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The hottest thing on Broadway these days may be the air above some of its most famous theaters.
During the city's real estate boom, theater owners have started capitalizing on a special zoning arrangement created eight years ago that lets them sell their unused rights to add to their buildings' height. Developers can transfer these air rights to other sites in the theater district and construct taller buildings than would otherwise be allowed.
Two pending transfers of air rights promise an added benefit that was crucial to the original approval of that arrangement: As much as $1.4 million is supposed to be set aside to help the theater community, by attracting new patrons or underwriting serious drama.
But there's a snag. Though two developers — who are buying the air rights for more than $20 million — are ready to hand over the special payments, the city government is not prepared to accept them. It never created the fund to hold the money or the council that is supposed to oversee it. As a result, it is not clear if the theater community will ever directly benefit from the windfall.
Others, meanwhile, are maneuvering to get the money. The Board of Education has raised its hand for the first payments from developers, most of which it would use to improve auditoriums in public schools, city officials said.
Jack Goldstein, who was working for Actors' Equity Association, a union of actors and stagehands, in 1998, when the arrangement was set up, said diverting the money to schools would violate pledges made to bolster what was then a fragile theater economy.Continue reading the main story
"There was a promise that was made to the theater community and the public, and I think it should be kept, and I think it can be," Mr. Goldstein said.
Neighborhood leaders in the vicinity of the theater district are also wary that the money may be sent elsewhere.
"Our community has a big proportion of working actors, so we want this to go to people who actually work in and support the theater," said J. Lee Compton, the chairman of Manhattan Community Board 4, whose territory includes one of the theaters that is selling its unused development rights.
The long-running debate about how to spend this potential stream of revenue from developers illustrates how much the theater business and the New York City real estate market have changed since the late 1990's.
Back then, theater owners and Broadway luminaries, including Stephen Sondheim and Tony Randall, campaigned for financial aid for an ailing industry. They feared that empty theaters and a paucity of new plays signaled worsening prospects for high-quality drama.
The city's response was to change zoning rules in 1998, allowing the owners of 25 Broadway houses to transfer their air rights anywhere within a 34-block zone north of 40th Street between Avenue of the Americas and Eighth Avenue. (Normally, air rights can be transferred only to contiguous building sites.)
To transfer development rights from a theater to a distant site, the buyers were required to pay an extra $10 per square foot on top of the regular purchase price for the air rights. The money was to be administered by a new Theater Subdistrict Council, with 20 percent to be set aside for monitoring the physical condition of the theaters. The rest was to be used to benefit the theater community by subsidizing tickets to shows for poorer city residents or by offering loans or grants to producers of serious plays.
But until this year, no theater owner had taken advantage of the air-rights provision. In the past eight years, attendance has rebounded as the public appetite has grown for serious shows like "Doubt" and "The History Boys." The Broadway Initiative, a theater-advocacy group Mr. Sondheim presided over, disbanded and the movement to find alternative sources of financing for plays faded out.
At the same time, demand increased for places to build apartment buildings close to Times Square. Few lots in the theater district can accommodate big buildings without a transfer of air rights. So, lately, developers have been knocking on the doors of the theater owners.
At the northeast corner of 46th Street and Eighth Avenue, a New Jersey-based builder, S.J.P. Residential, plans to erect a 42-story condominium tower on the former site of McHale's pub. To do that, S.J.P. arranged to acquire about 140,000 square feet of air rights from two Broadway theaters, the Brooks Atkinson around the corner and the Al Hirschfeld, which is more than a block away.
The deal with the Brooks Atkinson, which is owned by the Nederlander Organization, did not fall under the special zoning rules created in 1998, but the pending purchase of the Hirschfeld's air rights does. This week, the City Planning Commission is scheduled to vote to authorize the second of two transfers of air rights from the Hirschfeld, which is owned by Jujamcyn Theaters, to the McHale's site.
If approved by the Planning Commission and then the City Council, the sales of the Hirschfeld's air rights would yield about $580,000 for the Theater Subdistrict Fund. A third piece of the Hirschfeld's air rights, along with a larger bundle of air rights from another Jujamcyn theater, the St. James, are being acquired by the developer of a site on 54th Street between Broadway and Eighth Avenue. Combined, the transactions would produce about $1.4 million for the theater fund.
"This is a unique transaction," said Paul Libin, producing director of Jujamcyn. "They could have come and knocked on our door earlier, but there was no reason for them to do it." But now, he added, "There's a boom going on in New York, and I suppose that's why people knocked on our door."
After these sales, whose terms Mr. Libin declined to disclose, Jujamcyn would have no significant development rights left to sell, he said. The air rights for the company's other theaters were sold before the 1998 zoning change took effect, he said.
"Selling the air rights is all about perpetuating the Broadway theater," Mr. Libin said.
But, he added, "circumstances have changed so dramatically" that using money from developers to finance productions now "doesn't make any sense at all."
Alan Eisenberg, the executive director of Actors' Equity, noted that the original promise made in 1998 could still be met by giving the developers' payments to the Theater Development Fund, which sells discounted play tickets to attract a broader audience.
The City Planning Department's staff, however, favors giving most of the money expected from the special transfers — more than $1.1 million — to two programs run by the city's Board of Education, said Edith Hsu-Chen, deputy director in the department's Manhattan office. One, known as Arts Space, makes grants to public schools to upgrade their performance facilities. Another aims to stage summer musical productions starring public high school students.
"One of the key purposes of the theater subdistrict zoning is to develop new audiences," Ms. Hsu-Chen said. "What better way to accomplish this than to link kids directly to Broadway as active participants?"
The school programs are pet projects of Gerald Schoenfeld, chairman of the Shubert Organization, which owns or operates 17 Broadway theaters.
Still, Meile Rockefeller, co-chairwoman of the land-use committee of Manhattan Community Board 5, said the schools proposals were "fine as a short-term remedy for a problem that caught the city unprepared." But, she added, "It's not a long-term solution."Continue reading the main story


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County Home => Washoe County => Frequently Asked Questions => FAQ Details
Which Building Improvements Do I Report?
Report all building improvements you have made in detail, including year of acquisition, description and cost. Our office will determine if they are taxable and also make sure they will not be taxed as both personal property and real property.

subset: commoncrawl


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© University of Kent - Contact | Feedback | Legal | FOI | Cookies
An Olympian, 'physical activity guru' and world-renowned sports scientist, Greg is a Professor in Applied Sport & Exercise Science at Liverpool John Moores University and a UK authority on Exercise Physiology, Sports Performance & Rehabilitation which includes having extensive professional experience assessing, treating & improving the performance of athletes & sporting enthusiasts ranging from celebrities attempting their first mountain summit to Gold medal seeking Olympians.
A former modern pentathlete, Greg competed in two Olympic Games and has won European bronze and World Championship silver medals. After his athletic career he studied for his BSc (Hons) at Brunel University, completed his MSc in human performance at Frostburg State University in the USA and completed his PhD at St. Georges Hospital Medical School and the University of Wolverhampton, where he was research co-ordinator.
Greg is a Fellow of the British Association of Sport and Exercise Science (FBASES) and the American College of Sports Medicine (FACSM) and was the Chairman of the charity Cardiac Risk in the Young (CRY) from 1999-2009.
As one of the preeminent sport and exercise scientists nationally and internationally, Greg has worked as consultant physiologist in a large number of Olympic and professional sports. Prior to his appointment at Liverpool John Moores University, Greg has been the Director of Science and Research at the English Institute of Sport (EIS; 2004-2006), and the Director of Research for the British Olympic Association based at the Olympic Medical Institute (2001-2004).
He has published over 200 peer reviewed papers and eight books in the area of sport and exercise science and medicine. His main area of research interest is focussed around cardiac structure and function in health and disease, however he is widely published in a number of areas of sports science and medicine including: performance, altitude, immune function, exercise-induced asthma, and ergogenic aids in sport.
Greg is well-known for his involvement in Comic Relief. He has trained, motivated and successfully coached the comedian David Walliams to swim across the English Channel and Along the River Thames; John Bishop's Week of Hell; James Cracknell to run, cycle and swim to Africa; Cheryl Cole, Chris Moyles and Gary Barlow to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro; Eddie Izzard to run a remarkable 43 Marathons in 51 days and most recently, helped Mel C, Dara O'Briain and others to raft 110k down the Zambezi river.
So far Greg has helped raise over £17 million for Comic Relief and Sport Relief projects.- See more at: http://www.gregwhyte.com/about/about-greg#sthash.PbQYis2S.dpuf back to top


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After a wedding filled with werewolves, fay, and vampires, Vicky is looking forwards to a nice, quiet honeymoon away from the chaos of Darien's daily life. But nothing is ever simple with an Ancient Vampire around.
When the Vampire Council of Hawaii finds out Darien and his new bride are coming, they are determined to see that Darien is honored properly. But vampire etiquette isn't for the faint of heart.
The nights could burn when lines are drawn… and Darien finds himself in a turf war he never intended to start.
Julie Wetzel
Originally from Ohio, Julie always dreamed of a job in science. Either shooting for the stars or delving into the mysteries of volcanoes. But, life never leads where you expect. In 2007, she moved to Mississippi to be with her significant other.
My Thoughts:
It's been eight long months for fans of this series who have anxiously awaited the next installment of this absolutely incredible series. As any of my readers will well know, I love me a good paranormal series and when you throw in some vampires? Perfection. I absolutely cannot get enough. When I first encountered this series, I had no idea the profound impact it would have on this readers life. Not only is it a favorite of mine, it's become a pillar within the genre by which I compare others of its' kind. Now that an impactful series, right?
Riding the tails of the epic conclusion of Stolen Fire, our main characters Darien and Vicky find themselves on the cusp of their greatest adventure yet: marriage. But after a ceremony that will forever be remembered by the entire supernatural community, Darien only wants some time away from Brenton and all the recent drama that's unfolded. Keen to take his bride somewhere relaxing and memorable, the duo head to Hawaii hoping for a quiet honeymoon on the beach. Much like everything else in their lives, quiet was the last thing they found. An ancient threat looms over the Hawaii vampires and once Darien and his past are thrown into the mix, it's up to quick thinking and embracing his inner demons to beat the clock and not only ensure the safety of Vicky, but to save the entire Hawaiian clan.
Unlike the previous four novels in this series, this one really takes a detour when it comes to setting. Wetzel makes a bold move and leaves all of her side characters in Brenton, leaving the reader little insights to drama that occurs while Darien and Vicky are away. The story focuses near-entirely on Darien and Vicky's trip to Hawaii. A move that, while risky, ultimately proved to only farther prove the true writing talents of Wetzel and the potential of this series. When an author can say goodbye to an entire cast of characters temporarily and still reel the readers in as well as I was, I have to say that is quite a feat. While I ultimately would have liked to see more of the cast from previous novels, I definitely appreciate the direction Wetzel chose with Burning Nights. It's been rumored that in the next novel we'll see exactly what drama was happening in Darien's absence back home. I certainly cannot wait for that!
When it comes to the plot, I really was impressed. It's a fairly quick read, fast-paced read that I finished in a single sitting. In true Wetzel fashion, I was left with some great feelings and greatly anticipating the next novel in this incredible series.
Wetzel did a lot of things differently with this novel and strayed away from the conventional creatures and lore in a move that really paid off. She took real note of the Pacific-Islander history, culture, and lore to craft one of the most pleasing stories I've seen from her. The amount of research she did for this work was evident in each sandy beach, each sunset, and each cultural aspect she crafted. As a visual reader, I was highly satisfied.
While I won't say that Burning Nights takes the crown a my favorite in the series thus far, it was still an amazing fifth installment to the series that left me absolutely begging for more from Wetzel. I cannot wait to see what she comes up with for novel six. Any fan of Wetzel and this series will not be disappointed in the outcome of this novel, it was well worth the wait!
As you can clearly see, I fell in love with Wetzel's writing all over again with Kindling Flames: Burning Nights. It should come as no surprise that I am granting this novel a well-earned 5-star review. This is one of my absolutely highest rated series of all time. If you haven't started yet, you're missing out! Don't miss your chance to add this one to your TBR today. I highly recommend this series to all readers of paranormal, romance, and New Adult fiction.
Click the covers below to read my 5-star reviews of
Gathering Tinder (Kindling Flames #1),
Flying Sparks (Kindling Flames #2),
Smoke Rising (Kindling Flames #3), and
Stolen Fire (Kindling Flames #4).
Alright folks, that's all I have for you on the topic of Kindling Flames: Burning Nights by Julie Wetzel. I absolutely love this series and it just keeps getting better and better!. Head over and pick up your copy now. Also, head over to Julie's social media pages and give her a shout out, tell her Ethan sent ya! Be careful though, apparently, like her characters, she does bite. Watch out! Until next time, Happy Reading!


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They wanted to put their sailboat in the water. Would we be interested?
and Dave
are two of our favorite people. And, they let Paul sail their boat. He couldn't have been happier.
Of the many outdoor activities Paul loves, sailing is right there at the top of the list. He hasn't had a chance to be at the tiller and glide across the waves for (sadly) years.
Add to that some great fun playing board games,
incredibly wonderful meals,
with homemade gelato and sorbet
and lots of laughter
and you have a wonderful closing to a great summer.
Years ago, a 7th grade student brought me a recording of this song because he thought it would make me happy. His gesture touched my heart. As a result, I always equate this song with a reason to smile.
It was running in my head the whole time we were there. Thanks, Pam and Dave. Good times.


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- Research article
- Open Access
- Open Peer Review
The use of complementary and alternative medicine for patients with traumatic brain injury in Taiwan
© Gau et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. 2012
- Received: 1 February 2012
- Accepted: 30 October 2012
- Published: 6 November 2012
The use of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) continues to increase in Taiwan. This study examined the use of CAM and beliefs about CAM as expressed by patients with traumatic brain injury (TBI) in Taiwan.
TBI patients and their accompanying relatives were interviewed by using a structured questionnaire at an outpatient clinic in a medical center in northern Taiwan.
A total of 101 patients with TBI participated in the study. Sixty-four (63%) patients had used at least one form of CAM after sustaining TBI. CAM users had used an average of 2.72 forms of CAM after sustaining TBI. The most frequently used CAM category was traditional Chinese medicine (37; 57.8%), followed by folk and religious therapies (30; 46.9%), and dietary supplements (30; 46.9%). The majority of the patients (45; 70.3%) did not report CAM use because they felt it was unnecessary to do so. Patients who used CAM had a significantly stronger positive belief in CAM than those who did not (t = −2.72; P = .008). After using CAM, most of the patients (54; 85%) perceived moderate satisfaction (2.89 ± 0.44), according to a 4-point Likert scale.
Although the use of CAM is common for TBI patients receiving conventional medical health care in Taiwan, most patients did not inform health care personnel about their CAM use. TBI patients perceive combined use of CAM and conventional medicine as beneficial for their overall health.
- Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM)
- Belief in complementary and alternative medicine
- Traumatic brain injury (TBI)
Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) is a medical and health care modality that exists outside conventional medicine and includes many philosophical beliefs and health approaches that are not part of conventional medicine. Combining Chinese medicine with conventional medicine, as well as and the use of folk therapies, is a common practice in Taiwanese culture[1]. CAM has been gradually accepted as a helpful addition to conventional medicine. CAM use is widespread in Taiwan and over 70% of the public has reported using different forms of CAM such as Chinese herbs and folk therapies[2, 3]. CAM has mostly been used in Taiwan to improve overall health status, to treat diseases, and to improve quality of life[3].
There is a growing interest in CAM use among patients with chronic conditions. A prevalence of 17–72.3% CAM use has been reported among diabetic patients. Nutritional supplements and herbal medicines were the most frequently used CAM[4]. Chen surveyed outpatients from a hospital in the Taipei area, exploring the prevalence of combining CAM with conventional medicine. The result indicated that 25.6% of the patients used CAM in combination with conventional medicines[1]. Studies from Japan and the United States have also indicated a prevalence of 76% and 38%, respectively for CAM use[5, 6]. Most patients do not inform their doctors about using CAM, mostly because they were not asked when reporting medical history[2, 3, 7].
The characteristics of CAM users differ according to culture, geography, and type of dominant health care system. In surveying the public by telephone in Taiwan, Ting[2] found that CAM use was not associated with demographic variables such as age, gender, educational level, or place of residence. However, a survey by Huang et al. showed that most CAM users were women aged 20 to 49 years who had religious beliefs and educational levels higher than junior college[3]. Harris et al. reported that CAM use after an illness was associated with being female, a young age, a high educational level, and CAM use before an illness[8]. In Turkey, Ceylan et al. examined CAM use among cancer patients and discovered that CAM use was associated with country of birth, low educational level, and extended family structure[9].
A review of relevant literature showed that most recent studies have focused on CAM use in the general population[2, 3] or on patients with chronic conditions[4, 10]. Some researchers have used quantitative methods to explore the prevalence, effects, and costs of using CAM[3, 8, 9], whereas others have used qualitative research methods to determine the reasons for CAM use[11, 12]. There is a dearth of information about the use of CAM for patients with TBI, a condition that usually occurs following a head injury after sustaining an accident. TBI can lead to varying levels of impaired physical mobility, emotional and behavioral problems, and memory loss. Some of these functions can be recovered, although some patients suffer long-term sequelae. Based on clinical observation, patients with TBI or their families seek conventional medical treatment after the accident, and afterward use diverse complementary therapies to assist in recovery from TBI when conventional medicine is unable to restore impaired physical mobility and overcome long-term sequelae.
This study examined the use of CAM and beliefs about CAM as expressed by patients with traumatic brain injury (TBI) in Taiwan.
Participants and setting
We recruited a convenience sample of adult patients who were diagnosed with TBI and admitted to the neurosurgery ward of a medical center and who, regardless of whether they were to undergo surgery or not, had to continue follow-up after discharge from the TBI outpatient clinic of the study hospital. The TBI outpatient clinic was for TBI patients only. The majority of patients in this outpatient clinic were patients who were previously admitted, managed and discharged from the study hospital. The rest of them were TBI patients who were treated at other hospitals but chose to follow-up at this clinic because of location or being self-referred. Those patients who were not admitted to the hospital during acute stages were excluded from this study. Depending on the conditions of the patients, the duration and frequency of follow-up varied. The average frequency for follow-up was every two weeks to every month.
This study used a cross-sectional interview-based questionnaire survey to collect information. Data were collected in an outpatient clinic for brain-injury patients in a medical center in northern Taiwan.
Questionnaire design
The questionnaire included the following three parts:
Demographic information
Demographic information included gender, age, marital status, education level, occupation, and living situation. In addition, we assessed the patient's perceived satisfaction with the overall effects of CAM using a four-point Likert scale ranging from 1 (very unsatisfied) to 4 (very satisfied).
Use of CAM after brain injury questionnaire
The investigators designed this part of the questionnaire based on relevant literature[10, 13] and clinical experience. Five categories of CAM with 30 CAM forms were addressed: (1) traditional Chinese medicine such as Chinese herbs and acupuncture; (2) folk and religious medicine, such as holy water, reciting a Buddhist mantra, or spiritual healing techniques (such as shamanism and dang-kis); (3) dietary supplements, such as an organic diet, megadose vitamins, and green tea powder; (4) herbal and arcanum therapy; and (5) mind and body medicine, such as meditation, qi-gong, and aromatherapy. The questionnaire assessed the number of therapies employed by the patients, the reasons for using CAM, patients' satisfaction with the effects of CAM, and whether the patient discussed CAM with a physician before using it. Three experts in the field, using the same Likert scale, evaluated the relevance and clarity of the content of each question. The inter-rater assessment agreement Kappa was 0.63 (P < .01).
Belief in conventional medicine and CAM questionnaire
This part of the questionnaire was adapted from the work of Huang et al.[14]. The participants were asked to rate their agreement with 13 descriptors, such as "scientific," "less side effects," and "cured" for CAM and for conventional medicine on a 5-point Likert scale, 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly agree), in which a higher score reflected a more positive belief regarding CAM or conventional medicine. Score totals ranged from 13 to 65. The internal consistency (Cronbach's α) of this questionnaire was 0.90.
Data collection
A trained research assistant (SPL) collected the data. After explaining the aims of the study and its procedures and before conducting interviews, the patients and family caregivers gave their written consent. Face-to-face interviews were conducted in the waiting area of the brain-injury outpatient clinic. To reduce the recall bias, the information was mainly obtained from the patient, but the accompanying relatives provided additional information to complete the interview data. If the patient had language or cognitive impairment, then the accompanying family caregiver answered as a proxy.
Data analysis
After coding the data, we used the social sciences statistics program SPSS 16.0 for Windows (Chicago, USA) for analysis. We employed descriptive and inferential statistics in accordance with the aims of this study, and α = .05 was considered to have statistical significance.
Ethical considerations
This study was reviewed and approved by the Research Ethics Committee of National Taiwan University Hospital (No. 200612054R), where it took place. Participants gave written consent. They were informed that the data produced in this study would be confidential, would not affect patient treatment, and would be used only for academic research.
Demographic information on participants
Demographic information of participants (n = 101)
Mean ± SD (Range)
Age (year)
45.48 ± 18.86
Education (years)
Employed full-time
Employed part-time
Marital status
Living situation
With family
Perceived effects
2.89 ± 0.44
The use of CAM for TBI patients
The use of CAM by traumatic brain injury patients (n = 101)
Mean ± SD (Range)
Use of CAM following TBI
Time after injury until beginning use of CAM (months)
Most commonly used CAM categorya
Traditional Chinese medicine
Folk and religious therapy
Dietary supplements
Mind-body medicine
Herbal and Arcanum therapy
Most commonly used CAM forma
Chinese herbs
Spiritual healing, such as shamanism, dang-kis
Special diets
Megadose vitamins
Holy water, reciting a Buddhist mantra
Reasons for using CAM after brain injury (n = 64)
To improve overall health
As a complement to conventional medical treatment
Suggestion by relatives and friends
For psychological and spiritual support
To relieve symptoms
To rebuild confidence in ability to overcome disease
To alleviate stress
No progress in current condition with conventional medicine
Attitudes of CAM users toward conventional medicine (n = 64)
Discussed CAM with physician
Reasons for concealing the fact of using CAMa
Not necessary to tell
Afraid the physician may not be happy if she/he knows it
To avoid distracting the physician
Afraid the physician will prohibit using CAM
Physician is too busy to talk on the topic
Discontinuing the conventional medicine regimen
Belief in conventional medicine and CAM
The total score for belief in the effectiveness of CAM (31.09 ± 16.38; range14-64) was lower than the belief in conventional medicine (51.42 ± 5.35; range: 40–65). There were statistically significant differences (t = −2.72; P = .008) in the score of belief in CAM between patients who used CAM (34.36 ± 15.11) and those who did not use CAM (25.43 ± 17.15) after brain injury, indicating that the patients who used CAM had a significantly stronger positive belief in CAM than those who did not.
A prevalence of 63.4% for CAM use by patients with TBI was obtained in this study. This was similar to the rates reported for cancer patients in Turkey[9], and pediatric cancer patients in Taiwan[10]. The prevalence rate was lower than the rates reported for the public in Japan[5] and cancer patients in Taiwan[13] but higher than those for cancer patients in the United States[7] and the United Kingdom[8]. Differences in the definition of CAM and study population accounted for the wide variation of rates in the results of this study. Chinese medicine was the most frequently used CAM in this study. This is contrasting to the types of CAM use in other studies[3, 7, 8]. This might have resulted from cultural differences and the convenience of use.
More than 90% of the patients continued using conventional medicine while using CAM. This is a typical Taiwanese pattern of mixing traditional Chinese medicine, conventional medicine, and folk therapies[15]. Similar findings have been reported in many developing countries[16, 17]. Medical practices in Taiwan are generally categorized into three groups: conventional medicine, traditional Chinese medicine, and folk medicine. Each type of medicine consists of specific knowledge, skills and beliefs, and diverse approaches that coexist, in accordance to the definition of a "mixed" medical system or medical pluralism. Medical pluralism, which is the combination of conventional and traditional medical systems, is widespread in Asian countries. In many countries, the public believes that simultaneously applying CAM with conventional treatments improves overall health, which is consistent with beliefs regarding health and illness[15, 18]. Chinese culture understands health regarding the concepts of yin and yang, emphasizing harmony and balance. This includes internal harmony of the body and harmony between the body and its environment. For example, food may be used as medicine to improve the internal harmony of the body[15].
In our study, patients with TBI used CAM primarily to improve their overall health and, additionally, complement conventional medical treatment to restore health. Thus, TBI patients have used CAM mainly to preserve their health with the hope of strengthening the body, which is similar to findings from a study of the public in Taiwan[19]. Another major reason for using CAM was for psychological and spiritual support and to rebuild confidence in the ability of the patients to overcome illness. Half of the participants in our study believed that spiritual healing, the use of holy water, and reciting a Buddhist mantra strengthen the psychological domain, which reflects the concept that body and mind affect each other. Such psychological support can assist patients in coping with acute conditions or the long-term problems they must confront every day. Moreover, spiritual therapies may help people cope with the exigencies of daily life, as well as with special problems.
Most participants in this study (78.1%) did not inform their physicians on their CAM use, a finding that is similar to those of previous studies[3, 19, 20]. For example, in Taiwan, Tseng et al.[19] and Huang et al.[3] found that 81.6% and 50% of CAM users, respectively, did not inform conventional health care personnel. Cheung et al.[20] reported that reasons for not disclosing CAM use included "not being asked," "didn't think about it," and "didn't think it was important to my care." However, not informing physicians on CAM use may increase the risk of health complications related to combined use of CAM and conventional medicine. Physicians must know enough about various forms of CAM to know which should be contraindicated with the treatments they are providing and which need not be. This reduces the risk of CAM modality in adversely affecting treatment plans designed by physicians.
Characteristics of CAM users differ according to culture, geography, and type of dominant health care system. Our study showed that CAM use in Taiwan is not associated with variables such as patient gender, educational level, or religious beliefs, and whether patients had used CAM in the past, which is similar to the results of most studies[8, 9, 13, 19]. We found that younger patients who believe in CAM were more likely to use CAM. This was similar to the findings from other studies that reported a relationship between age and CAM use[3, 4, 21]. Previous studies have shown that the response "had ever used CAM" was a critical predictive variable for current CAM use[1, 8]. However, we found that most patients (85.1%) had never used CAM prior to TBI, which made the item "had ever used CAM" an irrelevant variable.
Questions on belief in CAM showed that more positive thoughts toward CAM resulted in a greater possibility that patients might choose CAM. Patients' use of CAM is consistent with their attitudes toward CAM and health beliefs[22]. For instance, Chinese people generally regard Chinese medicine as being able to balance the qi of yin and yang. They also trust that it does not induce iatrogenic illness and nourishes the body with fewer side effects than conventional medicine does. Folk therapy is valued for its spiritual benefits, which relieve stress and enhance confidence[11, 14]. CAM users also believe that CAM is holistic, natural, and associated with the spirit[23]. These varied beliefs affect the types and methods of medical treatment that patients use. In the view of patients, these different approaches to medicine are complementary, an attitude that reflects the concept of the yin-yang balance in Chinese culture. Our results show that most of the patients tended to use CAM and conventional medicine at the same time, suggesting that integrating traditional Chinese medicine and conventional medicine may become increasingly common in Taiwan's health care system. Currently, in addressing the Taiwanese public's preference for medical pluralism, some clinics integrated traditional Chinese and conventional medicine. We suggest that medical universities introduce scientifically approved CAM-related curricula, integrate CAM into programs that have previously used only conventional medicine, and provide opportunities for students to learn about complementary medical therapies.
This study had several limitations. Firstly, this study recruited only TBI patients who were scheduled for follow-up as outpatients; thus, information on those who did not need outpatient follow-up, those who lived outside the Taipei area and could not travel to the study hospital after discharge, and those who relied exclusively on CAM is limited, possibly causing a study sample bias. In addition, we used a convenience sample of patients attending an outpatient clinic who had received a single diagnosis at a single hospital. The limited sample size and homogeneity of patients, as well as the recalled bias of information in our study, limit the generalizability of the results. This study explored patients' satisfaction with the efficacy of CAM based only on subjective perceptions and cannot provide evidence-based data on efficacy.
Although the use of CAM is common for TBI patients receiving conventional medical health care in Taiwan, most patients did not inform health care personnel about their CAM use. TBI patients perceive combined use of CAM and conventional medicine as beneficial for their overall health.
The author wishes to express thanks to all the participants and Miss Sih-Ping Lin who assisted us in data collection.
Authors' Affiliations
- Chen HM: Characteristics of patients using complementary and alternative medicine combined with conventional medicine in primary care. Taipei City Med J. 2005, 2 (3): 278-285.Google Scholar
- Ting CYL: Who uses non-biomedical, complementary and alternative health care? Sociodemographic undifferentiation and the effects of health needs. Taiwan J Public Health. 2003, 22 (3): 155-166.Google Scholar
- Huang HM, Chen YM, Tseng YH: Use of complementary therapies in community dwelling adults in central Taiwan. J Nurs Healthc Res. 2010, 6 (4): 289-298.Google Scholar
- Chang HY, Wallis M, Tiralongo E: Use of complementary and alternative medicine among people living with diabetes: literature review. J Adv Nurs. 2007, 58 (4): 307-319. 10.1111/j.1365-2648.2007.04291.x.View ArticlePubMedGoogle Scholar
- Yamashita H, Tsukayama H, Sugishita C: Popularity of complementary and alternative medicine in Japan: a telephone survey. Complement Ther Med. 2002, 10 (1): 84-93.View ArticlePubMedGoogle Scholar
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Pre-publication history
This article is published under license to BioMed Central Ltd. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.


text: I am a Dominican Sister of Peace. I met Cesar when he came to Cleveland, I believe in 1980's, Ohio to speak at the Catholic Diocese, the Commission on Catholic Community Action. He also went all around the state of Ohio where there immigrants. I had the privilege to travel with him through out the state of Ohio and the opportunity to be his body guard! That was an experience, I have always had in my memory, even though I suffered from a right brain aneurysm in 2008 and with that I lost my long term memory. But not this memory that I kept in my brain.He is unforgettable! I got to represent the Akron Dominicans on the Board of the National Farm Worker Network and got to be involved in the campaigns of the UFW. I got to go to Bakersfield, CA and meet with Cesar there. My involvement with the UFW and NFWM was full of activism. Virginia Nesmith has a memory of when we were a meeting with some big corporation and I started with the Farm Worker prayer. I wish I could say more about it, but because of my brain injury, I cannot bring it up. All I could say it was something special.


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A great journey! Lots of information and bonus material! I'm very thankful for the course. It might be that the professor's speech is sometimes a bit difficult to follow, but it's a minor drawback
Well developed and presented course.. It'll be good to have it continued from 1650 to where the Christian faith is today. I'll be very interested to be part of it if it is developed.
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text:
Highly ranked within the Dispute Resolution section, the firm is highlighted for its involvement in the negotiation of the global benchmarking tri-lateral 3.5 billion USD settlement for Odebrecht - Latin America's largest construction company - in the context of the Brazilian Petrobas matter, known as operation "car wash".
The team was led by Peter Burckhardt in Zurich and included a number of lawyers from Schellenberg Wittmer notably Benjamin Borsodi who led the efforts on the Geneva requirements of the case.
Now in its 12th edition, the FT Innovative Lawyers Europe 2017 is a rankings report and awards for Europe-based lawyers and firms. Firms reported on comprise the most impactful and top scoring submissions within each ranking.


text:
For daily deal sites email has always been the primary means of communication. And they're probably one of the few types of businesses where an email a day is acceptable by the subscribers (or even desirable, though tiring at times). For the sender the question is, with this kind of frequency and volume of emails, how can you optimize your email marketing while still keeping it interesting for the subscribers? Automation is the key.
In another case scenario for using Autoresponders 2.0, we took a closer look at how automated messages can work for daily deals. We're describing a few tactics that might be very useful but of course these are just examples. What's more, they can actually be used in other industries, too.
Watch the video below to see the four tactics we mention:
- Send a welcome email immediately after sign-up.
- Schedule a message sequence over a specified time period to introduce your offer or add some tips. Set the emails to be sent at the same time of day, preferably in the morning when inbox engagement is high (for best send times check our infographic).
- Follow your subscribers' preferences. Send the offers according to what links they clicked in previous emails (setting up the "Clicked" autoresponder). If your subscriber changes their preferences or details such as the city they live in on your site, automatically send them tailored messages based on the new interests or location (setting up the "Data changed" autoresponder).
- Say thank you! Use the "Goal reached" autoresponder to be able to send customized messages after a purchase that originated from your newsletter.
Find out more about the different types of Autoresponders and how to use them here.
Stay tuned for more. What kind of industry-related use scenario would you like to see next?


text:
Guidance counsellor initiatives prove successful
Dr. Rob Shea (r) chats with a guest at a recent dinner hosted by the Office of Student Recruitment.
By Jill Hunt
The Office of Student Recruitment (OSR) held a celebratory dinner for approximately 15 guidance counsellors from the Eastern School District (ESDNL) on May 9. The event was co-hosted by the OSR and Dr. Rob Shea, deputy provost and associate vice-president (academic) pro tempore. The evening was designed to showcase Memorial University through the eyes of the student. Ryan Dwyer, Becky Winsor, Lacey Mills and Philippa Gosine, all current students, were on hand to share their Memorial experience.
"The role our office plays in establishing and maintaining relationships with guidance counsellors in our key markets is extremely important to recruitment," said Shona Perry-Maidment, director, Office of Student Recruitment. "Guidance counsellors play an instrumental role in educating prospective students about post-secondary options, so it is important to fully educate these key individuals about Memorial University."
Over the past several months, the OSR has been active in initiating several new projects with guidance counsellors in the ESDNL. Throughout the winter semester, the OSR hosted three different groups of principals, school counsellors, school board and Department of Education personnel. While the majority of these meetings had agendas which were pre-determined by the group, there were also opportunities for the visitors to have sessions about services for students as provided by the Glenn Roy Blundon Centre, the Counselling Centre and the Teaching and Learning team.
"Memorial has done an exceptional job in fostering the liaison with our school," said Sharon Brenton, guidance counsellor, Holy Trinity High School. "Regular contact and collaboration has provided our high school students with meaningful information and successful transition into the post-secondary setting. A collegial and positive working relationship with counsellors has been established, and events such as the recent dinner and on-campus meetings attest to the value of this continuing liaison."
Outreach has not ended with the ESDNL district. Other forays have been made to ensure that counsellors from outside of Canada have had the opportunity to become better acquainted with Memorial. On April 24, the OSR welcomed a delegation of 11 Indian guidance counsellors and principals to the St. John's campus as part of an Indian school counsellors familiarization tour of Atlantic Canada universities as organized and supported by the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA). During the visit, the delegation met with various administrative units and faculties. They also had the chance to speak with current Indian students who eagerly shared their experiences about the transition from India to Newfoundland. After a brief presentation the group toured the campus and visited Quidi Vidi village, where they viewed their first iceberg. The following day the delegation travelled to Grenfell Campus for the morning where they completed a city tour and a campus tour. The delegation received a presentation about Grenfell Campus and glimpsed a caribou en route to the airport.
This is the third year that ACOA supported this initiative. Memorial University was one of 14 universities visited on this familiarization tour of Atlantic Canada and it was the first in which a visit to Grenfell was incorporated.


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- Nano Express
- Open Access
Reduced graphene oxide aerogel with high-rate supercapacitive performance in aqueous electrolytes
- Weijiang Si†1,
- Xiaozhong Wu†1,
- Jin Zhou1,
- Feifei Guo1,
- Shuping Zhuo1Email author,
- Hongyou Cui1 and
- Wei Xing2Email author
© Si et al.; licensee Springer. 2013
- Received: 6 April 2013
- Accepted: 7 May 2013
- Published: 21 May 2013
Reduced graphene oxide aerogel (RGOA) is synthesized successfully through a simultaneous self-assembly and reduction process using hypophosphorous acid and I2 as reductant. Nitrogen sorption analysis shows that the Brunauer-Emmett-Teller surface area of RGOA could reach as high as 830 m2 g−1, which is the largest value ever reported for graphene-based aerogels obtained through the simultaneous self-assembly and reduction strategy. The as-prepared RGOA is characterized by a variety of means such as scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Electrochemical tests show that RGOA exhibits a high-rate supercapacitive performance in aqueous electrolytes. The specific capacitance of RGOA is calculated to be 211.8 and 278.6 F g−1 in KOH and H2SO4 electrolytes, respectively. The perfect supercapacitive performance of RGOA is ascribed to its three-dimensional structure and the existence of oxygen-containing groups.
- Supercapacitor
- Reduced graphene oxide aerogel
- Current density
- Cyclic voltammetry
As a novel energy storage device that bridges the gap between conventional capacitors and batteries, supercapacitor has attracted much attention for its high power density and long cyclic life [1]. The studies about supercapacitor mainly focus on the electrode materials such as transition metal oxides, conducting polymers, and particularly carbon materials that are perfect electrode materials because of their good conductivity, cyclic stability, and large specific surface area [2–4]. Carbon materials with different structures such as carbon nanotubes, carbon nanofibers, hierarchical porous carbons, and ordered mesoporous carbons are widely studied in recent years [5–8]. Apart from these carbon materials, graphene and graphene-based materials have also been widely studied as electrode materials of supercapacitor [9–13]. Graphene is a two-dimensional sheet of sp2-hybridized carbon, which possesses many remarkable properties such as high surface area, excellent mechanical strength, and low electrical resistivity [14, 15]. However, the practical preparation (chemical reduction process) of graphene-based material is often accompanied by the sacrifice of graphene surface area because the graphene layers are easy to restack through a π-π interaction during the chemical reduction process.
In order to obtain graphene-based material with high specific surface area, many researchers have prepared graphene-based materials with three-dimensional architecture. As a typical three-dimensional graphene-based material that has attracted much attention of researchers, graphene aerogel is often synthesized mainly through two strategies currently: self-assembly during reduction process [16–20] and post-reduction process after self-assembly [21–24]. Employing the first method, Xu et al. prepared graphene aerogel via self-assembly of graphene oxide during a hydrothermal reduction process at 180°C [16]. Chen synthesized graphene aerogel using various reductants such as NaHSO3, Na2S, vitamin C, and HI [17]. The specific surface area of the as-prepared graphene aerogels could only reach up to 512 m2 g−1[20] because the reduction of graphene oxide was accompanied by the elimination of oxygen-containing groups in aqueous solution. This could lead to the hydrophobility increase of reduced graphene oxide, thus resulting in the restacking of graphene sheets. Adopting the second method, we prepared the graphene aerogel with a superhigh C/O molar ratio by hydrogen reduction [21]. Worsley et al. synthesized a graphene aerogel through the self-assembly process in a basic solution followed by thermal reduction under nitrogen atmosphere. The Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) surface area of the as-prepared graphene aerogel could reach as high as 1,300 m2 g−1, which is the largest value ever reported in the literatures [22]. Although the graphene aerogels possess large BET surface area when employing the second strategy, the preparation procedure is complex due to the separated self-assembly and reduction processes. It usually takes 72 h to finish the separate self-assembly process [23]. How to produce graphene aerogel with high surface area in a simple way is still a challenge currently.
Apart from the high surface area, the surface properties should also be taken into consideration while graphene-based material is used as electrode material in supercapacitor. The existence of surface functional groups is the characteristic surface properties of graphene-based materials made by Hummers' method. Graphene materials with functional surface often have a better dispersibility in aqueous electrolyte. Moreover, these functional groups may also generate pseudocapacitance in aqueous electrolytes. Xu's study indicates that graphene oxide is more suitable for supercapacitor application than graphene due to the existence of pseudocapacitance generated from the oxygen-containing groups [25]. Our previous work also shows that graphene oxide aerogel possesses a higher specific capacitance than graphene aerogel at low current densities in KOH electrolyte [21]. Thus, it would be promising to prepare high surface area graphene-based aerogels with functional surface for supercapacitor applications.
Herein, we synthesize a partially reduced graphene oxide aerogel (RGOA) through a simultaneous self-assembly and reduction process using hypophosphorous acid (HPA) and I2 as the reductants. Nitrogen sorption analysis shows that the specific surface area of the as-prepared RGOA could reach as high as 830 m2 g−1, which is the largest specific surface area ever reported for graphene aerogels obtained through the simultaneous self-assembly and reduction strategy. Electrochemical tests show that RGOA exhibits a high-rate supercapacitive performance in aqueous electrolytes. The specific capacitance of the RGOA can reach 211.8 and 278.6 F g−1 in KOH and H2SO4 electrolytes, respectively.
Material preparation
Graphite powder was purchased from Qingdao Ruisheng Graphite Co., Ltd. (Shandong, China). All other chemicals were purchased from Shanghai Chemical Reagents Company (Shanghai, China) and used directly without further purification. Graphite oxide was prepared according to Hummers' method [26]. Graphene oxide solution (5 mg mL−1) was acquired by dispersing graphite oxide in deionized water under ultrasonication. The reduced graphene oxide hydrogel was prepared according to Phams' method [18]. In a typical experiment, 5 g I2 was dissolved in 100 g HPA solution (50 wt.%), and then a 100-mL graphene oxide solution was added and sonicated for 5 min before transferred into an oven and aged at 90°C for 12 h. The obtained product was washed twice with acetone in a Soxhlet extractor (ISOPAD, Heidelberg, Germany) for 12 h to get reduced graphene oxide gels. The wet gels were dried with supercritical CO2 to obtain reduced graphene oxide aerogel, which was labeled as RGOA.
Material characterization
The microstructure of the samples was characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD, D8 Advance, Bruker Optik Gmbh, Ettlingen, Germany) and Raman spectroscopy (RM2000, Renishaw, Gloucestershire, UK). The thickness of graphite oxide sheet was examined using an atomic force microscope (AFM, Multimode NS3A, Veeco Instruments Inc., Plainview, NY, USA). The microscopic morphology of the samples was observed using a scanning electron microscope (SEM, FEI, Eindhoven, The Netherlands) and a transmission electron microscope (TEM, JEOL2010, Akishima, Tokyo, Japan). The surface properties of the samples were characterized by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS, Escalab 250, Thermo VG Scientific, Waltham, MA, USA) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR, Nicolet 5700, Thermo Electron Corporation, Waltham, MA, USA). Nitrogen sorption measurement was performed with an ASAP 2020M analyzer (Micromeritics, Norcross, GA, USA) to obtain the specific surface area and pore structure parameters of the sample.
Electrochemical measurements
Working electrodes were made by pressing RGOA onto the nickel foam and titanium mesh for 6 M KOH and 1 M H2SO4 electrolytes, respectively. The mass of active materials in each electrode was about 2 mg. In order to ensure that the electrode materials were thoroughly wetted with the electrolyte, the working electrodes were vacuum-impregnated with the electrolytes before electrochemical tests. The electrochemical capacitive performances of the sample were studied on a CHI660D electrochemical workstation. Electrochemical measurements including cyclic voltammetry (CV), galvanostatic charge–discharge, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) were performed in a three-electrode system using a platinum film as a counter electrode and a saturated calomel electrode (SCE) as a reference electrode. Potential windows of −1 ~ 0 V and 0 ~ 1 V vs. SCE reference electrode were applied to the electrochemical measurements in KOH and H2SO4 electrolytes, respectively. In addition, the electrochemical performance of RGOA was also evaluated using a two-electrode system in H2SO4 electrolyte with a potential window of 0 ~ 1.2 V.
Results and discussion
Morphological evolution
Structural evolution
Evolution of surface properties
Electrochemical capacitive performances
Three-electrode system
In addition, the current density at each scan rate in H2SO4 electrolyte is higher than that in KOH electrolyte, which indicates that oxygen-containing groups exhibit more pseudocapacitance in acid electrolyte. Therefore, as shown in Figure 4b, the specific capacitance calculated from CV curves displays that RGOA possesses larger capacitance in H2SO4 electrolyte when the scan rates are lower than 100 mV s−1. However, RGOA maintains a higher capacitance in KOH electrolyte when the scan rates exceed 100 mV s−1, which is probably due to the higher ionic concentration of KOH electrolyte than that of H2SO4 electrolyte. The galvanostatic charge–discharge curves of RGOA in different electrolytes are composed of two parts: the first part is within the potential window of 0.0 ~ −0.3 V in KOH electrolyte and 0.6 ~ 1.0 V in H2SO4 electrolyte, which is attributed to the electric double-layer capacitance. The other part exhibits a longer duration time, indicating the existence of pseudocapacitance besides the electric double-layer capacitance. As shown in Figure 4d, capacitance retention ratios of RGOA remain 74% and 63% in KOH and H2SO4 electrolytes when current density increases from 0.2 to 20 A g−1, exhibiting a high-rate capacitive performance. This high-rate performance is mainly attributed to the three-dimensional structure, which is beneficial for the ionic diffusion of electrolyte to the inner pores of bulk material. As shown in Figure 4d, the specific capacitances are calculated to be 211.8 and 278.6 F g−1 in KOH and H2SO4 electrolytes at the current density of 0.2 A g−1. The specific capacitances per surface area are calculated to be 25.5 and 33.6 μF cm−2 in KOH and H2SO4 electrolytes, respectively, indicating more pseudocapacitance in H2SO4 electrolyte. These results coincide well with the cyclic voltammetry measurements.
Two-electrode system
A simultaneous self-assembly and reduction method is adopted to successfully synthesize the reduced graphene oxide aerogel with the specific surface area of 830 m2 g−1, which is the largest value ever reported for graphene-based aerogels obtained through the simultaneous self-assembly and reduction strategy. Systematic characterizations suggest that the as-prepared RGOA is a three-dimensional mesoporous material with functionalized surface. Electrochemical tests show that RGOA exhibits high-rate supercapacitive performance. Its specific capacitances reach as high as 211.8 and 278.6 F g−1 in KOH and H2SO4 electrolytes, respectively. The perfect supercapacitive performance of RGOA is ascribed to its three-dimensional structure and the existence of oxygen-containing groups.
This work was financially supported by the Natural Science Foundation of China (51107076), Distinguished Young Scientist Foundation of Shandong Province (JQ201215), China University of Petroleum (13CX02004A), Outstanding Young Scientist Foundation of Shandong Province (BS2009NJ014), and Key Sci-Tech Development Project of Shandong Province (2009GG10007006).
Authors' Affiliations
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This article is published under license to BioMed Central Ltd. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.


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Headphones & Headsets
Open, closed, circumaural, supra-aural, headsets, earspeakers, cans
IEMs & Earbuds
Earphones, in-ear monitors, IEMs, ear canal headphones, canalphones, earbuds
Audio Gear
Amplifiers, digital-to-analog converters, digital audio players, sound cards, mics, phonographs
Music is Personal. Welcome to the club. Basshead.Club
Top 10 Lists
1Want the best basshead headphones? We've got top lists for bass-heavy cans and IEMs. We might be wrong, but at least we're confident.
Earpad Dimensions
2Got ears that just won't quit? Yeah, us too. These are all of the headphone earpads we have measurements for, our aurally-endowed friends.
Other Places
3We aren't the only site on the internets. I hear there are tens of other websites out there, and some are worth visiting. Here are a few we like.
4Want to send us stuff? Are we dumb dummies? Did we miss something? Want to send us a virtual high five? Email us.
Basshead.Club's Latest
- Updates: MHDT Labs & S/PDIF Battle I've updated the MHDT Labs review to include the new TDA1541A-based Orchid: http://www.basshead.club/mhdt-labs-pagoda-stockholm-atlantis-and-canary/ And the S/PDIF Battle roundup now includes the new Schiit Eitr: http://www.basshead.club/spdif-battle-mutec-singxer-lynx-rednet-et-al/ Enjoy!
- Brainwavz HM2, BLU-200, and B200 It's been a long time since my last review here at Basshead.Club. Real life and work cut out my ability to properly maintain the site and even listen to music nearly as much as I'd like. That being said, it's time to start catching up. Here, we have a trio from Brainwavz, a company that has ...
- Holo Audio – Spring DAC – Level 3 – "Kitsune Tuned Edition" I recently received a Holo Spring Kitsune Tuned Edition digital-to-analog converter on loan to demo and review. It's a modern DAC with patented R-2R technology. It's the first discrete DAC that has linear compensation. It uses a dual R-2R network for PCM and a dual R-2R network for DSD. The technology involved made this intriguing to me, partly ...
- MHDT Labs Pagoda, Stockholm, Atlantis, Canary, and Orchid It's no secret that I've become a huge fan of MHDT Labs. They make non-oversampling R-2R tube DACs with no digital, op-amp, or feedback, and they're all gorgeous to listen to. I've had the privilege of owning several and having extended sessions with others, and I decided to put together a previously-unpublished comparison of the ...
- AudioQuest Nighthawk Review One of the most talked about headphone releases of 2015, the AudioQuest Nighthawk has gained a legion of adoring fans and a mob of antagonists. What makes this headphone so controversial? I spent months with the AudioQuest Nighthawk to find out. In the Box Headphones Two detachable cables (one hi-fi cable, the other slimmer and more durable) Padded leather carrying ...


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For the past year, I have been working with Desiree Chocolates. She likes to use my menu cards on her Sweet Tables. This folded card is the most perfect little design that works well with every table and can easily be changed to fit other themes. These cards are sold individually which makes it very affordable to enhance an already gorgeous Sweet Table. I have done several other themes as well.This next party was a beach theme, if you hadn't already guessed. Though a bit more complicated because of the intricate cuts; I love the way they came out and would definitely do it again for another party. You may be asking yourself, where did I find those cute images? ....but if I told you I would have to give away a few secrets...sorry friends... wink, wink!
I like to add a little BLING to each card and make them very unique to my own style.
This next party was a Tinkerbell Birthday Party I did last year. I didn't make Menu Cards so to speak, but I did make Candy Tags with a different look. Since these tags were used on a stemmed jar. I just added a hole with a slit and slipped it onto the stem. It was nice because the event was outside and the tags didn't blow-away.
So many more tags and menu cards to show you...but I will save them for another day.
Thanks for stopping by!
Thanks for stopping by!


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Has The Chemical Processing Industry Lost Momentum?
Source: ChemicalProcessing.com
Dec 17, 2008
A recent webcast from Sugar Land, Texas-based Industrial Info Resources presented a discussion with Trey Hamblet, Industrial Info's vice president for Chemical Processing, regarding the top-performing segments of the Chemical Processing Industry (CPI). Although the CPI has lost much of the momentum and strength it had built and enjoyed in recent years, a large amount of both capital and maintenance spending is still under way and planned for the United States and Canada during 2009.
Over the last month, the CPI has witnessed multiple chemical companies announce major cutbacks, closures and capacity consolidation that have shed thousands of jobs and reduced capacities for almost every major commodity. So far, most of the announcements have been made with the underlying tone that these changes are initially expected to be temporary, only until early next year in many cases.
Even as many segments of the CPI operated at a very high level of utilization during the past several years, there have been steps taken by producers of ethylene, polyolefins and agricultural chemicals to ensure that inventories and demand stay in close balance. The recently announced closures and cutbacks will likely act more as a step to ensure the current momentum and strength of the CPI rather than as something that brings it down or cripples the industry in the long term.
The North American CPI is a very large, mature and complex industry consisting of nearly 4,000 operational plants. These plants demand an enormous amount of people, resources and technology to remain competitive. As capital and maintenance budgets continue to face a greater level of scrutiny, plant owners will increase their search for equipment and technology that can provide greater reliabilities, efficiencies and compliance solutions for existing assets.
To view the full webcast, click here: http://www.industrialinfo.com/radio/navigating.jsp?industry=chemical02.


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The Devastating Consequences Of Motorcycle Collisions
For motorcycle enthusiasts, there is nothing quite as invigorating as the thrill of the open road. Unfortunately, this thrill is often destroyed by the actions and negligence of other motorists who simply do not watch out for motorcyclists. Too often, motorcycle collisions result from the negligence of other drivers, and the consequences can be devastating for motorcyclists and their passengers. Maloney-Lyons offers the following advice for motorcycle accident victims.
Some of the most deadly motorcycle collisions are the result of head-on collisions with other vehicles. In fact, in 78 percent of motorcycle accidents that occur with another vehicle, the motorcyclist is hit from the front. Tragically, head-on collisions with other vehicles are often fatal to motorcyclists.
Many other situations can pose significant dangers to motorcyclists as well, including:
- Cars making left hand turns
- Motorcycle lane splitting
- Motorcyclists who speed or drive under the influence
- Road hazards
- Inclement weather
All of these situations represent real dangers to motorcyclists. Motorcycle collisions often result, and due to the vulnerability and smaller size of the motorcycle, motorcyclists often suffer the most severe consequences.
If you or a loved one has been injured in a motorcycle accident, you need the help of a lawyer who understands the complexities and seriousness of these types of cases. Motorcycle accidents present unique challenges to victims, and these cases need to be handled by attorneys who know how to determine the full value of your losses and how to accurately represent your claim. As devastating as the consequences of a motorcycle accident can be, don't let failing to seek the legal help you need to get just compensation be one of them. Call (251) 443-4440 today to learn more about motorcycle collisions or to make an appointment to receive a FREE consultation with an attorney from Maloney-Lyons.


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The New York State Laborers' Union represents over 40,000 members employed in the construction industry and other fields throughout the state.
Our members are organized into more than 24 local unions and 5 district councils. We are a proud affiliate of the Laborers' International Union of North America (LIUNA).
Long time Sandhog member Eddie Mallon joined Dr. Jim Melius to provide testimony at the Washington DC hearing on the proposed OSHA silica standard. They testified as part of a panel with representatives from the LHSFNA, LiUNA Training , and the NJ Laborers Health & Safety Fund on the last day of three weeks of hearings on the standard. The LiUNA panel pointed out the health dangers of silica, but that it could be safely controlled if proper measures were followed. OSHA will now review the testimony and issue a final standard in about one year.


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If you tuned in to President Bush's Thursday night press conference to understand his point of view on Iraq, you got what you came for. If you tuned in to find out whether he understood yours, tough luck. That was the deal when we traded in Bill Clinton for Bush. We got a president who understood the difference between truth and lying. We gave up one who understood everything in between. The upside is that our president is doing the right thing in Iraq. The downside is that he can't talk anyone else into going along.
Clinton was famous for seeing three sides of a two-sided issue. There was the time he agreed with the congressional majority on the Persian Gulf war but said he shared the concerns of the minority. There was the time he lamented having raised people's taxes too much. And of course, there was the time he pondered the meanings of "is."
Bush suffers no such ambivalence. Everything he knows about foreign policy, he learned in kindergarten: Love your neighbor, stand by your friends, honor your word. Thursday night, a reporter asked whether Bush held a grudge against Saddam Hussein. "I swore to protect and defend the Constitution," said Bush. "I put my hand on the Bible and took that oath. And that's exactly what I am going to do." He described the United Nations the same way: "The fundamental question facing the Security Council is, will its words mean anything?"
Bush has no trouble calling a lie a lie. While French sophisticates parse the adequacy of Iraq's latest ploy, Bush sees Saddam's game as a whole. "These are not the actions of a regime that is disarming. These are the actions of a regime engaged in a willful charade," said Bush. As for those who preach peace, the president observed, "Allowing a dangerous dictator to defy the world and harbor weapons of mass murder and terror is not peace at all. It is pretense."
But sometimes, things aren't black and white. Sometimes they're gray. When the governments of France, China, or Mexico don't see things your way, you have to start the process of persuasion by understanding where they're coming from. That's where Clinton was at his best and Bush is at his worst. Four times at his press conference, Bush was asked why other countries weren't seeing things our way. Four times, he had no idea.
Bloomberg News reporter Dick Keil asked Bush why American allies who had seen U.S. intelligence on Iraq didn't agree that the threat was sufficient to require war. Bush replied that other countries agreed with him. Fox News reporter Jim Angle asked why "so many people around the world take a different view." Bush replied that protest was healthy but that it wouldn't change his opinion—as though the question had been about his opinion. ABC News correspondent Terry Moran asked why "so many governments and peoples around the world now not only disagree with you very strongly, but see the U.S. under your leadership as an arrogant power." Bush replied that the world would come around. Finally, Fort Worth Star-Telegram reporter Ron Hutcheson asked Bush about critics who feared war would destabilize the Middle East: "Do you ever worry, maybe in the wee, small hours, that you might be wrong, and they might be right?" Bush didn't budge. "I know we'll prevail," he said. "And out of that disarmament of Saddam will come a better world."
Again and again, Bush was asked to explain why other nations didn't see things his way. Again and again, he changed the subject to himself and his supporters.
At one point, Bush declared that Iraq's failure to disarm "cannot be denied." At another, he said of Saddam's compliance with U.N. resolutions, "It's hard to believe anybody is saying he isn't in defiance of 1441." At no point did Bush grapple with the fact that Iraq's failure to disarm is being denied and that other governments are saying Saddam isn't in defiance of 1441.
"I pray daily," Bush told the press corps. "I pray for guidance and wisdom and strength." Oh, well. Two out of three ain't bad.


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Book your room & Doobi
would be your guide for Dubai
"To Dream of the future is one of the most beautiful thing in life. We are not content only to dream, we also work hard, because our ambitions are great and so are our dreams"
His Highness General Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Vice President, UAE Prime Minister & Ruler of Dubai.
Initiating the hospitality segment in 1959, today Mr. L.R. Lulla, Managing Partner of Astoria & Ambassador Hotels, shares with us his wonderful experience in Dubai and how the city has evolved to become the most sought after business destination of the future.
Mr. Lulla's modest hospitality venture in Dubai dates back to 1959 when there were no hotels. At that point of time, Dubai was still some years from its entry into the oil boom, but its far-sighted visionary ruler, His Highness Sheikh Rashid Bin Saeed Al Maktoum - also fondly known as the Father of Dubai, sought to work with market forces, not against them and thanks his far reaching vision for Dubai's, a cosmopolitan trade capital boasting of excellent infrastructure began evolving at a phenomenal pace.
An interesting observation of Mr. Lulla is that over the city of Dubai, the great dome of the Ruler office looks down with an air of motherly protection. It is this that makes Mr. Lulla proud of being a resident of Dubai.
Today, His Highness General Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Vice President, UAE Prime Minister & Ruler of Dubai, has successfully steered his father's vision and the city of Dubai on a course of becoming a global hotspot.
Mr. Ramesh Whabi, General Manager of the Astoria & Ambassador Hotels, believes that Dubai today has propelled itself on a high trajectory, with several new avenues of economic growth & is no longer only a oil trading region. It has consolidated its position as a trade hub for the traders in the market.
Mr. L.R. Lulla's sons, Prakash L. Lulla, manages the Astoria Hotel in Dubai, & Raju L. Lulla who manages ASTAMB Holidays (India), both believe that UAE & Dubai in particular is a Global Trade Capital and a land of emerging opportunities boasting of excellent infrastructure and breath taking projects.
We takes pride in the fact that the Ruling family & the able administration of Dubai Government is designing this city to attract and accommodate 15 million visitors a year from 2010 onwards. It already serves as a gateway to the Middle East & the Indian Sub Continent, connected to 145 Global destinations by 105 airlines & 120 shipping lines.
Several Internationally recognized development initiatives have been implemented successfully. A few across several emerging sectors such as:
In the last five years alone Dubai has witnessed a tremendous growth in the number of tourists visiting Dubai. With further advancements in tourism development projects, Dubai now attracts over 6.4 million visitors each year, and is on the verge of attracting and comfortably accommodating over 15 million visitors annually.
Mr. Lulla strongly believes that Dubai is the future of evolving business activities, aptly brought to life with growing infrastructure, business friendly environment, unparalleled lifestyle, upscale civic amenities, Zero Tax & Trade barriers, well-connected transport facilities, high tourism potential, ever growing consumer markets and rapid industrialization.
Known for its larger than life shopping experience, Dubai is rightly referred to as the shopper's paradise, 365 days a year. The activities reach the helm during the annual Dubai Shopping Festival, where the entire city transforms into the biggest, and the most exclusive shopping extravaganza in the world.
Dubai is the most favored destination for tourists who are planning a memorable vacation. As the city has the best crop of landscapes, shopping arenas, adventure sports, leisure and entertainment all lined-up in an exclusive setting. Moreover, being centrally located, Dubai is increasingly becoming the premier tourist destination of the region thanks largely to the tireless efforts of Emirates Airlines, Dubai's very own international airline.
"On behalf of Astoria and Ambassador Group of Hotels, we welcome you to experience the new face of Emerging Dubai. Look no further. We have taken care of everything you need, to make your stay a memorable one. Looking forward to serving you"
Yours truly,
Mr. L.R. Lulla.
Astoria & Ambassador Hotels