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Turns out, the only thing Mets manager Mickey Callaway lost this week was his voice.
Days after New York's front office declared support for its criticized, second-year skipper, Callaway's players rallied for another startling victory Thursday and a four-game sweep of the division-rival Nationals.
Carlos Gómez slipped out of his shoe during an early dash, then hit a go-ahead, three-run homer in the eighth inning that helped the Mets overcome a comeback that started after Washington manager Dave Martinez's heated ejection for a 6-4 victory.
Gómez bolted around the bases, smacking himself in the helmet and letting out a few joyous shouts after his two-out shot against Wander Suero (1-4). Players jumped out of the dugout and danced on the warning track while he rounded the bases, greeting him with flying handshakes and hugs.
Callaway was already hoarse Thursday morning when he met with reporters. After Gómez's stunner, he could hardly get his pipes working.
"Sorry for the voice," he said. "I've been screaming and yelling (through) these crazy games."
Gómez delivered his first homer of the season in his seventh game. The 13-year major league veteran opened the year with Triple-A Syracuse, hoping to extend his playing days at Citi Field after breaking into the majors with the Mets as a 21-year-old in 2007.
"I'm blessed," Gómez said. "Came back here in this situation and play the way that we're playing right now with a lot of energy, you know, I'm enjoying every single time. You guys can notice when I'm in the dugout or playing defense like a little kid. I'm enjoying every single moment."
It was the third straight game New York beat Washington in its final turn at-bat.
The Nationals seemed as if they'd snapped from their funk after Martinez's ejection in the eighth. Plate umpire Bruce Dreckman rang up Washington's Howie Kendrick for a strikeout as he tried to check his swing leading off, then tossed the veteran infielder. Martinez charged from the dugout, spiked his hat and kicked dirt on home plate while barking relentlessly at Dreckman.
"I just didn't think he swung," Martinez said. "We just got into it. All I did was tell him to ask for help. That's why the first base umpire is there. He didn't like it."
Juan Soto then walked against Robert Gsellman (1-0), Victor Robles singled, and Yan Gomes brought in Soto with a double. Gerardo Parra followed with a pinch-hit, two-run single for a 4-3 Washington lead.
The Nationals have lost five straight and six of seven. Washington dropped to 19-31, a record better than only the Miami Marlins, Baltimore Orioles and Kansas City Royals.
Hardly the kind of start expected from an NL playoff hopeful.
"You can't put a blame on one thing," Martinez said when asked where culpability fell. "You really can't. This is a team thing."
The Mets swept the Nationals/Expos franchise over four games for the first time since July 1-4, 1991. It was the first four-game home sweep by New York in the series since May 15-18, 1972.
New York is 18-13 against the NL East and 24-25 overall. The Mets enter a three-game series against Detroit hoping to climb over .500 for the first time since May 2.
"Now we're winning ballgames, there's definitely a different air because of that," Callaway said. "But these guys have not quit one time. They're tremendous. That's an unbelievable comeback right there."
Edwin Díaz retired the side in order in the ninth for his 12th save.
Mets starter Steven Matz allowed 10 hits over six innings of one-run ball. Washington starter Stephen Strasburg allowed two runs and five hits over seven innings.
Starting with an unusual 12:10 p.m. first pitch, both teams looked short on caffeine. New York had two errors, Washington had one and both teams had players thrown out on the bases.
Gómez stole second in the fifth inning and took third on catcher Gomes' throwing error, and his left shoe flew off in the process. Gómez never broke stride and scored two batters later on Juan Lagares' sacrifice fly for a 1-0 lead.
New York placed infielders Robinson Canó (left quad strain) and Jeff McNeil (tight left hamstring) on the injured list prior to the game, leaving the team without two regular position players. The Mets went with an all right-handed lineup against a right-handed starting pitcher for the second time in franchise history, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.
Nationals: 1B Ryan Zimmerman (plantar fasciitis in right foot) has experienced some pain running in recent days and will back off. He was still expected to hit in a batting cage Thursday.
Mets: Luis Guillorme and Ryan O'Rourke were recalled from Triple-A Syracuse. … New York claimed former Phillies OF Aaron Altherr off waivers from San Francisco and designated RHP Tim Peterson for assignment.
Nationals: Open a four-game home series against Miami with RHP Kyle McGowin (0-0, 6.00) set to make his second career start. RHP Pablo López (3-5, 5.06) is up for the Marlins.
Mets: RHP Noah Syndergaard (3-4, 4.50) starts the opener of a three-game home series against Detroit, opposing LHP Gregory Soto (0-2, 10.80).
Follow Jake Seiner: https://twitter.com/Jake—Seiner
More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP—Sports


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Check this out...
By the end of July, your customers will no longer be directed to checkout.shopify.com to complete their purchase. Instead, their entire shopping experience—from homepage to checkout—will take place on your domain. No more domain switching.
Seeing your branded domain at checkout, coupled with the free SSL certificate we provide all merchants, will give your customers the confidence they need to tap that buy button again and again.
Checkout on your own domain is free for all merchants and will be activated automatically—no setup required. The checkout is one of the most important parts of your store, and now it belongs to you.
What if I don't have a custom domain?
While a custom domain name is a strong signal that you're an established business, you don't need one to get some of the benefits of having your checkout on a custom, branded domain.
All Shopify stores get a store-name.myshopify.com domain free of charge, and your checkout will now live there. Your customers will still see your store name in the URL, but it will appear alongside the trusted Shopify name.
If you'd like to take advantage of choosing your own domain name, instead of purchasing through a domain registrar you can easily purchase a domain name right in Shopify.
What if I'm on Shopify Plus?
Starting today, all those that use Shopify Plus can get a free Extended Verification (EV) SSL certificate. These EV certificates add another level of trust to merchant's store by clearly showing customers who they are and that their personal information is protected.
As well, because Shopify Plus allows for the customization of the checkout's liquid code, the migrations will happen on August 20th, giving Shopify Plus merchants extra time to make any necessary changes.
Can I edit the look of my checkout?
Your checkout is already rigorously tested, secure, and optimized for sales by ecommerce experts in order to give you and your customers the best purchase experience on the internet. This data-driven team is constantly looking for new ways to improve your checkout, so you never have to.
Because advanced customizations usually require dedicated teams to manage, editing the look and code of your checkout and using Shopify Scripts are a Shopify Plus-only feature.

subset: commoncrawl


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Contact Us
Tissue Specific BED
Radiation Dose for BED
Treatment Gap Compensation
Radiation Dose for Biological Equivalent Dose
BED in Gy
Dose per fraction in Gy
Select α/β ratio
Normal Tissue (3)
Tumour Tissue (10)
Spinal Cord (2)
Kidney (3)
Brain (2.1)
Ear (3)
Oesophagus (3)
Heart (2)
Liver (1.5)
Small Intestine (7.1)
Reference: "Practical methods for compensating for missed treatment days in radiotherapy, with particular reference to head and neck schedules" (Clinical Oncology 2002, 14:382-393, Dale et al.)
Disclaimer: This facility is fully tested and is provided for free and as is. The developers will not be held liable from your use of this facility.


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Small earthquake in Alberta knocks out power and shuts down gas plant
ROCKY MOUNTAIN HOUSE, Alta. — The ground rumbled in Alberta on Saturday as the strongest earthquake the province has seen in over a decade hit an area west of Red Deer.
Natural Resources Canada reported the 4.3 magnitude quake happened at 9:28 local time near Rocky Mountain House.
It said there were no reports of damage, and that none would be expected from a quake that size.
Power was disrupted to about 500 customers, including a gas plant near Rocky Mountain House.
AltaLink spokesperson Scott Schreiner said a substation in the area locked out to prevent a surge or other damage on the system, and that power was restored about two hours later.
Keyara Corp., which operates the Strachan gas plant, said the facility flared off excess gas when it lost power, but there was no damage.
Julie Puddell, a spokesperson for Keyara, said the gas was flared as a safety measure. She said Alberta Environment was contacted for air quality monitoring.
Ted Hickey, the director of community and protective services for Clearwater County, said there was no risk to the public during the flaring.
Hickey said there were no reports of damage from the quake.
"There were some local reports of people feeling something, but they were pretty isolated," Hickey said, noting he didn't feel the earthquake at all.
Still, Honn Kao, an earthquakes seismologist with the Geological Survey of Canada, said there hasn't been an Alberta earthquake this big since a 4.0 quake shook an area northwest of Rocky Mountain House close to the B.C. boundary in 2001.
Kao said Alberta isn't especially well-known for earthquakes. There have been only two other small quakes in the province in the last 30 days, and they were a magnitude of 2 or 3.
While that may sound like plenty, he said B.C. has had hundreds in the same period, if offshore areas are included. On July 25, there was a 6.2 magnitude quake near B.C. off the coast of the Alaska Panhandle.
Alberta's earthquakes typically happen close to the Rocky Mountains, he said.
"This earthquake is a perfect reminder, especially for residents, that this area is active," Kao said.
"People should take this opportunity to make sure they are very well prepared for any earthquake in the future."
Kao said oil and gas activity hasn't been ruled out as a potential case for Saturday's earthquake, and that seismologists would be studying data to see if it may have been a factor. But he pointed out that the region where it occurred experienced quakes prior to energy development.
While a 4.0 quake wouldn't be enough to damage buildings, Kao said it could still cause shelves or glasses to fall and cause injury.
"If you don't have well-constructed buildings, even a magnitude 6.0 can cause fatalities," he said.
Source: http://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/small-earthquake-in-alberta-knocks-out-power-and-shuts-down-gas-plant-1.1952837
Posted in: In The News
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February 1959
Daniel Drew (1797–1879) was a short, chunky man with a face as seamed and wrinkled as a prune; he walked with a stealthy tread, like a cat; his attire was downright dowdy; he affected the bland, who-me? air of a hedgerow parson. Yet for a quarter-century this man was one of the most justly feared in the financial circles of nineteenth-century America.
He began his business career as a cattle drover. It was rough and risky work, attracting chiefly the quick-witted and unscrupulous, and from the start Drew proved himself peerless as a swindler. He conceived the ruse of feeding his steers salt on the last night before a sale; next morning each animal, crazed with thirst, swilled enough water to add fifty pounds to its weight, and presently a new phrase, "watered stock," had entered the language.
In 1834 Drew had enough capital to engage in an epic duel with Cornelius Vanderbilt over who should control the Hudson River steamboat business. By a sustained policy of rate cutting and betrayal of his own associates Drew won; and by 1844 he was off on his fearsome, singlehanded career as the Great Bear.
In the spring of 1866 Drew, who had by that time wangled his way to treasurer of the Erie Railroad, advanced the line $3,500,000, taking as security 28,000 shares of unissued stock and $3,000,000 worth of bonds convertible into stock. He then cheerfully went short in a rising market, dumped 58,000 shares on the bewildered bulls, and when the stock dove from 95 to 50, shoveled in the profits, cackling. During this venture, Drew's lieutenants were two young scoundrels on the make—Jim Fisk and Jay Gould.
When a Vanderbilt judge ordered Drew's arrest, he prudently retreated across the Hudson to Jersey City with Fisk and Gould, taking with him $6,000,000 in greenbacks. It was estimated that in the final settlement of the "Erie War" the line was milked of no less than $9,000,000; and in October, 1868, Drew, Fisk, and Gould used their loot to attack bank credit, stock prices, and the foreign exchange. Thousands of businessmen in and out of Wall Street were ruined in the process, banks were brought to the verge of suspension, and the national credit was seriously threatened.
But suddenly, in 1870, Drew's luck ran out. He was cornered in a bull market, lost $1,500,000, and in the Panic of 1873 was irrevocably ruined. On no hand was there any mercy. In March, 1876, he filed a schedule in bankruptcy. He was old and broken, hated and scorned.
He died, not particularly mourned, in September, 1879.


text: What is Clean Trust and IICRC certification? The Institute of Inspection, Cleaning, and Restoration Certification, (also known as Clean Trust) was formed in 1972 as the standard-setting body and certification registry that develops and monitors educational programs and standards for the inspection, cleaning and disaster restoration industries. The Clean Trust represents more than 6000 Certified Firms and over 53,000 Certified Technicians around the world. When a company is certified they have made the effort to educate and train themselves to a highest standards possible. Additionally certified firms agree to update they're training on an ongoing basis, and abide to a "code of ethics". Unfortunately there are currently no legal regulations for the carpet cleaning industry, the majority of carpet cleaners have no formal training! You can rest assure when you call Heaven's Best Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning, you are getting an IICRC Certified Company. We know that our technicians training and company cleaning standards are one of the key factor in achieving consistent superior cleaning results. How long will it take for my carpet or upholstery to dry? Drying time for upholstery is very difficult to predict. Not only do the above mentioned environmental issues impact the drying time, but the material will have a significant effect as well. As a general rule, expect most upholstery to take up to 24 hours to dry. Will the cleaning agents used harm my children or pets? How long do I have to wait after cleaning to let my children or pets on the carpet or upholstery? The upholstery should be allowed to dry completely before returning the cushions and pillows to their usual places. How long do I need to stay off of my newly cleaned and polished hardwood floors? Do I need to vacuum before you arrive? Do I need to sweep the hardwood floors? Do I need to move my furniture before the crew arrives? Do I have to be home while you are working in my home? Can I cancel or reschedule my appointment? What payment methods to you accept? You are taking out one (or more) of my area rugs for in-plant cleaning. How long will they be gone, and how will we arrange for the return? How do you guarantee customer satisfaction? |


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Legend of the Lucky Cat (Maneki Neko):
In the 17th century, there was a rundown and poverty-stricken temple in Tokyo. The temple's priest was very poor, but he shared what little food he had with his pet cat, Tama.
One day, a wealthy and important man was caught in a storm while hunting and he took refuge under a big tree near the temple. While he waited for the storm to pass, the man noticed a cat beckoning him to come inside the temple gate. This was so startling that he left the shelter of the tree to have a closer look at this unusual cat. At that moment, the tree was struck by lighting.
As a result, the wealthy man became friends with the poor priest, and the temple became prosperous. The priest and his cat never went hungry again.
When Tama died he was buried in the Goutokuji Temple's cat cemetery with respect and love, and the first Maneki Neko (lucky cat) statue was made in honor of him. A Maneki Neko in your place of business or your home is said to bring in good luck and visitors.
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Microsoft to retire Live Mesh PC-sync service in February 2013
Live Mesh fans, the day many of you feared has come: Microsoft is acknowledging its plans to "retire" its Live Mesh PC-sync service on February 13, 2013.
"(W)e're starting to communicate with the remaining Mesh users and provide a set of instructions on how to keep their files in sync and alternative options for some of the features they're still using," said the Redmondians in a December 13 post on the "Inside SkyDrive" blog.
Microsoft introduced Live Mesh back in 2008 with much fanfare. The original plans for Live Mesh were quite ambitious; it was supposedly going to be a lot more than just a sync service in its full implementation.
But there have been growing hints for some time that Microsoft planned to replace Live Mesh with SkyDrive.
Microsoft officials said in today's blog post that "at one point," Live Mesh was used by "a few million people," but claimed "most" have already moved to SkyDrive, its cloud storage service. Currently, according to the Softies, there are fewer than 25,000 active users of Live Mesh. Microsoft officials said more than 200 million people "have used" SkyDrive.
Back in November, Microsoft announced the addition to SkyDrive of selective sync -- a feature many Live Mesh users wanted to come to SkyDrive. But it wasn't full selective sync, as becomes evident when reading tweets, comments and email from users who were quick to check out the new feature.
With the already-delivered selective sync in SkyDrive, users can select what they sync and can share files and folders directly from the Windows File Explorer. Users can select which folders from SkyDrive are synced, so that it's not an all or nothing proposition. New users can set this up when they first install SkyDrive on PCs or Macs. Those with SkyDrive will receive automatic updates and notifications of the new functionality.
Microsoft announced this week that it is bringing SkyDrive to the Xbox.


text: Performance Diesel Inc. Performance Diesel, Inc. (PDI) is located in Houston, Texas. We are the MAN diesel engine distributors for the Southern and Eastern United States. Performance Diesel packages and supplies MAN "high-speed" marine engines for major OEM 's and boat builders. In addition, we carry a full line of replacement parts for many other marine diesel engines, generators, and transmissions. We also offer 24 hr. full-service marine diesel engine repair services. Yacht Engines Workboat Engines


text: Ultimate Sports Memorabilia is the home of officially licensed, signed Michael Jordan memorabilia and collectables. You can purchase with the assurance that it is real, authentic and has been manufactured under license with express permission and endorsement of the sporting body and the athlete(s) featured. Our officially licensed products are featured on Channel 7, The Footy Show, The Herald Sun, The Daily Telegraph, and many more.


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Plastic Kit - ABS Cement Required
After the Spanish Civil War, the German authorities started to think that a new anti-tank gun would be needed, even though the 3.7cm PaK 36 had proven to be very successful. They asked Rheinmetall-Borsig to produce a new and more capable AT-gun. They first designed the PaK 37 in 1935, but the German authorities didn't approve it because of its low capabilities. Rheinmetall-Borsig was forced to create a new gun under the designation PaK 38, which fitted a new and longer L/60 barrel and was approved for mass production in 1939.
The 5cm PaK 38 (L/60) (5cm Panzerabwehrkanone 38 (L/60)) was first used by the German forces in April 1941. When the Germans faced Soviet tanks in 1941 during Operation Barbarossa, the PaK 38 was one of the few early guns capable of penetrating the 45mm (1.8 in) armour of the T-34. The gun was also equipped with Panzergranate 40 APCR shots with a hard tungsten core, in an attempt to penetrate the armour of the heavier KV-1 tank.
Although it was replaced by more powerful weapons, it remained a potent and useful weapon and remained in service with the Wehrmacht until the end of the war. Between 1940 and 1943, a total of 9,566 units were built.
During the invasion of Poland and France, the Wehrmacht captured thousands of 75mm Model 1897 guns, built by the French arms manufacturer Schneider. Soon after the German invasion of the USSR in 1941, Wehrmacht units encountered new Soviet tanks, the medium T-34 and the heavy KV. The thick sloped armour of these vehicles gave them invulnerability against German towed 3.7cm PaK 36 anti-tank guns. The situation led to requests for more powerful weapons that would be able to destroy them at normal combat ranges.
Even though Germany already had a suitable design, the 7.5cm PaK 40, this weapon entered production and the first pieces were delivered in November 1941. However, until enough of these were manufactured, some expedient solution was required. In its original configuration, the French guns were ill-suited for the anti-tank role because of their relatively low muzzle velocity, limited traverse (only 6°) and lack of a suitable suspension (which resulted in a transport speed of just 10 to 12 km/h). It was decided to solve the traverse and mobility problems by mounting the 7.5cm barrel on the modern split trail carriage of the 5cm PaK 38 anti-tank gun. To soften the recoil, the barrel was fitted with a large Swiss Solothurn muzzle brake. The gun was primarily intended to use HEAT shells as the armour penetration of this type of ammunition does not depend on velocity.
The 7.5cm PaK 97/38 reached the battlefield in the summer of 1942. Despite moderate effectiveness and violent recoil, it remained in service until the end of the war. A total of 3,712 units were built between 1942 and 1943.
Product Highlights:
- Options to build either a PaK 38 or PaK 97/38
- Front lower armour plate in operating or transport mode
- Movable trails & rotating gun
- Includes shells and ammo boxes
- 5 gun crew in mid-war uniform included
Product Code: 280059
Number of Parts: xx pieces / 1 sprue + 2 figure sprues


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WASHINGTON— Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano today announced that effective immediately, certain young people who were brought to the United States as young children, do not present a risk to national security or public safety, and meet several key criteria will be considered for relief from removal from the country or from entering into removal proceedings. Those who demonstrate that they meet the criteria will be eligible to receive deferred action for a period of two years, subject to renewal, and will be eligible to apply for work authorization.
"Our nation's immigration laws must be enforced in a firm and sensible manner," said Secretary Napolitano. "But they are not designed to be blindly enforced without consideration given to the individual circumstances of each case. Nor are they designed to remove productive young people to countries where they may not have lived or even speak the language. Discretion, which is used in so many other areas, is especially justified here."
DHS continues to focus its enforcement resources on the removal of individuals who pose a national security or public safety risk, including immigrants convicted of crimes, violent criminals, felons, and repeat immigration law offenders. Today's action further enhances the Department's ability to focus on these priority removals.
Under this directive, individuals who demonstrate that they meet the following criteria will be eligible for an exercise of discretion, specifically deferred action, on a case-by-case basis:
1.) Came to the United States under the age of sixteen;
2.) Have continuously resided in the United States for a least five years preceding the date of this memorandum and are present in the United States on the date of this memorandum;
3.) Are currently in school, have graduated from high school, have obtained a general education development certificate, or are honorably discharged veterans of the Coast Guard or Armed Forces of the United States;
4.) Have not been convicted of a felony offense, a significant misdemeanor offense, multiple misdemeanor offenses, or otherwise pose a threat to national security or public safety;
5.) Are not above the age of thirty.
Only those individuals who can prove through verifiable documentation that they meet these criteria will be eligible for deferred action. Individuals will not be eligible if they are not currently in the United States and cannot prove that they have been physically present in the United States for a period of not less than 5 years immediately preceding today's date. Deferred action requests are decided on a case-by-case basis. DHS cannot provide any assurance that all such requests will be granted. The use of prosecutorial discretion confers no substantive right, immigration status, or pathway to citizenship. Only the Congress, acting through its legislative authority, can confer these rights.
While this guidance takes effect immediately, USCIS and ICE expect to begin implementation of the application processes within sixty days. In the meantime, individuals seeking more information on the new policy should visit USCIS's website (at www.uscis.gov), ICE's website (at www.ice.gov), or DHS's website (at www.dhs.gov). Beginning Monday, individuals can also call USCIS' hotline at 1-800-375-5283 or ICE's hotline at 1-888-351-4024 during business hours with questions or to request more information on the forthcoming process.
For individuals who are in removal proceedings and have already been identified as meeting the eligibility criteria and have been offered an exercise of discretion as part of ICE's ongoing case-by-case review, ICE will immediately begin to offer them deferred action for a period of two years, subject to renewal.
For more information on the Administration policy reforms to date, please see this fact sheet.


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Professional OpenSim Grids
Why a private OpenSim grid?
A private OpenSim grid allows you to give your educational institution or company it's own virtual world home. You have full control of your own virtual world. You can define all rules for your world and it's users. Your OpenSim grid can use it's own domain name and grid web site (have to be bought separately).
This offer consists of all the central grid services you need for a full, private OpenSim grid. These services store all information about users, inventories, assets, groups, messages, etc. All the usual OpenSim features like HyperGrid, money, voice, etc. are supported.
To these central grid services you can connect as many OpenSim regions as you like. The central grid services are automatically scaled up the more regions you add and the more residents you have. We always ensure a top quality experience.
Your grid can be integrated with your grid web site or backoffice systems using various Grid Integration options. This includes creating or updating user account, supporting default appearances, showing the grid map or grid statistics.
Alternatively you can also rent an OpenSim region in OSGrid or a OpenSim standalone region ("mini grid"). If you have questions about our OpenSim hosting services, simply contact us.
Central OpenSim Grid Services
Central OpenSim Grid Services |
Kinds of regions we offer for private OpenSim grids (Features)
Basic OpenSim Region |
Standard OpenSim Region |
Professional OpenSim Region |


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QUANTICO, Va. (Sept. 19, 2013) -- Now more than ever, Soldiers, Army civilians, and family members rely on the Internet to work, study, stay connected with family and friends, pay their bills or simply unwind. For criminals, the Internet provides an endless stream of potential targets to be victimized.
The U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command, commonly known as CID, continually receives various reports ranging from identity theft to Internet scams, perpetrated by cyber criminals operating throughout the world. Law enforcement's ability to identify these perpetrators is difficult and limited, so individuals must stay on the alert and be personally responsible for their online presence to protect both themselves and their loved ones.
As such, CID is providing the following information to help the greater Army community protect themselves online and significantly reduce the chance of becoming a victim of cyber crime.
How to protect yourself:
-- Know the terms on social networking websites. Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and other social networking sites privacy settings default to everyone. This means anyone, can view your profile, not just people you know. Users can and should change this by accessing the Privacy Settings/Profile Information usually found under the respective Account tab.
-- Sample social networking safely. Never disclose private information when using social networking websites. Be very selective about who you invite or accept invitations from as cyber criminals use false profiles to gain access to personal and private information, such as birthdates, marital status, and personal photographs. Posts containing personal identifying information (PII), including pictures containing metadata can be used against you and your family.
-- Click with caution. Always use caution when clicking on links in an email or a social networking post, even from someone you know. Reports of personal social networking accounts being hacked and taken over by criminals have increased in recent years. Clicking on a link that appears to be benign in nature may in fact contain embedded malware that can compromise your computer. Once compromised, the data on your computer can be exploited and even your computer can be remotely operated as a surrogate in online attacks against others.
-- Hide your profile from search engines. This can be accomplished by going to the Account/Privacy Settings/ Search and unchecking the "Public Search Results" box. This will remove your public preview from Google, Bing, and Yahoo search returns.
-- Prevent people from "tagging" you in photos and videos. To do this, go to the Account/Privacy Settings/Profile Information/Photos and Videos of Me and deselect the everyone default.
-- Keep your personal information safe. Don't provide personal or financial information, user names, or passwords in response to an email, because legitimate companies generally don't seek such information in this manner.
-- Install/update your anti-virus/firewall software. Antivirus and firewall software is a must for anyone to safely navigate online. Always keep your security software up to date in order to provide the most complete protection from malicious programs as thousands of new viruses are detected every year. Also, ensure your antivirus software program updates automatically and scans your computer on a recurring schedule.
Free antivirus support from ACERT. Current Department of Defense employees (excluding contractors, retirees, and family members) with an active AKO account can download antivirus software for free by logging in to the United States Army Computer Emergency Response Team website and selecting the Antivirus link.
-- Know your Apps. When signing up with an app store or downloading individual apps, you may be asked for permission to let them access information on your device. Some apps may be able to access your phone and email contacts, call logs, Internet data, calendar data, data about the device's location, the device's unique ID, and information about how you use the app itself. If you're providing information when you're using the device, someone may be collecting it.
-- Passwords protect all devices. The time to safeguard the information on your portable electronic device is not after it has been lost or stolen. Ensure all portable electronic devices are properly password protected, especially any device with personal communications account information (email, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc.).
-- "Brick" a stolen device. In recent years, roughly 40 percent of all robberies now involve smart phones and/or tablet computers (iPad, Kindle Fire, etc.). Thus endangering the security of the personal information on the stolen devices. If a person's smart phone is lost or stolen, they may now contact the carrier and ask to have that device remotely disabled. These "Bricked" phones are of little or no use to thieves because they can't be reactivated after being sold on the black market.
Where to go for help:
If you are a victim of an online scam where the likeness of a U.S. Soldier was utilized (false social media/dating profiles, photographs, etc.) with no further Personally Identifiable Information disclosed, the following actions should be completed as soon as possible to assist law enforcement:
Report the theft to the Internet Crime Complaint Center, or IC3, which is an FBI-NW3C Partnership. They are available online at http://www.ic3.gov/default.aspx.
If you suspect you are a victim of identity theft, you should report the crime to the FBI IC3, as well as report the theft to the Federal Trade Commission. Your report helps law enforcement officials across the United States in their investigations.
They are available online at http://www.ftc.gov/idtheft
You can also call them at 1-877-ID-THEFT (438-4338) or TTY, 1-866-653-4261
You can mail in a complaint at: Identity Theft Clearinghouse, Federal Trade Commission, Washington, DC 20580
CID strongly recommends that Soldiers, civilians and family members who have information of any known crime committed by a Soldier or a crime that occurred on their respective post, camp or station to report the incident to their local CID office or email CID at firstname.lastname@example.com.
CID Lookout is a U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command, or USACIDC, initiative to partner with the Army community by providing a conduit for members of the Army family, to help prevent, reduce and report felony-level crime.
The USACIDC, commonly known as CID, is an independent criminal investigative organization that investigates serious, felony-level crime such as murder, rape, sexual assault, robbery, arson, fraud, and even cyber crime or intrusions into the Army networks (see CID Cyber Lookout).
Solving and preventing these types of crime cannot be achieved solely by CID Special Agents and the Military Police. Together, professional law enforcement officers and the Army community must work hand-in-hand to fight serious crime. As such, CID is On Point for the Army and depends heavily on Soldiers, family members and civilian employees to Be On The Lookout and provide assistance in keeping the Army Strong and safe.
CID Lookout provides the latest information to the Army community aimed at helping Soldiers protect themselves, their families and to reduce their chances of becoming crime victims.
For more information on CID or to report a felony-level crime or provide information concerning a crime, contact your local CID Office or the Military Police, or visit www.cid.army.mil.
Related Links:
Title 18 of the U.S. Code, Section 1343, Fraud by Wire, Radio or Television
CID warns of social networking, dating site scams
U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command


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16. Grazer Konferenz – Qualität der Lehre: Curriculum planning and assessment
19. - 21. April 2012, Timisoara, Romania
Dear Colleagues,
It is a special pleasure for me, for Jörg Stein and Marius Raica, as well as our hosts and co-organisers from the Victor Babes University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Timisoara, Romania as well as the Austrian Society for Didactics in Higher Education to welcome you to the 16th Graz Conference on medical education. Graz was the venue of the first conference that Jörg Stein and I organized in 1995 and we met there almost every year until 2004. Starting in 2005 the conference was hosted in turn by all Austrian Medical Universities. In 2011 the University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna was the hosting institution.
But 2012 marks the first year that a university outside of Austria was selected as the venue for this conference. While the Graz Conference started unashamedly as an event tightly focused on the needs of Austrian medical schools, it had evolved over the years to encourage colleagues from outside Austria to participate. By 2005 all plenary lectures were held in English and starting 2006 at least one of the parallel workshops was offered in English. And more and more colleagues from abroad, mainly from eastern and south-eastern Europe, joined us.
This is a necessary step, since medical universities the worldwide face so many similar challenges. Thus we can and should attempt to learn from each other. Rumania was a good place to start, since there the medical universities in Timisoara, Cluj-Napoca, Iasi, Craiova and Targu-Mures, supported by the medical universities of Szeged and Vienna are partners in a EU-funded project, eMediqual, to improve all aspects of their educational program.
Not really part of this conference, but impossible to miss nevertheless, was the "Student's Symposium - eMediqual 2012" which took place at the same time as the Graz Conference. More than 250 Romanian students plus their invited colleagues from Austria and Hungary attended this remarkable medical education event, which covered topics and issues of particular interest to all participants. Some of the students contributed posters to the Graz conference and some of the speakers of the Graz Conference gave presentations at the Student's Symposium, which helped both events.
If you are interested in finding out more about this conference as well as past and future Graz conferences please visit the web site: http://grazconference.at/
Herbert Plass is the conference web-master and also edited the 2012 conference program booklet and those of recent years. The complete conference programs can be downloaded from the web site.
The conference gave us an opportunity to learn from our colleagues and to discuss new ideas. Please join us at next year's conference, which will be take place at the Medical University of Innsbruck (back in Austria) 4. – 6. April 2013.
Richard Marz


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COP22: Adoption of Marrakech Action Proclamation for Climate, Sustainable Development
Marrakech, 17/11/2016 (MAP) – The Heads of State, Government, and Delegations, gathered in Marrakech for the High-Level Segment of the 22nd Session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, the 12th Session of the Conference of the Parties serving as the Meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol, and the 1st Session of the Conference of the Parties serving as the Meeting of the Parties to the Paris Agreement, have adopted the Marrakech Action Proclamation for Climate and Sustainable Development.
Here follows the full text:
" We, Heads of State, Government, and Delegations, gathered in Marrakech, on African soil, for the High-Level Segment of the 22nd Session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, the 12th Session of the Conference of the Parties serving as the Meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol, and the 1st Session of the Conference of the Parties serving as the Meeting of the Parties to the Paris Agreement, at the gracious invitation of His Majesty the King of Morocco, Mohammed VI, issue this proclamation to signal a shift towards a new era of implementation and action on climate and sustainable development.
Our climate is warming at an alarming and unprecedented rate and we have an urgent duty to respond.
We welcome the Paris Agreement, adopted under the Convention, its rapid entry into force, with its ambitious goals, its inclusive nature and its reflection of equity and common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities, in the light of different national circumstances, and we affirm our commitment to its full implementation.
Indeed, this year, we have seen extraordinary momentum on climate change worldwide, and in many multilateral fora. This momentum is irreversible – it is being driven not only by governments, but by science, business and global action of all types at all levels.
Our task now is to rapidly build on that momentum, together, moving forward purposefully to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and to foster adaptation efforts, thereby benefiting and supporting the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its Sustainable Development Goals.
We call for the highest political commitment to combat climate change, as a matter of urgent priority.
We call for strong solidarity with those countries most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change, and underscore the need to support efforts aimed to enhance their adaptive capacity, strengthen resilience and reduce vulnerability.
We call for all Parties to strengthen and support efforts to eradicate poverty, ensure food security and to take stringent action to deal with climate change challenges in agriculture.
We call for urgently raising ambition and strengthening cooperation amongst ourselves to close the gap between current emissions trajectories and the pathway needed to meet the long-term temperature goals of the Paris Agreement.
We call for an increase in the volume, flow and access to finance for climate projects, alongside improved capacity and technology, including from developed to developing countries.
We, the Developed Country Parties, reaffirm our USD $100 billion mobilization goal.
We, unanimously, call for further climate action and support, well in advance of 2020, taking into account the specific needs and special circumstances of developing countries, the least developed countries and those particularly vulnerable to the adverse impacts of climate change.
We, who are Parties to the Kyoto Protocol, encourage the ratification of the Doha Amendment.
We, collectively, call on all non-state actors to join us for immediate and ambitious action and mobilization, building on their important achievements, noting the many initiatives and the Marrakech Partnership for Global Climate Action itself, launched in Marrakech.
The transition in our economies required to meet the objectives of the Paris Agreement provides a substantial positive opportunity for increased prosperity and sustainable development.
The Marrakech Conference marks an important inflection point in our commitment to bring together the whole international community to tackle one of the greatest challenges of our time.
As we now turn towards implementation and action, we reiterate our resolve to inspire solidarity, hope and opportunity for current and future generations".


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European Journal of sustainable Development
ISSN 2239-5938 (print)
ISSN 2239-6101 (online)
Is a double blinded peer-reviewed open access journal, published under the supervision of the European Center of Sustainable Development.
EJSD was established as the official journal of ECSDEV, to provide an international forum for debates among diverse disciplines, such as human development, environmental and energy economics, health education studies, and related fields.
The main purpose of the journal is twofold: to encourage (1) integration of theoretical studies and policy studies on sustainability issues and (2) interdisciplinary works of energy economics, environmental policy studies, educational studies, sustainable agricultural development, health and food education, urban planning and related fields on sustainability issues. The journal also welcomes contributions from any discipline as long as they are consistent with the above stated aims and purposes, and encourages interaction beyond the traditional schools of thought.
The European Journal of Sustainable Development is currently being published in one volume per year of three issues in the months of Febbruary, June and October along with the Online version.
The EJSD recent publications are available at the following links:
Volume 11, Issue 4, Special Issue 2022
Volume 11, Issue 3, October 2022
Call For Papers: Volume 12, Issue 2, June 2023.
Manuscripts can be submitted electronically to:
Starting from December 2020 the EJSD Journal will consider only manuscripts submited through institutional email addresses that can be easily verified.
Open Access Policy
EJSD Follows an Open Access Policy. This statement means that all past and present published manuscripts can be accessed, viewed, copied, downloaded, distributed, linked or searched in full text without any need of submission or charge. This choice represents our intention to contribute in the global process of knowledge democratization.


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When I started this blog, I needed more self-awareness and gratitude. Over the years, so much has changed. I didn't maintain the blog as much as I had hoped, but the personal growth certainly continued. Despite some personal ups and downs, I have found myself so much further along on my journey than I would have expected.
Despite having more children than I did when I started this quest (yep, I now have 4 kids), I have more patience, compassion and I'm finding time to try new hobbies, looking for the one that speaks to me most. Some have been great new experiences, and some were experiences in humility. Who am I kidding, most were, but I did get some good laughs anyway.
I am still learning more and more about myself and what I need to do to be the best person, mother and wife I can be, but I feel so much more content about where I am now. I feel like my relationships with my kids and my husband are stronger than ever and I can't wait to see what smiles the future brings for us.
I'll try to keep updating in more timely fashion and share some great smiles!


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President Obama ordered a surge of U.S. troops into Afghanistan in 2009, with a pledge that those fighting would all be out by the end of next year. Now—surprise!—he and Afghan President Hamid Karzai have hammered out a draft accord that would permit perhaps 10,000 U.S. troops to remain in Afghanistan indefinitely.
That means the U.S. war in Afghanistan will probably slip beyond the 4,834 days (13 years, 2 months, 25 days) between Oct. 7, 2001, when the U.S. invaded, and Dec. 31, 2014, when all U.S. combat troops are due to leave. Those likely to be left behind will be there largely to train Afghan troops, hunt down and kill terrorists, and be targets for those same terrorists. That makes the U.S. war in Afghanistan more than three times the duration of its 1,346-day (3 years, 8 months, 7 days) participation in World War II.
But Iraq, increasingly slipping toward civil war, should offer Americans a cautionary tale about U.S. troops rushing for the exits from a war-torn country they created.
It's tough for a war-weary American public to concede, but the costs paid in American blood (2,193 killed) and treasure ($700 billion) could well be spilled in vain if there isn't some continuing U.S. presence in Afghanistan to keep al Qaeda and the Taliban in check. It also could give a shaky and corrupt Afghan central government, under a new president (Karzai is barred from seeking a third term), enough time to mature and send extremists packing.
The Afghan security force is nearing its goal of 352,000 troops and police, and has acquitted itself well during this year's fighting season. "There's still a lot of work that has to occur, but this year has been encouraging in terms of how they've fought the Taliban," Army Lieut. General Terry Wolff, the Pentagon chief strategic planner, said at a confab sponsored by the Defense One website last Thursday.
The size of the U.S. troop contingent will be negotiated over the coming months. Part of its mission will be ensuring that the $4 billion NATO nations are slated to invest in Afghanistan annually is properly spent. U.S. troops, likely between 5,000 and 10,000, expect to be concentrated around the capital, Kabul, and the southern city of Kandahar, the birthplace of the Taliban. Hundreds of German soldiers are slated to remain in the northern part of the country, while Italian troops will be in the west.
The sticking point in both Afghanistan and Iraq was protecting U.S. troops from local prosecution while on foreign soil. The U.S. argues that subjecting its troops to punishment under the Pentagon's Uniformed Code of Military Justice is adequate. But outsiders—particularly those who view the U.S. military as invaders or occupiers—don't always see it that way.
"Unfortunately, Afghanistan has witnessed a poor track record of the US forces during the past 10 years of their military operations," Ajmal Shams, president of the Afghan Social Democratic Party, wrote in a column in the United Arab Emirates' Gulf News newspaper Sunday. "The latter were either directly or indirectly involved in incidents where innocent civilians were impacted. These included drone attacks, night raids and unnecessary imprisonment."
After the Iraqi government insisted that U.S. troops would have to be subject to Iraqi justice if they stayed beyond 2011, the U.S. pulled out.
Local Afghan leaders will begin debating the draft accord this week, and few changes are expected. Karzai has said he will abide by their decision. Because the so-called bilateral security agreement is not a treaty, it can be enacted by the Obama Administration without a formal congressional vote.
Then again, there's always the chance that delaying the departure of all U.S. troops from Afghanistan will simply delay the inevitable.
The weekend gave a sense of what may be to come. On Saturday, a suicide car bomber killed 12, just outside the huge tent in Kabul where Afghan leaders are set to meet in this week's loya jirga to debate the continued U.S. military presence. Thousands of Afghans gathered in Jalalabad Sunday to protest any extended U.S. troop presence in their nation, shouting anti-U.S. chants and burning U.S. flags. Local villagers found six Afghan government contractors, building police compounds, beheaded near Kandahar. Bombings killed one coalition soldier in southern Afghanistan and a civilian in northern Afghanistan.


text: No matter where your bike takes you - to work, into the city, to the park with the kids, deep into the forest or across the country—your bike is a part of your own, unique and beautiful style. Cycling doesn't have to be synonymous with spandex, your bike is a tool that should fit into your lifestyle; but even when putting in the miles on the road or trail, we have all the biking style you need to get the look that matches your skills. Come with us as we explore tips, tricks and observations in the world of bikes and style.


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This is blog of Dr Jayanti Bhadesia about religious, patriotic, inspiring and human heart touching things to share with friends
When one Guru was dying, one of his deciple asked him "Guruji, who was your master?"He said, "I had thousands of masters. If I just relate their names it will take months, years and it is too late. But three masters I will certainly tell you about.One was a thief. Once I got lost in the desert, and when I reached a village it was very late, everything was closed. But at last I found one man who was trying to make a hole in t he wall of a house. I asked him where I could stay and he said 'At this time of night it will be difficult, but you can say with me - if you can stay with a thief'.And the man was so beautiful. I stayed for one month! And each night he would say to me, 'Now I am going to my work. You rest, you pray.' When he came back I would ask 'Could you get anything?' He would say, 'Not tonight. But tomorrow I will try again, God willing.' He was never in a state of hopelessness, he was always happy.When I was meditating and meditating for years on end and nothing was happening, many times the moment came when I was so desperate, so hopeless,that I thought to stop all this nonsense. And suddenly I would remember the thief who would say every night, 'God willing, tomorrow it is going to happen.'And my second master was a dog. I was going to the river, thirsty and a dog came. He was also thirsty. He looked into the river, he saw another dog there -- his own image -- and became afraid. He would bard and run away, but his thirst was so much that he would come back. Finally, despite his fear, he just jumped into the water, and the image disappeared. And I knew that a message had come to me from God: one has to jump in spite of all fears.And the third master was a small child. I entered a town and a child was carrying a lit candle. He was going to the mosque to put the candle there.'Just joking,' I asked the boy, 'Have you lit the candle yourself?' He said,'Yes sir.' And I asked, 'There was a moment when the candle was unlit, then there was a moment when the candle was lit. Can you show me the source from which the light came?' And the boy laughed, blew out the candle, and said, 'Now you have seen the light going. Where has it gone? You will tell me!'My ego was shattered, my whole knowledge was shattered. And that moment I felt my own stupidity. Since then I dropped all my knowledgeability.It is true that I had no master. That does not mean that I was not a disciple-- I accepted the whole existence as my master. My Disciplehood was a greater involvement than yours is. I trusted the clouds, the trees. I trusted existence as such. I had no master because I had millions of masters I learned from every possible source. To be a disciple is a must on the path. What does it mean to be a disciple? It means to be able to learn. To be available to learn to be vulnerable to existence. With a master you start learning to learn.The master is a swimming pool where you can learn how to swim. Once you have learned, all the oceans are yours."******
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Poppy Premium 425ml Beer Glass
Approximate delivery to
:Beer enthusiasts will love our personalised beer glasses! Available in both a classic conical style or a premium brassiere style glass in a range of different designs. Our engraved beer glasses are a beautiful and unique gift idea for weddings, anniversaries, birthdays or to commemorate that special occasion.
• 285ml Premium Beer Glass (170mm height and 285ml capacity)
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• Care instructions: hand wash only
Deliver to Door: Approximately 7-10 business days
Click and Collect: Collect in 7-10 business days. We will notify you when your order is ready to collect.


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Friends of Downtown Hendersonville
Connect with B2
Michael Spratley – preclosing compliment
Thanks very much Bryan, you really go above and beyond!
Daphne wp testimonial
B2 listens to what his clients want and then hunts and finds it! Always responsive and on-top of things. He was great at communicating every step of the way and throughout the purchasing process. He had great availability to go look at places spur of the moment and was able to quickly jump on things when we needed to. A++ realtor. Thank you!
Susan Patrick
Bryan is an excellent realtor. He is extremely responsive to his client's needs, and goes above and beyond what you would expect. He stuck with us over a long period of house hunting until we found the perfect place.
Bryan was so helpful, and professional. We were out of the state and wanted to buy in the Hendersonville area. He did everything possible to help us and let us know the best ways to go about this. Working with Bryan was like working with family.
Just wanted to thank you for your excellent services as our realtor during the recent purchase of a home in Columbus, NC. Working with you was an absolute pleasure. From your always welcoming smile, to your comprehensive knowledge of local retail markets, you deserve a 10 on a scale of 10.
You can't go wrong with Bryan when it comes to purchasing or selling your home! He listened to all of our wants and needs for what we wanted in a house and worked hard to find us the perfect one. If you're looking for a realtor who is knowledgeable, personable and hardworking then Bryan is your person!
Bryan is a great person and realtor. He was extremely helpful and stayed calm when I was stressed and helped me walk thru to buying a great piece of property! I would recommend him and would use him again if I needed a realtor!
Bryan was awesome! Patient professional kind courteous! Very communicative! Explained everything thoroughly! We noticed he's very connected to local small businesses which is a wonderful thing in this day and age! I'll definitely keep him in mind for our next transaction!
Bryan consistently goes above and beyond! He sold my house faster than I ever thought possible!
Bryan was exceptional in helping me to negotiate a deal... answered all my questions and worked with the sellers to figure out how we could make this deal work, making both of us happy... he is in now considered a friend, and I have an amazing house.
Absolutely the best marketer and communicator. I watched Bryan sell my neighbor's house in a week. I decided to list with Bryan Byrd and had a viable contract in 4 days. He kept on top of all the details… I highly recommend Bryan Byrd. 10 Stars if I could!!!
He took so much of the stress out of the process and we would definitely recommend him to anyone in the future!


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Blended First Aid at Work courses launched by ProTrainings. We are the first to launch the new HSE option for EFAW and FAW courses in the workplace. We have introduced all options for these courses including, Driver CPC, Equestrian and Forestry versions of the courses.
Blended training means you can reduce the time training has to be completed in the classroom by completing part of your training online using our full feature video online training. Blended training is nothing new to ProTrainings, we have been delivering it for many years. We already have blended Basic Life Support, AED and our popular Paediatric First Aid courses. Our video based training is more engaging that PowerPoint based training courses. ProTrainings trade body qualification or a regulated qualification are available.
Visit our website at www.profaw.co.uk where you will find more information and where you can sign up for the course. Watch a series of short videos, answer knowledge review questions and complete the test. All courses include a student resources section to download the free student manual and many other downloads and links. On completion of the online part you can instantly download and print your completion certificate. Because free downloadable evidenced based learning statement and Certified CPD statement are included, therefore ProTrainings course are comprehensive.
We have also added subtitle to some of the videos using the CC option and all videos will be available with subtitles soon.
Part two of the course
The part two of the course is where you complete the practical part of your course. Half day for an EFAW, two days for a First Aid at Work and one day for the First Aid at Work re-qualification. When you complete part two, you will receive your ProTrainings certificate in the post from your instructor. We have hundreds of approved and monitored instructors nationally who can deliver part two of the course locally or at your workplace.
Other Versions
We also offer the Appointed persons course which can be completed 100% online and the HSE recommended First Aid at Work annual refresher which again can be completed 100% online. Our blended first aid at work training is available to individuals, companies and instructors to offer to their students. For more information please email email@example.com or call ProTrainings on 01206 805359.


text: Comedy about one big happy family and their sometimes awkward, often hilarious and ultimately beautiful milestone moments as told by its various members. Of the three siblings, middle child Matt may have just found his true love, his co-worker, Colleen; his coddled youngest brother, Greg, and his wife, Jen, are overwhelmed by the birth of their first child; and the eldest, Heather, and her husband, Tim, are dreading their impending empty nest so much, they're considering having another baby. Their parents are Joan the family's adoring matriarch who would do anything for her kids - as long as she agrees with it - and John, the gregarious patriarch who's searching for ways to soften the blow of turning 70. As the family's lives unfold in four short stories each week, they try to savor these little pieces of time that flash by but stay with you forever, because these moments add up to what life's all about.


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[Vijay Kumar] is a professor at the University of Pennsylvania and the director of the GRASP lab where research centering around autonomous quadcopters is being met with great success. If you were intrigued by the video demonstrations seen over the last few years, you won't want to miss the TED talk [Dr. Kumar] recently gave on the program's research. We touched on this the other week when we featured a swarm of the robots in a music video, but there's a lot more to be learned about what this type of swarm coordination means moving forward.
We're always wondering where this technology will go since all of the experiments we've seen depend on an array of high-speed cameras to give positional feedback to each bot in the swarm. The image above is a screenshot taken about twelve minutes into the TED talk video (embedded after the break). Here [Dr. Kumar] addresses the issue of moving beyond those cameras. The quadcopter shown on the projection screen is one possible solution. It carries a Kinect depth camera and laser rangefinder. This is a mapping robot that is designed to enter an unknown structure and create a 3D model of the environment.
The benefits of this information are obvious, but this raises one other possibility in our minds. Since the robots are designed to function as an autonomous swarm, could they all be outfitted with cameras, and make up the positional-feedback grid for one another? Let us know what you think about it in the comments section.
[Thanks László]


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Book of Discovery - M. B. Synge |
While Livingstone was discovering Lake Nyassa, Speke was busy preparing for a new expedition to find out more about the great sheet of water he had named Victoria Nyanza and to solve the vexed question: Was this the source of the Nile?
In April 1860, accompanied by Captain Grant, an old friend and brother sportsman, he left England, and by way of the Cape reached Zanzibar some five months later. The two explorers started for their great inland journey early in October, with some hundred followers, bound for the great lake. But it was January 1861 before they had covered the five hundred miles between the coast and Kaze, the old halting-station of Burton and Speke. Through the agricultural plains known as Uzarana, the country of Rana, where many negro porters deserted, because they believed the white men were cannibals and intended to eat them when safe away from the haunts of men; through Usagara, the country of Gara, where Captain Grant was seized with fever; through Ugogo's great wilderness, where buffalo and rhinoceros abounded, where the country was flooded with tropical rains, on to the land of the Moon, three thousand feet above sea-level, till the slowly moving caravan reached Kaze. Here terrible accounts of famine and war reached them, and, instead of following Speke's route of 1858, they turned north-west and entered the Uzinza country, governed by two chieftains of Abyssinian descent. Here Speke was taken desperately ill. His cough gave him no rest day or night; his legs were "reduced to the appearance of pipe-sticks." But, emaciated as he was, he made his way onwards, till the explorers were rewarded by finding a "beautiful sheet of water lying snugly within the folds of the hills," which they named the Little Windermere, because they thought it was so like "our own English lake of that name. To do royal honours to the king of this charming land, I ordered my men," says Speke, "to put down their loads and fire a volley."
The king, whom they next visited, was a fine-looking man, who, with his brother, sat cross-legged on the ground, with huge pipes of black clay by their sides, while behind them, "squatting quiet as mice," were the king's sons, six or seven lads, with little dream-charms under their chins! The king shook hands in true English fashion and was full of inquiries. Speke described the world, the proportions of land and water, and the large ships on the sea, and begged to be allowed to pass through his kingdom to Uganda. The explorers learnt much about the surrounding country, and spent Christmas Day with a good feast of roast beef. The start for Uganda was delayed by the serious illness of Grant, until at last Speke reluctantly decided to leave him with the friendly king, while he made his way alone to Uganda and the Lake Victoria Nyanza. It was the end of January 1861 when the English explorer entered the unknown kingdom of Uganda. Messengers from the king, M'tesa, came to him. "Now," they said, "you have really entered the kingdom of Uganda, for the future you must buy no more food. At every place that you stop for the day, the officer in charge will bring you plantains."
The king's palace was ten days' march; the way lay along the western coast of the Lake Victoria Nyanza, the roads were "as broad as our coach roads cut through the long grass straight over the hills and down through the woods. The temperature was perfect. The whole land was a picture of quiescent beauty, with a boundless sea in the background."
On 13th February, Speke found a large volume of water going to the north. "I took off my clothes," he says, "and jumped into the stream, which I found was twelve yards broad and deeper than my height. I was delighted beyond measure, for I had, to all appearance, found one of the branches of the Nile's exit from the Nyanza."
But he had not reached the Nile yet. It was not till the end of July that he reached his goal.
"Here at last," he says, "I stood on the brink of the Nile, most beautiful was the scene, nothing could surpass it—a magnificent stream from six hundred to seven hundred yards wide, dotted with islets and rocks, the former occupied by fishermen's huts, the latter by crocodiles basking in the sun. I told my men they ought to bathe in the holy river, the cradle of Moses."
Marching onwards, they found the waterfall, which Speke named the Ripon Falls, "by far the most interesting sight I had seen in Africa." The arm of the water from which the Nile issued he named "Napoleon Channel," out of respect to the French Geographical Society for the honour they had done him just before leaving England in presenting their gold medal for the discovery of Victoria Nyanza.
The English explorers had now spent six months in Uganda. The civilisation in this country of M'tesa's has passed into history. Every one was clothed, and even little boys held their skin-cloaks tightly round them lest their bare legs might by accident be seen! Everything was clean and orderly under the all-powerful ruler M'tesa. Grant, who arrived in the end of May, carried in a litter, found Speke had not yet obtained leave from the king to "open the country to the north, that an uninterrupted line of commerce might exist between England and Uganda by means of the Nile." But at last on 3rd July he writes with joy: "The moment of triumph has come at last and suddenly the road is granted."
The explorers bid farewell to M'tesa. "We rose with an English bow, placing the hand on the heart, whilst saying adieu; and whatever we did M'tesa in an instant mimicked with the instinct of a monkey."
In five boats of five planks each tied together and caulked with rags, Speke started with a small escort and crew to reach the palace of the neighbouring king, Kamrasi, "father of all the kings," in the province of Unyoro. After some fierce opposition they entered the palace of the king, a poor creature. Rumours had reached him that these two white men were cannibals and sorcerers. His palace was indeed a contrast to that of M'tesa. It was merely a dirty hut approached by a lane ankle-deep in mud and cow-manure. The king's sisters were not allowed to marry; their only occupation was to drink milk from morning to night, with the result that they grew so fat it took eight men to lift one of them, when walking became impossible. Superstition was rife, and the explorers were not sorry to leave Unyoro en route for Cairo. Speke and Grant now believed that, except for a few cataracts, the waterway to England was unbroken. The Karuma Falls broke the monotony of the way, and here the party halted a while before plunging into the Kidi wilderness across which they intended to march to save a great bend of the river. Their path lay through swampy jungles and high grass, while great grassy plains, where buffaloes were seen and the roar of lions was heard, stretched away on every side.
Suddenly they reached a huge rock covered with huts, in front of which groups of black men were perched like monkeys, evidently awaiting the arrival of the white men. They were painted in the most brilliant colours, though without clothes, for the civilisation of Uganda had been left far behind. Pushing on, they reached the Madi country, where again civilisation awaited them in the shape of Turks. It was on 3rd December that they saw to their great surprise three large red flags carried in front of a military procession which marched out of camp with drums and fifes playing.
"A very black man named Mohammed, in full Egyptian regimentals, with a curved sword, ordered his regiment to halt, and threw himself into my arms endeavouring to kiss me," says Speke. "Having reached his huts, he gave us two beds to sit upon, and ordered his wives to advance on their knees and give us coffee."
"I have directions to take you to Gondokoro as soon as you come," said Mohammed.
Yet they were detained till 11th January, when in sheer desperation they started off, and in two days reached
the Nile. Having no boats, they continued their march overland till 15th February, when the masts of Nile
boats came in sight, and soon after the two explorers walked into Gondokoro. Then a strange thing happened. We
saw hurrying on towards us the form of an Englishman, and the next moment my old friend Baker, famed for his
sports in Ceylon, seized me by the
hand. What joy this was I can hardly tell. We could not talk fast enough, so overwhelmed were we both to meet
again. Of course we were his guests, and soon learned everything that could be told. I now first heard of the
death of
Leaving Baker to continue his way to central Africa, Speke and Grant made their way home to England, where they arrived in safety after an absence of three years and fifty-one days, with their great news of the discovery of Uganda and their further exploration of Victoria Nyanza. When Speke reached Alexandria he had telegraphed home: "The Nile is settled." But he was wrong. The Nile was not settled, and many an expedition was yet to make its way to the great lakes before the problem was to be solved.


text:
Philosophy of Existence: How Everything Came to Existence?
3 Parts: Micro Aspects, Macro Aspects and General Aspects
Part 1: Micro Aspects
Ahreeman X
January 19, 2014
Iran Philosophy Index
Defense Mechanism
By majority, people are creatures of habit. The public is not susceptive to change. They are happy with the Status Quo. When they see change is coming, they automatically panic and build a Defense Mechanism! The public are known to build fortresses around their minds to reject change. The public prefers to maintain slave to the mind control of the church and society. Scientific Change brings progress but the public prefers to stay secure in their comfortable and isolated little corner. It is the scientific people's duty to evolve the Earth or else the Earth would never evolve and the public will never accept the change! The Intellectual Scientific Few have a crucial task to push forward the Public in to the next evolutionary step thus they shall not banish and become extinct!
Philosophy of Existence
How Everything Came to Existence?
Part 1: Micro Aspects
This is a dialogue between Nicholas Ginex, the valuable author, philosopher, and free thinker and I. This is a philosophical debate and each party will contribute to the debate as time allows. Other parties may also participate in this debate. It specifically may take a while for me to respond (due to extremely busy schedule) but bear with me.
Nicholas Ginex is a scholar, an author and a philosopher with vast knowledge of theology, history of religions and sociology. Nicholas is a worthy intellectual and that is the reason in which I have set aside a good amount of time for this debate. As you are aware, I am in a middle of restructuring the whole website, a tech project, writing an article for X Diaries (my memoirs) and remodeling my estate; however, because it is Nicholas, I make time for this debate.
This debate and debates such as this are not only beneficial for Nicholas and I, because we learn a thing or two from one another but they are most beneficial for "All" to learn a thing or two from the debate; however, they are crucially educational for the youth, because after reading this or similar debates, they shall begin to question everything which they have been taught in school and they will start researching to make up their own minds about various issues. This debate and similar debates such as this will provide you the stepping stones as the primary steps to do critical thinking, independent thinking and free thinking to build your opinion based on rationality and facts. Feel free to read, follow the thread and to participate.
Before we begin this dialogue, the readers may read below links to gain background information about Nicholas Ginex, his books, his ideas, his letter to me and our past trade of words:
Nicholas Ginex Background Information
God, Islam and Author of the Month
Nicholas Ginex Letter to Ahreeman X
Ahreeman X Response
Nicholas Ginex Response
Nicholas Ginex Site
Nicholas Ginex on Author Network
Perquisite Reading
History of Faravahar
https://iranpoliticsclub.net/art-litera ... /index.htm
History of Zoroastra
http://iranpoliticsclub.net/philosophy/ ... /index.htm
History of Persian Mythology
https://iranpoliticsclub.net/culture-la ... /index.htm
History of Allah
https://iranpoliticsclub.net/islam/cres ... /index.htm
Islam is a Disease and Muslims are Infected!
https://iranpoliticsclub.net/islam/isla ... /index.htm
Religion, Living in Fantasy; Drugs, Living in Hallucination!
https://iranpoliticsclub.net/philosophy ... /index.htm
A Bank Named Religion!
https://iranpoliticsclub.net/philosophy ... /index.htm
Brain and Mind
https://iranpoliticsclub.net/philosophy ... /index.htm
Now you are ready to roll.
Let's Roll …
A Word with Nicholas Ginex
Dear NG, you take time from your personal life and go to hospitals and nursing homes to bring a moment of joy to the terminally ill, elderly, abandoned and forgotten people. You play your guitar, sing a few songs, chat with them, most importantly, you listen to them, because no one listens to them and the most important thing they need is for someone to just sit and listen to them and you do it. I bet you often bring to them presents too. I bet you bring to them donuts, cookies, flowers, a little thing here and a little thing there and you brighten up their lives. You shed some sunshine to their lonely lives. I bet sometimes you even take your books and read for them. In this society where no one has time to even stop a minute and talk to someone, you take time to talk and listen to the elderly and the ill.
This is a selfless act. This is an act of passion. This is a human act. When you do these sessions, there is no time and it is silly to discuss philosophy with them and to convince them what is the true God, what is Universal Intelligence, what is Evolution or to change their ways of thinking. They spent a lifetime as good or bad Christians and they believe in Jesus Christ, Holy Spirit and the Lord. "Why change all that?" (you tell to yourself), "let's just do some good for love of Jesus and bring these people some joy and make them happy just for a little while!" (you mumble to yourself). "I had a good life, I had my share of wild days, now in retirement, I have time to give back to the community and do a little good for people who are forgotten, so why not?" (you reason with yourself). And then you go on about your day and once a while you do this not for love of Jesus, not for Christianity, not for love of God and not to convince the people around you that you are a Do Gooder Human and a Lovely Soul! No, you just do this for your own continence and for your own humanity, so at the end of the day you can tell to yourself that:
"Today, I made a difference and my life meant something."
"Today, I made a change for good."
"Today's act, made me feel good about myself."
You do this selfless act of compassion and you go on writing and enlighten the people and you know it may be a losing battle but you still do it because even one man can make a change and put a dent in to the body of this heartless and emotionless machine. Maybe you can change one mind and if you do, then you won and you accomplished something.
You are a Better Man than I
This makes you a better man than I. This makes you a better human than I, not because you do charity work but because I am way too selfish to do what you do! I can bring you excuses based on facts that I am not retired, I am too busy, I am occupied at work, I am occupied with the website, I am occupied with the American and Iranian politics, I am occupied with the personal life and family, I am bla bla bla …… but I am a better man than that! I am a better man than to bring you excuses. I do not lie and I do not bring excuses. That is not my style. I am not a politician.
I tell you straight forward that I am too selfish to do what you do. You are too selfless to do what you do. This makes you a better man than I. You are a better human and a more humble man than I. I cherish what you do and it is a blessing to have folks such as you doing these simple acts of love for those misfortunate and forgotten ones. Elderly gets no respect in this country. More power to you and it is a blessing to have you and likes of you to make a dent and take a moment to make someone happy and bring joy to their life.
Amen Brother!
I Hope ….
Dear NG, I hope what I do makes a difference not just for Iran but for a better world. If I manage to change the minds and hearts of the future Iranian generation to not fall in the swamp of what their fathers and mothers fell in to (1979 Islamic Revolution of Iran) and correct the "Sins of the Fathers", maybe just maybe the future Iran unlike the today's Iran will not remain the central heart of the Islamist Terrorism!
Iran has always been a regional (Middle East) and a continental (Asia) power. Maybe decades of my efforts will mean something after all! Maybe the lives of all my martyred comrades slaughtered by IRI and Hezbollah will make a difference after all! Maybe decades of work will mean something after all!
The Change
If we manage to accelerate the death of IRI (Islamic Republic of Iran) and return Iran to once more being the heart of the Persian civilization, poetry, culture, hospitality and humanity, then it was not all in vain! Maybe by changing the minds and hearts of the future Iranian generation, we will change the future Iran and by changing the future Iran, we will change the world to a better world, a more peaceful world and a more civilized world. Maybe ….. sky is the limit …..
We can change Iran from being the bread and butter of the global Islamism and the benefactor to Hezbollah, Hamas, Al Jihad, Muslim Brotherhood, Al Qaeda, Al Shabab, Afghan Shiites, Bosnian Muslims and every single Islamist Terrorist group in the world to once upon a time proud and mighty Persian Empire, protector of knowledge, art, culture and civilization. Maybe we can accelerate the death of Islam in Iran like the Russians accelerated the death of Communism in Russia! Maybe after all, decades of our lives was not just a waste.
I do my best to make a difference and I am sure that I have done and I am doing and I will make a difference. There will be brighter days. I am sure of it. Things will change. Future is bright. I always tell my comrades that we have one foot in the grave and one foot in the paddle, we were born rebels. And if it all blow in our faces and it all goes to Hell, still once we get old, we will sit in some boon town in exile, around the fireplace and we will tell stories of these days. Boy we have stories to tell. Even if it all goes to Hell, we still have amazing stories to tell and it was all not just a waste! I was born rebel (Tom Petty)!
In hope of better days my friend …
Dear Nicholas
Dear NG (Nicholas Ginex), my free thinking brother:
Thanks for your E-mails, Forum Post and kind remarks.
A) Use the Gadgets Properly
For God's sake, please highlight the desired text and use the "Quote" button and highlight the desired text and use the color buttons properly. Your forum post is extremely "Designabely Challenged" (Liberal Politically Correct Term) and "Drastically Chaotic" (Ahreemanic Politically Incorrect Term)! For God's sake Nicholas, as a man of science, use the technology and gadgets properly and make it easy on our eyes to read the posts and follow the thread! Your post was a mixture of text, BB Code, Mixed color codes and failed forum quotes and colored text attempts. It is simply hard to follow your writing because quotations are messed up, colors are messed up and it is hard to tell which is quote and which is response. Don't be Low Tech, be Hi-Tech! I almost got blinded by the light of Amun (Amen) to follow the confusing pattern of you quoting me, responding and quoting yourself!
I got cataracts and pink eyes trying to read your disorganized post! For love of Jesus, Have mercy on my eyes!
BB Code Guide
B) Get an Avatar
You have no face. Get an avatar so we know who we are talking to?! If you are "technically challenged" (Politically correct liberal term) and you want me to upload your photo or any image you desire as your avatar, then send it to my e-mail or point to the link to it, and let me know?
A Few Points from your E-mail
"Thank you for reading the e-mail I recently sent you and responding with many comments that I will certainly answer in my most honest and logical way. For 95% of your comments, I fully agree regarding the unlikely possibility that religious leaders have enough common sense to unify their beliefs and teach the last command given by a man of God."
Buddy, this is the problem with our world and humanity. 95 % of the people are saying the same thing but with different views, terms and understanding. They all scream the same thing but due to lack of understanding, comprehension, and communication, they fight one another thinking they have fundamental and antagonistic differences!
Hassan and Hussein Metaphor
(Not Rouhani and Obama!)
The problem is that when Hassan speaks, instead of listening to what Hassan says, Hussein thinks of what to say next! Hassan is talking but Hussein is not listening, yet he is thinking of what to say next! This type of conducting dialogue ends up in misunderstanding, confusion and conflicts. This is the most common way that people conduct dialogue and this is why our world is crushing with conflict. We should talk less and listen more. We should listen to the other party rather than planning our next speech while he is talking! That's humanity in a nutshell for you.
"From a practical standpoint, the monotheistic religions have dogma they will not let go of. That is why my books appeal to people around the world to pressure religious leaders to unify their beliefs and teach the greatest command given by God - love one another."
Yes, you should continue the effort to enlighten. It is an uphill battle, yet you simply cannot seize the climbing, just because the hill is steep!
"It will be a fruitful exercise to discuss our viewpoints about religion and God. There is one basic difference between me and you;"
Ahhh are you talking about the fact that:
You are an Ancient Alien Astronaut posing as an Egyptologist Egyptian human,
I am an Ancient Persian God of Evil posing as a journalist human?
" you tend to hang onto the spiritual view created by past Persian thinkers"
I believe there is a bit of misunderstanding here.
2 points:
A) Ancient Persian Philosophy such as Zarathustra's philosophy speaks of Ahura Mazda as the "Universal Intelligence" meaning not as a Big Guy sitting in the sky and creating all universes and everything in them, but it is defining the "System" of dynamic, evolving and ever changing progressive interactions between the matters, energies and spirits which has been, is and will be running all universes and making it to functionally go on … This system is not the results of a thinking person's or thinking entity's creation, yet the complete system is intelligent!
They system was never created, will never be destroyed and it is always changing forms to evolve. This complete system made up of matters, energies and spirits within itself is intelligent.
B) I, also basically believe in the same thing! I believe that Everything in existence [Matters, Energies and Spirits (elements so far known)], was never created, will not be destroyed and always change forms within and from and to one another to evolve.
There never was or is a creator or an intelligent entity designed and created all. The system within itself is intelligent.
Human mind is simple and elementary. In human mind, everything must have a creator. There is a shoe, then there must be a shoemaker. But in universal concept there is no creator or creation.
The Universal Graph of Existence
The graph is a snake-like entity with no beginning and no end. Each circle of the snake's body does not fully close but it comes near closing points.
Human mind has a hard time comprehending that something can exist without getting created!
The funny thing is that the same human limited mind also believes in a God that always existed, can never be destroyed and he created all!
As scientists, we say the same thing about the matters and energies, but human's limited mind simply cannot accept that, yet he accepts a spiritual entity as God with the same criteria!
We offer the human, the sensible and visible matters and energies but he prefers to believe in the not visible and not sensible spiritual being named God!
We as scientists also believe in Spirits and Spirituality. But our spirits cannot exist without matters and energies! In our logical universe, matters and energies created the spirits, not vice versa! Read:
Brain and Mind
https://iranpoliticsclub.net/philosophy ... /index.htm
On My Spirituality
My spirituality is not the spirituality of an Abrahamic God and his prophets! My spirituality is the spirituality learned and earned through humanity, martial arts teachings, universal thinking, rational pondering and logically configuring. My spirituality is a world apart from Religious mumbo jumbo, God and his prophets!
" and, I have no allegiance to any religion except that the original premise of religion was to explain our existence and formulate a moral code to live by."
Actually you and I are much closer to your belief than what you assume it is my belief! I do not cling to Ancient Persian Philosophies and Religions. I only cling to core teachings of Zarathustra centered in "Universal Intelligence" system as the same system which I believe and refer to as "Evolution".
In other words, I do not cling to the Ancient Persian Doctrines but I cling to Science. I dig the scientific parts of them.
"Science has nothing to do with ethics and morality but only facts and logic that explains the existence of things."
Actually I differ.
Science has everything to do with morality!
On Morality
Science has everything to do with Logic.
Logic dictates what is logically Moral.
Rationally Moral thinking and behavior establishes Morality codes.
In formula:
Science => Logic => Morality
Human sense and logic makes us to build a moral code of ethics and morality.
Human logic dictates us on what is moral and what is not! Human has created the Morality. Now the morality can vary, some is upside down (Islamic Morality) and some is more logical (do not commit incest). There is a scientific logic on why not to commit incest (reproductive flaws, ethical bankruptcy, social ramifications, etc.) which has nothing to do with the religion.
Do you honestly believe that if there was never a God, a Religion and a Religious Moral Code in history of the man, then eventually the human animal would have not come to comprehend and write a set of moral codes? Human would eventually come to conclusion and write Moral codes (without religion) through logic.
Think about it,
Morality is more scientific and logic than having anything to do with God and Religion.
Human logic dictates us to be Moral beings:
Do not Kill
Do not commit Incest
Do not steal
Do not cheat
Do not rape
I can go point by point and prove to you that Morality is pure scientific and not religious.
Moral due to Logic not Religion!
Religious people out of ignorance believe that human cannot be moral without religion. They in fact believe that Atheists cannot be moral. It is actually the opposite! Atheists are moral due to logic and not due to the fear of God!
Religious people are moral due to the fear of God and burning in Hell at the Afterlife. If there was no God or Religion, all of these Pious people would eat each other alive, rape, incest, pillage and murder!
Islamic Morality!
Actually Muslims are already doing all the above and all are written in their good book of Quran! Praise be Upon Allah!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
There is only one God and it is the Psychopathic, Mass Murderer, Serial Killer named Allah and he only has one prophet named Muhammad the Jewel of Humanity and the symbol of purity (Incest, Rape, Polygamy, Stealing, Cheating, Murder, etc.)
Allah-o Akbar, Praise be Upon Allah!
The issue of Morality is by itself a wide subject and a discussion by itself. We can attend to the issue of Morality later on and discuss it in depth. I love to do so and I know you are just itching to get down and dirty with this issue.
Morality has always been a controversial issue of debate between philosophers and thinkers of both religious and non religious sides of the aisle.
"That is why I subscribe to the idea that people will always think of some unknown, mysterious, and incomprehensible God to try to understand their own existence."
God and Religion was created from the fear of unknown by man!
"This topic cannot be covered in just a few paragraphs. However, I look forward and am honored that you have taken the time to write and challenge much of my thinking."
It is surely enjoyable to debate a wonderful mind such as yours. I enjoy speaking to "People of Brains"!
"I assure you, we are of the same mind,"
Somewhat ….
" but I am looking for solutions that will bring harmony and peace to people around the world."
Then shall we call you Mother Theresa? Or Pope Nicholas P. Ginex?
"Nicholas P. Ginex"
Nicholas Professor Ginex
"PS: I understand your reluctance to receive a complimentary copy of my book. Perhaps, through a 3rd party, I could mail you signed, complimentary copies of my books. It would be my pleasure to be honored by the time and efforts you spend writing me."
Pleasure is mine.


text:
My health has continued to generally improve with time. I had a great summer in Alaska in which my improved health allowed me to get out on some great adventures in the mountains. I didn't at all try to run with any kind of everyday consistency, but on two different occasions (once in June and again in late July/early August) I was able to put in some pretty decent time out in the mountains for 2 or 3 week stretches. It would be a stretch to say I was feeling great on any of these outings, but compared to how horrible I felt for most of the past year it's hard to complain. If my health improves as much in the next year as it has in the past year then I will feel 100% sometime in the not so distant future.
This said, back in Colorado now I can certainly feel that it is taking some time to feel strong and energetic. It may be that I'm just recovering from a few very strenuous weeks my last few weeks in Alaska, or maybe my body is responding to the 7,500 ft. altitude that I'm living at here, or maybe just a natural regression in my health/energy, as I have had dozens of phases throughout this whole ordeal in which I inexplicably feel much worse than the previous several days or weeks. At any rate, I'm planning to take it really easy until my body feels better and then hopefully I can get out on some good autumn outings here in Colorado before resting up and moving into a 2014 in which I can hopefully return to stretches of everyday running and see where that takes me. I miss running everyday, and being in shape to be able to race anytime I want, but more than anything I just like to be able to get outside and explore my surroundings on a regular basis. I feel so fortunate that I was able to do this as often as I was this summer, and I look forward to moving gradually back into a place in which I can pretty much do this whenever I want to.
Despite my still compromised health I was able to put on two amazing sessions of camp this past summer. We had our best summer yet, and are super excited to be planning on three more sessions for next summer. Check out the website if you are interested in that. Entry is now open!
In the meantime, I'm enjoying being a family man. Marrying Corle this past summer was probably the smartest thing I've ever done, and the fact that she comes with such a rad kid makes the deal even that much sweeter. Our days back in Colorado have been filled with making our new house here into a home for the three of us and this has been incredibly enjoyable. Beyond this I've been slowly taking on a few new hobbies to fill some of the void of not running so much and certainly I have a few projects in mind that I hope to put some more energy into in the coming months.
In short, life is good, although I do still have a ways to go to feel like my old self physically. In the meantime it's been fun (and challenging) to figure out how to navigate through my life without the physical health that I had grown so used to. I'd be lying if I said it's been easy, but if my experience of this past year has taught me anything it's that sometimes we just need to keep faith, and practice patience, and keep moving forward. Our minds and our bodies have an amazing ability to heal and recover, but we need to be willing to give them the space to do so.


text:
Doubtless you've heard of Linux, free software, and open source software. It's important for small business owners to understand the finer points of these, because knowing what they are, and what role they play, is crucial to developing a smart business strategy.
Let's start with a quick overview: Linux is a computer operating system, like Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X, and Unix. In fact, Linux is a clone of Unix. Unix is the venerable, battle-tested operating system that has powered the world's servers—from mainframes down to small department servers—since the early 1970s. There are many different variants of Unix. Some are open source and free of cost, such as FreeBSD and OpenBSD, and some are closed-source commercial systems such as IBM's AIX and Hewlett-Packard's HP-UX. Apple's Mac OS X is a certified Unix variant, while Linux is a non-certified Unix-like operating system.
Who Uses Linux? You Do
Linux has displaced Unix, and to a lesser degree Windows, all over the planet. Linux literally powers the Internet. Facebook, Amazon, Google, and Netflix are all Linux-powered. The world's 500 fastest supercomputers are 96 percent Linux. What else runs on Linux?
- Your Android smartphone or tablet
- Your set-top TV box
- Computer networking routers, firewalls, and Internet gateways
- Automotive entertainment systems
- Factory automation
- The Large Hardon Collider
- The London Stock Exchange
- IBM mainframes
And much, much more: all Linux. Linux is main stream and has been for several years. It runs on everything from tiny embedded devices to the world's biggest and busiest datacenters.
The biggest recent technological advance—the Cloud—runs on Linux. I know, you're sick of hearing "cloud," and it's true that the marketing peeps have beaten the word to death. But it really is a giant leap forward in managing the datacenter, and it opens up a world of flexible, efficient possibilities that reduces costs while offering more and better functionality.
The single arena where it does not dominate is the PC desktop, which is still owned by Microsoft Windows. Which is a shame, as Windows remains a big security risk, and Linux makes a great PC and laptop operating system. It's stable, secure, and you can download a wealth of high-quality applications with a click.
The Many Flavors of Linux
Unlike the restrictive monocultures of Windows and OS X, there is a lot competition in the Linux world. Linux comes in hundreds of different variants (which are called "distributions"), and they offer something for everyone. Ubuntu, Red Hat, and SUSE are enterprise Linux distributions with commercial support. Ubuntu is also available for free, and some of the other top free-of-cost distributions include Fedora, Mageia, Mint, openSUSE, and Debian. You can learn more about these distributions at Distrowatch.
You can freely download and install just about any Linux distribution, and it's pretty easy. But what if you want to buy computers with Linux preloaded? Take a look at 5 Top Linux Computer Vendors for Small Business to learn where to get Linux already installed and configured on computers.