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Morning Parallel Session A
- A Task-Based Particle-in-Cell Method with Automatic Load-Balancing using the AllScale Environment
- LFRic and PSyclone: Building a Domain Specific Embedded Language for weather and Climate models
- Leveraging SLEPc in modelling the earth's magnetic environment
- A directory/cache for leveraging the efficient use of distributed memory by task-based runtime systems
Morning Parallel Session B
- Adapting CASTEP for the Exascale age: Hybrid OpenMP and vectorisation
- OpenACC accelerator for the PN–PN-2 algorithm in Nek5000
- First steps in porting the LFRic Weather and Climate model to the FPGAs of the EuroExa architecture
Afternoon Parallel Session A
- NEXTGenSim: a workflow and hardware-aware workload simulator for HPC systems
- Extra-P: Automatic Empirical Performance Modeling of Parallel Programs
- Wavelet-Based Compression Algorithm
Afternoon Parallel Session B
- Controllable data precision in the Met Office Unified Model
- Running Distributed Computations Using the SpiNNaker platform
- Performance Tracing of Heterogeneous Exascale Applications: Pitfalls and Opportunities
- In-flight ensemble processing for exascale
A Task-Based Particle-in-Cell Method with Automatic Load Balancing using the AllScale Environment
Roman Iakymchuk, Herbert Jordan, Philipp Gschwandtner, Thomas Heller, Peter Thoman Xavier Aguilar, Thomas Fahringer, Erwin Laure, Stefano Markidis
LFRic and PSyclone: Building a Domain Specific Embedded
Language for weather and Climate models
Christopher Maynard
In common with many science applications, exascale computing presents a disruptive change for weather and climate models. However, the difficulty in porting and optimising legacy codes to new hardware is particularly acute for this domain as the software is large (O(106) lines of code), takes a long time develop (∼ 10 years for a new dynamical core) and is long-lived (typically ∼ 25 years or longer). These timescales are much longer than the changes in both processor architectures and programming models necessary to exploit these architectures. Moreover, highly scalable algorithms are necessary to exploit the necessary degree of parallelism exascale computers are likely to exhibit.
In collaboration with academic partners, the Met Office is developing a new dynamical core, called GungHo. By employing a mixed Finite Element Method on an unstructured mesh, the new dynamical core is designed to maintain the scientific accuracy of the current Unified Model (UM) dynamical core (ENDGame [2]), whilst allowing improved scalability by avoiding the singularities present at the poles of a lon-lat grid. A new atmospheric model and software infrastructure, named LFRic after Lewis Fry Richardson, is being developed to host the GungHo dynamical core, as the structured, lon-lat grid is inherent in the data structures of the UM. The software design is based on a layered architecture and a separation of concerns between the natural science code in which the mathematics is expressed and the computational science code where the parallelism and other other software and hardware specific performance optimisations are expressed. In particular, there are three layers. The top layer, the algorithm layer, is where high-level mathematical operations on global fields are performed. The bottom layer is the kernel layer where these operations are expressed on a single column of data. In between is the Parallelisation System or PSy layer, where the horizontal looping and parallelism is expressed. This abstraction, called PSyKAl, is written in Fortran 2003 using Object Orientation to encode the rules of the API. Moreover, a Python code called PSyclone can parse the algorithm and kernel layers and generate the Psy layer with different target programming models. In effect, the PSyKAl API and PSyclone are a Domain Specific Embedded Language (DSEL). Domain science code which conforms to this API can be written in serial and the code, parallelised and optimised for the targeted hardware architecture, is then generated automatically.
The model is under active development and indeed, the science and numerical analysis are still areas of active research. However, in order to assess the scientific performance of the model, sufficiently computationally challenging problems must be tackled. Thus, there is a requirement to run these research models efficiently and at scale on current hardware architectures.
In this paper, the software design and strategy for future architectures is presented. Moreover, some preliminary performance analysis is presented, including scaling analysis to a quarter of million cores on the Met Office Cray XC40. The use of redundant computation, shared memory threaded parallelism such as OpenMP and OpenACC and performance on different architectures such as CPUs, GPUs and ARM processors are also discussed. Furthermore, as I/O is a significant performance factor for weather and in particular climate models, some performance analysis of I/O at scale using the asynchronous IO server of the XIOS library is presented.
Leveraging SLEPc in modeling the earth's magnetic environment
Nick Brown, Brian Hamilton, William Brown, Ciaran D Beggan, Brian Bainbridge, Susan Macmillan
The Model of the Earth's Magnetic Environment (MEME) [1] is an important tool for calculating the earth's magnetic field. In addition to being used directly for scientific study, this model is also a building block for a number of other BGS codes which have a wide variety of applications from oil and gas exploration to GPS positioning. The Earth's internal magnetic field is generated by the motion of the conductive metallic fluid in the outer core. Changes in the motion of this fluid, which are happening all the time, cause variations of the shape and intensity of the magnetic field measured at the surface. In order to calculate the current magnetic environment, the MEME models uses a combination of current and historical data from magnetic survey satellites (such as the ESA Swarm mission) and observational sites around the globe.
Computationally the model requires the solving of differential equations which it does by calculating Eigenvalues and Eigenvectors of a matrix (built from the input data) via the GOLUB algorithm, where the matrix is tri-diagonalised using Givens rotations. This method is very stable, but neither fast nor parallelised. The small amount of parallelism already present in the code is used for building the matrix, which itself is very time consuming, and exhibits significant load imbalance. Due to the sequential nature of the solver all data must fit within a single memory space and this is currently a major limitation. Due to these memory issues the model is limited to around 10,000 parameters and this means that only a subset (often 1 in 20 points) of current satellite data can be studied. With the deployment of new observation satellites and technologies imminent, it is realistic that runs with over 100,000 parameters will be required in the future but this is far beyond what the model is currently capable of.
We have replaced the bespoke solver with the SLEPc [2] package which builds upon PETSc to provide Eigensolvers. There are two advantages to this; firstly we get numerous solvers out of the box which are trivial to swap in and out so we can experiment with performance and stability. Secondly we are able to leverage the existing PETSc parallelism mechanisms. SLEPc/PETSc favours decomposing the matrix in a row based fashion where a number of matrix rows reside on each processes. However this raises a challenge when building up the matrix due to the symmetry. If we naively built the matrix then it would result in a very uneven load (depending upon the number of points a process has in the upper part of the matrix) or a duplication of calculations. To address this we have developed an algorithm which evenly distributes the points in the matrix for building by including a subset of points in both the upper and lower parts of the matrix. Whilst some communication is required once building has been completed, the work is well balanced and hence far more efficient than the existing approach, inherently works with the distributed data we require and extra parallelism is possible by utilising multiple processes in the building of each row.
In this talk we will discuss our work modernising the solver and parallelism of this model, the suitability of SLEPc and our algorithm for balancing the matrix building. We will illustrate the performance and scalability of the new code on ARCHER and describe the process adopted for providing confidence in the accuracy of results (which is very important to the community.)
A directory/cache for leveraging the efficient use of distributed memory by task-based runtime systems
Tiberiu Rotaru, Bernd Lörwald, Nick Brown, Mirko Rahn, Olivier Aumage, Vicenc Beltran, Xavier Teruel, Jan Ciesko, Jakub Sístek
As the community progresses towards exascale the appearance of much more complex architectures than we are currently used to leveraging is likely. For instance, machines which are highly parallel, with a large number of multi-core nodes, deep memory hierarchies and complex interconnect topologies are around the corner. Efficiently programming these new systems will be a huge challenge, where programmers will not only need to fundamentally rethink their code to increase the level of parallelism by at least an order of magnitude, but to also address other issues such as resilience.
Task-based models [1] are one possible solution to this challenge, where parallelism is decomposed into many tasks. By rethinking their parallelism in the paradigm of tasks, one can significantly reduce synchronisation which is key for achieving high levels of concurrency. The underlying task model decouples the management of parallelism from computation. This relieves the application developers from dealing with lower level details such as scheduling, memory management and resilience concerns that are tricky to manage in large computing systems. However task-based models are not a silver bullet and this paradigm often focuses around providing the abstraction of a single shared address space to the application programmer. To scale beyond a single physical memory space then some sort of distribute technology (e.g. MPI or GASPI) must be combined. This interoperability is either at the task based runtime level (and implicit to the programmer) or involves explicit communications calls provided by the programmer within tasks of their application code.
We have developed an API for a Directory/Cache [2] which can be integrated with task-based runtimes and seamlessly (to the applications programmer) provides the abstraction of a single shared address space. Supporting interoperability between task-based models and distributed memory technologies, whilst memory is physically distributed amongst the nodes the Directory/Cache enables this to be presented to the applications programmer as a single, unified memory space. The directory tracks what data is physically stored where and the cache is used for performance to avoid frequently retrieving the same piece of remote data. The main purpose of the Directory/Cache is to provide a set of services that support task-based runtime systems efficiently running distributed applications, while being able to consistently manage data stored in distributed memory or in local caches.
We have developed a reference implementation of our Directory/Cache API which, to illustrate the abstract and generic nature of our API, has been or is being integrated with the runtimes of the OmpSs, StarPU, GPI-Space and PaRSEC task-based models. The Directory/Cache API allows runtimes to be completely independent from the physical representation of data and from the type of storage used. This facilitates access through the same interface to an extendable list of transport implementations using different communication libraries such as GASPI and MPI and even on-disk storage or tiered memory.
In this talk we will describe the main concepts behind our API and the underlying architecture of the reference implementation. We will also present the results of integrating the Directory/Cache with popular task-based models and specifically the performance and scalability that this affords to real-world applications utilising this technology.
Adapting CASTEP for the Exascale age: Hybrid OpenMP and vectorisation
Arjen Tamerus, Ed Higgins, Phil Hasnip
CASTEP [1] is a high-performance density functional theory code, used to simulate the chemical, electronic and mechanical properties of materials using a plane-wave basis set. Its use accounts for a significant percentage of the total compute cycles of Tier-1 and Tier-2 HPC facilities in the UK. Its parallel performance is achieved through an MPI and OpenMP based parallel implementation, which is efficient on current architectures. In this talk we present the work undertaken to prepare CASTEP for the Exascale generation, through the optimisation of the hybrid OpenMP-MPI parallel mode. This work also improves the intra-node scaling, and is achieved through optimisations to internal CASTEP routines, better use of threaded libraries and run-time optimisations. We will reflect on the challenges faced and how they affect performance and memory scalability.
With the limit of sequential performance clearly in sight and the move to wide vectors and SIMD-inspired accelerators to achieve FLOP targets, CASTEP has to adapt to make optimal use of these new technologies. We will discuss the in-progress work of improving the vectorisation capabilities of the code and improving memory management, benefitting highly parallel and heavily vectorised architectures like the Xeon Phi platform, as well as modern x86 CPUs like Intel's Skylake-X and upcoming platforms.
OpenACC accelerator for the PN –PN-2 algorithm in Nek5000
Evelyn Otero, Jing Gong, Misun Min, Paul Fischer, Philipp Schlatter and Erwin Laure
Nek5000 is an open-source code for the simulation of incompressible flows. Nek5000 is widely used in a broad range of applications, including the study of thermal hydraulics in nuclear reactor cores, the modeling of ocean currents, and the study of stability, transition and turbulence on airplane wings. Exascale HPC architectures are increasingly prevalent in the Top500 list, with CPU based nodes enhanced by accelerators or co-processors optimized for floating-point calculations. We have previously presented a serial case studies of partially porting to parallel GPU-accelerated systems for Nek5000/Nekbone, see [1–3]. In this paper, we expand our previously developed work and take advantage of the optimized results to port the full version of Nek5000 to GPU-accelerated systems, especially regarding the PN –PN-2 algorithm. This latter algorithm is a way to de-couple the momentum from the pressure equations that does not lead to spurious pressure modes. It is more efficient than other methods, but it involves different approximation spaces for velocity (order N) and pressure (order N-2). The paper focuses on the technology watch of heterogeneous modelling and its impact on the exascale architectures (e.g. GPU accelerators system). In fact GPU accelerators can strongly speed up the most consuming parts of the code, running efficiently in parallel on thousands of cores. The goal of this work is to investigate if the PN –PN-2 algorithm can take advantage of hybrid architectures and be used in Nek5000 to improve its scalability to exascale. In this talk, we describe the GPU implementation of PN –PN-2 algorithm in Nek5000, namely:
- The use of GPU-direct to communicate directly between GPU memory spaces without
involving the CPU memory. For this work, we use an OpenACC accelerated version of
Nek5000 which is already implemented in the MPI communication library gs [3].
- The initial profiling and assessment of suitability of the code for the most time consuming
- The implementation of the OpenACC version for the multigrid solver.
In addition we present the initial performance results of the OpenACC version of PN –PN-algorithm for a typical production problem. Finally we discuss the experience and the challenges we faced during this work.
First steps in porting the LFRic Weather and Climate model to the FPGAs of the EuroExa architecture
Mike Ashworth,Graham Riley, and Andrew Attwood
The EuroExa project proposes a High Performance Computing (HPC) architecture which is both scalable to exascale performance levels and delivers world-leading power efficiency. This is achieved through the use of low-power ARM processors together with closely coupled FPGA programmable components. In order to demonstrate the efficacy of the design, the EuroExa partners support a rich set of applications.
One such application is the new weather and climate model, LFRic (named in honour of Lewis Fry Richardson), which is being developed by the Met Office and its partners for operational deployment in the middle of the next decade. High quality forecasting of the weather on global, regional and local scales is of great importance to a wide range of human activities and exploitation of latest developments in HPC has always been of critical importance to the weather forecasting community.
The first EuroExa system is being built now and is due for first application access in mid2018. In order to prepare for this we have been porting the LFRic model to a Zynq UltraScale+ ZCU102 Evaluation Platform. The initial approach is to study the LFRic code at three levels: the full application (Fortran), compact applications or "mini-apps" and key computational kernels. An example of a kernel is the matrix-vector product which contributes significantly to the execution time in the Helmholtz solver and elsewhere. Our first steps have been to evaluate the performance on the ARM quad-core CPU A53, to use Vivado HLS to generate IP blocks to run on the UltraScale+ FPGA.
The matrix-vector updates have been extracted into a kernel test program and converted to C. There are dependencies between some of the updates across the horizontal mesh and a colouring scheme is used in LFRic, such that nodes within a single 'colour' can be computed simultaneously. This is used to produce independent computations for multi-threading with OpenMP and can be exploited for the FPGA acceleration as well. As with all accelerator based solutions, a key optimization strategy is to minimize the overhead of transferring data between the CPU and the FPGA. We shall discuss how we have approached this for the LFRic code.
The Vivado HLS and Design Suite is only one programming model for porting applications onto the FPGA. In early 2018 we shall be comparing this approach with the OmpSs@FPGA system and the Maxeler MaxJ compiler, and by the time of the workshop will be in a good position to be able to present comparisons of the performance achieved so far, ease-of-use, robustness and maturity of the tools.
NEXTGenSim: a workflow and hardware-aware workload simulator for HPC systems.
E. Farsarakis, N. Johnson
Efficient scheduling in any HPC system can make the difference between efficient and poor use of resources. Having the scheduler aware of the hardware configuration of nodes may offer opportunities to schedule more efficiently.
Previous workload simulators have focused predominantly on the study of the effect of different scheduling algorithms such as First Come First Served, or First Fit. As part of the NEXTGenIO project* we have developed NEXTGenSim, discrete event hardware and workflow aware scheduling simulator which estimates execution time of applications based on specific hardware characteristics such as NVRAM.
Our work is focused on the unique nature of jobs that form workflows, i.e. that have a data dependence on each other and must follow a specific order, and how changes in scheduling policy can benefit throughput of a system, with special consideration for novel HPC systems incorporating technologies such as NVRAM. Using NVRAM in a persistent storage state allows the scheduling of workflow jobs to nodes which are used in full or in part across the whole workflow. For example, if job A is followed by job B, it makes sense to run job B on the same nodes as job A. If persistent storage (via NVRAM) is available, then rather than moving results to a Lustre of GPFS filesystem, data can remain local to nodes between jobs, reducing latency in beginning job B. Should the nodes of A not be available when B is ready to execute, the data must be moved to relevant nodes or the job delayed.
By modelling the time to move data to and from Lustre/GPFS and the time saved by using persistent storage via NVRAM, we can experiment with different strategies for persisting intermediate products from workflow jobs. As input we can use both synthetic workloads and anonymised workloads from real HPC systems. For example, we can experiment with a strategy of only allowing job B to be run on the nodes of A, regardless of the delay time between them and how this impacts the overall completion of a workflow, or we can see how increasing or decreasing the time taken to move data to and from Lustre or GPFS changes the overall throughput of a system, and how using NVRAM storage when possible benefits this.
Extra-P: Automatic Empirical Performance Modeling of Parallel Programs
Alexandru Calotoiu, Torsten Hoefler, Sergei Shudler, and Felix Wolf
Once a program has been parallelized, its performance usually remains far from optimal. Too difficult is the process of performance optimization, which needs to consider the complex interplay between the algorithm and the hardware. Many parallel applications also suffer from latent performance limitations that may prevent them from scaling to larger problem or machine sizes. Often, such scalability bugs manifest themselves only when an attempt to scale the code is actually being made a point where remediation can already be difficult. Performance models allow such issues to be predicted before they become relevant. A performance model is a formula that expresses a performance metric of interest such as execution time or energy consumption as a function of one or more execution parameters such as the size of the input problem or the number of processors. However, deriving such models analytically from the code is so laborious that too many application developers shy away from the effort.
In this talk, we will present Extra-P, a new performance-modeling tool. It substantially improves both coverage and speed of performance modeling and analysis. Generating an empirical performance model automatically for each part of a parallel program with respect to the variation of one or more relevant parameters such as process count or problem size, it becomes possible to easily identify those parts that will reduce performance at larger core counts or when solving a bigger problem. Specialized heuristics traverse the search space rapidly and generate insightful performance models. We will discuss case studies with large-scale applications in which we uncover both previously known and unknown performance bottlenecks. As a specific example, we will show how Extra-P can support co-design for task-based programming.
Task-based programming offers an elegant way to express units of computation and the dependencies among them, making it easier to distribute the computational load evenly across multiple cores. Unfortunately, finding a good match between input size and core count usually requires significant manual experimentation. Using Extra-P we can find the isoefficiency function of a task-based program, which binds efficiency, core count, and the input size in one analytical expression.
Wavelet-Based Compression Algorithm
Patrick Vogler, Ulrich Rist
The steady increase of available computer resources has enabled engineers and scientists to use progressively more complex models to simulate a myriad of fluid flow problems. Yet, whereas modern high performance computers (HPC) have seen a steady growth in computing power, the same trend has not been mirrored by a significant gain in data transfer rates. Current systems are capable of producing and processing high amounts of data quickly, while the overall performance is oftentimes hampered by how fast a system can transfer and store the computed data. Considering that CFD researchers invariably seek to study simulations with increasingly higher spatial and temporal resolution, the imminent move to exascale computing will consequently only exacerbate this problem [1]. Using the otherwise wasted compute cycles to create a more compact form of a numerical dataset, one could alleviate the I/O bottleneck by exploiting it's inherent statistical redundancies. Since effective data storage is a pervasive problem in information technology, much effort has already been spent on adapting existing compression algorithms for floating-point arrays.
In this context, Loddoch and Schmalzl [1] have extended the Joint Photographic Experts Group (JPEG) standard for volumetric floating-point arrays by applying the one-dimensional real-to-real discrete cosine transform (DCT) along the axis of each spatial dimension, using a variable-length code to encode the resulting DCT coefficients. Lindstrom [2], on the other hand, uses a lifting based integer-to-integer implementation of the discrete cosine transform, followed by an embedded block coding algorithm based on group testing. While these compression algorithms are simple and efficient in exploiting the low frequency nature of most numerical datasets, their major disadvantage lies in the non-locality of the basis functions of the discrete cosine transform. Thus, if a DCT coefficient is quantized, the effect of a lossy compression stage will be felt throughout the entire flow field [3]. To alleviate this, the numerical field is typically divided into small blocks and the discrete cosine transform is applied to each block one at a time. While partitioning the flow field also facilitates random-access read and write operations, this approach gives rise to block boundary artifacts which are synonymous with the JPEG compression standard.
In order to circumvent this problem we propose to adapt the JPEG-2000 (JP2) compression standard for volumetric floating-point arrays. In contrast to the baseline JPEG standard, JPEG-2000 employs a lifting-based one-dimensional discrete wavelet transform (DWT) that can be performed by either the reversible LeGall-(5,3) taps filter for lossless or the non reversible Daubechies-(9,7) tabs filter for lossy coding [3]. Due to its time-frequency representation, which identifies the time or location at which various frequencies are present in the original signal, the discrete wavelet transform allows for the entire frame to be decorrelated concurrently. This eliminates blocking artifacts at high compression ratios commonly associated with the JPEG standard. We therefore demonstrate the viability of a wavelet-based compression scheme for large-scale numerical datasets.
Controllable data precision in the Met Office Unified Model
Richard Gilham, and Paul Selwood
The Unified Model (UM) is a million-line, 30-year-old, but still very actively developed, Fortran codebase that is at the heart of the Met Office's weather forecasts and climate research. Despite its age, the UM is a cutting-edge model scientifically, and is successfully used for research and operations at scales from a desktop computer, to several hundred compute nodes on very large supercomputers.
The huge socio-economic benefits of accurate forecasts mean that there is a constant push to improve the compute efficiency of the UM to free up resources for further improvements. For example, efforts to improve both shared and distributed memory parallelism have allowed significant increases in model resolution and ensemble size. The subject of this talk, however, is on exploring the possibility of reducing the precision of the model from double to single precision, and potentially beyond[1]. Indications from comparable codes show a possible 40% saving in compute. Moreover, trends in future HPC architectures indicate that single precision capability would be highly advantageous for portability as well as performance. Single precision compute in the UM's numerical solver algorithms have already been proven and used operationally, providing significant compute savings.
In a proof-of-concept project, a specific scientific section of the UM was targeted and made 'precision-aware'. A bottom-up approach ensured that the project was of tractable magnitude, and that the benefits may be readily 'pulled-through' from research to operations. The hardest challenges in the project were working within the conservative working practices for an operational model, and overcoming subtle but frustrating technical debt. As well as demonstrating the technical feasibility of the approach, a saving of approximately 5% on total model runtime was realised for negligible scientific impact. Savings within the targeted section were around 40%, in line with expectations. Future work would look to extend this methodology to more scientific sections of the model.
Running Distributed Computations Using the SpiNNaker platform
Alan Barry Stokes, Andrew Rowley, Christian Brenninkmeijer, Donal Fellow, Andrew Gait, Oliver Rhodes, and Steve Furber
The SpiNNaker Platform, is a well known neuromorphic computing platform within the Human Brain Project, which is designed to run large scale spiking neural networks in real time. The SpiNNaker platform consists of up to a million low power ARM processors (each of which run at 200MHz), and therefore for applications to make the most of the platform, they require to be highly parallel in nature. Neural networks and the shallow water equations are a perfect sample of these types of applications, as each individual neuron/cell can be evaluated in parallel. The 1 million core machine when running 100% is estimated to use 100 KW, and therefore is significantly cheaper to run than most traditional HPC clusters of relative scale. Such infrastructures could satisfy the issue of power consumption of exascale machines.
Due to the complexity of using the SpiNNaker platform, we have developed a software stack that maps applications described as a graph (where vertices represent computation and edges represent communication of data between vertices) onto the SpiNNaker platform whilst also managing the runtime execution and data extraction process for the applications. we believe that by representing the application problem as a graph, or equivalent format, provides more potential than sequentially written code bases for detecting areas of parallelism. Communication between vertices in SpiNNaker is executed through small data packets (32 or 64 bit packet sizes) which are multicasted throughout the network through routers on each chip. We have not yet implemented a MPI or Open MP interface, but instead support an asynchronous interrupt based API where cores are informed when a packet has been received. This does not mean MPI is not possible with SPiNNaker, the communications network lends itself to an MPI implementation with the restriction that the network packets are small (but we provide a 1 to 1 message format for larger data packets,). By splitting an application into such small components that utilises the 1 million core machine, it can potentially reduce the communications requirement by each core into manageable sizes for the SpiNNaker communication infrastructure.
We believe there are other sets of applications, apart from neural networks and shallow water equations, that can be easily represented by a graph and therefore can be executed upon such architectures efficiently. For such applications, the massive parallelism provided by the SpiNNaker platform can improve upon current infrastructure performances in terms of speed and energy consumption.
In this talk we will discuss the SpiNNaker architecture, software stack, and programming paradigm and try to relate lessons we have learnt whilst using the SpiNNaker architecture to challenges in reaching exascale machines and why applications can see improvements when written/rewritten, if possible, to a graph representation.
Performance Tracing of Heterogeneous Exascale Applications: Pitfalls and Opportunities
Holger Brunst, Christian Herold, Matthias Weber
Future Exascale systems are expected to introduce an unprecedented degree of heterogeneity as pointed out by DOE's ASCR Program Manager Dr. Lucy Nowell at the recent VPA17 workshop at SC17. Dr. Nowell also stated that the induced adaption and redesign process of highly distributed algorithms and applications requires the support from the debugging and performance tools community. Because of that, we expect performance tools to be early adopters of the emerging system architectures, as they need to be one step ahead by definition. This position paper lists and discusses both tools pitfalls and opportunities arising from infrastructure and paradigm changes in the near future. It focuses on in-situ performance trace data processing, persistent memory exploitation, scripted applications and usability.
The sheer complexity of an Exascale hardware and software stack calls for a holistic performance reviewing at all layers of abstraction. Unfortunately, a non-perturbing monitoring solution with dedicated hardware is normally impracticable for economic reasons. Facultative software-based monitoring seems to be feasible but the resulting perturbation will grow with the number of monitored parameters. An iterative refinement process of a changing set of parameters seems to be most realistic, while only practical when performed in-situ in one and the same run due to long application runtimes and startup overheads. We will present how data collection, selection and visualization need to be rethought for the Exascale.
Node-local large persistent memory similar to Cray's DataWarp or Intel's 3D XPoint products will be located in very close proximity to the CPUs. This will have an impact on application file data handling and scheduling. I/O usage patterns that were prohibited performance-wise in the past might all of a sudden be top-notch. Understanding I/O performance requires a thorough picture of the actions in the increasingly deep I/O stack. Again, we expect that it will not be feasible to record all relevant information at the same time, which takes us back to the pre-mentioned runtime data selection. We will present new ways for in-depth I/O tracing and visualization designed for Exascale.
Scripted application workflows in python and alike are likely to gain further importance and are not easy to study with traditional performance tools due to their complex virtual runtime environment. Scripting approaches enable new science communities without traditional HPC background to enter the computing domain, which reveals tool usability issues to be discussed in the Exascale context. Our usability analysis is backed by customer feedback on the Vampir performance visualizer, which we develop in-house for many years.
In-flight ensemble processing for exascale
Jeff Cole, Bryan Lawrence, Grenville Lister, Yann Meursdesoif, Rupert Nash, and Michèle Weiland
Weather and climate science make heavy use of ensembles of model simulations to provide estimation of uncertainty arising from a range of causes. Current practice is to write each ensemble member (simulation) out to disk as it is running, and carry out an ensemble analysis at the end of the simulation. Such analysis will include simple statistics, as well as detailed analysis of some ensemble members. However, as model resolutions increase (with more data per simulation), and ensemble sizes increase (more instances), the storage and analysis of this data is becoming prohibitively expensive — many major weather and climate sites are looking at managing in excess of an exabyte of data within the next few years. This become problematic for an environment where we anticipate running such ensembles on exascale machines which may not themselves include local storage of sufficient size where data can be resident for long periods of analysis.
There are only two possible strategies to cope with this data deluge – data compression (including "thinning", that is the removal of data from the output) and in-flight analysis. We discuss here some first steps with the latter approach. We exploit the XML IO server (XIOS) to manage the output from simulations and to carry out some initial analysis en-route to storage. We have achieved three specific ambitions: (1) We have adapted a current branch of the Met Office Unified Model to replace most of the diagnostic system with the XIOS. (2) We have exploited a single executable MPI environment to run multiple UM instances with output sent to XIOS, and (3) We have demonstrated that simple ensemble statistics can be calculated inflight, including both summary statistics of individual ensemble members, and cross-member statistics such as means and extremes.
With this ability, we can in principle avoid having all data needing to reside on fast disk when the ensemble simulation is complete. This would allow, for example, deployment on an exascale machine with burst-buffer migrating data directly to tape (or to the wide area network). There are some issues yet to be resolved. In particular, we need to manage the MPI context to explicitly mange errors propagating up from an ensemble member (an errant ensemble member could otherwise halt the execution), and we need to consider how to bring third party data into the XIOS context so that non-linear comparisons can be calculated and meaned at run time. Neither of these are expected to be very difficult, but they will involve further engineering. In the longer-term, in-flight analysis will have to address some sort of steering where not all ensemble members are output for the entire duration of the simulation, but even this interim method will help with data management. It will be possible to identify "interesting" ensemble members from summary statistics, and keep them online for more detailed analysis, while less (initially) interesting ensemble members can be more rapidly migrated to colder storage for later analysis.


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SOLD OUT - DEMO 2017 Niner RIP 9 Alloy 2 Star SLX RS 27+ LG 19'' Mountain Bike Gray
Additional Info
For sale is a DEMO 2017 Niner RIP 9 Alloy 2 Star SLX RS 27+ LG 19'' Mountain Bike Gray
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- Top Tube (effective): 59cm
- Head Tube: 110mm
- Steer Tube: 200mm
- Standover Height: 29''
- Wheel Size: 27.5+
- Speed: 1x11
- Type: Full Suspension 27.5+ Bike
- Components: Shimano SLX Mix
- Color: Grey
- Weight: 30.7lbs
- Frame: Aluminum
- Fork: Rock Shox Lyrik RC 170mm Travel
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- Seatpost: KS Lev Dropper
- Saddle: Niner
- Stem: Race Face Aluminum 70mm
- Handlebar: Race Face Affect 780mm
- Shifters: Shimano SLX SL-M7000
- Brakes: Shimano SLX BR-M7000
- Rear Derailleur: Shimano SLX RD-M7000
- Crankset: Race Face Affect 175mm 32t
- Bottom Bracket: English Threaded
- Cassette: Shimano Deore XT CS-M8000 11-42t
- Chain: Shimano 11 Speed
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- Tires: Maxxis Ikon + 27.5x2.8''
CONDITION: NEW DEMO. This bike has gone out on a few longer test rides and a couple half-day rentals. Message us for current photos of the bike.
SIZING: Based on traditional sizing, it could fit someone 5'8'' to 6'1''. Please note this is an approximate range and the buyer is responsible for verifying the fit before purchase.
WARRANTY: If purchased locally, it comes backed with a 60 day limited mechanical warranty.
RETURN POLICY: Buyer has 7 days on receipt of item to initiate a return by contacting us. Item must be returned in the same condition as purchased and a refund will be issued on receipt of the item.
TERMS OF SALE: All items are sold AS IS and customers assume responsibility for their own safety and the upkeep of their purchased equipment.
LIMITED WARRANTY: New and specified used bicycles are covered with our 60 day limited mechanical waranty which allows for needed adjustments and tuning incurred from normal use. During this time, any hard goods deemed necessary for proper mechanical functioning will be billed to the customer at cost. Any mechanical or structural issues assessed to result from a crash, hard impact, or any other incident will not be covered under warranty.

subset: commoncrawl


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School starts two weeks from Wednesday...
I feel like someone just slapped me!
Where on earth did summer go!?!?
I've been doing some back to school shopping this week (online, of course) & wanted to share some of my finds! ;) Our sweet little school is moving to a DRESS CODE school next year, so to be really honest shopping for school was WAY easier than normal...but for a "semi-professional shopper" like myself (snicker), it was a bit boring!
My primary purchasing was at Gap/Old Navy online! They are a vendor through Big Crumbs & I always like to shop online through them & get some $$ put back into my Paypal account!
We bought some patio/porch furniture from Target.com last year & I ended up getting $150 put into my PP account from it! Rock on!
Here's my big spurge from Old Navy...boys & girls khaki shorts...they are $10 each when you buy 2 pair! I bought enough shorts to not have to do laundry for TWO FULL WEEKS...worth EVERY penny! ;) LOL
Oh, Gosh...Absolutely!!
I decided to spend just a little bit extra & get our "uniform" shirts (aka, a solid polo with a logo no bigger than a credit card...bah) from Abercrombie Kids. Big O has several of their solid polos already & their quality is out of this world!
I got a stew of these for Miss O on clearance for $18.90 each (regular $30, yikes)...they had some boy's polos on clearance for $12.90 as well!
It was new backpack year for the O's, so I found these awesome new ones at PBTeen...$39 & FREE Shipping! Miss O picked out the aqua/green dotty one & Big voted for the Camo!
I had someone asking about the hairflower that Miss O is wearing in our vacation pictures...I picked that one up at JCrew in downtown Charleston...but, they did have some on the website still. Miss O is ANTI-bow now that she's about to be a big 2nd grader...(booooo!) :(
Now, all I have to get is SHOES...
seriously, I would rather go have a ROOT CANAL than take my kids out shoe shopping...ARGH!
I'm pretty sure this is the most boring blog post I've ever put together...LOL...but, I thought this rambling might tide you over while I go out & slave over that chest of drawers today!
I painted it last night after dinner & let it dry overnight...now for the fun part...break out that sandpaper & DISTRESS that baby!! I'm going to have it finished before the day is out, stay tuned! ;)
Happy Saturday!!


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A quick follow up: Back in January, Colin Marshall took you inside Haruki Murakami's unexpected stint as an agony uncle, writing an online advice column called Mr. Murakami's Place. According to his publisher, readers sent the Japanese novelist 37,465 questions (see a few in translation here), and he penned responses to 3,716 of them -- answering questions like: "30 is right around the corner for me, but there isn't a single thing that I feel like I've accomplished.... What should I do with myself?" Or, "My wife quite frequently belches right near the back of my head when she passes behind me... Is there something I can do to stop my wife's belching?"
Luckily, at least for Japanese readers, Murakami has now published his responses (all of them) as an ebook in Japan. And it's been climbing Japan's Kindle bestseller list. Currently, there are no plans to release Mr. Murakami's Place - The Complete Edition -- in English. The task of translating what amounts to an 8-volume set of books would be formidable. And yet somehow -- like most things Murakami has written -- I suspect the collection will eventually see the light of day in English-speaking markets.
Thanks to @justinmegahan and @hyloupa for helping us track down this book.
Related Content:
Haruki Murakami's Advice Column ("Mr. Murakami's Place") Is Now Online: Read English Translations
Haruki Murakami Lists the Three Essential Qualities For All Serious Novelists (And Runners)
A Photographic Tour of Haruki Murakami's Tokyo, Where Dream, Memory, and Reality Meet
Haruki Murakami's Passion for Jazz: Discover the Novelist's Jazz Playlist, Jazz Essay & Jazz Bar


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This week we discuss father of the century and manager by force: Joe Jackson. We talk about Joe's early days as a boxer and musician, how he discovered his children's hidden talent, how fame effected his family and much more! This episode also features fellow podcaster and friend of the show Mansour of Two Niles Productions.
Show note links:
Joe Fiennes-Michael Jackson: https://www.cnn.com/2017/01/11/entertainment/joseph-fiennes-michael-jackson/index.html
Jermaine Jackson Hair Style: https://www.awesomelyluvvie.com/2014/04/jermaine-jackson-hair.html/jermaine-jackson-hair
Jacksons Jamming Out: https://youtu.be/68E9CGTZdeU
Two Niles: https://youtu.be/1Ryh5hH73eU. / Two-Niles.com


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Your children are always on their feet, that's why it's important that they wear quality footwear that gives them the support and comfort they need.
At Balance Footwear, we stock a range of children's shoes for any occasion from leading brands like Clarks, Merrell, Skechers, Saucony, Birkenstock and Orthaheel. Plus, all footwear that we stock is podiatrist recommended.
When it comes to finding your children's best fit, explore the range at Balance Footwear. All online orders over $100 receive free shipping and we have a generous 30 day returns policy.


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Antitrust Case Filings
Antitrust Case Filings
To filter the list of cases, select desired options from the left navigation pane.
View the list of NAICS and SIC industry codes used by the Division. To view all industry codes, visit Census.gov.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2
|Case Open Date
|Incident Date
|Case Type
|Federal Court
|Industry Code
|U.S. v. The Procter & Gamble Co. & Rhone-Poulenc Roorer, Inc.
|August 7, 1990
|Civil Merger
|Pennsylvania, Eastern District
|Pharmaceutical Preparation Manufacturing
|U.S. v. Brown & Root, Inc. et al.
|August 17, 1990
|Civil Merger
|District of Columbia, District of
|Heavy Construction, NEC, Water, Sewer, and Pipeline Construction


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Meal Improvement Ideas
Feedback from last year's #ATM15:
During my training sessions, before the official kickoff, meals provided were mainly bagels, cereal, muffins, and fresh fruit for breakfast (pretty good) and boxed meals for lunch (meh). The first day's lunch was good with plain chips, apple, cookie, and choice of veggie, ham, or turkey (if I recall correctly). The second day's boxed lunch included the apple and cookie, but the sandwiches were what I would consider fairly exotic and the chips were all choices that I personally didn't appreciate. Fortunately there are many restaurants in the hotel that are just a short walk away. All meals had great camaraderie with attendees and great conversations.
After the official kick-off, meals were all hot buffet-style and tables were all set with silverware and glasses in advance. The plates were large and allowed us to get all the food we wanted without having to waste time going back for seconds. However, attendees would sometimes waste time looking for a spot at a table that didn't already have used cutlery. Also, one would have to wait (though not more than a couple minutes) for conference center staff to come by with a pitcher of the meal's drink selection and fill up your glass.
I suggest Aruba save some money and just provide silverware and napkins as we go through the buffet lines. Then have drink stations scattered around the room for us to choose from. Notably missing from EVERY meal was any selection of soda. This was really unacceptable to a lot of folks who like to have our caffeine but don't drink coffee. Put some coolers with iced-down cans of soda and let us just grab our own. Even at breakfast. That way we can take a can with us to our first session after breakfast.
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So I'm sitting here trying to write a post about the yumminess of summer. All of my feeds – Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, WordPress – are blowing up with people blogging and photog-ing their bounty of the summer. Well, here in Calgary there may indeed be many bountiful treats, but up until yesterday, this was my reality:
I was really craving something…warm and comforting. I picked up yet another cookbook last week, this one locally written by the owner of the Skoki Lodge in Lake Louise, Alberta. There was a wonderful recipe for beef short ribs, which seemed like just the ticket to combat the rain. I followed the recipe pretty exactly, and the results were stellar; see for yourself: Continue reading


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Hello, you might remember me from blogging at mumofaprematurebaby.blogspot.co.uk. Some silly hackers got in and deleted it – boo! So I decided to move over to WordPress. I've wanted to for quite some time but this has just pushed me.
I look forward to writing here in my new corner of the internet!


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Which Board Games Can Help Students Learn Real Math?
If you're looking for board games that will teach your child math or help improve her math skills, you have several options: you can buy them, download some from the Internet or make games yourself. Keep reading for ideas!
Math Board Games
Games You Can Buy
Most traditional board games involve some math. At the very least, games like Sorry and Chutes and Ladders require kids to count out a certain number of spaces, which can be helpful for young children. Monopoly is an even better game for reinforcing basic math skills, since it requires players to count money, make change and perform multiplication with multi-digit numbers.
If your child is older, you can also use traditional board games as an opportunity to teach him about probability. For example, you can have him calculate the probability that his dice roll will produce a certain desired outcome, or that he will land on a certain space on his next turn.
You can also purchase a game called Quizmo for your child. In this game, which has rules similar to those for Bingo, one person calls out math problems and the players place a marker on their boards if they have the answer there. The game is available for different skill levels.
Games You Can Download
Some websites offer free or low-cost downloadable math board games online. Before you search, though, it's a good idea to ask your child's teacher for suggestions. You can also visit state department of education websites to look for resources. For instance, Virginia's Department of Education offers instructional resources on its website that contain printable math board games.
Games You Can Make
Fun with Factors
Create Bingo-style boards for each player with the numbers 1-12 randomly distributed on the boards. Then, call out the answers to the basic multiplication facts (ones through twelves) and have your child and her friends mark one factor of that number on their boards, if they have one. Continue until one of the players has a vertical, horizontal or diagonal line of spaces completely filled in with markers.
Inch by Inch
Tape together several sheets of white paper end to end to create a long game board. Then, lay a yardstick along the board and tape it down so it doesn't move. Create a deck of cards with fractions on them, like 1/2, 3/8, 2/4 and so on. Each fraction should have 2, 4 or 8 as a denominator, or it should be equivalent to a fraction with one of these denominators. Give each player differently colored writing utensils.
Your child and his friends will take turns drawing cards and moving the specified distance along the game board, marking their progress as they go. For instance, if your child has already moved 1 1/4 inches along the board, and he draws a card that says '2/4,' he will reduce this fraction to 1/2 and move 1/2 of an inch along the board to 1 3/4. The first player to reach the end of the yard stick is the winner.
Other Articles You May Be Interested In
Imagine a math teaching tool so effective that it need only be employed twice per week for less than an hour to result in huge proficiency gains. Impossible, you say? Not so...and MIND Research Institute has the virtual penguin to prove it.
Looking for a way to get your child engaged with math? There are many free, fun math games online that explore basic concepts such as addition, subtraction, multiplication and division, as well as more advanced games that offer practice with decimals and fractions. Read on to discover five of our favorite educational - and fun! -...
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Monthly Archives: September 2011
Girls Are Not Stupid! Stop It Already!
A few weeks back this latest entry into the Hit Parade of bad ideas hit the net. It seems JC Penney's buyer thought carrying a shirt in its on-line store that said "I'm too pretty to do homework so my brother does it for me." was cute or funny or true. I think it is a sign of what is wrong with our culture. Penney's pulled the shirt after a well deserved avalanche of emails expressing displeasure over the sexist garment.
But we all know when you cut the head off the Hydra, two more grow back. Forever 21, that bastion of hoochie clothing, carried this shirt which proudly proclaimed the wearer to be "Allergic to Algebra"..
Well thank the Gods for whoever had the sense to tack this post-it to the shirt. It is a small, but meaningful way to rebel. This whole "dumb girl" trend reminds me of the talking Barbie Mattel carried years back. One of the phrases she would spout is "Math is hard."
Now I've never been good at math. My brain just doesn't work in a linear fashion however I did learn something important in High School. I learned I wasn't stupid (as I thought for years and years after being called that by boys and teachers), my brain just worked differently.
I had a wonderful Pre-Algebra teacher as a Sophomore. He took the time to explain equations in different ways until I found one my brain could interpret correctly. Granted, my High School was on a mod system (like a college system) with an open campus, a different schedule each day, lecture halls and classes that were 30, 45 and 60 minutes long depending on the course. This allowed teachers to have posted office hours so kids could do homework during school and get extra help during school as well.
Society throws so many negative stereotypes at girls that it makes me gag. You need to look a certain way, have a certain color hair or a certain size breasts and don't be too smart or boys will get all intimidated and not like you. These shirts aren't funny, they are insulting. They aren't carried in the boys/mens department, just the young women who are hit with the reinforcing message that they don't have to be smart, just pretty. "Don't worry about having a brain, you are just an ornament."
Well what if you aren't the kind of pretty that society says you should be? Why should women who have certain looks forgo education so that a man will "take care of them" instead of them learning to take care of themselves?
Most people know it is not OK to use racial, religious or ethnic slurs but it's still OK to demean women, portray them as less than men and if someone points it out they are the one in the wrong. I've seen comments on various blogs saying the people who object to this have no sense of humor. Really? You know, I have a terrific sense of humor and this isn't funny. I also don't think that portraying men as emasculated worms for laughs is funny either.
I'm not a "bitch", a "feminazi", a "party-pooper" or a "fascist". I am a woman. I am no better and no worse than a man. I am an intelligent individual who refuses to be the reflection of shallow society fashion. I am a woman. Deal with it.
The Poodle Man of MUNI
Muni scares me. There, I said it. Aside from a school bus, I have only been on city buses a few times in my life. I would not have the slightest idea how much it costs, how it works, what a transfer is or If they even take physical money anymore. Perhaps they just take peanuts or crack.
What I do know is that MUNI is full of crazy people. MUNI also tends to run over pedestrians with increasing regularity. It is like a demented game of Frogger only with a 2 ton piece of metal and you trying to stay out of harms way when a MUNI bus drives by. Even being on the sidewalk doesn't seem to count as a "safe zone".
Since BART only skirts the bay, people need a way to get to other parts of the City. I was tricked onto MUNI by a friend and was in for an eye-opening experience. In addition to the law-abiding citizens on the bus, I saw a few gang-bangers having it out with some belligerent banger wanna-be's at the stop on the sidewalk. OK, if THAT goes South, I'm not as concerned. I am concerned about the on-board fights, thefts, vandalism and of course, the crazies. I know, the crazies need transportation too but you have no way of knowing if they are harmless crazy or psychotic crazy.
Case in point, the Poodle Man of MUNI. I have no idea the name of the line I was on. I know it was over by the Metreon. I was on my way to see my friend Peanut and she brow-beat me into getting on the death bus since (a) I didn't have my car, (b) my destination couldn't be reached from BART and (c) it was way too far to walk.
This guy looked like he escaped from the mental ward, covered himself in as many cotton balls as he could find as a disguise and then went on a hunt for every dirty, stuffed poodle in the area. He tied them on his body, stuffed them into plastic garbage bags and into the pockets of his ratty coat. He would alternate between barking and talking to himself and others. He would proclaim in a booming voice, how Willie Brown put a chip in his head and now the aliens can track him. Why Willie Brown cared enough to chip him like a Bichon Frise is beyond me. He then started holding forth on how alien poodles can battle German Sheppards, grey aliens and Bruce Willis and win.
"OK, crazy dude. You need some meds. Badly. I feel sorry that you are left to wander the streets, without medication, food or a bed like a nice mental hospital could provide you with. I remember the time when then Governor Reagan cut the majority of mental health funding in the State. This resulted in the majority of the non-uber violent crazies being tossed out on the streets. The majority of these people migrated to Hollywood or San Francisco. They still do.
I started wondering where the Poodle Man got all the cotton balls or all the stuffed poodles. Obviously a flickering porch light of sanity still burns somewhere. He had to seek out and acquire specific types of stuffed dogs which shows the ability to form a plan and execute on it. Sure, it's a bat-shit crazy plan but a plan none the less. At least he wasn't violent. There are those kinds of crazies out there as well and I was without my mace or handy PVC knee-whackin' pipe.
What would I like to see? I would like to see mentally ill people get the help they need in a safe, clean hospital. I would like to see violent criminals and crazies locked up in a cage. I would like the citizens of this City to be able to travel without fear of violence or death. But most of all I would like to see a death match between a miniature, alien poodle named Strawberry and Bruce Willis. I'm betting on the poodle.
Is Chubby Bunny The New Craze?
I know, I know, I owe you a whack-a-doodle Wednesday post but I am buried. Buried in unpacking boxes, memorizing lines for a show, work and a few new writing projects. I don't even have time to change my mind most of the time. Then I sat down to my laptop, decided to read the paper, which was really the Chronicle on-line and was diverted.
You see, my attention was grabbed with a headline that proclaimed the next "new thing", a phenom called "Chubby Bunny". I pictured obese rabbits, lounging in pastoral splendor but rabbits have nothing to do with this. It seems the point of this "game" (and I use that word loosely) is to see how many marshmallows you can stuff into your mouth and still say "Chubby Bunny".
No, really, people do this. I'm not making this up! If you think the worst thing your kid can do is getting knocked up or selling crack, you have yet to meet the horrors of Chubby Bunny. Pay attention parents. It starts out all sweet and innocent and full of unicorn sparkles. Just picture a circle of cherub faced children sitting around with a big of marshmallows. One at a time each child pops a marshmallow into their mouth and says "Chubby Bunny". Each time the bag is passed, you insert another marshmallow into your gob. If you can't say "Chubby Bunny", you are eliminated. If you chew or swallow the marshmallows, you are eliminated. If you regurgitate fluffy white marshmallow pieces on your friends, you are eliminated. Pretty innocuous, right?
It sure is until someone dies! Yup, there have been two verified Chubby Bunny fatalities. One was a 12-year-old girl named Casey who suffocated while playing this at an after-school fair. The game was suppose to be supervised but the teacher had stepped away before the start of the contest to speak with the janitor for 10 minutes. Kids being kids decided to start playing without him. Casey quickly choked on a marshmallow lodged in her throat. The other fatality was a grown woman, 32-year-old Janet. She was in a Chubby Bunny contest and suffocated in the same manner. Getting those sticky marshmallows stuck in your throat is a hazard.
Who would have thought that marshmallows could kill you? Me. This is how I figured this out. Peeps are evil. Peeps are made of processed marshmallows therefore marshmallows are evil. I just love the nonsensical, simplistic flow of my logic. It's almost like a Michelle Bachmann rally. Hmmmm, I have an idea! "HEY Extreme Whack-A-Doodles! Ever heard of Chubby Bunny? It's a wholesome game full of family values. You might want to give it a go at your next cross burning… I mean gathering!"
Why did this game even get started? Is it because the economy is in the toilet and we are in denial? Instead of standing on-line for government cheese, have we been driven to stuffing chemical-filled "food" into our mouths as a form of entertainment? If so, I weep for our country. We have way too much time on our hands.


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Missing Vietnam War Soldiers Identified
- Details
- Category: Latest
- Created: Monday, 18 October 2010 16:36
- Last Updated: Monday, 18 October 2010 16:36
- Written by Administrator
Army Staff Sgt. Robert S. Griffith, of Hapeville, Ga., will be buried on Oct. 23 in Fairburn, Ga. The group remains of the other two soldiers which could not be individually identified -- Army Staff Sgt. Melvin C. Dye, of Carleton, Mich., and Sgt. 1st Class Douglas J. Glover, of Cortland, N.Y., will be buried at a later date. The men were aboard a UH-1H Iroquois helicopter on Feb. 19, 1968, when it was shot down by enemy fire in Laos. They were involved in an attempt to extract a
long-range reconnaissance patrol in the mountains of Attapu Province. Three other American service members survived the crash and were rescued, but three Vietnamese Montagnards did not survive.
Several hours after the crash, a team was dispatched to survey the location and reported seeing remains of at least five people. Enemy activity prevented remains recovery at that time. The following month a second team was sent to the crash site but found no remains.
In 1995, a joint U.S.-Lao People's Democratic Republic team traveled to the recorded grid coordinates for the crash site but found no evidence of a helicopter crash. The team then surveyed a second location in the area where they found helicopter wreckage and human remains. In 2006, a follow-on team was not able to resurvey the same site due to severe overgrowth and time constraints. Another team excavated the location in late 2007 recovering human remains, wreckage and military-related equipment.
Among other forensic identification tools and circumstantial evidence, scientists from the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command used dental x-rays in the identification of Griffith's remains.
Since late 1973, the remains of 938 Americans killed in the Vietnam War have been accounted for and returned to their families with 1,708 service members still missing.
For additional information on the Defense Department's mission to account for missing Americans, call 703-699-1169 or visit the DPMO Web site at http://www.dtic.mil/dpmo.
Missing Vietnam War Soldiers Identified [ http://www.defense.gov/releases/release.aspx?releaseid=13980 ]


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From: Doctor Who "The Monster Of Peladon" (1974)
Played by: Various desperate bit-parters
Affectionately known by the production team as "the badger look", the haircuts foisted on the miners of Peladon were a unique combination of afro and humbugs, with a hairline that started at the eyebrows. Many of the miners looked like the result of Tom Jones being run over on a zebra crossing. Although they could probably get away with riding a motorbike without a helmet.
Go to the next bad hair day


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Posts Tagged 'Ellefar'
- In: Haul | Swatches
- 9 Comments
After taking you on a virtual tour of the new branch of Daiso Japan at Glorietta 3, let me show you the cosmetics I bought from there. Here are the items I bought, each at Php88.
Warning: This post is image heavy!
Let's start off with the lipsticks. I bought two shades of Winmax Pearl Rouge Lipsticks: [96] Deep Rose and [98] Cherry Pink. These are the two darkest shades among the five available at Daiso Japan. As you can see, it comes sealed in these clear plastic boxes attached to the cardboard. You can see the actual product extended to its maximum length. On the very bottom right you will see that the amount of product is 3 grams.
At the back is a lot of information, fortunately with english translation at the bottom half.
Here is a close up on the list of ingredients.
Here are the actual tubes. They are basically a navy blue and gold tube, of very flimsy plastic. That clear tube on top is included only to allow the buyer to see the actual product while sealed. You have to set it aside and use the actual caps, which is here shown beside them.
Here is how it looks like closed. That gold band is a huge fingerprint magnet. It otherwise looks sturdy, and the cap seals properly and won't fall out by itself in your bag.
The actual lipstick product looks just as flimsy as the rest of the tube. Make sure to double check the one you are purchasing, as I've seen some tubes with already-damaged product in the store.
The bottom of the tubes have some information but all of it is in kanji/kana, with a big red number stamped on top of them. The #3 tube is the Deep Rose while the #5 is the Cherry Pink; you can tell by the code number "5207-#" right under the "Winmax Pearl Rouge", and this corresponds to the one printed on the left side of the back of the card (check out the third photo above). It's a little confusing, and they should have just printed the shade name here somewhere instead of using some number code.
And here are the arm swatches. You'll notice I didn't bother to label them, because they look exactly alike on this swatch. It's a little unfortunate, because I had assumed that one of them will be more plum and the other more coral.
It does look different on the lips though, which is a happy conclusion. The one on the left is the #5/Cherry Pink/98, and the one on the right is #3/Deep Rose/96. Cherry Pink really leans more towards berry, while Deep Rose is almost a nude shade on me, but is a dusty plum. It applies quite easily on primed lips (ie I applied lip balm beforehand) and lasts a weak 3 hours without eating or drinking.
Next item we have is the Ellefar Princess Duo Color Cheek in Strawberry [61]. It comes sealed in this plastic covering which is attached to the cardboard backing. It has a little tab on the upper right, which makes opening it a lot easier. The other available shade in Daiso is Orange, which I decided to skip since I just got the Canmake Cheek&Cheek in Orange Bouquet.
This is the back of the cardboard, which thankfully also comes with english translation at the bottom. There is also a diagram on the right side which shows where to apply which color.
Here is a close up of the ingredient list. Note that the amount of product this has is 5 grams.
And here it is, free of the plastic wrapping. The compact is made of black plastic with a clear window so you can see the shades of the product. The name of the product is printed in reflective silver, along with a rose applique which was a nice touch.
Opened up, you can see that the compact actually comes with a mirror and a brush. The mirror is tiny, but it works in a pinch. The brush looks weak and is very thin, and I probably will not use this ever. The blush itself comes in two shades: a bright pink in the bigger pan on the left, and a lighter, more glittery pink on the slightly smaller right pan. I gather that this second shade is for highlighting to create a more dimensional effect on the cheeks.
Here is the arm swatch. These are about two swipes of product each using my finger. The left shade comes out as a medium pink and the right shade is almost entirely made up of pinkish sparkle. I don't have an actual cheek swatch of this yet, because honestly I am using the other one exclusively these days.
The fourth item I bought at Daiso Japan is this Special! Mix Cheek Powder in Magic Color (No.2). It again comes sealed in plastic wrap, but its cardboard backing is much smaller. This Magic Color variant's shades are mostly pinks and purples. The other variant, Cute Color, comes in mostly peaches and oranges.
This is the back of that tiny cardboard on top. Again it's great that there's english translation there, and you can easily read the list of ingredients as well. Here is where it tells us that this compact contains 6 grams of product.
Here it is, freed of the plastic wrap. It comes in a nice sturdy plastic compact, with a clear cap so you can see all four shades of the blush. The cover has some fancy gold print on it which I really like.
When opened, it's basically just the blush itself. There is no mirror nor brush, which isn't such a big deal to me to be honest. There are also no partitions between the four shades, which encourages blending and combining. I use my Artist Studio blush brush or Charm blush brush to apply this.
Here are the arm swatches of all four shades, clockwise starting from the upper left. Again, I used my fingers to swipe two layers. Upper left is a very light candy pink, a highlight shade, similar to the Ellefar one above. Upper right is a shimmery pink that's a little darker than the highlight shade. The lower right shade is a strong coral pink. Lower left is a magenta-leaning purple.
This pair of looks uses some combination of this mix cheek powder. It blends quite well and doesn't look as intense as the arm swatch, even the coral one. This is all I've been using recently and I really love this! I want to get the other variants!
There you have it! Each of these items costs only Php88 which is such great value!
- In: Reviews | Swatches
- 5 Comments
This will be a quick one. I recently bought this Ellefar Princess Nudy Lip in Peach from Saizen Trinoma (Php88).
And here is the initial swatch on my arm.
Very pretty and solid, isn't it? Unfortunately it failed when applied on the lips. It seemed at once both waxy and liquidy, which translated to a very patchy application. Check it out:
At first I really thought I didn't apply it properly, so I started over and tried again. Nope, the exact same thing came out. I am heartbroken.
FOTD: Mega Taray Office Look
Posted January 11, 2014on:
- In: FOTD
- 4 Comments
Makeup is such a versatile tool and can really change a girl's look if done correctly. I was able to use this to good effect when I needed a severe office look to help me face one of my toughest challenges as a manager. I wanted a "mega taray" look because I wanted to project a certain image.
Red lipstick is the centerpiece, a shade I don't normally wear to the office and something I would usually associate with the word "taray". I supported it with a light blush, dark brows, and some pinkish-red eyeshadows.
Products used:
Barenaturals Face Primer
Colour Collection Age Defying BB Cream
Avon Ideal Luminous Blush in Peach
Essence Mattifying Finishing Powder
In2It Eyebrow Powder in Eyebrowns
Essence I Love Stage Eyeshadow Base
Ellefar Princess Chifon Eyeshadow Palette in Twilight (upper right)
Nichido Naturally Beautiful Palette (third from the right)
Fairydrops Platinum Mascara
Ofra Lipstick #202
Avon Ultra Glazewear Lip Gloss in Fiery Red
I would love to hear your thoughts about this look!
FOTD: Typical Office Look
Posted July 20, 2013on:
- In: FOTD
- 3 Comments
I usually only have 20-30 minutes to prepare in the morning, since I have a 2-hour travel time to go to the office. This is what I would usually wear on my face on a typical office day.
Skincare (no picture, sorry!), applied in order
Celeteque Hydration Facial Wash with NMF
Celeteque Hydration Hydrolyzed Moisturizing Mist
Celeteque Brightening Tri-Benefit Power Cream
Primer: Barenaturals Skin Perfecting Primer
Foundation: Maybelline Pure Liquid Mineral Foundation
Eyebrows, Eyes, and Cheeks: Nichido Naturally Beautiful Palette
Eyebrows (2nd layer): Ellefar Princess Chiffon Eyeshadow Palette in Bronze
Lips: Avon Vitaluscious Lipstick in Reviving Red
What's your basic office look?
- In: Swatches
- 15 Comments
This is probably super late, but better late than never! Remember those Ellefar eyeshadow palettes I bought last February? Here let me refresh you. These eyeshadow palettes are available at Saizen (list of branches here) for Php88 each. I got two of their palettes, and I will now post them with their respective swatches.
First we have the Ellefar Princess Chiffon Eyeshadow Palette in Twilight.
And the Twilight palette swatches, from the upper left and going clockwise.
Second we have the Ellefar Princess Chiffon Eyeshadow Palette in Bronze.
And the Bronze palette swatches, going left to right top row first then bottom row.
There you have it! I hope this helps you decide whether to buy these eyeshadow palettes or not.
Haul: Saizen Cosmetics
Posted February 11, 2013on:
- In: Haul
- 4 Comments
[Preface: Been on an unannounced hiatus for a week, but I'm back! Lots of posts on the backburn, nail posts and reviews coming up. Expecting my subscription boxes soon as well, so there will be unboxing posts scheduled. Thanks for your patience!]
I want to start by saying, I LOVE Saizen. I have always loved their bento materials back when I still had time to make everyday bentos. Now that I'm concentrating on cosmetics and beauty products, I came back to my original love and found great products for my newfound hobby.
I was lucky to catch an end of season sale at Saizen, and I got this Creation Eyeshadow palette for only, get this, Php25! It's even in the 2013 color, green! This amazingly cheap palette has six pans of eyeshadow, three of which is a shade of green. The other three are a very light baby blue, a taupe/tan, and what is probably white or very pale cream. All shades are shimmery. It also comes with a probably-unusable double-ended brush, and it has no mirror.
I also got a couple of this Ellefar Princess Chiffon Eyeshadow, a 4-color eyeshadow palette that comes in an attractive black plastic compact with rose details. The first palette is in Twilight, and the shades are (clockwise from top left): a very light pink as a highlighting color, a tan/brown for the crease, a yellowish beige for the lid, and a dark chocolate for either brows or as a liner color. I should also mention that all colors are shimmery, and it doesn't come with a mirror.
The second Ellefar Princess Chiffon Eyeshadow palette is in Bronze. The shades are (clockwise from top left): a very light gray or slightly dirty white as a highlighting color, a pale tan for the lid, a black or dark gray for the brows or as a liner color, and a bronze for the crease. Again, all shades are shimmery, and the palette has no mirror. Both of these palettes are the standard Php88.
Finally, I got a Winmax Nail Lacquer, Nail Sparks variant (#8 shade). It's a very shimmery candy red shade. It's also Php88. Here are shots of the bottle, and the swatch (3 layers).
I've used all of the products above and I am generally pleased with all of them. I use the Ellefar palettes regularly, although usually only single colors as the shimmers are pretty strong to use for the office. I really like the Winmax polish, it's a fun sparkly shade to wear!
Do you shop cosmetics at Saizen? Tell me about it!


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My family and I are freshly back from our Lake District adventures and what a part of the week we've had. I say part of the week as it didn't go to plan… At all! We arrived on Monday and by Wednesday afternoon we were travelling back down the A66 and back into North Yorkshire. Now I feel I must fully explain the reasoning behind our swift and untimely departure from our lake side retreat.
We arrived at about 3.30pm and after unpacking the car took a leisurely stroll down towards the lake at the bottom of the site. Granny and Grandpa took me on the jetty whilst Mama J stood by the lake bank cooing that it looked unstable and that she didn't feel safe watching me perched perilously on the wooden edge. Oh she's such a drama queen!
Following a wander around the site Mama J's first and last Lake District training session began. She had to get back up the hill to the top of the site where our abode was situated. Now you'd have thought she was climbing Mount Everest the way she was going on, not a 200 yard hill! She kept stopping at every speed hump along the road, ticking them off as if she was ticking off her life long ambitions. I swear I thought once she'd reached the top of the site she was going to give an acceptance speech akin with the one Gwyneth Paltrow gave when she won her Oscar.
As we settled into lodge life, Mama J said she could happily live permanently in accommodation like this. She even had Granny looking on the Internet to see how much the lodge opposite was for sale at. Was I going to become a Lake District pooch instead of a Yorkshire lady? Err I think not, as things really took a turn for the worse when Mama J put her pyjamas on and climbed into bed. Was there a monstrous spider lurking between the bedcovers? No, it was even more sinister than that… The bed was rocking! Every movement Mama J made in this tiny, unstructured and unstable bed left her fearing for her life! As Granny walked by the room she could hear Mama J's cries of, "It's bloody rocking!" then, "Dorothy was right!" Dorothy who the hell was Dorothy? When asked by Granny to explain that she didn't have an imaginary friend, Mama J replied, "The Wizard Of Oz! Dorothy! There's no place like home!"
After half an hour of rocking and I don't mean in a passion filled 'if this caravan is rocking don't come a knocking' kind of way and once everyone, myself included was in bed, Mama J emerged from her cabin bedroom and made her way to the sofa. She had put on her orange rain coat for warmth and then topped it off with the dog blanket the lodge site had kindly provided for me to lay on. What a vision! Now I know it's a Joules rain coat but I do think it was designed for wet walking activities rather than sofa surfing!
Following a slightly comfier night than she may have had in the bedroom, Mama J's mind was firmly made up, she wanted to go home! Thank goodness she's never attempted a cruise because I'm really sure those beds would be rocking with the ships wave floating movements. Anyway she set about Grandpa and bribery was the order of the day. She offered him £700 to drive her home which was increased to £1000 soon after. Grandpa told her to stop being so silly and that we were staying until Friday. The look of horror on Mama J's face lead her to make a desperate search of the Internet for train tables and local taxi companies. This girl really wanted to be in her own bed!
Once Mama J had calmed down to an almost human manner we all got in the car for a drive around the northern Lakes. Mama J told Grandpa he was going the wrong way when he wasn't heading in the direction of home. This joke, oh she wasn't joking, went down fairly well with Granny who was swaying towards going home too but not with Grandpa who just huffed at her. After driving around the breathtaking beauty spots we all retreated back to the lodge for bread and soup and an afternoon of Mama J moaning and moaning some more that, she wanted to go home and asking if it was Friday yet. Oh dear!
It was 4.50am on Wednesday morning when Mama J was startling awoken to the sound of banging and then rustling from outside the lodge. Had MI5 come to bust her out and take her home to her beautiful bed? No, on looking out the window Mama J saw the culprits of all the noise. A flock (well okay there were three of them) of sheep outside kicking the side of the lodge and chomping on the bushes! This was an ambush of a very different kind. Also aren't sheep meant to send you off to sleep not wake you up from your slumber?
Once the rest of the lodge had woken up there was a different mood in the camp and especially from Granny. She who to be fair to Mama J was wavering slightly the day before, had also decided that this style of holiday wasn't really for her either and wanted to go home too. It was decided that Grandpa would go climb a mountain. Now that wasn't Mama J definition of a mountain which was a 200 yard hill but an actual mountain and then once he'd returned we could all go home, yippee!
Grandpa had a pretty scary experience up the mountain and nearly turned back at one point but managed to calm himself down enough to complete the task. He already had a dodgy hip when we set of for The Lake District and now he has two dodgy knees that he keeps telling us will be okay tomorrow each morning too!
Mama J was thrilled to be home and even more thrilled to be sleeping in her own bed. Like she and Dorothy said, "There's no place like home!"


text:
I run a number of Authenticity workshops – each focused on a different communication skill. For many people it's not always clear the difference between them. This blog post will share my definitions which are based on the flow of information between you and your audience.
It's important to me that people understand the differences between each discipline as each requires different skills, and has a different responsibility for the speaker. So often I experience trainers who pretty much just talk at their audience. To me, that's not training, that's presenting. To present (meaning "to offer") is when most of the information flows from you to your audience. It's a useful skill to have, but it isn't training. It's one of the things you do when training, but isn't the whole story.
To facilitate (meaning " to make easier; assist the progress of") is generally when most of the information flows from your audience to you. The facilitator will help that happen by posing questions or running processes designed to get the audience to generate the information. It's a key skill for many trainers who wish to help their participants find solutions for themselves. But on it's own, it's not training. A trainer uses both facilitation and presentation – with the added responsibility of ensuring that the information that flows between the two ends of the continuum, somehow meet up and fit together.
To train (meaning "to change skill or behaviour") requires us to know when to ask and when to tell. My general rule is only tell when I know they don't know. I like to let my participants be at the source of the learning; to make their own connections – and I invest much of my time supporting their thinking process rather than downloading information they already know.


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AHRQ Health IT Projects Publication Database
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This database serves as a central repository for publications resulting from AHRQ Health IT funded work that is PubMed or Google Scholar indexed, including: book chapters, journal articles, conference proceedings, and reports from funded contracts.
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Improving Asthma Care With Health Information Technology - Final Report
Bracha Y, Brottman GM, Larsen K. Improving Asthma Care With Health Information Technology - Final Report. (Prepared by Denver Health and Hospital Association and the Minneapolis Medical Research Foundation under Contract No. 290-06-0020-5). Rockville, MD: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, July 2011. AHRQ Publication No. 11-0068-EF.
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There are always those people who find a way to be the center of attention, and it seems they often do it by creating a chaotic situation. Their goal is to take something small and turn it into a major event, and then they will come in light a knight on a shining charger to fix the situation. It would not be quite so bad if they were able to actually fit the situation they let get out of hand, but they usually need someone else to do the correcting. Escaping insanity of this type is like finally getting a breath of fresh air.
A Type of Lifestyle
For those who become embroiled in this type of lifestyle, it can be wearying. They are generally people who live an organized life, and they suddenly find that there is something that needs to be done at every turn. They are often blamed for the situation, or they might be the one who is the unwitting subject of it. It does not matter that they were unaware of what was happening, but it will soon be something they can recognize immediately.
Creating Havoc
People who need to be recognized as heroes are good at creating havoc wherever they go. Their lives are incomplete unless they have invited a large group of people for dinner, and then they wait until the last minute to purchase the food. When they break down due to their own stress, they need someone to save them. They count on their partner to be there, fix whatever they have done wrong, and then they move on merrily while secure in the belief they have done their best to remedy the situation they created in the first place.
Finding Peace
For a person who has been subjected to this type of lifestyle over time, finding peace by leaving is something that can sooth their tattered nerves. They might find that simply living alone feels like their life is perfect, but they must be careful not to let this first step remain their only step. Getting out and socializing again is important, so even going out with independent Northampton escorts can help them break out of their own isolation.
Finding Someone New
The thought of finding someone new might be frightening for a person who has had a partner of this type, but they should not let it stop them from finding their own happiness. Booking Emily Busty, a popular lady from a line of professional independent escorts could help them get out and meet that person who will be a perfect partner in life.
Few people really like a chaotic life, so living with a partner who constantly creates it can wear them down completely. For those who find they have made a commitment to this type of person, there is nothing wrong with leaving them to life with the results of their own actions. Getting away from the insanity they create is a type of personal preservation, and leaving should be considered the first and best step toward creating a new and better life for the person who wants a measure of sanity.


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IARU HF World Championship
To contact as many other amateurs, especially IARU member society HQ stations, around the world as possible using the 160, 80, 40, 20, 15 and 10 meter bands.
The second full weekend of July, beginning 1200 UTC Saturday and ending 1200 UTC Sunday. Both Single and Multi operator stations may operate the entire 24-hour period.
Log Submission Deadline
Entries must be postmarked or emailed no later than 30 days after the end of the contest . Entries sent as attachments to email must be sent to firstname.lastname@example.com.
By submitting a log to the IARU HF World Championships, the entrant agrees the log may be open to the public.
A certificate will be awarded to the high scoring entry in each category in each ITU zone, each DXCC country and each ARRL Section.
A certificate of participation will be awarded to each IARU member society HQ station and to each Administrative Council and Regional Executive Committee station.
Achievement level awards will be issued to those making at least 250 QSOs or having a multiplier total of 75 or more.
Additional awards may be made at the discretion of each country's IARU member society.
For more information, visit the ARRL IARU HF Championship page.