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0. In a key text (Symp 205c), we learn that poiesis refers to any "creating from nothing", although we tend to reserve the word for a certain kind of creating. It is not easy to know how to read this passage, especially given its context as an analogy with eros and the text that follows (are we really to consider romantic lovers the "proper" form of love?). But neither should we empty the word of all content into a general ontology of "poetic creation" such that poetry becomes simply identified with nature.
1. Paz: the poet of words. Another mistake is to identify the poet with the craftsman whose "material" is words, as if the poet simply found words ready-made and whose task was simply to juxtapose and combine them in experimental and unusual ways. Neither (as suggested above) should we consider the poet the demiurgic creator of forms (again, whose material is words), since this begs the question of how it is that the poet is able to communicate.
While I speak, / things imperceptibly / shake loose from themselves, / escaping toward other forms, / other names. / They leave me these words: / with them I talk to you. // Words are bridges. / And they are traps, jails, wells. / I talk to you: you do not hear me. / I don't talk with you: I talk with a word. / That word is you …
These lines from A Tree Within—which contains, among other things, a masterful reading of the Symposium—contain what all modernists at least since Mallarmé have wanted to achieve, i.e., poetry that, while reflecting on itself, remains for all that still poetry.
The world a bundle of your images. [from Blanco]
We always already live in images; we are ourselves, of course, images. The poet does not merely need to create images but, more than simply "defamiliarizing" them, creates words themselves. This is not a claim about language "as such" (e.g., that language is "originally" poetic, metaphoric, etc); rather, we will never be able to think the relation between poetry and discourse as long as we continue to suffer the illusion that there is a Form of words. We do not make this mistake concerning the objects of our everyday experience—that the morphological identity of two bookshelves from Ikea means that there is really only one bookshelf from Ikea. That the words expressed by the poet resemble the words we use in speech and discourse should not lead us to assume that they are the same words.
The poet does not "reveal" anything—we know that a poem does not reveal the poet's "intentions", but neither does a poem reveal a "worldview" or an "ideology" or, worse, a "philosophy". Neither does the poet "communicate" to us; it is we, not the poet, who fall under a task, i.e., the construction of sense from the poet's words. The great poet is the one who offers us words that we have never before heard and, strictly speaking, will never hear again, for the task of "understanding" a poem is not discursive but, dare we say, "poetic". We are not merely shown the world "anew" but the great poem is the one that constructs a new world—this constitutes a task precisely insofar as we are to understand this world not as the interiority of a vague feeling or even a "moment of shock" but as the very materiality of the poem (which does not, of course, refer to ink, paper, or the health and biography of the poet). In short: how does the poem (re)distribute our affects? What effects does it have? (Perhaps, however, this is too reductive…)
2. Zagajewski: the poet of melancholy. For us, at the end of a negative century, what Zagajewski calls to mind is the awareness that we live under the sign of a massive temporal suspension such that we are unable either to anticipate the future:
Music heard with you / was more than music / and the blood that flowed through our arteries was more than blood / and the joy we felt / was genuine / and if there is anyone to thank, / I thank him now, / before it grows too late / and too quiet. ["Music Heard"]
nor our origin:
And what was your childhood like? a weary / reporter asks near the end. / There was no childhood, only black crows / and tramcars starved for electricity. [from "No Childhood"]
Both past and future are in danger of slipping away. The future, we fear, will be lost to the excesses of our own ambitions—to the persistent degradation of culture, to the destruction of the biosphere, and so on. But even if, as Baudelaire had said, modernity is an endless series of losses, it is not a "break" from the past or the name of an irrecoverable trauma (the "second Fall", etc). What has been lost is not an innocence that "should have been" but what we—here, now—have never known. We begin already in the midst of what has been lost; we are not to blame yet we are, of course, the ones responsible:
I'll never know them, / those outmoded figures / —the same as we are, / yet completely different. / My imagination works to unlock / the mystery of their being, / it can't wait for the release / of memory's secret archives. // … // And I think that when I too / do my teaching / they gaze in turn at me, // revising my mutterings, / correcting my mistakes // with the calm assurance of the dead. [from "Genealogy"]
It is not only the world but we ourselves who are thus constructed by melancholy. The question that remains, then, is quite simply: who shall we have been?


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(08/02/2019) In an effort to reduce pressure on housing affordability, the government wants to encourage older Australians to sell their home in order to improve housing stock. To achieve this, the government has introduced a new opportunity for older Australians to contribute some of the proceeds from the sale of their home into superannuation.
Under the new measure, which took effect in July 2018, individuals aged 65 years and over who sell their home may contribute capital proceeds from the sale of up to $300,000 per member as a "downsizer" superannuation contribution. This means an eligible couple can potentially contribute up to $600,000 from the sale of their home.
The good news is that downsizer contributions do not count towards the member's non-concessional contributions cap and they are not subject to the "work test" that usually applies to voluntary contributions by members aged 65 years and over. The contributions may be made even if the member's total superannuation balance (TSB) exceeds $1.6 million, but once made, they will increase the member's TSB. The usual limit on transferring benefits into the tax-free retirement phase also applies.
To qualify for downsizer contributions, a member or their spouse must have owned their home for 10 years prior to the sale and the sale must qualify for the CGT main residence exemption, either partially or in full. Despite the name, "downsizer" contributions can be made even if the member does not purchase another replacement property.
Additionally, the member must make the downsizer contribution within 90 days of receiving the sale proceeds, and must complete a specific form and provide it to their superannuation fund when, or before, they make the contribution. Members should therefore plan their downsizer contribution carefully to ensure its eligibility.
Care must also be taken regarding the effect of downsizer contributions on pension entitlements, which may result in either a complete loss of, or a reduced, entitlement. While the family home is not assessable for the purposes of determining Age Pension eligibility, superannuation savings are.
If you are thinking of selling your home and implementing a "downsizer" contribution, talk to us about whether you will qualify and whether you may require financial advice about this strategy. It is important that this contribution forms part of a long-term retirement plan that covers the relevant taxation, superannuation and Age Pension issues.

subset: commoncrawl


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Milton Keynes, 28 February 2018: Fans were the first to hear Paloma's live performance of the classic hit song, Make Your Own Kind of Music. The singer has recorded her own version of the sixties classic that will feature in the brand's forthcoming Karoq TV ad in March. The gig will also help raise awareness of ŠKODA's Driver's Seat Initiative: a programme which will work with the Prince's Trust to celebrate individuality, giving young, creative people the opportunity to shape their own future and make a positive impact on their local community.
Paloma Faith, said: "It was so much fun to perform for my fans at the secret gig, and to try out some new material. Singing in such an intimate venue made the performance feel really personal and I couldn't think of a better way to start my partnership with ŠKODA."
Kirsten Stagg, Head of Marketing, ŠKODA UK, added, "Paloma truly embodies being Driven by Something Different. Make your Own Kind of Music celebrates that it's good to go your own way and be an individual, an attitude that is shared between ŠKODA and Paloma. Listening to her on stage singing the song, was something truly special."
'Make Your Own Kind of Music' will be available to stream from 2nd March.
ŠKODA's Driver's Seat Initiative will be available via The Prince's Trust's existing Get Started programme.


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This is to inform you about this announcement from MCA website regarding filing of Form 23B:
"Ministry vide circular number 14/2012 dated 21.06.2012 had imposed fees on Form 23B (Information by auditor to Registrar) w.e.f. 22/07/2012. Kindly note that the last date for filing the Form 23B without fee has been extended for two weeks. Fee shall be charged on any eForm 23B filed on or after5th August, 2012. You are therefore advised to file the pending eForms within the time limit to avoid any last minute rush."
Please see relevant notification in MCA website- www.mca.gov.in


text: For CCTV cameras we work with two main big brands: Dahua and Hikvision. The sets that we provide start from the 2 Units Set up to 64 Units Set. We also provide IP Cameras, which can send and receive data via a computer network and the Internet. Customers can use these products for different purposes: house, hotel, store, reception etc.


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Artist: Scrap Iron
Title: Demo
Release: Digital
Year: 2014
Label: DIY
Raw hardcore punk band from the Netherlands debuting with 9 tracks that clock in about 10 minutes.
Solid and urgent vocals over rapid and unpolished hardcore sound with influences ranging from Negative Approach to Left For Dead. The production is really good for a DIY demo, everything is well played, aggressive and straight to the point.
The lyrics deal with socio-political subjects and beside the occasional angry songs about protesting the corrupt political system (opening track "Protest and Unnerve"), they are also directing their anger at more specific issues such as entertainment industry ("TSMGO"), pharmaceutics ("Still Medicated"), the beauty industry ("The Model"), privatization of water by multinational corporations like Suez, Nestlé and Bechtel (in the song "Dirty Waters") or the patents and control over seeds in the global food production by biotech and agribusiness giants like Monsanto (in "Suicide Seeds"). If you like Manliftingbanner you'll really dig this, the Dutch DIY scene still continues to produce tight and politically charged hardcore.


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Kanye West Thinking About Buying Kim Kardashian A Boat
Kanye continues to spoil Kim rotten! A source clos tells HollywoodLife EXCLUSIVELY that he may buy her a boat! Read on for more details!
Kanye West likes to show Kim Kardashian how much he loves her by showering her with gifts.
And a source close to Kanye tells HollywoodLife.com EXCLUSIVELY that he's thinking about buying Kim a big boat!
"Kanye's thinking about buying Kim a private boat," a source tells us. "He's thinking about buying a little boat for his princess. It won't be a mega yacht or something over-the-top, but it will be something for both of them."
With rumors swirling that Kanye is going to propose, our source says this likely won't happen until Kim is officially divorced from Kris Humphries.
"He's not moving a finger though, not until she's divorced," a source tells us.
Hmm! But perhaps Kanye is thinking about proposing on the boat!?
What do YOU think,, HollywoodLifers? Weigh in below!
— Reporting by Eric Mitchell
More Kim Kardashian News:
- Kendall Jenner Is The Face Of Fashion's Night Out Ad Campaign
- Kris Jenner: You're Emotionally Cheating On Bruce Jenner With Your Ex Lover
- Kanye West: Desperate For Kim Kardashian's Divorce To Be Finalized


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"The Business of Being Born" is a passionate ground-level examination of home childbirth, anchored in a scene in which its executive producer, Ricki Lake, the actress and former talk-show host, gives birth to her second child in a bathtub. That graphic scene, and several other unblinking sequences of home birth attended by a midwife, are intended to erase any stigma from the situation. Practiced widely in Europe and Japan, home birth has largely disappeared in the United States, the documentary states, because of an image as a primitive, unsanitary ritual.
The statistics cited in the film suggest that the revolution in childbirth from home to hospital was spurred by technology, which increasingly turned it into a surgical procedure involving multiple, often unnecessary interventions. In 1900 95 percent of births in the United States took place at home. By 1938 the number had shrunk to half. Today the number is less than 1 percent.
As the film enumerates disadvantages of hospital births, conspiracy theorists might detect a plot by the medical establishment to take control of a process for both economic and psychological reasons. But the medical establishment would argue that a hospital is the safest place to give birth because if something goes wrong, speed is essential. "The Business of Being Born" is not overtly political. Its feminism is palpable but unspoken.
Here are some of the disadvantages laid out in the film: Obstetricians have surgical training, but the film contends that many have never seen a fully natural birth and are therefore unprepared to supervise one. Because hospitals are businesses that thrive on a high turnover, drugs to induce and speed labor (and that often make it more intense and painful) serve the system by filling and emptying beds at a faster rate.
There are horror stories here of widely accepted medical practices that were subsequently shown to be dangerous to a newborn. The administration of the drug scopolamine in the '40s, '50s and '60s was supposed to stop pain but, the documentary says, eliminated the memory of pain, often leaving the mother suffering post-traumatic stress. The taking of X-rays of the pelvis was common until the discovery that some babies developed cancer as a result. The use of the infamous drug thalidomide for morning sickness was found to cause birth defects. In the 1990s the drug Cytotec to stimulate contractions was found to cause ruptured uteruses.
The movie sharply criticizes the "lithotomy" position, in which the mother, lying on her back, is encouraged to "push." Because it makes the pelvis smaller, that position increases the likelihood of having to deliver a baby with forceps or a vacuum extractor. Squatting is much less stressful for the mother, but more so for the doctor, who must catch the baby. The natural births in the film, including Ms. Lake's, are carried out in a squatting position in warm water with a midwife and loved ones at hand.
The one exception in the movie is the breach-birth hospital delivery of Abby Epstein, the film's director and one of its producers. (Her husband, Paulo Netto, is one of its producers as well as its cinematographer.) The movie's recognition that natural childbirth in the home isn't the answer for everyone keeps "The Business of Being Born" from turning into a one-note polemic.
Increasingly, the use of a Caesarean section, once the last resort in the event of an emergency, has become commonplace because it is so efficient. But as one expert after another points out, a C-section is major surgery. Although a woman's first C-section poses few risks, the dangers of serious complications increase with each repetition. It is also very expensive.
The cost of our blind trust in hospital technology, the film implies, is reflected in the United States infant-mortality rate, the second-highest in industrialized countries. What accounts for that fact? "The Business of Being Born" suggests that a cultural aversion to natural home childbirth is a contributing factor.
Opens on Wednesday in Manhattan.
Directed by Abby Epstein; director of photography, Paulo Netto; edited by Madeleine Gavin; produced by Ms. Epstein, Amy Slotnick and Mr. Netto; released by Red Envelope Entertainment and International Film Circuit. At the IFC Center, 323 Avenue of the Americas, at Third Street, Greenwich Village. Running time: 1 hour 27 minutes. This film is not rated.


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Samsung's SGH-t349, available from T-Mobile USA, is a compact and slim messaging phone featuring a 20-key, partial QWERTY keypad and XT9 predictive text and auto-word completion. The bar-style, lime green t349 makes messaging faster and easier with access to E-mail, Instant Messaging and picture, video and text messaging.
The t349 features a built-in 1.3-megapixel camera and camcorder with 4x digital zoom, MP3 player, expandable memory slot and Stereo Bluetooth wireless technology.
The Samsung SGH-t349 will be priced at US$14.99 with a two-year contract.


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I was privileged Thursday to be invited to address the UW System Board of Regents in Madison on the tragic death of UW-Stout student Hussain Saeed Alnahdi on Oct. 31. Regent President Regina Millner also discussed Hussain's death, which followed an attack in downtown Menomonie on Oct. 30. I thought you might be interested to read both of our remarks:
Regent President Millner's remarks to the full Board of Regents
Nov. 10, 2016
Thank you. Before we get started this morning, on behalf of the Board of Regents and President Cross, I would like to express our deepest condolences to the family, friends and others who knew Hussain Saeed Alnahdi. His death last week was a tragedy, not only for his family and friends but also for our communities. By all accounts, this young man from Saudi Arabia was an enthusiastic, well-liked and a valued member of the UW-Stout campus community, and it is clear he will be missed and remembered. I take heart in the strong message coming from both the campus and Menomonie community recognizing that so much more draws us together as people than divides us. As many have said, "This is not us."
Chancellor Meyer's remarks to UW System Board of Regents
Nov. 10, 2016
Thank you President Millner for allowing me a few minutes to discuss with the board, and its guests, an incident near campus that is so deeply tragic that words are insufficient to describe it but also illustrates the magnificent ability of a campus community to pull together, put aside any difference and to give comfort and assistance to grieving family and friends some 7,000 miles away.
The darkest day of my tenure as chancellor was Oct. 31 when I was told that Hussain Saaed Alnahdi, a bright and passionate young Saudi Arabian student of 24, had died as the result of injuries sustained in a violent attack in downtown Menomonie the day before. Much has been written about the incident, so I won't go into the details. What I want to talk about is Hussain, what he brought to our campus and the way our campus has responded to his tragic passing.
I have spent hours and hours with Hussain's friends in the last week and have heard about his gregarious spirit, keen sense of humor, love of America and deep bonds he forged with anyone he met, both Saudis and Americans.
It did not matter to Hussain if you were Saudi or American — if you had the capacity to laugh and enjoy life, you were his friend forever. He was truly color-blind when it came to friendship, which was obvious when you saw the UW-Stout students, some wearing the traditional white Saudi dress and the Americans in jeans, who took the podium last Thursday night to pour their hearts out over what Hussain meant to them and the heartache they now are experiencing.
Although I wouldn't wish this tragedy on any chancellor, my spirits continue to be lifted by the fact that we have been deluged by expressions of sympathy, support and offers of assistance from across the state, nation and world.
On our campus, our students, faculty and staff have pulled together to comfort each other, collectively discuss our loss, and try to find some ray of hope each day. We have heard from state and national leaders from both parties, our alumni and my colleagues in the UW System. President Ray Cross made the trip to Menomonie on his own volition last Thursday for Hussain's memorial service, and I continue to hear how much everyone appreciated his presence and his words of comfort. Regent Tyler visited campus on Tuesday to attend a session on intercultural competence in times of crisis and I appreciated that as well.
I would be remiss if I did not mention a few efforts that continue to be priorities for me in the wake of this tragedy.
First of all we are doing everything we can to help the Menomonie Police Department solve this crime. The city and the Stout University Foundation have teamed up to offer a $15,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person or persons responsible for the assault. Another $5,000 reward is being offered by the Council on American-Islamic Relations. Anyone with information about the assault is asked to call Menomonie police investigator Kelly Pollock at 715-231-8511.
I am also helping Hussain's friends establish a memorial in his honor on campus. A memorial fund has been established to remember the joy and happiness that Hussain brought to our campus. Please contact the Stout University Foundation if you are interested in donating to the fund.
As you can imagine, this is an especially unsettling time for our international students, so I have asked the campus and the Menomonie community to reach out to those students to provide them comfort and a sense of support and security at this difficult time.
Finally, I just to express from the bottom of my heart my gratitude and appreciation for every email, note, phone call and other message I have received since Oct. 31. Our campus knows that you all stand with us in our time of tragedy.
Thank you very much.


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Here are the ultimate insider tips to help make the most of your visit.
Important Safety Guidelines and FAQs
Buy your tickets online
Buying your tickets online means you can skip the line! Simply print them at home or show your e-ticket on your smartphone in the main lobby.
Members, you can get right to the fun, too. Just bring your valid membership card and a photo ID and head straight into the lobby. You may also buy discounted tickets for as many guests as are covered by your membership in person at Member Services in the main lobby. Thinking about becoming a member, or is it time to renew? Save time by joining or renewing online before you visit, then just bring your confirmation email and a photo ID with you to check in at Member Services.
Visiting several Boston attractions?
Save 40% or more off admission to Boston's top 4 attractions. Boston CityPASS is valid for one general admission to each attractions during its 9-day validity period, so there's no need to lock into a specific visit date now.
Avoid peak times
The middle of the day is our busiest time. If you want plenty of face time with Myrtle the green sea turtle, plan to arrive when we open at 9 a.m. or later in the afternoon after 3 p.m. Be sure to check the website for any last-minute changes to our schedule.
Take public transportation
Taking public transportation is the blue thing to do! The Aquarium stop on the MBTA's Blue Line is just a few steps from our Front Plaza. If you're driving, check out nearby parking options—prices vary. Here's some more information about accessibility at the Aquarium.
These movies take you places you only dreamed of going!
The Simons Theatre will remain temporarily closed.
Follow the incredible journey of a spry young green sea turtle as it encounters astonishing ocean creatures on the adventure of a lifetime in our film Turtle Odyssey.
Oceans: Our Blue Planet reveals dramatic events and intimate lives of the ocean's most extraordinary creatures – from the ice-crusted Arctic to the crystalline tropics.
Bring your camera
Take plenty of pictures and share them with us on Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, Instagram, and Pinterest. However, tripods and stands are forbidden as they can obstruct the exhibit paths. Flash photography and flashlights are also restricted in certain areas as they can distress some animals.
Leave the stroller at home
The stroller check will remain temporarily closed.
The Aquarium bustles during school vacation weeks and the summer, and large strollers are difficult to navigate through the crowds. If possible, bring an umbrella stroller. If not, we ask that you check your stroller in our designated area behind the Information Desk during your visit. (Reminder: For safety, strollers of any size are prohibited in the Simons Theatre.)
Storage lockers are available
The Storage lockers will remain temporarily closed.
For items you don't want to carry, lockers are available to the left of the glass doors leading into the Penguin Exhibit. A large locker is $7 for a full day rental, and a smaller locker is $5. Complimentary storage for large pieces that will not fit in the lockers is also available; please ask at the main Information Desk. There is no coat check.
Lost and found
If you have lost or found an item, check with the staff at the Information Desk in the lobby.
Pack a picnic lunch
Picnic tables are available on the Aquarium Plaza, and, weather permitting, you can sit at the tables in the Harbor View Café on a space-available basis.
Please note these policies when visiting the Aquarium.
Bag size: Any bag larger than 12 inches long, 12 inches wide, or 12 inches tall will not be permitted, with the exception of diaper bags and carriers for medical supplies. Bags, strollers, backpacks, and packages are subject to inspection.
Firearms: Firearms are not allowed on Aquarium property, with the exception of law enforcement and on-duty security personnel.
Prohibited items
- Weapons
- Signs
- Alcoholic beverages
- Food, drink, and gum (prohibited in exhibit areas)
- Clothing with offensive or vulgar language
- Illegal drugs
- Laser pens and pointers
- Noise-making devices (horns, whistles, etc.)
- Balloons
- Tobacco products and e-cigarettes
- Selfie sticks
- Any other items deemed to be dangerous or inappropriate
Still have questions?
Poke through our FAQs for answers to common questions.
After you visit, don't be strangers! When you get home or even from your phone, there are plenty of ways that you can connect with the Aquarium online. Follow our blogs for more about the Giant Ocean Tank, marine mammals, other exhibits throughout the Aquarium, and more.


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Sansho the Bailiff
In medieval Japan a compassionate governor is sent into exile. His wife and children try to join him, but are separated, and the children grow up amid suffering and oppression.
Genre: DramaActor: Akitake Kôno, Eitarô Shindô, Kazukimi Okuni, Ken Mitsuda, Kinuyo Tanaka, Kyôko Kagawa, Masao Shimizu, Yôko Kozono, Yoshiaki Hanayagi
Director: Kenji Mizoguchi
Country: Japan


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Millionaire? Not Exactly Last week I got my first Adsense Check from Google. Nothing else for a better New Year Gift! Hope I keep getting these every month!
How much was it?
The check was a huge princely amount of 127$! Yep, I have not left out any zeros on either side intentionally or otherwise!
Yep, right again. This is my first check from Google ever ever ever! I have been online for more than 7 years now, blogging for about 16 months now and this is my first check? YES! Thats the best part, I just learned the hard way that pennies and cents do addup to a nice amount. 😉
What took me so long?
My real money making life online started when I started this blog. Before that I was only a casual surfer of the web, a bystander. Still when I jumped into the money making bandwagon with making money online niche, I did not realize the mistake until recently. Webbies do not click on Ads! Nope, they really don't! Its been ages since I even remember seeing a Google Ad.
How long was it anyways?
Quite a loong time to earn 100$, anyone would say! But patience proved itself and I am here with a earnings for 127$ for my first check. I know I sound stupid trying to glorify my small earnings, but its not my intention. Only intention being that to inspire other smaller bloggers like me who are fed up seeing 0.00 all day through the week. Its a difficult start and your first check is the toughest to reach, take my word for it if you a beginner to making money online 😉 But hey, it paid for my hosting for a whole year!
Since ShoeMoney(read this blog tmro 😉 ) will be attending the BarCamp Kerala, I might as well ask him for a few tips.


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The goal of this article is to provide a very basic overview of AWS Certification Program, give a few reasons why you should get one and share my experience on a way of becoming AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner.
Table of contents:
- Few reasons to be AWS Certified
- High-level overview of Certification Roadmap
- My experience of becoming AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner
- What's next?
Few reasons to be AWS Certified
First of all, let me start with a few reasons why it's worth to be AWS Certified:
- AWS is the market leader in cloud computing according to Gartner research group. It was expanding exponentially over the past few years and continue to grow today at a very high speed.
- AWS Certificates are within the TOP 10 of the most valuable IT Certificates today
- AWS Certified folks are much-needed. Demand is growing with a higher level of certification
- Compare to certification from other industries, they're affordable.
As for me, another main benefit of AWS Certificates is extensive knowledge on topics such as building highly-scalable and fault-tolerant web applications, establishing best security/compliance practices and speeding up your development process. I also like that most of the architectural principles learned while studying for the exam are applicable in non-AWS environments and can be used in the day-to-day development lifecycle.
High-level overview of Certification Roadmap
After a small motivational introduction, let's take a closer look at the diagram which represents levels of AWS certifications:
Image Credit - AWS Certification
In the very beginning of the roadmap there is AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner Сertification which is located on the "Foundational" level (to be more correct, AWS names it as "Foundational Role-based Certification"). It is one of the most newest Certifications compare to the other ones and is the only one which represents AWS Foundational Role. Higher in the chain there is Associate Role which is followed by Professional. In addition to mentioned roles, there're specialty exams which validate advanced knowledge in corresponding technical areas.
With regard to requirements, AWS also removed the necessity of having previous level certificates:
In October 2018, we removed pre-requisites to give candidates more flexibility. Candidates are no longer required to have an Associate certification before pursuing Professional certification, and they are no longer required to have Cloud Practitioner or Associate certification before pursuing Specialty certification.
All certifications details are in-depth covered on the official AWS Certification Page. This guide will help you to decide which certification path to take based on your background, present position and personal goals.
Nevertheless, recommended (but not required) way is to obtain Cloud Practitioner Certificate as a pre-requisite before going to Associate, Professional or Specialty exams. It also intended for people working in Sales, Marketing, Finance, C-Level executives and other related professions. Personally, I think it's very challenging for people from non-tech field to pass the exam, since it does contain very tech-related and scenario based questions around APIs, Networks, Databases, etc. Questions themselves aren't difficult, but I think in order to answer a question such as
Is it true that DynamoDB supports compound primary keys?
you should have some sort of knowledge around databases. Sidenote: the answer is yes.
My experience of becoming AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner
Having a false impression that this exam is for IT-related professions, I had an idea that it would be very easy to pass taking into account that I already had more than a year of hands-on AWS experience. As a reference, this article as well as the entire site is on S3 and distributed via CloudFront. Even before attempting Cloud Practitioner I already run out of free tier. Returning to the topic, before going and register an exam date I decided to double check the exam blueprint and take a look at some of the sample questions. That where I realized I delude myself on this matter and started to google to find resources and courses on that subject. Here's list of resources will help you to prepare for the exam:
Resources list
- ACloudGuru is an undeniable leader in modern cloud certification training. In addition to the extensive collection of videos where instructor (Ryan Kroonenburng) explains like "I'm a 5 years old approach" they have a great collection of quizzes and exam simulators for each level that is really helpful while preparing to your exam.
- AWS has their own online and classroom training. Personally, I didn't look at them while preparing for AWS Cloud Practitioner exam, but will probably take a look before going to the next exams.
- AWS Whitepapers. It's hard to believe that people pass the exam without reading them. 90% of questions are from whitepapers. The best place to find them is on the AWS Cloud Practitioner exam overview page ("AWS Whitepapers" section).
- As a supplementary, Whizlabs resource provides exam simulator with a lot of questions that will set you in the mood for the exam. If you're wondering "Why would you buy whizlabs quizzes, since ACloudGuru" already has many", I would say that they cover different topics. I also felt like Whizlabs simulator has more "scenario based" questions, whereas ACG more theoretical. Update: there's a thread on reddit claims that Whizlabs stole questions from multiple sources. My personal opinion is that they're still valuable without going into the politics of question sources.
All of those resources are optional and none of them are required. Do some other research, find the ones which feel more beneficial to you and use them.
Overall impression
The overall impression is that the exam is not a breeze. Even though, there are basic questions about S3, CloudFront, EC2, etc. that can boost your confidence, there are plenty of others that made me nervious.
My Recommendations for AWS Cloud Practitioner:
- Remember which services fall into which category (e.g. VPC, Route 53 are part of "Networking and Content Delivery", Cloud Watch and Cloud Config are part of "Management Tools", etc.). This is in the whitepaper.
- Get more detailed understanding and capabilities of Databases: DynamoDB, RDS, Aurora.
- Have a good understanding of CloudTrail. Very important service, but I felt it's not covered enough on ACG
- Obviously, S3, Glacier, CloudFront, EC2. However, they're so widely covered on ACG that I wouldn't worry about them too much
- Calculators / TCO
- Have a good understanding of shared responsibility model
How I learned:
- Watched Ryan Course, took notes of all of his lectures. After finishing the course, got back to those notes and learned from them. Lectures give a very good basic understanding, but not enough to pass the exam.
- Read the whitepapers, took notes from them.
- Took all the quizzes from ACG, plus exam simulators.
- Kept doing Exam Simulators multiple times until got close to 100%.
What's next?
This was my journey to obtain first AWS certificate and I'm on my way to get AWS Certified Solutions Architect. As you can see it takes some work to get there, but might be rewarding in the end. If you're ready to start, take a look at ACloudGuru, AWS Training, Udemy and Whizlabs and also feel free ping me here.


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She suspected Cosby had drugged and raped her. The publication reports that, based on Hughes' testimony, she was an American Airlines flight attendant in the 1970s when she met Cosby. She said he positioned himself in front of the door, preventing anyone from entering or seeing what was going on. "I am certain that I had a couple of drinks".
Man dies after being pulled from water in Swampscott
He was transported to Salem Hospital and pronounced dead around 5 p.m. Essex District Attorney Jonathan Blodgett's office said it appears to be an accidental drowning. "From what we understand he had a life-preserver on and was swimming out to the boat and people didn't realize he was in distress", said Swampscott Police Sargent Timothy Cassidy.
14 injured in Seattle crash in intensive care
Meanwhile, 15 people remain hospitalized at Harborview Medical Center, spokeswoman Susan Greggs said. Her 57-year-old father, Greg Moody, heard the driver exclaim, "Oh, no", just before the collision. Her family has been notified. The college hosts a few 900 worldwide students from 50 countries, and the new term is to begin on Monday. They and dozens of other students were on their way to orientation events.
TX teen charged with killing his pregnant mother, fleeing in her car
Officers say the boy is cooperating with investigators. He told KPRC-TV: "I thought maybe someone had broken in the house or something and that's when I found the unfortunate event that happened". "My family is grieving, they are hurt", Moseley's sister Betty Simons sobbed. "I'm angry that somebody would do this to her. She didn't deserve this".
College Students Killed In Seattle Bus & Duck Boat Crash Identified
Critics have long warned that tourist duck boats - amphibious assault vehicles invited to carry troops in World War II that were then recycled for use as sightseeing vehicles in the U.S.- have no place winding their way through US cities. Multiple witnesses said the boat veered out of control before hitting the charter bus, prompting questions as to whether it was the driver's fault or mechanical failure.
New York City Likely to Face Major Floods Every 25 years
People wade and paddle down a flooded street as Hurricane Sandy approaches on October29, 2012, in Lindenhurst, New York. That's still "too short" to really determine whether the storm risk to New York has changed, the researchers find. Continuing development in New York and other coastal areas is also making the impact of such floods worse, similar to how water in a bathtub rises when displaced by a person entering the tub.


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Following Program Changes, MPP Enrollment Reopens
Last week President Trump signed a spending bill to fund the government. The deal also included several changes to the dairy safety net programs including the Margin Protection Program (MPP).
New Pricing. The program now provides small and medium farms with catastrophic coverage at the $5 level for no cost. This price only qualifies for the first 5 million pounds of a farm's historical production.
Calculation Frequency. Margins will be calculated monthly, instead of every two months.
Fees Waved. The $100 administration fee is now waved for underserved farmers, which USDA says includes veterans, socially disadvantaged, minorities and women.
Enrollment Open. The enrollment window for 2018 coverage is now back open. USDA hopes the additional enrollment period will give farmers a chance to weigh the program changes and then decide on participation. Producers who are already enrolled can change their coverage level if desired. Producers who decided not to participate in 2018, but participated in previous years are eligible to sign up.


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In light of recent security breaches, you have probably heard plenty about the need to monitor your credit. If you are among the 29 percent of Americans who do not have a credit card, pay attention: These recommendations still apply to you.
Although many people have few or no credit cards, or they rarely use the ones they do have, there are various factors in addition to credit utilization that can put your credit score at risk. The fact is, everyone needs to regularly monitor their credit score, no matter how little or which types of credit they use.
Why do I need to monitor my credit?
The credit world is not limited to plastic, and credit cards are not the only type of credit that affect your credit score. Every type of loan impacts consumers' credit. Even if you do not have credit cards, chances are you may still have a mortgage loan, an auto loan, a personal loan, a student loan, or all of the above. Also, how you manage each of these accounts is among the factors that go into calculating your credit score.
Even if you do not have credit cards, you may still have a form of established credit in your name that you should watch. Credit monitoring does more than protecting yourself against credit fraud and identity theft. Doing so also helps you to make sure that you are maintaining positive credit reports and score.
The reality is that everyone is at risk of becoming an identity theft victim, especially as many consumers continue to conduct their personal business online. For example, even the simple act of paying a bill online comes with some degree of risk that affect your credit profile. By regularly keeping an eye on your credit report, you can be proactive and quickly take the necessary steps to fix your credit in the event that something does negatively impact it.
Use it or lose it
While avoiding credit cards can be a smart financial decision, having too little or no credit can actually hurt your credit. Avoiding credit cards is wise for those who are likely to abuse it by running up high balances and getting behind to the point that they need credit help Generally speaking, though, securing a loan can be difficult if you have not established any credit history.
Even if you intentionally choose to avoid credit cards, life happens. Getting through life without the need to open a line of credit or to take out a mortgage can be a difficult. Establishing and monitoring your credit can improve your chances of securing a lower interest rate, which is important for loans that have five (5) to thirty (30) years terms.
Ultimately, monitoring your credit report and credit score will allow you to better protect your identity. It can also put you a position to be approved for the best available terms and interest rates in those times when you need to utilize credit.
If you discover inaccurate or fraudulent items on your credit reports, you may find yourself in need of credit repair. Lexington Law can help. We will work with you to exercise your legal rights and ensure that the information on your credit profile is fair and accurate.
You can carry on the conversation on our social media platforms. Like and follow us on Facebook and leave us a tweet on Twitter.


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The House of Representatives reconvened for a legislative session July 5, and the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) leadership is calling on CBC rank and file to "be as disruptive to (House) Speaker (Paul) Ryan (R-WI) as possible."
Breitbart News previously reported that House Democrats promised guerrilla tactics for gun control following their 25-hour sit-in on June 22-23. However, there was no specification of the type of tactics that would be employed.
Fox News now reports that a CBC leadership memo reveals plans to disrupt the House for the coming week — and especially disrupt Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) — in an attempt to secure gun control.
The memo says: "Rep. Robin Kelly (D-IL) would like CBC members to be present for Floor activities on gun violence when the House returns to session on Tuesday, July 5, 2016. The plan is to be as disruptive to (House) Speaker (Paul) Ryan (R-WI) as possible next week."
AWR Hawkins is the Second Amendment columnist for Breitbart News and political analyst for Armed American Radio. Follow him on Twitter: @AWRHawkins. Reach him directly at firstname.lastname@example.com.


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- 1 Please note this Wiki page is focused on SPL for Kaiser/Tilt/TyTn II devices.
- 2 What is the SPL? (Second Program Loader)
- 3 What types of SPLs are there?
- 4 Why is there more than one type of SPL?
- 5 Why would I want to change my SPL?
- 6 Why would I want to change my SPL back after I HardSPL?
- 7 So how do I change my SPL?
- 8 So why do I need to do all this back and forth flashing anyway and what does it really mean?!?!
- 9 So where do we go from here?
Please note this Wiki page is focused on SPL for Kaiser/Tilt/TyTn II devices.
Go here for the discussion thread.
What is the SPL? (Second Program Loader)
The SPL is mainly a bootloader which allows a ROM to be flashed onto your device. As has been uncovered recently (or known to the more astute longer) the SPL does more than just load and boot the ROM it sets various flags which can control the operation of the OS on the device. It also controls some operations between the OS and the device's hardware. SPLs come paired with shipped (or leaked) official ROMs and are meant to match the ROMs operation. Therefore, with each new ROM release there is likely to be a new SPL. As you read on you will learn more about the SPL...
What types of SPLs are there?
Basically there are two main types of SPLs. Hard and Soft.
A HardSPL is one that is permanently flashed in your device memory and will boot up every time your device boots. To get into your SPL or Bootloader on the Kaiser/Tilt you want to hold down the camera button (all the way) and then soft-reset the phone (or turn it on if it was off). You will then see a tri-color screen known as the Bootloader (a.k.a. the SPL). The SPL that is shipped with your device, or upgraded from an official ROM is a Hard SPL. In short, if it is loaded into your device's firmware, and survives a hard-reset it is considered Hard.
A SoftSPL is a stand alone .exe that is run on your device from within the OS. It basically changes your OS from running Windows, to initializing the boot loader. A Soft SPL is only loaded into RAM temporarily and will not survive a hard-reset. To understand more about these, read on...
Why is there more than one type of SPL?
The reason there are the two types of SPLs is to allow flashing of ROMs that are not from the vendor or region your phone is from. Most notably, they can allow you to use "cooked" ROMS.
There are actually two types of HardSPLs:
The SPLs that are loaded on your phone by your vendor's ROM. These are the "default" SPLs. You can most closely associate them with the "BIOS" that is shipped with a PC. The limitation of these SPLs is as I state above; they won't let you load ROMs from other people/vendors. In addition when you flash a newer ROM from your vendor your SPL can get overwritten on your device (in essence, the vendor is doing a "firmware" upgrade to your "BIOS"). The second type of HardSPL is truly HARD. These are the "cooked" SPLs that have been provided to us by OliPof and JockyW. These are special hacked versions of the original vendor SPLs that allow for two things: They bypass the vendor checks on ROMs, allowing you to load any ROM onto your device. This is a necessity if you want to run a cooked ROM. They disable overwrite of the current SPL. This is why I say they are truly HARD. So, even if your ROM comes with a new SPL, it won't overwrite your HardSPL. This is both a blessing and a curse as we will see later on. Why then Soft SPLs?
Soft SPLs are really only around because of the issue mentioned above with the HardSPLs. What if you need to flash a new SPL? HardSPL disables this as I mention. So, SoftSPLs were made to allow you to temporarily load a SPL/Bootloaded from an executable on your device to change your SPL. These SoftSPLs have the overwrite enabled which makes this possible.
NOTE: You should never use a SoftSPL to flash a full ROM to your device. You should only use them to flash a new SPL and once the new SPL is on your device, then flash the ROM!
There are two main SoftSPLs you will find. SSPL-KAIS is a SoftSPL written specifically for the Kaiser and JumpSPL which is a generic SoftSPL to use on multiple devices. For most people SSPL-KAIS will work however some will need to use JumpSPL. For more info, read on....
Why would I want to change my SPL?
As mentioned above if you want to run a "cooked" ROM on your device then you will need to load an SPL that allows that ROM to be loaded. You have two choices: Load one of the hacked HardSPLs (permanently) on your phone to allow you to flash any ROM Using a Soft SPL (temporarily), load an SPL onto your phone (permanently)that matches the ROM you want to load. Then load your ROM. NOTE: By permanently I mean persistent, in that it is "flashed" on your device and will survive even a hard reset. Temporarily means it is only loaded into RAM.
Choice one is usually easier, but it has some drawbacks that we will cover later. Choice two is generally the best, but it is more time consuming. Not only do you need to flash a different SPL with each ROM, but you also need to extract this SPL from the ROM first and load it separately. Only after it is loaded can you then flash the full ROM. In all honestly very few people actually use this technique, but I believe it is becoming more prevalent. I will provide/link to information on how to extract an SPL later on in this thread.
DOUBLE NOTE: You should never use a SoftSPL to flash a full ROM to your device. You should only use them to flash a new SPL and once the new SPL is on your device, then flash the ROM! This is why you need to extract the SPL and flash it first and then once it is "HARD" on your device you can flash the ROM.
Why would I want to change my SPL back after I HardSPL?
Up until a week ago the answer you would have probably gotten is "you wouldn't." However with the release of the Official 6.1 HTC ROM there has been alot of speculation, and some real data inferring that for best performance of a ROM you should use the SPL that came with a ROM or at the very least (to put it another way) you should use a newer SPL with a newer ROM.
There is no definitive proof or specific results that can show you how one SPL will make your device perform over another. I believe I have conducted the most "scientific" experiments on this to date which you can find here. However which SPL you use is up to you based on how you feel it makes the device operate. I recommend however that you use either one of the HardSPLs or the SPL that came with your ROM. It is not recommended (at this point) to run your ROM with an SPL that is not matched to it.
So how do I change my SPL?
If you have a new device and want to first put a HardSPL on the device so that you can load and try cooked ROMs, then you should follow the procedures given by the creators of the HardSPL. Below are the two HardSPLs and links to their instructions: OliPof's HardSPL JockeyW's HardSPL - look under the section in the first post titled "HardSPL with AT Command Interpreter Support" The above links provide good instructions, but you may want to read on for more assistance.
Assuming you already have a HardSPL on your phone and want to flash to another SPL (for instance to flash the SPL that came with your ROM), there is a slightly different procedure. Basically you will need to get your hands on the proper SPL and then use a SoftSPL to load this onto the phone.
This procedure is actually the same procedure you would use if you wanted to revert back to the SPL that actually came with your phone. Luckily, Sirsycho has written a fantastic guide which explains this process. And, since I don't want to duplicate his efforts, you can find that guide here.
SirSycho provides instructions not only how to flash another Hard SPL using a Soft SPL, but also provides instructions on how to extract an SPL from a ROM. You can use those same procedures to extract an SPL from any ROM. So, in other words, you can use these procedures to flash ANY SPL, not just to revert back to your original SPL...that is just one example.
Now, for some caveats on the above procedure:
The main problem you will likely encounter is when trying to run the SSPL-KAIS.exe on your device. Some users have found that instead of getting the tri-color bootscreen when running this application, that the screen goes white. Although the exact reasons for this are not fully known, there is a solution which JockyW has provided us in this thread.
I would like to make a few amendments/comments to his instructions based on my experiences. The first is that I have found that you don't need to remove you SIM card, but you do need to remove your SD card. The second is that JumpSPL1.56-KAIS.exe will probably not work, so just use JumpSPL1.93-KAIS.exe instead.
Also, step 4 and 5 are very important. Once you have launched JumpSPL you will see, after a few seconds, "USB" appear on the bottom white of the bootloader screen. If it doesn't show then either your device is not plugged into your USB port OR your SD card is still in the device. Remember that once is displays "USB" you want to unplug your USB connection and then reconnect it a few seconds later. No message will display when you plug your USB back in, and ActiveSync will not start (if it does start you should worry!) so assume that everything is ok and continue on.
Using the above procedures you should be able to flash between different SPLs with ease. To summarize I will go through the procedure I use to quickly flash between SPLs. Remember to read the above links first so you understand the tools and basic procedures:
- Get the SPL file (in .NBH format) that i want to flash along with the KaiserCustomRUU.exe and put it in a folder on my PC.
- Plug my device into my PC
- Copy JumpSPL1.93-KAIS.exe to my device. I use JumpSPL because I have the "White Screen" issue, if you don't, you can use SSPL-KAIS.exe.
- Take out my SD card
- Run JumpSPL1.93-KAIS.exe on my device
- Wait for the bootloader screen to appear and "USB" to show.
- Unplug my device from the USB port, wait 5 seconds, plug it back in.
- Run KaiserCustomRUU.exe and flash the SPL
I use this procedure to flash between any Stock/Official SPLs and HardSPL. JockyW's has provided the stand-alone HardSPL nbh file here flash-HardSPL.zip.
So why do I need to do all this back and forth flashing anyway and what does it really mean?!?!
Ah, yes, so this is what it comes down to and a point of confusion among many users currently. The fact is that if you are happy running one particular ROM, you should probably just flash the SPL that shipped with that ROM (in the case of a cooked ROM, use the SPL that shipped with the base ROM). However, if you are a flashing junky and want to keep switching, then you need to do some work.
Also, let me point out that you can just stick with either the OliPof or JockyW HardSPL and flash/run whatever ROM you want. If however you believe you are experiencing some of the freezing/lagging issues that some report being due to mismatched SPLs then you will want to follow the above procedures.
The reason of switching back and forth between different SPLs is if you want the best of both worlds. Meaning you want to flash multiple ROMs AND you want a matched SPL for stability/performance. If this is the case you will need to reflash JockyW's or OliPof's HardSPL everytime you want to flash a new ROM.*
The reasoning is that those HardSPLs are what allows you to flash a ROM not originally meant for your device (from your vendor/region). Once you have flashed the HardSPL you can then flash your ROM. Once your ROM is flashed, you can then flash the SPL which matches that ROM to ensure stability. However, if you want to flash a new ROM, you have to go back to the beginning and flash the HardSPL again to allow you to load another ROM!*
- Technically you can do the procedure in a different manner as I mention at the beginning of the thread. If you want to extract the SPL file and package it up as an NBH (as explained in SirSycho's thread). Then you can just run my procedure above and flash the ROM's SPL file first. Then, once that ROM's SPL is on your phone you should be able to load the ROM. However, it is often difficult to determine which is the correct SPL to a cooked ROM that didn't come with an SPL therefore you may want to stick to the HardSPL procedure.
So where do we go from here?
Well, at the moment this is where we are at. We are still investigating the full effects of what an SPL can do to vary the performance of an OS. For now there is a large consensus that the newer HTC 6.1 ROM SPL seems to work well for most of the newer 6.1 ROMS (stock and cooked). You can get that SPL file here if you'd like to try it.
At this time, we are also stuck doing the described procedures of flashing and reflashing SPLs everytime you want to load a new ROM (assuming you want to use that ROM's SPL). However JockeyW has graciously agreed to look into creating some new "hacked" HardSPL's based off of the newer SPLs! Currently he is working on the Official HTC 3.28.0000 SPL. If we are lucky we may see something within the next week. As more is discovered about how the SPLs work we may see some more work done on this front by him and others.
With that said, I would like to thank: JockyW - for all his past and current creations OliPro - for the original 'hacked' HardSPL Pof - for his work on Kaiser SPLs SirSycho - for his thread on reverting back to other SPLs Shafez and RPG0 - for bringing greater exposure to the current SPL issues And anyone else who originated information contained in this thread (PM me if you did so I can credit you!).


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While living on the Eastern Shore of Maryland I saw plenty of shiny new yachts. Most were kept in resort town marinas and saw, at best, occasional use by their absentee owners. They were pretty boats, to be sure: freshly varnished teak and pure white paint.
But the boats that most captured my imagination were the old wooden workboats—the fishing and crabbing boats that were built from thick timbers by old-time craftsman who took their skills for granted. Most were scuffed, scraped, splintered, and hastily repaired. They exuded a strong odor of dead fish and dried mud on hot summer days. But after decades of hard work, they exhibited a depth of character that no weekend yacht could emulate. Like a crumbling stone wall in an abandoned farm field, they became part of their environment. They blended harmoniously into the salt marsh landscape of the Bay precisely because they were rough hewn and hard used.
Maybe that's why I never aspired to yacht-like perfection in my boats. I want people to know that my boat is homemade; I want it to look used. While I admire the stamina of builders who spend weeks and months faring their hulls and applying six, eight, ten coats of marine varnish (sanding between each), I was satisfied with grinding down the rough spots and slapping on a few coats of porch paint. Up close, the casual approach is obvious. There are bumps and drips just about everywhere. But I am perfectly content with the results. My boat feels "real."
Still, part of me wondered if I would regret my hasty approach. Once I was on the water and my boat was exposed to the revealing glare of sunlight on water, would I wish for greater perfection? Maybe I would feel embarrassed by my humble work whenever a gleaming yacht slid passed.
But I recently had a revelation about this urge for workshop perfection. A few days ago I took my canoe—the "six hour" canoe I built last fall—to a local lake for its first outing of the season. This was only its second trip to the water and I doubt its total use by the family exceeded an hour or two hours of paddling. But by the end of the day, as I lifted it out of the water and hoisted it back onto the roof of my car, I immediately noticed that this new, barely used craft was coated in mud. Underneath, the paint had scraped off down to bare wood and fiberglass where the canoe dragged along the shoreline.
A quick once over with a hose and a touch up with a paint brush would make the canoe nearly good as new. But why fret about this "damage"? The canoe was just being used as a canoe should; the mud and scratches are badges of honor. And I'd rather enjoy my canoe than worry about every little ding. Instead, I found myself feeling smug that I didn't waste my time sanding and painting. Why pursue a notion of perfection that cannot be sustained in the real world?
Back home, my Pocket Cruiser has yet to see the water; it has yet to see sunlight or rain. It has not yet hit a gravely beach, or hosted children with muddy feet who spill their drinks. It has not yet hit a dock—hard. But it will and, when it does, my brightwork won't look so bright, the white paint will show dirt, the paint will scrape away and begin to bubble.
I can't wait.


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This morning it's time to prove hippies still want to change the world.
"On 28th March thousands will march through London as part of a global campaign to challenge the G20, ahead of their 2nd April summit on the global financial crisis.
Even before the banking collapse, the world suffered poverty, inequality and the threat of climate chaos. The world has followed a financial model that has created an economy fuelled by ever-increasing debt, both financial and environmental.
Our future depends on creating an economy based on fair distribution of wealth, decent jobs for all and a low carbon future.
There can be no going back to business as usual.
People from all over the country will join the march on March 28.
Be one of them."
from "Put People First" website http://www.putpeoplefirst.org.uk/
On the BBC News Website they have helpfully put a map and more details.
It starts at Midday ( in two hours).
"The assembly point for the march is now confirmed. People should gather from 11am on Victoria Embankment by Temple tube station on March 28th. The postcode is WC2R 2 PP." ( from Put People First Website)
The march will start on Victoria Embankment and move past Trafalgar Square and Green Park to Hyde Park, where there will be a mass rally.
If you don't read this in time for the march then do go to Hyde Park for the rally in the afternoon.
I'd like to wish the lovely people at "Born to Go" in Hitchin a great psychedelic evening tonight and also to Steve Hillage and Miquette who are playing this evening in London.
However I may not be there as I am going on the march in a second.
The media is speculating that there will all kinds of violence and anarchic nastiness at this march but let's prove them wrong. Let's keep our dignity
and protest peacefully and also keep away from any charging policemen.
We are the people of this country, we are entitled to a voice and the police are meant to serve us and the government is elected by us so we need to make a peaceful noise and
also if the police DO attack us it would be good if someone could take some footage of it and hand it in to sympathetic media people!
Love and Peace
Here is a clip of Woodstock to get me out the door and marching:


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With the arrival of summer come some of our favorite, refreshing treats. The Sicilian granita is an especially guilt-free indulgence, containing only fresh fruit, ice, and a sweetener (we prefer a natural alternative to sugar)!
Granitas are most commonly enjoyed for breakfast in Sicily, using lemon, coffee, mulberry, and almond. But you can enjoy them any time of day, and you can also feel free to choose from a variety of fruit flavors! Our recipe uses cantaloupes, a popular and refreshing summer fruit.
Cantaloupes are very nutritious fruits that act as a natural diuretic. They contain high levels of potassium, which helps lower high blood pressure. Not only that, there is also evidence in recent studies that they help lower the risk of cancer.
Yields: 6 servings | Serving Size: 1/2 cup | Calories: 54 Total Fat: 0 g | Saturated Fat: 0 g | Trans Fat: 0 g | Cholesterol: 0 mg | Sodium: 13 mg | Carbohydrates: 14 g | Dietary Fiber: 1 g | Sugars: 13 g | Protein: 1 g | SmartPoints (Freestyle): 3
- 1 pound cantaloupe pulp, chopped
- 2 cups water
- 3-1/2 ounces natural sweetener, such as Stevia
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- To make the syrup, bring the water and sweetener to a boil over medium heat, then simmer it for 15 minutes on low heat.
- Put the cantaloupe in a blender and blend until smooth.
- In a large bowl, mix the syrup and the melon until well combined. Add the lemon juice. You can adjust the taste according to your taste. Remember that when it freezes, it will lose a fraction of its taste so make the cantaloupe mixture a bit strong.
- When the cantaloupe mixture cools down, transfer it to an ice cream maker and follow the instructions of your machine.
- If you are not using an ice cream machine, transfer the mixture to a plastic or metal container with a cover and place it in the freezer. Take it out every half an hour to mix it until it arrives to the perfect consistency of a granita.
- If the granita hardens too much, break it into medium to big pieces and transfer it to a mixer to break it apart.
More refreshing recipes for the warm months ahead:
Refreshing Lemon-Lime Popsicles
Refreshing Lemonade Drink Recipes: Red, White, and Blueberry Lemonade
Citrus and Spinach Salad with Creamy Lemon Dressing
Zucchini Ribbon Salad With Pine Nuts and Parmesan Shavings
Don't miss out on the latest recipes, clean eating and healthy living tips from SkinnyMs. by subscribing to our newsletter. You can also follow us in our Facebook and Pinterest pages and be always up to date with what's happening at SkinnyMs.
If you liked the recipe, drop us a line at the comments section below.


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Innovative System for Heat Recovery from Wastewater
Energy is becoming ever more expansive and burning of fossil fuels accelerates global warming. Increased utilisation of renewable energy is the best solution to save fossil energy resources, reduce or avoid emission of carbon dioxide and slow down climate change. Heat recovery from wastewater for heating of buildings is possible and has become cost-effective. Wastewater has a substantial thermal energy potential. The question is: How can we recover this heat efficiently?
Close beneath our feet is a hidden source of energy that has remained virtually unnoticed in the past: domestic and municipal sewage. Generally its temperature is in a range between 10 °C and 20 °C all year round. Even during winter its temperature does not, or at most for a few days, drop below 10 °C. For this reason sewage is an excellent heat source for effective and economical operation of heat pumps. Recovery and use of this heat is cost-effective where large buildings and complexes are heated. The recovered heat can also be fed into existing or planned local heat distribution networks.
Heat can be recovered at wastewater treatment plants, preferably from their effluents. This is technically relatively simple, but wastewater treatment plants are often located remote from buildings that could be heated with the recovered heat. Heat recovery from treated wastewater is the best option where the treatment plant itself needs much heat, e.g. for sludge drying. Recovered heat can also be supplied from wastewater treatment plants to big nearby heat consumers, such as building yards, business parks or factories.
Alternatively, heat can be recovered from sewers and used for the heating of buildings in their proximity. In this case it is important to investigate the effect that cooling of the sewage could have on the operation of the wastewater treatment plant.
Present systems for sewer heat recovery use long and large heat exchangers that are installed on the invert of sewers. However, such systems can only be installed under certain circumstances. There are many structural and hydraulic requirements and constraints limiting installation of such heat exchangers in sewers. In many cases, where sufficient recoverable sewage heat is available and much heat is needed nearby, installation of such heat exchangers would be too difficult and expensive. Our Huber ThermWin Solution is an excellent alternative and opens a far wider field for sewer heat recovery.
The basic concept of our ThermWin Solution is that heat exchange does not take place within sewers, but remote from sewers, even above ground. We divert wastewater from the sewer and pass it through a screen for removal of course solids. Screened wastewater is then pumped through an external heat exchanger. The removed screenings are returned into the sewer, as is the wastewater after its passage through the heat exchanger. Screening of the wastewater is essential to prevent clogging and blocking of the heat exchanger and to permit use of a rather compact and inexpensive heat exchanger. Operation, maintenance and service of the system are easy because all components, the screen as well as the heat exchanger, are located outside of the sewer and are easily accessible. This feature is most important for the operators.
Operation of our ThermWin system are described as follows: A portion of the wastewater flows from the bottom of a sewer through a valved connection into the screen basket of a vertical screen ROTAMAT® RoK 4. Coarse solids are retained in the screen basket and then removed and lifted through a vertical pipe with a screw. At the upper end of the vertical pipe the lifted screenings slide down over a chute and drop back down into the sewer from another connection near its crown level. The screened wastewater, after it has been pumped through a compact heat exchanger and has been cooled, is returned to the chute and flushes the screenings back down into the sewer. The returned cooled wastewater and the screenings continue their way down the sewer.
Our ThermWin Solution offers many benefits; the most important thereof are explained hereafter:
- Quick and easy constructionOnly a manhole next to a sewer needs to be constructed underground. The sewer remains virtually unaffected throughout construction and installation. No deviation of sewage is needed. Ground water drainage, if necessary, is limited to the short manhole construction period.
- Easy and inexpensive installation
The heat exchanger is installed next to the heat pump and a heat storage tank in a building that is located near the heat consumers. The screen is quickly installed in the manhole and can be lifted out by use of common lifting gear.
- Compact, inexpensive and easily accessible heat exchangers
Heat exchangers for the cooling of screened wastewater are comparatively compact and inexpensive. Due to turbulent flow, their heat transfer coefficient is good. In addition, they have a far lower volume / heat exchange surface ratio. And the heat exchangers are easily accessible, which facilitates cleaning.
- Minimized heat losses
Hot water pipes between heat exchanger and heat pump are very short. Heat losses of compact and well insulated heat exchangers are negligible.
- Independent from sewer size and shape
Since no component of the system needs to be installed in sewers, there are no constraints by sewer size and shape. Only two connections are drilled through the sewer wall.
- Simple control strategy
Depending on heat demand and wastewater temperature, the wastewater flow through the heat exchanger is controlled by a pump. This flow is independent from the wastewater flow in the sewer.
- Limited heat exchanger fouling
Growth of bio-films is unavoidable on surfaces that are exposed to wastewater. Bio-films can reduce heat transfer coefficients by over 50 %. However, turbulent velocities in the heat exchanger and high shear forces keep bio-films thin.
- Easy maintenance
Since our heat exchangers are installed in a building, no costly and dangerous inspection, maintenance and repair work within sewers is needed.
- Quick implementation
So far unused sewer heat is available in close proximity to potential consumers. Fast construction and installation permit quick tapping of this source.
- Reduced use of fossil fuels
Generation of 1 kWh of heat in a boiler needs about 1.15 kWh of fossil energy. The same heat is made available with the heat pump consuming 0.2 to 0.3 kWh of electrical power which is generated in a power station from around 0.5 kWh of fossil fuel. Savings of fossil fuel are thus 50 % to 60 %. If power/heat cogeneration or regenerative power were used, savings would be even higher.
- Cost-effectiveness
Thorough cost calculations for big heat consumers, such as big buildings or sewage sludge dryers, have shown that heat recovery from wastewater is often cost competitive in comparison with conventional heating.
- Environment and climate protection
Heat recovery from wastewater is a step toward reaching the new European goals for the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and increased use of renewable energy. Wastewater should no longer be considered as waste, but as a valuable resource. With more sophisticated technology, wastewater energy can not only be reused for heating in winter, but also for cooling in summer. It can thus be used all year round. Almost anywhere domestic, commercial or industrial wastewater is not far away where heat is needed. This heat source is available within cities and towns, where most heat is needed. Heating of large buildings or of their hot water systems, e.g. of nursing homes, hospitals or schools, is as feasible as feeding recovered heat into local heat distribution networks. Our ThermWin system offers an innovative solution for recovery and reuse of heat from municipal sewers.


text: MOVIES Harry J. Ufland, Producer on 'The Last Temptation of Christ,' Dies at 81 7:07 PM PST 3/5/2018 by Mike Barnes FACEBOOK TWITTER EMAIL ME Courtesy of Tommy Ufland Harry J. Ufland Other collaborations with Martin Scorsese included 'Mean Streets,' 'The King of Comedy' and a Michael Jackson music video. Harry J. Ufland, a veteran agent turned producer who collaborated with director Martin Scorsese on The Last Temptation of Christ and the music video for Michael Jackson's "Bad," has died. He was 81. Ufland died of brain cancer at his Playa Vista home in Los Angeles, his son, Tommy Ufland, told The Hollywood Reporter. Ufland also produced films including Irwin Winkler's Night and the City (1992), starring Robert De Niro and Jessica Lange; Carl Franklin's One True Thing (1998), with Meryl Streep nominated for best actress; Snow Falling on Cedars (1999), starring Ethan Hawke; and Crazy/Beautiful (2001), featuring Kirsten Dunst. Ufland was representing Scorsese when he received a note of thanks in the credits for one of the filmmaker's earliest features, Mean Streets (1973), and he appeared onscreen as an agent for kidnapped late-night host Jerry Langford (Jerry Lewis) in Scorsese's The King of Comedy (1982). Ufland also served as an executive producer on Jackson's 18-minute, West Side Story-influenced "Bad" music video that was helmed by Scorsese in 1986 and on The Last Temptation of Christ (1988), for which Scorsese earned a best director Oscar nomination. Born in Manhattan on March 12, 1936, Ufland was raised in the uptown neighborhood of Washington Heights. He worked as an agent at William Morris from 1958-74 and at CMA/ICM from 1974-76 before launching his own outfit, where he helped package Scorsese's acclaimed Raging Bull (1980). His clients also included De Niro, Harvey Keitel, Peter Bogdanovich, Catherine Deneuve, Charles Grodin, Jodie Foster, Martin Brest, Marcello Mastroianni, Ridley and Tony Scott, Adrian Lyne and Jonathan Kaplan. In 1982, Ufland founded Ufland-Roth Productions with Joe Roth and worked alongside his wife, Mary Jane, in Ufland Productions from 1985-2011. He had producer credits on Streets of Gold (1986), directed by Roth, and Not Without My Daughter (1991), starring Sally Field, during this period. The last film he produced was The Big Wedding (2013), starring De Niro and Diane Keaton. Ufland was a professor at Dodge College of Film and Media Arts at Chapman University in Orange, California, from 2011 until his death. In addition to his son and wife of 33 years, survivors include his children John, Anne, Chris, Jenny and Jossie from a previous marriage. FACEBOOK TWITTER EMAIL ME Mike Barnes email@example.com mikebarnes4


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The GSA, EIB and the European Global Navigation Satellite Systems Agency signed an agreement to cooperate on supporting investment in the European space-based service economy.
The signing of the agreement occurred in Prague during the celebration to mark the 15th anniversary of GSA. To explore new investment support for the European space-based economy, the EIB and GSA are bringing together their expertise and experience. The common objective is to create high-skill jobs in the EU and improve the day-to-day lives of Europeans by supporting innovative companies and accelerating the development of new applications that use European global navigation satellite systems and earth observation data. These applications could be used to ensure smooth navigation, e.g. in search and rescue operations to save lives, for observing crops, and in precision farming to reduce the need for fertilizers and pesticides.
EIB VP Ambroise Fayolle, responsible for innovation, said that space is the final frontier and there is a new worldwide ambition in reaching it. The EU's global competitors and new private actors are investing heavily in the space sector. At the same time, new disruptive technologies and business models are emerging and changing the playing field. Europe needs to stay in the game. That is why EIB is particularly enthusiastic about this agreement with GSA. It is an important step to develop further support for European space entrepreneurs and businesses to eventually give them and the EU a competitive edge in this new space race.
A changing space sector The global space economy has been evolving rapidly in recent years. On average it has grown by 6.7 percent per year over the last 10 years, which is almost twice the 3.5 percent average yearly growth of the global economy. This growth has been partially driven by the US, China and other countries that have developed new ambitious space missions. The main driver, however, has been the "New Space" phenomenon: a number of technological and business model innovations that have introduced new products and services and reduced the cost of accessing and using space.
The transformation of the space economy has seen new space companies investing more than 14.8 billion euros since 2000, with a fast accelerating trend: total investment in space companies grew by a factor of 3.5 in 2012–2017 compared with the previous six-year period. Moreover, U.S.-based investors dominate the field, accounting for around two-thirds of the 400+ worldwide investors in space companies.
Historically, Europe has always been at the forefront of publicly-funded space exploration, investing massively in space infrastructures such as the Copernicus and Galileo satellite programs. Europe still boasts academic and scientific excellence but risks missing the next wave of space innovation unless it seizes the opportunity to stimulate more private investment in the new space sector.
Forty percent of the European companies surveyed seek public funding, which serves as a seal of approval in the market, as a precondition for further private investment. About the European GNSS Agency (GSA) As an official European Union Regulatory Agency, the European GNSS Agency (GSA) manages public interests related to European GNSS programmes. The GSA's mission is to support European Union objectives and achieve the highest return on European GNSS investment, in terms of benefits to users and economic growth and competitiveness. For more information, visit the GSA website.
According to a recent EIB and European Commission study on the future of the European space sector, European space entrepreneurs feel there is a lack of private financing sources, particularly for late-stage investments. They therefore tend to keep an eye on private capital outside the EU, especially in the US. In this context, European public innovation instruments play an essential role in unlocking private capital for the space sector.
Carlo des Dorides, GSA Executive Director, added that the company's expertise in market intelligence for satellite navigation and in supporting new business opportunities – thanks to EGNOS and Galileo – is the basis of our agreement with the EIB. The firm is confident that our cooperation will bring the extra added value required by entrepreneurs to transform their application businesses into globally successful companies.
Forty percent of the European companies surveyed seek public funding, which serves as a seal of approval in the market, as a precondition for further private investment.
For more information:
Cristina Comunian Communication Officer Tel. +420 234 766 780 European GNSS Agency (GSA) firstname.lastname@example.com www.gsa.europa.eu
Marie Ménard Communication Officer Tel. +420 602 619 776 European GNSS Agency (GSA) firstname.lastname@example.com
If you would rather not receive future communications from GOPA Com, let us know by clicking here. GOPA Com, Boulevard de la Woluwe 2, Brussels, - 1150 Belgium


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Aloha! If you have ever heard of Hawaii then you must know one of the Island's most desirable treasures – coffee. There's a remarkable amount of flavor in these coffee beans. From the sweet floral taste of Kona coffee to the rich boldness of Hamakua coffee, the Hawaiian Islands are world renowned for their high quality coffee beans.
Irrespective of how you drink it, Hawaii coffee offers a tropical taste experience that coffee connoisseurs say cannot be found in any other coffee in the world.
Not all Hawaiian coffee is the same.
The Hawaiian oldtimer's here on the Big Island say that the taste varies between coffee that is grown in soil (i.e. Hamakua, South Kona) to coffee that is grown in lava rock (Puna, Kona Desert). The coffee grown in soil is said to possess a bold, chocolate-like flavor while the coffee grown in lava rock is known to be sweet and floral.
How Hawaiian coffee is grown and processed
Hawaiian coffee plants grow freely throughout the Islands. This plant species has been spread naturally by birds and other environmental occurrences and thus grows like a weed. Despite it's widespread presence the majority of Hawaii's coffee bean industry is supplied by farms and estates.
Why is coffee cultivated?
Well, the yield of coffee beans per plant may not be optimal when plants are grown in the wild. Coffee plants yield the most amount of beans when given a healthy diet of nutrients, water and optimal sunlight. Pruning can help increase yield and also make harvesting coffee beans easier for pickers.
Coffee farmers in Hawaii have a wealth of information on-hand through the University of Hawaii (a great resource for all things agriculture) Here's a pdf that guidelines the best recommended coffee plant cultivation methods: https://www.ctahr.hawaii.edu/oc/freepubs/pdf/coffee08.pdf
When coffee is processed, it removes a lot of the "bitter" compounds such as tannic acid. This is done by husking off the coffee cherry skin and fermenting the jelly off the bean. Then the coffee beans are set out in the sun to dry before being roasted.
What makes Hawaiian coffee taste good?
The tropical Hawaiian climate is ideal for making a great cup of coffee. Some of the world's premier specialty coffee is Hawaiian cloud forest coffee. Cloud forest coffee is grown at high elevations and is esteemed for it's superb quality. Higher elevations have less particles in the air to block UV rays. More UV rays to plants may increase the amount of sugars produced. This, mixed with the rich, volcanic soil and the correct amount of dampness, offer perfect conditions for the wealthy, nice taste of the islands However the cost and availability of organic high elevation Hawaiian coffee is high and not-so-easy to find.
If you usually purchase organic items then you will be glad to see that Hawaii has an active organic ag community. While it's true that there are a large amount of coffee farms and estates in Hawaii that use chemical fertilizers and spray pesticides, there are an equally large amount of organic coffee estates and wildcraft bean sellers.
Why go organic?
Well, with organic coffee there are no chemical substance such as pesticides utilized in developing the organic coffee beans. Many people also believe that coffee grown in rich organic soils make the most enjoyable cups of coffee.
Finding Hawaiian Coffee For Sale
If Hawaiian coffee is something you desire to beverage on a regular basis you will have to look either online (if you're out of the state) or through local suppliers. Locating a trustworthy source of Hawaiian coffee is only half the fun, the other half is finding a coffee that tastes the best. Here at BestHawaiiCoffee.WordPress.com we taste sample lots of Hawaiian coffee and share our favorites.


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Chronically suppressing symptoms does not really heal a disease and allergy is no different. That is the way many medical problems are approached today. Which medicines work to suppress or block symptoms? Medicines like benadryl, albuterol and steroids. They are vital and potentially life-saving medicines when there is an emergency and Dr. Blanning prescribes them when he needs to. But when an illness shifts from an acute problem to a chronic illness there need to be other options. Because if the only therapy offered works to repeatedly suppress an illness, when will that end? Does that mean you will need to be on that medicine for the rest of your life?
The rates of allergic illnesses keep going up. They are much more prevalent today than they were in the past. Some estimates say that pediatric allergies have increased by 600% since 1970, so that a child today is about seven times more likely to have an allergy than 45 years ago. This includes things like asthma, eczema, and hayfever (allergic rhinitis), as well as dietary and environmental allergies. Something has changed about how we are able to take in substance from the outside world and respond to it.
A holistic and integrative approach looks to see:
- Can we identify the triggers that make your symptoms more severe?
- Is there a chronic irritation in one part of your body which perpetually irritates and stimulates the immune system?
- How can your digestive and immune systems be guided and strengthened to really break down foreign substance (food, pollen, animal dander, chemicals) and then fully excrete it from the body? This can be supported with different kinds of herbal and homeopathic medicines.
We are able to offer a whole range of holistic options besides suppression, and these treatments can be especially important in children, whose bodies and immune systems can be taught new ways of healing. We also feel that these kinds of alternative treatments can be safely added into an existing treatment, with the goal of safely transitioning off of suppressant medications over time.
Does this kind of holistic treatment work? Is there any science behind anthroposophic medicine? Well, a series of important clinical research studies show that the risk of developing an allergic illness in the first two years of life goes down by about 75% for children who experience an "Anthroposophic lifestyle." (Source: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21651566).


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El Donaldo claims they talked about The Wall: You know, the one that the erstwhile casino mogul wants to build along the border between the two countries, and make the country that supplies, directly or indirectly, his restaurant and domestic help (and, probably, a good part of the rest of his workforce) pay for it. After all, those folks south of the border have gotten so rich from all the money the fellow who made his taco bowl sent home that they can easily afford to foot the bill for keeping the country where the man makes his money safe. Right?
Caballero Jorge very politely, but in a very manly sort of way, denied that his country is going to pay for any such structure. Donald, trying to out-do him in the machismo department, reiterated his promise that not only will the wall be built, but that "they are going to pay for the wall, 100%. They don't know it yet."
OK, Donald, I won't let out the Big Secret. But please tell me: How thick will that wall be? And more important: How high?
I ask because no one really knows just how much is necessary to keep those thundering herds of taco trucks from rumbling across the border. But even if Your Wall could keep out those hordes of enchilada chefs yearning to make a living, it can't deter another group of intrepid souls:


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Pasir Ris otters a favourite subject of Nat Geo's Nature Photographer of the Year Jayaprakash Bojan
Singapore-based Jayaprakash Bojan talks about his favourite otter family in Pasir Ris and the real story behind his prize-winning orangutan encounter in Borneo.
SINGAPORE: He may have braved the rainforest jungles of Borneo to get his prize-winning peekaboo shot of a wild orangutan.
But this year's National Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year says Singapore is as good a place as any to shoot some fascinating wildlife, from local and migratory birds to its loveable otters.
In fact, Jayaprakash Bojan told Channel NewsAsia that the latter are his favourite subjects here.
"I've been photographing the Pasir Ris family for a year and a half now. I live in Pasir Ris Link and the park is one of my favourite places. When I'm not travelling, I go there three to four times a week, and there are a few spots they show up very regularly. Typically, in the mornings, they'd come and roll on the grass," said the 41-year-old photographer from Tamil Nadu, India.
He has even won an award for one of his otter photos – a scene depicting an encounter between the animals and morning joggers had previously won first prize at a contest in India.
"There were these uncles who were taking photos with their handphones and the otters were curious and even walked closer to them," Bojan recalled.
"I used that photograph to tell the story of how wildlife can still coexist with humans in an urban place like Singapore. It's got really limited wildlife but it's just amazing to see how people here are very appreciative of what is there, preserving and taking care of them."
At the heart of Bojan's love for photography is animal conservation. His award-winning photo of the male orangutan – fondly nicknamed "Cooper" by his wife for its copper-tinted fur – is part of an ongoing project of photographing endangered primates all around the world.
Another of his photographs – of an African cheetah – also made it to the National Geographic finals, but Bojan said he was glad it was the orangutan image that won.
"I'm happy to just put the spotlight on the orangutans – they deserve it more than me winning the award," he said, recalling the shock he felt at the sight that greeted him at the beginning of his trip to Indonesia's Central Kalimantan in August.
"When you fly down from Jakarta, all you see around are palm oil farms – probably 60 to 70 per cent of the habitat of the orangutans have been destroyed by palm oil cultivation. I was impacted by the loss of habitat," he said, adding that he plans to donate part of his prize money – US$7,500 (S$10,000) – to orangutan conservation.
As for the real story behind the prize-winning shot, Bojan knew he was on to something special when he was told by one of the local rangers that there were occasional sightings of orangutans crossing the Sekonyer River.
"Historically, there are very few documented evidence of orangutans in the river, because they hate water and some parts of the river have crocodiles. So we took the risk," said Bojan.
It was only on the second day of living on a boat when he and his companions finally spotted the great ape.
"I decided to jump into the river and hid behind a tree. It happened that the orangutan saw me and kind of hid behind another tree trunk in the river. So I just stood still – and after a few seconds, the orangutan came out to see if I was still there. I took a sequence of around 25 pictures. It was an exciting, thrilling moment for me," he said.
And there have been many such moments for Bojan, who had simply been a hobbyist until his move to Singapore a couple of years ago to follow his wife, who works in the banking industry.
After working in the corporate sector in India for 18 years, he decided to quit his job to pursue his passion for travel and photography as a freelance wildlife photographer.
In the past 11 months, he has been to Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Indonesia and Malaysia – primarily to focus on his endangered primates project, which he hopes to publish as a photobook by the end of next year.
His passion for endangered primates began thanks to a visit to the Singapore Zoo upon moving here two years ago – and seeing the orangutans, gibbons and red langur.
"It's honestly one of the best zoos I've seen. The design is so beautiful you don't feel you're in a zoo. Something was triggered and I thought should go and find all these primates and photograph them in the wild."
He added: "In Indochina alone there are about 25 rare monkey or primate species that are highly endangered. For some of them, there are only about 40 to 50 alive. So far, I've only captured around nine species because they're really hard to spot, especially since I'm trying to photograph them in the wild."
And there's more on his plate. In February, he'll be in Japan to shoot their famous snow monkeys. The month after that, it's off to the Himalayas in the hopes of spotting the elusive snow leopards.
"That's going to be a really tough one. It's maybe 10,000 feet about sea level and very low on oxygen. But we have a good team there," he said.
And is his wife okay with his constant travelling? "She's a huge nature lover. In fact whenever she has time she travels with me. But it's not easy to be away from home weeks at a time. Obviously, you need a supportive wife," he said with a laugh.


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The Atlanta Journal Constitution just reported an unusual exchange between Dr Julie Geberding, the head of the CDC, and US Senator Charles Grassley, the senior Republican on the US Senate Finance Committee. It seems that Senator Grassley requested a briefing from the newly hired CDC ombudsmen, but Dr Geberding refused the request.
In a March 5 letter to Grassley, Geberding said the two contract employees the CDC has hired to serve as interim ombudsmen believe that briefing the senator would violate standards of practice for ombudsmen and render them unable to continue to do their jobs effectively.
'While I am respectful of your desire to get further information, I am also sensitive to these principles — especially because CDC's Ombudsman Office is in a critical stage of development,' Gerberding wrote.
The big problem with that argument is that the ombudsmen already had agreed to brief Geberding.
Grassley's letter questions the validity of the ombudsmen's reasoning, stating that he is neither the subject of the ombudsmen's inquiries 'nor a potential cause of employee angst at CDC.' He notes that the ombudsmen have met and briefed Gerberding. Many employees blame Gerberding and her leadership for problems at the agency.
'Dr. Gerberding, am I missing something here?' Grassley asked in his letter. 'Why would two individuals claim preserving their objectivity as Ombudsmen requires refusing to brief Congress, but allows meeting with you to discuss their findings?' Grassley wrote, adding that he's not surprised that few CDC employees have 'felt comfortable approaching these two men to seek their help on their problems with CDC management.'
In my humble opinion, it's a funny sort of ombudsman who reports to the leader of his or her government agency, but cannot report to Congressional oversight. I would imagine any half-way rational CDC employee would be very hesitant to say anything to the ombudsmen that might be the slightest bit offensive to the leadership of the CDC.
Thus, the CDC still appears to be an agency whose leadership does not easily tolerate criticism. Given the scientific basis of the agency, this would appear to be yet another example of mission-hostile management, US government agency style.
But it seems that in many kinds of health care organizations, not just in the US, not just government agencies, the worst sin is to criticize the management. Given the ineptness, and worse of the management of many health care organizations (some of which has been featured on Health Care Renewal), is it any wonder that health care is in a mess?