text: in the Rescript of the Roman emperors relating to the articles impor. ed into Egypt from the east, and contained in the Digest of the Rom Law, Lib. XXXIX. title XV. 5. 7.* Lign Aloe.-The fragrant wood called Lign Aloe or Aguru in Sanscri is the Ahaloth of Scripture, from which term the name of Agallochu: given to it in the Digest, is derived. Hence the modern appellation Agal or Eagle wood which is sometimes applied to it. Aquillaria Aga locha, which yields this substance, is common in the mountainous countr between Sylhet and Assam. Speaking of the latter country, Mahome Cazim observes: "the mountains of Nanac (the Naga hills or Nazaviciur of Ammianus Marcellinus) produce plenty of Lign Aloes, which a societ of natives import every year into Assam and barter for salt and grain.' The fragrance of Lign Aloe is supposed to be the result of a disease state of the centre layers of the wood, which is converted into a resinou: matter. At Sylhet an essence or attar is extracted from it, which, in former days when this article was in great demand, was sold for its weight in gold. Both the wood and the essence or attar are purchased by Moghul merchants and are sent to Jidda and Bussora. The attar of Lign Aloe, which is of the consistence of thick oil and of a dark brown colour, appears to be the substance called Indian Cinnabar by Arrian. Dr. Vincent remarks in speaking of Arrian's account of Socotra: "it is remarkable that aloes are not mentioned by the author of the Periplus but he notices particularly the drug called Indian cinnabar which exudes from a certain species of trees. Dr. Vincent says that the confounding of Cinnabar and Dragons blood was a mistake of ancient date, and concludes that the latter is the article that is referred to."+ It would seem, however, that the substance, which Arrian alludes to, was not the produce of Socotra, but of India, and it is likely, therefore, that the attar of Lign Aloe is, from its colour, the substance that is meant by the article Cinnabar which exudes from certain trees. It was no doubt imported into Socotra from India. Lign Aloe is highly esteemed as a perfume throughout the east, and is employed for various purposes, as incense in temples, to fumigate apartments, cloths, &c. The Jews used it at their interments. * Quære, Tit. IV. ? where a long and highly interesting catalogue of oriental imports is given.-Eds. + Vincent's Periplus. Rhinoceros's Horn.—This appears to be the article which is mentionunder the term Pokeps in the Periplus. The Rhinoceros's horn was considered an antidote to poison, and was, therefore, highly valued in ancient times. These horns were no doubt exported from Assam where the Rhinoceros abounds. The horn of the Rhinoceros of Bengal was considered superior to that of every other country of Asia. Linschoten remarks that this was owing "to the herbs which Bengala vieleth, for in other places they were not near the price of these." The two Mahomedan travellers of the 9th century state that the Chinese purchased the horns of Rhinoceroses in the kingdom of Rami, in the fens of which country they are said to abound (the marshes of Bengal) and that they adorned their girdles with these, some of which were valued at 3000 pieces of gold in China. Tabasheer. This is supposed by some to be the ex kapvor of the Periplus. It is designated the sugar or manna of bamboos. It occurs in the works of the old travellers under the name of Spodiom de Canna. Barett mentions it as an export from Bengal to Goa in the 16th century. It is also noticed, as an article of traffic in other parts of India. Cæsar Frederick remarks: "From Cambara cometh the Spodiom which congealeth in certain canes (bamboos) whereof I found many in Pegu, of which I made my house there, because as I said before they make their houses there of woven canes like mats." Odoricus, who travelled in India in the early part of the 14th century, speaks of canes named "Cassam, of which they make sails (masts) for ships, and in which are found certain stones, one of which stones whosoever carrieth it about with him cannot be wounded with any iron, and therefore the men of the rountry for the most part carry such stones wherever they go." (Haklyut's voyages, p. 162.) Dacca, 16th April, 1846. SIR WM. JONES mentions APPENDIX. NOTE I. borders of India to those of Arabia, as the river Arabius, a place called Araba, a people named Aribes or Arabies and another called Sabi." (Discourse on the Arabs, As. Res. Vol. ii. p. 7.) "the similarity of some proper names on the Words allied to the latter term occur in Ptolemy's Geography of the countries of India: and were perhaps the names of Sabran commercial settlements. Supara or Sippara (the Sefareh of Arabian : moi mais de nouvelles? relations m'apprennent qu'il n'y a point de ville de nom." The site of Bengala appears to have been confounded with that Chittagong about the beginning of the 18th century. In some of the Fren geographical Dictionaries of that period, these towns are described as "Cha gan sur la rivière de Cosmin vis-a-vis Bengal que plusieurs geographes co fondent avec elle. Quelques uns ont cru que Bengale n'est autre q Chatigan." Dict. de Lamartine. That they were different places, however, evident from the circumstance of Bengala, Chatigan and Satigan being seve ally mentioned as the chief emporia of Bengal. From the city of Beng being described as situated on an island and opposite to Chittagong, Sunde would seem to be the locality that is referred to; on the other hand, Sir Herbert mentions this island, but does not allude to any town upon it, whil he particularly specifies Chatigan, Bacola, Serripore, and Sonargong as tl principal towns of the eastern part of Bengal. In a work entitled "L Mercatoria," written about the middle of the last century, Dacca is mentione as identical with Bengala. The mention by Morery of the latter having bee frequented by Portuguese, Dutch, English, and French, seems to countenanc this opinion; but on the other hand the insular situation of Bengala, and i being placed opposite to Chittagong prove that Dacca is not the town that referred to. Rennell, speaking of this city, remarks "no traces of it now exis It is described as being near the eastern mouth of the Ganges, and I conceiv the site of it has been carried away by the river." Note on an Image of Budha found at Sherghatti, Sc. by Capt. KITTOE I have the pleasure herewith to transmit a sketch of a small image of Budha at this place, and said to have been brought from a hill nea Gaya. It will be observed to differ in some respects from the ordinary form of these idols; it appears to hold a cup for offerings, instead of the right hand resting open on the knee, as generally found, but it is common in this district, as well as other forms which I propose treating upon on a future occasion. Sinhasun," or It will be observed that on the right beneath the " throne, is represented a monkey? on his hind legs, holding an offering in his fore paws; on the left, the same animal appears to be jumping down a well. This I have also seen on a fine figure of Budha at Budh Gaya, given in Buchanan, but badly drawn. Probably Lieut. Latter, who has already offered the Society some useful observations on Budhist emblems, |


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Category Archives: The Rough With The Smooth
BROKEN ENGLISH The Rough With The Smooth
This is the sound of the Stones rubbed smooth and polished to a gleam…there's no doubting Elson's songwriting ability…
All Music (March 2007)
Broken English caused quite a stir in the late 80s…With deliberately oblique marketing and the rumour mill intimating that the Stones-sounding single might in fact be the real thing operating under a pseudonym, that song was propelled into the Top 20.
Classic Rock (April 2007)
…the fact that so many songs seem like recognisable old friends doesn't hurt
Rock n Reel (May 2007)
The sleevenotes to this issue tell the story well enough, while the music argues a better case for its better-late-than-never reissue.
Record Collector (May 2007)
…a solid album…and a reminder for those who relished 80s rock.
Nigel Filby, Diss Express (April 2007)
The sleevenotes to this issue tell the story well enough. While the music argues a better case for its better-late-than-never reissue…
Joe Geesin, Record Collector (April 2007)
…the sound takes advantage of 80s rock and pop sensibilities offering clipped-riff pop-rockers and keyboard-coloured radio-friendly rockers…
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The single is still the real standout, and songs like Love on the Side and You Take Me Away held real promise…
Philip Wilding, Classic Rock (April 2007)
…one hell of an album it is, with catchy licks of the opening "Show A Little Mercy" addressed both ways – from the ensemble to the audience and from the punters to the musos. Here's music coming from the bottom of the heart and from the heart of the bottom, just like good blues-based songs should, and harmonica shuffle smoothing the sharp edges adds to overall feelgood mood.
Dmitry M. Epstein, www.dmme.net (May 2007)
…catchy tunes with bits of the casual guitar wizardry well-incorporated into them; some clever arrangements and the slick yet rootsy Stones attitude. (6.5/10)
Avi Shaked, www.maelstrom.nu (July 2007)
…no mere gathering of Rolling Xeroxes and 'Comin'; On Strong' hasn't gathered any moss, either
Jo-Ann Greene, Goldmine, April 27 2007
…Broken English's entire recorded history is contained on this one CD…Coming On Strong became one of those classic one hit wonders…
Bev Bevan – Sunday Mercury

subset: commoncrawl


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He got a bit miffed that people were pointing out errors in his work but he remained committed to the cause of simply trying to show that Africa is a big place. His wholly misleading map constantly bubbles up on the internet. The critiques get largely ignored because few care about accuracy and the world keeps turning. Except he's only gone and updated the graphic.
Scientific American published his new graphic in a blog entitled Africa Dwarfs China, Europe and the U.S. in a section called Graphic Science.
Nervously, I went over and took a look...and this is what I saw:
Now let's be clear, the aim of educating people that the Mercator projection distorts our perception of reality and that Africa as a continent has suffered more than most is commendable. Fighting immappancy (as Krause described this lack of understanding of geography) is also close to my heart. But using maps incorrectly is where I get all cartonerdy.
You'd think, perhaps, that Krause might have taken some of the criticism on the chin and used this update as a way to correct his own immappancy. You'd also think that in a publication that profers the importance of 'science' that accuracy might be important. You also may presume that anything in the 'Graphic Science' section would be scientifically accurate in its visual display. Let's see eh?
Like many, Krause has embraced 3D. People love 3D. It looks cool and literally gives maps depth. So this new graphic is attention grabbing because of it's three dee-iness alone.
However - 3D blocks in perspective wrapped round a globe creates visual distortions. In just the same way that on a flat map that uses Mercator the north and south are distorted relative to the equator, on a virtual globe we see distortions in the relative size and shape of features as they move away from the viewing point - the point closest to us as map readers. China therefore appears predominant and his rendering of Western Europe starts to diminish as it begins to wrap around the curve of the globe. So, visually, comparing like for like from a single point of view on a 3D perspective drawing (or globe) isn't a good way of showing comparisons...particularly when it's based on the relative size of areas (I wrote of these issues in a separate blog).
Notwithstanding the visual problems with interpreting the relative size of shapes across a curved surface, if Krause has at least got all his shapes in proportion during the construction of the graphic then we might at least be able to assume some semblance of relative size. BUT...the sizes and shapes didn't quite look right to me so I popped open my GIS package of choice and played with some shapes.
Given I re-drew the original 2D version I thought it only natural to re-draw the 3D version so here's my attempt at re-making his map with the same countries on a virtual globe:
I had difficulties re-making his map like-for-like for the simple reason that the real world shapes are not the same as he presents. Here's where Krause's map seems to fail:
- China is not the same shape and has been warped to fit neatly over Madagascar.
- The contiguous United States is much larger than he presents.
- Krause included Germany and a partial set of Eastern European countries. There simply isn't room.
- The real India is larger than Krause represents.
Of course I'm being cartographically pedantic again but if the very thing you purport to show is misrepresenting reality I don't think artistic license is a sufficiently good excuse. Yes, you could argue it's only a little bit wrong but if you're going to do something, why not do it right? Few who look at the new graphic will even think to question its authority and they will glean a distorted picture. That's the real issue.
The world will likely jump on his graphic and proclaim it as a great way to visualize differences in the size of areas. Like his 2D attempt, it's inaccurate. Will anyone care? I do. Should I have made a 3D version? Probably not. The 2D version is far more useful at supporting visual comparison of areas. Adding perspective and extruding the shapes to volumetric blocks just adds unnecessary visual noise that creates problems for our human processing of the map's message.
ht to @cartocalypse for the link


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I am a 54 year old, lifelong athlete and am ready for an additional form of training. I love my kettlebells and was looking to add body weight training. The neurogrips and book are an answer to a total body workout without the joint impact. I am following the program from the very beginning.…Read More
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I am a 54 year old, lifelong athlete and am ready for an additional form of training. I love my kettlebells and was looking to add body weight training. The neurogrips and book are an answer to a total body workout without the joint impact. I am following the program from the very beginning. I have progressed to pushups from my knees and getting stronger every week. The neurogrips and book have challenged me in ways I have never seen. It is amazing to see the increase in strength and the stability gained with each passing week. I look forward to challenging myself in each workout. I strongly recommend the program to anyone who wants to be challenged at any age.
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Monckton Misrepresents Scientists' Own Work (Part 1)
Posted on 21 February 2012 by dana1981, Alex C, Tom Curtis
On 19 July 2011, Monckton debated Richard Denniss, a prominent Australian economist, author and public policy commentator. During that debate, Monckton delivered his usual Gish Gallop, repeating a number of long-debunked myths and misrepresenting climate science research. A few days later, we at Skeptical Science detailed the various Monckton misrepresentations in the debate.
Monckton has recently responded to our comments, defending his debate arguments. However, Monckton's defense amounts to little more than additional misrepresentations. As John Cook recently alluded to, we will proceed to examine the mishmash of Monckton misrepresentations that ensued.
Monckton addresses John Cook throughout his response even though the Skeptical Science post was written by dana1981 (Dana Nuccitelli), as clearly indicated at the top of the post. Unfortunately as we'll show here, this careless reading of the Skeptical Science post is symptomatic of Monckton's constant problems misreading - and consequently misrepresenting - the climate science literature (as we'll see here in Part 1), specific situations (Part 2), and reality in general (Part 3).
The most interesting responses to Monckton's presentations have involved demonstrations that he has misrepresented climate scientists' work (i.e. by John Abraham and Tim Lambert). Here we will see that Monckton continues with this unfortunate habit.
Monckton Misrepresents Climate Sensitivity
In his recent blog post on Watts Up With That (linked above), Monckton claims there is no consensus regarding how much warming increased atmospheric CO2 will cause - also known as "climate sensitivity." This is simply untrue. Both the 2007 IPCC report and Knutti and Hegerl (2008) included literature reviews, examining climate sensitivity estimates using a wide range of methods, data, and timeframes. In both literature reviews, the clear consensus was that climate sensitivity is between 2 and 4.5°C for doubled CO2 (Figure 1).
Figure 1: Distributions and ranges for climate sensitivity from different lines of evidence. The circle indicates the most likely value. The thin colored bars indicate very likely value (more than 90% probability). The thicker colored bars indicate likely values (more than 66% probability). Dashed lines indicate no robust constraint on an upper bound. The IPCC likely range (2 to 4.5°C) and most likely value (3°C) are indicated by the vertical grey bar and black line, respectively (adapted from Knutti and Hegerl 2008)
In disputing this consensus, Monckton lists a few papers which he purports demonstrate that climate sensitivity is low. In some cases he has misrepresented the papers, as they make no assertions about climate sensitivity whatsoever. In other cases, he references papers by the same few "skeptics" which subsequent research has demonstrated are flawed.
Douglass et al. (2004): attempted to estimate the climate sensitivity to changes in solar irradiance, and found a sensitivity parameter of 0.63°C per W/m2. This equates to 2.3°C warming for a 3.7 W/m2 radiative forcing (the forcing caused by a doubling of atmospheric CO2). This sensitivity is within the IPCC range (2 to 4.5°C), and thus this paper does not support a low sensitivity argument.
Douglass et al. (2007): deals with tropical troposphere temperatures and does not even discuss climate sensitivity. Monckton also mischaracterizes the 'hot spot' as a fingerprint of human warming - it is not. Monckton also fails to mention the statistically flawed methodology in this paper, identified by Santer et al. (2008).
Coleman and Thorne (2005): like Douglass (2007), deals with tropical troposphere temperatures, not climate sensitivity.
Shaviv (2005): has concluded that climate sensitivity is low because galactic cosmic rays have contributed substantially to global temperature changes. Shaviv's conclusions are contradicted by virtually every other study on the subject of galactic cosmic rays.
Tsonis et al. (2006): fake skeptics frequently misrepresent this paper, claiming, like Monckton, that it attributes much of the recent warming to natural variability. In reality the paper specifically discussed natural variability superimposed on an anthropogenic warming trend. Moreover, a paper by co-author Swanson (2009) noted that if the climate is more sensitive to internal variability than currently thought, this would also mean climate is more sensitive to imposed forcings like CO2, and is thus an argument for high climate sensitivity.
Wentz et al. (2007): dealt with precipitation, not climate sensitivity. The paper finds that while atmospheric water vapor has increased as expected, precipitation has increased more than predicted by climate models. Note that Monckton wrongly claims Wentz et al. concluded evaporation has risen 3 times faster than expected; water vapor was on par with expectations, and it was precipitation that has risen faster than expected. The potential effects regarding global warming (and implicitly climate sensitivity) are unclear, as stated in the paper (in fact the paper does not even mention climate sensitivity). Monckton claims that because precipitation has increased roughly 3 times faster than climate models expect, this means climate sensitivity is 3 times lower than expected. This conclusion is wholly unjustified; even if we knew the implications of increased precipitation on climate sensitivity, the hydrological cycle is quite obviously not the only global warming feedback.
Paltridge et al. (2009): is a paper about specific humidity which draws no conclusions about climate sensitivity. Paltridge himself also noted that while their paper found decreasing specific humidity, it relied on problematic radiosonde (weather balloon) data. Subsequent research using satellite data has demonstrated that specific humidity is increasing as expected.
Douglass & Christy (2009): was published in Energy&Environment, which is not considered a legitimate peer-reviewed journal. The paper attempted to estimate climate sensitivity based on just lower troposphere temperatures in the tropics, which could be described as 'cherry picking' convenient data. This is also the third Douglass paper referenced by Monckton.
Lindzen and Choi (2009): relied on short-term data with conveniently chosen starting and ending points, using data from only the tropics. Monckton also failed to mention that several subsequent papers have demonstrated that this paper is flawed and its conclusions regarding low climate sensitivity are unsupported.
Spencer and Braswell (2010): this paper essentially suggested that cloud cover changes will act as a strong negative feedback and offset global warming. Monckton neglects to mention that Dessler (2010) found that the global cloud feedback is likely positive, and does not appear to be strongly negative. A number of other studies have also suggested a positive cloud feedback.
Spencer and Braswell (2011): subsequent research has demonstrated that Spencer and Braswell were not testing climate sensitivity, but rather models' ability to reproduce the El Niño Southern Oscillation. Monckton also neglecte to metion that Spencer and Braswell omitted inconvenient data from their published results, as shown by Dessler (2011). Thus like Lindzen and Choi, their conclusions regarding low climate sensitivity are unsupported.
Loehle & Scafetta (2011): this paper used an oversimplified climate model which fails to reproduce past climate changes, overestimated the natural contribution to 20th Century warming, and confused equilibrium with transient climate sensitivity, amongst its numerous fundamental flaws.
Overall, amongst the 12 papers which Monckton claims support low climate sensitivity, 5 do not even discuss climate sensitivity, 1 suggests climate sensitivity falls within the stated IPCC range, 1 tries to blame global warming on galactic cosmic rays, 1 was published in Energy&Environment, and 4 have been debunked by subsequent research and/or are riddled with fundamental flaws.
Even ignoring the fundamental flaws and subsequent research, Monckton has only identified 6 papers which actually suggest climate sensitivity is low, as compared to the dozens of papers identified in Knutti and Hegerl (2008) which are consistent with the IPCC climate sensitivity range.
In some of these papers, the implications for climate sensitivity (if any) is unclear (e.g. the 'hot spot' and greater than expected precipitation); however, Monckton is in no position to make those determinations himself. If the scientists themselves do not draw any conclusions about the implications of their research on climate sensitivity, Monckton should not misrepresent their research by drawing unsupported conclusions.
Monckton Misrepresents Economic Effects of CO2 Limits
In our original post, we pointed out the consensus amongst economists with expertise in climate that CO2 limits will help the economy (Figure 2), because climate mitigation is cheaper than adaption (Figure 3).
Figure 2: New York University survey results of economists with climate expertise when asked under what circumstances the USA should reduce its emissions
Figure 3: Approximate costs of climate action (green) and inaction (red) in 2100 and 2200. Sources: German Institute for Economic Research and Watkiss et al. 2005
Monckton begs to differ, citing economics reviews by Tol (2009) and Lomborg (2007). However, Lomborg (2007) appears to be a reference to Lomborg's book rather than a peer-reviewed paper. Tol (2009) is indeed a peer-reviewed overview of some climate economics research, but contrary to Monckton's claims, it concludes:
"A government that uses the same 3 percent discount rate for climate change as for other decisions should levy a carbon tax of $25 per metric ton of carbon (modal value) to $50/tC (mean value). A higher tax can be justified by an appeal to the high level of risk, especially of very negative outcomes, not captured in the standard estimates (Weitzman, forthcoming)."
"There is a strong case for near-term action on climate change, although prudence may dictate phasing in a higher cost of carbon over time"
Monckton has misrepresented Tol by claiming that his research concludes the costs of climate action will exceed the costs of inaction - Tol quite clearly concludes a carbon tax would be beneficial in this paper. Tol's review also relies heavily on the work of Nordhaus, who has similarly been misrepresented by the fake skeptics, and who also has concluded that reducing CO2 emissions will save money and benefit the economy. Note also that Tol and Nordhaus are two of the most conservative economists in their estimates of the costs of climate change, and yet they both support carbon pricing mechanisms; a fact which clearly supports the economic consensus in support of carbon limits.
Monckton Misrepresents Ice Cores and the Met Office
In discussing whether the Earth's climate is generally stable or unstable, Monckton made a number of incorrect claims about the Younger Dryas event. For example, he referenced Antarctic temperatures, when the event is actually observable in Greenland, not Antarctic ice core records. The temperature change Monckton refers to also occurred over a span of approximately 40 years, not 3 years, as Monckton asserts.
Regardless, Monckton's original argument that there just can't be a 5°C global surface temperature warming "overnight" (over approximately 250 years, in our case) simply has no basis in reality. Given a sufficiently large radiative forcing, there is no physical reason why this warming could not occur. Monckton also misrepresents the UK Met Office, claiming:
"We now have confirmation from the UK Met Office that there has been no "global warming" to speak of for 15 years."
Monckton did not provide a source to support this assertion, but he may refer to the David Rose Daily Mail article which made similar claims. The UK Met Office responded to that article, saying (emphasis added):
"This article includes numerous errors in the reporting of published peer reviewed science undertaken by the Met Office Hadley Centre and for Mr. Rose to suggest that the latest global temperatures available show no warming in the last 15 years is entirely misleading."
It would seem that Monckton has quite misrepresented the Met Office as well. The HadCRUT3 data set does show relatively little surface warming over the past 15 years (0.02°C), but that timeframe also just happens to start at the beginning of the largest El Niño in the past century (thus choosing it as a starting point is cherry picking, as illustrated in The Escalator). Moreover, we know that HadCRUT3 has a cool bias, and will soon be replaced with HadCRUT4, which - among other revisions - will include more temperature data in the Arctic (the fastest-warming region). Even cherry picking the convenient 1997 starting date, temperature data from NASA GISS shows 0.14°C surface warming despite virtually every non-greenhouse gas temperature influence acting in the cooling direction over that period.
The Met Office also would not say there has been no global warming, because Met Office scientists would not ignore the vast majority of the heat that is going into the oceans (i.e. Figure 4).
Figure 4: Total global heat content, data from Church et al 2011. Crossed-out data are ignored by Christopher Monckton, but not by the Met Office scientists.
In Part 2 we will examine further Monckton misrepresentations of scientific research, reports, and other specific situations in his response to our critique of his factually-lacking debate performance.


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Dead Lawyers Don't lie by Mark Nolan, is a gripping thriller full of suspense, plot twists and surprises. It features a cast of interesting characters, including several strong-willed women, two wise-cracking San Francisco Police Homicide Inspectors, one highly intelligent dog, and a philosophical killer who shares Jake's admiration for Van Gogh paintings but still plans to kill him anyway.
Dead Lawyers Don't Lie: A Gripping Thriller (Jake Wolfe Book 1)
by Mark Nolan
(2,988 Reviews)
Genre: Thrillers | Action & Adventure | Crime Fiction | Mystery
A mysterious killer who calls himself The Artist is assassinating wealthy lawyers in San Francisco. When war veteran Jake Wolfe accidentally takes his picture during a murder, The Artist adds Jake to his kill list and he becomes a target in a deadly game of cat and mouse that only one of them can survive. How far would you go to protect your loved ones from a killer? Jake wants to leave his top secret, violent past life behind him. But the reluctant, flawed hero can't ignore his duty and his personal moral compass.
As Jake gets closer to unraveling a merciless conspiracy, his life gets turned upside down and the danger level increases, adding to the growing suspense. This entertaining page-turner starts out as a murder mystery and then shifts gears into a high-speed action thriller that takes you on a roller-coaster ride to the riveting ending. A good read for those who enjoy mysteries, suspense, action and adventure, vigilante justice, unique characters, witty dialogue and a little romance too. Now on sale in over a dozen countries around the world. Be the first among your friends to read it.
Fans of new Kindle Unlimited novels will be happy to know this book is one of the best financial thrillers in kindle unlimited books.
Click here to get this book for $0.99
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This shows some important uses of Google Street View: helping tourists plan itineraries and conducting virtual field trips.
You can also view an impressive 3D model of Disneyland Paris in Google Earth. "More than 85,000 photos (450GB worth) were taken over a 20 day period for this project. The castle alone is comprised of over 354 textures derived from over 2,000 photos. (...) There are over 500 unique landscape elements that were created to make the park look as realistic as possible."
The unofficial Google Earth blog reports that Google added a lot of new 3D buildings. "Google has been slowly adding cities using an unpublished methodology where vast numbers of buildings for large areas of cities are being rendered in 3D with photorealistic textures. The photos appear to be aerial in some cases, in others they seem to be from the ground. But, they are using an at least semi-automated process judging from the cases where some buildings are not properly dressed with the photo textures."


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New 2024 Forest River RV Cherokee Wolf Den 262DBH
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Michael J. Media
Format: CD
Musical Performance | |
Sound Quality | |
Overall Enjoyment |
Five Minneapolis musicians comprise the band War Poets, but Rex Haberman, a longtime songwriter with three discs to his credit, is at the center of the band's debut album. Haberman wrote or cowrote all 17 songs on Dulce et Decorum Est. Even a casual listen, however, reveals how important collaboration was to this two-disc set. Matt Kirkwold and Jenny Case helped with some of the songwriting, and played, respectively, guitar and bass. Coproducers Kevin Bowe and Stephen McKnight also share a couple of bylines with Haberman, and play guitar.
Bowe's studio is in Minneapolis, McKnight's in Philadelphia. Musicians from both cities appear on various tracks here, but the album doesn't seem scattered or inconsistent. Its Minneapolis pedigree is immediately obvious in the crunchy guitars and melodic hook of the first tune, "Don't Look Back." Ironically, McKnight produced this track, but its attitude and influence echo the Replacements. Drummer Matt Curran hits hard, and guitarist Matt Kirkwold brings the tune the right mix of finesse and distortion. Case's harmony vocal in the chorus gives a velvet touch to the song's slightly hard edge.
Case takes the lead vocal in "Another Lie," an up-tempo rocker to which she also contributes an impressively fluid bass line. Alison Scott and Haberman duet in "Dominica's Been Sent," and Scott's singing has a new-country ring that should widen the track's appeal. The song's crossover potential seems calculated to sell, but clever playing and a good arrangement save it from being ordinary. In fact, the playing throughout is first rate, and "Good Company" showcases a band that can rock'n'roll. Neale is especially impressive here, but he's a player of such consistency and good ideas that each solo he takes brings focus to the track it's part of.
Disc 2 is softer and heavier on ballads, to which the players easily shift gears. Case has a gentle feature in "Partly Naked," the best of the seven tunes on this disc. Haberman is a good rock singer, but he's also fully convincing in ballads. Still, the album's rock half is more consistent overall -- a single, cherry-picked disc that included the ballads "Partly Naked" and "Deep Blue" would perhaps have been more effective.
Bruce Templeton mastered Dulce et Decorum Est and it flows together well, but I preferred McKnight's Philadelphia recordings for their visceral punch -- Curran's drums ring out hard, and Case's bass has better definition than in the Minneapolis tracks. The lead vocals are well out in front throughout, and instruments are clearly presented, but McKnight leans toward filling the soundstage, which gives his recordings their impact. The tunes Bowe produced are more country-rock in flavor, so his lighter touch is appropriate there. I just prefer this album's harder-rocking songs.
Dulce et Decorum Est is self-released, but you can find it at CD Baby and Amazon, and can download it at iTunes. You can also find two videos by the band on their beautifully designed website.
. . . Joseph Taylor


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In partnership with the African Development Bank (AfDB.org), Korea is ready to step up technology transfers to Africa.
Speaking at a meeting on potential technology partnerships between Korea and Africa, representatives of Busan Metropolitan City, Busan Techno Park, and Korea's Green Technology Center said there was huge potential for cooperation and immense opportunities for job-creating bankable projects.
The range of business options include agriculture, green growth, smart urban transportation management, and numerous business opportunities.
President of the African Development Bank, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina says, "the Future is going to be an exponentially different future," and that the Bank intends to "explore the creation of a strategic partnership with Korea that could lead to the creation of a Korea-Africa research and training Drone Center, that could help pave the way for Africa's 4th Industrial Revolution."
According to Hyung-Ju Kim, Director, Global Strategy Division, Green Technology Center, "Korean expertise can provide a practical and pragmatic solution to a wide range of Africa's most pressing technology needs: The African Development Bank could play a major role here: if we bring technology to the table, the Bank can identify and facilitate bankable projects that can boost technology cooperation between Africa and Korea."
With funding from the Korea-Africa Cooperation (KOAFEC) fund, the African Development Bank, in cooperation with Busan Metropolitan City, and the Busan Techno Park, has launched, a pilot project in Tunisia using drone technology to develop agriculture, including data collection and analysis, monitoring irrigated perimeters, aquifers, the effects of climate change, land degradation, biodiversity, filling and siltation of dams, and overall agricultural production.
Korea and the African Development Bank intend to extend the program to other countries and regions in Tunisia and Africa, and explore the massive market potential of industrial zones in other sectors.
Adesina says, "We are determined to expand the use of drones in agriculture in Africa. What we do in Africa today, will determine global food security tomorrow."
For the President of the African Development Bank, it is important that the technological partnership with Korea translates into capacity building on the ground, through training, so that Africa can industrialize, build or assemble drones.
Busan City's dominance as a Smart City on the cutting of artificial intelligence is thanks in part to political vision, one of the largest research and development expenditures in the world, and a team of 12,000 researchers and scientists.
Speaking afterwards to the African diplomatic corps in Seoul, Adesina identified three main obstacles to private sector development —access to finance, energy and stability. The Bank has invested $1 billion in AfreximBank, including $ 650 million in trade finance lines of credit and $ 350 million in trade insurance. The Bank has also invested $ 630 million in First Rand Bank and AbSA in South Africa to support expanded access to trade finance for 20 countries.
This financing effort includes small and medium-sized enterprises, which represent more than 80% of businesses in Africa. In this respect, he cited the Asian example, where large companies relied on value chains dominated by SMEs including suppliers and subcontractors. The Bank's strategy is to develop large companies while connecting them to SMEs for increased value creation.
"Without electricity it is impossible to industrialize Africa," Adesina said. The Bank has made access to electricity a top priority. Its 'Desert to Power' initiative will develop an estimated 10,000 MW in the Sahel region, making it the largest solar project in the world.
Adesina, the head of Africa's leading development finance institution, says, the Bank's 2018 Africa Investment Forum in South Africa, "secured investment commitments worth $ 38.7 billion in less than 72 hours, which provides a strong indication of global interest in Africa's emerging markets."
Experts say in order for the African Development Bank to continue supporting the continent's development, a general capital increase is necessary. According to Adesina, an $11 billion increase in paid-in capital for example would significantly change the lives of millions of people, including 105 million who would have access to electricity; 137 million who would benefit from access to improved agricultural technologies; 22 million who would benefit from investments in private sector projects; 151 million with access to improved transportation services; and 110 million who would be provided with access to improved water and sanitation services.
The dean of the Board of Directors of the African Development Bank, Abdelmajid Mellouki, estimates that a general capital increase would enable the Bank to provide African countries with funding at significantly lower costs.
Adesina is on a three-day visit to Korea which includes several official visits, and to receive the SunHaK Peace Prize awards for which he and co-laureate, Waris Dirie a well-known activist against female genital mutilation, are the 2019 nominees. This is the first time the SunHak Peace Prize has been awarded to the African continent.


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Chart: Who Participates And What People Are Doing Online
Kevin: An interesting chart based on Forrester Research that looks at online behaviours across age groups in the US. One thing that is very interesting is the relatively small group of "Collectors", those who use RSS and tag content to gather information. Even amongst the very active Gen Y group (22-26), the highest group of collectors is 18%.


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What is the 7 letters answer to the Emoji Quiz with American flag, Skyline at dusk, Statue of Liberty
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Level: 58
Category: place
Answer: NEW YORK
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Reduce, reuse, recycle, the way we repeat the phrase B.J. Leiderman does our theme music - but a new word might be added to this litany. The founder of a nonprofit in North Carolina wants us to reuse all durable packaging - from shoeboxes to yogurt containers.
Teresa Carey reports from Durham.
TERESA CAREY, BYLINE: Crystal Dreisbach rummages through a recycling bin set on the curb by one of her neighbors.
CAREY: For most people, the items in the bin are just trash - not for Dreisbach. These are signs of opportunity.
CRYSTAL DREISBACH: This is a beautiful one. Here we've got glass beer bottles. We've got aluminum cans. And we've got a couple of - ah, fellow fisher person...
CAREY: Oh, is that a worm...
DREISBACH: ...Some nightcrawler containers made of plastic.
CAREY: Dreisbach is a self-proclaimed trash junkie. She's made it her personal goal to put an end to single-use packaging, which she calls the take and trash economy.
DREISBACH: Right now we have sort of the status quo. We extract materials from the Earth. And then we make things with them. And then we use them. And then we generally throw them away.
CAREY: So in 2010, she zeroed in on reusing takeout containers. Other zero-waste services have popped up around the country, like Portland's Go Box, or Usefull, a coffee cup collective in Boston. Dreisbach's own project, called GreenToGo, provides durable takeout containers to Durham restaurants. Customers take their meal home in a reusable box. Then they simply drop the dirty box into a collection bin. Like the classic milkman model, GreenToGo will collect, wash, sanitize and redistribute the containers so restaurants can use them repeatedly. They even pick them up by bicycle to keep their carbon footprint low. At Part & Parcel, T. Land Store's, Land packs goods in reusable glass jars stocked and washed by GreenToGo.
T LAND: Glass is amazing. It doesn't retain odors. It can hold anything. You can see what's inside of it. There are just so many benefits to it. But it's heavy, and it doesn't often get recycled.
CAREY: From pasta to hand soap, everything in the store is package-free. And Land says doing away with disposable bags and containers is worth the extra effort.
LAND: This is replicable. Other businesses can do this. It will ultimately save them money to do it.
CAREY: So far, 29 businesses in Durham, including restaurants, schools and product producers, are packaging goods in these reusable containers. There are over 800 active users who pay a small membership fee. Altogether, Dreisbach says they have stopped more than 20,000 disposable containers from ending up in a landfill.
DREISBACH: GreenToGo - really, it's an experiment in which we demonstrate possibility of a different way of doing things. So we think to ourselves, what if durable, reusable packaging could be used again and again?
CAREY: Dreisbach wants to harness the existing recycling infrastructure to create a new system - a local economy where durable goods circulate endlessly between consumers and companies. Her proposal is called ReCirculation. Last year, she partnered with the city of Durham Solid Waste Management and Sonoco Recycling for a pilot demonstration. The containers are put in recycling bins and recovered.
Wayne Fenton, Durham's assistant solid waste manager, helped facilitate the project. He says ReCirculation has a greater potential to work if it involves local manufacturers only - circulating the reusable goods within the community.
WAYNE FENTON: I'll just say that there are hurdles to be overcome to be able to make it work. If enough consumers demanded it, then they would figure it out. But until the consumers demand it, it's easy to just keep doing what you've been doing all along.
CAREY: Dreisbach's idea comes with renewed interest in reusables. But in order for it to work, the system has to be economical.
Deborah Gallagher, a professor of resource and environmental policy at Duke University, led a group of business students in a feasibility study of the ReCirculation project.
DEBORAH GALLAGHER: The biggest issue was, how do you get these companies to increase the durability of their packaging so that the packaging actually, you know, stands up to being recollected?
CAREY: Despite the challenges, Gallagher says it's possible, and Dreisbach is moving forward with the next demonstration - one which involves the participation of 30 more businesses.
DREISBACH: We know for a fact, based on four years of operating GreenToGo, that once you put in the infrastructure and supply chain to make reuse possible, you can reuse anything.
CAREY: ReCirculation could combine the waste-free aspect of the milkman model, but with the convenience of disposables we've grown accustomed to.
For NPR News, I'm Teresa Carey in Durham, N.C. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.


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Getting into mobile app development often seems like a path paved with gold, but the reality is very different with many apps failing to succeed. Good apps do not simply "get lucky" but rather their developers work hard at planning a successful app. Smashing Magazine's article "How To Succeed With a Mobile App" shows the elements needed to plan for app success.
Smashing Magazine identifies six areas to consider for a great app.
1) The Idea. Find a vaccuum or empty niche for your app.
2) Money. Plan the business model for your app.
3) Define. Write down what your app will do in one sentence and stick to it.
4) Design. If the user has to think how to use the app, you've failed.
5) Coding. Native, high-quality, robust code is essential.
6) Marketing. Make friends, build buzz, launch big, love your fans.
But don't simply read the above and move on. Check out the original article by Jeremy Olson at Smashing Magazine as it has plenty of further information for would-be app coders.


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More than 3,600 coronavirus-related deaths were reported in the United States on Wednesday, topping all previous days during the pandemic, which has killed more than 300,000 Americans since March, according to Johns Hopkins University data.
Wednesday also saw a record 247,000 new cases of the COVID-19, a sign that the spread of the virus shows no signs of slowing.
Wednesday's figures mark the third time that US deaths topped 3,000 in a single day with two previous instances coming last week. Generally, mid-week death figures have marked the highest numbers due to how states report deaths.
All told, a seven-day average of coronavirus deaths indicates that there are nearly 2,500-related coronavirus-related deaths per day. While much has been made of death figures, a death is only counted if COVID-19 was a factor in the person's death. If someone dies from an unrelated ailment, but is coronavirus positive at the time of death, their death is not counted in official tallies, per CDC guidelines.
Deaths related to the coronavirus have risen sharply in recent weeks.
Here is a weekly breakdown of coronavirus related deaths in the last eight weeks, according to stats compiled by the COVID Tracking Project:
December 10-16: 17,381 (Avg: 2,483)
December 3-9: 16,187 (Avg: 2,312)
November 26-December 2: 11,198 (Avg: 1,600)
November 19-25: 11,624 (Avg: 1,660)
November 12-18: 7,528 (Avg: 1,075)
November 5-11: 7,490 (Avg: 1,070)
October 29-November 4: 6,495 (Avg: 927)
October 22-28: 5,724 (Avg: 818)
The despair of the virus has hit in the central US, especially the Dakotas. According to the CDC, South Dakota has the highest death per capita rate in the US with 2.4 coronavirus-related deaths per 100,000 people in the last week. Since the start of the pandemic, 1,261 deaths have been reported in South Dakota.
There has also been a marked rise in coronavirus-related hospitalizations. According to the COVID Tracking Project, there are more than 113,000 Americans in the hospital with the virus. That figure has doubled in the last five weeks, and more than tripled from late September and early October, when hospitalizations had recovered from a summer surge throughout the south.


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Frozen fruit mix suspected in hepatitis A outbreak
(CNN) -- A frozen fruit mix commonly used in smoothies is suspected in a hepatitis A outbreak that has affected five Western states, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Thirty people have been infected with acute hepatitis A, and nine of them have been hospitalized. Infections have been reported in Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada and New Mexico, the CDC website said Friday.
Eleven of 17 ill people interviewed reported eating Townsend Farms Organic Antioxidant Blend, a mix of frozen berries and pomegranate seeds.
Company records show that the fruit mix with contaminated ingredients was sent to only Costco stores, said William E. Gaar, an attorney for Townsend Farms. Costco has removed the product from its shelves, he said.
The outbreak has been traced to a type of pomegranate seeds from Turkey that are in the Townsend Farms fruit mix, Gaar said. The mix contains pomegranate seeds and other produce from Argentina, Chile and the United States, according to the label.
"There is no indication that cherries and other berries are contaminated," Gaar said.
State health departments, the Food and Drug Administration and the CDC continue to investigate. The company was notified about the outbreak Thursday by the CDC, which sent investigators to the Townsend Farms processing plant in Fairview, Oregon, Gaar said.
Hepatitis A is usually transmitted via contaminated food or water, or by someone who's infected, according to the Mayo Clinic website. Frequent hand-washing is recommended to limit the spread of hepatitis A.
The highly contagious infection inflames the liver and limits its ability to function.
"Mild cases of hepatitis A don't require treatment, and most people who are infected recover completely with no permanent liver damage," the Mayo Clinic website says.
Severe cases can lead to liver failure and death, according to the World Health Organization.
There are an estimated 1.4 million cases of hepatitis A annually worldwide, according to WHO.


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BOOGALOO FONT Boat Numbers | Pair + Extra Decal + Free Squeegee
3" (77mm) High Boat Registration Numbers.
- 1 PAIR Boat Number Decals
- 1 EXTRA Boat Number Decal
- 1 Plastic Squeegee Applicator
- Custom Cut Vinyl
- Masked for easy placement
- Line up decal. Remove backing. Apply with squeegee.
Conforms to Canadian pleasure craft regulations. Minimum 77mm height (3").
Choose a boat number colour that contrasts with the colour of your boat hull.
Please note that because these are custom items there are no returns due to improper colour choices.


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The spring equinox, reckoned as the moment of each solar year after the winter solstice and before the summer solstice when the center of the sun passes directly over Earth's equator, the instant when the solar terminator—the liminal boundary between night and day that rushes endlessly across the face of our rotating planet—transits through perpendicularity with the equator, marks the occasion of Mid Spring, also called Ostara. This sabbat provides an opportunity to focus on themes of beginnings, breakthroughs, and regeneration in our personal lives and in within the broader Pagan Reformation.
Tag Archives: once and future faith
On the Spirit of Imbolc
By some traditional, agrarian reckonings, the point in early February halfway between the winter solstice and the spring equinox marks the beginning of spring. This occasion has been celebrated by certain peoples of northwestern Europe as Imbolc, a name which may refer to the pregnancy of ewes around this time of year. Reform Pagans call this sabbat Spring Eve, and we take this opportunity to reflect on themes of openness, purification, and resolve.
Continue reading On the Spirit of Imbolc
Gather We Around One Flame
We wish you a very happy Mid Winter, Yule, Alban Arthan, and the rest! At this time of year, when days are shortest and the sun hangs lowest in the sky, we make time to celebrate solidarity, hope, and patience. One element that sometimes figures in our Mid Winter celebrations is the Yule log, a folk custom of unknown origin that has become for many of us a familiar favorite and a symbol of the inspirational themes on which we reflect in this season. Continue reading Gather We Around One Flame
Masquerading Together
Winter Eve, Samhain, the Pagan New Year, Sabbat of Sabbats—when the natural world enters a season of relative dormancy, we remember the past and those who have gone before us as we celebrate the dark, the mysterious, the ominous, the frightening, the macabre, even death itself. For many, this sabbat is a favorite; for others, it is difficult or painful. Whatever our opinion of this time when "the veil between the worlds thins", Winter Eve has lessons to teach us. Continue reading Masquerading Together
Celebrating the Harvest through Sacrifice
At Mid Autumn, when day and night pass through a moment of balance amidst the ongoing harvest season, we have an opportunity to celebrate sacrifice, reconciliation, and balance. This year, in particular, we call our attention to the balance that Reform Paganism strikes through the sacrifice of certainty and the reconciliation of ostensibly contradictory opposites through a hieros gamos ("sacred marriage") that rejects "either–or" in favor of "both–and". Continue reading Celebrating the Harvest through Sacrifice
A Natural Law of the Harvest
When we come each year to Autumn Eve, Lughnasadh, Lammas, the midpoint between the summer solstice and the autumn equinox, we celebrate the feast of the first fruits of the harvest. As we enjoy our sabbat, we would do well also to reflect on a certain natural law of the harvest, which reminds us, "We reap what we sow." Continue reading A Natural Law of the Harvest
A Magickal Physics of Power
Mid Summer, also called Litha, gives us an opportunity to celebrate joy, vitality, and power. And "Power for the Will" is a cardinal aspiration that we develop in Reform Pagan practice through the Element of Fire, which corresponds to ritual observances of common and special occasions over the course of human life in Nature. Mid Summer is, therefore, a fitting occasion for Reform Pagans to reflect on what we might call our "magickal physics of Power". Continue reading A Magickal Physics of Power
Open But Unbroken
At Summer Eve, Reform Pagans circle to celebrate passion, union, and creativity on or about the occasion of Beltane, an ancient "fire festival" dedicated, in many ways, to love. Continue reading Open But Unbroken
A Faith Ever New
Reform Pagans celebrate Mid Spring (also called "Ostara"), a sabbat of regeneration, breakthroughs, and new beginnings, around the time of the spring equinox, when hours of light and darkness in a day are most nearly equal. This time of year also sees new life emerging everywhere from winter's dormant Earth. Continue reading A Faith Ever New
The Perpetual Flame
Reform Paganism's sabbat of Spring Eve, coming halfway between Mid Winter and Mid Spring, draws some of its inspiration from the ancient Gaelic festival of Imbolc, a celebration of the goddess Brigid around the traditional beginning of the season of spring. Continue reading The Perpetual Flame


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171 Jehoshaphat his son reigned in his place, and strengthened himself against Israel. 2 He placed forces in all the fortified cities of Judah, and set garrisons in the land of Judah, and in the cities of Ephraim, which Asa his father had taken. 3 Yahweh was with Jehoshaphat, because he walked in the first ways of his father David, and didn't seek the Baals, 4 but sought to the God of his father, and walked in his commandments, and not after the doings of Israel. 5 Therefore Yahweh established the kingdom in his hand; and all Judah brought to Jehoshaphat tribute; and he had riches and honor in abundance. 6 His heart was lifted up in the ways of Yahweh: and furthermore he took away the high places and the Asherim out of Judah. 7 Also in the third year of his reign he sent his princes, even Ben Hail, and Obadiah, and Zechariah, and Nethanel, and Micaiah, to teach in the cities of Judah; 8 and with them the Levites, even Shemaiah, and Nethaniah, and Zebadiah, and Asahel, and Shemiramoth, and Jehonathan, and Adonijah, and Tobijah, and Tobadonijah, the Levites; and with them Elishama and Jehoram, the priests. 9 They taught in Judah, having the book of the law of Yahweh with them; and they went about throughout all the cities of Judah, and taught among the people.
10 The fear of Yahweh fell on all the kingdoms of the lands that were around Judah, so that they made no war against Jehoshaphat. 11 Some of the Philistines brought Jehoshaphat presents, and silver for tribute; the Arabians also brought him flocks, seven thousand and seven hundred rams, and seven thousand and seven hundred male goats. 12 Jehoshaphat grew great exceedingly; and he built in Judah castles and cities of store. 13 He had many works in the cities of Judah; and men of war, mighty men of valor, in Jerusalem. 14 This was the numbering of them according to their fathers' houses: Of Judah, the captains of thousands: Adnah the captain, and with him mighty men of valor three hundred thousand; 15 and next to him Jehohanan the captain, and with him two hundred eighty thousand; 16 and next to him Amasiah the son of Zichri, who willingly offered himself to Yahweh; and with him two hundred thousand mighty men of valor. 17 Of Benjamin: Eliada a mighty man of valor, and with him two hundred thousand armed with bow and shield; 18 and next to him Jehozabad and with him one hundred eighty thousand ready prepared for war. 19 These were those who waited on the king, besides those whom the king put in the fortified cities throughout all Judah.


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Since the dawning of the "Information Age" in the early 1980's the pace of change has accelerated in our society. To keep pace with the explosion of new information and this rapid rate of change, many people have adopted a new coping strategy of increasing their consumption of caffeine. Caffeine is a drug. It is a stimulant which increases many of same physiological responses as the survival response known as the "Flight-Fight" response. It is this reaction by the body to the stimulation from caffeine that can trigger an anxiety-type physical reaction. Many people are unsuspecting and naïve regarding the full extent of this response to which often includes a common, and even, celebrated "rush" of energy. Knowing about this response can keep you from being a victim to caffeine related anxiety attacks.
As a stimulant, the effect of caffeine can be different from one person to the next. The amount of caffeine consumed, and then the amount actually absorbed by the body, can contribute to the range of reactions. It is not uncommon for caffeine to cause an increase in brain wave activity that can arouse a tired mind. This is the most desired response for many sleep deprived people. This can backfire on many people who may have a day long response to their morning coffee (or other caffeine source) because many people can not sleep well at bedtime as a response to this early caffeine consumption. This "vicious cycle" will then cause poor quality sleep/rest which requires more caffeine to get "up" for the next day's activities.
The stimulation caused by caffeine can also increase heart rate and for some people increase their blood pressure as it simulates the release of excitatory hormones like adrenaline (epinephrine.) This rapid heart rate, when severe, can scare people, triggering the hormonal release which can cause a greater anxiety reaction. The frightening response to the physical associations of an anxiety attack can cause fear and can even drive people to the emergency rooms with the concern that the patient believes that they going to die from a heart attack. We have enough anxiety in our society without pushing ourselves over the edge with the stimulation of caffeine.
Caffeine can cause an increase in skeletal muscle tension as it triggers the classic flight response. This muscle tension can be distracting (loss of focus), cause fatigue, and in many cases increase the likelihood of increased muscle spasms and so, muscle contraction pain. In this way, caffeine can contribute to muscle tension headaches from the tightness of muscles in the jaw, neck, and shoulders. For people suffering from chronic muscular tension pain, this can contribute to their tension and pain. It will often cause an increased anxiety driven response to their pain which can intensify their chronic pain complaints. This is especially true for lower back pain and neck/shoulder pain, as well as the peripheral pains in the arms and legs that can be associated with back pain.
For those of you who use caffeine regularly, you should also know that there are plenty of cases of physical and psychological addiction to this drug. Many people feel withdrawal symptoms that are not comfortable when they try to discontinue their caffeine habit. If you want to discontinue, the best way to do this would be gradually over time. Substituting ½ de-caf into your morning coffee and minimizing other caffeine laden products will be helpful. Be patient and drink extra water!
In its defense, caffeine can be helpful for some types of headaches such as migraine headaches which can be reduced by caffeine or associated cafergot. (Cafergot is a brand name of the combination of ergotamine and caffeine.) With its stimulating effects on the digestive system, caffeine may also work as a laxative to minimize problems with constipation. Historically, European coffee "salons" were places where intellectuals could meet and have lively discussions while drinking brewed coffee which was more healthful than the untreated available water which was often contaminated with deadly diseases of the Middle Ages. The other alternative beverage for most Middle Age Europeans was to drink beer or alcoholic drinks which did not encourage good discussion, thinking, or productivity.
Since the 1980's, our society has seen an explosion of coffee houses and Espresso stands. You can not get through any American city without being confronted by easily accessible purveyors of liquid coffee refreshments. Both young and old are caught in this "glamorous" habit with expanding zeal. A gift of choice is the insidious gift certificate for the expensive coffee houses. This has gotten to be big business.
Besides coffee or espresso drinks, caffeine is found in many products. Black teas, green tea, soft drinks, chocolate candy, and as an additive in many other products are but a few of these additional sources for caffeine. There are even a few products with commercial names like: Jolt, Red Bull, and RockStar that cater to the young caffeine crazed generation that seem to require higher concentrations of caffeine. I do not want to deprive people from indulging in these products, but people must be aware of what the effects of these products can do to their body's and to people who interact with caffeine saturated folks. Many cases of "road rage" may be traced to the negative effects of over-caffeinated, stressed drivers.
Let's have some common sense. Moderation is a great rule to follow, especially if you are one the people who are most sensitive to the effects of caffeine. Coffee businesses are not bad or the enemy, we just need to learn how use their products in the most appropriate ways.
If you are looking for wellness coaching, please investigate the Professional Stress Management Coaching Program (train the trainer) at http://www.dstress.com
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"After 27 years of meditating on Sri Ramakrishna, I finally…" the 50-year-old philosopher, author, broadcaster and meditator stops, adjusts his Kashmir shawl and leans forward. "I recently met Sant Keshavadas and gave him a copy of Great Swan. He spontaneously said 'You should be called Ramakrishna Das for writing a book like this' I accepted it. Now when I lake Great Swan to India in December I will have a Sanskrit name!'"
Hixon beams and starts talking with the quick pace of a man on mission – his Yale philosophy degree and Columbia PhD erudition showing, but the bookishness softened by years of personal sadhana. As the Hindu world prepares to celebrate the centennial of Swami Vivekananda's dramatic 1893 sowing of the Advaitic vision in America, Lex Hixon points to the young sannyasin's guru, Bengali mystic Ramakrishna.
Hixon's gift to this celebration is a fresh portrait of that human glacier that fed the powerful stream of Himalayan teachings Vivekananda carried Westward. To this purpose, he has dedicated this fiftieth year of his life as an offering to Sri Ramakrishna, touring and reading from Great Swan, personally introducing the Hindu sage to others. Paramahamsa is popularly translated "Great Swan," referring to the swan of Hindu folklore who, like a great soul, can separate out the milk (the sacred) from a mixture of milk and water (worldy life). But actually, hamsa is the Anser Indicus, a high-flying goose, an ancient symbol of the sun. In scripture, it was used as a metaphor for the soul soaring to the Self.
Great Swan is a first-person, you-are-there dramatized literary doorway into 19th century India, directly into the potent recesses of the Dakshineswar Temple Garden, and into the vital presence of a God-realized being. It is not, however, a literal rendering of Ramakrishna's riveting, terse, eloquent, but inextricably colloquial Bengali, nor a simple rehashing of other translations in which Ramakrishna speaks in Victorianized English. Great Swan is a daring and exciting departure from rule-book biographies – transposing Ramakrishna's cryptic Bengali into 20th century English idiom and tone. Lingual charms are forgivably lost but important meanings are saved. For instance, Ramakrishna repeatedly used the rich two-word Bengali phrase kamini kanchan. "To indicate the habitual drives of sexuality and possessiveness, his shorthand description for the entire conventional world," Hixon notes. But in the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, Nikhilananda translated the subtle expression literally "women and gold," suggesting an indictment of womanhood hardly Ramakrishna's. Even Nikhilananda felt compelled to write a long footnote explaining the saint's metaphorical rather than literal meaning, "assuring the reading public that the Paramahamsa worshipped women rather than rejecting or denigrating them." Hixon ably hurdles these linguistic pitfalls.
"The book is based," the author continues, "on eyewitness accounts of Ramakrishna both from The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna and from the more recent Ramakrishna, As We Saw Him, containing reminiscences that before had existed only in Bengali or obscure, out of print English journals. Both were used to enrich the details."
As for inspiration, "it comes from 27 years of meditation on Ramakrishna. I feel that Ramakrishna's subtle body merges with the subtle body of anyone who receives his mantra in direct initiatory succession, which I did in 1965 from Swami Nikhilananda. On the other hand. I feel that my main source of guidance was my years of study with Swami Nikhilananda, all the scoldings he gave me and all the corrections he very kindly gave in order to get me on the right track."
Despite the reluctance of the venerable Ramakrishna Mission to identify itself with Hinduism per se, Great Swan delights in Ramakrishna's Hinduness. "The reader will begin to encounter and meet this Divine being in all his Hindu particularity, his dancing, his singing songs of Ramprasad about the Goddess Kali, all of those rich. Hindu qualities become vibrant, and no universality is lost," says Hixon. "We don't have to worry about Ramakrishna's primary devotion to Goddess Kali; we don't have to keep that hidden in a closet someplace. We can bring it out – particularly now because the women's movement has become so strong and the sense of the Goddess is penetrating everywhere."
Hixon adds with a mix of pleasure and relief, "I've gotten a letter from the General Secretary of the Ramakrishna Mission saying that 'Great Swan is a fruit from the hundred year old tree planted by Swami Vivekananda in Chicago, and that Great Swan is a gift from America to India.'
I cautiously ask consummate eclectic Hixon what he thinks about the Ramakrishna Missions's declaration as non-Hindu. He responds, "It is peculiar that people deny the roots of their own tradition…RK Mission calls it Vedanta, which is just Hinduism if you want to be really honest about it."
"I think the Hindu community will be overjoyed to see the quintessence of their culture and their spirituality – embodied in Ramakrishna – being reintroduced with depth and sensitivity," Hixon muses. "Society has been changing and transforming. For 50 years the figure of Ramakrishna has been percolating through American culture, affecting many people in a subtle way, so the atmosphere is just right for Ramakrishna to come dancing in, whirling, calling out Mother Kali's name."
Inside a stuffy hall, a crowd of 7,000 list under the deluge of heady speeches by a parade of international delegates. Chicago, 1893, World Parliament of Religions. Suddenly a young Indian monk mounts the podium:
"Brothers and sisters of America…" The greeting unnerves the audience. They burst into two minutes of applause. When the excitement subsides, the cool, brilliant mind of one of Hinduism's greatest spiritual figures delivers an historic vision of Hindu spirituality so potent and persuasive it has virtualy become the sruti note of Hinduism in the West.
Americans at once fell in love with 30-year-old Swami Vivekananda, Ramakrishna's foremost disciple Those weary of a "saved and doomed" mentality flocked to the radiant Asian soul. Christian preachers eager to trounce the "invader" in argument eventually shied away from his razor-sharp intellect and disquieting Hindu pride. Vivekananda stormed across America with meteoric intensity, traveling tirelessly, delivering scores of lectures, destroying misconceptions, and instilling a new respect for India, "the land of spirit."
Lex Hixon first stumbled upon The Gospel of Ramakrishna in 1963, after graduating from Yale with a degree in philosophy. Entranced, he tracked down the book's translator. Swami Nikhilinanda, "a direct disciple of Sarada Devi, the wife of Ramakrishna," Hixon shares. Lex and his wife became disciples, serving, traveling, and living with the Swami for the last 7 years of his life.
At his guru's urging, Hixon earned a PhD, from Columbia University for his dissertation on the Gaudapada Karika, the very same "radical philosophical text that Swami Nikhilananda had translated from Sanskrit into English as a young monk-scholar in India during the 1920's." Hixon also studied classical Indian music, founded Free Spirit magazine, and for 13 years hosted a celebrated weekly radio program interviewing famous spiritual personalities of all traditions. It was during this magical time that Hixon matured into working form his own highly eclectic path, an approach to the Divine he feels is thoroughly "grounded in Ramakrishna."
"There are four traditions with which I have an initiatory connection – Eastern Orthodox Christianity, the Khalwati-Jerrahi (Dervish) Order of Islamic Sufism, the Vajrayana Tantric Buddhist tradition of Tibet, and Sri Ramakrishna and Sri Sarada's transmission of what I call Hindu Tantra."
Pursuing simultaneously sadhanas from several religions can be a treacherous ascent to the Divine, but Hixon manages this approach with uncanny dexterity and resolve. "Ramakrishna himself didn't advocate anything. He saw the karmic tendencies and the predilections of a person and he encouraged them along their spiritual way. I encourage people with a laser beam concentration to remain concentrated like that in their tradition. Others I encourage to go forward and not to feel like they have to sacrifice one tradition in the name of another." Of his own four children, one is an Eastern Orthodox Christian, one a Vedantisi, and two are Tibetan Buddhists.
And does Lex Hixon consider himself a Hindu? "I haven't received the samakaras and taken the sacred thread, so I don't think I could culturally be called a Hindu in that sense, but Ramakrishna embodies the fullness and the mainstream of Hindu culture and spirituality, and I've absorbed that entirely, so in that sense. I think I am."
Article copyright Himalayan Academy.


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The madness, excitement, adventure and musings of a runner who can't get enough of it
Race Schedule
Sunday, September 16, 2012
No Reservations: Looking Back on the Awesome
7 comments:
- Meghan said...
- September 16, 2012 at 10:00 PM
Best SCotR post ever!
- September 16, 2012 at 10:05 PM
Very awesome - you made me feel better about my upcoming 14-hour Monday that started 30 minutes ago. I have BALANCE! ~Laura
- September 17, 2012 at 7:10 AM
- Rina said...
Awww, I love it. Great recap of a wonderful experience. So glad you did it. We're loving having you guys here:)
- September 18, 2012 at 1:17 AM
- Chris @ OOMFrunning said...
Just stumbled upon your blog and this is a great story - thanks for sharing. You are 100% right - when something is right, you put yourself out there and have a plan things work out. 4 years ago my wife and I left Utah (and full-time jobs) to pursue an unpaid internship in a dream industry. It all worked out better than I could have imagined. Thanks for sharing and reminding me!
- September 20, 2012 at 9:44 AM
- Chris @ OOMFrunning said...
Thank you for sharing your story - you are 100% correct. When something is right, you have a plan and you put yourself out there things workout. My wife and I left Utah & jobs 4 years ago to pursue an internship in a dream industry. It all worked out better than we could have imagined. Thanks for the reminder!
- September 20, 2012 at 3:37 PM
- Alene Gone Bad said...
Fantastic post, Paige! You learned so much and gained so much from this experience, something that will carry you forward together through whatever your future holds. Thanks for sharing your thoughts. And good luck to both of you with work and school, running, and everything else.
- September 22, 2012 at 9:08 AM


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System Center Process Pack for IT GRC
Published: December 13, 2011 | Updated: June 14, 2012
What's New
The final release of the System Center Process Pack for IT GRC (Process Pack for IT GRC) is now available for download.
This update provides capabilities to simplify, strengthen, and manage your organization's IT governance, risk management, and compliance (IT GRC) program. This release allows you to streamline your IT GRC process through exception management, drive data insights through comprehensive trend reporting, and stay current with the latest knowledge libraries.
Download This Process Pack
The Process Pack for IT GRC provides end-to-end IT governance, risk, and compliance (IT GRC) management and automation for desktop and datacenter computers.
Download the System Center Process Pack for IT GRC
Download System Center Service Manager 2012
About This Process Pack
Deeply integrated with Service Manager, the Process Pack for IT GRC translates complex regulations and standards into authoritative control objectives and control activities for your IT organization's compliance program. The process pack is designed to help customers understand and bind complex business objectives to their Microsoft infrastructure in an operationally efficient manner.
The following overview solution diagram shows how the process pack integrates with Service Manager, Microsoft System Center 2012 – Configuration Manager, and Microsoft Security Compliance Manager (SCM).
The final release of the Process Pack for IT GRC provides your organization with capabilities to simplify, strengthen, and manage your IT GRC program: The process pack allows your organization to:
- Streamline your IT GRC process through a combination of policy enforcement and exception management. Streamline and strengthen your IT GRC compliance process through simplified exception management. With the exception management feature, you can now optimize your IT GRC process: easily define, classify, and manage noncompliance incidents, technology/service constraints, and justifiable exceptions. Simplified exception management allows you to create, approve, and report justifiable exceptions to control and assess the applicability of a given business/IT situation.
- Drive data insights through comprehensive trend reporting. Drive deeper insights into your compliance health and status with comprehensive trend analysis and more comprehensive reporting. Proactively manage your IT compliance life cycle trends through multidimensional analysis across various measures, including control activities, risk factors, and exceptions, to strengthen your IT governance, risk management, and compliance program.
- Stay current with the latest knowledge libraries. Use the process pack to automatically check, download, and keep abreast of the latest knowledge libraries through online and offline updates. This final release is designed to broaden your IT compliance scope with even more control activities for various Microsoft technologies, including Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1, Windows 7 SP1, and more.
IMPORTANT: The Process Pack for IT GRC is designed to facilitate compliance activities conducted by your organization's IT experts, auditors, accountants, attorneys and other compliance professionals. The software does not replace those professionals. The Process Pack for IT GRC includes some control objectives and authority document citations plus libraries with some control activities and associated product value settings. These objectives, citations, controls and settings do not verify or guarantee fulfillment of your organization's compliance obligations. It is the responsibility of your organization to choose the objectives, citations, controls and settings to use, modify, add or remove based on guidance from your organization's compliance professionals. Reports and any other information provided by or generated from the software do not constitute professional compliance advice. You must consult compliance professionals to confirm compliance with specific governance, risk, and compliance authority documents.
Included in the Download
The Process Pack for IT GRC includes the following components:
- ProcessPackforITGRC_amd64.exe
- ProcessPackforITGRC_x86.exe
- ProcessPackforITGRC_AuthoringLibraries.exe
- ProcessPackforITGRC_Documentation.exe
- Process Pack for IT GRC - Developers Guide.docx
- Process Pack for IT GRC - Evaluation and Deployment Guide.docx
- Process Pack for IT GRC - Operations Guide.docx
- Process Pack for IT GRC - Release Notes.rtf
Related Resources
Take advantage of the following related resources for the IT GRC Process Pack:
- Microsoft System Center 2012. System Center Service Manager 2012, a System Center suite of products, delivers an integrated platform to automate and adapt IT service management best practices to meet your organization's requirements.
- Microsoft Security Compliance Manger This tool incorporates extensive security guidance and documentation in one centralized location, enabling organizations to access and automate the configuration of their security baselines for Windows client and server operating systems—including Windows 7—Microsoft Office applications, and Windows Internet Explorer.
- Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard Compliance Planning Guide. This guide is designed to help organizations meet Payment Card Industry Security Standard (PCI DSS) requirements.
- Security Risk Management Guide. This guide helps customers plan, build, and maintain a successful security risk management program.
- Microsoft Operations Framework (MOF) 4.0. MOF 4.0 delivers practical guidance for everyday IT practices and activities, helping users establish and implement reliable, cost-effective IT services for IT GRC activities.
- Monitor Key Security Controls to Prevent Data Breach. Learn how to use the free Microsoft Security Compliance Manager (SCM) tool to help you monitor security update status, identify changes to the administrators group, and report on the use of whitelists using the desired configuration management (DCM) feature in System Center Configuration Manager.
Community and Feedback
To join in the greater GRC conversation, visit the Security and Compliance Management Forum. Ask questions to compliance experts and collaborate with your peers on IT GRC-related compliance management issues.
Download This Process Pack
The Process Pack for IT GRC provides end-to-end IT governance, risk, and compliance (GRC) management and automation for desktop and datacenter computers.
Download the System Center Process Pack for IT GRC
Download System Center Service Manager 2012