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By Susan Tretakis – Coral Springs, Florida – I have a friend – who – unlike myself – is not known for speaking outside of the assigned politically correct language rules.
She was however, quick to say, when I told her about this article and my experiences last month, that "her sciatica is a bigger pain in the butt than her first and second husbands combined."
For those of us who suffer from sciatica, it really is no joke.
There is tons of information about sciatica online; you can watch collected YouTube videos for nearly a month proclaiming how you can prevent sciatica. Online you can read FDA and patient testimonials about pain killers.
Or you can be like me, remain in bed, on a heating pad, wondering why this is happening to me AGAIN – and just generally give into a mega-self-pity party. And there in bed I stayed, missing my acupuncture appointment, missing my gym appointments, missing writing deadlines because sitting for any extended period was truly, an "impossible dream".
Intellectually, I knew that TCM, acupuncture and Chinese cupping – known as "Hijama" – could help alleviate my pain. In fact, I knew a great deal – intellectually – about sciatica:
- The sciatic nerve is the longest nerve in the body – one of the reasons it can cause major discomfort not just in your lower back, but down your entire leg.
- There can be pain in your lower back or hip region.
- Pain worsens when sitting – definitely not a good thing for someone who writes at a computer.
- Pain can be supplanted by burning, weakness, and numbness in either the foot or leg.
- Pain can be continuous.
Standing up – once you manage to sit – to type the email that says your article will be late – can result in massive shooting pains from your lower back and down your leg.
Emotionally, I was a mess.
It's only when I received a telephone call from my acupuncturist – threatening a home visit – which meant I would have to get up and clean my house so he would not think I am both a pathetic set of illnesses AND a messy housekeeper – that I chose the lesser of two difficulties: I pushed myself to slide sideways into the car and, and embarrassed, drove to his office.
So, there I stood in his office, listening to him explain that one of the great strengths of Traditional Chinese Medicine is that it takes the time to understand exactly how the problem manifests itself. This means – yes, not all sciatica is the same – and therefore not treated the same in every patient. While acupuncture and cupping points are sometimes shared from patient to patient – treatment is unique to the individual.
I knew from my on-going conventional methods of dealing with sciatica that the term is used rather loosely by main-stream medical practitioners. I also knew that sciatica is caused by a compression of the nerve roots that exit the spine in the lower back – or what medical professionals refer to as the sacral region. I also knew that the most common treatments – from the western side – were pain medications and time. Neither appealed to me; I don't want to become reliant on pain medications and I have already been far too unproductive for too long a period of time. I vividly remember the cortisone injections – which lasted for only a month. I also know that one can aggravate their sciatica at any age after doing anything – and I take complete responsibility for being totally at fault for letting this get to this point.
Did I mention that I was STILL standing in my doctors' office, propped against the wall?
Eventually, I made it to the table – and my acupuncturist began his usual magic. But this time, after checking my tongue and both pulses – which after 3 years of him doing so – still confounds my western training – and listened to him as he suggested we began with cupping.
I have been in this situation before; in fact, my research for this article led me back to one of my earliest posts on cupping. The problem is that for many – like myself – sciatica is always on the horizon and this time, I was just not as proactive as I should have been.
Yes, I admit it – this was a mega TCM fail.
With cupping, TCM practitioners place cups along the length of the nerve and upon any structures that may be compressing it. Known as "Hijama", cupping applies negative pressure or suction to any tight muscles surrounding the sciatic nerve. It relieves the pressure caused by tight muscles and nourishes the parts of the nerves that may have been damaged by a restricted blood flow. Cupping also helps the body naturally remove any trapped cellular waste that may be hindering the function of the sciatic nerve.
Related – learn more about Chinese Cupping for Sciatic Pain
Like acupuncture, cupping follows the lines of the meridians. There are five meridian lines on the back, and this is where the cups are usually placed. Because my pain continued down my leg, cups were placed there as well. Using these points, cupping strives to "open" these channels – the paths through which the life energy flows freely throughout the body, through all tissues and organs, thus providing a smoother and more free-flowing "Qi" (life force).
My doctor, probably wishing to distract me from the pain – which I realize now both my pain and embarrassment were only making things worse – softly explained that Chinese cupping is one of the best deep-tissue therapies available. It is thought to affect tissues up to four inches deep from the external skin. Toxins can be released, blockages can be cleared and veins and arteries can be refreshed within these four inches. Research has shown that hands, wrists, legs, and ankles can be cupped, thus applying the healing to specific organs that correlate with these points.
People have told me that pictures of Chinese cupping scares them – that it looks painful. Trust me, I am no "pain warrior"; I can hurt myself by putting on sneakers or wrestling into and out of a sports bra. But cupping does not hurt – it's not a burning or pinching feel – it's simply lifting your muscle off of the nerve. In two words: it's heaven.
And as I lay there last week, I wondered why it took me so long to just admit I hurt.
My acupuncturist likes to follow cupping with an acupuncture session; he believes that patients – stressed patients from pain, embarrassment, anger, whatever – deserve to be sent into a "Zen zone" after treatment.
Yes, I love acupuncture for what it can do for my over-thinking mind – but research tells us that sciatica is frequently treated by acupuncture. In a published and acclaimed study in "The Efficacy of Acupuncture for The Treatment of Sciatica: A Systematic and Meta-Analysis", the authors did a comprehensive review of twelve studies involving over 1500 participants on acupuncture's effectiveness. Results show that acupuncture treatments are far more effective than conventional western medicine. Another study, completed in 2017, shows that the effectiveness of acupuncture and herbal medicine for the treatment of sciatica were found to be extremely effective treatments. In fact, as a stand-alone therapy, acupuncture had a total effective rate of nearly 82% for pain relief and return-to-normal functioning for the patient.
I asked my doctor about this; he explained that by inserting small needles into specific sites on the body, the acupuncture needles trigger a response from the nervous system. This response from the nervous system leads the brain to release a cascade of natural painkillers, known as endorphins and enkephalins. Acupuncture increases the blood flow to the painful area as well.
TCM puts great faith in the body healing itself and while I generally agree with this, the past three weeks had created a bit of a "crisis of faith". My pain would come and go. It followed no rhyme or reason. Then again, when does this thing we refer to as "life" have either rhyme or reason?
Here's my takeaway from all of this: I know I have a family predisposition to sciatica. I vividly remember my mother being at home, on the couch, clasped in some kind of leg-extension contraption which elongated her leg because her doctor told her "Reading for too long can cause sciatica issues."
I love to read – and can easily spend 4-5 hours in the same place SEATED on the patio or couch with a book.
I love to write – and can also easily spend 4-5 hours SEATED at the keyboard.
Now that I am retired, I can easily spend 4-5 hours SEATED in front of a sketchpad or easel.
Perhaps it is time for me to take TCM teachings beyond just eating and drinking differently; maybe it is time to realize that my Qi is dependent on how I treat my body from a physical viewpoint. I can set alarms – thanks to Alexa and Fitbit – to stand every hour. Research from chiropractors and physical therapists tell us that simply standing every hour for 5 minutes can greatly reduce the stress on our sciatic nerve. Kindly reminders from my acupuncturist tell me the same.
I just have to do it. And therein lies the issue: do I care enough for myself to do so?
Fully incorporating TCM into a life where the first 65 years were woven into conventional medicine is another post for another time.
Right now, I am thinking about the fact that while western research tells me that sciatica can come and go there is a great deal I can do to bypass its pain and its disabilities. Research tells me that sciatic pain can take up to six weeks to go away – unless there are severe underlying causes. That in itself is enough to make me set those alarms, and put a standing work-desk on my Amazon wish list.
Right now, I want to remind everyone that you do not need to be in pain from sciatica; there are options. Options who NEVER remind you how silly or foolish you may be.
Sciatica – what nerve – but it does kick ass.
The Acupuncturists accept insurance and serve the communities of Margate, Coconut Creek, Coral Springs, Tamarac, Parkland, Deerfield Beach, West Boca and offer free consultations daily.
- Dr. Landon Agoado, Care Wellness Center
- https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/7619.php
- https://www.webmd.com/back-pain/what-is-sciatica#1
- https://www.dc-acupuncture.com/physical-health/how-acupuncture-works-for-sciatica
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4575738/
- https://www.spineuniverse.com/conditions/sciatica/alternative-treatments-sciatica-acupuncture-acupressure-biofeedback-yoga
- https://www.acupuncture.org.uk/public-content/public-ask-an-expert/ask-an-expert-muscles-and-bones/ask-an-expert-muscles-and-bones-sciatica/3935-can-acupuncture-help-sciatica.html
- https://www.sanfrancisconaturalmedicine.com/natural-health-news/sciatica
- https://www.zeel.com/t/acupuncture/expert-answers/will-acupuncture-help-my-sciatica
- https://puretherapyclinic.wordpress.com/2017/08/04/can-hijama-cupping-cure-sciatica/
- https://www.byrdie.com/best-alternative-healing-methods


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subset: commoncrawl


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Karl Rove and other top Republicans are reportedly backing a new effort to bring the GOP into the digital age. According to The Wall Street Journal, the Republican National Committee is working with investor Dick Boyce and Sun Microsystems co-founder Scott McNealy on a "digital platform" for campaigning and fundraising. While plans for the project were apparently presented in late February, its goals are apparently still being pinned down. The Journal reports that the "central digital campaign tool" would be meant for use by all Republican candidates and organizations, and that it would be an "interactive platform with multiple applications" to organize and analyze data the GOP collected about voters.
The new venture is likely an attempt to counter Democratic counterparts like Obama's Narwhal campaign tool, which is widely considered to have trounced Romney's own Orca in the 2012 election. By creating a centralized platform for campaigning, core Republican leadership may also be attempting to connect with a "Facebook generation" that sees mainline conservative leadership as out of touch and technologically impotent. Besides its technological efforts, it's also considering holding an earlier National Convention and increasing outreach to minorities or West Coast voters who may be younger and more tech-savvy, revamping the party's overall strategy after defeats in 2012.


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The DNA in seawater can reveal the diversity and abundance of fish species living in ocean waters. Christopher Intagliata reports.
DNA Samples Find a Lot of Fish in the Sea
The way we sample much of the world's oceans, to see what's living down there, is pretty basic: Ask fishermen. Or just stick a net down there, and examine what we catch. Neither method is ideal. "Because you basically catch the fish and kill them." Philip Francis Thomsen, a biologist at the Natural History Museum of Denmark. Another drawback, he says, is you can't do it everywhere. "If the bottom is too soft, or too rocky, or there's a coral reef, you don't want to use this invasive method above sensitive habitat."
So Thomsen and his team investigated an alternative, that's been used in freshwater with some success: they sampled the diversity and abundance of marine life using something called environmental DNA, or "eDNA." Basically, genetic material that fish leave behind. "So that is all sorts of bodily fluids that are expelled by the fish during its lifetime." And beyond its lifetime too—like when one fish gets eaten, and its remains get expelled in the fecal matter of another. Bingo: eDNA.
Thomsen and his colleagues sampled seawater at various depths off the southwest coast of Greenland. And then fished out the eDNA in those samples. The researchers were able to identify 26 of the 28 fish families caught in the same area in trawling nets—and at similar abundances, too. They also found a few unique families missed by the nets, and lots of DNA from a species that, in net samples, seemed rare: the Greenland shark.
"We found the shark in almost all of the samples. That is because the shark just avoids the trawl. So here's an example of a species that is actually better surveyed by the environmental DNA than the trawling." The study is in the journal PLoS ONE. [Philip Francis Thomsen et al., Environmental DNA from Seawater Samples Correlate with Trawl Catches of Subarctic, Deepwater Fishes]
The technique's not quite ready for primetime in the marine setting: for one, ocean currents could transport a species' DNA far from where the fish may actually be found, and give inaccurate measures. But in the future, it might take the fishing out of fish surveys.
—Christopher Intagliata
[The above text is a transcript of this podcast.]


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Mobile Phones
International Travel and Phone Calls
The phone you have is almost certainly a GSM device. GSM or 'Global System for Mobile Telecommunication is a worldwide standard. It works on agreed frequencies and network standards which are identical the world over.
Best time to buy iPhone 7 is six weeks after launch
Some people will be getting their hands on the new iPhone 7 for the first time, but new analysis from MoneySuperMarket reveals the best time to buy the much talked about new handset is actually on 14th October – six weeks after the official launch date (9th September).
comparethemarket.com launches mobile phone comparison
comparethemarket.com has launched a new service that allows customers to compare mobile phone deals. The service has been developed to allow consumers simple comparison of new mobile phone contracts, filtering options by budget, phone model, usage and contract length.
EE reaches 7.7 million 4G customers as network expansion continues
EE, the UK's largest mobile operator, added a record 5.7million customers to the 4G network in 2014, with 1.7 million in the last two months alone.
Vodafone UK customers able to use 4G in 40 destinations worldwide in time for the festive period
Vodafone UK customers will be able to take advantage of ultrafast 4G roaming in 40 countries with the addition of 17 destinations in time for Christmas and the New Year.
Government secures landmark deal for UK mobile phone users
Consumers and businesses set to benefit from guaranteed £5bn investment into UK's mobile infrastructure.
EE launches 4G+ network in Central London
EE has switched on its 4G+ network in central London. The next step in 4G technology – also known as LTE-Advanced – will give customers access to one of the fastest networks in the world, delivering real world mobile data speeds of 150Mbps to a smartphone.
EE refreshes SIM Only 4G plans
EE, UK digital communications company, has launched a refreshed range of 4G SIM Only plans, designed to simplify the variety of options to best suit customers' needs.
EE revamps pay as you go market with 4g packs
EE has launched a range of market leading Pay As You Go (PAYG) packs with 4G included in all at no extra cost – starting from just £1 per week.
EE customers get 4G speeds in 16 more countries this Bank Holiday
EE announced it has extended access to superfast 4G for customers travelling to 16 countries. The deals are the latest in a series of outbound roaming agreements that will allow EE customers to enjoy 4G speeds in the world's most popular travel destinations.
Tesco launches free 4G pay as you go deal
Commenting on the launch of Tesco's free 4G pay as you go package, Rob Kerr, mobiles expert at uSwitch.com says: "Tesco's new free 4G pay as you go offering now gives it the edge on the competition of the other MVNOs, Giffgaff and Virgin Mobile.
Huge cuts in mobile data roaming price caps from 1 July
From 1 July 2014, the EU will cut the price caps for data downloads by more than half: down from 45 cents per megabyte to 20c/MB. It will become even cheaper to use maps, watch videos, check mails and update social networks while travelling across the EU.
Missed mobile payments could cost you the home of your dreams
Mobile phone users are unwittingly putting their chances of getting credit, including mortgages, at risk by paying their mobile phone bills late or missing payments altogether, according to a survey on behalf of mortgages and loans broker OceanFinance.co.uk.
England football fans could face £5,000 mobile penalty from Brazil World Cup
England fans heading to the World Cup in Brazil next month could be stung with eye-watering mobile phone bills of £4,859 if they opt out of automatic mobile data limits imposed by most networks, according to new research from uSwitch.com.
Over 9 million mobile users could be unwittingly paying for handsets they've already paid off
More than 9 million mobile phone owners could be forking out money each month for handsets that have already been paid off in full, according to new research by uSwitch.com.


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Great holiday gift ideas for all ages!
Affiliate links are used in this post. If you make a qualifying purchase via my link, I receive a small percentage of the sale at no additional cost to you. I only recommend products and services I use and love. It helps support my blog, so thank you for your support! Read my full disclosure here.
The holiday season is fully upon us, which means most of us have Christmas shopping to get done. Some folks are already finished, which is awesome. I am not one of those folks, though! In fact, I think I'm farther behind than usual this year, but I'll get there.
I've been hard at work coming up with holiday gift ideas for you over the last couple of weeks to help myself as well. But, I'm still just one person. I can't come up with every gift idea ever. So, I turned to some fellow bloggers for their ideas as well — and they haven't disappointed.
I've put together a round-up for you of some great holiday gift ideas to make your shopping easier!
Christmas gifts for just about anyone
15 gifts under $20 for almost everyone on your list
Quirky fun gifts under $25 for everyone on your list
Christmas gifts for kiddos
More than 100 children's books worth reading
5 Cheap games for small children the whole family will love
Holiday gift guide for creative kids
30 best video games for kids on the Nintendo Switch
Ultimate gift guide for ages 1-3
STEAM and STEM gift ideas for 2-year-olds
Allergy-friendly Christmas gift guide
Christmas gifts for adults
Gifts under $25 that are for your mom tribe
The gift guide for natural moms
The ultimate gift guide for her
$50 and under gift ideas for dads (all dad-approved)
Looking for more Christmas ideas? Check out these posts!


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Perspective of Sentinel-1 for Land Applications
Defourny, Pierre1; Bériaux, Emilie1; Gamba, Paolo2; Leonard, Aline1; Pathe, Carsten3; Santoro, Maurizio4; Schmullius, Chris3; Wegmüller, Urs4
1Earth and Life Institute - Université catholique de Louvain, BELGIUM; 2Department of Electronics - University of Pavia, ITALY; 3Earth Observation - Friedrich-Schiller-University Jena, GERMANY; 4Gamma Remote Sensing, SWITZERLAND
Since 20 years the all-weather observation capabilities of SAR instruments have been successfully illustrated for many potential land applications. In particular, the intensity of the backscattering signal in C-band was found related to various terrestrial variables, such as the water surface, fresh biomass, the soil moisture, the soil roughness, the forest type, etc. However the development of potentially operational monitoring system has been often hampered by scares time series and lack of continuity in SAR acquisition plan. Indeed, while their all-weather capabilities is a critical asset for monitoring activities, many SAR systems did not succeeded to deliver systematically the requested homogeneous time series on a regular basis due to conflicting configurations between users and competition between instruments. The Sentinel-1 mission is expected to change significantly the SAR time series availability at global scale. Furthermore, open and free access of such data will significantly boost the development of operational applications. This paper reviews various recent land applications of interest which will take much advantage of such data continuity and availability
The agriculture monitoring systems have among the highest requirements for continuous observations over large regions. In countries with high cloud occurrence, the previous controls for the Common Agriculture Policy had to rely on SAR acquisitions to insure timely crop discrimination over large areas. Similarly, very early acreage estimate of winter versus summer crops can only rely on C-band time series for a robust information delivery. For crop growth model adjustment, the fast growing period of the crop cycle requires a weekly effective observation which is hard to insure with optical data. This is particular true in food insecure countries where the cropping cycle corresponds to the rainy season. Biophysical variables, such as Leaf Area Index and biomass, are successfully estimated by inversion of radiative transfer model whenever dense homogeneous time series is available.
Tropical deforestation estimate derived by satellite remote sensing have been an important achievement in the recent years. However, large parts of countries like Cameroon, Gabon, Equatorial Guyana and Congo in Central Africa, were hardly covered by several wall-to-wall coverage over last decades due to the poor quality of optical data. In the context of the REDD+ initiative, the capabilities of regular deforestation mapping will be a key element for the Monitoring-Reporting-Verification process.
More recently, global LC_CCI inland water bodies' product was derived from the 5-year ENVISAT ASAR archive pre-processed on the ESA cloud computing facilities. The impressive accuracy of such a global product opens the way for an operational monitoring system based on Sentinel-1. However, it was found that only very dense time series allow discriminating automatically the inland water body's extent. Along this line, delineation of urban areas from SAR time series was found sometimes more efficient than from optical data, in particular in some semi-arid contexts.
Some other applications are also illustrated and their prospects are discussed based on the contribution of Sentinel-1 mission potentially providing consistent and dense time series over large areas.


text: 02 Mar 2017 Draft national standard for management of industrial chemicals released By Claire Smith, Laura Waterford Submissions on the Draft Standard, Explanatory Document and draft Categorisation Tool close at 5pm on 3 March 2017. Share and print this article Share Print On 24 November 2016, the Australian Government Department of the Environment, and Energy and State and Territory Governments, released the Draft National Standard for Environmental Risk Management of Industrial Chemicals. The Draft Standard was prepared in collaboration with consultancy firm GHD and is intended to streamline regulation and standardise environmental risk management practices for industrial chemicals nation-wide. Consultation in relation to the Draft Standard is now open and submissions close at 5pm on 3 March 2017. Overview of the Draft National Standard for Environmental Risk Management of Industrial Chemicals The Draft Standard provides a national framework for managing risks to the environment posed by industrial chemicals (as defined under the Industrial Chemicals (Notification and Assessment) Act 1989). The stated objectives of the Draft Standard are: to achieve better protection of the environment through improved management of the environmental risks posed by industrial chemicals; and to provide a nationally consistent, transparent, predictable and streamlined approach to environmental risk management of industrial chemicals for governments, industry and the community. The Draft Standard will be established by the Commonwealth and implemented by each State and Territory. Each jurisdiction will be responsible for compliance activities and enforcement of the scheduled risk management measures within that jurisdiction. The Draft Standard is not intended to replace current regulatory requirements for industrial chemicals in Australia. Instead, it is designed to complement the existing regulatory framework for industrial chemicals. The classification process An outcomes-based approach to risk management has been adopted under the Draft Standard. This approach is intended to encourage innovation and efficiency in the environmental protection measures adopted under the Draft Standard, and provide industry with the flexibility needed to keep the costs of complying with new risk management requirements as low as possible. The Draft Standard identifies three broad classes of industrial chemicals: High, Intermediate and Low Concern. Each chemical is then categorised into a particular Environment Schedule based on: hazard ‒ the harm that the industrial chemical that could cause to the environment; and risk ‒ the probability the chemical may pose harm to the environment based on the intended use and volume of use of the industrial chemical. This means that a chemical with multiple uses may be listed under more than one schedule. Accordingly, the classification system is structured as: Low Concern: Environment Schedules 1 and 2; Intermediate Concern: Environment Schedules 3 to 5; and High Concern: Environment Schedules 6 and 7. Risk management measures Specific risk management measures are identified for each of the Environment Schedules. However, not all risk management measures will be appropriate for every chemical in a given Environment Schedule. Generally, the risk assessor will recommend the risk management measures required for a particular chemical as part of an environmental risk assessment carried out under the National Industrial Chemicals Notification and Assessment Scheme. The risk management measures relate to the following areas and outcomes: general use; storage, handling and containment; treatment and disposal; and the protection of waters, groundwater, land and air. Significantly, the risk management measures under the Draft Standard may cover the entire lifecycle of a chemical and the responsibility for managing environmental risks posed by chemicals throughout their lifecycle will be placed on manufacturers. For example, where a chemical is used in consumer products, the product manufacturer will be responsible for ensuring the use of that chemical or product does not breach the risk management requirements during the intended, normal use of the chemical or product by consumers. What this means for you From 2018 industry will need to comply with additional regulatory requirements associated with the use of industrial chemicals. On 13 February 2017, a draft Categorisation Tool was released to assist stakeholders to understand the kinds of requirements that may be put in place under the Draft Standard. The draft Categorisation Tool is designed to give an indication of a potential scheduling decision and indicative risk management measures for specific chemicals. Additional information on the design and operation of the Draft Standard is available in the Explanatory Document and Discussion Paper - Consultation Outcomes. What's next Submissions on the Draft Standard, Explanatory Document and draft Categorisation Tool close at 5pm on 3 March 2017. Details of how to make a submission are available on the Department of Environment and Energy website. Please contact us if you would like any further information or assistance with drafting submissions in response to the proposed reforms. Once submissions have closed, the Draft Standard is to be considered by Commonwealth, State and Territory Environment Ministers, with legislative drafting to commence from mid-2017. The Draft Standard is intended to be implemented in all jurisdictions by 2018. RELATED KNOWLEDGE New national regulation for industrial chemicals Related Knowledge Get in Touch Get in touch information is loading Disclaimer Clayton Utz communications are intended to provide commentary and general information. They should not be relied upon as legal advice. Formal legal advice should be sought in particular transactions or on matters of interest arising from this communication. Persons listed may not be admitted in all States and Territories.


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Thursday, July 16, 2009
Programming on GPUs using CUDA (a manual written in Croatian)
Thanks to Matija Piškorec, a student from the Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Computing, University of Zagreb, we now have a Croatian manual on writing codes in CUDA.
His booklet is written in Croatian and contains step by step explanations and examples of codes in CUDA. He used our GPU/CPU cluster to run and test the codes.
You can download it from here.
Posted by Dejan Vinkovic at 10:02 AM
3 comments:
thank you for given us this bookReplyDelete
cuda manual is fun and programming is bae for most of us programmers out there, im sure if you are one then you can relate to this. great post! thanks for sharing.ReplyDelete
- AnonymousSeptember 12, 2017 at 5:53 AM
I think students who are in a computer programming degree should must read this book. This is really nice of you for taking the time researching and then sharing the details of the book for us.ReplyDelete
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You may recall a few weeks ago when I posted about Six Pack Fitness in my post about Comedy For Critters. They generously donated an Innovator 300 Meal Management Bag. Because of their donation and the donation of others we were able to raise more than $10 Thousand for local animal shelters. So I want to say thank you for that.
They also sent me an Expedition Backpack 500 to formally review. It's designed for health conscious individuals who want an innovative way to transport their meals and gym equipment. Now, I'll admit that I'm not someone to be confused for a "health conscious individual" but I was over-the-moon excited to have a way to transport my 5 kids' lunches with me in a more organized way than just throwing them all in a bag and hoping they weren't smashed by the time we needed to eat.
The removable meal core comes with 5 snap lid containers which is perfect for our lunches. I can pack up a lunch for each kid before we leave and they are good to go when it comes time to eat.
This was a little light lunch I packed for the kids (and myself since the baby only drinks milk) on our recent trip to the neighborhood pool. When the kids said they were hungry I just whipped out a container and we were in business.
For this trip to the pool, I removed the meal core bag and used it like a lunch box. We have a pool bag with all the other stuff we needed at the pool so I didn't necessarily need to bring the whole Expedition Backpack 500 with me.
On our recent trip to the zoo, that was a different story. I needed to bring diapers, wipes, a bottle for the baby, water bottles for everyone else, a change of clothes for the baby and a blanket. I was able to fit it all into the Expedition Backpack 500 plus the meal core with our lunches.
My Aunt was visiting us for a few days and she accompanied us to the zoo. When it was time for lunch, we found a shady table and I started passing out lunches.
It was perfect. I've really enjoyed this backpack. It can hold a ton of stuff and is really comfortable to wear. I love the flexibility of the meal core. I can use the meal core by itself as a lunchbox or I can slide it into the backpack. I can, of course, use the backpack without the meal core too.
If the meal core is in, then I have easy access to all my snap lid containers plus I can still fit in the baby's bottle on one side, my water bottle on the other side and some diapers and such in the middle.
When the core is in the pack, it does take up a lot of room but there is still room on each side, in the back and on top to fit quite a few other items.
If you remove the core then you have a huge amount of space in the bag and you can choose to use it two different ways. You can scrunch the meal core liner to the side and have one huge inner compartment:
Or you can keep the meal core pouch as is and have 2 seperate larger compartments:
There is ample room for a large laptop or tablet:
And there are several soft lined pockets for mp3 players or phones:
Another great feature is the heavily padded back and straps. It's nice to know that even if you load yourself up it is going to be comfortable all day long on your back!
The Expedition Backpack 500 really delivered and I'm excited about my new "Manly Diaper Bag." Head over to Six Pack Fitness and check out their full line of bags. They even have tote bags designed specifically for women that look fantastic! Whatever your needs are, Six Pack Fitness can meet them.


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This new mattress is ideal for futons, bunks, and kids' beds.
- 6" Total Depth
- 1.5" Soft Gel Infused Memory Foam on Top
- Provides cushion, pressure relief, and temperature control.
- 4.5" High Density Memory Foam
- Provides durability and back support.
- Includes a Waterproof Cover
- High Traction Bottom
- Prevents mattress from sliding
Brighton Bed
Queen only available in Grey.
5 Year


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Sep 28, 2023
Sep 28, 2023
Has the country of his birth reduced the memory of Mahatma Gandhi to mere tokenism ' something to be ritually observed on the 2nd of October (Gandhi Jayanti) and forgotten the rest of the year?
This certainly seems to be the case in the state of Gandhi's birth, Gujarat, which is now facing the danger of turning into Modi's Gujarat, accompanied by the propaganda that befits a rabble-rouser like him. The Times of India has reported on the contents of the new social studies textbooks that have been prepared by the Gujarat State Board of School Text Books. These books, now in circulation, find fault with the freedom movement to the extent that a Class VIII student is taught the negative aspects of Gandhiji's non-cooperation movement ' a movement that gained fame across the world and provided inspiration to many, like Dr. Martin Luther King and Nelson Mandela, and gave India a special status in the world.
The new stars in the Gujarat firmament are Fascism and Nazism with Hitler, its founder, being given pride of place in school textbooks. Fascism and Nazism, with their stress on national pride and the supremacy of the German race, are described in glowing terms, while the pogroms against the Jews and other weaker sections of the people have hardly been touched upon. There has been a lot of writing, rewriting and re-rewriting of history in India since the past few years, but nothing as shocking as Hitler being glorified and Gandhiji being put down in his home state. The irony is that when the Jews and European nations felt threatened by Nazism, it was the Mahatma who advised Winston Churchill and the other leaders to adopt non-violent means.
Gandhi was the antithesis of Hitler in every way, but most so when it came to the matter of non-violence. He took the concept of ahimsa from Hindu, Buddhist and Jain traditions and fashioned it into a weapon, but not one of mass destruction. Gandhi claimed that Muslim and Sikh traditions revealed a place for non-violence and also saw its consonance with Christianity. Gandhi argued that it was a delusion and a folly to wage a war like the Mahabharata, which ended with only a handful of survivors. He felt that ahimsa was integral to Hinduism and the Indian soil, and was not a sign of weakness for it was more a devilish will than physical strength that made it possible for a person to press a trigger to shoot another.
Gandhi used ahimsa effectively to wage a non-violent war; in the form of satyagrahas against the South African and British governments, protests against caste and religious divisions and when the need arose, as a means to actively speak on behalf of the weak, the maimed, the suppressed and sick, by displaying unconditional love for these factions.
It is more than half a century since Gandhi's death, and his beloved country seems to be moving further and further away from his ideals. Thanks to a virulent brand of Hindutva, the country is being increasingly divided across religious lines. When self-appointed upholders of the majority religion display fissiparous tendencies, it has its impact on the minority religions whose leaders feel that they have to jump into the bandwagon of preaching differences. So, one sees the likes of what happened in Godhra followed by the retaliatory carnage in Gujarat, courtesy the Modi brand of Hindutva. Gandhi believed that violence would beget more of itself, as much as love would beget more love. His words are prophetic not only with regard to what is happening in India but also across the world, with Iraq being the most glaring example.
Gandhi's advice to leaders was to think of the last man down the line when taking any decision. Present-day leaders have moved far away from Gandhian ideals, as their decisions seem to benefit only the rich and the powerful while in 21st century India, there are still people dying from hunger and poverty; often resorting to suicide to be freed from their living hells.
So instead of the ritualistic offerings of floral and verbal tributes on Gandhi Jayanti and the customary screening of Richard Attenborough's celluloid tribute to Gandhi on the national channel, our leaders would be well advised to applying the ideals of a saint of whom Albert Einstein said: Generations to come, it may be, will scarce believe that such a one as this, ever in flesh and blood, walked upon this earth.
More by : Melanie Priya Kumar


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Listing of the Day
Location: East Hampton, New York
Price: $5.995 million
Nestled among mature trees on an expansive lot between East Hampton and Sag Harbor, New York, this white, sculptural home contrasts with the lush greenery to create a picturesque scene.
"It's a beautiful piece of property," said Camilla Lundengard, who is co-listing the residence with fellow Douglas Elliman agent Thomas Cavallo. "The actual house is very modern and contemporary, but it just sits so nicely."
Its woody location fosters a sense of privacy and serenity. "It's just quiet," Ms. Lundengard said. "It's peaceful."
More: The Hamptons Summer House Share: Coronavirus Edition
The house has a sprawling, custom-made kitchen, which the current owner, who is a chef, used to film cooking shows, Ms. Lundengard said. And, when it comes to eating, a long kitchen island—one of two in the kitchen—can sit up to 10 people, in addition to the dining room.
Meanwhile, the sun room, equipped with its own dining table, dazzles with an all-glass wall that overlooks the manicured grounds and curves upward to create a 30-feet ceiling.
Sited on roughly 11 acres, the house unfolds on three stories, with a combined 9,000 square feet. It has seven bedrooms, six full bathrooms and two half bathrooms. The home also comes with an elevator that connects all floors as well as a four-car garage.
More: The Hamptons Home Where Jackie Kennedy Summered as a Child Asks $7.5 Million
The home flaunts a sauna—in addition to steam showers on every floor—a gym as well as a pet room with a bathtub, a feeding setup and access to the backyard.
Split between the ground and second floors, a 3,000-foot-long deck wraps around the home to reveal sweeping vistas of the property, which accommodates a tennis court and a large swimming pool.
"You have one of the biggest pools in the Hamptons," Ms. Lundengard said.
Moreover, the seller is currently laying out a one-mile running path around the property, Ms. Lundengard said.
"You don't even have to leave," she said. "You just stay there and you can do your exercise."
From Penta: Covid-19 Crisis Could Permanently Boost Online Art Sales
Neighborhood notes
The property rests between East Hampton, which is about five minutes away to the east, and Sag Harbor, some 10 minutes west.
It's also relatively close to the other glitzy villages and hamlets on New York's Long Island—from Sagaponack to Montauk—that attract the world's wealthy with their pristine beaches, secluded multi-million-dollar homes, upscale restaurants, posh galleries and boutique shops.
"You can go to East Hampton, you can go to Montauk, you go to Bridgehampton, Sag Harbor, Watermill—you name it," Ms. Lundengard said.
Agents: Camilla Lundengard and Thomas Cavallo, Douglas Elliman
View the original listing here.
Write to Listing of the Day


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September 22, 2019
#1157: The Only Thing We Can Consume Is The Cartoon
Adam and Drew are reunited this week and they open the show discussing the 'cartoonization' of our information intake in the context of Adam's social media feedback from the Alec Baldwin roast. They also hear from a caller who has further questions about Adam's roast performance and how the crowd reacted to some of his material. The guys also discuss the idea of 'calibrating' ones self and how valuable that can be in aspects of your life.
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LifeLock.com, promo code ADAM


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LAS VEGAS, May 8, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- MGM Resorts International (NYSE: MGM) (the "Company") today announced that MGM China Holdings Limited (the "Issuer"), a consolidated subsidiary of the Company, priced an upsized offering of $750 million in aggregate principal amount of 5.375% senior notes due 2024 and $750 million in aggregate principal amount of 5.875% senior notes due 2026 in a private placement, in each case, at par (collectively, the "notes"). The offering of the notes was upsized to an aggregate principal amount of $1.5 billion from the originally announced aggregate principal amount of $1.25 billion, in each case, across the two tranches of notes. The Issuer intends to use the net proceeds from the offering of the notes to repay amounts under its revolving credit facility and term loan facility. The offering is expected to close on May 16, 2019, subject to customary closing conditions.
The notes proposed to be offered will not be and have not been registered under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "Securities Act"), or any state securities laws, and may not be offered or sold in the United States or to any U.S. persons absent registration under the Securities Act, or pursuant to an applicable exemption from, or in a transaction not subject to, the registration requirements of the Securities Act and applicable state securities laws. The notes will be offered only to "qualified institutional buyers" under Rule 144A of the Securities Act or, outside the United States, to persons other than "U.S. persons" in compliance with Regulation S under the Securities Act.
This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell, or the solicitation of an offer to buy, nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any state or other jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to the registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such state or other jurisdiction. The Company gives no assurance that the proposed offering can be completed on any terms.
Statements in this release that are not historical facts are "forward-looking" statements and "safe harbor statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 that involve risks and/or uncertainties, including those described in the Company's public filings with the SEC. The Company has based forward-looking statements on management's current expectations and assumptions and not on historical facts. Examples of these statements include, but are not limited to, the completion of the Issuer's senior notes offering. These forward-looking statements involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Among the important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated in such forward-looking statements include effects of economic conditions and market conditions in the markets in which the Company operates and competition with other destination travel locations throughout the United States and the world, the design, timing and costs of expansion projects, risks relating to international operations, permits, licenses, financings, approvals and other contingencies in connection with growth in new or existing jurisdictions and additional risks and uncertainties described in the Company's Form 10-K, Form 10-Q and Form 8-K reports (including all amendments to those reports). In providing forward-looking statements, the Company is not undertaking any duty or obligation to update these statements publicly as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law. If the Company updates one or more forward-looking statements, no inference should be drawn that it will make additional updates with respect to those other forward-looking statements.
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|patterned paper: bam pop (birds, speech bubbles, scallops) basic grey (circles + blue) ki memories (numerals); labels: dymo: ink: colorbox; adhesives: elmers brand gluetape, 3m foam tape, sewing machine
to me the funniest part of this is that the bigger bird is agreeing with the little bird's snark. i don't know why that cracks me up, but it does, so i'm just going with it. possibly nobody else will find it remotely amusing, not even my brother, whose birthday card this is going to be. something i honestly didn't realize until right now when i uploaded the photo onto my blog, is that i subconsciously used all the colors from our JINGLE BELLES "cookies for santa" inspiration picture again! but really, it was based on the fact that the ancient bam pop birds and speech bubbles happen to be aqua and red, so it just made sense.
and now why not hop over to SOS or SOSS and see all the other gorgeous, hilarious, awesome, snark-filled cards that have been made especially to inspire ♥YOU♥ to join us!
*when SOS teams up with SOSS you get SSOOSSS, which sounds like the noise my garden hose was making last week when it hadn't been shut off properly. unless you have one of those fancy keyboards that does footnote or exponential numbering; then it'd be S2 O2 S-to-the-power-of-3 which i'm pretty sure is one of the ingredients in plutonium. so just *be careful* you guys, that's all i'm sayin'... :) :) :)


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The idea has already been tossed around for twenty years – now it is finally being realized: The development of a market-ready fuel cell bike. As gas specialist Linde announced in November 2015, it took in-house engineers less than three months to design an electric-assisted pedal cycle equipped with a fuel cell instead of a battery pack. The required hydrogen is brought along in a composite tank, which can hold 34 grams of the gas
Alexander Dobrindt
H2 Mobility Officially Launched
Oct. 13, 2015, was the official start of activities for H2 Mobility Germany. After the joint-venture consisting of six industry partners had already been founded in January last year (see July 2015), the joint launch came in fall in the presence of the Federal Minister of Transport, Alexander Dobrindt, and all company representatives. This meant that the organization's CEO, Frank Sreball, had nine months to familiarize himself with the issues
New E License Plate
There is the next step after introducing the electric vehicle bill (in force since June 12, 2015): Since the end of September last year, i.e., as long as the relevant amendment has been in effect, owners of electric cars have been able to apply for special license plates. The black E after the number on the plate could mean they enjoy certain privileges, for example, if a community has approved bus lanes for electric cars to drive on


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Hello! This is Selma Stevenson today with a popup card I decorated with several of Susan's CountryScapes dies.The flowers:
1. The Hollyhock die is only 4 inches tall and fits so well on any card or project. These flowers come in a variety of colors so you can create a garden of many colors of hollyhocks. For my card today, I chose to use the deep burgundy flowers. Susan has a great variety of CountryScapes dies to help create beautiful scenes around your flowers. I used the birdhouse and grass from the CountryScapes – Woods 2 die set on the right side of the card. The cute little birds were die cut from the CountryScapes – Critters 2 set. See Susan's various video tutorials on shaping petals and leaves for different kinds of flowers as well as CountryScapes scenes like the birdhouse and grass on the ECD YouTube channel HERE.
Creating the card:
2. When this card is standing open, it measures 5-1/2″ x 4″. When it is closed flat, it measures 5-1/2″ x 5-1/2″, so it will be easy to mail.
3. Cut white cardstock 5-1/2″ x 11″. Score down the center at 5-1/2″ and 1-1/2″ from each end. Once scored, fold the card in half creating a mountain fold in the center and a valley fold at the ends as shown below.
4. To create the popup, cut white cardstock 5-1/2″ square. Score it 1-1/2″ from one end. Place the little tabs on the Lorna Label PopUp die right on the score line and die cut. When all the score lines are pressed out, it will look like the photo below.
5. As shown below, using the same deep burgandy cardstock that was used for the Hollyhocks, die cut the flat Lorna Label and adhere to the popup Lorna Label.
6. Use the two smaller Lorna Label dies in this die set to cut a smaller label with the stitch lines. The inside die does not cut a label but it creates stitch lines as per photo below. Using black cardstock with Transparent Double-Sided Tape on the back, die cut the Hello and adhere it to the label.
7. The photo below shows the base card and the die cut Popup before assembly.
8. The PopUp was glued to the base card as shown below then decorated with Susan's Hollyhock and CountryScapes dies.
I hope I have inspired you to create something pretty with Susan's new Hollyhock and CountryScapes dies.
Elizabeth Craft Designs:
1015 CountryScapes – Hollyhock
1012 CountryScapes – Critters 2
508 Transparent Double-Sided Tape
Cardstock: white, green, tan, burgandy
Copic Markers
Dimensional tape


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Voting has started in the Legislative Council's Kowloon West by-election to fill the seat vacated by disqualified lawmaker Lau Siu-lai.
Should democrats regain the seat, they will reclaim veto power against the pro-Beijing camp's bills, motions and amendments, enabling them to vote down any further changes to the legislature's house rules. But if they lose, the pro-Beijing camp may propose changes, such as fines for lawmakers who are kicked out of the chamber for protesting.
Lau was ousted from the legislature in 2016 over protests she made during her oath taking. She abandoned a court appeal against her disqualification in the hope of winning her seat back, but the government banned her from running.
See also: Explainer: Meet the candidates in the Hong Kong West Kowloon by-election
'Fight for our dignity'
Lau's substitute candidate is Lee Cheuk-yan, a former Labour Party lawmaker supported by the democratic camp. On Sunday, he said his campaign is in an "emergency" state, as he urged supporters to come out to vote.
"This is a very difficult election – a battle between hope and despair," he said.
He said the government has become draconian after the 2014 pro-democracy Umbrella Movement.
"Seeing the crackdown on young people who care about society, some feel disappointed with the democrats, some choose to leave the front line, some don't even want to vote. As much as everyone else, I grieve for Hong Kong's fall. But we can't lose our ambition despite the concerns. To save Hong Kong, we will have to pull ourselves together." he said. "What we are fighting for is beyond a seat in the LegCo, we are also fighting for our dignity!"
Lee admitted they may lose the election as he has faced many attacks. But he said there are still many battles ahead, including the fight against the national security law and the proposed reclamation off Lantau Island, which both have to go through the legislature.
"We may not be able to alter the current situation in the short-term. But we should have the spirit to never surrender. Hong Kong is our home. If we stand in solidarity, your vote is a rebuke to the authoritarian government, lighting up hope for Hong Kong."
'We hate a noisy legislature'
Lee's main rival Rebecca Chan Hoi-yan, who represents the pro-Beijing camp, also said it will be a difficult election for her.
Chan, a former broadcast journalist and a political assistant to ex-health secretary Ko Wing-man, has received support from major figures including Ko, former justice secretary Elsie Leung, business magnate Allen Zeman, former police chief Andy Tsang and pro-Beijing heavyweight Maria Tam, among others.
Chan said the race is heated as there are five candidates running for one seat: "I hope you urge all your family members to vote for me."
"I believe you feel the same as me – that we hate a noisy legislature, and we don't want another lawmaker who will just oppose things for the sake of opposing," she added. "We need a practical and rational lawmaker. I promise I will put livelihood issues first and put politics aside, and bring your voices into the legislature."
Spoiler candidate?
Former pro-democracy lawmaker Frederick Fung is also running in the race, as he said he did not approve of Lee representing the pro-democracy camp without a primary election.
He denied snatching votes from democrats. He said, according to a poll, around ten per cent of the voters who voted for pro-democracy and pro-Beijing candidates in the March Kowloon West by-election will support him on Sunday.
"In the poll, half of the voters do not admit they are pro-democracy or pro-Beijing – half of them are looking for a third person," he said.
Fung said he would not estimate how many votes he will gain, but he expected he "may win with uncertainty."
As of 10:30am, 32,204 or 6.61 per cent of registered voters have voted in the by-election.
Other candidates include Judy Tzeng Li-wen and Ng Dick-hay.


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Embracing Cruelty Free Beauty
Animal testing for cosmetics is outdated and cruel, and switching has never been easier.
By Josephine Werni, University of Minnesota Twin Cities
If you're a human who has purchased cosmetics in the last year or two, there's a swell chance that you've seen some evidence of the cruelty free beauty (CFB) movement.
Whether you observed it in the form of blatant, shiny advertising, or a wee bunny sticker on the back of your face lotion, it's apparent that more and more brands are pledging to abstain from animal experimentation. In an article I wrote several weeks ago, I discussed some of the basics of the CFB movement, including the different databases that you can use to decipher which brands are cruelty free and which aren't, the dilemma of parent companies and a collection of some prominent humane labels to check out. This time around, I'd like to burrow a bit deeper into the subject and address some topics that previously went untouched.
In the last piece, I failed to describe the difference between cruelty free and vegan. Although they are related and often go hand-in-hand, the two are not interchangeable. A cruelty free product is defined as one that is manufactured or developed by methods that do not involve animal experimentation, whereas the vegan label denotes that a product does not contain anything that came from an animal. Another way to put it is that cruelty free generally refers the lack of animal involvement in the development process, and vegan refers to the absence of animal substances as ingredients in something.
It's entirely possible for a product to be cruelty free but not vegan. Burt's Bees is a great example—their brand revolves around the use of bee's wax, as well as milk and carmine, but there isn't any critter mistreatment involved. Conversely, a brand may inflict experimentation on animals during development, but not actually include any animal ingredients in their products.
In addition to the digital databases that were linked in the first article, there are a few other ways that someone can figure out whether or not a company has ties to animal testing. As I mentioned earlier, many labels make an effort to include little informational symbols on their products. However, not all brands that operate sans-cruelty advertise it on their stuff, and it's possible that they might not be on the radar of CFB movement websites.
If you're curious about the practices of a manufacturer that isn't appearing in any of these online directories, try figuring out which countries they sell in instead. If a company sells in China, they're generally disqualified due to the fact that the country has laws that require animal testing on most cosmetics (the United States, in comparison, doesn't have any laws necessitating animal testing).
While I covered a handful of inexpensive, animal friendly makeup brands in the other piece, I didn't include any mention of where they could be found. It doesn't matter if there are plenty of budget friendly, cruelty free companies out there if they're only carried by two department stores. Accessibility is just as important as affordability. Luckily, you can rest assured that E.L.F, Wet n Wild, Physicians Formula, and EcoTools are all sold at the most common drug stores in the country (Wal-Mart, Walgreens, Target and CVS, to name a few).
Even though cruelty free beauty options are now both abundant and economical, there's still a little room for hesitation. It's possible that there are some diehard makeup junkies out there thinking:
I've been using the same dope lipstick for eight years, but now I know that it's tested on hamsters! It's going to be a pain in the ass to try to find a replacement that truly matches up.
There's no shame in feeling this way, it can be difficult to give up a product that you've trusted for a long time. Fortunately, many other people have found the way around this issue for you. There are myriad videos and lists on the internet dedicated to highlighting cruelty free dupes for the most popular products that don't pass the ethics test. Many of the websites that contain cruelty free brand databases also have dupe/comparison lists. On YouTube, there are loads of channels that are dedicated solely to this matter.
So, to summarize, it's been established that adopting an ethical beauty routine is both affordable and as easy as making the decision to skip your 8 AM class for the second time this week.
All of the complicated work has been done for you. Other people have either invented the methods of creating cosmetics without animal testing or taken part in organizing all of the information about it into tidy web content.
Passing on inhumane beauty products isn't only convenient, it just makes so much more sense—namely because animal testing, at least where cosmetics are concerned, doesn't make sense in our modern world. A bunch of businesses have proved over and over again that it's entirely feasible to compassionately manufacture products that are of equal value to those created with the assistance of animal experimentation. Why do so many of the most prominent companies continue to operate under cruel circumstances, despite the increasing pressure to change? Laziness, perhaps? I'm not sure. It's beyond me.
When it comes to supporting the cruelty free beauty movement, the purest way to do so is to make the choice, the one that you have as a consumer, to spend your money on products that are deliberately humane. It's important to remember that, in the end, for-profit companies exist and operate for the purpose of making money. They'll embrace whatever it is that appears to be making them more of it. It might take a little time, as these things often do, but I'm confident that the CFB movement will maintain it's impressive momentum.


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Sunday, July 27, 2008
Sunday, July 20, 2008
Door---Hotel Solvay
My garden has been taken over by bindweed, the wild cousin of morning glories. Removing the vines before they strangle the daylilies has given me plenty of time to examine their twining stems and think about what inspiration can be found in the growth pattern of plants we have decided to consider "weeds." This photo shows the double doors of the Hotel Solvay in Brussels, designed by Victor Horta. Aside from the sinuous lines of both wood and metal, I like the reflection of the trees, which stood in an orderly row directly across the street. Surely Monsieur Horta spent time examining vigorously growing vines, perhaps ones attempting to strangle the irises and lilies in his own garden.
Sunday, July 13, 2008
A telephone pole standing on a corner near the old brick Market in Charleston, SC has been transformed into a piece of folk art. It is a mosaic of chewing gum. How did this happen? Perhaps one person got in the habit of sticking gum on the pole. But how many wads of gum did it take before others noticed and began to follow suit? What was that crucial point, when gum-chewing passers-by noticed the design potential in the arrangement of gum and began making their own contributions? I like to imagine that the gum chewers give some thought to the ongoing design of the pole: "I am chewing blue gum today, so I'd better stick it over on the other side, away from those other two blue pieces." To me, this pole is a testament to our fundamental need to make art.
Sunday, July 6, 2008
Bhutanese Sand Painting
At the Smithsonian Folklife Festival the featured country has been Bhutan, which is in the Himalayas. Bhutan's government has instituted a program focusing on the Gross National Happiness of its sparse population. On the Mall between the Capitol and the Washington Monument, a magnificent Buddhist temple has been erected. Dragons, tigers and swirling florals cover every inch, inside and out. Sweet incense drifts from the interior, where monks chant, play music, and answer questions. Tents shelter Bhutanese weavers, painters and carvers. Altars are draped with brilliantly colored silks sewn into the patchwork block we know as Broken Dishes. On these sat colorful ceramics reminiscent of the many-armed Tree of Life candelabra found in Mexico. Some of the weavings made me think of striped Guatemalan cloth, others of Laotian textiles. A cluster of children learned to wrap yarn around two crossed sticks to make what Mexicans call an Ojo de Dios. Art is universal. Many cultures share techniques, colors and motifs. This image is my favorite: a sand painting that has been carefully crafted over the past two weeks, with the knowledge that it is an ephemeral artwork. It's a piece of "here and now" for both the artists and the viewers.


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Well Grounded is London's first social enterprise developing a diverse new talent pipeline for the specialty coffee industry. With a focus on getting local people into local jobs, Well Grounded deliver SCA accredited training combined with interpersonal skill development, 1-2-1 mentoring, CV writing and job support to empower people who have been socially or economically disadvantaged.
Beyond Trading
Equatorial Traders is proud to support Well Grounded by providing a brand new space for their Head Office which will also include a Specialty Coffee Association Premier Campus situated in King's Cross. This start of the art campus will enable Well Grounded to support over 1000 vulnerable adults over the next three years and also deliver SCA Brew, Barista and Sensory courses.
For more information on Well Grounded visit their website.


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Katie Beckett Waiver
Tennessee's Katie Beckett program is for children under the age of 18 with significant disabilities or complex medical needs. This program is for children who are not Medicaid eligible because of their parent's income or assets.
This program has two parts, A and B, and will provide services and/or help paying for medical care that private insurance does not cover.
Information on Tennessee's Proposed Katie Beckett Program
Proposed Katie Beckett Program Presentation
Understanding Cost Sharing or Premiums for Katie Beckett Part A
Katie Beckett Level of Care Guide
Katie Beckett Program Family Presentation
Katie Beckett Program Level of Care Guide for Families
To apply for Tennessee's Katie Beckett Program, follow the steps below:
1. The application will start with a self-referral online at TennCare Connect. To begin a self-referral, you must create a TennCare Connect account.
2. Filling out the self-referral online is the fastest way to apply for the program. But if you don't have a computer, a DIDD case manager can help you complete the self-referral. To get help, call the DIDD office in your region:
West Tennessee Regional Office: (866) 372-5709
Middle Tennessee Regional Office: (800) 654-4839
East Tennessee Regional Office: (888) 531-9876
3. Once you complete the self-referral, a DIDD case manager will contact you to conduct an assessment. Be ready to provide medical documents that clearly identify your child's condition and/or proof of intellectual disability at the time of the assessment. Please note: your child's enrollment could be denied or delayed if you are unable to provide these supporting documents when you meet.


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Top Lawmakers To Meet Obama For U.S. Shutdown Talks
Washington (AFP) – U.S. President Barack Obama on Wednesday called congressional leaders to a White House meeting, providing a glimmer of hope for movement on day two of a crippling government shutdown.
The White House is squaring off with Republican rivals in Congress over how to fund federal agencies, many of which are now closed, leaving some 800,000 furloughed workers in the lurch and a fragile economy at risk.
Obama wants a straightforward temporary spending bill to end the first shutdown in 17 years, while Republicans have sought to tie the measure to a dismantling or delay of his signature health care law.
Neither side has blinked, and Americans are exasperated with the inability of their elected officials to break the impasse.
"Most of the time you can see an end game," Republican Senator Johnny Isakson told MSNBC. "Right now there's no end game in sight."
An hour after those comments aired, the White House announced an early evening meeting with Republican and Democratic congressional leaders to address the standoff.
The office of House Speaker John Boehner, Obama's primary political foe, said it represented a potential "start to serious talks between the two parties."
It was not immediately clear if the talks amounted to a possible breakthrough or were merely for appearances.
Meanwhile, furious tourists are locked out of Washington museums and monuments, as well as national parks and landmarks like the Statue of Liberty in New York. Cancer research and treatment at the world-class National Institutes of Health has ground to a halt.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, in scolding Republicans whom he blamed for the shutdown, said some 200 patients — including 30 children mostly needing cancer treatment — were denied access to NIH on Tuesday.
"They were turned away," Reid said.
The roiling political and fiscal drama threatens to affect the global economy as well, with European Central Bank chief Mario Draghi warning Wednesday that a U.S. shutdown "is a risk if it is protracted."
"It would be a risk not only for the U.S., but also the world economy," Draghi said.
The fallout has already caused Obama to shorten his long-planned Asia trip, scrapping stops in Malaysia and the Philippines that were due to begin this weekend, so he could attend to the crisis at home.
The president's attendance at summits in Indonesia and Brunei was also in doubt.
Complicating the budget gridlock, Congress has just over two weeks to strike a deal on raising the country's debt ceiling and avoid a painful default.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew has warned that U.S. borrowing authority will reach its cap by October 17, and he informed Congress that Treasury "has begun using the final extraordinary measures" available to pay U.S. bills.
Without a raising of the debt ceiling, Treasury's money ceases to flow, triggering a default.
With stakes critically high, Republican lawmakers were scrambling to at least get parts of government up and running.
The Republican-led House of Representatives was to vote Wednesday on five measures that would fund popular operations, including services for veterans, opening national parks and museums, and keeping key health research going.
Boehner insists they are good-faith efforts to keep crucial government operations running, but Democrats swatted them away as incremental funding bids ultimately aimed at leaving the health care law known as "Obamacare" high and dry.
"These piecemeal bills, they're not a way out," Reid said, sneering that Republicans were offering "one 'cockamamie' can't-pass idea after another."
"It's time for my Republican colleagues to do a gut check," Reid said.
Obama on Tuesday accused conservatives in the House of waging an "ideological crusade" by making government funding conditional on gutting his health care law.
Boehner has chosen to side with the renegade Tea Party faction of his party rather than risk his job by attempting to pass a straight funding resolution stripped of political poison pills.
Boehner's tactic has left him on precarious political ground.
A Quinnipiac University poll Tuesday found voters, by a margin of 72 percent to 22 percent, oppose the shutdown of government as a way to derail Obamacare.
Photo Credit: AFP/Karen Bleier


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Baseplan Software provides equipment and rental management software, in a fully integrated ERP solution, designed specifically to meet the needs of the industry. Baseplan offers a system that is a scalable, tightly integrated, and module based to offer a custom solution, appropriate to the requirements of your business.
From field solutions to rental management, Baseplan can offer business intelligence software designed to keep our clients a step ahead of their competition. As the industry changes and grows, Baseplan is there to provide clients with world-class technologies that harness the importance of asset management, computerized stock monitoring, and equipment maintenance solutions.
Our ultimate goal is to provide software solutions that help our clients drive more value to their customers, giving them the tools to build greater value into their business with prompt delivery of products and services while maintaining superior after-sales support.


text: Thanks to the support of Avela Home Service who generously donated £5000 towards our Mobilise project. We now have a mini bus which helps to transport our students to and from our Liverpool facilities. This is making a dramatic difference to the lives of our young people. Click here to read more.


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Values and Lifestyles Questionnaire
Famous People
Multiple Intelligences
Adrenalin Junkie???
Although not a tool for self-diagnosis, this checklist (developed by Daniel G. Amen, M.D., a nationally recognized expert in the field of Attention Deficit Disorder) may help you determine whether ADD may be a factor in the behavior of the person you are assessing. We thank Dr. Amen for this valuable contribution to One ADD Place.
The Values and Lifestyles (VALS) program at SRI International studies American
consumers by asking questions about their attitudes and values. You may find the questions interesting to answer, and enjoy learning about the characteristics of your "VALS type" (Actualizers, Fullfilleds, Achievers, Experiencers, Believers, Strivers, Makers and Strugglers).
With perseverance, they made it. So can YOU! CLICK HERE.
Although most testing assesses only 2 categories of intelligence (Verbal/Linguistic and Logical/Mathematical), there are several other equally important and valuable intelligences rarely recognized or specifically developed in children. Taking a look at this comprehensive list of intelligences may help you appreciate and develop these qualities more in your children, yourself and others.
Answer these 16 questions and decide for yourself. Then consider what can you do to get the high without the burnout.


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Commercial real property in Panama City: take advantage of the favorable market situation!
Commercial real estate in Panama is a promising long-term investment option to consider. Purchase of office space in Tower Financial Center, Panama City can serve two purposes equally well. First, you can put your own company office there and second, you can let the space on a lease to a local company.
Why invest into commercial property in Panama City?
If you have not thought about investing into commercial property yet, it is time you did now. Panama is one of the countries where the real estate market has tremendous growth potential.
Commercial property has been as popular with foreign investors in Panama as residential estates have been. There are several compelling reasons to make this kind of investment:
- Investments into real estate are much more secure than investments into stocks, shares, bonds, deposit or savings certificates and so on.
- Real property that you purchase provides a stable long-term return on investment. In Panama in particular, the number of people and companies wishing to hire office space or residential accommodations is always high.
There are some additional weighty reasons too:
- The Panamanian economy has been ceaselessly growing over the last fifteen years or so.
- Foreign investments to Panama and foreign businesses establishing residence in the country are also growing in volume and number.
- Middle class is appearing in Panama and becoming more and more solvent.
In general, Panama City real estate shows a strong investment potential. Fluctuations do occur in the market but the prices are steadily growing in the long-term perspective.
Some favorable fluctuations are happening now. According to the International Monetary Fund report, the rates of Panama economic growth in 2018 were lower than those a year before. This is attributed to less trade that the country conducted and internal demand slow-down.
Due to the excessive supply of housing and commercial property, the rent pay decreased in Panama City by 20% in 2018 and in some places by as much as 40%.
Panama economy and its development perspectives
Panamanian real estate experts note that the fall in the rent prices in the country was caused by tougher competition from Canada, the USA, and Columbia. Nevertheless, the World Economic League Table (WELT) specialists expect that Panama's GDP will grow by at least 4,5% in 2019.
They base their calculations on the fact that foreign investors were comparatively more passive last year because of the growth of the fuel price and the increase of the credit interest rates. In addition to that, the Panama Canal generated less income in April and May due to the trade war between the US and China.
Change of power in Panama and its effects on the economy
Because national elections took place in Panama in 2019, the economy slowed down as the business circles in the country waited to see what happens when the new President took office. However, the newly elected President Cortizo expressed support of all the previous government's initiatives aimed at improving Panama economy. In his election campaign, Cortizo promised to increase the country's GDP.
One of the first serious steps the new President plans to take is abolishing price control. He believes that this can revive Panamanian economy. In addition, more budgetary resources will be allocated to tourist industry development, and the new copper mine "Cobre Panama" will give an additional impulse to the improvement of the country's economy.
One of the priorities that Cortizo has is maintaining positive diplomatic relations with China. Panama has already made nineteen economic agreements with this country under the former administration of President Varela.
Chinese companies have started the construction of a railroad that will connect the country's capital with the city of David in Chiriquí province.
Notwithstanding the criticism on the part of the USA administration, Cortizo counts on making new trade agreements with the "Celestial Empire".
The arrival of Chinese investors to Panama is expected to give a boost to the economic activities in the country. The Chinese capital will help establish more companies in Panama and thus create more jobs. According to the statistics, the number of Chinese tourists to Panama grew by 40% in 2018.
There is a temporary stagnation in the Panama real estate market as the supply is considerably greater than the demand. The farsighted investor will never miss the chance that this sort of "crisis" offers.
Moreover, the Government of Panama has created super-comfortable conditions for foreign investors and foreign businesses in the country. The strong banking sector in Panama that is based on the American dollar has turned the country into a financial center of Central America. Panama opens wide perspectives indeed for the international business.
Today you can purchase real estate in Panama at much more attractive prices than they used to be before. What is even more important, these prices are much more attractive than they are going to be in the near future.
Even if you do not intend to use the property that we are about to offer as an office for your Panamanian company, you can still gain profit from renting it out. This profit is going to be quite large and stable in the long-term perspective.
Our on-site managers who have been residing in Panama City for over fifteen years will help you choose the best piece of property that conforms to your preferences. If you are interested, please send us a message to firstname.lastname@example.com and we will get back to you without delay.
Below please find the description of one possible piece of commercial property to buy that is located in a prestigious district of Panama City.
Fantastic offices in Tower Financial Center, right in the heart of Panama City
The Tower Financial Center building sits in the financial and business center of Panama City – Obarrio district. Walking through this district, you can easily tell locals from tourists: the former are wearing collars and ties while the latter are dressed in shorts and sandals.
Tower Financial Center – an astounding building of black aluminum and glass – dominates the intersection of two large streets: Calle 50 and Elvira Mendez. Calle 50 is one of the major transport corridors in Panama City where active business life goes on all throughout the day.
A number of skyscrapers can be found in Calle 50 hosting branch offices of more than fifty international banks. The most notable buildings in this street are Tower Financial Center, F & F Tower, and HSBC Tower.
The Tower Financial Center skyscraper has 52 stories. It is a high-tech modern building of a unique architecture that includes a fountain square in front of the Tower. A large trade center called 'Soho' is located nearby. You can also find such popular restaurants as 'Coffee Max', 'Beruit', 'La Strega', and 'Paul's' in the vicinity.
You can choose the following office spaces to buy in this Tower:
Office spaces of 1,224 square meters (1,464 sq. yards)
- These offices take up the whole floor.
- It is an open space office without any supporting columns.
- The windows give the view of the Panama Bay.
- Luxury interior decorations.
Office spaces of 562 square meters (672 sq. yards)
- Such an office takes up half of the floor, so there are two of them on one floor.
- It is an open space office.
- The floor-to-ceiling windows give a partial view of the ocean and the city.
- Elegant interior decorations.
Office spaces of 246 square meters (294 sq. yards)
- Four such offices on the floor.
- Views of the ocean and the city from the windows.
- Perfect interior decorations.
There are eight Mitsubishi high-speed elevators in the lobby. The offices are under security video surveillance 24/7. Fire alarms with temperature sensors and fire extinguishing modules are also there.
The price of the office space 246 square meters in size is US$ 740 000.
There are a limited number of offices for sale in Tower Financial Center skyscraper but some are sill available.
We invite you on a familiarization tour to Panama that will allow you to see the offices with your own eyes.
Panama City is a global business center. When you purchase commercial property in the financial center of the city, you will obtain the right to apply for Panama permanent residency and at the same time you can rent the office out to Panamanian resident companies.
Panama immigration for investment programs
Panama invites foreign citizens to make investments into different sectors of economy including real estate. The Panamanian Government has implemented several dozen immigration programs that will lead to legal permanent residence in the country.
You can use the following visa programs when you purchase some real property in Panama.
- Economic Investor visa program requires that the foreign investor purchase real property in Panama that is worth US$ 300,000 or more. If you buy property that costs less, you can put the rest of the three hundred thousand in the bank. The principle requirement is that your total investment sum is not less than the one indicated above. You can read more about this immigration program if you follow the link above.
- Friendly Nations visa program is a special easy access immigration program that is available to the citizens of fifty national states that Panama considers especially friendly. Citizens of Friendly Nations can obtain a permanent residence permit in Panama within three to four months since the day they apply for it. If it is an international family moving to Panama, only the primary program applicant has to have the citizenship of one of the fifty countries. The investment into real property that you have to make with this program is minimum US$ 100,000. You can find out what countries are included in the Friendly Nations list if you follow the link above.
- Pensionado visa program requires that the applicant's guaranteed lifetime annuity be at least US$ 1,000 per month. However, on the condition that you invest minimum US$ 100,000 into real estate in Panama, proving a stable income of US$ 750 per month will suffice for acquiring a permanent residence permit. Please read more about the Pensionado immigration program by following the link above.
All the three programs require that the real property be purchased in the name of a physical person. Purchase of property in the name of a legal entity (such as a corporation, for instance) will not lead to permanent legal residence in Panama.
If you are interested to learn more about the possibilities to immigrate to Panama, we invite you to apply for a free consultation with us. Please send us a request to firstname.lastname@example.com and we will get in touch with you promptly.


text: Party in style with a custom engraved flask from Kyle Design. A unique flask is the perfect birthday gift for guys and girls, makes for fun groomsmen gifts, and can be a thoughtful bridesmaid gift. Our unique engraved 8 oz flasks can be personalized with your color choice and an engraved message. Or check out Design Your Own Flasks for even further customization - you'll be blown away by all the design options. There are over 500 image choices like martini glasses, spider webs, shamrocks, cowboy boots, ladybugs, American Flags, baseballs, hearts - something for everyone!


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HomeRedefining the online Payment ParadigmWide Coverage of cards AcceptedMulti-Currency and Multi-LingualComplete Payment Management SolutionLow Fraud, High Credit Card Acceptance RateNewsScenariosReal Time ProcessingVirtual TerminalEnd of Month BillingCard PresentRecurring BillingWhite PapersFirewall Against Fraud3DSecurePCI Security StandardEU VAT DirectivesResourcesMerchant Website RecommendationsFAQSite MapDirectory
Most of us, at some point or another, have used a service or acquired a product over the internet which required a payment. Invariable we have reached out for our wallets or purses, took out a credit card and effected the payment. It easy and its fast but its not done without some trepidation - what is the card number is stolen?
The impact the internet has on our lives needs no introduction; all this activity on the internet also requires that payments flow securely across it to pay for products or services and the credit card has emerged as the most natural way to make these payments; how else can payments be made in real time, across different time zones, different languages, language barriers and on a global level.
The same internet however has created problems for credit card use because it's easy for someone to use the anonymity of the internet to use a stolen card number. The card industry responded at first by protecting the interest of the card holder - the card holder had the right to dispute a payment made online and have the money refunded - a process commonly called a chargeback in the industry.
This off course has not augur well for businesses accepting payments online as they were left carrying the burden of online credit card fraud. Clearly a solution was desperately needed, a solution based not on regulations but on technology to eliminate the problem at the source and make online payments safe for card holders and the online businesses alike.
The solution has been a number of years in the making and is called 3DSecure; it encompasses schemes operated by the major card brands. Visa calls its scheme 'Verified by Visa', while MasterCard calls its scheme 'Secure Code'. 3DSecure works by allowing a card holder to identify himself directly to his own bank; it harnesses the internet to allow real time collaboration between the bank that issues the card, the bank that collects payments for an online business and the card holder himself; A payment gateway is involved that orchestrates this collaboration seamless and transparently.
For a business accepting payments online, 3DSecure is a dream come true. Payments are accepted online without the risk of chargeback. Businesses can grow their online operations without costly verifications and losses to fraud.
For a card holder, if his card is still not participating in 3DSecure he will not notice any difference when he makes a payment, even if the online business is participating. Should his card be enrolled, however, after he submits his credit card number and general details he will find himself automatically redirected to a web page operated by his bank. Here he will see a personalized message registered on enrollment as a security measure to assure him he arrived at his bank's website. He will then identify himself through a password and on completion will be redirected back to the original website to finish off the payment process. The whole process is completed in less than 30 seconds. The card holder needs not worry about having his card number stolen - without his password the payment would be rejected and the password is shared only with his own bank and no one else.
The Endeavour Payment Gateway has been offering 3DSecure for quite sometime and has made several contributions to the industry in making this new technology both reliable and easy to use for its merchants and card holders alike.
In 2009, Endeavour licensed its own technology and become an authorized reseller for 3DSecure for both Visa and MasterCard. More information can be found at www.3dsecurempi.com.
In a world full of insecurities, some things just got safer.