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Powering up and exploding onto the scene: Goblins vs Gnomes, Hearthstone's first expansion, has been officially EXPLODING revealed today at BlizzCon!
Expand-o-Matic 5000!
Goblins vs Gnomes throws players smack dab in the middle of a rivalry between cunning goblin engineers and their eternally-tinkering gnome counterparts. These pint-size foes don't always have the upper hand over the myriad mechanical contraptions they cook up, and the results can be . . . unpredictable.
Over 120 New Cards
The expansion brings a slew of brand-new cards that are ready to wreak a wealth of mechanized havoc on your opponent: Our own tinkerers and explosives aficionados have assembled over 120 new cards that will be sure to throw a wrench in your opponent's gears—literally. Check out a few of the wild and wacky inventions that have been engineered for your collection below!
Meet the Mechs
The new expansion brings with it an all-new minion type—Mechs. Much like the Alarm-o-Bot and Harvest Golem, these quirky contraptions have been built to pack a creative spring-loaded punch to your game. Goblins vs Gnomes will introduce both neutral and class-specific Mechs, so prepare for things to get interesting*!
Big Trouble, Little Packages
Stirring up trouble this December for Windows®, Mac®, and iPad®, Goblins vs Gnomes cards will be available by purchasing Goblins vs Gnomes-specific card packs in the in-game shop with either gold or real money, whichever you prefer (same pricing as expert card packs). As with Curse of Naxxramas, Goblins vs Gnomes cards will be made available in your Arena picks as soon as the cards have been released; even if you haven't added them to your personal collection!
Prepare (Your Kneecaps) for Battle!
We hope you enjoyed this early look at Hearthstone's first expansion—Goblins vs Gnomes. Stay tuned for further details right here on our brand new Goblins vs Gnomes page here! Keep an eye out** for the expansion in December!
*We take no responsibility for damages if things get too "interesting".
**Please wear safety goggles at all times when engaging with Goblins or Gnomes.
If you haven't heard, the first expansion for Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft will feature the zany, brainy, delightfully surprising chaos that inevitably occurs whenever there's a contest of wits between Azeroth's most diminutive denizens: it's Goblins vs Gnomes!
Hearthstone senior game designer Ben Brode, game director Eric Dodds, and senior producer Yong Woo took to the panel stage on Saturday to talk shop about Goblins vs Gnomes, and what we can expect when we get our mitts on the new expansion once it's released.
Senior Game Designer Ben Brode
Ben kicked off the panel to discuss Hearthstone's first year with some interesting stats, ranging from what are the 'best' and worst' cards in Hearthstone, a bit of a post-mortem on Curse of Naxxramas (pun intended), and the role that randomness plays in games (including Hearthstone), which is what we'll focus on here.
Randomness and You
Randomness has been the source of much ire in the Hearthstone community. Whether it's seeing an opponent draw the perfect card at just the right moment to foil our plans, or Tinkmaster Overspark turning an opposing minion into a Devilsaur when we really need a chicken, randomness can be frustrating. We've all had a moment when we felt like we played masterfully, only to have victory snatched away by a single moment of bad luck. It's easy to feel like the existence of any randomness in a game means that skill matters less.
Take a look at this graph, where games of pure luck where there is no skill required are on the left, and games that are purely skill-based with no random elements are on the right. Many players feel that Hearthstone, and all games for that matter, falls somewhere along this spectrum:
In reality, that graph is totally misleading because the relationship between luck and skill doesn't work like that. Luck and skill are independent, and a given game can have different amounts of each. The real situation looks more like this:
Every game you can win or lose falls somewhere on a graph like this. Tic-tac-toe has no randomness, but it also requires almost no skill. There is no Tic-tac-toe world championship, because once you know "the strategy" every game ends in a tie. Some games that are extremely luck-based (like Monopoly) very rarely have moments where you can exercise your superior skill to win.
Chess is a classic example of a game that includes a lot of skill and no randomness. However, at the highest levels games like this often require massive amounts of memorization, since games often play out in the same way. Bobby Fischer, one of the greatest Chess players of all time, actually proposed randomizing the back row of pieces to help solve this problem with high-level Chess!
That leaves the games that feature both high randomness and high skill. Games like Poker . . . and Hearthstone! While any particular hand of Poker is random, the best players still win consistently, and Hearthstone is no different. Look at players like Kolento, who place highly in tournaments over and over again.
Games in this high-randomness, high-skill category have two really cool attributes. First, you are constantly presented with novel situations. If every game of Hearthstone was like the last, it would be easy to memorize a game plan and just execute it over and over again. Instead, randomness makes it necessary be quick thinking and solve new problems in every game. A Hearthstone game is more than one turn, and to win consistently, a player must act and react to changing circumstances turn after turn to make the most of what is happening in a match and set up a victory. In this case, randomness actually increases the amount of skill required to perform well, precisely because it can throw a wrench in our plans and forces us to think on our feet.
The second great thing about this type of game is the frequency of awesome player stories. When you need one specific minion to win a Brawl or you lose, and BOOM: It all goes down exactly right—your Armorsmith survives and you manage to turn the game around with an incredible play! That's a great story! Randomness increases the excitement and frequency of these memorable events.
This combination of novel scenarios and crazy player stories is a huge part of what makes Hearthstone a TON of fun.
Game Director Eric Dodds
Game Director Eric Dodds then took to the stage to talk about the new Hearthstone expansion: Goblins vs Gnomes!
A Hearthstone Expansion!?
That's right! An expansion! Over 120 cards packed with Goblin and Gnomish awesomeness. Need something blown up . . . or transmogrified . . . or flattened by a gigantic, ridiculous, smoke-spewing engine of destruction? You need look no further, the mayhem has arrived!
Sounds Great! But Why Goblins vs Gnomes?
There was definitely some discussion before the Hearthstone team settled on Goblins vs Gnomes for the first expansion. First, the team looked at where Hearthstone had already been. The first Hearthstone Adventure, The Curse of Naxxramas, took place in Kel'thuzad's dread, dank, and dark necropolis: Naxxramas. The team injected Naxxramas with a healthy dose of snarky fun using a Grobbulus-sized syringe, but at its heart, Naxxramas is still a pretty serious place about creepy undead stuff with a doom-and-gloom theme.
The team wanted to do something very different for the first Hearthstone expansion. Something more light-hearted, colorful, and a little zany. And, as always, it had to be FUN! Goblins and Gnomes are famous for their wonderful inventions, and they also have a unique way of inspiring passion! Some people love them and all that they do. Some people would rather see them all zapped by their own creations. Whether these diminutive demolitionists are your favorite thing and you play them every chance you get, or the pint-sized puntables are your first target for total annihilation, Goblins vs Gnomes has something for everyone! Goblins vs Gnomes cards are packed with crazy creations that will expand player deck options in huge, delightfully surprising ways.
Of course the REAL reason we went with Goblins vs. Gnomes is the song:
Goblin Fury
Goblins are known for their business acumen and their love of big explosions, and definitely not in that order. At the heart of Goblin engineering lies a deep, overwhelming desire to see things explode. Sure, ideally that means the enemy, but that's not what you'd call a strict requirement. As long as someone is getting blown up, then your average Goblin will be happy.
For Gnomeregan!
Conversely, what Gnomes do, they do FOR SCIENCE! While Gnomish inventions are less likely to leave smoking craters, they are significantly more likely to turn innocent bystanders into poultry. In fact, it seems like a lot of Gnomish engineering is a combination of the wackiest technology imaginable and a hefty dose of 'turning-things-into-other-things probably-by-accident.' Odds are, rather than blowing something up, a Gnomish invention will usually just leave the unfortunate target wishing they'd been blown up.
Battlefield Technology
While they're often at odds, Goblins and Gnomes combined their engineering know-how to crank out a brand new board for Hearthstone: Goblins vs Gnomes. While the technology has proven too disastrously unstable to allow operation at BlizzCon, you can be sure that when Gnomes vs Goblins arrives, the devices scattered around the edges of this board will be working spectacularly in ways that probably bear absolutely no resemblance whatsoever to what was originally intended.
Mechanically Speaking
While Goblins and Gnomes are at the heart of this particular contest, the real stars of the show are the crazed mechanical creations that they've built. Goblins vs Gnomes brings with it a new mechanical minion type: Mechs. Many of the new cards are Mechs, or interact with Mechs in interesting ways. Each class also has its own Mech-based cards that help ensure that making a deck featuring Mechs prominently will be viable, and that they'll fit well even in non-Mech focused decks. Some old favorites that clearly have been Mechs all along now have a shiny Mech type bolted onto their cards as well. Finally, and possibly most importantly: GIANT ROBOTS!
Of course, not all Mechs are automatons. Some Mechs have pilots, and when the Mech is destroyed, the pilot hits the big shiny red eject button, parachutes onto the field, and carries on the fight! Usually that's a lower cost minion than the original Mech, but Sneed left his old shredder behind when he was defeated in the Deadmines, and only a Legendary minion could possibly master those controls. Of course, which Legendary minion was in the cockpit varies wildly. It could be Lorewalker Cho . . . or it could be Ragnaros! Sure, Rags might have some trouble scrunching down into the pilot's seat, but don't overthink it. All things are possible WITH SCIENCE!
Got A Spare?
Goblins and Gnomes love tinkering. A thing isn't good until it's been bettered with a few engineering "improvements". That love of tinkering is reflected in Goblins vs Gnomes with Spare Parts cards. These 1 mana spells are acquired in a variety of ways, and playing those cards lets players improve an existing minion just a little bit, or maybe inconvenience their opponent at a critical moment. While they can't be added directly to a deck, a random Spare Part can often be acquired when certain minions join the fray, or are dismantled, leaving useful bits and bobs in the crater where they used to stand.
Magnificent Mayhem
Of course, other cards will also be added that aren't Mechs, Goblins, or Gnomes. To give you a taste of what we mean, we submit the Warrior's Bouncing Blade spell in the "Only a Goblin would think this is a good idea" category:
The Best Deals Anywhere!
So how do you bolt Goblins vs Gnomes fun onto your collection? You'll be able to get Goblins vs Gnomes packs for the same cost (in either gold or real money) as the existing Expert Hearthstone packs. If you're already sitting on a hefty stockpile of dust, then you're in luck! You can also craft Goblins vs Gnomes cards for the same dust costs—based on rarity—as the current cards. Just wait until you see what happens when you open a Goblins vs Gnome pack!
Senior Producer Yong Woo
On the subject of seeing, Yong Woo took to the stage to talk about another exciting feature that will be arriving alongside Goblins vs. Gnomes. . .
It's Better With Friends
One of the things that we realized early on while working on Hearthstone is that it's a game that is just as much fun to watch as it is to play! Whenever one of us is in a really good game, the whole team will gather around to watch, talk about Hearthstone, and chat about cards and deck concepts.
It's a really great experience, and it's one of our favorite ways to play Hearthstone: surrounded by friends. It's also the reason why we're so excited when Fireside Gatherings bring players together to play face-to-face and hang out. Of course, sometimes your friends can't be in the same room. Sometimes they're not even on the same continent! That's one of the things we love about the Blizzard community: we're always making friends from around the world.
With that in mind, we've been working hard on another feature. It might be the number one most requested feature since the release of Hearthstone. . .
That's right! We've been working to make Spectator Mode a reality. You will soon be able to watch your friend's games as if they were sitting right next to you when the explosives start flying in Goblins vs Gnomes!
Sounds Great! But How Does It Work?
After Goblins vs Gnomes comes out, when you bring up your Friends list, you'll see a new Spectate button next to your friends who are playing games. We wanted to make using Spectator Mode as easy as walking behind your friend's computer, so watching their game is as simple as clicking the Spectate button!
Once you're watching your friend's game, it's almost as though you're sitting in front of their computer. You can watch them hover over their cards and minions as they ponder their next move. You can see them point their targeting arrow and follow along with their thought process. You can even see the emotes the players are using. It really feels as though you're playing the game, but there's a Spectator Mode indicator on the bottom-left corner to remind you that you're just watching, so no matter how badly you might want you, you can't take over when your friend misses lethal!
On the other hand, as a spectator, you have full control over what you're looking at. As the game progresses, you can hover over cards and minions to get full card text and the details on buffs, and you can also check out the history to see what happened before you started watching!
We Love An Audience!
When someone is spectating your game, you'll see an indicator on the bottom left to let you know that you've got company. It will show you how many of your friends are watching, and who they are. And of course, if you'd rather not have spectators, you can set Spectator Mode to invitation only, and even 'kick' unwanted spectators from your game.
We've received a lot of requests for a good way to cast a match between two players without having to stitch together multiple streams, so we also wanted Spectator Mode to be useful for casting tournaments. So, Spectator Mode will support spectating two players at the same time. You'll be able to view both players' hands, and casters will be able to keep tabs on both players from within a single Hearthstone client.
That's All. . . For Now!
That's all these Hearthstone heroes had for us at BlizzCon, but you can be sure that there's more exciting Goblins vs. Gnomes gnews coming before its release this December, so keep your goggles soot-free and keep those transmitters pointed in this direction to stay tuned!
Sooo....what happened with the whole Azshara thing?
These cards looks awesome and we'll just have 1 month to wait ! I hope it will shake the current meta
The gnomes and goblins probably exploded azshara!, is this free or do you have to pay gold like naxxramas?
Hmmm. Lemme see if any cards stand out...Holy *!@# that Blingtron 3000 lol.Why is there a Mech version of Mountain Giant...?Omg the Spider Tank. That's actually a very strong card imo. Instantly counters all 2-drops pretty much and even some 3-drops.Wtf at Shrinkmeister. That's really strong for a 2-drop and it causes a massive tempo swing when used for forcing trades (also dat synergy with SW:P)
Awesome they include the spectator mode, now you can spy your enemies and see their tactics... Muahahahahahahahahaha
"Perfecting imperfection Goblins and Gnomes" This will be stuck in my head for awhile. Watching my friends play when this comes out.
Not that into hearthstone, but the artwork looks adorable. We need to see more of the rivalry in wow.
My uncle should be pretty happy about this. I was surprised to find out that he is a big fan of Hearthstone and plays it frequently. He's always been a fan of zany, crazy characters and settings, so I think Gnomes vs. Goblins will be right up his alley.
Goblins rule, they are very fun also!
Hate Gnomes, Love their engineeringPretty neutral opinion on Goblins
Love the gnome and goblin cards!
Im stoaked that this new expansion is coming out so soon, and that we don't have to wait too long.
Looks like a lot of fun, with some unpredictable outcomes.
I personally do not play alot of hearthstone, i have played it enough to know what i'm doing but, it's also nice to see them adding more cards on top of the previously released Curse of Naxxramas expansion. It'll be interesting to see what some of these cards do, how they'll be played in people's decks and just in general how they'll affect the over game play of the game, I personally enjoyed matching up against players when they had that Hearthsteed promotion for winning a certain set of games against people, it was enjoyable and i enjoyed getting the mount in world of warcraft as well. I'm definitely hoping to see something similair to happen in the future where they do a certain promotion and you get rewards to be a part of other blizzard games.
Sneeds Old Shredder card....the ability to summon any legendary seems like a huge gamble but it could really pay off. I love the RNG they're introducing into the game with that card. Also, Enhance-O-Mechano..... more RNG! I feel like they're really capturing the sporadic nature of gnomes and especially the possible random failures of engineering.
Look nice I cant wait:)
I hope they fix some classes or create new ones like monk or dk... I'm kinda tired of the same classes...
I am SO excited for this expansion! As a person who is a huge fan of gimmicky cards/decks, I can't wait to see how I can implement them into my RNG decks and have lots of fun!

subset: commoncrawl


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Black Diamond Skylight
This tent is very light and very spacious compared to many 3-person tents. You are actually able to place three regular pads (20in width) side by side without having them overlap each other.
So we decide to take three of us on a two day trip. However, on the trip it rained both days at night only. Epic by Nextec is billed as water-resistant and we learned why. When the three of us slept in it the two people next to the walls pushed the walls with their sleeping bags making the water - read carefully - LEAK RIGHT THROUGH THE FABRIC!
We made sure the seams were well sealed (which by the way it doesn't come taped as most decent tents but you have to do it yourself with a tube of silicon and syringe). Even after all that the tent leaked through the fabric. However, when we were just inside the tent the fabric repelled the water fine. The fabric just leaks when it is being pushed, stretched so to say, by someone leaning against the walls or with their sleeping bag as was the case with us. It is impossible to have three people and not push the walls as the width is not wide enough to make that happen.
The Skylight is a great idea and I had a hard time returning it due to its space and lightness but the cons outweighed the pros in this tent. I would definitely purchase again if the fabric was more water resistant and Black Diamond actually sealed the seams for you. For MSRP of $435 that is just ridiculous. They could just pay a Chinese worker to do it as the tent is made in China and it wouldn't cost them that much more.
Design: three-season freestanding dome
Sleeps: 2
Ease of Setup: Moderate to Easy depending on one's experience
Weight: 6lbs 5oz with footprint.
Price Paid: $315
A few months ago I purchased this tent from REI for 20% off. That weekend I took it on a short eight mile hike, we didn't get on the trail until 8:00 p.m. so it was 10:00 p.m. when we got into camp. Even with no experience setting this tent up I had it pitched in under 5 minutes.
That night was fairly humid and even though I didn't have any of the vents open the tent still managed to collect 0 condensation. I have taken this tent with me on over 100 miles of trail Spring-winter and it still has yet to leak or collect any condensation. However it is tight for 3 but makes a luxurious tent for 2. Both my hiking parter and I are over 6'6" 200lbs and don't even bump hips. This tent is worth every penny I spent on it.
Update: February 4, 2009
this is an updated review from my previous one. so far i have had this tent for almost 2 years and couldn't be happier! This thing is amazing!
I have over 160 nights in it and i still have yet to encounter any condensation. i have taken it everywhere (Washington state, New Mexico, Quebec, California, Texas, Florida, and Maine). I even used it last summer on Mt. Rainier during a storm! i have never had any problems with durability or leaking! it is simply amazing.
the setup of this tent is a huge learning curve, however i have setup down to 2.6 minutes from the time i lay down the ground cloth to the time where i'm rolling out my pad. i think that the condensation factor and leaking has to do with how it's setup, the tighter you get the better.
Design: three season freestanding hybrid
Sleeps: 3
Ease of Setup: found it to be incredably easy!
Weight: 5.1 pounds with 8mm black plastic ground cloth
Price Paid: $250 or so
Retiring it after three years. Can't keep out rain. Leaks like a sieve in steady rain. Condensation builds up in bad weather when you close the vestibule even with recommended venting. Lightweight, but don't trust it in inclement weather.
- Clever design
- Lightweight and spacious for two
- Can't keep out a steady rain
- Difficult to set up
I have used this tent for three years. Purchased from BD in 2013. Also have an Eldorado and Fitzroy. Those are keepers.
The Skylight is unreliable. It will not handle anything but balmy weather. It will not keep out a steady rain. Finally had to put a tarp over it. Why would you make a tent that is only water resistant? Sides leak if you touch them. Ceiling drips. Prone to condensation build-up when you close the vestibule. Small vent in the back is not adequate under most conditions.
Given the specs I thought this was the perfect tent. But it does not perform in the cold or rain.
Source: bought it new
Price Paid: About $500
I took this tent to the Bob Marshall Wilderness in Montana on a 65-miler in five days so light weight was key. A light tent and packs easy but on the very first night we used it we pulled down the rain fly and in the morning we had a ton of condensation on the inside of the tent. Ended up like that almost the rest of the trip except when rain fly wasn't down. The pulls bend too easy and keep a memory which can be bad.
Also to poles attach to the inside of the tent because there is no rain fly. So if it is raining you will get the inside of your tent soaked if you are wet. Also to attach the poles it uses velcro straps which tear up the mesh screen on the tent and it is a pain in the butt to velcro in a hurry if it is raining. This could be an outstanding tent if they changed a few things. Definetly not worth the money or time.
Design: Black Diamond
Sleeps: 3
Ease of Setup: not bad
Weight: 5 with every thing
Price Paid: $300
The biggest strength of this tent is its low weight relative to its size. I also like the design that allows stargazing at night, and the build quality.
Contrary to previous reviewers I have no problems setting it up. It takes me no longer than five minutes to set up. The tent is not advertised as waterproof, so it is no surprise that it starts to leak after extended rain. However, it did not leak during three hours of heavy rain. Due to the light weight, the tent does not leave the impression of taking abuse well. According to the owner's manual, it is also sensitive to UV radiation. If I need a rugged, waterproof tent, I pick the Bibler Ahwahnee which however weighs more.
Taken together, this tent performs very well and as advertised. However, if you look for a waterproof, rugged tent the Skylight may not be the right choice. I like it very much for its low weight, the nice design and build quality.
Sleeps: 2
Ease of Setup: easy
Price Paid: $400
I've been using this tent for 6 months and it is by far my favorite. I have six tents right now and this is the one I take for me on group trips. I am 6'2" 295#, and it will fit two guys my size with ease. I replaced the aluminum poles with carbon-fiber ones and the weight is under 4#. Condensation not a big problem if vents are left open. No issues with extended rainstorms. Overall best tent I've ever used out of 20+ I've owned.
Pros: Lightweight, and even lighter if you get carbon fiber poles, tons of room for two big guys, easy to set-up once you do it a few times.
Cons: Not a beginners tent, you need to know how to set this tent up, and seam seal it before you go. Need to set the vents up properly to have few condensation issues. You need to be careful with the tent flaps getting stuck in the zipper when zipping.
Design: 3-4 season free-standing modified dome
Sleeps: 2
Ease of Setup: tricky first time --easy with practice
Weight: Under 4# with carbon-fiber poles
Price Paid: $265
I just got back from the Grand Canyon Royal Arch Route. In general I'm pretty happy with the Skylight. The high points are that it packs as small as a football, with a compression sack, has huge amounts of room and is super light for the size. One night of windy blowing rain left me totally dry with no condensation. Another night at 31 degrees did show a little bit of frost on the inside though.
On the downside, it is fussy to set up. Crawling inside to set up poles, after long days of hiking, requires a little more effort than you want to exert.
Having said that, if you want a large, light tent that takes up minimal room in your pack, you could do a whole lot worse.
Design: three-season freestanding dome
Sleeps: 3
Ease of Setup: a little too much effort
Weight: 4.5 pounds
Price Paid: $380
I love everything about this tent, lightweight, easy to set up, bright when inside very waterproof and cool looking. Although the condensation is a huge problem. I live in the NWest so I think that contributes, but with three sleepers and no door cracked I about drowned in my sleep. So I tested the tent on a solo mission it was raining very hard. The door was all the way open and let's just say I am going to need floaties and a waterproof sleeping bag. I think the tent is killer other than that, and I am looking forward to the summer. Also if you stake it before set up you can have it up in just over a minute...
Sleeps: 3
Ease of Setup: super easy
Weight: 4 lbs
Price Paid: $328
After reading the reviews I was sold that this was the best tent since sliced bread. My husband and I just got back from a week in the Wind River Range in Wyoming where we tested it out. The tent is a bit cumbersome to put up in the rain. The mesh on the front portion started ripping on day one and progressively got worse. We had to cover the many holes with medical tape. There was a lot of condensation inside almost every night. I heavily seam sealed the tent on all outside seams and the tent leaked after three nights of solid rain. I'm returning the tent to REI. Would not recommend.
Sleeps: 3
Ease of Setup: More Difficult Than Average
Used this tent on a 6 day backpack in the Rockies (Needle Mtns). I like the design once set up but I CANNOT recommend it for two reasons: it is difficult to set up, and worse, every morning we had large amounts of condensation in the tent, pretty much what I would have expected if the walls had been coated nylon, not a breathable fabric!
Design: Single wall three person three season free standing
Sleeps: 3
Ease of Setup: Difficult
Weight: 5lbs or so
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HELSINKI (AP) — Nokia says it will slash 10,000 jobs and close plants as the ailing company fights fierce competition, and gave a grim outlook for most of the year, causing its shares to plummet 18 percent to close at €1.83 ($2.30).
The Finnish cellphone maker also on Thursday announced personnel changes and said it has agreed to sell its luxury phone brand, Vertu.
The measures, aimed at additional cost savings of €1.6 billion ($2 billion) by the end of next year, will shut down research and development facilities in Ulm, Germany, and Burnaby, British Columbia. Nokia said it will also close its main Finnish manufacturing plant in Salo, with 850 layoffs, but will keep its research and development center there.
Nokia Corp. updated its outlook, saying that heavy competition would continue to hit its smartphone sector in the second quarter, but to a "somewhat greater extent than previously expected" and that the downturn would continue in the third quarter.
Markets were disappointed, plunging Nokia shares to below €2.00 for the first time ever on the Helsinki Stock Exchange.
Nordea analyst in Helsinki, Sami Sarkamies, said Nokia's scale of the cost cutting took many by surprise and might not help to strengthen the company.
"When you make such drastic cuts you have to abandon a lot of things," Sarkamies said. "It may be that they just can't anymore afford to come up with innovative, new things."
CEO Stephen Elop said the planned cuts were "a difficult consequence of the intended actions we believe we must take to ensure Nokia's long-term competitive strength."
"We are increasing our focus on the products and services that our consumers value most while continuing to invest in the innovation that has always defined Nokia," he added.
The loss-making company has been struggling against fierce competition from Apple Inc.'s iPhone and other makers using Google Inc.'s popular Android software, including Samsung Electronics Co. and HTC of Taiwan. It is also being squeezed in the low-end by Asian manufacturers making cheaper phones, such as China's ZTE.
Markets had been expecting Nokia to signal some improvement in its earnings expectations for this year after it joined forces with Microsoft Corp. in 2011, launching several Windows Phone 7 models, including its sleek Lumia range.
But the new handsets have received mixed reviews and the company and made no mention of the much-anticipated Windows 8 version. Its revised outlook bodes ill for the former bellwether of the wireless industry that held the No. 1 cellphone maker spot for 14 years.
Elop said that more than a third of the global job cuts — 3,700 — will be in Finland, sending shivers through the small Nordic nation that has been intensely proud of Nokia's past success.
But he pledged to keep the company's corporate headquarters in Espoo, near the capital, Helsinki, and said much of the R &D will continue here.
"Nokia's core is in Finland. We firmly believe that at the heart of any company, the soul of a company, is something that includes its national identity," Elop said. "We continue to have significant operations in Finland. In fact, two-thirds of our Lumia team is in Finland."
The Espoo-based company said that although it plans "significant" cuts in operating expenses, it will continue to focus on smartphones as well as cheaper feature phones and intends to expand location-based services.
Nokia announced that private equity group EQT VI had agreed to acquire Vertu, its global luxury phone brand, but that the Finnish company would keep a 10 percent minority shareholding. No financial terms were announced.
The company said it would also overhaul its management team, with two long-time members of its top leadership – Mary McDowell, the head of the struggling mobile phones unit and Niklas Savander, head of the markets sector — leaving the company at the end of June. Chief marketing officer and brand manager Jerri DeWard, who joined Nokia in January 2011 will also step down.
Chris Weber, the current head of Nokia's U.S. operations, will take over sales and marketing on July 1.
In April, Nokia announced one of its worst quarterly results ever, blaming tough competition for a €929 million net loss in the first quarter as sales plunged, especially in the smartphone market. Last year, it was still the world's top cellphone maker with annual unit sales of some 419 million devices, but in the last quarter of the year it posted a net loss of €1.07 billion, a marked reverse from the 745 million profit a year earlier.
Boston-based Strategy Analytics said Nokia had significantly lost market share in the first quarter to Samsung, which pushed it out as the world's largest seller of cellphones by volume, grabbing a 25 percent global market share against Nokia's 22 percent.
It has fared even worse in the smartphone sector against Samsung and Apple by falling to third place in the first quarter of the year with sales of 12 million units against Samsung's 44.5 million and Apple's 35 million.
"Nokia is significantly increasing its cost reduction target for devices and services in support of the streamlined strategy announced today," said CFO Timo Ihamuotila. "With these planned actions, we believe our devices (and) services business has a clear path to profitability. Nokia intends to maintain its strong financial position while proceeding aggressively with actions aimed at creating shareholder value."
Last year, Nokia announced more than 10,000 layoffs, aimed at cutting operating expenses by €1 billion ($1.31 billion) by 2013. Thursday's savings aims come on top of those.
Jari Tanner in Tallinn, Estonia, contributed to this report.


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Section 11B: Possession or control of firearm with serial or identification number removed or mutilated, while committing or attempting a felony; destruction
Section 11B. Whoever, while in the commission or attempted commission of a felony, has in his possession or under his control a firearm the serial number or identification number of which has been removed, defaced, altered, obliterated or mutilated in any manner shall be punished by imprisonment in the state prison for not less than two and one half nor more than five years, or in a jail or house of correction for not less than six months nor more than two and one half years. Upon a conviction of a violation of this section, said firearm or other article, by the authority of the written order of the court, shall be forwarded to the colonel of the state police, who shall cause said weapon to be destroyed.


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The Edward James Olmos directed film, Battlestar Galactica: The Plan, is gearing up for a release and we've got all the details. The 112-minute feature has all new Cylon-on-human action, plus never-before-seen BSG behind the scenes features.
The new press release describes "The Plan" as a 90-minute feature, but we're guessing that's just the length of the shorter televised version. Amazon is listing the DVD release as 112 minutes long, meaning we'll hopefully get to see a lot more tangled Cylon sex and politics. (And given how racy the Caprica DVD was, this could be pretty strong stuff.)
Here's the official synopsis:
The Cylons began as humanity's robot servants. They rebelled and evolved and now they look like us. Their plan is simple: destroy the race that enslaved them. But when their devastating attack leaves human survivors, the Cylons have to improvise. Battlestar Galatica: The Plan tells the story of two powerful Cylon leaders, working separately, and their determination to finish the task.
The DVDs will include:
Battlestar Galactica: The Plan on Blu-rayTM Hi-Def and DVD takes viewers deeper into the acclaimed space drama with exclusive bonus features, including:
EXCLUSIVE TO Blu-rayTM Hi-Def:
* BD-LIVETM: Access the BD-LiveTM Center through your Internet-connected player to download more exclusive content, the latest trailers and more!
o MY SCENES: Bookmark your favorite scenes from the movie.
o BATTLESTAR GALACTICA TRIVIA: All-new trivia game.
BONUS FEATURES (BLU-RAY™ HI-DEF and DVD):
· FROM ADMIRAL TO DIRECTOR: EDWARD JAMES OLMOS AND THE PLAN – A day-in-the-life with director and actor Edward James Olmos, as he tackles the most ambitious Battlestar Galactica production to date.
· THE CYLONS OF THE PLAN – Features interviews with the actors who play the film's key Cylons, including Dean Stockwell, Tricia Helfer, Grace Park, Michael Trucco, Rick Worthy and Michael Bennett.
· THE CYLON ATTACK – This featurette takes viewers behind the scenes for the planning and execution of one of Battlestar Galactica: The Plan's major action sequences.
· BEHIND THE PLAN - An in-depth look at some stunning visual effects and the role post-production plays in bringing the world of Battlestar Galactica to life.
Battlestar Galactica: The Plan debuts on Blu-rayTM Hi-Def and DVD on October 27.
And here's a clip!


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Prosecutors are turning up the heat on Shayanna Jenkins, Aaron Hernandez's fiancée. In a filing, they list more than a dozen instances of evidence contradicting Jenkins's testimony to a grand jury in the murder case against Hernandez.
The most crucial discrepancy deals with Jenkins's disposal of a box of evidence, which investigators have strongly implied contained a handgun used to murder Odin Lloyd. Here's how a separate court filing from last year described it.
According to the records, June 18 footage from the home shows Shayanna Jenkins leaving the basement of the house around 1:15 p.m., carrying a trash bag, which authorities say contains a heavy "rigid object," resembling a lock box or safe. She placed the trash bag in the trunk of a red Nissan Sentra. Surveillance footage showed her returning 35 minutes later and opening the trunk of the car, which no longer held the trash bag and "rigid object," the records show.
Carlos Ortiz, one of the suspects charged in connection with the case, has told police that shortly after the shooting, Hernandez stashed two guns in a box in the basement.
The footage referred to in the documents shows Shayanna driving the Nissan toward Landry Avenue, where police the next day found a .22-caliber handgun. The gun, authorities said, looked like it may have been "recently discarded."
Prosecutors have indicated they believe it to be the same gun that Ernest Wallace, also charged in the case, and Ortiz were both seen carrying the night of the crime — a weapon Ortiz described as a "deuce deuce." Hernandez, meanwhile, was captured on surveillance footage carrying a larger handgun, which prosecutors say is the .45-caliber Glock pistol used to kill Lloyd.
Jenkins was charged with perjury last year. At her arraignment last month, a prosecutor laid out how she had answered questions regarding that box before the grand jury.
"She was asked what she did to the item that Mr. Hernandez instructed her to get rid of; she repeatedly told the grand jury that she couldn't remember, she didn't know, she'd thrown it in a dumpster, and she couldn't tell anybody where it was."
In yesterday's filing, the prosecution says it has direct evidence that will prove Jenkins lied about "how, why and the manner in which she removed the items from the home."
So what's the point of this? Almost assuredly, it's to put pressure on Jenkins with her looming trial for perjury, a charge to which she has pleaded not guilty. Prosectors don't want her, but they do want her to provide testimony that would help convict Hernandez.
We now have a tentative date for the beginning of Hernandez's (first) murder trial: Monday, Jan. 5, 2015. The judge has been seeking a postponement to the start of the trial, originally scheduled for October, and today Hernandez's attorneys have agreed, suggesting the Jan. 5 date. Which would put his trial smack dab in the middle of the NFL playoffs. Which would be the perfect timing to get a look at 33 pages of Bill Belichick's text messages.


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It's been just over a month since the hurricane of media coverage slowed to a drizzle. In July, the internet was abuzz about Tuesday Bassen, the unassuming but tenacious indie illustrator who challenged retail behemoth, Zara, over intellectual property theft.
She was the underdog. She was a minor annoyance that the retailer's parent company expected to extinguish swiftly. But a passionate fan base and close knit community of creatives propelled her story, and joined forces. Though the media has moved on, the conversation is still burning in design circles, fuelled by other artists who are standing up to protect their work.
Tuesday's friend and fellow artist Adam J. Kurtz launched Shop Art Theft, along with corresponding social accounts to throw light at the issue and encourage fans to speak up with their wallets. Shop Art Theft's Tumblr has become a whistleblower, accepting copyright infringement sightings from fans and artists alike.
This isn't the first time Tuesday's work has been the victim of theft. This particular crime inspired her "enough is enough" moment, however, after she spotted a near-identical version of her Girls! Pennant in one of the retailer's stores. Fans then began alerting her to other copycat designs. So she lawyered up.
"This is the first large scale copyright infringement issue I've ever had. Unfortunately it's rampant this season – Zara isn't the only one. I've had issues with a few other brands, too. It's a little disheartening that it's so commonplace right now."
Legal counsel cost Tuesday $2000, just for the initial cease and desist letter, and the costs keep adding up. The first response from Zara admitted no wrongdoing, and implied that because she was an "unknown", she had little recourse. This "unknown" took her message to her 168,000 Instagram followers and the media followed. Zara has since removed the offending pieces from their website, and has issued a more humble statement.
It's a little disheartening that it's so commonplace right now.
Luckily, in 2016, social pressure is a powerful thing. Companies, once able to dig into deep pockets to erase legal issues, can no longer ignore the little guy. The little guy with a free Twitter account. The little guy with 168,000 Instagram fans. Not every artist, inventor, or entrepreneur has the benefit of large social audiences to amplify the outcry, and sadly copyright infringements happen to small businesses and artists every day. Many go unreported.
Learn from Tuesday's cautionary tale: before someone else tries to take credit for your big idea, protect yourself. Smaller upfront copyright costs can save you a bundle in legal fees on the back end. But where do you start? What's the difference between copyright and trademark? Do you need a lawyer?
Before we demystify intellectual property protection, let's start at the beginning of Tuesday's story.
Meet Tuesday Bassen
photo: BuzzFeed BFF
Hailing from Nebraska, Tuesday Bassen honed her illustration chops at the Minneapolis College of Art, before, like many creative types, she found herself in New York City. Her first freelance gig – a corporate commission from Target – paid for her ticket. The struggle was real. The work was hard to come by, and when it did, she found she wasn't being true to her voice.
"I feel like for a long time I was making work that was very safe and not necessarily what was interesting to me. I made a lot of work for family-friendly blogs and stuff. That's cool, but it's not really where I had seen my work go. For a while when I graduated I think I felt insecure about the viability of making work that I actually liked. I was in such a poor financial position that I didn't really feel like I could afford to take any risks."
I was in such a poor financial position that I didn't really feel like I could afford to take any risks.
While deflating, the experience didn't deter her – she couldn't, she tells me, imagine doing anything else with her life. In 2014, when New York had all but broken her, she decided to start posting the work she wanted to create. "I didn't really feel like I had anything to lose," she said.
Her authenticity paid off. The true-to-herself designs attracted the attention of new clients and projects more in line with her style and subject matter.
"I started doing work for Playboy when they were looking for somebody to illustrate a series about the weirdest sex questions they've ever been asked. They wanted it handled in kind of a funny, not explicit kind of way. That was my first project where I felt like a client was really paying attention to what I wanted to do personally, or responding rather, to what I was putting out there."
Hello Holiday X Tuesday Bassen
After a visit to LA felt more like home, she packed her bags and moved to the other side of the country. Inspired by illustrator friends who were dabbling in products, she started experimenting with her own illustrations in the same way. Her first foray into tangible goods was a ceramic store on Etsy which earned her a collaboration deal with Urban Outfitters. The work was manual and labour-intensive, proving to be the wrong medium for her designs.
"I started making my first mass-produced product in 2014 and I made a sticker. I made it for myself, but I wanted to share it with the people who were following me. It sold out right away, which was really awesome, and I started making some more simple merchandise with my illustrations on them, like totes and more stickers, prints, and stuff like that."
She stuck with Etsy but pivoted her product, enjoying the new consumer audience. As her business needs grew, she moved over to Shopify in 2015. She had finally found her groove.
"Products are definitely the way for me to go. I really like the freedom it allows me. I'm moving into doing clothing right now. It took a long time to figure out the avenue within illustration I wanted to take."
The success of her ecommerce store and tangible goods line – patches, pins, and other merchandise – has even helped her gain even better freelance illustration gigs, too.
All images via Tuesday Bassen/Instagram unless indicated
This year, Tuesday's business outgrew her apartment, then a co-working space, before settling into a dedicated office space. She's also hired two employees who have taken ownership of large chunks of Tuesday's to-do list – one managing customer service and the other tackling order packing and fulfillment.
"Letting go has been a process over time. They started in February, and have been through a lot of different changes in the business. At the time, I was still controlling every aspect, but as time has gone on, I've gotten to know them both more and trust them pretty explicitly. It really helps me focus on being able to design more products, especially as I get into doing clothing and take on larger scale freelance projects."
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She's been able to become self-aware, and delegate the aspects of the business that don't align with her strengths, and to know when to step out of the way.
"I really like being able to have somebody that spends the time to speak with clients or customers. I think it's easy to feel personally attacked, especially if your brand is your name. It's good to be able to keep things moving along in a positive and productive way."
It's good to be able to keep things moving along in a positive and productive way.
When her battle with Zara started this summer, she was already knee-deep in the planning stages of two huge milestones for her business: the launch of her first womenswear line and an LA brick and mortar shop.
Having her work stolen was a reality check: there was so much that she didn't know about about the business aspect of illustration. I had the same beef with my own art education, my college pumping out graduates deft in oil paints, but with no experience in marketing, finance, or any of the skills required to sustain a career as a freelancer, or run a small business selling oil paintings.
"I feel like I've learned a lot, even in the past month, about the legal side of illustration. I feel like I've learned a lot about the business side. It's crazy to have to hire somebody to be on retainer to protect my intellectual property."
You can't keep people from stealing from you, but you can do things to protect yourself.
photo: Jillian Newman via Tuesday Bassen
[Note: This post is intended to be informational, and is not a substitute for professional legal advice. This information is also based on IP protection in the United States. Consult a lawyer or your local government's website for information specific to your country or region.]
Intellectual property for the layman
In the same way that you can insure a house or a car, you can insure ideas.
Intellectual property (IP) refers to something produced as a result of creativity. IP can include tangible goods – individual works of art, books, or films – or intangible things like ideas and processes. Logos, words and slogans associated with a brand also fall under the IP umbrella, as well as personas, likenesses, and voices.
Intellectual property refers to something produced as a result of creativity.
IP protection is especially important for ecommerce merchants, says the World Intellectual Property Organization:
"Ecommerce, more than other business systems, often involves selling products and services that are based on IP and its licensing. Music, pictures, photos, software, designs, training modules, systems, etc. can all be traded through Ecommerce, in which case, IP is the main component of value in the transaction. IP is important because the things of value that are traded on the Internet must be protected, using technological security systems and IP laws, or else they can be stolen or pirated and whole businesses can be destroyed. Also, IP is involved in making Ecommerce work. The systems that allow the Internet to function - software, networks, designs, chips, routers and switches, the user interface, and so on - are forms of IP and often protected by IP rights."
Let's use the example of a merchant who sells her own vegan printed handbags on her Shopify store. We'll call her Giulia. Giulia has a unique business name, designed the site's theme and logo herself, and has developed a new process for creating a leather alternative from coconut husks.
Her intellectual property could include:
- Logo
- Business name
- Brand tagline or slogan
- Her unique process for creating the material
- The website's theme design
- The textile print designs
If Giulia discovered that another company was using or selling any of her intellectual property, she would likely have grounds for legal action. The challenge arises, however, in proving that the IP rights belong to her, and proving that the copy is close enough to be considered IP theft.
However, if Giulia had protected her work through copyrights, patents, and trademarks, her legal right to the IP would be more clear-cut.
Copyright vs. Patents vs. Trademarks
A copyright protects unique works of art created by an individual, in a tangible medium. Works that qualify for copyright protection include books, paintings, films, songs, poetry, and software.
A copyright holder has the exclusive rights to reproduce the work, publicly perform, display, distribute, or sell the work, and create derivative works. As with an illustrator like Tuesday Bassen, each of her unique designs would need to be registered individually for copyright protection – about $35 a pop in the US.
"Protecting every design is currently what I'm doing. For other people, I would say it depends on the design and how distinctive it is and how much you honestly care about it. For me, I have a lot of different products. Things that are a little bit more unique are especially important to protect."
Copyright protects unique works of art created by an individual, in a tangible medium.
Registration is not mandatory for copyright to exist – it is technically implied the moment the unique work is created. However, to exercise your legal rights in the case of copyright infringement, it is advisable to register it officially.
In the United States, a copyright lasts for the life of the creator, plus 70 years.
Trademarks refer to logos, brand names, and even slogans that identify a business and distinguish it from others. Like a copyright, a trademark can exist without registration, simply through use of unique marks in association with your brand. Registration, however, establishes your legal ownership and right to exclusive use.
Trademarks do not expire provided the proper paperwork is filed at required intervals, and the trademarked logo or brand name continues to be used regularly in association with your business.
A patent protects rights to an invention, process, or even machinery. Patents can be held for 15-20 years depending on the type issued.
Infographic transcript:
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY PROTECTION for ecommerce Intellectual property (IP) refers to something produced – an invention, brand, or work of art – through creativity. Selling online can leave you vulnerable to IP theft. Patents, trademarks, and copyrights can protect you, but what's the difference? Trademark ™® Protects logos, words, and phrases related to a brand, business, or identity. It prevents others from selling or distributing products using the same symbol or brand name. Examples: Nike logo, "I'm Lovin' It", Shopify (name) Copyright © Protects individual works of authorship, giving the owner exclusive rights to sell, licence, and distribute the material. Used for music, art, photos, books, etc. Example: Harry Potter books Patent Protects inventions, products or processes, preventing others from manufacturing or selling the invention in the country in which the patent is held. Example: a new method for roasting coffee beans
Someone stole my work. What now?
"Not everybody has the capital to be able to protect themselves so aggressively, but I would say if you notice it being an issue, I would take immediate action to protect yourself legally so that if you have to go after somebody, you have a federal copyright to back you up."
Before you pursue the matter, consider whether the offending work qualifies as a copyright infringement under federal copyright law:
- Is your work protected by a valid copyright (or is it eligible for registration)?
- Does the alleged infringing party have access to your work? For example, could they have seen the work on a website or in a store?
- Does the use of the work fall outside of the exceptions to the law (ex: the Fair Use Doctrine)? In some cases, use of copyrighted work may be protected under Fair Use, allowing a court to reduce the damages if the infringing party can establish grounds for an exception. Determining Fair Use depends on several factors, including the purpose of use, the nature of the work, and the impact on the market of the original work.
Did you answer yes to these questions?
Next, hire a copyright lawyer. A legal professional can help you register a copyright for the work even after the infringement has occurred. If you haven't already protected your work, you can still do so. However, published works copyrighted more than 3 months after publication no longer qualify for statutory damages (a set amount of damages per work).
A legal professional can help you register a copyright for the work even after the infringement has occurred.
The Copyright Office, though it administers the law and provides registration, does not enforce copyright law.
If you believe that your work has been copied, the matter may be solved simply via a warning (or Cease and Desist) letter from your lawyer which includes a copy of the copyright certificate. If you are seeking damages, the next steps would involve filing a petition for a copyright infringement injunction or lawsuit, and the case would be settled by federal courts.
If you're just starting out and can't afford to hire representation, there are plenty of resources for free or low cost legal advice.
The aftermath
While Tuesday Bassen continues to go after the copycats (including, most recently, former client Target) and retroactively protect her designs, the legal woes haven't slowed down her growth. If anything, the experience has been motivating.
Her latest project – a brick and mortar shop in LA, co-owned with her boyfriend, designer Ben Goetting of World Famous Original – is an ode to independent artists, many of whom have also experienced theft of their IP. The shop is the celebration of the artist, the antithesis of the mass-produced, and the faceless chain.
"I really wanted to open up Friend Mart as a way to showcase other talent, of creators who are doing something similar. Specifically artist-run businesses, like artists that are making their own products. I think it's an interesting thing when they can have total control over the final product. It's awesome. I opened Friend Mart as a way to support that community."
Tuesday just released her womenswear line and is currently working on projects with Google and Sophia Amoruso. Recently, she painted a mural for Rihanna's show at NYFW. To what does she owe her success? Never backing down.
"Don't be afraid to do the work that you actually want to do and don't get discouraged by not seeing movement in your career right away. It took me at least 5 years to get there. It's actually really awesome because a lot of my goals are being achieved now."
Additional reading and resources
- What You Need to Know About Ecommerce Trademarks
- Legal Considerations for Ecommerce Businesses
- Understanding Copyright: A Deeper Dive – Lynda (Course)
- Shopify DMCA (Digital Millennium Copyright Act) Notice and Takedown Procedure
- The Definitive Legal Guide to Ecommerce
- Copyright Not Intended – Hello Internet (Podcast)
- Low Cost or Free Legal Advice for Your Business
- How to Enforce Your Copyright if Someone Infringes on Your Work


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Visit This Unique, Tropical National Park
The oft-overlooked American territory of Samoa is home to a national park spanning rain forest, beach, and coral reef.
Location: American Samoa
Established: October 31, 1988
Size: 13,500 acres (9,500 land, 4,000 marine)
For some 3,000 years, the people of Polynesia's oldest culture have been keenly attuned to their island environment, holding it to be precious and managing it communally. The name they gave their land reflects their attitude: Samoa means "sacred earth."
Located roughly 2,600 miles southwest of Hawaii, American Samoa, a United States territory, comprises ten volcanic islands (five inhabited) and two coral atolls (one inhabited). In 1988 Congress authorized the land for a national park. In 1993, Samoan chiefs agreed to sign a 50-year lease that enables the National Park Service to manage an area of rain forest, beach, and coral reef on three islands. Samoans help manage the park, and their villages offer a few guest facilities (ask the park about its unique homestay program).
The park protects hundreds of plant species in five distinct rain forest communities: lowland, montane, coast, ridge, and cloud. It is the only such rain forest on American soil. Among the fauna visitors can see are tropical birds and the endangered flying fox—a fruit bat with the wingspan of a barn owl.
On Tutuila, American Samoa's largest island, lofty volcanic ridges overlook the deep blue waters of Pago Pago Harbor. Except for a few villages, and the scenic drive that skirts the harbor and the dramatic southern coastline, there is little level land. Atop this crumbled terrain and plunging steeply toward the sea on the island's northern side lies the park area—about 2,500 acres of land and some 1,200 acres of ocean.
Parkland on Ta'u, the easternmost island, encompasses about 5,400 acres—including Lata Mountain, American Samoa's highest peak—and 1,000 acres offshore. Unforgettable is the panoramic view from the cloud forest toward the rugged cliffs of the southern coast. Small, remote Ofu Island includes what many call American Samoa's loveliest beach. Its main attraction is the 350-acre coral reef.
How to Get There
There are flights to Pago Pago from Honolulu twice a week that take 5.5 hours. Time from California is about 14 hours, including a 3- or 4-hour Honolulu layover. From the airport, taxi or rent a car to the Sadie Thompson Inn, Sadies by the Sea Hotel, Pago Airport Inn, Tessarea Vaitogi Inn, Tradewinds, or Motu-o-Fiafiaga Motel. From any of those accommodations you can reach the park visitor center in Pago Pago by bus or car. Accommodations are also available on Ta'u, Ofu, and Olosega. To get to Ta'u requires about a half-hour flight from Pago Pago while Ofu visitors are transported to Ofu Island by local fisherman. Ofu's park begins at the edge of the airport; parkland on Ta'u is about a half-hour walk from the airport.
When to Go
Any time. The islands are 14 degrees south of the Equator, giving them a hot and rainy climate year-round. The heat and rain abate slightly from June through September.
- Nat Geo Expeditions
How to Visit
Contact the park headquarters before you visit. For information, write National Park of American Samoa, Pago Pago, American Samoa 96799, talk by phone at +1 684 633 7082 ext. 22, or visit the website. You can also drop in at the visitor center, located in Pago Pago across from the Pago Way Service Station.
Fun Fact
The National Park of American Samoa is the only National Park Service site south of the Equator.
An elder of the Banjo tribe hunts for fish off the coast of Sampela, Indonesia.


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Viral infections:
Indications for: VIREAD
HIV-1 infection, in combination with other antiretroviral agents. Chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV).
Adult Dosage:
Test for HBV and HIV-1 infection prior to initiation. May use tabs or oral pwd (if unable to swallow). Mix oral pwd with 2–4oz of soft food not requiring chewing (eg, applesauce, baby food, yogurt). HIV or HBV (≥35kg): 300mg once daily. Renal impairment: CrCl 30–49mL/min: 300mg every 48hrs; CrCl 10–29mL/min: 300mg every 72–96hrs; hemodialysis: 300mg every 7 days or after a total of 12hrs of dialysis; CrCl <10mL/min: not recommended.
Children Dosage:
Test for HBV and HIV-1 infection prior to initiation. <2yrs (<10kg): not established. Mix oral pwd with 2–4oz of soft food not requiring chewing (eg, applesauce, baby food, yogurt). HIV or HBV: Oral pwd (≥2yrs [≥10kg] or Tabs ≥2yrs [≥17kg]): 8mg/kg once daily; max 300mg/day. For additional oral pwd dosing based on body wt: see full labeling. Tabs (if able to swallow): ≥2yrs (17–<22kg): 150mg once daily; (22–<28kg): 200mg once daily; (28–<35kg): 250mg once daily; (≥35kg): 300mg once daily.
Boxed Warning:
Post-treatment severe acute exacerbation of hepatitis B.
VIREAD Warnings/Precautions:
Discontinuation of anti-HBV therapy may be associated with severe acute exacerbations of hepatitis B. Closely monitor HBV-infected patients for several months after stopping treatment; if appropriate, anti-HBV therapy may be warranted (esp. in those with advanced liver disease or cirrhosis). Suspend therapy if lactic acidosis or pronounced hepatotoxicity (eg, hepatomegaly, steatosis) occurs. Assess SCr, estimated CrCl, urine glucose, urine protein in all patients, and serum phosphorus (in chronic kidney disease) before initiating and during therapy. History of pathologic fracture or risk factors of osteoporosis or bone loss: consider monitoring bone mineral density (BMD); calcium/vitamin D supplement may be beneficial. Pregnancy. Nursing mothers: not recommended in HIV-1.
See Also:
VIREAD Classification:
Nucleotide analogue (HIV-1 and HBV reverse transcriptase inhibitor).
VIREAD Interactions:
Concomitant adefovir dipivoxil for chronic HBV: not recommended. Avoid concomitant or recent use of nephrotoxic agents. Potentiates didanosine levels; monitor closely. Monitor drugs that reduce renal function or compete for renal tubular secretion (eg, cidofovir, acyclovir, valacyclovir, ganciclovir, valganciclovir, aminoglycosides, high-dose or multiple NSAIDs). Concomitant atazanavir: must give with ritonavir. Potentiated by concomitant lopinavir/ritonavir, ritonavir-boosted atazanavir or darunavir, ledipasvir/sofosbuvir, sofosbuvir/velpatasvir; monitor for toxicity (see full labeling).
Adverse Reactions:
Rash, diarrhea, headache, pain, depression, asthenia, nausea, insomnia, dizziness, pyrexia, abdominal pain, vomiting, pruritus; decreased BMD, new onset or worsening renal impairment, immune reconstitution syndrome.
Register pregnant patients exposed to tenofovir DF by calling (800) 258-4263.
Drug Elimination:
How Supplied:
Tabs—30; Oral pwd—60g (w. dosing scoop)


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The Oysterbeds, Image Archive
This site was developed to povide nesting sites for the Little Tern which arrive each year, during the summer months, to breed in Langstone harbour. A deep lagoon surrounds two man-made gravel islands (North and South) which the Tern find attractive for nesting. The lagoon is refreshed each high tide through two weirs at the seaward side. These weirs additionally ensure the water level is retained at low tide.
The following links are thoroughly recommended .
Langstone Harbour Wildlife Blog. Blog by Jason Crook (Seasonal warden at the Oysterbed site.)
Activity Photo Diary 2010 season. These images, ordered by date and in diary form, with background information.
01 May 2015 Green Woodpecker
Bee Orchid Ophrys apiferaHayling Billy TrailHayling IslandOysterbedsUK OrchidsWest Hayling LNRflowersnature
From UK Orchids


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It's one of the most vivid memories of my high school years. I'm dozing on my kitchen floor, surrounded by a debris of screwdrivers, scrap wood, ball bearings, nails, old cardboard boxes, springs, wood glue, wire hangers, and lots of duct tape. My dad nudges me in the side with his slippered foot. "It's three o'clock in the morning," he says. My cheek is squashed against the cool tile floor. I crack an eye open and see my nemesis: the golf ball that, in just a few hours, I'm supposed to somehow raise six feet in the air, in ten steps, for my physics final project.
Whom did I have to blame for my predicament? Not my physics teacher exactly, but rather a famous American cartoonist who never forgot the strange contraptions he saw in his engineering classes at UC Berkeley. After graduating in 1904, the engineer soon traded in his slide rule for a cartoonist's pen, but his training inspired his most beloved cartoons and even earned him a spot in the dictionary:
Rube Goldberg's signature drawings of hilariously baroque, hopelessly inefficient inventions drew their inspiration from engineering to poke fun at bureaucracy and irrationality. According to an article on Goldberg from UC Berkeley,
Goldberg gave credit for "one of the principal props of my career as a cartoonist" to an engineering professor, Freddy Slate. The professor had devised the Barodik to measure the earth's weight with "a series of pipes and tubes and wires and chemical containers and springs and odd pieces of weird equipment which made it look like a dumping ground for outmoded dentists' furnishings," Goldberg wrote.
"Like the Barodik, my "Rube Goldberg" inventions are incongruous combinations of unrelated elements which cause a chain reaction that accomplishes something quite useless. It points up the human characteristic of doing things the hard way."
But Goldberg's cartoons have since moved in the other direction, inspiring the engineers and physicists he satirized. Not only do probably hundreds of physics teachers assign Rube Goldberg final projects to their students each year, the national Rube Goldberg Machine Contest at Purdue University celebrates engineering for engineering's sake with ridiculous solutions to straightforward problems. First launched in 1949 by two engineering fraternities and later resurrected in the 1980s, the contest challenges high school- and college-age engineers-in-training to complete simple tasks like changing a lightbulb or assembling a hamburger in 20 steps or less. In 2007, Ferris State University won first place with this contraption that takes probably a hundred steps to squeeze a glass of orange juice (the action starts at 2:13):
If that tickled your fancy, check out the top ten best food-related Rube Goldberg machines and this top ten list.
Nothing compares to the fun of building a Rube Goldberg for yourself, but if you just don't feel like digging out the wood glue and the duct tape, an online game called Dynamic Systems will amuse the inventor in you. The task is simple, and doesn't change—get the ball bearing into the cup. But each level adds dominoes, springs, widgets and whirligigs to the challenge. I'm not sure if the game physics is perfectly accurate, but it's a fun way to test out the conservation of energy.
Rube Goldberg may have found engineering more amusing than amazing, but his satirical inventions have some truth in them. Rube Goldberg machines powerfully demonstrate how energy is conserved, and can be converted from one form to another, potential to kinetic and back again. I also love how the machines often shift the scale of motion, from a tiny ball bearing falling down a shoot to a huge lever arm swinging.
They also make me think of particle detectors. Incredibly intricate and often several stories high, particle detectors like those at CERN depend on complicated, seemingly fragile sequences of physical phenomena to turn a fleeting spray of fundamental particles far too tiny to see into an electrical current and, finally, a bit of data. I won't attempt to explain how ATLAS works, but take the humble photomultiplier, which is often found in larger particle detectors, as a small scale example:
When a photon hits the scintillating material, an electron in one of the atoms gets excited and then drops back down to its ground state, re-emitting a photon in the visible spectrum. This in turn hits the photocathode, causing an electron to fly out into the vacuum chamber of the photomultiplier thanks to the photoelectric effect. Each of the dynodes is set at a slightly higher voltage than the last, causing the electrons to accelerate a little more on their way, increasing their energy. This means that as the electrons hit a dynode, more and more electrons are produced. By the time you get to the end of the chamber, you've got enough electrons for a discernible jump in current, turning the tiny "bump" of the photon into something you can actually detect and quantify. And yet the process has so many steps, you might be tempted to call it Rube Goldberg. You would also have to say that, like the contraption for squeezing a glass of orange juice, it might be complicated, but it definitely works.


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Friday, 25 January 2013 01:11 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
Chairman of the China National Tourism Administration (CNTA) Shao Qiwei, and UNWTO Secretary-General Taleb Rifai have agreed to strengthen cooperation between both organisations as a key step towards advancing China's tourism development objectives.
|The Chairman of the China National Tourism Administration (CNTA), Shao Qiwei (right) with UNWTO Secretary-General, Taleb Rifai
On the occasion of his visit to Spain recently to receive the UNWTO Award for Lifetime Achievement, Shao also met with the Minister of Industry, Energy and Tourism of Spain, José Manuel Soria.
Meeting Rifai, Chairman Shao stressed the importance of collaboration with UNWTO in achieving the new objectives of China's tourism policy, a sector identified by the Central Government of China as one of the pillars of the country's economy.
"The focus in China is now on quality and sustainability. That is, while the tourism sector has grown significantly over the past years in terms of volume, the future of the sector should focus on the diversification of tourism products, on environmental protection, on the quality of the workforce and overall quality over quantity. In this respect UNWTO support and guidance is of the upmost importance," said Chairman Shao.
Rifai said, "UNWTO is very supportive of China's tourism strategy and is committed to supporting its tourism administration. There can be no tourism growth without responsibility and sustainability and thus we are extremely pleased to see that China, one of the world's major tourism destinations and source markets, is putting quality and sustainability at the heart of its tourism policy objectives."
Since 2006, UNWTO has supported the establishment of five Sustainable Tourism Observatories in China which are at the forefront of efforts to convert UNWTO theoretical criteria on sustainable tourism into practice at the destination level.
Meeting with Minister Soria of Spain, Shao further stressed that in spite of the current deficit in China's tourism balance due to slower growth in inbound tourism compared to outbound in 2012, the Chinese Government has not changed its strategy of encouraging outbound tourism.
"With 148 countries now included in the list of 'Approved Destination Status' (ADS), the government, and particularly CNTA, will continue to promote the traveling of Chinese people abroad as we believe in the mutual benefits of collaboration – by continuing to send Chinese travellers to Europe, the benefits will eventually flow back to China."
In 2012, 80 million Chinese travelled abroad, while 2.9 billion domestic trips were registered.
Attending the meeting, Rifai highlighted the role of UNWTO in bringing together two world tourism leaders.
"Spain is a reservoir of tourism experience and know-how built over more than 150 years of tourism history and China is an emerging tourism 'giant'. Spain can share its knowledge and experience with China and China can share its opportunities with Spain and through its tourists benefit not only Spain, but the entire European region," he said.


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The worldwide "ransomware" cyberattack spread to thousands of more computers on Monday as people logged in at work, disrupting business, schools, hospitals and daily life, though no new large-scale breakdowns were reported.
To make sure your computer has the latest Microsoft update, go to the start menu on your desktop and look under "all programs" for the "Microsoft Update" tab on older models; newer Windows versions lead you to updates through the start menu, look for "System Center", then "Software Center" and "show all" updates.
In Britain, whose health service was among the first high-profile targets of the attack Friday, some hospitals and doctors' offices were still struggling to recover.
The full extent of the damage from the cyberattack felt in 150 countries was unclear and could worsen if more malicious variations of the online extortion scheme appear.
The initial attack, known as "WannaCry," paralyzed computers running factories, banks, government agencies and transport systems in scores of countries, including Russia, Ukraine, Brazil, Spain, India and Japan, among others. Among those hit were Russia's Interior Ministry and companies including Spain's Telefonica and FedEx Corp. in the U.S.
Though the ransomware continued to spread at a more subdued pace on Monday, many companies and government agencies were still struggling to recover from the first attack.
Carmaker Renault said one of its French plants, which employs 3,500 people, wasn't reopening Monday as a "preventative step" while technicians deal with the aftermath of the attack.
Britain's National Health Service said about a fifth of NHS trusts -- the regional bodies that run hospitals and clinics -- were hit by the attack on Friday, leading to thousands of canceled appointments and operations. Seven of the 47 affected trusts were still having IT problems Monday.
Ciaran Martin, chief executive of the U.K.'s National Cyber Security Centre, has warned that more computers could be infected Monday as doctors' practices re-opened after the weekend.
In Asia, where Friday's attack occurred after business hours, thousands of new cases were reported on Monday as people came back to work.
The Japan Computer Emergency Response Team Coordination Center, a nonprofit group, said 2,000 computers at 600 locations in Japan were affected. Companies including Hitachi and Nissan Motor Co. reported problems but said they said had not seriously affected their business operations.
Chinese state media said 29,372 institutions there had been infected along with hundreds of thousands of devices.
Universities and other educational institutions in China were among the hardest hit, possibly because schools tend to have old computers and be slow to update operating systems and security, said Fang Xingdong, founder of ChinaLabs, an internet strategy think tank.
On social media, students complained about not being able to access their work, and people in various cities said they hadn't been able to take their driving tests over the weekend because some local traffic police systems were down.
Railway stations, mail delivery, gas stations, hospitals, office buildings, shopping malls and government services also were affected, China's Xinhua News Agency said, citing the Threat Intelligence Center of Qihoo 360, a Chinese internet security services company.
In Indonesia, the malware locked patient files on computers in two hospitals in the capital, Jakarta, causing delays.
Experts urged organizations and companies to immediately update older Microsoft operating systems, such as Windows XP, with a patch released by Microsoft Corp. to limit vulnerability to a more powerful version of the malware -- or to future versions that can't be stopped.
Paying ransom will not ensure any fix, said Eiichi Moriya, a cybersecurity expert and professor at Meiji University.
"You are dealing with a criminal," he said. "It's like after a robber enters your home. You can change the locks but what has happened cannot be undone. If someone kidnaps your child, you may pay your ransom but there is no guarantee your child will return."
New variants of the rapidly replicating malware were discovered Sunday. One did not include the so-called kill switch that allowed researchers to interrupt the malware's spread Friday by diverting it to a dead end on the internet.
Ryan Kalember, senior vice president at Proofpoint Inc., which helped stop its spread, said the version without a kill switch could spread. It was benign because it contained a flaw that prevented it from taking over computers and demanding ransom to unlock files but other more malicious ones will likely pop up.
"We haven't fully dodged this bullet at all until we're patched against the vulnerability itself," Kalember said.
The attack held users hostage by freezing their computers, popping up a red screen with the words, "Oops, your files have been encrypted!" and demanding money through online bitcoin payment -- $300 at first, rising to $600 before it destroys files hours later.
Just one click on an infected attachment or bad link would lead to all computers in a network becoming infected, said Vikram Thakur, technical director of Symantec Security Response.
"That's what makes this more troubling than ransomware was a week ago," Thakur said.
The attack has hit more than 200,000 victims across the world since Friday and is seen as an "escalating threat," said Rob Wainwright, the head of Europol, Europe's policing agency.
"The numbers are still going up," Wainwright said.
Microsoft's top lawyer is laying some of the blame at the feet of the U.S. government. Brad Smith criticized U.S. intelligence agencies, including the CIA and National Security Agency, for "stockpiling" software code that can be used by hackers. Cybersecurity experts say the unknown hackers who launched this weekend's "ransomware" attacks used a vulnerability that was exposed in NSA documents leaked online.
It was too early to say who was behind the onslaught, which struck 100,000 organizations, and what their motivation was, aside from the obvious demand for money. So far, not many people have paid the ransom demanded by the malware, Europol spokesman Jan Op Gen Oorth told The Associated Press.
Researchers who helped prevent the spread of the malware and cybersecurity firms worked around the clock over the weekend to monitor the situation and install the software patch.
"Right now, just about every IT department has been working all weekend rolling this out," said Dan Wire, spokesman at Fireeye Security.
Microsoft distributed the patch two months ago, which could have forestalled much of the attack, but in many organizations it was likely lost among the blizzard of updates and patches that large corporations and governments strain to manage.


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Value Engineering
Value Engineering (VE) is a systematic, creative study process conducted by engineers and technicians to obtain optimum value for every dollar spent.
The Code of Virginia requires VDOT to employ value engineering in conjunction with any project on any highway system, regardless of contract delivery system, using criteria established by the Department and including but not limited to all projects costing more than $15 million.
In 2001, the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) was named one of the largest and most effective users of the value engineering methodology in the country by a Federal Highway Administration report.
Since the VE program was established in the Management Services Division in 1990, 1044 studies have been conducted and 4,728 recommendations have been made.
Of those, 2,650 (56 percent) have been accepted, totaling more than $607 million in cost avoidance/savings.
Since 1990, VE at VDOT has produced a return on investment of 41:1.