D(\rho\mathbf{V})}{\mathit{Dt}} = ( - \nabla P + \overline{\rho}\mathbf{g}) - \overline{\rho}\mathbf{g}\overline{\beta}(T - \overline{T}) - \overline{\rho}\mathbf{g}\overline{\zeta}(Y_{v} - {\overline{Y}}_{v}) + \cdots$$
In the above equation, the pressure *P* can be redefined to include the hydrostatic force due to density variation (Batchelor [@b0115]), the buoyancy forces are due to the linear variations of the temperature and mass fraction of the water vapour. [Fig. 1](#f0005){ref-type="fig"} shows that for the current problem, both the average temperature and the average mass fraction of the water vapour along the condenser tube decrease as the gas mixture flow from the top of the tube to the bottom of the tube. This results in an increase in average density of the gas mixture along the condenser tube. Across the condenser tube, the temperature and mass fraction of the water vapour also decrease from the tube centre to the condensate film. This results in, on average, a density increase of the gas mixture towards the condensate film. Instead of using the Boussinesq approximation of expanding the density variation as that due to small variation of temperature and mass fraction of water vapour, we write the *x* direction momentum equation as$$\frac{D(\rho U)}{\mathit{Dt}} = \left( {- \frac{\partial P}{\partial x} + \rho_{0}g} \right) + (\rho - \rho_{0})g + \cdots$$
Here *ρ*~0~ is the density of the gas mixture at the centre of the condenser tube and increase with *x*. The above buoyancy force was applied in the gas mixture region and no linear approximation is involved.
At the interface between the gas mixture and the condensate film, as water vapour condenses into water liquid, it will cause a loss of momentum in the gas mixture and this can be modelled as$$\begin{aligned}
& {S_{U} = \mathit{US}_{m}} \\
& {S_{V} = \mathit{VS}_{m}} \\
\end{aligned}$$
Together with the buoyancy force in the *x* direction, these are added to the momentum equation [(2)](#e0165){ref-type="disp-formula"} in the CFD simulation of the gas mixture region.
### 2.3.3. Source term for energy {#s0040}
Similarly, the water vapour condensation also causes the removal of energy from the mixture region. This can be calculated as$$S_{h} = S_{m}h_{v}$$
This is different from that commonly used$$S_{h} = S_{m}\left( {h_{v} - h_{a}} \right)$$
Since the condensation occurs at the interface between the gas mixture and condensate film where only a sink term exists for the water vapour and there is no source term for the non-condensable gas.
2.4. Boundary conditions {#s0045}
------------------------
For the cooling annular channel, the outside tube is assumed to be adiabatic and the mass flow rate and the temperature at its inlet are specified as$$\overset{˙}{m} = {\overset{˙}{m}}_{c}\text{,}\quad T_{w} = T_{c}\mspace{6mu}\mathit{at}\mspace{6mu} x = L$$
A pressure outlet boundary condition is specified for the coolant at the exit.
For the gas mixture region, the total mass flow rate, the temperature and the mass fraction of water vapour are specified at the inlet$${\overset{˙}{m}}_{\mathit{av}} = {\overset{˙}{m}}_{\mathit{av}\text{,}0}\text{,}\quad T_{\mathit{av}} = T_{\mathit{av}\text{,}0}\text{,}\quad Y_{v} = Y_{v\text{,}0}\mspace{6mu}\mathit{at}\mspace{6mu} x = 0$$
The flow is assumed to be normal to the inlets.
As in Li et al. [@b0040], the condensate film is modelled as a very thin layer. Instead of solving the conservation equations in the condensate film, we conduct the CFD simulation only for the gas mixture region in the condenser tube and the condensate film is considered as providing the necessary boundary conditions. By considering the balance between the weights of the fluid elements, the buoyancy force and the viscous shear force, the velocity gradient of the condensate in the film can be written as (Li et al. [@b0040])$$\frac{\mathit{du}}{\mathit{dy}} = \frac{\left( {\rho_{l} - \rho} \right)}{\mu_{l}}\left( {\delta_{f} - y} \right) + \frac{\tau_{g}}{\mu_{l}}$$where *y* is the distance from the condenser inner surface, *ρ~l~* is the density of the condensate, *μ~f~* is the dynamic viscosity of the condensate and *τ~g~* is the shear stress at the interface between the air--vapour mixture and the condensate film. By integration, the velocity distribution in the condensate film can then be derived as$$u = \frac{1}{2}\frac{\left( {\rho_{l} - \rho} \right)g}{\mu_{l}}\left\lbrack {\delta_{f}^{2} - {(\delta_{f} - y)}^{2}} \right\rbrack + \frac{\tau_{g}}{\mu_{l}}y$$
This shows that the velocity at the surface of the condensate film is$$u = \frac{1}{2}\frac{\left( {\rho_{l} - \rho} \right)g}{\mu_{l}}\delta_{f}^{2} + \frac{\tau_{g}}{\mu_{l}}\delta_{f}$$
Here we have assumed that the velocity of the condensate is zero at the inner surface of the condenser wall (*r~i~*). We assume that at the interface of the gas mixture and the condensate film, the velocity of the gas mixture is the same as that of the liquid film (non-slip). Thus$$U = \frac{1}{2}\frac{\left( {\rho_{l} - \rho} \right)g}{\mu_{l}}\delta_{f}^{2} + \frac{\tau_{g}}{\mu_{l}}\delta_{f}\text{,}\quad V = 0\mspace{6mu}\mathit{at}\mspace{6mu} r = r_{i}$$
The reason for specifying *V* = 0 at *r = r~i~* is that the gas mixture cannot flow into the condensate film. During CFD simulations, the *τ~g~* was obtained from the wall shear stress of the gas mixture. The mass flow rate of the condensate film can be calculated from$${\overset{˙}{m}}_{f} = 2\pi\rho_{l}\left\lbrack {\frac{\left( {\rho_{l} - \rho} \right)g}{\mu_{l}}\left( {\frac{2}{3}r_{i}\delta_{f}^{3} - \frac{5}{12}\delta_{f}^{4}} \right) + \frac{\tau_{g}}{\mu_{l}}\left( {\frac{1}{2}r_{i}\delta_{f}^{2} - \frac{1}{3}\delta_{f}^{3}} \right)} \right\rbrack$$
At *x* = 0, *δ~f~* = 0. The mass flow rate of the condensate film at each *x* location is related to the vapour condensation at the interface between the gas mixture and the film and$${\overset{˙}{m}}_{f} = 2\pi r_{i}\int_{0}^{x}\left( {\frac{\rho D_{v\text{,}m}}{1 - Y_{v}}\frac{\partial Y_{v}}{\partial r}} \right|_{r = r_{i}}\mathit{dx}$$
By combining the above two equations, the thickness of the condensate film *δ~f~* can be determined at each *x* location. This film thickness is used to determine the temperature of the condensate at the film surface$$\begin{aligned}
& {q^{''} = \frac{\lambda_{f}\left( {T_{f\text{,}i} - T_{f\text{,}w}} \right)}{\left( {r_{i} - \delta_{f}} \right)\ln\left\lbrack {r_{i}\left. /\left( {r_{i} - \delta_{f}} \right) \right\rbrack} \right\rbrack}} \\
& {T_{f\text{,}i} = T_{f\text{,}w}\mspace{6mu}\mathit{if}\mspace{6mu}\delta_{f} = 0} \\
\end{aligned}$$where *λ~f~* is the thermal conductivity of the condensate, *T~f,w~* is the temperature of the inner surface of the condenser tube and the heat flux $q^{''}$ at the interface is calculated as$$q^{''} = - \lambda_{m}\frac{\partial T}{\partial r} - \frac{\rho D_{v\text{,}m}h_{l\text{,}v}}{\left( {1 - Y_{v}} \right)}\frac{\partial Y_{v}}{\partial r}$$
Here *λ~m~* is the thermal conductivity of the gas mixture at the interface and *h~l,v~* is the latent heat released by the water vapour during condensation.
As condensation occurs along the inner surface of the condenser tube, the condensate film changes from smooth laminar flow to rough turbulent flow. As in Li et al. [@b0040], we assume that the interface between the gas mixture and the condensate film is rough. It is assumed that the roughness height is half the film thickness *δ~f~*.
A pressure outlet boundary condition is specified at the exit of the condenser tube. In case of reverse flows at the exit of the condenser (*U* \< 0), the backflow boundary conditions for temperature and mass fraction of water vapour are specified using$$T = \left( {\sum\limits_{U > 0}{\overset{˙}{m}}_{\mathit{av}\text{,}j}T_{j}}/ \right.\sum\limits_{U > 0}{\overset{˙}{m}}_{\mathit{av}\text{,}j}\text{,}\quad Y_{v} = \left( {\sum\limits_{U > 0}{\overset{˙}{m}}_{\mathit{av}\text{,}j}Y_{\mathit{vj}}}/ \right.\sum\limits_{U > 0}{\overset{˙}{m}}_{\mathit{av}\text{,}j}\text{,}$$
This assumes that the backflow is from the nearby forward flow and temperature and mass fraction of the water vapour for the backflow is assumed to be the average temperature and mass fraction of water vapour of the forward flow at the exit of the condenser tube. During CFD simulations, at the intermediate iteration steps, the whole exit can be back flow. In this case, *T* = 300 K and *Y~v~* = 0 are used at the boundary conditions for the backflow.
3. Solution procedures {#s0050}
======================
The simulations of heat and mass transfer in the condenser as shown in [Fig. 1](#f0005){ref-type="fig"} were carried out using commercially available FLUENT®, now part of ANSYS®. As pointed out in Saraireh et al. [@b0095] in using FLUENT® for predicting the heat and mass transfer in both the air--vapour mixture channel and the cooling water channel simultaneously, many challenges are encountered. As stated in the FLUENT® user's guide, in modelling heat transfer in two separated fluid regions involving multispecies, only a single mixture material for the entire domain can be used [@b0120]. Because of this, the two flows in the present situation including the air--vapour mixture and the cooling water cannot be simulated simultaneously using FLUENT® since the flow in one channel is a mixture of air and water vapour and in the other channel the flow is water liquid. FLUENT20 can model two flows separated by a solid wall only if one flow is water liquid, say, and the other is a single species such as air or water vapour alone. Saraireh et al. [@b0095] have attempted the simulation using various methods and suggested that the flows in the condenser and the cooling channel can be separated into two and the simulations are carried them out asynchronously. The heat and mass transfer is analysed in the gas mixture in the tube condenser and the heat transfer is analysed for both the cooling water in the annular channel and the stainless steel condenser tube wall. The two simulations are coupled at the inner surface of the stainless steel condenser tube. The flow in the gas mixture condenser was simulated first. A guessed wall temperature from a pre-written file (this file includes the temperature at the condensing surface at each grid centre) at the inner surface of the condenser tube was read first and the simulation was carried out until convergence was achieved. A separate file was written for the heat flux ${\overset{˙}{Q}}^{''}$ at the condenser surface as an output of this simulation. Heat transfer in the cooling water channel and the stainless tube was then simulated using the heat flux file written previously as the input boundary conditions. The simulation was again carried out to convergence and a file for temperature *T~f,w~* at the inner surface of the condensing tube was written as an output of this second simulation. A journal file was written to run the two simulations alternatively many times to achieve convergence for flows in both the gas mixture and cooling water regions.
In simulating the flow in the condenser tube, a gas mixture of air and water vapour was introduced at the inlet with a given mass flow rate, temperature and mass fraction of the water vapour. All the thermal properties of the air and water vapour were assumed to be functions of temperature and were calculated in user-defined functions (UDF). The source terms mentioned early were also calculated using UDF and hooked to their corresponding conservation equations. Because the buoyancy force was calculated as a source term for momentum equation [(2)](#e0165){ref-type="disp-formula"}, no Boussinesq approximation was used for simulating the gas mixture flows.
In simulating the flow in the cooling channel, water was introduced at the inlet (from the bottom as shown in [Fig. 1](#f0005){ref-type="fig"}) at the prescribed mass flow rate and temperature. Boussinesq approximation was used to model the buoyancy effects as recommended by Li et al. [@b0040], because large difference in temperature between the condenser wall and the bulk temperature of the coolant can exist, buoyancy effects cannot generally be neglected in the cooling channel. In the cooling channel, the density variation of the water liquid is considered small and Boussinesq approximation can be expected to work adequately. The thermal properties of the cooling water were allowed to vary with temperature and these were calculated using UDF for the cooling channel.
To use the wall temperature profile (written in a file in the simulations for cooling channel and stainless condenser tube) in the simulation of flows in the air--steam mixture channel and to use the heat flux profile (written in a file in the simulations for mixture flow) in the simulation of cooling water and stainless condenser tube, the grids on the surface of the condensing wall common to both simulations need to be matched. Also, in general, FLUENT® performs CFD simulations starting from the inlet of the fluid domain and the positions at the condensing surface in the two simulations needs to be carefully matched.
To avoid divergence, the following measures were taken for the simulation of gas mixture region: the source term for mass has been under-relaxed as$$S_{m}^{n} = (1 - \alpha)S_{m}^{n - 1} + \alpha\left\lbrack {\left\lbrack {\frac{\rho D_{v\text{,}m}}{1 - Y_{v}}\frac{\partial Y_{v}}{\partial r}} \right|_{r = r_{i}}\frac{\delta A}{\delta V}} \right\rbrack$$where the second term on the r.h.s. of the equation is the source term in Eq. [(7)](#e0085){ref-type="disp-formula"} times an under-relaxation factor *α*, *n* is the *n*th iteration and *α* = 0.05 is used.
In solving the present problem using CFD, a third order MUSCL discretization scheme was used for all the conservation equations. The pressure--velocity coupling was solved using a coupled scheme and the pressure was calculated with a body-force weighted scheme. The solver used was pressure based and the flow is assumed to be steady and axisymmetric. User-defined functions (UDFs) were written for all the source terms, boundary conditions as given in Section [2.4](#s0045){ref-type="sec"} and the properties of the fluids and were called at each iteration.
4. Results and discussion {#s0055}
=========================
The CFD simulations were conducted using the condenser of the same dimension as that used in the experimental work of Kuhn [@b0030]. In Li et al. [@b0040], the experimental results of Siddique [@b0025], Tanrikut and Yesin [@b0125] and Kuhn [@b0030] were compared with model predictions. It was found that the measured centreline temperature of the condenser from Tanrikut and Yesin [@b0125] was close to the wet bulb temperature rather than dry bulb temperature. Sddique [@b0025] conducted the experiments by using turbulence promoters for the coolant channel in order to represent the bulk temperature of the coolant channel using the measured middle channel temperature. In CFD simulations, it is difficult to specify the turbulent intensity at the inlet of the coolant channel since no information is given in the experimental results of Sddique [@b0025]. Because of these, we compare with the experimental results of Kuhn [@b0030] here only. The test sections of the experiments in Kuhn [@b0030] were circular, vertical and metallic tubes, surrounded by annular jackets through which a liquid coolant (water liquid) flowed. The gas--vapour mixture flowed downward in the tube while the coolant in the jacket flowed upward. The condenser tube in the experiments of Kuhn [@b0030] was stainless and 2.418 m long but the experimental results were presented only for distance up to 1.48 m from the inlet of the air--vapour mixture. The experiments of Kuhn [@b0030] were conducted for pure steam, steam--air mixtures and steam--helium mixtures. Kuhn [@b0030] also investigated the effect of turbulent condensate films on the heat transfer by using suitable film distributors. In this paper, we compare the experimental results from Kuhn [@b0030] only for the steam--air mixture experiments with no arbitrarily introduced condensate film. In Kuhn [@b0030], the coolant bulk temperature was not directly measured, rather it was estimated by measuring the temperatures at the inner and outer walls of the annulus and by calculating the temperature difference ratio (defined as a shape factor F) numerically. [Table 1](#t0005){ref-type="table"} shows the selected experimental conditions for some of the experiments from Kuhn [@b0030]. Kuhn [@b0030] repeated some of the experiments to confirm the results and the inlet mass fraction of the water vapour for the runs given in [Table 1](#t0005){ref-type="table"} varies from 0.66 to 0.98.
In the experiments of Kuhn [@b0030], the local heat flux was estimated using$$q^{''} = \frac{{\overset{˙}{m}}_{c}C_{p}}{\pi d}\frac{\mathit{dT}_{c}}{\mathit{dL}}(x)$$where *T~c~* is the estimated bulk temperature of the coolant and the slope *dT~c~/dL* was estimated from a least square curve fit as a function of condenser length. The condensation rates were then estimated using$${\overset{˙}{m}}_{\mathit{cond}} = \frac{\overset{˙}{Q}}{h_{\mathit{fg}}}$$Here ${\overset{˙}{m}}_{\mathit{cond}}$ is the total condensation rate (or the total condensation rate as collected), $\overset{˙}{Q}$ is the total heat transfer rate across the condenser wall, and *h~fg~* is the latent heat of condensation and was calculated using the average temperature of the condenser wall. In using Eq. [(23)](#e0155){ref-type="disp-formula"} to calculate the total condensation rate, the contribution of the sensible heat transfer in $\overset{˙}{Q}$ was neglected. It needs to be pointed that the heat flux and the condensation rates given in Kuhn [@b0030] are derived results. The directly measured results are the centreline temperature of the condenser tube, the condenser tube wall temperature and the temperature of the adiabatic wall.
In the present CFD simulation, the condenser tube, the condenser wall and the coolant jacket are discretised into 800 uniform grids in the axial direction. In the radial direction, the condenser tube is discretised into 50 non-uniform grids with a bias ratio of 5 with the smallest grid near the inner surface of the condenser wall, the condenser wall has 4 uniform grids and the coolant jacket has 20 uniform grids. Tests were conducted using a number of grids in both the radial and axial directions and the results show that the resolutions used are adequate and the results for total condensation rate, wall temperature and heat flux are grid independent.
[Fig. 2](#f0010){ref-type="fig"}(a-f) show the comparison of adiabatic wall temperature between the CFD simulation results and the experimental results of Kuhn [@b0030] for the runs listed in [Table 1](#t0005){ref-type="table"}.
[Fig. 2](#f0010){ref-type="fig"}(a--f) show that the CFD simulation results for the adiabatic wall temperature in general agree well with the experimental results of Kuhn [@b0030] for *x* \< 1.5 m. The maximum difference between the CFD simulation results and the experimental data is about 2 °C. The CFD simulation results show that near the inlet of the coolant jacket (*x* = 2.418 m), the adiabatic wall temperature is almost constant for some distance from the inlet. A close examination of the CFD results shows that the length of the coolant jacket where the adiabatic wall temperature is constant and close to that of the coolant inlet temperature depends on the mass flow rate of the coolant. Using the data from [Table 1](#t0005){ref-type="table"} and the results in [Fig. 2](#f0010){ref-type="fig"}(a-f), it can be seen that the higher the mass flow rate of the coolant, the longer the region where the adiabatic wall temperature will remain constant. This is because the higher is the mass flow rate, the higher the velocity of the coolant in the jacket. This high velocity will carry the coolant faster than the heat transfer from the condenser tube to the adiabatic wall near the inlet of the coolant and thus results in a longer distance for the temperature of the adiabatic wall to change.
[Fig. 3](#f0015){ref-type="fig"}(a-f) show the comparison of the centreline temperature of the condenser tube between the CFD simulation results and the experimental results of Kuhn [@b0030] for the runs listed in [Table 1](#t0005){ref-type="table"}. It can be seen from [Fig. 3](#f0015){ref-type="fig"}(a-f), the CFD simulation results in general agree very well with the experimental results. All the CFD simulation results show that the centreline temperature of the condenser tube is almost constant for *x* \< 1.0 m. [Fig. 3](#f0015){ref-type="fig"}(a-f) show that, after the initial near constant value, the centreline temperature decreases faster with increasing *x*. By using the data as given in [Table 1](#t0005){ref-type="table"} and the results shown in [Fig. 3](#f0015){ref-type="fig"}(a-f), it can be concluded that the rate of temperature decrease depends on the inlet mass fraction of the water vapour. The lower is the inlet mass fraction of water vapour, the faster the centreline temperature decreases as can be seen from [Fig. 3](#f0015){ref-type="fig"}(d-f) where the centreline temperature decreases faster at x \> 1.0 m than that in [Fig. 3](#f0015){ref-type="fig"}(a-c). This is because at x \< 1.0 m in [Fig. 3](#f0015){ref-type="fig"}(d-f), the heat transfer is dominated by vapour condensation (latent heat) which involves little temperature change. For x \> 1.0 m, vapour content is relatively low, the contribution to heat transfer from the sensible heat will be increasing, which will involve large temperature decrease.
[Fig. 4](#f0020){ref-type="fig"}(a-f) show comparisons of condenser wall temperature between the CFD simulation results and the experimental results of Kuhn [@b0030] for the runs listed in [Table 1](#t0005){ref-type="table"}. In Kuhn [@b0030], the condenser wall temperature was measured by using J-type thermocouples with 0.508-mm diameter soldered into longitudinal grooves of 0.7-mm wide, 0.58-mm deep and 12.7-mm long machined close to the outer surface of the condenser tube. Because of this, the measured wall temperature should be between the temperatures of the outer and inner surfaces of the condenser wall. Since the wall thickness of the condenser tube is 1.65 mm, it is expected that the measured condenser wall temperature should be closer to that of the outer surface than that at the inner surface. In [Fig. 4](#f0020){ref-type="fig"}(a-f), the temperatures at the condenser inner and outer surfaces are both presented. The results in [Fig. 4](#f0020){ref-type="fig"}(a-f) show that the temperatures of the condenser tube surfaces predicted from the CFD simulations in general agree reasonably well with the measured tube temperatures. [Fig. 4](#f0020){ref-type="fig"}(a-f) show that the wall temperature measured by Kuhn [@b0030] is in general higher than the wall temperature of the inner surface as given by the CFD simulation.
As pointed out by Li et al. [@b0040], the wall temperature of the condenser tube is not constant and it varies significantly over the length of the condenser tube. The results from [Fig. 4](#f0020){ref-type="fig"}(a-f) show that the temperature of the condenser wall changes from that close to the inlet temperature of the coolant to that close to the inlet temperature of the mixture. In the experimental results of Kuhn [@b0030], this is in the order of 80 °C. Because of this, the simple models that use a constant wall temperature in modelling only the condenser tube will not be valid. Similarly, a constant heat flux boundary condition is also not a valid approximation. For engineering applications involving vapour condensation in the presence of non-condensable gases, generally both the wall temperature and heat flux at the condenser tube surface are not known a prior and in general only the inlet mass flow rates and the temperatures of the gas mixture and coolant are provided. Because of this, the condenser system including the gas mixture, the condenser wall and the coolant flow needs to be modelled together.
The results from [Figs. 2](#f0010){ref-type="fig"} (a-f) and 4(a-f) show that, at least near the inlet of the gas mixture region, the difference in the temperature of the condenser wall and that of the adiabatic wall can be quite large as that shown in [Fig. 5](#f0025){ref-type="fig"} for run 2.1--2. This large temperature difference will induce buoyancy forces in the coolant channel due to natural convection. Using the results given in [Fig. 5](#f0025){ref-type="fig"}, it can be estimated that the Raleigh number$$\mathit{Ra} = \mathit{Gr}\Pr \approx 9.4 \times 10^{6}$$at the coolant exit. Here $\mathit{Gr} = \frac{g\beta\Delta T\delta^{3}}{\nu}$ is the Grashof number, $\Pr = \frac{C_{p}\mu}{k}$ is the Prandtl number, β is the volume coefficient of expansion, Δ*T* is the temperature difference between that at the outer surface of the condenser tube and that of the adiabatic wall, and *k* is the thermal conductivity of the coolant. As according to [@b0130], the flow induced by the buoyancy force alone in the annulus cooling channel will be close to turbulent. The estimated heat transfer coefficient [@b0130] due to the buoyancy force will be about 5.7 kW/m^2^K. Because of this, it is recommended that buoyancy forces should be included in modelling the flow and heat transfer in the coolant channel, especially in case of high temperature and high vapour content in the gas mixtures.
[Fig. 6](#f0030){ref-type="fig"}(a-f) show the comparison of the heat flux between the CFD simulation results and the estimated results from Kuhn [@b0030] for the runs listed in [Table 1](#t0005){ref-type="table"}. Kuhn [@b0030] estimated the heat flux using the bulk temperature of the coolant which was in turn estimated using the measured wall temperature of the condenser tube, the wall temperature of the adiabatic wall and the F factor. Kuhn [@b0030] calculated the F factor using the *k*--*ε* turbulence model for the flow and heat transfer in the coolant channel. The heat flux from the CFD simulation was calculated using Eq. [(19)](#e0135){ref-type="disp-formula"} and was used as an input boundary condition for CFD simulations of the heat transfer in the condenser tube and coolant jacket. [Fig. 6](#f0030){ref-type="fig"}(a-f) show that, although the estimated heat fluxes from the wall temperatures are in the same order of magnitude as those from the CFD simulation results, the trend of the heat fluxes variation with *x* estimated from Kuhn [@b0030] is quite different from that of the CFD simulation results. In [Fig. 6](#f0030){ref-type="fig"}(a-f), we also show the 3rd order polynomial curve fitting to the estimated heat fluxes from Kuhn [@b0030] and the curve fitting relationships. It is clear from the curve fittings that the heat fluxes given by Kuhn [@b0030] fit the 3rd order polynomial curves perfectly. On the other hand, the heat fluxes predicted by the CFD simulations show a much more complex variation with *x* and a simple 3rd order polynomial curve fitting is inadequate to represent the heat flux for the vapour condensation in the presence of non-condensable gases.
The heat flux from the CFD simulations as given in [Fig. 6](#f0030){ref-type="fig"}(a-f) shows that near the inlet of the gas mixture, the heat flux decreases sharply. This is due to the entrance or developing length effect of the gas mixture flow. The inlet velocity and mass fraction of the water vapour were specified as constants. Different profiles of inlet velocity and mass fraction of water vapour can be used to examine their effects on the heat flux near *x* = 0. The CFD simulation results show that after the initial sharp drop and over much the length of the condenser tube, the heat flux remains fairly constant. This is consistent with the results of centreline temperature as that shown in [Fig. 3](#f0015){ref-type="fig"}(a-f) where the decrease in centreline temperature of the gas mixture is not large. [Fig. 6](#f0030){ref-type="fig"}(a-f) also show that near the inlet of the coolant, there is a slight increase in the heat flux as *x* increases. This could be due to the entrance effect of the coolant.
The condensation rates as given in Kuhn [@b0030] are not compared with the CFD simulation results since the condensate rates given in Kuhn [@b0030] were derived from the heat flux and it is expected that the results would have the same errors as that of the heat flux.
[Fig. 7](#f0035){ref-type="fig"} shows the gas mixture density variation across the condenser tube at the inlet and exit for the experimental conditions of Kuhn [@b0030] 2.1--2. At the inlet, the density as an input is constant, but at the condenser exit, [Fig. 6](#f0030){ref-type="fig"} shows that the density of the gas mixture increases as the condenser wall is approached. This increase in density is due to the decrease of temperature and an increase in the mass fraction of air. [Fig. 6](#f0030){ref-type="fig"} also shows that the average gas mixture density across the tube increases from inlet to exit, again due to both a decrease in average temperature and average mass fraction of water vapour.
[Fig. 8](#f0040){ref-type="fig"} shows the axial velocity of the gas mixture at the inlet and exit for the experimental conditions of Kuhn [@b0030] 2.1--2. The inlet velocity of the gas mixture, as an input, is constant across the condenser tube. The axial velocity at the exit shows an almost uniform profile over much of the radius of the tube. The axial velocity at the exit is not zero at the inner surface of the condenser tube. The non-zero velocity at the wall is from the boundary condition for the axial velocity of gas mixture, which was specified using Eq. [(15)](#e0120){ref-type="disp-formula"}, the surface velocity of the condensate film.
[Fig. 9](#f0045){ref-type="fig"} shows the axial velocity of the gas mixture at the centreline of the condenser tube and that of the condensate at the surface of the condensate film for the experimental conditions of Kuhn [@b0030] 2.1--2. [Fig. 9](#f0045){ref-type="fig"} shows that the axial velocity of the gas mixture at the centreline of the condenser tube decreases rapidly while the axial velocity of the condensate at the interface increase. At the exit of the condenser tube, the velocity of the condensate at the surface of the condensate film is not negligible in comparison with the velocity of the gas mixture. Because of this, it is not appropriate to use stationary wall as velocity boundary condition for the gas mixture.
[Fig. 10](#f0050){ref-type="fig"} shows the variation of the mass fraction of water vapour at the centre of the condenser and that at the interface between the gas mixture and the condensate film. [Fig. 10](#f0050){ref-type="fig"} shows that even through the decrease in the mass fraction of the water vapour is slow at the centre of the condenser tube, the decrease is much faster at the interface. Because of the very high inlet mass fraction (*Y~v~* = 0.98) of the water vapour for run 2.1--2 [@b0030], there is still a quit high average mass fraction of the water vapour at the exit of the condenser tube. As shown in the experimental conditions listed in [Table 1](#t0005){ref-type="table"}, Kuhn [@b0030] increased the mass flow rate of the coolant as the inlet mass fraction of the water vapour was increased. The results in [Fig. 10](#f0050){ref-type="fig"} show that even higher mass flow rate than that listed in [Table 1](#t0005){ref-type="table"} is required to condense nearly all the water vapour in the condenser for run 2.1--2. This also shows that at the high mass fraction of water vapour and high mass flow rate of the gas mixture, the heat transfer in the coolant may be the limiting factor in the condensation of the water vapour.
5. Discussion and conclusions {#s0060}
=============================
The condensation of water vapour in the presence of non-condensable gas in a vertical cylindrical tube condenser has been studied using CFD simulation. The CFD simulation for the first time successfully includes the heat and mass transfer in the gas mixture and the heat transfer in the coolant flowing in the annulus channel. Because of this, no assumptions have been made of the wall temperature, heat flux or heat transfer coefficient at the condenser tube wall. Instead, these quantities can be predicted from the CFD simulation.
The CFD simulations of the flow inside the tube condenser of gas mixture were carried out on the gas mixture only. The volume occupied by the condensate film has been neglected. The effect of the condensate film on the gas mixture flow is accounted for through a set of new boundary conditions including the sources for the mass, momentum and energy, a slip boundary condition for the axial velocity and a revised wall temperature taking into account the film thickness. The condensate film thickness is estimated using the Nusselt method by assuming that the shear stresses of both the gas mixture and the condensate match each other at the interface between the gas mixture and the condensate film. The axial velocity of the gas mixture is assumed to match that of the condensate at the interface.
The CFD simulations were conducted using the ANSYS FLUENT®. To overcome the limitations of the FLUENT® in simulating the heat transfer in two separate channels involving multispecies and fluids of different phases, the CFD simulations were carried out asynchronously and iteratively. It is found that this strategy works well. During the CFD simulations, the gas mixture was considered as an ideal gas with thermal properties varying with temperature. The buoyancy forces due to the temperature and mass fraction variations in the gas mixture were taken into account without using the linear approximation while that in the coolant channel was taken into account using the Boussenisq approximation.
The CFD simulation results have been compared with the experimental results of Kuhn [@b0030] for the gas mixture of air and water vapour with inlet mass fractions of water vapour varying from 0.66 to 0.98. The condensation of water vapour for such high vapour content has been considered difficult to predicted using CFD in the past. It is found that the CFD simulation results in general agree well with the measured quantities of Kuhn [@b0030] such as the adiabatic wall temperature, the centreline temperature of the gas mixture and the wall temperature of the condenser tube wall. The simulation results show that for the condensation of high mass fraction of water vapour in the presence of non-condensable gas, the heat transfer in the coolant channel is the limiting factor. The heat flux from the CFD simulations have also been compared with the results from Kuhn [@b0030] who derived these by making several approximations. It is found that the heat flux given in Kuhn [@b0030] can be correlated using a third order curve fitting while the CFD simulation results show a much more complex variation as the vapour is condensed.
The CFD simulation results for the density of the gas mixture, axial velocity and mass fraction of the water vapour across the inlet, outlet and along the condenser tube are presented for the run 2.1--2 of Kuhn [@b0030]. The results are all in agreement with expectations. The results clearly show that the average axial velocity decreases rapidly as water vapour is condensed, the density of the gas mixture increases across the condenser tube and along the condenser and the axial velocity of the gas mixture at the interface between the gas mixture and the condensate film is not small. It is expected that for lower Reynolds numbers of gas mixture at the inlet or long enough condenser tube with high mass flow rate of coolant, the axial velocity of the gas mixture at the interface can be higher than the average axial velocity of the gas mixture.
{#f0005}
![Comparison of adiabatic wall temperature between the CFD simulation results and the experimental results of Kuhn [@b0030] for the runs listed in [Table 1](#t0005){ref-type="table"}.](gr2){#f0010}
![Comparison of centreline temperature between the CFD simulation results and the experimental results of Kuhn [@b0030] for the runs listed in [Table 1](#t0005){ref-type="table"}.](gr3){#f0015}
![Comparison of condenser wall temperature between the CFD simulation results and the experimental results of Kuhn [@b0030] for the runs listed in [Table 1](#t0005){ref-type="table"}.](gr4){#f0020}
![The temperature profile of the coolant at the exit for the experimental conditions of Kuhn 2.1--2 [@b0030].](gr5){#f0025}
![Comparison of heat flux between the CFD simulation results and the derived results from Kuhn [@b0030] for the runs listed in [Table 1](#t0005){ref-type="table"}.](gr6){#f0030}
![Density of gas mixture at the inlet and exit of the condenser tube for the experimental conditions of Kuhn [@b0030] 2.1--2.](gr7){#f0035}
![Axial velocity of gas mixture at the inlet and exit of the condenser tube for the experimental conditions of Kuhn [@b0030] 2.1--2.](gr8){#f0040}
![Axial velocity of gas mixture at the centreline of the condenser tube and that of condensate at the condensate film surface for the experimental conditions of Kuhn [@b0030] 2.1--2.](gr9){#f0045}
![Mass fraction of water vapour at the centreline of the condenser tube and the interface between the gas mixture and condensate film for the experimental conditions of Kuhn [@b0030] 2.1--2.](gr10){#f0050}
######
Experimental conditions from Kuhn [@b0030].
*P (kPa)* *T~in~* (°C) *W~in~* ${\overset{˙}{m}}_{\mathit{av}}$ (kg/s) ${\overset{˙}{m}}_{c}$ (kg/s) *T~c,i~* (°C)
-------------- ----------- -------------- --------- ----------------------------------------- ------------------------------- ---------------
Run 2.1--2 415.3 147.7 0.98 0.01434 0.3521 31.3
Run 2.1--4 390.5 144.8 0.96 0.01464 0.3419 31.0
Run 2.1--6 391.2 142.5 0.92 0.01521 0.3008 30.0
Run 2.1--8R 413.1 144.8 0.85 0.01669 0.2570 27.5
Run 2.1--10R 406.6 140.6 0.76 0.01865 0.2420 26.5
Run 2.1--12R 410.1 135.5 0.66 0.02166 0.2128 25.1
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Q:
Why do My shortcut icons change to a robot?
I have a rooted Vodafone VF685, running Kitkat 4.4.2 with ADW Launcher. I'm having trouble with my shortcut icons. They keep changing at random to the green Android robot. The apps still launch when I tap the robot, but it's annoying.
Can anyone help please?
A:
For me this worked: deleting the shortcut and adding another back onto the homescreen. :)
A:
Solved the problem. I opened ES Task Manager again, killed all apps and cleared the cache. Icons back to normal. I found the idea here: lcons Broken
Thank you Rahul for assisting.
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Tuesday, November 20, 2012
Hard Drive Recovery
Popular Mechanics has some good news and some bad news about data recovery from a crashed hard drive. First, they recommend that you determine if it is an actual hard-drive failure or some other problem that causes boot failure. They recommend that " If you have access to another computer, remove the failed hard drive from your sick PC, and hook it up as a secondary drive to the alternate computer. The easiest way to do this is through a USB universal drive adapter—it costs about $30 and is a good device to have around for all sorts of hard-drive diagnostics." If you can access your files, great (although you will have to move the data off the drive in order to safely reinstall your operating system).
The authors then explain:
If your files don't show up on the secondary computer, then you are at one of those pivotal moments in life when you find out how much your hard work and treasured memories are really worth to you. Depending on how your drive is damaged, an attempt to salvage your data can cost anywhere from a hundred dollars to several thousand. What's more, the process can take days—and there is no guarantee that the money and time you invest will produce any results whatsoever.
There are two ways that drives crash: Logical failure and mechanical failure. In a logical failure, the drive's components are physically undamaged, but because of either accidental formatting or a corrupt file system, the drive is not able to find and navigate its own data. However, unless it has been overwritten, that data still exists on your drive.
A mechanical failure means that your drive has broken parts that are preventing it from working—busted drives often make a telltale clicking sound as they futilely attempt to access their files. If you hear that, your data may still be there, but you're not getting it back without calling in the experts (see "Worst-Case Scenario," next page). And those experts make good money. . . . But if you are just dealing with a logical failure, you can get your files back on your own for far less.
We recently attempted a data recovery from the crashed drive of a Popular Mechanics colleague whose 120 GB MacBook drive had spontaneously given up the ghost. We removed the drive from her laptop, then used our USB drive adapter to hook it up to a desktop computer for diagnosis. We didn't hear any sounds that indicated a truly dead drive, so our first step was to download the free demo diagnostic tool at Prosoft Engineering to check what might be salvageable. Many companies offer demos that will scan your drive and give you a pretty good idea of what's recoverable before you lay down money to buy their software.
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Back in August, we alerted you to the PlayStation Plus-exclusive Assassin's Creed Revelations beta which is now live on PlayStation Network. But today, Sony revealed that the beta will now be open for all PlayStation Network users beginning tomorrow, September 8th.
The PlayStation Blog reported that starting at 10am PT, everyone can download the beta from the PlayStation Store and get in on the action. The beta only runs until Sunday, September 11th, however, so if you want to start playing, you better do so as soon as you can!
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September 18, 1960 Groundbreaking for the present location took place.
August 27, 1961 the cornerstone was laid.
October 15, 1961 the first worship service in the new location.
November 19, 1961 dedication took place.
Rev. mart pastored the Church from April, 1959 to February, 1969. The church was subsequently pastored by Rev. Clifford Davis from July, 1969 to July, 1972; Rev. J. Randolph Elliott from November 1972 to March 1980; and Rev. Joseph Yundt from April, 1981 to March, 2015.
On October 7, 2015, Parkway extended the call to Rev. Dr. Le’ Roi L. Gill, our fifth and present pastor. Under his leadership we celebrate our glorious past and a new vision for the future.
The church within the churchIs one that cannot fail-A body of true believers, Alive and functioning well. The family of the Living God Is united in every way, Living a life of worship and praise, Serving the Lord each day. Oh, what a blessed fruit bestowed Upon each believers heart, When brought into God’s Family To be an active part. Such a precious union in the Father Who gave His only Son, To establish His body of believers- A family United as One.
— Connie Campbell Bratcher
“To be a ‘beacon on the boulevard’ that shines bright light and brings a new spirit to Willingboro and the surrounding communities.”
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Fears Rosemount site will remain vacant
A resident of Denman in the New South Wales Hunter Valley is concerned Muswellbrook Council's decision to reject Orica's plans for the old Rosemount Winery site might set a precedent for future proposals in the area.
Councillors unanimously rejected the development application for the ammonium nitrate storage facility on Tuesday night.
One of the reasons given was that Rosemount Road is not of a suitable standard to handle an increase in heavy vehicle traffic.
While business owner Steve Carter is relieved Orica's plans will not be going ahead, he fears the old winery will remain unused.
"The council rejected this proposal, largely on the state of the Rosemount Road," he said.
"I have a feeling that if there's a more suitable development planned for that site, better for jobs and whatever, that it may also end in the same fate that Orica did."
The site once featured Rosemount's wine production facility and cellar door and was one of the most visited wineries in the Hunter Valley.
Moscow's words and actions — including the alleged poisoning of a former spy — are not the results of random aggression but rather fall into distinct patterns that can help us anticipate Russia's next moves under Vladimir Putin.
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3 Tranquil Place ASHBURTON, Ashburton District 7700
Sold By
Ray White Ashburton
EXECUTIVE CONISTON RESIDENCE
4 Beds
2 Baths
A superbly designed tasteful and luxurious north facing home in an exceptional location providing sun shine , privacy and the most amazing rural feel.
Quality features throughout from entertainers kitchen, huge walk in pantry, amazing outdoor living area, in the very smart easy care landscaped grounds accessible from the 2 living areas plus master bedroom.
Four bedrooms, two bathrooms, two living areas, large office and five car garaging.
The list just keeps growing so call for your appointment to view to appreciate.
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Afterload reduction with vasodilators and diuretics decreases mitral regurgitation during upright exercise in advanced heart failure.
In advanced heart failure, mitral regurgitation increases the burden of the failing ventricle and decreases effective stroke volume. Although tailored afterload reduction decreases mitral regurgitation at rest, it is not known if this benefit is maintained during upright exercise. Simultaneous radionuclide ventriculography and thermodilution stroke volumes were compared to measure the forward ejection fraction in 10 patients during upright bicycle exercise before and after therapy with vasodilators and diuretics tailored to decrease pulmonary capillary wedge pressure and systemic vascular resistance. Ventricular volumes, total ejection fraction and the forward ejection fraction did not change during exercise at baseline. At rest, tailored therapy decreased average pulmonary capillary wedge pressure from 36 to 19 mm Hg (p less than 0.01), systemic vascular resistance from 1,570 to 1,210 dynes.s.cm-5 (p less than 0.05), and left ventricular volume index from 251 to 177 ml/m2 (p less than 0.01), while increasing the forward ejection fraction from 0.53 to 0.85 (p less than 0.01) without change in total ejection fraction (0.18 from 0.17). During steady state exercise at low work load, tailored therapy decreased left ventricular volume index from 279 to 213 (p less than 0.05) and increased forward ejection fraction from 0.52 to 0.79 (p less than 0.01) without change in total ejection fraction (0.20 from 0.19). The total stroke volume during exercise was not increased after therapy; the increase in forward stroke volume after therapy appeared to result instead from the decrease in mitral regurgitant flow. The benefits of tailored afterload reduction are maintained throughout upright exercise.
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Correlation between tear osmolarity and tear meniscus.
To examine the relationship between tear meniscus height (TMH) and subjective meniscus grading (subjective tear meniscus [TM]) with tear osmolarity. Tear osmolarity measurements (using TearLab) and digital images of the TM were obtained in 177 consecutive patients undergoing an eye examination at our optometry clinic (Universidad de Santiago de Compostela, Spain) who fulfilled the study's inclusion criteria. Participants were also administered the McMonnies and Ocular Surface Disease Index questionnaires for the detection of dry eye disease. The lower TM was videotaped by a digital camera attached to a slit lamp in its central portion without fluorescein instillation. After the study, a masked observer extracted an image from each video and measured the TMH using open source software (NIH ImageJ). Subsequently, the masked observer subjectively graded the appearance of each meniscus. For statistical analysis, subjects were stratified by age and by dry eye symptoms as indicated by their scores in the two questionnaires. In the whole study population, a significant relationship was observed between osmolarity and TMH (r = -0.41, p < 0.001) and osmolarity and subjective TM (r = 0.35, p < 0.001). A cluster analysis revealed similar correlations when subjects were stratified by age or dry eye symptoms, these correlations being more pronounced in older and more symptomatic subjects. Objective TMH measurements and subjective meniscus quality were also correlated (r = -0.75, p < 0.001). Osmolarity and both objective TMH measurements and subjective interpretation of the meniscus showed high correlation, especially in older symptomatic subjects.
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Aussie Mega Millions fans: Get A Whiff Of $221 Million!
It’s been two months since the Mega Millions jackpot was hit, but this could change on Friday! Will you pocket the $221 millions main prize? Seize the opportunity now!
The Mega Millions is rapidly moving into record-setting territory! The current jackpot prize pool is standing at a staggering $221 million – this is only the 9th time in 5 years that it has grown so huge. On Tuesday, 6 January, no jackpot winners were declared, resulting in another jackpot rollover – to an incredible $221 million!
There was a lucky winner from Minnesota who matched the first five numbers to become an overnight millionaire, but the Mega Ball number proved elusive. Players across Australia were glued to their screens when the following numbers were called out: 12-20-27-38-75 & Mega Ball 4. Luckily, this fabulous lottery plays bi-weekly on Tuesday and Friday nights. There is still time to cash in on this whopping lottery prize drawing slated for Friday, 9 January at 11 PM ET. But don’t wait too long! Push those PLAY buttons on the site and get your Mega Millions lottery tickets!
Features of the Mega Millions Jackpot Lottery
Matching all six numbers – the 5 white numbers and the yellow Mega Ball number will award you a $221 million jackpot. It’s worth $144 million if you opt for the one time cash option. When you buy a ticket, you’re in it to win it – there is no other way to claim the spoils of victory. Luckily, you can get your tickets right here for Friday’s drawing. Five white balls are drawn from a set of numbers from 1-75, the yellow Mega Ball number is drawn from a set of numbers ranging from 1-15. Tuesday’s drawing awarded payouts to over 2.4 million players, with prizes ranging from $3 all the way up to $1 million. With so much to win, there is no better reason for players down under to end up on top with the winning ticket on Friday 9th January at 11PM, ET! Happy jackpot hunting!
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Zippers have a long and rich history, from their invention over 150 years ago, to the latest shapes, configurations and materials, where development continues today. The market for these fasteners has developed so that zippers are commonly sold in sets: left and right tapes with interlocking teeth, and one or more sliders accurately sized and constructed of compatible materials to assure an acceptably long life of the set. However, between the wide range of sizes, shapes, configurations and colors, and the typically lengthy service life of a zipper, it is often difficult or impossible to find suitable replacement parts for a broken zipper—more often, one must disassemble the garment or item and replace all the parts of the broken zipper when any part fails. This is inconvenient, and the repair cost often exceeds the value of the remaining service life of the item.
What is needed is a universal, or one-size-fits-many, replacement zipper slider. This could extend the useful life of many items with zippers, and when the item finally fails from some other cause, the replacement slider can be recovered and used to repair something else. Some replacement sliders are known (see, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 7,313,847, co-invented by the present applicant) but new designs that improve the function or manufacturability of these repair devices may be of value in this field.
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When Mary Kay Letourneau was caught having sex with her sixth-grade student in 1996, America was shocked. Now, reports of female teachers sexually abusing the young boys in their charge seem almost routine.
According to the Akron Beacon Journal, at least five female educators in the Greater Akron area have faced charges of sexual misconduct with students in the past two year alone. Reporter Amanda Garrett decided to look into what’s going on.
She found that Akron is part of a national trend, which experts said is taking a growing toll on young boys.
A 2017 study published by the U.S. Justice Department revealed that most sexual abuse of students by employees of K-12 schools is committed by men. However, the percentage of female educators charged with such crimes is rising, the researchers found.
Psychologist Anna Salter, an expert on sexual predators, said these women are typically married moms in their mid-30s.
“They think they love the children,” she told the Journal.
Charol Shakeshaft, an education professor at Virginia Commonwealth University, said there is a name for these women: “opportunistic abusers.”
They are often the popular teachers, Shakeshaft explained in a 2013 study. They “tend to spend a lot of time around groups of students, talking with them, going to the same places they go, and trying to blend in. They are the teachers who want to be seen as hip or cool and who want the students to think they are part of the student peer group,” she said.
Garrett noted that Ohio teacher Tiffany Eichler seemed to fit the profile.
Eichler, 36-year-old married mother of four, was sentenced to 30 days in jail last June after admitting to having sexual relationships with three teenage male students. According to court documents, she flirted with the boys on social media before making her move.
The evidence against Eichler included an audio recording one of the students made of them gushing about the sex that had just had in the back of her SUV.
A double-standard for teacher sex?
Amid growing awareness of male sexual sexual misconduct and harassment of women, aka “toxic masculinity,” there are signs that female abusers are getting a relative pass.
A 2011 study published in the Journal of Social Psychology tested the theory that “male teachers are judged more harshly than female teachers for engaging in heterosexual intercourse with a student. According to the researchers, “a reverse sexual double standard was revealed, in which participants judged situations involving male teachers more harshly than they judged situations involving female teachers, but only when the sexual contact was teacher-initiated.”
Writing for Salon in June 2008 about the phenomenon of female teachers having sex with their students, journalist Carol Lloyd suggested that “the power imbalance between men and women may influence the way society regards statutory rapists.”
But contrary to the stereotypes of women as harmless nurturers – and teen boys as sexually insatiable – experts have said that female teachers do just as much harm to the boys they prey on as their male counterparts do to girls.
Such misconceptions can leave boys and men vulnerable, Sandy Parker, director of the Rape Crisis Center of Summit and Medina Counties, told Garrett. Male victims may be less likely to report sex crimes, Parker said, and even when they do, the justice system doesn’t take them seriously.
In one telling case last year, 18-year-old Corbin Madison was found dead of a self-inflicted gunshot after being molested by a married teacher who was convicted of having sex with four underage boys.
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You are here: Home » National » Delhi not on top in crime against women: Minister
Delhi not on top in crime against women: Minister
New Delhi, Feb 27, 2013, (IANS)
Even as Delhi has become known as the "rape capital of India", the home ministry Wednesday said the impression is not quite true -- there are other cities where the situation is even worse.
"The situation in Delhi in not as bad as portrayed. In the country, Delhi comes 16th or 17th in cases of crime against women. Even internationally, the situation is not so bad," Minister of State for Home Affairs M. Ramachandran told the Rajya Sabha.
Asked about the 64 cases of sexual violence registered in Delhi since the gruesome Dec 16 gang-rape case, the minister said the increase in the number of cases reported was also because women had now gained greater confidence, and were approaching the police in larger numbers.
"Women are confident to go to a police station and file a report. That is why there is a rise in cases registered," Ramachandran said.
The gang-rape of a 23-year-old woman in Delhi, who subsequently died in a Singapore hospital, unleashed mass protests in the capital and across the country. Protestors demanded stringent anti-rape laws and greater security for women.
The minister said action is being taken against police officers who do not register rape cases -- such action has already been initiated against many police officers, he said.Asked about the safety of women from the north eastern states, the minister said the government was taking all "necessary" steps.
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Secrets Of Adoption: What To Know Before You Adopt A Child Home
Once upon a time, families always matched. A walk down the street would yield the sight of husbands and wives hand in hand with their children, whose hair and eye color mimicked their own. If any of those children were adopted, that fact was carefully hidden from view and rarely was anyone the wiser. In today’s more enlightened, modern world, all it takes is a simple trip to the grocery store to see what was once considered to be an oddity; families composed of multiple colors and sizes arguing over which cereal to buy and same-sexed parents wheeling baby strollers through the produce aisle, discussing which veggies would make the best baby food.
Many of these families will have been forged through adoption. It’s no secret that love makes a family, but adoption, once kept very secret, is now an out-in-the-open choice for many people who simply wish to love their children and be looked upon in the same way as every other family. Adoption, however, does bring with it some unique challenges. While it may be true that love conquers all, the complexities surrounding adoption are as varied as the families created in this way. Several adoption experts weigh in on the challenges adoptive families face and how to handle them.
Become an Educator to Your Child
“If our adopted children don’t look like us, our status as an adoptive family is made public. This can happen if you have adopted internationally or transracially,” says Westchester-based adoption counselor Carolyn Berger, LCSW. “Then, we have to field questions about how our family came to be. The challenge here lies in tailoring your answer so as to not to reveal your child’s story, which is private and theirs alone to tell. Short answers carry the day, such as, ‘Anna came from China.’ Period. Strangers sometimes fish for more information and telling them this is private often works. The most inappropriate question of all is, ‘How much did your child cost?’ You can answer this with a blank stare or opt to educate the questioner by saying the costs of adoption are for medical, legal and agency fees only,” she adds.
According to Friends in Adoption agency founder Dawn Smith-Pliner, many of the challenges associated with adoption can be addressed by supplying children with tool boxes, put together by their family, so when the need arises they can choose how to respond. “Most days, families created through adoption are like any other family with the ups, downs, joys and challenges of daily life. But on occasion, being adopted makes you feel different. Your family tree most often does not reflect your biological family but rather, your adopted family. Your birth certificate lists your parents as the ones who adopted you. Your skin color may not be the same as your two moms.
Some of the differences are not visibly noticeable, but others are.” Pliner, herself an adoptive parent, has been entrenched in the world of adoption for over 20 years and was adept in creating a tool box for her own, now-grown children. “Questions like, ‘You don’t live with your real mom and dad’ can be addressed by saying, ‘You’re right, I live with my two moms and visit my birth mom every year on my birthday,’ or ‘Yes, I do live with my real mom and dad and my birth parents live in another state.’” Smith-Pliner also suggests the ever popular and perfectly acceptable ‘I don’t want to answer your question, it’s none of your business,’ if that is what’s most comfortable for the child to use as a response.
When working with your child to discuss how these types of situations should be handled, make sure to do so in age-appropriate language they can grasp and understand. A five-year-old will need different tools than a 17-year-old. It is also in your child’s best interest to start hearing and becoming used to proactive language about adoption at an early age, even beginning in infancy if you adopt a newborn. For children adopted from other countries or of different ethnic backgrounds, make sure information about their culture becomes part of their tool box as well.
Become an Educator to the World
Other misconceptions often need to be tackled by those adopting, who are sometimes viewed as being rescuers rather than parents. Berger, also an adoptive mom, is used to this. “People often carry around a stereotype regarding birth mothers and their inability to take care of their own children because they are too young or too poor,” she says. “You can be an educator in this case, letting people know birth mothers come from all kinds of lifestyles and have all kinds of histories.” Smith-Pliner agrees, “Once when I was in the grocery store, a woman applauded my bravery in adopting a poor, little orphan girl. I gently let her know my daughter was not an orphan, rather, she had both birth parents and adoptive parents who loved her to the ends of the world and back. The woman smiled, handed me five dollars and walked away!”
When others judge birth parents, celebrate adoptive parents or view them as ‘not real’ and treat children who were adopted as ‘different’ or the ‘other’ out of ignorance or a simple lack of understanding, it places undue pressure on regular people who just want to live out their lives like everyone else,” says adoption case manager Nan Pasquarello, who explains that adoptive parents are adopting to fulfill their own desire to parent, not to do a good deed. Understanding this, Smith-Pliner and Berger caution adoptive parents to be aware they will often find themselves filling the role of educators to the world and as such, should remember to always be aware of how they are responding to comments from others, particularly if their children are listening. Children will look to these conversations for validation about themselves and also as examples for how to handle these situations on their own.
Explaining Adoption as a Reproductive Choice
Sometimes, adoption will be considered as a family-building option after infertility treatment has failed or, for LGBT individuals, in lieu of using a sperm or egg donor and surrogate. A common myth that simply refuses to die is that once you adopt, you will easily become pregnant, as if your infertility was manifested in your head instead of in your body. “Statistics do not bear this out and you can tell people so,” explains Berger.
As far as we have come as a society, many of the myths surrounding adoption persist. Many of the misconceptions people have about this family-building choice can be addressed or even eradicated with accurate information about adoption and most poignantly, by example. Love is what makes a family, no matter how they find their way to each other and no matter what their gender or color happens to be.
Corey Whelan is a freelance writer in New York. Her work can be found at Examiner.com.
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MPs have been criticised after only a handful turned up for a debate on the growing humanitarian crisis in Yemen.
The emergency debate was called by Tory MP Andrew Mitchell, the former International Development Secretary, who used it to raise concerns about the “almighty catastrophe of biblical proportions” that he said was unfolding in the country.
However, he was joined in the House of Commons by only around 30 of Parliament’s 650 MPs.
Social media users voiced criticism when a picture of the near-empty chamber was posted online.
“Absolutely sickening” wrote one.
“It shows that it’s not a priority”, said another.
During the debate, Mr Mitchell told MPs: “There is rapidly rising concern in Britain about what is happening in Yemen and the part that Britain is playing in this crisis. There is deep concern that an almighty catastrophe of biblical proportions is unfolding in Yemen before our eyes, and a considerable fear that Britain is dangerously complicit in it.”
He said Saudi authorities were preventing aid shipments of food and medicine from entering Yemen.
“At least seven whole cities have run out of clean water and sanitation and aid agencies are unable to get food to starving families”, he said. “The destruction of clean water and sanitation facilities is directly responsible for the outbreak earlier this year of cholera affecting nearly one million people.
“Yemen is a country ravaged by medieval diseases and on the precipice of famine. With rapidly dwindling food and fuel stocks and the dire humanitarian situation pushing at least seven million people into famine, it is now vital that there is unimpeded access for both humanitarian and commercial cargo.”
The situation in Yemen Show all 14 1 /14 The situation in Yemen The situation in Yemen Houthi supporters trample on a US flag during a gathering mobilizing more fighters into several Yemeni battlefronts, in Sana'a, Yemen EPA The situation in Yemen People carry the coffins of men, who were killed in the recent Saudi-led airstrikes during their funeral, in the Old City of Sanaa, Yemen AP The situation in Yemen Pro-government fighters give food to Yemeni children on the road leading to the southwestern port city of Mokha. Yemeni rebels are putting up fierce resistance in a key Red Sea port city where they are encircled by pro-government force Getty Images The situation in Yemen A Yemeni stands in front of a graffiti protesting US military operations in war-affected Yemen, in Sana'a, Yemen. According to reports, US Special Forces troops allegedly disembarked from US helicopters in the Yemeni town of Yakla and attacked several houses belonging to members of the terrorist group Al-Qaeda, killing three high-ranking Al-Qaeda members and nine civilians, six women and three children. One American serviceman has been killed and three injured in the attack EPA The situation in Yemen US Special Forces troops allegedly disembarked from US helicopters in the Yemeni town of Yakla and attacked several houses belonging to members of the terrorist group Al-Qaeda, killing three high-ranking Al-Qaeda members and nine civilians, six women and three children. One American serviceman has been killed and three injured in the attack EPA The situation in Yemen A Yemeni female fighter supporting the Shiite Huthi rebels, and carrying weapons used for ceremonial purposes, takes part in an anti-Saudi rally in the capital Sanaa Getty Images The situation in Yemen Yemeni female fighters supporting the Shiite Huthi rebels, and carrying weapons used for ceremonial purposes, take part in an anti-Saudi rally in the capital Sanaa Getty Images The situation in Yemen A boy shouts slogans next to pro-Houthi fighters, who have been injured during recent fighting, during a rally held to honour those injured or maimed while fighting in Houthi ranks in Sanaa, Yemen Reuters The situation in Yemen Balls of fire and smoke rise from a Houthi-held military camp following alleged Saudi-led airstrikes, in Sana'a, Yemen EPA The situation in Yemen Yemenis search under the rubble of damaged houses following reported Saudi-led coalition air strikes on the outskirts of the Yemeni capital Sanaa Getty Images The situation in Yemen A Yemeni boy looks on as Yemenis search under the rubble of damaged houses following reported Saudi-led coalition air strikes on the outskirts of the Yemeni capital Sanaa Getty The situation in Yemen A Yemeni boy sits amidst the rubble of damaged houses following reported Saudi-led coalition air strikes on the outskirts of the Yemeni capital Sanaa AFP/Getty The situation in Yemen Marine One with US President Donald Trump flies with a decoy and support helicopters to Dover Air Force Base in Dover, Delaware, for the dignified transfer of Navy Seal Chief Petty Officer William 'Ryan' Owens who was killed in Yemen Getty Images The situation in Yemen US President Donald Trump aboard the Marine One to greet the remains of a US military commando killed during a raid on the al Qaeda militant group in southern Yemen on Sunday, at Dover Air Force Base, Delaware, US Reuters
Almost 9,000 people have been killed in Yemen and 49,000 injured since March 2015. Twenty-one million people - three quarters of the population - are in need of humanitarian assistance.
Mr Mitchell told The Independent he understood that many MPs had constituency commitments on the day of the debate, and that a number had written to him to apologise for not being able to attend.
The fact that the Speaker, John Bercow, took the unusual step of granting an emergency debate on the issue “underlines the seriousness of the situation”, he said.
The former International Development Secretary said MPs of all parties were “very, very worried indeed” about what he called “the greatest looming catastrophe in the world” in Yemen.
Among those present during the debate were Emily Thornberry, the Shadow Foreign Secretary, and her predecessor, Hillary Benn.
Ms Thornberry noted the poor attendance in her speech, saying: “It is regrettable in many ways that the House is not packed today. On too many occasions the war in Yemen has been described as a forgotten war, and indeed it is.”
Describing the situation in Yemen as “the world’s biggest humanitarian crisis”, Ms Thornberry said the UK was partly to blame for the disaster and called on the Government to clamp down on arms sales to Saudi Arabia, which is bombing Yemen.
Responding, Foreign Office minister Alistair Burt said UK officials are in Saudi Arabia monitoring air strikes to ensure that UK-made weapons are used appropriately.
He said: “We have a rigorous legal and parliamentary process, and ensuring that international humanitarian law is not breached is clearly a vital part of that. The information supplied by those liaison officers is crucial to ensuring that our international obligations are observed. That is why they are there.”
Last week, Saudi Arabia ended a blockade on areas controlled by Houthi rebels and allowed some aid to resume. Riyadh leads an Arab coalition in the civil war, fighting on behalf of Yemen’s exiled government.
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Wilton Castle (Redcar and Cleveland)
Not to be confused with Wilton Castle, Herefordshire.
Wilton Castle is an early 19th-century mansion, built on the site of a medieval castle, now converted into luxury residential apartments, situated at Wilton, in Redcar and Cleveland, North Yorkshire, England.
It is a Grade II listed building.
History
At the time of the Doomsday Book the estate is recorded as held by Nigel on behalf of Robert Earl of Morton.
John de Bulmer and the Bulmer family became lords of the manor of Wilton
but it isn't until towards the end of the 11th century when the Bulmer family are recorded as building a wooden manor house on the land.
In 1170 Sir Ralph de Bulmer received a royal charter confirming his ownership of the estate.
King John granted William de Bulmer a licence to fortify their manor house in the year 1210.
This would mean building in stone and marks the beginnings of the original castle as a fortified residence.
In 1330 a Sir Ralph de Bulmer obtained a charter of his desmesne from King Edward III acknowledging his ownership of the estate.
Sir Ralph carried out further alterations to the building and obtained a licence to crenellate from King Edward III allowing him to make the manor house into a castle.
All estates including Wilton estate were forfeit to the crown following the attainder and execution of Sir John and Lady Bulmer on 25 May 1537, for high treason under the 1534 Act of Supremacy, arising out of their part in the Pilgrimage of Grace, in protest against King Henry VIII's break with the Roman Catholic Church.
The manor was later restored to their nephew, Sir Ralph de Bulmer (d. 1558) by King Edward VI in 1547.
In 1558 Queen Mary I granted the estate to Sir Thomas Cornwallis and the estate passed via his son and grandson to his great-grandson Lord Charles Cornwallis in 1698.
Lord Cornwallis sold the estate in the early 1700s to Sir Stephen Fox.
Sir Stephen's son by his second marriage was created Earl of Ilchester in 1747 and sold the estate the next year.
The estate was purchased by the trustees of the will of a Robert Lowther for the benefit of (Sir) James Lowther (1736–1802), member of Parliament (1757–1784).
Sir James Lowther became the first Earl of Lonsdale in 1784 and with his death in 1802 the Earldom of Lonsdale became extinct.
Demolition and rebuilding
The castle had been allowed to decay and by 1805 was largely a ruin.
The estate was purchased in about 1806 by a cousin Sir John Lowther (1759–1844).
Sir John Lowther demolished the remains of the medieval castle in about 1807, and in 1810 built an imposing mansion house on the site, to a design by architect Sir Robert Smirke.
The first stage of the rebuilding of the castle was the building of the centre block, the west wing and a short low east wing and later in a second phase of building, an octagonal tower was added to the end of the east wing.
The Gothick design includes a fifteen-bay frontage with a four-storey castellated tower at the centre, flanked by castellated and gabled bays and turrets and five-bayed two-storey wings.
Lowther was created a Baronet in 1824 (see Lowther Baronets).
The iron industry was founded in Middlesbrough by Bolckow and Vaughan followed by the chance discovery in 1850 of iron ore in the Eston hills
on land that the Lowthers owned.
One area of farmland was rented to Bolckow and Vaughan for £17,700 pa and this change of fortunes funded later redevelopment work.
Sir Charles Hugh Lowther, 3rd Baronet (1803–1894) inherited the family baronetcy from his brother in 1868.
The whole of the east wing including the octagonal tower was later demolished and replaced by 1887 with amongst other rooms a pavilion ballroom to create essentially the building that exists today.
Farmhouses and outbuildings on the estate were also demolished and rebuilt for tenants followed by the building of a new village of Wilton out of sight of the castle, and the main road was moved further away from the front of the castle.
On the death of the third Baronet in 1894 the Baronetcy passed to his grandson but the Wilton Castle estate passed to his younger son James Lowther (1840–1904).
James Lowther died at Wilton in 1904 and left the castle to his nephew Colonel John George Lowther.
Post War
Colonel Lowther sold the estate including Wilton Castle, his private residence in 1945 to Imperial Chemical Industries.
In 1946 staff moved into Wilton Castle to plan the development of the estate as a chemical works.
The estate was laid out as ICI Wilton and the whole of the castle was converted and used as offices due to restrictions at the time on building new offices.
The offices were occupied at various times by major industrialists such as Dr Richard Beeching and Sir John Harvey Jones.
Staff were transferred to new offices on the works site as restrictions were lifted, such that by 1969 the building had many empty offices, but still had dining facilities and bedrooms for visitors, and a staff club.
In 1970 ICI carried out internal modifications and invited Trust House to manage the facilities.
The park had been developed as a golf course for ICI staff and was sold in 1999.
The golf club was acquired by its members, and over the period 2001–2002 Wilton Castle was converted by George Wimpey Ltd into 45 luxury apartments and houses.
Current status
There is no remaining evidence of the building of 1210, but internal walls to the east of the entrance are particularly thick and it is thought they constituted part of the original tower.
Wilton Castle was given grade II listed building status in 1952.
As well as the castle the associated stable block,
garden wall,
and retaining wall
are grade II listed buildings.
Cultural references
The castle was used as a location in the BBC television drama series Spender (1991).
References
The History and Antiquities of Cleveland John Walker Ord (1846) p. 384 History of Parish of Wilton.
Further reading
Wilton Village on Communigate.
Category:Grade II listed buildings in North Yorkshire
Category:Country houses in North Yorkshire
Category:Buildings and structures in Redcar and Cleveland
Category:Mock castles in England
Category:Castles in North Yorkshire
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STATE OF MICHIGAN
COURT OF APPEALS
PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN, UNPUBLISHED
November 22, 2016
Plaintiff-Appellee,
v No. 328281
Calhoun Circuit Court
GHERMELL JAQUES BOLDEN-JAPRICE, LC No. 2014-002705-FC
Defendant-Appellant.
Before: BECKERING, P.J., and HOEKSTRA and OWENS, JJ.
PER CURIAM.
Defendant, Ghermell Jaques Bolden-Japrice, appeals as of right his jury trial convictions
of armed robbery, MCL 750.529, and first-degree home invasion, MCL 750.110a(2).1 The trial
court sentenced him to 225 months to 30 years’ imprisonment for the armed robbery conviction,
and to 95 months to 20 years’ imprisonment for the home invasion conviction, with the sentences
to be served consecutively. We affirm defendant’s convictions but remand for a Crosby2
proceeding pursuant to People v. Lockridge, 498 Mich 358; 870 NW2d 502 (2015).
This case arises out of a nighttime robbery at the home of the victim, Allyn Reeve, which
resulted in Reeve being fatally shot in the chest. At the time of the robbery, Reeve lived with
Bradley Launder, who grew medicinal marijuana in the basement of the house. Defendant was
implicated in the robbery, along with Christopher Leon Felton, who was convicted of first-
degree felony murder and first-degree home invasion in a separate jury trial and whose appeal is
pending before this Court.3
On appeal, defendant claims that the lead detective, Detective Jeffrey Coons, “effectively
vouched” for two critical witnesses, Katie Bond and Ashley VanVleet, by affirming that their
prior statements to police had been consistent. Because defendant did not object to the testimony
1
Defendant was also charged with first-degree felony murder, but the jury acquitted him of that
offense.
2
United States v Crosby, 397 F3d 103 (CA 2 2005).
3
Docket No. 328280.
-1-
at issue, we review defendant’s unpreserved evidentiary claim for plain error affecting
substantial rights. People v Carines, 460 Mich 750, 763; 597 NW2d 130 (1999).
“It is generally improper for a witness to comment or provide an opinion on the
credibility of another witness, because credibility matters are to be determined by the jury.”
People v Dobek, 274 Mich App 58, 71; 732 NW2d 546 (2007). This prohibition typically
extends to third-party testimony that a witness’s in-court testimony was consistent with the
witness’s earlier statements. People v Washington, 100 Mich App 628, 633; 300 NW2d 347
(1980) (finding inadmissible a police officer’s testimony that an eyewitness’s trial testimony was
“for the most part” the same as the witness’s prior statements because the witness had not been
accused of recently fabricating her account).
However, under certain circumstances, a prior consistent statement may be admitted
through the testimony of a third party. See People v Jones, 240 Mich App 704, 706; 613 NW2d
411 (2000). For example, MRE 801(d)(1)(B) provides that a statement is not hearsay if the
declarant testifies and is subject to cross-examination about a prior statement and the statement
“is consistent with the declarant’s testimony and is offered to rebut an express or implied charge
that the declarant recently fabricated it or acted from a recent improper influence or motive in so
testifying.” Additionally, when a defendant introduces portions of a prior inconsistent statement
to impeach witness credibility, the prosecution may explore the extent of inconsistencies by
showing how the statement was consistent with the witness’ trial testimony. People v Sayles,
200 Mich App 594, 595; 504 NW2d 738 (1993).
Defendant indicated in his opening statement that this case involved witnesses who were
mistaken, lying, or not credible. Among the prosecution’s witnesses were Bond, VanVleet, and
Detective Coons. Bond and VanVleet testified to their observations of defendant and his cohort
planning the robbery beforehand, with Bond witnessing defendant and his cohort running from
the scene after the shooting. Detective Coons testified that he had interviewed Bond on the date
of the incident and “multiple times” thereafter when “delivering subpoenas and such.” The
prosecution asked Detective Coons whether, “. . . throughout the testimony of Ms. Bond has she
been consistent?” Detective Coons responded, “Yes.” Defendant takes issue with this exchange,
contending that it constituted an impermissible attempt to vouch for the credibility of the
witness. We disagree.
By the time Detective Coons testified, defendant had thoroughly impeached Bond using
prior statements made in interviews with police and her preliminary examination testimony. He
had also questioned her rather extensively about her ongoing Children’s Protective Services case,
implying that she was improperly influenced or motivated to testify in this matter so that she
would be viewed favorably in that case. Moreover, defendant cross-examined Bond regarding
alleged inconsistencies in her preliminary examination testimony, eliciting from Bond testimony
that she “stuck with the same [testimony]” and that her trial testimony did not differ from her
interview statements. Thus, because defendant introduced Bond’s alleged prior inconsistencies
to impeach her credibility, the prosecution was able to explore the extent of these alleged
inconsistencies. See Sayles, 200 Mich App at 595. Accordingly, defendant has shown no plain
error with respect to the admission of Detective Coons’s testimony regarding Bond’s prior
consistent statements. Carines, 460 Mich at 763.
-2-
With regard to VanVleet, defendant implied at trial and through his questioning of
VanVleet that she was not credible because of her heroin use and addiction. Upon questioning
by the prosecution, Detective Coons testified that he had interviewed VanVleet on the day of the
incident, “probably once or twice delivering subpoenas,” and that “[o]nce in a while during the
year” he had gotten “a phone call from somebody about something in reference to the case, but
that was it.” The prosecutor asked if VanVleet has been consistent throughout, and Detective
Coons responded, “Yes.” Defendant argues that this exchange was also inadmissible.
Upon review of the record, we conclude that this testimony was not admissible under
MRE 801(d)(1)(B) because VanVleet’s statements to Detective Coons came at a time after the
purported improper influence or motive to fabricate. Jones, 240 Mich App at 707 (“the prior
consistent statement must be made prior to the time that the supposed motive to falsify arose”)
(quotation marks and citation omitted). VanVleet testified that she used heroin on the morning
before the robbery and before she had any contact with Detective Coons. Therefore, to the
extent Detective Coons’s testimony was intended to rebut a charge of recent fabrication or recent
improper influence or motive to testify stemming from her heroin use, admission of the
testimony regarding VanVleet’s prior consistent statements was in error. Carines, 460 Mich at
763. Nevertheless, in light of the evidence presented and the jury instructions given, the
testimony did not affect defendant’s substantial rights, as it did not affect the outcome of the
proceedings. See People v Jones, 468 Mich 345, 356; 662 NW2d 376 (2003) (“To establish that
a plain error affected substantial rights, there must be a showing of prejudice, i.e. that the error
affected the outcome of the lower-court proceedings”).
Defense witness Shawn Pike testified that defendant was present and awake at
VanVleet’s house when he, Pike, went to sleep at 1:00 a.m. on June 17, 2014, which contradicted
defendant’s statement to Detective Coons that he left VanVleet’s house at 10:30 p.m. on June 16,
2014. Pike also indicated that defendant discussed robbing the house across the street during the
weeks leading up to the robbery, which corroborated Bond’s and VanVleet’s testimony that
defendant discussed multiple times robbing the house with the medical marijuana plants growing
in the basement. Bond and VanVleet corroborated each other’s account of the night at issue with
testimony indicating that, on the night of the robbery, defendant discussed robbing the house
during a conversation at the dining room table, both defendant and “L” asked for T-shirts, and
both men left VanVleet’s house after obtaining the T-shirts. VanVleet testified that she gave
defendant and “L” a pair of white and pink polka dot socks, which Jamie Moffitt, the surviving
victim, corroborated with testimony that the cloth wrapped around the gunman’s hand holding
the gun was white or pink in color. Moffitt also testified that the gunman demanded marijuana
from the victim during the robbery, which corroborates the testimony that defendant and “L”
discussed going across the street to steal the marijuana. Bond testified that she observed
defendant running from the house following hearing the gunshots. Moreover, the jury was
instructed multiple times that the task of determining witness credibility was solely the duty of
the jury. “[J]urors are presumed to follow their instructions.” People v Graves, 458 Mich 476,
486; 581 NW2d 229 (1998). Thus, in light of the admissible evidence presented to the jury, and
considering the trial court’s instructions, defendant has not shown that the admission of
Detective Coons’s testimony regarding VanVleet’s prior statements affected his substantial
rights. Carines, 460 Mich at 763.
-3-
Defendant asserts briefly on appeal that the prosecutor placed the prestige of her office
and the office of the police behind the contention that defendant was guilty, and that he was
denied a fair trial. However, defendant fails to brief either issue adequately. People v Kelly, 231
Mich App 627, 640-641; 588 NW2d 480 (1998) (“An appellant may not merely announce his
position and leave it to this Court to discover and rationalize the basis for his claims, nor may he
give only cursory treatment with little or no citation of supporting authority.”). With respect to
his claim that he was denied a fair trial, the law defendant cites is inapplicable, and he fails to
apply the facts of this case to his cursory argument. Although both of these arguments are
effectively abandoned, see id., we reviewed them nevertheless and found them to be without
merit.
Likewise, because defendant raises but gives cursory treatment to an ineffective
assistance of counsel claim, we deem the claim abandoned. Id. Nevertheless, from our review
of the trial court record, we conclude that defense counsel did not render ineffective assistance
by failing to object to the statements of Detective Coons at issue. In order to establish a claim of
constitutionally ineffective assistance, defendant must show that “(1) counsel’s performance fell
below an objective standard of reasonableness and (2) but for counsel’s deficient performance,
there is a reasonable probability that the outcome would have been different.” People v
Trakhtenberg, 493 Mich 38, 51; 826 NW2d 136 (2012). Because the admission of Detective
Coons’s testimony regarding Bond’s prior consistent statements was not plain error, defendant
cannot show that his trial counsel’s failure to object to the detective’s testimony fell below an
objective standard of reasonableness. Id. Assuming arguendo that defense counsel’s failure to
object to the detective’s inadmissible testimony regarding VanVleet’s prior consistent statements
did fall below an objective standard of reasonableness, for the reasons stated above, there is no
reasonable probability that the outcome would have been different had trial counsel objected. Id.
In a Standard 4 brief,4 defendant challenges his sentence on Sixth Amendment grounds
and asserts that the remedy set forth in Lockridge is insufficient to cure the Sixth Amendment
violation. Defendant’s counsel also filed a supplemental brief seeking a remand in light of
Lockridge. We agree that a remand is necessary under Lockridge, but find that defendant’s claim
of entitlement to a remedy different than the one set forth in Lockridge lacks merit.
In Lockridge, 498 Mich at 364, our Supreme Court concluded that Michigan’s sentencing
guidelines were constitutionally deficient to the extent that judicial fact-finding could be used to
mandatorily increase a defendant’s guidelines minimum sentence range. As a result, the Court
severed MCL 769.34(2)5 to the extent that it was mandatory and struck down the requirement
4
A “Standard 4” brief refers to a brief filed on behalf of an indigent criminal defendant pursuant
to Michigan Supreme Court Administrative Order 2004-6, Standard 4.
5
The relevant statutory language states the following:
Except as otherwise provided in this subsection or for a departure from the
appropriate minimum sentence range provided for under subsection (3), the
minimum sentence imposed by a court of this state for a felony enumerated in part
2 of chapter XVII committed on or after January 1, 1999 shall be within the
-4-
that courts must articulate substantial and compelling reasons to depart from the guidelines. Id.
at 391. The Lockridge Court concluded that a remand to the trial court is appropriate for “all
defendants (1) who can demonstrate that their guidelines minimum sentence range was actually
constrained by the violation of the Sixth Amendment and (2) whose sentences were not subject
to an upward departure.” Id. at 395. In such cases, the procedure outlined in Crosby, 397 F3d
103, must be followed to determine whether the sentencing court “would have imposed a
materially different sentence but for the constitutional error.” Id. at 397.
[O]n a Crosby remand, a trial court should first allow a defendant an opportunity
to inform the court that he or she will not seek resentencing. If notification is not
received in a timely manner, the court (1) should obtain the views of counsel in
some form, (2) may but is not required to hold a hearing on the matter, and (3)
need not have the defendant present when it decides whether to resentence the
defendant, but (4) must have the defendant present, as required by law, if it
decides to resentence the defendant. Further, in determining whether the court
would have imposed a materially different sentence but for the unconstitutional
constraint, the court should consider only the “circumstances existing at the time
of the original sentence. [Id. at 398-399, citations and quotation marks omitted).]
In this case, without judicially found facts supporting the scoring of the OV points,
namely offense variable (OV) 3, defendant’s sentencing cell would differ from the one under
which he was sentenced. Thus, we remand to the trial court for a Crosby proceeding.
Defendant raises what appears to be various claims regarding the Ex Post Facto Clause.
To the extent defendant asserts that the remedy outlined in Lockridge is not the proper or a
sufficient remedy for Sixth Amendment violations based on judicial fact-finding, pursuant to
stare decisis, this Court is required to follow the decisions of our Supreme Court. People v Hall,
249 Mich App 262, 270; 643 NW2d 253 (2002). Therefore, the appropriate remedy for
defendant is the one set forth in Lockridge, 498 Mich at 391, and defendant fails to support his
argument that any other remedy applies.
We affirm defendant’s convictions, but remand the case for a Crosby proceeding. We do
not retain jurisdiction.
/s/ Jane M. Beckering
/s/ Joel P. Hoekstra
/s/ Donald S. Owens
appropriate sentence range under the version of those sentencing guidelines in
effect on the date the crime was committed.
-5-
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Subarachnoid hemorrhage and the role of potassium channels in relaxations of canine basilar artery to nitrovasodilators.
This study was designed to determine the effect of subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) on potassium (K+) channels involved in relaxations of cerebral arteries to nitrovasodilators. The effects of K+ channel inhibitors on relaxations to 3-morpholinosydnonimine (SIN-1) and sodium nitroprusside (SNP) were studied in rings of basilar arteries obtained from untreated dogs and dogs exposed to SAH. The levels of cyclic GMP were measured by radioimmunoassay. In rings without endothelium, concentration-dependent relaxations to SIN-1 (10(-9)-10(-4) mol/L) and SNP (10(-9)-10(-4) mol/L) were not affected by SAH, whereas increase in cyclic GMP production stimulated by SIN-1 (10(-6) mol/L) was significantly suppressed after SAH. The relaxations to SIN-1 and SNP were reduced by charybdotoxin (CTX: 10(-7) mol/L), a selective Ca(2+)-activated K+ channel inhibitor, in both normal and SAH arteries; however, the reduction of relaxations by CTX was significantly greater in SAH arteries. By contrast, the relaxations to these nitrovasodilators were not affected by glyburide (10(-5) mol/L), an ATP-sensitive K+ channel inhibitor, in both normal and SAH arteries. These findings suggest that in cerebral arteries exposed to SAH, CA(2+)-activated K+ channels may play a compensatory role in mediation of relaxations to nitric oxide. This may help to explain mechanisms of relaxations to nitrovasodilators in arteries with impaired production of cyclic GMP.
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Social marketing: an underutilized tool for promoting adolescent health.
Social marketing applies some of the same principles used in commercial marketing for the analysis, planning, execution, and evaluation of programs designed to motivate voluntary behavioral change. It relies on consumer research for understanding the people they hope to change, including their values, aspirations, fears, lifestyle, and factors that motivate and deter them from adopting desired behaviors. Social marketing has been applied in public health settings since the 1980s for promoting such behaviors as safer sex, hypertension and cholesterol control, reduced occurrence of alcohol-impaired driving, improved utilization of public health prevention and screening services, and enactment of better school nutrition policies in schools. Although most evidence for social marketing's utility comes from interventions directed at adult audiences, its application with adolescents may help to address issues that have been challenging or unresponsive to health behavior change specialists. This article describes the basic tenets of social marketing as a behavior change process, identifies its previously successful applications with adolescent audience segments, and offers both lessons learned and projected future applications that employ emerging communication technologies.
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UPDATE @ 12.30PM - Josh Mansour joins Reagan Campbell-Gillard in the Kangaroos squad!
Panthers prop Reagan Campbell-Gillard has been added to the Australian squad to contest the 2017 Rugby League World Cup.
Campbell-Gillard, who on Wednesday night was awarded the 2017 Merv Cartwright Medal, received the surprise news from Kangaroos coach Mal Meninga on Thursday morning.
His call-up comes following the decision of Andrew Fifita to withdraw from the Kangaroos squad in order to play for Tonga.
Sione Katoa named in star-studded Tonga outfit
"Andrew called me and said he was passionate about playing for Tonga and I respect and support that decision," Meninga said.
"It is obviously a significant boost for Tonga as well as the World Cup – and international Rugby League in general.
"At the same time it is also a great opportunity for someone like Reagan, who has been outstanding for the Panthers.
"I'm extremely excited about seeing Reagan in a Kangaroos jersey."
The updated squad, listed alphabetically, is as follows:
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* Use existent form
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* @var \app\modules\shop\models\Contragent $model
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In August, United States marshals, acting on behalf of the F.D.A., seized vials of smallpox vaccine that was being used to create a stem cell product that was being given to cancer patients at the California clinics. The product posed a risk to those patients of inflammation of the heart and surrounding tissues, the agency said.
The California center trains other physicians in how to extract stem cells and has affiliates around the country. A Florida woman, Doris Tyler, lost her sight after being treated at an affiliate, the Ageless Wellness Center in Peachtree City, Ga. Cells from her fat were injected into both eyes.
Dr. Berman said that many people had been helped by his clinic and that he had tried to work out a compromise with the F.D.A. but was unable to do so. He also said he believed the cells that are harvested from individuals do not constitute a drug and should not be regulated as such.
In its statement, the F.D.A. also said that both the U.S. Stem Cell Clinic and the California Stem Cell Treatment Center were using cell extracts to treat serious conditions — including Parkinson’s disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease — but that their products were not approved for any use.
The F.D.A. oversight of stem cell therapies and regenerative medicine is still in flux. In August, Dr. Scott Gottlieb, the agency’s commissioner, called the field one of the most promising areas of science and medicine, holding great promise for some of the world’s most intractable illnesses. He vowed that the F.D.A. would ease the path to approval for researchers and companies that were developing legitimate treatments — a program authorized by Congress in the 21st Century Cures Act.
At the same time, however, Dr. Gottlieb vowed to crack down on clinics making hollow claims and marketing unsafe treatments. He also announced the action against the California Stem Cell Treatment Centers in Rancho Mirage and Beverly Hills and against the U.S. Stem Cell Clinic.
In November, the F.D.A. continued work along both themes.
The agency acknowledged the difficulty in pursuing rogue clinics and suggested that consumers check up on stem cell clinics before receiving treatment.
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Introduction
============
Extraintestinal pathogenic *Escherichia coli* (ExPEC), apart from being a seasoned nosocomial pathogen is also an important cause of community-acquired ([@B20], [@B20]) and other infections such as urinary tract infection, sepsis, neonatal meningitis, and colibacillosis in humans and animals ([@B21]; [@B39]). Genome analysis revealed that pathogenic *E. coli* have genome sizes in excess of about 1.0 Mb than the commensal strains mainly due to the presence of genes encoding multiple virulence factors, such as adhesins, toxins, invasins and siderophores that are absent or unlikely to be present in commensal strains ([@B10]). The virulence factors are mostly associated with phages and pathogenicity islands and undergo horizontal gene transfer which disseminates traits, thereby offering fitness advantages to recipient organisms ([@B1]).
Secreted toxins are the virulence factors that play an important role in long term colonization and pathogenesis of ExPEC. Some of these known secreted toxins comprise of important genotoxins, such as cytolethal distending toxins (CDT's), cycle inhibiting factors (*cif'*s) and cytotoxic necrotizing factors (CNF's) which can directly regulate the cell cycle of the host ([@B28]). Colibactin is another important genotoxin produced by a 54-kb pathogenicity island known as *pks* island harbored by the members of *Enterobacteriaceae* ([@B27]). This genomic island consists of a *clbA-S* gene cluster that encodes non-ribosomal peptides and polyketide synthases along with accessory and tailoring enzymes ([@B27]). Colibactin acts as a cyclomodulin and blocks the eukaryotic cell cycle causing progressive enlargement of the nucleus as well as the cell body eventually leading to cell death ([@B11]). The cytopathic effect of these genotoxins is mediated by live bacteria and requires a direct contact with the host cell ([@B27]).
The *pks* island was first identified in sequenced genomes of ExPEC prototype strains and was detected predominantly in strains of phylogenetic group B2 ([@B19]). The island was shown to display several signatures reminiscent of its horizontal acquisition ([@B30]; [@B24]). The origin and prevalence of the colibactin island among enteric pathogens is largely unexplored. However, it was also found to be present in other members of *Enterobacteriaceae* such as *Citrobacter koseri, Klebsiella pneumoniae*, and *Enterobacter aerogenes* ([@B30]). Epidemiological studies demonstrated the prevalence of *pks* in ExPEC and their association with severe infections in different host populations of varied geographical locations ([@B19]; [@B5]; [@B38]).
Epidemiological studies on ExPEC in India have so far been focused on understanding antimicrobial resistance, evolution and presence of pandemic clones ([@B2]; [@B17]; [@B14], [@B15]; [@B37]). However, a better understanding of ExPEC associated virulence factors may help in the development of therapeutic interventions, such as diagnostics and/or vaccines against ExPEC infections, and this would also facilitate risk assessment of ExPEC strains.
While colibactin is regarded as a virulence factor in ExPEC, not much is known in the context of its molecular epidemiology entailing Indian clinical isolates. Therefore, the present study was performed in order to investigate the prevalence and carriage of *pks* island, and to decipher the genotypic and functional characteristics of *pks* harboring clinical ExPEC isolates from India.
Materials and Methods {#s1}
=====================
Bacterial Isolates
------------------
A total of 462 isolates of ExPEC were harnessed for this study. These isolates were originally collected by SJ and her colleagues from Dr D. Y. Patil University Hospital, Pune, India as a part of their routine diagnostic screening during the years 2009--2015 and were also described in our previous study ([@B32]). The bacterial collection of our study, essentially a sub-set of the collection studied by [@B32], comprised 370 isolates cultured from urine, 63 from pus and 29 from other extra intestinal clinical samples. Standard microbiological laboratory methods were employed for the identification and preservation of these isolates ([@B17]). All isolates were collected, preserved and handled as per standard biosafety guidelines and according to the approvals of the Institutional Biosafety Committee (IBSC) of the University of Hyderabad (Ref. UH/IBSC/NA/12/7 dated 09/4/2012 and NA-N-32 dated 27/8/2015). The clinical information of the isolates is described in the Supplementary Table [S1](#SM1){ref-type="supplementary-material"}.
Detection of *pks*-Genomic Island and Phylogroup Determination
--------------------------------------------------------------
The clinical isolates were screened for the presence of *pks* island by PCR using primers for the four representative genes of the genomic island so as to generate two flanking (*clbB* and *clbQ*) and two internal (*clbA* and *clbN*) amplicons in order to document presence of a complete island ([@B19]). Heat killed bacterial lysates were used as DNA templates for PCR amplification, as described previously ([@B33]). PCR amplifications were carried out in 30 cycles at specific reaction conditions as described earlier ([@B19]; [@B33]). The *pks*-positive isolates were assigned to one of the eight phylogroups based on multiplex-PCR amplification of four genes (*chuA, yjaA, arpA*, and *TspE4.C2*) as described elsewhere ([@B7]).
Antibiotic Susceptibility and Extended Spectrum-β-Lactamase Production
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Antibiotic susceptibility analysis was performed, as previously described, by Kirby-Bauer disk diffusion method, on Mueller Hinton agar plates ([@B31]). Antimicrobial disks (Himedia, India) specific for fosfomycin (200 μg), chloramphenicol (30 μg), co-trimoxazole (20 μg), tetracycline (30 μg), gentamicin (10 μg), nalidixic acid (30 μg), doxycycline (30 μg), ciprofloxacin (5 μg), and colistin (10 μg) were used to determine the antibiotic susceptibility profile of the isolates. ESBL production was determined using disk synergy between clavulanic acid and indicator cephalosporins, CTX (cefotaxime) and CAZ (ceftazidime). Both the assays were performed in accordance with Clinical Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) guidelines ([@B8]). Isolates exhibiting resistance to three or more antimicrobials were designated as multidrug resistant (MDR).
Virulence and Antimicrobial Resistance Genotyping
-------------------------------------------------
PCR based screening of virulence genes encoding bacterial adhesins (*fimH, sfaD/E, afa)*, toxins (*usp, cvaC, sat)*, iron acquisition system (*iucD)* and protectants (*ibeA)* were performed using primers and reaction conditions as previously described ([@B17]; [@B33]). ESBL gene *bla*~CTX-M-15~, ([@B25]), genes conferring resistance to tetracycline (*tetA)*, sulfonamides (*sul1*) and aminoglycoside acetyl transferases (*aac(6*^′^)*-Ib)* were also screened for using primers and PCR conditions as described in previous studies ([@B17]; [@B32], [@B33]). The isolates were also screened by PCR using generic primers for TEM and amplified products were sequenced to identify the variants of the gene.
Determination of Siderophore Production, Biofilm Formation and Serum Resistance Assay
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
All the *pks-*positive isolates were screened for siderophore production using Chrome Azurol S Blue agar plates. A single colony of the bacterial isolate(s) was streaked on these plates and incubated overnight at 37°C. Colonies showing characteristic orange halos were identified as positive for siderophore production ([@B35]).
All the 35 *pks-*positive isolates were analyzed for their biofilm forming capabilities as described previously ([@B26]). Briefly, OD at 600 nm was taken for overnight grown bacterial cultures and all the isolates were diluted to an OD of 0.05 in fresh M63 minimal medium. An aliquot of 200 μL of the diluted culture was pipetted into flat-bottom 96 well sterile microtiter plates in triplicates. The plates were covered by a breathable sealing after obtaining OD at 600 nm \[OD~600(0~ ~h)~\]. The plates were incubated for 48 h at stationary condition at 28°C. Following this, OD was obtained at 600 nm \[OD~600(48~ ~h)~\]. Media was aspirated and wells washed thrice with 300 μL of deionized water. After air drying, bacteria were fixed using 250 μL of 99% methanol for 15 min and stained using 0.1% crystal violet solution for 30 min. Following staining, wells were washed thrice with deionized water and air dried. To solubilize the stained bacteria, 300 μL of Ethanol: Acetone (80:20) solution was added and incubated for 30 min at 100 rpm. OD at 570 nm was read in microtiter plate reader and specific biofilm formation was obtained using the following formula: SBF (specific biofilm formation) = (AB-CW)/G where AB = OD at 570 nm of attached and stained bacteria, CW = OD of control at 570 nm and G = OD~600(48~ ~h)~ - OD~600(0~ ~h)~, representing bacterial growth. The experiment was repeated twice in technical triplicates.
Serum resistance was also determined for all the 35 *pks*-positive *E. coli* isolates *in vitro* using 50% human serum as described earlier ([@B15]). Briefly, 5 μL of overnight culture was added to 495 μl of LB broth and incubated in a shaking incubator at 37°C for 1 h at 200 rpm. The bacterial cultures were pelleted and resuspended in 1mL of 1X PBS; 30 μL of this inoculum was added to 270 μL of 50% human serum in triplicates in a 96 well microtiter plate. In each case, an initial sample was collected and plated after dilution on LB agar plates for enumerating the colony forming units (CFU) at 0 h. The inoculated plate was incubated for 3 h at 37°C at 100 rpm. After 3 h, samples from each well were serially diluted and plated on LB agar plates for 3 h count. Isolates which had equal or higher CFU counts at 3 h compared to 0 h were considered resistant to human serum. Growth was obtained by subtracting CFU counts of 0 h from that of 3 h. The experiment was repeated two times in technical triplicate(s).
Statistical Analysis
--------------------
All statistical calculations were performed using GraphPad Prism (version 5.01). Non-parametric Mann--Whitney *U* test was performed for serum resistance assay. *p*-values ≤ 0.05 were considered to be significant and were denoted in the graph.
Results
=======
Screening for *pks* Island and Phylogenetic Grouping
----------------------------------------------------
A total of 462 *E. coli* isolates from our collection were screened for the presence of *pks* island, of which 35 were found to be positive for all the four targeted genes (*clbA, clbB, clbN* and *clbQ)* amplified from flanking and internal regions. Of these, 30 were originally cultured from urine, four from pus and one from blood. The prevalence of *pks*-positive isolates was 7.6% of the total *E. coli* collection studied. Using multiplex PCR, identification of *E. coli* phylogenetic groups was performed and out of the 35 isolates, 34 belonged to phylogroup B2 while one was assigned to phylogroup D (Table [1](#T1){ref-type="table"}).
######
Phylogroups, virulence and resistance genotypes, and antimicrobial resistance of *pks*-positive *E. coli* isolates.
Genotypic characterization No. (%) of positive isolates
---------------------------------------------- ------------------------------ -----------------------------------
**Phylogenetic group**
B2 34 (97.14)
D 1 (2.86)
**Virulence factors: Genotypic determinant**
Adhesins *fimH* 35 (100)
*sfaD/E* 35 (100)
*afa* 0 (0)
Toxins *usp* 35 (100)
*sat* 12 (34.29)
*cvaC* 15 (42.86)
Protectins *ibeA* 11 (31.43)
Iron acquisition *iucD* 18 (51.43)
**Resistance factors: Antibiotic class**
Tetracyclines *tetA* 2 (5.71)
Fluoroquinolones *aac(6*^′^*)-Ib* 7 (20)
Sulfonamides *sul1* 4 (11.43)
β-lactamases *bla*~TEM-1~ 8 (22.86)
*bla*~CTX-M-15~ 9 (25.71)
**Antimicrobial class or phenotype** **Specific Drug** **No. (%) of resistant isolates**
Aminoglycoside Gentamicin 2 (5.71)
Tetracyclines Tetracycline 8 (22.86)
Doxycycline 4 (11.43)
Sulfonamide/trimethoprim Co-trimoxazole 5 (14.29)
Phenicol Chloramphenicol 0 (0)
Phosphonic acid derivative Fosfomycin 0 (0)
Fluoroquinolone Ciprofloxacin 2 (5.71)
Nalidixic Acid 25 (71.43)
Antibacterial peptide Colistin 0 (0)
Multidrug Resistance 4 (11.42)
ESBL 13 (37.14)
Antimicrobial Susceptibility and ESBL Production
------------------------------------------------
Antimicrobial susceptibility testing against nine different antimicrobial agents belonging to seven different antibiotic classes revealed that the isolates were only moderately resistant to antibiotics. Maximum resistance was observed against nalidixic acid (71.4%). The isolates were found to be less resistant to tetracycline (22.86%), co-trimoxazole (14.29%), doxycycline (11.43%), gentamicin (5.71%), and ciprofloxacin (5.71%) and were completely sensitive to fosfomycin, chloramphenicol, and colistin. Of the 35 *E. coli* isolates, 13 (37.14%) were found to be ESBL producers and 4 (11.42%) were multidrug resistant. The details of resistance profile(s) for each antibiotic tested are shown in Table [1](#T1){ref-type="table"}.
Virulence and Resistance Genotyping
-----------------------------------
PCR based virulence and resistance genotyping of *pks*-positive isolates revealed their being relatively virulent as they possessed higher number of virulence genes compared to the resistance genes detected. Among bacterial adhesins tested, *fimH* and *sfaD/E* were 100% prevalent while *afa* was not detected in any of the isolates. Screening of toxin genes revealed presence of *usp* gene among all the isolates (100%), whereas *cvaC* and *sat* showed 42.86% and 34.29% prevalence, respectively. The genes *iucD* (iron acquisition system) and *ibeA* (protectant) were present in 51.43% and 31.43% of the isolates, respectively (Table [1](#T1){ref-type="table"}).
Antimicrobial resistance genotyping revealed that the ESBL gene *bla*~CTX-M-15~ was present in 25.71% (*n* = 9) of the isolates and all these isolates were phenotypically observed to be ESBL producers by double disk synergy test. Further, 22.86% (*n* = 8) of the isolates were positive for TEM, and sequencing of PCR products followed by BLAST analysis identified all the amplicons to be entailing *bla*~TEM-1~. The gene *aac(6*^′^*)-Ib*, which is involved in aminoglycoside resistance, was present in 20% of the *pks*-positive isolates. Occurrence of genes that confer sulfonamide (*sul1*) and tetracycline (*tetA*) resistance was observed to be at 11.43% and 5.71% of isolates, respectively (Table [1](#T1){ref-type="table"}). Overall, we observed low prevalence of resistance genes in concordance with the phenotypic antibiotic resistances detected by disk diffusion assays.
Virulence Associated Phenotypes
-------------------------------
The isolates were analyzed for siderophore production, biofilm formation, and serum resistance which are essential ExPEC virulence properties. All *pks*-positive isolates formed orange halos on Chrome Azurol S plates, confirming the production of siderophores. Biofilm formation assay was performed twice in triplicates for all the *pks* positive isolates in order to determine their biofilm forming capabilities and was documented by specific biofilm formation (SBF) values. Isolates showing SBF values greater than 1 were designated as strong biofilm formers, 0.5--1.0 as moderate biofilm formers and those showing less than 0.5 were considered as weak biofilm formers (Figure [1](#F1){ref-type="fig"}). Majority (21/35) of the isolates tested were strong biofilm formers while 10/35 isolates moderately formed the biofilm and 4/35 isolates were weak biofilm formers. Bacterial resistance to the bactericidal activity of human serum was also assessed and the number of CFU were found to be significantly higher for all the *pks* positive isolates after 3 h of incubation in the human serum as compared to the negative control, indicative of the fact that all the isolates were resistant to human serum. Serum resistance was performed twice in technical triplicate(s) (Figure [2](#F2){ref-type="fig"}) and *p*-values were obtained using Mann--Whitney *U* test.
{#F1}
{#F2}
Discussion
==========
The *pks* island encodes enzymes that are able to synthesize colibactin, a genotoxin that could induce host DNA damage and its presence may contribute to increased virulence and severe disease outcomes. Ever since the description of colibactin by [@B27], many studies were undertaken to develop a comprehensive understanding of this bacterial genotoxin ([@B4]; [@B13]). However, epidemiological data on the prevalence of the same and factors associated with *pks*-positive *E. coli* isolates, particularly from the Southern World have not been documented. The present study showed that 35 out of the 462 clinical ExPEC isolates were positive for all the four genes, indicating the presence of complete *pks* island(s) which might be able to synthesize functional colibactin. Thus, the overall prevalence was found to be 7.6% and this constitutes first epidemiological data on *pks* island harboring *E. coli* from India. In contrast, reports from other countries, such as those by [@B19] and [@B38] demonstrated high *pks* prevalence among clinical *E. coli*.
Our previous studies have suggested that majority of the *pks* negative clinical *E. coli* from India were genetically diverse and had a high prevalence of antibiotic resistance; these studies also identified and characterized the clonally evolving pandemic sequence type 131 *E. coli* isolates in India ([@B17]; [@B32]; [@B16]; [@B37]). However, the role of colibactin in the emergence of lineage specific virulence in *E. coli* that were comparatively less resistant to antibiotics has been shown herein for the first time from India. Such lineages could become a matter of public health concern and analysis of the underlying strains would be of great importance given the high burden of infectious diseases in this region. Thus, the findings of this study have implications for better understanding of the epidemiological context of pathogenic *E. coli* in human diseases.
*Escherichia coli* harboring *pks* island was reported to be strongly associated with bacteremia and human colorectal tumors ([@B19]; [@B5]). Recent reports suggest that mice infected with colibactin positive *E. coli* had significantly lower survival rates compared to those infected with isogenic colibactin-negative mutant(s) ([@B22]). It has been further demonstrated that *pks*-positive *E. coli* infection induces cellular senescence and concurrently produces growth factors which promote tumor growth ([@B36]; [@B9]; [@B12]). The *pks*-positive *E. coli* isolates in the present study were detected in different specimen types including urine, blood and pus. Therefore, it can be surmised that the *pks*-positive *E. coli* might contribute in many invasive and non-invasive infections at different anatomic sites.
Previous studies reported that the *pks* island was majorly detected in *E. coli* phylogenetic group B2 strains, which are mainly documented as extraintestinal pathogens ([@B40]; [@B34]). Our results were in line with these observations as the *pks-*positive isolates in our study also belonged predominantly to phylogroup B2 (97%), except for one isolate which belonged to phylogroup D (3%) (Table [1](#T1){ref-type="table"}). The pathogenic strains of *E. coli* mainly belong to group B2 and, to a lesser extent, group D and frequently harbor higher number of virulence-factors than group A and group B1 strains ([@B29]; [@B19]).
Several studies have demonstrated a strong correlation between the presence of virulence genes and the pathogenic spectrum of *E. coli* strains ([@B3]). These include multiple ExPEC-associated virulence genes such as adhesins, invasins, secretory toxins, and iron scavenging systems ([@B18]). Accordingly, the virulent nature of *pks*-positive *E. coli* isolates was supported by our findings as 100% of them were positive for *fimH* (D mannose specific adhesin of minor fimbrial component), *sfaD/E* (s-fimbrial adhesin) and *usp* (uropathogenic specific protein) while ≥ 30% of them were positive for *iucD* (enzyme for siderophore aerobactin synthesis), *sat* (secreted autotransporter vacuolating cytotoxin), *cvaC* (colicin-V precursor) and *ibeA* (invasion protein). The afimbrial adhesin gene, *afa* was found to be completely absent (Table [1](#T1){ref-type="table"}). These findings could be attributed to the pathogenic potential of the *pks*-positive strains along with the presence of many other virulence determinants. Furthermore, in the present study, siderophore production was detected in all *pks*-positive isolates; this observation was consistent with previous reports on the positive correlation between the presence of *pks* island and iron scavenging systems among the B2 *E. coli* strains ([@B23]). The localization of *pks* island within the High-Pathogenicity Island (HPI) and its physical association with siderophore biosynthesis gene cluster has also been described in other members of *Enterobacteriaceae* ([@B30]). A majority of *pks*-positive *E. coli* isolates demonstrated high biofilm forming capabilities in M63 medium (Figure [1](#F1){ref-type="fig"}) and all the *pks*-positive isolates tested were found to be resistant to serum bactericidal activity (Figure [2](#F2){ref-type="fig"}). We speculate that these genotypic and phenotypic virulence traits expressed by B2 *pks*-positive *E. coli* could act as fitness factors in order to colonize and initiate/establish infection in intestinal and extra-intestinal sites.
Antibiotic susceptibility of the *pks*-positive isolates was performed and the isolates were observed to be uniquely associated with low antimicrobial resistance, this finding is consistent with the previous reports which have suggested that *pks* island harboring *E. coli* exhibit reduced antibiotic resistance ([@B6]; [@B34]). This observation could likely be due to opportunist *E. coli* infections arising from intestinal microbiota. Additionally, detailed characterization of such isolates from fecal and clinical samples is needed to certainly understand the reason behind such an observation. Multidrug resistance and ESBL production was observed in only 11.42 and 37% isolates, respectively (Table [1](#T1){ref-type="table"}). Previous studies from our group have shown MDR rates of 95% for clinical ST131 strains, and 91% for clinical and stool non-ST131 strains ([@B15]). We have also previously reported MDR rates of 100% for metallo-(β-lactamase (MBL) producing *E. coli* isolates ([@B32]) and 67% for isolates from skin and soft tissue infections ([@B33]). The *pks* positive isolates in contrast demonstrated lesser rates of antimicrobial resistance compared to the *pks* negative isolates characterized from the similar settings in our previous studies. All nine *bla*~CTXM-15~ positive *E. coli* isolates were observed to be ESBL producers (Table [1](#T1){ref-type="table"}), although further screening for other groups of CTX-M genes, and other ESBL classes are warranted. In concordance with the antimicrobial susceptibility results, molecular detection of antimicrobial resistance genes showed a low prevalence of *sul1* (sulphonamide resistance), *tetA* (tetracycline resistance), *aac(6*^′^*)-Ib* (aminoglycoside resistance), *bla*~CTX-M-15~ (extended spectrum-β-lactamases) and *bla*~TEM-1~ (broad spectrum-β-lactamases) genes (Table [1](#T1){ref-type="table"}).
Conclusion
==========
The prevalence of colibactin producing *E. coli* was found to be moderate among clinical *E. coli* isolates in our collection. These isolates harbored multiple virulence genes/traits and demonstrated relatively low antimicrobial resistance. These findings comprise essential baseline data required to understand aspects of functional molecular infection epidemiology of possibly genotoxic phenotypes of *E. coli* and their clinical significance. We hope to extend these studies at genomic and landscape scales to gain further insights into evolution, adaptation and dissemination of such isolates at clinical, community and ecosystem levels.
Author Contributions
====================
AS designed and performed all experiments with assistance from AR, SJ, AH, and SS. AS was responsible for all of the data and served as the guarantor for the manuscript. RB, MA, and LW participated in detailed discussions, advised on the interpretation of some of the results and, contributed to the writing and editing of the manuscript. NA conceived the study and provided overarching supervision, laboratory facilities and resources, interpreted and discussed results, and wrote/edited the draft and final versions of the manuscript. All authors contributed to the development of the manuscript and its display items.
Conflict of Interest Statement
==============================
The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.
AS acknowledges the junior research fellowship (JRF) from CSIR, India and would like to thank icddr,b for a short research stay support. We would like to thank all the members of Pathogen Biology Lab for their constructive comments on the manuscript and suggestions, especially to Nishant Nandanwar. icddr,b would like to thank its core donors: Sweden (SIDA), Bangladesh, Canada (CIDA and GAC), the United Kingdom (DFID).
Supplementary Material
======================
The Supplementary Material for this article can be found online at: <https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2018.02631/full#supplementary-material>
######
Click here for additional data file.
[^1]: Edited by: Dongsheng Zhou, Beijing Institute of Microbiology and Epidemiology, China
[^2]: Reviewed by: Yasufumi Matsumura, Kyoto University, Japan; Maojun Zhang, National Institute for Communicable Disease Control and Prevention (China CDC), China; Shaofu Qiu, Institute of Disease Control and Prevention, Academy of Military Medical Sciences, China
[^3]: This article was submitted to Infectious Diseases, a section of the journal Frontiers in Microbiology
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Buccaneers fullback-tight end Alan Cross is retiring from the NFL to take a job as a graduate assistant at his alma mater, the University of Memphis, joining Mike Norvell’s staff. Cross, who was nicknamed “Honcho” and was one of the most likable Bucs in the locker room, was a special teams star for Tampa Bay and a role player in Dirk Koetter’s offense over the past three years.
Cross, who was signed an undrafted free agent in 2016, recorded one touchdown in his three-year career, which was the game-winner in Tampa Bay’s 19-17 upset at Kansas City in 2016. Cross finishes his NFL career with 13 receptions for 105 yards and one touchdown.
“I’m very thankful and blessed for the opportunity,” Cross told PewterReport.com. “Tampa will be considered my second home and will always have a place in my heart.”
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Dutch Elm Disease
Dutch Elm Disease (DED) is an invasive fungus spread to American Elms via the native elm bark beetle. This disease has killed off many American Elms in urban forests but with the help of the Province of Manitoba it has been managed for a number of years. To learn about DED, signs, symptoms, and the management program click here.
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Summer 2018
The knowledgeUnderstanding flag etiquette can be confusing. Duncan Wells untangles an ensign from a burgee
Practical seamanshipHow to moor and anchor a multihull and the tricks that make them different from monohulls
The big questionShould we add radar to our new boat?
Learning curve‘We should have turned back sooner’
A question of seamanship‘How do we find our way without a plotter?’
CRUISING
AdventureFall in love with Antigua. Will Bruton discovers why it makes sense to explore the Caribbean by catamaran
AnchorageAn idyllic spot to drop the hook in Corsica’s Baie de Figari, where Rod Heikell finds peace and tranquility
A long weekendThe Isle of Man. Brian Black receives a warm welcome from this small but fascinating island
Cruising logsUp close and personal with puffins, and discovering the Deben’s delights
GEAR & BOATS
First testWauquiez PS 42. Not only is she a joy to sail, but the attention to detail on this luxury cruiser is beautiful
Group gear testDry bag backpacks. Nobody wants wet gear when heading ashore, so we find which packs work best
Find me a…45ft yacht for cruising the Med for less than £150k. One couple looks for a comfortable boat to keep abroad
New boatsTwo gorgeous new 46-footers launched this year
Tried & testedWe test the Scrubbis hull cleaning system for scrubbing off in the water
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Electronic circuits typically include a number of components. These components can be discrete devices, or provided as part of integrated circuits. Whether provided as discrete devices or integrated circuits, multiple electronic components are often interconnected to one another by placing those components on a common printed circuit board. In addition to providing a structural member to which components can be attached, a printed circuit board typically provides traces on one or more layers to conduct power and signals to and between attached components. When used in connection with implementing complex circuits, the design of the individual circuit boards can also become quite complex. In addition, where a large number of components are to be interconnected to a printed circuit board, the area of the board can become quite large, and a relatively large number of layers may be required to provide the necessary connective traces. In addition to providing conductive traces, certain electronic components can be integrated directly into a printed circuit board.
One consideration in the design of electronic circuits is the size of those circuits. In particular, by making devices smaller, certain performance parameters can be improved, and the device can be easier to package and transport. Also, it can be desirable to maintain electronic circuitry within size limits that are defined by certain components of a device implemented using the electronic circuitry or a component of that circuitry.
One example of electronic circuitry that can be quite complex, but that is desirably deployed within a relatively small area, is a phased array antenna. In a phased array antenna, multiple antenna elements or radiators are deployed across a surface. The size of each antenna element is generally determined by the intended operating frequency or frequencies of the antenna. Furthermore, as more antenna elements are provided, the antenna beam can be more narrowly focused and directed by applying selected phase delays to the signal comprising the beam that is delivered to (or received from) each of the antenna elements. That is, by varying the delay of a signal, the corresponding beam can be scanned along one dimension for a one dimensional array of antenna elements and along two dimensions for a two dimensional array of elements. In addition, the maximum scanning angle that can be provided by an antenna will increase as the space between antenna elements is decreased. Accordingly, the radiator or antenna elements of a phased array antenna generally occupy an area that is defined by the size of the individual antenna elements, the number of antenna elements, and the spacing between antenna elements.
Within the area defined by the antenna elements of a phased array antenna, on a side of a circuit board opposite the side on which the antenna elements are formed, circuits have been developed that allow the phase delay of two separate beams to be controlled. However, where a phased array antenna is intended for simultaneous communications with or tracking of a larger number of targets, it is desirable to increase the number of beams that can be individually controlled. This has been difficult or impossible to achieve using conventional techniques in connection with the circuit board on which the antenna elements are formed. In addition, because higher frequencies generally require a smaller antenna element, it has been especially difficult to provide supporting circuitry for systems designed to operate at high frequencies.
In order to provide the area necessary for complex beam forming networks, additional circuit boards containing components of the beam forming network can be placed behind the board on which the antenna elements are formed, for example on circuit boards arranged perpendicular to the antenna element boards. That is, the space available for circuitry can be expanded into three dimensions. Although such systems provide a place for the circuitry required to provide a number of steered beams, they do not address issues of design difficulty and ease of expansion. In particular, each board or other unit of circuitry typically includes elements that are unique to that board.
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Q:
Idea about RESTful server
Ok, I had this argument with a friend about on how do we tackle data process in a restful environment.
The main idea is the application sends a data which is a position of the device (lat & long) to the server and expected to ping back the nearest device.
My argument was the process of determining the "nearest device" in the latlong position should be done in the server and just ping back the latlong of the nearest device.
Friend said that the process should be like this.. the server will pingback a json of every device with its latlong and the client itself will then determine the which one is the nearest.
A:
Look at it this way:
A server is a datahub where all data is stored and processed.
A client is something that fetches data from a server, presents data to the user, and takes input from him.
Now you have to think about Seperation of Concerns. A client's job is to view data to a user, and take his input. A server's job is to process all data and transform it in such a way that a client needs to do minimal processing on it.
I.e. a client fetches some data from the server, all he should have to do now is show it on the screen. There should be minimal data processing on the client side. This is the server's job. The server's job is to make the client's job as easy as possible.
A client also has other things to do on the background (maybe also for other applications). It's CPU is not dedicated to your application, while your server's is.
What does a client need? The nearest device. What does the client ask the server? "Hey server, tell me what is the nearest device.". What should the server return? Exactly, the nearest device. Not a list of all devices which the client has to dig through himself.
|
/*
* Helper functionality for distributing a fixed total amount of
* an abstract resource among multiple coroutines.
*
* Copyright (c) 2019 Virtuozzo International GmbH
*
* Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining a copy
* of this software and associated documentation files (the "Software"), to deal
* in the Software without restriction, including without limitation the rights
* to use, copy, modify, merge, publish, distribute, sublicense, and/or sell
* copies of the Software, and to permit persons to whom the Software is
* furnished to do so, subject to the following conditions:
*
* The above copyright notice and this permission notice shall be included in
* all copies or substantial portions of the Software.
*
* THE SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED "AS IS", WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR
* IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY,
* FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND NONINFRINGEMENT. IN NO EVENT SHALL
* THE AUTHORS OR COPYRIGHT HOLDERS BE LIABLE FOR ANY CLAIM, DAMAGES OR OTHER
* LIABILITY, WHETHER IN AN ACTION OF CONTRACT, TORT OR OTHERWISE, ARISING FROM,
* OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE SOFTWARE OR THE USE OR OTHER DEALINGS IN
* THE SOFTWARE.
*/
#include "qemu/osdep.h"
#include "qemu/coroutine.h"
#include "qemu/co-shared-resource.h"
struct SharedResource {
uint64_t total;
uint64_t available;
CoQueue queue;
};
SharedResource *shres_create(uint64_t total)
{
SharedResource *s = g_new0(SharedResource, 1);
s->total = s->available = total;
qemu_co_queue_init(&s->queue);
return s;
}
void shres_destroy(SharedResource *s)
{
assert(s->available == s->total);
g_free(s);
}
bool co_try_get_from_shres(SharedResource *s, uint64_t n)
{
if (s->available >= n) {
s->available -= n;
return true;
}
return false;
}
void coroutine_fn co_get_from_shres(SharedResource *s, uint64_t n)
{
assert(n <= s->total);
while (!co_try_get_from_shres(s, n)) {
qemu_co_queue_wait(&s->queue, NULL);
}
}
void coroutine_fn co_put_to_shres(SharedResource *s, uint64_t n)
{
assert(s->total - s->available >= n);
s->available += n;
qemu_co_queue_restart_all(&s->queue);
}
|
[Changes in the lipid-accumulating cells of the liver during experimental hypervitaminosis A].
Changes of the fat-storing cells (FSC) in the liver have been studied after oil solution of vitamin A have been injected to intact rats, when Kupffer's cells have been blocked with colloid silver and stimulated with prodigiosan. During these experiments (on the 4th, 7th, 14th days) the amount of FSC does not change, and their size increases. The blockade of Kupffer's cells does not influence the dynamics of the FSC changes, and their stimulation contributes to lipid accumulation in their cytoplasm and to earlier revealing of these elements (on the 2d day of the experiment). In parallel with increasing size of FSC, fatty infiltration of hepatocytes disappears and reticular fibers accumulate in the perisinusoid space. Participation of FSC in lipid metabolism and in synthesis of the III type collagen is proved, as well as existence of intercellular interactions of these elements with endotheliocytes, Kupffer's cells and hepatocytes.
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Fridge repairer
I recently purchased a fridge off gumtree which turned out not to be working. I didn’t try it out as soon as I purchased it as I was still using my old one and now the seller has moved overseas so there is no recourse there. I did try calling him and he insisted that it worked, so not sure if it got damaged during transit but I doubt it.
The problem with it is that it doesn’t get cold (both freezer and fridge compartment). I left it on overnight to test it out.
I’m not sure now if I should get it repaired (if it costs too much then I probably won’t bother). I have spoken to Samsung, the manufacturer of the fridge and they have advised me of their preferred repairer in Fyshwick. I contacted them and they are quoting over $100 for a call out then $33 for every 15 mins plus parts
Would it be worth repairing? Does anyone have any recommendations for an honest cheap fridge repairer or should I just resell it on gumtree and hope that a handyman will buy it to fix up? Or should I just take this as a lesson learnt
You will find that most appliance repairers will charge a call-out fee (although not possibly not as much as Samsung) and then charge on a time-and-materials basis. The question of whether to repair the fridge is really up to you – why did you buy it, to replace your old fridge or as a garage/beer fridge? The Yellow Pages should have a good selection of potential repairers, but don’t forget to quote the model number and be as specific as you can about the problem. For example, does it make any noise to indicate that at least something is working? In my experience, the main thing that goes wring with fridges is the compressor. Once this is replaced, then the fridge should give many years of service. If the fridge is in otherwise good condition, then if it were me I’d take a punt and least find out what is wrong with it. You can then decide whether to proceed if the cost isn’t too much.
Did you lay it down when you picked it up and travelled with it? Has it been sitting in a shed and you have now placed it inside? (Was it standing upright in the shed?) Sometimes you have to leave them to sit after you have moved them from once place to another.
The easiest fault finding you can do is to listen if the compressor starts [can you hear the whirring noise from the back of the fridge?]. If the compressor hasn’t kicked in when the power is turned on, then it could point to many things like lack of gas, broken thermostat, clapped out compressor or a wiring fault. If it is a newer fridge, there is an auto-defrost thermostat that stops the cooling procedure and melts the ice away, this often plays up and prevents cooling also.
Can you see why they charge so much now, the fault finding process can be complex and accessing the parts even more so, with the myriad of parts to disassemble.
I definitely wouldn’t recommend pulling the thermostat apart and bridging wires together if you haven’t got an electrical background, especially if your house isn’t fitted with RCD protection, as death is a possible consequence.
Personally, I’d write it off and consider it a lesson learned, second hand electronic goods nowadays just aren’t worth the hassle whilst new appliances are almost the same cost as replacement parts and come with at least 12 months warranty.
Not that I am a tradie, but comments like this show how little people know about how the real world works. Think about what that $132/h pays for. It isn’t wages straight into that persons pocket. By the time you take into account everything that has to be paid out of it, it is probably closer to around $40-50 in the pocket as pay.
|
Li Song (politician)
Li Song (李崧) (d. December 12, 948), nickname Dachou (大醜), was an official of the Chinese Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period states Later Tang, Later Jin, and Later Han, as well as the Khitan Liao Dynasty. He was particularly prominent during Later Jin, when he served as chief of staff (Shumishi) and chancellor. During Later Han, he was falsely accused of treason and executed.
Background
It is not known when Li Song was born, but it is known that he was from Raoyang (饒陽, in modern Hengshui, Hebei). His father Li Shunqing (李舜卿) was the tactical officer at Shen Prefecture (深州, in modern Hengshui), which Raoyang belonged to. He had at least two younger brothers, Li Yu (李嶼) and Li Yi (李㠖). It was said that he was intelligent in his youth, and was writing artful texts even when he was in his teenage years, surprising his family members. Once he reached adulthood, he became an officer at Shen Prefecture. (Historical descriptions do not give dates, or even the sovereigns that he was under, during these events.)
During Later Tang
During Li Cunxu's reign
However, it is known that by 923 — at which time Li Cunxu had declared himself emperor of a new Later Tang and had commissioned his oldest son Li Jiji the defender of Zhending (真定, in modern Shijiazhuang, Hebei) and the director of Xingsheng Palace (興聖宮) — Li Song was serving on Li Jiji's staff as an officer. At that time, Li Jiji's secretary Li Rao (李蕘) was in charge of Li Jiji's correspondences. Li Song had seen some of Li Rao's writings and considered them poorly written, He secretly spoke with the head of Li Jiji's household, Lü Rou (呂柔), stating, "The Lord Chancellor [(as Li Jiji carried an honorary chancellor title)] is the Emperor's son. The whole realm looks at him. Both his correspondences and his records need to be logically and properly written. The drafts written by Censor Li [(as Li Rao carried an honorary censor title)] lacked perfection." Lü asked Li Song to try to write for Li Jiji on a trial basis, and then showed what Li Song had written to Li Cunxu's secretaries Lu Zhi (盧質) and Feng Dao, both of whom praised Li Song's writing. Li Song was therefore soon promoted to be the surveying officer for Xingsheng Palace, and put in charge of Li Jiji's correspondences. After Li Cunxu conquered archrival Later Liang later in the year and made Luoyang his capital, he gave Li Song the title of Xielü Lang (協律郎).
In 925, Li Cunxu commissioned Li Jiji, who carried the title of Prince of Wei by that point, as the supreme commander of an army against Later Tang's southwestern neighbor Former Shu, with the major general Guo Chongtao serving as Li Jiji's deputy and actually in charge of the operation. Li Jiji made Li Song his secretary on the campaign. The Later Tang army was soon able to destroy Former Shu. However, after Former Shu's fall, both Li Cunxu and his wife (Li Jiji's mother) Empress Liu suspected Guo of plotting rebellion, and Empress Liu, even though she did not have agreement from Li Cunxu, issued an order to Li Jiji that he kill Guo. Li Jiji, after receiving her order, ambushed Guo and killed him. Hearing this, Li Song quickly went to see Li Jiji, lamenting to him, "Now the army is 3,000 li away from the capital. Why did Your Royal Highness carry out the dangerous act of killing a major general without an imperial edict? Why cannot you wait until getting back to Luoyang?" Li Jiji responded that he regretted the decision, but it had already been done. Li Song then summoned several scribes and secretly forged an imperial edict, using Li Jiji's seal to pretend to be an imperial seal in stamping the edict. Only after that did the army acquiesce.
The deaths of Guo and, subsequently, his ally and fellow major general Zhu Youqian, however, spawned a number of mutinies in the Later Tang army. In summer 926, Li Cunxu was killed in a mutiny at Luoyang itself. His adoptive brother Li Siyuan entered Luoyang and claimed the title of regent. Li Jiji, who was then withdrawing his army back from Former Shu's capital Chengdu back to Luoyang, headed for Luoyang, trying to contend for imperial title, but his army began to desert him. He committed suicide, and the army subsequently returned to Luoyang under the command of his general Ren Huan and submitted to Li Siyuan.
During Li Siyuan's reign
Ren Huan subsequently became a chancellor for Li Siyuan. He also was in charge of the three financial agencies (taxation, treasury, and salt and iron monopolies), and he made Li Song his assistant for salt and iron monopolies. Later, when Li Song's mother died, Li Song left governmental service to observe a mourning period for her. After the mourning period was over, Fan Yanguang, who was then the military governor of Chengde Circuit (成德, headquartered at Zhending), made Li Song his secretary, in charge of the communications. When Fan was later recalled to the imperial government to serve as chief of staff (Shumishi), Li Song became a member of the office of chief of staff. While serving there, his title gradually rose from Shiyi (拾遺), to Bujue (補闕, both consultant titles), to imperial chronicler (起居郎, Qiju Lang), to a supervisory position at the executive bureau of government (尚書省, Shangshu Sheng). Near the end of Li Siyuan's Changxing era (930-933), Li Song became an imperial scholar (翰林學士, Hanlin Xueshi).
As of 932, Later Tang's northern rival Khitan Empire was making repeated incursions into Later Tang territory. Li Siyuan wanted an appropriate military governor for Hedong Circuit (河東, headquartered in modern Taiyuan, Shanxi) to combat the Khitan incursions. Li Siyuan's son-in-law Shi Jingtang, who wanted to avoid conflicts with Li Siyuan's oldest surviving son Li Congrong the Prince of Qin, wanted the Hedong military governorship, but Fan and his fellow chief of staff, Zhao Yanshou (also a son-in-law to Li Siyuan) wanted to commission the general Kang Yicheng (康義誠), and therefore the matter was unsettled for a while. During a meeting at the office of the chief of staff, it was Li Song who spoke up in favor of commissioning Shi. Li Siyuan happened to be sending emissaries to the meeting at that time to rush the decision, so Fan and Zhao acquiesced. Shi was then made the military governor of Hedong. When Shi became aware that it was Li Song who advocated for his commission, he sent Li Song a message of appreciation.
After Li Siyuan's reign
Li Siyuan died in 933 (after a disturbance in which Li Congrong tried to seize power but was defeated and killed). Another of his sons, Li Conghou the Prince of Song, succeeded him as emperor. In 934, LI Siyuan's adoptive son Li Congke the Prince of Lu overthrew Li Conghou and became emperor. Li Song became one of the officials Li Congke frequently consulted, along with Li Zhuanmei (李專美), Lü Qi (呂琦), Xue Wenyu (薛文遇), and Zhao Yan'ai (趙延乂).
Li Congke and Shi had long disliked each other. Li Congke frequently suspected Shi of plotting rebellion, and a major concern at the time in Li Congke's inner circle was that Shi would seek aid from the Khitan in such a rebellion. Li Song and Lü advocated entering into a peace treaty with the Khitan by returning a number of Khitan officers that Later Tang had earlier captured and giving a large amount of money to the Khitan. The chancellor Zhang Yanlang, who then oversaw the three financial agencies, supported the idea. Li Congke initially was in favor as well, and had Li Song and Lü draft a proposed letter to Khitan's Emperor Taizong to suggest the treaty. However, Xue opposed, and argued that the Khitan emperor would insist on having Li Congke's young daughter marry him (or his son). Li Congke thus changed his mind, and one day thereafter summoned Li Song and Lü to rebuke them. They apologized profusely and were spared, but their proposal was not considered again. Li Congke also distanced himself away from Lü, although apparently Li Song remained part of the inner circle.
Li Congke then considered moving Shi to another circuit. Then-chief of staff Fang Gao and Li Song (and Lü, prior to Lü's departure from his inner circle) all strenuously opposed, believing that would provoke Shi into a rebellion. However, one night, when Li Song was had the night off and Xue was on duty, Li Congke consulted Xue by himself, and Xue argued that Shi would eventually rebel anyway — that having him rebel earlier was better than having him rebel later. Li Congke agreed. Shortly after, he issued an edict moving Shi from Hedong to Tianping Circuit (天平, headquartered in modern Tai'an, Shandong). Shi, as expected, rebelled and sought aid from Khitan's Emperor Taizong. Emperor Taizong launched an army to aid him, and their joint forces defeated the Later Tang army Li Congke sent, under the command of the general Zhang Jingda. Zhang was killed by his deputy Yang Guangyuan, who then surrendered to the joint Khitan/Hedong forces. Emperor Taizong declared Shi the emperor of a new Later Jin, and they advanced south. Believing the situation to be hopeless, Li Congke committed suicide with his family, ending Later Tang. Shi entered Luoyang and took over Later Tang territory.
During Later Jin
During Shi Jingtang's reign
At the time that Shi Jingtang entered Luoyang, Li Song and Lü Qi hid themselves among the people at Yijue (伊闕, in modern Luoyang). Shi discovered this. He was still grateful to Li Song for having spoken for his military governorship at Hedong and also respected Lü for what he believed to be Lü's correct recommendation to Li Congke to enter into a peace treaty with the Khitan, and therefore restored both of them to governmental positions. In Li Song's case, he was made the deputy minister of defense (兵部侍郎, Bingbu Shilang) and put in charge of taxation. Shortly after, he further promoted Li Song to be Zhongshu Shilang (中書侍郎, the deputy head of the legislative bureau (中書省, Zhongshu Sheng)) as well as chancellor, with the designation of Tong Zhongshu Menxia Pingzhangshi (同中書門下平章事). He was also made chief of staff, serving with Sang Weihan. However, this displeased Liu Churang (who wanted to be chief of staff) and Yang Guangyuan, who was then sieging Fan Yanguang at Tianxiong Circuit (天雄, headquartered in modern Handan, Hebei) as Fan had rebelled against Shi earlier in the year (as Sang was putting curbs on Yang's power). Yang thus submitted a petition arguing that chancellors should not also be chiefs of staff. Shi felt compelled to remove both Sang and Li Song as chiefs of staff. Li Song was given the additional title of minister of public works (工部尚書, Gongbu Shangshu), while Liu was made chief of staff.
In 941, Shi made his general Liu Zhiyuan, who was then the commander of the imperial guards, the military governor of Hedong. At the recommendations of Li Song and Feng Dao (who was then also chancellor), Shi's brother-in-law Du Chongwei, whom Liu despised, succeeded Liu as the commander of the imperial guards. It was said that Liu resented Li and Feng from this point on. Li accompanied Shi to Yedu (鄴都, i.e., Tianxiong's capital, also known as Wei Prefecture (魏州)) later in the year, as Shi was then anticipating a rebellion by An Chongrong the military governor of Chengde. Apparently while Li was at Yedu, his father died, and he left governmental service briefly to observe a mourning period, but Shi immediately recalled him to the imperial government without a lengthy mourning period.
During Shi Chonggui's reign
Shi Jingtang died in summer 941 and was succeeded as emperor by his nephew Shi Chonggui the Prince of Qi. One immediate question was how the Later Jin court would report this news to Emperor Taizong (who had changed his state's name from Khitan to Liao by this point). Shi Jingtang had earlier, not only submitted to Liao as a subject, but referred to Emperor Taizong as "father emperor" while referring to himself as "son emperor." The officials largely wanted Shi Chonggui to submit a report (as a subject) and refer to himself as "subject." The general Jing Yanguang, who supported Shi Chonggui's ascendency and who was then made a chancellor as well, however, opposed, suggesting that Shi Chonggui merely write a letter (i.e., to show equality between the states, rather than submission) in which he would merely refer to himself as "grandson" and not subject. Li Song opposed Jing, pointing out that this would lead to discord and war between the two states. Feng Dao took no position, and Shi Chonggui eventually agreed with Jing. This led to Emperor Taizong to angrily respond, through an emissary, "How do you dare to take the throne without first reporting to me?" Jing authored the response, with rudeness, to that rebuke, precipitating an eventual war between Later Jin and Liao, particularly given that Zhao Yanshou, then a Liao general, was urging Emperor Taizong to wage a war, as he himself wanted to become emperor of China.
By 944, Sang Weihan was again chief of staff and chancellor, and was said to control the army with discipline, enabling its effectiveness in battles against Liao. Shi Chonggui's brother-in-law Feng Yu and another close associate, Li Yantao (李彥韜), however, disliked Sang, and frequently defamed him before Shi. Shi thus considered removing Sang, but did not do so, at the urging of Li Song and Liu Xu. However, he made Feng also a chief of staff, to divide Sang's power. In late 945, Shi finally removed Sang as chief of staff and chancellor, making him the mayor of then-capital Kaifeng. Li Song was made chief of staff to replace Sang in that capacity, while Zhao Ying, who already carried a chancellor title but was acting as mayor of Kaifeng, was made full chancellor to replace Sang in that capacity.
In 946, Emperor Taizong decided to create a trap for Later Jin. He spread false news that Zhao Yanshou was intending to defect to Later Jin, rumors that were believed by Feng and Li Song. They had Du Chongwei (whose name had been changed to Du Wei by that point due to naming taboo for Shi Chonggui's name), who was then the military governor of Tianxiong, write a secret letter to Zhao, to see if Zhao intended to defect. Zhao, who was part of Emperor Taizong's plan, wrote back and indicated that, indeed, he wanted to defect, along with his Lulong Circuit (盧龍, headquartered in Beijing — which had previously been Later Tang territory but which Shi Jingtang, as part of the agreement in which Emperor Taizong aided him to become emperor, ceded to Emperor Taizong); in his letter, he asked for a major Later Jin army to be launched to support his defection. After discussions between Shi Chonggui, Feng, and Li Song, it was agreed that a large army would be launched, commanded by Du, with Li Shouzhen serving as his deputy. (This was opposed by Zhao Ying, who believed that Du was untrustworthy due to his unthankful nature, but Zhao Ying was not listened to.)
Du's army was soon launched, but as it approached Liao territory, was met by a large, highly mobile Liao army commanded by Emperor Taizong himself. It tried to retreat, but became encircled by the Liao army at Zhongdu Bridge (中度橋, in modern Baoding, Hebei). After Emperor Taizong made a promise (which he would eventually repudiate) to have Du made emperor, Du and Li Shouzhen surrendered with their army. As virtually the entire Later Jin imperial army was under Du's command, Kaifeng was left defenseless, and the Liao army advanced quickly toward it. Shi Chonggui surrendered, ending Later Jin.
During Liao
After Kaifeng's fall to Liao, Shi Chonggui and his family (including Shi Jingtang's wife Empress Dowager Li) were put under house arrest by the Liao general (formerly a subordinate of Du Wei's), Zhang Yanze, whom Emperor Taizong sent as forward commander to take control of the city. Li Song took a dissociative approach as far as his former emperor was concerned — including finding excuses not to go when Shi requested the presence of both him and Li Yantao. Emperor Taizong soon arrived at Kaifeng and claimed to be the emperor of China as well. With both Zhao Yanshou and Zhang Li recommending Li Song for his talent, Emperor Taizong made Li Song a chief of staff, and also gave him the honorary title Taizi Taishi (太子太師). Emperor Taizong made the comment, "All I gained by destroying the southern dynasty was Li Song."
Meanwhile, Zhao, finally realizing that Emperor Taizong had no intent on fulfilling his promise to make Zhao emperor of China, had Li Song request, on his behalf, for him to be made crown prince. Emperor Taizong, citing the fact that the Crown Prince should be a son of the emperor, also refused that request, although he gave Zhao a number of additional honorary titles.
Initially, nearly all of Later Jin military governors submitted to Emperor Taizong, but with Emperor Taizong allowing the ethnic Khitan soldiers to pillage the Central Plains region, many Han rebellions soon overtook the territory. Tiring of dealing with these rebellions, he decided to leave his brother-in-law Xiao Han in charge at Kaifeng, while he himself headed back to Liao's main territory. On the way, however, he fell ill, and died near Chengde's capital Heng Prefecture (恆州, i.e., Zhending).
In the aftermaths of Emperor Taizong's death, Zhao wanted to seize what remained of Liao-controlled former Later Jin territory, but not wanting to yet break with Liao, he only claimed that Emperor Taizong left an edict authorizing him to oversee the southern court (i.e., the former Later Jin territory). At the same time, unknown to Zhao, the Khitan generals at Heng were secretly meeting and agreed to support Emperor Taizong's nephew Yelü Ruan the Prince of Yongkang as the new emperor. Unaware of this development, Zhao prepared to hold a semi-imperial ascension ceremony, in which the officials and generals would all bow to him. Li Song, pointing out to him that it was uncertain whether the Khitan generals would agree, persuaded him not to hold the ceremony. Shortly after, Yelü Ruan used trickery to arrest Zhao, and commented to Zhang Li that had Li Song not talked Zhao out of holding the ceremony, the Khitan army would have overrun the ceremony and killed everyone present. He then declared himself emperor (as Emperor Shizong).
Emperor Shizong's succession to the Liao throne was immediately contested by his grandmother (the mother of both Emperor Taizong and his father, Yelü Bei), who wanted another son of hers, Yelü Lihu, to succeed to the throne. Emperor Shizong headed back to Liao's main territory to engage his grandmother's army, while leaving a Khitan army, along with the remainder of the captured Han army, as well as most of the Han officials (including Li Song and fellow captured chancellors Feng Dao and He Ning), at Heng, leaving Emperor Taizong's cousin Yelü Mada (耶律麻荅) in charge at Heng. Yelü Mada mistreated both the people of the region and the Han soldiers. When Emperor Shizong subsequently sent emissaries to summon Feng, He, and Li Song to join him for Emperor Taizong's funeral, the Han soldiers decided to mutiny, and a street battle developed in Heng. The battle initially did not go well for the Han mutineers, but the official Li Gu persuaded Feng, Li Song, and He to appear at the battle. When the Han soldiers saw the chancellors, their morale was greatly increased, and they eventually defeated the Khitan soldiers under Yelü Mada, who fled back to Liao territory. In the aftermaths of the battle, the city became controlled by the officer Bai Zairong (白再榮), who had the soldiers surround Li Song's and He's residences, demanding treasury. Li Song and He surrendered all their treasure, but Bai then considered killing them to prevent reprisal later, but Li Gu talked him out of it, pointing out that the new emperor (i.e., Liu Zhiyuan, who had established Later Han and taken over the Central Plains by this point) would punish him if he frivolously killed the chancellors. Bai therefore did not kill them.
During Later Han
After the Heng mutiny, Li Song, along with Feng Dao and He Ning, returned to Kaifeng to submit to Liu Zhiyuan. None of them, however, was given a key position, but only honorific titles — in Li Song's case, Taizi Taifu (太子太傅).
While Li Song was with the Liao army at Heng, however, Liu, apparently believing that both Feng and Li Song had turned their loyalty over to Liao, awarded their mansions at Kaifeng to his key followers (and by this point, chancellors) Su Yugui and Su Fengji, respectively. Su Fengji thus also took control of all of the precious items that Li Song had collected over the years, and further seized Li Song's mansion at Luoyang. After Li Song's return to Later Han, he knew that he lacked allies at the Later Han court, and therefore was carefully dealing with the new powerful Later Han officials with respect. However, his brothers Li Yu and Li Yi were not as careful, and, as they were colleagues at the Later Han court with Su Fengji's brothers and sons, they were occasionally drinking together, and they made such statements as, "You seized our houses and savings!" Su Fengji thus began to be apprehensive of Li Song. When Li Song then offered the deeds of the mansions to Su, rather than being soothed, Su was further displeased.
In 948, by which time Liu Zhiyuan had died, and his son Liu Chengyou was emperor, there was a time when Li Yu had discovered his servant Ge Yanyu (葛延遇) to be embezzling from him, and was trying to force Ge to return the embezzled funds. Ge thus decided to, in conjunction with Su's servant Li Cheng (李澄), accuse Li Yu of treason. Su then put Li Song under arrest as well. Subsequently, under torture, Li Yu wrote out a confession in which he implicated not only himself, but Li Song and Li Yi, as well as his nephew Wang Ning (王凝), of plotting a rebellion at Kaifeng, in conspiracy with Li Shouzhen, who had earlier rebelled at Huguo Circuit (護國, headquartered in modern Yuncheng, Shanxi), and Liao. Li Song, believing that he could not escape, also confessed. His entire family was executed, and the people lamented for them.
Notes and references
Old History of the Five Dynasties, vol. 108.
New History of the Five Dynasties, vol. 57.
Zizhi Tongjian, vols. 274, 278, 279, 280, 281, 282, 283, 284, 285, 286, 287, 288.
Category:948 deaths
Category:Politicians from Hengshui
Category:Generals from Hebei
Category:Executed people from Hebei
Category:People executed by Later Han (Five Dynasties)
Category:People executed by a Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms state by decapitation
Category:Later Tang politicians
Category:Later Jin (Five Dynasties) chancellors
Category:Later Jin (Five Dynasties) shumishi
Category:Liao dynasty shumishi
Category:Later Han (Five Dynasties) politicians
Category:Zhao (Five Dynasties period) people
Category:Jin (Later Tang precursor) people
Category:Executed Later Han (Five Dynasties) people
Category:Year of birth missing
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When you look at his production, Alex Burrows appears to be a bonafide top-line forward and an elite offensive talent. In the past four seasons, for example, he has recorded as many five-on-five markers as Corey Perry (97), and he's scored more often than the likes of elite-wingers Phil Kessel, James Neil and Zach Parise* over that time frame. He's been the tenth most efficient even-strength goal scorer over the past handful of seasons, and no one else on that list made anywhere in the neighbourhood of the 2 million per that Burrows has brought home the past three seasons.
(*) Zach Parise's inclusion should be qualified since he missed the majority of the 2010-11 campaign.
Burrows scores like Perry, but gets paid like Alexei Ponikarovsky, and with his contract expiring after the 2011-12 season, he's clearly in-line for a sizable raise either this summer, or next. Of course, because Burrows has scored so many of his goals playing with two of the best passing forwards in the game, it's tough to determine how much value he brings on his own.
Read past the jump.
There's no doubt that Burrows' is a legitimate top-six forward at the NHL level, but production aside, I don't think Burrows brings "elite offensive forward" value to a hockey club. It's that gap between Burrows' "true talent" and his sky-high production that will make his next contract so interesting.
Over the past three seasons, the twins and Alex Burrows have been joined at the hip. Occasionally the likes of Jannik Hansen or Mikael Samuelsson have been given Burrows' assignment for a few games, but Burrows and the twins are a pretty solid unit. Burrows has spent only about 600 of his even-strength minutes skating without the twins over the past three seasons, which, just isn't a big enough sample to really tell us much of anything.
So let's go back to the 2008-09 campaign, which, gives us a roughly 1400 minute sample to work with (in terms of Burrows' Sedin independent ice-time) and run a With or Without You (WOWY) test. The below table is broken down in terms of ice-time, Corsi percentage and goal differential (rated per sixty minutes).
For newer readers, or those who are skeptical of advanced analysis in hockey, a "Corsi" number is simply an expanded plus/minus number that counts all on-ice events (shots, missed shots, goals, blocked shots) rather than simply goals. By counting a larger sample of occurrences, Corsi is a crude tool to measure offensive zone ice-time and gives us a clearer view of which players are winning the on-ice battles or making the smart plays that contribute to quality puck possession. All of the numbers that appear in the table below are taken from David Johnston's excellent Hockey Analysis site.
One final qualifier, I used Henrik and Burrows rather than Daniel-Burrows for the WOWY because Henrik Sedin never ever misses a game, so the sample is somewhat larger.
2008-09 to 2011-12
TOI
Corsi %
GF
GA
GF/60
GA/60
Differential
Diff/60
Burrows With Henrik
2772: 41
57.26
169
88
3.66
1.9
+81
+1.76
Burrows Without Henrik
1367: 59
50.9
48
51
2.11
2.24
- 3
- 0.13
Henrik Without Burrows
1787: 59
53.48
105
70
3.52
2.35
+35
+1.17
Well isn't it a surprise that Alex Burrows isn't exactly "driving the bus" offensively on Vancouver's top-line!
As you can see, it's the twins who make the top-line special - both from the perspective of offensive production and puck possession. The gap in Corsi percentage should be qualified, however, since the Sedins are deployed almost exclusively in the offensive end no matter what, whereas Burrows is likely to play in a more two-way role (usually with Kesler) when he's removed from the top-line. Nonetheless, it's clear that Burrows' isn't quite an elite offensive talent when he's deployed without the twins.
That said, the twins are more productive with Burrows on the ice than they are without him, they're better at driving play and they give up significantly less the other way. The Sedin twins are the celebrated All-Stars for a reason, but it's also clear from both the numbers and the eye-test, that Burrows' presence does something to amplify their effectiveness.
Truly elite offensive talent, or not, what Burrows brings to the table is pretty significant: he's a plus possession player who is consistently in the top-25 in even-strength goal scoring. He's also dynamite on the penalty-kill, is known for being "clutch" (despite clutch not existing), and has a special type of chemistry with the twins. On the negative side, Burrows has got a bad reputation around the league as an occasional cheap-shot artist and embellisher, and he's not a particularly effective power-play presence, but those are minor quibbles and do nothing to negate his all around positive value.
So where should we expect Burrows' future cap-hit to end up? You have to think he's worth at least Brandon Dubinsky/Scott Hartnell money (4.2 cap-hit), though if Shane Doan and his relatively meagre production is going to be worth 7+ million on the open market, then all bets are off.
Ideally, the Canucks will try and get Burrows to take a hometown discount, and sign for something like 3 years at between 13 and 15 million (that would give him a cap-hit in between 4.33 and 5 million), even though he's probably worth well north of that.
If that number gives you sticker shock, consider that what Burrows brings to the table in terms of his play with the twins and his defensive reliability, tends to be expensive to replace through trade or free-agency. Also, unlike with a player like Alex Edler, Burrows' consistency is uncanny. While he's getting up there in age and will turn 32 next season, I don't think I'd hesitate to lock Burrows up for two or three more seasons at somewhere in the neighbourhood of 4.5 million per season.
Thomas Drance lives in Toronto, eats spicy food and writes about hockey. He is the editor in chief of the Nation Network (a.k.a Overlord), and an opinionated blowhard to boot. You can follow him on twitter @thomasdrance.
4.5-5 sounds perfect for Burrows. It'll probably take a 4 year term for him to sign in this range.
At 2 million per, he's been the best dollar for dollar deal out there.
The fact that he doesn't have many friends outside of the Canucks organization is a positive for the Nucks.
He's such a versatile player , he can keep up with the Sedins(his offensive numbers are definitely inflated because of his time with the twins) he can shut down top PPs with Kesler, and if you need him to grind it out on the 3rd line...he can do that too.
What about signing Burrows to a longer-term deal at a significant home town discount? Burrows is getting older but has a few good years of offensive talent left in him, and will certainly be usable in a bottom-six role for a few years after that. Give him a five or six year front-loaded deal, lock him up until he's 37 or so, take a ~$3 million cap hit, pay him $5 million or something over the next two years then drop down to ~$2 million for the last couple of years.
Be nice to see Burrows spend his whole career with the Canucks. He's a team guy and would probably take a deal like that for the security and flexibility it gives him and the team over the long term.
If winning is all about cap efficiencies and one of our most efficient spending areas has been on wingers, why are we suddenly blowing that up for Booth + Burrows. I get the Booth 'mythical beast' gamble, but that's never going to happen with Burrows. If we then add Doan, gives us so much less maneuverability looking for a 3rd line C, particularly considering we're still likely to get a bad contract in the Luongo trade and our other FAs will be looking for big pay rises.
He's been good and looking at his contract in isolation, 4.5 looks OK but in the big picture, a longer term lower hit makes sense.
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Molecular basis for structural heterogeneity of an intrinsically disordered protein bound to a partner by combined ESI-IM-MS and modeling.
Intrinsically disordered proteins (IDPs) form biologically active complexes that can retain a high degree of conformational disorder, escaping structural characterization by conventional approaches. An example is offered by the complex between the intrinsically disordered N(TAIL) domain and the phosphoprotein X domain (P(XD)) from measles virus (MeV). Here, distinct conformers of the complex are detected by electrospray ionization-mass spectrometry (ESI-MS) and ion mobility (IM) techniques yielding estimates for the solvent-accessible surface area (SASA) in solution and the average collision cross-section (CCS) in the gas phase. Computational modeling of the complex in solution, based on experimental constraints, provides atomic-resolution structural models featuring different levels of compactness. The resulting models indicate high structural heterogeneity. The intermolecular interactions are predominantly hydrophobic, not only in the ordered core of the complex, but also in the dynamic, disordered regions. Electrostatic interactions become involved in the more compact states. This system represents an illustrative example of a hydrophobic complex that could be directly detected in the gas phase by native mass spectrometry. This work represents the first attempt to modeling the entire N(TAIL) domain bound to P(XD) at atomic resolution.
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[Treatment of symptomatic vasospasm with GIK (glucose-insulin-potassium) infusion].
GIK (glucose-insulin-potassium) solution has been administered to myocardial infarction patients as a polarizing therapy, but the effects of GIK administration on vasospasm after subarachnoid hemorrhage have never been reported. We used GIK solution to treat 7 cases of symptomatic vasospasm with congestive heart failure due to hypervolemia-hypertensive treatment. The GIK solution, composed of 200cc of 50% glucose solution, 250cc of water, 40 mEq of KCl, and 20 units of actrapid insulin, was administered continuously through a central venous catheter. The GIK therapy improved congestive heart failure following elevation of cardiac output in 7 cases, and simultaneously stabilized the serum glucose level within the range of 88-175 mg/dl. After GIK administration, remarkable improvement in the consciousness level was achieved in all cases, and cerebral infarction due to vasospasm appeared in only one case in spite of severe subarachnoid hemorrhage. It is thought that GIK therapy will be effective in the treatment of symptomatic vasospasm with congestive heart failure through the normalization of hemodynamics, the improvement of hyperglycemia and protection against cerebral ischemia.
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Steam In-Home Streaming Monopolizes Host Computer
Valve announced last week that their new Steam feature will be moving into beta before the end of the year. Today, a Q&A with more information on the streaming service was released.
While a game is being streamed from your PC or Mac to another device, the host computer is unable to be used. According to the Q&A, the stream monopolizes the computer as it “is dedicated to running the game and input is coming from both the remote client and the local system.”
Streaming is also not accomplished via the internet. The streaming feature is designed for home-streaming. Internet streaming isn’t supported at the moment, forcing gamers to use local networks. Eventually, Valve hopes to combine this streaming feature with their Steam Machines and SteamOS to create an open gaming network.
If you’d like a chance to participate in the beta and check out In-Home Streaming for yourself, you can join the Homestream group on Steam. Participants will be randomly selected from Steam account-holders who are members of this group.
But, for now, all we can do is speculate. What are your thoughts on the Steam In-Home Streaming feature?
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One of the methods currently used for the in-flight refueling of aircraft comprises the use of a boom provided with an internal section with capacity for telescopic extension via which aircraft fuel is transferred by means of an internal line from the tanker aircraft to the receiving aircraft. The boom is connected to the tanker aircraft by means of a hinged system provided with two degrees of freedom and is equipped with a set of movable aerodynamic surfaces or fins which, by means of independent variations of the incidence of each of them relative to the incident air flow, enables the operator of the system to position the boom in the conditions of desired attitude. The limit of the attitude envelope attainable depends on the maximum capacity of said fins for generating forces that make it possible to balance the set of aerodynamic, inertial and gravitational effects relative to the linkage of the system.
Movement of the boom from one position of equilibrium in space to another is effected by using these fins, with their initial and final positions corresponding to those that balance the boom in both spatial conditions. Said movement is a movement of rotation about each of the two axes defined by the two degrees of freedom of the linkage (elevation-roll or elevation-azimuth). The dynamic characteristics of said system correspond to a modal description characterized by a very low damping ratio. Consequently this movement generated by a direct change of fins from that corresponding to equilibrium in one spatial position to another spatial position involves an oscillatory movement of the boom with very little damping.
To accomplish the precise and predictable operation of tracking of the refueling socket or receiver of the receiving aircraft, without running the risk of causing an impact between the recipient and the boom, it is necessary for the movement of the latter to be sufficiently damped.
For achieving this aim, the prior art employs electrical control systems (fly-by-wire), with functions for increasing stability and control, in such a way that the dynamics of movement, by means of said control system, has the desired characteristics for performing the task of tracking the receiver. An electrical flight control system comprises: Elements for measuring movement and/or position of the platform to be controlled, called sensors. A control element in the operator's cabin, generally a joystick, for controlling the movements required by the operator. Actuating elements that generate the movement of the control elements of the platform, in this case the aerodynamic surfaces. An on-board computer or calculating system with on-board software that includes algorithms which, when supplied with the orders generated by the operator, together with the measurements of movement and/or position of the equipment, generate a command for movement of the control elements, via their actuating systems.
The algorithms implemented in the on-board computer are directed towards modification of the natural dynamics of the equipment to be controlled as well as provision of other functions such as a manoeuvre or position demand system.
In the case of the in-flight refueling boom system, the control algorithms must perform a basic function of increasing the damping of the basic equipment, from a very low value, close to zero, up to a value compatible with a rapid and predictable response without oscillations or exceeding of the final value demanded. This desired response is associated with appropriate operating conditions for performing the task without requiring significant compensation of the dynamics of the equipment by the operator.
The increase in damping is achieved by means of a command for movement of the aerodynamic fins so that they generate a load, producing an overall force on the boom that tends to oppose the angular movement of the latter. The damping effect is achieved by means of a fin movement of a magnitude related to the angular velocity (normally a proportional relation) and opposite in direction to this angular movement. The basic characteristics of the refueling system necessitate increased damping of the angular movements defined by both linkages (elevation-roll or elevation-azimuth).
Owing to the fact that in the design of the refueling probe the length of the probe predominates, as well as its lowest possible weight, the structural characteristics of the boom are characterized by particular modes with extremely low frequencies. These frequencies are close to the natural frequencies that define the movement of the boom as a rigid solid about the linkage and the frequency of control thereof used by the operator for controlling said movement. These flexible modes are also characterized by a very low damping ratio, exhibiting a very characteristic resonance frequency with a high level of amplification of the response if excited at said natural frequency.
The flexible modes of the probe are excited when subjected to external loads, such as the forces generated by the fins in the process for controlling the position of the boom. The excitation through movement of the aerodynamic surfaces has two origins: one due to the change in aerodynamic load on changing its angle of incidence, the other due to the inertial loads caused by rotation about its axis of rotation. In the case of the in-flight refueling boom, the effect of generation of aerodynamic load is dominant.
The elements of the flight control system that detect the movement of the boom measure the movement of the section of the boom where the measuring elements are located, detecting both the movement as a rigid solid, the control object thereof, and the movement associated with the flexible vibration of the structure.
Therefore the control algorithms are fed with the rigid and elastic movements, which are converted by these algorithms into a demand for movement of the aerodynamic fins. By their movement, these in their turn generate new forces which in addition to acting on the movement of the boom as a rigid solid, once again excite the structural modes. This combination of rigid and elastic movements is fed again to the control system, and a coupling effect is produced. The effect of coupling of the flexible movement of the structure with a control function as a rigid solid is called “structural coupling”.
The excitation of the structure through movement of the aerodynamic fins decreases as the frequency increases, owing to the natural attenuation of the actuating system, as well as the intrinsic capacity for generation of aerodynamic force.
This effect of feedback of the movement must be such that the resultant dynamics are stable, and must moreover guarantee a margin relative to the condition of instability of the complete system, formed by the equipment to be controlled plus its control system. In the qualification of system airworthiness, minimum stability margins are specified both in the control of the rigid modes, and in the stability of the flexible modes.
In the phenomenon of structural coupling, the closeness of the rigid and the flexible control frequencies is critical, therefore the first flexible modes are of low frequency and are relevant to the phenomenon. The dominant flexible mode will be regarded as that having greatest influence on the problem of structural coupling, i.e. by its frequency, by a low damping ratio, by excitation due to the deflection of aerodynamic fins or by its detection by means of the elements for measuring movement or position.
A first measure for reducing this phenomenon is to locate the measuring systems in positions that are not altered by the movement due to the flexible modes relevant to the phenomenon, or even to locate the control surfaces at a point of less excitation of the structure. Whereas the location of the elements for measuring movement can at times have some flexibility during design, the positioning of the control surfaces has to satisfy the capacity for control and balancing of the equipment. In any case, positioning of the measuring elements in a position that is not altered by the movement due to the relevant flexible modes is not a robust solution owing to the change of these modes with possible changes in configuration of the equipment, as is the case with the movement of extension of the telescopic tube in the case of the refueling boom.
In the case of the boom, the aerodynamic fins must be positioned to be sufficiently remote from the linkage to produce a balancing moment about the linkage by means of a force that is as small as possible. The measuring elements can be located in the sections that interfere as little as possible with the transverse section of the boom, so that the aerodynamic drag does not increase significantly. These can be positioned at the root of the boom and in the section with the fins.
The usual techniques for avoiding the phenomenon of structural coupling are based on performing signal filtering, whether those obtained via the measuring systems, and the signals for command of fin movement, in such a way that there is no change in content of the signal with respect to measurement of rigid movement. The negative effect of said filtering is that the more we wish to attenuate the content of the flexible signal at high frequency, the more phase lag is induced in the signal in the range of control frequencies as a rigid solid. This phase lag means that the maximum damping ratio that could be obtained by means of feedback is limited. The greater the phase lag, the lower will be the maximum damping ratio attainable by means of feedback, and therefore the handling qualities that can be achieved will be poorer.
In the case of the in-flight refueling probe, the closeness of the flexible frequencies and the control frequencies means that the usual method of filtering cannot be used for simultaneously achieving the objectives of guaranteeing the required stability margins and providing adequate handling characteristics for performing the task of tracking of the receiver. The present invention aims to correct this shortcoming.
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Change in career aspirations and job values from study time to working life.
The main aim of this paper is to uncover whether the actual career choices and job values of newly qualified nurses are in accordance with the predictions they made at the commencement of their nursing education. A cohort of Norwegian nurse students was followed from the beginning of their education in 1998 through nursing school and 2,years after graduating. Questionnaire data from 221 nursing students at three points in time: 1998, 2001 and 2003 were analysed with frequency distributions and paired samples t-tests. For 140 respondents data from all three points were available. Initially motives like human contact, helping others, job security were important, and 92% had a wish for further education. Career preferences were often midwifery, public heath and nursing practice in high tech areas. Towards the end of the bachelor course (2001), there was more ambiguity in the helping motives. On one hand, the students wanted to be altruistic but on the other hand, they wanted gratitude in return when giving help to patients. Seventy five per cent of the students had plans for further education within a period of about 2 years after graduation. Midwifery, public health work and high tech practice were still preferred. Findings from 2003 indicated only 16% had started or finished further education 2 years after graduation. When appraising future job challenges in 2001 and 2003, there is a decrease in emphasis on the values human contact and part-time work and an increase in emphasis on high salary and job security. During the student period, the bachelor programme was regarded as a basis for further education, but 2 years after graduation only 16% had realized further education. Preferences related to job values regarding a prospective job reveal a decrease in the importance of human contact and an increase in the importance of a high salary and job security from 2001 to 2003.
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Q:
How to change SVG pattern image dynamically with javascript on hyperlink click
I have looked and not found a suitable answer for this. I have found answers for changing fill color but not the pattern images.
Fiddle
JAVASCRIPT
$("a#changePattern").click(function(){
var value = $('#pattern');
value.setAttributeNS('http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink', 'xlink:href', 'http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-zX0zs-7rHOM/UJ2halaWKlI/AAAAAAAACXg/2rape7g5Y6c/s320/tiling7small.jpg');
});
HTML
<a href='#' id='changePattern'>change pattern</a>
<svg version="1.1" id="レイヤー_1"
xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" x="0px" y="0px" width="105.513px"
height="80.789px" viewBox="0 0 105.513 80.789" style="enable-background:new 0 0 105.513 80.789;" xml:space="preserve">
<defs>
<pattern id='pattern' patternUnits='userSpaceOnUse' width='10' height='10'>
<image xlink:href='http://3.bp.blogspot.com/--4FM7pgC20Q/UKSCRo5QaII/AAAAAAAACa8/uh8wEsX7naM/s1600/new-tiling-1.jpeg' x='0'y='0'width='10px'height='10px' />
</pattern>
</defs>
<polygon style="fill:url(#pattern); stroke:#060001;stroke-width:0.15;" points="64.392,52.845 0.878,79.872 23.175,20.413 104.256,0.818 "/>
</svg>
I need to be able to change multiple patterns in a svg image without reloading the page.
Is this possible?
A:
You can do this with jQuery (which I think you were already trying to use but did not import it in jsFiddle):
Link to fiddle
Js code
$("#changePattern").click(function(){
var value = $('#pattern image'); // select 'image' tag inside element with id 'pattern'
value.attr('xlink:href', 'http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-zX0zs-7rHOM/UJ2halaWKlI/AAAAAAAACXg/2rape7g5Y6c/s320/tiling7small.jpg');
});
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Submitted by Jim Quinn via The Burning Platform blog,
Last week the government reported personal income and spending for April. After months of blaming non-existent consumer spending on cold weather, shockingly occurring during the Winter, the captured mainstream media pundits, Ivy League educated Wall Street economist lackeys, and Keynesian loving money printers at the Fed have run out of propaganda to explain why Americans are not spending money they don’t have. The corporate mainstream media is now visibly angry with the American people for not doing what the Ivy League propagated Keynesian academic models say they should be doing.
The ultimate mouthpiece for the banking cabal, Jon Hilsenrath, who does the bidding of the Federal Reserve at the Rupert Murdoch owned Wall Street Journal, wrote an arrogant, condescending, putrid diatribe, directed at the middle class victims of Wall Street banker criminality and Federal Reserve acquiescence to the vested corporate interests that run this country. Here are the more disgusting portions of his denunciation of the formerly middle class working people of America.
We know you experienced a terrible shock when Lehman Brothers collapsed in 2008 and your employer responded by firing you.
We also know you shouldn’t have taken out that large second mortgage during the housing boom to fix up your kitchen with granite counter-tops.
You should feel lucky you’re not a Greek consumer.
Fed officials want to start raising the cost of your borrowing because they worry they’ve been giving you a free ride for too long with zero interest rates.
We listen to Fed officials all of the time here at The Wall Street Journal, and they just can’t figure you out.
Please let us know the problem.
The Wall Street Journal was swamped with thousands of angry responses from irate real people living in the real world, not the elite, QE enriched, oligarchs living in Manhattan penthouses, mansions on the Hamptons, or luxury condos in Washington, D.C. Hilsenrath presumes to know how the average American has been impacted by the criminal actions of sycophantic Ivy League educated central bankers and their avaricious Wall Street owners.
He thinks millions of Americans losing their jobs and their homes due to the largest control fraud in financial history is fodder for a tongue in cheek harangue, blaming the victims for the crime. Hilsenrath reveals he is nothing but a Fed flunky who is fed whatever message they want the plebs to hear. His job is to obscure, obfuscate, spread disinformation, and launch Fed trial balloons to see whether the ignorant masses are still asleep. The Fed and their owners can’t understand why their propaganda hasn’t convinced the peasantry to follow orders.
A system built upon an exponential increase in debt, cannot be sustained if the masses stop buying Range Rovers, McMansions, stainless steel appliances, 72 inch HDTVs, iGadgets, bling, and boob jobs on credit. His letter to America reeks of desperation. The Fed and their minions have used every play in their Keynesian monetary playbook, and are losing the game in a blowout. With a deflationary depression beginning to accelerate, they have no game.
Despairing mothers, unemployed fathers, impoverished grandmothers, and indebted young people are supposed to feel lucky because they aren’t starving to death like the wretched Greeks. We do have one thing in common with the Greeks. We’ve both been screwed over by bankers and corrupt politicians. Did you know you’ve been given a free ride by your friends at the Federal Reserve? Did you know that zero interest rates and $3.5 trillion of Quantitative Easing (aka money printing) were implemented to benefit you? According to Hilsenrath, the Fed lending money at 0.25% to their Wall Street bank owners, who then allow you to borrow from them at 15% on your credit card, represents a free ride for you. Are the subprime auto loan borrowers, who account for 30% of all auto sales, paying 13% interest getting a free ride?
Hilsenrath is purposefully lying. Bernanke and Yellen have been saying they want to start raising interest rates for the last four years. Remember the 6.5% unemployment rate bogey set by Bernanke in January 2013? Unemployment dropped below 6.5% in early 2014 on its way to 5.5% today. Did they raise rates? In 2013 we had two consecutive quarters of 4% GDP growth, with no Fed rate increase. In 2014 we had two consecutive quarters of 4.8% GDP growth, with no Fed rate increase. We have added ten million jobs and the stock market has tripled since 2009, with no Fed rate increase.
We are supposedly in the sixth year of an economic recovery and the Fed is still keeping the discount rate at a Lehman “world is ending” emergency level of .25%. Six years after the last recession the discount rate was 5.25%. The last time the unemployment rate was this low the discount rate was 4%. The only ones getting a free ride from the Fed’s zero interest rate policy and QE to infinity have been Wall Street banks, the .1% who live off the carcasses of the dying middle class, zombie corporations who should have gone bankrupt, and politicians who keep running up the national debt with no consequences – YET. The Federal Reserve is a blood sucking leech on the ass of America. Their cure has been far worse than the original illness – Wall Street criminality. In fact, their cure has been to reward the Wall Street criminals while spreading cancer to the working class and euthanizing senior citizens.
Hisenrath and his puppet masters at the Fed can’t figure you out. For decades you have followed their orders and bought Chinese produced shit with one of your 13 credit cards. The Bernays’ propaganda playbook has produced wins for the ruling class since the early 1980’s. Their record is 864 – 0 versus the working class. Our entire warped economic system since the 1980’s has been dependent upon an exponential increase in debt peddled by Wall Street to citizens, government and corporations to give the appearance of a growing, healthy economy.
An economy built upon the consumption of iGadgets, Cheetos, meat lovers stuffed crust pizza, and slave labor produced Chinese baubles, along with the production of enough arms to blow up the world ten times over, and the doling out of trillions to the non-productive class, is doomed to fail. Maybe I can explain the situation in such a way that even an Ivy League educated central banker or a Wall Street Journal faux journalist will understand.
Maybe Jon and his Fed cronies could be enlightened by a look at the American consumer before the bubble boys (Greenspan, Bernanke) and gals (Yellen) at the Fed, along with the corporate fascist takeover of our political system, and the propaganda spewing corporate media monopolies, combined to deform our financial and economic system for their sole enrichment. The lack of spending by consumers might just be due to some of the following factors:
Back in 1980 income meant money earned through working, investing, and saving. The amount of personal income made up of wages totaled 60% in 1980. Today it totals 51%. Interest earned on savings accounted for 14% in 1980. Today it accounts for 8%, as the Fed has punished seniors and savers with negative real interest rates. Since 2009 the Fed has robbed over $1 trillion in interest income from seniors and savers with their zero interest rate policy and handed it to the Wall Street banking cabal. Bernanke didn’t just throw seniors under the bus, he ran them over, backed up over them, and ran them over again.
In a shocking development, government welfare transfers accounted for 11% of total personal income in 1980 and have risen to 17% today. Only the government could classify money which has been absconded at gunpoint from working Americans in the form of taxes and redistributed back to other Americans as welfare payments, as personal income. If you take money from your left pocket and put it in your right pocket, is that income? The replacement of wages and interest by welfare redistribution payments has not benefited society whatsoever.
In 1980 consumer credit outstanding as a percentage of personal income totaled 15%. Today it totals 22%, an all-time high. It is higher than the bubble peak in 2007-2008. Real per capita disposable income has only risen by 88% over the last 35 years. Meanwhile, real per capita consumer debt has risen by 288%. Wages and earnings from saving have been replaced by debt. The propagandists for consumerism have convinced the ignorant masses to spend money they don’t have, while pretending to be wealthier and successful. Consumer debt currently stands at a towering all-time high of $3.4 trillion, almost ten times the $350 billion level in 1980. Hilsenrath and the Fed are upset with you because credit card debt still lingers $122 billion, or 12% below 2008 levels. It has forced them to dole out $900 billion of government controlled subprime debt to University of Phoenix wannabes and any deadbeat that can scratch an X on an auto loan application. The U.S. economic system is like a Great White Shark that must keep swimming or it will die. The Federal Reserve run U.S. economic system must keep generating debt or it will die. They are growing desperate and you are not following orders.
Before the grand debt delusion overtook the populace, they were saving 11% of their disposable personal income. In 1980, Depression era adults still believed in saving for large purchases such as a house, car, appliance or home improvement. The young adult Boomers didn’t have the same experiential deterrent. They were convinced by the Wall Street debt peddlers, Madison Avenue maggots, and corrupt politicians that saving was for suckers. Live for today, for tomorrow may never come. Well tomorrow did come. Boomers are entering their retirement years with $12,000 in retirement savings, while still in debt up to their eyeballs. There have been 10,000 Boomers turning 65 every day since 2010. This will continue unabated through 2029. This demographic certainty was already depressing consumer spending, as this age demographic spends far less than 25 to 54 year olds. Factor in the pitiful amount of savings and you have an ongoing spending implosion.
The propaganda machine was so well oiled, the savings rate actually reached 1.9% in 2005, as the masses all believed they would live luxurious retirements off their home equity windfall. How’d that delusion work out? The current level of 5.6% is seen as troublesome by the powers that be. They cannot accept the crazy concept of saving and investment when their entire warped paradigm is built upon borrowing and consumption. Banks don’t make money when you save and they despise when you use cash. They can’t sustain their opulent lifestyles without their 3% VIG on every electronic transaction, 15% compounded interest on the $5,000 average credit card balance, billions in late fees for being one day late with your payment, $4 on every ATM transaction, and the myriad of other fees and surcharges designed to bilk you and keep you from saving. The saving rate will continue to climb as people have no choice to make up for years of living beyond their means.
Hilsenrath is willfully ignorant as he pretends to not understand why the American people will not or cannot accelerate their spending. It is really quite simple. Even a PhD should be able to understand. Real median household income was $52,300 in 1989. Real median household income today is $51,939. The median household has made no economic advancement in the last quarter of a century. And this is using the manipulated lower CPI figure. Using a true inflation rate would show a dramatic decline over the last 25 years. There has been virtually no wage growth during this supposed six year recovery. The industrial base of the country has been gutted, except for the production of arms to blow up brown people in the Middle East. Young people have $1.3 trillion of student loan debt weighing them like an anchor, and those Ruby Tuesday waitress jobs and Home Depot cashier jobs aren’t going to cut it.
So we have the demographic dilemma of aging, under-saved, over-indebted Boomers who are being forced to spend less. We have an over-indebted, under-employed youth who don’t have anything to spend. And lastly we have the 25 to 54 year old age bracket who should be in their prime earning and spending years who are still 4 million jobs short of where they were in 2007 before the Fed induced financial collapse. The only age bracket to gain jobs since the crisis has been 55 to 69, as they have been forced to work to make up for their lost interest income. The only people making job gains are those least likely to spend.
The spending crescendo in 2004 through 2007 was fueled by the Greenspan housing bubble and the $3 trillion of mortgage equity withdrawal used to buy BMWs, in-ground Olympic size pools, Jacuzzis, vacations to Tahiti, home theaters, granite countertops, stainless steel appliances, and boob jobs, by delusional, apparently brain dead Americans who fell for the Bernaysian propaganda spewed by the Wall Street criminal class, hook line and sinker. The majority of shell shocked underwater home owners have been unable to sell since the housing crash. A 35% price decline will do that. The Fed has created $3.5 trillion out of thin air, more than quadrupled their balance sheet with toxic mortgages from Wall Street, artificially suppressed interest rates to bring mortgage rates to record lows, and was a co-conspirator along with Fannie, Freddie, FHA, and Wall Street hedge funds (Blackrock) to delay foreclosure sales and pump home prices with their buy and rent scheme. The result has been unaffordably high prices, mortgage applications at 1997 levels (60% below 2005 levels), first time buyers at a record low, and a non-existent housing recovery – despite the MSM propaganda saying otherwise.
The last data point which might help the math challenged Hilsenrath understand why you aren’t spending is total U.S. vehicle miles driven. The chart below shows a relentless climb from 1982 through to the 2008 collapse. It coincides with the debt fueled consumption orgy over this same time frame. The unrelenting expansion of retail outlets and importing of cheap Chinese crap required a lot of trucks to haul the crap. It required a lot of trips to the mall in the minivans and SUVs by soccer moms living in our suburban sprawl paradise. In case you hadn’t noticed, the fastest growing retailer in the U.S. since 2008 has been Space Available. The well run retailers like Home Depot and Wal-Mart saw the writing on the wall and stopped expanding. The badly run retailers like Sears and JC Penney have been closing hundreds of stores. And the really badly run retailers like Radio Shack have gone bankrupt. Vehicle miles have essentially flat-lined for the last six years as retailers are closing more stores than they are opening, job growth has been non-existent and commerce within the U.S. is stagnant. If we were experiencing a real economic recovery, vehicle miles would be surging.
So this concludes my little tutorial for the Ivy League educated central bankers at the Fed and the Wall Street Journal Fed mouthpiece – Jon “I don’t understand” Hilsenrath. I know it is difficult for people to understand something when their paycheck depends upon them not understanding it, but this is pretty simple stuff. Pompous, arrogant, egocentric assholes who write for the Wall Street Journal, run JP Morgan, or control monetary policy for the world, know exactly what they have done, what they are doing, and who is benefiting. We all know the benefits of ZIRP and QE have gone only to the .1% who run the show. We know income inequality is at all-time highs. We know TPP will be passed, because the corporate fascists control the purse strings of our political class. We know the status quo will be maintained at all costs by the Deep State.
We know mega-corporations continue to ship jobs overseas and replace us with cheap foreign labor. We know the current administration actively encourages illegals to pour over our borders, swamp our social safety net, increase crime, and take jobs from Americans. We know the government has us under mass surveillance and will not hesitate to use all of that military equipment in the hands of local police against us. The will of the people is nothing but an irritant to those in power. They might not have us figured out, but a growing number of critical thinking, increasingly pissed off people, have them figured out. The debt expansion days are numbered. A deflationary depression is in the offing. The coming civil strife, financial panic, war, and overthrow of the existing social order will rival the three previous tumultuous upheavals in U.S. history – American Revolution, Civil War, Great Depression/World War II. Fourth Turnings are a bitch.
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What are the pros and cons of using analysts who are predominantly former high-ranking military officers to present their opinions in a public news medium?
One benefit of using former high-ranking military officers as public news analysts, also called pundits, concerns the fact that journalists are limited in their areas of expertise. As TV executives and news producers see it, "Journalists can't know everything"; therefore, it becomes very useful and even necessary for news producers to have experts on call (Tugend, "Pundits for Hire"). Former high-ranking military officers have contacts and "specialized knowledge about strategy, weapons, and tactics that most journalists don't have," making them key contacts for their comments on war ("Pundits for Hire"). In general, many agree that using pundits has provided the public with more expertise than has ever been available before.
However, using pundits can of course raise ethical questions. A journalism professor named Richard Schwarzlose, who specializes in ethics, has raised an ethical concern with respect to paying experts for their expertise. When experts are paid for their expertise, what they say can be called into question, especially when television is concerned. Everyone knows that television is all about entertainment and delivering "colorful and provocative commentary" regardless of facts ("Pundits for Hire"). Hence, many are concerned that when paid, pundits may become willing to say whatever needs to be said to keep getting paid, leading to intentional distortion of the facts. Also, some experts may be tempted to protect their paid positions as consultants by providing comments on a debate even if they aren't truly experts on particular facets of a story.
Another danger with using pundits concerns lack of objectivity. Most pundits are naturally respectful of the military and therefore pro-Pentagon, which means they give viewers only a pro-Pentagon side of the story. However, that's not the case for all pundits. Both retired generals Bary McCaffrey of NBC and Wesley K. Clark of CNN openly criticized the "Bush administration's war plan, questioning whether their were enough U.S. forces in Iraq to get the job done" ("Pundits for Hire"). Hence, while pundits certainly do have their own levels of expertise, they also have their own opinions and even biases.
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Teachers Federal Credit Union Reviews & Info
Teachers Federal Credit Union is a Federal Credit Union with 43 branches, assets of $4,465,109,275 that is headquartered in Smithtown, NY. Founded in 1952, TFCU is a not-for-profit, member-owned financial institution which exists to serve its members. We will provide them with exceptional value and service by hiring action-oriented people who share our passion for business and our goal of exceptional member service. We will ensure our success by improving continuously, never being satisfied with the status quo and never slowing down.
Worst customer service, i had this experience a few month ago and i got the chance to write today. I go to Selden branch and i had an issue with the teller who got me the supervisor her name is Jennifer. She is very rude and doesn’t know anything I wish they have suggestion box on their website i would suggest for them to fire this nasty woman.
I wish I could rate this bank a negative 10 stars!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Customer service is the worst, they continually charge overdraft fees for items that you have the money for instead of drafting the fees as promised when opening the account. On numerous occasions I had ample funds in the checking and savings and the bank would wait sometimes up to three weeks to process a payment that i had made to another company and hit me with an overdraft fee the day before payday instead of drafting from my savings and when i called to request my money back a manager used a racial slur with me (the N word) out of all the days in my life I have never been talked to this way. I will be filing a complaint with the BBB and the account will stay in the negative for all im concerned!…show more
Though I like this credit union quite a bit, the customer service for their credit card is atrocious. To submit fraud complaints, they must mail you a form to complete. I had my card stolen and used within the hour. They would take no information about fraudulent use on the phone. They will not accept fraud complaints from anyone other than cardholder, even if from joint cardholder. Their online rewards claim makes you create whole new login each time you visit. Online chat help is worse than unhelpful, but snarky. I contacted them to ask who the CEO was, and they said they couldn't tell me. When I found out and wrote him, my complaint about service was fobbed off on an underling, who sent me a stock note telling everything was fine. I am closing my credit card account with them.…show more
TFCU is the worst leasing agency I have ever dealt with. I made early payments only to have them tell me I am past due. When questioned they said they are not set up to accept early payments and the payments will get lost. After my car was totalled and insurance paid them and gap insurance was applied they continued to tell me I owed additional funds after I supposedly was given the final payment amount due. Never deal with TFCU - THE WORST EVER.…show more
Online banking is terrible. Constantly . I have multiple accounts and at one point couldn't tell one from the other. Business lending is a joke. I have a had to open a "business"Credit card when the couldn't link my personal to my business account. Which took over a year to figure out. The business credit card has a $1000 limit which is useless. Can't get a small business loan without two years of returns. Can't even secure a loan with your own money to establish credit. Recently wanted to put a stop on a lost check and they took it upon themselves to determine it wasn't lost. After my first car loan and current mortgage I'll be looking for a new bank.…show more
Customer service is atrocious. I am so mad my car lease set me up with this company. Received a letter with instructions on how set up automatic payments, but when you go to their site it crashes every time you get to the set-up screen. Tried calling and was told to send an online form via email. Turns out they told me the wrong email address so I was screwed another month. Had to go to a BETHPAGE Credit Union because this company is too shitty to handle its own business. This is the third month of my car lease and I am still unable to set up online banking or automatic payments with this shit company. About to make another trip to Bethpage bank tonight so send another physical check because they cannot get their act together. Horrible experience overall.…show more
I got one of their Visa Gift Cards from a relative and it was a pain to activate, the site is not user friendly, and can only be used at certain locations. Do NOT purchase this card for someone. There is a $4 fee which is throwing money out the window. And the person getting the card will be frustrated.
I've been with this credit union since a teenager & at 27 I can easily say they are the most understanding company I have ever had the pleasure of handling my money. No monthly fees & a litany of interest options that can accommodate the most affluent individuals as well starving college kids. And you only have to keep $1 in your savings account for it to remain active! It's a much more appealing option than a bank that sometimes require as much as $500 a month just to avoid fees. People should understand that while banks are worried about appeasing their stock holders, credit unions are solely invested in the communities they represent.…show more
I have had an account with them since the summer of 2012 since they were the only credit union or bank located on my campus. When I stepped in, they were all friendly and treated me well. It gave off a charming and comfortable vibe, which made it feel like everyone there was meant to be your friend. Making my account took no time at all and the worker was making delightful small talk the entire time, wishing me well in college and making me feel comfortable. They have made a customer for life out of me because I have never had any problems with them.…show more
I was in college in long island NY where this union is located. They had a representative office in our campus as well as an ATM machine. I opened an account with them and after a couple of tries they agreed to offer me a low interest credit card to help build my credit. I was receiving my allowance from my family overseas and the fees associated with these transaction are very low with them. Eventually I ended up opening up a savings accounts with them with good interest rate. Now they are my primary saving account.…show more
When i needed to find a checking account and needed it fast TFCU was there for me. They hooked me up in less than a day and had great customer service. The free checking account is a plus on top of their amazing banking services. I wish more banks were like TFCU. My only gripe is the $1.25 non bank atm fee, that thing is so annoying especially when you take cash out 2-3 times a week!…show more
Teachers Federal Credit Union Free Checking Account is the best credit union hands down, bar none. I feel so at home with them compared to my last credit union. My last credit union constantly charged me fees and late fees and what not and it was so frustrating to have to constantly monitor my checking account because of that. With Teachers Federal Credit Union Free Checking Account, I dont have to monitor it and they give me constant alerts on things that are happening with my account. I am going to recommend everyone I know to Teachers Federal Credit Union Free Checking Account!…show more
I recently signed up with the Teacher’s Federal Credit Union and I love it so far. The application process was seamless and the bank attendant that helped me through the process actually seemed like they cared. One of the things that I appreciate most about the Teacher’s Federal Credit Union is the fact that you don’t need a minimum for a checking’s or saving’s account. The only difficulty with this bank is the availability when leaving Long Island. I’ve had this account for a month so far and I plan on sticking with it for at least a few years.…show more
I have had an account at Teacher's Federal Credit union for about 6 years now. The bank I was at before would not allow me to open a savings account unless I had a minimum of $5,000 to open it- AND I had to maintain that! That's hard for a young person! I have two checking accounts and two savings accounts at TFCU. There is no minimum for how much you need to have in there. I never have any issues when I make deposits or withdrawals there. The customer service is always great. People there are very friendly.
There are only TWO things I don't care for. Number one- The drive-thru lines are very long most of the time. I know it's not really the banks fault, but perhaps they could put an additional person at the window to move things along more quickly. Also- they DO charge overdraft fees, even if you're covered with your savings account and their returned check fees are pretty big as well.
I left one of those banks that took a bail out and moved to Teacher's Federal. At first I was afraid that it wouldn't have the same services, but I've had not problems at all handling all of the normal stuff I used to do at the other bank that was killing me with fees. I have no regrets at all for changing to a credit union and would tell every one who asks that they should switch to a local credit union and leave those wall street jerks to their own mess.…show more
Prior to moving to Long Island, NY, I had never heard of TFCU (Teachers Federal Credit Union). However, everyone at the workplace recommended using this credit union, since at the time, I had no car to access my other banks. Upon signing up for the 5-year CD, the financial planner told me that they had a promotion going on for 1.85% APY (I do not know how much it is now). He even broke the numbers down for me and helped me sign up. The best part of everything was that I did not have the leave the building as we have a TFCU branch on the first floor of our workplace. He also tried to get me to sign up for a Traditional IRA and when I told him I did not have the time to manage any mutual funds, he said the bank takes care of it and told me how they would invest. Though this whole application process took about 2 hours, I left feeling more well-versed in investments and confidence in TFCU. If you do not have a credit union and want excellent service, then TFCU is for you.…show more
I have been banking with TFCU for almost three years now (since July 2010). I enrolled in several of their products including Certificates of Deposit, Savings, Checking and two Auto loans. Being a platinum member has also allowed me to take advantage of services which include free Visa gift cards and free money orders. I have also used their notary service on several occasions for important documents. Never had a problem and customer service at the branch took care of me within minutes. They also have a drive through service. The only downside to the drive through is that certain transaction types and amounts are not allowed and you have to present yourself in the branch. Overall great value. I would recommend banking with TFCU.…show more
I enrolled back into school to finish my Bachelor's Degree and received a Federal Stafford Loan at Stony Brook University. They had a branch of Teachers Federal Credit Union on campus and I opened up an account there to deposit my student loan check. The application process was simple and went smoothly. Everyone who I dealt with at the branch was courteous and friendly and they helped me set up an account so I could access my loan money. It was very convenient for me with the branch being right on campus and the rates were very competitive compared to the other bank I use. I definitely recommend them.…show more
I have had an account at TFCU for about 15 years, and am happy with their service and branch network on Long Island. Tellers and desk personnel have always been friendly and helpful, even letting me know that one of my accounts had fallen below the minimum needed to earn interest. The only time I was not effectively helped when I came in with a question was when I asked about Health Savings Accounts for use with high deductible health plans. It turned out that no one else had ever come in with a desire to open an HSA, so the staff did not have experience with the details. But that is a very small issue. TFCU provides a much better banking value than the large commercial banks, which are happy to mislead and not inform customers of important information.…show more
I loved this credit union. They offer a lot of different services. They have secured credit cards to help people with no credit or bad credit. They were always helpful and I was able to use most of them. They offered more free services than any banks did. I had a CD and it was overdue so I couldn't take the money out of it. I was lucky and was still in the grace period so there were no problems. This credit union is a family place. My mom uses it and I started using it as soon as I was old enough. I know a lot of people that bank here and have never heard any complaints.…show more
This card is a new one for me but is already showing some fantastic benefits. Other than the unrivaled assurances of protection from unauthorized use and purchase protection, this card has low rates, low maximum late fee, huge grace period and so much more. One benefit that I wasn’t even expecting was this card came with something called “Passport Unlimited” membership. Every now and then I’ll be shopping or eating out and the teller will see it and without any effort on my part I’ll get a discount off the entire bill. Sometimes it’s as high as 20%. Apparently certain stores and restaurants are members of the program so when we come together I get a discount. Works for me!…show more
I've had a secure Visa credit card with these guys for at least three years. It has been a real life saver and has helped me to rebuild my credit. I've been able to rent a car while on vacation something you don't want to do with your debit card. Yes, the interest rate is a little high at 13% (the last I checked) but it's your $500 you secured your card with, it gives you an incentive to pay it off quickly when you're paying interest on your own money. In my opinion in these bad economic times the only credit card you should have should be a secure one.…show more
I have been banking with Teachers Federal Credit Union for about three years now. Most of the services they offer are great, the employees are always helpful, nice and straight forward at the teller counter. I would recommend banking with Teachers Federal Credit Union. Their interest rates are great, also automatic payment has always been on time. I have overdrawn my account recently and they waived my fee because it was the first time it had every happened. I have used their savings and car loan services and both have been outstanding for me, and I hope they do the same for all their customers.…show more
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/* def-or.c generated by valac 0.24.0, the Vala compiler
* generated from def-or.vala, do not modify */
/*
* SmartSim - Digital Logic Circuit Designer and Simulator
*
* This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
* it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by
* the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the License, or
* (at your option) any later version.
*
* This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
* but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
* MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the
* GNU General Public License for more details.
*
* You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License
* along with this program. If not, see <http://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
*
* Filename: componentdef/def-or.vala
*
* Copyright Ashley Newson 2013
*/
#include <glib.h>
#include <glib-object.h>
#include <cairo.h>
#include <libxml/tree.h>
#include <libxml/xmlwriter.h>
#include <stdlib.h>
#include <string.h>
#include <float.h>
#include <math.h>
#include <config.h>
#include <stdio.h>
#define TYPE_COMPONENT_DEF (component_def_get_type ())
#define COMPONENT_DEF(obj) (G_TYPE_CHECK_INSTANCE_CAST ((obj), TYPE_COMPONENT_DEF, ComponentDef))
#define COMPONENT_DEF_CLASS(klass) (G_TYPE_CHECK_CLASS_CAST ((klass), TYPE_COMPONENT_DEF, ComponentDefClass))
#define IS_COMPONENT_DEF(obj) (G_TYPE_CHECK_INSTANCE_TYPE ((obj), TYPE_COMPONENT_DEF))
#define IS_COMPONENT_DEF_CLASS(klass) (G_TYPE_CHECK_CLASS_TYPE ((klass), TYPE_COMPONENT_DEF))
#define COMPONENT_DEF_GET_CLASS(obj) (G_TYPE_INSTANCE_GET_CLASS ((obj), TYPE_COMPONENT_DEF, ComponentDefClass))
typedef struct _ComponentDef ComponentDef;
typedef struct _ComponentDefClass ComponentDefClass;
typedef struct _ComponentDefPrivate ComponentDefPrivate;
#define TYPE_DIRECTION (direction_get_type ())
#define TYPE_COMPONENT_INST (component_inst_get_type ())
#define COMPONENT_INST(obj) (G_TYPE_CHECK_INSTANCE_CAST ((obj), TYPE_COMPONENT_INST, ComponentInst))
#define COMPONENT_INST_CLASS(klass) (G_TYPE_CHECK_CLASS_CAST ((klass), TYPE_COMPONENT_INST, ComponentInstClass))
#define IS_COMPONENT_INST(obj) (G_TYPE_CHECK_INSTANCE_TYPE ((obj), TYPE_COMPONENT_INST))
#define IS_COMPONENT_INST_CLASS(klass) (G_TYPE_CHECK_CLASS_TYPE ((klass), TYPE_COMPONENT_INST))
#define COMPONENT_INST_GET_CLASS(obj) (G_TYPE_INSTANCE_GET_CLASS ((obj), TYPE_COMPONENT_INST, ComponentInstClass))
typedef struct _ComponentInst ComponentInst;
typedef struct _ComponentInstClass ComponentInstClass;
#define TYPE_PROJECT (project_get_type ())
#define PROJECT(obj) (G_TYPE_CHECK_INSTANCE_CAST ((obj), TYPE_PROJECT, Project))
#define PROJECT_CLASS(klass) (G_TYPE_CHECK_CLASS_CAST ((klass), TYPE_PROJECT, ProjectClass))
#define IS_PROJECT(obj) (G_TYPE_CHECK_INSTANCE_TYPE ((obj), TYPE_PROJECT))
#define IS_PROJECT_CLASS(klass) (G_TYPE_CHECK_CLASS_TYPE ((klass), TYPE_PROJECT))
#define PROJECT_GET_CLASS(obj) (G_TYPE_INSTANCE_GET_CLASS ((obj), TYPE_PROJECT, ProjectClass))
typedef struct _Project Project;
typedef struct _ProjectClass ProjectClass;
#define TYPE_CUSTOM_COMPONENT_DEF (custom_component_def_get_type ())
#define CUSTOM_COMPONENT_DEF(obj) (G_TYPE_CHECK_INSTANCE_CAST ((obj), TYPE_CUSTOM_COMPONENT_DEF, CustomComponentDef))
#define CUSTOM_COMPONENT_DEF_CLASS(klass) (G_TYPE_CHECK_CLASS_CAST ((klass), TYPE_CUSTOM_COMPONENT_DEF, CustomComponentDefClass))
#define IS_CUSTOM_COMPONENT_DEF(obj) (G_TYPE_CHECK_INSTANCE_TYPE ((obj), TYPE_CUSTOM_COMPONENT_DEF))
#define IS_CUSTOM_COMPONENT_DEF_CLASS(klass) (G_TYPE_CHECK_CLASS_TYPE ((klass), TYPE_CUSTOM_COMPONENT_DEF))
#define CUSTOM_COMPONENT_DEF_GET_CLASS(obj) (G_TYPE_INSTANCE_GET_CLASS ((obj), TYPE_CUSTOM_COMPONENT_DEF, CustomComponentDefClass))
typedef struct _CustomComponentDef CustomComponentDef;
typedef struct _CustomComponentDefClass CustomComponentDefClass;
#define TYPE_PROPERTY_ITEM (property_item_get_type ())
#define PROPERTY_ITEM(obj) (G_TYPE_CHECK_INSTANCE_CAST ((obj), TYPE_PROPERTY_ITEM, PropertyItem))
#define PROPERTY_ITEM_CLASS(klass) (G_TYPE_CHECK_CLASS_CAST ((klass), TYPE_PROPERTY_ITEM, PropertyItemClass))
#define IS_PROPERTY_ITEM(obj) (G_TYPE_CHECK_INSTANCE_TYPE ((obj), TYPE_PROPERTY_ITEM))
#define IS_PROPERTY_ITEM_CLASS(klass) (G_TYPE_CHECK_CLASS_TYPE ((klass), TYPE_PROPERTY_ITEM))
#define PROPERTY_ITEM_GET_CLASS(obj) (G_TYPE_INSTANCE_GET_CLASS ((obj), TYPE_PROPERTY_ITEM, PropertyItemClass))
typedef struct _PropertyItem PropertyItem;
typedef struct _PropertyItemClass PropertyItemClass;
#define TYPE_PROPERTY_SET (property_set_get_type ())
#define PROPERTY_SET(obj) (G_TYPE_CHECK_INSTANCE_CAST ((obj), TYPE_PROPERTY_SET, PropertySet))
#define PROPERTY_SET_CLASS(klass) (G_TYPE_CHECK_CLASS_CAST ((klass), TYPE_PROPERTY_SET, PropertySetClass))
#define IS_PROPERTY_SET(obj) (G_TYPE_CHECK_INSTANCE_TYPE ((obj), TYPE_PROPERTY_SET))
#define IS_PROPERTY_SET_CLASS(klass) (G_TYPE_CHECK_CLASS_TYPE ((klass), TYPE_PROPERTY_SET))
#define PROPERTY_SET_GET_CLASS(obj) (G_TYPE_INSTANCE_GET_CLASS ((obj), TYPE_PROPERTY_SET, PropertySetClass))
typedef struct _PropertySet PropertySet;
typedef struct _PropertySetClass PropertySetClass;
#define TYPE_COMPILED_CIRCUIT (compiled_circuit_get_type ())
#define COMPILED_CIRCUIT(obj) (G_TYPE_CHECK_INSTANCE_CAST ((obj), TYPE_COMPILED_CIRCUIT, CompiledCircuit))
#define COMPILED_CIRCUIT_CLASS(klass) (G_TYPE_CHECK_CLASS_CAST ((klass), TYPE_COMPILED_CIRCUIT, CompiledCircuitClass))
#define IS_COMPILED_CIRCUIT(obj) (G_TYPE_CHECK_INSTANCE_TYPE ((obj), TYPE_COMPILED_CIRCUIT))
#define IS_COMPILED_CIRCUIT_CLASS(klass) (G_TYPE_CHECK_CLASS_TYPE ((klass), TYPE_COMPILED_CIRCUIT))
#define COMPILED_CIRCUIT_GET_CLASS(obj) (G_TYPE_INSTANCE_GET_CLASS ((obj), TYPE_COMPILED_CIRCUIT, CompiledCircuitClass))
typedef struct _CompiledCircuit CompiledCircuit;
typedef struct _CompiledCircuitClass CompiledCircuitClass;
#define TYPE_CONNECTION (connection_get_type ())
#define CONNECTION(obj) (G_TYPE_CHECK_INSTANCE_CAST ((obj), TYPE_CONNECTION, Connection))
#define CONNECTION_CLASS(klass) (G_TYPE_CHECK_CLASS_CAST ((klass), TYPE_CONNECTION, ConnectionClass))
#define IS_CONNECTION(obj) (G_TYPE_CHECK_INSTANCE_TYPE ((obj), TYPE_CONNECTION))
#define IS_CONNECTION_CLASS(klass) (G_TYPE_CHECK_CLASS_TYPE ((klass), TYPE_CONNECTION))
#define CONNECTION_GET_CLASS(obj) (G_TYPE_INSTANCE_GET_CLASS ((obj), TYPE_CONNECTION, ConnectionClass))
typedef struct _Connection Connection;
typedef struct _ConnectionClass ConnectionClass;
#define TYPE_CIRCUIT_INFORMATION (circuit_information_get_type ())
#define CIRCUIT_INFORMATION(obj) (G_TYPE_CHECK_INSTANCE_CAST ((obj), TYPE_CIRCUIT_INFORMATION, CircuitInformation))
#define CIRCUIT_INFORMATION_CLASS(klass) (G_TYPE_CHECK_CLASS_CAST ((klass), TYPE_CIRCUIT_INFORMATION, CircuitInformationClass))
#define IS_CIRCUIT_INFORMATION(obj) (G_TYPE_CHECK_INSTANCE_TYPE ((obj), TYPE_CIRCUIT_INFORMATION))
#define IS_CIRCUIT_INFORMATION_CLASS(klass) (G_TYPE_CHECK_CLASS_TYPE ((klass), TYPE_CIRCUIT_INFORMATION))
#define CIRCUIT_INFORMATION_GET_CLASS(obj) (G_TYPE_INSTANCE_GET_CLASS ((obj), TYPE_CIRCUIT_INFORMATION, CircuitInformationClass))
typedef struct _CircuitInformation CircuitInformation;
typedef struct _CircuitInformationClass CircuitInformationClass;
#define TYPE_GRAPHIC (graphic_get_type ())
#define GRAPHIC(obj) (G_TYPE_CHECK_INSTANCE_CAST ((obj), TYPE_GRAPHIC, Graphic))
#define GRAPHIC_CLASS(klass) (G_TYPE_CHECK_CLASS_CAST ((klass), TYPE_GRAPHIC, GraphicClass))
#define IS_GRAPHIC(obj) (G_TYPE_CHECK_INSTANCE_TYPE ((obj), TYPE_GRAPHIC))
#define IS_GRAPHIC_CLASS(klass) (G_TYPE_CHECK_CLASS_TYPE ((klass), TYPE_GRAPHIC))
#define GRAPHIC_GET_CLASS(obj) (G_TYPE_INSTANCE_GET_CLASS ((obj), TYPE_GRAPHIC, GraphicClass))
typedef struct _Graphic Graphic;
typedef struct _GraphicClass GraphicClass;
#define TYPE_PIN_DEF (pin_def_get_type ())
#define PIN_DEF(obj) (G_TYPE_CHECK_INSTANCE_CAST ((obj), TYPE_PIN_DEF, PinDef))
#define PIN_DEF_CLASS(klass) (G_TYPE_CHECK_CLASS_CAST ((klass), TYPE_PIN_DEF, PinDefClass))
#define IS_PIN_DEF(obj) (G_TYPE_CHECK_INSTANCE_TYPE ((obj), TYPE_PIN_DEF))
#define IS_PIN_DEF_CLASS(klass) (G_TYPE_CHECK_CLASS_TYPE ((klass), TYPE_PIN_DEF))
#define PIN_DEF_GET_CLASS(obj) (G_TYPE_INSTANCE_GET_CLASS ((obj), TYPE_PIN_DEF, PinDefClass))
typedef struct _PinDef PinDef;
typedef struct _PinDefClass PinDefClass;
#define TYPE_OR_COMPONENT_DEF (or_component_def_get_type ())
#define OR_COMPONENT_DEF(obj) (G_TYPE_CHECK_INSTANCE_CAST ((obj), TYPE_OR_COMPONENT_DEF, OrComponentDef))
#define OR_COMPONENT_DEF_CLASS(klass) (G_TYPE_CHECK_CLASS_CAST ((klass), TYPE_OR_COMPONENT_DEF, OrComponentDefClass))
#define IS_OR_COMPONENT_DEF(obj) (G_TYPE_CHECK_INSTANCE_TYPE ((obj), TYPE_OR_COMPONENT_DEF))
#define IS_OR_COMPONENT_DEF_CLASS(klass) (G_TYPE_CHECK_CLASS_TYPE ((klass), TYPE_OR_COMPONENT_DEF))
#define OR_COMPONENT_DEF_GET_CLASS(obj) (G_TYPE_INSTANCE_GET_CLASS ((obj), TYPE_OR_COMPONENT_DEF, OrComponentDefClass))
typedef struct _OrComponentDef OrComponentDef;
typedef struct _OrComponentDefClass OrComponentDefClass;
typedef struct _OrComponentDefPrivate OrComponentDefPrivate;
#define _component_def_unref0(var) ((var == NULL) ? NULL : (var = (component_def_unref (var), NULL)))
typedef struct _ComponentInstPrivate ComponentInstPrivate;
#define TYPE_PIN_INST (pin_inst_get_type ())
#define PIN_INST(obj) (G_TYPE_CHECK_INSTANCE_CAST ((obj), TYPE_PIN_INST, PinInst))
#define PIN_INST_CLASS(klass) (G_TYPE_CHECK_CLASS_CAST ((klass), TYPE_PIN_INST, PinInstClass))
#define IS_PIN_INST(obj) (G_TYPE_CHECK_INSTANCE_TYPE ((obj), TYPE_PIN_INST))
#define IS_PIN_INST_CLASS(klass) (G_TYPE_CHECK_CLASS_TYPE ((klass), TYPE_PIN_INST))
#define PIN_INST_GET_CLASS(obj) (G_TYPE_INSTANCE_GET_CLASS ((obj), TYPE_PIN_INST, PinInstClass))
typedef struct _PinInst PinInst;
typedef struct _PinInstClass PinInstClass;
typedef struct _PinInstPrivate PinInstPrivate;
#define TYPE_WIRE_INST (wire_inst_get_type ())
#define WIRE_INST(obj) (G_TYPE_CHECK_INSTANCE_CAST ((obj), TYPE_WIRE_INST, WireInst))
#define WIRE_INST_CLASS(klass) (G_TYPE_CHECK_CLASS_CAST ((klass), TYPE_WIRE_INST, WireInstClass))
#define IS_WIRE_INST(obj) (G_TYPE_CHECK_INSTANCE_TYPE ((obj), TYPE_WIRE_INST))
#define IS_WIRE_INST_CLASS(klass) (G_TYPE_CHECK_CLASS_TYPE ((klass), TYPE_WIRE_INST))
#define WIRE_INST_GET_CLASS(obj) (G_TYPE_INSTANCE_GET_CLASS ((obj), TYPE_WIRE_INST, WireInstClass))
typedef struct _WireInst WireInst;
typedef struct _WireInstClass WireInstClass;
#define _connection_unref0(var) ((var == NULL) ? NULL : (var = (connection_unref (var), NULL)))
#define _wire_inst_unref0(var) ((var == NULL) ? NULL : (var = (wire_inst_unref (var), NULL)))
#define TYPE_COMPONENT_STATE (component_state_get_type ())
#define COMPONENT_STATE(obj) (G_TYPE_CHECK_INSTANCE_CAST ((obj), TYPE_COMPONENT_STATE, ComponentState))
#define COMPONENT_STATE_CLASS(klass) (G_TYPE_CHECK_CLASS_CAST ((klass), TYPE_COMPONENT_STATE, ComponentStateClass))
#define IS_COMPONENT_STATE(obj) (G_TYPE_CHECK_INSTANCE_TYPE ((obj), TYPE_COMPONENT_STATE))
#define IS_COMPONENT_STATE_CLASS(klass) (G_TYPE_CHECK_CLASS_TYPE ((klass), TYPE_COMPONENT_STATE))
#define COMPONENT_STATE_GET_CLASS(obj) (G_TYPE_INSTANCE_GET_CLASS ((obj), TYPE_COMPONENT_STATE, ComponentStateClass))
typedef struct _ComponentState ComponentState;
typedef struct _ComponentStateClass ComponentStateClass;
#define TYPE_OR_COMPONENT_STATE (or_component_state_get_type ())
#define OR_COMPONENT_STATE(obj) (G_TYPE_CHECK_INSTANCE_CAST ((obj), TYPE_OR_COMPONENT_STATE, OrComponentState))
#define OR_COMPONENT_STATE_CLASS(klass) (G_TYPE_CHECK_CLASS_CAST ((klass), TYPE_OR_COMPONENT_STATE, OrComponentStateClass))
#define IS_OR_COMPONENT_STATE(obj) (G_TYPE_CHECK_INSTANCE_TYPE ((obj), TYPE_OR_COMPONENT_STATE))
#define IS_OR_COMPONENT_STATE_CLASS(klass) (G_TYPE_CHECK_CLASS_TYPE ((klass), TYPE_OR_COMPONENT_STATE))
#define OR_COMPONENT_STATE_GET_CLASS(obj) (G_TYPE_INSTANCE_GET_CLASS ((obj), TYPE_OR_COMPONENT_STATE, OrComponentStateClass))
typedef struct _OrComponentState OrComponentState;
typedef struct _OrComponentStateClass OrComponentStateClass;
#define _component_state_unref0(var) ((var == NULL) ? NULL : (var = (component_state_unref (var), NULL)))
typedef enum {
DIRECTION_NONE,
DIRECTION_RIGHT,
DIRECTION_DOWN,
DIRECTION_LEFT,
DIRECTION_UP,
DIRECTION_HORIZONTAL,
DIRECTION_VERTICAL,
DIRECTION_DIAGONAL
} Direction;
struct _ComponentDef {
GTypeInstance parent_instance;
volatile int ref_count;
ComponentDefPrivate * priv;
Graphic* graphic;
gchar* graphicReferenceFilename;
gchar* name;
gchar* description;
gchar* iconFilename;
gchar* label;
PinDef** pinDefs;
gint pinDefs_length1;
gint rightBound;
gint downBound;
gint leftBound;
gint upBound;
gint backgroundAlpha;
gint backgroundRed;
gint backgroundGreen;
gint backgroundBlue;
gdouble backgroundAlphaF;
gdouble backgroundRedF;
gdouble backgroundGreenF;
gdouble backgroundBlueF;
gboolean drawBox;
gchar* filename;
};
struct _ComponentDefClass {
GTypeClass parent_class;
void (*finalize) (ComponentDef *self);
void (*extra_render) (ComponentDef* self, cairo_t* context, Direction direction, gboolean flipped, ComponentInst* componentInst);
void (*extra_validate) (ComponentDef* self, Project* project, CustomComponentDef** componentChain, int componentChain_length1, ComponentInst* componentInst);
void (*add_properties) (ComponentDef* self, PropertySet* queryProperty, PropertySet* configurationProperty);
void (*get_properties) (ComponentDef* self, PropertySet* queryProperty, PropertySet** configurationProperty);
void (*load_properties) (ComponentDef* self, xmlNode* xmlnode, PropertySet** configurationProperty);
void (*save_properties) (ComponentDef* self, xmlTextWriter* xmlWriter, PropertySet* configurationProperty);
void (*configure_inst) (ComponentDef* self, ComponentInst* componentInst, gboolean firstLoad);
void (*compile_component) (ComponentDef* self, CompiledCircuit* compiledCircuit, ComponentInst* componentInst, Connection** connections, int connections_length1, ComponentInst** ancestry, int ancestry_length1);
void (*create_information) (ComponentDef* self, CircuitInformation* circuitInformation);
};
struct _OrComponentDef {
ComponentDef parent_instance;
OrComponentDefPrivate * priv;
};
struct _OrComponentDefClass {
ComponentDefClass parent_class;
};
typedef enum {
COMPONENT_DEF_LOAD_ERROR_NOT_COMPONENT,
COMPONENT_DEF_LOAD_ERROR_FILE,
COMPONENT_DEF_LOAD_ERROR_LOAD,
COMPONENT_DEF_LOAD_ERROR_CANCEL
} ComponentDefLoadError;
#define COMPONENT_DEF_LOAD_ERROR component_def_load_error_quark ()
typedef enum {
CUSTOM_COMPONENT_DEF_LOAD_ERROR_NOT_CUSTOM,
CUSTOM_COMPONENT_DEF_LOAD_ERROR_MISSING_DEPENDENCY,
CUSTOM_COMPONENT_DEF_LOAD_ERROR_NAME_CONFLICT,
CUSTOM_COMPONENT_DEF_LOAD_ERROR_INVALID
} CustomComponentDefLoadError;
#define CUSTOM_COMPONENT_DEF_LOAD_ERROR custom_component_def_load_error_quark ()
typedef enum {
PLUGIN_COMPONENT_DEF_LOAD_ERROR_NOT_PLUGIN,
PLUGIN_COMPONENT_DEF_LOAD_ERROR_INIT_ERROR,
PLUGIN_COMPONENT_DEF_LOAD_ERROR_LIBRARY_NOT_ACCESSIBLE,
PLUGIN_COMPONENT_DEF_LOAD_ERROR_LIBRARY_NOT_COMPATIBLE,
PLUGIN_COMPONENT_DEF_LOAD_ERROR_NAME_CONFLICT,
PLUGIN_COMPONENT_DEF_LOAD_ERROR_INVALID
} PluginComponentDefLoadError;
#define PLUGIN_COMPONENT_DEF_LOAD_ERROR plugin_component_def_load_error_quark ()
struct _ComponentInst {
GTypeInstance parent_instance;
volatile int ref_count;
ComponentInstPrivate * priv;
ComponentDef* componentDef;
gint myID;
gint xPosition;
gint yPosition;
Direction direction;
gboolean flipped;
gint rightBound;
gint downBound;
gint leftBound;
gint upBound;
PropertySet* configuration;
gboolean selected;
gboolean errorMark;
PinInst** pinInsts;
gint pinInsts_length1;
};
struct _ComponentInstClass {
GTypeClass parent_class;
void (*finalize) (ComponentInst *self);
};
struct _PinInst {
GTypeInstance parent_instance;
volatile int ref_count;
PinInstPrivate * priv;
gint* x;
gint x_length1;
gint* y;
gint y_length1;
gint* xConnect;
gint xConnect_length1;
gint* yConnect;
gint yConnect_length1;
gint xLabel;
gint yLabel;
WireInst** wireInsts;
gint wireInsts_length1;
gboolean* invert;
gint invert_length1;
PinDef* pinDef;
gint arraySize;
gint xMin;
gint xMax;
gint yMin;
gint yMax;
gboolean show;
};
struct _PinInstClass {
GTypeClass parent_class;
void (*finalize) (PinInst *self);
};
static gpointer or_component_def_parent_class = NULL;
gpointer component_def_ref (gpointer instance);
void component_def_unref (gpointer instance);
GParamSpec* param_spec_component_def (const gchar* name, const gchar* nick, const gchar* blurb, GType object_type, GParamFlags flags);
void value_set_component_def (GValue* value, gpointer v_object);
void value_take_component_def (GValue* value, gpointer v_object);
gpointer value_get_component_def (const GValue* value);
GType component_def_get_type (void) G_GNUC_CONST;
GType direction_get_type (void) G_GNUC_CONST;
gpointer component_inst_ref (gpointer instance);
void component_inst_unref (gpointer instance);
GParamSpec* param_spec_component_inst (const gchar* name, const gchar* nick, const gchar* blurb, GType object_type, GParamFlags flags);
void value_set_component_inst (GValue* value, gpointer v_object);
void value_take_component_inst (GValue* value, gpointer v_object);
gpointer value_get_component_inst (const GValue* value);
GType component_inst_get_type (void) G_GNUC_CONST;
gpointer project_ref (gpointer instance);
void project_unref (gpointer instance);
GParamSpec* param_spec_project (const gchar* name, const gchar* nick, const gchar* blurb, GType object_type, GParamFlags flags);
void value_set_project (GValue* value, gpointer v_object);
void value_take_project (GValue* value, gpointer v_object);
gpointer value_get_project (const GValue* value);
GType project_get_type (void) G_GNUC_CONST;
GType custom_component_def_get_type (void) G_GNUC_CONST;
gpointer property_item_ref (gpointer instance);
void property_item_unref (gpointer instance);
GParamSpec* param_spec_property_item (const gchar* name, const gchar* nick, const gchar* blurb, GType object_type, GParamFlags flags);
void value_set_property_item (GValue* value, gpointer v_object);
void value_take_property_item (GValue* value, gpointer v_object);
gpointer value_get_property_item (const GValue* value);
GType property_item_get_type (void) G_GNUC_CONST;
GType property_set_get_type (void) G_GNUC_CONST;
gpointer compiled_circuit_ref (gpointer instance);
void compiled_circuit_unref (gpointer instance);
GParamSpec* param_spec_compiled_circuit (const gchar* name, const gchar* nick, const gchar* blurb, GType object_type, GParamFlags flags);
void value_set_compiled_circuit (GValue* value, gpointer v_object);
void value_take_compiled_circuit (GValue* value, gpointer v_object);
gpointer value_get_compiled_circuit (const GValue* value);
GType compiled_circuit_get_type (void) G_GNUC_CONST;
gpointer connection_ref (gpointer instance);
void connection_unref (gpointer instance);
GParamSpec* param_spec_connection (const gchar* name, const gchar* nick, const gchar* blurb, GType object_type, GParamFlags flags);
void value_set_connection (GValue* value, gpointer v_object);
void value_take_connection (GValue* value, gpointer v_object);
gpointer value_get_connection (const GValue* value);
GType connection_get_type (void) G_GNUC_CONST;
gpointer circuit_information_ref (gpointer instance);
void circuit_information_unref (gpointer instance);
GParamSpec* param_spec_circuit_information (const gchar* name, const gchar* nick, const gchar* blurb, GType object_type, GParamFlags flags);
void value_set_circuit_information (GValue* value, gpointer v_object);
void value_take_circuit_information (GValue* value, gpointer v_object);
gpointer value_get_circuit_information (const GValue* value);
GType circuit_information_get_type (void) G_GNUC_CONST;
gpointer graphic_ref (gpointer instance);
void graphic_unref (gpointer instance);
GParamSpec* param_spec_graphic (const gchar* name, const gchar* nick, const gchar* blurb, GType object_type, GParamFlags flags);
void value_set_graphic (GValue* value, gpointer v_object);
void value_take_graphic (GValue* value, gpointer v_object);
gpointer value_get_graphic (const GValue* value);
GType graphic_get_type (void) G_GNUC_CONST;
gpointer pin_def_ref (gpointer instance);
void pin_def_unref (gpointer instance);
GParamSpec* param_spec_pin_def (const gchar* name, const gchar* nick, const gchar* blurb, GType object_type, GParamFlags flags);
void value_set_pin_def (GValue* value, gpointer v_object);
void value_take_pin_def (GValue* value, gpointer v_object);
gpointer value_get_pin_def (const GValue* value);
GType pin_def_get_type (void) G_GNUC_CONST;
GType or_component_def_get_type (void) G_GNUC_CONST;
enum {
OR_COMPONENT_DEF_DUMMY_PROPERTY
};
#define OR_COMPONENT_DEF_infoFilename PACKAGE_DATADIR "components/info/or.xml"
GQuark component_def_load_error_quark (void);
OrComponentDef* or_component_def_new (GError** error);
OrComponentDef* or_component_def_construct (GType object_type, GError** error);
ComponentDef* component_def_construct (GType object_type);
GQuark custom_component_def_load_error_quark (void);
GQuark plugin_component_def_load_error_quark (void);
void component_def_load_from_file (ComponentDef* self, const gchar* infoFilename, GError** error);
static void or_component_def_real_compile_component (ComponentDef* base, CompiledCircuit* compiledCircuit, ComponentInst* componentInst, Connection** connections, int connections_length1, ComponentInst** ancestry, int ancestry_length1);
gpointer pin_inst_ref (gpointer instance);
void pin_inst_unref (gpointer instance);
GParamSpec* param_spec_pin_inst (const gchar* name, const gchar* nick, const gchar* blurb, GType object_type, GParamFlags flags);
void value_set_pin_inst (GValue* value, gpointer v_object);
void value_take_pin_inst (GValue* value, gpointer v_object);
gpointer value_get_pin_inst (const GValue* value);
GType pin_inst_get_type (void) G_GNUC_CONST;
gpointer wire_inst_ref (gpointer instance);
void wire_inst_unref (gpointer instance);
GParamSpec* param_spec_wire_inst (const gchar* name, const gchar* nick, const gchar* blurb, GType object_type, GParamFlags flags);
void value_set_wire_inst (GValue* value, gpointer v_object);
void value_take_wire_inst (GValue* value, gpointer v_object);
gpointer value_get_wire_inst (const GValue* value);
GType wire_inst_get_type (void) G_GNUC_CONST;
Connection* connection_new_fake (void);
Connection* connection_construct_fake (GType object_type);
WireInst* connection_get_wireInst (Connection* self);
gpointer component_state_ref (gpointer instance);
void component_state_unref (gpointer instance);
GParamSpec* param_spec_component_state (const gchar* name, const gchar* nick, const gchar* blurb, GType object_type, GParamFlags flags);
void value_set_component_state (GValue* value, gpointer v_object);
void value_take_component_state (GValue* value, gpointer v_object);
gpointer value_get_component_state (const GValue* value);
GType component_state_get_type (void) G_GNUC_CONST;
OrComponentState* or_component_state_new (Connection** inputWires, int inputWires_length1, Connection* outputWire, ComponentInst** ancestry, int ancestry_length1, ComponentInst* componentInst);
OrComponentState* or_component_state_construct (GType object_type, Connection** inputWires, int inputWires_length1, Connection* outputWire, ComponentInst** ancestry, int ancestry_length1, ComponentInst* componentInst);
GType or_component_state_get_type (void) G_GNUC_CONST;
void compiled_circuit_add_component (CompiledCircuit* self, ComponentState* componentState);
static void _vala_array_destroy (gpointer array, gint array_length, GDestroyNotify destroy_func);
static void _vala_array_free (gpointer array, gint array_length, GDestroyNotify destroy_func);
OrComponentDef* or_component_def_construct (GType object_type, GError** error) {
OrComponentDef* self = NULL;
GError * _inner_error_ = NULL;
self = (OrComponentDef*) component_def_construct (object_type);
{
component_def_load_from_file ((ComponentDef*) self, OR_COMPONENT_DEF_infoFilename, &_inner_error_);
if (_inner_error_ != NULL) {
goto __catch42_g_error;
}
}
goto __finally42;
__catch42_g_error:
{
FILE* _tmp0_ = NULL;
GError* _tmp1_ = NULL;
g_clear_error (&_inner_error_);
_inner_error_ = NULL;
_tmp0_ = stdout;
fprintf (_tmp0_, "Failed to load built in component \"%s\"\n", OR_COMPONENT_DEF_infoFilename);
_tmp1_ = g_error_new_literal (COMPONENT_DEF_LOAD_ERROR, COMPONENT_DEF_LOAD_ERROR_LOAD, "Failed to load \"" OR_COMPONENT_DEF_infoFilename "\"\n");
_inner_error_ = _tmp1_;
goto __finally42;
}
__finally42:
if (_inner_error_ != NULL) {
if (_inner_error_->domain == COMPONENT_DEF_LOAD_ERROR) {
g_propagate_error (error, _inner_error_);
_component_def_unref0 (self);
return NULL;
} else {
g_critical ("file %s: line %d: uncaught error: %s (%s, %d)", __FILE__, __LINE__, _inner_error_->message, g_quark_to_string (_inner_error_->domain), _inner_error_->code);
g_clear_error (&_inner_error_);
return NULL;
}
}
return self;
}
OrComponentDef* or_component_def_new (GError** error) {
return or_component_def_construct (TYPE_OR_COMPONENT_DEF, error);
}
static gpointer _connection_ref0 (gpointer self) {
return self ? connection_ref (self) : NULL;
}
static gpointer _wire_inst_ref0 (gpointer self) {
return self ? wire_inst_ref (self) : NULL;
}
static void or_component_def_real_compile_component (ComponentDef* base, CompiledCircuit* compiledCircuit, ComponentInst* componentInst, Connection** connections, int connections_length1, ComponentInst** ancestry, int ancestry_length1) {
OrComponentDef * self;
Connection** inputWires = NULL;
ComponentInst* _tmp0_ = NULL;
PinInst** _tmp1_ = NULL;
gint _tmp1__length1 = 0;
PinInst* _tmp2_ = NULL;
gint _tmp3_ = 0;
Connection** _tmp4_ = NULL;
gint inputWires_length1 = 0;
gint _inputWires_size_ = 0;
Connection* outputWire = NULL;
Connection* _tmp5_ = NULL;
ComponentInst* _tmp6_ = NULL;
PinInst** _tmp7_ = NULL;
gint _tmp7__length1 = 0;
PinInst* _tmp8_ = NULL;
gint _tmp9_ = 0;
gint _tmp10_ = 0;
Connection** _tmp11_ = NULL;
gint _tmp11__length1 = 0;
ComponentState* componentState = NULL;
Connection** _tmp46_ = NULL;
gint _tmp46__length1 = 0;
Connection* _tmp47_ = NULL;
ComponentInst** _tmp48_ = NULL;
gint _tmp48__length1 = 0;
ComponentInst* _tmp49_ = NULL;
OrComponentState* _tmp50_ = NULL;
CompiledCircuit* _tmp51_ = NULL;
self = (OrComponentDef*) base;
g_return_if_fail (compiledCircuit != NULL);
_tmp0_ = componentInst;
_tmp1_ = _tmp0_->pinInsts;
_tmp1__length1 = _tmp0_->pinInsts_length1;
_tmp2_ = _tmp1_[0];
_tmp3_ = _tmp2_->arraySize;
_tmp4_ = g_new0 (Connection*, _tmp3_ + 1);
inputWires = _tmp4_;
inputWires_length1 = _tmp3_;
_inputWires_size_ = inputWires_length1;
_tmp5_ = connection_new_fake ();
outputWire = _tmp5_;
_tmp6_ = componentInst;
_tmp7_ = _tmp6_->pinInsts;
_tmp7__length1 = _tmp6_->pinInsts_length1;
_tmp8_ = _tmp7_[0];
_tmp9_ = _tmp8_->arraySize;
_tmp10_ = _tmp9_;
inputWires = g_renew (Connection*, inputWires, _tmp9_);
(_tmp10_ > inputWires_length1) ? memset (inputWires + inputWires_length1, 0, sizeof (Connection*) * (_tmp10_ - inputWires_length1)) : NULL;
inputWires_length1 = _tmp10_;
_inputWires_size_ = _tmp10_;
_tmp11_ = connections;
_tmp11__length1 = connections_length1;
{
Connection** connection_collection = NULL;
gint connection_collection_length1 = 0;
gint _connection_collection_size_ = 0;
gint connection_it = 0;
connection_collection = _tmp11_;
connection_collection_length1 = _tmp11__length1;
for (connection_it = 0; connection_it < _tmp11__length1; connection_it = connection_it + 1) {
Connection* _tmp12_ = NULL;
Connection* connection = NULL;
_tmp12_ = _connection_ref0 (connection_collection[connection_it]);
connection = _tmp12_;
{
Connection* _tmp36_ = NULL;
WireInst* _tmp37_ = NULL;
WireInst* _tmp38_ = NULL;
ComponentInst* _tmp39_ = NULL;
PinInst** _tmp40_ = NULL;
gint _tmp40__length1 = 0;
PinInst* _tmp41_ = NULL;
WireInst** _tmp42_ = NULL;
gint _tmp42__length1 = 0;
WireInst* _tmp43_ = NULL;
{
gint i = 0;
i = 0;
{
gboolean _tmp13_ = FALSE;
_tmp13_ = TRUE;
while (TRUE) {
gint _tmp15_ = 0;
ComponentInst* _tmp16_ = NULL;
PinInst** _tmp17_ = NULL;
gint _tmp17__length1 = 0;
PinInst* _tmp18_ = NULL;
gint _tmp19_ = 0;
WireInst* wireInst = NULL;
ComponentInst* _tmp20_ = NULL;
PinInst** _tmp21_ = NULL;
gint _tmp21__length1 = 0;
PinInst* _tmp22_ = NULL;
WireInst** _tmp23_ = NULL;
gint _tmp23__length1 = 0;
gint _tmp24_ = 0;
WireInst* _tmp25_ = NULL;
WireInst* _tmp26_ = NULL;
Connection* _tmp27_ = NULL;
WireInst* _tmp28_ = NULL;
WireInst* _tmp29_ = NULL;
WireInst* _tmp30_ = NULL;
if (!_tmp13_) {
gint _tmp14_ = 0;
_tmp14_ = i;
i = _tmp14_ + 1;
}
_tmp13_ = FALSE;
_tmp15_ = i;
_tmp16_ = componentInst;
_tmp17_ = _tmp16_->pinInsts;
_tmp17__length1 = _tmp16_->pinInsts_length1;
_tmp18_ = _tmp17_[0];
_tmp19_ = _tmp18_->arraySize;
if (!(_tmp15_ < _tmp19_)) {
break;
}
_tmp20_ = componentInst;
_tmp21_ = _tmp20_->pinInsts;
_tmp21__length1 = _tmp20_->pinInsts_length1;
_tmp22_ = _tmp21_[0];
_tmp23_ = _tmp22_->wireInsts;
_tmp23__length1 = _tmp22_->wireInsts_length1;
_tmp24_ = i;
_tmp25_ = _tmp23_[_tmp24_];
_tmp26_ = _wire_inst_ref0 (_tmp25_);
wireInst = _tmp26_;
_tmp27_ = connection;
_tmp28_ = connection_get_wireInst (_tmp27_);
_tmp29_ = _tmp28_;
_tmp30_ = wireInst;
if (_tmp29_ == _tmp30_) {
Connection** _tmp31_ = NULL;
gint _tmp31__length1 = 0;
gint _tmp32_ = 0;
Connection* _tmp33_ = NULL;
Connection* _tmp34_ = NULL;
Connection* _tmp35_ = NULL;
_tmp31_ = inputWires;
_tmp31__length1 = inputWires_length1;
_tmp32_ = i;
_tmp33_ = connection;
_tmp34_ = _connection_ref0 (_tmp33_);
_connection_unref0 (_tmp31_[_tmp32_]);
_tmp31_[_tmp32_] = _tmp34_;
_tmp35_ = _tmp31_[_tmp32_];
}
_wire_inst_unref0 (wireInst);
}
}
}
_tmp36_ = connection;
_tmp37_ = connection_get_wireInst (_tmp36_);
_tmp38_ = _tmp37_;
_tmp39_ = componentInst;
_tmp40_ = _tmp39_->pinInsts;
_tmp40__length1 = _tmp39_->pinInsts_length1;
_tmp41_ = _tmp40_[1];
_tmp42_ = _tmp41_->wireInsts;
_tmp42__length1 = _tmp41_->wireInsts_length1;
_tmp43_ = _tmp42_[0];
if (_tmp38_ == _tmp43_) {
Connection* _tmp44_ = NULL;
Connection* _tmp45_ = NULL;
_tmp44_ = connection;
_tmp45_ = _connection_ref0 (_tmp44_);
_connection_unref0 (outputWire);
outputWire = _tmp45_;
}
_connection_unref0 (connection);
}
}
}
_tmp46_ = inputWires;
_tmp46__length1 = inputWires_length1;
_tmp47_ = outputWire;
_tmp48_ = ancestry;
_tmp48__length1 = ancestry_length1;
_tmp49_ = componentInst;
_tmp50_ = or_component_state_new (_tmp46_, _tmp46__length1, _tmp47_, _tmp48_, _tmp48__length1, _tmp49_);
componentState = (ComponentState*) _tmp50_;
_tmp51_ = compiledCircuit;
compiled_circuit_add_component (_tmp51_, componentState);
_component_state_unref0 (componentState);
_connection_unref0 (outputWire);
inputWires = (_vala_array_free (inputWires, inputWires_length1, (GDestroyNotify) connection_unref), NULL);
}
static void or_component_def_class_init (OrComponentDefClass * klass) {
or_component_def_parent_class = g_type_class_peek_parent (klass);
COMPONENT_DEF_CLASS (klass)->compile_component = or_component_def_real_compile_component;
}
static void or_component_def_instance_init (OrComponentDef * self) {
}
GType or_component_def_get_type (void) {
static volatile gsize or_component_def_type_id__volatile = 0;
if (g_once_init_enter (&or_component_def_type_id__volatile)) {
static const GTypeInfo g_define_type_info = { sizeof (OrComponentDefClass), (GBaseInitFunc) NULL, (GBaseFinalizeFunc) NULL, (GClassInitFunc) or_component_def_class_init, (GClassFinalizeFunc) NULL, NULL, sizeof (OrComponentDef), 0, (GInstanceInitFunc) or_component_def_instance_init, NULL };
GType or_component_def_type_id;
or_component_def_type_id = g_type_register_static (TYPE_COMPONENT_DEF, "OrComponentDef", &g_define_type_info, 0);
g_once_init_leave (&or_component_def_type_id__volatile, or_component_def_type_id);
}
return or_component_def_type_id__volatile;
}
static void _vala_array_destroy (gpointer array, gint array_length, GDestroyNotify destroy_func) {
if ((array != NULL) && (destroy_func != NULL)) {
int i;
for (i = 0; i < array_length; i = i + 1) {
if (((gpointer*) array)[i] != NULL) {
destroy_func (((gpointer*) array)[i]);
}
}
}
}
static void _vala_array_free (gpointer array, gint array_length, GDestroyNotify destroy_func) {
_vala_array_destroy (array, array_length, destroy_func);
g_free (array);
}
|
//
// Generated by class-dump 3.5 (64 bit) (Debug version compiled Oct 15 2018 10:31:50).
//
// class-dump is Copyright (C) 1997-1998, 2000-2001, 2004-2015 by Steve Nygard.
//
#import <QuartzComposer/QCImageProvider.h>
@class NSArray, QCRegion;
__attribute__((visibility("hidden")))
@interface QCProvider_SceneKit : QCImageProvider
{
struct __C3DImage *_image;
struct __C3DTextureSampler *_sampler;
struct CGColorSpace *_colorSpace;
struct CGSize _size;
QCRegion *_domainOfDefinition;
NSArray *_pixelFormats;
NSArray *_targets;
}
+ (id)createProviderWithSource:(id)arg1 options:(id)arg2;
+ (BOOL)isCompatibleWithSource:(id)arg1 sourceMD5:(CDStruct_bdcb2b0d *)arg2;
- (id)createTextureBufferForManager:(id)arg1 withFormat:(id)arg2 target:(unsigned int)arg3 transformation:(id)arg4 bounds:(struct CGRect)arg5 colorSpace:(struct CGColorSpace *)arg6 options:(id)arg7;
- (id)supportedTextureBufferFormatsForManager:(id)arg1;
- (id)supportedTextureBufferTargetsForManager:(id)arg1;
- (unsigned int)nativeTextureTarget;
- (id)createPixelBufferForManager:(id)arg1 withFormat:(id)arg2 transformation:(id)arg3 bounds:(struct CGRect)arg4 colorSpace:(struct CGColorSpace *)arg5 options:(id)arg6;
- (id)supportedPixelBufferFormatsForManager:(id)arg1;
- (BOOL)hasAlpha;
- (id)nativePixelFormat;
- (struct CGColorSpace *)colorSpace;
- (id)domainOfDefinition;
- (id)sourceRepresentation;
- (id)sourceRepresentationType;
- (void)dealloc;
- (void)finalize;
- (id)initWithC3DImage:(struct __C3DImage *)arg1 options:(id)arg2;
@end
|
The Chester County woman who allegedly abducted a 7-week-old infant from the King of Prussia Mall has been charged with kidnapping and other offenses, officials said Friday afternoon.
The Montgomery County District Attorney's Office and Upper Merion police announced the charges against Cherie Amoore, of Tredyffrin. In addition to kidnapping, the charges include unlawful restraint, false imprisonment and related offenses.
Amoore first approached the boy's mother while she was shopping at the mall and started a conversation, police said. She then followed the woman to the food court, where she allegedly snatched the baby boy, named Ahsir Simmons, while his mother was distracted, police said.
Amoore fled the scene, and police arrived at the mall at 5:48 p.m. At 10:18 p.m., authorities said they found the baby unharmed at Amoore's residence. The child was reunited with his mother after a five-hour ordeal.
"It is every parent's worst nightmare," Montgomery County District Attorney Kevin R. Steele said. "We are very grateful that the baby was found quickly and returned safely to his family."
Montgomery County officials issued the Amber Alert for the missing baby Thursday evening. A security camera captured a woman who appeared to be Amoore exiting the mall, near the Bonefish Grill restaurant, with the baby in her arms.
Source/Upper Merion Police Department Suspect described as a dark skin black female, approximately 25-30 years of age and 5’2” in height.
According to The Philadelphia Inquirer, Amoore said she was prompted act by an "out of body experience" that stemmed from the death of an infant she had in February. Police did not immediately confirm whether her account of giving birth to a child was true.
Cherie Amoore was joined at her arraignment by her mother, Renee Amoore, who currently serves as the Deputy Chairman of the Republican Party of Pennsylvania and is actively involved in several institutions throughout Philadelphia.
Amoore remains held in lieu of $500,000 bail.
In an interview with 6 ABC, the mother of the child, Malika Hunter, expressed gratitude that her son was safely returned.
"I would like to thank God for allowing my baby to come back. And, I want to thank the Upper Merion Police Department, and everybody on social media that helped me get my baby back. I want to thank you so much."
|
Welcome to King of the Court, our daily celebration of the best performances in basketball from the night that was. We’ll be keeping track of the best player of every night of the NBA season, and tallying the results as we go along.
Kings of the Court: Greg Monroe and Michael Beasley
The weight of expectation can do a lot to dampen achievement. A great athlete likely finds little delight in winning a small race or minor tournament. The second ring usually means less than the first. A trophy seems cheaper when room needs to be made in the trophy case. Of course, most reasonable fans did not expect any trophies to be awarded to the Milwaukee Bucks this season, but after Jabari Parker’s ACL tear last week, it seemed that even smaller goals would be drifting farther out of reach.
Related The Awakening of Jabari Parker
If one had to guess how the Bucks would fare in a game against a projected playoff team on a night when Giannis Antetokounmpo scored only eight points on 2-for-9 shooting from the field, most would assume Milwaukee lost, probably by a lot. But, unhindered by expectation, the Bucks cruised on Monday to a 102–89 victory against the Detroit Pistons, who were likely still reveling in their win over the Toronto Raptors the night before. With the win, Milwaukee has closed the gap in the battle for the East’s eighth seed to one game.
Milwaukee was bolstered primarily by role players Greg Monroe and Michael Beasley, whose workmanlike performances to this point in the season have usually been overshadowed by the flash of the team’s young stars.
If Monroe was ever a routine bench player at any point during his basketball career prior to this season, that must have been before cameras were watching him. The forward was a heralded prospect coming out of high school, the focal point of the Georgetown offense during his two years in college, and a cornerstone in Detroit during his five years with the Pistons. Monroe started last season with the Bucks as well, but has played this season entirely in relief of Milwaukee’s starting center du jour (John Henson, Miles Plumlee, and Thon Maker have all seen time in the starting lineup, but Monroe averages more minutes than any of them). Despite a decrease in minutes and shots, Monroe’s efficiency hasn’t declined. His 52.2 effective field goal percentage is identical to his mark from last season, and it’s the best figure of his career since his rookie year. On most nights, Milwaukee doesn’t rely on Monroe for the bulk of its scoring, but on Monday night with Parker out and Antetokounmpo struggling, the former Hoya showed that he can still shoulder a weighty load, scoring 25 points on 12-of-15 shooting and grabbing 13 boards against Andre Drummond and Detroit’s tough frontcourt.
For a long time, it looked as if Beasley’s days as a starter were over, as well. The 2008 draft’s second pick crashed out of the NBA in 2015, but after a stint in China, where he scored over 30 points a game in 40 games with the Shandong Golden Stars, he returned as a reliable contributor for Houston, which traded him to Milwaukee during the offseason. This year has seen Beasley at his most efficient, bar none: His 54.2 eFG% is more than six points higher than his career average. His 23-point night was effortless. The forward looked to be his vintage self on a 10-for-13 shooting night, with all of his baskets coming around the rim and in the midrange. Beasley has scored in double digits in four of his past eight games.
With the postseason still in reach, Milwaukee can’t afford for this game to be an outlier for Monroe and Beasley. Even when Giannis is playing like his usual freakish self, the Bucks will need contributors to fill the void left by Parker if they intend to play themselves into the playoff picture.
Runner-up: Kawhi Leonard
Fundamentals aren’t boring, and neither is Kawhi Leonard.
In San Antonio’s tight 110–106 win over Indiana on Monday, Leonard notched 32 points, which has quietly become a regularity for the NBA’s best defensive player. He has now scored 30 points or more on 19 different occasions this season and has overtaken Kevin Durant as the league’s eighth-leading scorer.
Scoring is flashy, though, and since Leonard has always embodied a more robust style of play, here’s the most Kawhi Leonard highlight of the night: After falling and throwing an errant pass while driving to the hoop with the game still close and little more than 30 seconds to play, in a situation where most players would spend a moment in disgust, Leonard instead sprang up, ran downcourt, and poked the ball away from Paul George, giving the Spurs possession and essentially ending the game.
Defense is cool, kids.
|
The present invention is directed to a tandem solar module as well as to a method for the manufacture thereof.
High-efficiency, large-area, stable and, cost-effective solar cells or modules are needed for photo-voltaic energy generation in the power range.
Known solar modules of crystalline silicon (c-Si) currently achieve effective efficiencies between 10% and 14% for the conversion of sunlight into electrical energy. However, the crystal quality of the silicon must be extremely pure and results in high costs for silicon material. As a result such solar modules cannot economically compete with traditional energy sources.
Solar modules of amorphous, hydrogenated silicon (a-Si:H) are in fact relatively inexpensive to manufacture for this purpose. However, current solar modules of a-Si:H only achieve efficiencies of about 5% through 6%. Further, these modules tend toward long-term instabilities when exposed to light. A noticeable decrease in power of up to about 20% can be observed after a modest operating time.
Further, the solar sprectrum is not optimally exploited by standard solar modules. As a result of the higher band spacing of a-Si:H in comparison to c-Si, modules of amorphous silicon predominantly exhibit absorption in the blue range of the visible spectrum, whereas the crystalline cells absorb more in the red, longer-wave length range. This disadvantage can in fact be avoided by using high-grade, single-crystal silicon wafers and complex cell structures. However, the costs of such solar cells are extremely high.
Even the use of gallium arsenide, which is more receptive to the natural solar spectrum, for photo-voltaic elements has not produced the desired results and is not capable of supplying price-beneficial and high-efficiency solar cells.
Tandem solar cells offer another solution for better adaption of solar cells to the solar spectrum. These are thin-film solar cells of amorphous, hydrogenated silicon and other materials that are deposited or formed directly on top of one another, as is disclosed for example, in a report by J. Yang, R. Mohr and R. Ross in Proceeding of the First International Photovoltaic Science and Engineering Conference, Kobe, Japan, 1984, A-IIa-L6. These cells, whose active zones can have p-n or p-i-n structures, utilize the transparency of the a-Si:H material in order to also utilize those photons not absorbed in the upper cell for generating pairs of charge carriers in the lower cell. On the basis of this structure, tandem cells are "series-connected" and are treated like a single cell as a result of the electrical connection. Additives to the a-Si:H layers make it possible to modify the band spacing of the individual cells, so that the tandem cell operates in a greater spectral range than that of an individual cell.
However, the disadvantages such as long-term instability and poor efficiency also occurs in these tandem solar cells. Moreover, the layer thicknesses of the individual cells must be exactly matched to one another, so that the demand for equal currents is met by both individual cells and so that the double cell can operate satisfactorily.
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Chemicals from plastics have been found inside the eggs of seabirds living in remote Arctic colonies, in the latest sign of pollution contaminating the furthest reaches of the planet.
Scientists were concerned by the traces of phthalates, hormone-disrupting chemicals that have been banned from children’s toys due to their potential “gender-bending” effects.
These substances are routinely applied to many plastic products, and probably came from the bottle tops and cigarette butts these seabirds often eat after mistaking them for food.
The eggs were taken from northern fulmars living on an island in Lancaster Sound, more than 100 miles away from the nearest human settlement.
In a preliminary study, Dr Jennifer Provencher of the Canadian Wildlife Service tested the eggs of five fulmars and found phthalates in one, but warned the problem is likely to be far more pervasive.
Plastic waste across the world: in pictures Show all 15 1 /15 Plastic waste across the world: in pictures Plastic waste across the world: in pictures A father and son on a makeshift boat made from styrofoam paddle through a garbage filled river as they collect plastic bottles that they can sell in junkshops in Manila. The father and son team earn some three US dollars a day retrieving recyclables from the river. AFP/Getty Plastic waste across the world: in pictures A composite image of items found on the shore of the Thames Estuary in Rainham, Kent. Tons of plastic and other waste lines areas along the Thames Estuary shoreline, an important feeding ground for wading birds and other marine wildlife. Getty Images Plastic waste across the world: in pictures Children collect plastic water bottles among the garbage washed ashore at the Manila Bay. According to the United Nations Environment Programme, at current rates of pollution, there will likely be more plastic in the sea than fish by 2050. AFP/Getty Plastic waste across the world: in pictures Plastics and other detritus line the shore of the Thames Estuary. In December 2017 Britain joined the other 193 UN countries and signed up to a resolution to help eliminate marine litter and microplastics in the sea. It is estimated that about eight million metric tons of plastic find their way into the world's oceans every year. Once in the Ocean plastic can take hundreds of years to degrade, all the while breaking down into smaller and smaller 'microplastics,' which can be consumed by marine animals, and find their way into the human food chain. Getty Plastic waste across the world: in pictures A dump site in Manila in 2013. The Philippines financial capital banned disposable plastic shopping bags and styrofoam food containers, as part of escalating efforts across the nation's capital to curb rubbish that exacerbates deadly flooding. AFP/Getty Images Plastic waste across the world: in pictures Children swims in the sea full of garbage in North Jakarta, Indonesia. Getty Plastic waste across the world: in pictures An Indian woman holds a jar filled with Yamuna river water polluted with froth and toxic foam to be used for rituals at the river bank in New Delhi, India. The Yamuna River, like all other holy rivers in India, has been massively polluted for decades now. The river that originates in a glacier in the pristine and unpolluted Himalayas, and flows through Haryana, Delhi and Uttar Pradesh before merging with the Ganges River in Allahabad, once used to be the lifeline of the Indian capital. Currently, it is no more than a large, open sewer that is choking with industrial and domestic discharge that includes plastic, flowers and debris and has virtually no aquatic life. EPA Plastic waste across the world: in pictures Plastic waste is washed up on South Troon beach in Scotland. Recent reports by scientists have confirmed, plastics dumped in the world oceans are reaching a dangerous level with micro plastic particles now being found inside filter feeding animals and amongst sand grains on our beaches. Getty Plastic waste across the world: in pictures Children collect plastic to be sold and recycled, in a polluted river in suburban Manila. The city's trash disposal agency traps solid waste floating down waterways that was thrown into the water by residents of slums along riverbanks upstream. AFP/Getty Plastic waste across the world: in pictures View of the Carpayo Beach in La Punta, Callao, some 15 km of Lima. In 2013, the NGO VIDA labeled the Carpayo Beach as the most polluted in the country - 40 tons of trash on each 500m2. AFP/Getty Plastic waste across the world: in pictures Trash from Kamilo Beach in Hawaii. Gabriella Levine/Flickr Plastic waste across the world: in pictures A scavenger collects plastic cups for recycling in a river covered with rubbish near Pluit dam in Jakarta. Reuters Plastic waste across the world: in pictures Rubbish fills Omoa beach in Honduras. Floating masses of garbage offshore from some of the Caribbean's pristine beaches are testimony to a vast and growing problem of plastic pollution heedlessly dumped in our oceans, locals, activists and experts say. AFP/Getty Plastic waste across the world: in pictures A man climbs down to a garbage filled river in Manila. Plastic rubbish will outweigh fish in the oceans by 2050 unless the world takes drastic action to recycle the material, a report warned in 2016. AFP/Getty Plastic waste across the world: in pictures Garbage on East Beach, Henderson Island (Pitcairn Islands), in the south Pacific Ocean. The uninhabited island has been found to have the world's highest density of waste plastic, with more than 3,500 additional pieces of litter washing ashore daily at just one of its beaches. EPA
“These are some of the birds who have the lowest levels of accumulated plastic,” explained Dr Provencher.
If fulmar colonies were tested in the North Sea, where levels of plastic consumption are far higher, she said the results could be far more dramatic.
“Now the thing is to look at other populations and to see if they have the same chemicals, or other chemicals,” she said.
In another study, Dr Provencher and her colleagues examined the eggs of both fulmars and black-legged kittiwakes, and found traces of more chemicals known as UV stabilisers and antioxidants.
“We are finding multiple plastic-derived contaminants that are maternally transferred to the egg,” she said.
“It’s really tragic.”
Once the birds have consumed plastic items, they are often too big to pass through their digestive systems meaning they sit in their stomachs, leaching out chemicals which can pass into developing eggs.
Discussing her early-stage work at the American Association for the Advancement of Science in Washington DC, Dr Provencher said it was now important to establish how widespread this problem is – and whether the chemicals were causing the birds harm.
Dr Alex Bond, a conservation biologist from the Natural History Museum who was not involved in the work, said this data provided “another example of the often-invisible impacts that plastics can have on wildlife”.
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“It may not be enough to result in mortality, but it’s certainly not a positive thing.”
Experts are concerned not only by the deadly impact of plastic as it chokes or ruptures the stomach of animals that eat it, but by the various “sub-lethal” effects as well.
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From the Critics
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Fresh
The Tomatometer is 60% or higher.
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The Tomatometer is 59% or lower.
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Westworld Videos
Westworld Photos
Movie Info
Welcome to Westworld, where nothing can go wrong...go wrong...go wrong....Writer/director Michael Crichton has concocted a futuristic "Disneyland for adults", a remote resort island where, for a hefty fee, one can indulge in one's wildest fantasies. Businessmen James Brolin and Richard Benjamin are just crazy about the old west, thus they head to the section of Westworld populated by robot desperadoes, robot lawmen, robot dance-hall gals, and the like. Benjamin's first inkling that something is amiss occurs when, during a mock showdown with robot gunslinger Yul Brynner, Brolin is shot and killed for real. It seems that the "nerve center" of Westworld has developed several serious technical glitches: the human staff is dead, and the robots are running amok. Suddenly promoted to the film's hero, Benjamin (who seems as surprised and shocked as the audience) must first avoid, then face down the relentless Brynner. Much of Westworld was lensed on the expansive grounds of the old Harold Lloyd estate in Beverly Hills, so it's no surprise that there's something Lloydlike about Dick Benjamin's instinct for self-preservation.
Audience Reviews for Westworld
½
It takes too long for things to start to finally happen in this dull precursor of Jurassic Park (although everything is quite predictable right from the beginning), with also a glaring problem of focus and terrible pacing and editing, but Yul Brynner looks cool as a killing robot-cowboy.
Carlos Magalhães
Super Reviewer
Writer/director Michael Crichton imagines a future where technology is good enough so that robots resembling humans are indistinguishable from the real McCoy. In Blade Runner such automatons are put to work, doing the most dangerous jobs. Crichton says, nope, we'll invent a Disneyland where we'll pay to kill 'em or sex 'em and I'm inclined to agree with him. So what happens if there's ever some sort of technical glitch? Kind've a thin premise, but the actors sell it.
Kevin M. Williams
Super Reviewer
Great premise, but the result did not age well at all.
Jens S.
Super Reviewer
½
People always complain about film adaptations of books never living up to the source material, and yet when novelists turn to filmmaking the results are hardly extraordinary. The problem is often that novelists are so attentive to verbal content that they neglect the visual characteristics of great cinema. Stephen King's adaptation of The Shining may follow the original story more closely, but it isn't half as scary or discomforting as the Stanley Kubrick version.
With Westworld, the task is made doubly difficult by the sheer number of genres involved. Michael Crichton's first film contains elements of pretty much every genre apart from rom-com, musical and gothic horror. It's an odd little number, shifting rapidly from western and action-adventure elements into conspiracy thriller territory, borrowing from horror as it goes along. While it never quite comes through with the goods in the way that we would like, it remains an interesting debut effort and a decent 1970s cult film.
The first thing in Westworld's favour is its achievements on a technical level. It was famously the first film to utilise pixelated graphics, showing certain short sections of the action from the androids' point of view. Original footage shot on celluloid was scanned into a computer and processed digitally, creating a blurred and distorted image which makes Yul Brynner's killings seem all the more merciless.
The old-fashioned effects are pretty good as well. To create the effect of acid being thrown into Brynner's face, the production team mixed ground-up indigestion tablets into his make-up; when water was thrown at it, it would fizz to give the impression of skin being dissolved. The make-up and prop-making in general is impressive, particularly when it comes to the robots themselves. Brynner's face mask is very life-like, and seeing his charred body stagger into close-up without a face is quite creepy.
Westworld's chief significance, however, is in its influence on subsequent thrillers. Crichton would rework the central premise of an elaborate amusement park gone wrong for Jurassic Park, one of Steven Spielberg's biggest and best blockbusters. Yul Brynner's Gunslinger was the Terminator of its day, with the same jerky, mechanical posture and relentless desire to kill. And there is some discussion about robots being indistinguishable from humans and being used as "sex models", subjects which would later be tackled in Blade Runner.
The various worlds of the Delos complex allow Westworld to dip in and out of various genres, picking and choosing as it sees fit. It only becomes a conspiracy thriller in its third act, with the duel between Yul Brynner and Richard Benjamin becoming the driving force of the plot against a background of total chaos. In fact, one of the weaknesses of Westworld is that it dabbles a little too much. It gets so distracted by the various sub-plots - for instance, the knights duelling in Mediaeval World - that when all hell breaks loose, you don't feel quite so threatened by it.
The film attempts to address a number of ideas which have become archetypal of low-budget 1970s cinema. Most obviously, it deals with the idea of a perfect machine going wrong, and by extension how mankind's increasing dependence upon technology will eventually come back to haunt them. But whereas Kubrick approached this idea from a conceptual or philosophical platform in both Dr. Strangelove and 2001, Crichton is more interested in the mechanics of such a rebellion. It is not so much a case of discussing morality as predicting the course of destruction that would occur, with Crichton steering closer to the work of Arthur C. Clarke in his matter-of-fact treatment of technology.
The Delos complex functions like the robots which populate it. On the surface it may appear incredibly sophisticated and refined, but it is ultimately a very fragile creature, reliant on constant input and highly sensitive to changes in its surroundings. Long sections of the film focus on the scientists surrounded by computer banks, endlessly checking temperatures and humidity levels, tweaking the system to respond to individual needs and weeding out any renegades. The repair sessions which take place at night resemble the A&E ward of a hospital, with doctors working against the clock just to maintain the status quo.
Westworld also tackles the idea of mankind's nostalgia for the past. Like Deliverance a year earlier, its characters make the trip to experience an alternative to their carefully ordered, incredibly dull lives. There is the same desire to 'be at one with nature' or live in the past, while at the same time romanticising it. If, as Alfred Hitchcock said, drama is reality with all the dull bits cut out, then Westworld contains all that is fun and jolly about the American West without any of the drawbacks - disease, death, boredom or hard work.
Within this there is also a comment about the compartmentalisation of violence, and the difference between the simulated world and the reality. Part of what attracts our heroes to Westworld is the ability to get away with murder on a daily basis. They can go around firing off guns without fear of getting killed or being thrown out; when Richard Benjamin is thrown in jail, it is merely the set-up for the jokey stunt that gets him out. Yet when things turn nasty and reality intervenes, Benjamin runs instead of confronting Brynner; even though the latter is still a robot, our hero cannot bring himself to practice what he has preached up until that point.
While all of these ideas are enticing, they are somewhat undercut by the film's execution. Crichton, for all his skill as a writer, is not a brilliant director, at least when it comes to sustaining and building tension. Because the film was shot using anamorphic lenses on MGM's sound stages, it looks a lot more professional than something equally ideas-driven like The Clonus Horror. But the tone remains uneven, so that even when it works really well you can't help wishing the whole film had been as good. This is exemplified by Fred Karlin's erratic soundtrack, which dithers between subtle underplay and energetic bursts in the manner of Bernard Hermann.
The performances in Westworld vary from the intensely memorable to the completely forgettable. Brynner is great, sending up his role in The Magnificent Seven right down to wearing the same costume. He exudes menace and tenacity, and his delivery manages to sound stilted without tipping over into comedy. His co-stars, however, fare less well. James Brolin - father of Josh - is decent but has little in the way of character development, and Peter Morgan is not charismatic enough to carry the final section on his own. Without the Gunslinger constantly hunting him, the film would fall completely flat.
Westworld is an entertaining and insightful film hamstrung only by its uneven execution. Its campy visual style may have dated, and it isn't constructed half as consistently as many would have liked. But when it does pull itself together, it meets all the requirements of a decent 90-minute thriller, giving us enough in the way of both ideas and suspense to sustain our attention. A decent start to Crichton's career in film, which would culminate twenty years later.
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Q:
Deploying application with SSH tunnel
I am developing spring-boot application where my backend-side is connecting to database using ssh tunneling (this part is required and cannot be changed). I have three ways to deploy application:
creating jar (with embeded tomcat and ssh tunnel inside application)
creating war and deploy on standalone tomcat (with ssh tunnel outside application as linux service)
creating war and deploy on standalone tomcat (with ssh tunnel inside application), with this option is connected problem I cannot resolve https://stackoverflow.com/questions/49471387/spring-boot-tomcat-ssh-connection-link-failure
Which is best choice and why?
A:
You should choose option 2:
creating war and deploy on standalone tomcat (with ssh tunnel outside application as linux service)
You want your SSH tunnel to be managed by the underlying OS, not by your app. This way it can be delegated by a SysAdmin (preferably using a configuration management tool).
An app you develop should not have to concern itself with managing system tasks like persisting a tunnel to the backend.
This aligns with the "12 Factor App" method of handling 'backing services':
The code for a twelve-factor app makes no distinction between local and third party services. To the app, both are attached resources, accessed via a URL or other locator/credentials stored in the config. A deploy of the twelve-factor app should be able to swap out a local MySQL database with one managed by a third party (such as Amazon RDS) without any changes to the app’s code.
So, if your codebase has anything related to creating an SSH tunnel or persisting the system connection, you're doing it wrong ;)
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Yesterday we published a document titled “Covid-19 does not lead to a typical Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome”, authored by doctors D. Chiumello (San Paolo Hospital, University of Milan), M. Cressoni (San Gerardo Hospital, University of Milan-Bicocca), and L. Gattinoni (Medical University of Göttingen). It is actually a letter published by the American Journal of Respiratory Critical Care Medicine. In it, we read:
While fulfilling the ‘Berlin criteria for ARDS’ the patients with Covid-19 pneumonia have a specific disease, with a similar phenotype. The most peculiar characteristics we are observing (confirmed by colleagues in other hospitals), is the dissociation between their relatively well preserved lung mechanics and the severity of hypoxemia. As shown in our first 12 patients, the respiratory system compliance of 52.1 ±15.4 ml/cmH2O is associated with shunt fraction of 0.51 ±0.10. Such a wide discrepancy is virtually never seen in most forms of ARDS. Relatively high compliance indicates well preserved lung gas volume in this patient cohort, in sharp contrast to expectations for severe ARDS.
In other words, the respiratory distress they are observing is very peculiar. It corresponds to nothing these doctors had seen in the past.
After this post was put online, we came across this tweet by Mike Coudrey (archive).
COVID-19 is causing prolonged & progressive hypoxia (starving your body of oxygen) […]. Many doctors are starting to believe that they are operating under a false notion of pneumonia, & possibly treating the wrong symptoms on a systematic basis throughout the country. Ventilators may not be treating the root cause, as many of the patient’s lungs aren’t ‘tiring out’, they’re pumping just fine. It is instead that the affected hemoglobin have been stripped of their ability to carry oxygen, resulting in hypoxia.
The study he is referring to is this one, which essentially corroborates the testimony of this front-line NYC doctor, which we linked yesterday, but which we are embedding today because of these additional confirmations (video archive 1, archive 2).
At this point, these doctors are still working under the assumption the disease (involving respiratory distress) they are observing is caused by a virus. Yet, their understanding of the disease is fundamentally different from what had been established until now; particularly, the reliance on ventilators could be misguided.
Here is an article that gives more insight into this (archive). Excerpts below.
There is no ‘pneumonia’ nor ARDS. At least not the ARDS with established treatment protocols and procedures we’re familiar with. Ventilators are not only the wrong solution, but high pressure intubation can actually wind up causing more damage than without, not to mention complications from tracheal scarring and ulcers given the duration of intubation often required. The core point being, treating patients with the iron ions stripped from their hemoglobin (rendering it abnormally nonfunctional) with ventilator intubation is futile, unless you’re just hoping the patient’s immune system will work its magic in time. The root of the illness needs to be addressed. All that hilariously misguided and counterproductive criticism the media piled on chloroquine (purely for political reasons) as a viable treatment will now go down as the biggest Fake News blunder to rule them all. The media actively engaged their activism to fight ‘bad orange man’ at the cost of thousands of lives. Shame on them.
The key takeway: intubation is counterproductive, and (hydroxy)chloroquine is even more useful than previously thought.
You could call us prescient, as we predicted that Trump would benefit from this crisis (and the fake controversy around chloriquine). That is exactly what is starting to happen. The “press” will have to backpedal on their (fake and provocative) criticism. We are not prescient, we merely understand what is going on, and the role played by reverse psychology in this whole propaganda circus. It has been going on since 2016 at least.
In a similar vein, none other than the World Economic Forum (those who organized Event 201, remember?), is saying “We could be vastly overestimating the death rate for COVID-19, here’s why” (archive 1, archive 2).
Because of lack of adequate testing, including in the United States, in many places only hospital patients are now counted as cases. The people who do not feel seriously ill stay home, recover quietly, and are never counted. This matters because they do not appear in any of the official statistics. However, instead of counting us all in the denominator, in many countries including the US, only people sick enough to go to the hospital are counted. People sick enough to go to the hospital are more likely to need critical care, and patients in critical condition are more likely to die than patients with mild symptoms. This means the fatality rate looks higher than it really is.
This is called a selection bias, and we already mentioned it as conclusion to our post on March 19th. There is no way “public health authorities” didn’t know about this, and are only discovering it now.
One last thing: all death rates predictive models for this coronavirus are turning out to be wrong. More importantly, the mainstream press is saying so; this is becoming the new common knowledge. In other words, the panic was exaggerated, and this is becoming acknowledged now.
What is going on? We believe we have answered already. If you haven’t seen this post, please consider it now.
Still, there is something missing. All these people who devised the alarmist models are not conspirators. They are mostly acting in good faith. So what is the actual reason they got it so wrong? There is only one possible answer to that question: they are working under a false premise. Specifically, the disease is not being caused by a virus. Systemic poisoning is indeed much more likely.
What poison? Good question. Stay tuned.
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-14))/((-6)/(-72)*-5)?
6
What is -1*4/(12/15)?
-5
What is 230/(-138)*36/10?
-6
Evaluate -8*(-46)/92*2/18.
4/9
144/(-64)*3/(-27)
1/4
(4/6)/(((-320)/330)/(-16))
11
((0/(-1))/1)/((-9)/3)
0
20/(-30)*(-1)/((-2)/3)
-1
What is the value of ((-12)/3)/((-44)/33)?
3
Calculate (4/(-14))/(1/(-84)*4).
6
What is 2*(1/(-40)*-5)/(-1)?
-1/4
What is the value of ((-6)/(-12))/(2/20*1)?
5
What is the value of (1*2/(-4))/((-945)/(-420))?
-2/9
2/((-5)/((-20)/8))
1
Calculate (4*(-15)/12)/4.
-5/4
What is ((-33)/(-99))/((-3)/2)?
-2/9
Evaluate (1/(-1))/((-136)/272).
2
What is the value of ((5/4)/((-175)/210))/(-7)?
3/14
(-60)/54*27/(-12)
5/2
(6/(-66))/(-2*2/(-8))
-2/11
What is 18/(-9)*9/36?
-1/2
(13/26)/(9/(-18))
-1
Evaluate (10/4)/((-13)/26).
-5
What is (-225)/150*16/6?
-4
What is the value of 9/((-9)/1)*-5*1?
5
What is the value of (-48)/(-20)*-20*5/(-30)?
8
((-129)/(-215))/((-6)/4)
-2/5
2/(-28)*(-301)/(-43)
-1/2
What is the value of (7/(-14))/(50/(-20))?
1/5
What is the value of 16/(-1)*(-11)/44?
4
What is (-24)/(-108)*-3*2/(-4)?
1/3
Evaluate 8/42*(-12)/(-8).
2/7
Calculate -4*1/(-13)*(-1)/2.
-2/13
(2/(-1))/((-2)/2*-7)
-2/7
((-2)/(-3))/(3/(-9)*-3)
2/3
(-10)/(-4)*96/(-30)*1
-8
What is (-6)/(-3)*(-15)/(-6)?
5
What is 16/4*(-27)/36?
-3
Calculate (18/(-63))/(11/(-7)).
2/11
What is (11/(66/54))/3?
3
What is 30/8*2*18/27?
5
What is (-36)/(-96)*8/6*0?
0
Calculate (0/28)/(8/2).
0
Calculate 18/135*27/9.
2/5
Calculate 9/6*-1*-2.
3
Evaluate (8/(-6))/(9/(-54)).
8
(60/(-100))/(2*(-1)/(-10))
-3
What is the value of ((-5)/(-100)*-2)/((-7)/(-28))?
-2/5
What is ((-2)/5)/(17/(-85))?
2
Calculate ((-30)/(-525)*5)/(22/14).
2/11
Calculate 9/(-6)*96/144.
-1
3/4*-10*212/265
-6
Evaluate (56/21)/(-2)*6/76.
-2/19
What is (27/30)/(-9)*(-15)/6?
1/4
Calculate (2/(-4))/(9/54).
-3
What is 2*1/(-16)*1?
-1/8
(-8)/6*99/(-66)
2
What is the value of ((156/48)/(-13))/(21/8)?
-2/21
What is ((-2)/16*-3)/((-12)/8)?
-1/4
Calculate (1/7)/(-1)*7/(-2).
1/2
What is the value of 2/(-4)*4*3/2?
-3
What is (-14)/2*1*7/7?
-7
Calculate 25/(-6)*(78/20)/(-13).
5/4
Calculate 27/6*(-9)/54.
-3/4
Calculate (-35)/21*4/(-10).
2/3
Evaluate (18/4)/(-3*(-14)/84).
9
Calculate 24/36*-3*7/(-2).
7
Calculate 9/3*(-24)/612.
-2/17
What is the value of 1*(-15)/(-40)*-4?
-3/2
(((-15)/2)/(-3))/(15/30)
5
Calculate ((-8)/14)/(52/(-14)).
2/13
Evaluate 3*2/(25/(2200/(-48))).
-11
((-8)/(-30))/(-2)*1
-2/15
Calculate ((-5)/1)/(((-4)/(-2))/2).
-5
Evaluate 0/(4/((-8)/2)).
0
Calculate ((-2)/(-8))/(5*12/240).
1
Evaluate ((-2)/(-4)*1)/(13/(-78)).
-3
2/(-1)*27*10/(-60)
9
Evaluate 64/24*6/(-72).
-2/9
What is (4/6)/((-2)/(-12)*-4)?
-1
Evaluate 6/3*(-1)/(-5).
2/5
Calculate ((-2)/4)/(12/120).
-5
Evaluate ((-3)/(-10)*2)/3.
1/5
Evaluate (5*(-7)/175)/((-1)/5).
1
What is the value of (2/(-9))/(6*(-2)/18)?
1/3
Calculate (8/(-24))/(2/4).
-2/3
Evaluate (13/39)/(1/3).
1
(-9)/(-2)*(-4)/6
-3
What is the value of (7/(-21))/((-1)/(-12))?
-4
Calculate 27/(-12)*((-5)/(-3))/(-5).
3/4
What is ((-129)/215)/((-3)/35)?
7
Evaluate (-11)/((-55)/10)*2.
4
Calculate ((-84)/18)/(4/6).
-7
Calculate 2*9*2*1/12.
3
(-2)/8*2*(-270)/(-45)
-3
Calculate ((-23)/46)/(-1)*4/(-18).
-1/9
What is the value of ((-2)/2*-1)/((-7)/(-7))?
1
((-42)/(-7))/(6/2)
2
What is the value of 488/1098*1*(-18)/(-4)?
2
Evaluate (6/324*-3)/(1/4).
-2/9
What is 5/((-50)/(-28))*50/(-20)?
-7
(-5)/(10/(-1))*8
4
What is the value of (-4)/(-72)*6*16/(-72)?
-2/27
Calculate 10/(-1)*(-11)/(-165)*-12.
8
Evaluate 2/(-6)*(-11)/(-11).
-1/3
What is (-32)/(-8)*2/16*-6?
-3
Evaluate ((-10)/15)/(150/315).
-7/5
Evaluate (-8)/(-1)*((-136)/16)/(-17).
4
What is the value of 2/16*2/4*-4?
-1/4
Calculate (156/(-2691))/(4/6).
-2/23
What is ((30/(-162))/5)/(2/(-12))?
2/9
430/(-86)*((-2)/1)/70
1/7
Calculate -4*(-1)/4*-3.
-3
Calculate ((-414)/483)/(9/(-105)).
10
(-1944)/(-108)*(-1)/(-18)*2
2
Evaluate (2/8)/((99/22)/9).
1/2
What is the value of 119/(-357)*6/20?
-1/10
What is the value of (8/(-5))/(81/405)?
-8
Evaluate (-2)/12*15*8/30.
-2/3
Calculate 15/(-225)*-5*2/2.
1/3
What is ((-100)/(-30))/(-5)*2/(-4)?
1/3
Calculate ((-12)/63)/(2/(-3)).
2/7
18/(-9)*(-2)/(-2)
-2
What is the value of 1/(((-128)/(-12))/8)?
3/4
What is ((-1)/(-21))/(45/210)?
2/9
Evaluate 25/(-5)*(-2)/(-5).
-2
-1*4/2*4/8
-1
Calculate ((-4)/(-40)*5)/((-4)/(-24)).
3
What is (-1)/7*(-3)/(30/10)?
1/7
Evaluate (-4)/14*(-14)/5*5.
4
Calculate (81/(-351))/((-3)/117).
9
Evaluate (5/(-3))/((-660)/72).
2/11
((-3)/2)/((-4)/(-8))
-3
Calculate (63/((-35)/(-5)))/((-147)/(-14)).
6/7
Calculate (-8*7/70)/((-26)/5).
2/13
(1452/(-605))/(((-12)/10)/(-3))
-6
What is the value of (28/(-16))/(1/(-4))?
7
What is the value of (15/3)/1*(-2)/(-10)?
1
What is 30/(-6)*(-1)/(-5)?
-1
Calculate 1/4*6/6*0.
0
(1/(3/(-9)))/(21/(-7))
1
What is -63*-2*(-9)/(-162)?
7
Evaluate 2/20*10*5*1.
5
(-6)/(-9)*(-9)/6
-1
Calculate ((-8)/8)/((-15)/(-6)).
-2/5
Calculate (-2)/((-3)/(-6)*54/(-9)).
2/3
Evaluate (0/(-1))/((-6)/24*-12).
0
Evaluate ((-1)/(-26))/((-20)/80).
-2/13
What is (19/19)/(1/(-7))?
-7
Evaluate 2/((-2*35)/7).
-1/5
(1/(-1)*0/(-31))/2
0
14/2*32/(-112)
-2
Evaluate 8/(-1)*(-9)/90.
4/5
4/(-5)*45/18*-3
6
What is the value of ((-2)/44)/(2/4)?
-1/11
What is the value of (43/((-5160)/96))/(2/10)?
-4
Evaluate 1*0/((-4)/(-16)*4).
0
What is ((-6)/36)/((-2)/(-4))?
-1/3
6/(-2)*(-3)/(-9)
-1
What is the value of (1/(-10))/(((-12)/(-4))/12)?
-2/5
Evaluate (-45)/(-10)*16/(-8).
-9
Calculate ((-4)/10)/((-69)/690).
4
Evaluate (6/(-165))/((44/20)/(-11)).
2/11
Evaluate (-4)/(4/(16/(-8))).
2
What is (60/(-40))/(3/10)?
-5
5*5/50*12
6
What is the value of (1/(-4))/(9/18)?
-1/2
What is 13/455*-7*25?
-5
What is the value of 1*-3*(-6)/((-120)/(-4))?
3/5
What is the value of (-10)/22*(-52)/130?
2/11
What is the value of (4/28)/((-2)/(-2))?
1/7
What is -3*((-2)/15)/(13/5)?
2/13
Evaluate (30/(-35))/((-18)/84).
4
What is (12/(-1950)*5)/(2/10)?
-2/13
((297/(-18))/11)/(1/2)
-3
What is 9*((-42)/7)/(-198)?
3/11
What is 12/64*8*32/(-6)?
-8
What is the value of (341/(-66))/(-31)*(-8)/2?
-2/3
Calculate 1*15/(75/(-2)).
-2/5
Evaluate (2/(-2))/(1*(-2)/2).
1
What is the value of 270/45*(-1)/(-9)?
2/3
What is the value of (0/((-9)/(-3)))/((-114)/38)?
0
What is the value of (-19)/342*(-3)/(-1)?
-1/6
What is the value of 6/(-20)*-14*6/(-63)?
-2/5
Calculate -2*2*(-2)/(304/4).
2/19
1/(4/6)*4/(-2)
-3
(-2)/12*4*45/10
-3
12/18*(-2)/(-4)
1/3
What is ((-49)/49)/(7/(-2)*1)?
2/7
6/1*-1*4/(-108)
2/9
Calculate 54/(-15)*(1375/(-22))/(-25).
-9
What is 3/(-2)*(-50)/15?
5
((-1)/(-2))/(10/(-20))
-1
(-22)/627*(-3)/(-1)
-2/19
Calculate (-10)/4*(-16)/10.
4
What is the value of 4*1/8*0/1?
0
What is (16/20)/((-2)/5)?
-2
What is the value of 1*(-1)/(-4)*-4?
-1
Calculate 56/196*7/8.
1/4
What is 4/42*((-15)/(-5))/1?
2/7
Evaluate 1*(-2)/6*-3*0.
0
Evaluate 30/15*(-2)/4.
-1
6/48*-5*2/5
-1/4
28/(-8)*40/35
-4
Evaluate 21*(-6)/(-36)*(-4)/(-49).
2/7
Evaluate 8/20*60/42.
4/7
Calculate (2/6)/(12/36).
1
((-5)/(-9))/((-645)/(-258))
2/9
What is 40/(-20)*(-9)/(-3)?
-6
What is the value of 8*(-5)/(-25)*20/(-8)?
-4
What is 1*2/(-4)*8?
-4
Evaluate ((-2)/5)/(130/65).
-1/5
What is the value of (78/(-130))/(114/(-20))?
2/19
Calculate ((-4)/35)/(22/55).
-2/7
Evaluate (-6)/4*(-116)/58.
3
Calculate ((2*5/(-80))/1)/1.
-1/8
What is the value of (12/35)/(6/(-75)*5)?
-6/7
Evaluate (0/2)/((-6)/24*4).
0
Calculate ((-2)/(-4))/(30/(-20))*-15.
5
What is the value of (-6)/(50/15*9/(-4))?
4/5
Evaluate ((-7)/273)/((-13)/78).
2/13
What is the value of (-4)/(-108)*3*-3*5?
-5/3
What is the value of (0/2)/((-50)/10)?
0
What is 2/((-2)/(-3)*(-3)/(-2))?
2
Evaluate ((-12)/(-22))/(104/286).
3/2
(36/(-42))/((-15)/35)
2
70/80*20/14
5/4
What is ((-6)/(-28))/(2/(-7))*4?
-3
What is the value of ((-45)/(2025/(-18)))/(4/5)?
1/2
What is the value of 1/(1/30*6)?
5
4*275/(-88)*1/(-5)
5/2
Calculate 6/(-21)*7/(-8).
1/4
Calculate 1*-4*4*(-5)/(-40).
-2
((-16)/(-32))/(2/2)
1/2
Evaluate ((-3)/(-72)*8)/((-17)/6).
-2/17
Evaluate (2/(-12))/((-98)/1372).
7/3
((-56)/7)/8*1
-1
What is (-4)/510*-5*-3?
-2/17
What is ((-40)/(-14))/((-98)/343)?
-10
Calculate ((-2)/8)/((-58)/(-1624)).
-7
What is (-4)/(-5)*(-180)/216?
-2/3
What is 4/5*30/84?
2/7
Evaluate (((-2)/(-1))/2)/((-1)/5).
-5
3*4/3*15/(-12)
-5
Calculate ((-192)/40)/8*5.
-3
What is the value of ((-52)/(-546))/((-3)/7)*-3?
2/3
Calculate ((-256)/40)/(-8)*1/1.
4/5
Evaluate 20*(-2)/(-3)*6/16.
|
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A member of Vice President Mike Pence's staff has tested positive for the coronavirus, Pence's office said Friday night.
The staffer's name and exact position was not released, but Pence's press secretary, Katie Miller, said, "Neither President Trump nor Vice President Pence had close contact with the individual.
"Further contact tracing is being conducted in accordance with CDC guidelines,” Miller said.
Pence, who was placed in charge of the White House coronavirus task force in late February, said earlier this week he had not been tested for the virus himself.
"I'm in regular consultation with the White House physician and he said I've not been exposed to anyone for any period of time who has the coronavirus," he told reporters on Monday.
"My wife and I have no symptoms, but we’re checking our temperature regularly every day and will continue to follow guidance."
Trump tested negative for the virus last week, after he was in close contact with multiple people at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida who had been exposed to the coronavirus.
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Raven (1996 film)
Raven is a 1996 American direct-to-video action film starring Burt Reynolds.
Cast
Burt Reynolds as Jerome "Raven" Katz
Matt Battaglia as Martin "Duce" Grant
Krista Allen as Cali Goodwin
David Ackroyd as Bill Gilley
Richard Gant as Russ Carlson
Angela Harry as Eva
Walter Olkewicz as Bernie DeFrewd
Christopher Mayer as Hub
Production
It was originally called Raven Team.
Reynolds said he changed everyone of his lines in the script. "The really talented ones understand it's a collaborative effort and if you say something funny they say, 'I wrote that.'" He added, "This movie is very much a copy of that Travolta movie, Broken Arrow... I play the Travolta part. It's a part I can play. It's my part, my persona. And if you play a pink flamingo, you can play one for life, if it's a hit."
External links
Raven at IMDb
References
Category:1996 films
Category:1996 direct-to-video films
Category:1990s action films
Category:American films
Category:American action films
Category:American direct-to-video films
Category:Films scored by Harry Manfredini
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Image copyright Getty Images
The US presidential campaign doesn't take weekends off. For once, however, the spotlight is shining squarely on Hillary Clinton and not Donald Trump.
On back-to-back days the Democratic nominee made headlines - the first time, perhaps, intentionally. The second time was the kind of unpredictable event that all campaigns dread.
As with any political story, time - and the actions of the campaigns - will tell. Will Mrs Clinton's lumping of half of Mr Trump's supporters in a "basket of deplorables" alienate voters? Did her near collapse during Sunday's 9/11 memorial ceremonies make her health a political Achilles heel?
For the moment, there's plenty of cause for concern in the Clinton camp, as it reels to regain control of the news cycle.
As the saying goes, however, things are never as good as you think or as bad as they seem. The Democrat was riding high just a month ago, with pundits and prognosticators wondering just how big her election victory would be. Now comes the apparent trough. Will she - can she - rebound?
Here's a look at the two big stories of the weekend and why they may or may not be a significant blow to Mrs Clinton's presidential hopes.
Image copyright Getty Images
The 'Basket of Deplorables'
Hillary Clinton and the "basket of deplorables" sounds more like a rejected Harry Potter book title than a political insult, but her dismissive line instantly drew comparisons to other recent political gaffes. In 2012 Mitt Romney was roundly criticised for his dismissal of half of Americans as being addicted to government support, and Barack Obama said some downtrodden Pennsylvanians cling to guns and religion in 2008.
Mrs Clinton had delivered an entire speech about racism, sexism and xenophobia within the Trump ranks several weeks ago, but her basket comment on Friday night made headlines the following day because she applied the label to fully half of Mr Trump's supporters. Given that he received 13 million votes in the Republican primary alone, that's a sizable number of Americans.
By Saturday afternoon, Mrs Clinton had partially walked back her comments, saying she regretted using the word "half". She stood by her characterisation that the Trump campaign was lifting up and giving voice to many deplorable individuals and groups, however.
Why it's a bundle of trouble: The Trump campaign has already cut an advert, which will air in four key battleground states, blasting Mrs Clinton for maligning millions of "hardworking people like you".
As Mrs Clinton herself acknowledged before making her comments, she was being "grossly generalistic" about her description. Any time a politician has to preface a comment with that kind of qualification, it's probably something she shouldn't be saying at all.
The gaffe could make Mrs Clinton look elitist and dismissive of some voters, alienating the kinds of working-class voters she needs to win states like Pennsylvania, Ohio and Michigan.
Candidates insult each other all the time - something voters largely shrug off. Start taking shots at the public, however, and voters start wondering if you're talking about them.
Why it's a basket of nothing: Unlike the Obama and Romney gaffes, which maligned otherwise decent people for receiving government subsidies, being religious or supporting gun rights, Mrs Clinton was condemning deplorable behaviour. While the "half" line was an inflammatory overgeneralisation, Mrs Clinton would probably be happy to have a debate over how many of Mr Trump's supporters are racists or xenophobes.
Already some on the left are citing examples of the extreme views of Mr Trump's "alt-right" supporters and providing statistical evidence they say supports Mrs Clinton's assertion. A majority of Trump's supporters, for instance, believe President Barack Obama is secretly Muslim. Nearly half say that blacks are "more violent" than whites.
Moreover, it's unclear exactly where Mrs Clinton's comments could damage her. Even in his darkest days after the Democratic convention, Mr Trump had around 40% support in national polls. Those voters are fully out of Mrs Clinton's reach.
The Democratic nominee's supporters probably agree with her characterisations of Mr Trump's legions of fans. Many probably think the number of deplorables is greater than half.
There's still a high number of undecided in many polls - voters who had shown signs of supporting Mrs Clinton in August but have wavered in recent days. Being told that many of Mr Trump's supporters are racists isn't likely to push them into the Republican side.
Image copyright Getty Images
Clinton 'overheats'
Just as Democrats and Republicans were gearing up for the Battle of the Deplorables, the entire race was thrown in turmoil when Mrs Clinton made a mysterious exit from 9/11 memorial ceremonies in New York City.
At first the campaign said nothing. Then it said Mrs Clinton had "overheated" and was taken to her daughter's nearby apartment to recover. An amateur video showing the Democratic nominee walking unsteadily and apparently collapsing as she entered her van went viral on the internet.
Mrs Clinton, in better health, then appeared outside her daughter's apartment before departing to her home in Chappaqua, New York. Later that day, the campaign said Mrs Clinton had been diagnosed with pneumonia two days earlier. Toward the end of the evening it put out word that a scheduled Clinton trip to California had been cancelled.
Why it's a fall: Rumours about Mrs Clinton's health have been swirling in conservative circles for more than a year. In December 2014, Republican strategist Karl Rove suggested the Democrat had lingering brain damage from a concussion she received from a fall in 2012. In recent days Trump surrogates - including former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani - had suggested Mrs Clinton was covering up a serious medical condition.
These conspiracy theories had been roundly dismissed in the mainstream media, and news outlets that did touch it - like NBC, which ran a story about Mrs Clinton's recurring coughing fits - were denounced by the Clinton campaign.
Now, however, Mrs Clinton's health is squarely a campaign issue. More than that, the way the Clinton campaign handled the story - at first keeping the media in the dark, then trotting the candidate in front of cameras to say all is well, then revealing a two-day-old pneumonia diagnosis - plays into perceptions that the Clintons are overly secretive.
Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption This content is no longer available
"Antibiotics can take care of pneumonia," tweets former Obama campaign manager David Axelrod. "What's the cure for an unhealthy penchant for privacy that repeatedly creates unnecessary problems?"
What should be most concerning to the Clinton team is that the Trump campaign has managed to hold its tongue as the news unfolded, likely sensing that the story was damaging enough on its own. In his first public comments on Monday morning, for instance, Mr Trump only said that he hopes Mrs Clinton makes a full recovery.
Presidential campaigns go through great efforts to portray their candidate as healthy and full of vigour. Mr Obama played basketball with his staff. George W Bush cleared brush and jogged on his Texas ranch. Presidents who had health troubles concealed their weaknesses. John Kennedy, who had debilitating back pain among other ailments, played football with family members in front of the cameras. Franklin D Roosevelt was loath to be seen in his wheelchair.
At 68, Mrs Clinton is particularly susceptible to concerns about her health (as is 70-year-old Trump). She has the additional challenge of being the first female presidential nominee from a major political party - and may have to face biases within the electorate over whether a female candidate is sufficiently "strong", regardless of her age.
Why it's a stumble: Mrs Clinton will be under intense scrutiny over the coming weeks, as everyone looks for signs of lingering weakness. If she returns to her normal campaign schedule without incident after a few days of recuperation, she will go a long way towards putting health concerns to bed.
There may even be an unexpected benefit to Sunday's episode, as Mrs Clinton could gain sympathy from voters for enduring an illness and attempting to slog through to attend the 9/11 memorials. She was boosted prior to the New Hampshire primary in 2008, for instance, when she chocked back tears talking about her campaign efforts. It gave her an emotional connection to Americans that she often lacks.
Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Hillary Clinton health concerns 'are sexist', says former New York Times editor
No matter what happens in the coming weeks, the series of presidential debates starting on 26 September have taken on the utmost importance. Polls showed the race between Mrs Clinton and Mr Trump already tightening, and now Americans will be even more inclined to watch to see how the Democratic nominee holds up for 90 minutes on the stage.
In a way it may help her lower expectations for her performance. Mr Trump was already thought to have a low bar given his penchant for intemperate, ill-conceived remarks. Mrs Clinton may only have to stay upright on stage for her appearance to be deemed a success.
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type="range"
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onSelectHasDisableDate="onSelectHasDisableDate" />
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9 Airports to Find Craft Breweries
THE NEW BELGIUM HUB AT THE DENVER INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT. (CREDIT: FLY DENVER)
Traveling is stressful. Between a long wait in the security lines, delayed flights and navigating through crowds, airports can very quickly become a not-so-great place to be. Each of these U.S. airports has a true gem and saving grace inside — a much-welcomed craft brewery.
With this list of beer-lover hot spots (in no particular order), you may just welcome your next delayed flight or layover.
2. Boston Logan International Airport
3. San Diego International Airport
Can’t pick just one of Stone’s awesome brews to go with their eclectic food menu (some of which comes from their own organic farm in Escondido)? Opt for an IPA sampler or a Taste of Stone, which features 7-ounce pours of Levitation Ale, Smoked Porter, and Arrogant Bastard.
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Create an FCI with Storage Spaces Direct (SQL Server on Azure VMs)
06/18/2020
8 minutes to read
In this article
APPLIES TO: SQL Server on Azure VM
This article explains how to create a failover cluster instance (FCI) by using Storage Spaces Direct with SQL Server on Azure Virtual Machines (VMs). Storage Spaces Direct acts as a software-based virtual storage area network (VSAN) that synchronizes the storage (data disks) between the nodes (Azure VMs) in a Windows cluster.
To learn more, see an overview of FCI with SQL Server on Azure VMs and cluster best practices.
Overview
Storage Spaces Direct (S2D) supports two types of architectures: converged and hyperconverged. A hyperconverged infrastructure places the storage on the same servers that host the clustered application, so that storage is on each SQL Server FCI node.
The following diagram shows the complete solution, which uses hyperconverged Storage Spaces Direct with SQL Server on Azure VMs:
The preceding diagram shows the following resources in the same resource group:
Two virtual machines in a Windows Server failover cluster. When a virtual machine is in a failover cluster, it's also called a cluster node or node.
Each virtual machine has two or more data disks.
Storage Spaces Direct synchronizes the data on the data disks and presents the synchronized storage as a storage pool.
The storage pool presents a Cluster Shared Volume (CSV) to the failover cluster.
The SQL Server FCI cluster role uses the CSV for the data drives.
An Azure load balancer to hold the IP address for the SQL Server FCI.
An Azure availability set holds all the resources. Note You can create this entire solution in Azure from a template. An example of a template is available on the GitHub Azure quickstart templates page. This example isn't designed or tested for any specific workload. You can run the template to create a SQL Server FCI with Storage Spaces Direct storage connected to your domain. You can evaluate the template and modify it for your purposes.
Prerequisites
Before you complete the instructions in this article, you should already have:
An Azure subscription. Get started for free.
Two or more prepared Windows Azure virtual machines in an availability set.
An account that has permissions to create objects on both Azure virtual machines and in Active Directory.
The latest version of PowerShell.
Add the Windows cluster feature
Connect to the first virtual machine by using Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) with a domain account that's a member of the local administrators and that has permission to create objects in Active Directory. Use this account for the rest of the configuration. Add failover clustering to each virtual machine. To install failover clustering from the UI, do the following on both virtual machines: In Server Manager, select Manage, and then select Add Roles and Features. In the Add Roles and Features wizard, select Next until you get to Select Features. In Select Features, select Failover Clustering. Include all required features and the management tools. Select Add Features. Select Next, and then select Finish to install the features. To install failover clustering by using PowerShell, run the following script from an administrator PowerShell session on one of the virtual machines: $nodes = ("<node1>","<node2>") Invoke-Command $nodes {Install-WindowsFeature Failover-Clustering -IncludeAllSubFeature -IncludeManagementTools}
For more information about the next steps, see the instructions in the "Step 3: Configure Storage Spaces Direct" section of Hyperconverged solution using Storage Spaces Direct in Windows Server 2016.
Validate the cluster in the UI or by using PowerShell.
To validate the cluster by using the UI, do the following on one of the virtual machines:
Under Server Manager, select Tools, and then select Failover Cluster Manager. Under Failover Cluster Manager, select Action, and then select Validate Configuration. Select Next. Under Select Servers or a Cluster, enter the names of both virtual machines. Under Testing options, select Run only tests I select. Select Next. Under Test Selection, select all tests except for Storage, as shown here: Select Next. Under Confirmation, select Next. The Validate a Configuration wizard runs the validation tests.
To validate the cluster by using PowerShell, run the following script from an administrator PowerShell session on one of the virtual machines:
Test-Cluster –Node ("<node1>","<node2>") –Include "Storage Spaces Direct", "Inventory", "Network", "System Configuration"
After you validate the cluster, create the failover cluster.
Create failover cluster
To create the failover cluster, you need:
The names of the virtual machines that will become the cluster nodes.
A name for the failover cluster.
An IP address for the failover cluster. You can use an IP address that's not used on the same Azure virtual network and subnet as the cluster nodes.
Windows Server 2012 - 2016
Windows Server 2019 The following PowerShell script creates a failover cluster for Windows Server 2012 through Windows Server 2016. Update the script with the names of the nodes (the virtual machine names) and an available IP address from the Azure virtual network. New-Cluster -Name <FailoverCluster-Name> -Node ("<node1>","<node2>") –StaticAddress <n.n.n.n> -NoStorage The following PowerShell script creates a failover cluster for Windows Server 2019. Update the script with the names of the nodes (the virtual machine names) and an available IP address from the Azure virtual network. New-Cluster -Name <FailoverCluster-Name> -Node ("<node1>","<node2>") –StaticAddress <n.n.n.n> -NoStorage -ManagementPointNetworkType Singleton For more information, see Failover cluster: Cluster Network Object.
Configure quorum
Configure the quorum solution that best suits your business needs. You can configure a Disk Witness, a Cloud Witness, or a File Share Witness. For more information, see Quorum with SQL Server VMs.
Add storage
The disks for Storage Spaces Direct need to be empty. They can't contain partitions or other data. To clean the disks, follow the instructions in Deploy Storage Spaces Direct.
Enable Storage Spaces Direct. The following PowerShell script enables Storage Spaces Direct: Enable-ClusterS2D In Failover Cluster Manager, you can now see the storage pool. Create a volume. Storage Spaces Direct automatically creates a storage pool when you enable it. You're now ready to create a volume. The PowerShell cmdlet New-Volume automates the volume creation process. This process includes formatting, adding the volume to the cluster, and creating a CSV. This example creates an 800-gigabyte (GB) CSV: New-Volume -StoragePoolFriendlyName S2D* -FriendlyName VDisk01 -FileSystem CSVFS_REFS -Size 800GB After you've run the preceding command, an 800-GB volume is mounted as a cluster resource. The volume is at C:\ClusterStorage\Volume1\ . This screenshot shows a CSV with Storage Spaces Direct:
Test cluster failover
Test the failover of your cluster. In Failover Cluster Manager, right-click your cluster, select More Actions > Move Core Cluster Resource > Select node, and then select the other node of the cluster. Move the core cluster resource to every node of the cluster, and then move it back to the primary node. If you can successfully move the cluster to each node, you're ready to install SQL Server.
Create SQL Server FCI
After you've configured the failover cluster and all cluster components, including storage, you can create the SQL Server FCI.
Connect to the first virtual machine by using RDP. In Failover Cluster Manager, make sure all core cluster resources are on the first virtual machine. If necessary, move all resources to that virtual machine. Locate the installation media. If the virtual machine uses one of the Azure Marketplace images, the media is located at C:\SQLServer_<version number>_Full . Select Setup. In SQL Server Installation Center, select Installation. Select New SQL Server failover cluster installation. Follow the instructions in the wizard to install the SQL Server FCI. The FCI data directories need to be on clustered storage. With Storage Spaces Direct, it's not a shared disk but a mount point to a volume on each server. Storage Spaces Direct synchronizes the volume between both nodes. The volume is presented to the cluster as a CSV. Use the CSV mount point for the data directories. After you complete the instructions in the wizard, Setup installs a SQL Server FCI on the first node. After Setup installs the FCI on the first node, connect to the second node by using RDP. Open the SQL Server Installation Center. Select Installation. Select Add node to a SQL Server failover cluster. Follow the instructions in the wizard to install SQL Server and add the server to the FCI. Note If you used an Azure Marketplace gallery image that contains SQL Server, SQL Server tools were included with the image. If you didn't use one of those images, install the SQL Server tools separately. For more information, see Download SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS).
Register with the SQL VM RP
To manage your SQL Server VM from the portal, register it with the SQL VM resource provider (RP) in lightweight management mode, currently the only mode that's supported with FCI and SQL Server on Azure VMs.
Register a SQL Server VM in lightweight mode with PowerShell:
# Get the existing compute VM $vm = Get-AzVM -Name <vm_name> -ResourceGroupName <resource_group_name> # Register SQL VM with 'Lightweight' SQL IaaS agent New-AzSqlVM -Name $vm.Name -ResourceGroupName $vm.ResourceGroupName -Location $vm.Location ` -LicenseType PAYG -SqlManagementType LightWeight
Configure connectivity
To route traffic appropriately to the current primary node, configure the connectivity option that's suitable for your environment. You can create an Azure load balancer or, if you're using SQL Server 2019 and Windows Server 2016 (or later), you can preview the distributed network name feature instead.
Limitations
Azure virtual machines support Microsoft Distributed Transaction Coordinator (MSDTC) on Windows Server 2019 with storage on CSVs and a standard load balancer.
Disks that have been attached as NTFS-formatted disks can be used with Storage Spaces Direct only if the disk eligibility option is unchecked, or cleared, when storage is being added to the cluster.
Only registering with the SQL VM resource provider in lightweight management mode is supported.
Next steps
If you haven't already done so, configure connectivity to your FCI with a virtual network name and an Azure load balancer or distributed network name (DNN).
If Storage Spaces Direct isn't the appropriate FCI storage solution for you, consider creating your FCI by using Azure shared disks or Premium File Shares instead.
To learn more, see an overview of FCI with SQL Server on Azure VMs and cluster configuration best practices.
For additional information, see:
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1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an X-ray analysis apparatus, an X-ray analysis system, an X-ray analysis method, and an X-ray analysis program for converting an X-ray intensity distribution of discrete data determined for each pixel, from a first plane where the distribution is known into a second plane where the distribution is not known.
2. Description of the Related Art
While image data is usually two-dimensional, in consideration of an observation or measurement space, the image data can be regarded as data on a three-dimensional orthogonal coordinate system. Furthermore, data measured by a detector takes a discontinuous value for each pixel and is expressed as spatially discrete information as discrete data.
There is a case where such discrete data on an orthogonal coordinate system needs to be mapped to another coordinate system having the same or a lower dimension. Particularly in mapping in which data is expressed discretely in a mapping source and a mapping destination, one-to-one relationship can hold in a special conversion such as square pixel rotation in a multiple number of n/2. However, usually, one-to-one relationship does not hold between data elements even when the conversion operation is parallel transfer or rotation.
In the field of image processing, a method of approximately solving this problem exists for a long time and a nearest neighbor algorithm, a bilinear interpolation method, and a bicubic interpolation method are widely used. However, these methods do not guarantee preservation of a pixel value and an integral value thereof and are not always appropriately applied to an X-ray diffraction or scattering method in which a position and an integral value of a pixel value are important.
As a method of preserving a position and an integral value of a pixel value, there is proposed an approximation method of transforming a square pixel of a mapping source into a rectangular region in a mapping destination (refer to Non-patent Documents 1 to 4). However, in this method, while a pixel value is preserved, there is caused deformation of a high-frequency component of space frequency. Furthermore, a measurement value by a digital detector is limited to an integer, and sometimes an observation coordinate system does not coincide with an ideal observation coordinate system. For example, in the case such as the detector being inclined, data expression is treated only by using an integer value, and thus a rounding error to an integer value can be accumulated.
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Evidence that asthma is a developmental origin disease influenced by maternal diet and bacterial metabolites.
Asthma is prevalent in Western countries, and recent explanations have evoked the actions of the gut microbiota. Here we show that feeding mice a high-fibre diet yields a distinctive gut microbiota, which increases the levels of the short-chain fatty acid, acetate. High-fibre or acetate-feeding led to marked suppression of allergic airways disease (AAD, a model for human asthma), by enhancing T-regulatory cell numbers and function. Acetate increases acetylation at the Foxp3 promoter, likely through HDAC9 inhibition. Epigenetic effects of fibre/acetate in adult mice led us to examine the influence of maternal intake of fibre/acetate. High-fibre/acetate feeding of pregnant mice imparts on their adult offspring an inability to develop robust AAD. High fibre/acetate suppresses expression of certain genes in the mouse fetal lung linked to both human asthma and mouse AAD. Thus, diet acting on the gut microbiota profoundly influences airway responses, and may represent an approach to prevent asthma, including during pregnancy.
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By Culted
J. Z. Knight [as Ramtha] is now pandering to the GOP and Trump.
Rosanne Barr has had a lot of association with Ramtha recently. Both Roseanne and JZ are heavy Second Amendment supporters. Roseanne has been seeking Ramtha for spiritual guidance in phone calls and both are rabid Trump supporters.
Anyone who lives near the Ramtha School of Enlightenment knows that it borders a thick forest that is owned by the US Military. There are some people who follow Ramtha who live out in those woods. There is a small encampment that has been living there literally for decades.
The encampment is known as “the people who lost everything to Ramtha.” They are the truly devoted.
It’s hard to get to and locate in the thick forest, but the encampment is actually only a few hundred yards from another part of the school – the Maze.
As part of their training, people are put in the Maze and they have to try to get out. They often act like frenzied rats trying to escape. Sometimes this drill can last for many hours at a time, with people being literally stuck in the ever-changing maze.
I think that originally Knight did not intend to commit crimes, but things got out of control with the Pyramid Schemes and colored Trek Pants. Miss a class, you start all over, even if that means camping in a PsyOps drill called Paradise Beach, where one can be left out for days at a time in cold, wet weather, often scheduled during February or November, where temperatures are often in the forties or colder.
It was rumored that JZ Knight and Linda Evans were having an affair for a while. Linda helped finance the Ramtha school along with John Derek’s daughter. {Evans was married to Derek.]
JZ became famous when she appeared on the Merv Griffin show. Merv gave JZ her first big exposure. The reason for that is because Merv and JZ’s ex-husband were gay and JZ’s ex-husband knew Merv and arranged her appearance.
Also, if you look at the later year plot lines of the TV show Dynasty, it is almost a mirror image of how JZ crafted her image: the UFO plot lines, the horses, two of the characters of Dynasty moved to the Seattle area. That’s because some of the writers also joined the Ramtha cult after the show wrapped.
Lots more to be said about Ramtha
I hope that Catherine Oxenberg’s next book will be about Ramtha, now that she nabbed NXIVM. [Her book Captive was such a good read.]
Hopefully, Linda Evans will fast track a biography about her Ramtha years before others cash in. Linda’s time out of the limelight has been too long and she needs a comeback like Oxenberg did thru her association with NXIVM.
The Ramtha lawyers are to be feared though. Time and time again they have shut people down and shut them up into silence.
I doubt Frank Parlato will get very far before Ramtha sues.
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The unique passion, energy, and obsession of Philadelphian basketball community can be tough to fully understand and capture for people who come into the community from the outside. Thankfully for Diana Venezia, she had already grown up with a large window looking into the city’s basketball culture at the collegiate level, so diving into work serving its foundation — our city’s young people — was a challenge she was excited and prepared for. Although she grew up an hour…
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/*
* Copyright 2013-2020 http4s.org
*
* SPDX-License-Identifier: Apache-2.0
*
* Based on https://github.com/spray/spray/blob/v1.1-M7/spray-http/src/main/scala/spray/http/CacheDirective.scala
* Copyright (C) 2011-2012 spray.io
* Based on code copyright (C) 2010-2011 by the BlueEyes Web Framework Team
*/
package org.http4s
import org.http4s.util.{Renderable, Writer}
import org.typelevel.ci.CIString
import scala.concurrent.duration.Duration
sealed trait CacheDirective extends Product with Renderable {
val name = CIString(productPrefix.replace("$minus", "-"))
def value: String = name.toString
override def toString: String = value
def render(writer: Writer): writer.type = writer.append(value)
}
/**
* A registry of cache-directives, as listed in
* http://www.iana.org/assignments/http-cache-directives/http-cache-directives.xhtml
*/
object CacheDirective {
final case class `max-age`(deltaSeconds: Duration) extends CacheDirective {
override def value: String = name.toString + "=" + deltaSeconds.toSeconds
}
final case class `max-stale`(deltaSeconds: Option[Duration] = None) extends CacheDirective {
override def value: String = name.toString + deltaSeconds.fold("")("=" + _.toSeconds)
}
final case class `min-fresh`(deltaSeconds: Duration) extends CacheDirective {
override def value: String = name.toString + "=" + deltaSeconds.toSeconds
}
case object `must-revalidate` extends CacheDirective
final case class `no-cache`(fieldNames: List[CIString] = Nil) extends CacheDirective {
override def value: String =
name.toString + (if (fieldNames.isEmpty) "" else fieldNames.mkString("=\"", ",", "\""))
}
case object `no-store` extends CacheDirective
case object `no-transform` extends CacheDirective
case object `only-if-cached` extends CacheDirective
final case class `private`(fieldNames: List[CIString] = Nil) extends CacheDirective {
override def value: String =
name.toString + (if (fieldNames.isEmpty) "" else fieldNames.mkString("=\"", ",", "\""))
}
case object `proxy-revalidate` extends CacheDirective
case object public extends CacheDirective
final case class `s-maxage`(deltaSeconds: Duration) extends CacheDirective {
override def value: String = name.toString + "=" + deltaSeconds.toSeconds
}
final case class `stale-if-error`(deltaSeconds: Duration) extends CacheDirective {
override def value: String = name.toString + "=" + deltaSeconds.toSeconds
}
final case class `stale-while-revalidate`(deltaSeconds: Duration) extends CacheDirective {
override def value: String = name.toString + "=" + deltaSeconds.toSeconds
}
def apply(name: CIString, argument: Option[String] = None): CacheDirective =
new CustomCacheDirective(name, argument)
def apply(name: String, argument: Option[String]): CacheDirective =
apply(CIString(name), argument)
def apply(name: String): CacheDirective = apply(name, None)
private final case class CustomCacheDirective(
override val name: CIString,
argument: Option[String] = None)
extends CacheDirective {
override def value: String = name.toString + argument.fold("")("=\"" + _ + '"')
}
}
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A module in a module system is associated with a particular name. Modules refer to each other by their respective names. For example, one module may declare a dependency on another module, referring to the depended-upon module by name. However, a module may be renamed. For example, a module may be generated using an automatically assigned name (e.g., assigned by an integrated development environment (IDE)) and may later be renamed using a user-assigned name. As another example, a company may be acquired and subsequently change its module names to reflect the acquisition. Many different reasons for renaming a module exist.
When a module's name changes, consumers of that module (e.g., other modules depending on that module) may break, i.e. cease to function properly, if the consumers are not edited to reference the new module name. Specifically, when a consumer attempts to access a module using its old name, an error may be generated and/or the consumer may encounter errors when attempting to reference the module using its old name. Editing every reference to an old module name, in each of the module's consumers, may be time-consuming, expensive, and/or simply impractical. For example, the developers of a module that is released for use by other developers generally do not have access to edit consuming modules' code.
One approach to renaming a module may be to declare multiple names for that particular module. In other words, the module system may include a single module that can be referenced by multiple names. However, allowing a single module to have multiple names may require the programming environment, compiler, and/or runtime environment to keep track of the multiple names and ensure that references to each of those names resolve to the same module. Thus, allowing a single module to be have multiple names may be resource-intensive and/or error-prone.
The approaches described in this section are approaches that could be pursued, but not necessarily approaches that have been previously conceived or pursued. Therefore, unless otherwise indicated, it should not be assumed that any of the approaches described in this section qualify as prior art merely by virtue of their inclusion in this section.
|
/*
* {{{ header & license
* Copyright (c) 2007 Patrick Wright
*
* This program is free software; you can redistribute it and/or
* modify it under the terms of the GNU Lesser General Public License
* as published by the Free Software Foundation; either version 2.1
* of the License, or (at your option) any later version.
*
* This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
* but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
* MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the
* GNU Lesser General Public License for more details.
*
* You should have received a copy of the GNU Lesser General Public License
* along with this program; if not, write to the Free Software
* Foundation, Inc., 59 Temple Place - Suite 330, Boston, MA 02111-1307, USA.
* }}}
*/
package com.openhtmltopdf.util;
import java.util.Map;
import java.util.HashMap;
/**
* Simple enumerated constants for downscaling (scaling to smaller image size)--since we have various options
* for what algorithm to use. Not general-purpose, applies only to methods used in ImageUtil. Types constants
* can be looked up using {@link #forString(String, DownscaleQuality)} and the corresponding string
* for the quality
*/
// made a separate class only to reduce size of ImageUtil
public class DownscaleQuality {
/** Internal map string type to DQ instance */
private static Map<String, DownscaleQuality> constList;
/**
* Highest-quality downscaling; probably slowest as well.
*/
public static final DownscaleQuality HIGH_QUALITY = addConstant("HIGH");
/** Low-quality, but not worst quality */
public static final DownscaleQuality LOW_QUALITY = addConstant("MED");
/** Low quality, but very fast. */
public static final DownscaleQuality FAST = addConstant("LOW");
/** One step, fast, but should be better than low-quality. */
public static final DownscaleQuality AREA = addConstant("AREA");
private final String type;
/**
* Create and add constant instance
* @param type Unique string for the instance
* @return The constant for that type
*/
private static DownscaleQuality addConstant(String type) {
init();
if ( constList.containsKey(type)) {
throw new RuntimeException("Type strings for DownscaleQuality should be unique; " + type +
" is declared twice");
}
DownscaleQuality q = new DownscaleQuality(type);
constList.put(type, q);
return q;
}
private static void init() {
if ( constList == null ) constList = new HashMap<>();
}
private DownscaleQuality(String type) {
this.type = type;
}
public String asString() {
return type;
}
/**
* Retrieves the DownscaleQuality instance for the corresponding string.
*
* @param type The string describing the quality, e.g. HIGH
* @param dflt Default value to use if not found
* @return The constant quality instance for the type, or the default if not found.
*/
public static DownscaleQuality forString(String type, DownscaleQuality dflt) {
DownscaleQuality q = constList.get(type);
return q == null ? dflt : q;
}
}
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"Holy shit." "You all right?" " Yeah." " Hershel?" "Let's head back." "Car." "Car." "Get down." "Dave?" "Tony?" "They said over here?" "Yeah." "I'm telling you, man, I heard shots." "I saw roamers, two streets over." "Might be more around here." "It's hot." "We gotta get out of here." "Dave!" "Tony!" "Shut up, idiot!" "You wanna attract them?" "Just stick close." "We're gonna find them." "Dude, he said to stay close." "Tony." " They should've been back by now." " Yeah." "They just got holed up somewhere." "We'll head out first thing in the morning." " Thank you." " Welcome." "Thanks." "Carl, I want you to keep your head up, okay?" "Your old man, he's the toughest son of a..." "No cussing in the house." "Sorry." " Lori, dinner." " She's not in there." "Where is she?" "Carl, when's the last time you saw your mom?" "This afternoon." "She was worried about Rick, asked me to look in on Carl." " She went after them?" " She didn't say that." "Nobody panic." "Gonna be around here somewhere." " Why won't they leave?" " Would you?" "We can't sit here any longer." "Let's head out the back and make a run to the car." " What happened?" " Roamers." "I nailed them." " They disappeared, but their car's still there." " I cleared those buildings." " You guys get this one?" " No." "Me neither." "We're looking for Dave and Tony and no one checks the damn bar?" "What?" "Someone pushed that shut." "There's someone in there." "Yo, is someone in there?" "Yo, if someone's in there, we don't want no trouble." "We're just looking for our friends." "What do we do?" "Bum rush the door?" "No, we don't know how many are there." "Just relax." "We don't want any trouble." "We're just looking for our friends." "If something happened, tell us." "This place is crawling with corpses." "If you can help us not get killed, I'd appreciate it." "Dude, you're bugging." "I'm telling you nobody's in there." "Someone guard the door." "If they're in there, they might know where Dave and Tony are." "They drew on us!" "Dave and Tony in there?" "They alive?" " RICK:" "No." " They killed Dave and Tony." "Come on, man, let's go." "No, I'm not leaving, I'm not telling Jane." "I'm not gonna go back and tell them that Dave and Tony got shot" " by some assholes in a bar." " Your friends drew on us!" "They gave us no choice!" "I'm sure we've all lost enough people, done things we wish we didn't have to, but it's like that now." "You know that!" "So let's just chalk this up to what it was, wrong place, wrong..." "Get outta here!" "Go!" "We can't find Lori." "And the others aren't back yet either." "That dumb bitch must've gone off looking for them." " What?" " Yeah, she asked me to go." "I told her I was done being an errand boy." "And you didn't say anything?" "Don't do this." "Please." "I've already lost my girl." "Yeah, that wasn't my problem neither." " She's not at the barn." " I checked the yards." "Well, where is she?" "She asked Daryl to go into town." "Must've gone herself." "Hey." "Carl." " Did you know about this?" " No." "Look, just, did she take a gun?" "I don't know." "I wouldn't let her go out there alone." "Hey!" "We all know this is not gonna end well!" "There's nothing in it for any of us!" "You guys, just back off, no one else gets hurt!" "Shit!" "Glenn!" "Glenn!" "I'm all right." "I'm all right." "Lori!" "I'll hold them here." "You cover Glenn." "See if you can make it to your car." "Tell him..." "Tell him to pull up back." "We'll run for it, get the hell out of here." "You want me to cover Glenn?" "You missed all that gun training." "It could've come in handy now." "I can shoot." "I just don't like to." "Sorry." "Sorry." "Rick wants you to try for the car." " Try?" " You'll try and succeed." " I'll cover you." " That's a great plan." " What happened?" " He fired." "He must've hit Glenn." "He's behind the dumpster." " Doesn't look like he's moving." " Help!" "You hit?" "Are you hit?" "No." "No." " It's all right." "The car's right there." " Okay." "We're almost home." " You good?" " I'm good." "Let's go." "Get back." "Let's get out of here!" "Roamers all over the place!" "Hurry up!" " We gotta get out of here!" " What about Sean?" " They shot him." " We gotta go." "Roamers are everywhere." " We're leaving?" " Jump!" "Hurry up, jump already." "Dude didn't make it." " Help me!" "Help me!" " I've gotta go." "I'm sorry!" "No, no, don't leave!" "Help me!" "No!" "No!" " Get Hershel." " Help!" "Help!" "Help!" "Help me!" "Hershel!" "No!" "Help!" "Hershel." "Hershel." "The gunfire must've attracted the walkers." "Where's Rick?" "He ran across." "Well, hell, we can't go without him." "Rick!" " We have to go now." " No!" " I'm sorry, son." "We have to go." " No, no, don't leave me, please." " We have to go." " We can't." " He was just shooting at us!" " He's a kid." " Please help me." " This place is crawling with walkers!" "We can't leave him!" "The fence went clean through." "There's no way we can get the leg off in one piece." " Shut up or I will shoot you!" " That may be the answer." "We're not gonna get that leg off without tearing the muscle to shreds." "He certainly can't run." "He may bleed out." "Shut up." "I'm sorry." "Shut up." "Shut up." "Maybe we should put him down." "I don't wanna see any more killing, but this is cruel." "Can't we just take the leg off?" "That hatchet still in the car?" "No, no." "Don't cut my leg off, please." " Please, not my leg." " Will this cut through the bone?" "I'll have to sever the ligaments below the kneecap, out above the tibia." "He's going to lose his lower leg." " No, don't." "No." " When we get clear of here, we're gonna have to find some tinder, cauterize the wound so he doesn't bleed out." " All right, no choice." "Hurry up." " Oh, God." "Oh, God." "Hand me that stick." "Here." "Guys, walkers." " Shut up!" " Oh, my God." "Hurry up!" "Shut up." "Oh, God!" "They're everywhere." " Hershel, how we doing over there?" " I need more hands!" "Easy, easy." "No, don't cut my leg off, please." "Come on, we gotta go!" "I'm almost out of ammo!" "We don't have much time!" "Come on, we've gotta go!" "Can't hold them off!" "Hershel, do it now!" " Come on, Hershel!" " There is no time!" "Hershel, come on!" "Please don't leave me!" "Please!" "No!" "Don't leave me!" "Please!" "Please don't leave me!" " Are you all right?" " I'm fine." "You're not fine." "I saw the wreck." "Let me look at you." " What happened?" " Looked down at the map and hit a walker." "Next time stay put, you won't need a map." " Come on, I gotta get you back." " No, we gotta find Rick." "He's back." "They're all back." "They're all safe and sound." " Really?" " Yeah." "Oh, thank God." " What are you doing?" " God." " Keeping an eye on you." " Ain't you a peach?" "I'm not gonna let you pull away." "You've earned your place." "If you spent half your time minding your daughter's business instead of sticking your nose in everybody else's, she'd Still be alive!" "Go ahead." "Go ahead and what?" "I mean, just go!" "I don't want you here!" "You're a real piece of work, lady." "What, are you gonna make this about my daddy or some crap like that?" "Man, you know jack." "You're afraid." "You're afraid 'cause you're all alone." "You got no husband, no daughter." "You don't know what to do with yourself." "You ain't my problem!" "Sophia wasn't mine!" "All you had to do was keep an eye on her!" "Hmm." "Yeah." "Oh, my God, are you all right?" "What happened?" " I was in an accident." "I'm fine, I'm fine." " She was attacked." "I really am." "Where's Rick?" "They're not back?" "Where are they?" "Look, I had to get you back here." " You asshole." " Lon." " He's my husband." " Lori, I will go after him." "I will find him." "Hey!" "Now, look, first things first." "I gotta..." "I gotta look after you." "I gotta make sure the baby's all right, okay?" "You're having a baby?" "Why didn't you tell me?" "Come on." "Let's make sure you're all right." "Come on." "Thank you." "Hey." "I am so sorry that I left without telling you." "It's okay." "I wasn't scared." "When's Dad getting back?" "Let's hope soon." "I wanna be there when you tell him about the baby." "He already knows." "We were just trying to find the right time to tell you." "Is it a boy or a girl?" "Well, we won't know that until it's born." " Will I be able to feel it?" " Not for a while." "You must have a lot of questions, huh?" "We never had the talk." "I guess we forgot." "Don't look at me." "That's your father's job." "If the baby's a girl, can we name her Sophia?" "Hey, dude." "Hey, I'm sorry, bud." "Okay?" "I thought you knew." "Big brother Carl." "Pretty cool, huh?" "I say that's very cool." "You mind if I talk to your mom a sec?" "How about a little later after she's had some rest?" "Lori, I had to get you back here." "You wouldn't have come otherwise." "How about you..." "How about you just hear me out, please?" "It's okay." "Can you give me a minute?" "Thanks, bud." "Okay." "Lori, it was a lie." "It was one little white lie." "But I think that..." "I think you ought to be thinking about how lucky we are that your baby's safe." "You just can't stop lying, can you?" "My husband is back safe and sound." "My husband is dead in some hospital." "When are you gonna..." "When are you gonna stop throwing that in my face, huh?" "I thought that he was..." "The point here, Lor, is that you cannot keep running off like that." "What are you thinking about?" "I was thinking we needed Rick here to keep us safe." "Rick?" "I keep you safe." "Like you did with Otis?" "What happened that night?" "You haven't been the same since." "You wanna know what happened with Otis?" "What happened with Otis happened because I love you." "I love you and I love Carl." "I told Rick." "What?" "You told him what?" "Did you tell him that you thought you were a widow?" "That you were grieving and that the world was coming to an end?" "That you needed comforting?" "Did you tell him it was a mistake?" "Mmm-hmm." "You know, Lori, that ain't true." "What we had, it was real." " It was not." " It was a long time coming." " It was real, Lori." " It was not." "It was you and it was me and Carl, and it was real." "It was right." "Don't say it wasn't." "It wasn't." "Just think about what you felt, just for a second." "What you felt." "Everything falling apart all around us, but it..." "It was the one good thing." "And you know it's true." "How is she?" "Dehydrated." "I'll set up an IV." "Best I can do without Hershel." "Hey." "Can I get you anything?" "I just wish my dad was here." "She'll be okay." "You just need to be strong for her." "I was just reminding her about..." "Never mind." "No, no." "I'd love to hear." "My dad would die if he heard this." "My first summer back from college," "I drove home, dumped my stuff off, went straight out to the stable for a ride." "My family comes back from church and Beth grabs my things and starts unpacking my stuff upstairs." "That's sweet." "Yeah, until this one here starts rifling through my backpack." "She finds this little plastic container with these pink and green candies inside." "She didn't even know I was on the pill." "She was so freaked out by the idea of me and boys and sex, that she runs outside and chucks them in the duck pond." "And I ride up, I see this, I'm screaming." "She's crying and Shawn runs outside, thinks one of us is drowning." "Soon as he figures out what's going on, the jerk busts out laughing so loud that my horse rears up and gets mud all over the three of us." "My dad comes out, "What the heck is going on out here?"" "And she turns around, bats her eyelids and says," ""We're just swimming, Daddy."" "In her Sunday dress, all covered in snot and mud." "Rick and Glenn will get your dad back." "Glenn's a good guy." "Yeah." "He is." "Are you sure you wanna risk it?" "You might not make it back." "I'll be fine." "And with Shane at the helm, I wouldn't be too sure." "He's lost people before." "And he's had my back." "What are you insinuating?" "He doesn't want Rick back, or Hershel." "With them gone, he's got everything he wants and no one to tell him otherwise." "Shane has done more to keep this group alive than anybody," " including Rick." " You can't possibly believe that." "I do." "Guys." "Dad!" "You're okay." "Patricia, prepare the shed for surgery." " Are you hurt?" " No, but what happened to you?" " I was in a car accident." " Accident?" "How?" " I went looking for you." " Snuck out on her own." " I brought her back." " Are you crazy?" "You could've..." "Who the hell is that?" "That's Randall." "We couldn't just leave him behind." "He would've bled out, if he lived that long." "It's gotten bad in town." "What do we do with him?" "I repaired his calf muscle as best I can, but he'll probably have nerve damage." "Won't be on his feet for at least a week." "When he is, we give him a canteen, take him out to the main road, send him on his way." "Isn't that the same as leaving him for the walkers?" " He'll have a fighting chance." " Just gonna let him go?" "He knows where we are." "He was blindfolded the whole way here." "He's not a threat." "Not a threat." "How many of them were there?" "You killed three of their men, you took one of them hostage," " but they just ain't gonna come looking?" " They left him for dead." "No one is looking." "We should still post a guard." "He's out cold right now, will be for hours." "You know what?" "I'm gonna go get him some flowers and candy." "Look at this, folks!" "We back in fantasy land!" "We haven't even dealt with what you did at my barn yet." "Let me make this perfectly clear once and for all." "This is my farm." "I wanted you gone." "Rick talked me out of it, but that doesn't mean I have to like it." "So do us both a favor." "Keep your mouth shut." "Look, we're not gonna do anything about it today." "Let's just cool off." "Can I talk to you?" "What's going on with you?" "Your dad saved my life today, and Rick saved us both." "And I..." " I froze." " Well, you were being shot at." "I know, but..." "You don't have anything to prove." "All I've done, and this, okay?" "It's because of what you said." "That I love you?" "Yeah." "A bullet hit the wall behind me and I thought of you, losing me, hurting." "And I couldn't take it, so I hid to stay alive." "Glenn." "No, no, no, you don't get it." "Rick, your dad, they were counting on me, and I only thought of myself." "Has she eaten?" "I'll give her a sedative, stop her body from working too hard." "You were drinking." "That was the least of my worries." "You left and I didn't know what to do!" " Want me to take watch?" " Yeah." "Relieve T in a few hours." "I'm gonna take the graveyard." "And then what?" "We just send him on his merry way?" "According to Rick and Hershel." "If he finds his people and leads them here, we'll have a war on our hands." "You know you're preaching to the choir, girl." "You ever consider a lighter touch?" "Abandoning the search for Sophia, taking out the walkers in the barn, lying to Lori today." "Those were all the right calls." "It's your presentation that leaves something to be desired." "Dale send you?" "I see you pushing everyone away." "For what?" "They need you." "I'll always be the odd man out." "The same as you." " I've made my peace." " Have you?" "The way I see it, you and me, we're treated the same way." "Everyone's always trying to take the gun out of your hand." "These folks, they want to play house." "They wanna pretend that Rick and Hershel, they know what they're doing." "Let me tell you something, they bound to get us all killed." " Then we have to stop that." " They don't listen." "They're gonna give this kid a care package." "They're gonna send him on his way." "And you're right, that's gonna bring on a war or something worse, and We're just gonna..." "We're gonna sit here and wait for it." "But you and me, we're the only ones who see it coming." "I should've left with you when I had the chance." "Oh, man." "Thank you." " Little help." " Come here." "Ow!" "Ow!" "We're like a couple of old people." "We need to talk about Shane." "What's he done now?" "He thinks the baby's his." "No matter what, it's yours." "He'll accept that." "You're gonna have to make him." "He won't listen to me." "He's delusional and he's dangerous." "When I went looking for you, he came after me." "Well, of course he did." "And lied to me to get me back here, said you were already back." "Wha..." "You saw what he did at the barn." "He's threatened Dale and Hershel." "He's scaring people and he's scaring me." "And I think he killed Otis." "I think he left him behind and I think..." "I think he did it not just to save Carl, but because he loves me." "But you don't know that." "And he thinks that we're supposed to be together no matter what." "Those gunmen left that kid behind today." "I killed two people myself because of you, and Carl and the baby." "It was gonna be me and not them no matter what." "You killed the living to protect what's yours?" " That's right." " Shane thinks I'm his." "He thinks the baby's his." "And he says you can't protect us, that you're gonna get us killed." "He's dangerous, Rick, and he won't stop."
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Vitrification of in vitro produced bovine blastocysts: methodological studies and developmental capacity.
Methodological studies were undertaken to test the validity of a three-step vitrification procedure for bovine in vitro produced embryos using glycerol and ethylene glycol as cryoprotectants. Embryos were produced in a low-phosphate culture system (medium VT1 + 10% foetal calf serum) and vitrified at day 7 post-insemination either in a mixture of 25% glycerol--25% ethylene glycol or a mixture of 10% glycerol--40% ethylene glycol. In the first mixture 67% (n = 283) of blastocysts were re-expanded after 72 h of culture and 53% were hatched while in the second one (n = 65) only 5% survived. The mean number of cells of the surviving blastocysts was correlated with the rate of survival (R2 = 0.47; P = 0.0024). Embryo size (diameter < or > to 180 microm) did not influence blastocyst survival or cell number, but hatching rate was higher for embryos > 180 microm. Embryo survival, hatching rate and cell number 72 h post-warming were not affected by the mode of vitrification (direct plunging into nitrogen liquid or vitrification into nitrogen liquid vapour), the mode of preparation of the vitrification solutions (molar or molal basis) or by the concentration of galactose used as a diluent (0 to 0.85 M). Only one calf was born after transfer of 22 vitrified blastocysts. These results confirm the apparent lack of correlation for cryopreserved embryos between in vitro survival or hatching and viability after transfer.
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everything you could possibly imagine.
Monthly Archives: August 2012
Definition: The process of identifying and hiring the best-qualified candidate to join an organization.
In the University Greek world, however, recruitment takes on a whole other meaning.
For the past few weeks, I prepared for and participated in my first ever Panhellenic recruitment at the University of Florida for my sorority Alpha Epsilon Phi. Needless to say it was one of the most confusing, exhausting, and rewarding experiences I have yet to endure.
It started out with us learning how to walk and to talk properly, and how to appear absolutely perfect and graceful, despite your agony of the terrible heat and your hurting feet in high heels. We then moved onto the smell of hairspray filling the room as we all tried out different hairstyles that would make us look flawless, all while making sure our outfits were “GATOR” blue and orange, and not a shade darker or lighter.
We discussed the qualities and types of girls we wanted to join our sorority and set those guidelines that would help us decipher if we were truly connecting with a potential new member during a 20 minute short girl flirting conversation during each round.
So far I had never been the type of girl who was all “Ra Ra” for my sorority, for the thought of calling 200 girls my sisters scared me, and because of the fact that almost all fraternity men disgust me. However, despite the superficial and judgmental process of recruitment, what I did gain was an amazing bond to this group of girls and finally my admiration to Aephi and all that it stands for.
It took two full weeks of spending almost every waking moment with the same wonderful people, sharing my experiences with them, and seeing a room full of girls cry when I sang at our preferentials ceremony for me to finally see why my sorority is so special. We weren’t looking for girls who had the fanciest clothes, or who were the tallest and the prettiest. Instead, we were looking for girls with big hearts who wanted to contribute their knowledge, intelligence, and experiences to better our sorority and community. These qualities speak volumes, and is exactly the reason why Aephi continues to prosper and hold one of the best sisterhoods at this university.
Regardless of the stressful hours we stayed awake and the anxiety of recruiting the best new pledge class, I loved recruitment because I became closer with many of the girls and gained amazing friendships that will continue to grow each day. Our new pledge class is also AMAZING, if I do say so myself. Recruitment was definitely one of those experiences where I had to accept being vulnerable, and I couldn’t be happier that I can now add this to the list of “stepping out of my comfort zone situations.”
About 6 months ago, my nearly 4-year relationship had come to an end. It seemed as if everything I knew had suddenly vanished and I was left confused and broken-hearted. I am not going to lie, getting over a break up is tough, for a broken heart is the worst feeling I have felt thus far in my life. However, it does get a lot easier if you allow yourself to look at things in a positive light and enjoy your life.
Here are a few things I have learned from this whole experience:
First, you need to accept that your relationship is over. Of course it’s okay to be upset, but if you still have the idea in your head that you will get back together, you will never be able to cut ties and get over him.
You can allow yourself a few days of crying and dwelling, but then THAT’S IT. The only way to get through it is to be strong and have lots of will power. The most important thing to do initially is to keep busy. If your mind is wrapped around a million things, it is hard to focus on a breakup.
Cut all connections from him, whether it’s deleting their Facebook, Twitter, phone number, etc., it’s easier to stop thinking about him when they are “out of sight, out of mind.”
You should not think about what you “should have, could have, would have” done, but instead, do try to think back at the mistakes you made, and fix them so you won’t repeat them the next time. This is a good time to correct some of your flaws that might have affected your relationship. For example, I was the biggest pessimist ever, I was too bossy, I was so uptight, and I had the worst self-esteem on the face of the earth. I know all of them affected my happiness, and therefore affected my relationship, so I took a vow to work on all of them and improve myself.
Do not turn to food because you are upset! Channel whatever feelings you have into physical activities such as running, or yoga, or any sport. You want to turn every negative feeling you have into a positive outcome, and that can be achieved by bettering your health and fitness.
Be optimistic! Think of all of your goals and dreams you had for yourself before they included a “plus one,” and start working towards accomplishing them. Pick up some new hobbies you never thought you would have. Be daring and take some risks! It is important to step out of your comfort shell because you might find something new that you love and some great new friends who enjoy the same things.
You need to look at a break up not as a tragedy, but as an opportunity. This is your time to focus on YOU! Being in a long-term relationship sometimes makes us lose who we really are and now is the time to find yourself. You need to be able to be completely happy and comfortable with yourself, by yourself, and only then will you truly enjoy your life and others will notice. It is absolutely unacceptable to depend on someone else to provide you happiness. It is good to be alone after becoming too comfortable with this support system you had where you could just dump all of your problems and complaints. That is not what a boyfriend is for and sometimes we lose sight of that.
Try very hard not to bring up your ex in conversation and if you find your mind drifting away and starting to think about him, start singing a song either out loud or in your head; I promise it helps.
Do NOT be the girl that always needs a guy by her side. Have some self respect and therefore, do not jump at the first guy who makes a move on you, especially if you are not ready for it. We don’t want to be breaking hearts while we are trying to mend our own.
On the contrary though, if you do come across a nice guy who is respectful and seems interested in you, don’t be afraid to give him a chance. Just because you got your heart broken once before doesn’t mean you should hide away forever.
You need to realize that maybe this didn’t work out for a reason. There might have been some characteristics in you or him that together, wouldn’t have lasted, and it might be a while until you see them. Aside from the many things I needed to change about myself, I realized that my ex was a “runner.” Whenever there were really bad situations, instead of sticking things out “through thick and thin,” he would just leave me over and over again. That doesn’t seem like the type of person I want to give my whole heart and soul to. For me, love is enough, and I would want the next guy I give my heart away to, to feel the same way.
If your ex finds a new girlfriend fairly quickly, you cannot look at this as an attack on you or that it has anything to do with you! It is as simple as this: men are less emotional than women are, and therefore they are able to move on a lot quicker and easier. Just because your ex is involved with someone else doesn’t mean you are any less of a person or that you don’t matter. This is not a competition and nobody is a winner in this situation. Us women are just usually more careful and selective when it comes to choosing a person we would like to date, and we don’t just take the first opportunity that comes our way based on convenience. Try your hardest not to compare yourself to the new girlfriend and remember your worth. Know that someday none of this will even matter because someone far more important will be making you feel like the only person in the world.
Most importantly, you must not hold any sort of grudge against your ex. You need to have peace in your mind and, despite whatever he thinks of you, want the best for him, because only then will your unhappiness decrease more and more and you can truly let go.
Love yourself, do things that make you happy, smile as much as you can, and I promise another special someone will come along and appreciate all of those things about you and more.
For the past few years, I would frequently watch one of my favorite movies, 500 Days of Summer, and completely enjoy it up until the very end. This was the first movie I had ever encountered that didn’t end with the two main characters living happily ever after, and quite frankly it baffled me as to why it ended that way.
Despite the narrator warning us in the beginning of the movie that this is not a love story, you totally want to forget about that during the middle when Tom falls completely in love with Summer, and even though she breaks his heart, you still have hope that they will end up together in the end. It made me so upset that someone like Tom, who was nothing but loving and caring, doesn’t end up with the person he thinks he deserves, and instead gets basically dumped on the side of the road as if he meant nothing to her. Then it finally hit me, this is one of the most realistic movies ever made. How many times have we actually seen a “fairy tale ending,” like this one in real life? Not too often I would say. That’s when I realized that those kind of endings are not real and are made for the movies. I’m not saying people don’t fall in love and get married and live happily ever after, because of course that happens. It just never occurred to me that sometimes people might have had an interesting past relationship that got them to that point.
I was young and naive when I used to think that my first love would be my only, and that heartbreaks weren’t meant for me. I used to hate the ending to this movie, where Summer gets married to someone else and Tom eventually meets some other girl at a job interview. All this time I thought Summer was absolutely perfect for Tom, but then I realized that she was never the right girl for him because she never appreciated him like he deserved to be. Happy endings do happen to everyone, it just might not be in the way you expected, or with the person you expected. Now, after experiencing a little more of life, I can finally say that I understand and very much appreciate the ending to 500 Days of Summer. It brings a realistic approach and shows you that life goes on after a heartbreak, and that there really are many, many other fish in the sea.
Today, while studying like a mad man for my Organic Chemistry 2 final, I happened to be checking in on my blog and came across the sweetest thing ever! Another amazing blog, Tartars and Teacups has just nominated me for the “One Lovely Blog Award” and I am so excited and appreciative!
The recipient rules to this award:
Link back to the blogger that nominated you
Paste the award image anywhere on your blog
Tell us 7 facts about yourself
Nominate 15 other bloggers you like for the award!
Post a comment on your nominees’ blogs telling them of their nomination!
7 Facts About Me:
I have dyed my hair every color in the “real hair color” spectrum, but I am naturally blonde.
I was in the Broadway touring production of Evita when I was 12 years old.
I can recite every line of the movie, The Parent Trap from start to finish.
Any man could win my heart over if he performs Green Eyes, by Coldplay for me.
I have found a new love for the outdoors! I love hiking, biking, and everything in between.
I could live off of mozzarella sticks and plantains for the rest of my life.
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At one point in time the picture was exposed to high humidity or it simply got wet. I have had that happen twice to old family portraits that I was trying to remount into more modern frames. I had limited success by holding them over steam (think of the old envelope opening technique)…it worked for one and not-so-much for the other. But, I am not an expert and I had the negatives so replacements were not out of the question….good luck.
Musicmakeron November 30th, -0001
I do not believe there is a way to do that. If you want maybe try a hair dryer and heat up the glass a bit, but dont put the hair dryer too close because the heat will just break the glass! I work at a glass company and there really is no way to do it with out ruining the picture!
StoneHengeon November 30th, -0001
Place the glass and photo in a basin of very luke warm water with just a few drops of washing up liquid in it. Let the photo soak and peel off gradually like taking a stamp from an envelope. Don’t force it or you will damage the print. This only applies to regular type photos, not the digital home computer printout types.
Caton November 30th, -0001
I agree with the suggestion of soaking. You’ll then need to rinse the print and then hang it to dry.
Now you know why prints should be behind a cut-out mask to keep them from contact with glass.
JunkFoodAddicton November 30th, -0001
Try the soaking method… Also, in the future when you frame your prints use an inexpensive mat board to keep the photo’s from making contact with the glass surface.. Also, when cleaning your prints/picture’s in frames DO NOT spray the cleaner directly on the glass INSTEAD spray the cloth/towel and wipe the glass so no moisture is present… Also, if you have a scanner you might be able to get a “copy” of the stuck print so if the soaking method doesn’t work you still have a decent enough image if the print is really special or one of a kind ! Good luck
Raul Davaloson August 14th, 2012
The best way to remedy this is to insert the photo and the glass in an open plastic bag for ptrotection, like a grocery bag or large zip-loc, and place them in the freezer overnight. The next day carefully remove the photo from the glass which should come off without tearing or lifting the surface of the photo.
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About Me
ALES LOMBERGAR is one of the few artisans in Europe who still practice the ancient art of glass acid etching which flourished in the late 19th century. Decorations are applied with resin resists by hand and then exposed to acid baths, with no machinery used. More information here.
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Get breaking news alerts and special reports. The news and stories that matter, delivered weekday mornings.
A man charged with shooting and killing a supervisor at a Missouri community center Monday evening and then firing at police was a part-time janitor who "reacted with anger" after being sent home from work at the facility, the police chief said Tuesday.
A suspect, Michael Joseph Honkomp, 30, who was in serious condition at a hospital, has been charged with murder and other counts in the shooting at the Maryland Heights Community Center, near St. Louis, in which Maria L. Lucas, 45, was killed, police said.
Michael Joseph Honkomp. Maryland Heights Police
Maryland Heights Police Chief Bill Carson said the suspect, later identified as Honkomp, confronted Lucas at the front desk and shot her in the head with a handgun.
He then paced back and forth with the gun in his hand before a Maryland Heights officer who was in the parking lot entered the facility, Carson said.
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Honkomp is alleged to have fired several shots at the officer and was wounded when the officer returned fire. The officer was not injured.
"It's my belief that the actions of the officer involved were absolutely heroic. He immediately went and sought out the threat," Carson said. "And his actions may have prevented further bloodshed."
Honkomp was described as a part-time janitor at the community center who worked for the city for around three years.
About 150 people were in the community center, which has a gym and other amenities, at the time of the shooting. People inside reported running from the building or hiding in closets. Carson said that he did not know what the gunman intended to do after the shooting or whether he was waiting for police but that he did not flee the building.
In addition to murder, Honkomp is charged with one count of first-degree assault, one count of resisting arrest and three counts of armed criminal action, the city said in a statement.
It was not immediately clear Tuesday evening whether Honkomp had an attorney who could speak on his behalf. A phone number for someone who might be associated with Honkomp could not be found in public records.
The woman killed in the shooting, Lucas, was a customer relations specialist and a supervisor at the community center. She had worked for the city of Maryland Heights for seven years, Carson said.
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The name of the officer was not released, but the police chief said he is a relatively new officer who has been out of the police academy for just over a year.
"He responded like an experienced veteran," Carson said. "I cannot tell you how proud I am of how he handled the situation."
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Mikel Arteta has challenged his Arsenal players to develop a winning mentality like that of summer signing David Luiz.
Arsenal boss Arteta has identified Luiz as the role model his players need to follow as they bid to turn around their campaign after falling nine points off the pace in the race for a top-four spot.
The centre-half, who signed from Chelsea for just £8million in the summer, has won league titles in three different countries as well as two FA Cups, the Champions League and Europa League.
While the 32-year-old has twice been overlooked for the captaincy since joining, his influence in the dressing room and on the pitch has grown steadily during the campaign.
And Arteta has called on his Arsenal players to learn from Luiz's attitude in training and his recently improved performances as they prepare for Saturday's trip to Crystal Palace.
(Image: Getty Images)
Acknowledging that Luiz was becoming something of a mentor to Arsenal's young players, Arteta said: "Yes, that's what I wanted to demand of him.
"He is a player that has won more trophies than anybody else in that dressing room.
“We have to use that in a very powerful way. I wanted him to step up, I wanted him to put all his qualities - his personality and his experience - towards the team and he made a big step forward.
“I am very, very pleased with him. Is he becoming more consistent? I hope so. In the games he has played under me so far, he has been terrific.
“His attitude in training, the way he communicates with his team-mates, his desire to still learn, it’s superb. I am delighted with him.”
Former Brazil international Luiz as now made more clearances and interceptions than any of his centre-back partners.
And Arteta said extra one-on-one work he had been doing with his defenders was paying off.
“We have to because I have to share my principles and what I expect from them in every situation on the pitch, which might be a bit a little bit different from other managers," said the Gunners boss.
(Image: Arsenal FC via Getty Images)
“Positionally they have to understand what I expect from them. We have been doing different types of drills.
“Drills where they are facing the ball when the ball is far from them, situations where they have to defend transitions when they are overloaded, when they are in equal numbers.
“When the ball is with the full-backs, what I expect from them. Where I want the line in relation to the ball, not just the opponent, a few things that for us are important.”
Luiz has been criticised in the past for lapses in concentration, but Arteta said he had been impressing on his players the importance of communication.
“For me the most helpful thing for that is communication," he said. "If you are constantly communicating with your team-mates it makes you stay focused on what is happening all the time.
“If you don’t talk to each other there are always moments or gaps when your focus can go, and the back four can’t have those moments.”
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Contents
Paying The Room Deposit
Prior to proceeding through the Room Reservation Process, a $250.00 non-refundable Room Deposit, also referred to as a Room Application Fee, must be paid beginning February 9, 2015 and will be accepted until March 13, 2015 by 4:00 p.m. This application fee will serve as a deposit for room and board for the upcoming academic year. When paid, your Room Application Fee/Room Deposit will be applied to your Fall 2015 bill. Please be aware, if you have an outstanding account balance, you will have a hold on your account that will prevent you from reserving a room for the next academic year.
** In order to pay the Room Application Fee, please follow these steps:
Log on to “Secure Site” of Banner Self-Service
Click the “MyStudentHousing” link, found in the "Student & Financial Aid" tab
Pay the Returning Student Housing Application Fee/Room Deposit - Students will be prompted to this screen during completion of the Housing Application. If desired, students should print the confirmation page for their records.
For a more detailed version of how to complete the Online Application and Pay the Room Application Fee/Room Deposit, please utilize the following links:For a more detailed version of how to complete the Online Application and Pay the Room Application Fee/Room Deposit,
For a streaming video detailing Completion of the Online Application, please click here.
Once a student has completed the Application, paid their Room Application Fee/Room Deposit, all outstanding balance on a student’s account has been paid, and all holds have been removed from their student account, they are considered eligible to participate in the Room Reservation Process.
Receiving Your Lottery Number
After paying the Room Deposit by the March Deadline, a Lottery Number will be provided to your student on their “My Housing Overview”, accessible through the “MyHousing” page. Lottery Numbers are assigned based on a student’s class standing (i.e. Freshman, Sophomore, Junior, Senior); Seniors will be given highest priority in the Lottery. The date of payment of the room deposit has no bearing on the Lottery Number, unless students submit their deposit through the "Last Call Application".
Lottery Numbers will be released following completion of the payments and are scheduled to be posted on the evening of March 16, 2015. Should your student not be able to view their lottery number in their “MyHousing” information after having paid a Room Application Fee/Completed the Online Application, please contact the Office of Residence Life at (518) 454-5295.
The College of Saint Rose432 Western Avenue | Albany, New York 12203 | 1-800-637-8556
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1. Introduction {#s0005}
===============
Finasteride and dutasteride, are irreversible inhibitors of 5α-reductase isozyme(s) [@bib1]. They were developed to decrease the conversion of testosterone to its more potent metabolite 5α-dihydrotestosterone (DHT) ([Fig. 1](#f0005){ref-type="fig"}) in the treatment of benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) and are now being proposed for use in prostate cancer [@bib2]. In its early stages, prostate cancer is androgen-responsive and androgen ablation therapy is effective in restraining tumour growth [@bib3]. As the disease advances, the tumour becomes "castration resistant", with changes in the responsiveness of the androgen receptor (AR) and in its associated signalling pathways. Under these circumstances, local androgen synthesis inhibitors, such as 5α-reductase inhibitors, may be used to further lower levels of any remaining intra-tumoural androgen [@bib4], often derived from adrenal sources. In many therapeutic settings where 5α-reductase inhibitors are used or studied, the simultaneous assessment of pharmacodynamics and pharmacokinetics is desirable, and best achieved by measurement of steroid concentrations and drug concentrations respectively.
Finasteride, the first drug in class, is selective for 5α-reductase type 2 [@bib5], exerting its effects most markedly in the prostate. Dutasteride is a "dual" 5α-reductase type 1 and 2 inhibitor [@bib6], developed to lower the levels of DHT further, achieving \~94% reduction in DHT compared with \~70--80% suppression by finasteride [@bib7; @bib8; @bib9; @bib10]. However, by inhibiting 5α-reductase 1, it has the potential to influence the hormonal milieu in a wider array of tissues [@bib11], notably the liver. 5α-Reductases metabolise not only androgens but also glucocorticoids, mineralocorticoids and progestogens. Therefore, inhibitors of 5α-reductase isozymes, and in particular of type 1 5α-reductase may have effects on diverse steroid hormone signalling pathways. Recent studies suggest that inhibition of 5α-reductase type 1 in liver may adversely influence insulin sensitivity [@bib12], predispose to fatty liver [@bib13] and also alter stress responses [@bib14].
Pharmacodynamic and pharmacokinetic studies of 5α-reductases are achieved by measurement of the androgenic substrate and product, together with circulating drug concentrations. Such measures also permit assessment of treatment adherence in clinical studies. To minimise sample volume, maximise efficiency of sample processing, allow analysis without unblinding participants, and permit simultaneous pharmacodynamic and pharmacokinetic evaluation, a single assay measuring both drugs and androgen concentrations is desirable. Dutasteride [@bib15; @bib16] and finasteride [@bib17; @bib18; @bib19; @bib20; @bib21; @bib22] have been quantified previously by liquid chromatography--mass spectrometry (LC--MS), but only individually. Testosterone and androstenedione, the principle endogenous androgenic substrates of 5α-reductase circulate in \~1--30 nM concentrations [@bib23; @bib24], and testosterone is routinely monitored by LC tandem MS ( LC--MS/MS) in clinical biochemistry laboratories [@bib25]. However, analysis of DHT presents particular challenges due to its low concentrations, especially following 5α-reductase inhibition [@bib8] and poor propensity to ionise. The use of LC tandem MS (LC--MS/MS) has allowed measurement of DHT in adult [@bib24] and paediatric populations [@bib26], overcoming the need for derivatisation with GC--MS methods [@bib27; @bib28], the low sensitivity and lack of mass separation with HPLC methods with ultraviolet detection [@bib29] and the lack of specificity with immunoassays [@bib30]. While many approaches to quantify DHT by LC--MS have also required derivatisation [@bib31; @bib32; @bib33], this may not be possible in conjunction with simultaneous analysis of drug levels.
We developed a novel assay simultaneously measuring inhibitors (finasteride and dutasteride), substrates (testosterone, androstenedione) and product (DHT) of 5α-reductases in human serum. The approach was evaluated in monitoring pharmacodynamic responses to 5α-reductase inhibitors in men.
2. Materials and methods {#s0010}
========================
2.1. Reagents and standards {#s0015}
---------------------------
Unless stated otherwise, chemicals (including 2,3,4-\[^13^C~3~\] labelled androgens) were from Sigma-Aldrich (Dorset, UK) and all solvents were from Rathburn Chemical Ltd (Walkerburn, UK). Water and formic acid (FA) were from Fisher Scientific (Loughborough, UK). Methanol (HPLC gradient grade) was from VWR (Lutterworth, Leicestershire, UK). Finasteride was from Steraloids (Newport, RI, USA) and dutasteride from AK Scientific (Mountain View, CA, USA). 23,23,23,24,24,24,25,25,25\[^2^H~9~\]-finasteride (d9-finasteride) was synthesised in-house [@bib34]. Stock solutions were prepared at 1 and 0.01 mg/mL in methanol, and stored at −20 °C. Working solutions were prepared on the day of analysis.
2.2. Biological samples {#s0020}
-----------------------
Pooled male human serum and steroid-stripped serum for the method of optimisation and validation were from TCS Biosciences (Buckingham, UK). Due to residual androstenedione and testosterone being detectable in the steroid-stripped serum, it was re-stripped before use. Dextran-coated charcoal was added to steroid-stripped serum (0.1 g/10 mL), stirred (\~24 h, 4 °C) and removed by centrifugation (1811*g*, 4 °C, 30 min). Stripped serum was sequentially filtered through 1.20 µm (Sartorius minisart, Sartorius AG, Göttingen, Germany) and 0.22 µm filters (Millex^®^ GP filter unit, Millipore Ireland Ltd., Carrigtwohill, Ireland) until clear and aliquots frozen (−20 °C) until use.
2.3. LC--MS/MS instrumentation and MS tuning {#s0025}
--------------------------------------------
Chromatographic separation was performed on a Waters Acquity™ UPLC (Manchester, UK) with autosampler, and detection on an ABSciex QTRAP® 5500 mass spectrometer (Warrington, UK), operated with Analyst® Software version 1.5.1. Nitrogen was the source, curtain and collision gas. Compound specific tuning (collision energy, cell exit potential and declustering potential) in positive atmospheric pressure chemical ionisation (APCI) mode was performed using methanolic solutions of steroids, internal standards and drugs. The masses of precursor ions were determined and transitions yielding the most abundant product ions selected from the eight most abundant transitions screened. MS source conditions were then optimised for DHT, the least abundant analyte; final optimised conditions were curtain gas 25 psi, collision gas low, spray voltage 5 kV, nebuliser current 3.5 µA, source temperature 500 °C, and ion source gas 55 psi.
2.4. Extraction and chromatographic method {#s0030}
------------------------------------------
Samples were extracted via solid-phase extraction (Oasis® HLB, 30 μm, 30 mg (Waters, Elstree, UK)). Extraction cartridges were primed with methanol (1 mL) then water (1 mL). Samples (500 µL), enriched with internal standard (1 ng), were mixed with water (500 µL) and loaded onto primed extraction cartridges. After a wash step (50% methanol in water, 1 mL), analytes were eluted with methanol (1 mL). Eluates were dried under oxygen-free nitrogen (37 °C) and reconstituted in mobile phase (30:70 methanol:water+0.1% FA; 100 µL). Injection volume was 10 µL.
Analytes were eluted at 35 °C from a Kinetex C18 column (150×3 mm, 2.6 µm, Phenomenex^®^, Macclesfield, UK) with a 1 min hold followed by a 9 min linear gradient from 30:70 to 80:20 (methanol:water with 0.1% FA) at a flow rate of 250 µL/min. Conditions were sustained until 16 min followed by re-equilibration.
3. Assay validation {#s0035}
===================
3.1. Recovery {#s0040}
-------------
Recovery was calculated by expressing the mean of the integrated peak areas from extracted standards as a percentage of that of unextracted standards. This was performed in replicates of 6 using stripped serum as matrix and enriched with androstenedione (1 ng), testosterone (1 ng), DHT (10 ng), finasteride (1 ng) and dutasteride (10 ng).
3.2. Ion suppression by serum {#s0045}
-----------------------------
The effect of the biological matrix (human serum) on ionisation efficiency was assessed in replicates of 6 by post-spiking extracted blank serum with all analytes in amounts corresponding to the midpoint of the standard curve (indicated by ⁎), and responses compared with those of standards with the same amounts of analytes dissolved in mobile phase (30:70 methanol:water +0.1% FA). Blank serum sample were also analysed so amounts of endogenous analytes could be subtracted from peak areas detected in post-spiked samples.
3.3. Analyte specificity {#s0050}
------------------------
Extracts of blank stripped and unstripped serum were analysed and checked for interferences at or close to the expected retention times for androgens and drugs and internal standards respectively. Chromatographic resolution was ensured between anticipated endogenous stereo or positional isomers, e.g., testosterone, epi-testosterone and dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), and also between endogenous hormones and predicted mass +2 isotopomeric interferents, e.g., mass +2 testosterone and DHT. Ratios of quantifier and qualifier mass transitions were monitored for analytes all except DHT, where the ion generated by the qualifier transition was not detected in serum. Quantifier:qualifier ratios in biological samples were considered acceptable if within 20% of the mean ratio of standards.
3.4. Limits of detection (LOD) and lower limits of quantitation (LLOQ) {#s0055}
----------------------------------------------------------------------
LOD were determined by analysing solutions prepared by serial dilution of analyte and internal standard stock solutions, with the LOD assigned to a peak area where signal:noise ratio (SNR) was ≈3. LLOQ following extraction was determined by extracting analyte and internal standard from serum at amounts corresponding to 0.2×LOD, 0.5×LOD, LOD and 5/3×LOD. The LLOQ was defined as the amount where relative standard deviation in replicates of 6 was ≤20%.
3.5. Linearity {#s0060}
--------------
Two standard curves were generated, one in water (for quantitation of androgens) and one in serum (for quantitation of dutasteride and finasteride), with 1 ng of each internal standard. Standard curves represented concentration ranges: testosterone (1, 2^\#^, 3, 5, 7.5^,\#^, 10⁎, 12.5, 15^\#^ ng/mL), androstenedione and DHT (0.1, 0.2^\#^, 0.5, 1, 2^⁎,\#^, 3, 4, 5^\#^ ng/mL), finasteride and dutasteride (1, 2^\#^, 5, 10, 25^⁎,\#^, 50, 75, 100^\#^ ng/mL); ^⁎^ used to assess ion suppression, ^\#^ used to assess accuracy and precision. Peak areas of each analyte and internal standard were integrated and a calibration curve constructed (peak area ratio of analyte/internal standard versus concentration of analyte). Regression lines of best fit were constructed and considered acceptable if the regression coefficient, *r*, was \>0.99. Accuracy was compared using different weightings (none, 1/*x* and 1/*x*^2^).
3.6. Precision and accuracy {#s0065}
---------------------------
The intra-assay accuracy and precision were determined with 3 points of the standard curve prepared in replicates of 6 (low, medium, high, indicated by \# above). Precision was also determined using 6 replicates of a patient sample. The inter-assay accuracy and precision were determined from four standard curves prepared on different days. The precision was calculated as the relative standard deviation of the mean (RSD) with RSD (%)=standard deviation/mean×100. The % accuracy was calculated as the calculated concentration/ theoretical concentration×100. Injector variability was assessed by injecting (6 times) the midpoint standards (medium) of the calibration curve, and a pooled male serum sample enriched with both finasteride (10 ng/mL) and dutasteride (20 ng/mL).
3.7. Stability {#s0070}
--------------
Stability was assessed by reinjection of a single calibration curve and patient sample after 24 h in the auto-sampler (10 °C) and following 28 day storage (−20 °C). Acceptable storage conditions were those giving ≤10% change in response.
3.8. Method exemplification {#s0075}
---------------------------
Drugs and steroids were quantified in serum collected from male subjects (age 20--85 years, *n*=16/group) prior to and following 90 days of treatment once daily with either dutasteride (0.5 mg, Glaxo Smith Kline Pharmaceuticals, Poznań, Poland) or finasteride (5 mg; Gedeon Richter, Budapest, Hungary). Local ethical committee approval and informed consent were obtained.
3.9. Data analysis {#s0080}
------------------
Assay validation data are presented as mean (RSD) and biological concentrations as mean±standard error of the mean. Effects of drugs on concentrations of substrates and product of 5α-reductases were tested by repeated measure ANOVAs with Fisher׳s post-hoc tests and associations tested by Pearson Correlation. Where appropriate, data below the limits of quantitation were imputed as 0.5xLLOQ for statistical tests.
4. Results and discussion {#s0085}
=========================
4.1. Mass spectrometric conditions and fragmentation of analytes {#s0090}
----------------------------------------------------------------
All analytes and internal standards in solution ionised to form their protonated molecular ions in both positive electrospray (ESI) and APCI modes ([Table 1](#t0005){ref-type="table"}). Although others have previously used ESI [@bib24], APCI was selected due to less ion suppression during steroid analysis in the biomatrix. Signal responses in post-spiked serum compared to unextracted serum were androstenedione 110.8% (1.7%), testosterone 115.3% (2.1%), DHT 109.2% (2.4%), finasteride 111.0% (0.9%), dutasteride 97.2% (3.0%). APCI typically suffers less from ion suppression due to reduced ionisation of phospholipids and other competing compounds [@bib35].
Androgens fragmented as previously reported [@bib24] to yield product ions incorporating the A-ring of the steroid [@bib36] and the presence of the three ^13^C atoms was evident in the product ions of their internal standards. Finasteride, d9-finasteride and dutasteride fragmented as reported previously [@bib15; @bib34]. It was important to enhance the signal for DHT, the least abundant analyte with poorest ionisation efficiency, hence source conditions were optimised for this analyte. Quantifier and qualifier transitions were defined for each analyte and internal standard ([Table 1](#t0005){ref-type="table"}); however, in the case of DHT the signal from the potential qualifier ion (*m*/*z* 291→91) was not detectable in the biological matrix. The 3α, 5α-reduced product formed from androstenedione was included in initial screening but was not pursued into full validation. This steroid generated ions with similar intensity to DHT but, due to lower substrate concentrations, this product was present in concentrations which could not be readily detected in 500 μL of serum.
4.2. Selection of internal standards {#s0095}
------------------------------------
^13^C labelled internal standards of androgens were selected, since some deuterium labelled steroids proved unsuitable due to variable loss of stable-isotopes during sample processing or ionisation, and isotopomers labelled in the D-ring did not retain deuterium in the product ion. Loss of deuteriums (particularly when attached to the steroid A-ring), has been described by others [@bib37; @bib38; @bib39]. ^13^C~3~-Androstenedione, ^13^C~3~-testosterone and ^13^C~3~-DHT proved suitable for robust quantitation as described further, subject to chromatographic resolution. For example, the mass +1 isotopomer of ^13^C~3~-androstenedione could interfere with quantitation of DHT.
We have previously reported the synthesis of d9-finasteride [@bib34] and others have used d3-finasteride as the internal standard for gas chromatography--MS [@bib40]. In all other reports of finasteride and dutasteride analysis, non-deuterated internal standards were used, with finasteride often used as the internal standard for dutasteride [@bib15; @bib16], and other compounds used for finasteride quantitation [@bib18; @bib19; @bib20; @bib29]. d9-Finasteride had sufficient structural similarity to both 5α-reductase inhibitors for robust analysis of either drug, however synthesis of deuterated dutasteride in future may offer added benefits for precision and accuracy.
4.3. Chromatographic conditions {#s0100}
-------------------------------
The potential for interference between endogenous positional isomers (testosterone and DHEA), stereoisomers (testosterone and its 17α-epimer) and also isobaric isotopomers from naturally occurring ^13^C~2~ isotopomers was noted, requiring selective chromatographic approaches. This combined approach had not been achieved previously for steroids and drugs. Reported methods for detection of individual analytes predominantly use C18 columns, though these varied in length from 50 mm [@bib15; @bib16; @bib17] to 150 mm [@bib19; @bib20]. Attempts with alternative stationary phases were not successful with all analytes. Although finasteride could be efficiently eluted with the steroids, combined analysis with dutasteride proved more challenging. Adequate peak resolution was seen with most analytes of interest using a pentafluorophenyl column, however dutasteride was not detected; with 6 fluorine atoms and an aromatic unit in the molecule, dutasteride may have a much greater affinity for the column, though *π*--*π* interactions. Greatest peak intensities for all analytes were found with a Kinetex C18 column, a porous shell column, and acceptable peak resolution with column length of 150 mm.
Acetonitrile has often been selected as the organic component of the mobile for analysis of dutasteride and finasteride [@bib18; @bib19; @bib20], and methanol for androgens [@bib24; @bib41]. However, acetonitrile suppressed ionisation of all analytes and hence methanol was selected. Ionisation was improved when formic acid was added as a modifier, with 0.1% yielding maximum responses, while still retaining consistency in chromatographic separation. We did not observe the improvements in analysis of testosterone, androstenedione and finasteride reported previously following buffering formic acid with ammonium acetate [@bib17; @bib42]. The duration of the gradient was optimised, being the key component allowing optimal baseline separation (particularly of testosterone and epi-testosterone), ultimately requiring a 19 min run. Extension of the isocratic time after the initial gradient was important to maintain peak symmetry of DHT.
4.4. Extraction {#s0105}
---------------
Extraction was optimised to maximise recovery of endogenous DHT from serum, while extracting both androgens and 5α-reductase inhibitors. DHT and dutasteride proved the most challenging analytes.
Based on previously published reports, we evaluated a series of liquid-liquid extractions employing ethyl acetate:hexane (3:2, *v/v,* with and without NaOH (0.1 M)) and ethyl acetate (with and without saturated NaCl) with samples tested neat, mixed with water, acidified (mixed with 0.1% FA) or alkaline (mixed with 5% ammonia). Despite good recovery of testosterone and androstenedione, these approaches did not recover endogenous DHT or the 5α-reductase inhibitors efficiently. In supported liquid extractions, pre-extraction mixing was tested with FA (1%, 0.1%), water, NH~4~OH (0.1 M), and acetic acid (0.1%), and extracting solvents tested were dichloromethane, diethyl ether, ethyl acetate, hexane, methanol and acetonitrile. Supported liquid-liquid extractions proved highly variable for steroid analysis, and recoveries achieved for 5α-reductase inhibitors were inadequate. Protein precipitation and phospholipid crash methods gave poorer recoveries and again endogenous DHT was not detected. Solid-phase extraction had been used previously in separate assays for 5α-reductase inhibitors [@bib15; @bib18] and androgens [@bib26; @bib43] and the reversed-phase polymeric sorbent, Oasis® Hydrophilic Lipophilic Balanced (HLB), was ultimately selected. This technology also allowed transfer to 96-well plate format, suitable for high-throughput processing.
Mixing serum with water prior to extraction yielded the best extraction efficiency and the composition of the wash step proved vital to decrease background noise in the DHT transition. When using only 5% methanol in the wash step, several large peaks eluted close to the retention time of DHT; these could be eliminated by washing with 50% methanol in water, followed by elution in methanol ([Fig. 2](#f0010){ref-type="fig"}A and B). Using the final methods, extraction efficiencies all exceeded 80%: androstenedione 88.7% (15.4%); testosterone 84.6% (13.4%); DHT 85.5% (14.7%); finasteride 89.6% (14.3%); dutasteride 94.5% (10.4%).
5. Assay validation {#s0110}
===================
5.1. Analyte specificity {#s0115}
------------------------
All analytes and internal standards were temporally resolved from potential isomeric and isobaric interferences. Of note, testosterone and its biologically inert epi-isomer, epitestosterone, were separated chromatographically ([Fig. 2](#f0010){ref-type="fig"}C). The highly abundant isobaric steroid DHEA was not detected in the mass transitions (both quantifier and qualifier) monitored for testosterone. At amounts used, internal standards did not give any detectable interference in the analyte transitions.
An additional consideration was the potential presence of metabolites of 5α-reductase inhibitor drug in serum. As well as unchanged drug, dutasteride is known to have 3 major (4′-hydroxydutasteride, 1,2-dihydrodutasteride, and 6-hydroxydutasteride) and 2 minor (6,4′-dihydroxydutasteride and 15-hydroxydutasteride) metabolites detected in human serum following dosing to steady state [@bib44]. Finasteride has two main in vivo metabolites detected in serum [@bib45]. With different molecular weights to their parent drug, metabolites of both finasteride and dutasteride would be anticipated to give rise to different precursor ions and mass transitions and hence not be detected in the current assay.
5.2. LOD and LLOQ {#s0120}
-----------------
Analyte limits of detection and lower limits of quantitation ([Table 2](#t0010){ref-type="table"}) permitted analysis of anticipated concentrations of analytes in serum and were similar to those of Kulle et al. [@bib26] for testosterone and androstenedione, although slightly poorer for DHT. The anticipated reference ranges for expected concentrations in serum in adult men are: androstenedione 0.23--2.41 ng/mL [@bib23; @bib46], testosterone 2.65--9.71 ng/mL and DHT 0.14--0.77 ng/mL [@bib24], finasteride 1.8--49 ng/mL [@bib45] and dutasteride 36 ng/mL [@bib44]. Notably finasteride and dutasteride could be quantified accurately even in amounts with signal:noise ≤3 (defined as the LOD). These limits would permit analysis of most analytes (except DHT) in volumes as low as 10 μL but to allow the incorporation of DHT, 500 μL of serum was required.
5.3. Linearity {#s0125}
--------------
Standard curves were linear in the range required, and for all analytes mean *r* was \>0.99 (SD between 0.002--0.004). Mean intercepts (SD) were: androstenedione −0.007 (0.02); testosterone 0.084 (0.31); DHT−0.011 (0.02); finasteride 0.044 (0.06); dutasteride 8.13E^−08^ (2.42E^−07^). 1/*x* weighting was used for all analytes except DHT, where no weighting was applied.
5.4. Precision and accuracy {#s0130}
---------------------------
Intra- and inter-assay precision and accuracy of analysis are summarised in [Table 3](#t0015){ref-type="table"}. While acceptable results were obtained for testosterone and androstenedione across the range of concentrations tested, increasing inter-assay variability in DHT analysis was observed at low values, close to the LLOQ. In the case of finasteride and dutasteride, acceptable intra- and inter-assay precision and accuracy were demonstrated across the range of concentrations anticipated in clinical studies ([Table 3](#t0015){ref-type="table"}), although in future stable-isotope labelled dutasteride might allow for lowering of the LLOQ. Acceptable reproducibility upon repeat injections of standards and samples was demonstrated with relative standard deviations between 3.1 and 5.9%.
5.5. Stability {#s0135}
--------------
Acceptable autosampler and extract storage stability were demonstrated for a calibration curve and patient samples, as shown in [Table 4](#t0020){ref-type="table"}, with less than 10% decline during typical handling conditions.
5.6. Pharmacodynamic assessments in clinical samples {#s0140}
----------------------------------------------------
The assay presented was applied to a clinical research study with male volunteers studied prior to and following three months of finasteride (5 mg daily) or dutasteride (0.5 mg daily) [@bib12]. Dutasteride and finasteride treatment resulted in a 46.5% and 47.1% suppression of DHT concentrations respectively ([Fig. 3](#f0015){ref-type="fig"}A and B). This is somewhat less than reported previously [@bib47], but provided a robust marker of target engagement. The concentrations of dutasteride achieved would be anticipated to inhibit both isozymes of 5α-reducatse effectively. Relationships were not observed between amounts of DHT and those of dutasteride or finasteride, possibly due to maximal inhibition of the enzyme ([Fig. 3](#f0015){ref-type="fig"}C and D); doses of finasteride greater than 5 mg/day do not to achieve an increase in efficacy [@bib48] and likewise the concentrations achieved of dutasteride were close to the maximal effect demonstrated by Gisleskog et al. [@bib49]. The reduction in DHT was accompanied by an increase in the concentrations of the enzyme substrate, testosterone, following treatment with both finasteride and dutasteride, of a similar magnitude to previously reported [@bib50]. Androstenedione, a further substrate also increased significantly following dutasteride treatment, with a strong trend evident with finasteride (*p*=0.06).
With pre-treatment concentrations of DHT approximately 0.8 ng/mL, it is anticipated that measurement of suppression of DHT to \~25% of its original value would be possible using this analytical approach. Levels fell below the LLOQ in more subjects receiving dutasteride than finasteride. Increased sample or injection volume, derivatisation or further advances in technology may allow extension of the pharmacodynamic range measurable.
6. Conclusions {#s0145}
==============
The novel method developed was suitable for simultaneous measurement of androgens, dutasteride and finasteride from human serum, despite significant challenges in chromatographic and extraction method development. The assay requires relatively little sample volume (500 µL), has a simple extraction method compatible with a 96-well format, and is able to quantify DHT without derivatisation, although advances in sensitivity would still be beneficial and allow quantitation of DHT and androstane-3α,5α-dione in smaller volumes. Expected concentrations of all analytes fell within the linear range of the standard curve in healthy men. The method is able to quantify DHT suppression to approximately 25% of normal values and can be used detect enzyme inhibition and compliance with both 5α-redcutase inhibitors. Intra- and inter-day precision and accuracy were acceptable and stability testing demonstrated the assay to be applicable to normal laboratory practice.
The authors wish to thank Sanjay Kothiya and the Wellcome Trust Clinical Research Facility Mass Spectrometry Core for technical support and the Chief Scientist Office, Scotland, UK and the Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia for funding this work (Grant no. CZB/4/642). RU is a recipient of a Graham Aitken Nuffield post-graduate travelling scholarship.
{#f0005}
{#f0010}
{#f0015}
######
Mass spectral conditions for analysis of analytes and internal standards utilising atmospheric pressure chemical ionisation.
Mass (amu) Precursor ion (*m*/*z*) Product ion Quan; Qual Declustering potential (V) Collision energy (V) Quan; Qual Cell exit potential (V) Quan; Qual
--------------------------------- ------------ ------------------------- ------------------------ ---------------------------- --------------------------------- ------------------------------------
**ANALYTES**
Androstenedione 286.4 287 97; 109 56 29; 27 18; 12
Testosterone 288.4 289 97; 109 16 27; 31 14; 16
5α-Dihydrotestosterone^⁎^ 290.4 291 255; ^⁎^ 16 21; ^⁎^ 28; ^⁎^
Finasteride 372.5 373 317; 305 26 27; 41 14; 28
Dutasteride 528.5 529 461; 264 161 45; 55 48; 32
**Internal Standards**
^13^C~3~-androstenedione 289.4 290 100; 112 31 27; 39 12; 16
^13^C~3~-testosterone 291.4 292 100; 112 1 27; 35 4; 8
^13^C~3~-dihydrotestosterone^⁎^ 293.4 294 258: ^⁎^ 61 21; ^⁎^ 12; ^⁎^
d9-Finasteride 381.6 382 318; 314 41 33; 41 34; 36
Amu: atomic mass unit; Quan: quantifier ion; Qual: qualifier ion; V: volts. ^⁎^: Qualifier ion not detected in biological matrix.
######
Limits of detection and lower limits of quantitation.
Standard curve range (ng/mL) LOD (ng/mL) LLOQ (ng/mL)
------------------------ ------------------------------ ------------- --------------
Androstenedione 0.1--5 0.08 0.125
Testosterone 1--15 0.003 0.005
5α-Dihydrotestosterone 0.1--5 0.13 0.21
Finasteride 1--100 0.02 0.003
Dutasteride 1--100 0.2 0.1
Abbreviations: LOD: limits of detection, LLOQ: lower limits of quantitation.
######
Intra-assay and inter-assay precision and accuracy.
Target concentration (ng/mL) Intra-assay (*n*=6) Inter-assay (*n*=4)
------------------------ ------------------------------ --------------------- --------------------- -------------- ------------- ------- -------
Androstenedione Low (0.2) 0.18 (0.01) 5.4 87.6 0.19 (0.02) 19.3 93.6
Mid (2) 1.65 (0.12) 7.2 101 1.75 (0.16) 8.9 92.3
High (5) 4.22 (0.27) 6.5 98.3 5.01 (0.59) 11.9 103.4
Sample 0.16 (0.02) 9.9 -- 0.20 (0.04) 20.1 --
Testosterone Low (2) 1.80 (0.07) 2.8 94.4 1.88 (0.19) 10.0 94.9
Mid (7.5) 6.50 (0.42) 5.8 101 7.29 (0.83) 11.3 100.6
High (15) 14.40 (0.75) 4.9 100 15.28 (0.65) 4.2 103.3
Sample 9.40 (0.61) 6.0 -- 4.22 (0.21) 5.0 --
5α-Dihydrotestosterone Low (0.2) 0.17 (0.02) 11.8 87 0.23 (0.04) 15.5 119.5
Mid (2) 1.70 (0.11) 6.4 90 1.83 (0.14) 7.4 100.0
High (5) 4.11 (0.20) 4.9 103 5.00 (0.60) 12.1 105
Sample 1.39 (0.19) 12.8 -- 1.13 (0.31) 27.3 --
Finasteride Low (2) 2.18 (0.24) 10 101 1.87 (0.30) 16.2 92.7
Mid (25) 24.68 (1.34) 5.5 104 24.51 (2.08) 8.5 100.9
High (100) 95.69 (6.23) 6.5 101 99.17 (4.35) 4.4 102.3
Sample 8.45 (0.35) 4.1 -- 8.96 (0.69) 7.8 --
Dutasteride Low (2) 1.67 (0.37) 22 88.2 1.86 (0.16) 8.8 94.5
Mid (25) 25.07 (2.40) 9.6 110 26.00 (2.60) 10.0 107.4
High (100) 107.51 (16.06) 14.9 108 86.5 (4.40) 5.1 105
Sample 16.25 (1.83) 11.2 -- 15.05 (1.26) 8.4 --
######
Stability upon storage.
Relative response after 24 h in autosampler (10 °C) Relative response after 28 days in freezer (−20 °C)
------------------------ ----------------------------------------------------- -----------------------------------------------------
Androstenedione 102.7% 98.3%
Testosterone 99.7% 101.0%
5α-Dihydrotestosterone 90.0% 97.5%
Finasteride 95.3% 103.4%
Dutasteride 92.0% 92.0%
Relative response for calculated concentrations for all analytes in a single patient sample after 24 h in the autosampler (10 °C) and after 28 days in the freezer (−20 °C).
|
Q:
Sending an async email without await from a .Net core web service
I have a webservice .Net core2 that has certain methods that send an email. I have it working fine using smtpclient.sendemailasync.
public async Task<bool> SendEmailAsync(MailMessage email)
{
try
{
if (string.IsNullOrWhiteSpace(emailFrom)) email.From = new MailAddress(emailFrom);
using (SmtpClient client = getSMTPClientInstance())
{
await client.SendMailAsync(email);
}
return true;
}
catch (Exception ex)
{
Log.Error(ex, "Error sending email in EmailService.SendEmailAsync");
return false;
}
}
The only issue is that some SMTP servers take a little too long to respond. I want to set up the email, queue it and return without waiting for the result.
Just using an unawaited async is out for 2 reasons;
It is not reliable to continue a method outside a request context in asp
I need access to the database context of my entity framework to write a log
I have to allow for external or internal SMTP (my client specifies), so a collection folder is not a possibility - at least not without a service that manages it.
How could I achieve this? Do I need to write a service that manages this? If so, how would I do that inside my .Net Core App, keeping in mind that the service also needs to access the EF context to write a log
UPDATE
There is plumbing available in .NetCore DI especially for this. Refer to my additional answer below. Use IServiceScopeFactory
A:
You can call the RegisterAsyncTask method on the Page object. That will signal the ASP.NET runtime you want to make sure these are finished before terminating the request context:
Example:
public void Page_Load(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
RegisterAsyncTask(new PageAsyncTask(LoadSomeData));
}
public async Task LoadSomeData()
{
var clientcontacts = Client.DownloadStringTaskAsync("api/contacts");
var clienttemperature = Client.DownloadStringTaskAsync("api/temperature");
var clientlocation = Client.DownloadStringTaskAsync("api/location");
await Task.WhenAll(clientcontacts, clienttemperature, clientlocation);
var contacts = Newtonsoft.Json.JsonConvert.DeserializeObject<List<Contact>>(await clientcontacts);
var location = Newtonsoft.Json.JsonConvert.DeserializeObject<string>(await clientlocation);
var temperature = Newtonsoft.Json.JsonConvert.DeserializeObject<string>(await clienttemperature);
listcontacts.DataSource = contacts;
listcontacts.DataBind();
Temparature.Text = temperature;
Location.Text = location;
}
https://www.hanselman.com/blog/TheMagicOfUsingAsynchronousMethodsInASPNET45PlusAnImportantGotcha.aspx
|
JUNE started with more of a whimper than a bang but there weren’t too many games to look at.
I tipped Karlsruhe to beat Hamburg in the Bundesliga play-off and covered the bet when they took the lead late on – and I hope anyone who backed them did too.
As far as stats go I’ll take the hit because I was working on the paper and wasn’t able to advise the cover at the time.
Regulars on the site know all about covering now and I’m sure anyone who followed the Super Single and who was monitoring the game would have broke even or maybe profited.
Both teams scored in the Brann-Follo game but Djurgarden failed to hit the target at leaders Gothenburg to beat the Daily Double as they drew 0-0.
Tuesday is another quiet night with a couple of Serie A promotion play-offs between Bologna and Avelino and Vincenza and Pescara as well as 1860 Munich v Holstein for promotion to Bundesliga 2 – they drew 0-0 in the first leg and another tight contest is expected.
Bologna lead 1-0 from the away leg and are hot favourites to make the final. They finished fourth in Serie B and are clearly the better team. However, do they stick or twist? If the defend their lead which is likely under 2.5 goals is probably the best bet.
Pescara were my Super Single at home to Vicenza but their 1-0 win courtesy of a late penalty was all that settled a dull affair. Under new boss Massimo Oddo Pescara have kicked on and won three in a row and I don’t see them being beaten here.
In fact I’ve won two Super Singles on Pescara games in recent weeks and I’m going for a hat-trick. Pescara looked set to miss the play-offs altogether until Oddo came in for the final game and I reckon he’ll lead his side to the result they need to reach the final.
I’m going for Pescara not to lose at 4-5 with bet365 and it’s worth pointing out if they are beaten by one goal Vicenza will qualify as they finished higher up in Serie B.
That’s the only tip I’m putting up today but keep an eye on the comments for plenty of others. I’ve seen both to score in the Sirius game backed and over 3.5 goals in the Icelandic Cup matches at Throttur and Reykjavic among others.
Hosts and favourites France are in Toulon Tournament action against Costa Rica but are no bigger than 1-3 with Skybet to win. Slighty better is 2-5 with Skybet to score 2+ as they go for a third win on the spin against a nation already eliminated.
3pts Super Single
Pescara not to lose (8pm)(4-5, bet365)
June Super Single record
1 bets (1 loser)
Profit/Loss: -2pts
June Daily Double/Top Treble record
1 bet (1 loser)
Profit/Loss: -3pts
Remember to check out our friends at We Love Betting for more video tips and chat.
Meanwhile, Raaljaca’s goals thread started recently and he’s asking for donations to two cancer charities. In June we’re supporting another cause in the shape of Projects Abroad who send volunteers to work in poor countries all over the world.
My student daughter is raising money for a trip to a Romanian orphanage and this month all Buy a Beer donations (£3 minimum) will be passed on to Projects Abroad so click the button if you want to help.
Just seeing it was you who tipped BTTS in the huracan game last night James took them in with Lanus and o/2.5 in the Ukraine u20s.Which came in very nicely to waken upto this morning.Had o/0.5 and o/1.5 mgs in the two u20s games this morning
Thanks jb thatsme mate and glad you got on the BTTS linfieldaces, Rafaela have a very good record scoring away from home so the odds looked generous for the BTTS.
Have to say i’ve been watching the Ghana U20’s game and what a performance by the young Black Stars, showing Argentina how its done! Their youth team could go quite far in this competition, i’d keep a close eye on them in this tournament
Chelsea :- i have read mourinho will put out a full strength side as we feels obligated to get a win for the travelling fans. hes said front three will be hazard, remy, costa. Not staking abything until ive seen team sheet though
morning guys, quick question, does anyone know if the three red cards after the final whistle in the motherwell game at the weekend is included in the booking points for the game ?
i remember two bookings in the tunnel in the celtic milan euro tie at half time being included in the final total, surely this is the same situation, any ideas ?
Looks like mourinho kept to his word With lineup. Think il just get one -1 asian chelsea and chelsea win to nil.
Dont think it will be a hammering. A win is good enough and chelsea back line hard enough as it is to break through. Best player sydney have is a salzburg reject. Cant see them scoring
South Yara have just 1 win from 10 games, losing the other 9, and have a goal record of 8:41. South Yarra’s matches against Bundoora’s nearest challengers have seen a 10-0 loss at home to 2nd place Ashburton, 7-0 loss at home to 3rd place Boroondara and a 8-0 loss away to 4th placed South Melbourne. This suggests they just can’t live with the big boys, or girls in this case!
Bundoora are top of the league with 8 wins, 1 draw & 1 defeat from 10 games and a goal record of 24:8. Against the other 2 sides sitting joint bottom with South Yarra, they have won 4-0 & 4-1. Their nearest challengers have recorded similar results against these sides.
Was hoping for 1.5 FHG & 4.5 at worst for match goals however they are set 1 goal higher so going small stakes on both
1860 München – Holstein Kiel – 2nd Bundesliga Relegation
——————————————————–
First Game was 0-0. Both teams gonna give more than 100%. Kiel scored in their last 9 away matches in row everytime. Munich scored in the last 10 home matches 8/10. So I see here a BTTS. Odds are very good at 1/1.
Good luck
Cheers guys, really appreciated. Yet again taking it all at face value the bookies had priced this friendly up totally all wrong. Look at Sydney against Spurs, completely toothless and no end product and with 3 out of 4 chelsea 1st back four playing today, there were never really going to get a sniff. I think it’s safe to say Chelsea are a better quality opposition than Spurs and all we needed was Chelsea to go 1-0 up and they were going to shut up shop, like they have done all season.
Either way seems to be an awful lot of work for them to do and I can’t see the Buddies taking up the slack and challenging Hibs. Unless Dave King pulls that 30million out of his arse and fast it coud be another difficult year at Ibrox.
Fitba, my question firstly will be, has King put one penny into Rangers yet? He was going to appoint a NOMAD when his arrival was trumpeted to ensure the clubs shares could still be traded but that has not happened.
Fitba, I want to see if Warburton is the manager and who he brings in before having a bet. King has already said he’ll spend the £30m over 4 years but there’s a lot to sort out at Rangers first without worrying about a transfer kitty.
Basically agree with Mr F and I would also be interested in who Ian Murray brings into St Mirren. What has to be remembered is St Mirren are completely debt free and a very well run club and at this level 3 or 4 decent signings could make a very big difference.
Fitba Tips, Keatings is a good signing but will struggle to keep Allan. Hibs were OK last season but not impressed by them against Rangers so a bit to go yet. St Mirren could be dark horses – Ian Murray has the makings of a good manager and has Championship experience but again depends on the squad he has.
Fitba Tips, JUDAS is a good signing but will struggle to keep Allan. Hibs were OK last season but not impressed by them against Rangers so a bit to go yet. St Mirren could be dark horses – Ian Murray has the makings of a good manager and has Championship experience but again depends on the squad he has.
*** This price is basically wrong *** Start have seen both teams scoring in all 12 of their last home games and this bet has landed in 10 of the 12. Stromgodsets last 12 away games have seen both to score in 7 of them and over 2.5 match goals in 8 of their last 12. The last 4 meetings here have finished 2-3 0-6 5-1 4-2 and at odds against this bet is well worth backing. I reckon that these odds will shrink within the next few hours if you guys start getting on this as William Hill will see it should be slightly odds on, around 4-5 or even shorter.
Following on from last nights tip, it appears Co.ral and Bet.Fair have settled for scrumptious odds of 6/5 on this. Not much difference, but wish I waited before settling for 23/20 with BFair, but a Bargain Betty all the same.
J-Sodra currently sit top of the table, defacating on the teams below them so far this season at their home fortress Stadsparksvallen, mustering 7 wins in 7 and accumulating 28 points out of a possible 32. Very Chelsea-esque. The team have made very little changes since the last couple of seasons and finished 4th last season. They’re tipped to win promotion this time round and I can see why.
The last time the hosts failed to score here was around this time last year, June 2014 and the last time they drew 0-0 here was in April 2014. Coach Jimmy Thelin has really whipped this lot into shape since then and it appears to be paying off. The two front rude boys, Tommy Thelin and Frederik Olsson have really set things alight in recent games, with the latter scoring 5 in his last 5 home games.
The nil nil kings are Sirius, here to put a temporary end to the goal scoring epidemic at Stadsparksvallen, but will that occur sitting pretty in 4th place? Probably not, this is their 3rd game in 8 days, injuries and fatigue is surely a factor for coach Andreas Brannstrom, who’s got a dilemma of changing it up against the in form top dogs.
Sure, the odds reflect what the bookies suspect will be another dire game, Sirius have managed to entertain the crowd with 0-0 and the odd 1-1 while playing away from home, and somehow managed a freak 7 goal thriller where they lost 4-3 to 8th placed Ljungskile amongs all that, but Jonkoping’s ability seem to be omitted in all this, 14 goals in 6 home games is a trait of a bad man side.
H2H favours the home side, won here 3-0 last season and 3-1 time before that in 2010. 13 goals in 5 H2H’s against this outfit.
Yeah Jordan, couldnt believe the odds considering the form J-Sodra are in, was gonna go with corall but they kept changing odds while I was still getting info on the game, so went with Bet fair. They’ve both settled with 6/5 though, very good price.
match from the top of the league, both teams capable scoring (both scored 19 in 11 games). 4 from the last 5 matches played in jonkoping have seen over & bts (22 goals).
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1-1 FT, LOSS
W18,L11,P0
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Wee look at RFO and picked out 5 BTTS games for the wknd, well Thursday – Saturday. Will have to wait til Betvictor prices them up to get a free bet if 1 game lets me down tho as a safety net. Hopefully it pays around the 12/1 lke at wknd but we’ll see
Jordan, either ignore them or rip them to pieces! Best to ignore them actually mate and just continue tipping reassured by the fact they dress head to toe in Sports Direct gear where you can have a complete wardrobe full of shell suits for under £3.50
Jordan I know it’s hard to try and ignore the idiots that have nothing better to do with there time than slag off losing tips just keep what your doing mate the last thing we need is the very good regular tips on here disappearing
Jordan
have to agree about the people that just wanna slate people if they put up a losing tip.
Only been posting on this site for just over 2 weeks and probably a few points down on the whole with my footie bets but did post a 14/1 winner on John b site on sat so still playing with the bookies money.
don’t some of these people realise that it’s profit in the long term is what you aim for .
keep up with your good tipping mate always
constructive reading and good tips
Craneguy honestly never seen yours haha, been working aw night so hopefully it comes in wi ease. I just looked at top scorers in the nights games and was surprised at the price, probably what you done tae
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Some of the greatest champions of liberal politics have been conservatives. In 1940, Churchill, a conservative, led Britain alone against the Nazis and did more to protect liberal values than anyone else in the last century.
But the best example is America's own founding. When it was written, the Constitution was a liberal document, protecting the rights of common men and women against British tyranny. Yet, the founders didn't believe they were progressives. They believed they were conservatives -- conserving what they understood to be their true birthright of liberty in the Anglo tradition. They were conservative liberals.
Historically, conservatives who protect liberal values have risen at times of crisis. Today, history is rhyming with itself. America is in a crisis and the conservative who can keep America safe for liberal values happens to be called Ron Paul.
A Ron Paul presidency would represent a massive shift away from the old Left vs. Right paradigm that has prevailed for a century. What would it mean and how could it happen?
The fundamental difference between Left and Right is not one of political philosophy. Rather, it is this: the Left is a politics of goals (how things should be) while the Right is a politics of outcomes (how things, in fact, operate).
Let me explain. The fundamental assumption of the Left is that policy is good if it directly enforces good goals. The secondary assumption is that well-intended policy (i.e. with good goals) generally produces good results. Since the political Left experiences itself as "good," it naturally sees its opponents on the right as "bad."
This feeling on the Left lies at the root of its fundamental distrust toward the Right.
However, this feeling on the Left is largely mistaken. The moderate Right (including Constitutionalists, but excluding neocons and the religious Right who, just like socialists and communists, wish to use government to impose their own moral vision on society) does not seek for government policy to enforce social good, because the moderate Right doesn't believe that government is an effective mechanism for achieving it. Since this belief about the way the world works (rather than any goal) drives the politics of the Right, those on the Right are more likely to see their opponents on the Left as "wrong" than to see them as "bad."
Put simply: to those on the Left, the Right is bad. To those on the Right, the Left is wrong.
This fundamental asymmetry between Left and Right is the clue to how they can come together: Conservatives can maintain their belief that traditionally Liberal methods don't serve liberal outcomes, while still validating the intentions of liberals; and liberals can continue to insist on their good social goals (intentions) while acknowledging that the conservative claim that government is an ineffective means of achieving lasting social good is reasonable -- and does not make conservatives any less concerned with fairness, social justice or any other social good.
Since President Wilson, America has enlarged government, instituting huge, well-intended social programs.
Along with extensive militarism, these programs have bankrupted us. Reasons include the following:
1) Government planning is as crude a mechanism in the West as it was in communist states.
2) Politicians are less clever than they think they are.
3) Greater government reach provides greater opportunities for corruption.
4) All policies have unintended consequences.
5) Laws are not passed with any means of termination if they fail to achieve their well-intended goals; nor can their effects be easily reversed.
After a century of government engineering of society, the jury is in: policy-making without Constitutional constraints has brought us to a point of undoing the very good our policies were designed to achieve. For example, Medicare is unaffordable and welfare is sustained by a system of printing money that simultaneously supports big banks and inflation, making average citizens poorer, increasing the need for welfare and reducing the buying power of the welfare checks... and so on, in a vicious cycle. Liberals and Conservatives can agree that these outcomes are unsatisfactory.
Responsible Liberals clearly need a new approach to improving society, but they need not throw out their baby of good intentions with their bathwater of bad policy-making and government intervention.
Consider the following from Milton Friedman:
In my opinion, a society that aims for equality before liberty will end up with neither equality nor liberty. And a society that aims first for liberty will not end up with equality, but will end up to a closer approach to equality than any other kind of system than has even been developed. Now, that conclusion is based both on evidence from history, and also, I believe, on reasoning, which -- if you try to follow through the implications of aiming first at equality -- will become clear to you. You can only aim at equality by giving some people the right to take things from others. And what ultimately happens when you aim at equality is that A and B shall decide what C shall do for D.
Many Liberals consider Milton Friedman a political opponent, but this free marketeer not only acknowledges that a truly liberal value, equality, is a social good: he suggests that attempts to achieve social good should be evaluated not against ideology, but against the only thing that matters -- historical results.
Evidence suggests that Milton Friedman's above quote was correct. Try substituting the following into his final sentence above, and you'll see.
A = Treasury, B = Federal Reserve, C = American taxpayer and D = Goldman Sachs.
Or...
A = state legislature, B = public union, C = state taxpayer, D = public workers.
Today's great challenge for the responsible, moderate Left is to realize that its opponent is not the moderate Right. Rather, the moderate Left and Right have a common enemy, which is all those with an interest in an illiberal political establishment that wants to impose its will on society (always for our own good, of course) at the expense of individual liberty and, usually, prosperity. This enemy comes in many forms, including neocons, the religious Right and socialists.
Once moderate Liberals and Conservatives see that they don't differ fundamentally in moral sensibility but share classical liberal values (small "L"), and that a century of data show that a century of massive government intervention has failed when judged by its own stated (and Liberal [capital "L"]) goals, America will be free to realign politically from the old Left vs. Right to the new classical liberal vs. illiberal.
It's already begun, and it is showing up in Rasmussen's polls, the "real" tea party and the massive support of Ron Paul among the young.
This wholesale political realignment is exactly what Ron Paul represents. A vote for him in 2012 will be a vote against the old political order of Left vs. Right and for classical liberal values. And you can't have the second all the while you're stuck with the first.
Like me, Liberals won't agree with Paul on all issues, such as abortion, but that doesn't matter: the whole point of Paul's America is that people (and states) are free to make their own choices, and the rest of us are free to disagree with them, and make our own.
And that is the only true liberalism worthy of the name.
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It was installed by the Chicago TST chapter
The Satanic Temple’s Chicago chapter has installed a sculpture, named “Snaketivity” on the rotunda of the Illinois Capitol. The structure has a three-foot base, and there is a sign proclaiming "Knowledge is the Greatest Gift." The sculpture depicts a woman's forearm holding an apple. It is seen along with a nativity scene commemorating Christmas and a menorah celebrating the Jewish festival of Hanukkah.
Only a short distance away is another sign installed by the Illinois state government. It imparts a civics lesson to its reader where the government states it did not have much choice as Illinois is compelled by the United States First Amendment to permit temporary public displays within the state capitol. The sign then adds that as the Capitol Rotunda’s first floor is in the public domain, it will not be possible for state officials to censor within legal means any speech content or any displays. The Supreme Court of the United States has ordered that public officials could legally impose a reasonable amount of time, manner, and place restrictions when it comes to speeches and displays, but the content of the speech cannot be regulated. Dave Druker, the spokesperson of Illinois Secretary of State, told the media The Satanic Temple has equal rights as all religious organizations as per the U.S. Constitution.
The Satanic Temple-Chicago chapter clearly spelled out its mission on their GoFundMe campaign stating “The Satanic Temple-Chicago will no longer allow one religious perspective to dominate the discourse in the Illinois State Capitol rotunda during the holiday season.” The Chicago chapter urged supporters to bring Satan into Springfield. In its statue application, The Satanic Temple terms itself as a non-theistic organization which wants to encourage empathy and benevolence among people. The group proclaimed it rejects any kind of tyrannical authority and also advocates justice and common sense.
If you're going to have one public religious holiday display, you gotta have them all, including this amazing "Snaketivity" status from the Satanists –https://t.co/OtWhtiEQHG — Zack Ford (@ZackFord) December 4, 2018
What???!!! Snaketivity???? Worship the devil and you become the devil — Julie McKee (@jcsumers) December 5, 2018
How appropriate!! The evil “snaketivity.” Satan is up to his deceptive twisted tricks again!!(Rev12:9). Adam and Eve failed the first test. God’s work to redeem us is done. So God’s people refuse Satan’s poison! We serve the Anointed One, Jesus Christ! https://t.co/lV9VyZRbbf — Lisa Kelly (@Lkelly777Kelly) December 5, 2018
The Snaketivity structure is approximately four and a half feet in height. The apple and arm are approximately 18 inches in length. Lex Manticore, the spokesperson and leader of the Chicago chapter, said the arm represents the said limb of Eve as described in the Garden of Eden biblical tale and the story concerns both Adam and Eve eating the apple, a forbidden fruit from the mythical tree of knowledge. According to Manticore, The Satanic Temple has given the age-old tale a new twist: “We see Satan as a hero in that story, of course, spreading knowledge.”
Not surprised, God does give us a choice. Still amazing to witness, what a time we live in. https://t.co/mOV80fSm0q — J Baker (@_jabmin) December 5, 2018
Resources
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nonviolent communication
Nonviolent Communication
Nonviolent Communication was developed by Dr Marshall Rosenberg when he became disillusioned with the way he was expected to work with patients as a newly qualified psychologist. He wanted something more in tune with honouring people and their humanity.
Marshall (photo right) developed a system to help people in a positive way and this has turned into a world-wide movement involving ordinary people, mediators, parents, therapists, educators and peace-activists. He hopes these initiatives will continue to spread and lay the foundations for a more compassionate society.
Essentially, nonviolent communication involves changes in the way we habitually encounter one another. While we talk and try to relate, we hold in our hearts the belief that we share universal human needs (to be autonomous, accepted, supported, safe, creative, rested, joyful, etc., etc.). Marshall sees this as a practical spirituality, a choice to treat one another how we want to be treated and to use language to reveal our own and the other person’s humanity.
The name Nonviolent Communication shows that Marshall was aware that people found the judgments and demands inherent in usual communication styles less than compassionate and indeed sometimes outright violent. This led to a culture of distance and division; life was less peaceful than he thought our underlying common humanity called for. He set about devising a language that was more compassionate, life-affirming and effective.
Needs are met through Effective Communication
In nonviolent communication, we use language, not to turn away, admonish or seek to control but to express our felt needs and to respectfully ascertain what feelings and needs are alive in the other person. The aim is to use empathy and self-empathy to prevent misunderstandings and the closing of hearts. It is a way to maximize our chances of relating well. To non-violent communicators this means helping to meet the other person's genuine needs whilst also getting our own human needs met.
People who feel they are being respected through being heard compassionately are less likely to respond to us through fear and disappointment with anger and denial. They tend not to attack with harsh judgments, are less inclined to deny our perspectives, ignore our feelings and deny our needs. Humans tend to act reciprocally; happy people are more generous.
Learning nonviolent communication helps you to become more literate in the ways of the human heart. Not only do you learn to keep your humanity in difficult interpersonal situations, you learn to name your feelings and listen to your own real needs. Keeping comments to observations rather than judgments helps you to stop taking things personally and making assumptions about others motivations and intentions. You are rewarded with less stress, less unhappiness. Relating well oils the wheels of living with others, be they your loved ones, your employees, your pupils, your neighbours.
Violence in any form is a tragic expression of our unmet needs.
Marshall B. Rosenberg, PhD.
Anger, relationship and self esteem problems respond very well to nonviolent communication but it is efficacious whenever anyone desires a richer, less problem-filled life. Therapy may concentrate on discovering how neglected or misconstrued needs may be playing havoc in your life. The focus is then on learning the skills required to join with others to really communicate and seek out a solution which meets everyone's human requirements.
Without nonviolent communication, the ways in which we try to meet our needs often fail because our strategies cut across the needs of other people, or we are not able to express our real concerns. With non-violent communication the energy that has been used to defend a position can be freed for a deeper, more effective discussion. Learning to express your feelings in terms of your own observations, needs and wishes helps to avoid blaming and demanding.
I encourage you to discover more about this peace-making, satisfaction-building field.
Article posted 20 November 2012
Alison Edwards is a counsellor, clinical supervisor, and communications coach in private practice in Auckland » see website
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WASHINGTON—The Trump administration is preparing to initiate direct talks with Iran-backed Houthi forces in Yemen in an effort to end the four-year-old war, a conflict that has become a volatile front line in the conflict with Tehran, according to people familiar with the plans.
The U.S. is looking to prod Saudi Arabia into taking part in secret talks in Oman with Houthi leaders in an effort to broker a cease-fire in Yemen, according to these people.
The...
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Tu sei qui
The Guru Ram Das Mantra
The Guru Ram Das Mantra: Guru Guru Wahe Guru, Guru Ram Das Guru
This is a mantra of self-healing, humility, relaxation, protective grace, and emotional relief. It calls on the spirit of humility and grace of Guru Ram Das.
The Guru Ram Das Mantra is an ashtang mantra. Ashtang mantras have eight parts. They catalyze the kundalini energy to initiate through your own effort and devotion. The first part of the mantra, Guru Guru Wahe Guru, projects the mind to the Infinite, the source of knowledge and ecstasy. The second part, Guru Ram Das Guru, means “the wisdom that comes as a servant of the Infinite.”
This mantra projects the mind to the Infinite and then brings finite guidance on a practical level.
Posture: Sit in Easy Pose with the spine straight.
Mudra: The hands can be in any comfortable position (Gyan Mudra, folded in your lap, on the knees, etc.).
Eyes: Close the eyes and focus at the brow point.
Mantra: Chant the Guru Ram Das Mantra for 5 – 31 minutes. There are many melodies for this mantra (listen at Spirit Voyage) or it can be recited in a monotone. Try to complete the whole mantra on one breath.
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Salmon in the Classroom may be saved from becoming extinct
Here is an article by Susan Gilmore, Seattle Times staff reporter, on a bid to save a much needed classroom program:
The Salmon in the Classroom program, slated for extinction because of state budget cuts, may be saved in Seattle.
City Council President Richard Conlin said he was so dismayed to hear that the program might be ending that he has directed Seattle Public Utilities (SPU) to commit $10,000 to keep the program going.
“It’s really critical that kids get in touch with the environment at an early age and have a connection to the natural world,” Conlin said. “This program is something that does this. It’s hands on, it’s real. Salmon is our totem, our iconic symbol of the Northwest.”
Every year, 40,000 schoolchildren in the state are introduced to the life cycle of salmon through the program.
In December, the state Department of Fish and Wildlife, which had been funding the program, said it was eliminated for the current fiscal year in the special session of the Legislature, and was also proposed to be eliminated in Gov. Chris Gregoire’s fiscal 2012-2014 budget.
The final decision will be up to the Legislature.
The program has been in place 20 years, and an average of 495 schools in the state have participated each year. Eliminating the program will save $110,000 for the rest of the school year and $442,000 for the next biennium.
Under Conlin’s plan, SPU will spend $10,000 to help about 50 Seattle schools maintain the program.
SPU had been supporting the program since 1991, but in recent years has diverted its money to a broader science curriculum.
Miles Mayhew, a SPU water manager, said the department was doing work related to youth education, and the salmon program fits into that.
“We’re going to work with our community partners and the state to keep it going,” Mayhew said.
He said the money will go for such things as repairing equipment in the classrooms and training teachers.
Many of the schools received their salmon eggs this year because they had permits, but the state is no longer available to maintain the equipment and there are no permits to harvest the eggs for next year.
Craig Bartlett, a spokesman for the Department of Fish and Wildlife, said he didn’t know how big an issue the permitting process will be. Because students have the eggs for this year, the decision doesn’t have to be made until July, at the start of the next biennium.
The state is required to give permits for egg harvesting as part of an agreement with the federal government under the endangered-species act. That way, state and federal officials can keep track of where the eggs go when they’re planted in streams.
Bartlett said the permitting process can be time-consuming. He hopes something can be worked out.
“We’ve had thousands of kids go through the program,” Bartlett said. “This is a way to involve and invest the kids in salmon and the natural world. We want to continue to help the school district, if we have the resources. It’s a sticky issue.”
He said the program will require volunteers and possibly help from Native American tribes.
Judy Pickens has been a longtime volunteer with the program in West Seattle and is happy to hear SPU will help support it.
“This is very good news,” she said, but she worries whether the SPU money will be enough to sustain it. With 50 schools and a pot of $10,000, that’s $200 per school. She said it costs $100 to rent a bus to take the kids to the streams where the salmon are released.
“This is going to require a strong volunteer component and supporting money so schools with high resources get less than those who don’t,” Pickens said. “With some combining of our individual wisdom, we can supplement this much-needed money from the city with volunteer energy and other resources to make sure the program is not only sustained, but enhanced.”
About the author
A Seattle native, Mark Yuasa is a lifelong angler who grew up near the banks of Lake Washington and has been covering fishing and outdoors for more than 21 years for The Seattle Times. Read his regular fishing report every Thursday and the outdoor notebook every Sunday.
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A model for the temporal organization of X- and Y-type receptive fields in the primate retina.
A model is proposed for the temporal characteristics of X- and Y-type responses of ganglion cells in the primate retina. The main suggestions of the model are: (I) The X-type temporal response is determined primarily by the delay between center and surround contributions. (II) The Y-type response is generated in the inner plexiform layer by a derivative-like operation on the bipolar cell's input, followed by a rectification in the convergence of these inputs onto the Y-ganglion-cell. (III) The derivative-like operation is obtained by recurrent inhibition in the dyad synaptic structure. The X- and Y-type responses predicted by the model, for a variety of stimuli, were examined and compared with available electrophysiological recordings. Finally, certain predictions derived from the model are discussed.
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Introduction {#sec1-1}
============
Achalasia of the esophagus is a primary motility disorder characterized by impaired peristalsis of the esophageal body and incomplete relaxation of the lower esophageal sphincter (LES). The etiology of the disease still remains unclear. The incidence is 1.6 cases per 100,000 individuals per year. High-resolution manometry (HRM) of the esophagus is the gold-standard diagnostic tool for achalasia, as it is a precise and evident technology that classifies the disorder into subtypes according to the Chicago Classification \[[@ref1],[@ref2]\]. The 3 subtypes are classic achalasia (type I), achalasia with panesophageal pressurization (type II) and vigorous achalasia (type III), based on the pattern of motility of the esophageal body. The severity of symptoms is most commonly evaluated using the Eckardt score (ES). The ES is the most commonly used clinical scoring system in achalasia, as it tends to be the most useful scale in clinical practice. It takes into consideration the frequency and severity of dysphagia, regurgitation and chest pain in addition to weight loss evaluation on a scale of 0-12. Each symptom is graded from 0-3 \[[@ref3]\].
Since medical treatment for achalasia has shown poor results, endoscopic and surgical procedures are predominantly applied worldwide. All therapeutic approaches are considered palliative, as esophageal motility in achalasia cannot be restored \[[@ref4]\]. Laparoscopic myotomy followed by a partial fundoplication, also known as the Heller-Dor procedure, is from the long-term aspect the most effective treatment, with a 90% success rate \[[@ref5]\]. Surgical failure is mainly attributed to either incomplete myotomy or tight fundoplication, and most frequently presents as postoperative dysphagia \[[@ref6]\].
With regard to improving the surgical outcome, the intraoperative use of manometry was proposed in a few studies several years ago with varying results. All studies published used conventional manometry, mainly comparing instantaneous values of the intraluminal pressures of the esophagus before and after myotomy and fundoplication. The main aim was to calibrate the dynamic effect of every surgical step and in some cases modify the technique accordingly \[[@ref7]-[@ref14]\]. The wide use of HRM, however, has eliminated the use of conventional manometry in current practice, as the new generation manometry is undoubtedly a more accurate tool for the evaluation of esophageal motility. The main objective of this study was to evaluate both clinically and functionally the long-term results of modifications of the standardized surgical technique based on simultaneous and continuous manometric recording using HRM.
Patients and methods {#sec1-2}
====================
In this prospective study we enrolled consecutive patients diagnosed with achalasia based on upper gastrointestinal tract endoscopy and HRM. All participants were adults with no previous history of surgery in the upper gastrointestinal tract.
Based on manometric findings and the Chicago Classification (CC), the patients were classified into achalasia subtypes. A detailed history and the severity of achalasia symptoms using the ES were recorded preoperatively. Patient demographics were also reviewed. All individuals signed an informed consent document in order to participate in the study. The ethics committee of our institution approved the study protocol.
The population studied underwent laparoscopic myotomy and fundoplication by a single surgeon, using the HRM probe during the procedure in order to calibrate the manometric profile of all surgical steps during the surgical technique, as described previously by our department \[[@ref15]\]. Modifications of either myotomy or fundoplication based on increased pressure zones during the Heller-Dor procedure were also calibrated. All patients were reassessed with ES and a repeat manometric test with HRM after surgery.
The HRM studies were performed with a ManoScan ESO Given Imaging catheter that consists of 36 pressure channels. Data acquisition, display and analysis were performed with ManoView Software, Given Imaging. The manometric tests consisted of ten 5-mL swallows in the supine position. The reports were evaluated with the current version of CC v3.0.
The participants enrolled to this protocol underwent laparoscopic myotomy and an individually modified partial fundoplication according to the intraoperative manometric values. HRM was used to calibrate the entire surgical procedure, while the patient was under general anesthesia. In fact, the real-time recording started at the time of intubation and the manometric analysis was simultaneously assessed on the HRM screen, placed next to the laparoscopic monitor, in such a way that each surgical step (retraction, mobilization, myotomy, fundoplication) could be evaluated manometrically. The setup of the HRM in the operating room has been thoroughly described in our previous study \[[@ref15]\]. Although the standardized Heller myotomy is a 5-cm esophagomyotomy from the esophagogastric junction (EGJ) proximally to the esophagus and 2 cm distally to the cardia of the stomach, in this study the total length of myotomy to the esophagus or distally to the stomach was adapted to the pressures recorded during surgery. More precisely, residual high pressures along the EGJ were eliminated by further cutting the circular *muscularis propria* of the esophagus or incising any remaining circumferential esophageal vessels after localization of the exact anatomic point of the residual high-pressure zone using the forceps ([Fig. 1](#F1){ref-type="fig"}). In addition, if high pressures caused by the standard sutures required it, Dor fundoplication was modified by skipping the right side of the myotomized esophagus, fixing the right side of the myotomy to the right crus or adding more sutures to minimize tension to the lower esophagus ([Fig. 2](#F2){ref-type="fig"}).
{#F1}
{#F2}
Statistical analysis was conducted using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (IBM, SPSS, version 23.0). For normally distributed data, a paired-samples *t*-test was conducted to evaluate the impact of our intervention on patient values. To inquire about possible correlations between patient values, the Pearson correlation coefficient was used. For all statistical tests, a P-value \<0.05 was considered significant.
Results {#sec1-3}
=======
Twenty-four achalasia patients were enrolled in our study between September 2013 and July 2016. All volunteers were diagnosed with achalasia of the esophagus based on HRM findings. All individuals underwent HRM before surgery and completed the ES. However, only 20 patients eventually repeated the postoperative manometric study with HRM. Of these, 20% were diagnosed with achalasia type I, 55% with type II, and 25% with type III, according to the CC v3.0. The mean age at the time of diagnosis was 50.8±14.7 (17-83) years and 45% of the patients were female.
Regarding the surgical technique, Heller myotomy was further extended in 9 cases (45% of patients) according to manometric findings during the procedure. Because of elevated pressures according to the HRM, Dor fundoplication was modified in thirteen patients (65%), either by the addition of an extra suture between the gastric fundus and the central tendon of the diaphragm (45%), or by relocation of one of the sutures (5%) that comprised the wrap. We also applied a modified technique in 3 patients (15%), concerning the last two sutures of the standardized Dor fundoplication, which consisted of fixation of the gastric fundus directly to the right crus of the diaphragm, as previously described \[[@ref16]\]. In addition, in 7 patients (35%) we performed incision of the short gastric vessels because high pressures persisted after completion of the wrap. [Figure 3](#F3){ref-type="fig"} presents the aforementioned modifications.
{#F3}
The procedures were completed with no intraoperative complications and all patients were discharged on the second postoperative day. Liquid diet was initiated on the first postoperative day. The mean postoperative follow-up time was 17.7 (range 7-48) months. Regarding the mean pressures of the LES, both resting and residual pressures significantly decreased after surgery (16.16 vs. 41.97 mmHg, P\<0.001, and 9 vs. 28.78 mmHg, P\<0.001, respectively) ([Table 1](#T1){ref-type="table"}). In fact, these findings were significant regardless of the achalasia subtype ([Table 2](#T2){ref-type="table"}). Among the HRM parameters of the esophageal body, distal contractile integral (DCI) was the only parameter that significantly decreased after surgery (1382.64 vs. 3745.24 mmHg·sec·cm, P=0.05) ([Table 3](#T3){ref-type="table"}). A statistically significant decrease was also found regarding the ES after surgery (0.74 vs. 6.91, P\<0.001).
######
HRM characteristics of the LES before and after surgery
######
HRM characteristics of the LES before and after surgery according to achalasia subtype
######
HRM parameters of the body of the esophagus
Discussion {#sec1-4}
==========
Over the years, pharmacotherapy and endoscopic techniques (injection of botulinum toxin and dilations) had predominantly been established as the standard of care regarding treatment for achalasia of the esophagus. As the long-term efficiency of these options has been questioned, current advances in the treatment of achalasia mainly focus on the outcome of the standard surgical Heller-Dor procedure and the evolving technique of peroral endoscopic myotomy (POEM), widely performed. Although the current literature still lacks long-term results, the short-term results of POEM were initially promising; however, recent studies have revealed increasing rates of reflux \[[@ref17]\]. Moreover, according to a study by Patel *et al*, endoscopy after POEM resulted in a new diagnosis of esophagitis in 19% of the patients who underwent the procedure \[[@ref17]\]. In fact, a multicenter study concluded that more than 55% of patients presented with a DeMeester score of ≥14.72 after a median follow up of one year \[[@ref18]\].
Taking under consideration the limitations of POEM, improving the result of surgical myotomy combined with fundoplication may be a reasonable approach in order to achieve the optimal outcome. Calibration and individualization of the technique based on the intraoperative manometric findings may be the key to a further reduction in the rates of postoperative failure. In the past, several studies proposed the use of manometry during surgical treatment for achalasia, aiming to calibrate and, in some cases, guide myotomy and fundoplication. However, there is no study that applied HRM intraoperatively. Case series, case reports and short communications have been published, including adult and pediatric patients diagnosed with achalasia \[[@ref7]-[@ref14]\].
More precisely, Mattioli *et al* studied the role of intraoperative manometry during esophagogastric myotomy and achieved abolition of the high-pressure zone in all patients, according to intraoperative manometric measurements. Moreover, the great majority of the patients presented with improvement of their symptoms after surgery \[[@ref7]\]. A few more studies presented their results regarding recession of the symptoms of patients who underwent myotomy and fundoplication with intraoperative conventional manometry \[[@ref8]-[@ref14]\].
The present study evaluated the long-term outcomes of our previously presented pilot study on the intraoperative use of HRM during surgical treatment for achalasia of the esophagus \[[@ref15]\]. HRM provides the advantage of simultaneous and continuous recording of the pressures of the esophageal lumen during all surgical steps of the Heller-Dor technique. Most importantly, it may guide further myotomy or modification of the fundoplication in cases where a high residual pressure is recorded. At the same time, the surgeon is able to localize the exact point in the esophagus by using a grasper over the high-pressure zone in order to identify the anatomic point presenting with functional abnormality.
Regarding modifications based on our protocol, 9 myotomies (45% of patients) were further extended after completion of the standardized extent of the Heller technique, while 13 cases (65%) underwent a modified partial technique as a result of increased residual pressures during the established Dor fundoplication. Additionally, in 7 patients (35%) the short gastric vessels were sacrificed in order to achieve a floppier wrap. Clinical and objective reassessment of the patients with ES and HRM tests, respectively, after surgery revealed a significant decrease in total ES (0.5 vs. 7.5), resting (16.16 vs. 41.97 mmHg) and residual (9 vs. 28.78 mmHg) pressures of the LES, along with the DCI measurements (1382.6 vs. 3745.2 mmHg·sec·cm). Although postoperative HRM findings in surgical patients are rarely reported in the literature, the study of Salvador *et al* revealed a decrease in median resting pressure of the LES (15.3 vs. 39 mmHg) and residual pressure of the LES (6 vs. 27.4 mmHg) \[[@ref19]\] The decrease in our DCI measurements to one third of the preoperative value may also indicate the adequacy of resolution of the previously recorded high pressure of the LES, diminished after the myotomy. Moreover, the effect of the partial fundoplication on esophageal body contraction did not increase the DCI values postoperatively. The value of the changes in the pattern of esophageal body contraction after endoscopic or surgical treatment among the 3 types of achalasia has been already discussed in the literature; however, the clinical significance of the difference between preoperative and postoperative HRM measurements, such as DCI or esophageal peristaltic amplitude, still remains unclear. Interestingly, the possibility of partial recovery of the esophageal body motility after POEM or surgical myotomy cannot be ruled out \[[@ref20],[@ref21]\].
Furthermore, given the fact that surgical intervention for achalasia aims to improve the patient's quality of life, the most important outcome of our study was the decrease in postoperative ES compared to the preoperative evaluation (0.7 vs. 6.9), which represents patients' satisfaction regarding dysphagia, regurgitation, chest pain and weight gain after surgery. In a study by Gockel *et al*, the ES decreased from 6 to 1 for 108 patients who underwent myotomy along with Dor fundoplication for achalasia of the esophagus \[[@ref22]\]. In the present study, postoperative symptoms were almost diminished during the long-term follow-up period.
Our study included a small number of patients; however, this is the first reference in the literature to assess the long-term outcomes of the application of HRM during surgical treatment for achalasia of the esophagus. Although the EGJ contractile integral is currently the most meaningful HRM metric in the evaluation of EGJ function, this study was initiated before the first introduction of this measurement \[[@ref23]\]. Therefore, it was the residual and resting pressures of the LES that were assessed in our HRM studies. Another limitation may be the difficulty in defining precise cutoff values for the decision to modify the technique. Objective values could not be used, as general anesthesia and pneumoperitoneum established at a pressure of 12 mmHg interfere with the manometric values of the EGJ during surgery; thus, preoperative HRM assessment could not be directly related to intraoperative pressures. To address this problem, we intraoperatively compared the pressures of the EGJ to the esophageal body pressures or the pressure recorded in the stomach. Another drawback of the present study may be the lack of objective evaluation of postoperative reflux. Postoperative reflux was assessed using the ES and the need for proton pump inhibitors. Although locating the previous LES position in order to place a pH probe or capsule may be confusing, because of the significant decrease in pressure, future studies may elucidate the value of pH tests postoperatively. Overall, regardless of the demanding setup of the HRM software and hardware and acquisition of measurements in the theater, the application of the HRM during the Heller-Dor technique may be a useful and safe guide, especially for the new surgeon, as it provides a detailed recording of the functional result of each surgical step.
The technique of impedance planimetry (endoluminal functional lumen imaging probe; endoFLIP) has been applied during both surgical and endoscopic treatment of achalasia, aiming to guide the length of myotomy and fundoplication \[[@ref24],[@ref25]\]. However, the idea of instant measurements of diameter and distensibility of the esophagus during myotomy with the endoFLIP seems to differ from the intraoperative use of HRM, as our protocol presents real-time continuous manometric recording of all surgical steps, precisely synchronized to the laparoscopic camera view in a more dynamic and detailed way.
This study is the first presentation of the long-term results of the use of HRM during surgical treatment for achalasia of the esophagus. Based on intraoperative manometric findings, we further extended 45% of the myotomies and we modified 65% of the fundoplications in the group of patients we enrolled. The results of the present study proved that the intraoperative use of HRM may be a useful tool for safely tailoring myotomy and fundoplication in order to achieve the optimal functional and clinical outcome. Future case-control or even randomized studies with a larger number of patients may be mandatory.
###### Summary Box
**What is already known:**
Laparoscopic Heller myotomy combined with Dor fundoplication for the treatment of achalasia of the esophagus achieves a 90% success rateFailure of the surgical technique is attributed to either incomplete myotomy or tight fundoplicationPrevious studies manometrically calibrated the surgical effect of the myotomy and fundoplication during the surgical procedure using conventional manometry with various resultsHigh-resolution manometry (HRM) is the gold-standard tool for the assessment of esophageal motility
**What the new findings are:**
This study is the first presentation of the long-term clinical and manometric results of the use of HRM during surgical treatment for achalasia of the esophagusThe results of the present study proved that intraoperative HRM may be a useful tool for safely tailoring the myotomy and fundoplication to achieve the optimal functional and clinical outcome
Conflict of Interest: None.
Hippocration General Hospital of Athens, University of Athens; General and Oncologic Hospital of Kifissia Agii Anargiri, Athens, Greece
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if (this instanceof MyJsClass) {
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return new MyJsClass();
}
}
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Signal processing by vestibular nuclei neurons is dependent on the current behavioral goal.
The vestibular sensory apparatus and associated vestibular nuclei are generally thought to encode angular head velocity during our daily activities. However, in addition to direct inputs from vestibular afferents, the vestibular nuclei receive substantial projections from cortical, cerebellar, and other brainstem structures. Given this diversity of inputs, the question arises: How are the responses of vestibular nuclei neurons to head velocity modified by these additional inputs during naturally occurring behaviors? Here we have focused on the signal processing done by two specific classes of neurons in the vestibular nuclei: (1) position-vestibular-pause (PVP) neurons that mediate the vestibulo-ocular reflex (VOR), and (2) vestibular-only (VO) neurons that are thought to mediate, at least in part, the vestibulo-collic reflex (VCR). We first characterized neuronal responses to passive rotation in the head-restrained condition, and then released the head to record the discharges of the same neurons during self-generated head movements. VOR interneurons (i.e., PVP neurons) faithfully transmitted head velocity signals when the animal stabilized its gaze, regardless of whether the head motion was actively or passively generated; their responses were attenuated only when the monkey's behavioral goal was to redirect its axis of gaze relative to space. In contrast, VCR interneurons (i.e., VO neurons) faithfully transmitted head velocity signals during passive head motion, but their responses were greatly (and similarly) attenuated during all behaviors (i.e., gaze shifts, gaze pursuit, gaze stabilization) during which the monkey's behavioral goal was to move its head relative to the body. To characterize the mechanism(s) that underlie this differential processing, we tested neurons during passive rotation of the head relative to the body, as well as during a task in which a monkey actively "drove" both its head and body together in space. We conclude that neither passive activation of neck proprioceptors nor knowledge of self-generated head-in-space motion directly mediate the observed reductions in head-velocity-related modulation. Instead, we propose that the VOR and VCR pathways use efference copies of oculomotor and neck movement commands, respectively, for the differential processing of vestibular information.
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Q:
R' Alexander bar R' Shlomo, "hevio likvurah"?
There is the following name in "Shemos HaTzaddikim":
ר' אלכסנדר בר' שלמה, הביאו לקבורה
I don't understand what this means. To my understanding, הביאו לקבורה would be "he went to the grave", but that seems strange. What's the deal with this name?
I understand this may be closed as being about Jews and Judaism, but I was interested if I did translate correctly, then what is the story behind this?
A:
The following is an extract from the Wikipedia article on Rabbi Meir of Rothenburg.
The Maharam of Rothenburg, Rabbi Meir, was born between 1215 and 1220
in Worms. After the death of his father in 1281, he settled in Worms.
In 1286, King Rudolf I instituted a new persecution of the Jews,
declaring them servi camerae ("serfs of the treasury"), which had the
effect of negating their political freedoms. Along with many others,
Meir left Germany with family and followers, but was captured in the
mountains of Lombardy having been recognized by a baptized Jew named
Kneppe, and imprisoned in a fortress near Ensisheim in Alsace.
Tradition has it that a large ransom of 23,000 marks silver was raised
for him (by the Rosh), but Rabbi Meir refused it, for fear of
encouraging the imprisonment of other rabbis. He ruled on his own
abduction in light of Talmudic law. He died in prison after seven
years. Fourteen years after his death a ransom was paid for his body
by Alexander ben Salomon Wimpfen, who was subsequently laid to rest
beside the Maharam in the Jewish cemetery of Worms.
The reference you found to
אלכסנדר בר שלמה refers to the fact that it was he who brought the Maharam to be buried and that's why it says
הביאו לקבורה .
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