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This morning, Tennessee released several documents to the public via its website relating to the NCAA's investigation of UT Athletics. These documents included the NCAA's Notice of Allegations, a letter from the NCAA to Chancellor Jimmy Cheek, and statements from Cheek, Athletics Director Mike Hamilton, and head basketball coach Bruce Pearl.
The released Notice of Allegations is full of redactions -- portions intentionally blacked out so they cannot be read. This isn't out of the ordinary. Such reports often contain confidential information about individuals and other things that are not for public consumption. Clay Travis this morning via Twitter opined that the redactions were exactly what you'd expect -- obliterations of certain individuals' names, particularly those of football hostesses. With all due respect to my friend, I'm not so certain.
Let's take a look at a couple of the more perplexing ones. First, a baseline.
This to me looks exactly like what you'd expect and isn't alarming at all. It's probably a redaction of names of junior recruits who can't be identified because they aren't current NCAA players. The other guys are, though, so they're identified. Fine. No problem.
This one's more problemataic. Note first that the citation to the Bylaw is redacted. Why would that be? I'm not saying that this is the case, but I honestly can't think of any reason to redact that other than hiding what the alleged violation might be. In the meat of the paragraph, it's the verb -- the most important part -- that is redacted. What did Pearl, Jones, and Forbes do? There are probably six lines of information redacted, and it certainly doesn't look like a mere list of names.
More of the same. (There are also two more subparagraphs (g) and (h) that are similar but not in the screen cap.) Further redaction of the citation to the rule allegedly violated and what appears to be the specifics of the rule. In (c), more redaction of the key verb. Subsection (d) is almost completely obliterated except for the tantalizing "Please indicate whether the . . . " Yes, please do. Ditto sub (f). Whether Pearl did what? Why leave unredacted the details in Section 4 about Pearl's "providing false and misleading information to the institution" and encouraging Aaron Craft to assist in the cover up but redact . . . something else as to whether Pearl did . . . some unspecified act in violation of some unidentified rule? Perhaps there's an explanation. But what is it?
Again, why the redaction in Section 8(b)? They want the school to make a statement regarding whether Pearl promoted an atmosphere of compliance when he did some redacted act, which is presumably something other than lying and asking a recruit to back him up because that was disclosed in detail.
That's just the basketball stuff. There are redactions in the sections dealing with football, but they appear to be for the purpose of protecting identities over which the NCAA doesn't have authority, which is what you'd expect.
Perhaps there's a perfectly appropriate explanation for this other than what I fear. Perhaps it's just sloppy and inconsistent redaction. I hope that's all it is. But Mike Hamilton also said in the statement he released with all of the other documents this morning that "most items noted in this document have already been reported broadly."
Most? Which ones haven't? The details and minor matters that are unredacted but unalarming? Or the secrets behind all the Sharpie tracks?


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CYEC in Nyeri, Kenya by Nora Frumento, CED & GLOBE double major with minor in Spanish and Arabic
Posted: October 8, 2015
I keep going back because I want to a positive and driving force in the lives of the youth, just as they have been in mine.
This past summer I spent four weeks at the Children and Youth Empowerment Centre in Nyeri, Kenya with CED499A. This was my second time in the class and hopefully not the last. I'm grateful that I had the opportunity to be a part of the class again, with a new group of students, grad students, and professors who have become my closest friends and mentors.
The first trip to the CYEC defined the rest of my college career. It motivated me, a sophomore with no specific direction in mind, to find two majors that I have grown to love and gave me specific interest in youth and education programs. This second trip allowed me to gain a new perspective with which to understand the class, the projects, and community in which the CYEC resides.
Over the past four weeks most of our time was spent at the CYEC, except for the several days in Nairobi at the beginning of the trip. We had a full couple of days in Nairobi, which provided us the opportunity to acclimate to the new environment, culture, and food while also allowing us time to do touristy-things. We toured several agricultural institutes, visited Mount Kenya University, spent time getting kissed by giraffes at the giraffe sanctuary in Nairobi [where I overcame my fear of giraffes, see right photo], went to a performance at the Bomas Cultural Center, and were given time to explore the city areas close to where we were staying. I really appreciate that we are given time to do this before heading to the CYEC because it helped us bond as class before going and working together for the next three weeks.
Overall, this past trip reinforced in me my belief that flexibility is key and having an open mind is a must. When we arrived at the Centre, my group found that what we were going to be working on had to be radically changed. My classmates and I saw firsthand that traveling to, and volunteering in a new environment can be hard, messy, and challenging. From this I have learned that staying flexible with plans and being open minded to whatever may happen are not only important skills to learn but, also necessary in order to adapt to the new environment. It was clear how important it is to adapt and adapt quickly to new places in order to start working effectively within an organization, community, or in my situation, a youth empowerment center ready to move forward with our new workshops.
My team was tasked upon arrival with coming up with two days of workshops that focused on the development of the new eco-village site that the CYEC was planning for a plot of land the neighboring idyllic area of Othaya [see bottom right photo].
The first day of workshops were with the youth and the second were with the staff, in order to give both groups the opportunity to voice and then discuss their ideas regarding the development of the site. We spent the two days throwing out any and all ideas so that everyone's idea would be heard and briefly discussed, no matter how far fetched. Ideas ranged from agriculture development to building a movie theatre or bowling alley. I learned just how important it is to let any and all ideas be heard and discussed before moving forward as a group. This facilitated an environment in which all voices were heard and all ideas were discussed.
Traveling to somewhere so vastly different from my own hometown, not once, but twice has taught me a lot. Walking down the street in a country where you look so clearly different from others was and continued to a humbling experience in my life. Also, I have learned that no matter how different our cultures or customs may be, that inherently people still have the same needs, wants, and goals. For example, my classmates & I spent four weeks working alongside youth at the center the same ages as us, with similar life goals and wants. Although we came from different backgrounds, upbringings, educations, and religions, at the end of the day we found common ground on which to bond and realized that we were more similar than previously imagined. Realizing this was incredibly beneficial and allowed us to build friendships with people halfway across the world.
From living at the CYEC once more, I have gained even stronger friendships and bonds with the staff and youth. The youth at the CYEC have continuously shown me what drive and resilience look like, in the forms of little kids all the way to adults. The first year that I traveled to the CYEC I was aware of their perseverance, but it wasn't until this year that I was able to spend enough time with specific people to witness it. It became clear that I had just spent four weeks with children who have been faced with extreme adversity in their lives, but have somehow managed to establish a place within the CYEC for themselves, and therefore, in the community. This is in major part due to the help they receive from the incredible staff of the CYEC but, at the end of the day I believe that it is those kids who had to fight for themselves when no one else would, or no one was else could. All of those children made the conscious decision to stay at the CYEC. This was not something forced upon them, but it was choice that they made regardless of their instincts to run and distrust authority.
Faced with more obstacles than solutions, those kids have given themselves a shot at an education and a life, by staying at the CYEC instead of running away. After spending time with the kids, it's clear that they are kids- they play, they laugh, they fight, they cry, they act like children. But, after spending time with them it is also clear that they are strong. I keep going back because I want to be a positive and driving force in the lives of the youth, just as they have been in mine.
They have showed me time and time again what determination and resilience looks like, and it has been one of the greatest influences in my life since.
Ag Sciences Global
Address106 Agricultural Administration Building
University Park, PA 16802
- Email email@example.com
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Ag Sciences Global
Address106 Agricultural Administration Building
University Park, PA 16802
- Email email@example.com
- Office 814-863-0249
- Fax 814-865-3055

subset: commoncrawl


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There are some films difficult to view because of their portrayal of the human condition, or their presentation of man's inhumanity to man. Most of us seek escape from the realities of life whenever we venture into a movie theater. Indeed, that's the main duty of the cinema, to entertain us.
Occasionally a film can open our eyes to injustice and offer solutions to correct such wrongs. There isn't a single film on the following list I wanted to see, due to their subject matter or some imagery I knew would upset or unnerve me.
But I'm glad I saw them, because each helped me better understand myself, my fellow man, and in one case, my God.
American Sniper
In Clint Eastwood's "Unforgiven," the lead character and former gunman speaks one of the most telling lines in movie history about the irreversible finality of killing a fellow human being: "You take away all he's got and all he's ever gonna have." While the statement is not completely true (at least for those who die and spend eternity with our Lord and Savior), it does reveal the inner turmoil a man of conscience goes through upon examination of the deed.
Some may be desensitized to just about anything Hollywood dishes out nowadays, but for many of us, it still grieves the spirit within to view brutal combat or the suffering of people on screen. Such films can, however, give us an insight into the character of man. Such is the case with American Sniper.
Based on a true story, American Sniper recounts the military career of Chris Kyle, a Navy S.E.A.L who was trained as a sniper to protect advancing soldiers into hostile zones. This film, also from director Clint Eastwood, recreates many of his more than 150 confirmed kills. Superbly directed and memorably acted by Bradley Cooper, American Sniper does what most great military films do: it delivers a thoughtful exhortation on the wages of war.
While it is pro God (Chris carried a Bible at all times) and pro country (he did four tours of duty), it points out the haunting price paid by any man who uses a weapon in the name of freedom. The film reminded me not just to thank our soldiers when I see them; but to pray God will replace their nightmares with peaceful dreams, and gently restore wounded bodies and minds. But beware. It's an R-rated film about men in war. It's brutal and peppered with obscenity. Does the profundity outweigh the profanity? Your call.
The Passion of the Christ
Mel Gibson's brutal yet undeniably artistic rendering of the final hours of Christ's life is aided by superb cinematography, lighting, music, dynamic special effects and Jim Caviezel's sincere and muted performance. Justly rated R for its graphic depiction of scourging, piercing, beating and crucifixion, The Passion of the Christ is meant to shock and unnerve us, and clarify the ordeal of Christ's sacrifice. That's often hard to sit through. But Mr. Gibson's film, while showing the physical horrors Christ endured, is not really about what mankind did to Him. It's about what He did for us.
Amish Grace
Based on a true story, this moving TV drama centers on a grieving community after a madman kills several of their schoolgirls. I only watched it because I had to review it. But what a lesson I learned. The book's title best summarizes the production's theme — "Amish Grace: How Forgiveness Transcended Tragedy." For me, it wasn't a defense of a particular religious group, but rather a penetrating examination of the concept of true forgiveness. Make no mistake, this is a tough one. It will move you, often. But it's an important film because it deals with spiritual truths and provides a positive answer to a nagging question — how do we forgive?
Schindler's List
Schindler's List, from 1993, is the true story of a war profiteer affected by the mistreatment of the Jews during the Holocaust. Besides the historical value of this piece, it presents a great example of redemption, and contains one of the most spiritually uplifting endings I have ever seen at the movies. Caution: it is rated R for language, brutality and sexual situations, including nudity, and adultery. I abhor those offenses and believe the same film could have been made just as effectively without the explicitness. But for me, Schindler's List contains scenes that represent God's intervention and His power to heal relationships.
French with subtitles, what really makes it difficult to view is the ordeal the little protagonist endures. After the death of her mother, a child attempts to understand where her mommy is, and believes if she can get close enough to God, He will send the mother back.
While it's a film that frustrates because we cannot relieve the child's sadness, Ponette nevertheless is an insightful look at the world of children. It includes an uplifting ending and powerful performances by the three lead kids. There's also a positive portrayal of a Christian woman as she relates the story of Christ to this little one.
Four-year-old Victoire Thivisol won the 1996 Venice Film Festival Best Actress prize for her portrayal. How the filmmakers got such a dynamic, moving performance out of this cherub is beyond me; but even if she never does another thing, this little girl has greatly contributed to the world of art and the spirit of man. This film is not rated (There are three or four obscenities, but no apparent misuse of God's name).
In Plain Sight
In Plain Sight is an inspiring documentary featuring the work of six female abolitionists as they fight against sex trafficking in the United States. Right now, children are bought and sold, some by family members, right here in our own cities. This subject is painful to think about, but In Plain Sight will help you understand what is happening, why it is happening, and what you can do to make a positive difference. It's a moving, informative and necessary film. Not rated, this 68-minute documentary is now available from Word Entertainment.
Anne Frank Remembered
It's disheartening to think of people having to hide in order to survive, but that's the way it was for many Jews during WWII. This poignant documentary works on several levels: a true-life coming of age, the insights of a wise young girl, and the human capacity to survive while caring for others.
Filled with many intuitive moments, the film reminds us that soon no one will be here to tell the personal events associated with that horrific time.
One particular moment had a sudden emotional impact on me. Real-life film footage shows a parade during that period when suddenly the camera pans up the side of a housing complex, revealing people looking out the window at the commotion in the street. One of those people was the real Anne Frank. I remember bursting into tears as that visual overwhelmed me. I'm not sure why, other than the fact that here was this human being, full of life, and I realized that life would swiftly undergo change, then be snuffed out one day in a concentration camp. It's one of the most moving images ever caught on film. Anne Frank Remembered is rated PG. The atrocities of Hitler's concentration camps are briefly seen toward the end of the film.
Chadwick Boseman is outstanding as the legendary Jackie Robinson, one of the greatest baseball players of all time. Perhaps the most profound scene in the film has to do with an opposing coach hurling insults at Robinson before a packed stadium. It's an extended sequence, meant to unnerve and madden us. As difficult as it is to sit through these screen moments, they ultimately serve to unite the theater audience with Robinson.
An equally telling moment has a dad and his boy ready to enjoy the game. The father and son are bonding when, as Robinson takes the field, the father yells out the N-word, along with the crowd. His vitriolic chant against this man of color unsettles the boy, as he doesn't understand what's going on. Alas, soon the child is also yelling the N-word along with his father. As demoralizing as that sequence can be, it sends the message that we learn from our parents. This film is rated PG-13.
I'm sure many are asking, "What about the content of some of these films you are presenting?" The above films were difficult for me because of the content and the subjects, but they were also profound in their intent.
— by Phil Boatwright | BP
Boatwright reviews films for www.previewonline.org and is a regular contributor to "The World and Everything In It," a weekly radio program from WORLD News Group.


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The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) officially approved three new billing codes for Remote Patient Monitoring (RPM). Announced in November 2018, the new codes came into effect January 1, 2019.
With these new reimbursement codes, physicians are incentivized to drive more health care to the home, and leverage technology like VoCare's Vitals360 device.
The new codes will reimburse physicians for the initial set-up and education of the patient on the new RPM equipment, as well as monthly reimbursements towards device transmission services and monthly monitoring/treatment. This structure closely mirrors the Vitals360 business model.
The specific codes are:
- CPT code 99453: Initial setup. Pays approximately $21. "Remote monitoring of physiologic parameter(s) (e.g., weight, blood pressure, pulse oximetry, respiratory flow rate), initial; set-up and patient education on use of equipment."
- CPT code 99454: Device/transmission fee. Pays approximately $69 per month. "Remote monitoring of physiologic parameter(s) (e.g., weight, blood pressure, pulse oximetry, respiratory flow rate), initial; device(s) supply with daily recording(s) or programmed alert(s) transmission, each 30 days."
- CPT code 99457: Monitoring and treatment. Pays approximately $53 per month for 20 minutes of time spent viewing data and communicating with patients. "Remote physiologic monitoring treatment management services, 20 minutes or more of clinical staff/physician/other qualified healthcare professional time in a calendar month requiring interactive communication with the patient/caregiver during the month.
CPT 99457 allows RPM services to be performed not only by the physician or qualified healthcare professional, but also by "clinical staff," such as: RNs and medical assistants. This could make it easier for healthcare providers to figure RPM programs into their workflow.
Moreover, these codes can be combined with chronic care management services (CCM), which have been active for a few years. The combined utilization of these codes provides a mechanism that family medicine providers can use to monitor and engage with patients, and to help them more efficiently manage their chronic conditions, while getting reimbursed, providing a new mechanism that innovative and savvy physician practices may be able to use to increase their quality metrics while also increasing the near term profitability of their practices.
Why is CMS doing this?
While this new mechanism creates an enormous new financial opportunity for certain types of providers (e.g. primary care providers), the new billing codes are expected to help reduce overall medical spending as a whole.


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Here is the scoop:
I love you Janel !!
xoxox cuppy
I will only be taking a limited number of classmates for this class so grab your spot before they are gone!!
You got me again, I was just going to put my stuff away... What's another month? Looking forward to the class!ReplyDelete
I just signed up, I am so excited about it!ReplyDelete
Oooh I wish I could do this! I will have to save up some money for the next time!!ReplyDelete
You are a super mom! I wish I could do this but our new baby is taking up all my time right now. Do again. Please!ReplyDelete
YAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! So excited for this class!! xReplyDelete
Yesssss... just paid my $$$. Cant wait to get started - LOVE your journal classes!!
So excited to start!!! And what perfect timeing. Its my favorite season, I am on vacation allll week so I will have LOTS of time to play and I am starting a new "season" of prepping to get pregnant in January!ReplyDelete
Just signed up. Hope I am not to late?
I am excited to join!
Love, Renee


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Legislative and Political Action
*** Community and Political Action Links and Information! ***
Labor Unions are involved in politics to protect and advance the best interests of all workers and their families. Wages and benefits achieved through collective bargaining can be ...
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** NEW TOOL** Public Citizen Launches Trade Data Center **
Public Citizen's Global Trade Watch today launched its Trade Data Center, a new and exciting tool for researching and illustrating the impacts of trade policy on local communities....
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I know some of you disagree with my efforts to email staffers. For those that don't, I've created a program to email staffers directly. It's very easy, one click to access all th...
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Community and Political Links
Mark Fiore's Animated Political Cartoons
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*CWA Members & Retirees Kicking Ass For The Working Class*
Be Part of the Fight. Join the fight for worker's rights. If you are a CWA member, part of a family with a CWA member, or a retired CWA member, give at least $25 to CWA-COPE today...
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*New* Social Security Calculator Helps Set Retirement Goals
The Center for Economic and Policy Research (CEPR [3]) has made it easy to determine how much of your retirement income will come from Social Security. The CEPR?s new Social Securi...
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TOGETHER... We Can Rebuild America's Middle Class!
I just signed an important petition to help get our country back on track, and I hope you'll join me. In today's economy, folks like you and me need a fair deal and ...
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************ Introducing KochBlocked.com ************
Check out our new site for creative agitation against the Koch Brothers? dirty money landing in our politics: KochBlocked.com. Along with KochBlocked, we?ve launched our brand new ...
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I was strolling in the gardens of an insane asylum when I met a young man who was reading a philosophy book.
His behavior and his evident good health made him stand out from the other inmates.
I sat down beside him and asked:
'What are you doing here?'
He looked at me, surprised. But seeing that I was not one of the doctors, he replied:
'It's very simple. My father, a brilliant lawyer, wanted me to be like him. My uncle, who owns a large emporium, hoped I would follow his example. My mother …. And the story continues. … read the ending here: 30 SEC READ: A story by Kahlil Gibran


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Ccra Travel Solutions News
CCRA unveils a new travel agent blog
This month CCRA Travel Solutions - a leading provider of business-related solutions for the travel professional—is pleased to unveil a new travel agent blog that will feature travel tips and industry insight; travel agent success stories and advice; the latest CCRA agent offerings, and much more.
CCRA Travel Solutions enhances online offerings for travel agents
CCRA Travel Solutions - a leading provider of business-related solutions for the travel professional – is pleased to announce a series of online enhancements to help travel agents boost their income in 2012.
CCRA signs global distribution deals to expand global offering
CCRA has confirmed its Global Network Division has signed its first seven global distributor agreements in Europe, Asia, Africa and Latin America. Speaking earlier at the American Society of Travel Agents trade conference in Las Vegas, Nevada, president Dic Marxen said the move would extend CCRA's international presence to over 10,000 new travel agencies in 19 countries.
CCRA Introduces new travel program
CCRA Travel Solutions is pleased to announce a new preferred travel partner program that will greatly enhance the travel agent services and commissionable booking opportunities.


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Capital ship balancing
I am proud to announce that this winter, we are going to release some long-anticipated ship balancing. Specifically, capital ship balancing.
For a long time, there has been an outcry in the community that fleet fights are stagnating and are just not as fun as they should be. There are dozens, if not hundreds, of pages of forum threads dedicated to this subject both on the official EVE Online forums, other EVE forums, as well as in blogs and articles. There is no shortage of opinions on this subject from players, devs and CSM members; the main concern that has been stated over and over again is that the proliferation of supercapitals is mostly to blame. Supercapitals can effectively deal with any size of target, and killing them takes a tremendous amount of damage. What this means is that with very few exceptions, the fleet with the most supercarriers wins. Huge, expensive ships should obviously be powerful, but there needs to be a way to fight back.
While not everyone agrees that supercarriers are to blame for everything, there were some issues that kept popping up:
- Supercapitals are too hard to kill.
- Supercarriers are far too versatile.
- The Titan superweapon is too powerful.
- Dreadnoughts are not good enough.
- Remote ECM Bursts should not work on ships immune to ewar.
- Sub-capitals are useless in fleet fights.
Supercapitals are too hard to kill
We wanted to make them a little bit weaker, but not gut them completely. We're doing a simple 20% reduction in Shield, Armor and Hull hitpoints on both supercarriers and titans.
Supercarriers are far too versatile
The reason that supercarriers can deal with any size of ship is the versatility provided by its massive drone bay. Having access to almost unlimited combat drones of all sizes and being able to launch 20 of them at a time means that they have an answer to almost any situation. In fact, we found that drones on capital ships in general to be detrimental to the way fleet fights should work. If you want to deal with sub-capitals, you should bring your own sub-capitals or a carrier. Supercarriers will now have a smaller drone bay and will only be able to put fighters and fighter bombers in it. We are increasing the signature resolution on fighters so that they deal less damage to smaller targets. We are also completely removing the drone bays of titans and dreadnoughts. Seeing as we didn't want to take damage away from dreadnoughts, we're boosting the damage bonus of Siege Module I to compensate for the loss of drones. The Moros had its drone bonus changed to a capital hybrid turret rate of fire bonus.
The Titan superweapon is too powerful
Once we decided to reduce the capabilities of the supercarriers, we had to make sure that the "supercapital blob" wouldn't simply be replaced by the "titan blob." This meant that we had to do something about the superweapons. The big problem with the superweapons is that they can take out the crucial logistics and command ships of the opposing fleet in the first few minutes of a fleet fight, which severely reduces the capabilities of any remaining sub-capital ships. To fix this, we are changing the superweapon so that it cannot fire upon sub-capital ships (capital ships being Freighters, Jump Freighters, Carriers, Dreadnoughts, Capital Industrial Ships, Supercarriers and Titans).
Dreadnoughts are not good enough
One of the biggest problems with dreadnoughts is the fact that you have to commit them for 10 minutes at a time with siege mode. We are shortening the duration of Siege Module I from 10 minutes to 5 minutes and cutting the Strontium Clathrate cost in half. Dreadnoughts in siege mode will also no longer be affected by Remote ECM Burst. There was some discussion about boosting the dreadnoughts further, but we want to see how they play out with the other capital changes first.
Sub-capitals are useless in fleet fights
The changes we're making should have a big impact here. Capital ships will have fewer drones to attack sub-capitals. Fighters will deal less damage to sub-capitals. Superweapons won't be able to shoot sub-capitals. Supercarriers will have fewer reserve fighters and fighterbombers, so having your sub-caps take down fighters and fighter bombers will have more of an impact on the fight.
Logging off should not be a viable tactic
Then there are the logoff mechanics. When you log off your character in space, the ship you are piloting disappears after 15 minutes. This, coupled with the millions of hitponts that supercapitals have, means that very few supercapitals are actually being destroyed. When a fleet is losing a large supercapital fight, they can simply log everyone off and be confident that they enemy fleet will only have enough time to kill a handful of their supercapitals. This kind of meta-gaming is not only un-fun but it just doesn't make much sense. When you commit your ship to a battle that should actually be a commitment. Only by winning or by making a tactical, well planned retreat should your ship be able to survive. It has been said that spaceships are serious business and they damn well should be. We are changing the logoff mechanics in such a way that as long as your enemies are actively engaged in fighting you, logging off is not going to save your ship.
The end. Except it's not the end at all.
As a part of our efforts to refocus towards FiS, these balancing changes are going to be the first of many, making sure that we continually balance and shake up EVE for years to come.
In conclusion, here is a full list of the changes we're making.
- Drone bay can only hold fighters and fighter bombers.
- Reduce Shield, Armor and Hull hitpoints on all Supercarriers by 20%.
- Reduce drone capacity.
- Aeon, Revenant and Wyvern: 125000 (25 total Fighters + Fighter Bombers)
- Hel and Nyx: 150000 (30 total Fighters + Fighter Bombers)
- Remote ECM Burst: Does not affect ships that are immune to electronic warfare (Supercarriers, Titans, Triaged Carriers and Sieged Dreads)
Increase signature resolution to 400. (This change has been cancelled due to feedback from the EVE community)
- Remove drone bay from all dreadnoughts.
- Siege Module I: Boost damage bonus from 625% to 700% to compensate for loss of drones.
- Siege Module I: Duration time reduced to 5 minutes. Fuel cost -50%.
- Moros: Remove drone bonus.
- Moros: New bonus: 5% bonus to Capital Hybrid Turret rate of fire per level.
- Remove drone bay from all titans.
- Reduce Shield, Armor and Hull hitpoints by 20%.
- Superweapon: Cannot shoot sub-capital ships.
Logoff timer
- After a player logs out, there is a check for player aggression every 15 minutes. If you have been aggressed, the timer extends for 15 minutes; if you have not been aggressed, you disappear as before. Note: this is only for player aggression and will not change what happens when you log off during fights against NPCs.
New to EVE? Start your 14-day free trial today.
Returning pilot? Visit Account Management for the latest offers and promotions.


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This particular customer was undergoing a critical architecture shift from a self-hosted, wholly-released system to a service-oriented architecture. What was once a large, monolithic system that had big-bang releases is now becoming a distributed solution made up of many independent services.
At the same time, there was also a big organizational push to implement Agile methodologies on the software delivery teams. This architecture and methodology shift has many benefits – it lowers the risk involved with big releases, allows teams to deliver value to customers more frequently, and enables their solution to be delivered in the cloud rather than heavy and expensive on-premises servers at each customer site.
My goal for visiting this customer was to determine how Jama could help in this challenging shift to a new paradigm which really impacts the way they think about requirements and test management.
The Current StateThis customer primarily uses Jama to:
The ChallengeIn the past, the customer had a large engineering team all marching toward the same release date. Now, many Agile teams iterate and deploy their services independently.
For the system engineers, their requirements typically need many agile teams across different services to completely implement a new feature requirement. The system and software engineers authoring the functional specifications have no connection or visibility to the Agile team-level user stories, so it's very hard to tell the team dependencies and when the overall functional spec can be considered "done."
As we dug in with the Agile teams, we learned that many simply had a flat list of user stories on a backlog and no real hierarchy or traceability to requirements. These stories lived in a variety of Dev tools – some home-grown, some industry-popular tools like Jira.
The Recommendation: It's Epic!Jama recommended introducing an "epic" workflow in the requirements traceability model. Epics are basically a large user story that will be specific to an Agile team and tie together system requirements and user stories for each independent service. They break down the system requirements into something each Agile team can consume. Using Jama's Integration Hub or Jama's Rest API, these epics can sync to a variety of Dev tools each team prefers to use while Jama holds the roll-up and traceability to the holistic system solution. Agile teams decompose the epics to user stories on their Service backlog and as they proceed through their sprints, the epic status syncs back to Jama.
The TakeawaysThese recommendations aren't rocket science, they just require some time for teams to take a step back, analyze the challenge, and come up with a solution.
We understand it's hard to pause the work of your job and think process improvement, but this proves invaluable time and again. One of the key principles of the Agile Manifesto is: At regular intervals, the team reflects on how to become more effective, then tunes and adjusts its behavior accordingly.
Are you looking to optimize your usage of Jama? Is your team undergoing a methodology or architecture shift and not sure how to proceed with Jama? Connect with us; we would love to partner with your team for success.
HEADQUARTERS|135 SW Taylor Suite 200, Portland, Oregon, 97204


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At the same time, LED street lighting is increasingly becoming recognized as a relatively low-risk investment that can pay big dividends in the form of energy and maintenance savings when correctly implemented. The recent emergence of myriad financial instruments, as well as financing companies offering to supply the associated funding, is testament to the favorable perspective taken on these investments.
The purpose of this section of the website is to offer a brief introduction to the various financing models and tools that are becoming available, to present case studies of municipalities that have used those tools, and to provide links to resources that offer additional information. These materials are not intended to be a complete tutorial on the various financing methods, nor to steer users in any particular direction; but, rather, to raise awareness of some of the different options available and identify sources for obtaining more information.


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The social group skills competition has been held since 2012. It is known as the "National Skills Competition of Labor Gurus' Cup" and is held once a year. It aims to encourage people to learn techniques to improve the national skills standards, promote industry friendships and technological exchange and bring out workplace efficacy. Participants have to be over the age of 22. From 2013, it has been called "National Career Gurus'Cup skills competition" and is held biennially.
The "2015 National Career Gurus' Cup skills competition" organized by the Kaohsiung, Pingtung, and Penghu East Branches of the Ministry of Labor Workforce Development Agency and Zhongshan Senior Industrial and Commercial schools handled nine competition vocational categories which progressed in two fields of competition. In the competition field of Kaohsiung, Pingtung, and Penghu East Branch, the single vocational category "metal welding" was handled; in the competition field of Kaohsiung city private Chung Shan senior Industrial and Commercial school, competitions were held in 8 vocational categories, "vegetarian creative dishes", "bread-making", "western art", "bricklaying", "interior decoration creation", "window design","vehicle maintenance technical" and "motorcycle repair".
Workforce Development Agency
Address: 4F., No.439, Zhongping Rd., Xinzhuang Dist., New Taipei City 242030, Taiwan (R.O.C.)
Service hours: Monday to Friday, 8:30a.m.~12:30a.m.;1:30p.m.~5:30p.m.
Office hours for foreigner's work permit application: Monday to Friday, 8:30a.m ~ 5:30p.m.
Address:10F, No. 39, Sec. 1, Zhonghua Rd., Zhongzheng Dist., Taipei City


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Pork is a nutrient dense food, which means it has a high level of nutrients in proportion to its calorie content. It contains a high level of some of the essential B vitamins, such as B12, B6, thiamin, niacin and riboflavin. It is also rich in other nutrients, such as phosphorous, zinc, potassium, iron and magnesium, which are important to our daily diet. Our bodies require a certain amount of protein daily and the body does not store protein so we need to replenish it each day. A 3-ounce portion of pork provides approximately half of our daily requirement for protein.
Our bodies also require fat in our diet, which allows us to absorb vitamins that are fat-soluble and energy producing. But, too much fat is not healthy and will increase our cholesterol levels. Some cuts of pork are as low or lower in fat than chicken and over half of the fat is unsaturated fat, the type that helps lower cholesterol. Any cuts from the loin are good lean selections. Shown below are a few suggestions on how to reduce the fat content and avoid adding extra fat when preparing pork.
Nutrition Chart - Pork versus Other Meats


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Cochin - Munnar - Thekkady - Kumarakom - Cochin
Our representative will receive you at the Cochin Airport / Ernakulam railway station (depend on your arrival place) and drive down to Munnar (4 ½ hrs). On arrival, check into the hotel and relax for the rest of the day. Overnight stay at the hotel will be arranged.
Morning explore the picturesque hill station. Your sightseeing itinerary will include the Rajamala Hills (also known as Evarikulam National Park) / Anaimudi (2,695 m) - South India's highest peak, and the Madupetty Dam, Echo point, Pothemedu view point, Blosson Park, Tea Museum. Return to the hotel for overnight stay.
After breakfast proceed to Thekkady / Periyar, a highly picturesque resort ideal for unwinding. Upon arrival you will be taken to resort. In the evening simmer down and get refreshed enjoying a boat safari (on supplement cost if not include with the tour) in the scenic Periyar Lake, occasionally winning the glance of some rare varieties of birds and animals at Periyar National Park. Return to hotel for an overnight stay.
After a refreshing breakfast, leave for Kumarakom, a land lying on the banks of Lake Vembanad, enveloped with stunning scenery. Kumarakom Bird Sanctuary, a home to thousand and more of rare species of birds, is also included in the itinerary. Return to the hotel for an overnight stay.
After a refreshing breakfast, set out on an enchanting overnight backwater cruise in traditionally decorated houseboats. Check in at 1300 hours – cruise start with lunch. While cruising in these floating luxury-villas, let your eyes settle for the rare and the unusual - skim past Chinese fishing nets, bowed-down paddy fields, local inhabitants engaged in making coir products, rustic homes, ancient temples and swaying coconut groves. Food will be served onboard. Overnight stay in the houseboat
After a refreshing breakfast served onboard, check out from the houseboat and drive to Cochin Airport / railway station (depend on your departure place) for your flight / train back home, feeling contented about a wonderful holiday you spent in the "God's Own Country".
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Black Truffle Butter (8oz) Angel Salumi
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Hailing from Californian grass-fed cows, this European-style naturally cultured butter is blended with 5% Black Truffle Puree, Black Truffle Peelings and Sea Salt to create a traditional French flavor palette. Our Black Truffle Butter contains Grade AA (>82%) butterfat, and is made using Graziers-Certified Cream.
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text: EquipNet is the world's leading provider of used washers and rinsers and a range of other preowned equipment. Our exclusive contracts with our clients yield a wide range of used washers and rinsers from a number of respected OEMs, including Getinge, link,Miele, Lancer, Steris, Scientek, Bosch, Sani Matic Inc., Steris Finn Aqua, Mengibar, and many others. We are constantly receiving used bottle washers, dishwashers, glassware washers, lab parts washers, vial washers, stopper washers, and much more. If you don't see the used washers and rinsers you are looking for, call one of our representatives and we'll find it for you. We can also source the right tooling and change parts that you need through our huge network of corporate clients from around the globe.


text: Group Events Details on Hosting a Group Event FIRST: Talk to your friends about your intentions to hold a group event. Find out who's interested and if you choose to, get their input on a suitable day and time. Ultimately, YOU choose the date and time – so don't get hung up on this! continue reading


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Foot Switch Cap, Transparent Dark Blue
Foot Switch Cap, Transparent Dark Blue
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These foot switch caps are a great way to add a unique style to your builds or existing pedals. They also provide a larger area to stomp the switch!
- 24mm width (about 1")
- 12mm height (about 1/2")


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There's something for just about everyone to feel good about in Salt Lake's pre-kindergarten program.
The state, with money from Goldman Sachs, expanded the program to serve more children from low-income families. In the end, Utah saved money, investors made money, and nearly every student who participated ended up not needing special education in kindergarten.
The Utah pre-K experiment is worth paying attention to for two reasons. It's another piece of evidence that good-quality early childhood education can save money in the long term. But it's also the result for a new, mostly untested way of paying for social programs known as a social impact bond: Private entities put up the money upfront, and the government only pays if the program gets the results it wants.
Social impact bonds are a relatively new idea, but they're spreading quickly. About 40 projects are underway, seven in the US. The Utah pre-K program is, so far, the first American success.
How the Utah pre-K program worked
The pre-kindergarten program, which was free to low-income children in the Granite School District in Salt Lake County, had already proven to be good at getting disadvantaged kids ready to start school. A three-year study of the program looked at 737 kids who participated between 2006 and 2011. More than 200 were expected to end up needing special education in elementary school; only 11 of them did.
But the half-day program, which cost $1,500 per student, had a long waiting list. In 2013, Goldman Sachs and the Pritzker Family Foundation put up $7 million to expand a pre-K program run by the United Way of Salt Lake.
The deal was that if the program delivered the results it promised and kept kids from needing special education, the state would pay most of the savings — about $2,600 per student — to the investors. If the program failed, the nonprofit Pritzker Foundation would help cover Goldman's losses.
The loan allowed Utah to expand the program to 595 more 3- and 4-year-olds last year, about half of the waiting list. All of them were from low-income families, and 110 were expected to need special education in elementary school. But this year, when students were tested in kindergarten, only one of them did.
That saved the state $281,550, according to the United Way. Investors will get a payment of $267,473, with additional payouts to follow if the students continue not to need special education in grade school. And the state now has proof that spending more on early childhood education still saves money, because a year of pre-K is cheaper than a year of special education.
This is the first time a social impact bond has worked in the US
It would have been even more cost-effective for Utah to expand pre-K itself. That way, the state could have kept all of the savings rather than paying most of the money to Goldman Sachs. But it also would have been riskier; if the program hadn't worked, the state would have spent the money on pre-K with nothing to show for it.
That's why social impact bonds are so appealing to policymakers. The bonds offer many of the benefits of new policies with none of the risk.
It can also provide a way for states and local governments to try things that might be politically difficult, said Allen Grossman, a professor of management at Harvard Business School who has researched social impact bonds.
"This has the other and very important benefit of removing it from all the vagaries and sclerotic dimensions of the bureaucracy," he said.
And so social impact bonds are spreading. In the past five years, the method has started experiments with new policies to lower unemployment for migrants in Brussels, find homes for children in need of adoption in the United Kingdom, reduce recidivism for young men who served prison terms in Massachusetts, and help children in Saskatchewan avoid foster care.
But while the Utah program is a success, other social impact bonds have faltered. Either they haven't delivered the results they promised, or they weren't given a chance to play out fully.
The first social impact bond project started in Peterborough, in the UK, in 2010 and was meant to reduce recidivism among prisoners. Early results were promising but not spectacular: The program was effective enough to continue, with repayment expected in 2016, but it wasn't effective enough that investors were repaid immediately. Then the UK changed its policies for dealing with prisoners and recidivism, and the project was cut short.
In the US, meanwhile, Goldman Sachs and Bloomberg Philanthropies put up the money for a program meant to reduce recidivism for juveniles held at New York's Rikers Island prison. But it didn't work — an evaluation found no difference between people participating in the program and a control group — so the city killed the program.
Supporters of social impact bonds tried to portray this as good news: The city hadn't wasted any money on an inefficient program, and once the program was found not to be effective, it was discontinued quickly. But the news out of Utah is much better.


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Lockout Tips
The Hot Car Problem and Vehicular Heatstroke
- by: 24Hr Lockouts
- in emergency locksmith service, safety tips
Summer is upon us, and soon news headlines are sure to include a few about a child or pet dying due to heatstroke after being left in a car. In 2016, 39 precious children lost their lives due to vehicular heatstroke. This is so heartbreaking because it is so preventable. 24Hr Lockouts wants to offer you these tips to help you avoid an emergency situation. A few extra seconds to follow these tips could save a life.
Remember to Check the Back Seat
Placing something important in the back seat before your trip will help you remember to check the back seat before locking up the car and leaving. This can be your purse or smartphone, or any other item that you are unlike to forget. It can happen to the best of us. We are running around hurriedly to meet deadlines, accomplish every errand on one trip, and beat the traffic jams of rush hour. We can become consumed with the immediate tasks and forget to look in the back seat for the toddler who has fallen asleep. Here's a specific list to help you remember.
- Leave your wallet, purse, smartphone or other important item on the floor of the back seat when you get into your car. When you leave, you will need to retrieve it and quickly ensure the child seat is empty.
- Use a toy or stuffed animal to occupy the child seat when your kid is not with you. Place the stuffed animal or toy in the passenger seat when your child is with you. This will remind you that your child is in the car seat.
- Put your mobile device on the floor of the back seat. This will keep you from driving while texting as well as ensuring that you open the back door to retrieve it.
- Ask your child's caregiver to call you if you have not dropped your child off as scheduled. Ask that person to not assume the child is sick and will be missing the day. Ensure that the caregiver has you cell, home, and office phone numbers.
New parents face many challenges and sleep deprivation is one. This can impact your memory, as well as stress and fatigue levels. It's easy to become distracted and overwhelmed, especially if your child is quiet in the back seat.
A quick run into the store can easily become a disaster. Even if the outside temperature is in the 70s or 80s, the interior of a car can rise to unlivable levels within minutes. In addition, the body temperature of a child or pet can rise more quickly than an adult's. It can be inconvenient to bring the baby along for a short shopping excursion or leave the dog at home, but it's so crucial.
If you see a child or pet inside a locked, unattended vehicle, call 911 immediately. Then call 24Hr Lockouts to dispatch a lockout technician immediately.
24Hr Lockouts wishes you a fun, happy, and safe summer!


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Caregiving is nearly always a team effort. In the best of circumstances, this means everyone involved communicates and works hard to be ready when called. But in the real world we all have met coworkers or team members who just aren't contributing, and some even neglect to come to practice. Here are some ways to remind teammates that their efforts are vital to the team's success.
Document and Decide
Before you start making changes or speak with other team members, take time to document times, incidents and actions that show your coworker's neglect of duty. The worst thing you can do is to arrive with one or two small examples or none at all, and breed negativity. Keep a discrete notebook or take notes on your phone. Include dates, times, and pictures, if possible. Then, note possible excuses they might have. For example: If the senior in your mutual care becomes nauseated after dinner and does not want to take the usual bath, that does not constitute laziness by a coworker. It means they are flexible and put a senior's wellbeing before routines. If you notice a senior has not received a bath in some time that may be a problem.
Once you have documentation and you have shown that laziness is a strong possible explanation for the coworker's actions, notify your supervisor. Most businesses have a chain of command–identify yours, bring your documentation, and speak kindly. Identify the highest priorities–those that interfere with a senior's health and safety are first. (This process can be difficult because it is likely that a coworker's refusal to complete assigned tasks always directly affects seniors. Do your best to judge what your supervisor will deem most important.)
Once you meet with your supervisor and create a plan of action, you will probably have to continue working with this person. Keep your exchanges polite, respectful and tactful. If you can file your concerns anonymously, do so. Listen to your supervisor and support your coworker's improvement. Your plan might stop here!
However, in some workplaces, supervisors are not as effective as coworker communication. If chatting with a supervisor does not yield good results, you may need to adjust your communication in order to solve the problem. This can prove difficult since you always want strong and amicable relationships at work. Consider some of the following roundabout methods of addressing the situation.
- I've noticed you've been a little tired lately. Is everything okay?
- [Name of senior] seems off today–did everything go all right with his medications last night?
- [Senior's family member] called, asking about her lunchtime routine, since she might take her out to lunch next weekend. Can you walk me through it so I can call her back with the right information?
These questions prompt your coworker to think about their behavior at work. It also reminds them you are a team and that their actions affect others. Consider these possible answers:
- I have been tired. I started night school and it's taking a lot out of me, thank you for noticing. (Now you know why things might be slacking! Then you can ask smarter questions, even offer to help while your coworker adjusts to a newer, more demanding schedule.)
- Oh, he's been resisting taking his sleeping medications. I didn't want to fight him, so I let it go, but this is happening more often. (Now you have a specific issue you can bring to the senior or his doctor to discuss.)
- She likes to eat a sandwich and soup around noon, then she takes her afternoon medications and goes on a walk. She's supposed to be supervised, but she does fine on her own. (Now, you can politely impress upon your coworker the importance of following protocols. Or, find out why she or he might be resistant to the task and help to remedy it.)
Keep Calm and Change the Plan
Typically, caregivers work hard and do their best. This means that most of the time coworkers grapple with issues that challenge their patience, stamina and intellect. These challenges are not overcome easily or alone. When you believe a coworker is being lazy, have the patience and compassion to reserve judgment. Then, when you establish communication and understand why tasks are not being completed, create a solution that involves both of you. This could mean giving support, checking in on them in a few days or offering a pep talk. No matter what the changes are, changes are in order. The more team- and action-oriented the changes are, the better. For example, if your coworker has been doing a poor job completing the daily journal on several seniors, offer to read it for them for a few weeks before they turn it in. This puts an extra task on you, but you might find that they simply need more training or a keener eye. Then, they'll no longer need your help and can write good journals.
Remember, remind others that they are part of a vital team to keep seniors healthy, happy and safe. The more team-oriented and supportive the workplace is, the better it is for everyone – and it starts with you.
Rosenblatt, Carolyn. 5 Success Tips With Difficult Aging Parents. Forbes, January 27, 2011. Available at https://www.forbes.com/sites/carolynrosenblatt/2011/01/27/5-success-tips-with-difficult-aging-parents/#287146a7532e. Retrieved March 5, 2017.
Smith, Jacquelyn. 12 Tips For Dealing With A Lazy Co-Worker. Forbes, August 1, 2013. Available at https://www.forbes.com/sites/jacquelynsmith/2013/08/01/12-tips-for-dealing-with-a-lazy-co-worker/#4b5f80f7b832. Retrieved March 5, 2017.
WikiHow. How to Stop Covering for a Lazy Coworker. WikiHow.com. Available at http://www.wikihow.com/Stop-Covering-for-a-Lazy-Coworker. Retrieved March 6, 2017.


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Your support helps us cover dance in New York City and beyond! Donate now.
OAKLAND, CA: "In The Meantime" by The Kendra Kimbrough Dance Ensemble (KKDE)
The Kendra Kimbrough Dance Ensemble (KKDE)
K*STAR*PRODUCTIONS, home of the Kendra Kimbrough Dance Ensemble (KKDE), presents a remount of the 2012 premiere, "In the Meantime." This original dance-drama is about how a family devastated by cancer manages to cope. "In the Meantime" combines dance and text to explore the intimate anxieties of the meantime—when you hope for the best but must prepare for the worst. "In the Meantime" was choreographed & co-directed by Kendra Barnes, written & co-directed by Izzie Award recipient Delina Patrice Brooks, a Bay Area-based playwright, director and performing artist. Featured guest artists include Dandha da Hora (Brazilian Vocalist & Choreographer) and Julio Remelexo & Tambores (Brazilian Percussionist & Vocalist) performing live traditional Orixa songs as well as original songs written by Delina Patrice Brooks.
"'In The Meantime' is a spell-binding work that pays tribute to the strength and resilience of women," says Kimbrough Barnes. "I'm honored to remount a work with a performance intended to uplift those who have suffered or are suffering from this epidemic."
Director Kendra Kimbrough Barnes presents "In the Meantime" as a tribute to Breast Cancer Awareness Month, remembering her mother's battle that ended 26 years ago, and to the many families still affected by the disease. It investigates what it's like to face the possibility of death while managing the demands of life. KKDE's multi-disciplinary performers articulate the gripping emotional commitment and vulnerability of those suffering from breast cancer, whether researching preventive measures, caring for an inflicted loved one, or personally facing the disease. "In The Meantime" also takes a critical look at breast cancer awareness campaigns.
"In the Meantime" will be performed on Saturday and Sunday, October 28–29, 2017, at 7:30pm and 4:00 respectively at Laney College Theater, 900 Fallon Street, Oakland (Lake Merritt BART accessible). Tickets ($10–$25) are available at www.kkde21.brownpapertickets.com; by calling 510.560.5533; or at the Box Office one hour prior to the concert.
Further information is available at www.kkde.net
A discussion follows the concert on Saturday, October 28 (8pm) with local breast cancer awareness and prevention service organizations.
KENDRA KIMBROUGH BARNES (Artistic Director, ITM Choreographer & Co-Director)
Having performed with such notables as the late Malonga Casquelord's Fua Dia Congo, Chitresh Das' Chhandam School of Kathak Dance, Donald Byrd, Robert Moses, Robert Henry Johnson, Bebe Miller, Bill T. Jones, and Roseangela Silvestre, Kendra Kimbrough Barnes founded her own ensemble in 1996. She has been a guest choreographer for San Francisco State University's Dance Department, Dimensions Extensions Youth Performance Ensemble, Move Dance Theater of Oakland, and Abundant Life Christian Fellowship (staging a 100+ cast for a 4,000+ audience). KKDE has presented work at the East Bay Dance Festival, Alice Arts Center, the Black Choreographers Festival, Summerfest/WestWave Dance Festival, and Dance Mosaic. Barnes has taught dance to adults and children of all ages through Dimension's Rites of Passage program in Oakland at the Malonga Casquelourd Center for the Arts and jazz, Pilates and yoga at San Mateo, Laney and SF City Colleges. She has been an artist in residence at the Headlands Center for the Arts and is a 2010 AIR at CounterPULSE. Most recently she was the co-choreographer of CalShakes' Black Odyssey for which she is a finalist for Outstanding Choreography.
Barnes is also co-founder/director for the Black Choreographers Festival (BCF). Since 2005 BCF has served local, national and international artists with over 150 public events, acknowledging the diverse artistic expression within the context of African and African American dance and culture. Under her direction, K*Star*Productions, the presenting organization for BCF and KKDE, has received funding from the City of Oakland Cultural Arts Program, CA$H, The Irvine Foundation, the Zellerbach Family Fund, Alameda County Arts Commission, East Bay Community Foundation, California Arts Council, Sam Mazza Foundation, and The Walter and Elise Haas Fund Foundation.
Barnes holds a BA in Dance from San Francisco State University and a MA in Arts Administration from Golden Gate University. She graduated with honors and is a recipient of the "Who's Who Among Students in American Universities and Colleges" Award and as of 2008 the "Who's Who Among American Women."
The Season of the Kendra Kimbrough Dance Ensemble is made possible by the generous funding of The City of Oakland Cultural Funding Program, Zellerbach Family Foundation, Sam Mazza Foundation, and the California Arts Council. KKDE/K*STAR*PRODUCTIONS is fiscally sponsored by Dimensions Dance Theater.
Delina Patrice Books, (Writer & Co-Director) is a writer, producer and performing artist, and Founder & Director of DelinaDream Productions. Her work has been commissioned by the AfroSolo Festival, YBCAway Program, The Black Choreographers Festival, Dance Brigade's D.I.R.T Festival, and University of Wisconsin: Madison's Filipino American Student Organization among others. Current projects include Izzie-award "An Open Love Letter to Black Fathers" (dance-theater) and Bare Soles Bare Soul (film). Visit her at www.delinadream.com.
Dandha da Hora (Guest Choreographer & Vocalist) Born and raised in Salvador, Bahia, Dandha Da Hora has been a member of Ilê Aiyê, one of Brazil's most important musical and cultural institutions, since she was 6 years old. In her teaching, as well as in her performances, Dandha invokes the incredible spirit of Salvaldor, Bahia, Brazil and of Ilê Aiyê. A master dancer and dance teacher, as well as vocalist and percussionist, Dandha honors the incredible gifts of her culture every time she performs. As a lead dancer with Ilê Aiyê and one of the lead vocalists of music group SambaDá (based in Santa Cruz, CA), Dandha has shared the stage with Brazilian stars such as Caetano Veloso, Gilberto Gil and Daniela Mercury.
Julio Remelexo & Tambores (Percussionist), is a drummer originally from the Afro-Bloco Ilê Aiyê in Salvador, Bahia, Brazil. He is the founder, director and singer for Tambores Julio Remelexo and has played with famous musicians all over the world. Julio founded Tambores Julio Remelexo in 2004 as an all-women's percussion bloco here in the U.S. similar to those of Salvador, Brazil. Tambores Julio Remelexo is a lively, energetic group known for its rhythms, dancing while playing, and unique tricks with instruments. Julio Remelexo performs all over the Bay Area and in Brazil. For a great time, amazing energy, fabulous entertainment, and lots of fun…look to Tambores Julio Remelexo!!!!
Principle Roles
Clairemonica Figueroa, Marianna Hester, Yeni Lucero, Lavinia Mitchell, Patricia Ong, Aja Randall, Latanya Tigner, Meagan Wells
Kendra Barnes, Ebonie Bartlett, Anissa Carthen, Portsha Jefferson, Shelley Davis Roberts
Share Your Audience Review. Your Words Are Valuable to Dance.
Are you going to see this show, or have you seen it? Share "your" review here on The Dance Enthusiast. Your words are valuable. They help artists, educate audiences, and support the dance field in general. There is no need to be a professional critic. Just click through to our Audience Review Section and you will have the option to write free-form, or answer our helpful Enthusiast Review Questionnaire, or if you feel creative, even write a haiku review. So join the conversation.


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Protect pallet racking and the ends of racking aisles from vehicle impact damage with industrial-strength rack end guardrails.
Memaplex™ advanced polymer gives rack end guardrails unique strength and built-in memory to flex and recover from repeat impacts and scrapes.
A unique product design allows rack end barriers to absorb and deflect impact energy without causing damage to floors.
Rack end barriers undergo rigorous, dynamic testing to replicate real-life conditions and give you a performance rating to the PAS 13 standard.
Chemical resistant, non-corrosive, non-scratch and self-colored, rack end guardrails eliminate the need for costly painting and repairs.
Zinc nickel, electrophoretic coated bases as standard gives rack end barriers advanced protection from chips and corrosion damage.
Cold Storage barriers are also available to protect rack ends, they are purpose-engineered to perform in extreme conditions down to -30°C.
Rack end guardrails are made of recyclable polymer and have a significantly reduced carbon footprint compared to traditional steel.
Unrivalled quality means owning every aspect of the development and production process. Our rack end barriers are designed, developed, manufactured and tested in the UK at our state-of-the-art innovation and production facilities in Elland, West Yorkshire.
A-SAFE is the global leader in polymer industrial workplace safety solutions. We also believe in the importance of local expertise. With 16 offices on four continents, we speak your language and understand your industry – no matter where you are in the world.
Since inventing the world's first industrial polymer guardrail in 2001, we have not stood still. We are constantly innovating and enhancing products to make workplaces safer and more efficient.
A-SAFE products are tested to the rigorous standards of BSI PAS 13, the global code of practice for testing the impact resilience of workplace safety barriers. Furthermore, conformity to PAS 13 is independently inspected and certified by TUV Nord - one of the world's most respected independent test houses.
"Losing a set of racking would cause much disruption to our business and be expensive to replace, so protecting all our racking is essential. We have worked closely with A-SAFE to develop a model to best suit our needs."
Discover how A-SAFE barriers can help protect your racking


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Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM); request for comments.
FMCSA proposes changes to the New Entrant Safety Assurance Process that would raise the standard of compliance for passing the new entrant safety audit. The agency has identified 11 regulations that it believes are essential elements of basic safety management controls necessary to operate in interstate commerce and proposes that failure to comply with any one of the 11 regulations would result in automatic failure of the audit. Under this proposal, carriers would also be subject to the current safety audit evaluation criteria in Appendix A of part 385. Additionally, if a roadside inspection discloses certain violations, the new entrant would be subject to expedited actions to correct these deficiencies. The agency proposes to eliminate Form MCS- 150A--Safety Certification for Application for USDOT Number. The agency also intends to check compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act and certain household goods-related requirements in the new entrant safety audit, if they apply to the new entrant's operation. However, failure to comply with these requirements would not impact the outcome of the safety audit. These changes would not impose additional operational requirements on any new entrant carrier. All new entrants would continue to receive educational information on how to comply with the safety regulations and be given an opportunity to correct any deficiencies found. FMCSA recognizes many new entrants are small businesses that are unaware of these requirements and continue to need the agency's assistance. Finally, FMCSA would make clarifying changes to some of the existing new entrant regulations and establish a separate new entrant application procedure and safety oversight program for non-North America-domiciled motor carriers. FMCSA believes this proposal would improve its ability to identify at-risk new entrant carriers and ensure deficiencies in basic safety management controls are corrected before the new entrant is granted permanent registration.


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Whether you're managing a large post-production studio or an in-house corporate video department, AI can open new doors for enhancing the efficiency of your media workflow and increasing the value of your content.
Here are just a few ways you can use AI:
Eliminate time-consuming manual metadata tagging
You're producing more and more video content. And you want to keep that content readily accessible at each stage of its lifecycle—from the moment it's ingested to the time it's archived.
Applying metadata tags to files is critical for enabling team members to find what they need fast. But who has the time for the manual work of tagging clips? You simply have too much content flowing in and too few people for that tedious task. And don't even think of going back into your archive to tag existing content. That could keep someone busy for years.
AI engines can do the work for you. They can create metadata tags automatically—eliminating the need for time-consuming manual work. You can apply tags to all your clips, from those being ingested to those buried deep in your library.
Translate content for globalization
Let's say you've created a series of 10 videos for your marketing team to support a new product launch in North America. Your management team loves the videos, and they're quickly earning positive responses from customers.
Now your sales team wants to use those videos as part of an expanded product rollout in Asia and Europe—in two weeks! How will you get all 10 videos translated into multiple languages in time for the international launch?
An AI engine can automatically generate translations of voice-over material. Instead of having to transcribe videos and then manage multiple translations, you can use an AI engine to deliver translated content, ready for captioning, well ahead of your deadline.
Deliver targeted ads
Consumers today are inundated with advertising. To have any hope of capturing and keeping their attention, the ads they see must be relevant to their interests. AI engines can help content distribution platforms dynamically deliver targeted ads to viewers by analyzing data on viewer preferences, behaviors, location, and more.
AI capabilities also help creative agencies by generating demand for additional, targeted versions of ads. And of course, using AI this way can help advertisers by more effectively reaching their intended audiences.
Today, it's primarily web- and app-based content distributors, over-the-top content providers, video-on-demand services, and similar platforms that deliver targeted video ads. But broadcasters might be able to capitalize on these types of AI engines as well in the not-too-distant future, serving up tailored ads to people as they watch TV.[mk_fancy_title tag_name="h2″ style="true" color="#393836″ size="14″ font_weight="inhert" margin_top="0″ margin_bottom="18″ font_family="none" align="left"]This is just the beginning[/mk_fancy_title]
These use cases are just the tip of the AI iceberg. To discover additional ways AI can help you improve the efficiency of your media workflow and capitalize on new opportunities, check out this infographic.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]


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This year, Code Rouge are setting their sights on aviation with their mass action, which will take place between Friday 15th and Sunday 17th December. The 'People Not Planes' mobilisation focuses on the climate injustice of the aviation industry and its determination...
Degrowth of Aviation
Reducing Air Travel in a Just Way
Flying is the fastest way to heat the planet. How can a reduction of aviation and its climate impact be achieved in a just way? The report, published in December 2019, fills an important gap:
While it has been clear to the climate movement and civil society that "green growth" of aviation is and will be an illusion, clear steps leading to effectively reducing the negative environmental and social impacts of aviation have been missing so far.
In July 2019, during the conference "Degrowth of Aviation" in Barcelona, more than 150 experts and civil society participants discussed different measures. The outcomes of the conference and further discussions led to the now published report. It is aimed to spark more campaigns and policies to tackle aviation's climate impact in a just way.
- Download Report
- Download Illustrations
- Download Briefing Paper (EN, ES, NL)
- Download report in other languages (ES, PT, DE) or find translated pages via the language buttons on top
- Order print reports (free donation) at office[at]kollektiv-periskop.org
Reducing Emissions from Aviation = Reducing Aviation
Aviation is the mode of transport with the biggest climate impact by far. Yet, air travel is growing faster than any other sector. In response to the growing critique, the aviation industry has announced its intention to become greener in the future. But numerous reasons make it impossible for aviation, to really grow in a carbon-neutral way. Degrowth is the only option, a concept that is embedded in a needed social-ecological transformation of society and economy.
Flying is virtually tax free in comparison to other modes of transport. Introducing fiscal measures can counter the massive indirect subsidies of the aviation industry. This is a necessary step, but not enough to reduce aviation and to target the few wealthy people responsible for the biggest share of flights and climate impact.
The frequent flyer levy (FFL) or the air miles levy (AML) attempt to address the social injustice of flying, by making each flight or each air mile travelled progressively more expensive. The revenues obtained from such levies can be used to make climate-friendly modes of mobility accessible for all, especially in the Global South, including a "just transition" fund.
Setting Limits on Flights
The most effective way to reduce aviation is to limit the amount of flights. This can be done by banning short-haul routes where alternative transport could easily be used or built, or by limiting the amount of departures per day on specific routes. Setting absolute limits and bans is fair, as nobody can buy themselves out of it. Bans are beginning to be publicly discussed and could become more popular if their justice dimension is pointed out more.
A red line needs to be put on airport expansion, setting moratoria on new infrastructure projects. Along with a shift of short-haul flights to trains, regional airports (which are usually highly subsidised) will become obsolete and close.
Fostering Alternatives
Boosting the use of alternatives to flying requires investment in the network of long-distance train and bus routes. This does not require high-speed train lines, which are also problematic, but larger numbers of more comfortable and affordable night trains and buses. Also, ecologically modernised ferries, ships, integrated and user-friendly international booking systems for multi-modal travel, improved transfers, as well as online conference systems are part of the future picture.
Institutional Change of Travel Policies
While most of the above measures need implementation on a state level, institutions like schools, universities, municipalities, NGOs and businesses can already contribute to the reduction of flights (of their employees and partners), by changing their travel policies.
There are plenty of other measures that could lead to a reduction of air travel, including making explicit the overall climate impact of aviation (in accounting and communication); mandating that all marketing of flights show the climate impact; behaviour change campaigns; divestment from the aviation sector; banning frequent flyer programmes; and more.
Bringing It All Together – A Summary
A multitude of measures have been discussed in this report. How do they fit together? What is necessary to bring them forward? Which actors are key in promoting them? Choosing a combination of measures must take into account cross-cutting concerns like social justice. The systemic change needed in order to avoid climate crisis is complicated but achievable step by step, when building a strong movement.


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The President of Taiwan has coyly repeated over and over again that he doesn't want a Ma-Hu meet up soon, that he didn't become Chairman to facilitate face time with the
Despite the obvious desire of the powers-that-be for a Ma-Hu Lovefest Nobel Prize Tour '09, only 47% of the population in a pro-KMT poll can be found to support it. Of course, the ploy is obvious -- remember when Ma promised he would never run for mayor of Taipei, and Dear Old Dad had to "beg" him? Oh, and then Ma said he would never be President and Chairman at the same time.... the Great Man shows his Greatness by benevolently acceding to the public's request and setting up a date with his ally across the Strait. It's the public pressure, you see.
The poll found that 47 percent support a meeting between President Ma Ying-jeou and the mainland Chinese leader Hu Jintao. Only 16 percent said there is no need for such an encounter.
Regarding the timing of a possible Ma-Hu meeting, 42 percent said it should be held between 2010 and 2012, with 30 percent indicating that this year would be the most opportune time. A resounding 72 percent believe such an encounter could take place during the president's first term. Only 14 percent said the meeting should take place after Ma's mandate expires May 2012.
The survey also showed that 35 percent feel Hong Kong would be the best place to carry out such a summit. Around 30 percent hoped that Hu could come to Taiwan to meet Ma while 5 percent said the encounter should be held on the mainland. A total of 20 percent think the Ma-Hu meeting must be held in a territory separate from Taiwan or the mainland.
The rest of the poll is actually more interesting. In a survey from a pro-KMT paper....
...just under half think it will be positive, just over half think it should be agreed to, and 63% are not clear on its content. And that's from a paper that is institutionally committed to the other side.
Separately, as to the signing of the proposed cross-strait economic cooperation framework agreement, 58 percent of those polled said they are aware of the proposed trade pact.
Out of these, 37 percent said they understood its content, while 47 percent stated they were unclear about the agreement. A total of 17 percent said they have no idea about the nature of the pact.
Overall, 48 percent see the inking of the ECFA in a positive light, believing it will assist in Taiwan's overall development. However, 24 percent fear that it might have a negative impact. Only 5 percent believe it will exert no influence.
The survey also revealed that 52 percent are in favor of inking an ECFA with the mainland. Only 25 percent said there was no need for such agreement, with 23 percent seeing the agreement as having no effect.
Ya gotta love a populace in which 63% don't understand it but 52% said they approve anyway. Further, even though no details are out, a psychic 37% slice of the population understands it. And people wonder why expats here drink so much...
Taipei Times had a Taiwan Think Tank poll the other day that had the "don't understand" column at 90%. Taiwan-Born American made many of the same points about that poll.
Today's totally unrelated rant: why are there so many idiot commentators on the Left and Right writing about this crisis implying that China's system "works" while the democracies have failed? For over a century at least, the western democracies have been wealthier, offered their citizens more rights, better quality of life, and greater wealth and freedom than China. One economic crisis and suddenly China has a "system" that kicks butt? What planet are these idiots living on?
Daily Links
- Project 2049 has its recommendations out on Taiwan Defense: Deter, Defend, Repel, and Partner
- Typhoon/tropical storm due in a couple of days -- here's the track.
- Taiwan is finally Taiwan at an international event.
- Taiwan wipes floor with China in baseball rematch.
- Taiwan Trance goes to Shuilian Cave in Miaoli.
- The Straits Times warns that the KMT may face a revolt from local factions due to Ma.
[Taiwan] Don't miss the comments below! And check out my blog and its sidebars for events, links to previous posts and picture posts, and scores of links to other Taiwan blogs and forums!


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Custom Cut
Area rugs come in many shapes, sizes and colors. But what happens when you have a unique size or shape that is needed for a specific room? Or you have an existing pattern and style of broadloom carpet in your home that your would like to continue into a space with hard surface flooring? We can turn that broadloom into a beautiful bound area rug. Custom area rugs can be made in virtually any size or shape with a wide range of binding colors and styles. We have a wide range of beautiful area rugs to choose from but don't feel limited by what you see on the racks, because we can always create a custom area rug that's perfect for you decor.


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Secret Base
The Secret Base (秘密基地; Himitsu Kichi) was a secret headquarters used by the Inner Senshi in Codename: Sailor V, the Sailor Moon manga, the live-action series, and Sailor Moon Crystal. It did not appear in the original anime, though it may have been partially responsible for inspiring the Game Machine.
Sailor Moon Manga and Crystal[edit]
In the manga, the Secret Base was located underneath Game Center Crown and was entered through the Sailor V game there. It contained many large computers, which were mainly used by Sailor Mercury, Artemis, and Luna. Evil Prince Endymion managed to breach the headquarters with the help of a brainwashed Motoki; it was here that he severely injured Luna, which made Usagi realize that he was not the same man he once was.
The Secret Base was damaged in a explosion that occurred due to the fight with the Dark Kingdom, which led to Motoki discovering the identities of the Sailor Senshi after recovering from the effects of being brainwashed. The Base was not seen again after the Black Moon arc of the manga.
Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon[edit]
|The Secret Base in PGSM
In the live-action series, the Secret Base was located underneath Karaoke Crown, Game Center Crown's live action counterpart, possibly in another dimension. The Senshi were given the Karaoke Crown Passports by Luna so they did not have to pay to gain access to it. The door leading down to the base would magically appear when a Senshi willed it.
This version of the Secret Base had a much more homey feel than its manga counterpart. When it first appeared in the second episode, the decor was mostly white and bare, though it had some fun things for the Senshi such as a stage with a karaoke machine and large candy dispensers. As time went by more items appeared, including colorful decorations, a large couch, and photographs of the Senshi on the walls. In the center of the room stood a table that started out white, but after a few episodes became yellow with a round blue placemat to one side, making it look like a crescent moon. It was surrounded by five chairs: a pink one for Usagi, a blue one for Ami, a purple one for Rei, a green one for Makoto, and an additional chair intended for Minako, which started out white and later turned orange.
The Secret Base was not seen again after the events of the Final Act.


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Renuka City Hotel, Colombo, Sri Lanka, October 13th, Monday, 12:45AM: Showered, teeth brushed, pajamas packed. So very tired. Not tired. WEARY. As I prepare for what I consider another grueling passage to the next place, I think of all the people of the world sailing, trekking, riding horses and camels or hot packed trains or creaky buses great distances, sometimes with their babies and belonging in tow. Then I feel silly talking this 'weary' shit.
Steven's alarm is set for 1:15AM. He's already packed and showered, can spring awake and away very quickly. I am slightly less springy.
1:30AM: Taxi is waiting. 3100 rupees to the airport, about $25. I never account for all of the money transportation will cost—tours, drivers, taxis. Planning airfare, hotels, food is pretty easy after all of this time. But the transportation, admissions, tips and so forth can add up to a lot, probably half again as much if you're seeing and doing a lot. Remember that. Sort of the same principle as packing—pack everything you must have along, and then cut that in half. The transportation principle could be—make up your whole budget and then add half again as much for all in-town/in-country travel costs.
Bandaranaike International Airport Colombo, Sri Lanka, 2:30AM: At the airport. In one of the passport control/customs/security check lines to be maneuvered before take-off. The reason for this 15 hour black-time-hole is to make our way from Colombo to Kuwait City. Hours lost from real life. Line is moving slowly. Airport is busy. A whole lot of mostly youngish Sri Lankans are on their way to their work in the Gulf States. They're the housemaids and construction workers who keep these places running, booming. Since the Gulf Arabs are rich rich rich and do not do this menial stuff themselves.
5:00AM: Flight took off a little late but now we're winging our way over the Indian Ocean and being served a very bad omelet, a bright yellow dusty-dry wedge of something. We sleep a little on this four and one-half hour flight. And arrive at 7:30AM UAE time.
Abu Dhabi, International Airport, 8:00AM: Breakfasting at O'Leary's Bar and Pub in high and dry Muslim territory. Airports are a never never land. Pico Iyer's book, The Global Soul: Jet Lag, Shopping Malls, and the Search for Home is such a good look at the sense one has of airports as worlds onto themselves, not 'of' any one culture but rather a kind of timeless, history-less, no-man's land without politics, morals, crime or love. Does Clooney's Up in the Air visit this land? I think so.
Well anyway by 8:30AM I was eating pancakes that weren't quite as good as IHOPs and Steven was sustaining life with a very ordinary burger.
10:30AM: We have walked around a bit and found relatively comfortable seats overlooking much distant construction and busses bringing the lost souls from the next flight in to airport land. Several parked Etihad and Jet Airways planes are parked in front of us for our scenic viewing pleasure. Airport population mostly Asian and Arab naturally. Every mode of Arab dress for men and women present from the most oppressive to the most elegant. Add that to all of the Indian costuming and it's only us westerners in our jeans and sweatshirts who look rather slovenly…like we just got out of bed and couldn't find any clean clothes to put on.
About halfway through the lost 15. See you later…from that famous tourist destination, Kuwait City.
Steven's reading Malcolm Gladwell's "David and Goliath." He's been reading econ books the whole trip. Trying to convert him to crime fiction with no luck so far.