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By Heather King - May 2014
Achiam, M. F. (2013). A content-oriented model for science exhibit engineering. International Journal of Science Education, Part B: Communication and Public Engagement, 3(3), 214–232. doi:10.1080/21548455.2012.698445
In this paper, Achiam presents a template for improving and systematizing the exhibit design process to ensure that the visitor experience matches the designer's intended learning outcomes. The template helps to unpack and "operationalize" visitors' interactions with exhibits. By examining the relationship between visitor actions and exhibit features, we can better understand why exhibits, or indeed other learning environments, do or do not meet their intended learning outcomes.
Theoretical Basis
Achiam's proposal is underpinned by a model of human activity called praxeology. In the case of engagement with a museum exhibit, the praxis or activity involves:
- Tasks: the challenge the exhibit poses
- Techniques: the ways in which visitors complete the challenge
- Technology: the visitor's rationale for applying the technique to the task
Research Findings
Applying the framework of praxeology, Achiam discusses the design of one exhibit commonly found in science museums: a hot-air balloon whose ascent and descent demonstrates the effects of heating a volume of air. The exhibit was designed to illustrate Charles' Law: Assuming that pressure remains constant, the volume and absolute temperature of a quantity of gas are directly proportional, so that each 1°C of increase in temperature produces the same increase in volume.
The designer's intended praxeology for visitors is as follows:
Task: increase the temperature of the air inside the balloon
Techniques: read instructions on panel, press buttons in indicated sequence, read temperature gaugeTechnology: know that increasing the temperature of the air causes it to expand, making it less dense than the surrounding air and causing the balloon to ascend
Achiam then discusses visitors' interpretation of the exhibit as described in a study by Botelho and Morais (2006). She notes, for example, that students were able to easily able to complete the task and enact appropriate techniques. However, when asked to explain the phenomenon and thus articulate their technology, the students offered non-scientific accounts. The intended learning outcome—that visitors would gain a hands-on experience of Charles' Law—was not achieved. Rather, most visitors simply learned that, when they pressed a button, the balloon rose and then fell.
In an attempt to address this problem, Achiam uses a praxeological template to explore alternative exhibit designs that would scaffold visitors' interactions with the phenomenon and facilitate their understanding of Charles' Law. She outlines a process of "museographic transposition" to describe the step-by-step development of an exhibit to realize its praxeological intent.
The first phase of transposition involves framing and staging the task, that is, selecting the concept to be presented and learned. In this instance, a key concept is that air is not a "non-material," as many visitors might think, but that it has pressure, density, and volume. Thus an activity is needed to allow visitors to experience this concept. Achiam suggests that visitors engage in physically forcing air into the balloon. Next, visitors should be given the means to heat the air inside the balloon and be prompted to observe what happens.
The second phase involves ensuring that the exhibit really does implement the designers' intention, so that visitors who encounter it immediately understand its purpose, scope, and properties. Thus Achiam suggests relabeling the exhibit with the title "Can you make the hot air balloon fly?" Further amendments to the exhibit should ensure that visitors understand that the rise in temperature is what causes the balloon's flight; the quantity and pressure of the air have remained the same. For this purpose, Achiam proposes the use of an interpretation panel.
Implications for practice
Achiam notes that the main contribution of the praxeology template is not to define one course of action, but instead to sensitize exhibit designers to the potential outcomes that an exhibit may promote. Moreover, she notes that exhibit design is subject to financial, ergonomic, and safety considerations. Of course consideration should be given to museum professionals' instincts and implicit knowledge about what makes a good exhibit. Nonetheless, the paper provides a convincing argument for a greater use of praxeology in order to enrich the practice of exhibit designers and guide the actions of gallery educators, with the ultimate aim of facilitating visitor engagement with exhibits.
Botelho, A., & Morais, A. M. (2006). Students-exhibits interaction at a science center. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 43(10), 987–1018.


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Beaufort Memorial Hospital Replaces Pagers with Imprivata Cortext as Standard Communication Solution for All Providers
Imprivata Cortext Streamlines Clinical Communication for Beaufort's Code STEMI, Radiology, Anesthesiology and other Departments to Improve Care Coordination and Workflow Efficiency
CHIME14 CIO Fall Forum—San Antonio, Texas, October 28, 2014—Imprivata® (NYSE: IMPR), a leading provider of authentication, access management and secure communications solutions for the healthcare industry, today announced that Beaufort Memorial Hospital (Beaufort, S.C.) is replacing pagers with Imprivata Cortext® as the standard form of communication for all its care providers. Imprivata Cortext is the secure communications platform for healthcare that enables healthcare organizations to replace pagers and improve care coordination inside and outside the hospital. Beaufort Memorial's Medical Executive Committee decided to standardize on Imprivata Cortext for all its physicians to improve clinical communication and care coordination.
"Several of our hospital departments have been using Imprivata Cortext and it has proven to be a far more convenient, effective solution for clinical communication and care coordination than pagers," said Kurt Gambla, D.O., chief medical officer at Beaufort Memorial Hospital. "We are excited to extend these benefits to our entire physician population by standardizing all communication on Imprivata Cortext, which we believe will greatly improve physician satisfaction, increase efficiency and, most importantly, enhance the quality of patient care."
With Imprivata Cortext, Beaufort Memorial will improve communications and care coordination while addressing the inefficiencies of pagers and other outdated technologies for a number of different clinical workflows, including:
- Code STEMI—When a catheterization lab is activated, the percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) team must be notified and mobilized as quickly as possible. Prior to implementing Imprivata Cortext, this required numerous pages to the PCI team members, waiting for callbacks and creating delays in organizing the next steps for care. Using the Imprivata Cortext group messaging functionality, an alert can be sent via secure text message to the entire PCI team simultaneously, which significantly improves Code STEMI response times and care coordination.
- Radiology—Prior to using Imprivata Cortext, when a report was ready, radiologists would call or page specialists, who would then have to locate an available workstation to access the electronic health record to view the medical image and the corresponding radiology report. Using Imprivata Cortext, radiologists can more quickly alert attending physicians that the requested radiology reports are available, which improves efficiency and enhances patient satisfaction.
- Anesthesiology—Anesthesiologists are highly mobile, moving between operating rooms and catheterization labs. Imprivata Cortext enables them to receive secure text messages that include not only current medications and recent lab results that could create a patient safety issue, but also updates about when they can expect patients to be prepped for surgery and administration of anesthesia.
"Our clinical staff has been extremely impressed with the functionality and ease-of-use of Imprivata Cortext, and it speaks volumes that clinical leadership—and not IT—made the decision to move away from pagers and standardize all physician communication on Imprivata Cortext," said Edward Ricks, VP and CIO at Beaufort Memorial Hospital. "From an IT perspective, Imprivata Cortext gives us an easy-to-manage, cost-effective communication solution that also maintains compliance with HIPAA and security regulations. It also gives us a comprehensive solution for replacing costly, inefficient technologies, and in the past year, we have eliminated about half the pagers in the hospital."
"Beaufort Memorial's decision to replace pagers with Imprivata Cortext as its standard solution for provider communications reflects the clinical need for more efficient technologies to increase workflow efficiency and improve care coordination," said Ed Gaudet, general manager of the Imprivata Cortext Products Group. "Imprivata Cortext is designed specifically for healthcare to meet the workflow challenges that care providers face every day, providing healthcare organizations with a secure communications platform that improves efficiency, meets compliance and security requirements and addresses inefficiencies caused by pagers and other outdated systems."
According to the Imprivata Report on the Economic Impact of Inefficient Communications in Healthcare, more than 50 percent of the time it takes to complete patient admissions, coordinate emergency response teams and patient transfers is wasted due to inefficient communication, costing the average U.S. hospital about $1.75 million annually. The study also finds that about half this wasted time could be reclaimed using secure text messaging, saving about $918,000 per hospital, per year.
About Imprivata
Imprivata is a leading provider of authentication and access management solutions for the healthcare industry. Imprivata's single sign-on, authentication management and secure communications solutions enable fast, secure and more efficient access to healthcare information technology systems to address multiple security challenges and improve provider productivity for better focus on patient care. For more information, please visit www.imprivata.com.
All Imprivata products are trademarks of Imprivata, Inc. in the USA and other countries. All other product or company names mentioned are the property of their respective owners
Media Contact:
Dan Borgasano
Investors Contact:
Bob East / Asher Dewhurst
Westwicke Partners

subset: commoncrawl


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The Assistant Service Manager at Valvoline Instant Oil Change (VIOC) is a key member of our local team from both a technical and managerial standpoint. This role is ideal for a person who wants to lead one of our service centers and is ready to start taking the initiative among auto technicians. With the goal to become a Service Center Manager, this position sets up our team members for success.
A day in the life of an Assistant Service Manager at VIOC changes rapidly hour by hour.
Responsibilities include:
Knowledge and Skills:
Physical Requirements
The physical requirements described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of the job. While performing the duties of this job, the employees are required to stand, stoop, kneel, walk, and bend for up to 8 hours.
Work Experience and/or Education:
We offer medical, dental, vision and 401kCandidates will participate in a six month training progrValvoline has spent 150 years under the hood perfecting our lubricants to improve vehicle performance. Our long history of success is an indication of the stability of our company.
We are An Equal Opportunity Affirmative Action Employer
This position is currently not accepting applications.
To search for an open position, please go to http://MetrolubeEnterprisesInc.appone.com


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Tony comes by on a regular basis. Picking up Power Station decks with Mike Early Pool King Collab. Damon sneaks in the shot!
Friday, May 13, 2011
Tony Alva Power Station!
Posted by swank zine at 5:28 PM
Labels: Mike Early, Pool King, Power Station, Tony Alve
Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)


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Offers (Add an Offer)
There are no offers.
- Option only available for users with Seller Account.
- Each Offer last 30 days. During this time they will appear first in stock search results
- The user can remove the Offer any time. If you remove the Offer after 10 minutes, it will not be refunded
- The quickest way to add Offers is on "My Stock", by clicking on the "Make an Offer now" in the reference you want to Offer
- You can also click "Add an Offer" and add the data for your reference:
- If it does not exists in your inventory, it will be added
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Note: Offers that include more than one Reference will be deleted and it will not be refunded


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This year, a few NFL games will take place in London. Read our NFL London guide to find out where those games will take place, how to get around and where to eat and drink.Jump to
Tottenham Hotspur Stadium
Where is it?
Tottenham, North London
How big is it?
The stadium's capacity is 62,062
Who plays there?
Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, runners up of the 2019 UEFA Champions League
What are the nearest stations to the ground?
White Hart Lane (Overground), Northumberland Park (Overground), Seven Sisters (Victoria Line and Overground)
- Learn how to read odds for wagering on sports.
- Use our betting odds calculator to figure out your profits.
- Sign up to Sports Illustrated and make bets on sports online.
When did it open?
April 2019
Where should you eat?
Honestly, inside the ground! Tottenham have beaten local restaurants and cafés to plenty of business since the stadium opened – with tasty, well-priced food. Most of the eateries are in the South Stand of the stadium including: Touchline Grill (burgers, hot dogs, chips), N17 grill (burgers, fries and American snacks), Linesman (fish and chips), Chicken House (well, chicken!), Naan & Noodle (Asian), Smashed Olive (pizzas, pasta and salad)
What about the best place for a beer?
There are bars in every stand of the ground, but the famous Goal Line Bar (the longest bar in Europe) is situated in the South Stand of the ground.
Wembley Stadium
Where is it?
Wembley, North-West London
How big is it?
A whopping 90,000 people can fit inside the ground!
Who plays there?
The England national football team
What are the nearest stations to the ground?
Wembley Park (Metropolitan Line and Jubilee Line), Wembley Stadium (Chiltern Main Line), Wembley Central (Bakerloo Line and Overground)
When did it open?
March 2007
Where should you eat?
The London Designer Outlet contains great restaurants such as Nando's, TGI Friday's, Pizza Express, Frankie & Benny's, Prezzo and Subway!
What about the best place for a beer?
The Torch, The Green Man, Moore Spice, The Arch – and so many more places!
The teams playing:
- Chicago Bears v Oakland Raiders
- Carolina Panthers v Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- The Panthers have one win and two losses in the NFC South, while the Buccaneers are also in the NFC South, and also have one win and two defeats.
- Cincinnati Bengals v Los Angeles Rams
- In AFC North, the Bengals have lost their first three games and will come up against a Rams side who are yet to lose in the NFC West.
- Houston Texans v Jacksonville Jaguars
- The Texans began the 2019-20 season with two wins and a loss in the AFC South, while their opponents – the Jaguars – have won one and lost two of their opening fixtures.
Read our football betting guide and get ready to bet on the NFL this season.
Morten Andersen preview:
Morten Andersen on the NFL in Europe:
"I remember coming to London and going to the old Wembley Stadium to help promote the NFL. It was a brand-new game here, there wasn't anywhere near the interest that there is today. The fans then engaged on a broader level, where today fans are much more educated and follow specific players. They also follow them on social media and engage with them in a much more personal way than 20 years ago. I think eventually the NFL will have an expansion team in Europe."


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As NewsBusters' Lachlan Markay pointed out, the Weinergate scandal showcased a variety of liberal media conspiracy theories. One of the most prevalent theories focused on besmirching conservative blogger Andrew Breitbart, who broke the story wide open Monday with a series of posts on BigGovernment.com featuring lewd photos of Rep. Anthony Weiner.
"Look, Breitbart is a proven liar, okay?" bellowed MSNBC anchor Cenk Uygur on June 1. "He doctored the Shirley Sherrod tapes. He's done this over and over again. Why would anybody take this fool seriously?"
[Video after page break]
Uygur was far from the only media figure to assault Breitbart's credibility to defend Weiner:
In an exchange with Howard Kurtz on CNN's "Reliable Sources," CBS correspondent Nancy Cordes blamed Breitbart's "history of taking Democrats out of context and smearing people" for her network's reluctance to cover the Weiner story. "That was a reason that people were going slow on this story," Cordes confessed. "We were wary."
On the May 31 edition of "Anderson Cooper 360," CNN's Jeffrey Toobin suggested Weinergate would "fall apart" because it originated with the unreliable Breitbart: "In his defense, I think we do need to point out that the person behind this is Andrew Breitbart, who has made a practice of targeting Democrats – Shirley Sherrod most notoriously of all. And his stories tend to fall apart on close inspection."
The next night, CNN's Paul Begala took a similiar tack: "It is a right-wing blogger who was pushing this, and a pretty unreliable one at that, which mama always said, consider the source."
Salon.com's Joan Walsh chimed in on the June 1 "Hardball" to take her pound of flesh: "My position from the beginning has been, I'm inclined to give him the benefit of the doubt because this originated with Andrew Breitbart, who released the selective – deceptively edited ACORN tapes."
Noting that Gawker's Maureen O'Connor scolded Cordes on "Reliable Sources" for failing to cover Weinergate, NewsBusters' Noel Sheppard framed the reflexive criticism of Breitbart as a clash between old and new media.
At his contrite press conference on Monday, Weiner apologized to Breitbart. How many of these newspeople have issued similiar mea culpas?
--Alex Fitzsimmons is a News Analysis intern at the Media Research Center. Click here to follow him on Twitter.


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Frank Crowder Jr., a third-grade elementary school student, would walk past impressive houses in a shady, tree-lined White neighborhood to get across the tracks to his home on the Black side of town in Grenada, Mississippi, daily. The year was 1977. Segregation was over but still in style.
"Back then we were impoverished," Frank remarks. "You can imagine the living conditions for Black people in Mississippi during that time." Every day, young Frankie envisioned living in the beautiful antebellum-style homes he'd never seen inside of. Taking note of elegant details like the Southern tradition of establishing the home with wrought-iron insignia—"GOLLADAY HOUSE est. 1850" or "THE BROWN HOUSE est. 1904"—the little boy vowed to himself, "One of these days, I will own one of these houses."
Maggie Bell Hooper, Frank's grandmother, worked in the Boyd House, built in 1946, as a maid for 11 years. She and her husband, Napoleon Hooper Sr., who worked for Illinois Central Railroad Company, had nine children. Due to his job, Napoleon Sr. was only home on the weekends. Maggie waited until her children were a little older before taking work outside the house.
Frank's aunt, Mary Hooper Robinson (b. 1941), recalls, "My mom was hired to work there [in 1955] when I was a teenager. After I graduated high school, got married and had a couple of kids, I was hired as the cook in the evenings to prepare dinner. I worked for the Boyds from 1963-1966." Although "the help" could not come to the front door, Mary remembers the Boyds as nice people who had elaborate parties and proved supportive of her family. "Working for them was sort of a status symbol," Mary adds.
Minnie Hooper (b. 1944), also Frank's aunt, worked for the Boyds during summers as a young girl, cleaning the pool with her sister Beatrice for extra money. "Their daughter's bedroom was a fantasy to me. It was bigger than the parents' room, and she had a walk-in closet. When we would eat lunch, they would allow my sister and me to eat inside at the breakfast nook." This was unheard of in the 1950s Deep South. "I would look forward to that."
Prominent in Grenada, John Boyd owned a construction and oil company. Several of Frank's family members—including his uncle Joe Parks (b.1936)—married to Hooper matriarch and eldest of the nine, Vera Louise (née Hooper) Parks. Joe was 19 when he started working for Boyd Construction Company. "I worked in his mechanic shop as a trainee for four years," he says. "We fixed machines used to build highways." Joe repaired machines all winter to be ready for summer construction jobs. "[Mr. Boyd's] machine operators and truck drivers were all White. The builders of the bridges, overpasses and roads were Black."
Mr. Parks, who now lives in Saginaw, Michigan, continues: "That's how it was, up until Dr. King came through in the 1960s and made the turnover." Desegregation may have been a difficult notion for most southern Whites, but Mr. Boyd respected the law, and so would his employees.
"Mr. Boyd called all the mechanics in for a meeting," he recalls. Joe was the only Black mechanic in the shop. "He said, 'It's a great change now. [Joe Parks] will be drinking from the same fountain and using the bathroom just like anybody else in here. Anybody who can't handle it, I will pay you off today." Mr. Boyd made that clear once more to a mechanic using racial slurs and threatening Joe. "I didn't have any more racial issues after that." He worked at the company for 10 years.
Frank, who is a retired chief master sergeant of Air Force and CEO of Defense Consulting Services, now lives in San Antonio, Texas, with his wife Pam and daughter, Paige. Confiding his dream of owning "one of those houses, one of these days" only to his wife, he set his sights on the Boyd House. For years, he and Pam had a ritual. When they would visit Grenada, "My wife would say, 'We have to go by and take a picture of your house.' "
In 2014, Frank, 47, revealed his now 40-year-old dream to his cousins at a family reunion. Three weeks later, he traveled to Grenada. On his way to see an aunt, he made his way to take his routine photo of the house. As he prepared to take the picture from his car, a White couple walked out of the front door. Without pretext of Mississippi culture or race, Frank asked, "Hey, is this your house?"
Introducing himself, his attraction to the house and its history, the driven dreamer stated, "My relatives worked for the Boyds. My relatives served in this house." The couple, Harvey and Lauren Leslie, explained that they'd bought the house at auction. They lived in another home in the same community. Lauren says to Frank, "I could not stand to see one of Grenada's finest, oldest properties fall into disrepair." The Leslies purchased the home with the intent of restoring it. Beyond that, they had no plans. The couple offered Frank a tour.
"I had never been inside!" he says. Touring the house, the couple pointed out the changes they'd made and efforts to keep original fixtures. All Maggie Bell's grandson could think was, "Wow, my grandmother used to open those cabinets. My grandmother used to clean these original fixtures. I was blown away, totally tripping that I had this opportunity." As Frankie was leaving, they asked him for a business card. When he returned from the car with his card, "Harvey says, 'Frank, would you like to buy the Boyd House?" Frank and Harvey shook on it.
The purchase was made in January 2015. The Hoopers' ribbon-cutting ceremony is set for August 1. "My grandmother's brother will bless the house. My cousin will do spoken word based on my aunt's memories of working in the Boyd House. In the interior, the elders will hang the photographs of Maggie Bell and Napoleon Sr." Frankie's renaming of the Boyd House is a nod to his grandmother and perhaps a wink of validation to a little boy's dream. The wrought-iron sign will read THE HOOPER HOUSE, EST. 2015.
"After that, it's a good ol' country gathering—it's delta blues, food, dancing, fun! Everybody on the front lawn!" There are no coincidences; the stars aligned perfectly for the Hoopers. Frank's childhood vision was destined from the door, where his family may now cakewalk through the front.
The Coolest Black Family in America is an EBONY.com original series: an ongoing look at the intricacies, layers and compelling beauty of African-American family life. Of course, The Coolest Black Family is not one family but many. In fact, we've found that there are as many Coolest Black Families as there are versions of cool. Also consider: family doesn't always mean mother + father + kids. What defines family is connected hearts and supported souls. Ride with us weekly as we crisscross the country in search of kinfolk whose cool is so palpable and real, it comes second only to their love. Think your cool fam qualifies? Email us at digitalpi[email protected] (with Coolest Black Family in the subject line)!
Joicelyn Dingle travels to find the Coolest Black Family in America exclusively for EBONY.com. She splits her time between Savannah and Brooklyn. She is currently completing a documentary on the making of Honey magazine and the 1990s urban publishing era. Friend her on Facebook. Follow her on Twitter @editorialgenius.


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For a Dutch company, we are currently looking for a Senior SAP Development Specialist for a contract position.
Location: Utrecht Or Amsterdam
Duration: Minimum 3 months contract and possibility to extend (6 to 9 months)
• Minimum 5 years of programming experience;
• Fluent in English and Dutch;
• SAP ABAP Programming Classic and Object Oriented (release 6.0);
• Experience with development in the functional areas PM, MM and PS;
• SAP Business Intelligence Data Source extractions;
• Has good (technical) knowledge of SAP BI;
• SAP Development Tools;
• SAP and Customer Enhancements;
• SAP Transaction developments (Classic Dynpro's);
• SAP Web developments (ITS, BSP, WD4A);
• SAP Interface methods (IDoc/EDI, Batch file, Batch Input, BAPI, …);
• SAP Process Integration (Development, Design, Configuration, Runtime);
• SAP Migration and testing tools (CATT, QUERY, LSMW);
• SAP Output development with Smart Forms;
• SAP ASAP-method;
• Understanding of SAP Business Workflow Development and Administration
• Has performed three or more full cycle projects for the subjects mentioned above;
• Has extensive experience in designing and realization of complex data-intensive extraction/retraction programs and interfaces (5-10 yrs);
• Is able to plan own work in order to deliver project deliverables on time;
If interested in this job please send your resume/CV in editable format (word, open office) to firstname.lastname@example.com
Please also give me an indication of your financial expectations (daily rate).
Contact:E-mail: email@example.com
Mobile: +40 749 28 19 88
For more job updates follow us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/A_SAP_Rec
You can also subscribe to receive the new jobs by e-mail: http://bit.ly/A-SAP_Jobs_e-mail
If you want to recruit SAP specialists for your organization please consult our unique offer: http://www.asaprec.com/client-proposition
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I got slammed this past week with stuff for VBS and other things. I'll get this written with actual useful information later today. Just wanted to get the linky up for everyone to link up to.
I should say, "Hopefully, I'll get this written up later today." We're taking the boys to camp today also.
Let's see what others did this week:
I love how Tiger Chronicle incorporated nature studies into her schooling.
Creekside Learning had a fun experiment involving freezing stuff.
Fantastic Five has play dough layers of the earth and some nomenclature cards for the layers.
I bet your kids would remember the rock cycle and different types of rocks if you did a Fudge rock cycle like All Things Beautiful did.


text: Features HS-3 and HS-3S are horizontal slicers mainly used for hamburger and cake cutting. The products are transported to the blades by the conveyor belt. Easy to adapt distance between blades. Equipped with two perspex safetyhoods. Delivered with socle on castors with locking system. HS-3S, with upper conveyor for the infeed.


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Canoeing from Paris, Ontario to Brantford, Ontario
During the warmer months of 2019, I had an opportunity to go canoeing in Grand River Conservation Area with a few of my friends.
This trip starts on the Nith River and goes into the Grand River. The river averages 1 meter in depth with 2 meter deep pools. Many first time canoe, kayak, stand up paddle board clients prefer this route as it makes for a relaxing day or the perfect introduction.
The Paris to Brant Park route is a scenic paddle from a town setting into pristine wilderness. The section has moving shallow rapids at 1 km mark and then easy going after that. Some of the highlights are drinkable spring water and perfect swimming areas. There are picnic stops and portable washrooms at the 9 km mark.
The trip starts in the town of Paris, Ontario, which gives you access to stores and amenities right at the starting point.


text: At Swope and Young Land Company, we have extensive knowledge of all aspects of rural real estate across Texas. This includes real estate marketing, farm and ranch management, property assessment, land valuation, real estate appraisals, and agriculture & wildlife exemptions. When working with Swope and Young, every detail is accounted for and we are driven to provide the best service we possibly can. There's not a questions we won't answer for our clients. That's why we've compiled some of our favorite resources to assist you with your rural, recreational, farm and ranch property needs. Click on the links below to learn more about Texas real estate or give us a call with any specific questions you may have!


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Zip Line With The Zombies & Creatures of the Night Swamp Walk
- 5543 US Hwy 259 North
- Diana, TX
- 903-968-6924
- 903-736-5155
- Average Review
- (9 reviews)
- Scare Factor
- Scary
- Appropriate For
- All ages
- Organization Type
- Commercial / For Profit
- Listing Categories
- Haunted Houses, Haunted Hay Rides, Zombie Hunts & Shootouts, Haunted Mazes / Haunted Corn Mazes, Haunted Trails, Halloween Parties & Nightlife, Scream Parks, Hay Rides (Kid Friendly), Not-So-Scary Haunted Houses (Kid Friendly), Kids Parties, Mazes / Corn Mazes (Kid Friendly), Other Events
- More Info
- Snacks & Refreshments, Outdoor Event(s), Covered Wait Area, Touching Not Allowed, Free Parking
|Some locations may have last minute updates due to changing circumstances. Please visit the attraction's website and/or social media before going to double-check that they are open.
|October 2023
Hours of Operation: Reservations Required.
Admission Costs: 3-Zip-lines + Wagon ride + Creatures of the Night Tour: $39
(Without Zip-lines) Wagon ride + Creatures of the Night Tour: $15
Payments Accepted: Cash, Credit Cards, Debit Cards
- event open dates
Recent ReviewsReview This Haunt
Email Verified Had A Blast
I took my family there and we all had a blast. A very scenic ambience and multiple activities to indulge into allowed my kids to enjoy a lot. We did the wagon ride and there were no excessive walking or hill climbing. Impressed by the safety features like back-up emergency block and commercial hand brakes. The staff was very nice and helpful. Overall, a great place for family to participate in multiple attractions and spend time together. Loved it!! We will surely visit again.
Scare Factor: Fun Factor: Haunt Value:
Wonderful Experience
Generally, we spent our free time going to movies or some events. But this time, we wanted spent it differently and came across this Zip Line with the Zombies. Being the first time to zip line and that too with the zombies we were little tensed, but the team out there are extremely helpful. They made our experience wonderful one. The scenery was beautiful. The zip lines were a blast. I would highly recommend this place to anyone who is looking to spend some quality time over the weekend with family.
Scare Factor: Fun Factor: Haunt Value:
Absolutely Loved It
We loved it. I will definitely give Zip Line with the Zombies a full 5 star rating. I took my mother to this place who really loves adventures. We had a great time together. I am the happiest watching my mother enjoying every bit of the adventure. The guide we were allocated is wonderful and is very patient. We had already decided to go back to this place again.
Scare Factor: Fun Factor: Haunt Value:
Family Friendly
We had many screams and laughs! This was the first time I was visiting Zip Line with the Zombies and they met my expectations very well. The scenery was awesome and we enjoyed all attractions without any fear. Impressed by their staff's safety concern for participants and they never left any stone unturned to let any such misfortune to happen. Amazing place to spent time with family. Definitely worth spending time and money.
Scare Factor: Fun Factor: Haunt Value:
Email Verified Best Family Outing
We, a team of 18 members have decided to visit Zip Line with the Zombies. I would say that this is the best place we could enjoy ourselves to the core. Owners and Guides are particularly friendly and made our ride very smooth. I would highly recommend this place to all. This is the best place for both family fun and corporate event.
Scare Factor: Fun Factor: Haunt Value:
Best Place for Kids Fun
The day was really awesome. With my GF visited the Zip Line with Zombies and the Creatures of the Night Swamp Walk to celebrate Halloween. It was our first time to zip line. Zombies were really frightening. Our guides were really talented guys. Definitely kids will love this place. We are planning to come again.
Scare Factor: Fun Factor: Haunt Value:
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
Adventurous Time
Awesome experience at Zip Line with the Zombies. One of the best places to spend adventurous time with the family. The staff were super fun and friendly. Zip line with the zombies is a new attraction and we really enjoyed it. Our guides were super cool and explained everything in a polite manner. The queue wasn't very long and the management did a perfect job in handling crowd. A bit expensive admission fee, but will definitely be returning soon!!
Scare Factor: Fun Factor: Haunt Value:
Email Verified Highly Recommended
It was good man. The Tomb of the Dead Mausoleum gave us some great scares. Maze trail was one among the best I'd done till date. The scary characters in the Night Swamp Walk will freak you out. They had my GF screaming. The zombies also gave us some good scares. Staff was friendly. Overall the visit was pretty satisfactory. Recommend this!
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Terrifying Experience
One of the best haunts I have been to. Maze trail was really creepy. Creatures while the Night Swamp Walk was very frightening. Tomb of the Dead Mausoleum was equally terrifying. Costumes and the make ups of characters were spot-on. For the terrors we saw, prices per head were reasonable. We will be back.
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Run Greece Set for Action in Seven Cities: First Stop Larissa
Professional athletes, amateurs and sports lovers are invited to join Run Greece in a series of running events held in seven Greek cities. For a sixth consecutive year, Run Greece announces the launch of its sport events from the Central Greece town of Larissa, on March 24.
Organizers are expecting more than 5,000 runners to join the sporting event, which includes 5km, 10km and kiddies runs.
Run Greece Larissa is jointly organized by the Hellenic Athletics Federation (SEGAS), the Region of Thessaly and the Municipality of Larissa with the support of SEGAS' regional office.
"We support sport because it is a philosophy of life that adds years to life. These games are a continuation of major sports events taking place in Thessaly, while at the same time showcasing the region's dynamic role as a host to top sporting events as well as an attractive sports tourism destination," said Thessaly Regional Governor Kostas Agorastos, adding that the goal is to "create the suitable conditions and stimuli so that engaging in sport will become an integral part of the everyday life of all Thessaly residents".
Next stops for Run Greece:
Heraklio, Crete – April 29
Kastoria – May 13
Ioannina, Northern Greece – May 20
Alexandroupolis – September 30
Patra – October 7
Rhodes – October 14
Interested in participating? Register here.
The Greek Travel Pages (GTP) is a communication sponsor of Run Greece events.


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There are people who follow special meal plans because they saw it in a magazine….and thought it was a way to lose weight or be healthier. And that's not a bad thing if they are following a healthy wellness plan that improves their quality of life! But many times there was no guidance and they are trying something random with no plan. Unfortunately when something goes wrong, news travels faster. Which results in many receiving the wrong impression and they miss out on how life-changing alternate eating lifestyles really might be for them.
We didn't wake up one day and say "Hmmm, I think I want to be gluten free!" The people I partner with are affected by allergies, autoimmune disease, cancer, chronic pain, fibromyalgia and rheumatoid conditions. They are on a journey. They get connected to their community. They find out how others have improved how they feel each and every day. Basic stuff that we might not have learned in our home. I know I didn't. How to nourish, move and care for our one body. Some people may have always lived with pain or discomfort like bloating….but it was their normal. Never realizing that those were symptoms and with a plan that works for them, their new normal could be better not worse.
Today there is a plethora of options. Find someone (like me!) to navigate these choices with you. Help you create a strategy to find what works best for you. Keep you in your budget and accountable to wellness. Has experienced, trustworthy resources and ethical practitioners that will support your goals. I would be honored to meet with you, discuss what well would mean to you and your family….and help you stay the course.
Feeling not alone is a big piece of finding a successful plan….no cost but time to meet and see how I may help!
I can help Your Comfort For Life! Elizabeth Anthony Gronert, LifeStyle Mentor & Wellness Strategist (email@example.com)


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Reasons You're Tired All The Time (And How to Fight It)
Have you ever asked yourself "why am I so tired?" Here's what to look out for.
Heading out the door? Read this article on the new Outside+ app available now on iOS devices for members! Download the app.
Q: Help! I'm always tired. What should I do?
A: You can be tired for a million different reasons, but it makes sense to start with the most obvious ones.
Improve the quality of your sleep.
Number one is sleep. There's an old saying that goes like this: When you hear hoofbeats outside your window, don't start looking for zebras. When you're looking for an explanation for something, it always makes sense to start with the obvious. Sure, you could be tired because of a weird food sensitivity, or because of some undiagnosed medical condition, but the most obvious and common cause of fatigue is something that just about everybody in modern life experiences: inadequate sleep.
Sleep disturbances can cause weight gain, mood disturbances, brain fog, abdominal fat, increased blood pressure, loss of memory, loss of mental clarity, increased stress levels, and have several other negative effects, the most obvious of which is a constant, nagging fatigue. During sleep, your body solidifies memories and—very importantly—manufacturers hormones (such as HGH and melatonin, both involved in well-being and energy). Sleep experts recommend a few basic steps to ensure that you're getting the right amount—and the right quality—of sleep.
First, go to bed a half hour earlier. It's been shown that it's far easier to add sleep time at the front end than the back end. Second, keep the bedroom comfortably cool. Third, never go to bed with the television on. Fourth, keep the room dark. (Studies have shown that even the soft lights from the cable box can make a difference in how deeply you sleep.)
Manage adrenal health.
The adrenals are two small glands about the size of walnuts, located right above the kidneys. They are responsible for secreting all kinds of hormones, but for our purposes we'll talk about two of them: cortisol and adrenaline. Both these hormones are known as "fight or flight" hormones, because they prepare the body for emergencies.
When our ancient cavemen ancestors spied a threatening animal in the bush, cortisol and adrenaline kicked in to allow them to either run like heck or pick up a stick and fight. These hormones raise blood pressure and heart rate, increase blood flow to the pumping legs and arms, and raise blood sugar so you have more energy available to the muscles. All of this gives you a much better chance of surviving a threat to your life.
The problem is, these stress hormones were meant to kick in once in a while, in an emergency situation. In modern life, the stress response is on 24/7. Your poor adrenals can't keep up with the demand. Stress responses were designed to be triggered by hungry wildebeests and woolly mammoths, not by deadlines and soccer games. Ultimately, the adrenals get exhausted, and you're tired all the time.
What to do? The first thing is to manage stress. In my most recent book, The Great Cholesterol Myth, cardiologist Stephen Sinatra and I identified stress as one of the four major contributors to heart disease. Stress will make you tired, but it will also make you fat, hungry, sick, and depressed. And if you're walking around "tired and wired"—a condition common enough that Dr. Oz devoted an entire show to it—then chances are you're suffering from adrenal fatigue, and the sooner you do something about it the better.
First, try some stress-management techniques. The most studied—and most effective—is meditation, but if you have trouble with that, try some simple deep breathing exercises. One of my favorites is to sit quietly at your desk, eyes closed, palms upturned and resting on your knees, while you breathe in slowly for the count of four, hold for the count of four, and exhale slowly for the count of four.
Set your timer and do this for four minutes, several times a day if you can. You can also try proven stress-management techniques like walking (preferably somewhere there's greenery), warm baths, reading for pleasure, or just sitting quietly with nothing to do. (Try it. It's amazing.) Anything that relaxes you, brings your heart rate down, and lowers your blood pressure works.
Cut back on sugar and carbs.
Diet is also key. I don't have to tell you that the typical crummy American diet is energy-draining. It's high in sugar (which plays havoc with blood sugar, which will destroy your energy). Nothing drains energy like the blood sugar roller coaster, so the first thing you want to do is cut back on carbs and increase intake of protein and good fat. Protein stimulates the metabolism, fat makes you feel satiated, and both work together to keep blood sugar on a nice even keel.
Supplements for Fatigue
There are certain supplements—known as adaptogens—that can help. Adaptogens are like a thermostat. When you set your thermostat to a comfortable 72 degrees, it heats up the room if the temperature is cold, but it cools down the room if the temperature is in the 80s. An adaptogen in your body works in a similar way. It's a metabolic regulator. If you're running "cool" (fatigued) it will heat you up a bit, but if you're running "hot" (wired and tense) it will cool you down. Well-known effective adaptogens include ginseng, ashwagandha, and schizandra. Many people with fatigue have also had great results with Rhodiola rosea.
Nutrient deficiencies can also make a huge difference in your energy levels. At the very least, take a good, high-potency multiple vitamin/mineral. And be aware that stress eats up vitamin C and the B vitamins like Ms. Pac-Man on steroids. If you're feeling stressed and tired, it might be prudent to start adding extra vitamin C and B complex to your daily regimen.
Jonny Bowden, PhD, CNS, aka "The Rogue Nutritionist," is a board-certified nutritionist and the best-selling author of 13 books on health, most recently The Great Cholesterol Myth (FairWinds Press, 2012). Visit him at jonnybowden.com and follow him on Twitter @jonnybowden. Do you have a health question for Jonny? Send it to email@example.com. Write "Health Q&A" in the subject line.


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Customer Sales Team Lead for Honda
Vaše náplň práce
Key Tasks:
Definition of Customer Strategy, New Business and innovation identification, Driving of acquisition process, Quote Negotiation, Leading annual price agreements, customer engagements de escalation and overall customer relationship management.
commercials Management - Customer contracts, Crisis management, Claim management, Reporting A/R and sustainability.
Strategically Managing customer strategy and innovation, Customer volume and Roadmap,
Competitor intelligence, Customer experience and Communication and events.
Váš profil
Engineering with 12 to 15 years of experience in Automotive sales.
Should be good in handling OEM customers, India and global partners.
Co nabízíme
Ready to drive with Continental? Take the first step and fill in the online application.


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There are those who seek knowledge for the sake of knowledge; that is Curiosity.
There are those who seek knowledge to be known by others; that is Vanity.
There are those who seek knowledge in order to serve; that is Love.
~ Bernard of Clairvaux
Sierra Club just posted this in their newsletter. I love it. It expresses WHY we are here at JBL. Thank you for being here with me. In love of knowledge for the purpose of service.
Much love,
Happy D!
Debbie Happy Cohen, author and coach, is also the founder of Joy-Based Living. Her Master's Degree is in counseling, specializing in family systems, healing emotional trauma, and practical spirituality. Also affectionately known as Happy D! and Reverend SASSY SHORTS!, she lives on Lookout Mountain in Alabama, near Chattanooga, Tennessee. Her books include Reach Your Stars!, SANCTUARY, It's All About Kids: Every Child Deserves a Teacher of the Year, and I Don't Think So! You can find her blogging at http://www.joybasedliving.com.


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Audio Signal Analysis is the basis of most audio related research - a close collaboration with other AudioLabs research areas is therefore natural. One of the fields addressed in the group headed by Prof. Dr. Bernd Edler is the development of improved models of auditory perception suitable for audio codecs as well as for speech codecs. Besides new spectral analysis systems and extended tonality estimation, different control methods for speech and audio codecs are studied. These developments are accompanied by psychoacoustic experiments for the systematic evaluation of specific auditory phenomena.
Time/Frequency analysis is a ubiquitous element of contemporary digital signal processing algorithms. The main research topics in this field encompass real- and complex-valued transforms and time-warped filter banks as well as their temporal and spectral adaptation to the characteristics of the input signal. Applications already investigated include perceptual audio coding, parametric signal representations as well as analysis and enhancement of both speech and music.
Most currently available audio signals are professional mixes of multiple sound sources. The capability to modify (e.g. attenuate, amplify) sound sources isolated from the mixture enables new applications with respect to efficient source coding and interactive services. If the mixture is the only available representation (blind source separation) appropriate signal representations are important. These representations must reveal the different characteristics of the individual sources and enable access to their unique features, e.g. timbre and modulations.


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In crafting its disastrous budget targeted at the poor and lower middle class, the members of the Newfoundland and Labrador Government appear to be oblivious about what is happening in the world around them and unaware, even after a lengthy consultation process, of the true state of their own province.
This province has an aging population, an employment market devastated by declining resource jobs and a diminished industrial base. It is further being impacted by returning unemployed workers from Alberta, as that province's economy declines. People are hurting.
Globally there is growing backlash on all governments who have pushed austerity, cut back social programs and taxed the middle class and poor, while at the same time providing tax exemptions for the rich. The Conservative government of Canada was turfed for these very same reasons.
People everywhere are angry and protesting against rising poverty, inequality and austerity targeted at those with the least.
The Liberal government in this province, facing a severe economic crisis, decided to use an unbearable and unpopular approach in its own first budget, an approach that has failed in other places. They are attempting to address a major economic collapse by loading more taxes and levies on the backs of those already overburdened.
I read that a manager at Eastern Health said that to do their part they would no longer provide treats or stickers for children in their mental health program. It made me wonder how an educated professional could imagine that such a budget deficit could be addressed by such miniscule measures.
Obviously this thinking is endemic among government managers, as they cut school supplies for classrooms, over-size and double up classes, and heaven knows what else. This is in addition to overtaxing everything that moves or is useful and levying fees on every activity that a person or family needs just to live.
Adding insult to injury, the government imposed a deficit tax, to which even children will have to contribute by forfeiting their recess money so their parents are able to pay it. The wealthy are shielded from this tax as it is capped at $900 based on income.
It is suggested that the total cost to "ordinary families" will be in excess of $3000 (some suggest $6000). This doesn't include the added burden of businesses raising prices to cover the increased cost of doing business.
The real source this large deficit is not just the price of oil, but the most ill advised and worst managed project in the history of the province; Muskrat Falls. Many wise people have addressed the irresponsibility of carrying out this project.
The reality of this situation was most evident in a study of major infrastructure projects in 2013 by Flyvberg and AtifAnsar. This study found that of 245 large hydro dam projects in 65 countries, the cost escalated on average by 90% between final budget approval and the completed project. There was no improvement in budget accuracy over 75 years of data that the study covered.
Whether in fact it can even be finished, given the fiscal state of the province, is a bigger question that needs answering before everyone is driven to the poor house. Is it possible for this government to borrow the 7-10 billion dollars it appears it will take to finish this project, given our fiscal state and the technical issues surrounding the project?
So why not cut the risk and moth ball the project, as many knowledgeable people have suggested, until times are better and the technical issues are understood?
How could a budget be prepared without considering issues such as this project and the size and expense of the top heavy bureaucracies throughout this government?
It is not possible to pay off a 2.4 billion dollar deficit by taking nickels and dimes and treats from children and putting taxes on everything required for people with the least resources to live. This is evident from the fact that with all these taxes, levies and cutbacks, the budget deficit will still be 1.8 billion dollars.
Those who are most affected by this budget will face bankruptcy and despair, while those most prosperous will still have full pockets.
This appears to be a budget prepared by cynical bean counters unable to address core issues and whose vision is limited by the insular view of "their own world."
Where is the balanced approach to addressing the major provincial issues, with an economic and social program designed for progress and not more regression? Where is the investment that builds a future for youth, rather than stealing their treats and denying them what they need to be decently educated, ultimately driving them to some other part of the world?
Written by Bill Pardy
April 17th, 2016


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Gaming apps are the most popular type of apps in the App Store. Of the thousands of iPhone gaming apps being developed, only few achieve success. So, what makes a gaming app successful ?
The technology for video games has changed a lot with the advent of iPhone Games. The iPhone is superior in graphics and performance & can showcase high performance games. Due to the increasing popularity of iPhone, iPod & iPad devices, iOS games are getting more attention from Game lovers. With proper guidance and information about the target audience, a developer can easily start making iOS games .
iPhone game developers start the game development process by downloading Apple's iPhone Software Development Kit (SDK). With SDK, developers can access inner functions and input devices of the iPhone. The iPhone is altering the way portable games are played. These games network with other devices, share screens, and act together in a more instinctive way. The potential of iPhone gaming is great & it remains underutilized till now.
The two primary benefits of making games for the iPhone as opposed to other major platforms, is the cost and accessibility. To make iPhone games, developers have to pay a registration fee to Apple.
Why iPhone Game development ?
- The iPhone platform is being utilized to the full by mobile game developers. Moreover, iPhone developers are available with ease. So, you can find the right developer for your iPhone apps.
- The variety of iOS games available in the app store will surprise anybody. From kids' games to addictive games, you can develop them all on this platform.
- Gives game players options like unlocking certain features, or play more levels. For example, create point levels that make players eligible for discounts during in-app purchases, or let players unlock features and tools based on their game points.
- Selling game apps in iPhone app store is easy compared to other app stores as you get the target audience in the app store itself. Marketing your game will further take you closer to your goals. For every download of a paid game app, the App store shares revenue with the game developer.
- Most people use their phones to play games while traveling or while waiting for a friend or sitting idle. Short levels give players the option of playing for a short time and picking up later without losing progress or points achieved during the game. The other advantage of short levels in a game is that they make games addictive for the player.
- If you want a gaming mobile app to succeed, you should make the game players think. iPhone game apps allow game players to think.
- Adding social features to your iPhone game makes it sticky. Give the game an edge by providing social features.


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You may think wholesome princess books for all ages are those with clean, rated-G content, but we are adding to that by putting some additional qualifiers for this list. We are recommending princess books that you can use to teach good themes or characteristics to your princess lovers.
If you haven't listened yet, head on over to our interview with Dr. Sarah Coyne, professor of human development at Brigham Young University. We talk about books that include some of your children's (and maybe even yours as welll!) favorite characters and how they can be powerful tools in conversations about some really great life lessons.
We divided our list by age categories in order to cover anyone in your family who dreams big and just might have a penchant for the royal side of life.
Picture Books
Once Upon a World (series) by Chloe Perkins and Hannah Eliot (multicultural) pictured here is The Little Mermaid
This set of board books are classic fairy tales that we are all familiar with, but set in different cultures from around the world, giving fresh breath to our list of wholesome princess books in what tends to be a very anglo-centric background for many books retelling the classic princess tales. The illustrations are divine and done by artists from the country or culture each story is set in.
Talking points: What differences and similarities of the Princesses and their cultures to you and your family did you see?
Princess Furball by Anita Lobel
While most recognize this as one of many versions of Cinderella that have gone through time, there are elements of several different fairy tales in it. Even as a kid, I loved chatting about the differences and similarities of this version with the versions we were more familiar with (coughDisneycough). While I love updated versions of classic fairy tales, sometimes there is just as much merit in exploring the folk and fairy tales of old that inspired the versions we know and love.
Talking points: Historicity of fairy/folk tales; where do historical fairy/folk tales come from?
The Paper Bag Princess by Robert Munsch is a classic for a reason. We love that there is Paper Bag Princess Day (March 7th) to celebrate, too. This one appears on many a list, but we couldn't leave it off our own wholesome princess books list.
After a dragon burns down her castle with everything she owns in it and then kidnaps her betrothed prince for a snack, Princess Elizabeth calmly puts on the only thing she has left- a paper bag- and goes about outsmarting the dragon and rescuing the prince.
Talking points: How did Elizabeth feel about the prince at the end of the story vs the beginning of the story?
Olivia and the Fairy Princesses by Ian Falconer
The Olivia books are delightful, and while my (Jill's) kids definitely do not pick up on the subtle humor in them yet, I certainly do. In this one, Olivia, the pig many of us know and love, experiences pink princess fatigue and considers some other options when dressing up, reading stories and dreaming of what to be when she grows up.
Talking points: Why did Olivia not want to be a princess? Who was it that came up with all of the alternatives to playing/being a princess?
Tangled Rapunzel's Journal: Letting Down my Hair is an example of how diverse the Disney princess book collection really is. This is written as if it were Rapunzel's scrapbook or picture journal. It gives more background to Rapunzel as a person and what her life was like before she left her tower. Amanda uses this to teach about journaling and family history work, art as therapy, the concept of bullet journals, art as a form of expression, various kinds of list making, and more. The song in Tangled about "wondering when will my life begin" is a deeper topic that could be discussed with this book, and why Rapunzel felt the need to follow her dreams and leave the tower in the first place.
Talking Points: What would you write in your journal? What do you think Rapunzel means when she sings "when will my life begin?" Do you think Rapunzel is happy when she is in the tower?
Falling for Rapunzel by Leah Wilcox
This is one of those re-imagined fairy tales we mentioned earlier. A series of misheard requests from the prince to Rapunzel in her town humorously leads to confusion and then happiness for all in the end…although not in the way you might expect! Full of rhymes, this one is a delightfully light-hearted option as a wholesome princess books.
Talking points: This one is honestly a great one to simply enjoy the story with the kids. It is such a clever retelling of the story and can lead to chats about how it differs from the original, if your family is familiar with that, as well.
As the longest picture book on our list, this one has plenty of material for starting conversations with your kids. While this is a version of Sleeping Beauty, as you might have guessed, the focu of the story is mainly about how a beautiful princess can be ugly on the inside and a plain girl can be beautiful.
Talking points: What are some of the things that make Miserella ugly on the inside throughout the story? What makes Plain Jane beautiful on the inside?
What is a Princess from the Step Into Reading series is a great book to illustrate what Dr. Coyne says throughout our interview with her.
This book can be a powerful tool to help encourage your reluctant child to read because of the familiar faces. As a parent you can leave it at that, which is great and there are other Disney princess Step Into Reading books as well, but there are several conversation starters here if you want as well. The idea that a princess is pretty is front and center to talk about. This can be really important given the age these books are geared toward.
Talking points: What does a princess actually do (is it hard work?) Do princesses have to look a certain way? What makes a person beautiful?
Juvenile Fiction
Hamster Princess (series) by Ursula Vernon
With six books in the series so far, there is plenty of Princess Harriet Hamsterbone for everyone. She is another princess who takes her fate into her own hands (paws?) and now rides her trusty quail through fairy tale after fairy tale, rodent style.
I (Jill) have only listened to the audiobooks with my older daughter, but the books are apparently graphic-hybrid novels, which…I now want to know what that means. It is an interesting one to me, as well, because while Harriet has many traits that I want my girls to emulate someday, she is also not perfect and has many qualities that I don't want my girls to emulate, which is a great point to start conversations with.
Talking points: Harriet Hamster is a great character, but certainly not perfect. What are some things that you like about Harriet and what are some things that she could work on?
The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo
I (Jill) am such a big fan of Kate DiCamillo and her books that I dream of meeting her one day, so my recommendation may be a bit bias, but I feel like her books are becoming classics for a reason. Despereaux is one of her most well known ones (enough that it has a movie version), but is still well worth reading if you haven't gotten to it yet. While it takes place in a castle and includes many characters you would expect (king, queen, princess…), we follow the story of the mouse who had the moxy to go and fall in love with said princess.
Talking points: A big theme of the book is redemption and forgiveness and so many of the characters' stories can open up conversations about reactions when we go through hard or painful experiences.
The Royal Diaries (series) by various (multicultural) Elizabeth I pictured here
My (Jill) sisters and I devoured this series when we were younger. My love of history started early and I loved this series that focused on the women of history. Written as the diaries kept by royal women from all over the world, usually in their pre-teen and teenage years. While these certainly aren't going to be 100% historically accurate, they definitely piqued my interest in a lot of women and areas of the world that I hadn't been interested in or even knew existed before I read these books!
Talking points: These are great books to talk to a budding historian or history buff on the difference between historical fiction vs. academic history. Where do these books fit in? What are the merits and the limitations of historical fiction?
Princess in Black by Shannon Hale
The Princess in Black series is amazing, because the protagonist, Princess Magnolia, is both a princess AND a superhero! The series was born when one of Hale's young daughters insisted that, "princess don't wear black" and Hale decided to prove her wrong. We are so glad she did, because the result, these books, are amazing!
Talking points: Stereotypes, secret identities and having multiple roles, responsibility, helpfulness.
Disney Princess Beginnings (series) Belle's Discovery pictured here is everything your 4th grader+ would want, and everything you would want for her/him in a wholesome princess book.
These books have great illustrations to accompany the Disney princesses in their childhoods. Each book focuses on worthwhile lessons while staying true to the characters in the beloved movies. It particularly helps to give some deeper perspective to the princesses from the oldest movies. Great for reading aloud to get your family talking about who these princesses really are – because they are so much more than a pretty face.
Talking points: What do you want to be like when you grow up? If someone made a movie about you, what would you want it to be like? What did (character) do when they were younger that helped them become who they are in the movie?
Tangled- The Story of Rapunzel is a great example to have on this list for a way to slow down a princess movie and talk about what's happening.
These books follow the movie script, so it isn't confusing, and makes it easy to pause and discuss what you would like to focus on in your family. Over the course of reading this particular book, Amanda's family defined and discussed optimism, talked about how different people have different personalities, what is right and wrong, how to right your wrongs, selfishness, vanity, hope, and more.
Talking points: Take any of the princess movies your child loves, and dissect it. After selecting what you want to talk about, choose one or two to start with and read the book together! Here's another post to go in depth about this.
Graphic Novels
Jasmine's New Pet is a great introduction to graphic novels. There is a bit of a learning process to reading comics and graphic novels, and this book helps ease young children into the concept of frames, sequencing, etc. Amanda was reading Calvin and Hobbes with her 5-year-old, who enjoys the comics themselves (though the humor is often far above her head), but realized she would benefit from something just like this graphic novel. The book itself focuses on Rajah, which is fun. Themes to focus on include the problem solving process.
Talking points: What problems have you solved today, and how did you do it? Can you help me solve this problem I have? Ask the child to place their finger on the frames as you read through the book.
Diana Princess of the Amazons by Shannon Hale
We know, we know. Shannon Hale again. But, yes. Shannon Hale AGAIN. She knocks wholesome princess books of all kinds out of the park, and this graphic novel is no exception. Diana before she is Wonder Woman has lots of growing-up problems to solve. A particularly good theme to discuss with this book is healthy friendships and solving problems you have with your friends.
Talking points: What does being a good friend mean? What is forgiveness? Have you ever apologized to someone and not really meant it? Is it easy to say you're sorry? What is jealousy?
Mega Princess (series) written by Kelly Thompson
This series can help jumpstart conversations about the roles you were born into and whether or not they are good. It also includes underlying themes of gratitude, problem-solving as a team, keeping an open mind, thinking through things. Mega Princess is also included in Michelle's list of graphic novels over at The Book Report, so be sure to look there for more graphic novel reading ideas.
The Courageous Princess: Beyond the Hundred Kindgoms (trilogy) by Rod Espinosa
This trilogy has one particular aspect that stands out in a princess book: the heroine saves herself when she is captured. Things you can point out to your little princess include biracial families, what true love is, grit/persistence, and prayer.
Princeless: Save Yourself (series) written by Jeremy Whitley
The princess saves herself again in this one! This book may be best suited to talk about gender roles and princess stereotypes, especially when keeping in mind how the males are portrayed. Where the protagonist defies typical princess roles, the men fit the generic mold and her twin brother behaves how one would expect a typical princess (or at least female) to behave when conforming to gender roles. Race is also a discussion point, as well as actually business ethics and ethics/integrity generally.
Talking points: What are gender roles? What is a stereotype? What is feminism? How do expectations affect people? What is rasism?
Princess Books – YA
The Lunar Chronicles (series) by Marissa Meyer is a popular series that well deserves the acclaim, in our opinions. If anyone could write a book about cyborgs, androids and fairy tale characters — while managing to keep Amanda hooked all the way through, it is Marissa Meyer. This series is a great one for your teen or your adult self, and our list of wholesome princess books wouldn't be complete without it.
Talking points: Perhaps one of the most obvious themes weaving through the books is discrimination. Others include redemption, judgement, leadership, government structure and international relations, power and seeking power, and even into healthcare.
Enchanted Forest Chronicles (series) Dealing with Dragons pictured here by Patricia C. Wrede
This is a series of fantasy books written in the early 90s, but they are still delightful today. They follow Princess Cimorene, who never quite got on board with the life of a princess and ends up offering her services to a dragon when her parents try to betroth her to a prince. There are many nods and winks to some more traditional princess stories, but Cimorene's journey is a new and unique one.
Talking points: While Cimorene is a great character to chat about, the dragons themselves are very vibrant and nuanced characters in this story. What do all the different dragons add to the story? Which dragons do you relate to? Which ones would you be willing to be captured by? Why?
Unicorns of Balinor (series) by Mary Stanton
This is one that neither of us have read (yet), but was recommended to us by so many trusted friends when we started asking around about favorite princess books that we couldn't not include it! It has everything! Princesses! Unicorns! Magical worlds! A collie dog!
Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine may be the one, single book that both Jill and Amanda would recommend you read this very instant if you haven't already. And if you have, we would like to heartily encourage you to read it again. And again. And again. This spin on a Cinderella story is full of great things, most notable being the fantastic main character: a strong female lead who is independent, funny, smart, and flawed in ways that make her approachable and human. In short, this is everything you'd want in your library of wholesome princess books.
Talking points: What would your life be like if you had to be obedient? Is it easy or hard for you to keep secrets? Did you guess how the curse would be broken? Would Ella make a good queen, why/why not? Are there still finishing schools – would you want to go to one?
Shannon Hale (author) (Goose Girl pictured here, Princess Academy, Ever After High)
Shannon Hale is an amazingly versatile author (not many authors can navigate writing graphic novels, juvenile fiction, Young Adult fiction AND adult fiction quite as seamlessly as she does!) and many of her books, such has her Goose Girl, Princess Academy and Ever After High series will be perfect for anyone looking for a well-written, unique princess story.
Talking points: She has so many books that you can start pretty much any sort of conversation you want using her stories! Hale writes some very solid female protagonists with many characteristics well worth emulating and well worth exploring in discussions.
Robin McKinley (author) pictured here is Beauty
Beauty may be McKinley's most well-known work, but she wrote another retelling of Beauty and the Beast 20 years later called Rose Daughter. Another directly related princess tale is her retelling of Sleeping Beauty, called Spindle's End. Each book is expertly written and equally enchanting.
Talking points: Rose Daughter is slightly more mature (though still clean) and is great to talk about emotions and symbolism, and obsession. All three books are good for talking about the nature of love, if "instalove" is possible, or what it takes to have a good relationship with your significant other. Kindness is a strong theme as well. What does it mean to be kind-hearted? Is there a difference between being kind or being nice? Is it worthwhile to be kind?
The False Princess by Eilis O'Neal
This book is grouped with Ella Enchanted and Goose Girl by Janssen Bradshaw from Everyday Reading. We need no more recommendation than that! Janssen mentions in her review that the main character, Sinda, isn't overly perfect. She is normal, makes mistakes – she's human. In a world of perfectly primped princesses in all forms of media, this is a great topic to discuss.
Melanie Cellier (author) pictured is a Dance of Silver and Shadow from Beyond the Four Kingdoms (series)
There's no shortage of fairytale princess books in the multiple series written by Melanie Cellier. These are very new to the world of audiobooks (produced in 2019-2020), so you may need to ask your library for them if you're looking for them on Libby. Cellier weaves the most popular princess stories together with ease, creating a very regal and enticing tapestry. They are clean, wholesome princess books, and give depth to the characters many may only seen on the big screen.
Talking points: (There are a lot here because there are a lot of books) What are the different kinds of governments, and what kinds use lineage for the heirs? How are these stories different than what you have heard for Beauty and the Beast, The Little Mermaid, etc. and what do you like/dislike about these? What is the worth of a person – do royals (or leaders) deserve better treatment than others? What difference does having money or a title make in the way someone may be raised and their success in life? Is it possible to be critical of yourself and still be kind to and confident in yourself?
More Book Lists for Princess Lovers
For more princess books (because really, who can get enough of them?), check out a few more recommendation lists:
Everyday Reading – 10 Fantastic Princess Books Worth Reading
Brightly – You Won't Find Your Average Princess in these 10 Books
A Mighty Girl – The Ultimate Guide to the Independent Princess
Goodreads – Best Princess Tales
Riveted – The 15 Secret Princesses of YA
Princess Books for all ages Wrap-up
This post has been incredibly long, but each of these books are beloved by us, and we still feel like we have missed some really good ones! Do you have a favorite princess book? Or your child? Let us know in the comments so others can find it!
You may be interested in:
Don't miss our related superhero book list full of great reads for all ages.
Coming soon is our YA and adult booklist we have divided into different categories to help you find your next read.


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How to Save 11% Off an Apple Watch Series 4 at Sport Chek
If you are looking for a deal on the latest Apple Watch Series 4, you can do so by purchasing it from Sport Chek, as the retailer now has aluminum models in stock.
To save your 11% off, you need to shop via eBates.ca, as the latter currently is offering 3% cash back at SportChek.ca.
This 3% cash back is then coupled with an eBates.ca $45 cash back bonus for spending over $350 at Sport Chek, saving you $61.77 in total, or 11% off Apple.ca's retail price of $559 for the 44mm model.
With the savings, you can put the extra cash towards a new Apple Watch band or something else (like repairing the burning hole in your wallet from buying an iPhone XS Max + Series 4).
Advantages of buying from Sport Chek online versus Apple? You have 60 days to return your Apple Watch if you change mind, versus just 14 days from Apple.
Click here to sign up for an eBates.ca account, if you don't have one already.
[via RFD]


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I sure love full moons out here in New Mexico. :-)
This was after my first real estate shot. Can you imagine the view from that house?
Debunking myths on genetics and DNA
Musings on writing, genetics and photography. Sign up for my newsletter to get notified of promotions, ARCs, and free stories.
Thursday, January 23, 2014
January Moonrise
Posted by EEGiorgi at 10:12 AM
Labels: My photos
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The government of Colombia and the country's largest remaining guerrilla group have agreed to a bilateral ceasefire, but the rebels' lack of unity may make enforcement difficult.
On September 4, Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos announced that the ceasefire with the National Liberation Army (Ejército Nacional de Liberación - ELN) will begin on October 1, and last until January 12, 2018.
In addition to halting attacks on Colombian security forces, the ELN will also be expected to stop targeting civilians with kidnappings, destroying infrastructure, recruiting minors and laying down landmines.
"The priority is to protect citizens," the president said.
For its part, the Colombian government has promised to suspend military operations against the group, to provide protection for social leaders who are being killed in large numbers, and to improve conditions for imprisoned guerrillas.
The announcement comes just days before a visit to Colombia by Pope Francis, the head of the Roman Catholic Church. The church has backed the peace process between the government and the ELN's guerrilla counterparts, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia - FARC), who signed a peace deal last year.
SEE ALSO: Coverage of FARC Peace
A joint statement published on Twitter says that the ceasefire will be monitored by a body backed by the Colombian government, the ELN, the United Nations and the Catholic Church.*
Gobierno y Eln acuerdan cese bilateral del fuego y de hostilidades desde el 1 de octubre hasta el 12 de enero. Vea el comunicado conjunto ? pic.twitter.com/zVYUZPhQkO
— Equipo Paz Gobierno (@EquipoPazGob) 4 de septiembre de 2017
InSight Crime Analysis
Although the ELN has argued vehemently for a bilateral ceasefire as a measure that could build confidence in the peace negotiations, it has struggled to demonstrate that it can control its rank and file. Criminal activities by guerrillas -- particularly kidnapping -- could be considered violations of the ceasefire agreement, if they continue.
SEE ALSO: Coverage of ELN Peace
And even if a deal should eventually be reached, InSight Crime's reporting suggests that many members of the group may choose to defect from the peace process in order to continue engaging in lucrative illicit activities like drug trafficking and illegal mining.
It will be important for ELN negotiators to deliver more concrete advances like the ceasefire agreement in order to build confidence among the ranks about the viability of the negotiations. However, as the process with the FARC illustrated, the issue of post-peace criminalization is a crucial theme that must be addressed by both sides in order to mitigate the likelihood of dissidence.
* This piece has been updated to include the document released by the Colombian government.


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If you need to know which are the sugar/glucose reference ranges or you require more information about the role of sugar/glucose in the blood, you can visit normal sugar/glucose level in the blood
Hypoglycemia (low blood sugar/glucose level) usually means that the pancreas produces too much insulin.
Blood sugar values are usually given in mg/dl but sometimes you can see those values in mmol/l following the International System of Units (SI). In case your values are in mmol/l you can convert them using this tool:
Mild hypoglycemia is not usually a cause for concern but you and your doctor need to be aware and careful if there are other symptoms associated.
It often happens when you are suffering from diabetes and you are taking too much insulin.
Moderate hypoglycemia usually causes hunger, headache, sweating and weakness.
If you are not taking anti-diabetic drugs, it is recommended to visit your doctor. He should advise you what to do.
You may be hungry, sweaty and confused with blurred vision and uncoordinated movements. You can also suffer from tachycardia.
Moderate to severe traumatic brain injury can appear with prolonged low glucose levels.
Low glucose level due to an underlying disease is very common. For example, as a result of a small tumor in the pancreas called insulinoma. Therefore, you must look for medical assistance.
Severe hypoglycemia can be subsequent to or a consequence of another disease. Therefore, it is important to study your circumstances and any other information relevant for the diagnosis.
With such a low value, you can have seizures, convulsions or a loss of consciousness (coma). You need to look for urgent medical attention because you are probably unable to eat or drink.
To suffer a concreted health situation or to be taking some drugs can reduce your blood sugar/glucose level:
The following diseases can explain a blood sugar/glucose level lower than normal:
If your blood sugar/glucose level is slightly low (55 - 70 mg/dl in adults) you can add sugary food to your diet (fruit juice, sweets, grapes, raisins, pineapple, etc.)
If your sugar blood is extremely low (< 50 mg/dl in adults) you should be advised to take Glucagon to regulate the rate of glucose production and counterbalance the action of insulin.
You can visit our pages about:
The following values are considered to be below the normal range:
IMPORTANT: These levels are expressed in mg/dl. They are an example of a healthy man of about 45 years of age with no known disease and not taking any medication. The ranges can be different depending on the laboratory or on your personal circumstances.
Blood Sugar
|Mild hypoglycemia
|69 mg/dl
|68 mg/dl
|67 mg/dl
|66 mg/dl
|65 mg/dl
|64 mg/dl
|63 mg/dl
|62 mg/dl
|61 mg/dl
|60 mg/dl
|59 mg/dl
|58 mg/dl
|57 mg/dl
|56 mg/dl
|55 mg/dl
|Moderate hypoglycemia
|54 mg/dl
|53 mg/dl
|52 mg/dl
|51 mg/dl
|50 mg/dl
|49 mg/dl
|48 mg/dl
|47 mg/dl
|46 mg/dl
|45 mg/dl
|44 mg/dl
|43 mg/dl
|42 mg/dl
|41 mg/dl
|40 mg/dl
|Marked hypoglycemia
|39 mg/dl
|38 mg/dl
|37 mg/dl
|36 mg/dl
|35 mg/dl
|34 mg/dl
|33 mg/dl
|32 mg/dl
|31 mg/dl
|30 mg/dl
|Severe hypoglycemia
|29 mg/dl
|28 mg/dl
|27 mg/dl
|26 mg/dl
|25 mg/dl
|24 mg/dl
|23 mg/dl
|22 mg/dl
|21 mg/dl
|20 mg/dl
|19 mg/dl
|18 mg/dl
|17 mg/dl
|16 mg/dl
|15 mg/dl
|14 mg/dl
|13 mg/dl
|12 mg/dl
|11 mg/dl
|10 mg/dl
|9 mg/dl
|8 mg/dl
|7 mg/dl
|6 mg/dl
|5 mg/dl
|4 mg/dl
|3 mg/dl
|2 mg/dl
|1 mg/dl
|0 mg/dl
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I warned Democrats that hell cometh after the midterms. And so it begins for the Clintons.
As reported by Judicial Watch:
In 2016, Hillary Clinton was required to submit, under oath, written answers to Judicial Watch's questions. Clinton objected to and refused to answer questions about the creation of her email system; her decision to use the system despite warnings from State Department cybersecurity officials; and the basis for her claim that the State Department had "90-95%" of her emails. Judge Sullivan is considering Judicial Watch's motion to compel answers to these questions.
In her responses sent to Judicial Watch and the court on October 13, 2016, Clinton refused to answer three questions and responded that she "does not recall" 20 times concerning her non-government clintonemail.com email system. She preceded her responses by eight "general objections" and two "objections to definitions." The words "object" or "objection" appear 84 times throughout the 23-page document submitted to the court and Judicial Watch.
The Clintons' Day of Reckoning approaches. Now, this family of crooks and scoundrels must answer questions from a Department of Justice no longer filled with Clinton-supporting swamp rats.
And this is only the beginning. The Clinton Foundation has been under an FBI investigation for months.
Here's what NBC reported:
A Trump administration official said Friday that a revived investigation of the Clinton Foundation "has been going on for months."
The Hill newspaper reported that FBI agents from Little Rock, Arkansas, recently conducted an interview with a potential witness. The paper said the Justice Department "has launched a new inquiry" into the foundation.
But the administration official said the investigation was quietly re-opened several months ago.
We reported that while former Attorney General Jeff Sessions was ineffective in wrangling Mueller's farce, he did do something right:
He explained that while what Sessions has done doesn't look like much, he's actually done quite a bit. For one thing, the Fed is investigating The Clinton Foundation. But what's more important is how Sessions avoided the swamp.
As CNN reported,
Federal authorities are actively investigating allegations of corruption related to the Clinton Foundation, the charity of Bill and Hillary Clinton, according to a US official briefed on the matter.
The FBI and federal prosecutors are looking into whether donors to the foundation were improperly promised policy favors or special access to Hillary Clinton while she was secretary of state in exchange for donations to the charity's coffers, as well as whether tax-exempt funds were misused, the official said.
The investigation, led by the FBI field office in Little Rock, Arkansas, is being overseen by the US attorney's office in the state, according to the source.
It's unclear precisely what, if any, new evidence ignited the current federal investigation, after initial inquiries had stalled prior to the 2016 election.
The Justice Department declined to comment to CNN, citing a general policy of not confirming or denying the existence of active investigations. The US attorney's office in Arkansas declined to comment.
So Sessions initiated this investigation in Arkansas, not DC. Thus prying eyes of swamp rats get no view.
The FBI field office in Little Rock. An office devoid of the sycophants of James Comey leads the investigation.
Is what we're seeing now the fruit of Sessions' labor?
One can certainly hope.
On thing is for sure, and that is Hillary Clinton and company won't find nearly as amenable a Department of Justice as they did in the past.
I'd love to be a DC insider hanging around the Clinton clan. I suspect a few of them already grabbed their bugout bags and headed for their prepper homes. When it comes to the Clintons better safe than sorry in getting off the grid.
As for the rest of DC, particularly other Obama administration members, the executioner comes for you too, soon.


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ImageTrend hosting virtual meet-up in response to rapidly evolving COVID-19 crisis
LAKEVILLE, Minn. — ImageTrend, Inc. is hosting Virtual Meet-Up, a two-day webinar series on industry hot topics on April 8 and 9. In response to the rapidly evolving COVID-19 situation, Virtual Meet-Up will deliver our originally scheduled regional events that were located throughout the country directly to you in a virtual setting.
Virtual Meet-Up is designed for anyone who is interested in learning more about tackling industry-wide challenges – regardless of the software vendor you are using. Over the course of the two-day webinar series, discussions will cover topics such as identifying trends, improving communications and overcoming documentation challenges. Virtual Meet-Up will kick off with an update on ImageTrend's response to COVID-19. To view the full list of webinar topics and to register for the individual webinars, click here.
"The health and safety of event participants and the ImageTrend community is our greatest concern, and we know that many of you are also facing difficult situations in the communities you live in and serve," President and COO of ImageTrend Joe Graw said. "We at ImageTrend are proud to bring these conversations and resources to participants in a virtual setting."
ImageTrend remains committed to maintaining an open conversation and actively engaging with the public health and safety industry to deliver tools and resources to positively impact our communities. Questions can be sent to email@example.com.
About ImageTrend, Inc.
ImageTrend, Inc. is dedicated to connecting life's most important data in the healthcare and emergency response community. ImageTrend delivers software solutions, data analytics and services for EMS, hospitals, community paramedicine (CP), critical care, fire, and preparedness to enable fully integrated patient-centric healthcare and public safety. ImageTrend's commitment to innovation, its clients, and providing world-class implementation and support is unsurpassed. Based in Lakeville, Minn., ImageTrend combines business analysis, creative design and data driven architecture to offer scalable solutions and strategies for today and the future.


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Cut different kinds of melon into a variety of shapes, using cookie cutters, melon ballers or a small knife. Mix them together or add summer berries.
Adhere letter stickers to the watermelon, trace with a permanent marker, then use a linoleum cutter (available at craft stores) to etch away the skin.
Instant Star
Press a large star cookie cutter into the watermelon, then cut along the lines with a paring knife and remove the shape. Scoop the fruit out with a metal spoon and fill with assorted berries.
Drink Dispenser
Drink Dispenser
Using a paring knife and working at an angle, cut around one end of an oval watermelon to create a lid, then scoop out the fruit with a metal spoon. With a clean screwdriver, poke a hole about a third of the way up the watermelon, then use a paring knife to make it slightly smaller than your spigot (Stainless Works Beverage Spigot, $13.95; Amazon.com). Gently screw in the spigot so it fits snugly. Handwrite " Enjoy" above the spigot in permanent marker, then use a linoleum cutter to trace the letters and etch away the skin. Fill with watermelon limeade, then replace the lid and position on a stand.
Sweet Ladybug
Halve a small red or lady apple. Cut a slit in the rounded side, then poke holes and insert peppercorn spots. Use half a toothpick to attach a blackberry gummy candy for the head, then push in apple stems for antennae.
Hungry Hippo
Use a permanent marker to draw a large mouth on one end of an oval watermelon, then cut out with a paring knife; reserve the rind. Scoop out the fruit with a melon baller, then return to the mouth along with berries. From the reserved rind, cut four teeth, two half-circles and two slightly smaller circles for eyes, plus two teardrop ears. Use a linoleum cutter to etch away the skin on the teeth, eyes and ears as shown, then attach using toothpicks. Finish by etching nostrils and wrinkles next to the eyes.
Swimming Dolphins
For the bowl Use a permanent marker to draw a simple wave design around the center of a small watermelon. With a large serrated knife, split the melon just above the design. Use a melon baller to scoop out the fruit; discard the top. Use a paring knife to cut along the wave line, discarding the pieces in between the pattern; repeat to smooth the edges. Return the melon balls to the bowl, adding other fruit, if desired.
For the dolphins Slice the stem of a banana, spritz with lemon juice (to keep from browning) and place a small raspberry inside. Poke holes and insert peppercorn eyes, then attach grapefruit gummy candies with toothpicks for fins and a tail, as shown. Position the dolphin inside or next to the wave bowl.
The Tortoise and The Frog
For the tortoise Use a large serrated knife to cut an oval watermelon in half lengthwise. Scoop out the fruit. Draw a shell design in permanent marker on one half and add a matching border on the other half. With a linoleum cutter, trace the shell design to etch away the skin. From a second watermelon, cut five 4-in. pieces of rind for the head and legs; attach to the bottom half using toothpicks. Affix candy eyeballs with corn syrup. Fill with fruit, then use the top shell as a lid.
For the frog With a paring knife, cut a mouth into a round watermelon. From the cutout, carve a watermelon tongue and use a melon baller and the knife to make eyes from the rind; attach using toothpicks. Use a screwdriver to poke nostrils. From a second watermelon, use a large serrated knife to cut off the end, then cut it in half to create the two hind legs. Next, cut two 1-in.-thick wedges for the front legs. Using a paring knife, cut four feet from the rind. Secure, as shown, with toothpicks. When ready to serve, cut into pieces.


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The pope may be a hit with millennials, but God is not.
Multiple studies this year confirm: As Quartz first reported in June, a survey of several studies spanning nearly 50 years and 11 million US students, published in PLoS ONE, shows that American millennials are far less religious than previous generations. Among college students, in particular, the study found that the nation's percentage of nonbelievers has tripled since the late 1960s.
Attendance at religious services has also plummeted; whereas very few students opted out of church services in the early 1970s, more than a quarter of millennials abstained in the 2010s.
"Overall," the study says, "these results suggest that the lower religious orientation of Millennials is due to time period or generation, and not to age." While studies have always shown that younger people tend to be less religious, this multi-decade analysis demonstrates an actual shift in American culture.
Another study conducted by the Pew Research Center, also published in May, found similar results. Unlike the PLoS ONE study above, which looks at historical data on students, this one polled across generations to see where they stand today.
The Pew study found not only that a large portion of young Americans identify as atheist or agnostic, but also that older millennials become even less religious as they age. And non-belief, as it turns out, appears to have "a higher retention rate than most other major religious groups," the study observes: 67% of millennials who were raised without religion remain unaffiliated later in life.