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Set2Survive Survival Blog
Learn everything about how to survive in the wild nature.
Our annual storage fee is due every year on the birth date of the child and covers the cost of storage until the following birthday. The fee is the same $150 for both our standard and our premium cord blood services. The annual cord tissue storage fee is an additional $150.
Insurance assisted payments: Some cord blood companies work with insurance companies that can help parents pay for cord blood processing and storage, particularly if one child in the family has an illness and might be able to benefit from cord blood use.
AlphaCord has a 100% success rate of viable specimens upon thaw. It has been in business for over a decade and is FDA-approved. The company aims to provide a low-cost means of collecting and processing cord blood for customers.
Childbirth educators may be one of the first resources that an expectant family turns to in order to gain more knowledge to make an informed decision about collecting umbilical cord blood in the birthing process. Therefore, the childbirth educator should be well versed on the topic, so that as questions from class participants arise, the multiple facets of umbilical cord blood banking can be explored.
Umbilical cord blood can save lives. Cord blood is rich in stem cells that can morph into all sorts of blood cells, which can be used to treat diseases that harm the blood and immune system, such as leukemia and certain cancers, sickle-cell anemia, and some metabolic disorders. There are a few ways for transplant patients to get blood cells (umbilical and placenta, bone marrow, peripheral/circulation), but cord blood is easier to match with patients, and because it is gathered during birth from the umbilical cord, it's a painless procedure.
There are several advantages of using umbilical cord blood stem cells over bone marrow stem cells for transplants (see Table 2). The first advantage is that umbilical cord blood is relatively easy to collect and process. Once considered a substance to be thrown away after a birth, now the cord blood can be easily saved. After it is saved and sent to a storage facility, the cord blood is quickly available for use within days to weeks after processing. In contrast, bone marrow stem cells can take much longer to find a match, collect the sample, and process. The process for bone marrow transplantation can take from weeks to months. The collection process for cord blood is not painful to either mother or child and can be done either prior to or after the delivery of the placenta (Gonzalez-Ryan, VanSyckle, Coyne, & Glover, 2000; Percer, 2009). Bone marrow transplants, on the other hand, require the donor to be hospitalized, anesthetized, and experience postcollection pain and discomfort. Thus, compared to cord blood, bone marrow collection and transplantation of stem cells are more costly (Drew, 2005; Moise, 2005).
As a result of these advances, it is not unreasonable to hope that cord blood may eventually be used to treat a wider variety of auto-immune and degenerative diseases than is currently being done. If so, (and there are solid indications by researchers that this indeed is the case), it makes perfect sense to consider private cord blood banking.
The blood that remains in the umbilical cord and the placenta after birth is called "cord blood". Umbilical cord blood, umbilical cord tissue, and the placenta are all very rich sources of newborn stem cells. The stem cells in the after birth are not embryonic. Most of the stem cells in cord blood are blood-forming or hematopoietic stem cells. Most of the stem cells in cord tissue and the placenta are mesenchymal stem cells.
Chandy M, Balasubramanian P, Ramachandran SV, et al. Randomized trial of two different conditioning regimens for bone marrow transplantation in thalassemia: the role of busulfan pharmacokinetics in determining outcome. Bone Marrow Transplant.2005;36 :839– 845
Save by paying in advance for 21 years of storage through our long-term storage plan. This plan covers all the initial fees (collection kit, courier service, processing, and preservation) and the cost of 21 years of continuous storage. A lifetime plan is also available; call for details.
Families that are predisposed to certain diseases, that are ethnically mixed, that are adopting a newborn child, or that have a family member who may need a stem cell transplant should take special care to understand the value the cells may provide and their storage options.
Back in the 1980s, umbilical cord blood caught the attention of researchers who suspected that the often-discarded tissue could be a valuable source of shape-shifting stem cells. These cells, which can become several different types of blood cells, are similar to the specialized stem cells found in bone marrow that can churn out new blood cells. Such stem cells are found in adult blood, too, but not as abundantly.
So far, the Flower of Sunlight has been tested by a small number of individuals, including some athletes and physically active individuals, different age groups, etc., and they always felt the immediate energy boost and improvements of physiological and mental health. In the group of physically active people, the oil significantly improved their efforts, some of them saying that they didn't have to try that hard to achieve the same performance as they normally do.
Umbilical cord blood was once thought of as a waste product of the birthing experience, but now it is valued for its content of stem cells. Today, more than 20 years after the first successful umbilical cord blood stem cell transplant, more families are seeking information about whether or not to invest in saving their newborn's umbilical cord blood. Saving the cord blood in public banks is a worthy undertaking for any family. It is recommended that expectant families only consider cord blood banking in private banks when they have a relative with a known disorder that is already treatable by stem cell transplants. Moreover, expectant families should not rely on commercial cord blood banks as their sole source of information about cord blood banking.
Finally, there is a significant lack of regulation for umbilical cord blood banking. The lack of quality control, in turn, affects the quality of the specimen available for transplant. Some cord blood banks have submitted to voluntary accreditation, but the process of accreditation varies from bank to bank, whether public or private (McGuckin & Forraz, 2008; Moise, 2005).
Hard numbers are tricky to pin down, but between that first transplant in 1988 and 2015, an estimated 35,000 umbilical cord blood transplants had been performed globally. That number includes people treated for leukemia and other types of cancer, blood disorders and immune diseases. And the utility of umbilical cord cells may stretch well beyond the disorders that the cells are currently being used for. "If you read the literature, it's pretty exciting," says pediatrician and immunologist William Shearer of Baylor College of Medicine and Texas Children's Hospital.
Cord blood banking can be complex & difficult to research. To help consumers get started, our editors have spent over 200 hours reviewing the best cord blood registries & making this year's selections of best all-around providers.
Tracey Dones of Hicksville, N.Y., paid to bank her son Anthony's cord blood. But four months after he was born, Anthony was diagnosed with osteopetrosis, a rare disease that causes the body to produce excess bone, leads to blindness, and can be fatal if left untreated.
Four main types of physical conditions are treated with stem cell transplants: cancers, blood disorders, congenital metabolic disorders, and immunodeficiencies (see Table 1). Examples of cancers that are treated with stem cells are both lymphoma and leukemia. Nonmalignant hemologic disorders also account for a fair share of the recipients of stem cells. Examples of these blood disorders are various types of anemias, such as sickle-cell anemia and Fanconi's anemia (the first disorder treated with umbilical cord blood stem cells). Stem cells have also been used to treat various metabolic disorders, such as adrenoleukodystrophy. The fourth major category of uses for stem cells is in treating immunodeficiencies, such as Duncan's disease or adenosine deaminase deficiency (Drew, 2005; Moise, 2005).
ViaCord's Sibling Connection Program, a dedicated transplant program for siblings, was designed to help families in need of a stem cell transplant. This program provides ViaCord's cord blood banking services at no cost to expecting parents. A family with a child with an established diagnosis of a disease that is currently treatable with sibling cord blood may be eligible.
The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG, 2008) recommends giving pregnant women information about umbilical cord blood banking that is free from bias. According to ACOG, the chance of a child or family member needing a stem cell transplant is about 1 in 2,700. Therefore, ACOG recommends the collection and banking of cord blood only when an immediate family member has a known diagnosis for which stem cells are currently being used for treatment, and not for potential future uses.
Both public and family cord blood banks must register with the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and since Oct. 2011 public banks also need to apply for an FDA license. All cord blood banks are required by federal law to test the blood of the mother for infectious diseases. At public banks the screening is usually more extensive, similar to the tests performed when you donate blood. The typical expense to a public bank is $150 per unit.
Initially, cord blood stem cell transplantation using allogeneic umbilical cord blood was performed in relatively small children, because the cell dose per weight of recipient was shown to be important.19,20 However, older children, adolescents, and adults have benefited from unrelated allogeneic umbilical cord blood transplantation.34,55–61 Because of the relationship between cell dose per recipient weight and transplant outcome, the number of cord blood cells needed for marrow reconstitution in older children or young adults is much larger than that needed when cord blood is used for transplantation in small children. Cord blood transplants using multiple cryopreserved units from separate donors have been performed successfully in adults, and the approach is currently under investigation as a strategy to increase the dose of cells for transplantation in a single recipient.62 Cord blood is collected in observance of good obstetric and pediatric practice.45
That may sound expensive, but the cost of processing cord blood and storing it in medical freezers for years on end is considerable. Even public cord blood banks say the initial collection, processing, and storage cost them about $1,500 per unit of cord blood.
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‡ Payment Plan Disclosures for in-house CBR 6-Month Plan (interest free) – No credit check required. The 6-month plan requires a $10/month administrative fee. The plans may be prepaid in full at any time.
Medical shipping: Some cord blood companies use medical shipping companies to deliver cord blood; these companies guarantee that cord blood is kept a certain temperature and delivered to the facility by a certain time, typically within 24 hours of collection.
Please tell us a little about yourself. A Newborn Stem Cell Educator may call to discuss your options and answer any questions you may have. You may also receive additional information about saving or donating newborn stem cells.
Harvesting and banking cord blood is a fairly simple procedure that can be performed during vaginal or cesarian deliveries without interrupting the birth process. The doctor or nurse will collect the cord blood after the umbilical cord has been clamped. The collection of cord blood is not painful, intrusive or risky to the mother or baby.
Patients with leukemia, lymphoma, or certain inherited metabolic or immune system disorders have diseased blood-forming cells. For some patients, an umbilical cord blood or bone marrow transplant (also called a BMT) may be their best treatment option.
Research on stem cell transplants began in the 1950s, with successful bone marrow transplants occurring in the 1970s, often to treat cancer patients whose own bone marrow was destroyed by chemotherapy and radiation. The first successful umbilical cord blood stem cell transplant was reported as occurring in the late 1980s. The recipient was a 6-year-old American boy from North Carolina who was treated for Fanconi's anemia (a genetic disorder) at Hospital St. Louis in Paris, France, using cord blood obtained from his younger sister's birth. Interestingly, more than 20 years after the transplant, this young man is alive and well. Not only did he survive long term, but both his immune system and his blood were transformed by the transplant of his sister's cord blood stem cells. Soon after this first documented cord blood stem cell transplant, the first public umbilical cord blood bank was established in 1991 in New York (McGuckin & Forraz, 2008).


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Time to wake up folks. We desperately need to make some big changes before it's too late.
John Boy chooses every single ingredient that goes into the feed.
People don't realize that pigs are very close to humans.
We need to leave our kids with something better that we found.
Old man Larson taught John everything he knows.
The farm gained even more significance when John's son was born.
John loves his cows.
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Let's stop the my-name.com, let's kill the signature, let's destroy the me, myself and I, let's dance. Katya Bonnenfant has joined The Old Boys Club for the Better and Worse. The work of an artist is inhabited by you, by me, by them, and not only. It's an offer.
old boys'club: an informal system by which money and power are retained by wealthy white men through incestuous business relationships. It is not necessarily purposeful or malicious, but the Old Boy's Network can prevent women and minorities from being truly successful in the business world. It entails establishing business relationships on high-priced golf courses, at exclusive country clubs, in the executive sky-boxes at sporting events, through private fraternities or social clubs, etc... These are arenas from which women and minorities are traditionally excluded and thus are not privy to the truly serious business transactions or conversations.


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The following topics are described:
Introduction to Kaltura REACH
Kaltura REACH is the Kaltura service for providing Captions and Translations. Kaltura REACH supports captioning, transcription and translation services, in-video and cross-library search and discovery, deep-linking capabilities, and metadata and keyword extraction. With Kaltura REACH, organizations can access global audiences, comply with government regulations and industry standards, and capture accurate data.
Kaltura REACH includes a full end to end process for caption ordering and return.
For general information on setup please see the Kaltura REACH Setup and Walkthrough Guide.
REACH provides you with the following abilities:
- You can request captions/translations through Kaltura via the KMC or KMS/KAF application.
- Caption requests can be authorized through the KMS/KAF or your portfolio if customer authorization is enabled.
- All completed caption requests are automatically returned to your KMS/KAF or KMC
- Caption Files are seamlessly integrated.
- Transcript Files and widget - follow video, search in video, present md & keywords, download/print transcript
- Related Files: JSON (per word timed transcript)
and much more.
Kaltura REACH Documentation Guides
The following information about Kaltura's REACH procedures, features and tips is available.


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Why I Love Economics
Ever since I took my first economics course as a freshman in college, I fell in love with the field. As I continued my studies, both in the classroom and outside of it, my love for economics increased.
I am not sure why I am so fascinated by the subject, to be honest. It might be because I am reasonably good at it. It might be that after a mediocre high school career doing really well in the economics course I took in my first semester in college made me feel very good about myself. Maybe I attached those good feelings to the field of economics and I would feel the same way about another subject had I taken that subject instead.
The above is possible, but I think it's much more than that. Here are a few reasons why I love economics:
Studying economics has made me a more educated and intelligent person allows me to live a more informed life. I love this field of study and I believe anyone who takes the time and puts in the effort to study this social science which tries so hard to be a real science will fall in love with the subject as well.
The Hardest Part is Showing Up
I'm at the gym waiting for a buddy of mine to show up and workout with me. After a long day at work I didn't want to workout. I wanted to go home and rest or basically do anything but exercise. However, I made plans with my friend already and I didn't want to experience that feeling you get when you break a promise to yourself, so I somehow made it to the gym. Sitting here in the gym's lobby waiting for my friend to arrive I remembered a quote I heard before, although I am not sure who said it originally. I tried to search for the quote on Google but it seems that it is attributed to many individuals.
"The hardest part is showing up."
Now that I'm at the gym I don't feel this desire to leave. I've already broken the main part of my internal resistance to working out by just showing up to the gym. I know that I will have to have an intense workout session, but that's perfectly fine now that I'm already at the gym. It's hard to explain and it seems to not make a lot of sense because the difficult part is still ahead of me. I've only completed the easy preliminary task. However, that easy preliminary task seems to have been the most important part. If I just show up to the gym I'll likely work out. It's not likely that I'll show up and then just get up and leave. Maybe it's because getting up and leaving will mean a change of course and a change of plans. Maybe that's what the difficult part is: actually getting started. Once I'm already at the gym inertia is acting in my favor. To leave the gym now would require me to go against that inertia.
I'll keep this little insight in mind next time I have a difficult task to do that I don't want to do. Obviously the task has to be of a particular variety for the principle to be effective, but it is easier to think about just showing up than thinking about the entirety of the task in front of you.
Difficult Economic Winds
This is a poem I wrote a few years ago:
Confusion on capitol hill,
Years of spending and now we see the bill.
Some politicians with great intentions,
Some inventors with great inventions.
Some thinkers with great plans,
But many with greedy hands. Health care, medicare.
Rising debts, unwise bets.
Little regulation, a consumerist nation.
In a hole and trying to climb out,
Except unsure about how to win this bout.
Efficiency and growth must be our focus,
Can't fix it with rhetoric, wishing, and hocus pocus.
Lower our nation's debt,
That would be a safe bet.
Increase confidence in where we're going,
And the employed crowd will start growing.
Economic thinking and analysis isn't easy,
And it may not be the most appeasing,
To corporations,
And debtor nations.
It must be done, however,
If we don't want to sink, whenever,
Difficult winds blow our way.
Never let the future disturb you...
"Never let the future disturb you. You will meet it, if you have to, with the same weapons of reason which today arm you against the present."
I absolutely love this quote by the great general and great Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius. Often I have been worried in thinking about future events. I've asked myself "will I be able to perform or handle it?" Marcus Aurelius instructs us to not fear future events that seem daunting, difficult, or scary. He tells us that we'll be able to face the future the same way we are able to face the present. When we're in that scary situation, we'll do just fine because we are good and strong people. We'll do our best with the knowledge we have and the reason we posses as we do our best now. This quote should put you at ease when thinking about how you will handle that daunting future event.
Book Review: The Age of Miracles
Title: The Age of Miracles
Author: Karen Thompson Walker
Publication Date: 2012
Pages: 272
Genre: Fiction
I rarely read fiction books and I'm not quite sure why. It might be because I feel that I have a lot to learn and that I shouldn't spend time reading fiction books when there are still so many popular and educational non-fiction books that I have yet to read. It might be because I feel that fiction books are more for entertainment purposes, akin to watching a movie, while non-fiction books help you learn and grow. When I pick up the right fiction book, however, I realize how wrong the above statement is. The right fiction book can entrance, educate, inspire, and entertain all at once unlike anything else because the characters live both on the pages of the book and in your imagination. This is what I found in Karan Thompson Walker's debut novel The Age of Miracles.
I came across this novel when I was browsing Apple's iBooks Store on my iPad and saw The Age of Miracles as a new and recommended book in the summer of 2012. I quickly read the book's summary and was intrigued by the scientific aspects of the story and decided to read the book despite it being about a pre-teen girl, which not my usual choice of protagonist in the fiction books I read.
The book follows a California girl named Julia, who is 11 years old when it is discovered that the Earth has begun taking longer to complete a rotation. The phenomenon obviously comes as a shock to humanity and is not able to be explained despite efforts by governments and scientists to do so. As the days become longer and the nights longer also, the government of the United States announces the adoption of something called "clock time," where a day will still be 24 hours just like before the "slowing" even though the days get longer and longer. In "clock time" it might be dark outside at 12 p.m.
When I started reading the book I already knew that the world's rotation in Julia's universe would slow down from the book's summary and I was very interested to see how this enormous change would affect people's lives. The book mainly focuses on the life of our protagonist Julia, who lives in what seems to be an upper-middle class family in a relatively pleasant California suburb. After the government announces "clock time," two groups of people emerge: those who are on clock time and the "real timers," who live their lives by the sun and ignore the artificial "clock time."
Julia's life changes because of the Earth's changing spin, but I believe her life also changes because she is a young girl and at that age life can be difficult and quickly changing even if you have all you needs met and even if the Earth's rotation is the same. Julia loses friends, makes new ones, has turmoil and difficulty within her family, and finds what seems to be young love. In thinking about her existence and about everything that has been happening to her, Julia says the following quote which I am intrigued by:
"There is such a thing as coincidence, the alignment of two or more things with no causal connection. Maybe everything that happened with me and my family had nothing to do with the slowing..."
What intrigued me about this quote is that it reminds me a lot about economics. I know that Walker probably wasn't thinking about economics at all when writing the above quote or her novel in general, but I was still excited to be able to relate it to economics. The quote is about coincidences and causal connections. Economists strive to understand how the world works and in doing so they attempt to find causal connections between events, but this is incredibly difficult in general and especially difficult in a field such as economics, where experimentation in the traditional sense is not possible. Sometimes economists foolishly believe there to be a causal connection when in fact there is a mere correlation and no evidence of a causal connection. It is in fact very difficult to determine causal connections. Does A cause B? Or does C cause both A and B? That's one simple example. The field of econometrics, which is like a combination of economics and calculus-based statistics deals with these type of questions. Part of what econometricians do is gather data and run what is called a regression analysis to determine correlations. People also mistake correlations with causal connections in their daily lives all the time. It can be useful to recognize the difference between correlation and causation so that one can live a life that is more informed.
I was slightly disappointed that the novel only briefly discussed how the Earth's slowing rotation affected other people in other cities, other states, other countries, and people in other socio-economic positions. I was interested, in starting the book, to see the macro changes that would occur. Although the book does discuss this somewhat, I wish it did so a little more.
Additionally I would like to point out that I've read online that some of the scientific facts or conclusions in the book are not totally accurate. I think it might be important to note this possibility, but I don't think it's a major flaw of the book because the book is about how the life of a girl and the people she knows changes by the Earth's slowing rotation. Even if the facts are a little bit off, the emotions and the psychological effects will likely not change much if at all. The physical effects described might be slightly different, but I doubt they would be so different that they would materially change the book's main thrust.
A broad range of people will enjoy this book, both for its simple and high quality writing and for its unique plot.
I learned about this video while I was an undergraduate pursuing my degree in economics. Learning economics and being a genuine economics nerd, I fell in love with the video and the concept. I remember thinking that it was amazing that someone or some group would make a video like this. I thought that the ideas presented were important, but that the subject matter was fairly narrow and that only a small audience would really appreciate this video. I was surprised, therefore, that the production quality of this video was so high.
I later found out that the video was made by a group called ECONSTORIES and that the host of my favorite podcast, Russ Roberts, was a big part of the making of this video. Russ Roberts has a weekly podcast called EconTalk that I listen to every week and highly recommend. You can learn more about this great podcast here.
The Keynes vs. Hayek rap video is a short music video with characters playing the roles of economists John Maynard Keynes and Friedrich Hayek. John Maynard Keynes is portrayed as a confident, self-assured, slightly wild, and popular man while Friedrich Hayek is portrayed as more cautious, attempting to obtain recognition, and a lot less popular. This parallels the real world as a lot of a people know of British economist John Maynard Keynes, while in my experience it seems that only economists and policy makers have some knowledge of the Austrian economist Friedrich Hayek.
Each economist describes his world-view and economic philosophy in the music video in simple and easy to understand ways. Being an economist I understood everything, but I feel that the video will not have the same effect on a non-economist. It's easy to understand, but it seems to me that a non-economist might not understand certain concepts and terms (eg. Keynes's "animal spirits"). Keynes describes his top-down stimulus spending approach and how that approach can help reenergize the economy when there is a general glut. Hayek argues that such a top-down approach only leads to perverse incentives and ignores the importance of savings to changes in the economy and increases in productivity, which Hayek believes is the true path to prosperity. Hayek believes that the government intervention that Keynes argues for creates boom and bust cycles.
The video was created by ECONSTORIES, a media channel dedicated to exploring the world of economics with visual storytelling and entertainment. You can learn more about them and watch other very interesting and informative videos here.
"The ideas of economists and political philosophers, both when they are right and when they are wrong are more powerful than is commonly understood. Indeed, the world is ruled by little else. Practical men, who believe themselves to be quite exempt from any intellectual influences, are usually slaves of some defunct economist."
Title: The Richest Man in Babylon
Author: George Samuel Clason
Publication Date: 1926
Pages: 144
Genre: Financial Advice/Money Management/Wealth Building
The Richest Man in Babylon, written by George S. Clason is an interesting, relatively brief, and useful read that will educate those new to money management and wealth building and entertain those who already know a lot about building wealth.
Through a series of short stories and parables that take place in the once great city of Babylon, Clason teaches readers about saving, investing, and spending. The stories are short and engaging and help illustrate fundamental principles of money management and wealth building. Even though I already knew a lot about saving and investing and would consider myself a sophisticated reader when it comes to books on finance and money management, reading Clason's The Richest Man in Babylon reinforced some principles in my mind and got me even more excited about saving and building wealth. It feels like the main strength of the book, beyond the basic financial principles that is espouses, is to put the reader in the right mindset for saving. Among the various things taught in this book are The Seven Cures for a Lean Purse and the Five Laws of Gold:
7 Cures for a Lean Purse
Start thy purse to fattening. Begin saving a portion of your income instead of spending all that you earn. This might seem almost too simple, but there's magic in the boldness of beginning something. Soon you will see your purse and your savings grow and this will make you feel good.
Control thy expenditures. Controlling your spending is half the equation, because even if you earn a ton of money, if you spend it all you'll still be broke. Control your spending and live below your means.
Make thy gold multiply. Once you start saving and have some money put aside, make the money work hard and earn more. Invest your money wisely so that your savings grow.
Guard thy treasures from loss. A lot of opportunities for investment will come along, but not all of these opportunities are worth your time and your hard-earned money. Security is a vital part of investing, so make sure your principal is safe. Additionally, consult with experienced, intelligent, and wise individuals so that you may learn from them and be guided properly in your investing.
Make of thy dwelling a profitable investment. If you always pay rent you will have nothing to show for it at the end of your life. If you pay a mortgage you will have a house to show for it at the end of your life. So, "own thy own home."
Insure [Ensure] a future income. It is important to make sure that you have money in old age and that your family will be provided for in case of your demise. Saving diligently and purposefully for retirement and purchasing life insurance can help to protect yourself and your family.
Increase thy ability to earn. A person must set concrete goals and work hard to achieve them. These goals should be to both advance your position and to make yourself a more knowledgeable and wiser person. A person should also pay his or her debts, be compassionate, make a will, and take care of his or her family.
The Five Laws of Gold
1. Gold cometh gladly and in increasing quantity to any man who will put not less than one-tenth of his earnings to create an estate for his future and that of his family.
2. Gold laboreth diligently and contentedly for the wise owner who finds for it profitable employment, multiplying even as the flocks of the field.
3. Gold clingeth to the protection of the cautious owner who invests it under the advice of men wise in its handling.
4. Gold slippeth away from the man who invests it in businesses or purposes with which he is not familiar or which are not approved by those skilled in its keep.
5. Gold flees the man who would force it to impossible earning or who followeth the alluring advice of tricksters and schemers or who trusts it to his own inexperience and romantic desires in investment
These are just some of the many interesting things you will learn in The Richest Man in Babylon. Although the book proffers what many already agree with and understand, it provides excellent motivation to really move forward with wealth building and financial success.
The book is a quick read even though it is written in a somewhat artificially-archaic style in what seems to be an attempt by Clason to add some kind of ancient mystique to his work. It can be finished in less than a week and even less than a single day if one is so inclined. The book will likely earn a permanent place on your bookshelf and be a source of future inspiration when inspiration is needed. You'll also likely end up recommending the book in the future to someone who is starting out or who wants to learn about wealth building and financial success.
I recently sat down with a top-rated resume consultant in Los Angeles, CA with a Ph.D. in communications and many successful years of experience in resume consulting to look over my own resume and get some guidance on how to craft a resume that will stand out in 2014 and the next few years.
Although opinions vary, it is not considered best practice to include your LinkedIn information on a professional resume. I was told by the consultant that putting your LinkedIn URL or other similar types of URLs on your resume make it seem like the resume is a little pointless. He said "what's the point of giving your resume if you're just saying 'take a look at my LinkedIn profile for my complete profile, this resume is just a brief sonopsis.'" The consultant stated sarcastically that if you're going to put your LinkedIn profile, "...you might as well not have anything except a blank sheet with just your LinkedIn profile, which will save the resume reader some time."
Of course the resume is a brief sonopsis and your LinkedIn profile will likely be much more in-depth, but you don't want the person reading your resume to think that he or she has to go online and go to LinkedIn to really get to know you. They should be able to get a feel for you based on your resume and not have to do more research. Your resume should stand out. Your resume should be enough for them to make a decision about whehter or not they want to get to know you better. That's hard to do, but that's the point of a resume.
The conversation surprised me because I though I was smart and savvy by including my LinkedIn information on my resume. I have since taken off my LinkedIn URL and I believe my resume, revised and crafted to express what I want it to, is better for it. I am, however, open to putting the LinkedIn URL back and making any other changes if I feel they are appropriate or if circumstances change.
Do you have your LinkedIn URL on your resume? If so, why do you think that's a good idea?
The Economics of Seinfeld
The Economics of Seinfeld
I was never a fan of the hit show Seinfeld, but after finding this interesting website I realize that it's a pretty funny and interesting show. I absolutley love this website and what it tries to accomplish. The website uses short clips from the famous "show about nothing" to demonstrate all sorts of economic principles from arbitrage to zero-sum games.
GDP 101: An Introduction
You've probably heard about the GDP in the news in general and in financial new specifically, escpeically during the economic turmoil of the past decade and the Great Recession. After reading this article you'll have a general understanding of what this often-used, often-misunderstood, and often-misused measure of the macroeconomy is.
GDP stands for Gross Domestic Product.
Gross = Total
Domestic = Within the borders of a particular country
Product= What is produced (which can be measured in various ways and is often hard to measure)
So, GDP, or the Gross Domestic Product, is the dollar value of the goods and services produced within a country's borders during a particular period of time, that time period being one year for the obvious reasons of convenience and comparability.
Calculating the GDP is very difficult, but for our purposes we shouldn't complicate things. To calculate the Gross Domestic Product we just need to add up the dollar value of all of the goods and services produced within a country's borders during the period of one year. That total value represents "what was produced" in the year and knowing "what was produced" helps us have a better understanding of how the economy is doing.
That total value of goods and services produced within a country's borders within a year, the GDP, can be compared with the GDP of previous years. Comparing the GDP with previous years allows us to see how we things are changing and if they are improving or getting worse. Was last year better than the year before? Better than 10 years ago? We can compare GDP measures for each year to find out.
Let's dig a little deeper now that we know what the Gross Domestric Product attempts to measure. We know GDP is the total value of all the goods and services produced within a country's borders, but economists have broken down the Gross Domestic Product into 4 components that generally make up the entire economy. These compotents are: Consumption (C), Investment (I), Government (G), and Net Exports (X - M).
Now you have a relatively basic understanding of what the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is. Although it has flaws and is just one of many measures of the economy, the relative simplicity and the all-encompassing nature of this measure make it useful and attractive.
Check out future articles on the GDP for a further understanding.
The conventional wisdom is that diversification is an integral part of successful investing. Although the idea of diversification has been around for centuries (and is mentioned in both the Bible and the Talmud), the modern idea of financial diversification can be attributed to the work of Nobel prize-winning economist Harry Markowitz and his Modern Portfolio Theory. We won't get technical here and we by no means will cover anything in depth, but it's a good idea to realize that too much diversification will prevent a portfolio from achieving great returns.
For most people who are not in the game to get amazing returns (who are in it to protect and grow their money at a reasonable pace), broad diversification is a great idea and will likely protect them. For those individuals who are in the game to make spectacular returns (and who should be able to tolerate more risk), diversification beyond a certain point makes them worse off. I'm not sure exactly where that point is. Some people say ten investments or stocks and some say a little more or a little less. Warren Buffett has stated that six is a good rule of thumb.
Whatever the number, the important thing to understand is that if a portfolio has too many stocks an amazing performance by a single stock gets diluted. If a stock goes up 10x (a ten bagger as Peter Lynch would call it) and it represents only 1% of your portfolio, your portfolio only goes up by 10%. The stock went up 1000% but your portfolio only went up 10%. If you want to make spectacular returns, energy must be focused on picking great businesses to invest in and discipline must be exercised to not overcrowd your portfolio.
Additionally, a part of diversification involves investing in different sectors (eg. energy, healthcare, financials, etc.). However, why would one need to invest in one hundred businesses in every sector? Wouldn't it seem wiser to invest in the best businesses in each sector?
Again, this isn't meant for individuals who dabble in the stock market, who can't tolerate the risk that comes with investing for spectacular returns, or who don't have either the time or the inclination to research businesses in an in-depth way. However, if you want to make great investing returns don't over-diversify and do your best to stay focused and disciplined on high-quality investments.
It's key to not that this entire discussion only applied to advanced and experienced investors - novice investors or investors with a moderate level of knowledge and experience should not attempt to pick individual stocks. Novice investors and moderately-experienced investors will be best served by sticking to good mutual funds and ETFs.
Check out the video below to hear a few words form world-renowned investor Warren Buffett on the topic of diversification:
Have you heard the common refrain that Apple products, specifically Apple computers (Macs) are overpriced? We won't take a stance as to whether or not Macs are good computers or whether or not they are overpriced. We'll just look at the question from the perspective of an economist and try to see that the question itself isn't properly formed.
Overpriced compared to what?
Usually, when people say that Macs are overpriced they mean that they are overpriced to comparable PCs running Microsoft's Windows operating system. Usually, people who make this comment point out that the same specs can be obtained on a Windows PC for less money. They also point out the fact that an entry-level Windows PC costs just a few hundred dollars (usually a laptop), but the cheapest Mac currently is the $500 Mac Mini, which doesn't come with a display, mouse, or keyboard. To get a Mac laptop (a MacBook Air or MacBook Pro) at least $900 has to be spent, the cost of a higher-end Windows laptop.
From an economist's perspective, the statement is correct in that more power can be had for less money in the Windows world. However, a wise economist would also point out that Macs are very different things than Windows PCs. They have a different operating system, build quality, customer support, and brand recognition. When someone purchases a Mac, they might be spending more money because they want one or all of these differentiators.
Potential Differentiator 1: Operating System (Mac OS X)
Although specs on a Mac cost more, many would argue that Mac OS X is a more efficient operating system that takes better advantage of Mac hardware because both the hardware and software are built by the same company.
Potential Differentiator 2: Build Quality
Macs are well-known to have a high build quality. It might just be that Apple customers like the look and feel of Macs and are willing to pay for it in the same way that the owner of a luxury vehicle is willing to pay extra for the look and feel of his or her car. The look and feel may not account for one hundred percent of the price difference, but it might account for some.
Potential Differentiator 3: Customer Support
Apple's customer support, specifically their Genius Bar, is well-known to provide excellent customer service and support that doesn't seem to have a rival on the Windows side. Attempts on the Windows side to provide something similar generally don't turn out very well (eg. Best Buy's Geek Squad). You can just bring in your Apple product to one of their many stores and you will be quickly helped by a knowledgeable associate. This may seem pointless to someone who is a computer expert. Why would someone pay more for a product so that if it breaks later you can have someone take a look at it in a convenient way? However, it isn't pointless to a less tech-savvy or a very busy person who commands higher wages and is willing to pay more to save time and mental stress. A person making $500 per hour (obviously an exaggerated example) should be more than willing to pay extra for things that will save him or her time and preserve his or her energy. It's just worth it for them.
Potential Differentiator 4: Brand Recognition
Finally, many people might purchase Apple products because of the Apple brand. In the same way that some people purchase a Mercedes Benz in part because of the brand and the prestige that is associated with it, a person might purchase a Mac because they want to be associated with the Apple brand. It might seem pointless to some, but in a wealthy society brand recognition, branding in general, and how you feel about what you purchase is very important. Everyone wants to feel good about what they buy and people are willing to pay for that feeling.
There might be more reasons as to why Apple products generally seem to cost more, but the above four generally explain why so many people are willing to pay more for products that are similar in many ways. The reason they are willing to pay more is because although they may be similar in terms of specs, they are different in other important and often intangible ways.
This same methodology can be applied to other products and even to other things in life. Things aren't always black and white and things that seem similar can be different in important ways. Even if those differences are small, they might mean a lot to some people and those people might be ready and willing to pay a premium for things that are important to them.
Finally, it's important to point out that any society in which people will pay more of their hard-earned money to buy a product because "they feel better about it" or because "it makes them feel better" or because "they like the brand" is a rich society compared with the rest of the world and humanity's history. Only in a very rich society can these types of products exist, can this type of intangible product differentiation exist, and can many people afford to pay premiums for very intangible things.
If you're here then you probably already know something about the digital currency called Bitcoin which has grown in popularity over the last few years. Therefore, we won't discuss what they are, how they are obtained, or how they are mined. We will be attempting to answer a simple question: Should you invest in Bitcoin?
More precisely, the question should be: Should you PURCHASE Bitcoin? This is because Bitcoins can be either purchased or obtained through mining. I won't be discussing Bitcoin mining here because I have only done minimal research on the topic and your success depends greatly on how you approach the endeavor.
So, should you buy some Bitcoin? Should you spend your US Dollars (or whatever form of currency you use) to purchase this new and unregulated digital currency? In my opinion, the current answer has to be a weak no. Let's go over the main reasons why this is so and then we'll go over why you might want to purchase Bitcoin.
Currency is Generally Not a Good Investment for Most Investors
For the vast majority of investors, investing in currency or currency trading is a fool's game. There is a lot of risk and uncertainty and there are always people who are playing the same game but are more informed than you. What makes you think that you will be better able to predict the movements of the Yen or the Euro than another currency trader with more education, a faster computer, and better software? That's what you have to do to succeed in currency trading because the only way you make money in currency trading is when you make the right "bet." Bitcoin is just another type of currency. It's not government-issued or government-regulated, but it is a currency nonetheless. The same principle of currency investing that applies to the plethora of government-issued and government-backed currencies apply to this new digital currency called Bitcoin.
I did say you were making a "bet" when currency trading. You might say, "don't you make a bet on any investment, be it a stock, a bond, real estate, etc.?" The answer to that question is a resounding yes. However, when you purchase some investments, it's a different type of bet you're making.
As we discussed in our article on investing in precious metals, if your gold coin goes up in value it only goes up because of the forces of supply and demand. If my share of Tesla Motors goes up in value, it may be for the same reasons of supply and demand, but it also might be because the underlying value of the company increased. That's an important difference.
It's the same thing with currency. If the value of the Euro goes up, it's only because of the forces of supply and demand. Maybe more people want to hold Euros (eg. interest rates in the Eurozone increase) or the supply of Euros decreases (eg. The ECB decides to print fewer Euros). There can be many other events and factors that affect the supply of and demand for Euros. Either way, there is no underlying value to Euros besides the paper they are printed on. They are worth what we say they are worth. This is profoundly different than the underlying value of a company like General Electric, which makes all kinds of things that people want to buy. If you own a share of General Electric, you own a share of all of its business and you own a share of an income-generating organization.
Getting back to the main point of this subsection, currency trading is just like making a bet on what the future value of a currency will be. If you buy Bitcoins with US Dollars you hope that sometime in the future the Bitcoins will be worth more than they are today. You hope that your Bitcoins will be able to buy more dollars than a number of dollars you used to buy the Bitcoins.
Note: We're ignoring inflation above for simplicity purposes
Bitcoin Don't Generate Income
This was briefly addressed above. Bitcoins are just a "thing." You hope that "thing" will be will be worth more in the future. That's the nature of your Bitcoin investment.
I would contrast this with the nature of many other types of investments. If you purchase stocks, you are hoping that the underlying value of the company (based many factors) improves. If you purchase bonds, you are effectively making a loan to a government or a company and you are hoping that you are repaid an amount greater than your original investment adjusted for inflation. If you purchase real estate, you are hoping that the price of your real estate goes up. That real estate price is dependent on supply and demand for real estate in the community, but it's also dependent on the rental income your real estate can generate and the improvements you make to the property. In the above three examples, the investments are tied to some kind of cash flow: corporate profits or dividends, interest payments, or rent payments.
With investments in currency, there is no income and there is no cash flow. You will sit with that currency until you are ready to sell.That's why investors who aren't overly cocky about their abilities and who have a medium-term or long-term approach prefer to invest in equities, bonds, and real estate rather than currency. Bitcoins are just another type of currency and they have all of the same drawbacks when it comes to investing that any traditional government-issued or government-backed currency would have.
Bitcoin Will Add Major Uncertainty (Volatility) to a Portfolio
I believe the final reason why you should be very cautious in deciding whether to purchase Bitcoin is that there is a lot of uncertainty and most Bitcoin purchasers seem to have less information about what they are purchasing than a traditional investor in equities would have.
Before you purchase a stock you research the company. You look at their financials and their management. If you are a smart investor you look at the actual company itself. You might walk into a store, look at their product, and really think about what this company makes. You then make a decision based on this information about whether investing is a worthwhile risk.
With Bitcoin, you are investing in a digital currency. There's not store to walk into. You know that the supply is increasing (for now) and that the difficulty of creating new Bitcoin (mining) is correlated with the number of people attempting to create them (attempting to mine for them). You know that you need relatively powerful computers to mine Bitcoin. You hear the news stories about people making money by purchasing or mining Bitcoin. But, how much do people really know? To me, it seems like many people are engaging in classic speculation.
There's no way to know whether Bitcoin will collapse tomorrow or whether it will increase in value by ten thousand times. There's even no way to know if people will accept it in the stores you shop at. There's no way to know what the government will say about Bitcoin. There's no way to know if a competing digital currency that is better in every way will come out tomorrow and Bitcoin will become completely worthless.
Given the above, you still might want to consider adding some Bitcoin to your portfolio
Although I don't believe it's a good investment today, Bitcoin might become something you might want to purchase in the future, even if just for using it as a means of exchange. Bitcoin might or might not last, but it's likely that some kind of virtual currency (be it Bitcoin or another virtual currency that does or doesn't exist yet) will become widely used. Throughout history, currencies change and there's no guarantee that the US Dollar (or any other currency that's widely used) will remain popular. It might just be the case that virtual currency will be attractive and used as a possible means of exchange. It might just be that virtual currency will be like money in the future.
Therefore, we can't completely say that you should never hold Bitcoin or virtual currency. However, if we do hold it, we should hold it because it is a useful and efficient means of exchange, not because we are deluded enough to think that holding currency in general or virtual currency specifically is a wise investment compared to the plethora of other investment options available to investors novice or expert.
UPDATE: Click here for an a new article written in light of new information and study
Use Precious Metals for Diversification and Risk Management, NOT for Long-term Investing
Gold and silver might be good ways to diversify your portfolio and guard against risk and uncertainty (strategic portfolio risk management and mitigation), but you are mistaking if you make precious metals a very significant part of your portfolio in most cases.
As ultra-successful investor Warren Buffett has stated and as any good investor knows, gold and silver (and pretty much every such precious metal and commodity) are not productive assets - they just sit there and look pretty. Unlike a successful business, they don't make more money, as illustrated by the below example.
If you had $1000 to invest today and you purchased silver bullion with the entire sum, the value of your initial $1000 investment in 10 years would depend solely on the supply and demand for silver. That's it. If you invested that money into buying a share of a successful and profitable business, however, the value of your $1000 investment in 10 years would depend on a lot more than the supply and demand for a share of that business. It would depend on that of course, but it would also depend on the business's management, the innovation that occurred within the business, how effectively the business model and the business's plans were carried out, etc. Over those 10 years, your silver would just be sitting there but the business would be working hard to sell products or services, grow, and become more efficient. It may turn out that the investment in the business was a bad idea, but that wouldn't be because of the nature of the investment. It might be because of other factors such as a recession, depression, poor management, an act of God, etc. If your investment in the silver bullion turned out to be extremely profitable, however, it would only be because of the speculative nature of investing. You would have guessed correctly that market forces would cause an increase in the price of silver. Over those ten years, you silver bullion would have been sitting there, but the business will have been hard at work creating value and serving its customers.
Investing in precious metals and commodities is not a bad idea by any measure, it is just important that you do not place your hard-earned money into an investment or speculative venture without fully understanding what you are doing. It isn't wise, for example, to have 100% of your portfolio in precious metals.
Below is a quote by Warren Buffet that should more eloquently and more effectively illustrate the above lesson:
September 2019
And now, given the rise of cyrptocurrencies and crypto assets to quasi-mainstream financial assets, we're dedicated to providing quality, relevant, and interesting material on cryptocurrencies and cryptoassets. Articles on Bitcoin, Ethereum, Ripple, Cardano, and many more cryptocurrencies and cryptoassets can be found on Pennies and Pounds - all that in addition to a plethora of information on what cryptoassets are, how the entire crypto industry came to be, blockchain/immutable ledge technology, mining, proof of work, proof of stake, and how to prudently invest in crypto if you are so inclined (based on your risk tolerance and ability to withstand the volatility that will come with a crypto portfolio).


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The vulgarity of "Sausage Party" does not end with the title, but what do you expect from the minds of Seth Rogen and his producing partner Evan Goldberg, who gave us "Superbad," "This Is the End," and the "Neighbors" movies?
The two have a talent for offering more than laughs, however. Would you believe it if I told you religion, including the issues between Israel and Palestine, is a major theme in "Sausage Party?"
Ten years in the making, this animated comedy is filled with incredible talent and an enormous amounts of laughs, but the cleverness of the story stands out most.
We are in a world where food products are living things and inside a grocery story, the stock wakes every day hoping to be plucked by the "Gods" (humans) and taken outside to the great beyond where everything is magical. Or so they think.
Rogen voices Frank, a sausage whose only goal in life, outside of leaving the grocery store, is to get inside Brenda (Kristen Wiig), a bun. But life gets interesting when Frank, and his other sausage friends Barry (Michael Cera) and Carl (Jonah Hill), start to question their beliefs when a honey mustard jar (Danny McBride) miraculously returns from the great beyond and reports the horrific truth: the Gods eat them.
This begins a journey through the aisles by Frank, Brenda, Lavash (David Krumholtz), and Sammy Bagel Jr. (Edward Norton) to find some answers.
The laughs keep up with absurd moments, including a sequence in which food being dropped from a shopping cart is made to look almost shot-for-shot like a scene from "Saving Private Ryan." Or the clever feud between Lavash flatbread and Sammy Bagel because the Middle Eastern food aisle is next to the kosher section.
Then there's the villain of the movie (Nick Kroll in his best Jersey Shore accent) who wants to pummel Frank for ruining his dream of getting outside.
Meanwhile, Barry makes it outside, where he sees firsthand his friends getting slaughtered when a woman cooks a stew.
But nothing will prepare you for the ending of this movie. Don't worry, I won't spoil it, but what I will say is if you are a Rogen/Goldberg fan, you're going to love it. (And figuring out which stars are voicing which characters is also part of the fun.)
"Sausage Party" will lure people in with the raunchy humor of the Judd Apatow clan, but they'll discover a respectful commentary on theology. And by that I mean directors Greg Tiernan and Conrad Vernon make sure to pick on almost every religion and ethnicity known to mankind.
And that's a good thing.
"Sausage Party" opens in theaters on Friday.


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New ŠKODA Offers
With the full range of brand-new ŠKODA cars available at Alan Day, we strive to bring you the most comprehensive car shopping experience around. This means not only a vast choice of vehicles, services and packages, but a commitment to bringing you value as well. While our everyday prices are always low, we also offer the latest and best new car deals and offers across our London dealerships, as we work to ensure our customers receive only the best prices every single time.
For the first time, the Kodiaq gets the legendary RS badge.
Putting small cars on top, the expressively stylish ŠKODA FABIA


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What do you do?
SO.... What's a Life Designer you ask? Let me tell you!
I'm in the business of CREATING.
Creating joyful people. Creating meaningful lives. Creating beautiful space. Creating a better world.
As we work together to jumpstart your ah-mazing life,
- You will blast through limiting beliefs and "get real" about who you are and uncover what you truly want.
- You will realize your unique personality and discover your personal strengths.
- You will manifest your own purpose and learn the importance of living in your peak state to accomplish what you most desire.
Like I said, ah-mazing right? It gets even better...
What makes working with me so special, is that then, after we do the internal work, you will have the opportunity to work with me as we have a BLAST celebrating YOU and creating YOUR space. I will show you how colors and arrangement of space can make you feel great. We will work together to create a space that SCREAMS you and LIGHTS YOU UP. You will feel alive INSIDE AND OUT!
I believe our "outer" physical space plays such a huge role in how we feel in our "internal" metaphysical space. My experience has taught me that where you live matters, what your space feels like matters, and if you want to change internally, you must make physical changes to make those internal changes more lasting.
Clear out the old, let go of the past, and welcome in the new INSIDE and OUT!


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We're at the beginning of 2015 and we've got some great plans for the year. We're currently developing a series of monthly talks and discussions on ideas of self determination, the first taking place on February 18 revisiting and refining the kaupapa of the free university movement and the Aotearoa Free University / University Without Conditions.
We'll be continuing our reading group, moving on to a new text in the next month which is always an opportunity for new people to join us in reading and discussing.
More information on both of these will be up soon.


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Compaq Commitment to Open Source Community
Compaq Extends Commitment to Open Source Community with Six New Linux Initiatives
AUCKLAND, June 20, 2001 - Compaq has expanded its global Linux leadership with six initiatives to meet demand for commercially viable Linux solutions. This expansion builds on Compaq's long commitment to the open source community - from the infrastructure to the edge of the network.
"As the Linux platform becomes more commercially viable, customers around the world are turning to Compaq for innovative technology, strong partnerships, and proven solutions," said Mike Hill, director of enterprise solutions and services group for Compaq Computer New Zealand.
"Our ten years of experience with the open source community ensures that Linux solutions deployed on Compaq systems will dovetail easily with existing IT infrastructures and offer the same superior levels of compatability, manageability, and performance they expect from Compaq."
The six new Linux-focused initiatives include: 1. High-performance Beowulf clustering 2. A program for interoperability and portability between Linux and UNIX 3. Investment and participation in a Linux lab 4. Training and certifying system engineers 5. Contributing SSI clustering technology to the open source 6. Fostering development of Linux applications for handheld devices According to International Data Corporation (IDC), Compaq ProLiant(tm) servers are the industry-leading platform for Linux, with 22 percent market share in server shipments for the first quarter of 2001, beating Linux servers from major industry competitors including IBM and Dell. For the year 2000, Compaq leads the industry with a 30.5 percent revenue market share for all Linux server shipments.
Compaq provides Linux solutions from the edge of the network to the heart of the IT infrastructure. Compaq supports customers not only by certifying platforms with the major Linux distributions, but also by providing global 24x7 support in Compaq call centres worldwide and professional services for IT assessment, architecture/design, implementation/integration and on-site management and training.
A Closer Look At The Six Initiatives: 1. High-performance Beowulf clustering - Compaq will draw on more than 20 years of experience in clustering to enable enterprises to build supercomputer-like clusters for high-compute applications such as those needed in the oil and gas, aerospace, finance, and biotechnology industries. To achieve this, Compaq is partnering with leading Linux players to deliver Beowulf clustering solutions on the industry-standard ProLiant server platform.
2. A Program for interoperability and portability between Linux and UNIX - a new Linux and Tru64 Affinity Program will offer a portfolio of software tools and services that allow both interoperability and application mobility within mixed Linux and Tru64 UNIX environments. It enables customers to seamlessly implement a mixed environment of Linux on Compaq ProLiant or AlphaServers and Tru64 UNIX using common user interfaces, applications, and management capabilities. In addition, customers can protect their investments by developing applications on Linux and moving them to Tru64 UNIX or vice-versa for increased reliability, availability and serviceability, and overall lower deployment costs.
3. Investment and participation in a Linux lab - Compaq will participate in the Oracle® Linux Lab to optimise kernel development and performance. Enhancing Compaq's long-standing global alliance with Oracle Corporation will advance development of Linux solutions and working together with Oracle in the Linux lab capitalises on respective strengths and expertise in developing more reliable and scalable next-generation Linux applications
4. Training and certifying system engineers - to meet the growing demand for qualified Linux system engineers, Compaq is adding an Accredited Systems Engineer (ASE) certification level for Linux to the Compaq Accredited Professionals Program (CAPP). Compaq Accredited Professionals are trained to plan, deploy, troubleshoot and maintain their company's systems and solutions. They include Compaq customers, authorised resellers, service providers and integration specialists, plus information-management personnel responsible for Compaq solutions and systems.
5. Contributing SSI clustering technology to the open source - to make enterprise server clusters more manageable, Compaq has made its Single System Image (SSI) Clustering Technology available on Linux and is working with the open source community to make SSI clusters ready for production. SSI treats multiple servers as if they were one server, giving administrators and application users a single view of the cluster to simplify common system tasks such as load balancing, server expansion on demand, password sign-on, software upgrades, and application access.
6. Fostering development of Linux applications for handheld devices - Compaq has announced an application development contest for handheld devices to drive development and adoption of Linux applications on hand-held devices such as the Compaq iPAQ. A number of contest winners including one grand prize winner will be announced at Linux World in August 2001.
For more information on Compaq's Linux initiatives, see http://www.compaq.com/linux
Compaq Computer Corporation, a Fortune Global 100 company, is a leading global provider of technology and solutions. Compaq designs, develops, manufactures, and markets hardware, software, solutions, and services, including industry-leading enterprise computing solutions, fault-tolerant business-critical solutions, and communications products, commercial desktop and portable products, and consumer PCs that are sold in more than 200 countries. Information on Compaq and its products and services is available at www.compaq.co.nz
This press release may contain forward-looking statements based on current expectations that involve a number of risks and uncertainties. The potential risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially include, among others: market conditions, particularly in the U.S.; increased competitive environment and pricing pressures; disruptions related to restructuring activity and delays in the implementation of changes in delivery models. Further information on these and other factors that could affect Compaq's financial results is included in Compaq's Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filings, including the latest Annual Report on form 10-K and the latest quarterly report on Form 10-Q.


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"Economists have paid scant attention to the properties of school accountability systems.1 The nature of the incentives presented to schools ultimately depends upon the strengths and weaknesses of the school-level mean test score measures
upon which most accountability systems are based. Accordingly, in this article, we describe the statistical properties of school test score measures, which are less reliable than is commonly recognized, and explore the implications for school
incentives. Many accountability systems that appear reasonable at first glance perform in perverse ways when test score measures are imprecise."
"The problem is that because small school don't have a lot of students, scores are much more variable. If for random reasons a few geniuses happen to enroll one year in a small school scores jump up and if a few extra dullards enroll the next year scores fall."


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Twinkling Spark having fine quality of Glitter for flower making, giving extra shimmery effect to Flowers, embellishments.
Net Content : 20gm.
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William Mitchell
William George Mitchell (born 1925) is an English sculptor, artist and designer. He is best known for his large scale concrete murals and public works of art from the 1960s and 1970s.
Instagram can be a wonderful discovery tool. Earlier this week LF markey ( A must follow if you don't already) posted the work of William Mitchell and I was hooked. Luckily William has a website which documents much of his work . Below are some of my favourites. Having spent 3 years living almost next door to the Metropolitan Catherdral in Liverpool I am rather ashamed that it has taken me this long to discover his wonderful work. I think I may plan a pilgrimage to Swiss Cottage Community Centre * to make up for it.
* On a side note I accidentally walked past Swiss Cottage community centre last weekend. Unfortunately William's mural is no longer there.


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Teleprotection Systems
DM1300 Series
Following customer demand, Dewar have designed and manufactured a streamlined version of their teleprotection systems. This will include two 1U high systems: The DM1350, a simple teleprotection system and the DM1300, a natural evolution of the DM1200, same functions but with a new user interface.
The DM1200, Dewar's flag ship product, has been the industry standard for Teleprotection Terminals for over 30 years. It features in transmission installations with every major power authority in Australia and New Zealand. It's simple but elegant design has made it the favourite of network engineers. It is the product that Dewar Electronics has built its enviable reputation on.
The Dewar DM1200 Teleprotection unit now features a fully compliant C37.94 optical interface. Options available are 850 Nm multi-mode, 1310 Nm multi mode and single mode and 1550 Nm single mode.
As part of the fibre optic upgrade Dewar has incorporated a LAN port which allows users to configure the DM1200 remotely via their network. Dewar are also pleased to release a new version of the DM1200 Talk configuration software which incorporates mouse driven commands, making it much easier to configure a DM1200 unit.
The DM1200 Teleprotection Terminal is compatible with:


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The Chargers are making a big push to keep the team in San Diego.
On Saturday, the team held a rally to help gather signatures for their downtown stadium project. Among those in attendance were Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers and ex-Chargers running back and NFL Media analyst LaDainian Tomlinson.
NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell also spoke at the rally and reiterated he wants to see the team stay right where it is.
"I said it. I mean it. The Chargers belong in San Diego," Goodell said, via the San Diego Union-Tribune.
Goodell added a new stadium in San Diego would be "the perfect place for the Super Bowl."
Earlier this week the team released conceptual renderings of the proposed downtown stadium project and convention center expansion.
First Look at Stadium Convention Center Expansion Project.â San Diego Chargers (@ Chargers) April 21, 2016
MORE PHOTOS: https://t.co/8JzprUpZUX pic.twitter.com/gSbialwPAE
The Chargers were a candidate to move to Los Angeles earlier this year before the NFL approved the Rams' relocation plan. Dean Spanos' club still has the option to move in with the Rams in LA.
First the team will continue its efforts to remain put. The NFL has committed $300 million to assist in a stadium solution that would keep the Chargers in San Diego
Just under 67,000 valid signatures from registered voters in San Diego are needed for the initiative to qualify for a November vote.


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This was sent to us (and the Dispatch), and is penned by a 6th gre math teacher, in response to the recent Dispatch article on failing charter schools. The ABC's of Betrayal is a reference to the Dispatch's gratuitous attacks on teachers'
First a short bit of background: I am in my 10th year of teaching, but this is my second career. I spent close to 13 years in the tech industry and have an MBA so I bring a bit of a different perspective to the classroom.
As a teacher I read with interest many of the education stories in the Dispatch, which isn't always easy, especially in the last few years. I understand the necessity for the scrutiny our "industry" receives because of what we do, but I always felt like a large part of the education story wasn't being told. Then I saw your story about failed charter schools.
I hope you will consider looking into charter school funding. It was recently brought to my attention that when a student attends a charter school the "money follows the student". As a taxpayer and parent, I can understand the argument for money following the student. What I find disturbing, and I hope you find compelling enough to write about, is that the money remains with the charter regardless of how long a student stays at the charter. My understanding is that a student could attend the charter for 1 day, 1 week, 1 month, etc., decide that it wasn't right for them and return to their home school, but the money,doesn't return with the student.
What a fantastic business model for charters. Charters can heavily advertise the supposed benefits of their schools, not disclose they are for profit institutions, enroll as many students as possible, and not worry about losses. Why should charters even care if they educate children. I was told that ECOT enrolled almost 11,000 students last year, but less than 600 students stayed for the entire year. No wonder more charters schools want to open every year.
If any of this is true, the students of charter schools who don't stay, their families, the public school systems, and taxpayers are all subsidizing a system whose business model is designed, with Ohio law's blessing, to enrich the owners. To me that represents "The ABC's of Betrayal" more starkly than what many public schools are accused of doing.


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Theatrhythm: Final Fantasy – Curtain Call debut on Square Enix's Tokyo Game Show stream, and what better feature to show than the new Versus mode that's included in the game. Director Ichirou Hazama took on Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII producer Yoshinori Kitase on a track from the game — with interesting results!
The game is currently scheduled for a Spring 2014 release, and will include many more characters and music to play including tracks from Lightning Returns, Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn, Final Fantasy Type-0 and more.


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8 May 2018
Building a Better World Through Water Partnerships
Webinar participants from countries across the world – Spain, Puerto Rico, Mexico, Brazil, Ecuador, China, United Kingdom, Netherlands, USA and Australia – recently enjoyed an informative hour of inspiring accounts of city-wide collaboration related to water.
Milwaukee and Leeuwarden are the first UN Global Compact – Cities Programme Innovating cities to tackle water and economic development challenges based on an integrated and innovative approach to water – all driven by sustained multi-sector collaboration. Both cities are leading partnership developers, shaping water-centred 'cultures' and best practice in their cities and building connectedness between water leaders across the globe.
Although the cities of Milwaukee and Leeuwarden are on opposite sides of the globe, there are strong synergies in the way they approach water issues and harness water technology to build economic growth. Whilst it is not possible to encompass all that has been achieved by both cities over the past decade, the following threads have been drawn from the webinar. A set of resources at the end of this article round out the story.
The webinar started with both cities acknowledging that proximity to water has shaped their communities and created opportunities for ecological, economic and social development. As stated by Evelien Walstra, Senior Advisor Economic Affairs of the Municipality of Leeuwarden:
"Water is in our DNA: water has formed our culture, our way of living – and our landscape".
In the words of Erick Sharmbarger, Sustainability Director for the City of Milwaukee:
"Milwaukee values water … you can't have long term sustained economic growth without having a healthy environment".
Landmark centres to foster collaboration and innovation
One of the most inspiring actions in both cities has been the building of landmark physical spaces that house business, research and development, academia and government, fostering collaboration and innovation.
These shared spaces build the cities' economies around water technology. They use these technologies to support the improvement of both the local environment and also provide solutions to global water challenges such as: the availability of clean water; management of storm water; and the processing of waste and polluted water.
In Milwaukee, The Global Water Center was established in 2009 and is "the driving force behind … the vibrant spirit of collaboration between public, private and academic sectors with a strong, shared commitment to finding innovative solutions to critical global water challenges".
In Leeuwarden, WaterCampus "stimulates cooperation between (inter)national businesses, knowledge institutes and governments within the water technology sector in order to create synergy for world class innovation, education and entrepreneurship".
Recognised as one of the world's top 25 global water leaders, Hein Molenkamp, Director of the Water Alliance, described the role of WaterCampus in facilitating co-operation between academia, government, business and civil society. He provided examples of shared research facilities that can be rented by small innovative companies to test ideas in the applied research phase of developing innovative technologies and can call on students to support research towards the creation of marketable products. He also noted that WaterCampus has off-site research test beds working on: desalination techniques; the management of hospital waste water, municipal waste water and drinking water; and the needs of the dairy industry.
Similarly, The Global Water Center provides facilities for research and innovation in water technology as well as housing private sector organisations, universities and fostering start-ups. On a former brown field site, the Global Water Center is located close to the Reed Street Yards which has since developed into a Water Technology Business Park – an eco-industrial district incorporating green infrastructure; an exemplar of sustainable development and central to the Milwaukee 'Water-Centric City' framework.
The City of Milwaukee are encouraging other cities to adopt the Water-Centric City framework, you can make a pledge using this link.
Impact on the city, society and environment
Both cities foster engagement with their citizens.
Milwaukee provided the example of a large citizen science program and the one hundred different community groups that participate in activities like the water sampling program that helps monitor pollution levels in the local rivers and lakes.
Leeuwarden has developed a 'life-long learning' approach to engaging with students around water issues from primary school age projects to post-doctoral research.
Finally, the webinar showcased a number of wonderful environmental restoration projects that have made Milwaukee's rivers and lakes both safer, healthier and more accessible to the community.
As Jenny Kehl, UW-Milwaukee Professor and Global Water Security Scholar, explained, the work is focused on "how to keep the water clean in the context of political uncertainty and also climate variability; (and) how to make reliable forward thinking long term decisions".
Evelein Walstra also spoke of political struggles:
"First it was the fight against water, then the fight against water pollution… and now it is the time to work with nature and with technology to solve regional and global water issues – and to create more sustainable, more environmentally friendly and community accessible spaces that link our cities and our waters".
We were pleased that both cities spoke positively about the role of the UN Global Compact – Cities Programme in supporting their efforts to build unique and innovative projects.
We are delighted with this first 2018 Innovation Webinar and the way that it brought models of collaboration between government, business and civil society to life. We thank the following leaders for sharing their time, expertise and experience:
- Erick Shambarger, Sustainability Director for the City of Milwaukee
- Jenny Kehl, Professor and Global Water Security Scholar, School of Freshwater Sciences, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee
- Evelien Walstra, Senior Advisor Economic Affairs, the Municipality of Leeuwarden (who represented Friso Douwstra, Leeuwarden Deputy Mayor)
- Hein Molenkamp, Director of the Water Alliance.
This report was written by Dr Jane Mullett, who co-facilitated the water webinar with Deputy Director, Elizabeth Ryan. The support of UN Global Compact city contact points, Anke Hoekstra (Leeuwarden) and Elizabeth Hittman (Milwaukee) is very much appreciated.
Learn more about Milwaukee and Leeuwarden's practices and achievements
Both Innovating cities are hosting major international water events this year.
All city participants and partners of the UN Global Compact – Cities Programme are warmly invited to attend these important global gatherings.
The Water Leaders Summit 2018 will take place between 27 and 28 June 2018 in Milwaukee, USA. It is The Water Council's headline event for the local, national and global water industry. People come from all over the globe, interested in all parts of the water cycle to talk together, hear from leaders in the field and network.
European Water Tech Week Leeuwarden 2018 will take place between 24 and 27 September 2018 in Leeuwarden, Netherlands. It will link water hubs throughout the world, and provide the water industry with a week of interactive sessions, talks and tours, as well as networking opportunities.
Innovation Webinar: Building a culture of best practice around water
Leeuwarden: Building the European Water Technology Hub Through Partnerships And Innovation (Innovating project with the UN Global Compact – Cities Programme)
Milwaukee: Water-Centric City (Website) (Innovating project with the UN Global Compact – Cities Programme)
WaterCampus Leeuwarden (Website)
WaterCampus Leeuwarden – connecting water technology in Europe (Case Study)
WaterCampus Water Technology Innovation Chain (Video)
Milwaukee Water Technology District: Economic Investment Analysis 2010-2014 (Report)
Milwaukee – Innovative World Water Hub (Case study)
Water Technology Makes Global Waves in Wisconsin (Video)
Dean Amhaus: Milwaukee: Gathering Place by the Waters, Melbourne 2016 (Webinar video)


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Keep on Learning
Posted by Linda Collins | May 14, 2013
Össur offers you numerous opportunities to participate in reimbursement workshops, webinars and presentations. We host regional "Ask the Reimbursement Expert" webinars, which give you an opportunity to submit your most pressing questions about reimbursement issues and receive practical answers from the experts. In conjunction with OPGA, we will offer three "Reimbursement Success" webinars offered throughout the summer. These webinars include loads of useful data and additionally give you 1.5 CEU credits.
We will also provide In-depth workshops on "Appeals Success" on a limited basis. These workshops give you and your billing staff tips and strategies for writing winning appeals. In addition, watch for us at several meetings throughout the year as we present on "Coding, Coverage and Reimbursement" success.
We have listed the details about each event on the "Events" page.
If you are interested in hosting an Össur Reimbursement Seminar in your area, please contact your local Össur Sales Representative.
The Source for O&P Reimbursement & Regulatory News & Analysis


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Believing in Jesus: There are many who claim to believe in Jesus for a variety of reasons and with numerous definitions of who Jesus is and what he accomplished. Believing in Jesus or having faith in Jesus is not a mere academic exercise or historical affirmation. An effective way to define what it means for you to believe in Jesus is to complete the statement, "I believe in Jesus for…"
NT Lesson: 1 John 5:1-5, 13-15 (Faith in the Son of God)
NT Lesson: Revelation 22:12-14 (Jesus is coming back soon)
Gospel Lesson: John 3:16-17 (For God so loved the world…)


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Archives: 5
Via del Lavatoio, 3, 02046 Magliano Sabina RI, Italia
42.359140, 12.473219
Easter Puja Magliano Sabina Ashram, Magliano Sabina (Italy)
Easter Puja. Magliano Sabina, Rome (Italy), 11 April 1993.
We all have today gathered here on top of this beautiful mountain to celebrate the resurrection of Christ.It's very significant for Sahaja Yogis to understand the great event of His resurrection by which He showed that the spirit does not die. He was — He was the Aumkara. He was the Logos and He was the Spirit and that is why He could walk on the water.And also, […]
Easter Puja, You have to grow and take up the responsibility Magliano Sabina Ashram, Magliano Sabina (Italy)
Easter Puja. Magliano Sabina, Rome (Italy), 19 April 1992.
This is a great day for all of us to rejoice and to enjoy this Resurrection of Christ. The Resurrection of Christ took place to open our Agnya center because it was a very subtle center as you know, very complicated with the ideas people had from their conditioning and from their ego, were so much clogging the Agnya Chakra that Kundalini could have been impossible to pass through. […]
Evening Program and Talk, Eve Of Easter Puja Magliano Sabina Ashram, Magliano Sabina (Italy)
Talk Evening Before Easter Puja, Magliano Sabina (Italy), 18 April 1992.
It was really very enjoyable today, to see all of you, in such a happy mood. What happiness what joy Sahaja Yoga has brought to all of you. It's really, I could never have imagined, that people could be that joyous and, that relaxed, as you were this evening. Also it shows, how much you have understood, the stupidity of this hypocrisy going on in the Name of God. […]


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March break is coming up, and you don't know what to do with your kids? Want to able to go to work worry free, knowing that they will be taken care of properly? Archers Arena has the perfect solution for you! We are going to hold a day camp filled with great activities to keep your kids busy all day, while spending all of their energy keeping healthy, active, and fit.
From the 13th to the 17th, for only 40$/day or 160$/week, the camp is open to kids aged from 8 to 13 years, with the possibility of signing up for one day, or to come in for the full week; hours going from 10am to 5pm. At this point, you may be wondering what exactly IS your child going to be doing throughout the day? Let's have a quick look at what our daily schedule entails:
10am-12pm: Combat Archery Tag
12pm-1pm: Lunch and Board/Card Games
1pm-2pm: Supervised Nerf Wars
2pm-3:45pm: Movie Screening
3:45pm-5pm: Ninja Academy (Training/Fitness)
Because we always put safety first, Archers Arena guarantees that every activity will be completely safe and secure, not only with all the equipment we provide, but also with the excellent staff and coaches we employ.
Everybody knows that kids have excess energy, and we're very well suited to handle and guide how to use said energy. We are fitness enthusiasts who know that being active is part of a healthy lifestyle, and who also know that the best way to grow healthy is to start young to build and develop the habit. Archery is also a very disciplined and calm art, and we hope to instill in them some of that quietude.
Getting your kid into this camp is a great way to insure yourself peace of mind at work as well as some quiet time when you come home, knowing your child will be spent energy-wise while being taken care of properly. It also becomes a place where they can learn and try new things, in a positive environment. You can rest assured that your child will be having so much fun they won't want to leave


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Take Advantage Of Online Gaming – Read These Tips
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The very best future survival game titles of 2018. This is certainly among the best vehicle race game which you can play along with your buddies. Wartune is an Action-Adventure game that includes Role playing feature. Subscribers can get to download a compilation of classic titles with added online play, such as for example Super Mario Bros. Whether you are playing through fiedishly addictive Treasure Battle mode or taking on friends on line, there is plenty to love right here.
The game is described by its designers as a fast-paced, competitive video game that combinations the rate and intensity of an RTS with RPG elements." Two groups composed of five players battle head-to-head across various battlefields and game modes, with the aim of destroying the enemy Nexus (which will be pretty greatly protected while you might imagine).
Intriguing action-RPG taken from Sweden, Biomutant has you playing a racoon-esque creature in a global under threat by natural disaster. Inform us, in reviews, which games you're most looking towards in 2018. We don't yet have a name for Ubisoft's upcoming Avatar game, but we can say for certain it will be a triple-A name for PC and consoles.
Like a great many other cards, online gambling internet sites offer you numerous how to play. Respawn Entertainment has crafted a short yet exhilarating solo campaign to accompany its addictive multiplayer now, and it's really an interestingly inventive venture worth spending some time into. Marking a departure for BioWare, the game developer understood for story driven franchises like Mass impact and Dragon Age: Inquisition, comes Anthem, a multiplayer RPG action game.
We've rounded up the Xbox One games we're looking forward to many, ideally they'll be in your wish listings too. Livelock is a sci-fi twin-stick shooter for approximately three online players, occurring in a world where robots guideline. Four friends can tackle a zombie-infested city in Dying Light , which brings elements of first-person action games, combined with Diablo-like loot mechanics generate one thing truly special.
That's because this social game works with the HTC Vive and Oculus Rift, plus will undoubtedly be suitable for Windows Mixed Reality headsets for proper cross play action. Being LAN and on the web multiplayer diversion, you'll play along with your companions the globally. Although a real income online gambling card games can be found just about everywhere, there is no sense selecting a random casino on the web.
There are many good titles through the studio includes framework 1 and 2 for puzzle games. The organization then must play catch-up whilst the Xbox One's launch date – and the PS4's – quickly approached. Two buddies agenbola8 sbobet explore surreal islands, manipulating time for you resolve puzzles Each area is littered with giant-sized versions of every day items: video game consoles, walkie-talkies, recycling containers, soft drink containers, Jenga blocks and more.


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In getting back into the Wedding Professionals community I attended a networking event with AFWPI early this month at the new Patriot Event Center (operated by The Patriot Restaurant) at the blossoming Milagro on Fair Oaks in Carmichael!
I saw it at the end of construction in late Summer and liked the open, light feel of the space (which will easily hold 200 I think on round tables) then. Seeing it "dressed up" for the event just solidified my liking of Patriot!
There are some trick, state of the art audio/visual opportunities with the panel screens you see and lighting that is capable of a variety of colors that create a nice ambiance!
The sumptuous hors d'oeuvres from The Patriot Restaurant were absolutely yummy! I'm sure their catering menu will not disappoint!
It's worth a check out! Contact Sierra at email@example.com or call 916-817-9917,


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The Two Main Methods Of Buying A Floor Covering
There is no other object you can use indoors which can bring the same kind of appearance or comfort to a place like a floor covering. This makes floor coverings a must have item in any house or any office. Depending on the place you are going to be using this floor covering the material used to create the floor covering can be different. Since these floor coverings are items everyone wants to buy we have to know about the different methods in which we can buy such a floor covering for our use. There are two main methods one can use to buy a floor covering these days.Visiting the Shop in Person
You can always go visit the carpet stores from Wellington in person. However, when you are selecting your floor coverings using this method you should have some free time in hand. In every shop which sells floor coverings there is going to be a huge collection of floor coverings, if they are good shops. This means you will have to spend a considerable time selecting these floor coverings. Even if you have a clear idea as to what kind of a floor covering you need to have you will have to spend time to find one which perfectly suits your needs. If there is a shop that sells amazing and high quality floor coverings in your area you will not have a hard time shopping for a floor covering there. However, there are times when there is no such shop nearby.
Visiting the Web Shop
If you want to buy a floor covering without having to go through much trouble or wasting any time you can use the service of carpet retailers who operate online. They have their own web shops which showcase all the details and the all the floor coverings they have for sale. You can visit that web shop any time of the day and go through the catalogue to decide what you want to buy. If you have problems or if you want to know more details there is always a way to contact the seller. Once you have decided on the floor covering all you have to do is order it. A lot of people these days are keen on using the second method of shopping for floor coverings because it is easier. It also offers a great chance for people who do not have a floor covering shop nearby they can visit in person. You can decide which method you want to use based on your preference.