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In 1980, topping off the active phase of their strange career as pop interlopers turned AOR powerhouses, Steely Dan scored their third and final Top 10 hit: "Hey Nineteen," in which a class-of-'67 "dandy of Gamma Chi" came on to a girl too young to remember Aretha Franklin. As music, it was smoothly seductive, all tasty off-harmonies and jazz-lite pulse. As seduction, however, it was slightly sickening—half whine, half bribe. Lamented singer and lyricist Donald Fagen: "She thinks I'm crazy/But I'm just growing old." Fagen was 32 at the time.
Shortly thereafter, Fagen and his chum Walter Becker showed just how old they felt by retiring. They'd always hated the rock life anyway—not just touring, the whole mess of having a band. Holing up for months diddling sonic details they dug, but not the interpersonal stuff. Having bestowed upon us two Doobie Brothers and a clean-cut blond vocalist who was never heard from again, they abandoned all pretensions to collective camaraderie by contracting out the priciest studio guns in El Lay—swinging perfectionists from the Crusaders to Toto, typified for me by pet guitarist Larry Carlton, who can say nothing with more taste and dexterity than any alleged jazzman ever to lick his chops. But if you want to blame Carlton for 1977's Aja, the band's blandest and most commercially decisive album, you'll have to explain how come he's all over Fagen's wonderful 1982 The Nightfly. Steely Dan is Fagen and Becker—everyone else is an instrument. They need snazzy ones because they specialize in chords most rock and rollers can't play. So rock covers of their perverse low-life lyrics and scrumptious melodies are almost nonexistent. But Doc Severinsen did one once, and next time you're stuck in an elevator, keep your ears peeled. Muzak loves these guys.
Muzak has no doubt helped keep them flush since 1981, along with songwriting and production work, sampling royalties, a grand total of three solo albums, and the two tours they ventured in the '90s. But for 20 years Fagen and Becker have lived primarily off their small, lovingly tended catalog of sound recordings: seven albums, a few compilations, and in 1993 a meticulously remastered box, Citizen Steely Dan, that rather than dangling the usual add-on dreck upheld their sonic principles by making room for just four nonalbum cuts, only one previously unreleased—and that has since been surpassed, for reasons they'll happily detail, by the reremastered single albums they put out later. Their exacting, articulate, affluent cult is loaded with audiophiles as well as supporting schools of exegetes who'll go to their graves pondering the hidden meaning of "Brooklyn owes the charmer under me."
And in this new millennium the exegetes finally have something new to dissect, because for the first time since 1980's dispirited Gaucho Steely Dan has finalized some new material: an album called Two Against Nature, not a bad slogan for a matched pair of urban cynics. There's nothing expedient, rote, or stillborn about this return to the racks. As a Steely Dan fan from the moment the vicious cycle that is "Do It Again" snuck onto AM radio in 1972, I hear it as almost a rebirth, closer in mood to the elitist effrontery of their first four albums than the accomplished slickness that gradually took over. But it's different from both, as after 20 years it had better be. The music turns Aja's fusion-pop mode jumpier and snappier, sourer and trickier and less soothing—postfunk, whether anyone will admit it or not. Even more important, the impenetrable lyrics have moved decisively toward the literal. Sure, you can debate the precise meaning of "Who makes the traffic interesting?"; they're doing it in the chat rooms right now. But Two Against Nature is so thematically unified it almost has a concept, one familiar to admirers of "Hey Nineteen"—and a dandy for a rock comeback, too. Clearly and explicitly, Two Against Nature is an album about old men trying to get laid.
Rocking past your prescribed time doesn't oblige you to feign "youth," especially if you weren't so crazy about either rock or youth to begin with. But for damn sure the possibility is going to occur to you. And now that Fagen and Becker have passed 50 it becomes clear that they have a unique solution to this problem. Thrown together, they're permanent college boys, tied to the roots of their relationship at small, arty, expensive Bard. The bull-session one-upsmanship of their synergy suggests nothing so much as a less slapstick version of National Lampoon, which was very much a reflection of the same '60s worldview (meaning early '60s worldview) the solo Fagen celebrated—rather more lyrically than he ever gets with Becker—in The Nightfly. And they're premature pseudosophisticates to this day. Their cynicism, their obscurantism, their compulsive cleverness, their devotion to agreed-upon totems of musical cool—all are hallmarks of the kind of bond that develops between too-smart sophomores who aren't as sure of themselves as they pretend to be, especially around women.
There are nine songs on the new album. In the relatively cryptic opener, loosely based on an old Ingrid Bergman flick, hubby and "ripe and ready" new flame drive wife crazy by the sea. Then a fortysomething clerk at the Strand doesn't have the gumption to go home with the movie star he went out with in college. Then the title tune, about voodoo, the exception to the theme. Then a painter rejuvenated by jailbait Janie angles for a three-way with her friend Melanie. Then a sloe-eyed Little Eva of Bleecker Street has our protagonist "sizzling like an isotope." Then he's saving a honey from a speed freak, sex just a subtext in this one. Then Dupree gets turned down by his all-grown-up little cousin Janine in the most savory lines of the record: "She said maybe it's the sleazy look in your eyes/Or that your mind has turned to applesauce/The dreary architecture of your soul/I said—but what is it exactly turns you off?" Then another mercurial narcissist jerks our man around. And finally a hot affair between Kid Clean and Anne de Siecle slips "below the horizon line"—apparently into therapy, which the Kid apparently needs big time. Do you still think I'm making this concept stuff up?
OK, not concept—that was the silly sci-fi of Fagen's Kamakiriad. Say instead that sex here is somewhere between controlling metaphor and shared obsession. The likelihood that the songs are fictions, based like most fictions on observation—the music business is a petri dish for such stories—doesn't mean they aren't also fueled, like most fictions, by personal experience. But who knows whose autobiography ended up where? Certainly not us exegetes. Although convention attributes all Steely Dan lyrics to Fagen, whose solo albums are far more literary than the plainspoken Becker confessional 11 Tracks of Whack, Becker is plenty verbal—his 1996 tour letters at www.steelydan.com set the band's sardonic public tone, full of false leads and backhanded putdowns of people you didn't know existed. And while Fagen married the formidable singer-scenester Libby Titus in 1994, Becker seems something of a man-about-town. So I can't escape the feeling that a lot of the content is Becker's even if the words and details aren't. This band isn't just a working partnership, CSNY sans applesauce. It's a collaboration at a very deep level.
Though the songs are fictions, they're also revelations—glimpses of middle-aged sophomores looking for validation and the kind of excitement they always held at a distance in the end. Far removed classwise from the petty loserdom of Katy Lied and Can't Buy a Thrill, they're full of heady infatuations and random acts of cruelty, self-interest, and self-hate, vicious cycles blowing hot and cold. Precise, hip, worried, waiting by the phone for a "negative girl" or brimming with pedophile delight at a runaway's cute sexy ways, Fagen always conveys the urgency of attraction. Whether the objects of his desire are young or not, a matter usually left unspecified, they got the juice, so that the metaphor is less being able to get it up than being unable to restrain yourself, which is the first thing fiftysomethings miss when their libidos begin to run down—and which is also the difference between a rote comeback and a near rebirth.
If the price of making a good record is looking like dirty old men, Fagen and Becker have no qualms about paying. Long ago they began their careers as staff songwriters, and for all their jazzy proclivities, song is their element. Imagine the incredibly skilled and through-composed music alone and it's pretty annoying—Medeski Martin & Wood without that band's showoff eccentricity, which in this context would come as a relief. Contemplate the lyrics just as writing and they're also pretty annoying—the superannuated sex fantasies of the rich and neurotic. Put the two together and you have the stuff of great rock and roll that no one has ever come close to duplicating—not even worthy inheritors like Tom Zé and Freedy Johnston. Male computer nerds who've mastered a culture of affluence without making sense of their sex lives should listen up. They won't learn a damn thing, that's not really the idea. But they'll feel a little less alone.


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I think it must be innate — the weather gets warmer, the flowers bloom, and everyone decides they need a haircut. (I think maybe it's like shedding, for people.) Dan has been talking about needing to cut his hair for weeks, I've been deciding if I want to brave getting my hair cut here again, and Liam's hair has been starting to get too long even for my taste.
The day before yesterday, I decided to tackle Liam's hair (again). I've cut it a few times before, under the general assumption that it's hard to screw up curly hair too badly, but with my dual goals of keeping it out of his eyes and keeping the long curls, it has starting looking a little mullet-like after my attempts. Before he starts school in the fall, I'll probably resort to having him trimmed by a professional (which worries me, because I've had bad luck and heard bad stories, and I worry about his curls) but I decided to do it again this time, with a little more research beforehand. As a result, I left the longest pieces on the top of his head pretty much alone and focused on trimming the pieces that fall in his eyes, as well as the long parts in the back that don't really curl anyway. I'm no stylist, but I think this was my best effort so far.
B decided last night that he, too, needed a new haircut (perhaps inspired by Liam's new style? . . . probably not) so he & Dan went to get their hair done today. I was kind of surprised by how short of a style B chose, but he likes it a lot and I think he'll be cool and cute for summer (it's also the most popular style with the other boys at school, so I'm not THAT surprised).So now it's just me! Maybe it'll be my turn next . . . Happy spring haircut season!

subset: commoncrawl


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Tag Archives: recording video
First Attempts at Recording Video on the Canon 5D Mark II
I have been shooting Canon for my still photography work for quite some time now. I may actually be somewhat of an oddity because I am mostly a landscape and architecture photographer and it seems to me many people chose Nikon as their camera of choice if that is what they shoot, but I guess I started with Canon and will probably stay there unless someone gives me a stable of Nikon gear. I must admit I do lust after that 9 image auto bracket when it comes to my HDR work but that is a much different story. Continue reading
Posted in Art, Film, Photography, Weblogs Tagged canon 5D mark II, Canon 5D Mark II how to shoot video in manual, hd video, recording video, Rode Stero Videomic Pro, Rode Videomic Pro Comments Off on First Attempts at Recording Video on the Canon 5D Mark II


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More Instruments
Perhaps I'm doing something wrong…
I've used the wizard and initiated a configuration to use with BFD3. Then, I've moved things around, assigned different instruments to triggers, etc. The problem is this:
There are not enough instruments for my EXP.
There are five cymbals — that's great, I'm using them.
There are six toms!
There is really only one HighHat — the sounds seem to be somewhat connected. This is fine, I can assign different modes to a couple of triggers – works fine.
There is also really only one Snare and Ride — same thing.
There is one kick.
And the real problem — there are only TWO percussion pieces listed.
So, I program six Toms, five cymbals, and use two triggers for hats and two for snares and two for kicks. I'm at 17 triggers. I want to add some bells, some hand-percussion, a couple different tambourines, blocks, shakers to other triggers, but even if I try to use some "unused" things (ride bell, tom rim, etc.), they are tied to whatever instrument I select in BFD3 for the primary instrument.
So, how can I add about 20 percussion pieces to the configuration so that I can assign instruments to them in BFD3?


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Heart Disease, Symptoms & Risk Factors
The term heart disease, also called cardiovascular disease, is an umbrella term for diseases, conditions, and defects of the heart.
- Rheumatic heart disease
- Congestive heart failure
- Hypertensive heart disease (e.g., aneurysms, atherosclerosis, hypertension)
- High cholesterol
- Arrhythmia
- Heart attack
- Valvular heart disease
- Cerebral vascular disease
- Stroke
Heart disease might be congenital (present at birth) or can develop later in life. It is the leading cause of death in America – for both men and women, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and about one in every four deaths is related to heart disease.
What are the symptoms of heart disease?
Not every person with heart disease has the same signs. Some may be asymptomatic. The symptoms you experience depend on your particular condition:
Narrowing/thickening of arteries
- Chest pain
- Shortness of breath
- Pain in the neck, jaw, or upper back
- Pain, weakness, or numbness in your arms or legs
Abnormal heart rhythm
- Fast or slow heartbeat
- Fluttering in your chest
- Discomfort or pain in the chest area
- Lightheadedness
- Dizziness
- Shortness of breath
Weak heart muscle
- Breathlessness after exertion
- Fatigue
- Irregular heartbeat
- Swelling in the legs and feet
- Dizziness
- Fainting
Valvular disease
- Fatigue
- Shortness of breath
- Chest pain
- Fainting
- Swelling in the feet
- Irregular heartbeat
What factors increase the risk of heart disease?
Heart disease doesn't discriminate; it can affect anyone of any race from any background at any stage of life. That being said, there are certain risk factors for heart disease that you should be aware of.
- Age – the older you get, the higher your risks
- Family history of heart disease
- Smoking
- Birth control pills
- Sedentary lifestyle and lack of exercise
- Obesity
- High blood cholesterol levels
- Diet high in cholesterol, salt, and sugar
- High blood pressure
- Diabetes and prediabetes
- Unmanaged stress
If you are at risk of developing heart disease, take steps to eliminate or reduce any risk factors that are within your control. The following pages provide further details on heart health:
World-Class Care at Heart Vascular & Leg
If you have precursors or symptoms of heart disease, set up your appointment with The Heart Center for an evaluation. Our founder, Dr. Kumar regularly attends national medical conventions and conferences to bring the best technologies and diagnostics back to Bakersfield.
You'll have access to our world-class heart specialists and state-of-the-art evaluation, testing, and treatments, all in a single location.
Call us today at 661-324-4100 or fill out our contact form. We offer same-day appointments and accept most types of insurance.


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I put my mascara on before my eye shadow because I'm a lot messier with it and it's easier to remove with a cotton bud when I don't have to worry about ruining my shadow. I've gotten a lot better because for the last few years I have used a piece of torn off cardboard or an old business card behind my lashes so I literally paint the mascara on. I've now started using a spoon - watch this highly entertaining video:
I'm going to have to try using it to put on liquid eye liner but I think I'll skip the eyelash curling.
I tend to buy a variety of mascaras, usually waterproof and rotate through them, if I don't like it I will toss it straight away. Today I'm using Essence Get Big Lashes and I have no complaints.
Eye Primer
I have a small tube of Napolean Perdis that doesn't seem to end. It also does the job well.
Eye Shadow
Don't hate me but I love cream shadows. I find them so easy to use. Powder shadow has too much fall out and I find that it irritates my eyes.
A lot of the cheaper creams don't have much lasting power or pigment but I can highly recommend Max Factor's Masterpiece Colour Precision Eyeshadow. At the moment I am wearing Pearl Beige as my brow and inner eye highlight and Coffee over my lid - blended together. It's been on all day, and yes the colours aren't as strong as this morning but still noticeable.
Invisible Zinc
I smudge a bit of zinc on the areas that I worry about like where my glass sit, the tip of my nose, chin and around my lips. I don't do all over because zinc is thick and heavy and because it sits on the skin I find it washes me out if I do.
Tinted Sunscreen
I usually wear Sun Sense 50+. It's light coloured and feels nice on. I am trying Nivea Visage Anti-Wrinke SPF 15 which is oka but it is darker and doesn't protect me as long as Sun Sense. I bought it because it was in a smaller tube for carrying overseas.
Lip stick
I have a bit of a thing for lipstick. I really love the ones that last for ages like Maybelline 14 hr Lipstick or the 24 hour type ones. But I also like chubby sticks - I'm wearing Sally Hansen Colorfast but I also have Revlon's Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stains as well. Like mascara I really haven't got a preference as long as the colour is nice, I even have a few Coral Colours - I use a lip pencil under them and blot and they seem to say on for ages.
I also use ChapStick with SPF 30.
What I would like
I only wear liquid eye liner when I'm going out somewhere special but I wouldn't mind trying it for day wear.
Sometimes I run a pencil liner under the top lid of my eye to make my lashes look thicker - it's apparently called tightlining. I would like to buy a nude colour for my lower water line because white just doesn't seem to look good on me.
I'd also like to start lightly contouring my face but I don't really have anything to do it with anymore.
The other thing that I really want to do is extend my eye shadow collection, with quality powder shadows, and maybe try some more creams.
So that's it. I don't usually wear foundation and when I do I usually mix it with a bit of sorbolene cream. I don't use blush or powders either. I'm pretty lucky that I have nice skin and I don't want to hide it.
My cleansing routine hasn't changed since I stopped using Clearasil in high school - face washer and warm water while I'm in the shower. I will use eye make-up wipes in the evening but I find they sting my eyes so I want to find a nicer option.


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It's summer, so our BBQ is in full tilt. We leaped to charcoal a few years ago and never looked back, that smokey goodness is just too incredible to skip. We've been busy smoking anything we can fit in that BBQ, including a 20 pounds turkey – but that's a post for another day. Today we're all about how to smoke salt – and the 100 reasons why you should. (ok 3 reasons why you should)
A Step by Step process to smoke your own salt at home
First, the stuff tastes fantastic. It's a perfect finishing salt to add to tomato soup, or on top of an avocado – or anything you want to impart a smokey kick. It's as good, if not better than some of the gourmet smoked salts you buy in the grocery store.
Second, it's far cheaper to make this at home. Some of the fancy finishing salts are super expensive. Get as fancy as you want to be with this and still save a load of money.
And if you need one more reason, these make great gifts! It's the perfect host/hostess gift, especially if you are going to a BBQ this summer. A great gift for any BBQ lover or foodie on your holiday gift list!
I've even included the labels so you can print them off and make your own fancy bottles to give away. You can find the download toward the bottom of the post.
But honestly – I don't think you will give them away. I think you're going to hoard your smoked salt in your cupboards.
~This post may contain affiliate links. If you click one and make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no additional cost to you.~
So what is the best salt to smoke?
Sea salt – the flakier and chunkier the better.
My go-to choice is Maldon because that is my favorite salt by far and it is thin and flaky, perfect for smoking.
But you don't have to buy expensive Maldon salt either, we did smoke up some coarse sea salt, and it worked just as well.
Maldon makes a smoked salt, but I find the smokey flavor is very dull, very non-existent hence the DIY BBQ adventure.
You can smoke fine sea salt too, but honestly, I find smoked salt is more a finishing salt. Fine salt doesn't add that crunch, and I find it doesn't add that punch of fire roasted smokey flavor.
What's the best wood to make smoked salt?
Applewood – by far our favorite.
After trying several different kinds of wood on several different salts, we both agreed that the applewood smoked salt was the best.
Don't get me wrong, the rest of the woods made fine tasting salt too, but the applewood was superior. I found applewood to be the most versatile of all the smoked salts we've tried. It imparted the best clean smoke flavor that paired well with everything.
With that said, I also have to say that never made a smoked salt that I didn't like. Hickory, cherry, rum barrel, maple bourbon barrel, all worked perfectly well.
Like anything that has to do with food, this is just a personal preference. Honestly, smoking a batch of salt is super easy, so I recommend trying a few different kinds of wood to find what you like the best.
But if you don't want the fuss of experimenting, go with applewood. It does make a tasty smoked salt – you can't go wrong if you start out with applewood.
There are also specialty wood chips you can find like rum barrel and bourbon oak which we also quite like. You can find most of those specialty wood chips on Amazon.
What temperatures are needed to make smoked salt?
We've smoked salts at 250F and 400F, and I have found that the only thing that changes is how long you have to smoke your salt. At 250F we smoke for 5-6 hours – at 350-400F we smoke for 2-3 hours and end up with the same result.
I did read a recommendation that you should cold smoke your salt for 12 hours. Tried that, what I ended up with was an incredibly powerful – over the top – acrid smokey salt. I did not like it at all, but if you want something stronger, add a few hours to your smoke.
My advice – smoke it at 350F for 2-3 hours.
Ok, so what do I need?
You need flakey sea salt, or coarse salt, your favorite wood for smoking, a BBQ or smoker, and time.
When I was trying to figure out how to smoke salt, I used a lot of different woods, a lot of different methods, and went through a lot of salt!
Here is a list of what we used to make our favorite applewood smoked salt.
- Char-Griller Akorn Kamado Kooker Charcoal Barbecue Grill and Smoker
- Maldon Sea Salt Flakes – Pack of 2
- 13″ Splatter Screen
- Apple Wood Chips
We have a Char-griller Akorn Kamado grill/smoker. We wouldn't replace it with anything because it's the best BBQ we've ever had. It's fantastic, we love it, I highly recommend it.
After three summers of hard wear and tear this thing is still going strong without any issues. My husband smokes everything in that thing – turkeys, cheese, salt, pizza, grilled cheese- honestly if it is food I am sure at some point we tried to BBQ it or smoke it.
I also bought a frying pan splatter screen, stainless steel, and bent the handle up so I could put it inside our BBQ.
The screen is perfect for coarse salt. It allows the smoke to penetrate at the top and the bottom at the same time. I find this speeds up the process and makes it easy work.
How to smoke salt.
How to smoke salt is as easy as pie. Wait, no that's wrong, it's way easier.
I smoke 2 cups of salt on 300-350 f for 2-3 hours. I stir my salt and add new smoke chips every hour, and I do not soak them.
All that soaking will do is delay your smoke and reduce the temperature of your coals.
If you want an excellent BBQ book that delves into the science of heat, smoke and flame buy Meathead: The Science of Great Barbecue and Grilling. The best damn BBQ book ever. It's where I learned all about why you shouldn't bother soaking the wood and many other unusual tidbits that will take your BBQ game to the next level.
How to smoke salt was not a topic in the cookbook, but you can find some of the best recipes for your summer BBQ in that book.
Can I smoke salt in a gas BBQ?
How to smoke salt in a gas BBQ? Buy an A-MAZE-N 12" Pellet Tube Smoker.
I am going to recommend that you invest in this beautiful little device. The A-MAZE-N pellet tube smoker allows you to cold smoke in your gas BBQ.
I've used it in the past, and it works great. It takes pellets, and not wood chips or wood chunks, so that's an extra investment, but it does turn your gas BBQ into a cold smoker.
Storing your smoked salt
The salt improves over time. It mellows, gets a bit smokier, and the taste keeps getting better and better.
I store my salt in mason jars, and it lasts indefinitely. I have some kicking around from last summer, and it still tastes terrific. Use airtight storage containers if you are storing for long periods of time.
I made these adorable labels that you can print off and add to your jars. You can print them on sticky label paper, but you will need to cut them. A paper trimmer makes quick work of the job.
I printed mine on card stock and used a glue stick to slap them on the front of a 500ml (2 cups) mason jar. A bit of craft paper added to the lid and a twist of twine add a nice touch.
You seriously need to make a batch! In the middle of winter, when it's cold outside, you can add a pinch of fire-roasted goodness to your dishes and pretend that it's still summer.
I mean think about the possibilities! Smokey Mac N Cheese, sprinkle on mashed potatoes, rim a Bloody Mary, add to homemade mozzarella, make smokey rubs to use in the oven, sprinkle on a bowl of pumpkin soup…
Speaking of pumpkin soup, have you ever tried Cinderella pumpkins?
An easy DIY smoked salt recipe anyone can make in their own backyard BBQ. If you have a gas BBQ and still want to smoke salt, you can purchase A-MAZE-N 12'' Pellet Tube Smoker. The A-MAZE-N pellet tube smoker allows you to cold smoke in your gas BBQ. I've used it in the past, and it works great. It takes pellets, and not wood chips or wood chunks, so that's an extra investment, but it does turn your gas BBQ into a cold smoker. As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchases.
How to Smoke Salt With Your Backyard BBQ
For Charcoal BBQ
For A Gas BBQ
Recommended Products
Nutrition Information: Yield: 192 Serving Size: 1/4 tsp
Amount Per Serving: Sodium: 580mg
An easy DIY smoked salt recipe anyone can make in their own backyard BBQ.
If you have a gas BBQ and still want to smoke salt, you can purchase A-MAZE-N 12'' Pellet Tube Smoker.
The A-MAZE-N pellet tube smoker allows you to cold smoke in your gas BBQ.
I've used it in the past, and it works great. It takes pellets, and not wood chips or wood chunks, so that's an extra investment, but it does turn your gas BBQ into a cold smoker.
As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchases.


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Intel i5 Quad
256mb hash each
3-4-5 piece tablebases
Ponder off
GBSelect2017-3.cgb book
40 moves in 25 minutes repeating (adapted for the CCRL)
4 cycles 44 rounds
All engines 64-bit where available
The top engine will gain automatic promotion and the bottom engine will be relegated. Any other changes of division will be at my discretion and may not necessarily involve playoff matches.
Delocto 0.6 64-bit
Phalanx XXV
Danasah 7.0
tomitankChess 1.5 64-bit
Capivara LK 0.09b02g 64-bit
Schooner 1.8 64-bit
MadChess 2.2 64-bit
Betsabe II 1.75
CyberPagno 3.0 64-bit
Bagatur 1.5e 64-bit
Lozza 1.17 64-bit
TJchess 1.3 64-bit


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August's Picture Puzzles and "Mixed Bag" Questions are at the top of the PUZZLES PAGE ;
August 2016 Skeptical Crossword Puzzle revisits Chiropractic ;
and there's a set of August 2016 Logic & Maths Problems .
August's Picture Puzzles and "Mixed Bag" Questions are at the top of the PUZZLES PAGE ;
August 2016 Skeptical Crossword Puzzle revisits Chiropractic ;
and there's a set of August 2016 Logic & Maths Problems .
By Mal Vickers
Dr Ken Harvey, a friend of the Vic Skeptics was recently interviewed on ABC Radio National. (play the interview below)
The subject up for discussion was advertising by chiropractic businesses. The interview was prompted by an article Dr Ken Harvey recently authored for the MJA (Australian Medical Journal).
In the article, Ken expresses his concerns that not much has changed in the last five years since the regulator, AHPRA (incorporating the Chiropractic Board of Australia, CBA), issued a warning via a newsletter for chiropractors to clean up their advertising.
AHPRA stated:
The Board asks all chiropractors to review their advertising including their websites as a priority to ensure that the content meets the advertising requirements of the National Law and the provisions of the Guidelines on Advertising. There are criminal penalties for breaching section 133 of the National Law, which is set out in the attachment to this communiqué.
Since then, a CBA statement has also reminded chiropractors about their advertising obligations "in more than six publications in the past three years…" Read the rest of this entry »
By Mal Vickers
I was recently asked, "Does osteopathy work? Is it scientific?" The short answer is: osteopathy is unlikely to be effective for most health conditions. It's a form of alternative medicine. I wouldn't put it in the category of a science–based medicine. Read on if you're interested in why I would think such a thing.
It's difficult to definitively answer questions like this for three reasons.
One – Science is all about probability.
Two – it's hard to prove a negative.
Three – it's not a very clear question.
If the idea is to sort the wheat from the chaff in medical treatments, there are better/tougher questions to ask.
Let's try to explore it.
Whole health disciplines might contain just a handful of useful treatments for some ailments, Read the rest of this entry »
* Our January 2015 SKEPTICAL CROSSWORD is, as usual, available in both standard and cryptic versions and has Chiropractic as its theme;
* here are the JANUARY 2015 LOGIC & MATHS PROBLEMS ;
* and new sets of PICTURE PUZZLES and "MIXED BAG" (trivia type) QUESTIONS have been placed at the top of the PUZZLES PAGE
Many thanks to Adam Ford!
By Mal Vickers
Before you read any further, try to guess the answer to this question:
In Australia, in 2012, how many chiropractic treatments occurred as a result of a doctor's referral?
To clarify, I'm not asking for the total number of chiropractic consultations that occur per year, just patients consultations for chiropractic treatment where the patient was referred by a medical doctor – how many? Find the answer in the text below highlighted in red. How close were you?
Medicare Dollars are Taxpayer Dollars
Everyone in Australia pays for Medicare rebates through the tax system. Medicare enables community access to a variety of quality health services but that's not in question. What I'd really like to look at is how much we pay through the Medicare system for treatments that show little or no efficacy. Read the rest of this entry »
by Mal Vickers
Back in June 2012, a letter was sent to the Chiropractors' Association of Australia (CAA). The text of this letter is reproduced below. The letter was signed by representatives of the Australian Skeptics and the Tinnitus Association of Victoria.
Att: Dr Laurie Tassell
President of the Chiropractors' Association of Australia (National) Limited
Date: 19 June 2012
Dear Dr Tassell,
We request that your organisation takes action by removing misleading claims regarding the treatment of medical conditions via chiropractic. It appears to be a practice of a small number of your members to advertise that they can treat conditions for which there is little or no scientific evidence that chiropractic is effective. Read the rest of this entry »


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A few weeks ago, Anne J. Hill was missing a second time. Previously listed on the Oklahoma Missing Persons site, Missing Kids and Klaas Kids, she disappeared as a poster for missing. This was up http://www.missingkids.com/poster/NCMC/1231257/1 But then it all vanished? Without news or any announcements to the public. Searching her name, Anne J Hill today generated this http://www.missingkids.com/SiteSearch. Nada?
.@Ihavevanished on Twitter yesterday noted that Anne J Hill case was transferred from a missing person ( not a missing child or youth case, mind) to a homicide victim, in final stages of investigation, moving towards prosecution. https://twitter.com/IHaveVanished
Her family continues to host a Facebook page for Anne J Hill https://www.facebook.com/Helpfindanne101
A family friend has hit Twitter with regularity. https://twitter.com/wade_taryn but that last posting was mid July.
Many faithfully still look and RT. Looking for ONE missing person, might turn up another or group of missing, captive, sex trafficked or murdered. The mutually beneficial act of looking shows sharing of information that solves these crimes. And yes, it is crime.
From the onset of this case, a gross but surprisingly not unusual absence of reporting options extended to the family of Casady School sophomore, Anne J Hill marked the missing status and alerts declared to the community, family and school scene in greater Oklahoma City in the spring of 2014. The family successfully inched the case forward on their own mostly to Nancy Grace, and then to the above missing persons pages. The mystery of a teen unaccounted for seemed not to match refusals from law enforcement to list her. http://yeahstub.com/article/edmond-resident-casady-school-sophomore-…
Investigative locations were marked by significant splits in locations possibly involved this has been an odd case from day one. This case has also been splayed across 2 police departments: Edmond and Oklahoma City, but not the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigations.
The investigations released process the following data. Anne J Hill, a highschooler, was a resident of Piedmont, Oklahoma a bedroom community to the West of Oklahoma City proper, she lived there with her Mom. Kids in the OKC area were out for Spring Break, and Anne J Hill would normally commute to the Nichols Hills/Casady Square area Casady School. So, she had her own car, and was known to be responsible to travel some distance daily by herself and keep a schedule. She was an honor student and athlete familiar with routines and accountability to others.
The location Anne J Hill's phone last engaged a signal and her vehicle was later found abandoned, which was Edmond, Oklahoma a bedroom community to the North of OKC proper…..near a university where she new some others. Anne J Hill left her family home, went to a gym to work out and then on to the area of a university campus and was neither seen nor heard from again.
The family attempted to file missing persons reports regarding her unaccounted absence and were refused. This was concerning at the point it happened for a variety of reasons. Apparently, the police have a right to refuse teen listings if it could at all be possible the person left voluntarily. However, the window of risk is about 3 hours on investigative stats, and most people don't understand the missing to BE missing, and that becomes a fiasco almost immediately for more families than not, actually back to the 1960's and possibly before that.
Amber Alerts and Missing Kids have been in play since the 1990's as has Klaas Kids. Both the FBI and the missing kids groups have concurred with Marc Klaas, the father of Polly Klaas that these systems of report, notification and alert have been flawed since inception. Anne J Hill glitches in posting a report are only another in a long string of fire bell alerts to the community that methods of inbound reporting, documentation, triage of information for reply and replies are lacking.
In that Oklahoma has had one of the highest rates of child sex trafficking and violent crimes in the United States, this combination especially for a young woman or the family of a young woman are an excruciating edge of dodging statistics to get to adulthood unscathed.
OKCPD police search of an apartment in NW OKC, near Lake Hefner….. just prior to the Oklahoma City Marathon. No public updates were extended about Anne J Hill following that. Her family advanced in listings as above and then she disintegrated.
The family continues to look for Anne J Hill in the face of all the distress. Either way, Anne J Hill is unaccounted for to date physically and joins a slew of others nationwide whose cases are in some registered status with "appropriate" or "available" agencies…. but the case is not finalized, noone has been prosecuted and her person remains missing. Body live or body dead.
Removing Anne J Hill from sites reduces the visibility of her situation in general, and reduces her profile as a registered statistic in any category… whether AWOL, missing kid, or murdered or deceased from natural causes. Registered profiles globally relate to community and law makers, statisticians and carers. Monies alotted to deal with historic problems or new problems are misevaluated when things are handled like this… and unfortunately that either opens doors for increased criminality in communities, community misperception of what risks exist.
In turn, miscalculations of what statistical issues any area of OKC faces, merely compounds the existing issue of the gross and ongoing underfunding of our own law enforcement. Failure to engage cases or methods by which cases can be engaged is in part driven by policy and funding. The police cannot do more, if they are grossly and chronically underfunded.
Ultimately, this is abuse of the community, and abuse of the police departments…. Under performance is not on anyone's agenda when they wake up to go to their profession. Oklahoma law enforcement spans community police, the Oklahoma Highway Patrol and the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigations.
Support and adovacy voice groups like the YWCA http://www.ywca.org/site/c.cuIRJ7NTKrLaG/b.7515807/k.2737/YWCA__Eliminat… provide advocacy for issues related to women and girls who may be involved in situations of violence, sexual misuse, or rape.
Oklahoma Department of Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault http://ocadvsa.org/get-help/ and the Office of Victim's Services. http://www.ok.gov/dac/Victims_Services/Just_for_Victims/
A town hall meeting solely on missing persons, featuring Marc Klaas would be an ideal springboard to wake up our Mayor, Mick Cornett to the reality of being female and under 25 living, working or going to school in OKC.
Rally support within the greater OKC area, or even statewide in this year of elections as our performance in just about any child and youth and family issues is underpar. As some of gaffs again against our youth and their families also fall under decisions made by Governor Mary Fallin. This Anne J Hill case is an exceptional illustration that decisions about funding and performance improvements that show demonstrable improvements.
Let's recap that Kate Bernard statehood era performance of championing kid issues and surpass instead of barely meet the lowest standards or chronically fail our kids. Clear, honest and untiring processes to audit what is extended to the families of missing kids is imperative. Statistics of connections between missing kids and children who are sex trafficked and also kids who are in foster systems is very high and solving one issue may knock out others.
Stop dreaming. Start acting. http://yeahstub.com/article/stop-squandering-our-youth-unreported-an….
Need another example? How about Racine Jane Doe? http://yeahstub.com/article/amazing-secrets-unclaimed-child-evidence…
Find Anne J. Hill. RT.


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It does appear there's now a hard cap on parts, hurrah! I should be able to max out the remaining tables relatively quickly and can hopefully start mining coins instead.
Some of the target scores have indeed changed but here's really the great news... Safe Cracker 1-ball is now a thing (Easy = 240,000)


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Filed under: Uncategorized
Filed under: Uncategorized
Filed under: Uncategorized
Deadly Tide could Threaten Island!!!
Article about Red Tides right on the coast of our own home state, North Carolina!
Post your comments in your section of the wiki by 01.29.10. I will show you how to do this in class.
Filed under: Uncategorized
Hey everybody, just to let you know of some developments that have occurred in Atwood's Cyberspace. On a semi-regular basis (2-3 times a week) you need to check this Blogspace. So bookmark it, write it down, do something to remind yourself to check it. On this Blogspace will be information about class on a day to day basis and links to helpful materials and media. On this page will be links to class notes so you can copy them down if you missed something, or to look over to review for a test. Homework will be posted as well.
If you are absent, please check on the blog to see what is going to happen/what has happened. This is going to be our new make up work board.
Also, I am now introducing our class Wiki. "What in the world is a wiki??" you might be asking yourself. Well, a wiki is a website that we will be using the rest of the year to communicate with each other and to get help when needed. You will be given your own user name and password to access the wiki. These will be given to you later.
When using the wiki you will have opportunities to post your thoughts and ideas on many different topics and on the thoughts of others. Have fun using the wiki, but please be respectful of each other and their work. There will be current events posted that you will need to respond to every week. But more on that to come soon.
When posting to the wiki DO NOT use text speak (i.e. LOL, BTW, IDK, B4, etc.) Use complete sentences and proper English to express yourself.
That's all for the moment. Hope you had a great long weekend 😀
p.s. Remember to check out the Wiki!
Filed under: Uncategorized
This is Mr Atwood just making some preliminary changes to this site before it is completely up and running. I hope to have things completely smoothed out by the beginning of the Second Nine Weeks. Hope you all have a good one!


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The Athletes' Commission reports directly to the ISAF Executive Committee, with its members representing the athletes in each of the Olympic events. The aim of the new ISAF Athletes' Commission Forum is to host online debate on key topics. The Athletes' Commission members will be moderators for the Forum, with the initial topics planned to be:
- ISAF Sailing World Cup series
- ISAF World Sailing Rankings
- Racing Rules of Sailing and Regulations
- Communications and Marketing
- Olympic Games
- Submissions
Marcelien DE KONING (NED), silver medallist at the Beijing Olympic Games and chairman of the ISAF Athletes' Commission, said: "The ISAF Athletes' Commission Forum gives a chance for all Olympic sailors to have their say direct to the Commission members. As an open Forum it's also an opportunity for everyone to see the key issues affecting Olympic sailors around the world. We hope the Forum will grow to become a central tool informing the work of the ISAF Athletes' Commission."
As part of her role as chairman of the ISAF Athletes' Commission, DE KONING will be in Madrid, Spain on 7 November to deliver a report to the ISAF Executive Committee during their opening meeting at the ISAF Annual Conference. This will enable the view of the Athletes' Commission to then be carried through to the various ISAF Committees.
The ISAF Athletes' Commission Forum is open to view by anyone. However only Registered Members will be able to post and reply to topics. In order to Register you must have an ISAF Sailor ID and be listed on the ISAF World Sailing Rankings.
View and register for the ISAF Athletes' Commission at www.sailing.org/forum or click here to register.
Find out more about the ISAF Athletes' Commission at www.sailing.org/athletes.
World Sailing Newsletter
World Sailing Newsletter is the weekly online newsletter of World Sailing.
It features the latest news and events from the sailing world together with features and info in an easy-to-use format.
It features the latest news and events from the sailing world together with features and info in an easy-to-use format.


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Every wedding has its own temperament or personality. The excitement and anticipation of the day plays out in many different ways. I get to document a good part of the day as it unfolds and to capture the little moments that together paint a picture of the wedding day. Alicia and Thomas's wedding was a true Southern affair. They were wed on Easter Sunday in downtown Charleston, where the quiet and bucolic setting made it feel as if the city itself was waiting in anticipation for their wedding.
Their church, St. Luke's Chapel, stood towering over nearby buildings, lining a quiet street with moss-covered Southern Oaks interspersed in the historic urban landscape. The city was open to us as we walked alongside aging cobblestone walls and past plantation homes, palm trees and beautiful manicured yards. Thomas and his groomsmen were up for anything during their photo shoot, including climbing a low-hanging tree branch covered in Spanish moss, but then we thought better of it.
Alicia and her girls meanwhile were getting ready in the Wicklyffe House, a beautiful plantation home with a sprawling veranda and lawn and beautiful ball room complimented by a spiral staircase. The house was also the setting for the reception, which boasted a live band and a well-worn dance floor by the end of the night.
What I'll remember most about Thomas and Alicia's wedding day was all the little moments – before the wedding vows and at the party afterward – that set the tone. Everyone was so sincere and kind and their actions centered on Alicia and Thomas's happiness that day. The couple gave every person their undivided attention when they talked and were genuine in their gratitude to those attending. It was a truly remarkable occasion that reminded me of how down-to-Earth and happy Thomas and Alicia are and how they set the tone for their marriage on that first day. In their sendoff, they of course exited in a horse and carriage, like in any true Southern wedding, and took to the wide open streets, symbolic of a future where anything is possible.


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Last week the TV show "How I Met Your Mother" had it's series finale after nine seasons of following along with Ted Mosby's story to his children about how he met their mother.
The reviews of the finale were mixed at best with a lot of people feeling that the writers had cheated them. I on the other hand enjoyed the finale.
In case you haven't watched it yet I'll try not to give away any details.
The reason I liked the finale was because I felt that the writers did a good job of tying up the loose ends of the show and in the process sharing the successes of some of the characters whose futures had hung in the balance as they pursued their dreams.
I felt that the way our fictional friend's lives turned out were more realistic than I'm used to seeing at the finale of a long running TV show. With that was also the realization that none of their successes came as they had planned.
Each of them achieved a goal that was satisfactory to them, but not the goal that they had originally set out to achieve and none of them did it in the time frame that they had envisioned that they would.
It's good to have goals, but we need to be mindful that what we set out to achieve now may not be what we desire when our goals come to fruition. We also need to be mindful that things are not always a yes or no, but that sometimes the right thing to do is wait.
Sometimes it's a no for now, but later on that same no could turn into a yes. Sometimes we need to wait for something else to happen or learn something else or rid ourselves of something.
What blows my mind is the precision in imprecise situations. How close we are to missing something or all the little things that line up to create an opportunity that you had no idea was coming.
I think the biggest thing in the HIMYM finale and in my own life is the idea that although things haven't come to together the way that they were planned, yet they do come together eventually and when they do you realize that you somehow you ended up where you wanted to, but you not really sure how you got there.
What's in progress for you?


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Public Information Meeting Held to Address Mount Auburn Street Redesign
Watertown Free Public Library – here could be some major changes coming to Mount Auburn Street in the coming years. A public information meeting was recently held at the Watertown Free Public Library to get feedback from the public and town officials about how the road can better accommodate cyclists, pedestrians, and automobiles. Find out more about the proposed "road diet" in the report below.
Check Out the Video!
Produced by Kyle Igoe, Playback Operator
December 15, 2016


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License information: 33.023194
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Fee information: Free Consultation, Offering 30, 60, and 90 Minutes at $25, $55, $85
Massage gift certificates available! Contact me for more details.


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Ms Diane Abbott (Hackney, North and Stoke Newington) (Lab): I am grateful for the opportunity to speak in this important debate.A great many of my constituents attend the LMU, and I have had hundreds of letters about its financial crisis over many months. As we have heard, a disproportionate number of the students at the LMU are older students, women students and black and minority ethnic students. Far from having family support as they go through university, they often have to support families, and are the single head of their households. My concern is not the staff, although any redundancy is extremely regrettable, but those students.
LMU is one of a range of higher education offers for people who are older, or who have jobs and families: Birkbeck, a London university college that offers excellent degrees based on evening classes, the Open university and others are adapted to the needs of non-traditional students. However, let me say this: when we talk glibly about access to higher education, my view, as someone who spends a lot of time working on and paying attention to what happens in the black community in relation to education, is that it is not only about access to higher education, but about access to higher-quality education.
I draw the House's attention to the unspoken apartheid in higher education in London. The Russell group, including Imperial and the LSE, is largely white, and some of the former polytechnics are largely black and minority ethnic. The LMU has many unique courses and excellent members of staff, and features in the top 10 of any league table one cares to mention. I strongly believe that schools should not use the class background or race of their students as an excuse for underperformance, and the same is true of higher education institutions. It is precisely because I am concerned about the life chances of older students—black women and people of all nationalities—who have struggled and beaten all their expectations and those of people around them to go to university that I am concerned about standards at the LMU going forward.
I understand that the funding problems stem partly from the much-higher-than-average drop-out rate and partly from the fact that the majority of students at the LMU complete their course in four years rather than the standard three. I also understand—people have talked about bad management and the funding council—that there was a degree of collusion between the funding council and the university in misreporting for years before the former finally decided to pull the plug. That may be the responsibility of management, but it is also the responsibility of the funding council, which could and should have addressed the issue in a much more measured way, much earlier, to avoid this crisis for students.
My concern is, first and foremost, that the students should not suffer in this time of financial crisis.
Mr. Rob Wilson: I asked the hon. Member for Islington, North (Jeremy Corbyn) why the drop-out figures, which the hon. Lady has mentioned, were not picked up by HEFCE or the university. Has she received any information that university departments were told to suppress drop-out information? My information is that that is exactly what they did. Far from being a cock-up, this was a conspiracy.
Ms Abbott: I do not dispute what the hon. Gentleman has said. As I have said, there was a degree of collusion between the funding council and management, which has now reached a crisis. Who is suffering? It is not the people at the funding council, but the students. That is my concern.
Going forward, I want the rights and aspirations of the students and the range of courses, as long as they are high quality, to be protected. That is particularly true of the specialities, whether cabinet making or the study of Cuba, for which the LMU is renowned. I want the quality of the education offer to my constituents not only maintained but increased. There is no reason at all—I do not care what people say about the class or colour of undergraduates—why the LMU should bump along in the bottom 10 per cent. I want standards to be maintained and driven upwards. The background of students should not be an excuse for failure in any of our educational institutions.
I want the funding council to help, by whatever mechanisms are available, the LMU to get through this period without the students suffering. I also want Ministers and the funding council to look at their funding systems and schemes to ensure that they properly reflect the realities of student bodies in such institutions.
Dr. Gibson: Given that we often look on universities as regional centres of education, and that students can move between them on exchanges, will my hon. Friend consider the possibility of financial collaboration between them, instead of rivalry? Why do they not work to support each other? The three universities should work together to serve the community—let us have some money from Imperial going into London Met.
Ms Abbott: More collaboration may well be part of the answer, but we must get the management and running of London Met right before there can be any notion of collaborating with other institutions.
Going forward, we must look at our funding mechanisms. The funding council has not treated London Met fairly; it colluded in the situation up to a certain point, but then there was a cliff-edge crash, and the university faces potential cuts.
I wrote to the Minister about this issue many months ago, but I was disappointed with the response that I received, because he simply referred me to the funding council. Let me make a general point. We in Parliament have seen all sorts of core Government functions outsourced to organisations such as the funding council over the past 20 years. Although those functions have been outsourced, they are wholly funded and owned by the Government, and Ministers cannot hide behind such institutions. I am not suggesting that, having set up the funding council, Ministers should second-guess every decision, but it should be possible for the Government to intervene in special cases, if Members of Parliament have come to them. London Met is a special case, and Ministers have hidden behind the funding council for too long.
There is a range of issues about the management of London Met and about how we can help it through the present period financially so that students do not suffer. However, there is also an issue about whether the funding council considers the circumstances of institutions that have high drop-out rates despite the best efforts of their staff. When colleagues come to the Minister with special cases such as that of London Met, I urge him not to brush us off by referring us to the funding council. I think that every Member present has written asking him to focus on the special issues at London Met. Although there may be singular problems at the university, events there also raise general issues about further and higher education, which it is wholly appropriate for a Minister to focus on and get involved in.
Jeremy Corbyn: In the many letters that my hon. Friend has had from her constituents, has anyone said whether they have an alternative place to go to in the event of their department or course closing? What are their thoughts for the future?
Ms Abbott: The reason why I am so concerned about this issue is that many of the students who have written to me are really in a panic. There may be alternatives, but these students do not know about them. They have often screwed up all their courage and got together every penny that they have to go to university, which is something that they never thought that they would do when they were younger. Now, thanks to a combination of the university's management and the actions of the funding council, the rug has been pulled from under them in what are difficult times for all our constituents. People really are in a panic, and they deserve better from the management of London Met and from Ministers, because this issue has been bubbling under from a long time.
Redundancies may be inevitable at London Met, and more may need to be done to improve management there. We may also need to move away from an assumption that institutions can excuse underperformance—whether academic or management underperformance—by pointing to undergraduates' class or race background. That is no excuse for anything. All those things may be true, but I ask Ministers at this point to focus on the students, for whom going to university means so much more than it did even to me, the Minister and other Members in the Chamber. The Minister should focus on the students and stop hiding behind the funding council. He should intervene to ensure that students do not suffer in this transition period and that the funding council knows that it cannot apply one-size-fits-all funding solutions to universities up and down the country whose demographics and social context may be very different.
We owe these students something. We should not have spent 12 years as a Government talking about education, education, education. We should not have spent 12 years as a Government talking about skills, the need to go forward and increasing access. Whatever problems it may have had in the past, London Met has reached a crisis, and we have not stepped in swiftly to protect the interests of the students and my constituents.


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Maren Morris' latest single is "The Bones" and Maren says the song is about the foundation of a good relationship.
Morris says, "I wrote 'The Bones' with Jimmy Robbins and Laura Veltz and it was a day when I was writing in Nashville. And, Laura brought the title 'The Bones' and she's always so good at bringing stuff like that to the table. And, it's always like a weird title and that's why she and I get along so well… I'm willing to get weird. But she also knows how to make it so sentimental and real life. And, we just started talking about how gracious we were with our relationships at the time. And, I was really feeling so solidified in my relationship with my then-fiancé and now-husband."
She continued, "She was feeling so amazing with her marriage and her children. And, Jimmy just found out that his wife was pregnant. It was like we all were super solid with our partners and so writing this song about like the bones of a house, you know even if a hurricane comes, a storm, if the wolves come the structure of the house is still standing. The foundation is still there. So you could rip it down to the studs and the foundation of this relationship isn't going anywhere."


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Rock the South returns in 2017 on June 2 and 3! This year we're bringing artists who are packing out stadiums across the country. You don't want to miss The Biggest Party In the South!
Rock the South is proud to present Luke Bryan, Sam Hunt, Brett Eldredge, Dustin Lynch, Maren Morris, High Valley, Chris Janson, Cody Jinks, Muscadine Bloodline, Riley Green, Dee Jay Silver & more as part of our 2017 lineup!


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The Signs Of Rectal Dysfunction
Rectal dysfunction is far more common than many people think, and a large portion of Americans experience it at least once in their lifetime. If you have personal concerns about this issue, you should watch for a number of specific day-to-day symptoms. The more you learn about your body and its daily functions, the more money and time you are likely to save at the doctor's office.
Itching, known as pruritus in the medical world, is not a direct sign of serious rectal dysfunction, but it may indicate another issue in the region. Itching and scratching may cause the skin to thicken and pale over time, and many conditions can cause the sensation. The most common cause is poor cleaning of the area after bowel movements, which can lead to skin irritation, infection, and a number of other unfortunate symptoms.
Several medications may also lead to itching. For example, prescriptions such as antibiotics often cause constipation or diarrhea. In addition, you may experience skin irritation and itching if you regularly clean your anus with extremely hot water and irritating soaps. Chemicals or extreme temperatures can wash away the natural oils that protect the area from irritation caused by bowel movements.
However, a symptom such as pain may indicate a more serious problem. Diarrhea, constipation, and a number of other conditions can cause discomfort and lead to rectal dysfunction. If you receive quick treatment, the pain should ease alongside your condition, but a number of causes can be behind the pain. For example, you may have hemorrhoids, which are swollen and enlarged veins inside and outside the anus.
Furthermore, any foreign object introduced to the anus and rectum can cause damage and in turn lead to pain. Whatever the cause, you can visit website name to learn more about symptoms and treatment options. You can also follow them on Twitter for more information.


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In 2011, British singer-songwriter Ben Howard debuted with his "Every Kingdom". It became a huge success, both underground and mainstream. Howard has since his debut travelled around the world to perform singles like "The Wolves" and "Keep Your Head Up".
Now, three years after "Every Kingdom", Howard releases a new single from his upcoming album. A haunting, epic and bold choice for a first single, "End of the Affair". Listen to it below!