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The Transformative Impact of
Speculative Fiction
No. 16 in the Babette's Feast chapbook series by
Math Paper Press.
Available from: LocalBooks.sg | BooksActually • Big Cartel • HipVan
"Embracing the Strange succinctly parallels the love of a father for his daughter, as expressed through poignant fantasy, with the commonplace struggles of being a writer. But divisions between what is real and unreal become negligible, as the emotional urgency of parental love burns through with redemptive truth, sustaining and buoying the literary life with its flights of speculative fancy. What is deemed 'strange' becomes movingly conjoined with the familiar and the universal." —Cyril Wong, award-winning author of Unmarked Treasure and The Last Lesson of Mrs de Souza
"This little, perfectly elegant essay-talk-hybrid of a book bends genres, challenges convention and dares to dream of the possibilities of prose and writing in a manner that is at once delightful and invigorating. It restores your faith in the imagination." — Thirunalan Sasitharan, "My Book of the Year," Singapore Poetry
In early 2012, Jason Erik Lundberg was asked to deliver a plenary talk to Singapore's best and brightest young creative writers. He chose to speak about the extraordinary impact of speculative fiction on every facet of his life, from childhood to the birth of his daughter, and beyond. This talk was expanded, and integrated with a multi-part short story about a brave little girl who tumbles down a very different kind of rabbit hole, and must use her bravery and intelligence in order to find her way home. The result is a 14,000-word hybrid-essay of such power and poignancy that the real and the imagined become inextricably mixed.
Illustration by Stephanie Raphaela Ho, inspired by chapter six in Embracing the Strange.
From the Preface
The odd-numbered chapters of this hybrid-essay were delivered (in edited form) as a plenary lecture for the Creative Arts Seminar (May 2012) and Literature Seminar (August 2012) run by the Singapore Ministry of Education's Gifted Education Branch. Previously, I had taught writing workshops focusing on speculative fiction at both of these seminars, and was honoured, and more than a little anxious, to be invited to deliver a talk at these wonderful events last year. I am comfortable in the classroom, and especially with student interaction, but I am not a natural lecturer.
I am, however, passionate about speculative fiction (science fiction, fantasy, and their associated subgenres), and have made it my mission to spread this fervour to Singapore's reading public, first through my fiction collection, Red Dot Irreal (2011), and then with my edited anthology of original Singaporean SF, Fish Eats Lion (2012), and lastly, but not leastly, with the founding of LONTAR: The Journal of Southeast Asian Speculative Fiction, all published by the wonderful folks at Math Paper Press. I was also tremendously inspired by Michael Chabon's lecture titled "That's Poe-biz," delivered with humour and insight at the 2011 Singapore Writers Festival, which provided the "chapter" framework that I have ruthlessly appropriated for my own ends in the essay to follow, with generous apologies to Mr. Chabon.
However, it struck me as I prepared this piece for publication that the plenary address only told half of the story. Read aloud, it took around 45 minutes to complete, which allowed time for Q&A from the students in attendance, but I felt as if something were missing. I'd initially asked Ms. Lim Siew Yea, the GEB coordinator for both seminars, if I might also read a bit of my fiction as an example of what I wanted to cover in the lecture; she heartily assented, yet I was unable to fit a story into the allotted time. Since the published version of this essay would be unencumbered by such limits, I decided to incorporate the sections of a multi-part short story called "Looking Downward," which had been serialized monthly (in slightly different form) from October 2009 to July 2010 at The Daily Cabal; also included are two postscripts in the guise of flash fiction which, it is hoped, are thematically connected to the content of the essay that precedes them.
Writing a piece of this length, hybridized as it is, was a concerted challenge. I am used to my thoughts and speculations and grievances coming through filtered largely in my fiction. Proudly an introvert, I prefer to say what I mean indirectly, but I was profoundly grateful to Siew Yea for giving me the opportunity to try something new. It is up to you, dear reader, to decide if I succeeded.


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(Take) a Walk on the Wild Side Ch. 01byMag58©
I'd been married to Connie for nearly 10 years when this story began. I was 44 and she was 32. We had a beautiful daughter who was 4 year old . Connie's as gorgeous and sexy today as the first time I saw her in the perfume department of a large chemist in the City Centre 12 years ago.
She has fantastic thick shoulder length strawberry blonde hair and looks a bit like the actress Nicola Stephenson; especially her cheeky smile and freckles. If we won the lottery she'd like bigger boobs but I like them just the way they are -- 34b.....nice and bouncy and still firm enough for her to go topless on the beach (which really turns me on). I still play indoor football once a week and go to the gym two or three times; so I'm still quite trim for a guy my age.
It had become difficult to keep things fresh and exciting especially with Connie juggling a full-time job and being a wife and mother; plus our daughter is a bit of a handful. My job now takes me away from home 1 or 2 nights a week and I'm rarely home before 7.30 on the other nights; all of which leaves both of knackered most nights; but we still try our best to keep the spark alive.
We were at the dreaded stage that married couples fear most-- each week night was the same. When I was at home we would have a family meal; bath our daughter, put her to bed, make a coffee then sit on the sofa staring at the idiot-box in the corner while I massaged my wife's feet then bed by 11pm without the merest hint of sex.
On Fridays I'd sometimes go to the local pub and Connie would be in bed when I arrived home; drunk. On Saturdays we would go out with friends for a meal and drinks then after 5 minutes each in the bathroom we would have sex. Now -- don't get me wrong; it was always good sex. Think about it; my wife is young and gorgeous but.....but.....it was pretty much the same most weeks. I knew exactly which buttons to press and in which order to make her have a satisfying orgasm and I did.....every bloody Saturday night between 11.30 and 12 midnight!
In the previous couple of years I'd had a few opportunities for extra-marital naughtiness and had weakened twice -- once at a European Sales Conference in Bonn with a Swiss woman and another time in London with a colleague that was recently divorced. Neither was as spectacular as I'd hoped but great fun none the less!
I was pretty sure Connie had been faithful until she was invited to a 'schoolgirl' themed Hen night to Manchester with her younger sister, Marie and about 20 of their friends to celebrate a 21st birthday. When she returned home on the Sunday evening she was a bit sheepish and quiet; which was unusual. Later in bed after a lot of coaxing she told me that due to her outfit she had received an awful lot of male attention on the Saturday night and had absolutely loved it. I got her to wank me as she eventually admitted to dancing with a couple of guys in a club then eventually confessed in a whisper that they had both put their hands up her skirt to play with her suspenders and had tried to get inside her knickers but she'd resisted. Then she giggled when she realised that my cock was getting harder and harder. With a new found confidence she then told me that she had even let one of them play with her tits as they snogged; which made me cum all over her hand. I always felt that there might be more to the story but didn't 'push it'.....but when I was alone in a hotel later in the week; I had a few wanks thinking about what she might have got up to.
After football the following Sunday morning one of the younger lads; who didn't know my wife; showed us some photos of his girlfriend in a schoolgirl uniform on his mobile phone then regaled the bar with some of the tales she'd told him about a recent trip to Manchester. She'd told him that 6 or 7 of the women had got fucked including two married women who had gone back to a hotel with some rugby players from Wales and had got fucked six ways sideways! My cock instantly stiffened at the thought of Connie being one of them!
The thought of my wife going with another guy or more than one guy drove me insane with lust for the next few days. Without ever telling her why; I became almost insatiable; which made Connie feel very desirable and therefore more accommodating to my sexual needs. A 'win-win' situation for both of us.
On the Thursday night I was checking out my Facebook site for the first time in weeks when I spotted that one of her friends had posted some pictures from the Hen Night. No wonder she'd received lots of attention! Connie's shirt was unbuttoned so that her tits were nearly falling out of her pink Wonderbra and her skirt was so short you could see her stocking tops and suspenders without her even bending over! In one picture she had one guy sticking his tongue in her ear while she smothered his friends' face with her tits! Her friends were just as lecherous in the other dozen or so pictures of them showing their arses and one of her friends sucking on a life like dildo! It certainly looked like they had had a really good time and the picture of Connie and the two guys really intrigued me....plus it helped me have another wank; fantacising about my darling wife with two horny rugby players!
In bed the following night Connie nearly choked when I mentioned (as casually as possible) that I'd seen the Facebook pictures.
"You look like you had fun." I grinned as she blushed like a beetroot.
"I can explain." She stammered as she squirmed and quickly turned away from me. "I thought that you'd told me about everything that happened on Sunday night." I chuckled as I began stroking her nipple through her nightie.
"I did." Connie whispered as her nipple became erect.
"Are you sure?" I continued as my cock nudged against her buttocks. "There was a picture of you with.....two guys....and.....some of the comments under it were....well.....someone asked if their bedroom was bigger than yours."
I began softly kissing her neck and rubbing my erection against her soft arse but Connie was now stiff with fear.
"I'd love to know how you would know if their bedroom was bigger than yours sweetheart." By now I'd lifted her nightdress up and was alternating stroking her tits with running my fingers through her hairy bush.
My wife slowly turned over until she was lying on her back. Her eyes were filled with tears.
"Something else happened....didn't it?" I asked as I kissed away the tears then gently placed her hand on my rock hard cock. "I've already had a couple of wanks thinking about them putting their hands up your skirt and you letting one of them play with your tits." I then kissed and licked her nipples. "Tell me everything babe....please."
Connie's hand gently stroked my shaft making me shiver with excitement.
"Are you sure?" She whispered as she sniffed back another tear.
"Oh yes!" I chuckled as I flicked my tongue across her nipples and gently teased her legs apart.
"As soon as we left the hotel in the afternoon guys were whistling and shouting at us." Connie's voice was barely audible but her fingers kept running along the blue veins on my dick.
"Every where we went guys were hitting on us and buying us drinks." She finally looked me in the eye as if asking if she should go on. "Even when I was a teenager I never got attention like that....it was....intoxicating!" Connie chuckled at using a 'big word'.
"Mmmmmm." I purred as my fingers stroked and tugged her bushy pubes. "I'm not surprised...you looked dead fucking sexy!"
"It was in the second or third bar that we....you know....relaxed....and let ourselves go." She was now resting on her side and had slightly opened her legs for me. "We were in the toilets when Marie hiked her skirt up and said something about 'Lets take a walk on the wild side!'"
I nodded as I peeled her pussy lips apart and ran my finger down her sticky slit.
"I thought 'why not for one night'....and hiked my skirt up too then loosened a couple of extra buttons on my shirt too." Her chest was becoming flushed now and her pussy even wetter. "I was drunk and...it was just meant to be....a laugh.....I didn't expect anything to....'happen'....you believe me don't you?"
"Of course." I lied and gently slid a finger into her love pot as her fingers wrapped around my dick and started sliding slowly up and down.
"Guys were all over us." My once shy wife grinned. "They were nearly fighting to buy us drinks and one of them was rubbing up against me.....you know....pretending to shag me from behind!"
I automatically raised my eyebrows in surprise.
"And I leaned forward and pressed back against him....pretending to......have an orgasm....you know like in 'When Harry met Sally'!"
Connie was a flirt ....but...... not like that normally.
"Everyone cheered.....it was the most amazing night of my life." Her face had lit up now and she had her left leg curled and raised for me to continue fingering her.
"Then we moved onto another club-bar that had music playing and some of the guys had followed us and wanted to dance." She was in full flow now and obviously getting as turned on as I was with her confession. "When I danced I made sure my skirt lifted up and my....tits....jiggled." We both chuckled because that's my favourite 'game'....when she shakes or jiggles her tits. "Lyle loved it when I did that."
"Lyle?" I quizzed her.
"The two guys in the picture.....Lyle and Scott...from Scotland. They were on a Rugby club trip." Connie's eyes glazed over slightly at the memory.
"Nice guys? How old are they?" I innocently asked.
"Verrrryyy nice." Connie purred then giggled, "Lyle was 20 and Scott 22....I asked!"
"Then what happened?" I inquired as my balls began aching.
"It was on the dance floor that Lyle began playing with my suspenders and stockings. I think he was showing off to his friends....lifting my skirt up and stuff....but...." Connie hunched her shoulders and gave me her 'naughty girl' smile as she squeezed my cock very tight, "I didn't give a shit and let him."
"Then Scott barged in and wanted the next dance. He was very tall....even bigger than you ....he did the same....his hands were straight up my skirt......squeezing my arse.....even spanking it a little bit....telling me how naughty I was and how naughty schoolgirls should get spanked for showing their knickers on the dance-floor. I tried to shock him by saying something about 'was he man enough to spank me'. He lifted my skirt and gave me three hard slaps on the arse in front of everyone!"
"What did you do then?" I asked incredulously as I stuffed her twat with a second finger.
"I put my arms around his neck and kissed him." Connie giggled again. "Then he put his hand up the front of my skirt as we slow danced and......"
"AND?????" I gasped as I felt my balls tighten.
"He tried to finger me! A great big farmers finger; but I kept moving -- twisting away and stuff so he couldn't get it in....but it felt...you know....well you wouldn't...but.....so very naughty."
"In fffffront of everybody?" I stammered.
"Well.....it was dark....but......Marie was watching us." Connie was grinding onto my fingers now and thankfully her strokes had slowed down on my dick.
"Then what happened?" I garbled as I started thinking about Hilary Clinton in my attempt to stop cumming too soon.
I finally pushed him away and went back to the bar." Connie's chest was now heaving and her nipples were like diamonds.
"Then what?" I repeated......Hilary was now starting to look very sexy!
"He followed and bought me a cocktail....then told me he wanted to take me back to his hotel."
"And?" My balls were vibrating now at the thought of my wife going back to a hotel room with a handsome young stud.
Connie shrugged her shoulders and curled her lip. "I couldn't....really.....I wanted to.....but....I couldn't." Her eyes misted over again as she re-lived the moment she turned the young stud down. "I really really wanted to....."
"Oooohhh...uuuggghhh." My spunk poured out all over my wifes hand.
"Hehehehehe....you're terrible!" Connie giggled as she looked at the warm jism and began rubbing it back into my shaft. "What would you have said if I had gone back to his hotel?" She turned her head away to avoid eye contact and whispered.
"I think...." I considered my next words very carefully, "it would have really turned me on."
"Really?" Connie looked me straight in the eye for confirmation.
"I think so......yes." I croaked back at her as she cranked my cock back to stiffness.
"Maybe next time then." She smiled a wicked smile.
I still wasn't 100% convinced that she hadn't gone back to the hotel like Greg had told us after the football match.
"Did anyone actually..... stray?" I asked as my fingers curled deep inside her soaking twat.
"Apparently a couple of girls from Accounts did go back with some of Lyle and Scott's mates and had a bit of an orgy!" Connie giggled and sounded a little bit jealous.
"Oh." Was all I could think of to say.
Connie looked down at her spunk smeared hand and winked then twisted until she could open her knickers drawer. With her dry hand . After a quick fumble at the back she produced her 9 inch dildo and waved it in front of my face.
A second later we were in a 69, Connie curled in a ball sucking my cock while I lapped at her dripping cunt juice and fucked her with the sex toy.
My head was spinning as I lapped at her honey pot. She hadn't been this wet for years....I was in Heaven and so was Connie as I licked and sucked on her clit and labia as I stroked and tugged her soft curly pubes. Connie really was a good cocksucker! Her tongue and lips alternated between feeling like silk and velvet to becoming a Dyson vacuum cleaner! Her fingers were all over my balls and shaft too.
"Use the toy." My wife panted as her tongue flicked across my aching cock. I tried to force it in but it was difficult with the best cocksucker in England deep throating my dick!
"Get on your knees!" I grunted with frustration.
Still with my cock in her mouth; Connie was on her knees in seconds. Her eyes flickered when I pressed the life like knob against her slippery slit.
"Is this what you want?" I teased as it slid in with ease, "a big fucking cock up your twat while you're sucking a cock?" Talking dirty in bed really turned her on....I guess she's a bit submissive; but this was going to be a little bit different....I intended pushing the boundaries.
"Is it?" I asked again as I began fucking her with the plastic cock, "you love getting fucked at both ends; don't you?"
She squeezed my shaft and nodded; without making eye contact.
Soon my left hand was pumping the toy in and out of her pussy as her sucking went up another level.
"Oohh...that's good.....you're a real dirty cocksucker...aren't you?" I would never dream of talking to her like this in real life but 'bedroom talk' gave us both a buzz and the right words at the right time never failed to bring her to orgasm if I was fingering her or she was riding me.
The toy was gliding in and out very very easily now (too easily?) as I continued my speech.
"Ooohh baby...imagine what it must be like getting fucked like this with two big real cocks....one in your mouth and.....one up your...." I waited a few seconds. Normally I'd say pussy or fanny or slot but tonight I was going to use the C word and see what her reaction was.
"Yes.....(gasp)....you sucking my cock and....and...somebody else fucking your.....sopping...cunt.....with his big cock!" There. I'd said it. There was a dramatic silence for nearly two seconds as I waited for her response.
"Mmmmmm." Connie purred as she turned her head to face me and her fingers rubbed my shaft even faster while her tongue curled around my tingling knobhead.
"Oh fuck!" She wasn't upset or angry.....my wife had actually purred and I swear she got even wetter as she sucked my cock even harder!
I carried on like this for 5 minutes or so......talking about all of the young guys in our pub wanting to fuck her......taking it in turns to fuck her and ram their cocks down her throat......maybe even two strangers picking her up in a nightclub and fucking her cunt inside out! hahaha!
She was now moving her hips in time with my dildo fucking and had let my cock slip out of her mouth so she could rub it across her face and tits....just the way I like.
"Faster." She panted. My wrist was soon a blur and with a well practiced flick of my thumb I finally switched the toy on.
"Oh SHIT! Yes!" Connie gasped. We both knew it wouldn't be long now.
"Get my fucking cock back in your fucking mouth." I grunted as I desperately tried to tighten my balls and not cum too soon. I wanted this to last forever..
"That's the way.... you dirty fucking cocksucker ...fill your mouth with it while some stranger fucks your cunt!"
"Ugh....ugh!" Connie grunted as her fingers rubbed her clit while I pounded her cunt with 9 inches of vibrating plastic and began moving my hips so I could fuck her mouth.
"Open your fucking throat!" I was now nearly in a frenzy as I fucked her mouth, "I'm going to fill your fucking mouth with hot spunk.....while...."
Connie was trembling now as her fingers rubbed her clit to orgasm and the dildo was disappearing inside her belly.
"Ooh....oh....ugh....ugh.....FUCK...FUCK....FUCK ....YES!" I yelped as I emptied a cup full of hot seed down my wifes' throat at exactly the same time as she squealed and cried out with a loud orgasm of her own.
I pulled the toy out with a sloppy plop, switched it off then dropped it on the floor before facing my beautiful sweating wife.
"WOW." I whispered as I tried to inflate my lungs. "WOW.....how good was that?"
"One of the best ever." Connie whispered back as she clung to me like a limpet.
It was basically now or never for me.
"Didn't you mind when I......" I stumbled over the words, "when I...used the C word and...and talked about.....other guys fucking you?"
Still with her eyes closed Connie smiled and kissed my chest. "No....not really....it...it..." her voice was barely audible, "turned me on a bit."
"A bit?" "A lot.... then." She quietly whispered and pressed her warm tits against my chest.
After a few minutes of basking in the afterglow of our love Connie whispered.
"Where you serious...you know...when.....I told you about....in the club....and....those guys....and....if I'd.....you know....actually....... you know?"
"Yes." I instantly replied. "Really?" Connie whispered and kissed my neck.
"Why?" I whispered as my heart began thumping again. "Is there something that you want to tell me?"
There was a deafening silence for a few seconds then Connie huskily told me; "No...just.....the thought of....you know.....two guys...actually....you know......it...it....really turns me on."
"Fucking hell!" I gasped. "Me too."
We looked into each others twinkling eyes.....my fantasy might actually be about to come true.
"With me?" I asked virtually silently for fear of getting the wrong answer.
"I guess so." Connie looked disappointed at my question.
I quickly interjected, "Or have you got someone else in mind?"
A thin smile parted her luscious lips. "Oh! You think....the guys from the Club?" Then she giggled. "No no no.....after coming so close....with them....I just....would...love to...you know...try it....once."
"Do you want me to.....arrange something?" I panted as I could hardly breathe with excitement.
Connie nodded. "But nobody that we know."
It took ages to get to sleep as I planned and unplanned who to ask and what we could do and where.
Over the next couple of days I asked over and over again if she was happy doing this and after plenty of assurances and a small set of rules I set about my task.
She'd set me a helluva challenge....a threesome with someone that we didn't know; possibly including me but possibly not but I definitely had to be in the vicinity!

subset: commoncrawl


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Sun could shine on Sri Lanka at Lord's
Match factsSaturday, May 31, 2014
Start time 1030 local (0930 GMT)
Big Picture
Eighty-one runs was the difference between the teams in the first match of the series. The margins have expanded alarmingly since, to 157 runs, then 10 wickets and 227 balls. They might not be numbers that suggest a compelling series, but Sri Lanka's tilt at England has held interest, if only because of the unpredictability of the results.
Sri Lanka arrived favourites at the first match, on the back of a T20 international win and an unbeaten 2014 in ODIs, then faltered dramatically. England appeared to hold the aces at an overcast Chester-le-Street, but were shot out for 99. Then the hosts outskittled the skittlers at Old Trafford, to almost everyone's surprise. Even the weather forecasts have been way off base, with heavy rains failing to materialise in the second and third matches. Conditions have been no indicator of results. Sri Lanka have at various times seemed well-adjusted and at sea in the cold and the damp.
Lord's is expected to be rain-free and somewhat less chilly on Saturday, with temperatures expected to peak in the high teens. Sri Lanka appear to be the more vulnerable side at present, but they have traditionally done well at the venue, and when the sun shines. These are all just facts. They may not mean a thing.
One trend that will have been pored over by analyst and coaches in the Sri Lanka camp, is their batsmen's frailty against Chris Jordan's hit-the-deck pace. Jordan has not relied on great movement nor even a tight line and length. He has instead created trouble by generating good lift, and by having batsmen play too early or too late. His ambling approach to the crease explodes abruptly into an energetic delivery swing, and though many bowling coaches will see this as a flaw needing correction, it appears his pace has not been easy for Sri Lanka batsmen to judge.
If Sri Lanka fail at Lord's, they will have comfortably lost a series. It will mark the end of their remarkable 2014 run. England, meanwhile, will hope it begins their resurgence.
Form guide(last five matches, most recent first)
England: WLWWW
Sri Lanka: LWLWW
In the spotlight
Jordan may be taking most wickets, but there is no doubting the influence James Anderson's pinpoint opening spell exerted on the last match, when he claimed both openers and conceded only 10 runs from his seven overs. Skilful, probing and relentless, he is exactly the kind of fast bowler Sri Lanka's batsmen don't like. They failed in their plan to play him out safely in Manchester, and even if they alter their outlook for Lord's, Anderson is not an easy bowler to gain control of.
Mahela Jayawardene was among those who attempted to bat slow and long in Manchester, but he changed so much about his normally free-flowing game, he tangled himself up against an innocuous James Tredwell offbreak. Tough situations often coax him to his best, and as he has set the 2015 World Cup as a target, a regular flow of good scores will serve his confidence well.
Teams news
England will have learned little about their batsmen from the brief Manchester chase and will likely be unchanged.
England (probable): 1 Alastair Cook (capt.), 2 Ian Bell, 3 Gary Ballance, 4 Eoin Morgan, 5 Joe Root, 6 Ravi Bopara, 7 Jos Buttler (wk), 8 Chris Jordan, 9 James Tredwell, 10 James Anderson, 11 Harry Gurney
Angelo Mathews suggested Lahiru Thirimanne will be given a longer run at opener after the last match, but they may be tempted to bring in Kusal Perera into the side, displacing Thirimanne down the order. The visitors will hope to play two spinners, but have Thisara Perera in reserve if the conditions are more suited to quick bowling.
Sri Lanka (probable): 1 Tillakaratne Dilshan, 2 Lahiru Thirimanne, 3 Kumar Sangakkara (wk), 4 Mahela Jayawardene 5. Dinesh Chandimal, 6. Angelo Mathews (capt.), 7. Ashan Priyanjan, 8. Nuwan Kulasekara, 9 Sachithra Senanayake, 10 Rangana Herath/Thisara Perera, 11. Lasith Malinga
Pitch and conditionsThe recent T20 double header saw the wicket go very slow for the second 40 overs and several Championship matches have seen some low first-innings totals but Lord's wickets for internationals are generally excellent. The weather forecast is dry.
Stats and trivia
- Sri Lanka rode a Dinesh Chandimal century to victory in their most recent ODI at Lord's in 2011, which was Chandimal's last ODI hundred.
- Alastair Cook needs 90 to move to 3000 career ODI runs. Ian Bell is the highest run-getter in the team with 4788 runs.
- Lasith Malinga has the worst figures of any bowler who has delivered more than 10 overs in the series. He has taken one wicket at an average of 101. His economy rate is 6.73.
Quotes"Sometimes you can get on one of those roles on a wicket where you lose two or three quickly and it's difficult to turn the tide. That's probably been the case in the last two games."
James Tredwell identifies the cause of both team's collapses in this series.
"We had a bad day, we are looking forward to Lord's. The boys are practising hard. We just want to forget what happened in the last match."
The Old Trafford collapse is quickly behind Sri Lanka according to Lahiru Thirimanne
Andrew Fidel Fernando is ESPNcricinfo's Sri Lanka correspondent. @andrewffernando


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This post will cover the first part of the public meeting of September 21st, 2009. In another post, which we'll get up in a day or two, we'll recap the comments and questions from the audience.
At the September 21st public meeting, after quick introductions from Alder Maniaci and the steering committee, Apex presented their concepts for the 200 block of East Mifflin.
The first presenter was Steve Yoder, president of Apex. His presentation, available here in PDF format focused on Apex the company, some of their other properties, their motivation for the project, and an introduction to four concepts: three on the south side of the 200 block of E Mifflin, where existing two and three stories homes are located, and one on the north side of E Mifflin, on top of the McCormick parking lot.
The second presentation was from Matt Tills and Bob Feller from Iconica, focused more on the four designs. Their presentation is also available here in PDF format. I've pulled out the massing designs of the the concepts, because I think those are the easiest versions to get oriented and get a sense of the building concept. The full presentation includes some styled renderings, as well as top-down views of the building footprints, so please check that out, too.
The first option is the "Two Towers" option:
The second option is the "Connected Towers":
Option three is the Elongated single building:
Finally, option four is on top of the parking ramp:
Using SketchUp, Apex attempted to show how the parking ramp concept aligned with the Capitol Point condo tower. It didn't quite work, so Apex sent this rendering to the steering committee two days later. They did not present this on the 21st (so don't think you've gone crazy and missed it at the presentation).


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How You Can Help
PROUDD is a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) organization. We run our business by contribution from people like you! 100% our your contributions go toward our programs and activities. WE have no administartive costs. We also secure grants, work with community businesses and seek contributions so that we can provide our activities and materials at free to bare minimal cost to families.
If you would like to contribute to our work, please send your tax-deductable contribution to PROUDD, 560 Waterbury Dr, Aurora, IL 60504.


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My husband about fell over when I told him that I wanted to start a "personal" blog. I already blog at What the Teacher Wants and I manage my school blog, sorority blog, class blog, and collaborate on Blog Hoppin'.
I guess I like to blog. But, I like other things too! Let me tell you a little about me.
But I don't look like that because I now eat all the veggies, fruits, and proteins in the world!!!!!!
And I do this...
I'm super excited to share my fitness journey with you along with posts about...
*food, food, and more food
*family shenanigans
*crafty mcCrafterson
*fashion (kind of)
Will you join me? Feel free to follow me on my social media outlets (the flags at the top of this blog)! Get ready for an upcoming post about how I get PHYSICAL, PHYSICAL. I WANNA GET PHYSICAL, PHYSICAL!
And if you're looking for a blog designer... LOOK NO FURTHER! My sweet friend Susan's husband, Parker designed this blog and it's EXACTLY how I envisioned it. He's so talented (and very affordable).


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Beyond Retro Brick Lane
It's difficult to walk into this east London institution and not be dazzled by the rainbow rails. With a decade under its belt, it's easy to see what has made the franchise such a success: it caters for the festival teen, the trendy twenty-something and the shrewd, more mature, fashionista. For both men and women, this branch offers one of the widest selection of retro-wear in London, all under one roof. Ready for the summer shopper, the current stock includes Hawaiian shirts galore and its very own range of sleeveless cropped shirts in every shade and style under the sun. A word to the wise though: don't be so overwhelmed by the potent mix of patterns and colours that you pick out any old thing, finding the right item takes time and consideration.
|Venue name:
|Beyond Retro Brick Lane
110-112 Cheshire Street
|Opening hours:
|Open 10am-7pm Mon-Sat (10am-8pm Thur); 11.30am- 6pm Sun
|Tube: Liverpool Street tube/rail
|Do you own this business?
Average User Rating
4.2 / 5
Rating Breakdown
- 5 star:6
- 4 star:6
- 3 star:1
- 2 star:1
- 1 star:0
my one and only goodies tavern, the best unique pieces for a barghain and lovely (quirky-looking) staff around.
The original vintage shop. Still good but becoming a bit overrun with 'replica' clothing.
Bit pricey but if you take the time to rummage through you can find real gems
Good men section (unlike most retro stores). Best one
I love this store, it's got everything you could want from vintage to retro. On my first visit I was in for over an hour and came out with a gorgeous coat, vintage scarf and some amazing boots . Anytime my wardrobe is needing a new injection of style I visit. Some of the things are way out there but its great to see some crazier style even if I'm not going to wear it.
I came to London with my daughter for the day she is an ardent vintage clothing collector and was impressed with the range available. She bought a tapestry rucksack and a cute black top with a white lace collar. i was also tempted and bought a bag and a a red silk blouse. Would recommend a visit .
excellent shop,needs to bring back the mood of the old times ,not only by hanging the beautiful clothes you hold in the shop,but also by creating an atmosphere in the shop of the times you're trying to represent,sorry don't mean to be critical,but I believe you would do a lot better.Best of luck love most of the clothes you have,every time I've had the chance and the money I leave with something.thank you
This store has a huge selection! The clothes are mostly 70s-90s with a few older pieces tucked away. The racks are very full and are organized by type of garment and colour, not size, so it is quite difficult to look through. They have tons of shoes and bags, and the prices are reasonable. Be careful when buying though, as I have seen some condition issues with some of the garments, especially women's sweaters. A good place to browse through if you have some time and have a free hand to really paw through the racks.
OH the boys here are so dreamy! The one in Soho is better. A perfect place to pick up a real rarity or a leather jacket with a horse painted on the back.


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July 2000 - Issue No. #39 (p.15-16)
It was a holiday. Meena and Raju went for a walk in the nearby woods. They were fascinated by the trees, plants, flowers and birds of various colors. While moving around, they saw a nest on a branch of a tree. There were two baby birds in the nest. They wondered where these baby birds had come from, how they had come. Raju asked, "Meena, can you say which of these two baby birds is a girl and which is a boy?" Meena replied, "It doesn't matter which is a girl and which is a boy. You will see, after a few days, both of them will be able to fly."
The story above is taken from Birds Will Fly, a storybook for children developed in Bangladesh by the UNICEF Meena Material Production Team. The story was written in Bangla and has been translated into English; each sentence in the story is accompanied by a colorful illustration of Meena, her brother Raju, the forest and a bird's nest.
Meena is a cartoon character developed by UNICEF for South Asia to empower parents, other family members, teachers and community members to treat boy and girl children alike. The Meena Communication Initiative was developed in an area of the world where girls are routinely married off before puberty, where school enrollment for girls is 50% that of boys, where lower nutrition levels are common among girls compared to boys while morbidity and mortality rates are higher, and where girls who must work are paid less than boys and often do more hazardous work,. In addition to empowering people to treat girls and boys alike, Meena calls attention to the plight of the girl-child and provides alternatives for responding to her myriad problems.
Meena was drawn by Ram Mohan, India's best-known animator. He drew this cartoon character as a composite of typical Asian girl-child features. Her character and her stories were developed through extensive research in both rural and urban areas of
South Asia. She had to be acceptable to children and adults in Bangladesh, India, Nepal and Pakistan, and they had to be able to identify with her character. Ten year old Meena has a younger brother, Raju, and lives with her parents and grandparents in a typical village. Meena also has a pet parrot, Mithu, who accompanies her on her adventures and helps to summarize important points. Stories about her, like the one at left, are set in villages and contain themes regarding gender parity and child rights.
The story at left was developed to help children and adults learn that girls, just like boys, can learn "to fly": that they can be "curious, try new things, accept themselves as they are and be happy about being either a girl or a boy." (last page of storybook).
In another story, Meena wants to learn very badly, but because she is a girl, is not allowed to attend school with her brother Raju. Meena sends her parrot, Mithu, to school with Raju; Mithu learns to count and teaches Meena. One day, a thief steals Meena's chickens and because she can count, she is able to help the community catch the thief. Her father wonders how she is able to count and, while telling him, her story underscores the need for educating girls as well as boys. After this, her father decides to send her to school.
These and other stories address the issues of girls' and boys' work in the home, their access to health care, the drawbacks of the dowry system and early marriage, and the preference for boy babies. Some stories also explore treatment of handicapped children and those afflicted with AIDS. The stories are based on much research, have interesting and clever story lines and have been well received by children and adults.
Research in Bangladesh has shown that urban and rural children are now quite familiar with Meena. They know who she is and know some of her stories. More videos are being developed which intersperse real children at the beginning, middle and end of the cartoons so children will be more likely to identify with Meena and her messages.
Storybooks, facilitators' guides, comic books and videos are available, though not all are in English. To find out what's available in the country where you work, contact the UNICEF Regional Office for South Asia at the address below. Meena also has two web pages and the information there is in English. The materials, especially the stories, are a wonderful classroom resource. In addition to helping students learn English, Meena also conveys important, and at times critical, social messages.
Dividing the Mango: A Meena Story
Meena and her brother Raju decide to exchange household chores for a day to see what each other has to do. The day of the exchange, Raju gets up very early to make a fire to give his father tea and bread before he goes to the field for the day. Then Raju has to make breakfast for the other members of the family, wash the dishes, sweep the floor and straighten the house. Then he takes the clothes to the pond to wash them. About this time, Meena takes the cow to the pasture to graze. Meena spends most of the day watching the cow graze and moving the cow to good grass from time to time.
After Raju finishes washing the clothes, he has to prepare the vegetables and meat and measure out the rice and lentils so their mother can prepare the main meal. This takes most of the afternoon. In the late afternoon, Meena has an incident with the cow when it tries to run away. She gets it back, but has to work hard to do it. At the end of the day, Raju is very tired and states that he didn't realize Meena had so much to do. Meena also appreciates the hard work that sometimes must be done with the cow. They state this before their family and their grandmother says that from now on, Meena should be given as much food as Raju because they are both working hard for the family. (Usually girls are given less food than boys in South Asia.)
Meena's cousin's wife is about to give birth and her uncle is all set to welcome a baby boy. Meena teaches her uncle that girls are not inferior to boys. When the grandchild turns out to be a girl, her uncle has a change of heart about the value of having girls in the family.
There is a financial crisis in the family and Meena's family decides she should leave school to look after her little sister as her mother will have to work outside the home. Meena discusses the situation with her schoolteacher and with her help, Meena's mother obtains credit and buys a cow.
A circus is in town. A twin brother and sister, who are acrobats, are required to do the bidding of their snakecharmer uncle who believes in taking care of the boy when he falls sick but neglects the girl. Meena befriends the family, pointing out that girls and boys have an equal right to health care.
Meena, in a dream, is offered 3 wishes by a genie. Inspired by the dramatic change brought to people's lives by her dream wishes, Meena, with her friends, mobilizes her village to dig their own latrines and maintain simple rules of correct sanitary practices.
Meena's cousin Rita is being teased by a bully and his gang, and because of this she decides to leave school. With support from her mother, Meena and her friends plan together to challenge the bully. The bully learns his lesson at the end of the story and finally becomes a friend.
Meena's cousin is to get married to a man from the town. With the help of Mithu, her parrot, Meena finds out that the would-be groom's father plans to extract even more dowry after the marriage. Meena exposes this and as a result the community decides to unite against the dowry practice.
The story focusses on the issues of early marriage and early motherhood. Meena's young cousin, Tara, is to be married off. Meena's family realizes the importance of the matter and discusses it seriously together. Finally, her young cousin's marriage is postponed till she is 18 years old.
Meena is drawn into the plight of a family that returns to the village and is coping with the social pressure of AIDS. Meena helps to expose some myths about AIDS and shows how a caring community can make a difference.
UNICEF Regional Office for South Asia
You can search the site by using the above tabs or click on the links below.


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Watch Childish Gambino Discusses Working With Kid CudiIn this new interview with DB of "The Backwash", 'Bino discusses his new album "Because The Internet" and his working relationship with Kid Cudi.
Watch Childish Gambino Discusses Working With Kid Cudi, the latest video from Childish Gambino, which dropped on Sunday, November 3rd, 2013. Childish Gambino's horizons are broadening with each new release, and Childish Gambino Discusses Working With Kid Cudi is no exception. It's a worthy addition to a catalogue that has seen much growth since Childish Gambino stepped foot in the rap game. We're looking forward to hearing more.
How do you feel about the production here?
Did y'all catch Childish Gambino's latest visual for Childish Gambino "Tim Westwood Freestyle" Video?
If you're feeling this, make sure to hit up Childish Gambino's profile page for the latest info, news, songs, and mixtapes. Remember to follow Childish Gambino on Facebook and Twitter.


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Tony Parker out with 'variety of maladies'
The Spurs will be without Tony Parker for a while.
Gregg Popovich says Tony Parker out "for the foreseeable future" with a "variety of maladies."
- J.A. Adande (@jadande) February 18, 2014
MORE: All-Star recap | Trade rumors to watch for | PHOTOS: All-star game
The 31-year-old point guard had been listed as day-to-day with a sprained left hand through February and is coming off a back injury. He played in Sunday's All-Star game, though much to the relief of Spurs fans he didn't do much. His stat line: four points (2-for-5), two rebounds, one assist in 11 minutes.
He's averaging 17.7 points and 2.3 rebounds per game. The Spurs are 38-15 and second in the Western Conference.
San Antonio will start its Parker-less string of games Tuesday against the Clippers.


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I'm here in Datil with Betty and John, who have let me rest and wash up here. Betty insisted on the washing-up.
I went to community breakfast at the Eagle Guest Ranch, and then to the public library, and on to the local craft fair. In the process I met Datil twice, and half of Pie Town.
I cleaned the cabin for a few hours the last two days. Betty made me leave the hantavirus outdoors. I've been looking for the welcome mat left out for the Pack Rat (Sammy, Dean, Frank, Peter, and Joey). Now that I'm showered and jammied, I think it's under the only poop I was too tired to clean.
If I left you lost, horrified, and trembling at hantavirus, here's a fact sheet for you:
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SearchSkip to Search Results
Controlled trials in children: quantity, methodological quality and descriptive characteristics of pediatric controlled trials published 1948-2006.Download
Tjosvold, L., Thomson, D., Vandermeer, B., Klassen, T. P., Cohen, E., Hartling, L.
Background The objective of this study was to describe randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and controlled clinical trials (CCTs) in child health published between 1948 and 2006, in terms of quantity, methodological quality, and publication and trial characteristics. We used the Trials Register...
Quantifying bias in randomized controlled trials in child health: a meta-epidemiological study.Download
Hartling, L., Vandermeer, B., Dryden, D. M., Fernandes, R. M., Hamm, M. P.
Objective: To quantify bias related to specific methodological characteristics in child-relevant randomized controlled trials (RCTs). Design: Meta-epidemiological study. Data Sources: We identified systematic reviews containing a meta-analysis with 10–40 RCTs that were relevant to child health in...
Children are not just small adults: the urgent need for high-quality trial evidence in children.Download
Offringa, M., Hartling, L., Craig, J. C., Klassen, T. P.
Children are often touted as being very important members of society because they represent our future. Optimizing their health outcomes has the potential for a huge impact on public health because children are at an early stage in the life trajectory. But it is often unclear how society...
Thomson, D., Chisholm, A., Hartling, L., Dryden, D. M.
Background: Overviews of systematic reviews compile data from multiple systematic reviews (SRs) and are a new method of evidence synthesis. Objectives: To describe the methodological approaches in overviews of interventions. Design: Descriptive study. Methods: We searched 4 databases from 2000 to...


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The BBC has dropped the ball a little after a reporting blunder in which they said the jury in the Harry Redknapp trial had found the Tottenham Hotspur FC gaffer GUILTY of tax evasion.
But the Southwark Crown Court jury had in fact found him NOT GUILTY of both counts after a 13-day trial in which he was accused of evading around £80,000 of tax.
Redknapp left court a free man but not until the corporation had spilled duff details on their News24 channel.
The BBC apologised for the "confusion" as the reporter said: " I am sorry I am going to correct this because we have confusion here and that makes much more sense. They have been cleared of all charges. We have got some wrong information that has come through here." The Telegraph report him as saying.
"A clarification, they have been found not guilty of all charges. I was getting very confused when I was speaking then. It was unlikely that they could be found not guilty of the first charge and guilty of the second charge."
He added: "That is now confirmed, they have been found not guilty of all charges."
Image: BBC but via Telegraph
Story Via: Telegraph


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- Research article
- Open Access
- Open Peer Review
Smoking in preeclamptic women is associated with higher birthweight for gestational age and lower soluble fms-like tyrosine kinase-1 levels: a nested case control study
© Kahn et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. 2011
- Received: 6 October 2011
- Accepted: 10 November 2011
- Published: 10 November 2011
Smoking paradoxically increases the risk of small-for-gestational-age (SGA) birth but protects against preeclampsia. Some studies have reported a "U-shaped" distribution of fetal growth in preeclamptic pregnancies, but reasons for this are unknown. We investigated whether cigarette smoking interacts with preeclampsia to affect fetal growth, and compared levels of soluble fms-like tyrosine kinase-1 (sFlt-1), a circulating anti-angiogenic protein, in preeclamptic smokers and non-smokers.
From a multicenter cohort of 5337 pregnant women, we prospectively identified 113 women who developed preeclampsia (cases) and 443 controls. Smoking exposure was assessed by self-report and maternal hair nicotine levels. Fetal growth was assessed as z-score of birthweight for gestational age (BWGA). sFlt-1 was measured in plasma samples collected at the 24-26-week visit.
In linear regression, smoking and preeclampsia were each associated with lower BWGA z-scores (β = -0.29; p = 0.008, and β = -0.67; p < 0.0001), but positive interaction was observed between smoking and preeclampsia (β = +0.86; p = 0.0008) such that smoking decreased z-score by -0.29 in controls but increased it by +0.57 in preeclampsia cases. Results were robust to substituting log hair nicotine for self-reported smoking and after adjustment for confounding variables. Mean sFlt-1 levels were lower in cases with hair nicotine levels above vs. below the median (660.4 pg/ml vs. 903.5 pg/ml; p = 0.0054).
Maternal smoking seems to protect against preeclampsia-associated fetal growth restriction and may account, at least partly, for the U-shaped pattern of fetal growth described in preeclamptic pregnancies. Smoking may exert this effect by reducing levels of the anti-angiogenic protein sFlt-1.
- Nicotine
- Preeclampsia
- Fetal Growth
- Fetal Growth Restriction
- Placental Weight
Preeclampsia, a hypertensive disorder that occurs in 2-7% of pregnancies, is an important cause of fetal and maternal morbidity and mortality [1]. Paradoxically, while maternal cigarette smoking increases the risk of a number of pregnancy complications, including miscarriage, preterm birth and small-for-gestational-age (SGA) birth, smoking has consistently been shown to be associated with a ~30% reduction in the risk of preeclampsia [2, 3]. The mechanism for this protective effect is unclear, but may involve direct effects of smoking byproducts nicotine or carbon monoxide in inhibiting placental cytokine production, placental vascular constriction or oxidative stress [4, 5], factors that have been implicated in the pathophysiology of preeclampsia [6]. Furthermore, it was recently reported that both in normal and preeclamptic pregnancies, smoking is associated with lower maternal plasma concentrations of soluble fms-like tyrosine kinase-1 (sFlt-1) [7], a circulating anti-angiogenic protein that induces endothelial dysfunction and is found in higher concentrations in pregnant women who subsequently develop preeclampsia [8].
In preeclamptic pregnancies, fetal growth has been described as having a "U-shaped" distribution, with an increased risk of both low birthweight and high birthweight babies [9]. In a case-control study nested within a large multicenter cohort of pregnant women whose primary aim was to evaluate the link between thrombophilia and preeclampsia, we performed secondary, hypothesis-generating analyses to assess whether maternal cigarette smoking, measured by self-report and by hair nicotine levels, modifies the association between preeclampsia and fetal growth. In addition, we examined the relationship between plasma sFlt-1 levels, smoking and preeclampsia.
The Montreal Preeclampsia Study [10] is a case-control study nested within a prospectively recruited cohort of 5337 pregnant women who were participants in the Montreal Prematurity Study, a large multicenter study on causal pathways of preterm birth [11]. At the time of providing informed consent for the preterm birth study, the preeclampsia study was explained and women were asked to provide signed informed consent on a separate consent form. Before both studies were started, they received approval by the research ethics committees of the four participating hospital centers (Hôpital St. Luc; Hôpital Maisonneuve Rosemont; Royal Victoria Hospital and Jewish General Hospital [approved jointly by McGill University Faculty of Medicine institutional review board]) Our research conformed to the Helsinki Declaration (http://www.wma.net/en/30publications/10policies/b3/17c.pdf) and to local legislation.
Recruitment of cohort and follow-up to time of delivery
Patients and study setting
Trained research assistants approached consecutive pregnant women at the time they presented for routine ultrasound examination (most subjects), prenatal blood drawing, or first- or second-trimester obstetric clinic visits at four large maternity hospitals affiliated with McGill University or l'Université de Montréal in Montréal, Canada. Women aged ≥18 years at the expected date of delivery who spoke and understood French or English and had a singleton fetus were eligible for enrolment in the study. Women with severe chronic illness (other than hypertension, asthma or diabetes) requiring ongoing treatment, placenta previa, history of incompetent cervix diagnosed in a previous pregnancy, impending delivery, or a fetus affected by a major anomaly were excluded. Among these excluded women, reasons for exclusion and data on maternal education were recorded whenever possible.
Study visit at 24-26 weeks
Women who consented to participate were asked to return for a study visit at 24-26 weeks of gestation to obtain data on sociodemographic characteristics, medical, obstetric and family history, and cigarette smoking. Subjects were asked if they had ever smoked, if they had smoked (defined as one or more cigarettes per day) during the pregnancy, and if so, the average number of cigarettes smoked per day.
After the interview, non-fasting blood samples were obtained by venipuncture and immediately placed on ice. Samples were centrifuged, and plasma was aliquoted into cryovials that were frozen at -80°C.
Identification of cases of preeclampsia and selection of control subjects
Classification of preeclampsia among cases (N = 113)
Canadian Hypertension Society classification a
Gestational hypertension with proteinuria without adverse conditions
12 (11%)
3 (8%)
0 (0%)
Gestational hypertension with proteinuria with adverse conditions
49 (43%)
16 (46%)
19 (59%)
Gestational hypertension without proteinuria with adverse conditions
49 (43%)
14 (40%)
10 (31%)
Chronic hypertension with superimposed preeclampsia
3 (3%)
2 (6%)
3 (10%)
113 (100%)
35 (100%)
32 (100%)
Primarily for recruiting convenience, controls (n = 443) were study women who delivered at the same hospital closest in calendar time to a case, but did not have preeclampsia. As controls partially overlapped with those of the concurrently running preterm birth study [11], 3-4 eligible controls were available per case of preeclampsia. Study women who had onset of hypertension during pregnancy but did not meet criteria for preeclampsia were ineligible to be cases or controls and were excluded from all analyses.
Postpartum procedures for cases with preeclampsia and control subjects
After delivery, study staff collected data from the mother's and infant's hospital chart and by interview on infant birthweight, sex, placental weight, gestational age and pregnancy course since the 24-26 week study visit.
Infant birthweight and placental weight were recorded as the weights obtained in the delivery room. Gestational age was determined using both the subject's last menstrual period (LMP) as well an ultrasound estimate usually obtained at 16-20 weeks gestation. If the gestational age estimates using the two methods differed by more than 7 days, the ultrasound estimate was used; otherwise, the LMP estimate was chosen. During the postpartum interview, subjects were asked if they had smoked cigarettes (defined as one or more cigarettes per day) since the prenatal interview, and if so, the average number of cigarettes smoked per day.
Laboratory analyses
After delivery, cases and controls had a small amount of maternal hair cut from the posterior scalp, sealed in a labeled envelope and sent in batches to Dr. Koren's laboratory in Toronto to test for nicotine concentrations, using previously described techniques [13]. Results are expressed in nanograms of nicotine per milligram of hair.
Plasma samples of cases and controls were retrieved and thawed. sFlt-1 concentration was measured in Dr. Genest's laboratory using commercial ELISA kits from R&D systems (Minneapolis, MN). Results are expressed in pg/ml. The sFlt assay is specific for human sFlt-1, with sensitivity of 5 pg/ml. As reported by the manufacturer, intra-assay and inter-assay coefficients of variation are 3.2% and 5.5%, respectively.
All laboratory analyses were performed blindly without identifying the source of each specimen as a case or a control.
Statistical analysis
Data on demographic and medical characteristics, self-reported cigarette smoking, pregnancy outcome, and hair nicotine and plasma sflt-1 concentrations were compared in cases and controls using t-tests for continuous variables and chi-square tests for categorical variables. Hair nicotine and plasma sFlt-1 were examined both as continuous and quantile (divided at the median and by quartiles, respectively) variables. A P value of < 0.05 was considered statistically significant.
Fetal growth was assessed on a continuous scale as the z-score of birthweight for gestational age (BWGA), using the following formula: z = (observed birthweight - mean birthweight)/SD, where mean and SD were based on published Canadian population-based standards, stratified by infant sex and gestational age in completed weeks [14]. SGA and LGA births were defined as having birthweight below the 10th percentile and above the 90th percentile, respectively, using the same Canadian population-based standards used to obtain the BWGA z-scores.
Multiple linear regression was used to test associations between measures of maternal tobacco smoke exposure, preeclampsia, and z-score of BWGA. Models were constructed in which the dependent variable was fetal growth represented by z-score of BWGA, and the independent variables were preeclampsia, maternal tobacco smoke exposure (self-reported smoking status, or log-transformed hair nicotine concentration), and an interaction term for preeclampsia and smoking exposure. As the distribution of hair nicotine was right skewed, this variable was log-transformed (natural log) to normalize the distribution. In order to retain 0 values, we added a constant (0.1) that best normalized the distribution after log-transformation.
Because birthweight and fetal growth are known to be influenced by placental weight, we also constructed models adjusted for placental weight, represented by the z-score of placental weight for gestational age (PWGA) using the following method, described by McNamara [15, 16]: z = (observed placental weight at a given gestational age - mean placental weight for that gestational age)/SD, where mean and SD were based on singleton deliveries (excluding infants with congenital anomalies) between 1978 and 2001 in the McGill Obstetrical and Neonatal Database [17], stratified by ultrasound-confirmed gestational age.
Finally, the above models were further adjusted for age, pre-pregnancy BMI, maternal language other than French or English, diabetes preceding or during pregnancy, chronic hypertension and parity (nullipara vs. other).
All analyses were performed using SAS version 9.1 (SAS Institute, Cary, NC).
Comparison of preeclampsia cases, non-cases and controls: demographic, medical and obstetric characteristics ascertained at 24-26 week study visit
(n = 113)
(n = 5107)
(n = 443)
Age category
< 20 years
20-34 years
> 34 years
Hospital recruited
Hôpital St. Luc
Hôpital Maisonneuve Rosemont
Royal Victoria Hospital
Jewish General Hospital
Body Mass Index before pregnancy, kg/m2
< 18.5
18.5 to < 25
25 to < 30
≥ 30
Use of prenatal vitamins
Diabetes before pregnancy or prior to 24 weeks gestation
High blood pressure before pregnancy
Previous preeclampsia or eclampsia (among women with prior pregnancy lasting > 20 wks)
Smoke currently
Gestational age and fetal growth among preeclampsia cases and controls
P value
Gestational age at delivery, weeks; mean (SD)*
36.8 (3.5)
39.2 (1.4)
< 0.0001
Gestational age at delivery, weeks*
< 32 weeks
8 (7%)
1 (0%)
< 0.0001
32-33 weeks
6 (5%)
0 (0%)
34-36 weeks
23 (21%)
18 (4%)
≥ 37 weeks
76 (67%)
415 (96%)
Birthweight, grams; mean (SD)#
2834.4 (848.4)
3485.3 (500.2)
< 0.0001
Z-score birthweight for gestational age^; mean (SD)
-0.31 (1.0)
0.15 (0.9)
< 0.0001
Small for gestational age^
22 (21.6%)
32 (7.3%)
< 0.0001
Large for gestational age^
6 (5.9%)
50 (11.3%)
Z-score placental weight for gestational age+;
mean (SD)
0.15 (0.98)
Maternal smoking and preeclampsia
Self-reported cigarette smoking and hair nicotine levels in preeclampsia cases and controls
Smoked throughout pregnancy
10 (8.9%)
69 (15.6%)
Smoked steadily (within the same category of number of cigarettes) throughout pregnancy
4 (3.4%)
41 (9.3%)
Average number of cigarettes/day, mean (SD)*
1.20 (3.6)
1.91 (4.7)
Category of average number of cigarettes smoked per day
90 (80.4%)
340 (77.3%)
16 (14.3%)
67 (15.2%)
> 10
6 (5.4%)
33 (7.5%)
Hair nicotine (ng/mg), mean (SD)#
1.29 (2.9)
1.94 (5.4)
Effect of smoking on fetal growth in controls
Among controls, mean (SD) BWGA z-score was lower in self-reported smokers than in non-smokers (-0.26 (0.89) vs. 0.22 (0.96); p = 0.0002) and was lower in women with hair nicotine levels above vs. below the median (0.01 (0.99) vs. 0.30 (0.95); p = 0.004). Similarly, the risk of SGA birth was significantly increased in self-reported smokers vs. non-smokers (OR 2.28 [95% CI 1.01, 5.56]) and in women with hair nicotine levels above vs. below the median (OR 5.36 [1.99, 14.40]).
Association between smoking, preeclampsia and fetal growth
Linear regression analyses: Relationship between maternal exposure to smoking, preeclampsia and fetal growth
Unadjusted β
Adjusted β#
Model 1a
z-score BWGA = smoker + preeclampsia + interaction term
(-0.61, -0.15)
< 0.0001
(-0.93, -0.41)
< 0.0001
Smoker* preeclampsia
(0.36, 1.36)
(0.33, 1.39)
Model 1b
z-score BWGA = smoker + preeclampsia + interaction term + z-score PWGA
(-0.50, -0.09)
(-0.54, -0.09)
(-0.86, -0.35)
< 0.0001
(-0.87, -0.33)
< 0.0001
Smoker* preeclampsia
(0.25, 1.23)
(0.16, 1.22)
z-score PWGA
(0.48, 0.65)
< 0.0001
(0.43, 0.61)
< 0.0001
Model 2a
z-score BWGA = log hair nicotine + preeclampsia + interaction term
Log nicotine
(-0.16, -0.05)
(-0.16, -0.01)
(-0.55, -0.07)
(-0.63, -0.09)
Log hair nicotine * preeclampsia
(0.11, 0.46)
(0.07, 0.46)
Model 2b
z-score BWGA = log hair nicotine + preeclampsia + interaction term + z-score PWGA
Log nicotine
(-0.16, -0.03)
(-0.13, 0.01)
(-0.54, -0.08)
(-0.60, -0.07)
Log hair nicotine * preeclampsia
(0.07, 0.42)
(0.06, 0.44)
z-score PWGA
(0.48, 0.64)
< 0.0001
(0.42, 0.62)
< 0.0001
Similar results were obtained when log hair nicotine was substituted for self-reported smoking in the models (Models 2a and 2b) (Table 5). For example, in Model 2a, an increase in log hair nicotine by 1 unit decreased the BWGA z-score by -0.12 in controls, but increased the BWGA z-score by +0.16 in preeclampsia cases (i.e. βnic (log nicotine) + βinteraction (log nicotine*preeclampsia) = -0.12*1 + 0.28 (1*0) = -0.12 for controls, and -0.12*1 + 0.28 (1*1) = 0.16 for preeclampsia cases).
Due to the small numbers of smokers in subgroups of cases with early onset preeclampsia and severe preeclampsia, we were unable to examine the association between smoking, subtypes of preeclampsia and fetal growth.
Levels of sFlt-1 in association with preeclampsia and smoking
Mean (SD) plasma sFlt-1 was 761.5 (445.6) pg/ml in preeclampsia cases and 703.83 (358.8) pg/ml in controls (p = 0.21), and cases were more likely to have sFlt-1 concentrations in the top quartile of values than controls (33.9% vs. 21.9%, p = 0.016). Among preeclampsia cases, women with hair nicotine levels above the median had significantly lower mean (SD) sFlt-1 levels than women with hair nicotine levels below the median (660.4 (377.2) pg/ml vs. 903.5 (466.4) pg/ml, respectively; p = 0.0054) and tended to be less likely to have sFlt-1 concentrations in the top quartile of control values (29.4% vs. 44.7%, p = 0.16). Among controls, sFlt-1 levels did not vary by hair nicotine level.
We found that cigarette smoking was associated with reduced fetal growth restriction in preeclamptic women. This finding remained robust after adjustment for potentially confounding covariates. We further found that preeclamptic women who had higher levels of exposure to smoking, indicated by higher hair nicotine levels, had significantly lower plasma concentrations of the circulating anti-angiogenic protein sFlt-1 at 24-26 weeks gestation than preeclamptic women with lower levels of smoking exposure.
We also confirmed previous reports that smokers are less likely to develop preeclampsia than non-smokers and have lower birthweight for gestational age babies; that high BMI, diabetes, hypertension, primigravidity, previous preeclampsia and family history of preeclampsia increase the risk of preeclampsia; and that fetal outcomes are worse in preeclamptic vs. non-preeclamptic women.
Our study has a number of strengths. Cohort women were recruited prospectively and consecutively at four large maternity hospitals in Montreal that serve a wide socioeconomic and demographic spectrum and are likely to be broadly representative of the general obstetric population. While the incidence of preeclampsia in our cohort (2.2%) was at the lower end of that previously reported in healthy pregnant women [18], this likely reflects our use of strict, high-specificity criteria to diagnose preeclampsia. We are confident that we did not miss cases of preeclampsia as trained research assistants reviewed the delivery of each cohort woman to ascertain, using a detailed checklist, if criteria for preeclampsia were met. Our success in obtaining "true" cases of preeclampsia is shown by the differences in frequency of recognized preeclampsia risk factors and indicators of poorer pregnancy outcomes in cases and controls. Results were similar whether we assessed smoking exposure by self-report or using hair nicotine level, hence misclassification of smoking exposure is unlikely [19]. We used hair nicotine rather than hair cotinine as a measure of maternal tobacco smoke exposure because previous work by our group found that hair nicotine was a better predictor of reduced infant birthweight in control women, and hence a better measure of maternal smoke exposure [20]. The proportion of women who reported smoking during pregnancy was similar to that of other large cohorts of pregnant women [21, 22]. We assessed fetal growth on a continuous scale adjusted for sex and gestational age, using Canadian population-based standards [14].
As the sample size of our study was predetermined by the requirements of the Montreal Prematurity Study, precision was limited for estimates of association between smoking and preeclampsia. Furthermore, we could not perform analyses by preeclampsia subtype, which would have been of interest as severe, early-onset preeclampsia may be a different disease entity from milder forms of preeclampsia [1]. We did not have information on race/ethnicity of study women, hence could not examine potential effects on BWGA z-score, preeclampsia incidence or hair nicotine levels. Finally, we acknowledge that associations should be considered hypothesis-generating and do not prove causality.
Smoking has consistently been shown to reduce the risk of preeclampsia by ~30% [2, 3]. The biological mechanism of this protective effect is uncertain, but may relate to inhibitory effects of smoking by-products such as nicotine and carbon monoxide on endothelial dysfunction and excessive maternal inflammatory response [6]. Nicotine acts on human placenta to release placental acetylcholine, which stimulates release of endothelium-derived relaxing factor and nitric oxide [23], and in vitro studies show that nicotine selectively inhibits thromboxane A2 synthesis [24]. Both effects would be expected to reduce endothelial dysfunction and preserve placental blood flow. Nicotine also has anti-inflammatory activity and inhibits placental cytokine production [4]. Carbon monoxide has direct placental effects that could reduce the risk of preeclampsia, including promotion of trophoblast invasion, reduced decidual inflammatory response, increased uteroplacental blood flow, decreased hypoxia-induced apoptosis and upregulation of placental antioxidant systems [5, 25]. Finally, findings of a recent Swedish birth register study suggest that tobacco combustion products rather than nicotine may be protective of preeclampsia, and it may be the smoking habits in middle or late gestation (rather than beginning of pregnancy) that influence the risk of developing preeclampsia [26].
Our finding that smoking attenuated the relationship between preeclampsia and fetal growth restriction is intriguing, as some studies have reported a U-shaped pattern of fetal growth in populations of women with preeclampsia. In a population-based, retrospective Canadian study, Xiong reported that women with preeclampsia had a 2.6-fold higher risk of SGA birth than normotensive women, but also had a 1.8-fold higher risk of LGA birth [9]. While analyses controlled for self-reported smoking, potential interaction between smoking and preeclampsia on fetal growth was not examined. Similar results were reported in a population of Chinese women, for which information on maternal smoking was not available [27]. Based on our finding that preeclamptic women who smoked had infants with higher BWGA compared to preeclamptic women who were non-smokers, we suggest that smoking may account, at least in part, for the U-shaped pattern of fetal growth in preeclampsia.
In our study, plasma sFlt-1 levels were significantly lower in preeclamptic women with higher hair nicotine levels. This suggests that smoking may attenuate fetal growth restriction by reducing production of the anti-angiogenic protein sFlt-1. sFlt-1 is secreted by the placenta into the maternal circulation and adheres to the receptor-binding domains of placental growth factor and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), preventing interaction with endothelial receptors, blocking VEGF-mediated vasodilation and inducing endothelial dysfunction [8], considered to be key to the pathogenesis of preeclampsia [6]. Levels of sFlt-1 are elevated in preeclamptic women, and beginning at 21-24 weeks gestation, in pregnant women who subsequently develop preeclampsia [7, 8]. Smoking increases placental expression of VEGF [28], and plasma sFlt-1 levels have been found to be decreased in smokers [29]. Furthermore, carbon monoxide has inhibits sFlt-1 production in mice [30]. This effect of smoking on increasing pro-angiogenic factors and reducing anti-angiogenic factors may explain why preeclampsia occurs less frequently in smokers, and could also explain our finding that among preeclamptic women, smoking limits fetal growth restriction. A recent study of 58 preeclamptic women also reported a tendency to lower sFlt-1 levels in smokers vs. non-smokers [7].
Finally, our finding of a protective effect of smoking on preeclampsia-associated fetal growth restriction corroborates that of a recent linked record study of > 650,000 pregnancies, in which self-reported smokers who developed preeclampsia had a lower adjusted mean difference in birthweight compared to controls than would have been expected based on the independent additive effects of smoking and preeclampsia, and lower than expected rates of preterm delivery [31]. Furthermore, a secondary analysis of the Calcium for Preeclampsia Prevention trial reported that among 274 nulliparous women with preeclampsia, smoking did not act to further reduce infant birthweight, compared with non-smoking women [32].
In conclusion, fetal growth restriction in preeclamptic pregnancies seems to be attenuated by maternal smoking. Smoking may account, at least in part, for the U-shaped pattern of fetal growth described in women with preeclampsia, and may exert this effect by reducing levels of the anti-angiogenic protein sFlt-1. Further exploration of the reasons why smoking may protect against preeclampsia-associated fetal growth restriction could increase understanding of the pathophysiology of preeclampsia.
This study was supported by grants from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (MOP36424) and the March of Dimes Birth Defects Foundation (PERI grant #20-FY04-38).
Dr. Kahn is a national investigator (chercheur national) of the Fonds de la recherche en santé du Québec (FRSQ). Dr. Platt is a career investigator (chercheur-boursier) of the Fonds de la recherche en santé du Québec. Drs McNamara, Kramer, and Platt, and Mr. Dahhou, are members of the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre, which receives core funding from the FRSQ.
Authors' Affiliations
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- Roberts JM, Cooper DW: Pathogenesis and genetics of pre-eclampsia. Lancet. 2001, 357: 53-56. 10.1016/S0140-6736(00)03577-7.View ArticlePubMedGoogle Scholar
- Jeyabalan A, Powers RW, Durica AR, Harger GF, Roberts JM, Ness RB: Cigarette Smoke Exposure and Angiogenic Factors in Pregnancy and Preeclampsia. Am J Hypertens. 2008, 21: 943-947. 10.1038/ajh.2008.219.View ArticlePubMedPubMed CentralGoogle Scholar
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- Kahn SR, Platt R, McNamara H, Rozen R, Chen MF, Genest J, et al: Inherited thrombophilia and preeclampsia within a multicenter cohort: the Montreal Preeclampsia Study. American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology. 2009, 200: 151.e1-151.e9. 10.1016/j.ajog.2008.09.023.View ArticleGoogle Scholar
- Kramer MS, Goulet L, Lydon J, Seguin L, McNamara H, Dassa C, et al: Socio-economic disparities in preterm birth: causal pathways and mechanisms. Paediatr Perinat Epidemiol. 2001, 15 (Suppl 2): 104-123.View ArticlePubMedGoogle Scholar
- Helewa ME, Burrows RF, Smith J, (Eds), et al: Report of the Canadian Hypertension Society Consensus conference: 1. Definition, evaluation and classification of hypertensive disorders in pregnancy. Can Med Assoc J. 1997, 157: 715-725.Google Scholar
- Eliopoulos C, Klein J, Phan MK, Knie B, Greenwald M, Chitayat D, et al: Hair concentrations of nicotine and cotinine in women and their newborn infants. JAMA. 1994, 271: 621-623. 10.1001/jama.271.8.621.View ArticlePubMedGoogle Scholar
- Kramer MS, Platt RW, Wen SW, Joseph KS, Allen A, Abrahamowicz M, et al: A new and improved population-based Canadian reference for birth weight for gestational age. Pediatrics. 2001, 108: E35-10.1542/peds.108.2.e35.View ArticlePubMedGoogle Scholar
- McNamara HM, Platt RW, Benjamin A, Kramer MS: Fetal Growth Restriction And Adverse Perinatal Outcomes: What About The Placenta?. BJOG. 2008, 115: 56-Google Scholar
- McNamara HM, Platt RW, Benjamin A, Kramer MS: Determinants Of Placental Weight Standardized For Gestational Age & Infant Gender. BJOG. 2008, 115: 58-Google Scholar
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- Almeida ND, Koren G, Platt RW, Kramer MS: Hair Biomarkers as Measures of Maternal Tobacco Smoke Exposure and Predictors of Fetal Growth. Nicotine & Tobacco Research. 2011, 13: 328-335. 10.1093/ntr/ntq259.View ArticleGoogle Scholar
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- Zhou Y, McMaster M, Woo K, Janatpour M, Perry J, Karpanen T, et al: Vascular endothelial growth factor ligands and receptors that regulate human cytotrophoblast survival are dysregulated in severe preeclampsia and hemolysis, elevated liver enzymes, and low platelets syndrome. Am J Pathol. 2002, 160: 1405-1423. 10.1016/S0002-9440(10)62567-9.View ArticlePubMedPubMed CentralGoogle Scholar
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- The pre-publication history for this paper can be accessed here:http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2393/11/91/prepub
Pre-publication history
This article is published under license to BioMed Central Ltd. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.


text:
Tags : videos
Sun Microsystems-Grupo Dinarte
[March 24, 2010] Managing information is an important part of Grupo Dinartes services, and they work with data in a variety of formats, including databases, text files, documents, images, and videos. In order to enhance customer service and improve their data storage systems, Grupo Dinarte wanted to upgrade its storage infrastructure. They also needed a solution that would work with Apple Mac devices and a network of PCs. Read More...
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Tuesday, October 16, 2007
Rocks and Walks
Oct 16 07
Rocking and walking through the fall in SNP. The incredible temperatures are trying to make up for a lack of color, and doing a pretty good job! Looks we'll wait a bit longer for the leaves to peak this year but, "the times they are a changing."
Posted by Shenandoah Mountain Guides at 11:20 PM No comments:
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RED WING Software launches a new ag-specific financial software called CenterPoint. The new software goes beyond basic accounting to provide growers with information they can use to assess profitability and efficiency. Growers may structure and segment entire operations, profit centers, accounts and inventories to receive relevant and versatile reports. "Producers can learn more about their cost of production than ever before," reports Ken Hilton, Red Wing president. "It empowers them to make smart business decisions and tighten up loose ends within their profit centers."
CenterPoint is a double-entry accounting package with intuitive screens and a menu structure that follows standard Microsoft formats. It includes general ledger, accounts receivable, accounts payable, asset and liability tracking and inventory management functions.
Price: $1,295. Contact Red Wing Software, Dept. FIN, 491 Hwy. 19, Red Wing, MN 55066, 800/732-9464, visit www.redwingsoftware.com or www.freeproductinfo.net/fin, or circle 194.


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Why do so many people drive the Chevrolet Spark in Broussard? The Spark is a good value, reliable subcompact car. It includes a fuel-efficient 4-cylinder engine and an estimated 39 MPG highway. There's enough room for four adults and there are 10 airbags, with optional Lane Departure Alert and Forward Collision Warning. Available built-in Wi-Fi with 4G LTE, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are standard features. It is easy to park, well-designed and will transport you around the city in the worst of traffic. Search our inventory of new Chevy Sparks in Broussard to find the color and trim that you want. For additional specs, give us a call at 337-446-2269 about buying or leasing a Spark.


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Knicks resume homestand against Memphis
(Sports Network) – The New York Knicks will resume their six-game homestand
tonight when they host the Memphis Grizzlies at Madison Square Garden.
New York, which has lost two in a row and four of five, suffered a 103-100
setback to the Toronto Raptors in the opener of the homestand on Saturday.
Eddy Curry had 27 points and 12 rebounds, while Quentin Richardson had 16
points and 16 rebounds for New York, which has lost four straight and seven of
eight at home this season.
Stephon Marbury added 15 points and Jamal Crawford and Renaldo Balkman each
had 10 points for the Knicks, who will also welcome Washington, Milwaukee,
Boston and Atlanta to historic MSG.
The Grizzlies, meanwhile, have lost two straight and three of four, including
Saturday's 98-97 loss to the Miami Heat at FedEx Forum.
Mike Miller posted 22 points and eight rebounds for the Grizzlies, who will
hit the road for three games at New York, Boston and Milwaukee and are 1-8 as
the guest this season. Chucky Atkins scored 18 points and Hakim Warrick added
17 in a losing cause.
Memphis went 2-0 against the Knicks last season, but lost its 2006-07 season
opener against New York by a 118-117 score in triple overtime on November 1.
The Grizzlies have won five of eight and seven of the last 12 meetings.
Memphis has lost six of its 10 trips to Madison Square Garden.


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BLACK NikeLab Free Train Force Flyknit x Riccardo Tisci Men's Nike Shoe
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As part of exciting growth plans, our client, one of the World's largest Oilfield Service companies is looking to hire a number of highly motivated individuals to join their rapidly expanding team.
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Ajax claim Napoli keen on Milik to replace Higuain
Ajax's Arkadiusz Milik could be on his way to Napoli as the Serie A side look to replace Gonzalo Higuain.
Napoli appear to have turned their attention to Ajax attacker Arkadiusz Milik after losing Gonzalo Higuain to Juventus.
Argentina international Higuain signed a five-year deal with the Serie A champions on Tuesday to end his time at Stadio San Paolo and Napoli are determined to bring in a new forward as quickly as possible.
They were previously linked with Inter striker Mauro Icardi and AC Milan ace Carlos Bacca, but Poland international Milik now appears to be in pole position to replace Higuain.
"It is correct that Napoli are keen to discuss a transfer," Ajax sporting director Marc Overmars told Voetbal International following reports the Serie A outfit are ready to pay €35m for the 22-year-old.
"But there is no agreement yet."
65 - Arkadiusz Milik has been involved in 65 goals in 76 games for Ajax in all competitions (47 goals, 18 assists). Impact.
— OptaJohan (@OptaJohan) July 26, 2016
Ajax recently announced Milik will not be allowed to leave, but they seem to have changed their stance following Napoli's interest.
The Poland international netted 21 goals in 31 Eredivisie appearances in 2015-16 as Ajax finished second in the table.
Milik was also part of the Poland squad that made it to the quarter-finals at Euro 2016, scoring once in five games.
His contract with the Amsterdam ArenA side runs until June 2019.


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The "goddess" Athena
Athena was a "goddess": with testicles.
Athena was a Caucasian who lived in Crete 5,000 years ago.
"The Parthenon" in Tennessee is a jew racist FRAUD.
Modern Greeks are descendants of the Arabs who left no stone unturned when they raped and pillaged ancient Greeks.
Click Athena to view the Athena Forum, click the jew to see the difference:
What the following story from racist jew Goetz-controlled Microsoft (who also "thinks" Hannibal was a nigger) "forgot" to include in the following article was a PICTURE of the "life size" statue of the "goddess" Athena which was just discovered in a 5,000 year old city in Crete. Had they done so, they would have discovered that this "goddess" has testicles (something jew Goetz clearly doesn't).
This "goddess" also has very masculine hands, face, and arms which don't look at all like a "goddess"--suggesting that the jew-controlled media is misrepresenting at LEAST this part of Greek "mythology", just as they're misrepresenting the racial appearance of people from the "middle East". THIS "GODDESS" IS A CAUCASIAN.
The "statue" of the "goddess" Athena in the Parthenon in Tennessee, besides being in poor taste, besides making the REAL statue of Athena look like it was designed by God by comparison, besides being a woman rather than a man--is another great example of how low "America" has sunk.
This is how Plato and Athena would look at jew Goetz if they ever witnessed this racist jew's vile form of revisionism.
Updated: 3:16 p.m. ET Sept. 30, 2005
ATHENS, Greece - The life-sized marble statues of two ancient Greek goddesses have emerged during excavations of a 5,000-year-old town on the island of Crete, archaeologists said Friday.
The works, representing the goddesses Athena and Hera, date to between the second and fourth centuries during the period of Roman rule in Greece and originally decorated the Roman theater in the town of Gortyn, archaeologist Anna Micheli from the Italian School of Archaeology told The Associated Press.
They are in very good condition, she said, adding that the statue of Athena, goddess of wisdom, was complete, while Hera long-suffering wife of Zeus, the philandering king of gods was headless.
But we hope to find the head in the surrounding area, Micheli said.
Standing six feet high with their bases, the works were discovered Tuesday by a team of Italian and Greek archaeologists excavating the ruined theater of Gortyn, about 27 miles south of Iraklion in central Crete.
Micheli said the goddesses were toppled from their plinths by a powerful earthquake around A.D. 367 that destroyed the theater and much of the town.
The statues fell off the stage, and were found just in front of their original position, she said.
This is one of the rare cases when such works are discovered in the building where they initially stood, she added.
Hopes are high that other parts of the theaters sculptural decoration will emerge during future excavations.
Digging has stopped due to the finds, but we suspect there may be more statues in the area, she said.
Gortyn, the Roman capital of Crete, was first inhabited around 3000 B.C., and was a flourishing Minoan town between 1600-1100 B.C. It prospered during classical and Roman times, and was destroyed by an Arab invasion in A.D. 824.
Greek mythology has it that the town witnessed one of Zeus many affairs with the princess Europa whom the god, disguised as a bull, abducted from Lebanon. Europe was named after Europa, who conceived her first son with Zeus under a plane tree in Gortyn.
The Italian School of Archaeology has been digging at the site since the early 20th century, in cooperation with Greek state archaeologists. So far, excavations have revealed fortifications, temples, baths, a stadium and an early church of St. Titus, who preached Christianity in Gortyn.


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National Precision Bearing offers stainless steel for applications that require corrosion resistance.We have world class manufacuring facilities using latest technology, machines and equipments.
- √ Managerial concept: science and technology, quality and service and win-win results
- √ Core concepts: trust, market, learning and talents
- √ Targets: always to be the fresh air of the industry
- √ Mission of the employees: development, creativeness and honest corporation comes first
- √ Spirits of employees: creativeness, honesty and persistence
- √ Targets of employees: intelligence and win-win results
- √ Working style: seriousness, happiness and changeability
If you want to know more about our products or have after-sales problems, you are welcome to contact us.Our working hours are from 9:00 to 5:30 in China every Monday through Friday.Contact us