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Patna: Opposition RJD on Tuesday accused Chief
Minister Nitish Kumar of misleading people on the 1996 Ganga
Water Sharing Treaty and demanded that he take back his
comments against erstwhile Lalu Prasad government on the
RJD leader MP Jagdanand Singh claimed that the erstwhile
RJD government had strongly opposed the Ganga water sharing
with Bangladesh much before and after the treaty.
Kumar had yesterday accused the erstwhile Lalu Prasad
government in the state and the Centre of having ignored the
interests of Bihar while signing the treaty.
``The erstwhile Lalu Prasad government had not even
objected to the treaty,`` he had said.
Singh, the water resource minister in Prasad`s cabinet,
told newsmen that RJD had lodged its protests with the Centre
against the treaty. ``Nitish Kumar should have gone through
the documents first before levelling charges.``
He said due to the protests by the then RJD government
the union water resource ministry, Central Water Commission
and Ganga Flood Control Committee had a meeting soon after the
treaty and the Centre had promised that the interests of the
state would not be ignored or compromised following the


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This week sees the release of a brand new album from 60s icon Scott Walker. And what a joy it is too with its instantly hummable tunes and striking yet subtle orchestration. It's a return to his salad days and sure to be adored by anyone who loved his Walker Brother hits.
Well not quite. Bish Bosch is actually the third in Scott's trilogy of albums which began with Tilt in the mid 90s and continued with The Drift a few years ago. It is unorthodox, unsettling, unpredictable, maybe even chaotic and in many ways stunning. Take the 'single' Epizootics which starts off with what sounds like a cow farting over a strange drum pattern in and it's hook, for want of a better word, is strange fanfare over which Scott sings passionately. And that's one of the more accessible tracks on it.
Oddly Bish Bosch does include a sleigh-bell infused Christmas track, but it shouldn't dent Shane McGowan's New York Christmas royalties cheque too greatly for The Day The Conducator Died (an Xmas Song) is a seven minute drone that focuses on the death of Romanian dictator Nicolau Ceausescu. It is a beautiful piece of music, but I doubt there is much karaoke mileage in it.
Like most other Scott Walker diehards I am utterly bemused by the album. In many ways I love it's diversity and Scott's sheer bloody mindedness in creating it, but I can't help but wish that Scott would make an album a little more akin to the quintet of LPs that bore his name in the late 60s and early 70s. For Scott 1-4 along with the sadly neglected, even by Scott himself, Til The Band Comes In, contain some of the most passionate and majestic pop music ever written.
On those album the deep baritone singer, who could potentially have been the Sinatra of is generation had he stayed in the US, mixed his own stunning originals with covers of then little known continental artists like Jacques Brel and Michel Legrand. Scott's voice is liquid gold, the orchestration courtesy of Wally Stott, is both dazzlingly inventive and beautifully subtle. And as for the melodies they swoop and soar before wrapping themselves around you,
For me though the main reason why Scott must just be pop's ultimate thinking persons icon is that he was in many way so out of kilter with the time he lived. Although he was no stranger to the hip 60s clubs and was on good terms with the rest of British pop royalty Scott's interest, passions and even the way he dressed made him stand out as a maverick, even then.
First up take the lyrics of his mid 60s hits. On thanks like Mrs Murphy and Montague Terrace In Blue Scott peers into the life of ordinary people in way that the recent new wave films – Saturday Night and Sunday Mon ring, Room At The Top, had a few years earlier. Very few others (ok Ray Davies) were writing in this way at the time.
Then when psychedelia hit and the Fabs and the Stones shared their worldwide messages of love, peace and optimism, Scott was singing songs about lonely men, evil dictators and the horrors of war – lyrics that were totally at odd with age.
And while San Francisco bands were pioneering a new kind of hip progressive rock music, Scott was rubbing shoulders with the squares featuring next to crooners like Val Doonican and family entertainers like Lulu on TV shows and singing the songs of MOR session hacks like like Tony Hatch.
He even looked different too. Not for Scott the Paisley and Kaftans that was de rigeur in the late 60s. Look instead at the cover of his Sings Songs From His TV Series album. Rather than hop aboard a fashion bandwagon Scott looked timelessly stylish in classic, shades, corduroy trousers, scarves and black jumpers. In many respects Scott was the James Dean of his era, an existential icon that seemed to be looking at the world in a different way to the rest of us.
Finally there is Scott's huge influence. Bowie is obviously an enormous fan. And when Walker finally made a live appearance (of sorts) at the Barbican a few years back, British pop royalty, from Damon Albarn to Jarvis Cocker were queuing up to sing his songs.
So, I am voting Scott as pop's ultimate icon. How about you?

subset: commoncrawl


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Keep your baby comfortable and happy with Erbaviva Diaper Cream, an all-natural nappy cream infused with calming ingredients to help relieve and comfort baby's bottom.
Enriched with soothing Aloe and replenishing Echinacea, the cream helps to reduce signs of redness, inflammation and pain to leave your baby's skin feeling soft, nourished and relieved. Its dose of organic Lavender and Chamomile essential oils impart a subtle, pleasant scent.
Chemical free. Not tested on animals.
Apply generously to the affected area either when diaper rash has appeared. May also be used daily as a preventative measure.
*Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Zinc Oxide, *Helianthus Annus (Sunflower) Seed Oil, Lecithin, Cetearyl Alcohol, Cetearly Glucoside, *Glycerin, Echinacea Angustifolia Root Extract, Gluconolactone, Beeswax, Cetyl Alcohol, Stearyl Alcohol, Hydroxyethylcellulose, *Rosemarinus Officinalis (Rosemary) Leaf Extract, Carrageenan, Glucose, Tocopherol, Sodium Benzoate, Citric Acid, *Lavandula, Angustifolia (Lavender) Flower Oil, *Anthemis Nobilis, (Chamomile) Flower Oil.
*Certified organic ingredient.
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Trimax Mowing Systems offer a large range of fine turf mowers including front and rear mounted rotary mowers.
Two of the mowers that excel in turf production are the Trimax Pegasus roller mower and the all new 10.4m X-WAM, a roller mower designed and built specifically for turf production.
The X-WAM is the widest Trimax roller mower available, and can be purchased either as a complete unit or as an attachment for your existing Trimax Pegasus 610. It has superior contour following abilities based on the combination of individually floating decks and articulated axis. With the potential to cut 33 acres per hour and the ability to perform zero-turns without having to lift any of the mower decks, the X-WAM will increase your productivity using one tractor, one driver, and one mower to cut 2/3 more area with a cylinder-like cut finish.
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Transcendence Theatre Company in Sonoma has teamed up with a cast of New York-based Broadway performers to stage the "Sonoma Strong Benefit Concert for California Fire Recovery," a one-night only performance Sunday, Nov. 5.
The concert will take place at The Green Room 42 in New York City and will be streamed on Facebook Live at 4 p.m. for those on the West Coast.
The fire benefit event will feature 25 performers, including a few who have been directly impacted by the wildfires. "One of the performers in New York grew up in Sonoma with her family. We have a couple that lives in Kenwood and they will fly to New York and share some words," said co-executive director Stephan Stubbins.
"A Broadway performer couple who recently got married at Paradise Ridge will also share some personal messages during the show."
The deadly fires have burned more than 110,000 acres throughout Sonoma and Napa counties. Firefighters achieved 99 percent containment as of Monday. Full containment is expected later this week.
"There's something about music and that can be very powerful for a community in a time of healing," Stubbins said.
Transcendence Theatre Company, a nonprofit known for producing the award-winning, "Broadway Under The Stars" open air performance at Jack London State Historic Park, has raised more than $350,000 for the park since its inception in 2011. Due to the recent devastation of the North Bay wildfires, the fundraising efforts have shifted to a more immediate need.
Tickets for the 7 p.m. event in New York will cost $30 per person. The live stream can be seen at facebook.com/TTCsonoma.
Transcendence Theatre Company has developed the "Rise Up & Recover Fund" to help support the communities of Glen Ellen, Kenwood, Santa Rosa and Sonoma. Proceeds from this campaign fund will help to support fire victims, evacuees and first responders. To donate or for more information visit www.RiseUpAndRecover.org.


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Originally published February 23, 2011 at 10:02 PM | Page modified April 24, 2012 at 2:22 PM
Vendors named by auditors say they did no wrong
Some prominent figures caught up in the Seattle Public Schools financial scandal — including former state Democratic Party Chairman Charles Rolland and former Urban League of Metropolitan Seattle President James Kelly — denied wrongdoing Wednesday, after they were identified by state auditors as vendors involved in "questionable uses" of public funds.
Seattle Times staff reporters
Some prominent figures caught up in the Seattle Public Schools financial scandal denied wrongdoing Wednesday, after they were identified by state auditors as vendors involved in "questionable uses" of public funds.
Former state Democratic Party Chairman Charles Rolland and former Urban League of Metropolitan Seattle President James Kelly, who both worked on school contracts highlighted by auditors, disputed the audit's characterization of their work.
"I stand by the work," Rolland said about one of the contracts he had with the school district. "Do I think I cheated the district or public out of money? No."
The state did not audit the vendors, and no one is accusing them of wrongdoing, emphasized state Auditor Brian Sonntag's spokeswoman, Mindy Chambers.
The audit found that Seattle Public Schools spent up to $1.8 million on contract work that was never done or didn't benefit the school system. The irregularities, according to the audit, center on a school-district program that helped small businesses, primarily female- and minority-owned companies, compete for contracts with the district and other government agencies.
According to the audit, the school district's program, which started several years ago and operated until it was shut down last fall, became a loosely run operation in which outside contractors sometimes were paid for services that weren't provided and, as the district scaled back the program, its manager diverted district funds into a privately run organization offering similar services, according to the audit.
Sonntag's report said the district paid $25,000 to the Urban League for a software subscription fee to a database designed to match small-business owners with general contractors. But the Urban League reported that the database didn't work and district employees said they never used it, instead preferring another system, auditors said.
In an interview Wednesday, Kelly, who resigned from the Urban League last month, emphasized that any official Urban League response should come from acting director Tony Benjamin, who did not return a message.
But, Kelly said he didn't know why the district didn't use the software. He said it could have been helpful, though it was still "in development."
Kelly stressed the audit had nothing to do with his departure from the league, where he still does consulting work. "Not at all," he said. "I needed to refocus. I had a stroke and a divorce."
According to the auditor, Rolland, who has worked as an advocate for minority businesses, was involved with three contracts that were questionable.
Under one contract, Sonntag said vendors, including Rolland, billed for two to three hours of work for meetings that lasted just 1.5 hours. Rolland said he probably did that, because he performed related work before the meetings and afterward.
The district paid Rolland $6,000 in another contract, Sonntag says, to create a database for the small-business program's hiring and apprenticeship efforts.
School-district staff members said the database wasn't working when they received it, according to Sonntag. Auditors contend the database contained only a list of student names and identifying information.
"I have no comment," Rolland said to that assertion.
In a third contract, auditors reported, Rolland and several other vendors were paid for meetings with state legislators and for testifying on legislation. It turns out, though, that program manager Silas Potter had not been authorized to contract for such services, the audit said.
Rolland on Wednesday denied being one of the vendors involved in such work. "I didn't testify or lobby," he said, adding he didn't recall meeting with any legislators on school-district business.
Rolland said he believed the program had been successful in spending more contracting dollars on minority and small businesses and had saved public money by increasing competition for school contracts. "The part that's not being told is that this was a highly successful program," Rolland said.
Rolland said he had not seen Potter — whom auditors have been unable to locate — for more than a year. "I don't believe Silas was doing anything to benefit himself personally. I think his objective was to help small businesses. If he violated school-district policies, I don't think it was malicious."
Two other vendors known for their work advocating minority-contracting opportunities, Eddie Rye Jr. and Ralph Ibarra, insisted they did nothing wrong.
Rye, like Rolland, was cited as billing the district for more hours than spent at meetings. And like Rolland, he said he worked with officials before and after the actual meetings.
"I welcome any inquiry about my participation or performance," Rye said.
Ibarra was identified in the audit for a lack of precision in how his work was billed. He maintains that he never overbilled the schools and that he sometimes did more work than he charged for.
In another case, the vendor flatly challenged the audit.
The audit reported that the district paid $163,175 to Grace of Mercy, a Tacoma nonprofit, "for instructional services on dates when no classes were taught."
David Johnson, head of the agency, said he received $2,500 to $3,500 for his work and that the classes did take place.
Johnson said he was hired by Potter about two years ago to find small, independent business owners — janitors, framers and other construction workers — who wanted to work for Seattle Public Schools.
Johnson said he found about 15 to 20 workers, and they attended a two-hour class twice a week for three months to learn procedures they needed to know to get jobs in the Seattle district.
Johnson said Potter gave him a check for about $2,500 to $3,500 for his work, but later asked for about half the money back in cash, telling him, "I will make it up to you." Johnson said he gave the money back.
Potter told Johnson that he was going to move to Portland to set up a similar operation, and that Johnson could earn $300,000 or more as a teacher. But a few months ago, Potter disappeared, his phone number disconnected.
"I have done a lot of work for the school district, for Silas Potter," Johnson said. "He still owes me some money."
Another vendor, former Port of Seattle official Elaine Ko, said she fully cooperated with auditors and declined further comment.
The Seattle Times did not reach some of the other vendors identified in the audit, including Tony Orange, former state legislator Velma Veloria and Leon "Skip" Rowland.
Staff reporter Jim Brunner and news researcher Miyoko Wolf contributed to this report.
Bob Young: 206-464-2174 or email@example.com


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Series: Australian Natural History Series
By: Brad Purcell
176 pages, photos and illustrations
Many present-day Australians see the dingo as a threat and a pest to human production systems. An alternative viewpoint, which is more in tune with Indigenous culture, allows others to see the dingo as a means to improve human civilisation. The dingo has thus become trapped between the status of pest animal and totemic creature. This book helps readers to recognise this dichotomy. The book brings together more than 50 years of observations to provide a comprehensive portrayal of life as a dingo.
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Wednesday 11th May, 2011
1:45pm to 2:45pm
Learn how to create new apps or enhance existing Android apps for Google TV. Session includes an overview of the platform, best practices, demos, and discussion about the fantastic opportunities Google TV creates for developers.
Developer Advocate for Google TV / Android. Mobile Technologist, Eclectic Tinkerer, Geek, Gear Head, Biker and Burner. bio from Twitter
3pm Android Development Tools by Xavier Ducrohet and Tor Norbye
89 more videos from Google I/O 2011
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United States United States, San Francisco
10th–11th May 2011


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Perak Trip
(2 Days 1 Night Trip)
This is my first short trip in 2017. I start my journey on Saturday morning 7.30am and move to RnR Jejantas Sg Buloh for having breakfast. After all tummies are full :p we continue our journey to Teluk Intan for visiting The Leaning Tower (Menara Condong). We arrive at Teluk Intan at 11.30am.
After taken about thousand photos we continue our journey to Batu Gajah for visiting Kellie's Castle. We arrive here at 1.50pm. Yeap 1.50pm for taking photos??? I bet you guys can guess how it is the weather at this time.
And yes I still stick with my decision/plan for having some photosss there :p
Everyone seems like feels so exhausted and we suggest for make a next move to fill in our tummies happily. Our first location for food hunting is at Kafe Setinggan, Jalan Margosa Ipoh for having the famous food in Ipoh which is Laksa Telur Bersarang/Laksa Sarang Burung or whatever it is. Btw, there are 3 different Restaurant of Laksa Sarang Burung in Ipoh. I have made some survey so I make a decision to go here since it is near Batu Gajah.
Rate for Laksa Telur Bersarang : 8/10
Price : RM4.00
It is the lunch hour, maybe i dont feel like to eat laksa because my tummy needs rice. And in front of this restaurant also got some Nasi Kukus Ayam Berempah. So dont worry for those who cant or dont want eat Laksa.
Rate for Nasi Kukus Ayam Berempah : 9/10
Price : RM5.00
Tummies are full and everyone feels like sleepy and i make decision to skip all plan since the sky is going to cry and we make a move to our Hotel for having some rest.
I choose Kinta Riverfront Hotel & Suites.
3 Bedrooms Apartment.
Price : RM300+ per night
Rate for Hotel : 10/10
After Maghrib and having a good rest, our tummies are making some songs inside :p We back to our plan, having dinner at Restoran Simpang Tiga, Greentown. We having a basic dinner for family like Ikan Bakar, Ikan Siakap and etc. I truly love the food! and the services are tip-top!
Rate for foods : 10/10
Day 2 in Ipoh, for breakfast I suggest to eat at Restoran New Hollywood, Taman Canning. This legend restaurant is full of people every morning for having breakfast. The Chee Cheong Fun will be always my fav!
Rate for food : 10/10
12.00pm - We check out from hotel and still follow our plan to Concubine Lane. We bought some souvenir for a memory. We also having some cendol at the streets. The popular cendol in Ipoh, they called Cendol Abang Hensem. Sorry to say, I prefer Cendol in Masjid Tanah Melaka. It is superb mayn! How can you eat cendol without any chairs and tables? Im not comfortable with it.
Rate for Cendol: 5/10
Before heading to KL, we fill our tummies with Nasi Vanggey Ipoh. It is so delicious and i'm still craving for it.
Rate for Nasi Vanggey : 10/10
I know trip for 2 days 1 night is not enough. Its okay Ipoh, will come back to you one day. Tambun maybe after this? :P


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Clive Barker's Hellraiser Masterpieces Vol. 2
(W) Larry Wachowski & Various (A) Bernie Wrightson & Various (CA) Tristan Schane Classic tales of horror and high strangeness come to you in Volume 2 of HELLRAISER MASTERPIECES. Collecting the best of the Epic Comics Hellraiser series, this volume features top-notch talent by the likes of Larry Wachowski (THE MATRIX), Dwayne McDuffie (STATIC SHOCK), Bernie Wrightson (SWAMP THING), Kyle Baker (NAT TURNER), and more! Perfect for any Hellraiser fan's collection!
$19.99Add to Cart
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FORT WORTH, TX --Experts say the lingering Texas drought may be affecting the migration of monarch butterflies heading south for the winter.
Biologist Michael Warriner with the Texas Parks & Wildlife Department says he's seen probably only four monarchs in the last three weeks.
Researchers hope to get a better count of the monarchs once they arrive at their winter grounds in Mexico in a few weeks.
The Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported Wednesday that the drought has dramatically reduced the main food source for monarch butterflies. The insects need the nectar from blooming plants.
Entomologist Mike Quinn with Texas Monarch Watch says he drove through the Hill Country last month and was disappointed in how many dead plants and how few butterflies he saw.


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Bright ideas. Brilliant execution.
Business Analysis
Our Business Analysts deliver the insights your organisation needs to guarantee your solutions are aligned with your business requirements and your industry's needs, thus keeping you ahead of the competition. Moreover, they make sure that the IT solutions build upon the defined requirements.
Architecture and Business Consulting
TBSCG consulting experts have been spending the majority of time on client consulting engagements assessing, designing, and developing architecture solutions involving cross platform architecture, cloud computing architecture, network architecture, storage architecture, resource optimisation/virtualisation, and utilisation of enterprise architecture methods for solution design and deployment.
Our Architects can help you build or improve your:
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TBSCG's extensive experience on creating and improving online experiences will guarantee the fulfillment of your organisation's requirements toward these ends. Our user experience process includes everything a user touches, hears or sees on your organisation's digital point of contact/sale though our UX process of research and analysis-design, production-beta launch, and evaluation stages.
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Our copywriters and journalists know how to write for different clients, different audiences, and different media. So, whether you need content for a mobile app, articles for a magazine, or copy for your website, our content team can produce content that captures your corporate voice.
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Nowadays, all websites feature video content. Not simply because it's the latest trend, but also because it offers the most efficient way of engaging with your audience. Video content can bring your brand to life. TBCCG can illuminate complex subjects, demonstrate brilliant products, and kick-start conversations online. Our video team can undertake script, produce, edit, and upload content for a range of clients.
Do we need to adopt a promotional tone or a journalistic one? Is the video a special report, an interview or a TV-style program? Are we discussing about an advert or a viral video? Our editorial director will use his experience to identify how the video should look based on your specific business needs.
As soon as the brief has been completed, our creative team drafts the synopsis. The team contacts the principal stakeholders and organises a shoot preparation session. The aim of this session is to offer reassurance and minimise shoot inaccuracies. In most cases the shoot is a relatively small-scale affair: the editorial director and the video director are the only ones present.
After the shoot we start a rough video editing in order to check the structure of the story, and then the finer editing is completed. Graphics, lower-thirds, subtitles, music, etc. are all added during the post-production phase. The "master" version of the video is then encoded ready for broadcast either on the web or at the point of sale.
Web Development
TBSCG offers a full range of expert web development services. Our developers have delivered a variety of projects ranging from corporate websites and e-commerce solutions to multi-functional web portals.
Whether you need a custom solution, want to extend the functionality of your existing one or improve its performance, we can help you with: requirements analysis and planning, software and system architecture, usable and accessible implementation, agile processes, use of effective SEO practices, monitoring, scalability and reliability.
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Our project management experts offer an elastic and highly bespoke service based on a robust and well-proven formula for delivery with a combination of strict deliverables schedule with efficient team management. TBSCG defines clearly the business and project objectives before categorising the most effective resources to deliver.
We provide end-to-end project and delivery management services from the preparation of business cases and the development of organisational frameworks to straightforward procurement, design, development, testing and operation using agile practices. TBSCG's management processes offer control, governance and transparency from inception to completion of the project, while it continuously monitors project's progress at any stage identifying risks at an early stage.
TBSCG can help you meet a wide range of enterprise content management demands such as content authoring, multichannel delivery, site design and layout, multivariate testing, content targeting, rich media management, advanced analytics, social content management, workflow and approval, and archiving. Our content management offer scalability, Multichannel and social content, Content targeting, Rich media management, online Optimisation and Metadata management.
Digital Asset Management
TBSCG has extensive experience in building digital asset management solution to help organisations with distributed teams to provide engaging and consistent customer experience by effectively managing, distributing, and publishing thousands of user-facing digital assets. Some of the benefits are agility, strong brand identity, increased productivity, and the future leverage of your corporate assets.
TBSCG can analyse your big data in order to provide you with the intelligence you need to transform raw data into meaningful and useful information. TBSCG will first help you identify the metrics you should measure, and then build the appropriate reporting to record all the vital numbers, which can be viewed by industry, channel, region, and country. Once your metrics reporting is up and running, the next step is analysing the results and compare them with your industry's benchmarks in order to improve them. TBSCG can assist in defining realistic KPIs for your organisation so you can reach your targets.
E-Commerce Solutions
TBSCG has gained a lot of experience in e-commerce solutions for a wide range of local and international clients. When developing an e-commerce solution, we focus entirely on helping your online shop generate sales by designing and implementing:
Systems Integration
Enterprise systems consist of many different applications that are custom built, third party, legacy systems, and multiple tiers of different operating system platforms. TBSCG's has extensive experience in systems' integration and we can assist you achieve real time information access, streamline business processes, and increase organisational efficiency while maintaining information integrity across multiple systems.
Hybrid Cloud
The hybrid cloud is the combination of a public cloud provider with a private cloud platform that is designed for use by a single organisation. The public and private cloud infrastructures, which operate independently of each other, communicate over an encrypted connection, using technology that allows for the portability of data and applications.
TBSCG can analyse your business focus and needs (for example security, physical presence, hardware cost, workload) to propose the most effective strategy path for Hybrid cloud adoption.
Multichannel Communication
TBSCG offers Multichannel Communication Management services (MCM) that helps you make the most of every customer touch point by creating insightful, impactful, real-time customer communications. Proven, leading capabilities help you to improve your customers' overall experience with relevant, meaningful communications delivered through their preferred channel, including print, web, email and SMS.
Companies using our MCM services deliver a better customer experience in order to reduce:
Mobile Applications
TBSCG develops mobile applications (iOS, Android, Windows) for handheld devices (Smartphones, tablets) used within an enterprise and their customers. As part of the development process TBSCG focuses on Mobile User Interface Design to consider constraints, contexts, screen size, input and mobility.
We make sure that your mobilie apps depend on reliable back-ends to support access to enterprise systems. The mobile back-end facilitates information routing, security, authentication, authorisation, working off-line, and service orchestration; supported by a mixture of middleware to guarantee your customer will access and get the information needed and requested at any place and anytime.
SErvice Level as A Service - SELAS
Service level as a service hosting with application availability in mind
Service level as a service hosting with application availability in mind
TBSCG main differentiating factor is SELAS which is Service Level as a Service hosting with application availability. SELAS is provided by a state of the art secured technical infrastructure, release management process human expertise and monitoring of real business scenarios.
Our virtual data center has been built with an architecture to avoid physical, economic and political threats. We have based our business continuity and redundancy plans against these threats by placing data centers in various geographic locations and associating with the correct mixture of trustworthy different suppliers.
TBSCG strategic advantage is the ability to monitor real business scenarios simulations making sure that the actual functionality of the website is correct and available.
Also we have running operations that monitor: Server resources and availability, CPU, firewall sessions, disk and memory utilisation metrics, graphs, and operating systems and applications.
Moreover, we are running frequent security scans throughout our hosting infrastructure with the latest security defenses to achieve a proactive and continuous application and hosting security scanning for our customers.
Maintenance & Support
Don't get distracted anymore by maintenance of your infrastructure. Focus on your business and TBSCG will take care of the rest. TBSCG offers flexible subscription services to keep your cost low and pay only for the services you really need, reduce capital expenditure by switching your environment to TBSCG's management, reduce business risk and spread the knowledge of your environment with our Support team, be cost effective than other options and avoid the investment required for your own support infrastructure.
Furthermore, your organisation can access a wide range of skilled professionals, define your preferred rate for your project, and have a proactive solution management and monitoring.
Quality Assurance and Testing
With TBSCG's Quality Assurance service the developers do the DEV Testing activities while our QA team does the rest (test planning, designing and execution). TBSCG's QA team provides tests on Front-end, Back-end and Functionality. Here is how we do it:


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Check out Sarah Wilson's blog!
She has a series of posts about sugar and its effect on our bodies
I quit sugar #2 (first step is to start eating more fat…yes!)
I quit sugar #3 (why sugar makes us fat)
I think I may be cleaning out my food cabinets today!


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The market suffered its worst week since June last week. Was it a much-needed capitulation that will clear the decks for bullishness (finally)? Or, was it a microcosm of the bigger market mood right now? There are a lot of variable in play right now - some sentiment related, and some economic-based. Here's a look at the whole picture.
Economic Calendar
Fortunately, it was a light week last week in terms of economic data, giving the market a chance to continue digesting hurricane Sandy, and focus on digesting the Presidential election's outcome. Still, there were a couple of major items worth noting.
Take consumer credit for instance. For nearly two years now, we've seen consumer credit grow by tens of more than $10 billion per month (and reach $20 billion a few times). Granted, a huge chunk of that is student loans - unemployed and underemployed people are taking the time and opportunity to add skills and credentials to their resume. Yet, even the student loan-created surge in loan levels has its limits, and new laws enacted a few months ago to limit government-funded student loans hasn't exactly stifled the monthly growth in consumer credit levels. A decent chunk of the increases is also car loans, and other loans too. It doesn't exactly scream that consumers are in pain here.
The only other item of real interest was Friday's preliminary Michigan Sentiment Index score, of 84.9. This is only the first of three readings for November [the third is 'the' final one], but we're already well above October's final level of 82.6. That's the fourth straight increase, and leaves the optimism score at its highest level since July of 200...before economic Armageddon struck. Again, it doesn't really jive with the "consumers are worried" chatter.
Economic Calendar
The coming week is a little more loaded, with some biggies. The items of most interest are:
* Wednesday: October's retail sales are expected to be off by 0.2% counting cars, but up 0.1% excluding automobiles. Neither number is all that dramatic.
* Wednesday: The first half of the inflation picture will be unveiled with October's producer prince inflation figure. The pros expect flat inflation overall, but a 0.1% uptick in inflation on a core (excluding energy and food) basis.
* Thursday: We saw a decent-sized dip in new unemployment claims last week (to 355K), but economists don't think that move lower will become a trend; those same economists are expecting a move back to 388K for this week. The continuing claims number is barely budging.
* Thursday: The inflation picture will be rounded with the consumer inflation rate; experts are looking for a midst increase of 0.1%, on a core as well as a non-core basis. As of the last look, 'the' inflation rate is 1.99%… a little on the low side compared to the long-term norm.
* Friday: One of the biggest red flags we've seen for the market of late has been waning industrial production growth and capacity utilization. Though neither is sinking, both are slowing, if not flat-lining. Though only a downtrend in both would likely mean we're headed into another bear market, all downtrends start as slow-downs of uptrends. That could be what where seeing now. Either way, the pros say industrial production growth was likely stagnant (0.0%) last month, and capacity utilization probably fell from 78.3% to 78.2% for October.
S&P 500, with Capacity Utilization and Industrial Production
Stock Market
Apparently dissatisfied with the Presidential election's outcome, Wall Street started to dump stocks (NYSEARCA:DIA) (NASDAQ:QQQ) (NYSEARCA:IWM) right out of the gate on Wednesday. Though the bleeding seems to have stopped by Friday - at least temporarily - the damage had already been done. The S&P 500 (SPX) (NYSEARCA:SPY) lost 34.35 points last week (-2.42%) to close at 1379.85… the lowest close since the middle of July.
That sharp move lower, however, is the least of the market's worries. What the bulls and buy-and-hold investors need to worry most about is the fact that the S&P 500 is dancing with a crossunder of the key 200-day moving average line. It's already moved below all the other key averages. In fact, the 20-day line's move under the 50-day average line in the first part of last week confirms the strength and direction of the current downtrend. If the S&P 500 closes below the lower 20-day Bollinger band at 1377 anytime this week, that's it - that's the last of any potential technical floors.
There's something else troubling about the chart of the S&P 500 as well, though it's clearer on the weekly chart than it is on the daily chart (though you can see it in both timeframes) - the CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) (NYSEARCA:VXX) is starting to trend upward. We've already seen the VIX's 20-day average move above the 50-day moving average line on the daily chart, and we're close to seeing the VIX move above its 52-week moving average on the weekly chart. If the VIX makes its way above 18.90, that's going to represent a major change in market's undertow.
We can also get a little more perspective on the market's breakdown with the weekly chart, and it's with that perspective we can see there's not another major support area anywhere nearby, if things take the slightest turn for the worst on the daily chart.
The next likely floor based on the weekly chart is the lower 26-week Bollinger band at 1286. That's still 93 points below where we are now (about 6.8% below). Thing is, a move to 1286 from the October peak would still only be about a 12.5% pullback from the apex. That's a tad bigger than the average bull market corrective move, but nothing way out of the ordinary. Besides, the lower 26-week band is still apt to creep higher between now and the time it's tested.
Third Quarter Earnings
With earnings season nearly over (91% of the S&P 500′s companies have reported), we've got a pretty good grip on just how well the market did as a whole last quarter - the S&P 500 is going to earn $24.40 for Q3. That's even worse than the $24.93 the pros were expecting at the end of the third quarter, and the initial outlook was pretty weak to begin with. There were fewer beats than usual as well, and a few more misses than the average. Analysts also dialed back their earnings estimates through the end of 2013.
In simplest terms, though not an outright disaster, it would be impossible to call third quarter earnings a success story.
S&P 500, with Per Share Earnings & P/E Ratio
Disclosure: I have no positions in any stocks mentioned, and no plans to initiate any positions within the next 72 hours. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it. I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.
Additional disclosure: BigTrends Rapid Options Income clients have an open SPY options position.


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Bike Accidents – Caledonia, WI 53108
Bike accidents can result in severe and in some cases deadly injuries. Lawsuits to recuperate damages for injuries in bike mishaps with automobiles include many of the same problems as any auto accident suit. Liability for bike accident injuries typically comes down to negligence– whether the automobile motorist's negligence caused the cyclist's injuries, and whether any negligence by the bicyclist caused or added to the mishap.
Bike Mishap Liability Fundamentals
Cyclists and drivers are bound to obey the rules of the road. These rules consist of traffic laws, in addition to the task to exercise normal care in regards to one's own security which of others on the roads. Like other lorry mishap claims, bike mishap claims are governed by state law, and typically informed by state and local traffic laws.
Negligence and Bicycle Accidents in Caledonia, Wisconsin
When a bicyclist sues to recuperate damages for injuries suffered in an accident with an auto, the result often depends upon 2 questions:
- Did negligence (or recklessness) on the part of the motorist trigger the accident and resulting injuries to the bicyclist?
- Did any negligence of the bicyclist cause or add to the mishap?
Driver Negligence or Recklessness
Negligence by a chauffeur can take many types. For instance, speeding, running a stop indication, and drifting into a bike lane all make up chauffeur negligence, or even recklessness if maded with knowing disregard for the security of others.
In a claim declaring negligence by another individual, plaintiffs typically need to show that the defendant acted in a way that violated a responsibility owed to the complainant. In automobile mishap cases, this means violating the fundamental duty of care owed to everyone else on or near the roads.
Accident claims boil down to realities particular to the specific case, and typically the capability of the plaintiff to show negligence through eyewitness testimony or other proof. In cars and truck accident cases, however, behaviors which make up traffic offenses can make up "negligence per se." This suggests that if a motorist was pointed out for a violation such as speeding at the time of the accident, evidence of the speeding infraction counts as proof of negligence. The problem then moves to the defendant to show that he or she didn't trigger the complainant's injuries.
Cyclist Negligence – Caledonia, Wisconsin 53108
Whether a bicyclist sues a driver, or a bicyclist is demanded causing somebody else injury, bicyclist negligence can figure out the outcome of the lawsuit. Examples of biker negligence include riding the wrong way on a one-way street, running a stop sign, and turning suddenly into traffic.
Negligent cyclists might be unable to recover damages for injuries they suffer in mishaps involving vehicles. Such negligence is called contributory or relative negligence, suggesting that the bicyclist's negligence, a minimum of in part, caused the accident to occur, and hence triggered a minimum of some of the cyclist's injuries. If a bicyclist rode negligently, and that negligence caused injury to somebody else, the cyclist might be held accountable for that individual's injuries.
In mishap cases including kids on bicycles, courts hold drivers to a greater standard. See specifics on child bike mishap liability for more information.
Get Your Legal Claim Evaluated free of charge
Mishaps including vehicles and bicycles can involve serious injuries and big liabilities. Bike accident suits typically come down to whether the motorist or the cyclist negligently triggered or contributed to the mishap. This negligence decision can be a complex and need thorough analysis. If you or a loved one has actually been in a bike mishap, you must consult with an attorney to best secure your rights. You can have an experienced law practice evaluate the merits of your claim for free.


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Hello My Name Is...
Mrs. Leah Brymer
Bragg Middle School
I have been teaching for 6 years. I graduated from UAB with a bachelor's degree in Early Childhood/Elementary Education. I went on to be certified to teach middle school science and physical education. Before attending UAB, I went to Bevill State on a full athletic scholarship for two years and played softball.


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Reese Witherspoon: Vanessa Bruno Shopping Spree!
Reese Witherspoon goes shopping at the Vanessa Bruno boutique on Monday (July 11) in West Hollywood, Calif.
The 35-year-old actress chatted on her cell phone and fed the parking meter before heading inside the store.
Over the weekend, Reese mingled with Prince William and his wife, Kate, at the Tusk Trust's U.S. Patron's Circle brunch.
Later in the day, Reese enjoyed lunch with her son Deacon and husband Jim Toth in Venice, Calif.
FYI: Reese is wearing Genetic Denim's "The James" Zipper Cigarette in Pale.
10+ pictures inside of Reese Witherspoon shopping at Vanessa Bruno…


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Iranian Performance Arts Journals Pre-1979
Endangered Archives Programme (EAP) at the British Library
Classical Persian Poetry and Poets: the Timurid and Turkmen Periods
Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC)
Flowers of Persian Song and Verse
British Academy
Dr Leonard Lewisohn
Senior Lecturer, Iran Heritage Foundation Fellow in Persian and Sufi Literaure
01392 724090
The staff and students of the Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies, University of Exeter, are very sad to announce that, on Monday 6 August 2018, our colleague and friend Dr. Leonard Lewisohn passed away. Our hearts go out to his wife, his family and his wide network of friends and colleagues.
Lenny was Iran Heritage Foundation Fellow and Senior Lecturer in Persian and Sufi literature. An online board for messages of condolence has been set up here: https://www.kudoboard.com/boards/ttrOg6l0
Christine Robins
Director, IAIS
Leonard was the co-director (with Dr. Michael Axworthy) of the Centre for Persian and Iranian Studies.
He was also the Editor of the Mawlana Rumi Review.
In April 2016, he organised with Dr. Reza Tabandeh a three-day international conference on "Sufis and Mullahs: Sufis and Their Opponents in the Persianate World."
Dr. Leonard Lewisohn was Senior Lecturer in Persian and Iran Heritage Foundation Fellow in Classical Persian and Sufi Literature at the Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies of the University of Exeter in England where he taught Islamic Studies, Sufism, history of Iran, as well as courses on Persian texts and Persian poetry in translation. He specialized in translation of Persian Sufi poetic and prose texts.
He is the author of Beyond Faith and Infidelity: The Sufi Poetry and Teachings of Mahmud Shabistari (London: 1995), and the editor of three volumes on The Heritage of Sufism, vol. 1: The Legacy of Mediæval Persian Sufism, vol. 2: Classical Persian Sufism from its Origins to Rumi Classical Persian Sufism from its Origins to Rumi, vol. 3 (with David Morgan): Late Classical Persianate Sufism: the Safavid and Mughal Period (Oxford: 1999)—covering a millennium of Islamic history.
He was editor of the Mawlana Rumi Review, an annual journal devoted to Jalal al-Din Rumi (d. 1273). He was also editor (with Christopher Shackle) of The Art of Spiritual Flight: Farid al-Din 'Attar and the Persian Sufi Tradition (London: I.B. Tauris 2006), co-translator with Robert Bly of The Angels Knocking on the Tavern Door: Thirty Poems of Hafiz (New York: HarperCollins 2008), editor of Hafiz and the Religion of Love in Classical Persian Poetry (London: I.B. Tauris 2010), and editor of The Philosophy of Ecstasy: Rumi and the Sufi Tradition (Bloomington, Indiana: World Wisdom 2014), and co-editor (with Reza Tabandeh) of Sufis and Mullahs: Sufis and their Opponents in the Persianate World (forthcoming 2018).
Dr. Lewisohn contributed articles to the Encyclopedia of Love in World Religions, Encyclopedia of Islam (2nd and 3rd editions), Encyclopædia Iranica, Encyclopædia of Philosophy, 2nd Edition, Encyclopædia of Religion, 2nd Edition, Iran Nameh, Iranian Studies, African Affairs, Islamic Culture, Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society and the Temenos Academy Review.
Research interests
Dr. Lewisohn's research interests were focused on Sufism and classical Persian poetry. He worked on several projects in recent years:
- editing the Mawlana Rumi Review, an academic review published once a year.
preparing for publication The Philosophy of Ecstasy: Rumi and the Sufi Tradition, a volume of essays on Rumi
preparing for publication a volume with Dr. Leili Anvar, entitled: Wondrous Words: The Poetic Mastery of Jalal al-Din Rumi, a volume of essays on Rumi
Over the past six years he published books and articles on the major Persian poets such as Nasir-i Khusraw, Ansari, 'Attar and Hafiz, written articles on minor Persian poets such as Nizari Quhistani, Awhadi Maragha'i and Mir Husayni Haravi, and also composed studies on well-known Islamic philosophers and mystics such as Sa'in al-Din Turkah Isfahani and Shahrastani. Recently he has published several studies comparing Persian poetry and Sufism with Western and Eastern poetry and love mysticism, including poets such as Shelley, Blake and Tagore.
During all of 2010 Dr. Lewisohn was on research leave for a project entitled "Flowers of Persian Song and Verse: a Database Website for the Golha Programmes" which was sponsored by a British Academy Research Development Award. He was working on construction of a searchable, relational database for the Golha ('Flowers of Persian Song and Music') Iranian radio programmes, ca. 850 hours of programmes broadcast from 1956-79, today referred to by scholars and musicians as an encyclopedia of Persian music and poetry. Accessed by a website, the database includes bio-bibliographical data on the performers and authors, musical notation for songs, transcriptions of poetry, and commentaries included in the programmes in order to make them available over the internet, searchable by musicians, vocalists, composers, reciters, poets' names, as well as by musical mode, submode, poem, literary and musical genre, and poetic meter. On this project, see: http://www.golha.co.uk/
For a video of the 2010 Persian BBC "Pargar" programme, featuring Dr. Lewisohn's debate with Daryoush Ashouri about classical Sufism and Iran, click here.
Please also see an interview in Persian with Dr Leonard Lewisohn and Dr. Leili Anvar on the great mystical poet Jalal al-Din Rumi (d. 1273) on the BBC Persian Service "Pargar" Programme
Hafiz and the School of Love in Classical Persian Poetry - conference 2007
To listen to the lectures given in 2007 at the conference on "Hafiz and the School of Love in Classical Persian Poetry" convened at the Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies by Leonard Lewisohn and James Morris, you can access the following link: http://river-valley.tv/conferences/hafiz-2007/. The proceedings of this conference were published as Hafiz and the Religion of Love in Classical Persian Poetry, edited by Leonard Lewisohn (London: I.B. Tauris 2010).
BBC Persian Network TV Interview
Dr Leonard Lewisohn and Mrs Lewisohn being interviewed in their home on Persian Culture, Music,Sufism and Art. Dr Lewisohn is a Senior Lecturer, and an Iran Heritage Foundation Fellow in Persian and Sufi Literaure here at the Insitute.
(interview in Persian)
Research supervision
Completed theses
Nahid Angha. "An Annotated Translation and Examination of the Essential Mystical Teachings in 'Abdu'llāh Ansāri's (396-481/1006-1089) Sad maydan (Hundred Fields)" 2005. This thesis has been published by Dr. Angha with a preface by myself, as Ansari's Hundred Fields: An Early Persian Treatise on the Sufi Way (London: Archetype 2010).
Theses in Progress
Bahman Solati. "The Reception of the Persian Poet Hafiz in 19th-20th Century Iran"
Reza Tabandeh. "The Rise of Nimatullahi Shi'ite Sufism in 19th Century Qajar Persia: Husayn 'Ali Shah, Majdhub 'Ali Shah and their Battle with Islamic Extremism"
The Alexander Romance in the Persian Tradition: Its Influence on Persian History, Epic and Storytelling.
Dr Leonard Lewisohn
Ibn 'Ajība (d. 1224/1809) and His Oceanic Exegesis of the Quran: Love in the Moroccan Sufi Tradition
Dr Leonard Lewisohn
An Annotated English Translation of Nāṣir-i Khusraw's Khwān al-Ikhwān with an Analytical Introduction
Dr Leonard Lewisohn
Modules taught
- ARA1021 - Introduction to Persian History and Culture
- ARA1905 - Employability
- ARA2152 - Persian Literature
- ARA3145 - Advanced Persian Language II
- ARAM102 - Islam in Practice
- ARAM214 - Islamic Culture and Civilisation
- ARAM217 - Sufism, Islamic Mysticism and Devotional Life
Leonard Lewisohn is the author of Beyond Faith and Infidelity: The Sufi Poetry and Teachings of Mahmud Shabistari (London: Curzon Press 1995), and The Wisdom of Sufism (Oxford: Oneworld 2001). He is the editor of The Heritage of Sufism (Oxford: Oneworld Publications 1999), vol. 1: The Legacy of Medieval Persian Sufism, vol. 2: Classical Persian Sufism from its Origins to Rumi Classical Persian Sufism from its Origins to Rumi, vol. 3 (with David Morgan): Late Classical Persianate Sufism: the Safavid and Mughal Period covering a millennium of Islamic history.
He is also editor (with Christopher Shackle) of The Art of Spiritual Flight: Farid al-Din Attar and the Persian Sufi Tradition (London: I.B. Tauris and the Institute of Ismaili Studies, forthcoming 2006) His articles have appeared in the Encyclopedia of Islam, 2nd Ed., The Encyclopedia of Philosophy, 2nd Ed., The Encyclopedia of Religion, 2nd Ed., Encyclopedia Iranica, Iran Nameh, Iranian Studies, Journal of the American Oriental Society, Bulletin of the School of Oriental & African Studies, Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society, British Association for the Study of Religion Bulletin, African Affairs, and Temenos.
He was Research Associate in Esotericism in Islam at the Department of Academic Research and Publications of the Institute of Ismaili Studies (London) from 1999-2005. Since 2004 he has been Lecturer in Persian and Iran Heritage Foundation Fellow in Classical Persian and Sufi Literature at the The Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies, at the University of Exeter in England.


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The technique of 3D printing is spreading rapidly in the field of medicine. Many hearing aids and dental crowns are now 3D-printed, as are disposable surgical instruments and even prosthetic limbs.
Additive manufacturing (AM), as the technique is also known, can even be used to make porous, melt-in-the-mouth pills for epileptics who are unable to swallow them.
Twenty-eight percent of all medical technology and pharmaceutical companies have already used 3D printing, according to a recent survey of 12 mostly Western countries by the London-based professional services company Ernst & Young (EY).
Almost all hearing aids are 3D-printed these days, says EY manager Stefana Karevska, noting that while 3D printing is gaining ground across numerous industries, it has especially taken off in medical technology.
"It's fascinating," says Dr Bilal Al-Nawas, medical director of the Department of Oral, Maxillofacial and Plastic Surgery at Mainz University Medical Centre in Germany.
"Surgeons need 3D printing, and patients want it. Taking a piece of bone or tissue out of the body and then reinserting it somewhere else – that can't be the future."
In mid-May, Al-Nawas and his colleagues hosted the Second International Conference on 3D Printing in Medicine in Mainz, bringing together researchers, startups and 3D printer manufacturers from around the world.
One of the attendees was EOS, headquartered near Munich, a pioneer in the field of direct metal laser sintering and a provider of AM systems for plastics. Sintering is the process of turning a powdered material into a solid or porous mass by heating it – and usually also compressing it – without melting it.
One of the company's 3D printers can make 400 individual dental crowns per day at a tenth of the conventional production cost, according to EOS manager Martin Bullemer, who adds: "Progress is being made throughout the entire field of orthopaedics."
Screws aren't 3D-printed, though, because lathes can make them faster. Researchers are currently concentrating on blood vessels, Al-Nawas says, pointing out that they have already been successfully implanted in animals.
"Blood vessels are the first step. If they work, a lot of other things are conceivable," he adds, while also cautioning that whole organs such as livers and thyroid glands are probably still a long way off.
In 3D printing, a powder material such as titanium or plastic is fused by melting or sintering with a laser beam or infrared lamp, layer by layer. Since the layers are only hundredths of a millimetre thick, the process is extremely precise.
It's even possible to make complex honeycomb-like structures that can't be produced by drilling or injection moulding. The bespoke blueprint is created, for example, from a computed tomography scan.
Al-Nawas is working with a team of scientists on developing new materials that could be used instead of metal when it comes to reconstructing a face after a kick by a horse, for example.
"We would prefer a material that the body converts to bone, like magnesium. Or at least a material that's more bone-like," he says.
In another development, the France-based NGO Handicap International has launched 3D-printing trials for 19 lower-leg amputees in Togo, Madagascar and Syria.
Using a small, lightweight 3D scanner to create a digital mould of the amputated limb, it then adapts the mould to the respective patient's needs using computer-modelling software before sending it to a 3D printer. The printer produces a bespoke socket that corresponds perfectly to the shape of the amputated limb.
Al-Nawas cautions against overestimating the possibilities of this "exciting" new field of 3D-printed body parts, however, likening it to "slow boring through a thick board." — dpa


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Love him or hate him, you can't deny that Brett Hull was a truly great hockey player. Over the course of his career, Hull scored 741 goals, earning him the third spot on the all-time list of most goals scored. In twenty seasons he played on five teams, but is probably best known for his time with the St. Louis Blues.
Somebody with a resume like Brett Hull would be a perfect person to inspire your workforce or organization. A Brett Hull speaker appearance or a Brett Hull endorsement is not impossible with the help of TSE. Give us a call today and we'll take care of your Brett Hull speaker negotiations to secure you the best rate possible.
**Brett Hull Speaker**
Brett Hull is not afraid to speak his mind. His determination and success in the rink are perfect Brett Hull speaker topics. Hull can inspire your audience to take charge of their own lives, destinies, and job performances. After his retirement in 2005, Hull joined NBC's broadcast team as an analyst and makes weekly appearances on a Dallas radio show. Hull is the type of guy who is never at a loss for words.
**Brett Hull Appearance**
Organizing a Brett Hull appearance is sure to be entertaining and memorable. In his career, Brett Hull appeared in eight All-Star Games. Another famous Brett Hull appearance was his controversial goal for the Dallas Stars in game six of the 1999 Stanley Cup finals against the Buffalo Sabres. Ask him about it when he stops by your next event or function!
**Brett Hull Endorsement**
Given his successful career and media friendly persona, a Brett Hull endorsement will carry some weight. TSE has a proven track record of success in negotiation with athletes and working with companies like yours in securing a Brett Hull endorsement.
For more information about booking athletes and celebrities with the help of TSE Speakers, please fill our our detailed contact form or call us at (866) 520-7081 to speak with a dedicated TSE representative.
|01. Modano, Mike
|02. Craig, Jim
|03. Hull, Brett
|04. Messier, Mark
|05. Howe, Gordie
|06. Eruzione, Mike
|07. Lemieux, Mario
|08. Gretzky, Wayne
|09. Bourque, Ray
|10. Roy, Patrick


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Female Senate Democrats Call For Raising Of Minimum Wage For Women
Women Democratic senators demanded an increase in the minimum wage, saying it would assist needy women. From left to right, Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, Barbara Boxer of California, Barbara Mikulski of Maryland, Debbie Stabenow of Michigan, Kirsten Gillibrand of New York, Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota, Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin, Mazie Hirono of Mawaii, Maria Cantwell of Washington, and Patty Murray of Washington.
Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images
Copyright © 2018, Orlando Sentinel


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Given the snowy conditions out there you might not be thinking about your spring wardrobe just yet, but fashion waits for no man and what better distraction from the ensuing chaos than some internet shopping? ASOS are fully stocked for summer, with some great options in chambray and seersucker. This dark chambray, unstructured blazer (similar to the Acne/Lanvin collaboration) is a great staple. Seersucker has been building popularity over the last few summers and a pair of slim-fitting pants with that charming fine stripe is a great use of the fabric. The denim barrel bag is a snip at less than £10. Finally this short-sleeved chambray shirt with polo-type collar and the desert boots in lovely soft tones are both steals.
ASOS are promoting this look through a themed video called Bistroteque – a name many Londoners would associate with Hackney's trendy bistro/drag cabaret venue rather than 'Riviera chic' but it certainly sets the tone.


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Re-building after hurricane Katrina, USA
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Open house for Hwy 10 bridge replacement, resurfacing project set for April 6
DETROIT LAKES, Minn. – The public is invited to an open house to learn about the 2017 Highway 10 project in Detroit Lakes on Thursday, April 6, from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. at the MnDOT District 4 office, 1000 Highway 10 West, Detroit Lakes.
Crews will replace the eastbound Highway 10 bridge over the CP Railway line and place concrete in both directions on Highway 10 between Highway 59 and Summit Avenue.
Placing concrete in this section will provide a long-term fix, but the project will result in significant traffic disruptions, particularly during work near Highway 59 and near Summit Avenue.
The project is set to begin in mid-April.
The meeting is an opportunity for the public to learn about the project timeline and construction staging.
Additional project information is available at www.mndot.gov/d4/projects/dlwest/.
To request an ASL or foreign language interpreter, or other reasonable accommodation, call Janet Miller at 651-366-4720 or 1-800-657-3774 (Greater Minnesota), 711 or 1-800-627-3529 (Minnesota Relay). You may also e-mail your request to firstname.lastname@example.com. Please request at least one week in advance, if possible.


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Unified Development Authority
The CSRA Unified Development Authority is a joint development authority pursuant to the Official Code of Georgia Annotated (OCGA) 36-62-5.1. The UDA's Board of Directors includes two appointees from each of the member counties (appointed by the County Commission) and works on regionally significant projects that require joint local government cooperation.
As a Joint Development Authority, the UDA offers its members the ability to negotiate, finance, construct, and operate projects with a regional labor market pull.
For more information, please contact Sharon at (706) 210-2000 or by email at firstname.lastname@example.com


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§3-812. Execution and levies prohibited
No execution may issue upon nor may any levy be made against any property of the estate under any judgment against a decedent or a personal representative, but this section shall not be construed to prevent the enforcement of mortgages, pledges or liens upon real or personal property in an appropriate proceeding. [1979, c. 540, §1 (NEW).]
1979, c. 540, §1 (NEW).


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I chose to write about the smoking ban in Hull and East Riding Hospitals, namely Hull Royal Infirmary and Castle Hill. It was an interesting story as it has caused a lot of controversy. I visited both sites to try to get some film and interviews. This proved to be a lot more difficult than I expected. People were not happy about being recorded or filmed.
Outside the entrance to Castle Hill, but still within the grounds, I managed to interview an elderly lady who had come out for a smoke. The quality of the recording wasn't very good as we were standing in the rain. However, I think the recording adds to the story because it illustrates how people are ignoring the ban and also shows conflicting views.
The short film footage that I managed to take on my mobile phone was an important lesson for me. I was approached by one of the security guards and asked to stop filming. What was even more interesting was that he asked me to leave before he approached the people who were smoking.
I was not sure if I would be able to show this footage so I blurred out the faces to avoid any problems. Also I feel that it adds some irony to the article as the people I filmed smoking were mainly staff.
The article could be used for a local website such as the Hull Daily Mail because of the location. Although a link I added is a general NHS guidance addressing all UK NHS Trusts. Comments taken from Facebook were also aimed at other hospitals so this story would have a wider appeal. The audience demographic is also very wide-ranging as it is an issue that affects so many; both smokers, non-smokers, staff, patients, visitors, old and young alike.


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Brianna Wilson enters her first season as an assistant coach with the nationally-ranked Cal State Northridge women's water polo team.
Wilson played three years in the Matador program after transferring after starting her collegiate career at San Jose State.
During her senior season at Cal State Northridge (2008), Brianna scored two goals along with two assists and a steal. In 2007, her junior campaign, Wilson tallied three goals and added a career-high nine assists. In 2006, her sophomore season, Wilson posted three goals, seven assists and five steals.
Wilson, who majored in Kinesiology at CSUN, graduated from Bonita High School in 2004 in LaVerne, Calif. While at Bonita, she earned all-league honors all four seasons and all-CIF honors during her sophomore, junior and senior seasons. The Bearcats won the Maramonte League championships in 2002, 2003 and 2004.
Wilson was born on April 29, 1986 in Upland, Calif.


text:
The Simpsons Ice Cube Tray is perfect for any hardcore fan looking to infuse iconic character elements from the show into their everyday lives.
When it comes to classic cartoon shows, The Simpsons has been one of the longest running cartoons in history, providing viewers with memorable characters and humorously unique storylines. With Homer Simpson being one of the most iconic parts of the series, there's no surprise as to why an array of household products are emerging with this instantly recognizable character as its inspiration. This unique ice cube tray is designed to resemble a headshot of Homer Simpsons' character, providing fans with a comical way to showcase their appreciation for the show.
Allowing individuals to infuse some cartoon humor into their beverages, these humorous ice trays will certainly demonstrate your affinity for cult TV characters.
Cult Cartoon Ice Cubes
More Stats +/-
Water Bottle Ice Cubes
Fishy Frozen Drink Divers
Planetary Ice Cube Molds
Hammer-Shaped Ice Cubes
Global Drink Chillers
The Simpsons Ice Cube Tray is Perfect for Fans of this Cult Classic Series
- By: Tana MakmaneeFeb 21, 2014
References: hottopic & geekalerts
References: hottopic & geekalerts


text:
Wednesday, 25 January 2017
Double Bay, wharf
11 comments:
Lovely shot Jim. Beautiful scene.ReplyDelete
The Eastern Suburbs are lovely, especially on the water.ReplyDelete
It looks like good weather to be fishing.ReplyDelete
Looks like a nice place to fish. Here in California, people in California are allowed to fish from the piers without a license. Not sure if a license is needed in Sydney. #WordlessWednesdayReplyDeleteReplies
I just checked and apparently you do need a licence in Sydney. Also people are banned from fishing from some commuter wharves but not sure about this one.Delete
Looks a bit choppy out there, you don't need a licence to fish off wharves here either, loads of people do it off the piers.ReplyDelete
A picturesque scene...ReplyDelete
Very nice scenic image.ReplyDelete
I love the old ferry wharfs...ReplyDelete
Thank you for sharing. I enjoyed the nice scenic image.ReplyDelete
Have a great rest of the week.
Water views in Sydney are just amazing, Jim!ReplyDelete
Thanks for taking part in the Travel Tuesday meme.


text:
Clarence Michael James Stanislaus Dennis
Clarence Michael James Stanislaus Dennis Poems
- Hist! Hist! . . . . . . Hark! The night is very dark, And ...
- A Change Of Air Now, a man in Oodnadatta He grew fat, and he...
- The Circus Hey, there! Hoop-la! the circus is in town! Have...
- Growing Up
- Going To School Did you see them pass to-day, Billy, Kate and...
- The Ant Explorer Once a little sugar ant made up his mind to ...
- The Band Hey, there! Listen awhile! Listen awhile, and ...
Clarence Michael James Stanislaus Dennis, better known as C. J. Dennis, was an Australian poet known for his humorous poems, especially "The Songs of a Sentimental Bloke", published in the early 20th century. Though Dennis's work is less well known today, his 1916 publication of The Sentimental Bloke sold 65,000 copies in its first year, and by 1917 he was the most prosperous poet in Australian history.
Together with Banjo Paterson and Henry Lawson, both of whom he collaborated with, he is often considered among Australia's three most famous poets.
When he died at the age of 61, the Prime Minister of Australia Joseph Lyons suggested he was destined to be ... more »
Click here to add this poet to your My Favorite Poets.
Comments about Clarence Michael James Stanislaus Dennismore comments »
Amelia Bright
the reson i have looked this poem up is we are lerning it at bribie island state school it is a good poem for kids my techer learnt it 50 years ago.
Hist! . . . . . . Hark!
The night is very dark,
And we've to go a mile or so
Across the Possum Park.
Step . . . . . . light,
Keeping to the right;
If we delay, and lose our way,
We'll be out half the night.
The clouds are low and gloomy. Oh!
It's just begun to mist!
We haven't any overcoats
And - Hist! . . . . . . Hist!
(Mo . . . . . . poke!)
Who was that that spoke?
This is not a fitting spot
To make a silly joke.
Dear . . . . . . me!
A mopoke in a tree!
It jarred me so, I didn't know
Whatever it could be.
But come along;...


text:
Jet city by Tonya Doughty
by Alexander Domnin
by benoit paille
Genisis by ! Fernando Decillis
Solitary Screw by Christian Valle
lara by Shawn Koh
A scale for#4 (reloaded 21) by Paolo Fani
Sunset in Santa Monica 2 by Michael Goermann
RSS for Andrea Jeckering's favorites
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text:
The most fascinating observation coming out of the visit to Palm Beach of Their Royal Highnesses of Great Britain was the one made by, of all people, the night manager of The Breakers.
The posh hotel was, as you may recall, the posh setting for a posh gala ball put on during the posh royal visit for the entertainment of the rich and the glittering from near and from far.
I mean, for about 24 hours in mid-November, everything was so posh around here, you could hardly breathe.
Well, normally, even at the poshest of times, you don`t hear much from night managers, and it`s probably just as well. But this particular gala was such an all-out Red Alert-type gala that everybody and his brother was asked to put in two cents` worth, including this night manager, who turned out to be a fellow named Gene Smith.
And in case you missed his contribution to the festivities, Smith was the one who explained that only male waiters were chosen by The Breakers to work the ball, instead of a mix of waiters and waitresses, ``to make things look uniform since`` (you`re going to love the elaboration) ``women come in all shapes and sizes.``
Are we talking astute observer, or what?
Smith didn`t say where his research was conducted, but it sounds to me as if he`s been at my aerobics class. You`d think someone would have noticed him there, because it`s not coed, but maybe he slinks around outside and just peeks in.
Or maybe, because he works nights, he spends his days at the beach. But whatever, you`ve got to hand it to him. Women certainly come in all shapes and sizes.
So only a nitpicker could fault his explanation and, as fate would have it, several nitpickers have done that very thing, and what we have in the way of fallout is a general grousing about it from the peanut gallery.


text:
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text:
Offaly students in dark over third level grant changes
A local TD has hit out at the Government for planned changes to third level grant system that will penalise students from families with farms or small businesses.
Fianna Fail's Deputy Barry Cowen said many students across Co Offaly are extremely worried about how they will afford college, as the Government plans to include farming assets and small businesses in the means-testing for third level grants.
"Students in Offaly who have received their third level offers this week are still in the dark about whether or not they will be eligible for a grant. How can they be expected to make decisions about their future when they don't know if the Government will pull the rug from under them when it comes to grant support?
"Minister Ruairí Quinn confirmed in May that the Government was examining including capital assets in the means-testing for third level grants. Since then we have heard nothing but contradicting statements from Government members, leading to confusion for many families.
"Families who are doing their best to ensure the best possible education for their children need supported, not punished, by the Government.There are many farming families in Offaly who may have land but are on extremely low incomes. Meanwhile many small business owners and self-employed workers are experiencing severe difficulties as costs remain high and consumer sentiment remains weak. Now the Government is threatening to include this capital as part of the assessment for third level grants.
"I am calling on Minister Quinn to do the right thing, and take this off the table completely. At the very least and as a matter of urgency the Minister must clarify that students will be able to apply for grants this year in advance of any changes and that the college-cycle will be taken into account in any changes he proposes. This would avoid a student getting a grant this year and starting college only to find the support is scrapped next year. However I would stress that the Minister should simply abandon his plans to target students from low income families in this way.
"At a time when we're encouraging everyone to increase their education and skills-base to give the younger generation every chance at a securing jobs here into the future, the Government should not be throwing up barriers for students and their families."


text:
Red Sox top Yankees, 5-3
Hanigan, Shaw, Bogaerts power Boston
Red Sox top Yankees, 5-3
Hanigan, Shaw, Bogaerts power Boston
Ryan Hanigan, Travis Shaw and Xander Bogaerts homered off Michael Pineda to back knuckleballer Steven Wright, and the Boston Red Sox opened the second half with a 5-3 win over the New York Yankees on Friday night.
Hanigan's third-inning homer was his first since last Aug. 19 off Cleveland's Corey Kluber, and the ball was caught by reliever Robbie Ross Jr., who stuck out his cap to snag it in the visitors' bullpen in left field. Shaw hit a two-run homer in the fifth, and Bogaerts made it 5-0 with a two-run drive in the sixth.
Wright (11-5), who began the night with an AL-leading 2.68 ERA, was a first-time All-Star at age 31 but didn't pitch in Tuesday night's game and was moved up in Boston's rotation for the series opener.


text:
Our Van
Just Another Way
Adam Land
Oinofyta Community Workshop
Adam Jefferson Land
Friday, February 17, 2017
Plans under way for the Community Garden
Mar 03, 2017
Today we locked ourselves in the van, got the table out (a rare event) and made ourselves a proper little office, to put the finishing touches to our plans for a community garden here at Oinofyta. As you can see Niaomh is very excited about the project... The idea is to turn part of the area around the warehouse into a beautiful community garden, where people can socialize and hangout, in what is at the moment a pretty bleak setting. As I mentioned previously it feels at the moment in the
The new addition to our family
Feb 27, 2017
We've got a massive bloody tiny little puppy... her name is Bagheera and she is the most beautiful pain in the arse I have ever had. She was brought into the camp in a veg crate, a tiny shivering ball of black fur with huge wide eyes and a head that smelt like fish. We had been talking about getting a dog for ages so when I went into the office to ask if I could play with the dog and got told "Yea if you take it out of the freakin' office", we did just that and took her right into our
Oinofyta camp
Jan 19, 2017
It seemed strange to think that our journey along precarious sea cliffs, through rolling green valleys and over mountain passes culminated in a dirty grey industrial estate just off a very non-descript section of the A17 motorway... but such is the location of the Oinofyta camp. We will be here for the next 3 months at least, so better start looking for the beauty a little deeper below the surface... I am mainly working towards setting up a useable workshop/carpentry space and tool libary
The Journey Down
Jan 17, 2017
We finally left cold, rainy England with smug grins on our faces setting sail for a couple of glorious weeks of winter sun before we started work at the Oinofyta camp. A few days later we were snowed in on the side of a mountain waiting for the sun and our own urine to melt the ice enough to get out... but I get ahead of myself. For the first part of the journey we were joined by my old mate Sam who was on his way to see his new lady in Marseille. This worked out excellently as he was just as


text:
Short Let Terms and Conditions
Thank you for choosing to stay with us. Below are our policies and procedures; read them carefully. As our guests, by reading and signing your registration card at check-in or by booking a reservation on our website, you are agreeing to abide by our policies and procedures.
Check-in time is between 3pm and 9pm. If you arrive earlier then we will be pleased to store your luggage until your room is ready. Guests will be required to present a valid form of identification upon check-in. We will make every effort to honour special requests (such as a specific floor or room number) where possible. However, the availability of these items cannot be guaranteed in advance. We reserve all rights to refuse service to any guests who do not follow or comply with site policies.
Check-out is between 9am to 10am. Please lock your door behind you and simply return your key to reception. If you require a later check-out, please contact us the day before your departure, and we will do our best to accommodate your request. A charge may apply, depending on availability. If you wish to extend your stay, please visit our website to book.
Guests have access to shared laundrette and common room facilities. We ask all guests to treat these rooms with respect and leave them in a clean and orderly condition to ensure the comfort of all users.
The full prepayment will be charged to your nominated card at the time of submitting the booking. Unfortunately we cannot accept cash payments. Please note, at the time of writing our sites are not VAT registered and therefore any invoices will show VAT at 0%.
Please report any breakages to the office as soon as possible and we will endeavour to repair or replace within 24 hours. Please note, damaged items will be charged to the guest where appropriate.
All pets are prohibited. Service animals are allowed with proper documentation provided in advance.
You can amend or cancel your reservation free of charge up to 72 hours prior to arrival date (15.00 GMT). If you cancel after this time the full charge will apply. Any changes on packages or rates to your reservation must be done three days prior to your arrival date. Reservations that are cancelled within three days are subject to full charge.
Smoking is prohibited in all indoor areas. Smoking is allowed outside.
Guests must be 18 years or older to check in without a parent or legal guardian.
We enforce a NOISE POLICY to ensure the comfort of our guests at all times. We ask that all guest keep noise to a minimum during the hours of 11pm to 8am. In the event of a disturbance one warning will be given to reduce noise. If this warning is not followed, the guest will forfeit all fees and must leave the site immediately.


text:
SSL reactivated for PostgreSQL 8.1
August 8, 2007
I've used the following procedure for allowing SSL connections between PostgreSQL interactive terminals and the server. The organization of keys and certificates is roughly as was documented earlier.
1) Created CA root key and self-signed certificate on iMac
<MACUSER>$ mkdir tmp.ca <MACUSER>$ cd tmp.ca <MACUSER>$ openssl req -new -x509 -out ca.crt -keyout ca.pem -days 365 Generating a 1024 bit RSA private key Enter PEM pass phrase: <PASSPHRASE1> Verifying - Enter PEM pass phrase: <PASSPHRASE1> Country Name (2 letter code) [AU]: <BLANKS> State or Province Name (full name) [Some-State]: <BLANK> Locality Name (eg, city) []: <BLANK> Organization Name (eg, company) [Internet Widgits Pty Ltd]: <BLANK> Organizational Unit Name (eg, section) []: <BLANK> Common Name (eg, YOUR name) []: ca Email Address []: <BLANK> <MACUSER>$ chmod go-rwx ca.pem
2) Created database server and client keys and certificates on iMac
<MACUSER>$ openssl req -new -text -out pg_server.req -keyout pg_server.pem -days 365 Enter PEM pass phrase: <PASSPHRASE2> Verifying - Enter PEM pass phrase: <PASSPHRASE2> Country Name (2 letter code) [AU]: <BLANKS> State or Province Name (full name) [Some-State]: <BLANK> Locality Name (eg, city) []: <BLANK> Organization Name (eg, company) [Internet Widgits Pty Ltd]: < BLANK> Organizational Unit Name (eg, section) []: <BLANK> Common Name (eg, YOUR name) []: pg_server Email Address []: <BLANK> A challenge password []: <EMPTY> An optional company name []: <EMPTY> <MACUSER>$ openssl req -new -text -out pg_client.req -keyout pg_client.pem -days 365 Enter PEM pass phrase: <PASSPHRASE3> Verifying - Enter PEM pass phrase: <PASSPHRASE3> Country Name (2 letter code) [AU]: <EMPTY> State or Province Name (full name) [Some-State]: <EMPTY> Locality Name (eg, city) []: <EMPTY> Organization Name (eg, company) [Internet Widgits Pty Ltd]: <EMPTY> Organizational Unit Name (eg, section) []: <EMPTY> Common Name (eg, YOUR name) []: pg_client Email Address []: <EMPTY> A challenge password []: <EMPTY> An optional company name []: <EMPTY> <MACUSER>$ openssl x509 -req -in pg_server.req -out pg_server.crt \\ -CA ca.crt -CAkey ca.pem -set_serial 0 Enter pass phrase for ca.pem: <PASSPHRASE1> <MACUSER>$ openssl x509 -req -in pg_client.req -out pg_client.crt \\ -CA ca.crt -CAkey ca.pem -set_serial 0 Enter pass phrase for ca.pem: <PASSPHRASE1> <MACUSER>$ rm pg_server.req pg_client.req <MACUSER>$ chmod go-rwx pg_server.pem pg_client.pem
3) Copied all keys and certificates to permanent location
<MACUSER>$ sudo su - root# mkdir /etc/ssl root# mkdir /etc/ssl/certs root# mkdir /etc/ssl/certs root# mv ~<MACUSER>/tmp.ca/*.pem /etc/ssl/private/ root# mv ~<MACUSER>/tmp.ca/*.crt /etc/ssl/certs/ root# exit <MACUSER>$ rm -fr ~/tmp.ca
4) Copied select keys and certificates to Debian VPS
guava$ mkdir tmp.ca <MACUSER>$ cd /etc/ssl/private/ <MACUSER>$ scp pg_server.pem pg_client.pem \\ guava@<VPS>.vps.budgetdedicated.com:tmp.ca <MACUSER>$ cd /etc/ssl/certs <MACUSER>$ scp ca.crt pg_server.crt pg_client.crt \\ guava@<VPS>.vps.budgetdedicated.com:tmp.ca
5) Added two lines to /etc/postgresql/8.1/main/pg_hba.conf
hostssl guava guava 127.0.0.1/32 md5 hostssl guava guava ::1/128 md5
6) Installed (unencrypted) key and certificate into PostgreSQL 8.1 server
guava$ su root# cd /var/lib/postgresql/8.1/main/ root# mv root.crt root.crt.save root# mv server.key server.key.save root# mv server.crt server.crt.save root# cp ~guava/tmp.ca/ca.crt root.crt root# cp ~guava/tmp.ca/pg_server.pem server.pem root# cp ~guava/tmp.ca/pg_server.crt server.crt root# openssl rsa -in server.pem -out server.key Enter pass phrase for server.pem: <PASSPHRASE2> root# chmod og-rwx server.key root# rm server.pem root# chown postgres root.crt server.key server.crt root# chgrp postgres root.crt server.key server.crt root# /etc/init.d/postgresql-8.1 restart root# exit guava$ postgres# psql guava postgres=# \\q
7) Installed (unencrypted) key and certificate into PostgreSQL interactive console
guava$ mkdir ~/.postgresql guava$ cd ~/.postgresql guava$ cp ~/tmp.ca/ca.crt root.crt guava$ cp ~/tmp.ca/pg_client.pem postgresql.pem guava$ cp ~/tmp.ca/pg_client.crt postgresql.crt guava$ openssl rsa -in postgresql.pem -out postgresql.key Enter pass phrase for postgresql.pem: <PASSPHRASE3> guava$ chmod og-rwx postgresql.key guava$ rm postgresql.pem
8) Performed santity check as ahead simulation of SSL client and server authentication
(sanity check before SSL server authentication) guava$ su root# openssl verify -CAfile ~guava/.postgresql/root.crt \\ /var/lib/postgresql/8.1/main/server.crt /var/lib/postgresql/8.1/main/server.crt: OK (sanity check before SSL client authentication) root# openssl verify -CAfile /var/lib/postgresql/8.1/main/root.crt \\ ~guava/.postgresql/postgresql.crt ~guava/.postgresql/postgresql.crt: OK
9) And that was it …
root# exit guava$ psql -h localhost guava Password: <GUAVA_DATABASE_PASSWORD> SSL connection (cipher: DHE-RSA-AES256-SHA, bits: 256) guava=> \\q
Informal benchmark
August 3, 2007
I've run an informal benchmark for comparing the relative speeds of the virtual private server and my iMac G5 at home. As can be seen from the plot, the iMac (2 GHz PowerPC) wins throughout and by up to a factor of 2. The horizontal axis corresponds to the range of algorithms participating in openssl speed measurements.
A couple of (security) updates
August 3, 2007
So far, I have been trusting Debian (security) updates rather blindly, but in the future I'd prefer a simple tool for inspecting changelogs or similar on what's being specifically addressed …
# aptitude update # aptitude --show-versions upgrade The following packages will be upgraded: bind9-host [1:9.3.4-2 -> 1:9.3.4-2etch1] dnsutils [1:9.3.4-2 -> 1:9.3.4-2etch1] file [4.17-5etch1 -> 4.17-5etch2] libbind9-0 [1:9.3.4-2 -> 1:9.3.4-2etch1] libdns22 [1:9.3.4-2 -> 1:9.3.4-2etch1] libisc11 [1:9.3.4-2 -> 1:9.3.4-2etch1] libisccc0 [1:9.3.4-2 -> 1:9.3.4-2etch1] libisccfg1 [1:9.3.4-2 -> 1:9.3.4-2etch1] liblwres9 [1:9.3.4-2 -> 1:9.3.4-2etch1] libmagic1 [4.17-5etch1 -> 4.17-5etch2]
Upgrade from PostgreSQL 7.4 to 8.1
August 3, 2007
I had mistakenly thought that Debian package postgresql was an "alias" for the most recent version of the database server, but evidently it contains support functions specifically for 7.x versions, and hence my earlier install only led to PostgreSQL 7.4. I should therefore be able to upgrade and use PostgresSQL 8.1 under Debian 4.0 after all.
Before installing the 8.1 packages, I backed up by dumping the databases as well as saving copies of the files server.key, server.crt, and root.crt.
# su postgres postgres# pg_dumpall > outputfile postgres# exit
This time I referred to the correct package names for the PostgeSQL 8.1 server and client respectively.
# aptitude --show-versions --prompt install postgresql-8.1 postgresql-client-8.1 The following NEW packages will be installed: libpq4 [8.1.9-0etch1] postgresql-8.1 [8.1.9-0etch1] postgresql-client-8.1 [8.1.9-0etch1] # aptitude update # aptitude upgrade
The configuration in /etc/postgresql/8.1/main/postgresql.conf has SSL enabled by default (ssl = true, ssl_socket = true is now obsolete), and I only had to adapt pg_hba.conf by commenting out three lines (they may actually have been commented already) and adding one with the current IPv4 NAT address of my computer at home (actual address masked by placeholder CLIENT).
local all postgres ident sameuser # local all all ident sameuser # host all all 127.0.0.1/32 md5 # host all all ::1/128 md5 hostssl guava guava CLIENT/32 md5
Next, I copied the saved versions of server.key, server.crt, and root.crt into /var/lib/var/lib/postgresql/8.1/main/ (after renaming three existing symbolic links by the same names into *.save), and set their owner and group to postgres. At this point, both versions are installed in parallel, and I can start either server, however the new one listens on port 5433 for the time being.
# /etc/init.d/postgresql-7.4 stop # /etc/init.d/postgresql-8.1 start # su postgres postgres# psql --port 5433 postgres=# \\q
I tried the new client for restoring the data, and encountered a few error messages. From inspection of the SQL file I judged to ignore those.
postgres# /usr/lib/postgresql/8.1/bin/psql -p 5433 -d postgres -f outfile psql:/home/guava/outfile:11: ERROR: cannot delete from a view HINT: You need an unconditional ON DELETE DO INSTEAD rule. psql:/home/guava/outfile:13: NOTICE: SYSID can no longer be specified psql:/home/guava/outfile:20: ERROR: cannot delete from a view HINT: You need an unconditional ON DELETE DO INSTEAD rule. psql:/home/guava/outfile:122: NOTICE: ALTER TABLE / ADD PRIMARY KEY will create \\ implicit index "blog_pkey" for table "blog" psql:/home/guava/outfile:131: NOTICE: ALTER TABLE / ADD PRIMARY KEY will create \\ implicit index "tag_pkey" for table "tag"
I stopped the 8.1 server and switched it to the default port by setting port = 5432 in postgresql.conf, and then removed the PostgreSQL 7.4 and its redundant dependent packages.
# aptitude -purge postgresql-7.4 postgresql-client-7.4 The following packages will be REMOVED: postgresql-7.4{p} postgresql-client-7.4{p} The following packages have unmet dependencies: postgresql: Depends: postgresql-7.4 but it is not installable postgresql-client: Depends: postgresql-client-7.4 but it is not installable The following actions will resolve these dependencies: Remove the following packages: postgresql postgresql-client
The 7.4 installation and its configuration files are now gone (find / -name 7.4), and I can restart the 8.1 server again. The JDBC client on my computer at home does not yet work, presumably because it does not do SSL client authentication against root.crt (was not supported in PostgreSQL 7.4). Local SSL loopback connectivity with psql -h localhost also does not work yet, presumably for related reasons. I'll try to finish the SSL-related security update next, but at this time can already use the interactive terminal on a local Unix-domain socket connection.
# /etc/init.d/postgresql-8.1restart # su postgres postgres# psql postgres=# \\q
Signing the new deal
July 31, 2007
My experience with the new VPS provider during the one-week free trial period was a pleasant one, and I've now signed up for their monthly plan (see invoice below). There was only one incident (hardware hickup), which was quickly resolved on a Sunday. I could now get a dedicated domain name separately, but the prevalence of search engine use has made this step somewhat irrelevant and therefore optional.
Certificate zoo
July 26, 2007
So far I am only maintaining two applications with SSL authentication on the Debian server (ssh and PostgreSQL), but keeping track of all distinct certificates and private keys is already becoming quite difficult. I therefore plan on adopting a common simplifying convention under the following guiding principles.
- store only one local copy of certificates and keys on the host that generated each pair; preferably use directory /etc/ssl/cert for certificates, and /etc/cert/private for keys; create additional references as symbolic links
- use only one self-signed certificate from a local certificate authority; sign all other new certificates with its key; don't generate the root certificate and key on the server, but on my machine at home (Mac OS X)
The drawing depicts a draft plan with the following notation (assumes PostgreSQL 8.1 with two types of client: JDBC on Mac OS X and psql on Debian).
- new certificates and keys on Debian server inside darker gray boxes
- other unmodified certificate and keys on Debian server inside lighter gray boxes
- new certificates and keys on Mac OS X client inside red boxes
- master copy of certificates and keys (only one pair per host) in bold font
- symbolic links in italic font
- (*) in cases where another certificate and key is replaced (archived as *.save file)
- connecting lines indicate two certificates signed with root key
- application needs dictate certificate and key file names in directories other than /etc/ssl/cert and /etc/cert/private
Update: locally created certificates should go into directory /etc/ssl/certs instead of /etc/ssl/cert (corrected typo).
Debian security updates
July 24, 2007
The default /etc/apt/sources.list file did not yet account for security updates (RSS feed here). I added a new first line and ran
aptitude update; aptitude upgrade. (I noticed that by now aptitude is the preferred program for Debian package management from console.)
deb http://security.debian.org/ etch/updates main contrib non-free deb http://ftp.nl.debian.org/debian etch main
As it turns out, my PostgreSQL installation was in need of security updates.
The following packages will be upgraded: libkrb53 postgresql-7.4 postgresql-client-7.4