Contact lenses could stream data across wearer's field of vision

Researchers have taken a major step towards the Terminator-style streaming of real-time information across a person's field of vision.

A US/Finnish team of researchers has built a computerized contact lens and tested it successfully in the eyes of live rabbits.

Right now, the lens contains only a single pixel - but the team says it's a proof-of-concept for the creation of lenses with multiple pixels.

These could overlay computer-generated visual information onto the real world, diplaying, say, emails, texts or geographic information. They could also revolutionize gaming.

The lens, created by researchers at the University of Washington and Finland's Aalto University, consists of an antenna to harvest power sent out by an external source, along with an integrated circuit to store this energy and transfer it to a transparent sapphire chip containing a single blue LED.

One big hurdle was the fact that the human eye has a minimum focal distance of several centimetres, and therefore can't focus on anything as close as a contact lens.

To cope with this, the researchers incorporated a set of Fresnel lenses, much thinner and flatter than conventional lenses, to focus the projected image on to the retina.

When tested on a rabbit, the lens was found to cause no abrasion or other problems.

The researchers concede that there's a lot more owrk necessary before fully functional, remotely powered, high-resolution displays can be produced.
For instance, when placed on the rabbit's eye, the device could only be remotely powered from a distance of less than two centimeters.

"We need to improve the antenna design and the associated matching network and optimize the transmission frequency to achieve an overall improvement in the range of wireless power transmission," says professor Babak Praviz.

"Our next goal, however, is to incorporate some predetermined text in the contact lens."


(Cat? OR feline) AND NOT dog?
Cat? W/5 behavior
(Cat? OR feline) AND traits
Cat AND charact*

This guide provides a more detailed description of the syntax that is supported along with examples.

This search box also supports the look-up of an IP.com Digital Signature (also referred to as Fingerprint); enter the 72-, 48-, or 32-character code to retrieve details of the associated file or submission.

Concept Search - What can I type?

For a concept search, you can enter phrases, sentences, or full paragraphs in English. For example, copy and paste the abstract of a patent application or paragraphs from an article.

Concept search eliminates the need for complex Boolean syntax to inform retrieval. Our Semantic Gist engine uses advanced cognitive semantic analysis to extract the meaning of data. This reduces the chances of missing valuable information, that may result from traditional keyword searching.

Publishing Venue

Related People

Abstract

This article describes a special move operation provided to assist a microprocessor perform the 'insert' function in a large-screen alphanumeric display terminal. The same operation can also be used to assist with other tasks, such as deleting, repeating to address, clearing, and the general movement of data within the character buffer for the display.

Country

United States

Language

English (United States)

This text was extracted from a PDF file.

This is the abbreviated version, containing approximately
53% of the total text.

Page 1 of 2

Special Move Operation for Insert Assistance

This article describes a special move operation provided to assist a
microprocessor perform the 'insert' function in a large-screen alphanumeric
display terminal. The same operation can also be used to assist with other tasks,
such as deleting, repeating to address, clearing, and the general movement of
data within the character buffer for the display.

When a character is to be inserted, the operation to be performed on the data
in a character buffer RAM (ramdom-access memory) of the terminal is to shift a
number of bytes to the right by one or two bytes, thus making room for the new
character (and its character attribute, if it has one).

In this description, 'source address' refers to the address in the character
buffer from which a byte is read, and 'sink address' means the address to which
a byte is written.

The desired shifting operation can be achieved by incorporating a 3-byte first-
in, first-out (FIFO) buffer through which the bytes are written. Because two extra
bytes are buffered (in addition to the single byte buffered by a conventional
move), no replication or loss of bytes will result when the initial sink address is
one or two bytes to the right of the initial source address.

The required move operation can readily be perfomred by a display adapter,
which interfaces between the microprocessor and the display device and
contains all the registers needed to define and control such an operation. These
are: - an address counter for the source address, - an address counter for the
sink address, - a counter for the number of bytes to be moved, and - three
registers to buffer the bytes being moved.

Implementation of the special move operation only requires the addition of
controls for the operation, all paths needed by the operation being already
present in the dataflow to and from the character buffer RAM.

Two of the registers participating in the 3-byte FIFO are loaded (during an
operation list fetch procedure of the special move) with the first two bytes that will
be written to RAM. These could be the character and the character attribute
being inserted. The source and sink address and the byte count are also set up
during the special move operation list fetch procedure.

The actual move starts with the display adapter reading a byte from RAM at
the source address, which it places in the FIFO. The adapter then increments
the source address by one, extracts a byte from the FIFO, writes it into RAM at
the sink address, increments the sink address, and decrements the byte count.
The operation continues with the adapter alternately reading the writing bytes
until the number of bytes specified by the intial byte count have been written to
RAM.

This special move operation performs as follows for some of the more useful
relative starting values of the source and sink addresses. The first two bytes with


The present invention relates to distance-of-travel measuring equipment for a numerical controller.
A numerical controller has a function called a skip function. With this function, when a code, for example, G31 (a distance measuring function code), is followed by a move command, for instance, X1000, the numerical controller moves a movable machine part in the X-axis direction through a linear interpolation, which is a process for finding a value of a function between two known values under the assumption that three points lie on a straight line, as in the case of G01; and when a skip signal is input from an outside source in the execution of the command, the numerical controller proceeds to the next block or suspends its operation, leaving the commanded distance of travel 1000 unfinished. This function can be utilized when the amount of travel is indefinite, and so it is suitable for use in measuring a tool length in combination with a touch sensor.
FIGS. 3(A) and (B) are explanatory views of a tool length measuring system employing the skip function and the touch sensor in combination.
In general, the tool length L indicates the length from a reference point 0 of a tool 1 attached to a chuck 2 to the tip of the tool 1. Next, let the actual position of the reference point 0 and the distance to the sensing face of a touch sensor 3, disposed at a position P.sub.1, be represented by P.sub.0 ' and X.sub.0, respectively, as depicted in FIG. 3(A). Assuming that when the actual position of the reference point 0 reaches a point P.sub.x ', as a result of travel of the tool 1 in the X-axis direction through the skip function, as shown in FIG. 3(B), the tip of the tool 1 abuts against the sensing face of the touch sensor 3 and at the same time a skip signal is generated by the touch sensor 3, stopping the travel of the tool 1. The actual amount of travel P' of the tool can be obtained by subtracting P.sub.0 ' from P.sub.x ', and the tool length L can be determined by subtracting P' from x.sub.0.
Conventional numerical control equipment obtains the abovementioned amount of travel P' by subtracting the current position P.sub.0 in the equipment immediately before the execution of the skip function, from the current position P.sub.x in the equipment at the instant of the application of the skip signal. However, in the case where the machine was stopped prior to the execution of the skip function, P.sub.0 will be equal to P.sub.0 ', and P.sub.x will become greater than P.sub.x ' by a value corresponding to a time lag of servo, or if the feed was accelerated and decelerated, by the corresponding value. Thus, the prior art has encountered the problem that the tool length could not accurately be measured.
The present invention succeeds in solving this problem by the employment of an arrangement including: a feed rate Fm; an acceleration/deceleration time constant TC; a servo time constant TS; and a time lag TR of a skip signal receiving system, which are all prestored in a memory. The distance P.sub.n from the machine position immediately prior to the execution of the abovesaid code, to the machine position at the instant of application of the skip signal is automatically computed. The computation uses the following expression which is based on the current position P.sub.x in the numerical controller at the time of the application of the skip signal, the feed rate Fm, the acceleration/deceleration time constant TC, the servo time constant TS, and the time lag TR. EQU P.sub.n =P-Fm(TC+TS+TR)/60.times.1000 (1)
where P=P.sub.x -P.sub.0, the feed rate Fm is given in mm/min and the acceleration/deceleration time constant, the servo time constant and the time lag of the skip signal receiving system are given in msec.
With such an arrangement, a measurement error resulting from acceleration/deceleration, a time lag of servo, or the like, can automatically be corrected, therefore enabling the amount of travel to be obtained with relatively high accuracy.
However, there is an error which cannot yet be eliminated even by such an arrangement. It is caused by a delay in detecting the skip signal. Conventionally, whether the skip signal has been input or not is detected by monitoring the output of the skip signal receiving circuit through software with a time period of 2 ms, therefore the rise of the skip signal cannot be detected with an accuracy of less than 2 ms. The delay in detecting the skip signal varies each time and cannot be included in the abovementioned expression (1), and the solution to this problem has been greatly desired. The detection delay could be reduced by shortening the skip signal monitoring period, but this would present the problem of increased load on software.


AIMIM blocks Taslima Nasreen’s entry into Aurangabad

AURANGABAD: Controversial Bangladeshi author Taslima Nasreen had to board a Mumbai-bound flight soon after landing in the city from Delhi on Saturday as a huge crowd gathered outside the airport shouting “Taslima Go Back” slogans.Police stopped Taslima from stepping out of the airport and advised her to abandon her Aurangabad holiday plan, citing security reasons.Imtiyaz Jaleel, MLA from AIMIM, who represents Aurangabad central constituency, was at the forefront of the protest Hundreds of protesters also reached the star hotel where Taslim had booked a double occupancy room in the name of her friend.The exiled author, who had planned a three-day stay in Aurangabad, landed in the city in an Air India flight around 7.30 pm from Delhi. She soon boarded the same aircraft for Mumbai about an hour later.City police commissioner Yashasvi Yadav told TOI that the writer did not intimate police in advance about her visit. “Citing security reasons, we asked her to board the next flight and she agreed.”The incident took place within a week of her visa being extended by the Union home ministry for a year with effect from July 23, 2017.A source said that Taslima was planning to visit the world heritage sites of Ajanta and Ellora besides other spots in Aurangabad.Senior police officers expressed anguish over the writer reaching Aurangabad without informing them. “There is already tension and tight security in the city because of the ongoing demolition of illegal religious structures. We cannot tackle more problems at this moment,” said an officer.Imtiyaz Jaleel said, “Her remarks and writings have hurt the religious sentiments of Muslims across the world. Whenever she comes to Aurangabad, we will protest and not allow her to enter the city.”Deputy commissioner of police (zone-II) Rahul Shrirame said police intensified security at the airport as well as the hotel where Taslima was planning to stay as a large number of protesters were gathering at these places.“The airline issued a ticket to Taslima for Mumbai at the last minute after realising the gravity of the situation, and she left in the Air India flight at 8.20 pm,” he said.


Q:

Multiple IF Statements in DAX

I currently have Column Data formulated below in Power BI which I need for it to display in one column but replacing the "1" with a Text value being:
Orginal column formula:
Age (18-27) = IF(AND([Age]>17, [Age]<28),"1",BLANK())
Age (28-35) = IF(AND([Age]>27, [Age]<36),"1",BLANK())
Age (36-43) = IF(AND([Age]>35, [Age]<44),"1",BLANK())
Age (44-50) = IF(AND([Age]>43, [Age]<51),"1",BLANK())
Age (50+) = IF([Age]>50,"1 ", BLANK())

Output:
Age (18-27) = IF(AND([Age]>17, [Age]<28),"Age (18-27)",BLANK())
Age (28-35) = IF(AND([Age]>27, [Age]<36),"Age (28-35)",BLANK())
Age (36-43) = IF(AND([Age]>35, [Age]<44),"Age (36-43)",BLANK())
Age (44-50) = IF(AND([Age]>43, [Age]<51),"Age (44-50)",BLANK())
Age (50+) = IF([Age]>50,"Age (50+) ", BLANK())

I would like to have the formula display the data in one column where it is consolidating the Output formula (seen above) so I see the results in one column.

A:

Just nest your IFs:
Age Group = IF(AND([Age]>17, [Age]<28),"18-27",
 IF(AND([Age]>27, [Age]<36),"28-35",
  IF(AND([Age]>35, [Age]<44),"36-43",
   IF(AND([Age]>43, [Age]<51),"44-50",
    IF([Age]>50,"50+", BLANK())
))))

A:

You can use SWITCH() like this which is much cleaner than nested IFs:
Age Group = SWITCH(TRUE(),
    AND([Age]>17, [Age]<28), "18-27",
    AND([Age]>27, [Age]<36), "28-35",
    AND([Age]>35, [Age]<44), "36-43",
    AND([Age]>43, [Age]<51), "44-50",
    [Age]>50, "50+", BLANK()
)

Source: https://community.powerbi.com/t5/Desktop/IF-or-SWITCH/m-p/167098#M72970


Hero of Legend

Hero of Legend was a project completed as the culmination of the basic C++ segment of my Game Development course, after 2 months of instruction. We were given 1 week to work on the project, but were informed what it would be much before that, and I started working on it immediately. The only guideline for the project was that it had to be a text based RPG. I was responsible for almost all of the game's programming and system design. Things like the screen colors, save system and ascii map are all things that I went out of my way to learn just because I had the time and the drive to make a better RPG.


Luxury Photos Of Long Curly Hairstyles: Long Hairstyles

Luxury Photos Of Long Curly Hairstyles- Delightful for you to my personal website, on this period I’ll show you about Photos Of Long Curly Hairstyles. And today, this is the very first graphic.

What about impression above? is that awesome???. if you think consequently, I’l m provide you with many picture once more down below:

50 Best Curly Hairstyles of 2017 Cute Hairstyles for Curly Hair from Photos Of Long Curly Hairstyles, source:marieclaire.comCurly Hairstyles Back To School from Photos Of Long Curly Hairstyles, source:behairstyles.com18 Best Haircuts for Curly Hair from Photos Of Long Curly Hairstyles, source:naturallycurly.comPinterest from Photos Of Long Curly Hairstyles, source:pinterest.com40 Easy Curly Hairstyles Short Medium and Long Haircuts for from Photos Of Long Curly Hairstyles, source:redbookmag.comBest 25 Long wavy hairstyles ideas on Pinterest from Photos Of Long Curly Hairstyles, source:pinterest.com30 Black Women Curly Hairstyles from Photos Of Long Curly Hairstyles, source:lovely-hairstyles.comFckie Black Hairstyles with Layers Cute Hairstyles to Do from Photos Of Long Curly Hairstyles, source:fckie.comCurled Hairstyles for Long Hair Hairstyles Ideas Me from Photos Of Long Curly Hairstyles, source:hairstyles-ideas.me40 Easy Curly Hairstyles Short Medium and Long Haircuts for from Photos Of Long Curly Hairstyles, source:redbookmag.com7 Easy Everyday Hairstyles for Long Natural Curly Hair from Photos Of Long Curly Hairstyles, source:youtube.com10 Stunning Curly Home ing Hairstyles from Photos Of Long Curly Hairstyles, source:stylecraze.com28 Curly Hairstyles for 2017 Cute Hairstyles for Short Medium from Photos Of Long Curly Hairstyles, source:elle.comCurly bridal hairstyle for long hair tutorial from Photos Of Long Curly Hairstyles, source:youtube.com31 Ridiculously Cute Hairstyles for Long Hair Popular in 2018 from Photos Of Long Curly Hairstyles, source:latest-hairstyles.com

So, if you desire to receive all of these awesome photos regarding (Luxury Photos Of Long Curly Hairstyles), click on save icon to store the pics to your personal pc. These are prepared for down load, if you’d prefer and wish to get it, click save badge in the article, and it will be immediately downloaded to your home computer. As a final point if you desire to find unique and recent graphic related to (Luxury Photos Of Long Curly Hairstyles), please follow us on google plus or book mark this site, we attempt our best to offer you regular up grade with fresh and new graphics. Hope you enjoy staying right here. For some upgrades and latest information about (Luxury Photos Of Long Curly Hairstyles) pics, please kindly follow us on twitter, path, Instagram and google plus, or you mark this page on book mark section, We attempt to give you up grade periodically with fresh and new photos, love your surfing, and find the right for you.

Here you are at our site, contentabove (Luxury Photos Of Long Curly Hairstyles) published by at . At this time we’re delighted to announce that we have found an incrediblyinteresting topicto be pointed out, namely (Luxury Photos Of Long Curly Hairstyles) Lots of people searching for specifics of(Luxury Photos Of Long Curly Hairstyles) and of course one of these is you, is not it?

Related to Luxury Photos Of Long Curly Hairstyles

Awesome Pictures Of Different Hairstyles for Long Hair- Pleasant in order to my personal blog, in this particular occasion I am going to demonstrate in relation to Pictures Of Different Hairstyles For Long Hair. And from now on, this is the initial picture. How about graphic preceding? is which awesome???. if you’re more dedicated and […]

Inspirational Long Hairstyles for Square Faces 2018- Delightful in order to our blog, within this time period I’ll demonstrate with regards to Long Hairstyles For Square Faces 2018. And from now on, this can be the first image. What about impression preceding? can be of which remarkable???. if you’re more dedicated consequently, I’l t explain […]

Luxury Korean Long Hairstyle for Men- Delightful to the blog, with this period I’m going to teach you about Korean Long Hairstyle For Men. And today, this can be the very first picture. Why don’t you consider picture previously mentioned? is actually that awesome???. if you feel so, I’l m teach you many photograph once […]

Awesome 1940 Hairstyles Long Hair- Pleasant to our blog site, within this time period We’ll demonstrate about 1940 Hairstyles Long Hair. And after this, here is the very first impression. Why not consider photograph over? will be which wonderful???. if you believe and so, I’l m provide you with many image again underneath: lgebert BestPickr […]

Best Of Cute Hairstyles for Long Straight Hair with Side Bangs- Encouraged to the blog, on this time period I am going to show you concerning Cute Hairstyles For Long Straight Hair With Side Bangs. And after this, this is the first picture. Why not consider graphic over? can be that will remarkable???. if you […]


Q:

Customizing CKEditor's toolbar during runtime

I have a website using CKEditor. Now I  want to customize the toolbar "live" during runtime, without having to create a new instance of the editor.
Is there a way to do that?

A:

I have got solution.I am using ckeditor.replace and it works now.
I am destroy the existing instance and then try to use replace.Actually replace will create a new instance.


Q:

how to ensure that my string have two word in typescript

How do I ensure that my string have two words in it using typescript.
The reason I need this so that I would call server only if name is in "first last" name format.

A:

The answer really isn't TypeScript dependent. It's basic JavaScript.
You can use a regular expression to perform a test on the string:

function testString(input){
 // Return whether or not there are letters (any amount and any case)
 // followed by one space and then more letters (any amount and any case).
 // Of course, if you wanted to get more specific about case or character
 // counts, adjusting the regular expression would be simple.
 return /^[A-Za-z]+ [A-Za-z]+$/.test(input);
}

console.log(testString("Scott"));
console.log(testString("Scott Marcus"));
console.log(testString("Scott\nMarcus"));


Wille Mäkelä

Wille Mäkelä (born 2 March 1974 in Hyvinkää) is a Finnish curler and Olympic medalist. He received a silver medal at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Torino.

He has obtained two bronze medals in the World Curling Championships, and won a gold medal at the 2000 European Curling Championships with the Finnish team.

References

External links

Category:1974 births
Category:Living people
Category:People from Hyvinkää
Category:Finnish male curlers
Category:Olympic curlers of Finland
Category:Curlers at the 2002 Winter Olympics
Category:Curlers at the 2006 Winter Olympics
Category:Olympic silver medalists for Finland
Category:Olympic medalists in curling
Category:Medalists at the 2006 Winter Olympics
Category:European curling champions


My life and style blog. I hope to inspire you to mix and match looks to create your own unique look.
"Fashion is not something that exists in dresses only. Fashion is in the sky, in the street, fashion has to do with ideas, the way we live, what is happening." - Coco Chanel

Pages

Tuesday, June 12, 2012

Lipstick Challenge

Lately, I have begun experimenting with a bold lip. I have been fearing this trend for the last year, since it brights back memories of my grandma wearing it. Bright colors, especially somewhat neon colors, on the lips are very hot right now! Rihanna, Emma Stone, Kelly Osbourne, and many other celebrities have been sporting this look.

The bright lips on these celebrities adds an extra glam factor!

I tend to always reach for a neutral shade on my lips and was not a big fan of lipstick. My go to lip shades include cherry chapstick, MAC angel, and Chanel gloss. My new bright favorites include Maybelline Colorsensational Coral Crush and MAC Chatterbox.
I challenge you to try a bright lipstick!


ME1 > ME2 > ME3

ME1 > ME3 > ME2

ME2 > ME1 > ME3

ME2 > ME3 > ME1

ME3 > ME1 > ME2

ME3 > ME2 > ME1


Promised Supra I would do this, ended up getting swamped and not doing it in the postgame thread. So this is me getting back to it now:

This is on the opening possession. Okafor does a good job holding his ground on the down screen, gets Covington a good look.

The ensuing possession, Okafor with some late, KG-style movement via the on-ball screen, forces help to come off a little farther. The far-side action is well timed as well to coincide and leads to solid Ilyasova look.

More or less run the same play to start the third that they did to start the first. It leads to another good look for Covington.

And then we end with the best one where Morris gets crushed on a fade screen. Okafor again moves just a pinch at the last second and turns into the defender, sneaky sneaky.

Wrap-Up

During the re-watch, I noticed overall he was just holding screens a split second longer and moving just a pinch at the last second -- he was taking a risk to ensure the better screens, as he should to force the ref to make the call. He's still not quick enough getting into the pick and roll on-ball, and gets a bit confused trying to screen and re-screen on-ball, but the off-ball screening was high quality by Okafor.


----------------------------------------------------------------
-- Copyright (c) 2010-2011 Zipline Games, Inc.
-- All Rights Reserved.
-- http://getmoai.com
----------------------------------------------------------------

MOAISim.openWindow ( "test", 320, 480 )

viewport = MOAIViewport.new ()
viewport:setSize ( 320, 480 )
viewport:setScale ( 320, 480 )

layer = MOAILayer2D.new ()
layer:setViewport ( viewport )
MOAISim.pushRenderPass ( layer )

grid = MOAIGrid.new ()
grid:setSize ( 2, 2, 64, 64 )

grid:setRow ( 1, 	0x00000001, 0x20000002 )
grid:setRow ( 2,	0x40000003, 0x60000004 )

tileDeck = MOAITileDeck2D.new ()
tileDeck:setTexture ( "test.png" )
tileDeck:setSize ( 2, 2 )

prop = MOAIProp2D.new ()
prop:setDeck ( tileDeck )
prop:setGrid ( grid )
layer:insertProp ( prop )


# IMPORTANT: AMP by Example has been merged into amp.dev. All new issues and pull requests should be created [here](https://github.com/ampproject/docs).

# AMP by Example

## Installation

1. Fork the repository.
2. Install [NodeJS](https://nodejs.org). You will need version 4.0.0 or above.
3. Install [Gulp](http://gulpjs.com/) via `npm`. You may need to use `sudo` depending on your Node installation.

  ```none
  $ npm install -g gulp
  ```

4. Set up the repository:

  ```none
  $ git clone https://github.com/YOUR_GITHUB_NAME/amp-by-example.git
  $ cd amp-by-example
  $ npm install
  ```

5. Build and run the site:

  ```none
  $ gulp
  ```

6. If everything went well, `gulp` should now be running the site on <http://localhost:8000/>

## Creating a new sample

Create a new example with `gulp create`. Set the title via `--name` or `-n` and add it to an existing section using `--dest` or `-d`:

```none
$ gulp create --name amp-img --dest src/20_Components
$ vim src/20_Components/amp-img.html
```

For more descriptive example names including whitespaces use quotes:

```none
$ gulp create --name 'Hello World' --dest src/10_Introduction
$ vim src/10_Introduction/Hello_World.html
```

If you want to create a new sample category, use `--category` or `-c`. Prefix the name with two digits followed by a space to define the sort order:

```none
$ gulp create --name amp-awesome --category "50 More Awesomeness"
$ vim src/50_More_Awesomeness/amp-awesome.html
```

Run validate to validate all examples against AMP spec:

```none
$ gulp validate
```

Run build to generate all examples:

```none
$ gulp build
```

While working on an example you can start a local webserver with auto-reload on <http://localhost:8000/> by running `gulp`:

```none
$ gulp
```

Some components, like [amp-live-list](https://github.com/ampproject/amp-by-example/blob/master/src/20_Components/amp-live-list.html) require an additional server endpoint.

## Writing the sample

Use HTML comments (`<!-- ... -->`) to document your sample code:

```html
<!-- Look! Images in AMP. -->
<amp-img src="img/image1.jpg" width="200" height="100" layout="responsive"></amp-img>
```

This works for elements in the header as well:

```html
<head>
  <!-- Import the amp-youtube component -->
  <script async custom-element="amp-youtube" src="https://cdn.ampproject.org/v0/amp-youtube-0.1.js"></script>
  ...
</head>
```

Every HTML comment creates a separate example section spanning the following HTML element.

```html
<!-- This comment spans the whole following section including the two images -->
<section>
  <amp-img src="img/image1.jpg" width="200" height="100" layout="responsive"></amp-img>
  <amp-img src="img/image2.jpg" width="200" height="100" layout="responsive"></amp-img>
</section>
```

Nesting comments are not supported:

```html
<!-- A comment -->
<div>
  <!-- This does not work because the parent div has already a comment -->
  <amp-img src="img/image1.jpg" width="200" height="100" layout="responsive"></amp-img>
</div>
<div>
  <!-- Commenting inside nested tags works though -->
  <amp-img src="img/image1.jpg" width="200" height="100" layout="responsive"></amp-img>
</div>
```

If your comment spans multiple elements, wrap these in an single `div` without any attributes. The enclosing `div` tag will be hidden in source code listings:

```html
<!-- The enclosing `div` will be hidden in source code listings. -->
<div>
  <button on="tap:my-lightbox" role="button" tabindex="0">Open lightbox</button>
  <amp-lightbox id="my-lightbox" layout="nodisplay">
    <h1>Hello World!</h1>
  </amp-lightbox>
</div>
```

#### Sample Styling

Sometimes it's good to add a little bit more styling to a sample (e.g. to separate a button from an input field). To make sure that all samples have a consistent styling, please use the following CSS variables to style specific elements in your sample:

```
:root {
  --color-primary: #005AF0;
  --color-secondary: #00DCC0;
  --color-text-light: #fff;
  --color-text-dark: #000;
  --color-error: #B00020;
  --color-bg-light: #FAFAFC;

  --space-1: .5rem;  /* 8px */
  --space-2: 1rem;   /* 16px */
  --space-3: 1.5rem; /* 24px */
  --space-4: 2rem;   /* 32px */

  --box-shadow-1: 0 1px 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,.14), 0 1px 1px -1px rgba(0,0,0,.14), 0 1px 5px 0 rgba(0,0,0,.12);
}
```

You can use them to style your samples like this:

```
.button {
  margin: var(--space-2);
  padding: var(--space-1);
  background-color: var(--color-primary);
  color: var(--color-text-light);
}
```

Only add the ones that you need to the sample. These CSS variable declarations will be added automatically to your sample, if you use `gulp create ...` to create the sample.

**Colors**

**Spaces**

#### Formatting

You can use [markdown](https://help.github.com/articles/github-flavored-markdown/) to format your documentation:

```html
<!--
  A simple [responsive](https://www.ampproject.org/docs/guides/responsive/control_layout.html)
  image - *width* and *height* are used to determine the aspect ratio.
-->
<amp-img src="img/image1.jpg" width="200" height="100" layout="responsive"></amp-img>
```

#### Notes, Warnings & Tips

There's a special markup available for callouts:

```
[tip type="default|important|note|read-on"]
Tip!
[/tip]
```

For example:

```
[tip type="important"]
Warning! This might go wrong.
[/tip]
```

#### Hints

If you'd like to add additional information about a single element inside a section, use the `<!--~ hint syntax ~-->`:

```html
<!-- A comment about the form. -->
<form method="post"
  action-xhr="https://example.com/subscribe"
  target="_top">
  <fieldset>
    <input type="text" name="username">

    <!--~ Addition explanation about the hidden field. ~-->
    <input type="hidden" name="id" value="abc">
  </fieldset>
</form>
```

This will make the `<input>` element clickable, with the additional explanation appearing on click.

#### Drafts

You can mark samples as drafts if they are still work-in-progress. This means the samples won't show up in the start page.

```yaml
<!---
draft: true
--->
```

#### Experimental Features

If your sample is using one or more experimental features, you can add a metadata section (`<!--- ... --->`) with the variable `experiments` to specify which experiments to enable. This will skip its validation and add an experimental note with instructions to your sample:

```yaml
<!---
experiments:
  - amp-experiment-name
  - amp-another-experiment
--->
```

#### Preview Mode

Visually rich examples can provide a preview mode like [this](https://ampbyexample.com/samples_templates/news_article/preview/). Enable via metadata in the sample:

```yaml
<!---
preview: default
--->
```

There is a special preview mode for AMP Ad samples:

```yaml
<!---
preview: a4a
--->
```

#### Single Column Layout

If your sample looks better with a single column layout, you can disable the code and preview columns adding the following flags to your sample file:

```yaml
<!---
hideCode: true
hidePreview: true
--->
```

#### Disabling the Playground

If it doesn't make sense for your sample to provide a playground link, you can disable it:

```yaml
<!---
disablePlayground: true
--->
```

## Running the backend server

If you need to run or write a sample that depends on the backend server, you can run a local version.

1. Install the [Google App Engine SDK for Go](https://cloud.google.com/appengine/docs/flexible/go/download).
2. Run the backend server in watch mode so it will recompile on change.

    ```none
    $ gulp backend:watch
    ```

    If you get an error message `can't find import: "golang.org/x/net/context"`, you have to manually install and configure the GO appengine environment:

    ```none
    # install the google.goland.org/appengine package
    $ go get google.golang.org/appengine
    # explicitly set the GOROOT and APPENGINE_DEV_APPSERVER env vars
    $ export GOROOT=$HOME/local/google-cloud-sdk/platform/google_appengine/goroot
    $ export APPENGINE_DEV_APPSERVER=$(which dev_appserver.py)
    ```

3. If everything went well, the full site should now be running on <http://localhost:8080/>

### Adding backend functionality

Sample specific backend endpoints should be defined in their own file, e.g. for a sample `amp-my-component.html` the backend should be `backends/amp-my-component.go`.

#### How to style examples

You can’t reference external stylesheets when creating samples. AMP by Example provides a [default styling](https://github.com/ampproject/amp-by-example/blob/master/templates/css/styles.css) for common elements (p, h1, h2, h3, a, ...) which you should use. Sample specific styles must live in the head of the document using the tag `<style amp-custom>`. Try to keep the additional CSS for samples to a minimum and use the default styles as often as possible. If you compile a sample via Gulp and run it, the default styling will be applied.

Please note: if you copy code from a sample's code section, you will not get the style that you can see in the preview section.

## Contributing

Please see [the CONTRIBUTING file](CONTRIBUTING.md) for information on contributing to amp-by-example.

## License

AMP by Example is made by the [AMP Project](https://www.ampproject.org/), and is licensed under the [Apache License, Version 2.0](LICENSE).


Getting Around Waterloo Region By Bicycle

#WRCC12 draws to a close

As this years commuter challenge (#WRCC12) has come to an end, the question that’s most pressing in my mind is: How many new cycling commuters have we added?

The one quote from the Hans Moor kick off that sticks with me is how do we actively convert the 60% of Waterloo Region folks who state they would cycle if it was safer, easier and more convenient.

It’s a question that I’ll be pondering this summer for sure.

However, I’ll leave this commuter challenge with pictures taken in K-W which once again pushes the limits of what’s possible with a bicycle. (Thanks Eli for the pictures and let me know when you’ve rigged up your own canoe trailer.)

Also reminds me of the old Monty Python joke: American beer is like making love in a canoe …

Related

3 thoughts on “#WRCC12 draws to a close”

In answer to the facebook question, “What does it say when Waterloo Region has the most participants in 2012’s Commuter Challenge across all of Ontario?”

Well, I think all we can say for sure is that people in Waterloo Region have really attached themselves to that specific website. It could be that people elsewhere are using other websites to track their commutes, or not using websites at all. On the other hand, that so many people are getting involved in Waterloo is still a very good thing, and makes me hopeful for the future that cycle commuting will continue to grow.

The Bike2Work challenge was pretty good as well, in terms of encouraging non-cyclists to bike for the first time. It’s so convenient that I have trouble imaginging they’ll give it up afterwards. “Once you’ve gone biking, you’ll never go back” as it were.

The region’s planned 25% seems like a pipe dream to me. Even Portland, already described as a cylcist’s heaven, only has about 5.4% of its commuters cycling to work (http://www.businessweek.com/news/2012-05-22/portland-is-top-bike-to-work-city-as-lawyers-hit-street) though I suppose 25% of trips is different than 25% of commuters. Still, it’s better to aim high. There’s certainly no reason why 25% (or more) of commuters couldn’t cycle in this city, at least during the warm part of the year.

I have observed that commuter share numbers do differ from trip share numbers. Plus, these are annualized averages across all trips (long and short) and all seasons. But still, I'd be surprised if 25% cycling in KW is being envisioned anywhere but in the feverish imaginations of… people like myself, I guess.

Woops! Thanks Chris, you’re totally right! The number I saw was indeed 12% not 25% (which I guess I just imagined) and the source I saw recently was the previous blog post right here at waterloobikes. Sorry for the confusion.

12% would still qualify as a pipe dream, in my estimation, if it was only bikes, but as you correctly point out (and as Graham did actually hedge in that previous post) it’s for all active transportation, not just cycling. I can only find pretty old data online (2007) but it looks like total AT mode share of 12% would put us among the top in the country, but that’s certainly not impossible. Then again, if 60% of residents want to cycle more, maybe 25% is a better goal. =)


A US lobby group has released a volley of attack ads targeting Australia's plain packaging laws complete with a dubious Australian accent and copious use of permanent markers that have left policy advisers and viewers in stitches.

"In life, not everything you hear is always true" is the very prescient opening line of a three-and-a-half minute Youtube clip posted by the Property Rights Alliance.

"Especially regarding Australia's plain packaging experiment," or rather "ploin pickaging ex-spearmint", warns the voice over that appears to be attempting an Australian accent.

National plain packaging laws introduced in 2011 are an attack on "liberty" and the "very core of free societies" according to the advocacy group for intellectual property rights, which accuses the Australian government of hood winking the public by touting the success of its anti-smoking policies.


BOIL A BANANA, DRINK THE WATER BEFORE BED AND SEE WHAT HAPPENS TO YOUR SLEEP!

Imagine a world without fossil fuels. You can’t completely rely on solar power…

The Eagle Eye drone is a tricopter packed with powerful technologies to give wilderness rescue teams a birds-eye-view of the landscape below. For hard-to-reach areas and treacherous terrain, it uses a cocktail of cameras, sensors and integrated artificial intelligence to know the topology of the field. Solar powered pylons keep the drone recharged so that it can work autonomously.

25° Thermal Camera Cores for Drones - DIY Drones

The Racing Drone concept is all about looking badass, and slicing through the air with absolute speed.

do-you-want-to-fly-drones.jpg (1200×3450)

Amazon and Walmart plan to use drone. Are you in favor of or against drone?

STORM Drone AntiGravity GPS Flying Platform (RTF / NAZA V2) - HeliPal

This Parrot Disco is super fun to fly and easy for any level flyer! Drones are AWESOME! Put your Parrot Disco into flight today! Start taking epic footage with your new Parrot Disco. We make it easy with BUY NOW PAY LATER finance option as low as 25$ per month. Now what are you waiting for. https://www.dynnexdrones.com/


Monday, April 9, 2012

That shit cray

Two Flyers games in two weeks?! And both featuring exciting things during warm-ups?! That shit is, in fact, cray. First up, we had Flyers-Bolts on 3/26. I love Foxy Lady Byng lifer Marty St-Louis, so we sat on the Tampa side for warm-ups (though I legit know about five guys on Tampa right now... kind of a buzzkill). Sitting on the opposing side is so nice, you can walk down like two minutes beforehand and still snag an ice row seat! However, the real excitement came in the waning minutes of warm-ups when someone at Tampa's blueline lofted a shot that hit the netting above us, skittered through, and literally fell at Pops' feet! And surprisingly, there was no bevy of children and drunk guys trying to retrieve it. In our row, there was me and Pops, a college-age couple, and a high school kid with his dad. And we all looked at each other, dumbfounded, so Pops simply picked up the puck and gave it to me. I never cared about getting a game puck before, but now that I have one, it's kind of the coolest thing ever, especially because there is a chunk randomly taken out of it?!

In the words of Doug Glatt, "It's official!"

I've never been able to sit ice row on the Flyers' side for warm-ups, but I somehow lucked into a seat there just to the left of the net last Thursday! Being so close was helpful because I have a fancy-pants-ish baby DSLR now so I can actually take non-shitty pictures! And it makes a fabulous snapping sound so I feel very important. The only thing is, I have to look through the viewfinder, so imagine my surprise when Talbot jumped into the glass in front of me!!11!!! Whaaat? I can honestly say that's never happened before, and I've been to a lot of pre-game skates in my day. Talbot then proceeded to skate away and bump into Read, all the while singing along with "Tonight Is the Night." Love. This. Man. Giroux was also hanging around our section, and one point, so was Coburn! And I actually managed to capture both!

OH HAI.

In case you were wondering, this is when time slowed down and "I Think We're Alone Now" started to play.

Max giggling with Bryzy. Just 'cause.

For the game, we inadvertantly had AWESOME seats in section 123 which, FYI, is practically next to the Flyers' bench AND afforded us a fine view of the Flyers' end-of-the-year awards. I'm going to marry those seats. It was a fairly dull game but Read scoring the GWG on a third period breakaway was fantastic. Especially because these tickets were Moo's birthday gift!

Oh, AND in between the Tampa and Buffalo games, I went to Chicago with my friend Timmi. I would have dragged her on a 5.5 hour bus ride to St. Louis for a Blues game, but there was no way to make that into a tantalizing offer. HOWEVER, she had to go to a school event one morning, so I decided that the best use of my time was obviously going to see Goon at 10:15 AM! The six dudes in the theater with me at that hour seemed equally excited to be there. The last game is SUPER intense on the big screen, and when Ross the Boss is walking through the snow with the bagpipes playing in the background, I almost peed my pants. And, of course, Marc-Andre Grondin is even lovelier (though decidedly more unwashed-looking... hmm) on the big screen. On a related note, I'm glad to see that the majority of our recent blog hits have been from people trying to find out more about this mysterious petit chou! Have you guys seen his awesome French-Canadian movie C.R.A.Z.Y? The whole thing has been uploaded to YouTube (with English subtitles!) and features a less douchy Grondin (though clothing is still optional... eep!) as a gay teen in a conservative fam. The scene with "Space Oddity" just breaks my heart every time. "Can you hear me Major Tom?" ZOMGtears.

Substantially trendy information typically the sweep their widest crowd are most often within the website page, no great surprise so it application a hobby, seriously in him some writers create at the time you, who will be qualified as well as service with the producers, or maybe pleased to reveal essential tshirt. Machine all of us many thanks on a workcrews anyone to made, back to you however the girl's content own it nice and also entertaining.casino aussie online


Jeremy Corbyn is expected to bolster his dominance of Labour’s key decision-making body on Monday with the election of three leftwing candidates, paving the way for party changes that may include the reselection of MPs.

The three new positions representing party members on Labour’s national executive committee have been created in response to the surge in Labour membership.

The comedian Eddie Izzard is believed to have the most promising chance of snatching one of the seats from the party’s “left slate”. But it is expected there will be a clean sweep for the three candidates backed by the grassroots movement Momentum, tipping the once finely balanced body further in favour of Corbyn’s brand of Labour politics.

Momentum’s founder and chair, Jon Lansman, one of the three leftwing candidates, said he was confident he would win a place on the NEC.

“I’ve dreamt for a members-led Labour party. I think, I hope, that’s what we’ll have,” he told the BBC’s Pienaar’s Politics. “Members will have nine out of a 39-member executive, still under a quarter, but much better representation, a reward that 600,000 members achieved such a fantastic turnaround in the general election.”

The balance of the NEC has been in Corbyn’s favour since the unexpectedly positive result in last June’s election but the changes should give him a large majority on the body.

Previous Corbyn-sceptic rebels on the committee, including the party’s deputy leader, Tom Watson, have made it clear they are no longer prepared to challenge Corbyn’s authority and believe he has won the right to make the changes he desires.

A review of party democracy, led by the former MP Katy Clark, is set to examine whether MPs should face a mandatory re-selection triggered by party members and local affiliates, which include trade union branches.

Sources close to the NEC said there would be little the committee could do to shield MPs should the leader’s office decide to press ahead with such a measure. Two influential unions, Unison and GMB, are understood to be sceptical about backing the change.

“The leader’s office could do whatever they wanted, technically, but the unions are still extremely influential,” one source said. “It will be interesting to see how people like Lansman get on with the unions; they don’t always agree on issues and the unions will still be able to outvote them.”

Committee sources said MPs should start preparing now that re-selections were a possibility, though not a certainty. “We have to start saying to MPs now it’s possible, so you have to make sure if you do face mandatory re-selection you are able to win it,” a source close to the committee said.

“They are in the strongest position possible if they go out and engage with members regularly. They can sign up people who support them. Often the agitators are only a handful of individuals.”

The source stressed future mandatory re-selection was not anywhere near a certainty, hinting Corbyn himself was not wedded to the change. “We could be in government within the year; we do not want to look like a ragtag bunch doing factional infighting, we want to be a government in waiting,” the source said.

Stephanie Lloyd, the deputy director of centrist Labour pressure group Progress, said Lansman’s election to the NEC would be “a nightmare.”

She said: “You only have to look at his determination to bring in mandatory resection of Labour MPs; his recent calls to redo every London councillors selection with only months before polling day; how he stopped all democratic discussion on Brexit at Labour party conference; and how he runs Momentum: the end always justifies the means,. In 2017 he unilaterally changed Momentum’s rules without any democratic approval.”

One key area of dispute that may emerge from the review could be a proposal to abolish Labour’s national policy forum, to be replaced with a body that allows more members to vote on policies.

Corbyn has been a strong supporter of giving members more direct influence over the party’s policy direction. Trade unions are likely to be cautious about any move that would dilute their influence, however.

Such a change could create difficulties for Corbyn, too, as members are likely to diverge from the leader’s office on some key issues: for example, the overwhelming number of members are more solidly pro-EU than the party’s current official Brexit position, which is to leave the single market.


-- |
--
-- Copyright   : (C) Keera Studios Ltd, 2013
-- License     : BSD3
-- Maintainer  : support@keera.co.uk
module AppDataFull where

import AppDataBasic (HailsAction)

-- This is the internal action definition. It should be a more
-- complete version of the basic data. Some values can be read from
-- existing files, for instance, from cabal files, from Haskell
-- source, etc.
data AppDataFull = AppDataFull
 { action    :: HailsAction
 , outputDir :: FilePath
 , overwrite :: Bool
 }
 deriving (Show)


/*
** Taiga
** Copyright (C) 2010-2020, Eren Okka
**
** This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
** it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by
** the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the License, or
** (at your option) any later version.
**
** This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
** but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
** MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
** GNU General Public License for more details.
**
** You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License
** along with this program.  If not, see <http://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
*/

#pragma once

#include <map>
#include <optional>
#include <string>

class Url;

namespace oauth {

struct Access {
  std::wstring token;
  std::wstring secret;
  std::wstring pin;
};

struct Consumer {
  std::wstring key;
  std::wstring secret;
};

using Parameters = std::map<std::wstring, std::wstring>;

std::wstring BuildAuthorizationHeader(
    const std::wstring& url,
    const std::wstring& http_method,
    const Consumer& consumer,
    const Access& access = {},
    const std::optional<Parameters>& post_parameters = std::nullopt);

Parameters ParseQueryString(const std::wstring& url);

namespace detail {

Parameters BuildSignedParameters(
    const std::wstring& url,
    const std::wstring& http_method,
    const Consumer& consumer,
    const Access& access,
    const Parameters& get_parameters,
    const std::optional<Parameters>& post_parameters);

std::wstring CreateNonce();
std::wstring CreateSignature(
    const std::wstring& consumer_secret,
    const std::wstring& signature_base,
    const std::wstring& access_token_secret);
std::wstring CreateTimestamp();

std::wstring NormalizeUrl(const std::wstring& url);
Parameters ParseQuery(const Url& url);
std::wstring SortParameters(const Parameters& parameters);

}  // namespace detail

}  // namespace oauth


Q:

How can I use ESLint no-unused-vars for a block of code?

I need to disable some variable checks in ESLint.
Currently, I am using this code, but am not getting the desired result:
/* eslint no-unused-vars: ["error", { "caughtErrorsIgnorePattern": "Hey" }] */
export type Hey = {
  a: string,
  b: object
}

Two questions:

Is there a variant which can enable no-unused-vars for a block of code?

Something like...
/* eslint rule disable"*/

// I want to place my block of code, here

/* eslint rule disable"*/

Or could I make Hey a global variable so that it can be ignored everywhere?

A:

Just use pair of lines:
/* eslint-disable no-unused-vars */

// ... your code here with unused vars...

/* eslint-enable no-unused-vars */

A:

Alternatively, you can disable the rule for one line:
// Based on your Typescript example

export type Hey = { // eslint-disable-line no-unused-vars
  a: string,
  b: object
}

A:

One more option...
function doStuff({
  // eslint-disable-next-line no-unused-vars
  unused,
  usedA,
  usedB
}) {


Nonlinear dynamics of team performance and adaptability in emergency response.
The impact of team size and performance feedback on adaptation levels and performance of emergency response (ER) teams was examined to introduce a metric for quantifying adaptation levels based on nonlinear dynamical systems (NDS) theory. NDS principles appear in reports surrounding Hurricane Katrina, earthquakes, floods, a disease epidemic, and the Southeast Asian tsunami. They are also intrinsic to coordination within teams, adaptation levels, and performance in dynamic decision processes. Performance was measured in a dynamic decision task in which ER teams of different sizes worked against an attacker who was trying to destroy a city (total N = 225 undergraduates). The complexity of teams' and attackers' adaptation strategies and the role of the opponents' performance were assessed by nonlinear regression analysis. An optimal group size for team performance was identified. Teams were more readily influenced by the attackers' performance than vice versa. The adaptive capabilities of attackers and teams were impaired by their opponents in some conditions. ER teams should be large enough to contribute a critical mass of ideas but not so large that coordination would be compromised. ER teams used self-organized strategies that could have been more adaptive, whereas attackers used chaotic strategies. The model and results are applicable to ER processes or training maneuvers involving dynamic decisions but could be limited to nonhierarchical groups.


The Quantum Scale Proves Less is More and Everything is Relative

As parents, there are certain things we know to be true, that sometimes our childless friends just don’t fully grasp. When your 5 year old asks where babies come from, you paint in broad strokes, giving as little biological information as possible. You know that less is more. When you declare with great pride that you finally have your newborn sleeping through the night, because he now sleeps from 3am – 6am, every 3rd night, you understand that the concept of “through the night” is relative.

Now a company called Quantum Scale brings the concepts of “less is more” and “everything is relative” to a bathroom scale. Yes, the Quantum Scale has “less” information than your normal scale, as it will not tell you your weight! Embracing the awesomeness of “everything is relative”, the Quantum Scale just tells you how much weight you have lost or gained since you first stepped on the scale.

Let’s take a look at our video review of the Quantum Scale -

Knowing Your Weight Is Incredibly Overrated

Call me naive, but I used to think the point of a scale was to tell you how much you weighed. After using the Quantum Scale for a while, I realized that knowing your weight is not very useful and probably harmful. Think of it this way, let’s say you weigh 250 pounds and a healthy weight for you is 200 pounds. You exercise, diet and do everything you can for a few months and lose 30 pounds. Step on your “normal scale” and it will not say “great job, you dropped 30 pounds“. No, that scale will flash the number 220, showing you are still 20 pounds overweight. You get frustrated, fear ever stepping on the scale and probably dream about bringing the scale to life…just so you could kill it.

The Quantum Scale puts a whole different spin on the above scenario. After losing 30 pounds you step on the Quantum Scale and see a big “- 30 LBS” on the display. You feel great, your diet and exercise is rewarded and you stay motivated. Let’s say you have a minor setback one week and gain 5 pounds, the Quantum Scale shows a big “- 25 LBS“, so you still feel positive that you are down 25 pounds from your starting weight.

This is the real genius of the Quantum Scale, it highlights the change in your weight, as opposed to your weight.

Will The Quantum Scale Really Help You Lose Weight?

Not if you keep raiding the kids’ Halloween candy! If you have ever tried to lose weight, you know it can be both physically and mentally challenging. You still need to diet and exercise but the Quantum Scale can help you with the mental side of weight loss. Seeing negative numbers, no matter how many pounds overweight you still may be, is a huge motivational aide.

If you take a look at the Quantum Scale website you will see they have some decent research to show that people hate seeing their weight when they step on a scale. In addition, the Quantum Scale has been featured on Dr Oz, The Today Show, Tyra and the Bonnie Hunt show. There are no magic bullets when it comes to weight loss, but any tool that can give you an edge in the weight loss battle is a positive.

Conclusion: The Quantum Scale Will End Your War With Your Scale

Once your scale stops telling you how much you weight and instead tells the story of your progress, you will no longer hate your scale and treat it as your enemy. The Quantum Scale also is easy on the eyes and comes in 6 different colors. One negative to the Quantum Scale is that only one person can use it – it would be great if you could have two or three different profiles so a few family members could use it. Update - We have been informed that a multi-user version of the Quantum Scale is in the works, so this one negative will soon be removed!

The Quantum Scale is a product that doesn’t make much sense on paper. How can a scale that doesn’t tell you your weight be of any use? Once you step on the Quantum Scale, the light bulb goes on and you wonder where this scale has been your whole life.


Valve actuation in an internal combustion engine is required in order for the engine to produce positive power, as well as to produce engine braking. During positive power, intake valves may be opened to admit fuel and air into a cylinder for combustion. The exhaust valves may be opened to allow combustion gas to escape from the cylinder. Intake and exhaust valves may also be opened during positive power at various times to recirculate gases for improved emissions.
During engine braking, the exhaust valves may be selectively opened to convert, at least temporarily, an internal combustion engine of compression-ignition type into an air compressor. In doing so, the engine develops retarding horsepower to help slow the vehicle down. This can provide the operator with increased control over the vehicle and substantially reduce wear on the service brakes of the vehicle.
In many internal combustion engines the engine cylinder intake and exhaust valves may be opened and closed by fixed profile cams in the engine, and more specifically by one or more fixed lobes which may be an integral part of each of the cams. The use of fixed profile cams can make it difficult to adjust the timings and/or amounts of engine valve lift to optimize valve opening times and lift for various engine operating conditions, such as different engine speeds.
One method of adjusting valve timing and lift, given a fixed cam profile, has been to provide variable valve actuation and incorporate a “lost motion” device in the valve train linkage between the valve and the cam. Lost motion is the term applied to a class of technical solutions for modifying the valve motion proscribed by a cam profile with a variable length mechanical, hydraulic, or other linkage assembly. In a lost motion system, a cam lobe may provide the “maximum” (longest dwell and greatest lift) motion needed over a full range of engine operating conditions. A variable length system may then be included in the valve train linkage, intermediate of the valve to be opened and the cam providing the maximum motion, to subtract or lose part or all of the motion imparted by the cam to the valve.
This variable length system (or lost motion system) may, when expanded fully, transmit all of the cam motion to the valve, and when contracted fully, transmit none or a minimum amount of the cam motion to the valve. An example of such a system and method is provided in Hu, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,537,976 and 5,680,841, which are assigned to the same assignee as the present application and which are incorporated herein by reference.
In the lost motion system of U.S. Pat. No. 5,680,841, an engine cam shaft may actuate a master piston which displaces fluid from its hydraulic chamber into a hydraulic chamber of a slave piston. The slave piston in turn acts on the engine valve to open it. The lost motion system may include a solenoid trigger valve and/or a check valve in communication with the hydraulic circuit including the chambers of the master and slave pistons. The solenoid valve may be maintained in a closed position in order to retain hydraulic fluid in the circuit. As long as the solenoid valve remains closed, the slave piston and the engine valve respond directly to the motion of the master piston, which in turn displaces hydraulic fluid in direct response to the motion of a cam. When the solenoid is opened temporarily, the circuit may partially drain, and part or all of the hydraulic pressure generated by the master piston may be absorbed by the circuit rather than be applied to displace the slave piston, and correspondingly, the engine valve.
Previous lost motion systems have typically not utilized high speed mechanisms to rapidly vary the length of the lost motion system. Lost motion systems of the prior art have accordingly not been variable such that they may assume more than one length during a single cam lobe motion, or even during one cycle of the engine. By using a high speed mechanism to vary the length of the lost motion system, more precise control may be attained over valve actuation, and accordingly optimal valve actuation may be attained for a wide range of engine operating conditions.
The lost motion system and method of the present invention may be particularly useful in engines requiring variable valve actuation for positive power, engine braking valve events (such as, for example, compression release and bleeder braking), and exhaust gas recirculation valve events. Each of the foregoing events not only make the engine operate, but also relieve the high pressures and temperatures that occur in the engine. If left uncontrolled, which may occur with the failure of a lost motion system, positive power, engine braking, and/or exhaust/intake gas recirculation could result in pressure or temperature damage to an engine. Moreover, if the exhaust valve should fail to open during positive power, the “exhaust” stroke will actually be an engine compression stroke starting with an abnormally high cylinder pressure. The peak cylinder pressures produced could be substantially higher than the structural limits of the engine. Therefore, it may be beneficial to have a lost motion system which is capable of providing exhaust valve events should the lost motion system fail.
The present invention provides such a system. The present invention is a valve actuation system capable of automatically and virtually immediately providing at least a portion of a desired engine valve event should the lost motion system fail.
One advantage of an embodiment of the present invention is that it may provide a system and method for actuating at least one engine valve should a primary variable valve actuation system fail to operate.
Another advantage of an embodiment of the present invention is that it may provide a system and method for actuating at least one engine valve should a primary variable valve actuation system be turned off.
Another advantage of an embodiment of the present invention is that it may provide a system and method for automatically actuating at least one engine valve using an auxiliary system should a primary variable valve actuation system fail to operate.
Another advantage of an embodiment of the present invention is that it may provide a system and method for virtually immediately actuating at least one engine valve using an auxiliary system should a primary variable valve actuation system fail to operate.
Additional advantages of the invention are set forth, in part, in the description which follows and, in part, will be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art from the description and/or from the practice of the invention.


Friday’s clashes between Palestinian protesters and Israeli Security Forces in the Gaza strip left up to 49 people injured, local media reports, citing Palestinian Health Ministry.

The clashes erupted during an anti-settlement protest at the eastern border of the Gaza strip. Thousands of Palestinians are said to have taken part in the demonstrations.

Local media reported that up to 49 people had been wounded by Israeli Armed Forces, 19 of them allegedly by live fire. Also, eight volunteer health workers and one journalist were said to have sustained injuries.

Earlier reports stated that Israel and Hamas had struck a deal on a cease-fire along the border. According to an Israeli official, Israel would renew the delivery of fuel to Gaza (halted on June 25), expand the fishing zone around the Gaza Strip to 15 nautical miles (28 kilometres) and return confiscated Palestinian fishing boats, Haaretz reported.

In exchange, Israel demanded that Hamas halt violence in the buffer zone. Hamas was to ensure the demonstrations at the border remain peaceful and to stop the launch of airborne firebombs into Israeli territory.

This week, Gazans held their Great March of Return demonstrations for the 63rd week in a row. They are demanding the return of Palestinian refugees to historical Palestine, currently Israeli territory. They are also calling for an end to Israel’s 12-year-long blockade of the Gaza Strip. Dozens of protesters have been killed in clashes with Israeli forces as a result of these weekly demonstrations, with many more people injured on both sides.


The lack of wage growth in Britain’s economy is the result of turning the clock back to the days before the Industrial Revolution when there were no trade unions and self-employment was rife, the chief economist of the Bank of England has suggested.

Andy Haldane said the current relationship between pay and employment had more in common with the period between 1500 and 1750 than in the subsequent period, because in the post-1750 era, collective bargaining and the expansion of full-time paid employment meant workers were able to secure generous pay awards when labour was scarce.

“The move towards greater self-employment and less unionisation is, in some respects, a shift back to the future in the nature of work,” Haldane said, harking back to the days before James Watt, a key figure in the emergence of the steam engine, and other pioneers began the transformation of Britain’s largely agrarian economy.

Business Today: sign up for a morning shot of financial news Read more

“Prior to the Industrial Revolution, and indeed for some years after it, most workers were self-employed or worked in small businesses. There were no unions. Hours were flexible, depending on what work was needed to collect the crops, milk the cows or put bread on the table. Work was artisanal, task-based, divisible.”

Haldane, whose speech revealed differences with the Bank’s governor, Mark Carney, over interest rates, said the read-across from pre-industrial Britain to the 21st century was not exact but that there were parallels with today’s gig economy. He added that there was evidence that changes in the nature of work had been a factor in explaining why wage growth was running at just 2% at a time when unemployment was the lowest since the mid-1970s.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest James Watt was instrumental in ushering in the Industrial Revolution. Photograph: Getty Images

The chief economist said a period of “divide and conquer” had left workers less able to bargain for higher wages. “There is power in numbers. A workforce that is more easily divided than in the past may find itself more easily conquered. In other words, a world of divisible work may reduce workers’ wage-bargaining power.”

Trade union membership has declined from 38% of employees in 1990 to 23% in 2016, and Haldane noted that the downward trend was likely to continue.

“The fact that unionisation rates have been falling within each age cohort over time, and are lowest among the young, suggests the downward trend in rates of unionisation may still have some distance to travel.

“For example, if unionisation rates were to continue to decline at the same average rate as over the past decade, then they are likely to fall to around 10% of employees, or 3 million people, within a generation.”

Self-employment had increased from 8% of the workforce in 1980 to almost 15%, or about 4.25 million people. Only one in six of the self-employed hired other workers compared with 30% in 1990. The number of people on zero-hours contracts had increased from 170,000 (0.6% of those in employment) in 2010 to almost 1 million workers (3% of employees) by 2016. At the current rate of expansion, employees on zero-hour contracts would reach about 7% within a decade.

Haldane said: “Gigging can be fun for some. But not everyone wants to be a roadie when it comes to the world of work.”


Schedule a Free In-Home Consultation

We Design

We Get to Know You and Your Unique Needs

At Budget Blinds we truly care. We spend the time to understand the way you live and what's important to you. We make the process both simple and enjoyable to provide the best solution possible that matches your personal style and budget.

We Measure

We Measure to Ensure a Perfect Fit

Precision is important to us as accuracy is paramount in delivering a solution that truly fits your window. We do this by ensuring that our team of design consultants go through a rigorous training program to ensure you'll have peace of mind backed by the #1 provider of custom window coverings in North America.

We Install

Expert Knowledge and Professional Installation

Our expert installers go through a comprehensive training program and are thoroughly committed to your complete satisfaction so you never have to lift a finger.

You Enjoy

We Leave You With Peace of Mind

Not only do we deliver a window covering solution you'll love, we also stand behind our products with the best warranty in the business. We're in your neighborhood and here to stay


Photochromism of 7-(N,N-diethylamino)-4'-hydroxyflavylium in a water-ionic liquid biphasic system.
Photochromism of trans-4-(N,N-diethylamino)-2,4'-dihydroxychalcone, with formation of the photoproduct 7-(N,N-diethylamino)-4'-hydroxyflavylium, is promoted in the ionic liquid phase of a water/[bmim][PF6] biphasic system.


All is not well in Tampa Bay these days.

After a dream season a year ago, including a run to within two wins of the Stanley Cup, the Lightning are struggling. They've won only 14 of 30 games this season; they sit outside the playoff picture by a few points in an Eastern Conference filled with unremarkable teams.

Injuries have hurt the Triplet Line – perhaps the best trio in the NHL last season – and Tyler Johnson and Ondrej Palat haven't been able to produce close to the offence they did in 2014-15.

Story continues below advertisement

But that's not why the entire hockey world will be focused on Tampa when it touches down in Toronto this week.

It's Steven Stamkos.

There's a lot of obfuscation in this situation, as neither Stamkos nor the Lightning want his lack of a contract extension to be a distraction as the team continues to struggle on the ice. (Good luck with that.)

But the chatter behind the scenes here isn't good.

At best, Stamkos simply disagrees with Lightning head coach Jon Cooper about being played on the wing instead of centre, a controversial switch during last year's playoffs that is being attempted again this season.

At worst? Stamkos and the coach have an active dislike for one another. In fact, some say they rarely talk to one another – and that that's not a unique situation in Tampa.

Two things happened in the past two weeks to escalate this beyond the point where GM Steve Yzerman can control the optics of what's really going on.

Story continues below advertisement

First, he signed Cooper to a multiyear contract extension, signalling to his captain that if he wants to stay, he'll have to play for this coach.

A few days later, Stamkos liked a tweet from TSN that had the headline: "Should the Maple Leafs pursue Stamkos?" igniting a firestorm among Greater Toronto Area fans anxious to have one of their favourite sons come play at home.

Stamkos later claimed this was an accident, but no one who knows him – and knows the difficult situation with Cooper – believes it.

This has been brewing for months, and the tough part for Yzerman is Stamkos holds the hammer. He has a full no-movement clause in the final year of his contract, meaning the Lightning may not even be able to deal him as a rental player late in the year.

Stamkos has also had a poor season by his standards: He is on pace for only 30 goals and 60 points, his lowest per-game totals since he was an 18-year-old rookie.

It is widely believed that Yzerman already investigated trading Stamkos before the no-movement clause kicked in. Prior to the draft, the Lightning were in discussions with the Buffalo Sabres about a potential deal for the second-overall pick, which they eventually used to take Jack Eichel.

Story continues below advertisement

Depending on who you believe – and we're dealing with a rumour mill gone absolutely wild right now – those discussions were either very preliminary or somewhat advanced.

Those who argue they were advanced say that it was Stamkos who nixed the deal, because one condition the Sabres put on the blockbuster trade was that they had to be able to sign him to an extension.

Let's take that talk at face value. It would have made little sense for Stamkos to negotiate a new deal under those circumstances – with only one team to work with – when he was a year away from full unrestricted free agency. If he makes it to July 1, 2016, without a new deal, he will have more than a dozen teams courting him for a record-setting contract that will almost certainly exceed the $10.5-million salary cap hit the Chicago Blackhawks gave to Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews last season.

(It's worth noting that the Calgary Flames similarly pursued a trade for Stamkos at some point in the summer but that it didn't get very far.)

There have been denials on much of this all around, and there will continue to be as the focus on the Lightning heats up this week when they face the Leafs.

But it increasingly looks as though the Stamkos UFA sweepstakes will happen this summer.

Story continues below advertisement

If he truly doesn't want to play for Cooper anymore, all he needs to do is wait. That will be a bitter pill for the Lightning – losing a 26-year-old franchise player they drafted first overall in 2008 for nothing – but it won't catch them by surprise.

If you put any stock in the talk around the league, that's now the most likely outcome. The only wild card is if Stamkos will allow Yzerman to recoup some sort of asset at the trade deadline by agreeing to be a rental player.

That would have to happen relatively quickly, as the deadline is Feb. 29 – only 78 days away.

It's either that or broker a reconciliation between player and coach, finally ending a rift that's been dragging what should be one of the NHL's better teams down all year.

Either way, Yzerman is running out of time.


Some great updates on HS Girls’ Rugby in Wisconsin and the NIT via LifeLawRugby:

• This weekend Milwaukee, Wis., is home to the 2007 Girls HS Rugby National Invitational Tournament. The DSHA Dashers of Milwaukee are going for a fourth-straight national title on home turf.

Here’s an article from the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel about this weekend’s tournament (and we’ll just ignore the usual non-rugby non-intellectual banter from the reporter in the opening).

Rugby teams aim to keep teeth in battle for title Posted: May 14, 2007Anthony Witrado

Well, it is kind of like football . . . but not really.

It is sort of like soccer, a little bit . . . but it’s different.

Maybe hockey, minus the sticks, has something to do with it, too.

What is definite is people huddle up in what looks like a celebratory group hug, then a ball that is oval like a football but bigger is dropped in the middle and it no longer looks like a celebration. It then resembles more of a riot, and sometimes players climb on each other’s shoulders like a chicken fight.

If you’ve never seen rugby played live, it is a pretty cool sight. There are a ton of gross and semi-amazing stories, like a guy splitting his head open and, because there was no trainer, teammates taped his dome with duct tape and he played on.

Casual observers think two things when they hear “rugby”: missing choppers and blood. It is not for the easily queasy, even when girls play.

“Rugby is the most physically intense sport women play,” said Nicole Back, who played club in 2004 at UW-Milwaukee. “It’s football without pads. Nothing has made me feel stronger.”

This week, Milwaukee is getting a taste of the sport at a pure, championship level when the 16-team Girls High School Rugby National Invitational Tournament starts Friday. The tournament’s Web site calls it the biggest tournament in girls high school rugby history, although only eight teams are in the comp bracket that plays for the national title.

Divine Savior Holy Angels, the all-girls Catholic college prep school, is host of the tournament. Its rugby team, which is club and not certified by the Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association, has won the last three NIT championships, which is the equivalent to a national championship.

This is not the first time Milwaukee has been host of the Rugby NIT. In 1999, its inaugural year, the six-team bracket was played on the lakefront. This year it will be at the Milwaukee Sports Complex in Franklin and the Dashers want to defend home turf and have their seniors go out with four titles. They have also won the last five regional championships, which teams must win to get an NIT bid.

“As a result of our tradition, they play harder for it,” DSHA coach John Klein said. “When you see that everybody before you has won, you feel that pressure to keep winning.”

Klein became enamored of the sport as a freshman at Marquette University when he decided it was time for him to try something new. Club rugby? Why not?

He is now in his 10th season as the coach of one of the most successful club rugby programs in the country. The sport has 350 teams and is considered the fastest growing high school sport.

Every one of the girls Klein gets has never played the sport, but its winning ways is part of the program’s selling point. He credits much of the success, for which he hesitates to take much credit, with DSHA’s practice habits. Klein includes every girl on the team, freshmen to seniors, in the same drills, grooming the youngsters to play at a high level.

“I think that has something to do with it,” he said. “They want to do their best to keep up with the girls that are older.”

The tournament itself is all the work of coaches, though. The festivities this weekend, which include opening ceremonies and a social gathering Saturday night for all the teams, will run upward of $20,000, and all of that money was raised by the teams.

Because rugby is a club sport, there is no financing from a governing body, not even USA Rugby, although Klein said the organization might change its position soon because of the growing popularity.

“It is fun because this is the coaches’ doing,” Klein said. “They are trying to give the girls something extra to play for.”

And rest assured it will be a great weekend for whoever holds up the championship cup and smiles for a picture without any missing teeth.

Also, congrats to both DSHA and Vernon for meeting in the finals of the Midwest Girls’ Rugby Championship – an All-Wisconsin Final!

Related

2 responses to “HS Girls’ Rugby Alive & Well in Wisconsin!”

I am looking with interest and wonderment as to how the MidWest Invitational could possibly be called a national championship as quite a few rgions(states) have not decided their champions yet. Until every state has a champion and runnerup there should be no tournament that lists itself as a “national championship. Only state champions and 1st runnerups should be included to decide a national champion. Why not just call it A Nice Midwest Rugby Tournament and be truthful about it.Sparky

Sparky, there were teams from Georgia, Washington, Maine, Pennsylvania, Oregon, Maryland, Wisconsin, Colorado, and New York. The only teams from the Midwest I believe were the 2 Wisconsin teams, Vernon and DSHA. Get your facts straight my friend.


There have been proposals for wind turbine and autogiro boats for more than a century. Wind turbine boats typically use a horizontal or vertical axis wind turbine to drive a propeller, which in turn powers the boat, while autogiro boats use thrust forces on rotating vanes directly to power a boat. The promise has always been that one need not know how to sail to operate a wind turbine boat, and can move directly into the wind, and directly downwind faster than the wind speed. While there have been many proposals, instances of practical use of these technologies are few and far between. In fact, the Amateur Yacht Research Society publication AYRS 120-1 (pages 48-64) actually suggests that a horizontal axis wind turbine multihull boat is impractical, and cannot go directly into the wind.
The failure of practical application of wind turbine technology to watercraft may be due to a failure to properly meld existing components into an optimum combination. The failure may also be due to the failure to produce enough effective power for moving the boat due to power transmission losses, incorrect selection of the wind turbine configuration, what to do with the wind turbine when docked, or a combination of these and other factors. In any event, according to one aspect of the present invention, a wind turbine watercraft is constructed that will be operational and can power directly into the wind, and overcomes all of the difficulties mentioned above. However the invention is not limited to a wind turbine watercraft alone, but rather includes as separate and distinct concepts: a collapsible vertical axis wind turbine in general (for use on land as well as with a watercraft); a suitable material and shape for catamaran (or other multihull) hulls of a watercraft; and a power transmitting mechanism with little or no power transmission loss.
According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a vertically collapsible vertical axis wind turbine comprising: a substantially vertical shaft; at least two vane supports mounted by the shaft; and at least two vertically collapsible material vanes supported by the vane supports, so that the vanes are movable from a first operative position in which the vane material is substantially taut, to a second inoperative position in which the vane material collapses. The vane supports may be positioned, and the vanes are constructed, so that the wind turbine has an open helix configuration, or a Savonius configuration, or other conventional vertical axis wind turbine configurations.
Preferably the at least one of the vane supports comprises a first vane support mounted to the shaft by a locking device, the locking device removable to allow movement of the first vane support with respect to other vane supports along the shaft. The first vane support may comprise the top vane support. There may be at least three vane supports vertically spaced from each other on the shaft, including a second vane support mounted to the shaft by a removable locking device. The locking device may comprise a locking pin extendable through aligned substantially horizontal openings in the shaft and first (and second) vane support(s).
Each vane support may comprise a hub having a central substantially vertical bore, and a plurality of curved spokes extending generally radially outwardly from the hub and operatively connected to a vane. Preferably, the hub central bore and the shaft have at least one radially extending projection and vertically elongated groove which cooperate to key the vane support to the shaft (for example the at least one radial projection is in the hub central bore and the at least one vertically elongated groove is in the shaft). Each vane support may have four spokes space substantially uniformly around the hub. The spokes of the lowest vane support on the shaft may have a significantly smaller radial dimension than the spokes of a vane support above them, so that the vane is tapered radially inwardly from the above vane support to the lowest vane support.
The vanes may be made of kite or high performance sail material. At least one vane optionally includes at least one substantially vertical or substantially diagonal batten therein.
According to another aspect of the present invention there is provided a multihull watercraft comprising: a plurality of hulls; a propulsion mechanism mounted between two of the hulls; a vertically collapsible vertical axis wind turbine operatively fore mounted to at least one hull, the wind turbine having a shaft; and an operative connection between the wind turbine shaft and the propulsion mechanism. The vertically collapsible vertical axis wind turbine may comprise a Savonius wind turbine or an open helix wind turbine, and may have the details of construction described above. That is the wind turbine may comprise at least two vane supports mounted by the shaft; and at least two vertically collapsible material vanes supported by the vane supports, so that the vanes are movable from a first operative position in which the vane material is substantially taut, to a second inoperative position in which the vane material collapses. The propulsion mechanism may comprise a horizontal propeller and the operative connection between the wind turbine shaft and propeller may comprise a flexible shaft having at least about a 70 degree (e.g. about 90 degree) bend therein. The propeller may have a diameter of between about 10-14 inches, and may be mounted so that during normal loading of the watercraft roughly half of the propeller is in water and roughly half is out of water. Also, at least portions of the hulls which normally engage water may be made of low friction marine grade polyethylene (Roplene®).
According to another aspect of the invention there is provided a watercraft comprising: a watercraft body (e.g., but not necessarily, a multihull); a vertical axis wind turbine having a substantially vertical shaft mounted with respect to the body for rotation with respect to the body; a horizontal propeller mounted to the body for rotation about a generally horizontal axis, and a flexible shaft having at least about a 70 degree (e.g. about 90 degree) bend therein operatively connecting the wind turbine shaft to the horizontal propeller. A clutch may be provided between the wind turbine shaft and the flexible shaft, the clutch positioned above the flexible shaft bend.
The invention, and its various aspects, will be described more fully—but in a non-limiting manner—with respect to the included drawings.


INDIANAPOLIS — The Seahawks’ to-do list for this offseason is a lot shorter than it has been the past couple of years.

They’re not searching for a left tackle like they were in 2010. They’re not scouring the free-agent market for four starters on offense like 2011. And after three years of long-term uncertainty at quarterback, Seattle might be overstocked at the position with Russell Wilson the undisputed starter and Matt Flynn an overqualified backup.

Seattle has so many pieces in place that it makes it all the more important they fill those final few needs. Going sackless in the playoff loss at Atlanta underscored what is the team’s biggest need going forward, and a good part of Seattle’s offseason will be spent trying to find men capable of tackling, hurrying or otherwise harassing the opposing quarterback.

The Seahawks could use more speed at receiver, as well as another starting linebacker, but Seattle’s ability to improve the pass rush is the most important question facing this team. The answer will only begin to take shape this week when the NFL’s offseason begins in earnest at the annual scouting combine.

Everyone in the league — from coaches to general managers to scouts — converges in Indianapolis this weekend to watch this year’s top draft prospects on display. The workouts are the backdrop to the NFL equivalent of baseball’s winter meetings. This is when franchise tags can first be affixed to players, preventing them from becoming unrestricted free agents, long-term deals are struck to keep a player from hitting the open market, and teams begin to decide whether they have to spend big to add free-agent talent or they’ll roll the dice on finding cost-effective alternatives in the draft.

Seattle enters the offseason with 10 draft selections, millions of dollars in salary-cap space and a bargaining chip for a backup quarterback.

The Seahawks also have a need at a position that commands a premium in the NFL. Only quarterbacks, left tackles and the occasional cornerback command more than a high-end pass rusher.

Options exist on the open market this year, whether it’s veterans like Dwight Freeney of the Colts or Osi Umenyiora of the Giants or younger players like Paul Kruger of Baltimore or perhaps Michael Johnson of Cincinnati.

It’s not that Seattle’s pass rush was toothless. Chris Clemons had double-digit sacks for the third successive season since coming to Seattle, and last year’s first-round pick of Bruce Irvin had eight sacks, most among NFL rookies. But no one else on the team had more than three sacks. Throw in that Clemons will be coming back from reconstructive knee surgery, and there’s no doubt about Seattle’s desire to improve the pass rush.

So how will the Seahawks do it? There are plenty of options, all with risks and difficult choices that Seattle must weigh.

I. Catch a rising star

Seattle hasn’t made a habit of spending big in free agency, but two years ago, the Seahawks signed a pair of 20-somethings to two big-budget deals, adding receiver Sidney Rice and tight end Zach Miller.

Each was in his mid-20s. Both were first-time free agents. A couple of pass-rushers meet those specs this year.

Kruger had nine sacks during the regular season and 4.5 more during the Ravens’ Super Bowl run. He turned 27 last week and is entering his prime. He’s also a one-year starter who recorded the bulk of his sacks in the run-up to free agency.

Same holds true for Johnson. He is 6 feet 7, a lean speed rusher off the edge who totaled 11.5 sacks in 2012. A candidate to be franchise-tagged, he may not get to free agency, and if he does, he’s going to cost millions.

II. Veteran seasoning

It isn’t a rule that Seattle won’t sink big money into veterans, but under Schneider it has been the exception for the team to offer a multiyear contract to someone in his 30s.

Freeney and Umenyiora have been exceptional pass rushers in this league, though. Both are expected to hit free agency, where several contenders will take a look. The upside is obvious, and there are plenty of examples of pass-rushers who have remained effective into their 30s, from Bruce Smith to Michael Strahan to Jason Taylor.

On the other hand, Seattle’s history with both Grant Wistrom and Patrick Kerney demonstrates the danger of relying on high-priced veterans.

III. Pick a winner

Seattle’s ability to find value in all rounds of the draft has been the signature of John Schneider’s time as general manager. He has picked Pro Bowlers in the first round like left tackle Russell Okung and safety Earl Thomas. He has found stars in the fifth round, too, in safety Kam Chancellor and cornerback Richard Sherman.

But finding an immediate-impact pass-rusher with the 25th pick of the first round would take some doing, even for Schneider. From 2002 to 2012, 12 players totaled double-digit sacks as rookies. Ten were chosen among the first 20 picks.

One of those two picked outside the top 20 was linebacker Clay Matthews, chosen No. 26 in 2009 by the Green Bay Packers, where Schneider was working at the time. Four years later, Schneider will spend this week looking to see if he can find someone to provide a similar boost in Seattle.


Assessment of hormone loss through hemofiltration.
The concentrations of testosterone, cortisone, gastrin, insulin, gastric inhibitory polypeptide (GIP), somatomedin B, parathyroid hormone (PTH), human growth hormone (HGH) and thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) have been determined in the plasma and the ultrafiltrate of five uremic patients undergoing intermittent hemofiltration treatment. There was a considerable loss of gastrin, insulin, GIP, somatomedin B and PTH by hemofiltration treatment. The plasma concentrations, however, did not decrease except for immunoreactive-PTH (IR-PTH) which returned from elevated to normal levels. Cortisone, HGH and TSH concentrations in the ultrafiltrate were below the measureable range. A significant elimination of 11-hydroxylated androstans by hemofiltration may have a positive effect on the disturbed steroid metabolism. Results indicate that hemofiltration does not cause a hormone deficiency syndrome. On the contrary, the loss of degradation products of hormones with disturbing biological activity may be a favorable effect of the hemofiltration treatment.