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|Naruto Jiyuu > Technique Chart/Bloodline Registration > Unlocked Hana Ouji
|Posted by: Ds14 Apr 14 2007, 09:24 PM
| Name: Hana Ouji
Element: Earth/Water
Type: Ninjutsu and Genjutsu
Rank: All
Special Items: Any plant samples of any size collected over time.
The Hana Ouji, or flower prince clan is a fairly new clan in Konohagakure. The founder was a missing-nin from Kusakgakure that was accepted into Kohoha. He married in Konoha, but was unable to give birth to a boy. His children married as well, and could not give birth to boys, either. Finally a boy was born and he was treated as a prince. From then on, one boy was chosen as the princes' successor and all other boys born were killed at birth except for several males chosen at random to bear children.
The clan has a bloodline doujutsu called the Kakigan that lets them turn, to some extent, into "plant people". Other than eye color, there is not much of a physical change, but they are able to do certain things, like gather energy from the sun, that only plants can do. The other jutsu use flowers offensively, defensively, and passive offensively.
[NOTE]Do not confuse "flower" justu with Wood jutsu.[NOTE]
Hana-Ouji: Defensive Stance
Kakigan Photosynthesis level 1
Type: Bloodline
Chakra: N/A
Description: Using a minimal amount of chakra, the user can use their eyes to gather sunlight and heal small wounds while standing stationary.
Hana Bunshin no jutsu
Type: Ninjutsu
Chakra: 5,000
Description: User makes a bunshin made of flowers. The bunshin absorbs water and grows much larger when exposed to it. It is therefore immune to suiton techniques.
~Can make one exact strength duplicate that turns into leaves upon being attacked for every 10,000 chakra
~Can make one non-attacking duplicate with same speed for every 5,000 chakra
Hana no Arashi
Type: Genjutsu
Chakra: 7500
Note(Kakigan must be on)
Description: The user looks into the eyes of the opponent and causes them to believe that flower petals are flying all around them, completely obscuring their vision.
Flower Shield
Type: Ninjutsu
Chakra: 5,000
Description: A handheld shield made from a flower. It can stop attacks of up 5k chakra.
Kakigan Photosynthesis Level 2
Type: Doujutsu
Chaka: 5,000 (Must have Kakigan Level 1 or 3 activated)
Description: Leaves sprout from any body part a user of this technique chooses to speed up the healing from photosynthesis by 10-20%. An example would be completely closing a wound made by a kunai that penetrated an inch through the skin in 3 posts.
Hana no Wana
Type: Genjutsu
Chakra: 7,000
Description: The user makes their opponent believe that they are being bound by long stemmed flowers and they are rendered immobile from the waist down.
- 3 post limit
- Power based on difference between attacker and defender's chakra
~For *roughly* every 2000 points the difference is greater/less, the attack lasts more one more/less post.
Transform into Petals Shunshin no Jutsu
Type: Ninjutsu
Chakra: 5,000
Description: A variation on shunshin no jutsu in which the Hana Ouji clan member turns into a shower of flower petals and transports themselves from one place to the other. In the event of an accident, the shinobi can reform their body from just a single petal. (Not usable in battle)
Obscure Vision With Petals no Jutsu
Type: Ninjutsu
Chakra: 15,000
Description: The user of this jutsu can create so many flower petals that it obscures their opponent's vision unless they are able to blow the petals away.
Kakiheki no jutsu
Type: Ninjutsu
Chakra: 15,000
Description: The user makes a giant flower with wide petals and closes them around him/her to make a shield. Capable of blocking techniques of up to 25k chakra.
Cutting Petals and or Leaves no Jutsu
Type: Ninjutsu
Chakra: 20,000
Description: The user of this jutsu can make any flower petal or leaf sharp enough to cut through human skin. This will not make a particularly deep wound, but is capable of making many small cuts due to the amount of leaves and or petals in the air.
Type: Ninjutsu
Chakra: 20,000
Description: The user sucks moisture from the opponents body, palms flat as if their hands were roots. The effects of this technique are potentially fatal. It is usually used in conjunction with Hana no Wana because the opponent must not resist.
- Can severely weaken in 3 posts
- Can make a victim incapable of proper battle in 4 or 5 posts
- Can kill in 6 posts
Hana-Ouji: Offensive Stance
Kakigan 2(or Kakigan- Offensive Style)
Type: Kekkei Genkai
Chakra: (At Least) 2,000
Description: Unlike the original Kakigan, this version of the Kakigan gives the user a yellow iris and pink pupil. It allows a user to do different techniques than the Defensive Stance Kakigan(Kakigan 1)
Unknown requirements to achieve.
Hana Henge no Jutsu
Type: Ninjutsu
Chakra: 500(plus knowledge and complete memorization of anatomy of the plant)
Description: User can turn into a plant they have memorized the physical structure of.
Spy Plant no Jutsu
Type: Ninjutsu
Chakra: 3,000
Description: A shinobi can grow a plant that they can see out of from long distances. Similar the the third eye jutsu of Hidden Sand.
Leaf Transport no Jutsu
Type: Ninjutsu
Chakra: 5,000
Description: A user can change any small leaf into a large one capable of keeping them aloft at great heights. (Gliding, not flying)
Roketto Gahou no Jutsu (Rocket Spore no Jutsu)
Type: Ninjutsu
Chakra: 10,000
The user of the technique creates a flower 5 - 10 feet in diameter that grows from the palm of their hand. Out of the center of that flower shoots any previously learned spore of the user's choice at high pressure, in great numbers, and at a high velocity. Enough to spread over wide areas or to launch a user into the air. Technique must be charged for one post in which the technique user must be stationary.
Gogahou no Jutsu (Five spores no Jutsu)
Type: Ninjutsu to multiply the spores and taijutsu for the effect of the spores themselves.
Chakra: See Below
Description: Spores that originate from a small swab applied to the user's palm multipy and cause effects on opponents.
Spore 1: Hypnotic Spore - Puts an opponent within 3,000 chakra above and any amount below to sleep. They will be woken up; however, if they are struck in any way. (Not necessarily any sort of touch)
-Wears off in about an rpg time hour if the victim isn't woken up by a shock
- A resistance can be developed so that it can only be used twice effectively on the same person before the resistance goes away after a ten post waiting period.
Chakra: 10,000
Spore 2: Poisonous Spore- Causes nausea, vomiting, and muscle spasms/pain to anyone that breathes them in.
Chakra: 7,500
Spore 3: Rapidly Reproducing Spore- This spore's ideal habitat is inside of the human body. Although it is aerobic and cannot survive when soaked in water and can be killed by high temperatures, if they are inside of a shinobi, they will rapidly propagate and weigh down the victim. They will also make breathing hard, but not nearly impossible. If left untreated for too long, the spore may invade other tissues or brain and possibly kill the victim.
(To clarify, a killing temperature would be around 120 degrees fahrenheit, well above possible human body temperature.)
- 2 posts breathing trouble
- 4 posts weighed down
- 3 whole threads without treatment for body damage
Chakra: 15,000
Spore 4: Paralysis Spore- Causes a victim who is 5.000 chakra or less above the user to be immobile for one post. Anyone within 5,000 below for two posts. Anyone below 5,000 less will be immobile for 3 posts.
Chakra: 10,000
Spore 5: Love Spore- Same chakra limits as paralysis spore, but this spore causes the opponent to become attracted to the user of the technique. They "fall in love" with them for the duration of the effect and are hesitant to pursue them. As this is not truly a genjutsu because the effect of the spores it biological and uses no chakra, the effect lasts a relatively long time, around 6 posts. Over time; however, one develops a resilience to the spores. For example, the second time this technique is used, the effect lasts about 4 or 5 posts rather than 6.
Unlike Johnny Cage's low blow, this works on both sexes ;-)
Chakra: 5,000
Pollen Bomb no Jutsu
Type: Ninjutsu
Chakra: 25,000 (2.5x the chakra req of the spore cannon sounds fair)
Description: A small grenade like ball of pollen. The explosion, caused by pressure due to rapid multiplication of spores in an airtight seed, is not very large and only spreads over about a five-foot radius. The spores are easily combustible due to large surface area.
Botanical Animation
Type: Ninjutsu
Chakra: Gained with Kakigan 2
Description: Can control surrounding plant life. Including growing and shrinking them. They can manipulate woody plants but NOT trees, which are too thick to bend and too large to grow/shrink.
Manipulation includes: Movement and size. (She can grow a seed into a tree and vice versa in seconds flat, but can't make a tree out of thin air)
Unlocked Hana Ouji
Kakigan Level 3 (Spiral Kakigan)
Type: Doujutsu
Chakra: N/A
Description: An eye with bands of pink and yellow twisted around a central point that swirl slowly, increasing speed when chakra is used for techniques. This eye is a combination of both Kakigan Level 1 and Level 2, allowing use of both offensive and defensive techniques along with some new additions.
Blood Sucking Fruit no Jutsu
Type: Ninjutsu
Chakra: 20,000
Description: A special fruit cultivated by the Hana Ouji clan. If its seeds are either ingested by or inserted into the body of a victim, a fruit can grow, sucking blood and organic matter from their body. It is still usable on a stronger opponent, but it would take a full thread without removal to disable an opponent. (Seeds must be prepared before the technique can be used)
Hover Leaf
Type: Ninjutsu
Chakra: 15,000(Must have Kakigan Level 3 activated)
Description: A more powerful form of the leaf transport jutsu. The shinobi can now hover a maximum of two and a half feet above the ground on a wide leaf and move relatively quickly through the air. The leaf must be thin in order to do this technique and can be destroyed.
Spore Hana Bunshin
Type: Ninjutsu
Chakra: 30,000
Description: A Hana Ouji shinobi makes a clone of themselves that upon being destroyed turns into a cloud of spores of a previously mentioned type. Any spores can be destroyed by Katon techniques, nullifying their effects but causing an explosion slightly bigger than the bunshin due to the large surface area of the massive amount of spores. (This works with sawdust in real life, so I'd assume...)
|Posted by: Ds14 Apr 14 2007, 09:27 PM
| Okay, so these aren't the official jutsu names. I just wanted to wait until everything was fine before I went through naming all of them.
And on to topic 2, I also want to make a jutsu that is Hana Ouji bloodline, but specifically for Ayame and nobody else because of her position in the clan. It would be that vine jumper she always wears, but expanded and explained. There would be 3 levels for it, the 3rd being for rping purposes only and not really worth much in battle.
|Posted by: Omega2042 Apr 16 2007, 08:13 AM
| Oh boy...What to say about this chart...again. Oh I know! I find it funny that the plant charts changes with the seasons. Just wondering, but what version of this bloodline is this? Its getting to the point where I just wont even bother looking at it anymore as changing it a lot is GMing.
Once more I dont like Ne at all. That to me is the biggest GM on this chart. I just hate a death move that comes at 12K chakra. Oh wait sorry, I should say I hate it when you do that funky increase your size five times yet have no decrease to speed. Then you can suck all the water out of someone in a matter of seconds. Oh and since you want to change it again any and all jutsu on it are open game for editing.
As I am sure you have heard before, this chart has a lot of justu on it, 37 to be exact. I mean damn, what havent you covered? Got a defensive stance, then an offensive one, so got defense and offense covered. But wait! Now you can use both at the same time! Personally I would like to have some restriction on switching between each stance so which one you are in actually makes a difference. It would help you keep the 37 jutsu you want to have. I would say something like a min number of posts that you must stay in a stance before you may swtich. As for the third, it should have some negative effect so you would have a reason to use the pure ones still.
Next we come to what you said about a character only jutsu. Its called the third chart, use it! Thats what its there for, character only jutsu. Its not a chart that goes anywhere except on your character. No one else can have it, its your own chart.
|Posted by: Ds14 Apr 16 2007, 10:00 PM
| 1. If certain techs were accepted before... twice, why would there be a problem with them?
2. I changed it because I realized it was basically useless.
3. Since when did the amount of jutsu matter?
4. I never said before that you couldn't use defensive stance techs while in offensive stance and vice versa. I just added that in here because I had been switching on and off. There can and will only be one Hana Ouji tech user and as a jounin, they should be able to use their bloodlines easily anyways.
5. I was asking because I thought a third chart was for combination jutsu or invented jutsu. This would be a clan jutsu, but a jutsu only my character could use.
|Posted by: Omega2042 Apr 17 2007, 09:12 PM
| There is a pattern forming around edits to this chart. That being you do it after you lose a fight. First you add the offensive part after the chuunin exam and now this. This is of course something that is seen in a very negative light.
If you feel the chart is this weak why dont you just completely redo it instead of editing it constantly? For reasons stated above I cant allow you to keep editing it.
|Posted by: Ds14 Apr 17 2007, 10:16 PM
| What do you mean by redo it? Remove everything old? This is redoing it.
The chuunin exam doesn't count because it was before the wipe. This is technically not even the same storyline. And it's not like I didn't make the NPC that beat my character anyways. It was planned out, holmes.
And to cut to the main point, what exactly does the rpg as a whole have to lose by me remaking this chart?
|Posted by: Nirubi-chan Apr 18 2007, 01:48 AM
| What is has to lose is a bit of dignity. What I'm seeing is that, every time you feel that your chart is insufficient, we have to come do this same moon dance, so that you can yet again rebuild the chart that you seem to have trouble applying to your character.
Now, making revisions to your technique chart is one thing, but you seem to be constantly dissatisfied with this chart to the point where you're constantly changing it like this. Couldn't you take some pride in what you have?
Disregarding the above completely.. Like I've told you before, this chart just seems to be you wanting to have a jutsu of every time for every possible situation. You've got medical jutsu, you've got a slew of ninjutsu, body modifying moves, defensive jutsu, status affecting moves, poisoning moves, Moves that out right kill in a small amount of turns, both normal and eye activated genjutsu. This chart has more than any other chart on the site. Way more. Nothing even comes close.
I'd rather fight someone with a mangekyou sharingan. This shit is ridiculous right here.
|Posted by: Ds14 Apr 18 2007, 01:54 AM
The second after the restart
|Posted by: Ds14 Apr 18 2007, 03:27 AM
|Bleh. Chill out. Your point is taken, there are just certain things I'm very reluctant to remove. I'll fix stuff up and we can go over it more tomorrow. Thanks for what we did today, it was very helpful in an lovable assholey sort of way.
|Posted by: Ds14 Apr 21 2007, 04:39 PM
|Feedback, plx?
|Posted by: Kintaro Apr 21 2007, 06:54 PM
| Patience is a virtue... or something like that.
It hasn't even been a week, you can wait a bit longer. As it stands right now, I am the only one capable of reviewing this chart because the others have reasons not to... or something. Anyway, I've been busy lately but I should be able to look it over later with you if you are on AIM.
|Posted by: Ds14 Apr 21 2007, 08:22 PM
|Yeah, I don't care if I'm waiting, man... no rush. I just wanted some feedback to know if anyone was in the process of doing anything with it or if you were waiting for me to do something.
|Posted by: Ds14 Apr 24 2007, 02:18 AM
|Posted by: Omega2042 Apr 25 2007, 10:44 AM
|Now, my only big problem with this now is I need to know the extent to which you can manipulate plantlife. Seeing as how with the third level of your bloodline you can treat your body as a plant, you might be able to be like that weird bone guy who's name I never bother to remember.
|Posted by: Ds14 Apr 25 2007, 08:46 PM
|Grow them, shrink them, bend them, move them. Any part of them. (I think that's it)
|Posted by: Ds14 Apr 30 2007, 01:00 AM
| ::Hypnotism voice::
You want to accept this.
You want an active jounin in Konoha.
You love DS like a fat man loves cake.
|Posted by: Omega2042 Apr 30 2007, 01:08 AM
| Actually, I dont want to accept this. I dont want Konoha to have a jounin and I dont really like you.
My main reason for not liking this now is the whole turn your body into a plant thing. Its way too easy to abuse that with the being able to manipulate plants. Just turn your arms into vines then grab someone with one and impale them with the other. Or just make yourself giant and flatten them.
|Posted by: Ds14 Apr 30 2007, 01:15 AM
| That's a shame. I like me, though. So it's okay.
And I was very willing to remove a lot of things on the chart, but I can tell you that body into plants thing is not something that was one of those things. I nerfed it a lot by adding in that whole cooldown phase idea and wouldn't be completely averse to some more nerfing, but I definitely do not want to get rid of that.
|Posted by: Ds14 Apr 30 2007, 02:23 AM
|So, umm....?
|Posted by: Omega2042 Apr 30 2007, 03:52 AM
| What? I say I dont like something and you give me: It is staying no matter what, its a bit hard to do anything after that now isnt it?
Since this has been brought up, I feel I must ask the question on everyone's mind: Exactly how does a bloodline dealing with eyes somehow get turned into turning your body into plants?
|Posted by: Ds14 Apr 30 2007, 04:15 AM
| I said that I want it to stay and wouldn't mind making changes, not that it's staying no matter what.
And nothing can make your body parts turn into plants. It's called artistic license, dear.
|Posted by: Omega2042 Apr 30 2007, 04:17 AM
|So you want your bloodline to change suddenly to go along with your most recent idea, despite the fact it doesnt fit? Sorry, not going to happen.
|Posted by: Ds14 Apr 30 2007, 04:25 AM
| Alright. It lets her absorb sunlight and activate the magic plant cells that she can make in her body.
Or it changes her genetic makeup to that of a plants because the sunlight has just enough energy to change the form of her clan's DNA.
Or I could make something else up really quickly/
Or you could try not finding a time wasting and petty excuse for something I don't quite yet know.
|Posted by: Ds14 May 1 2007, 05:19 AM
| Before anyone complains... complains more about me editing my bloodline, I'd like to put it out there that it's technically not an edit because I semi-quit with one of my characters and set their chakra to zero and am going to rejoin. It just so happens that I hadn't gained any chakra from all the stuff I've done before and rejoining with a new chart ends up giving me the same amount of chakra. You could give the other jounin a chakra boost to compensate for it, but I don't think that'd really be worth it.
Dialogue is our friend, friends. Let us shake hands with it and embrace it. Possibly even kiss it. Dialogue loves me and I intend to love it to its fullest. Care to join in a three way, anyone that edits the tech charts?
(I would also like to announce that Omega is my favorite Admin. He's the most helpful and useful one. He also likes to look at things in different ways and see how he might not be right. What I love the most about him is his laid back attitude. He doesn't let anything ruffle his feathers. Someone get this guy an award. He's earned it)
|Posted by: Omega2042 May 1 2007, 09:47 AM
| It is an edit no matter how you try to justify it in your mind. I would like to point out that if you did indeed quit with one character than you are unable to RP with that character until they get approved again. As for the idea of giving away chakra to every other jounin because of something you did, who do you think you are? The whole board isnt going to get chakra because you want your jounin to be weaker than the rest. Stop thinking the rules somehow apply differently to you.
For someone who claims to want dialogue you certainly go about it in a strange way. The sarcasm at the end is just wonderful. Stop being passive agreesive and just say you dont like me.
You complain that I dont bother to look at an issue from another point of view. I would charge you do the same thing. A big concern on what is allowed and what isnt is what precident it would create. In this case it would be the editing of bloodlines.
The latest issue of the thid level of a doujutsu somehow changing the physical structure of someone opens up a whole realm of what can happen and not. For example if this was allowed without some reasoning behind it, I couldnt keep someone else from changing their bloodline to alter their physical form no matter what their original bloodline was.
You might say I am caring about details too much with this, but I will try to explain my reasons behind why this is important. Assuming the level 3 goes through and you turn into a plant, is it a permanent transformation, or willed? The reasons why this is very important is it would greatly affect how jutsu would work on you.
If you are always a plant, then I would assume your body would react to jutsu in a different way. As such water wouldnt be as effective, but fire would be more so. Ice jutsu would be very hard to fight against and so on. It would also raise the question of if genjutsu would work the same way or not. Finally we come to poison, would it work or not?
What I fail to understand is why you would want to edit this chart in the first place. It seems to have no real weakness. The recent addition just seems to be over the top in terms of what this bloodline does. I mean the defensive style alone is powerful, much less everything else.
|Posted by: Fire Fist Ace May 1 2007, 03:26 PM
| Well, since you so kindly asked, I took a look over your tech chart as well, and frankly, I agree with Omega. You're chart is broken, I mean, you have killing techs and debilitating techniques at low chakra levels, your "unlocked" level comes at a level a jounin can have immediately, and considering you insist on no one in the village knowing about the Hana Ouji clan, I find that impossible considering how lethal and damaging most of your techniques are. The Hokage knows about the Hyuuga clan and knows a great extent of Uchiha (exception of possibly Mangekyou Sharingan but only a few Uchiha actually knew about that). I don't see a need for an addition other than you wanted to do it before but didn't have the idea until now.
Also, lay off Omega, he's trying to help you by pointing out what he sees wrong, I see nothing wrong with his arguments and in fact agree with them.
|Posted by: Ds14 May 1 2007, 10:36 PM
Thanks for reviewing my chart, I appreciate it.
And Omega needs to get off of my nuts. I have no problem with him really, just the way he acts. There's a way you go about talking to someone in order to keep them from being offended and if you don't know that by a certain age, it's pitiful.
Another point brought up was that I was editing a chart and not actually quitting with Ayame. I asked permission before I got my chakra set to zero and explained what I was going to do beforehand, I didn't just decide I would do it because I think I'm an admin or something. And is it really an edit? I'm basically rejoining with the same character and making a new chart. I just asked if I could make it so that my character's history wasn't erased when that happened.
The points you bring up are constructive and make sense. I don't mind fixing things and changing them. Ask anyone that's gone over a chart with me on AIM or otherwise. I've made huge edits to this chart and removed a lot of things I didn't mind removing and others that I wanted to keep, but was willing to compromise on. I don't mind removing more, but I want to talk about it, not be insulted and berated about it. It's not important enough to me to let someone talk stuff to me and get away with it.
Finally, I didn't say nobody knows about the clan or if I did write it somewhere, I can change that quickly. I just want it so that the majority of people don't know about what the attacks do or how they work. Of course the Hokage would know about the clan, I don't see why he wouldn't. But another member of the rp that would have had no connection with any clan members wouldn't have any way of really knowing. But since this rp is so freeform, there are always little loopholes.
Thanks again.
|Posted by: Fire Fist Ace May 2 2007, 03:25 AM
|Ah, well then it makes sense, as I was reading it, I was like, but there's killing jutsu in here. Heh, well, if you want to talk, throw me an IM at XFireFistAceX, I'll be glad to go over stuff with ya. (of course I'll have to not be getting killed by finals and the like ^^; )
|Posted by: Ds14 May 2 2007, 03:52 AM
|Yeah, i'll hit you up later.
|Posted by: Ds14 May 7 2007, 12:12 AM
|Anything else?
|Posted by: Omega2042 May 7 2007, 12:50 AM
|In case I missed it, the questions I asked about your ability were never answered. Namely this one: "Assuming the level 3 goes through and you turn into a plant, is it a permanent transformation, or willed?".
|Posted by: Ds14 May 7 2007, 01:55 AM
|Posted by: Omega2042 May 7 2007, 11:29 AM
| This may or may not be long depending on how early I get on a roll with things I think of, just advanced warning.
First I shall break down the chart.
Non-Combat Jutsu: Hana no Arashi, Transform into Petals Shunshin no Jutsu. Total: 2
Offensive: Cutting Petals and or Leaves no Jutsu, Roketto Gahou no Jutsu, Pollen Bomb no Jutsu. Total: 3
Defensive: Flower Shield, Kakiheki no jutsu. Total: 2
Disable/Distraction: Hana no Wana, Obscure Vision With Petals no Jutsu, Ne, Blood Sucking Fruit no Jutsu. Total: 4
Utility: Kakigan Photosynthesis level 1, Photosynthesis Leaves, Hana Bunshin no jutsu, Hana Henge no Jutsu, Spy Plant no Jutsu, Leaf Transport no Jutsu, Botanical Animation, Kakigan Level 3, Hover Leaf, Spore Hana Bunshin. Total: 10
Chart total: 21
So the chart has a bit of everything, but man its pretty clear which category it fall under. Now why is this important? Well, honestly I just did it for my own curiosity, but maybe this came as a surprise to you, no idea. Certainly helps understand what the growth of it should be and would help form battle strategies and such, but for thsi use, its just to categorize everything.
Anyway, I now want to cover the bloodline itself. Honestly, there isnt a clear definition of what it is. You say its a doujutsu and they can control plants. Nothing wrong with that at all, the problem comes in with the recent additions. The other question is about the jutsu in relation to the bloodline. Due to the fact it can be turned on and off, the question of does it have to be on to use jutsu come up. Some say it needs a certain one on, while others dont. In truth, the bloodline ability seems weak. It looks as if this is more of a chart for a clan that uses plant jutsu rather than a bloodline. I counted 6 jutsu that require the bloodline to be active to use, thats about 28% of the chart. Seems low for a bloodline ability.
To sum up that whole paragraph in a since sentence: Please clarify your bloodline ability. Now lets look at each justu.
I will start here first since I have very little to say on both of these.
Hana no Arashi: Hoenstly, this could be a lot better. I would assume that havinga doujutsu as your bloodline, you would be able to use this by looking at someone. I honestly dont see why this is a non-combat jutsu. Its fine how it is of course, but if you wished you could move this up to about 7,500 or so and make it a doujutsu/genjutsu thingy. Personally I would rather add another distraction jutsu, but its up to you.
Transform into Petals Shunshin no Jutsu: I have no idea why this costs as much chakra as it does. As far as I can see its just the clan's version of the normal Leaf one. I would just have it cost the same as the academy one.
Next we shall cover the largest category.
Kakigan Photosynthesis level 1: I find it odd that there is only a level 1 to this. I cant remember the other versions of this chart, but did the others get taken out? Really, nothing wrong with it, but if you plan on not having more of these later, take out the Level 1.
Photosynthesis Leaves: Shouldnt this be the level 2 of the previous? Also, since this is a powerup for it, it needs to be further down the list. Now, it isnt that drastic of an improvement, so I would put it at about 5K or so. You know, the traditional level 2 spot.
Hana Bunshin no jutsu: As with all clones, there needs to be something that mentions its abilities to fight. Can it attack? Can it move? How fast is it? Those are the big three that need to be covered.
Hana Henge no Jutsu: Honestly, I have nothing to say for this that I havent already covered.
Spy Plant no Jutsu: 1K seems a bit low. Now I know its not that hard of a jutsu to do, but I would say 2-3K would work better for it. By that time a genin will have learned some basic chakra control techniques and would be able to hold this plant up. Before that I just dont know if they would have the control to make a third eye.
Leaf Transport no Jutsu: Same as the previous. Nothing wrong with the jutsu, just the cost needs to be increased. Advanced genin jutsu I would say, so about over 5K or so. You have to keep in mind what they would be learning with relation to the other jutsu on the chart when you make the level.
Botanical Animation: This is a bloodline, not a ninjutsu. Now, this is just lacking details basically. How many things you can control at once, the range of the size change, can is make the plants strong enough to cut or block? I would fear having to fight vine swords personally.
Kakigan Level 3: Back to the last thing I talked about. While the power of this is largely based on the answers to the previous jutsu, there is still a large question remining. That being, how does the change work? Does it affect the whole body or just a part you want? Does the user's appearence change? How fast can you switch between plant and human?
Hover Leaf: Just reading this jutsu makes me angry. Only reason being it reminds me of Kagura from Inuyasha, which makes me think of Inuyasha, which angers me. That being said, I dont think this should be a 20K jutsu. Certainly not a genin justu by far, but advanced chuunin? Dont think its that high. This is almost a jounin level justu for its cost, which is just too high for it.
Spore Hana Bunshin: Now, is it made of the spores, or is it the floor clone with spores in it? The main point being that if its the spores then it would be nice if you included how to kill each type of spore, or I should say what they are weak to. Like if the Rapid Spore got hit by a Katon attack, I would guess they would spred into the air.
Seeing as how this chart is more or less completely unoffensive, defense is next.
Flower Shield: Reminds me of a buckler. Doesnt seem to be anything wrong with it, although you should keep in mind that not all 5K attacks would react to this the same way. Three good examples would be: Katon, Ice and of course the Strength chart. The first two being your natural foes, while the last is a large exception on a lot of things.
Kakiheki no jutsu: Pretty much the same thing as the above, only I would assume if you used it on someone else, you yourself would be open. Or not, I really dont know. It just seems like if you use your shield on someone else, it leaves you open. Just wondering about that.
This is where the real offense of this chart is.
Hana no Wana: Nothing wrong with it really. Maybe be a bit higher in cost depending on how the final version of this looks like, but for right now its fine.
Obscure Vision With Petals no Jutsu: What type of petals? And yes, that is a joke question. I would assume cherry blossoms, but who knows? Nothing wrong with it.
Ne: I think you already know what I think about this jutsu. So what else is there to say?
Blood Sucking Fruit no Jutsu: I would hope its a special seed that you have placed your chakra into. I dont want to seeL HE ATE A KIWI NOW I CAN KILL HIM, stuff going on. And yes, a kiwi.
Almost done!
Cutting Petals and or Leaves no Jutsu: This is just plain evil with the Obscure Vision With Petals jutsu. There really isnt anything wrong with this jutsu. I can think of plenty of evil things to do with it, but then it becomes more of a disable rather than an attack, which makes sense with this chart actually...
Rocket Spore: This certainly blurs the line between offense and disable doesnt it? While this justu itself is offensive, the end result of it is a disable. Why am I mentioning this? No idea really, I have started just typing whatever thought enters my head. Anyway, nothing really wrong with this jutsu.
Pollen Bomb no Jutsu: Here we are, last jutsu. Again nothing wrong with this one either, but its the same as the previous.
So thats it. A complete list of all the thoughts I have looking at each jutsu. As a whole I would say you tried a bit too hard to include as much stuff as possible onto the chart which as a whole made ti suffer. I say embrace the utility and disables. Then again I tend to find specialists stronger than being average in everything.
One last thing, the format of the chart needs work too. After being edited so many times its sort of become random and hard to go over. While I am not going to force you to change it, making it look pretty never hurts.
|Posted by: Ds14 May 7 2007, 09:47 PM
| Thanks a lot, Omega. I didn't enjoy being on bad terms with you, but you definitely just fixed/helped me figure out what to fix all my stuff.
I'll get to you probably before Thursday. I have AP Spanish tomorrow.
Thanks again.
|Posted by: Ds14 May 7 2007, 11:16 PM
| Everything you said is perfectly fine with me.
Ne, though. I can nerf it. I shouldn't have mentioned that it can kill someone in the description, it should just be implied. I mean, if you have water drained out of you, you can trust someone else to rp that correctly. And if it's a random, weak NPC then killing might be okay, imo.
|Posted by: Ds14 May 12 2007, 04:11 AM
|I edited the stuff you told me to. If you give that the okay, I'll rename the techs and fix the format.
|Posted by: Omega2042 May 16 2007, 08:24 AM
| There are still several things that you havent covered yet.
Kakigan Photosynthesis Level 2, needs a chakra amount.
Botanical Animation: This is a bloodline, not a ninjutsu. Now, this is just lacking details basically. How many things you can control at once, the range of the size change, can is make the plants strong enough to cut or block? I would fear having to fight vine swords personally.
Kakigan Level 3: Back to the last thing I talked about. While the power of this is largely based on the answers to the previous jutsu, there is still a large question remining. That being, how does the change work? Does it affect the whole body or just a part you want? Does the user's appearence change? How fast can you switch between plant and human?
Blood Sucking Fruit no Jutsu: I would hope its a special seed that you have placed your chakra into. I dont want to see: HE ATE A KIWI NOW I CAN KILL HIM, stuff going on. And yes, a kiwi.
Along with a detailed description of what the bloodline ability is and all that.
|Posted by: Ds14 May 16 2007, 09:39 PM
| Before I edit the techs I'll try to discuss it here.
If a plant gets to a certain thickness, it becomes a tree. She can't control trees. And with sharpening them, basically no. She can make a plant that's already pointy go fast enough to pierce flesh though (of course depending on how strong the plant is). It's GMable, I guess, but I don't plan on GMing and I would hope someone would call me out if I did.
|Posted by: Ds14 May 21 2007, 11:06 PM
|Posted by: Omega2042 May 23 2007, 09:20 PM
|One thing this time. I need to know what you had in mind for the regeneration for the Kakigan Level 3.
|Posted by: Ds14 May 24 2007, 02:44 PM
| I think a higher level of regeneration would be hax and it doesn't fit the theme. A plant can regenerate, but not like Wolverine, y'know?
I like where it is now that it's not an in battle sort of thing and she can just fix little stuff.
|Posted by: Omega2042 May 25 2007, 01:12 AM
|What I really need are example of light wounds. If you remember someone had a regeneration power and healed a broken rib since it was a light injury to them.
|Posted by: Ds14 May 25 2007, 10:15 PM
|I think that would heal over a day if she sat in the sun for like 12 hours. But if it's like broken as in jutting out of the skin and spraying blood broken, then I'd rp that differently.
|Posted by: Omega2042 May 25 2007, 11:45 PM
|There is only one thing keeping this from being accepted now: How a doujutsu bloodline allows you to turn into a plant.
|Posted by: Ds14 May 26 2007, 12:08 AM
|The doujutsu is what activates the "plant-person"-ness. When she turns it on, she can control the plants and when it's off, she can't really do much.
|Posted by: Omega2042 May 27 2007, 04:54 AM
| Ok, here is the basic problem. Your bloodline changes your eyes and gives you control over plants and some genjutsu. Thats all fine, but now you want your eye activated bloodline to be able to turn any part of your body into a plant.
That just doesnt add up really. Apart from that, honestly what you are trying to add this time really isnt needed. Everyone after the level 3 bloodline you dont really need. Something you could possibly do would be to take off the turning yourself into a plant part and then either move the plant animation to level 3, or split that ability between the two in some way.
|Posted by: Ds14 May 27 2007, 09:17 PM
|I could say that it's not a doujutsu and that the eyes change as an effect from the bloodline's abilities activating.
|Posted by: Ds14 May 31 2007, 09:30 PM
| If the problem is something just being unnecessary, then is it really a problem? I got rid of a lot of stuff and I kept what I would feel uncomfortable removing.
I could have easily GM'ed with it before. A pointy plant can come out of the ground and go through someone from below. A Hyuuga can GM jyuuken by attacking the brain and one hit killing. A person that has mastered weapon accuracy can easily target a kunai at an unsuspecting victim and one hit them.
There are almost always going to be ways someone can GM with a chart, it's just up to them not to do it and up to the mods to punish them for doing it if they do.
|Posted by: Nirubi-chan Jun 1 2007, 01:53 AM
|Problems still go back to. If you have this chart, there's sooooooooooooooo much shit on it to where you wouldn't need a secondary chart. Also I don't like the turning into a plant thing.. mainly because it's based off nothing, and is just dumb as far as I see it. Nobody's bloodline just turned them into something completely different. That's just plain not getting in. End of Story. No arguing, just the sound of a fierce, vibrant, No.
|Posted by: Ds14 Jun 1 2007, 04:29 AM
Kiba can turn into a dog and stay that way for fighting.
What would be a possible problem with it, though? It's not like she would be impervious to damage or anything.
And if that absolutely won't work, then could I have her be able to grow plants from her body?
|Posted by: Ds14 Jun 1 2007, 05:23 AM
| Edited
FAB really really really really really sucks and has no friends and is a poopyface
|Posted by: Omega2042 Jun 2 2007, 03:23 AM
|Posted by: Ds14 Jun 4 2007, 05:03 AM
|Okay, now I'm going to change the names for the jutsu.


text:
Public Performance
Fred Matser loves inspiring others through his public talks based on his life experiences and philosophy. He is a warm, humorous and popular speaker and has (amongst others) already given well-received talks at Nyenrode Business University in the Netherlands, Sages and Scientists Symposium and Matthew Fox's University for Creation Spirituality, California in the U.S. and the Findhorn Foundation and Schumacher College in the UK.
His main topics are inspiration and empowerment based on his life experiences in both business and personal settings.
He is happy to do talks for lay people, health professionals, business people, different groups etc. He is also available for appearances on radio and television and at conferences etc.
For an interview, please contact us via email.
To book Fred for a talk, contact the Teeuwen Groep, www.teeuwengroep.nl. Please click here to read an example (in Dutch) of an introduction to one of Fred's talks or watch the below video to get an impression of what Fred's performance could look like.
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Fred Matser's upcoming event:
Fred Matser's recent speaking events:
5 June 2015: Alzheimer Symposium: The Future of Brain Health, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
As the founder of Fred Foundation, Fred opened and closed the symposium which featured state-of-the-art research and therapy innovations with speakers like Dr. Rudolph Tanzi, Dr. Deepak Chopra and Prof. dr. Philip Scheltens. The symposium was an invitation to the audience for reflection and dialogue on the way we approach alzheimer and brain health.
21 October 2014: One World with Deepak Chopra, New York, USA
Interview programme by Deepak Chopra featuring thought leaders, trendsetters & pioneers engaged in social change and modern day investors for a better tomorrow.
22-24 August 2014: Sages&Scientists Symposium, USA
Fred spoke at the annual Sages&Scientists symposium.
The symposium explored a series of fantastic emerging facts with the incorporation of the creative arts such as dance, music, spoken word and art:
• Science and Consciousness – Frontiers of Science and Consciousness
• Leadership – Defining a New Leadership: Serving a New Humanity
• Wellbeing (Sustainability, Environment, Health, Technology, Economy) – Conscious Living
• Peace and Justice – Living Harmoniously
• World Transformation: Challenges and Creative Solutions – It's Time
Fred shared the lessons he has learned until so far. Amongst others he talked about his shifting perception of money as well as what in his eyes are the most effective ways to really help and empower people in the context of a greening environment. The money he is providing for projects and other initiatives is not anymore his money as he has donated it to foundations of which he is the founder and board member. He sees this money as a tool to influence processes in life. Basically with money one can choose to invest it according to the development of one's own level of consciousness. In Fred's case he aims to do such in an all-inclusive way that is to say, to invest it for the good of all or at least the many. In this respect he thinks it to be most important that we learn to filter the products of our thinking through the wisdom of our hearts.
22-26 April 2014: Schumacher College, Totnes, UK
Fred Matser was one of the teachers alongside Mr. Matthew Fox and Mr. Satish Kumar in the course 'The Return of Wisdom - Finding Our Way with Money and Work'. In a worldview that is dominated by a sense of scarcity, fear and competition reign alongside a win/lose attitude. In contrast, in a worldview that values sharing over hoarding and inclusion over exclusion, we can move beyond win/lose, to community or win/win. The course looked at how business, society and we as individuals can rebuild our foundations to be less about win/lose and scarcity and more about community caring and sharing.
2 September 2013: Green Cross International General Assembly, Geneva, Switzerland
Since 1993, Green Cross has responded to the combined challenges of security, poverty and environmental degradation. Our mission is to ensure a sustainable and secure future for all, seeking solutions through dialogue, mediation and co-operation.In 2013, the year marking our 20th anniversary, the world is at a decisive crossroads. Warning signs signal dangers all around: unchecked climate change and resulting extreme weather events; continued presence of weapons of mass destruction; 800 million people living without access to water; rampant poverty.
29 May -3 June 2012: Science and Nonduality Conference, Doorn, The Netherlands
The Science and Nonduality Conference is a yearly event where preeminent scientists, philosophers, authors, and teachers, gather to explore a new understanding of who we are, both as individuals and as a society. This exploration is grounded in cutting-edge science and consistent with the ancient wisdom of nonduality - the deep understanding of the interconnectedness of life.
The theme of the European conference was 'The Nature of the Self' - an exploration of the perception of the Self from scientific, philosophical, phenomenological, psychological etc. perspectives.
18-19 May 2012: Europe in the 21st Century: Challenges and Opportunities, Luxembourg
This conference was organised by the Luxembourg Institute for European and International Studies and the New Policy Forum (Gorbachev Forum), in cooperation with the Representation of the European Commission in Luxembourg and the think-tank Notre Europe. The speakers expressed their views on Europe's recent political developments and options for the future and was attended by about 50 participants and over 300 observers. Fred Matser spoke about involving more "heart" in Europe's decisions and policies.
3-5 March 2012: Sages and Scientists Symposium, USA
The three-day Sages and Scientists: The Merging of a New Future Symposium explored a series of fantastic emerging facts in both a scientific and spiritual context. Such a contemporary synthesis of ideas and facts allows science and soul to coexist comfortably, and paves the way for the future evolution of humanity. Fred Matser spoke about the topic of scarcity with a contribution titled 'Does Scarcity Exist?'.
22 june 2011 and 29 july 2011: Nyenrode Business University, The Netherlands
Economics is based on the assumption that there is scarcity in our world. The topic of these talks was "Does scarcity exist?". Fred Matser shares a different perception of scarcity and the related phenomenon of competition. He places scarcity in the context of the finite: time and space.There are 2 options: do we choose to compete or do we choose to compare with care in order to share with care?
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Fred Matser is an inspiring humanitarian who, like many others, cares deeply about the future of the planet. He has made it his life's work to contribute to creating a more functional...Read More
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subset: commoncrawl


text:
Sea Gravity Data In The Gulf Of Naples- A Contribution To Delineating The Structural Pattern Of The Vesuvian Area
From Open Energy Information
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Journal Article: Sea Gravity Data In The Gulf Of Naples- A Contribution To Delineating The Structural Pattern Of The Vesuvian Area
AbstractThree active volcanoes are located in the Neapolitan volcanic region of the Campanian Plain i.e. Somma-Vesuvius, Campi Flegrei and Ischia. Bathymetric and gravity surveys in the Gulf of Naples were made since 1987 in order to complete the off-shore Bouguer map. Eight hundred sixty-two stations were surveyed within the 400 m isobath and the project was concluded in 1994. The data have been processed with 2000 gravity values available on land to obtain a Bouguer anomaly map of the whole volcanic region. The global set of gravity data has been referred to the absolute gravity station established in Naples in 1986 and remeasured in 1994. The gravity anomalies have been computed according to the 1980 geodetic reference system; a density value of 2200 kg/m3 has been used in the computation of the Bouguer and terrain effects. The anomaly map shows positive values ranging from 7 to 102 mGal with a mean value of 41 mGal. The Vesuvian area is characterized by a short wave length Bouguer anomaly, located at the southeastern edge of a large gravity minimum, north of Naples, interpreted as a tectonic depression (Acerra depression). A strip of high gravity gradient runs south of Somma-Vesuvius with an E-W trend on land changing to a NE-SW trend in the Gulf of Naples. This strip borders two gravity minima located southwest of the Somma-Vesuvius and south of the Bay of Pozzuoli, respectively. A well defined minimum spans the Campi Flegrei and strong gravity gradients border the islands of Ischia and Procida. The interpretation of the gravity anomalies is based on 2.5D modelling along selected profiles crossing the investigated area. The models have been constrained with data obtained from deep wells and other geophysical information. Three main bodies have been modelled, i.e. the polygenic filling of the Campanian Plain, the sedimentary basement and the crystalline basement. The interpretative sections suggest that in the Neapolitan area the sedimentary basement is strongly displaced. Its top reaches the maximum depth of 3 km in the central part of the Gulf of Naples and in the Acerra depression. In the Vesuvian area the sedimentary basement is about 11 km thick with the top at a depth of 2 km. A complex system of faults surrounds the Somma-Vesuvius.
- Authors
- Giovanna Berrino, Gennaro Corrado and Umberto Riccardi
- Published Journal
- Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research, 1998
- Not Provided
Check for DOI availability: http://crossref.org
Giovanna Berrino,Gennaro Corrado,Umberto Riccardi. 1998. Sea Gravity Data In The Gulf Of Naples- A Contribution To Delineating The Structural Pattern Of The Vesuvian Area. Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research. (!) .


text:
Picture this: you are driving home from work on a rainy Tuesday night. You stop at a red light, and put your blinker on to make a right turn. As you turn, a person trying to avoid the rain runs in front of your car and you crash into him. Your first thought it, "Is the person alright?" Luckily the person is alive but has severely injured their arm and wrist. You leave the scene a little shaken up but thankful that no one was killed.
One month later you receive a letter in the mail. The person you crashed into was a 36 year old surgeon at a local hospital. As a result of the crash they needed surgery on their arm and wrist, physical therapy for 10 months, and will not be able to work for a year. The total bill after all expenses are taken into account is $900,000.
Even though this is a fictitious example, I know a client who had a very similar situation happen to them. Luckily for them, they carried a $1,000,000 Umbrella Insurance policy and their financial plan was left unaffected. Umbrella Insurance is coverage for excess liability that sits on top of, and in addition to, your primary insurance policies. If you have a catastrophic accident that exhausts the liability limits on both your Homeowners and Auto policies, your Umbrella policy will provide extra protection to keep your financial and retirement plan safe. Umbrella's are used for both personal and commercial lines of insurance. All business owners should carry umbrella limits up to the value of their assets in the company to keep their businesses properly protected from unexpected occurrences.
Do obtain umbrella policy quotes
An umbrella quote can range from $200-$300 for $1,000,000 in coverage. These policies are very affordable. If you currently have your Homeowners and Auto policy's packaged with the same company, that same company will likely have the most affordable umbrella coverage. In the case that you do not have both with the same company, umbrella's can be purchased from stand-alone carriers as well. The best course of action would be to contact a trusted broker to help you proceed forward.
Do carry proper injury limits on your auto insurance
In order to qualify for an Umbrella Policy, you need to carry a minimum of $300,000 Combined Single Limit or $250,000/$500,000 Split Limits of Bodily Injury Coverage. Umbrella policy's only pick up payments once your primary limits have been exhausted. Companies require these minimum limits because Umbrella policy's are meant to be excess coverage in catastrophic cases.
Do carry proper liability limits on your homeowners policy
In order to qualify for an Umbrella Policy you need to carry a minimum of $300,000 Liability Limits on your Homeowners Policy. This is for the exact same reasoning as Do #2. Umbrella policy's only pick up payments once your primary limits have been exhausted. Companies require these minimum limits because Umbrella policy's are meant to be excess coverage in catastrophic cases.
Do read the fine print
Every company is different. Read the exclusions on your Umbrella Policy so you know exactly what is and isn't covered. You do not want to be in a situation where you think you are covered for a claim, but it states clearly in the exclusions of the policy that you do not have this particular coverage. Not even the best broker or lawyer in the world will be able to help you get indemnified from a loss that is excluded by your policy.
Do ask for excess SUM Coverage on your umbrella quotes
SUM (Supplementary Uninsured/Under-insured Motorist) protects you in the case that someone who does not carry proper liability limits crashes into you. Their policy will only pay up to its limits even if your damages are higher. Make sure your Umbrella Policy includes SUM so you are fully protected against a not-at-fault accident.
Do not wait on getting insurance
The longer you wait to get a quote, the less likely it you'll actually do it. Start shopping around right away for this coverage that can potentially save your financial plan. Not too many people have a liquid $1,000,000 in their emergency fund in the case of a bad accident. The $200-$300 you spend on an umbrella policy will be worth it's weight in gold if there is ever an incident where you need it.
Do not purchase coverage without checking A.M. Best
A.M. Best provides credit ratings and financial data for the Insurance Industry. Make sure the company insuring your umbrella coverage is rated at least a "B+" by A.M. Best. For every strong, stable insurance company, there is a "fly by night" impostor competing for your business. A.M. Best is the insurance industry equivalent of the Better Business Bureau for checking a company's credibility.
Do not purchase coverage without shopping around first
Make sure you have at least 2-3 quotes in your possession before making a final decision. Compare the coverages, exclusions, and prices to make sure you are getting the best protection for your money.
Do not purchase coverage based on price alone
Absolutely do not shop on the sole criteria of price. Insurance products are the same as tangible products in the case where, if it seems too good to be true, it probably is. Make sure the coverage is what you need before concerning yourself solely on price.
Do not hesitate to contact an insurance broker
Contact a broker if you have any questions about Umbrella Insurance. They can consult with you, and help you find a suitable product that fits closely into your price range.
If you ever find yourself in the unfortunate circumstance that was described above, you'll be happy you have Umbrella Insurance. Now that you are more knowledgeable on the product, you can see that this is an essential coverage for both home and business owner's alike. For $200-$300 you can be covered for $1,000,000; it's a no-brainer. We all wish for the best and hope that bad situations never occur. But in the case that they do, it is always better to know you are protected.
More expert advice about Home, Auto, and Theft Insurance
Photo Credits: Umbrellas @ James Smith's Umbrella Shop © Rev Dan Catt - Flickr; Check Man, Cross Man and Jump Man © ioannis kounadeas - Fotolia.com


text:
"Are you sure?" Richard asked, staring at her almost in disbelief.
He had just returned from a hunt with Commander General Meiffert and some men of the First File, taking longer than expected. He had been anxious to return to the People's Palace and his Kahlan. When they arrived back, he found her with Cara in one of the devotion squares talking quietly to each other as Kahlan played her delicate fingers through the cool water of the reflecting pool.
Now sitting beside her on a stone bench, he could hardly believe what she had just told him.
Kahlan gave him her special smile, the one she reserved only for him. Her blue eyes sparkling with that ageless quality he had seen so many times in her and others; Adie, Verna, Nicci. They all had that ageless quality that flowed from their Han. Yet Kahlan's was something special, something wondrous. Uniquely her. It was almost as if it burned only for him.
She laughed softly as she placed a hand on his cheek. "Yes, Richard Rahl. I am sure. A Confessor knows." She smiled softly, then added, "A woman knows."
Everything he had ever wanted seemed to finally coming true. Since the day he first encountered Kahlan running from a quad of D'Harans in Westland to the day they opened the Boxes of Orden and defeating Darken Rahl, too sealing the Rift and discovering that their love was stronger than her magic, that he could not be confessed. All he ever wanted was to be with Kahlan, his wife, the woman he loved more than life itself.
"The Lord Rahl is speechless," smirked Cara mockingly, leaning against a pillar, her intense blue eyes betraying her true feelings, revealing how happy she was for her two friends.
Richard looked over his shoulder at her. "You knew?"
Cara raised an eyebrow and fiddled with her blonde braid, trying to look innocent, a hard thing for a Mord'Sith to do when clad in their red leather. "What the Mother Confessor and I discuss when our husbands are out hunting is none of your business."
Richard could not help but smile. Cara had grown so much since the first time Egan and Ulic pulled him off the streets of Aydindril, before he made a very big mistake in dealing with some Blood of the Fold, and took him to her and her Sisters of the Agiel.
She had been at his side ever since. From his dissolving of the Midlands Alliance and the formation of the D'Haran Empire to combat the Order, through Chainfire and his frantic search for the woman everyone told him was a phantom of his imagination. Though at the time she did not fully believe him, she never wavered in her loyalty. Out of all the Mord'Sith, he believed Cara had been the first to fully reclaim her lost humanity.
He turned back to Kahlan, his brown eyes filling with concern. "His everything all right, I mean... are you okay?"
"The Mother Confessor had trouble keeping down her breakfast," Cara scowled, speaking before Kahlan could even open her mouth.
Kahlan gave the Mord'Sith a look, then turned to Richard and smiled. "I'm fine, Richard," she reassured him. "Nicci checked me this morning. I'm fine. Everything is fine."
Slowly, Richard allowed the joy he felt to seep into his heart, a smile slowly began to spread across his lips. "We're going to have a baby," he murmured softly, then looked up at her blue eyes, and kissed her. "And she'll look just like her mother. Beautiful, smart—"
"If she's anything like the Mother Confessor," Cara chimed in. "She'll be a handful." She pointed an accusatory finger towards them. "And don't expect Benjamin and me to babysit when you two want some alone time. The wizard can handle that."
Richard laughed. "I'm sure her great-grandfather would be more than welcomed to babysit."
Cara smirked. "I'm sure he would. Beside, he'll have the Prelate and her Sisters to help him."
Richard turned back to Kahlan, suddenly missing Zedd and wishing his grandfather was here in the People's Palace instead of back at the Wizard's Keep. "We should go to Aydindril," he said firmly. "You should give birth in the Confessor's Palace." It just seemed right that the first new confessor, their first child, should be born there, where Kahlan had grown up, where all the Mother Confessors before her had reign.
Kahlan smiled softly. "I'll go wherever you go, Lord Rahl," she teased him, caressing his cheek, flashing him her special smile. Then her eyes suddenly became distance, as if lost in a dark cloud of worry. She trembled slightly and her hand moved to rest over her stomach.
Fearing something was wrong, Richard inched closer and placed his arms around her, wanting nothing more than to comfort his beloved. "Kahlan, what is it?"
She tried to wave off his concern with a smile, but he could tell it was forced.
"Kahlan, tell me," he commanded, more sternly.
"I was just thinking about Shota's promise," Kahlan replied, the worry in her voice evident.
Richard remembered that promise all too well. Shota had interrupted their wedding, freezing time in the Mud People's village, and spoken to them. The witch woman had promised that if they conceived a child, no matter how she felt about Richard and Kahlan, she would destroy it before it became the monster her visions told her it would become.
He did not believe in her visions for one second, but he knew the Shota would keep her word. She was devious like that.
"Don't worry about that witch woman," Cara spoke up loudly. "The Mord'Sith can handle her. And if we need help, not saying that we will, but if we did I am sure Nicci, with her subtractive magic, can assist. Nicci did, after all, make her own promise to Shota." The Mord'Sith smirked, remembering Nicci's encounter with the witch woman in Aydindril.
"Cara," Richard called to quiet her.
Cara gave a shrug, but remained quiet.
"Kahlan," Richard returned his attention to the Mother Confessor. "Don't worry about Shota. I'll protect you and our baby. I will not allow any harm to come to either of you."
"What if our child becomes a monster, like she warned us?" Kahlan asked him, fear rippling through her voice.
"You know I don't believe that," Richard replied, trying to calm her. "How can our child ever become a monster, Kahlan? She'll be surround by those who love and care for her. She'll be guided and nurtured by us and our friends. We will teach her our values and ideals. And if Shota tries to interfere, well, I am a War Wizard, I'm sure I can figure out someway to stop her." He smirked, allowing himself a small bit of pride at all he had accomplished in the past. "I did after all figure out how to open and close the Boxes of Orden."
Much to his dismay and horror, before he had used the Sword of Truth on the boxes, Kahlan had told him that she loved him. He had been both heartened and devastated when she had said that. Richard feared that she was no longer protected in a sterile field and that the emotions would contaminate her chances of regaining her memory once he repaired the damages caused by Chainfire.
However, when he pulled his sword from the boxes, Kahlan had miraculously been brought back. Somehow, the fact that she had fallen in love with him all over again, and for the same reasons, had protected her memories and brought them back to her.
Blinking his eyes, coming back to the present, Richard saw Kahlan smiling at him. By the look in her eye, he knew she was remembering that day as well.
"You are a rare person, Richard Rahl," she echoed the very same words she had said to him when he had closed the Boxes of Orden and they had found out that her memories were restored.
Smiling, he leaned in and kissed her, much like he had on that day. It was a kiss of longing and joy at having your loved one returned to you when you had thought them lost. Now, more than ever, he wanted nothing more than to take her to Aydindril and spend nights on end with her in that big bed of hers in the Confessor's Palace.
After breaking from their kiss, Kahlan gave a nod. "To Aydindril it is then," she spoke, breathlessly, the wisps of a smile still on her lips. "And my big bed."
Out of the corner of his eye, Richard could tell that Cara was aching to say something. With a nod of his head, he gave her his consent.
"What is it, Cara?"
Her eyes looked worried, as if she had just thought of something that tore down her whole world. "Lord Rahl, I… I was just thinking... if Confessor's only give birth to daughters, then who will inherit the title of Lord Rahl?"
Richard raised his eyebrows. He had not thought of that. Kahlan looked up, terrified. "Richard," she said, terror gripping her voice. "I… I…! Oh, Richard… I'm so sorry, I cannot give you a son."
He reached over to sooth her, but she would not have it. She had a desperate look in her eyes, as if she was fighting with all her might to contain her raging emotions.
"I can never give you a son," Kahlan repeated, her emotions raw. "Never… never," she shook her head despondently. "A male confessor would be worse than the Order. You… you… oh, Richard," she was near tears. She sucked them back and tried to put on her confessor's face, but she was unable to. "You have to pass on your gift to a male heir… for the good of the D'Haran people, for the Midlands… there will need to be a Lord Rahl."
She began to tremble as tears rolled down her cheeks. "Oh, Richard," she sobbed. Kahlan's eyes turned to Cara. "Cara…?"
"Yes, Mother Confessor?" Cara stepped forward, looking confused and a little anxious at the tone Kahlan's voice carried.
"Cara…," Kahlan stammered, taking a deep breath, finally masking her emotions with her confessor's face. "You… You'll need to provide Richard with a male heir." She could not stop herself. "Or maybe Nicci… she loves you, Richard. She'll be willing to bear you a son."
"Kahlan, no," Richard took her head in her hands. "No. You are the only woman who I ever want, Kahlan. You, no one else, will be the mother of my children."
"But you need a son," she began to protest.
"If I can only have daughters with you, then I want daughters!" Richard declared adamantly, leaving no room for doubt in Kahlan's mind. "Besides, D'Hara has no need for the bond anymore. Jagang is defeated. There are no more dreamwalkers. He was the last of his kind."
"Are you so sure?" Kahlan questioned, almost sounding distraught, as if she was right and he was wrong. "He took so many women to his bed, Richard. So many. Dear spirits, believe me, I know. When he held me captive… Oh, Richard, the things he did to those poor women—the things he did to Nicci!—Oh spirits, what if he planted his seed in one of them? Somewhere out there… there might be an infant destined to become a dreamwalker."
"Shh," Richard soothed. "Don't worry, Kahlan. I do not think that there is another dreamwalker. Jagang would not have wanted any competition. He would not have sired another."
"Our child will be more than a match if ever another dreamwalker shall arise," Richard said. "And besides… Nathan's not that old. I'm sure he can provide us with a male Rahl if need be."
Cara narrowed her eyes behind him and scoffed. "Are you seriously suggesting we allow that mad prophet to be the forefather of the next Lord Rahl?"
Richard gave a shrug. "Its either that or the D'Haran people learn to except a Confessor and an Amnell as their leader."
"An Amnell?" Kahlan looked up questioningly.
He turned back to her and held her hands to his chest, placing them just above his heart. "I took the title and name of Rahl only because I had to," he answered. "I want our children to have the Amnell name. Your name. Not a name that I associate too much with Darken Rahl and his crimes. The Rahl name has brought nothing but trouble."
"It brought me you," Kahlan objected. "It brought me my Richard."
Richard smiled, and caressed her cheek. She closed her eyes and eased into his touch.
"We'll have a daughter, Kahlan, I know it. I feel it in my bones. And she'll be just as beautiful, as strong, and as smart as her mother," he said. "She'll be our little confessor. And she'll be the one who can fully unite both D'Hara and the Midlands."
"Oh, Richard," Kahlan inched closer and kissed him.
Cara rolled her eyes and grumbled. "If you two are heading towards where I think your heading, then you better get back to your bedchambers. It would not do for all of D'Hara to her the Mother Confessor's cries of ecstasy for the Lord Rahl echoing throughout the People's Palace."
She fiddled with her braid, annoyed that they appeared not to have heard her. "Though," Cara continued, but mainly speaking out loud to herself, acting like she was oblivious to the passionate lip locking that was going on right in front of her. "I suppose it does not matter where the Lord Rahl takes the Mother Confessor, because her cries will be so loud it is sure to wake the dead. Spirits know you two keep me up all night with your constant cries of passion."
Richard and Kahlan backed out of their embraced and laughed, no longer able to contain their amusement at their friend's ramblings.
"Laugh if you must," Cara said rolling her eyes at them. "Maybe Benjamin and I will keep you up tonight instead! It's been a while since I've had my husband in my bed. Lord Rahl is always taking him off on some hunt or some diplomatic mission to Nicobarese or Tamarang or wherever."
As Cara continued to rant, Richard and Kahlan hugged each other tightly, smiling and thinking about the future that lay ahead of them; a future filled with promise, hope, and love.


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One slice of cake.
Additional definitions for 'piece of cake':
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Document Type
Teacher Resource
Publication Date
Spring 4-6-2016
The purpose of the psychodynamics module is to define the concept of psychodynamics and explore the various psychological models and understand their relation to leadership. The module examines concepts such as conformity, consensus, and authority. The module looks into the implications of having or gaining authority through social experiments. Furthermore, the module explores the relationships between different psychological states.
Recommended Citation
Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy, "07. Psychodynamics in Leadership" (2016). CORE. 9.
Included in
Applied Behavior Analysis Commons, Business Administration, Management, and Operations Commons, Educational Leadership Commons, Gifted Education Commons, Leadership Studies Commons, Organizational Behavior and Theory Commons, Organization Development Commons, Other Psychology Commons, Other Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons, Social Psychology Commons


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Melisa Marquez
Irvin High Class of 1981
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KOTA BAHRU – Kelantan Football Association (KAFA) adviser Tan Sri Annuar Musa wants the management of football in the country do justice to the issues faced by KAFA at the moment.
Annuar said the management of football in the country should not be acting arbitrarily without discussing with KAFA about the matter and measures to be imposed on the association.
"We (Kelantan) are a poor team, a hand-to-mouth team, a team which is supported by people who do not have rank or power..not MB (Menteri Besar) and not the palace, but do not act as you please, we only want justice in sports," he he said on his Facebook page today.
Kelantan are currently facing an issue of registration, since the signing of a new foreign player, Seydi L'Imam, was not approved by the Football Malaysia Limited Liability Partnership (FMLLP), apparently due to issues of salary arrears and deduction of six points in the Super League competition.
Annuar said the body which is responsible for its affiliates should engage KAFA in negotiations related to the issues faced at the moment.
"Kelantan was not invited for discussions or consultation or given an opportunity to explain the problems encountered. It began with various allegations against me which spread to MARA and MACC (Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission).
"As if that was not enough, the team had points deducted, then there was intention to obstruct our effort to improve the team. What is wrong if the Red Warrior is strengthened? he asked.
In early May, Kelantan was among four teams who had points deducted following their failure to solve salary arrears of players in the M-League since 2015.
The other three teams subjected to the same action by FMLLP were Perlis, Armed Forces and T-Team. – BERNAMA


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Patricia A. Serpa (D) has represented District 27 in West Warwick, Coventry and Warwick since first being elected in November 2006. She serves as chairwoman of the House Committee on Oversight. She is also a member of the House Committee on Rules.
As Oversight chairwoman in the past two years, she has led investigations into the computer glitches in the UHIP rollout, which led to the delay of food and health benefits, as well as to problems with both DCYF and the Training School, as well as the delay of tax refunds to many Rhode Islanders.
In 2017, Representative Serpa introduced a law that requires physicians involved in the delivery and care of infants to report cases of infants born with or affected by substance abuse.
For her advocacy efforts, in 2017 she received the Legislative Champion Award from RI Partnership for Home Care; the Making a Difference Award from LeadingAge RI; and the Humane State Legislator Award from the U.S. Humane Society.
In 2016, she co-sponsored legislation that led to a constitutional amendment restoring the Ethics Commission's jurisdiction over the General Assembly. Other successful 2016 legislation she sponsored now makes freestanding emergency care facilities subject to the same regulatory requirements as other health care facilities; a law that allows pharmacies to dispense biological products; a law expanding coverage for substance abuse treatment, and a law laying down tougher penalties for animal abuse that leads to death.
During the 2015 session, Representative Serpa's proposal to eliminate the business fuel and electricity tax was included in the state budget. She also sponsored a law that provides coverage for seven days of residential or inpatient services for opioid treatment to be included within the appropriate classification. She also introduced legislation that authorizes pharmacists to perform limited function clinical laboratory tests. Representative Serpa also sponsored a bill that increases the time convicted murderers must serve of their sentences before they are eligible for parole.
In 2014, the General Assembly passed a bill she sponsored, requiring insurers to provide coverage for the treatment of mental health and substance abuse disorders under the same terms and conditions as coverage provided for other illnesses and diseases.
She also sponsored laws regulating the use of epinephrine auto-injectors to treat allergic reactions, increasing penalties for texting while driving, protecting the physical well-being of animals, and making changes to teacher tenure laws in order to give educators the opportunity to gain administrative experience with an unpaid leave option.
Representative Serpa spent six years on the West Warwick School Committee from 2000 to 2006. She is an associate member of the West Warwick Democratic Town Committee and is involved with the Sons of Italy, Vince Lombardi Lodge, Defenders of Animals and the West Warwick Lions Club.
A retired public school educator and admissions officer, she holds a master's degree in education from Providence College after earning her bachelor's degree in the same study at Mount St. Joseph College. She lives in West Warwick.
CONTACT INFORMATION: 194 Kimberly Lane West Warwick, RI 02893 (401) 828-5687


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Is Philanthropy Becoming Sexy?
July 20, 2018
The Internet has a long and storied history of democratizing information and influencing social change. It has flattened hierarchies and made information accessible to many more people -- though, ironically, it also has sometimes assaulted democracy in the process. Just think about how philanthropy has been changing at the instigation of Salesforce, one of the Internet's poster kids.
Could a Tech Collaboration Tool Fix Dysfunctional Governments?
July 16, 2018
Microsoft Inspire is taking place this week, and a huge number of my personal friends and I were prebriefed on what the big announcements would be. Strangely, the embargo on the news lifted last week, so I'm not going to get in trouble for sharing some of the revelations. There are a number of interesting elements, including Microsoft's suddenly aggressive move to use Azure as an IoT host.
A Trade War in the Cloud?
July 14, 2018
So far, the looming trade war is limited to actions and reactions related to durable things that trade throughout the global economy. Will that remain the battleground? Or should we expect greater contentiousness around services -- specifically, SaaS, and CRM in particular? Retaliation for U.S. trade initiatives so far has been aimed at things produced by Trump-leaning industries and states.
How Smart Should a Home Be?
July 12, 2018
One of the loudest buzzes in the Internet of Things is around smart homes. Vendors have rushed to connect everything imaginable within a house, including lights, appliances, entertainment systems, windows, shades, door locks, ceiling fans, faucets, smoke detectors, security systems, furniture -- basically anything with a battery or power cord now can be connected.
Next Up, Game Consoles: Is There Anything Google Can't Do Badly?
July 9, 2018
It's interesting to compare Google and Amazon -- two of the most incredibly powerful companies in the world. Amazon brings out product after product, with more successes than failures. Google largely buys companies and then loses interest in what they do. Profit is built into Amazon's retail efforts, while Google largely lives off selling users' information and providing access to content.
What I Learned at the Conferences
July 7, 2018
The close of Q2 ends the first wave of vendor customer events. Still to come this fall are Salesforce Dreamforce and Oracle OpenWorld -- and others -- but mercifully, we have the summer to digest all the information absorbed this spring and re-sync with our native time zones.For starters, CRM doesn't appear to be slowing down. As an industry, it's rated at about $35 billion in revenues.
Security Economics: The Key to Resilience
July 5, 2018
There are times when looking at something narrowly can be more effective than taking a wider and more comprehensive view. If you don't believe me, consider the experience of looking at organisms in a microscope or watching a bird through binoculars. Distractions are minimized, allowing optimal evaluation and analysis of what's under investigation.
Intel's 'CEO Problem' Is Its Board
July 2, 2018
Tech companies have been going through a lot of CEOs of late. HP had a revolving door for CEOs with mistake after mistake. Yahoo's board kept making choices that made things worse, Uber's CEO almost took the company under, and CEOs fired for ethical lapses jumped a whopping 36 percent. When an employee misbehaves and has to be fired, it generally is at least partially the fault of management.
To Drive Change, Let Your Customers Be the Messengers
June 30, 2018
Before I was a parent, I was a youth leader. As individuals, teens had unique personalities, skills and stories, but one thing that was universal was the effect that parental communication had on them. Whether it was a criticism, a suggestion, or merely a bit of helpful information, the teens tended to look down on it, or even become hostile toward the messenger.
Oracle's Nice Numbers
June 30, 2018
Significant Q4 wins and earnings numbers reflect the strength of Oracle's resurgence as a cloud company. At its earnings call earlier this week, CEO Mark Hurd mentioned some big names -- including Johnson & Johnson, the Cleveland Clinic, Baylor University and AT&T -- that made significant commitments to Oracle in the quarter. For FY2018, total revenues were up 6 percent compared with fiscal 2017.
Oracle's Creative Destruction
June 26, 2018
Although Oracle was one of the last major enterprise software vendors to move to the cloud, it has embraced the idea of creative destruction in breathtaking ways. With BYOL -- Bring Your Own License -- the company has inspired a movement of its traditional software customers to its infrastructure cloud. It continued the translation exercise with Oracle LaunchPad, a new online learning platform.
The Best Defense Against Fake News in Social Media
June 25, 2018
IBM just showcased Project Debater, and it just won against a top human debater using actual facts. We need the production version of this tool yesterday. The problem with fake news is that it is getting worse over time. We have always had issues with politicians and con artists trying to convince us down is up and to get us to do things that, were we informed, we'd never do.
Salesforce Connects With Marketing
June 21, 2018
A good way to understand what Salesforce articulated at Connections 2018 is to recall the direction it set a few years ago, when CEO Marc Benioff said the company would develop most apps for the small screen first. Translated, that was a concession that handheld devices -- phones and tablets -- would become the primary devices we'd all use in business. So far that's been a good bet.
Fire Cubes, Home Theater Beams, and X-ray Cases
June 21, 2018
Amazon's latest gambit for taking over your living room is the Fire TV Cube. It works in much the same way as the Fire TV stick, but with the added impact this time around of stuffing in a smart speaker with the familiar tones of the Alexa voice assistant. You can use it to play whatever you want to see in up to 4K resolution from various streaming services.
Cisco, Dell, and the Race to Make a Better World
June 18, 2018
To say we live in troubled times would be an understatement. It often feels like the politicians and executives who surround us are interested only in who can tell the biggest whopper while lining their own pockets and leaving their constituents and customers to pay the bills. I recently read that the real reason Jon Stewart stepped down from The Daily Show was that he was incredibly angry all the time.
Zuora at a Crossroads
June 18, 2018
Zuora's recent Subscribed user conference was a good first outing since the company's IPO, coming off some impressive first-quarter results. Year-over-year subscription revenues grew 39 percent and total revenue grew an amazing 60 percent, for example. As good as its present situation is, now that Zuora is a public company, it has to push down the gas pedal to feed the insatiable stock market.
Digitization of Paper-Based Processes
June 13, 2018
Decades after computers were supposed to end paper-based business, we're still at it, using documents to send and receive information and act as proxies in business processes. It's hard to say if paper consumption slowed thanks to digitization, because good historical use statistics are hard to find. However, it doesn't really matter, because business is drowning in paper -- and, more importantly, the expenses associated with it.
Nvidia May Be Lone Rider on Next Big Technology Wave: Robotics
June 11, 2018
Dell's most forward-looking people spoke about the future at Dell World a few weeks ago. One of the sessions I attended dovetailed with something that appears to be glaringly obvious -- to me, anyway -- which is that is that robots likely will be the next big technology wave. I then wandered around to find out what Dell was doing in robotics, and I couldn't find anything. Dell is not alone.
Reshaping the Software and Services Marketplace
June 11, 2018
In the old IT world, systems integration and consulting companies flourished, helping enterprises of all sizes across nearly every industry pull together a plethora of proprietary systems from a wide array of software and technology vendors. Despite the promises of the cloud, not much has changed. Yet, there are several important differences in today's IT services requirements that set them apart.
The CLOUD Act's Dramatic Impact on International Privacy Laws
June 7, 2018
Just when the European Union's General Data Protection Regulation, or GDPR, was about to go into effect, the United States Congress created the CLOUD Act. Without any public hearings, review or public comment, Congress passed the legislation as part of the $1.3 trillion government spending bill. The CLOUD Act changed the privacy provisions that previously were in effect.
SAP Discovers CRM
June 6, 2018
SAP has unveiled a new attempt to consolidate a group of about a dozen front office apps into a fully integrated CRM suite -- next year. How do you say "lipstick on a pig" in a non-derogatory way? Look, CRM is over 20 years old now. For most of the early days, the vendors scrambled to integrate their apps into a coherent whole, supporting multiple customer-facing processes.
Avoiding Career Death by Twitter
June 4, 2018
The most popular show on ABC was canceled last week because the star of the show, Roseanne Barr -- known for saying and writing stuff that would get most of us fired -- did exactly what she was known for doing and got fired. ABC now looks like it is run by idiots because, really, who didn't see this coming? This outcome is one that could have been prevented relatively easily.
Oracle's Security Jag
June 2, 2018
Oracle has been on a security campaign ever since Larry Ellison openly began discussing the new "autonomous database" -- so called because it can manage itself, including self-patching and upgrading, without human effort. The hands-off database can eliminate human labor to keep it tuned and running, according to Oracle, greatly reducing the time between availability and implementation.
Qualcomm and Huawei: More Partners Than Rivals
May 31, 2018
Because both Qualcomm and Huawei are technology leaders in the wireless segment and have invested heavily in 5G, they often are pitted against one another in political, financial and industry discussions. However, the truth is that the two companies complement one another and work together more than they compete against each another, since they come from different ends of the wireless ecosystem.
Realistic 'Zero Trust' for Your Cybersecurity Program
May 29, 2018
If you're a cybersecurity practitioner, chances are good that you've heard the term "zero trust" over the past few months. If you attend trade shows, keep current with the trade media headlines, or network with peers and other security pros, you've probably at least heard the term. Depending on whom you're talking to, you'll get a different answer about what it is and why it might be useful.
HP: Reimagining the Future
May 28, 2018
I got a view of the future at HP's Innovation Center in Barcelona. The company has made some aggressive moves to blend its printing and imaging technologies to create products that will redefine our near-term future. HP also showcased capabilities that are something just short of magic. When you can transform what you can imagine into physical products, what else would you call it?
Rhino-Saving Tech Also Could Protect Kids and Borders
May 21, 2018
Cisco has reduced the poaching of endangered rhinos in Africa by a whopping 96 percent. This success comes at a time when kids appear to be increasingly at risk from rogue school shooters and the United States government seems deadlocked on gun control. The focus of Cisco's tech is on catching the poachers who kill around 1,000 endangered rhinos a year, rather than on taking away their guns.
Middle Office or No-Man's Land?
May 20, 2018
It was once common knowledge that Apttus was the next big acquisition target on Salesforce's radar, until Salesforce decided to acquire another CPQ vendor to augment its Sales Cloud. In the two-ish years since, Apttus has nicely pivoted, diversifying its partner base and justifying its existence with a new strategy and nomenclature around what it calls the "middle office."
Tech Career Checklist: Aggressive Diversity, Cold Cash
May 14, 2018
I've become convinced that too many of us don't prioritize our employment choices properly. What recently drew my attention to this was a conversation I had with Dell's CFO Tom Sweet at Dell Technology World. We were chatting about Dell's problem attracting employees. Because Dell is a private company, few employees get stock or stock options -- they get cash instead. It seems that has put Dell at a disadvantage when competing for top folks.
Oracle's Drive to Automate
May 13, 2018
Oracle -- or could we say "Autoracle"? -- has introduced more autonomous products, generally in keeping with what I see as a build-out of an information utility. The products include Autonomous Analytics, Autonomous Integrations, Autonomous Builder code generation and free premium service. The autonomous products broadly leverage a variety of analytics and machine learning tools.


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This peek-a-boo pelican is giving me the eye. Brown pelicans are so much fun to watch and photograph. From allaboutbirds.org: "The Brown Pelican is a comically elegant bird with an oversized bill, sinuous neck, and big, dark body. Squadrons glide above the surf along southern and western coasts, rising and falling in a graceful echo of the waves. They feed by plunge-diving from high up, using the force of impact to stun small fish before scooping them up. They are fairly common today—an excellent example of a species' recovery from pesticide pollution that once placed them at the brink of extinction".Shortly after taking the photo, my peek-a-boo pelican tucked the rest of his head into his wings and completely ignored the me.
By Gladys L Buzzell | |


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Is It Better To Use Shipping Containers Or Pods?
Whenever you need to move or you are looking for some storage options, there are a few viable choices. It goes without saying that storage solutions can come in a variety of sizes and shapes. When looking at either Pods or shipping containers for storage, you can weigh out the advantages and disadvantages to help you make a decision as to which will be the best for your needs as well as the budget that you happen to have to work with.
Pods are often looked at as a great solution if you are in need of short term residential storage. These are units that you can have delivered to your location and are easily accessible through roll up doors. Due to the cost difference, shipping containers are often looked at for residential storage that is more of a long term basis. Overall, both units are going to give you a decent amount of security. It is all a matter of looking at the length of time that you will be needing the storage.
All in all, it may actually come down to personal preference when you are picking between either Pods or shipping containers to help you take care of your residential or even your commercial storage needs. Whichever structure you decide is best for your needs, you will still want to look at your options in terms of companies in your local area to help you have your container delivered so that you can start storing your items immediately. In the end, you will have a safe, dry and roomy space to keep all of your household goods or other items that you need to store for a designated period of time. If at any time you feel as though you need more storage, you can simply have another pod or shipping container delivered.


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Walk-ons at Kansas prove their value daily in practice as members of the scout team, known as the Red Team.
"We take it really serious," said Clay Young, a 6-foot-5 junior from Lansing, who is beginning his second season as a non-scholarship Jayhawks basketball player.
"It's vital to our success, these guys seeing other team's plays. Seeing what teams do is really important."
Now, it does take some getting used to for a walk-on to understand that he won't be playing much in games. Young scored four points all last season while appearing in a total of nine contests.
"I used to play almost every minute," Young said of his days at Lansing High and Kansas City Kansas Community College, where he played before coming to Lawrence. "It's definitely a different role. Just being part of this is incredible. I'm thankful for all of it and wouldn't change a thing. ... Being a part of this team has been the best experience of my life."
Young, who scored his first point as a Jayhawk by hitting a free throw against Chaminade in Hawaii, said he "definitely improved quite a bit from the beginning of the year to the end."
That's partly because last season was a comeback year for Young. He tore his ACL in the second game of his second season at KCKCC.
"Part of it was me getting back in the swing of things," Young said. "I definitely improved, caught up to the speed of the game, stuff like that. I was able to go to every practice all year. There were maybe a few days it (the knee) felt bad and I put a brace back on it. Other than that, I was good to go."
Young enters his junior season 1-for-1 from the field. He's a perfect 100 percent, having made his only attempt in a win over Holy Cross.
That's all fine and dandy, but he knows what's really important.
"My role is to push the guys that are going to be out there, try to make them the best they can be, make the team better, be a good teammate," Young said.
His work classifies as a labor of love, considering he grew up a big Jayhawks supporter.
"I was a huge fan of (former KU forward) Wayne Simien growing up," Young said. "I would go to the Leavenworth basketball camps. He would be there helping out. I thought that was the coolest thing.
"I have actual memory of watching the national championship game in 2003 (KU's loss to Syracuse). I would have been 9 years old. I grew up watching Aaron Miles, Kirk Hinrich, Nick Collison. I've been going to games since I was that young, too. It's an amazing thing they considered me and let me be part of it."
Gary Bedore: 816-234-4068, @garybedore