text:
Designed Kit Systems
Ground Floors
Upper Floors
Mezzanine Floors
Roof Frames
Designed Systems
For Boxspan Floors
Adjustable Piers
Sub-floor Bracing
For All Floors
Ezipier Website
Stock Beams & Brackets
Flooring Beams
Flooring Brackets
Stock Beams & Brackets Where to buy
Roofing Beams
Roofing Brackets
Building In
Solutions For
Building On
Privacy Policy | Terms of Use Boxspan®, Colorbeam®, Ezipier™ and Ezibrace™ are trademarks of Spantec Systems. © 2016 Spantec Systems Pty Ltd. All Rights Reserved. Website by BrightAgency


text:
I am thinking about buying a Fuji HS30 to my wife, so she can start shooting on full manual, before investing in a dslr and some lenses.
Do focus ring and zoom ring in Fuji HS30 behave like a dslr manual lenses behaves?
i.e can I use this cam as a training camera before buying a real dslr camera?
Before someone says "just buy a entry level dslr", don't forget that a HS30 cames with a 30x zoom (24-720mm focal range), which is a very expensive lens on a dslr, and provides a great range for training purposes.

subset: commoncrawl


text: The namesake interdisciplinary practice of Dror Benshetrit has created this highly-sculptural limited edition light for 3D printing specialists, the Belgian brand .MGX by Materialise. Created as a single piece, the cubic lamp is composed from an intricate, polyamide net of hounders of interlocking squares 'which when lit, provide both a bright, warm glow in its center, and a cooler, darker feeling around its edges.' Watch the collapsible design come to life in the video below. (more…)


text:
The government of France has managed to do what we all assumed to be impossible: they've muzzled director Lars von Trier.
Von Trier, a notorious provocateur, was at Cannes this year with his new film, "Melancholia", about two sisters dealing in very different ways with the approach of a planet that threatens to crash into Earth. During a press conference at the film festival, von Trier started rambling and the next thing everyone knew, the man was making wildly inappropriate jokes about Hitler and Jews and the Holocaust.
He was promptly kicked out of Cannes, though festival organizer were sensible enough not to punish "Melancholia" star Kirsten Dunst, who would win Best Actress--fair enough. But now it's been learned by Deadline that the director was visited by police who wanted to question him about his having possibly broken French laws regarding speaking about war crimes. He's since issued this press release:
U.S. & World
The day's top national and international news.
Today at 2 pm I was questioned by the Police of North Zealand in connection with charges made by the prosecution of Grasse in France from August 2011 regarding a possible violation of prohibition in French law against justification of war crimes. The investigation covers comments made during the press conference in Cannes in May 2011. Due to these serious accusations I have realized that I do not possess the skills to express myself unequivocally and I have therefore decided from this day forth to refrain from all public statements and interviews.
Let's make a couple of thing clear: 1) Von Trier's comments were stupid and totally indefensible, 2) his subsequent apology sounded a bit half-hearted and 3) There is no way on Earth a man like von Trier will keep his mouth shut for any significant length of time--his head would explode. That said, dragging a man inot court for spouting stupidities in a ill-advised attempt at humor is beyond dumb. The man's already been vilified in the global press, and, worse yet for him, European distributors dropped "Melancholia" like a hot potato, the law doesn't need to step in.


text:
The World Goes Japanese
- Order Reprints
- Print Article
BRING BACK THE PKO! THAT WAS snarky shorthand for "Price Keeping Operation," measures Tokyo traditionally invoked to direct banks to buy stocks or deploy money from Japan's massive postal-savings system to prop up the Nikkei. Today, the whole world is using some version of the PKO. With the Nikkei down 48% this year -- reflecting the yen's strength and the market's jitters -- why should Japan sit this one out?
It may not. Japanese equities, as well as battered real estate, may be bought by a new government-owned fund, according to its advocate, Sen. Kotaro Tamura of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party. The PKO would be funded by loans from Japanese banks. It's inspired by the French sovereign-wealth fund proposed this year by President Nicolas Sarkozy. That fund was established last month to invest in strategically important companies and in smaller companies that were having trouble borrowing.
"This would be close to the French idea," says Tamura, although it wouldn't focus on takeover defenses. Tamura says it could be as large as $250 billion -- about a tenth of the Nikkei's market cap. The French fund is just $25 billion. Japan has almost $1 trillion in foreign-currency reserves and a $1.5 trillion public-pension fund. "We would not be seeking economic returns, but 10 years ago, the government made a huge investment in banks and real estate and made huge money," says Tamura. "In the long term, we can make a huge return."
The fund is the latest iteration of Tamura's idea of a sovereign-wealth fund that would use parts of the government-pension fund and its foreign-exchange reserves to buy non-Japanese assets and diversify returns.
Barron's recently visited the flashy young Tamura (for more on his style, check his blog kotarotamura.net). His idea for a sovereign wealth fund has been taken very seriously this year. Japan's finance and banking minister is concerned about the markets, and a package of measures to support regional banks is part of the latest emergency economic stimulus package.
Much depends on how any fund is structured, and whether it's sufficiently diversified and professionally managed. "The devil is in the details," says Kathy Matsui, Goldman Sachs' Japan strategist.
"Tamura is a creative thinker who wishes to advance Japan as an international financial center and lower the burden on future generations by investing national assets more constructively," says John Vail, the chief global strategist at Nikko Asset Management. Vail doubts that a fund to buy stocks would immediately fly with banks or bureaucrats. He says that "more aggressive management of forex reserves should happen by spring, [although] a true SWF is unlikely for several more quarters."
Says Tamura: "If we can better manage government assets, we don't need to increase the consumption tax -- we could even decrease it. If we want to stimulate consumption, we have to have a better stock and real-estate market. Our companies and economy are much healthier than the U.S. and Europe's. Any stimulus should be focused on the asset markets." That could be the trigger for domestic investors to buy the Nikkei. And any stimulus plan will bolster the yen.
E-mail: email@example.com


text:
Harry Potter? Twilight? Nope – Bob Chanin
Beloved Former NEA Lawyer Signs New Book
By Cindy Long
Suzie White Gomez from Redlands, California, was one of hundreds of RA delegates who queued up to have Bob Chanin sign her copy of More Than a Lawyer, a biography of his storied legal career and its profound impact on public education.
Gomez had already begun underlining sections of the book, like the historic election of Ella Flagg Young as the first female president of the NEA on page 25. She said she got up to page 50 just standing in line and so far found the book extremely interesting.
By chronicling the highlights of Chanin's career, More Than A Lawyer follows the history of public education and the National Education Association's role in everything from the fight for civil rights and affirmative action to current struggles against vouchers and the pitfalls of No Child Left Behind.
"His career is just so impressive, and I've always admired his ability to look at things from the members' perspective, rather than only the legal perspective," Gomez said. "And I love his no nonsense attitude."
The signing was supposed to start at 2:30, but by 2 p.m. the line stretched from the Professional Library into the distance of the convention hall. When Chanin arrived, the crowd erupted in cheers and began chanting, "Bob! Bob! Bob!"
"They showed up, didn't they," he said, smiling unassumingly.
Show up they did, and the line continued to grow as Chanin signed book after book and chatted with his fans.
One of his most adoring admirers is Jane Stern, a retired French teacher from Montgomery County, Maryland. Like Bob Chanin, Stern's first RA was in 1968. "I've been able to witness his brilliant mind year after year," she said, "And I'll sorely miss him."
Len Herricks, an agriculture teacher from Osh Kosh, Wisconsin, had been standing in line for 45 minutes and estimated he had at least another 45 to go, but was more than happy to wait. Like many in line, his nose was buried in the book, and he said was particularly interested in the section on school choice, which "reared its ugly head" in Wisconsin in the 1990s.
Herricks said he always appreciated Chanin's thorough and articulate responses to issues that arose at the RA, but that he was most moved by his retirement speech last year, saying it was the highlight of all the RA's he's ever attended.
"As a young teacher, I was often shoved in the corner for speaking out about what was true," he said. "I like to speak freely, and I was moved by Bob's ability to finally speak his mind. He was finally able to let loose."
Martha Landy, a special education teacher from New Jersey, thinks Bob Chanin is "hot," finds his intelligence "mind boggling," and is an obsessive "Bob groupie."
She'd also begun reading her copy of More Than a Lawyer while waiting in line, and, though she knew he was an ardent pursuer of civil rights, she didn't know he was key in winning women the right to teach while pregnant.
"Women weren't allowed to teach when they began to show," she said. "But when Bob was still in law school and his wife was pregnant, he worked on the legislation that would allow pregnant women to keep working in the classroom."
Landy planned to have her book signed not only by Chanin, but also by his wife, Rhoda.
"Rhoda Chanin is an important part of the story," Landy said.
In fact, it was for Rhoda, their children, and their grandchildren, that Chanin wanted to work on the book in the first place.
"He didn't talk that much about his work in education when he was home," Rhoda said. "And he was on the road a lot. Now our children have a chance to learn about all of the important things he accomplished while he was away."
Now we can all learn about the important things he accomplished in his 45-year fight for public education, employee rights, and social justice. Find out how to purchase a copy of your own at NEA's Professional Library.
RA Media Headlines
View All RA Speeches


text:
A scathing report about OpenStack from research firm Gartner warns businesses to beware of considerable hype and says misconceptions about the open source cloud computing project are leading to "dangerous myths" that are impacting IT adoption and investments.
OpenStack is a nascent technology driven by a group of self-serving vendors who are pushing their own agendas over the usability of the cloud management platform, argues Lydia Leong, the author of the report and a research VP at Gartner who focuses on cloud computing. As OpenStack hype continues to build, she says vendors are associating themselves with the project for marketing reasons, but are reticent about contributing significant resources to the broader goals of the project. Fragmentation created by the amalgamation of various interests undermines the interoperability among OpenStack-powered clouds and the ability of third-party support groups to manage OpenStack distributions.
OpenStack backers, in response, disagree. They specifically point to the project's momentum in recent weeks, including its launch of the OpenStack Foundation, the release of the latest OpenStack code, named Folsom, and organizers gearing up for the project's semi-annual OpenStack Summit this month to plan future development of OpenStack. Jonathan Bryce, executive director of the OpenStack Foundation, says the report "touches on a lot of different points," and said many of the criticisms could apply broadly to other cloud computing projects. "We're early on in this technology shift," he says.
Below are some of the assertions that Leong makes and the responses by OpenStack officials.
OPENSTACK FOUNDATION Q&A: OpenStack reaches milestone with launch of foundation
IS DR RIGHT FOR THE CLOUD? DR in the cloud: Vendors jump in; enterprises wade
MORE CLOUD: Oracle looks to take business from Amazon Web Services
Leong: "Hype around open-source CMPs (cloud management platforms) is causing some customers to make unfounded assumptions that may lead to poor sourcing decisions when they are choosing a CMP to build a private cloud, or when buying cloud IaaS from a service provider. Some people have been led to believe that because OpenStack is open source, it is an open and widely-adopted standard, with broad interoperability and freedom from commercial interests. In reality, OpenStack is dominated by commercial interests, as it is a business strategy for the vendors involved, not the effort of a community of altruistic individual contributors."
OpenStack: OpenStack officials say "hype" is in the eye of the beholder. "We prefer to think of it as excitement," says OpenStack Foundation COO Mark Collier, who's also held the title of Rackspace VP of business and corporate development. Standards, he says, is a "loaded word," and a project like OpenStack could only achieve such as a status through adoption, which he says is one of the OpenStack Foundation's primary focuses. The recently formed Foundation will serve as a uniting body that will bring the various interests within the project together for the good of OpenStack, he adds.
Leong: "OpenStack has drawn a large vendor community, which makes source code contributions, but many exclusively contribute vendor-specific code, such as drivers for their own hardware and resist the creation of interoperability inducing common frameworks that would facilitate switching between vendors. Vendor interests also heavily affect the determination of what features to add and how to implement them, since every vendor wants each feature to work best with its own products."
OpenStack: Bryce says contributions from a growing cadre of member organizations make the project stronger. The alternative would be to have an open source project backed by a single company or a small number of companies controlling it, which Bryce says would not be ideal. Companies are using the OpenStack code to create products and services, so they have an interest in encouraging the source code to be strong, he argues. "We want something that will be around for the long term that will have long-term support, not a product from a single company," he says. Plus, new additions to the OpenStack code that are contributed by member companies are optional for OpenStack to install. The newest Folsom release, for example, adds block storage and virtual networking features, but the code still works without implementing those.
Leong: "Since the vendors involved want to drive business through the OpenStack ecosystem, there is considerable incentive for proprietary lock-in. There is no significant difference in lock-in for customers adopting OpenStack than for those customers adopting proprietary CMPs. In fact, as OpenStack is not a widely-adopted standard, the number of solution providers is highly limited (whether in hardware, software, or services), restricting overall customer choice far more than adopting VMware's vCloud. Nor are there multiple implementations of an OpenStack CMP. On a practical level, the AWS API has the broadest ecosystem, including multiple CMPs (both open source and proprietary) offering compatible implementations."
OpenStack: While there may be many companies using OpenStack and creating their own products and services based on the code, Bryce says each company has a lowest common denominator of using the same base-level code, which will inherently allow for interoperability compared to if vendors had each created their own cloud management platform. The OpenStack Foundation hopes to control fragmentation by creating rules to ensure that products and services that use the OpenStack brand name include specific components to encourage interoperability. One of the recent goals of the code development within OpenStack has been around improving ease of use, and Collier says he expects a healthy debate about how much focus there should be on management and upgradeability within the code at the upcoming OpenStack foundation.
Leong: "The overall project difficulties are causing many vendors to re-evaluate their OpenStack-related strategies. Vendors, as well as OpenStack customers, often say very different things in public about OpenStack than they do in private. The dissonance between public and private statements stems from customers' desire to associate themselves with a project hyped as the future of the cloud. However, their reservations about the project's ability to produce a stable product within a commercially meaningful time frame run very deep and consequently, many vendors are unwilling to fully commit significant engineering resources to the project at present."
OpenStack: Folsom had a 65% increase in contributions, with a record 330 developers writing 185 new or updated features in the code, Collier says. "Numbers tell the story," he adds. "We have more developers than ever." Rackspace, which some have viewed as steering the project in the past, dropped from contributing about half of the code changes in previous versions to being responsible for 30% of contributions in the newest release. "There are more features, more bug fixes and less of them from Rackspace," Bryce says, noting the additional share of contributions represents more vendors involving themselves in the project.
Leong: "OpenStack may eventually become a solid open-source core at the heart of a large and successful ecosystem of commercial offerings," Leong says, noting some of the positive benefits she sees around the project. It has quickly become one of the four most important cloud computing infrastructure ecosystems along with Amazon Web Services, VMware and Microsoft, she says. The code is architected for true cloud-scale deployments and she expects it will "evolve into a successful solution for those looking for a basic, low-cost CMP." Vendors will leverage it to build products and services, albeit while adding proprietary extensions and capabilities on top of the code. The launch of the OpenStack Foundation, she says, "may potentially resolve some of the interoperability and fragmentation issues, as well as (provide) overall stronger project governance and management and will be crucial for moving OpenStack beyond a niche, early-adopter solution, to something that is suitable for mainstream enterprise adoption."
OpenStack: Collier and Bryce say they're proud of the project's development. With the Foundation launched, the latest code release out, more vendors and users joining the project and the summit happening this month, the "timing is perfect" for the project right now, Collier says. "We couldn't be happier."
Network World staff writer Brandon Butler covers cloud computing and social collaboration. He can be reached at email@example.com and found on Twitter at @BButlerNWW.
This story, "Gartner Report Throws Cold Water on Uber-Hyped Openstack Project" was originally published by Network World.
Next read this:
- Top 9 challenges IT leaders will face in 2020
- Top 5 strategic priorities for CIOs in 2020
- 7 'crackpot' technologies that might transform IT
- 8 technologies that will disrupt business in 2020
- 7 questions CIOs should ask before taking a new job
- 7 ways to position IT for success in 2020
- The 9 new rules of IT leadership
- 20 ways to kill your IT career (without knowing it)
- IT manager's survival guide: 11 ways to thrive in the years ahead
- CIO resumes: 6 best practices and 4 strong examples
- 4 KPIs IT should ditch (and what to measure instead)


text:
Skip to Content
New information following the change in COVID-19 alert levels. massey.ac.nz/coronavirus
Massey University's Diploma in Meat Technology is the only qualification of it's kind in New Zealand one of only two in Australasia.
Find out more about entry requirements, fees and courses in the planning section.
Massey University's Diploma in Meat Technology is for those working in the meat industry as a process supervisor, foreperson or skilled process worker, and those who aspire to be a plant manager, production manager, meat marketer, or compliance manager.
If the meat industry is to remain competitive, a scientifically and technologically trained workforce, particularly supervisors and managers are vital. This qualification gives you the skills needed to lead the industry.
The programme will increase your technological and scientific knowledge so you can make informed decisions to improve process efficiency and product quality and ultimately enhance or maintain company competitiveness.
The Diploma could also be a good way to get meat industry specific knowledge if you have a non-specialised degree or have previously worked in a different industry.
Massey University offers the only Diploma in Meat Technology in New Zealand at NZQA level 5 and one of only two such programmes in Australasia. We have been teaching meat technology since 1968.
The DipMeatTech is offered via distance learning with short contact workshops, which are on-campus sessions at the Massey University Manawatū campus. Lectures are delivered both at the contact workshops and are recorded so that they can be watched at a time that suits you.
The diploma includes field trips and practical work in laboratories, both of which take place during the contact workshops.
There may be a possibility for contact workshops to be delivered in other New Zealand centres, dependent on student numbers and geographic location of enrolled students.
Our staff have many years of experience in the industry and can draw on Massey University's expertise across Massey University's veterinary, engineering, technology and food,
Our courses include an introduction to automation, new technology and current research projects in the international meat industry. Learn about pertinent new topics like machine sensing and image processing, the use of robots in the meat industry, research to improve meat tenderness, factory farming and faecal detection.
We have listened to industry feedback and reduced the amount of time you need to spend at the Manawatū campus.
There are two contact workshops per course, one at the start and one at the end. The closing contact workshop ends with a three-hour morning exam. On the afternoon of the same day, the following day the opening block course of the next course starts, cutting down on accommodation and transport costs and time away from work.
The diploma's first three courses are for students who have not studied mathematics and science at senior high school or tertiary level. These bridging courses ensure you will have sufficient understanding of mathematics, chemistry, physics and biology for the Part 2 courses.
The diploma can be completed in two years. You must complete six of the seven second and third-year courses. Three of the courses are compulsory. Each course is offered once every two years. There is no set order in which the courses need to be taken.
"I found studying at Massey to be a great experience and a good environment to learn in…"
"My manager suggested I do the course; he had already done it. The diploma is quite well known in the meat industry and highly recommended for those who want to further their knowledge and career.
I already had an overview of the business but my study has meant I've gained a much deeper understanding of what we are doing and why we are doing it. I've been able to implement knowledge from my refrigeration course; and also changes to yard design and receipt of livestock, which have meant the animals are less stressed before processing.
The next project we're looking at is areas for further processing and adding value to the business. We're always trying to do things smarter and sharper. I'm keen to become a plant manager one day.
I found studying at Massey to be a great experience and a good environment to learn in.
Fitting my study around working full time was hard at first but once I got into a routine things became easier.
As a student who had been out of the classroom for a long time, I found the block courses a good chance to fully focus on the course."
More than 40 per cent of the managers of New Zealand's export meat processing plants are Diploma of Meat Technology graduates.
More managers are retiring than there are students graduating, so the skills you gain from this qualification will be in-demand from the industry.
Potential roles include plant managers, production managers, meat marketers, compliance managers and process supervisors.
Massey's staff in this area are internationally renowned for their research, and teaching and learning methods. You will be working with meat technology specialists, for example:
Diploma director Richard Forgie has 21 years' experience in the meat processing industry. He has a background in meat industry management, economic development and frozen food processing.
Associate Professor Brian Wilkinson has been at Massey since 1978. He has expertise in new food product development, and science and technology used to add value to meat products.
Page authorised by Director, Student Administration
Contact us Mon - Fri 8:30am to 4:30pm 0800 MASSEY (+64 6 350 5701) TXT 5222 firstname.lastname@example.com Web chat Staff Alumni News Māori @ Massey


text:
squash (someone or something) (in) like sardines(redirected from squashes like sardines)
squash (someone or something) (in) like sardines
To fit many people or things very tightly or snugly into a small space. We didn't want to take more than one car, so Jeff squashed us like sardines in his little sedan for the four-hour drive to Moab. Having a concert in our friends café was such a good idea! Sure, we had to squash people in like sardines, but everyone had a great time. I wish you would just let us buy you a bigger backpack! It makes my own back hurt watching you squash those books like sardines into your little shoulder bag.


text:
The EPA's mission is bigger than its workforce can possibly deliver. That's why it relies on the public to keep tabs on local conditions and help carry out agency policies. In return, EPA provides the public as much information as it can about local environment health and risks. EPA's How's My Waterway (HMW) project is a tool that helps both the agency and the public keep their ends of the bargain.
HMW is a platform-independent mobile website and app that helps users find information on the condition of their local waters, using a smart phone, tablet or desktop computer. The application was developed to make EPA's national water quality information system more accessible and understandable by translating science-based information for non-scientists.
In building the system, EPA developers kept to a goal to re-use existing agency computing resources, developing an application that worked on as many devices as possible and providing 'fast and local' access to the latest information on users' local rivers and streams. By using existing resources, the application launched without needing any additional hosting resources.
The agency also wanted to use responsive design techniques to avoid building a native mobile application. The team also believed a responsive designed web application would provide the most accessible way to operate across most desktop and mobile devices.
HMW is one of EPA's first platform-independent websites, which it delivered in less than a year and within a modest budget. HMW has been a big hit, says EPA. Last year, on the Clean Water Act's 40th anniversary, a Google search on the app was returning over 3 million results.
Read about more 2013 GCN Awards winners.
About the Author
Connect with the GCN staff on Twitter @GCNtech.
E-Mail this page
Printable Format
Advanced Search
Sign up for our newsletter.
I agree to this site's Privacy Policy.


text:
I'm an old player who hasn't played in years, but I just had something happen to me today that made me seek out other Marathon players and ask if they have had anything similar happen to them. I first played Marathon at a friend's house in the late '90s, and eventually got the "Mac Action Stack" that contained the entire trilogy for Christmas in 1999.
Anyways, onto the story.
I just had a guy dressed in a bright green shirt and bright green sweatpants approach me saying "Thank god it's you!" and experienced a moment of fear and panic.
Luckily I was unarmed and nothing much came of it, he was just waiting for me to help him fix something (I'm a computer technician). He also had NO idea why I momentarily looked scared by his greeting, having never heard of Marathon when I mentioned it.
Has anything like this happened to anyone else?
The funny thing is, I haven't played Marathon I since my pre-G3 PowerMac 6500/300 died in 2009, and I'm almost certain I hadn't played the original game instead of a TC since at least 2008, probably longer. Yet I instantly connected the phrase with a guy in green approaching me and felt panic in real-life. Weird, huh?


text:
American Precision tooling from Wilson Tool International incorporates a one-of-a-kind design that's faster loading and more versatile than any other American style press brake tooling available today.
Exclusively to Wilson Tool, the entire American Precision line comes "pre-staged," which means that tooling is "common shut height" right out of the box. Setups for staging include various angles and operations in one setup; for example, a 30-degree, 90-degree and flattening operations can be loaded side by side.
The American Precision line is Nitrex® heat treat processed for optimal life. It is precision manufactured to a tolerance of +/- .0008" (.02mm) on all critical dimensions and is available in long, short or sectionalized lengths for ease of use.
Tooling is laser marked for easy identification and includes a push-button mechanism (or safety tang in longer sections) for fast, easy loading.
Unfortunately our site requires cookies to be enabled in order to use our live chat feature. Please call 1-866-752-6531 to speak with a Wilson Tool representative, or fill out our contact form.
Please select your area(s) of interest:
Please select your preferred language(s):
Please call 1-866-752-6531 to speak with a Wilson Tool representative or fill out the form below.
Based on your feedback, the Wilson Tool International e-Business site will still be available until we develop a next generation replacement. We appreciate your feedback and continued communication.
We will be working to create a new, more user-friendly version of the e-Business Center in 2018. To ensure the new site meets your business needs, we need your input. Please take a minute to fill out a brief, 3-question survey. Your responses will help inform the new Wilson Tool e-Business Center.
Give us feedback
Our tooling technicians are also available to assist with any of your business needs.
Thank you,
Wilson Tool International


text:
After undergoing a back-room abortion as a 15-year-old, Isabel considers herself among the lucky ones. Ten years later, she has a healthy five-year-old son, while several of her friends will forever be unable to have children. Women in her neighborhood have lost their lives.
"I knew that something could happen to me," Isabel recalls, sitting on a plastic chair outside her home, "but I risked it."
In Mozambique, where abortion remains illegal under any circumstances, the government has come to regard the ravages of clandestine abortions as a major public health problem. According to the Ministry of Health, they are responsible for more than half of visits to obstetric and gynecological services nationwide, and more than 5,000 maternal deaths each year. The true number is probably much higher, since many women die without reaching a hospital or at a stage when they are not visibly pregnant.
"Around the world, clandestine abortion is a leading cause of maternal death, and one of the hardest to get good data on," says Dr. Diederike Geelhoed, a physician with the International Centre for Reproductive Health (ICRH). " The [World Health Organization] estimates that more than 5 million clandestine abortions occur annually throughout Africa, while only 100,000 abortions that take place in a safe, legal setting.
In March, the Mozambican legislature is expected to pass a bill that would revise the country's draconian abortion law and legalize voluntary abortions in the first 12 weeks of pregnancy. In doing so, Mozambique would become the ninth African country to liberalize its abortion policy in the last decade. Since 2003, 28 countries have ratified an African Union protocol supporting the right to abortion in cases of rape, incest, or high-risk pregnancies. In these incremental changes, there may be signs of a continental shift.
At the Tete Provincial Hospital around the corner from Isabel's home, Dr. Clemente Madeira, director of obstetric and gynecological services, regularly treats women suffering from complications following clandestine abortions. Many of them have drunk laundry detergent or bitter concoctions offered by traditional doctors or purchased pills from off-duty health workers. Many have hemorrhages, sepsis, and perforated uteruses, and face lifelong infertility or even death.
"The ones who lose their lives are the ones who delay their visits to the hospital," Dr. Madeira says.
Abdul Carimo, who led the legal reform team that drafted the proposed law, argues that it will save lives. "Only by offering legal, controlled, sanitary means of abortion... will we be able to keep women from taking these risks," he says.
It is a view that some officials here have held for more than 20 years. Mozambique's current law is a legacy of the Portuguese colonial penal code, inherited at independence and unchanged since 1886. Though prosecutions are rare, it carries a sentence of up to eight years in prison for providers and pregnant women alike, and girls as young as 16 have been arrested for seeking to interrupt unwanted pregnancies.
In 1990, alarmed by by the country's astronomical rates of maternal mortality – more than 1,000 women died for every 100,000 live births – the minister of health authorized first-trimester abortions in cases of rape, incest, and high-risk pregnancies. But the measure was limited to the country's main hospitals and did not carry the force of law. According to Mr. Carimo, many doctors are unaware the decree exists, or object to performing abortions on moral grounds.
In practice, application of the decree varies widely, and its impact has been limited to two or three hospitals. In the capital, Maputo, women have long been able to obtain voluntary abortions in a quasi-legal setting, while in Tete, Madeira performs abortions only when a woman's health is at risk.
Though it remains among the highest in the world, Mozambique's maternal mortality rate has fallen by more than half in the last twenty years, aided by economic growth and the expansion of formal health services, such as care by professional midwives and growing access to family planning. Still, clandestine abortions continue.
Several health professionals at Tete suggested that adolescents bear the brunt of the complications that stem from unsafe abortions. Looking back on her own experience, Isabel said that she "knew nothing and didn't use condoms." It was only with her mother's guidance that she used the relatively safer method of Cytotek, a drug used legally in several countries for medical abortions.
By contrast, Dr. Madeira said he often sees patients whose parents learn of their daughters' abortions only when they bring them to the hospital. The Ministry of Health now includes information about the risks of unsafe abortion in a sex education program in secondary schools, and distributes family planning materials through "youth-friendly services" aiming to improve access among sexually active minors.
The pressures that cause teenage girls in Mozambique to seek abortions are probably growing: contraception use is still under 20 percent and adolescence in Mozambique is something of an emergent phenomenon. "Before, either you were a child, or you had your initiation, and you got married, and then you got kids," Dr. Geelhoed explains. "Now you go to school, and if you get pregnant during school time, it's very unlikely that you'll be able to continue."
Evidence from other countries suggests that legalizing abortion contributes directly to reducing maternal mortality. In the United States, rates of complications from abortion dropped dramatically in the four years following Roe v. Wade; in Romania, maternal mortality fell by two-thirds following the ouster of dictator of Nicolas Ceausecu, who outlawed abortion and contraception.
In moving towards legalization, the Mozambican government is hoping to replicate the experience of its neighbor South Africa, where legalized abortion contributed to a 91 percent drop in the maternal mortality rate over five years in the 1990s. Yet the examples of South Africa and Zambia, another of Mozambique's neighbors, have also shown that the widespread social stigma continues to fuel clandestine abortions even after legalization.
Mozambique's proposed law would require a referral from two doctors, and parental authorization for minors. For a procedure that is most often performed by midwives and nurses under a veil of secrecy, it remains to be seen just how much will change.
Get daily or weekly updates from CSMonitor.com delivered to your inbox. Sign up today.


text:
*This Day in Revisionist History: A new feature where Jake talks about something that could be cool or whatever if it happened in history.
(Editor's note: In case you missed our historic introduction of Jake earlier today, this is a classic from Jake's archive. Tune in next week for the current edition!)
October 18:
"Wait, was that a bear? No dude, I'm not kidding, I think I just saw a f*cking grizzly bear!"
–General Lovell Rousseau on the morning of October 18, 1867, shortly after accepting the transfer of the Alaskan territory from Russia on behalf of the United States.
Nowadays almost everyone knows Alaska has bears, but as they say: Hindsight is 20/20. Now granted, this doesn't make sense, because 20/20 is just the de facto standard; recent studies have suggested that optimal visual acuity occurs at about 20/8. But hey, when they came up with that expression, they didn't have the benefit of…okay, you see where I'm going with this (and that's called foresight, which strangely enough no one measures, not even metaphorically).
In any case, William Seward certainly didn't know that the winter wonderland he had purchased in the spring of that year was overflowing with more bears than present day New York City has people, and so it was with great confidence that he signed the treaty with Russia's minister to the United States, Baron Edouard de Stoeckl, who had risen to prominence in Russia despite his Turkish birth after developing what many industry experts now recognize as the most approximate precursor to the toaster strudel. Continue reading


text:
The recently retitled Rise of the Planet of the Apes has released a bit of WETA footage, showcasing the motion-capture Apes who will eventually enslave all of mankind. And it's creepy as hell.
WETA released this short clip on the new Apes' facebook page, featuring a few seconds of a new-style Ape. Is this the infamous Caesar, played by Andy Serkis? We're not sure, but it's freaking us out in all the right ways. It's almost as scary as when Charlton Heston finds out what happened to his friend Dodge in the Human Museum.
The new Apes flick, takes place in the present day in San Francisco. It's an origin story that follows scientist Will Rodman (played by James Franco), in which "man's own experiments with genetic engineering lead to the development of intelligence in apes and the onset of a war for supremacy."
Apes will be in theaters August 5th.


text:
A few announcements
Popping up on the site soon should be a few announcements. One, we've resigned Ramon Martinez for next year, with an option for 2008. I think anyone who watched the team regularly saw how valuable he was because of his versatility and he was also a very positive presence in the clubhouse.
Second, there have been some promotions in the baseball operations department, including Logan White, who is now the Assistant GM, Scouting. Among the other key people in baseball ops whose titles have now changed (and their new titles) are: Vance Lovelace (Special Asst. to the GM), Tim Hallgren (Director, Amateur Scouting), Chris Haydock (Assistant Director, Player Development), Ellen Harrigan (Assistant Director, Baseball Administration), Luchy Guerra (Assistant Director, International Player Development), Bill McLaughlin (Manager, Scouting), Jane Capobianco (Manager, Scouting and Administrative Travel) and Adriana Urzua (Coordinator, Minor League Administration). We've also hired Toney Howell, who was with the Brewers as a pro scout, to be a Special Assistant to the GM. Our sincere congrats go out to these people, who have worked very hard and deserve some recognition.
Also, Clayton Kershaw was named the Player of the Year in the Gulf Coast League by Topps and Minor League Baseball while James Loney was named by Topps to the Triple-A All-Star team.
That's all for now…
28 Comments
what happened to Kim Ng??
Good job on resigning Martinez!
Now sign Fernando as situational
left-hander. I'm sure he's got a couple of tricks left, and he probably will not cut his hand in a bar room or trip over the bull pen mound. Why not take him to Vero?
don't get me wrong i really really like Logan White
kim ng is already assistant gm
but i thought Logan White was the assistant G.M. now?
i not trying to by funny here i'm really comfused??
i guess they r going to have 2 assistant gms… i may be wrong, but wasnt roy smith also assistant gm?..
i don't know ray maybe Josh will give further details tomorrow or something
Man that's great news about re-signing Ramon Martinez. Now PLEEEEEASE re-sign Maddux!
apparently they are going to have two assistant GMs. Why not, we had 5 shortstops. 🙂
I'll copy/paste it since you guys can't read the word at the end of the sentence 😛
"Logan White, who is now the Assistant GM, Scouting."
Good for Martinez. Now if only he could get some playing time. The Lugo thing was a horrible mistake and a fiasco.
if anything Logan White will now whisper in Neds ear what trades will be good & what trades would be bad.
Resigning Ramon is good , promoting Logan is great. He's done a good job so far and having him more acessible to the front office can't be bad.
To clarify your questions, Kim Ng remains our Vice President and General Manager. She'll be in charge of Player Development (the minor leagues) and Professional Scouting, as well as assistant Ned on everything having to do with the Major League team. Logan White will be in charge of International Scouting and Amateur Scouting, while also assisting Ned with big league transactions. In terms of a replacement for Roy Smith, this is basically it, though it's not a direct replacement for him. That position was molded into Kim and Logan's duties.
Giving Lugo the playing time that Martinez was getting did turn out to be a mistake, glad Martinez is back. Now the next few years will show just how bad a trade it was if Joel Guzman turns into a star. However, at the time of the trade, both Kent and Nomar were out, so Lugo really was needed, and the turnaround started around that time, so you just have to live with how it turns out, it was the right move. (I know, I just took both sides of the issue)
Okay, maybe I'm a little bit crazy (my closest friends would tell you that that's a big understatement) but I've been thinking about this a lot. We all keep saying that we need to go out and get a power-hitting 3B, right? Why? We have a pretty decent one already.
I know someone here is going to bash me for saying this but look at the stats. Betemit hit 18 HR in 373 AB this year. Think about that – roughly 1 HR per 20 AB. This includes the beginning of the season when he was basically a spot player in Atlanta. Most power-hitters will increase that ratio when given regular playing time. I'm not gonna say that ratio's gonna be 1 HR/15AB, but I wouldn't be surprised if it became 1HR/18AB. Aramis' number was about 1HR/16AB this year, and we keep drooling over him. 1HR/18AB runs to about 33-35 HR over the course of a season. Then there's the problem of his AVG. vs RHP…
Okay, mull over this for awhile. Our hitting coach is… that's right, Eddie Murray. One of the best switch-hitters of all time. Certainly the best switch-hitter for power. Look at what he did for Furcal – he had his best season ever. Highest AVG, most RBI, most hits, 2nd most Runs scored, 2nd highest OBP, the list goes on… Again, maybe I'm just crazy and sleep-deprived, but I think that money would be better spent on a really high-end starting pitcher and some good bullpen help.
why not 2 quality arms? but think about it Kent is up there in age & won't heall as quickly as he would if he were a young pup Drew is Drew & Garciaparra is Garciaparra also. it's gonna be tricky but i have full faith in our front office to make the right moves.
dualtone – Betemit's problem is against Left-handers, but that can be solved by platooning him with Saenz until he can sort out hitting from the right side (or just becoming a lefty). If he couldn't hit right handers, he would be released.
But that is a good point, and I think that just one good upgrade for the rotation would be the way to go, given the depth of young talent. I think if any starter is to be traded, it should be Kuo, considering that his value is high but his injury history isn't good.
I would hesistate to do a whole lot for the bullpen, apart from re-signing Gagne, keeping Saito, getting Brazoban back, keeping Broxton, and reconciling things with Beimel. Really good middle relief is rare; either the pitcher will be good enough to be a setup man or closer somewher else and leave, or that pitcher will not stay good. The key to a good overall bullpen is having young guys without the service time to become free agents so that they do what you say, and having a good pitching coach. As long as you aren't tempted to trade them, you'll be fine.
So that said, the three biggest upgrades the Dodgers pitching staff could see are
1) Healthy Gagne
2) Sign Zito/Schmidt
3) Fire Rick Honeycutt and hire Orel Hershiser
in my book the best switch hitter for power was mickey mantle!!!! Go Dodgers
I agree that getting lugo was a mistake. unless we get draft picks for him, that become solid players, it could be a huge mistake. giving up a couple of power hitting outfielders in guzman and pedroza already seems bad to me. we didn't need lugo then, and don't want him now.
i predict this trade was so bad, that trades will be compared to this one, and bad trades will be known as a big lugo.
and…. trading prospects for someone like lugo will become a giant lugo.
"3) Fire Rick Honeycutt and hire Orel Hershiser"
really man, what is that guy doing here.
Hey kday01 – Great to hear from you!
I agree with you about "The Mick" being the best switch hitting power hitter of all time, but I have to say that even though he is one of the biggest jerks in the game, Milton Bradley is also one of the best switch hitting power hitters I have ever seen, too.
I was at the game where Bradley hit homeruns from both sides, including the left-handed shot that landed way up in the right field loge seats. He was only the 12th player in Dodger Stadium history to hit one there. Man, what a shot!
That being said, in spite of his incredible power, I sure am glad that we got rid of his sorry *** and picked up Andre Ethier in his stead.
PS: Hey Ned – PLEEEEEASE re-sign Maddux!
Maddux needs to be re-signed. Gagne need to be re-signed
HoneyCUNT needs to be fired.
Free agents…
Sign Zito
Sign A-Ram
I can't get excited about any FA except for Zito. I'd rather we get a stud LF/RF and pitching. I think betemit will be okay-don't know much about LaRoche, but he should be given a chance.
Hey 51 and 53 – I agree, the Mick was without doubt, with respect to Eddie Murray, the greatest power hitting switch hitter of all time. Man, I really get nervous when we start talking about signing high priced free agents, especially pitchers. They hardly ever seem to work out once the huge contract is signed. Having said that, I expect we could use a couple of guys, pitchers or otherwise who worked out like Furcal. To use a hockey term, I like grinders. Guys who give all they have every time but are not necessarily superstars. One thing I think is for sure is that we don't take on guys who are injury prone or coming off surgery, with the exception of Gagne. Ray, now I don't want you to think I am envious because you are in Arizona and we had snow flurries the other day. Thanks for the heads up on Meloan but you clued us in to that several months ago. He does look like a good one.


text:
- Venomous secretions from marine snails of the Terebridae family target acetylcholine receptors (2013)
- Venoms from cone snails (Conidae) have been extensively studied during the last decades, but those from other members of the suborder Toxoglossa, such as of Terebridae and Turridae superfamilies attracted less interest so far. Here, we report the effects of venom and gland extracts from three species of the superfamily Terebridae. By 2-electrode voltage-clamp technique the gland extracts were tested on Xenopus oocytes expressing nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs) of rat neuronal (α3β2, α3β4, α4β2, α4β4, α7) and muscle subtypes (α1β1γδ), and expressing potassium (Kv1.2 and Kv1.3) and sodium channels (Nav1.2, 1.3, 1.4, 1.6). The extracts were shown to exhibit remarkably high inhibitory activities on almost all nAChRs tested, in particular on the α7 subtype suggesting the presence of peptides of the A-superfamily from the venom of Conus species. In contrast, no effects on the potassium and sodium channels tested were observed. The venoms of terebrid snails may offer an additional source of novel biologically active peptides.
- The mitochondrial genome of the venomous cone snail conus consors (2012)
- Cone snails are venomous predatory marine neogastropods that belong to the species-rich superfamily of the Conoidea. So far, the mitochondrial genomes of two cone snail species (Conus textile and Conus borgesi) have been described, and these feed on snails and worms, respectively. Here, we report the mitochondrial genome sequence of the fish-hunting cone snail Conus consors and describe a novel putative control region (CR) which seems to be absent in the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) of other cone snail species. This possible CR spans about 700 base pairs (bp) and is located between the genes encoding the transfer RNA for phenylalanine (tRNA-Phe, trnF) and cytochrome c oxidase subunit III (cox3). The novel putative CR contains several sequence motifs that suggest a role in mitochondrial replication and transcription.
- Chemical camouflage : a frog's strategy to co-exist with aggressive ants (2013)
- Whereas interspecific associations receive considerable attention in evolutionary, behavioural and ecological literature, the proximate bases for these associations are usually unknown. This in particular applies to associations between vertebrates with invertebrates. The West-African savanna frog Phrynomantis microps lives in the underground nest of ponerine ants (Paltothyreus tarsatus). The ants usually react highly aggressively when disturbed by fiercely stinging, but the frog is not attacked and lives unharmed among the ants. Herein we examined the proximate mechanisms for this unusual association. Experiments with termites and mealworms covered with the skin secretion of the frog revealed that specific chemical compounds seem to prevent the ants from stinging. By HPLC-fractionation of an aqueous solution of the frogs' skin secretion, two peptides of 1,029 and 1,143 Da were isolated and found to inhibit the aggressive behaviour of the ants. By de novo sequencing using tandem mass spectrometry, the amino acid sequence of both peptides consisting of a chain of 9 and 11 residues, respectively, was elucidated. Both peptides were synthesized and tested, and exhibited the same inhibitory properties as the original frog secretions. These novel peptides most likely act as an appeasement allomone and may serve as models for taming insect aggression.
- Biological activities of aqueous and organic extracts from tropical marine sponges (2010)
- We report on screening tests of 66 extracts obtained from 35 marine sponge species from the Caribbean Sea (Curaçao) and from eight species from the Great Barrier Reef (Lizard Island). Extracts were prepared in aqueous and organic solvents and were tested for hemolytic, hemagglutinating, antibacterial and anti-acetylcholinesterase (AChE) activities, as well as their ability to inhibit or activate cell protein phosphatase 1 (PP1). The most interesting activities were obtained from extracts of Ircinia felix, Pandaros acanthifolium, Topsentia ophiraphidites, Verongula rigida and Neofibularia nolitangere. Aqueous and organic extracts of I. felix and V. rigida showed strong antibacterial activity. Topsentia aqueous and some organic extracts were strongly hemolytic, as were all organic extracts from I. felix. The strongest hemolytic activity was observed in aqueous extracts from P. acanthifolium. Organic extracts of N. nolitangere and I. felix inhibited PP1. The aqueous extract from Myrmekioderma styx possessed the strongest hemagglutinating activity, whilst AChE inhibiting activity was found only in a few sponges and was generally weak, except in the methanolic extract of T. ophiraphidites.
- Biological activities of ethanolic extracts from deep-sea antarctic marine sponges (2013)
- We report on the screening of ethanolic extracts from 33 deep-sea Antarctic marine sponges for different biological activities. We monitored hemolysis, inhibition of acetylcholinesterase, cytotoxicity towards normal and transformed cells and growth inhibition of laboratory, commensal and clinically and ecologically relevant bacteria. The most prominent activities were associated with the extracts from sponges belonging to the genus Latrunculia, which show all of these activities. While most of these activities are associated to already known secondary metabolites, the extremely strong acetylcholinesterase inhibitory potential appears to be related to a compound unknown to date. Extracts from Tetilla leptoderma, Bathydorus cf. spinosus, Xestospongia sp., Rossella sp., Rossella cf. racovitzae and Halichondria osculum were hemolytic, with the last two also showing moderate cytotoxic potential. The antibacterial tests showed significantly greater activities of the extracts of these Antarctic sponges towards ecologically relevant bacteria from sea water and from Arctic ice. This indicates their ecological relevance for inhibition of bacterial microfouling.
- Chemical synthesis, proper folding, nav channel selectivity profile and analgesic properties of the spider peptide phlotoxin 1 (2019)
- Phlotoxin-1 (PhlTx1) is a peptide previously identified in tarantula venom (Phlogius species) that belongs to the inhibitory cysteine-knot (ICK) toxin family. Like many ICK-based spider toxins, the synthesis of PhlTx1 appears particularly challenging, mostly for obtaining appropriate folding and concomitant suitable disulfide bridge formation. Herein, we describe a procedure for the chemical synthesis and the directed sequential disulfide bridge formation of PhlTx1 that allows for a straightforward production of this challenging peptide. We also performed extensive functional testing of PhlTx1 on 31 ion channel types and identified the voltage-gated sodium (Nav) channel Nav1.7 as the main target of this toxin. Moreover, we compared PhlTx1 activity to 10 other spider toxin activities on an automated patch-clamp system with Chinese Hamster Ovary (CHO) cells expressing human Nav1.7. Performing these analyses in reproducible conditions allowed for classification according to the potency of the best natural Nav1.7 peptide blockers. Finally, subsequent in vivo testing revealed that intrathecal injection of PhlTx1 reduces the response of mice to formalin in both the acute pain and inflammation phase without signs of neurotoxicity. PhlTx1 is thus an interesting toxin to investigate Nav1.7 involvement in cellular excitability and pain


text:
tnx Chris K.
another question:
if i set -sameq i also must set the bitrate of video/audio or there is no need to be?
+ Reply to Thread
Results 301 to 330 of 1190
With -sameq, FFmpeg goes entirely its own way. What bitrate it will use depends on the source and may differ widely. It doesn't matter what bitrate you set because it's totally ignored. The FFmpeg docs say about -sameq; "use same video quality as source (implies VBR)".
You can't even force a higher bitrate than the suggested by simly setting it.
In my xvid test setup, when I add -sameq, FFmpeg goes up to about 4600 kbps for the given source. When I remove -sameq and set the bitrate higher, it still uses approx. 4600 kbps. I can only "reduce" the bitrate FFmpeg uses by setting it lower (at the cost of lower quality).
AFAIK, -sameq only works on the video stream so you have to set a audio bitrate.
Ok, tnx2much
Is there a way to keep Avanti from copying ffmpeg.exe to ffmp_avanti.exe in the ffmpeg folder when it's started. Doing so creates a significant delay when running from a flash drive, as well as increased wear.
Also, if I UPX ffmpeg.exe (reduces the size by 2/3) then Avanti thinks it's a 'special build' and won't initialize it. Is there any way around this?
Many thanks.
There's a history about why Avanti copies and renames FFmpeg.
Early versions didn't but were restricted to run FFmpeg from the ffmpeg folder at your Avanti install directory. Then there was a user request for the ability to run FFmpeg from any other location because a lot of people have it already somewhere on disk.
The reason for a renamed copy is; to prevent conflicts with other applications that run FFmpeg simultaneously with Avanti. Because Avanti controls FFmpeg in exceptional cases by terminating the FFmpeg process by name, it would also terminate the other application.
It could be omitted if the user itself would run a uniquely named FFmpeg version. Currently this is not possible but it could be added as an option.
A practical example of the above mentioned is the case where FFmpeg hangs on e.g. a corrupted source. If you would try to restart the process a few times to find out what's wrong, there would be several FFmpeg's running (hanging) in memory without being noticed. With a unique named FFmpeg copy, Avanti can freely terminate any number of FFmpeg's from running if necessary.
The reason that Avanti sees a UPX'd executable as a special build is because when you startup the program, it analyzes the data in the FFmpeg executable to make adaptions for different versions, e.g. the libfaac vs. aac adaption. An UPX'd executable is compressed so the program can't find the data it's looking for. There's no solution for that.
BTW; USB 2.0 shouldn't be that slow in copying but it takes indeed twice the FFmpeg space for the time Avanti is running.
I try to convert an mp4 file (AVC firstname.lastname@example.com) but with -bf 2 and -sameq I'm not satisfied with what I've done.
How I can improve the quality?
Last edited by jkhox; 22nd Apr 2010 at 02:57.
Hey! I ran into a weird surround sound problem that I thought I should share. I have a PAL DVD that I wanted to convert to NTSC. There's a lot of music in the movie, so I also wanted to correct the pitch of the audio. I used DVD Shrink to create a single VOB file. I loaded it into Avanti and set the AV Frame Rate Conversion to P/N 23.976. I also added some SRT subtitles in the Subtitles Styler section to add hard subs to the image. It did the conversion fine, but when I went to play back the MPG file, my receiver told me the sound was 5.1, but I couldn't hear anything out of the rear surround speakers.
In Media Player Classic HomeCinema, I disabled the internal AC3 decoder so that it would use AC3Filter instead. I played the original PAL DVD and I could see in AC3Filter that there were audio levels for all six channels. When I played the converted NTSC MPG file, there were only audio levels for front left, right and center.
As you recommended, I stopped using codec packs and now only use the latest ffdshow tryouts, Haali Media Splitter and AC3Filter on Windows 7 x64. I double-checked the AC3Filter settings to make sure it wasn't set to only output two channel or whatever. It's set to AS IS (no change). As an experiment, I extracted the AC3 from the PAL VOB and then tried transcoding (recoding?) without the frame rate conversion and it converted and played back with all six channels. Then I tried transcoding the AC3 with the frame rate conversion and it again converted to what MediaInfo shows is a "six channel" AC3, but with actual audio only in the front left, right and center channels.
When I transcode the audio without frame rate conversion, it feeds directly to FFmpeg. If I transcode the audio with frame rate conversion, it runs through Avisynth first, so I suspect the problem is with Avisynth. I have the latest Avisynth 2.5.8 installed. As a way around this problem, I dug out BeSweet and converted the AC3 that way and then muxed it into an MPG container with the converted video using Avanti, but BeSweet is pretty slow and it would be nice if I could do the whole process with Avanti. Any ideas why Avisynth is blanking out the surround channels when I try to convert PAL to NTSC? Have you ever noticed this yourself?
As a side note, following the first conversion I did, when I first played the NTSC MPG, I was a little baffled that the frame rate was correct but the sound was still pitched. When I hit the Insert AUTO Script button in the Avisynth Script Editor, I noticed TimeStretch( pitch = 104.270938), which seems to correct the lower pitch back to the pitch of the original PAL audio. Removing the line fixed the problem, as I wanted the lower (original film) pitch of the slower 23.976 frame rate. It might be more intuitive if there was a Correct Pitch Adjustment checkbox or some such in the AV Frame Rate Conversion section.
Last edited by KevinSartori; 4th May 2010 at 12:58. Reason: typo
FFdshow settings are right. I'm currently not able to check it out in detail (moving to another house), but can you try to convert the audio separately (video disabled). That uses other Avisynth commands and I'm curious if that differs.
As a side note, following the first conversion I did, when I first played the NTSC MPG, I was a little baffled that the frame rate was correct but the sound was still pitched. When I hit the Insert AUTO Script button in the Avisynth Script Editor, I noticed TimeStretch( pitch = 104.270938), which seems to correct the lower pitch back to the pitch of the original PAL audio. Removing the line fixed the problem, as I wanted the lower (original film) pitch of the slower 23.976 frame rate. It might be more intuitive if there was a Correct Pitch Adjustment checkbox or some such in the AV Frame Rate Conversion section.
When I try to do just an AC3 file, Avanti tries to start up Avisynth and I get an error:
Input #0, incorrect Avisynth duration ... must be 01:41:04.52 [ 101.12 min ]
MediaInfo shows the duration of the AC3 to be 1h 36mn, so the 1h 41mn duration would be the correct length after conversion from PAL 25 to NTSC 23.976, but Avisynth is having some kind of problem.
It's not a Avisynth error but a error of the FFmpeg Avisynth interface. It has no effect on the conversion.
Input #0, incorrect Avisynth duration ... must be 00:09:44.40 [9.74 min.] Input #0, avs, from 'G:/avanti_path/excerpt_final.avs': Duration: 00:00:00.00, start: 0.000000, bitrate: -2147483 kb/s Stream #0.0: Audio: pcm_s16le, 48000 Hz, 2 channels, s16, 1536 kb/s
MediaInfo shows the duration of the AC3 to be 1h 36mn, so the 1h 41mn duration would be the correct length after conversion from PAL 25 to NTSC 23.976
I got the error, but then the conversion didn't happen. Should I test anything else?
Don't understand why it quits? I don't work much with six channel audio but have a few ac3 test clips that I use for testing. These work fine.
16:25:56 - Process started using FFmpeg version SVN-r22988 [ffmpeg22988]. ====================================================================================== Input #0, incorrect Avisynth duration ... must be 00:00:35.43 [0.59 min.] Input #0, avs, from 'G:/avanti_path/Broadway-5.1-48khz-448kbit.avs': Duration: 00:00:00.00, start: 0.000000, bitrate: -2147483 kb/s Stream #0.0: Audio: pcm_s16le, 48000 Hz, 6 channels, s16, 4608 kb/s --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Output #0, ac3, to 'F:/destination_path/test_final.ac3': Stream #0.0: Audio: ac3, 48000 Hz, 5.1, s16, 448 kb/s --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Stream mapping: Stream #0.0 -> #0.0 ====================================================================================== +--------------------+ +----------------+ | | Source [1] --> | Avisynth AUTO | --> | FFmpeg | --> Destination [1] +----------------+ | | +--------------------+ ====================================================================================== 16:26:00 - Free space on destination disk at start 29,161 Mb. FFmpeg messages/warnings: [avs @ 018be0c0]Estimating duration from bitrate, this may be inaccurate [ac3 @ 019a0210]No channel layout specified. ... The encoder will guess the layout, but it might be incorrect. Metadata: ... encoder : Lavf52.61.0 16:26:10 - Process finished after 00:00:10 hms with messages/warnings. ... Console processing <Ctrl><S> possibly shows more details.
I have the audio settings set to... ac3, bitrate 448 kbps, sample freq 48000 and channels to 6.
FFmpeg input that it runs a Avisynth script, not the ac3 directly.
Input #0, incorrect Avisynth duration ... must be 00:00:35.43 [0.59 min.] Input #0, avs, from 'G:/avanti_path/Broadway-5.1-48khz-448kbit.avs': Duration: 00:00:00.00, start: 0.000000, bitrate: -2147483 kb/s Stream #0.0: Audio: pcm_s16le, 48000 Hz, 6 channels, s16, 4608 kb/s
Notes @ Avanti 0.4.7 release ...
This version has to do for a while because I'm preparing a move to another house (for medical reasons). I have to dismantle my computer setups and the telephone company needs "four weeks" (of paperwork) to connect me at the new house. I hope the new things in Avanti 0.4.7 won't give to much trouble because I can only reply to posts for still a couple of days.
And then this ...
From FFmpeg version SVN-r23056 up the well known crop and pad commands don't work anymore (afaik). A working version of "libavfilter" is now included and you need to replace e.g. -padtop and -padbottom with something like; -vfilters pad=640:480:0:0 (width, height, x, y).
This is very interesting but with this FFmpeg change the Avanti crop/scale/pad option will fail, when you select FFmpeg to do the job (Avisynth still works fine). It needs a lot of research to keep Avanti compatible with both old and new FFmpeg versions and as you may understand, it will take some time (even before I can start with it).
Chris K
I think the extension for libtheora is wrong in the codec database manager. Currently its ogm but according to http://wiki.xiph.org/index.php/MIME_Types_and_File_Extensions ogm is not listed. I think it should be ogv. ogm files still play, I just thought you should know. Thanks!
It's a bit of chaos with media file extensions. It seems that .ogm is unofficially adopted at some places. Perhaps with the thought that .ogv would stand for a raw Theora stream? MPCHC has it on its formats list as "Ogg Media file; .ogm, .ogv".
"xiph.org" is the official source so you're right, it should be .ogv exclusively.
But with my FFdshow / MPCHC setup, playback fails when I use the .ogv extension while the .ogm extension does fine? MediaInfo however reports the .ogv file as valid theora/vorbis in ogg container.
Hi Chris!
Hope everything is going well with the "moving/changing house", from what you said i realize you don't have much time nowadays but is there any chance of including webm/vp8 support on Avanti?
I've been searching the net for ffmpeg builds with vp8/webm support but the only one i found so far doesnt have libvorbis, the default vorbis encoder in ffmpeg from what i googled is not very good and we cant pick audio bitrate values only quality settings unlike libvorbis that has superior quality and we can pick a audio bitrate.
Do you know where i can get a ffmpeg build with vp8/webm and libvorbis? Are you planning on adding support for it on Avanti?
ThanksI love it when a plan comes together!
FFmpeg support for encoding/decoding vp8, I think it's only a matter of time. Avanti don't need no special adaptions for this except including a few new templates.
You could ask Ramiro Polla if he's willing to include libvpx but it might be a bit too early.
I'm not involved in FFmpeg development and my main concern for Avanti is to keep it compatible with the most recent FFmpeg revisions. Currently this is the addition of a revised libavfilter that takes over the old crop and pad commands. This is still incomplete because its scale filter doesn't support the scale algorithms yet. But I have to use it anyway because the old pad commands don't work anymore.
Im a bit confused now lol....
From what i read there are 2 ways to encode to webm with ffmpeg, i wasnt aware of the seconde one:
1- ffmpeg build compiled with vp8
http://micksam7.com/blog/index.php/?p=743 (windows builds here)
2 - normal ffmpeg version through an external libvpx file
can you tell me how can i use ffmpeg in the seconde example, or point me in the right direction? I see a lot of chat on the web but i dont see any info for "regular/casual" users like me.
Thanks for any info you can giveI love it when a plan comes together!
The second link gives the source code and a win32 build of "libvpx" (the dll's). It has to be added to a folder with a shared FFmpeg build that is made aware of the library during compilation. Afaik, it can't be used with just an arbitrary FFmpeg build.
I've played around a bit with the FFmpeg executable on the first link but I currently can only run Avanti as user on a borrowed laptop (to have web access).
Avanti expects a FFmpeg version that accept to set a video codec. I would expect "-vcodec vp8" to work with that executable but it doesn't. It is a special build that is only capable to encode webm vp8. I can't change Avanti to support all kind of experimental builds made by individuals.
Just be patient and wait for the FFmpeg gurus.
Found it! The codec name is "libvpx_vp8". Here's a template for Avanti to try ... UNI_WEBM_VP8.7z
Only for FFmpeg builds with "--enable-libvpx-vp8" in the configuration. Encoding is extremely slow and the DirectShow webm decoder I downloaded crashed on the file. MediaInfo sees vp8 and vorbis in it but says its a mkv container?
Last edited by Chris K; 26th May 2010 at 16:42. Reason: addition
i used the template with the ffmpeg build from the previous link with vp8 and it displays the following message:
FFmpeg messages/warnings:
Unknown encoder 'libvpx_vp8'
at the moment i can convert a video with the ffmpeg build with vp8 using a script/bat but the vorbis quality isnt hat good, i need to use libvorbis but that build hasnt libvorbis on it, so i converted the audio to ogg with LameXp so at the moment i have:
1 webm video with vp8 and vorbis (bad audio quality) and one ogg/vorbis audio track, can ffmpeg discard the vorbis audio in first file and mux the audio i converted with lamexp? Kind of remuxing the video with different audio track?
Last edited by ricardouk; 27th May 2010 at 04:54.I love it when a plan comes together!
This is the output on the Avanti log window;
Output #0, webm, to 'F:/destination_path/test_final2.webm': Stream #0.0: Video: libvpx_vp8, yuv420p, 720x576 [PAR 16:15 DAR 4:3], q=2-31, 450 kb/s, 1k tbn, 25 tbc Stream #0.1: Audio: vorbis, 22050 Hz, 2 channels, s16, 64 kb/sat the moment i can convert a video with the ffmpeg build with vp8 using a script/bat but the vorbis quality isnt hat good, i need to use libvorbis but that build hasnt libvorbis on it, so i converted the audio to ogg with LameXp so at the moment i have:
1 webm video with vp8 and vorbis (bad audio quality) and one ogg/vorbis audio track, can ffmpeg discard the vorbis audio in first file and mux the audio i converted with lamexp? Kind of remuxing the video with different audio track?
It works, i have to overwritte the container box with webm:
one side effect... audio only plays for 4 seconds and then disappears, guess i'll have to wait for more complete "official" ffmpeg builds.
Thanks for your help Chris, will wait for Avanti to support it...meanwhile back to scripts.I love it when a plan comes together!
Hi Ricardo,
I was successfull doing encoding the audio and video seperately:
You will need the following:
ffmpeg with libvpx support
oggenc from www.rarewares.org
mkclean: http://www.matroska.org/downloads/mkclean.html
mkvtoolnix: http://www.bunkus.org/videotools/mkvtoolnix/
I did the following with a test video called Wildlife.wmv:
ffmpeg -i "c:\Users\Public\Videos\Sample Videos\Wildlife.wmv" -acodec pcm_s16le -vn test.wav
oggenc2.exe -b 128 test.wav
ffmpeg -i "c:\users\Public\Videos\Sample Videos\Wildlife.wmv" -vcodec libvpx -an testvid.mkv
Launch mkvmerge GUI v3.4.0(included in MKVtoolnix)
Add both test.ogg and testvid.mkv to the Input files list
Specify output file name for example: finalresult.mkv
Press 'Strart muxing'
mkclean.exe --doctype 4 finalresult.mkv finalresult.webm
I only have tested on VideoLAN classic player version 1.1.0rc
Hi Leon!
Are you using the ffmpeg build from Micksam7 blog?
My method is more or less like yours
1- demux audio from source
2- encode video to webm with ffmpeg
3-load webm file onto mkvtoolnix build with webm support, deselecting the audio audio track (minimize mkvtoolnix)
4-convert audio from step1 with lamexp to ogg
5-load the ogg track to mkvtoolnix
6- mux the video as webm
heres the mkvtoolnix version with webm support:
will try your method
where did you get your build from?
In your example i dont see any reference to the ogg output in the command line (typo?)
Thanks for the info
PS: Welcome to videohelp, guess you seen my comments elsewhere about thisI love it when a plan comes together!
Appologies if my reply is all in one line. I am typing from my phone. Thanks for the welcome. Yes, I am using the ffmpeg build from the Micksam7 blog. The encoding speed speems really slow. The ffmpeg from Miro Video converter seemed a bit faster, but I might be wrong because I used a different PC and different content. I don't think I made a typo, oggenc automatically creates an output file with .ogg extension based on the input file name. Also Im not 100% sure if I created the WAV file correctly because of all the 16 bit pcm choices ffmpeg had. I chose one randomly. Does anyone know if there are differences between them? it seems to sound/work correctly
Similar Threads
TEncoder 4.0.0 - Multithreaded GUI for FFMpeg and Mencoder (Support thread)By ozok in forum Video ConversionReplies: 104Last Post: 4th Jun 2014, 10:10
GUI Encoders with Avisynth support?By shagratt71 in forum Video ConversionReplies: 4Last Post: 13th Dec 2011, 05:27
AVANTI (FFMPEG) QuestionBy erichollis in forum Video ConversionReplies: 1Last Post: 18th Aug 2011, 15:54
Avanti - FFmpeg verisonBy ABBrittain in forum Newbie / General discussionsReplies: 2Last Post: 22nd Jun 2011, 04:01
I need a supported build of ffmpeg for Avanti 0.4.8By flashandpan007 in forum Video ConversionReplies: 1Last Post: 23rd Jun 2010, 09:28


text:
Phine Ka
"If a photographer cares about the people before the lens and is compassionate, much is given. It is the photographer, not the camera, that is the instrument." - Eve Arnold
I am Phine Ka (1973, The Netherlands), a published Fashion & Portrait photographer based in Berlin. Mainly self-taught, but I have also trained with award winning photographers and at Central Saint Martins College of Art & Design.
Moving to London in 2009 sparked my love for fashion photography and portraiture and now I work with clients in Germany, the UK and abroad.
I love storytelling through a single shot or a wider body of work and to celebrate the beauty of each individual in front of my lens.
Most of my portfolio is focused on fashion editorial work with full creative teams, but I also photograph agency model portfolios, portraits for private and corporate clients, artist's headshots and designer look books.
If you want to find out more about working with me, please get in touch via firstname.lastname@example.com or the Contact page. Instagram: @phineka
You may not otherwise reproduce, distribute, transmit or sell anything from this site to any other person or company, nor incorporate it in any way into another document or other material. Further to this, you are not permitted to modify, alter or misappropriate this information in any way without the prior written permission of the copyright owner. Copyright © Phine Ka Photography 2010-2017.
- 3,891 Affection
- 284,066 Photo Views
- 193 Followers
- 48 Following
- Berlin, Germany


text:
Status Report
From: Astrobiology Magazine
Posted: Tuesday, November 27, 2007
Mars is often suggested as a good location to search for alien life. Despite many missions to the red planet, it's still a mystery whether life existed there in the distant past or if it is thriving there today. Attempting to answer this question was an aim of the Viking missions of 1976, but the results of those experiments were frustratingly ambiguous.
At a recent science conference, Joop Houtkooper of the University of Giessen in Germany explained how he took another look at the data and came up with two reasons why the Viking experiments didn't provide conclusive answers to the life on Mars question. First, they didn't find organic material in the gas chromatograph - mass spectrometer, a device which detects the chemicals present in a sample. Although it was extremely sensitive, it didn't find any of the chemicals we associate with life.
And the second reason? "Upon moisturising the soil, they found a rapid development of oxygen, carbon dioxide and some nitrogen," says Houtkooper. A majority of scientists think an inorganic oxidant created this reaction, and that the Martian soil contains no life.
However, this interpretation doesn't sit well with Houtkooper, and he suspects that Viking may have discovered Martian microbes after all. "In my opinion, the search for an inorganic oxidant to explain the Viking results has not really come up with the definitive solution," he says. "I think it is time to look at alternatives. The biological explanation is an interesting one."
His theory to explain the Viking results is that Martian life may not be based simply on water, but on a mixture of H2O2 (hydrogen peroxide - a kind of bleach) and water. Such a creature could "drink" by absorbing small quantities of water from the atmosphere. But exposure to too much water would be disastrous for it.
"If these organisms consist of 50 percent water and 50 percent hydrogen peroxide, then they are sensitive to water, because they blow themselves up when they get too much," Houtkooper explains. "This could be what happened in the Viking experiment."
Jack Farmer from Arizona State University thinks Houtkooper's idea may have merit. "It is generally assumed that if life is present on Mars, it must be in the deep subsurface where the mechanisms proposed by the H2O2 hypothesis would not be favored," says Farmer. "Still, (this idea) implies that an extant form of Martian life might have adapted to the relatively extreme thin skin of oxidized surface soils. Although there are some predictions that are unsupported by the Viking biology experiments, such as the observed low abundances of organic matter in the surface soils, this represents the kind of counterintuitive thinking that is needed to break our terra-centric views and begin to address the origin of life on a more universal basis."
A lifeform based on bleach may seem incredible, we already know of Earth-bound creatures that use hydrogen peroxide. The beetle Brachinus crepitans mixes this bleach with other chemicals to create a toxic spray that deters predators. It's also used by other organisms to help with various cell functions. It could be a useful kind of anti-freeze for life that survives in very low temperatures, such as those experienced on Mars. In theory, Houtkooper's Martian microbes could quite happily live at -50 degrees C, and probably at even lower temperatures.
"The fact that some terrestrial organisms utilize some of the mechanisms proposed in the model certainly strengthens the case," says Farmer. "If there is one thing that has been learned from extremophile research, it is that life continues to pop up in many of the places we least expect it. This is a testimonial to the capabilities of living systems to adapt to environmental extremes through natural selection and evolution."
Knowing where life is most likely to be active is important in order to successfully find it on Mars, and Houtkooper's research helps here, too. He suggests that the best place to search for these organisms would be cold areas with plenty of water in the atmosphere: specifically, around the edge of Mars's polar ice caps.
NASA's Phoenix mission is scheduled to land in such a region in May of 2008. Says Chris McKay of NASA's Ames Research Center, "The proposal for H2O2 life on Mars is highly speculative, but it is interesting because it can be tested -- possibly as soon as next summer with the instruments on the Phoenix mission to the Martian north polar region."
Phoenix is not specifically designed to test for hydrogen peroxide-based life, but even with the proper instruments detection would be difficult. If the temperature got too high or if too much water was added, the organisms would decompose quickly. Not adding water and conducting all experiments at sub-zero temperatures would be essential to make sure the microbes were kept alive.
A sample return mission could collect some of the organisms and return them to Earth for study, but Houtkooper advises against this until we know exactly which conditions they can survive. Get it wrong and they'd die during the journey, making it a wasted trip.
If such organisms do exist on Mars, they may have made the trip to Earth before. "If there is life on Mars, there's a possibility that it has been transported either one way or the other, between Earth and Mars," says Houtkooper. "It may be part of the same evolutionary tree as us."
Richard Quinn from the SETI Institute, however, is skeptical that Viking may have found hydrogen peroxide life on Mars. The reasons, he says, have to do with temperature and humidity.
"In both the LR (labeled release) experiment and in the gas experiment, they used a heating protocol to "sterilize," to give a heat shock to diminish the population," says Quinn. "When heated to 145 degrees in the gas exchange experiment for three hours there was still a positive signal, and the claim is this was a positive signal for life. When heating at 160 degrees for three hours there was a negative signal, and the claim is in that case the life died. There's an incompatibility there, especially given that the decomposition temperature of hydrogen peroxide is typically much lower."
To say that humidity, or adding water, caused death also is incompatible with the Viking data, says Quinn. "In the PR (pyrolytic release) experiments, in some cases they didn't humidify and got a positive response and in other cases they did humidify and they still got a positive response."
Houtkooper is keen to emphasize that this theory of hydrogen-peroxide life is far from definite. "Of course, this is a hypothesis that needs confirmation," he says. "But there are some good grounds to think that life exists on Mars and we may find it with the Phoenix lander next year, so we are fairly tense about what will happen. It may give a new perspective on astrobiology."
// end //
More status reports and news releases or top stories.
Please follow SpaceRef on Twitter and Like us on Facebook.
Recent Articles


text:
Third toy library set to open
The PCF will open its third toy library at Wat Muang Mai School in Tambon Thepkrasattree on Friday July 24 at 2pm. Everyone is invited. Expect dance shows and a puppet show from staff of Phuket International Hospital.
The wat is on the left of the main road, 6.6 km north of the main intersection in Thalang town, and about 900 m before the turnoff to the airport (see map below). We hope to see you there. And if you have kids, bring 'em along too.
Tags: charity, children, school, toy library, toys


text:
When you go searching for one of the most dangerous psychic agents in the world, you'd better have a darn good plan for what happens when you find him. In day two of our exclusive daily comic strip of Matt Kindt's Mind MGMT, Lyme catches up with the deadly Fingerprint — with potentially murderous consequences.
Here's page two of the strip. Click to embiggen, and check back tomorrow for the next installment:


text:
Please wait...
Welcome to Kodesh Kallah, the Holiness of the Bride. We are seeking the reformation of the Church, the restoration of the whole Body of Messiah and the holiness of the Bride. To put that in more practical language, we are asking believers in Yeshua (Jesus) to make a commitment to holy living. We're also asking pastors and other leaders to make a commitment to leading their flock in holiness. We keep the guidelines of our Sacred Community at the bottom of this page, should you wish to formally join, and for those unsure about all the guidelines, you can participate as friend or ally with only a partial commitment. We also feature learning resources about how we can pursue holiness, some of which I've written and some of which come from other sources.
Let's face it, at this late hour, and with the Body of Messiah living much like the rest of the world, we ought to have a hard time complaining about the godlessness and immorality surrounding us. Our complaints sound immensely hypocritical when we are living nearly as they are. So before we seek to change the society around us and be a light to the world, let us pursue radical change in our own lives. Let us seek a lifestyle which is truly grounded in our faith, and immersed in the perfect holiness which our Savior provides. After all, we are to be His Bride.
If you are not used to having many standards of Christian holiness in your lifestyle, I'd imagine the commitments we ask you to make sound very heavy if not beyond what you would ever consider. Nevertheless, I urge you to start somewhere, even with a few of them. They are spiritual treasures. I began with one or two commitments myself, and by the grace which God freely provides, have taken on even more into my lifestyle. Why did I do it? Because I honestly sincerely believe all of us should live in committed holiness. And truth be told, if I want everyone to live that way, I ought to live that way myself. So remember we are not asking you to take on something that I am not willing to do myself.
It is my passionate belief that if we humble ourselves before God, and allow Him to transform us, He will use us as His light, His lamp His Menorah to the world. We only need to let go of our committed worldliness. Let go of living how we want to. Then, we will be a living example of God's love. Then we will have something to teach the world around us. Then we will be a Ground Zero for a new society.
Please come and join us.


text:
Plumbing Leak in Arcola, Texas, 77545, (713) 338-2424
Bionic Emergency Services of Arcola, TX, 77545 is aware and cautious with black water, also known as category 3. Often times associated with plumbing leaks and it is essentially water that's considered contaminated with bacteria and virus and other hazardous microbial. Black water could cause severe illness or death if ingested or if you come into contact with open wounds. Black water must to be avoided at all costs and a professional Plumbing Leak Flood Cleanup Company like ours should be contacted immediately for cleanup and disinfection of the area. The sources of black water may include but are not limited to:
- Water from toilet overflow, broken sewage pipe
- back up of basement drain
- Standing water that supports microbial growth
- Flooding from rivers or streams
Bionic Emergency Services of Arcola, TX, 77545 knows that usually the main cause of plumbing overflow is a blockage in the plumbing system. Whenever there's a blockage in the pipes, water has nowhere to go but back up and into your home. The moment water backs up or leaks out into your property, it carries many types of bacteria and germs with it. Because of this, it's extremely important to clean up the contaminated water quickly. However, this task isn't always as simple as it looks nor is it safe to just apply normal cleaning techniques after a plumbing leak incident. If you really want to get rid of the risk of contaminants, you'll need a like a Plumbing Leak Flood Cleaning Company like ours that has special equipment and powerful cleaning products to decontaminate the area. Additionally, you also have to watch out for potential water damage that can develop on your property and our Plumbing Leak Flood Removal Service is certified to do full restoration of water and sewage, give us a call today at (713) 338-2424.
Contact Bionic Emergency Services of Arcola, TX, 77545 and we'll take care of your plumbing leak cleanup project, no matter what category water it's in. Our expert Plumbing Leak Flood Cleaning Service uses cleaning methods that ensure your environment is returned to its healthy condition, and your property is free from all possible water damage. Our emergency service team is also ready to assist you anytime night or day, call us today at (713) 338-2424 for a free estimate.
City's in Fort Bend County: Sugar Land, Weston Lakes, Sienna Plantation, Simonton, Thompsons
Zip Codes in Arcola, Texas: 77583, 77545


text:
Polycarp had only been a child when he had been introduced to the man by the name of John yet he knew that this man was important. He gave him his attention because his parents seemed to be amazed at the man and when he did this he began to hear John speak words that amazed him. Soon, Polycarp had converted to the faith of John the Apostle and had become a follower of John's Lord–Jesus Christ. Further, he began taking teaching and guidance from John in how he might also be a man of God who faithfully pursued God's calling upon his life. He never was a philosopher or an especially educated man but he had the benefit of spending much time with not only John but also Papias and Ignatius of Antioch. Soon, he was a leader within the Church–even without a philosophical education–in one of the most trying and challenging times in the history of the Body of Christ. It seemed that all who wanted it could claim to be the true Church that was established by Jesus. There was no clear distinction what was and wasn't orthodoxy and many were led astray by teachers who, knowingly or unknowingly, taught their opinions as Jesus' opinions. Polycarp relied upon the teaching and guidance he had received from John to discern right teaching from wrong teaching. Then, he used his natural gifts and talents to teach and guide others to avoid heresy. In this way, Polycarp was father to many.
One of the men that Polycarp taught and mentored was Irenaeus who would go on to grow Polycarp's investment of time and attention by guiding the Church through another challenging and nebulous time of his own. Polycarp's love for Irenaeus quite literally changed the world even if Polycarp himself never saw or knew it. Looking back, this kind of love and devotion is what differentiated Polycarp from his opponents. While there was much argument it was not always full of love and compassion. Polycarp on the other hand seemed to be genuinely affected and transformed by the faith that held him. He was not brilliant or well educated but he was sincere and loving and this lent weight to his arguments. The marks of transformation on his life suggested that he had truly consumed and been sustained by the Bread of Life and the life-giving water of Jesus' teaching. When he told the story of what God had done in his life people were inspired to hand their lives over to the same God he followed. He led by example and not simply be beautiful, rhetorical flourishes.
When he was an old man (as old as ninety years by some estimates), he was arrested for being a Christian by a government that was growing increasingly hostile to those who were devoted to another power. On some level he had seen this coming for Ignatius and John had already been murdered for their faith. He was accused of being Christian and, ever sincere and honest, he gladly admitted that he was–he could see no reason to be ashamed for his faith. They gave him an opportunity to deny his faith in public or be executed. He responded: "How am I supposed to blaspheme my King and Savior? Do whatever you will." They did whatever they willed by building a large pyre of sticks and flammable items. They tied him to the top of it and prepared to drive nails through his body so that he might not escape. He smiled at the worker and assured him: "Don't worry about the nails. The God who gives me strength to endure the fire will give me enough to sit still without your help." They didn't nail him down but they must have expected him to cry out once the pyre was lit. Yet, he didn't. Instead, it seemed that he was unscathed by the flames as he prayed and sang hymns. The crowd looked on amazed and many would be converted because of this sight but his executioners were enraged that he didn't have the courtesy to die screaming like they had hoped he would. Finally, they stabbed him in the chest with a dagger and he died as a martyr.
from Blogger http://ift.tt/2sNoS5E


text:
Weather Blog: Cool, damp weather looming
Thank you for stopping by the Weather Watch 12 Blog! An active stretch of weather with numerous rain chances will dominate the forecast through Thursday. In today's blog we discuss when to expect rain and the huge temperature contrast that will set-up over the Midwest.
Let's start with the big picture and the trigger for the rain showers in the forecast Monday. The WPC(Weather Prediction Center) surface forecast map below is valid at 7am Monday morning. A warm front will be situated just south of Wisconsin. As moisture flows up and over the front rain will develop and move across southern Wisconsin.
With on and off rain for much of the work week an umbrella will need to be on standby. The first round of rain is possible during the Monday morning commute. Futurecast shown below is valid at 5am. This one model is pointing toward a soggy commute with rain showers arriving somewhere around 5am. I'd say rain showers are possible from around 5am Monday through early afternoon.
The rain may be steady at times, but no severe weather is expected in southeast Wisconsin on Monday.
With on and off rain in the forecast and a front located just south of our area, there is a good chance temperatures stay on the cool side for much of this week. Any location north of the warm front will have an easterly surface wind. This type of wind blowing across the cold Lake Michigan waters will push the cool air above the lake's surface inland. As the cool air locks-in, the warm front will have a tough time pushing the cooler more dense air out of southeast Wisconsin.
The NAM computer model temperature forecast valid at 7pm Tuesday shows the sharp temperature contrast that will exist early this week. Notice the 70s in Illinois, but only 30s and 40s across much of Wisconsin!
The main storm system will push across the Midwest Tuesday night through early Thursday. If the warm front nudges into southern Wisconsin temperatures may touch 60 or better in spots. Right now the east winds may be too much to overcome in Milwaukee so we'll stick with highs in the low 50s Monday, and then 40s the rest of the work week.
Where warm and moist air is in place the threat for severe weather is increasing. The Storm Prediction Center's day 3(Tuesday-Wednesday AM) outlook is shown below. A slight risk of severe weather covers areas from Iowa and Illinois south to Texas. The exact placement of the warm front will determine how far north this threat shifts in the next couple of days.
For southern Wisconsin beneficial rains appear likely with many locations picking up 0.50"-1"+ through Thursday. If enough cold air wraps into the system on Thursday we may see some snow over parts of Wisconsin. At this point I can't rule out southeast Wisconsin from this chance. A lot of weather ahead and we will keep you updated right here in the blog all week!
Finally, I was in Florida recently and the weather was perfect! Lots of sun and highs in the 70s and 80s. The photo below is one of my favorites from the trip. This sunset picture was taken on Marco Island looking over the Gulf of Mexico! My attempts to bring warm weather back to Wisconsin seem to have failed though.
For the latest weather information watch WISN 12 News, and for updates throughout the day follow me on Twitter @jnelsonweather
Have a great day!
Jeremy Nelson