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Jesse Williams, a Portland, Ore., janitor who smoked three packs of Marlboros aNovember 1st, 2006 at 03:54 am
Jesse Williams, a Portland, Ore., janitor who smoked three packs of Marlboros a day, died of lung cancer in 1997. His widow, Mayola, sued Philip Morris for fraud and negligence, alleging that any fears her husband had about becoming ill from smoking were eased by the cigarette-maker's publicity campaign that suggested it was safe. Mayola Williams recalled in court filings that when her husband learned he had inoperable cancer, he said, "Those darn cigarette people finally did it. They were lying all the time."
The lawsuit that Mayola Williams filed was among many claims filed against tobacco companies in recent years, but one of the few to lead to a multimillion-dollar judgment. An Oregon jury awarded Williams $79.5 million in punitive damages. Such damages are intended to punish defendants beyond the actual damages they caused and deter future bad conduct.
Williams' award was 97 times greater than the actual — or compensatory — damages awarded by the jury, and according to court records it was based partly on the jury's consideration of Philip Morris' harm to other smokers in Oregon.
Now, Williams' case is before the U.S. Supreme Court and has become one of the most significant tests ever of how far a jury can go in punishing a civil defendant. The question in the Williams case is whether the punitive damages award is so disproportionate to the injury to Jesse Williams that it violates the 14th Amendment's guarantee of due process of law.
In its appeal, Philip Morris says the Oregon verdict violated due process because it was so much higher than the actual damages caused to Jesse Williams and because jurors were punishing the company for injuries to smokers who were not part of the Williams case.
Mayola Williams' attorney, Robert Peck, says in court papers that the cigarette-maker's efforts to hide the dangers of smoking were "monstrous" and says that if ever a big award were justified, this is the case.
The dispute, to be argued before the high court on Tuesday, is a new round in the court's struggle to draw the line between permissible and unconstitutional punitive damages awards.
Business groups, such as the National Association of Manufacturers, say juries improperly use punitive damage awards to "send a message" to corporate defendants. Consumer advocates and trial lawyers counter that punitive damages help bring accountability to businesses that have a history of abuse.
"The tobacco industry has evaded liability for decades ... and the result has been a public health catastrophe," Trial Lawyers for Public Justice says in a court brief filed in the Williams case.
'Court is on the knife edge'
For decades, the Supreme Court considered such jury awards the domain of the states and gave wide latitude to state judges and juries. In recent years, however, the court has begun to rein in awards by setting criteria for punitive damages. The addition of two new justices last term — Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Samuel Alito, who replaced the late William Rehnquist and the retired Sandra Day O'Connor — could add a wrinkle to the court's approach.
In the justices' most recent ruling on the issue, in 2003, the majority said any punitive damages that are more than 10 times the actual damages for the injury could be presumed to be excessive. Voting 6-3, the court invalidated a $145 million award levied by a jury that had found that the State Farm insurance company acted in bad faith by not settling claims against a policyholder who was involved in a fatal accident.
In the current case, a key question will be whether Philip Morris' conduct was bad enough to justify a punitive damages award beyond the 2003 guideline.
Rehnquist and O'Connor voted with the majority in the State Farm case. Washington lawyer Mark Levy, who follows decisions concerning punitive damages, says that suggests that their replacements, Roberts and Alito, could tip the court's vote either way in assessing whether the award in the Williams case was excessive.
"The court is on the knife edge," Levy says. If Roberts and Alito join the justices who dissented in the State Farm case and want to leave the matter to the states, Levy says, there would be "a sudden and radical change in this area of the law."
1999 award upheld in Oregon court
In her case, Mayola Williams claimed that Philip Morris mounted a fraudulent publicity campaign aimed at minimizing the dangers of smoking. After a month-long trial in 1999, the jury awarded $821,485 in compensatory damages and the $79.5 million in punitive damages.
The Oregon Supreme Court upheld the award. "There can be no dispute that Philip Morris's conduct was extraordinarily reprehensible. (It) knew that smoking caused serious and sometimes fatal disease, but it nevertheless spread false or misleading information to suggest ... that doubts remained about that issue. ... The scheme was damaging the health of a very large group of Oregonians — the smoking public — and was killing a number of that group."
In his appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court, Philip Morris' lawyer, Andrew Frey tells the justices that the Oregon court misinterpreted recent decisions by the high court, particularly the 2003 ruling. He says the State Farm decision does not allow a company to be punished for harm to people who were not involved in the case. Frey says calculating such damages for injuries to outside parties creates an unfair risk of duplicative and excessive punishment.
Peck, Williams' attorney, says the cigarette-maker is seeking to turn "review of punitive damage awards (into) a simple arithmetic exercise," based on the ratio between actual and punitive. He says the Oregon jury's verdict followed proper criteria "to achieve deterrence" and reverse some of Philip Morris' "ill-gotten profit."


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Buy a Print. Help Save a Life.
Eliza O'Neill is just four-years-old but in six months, she will stop speaking.
In the next four years, the energetic child won't be able to walk or feed herself, before developing seizures and movement disorders. And then, she will die.
But the South Carolina toddler's family hope to avoid the horrible prognosis by raising $1 million to fund a known cure for Sanfilippo Syndrome, the disease Eliza was diagnosed with in July.
Photographers have got together and made photographs available to be sold, with all the proceeds going direct to the Saving Eliza Campaign.
I have donated "Southbank Smooch" and its available to buy on The Smugmug website, prices start from just £17.85 with all the proceeds going direct to The Saving Eliza Appeal. Click the image below to go straight to the website.
In fact it doesn't matter which picture you buy, but if you can, and you want something for the wall please look through the fantastic pictures available form this gallery and not only get something for your wall, but potentially save a life of a four year old child.
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Facebook https://www.facebook.com/ElizaOStory
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subset: commoncrawl


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The Thai rainy season greeted me in the form of monks in flowing orange robes holding little umbrellas. Their smiles beamed at me through the thick mist as I sauntered through the old section of Chiang Mai, trying unsuccessfully to avoid becoming wet and lost.
No matter the weather conditions, northern Thailand has much to offer. You can take part in a cultural experience with local villagers, be introduced to the mysteries of Thai cooking, even wash an elephant recuperating from abuse. While Bangkok assaults the senses and tends to overwhelm, Chiang Mai intoxicates with its natural and cultural beauty and dizzying selection of activities.
A quick flight or overnight train from Bangkok can transport you to the enchanting environment of Chiang Mai. A visit to the city and its surrounding hills often turns into a more memorable and beloved experience than a visit to Bangkok for first time visitors to Asia. More relaxed and attractive than Bangkok, Chiang Mai is Thailand's second-largest city.
Once you arrive, the hotels are counting on you to choose from a plethora of available activities. Take a cooking class, visit an elephant refuge, go river rafting, take a massage class, attend a handicraft workshop, or join a trek lasting from one to three days. On the treks, you'll generally have the opportunity to meet local village people. Know the customs well enough so you don't inadvertently offend your hosts. (Some tribes, for instance, do not like to be photographed.) Your tour guide should advise you of such customs.
I visited a Hmong village along a hillside and waterfall. The Hmong are a nomadic tribe of farmers that settled in the area. They make a variety of colorfully designed handcrafted items, including sarongs, handbags and a variety of clothing. I wandered their village admiring their brightly colored fabrics and handicrafts and relaxed by a waterfall overlooking a beautifully landscaped garden.
Near the Hmong village, the Wat Doi Suthep temple offers a magnificent view overlooking Chiang Mai. Locals consider this a sacred site. View impressive pagodas, statues and shrines here, including one of a white elephant. Several young monks, some the age of grade school kids, sloshed around the temple barefoot on the rainy day I was there.
The following day, I took a trip to the Elephant Nature Park, an hour north of Chiang Mai. ENP and the Baanchang Elephant Park are worthwhile day trips for those with an affection and curiosity about these creatures that are so important to the Thai people. Both Elephant Nature Park and Baanchang Nature Park rescue elephants from unsuitable conditions and are worthy of a day trip. Be judicious and steer clear of elephant shows in Thailand that exploit elephants.
Chiang Mai is an excellent city for walking. The old town is an ideal area to explore on foot, and you should set aside time to explore it. My hotel was just a few blocks from Thapae Gate, the entrance to old town with its plethora of temples. Wat Chiang Man, Wat Pan Tao and Wat Chedi Luang are three of the most beautiful and noteworthy temples in the old town area. The latter is the largest chedi and marks the center of town.
Altogether, there are around 300 temples throughout Chiang Mai. Underscoring the cultural and intellectual richness of the area, there are several bookstores within and just outside of old town.
Northern Thailand has a milder climate than Bangkok, much more conducive to a lengthy trek. The hills outside town offer several such opportunities.
At night, Chiang Mai comes alive with the night market and bazaar that covers several blocks. I purchased a much needed pair of flip-flops – standard footwear in Thailand. I also practiced my negotiating skills in the process. A wide variety of items are sold at the night market, and visitors should come here, if just for the spectacle. Items on sale include colorful Thai fabrics, t-shirts, antiques, luggage, sunglasses, handicrafts, antiques, clothing, wood carvings and gems.
Once you've explored the wonders of Chiang Mai and its environs and want to explore northern Thailand further, check out nearby Chiang Rai, known as the "laid-back Chiang Mai."
More from SDReader
- More stories by Derek Ray
- Thailand and back again — Jan. 14, 2018
- The real Chiang Rai — May 4, 2015
- Charmed in Chiang Mai — July 29, 2013
- Ayutthaya, Thailand: City of Buddhas — Jan. 7, 2012
- Do's and Don'ts in Bangkok — Nov. 28, 2011
Nice report. Chiang Mai is the most beautiful city in Thailand to visit that will captivate any American visitor. American Expat in Chiang Mailink text
Chiang Mai is way over rated. This is more advertisement than actual facts. FOUR months of pure smoke and the government does nothing but LIP service to the problems year after year. AVOID this place.
Great story Mr Ray!!
You make me wanna visit Thailand! At least for the beautiful temples. I need to go.
Thanks, mveseskis and ExpatChiangMai. Best wishes for a future visit to Thailand, donnapcrilly. BuddyD, I just share my travel experiences. Your experience in Chiang Mai was obviously different than mine. Feel free to share any "facts" or "problems" that would be worthwhile for someone planning a trip there to consider.


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Pierre Gagnaire, Tokyo
My last meal at Pierre Gagnaire, Paris was a roller coaster. Lots of ups and downs and by the end of service I was left holding on to my chair in confusion. Any great restaurant has to take risks in the kitchen to achieve something great. But my original experiences were like a lottery, and after three meals at Gagnaire Paris, I kept losing. Pierre Gagnaire Tokyo, in some ways, was the complete opposite. There were few risks. Everything was consistent. This is good in the sense that no single course was particularly disappointing; bad, however, that nothing was exceptional. Exceptional cuisine balance risk-taking and spontaneity with consistency, and it's no easy task. My meal here was an extremely toned-down version of my meal in Paris.
Pierre Gagnaire Tokyo closed for a bit and recently re-opened at the top of the ANA Intercontinental Hotel. This meal took place at the original location, directly across the street from Prada Aoyama.
Amuses bouches with wine.
Langoustine salpicon with melanosporum black truffles, Shellfish wurtz, ice plant, and Japanese pearls. The ice plant was interesting: thin green leaves coasted with crispy translucent bubbles that bursted in your mouth. The wurtz was light and airy tasting almost like a lobster bisque.
Abalone and Meishan ham grilled with sage, braised lettuce heart, chorizo, and crispy lard. The texture of the abalone was fantastic: firm with a hint of crispiness on the edges.
Roasted Amadai snapper "with crispy scales," sea urchin velouté. The cracking skin of the snapper almost looked like pomelo seeds. The texture was crispy but moist from the high fat content. The velouté glowed a golden yellow from the sea urchin, which filled every crevice of the skin. This was delicious.
Sea urchin with "soba sauce jelly," crunchy turnips, Nori seaweed flakes. This was clean, fresh, and bright. The mild and slightly salty soba jelly set the stage for the natural sweetness of the sea urchin. This was the highlight course of the night.
Foie gras pan-fried with green pepper, pear-raisins-celeriac marmalade, western burdock with pomegranate juice. This was very fatty and greasy. The acidity of the pomegranate helped to break up the fatty mouthfeel a bit, but I thought this was missing some kind of absorbant bread or fruit to soak up the oils from the liver.
Prime cut of grilled Hitachi beef lacquered with red wine sauce, cuttlefish with lime, onion confit with watercress. Gagnaire's use of sweet red wine sauces and meat is truly exceptional. The sauce was bright and fruity and not at all cloying. It developed a sweet caramel taste in combination with the fatty meat. The cuttlefish was chewy and firm, much like the texture of thinly sliced abalone. The lime zest added a touch of fruity acidity to help brighten the flavor of the meat allowing it to mix with the cuttlefish.
Mont d'Or cheese, orange syrup, lamb's lettuce and fennel salad with hazelnut oil.
Table of desserts. Strawberry and pineapple tart in a martini glass, strawberry with chantilly, chocolate with peanut glace. This course seemed the most Gagnaire-style as our entire table was filled with small plates. As my friend Chuck recalls, "Do you remember the desserts? When they filled the table full of plates?" This was a tempered down version of the potluck of desserts served in Paris. I also found it strange that three of the four desserts highlighted strawberries. It was as if the kitchen had five ingredients and combined them in different ways.
The meal was enjoyable but lacked the passion and impromptu nature of the dishes in Paris. After my meal in Paris I complained that there was too much risk leading to several courses that just didn't work. As the motto goes, be careful what you wish for. Here there was not enough risk lending to a weakened intensity and diversity of flavors.
I dream of a meal at Gagnaire full of impulse and spur-of-the-moment zeal where the luck lands on my side. I just haven't had that yet.


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What is Pinterest?
Pinterest is basically a website categorized under social media sites. It's unique kind of site. Most of the web masters use it in order to get more traffic to their blog or site.
I first listed in from a YouTube Video saying that get referral traffic for you blog. In my opinion this is search engine kind of site because when I used it I found for Hair Styles and the result was amazing. Believe me, It gives best result for your search. The most shared things on this site are images and videos. You can share any kind of pictures over there. If you want to get visitors from this site to your site then you may post links there which will give you a high quality backlink and page view.
Pinterest is a fast growing social media website, in it's first 10 month it hit about 13 Million users hundreds of brands are using this site even if you focus on sharing icons in blogs or websites you will see a button for pin as well.
It is emphasized that piterest drives more traffic than YouTube, Linkedin and Twitter.
Now as you have known much about it lets get started with it and learn how to use it. on Facebook we share something but on pinterest we use word PIN IT in order to keep that post saved to our profile. In our computers there are folder to categorize our stuff the same thing on pinterest is called a BOARD. All the pins may be added to boards, in other words we can say that board is a collection of pins.
How to get traffic from Pinterest?
In order to get traffic from it just go and create your account on it. Now complete your profile information, If your more file is properly and 100% complete then chances of your pin to appear more are increased.
The extra benefit is that you can get a backlink by adding your site in your profile. The site will have to be verified and for that you will have to put a HTML code into your blog or site's header.
Here if you want to drive traffic to your blog then go and create a pin then categorize it and publish. You have option to give a link directly or upload from your PC. The video embedded above give more clarification however that is in Hindi or Urdu language but may be understood by anyone through visualizations.
Now what you have to do is just wait for friends to go to your site's post. What you need to do is just follow the others and pin others post to get the same back.
I hope you have learnt about What is Pinterest? and there is no question in your mind but if it exists then let me know through below comment box. I will post about getting traffic using Sumbleupon very soon.


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Knitting and Crochet
Hobbycraft Aberdeen is the only place to find all your craft materials, art supplies, and craft workshops under one roof.
Join our free Club today and get exclusive offers, invites to craft events and entries to competitions.
Hobbycraft is a registered trademark of Hobbycraft Trading Ltd. Hobbycraft Trading Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. We are a credit broker and not a lender. PayPal Credit is a trading name of PayPal (Europe) S.à.r.l. et Cie, S.C.A., 22-24 Boulevard Royal L-2449, Luxembourg.


text: It's a cold world out there. One thing that always works for me is to share a positive, enthusiastic attitude. Whenever I feel down, or when things aren't going my way, I try to instantly turn that around with a smile, a fun comment, or a positive action. Most of the time it works and as I do it, it becomes infectious, and bounces right back to me. So . . .


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- 3 Beds
- 3 Full, 1 Half
- 3,662 +/- Sqft
Property TypeResidential – Single Family
SubdivisionSNOWBERRY SUB
Listing Date03/13/19
Year Built2004
Lot Size0.34 Acres
Parking2 Car Garage
Property Description
Thoughtfully built home in the quiet & desirable Snowberry neighborhood. Enjoy the expansive mountain views from every window! Mature aspens & pines create privacy. Main level master forms a functional floorplan! Cathedral & high ceilings create comfortable bright open living. Tons of built-ins & storage. Covered deck & patio allow for winter sun & summer shade plus little snow removal! Huge garage w/ easily accessible storage space! Energy efficient w/in-floor heat & high efficiency furnace.
Presented By
- See Remarks
- Meadow
- Mountains
- Cable Available
- Deck
- Fireplace - Gas
- Ground Floor Master
- Multi-Level
- Patio
- Vaulted Ceilings
- Golf - Public
- Hiking / Pedestrian Trails
- Cable Tv
- District Sewer
- District Water
- Electricity
- Gas
- Snow Removal
- Trash Pickup
- Natural Gas
- Radiant
- Dryer
- Washer
Financial Information
About Dillon
Come experience the magic of the Colorado high country and fall in love with the town of Dillon. Perfectly situated on the scenic shores of the Lake Dillon Reservoir with recreation, entertainment, relaxation, and pure fun all at your doorstep. Dillon is a great getaway close to Breckenridge, Keystone, Arapahoe Basin, Copper Mountain, Vail, Beaver Creek and Denver. Aside from being an excellent, central location for embracing Summit County's winter activities, Dillon bustles with summer events for all ages, from the Thursday Nature Nights series and Friday morning Farmers Markets to the popular weekend concerts at Lake Dillon Amphitheatre. Spend an afternoon at the Dillon Marina where rental boats, guided sailing tours or sailing lessons are available, or visit the School House Museum and historical park where relics from the mining days come to life. World-class lodging, dining and shopping are within minutes.
Area Market Data
We get asked this question a lot. Below is a tool that gives you the ability to see what the market is like in your community. Find out what homes like your own are selling for right in your back yard. Simply enter in your address, choose the proximity of the search and find out market data for other homes that are selling near you.
While we'll provide you with plenty of information, this is a snapshot of your market data and there are real people behind the high-tech and automated tools. If you would like more detailed information or help in understanding the results we are here to help.
Until then, enjoy the tools!
The data relating to the real estate for sale on this website comes in part from the Internet Data Exchange program of the Vail Multi-List Service, Inc.
Copyright © 2019 Vail Multi List, Inc. (VMLS). The information displayed herein was derived from sources believed to be accurate, but has not been verified by VMLS. Buyers are cautioned to verify all information to their own satisfaction. This information is exclusively for viewers' personal, non- commercial use. Any republication or reproduction of the information herein without the express permission of the VMLS is strictly prohibited.
Listing courtesy of Omni Real Estate


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Global In-flight Entertainment Market: Snapshot
The global in-flight entertainment market is projected to receive telling growth prospects owing to a large demand for amusement devices for long distance flights to make time-consuming journeys enjoyable and comfortable. Excellent audio and video services are offered by aircraft carriers today to provide amusement for air passengers. Changing consumer pattern and technological development could be key for the demand for in-flight entertainment services. New airliners offering state-of-the-art infrastructure and modern in-flight entertainment equipment are foretold to augur well for market growth. In-flight entertainment could also be engaged by advertisement companies to create brand awareness through photographs and television commercials.
The global in-flight entertainment market, as noted by Transparency Market Research (TMR), is envisaged to rise at a CAGR of 12.7% between 2017 and 2022 to attain a valuation of US$6.4 bn by the final forecast year. In 2017, it was valued at a US$3.5 bn.
In-flight Entertainment Hardware to Top Share with Snowballing Demand for Amusement Devices
The world in-flight entertainment market is predicted to be classified into in-flight entertainment hardware, communication system, connectivity system, and support services as per a segmentation by component. Out of these, the market could witness the lead secured by in-flight entertainment hardware. By 2022 end, it could bag a valuation of US$3.4 bn. It is expected to rise annually with an absolute growth of US$0.3 bn, which could be larger than that of other segments in the component classification. In 2017, it gained a market share of 47.9%.
According to a segmentation by fit, the world in-flight entertainment market is anticipated to include segments such as line fit and retrofit. By application, the market could find opportunities in segments such as moving map system, audio system, video system, in-flight games, and network connectivity.
Each segment of the world in-flight entertainment market is carefully studied on the basis of revenue, market share, and year-on-year (Y-o-Y) growth comparison.
North America to See Overwhelming Growth with Rising In-flight Entertainment Connectivity Deals
The international in-flight entertainment market is prognosticated to testify the ascendancy expected to be gripped by North America in the coming years. This region could expand at a CAGR of 14.3% and attract a larger share of the market all through the course of the forecast period. In 2017, it earned a valuation of US$1.1 bn. Not the case with most markets, but Europe could be on the slower side of growth while increasing at a 10.8% CAGR. It is prophesied to be joined by the Middle East and Africa (MEA) region, which could exhibit a minimal growth of US$0.3 bn by the concluding forecast year.
With that said, Asia Pacific Excluding Japan (APEJ) and Japan are foreseen to secure an impressive share in the international in-flight entertainment market. APEJ accounted for a 13.8% of the total revenue share in 2017 whereas Japan could gain 85 basis points (BPS) during the forecast period.
Some of the important companies operating in the worldwide in-flight entertainment market could include Thales Group, Rockwell Collins, Inc., Gogo LLC, Honeywell International, Inc., Zodiac Aerospace, Global Eagle Entertainment, ViaSat, Inc., Panasonic Avionics Corporation, and FDS Avionics Corp.
Global In-flight Entertainment Market: Overview
The global in-flight entertainment market is foreseen to gain prominence in both developed and developing regions, although North America could dominate with its greater regional attractiveness. In developed nations, in-flight entertainment could set the mark for a colossal growth in the near future because of the development of networking and connectivity technologies and constant investment on innovations. With the increase in air passengers, the demand for in-flight entertainment services is expected to see a rise. Moreover, the swelling rate of upgrading old aircraft systems and rising air traffic could bode well for the growth of the market.
This report on the global in-flight entertainment market is foretold to provide a robust support for industry players to lay a solid foundation for their growth. It includes a comprehensive evaluation of the market's growth prospects and deterrents. Furthermore, it attempts to determine the impact of buyers, substitutes, new entrants, competitors, and suppliers on the market.
Global In-flight Entertainment Market: Dynamics
The world in-flight entertainment market is prophesied to increase its revenue in the near future due to certain factors such as the rise in the count of air passengers globally and furtherance of in-flight connectivity technologies. The market could also rely on the advent of the promoted onboard application of personal electronic devices supported by government policies. With the declining effect of restraints such as data privacy and security issues and expensive installation and deployment cost of connectivity hardware and technologies, the market is predicted to recover graciously in the foreseeable future.
Global In-flight Entertainment Market: Segmentation
The international in-flight entertainment market is anticipated to see a classification as per component, fit, and application. In terms of segmentation by component, the market could be divided into in-flight entertainment hardware, communication system, connectivity system, and support services. Amongst these segments, in-flight entertainment hardware is prognosticated to make the cut in the market with a staggering share of 53.5% expected to be earned by the end of 2022.
On the basis of fit, the international in-flight entertainment market could be segregated into line fit and retrofit. By application, there could be segments such as moving map system, audio system, video system, in-flight games, and network connectivity.
As per regional segmentation, the international in-flight entertainment market is forecast to be classified into North America as a leading segment. Unlike for other markets, Europe could showcase a declined growth in the market alongside the Middle East and Africa (MEA). While Latin America could be another region of the market, Japan and Asia Pacific Excluding Japan (APEJ) are expected to grow strong in the coming years.
Global In-flight Entertainment Market: Competition
The worldwide in-flight entertainment market could witness the dominance of prominent players such as Thales Group, Rockwell Collins, Inc., Gogo LLC, Honeywell International, Inc., Zodiac Aerospace, Global Eagle Entertainment, ViaSat, Inc., Panasonic Avionics Corporation, and FDS Avionics Corp. The report offers a close study of the competitive landscape and present scenario therein so as to help players devise profiting strategies that could place them sturdily in the market.


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Speaking of the saturation of American pop culture with sex that I lamented in a recent post, Faisal was nice enough to alert me to a particularly germane piece in the New York Times, "Children, Media and Sex: A Big Book of Blank Pages – New York Times".
January 31, 2006
Personal Health
Children, Media and Sex: A Big Book of Blank Pages
By JANE E. BRODY
In last summer's prize-winning R-rated film "Me and You and Everyone We Know," a barely pubescent boy is seduced into oral sex by two girls perhaps a year older, and his 6-year-old brother logs on to a pornographic chat room and solicits a grown woman with instant messages about "poop."
Is this what your teenage children are watching? If so, what message are they getting about sexual mores, and what effect will it have on their behavior?
The journal Pediatrics addressed the topic last July in a supplemental report, "Impact of the Media on Adolescent Sexual Attitudes and Behaviors." It is an important and, sad to say, much neglected subject. The report, based on a thorough review of scientific literature, was requested by Congress and supported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston.
A Neglected Subject Pursued
I'll start with the bottom line: "Although a great deal is known about the effects of mass media on other adolescent behaviors, such as eating, smoking and drinking, we know basically nothing about the effects of mass media on adolescent sexual behaviors," the report's principal investigator, S. Liliana Escobar-Chaves of the university's Center for Health Promotion and Prevention Research, concluded.
But to hazard a guess based on clear evidence that media representations influence teenage eating, smoking and drinking habits, adolescents are almost certainly affected — negatively — by sexual references and images from television, in movies and video games, in music, in magazines and on Web sites.
Who's monitoring what teenagers see, read and hear about sex? For the most part, no one. "There is growing concern that youth are accessing media in environments isolated from the supervision or guidance of parents or other adults," the report says. "The average American youth spends one-third of each day with various forms of mass media, mostly without parental oversight."
Despite the advent of V-chips, movie ratings and televised warnings of appropriateness for young people, American teenagers have no trouble getting access to graphic sexual presentations. And no one restricts what they hear in popular songs. The effect of abstinence-only education pales by comparison with the many graphic messages that portray sexual activity — especially unprotected sex outside of marriage — to be a part of our culture as normal and acceptable as eating a Big Mac or drinking a Coke.
The proportion of high school students who say they have had sex has declined some and the rate of teenage pregnancies has dropped, but the numbers remain staggering. The report states: "Approximately 47 percent of high school students have had sexual intercourse. Of these, 7.4 percent report having sex before the age of 13, and 14 percent have had four or more sexual partners."
Each year, nearly 900,000 teenage girls in the United States become pregnant (340,000 are 17 or younger). The rates of sexually transmitted diseases are higher among teenagers than among adults, and 35 percent of girls have been pregnant at least once by age 20. In 2002, chlamydia infections were six times as prevalent among sexually active adolescent girls as they were among sexually active women.The risks don't end with pregnancy and disease. "Data suggest that sexually active adolescents are at high risk for depression and suicide," the report states. "Early sexual experience among adolescents has also been associated with other potentially health-endangering behaviors, such as alcohol, marijuana, and other drug use."
In an accompanying article, Dr. Joe S. McIlhaney Jr. of the Medical Institute for Sexual Health in Austin, Tex., wrote, "Many parents and some physicians underestimate the negative and lifelong impact of early sexual activity." The main report said that, in hindsight, many sexually active teenage girls wished they had waited longer.
Exposure Is Widespread
Television is the best-studied medium, and the average teenager watches it for more than three hours a day. Two-thirds of youngsters 8 to 18 have TV's in their bedrooms, and two-thirds live in homes with cable TV, providing unsupervised access to sex talk and scenes.
The sexual content of TV is pervasive and increasing. A Kaiser Family Foundation study found that "the shows most watched by adolescents in 2001-2002 had 'unusually high' amounts of sexual content compared with TV as a whole: 83 percent of programs popular with teens had sexual content, and 20 percent contained explicit or implicit intercourse."
"On average," it continued, "each hour of programming popular with teens had 6.7 scenes that included sexual topics."
The foundation study found that "characters involved in sexual behavior in TV programs rarely experience any negative consequences."
"Programs with a primary emphasis on sexual risk and responsibility themes represent only 1 percent of all shows that contain sexual content," it continues. Furthermore, only 3 percent of sex scenes observed involved protection against disease and unwanted pregnancy.
What little is known about the effects of television sex on teenage attitudes and behavior comes primarily from a national telephone survey conducted twice, in 2001 and again in 2002, among 1,792 youths ages 12 to 17.
Growing Up Faster
The survey showed that watching TV with sexual content artificially aged the children: those who watched more than average behaved sexually as though they were 9 to 17 months older and watched only average amounts. Twelve-year-olds who watched the most behaved sexually like 14- and 15-year-olds who watched the least.
The research indicated that adolescents who watched shows with sexual content tended to overestimate the frequency of certain sexual behaviors and to have more permissive attitudes toward premarital sex.
As for movies, two studies that analyzed the content of top movie videos rented by young people revealed a large amount of sexual content, mostly sex among unmarried partners.
The effects of such viewing have been minimally studied. In a 2001 study of sexually active black girls ages 14 to 18, those who were exposed to X-rated movies were more likely to have multiple sexual partners, to have sex more often, to test positively for chlamydia and to be less likely to use contraception.
The music videos aimed at teenagers are rife with sexuality or eroticism, much of it explicit, the report noted. But the effects of this exposure have yet to be studied. Likewise, nothing of a scientific nature is known about the effects of magazines, advertising or video or computer games on adolescents' attitudes and behavior toward sex.
As for the Internet, one national survey of 10- to-17-year-olds found that one in five had "inadvertently encountered explicit sexual content, and one in five had been exposed to an unwanted sexual solicitation while online."
The report called for better studies to assess the effects of sexuality in the mass media on adolescent beliefs and behavior, especially studies that measure over time how the cumulative effects of sexual content in different media affect teenage sexuality.


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High tech materials aren't the only novelty the new Vikings stadium may feature. (Read about ethylene tetrafluoroethylene here.)
There's also some other very interesting details in the draft environmental impact statement just put out by the Minnesota Sports Facilities Authority.
1. Blowing up the old stadium is apparently still one of the options for taking it down after the Vikings finish their 2013 season — possibly as late as mid January next year. Here's the story on the plans for demolition from the draft EIS:
"Demolition of the Metrodome will commence as soon as the facility is vacated, which is expected to occur in January, 2014. Demolition will begin with the removal of the fabric roof, and its structure and demolition of the loading dock area. After the roof material is removed, demolition of the stadium structure will commence in the northeast corner of the building, It has yet to be determined in what sequence the demolition will proceed. Implosion has not been eliminated as a possible means of demolition."
2. The new Vikings stadium may be higher than the existing stadium, too. A lot higher.
"The new stadium is somewhat larger and, at its highest point, is approximately 100 feet taller than the Metrodome, assuming it is built at the same elevation as the existing structure."
3. The Star Tribune's building could go too.
"The Proposed Project would also involve the demolition of the existing Star Tribune building on the block bounded by 4th and 5th Streets and Park and Portland Avenues. Approximately 600 people currently work in the 425 Portland. If these employees need to be relocated, the Star Tribune has stated that it will search for existing space in downtown Minneapolis to lease."
4. The draft EIS has the most complete project schedule we've seen to date:
- Demolition of Metrodome — first quarter of 2014
- Improvements to TCF Stadium — summer of 2014
- Excavation for new stadium — first quarter to third quarter of 2014
- Foundations — first quarter of 2014 to fourth quarter of 2014
- Building structure — second quarter of 2014 to fourth quarter of 2015
- Roof structure — third quarter of 2014 to fourth quarter of 2015
- Enclosure — second quarter of 2014 to fourth quarter of 2015
- Interior finishes — fourth quarter of 2015 to second quarter 2016
- Sitework — third quarter of 2015 to second quarter of 2016.


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Bonavita Electric Kettle
Bonavita Electric Kettle
Make your brewing experience faster, easier, and more beautiful with this elegant brushed-steel electric kettle. With a 1000-watt heater, you can have boiling water in about 4 minutes. The kettle holds a liter (almost 34 ounces) of water—no shortage for your favorite pour-over method. The gooseneck spout allows for unparalleled control over your pour, evenly flowing from the articulating spout, minimizing accidents—this in addition to the ergonomic handle, you'll be pouring like a professional barista in no time. The 360° swivel base, plus 3 ft. wrap cord, allows for the perfect positioning of this charming addition to your countertop.
- 1000-watt heater for quick boiling
- Automatic shut-off
- 360° swivel base
- 3 ft. wrap cord
- Brushed stainless steel and BPA-free plastic
- 1 liter capacity (33.8 ounces)
- 2 year warranty


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Mesh champagne bottle and glasses for display, with animated bubbles, gives out glasses of champagne to wear and drink on touch.
And, of course, your pair of vests! This time half and half: black and blue, and black and red.
(I got hya drunk and made her pose with me <3)
At the elephant, for this Friday!


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Video, Video, and More Video
I think its safe to say that "Content Marketing" has been in full swing for quite awhile - and brands are putting out exorbitant amounts of content in many forms at an unbelievable rate. This has accomplished many things but first and foremost it has given us a ton of data and allowed us to gauge what forms of content are most effective. What do people want to see? What do people want to share? What is going to give you the highest ROI? We have a much wider range of numbers to measure than ever before.
So what is the most effective? Well, the boring answer is it varies. It depends on what you are doing and where you are doing it. However - most of the time - the hands down winner is video. People like videos way more than blogs, pictures, podcasts, case studies, or any of the million other forms of content that marketers are putting out on a daily basis. Video can be pricey, there is no denying that, but in terms of your ROI - is the expense of video really worth it?
TL;DR: Videos are the most interesting form of content right now. Using videos along with other types of content makes everything perform better. The advertising and marketing industries as a whole expect to increase their investments into videos because they perform so well.
The answer is yes. Here's what the stats say:
Marketing Land reported 72% of ad agencies think online video advertising is just as effective as—if not more than—television advertising. PR Daily, 2015.
That is actually a really huge stat right there. Because of the amount of people switching from the old model of enjoying their media from the television solely - to the current model of enjoying media on phones, tablets, computers, and television - the effectiveness of tv commercials has dwindled and the effectiveness of online advertisements has exploded - at a significant savings - Youtube and Vimeo are much cheaper than what the broadcast channels charge to air your tv spot.
Videos on landing pages increase conversions by 86%. Social Fresh, 2014.
This is a great metric to gauge the effectiveness of video. Videos are much more effective at funneling prospects into the ecosystem that allows a company to sell to them. Landing pages are very important to many companies' content marketing strategies and increasing conversions by 86% can lead to a significant increase in sales.
Blog posts incorporating video attract 3x as many inbound links as blog posts without video. - MOZ
The success doesn't just end with landing pages. Videos and alternate forms of media are extremely efficient at increasing your SEO, and inbound links to your blog TRIPLE. It shows that videos are shared and clicked on in a much higher rate than any other form of media.
75% of smartphone owners watch videos on their phones; 26% at least once per day. NewsCred, 2014.
Pretty much everyone agrees that everything is going mobile - and user habits show that people prefer to spend more time watching a video on mobile compared to any other type of content.
Enjoyment of video increases purchase intent by 97% and brand association by 139%. - Mediapost
If someone likes your video their intent to purchase will almost double! Other than a significant drop in price there is no other more effective way to increase purchasing intent to such a high degree.
The most effective stats for me, are what the professionals in the field plan on doing in the future. These people look at success metrics and analyze the effectiveness of all their strategies all day long. They invest in the forms they feel will be the most successful. If the industry as a whole is moving towards video I feel pretty confident that so far it is performing successfully for the vast majority of brands.
- 65% of respondents have said they plan to increase spends on online videos in 2015. Regalix, 2015.
- The use of video content for marketing increased 73% this year. Digital Marketing Phillipines, 2014.
- By 2017, online video will make up nearly 70% of consumer Internet traffic. - CISCO
- 75% of executives said they watch work-related videos on business-related websites at least weekly; more than half (52%) watch work-related videos on YouTube at least weekly. (forbes)
- 62% of marketers report using video in their content marketing. -The Content Council
- 73% of B2B marketers use video as a content marketing tactic. -Content Marketing Institute
- $118.4 billion will be spent on online advertising, including content marketing, video and social media in 2013. -Emarketer
- 61% of young executives say they will rely more heavily on business-class video in the next 5-10 years.-CISCO
Take these stats into account when you are planning your next big marketing push. We know everything always comes down to budget - but if your budget allows - we recommend video, video, and more video.
Drop us a line if you are thinking a video might be in your near future.
Want to see some of the amazing videos we've worked on lately? Go here!


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Psychology student provides medical care in Ghana this summer
Pre-occupational therapy and psychology student Michelle Asiedu took the trip of a lifetime this summer but don't call it a vacation. Asiedu went to Ghana, West Africa, on a Medical Brigades trip with Wayne State.
Medical Brigades is a chapter of Global Brigades, the world's largest student-led global health and sustainable development organization. Global Medical Brigades develops sustainable health initiatives and provides relief where there is limited access to health care.
Asiedu's group provided pro-bono medical services to the less fortunate in these villages. "We provided services including assessing patients with diseases ranging from infection or high blood pressure to malaria." The group also completed pharmacy and optometry tasks, house visits, and educational programs for nutrition, hygiene and sex education.
Hoping to specialize in pediatric occupational therapy, Asiedu said the highlight of the trip was meeting and helping local children. "It was such an amazing experience because I learned so many things about the people in these villages and how they value their resources," said Asiedu, "I got to see some children with different abnormalities, which was extremely beneficial for me."
Asiedu learned that items we often take for granted in the West such as hot water for a shower or clean drinking water are considered luxuries in Ghana. "I learned to appreciate things that I have," she said. "Most of the things I look at as a necessity for survival, these people haven't even heard of." The lack of these things will not stop Asiedu from returning after graduation next spring. "I'm already planning my trip for next year!"
View photos of her trip this summer
Written by Alexandra Leroux, Marketing and Communications Associate


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DX Mobile: Industry's First Mobile DSP is Now Available
Today, we are excited to announce the General Availability of DX Mobile. Since we introduced the DX2 platform last September, we have experienced accelerated adoption that has exceeded all expectations. DX Mobile is an extension of our strategy to become the "brain" of digital media across all channels and all devices. Our vision is to establish market leadership in a highly strategic growth area that is expected to top $1 billion before the end of 2011.
Consumers have voraciously adopted mobile devices but advertisers have long struggled to keep up because of the complexities of delivering effective and measureable mobile advertising results. DX Mobile overcomes these barriers by simplifying how advertisers buy, plan and measure mobile advertising. Now advertisers can experience the benefits of programmatic buying across exchange traded mobile inventory – all from one central source. Combined with our advanced analytics and optimization capabilities, advertisers have the ability to effectively keep pace with the dynamic mobile consumer.
Our early testing of DX Mobile has demonstrated strong results, outpacing mobile ad network performance by over 400% and direct buys by over 800%. We are educating the marketplace about the merits of moving beyond the click for insightful post-ad engagement metrics that will help place mobile where it belongs, at the top of any media plan.
We attribute the success of our platform to having some of the best minds in technology, advertising and mobile, including former colleagues from Enpocket and Nokia, for keeping our customers at the forefront of innovation.We view this as a major step towards our long term vision of a converged digital marketplace. We look forward to sharing more exciting news with you in the very near future!
Mike Baker, CEO DataXu


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Accounting and financial advisors in the Tampa Bay area and throughout the country have once again been pushed to the limits of their patience by Congress and their inability to compromise. From South Tampa to Clearwater and beyond, the issue for accountants is not one of right or left but one of right and wrong. It is not acceptable to hold our client's hostage to endless political maneuvering.
The failure of the Congress to act in a timely, decisive and committed manner has a trickle down affect on accountants' and financial planners' ability to make sound recommendations to our clients because our hands have been tied by uncertainty. All too often I am forced to tell a client that the advice I am offering may only good for today, as the law might change tomorrow.
Stimulating our economy requires investment and investment requires planning. The bottom line for many small businesses throughout South Tampa and Clearwater is that they haven't been able to make longer term decisions due to the lack of certainty about tax code changes. If knowledge is power then lack of knowledge is weakness. Accountants and financial planners have been placed in a position of weakness through no fault of our own by the inaction of Congress.
Businesses and investors are not the only ones affected by the endless delays. Every taxpayer in America regardless of income or locale will be affected by the behavior of their own elected officials. Thanks to the delays in Congress the IRS has delayed the opening of E-Filing this year until January 30th, the latest date in recent memory. This move forces accountants to compress tax filing season even further and delays tax refunds for an as yet undetermined period.
Accountants and financial planners aren't typically professionals who complain. We take pride in our deliberate nature and ability to provide clear and reasoned advice based on facts. The facts we rely on are the tax laws and policies of the IRS and when the future of those laws is uncertain our ability to advise is compromised. As professionals who are trained to be clear and concise and understand the tax laws and regulations, we are placed at a disadvantage that can be very challenging to say the least.


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Exact match. Not showing close matches.
PICList Thread
'[PIC]: GCC - C Compiler UNIX in DOS'
2002\09\02@205025 by Dan Marchesani
2002\09\02@214935 by Dale Botkin
2002\09\02@215631 by Dan Marchesani
2002\09\02@215634 by Pic Dude
2002\09\02@222925 by Dan Marchesani
On Mon, 2 Sep 2002, Dan Marchesani wrote:I am interested in getting this GCC, ANSI C Compiler from WWW.GNU.ORG.
It is in a UNIX Format, that I understand will work in the DOS Enviro.
My problem is getting the GZIP to decompress the .TAR.GZ files for MSDOS.
I don't think it will do you much good anyway just running DOS or Windows.
You will need Cygwin, which gives you the equivalent of a UNIX
environment under Windows. I believe Cygwin installs GCC.
Also, bear in mind that GCC is a C compiler, not a cross-compiler, which
means you can compile code for your PC but not for PICs.gzip -d < foo.tar.gz | tar xf -
gzip and tar are UNIX commands, you don't have them (or don't until you
have Cygwin installed, or just dump Windows and install Linux or BSD).
http://www.piclist.com#nomail Going offline? Don't AutoReply us!
email email@example.com with SET PICList DIGEST in the body
2002\09\03@014830 by Wouter van Ooijen
2002\09\03@191318 by Richard Crossley
2002\09\03@195335 by Bruce Kroeze
2002\09\04@124338 by Peter L. Peres
More... (looser matching)
- Last day of these posts
- In 2002 , 2003 only
- Today
- New search...


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30 Jul 2011
Wedding stuff
It's Saturday and we have a wedding to attend today. I'm so happy because I have shoes to go to the wedding with. Last week was a nightmare of shoe searching and it was killing me because, in fact, there is lots and lots of perfectly beautiful party shoes. However, all of them have heels and I should avoid heels like devil sacred water unless I want to distroy some ceilings on my way.
Hence, I was dealing with tons of ballerinas that made me look like I'm wearing slippers. Anyways, after fourth day in the shopping mall (believe me, I can have enough of it) I found the shoes. They are not the best in class, but they will do. And I m so happy that in the LAST POSSIBLE SHOP, that I NEVER go to, was ONE pair of these shoes in MY SIZE and in SUITABLE COLOUR.
Destiny. What do we know about it.
Talking about weddings, check out HERE. Coolest blog on weddings ever. Thats where the pic above comes from.
PS: pictures of outfit will probably follow:)
Posted by Asiul at 09:54 No comments:
18 Jul 2011
Search for perfect swimming suit
I've been looking around for a swimming suit and here are some really cool ones from We Are Handsome
17 Jul 2011
Have you had a good weekend?
I do hope so! I had a lovely one. Saturday was all about how lazy it can get. And Sunday we went for little hike nearby from Krakow. Good times! The mood we had in the car on the way there can be pretty much described by the song I'm posting below :)
And here are some photos from the weekend, pls excuse the quality, I only had my iPhone with me
And here are some photos from the weekend, pls excuse the quality, I only had my iPhone with me
Posted by Asiul at 22:24 2 comments:
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This is where you will (eventually) find step by step photo tutorials to help you with real food preparation or homemade gifts/cards/cleaners/health remedies.
2 thoughts on "Tutorials"
Hi. I am researching ideas for making a carousel cake for my granddaughter's birthday and came across yours which is lovely. Do you have any instructions available for it? It was iced yellow with pink accents.


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If a picture is worth a thousand words, a 3-5 minute video is worth ten thousand. Below are eight engaging innovation-themed tutorials from Brainstorm Champions Co-Founder, Mitch Ditkoff.
1. The Six Sides of the So-Called Box
2. Facilitating Effective Brainstorm Sessions
3. Balancing Right and Left-Brained Thinking
4. Going Beyond Idea Killing Behavior
5. The Seed of Innovation Moment
6. The Two Biggest Obstacles to Innovation
8. The Creativity Innovation Continuum


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In December of 2008 I received Best of Show in the 2nd annual Denver Plein Air Arts Festival. Beginning in 2009, during the Plein Air Exhibition, the Byers-Evans House Museum will host a show for the previous year's winner.
Our world is home to landscapes more beautiful than my imagination could ever contrive. Nature provides an endless source of inspiration and compositions. To paint from life is not only to capture the likeness of a place, but also to evoke a sense of being aware. I am fascinated by ski runs glowing under moonlight, mesmerized by aspen reflections, and humbled by the resilience of a ponderosa pine. These paintings depict landscapes in Colorado, Italy and Southern Africa.
-Nicholas Reti
7 AM - Elk Mountains, Colorado
Last night the rain beat my tent with relentless percussion. Gentle drizzles became pounding chaos. I could just make out the hard centers of the hail through the tent in the morning light. At sunup the clouds raced across the peaks and over the lake at a dizzying speed. Whimsical clouds of pink, purple and yellow tumbled through the sky. First light revealed a metallic lake under a cool, wet mist and steady rain. I took refuge from the weather under the giant lower limbs of a regal blue spruce which stood guard over my campsite. The walls of rain that pounded my tent through the night were now visible as ribbons snaking across the shimmering lake. The colors of fall clung to the aspens and rustled in the wind. A violent gust descended across the lake and the sky was filled with speckles of yellow, red and orange. The clouds parted briefly and a sliver of warm sun touched my face. Everything glistened in its brief appearance. The gust passed and the quiet of the valley returned only to reveal a distant wind winding its way through the restless trees. Dark purple clouds weighed down the western sky and the forest waited for snow.


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When I lived in Germany back in 2003, I worked on a project with a large Japanese automaker that was also producing a brand new type of photovoltaic cell. They wanted to know whether it made sense to launch it in Germany or California first. At the time, I didn't know much about solar energy and certainly didn't expect Germany to be a leader in solar, since it's not like I was getting much of a tan while living in Munich. As it turns out, Germany has been at the forefront of solar and other forms of renewable energy and eco-friendly initiatives for years. So it wasn't a surprise when Wellington Partners told us about their newest partner, Christian Reitberger, who just joined the firm's CleanTech team. Christian has a long heritage of experience in the category and has also been angel investing in recent years.
The CleanTech space is certainly interesting and renewable energy and sustainability have now become mainstream themes in the US – indeed we can't even turn on the TV or read the news without seeing Obama and McCain remind us how important it is to our future.
Wellington has been investing in CleanTech since 2002 and currently counts four companies in their CleanTech portfolio. We're looking forward to learning about new additions as the team reviews the significant opportunities available.
On Wednesday, Oct. 22nd, Metaplace announced they have changed their name from Areae to Metaplace – something much easier to say, spell and remember! But the big news is they have raised an additional $6.7 million from existing investors Crescendo and CRV, and new investors Marc Andreesen and Ben Horowitz. Additionally, Metaplace also moved from private alpha status to a phased invite-only beta opening of their site – providing codes to select blogs to offer out to their users. As Raph Koster, CEO of Metaplace stated, "In the coming years, as virtual places become a standard element of the Web, alongside text, audio, images, and video, Metaplace will be the engine that enables the transformation." We're looking forward to seeing the new and exciting ways people will use Metaplace to create virtual book clubs, town halls, games, gatherings and conversations.
This morning I headed over to the private club The Hospital to meet up with Raph of Metaplace and meet others attending the VWF "Unplugged" version of the conference. Groups of people gathered together to talk about subjects and themes near to their heart while film crews buzzed around interviewing some of the speakers. Despite being dealt a unlucky blow, the organizers rallied to pull together a lively discussion with about 100 people.
I also discovered Raph is an avid photographer and walker, as he walked half of London on his first day here. Above is a shot of me taking a photo of him taking a photo of London from the London Bridge.
While the formal agenda has been scuttered due to the last-minute cancellation of the venue, the SXSW event still took place last night for a bit of mixing and mingling, and the conference itself is regrouping today at the private networking club, The Hospital, for impromptu gatherings and discussions. The media will also be there filming and interviewing, so despite the bad luck, business carries on. Now if only the rain would be rescheduled…
After a delayed flight from SFO via United Airlines, I just landed in London two hours ago, as I'm here to attend the Virtual World Forum with Raph Koster, the CEO of Metaplace. Incredibly, we just received an email from the organizers of the event saying the conference has been regrettably canceled due to a crime that took place at the venue. With this short notice, a new venue could not be secured. Wow, I've never been in this position before… a transcontinental flight; an agenda all set around a conference; and an abrupt end following months of preparation. More to come…
Yesterday I attended OMW with James Chong and Irene Owyang-Lim of Wigix as James was presenting a speech on the significance of community and community-building in e-commerce. He made an interesting point in noting that the original idea of community on the internet actually started long before the days of Facebook, MySpace and social networking. Indeed, the first vibrant communities on the internet were the streams of commentary and congregation around stocks. What people needed to find one another in the early days of the internet, were common themes of interest where they could share ideas, rumors, and opinions. What better draw than a stock symbol for a company? The stock symbol acted as a beacon to draw people together and millions flocked to read and post their opinions and ideas during the fledging days of community. Nowadays, community abounds on the internet – indeed every site that either provides content or commerce needs community in order to thrive. Wigix is a marketplace driven by the community – a site where users can post items for sale, items that they have they might sell later, search for manuals about products, ask other "experts" about their thoughts on a product. Just as the financial communities gathered around a stock ticker symbol, the community in Wigix can gather around a SKU or individual product. For example, a page on the iPhone lists various iPhones for sale by multiple people, discussions about the iPhone, reviews and manuals. Community, commerce and content can all be found in one place on Wigix.
While Consort Partners is in the business of providing strategic advice to our clients, including how to solidly position their companies to the press and offer great quotes and soundbites, every now and then, I also find myself on the hotseat, taking questions from reporters. In this case, it happened on the streets of San Francisco.
Last night we met Andrea and Stefan Heuer for dinner, but beforehand wanted to catch the Vice Presidential debates. The only place we found where the TV screens were projecting the debate was the Chieftans Irish Pub so we squeezed in and soaked in the atmosphere as the crowd booed and cheered the various responses. Afterward, I was asked by reporter John Sasaki of KTVU Channel 2 to comment on the debate. I thought I'd say something that nobody else would probably say.. well, anyway, it made for a soundbite that I'm getting ribbed for today… Here's the link to the video: Debate Reactions


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I Was a Foster Child and CPS Needs Real Reform
Share this with your friends
IMAGE: ""Draped Reclining Mother and Baby" by Henry Moore, Photo by Peter Rivera, Creative Commons
Just like Child Protective Services can suck for parents, foster care can suck for kids too. As someone who spent my pre-teen and teen years in foster care, this is something that my friends and I know all too well.
The following is a letter that I recently wrote to the Texas Senate Committee regarding recommendations for better protecting children in foster care as a follow up to a judicial hearing that was held on 2/20/2014.
In short, when CPS recognizes its limitations, it can prioritize its services for those who can benefit most, and stop wasting time and energy on families who will not benefit at all, such as in households with responsible marijuana using parents.
You don't have to have been in foster care to agree with this.
Dear Committee Member,
Thank you for including the well-being of foster youth as a topic of discussion during the 83rd Interim Session on 2/20/2014. By allowing public testimony, those who have experienced the foster care system firsthand were able to share their experiences and provide recommendations for how the system can be improved. This email is a follow-up to that testimony.
In 2013, 17,022 children were removed from their homes by the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS 2013 Data Book, pg. 48). This is a 40% increase from the 12,107 children removed in 2009, just 2 years after the DFPS started putting regulations in place to house foster youth in hotels due to a lack of available foster homes or other appropriate placements. This increase in removals is no doubt a result of increased funding provided to the department to hire additional investigators to handle referrals that were being made to the Statewide Intake Hotline.
While we – and by "we" I mean all of the people of Texas – have expanded Child Protective Service's ability to investigate claims of abuse or neglect and separate families by removing children when they deem it to be necessary, we have not placed a strong enough focus on ensuring the well-being of these children once they have entered the foster care system. We have taken great steps in this direction by doing things such as setting up the Foster Care Redesign program and providing greater regulations for psychotropic medicating of youth, but it is simply not enough. This is apparent not only by the experiences shared by former foster youth on 2/20/14, but also because of the fact that other youth currently in care are still sharing these same experiences and could tell many of the same stories we heard.
I aged out of foster care in 2003 and more than 10 years later the stories of those who recently aged out of foster care are still full of the same pain, hurt, and agony my own friends and I experienced. Not enough is changing. We have to do more. But what?
The most important thing we must do to immediately improve the lives of youth in foster care is to hold the department accountable to children the same way the department holds parents and families accountable during investigations of abuse or neglect.
Actually, the Texas Family Code already requires us to do this, we just have to get better at it. Section 153.002 states that "The best interest of the child shall always be the primary consideration of the court in determining the issues of conservatorship and possession of and access to the child". When the department removes a child from their family, they claim that the removal is in the best interest of the child and that they (the department) can do a better job ensuring the safety and well-being of the child than the family can.
If a child is being abused or even killed in their care, are they really doing a better job of caring for that child than the family was? Maybe, maybe not. Who gets to decide if the state funded abuse or neglect a child has endured is better or worse than the privately funded family abuse or neglect the child received at home? In some cases children were not even being harmed at home but the department did not agree with some other aspect of the parent's lives. CPS shouldn't get to decide when they have so much to lose in the decision. If they admit that they are actually more harmful to a child than their biological family, they open themselves up to lawsuits, and could lose funding. None of that is very good for business, but that can't be the primary concern when we are talking about children's lives.
What we need is an outside group, agency, committee, or someone to provide an unbiased investigation of claims of abuse or neglect within the foster care system.
This group would communicate with the courts so that judges can really make decisions about what is in the best interest of the child and the most egregious cases of abuse or neglect within the foster care system would be reported to the legislature directly. This would enable the legislature to be more educated regarding the services being provides by Child Protective Services and make the best decisions to protect Texas' most vulnerable population. While it would be best to establish this group as a formal entity with a budget, we could surely ask people to take this task on voluntarily, or ask an existing Committee (such as the CPS oversight committee that already exists) to take on this great task.
Another way to protect youth in foster care is to stop depending on CPS to report abuse and neglect within it's own system. We have to start listening to the children.
When CPS receives a report of abuse or neglect, they usually interview the youth involved. They believe what the youth is telling them and use information gained in these interviews to justify removals of children from their homes. Yet once a youth enters the foster care system, their word is no longer considered reliable.
Youth should be taken seriously when reporting abuse or neglect, regardless of whether they are on medications or considered "problem children". Youth should also have people who periodically talk with them and ask them if they have been abused or neglected since some youth will not tell unless asked. The best way would be for each youth to have a Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) that does not change and that they could bond with. This would allow the youth to feel more comfortable and make them more likely to report abuse or neglect if it occurs. However, random yearly interviews of youth to ask about abuse and neglect, as well as the investigation of all claims of abuse and neglect made by youth is a good start. This could also be done by the group established above to investigate these claims anyway.
We can also teach youth who to contact if they do get up the courage to report abuse or neglect and nothing is done. We can establish a hotline similar to (or maybe even the same as) the abuse and neglect line set up for youth in the custody of the Texas Youth Commission.
We should also teach youth how to contact their legisators if they are being abused and neglected in foster care and no one else will help them. The Texas Health and Human Services, including Child Protective Services, is accountable to the legislature for the quality of services it is providing and if anyone can help a youth who is being abused, is it not their legislators? Hopefully we are able to set up a system in which youth are being taken seriously and being protected so that they have nothing to report, but if they do and no one will listen, wouldn't you like to know about that?
These are just a few of the many things that can be done to better protect youth in the foster care system. To recap, my recommendations are:
1. Holding CPS accountable the same way we hold parents and families accountable.
2. Creating an outside entity to investigate claims of abuse or neglect within the foster care system
3. Stop letting CPS be the sole reporter of abuse or neglect in the foster care system. Listen to the children.
4. Teach children who to contact if their claim of abuse or neglect is not addressed. Also teach youth how to contact their legislator as a last resort.
While foster care can be a better alternative for some youth, Child Protective Services is unable to recognize its own limitations. Unfortunately, the result is that the department ends up harming some youth instead of helping them. And not only while they are in care, but youth continue to be affected by their foster care experience even once they age out. These youth have a 50% chance of becoming homeless once they leave care, and are usually not considered employable. Only 3% graduate college with some sort of degree, even though Texas offers free tuition to those in the foster care system. Over 200,000 prisoners nationwide admit to spending time in foster care. This is arguably the most at risk of all at risk groups, including 1st generation high school graduates, 1st generation college students, single parent homes, youth of incarcerated or drug addicted parents, and minority youth. All of this should be considered when determining what is in the best interest of youth when determining whether to place a youth in foster care or keep them with their family.
Once Child Protective Services starts to do recognize their limitations and truly focus on what is in the best interest of youth, they will be able to priortize their services for those who truly need them. They will be able to reduce caseloads by not focusing on families unnecessarily, and have a reduced demand for services that will allow them to expect quality and not overburden their service providers.
We may not see all of the results right away, but when CPS can provide better care to the youth in foster care, THEY will start creating better adults. They will start creating successful adults that are not being incarcerated and are able to pursue higher education without other trauma standing in their way.
And that will reduce the number of parents who need CPS servcies in the future, which is really the key to lowering the number of youth who need these services in the first place.


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Group booking
- Published in Partnerships
Buggy activity for group
If you are a group of more than 10 people and want to be all together for a desert adventure, we can organise it for you !
What activity for group
- We can offer you a shuttling service to a place in the desert where you can all enjoy water, soft drinks and snacks together.
- Then we can divide the group into smaller ones, with one group taking part in a buggy trip while another tries sandboarding, and another the "Zorb ball"
- We can coordinate other activities for even bigger groups.
Get in touch for more information, rates and booking details.


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This week on the show we have two big events to prepare for! AEW's Fight for the Fallen and WWE's Extreme Rules! We run down both cards and Munroe & John preview AEW's show as they'll be there! We also talk about the week in pro wrestling including NJPW, AAA, IMPACT, Stardom, and so much more!
Find us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube!


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Mark it in your calendar! This Oct 15th, 2:00 PM to 4:00 PM we will be hosting an Open House at 230 21st Avenue SW in The Hamilton in the Mission neighborhood, Calgary. This is an opportunity to visit this excellent Condo for sale in beautiful Mission.
Please come with any questions you may have. In the meantime you can take a virtual tour of this Mission Condo for sale.
As always please do not hesitate to give me a call at 403.975.0910 if I can answer any questions before the open house, or if you would like to book a private showing.
Craig Rushton & Allison Bannard
Bamber Realty Ltd


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The "Weekly" nail polish
Review on CND Vinylux nail polish
"Weekly Polish is a breakthrough polish that endures a week of fashion perfection...without a base coat! Exposure to natural light activates the patent-pending ProLight Technology to deliver week-long wear." Basically, the more natural light it is exposed to the longer the wear. That is intriguing? But what if you aren't outside all day long.. This is a little odd.
It goes on a little streaky but I did use a pale pink color, and did 3 coats instead of 2. I believe it looked streaky due to the fact that I DID NOT use a base coat. This particular brand polish tells you NOT to use a base coat. Base coats usually help with the longevity of the polish but also help fill ridges. I have lots of ridges. After the 3 coats and then the top coat it looked normal and not streaky.
6 days later………
I am constantly washing and using my hands so it is normal for my nails to chip 5 hours after I finish them. The picture above is from the 7th day of wearing this product. While the color has dulled and there is some chipping happening, I can still wear it on my nails without feeling self conscience about them. I am so happy with this product and I will definitely be repurchasing it!
CND Vinylux Weekly Polish in "Romantique"
CND VINYLUX Weekly Polish and Weekly Top Coat retail for $9.90 each for a .5oz bottle. A bottle of oz OPI costs $9.50!! This is a no brainer! OPI chips on my literally 3 hours after putting it on!
I am really in love with this product! If you would like a chance to win this polish and the top coat you must like my Facebook page, follow me on Instagram flawless_stl, and like the picture I post to my Instagram that will look like the one below :) Winner will be picked by random on Friday! GOOD LUCK


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Evernote Peek Turns Your iPad 2 Into the Ultimate Pretentious Study Machine
If you're lucky enough to own an iPad 2, you've probably also fallen in love with its accompanying magnetic Smart Cover, which caresses your ears with each satisfying snap. Where we saw a simple case though, the folks at Evernote saw an opportunity, and Evernote Peek was born.
The concept is simple, but brilliant. Using your the Smart Cover as a cover sheet, the app allows you to quiz yourself on anything in your Evernote library. Simply fold up the bottommost tab to reveal a question (pulled from the note titles of the Evernote notebook of your choosing). When you're ready, lift the next section of the cover to reveal the answer (determined by the contents of aforementioned notes). You can then mark whether you were correct or incorrect, close the cover, and start again with a new question. Flash cards have never been this high tech!
Obviously, this app is mostly just a party trick. Evernote even has some great integration with online flash card service StudyBlue, which doesn't require an iPad 2 and smart cover. Still though, if you already use Evernote and you own the required gear anyway, Peek could be helpful cramming alternative.


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What McCain said and what he didn't say
Thousands of cheering supporters welcomed John McCain and Sarah Palin as they entered the hangar at the Anoka County Blaine Airport. From the outset, McCain and Palin said they were optimistic that they could win Minnesota.
"I know with this kind of enthusiasm and with this kind of support, we will win this election," McCain said.
As he has done for the past few days, McCain spent a large part of his time talking about the economy, and the meltdown in the financial markets. McCain tried to lay the blame for the economic crisis at Obama's feet.
"The crisis on Wall Street started in the Washington culture of lobbying and influence peddling, and he was right square in the middle of it," he said. "My friends, this is the problem with Washington. People like Sen. Obama have been too busy gaming the system and haven't actually done anything to challenge the system. That's not country first. That's Obama first."
But while McCain said he'll take on lobbyists, he failed to mention that he has seven former lobbyists working on his campaign. McCain's campaign manager, his senior foreign policy adviser and another senior adviser are just a few former lobbyists on his campaign.
His congressional liason and his national finance chair also lobbied for troubled mortgage giant Fannie Mae.
McCain, however, worked to link Obama to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. McCain noted that Obama took large campaign contributions from the companies that were recently taken over by the governnment. He also said a former CEO of Fannie Mae was the one-time head of Obama's vice presidential search team.
"While Fannie and Freddie were working to keep Congress away from their cards, Sen. Obama was taking their money," McCain said. "He got more, in fact, than any other member of Congress, except for the Democratic chairman that oversees them. And while Fannie Mae was betraying the public trust, somehow, its former CEO had managed to gain my opponent's trust to the point that Sen. Obama actually put him in charge of his vice-presidential search."
The person who headed Obama's vice-presidential search team for a time --Jim Johnson--was CEO of Fannie Mae, but he left in 1998. And McCain failed to mention that the person who headed his own VP search team also lobbied on behalf of Fannie Mae.
It is true that Obama is the second highest recipient of campaign money from employees of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The Center for Responsive Politics says Obama collected $126,000 from those groups. The nonpartisan group says McCain also took $21,500 from Fannie and Freddie since 1989.
McCain also said he was the more experienced candidate. He criticized Obama for failing to take a stand on tough issues during his time in the Illinois Senate.
"When he was a state senator a short time ago, he voted present over 100 times on difficult issues," McCain said. "My friends, Sen. Obama may not realize it but you don't get to vote present when you're President of the United States of America."
That statement is true. A study by the nonpartisan fact check group PolitiFact found that Obama voted "present" 129 times during his eight years in the Illinois state senate. The practice is considered an effective way to block bills without having to actually vote against them.
McCain also said he'd veto any legislation that included what he called pork barrel spending and earmarks. He criticized Obama for asking for such earmarks.
"In the short time that he's been in the Senate, Sen. Obama has voted, has asked for $932 million in pork barrel projects," McCain said.
Obama's website says he did, in fact, ask for those earmarks, but that doesn't mean he received all of them.
And then there's the issue of taxes. McCain, again, ripped Obama as a tax and spender.
"A vote for Sen. Obama will guarantee higher taxes, fewer jobs and an even bigger federal government," McCain said. "These policies will deepen our recession."
The nonpartisan Tax Policy Center says most Americans will see a tax cut, not a tax increase, under Obama's plan. The group found that 95 percent of all tax filers will pay less in individual income taxes under his plan.
Obama, however, does support raising taxes on individuals who make more than $200,000 a year and couples who make more than $250,000 a year.


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16 Essential Holiday Side Dishes
Load up on a few of these foolproof favorites to ensure your holiday ham doesn't get lonely on the dinner table.
Load up on a few of these foolproof favorites to ensure your holiday ham doesn't get lonely on the dinner table.
"I made this as a side dish to accompany a roast I made, but the roast wasn't touched. My husband and boys devoured this!"
"I make this every year and no one can tell it's a "diabetic-friendly" recipe."
"This is an excellent salad. I added some dried cranberries and topped with a raspberry vinaigrette dressing. Try candied walnuts for little variety, too!"
-Mick's Kitchen
"I love carrots and I love parsnips so this was veggie heaven! Very easy to prepare and can easily make this for a crowd."
"The roasting gives this such a nice flavor. I used pecans instead of pine nuts and it worked great!"
-Barb Gertz
"This was one of the best scalloped potatoes recipe I have found. Normally mine turn out watery — not so with this one!"
"This was just perfect! My bacon was a little lean, so I did add a little olive oil to the bacon fat. I used toasted pecans instead of hazelnuts."
-tara portee
"Thank you for a great addition to our Christmas table. I was going for a homey Southern meal and this hit the spot."
"I've never made Yorkshire Pudding before, but I followed this recipe to the letter. They came out magnificently!"
"Very easy and tasty. I used kale instead of chard since I have it growing in my garden."
-Diana Johnson
"These are fabulous and far superior to the way I made them before."
"This recipe is a winner! I'm notorious for changing things up a bit, so instead of parsley I added some rosemary and thyme."
-Jessica H.
"I made this easy and delicious recipe to compliment the Cornish hens we were having for supper. My husband and I loved it!"
"I needed something different to do with my snap peas other than plain old steamed, and this fit the bill! Very easy and tasty!"
"This salad has a wonderful crunch to it and the dressing is amazing."
"This recipe is great! I had them with a pot roast and they came out fabulous — so soft and the perfect texture!"


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An enviable and excellent ride captured at a Hollywood Hot Rods show in Burbank in 2008.
Archives for posts with tag: Autos
Joined some of my grease monkey friends to a back yard bbq in 2007 where the home owner and birthday boy even had his own circle track where hot rodders could kick up some dirt. Took this shot when those who were going to ride the track first gathered up. Retouched this in sepia to try and make it look like it came straight from the old days.


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Business Management: The Dark Side of Budgeting
Working within a budget guides a business in its modeling, planning, and control. All good, right? But there's a dark side to budgeting, too. Unrealistic business goals and unfavorable variances (as in, losses and shortfalls) are just a couple of examples.
Unfavorable budget variances
In larger businesses, budgets are typically used to hold managers accountable for their areas of responsibility in the organization; actual results are compared against budgeted goals and timetables, and variances are highlighted.
Managers don't mind taking credit for favorable variances, when actual comes in better than budget.
But beating the budget for the period doesn't always indicate outstanding performance. A favorable variance could be the result of manipulating the budget in the first place, so that the budgeted benchmarks can be easily achieved.
Unfavorable budget variances have to be interpreted carefully. If a manager's budgeted goals and targets are fair and reasonable, the manager should be held responsible. The manager should carefully analyze what went wrong and what needs to be improved.
Stern action may be called for, but the higher ups should recognize that the budget benchmarks may not be entirely fair; in particular, they should make allowances for unexpected developments that occur after the budget goals and targets are established (such as a hurricane or tornado, or the bankruptcy of a major customer).
When managers perceive the budgeted goals and targets to be arbitrarily imposed by superiors and not realistic, serious motivational problems can arise.
The downside to budgeting
Budgeting isn't without its problems. Budgeting looks good in theory, but in actual practice things are not so rosy. Here are some issues to consider:
Budgeting takes time, and the one thing all business managers will tell you is that they never have enough time for all the things they should do.
Budgeting done from the top down (from headquarters down to the lower levels of managers) can stifle innovation and discourage managers from taking the initiative when they should.
Unrealistic budget goals can demotivate managers rather than motivate them.
Managers may game the budget, which means they play the budget as a game in which they worry first and foremost about how they will be affected by the budget rather than what's best for the business.
There have been cases in which managers resorted to accounting fraud to make their budget numbers.


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Healthcare Pro
The Healthcare Pro™ is a normative psychometric assessment tool that helps streamline the recruitment process and place people in the most appropriate career in healthcare.
The Healthcare Pro™ provides science and data to help HR professionals and recruiters complement their intuition gained from the information collected from resumes, interviews, and reference checks.
As part of the development of the Healthcare Pro™, it was included in a major study of nurses in over 15 major hospitals in the United States. The study found that certain types of individuals were better suited for different nursing roles.
For example, a nurse suitable for an emergency department was very different from a nurse in pediatrics. The study highlighted that nurses in a "poor fit" role experienced significantly more burn-out and performance issues than nurses who were in roles well suited to their personality make up. As a result, any institution or organization that recruits nurses can dramatically reduce burn-out and increase retention through effective matching using the Healthcare Pro™.
By matching the unique demands of the role to a candidate's dominant personality traits, patient-focused healthcare organizations can increase employee engagement, reduce 'early role burn-out', and maximize the patient experience.
Use the Healthcare Pro™ to select candidates who will thrive in specific healthcare roles.
What Does the Healthcare Pro™ Do?
- Helps to recruit high potential healthcare practitioners
- Increases the quality of the patient experience
- Predicts performance and retention
- Can be customized and validated for all healthcare organizations
- Identifies strengths and growth opportunities
- Provides coaching and development suggestions
- Includes comprehensive self-coaching feedback
What Does the Healthcare Pro™ Assess?
- Consulting and leadership styles
- Approach to motivating self and others
- Decision making, goal setting, and approach to feedback
- Emotional awareness of self and others (emotional intelligence)
- Success factors such as self-management, comfort with conflict, motivation, confidence, and lifestyle management
- Fit to team and culture
- Listening style and approach to patients, doctors, and colleagues
Selecting, Developing, and Retaining Employees in the Healthcare Industry
The Healthcare Pro™ is a normative personality profile developed using advanced statistical methods in psychometric research. It is a powerful tool to help attract, develop, and retain top performing healthcare professionals.
The Healthcare Pro ™ can be a major component of an integrated talent management solution that assists in career development and improves retention by matching individuals to the best fit career path.
Improve the performance and retention of nurses!
Getting Started Is Easy!
To contact an SMG consultant about Healthcare Pro™ or experience a complimentary psychometric profile, complete this brief form or call us at 416-746-0444.
More Healthcare Pro™ Resources:
Download the Healthcare Pro™ product sheet


text: reading both reviews for each products and watching videos for both products as well did not help me decide on which one I want, so I have a question: which one is quieter? in the video it seemed like vr6 is quite loud but again some people told me that it is not that loud. I dont want my apartment mates to hear me using a toy and so I need to know which one is more discrete. Thanks


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JLR workers urge bosses to act in a 'responsible manner' over Tata Steel sale
Members of the Unite Union at Jaguar Land Rover have written to Tata Group chairman Cyrus Mistry, urging him not to act to act irresponsibly over a 'fire sale' of the loss-making UK steel arm of the company.
Steel workers based in South Wales are facing uncertainty over jobs as Indian owners Tata has announced it's looking to back out of its UK operations – which currently lose £1 million a day as steel prices continue to fall.
However, Unite has warned that a sudden sale would be irresponsible and could have catastrophic consequences for the industry.
A letter, addressed from Unite's chair of JLR, Bob Nason, and JLR Halewood convenor, Ken Smith, read: "We are alarmed to read comments in the press that the company is looking to dispose of its UK steel operations within a short period of time.
"This is not something that a responsible employer would seek to do, given any sale and the necessary arrangements and due diligence will take some considerable time.
"Therefore we would ask you to confirm that Tata will act in a responsible manner in the UK, will allow sufficient time and resources to secure the business through a new buyer, that the whole of the Tata business in the UK is sold 'as a whole' and that you make it clear this is the course of action you will follow."
The union is urging the government to step in and stabilise the UK steel industry by giving it a financial lifeline. It also wants ministers to 'create an even playing field' by dropping opposition to European Commission proposals to slap higher tariffs on cheap Chinese steel – as well as by taking action on 'sky high' energy costs faced in Britain.
Unite represents nearly 500,000 people working in manufacturing industries in the UK. The organisation added: "As union reps representing members in Jaguar Land Rover, part of Tata, we are extremely concerned for our brothers and sisters working in the UK steel industry."


text: 5 tips to find and prepare for living with your first college roommate Living on campus offers many opportunities to develop meaningful friendships, learn about yourself and others, and create lifelong memories. Our Residence Life staff offered the following tips to tackle one of the first major decisions students face when moving to campus: selecting a roommate. You Can Do It – Within your housing application, fill out your profile questionnaire on your own. Don't leave it to mom or dad. Honesty Is the Best Policy – Be as honest as you can about your habits. If you are a night owl and aspire to be a morning person, know that being paired with a morning person won't automatically change your lifestyle. Let's Make a Deal(breaker) – As you build a list of questions to ask prospective roommates, look over the roommate contract and think about what your non-negotiables are. Dig Deeper – Take the time to really get to know someone you might consider as a potential roommate. Try connecting with them on social media to learn more. Or just pick up the phone for a real conversation. Hug It Out – Prepare yourself to embrace life on campus as an excellent learning opportunity. It's a chance to strengthen your communication and problem-solving skills and learn from someone with a different perspective. Learn more about living at Regis.


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Scott McCaughey – of The Young Fresh Fellows, The Minus 5, Robyn Hitchcock and the Venus 3, and R.E.M. – was a guest interviewee on Monday's "The Freak Power Ticket" (September 1).
He talked about his newest group, The Baseball Project, and their planned return to the Central Coast.
BREAKING NEWS/UPDATE: The Baseball Project's concert this coming Sunday evening, September 7th, is now being presented at Velvet Jones nightclub, 423 State Street (relocated from the Lobero Theatre). Doors open at 6pm, and showtime is 7pm. $15 tickets now available online (CLICK HERE) or at the door!
KCSB is a media supporter of this event!
The Baseball Project is an indie-rock super-group that features the Pacific Northwest resident McCaughey, Steve Wynn (of LA's The Dream Syndicate and Gutterball), Linda Pitmon (formerly of Minneapolis rock-band Zuzu's Petals), and Peter Buck and Mike Mills of R.E.M. (from Athens, GA).
Their third album of baseball songs, called 3rd, was released last spring, courtesy of Yep Roc Records. Producer/host Ted Coe's broadcast also featured music associated with all those groups, plus a selection of rockin' tunes about the national pastime.
An edited podcast highlighting that interview is now available for streaming or download, below.
"The Freak Power Ticket" airs on Mondays in the summer from 11am-1pm PDT.


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(((S))) single "Alive/Die" will be published on 31st of August
Since meanwhile the first few songs of the upcoming album "The Moon Is My Sun" of the danish, anonymous mastermind behind the ungoogable band (((S))) are available for pre-listening on their official Facebook page as well as on Bandcamp, now the single "Alive/Die" will be released in advance on August 31st 2012, which will increase the fans' anticipation for the upcoming album once more.
Well-known as a chameleon of retro-music, (((S))) start once again, to unlock new realms with their music. So the new songs shift in the realms of minimal-synth-wave, which had it's high time between 1978 and 1983, until 1984 the Lynn-drums were invented. A time, when bands such as New Order enchanted millions of people with their unique, distinctive sound.
The now appearing single "Alive/Die" stands representative for this sound and will be perfected by 3 experimental remixes of known danish artists. In advance "Alive/Die" will be available for complete pre-listening and pre-order on Bandcamp.More infos…


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With years of experience in voice over, Tom has recorded hundreds of projects from commercials, learning and training narrations to telephone on hold work and more. Tom is known for his attention to detail, promptness, and on-time delivery. His voice has been described by other professionals as a "clear, mid range, engaging voice, with a relaxing, warm tone". A "natural at reading copy," He can read in a charismatic, trusting style with a subdued tone or pull in drama and excitement at his command.
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