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By Anthony Caruso III | Publisher
Minnesota Timberwolves point guard Ricky Rubio scored a career-high 33 points on Thursday night. The Wolves defeated the Los Angeles Lakers 119-104 at the Target Center.
He had 13 of his points in the second half. He had 20 first half points.
Any Corrections?. You can contact Anthony at publisher@thecapitalsportsreport.com.
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As far as draft busts go, Yi Jianlian is right up there. Prior to being selected in 2007, several reputable pundits were suggesting the big man was going to make a sizeable impact when he moved from China to the NBA.
But reality soon followed. Yi posted up chairs in his infamous draft workout video, initially refused to move to Wisconsin after being selected by the Milwaukee Bucks, and became dogged by allegations that he had lied about his age. Within five years, the man pegged as the Chinese Kevin Garnett was out of the NBA and back in his home country.
According to Wang Yiqiong of the People’s Daily, one of China’s best-selling newspapers, the Lakers reached out to Yi in the offseason only for the player to veto the move because the offer was too low.
Though the rumor seems unlikely from a western perspective, Wang has not retracted his claim and the rest of China’s media is treating it seriously. David Yang, editor of the respected China Sports Review website, certainly feels the story is true: “I wouldn't be surprised if there was an offer for Yi as he can help the Lakers both athletically and commercially.”
The move would’ve also made some sense from Yi’s perspective. This offseason, the player was the biggest free agent in China after his contract with the Guangdong Tigers expired. At the time, the Tigers—who had won eleven CBA titles in the previous fourteen years—appeared to be falling apart. The team, coached by legendary former Guangdong player and Yi’s one-time teammate, Du Feng, had lost in the playoff semi-finals for the second year in a row. This came despite finishing the regular season as the top overall seed and setting a record for most consecutive wins. Besides an aging roster, another big concern was Du’s tactical acumen and Guangdong’s elimination was certainly hastened by several odd decisions involving the team’s foreign players.
With many feeling that Yi’s window was starting to close, Chinese media spent the summer openly speculating that the player might leave the Tigers, either to another CBA team or even the NBA. But eventually, Yi re-signed in Guangdong on a three-year, $16.1 million deal; a contract that shattered the previous record salary in the CBA. The Tigers also brought in Brian Goorjian, a former Australian national team coach, as lead assistant coach and the presumed tactical safety blanket for Du.
However, the Lakers rumor continues a popular offseason tradition in the world’s largest and most basketball-crazed nation. Despite his embarrassing exit from the NBA, Yi is widely popular in China and remains one of the CBA’s best players. On top of this, the player has also carried his country’s flag in the Olympics opening ceremony, one of the biggest honors within the country’s sports program.
So it goes without saying that China wants to see their best active player back in the NBA. As recently as last week, one Chinese website published a purported list of requirements from Yi for a potential NBA return, namely a team with a good point guard, a suitable living environment, and a front office that was willing to believe in him.
But because this summer was also perhaps his best opportunity to leave China, Yi’s decision to stay has been met with anger from some fans. Some feel Yi ran from the challenge, whilst others called the player’s decision not to play for the Lakers—who themselves are hugely popular in China—a wasted opportunity. Yet Yang, who has covered Chinese sport for several years, is sympathetic to the player’s situation. “It's not hard to come to the conclusion that staying in China suits Yi best. The same can be said of soccer players like Chen Zhizhao and Zhang Xizhe [both of whom have resisted overtures to play overseas]. These players are already well-paid in domestic leagues so a move abroad would sometimes prove to be economically and athletically costly for Chinese athletes.”
By re-upping with Guangdong, Yi has likely killed off any talk of returning to America. By the next time he is a free agent, Yi will be almost 35 and would not have played in the NBA for six years. The sight of Kobe Bryant passing the ball to Yi would have generated unprecedented interest for the Lakers in China, but now the only way that is going to happen is on NBA 2K. Depending on your opinion of Yi Jianlian, that scenario is either the best or worst possible outcome from this piece of free agency drama.
Andrew Crawford can be found on Twitter (@shouldersgalore) and is the man behind the site sharkfinhoops.com, one of the few English language sites that specialize in covering Chinese basketball. |
Become a Fan
July 31, 2012
This is a fairly new study published again by the folks at the ASPCAPro. The topic of this one is Why do adopters choose the particular animal they choose at a shelter?
The study asked 1,491 adopters seven questions to determine what it was about a particular pet that led them to choose that particular pet for adoption.
The most important factor for cat adoptions was "behavior with people"(27%). For dogs, Appearance was most important -- also at 27%. I would suspect this difference would be primarily because of the more variance in appearance among dogs than cats. Interestingly, kittens were more likely to be chosen based on their appearance than adult cats and more so than because of their behavior. There was less difference between puppies and dogs.
Another question was asked: "What did this pet do when you first met him or her?" In otherwords, what type of first impression did the pet make.
For Kittens, they were more likely to vocalize, and play, than approach or rub on. Again, the difference between dogs and puppies was not as major.
When listing what elements were important in determining adopt an animal the results were very interesting:
Kitten Adult Cat Puppy Adult Dog
Physical Appearance 63% 66% 77% 75%
Age 78% 64% 75% 66%
Behavior w/ People 69% 78% 74% 78%
Playfulness 67% 54% 64% 58%
Sex 44% 35% 45% 35%
Health 50% 51% 45% 49%
Energy Level 45% 44% 56% 56%
Behavior when by himself 26% 26% 34% 29%
Behavior toward other animals 19% 25% 27% 32%
Reco from staff or volunteer 13% 22% 16% 24%
Special adoption offer 2.2% 5.9% 2.9% 7%
Wanted to help animal 13% 21% 23% 24%
Adopters for cats and dogs note that more than 75% of the time the most important source of information about that animal came from a staff or volunteer, around 45% said from their cage card and 30-35% said from the internet. Information received was about health, behavior and prior life experiences (in that order).
Discussion thoughts:
- While adoptions specials may encourage adoption in general, they don't appear to have a huge influence on individual choice of animals.
- Dogs and cats approaching adopters was an important factor for adopters which suggests the importance of social greeting behavior in shelters. Teaching approach behaviors may help animals to become adopted.
-- Staff and volunteers are an extremely important source of information about animals -- way moreso than the internet -- proving the importance of customer service in shelters.
-- Interacting directly with a dog or cat is more important than seeing the pet behind a cage door. Providing areas and opportunities for adopters to spend time with pets outside of the kennel can be valuable.
-- Because appearance was so important in the adoption of puppies/kittens, shelter staff could benefit by providing potential adopters more emphasis on behaviors and personality to create a better match.
-- On a personal note, I was surprised at how low energy level scored in importance -- when it may very well be the most important factor in a good match for adopters -- particularly for dogs.
July 28, 2012
A couple of weeks ago, at a mayoral breakfast, a Sioux City, IA couple brought up the conversation of repealing the city's 4 year old breed ban. The Sioux City Journal published an editorial encouraging the council to no "go there". While the Journal opposed the ban back in 2008, and then again when it was discussed in 2010, but now says there has already been too much discussion over the subject and they should just move on.
And to no surprise of anyone, the distraction of limited resources has had a negative affect on public safety as well. The city passed the ban in late 2008 (late October/early November) and began enforcing the law in March of 2009. 2006 and 2007 numbers come from this article, 2008-2011 numbers I obtained via FOI request this week (thanks to the helpful folks in Sioux City who were very nice in pulling the data together for me). I have no explanation for why the 2008, 2009 and 2010 data is different in the numbers I got from the city vs what is in the article.
Dog bites by year (numbers in parenths are those by "pit bulls" -- second parenths is "all other" dogs).
2006 - 88
2007 - 115
2008 - 102 (20) (82)
2009 - 107 (13) (94)
2010 - 134 (13) (121)
2011 - 117 (5) (112)
While it appears that 'pit bull' bites have gone down some since they enacted the ban (culling a huge amount of the population of one type of dog will do that). However, the bites by all other breeds of dogs have increased pretty dramatically -- and some of the other breeds that have increased over that time are Boxers, American Bulldogs, German Shepherds and Labrador Retrievers -- all bigger dogs that "pit bulls' typically are.
So in other words, the Sioux City Journal is wrong. The city council SHOULD revisit the breed ban, and repeal it; because they have an obligation to fixt the failures of the prior administration in the name of public safety. The law has failed. Fix it.
Meanwhile, I would be remiss if I didn't mention that while the law has been failing, there are a couple of folks who are celebrating the Sioux City Journal Editorial.
Pictured, to the left (you can click on it for a larger view) is the thread from dogsbite.org celebrating the Sioux City Journal Editorial. Dogsbite.org celebrating the "victory" should come as no surprise as public safety has never been their goal -- having once named now fired Dog Warden Tom Skeldon "Dog Warden of the Year" in 2008 after his jurisdiction had a 23% increase in dog bites. At this point, I think most people are catching onto the truth about dogsbite.org -- they are a hate group (and by group, I mean essentially one person), not a group promoting public safety.
But maybe even more telling are the comments by Council Bluffs Assistant City Attorney Don Bauermeiester who is taking credit for having talked to an Assistant City Attorney in Sioux City. According to Don:
"When contacted recently by former intern, now assistant city attorney, I directed him to dogsbite.org. Beleive me when I say that the asst city attorney in Sioux City understands pit bulls must be treated differently. lol".
Yes, I'm sure all of the the residents in Sioux City who are paying for the enforcement of the law while it decreases their public safety are laughing hysterically.
I should also note, the Bauermeister should be very familiar with the results of breed bans -- as the number of bites in his own city went up dramatically after enacting their breed ban in 2004.
So add Bauermeister to the small list of bozos who have no interest in promoting public safety - only in using his position to promote the slaughter of dogs that look like 'pit bulls' - and lol-ing while the animals die and public safety is compromised.
July 25, 2012
Below is the new volunteer video was put together to promote our volunteer program at KC Pet Project.
The video was actually put together by a Kansas City group Agenda BE -- a KC area organization that is out encouraging Kansas Citians to be more active in local charities. I think their program is a great idea and I'm glad they chose us to be a part of it.
The video is a short 2 1/2 minute look at what it's like to be a volunteer at KC Pet Project. Would love to get your thoughts on the new video. I think we're going to get a lot of use out of it.
July 24, 2012
last week, the community of North Beach, MD repealed its ban on pit bulls. The new ordinance prohibits "dangerous animals" but does not name 'pit bulls' among them.
Apparently the Calver County Animal Control -- which provides services to North Beach (a community of about 1800 people) -- refused to enforce the town's ban on pit bulls though pledges to cooperate in enforcing the revised ordinance.
July 22, 2012
Been really busy on a lot of things the past few weeks, and I had a computer meltdown, and so I've been HORRIBLE about the weekly roundups. So this week's is going to work a little different. I'm cleaning out my saved links this week and anything that seems interesting and still relevant from the past month or so I'm posting (there are a couple of recent items I'm saving for posts this coming week). Trying to get back on schedule...
Hobart, IN has decided against breed specific legislation in favor of legislation that puts responsibility on owners to properly care for and manage their dogs.
An Aurelia, IA couple finally reached a settlement with their community to allow them to keep their pit bull service dog. While the terms of the agreement are not announced, the couple's legal fees were over $25,000 -- a substantial amount for the couple or a small community like Aurelia.
Dangerous dog reports are up significantly in Leicestershire, UK. The UK has had a ban on four breeds of dogs since 1991....but public safety continues to not be improved.
Abuse Cases
Authorities have seized nearly 300 dogs, mostly pit bulls, from a hoarding situation in Montgomery County, TX that was acting as if it was a "no kill" shelter. Hoarding is not No Kill. No Kill is finding homes for them. Not hoarding and neglecting them. An ex employee called it "a living hell".
Cumberland County Animal Shelter went from killing 89% of all animals that came in to not euthanizing a single adoptable dog since November. I'm not sure how they're defining "adoptable", but even with a lax definition it is still a huge improvement.
West Valley, UT has formed an agreement with Best Friends Animal Society in hopes of moving that community closer to No Kill.
This is a great story about a group I think is really cool -- but Gretchen Meyer has formed a group called "Firecracker Dogs" to help high energy, mischievous dogs that find their way into shelters and often are the hardest to adopt out for shelters.
Baking cookies in your car -- this video made the rounds on the internet earlier this summer as a "heads up" to not leave your dogs in your car on hot days -- it's a very telling video, and I saw it first on Pound Dogs
- 14% of dogs had been lost in the past 5 years, (of which, 95% were recovered) and 15% of cats were lost (of which, 75% were recovered).
-- 50% of dogs and 33% of cats had been lost multiple times
-- 80% of dogs and 88% of cats were spayed or neutered (male dogs were less likely to be altered than female dogs). This would seem to be counter to common thinking that unaltered animals are more likely to run off than altered ones.
-- Not surprisingly, people with higher incomes and more education were MORE likely to alter their pets than people with lower incomes and less education -- further highlighting the need for targeted low-cost spay/neuter services.
-- There was no significant difference in likelihood of a pet being lost based on income or education
-- 49% of found dogs were found by searching their neighborhood, 20% came home on their own, 15% were contacted because they were wearing a tag or had a microchip, 7% were brought home by a neighbor and 6% by contacting animal control
-- 59% of cats were found because they returned home on their own, 30% were found by searching the neighborhood. Only 2% were returned home because they were wearing a tag or mcircochipped, and another 2% via contacting animal control.
-- For people who never found their lost dogs, 75% of searched their neighborhood, 75% visited the shelter, 50% hung posters, 50% put an ad in their paper, 50% posted online and 38% called their veterinarian (I will note that the sample size is very low for this since most people found their pets).
-- For people who never found their cats, 67% searched the neighborhood, 22% visited a shelter, 17% hung posters , 11% put an ad in the paper, 6% posted online and 11% called veterinarians (again, a fairly low sample size). The number of lost cat owners that never visited the shelter to look for the cat (and a verys small percent have any form of identification) is likely a reason that most shelters have strikingly low return-to-owner rates for cats.
-- People who made less than $50,000 a year were less likely to be reunited with their dogs than people in higher income brackets. For cats, low income (less than $30,000 and high income ($100,000+) were more likely to be reunited, where people between $30,000-100,000 were less likely to find them.
-- Women were more likely than men to be reunited with their dogs, but the opposite was true for cats.
-- While the numbers of unfound pets seem fairly low by these numbers, when you compare to the large numbers of owned pets in this country (86 million cats, 78 million dogs), this still means that roughly 2.2 million dogs are lost each year, and 2.6 million cats. Based on this, a large number of the animals that find their way into shelters across the nation are actually owned animals, not strays. And based on numbers of animals that are never found, this accounts for 110,000 dogs and 645,000 cats annually that are owned, but unable to be reunited with their owners.
I think the results of the study are interesting on a lot of levels. They support a lot of reasons for targeted low cost spay/neuter programs and the need for aggressive programs to encourage pet owners to put identifying tags and microchips on their pets (particularly for indoor cats, who do get lost). It also poses a pretty hefty task on shelters to try to be creative to create programs to help reunited cats to cat owners (which includes encouraging cat owners to come to the shelter to look for their lost cats.
There may be some sample bias in this survey, but I thik it does provide some good first data on the frequency of pets becoming lost, and then found again.
July 14, 2012
Earlier this week, a 40 year old man was killed by his own dog in the neighborhood of Avondale in Cincinnati.
Because the man was alone, there is little knowledge of what happened to lead up to the attack, but the man was apparently on a dialysis and had a device in his forearm that was ripped out causing a huge wound in his arm. The man, Ronald Brown, called 911 and said he was bitten and thought he was going to pass out -- but he bled to death by the time authorities arrived.
Authorities found "bags" of marajuana in the victim's home and the dog was shot by police as it was acting very aggressively toward them when they arrived.
The dog is being called an Alapaha Blue Blood Bulldog -- a rare breed of dog that looks a lot like an American Bulldog/Mastiff mix that is often described as tenacious and aloof (aloof is a trait often sought in guarding breeds).
The story is tragic, as all fatal dog bite incidents are (although I note that dog bite-related fatalities are exceedingly rare -- with only 30 or so happening per year in a dog population that exceeds 70 million dogs -- so when someone says dog attack fatalities are one in a million, they're wrong, it's actually 1 in 2 million), but is interesting or a variety of reasons.
First, only a couple of months ago, the city of Cincinnati repealed its ban on 'pit bulls'. The dog in this story would not have been illegal under the city's ban -- which further indicates that if someone wants an aggressive dog, there are ALWAYS other breeds of dogs they can turn to to make aggressive if that is their desired intent.
Second, the neighborhood of Avondale is a rough neighborhood in Cincinnati. It was the area that had the race riots in the late 60s and like these areas in similar cities, have yet to recover from the violence during that period. In Avondale, 41% of residents live below the poverty line (nearly 3x the national average). Brown appears to have had enough Marajuana to have been selling it out of his home ("bags" would indicate more than what someone would have for personal use) and likely had the dog as a guard dog in his tough neighborhood and to protect his stash. Function of a dog is extremely important in analyzing dog bites because dogs that are owned for an aggressive function (like guarding) are more likely to inflict injuries than ones that are pets. '
Third, many of the breed haters out there are still insisting on calling the dog a "pit bull type" dog -- because noting factual information about dog breeds, and attacks, isn't their motivation. They seem more content to just skew their year-end data to try to convince people that different types of dogs are more aggressive than others so they can push their dog-killing agendas while ignoring the circumstances surrounding these rare attacks.
July 11, 2012
Lennox was taken from his home because he was declared to be illegal under the UK's ban on four breeds of dogs, including American Pit Bull Terriers.
Lennox's ownes fought for two years to save him -- saying that he was not a banned breed but an American Bulldog/Lab mix. But in the end, the government in Ireland sided with him being illegal, and we was killed, after 2 years alone in his holding cell.
Lennox's deathwas the worst kind of death. He wasn't in need of a home. In fact, he had loving, caring owners who fought for two years for him (after most would have given up hope). In addition to this, there were hundreds of people who stepped up to help, and even pay to tranport him to the United States to live out his years. There is no indication that he had behavioral issues that made him a threat to anyone. He wasn't guilty of even running loose.
At the end of the day, he was killed because of how he looked, and nothing more.
The world is angry at the Belfast government now, and justifiably so. The story has made international headlines. And people are angry that a loved and loving dog could be killed for no reason at all. I understand the anger. It is more than justified.
But once the shock of the government in Belfast ignoring pleas to spare Lennox's life have passed, I want people to understand something important in this case:
Lennox's story is not unique.
While Lennox's story has made the national headlines, and his owners waged a huge campaign to save him, Lennox's story plays out in communities throughout the United States daily. Daily in this country, because of a city's breed ban, a perfectly good, loving dog is taken from a home and killed for no reason at all: not to improve public safety, not because they don't have a home, dogs are killed simply because of the way they look; just like Lennox.
For all the passion that went behind Lennox, all of these other dogs deserve it too. The governments that continue to round them up and kill them needlessly -- like in Denver, Ontario, Miami, Overland Park, KS; Independence, MO; Springfield, MO; Council Bluffs, IA; Winnipeg and other communities throughout the country deserve the same passion against their breed-specific ordinances as the folks in Belfast. These dogs need our support too.
The channeled passion against Belfast made Lennox's story an international story -- and an embarrassment to many in Northern Ireland. If we harness the passion for dogs like Lennox, we do have the power to enact changes in ordinances like this throughout the country by making the stories of these dogs, the injustices against them, more public.
Lennox is one dog. A loved dog. A critical life like many others. But let's not let his death be in vain and let his story and face be the face of this same injustice elsewhere.
July 08, 2012
Last week, a new study was published out of Manitoba, Canada, about the effectiveness of breed-specific laws (BSL). And contrary to all of the other studies on the subject (which they acknowledge), this study says that BSL MAY work. Here is their conclusion:
“BSL may have resulted in a reduction of Dog Bite Injury Hospitalizations in Winnipeg, and appeared more effective in protecting those aged <20 years.”
So with great interest, I read the article. You can read the article here, in its entirety (it’s only about 7 pages) for yourself.
The study is a fairly detailed study of 16 jurisdictions with pit bull bans in Manitoba that covers the Dog Bite Injury Hospitalization (DBIH) rates before and after they enacted their pit bull bans. The study did take into account population changes and rated the injuries on a per 100,000 person basis. The study focused on DBIH because their premise was that ‘pit bulls’ cause more injury when they bite and this would be a better measure of public safety than just bites.
They did also measure for Rabies exposure tests to see if bites that broke the skin increased or decreased (although this included all potential rabies exposures, and not just dog bites). This information proves to be pretty useless however as they later note that only about 30% of all potential rabies exposures come from dogs while skunks are the primary carrier.
The test included mostly rural communities, but did also include the Provence’s 2 largest cities: Winnipeg (which has a breed ban that it enacted in 1990) and Brandon, which has no ban. Brandon was one of 15 communities without breed-specific laws that were used as a control group. All of the other communities were labeled as rural communities. The study covered the years 1984-2006.
Unfortunately, the way the results were published, was a bit, ahem, misleading.
For the most part, they grouped all of the cities with BSL and those without together to show results – the lone exceptions were the two urban communities (Brandon and Winnepeg) and two small northern cities: The Pas (which enacted a ban in 2005, the last year of the study) and the town of Flin Flon (which has no ban). The rest were all grouped together.
During the years studied, there were 838 total DBIH in Manitoba – a total of 36 per year – and a total of 3.19 per 100,000 people. Of those, 363 (43%) occurred in cities without breed bans, 417 (57%) occurred in cities that enacted breed bans during this time.
Now here is where the numbers start breaking down for the study.
If you look at the communities that enacted breed bans during this time, of the 417 total DBIH, 144 of them occurred prior to the city implementing their breed ban. Of those, 122 were in the cities of Winnipeg and The Pas (the only cities with bans listed individually). So of the other 14 communities studied, there were only a total of 22 DBIH before they passed the bans – so about 1.5 per community over the course of 7-22 year time frame. So we’re talking, on average, about one incident every ten years here for all the communities that are not the Pas or Winnipeg.
After the bans were enacted, there were a total of 331 DBIH – of those, 307 were in Winnipeg alone (the Pas has zero in its one year after the ban). So post bans, there were only 24 total DBIHs for the other 14 cities combined – again, a very low number over a range of 2-15 years.
So the sample size of the number of incidents in surrounding communities is VERY small. All of which of the communities were very rural (and this study confirmed what other studies have reported that major injuries are more likely to occur per 100,000 people in rural areas than in urban ones). Also, based on the types of dogs owned in many of these areas for working purposes, and based on Canadian dog bite fatality studies, most of these incidents likely involved Huskies or other sled-type dogs.
So given all of this, almost the only conclusions that can be drawn from the study itself is based on what happened in Winnipeg and The Pas (the two communities broken out separately).
But even The Pas is impossible to study, because it instituted its ban in 2005 – right before the last year of the study. In the 22 years prior to passing the ban, they had a total of 12 DBIH – so essentially one every two years. Then, in the one year after passing the ban, they had zero – which statistically was just as likely to happen prior to the ban as it was after the ban - -so not much can be gleaned from that.
So let’s look at Winnipeg.
In the 6 years prior to them passing their ban in 1990, they had 110 total DBIH – an average of 2.93 per 100,000 persons-years. In the 16 years following the ban, they had 307 total incidents – an average of 2.81 incidents per 100,000 persons-year.
So, in other words, in the 16 years after the ban they lowered their DBIH numbers an average of .12 incidents per 100,000 people – or one incident per 800,000 people – or, based on Winnipeg’s population of 660,000 that is a drop of less than one incident per year during a 16 year stretch when dog bites throughout the US and Canada have been dropping. (Interestingly, there is no comparision in this study of whether or not bites dropped in cities without BSL during the same time period).
Meanwhile, in Brandon (the only other “urban” city studied), for the entire 24 year study, they had a total of 24 DBIH (1 per year) and a incident rate of 2.5 per 100,000 persons-years – so lower than either period for Winnipeg.
The researchers in this case seem to get that they were having a tough time proving their hypothesis. From the discussion:
“When jurisdictions were used as their own controls in a pre-BSL versus post-BSL comparison of incidence of DBIH, no significant reduction in the period after BSL implementation was observed.” (Emphasis mine)
The researchers also noted other reasons for changes in DBIH numbers that they didn’t not account for in their study – in part due to the long-amount of time (23 years) included in the study:
“Longer periods under observation have the potential to be influenced by period effects or confounding factors such as changes in the number of pet dog populations, changes in the popularity and ubiquity of breeds, changes in the number of dog-owning households, parallel and related ordinances, and public safety education campaigns.”
The study also notes that there was absolutely no inclusion of DBIH by breed of dog involved in the incident – either before, or after the bans. So while it measures the impact of DBIH before and after a ban, it does not indicate, at all, if ANY of the incidents involved pit bulls. Pit bulls have not been a major factor in Canadian fatality figures as from 1990-2007, only 1 of the 28 dog attack fatalities in Canada involved a pit bull-type dog. So it is likely that very few of the incidents either before or after the ban involved the type of dog that was banned.
The media, of course, has picked up on the story, bending whatever data they want to to prove whatever opinion they already have – like this author who compares the bites per 1000 people for two different data-sets of cities to 'prove' her point, the 'pre' number included all 31 cities studied and the "post" number just the cities that passed BSL.
So, in short, the study – which reports to show that BSL has been effective in Manitoba, doesn’t.
- It doesn’t show a significant decrease in dog bite hospitalizations after a ban has taken place
- It doesn’t even indicate what number of incidents before or after a breed ban involved the banned breed
- Because of the extreme length of time for the study, it was not able to isolate out cultural differences in dog ownership that would influence the data in the study.
- And based on the low incidences of bites per 100,000 people (less than 4 in all cases), there appears to be no evidence to support that any of these jurisdictions had any type of dog bite problem in the first place.
UPDATED:
The National Canine Research Council has offered up their view of the study -- and again noted that about 90% of the total person-years covered in the study -- which essentially means that the study is a study about the effectiveness of the law in Winnipeg -- which, as noted above, showed no measurable decrease in hospitalizations before and after the enacting their breed ban. Thanks JM for the link.
July 06, 2012
Per Jodie Pries at Bless the Bullis, Lebanon, Ohio has repealed their breed-specific law with a unanimous vote. Their new law takes a breed-neutral aproach to declaring dogs dangerous based on behavior that is modeled after the state law. Their old ordinance was enacted in 1986.
Meanwhile, Allen Park, MI has also repealed their breed ban. The cold city law, passed only a few years ago, declared that all 'pit bulls' had to be killed immediately by the shelter -- and breed ID was determined solely by the shelter staff.
However, Allen Park is now joining four other cities to form the Downriver Central Control Animal Shelter. In order to make things easier for Animal Control, they wanted the five cities to all have uniform animal control laws, so Allen Park had to repeal their law. Said City Attorney Crhis Forsyth:
"The reason for the repeal is to comply with other cities, but your vicious animal ordinance will still allow you to enforce anything needed with pit bulls."
Indeed.
Congrats to two more cities that are moving forward without their breed-specific laws. |
U.S. Rep. Keith Ellison. | AP Photo/David Zalubowski Israel-Palestine tensions ripple through Democratic Party chair races
Top Jewish fundraisers and activists in Florida have a message for the politicians who want to lead the Democratic Party: Support for the Palestinian cause at the expense of Israel is politically toxic.
In the nation’s biggest swing state — home to a diverse electorate and large Jewish community — few issues have torn at the fabric of party unity recently like the past stances on Israel taken by Rep. Keith Ellison of Minnesota and former Miami state Sen. Dwight Bullard.
As Ellison pursues a bid for Democratic National Committee chair and Bullard seeks to lead Florida Democrats, state and local party leaders are getting increasingly nervous about tensions between two key Democratic constituencies — Jews and African-Americans. Already, the race for state party chairman is marked by behind-the-scenes threats and racially charged rhetoric; one backer of Bullard said his treatment by Jewish critics amounted to a virtual “modern-day lynching.”
Ellison, who would be the first Muslim Democratic National Committee chair if elected, has been so hamstrung by his past support for Palestinians that he began releasing statements of support from Israeli and Jewish supporters. And in a surprise move, Ellison last week endorsed Bullard’s Miami rival, Stephen Bittel, a DNC finance chair who is Jewish.
But it’s not enough to move critics who see him and Bullard as existential threats to the party and nation.
“If we elect the Dwight Bullards and we elect the Keith Ellisons to leadership rolls in our party, the Republicans are going to make significant inroads in the Jewish community,” said Michael Moskowitz, a staunch South Florida supporter of Israel who estimates he raises about $1 million every election cycle for Democrats.
“The Democratic Party will just be going in the wrong direction on this issue if we do this. And so will our nation,” Moskowitz said. “With all the turmoil in the Middle East, Israel is our only true democratic ally.”
Moskowitz and other donors say they’ll withhold support for the local, state and national parties if either man wins a leadership spot. And as Donald Trump tries to make inroads in the Jewish community by adopting a hawkish position on Israel, many Democrats say the twin candidacies of Bullard and Ellison aren’t something the party can afford.
Ellison has faced persistent criticism over controversial comments he made in the past — from once comparing former President George W. Bush to Adolf Hitler to long ago defending Nation of Islam Leader Louis Farrakhan. The 53-year-old Ellison, who was a law student when he spoke favorably of Farrakhan, said he didn’t “adequately scrutinize” the religious leader’s positions.
In early December, Anti-Defamation League CEO Jonathan Greenblatt released a statement saying his organization had "serious concerns" about the prospect of Ellison serving as DNC chair given his past statements. Democratic megadonor Haim Saban — owner of Spanish-language powerhouse Univision and Jewish — also called Ellison an "anti-Semitic and anti-Israel person."
In the face of the barrage against Ellison, Sen. Chuck Schumer, J-Street, MoveOn.org's Ilya Sheyman, and a member of Israel's Knesset released statements stressing Ellison’s support of Israel and a two-state solution.
Ellison’s backers say he’s the victim of a smear campaign and some privately say that, had he been a white Christian, he wouldn’t be so pilloried.
"There's not five votes to lose for having the position that Keith Ellison has had on issues related to Israel, Palestine, and the Middle East, et cetera," said James Zogby, president of the Arab-American Institute and a DNC member-at-large supporting Ellison. "There's just not any votes there to lose. What there is is noise to make and the perceived threat that this will cost the DNC money. But I've been down this road before. I remember when the party would not deal with Arab Americans at all."
The Democratic drama over the future DNC chair and that of the Florida Democratic Party only deepened last week when Labor Secretary Tom Perez jumped into the race last week, posing the strongest threat to Ellison’s position as the frontrunner.
With Perez in, Ellison faced a fresh round of questions about where he is on Israel and Palestine that dogged his candidacy. Ellison then endorsed Bittel in the Florida race, but Bittel has yet to return the favor.
In Florida, Bullard for months has played defense over his position on the Middle East, which became a campaign issue in his Miami-area state Senate race — a race that he lost. After that defeat, he lost a local party contest two weeks ago. And, insiders say, he’s likely to lose another local party race Tuesday to Bittel. The winner can qualify to run for state party chairman.
Bullard’s trouble began this summer when activists pointed out to reporters that he traveled to Israel with a group called the Dream Defenders, which is allied with the Black Lives Matter movement and criticizes Israel on its website for “ethnically cleansing” Palestinians in 1948. They pointed out Bullard met with Haneen Zoabi, an Israeli Knesset Member and Palestinian activist who once called Israeli soldiers “murderers.” And he sat down with Omar Barghouti, co-founder of the “Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions” movement against Israel. Bullard, who is Christian, was one of the only state senators to vote against an anti-Boycott, Divest and Sanctions bill in the Florida Legislature before reversing his position early this year.
“A number of folks called me concerned over my committee vote,” Bullard told the Miami Herald. “For the sake of not being the thorn in anyone’s side I decided to vote for it on the floor.”
To a local TV station, NBC6-Miami, Bullard stressed that he’s “pro-Israel, but I'm also pro-Palestine in that people can co-exist. ... My position is co-existence."
Bullard won his Democratic primary, but he was quickly attacked for the trip by a political committee for Florida Senate Republicans. Fundraising was also difficult for him. And he lost his general election to Republican rival, state Sen. Frank Artiles.
A friend and ally of Bullard’s, Leslie Wimes, felt the party's treatment of Bullard was so shoddy that she penned a column last month in the conservative Sunshine State News with the title “The Lynching of Dwight Bullard.”
“OK, I get it. Some Jewish people are upset with Dwight Bullard,” wrote Wimes, who heads a group called the Democratic African American Women Caucus. “Exactly what is it that you want? Bullard hanging from a tree? Bullard tied up and whipped? What exactly will make you happy?”
When Ellison decided to endorse Bittel over Bullard, it amounted to a betrayal for Wimes and other supporters. Like both men, Wimes backed the presidential campaign of Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, who is also Jewish. Ellison and Bullard are African-American as well.
Bittel, the establishment candidate allied with the Hillary Clinton wing of the party, is a top donor who has hosted President Barack Obama at his home and backed former DNC Chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz, who represents such a heavily Jewish district in South Florida that she nearly voted against the president’s Iran deal as party chair. Bullard, running as the grassroots pick, has received the backing from the political committee that grew out of Sanders’ campaign. Sanders also supports Ellison in the DNC race.
That made Ellison’s endorsement of Bittel so surprising to so many.
“I support Stephen Bittel’s campaign because I believe that the future of the Florida Democratic Party is built on effective field campaigning, raising the resources to win down ballot and statewide races, and recruiting top flight candidates who recognize the strength of the party apparatus,” Ellison said in a statement issued by Bittel’s camp. “We need to do deep organizing to win and Stephen gets that.”
Though the issue of Israel wasn’t mentioned at all in his statement, Democrats say Ellison’s endorsement had a lot to do with his views on the Middle East.
“It was a brilliant move,” said Mitch Ceasar, a South Florida Democrat who sits on the DNC’s executive board and is undecided in the race. “In reading the things I’ve read and in hearing people talk about Israel, this came as a complete surprise.”
Fueling the Democratic tensions surrounding the twin campaigns of Ellison and Bullard, Ceasar said, was a simple fact: “We’re still angry with what happened in the election. We don’t know what happened. Many of us are in the anger stage of grief. Democrats are still in mourning.”
“We’re still sitting shiva,” Ceasar said, referring to the Jewish custom of mourning a death of a loved one.
The internal party rage, though, is taxing. Miami-Dade’s Democratic chairman, Juan Cuba, took to Facebook last week and implored his members to be civil: “Democrats, we can debate about the future of our party without demonizing one another.”
Evan Ross, a Miami-Dade Democratic Party member and consultant, said he’s not angry and has no personal animus toward Ellison and Bullard.
“But when I hear their [Bullard and Ellison] position, it’s not going to get my support or the support of the Jewish community,” Ross said. “It’s toxic in the Jewish community, which has a long history of supporting the Democratic Party and Democratic candidates.”
As if the hangover of November’s loss wasn’t bad enough, bringing in the Middle East conflict is just too divisive for DNC members like Joyce Cusack. A former Florida state House member who served with Bullard’s parents in the Florida Legislature, Cusack worried that some of the opposition might be steeped in race.
“I don’t know what he has done as it relates to Jews,” said Cusack, who is African-American. “A lot of folks are bothered by an Afro-American running for chair.” |
Q:
How to generate random numbers in C two colons?
I need in c code that generates two numbers in horizontally...so that i can get token numbers for my login system.
I need that i get this:
token=0.152644,0.429187
so in example i have token= and random generated numbers that have at beginning 0. and then 6 random generated numbers separated with , sign.
How to get get this in C?
I have try this code but it does not give me what i want_
#include <stdio.h>
#include <string.h>
typedef
union
{
char tmp[sizeof(unsigned long long)];
unsigned long long myll;
} ll_t;
unsigned long long llrand(void)
{
FILE *in=fopen("/dev/urandom", "r");
ll_t ll_u;
fread(ll_u.tmp, sizeof(ll_u.tmp), 1, in);
fclose(in);
return ll_u.myll;
}
int main()
{
char tmp1[64]={0x0};
char working[64]={0x0};
int i=0;
for(i=0; i< 1; i++)
{
while(strlen(tmp1) < 6)
{
sprintf(working, "%lu", llrand() );
strcat(tmp1, working);
}
tmp1[6]=0x0;
printf("%s\n", tmp1);
*tmp1=0x0;
}
return 0;
}
From output i get this:
747563
102595
Can code be simple and short?
A:
You can use rand() function:
#include <stdio.h> /* printf, scanf, puts, NULL */
#include <stdlib.h> /* srand, rand */
#include <time.h> /* time */
int randomNumber(int min, int max)
{
/* generate secret number between min and max: */
int res = rand() % (max-min+1) + min;
return res;
}
int main()
{
int i = 0;
srand (time(NULL));
for (i=0; i<100; i++)
printf("%d ", randomNumber(10, 1000000));
return 0;
}
That is full detail for rand():
http://www.cplusplus.com/reference/cstdlib/rand/
|
Determination of phosphorus, sulfur and the halogens using high-temperature molecular absorption spectrometry in flames and furnaces--A review.
The literature about the investigation of molecular spectra of phosphorus, sulfur and the halogens in flames and furnaces, and the use of these spectra for the determination of these non-metals has been reviewed. Most of the investigations were carried out using conventional atomic absorption spectrometers, and there were in essence two different approaches. In the first one, dual-channel spectrometers with a hydrogen or deuterium lamp were used, applying the two-line method for background correction; in the second one, a line source was used that emitted an atomic line, which overlapped with the molecular spectrum. The first approach had the advantage that any spectral interval could be accessed, but it was susceptible to spectral interference; the second one had the advantage that the conventional background correction systems could be used to minimize spectral interferences, but had the problem that an atomic line had to be found, which was overlapping sufficiently well with the maximum of the molecular absorption spectrum. More recently a variety of molecular absorption spectra were investigated using a low-resolution polychromator with a CCD array detector, but no attempt was made to use this approach for quantitative determination of non-metals. The recent introduction and commercial availability of high-resolution continuum source atomic absorption spectrometers is offering completely new possibilities for molecular absorption spectrometry and its use for the determination of non-metals. The use of a high-intensity continuum source together with a high-resolution spectrometer and a CCD array detector makes possible selecting the optimum wavelength for the determination and to exclude most spectral interferences. |
Digital Signage: GP College Deploys Web-Based Communications System
Georgia Perimeter College in Atlanta has deployed a Web-based visual communications platform from Visix, AxisTV, to enhance messaging to students on four of its sites. The technology is being used to narrowcast messages to large-screen LCD displays in its Newton County, Clarkston, Decatur, and Dunwoody locations.
"AxisTV has helped us to cut printing costs and has increased efficiencies, since the built-in scheduling function automatically removes notices without further user intervention," said Glenn Sierko, assistant director of classroom and event technologies at GPC earlier this month.
AxisTV provides a Web interface for remote administration of content to be delivered, including scheduling and the creation of content to be delivered. GPC is using nine Visix Channel Players in thirteen buildings to deliver content, which can include everything from student schedules to weather alerts to emergency communications.
Georgia Perimeter College serves 21,000 students on four sites and is the third-largest institution in the University of Georgia system.
David Nagel is editorial director of 1105 Media's Education Technology Group and editor-in-chief of THE Journal and STEAM Universe. A 25-year publishing veteran, Nagel has led or contributed to dozens of technology, art and business publications. |
"""
Utilities for accessing Path of Exile's translation file format.
Overview
===============================================================================
+----------+------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Path | PyPoE/poe/file/translations.py |
+----------+------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Version | 1.0.0a0 |
+----------+------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Revision | $Id: c039d920b470c29e4e5008b41ca712bf295d8a65 $ |
+----------+------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Author | Omega_K2 |
+----------+------------------------------------------------------------------+
Description
===============================================================================
Utilities for parsing and using GGG translations.
The translation GGG provides are generally suffixed by _descriptions.txt and
can be found in the MetaData/StatDescriptions/ folder.
Agreement
===============================================================================
See PyPoE/LICENSE
.. todo::
optimize __hash__ very slow atm; or remove, but it is needed for the diffs
reverse for non-number values?
Fix empty translation strings
passive_skill_stat_descriptions: tolerance vs missing stuff.
Documentation
===============================================================================
Public API
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
API for common and every day use.
Most of the time you'll just want to import the :class:`TranslationFile` or
:class:`TranslationFileCache` classes and work with the instantiated
:meth:`TranslationFile.get_translation` and
:meth:`TranslationFile.reverse_translation` methods.
The result formats :class:`TranslationResult` and
:class:`TranslationReverseResult` provide optional wrappers around the function
results that contain extra information and utility methods.
.. autoclass:: TranslationFile
:inherited-members:
.. autoclass:: TranslationFileCache
:inherited-members:
:special-members: __getitem__
.. autoclass:: TranslationResult
.. autoclass:: TranslationReverseResult
.. autofunction:: get_custom_translation_file
.. autofunction:: set_custom_translation_file
.. autofunction:: install_data_dependant_quantifiers
Internal API
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
API for internal use, but still may be useful to work with more directly.
.. autoclass:: Translation
:special-members: __eq__
.. autoclass:: TranslationLanguage
:special-members: __eq__
.. autoclass:: TranslationString
:special-members: __eq__
.. autoclass:: TranslationRange
:special-members: __eq__
.. autoclass:: TranslationQuantifierHandler
:special-members: __eq__
Warning Classes
===============================================================================
.. autoclass:: TranslationWarning
.. autoclass:: MissingIdentifierWarning
.. autoclass:: UnknownIdentifierWarning
.. autoclass:: DuplicateIdentifierWarning
"""
# =============================================================================
# Imports
# =============================================================================
# Python
import io
import re
import os
import warnings
from enum import IntEnum
from string import ascii_letters
from collections.abc import Iterable
from collections import OrderedDict, defaultdict
# self
from PyPoE import DATA_DIR
from PyPoE.shared.decorators import doc
from PyPoE.shared.mixins import ReprMixin
from PyPoE.poe.constants import MOD_GENERATION_TYPE
from PyPoE.poe.file.shared import AbstractFileReadOnly, ParserError, ParserWarning
from PyPoE.poe.file.shared.cache import AbstractFileCache
# =============================================================================
# Globals
# =============================================================================
__all__ = [
'TranslationFile',
'TranslationFileCache',
'get_custom_translation_file',
'set_custom_translation_file',
'custom_translation_file',
'install_data_dependant_quantifiers',
]
CUSTOM_TRANSLATION_FILE = os.path.join(DATA_DIR, 'custom_descriptions.txt')
regex_translation_string = re.compile(
r'^'
r'[\s]*'
r'(?P<minmax>(?:[0-9\-\|#!]+[ \t]+)+)'
r'"(?P<description>.*)"'
r'(?P<quantifier>(?:[ \t]*[\w%]+)*)'
r'[ \t]*[\r\n]*'
r'$',
re.UNICODE | re.MULTILINE
)
regex_ids = re.compile(r'.*(?!\s[0-9]+)', re.UNICODE | re.MULTILINE)
regex_id_strings = re.compile(r'([\S]+)', re.UNICODE)
regex_strings = re.compile(r'(?:"(.+)")|([\S]+)+', re.UNICODE)
regex_int = re.compile(r'[0-9]+', re.UNICODE)
regex_isnumber = re.compile(r'^[0-9\-]+$', re.UNICODE)
regex_lang = re.compile(
r'^[\s]*lang "(?P<language>[\w ]+)"[\s]*$',
re.UNICODE | re.MULTILINE
)
regex_tokens = re.compile(
r'(?:^"(?P<header>.*)"$)'
r'|(?:^include "(?P<include>.*)")'
r'|(?:^no_description (?P<no_description>[\w+%]*)$)'
r'|(?P<description>^description[\s]*(?P<identifier>[\S]*)[\s]*$)',
re.UNICODE | re.MULTILINE
)
_custom_translation_file = None
# =============================================================================
# Warnings
# =============================================================================
class TranslationWarning(ParserWarning):
pass
class MissingIdentifierWarning(TranslationWarning):
pass
class UnknownIdentifierWarning(TranslationWarning):
pass
class DuplicateIdentifierWarning(TranslationWarning):
pass
# =============================================================================
# Classes
# =============================================================================
class TranslationReprMixin(ReprMixin):
_REPR_ARGUMENTS_TO_ATTRIBUTES = {
'parent': '_parent_repr',
}
@property
def _parent_repr(self):
return '%s<%s>' % (self.parent.__class__.__name__, hex(id(self.parent)))
class Translation(TranslationReprMixin):
"""
Representation of a single translation.
A translation has at least one id and at least the English language (along
with the respective strings).
Attributes
----------
languages : list[TranslationLanguage]
List of :class:`TranslationLanguage` instances for this
:class:`Translation`
ids : list[str]
List of ids associated with this translation
identifier : str
Identifier if present else None
"""
__slots__ = ['languages', 'ids', 'identifier']
_REPR_EXTRA_ATTRIBUTES = OrderedDict((
('ids', None),
))
def __init__(self, identifier=None):
self.languages = []
self.ids = []
self.identifier = identifier
def __eq__(self, other):
if not isinstance(other, Translation):
return False
if self.ids != other.ids:
return False
if self.languages != other.languages:
return False
return True
def __hash__(self):
return hash((tuple(self.languages), tuple(self.ids)))
def diff(self, other):
if not isinstance(other, Translation):
raise TypeError()
if self.ids != other.ids:
_diff_list(self.ids, other.ids, diff=False)
if self.languages != other.languages:
_diff_list(self.languages, other.languages)
def get_language(self, language='English'):
"""
Returns the :class:`TranslationLanguage` record for the specified
language.
As a fallback if the language is not found, the English
:class:`TranslationLanguage` record will be returned.
Parameters
----------
language : str
The language to get.
Returns
-------
TranslationLanguage
Returns the :class:`TranslationLanguage` record for the specified
language or the English one if not found
"""
etr = None
for tr in self.languages:
if tr.language == language:
return tr
elif tr.language == 'English':
etr = tr
return etr
class TranslationLanguage(TranslationReprMixin):
"""
Representation of a language in the translation file. Each language has
one or multiple strings.
Attributes
----------
parent : Translation
The parent :class:`Translation` instance
language : str
the language of this instance
strings : list[TranslationString]
List of :class:`TranslationString` instances for this language
"""
__slots__ = ['parent', 'language', 'strings']
def __init__(self, language, parent):
parent.languages.append(self)
self.parent = parent
self.language = language
self.strings = []
def __eq__(self, other):
if not isinstance(other, TranslationLanguage):
return False
if self.language != other.language:
return False
if self.strings != other.strings:
return False
return True
def __hash__(self):
return hash((self.language, tuple(self.strings)))
def diff(self, other):
if not isinstance(other, TranslationLanguage):
raise TypeError()
if self.language != other.language:
print('Self: %s, other: %s' % (self.language, other.language))
if self.strings != other.strings:
_diff_list(self.strings, other.strings)
def get_string(self, values, use_placeholder=False, only_values=False):
"""
Formats the string according with the given values and
returns the string and any left over (unused) values.
If use_placeholder is specified, the values will be replaced with
a placeholder instead of the actual value.
If only_values is specified, the instead of the string the formatted
values will be returned.
Parameters
----------
values : list[int]
A list of values to be used for substitution
use_placeholder : bool or callable
If true, Instead of values in the translations a placeholder (i.e.
x, y, z) will be used. Values are still required however to find
the "correct" wording of the translation.
If a callable is specified, it will call the function with
the index as first parameter. The callable should return a
string to use as placeholder.
only_values : bool
Whether to return formatted values instead of the formatted string.
Returns
-------
str or list[int], list[int], list[int], dict[str, str]
Returns the formatted string. See
:meth:`TranslationString:format_string` for details.
"""
# Support for ranges
is_range = []
test_values = []
short_values = []
for item in values:
# faster then isinstance(item, Iterable)
if hasattr(item, '__iter__'):
# Use the greater value unless it is zero
test_values.append(item[1] or item[0])
if item[0] == item[1]:
short_values.append(item[0])
is_range.append(False)
else:
short_values.append(item)
is_range.append(True)
else:
test_values.append(item)
short_values.append(item)
is_range.append(False)
temp = []
for ts in self.strings:
# TODO: check whether this really is a non issue now
#if len(values) != len(ts.range):
# raise Exception('mismatch %s' % ts.range)
match = ts.match_range(test_values)
temp.append((match, ts))
# Only the highest scoring/matching translation...
temp.sort(key=lambda x: -x[0])
rating, ts = temp[0]
if rating <= 0:
return None
return ts.format_string(short_values, is_range, use_placeholder, only_values)
def reverse_string(self, string):
"""
Attempts to find a match for the given string and returns a list of
reversed values if a match is found for this language.
Parameters
----------
string : str
String to match against
Returns
-------
None or list
handled list of values or None if not found
"""
# TODO: Should only match one at a time. But may be not?
for ts in self.strings:
result = ts.reverse_string(string)
if result is None:
continue
return result
return None
class TranslationString(TranslationReprMixin):
"""
Representation of a single translation string. Each string comes with
it's own quantifiers and acceptable range.
Attributes
----------
parent : TranslationLanguage
parent :class:`TranslationLanguage` instance
quantifier : TranslationQuantifierHandler
the associated :class:`TranslationQuantifierHandler` instance for this
translation string
range : list[TranslationRange]
list of :class:`TranslationRange` instances containing the acceptable
ranges for this translation as a list of instances for each index
strings : list[str]
translation string broken down into segments
tags : list[int]
tags for value replacement between segments
tags_types : list[str]
list of tag types
"""
__slots__ = ['parent', 'quantifier', 'range', 'strings', 'tags',
'tags_types']
_REPR_EXTRA_ATTRIBUTES = OrderedDict((
('string', None),
))
# replacement tags used in translations
_re_split = re.compile(
r'(?:\{(?P<id>[0-9]*)(?:[\:]*)(?P<type>[^\}]*)\})',
re.UNICODE
)
_RANGE_FORMAT = '({0}-{1})'
_NEGATIVE_RANGE_FORMAT = '-({0}-{1})'
def __init__(self, parent):
parent.strings.append(self)
self.parent = parent
self.quantifier = TranslationQuantifierHandler()
self.range = []
self.tags = []
self.tags_types = []
self.strings = []
def __eq__(self, other):
if not isinstance(other, TranslationString):
return False
if self.quantifier != other.quantifier:
return False
if self.range != other.range:
return False
if self.string != other.string:
return False
return True
def __hash__(self):
return hash((self.string, tuple(self.range), self.quantifier))
def _set_string(self, string):
string = string.replace('%%', '%').replace('\\n', '\n')
start = None
for match in self._re_split.finditer(string):
self.strings.append(string[start:match.start()])
intid = match.group('id')
if intid:
self.tags.append(int(intid))
# Empty values appear in order
else:
if len(self.tags):
self.tags.append(self.tags[-1] + 1)
else:
self.tags.append(0)
self.tags_types.append(match.group('type'))
start = match.end()
self.strings.append(string[start:])
@property
def string(self):
"""
Reconstructed original string that would be used for translation
Returns
-------
str
the original string
"""
s = []
for i, tag in enumerate(self.tags):
s.append(self.strings[i])
if self.tags_types[i]:
s.append('{%s:%s}' % (tag, self.tags_types[i]))
else:
s.append('{%s}' % tag)
s.append(self.strings[-1])
return ''.join(s)
@property
def as_format_string(self):
"""
The translation string as python str.format string
Returns
-------
str
str.format string
"""
s = []
for i, tag in enumerate(self.tags):
s.append(self.strings[i])
s.append('{%s}' % tag)
s.append(self.strings[-1])
return ''.join(s)
def diff(self, other):
if not isinstance(other, TranslationString):
raise TypeError()
if self.quantifier != other.quantifier:
self.quantifier.diff(other.quantifier)
if self.range != other.range:
_diff_list(self.range, other.range)
if self.string != other.string:
print('String mismatch: %s vs %s' % (self.string, other.string))
def format_string(self, values, is_range, use_placeholder=False, only_values=False):
"""
Formats the string for the given values.
Optionally use_placeholder can be specified to return a string formatted
with a placeholder in place of the real value. It will use lowercase
ASCII starting at x. For indexes > 3, it will use uppercase ASCII.
If only_values is specified, no string formatting will performed
and instead just parsed values will be returned.
Parameters
----------
values : list[int]
List of values to use for the formatting
is_range : list[bool]
List of bools representing whether the values at the list index is
a range or not
use_placeholder : bool or callable
If true, Instead of values in the translations a placeholder (i.e.
x, y, z) will be used. Values are still required however to find
the "correct" wording of the translation.
If a callable is specified, it will call the function with
the index as first parameter. The callable should return a
string to use as placeholder.
only_values : bool
Only return the values and not
Returns
-------
str or list[int], list[int], list[int], dict[str, str]
Returns 4 values.
The first return value is the formatted string. If only placeholder
is specified, instead of the string a list of parsed values is
returned.
The second return value is a list of unused values.
The third return value is a list of used values.
The forth return value is a dictionary of extra strings
"""
values, extra_strings = self.quantifier.handle(values, is_range)
string = []
used = set()
for i, tagid in enumerate(self.tags):
value = values[tagid]
if not only_values:
string.append(self.strings[i])
# For adding the plus sign to the $+d and $+d%% formats
if '+' in self.tags_types[i] and (
is_range[tagid] and value[1] > 0 or not is_range[tagid]
and value > 0):
string.append('+')
if not use_placeholder:
if 'd' in self.tags_types[i]:
fmt = '{0:n}'
else:
fmt = '{0}'
if is_range[tagid]:
# Move the minus outside if both values are negative
try:
if value[0] < 0 and value[1] < 0:
value = [-v for v in value]
range_fmt = self._NEGATIVE_RANGE_FORMAT
else:
range_fmt = self._RANGE_FORMAT
#TODO: how to show ranges for text stuff?
except TypeError:
range_fmt = self._RANGE_FORMAT
value = range_fmt.format(
fmt, fmt.replace('{0', '{1')
).format(*value)
else:
value = fmt.format(value)
elif use_placeholder is True:
value = ascii_letters[23+i]
elif callable(use_placeholder):
value = use_placeholder(i)
string.append(value)
used.add(tagid)
unused = []
for i, val in enumerate(values):
if i in used:
continue
unused.append(val)
if only_values:
string = values
else:
string = ''.join(string + [self.strings[-1]])
return string, unused, values, extra_strings
def match_range(self, values):
"""
Returns the accumulative range rating of the specified values.
Parameters
----------
values : list[int] or list[float]
List of values
Returns
-------
int
Sum of the ratings
"""
rating = 0
for i, value in enumerate(values):
rating += self.range[i].in_range(value)
return rating
def reverse_string(self, string):
"""
Attempts to match this :class:`TranslationString` against the given
string.
If a match is found, it will attempt to cast and reverse all values
found in the string itself.
For missing values, it will try to insert the range maximum/minimum
values if set, otherwise None.
Parameters
----------
string : str
string to match against
Returns
-------
list[int] or None
handled list of values or None if no match
"""
index = 0
values_indexes = []
for i, partial in enumerate(self.strings):
match = string.find(partial, index)
if match == -1:
return None
# Matched at the start of string, no preceeding value
# Fix for TR strings starting with value
if i == 1 and self.strings[0] == '':
values_indexes.append(match)
index = match + len(partial)
values_indexes.append(index)
# Fix for TR strings ending with value
if self.strings[-1] == '':
values_indexes[-1] = None
values = []
for i in range(0, len(values_indexes)-1):
j = i + 1
values.append(string[values_indexes[i]:values_indexes[j]])
# tags may appear multiple times, reduce to one tag per value
tags = {}
for i, tag in enumerate(self.tags):
tags[tag] = values[i]
values = list(range(0, len(self.range)))
for i in values:
if i in tags:
# Fix for %1$+d
values[i] = tags[i].strip('%')
else:
# The only definitive case
r = self.range[i]
warn = True
if r.negated:
if r.min == r.max and r.max is not None:
val = r.max + 1
elif r.min is not None and r.max is not None:
val = r.max + 1
elif r.min is None and r.max is not None:
val = r.max + 1
elif r.min is not None and r.min is None:
val = r.min - 1
else:
val = 1
else:
if r.min == r.max and r.max is not None:
val = r.min
warn = False
elif r.min is not None and r.max is not None:
val = r.max
elif r.min is None and r.max is not None:
val = r.max
elif r.min is not None and r.min is None:
val = r.min
else:
val = 0
if warn:
warnings.warn(
'Can not safely find a value at index "%s", using '
'range value "%s" instead' % (i, val),
TranslationWarning
)
values[i] = val
return self.quantifier.handle_reverse(values)
class TranslationRange(TranslationReprMixin):
"""
Object to represent the acceptable range of a translation.
Many translation strings only apply to a given minimum or maximum number.
In some cases there are also special strings for specific conditions.
For example, 100 for freeze turns into "Always Freeze" whereas less is
"chance to freeze".
Attributes
----------
parent : TranslationString
parent :class:`TranslationString` instance
min : int
minimum range
max : int
maximum range
negated : bool
Whether the value is negated
"""
__slots__ = ['parent', 'min', 'max', 'negated']
def __init__(self, min, max, parent, negated=False):
parent.range.append(self)
self.parent = parent
self.min = min
self.max = max
self.negated = negated
def __eq__(self, other):
if not isinstance(other, TranslationRange):
return False
if self.min != other.min:
return False
if self.max != other.max:
return False
if self.negated != other.negated:
return False
return True
def __hash__(self):
return hash((self.min, self.max))
def in_range(self, value):
"""
Checks whether the value is in range and returns the rating/accuracy
of the check performed.
Parameters
----------
value : int
Value to check
Returns
-------
int
Returns the rating of the value
-10000 if mismatch (out of range)
-100 if no match
1 if any range is accepted
2 if either minimum or maximum is specified
3 if both minimum and maximum is specified
"""
# Any range is accepted
if self.min is None and self.max is None:
return 1
if self.negated:
f_comp = int.__gt__
f_and = bool.__or__
else:
f_comp = int.__le__
f_and = bool.__and__
if self.min is None:
if f_comp(value, self.max):
return 2
else:
return -10000
elif self.max is None:
if f_comp(self.min, value):
return 2
else:
return -10000
elif self.min is not None and self.max is not None:
if f_and(f_comp(self.min, value), f_comp(value, self.max)):
return 3
else:
return -10000
return -100
class TranslationQuantifierHandler(TranslationReprMixin):
"""
Class to represent and handle translation quantifiers.
In the GGG files often there are qualifiers specified to adjust the output
of the values; for example, a value might be negated (i.e so that it would
show "5% reduced Damage" instead of "-5% reduced Damage").
Attributes
----------
index_handlers : dict[str, list[int]]
Mapping of the name of registered handlers to the ids they apply to
handlers : dict[str, TranslationQuantifier]
Class variable. Installed handlers
reverse_handlers : dict[str, TranslationQuantifier]
Class variable. Installed reverse handlers.
"""
_REPR_EXTRA_ATTRIBUTES = OrderedDict((
('index_handlers', None),
('string_handlers', None),
))
handlers = {
}
reverse_handlers = {
}
regex = None
__slots__ = ['index_handlers', 'string_handlers']
def __init__(self):
self.index_handlers = defaultdict(list)
self.string_handlers = defaultdict(list)
def __eq__(self, other):
if not isinstance(other, TranslationQuantifierHandler):
return False
if self.index_handlers != other.index_handlers:
return False
return True
def __hash__(self):
#return hash((tuple(self.registered_handlers.keys()), tuple(self.registered_handlers.values())))
return hash(tuple(self.index_handlers.keys()))
def _warn_uncaptured(self, name):
warnings.warn(
'Warning uncaptured quantifier %s' % name, UnknownIdentifierWarning
)
def _whole_float_to_int(self, value):
if isinstance(value, float) and value.is_integer():
return int(value)
return value
@classmethod
def install_quantifier(cls, quantifier):
"""
Install the specified quantifier into the generic quantifier handling
Parameters
----------
quantifier - TranslationQuantifier
:class:`TranslationQuantifier` instance
Returns
-------
"""
cls.handlers[quantifier.id] = quantifier
cls.reverse_handlers[quantifier.id] = quantifier
@classmethod
def init(cls):
cls.regex = re.compile(
r'(%s)(?!\_)' % '|'.join(cls.handlers.keys()),
re.UNICODE
)
def diff(self, other):
if not isinstance(other, TranslationQuantifierHandler):
raise TypeError
#if self.registered_handlers != other.registered_handlers:
_diff_dict(self.index_handlers, other.index_handlers)
def _get_handler_func(self, handler_name):
try:
f = self.handlers[handler_name].handler
except KeyError:
self._warn_uncaptured(handler_name)
return None
if f is None:
self._warn_uncaptured(handler_name)
return None
return f
def register_from_string(self, string):
"""
Registers handlers from the quantifier string.
Parameters
----------
string : str
quantifier string
offset : int
offset this operation is appearing at (to show errors)
"""
values = iter(self.regex.split(string))
for partial in values:
partial = partial.strip()
if partial == '':
continue
handler = self.handlers.get(partial)
if handler:
args = [values.__next__() for i in range(0, handler.arg_size)]
if handler.type == TranslationQuantifier.QuantifierTypes.INT:
try:
self.index_handlers[handler.id].append(int(args[0]))
except ValueError as e:
warnings.warn('Broken quantifier "%s" - Error: %s' % (string, e.args[0]), TranslationWarning)
elif handler.type == TranslationQuantifier.QuantifierTypes.STRING:
self.string_handlers[handler.id] = args
else:
warnings.warn('Uncaptured partial quantifier string "%s"' % (partial, ), UnknownIdentifierWarning)
def handle(self, values, is_range):
"""
Handle the given values based on the registered quantifiers.
Parameters
----------
values : list[int]
list of values
is_range : Iterable of bools
specifies whether the value at the index is a range or not. Must be
the same length as values.
Returns
-------
list[int]
handled list of values
"""
values = list(values)
for handler_name in self.index_handlers:
f = self._get_handler_func(handler_name)
if f is None:
continue
for index in self.index_handlers[handler_name]:
index -= 1
if is_range[index]:
values[index] = (f(values[index][0]), f(values[index][1]))
else:
values[index] = f(values[index])
for i, value in enumerate(values):
if is_range[i]:
values[i] = tuple([self._whole_float_to_int(v) for v in value])
else:
values[i] = self._whole_float_to_int(value)
strings = OrderedDict()
for handler_name, args in self.string_handlers.items():
f = self._get_handler_func(handler_name)
if f is None:
continue
strings[handler_name] = f(*args)
return values, strings
def handle_reverse(self, values):
"""
Reverses the quantifier for the given values.
Parameters
----------
values : list[int]
list of values
Returns
-------
list[int]
handled list of values
"""
indexes = set(range(0, len(values)))
for handler_name in self.index_handlers:
try:
f = self.reverse_handlers[handler_name].reverse_handler
except KeyError:
self._warn_uncaptured(handler_name)
break
for index in self.index_handlers[handler_name]:
index -= 1
indexes.remove(index)
# TODO: handle string values
values[index] = f(values[index])
for index in indexes:
values[index] = int(values[index])
return values
class TranslationQuantifier(TranslationReprMixin):
"""
Attributes
----------
id : str
string identifier of the handler
arg_size : int
number of arguments this handler accepts (excluding self)
type : QuantifierTypes
type of the quantifier
handler : function
function that handles the values, if any
reverse_handler : function
function hat reverses handles the values, if any
"""
class QuantifierTypes(IntEnum):
INT = 1
STRING = 2
__slots__ = [
'id', 'arg_size', 'type', 'handler', 'reverse_handler',
]
def __init__(self, id, arg_size=1, type=QuantifierTypes.INT, handler=None,
reverse_handler=None):
self.id = id
self.arg_size = arg_size
if not isinstance(type, self.QuantifierTypes):
raise ValueError('Type must be a QuantifierTypes instance')
self.type = type
self.handler = handler
self.reverse_handler = reverse_handler
TranslationQuantifierHandler.install_quantifier(self)
class TQReminderString(TranslationQuantifier):
def __init__(self, relational_reader, *args, **kwargs):
self.relational_reader = relational_reader
super().__init__(
id='reminderstring',
type=self.QuantifierTypes.STRING,
handler=self.handle,
reverse_handler=None,
)
def handle(self, *args):
return self.relational_reader['ClientStrings.dat'].index['Id'][args[0].strip()]['Text']
class TranslationResult(TranslationReprMixin):
"""
Translation result of :meth:`TranslationFile:get_translation`.
Attributes
----------
found : list[Translation]
List of found :class:`Translation` instances (in order)
found_lines : list[str]:
List of related translated strings (in order)L
lines : list[str]
List of translated strings (minus missing ones)
missing_ids : list[str]
List of missing identifier tags
missing_values : list[int]
List of missing identifier values
partial: list[Translation]
List of partial matches of translation tags (in order)
values : list[int]
List of values (in order)
values_unused : list[int]
List of unused values
values_parsed : list[str]
List of parsed values (i.e. with quantifier applied)
source_ids : list[str]
List of the original tags passed before the translation occurred
source_values : list[int] or list[int, int]
List of the original values passed before the translation occurred
extra_strings : list[dict[str, str]]
List of dictionary containing extra strings returned.
The key is the quantifier id used and the value is the string returned.
"""
__slots__ = [
'found',
'found_lines',
'lines',
'missing_ids',
'missing_values',
'partial',
'values',
'values_unused',
'values_parsed',
'source_ids',
'source_values',
'extra_strings',
]
def __init__(self, found, found_lines, lines, missing,
missing_values, partial, values, unused, values_parsed,
source_ids, source_values, extra_strings):
self.found = found
self.found_lines = found_lines
self.lines = lines
self.missing_ids = missing
self.missing_values = missing_values
self.partial = partial
self.values = values
self.values_unused = unused
self.values_parsed = values_parsed
self.source_ids = source_ids
self.source_values = source_values
self.extra_strings = extra_strings
def _get_found_ids(self):
"""
Generates a list of found ids and returns it.
Returns
-------
list[list[str]]
List of found ids
"""
return [tr.ids for tr in self.found]
found_ids = property(fget=_get_found_ids)
@property
def missing(self):
"""
Zips :attr:`missing_ids` and :attr:`missing_values`.
Returns
-------
zip
"""
return zip(self.missing_ids, self.missing_values)
class TranslationReverseResult(TranslationReprMixin):
"""
Result of :meth:`TranslationFile.reverse_translation`
Attributes
----------
translations : list[Translation]
List of :class:`Translation` instances
values : list[list[float]]
List of values
"""
__slots__ = [
'translations',
'values',
]
def __init__(self, translations, values):
self.translations = translations
self.values = values
class TranslationFile(AbstractFileReadOnly):
"""
Translation file reader.
Translation files can be found in the following folder in the content.ggpk:
Metadata/StatDescriptions/xxx_descriptions.txt
Attributes
----------
translations : list[Translation]
List of parsed :class:`Translation` instances (in order)
translations_hash : dict[str, list[Translation]]
Mapping of parsed :class:`Translation` instances with their id(s) as
key.
Each value is a list of :class:`Translation` instances, even if there
is only one.
"""
__slots__ = ['translations', 'translations_hash', '_base_dir', '_parent']
def __init__(self, file_path=None, base_dir=None, parent=None):
"""
Creates a new TranslationFile instance from the given translation
file(s).
file_path can be specified to initialize the file(s) right away. It
takes the same arguments as :meth:`TranslationFile.read`.
Some translation files have an "include" tag which includes the
translation strings of another translation file automatically. By
default that behaviour is ignored and a warning is raised.
To enable the automatic include, specify either of the base_dir or
parent variables.
.. note::
the inclusion paths for other translation files are relative to
root of the content.ggpk and if using a file system it is expected
to mirror this behaviour
Parameters
----------
file_path : Iterable or str or None
The file to read. Can also accept an iterable of files to read
which will all be merged into one file. Also see
:meth:`read`
base_dir : str or None
Base directory from where other translation files that contain the
"include" tag will be included
parent : :class:`TranslationFileCache` or None
parent :class:`TranslationFileCache` that will be used for inclusion
Raises
------
ValueError
if both parent and base_dir are specified
TypeError
if parent is not a :class:`TranslationFileCache`
"""
self.translations = []
self.translations_hash = {}
self._base_dir = base_dir
if parent is not None:
if not isinstance(parent, TranslationFileCache):
raise TypeError('Parent must be a TranslationFileCache.')
if base_dir is not None:
raise ValueError('Set either parent or base_dir, but not both.')
self._parent = parent
# Note str must be first since strings are iterable as well
if isinstance(file_path, (str, bytes, io.BytesIO)):
self.read(file_path)
elif isinstance(file_path, Iterable):
for path in file_path:
self.merge(TranslationFile(path))
def _read(self, buffer, *args, **kwargs):
self.translations = []
data = buffer.read().decode('utf-16')
# starts with bom?
offset = 0
match = regex_tokens.search(data, offset)
while match is not None:
offset = match.end()
match_next = regex_tokens.search(data, offset)
offset_max = match_next.start() if match_next else len(data)
if match.group('description'):
translation = Translation(identifier=match.group('identifier'))
# Parse the IDs for the translations
id_count = regex_int.search(data, offset, offset_max)
if id_count is None:
raise ValueError(
'Couldn\'t find id count between offset %s and %s' % (
offset, offset_max
)
)
offset = id_count.end()
id_count = int(id_count.group())
id_string = regex_ids.search(data, offset, offset_max)
if id_string is None:
raise ValueError(
'Couldn\'t find id count between offset %s and %s' % (
offset, offset_max
)
)
# Actually extract the individual ids
translation.ids = regex_id_strings.findall(id_string.group(0))
if len(translation.ids) != id_count:
print(data[offset:offset_max])
raise ValueError(
'Mismatched number of id strings found (%s found vs %s '
'expected) between offset %s and %s' % (
len(translation.ids), id_count, offset, offset_max
)
)
offset = id_string.end()
t = True
language = 'English'
while t:
tl = TranslationLanguage(language, parent=translation)
tcount = regex_int.search(data, offset, offset_max)
offset = tcount.end()
language_match = regex_lang.search(data, offset, offset_max)
if language_match is None:
offset_next_lang = offset_max
t = False
else:
offset_next_lang = language_match.start()
language = language_match.group('language')
for i in range(0, int(tcount.group())):
ts_match = regex_translation_string.search(data, offset, offset_next_lang)
if not ts_match:
raise ParserError(
'Malformed translation string near line %s @ ids %s: %s' % (
data.count('\n', 0, offset),
translation.ids,
data[offset:offset_next_lang+1],
)
)
offset = ts_match.end()
ts = TranslationString(parent=tl)
# Min/Max limiter
limiter = ts_match.group('minmax').strip().split()
for j in range(0, id_count):
matchstr = limiter[j]
if matchstr.startswith('!'):
matchstr = matchstr[1:]
negated = True
else:
negated = False
if matchstr == '#':
TranslationRange(None, None, parent=ts,
negated=negated)
elif regex_isnumber.match(matchstr):
value = int(matchstr)
TranslationRange(value, value, parent=ts,
negated=negated)
elif '|' in matchstr:
minmax = matchstr.split('|')
min = int(minmax[0]) if minmax[0] != '#' else None
max = int(minmax[1]) if minmax[1] != '#' else None
TranslationRange(min, max, parent=ts,
negated=negated)
else:
TranslationRange(None, None, parent=ts,
negated=negated)
warnings.warn(
'Malformed quantifier string "%s" near index %s (parent %s). Assuming # instead.' % (
matchstr, ts_match.start('minmax'), translation.ids
), TranslationWarning)
ts._set_string(ts_match.group('description'))
ts.quantifier.register_from_string(
ts_match.group('quantifier'),
)
offset = offset_next_lang
self.translations.append(translation)
for translation_id in translation.ids:
self._add_translation_hashed(translation_id, translation)
elif match.group('no_description'):
pass
elif match.group('include'):
if self._parent:
self.merge(self._parent.get_file(match.group('include')))
elif self._base_dir:
real_path = os.path.join(self._base_dir, match.group('include'))
self.merge(TranslationFile(real_path, base_dir=self._base_dir))
else:
warnings.warn(
'Translation file includes other file, but no base_dir '
'or parent specified. Skipping.', TranslationWarning)
elif match.group('header'):
pass
# Done, search next
match = match_next
def __eq__(self, other):
if not isinstance(other, TranslationFile):
return False
for attr in ('translations', 'translations_hash'):
if getattr(self, attr) != getattr(other, attr):
return False
return True
def _add_translation_hashed(self, translation_id, translation):
if translation_id in self.translations_hash:
for old_translation in self.translations_hash[translation_id]:
# Identical, ignore
if translation == old_translation:
return
# Identical ids, but more recent - update
if translation.ids == old_translation.ids:
self.translations_hash[translation_id] = [translation, ]
# Attempt to remove the old one if it exists
try:
self.translations.remove(old_translation)
except ValueError as e:
pass
return
'''print('Diff for id: %s' % translation_id)
translation.diff(other)
print('')'''
warnings.warn('Duplicate id "%s"' % translation_id, DuplicateIdentifierWarning)
self.translations_hash[translation_id].append(translation)
else:
self.translations_hash[translation_id] = [translation, ]
def copy(self):
"""
Creates a shallow copy of this TranslationFile.
Note that the same objects will still be referenced.
Returns
-------
:class:`TranslationFile`
copy of self
"""
t = TranslationFile()
for name in self.__slots__:
setattr(t, name, getattr(self, name))
return t
def merge(self, other):
"""
Merges the current translation file with another translation file.
Parameters
----------
other : :class:`TranslationFile`
other :class:`TranslationFile` object to merge with
Returns
-------
None
"""
if not isinstance(other, TranslationFile):
TypeError('Wrong type: %s' % type(other))
self.translations += other.translations
for trans_id in other.translations_hash:
for trans in other.translations_hash[trans_id]:
self._add_translation_hashed(trans_id, trans)
#self.translations_hash.update(other.translations_hash)
def get_translation(self, tags, values, lang='English', full_result=False, use_placeholder=False, only_values=False):
"""
Attempts to retrieve a translation from the loaded translation file for
the specified language with the given tags and values.
Generally the list of values should be the size of the number of tags.
If instead of the real value a placeholder is desired use_placeholder
can be used.
Parameters
----------
tags : list[str]
A list of identifiers for the tags
values : list[int] or list[int, int]
A list of integer values to use for the translations. It is also
possible to use a list of size 2 for each element, which then
will be treated as range of acceptable value and formatted
accordingly (i.e. (x to y) instead of just x).
lang : str
Language to use. If it doesn't exist, English will be used as
fallback.
full_result : bool
If true, a :class:`TranslationResult` object will be returned
use_placeholder : bool or callable
If true, Instead of values in the translations a placeholder (i.e.
x, y, z) will be used. Values are still required however to find
the "correct" wording of the translation.
If a callable is specified, it will call the function with
the index as first parameter. The callable should return a
string to use as placeholder.
only_values : bool
If true, only the handled values instead of the string are returned
Returns
-------
list[str] or TranslationResult
Returns a list of found translation strings. The list may be empty
if none are found. If full_result is specified, a
:class:`TranslationResult` object is returned instead
"""
# A single translation might have multiple references
# I.e. the case for always_freeze
if isinstance(tags, str):
tags = [tags, ]
trans_found = []
trans_missing = []
trans_missing_values = []
trans_found_values = []
for i, tag in enumerate(tags):
# stats that are zero are not displayed
try:
if values[i][0] == 0 and values[i][1] == 0:
continue
except TypeError:
if values[i] == 0:
continue
if tag not in self.translations_hash:
trans_missing.append(tag)
trans_missing_values.append(values[i])
continue
#tr = self.translations_hash[tag][-1]
for tr in self.translations_hash[tag]:
index = tr.ids.index(tag)
if tr in trans_found:
tf_index = trans_found.index(tr)
trans_found_values[tf_index][index] = values[i]
else:
trans_found.append(tr)
# Used to identify invalid translations later
v = [0xFFFFFFFF for i in range(0, len(tr.ids))]
v[index] = values[i]
trans_found_values.append(v)
# It seems that partial matches for the tags are indeed allowed and not
# invalid.
# Cases are base_chance_to_freeze_% and always_freeze for example
partial = []
for i, found_values in enumerate(trans_found_values):
for j, value in enumerate(found_values):
if value == 0xFFFFFFFF:
# Assume 0 as default.
found_values[j] = 0
partial.append(trans_found[i])
if partial:
warnings.warn(
'Partial tag match for %s' % ', '.join([
str(p) for p in partial
]),
TranslationWarning
)
trans_lines = []
trans_found_lines = []
unused = []
values_parsed = []
extra_strings = []
for i, tr in enumerate(trans_found):
tl = tr.get_language(lang)
result = tl.get_string(trans_found_values[i], use_placeholder, only_values)
if result:
trans_lines.append(result[0])
trans_found_lines.append(result[0])
values_parsed.append(result[2])
if full_result:
unused.append(result[1])
extra_strings.append(result[3])
else:
trans_found_lines.append('')
values_parsed.append([])
if full_result:
return TranslationResult(
found=trans_found,
found_lines=trans_found_lines,
lines=trans_lines,
missing=trans_missing,
missing_values=trans_missing_values,
values=trans_found_values,
values_parsed=values_parsed,
partial=partial,
unused=unused,
source_ids=tags,
source_values=values,
extra_strings=extra_strings,
)
if only_values:
return values_parsed
else:
return trans_lines
def reverse_translation(self, string, lang='English'):
"""
Attempt to reverse a translation string and return probable candidates
as well as probable values the translation string was used with.
.. warning::
During translation there is a loss of information incurred and
there are cases where it might be impossible reconstruct the string.
.. warning::
The method can only work of **exact** translation strings, so
minor differences already might result in failure detection. As
such strings from previous versions of Path of Exile may not work.
Parameters
----------
string : str
The translation string to reverse
lang
The language the string is in
Returns
-------
TranslationReverseResult
:class:`TranslationReverseResult` instance containing any found
translation instances as well as the values.
"""
translations_found = []
values_found = []
for tr in self.translations:
tl = tr.get_language(lang)
values = tl.reverse_string(string)
if values is not None:
translations_found.append(tr)
values_found.append(values)
return TranslationReverseResult(translations_found, values_found)
@doc(append=AbstractFileCache)
class TranslationFileCache(AbstractFileCache):
"""
Creates a memory cache of :class:`TranslationFile` objects.
It will store any loaded file in the cache and return it as needed.
The advantage is that there is only one object that will handle all
translation files and only load them if they're not in the cache already.
In particular this is useful as many translation files include other
files which will only be read once and then passed to the other file
accordingly - separately loading those files would read any included
file multiple times, as such there is a fairly significant performance
improvement over using single files.
"""
FILE_TYPE = TranslationFile
@doc(prepend=AbstractFileCache.__init__)
def __init__(self, *args, merge_with_custom_file=None, **kwargs):
"""
Parameters
----------
merge_with_custom_file : None, bool or TranslationFile
If this option is specified, each file will be merged with a custom
translation file. If set to True, it will load the default
translation file located in PyPoE's data directory. Alternatively a
TranslationFile instance can be passed which then will be used.
"""
if merge_with_custom_file is None or merge_with_custom_file is False:
self._custom_file = None
elif merge_with_custom_file is True:
self._custom_file = get_custom_translation_file()
elif isinstance(merge_with_custom_file, TranslationFile):
self._custom_file = merge_with_custom_file
else:
raise TypeError(
'Argument merge_with_custom_file is of wrong type. %(type)s' %
{'type': type(merge_with_custom_file)}
)
# Call order matters here
super().__init__(*args, **kwargs)
def __getitem__(self, item):
"""
Shortcut for :meth:`TranslationFileCache.get_file` that will also
added Metadata automatically.
That means the following is equivalent:
obj['stat_descriptions.txt']
obj.get_file('Metadata/StatDescriptions/stat_descriptions.txt')
Parameters
----------
item : str
file name/path relative to the Metadata/StatDescriptions/ directory
Returns
-------
TranslationFile
the specified TranslationFile
"""
if not item.startswith('Metadata/StatDescriptions/'):
item = 'Metadata/StatDescriptions/' + item
return self.get_file(item)
@doc(doc=AbstractFileCache._get_file_instance_args)
def _get_file_instance_args(self, file_name, *args, **kwargs):
return {
'parent': self,
}
def get_file(self, file_name):
"""
Returns the specified file from the cache (and loads it if not in the
cache already).
Note that the file name must be relative to the root path of exile
folder (or a virtual) folder or it won't work properly.
That means 'Metadata/stat_descriptions.txt' needs to be referenced
as such.
For a shortcut consider using obj[name] instead.
Parameters
----------
file_name : str
file name/path relative to the root path of exile directory
Returns
-------
TranslationFile
the specified TranslationFile
"""
if file_name not in self.files:
tf = self._create_instance(file_name=file_name)
if self._custom_file:
tf.merge(self._custom_file)
self.files[file_name] = tf
return tf
return self.files[file_name]
# =============================================================================
# Functions
# =============================================================================
def _diff_list(self, other, diff=True):
len_self = len(self)
len_other = len(other)
if len_self != len_other:
print('Different length, %s vs %s' % (len_self, len_other))
set_self = set(self)
set_other = set(other)
print('Extra items in self: %s' % set_self.difference(set_other))
print('Extra item in other: %s' % set_other.difference(set_self))
return
if diff:
for i in range(0, len_self):
self[i].diff(other[i])
def _diff_dict(self, other):
key_self = set(tuple(self.keys()))
key_other = set(tuple(other.keys()))
kdiff_self = key_self.difference(key_other)
kdiff_other = key_other.difference(key_self)
if kdiff_self:
print('Extra keys in self:')
for key in kdiff_self:
print('Key "%s": Value "%s"' % (key, self[key]))
if kdiff_other:
print('Extra keys in other:')
for key in kdiff_other:
print('Key "%s": Value "%s"' % (key, other[key]))
def get_custom_translation_file():
"""
Returns the currently loaded custom translation file.
Loads the default file if none is loaded.
Returns
-------
TranslationFile
the currently loaded custom translation file
"""
global _custom_translation_file
if _custom_translation_file is None:
set_custom_translation_file()
return _custom_translation_file
def set_custom_translation_file(file=None):
"""
Sets the custom translation file.
Parameters
----------
file : str
Path where the custom translation file is located. If None,
the default file will be loaded
"""
global _custom_translation_file
_custom_translation_file = TranslationFile(
file_path=file or CUSTOM_TRANSLATION_FILE
)
custom_translation_file = property(
fget=get_custom_translation_file,
fset=set_custom_translation_file,
)
def install_data_dependant_quantifiers(relational_reader):
"""
Install data dependant quantifiers into this class.
Parameters
----------
relational_reader : RelationalReader
:class:`RelationalReader` instance to read the required game data
files from.
"""
def _mod_value_to_item_class_reverse( value):
for row in relational_reader['ItemClasses.dat']:
if row['Name'] == value:
return row.rowid
return None
TranslationQuantifier(
id='mod_value_to_item_class',
handler=lambda v: relational_reader['ItemClasses.dat'][v]['Name'],
reverse_handler=_mod_value_to_item_class_reverse,
)
def _tempest_mod_text_reverse(value):
results = []
for row in relational_reader['Mods.dat']:
if row['GenerationType'] != MOD_GENERATION_TYPE.TEMPEST:
continue
if row['Name'] == value:
results.append(row.rowid)
if len(results) == 1:
return results[0]
elif len(results) == 0:
return None
else:
return results
TranslationQuantifier(
id='tempest_mod_text',
handler=lambda v: relational_reader['Mods.dat'][v]['Name'],
reverse_handler=_tempest_mod_text_reverse,
)
TQReminderString(relational_reader=relational_reader)
TranslationQuantifierHandler.init()
# =============================================================================
# Init
# =============================================================================
#
# Translation Quantifiers
#
# Notes:
# * It's hardly possible to reverse rounding accurately
"""
TranslationQuantifier(
id='',
handler=lambda v: ,
reverse_handler=lambda v: ,
)
"""
TranslationQuantifier(
id='30%_of_value',
handler=lambda v: v*0.3,
reverse_handler=lambda v: v/0.3,
)
TranslationQuantifier(
id='60%_of_value',
handler=lambda v: v*0.6,
reverse_handler=lambda v: v/0.6,
)
TranslationQuantifier(
id='deciseconds_to_seconds',
handler=lambda v: v/10,
reverse_handler=lambda v: float(v)*10,
)
TranslationQuantifier(
id='divide_by_three',
handler=lambda v: v/3,
reverse_handler=lambda v: float(v)*3,
)
TranslationQuantifier(
id='divide_by_five',
handler=lambda v: v/5,
reverse_handler=lambda v: float(v)*5,
)
TranslationQuantifier(
id='divide_by_one_hundred',
handler=lambda v: v/100,
reverse_handler=lambda v: float(v)*100,
)
TranslationQuantifier(
id='divide_by_one_hundred_and_negate',
handler=lambda v: -v/100,
reverse_handler=lambda v: -float(v)*100,
)
TranslationQuantifier(
id='divide_by_one_hundred_2dp',
handler=lambda v: round(v/100, 2),
reverse_handler=lambda v: float(v)*100,
)
TranslationQuantifier(
id='divide_by_two_0dp',
handler=lambda v: v//2,
reverse_handler=lambda v: int(v)*2,
)
TranslationQuantifier(
id='divide_by_six',
handler=lambda v: v/6,
reverse_handler=lambda v: int(v)*6,
)
TranslationQuantifier(
id='divide_by_ten_0dp',
handler=lambda v: v//10,
reverse_handler=lambda v: int(v)*10,
)
TranslationQuantifier(
id='divide_by_twelve',
handler=lambda v: v/12,
reverse_handler=lambda v: int(v)*12,
)
TranslationQuantifier(
id='divide_by_fifteen_0dp',
handler=lambda v: v//15,
reverse_handler=lambda v: int(v)*15,
)
TranslationQuantifier(
id='divide_by_twenty_then_double_0dp',
handler=lambda v: v//20*2,
reverse_handler=lambda v: int(v)*20//2,
)
TranslationQuantifier(
id='milliseconds_to_seconds',
handler=lambda v: v/1000,
reverse_handler=lambda v: float(v)*1000,
)
TranslationQuantifier(
id='milliseconds_to_seconds_0dp',
handler=lambda v: int(round(v/1000, 0)),
reverse_handler=lambda v: float(v)*1000,
)
TranslationQuantifier(
id='milliseconds_to_seconds_1dp',
handler=lambda v: round(v/1000, 1),
reverse_handler=lambda v: float(v)*1000,
)
TranslationQuantifier(
id='milliseconds_to_seconds_2dp',
handler=lambda v: round(v/1000, 2),
reverse_handler=lambda v: float(v)*1000,
)
# TODO: Not exactly sure yet how this one works
TranslationQuantifier(
id='milliseconds_to_seconds_2dp_if_required',
handler=lambda v: round(v/1000, 2),
reverse_handler=lambda v: float(v)*1000,
)
TranslationQuantifier(
id='multiplicative_damage_modifier',
handler=lambda v: v+100,
reverse_handler=lambda v: float(v)-100,
)
TranslationQuantifier(
id='multiplicative_permyriad_damage_modifier',
handler=lambda v: v/100+100,
reverse_handler=lambda v: (float(v)-100)*100,
)
TranslationQuantifier(
id='multiply_by_four',
handler=lambda v: v*4,
reverse_handler=lambda v: int(v)//4,
)
TranslationQuantifier(
id='negate',
handler=lambda v: -v,
reverse_handler=lambda v: -float(v),
)
TranslationQuantifier(
id='old_leech_percent',
handler=lambda v: v/5,
reverse_handler=lambda v: float(v)*5,
)
TranslationQuantifier(
id='old_leech_permyriad',
handler=lambda v: v/500,
reverse_handler=lambda v: float(v)*500,
)
TranslationQuantifier(
id='per_minute_to_per_second',
handler=lambda v: round(v/60, 1),
reverse_handler=lambda v: float(v)*60,
)
TranslationQuantifier(
id='per_minute_to_per_second_0dp',
handler=lambda v: int(round(v/60, 0)),
reverse_handler=lambda v: float(v)*60,
)
TranslationQuantifier(
id='per_minute_to_per_second_1dp',
handler=lambda v: round(v/60, 1),
reverse_handler=lambda v: float(v)*60,
)
TranslationQuantifier(
id='per_minute_to_per_second_2dp',
handler=lambda v: round(v/60, 2),
reverse_handler=lambda v: float(v)*60,
)
TranslationQuantifier(
id='per_minute_to_per_second_2dp_if_required',
handler=lambda v: round(v/60, 2) if v % 60 != 0 else v//60,
reverse_handler=lambda v: float(v)*60,
)
TranslationQuantifier(
id='times_twenty',
handler=lambda v: v*20,
reverse_handler=lambda v: int(v)//20,
)
TranslationQuantifier(
id='canonical_line',
type=TranslationQuantifier.QuantifierTypes.STRING,
arg_size=0,
)
TranslationQuantifier(
id='canonical_stat',
)
# These will be replaced by install_data_dependant_quantifiers
TranslationQuantifier(
id='mod_value_to_item_class',
)
TranslationQuantifier(
id='tempest_mod_text',
)
TranslationQuantifier(
id='reminderstring',
type=TranslationQuantifier.QuantifierTypes.STRING,
)
TranslationQuantifierHandler.init()
|
Saturday, 11 June 2011
"Oh look, it's raining"
As a kid, if anyone ever told me that the monsoon
is overrated, and annoying, I'm not sure how my reaction would've been. Then
again, who says such things to children?
Today, however, if one said the exact same phrase to me; I'd think that
person's thoroughly misinformed. For two reasons: one, the monsoon, or the
'rainy season' as it's know around these parts, isn't overrated. It's usually a
case of 'over', but of a different kind, most of them being the grammatical
cousins of the adjective 'over-flowing'. And two, they're not 'quite' annoying;
I believe the word you're looking for is 'very', and as always, it applies to
us humans, and not the natural phenomenon which, I believe, is called
'precipitation' by the scientific community.
The
thundering of rain clouds and the pitter-patter outside the window coincides
with the opening of schools and colleges. Imagine waking up to a nice and cool
morning, whilst you’re all snuggled up and cozy in your bed, and then facing
the prospect of getting ready to…go out there. If this doesn’t ruin a
good day, then I don’t know what does. School days, though, are okay; I mean,
you don’t really need an excuse to make mischief, and splash about in puddles,
and even if you do, you have a solid alibi: “But, it’s raining!”
Once you
grow slightly older, and begin commuting, you say the same words; only this
time, it’s a low, lazy and unwilling effort on your part, and it usually goes
like, “Oh *bleep*, it’s raining.” (Do notice the emphasis, if I might
add).
But hey,
you never really hate the monsoon. You just end up making a list of
things that you hate during the monsoons.
Like
walking—anywhere outside the dryness of your house—be it the roads, or train
stations; there’s cars’ splashing water and mud onto you, like it’s their god-given
right to do so. And, if you’re driving, swearing at stupid pedestrians who
practically walk on the roads, like it’s their
god-given right to do so. They can have the foot paths, skywalks or the whole
of Marine Drive
for all I care…but WHY the roads?! Alas, that enlightenment is still beyond me.
Coming to
think of it, there is no single apparatus, accessory or even a damn vehicle
here that is completely rain-proof, other than perhaps a reinforced concrete
structure, with some good paint on the exterior walls; then again, you can’t
carry your house everywhere, can you? You will have to settle for either an
umbrella, or a wind-breaker. And to make this choice correctly is to have a
superior sense of weather-forecasting, much like the Native American Indians.
But unlike us, they usually stay indoors, and stock up on food supply when they
predict harsh weather. While we are left to battle the unpredictable and
unforgiving rain and winds (not to mention flooded gutters and potholes), in
which case the umbrella ends up upturned, and ones underpants, the only garment
which remains dry under a wind-breaker.
However,
before you dismiss me as a cynic, let me tell you that I, in fact, do love the
monsoon. Sure it has its downsides; you’ve just read about four-hundred words
of it, and also the fact that I, like over a million people, have been stuck in
local trains when the tracks flood (some scary scenario, this is); but,
compared to summers that makes pot-holes baking ovens, and winters that are
probably non-existent (or very cold, as we saw last year), the monsoon truly is
a wonderful season.
Especially
if you live in a place from where you can see lush, green mountains and
water-falls; and have a terrace where you can get wet without stepping on mud
or, being run over by a lunatic whose wipers aren’t working. But, if you live
in a place where it floods the instant the skies begin tinkling and where there
are traffic jams below your window, then, I’m sorry to say: bad luck, mate. |
---
abstract: 'Neural network pruning is an important technique for creating efficient machine learning models that can run on edge devices. We propose a new, highly flexible approach to neural network pruning based on Gibbs distributions. We apply it with Hamiltonians that are based on weight magnitude, using the annealing capabilities of Gibbs distributions to smoothly move from regularization to adaptive pruning during an ordinary neural network training schedule. This method can be used for either unstructured or structured pruning, and we provide explicit formulations for both. We compare our proposed method to several established pruning methods on ResNet variants and find that it outperforms them for unstructured, kernel-wise, and filter-wise pruning.'
author:
-
-
bibliography:
- 'mybibfile.bib'
title: 'A Framework for Neural Network Pruning Using Gibbs Distributions\'
---
neural networks, neural network pruning, edge intelligence, machine learning
Introduction {#sec:introduction}
============
While machine learning research has recently focused on massive deep neural networks, practical deployment of these powerful models on edge devices remains a challenge. One approach to making machine learning for edge intelligence more feasible is neural network pruning, where connections in a neural network are removed to produce a smaller final model. Pruning can be used on its own to improve inference performance and compress models, or it can be combined with other techniques like quantization to produce even more efficient neural networks [@han2016deep].
Neural network pruning methods can be divided into structured and unstructured pruning. In unstructured pruning, any set of connections can be removed. Structured pruning instead requires that the pruned connections follow some structure, such as removing entire rows from weight matrices or entire filters from convolutional layers. Structured pruning can usually improve performance metrics like inference speed at lower sparsity levels than unstructured pruning, since the structure can be taken advantage of in optimization [@wen2016learning]. On the other hand, unstructured pruning can generally remove more connections without significantly decreasing accuracy, even finding architectures that outperform the original model [@frankle2019lottery].
We introduce a novel pruning method that can be used for both unstructured and structured pruning. Taking inspiration from statistical physics, we propose inducing a Gibbs distribution over the weights of a neural network and sampling from it during training to determine pruning masks. This procedure induces a learned network structure that is resilient to high degrees of pruning. Gibbs distributions are highly flexible in terms of network properties that they can express, and quadratic energy functions, such as Ising models, can capture parameter interactions and induce desired structure in pruning masks. They also naturally allow a temperature parameter to be used for annealing, gradually converging to a final pruning mask during training and improving network resilience to pruning.
Many existing pruning methods start with a trained network and use an iterative procedure that alternates between removing some connections and training for additional epochs to fine-tune the network [@han2016deep; @li2017pruning; @luo2017thinet]. We believe that it is preferable to prune the network during the original training phase, since this allows the network and the pruning mask to adapt to each other, in particular encouraging the network to take on a representation that is robust to pruning. We show that our method can take advantage of additional training epochs by stretching the annealing and learning rate schedules rather than adding a separate fine-tuning phase. We compare our proposed method to a number of structured and unstructured pruning methods from the literature, including methods that fine-tune trained networks and methods that prune while training [@han2016deep; @frankle2019lottery; @gomez2019learning; @li2017pruning; @luo2017thinet]. We generally find that our method outperforms them.
Sample code for our proposed method is available at <https://github.com/j201/gibbs-pruning>.
Proposed Method {#sec:method}
===============
A Gibbs distribution over a vector $\x$ has a density function $$p(\x) = \frac{1}{Z(\beta)}e^{-\beta H(\x)},
\label{eq:gibbs}$$ where $H(\x)$ is the Hamiltonian function, or [*energy*]{}, $\beta$ is an inverse temperature parameter, and $Z(\beta)$ is a partition function that normalizes the distribution. Gibbs distributions are a very general family of probability distributions, giving considerable flexibility in defining pruning methods. For instance, every Markov random field corresponds to a Gibbs distribution, and vice versa. They also naturally permit annealing, by changing $\beta$ over the course of training.
In our proposed method, $\x$ represents a pruning mask for a single neural network layer, with $x_i \in \{-1,1\}$. Given the weights of the layer as a flattened vector $\w$, a weight $w_i$ is masked (treated as zero) during training if the corresponding $x_i$ is -1. $\x$ is sampled from $p(\x)$ at every training step and once again after training to determine the final mask. Note that weight values are not permanently modified during training, allowing a connection to be masked out in some iterations and active in others.
The goal of our method is to have both the neural network weights and pruning mask converge together from random initial states to a final effective representation over the course of training. Gibbs distributions enable this, since they can be annealed from more random behaviour at high temperatures and converge to a final steady state [@kirkpatrick1983optimization]. The most likely result of sampling — and the result we expect to converge to — corresponds to the state that minimizes the Hamiltonian. We select a Hamiltonian and annealing schedule that will converge to an effective pruned network.
Defining a pruning method within this framework requires:
- A Hamiltonian where the minimum energy corresponds to a desired pruned structure, based on the network parameters;
- A method for sampling from the distribution;
- An approach for annealing $\beta$ during training.
The following sections discuss these elements in more detail.
Unstructured Pruning
--------------------
A widely used heuristic for pruning neural networks is pruning weights with low magnitudes [@han2016deep; @li2017pruning; @gale2019state]. We follow this approach in designing a Hamiltonian for unstructured pruning: we want the energy to be minimized when weights with low magnitude are pruned away.
Let $N$ be the number of weights in the layer and let $\v$ represent a vector with the elements of $\w$ sorted such that $v_i^2 \leq v_{i+1}^2$. Given a pruning rate $p$ between 0 and 1, select $Q(p) = v_i^2$, where $i = p(N-1)+1$. If $i$ is not an integer for the given value of $p$, we linearly interpolate between $Q(p^-)$ and $Q(p^+)$, where $p^-$ and $p^+$ are the nearest values below and above $p$ respectively for which $i$ is an integer: $$Q(p) = Q(p^-) + \frac{p - p^-}{p^+ - p^-}\left(Q(p^+) - Q(p^-)\right).$$ In effect, $Q(p)$ is the empirical $p$th quantile of the squared weight magnitudes.
We define the Hamiltonian for unstructured pruning as $$H(\x) = \sum_{i=1}^N \Big(Q(p) - w_i^2\Big)x_i.
\label{eq:ham-unstruct}$$ The value of the Hamiltonian is minimized when the fraction $p$ of weights with lowest magnitude are masked, making that the state that annealing will converge towards.
In general, sampling from the Gibbs distribution is difficult because the partition function cannot be feasibly computed for large vectors. In the following proposition, we show that our proposed Hamiltonian for unstructured pruning factors in terms of elements of $x$. The elements are therefore independent and can easily be sampled individually.
The Gibbs distribution corresponding to the proposed Hamiltonian (\[eq:ham-unstruct\]) has a product form. \[prop:unstruct-factor\]
The partition function $Z(\beta)$ normalizes the distribution. With the proposed Hamiltonian, it has the form: $$\begin{aligned}
Z(\beta) &= \sum_{\x\in\{-1,1\}^N} e^{-\beta \sum_{i=1}^N \left(Q(p) - w_i^2\right)x_i} \\
&= \sum_{x_1\in\{-1,1\}} \sum_{x_2\in\{-1,1\}} ... \prod_{i=1}^N e^{-\beta \left(Q(p) - w_i^2\right)x_i} \\
&= \prod_{i=1}^N \left(e^{-\beta \left(Q(p) - w_i^2\right)} + e^{\beta \left(Q(p) - w_i^2\right)} \right) \\
&= \prod_{i=1}^N 2 \mbox{cosh} \Big(\beta\left(Q(p) - w_i^2\right)\Big).\end{aligned}$$ The Gibbs distribution therefore factors as: $$\begin{aligned}
p(\x) &= \frac{1}{\prod_{i=1}^N 2 \mbox{cosh} \Big(\beta\left(Q(p) - w_i^2\right)\Big)} e^{-\beta \sum_{i=1}^N \left(Q(p) - w_i^2\right)x_i} \\
&= \prod_{i=1}^N \frac{1}{2 \mbox{cosh} \Big(\beta\left(Q(p) - w_i^2\right)\Big)} e^{-\beta \left(Q(p) - w_i^2\right)x_i}.\end{aligned}$$
Structured Pruning {#sec:structured}
------------------
For structured pruning, we prune blocks of weights together in a way that is advantageous for inference performance. We enforce this by adding a quadratic term to the Hamiltonian that encourages all elements of the pruning mask within given neighbourhoods to take the same value, where the neighbourhoods are chosen to correspond to the blocks of weights that are pruned together. For instance, to do filter-wise pruning on a convolutional network, we would define the neighbourhoods to correspond to the filters of the layer.
We define a neighbourhood as a set of indices corresponding to a subset of weights in the neural network layer. Let $\N_k$ represent the $k$th neighbourhood. Neighbourhoods are disjoint and the union of all neighbourhoods is the set of all weight indices, that is $\N_i \cap \N_j = \emptyset$ and $\bigcup_{k=1}^{M} \N_k = \{1,...,N\}$, where $M$ is the number of neighbourhoods. Let us also define a vector $\bar{\w}$ such that $$\bar{w}_k^2 = \frac{1}{|\N_k|}
\sum_{i\in \N_k}w_i^2.$$ We propose the Hamiltonian $$H(\x) = -c\sum_{k=1}^M\,\sum_{\substack{i,j \in \N_k\\i \neq j}}x_ix_j + \sum_{i=1}^N
\Big( \bar{Q}(p) - w_i^2\Big)x_i,
\label{eq:ham-struct}$$ where $c$ is a hyperparameter controlling the relative influence of the structure term on the Hamiltonian, and $\bar{Q}(p)$ is an empirical quantile function over squared weight magnitudes as described previously, but calculated over the values in $\bar{\w}$ instead of $\w$. The state that minimizes the Hamiltonian when $c$ is large enough to enforce the mask structure therefore corresponds to pruning the fraction $p$ of neighbourhoods with lowest average weight magnitude. When $|\N_k| = 1\,\forall\,k$, the inner summation in the quadratic term does not sum over anything, so the quadratic term does not apply. Hence the unstructured pruning Hamiltonian (\[eq:ham-unstruct\]) is a special case of the Hamiltonian (\[eq:ham-struct\]).
The following proposition shows that the probability distribution still factors in terms of neighbourhoods, so we can sample each neighbourhood separately.
The Gibbs distribution corresponding to the Hamiltonian (\[eq:ham-struct\]) has a block product form.
Since the first term of the Hamiltonian (\[eq:ham-struct\]) is zero for elements from different neighbourhoods, the Hamiltonian can be expressed as: $$\begin{aligned}
H(\x) &= \sum_{k=1}^M H_k(\x_k),\end{aligned}$$ where $H_k(\x_k)$ is the Hamiltonian (\[eq:ham-struct\]) only computed over the elements of the neighbourhood $\N_k$. Following the same approach as for Proposition \[prop:unstruct-factor\], the partition function can then be shown to factor as: $$\begin{aligned}
Z(\beta) &= \prod_{k=1}^M\,\sum_{\x_k \in \{-1,1\}^{|\N_k|}} e^{-\beta H_k(\x_k)} \\
&= \prod_{k=1}^M Z_k(\beta),\end{aligned}$$ and the overall distribution factors as: $$\begin{aligned}
p(\x) &= \prod_{k=1}^M\frac{1}{Z_k(\beta)} e^{-\beta H_k(\x_k)}.\end{aligned}$$
Sampling from the above distribution is more challenging than in the unstructured case. If neighbourhoods are small enough, the partition function for each can be computed and the distribution can be sampled from directly. But for large neighbourhoods, this is computationally infeasible, and so we use a Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) method to generate samples. A sampling method that parallelizes well and is simple to implement on a GPU is preferable for neural network training to highly iterative methods like standard Gibbs sampling or the Wolff algorithm [@wolff1989collective]. We therefore propose using Chromatic Gibbs sampling [@gonzalez2011parallel].
Chromatic Gibbs sampling involves making a colouring over the elements in $\x$ such that any interacting elements $x_i$ and $x_j$ in the Hamiltonian have different colours. For our Hamiltonians, $x_i$ and $x_j$ interact if there is a term $\alpha x_ix_j$ with $\alpha \neq 0$. An iteration of the Markov chain then consists of sampling all elements of one colour simultaneously given the current values of all other elements.
To create a colouring, we arbitrarily divide each neighbourhood into two sets of elements and modify the Hamiltonian to remove all quadratic terms containing elements in the same set. In graphical terms, this transforms the Markov random field for each neighbourhood from a complete graph to a complete bipartite graph that can be coloured with two colours, as shown in Figure \[fig:chromatic\]. This modification still preserves a high degree of connectivity within each neighbourhood and so is still effective at encouraging elements in neighbourhoods to take the same value. For instance, to perform filter-wise pruning of a convolutional network, we can divide all connections into two groups based on their input channel. Pseudocode for this algorithm is shown in Algorithm \[fig:chromatic-algo\].
[latex@errorgobble]{}
$\X_0 \gets \X_{\text{init}\,:,:,0:C/2,:}$ $\X_1 \gets \X_{\text{init}\,:,:,C/2+1:C,:}$ $\X \gets \text{concatenate}(\X_0, \X_1)$
\[fig:chromatic-algo\]
Our Hamiltonians are designed so that we know which $\x$ value minimizes them and is therefore the mode of the distribution. To minimize burn-in time, we use this value to initialize the Markov chain, as recommended in [@brooks2011handbook].
Annealing
---------
We perform annealing by increasing $\beta$ from a low value to a high value while training. At high temperatures (low $\beta$), differences in the Hamiltonian do not affect sampling much, and so roughly 50% of weights are pruned randomly. This phase acts similarly to stochastic methods for regularizing neural networks [@labach2019survey], in particular dropconnect [@wan2013regularization], regularizing the network and conditioning it to be robust under weight pruning. Once annealed to a low temperature (high $\beta$), the Gibbs distribution converges towards the value of $\x$ that minimizes the Hamiltonian, which is our desired final pruning mask. A significant amount of later training time is therefore spent adapting to the particular structure of the pruning mask. The balance between time spent on adapting to random masks and time spent on adapting to the final mask can be controlled by the particular annealing schedule for $\beta$ used in training.
Experiments {#sec:experiments}
===========
We compare Gibbs pruning, our proposed method, to several pruning methods that are either well-established or have recently shown exceptional results. We evaluate performance on ResNet neural networks [@he2016deep]. Nearly all of the parameters of these networks are in convolutional layers, which already are much more sparse than dense layers of similar dimensions, and additionally employ weight sharing, making them more difficult to prune than dense layers. Pruning methods that are effective on networks like AlexNet [@krizhevsky2012imagenet] with large dense layers often do not show the same performance on networks like ResNet, making them a more challenging test.
In particular, we train ResNet-20 and ResNet-56 with linear projection [@he2016deep] on the CIFAR-10 [@krizhevsky2012cifar] dataset. The networks are trained for 200 epochs using the Adam optimizer [@kingma2014adam], with a learning rate initially set to $10^{-3}$ and reduced by a factor of 10 at epoch 80 and every 40 epochs thereafter. We use data augmentation during training, randomly shifting images horizontally and vertically by up to 10% and flipping images horizontally with 50% probability. This achieves baseline top-1 accuracies of 90.7% for ResNet-20 and 92.2% for ResNet-56. For all methods, we prune all convolutional layers except for the first one, following the recommendation in [@gale2019state].
For pruning methods that use additional epochs for fine-tuning, we use a training rate of $10^{-5}$ after the initial training phase. We also test changing the lengths of fine-tuning schedules, to evaluate tradeoffs between the number of additional training epochs and the final accuracy.
Unstructured Pruning
--------------------
[.45]{} ![Comparison of our proposed method to other unstructured pruning methods. All methods prune 90% of weights. Dotted lines are shown for comparison on methods that do not require additional training epochs. []{data-label="fig:resnetscatter"}](resnet20-scatter.pdf "fig:"){width="\textwidth"} \[fig:resnet20scatter\]
[.45]{} ![Comparison of our proposed method to other unstructured pruning methods. All methods prune 90% of weights. Dotted lines are shown for comparison on methods that do not require additional training epochs. []{data-label="fig:resnetscatter"}](resnet56-scatter.pdf "fig:"){width="\textwidth"} \[fig:resnet56scatter\]
We compare Gibbs pruning to four established unstructured pruning methods. The first is using $l_1$ regularization with a tuned penalty of 0.001 to induce sparsity during training before masking the fraction $p$ of weights in each layer with the lowest magnitude. The other pruning methods are more advanced approaches from the literature. We evaluate the method proposed in [@han2016deep] by Han et al. Once training is complete, a certain percentage of the weights with lowest magnitude are pruned and the network is fine-tuned. This procedure is then repeated several times. We test different training schedules, using pruning percentages of 10%, 20%, 30%, etc. up to 90%, fine-tuning for $n$ epochs after each step, leading to a total of $200+9n$ epochs. We also compare to iterative magnitude pruning (IMP), proposed by Frankle et al. [@frankle2019lottery] with rewinding [@frankle2019stabilizing]. This method trains the network several times, pruning gradually more each time and then rewinding the network weights to the values they had after the first 500 training steps. To test different training times, we vary the number of times that the network is trained with intermediate pruning rates between the initial rate of 0% and the final rate of 90%. Finally, we test targeted dropout, a method recently proposed by Gomez et al.[@gomez2019learning]. We use their most successful hyperparameter settings: $\alpha=0.75,\gamma=0.9$.
When using Gibbs pruning, we anneal $\beta$ according to a logarithmic schedule from 0.7 to 10000. With the baseline training schedule of 200 epochs, we anneal over the first 128 epochs. These values were chosen empirically to cover a range from an effective pruning rate of 50% to $p$.
To compare our proposed method to those that use additional training epochs, we also evaluate ’stretching’ the training and pruning procedure to take place over a longer training schedule. To do this, we run training for some multiple of 200 epochs, and stretch out the learning rate and $\beta$ annealing schedules by the same multiple. This follows our general approach of training and pruning at the same time, but gives the network longer to both converge to the final pruning mask and to fully adapt to it. In some highly stretched configurations, the pruning mask requires a higher final $\beta$ to converge—in these cases we increase the final beta to $10^6$.
We evaluate pruning 90% of weights in each pruned layer, which is a high degree of compression for the given networks that effectively shows performance differences between different methods. Results are shown in Figure \[fig:resnetscatter\]. Our proposed method outperforms the other evaluated methods for any number of training epochs. While it is effective at 200 epochs, stretching the learning and annealing schedules provides even better performance.
We evaluate Gibbs pruning using different pruning rates in Figure \[fig:p-acc\]. When additional training epochs are used, the resulting accuracy can come close to or exceed the baseline accuracy even with very high pruning rates. For instance, removing 95% of weights in pruned layers decreases accuracy by only 0.90% for ResNet-20 and 0.45% for ResNet-50. To the best of our knowledge, these are the best results reported for such a high compression rate on CIFAR-10 [@blalock2020state].
![Loss in accuracy compared to the baseline versus pruning rate using our proposed unstructured pruning method.[]{data-label="fig:p-acc"}](p-acc-plot.pdf){width="45.00000%"}
[0.4]{}
[width=]{}
Method
----------------- ------ ------ ------ ------
50% 75% 90% 95%
Random mask 89.3 87.2 83.2 79.8
Random re-init. 88.6 86.3 83.4 79.4
Gibbs pruning 89.9 89.0 87.5 85.2
: ResNet-56
[0.4]{}
[width=]{}
Method
----------------- ------ ------ ------ ------
50% 75% 90% 95%
Random mask 91.2 90.0 87.3 84.6
Random re-init. 90.3 89.1 86.7 84.5
Gibbs pruning 91.2 90.8 89.8 88.5
: ResNet-56
\[t:random\]
Random Masks and Re-initialization
----------------------------------
In [@liu2019rethinking], the authors show that results with many pruning methods can be replicated by training a network with the same structure as the pruned network, but with newly initialized weights. This calls into question the utility of training large networks and then pruning, as well as the relevance of weight values in pruning networks. To assess this phenomenon with our proposed method, we evaluate retraining pruned networks with randomly re-initialized weights. For comparison, we also test training networks from scratch using random pruning masks with the chosen sparsity.
Results are shown in Table \[t:random\]. We find that random re-initialization does not meet the performance of our proposed method, and is more similar to training with a random mask. These results suggests that Gibbs pruning acts less as a search over possible network architectures, and instead adapts more dynamically along with weight values throughout training, resulting in a final representation that is more tuned to particular weights than other methods are.
[.45]{} ![Comparison of our proposed method to other kernel-wise structured pruning methods. All methods prune 90% of weights. Dotted lines are shown for comparison on methods that do not require additional training epochs. []{data-label="fig:resnetkernelscatter"}](resnet20-kernel-scatter.pdf "fig:"){width="\textwidth"} \[fig:resnet20kernelscatter\]
[.45]{} ![Comparison of our proposed method to other kernel-wise structured pruning methods. All methods prune 90% of weights. Dotted lines are shown for comparison on methods that do not require additional training epochs. []{data-label="fig:resnetkernelscatter"}](resnet56-kernel-scatter.pdf "fig:"){width="\textwidth"} \[fig:resnet56kernelscatter\]
Structured Pruning {#structured-pruning}
------------------
We also evaluate performance for structured convolutional neural network pruning. We consider pruning individual kernels as well as entire filters of size $N\times N\times C$, where $C$ is the number of output channels for the layer being pruned. Generally speaking, kernel-wise pruning can achieve higher accuracies for the same number of parameters, but might be harder to optimize performance for compared to filter-wise pruning. In practice, the desired structure depends on the optimization capabilities of the hardware and software the neural network is implemented on.
We compare Gibbs pruning to three established structured pruning methods. One is targeted dropout [@gomez2019learning], implemented as previously described, but dropping entire kernels or filters. For filter-wise pruning, we set its hyperparameters to the most effective values described for unit dropout: $\alpha=0.9, \gamma=0.75$. We also evaluate iteratively pruning filters or kernels based on their $l_1$-norm and retraining, as proposed by Li et al. in [@li2017pruning]. Finally, we evaluate ThiNet pruning, as proposed by Luo et al. [@luo2017thinet]. This method greedily prunes channels to minimize changes in activations over an evaluation dataset. Pruning a channel is equivalent to pruning a filter in the previous layer, making channel-wise and filter-wise pruning comparable. This method does not prune $1\times1$ convolution layers, which we also omit for filter-wise pruning with our proposed method.
For kernel-wise Gibbs pruning, each neighbourhood is small enough that the partition function is practically computable, so we sample directly from the Gibbs distribution. For filter-wise pruning, we use chromatic Gibbs sampling as described in Section \[sec:structured\]. We run the Markov chain for 50 iterations, as further iterations did not improve performance in practice. For kernel-wise pruning, we set $c$ to 0.01 and anneal $\beta$ logarithmically from 0.7 to 10000. For filter-wise pruning, we set $c$ to 1 and anneal $\beta$ logarithmically from 0.003 to 1. As with unstructured pruning, these values were chosen empirically to cover a range from an effective pruning rate of 50% to $p$, while also converging to a mask that has the desired structure. To test different training lengths, we stretch the learning rate and annealing schedules as previously described.
Kernel-wise pruning results are shown in Figure \[fig:resnetkernelscatter\] and filter-wise pruning results are shown in Figure \[fig:resnetfilterscatter\]. Note that a lower pruning rate of 75% is used in evaluating filter-wise pruning methods, since filter-wise pruning at high rates results in much lower accuracy. In both types of structured pruning, Gibbs pruning outperforms other methods, and stretching the learning rate and annealing schedules proves to be effective in additionally improving accuracy.
[.45]{} ![Comparison of our proposed method to other filter-wise structured pruning methods. All methods prune 75% of weights. Dotted lines are shown for comparison on methods that do not require additional training epochs. []{data-label="fig:resnetfilterscatter"}](resnet20-filter-scatter.pdf "fig:"){width="\textwidth"} \[fig:resnet20filterscatter\]
[.45]{} ![Comparison of our proposed method to other filter-wise structured pruning methods. All methods prune 75% of weights. Dotted lines are shown for comparison on methods that do not require additional training epochs. []{data-label="fig:resnetfilterscatter"}](resnet56-filter-scatter.pdf "fig:"){width="\textwidth"} \[fig:resnet56filterscatter\]
Conclusion
==========
We introduce a novel method for neural network pruning based on Gibbs distributions that achieves high pruning rates with little reduction in accuracy. It can be used for either unstructured or structured pruning, and the general framework can be adapted to a wide range of pruning structures. Our results show the efficacy of simultaneously training and pruning a network rather than training and pruning as distinct steps at different times. Future work could explore other structures that can be expressed within this framework, such as limiting the number of non-zero values in convolutional kernels or structured pruning of recurrent neural network layers.
Acknowledgement
===============
The authors would like to thank Fujitsu Laboratories Ltd. and Fujitsu Consulting (Canada) Inc. for providing financial support for this project at the University of Toronto.
|
Wastage of ova in young Merino ewes.
Eight sub-flocks each of 48 to 51 Merino ewes were mated for 18 days with 1 ram to each subflock. Four of the sub-flocks were of non-parous 1.5-year-old ewes and the other 4 were of parous 2.5-year-old ewes. Fertilisation rates for the subflocks of 1.5-year-old ewes varied from 83 to 94%, and the sub-flocks of 2.5-year-old ewes ranged from 81 to 94%. By day 29 post coitum 42% and 56% of 1.5-year-old ewes in sub-flocks 1 and 2 respectively were no longer pregnant. Embryonic mortality was low in other sub-flocks of 1.5- and 2.5-year-old ewes. Virtually all embryonic death occurred after day 12 post coitum. The sporadic occurrence of high ova wastage in maiden 1.5-year-old ewes in this experiment and in others is discussed in relation to the short duration of oestrus in young ewes and the great variation in service activity of rams. |
Rivo at Ringling
Rivo at Ringling Condos for Sale – Sarasota
Downtown condominiums are ideal for busy bodies who like to be near their offices, the shops, restaurants, theaters, banks, and just about everything. However, tall buildings tend to block out the sun and extreme traffic can be depressing, leaving residents with pale skin and in a foul mood most of the time. Rivo at Ringling real estate provides a solution to this dilemma. While retaining the convenient downtown location, this 15-story condominium provides residents with plenty of sun through a center atrium and liberally sized residential windows. Glass sliding doors also help bring in fresh air, on top of the natural light.
The price tags for such an open and airy living space range from the mid-$500s to $1.4 million. Rivo at Ringling condos for sale provide choices for one to three bedrooms and units with floor sizes between 1400 to 3500 square feet. The residences are composed of 92 units and 14 penthouses, all with private balconies that provide remarkable views of the cityscape. The community also enjoys access to a swimming pool and sundeck—more sun. A modern fitness center complements this bright and lively lifestyle. A social room and a conference room are also available for the use of residents.
Rivo at Ringling is located just south of Main Street, and is therefore in close proximity to the city’s popular shops and restaurants. In fact, the Regal Hollywood Stadium 20 is mere walking distance away. Thus, the latest movies from Hollywood can easily be seen from state-of-the-art widescreen and 3D theaters.
Speaking of theaters, Sarasota is a melting pot of live performance theaters. From its cultural landmark, the Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall, to the contemporary Florida Studio Theater, and The Players Community Theater and their signature Broadway Series to the Sarasota Ballet and its established repertoire, Sarasota satisfies the cultural appetite of a wide range of patrons.
Aside from Main Street to the west, Rivo at Ringling residents also enjoy easy access to the picturesque areas of Burns Square and Burns Court to the west. A historic site littered with quaint cafés and antique galleries, the mixed used neighborhood offers a glimpse into Sarasota as it was back in the day. Travel through time as you peek into charming shops or have a cappuccino on a cobblestone patio. In the roaring 20s, these structures were houses built by one of Sarasota’s foremost developers, Owen Burns.
Now preserved districts composed of scenic shops, romantic restaurants, and upscale residences, Burns Court and Burns Square serve as reminders of a once gay era. You can retreat to this part of the city and experience a shift in hue—from the dazzling white of your Rivo at Ringling residence to the golden rays of the Sarasota sunset, whenever you want to sit back and indulge in nostalgic sentiments.
Rivo at Ringling Condos for Sale
Below are all of the current condo listings for sale in Rivo at Ringling.
Please contact me if you would like to schedule a tour of any of the listed properties.
1771 RINGLING BLVD #609
Listing data source: MFRMLS - IDX information is provided exclusively for consumers’ personal, non-commercial use, that it may not be used for any purpose other than to identify prospective properties consumers may be interested in purchasing, and that the data is deemed reliable but is not guaranteed accurate by the MLS. |
Q:
Why does "e.preventDefault()" and "return false" disable the post?
I have encountered a problem today. I have solved it. I solved it heuristically, however I want scientific explanation (We should not be a programmer, a scientific person also :) )
Here is my initial View code of my MVC project:
//shortened for brevity
@using (Html.BeginForm())
{
@Html.ValidationSummary(true)
<fieldset>
<div class="editor-label">
@Html.LabelFor(model => model.UserName)
</div>
<div class="editor-field">
@Html.TextBoxFor(model => model.UserName, new { onkeyup = "InputToLower(this);" })
@Html.ValidationMessageFor(model => model.UserName)
</div>
<div class="editor-label">
@Html.LabelFor(model => model.UserPassword)
</div>
<div class="editor-field">
<input type="password" name="password1" id="password1" />
</div>
<div class="editor-label">
<label for="male">Lütfen şifrenizi tekrar giriniz: </label>
</div>
<div class="editor-field">
<input type="password" name="password2" id="password2" />
</div>
<div class="editor-label">
@Html.LabelFor(model => model.UserEmail)
</div>
<div class="editor-field">
@Html.EditorFor(model => model.UserEmail)
@Html.ValidationMessageFor(model => model.UserEmail)
</div>
<p>
<input type="submit" id="registerButton" value="Kayıt Ol" />
</p>
</fieldset>
}
<script type="text/javascript">
$(function () {
$("#registerButton").click(function (e) {
// e.preventDefault();
var errorSummary = $('.validation-summary-errors');
if (errorSummary.length == 0) {
$('#listError').remove();
$('<div class="validation-summary-errors"></div>').insertAfter($('.validation-summary-valid'));
$(".validation-summary-errors").append("<ul id='listError'><li>0 karakter giremezsiniz. OSI-122 </li></ul>");
}
else if (errorSummary.length == 1) {
$('#listError').remove();
$(".validation-summary-errors").append("<ul id='listError'><li>You cannot enter more than 20 characters.</li></ul>");
}
//return false;
});
});
</script>
Code is shortened for brevity. When I disable e.preventDefault() and return false, posting has been done. How and why e.preventDefault() and return false prevent posting? Do you recommend any book that mentions that kind of issue? Thanks in advance.
A:
registerButton is submit button and behavior of submit is to post form's data to the action that is mentioned in form tag. If you have not mentioned any action attribute in form tag then it will hit post action of same get action.
event.preventDefault() and return false stops your post back or further events.
|
* Stephen Colbertdropped by his soon-to-be-predecessor David Letterman’s show on Tuesday night. The two joked heartily, about, among other things, Stephen’s salary for the gig – he revealed he’d once turned down an opportunity to intern at the Late Show because he wasn’t going to be paid. Come 2015, that should be a fond memory for Colbert.
* We’ve loved him as Barney, and before that Doogie Howser, and now Neil Patrick Harris is earning high praise for his role as Hedwig in John Cameron Mitchell’s Hedwig and the Angry Inch. The new version of the production opened on Tuesday night, with The New York Times’ Ben Brantley declaring that Harris now joins “an elite club of musical-comedy male supernovas that has exactly one other member these days, Hugh Jackman.” High praise, indeed.
* Robert Downey Jr is new to Twitter but it looks like he’s got the hang of it quite well – giving us his first pic from the set of The Avengers: Age of Ultron, which is of him andexecutive producer Jeremy Latcham in safety vests. Keep ’em comin’, Mr Stark.
* If you’re a Pixies fan, you’ll already know you can stream the band’s first album in over 20 years, right now. Indie Cindy recorded without co-founder Kim Deal, is the 6th album from the Boston group, and no doubt a polarizing one for many.
* Oscar winner Lupita Nyong’o has topped People Magazine’s Most Beautiful list. Of course, she’s to be commended for much more than her looks, but it’s still pretty great to see her on the cover. |
The relationship between arterial compliance, age, blood pressure and serum lipid levels.
To investigate the association of serum lipids with non-invasively assessed systemic arterial compliance in a group of newly diagnosed coronary artery disease patients and their matched controls. Systemic arterial compliance is important in maintaining diastolic blood pressure and coronary perfusion, with decreased diastolic blood pressure in the presence of significant coronary artery disease suggested as contributing to increased morbidity. Decreased systemic arterial compliance is also associated with increased morbidity through its contribution to systolic hypertension. Despite the importance of arterial compliance, its association with biochemical factors is not certain. Twenty newly diagnosed coronary artery disease patients and disease-free controls were matched for age, sex, smoking status and total serum cholesterol level. Systemic arterial compliance was measured using applanation tonometry and Doppler velocimetry before instigation of treatment. There was no difference in group low-density lipoprotein or high-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels. Systemic arterial compliance was significantly less in the coronary artery disease group. For the groups combined, a significant negative correlation was demonstrated between systemic arterial compliance and low-density lipoprotein; however, on separate group analysis the correlation was confined to the coronary artery disease group. A significant difference was found in the association between systemic arterial compliance and diastolic blood pressure for the two groups. Increasing low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels are associated with decreasing systemic arterial compliance; however, the identified intergroup differences suggest that, presumably because of differences in lipid-vessel wall interactions, disease-free subjects exhibit relatively less alteration in aortic mechanical properties than those who develop coronary artery disease. |
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Article on Malaysia’s Election in Islamic Monthly
…BN’s victory means that it will hold 60% of the seats in Parliament, despite receiving less than half of the national vote. That is the result of the gerrymandering of electoral districts and also the gross imbalance in the size of those districts, which can range from less than 25,000 to over 100,000 voters. That tends to benefit rural districts, where the BN is strong, at the expense of urban voters, who favor the opposition.
In every election there are reports of voter fraud, “phantom voters,” and vote buying. The general consensus among political experts is that in past years it did not affect the ultimate outcome. This year, however, the picture is more confused. There are numerous and well-documented reports of vote buying and illegal voting. The indelible ink that the Election Commission used turned out to be easily removable. |
The present invention relates to an aerodynamic vehicle mirror head which combines an aerodynamically shaped housing for the mirror head with an upstream vane on the side of the mirror head adjacent the vehicle for causing air scrubbing of the mirror surface and a downstream vane on the opposite side of the mirror head for closing down and reducing the size of the downstream wake of the mirror flow field. The mirror head is especially suited for use on a large vehicle such as a truck or bus. |
Geheimnisverrat, Behinderung der Justiz: Immer neue Enthüllungen setzen Amerikas Präsidenten unter Druck. Dass er Medienberichte dementieren lässt, beeindruckt viele Amerikaner schon lange nicht mehr. Das liegt vor allem an Donald Trump selbst.
Als Donald Trump vor wenigen Wochen seine ersten hundert Tage im Amt komplettierte, präsentierten viele amerikanische Tageszeitungen und Faktencheck-Portale erstaunliche Zahlen. In der so wichtigen Anfangsphase seiner Präsidentschaft habe der Republikaner sage und schreibe 492 Mal falsche oder irreführende Aussagen gemacht, rechnete etwa die Zeitung „Washington Post“ vor.
Natürlich haben auch Präsidenten vor Trump immer mal wieder Lügen verbreitet, doch die meisten Beobachter sind sich einig: Kaum ein Vorgänger habe ein derart gespaltenes Verhältnis zu Wahrheit gehabt wie der aktuelle Amtsinhaber. Nur an zehn von hundert Tagen habe Trump keine falschen oder irreführenden Aussagen von sich gegeben. An sechs dieser zehn Tage soll er übrigens Golf spielen gewesen sein.
Mehr zum Thema 1/ Trump verrät dem russischen Außenminister Lawrow vertrauliche Informationen eines befreundeten Nachrichtendienstes. Damit brüskiert er seine Partner, beschädigt sein Amt – und setzt die Sicherheit Amerikas aufs Spiel.
Man muss diese Vorgeschichte im Hinterkopf haben, wenn man die aktuelle Debatte über angeblich von Trump an Russland ausgeplauderte Top-Secret-Informationen eines befreundeten Geheimdiensts oder die mögliche Behinderung von FBI-Ermittlungen analysiert. Viele Amerikaner, unter ihnen auch Republikaner, sind zunehmend skeptisch, wenn sie mit Aussagen der Trump-Regierung konfrontiert werden. Zu oft wurde ihr Präsident beim Lügen erwischt.
Video starten Washington : Trump soll Russland Geheimdienstinformationen verraten haben Trump soll sensible Geheimdienstinformationen an Lawrow weitergegeben haben To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video Video: reuters, Bild: MINISTRY HAN/REX/Shutterstock
Da hilft es offenbar auch nicht viel, dass Trump in dieser Woche mit seinem Nationalen Sicherheitsberater H.R. McMaster einen Mitarbeiter vorschickte, dessen Glaubwürdigkeit – bisher zumindest – über nahezu jeden Zweifel erhaben war. Dass der frühere General die entsprechenden Berichte vieler Medien als „falsch“ und die Vorgehensweise des Präsidenten als „völlig angemessen“ bezeichnete, heißt nicht, dass der Großteil der Öffentlichkeit das auch glaubt.
Spicers Absturz
Es wäre schließlich nicht das erste Mal, dass ein enger Mitarbeiter Trumps beim Versuch, den eigenen Chef zu verteidigen, eine peinliche Bauchlandung erlitte. Präsidentensprecher Sean Spicer, bis zu Trumps Amtsantritt im Januar eigentlich auch eine parteiübergreifend respektierte Person in Washington, zerstörte gleich an seinem ersten Arbeitstag viel Glaubwürdigkeit, als er in aggressivem Ton verkünden musste, dass die Zuschauermenge bei Trumps Amtseinführung größer war, als Fotos belegten.
Seitdem vergeht kaum eine Woche, in der Spicer sich bei seinen Pressekonferenzen nicht im Gestrüpp von Fehlinformationen, Halbwahrheiten und Trump-Deutungen verstrickt. Spicers Stellvertreterin Sarah Huckabee-Sanders ereilte vergangene Woche ein ähnliches Schicksal, als sie den von Trump veranlassten Rauswurf von FBI-Direktor James Comey mit einer Erklärung zu begründen versuchte, der der Präsident kurz danach selbst widersprach. Sogar Vizepräsident Mike Pence fand sich bereits des Öfteren blamiert und frustriert in solchen Situationen wieder.
Trump attackiert Mitarbeiter
„Menschen, die ein Leben lang im öffentlichen Dienst für Integrität standen, riskieren in dieser Regierung, ihren Ruf zu verspielen“, sagt der Republikaner-Berater Steve Schmidt. Der demokratische Senator Brian Schatz sagt im Magazin „Politico“, Trump und sein Team hätten bereits „am Inaugurationstag damit begonnen, ihre Glaubwürdigkeit zu verspielen“.
Derweil versucht Trump offenbar, die Schuld für die schlechten Schlagzeilen auf seine Mitarbeiter abzuwälzen. So soll der Präsident bereits zu Beginn dieser Woche das PR-Team um Spicer, Huckabee-Sanders und Kommunikationsdirektor Michael Dubke regelrecht angepfiffen haben, sich „endlich auf einer gemeinsamen Wellenlänge“ einzufinden, wie die Zeitung „New York Times“ unter Berufung auf eine gut informierte Quelle berichtet.
Gut möglich, dass Spicer der erste Mitarbeiter ist, der bei einem „Shake-up“ im Weißen Haus gehen müsste. Andere Beobachter glauben, dass Stabschef Reince Priebus ganz oben auf der Entlassungsliste steht.
Affäre um FBI-Chef Comey
Am Dienstagabend bricht dann die nächste Eilmeldung über Washington herein. Demnach soll Trump bei einem Treffen im Februar den damaligen FBI-Chef Comey darum gebeten haben, die Ermittlungen gegen seinen früheren Sicherheitsberater Michael Flynn einzustellen. Das berichtet die Zeitung „New York Times“ unter Berufung auf ein Memo, das Comey kurz nach dem Treffen mit Trump geschrieben haben soll. Flynn steht derzeit wegen seiner Russland-Kontakte im Wahlkampf im Visier von Sicherheitsbehörden und Kongressausschüssen.
Der Sturm der Empörung lässt nicht lange auf sich warten. „An einem Tag, an dem wir dachten, dass die Dinge nicht mehr schlimmer werden können, sind sie es doch geworden“, sagt der demokratische Senator Chuck Schumer am Abend im Kapitol mit düsterer Miene. Die Vereinigten Staaten würden „auf eine Probe gestellt“. Wenn ein Präsident einem FBI-Direktor rate, die laufende Untersuchung eines führenden Wahlkampfberaters zu beenden, dann sei das nur mit den Worten „Behinderung der Justiz“ zu beschreiben, empört sich der renommierte Jurist und CNN-Kommentator Jeffrey Toobin.
Und was macht Trump? Er lässt die Skandalmeldungen dementieren – bereits zum zweiten Mal in dieser Woche. Sagt er die Wahrheit? Blickt man auf seine Bilanz der ersten hundert Regierungstage, sind Zweifel angebracht. |
Monday, December 9, 2013
A Bizarre Hit and Run Happened Saturday Morning
Shamanique R. Bryant is being charged in a bizarre hit and run that occurred early Saturday morning near the intersection of Euclid Avenue and Coltman Road.
Bryant was driving a 2001 Oldsmobile Alero when she rear-ended another car, Cleveland.com reports. Ok, that's pretty reckless, but nothing too out of the ordinary.
But, Bryant was driving fast enough that the impact threw the woman sitting in the passenger seat, Mattie J. Quellen Stubbs, out of the car.
Did Bryant stop and get out of the car to see if Stubbs was ok? No. Did she instead flee the scene? Yes.
While the actions mentioned above point to some sort of diminished capacity for reasoning and general good decision making, Bryant did later stop to perform CPR on a man in the backseat of the car. By the way, the man had been shot earlier in the night.
Presumably the man who had been shot showed some sign of improvement, because Bryant returned to the scene of the accident, where she then proceeded to run over Stubbs.
So, to recap, Bryant is speeding, crashes into another car, causing her passenger to be thrown out of her car, while a man is likely bleeding profusely from a gunshot wound in the backseat. Bryant flees sans Stubbs, comes back and runs over Stubbs, who died from her injuries.
Bryant is being charged with aggravated vehicular homicide, and leaving the scene of an accident. According to Fox 8, OVI charges may also be added. |
Q:
The "CreateRiaClientFilesTask" task failed unexpectedly
I've VS 2010 and recently installed WCF RIA Services V1.0. For testing I have created a new Silverligh Business project but now every now and then when I rebuild the solution I receive the following error:
Does anybody know why I get this?
Thanks
Error 1 The "CreateRiaClientFilesTask" task failed unexpectedly.
System.IO.FileNotFoundException: Could not load file or assembly 'Microsoft.ServiceModel.DomainServices.Tools, Version=4.0.0.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=31bf3856ad364e35' or one of its dependencies. The system cannot find the file specified.
File name: 'Microsoft.ServiceModel.DomainServices.Tools, Version=4.0.0.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=31bf3856ad364e35'
at System.RuntimeTypeHandle.GetTypeByName(String name, Boolean throwOnError, Boolean ignoreCase, Boolean reflectionOnly, StackCrawlMarkHandle stackMark, Boolean loadTypeFromPartialName, ObjectHandleOnStack type)
at System.RuntimeTypeHandle.GetTypeByName(String name, Boolean throwOnError, Boolean ignoreCase, Boolean reflectionOnly, StackCrawlMark& stackMark, Boolean loadTypeFromPartialName)
at System.RuntimeType.GetType(String typeName, Boolean throwOnError, Boolean ignoreCase, Boolean reflectionOnly, StackCrawlMark& stackMark)
at System.Type.GetType(String typeName, Boolean throwOnError)
at System.Web.Hosting.HostingEnvironment.CreateWellKnownObjectInstance(String assemblyQualifiedName, Boolean failIfExists)
at System.Web.Hosting.HostingEnvironment.CreateWellKnownObjectInstance(String assemblyQualifiedName, Boolean failIfExists)
at System.Web.Hosting.ApplicationManager.CreateObjectInternal(String appId, Type type, IApplicationHost appHost, Boolean failIfExists, HostingEnvironmentParameters hostingParameters)
at System.Web.Hosting.ApplicationManager.CreateObjectInternal(String appId, Type type, IApplicationHost appHost, Boolean failIfExists)
at System.Web.Compilation.ClientBuildManager.CreateObject(Type type, Boolean failIfExists)
at Microsoft.ServiceModel.DomainServices.Tools.CreateRiaClientFilesTask.CreateSharedTypeService(ClientBuildManager clientBuildManager, IEnumerable`1 serverAssemblies, ILogger logger)
at Microsoft.ServiceModel.DomainServices.Tools.CreateRiaClientFilesTask.GenerateClientProxies()
at Microsoft.ServiceModel.DomainServices.Tools.CreateRiaClientFilesTask.ExecuteInternal()
at Microsoft.ServiceModel.DomainServices.Tools.RiaClientFilesTask.Execute()
at Microsoft.Build.BackEnd.TaskExecutionHost.Microsoft.Build.BackEnd.ITaskExecutionHost.Execute()
at Microsoft.Build.BackEnd.TaskBuilder.ExecuteInstantiatedTask(ITaskExecutionHost taskExecutionHost, TaskLoggingContext taskLoggingContext, TaskHost taskHost, ItemBucket bucket, TaskExecutionMode howToExecuteTask, Boolean& taskResult)
WRN: Assembly binding logging is turned OFF.
To enable assembly bind failure logging, set the registry value [HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Fusion!EnableLog] (DWORD) to 1.
Note: There is some performance penalty associated with assembly bind failure logging.
To turn this feature off, remove the registry value [HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Fusion!EnableLog].
BusinessApplication2
A:
Close VS, delete files in c:\Windows\Microsoft.NET\Framework\v4.0.30319\Temporary ASP.NET Files\.
Restart VS, Build solution.
By the way; I got the problem after a bluescreen.
A:
I found restarting VS in Administrator mode was all that was required.
|
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Yashraj Biotechnology Limited (YBL) is a part of the “YASHRAJ GROUP” having diversified interests in finance, construction, agriculture, chemicals and biotechnology. YBL was established in 1999 with a mission to achieve excellence in biotechnology and utilize its power for the good of humanity.
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sTfR
Click here for full detailsThe uptake of iron by cells is mediated by a cell surface transferrin receptor (TfR). The level of TfR expression is proportional to the need for iron in the cells. A proteolytic product of transferrin receptor soluble transferrin receptor (sTfR) appears in plasma during the cellular deficiency of iron. sTfR is used as a biomarker for the evaluation of suspected iron deficiency in patients.
Route of Production: Native
rGalectin-3
Click here for full detailsGalectin-3 is a member of lectin family. Galectin-3 binds to a wide range of extracellular matrix proteins such as fibronectin, and laminin domains. Expression of Galectin-3 is seen in neutrophils, macrophages, mast cells, fibroblasts, and osteoclasts Plasma. Galectin-3 is a novel prognostic marker in patients with chronic heart failure.
Route of Production: Recombinant
NGAL (Neutrophil Gelatinase Associated Lipocalin)
Click here for full detailsAlso known as Lipocalin-2. It is an early and reliable indicator of acute kidney injury (AKI). In the recent past NGAL has emerged as an excellent prognostic marker for the AKI. During kidney injury level of NGAL goes high in both plasma as well as urine. Since NGAL is resistant to protease, it is stable in the blood and serum. Wild type: consists of 178 amino acids (AA 21-198). Mutant NGAL: consists of 178 amino acids (AA 21- 198) with replacement of free Cysteine to Serine at 107th position. Route of Production: Native, Recombinant
rSLO (Recombinant Streptolysin)
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rSAA-I (Recombinant Serum amyloid A)
Click here for full detailsSerum amyloid A (SAA) proteins comprise a family of apolipoproteins. These proteins play an important role in HDL metabolism and cholesterol homeostasis. Human SAA1 is a major acute phase protein that is highly expressed in response to inflammation and tissue injury. SAA1 is considered to be a biomarker for inflammation.
Route of Production: Recombinant
Monoclonal Antibody against CA15-3 like antigen
Click here for full details15-3 is a glycosylated protein of molecular weight of around 400 KDa. It is secreted by the surface epithelia of cancer tissues and released into the blood stream. The mouse monoclonal antibody has been generated against native CA 15-3 like antigen. |
3 Sexy Summer Hair Ideas – Oklahoma City Hairdresser
Summer is a time when you want to go to the beach, hang out at the pool and enjoy the outdoors. Sexy summer hair is simple and you don’t have to spend a lot of time and effort to look you best while you’re enjoying the sun. First start with a great cut. With a great cut your hair will look good no matter how you wear it. Next protect your hair from the sun by using products which contain sunscreen. Your scalp can sunburn just like your face and body so if you’re going to be out and about in heavy sun, wear a hat or scarf. The easiest summer hairstyle is a short pixie or bob, but it you have longer hair you’ll need some styling options.
Cosmopolitan.com
Big Ponytail
Instead of just opting for a boring ponytail why not add some volume for a different look? The secret to this look is a sleek front and a pumped up back. Use volumizing mousse on towel dried hair and gather it up into a ponytail about eye level. Use a paddle brush to back comb the ponytail. Make it as big and messy as you want. This is a great look if you’re spending the day at the beach or pool.
Braids
A long braid down your back is sexy. It sways as you walk and you can have this look in just a few minutes. Either gather your hair up into a low ponytail and then braid it, or French braid your hair into a long ponytail. This style works best on long thick hair, but you can still have this look with almost any texture or length. Simply French braid your hair into a back braid and you’ve got a sexy no fuss style.
Low Slung Bun
If you need a polished look for special night out a low slung bun is the perfect answer. Gather your hair up into a ponytail at the nape of your neck, wrap the hair around the ponytail and secure it with hairpins. Use some extra hold spray to keep it all together and don’t worry about getting each hair in place. A bit of a messy look is very sexy this season.
These are just a few of the great sexy styles you can try out this summer. Ask your stylist to recommend professional products to protect your hair from sun, chlorine and keep it looking great all summer long.
Call now to book an appointment. Anastasia is a salon hair stylist in Oklahoma City, OK. Out of town appointments welcome. |
Lymphocyte vaccination protects prediabetic non-obese diabetic mice from developing diabetes mellitus.
In the therapeutic manoeuvre termed "lymphocyte vaccination", activated lymphocytes capable of transferring an autoimmune disease are instead attenuated and given in vaccine form. We have previously shown that such a therapy administered to non-obese diabetic (NOD) mice at 6 weeks of age prevents diabetes mellitus. To assess whether this therapy has potential clinical relevance, in the present study lymphocyte vaccination was applied in NOD mice in 3 weekly doses commencing in the immediate prediabetic period (age 12 weeks), when insulitis is advanced and diabetes incipient. Of 30 NOD mice receiving active vaccine (composed of attenuated lymphocytes from diabetic NOD mice) 13 (43.3%) remained non-diabetic to the age of 30 weeks, in comparison with 2 of 30 (6.7%; p < 0.01) mice receiving a control vaccine (composed of attenuated lymphocytes from non-diabetic NOD/B10 mice) and 5 of 26 (19.2%; p < 0.01) mice receiving saline carrier alone. Moreover, in an additional group of 10 NOD mice receiving active vaccine weekly between 12 and 30 weeks, 8 remained diabetes free at the end of the treatment. The most notable effect of the vaccine was that the delay in diabetes onset was accompanied by a reduction in insulitis and in some cases a complete absence of infiltrating lymphocytes at 30 weeks of age. Immunocytochemistry indicated that when present, islet infiltrating lymphocytes in non-diabetic mice that received active vaccine showed significantly reduced staining for interferon-gamma, compared with the infiltrate seen in diabetic mice receiving the control vaccine or saline. This study demonstrates that the rapid progression to diabetes typically seen in 12-week-old NOD mice can be delayed by lymphocyte vaccination, supporting the possibility that a vaccine composed of attenuated autologous peripheral blood lymphocytes could be effective in high risk first degree relatives of patients with insulin dependent diabetes mellitus. |
Exclusive: After the Persian Gulf War in 1991, America’s neocons thought no country could stand up to the high-tech U.S. military, and they realized the Soviet Union was no longer around to limit U.S. actions. So, the “regime change” strategy was born and many have died, writes ex-CIA analyst Ray McGovern.
By Ray McGovern
Former Washington insider and four-star General Wesley Clark spilled the beans several years ago on how Paul Wolfowitz and his neoconservative co-conspirators implemented their sweeping plan to destabilize key Middle Eastern countries once it became clear that post-Soviet Russia “won’t stop us.”
As I recently reviewed a YouTube eight-minute clip of General Clark’s October 2007 speech, what leaped out at me was that the neocons had been enabled by their assessment that after the collapse of the Soviet Union Russia had become neutralized and posed no deterrent to U.S. military action in the Middle East.
While Clark’s public exposé largely escaped attention in the neocon-friendly “mainstream media” (surprise, surprise!), he recounted being told by a senior general at the Pentagon shortly after the 9/11 attacks in 2001 about the Donald Rumsfeld/Paul Wolfowitz-led plan for “regime change” in Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Iran.
This was startling enough, I grant you, since officially the United States presents itself as a nation that respects international law, frowns upon other powerful nations overthrowing the governments of weaker states, and in the aftermath of World War II condemned past aggressions by Nazi Germany and decried Soviet “subversion” of pro-U.S. nations.
But what caught my eye this time was the significance of Clark’s depiction of Wolfowitz in 1992 gloating over what he judged to be a major lesson learned from the Desert Storm attack on Iraq in 1991; namely, “the Soviets won’t stop us.”
That remark directly addresses a question that has troubled me since March 2003 when George W. Bush attacked Iraq. Would the neocons widely known as “the crazies” at least among the remaining sane people of Washington have been crazy enough to opt for war to re-arrange the Middle East if the Soviet Union had not fallen apart in 1991?
The question is not an idle one. Despite the debacle in Iraq and elsewhere, the neocon “crazies” still exercise huge influence in Establishment Washington. Thus, the question now becomes whether, with Russia far more stable and much stronger, the “crazies” are prepared to risk military escalation with Russia over Ukraine, what retired U.S. diplomat William R. Polk deemed a potentially dangerous nuclear confrontation, a “Cuban Missile Crisis in reverse.”
Putin’s Comment
The geopolitical vacuum that enabled the neocons to try out their “regime change” scheme in the Middle East may have been what Russian President Vladimir Putin was referring to in his state-of-the-nation address on April 25, 2005, when he called the collapse of the Soviet Union “the greatest geopolitical catastrophe of the [past] century.” Putin’s comment has been a favorite meme of those who seek to demonize Putin by portraying him as lusting to re-establish a powerful USSR through aggression in Europe.
But, commenting two years after the Iraq invasion, Putin seemed correct at least in how the neocons exploited the absence of the Russian counterweight to over-extend American power in ways that were harmful to the world, devastating to the people at the receiving end of the neocon interventions, and even detrimental to the United States.
If one takes a step back and attempts an unbiased look at the spread of violence in the Middle East over the past quarter-century, it is difficult to avoid the conclusion that Putin’s comment was on the mark. With Russia a much-weakened military power in the 1990s and early 2000s, there was nothing to deter U.S. policymakers from the kind of adventurism at Russia’s soft underbelly that, in earlier years, would have carried considerable risk of armed U.S.-USSR confrontation.
I lived in the USSR during the 1970s and would not wish that kind of restrictive regime on anyone. Until it fell apart, though, it was militarily strong enough to deter Wolfowitz-style adventurism. And I will say that for the millions of people now dead, injured or displaced by U.S. military action in the Middle East over the past dozen years the collapse of the Soviet Union as a deterrent to U.S. war-making was not only a “geopolitical catastrophe” but an unmitigated disaster.
Visiting Wolfowitz
In his 2007 speech, General Clark related how in early 1991 he dropped in on Paul Wolfowitz, then Under Secretary of Defense for Policy (and later, from 2001 to 2005, Deputy Secretary of Defense). It was just after a major Shia uprising in Iraq in March 1991. President George H.W. Bush’s administration had provoked it, but then did nothing to rescue the Shia from brutal retaliation by Saddam Hussein, who had just survived his Persian Gulf defeat.
According to Clark, Wolfowitz said: “We should have gotten rid of Saddam Hussein. The truth is, one thing we did learn is that we can use our military in the Middle East and the Soviets won’t stop us. We’ve got about five or 10 years to clean up those old Soviet client regimes Syria, Iran (sic), Iraq before the next great superpower comes on to challenge us.”
It’s now been more than 10 years, of course. But do not be deceived into thinking Wolfowitz and his neocon colleagues believe they have failed in any major way. The unrest they initiated keeps mounting in Iraq, Syria, Libya, Somalia, Lebanon not to mention fresh violence now in full swing in Yemen and the crisis in Ukraine. Yet, the Teflon coating painted on the neocons continues to cover and protect them in the “mainstream media.”
True, one neocon disappointment is Iran. It is more stable and less isolated than before; it is playing a sophisticated role in Iraq; and it is on the verge of concluding a major nuclear agreement with the West barring the throwing of a neocon/Israeli monkey wrench into the works to thwart it, as has been done in the past.
An earlier setback for the neocons came at the end of August 2013 when President Barack Obama decided not to let himself be mouse-trapped by the neocons into ordering U.S. forces to attack Syria. Wolfowitz et al. were on the threshold of having the U.S. formally join the war against Bashar al-Assad’s government of Syria when there was the proverbial slip between cup and lip. With the aid of the neocons’ new devil-incarnate Vladimir Putin, Obama faced them down and avoided war.
A week after it became clear that the neocons were not going to get their war in Syria, I found myself at the main CNN studio in Washington together with Paul Wolfowitz and former Sen. Joe Lieberman, another important neocon. As I reported in “How War on Syria Lost Its Way,” the scene was surreal funereal, even, with both Wolfowitz and Lieberman very much down-in-the-mouth, behaving as though they had just watched their favorite team lose the Super Bowl.
Israeli/Neocon Preferences
But the neocons are nothing if not resilient. Despite their grotesque disasters, like the Iraq War, and their disappointments, like not getting their war on Syria, they neither learn lessons nor change goals. They just readjust their aim, shooting now at Putin over Ukraine as a way to clear the path again for “regime change” in Syria and Iran. [See Consortiumnews.com’s “Why Neocons Seek to Destabilize Russia.”]
The neocons also can take some solace from their “success” at enflaming the Middle East with Shia and Sunni now at each other’s throats — a bad thing for many people of the world and certainly for the many innocent victims in the region, but not so bad for the neocons. After all, it is the view of Israeli leaders and their neocon bedfellows (and women) that the internecine wars among Muslims provide at least some short-term advantages for Israel as it consolidates control over the Palestinian West Bank.
In a Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity memorandum for President Obama on Sept. 6, 2013, we called attention to an uncommonly candid report about Israeli/neocon motivation, written by none other than the Israel-friendly New York Times Bureau Chief in Jerusalem Jodi Rudoren on Sept. 2, 2013, just two days after Obama took advantage of Putin’s success in persuading the Syrians to allow their chemical weapons to be destroyed and called off the planned attack on Syria, causing consternation among neocons in Washington.
Rudoren can perhaps be excused for her naive lack of “political correctness.” She had been barely a year on the job, had very little prior experience with reporting on the Middle East, and in the excitement about the almost-attack on Syria she apparently forgot the strictures normally imposed on the Times’ reporting from Jerusalem. In any case, Israel’s priorities became crystal clear in what Rudoren wrote.
In her article, entitled “Israel Backs Limited Strike Against Syria,” Rudoren noted that the Israelis were arguing, quietly, that the best outcome for Syria’s (then) 2 ½-year-old civil war, at least for the moment, was no outcome:
“For Jerusalem, the status quo, horrific as it may be from a humanitarian perspective, seems preferable to either a victory by Mr. Assad’s government and his Iranian backers or a strengthening of rebel groups, increasingly dominated by Sunni jihadis.
“‘This is a playoff situation in which you need both teams to lose, but at least you don’t want one to win, we’ll settle for a tie,’ said Alon Pinkas, a former Israeli consul general in New York. ‘Let them both bleed, hemorrhage to death: that’s the strategic thinking here. As long as this lingers, there’s no real threat from Syria.’”
Clear enough? If this is the way Israel’s leaders continue to regard the situation in Syria, then they look on deeper U.S. involvement overt or covert as likely to ensure that there is no early resolution of the conflict there. The longer Sunni and Shia are killing each other, not only in Syria but also across the region as a whole, the safer Tel Aviv’s leaders calculate Israel is.
Favoring Jihadis
But Israeli leaders have also made clear that if one side must win, they would prefer the Sunni side, despite its bloody extremists from Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State. In September 2013, shortly after Rudoren’s article, Israeli Ambassador to the United States Michael Oren, then a close adviser to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, told the Jerusalem Post that Israel favored the Sunni extremists over Assad.
“The greatest danger to Israel is by the strategic arc that extends from Tehran, to Damascus to Beirut. And we saw the Assad regime as the keystone in that arc,” Oren said in an interview. “We always wanted Bashar Assad to go, we always preferred the bad guys who weren’t backed by Iran to the bad guys who were backed by Iran.” He said this was the case even if the “bad guys” were affiliated with Al-Qaeda.
In June 2014, Oren then speaking as a former ambassador said Israel would even prefer a victory by the Islamic State, which was massacring captured Iraqi soldiers and beheading Westerners, than the continuation of the Iranian-backed Assad in Syria. “From Israel’s perspective, if there’s got to be an evil that’s got to prevail, let the Sunni evil prevail,” Oren said.
Netanyahu sounded a similar theme in his March 3, 2015 speech to the U.S. Congress in which he trivialized the threat from the Islamic State with its “butcher knives, captured weapons and YouTube” when compared to Iran, which he accused of “gobbling up the nations” of the Middle East.
That Syria’s main ally is Iran with which it has a mutual defense treaty plays a role in Israeli calculations. Accordingly, while some Western leaders would like to achieve a realistic if imperfect settlement of the Syrian civil war, others who enjoy considerable influence in Washington would just as soon see the Assad government and the entire region bleed out.
As cynical and cruel as this strategy is, it isn’t all that hard to understand. Yet, it seems to be one of those complicated, politically charged situations well above the pay-grade of the sophomores advising President Obama who, sad to say, are no match for the neocons in the Washington Establishment. Not to mention the Netanyahu-mesmerized Congress.
Corker Uncorked
Speaking of Congress, a year after Rudoren’s report, Sen. Bob Corker, R-Tennessee, who now chairs the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, divulged some details about the military attack that had been planned against Syria, while lamenting that it was canceled.
In doing so, Corker called Obama’s abrupt change on Aug. 31, 2013, in opting for negotiations over open war on Syria, “the worst moment in U.S. foreign policy since I’ve been here.” Following the neocon script, Corker blasted the deal (since fully implemented) with Putin and the Syrians to rid Syria of its chemical weapons.
Corker complained, “In essence I’m sorry to be slightly rhetorical we jumped into Putin’s lap.” A big No-No, of course especially in Congress to “jump into Putin’s lap” even though Obama was able to achieve the destruction of Syria’s chemical weapons without the United States jumping into another Middle East war.
It would have been nice, of course, if General Clark had thought to share his inside-Pentagon information earlier with the rest of us. In no way should he be seen as a whistleblower.
At the time of his September 2007 speech, he was deep into his quixotic attempt to win the Democratic nomination for president in 2008. In other words, Clark broke the omerta code of silence observed by virtually all U.S. generals, even post-retirement, merely to put some distance between himself and the debacle in Iraq and win some favor among anti-war Democrats. It didn’t work, so he endorsed Hillary Clinton; that didn’t work, so he endorsed Barack Obama.
Wolfowitz, typically, has landed on his feet. He is now presidential hopeful Jeb Bush’s foreign policy/defense adviser, no doubt outlining his preferred approach to the Middle East chessboard to his new boss. Does anyone know the plural of “bedlam?”
Ray McGovern works for Tell the Word, a publishing arm of the ecumenical Church of the Saviour in inner-city Washington. He served for a total of 30 years as an Army infantry/intelligence officer and CIA analyst and is a member of the Steering Group of Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity (VIPS). |
ThreadRacer
ThreadRacer is a simple CPU benchmark utility designed to test the relative performance of CPU cores. Simultaneous Multi-Threading (SMT) for AMD, and Hyper-Threading (HT) on Intel, accelerates processing by sharing select CPU units between two logical cores, or threads. This means that every pair of CPU cores has shared computational units and cache(s). This can impact performance. Threads should be loaded on distinct CPU core sets before their pairs are utilized, something all modern OSes are aware of. In some cases, it is still preferable to manually disable SMT/HT so that threads are forced to execute on more optimal CPU cores. Process Lasso can disable SMT/HT on a per-process basis by using staggered CPU affinities. |
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Twenty-fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time, 16th September
Mark
8:27–35
Jesus
went on with his disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi; and on the way
he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that I am?” And they answered him, “John
the Baptist; and others, Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets.” He
asked them, “But who do you say that I am?” Peter answered him, “You are the
Messiah.” And he sternly ordered them not to tell anyone about him. Then he
began to teach them that the Son of Man must undergo great suffering, and be
rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and
after three days rise again. He said all this quite openly. And Peter took him
aside and began to rebuke him. But turning and looking at his disciples, he
rebuked Peter and said, “Get behind me, Satan! For you are setting your mind
not on divine things but on human things.” He called the crowd with his
disciples, and said to them, “If any want to become my followers, let them deny
themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For those who want to save
their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake, and for the
sake of the gospel, will save it.”
Commentary
St. Mark recorded two incidents in
Jesus’ public life. They both took place in Caesarea Philippi, which is a town
in the north-eastern corner of Palestine close to the border. It was rebuilt by
the Tetrarch Philip who added his name to the original town that had already
called after Caesar so as to distinguish it from another Caesarea on the west
coast of Palestine.
The first incident happened about a year
or more after Jesus’ public ministry. During the period, Jesus performed many
miracles in additional to preaching. There were a large crowd followed him,
apart from his apostles. Jesus knew that the crowd were forming some ideas
about him as to who he was, though such ideas might vary from one end of the
spectrum to another end.
For those people who had heard but not
met John the Baptist, it would be natural that they mistook him as John the
Baptist. However, one person might think Jesus being John the Baptist risen
from the dead was Herod because his conscience bore the guilt of John the
Baptist’s murder.
Some said Jesus was Elijah, the great
prophet of Israel. According to legend, he had been taken up to heaven and
would return again to prepare the way for the Messiah. Still some thought he
was one of the prophets who had taught their ancestors before. Up to this very
moment, no one knew Jesus is, except the demons. But they were ordered by Jesus
to keep silent about his identity.
Then Jesus asked his apostles: “But who
do you say that I am?” Through their leader, Peter, they proclaimed their
belief in him as the promised Messiah. It was interesting at this point because
Jesus ordered them to remind silent about who he was. Such an order was
necessary because the apostles though knew who he was they had no idea what
this title meant. This would soon be shown in the second incident. Jesus would
like them to learn the real meaning of Messiah until they witnessed his
crucifixion and resurrection.
But first, he corrected their idea of
Messiah by saying that he was not to reign on earth as a glorious and
triumphant king, rather he was to suffer many things and finally be put to
death. In fact, he was the suffering servant foretold by prophet Isaiah.
Nevertheless, Jesus concluded that eventually he would triumph because death
would not hold him and he would rise again after three days.
Although Jesus made it plain about his suffering,
death and resurrection, his apostles did not understand much. How could this
man who performed miracles right in front their own eyes be so powerless? How
could dead man rise again? All these questions puzzled them. Peter would not
accept this and told Jesus he should not admit the prediction he had made.
Jesus told Peter to back down because
his idea was opponent to God’s plan, which was laid down in the prophecies of
the second-Isaiah that is the first reading of today’s liturgy of Word. Peter
and his companions took a very human outlook on God’s purpose in sending the
Messiah. Today, we may still hold this very human outlook on God’s purpose of
his salvation.
Jesus’ suffering, death and resurrection
set us an example that true Christian life demands that one is ever ready to
sacrifice one’s own convenience and pleasure if the gospel so demands. From the
very beginning, the Christian Church saw the cross, from being a scandal the
cross became the emblem and the proud standard of God’s love for mankind, as
the symbol of Christ’s redemptive action – something every Christian should be
ready to imitate. Amen. |
Scare up a wickedly good time with these macabre potions (no cauldron required).
By Kelly A. Magyarics
1of7
Back
Start
Nothing quite says “Halloween” like the color black. Even cocktails are looking spooky this month, with bartenders adding crushed black sesame seeds, squirts of squid ink and sprinkles of activated charcoal to feed into the holiday’s eerie vibe. This Halloween scare up a wickedly good time with these macabre potions (no cauldron required).
Ursula, the half-human, half-octopus villainess from Disney’s The Little Mermaid, was the inspiration for this ocean potion. A swirl of squid ink evokes the opaque ink that Ursula emits when she’s angry, and the glass’s shape mirrors the hurricane of destruction that the dark witch of the sea causes in her final battle.
“For Halloween, we wanted to have a little fun and dip into our darker side,” says Renee Reardon, manager of Food Wine & Co. “Black cocktails are anything but ordinary, and represent the Halloween spirit.”
Rub the outside of a chilled cocktail glass with a lemon wedge, and then rim it with the brown sugar. Add the remaining ingredients, except the squid ink, to a cocktail shaker. Add ice, and shake vigorously until chilled. Strain into the prepared glass, add a few drops of squid ink and swirl it with a toothpick. Garnish with the squid tentacle.
This ominous-looking variation of the Hemingway Daiquiri is fitting for Halloween, “considering Hemingway’s jilted outlook on the world, not to mention the more obvious foreboding image that ‘Death Before Dinner’ evokes,” says Matt Allred, Zentan’s lead bartender. He alters the classic crowd-pleasing recipe by adding orgeat syrup to round out the sweetness. Citrus juice infused with activated charcoal gives it a dark, gunmetal grey color.
An interpretation of a sesame-driven Japanese dessert in liquid form, Zentan’s drink gets depth (and color) from syrup made from black sesame seeds.
“Charcoal reinforces the black color of the sesame seeds and makes for a pretty aesthetic, especially as a canvas for the garnish,” says former bar manager Jon Harris, who created the drink. Though strawberry adds an accent, the sip is more foreboding and savory than fruity or sweet, making it both a trick and a treat.
Add all ingredients to a cocktail glass. Add ice, and shake vigorously until chilled. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with edible flowers sprinkled on top.
For the sesame-strawberry syrup:
Bring ¼ cup chopped strawberries and 1 cup water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Reduce the heat to medium, and add 2 cups of sugar. Simmer until the syrup clarifies and the sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat and let cool. Strain out the strawberries, and pour the syrup into a blender. Add 4 teaspoons of toasted black sesame seeds and blend the mixture on high until the seeds are pulverized. Let the syrup cool, and strain out the sesame seeds. Store in the refrigerator until needed.
The somber tones of artist Joseph Beuy’s images stirred fellow artist and mixologist Ektoras Binikos to recreate them in a cocktail. Activated charcoal is purely for aesthetics, but the best-selling drink gets floral and herbal undertones from muddled shiso leaves and Bergamot bitters.
“As a mixologist and visual artist, I have this idea that my cocktails are components of a large social sculpture,” says Binikos. The drink’s drab and gloomy appearance belies its fitting festivity at a Halloween soirée.
Wet the outside rim of a cocktail glass and roll it in the smoked sea salt to rim it.
In a cocktail shaker, muddle the lime wedges, 1 shiso leaf, the simple syrup and the mastiha water. Add the vodka, Becherovka, juices, citrus bitters, zest and activated charcoal powder to the shaker. Add ice and shake vigorously until chilled. Strain the drink into the prepared highball glass, and top with 2 shiso leaves and 2–3 drops of the Bergamot bitters.
Todd Thrasher, a partner at PX and its beverage director, was tired of guests requesting dirty martinis with stuffed blue-cheese olives, so he came up with this version that’s anything but clichéd and murky. He infuses Dolin Blanc Vermouth with a tablespoon of squid ink.
“It’s dark and dramatic, and perfect to serve up at a Halloween party when a regular martini needs to be a little more spooky and festive,” says Thrasher.
Everything on the menu at this South American restaurant is smoked or touches the flame. Smoked tomato juice and a charred chili pepper give mouthwatering savory notes to the brunch eye-opener whose name translates to “panther.” It gets a facelift with a briny mixture of fish stock and a dash of squid ink.
For the applewood-smoked tomato juice:
Pour applewood chips into a smoker box, set on a grill and preheat to medium. Pour tomato juice into a shallow bowl or pan, set it on the grill and smoke for 20 minutes, or until desired flavor is achieved. (A stovetop smoker can also be used.) |
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TODAY´S NEWS
STAR Plus completes fourth year of leadership
Since the last four years STAR Plus has been playing a good innings of 200 weeks of continuous lead, and surging ahead with shows that cater to three generations, making TV viewing a family phenomenon. STAR Plus shows have also been high on the rating cards for four consecutive years, dominating the top slot.
In these four years, some of the shows on the channel have earned phenomenal success across the country, pushing competition to a far second with high TVRs and increasing eyeballs. STAR shows like ‘Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi’, ‘Kahaani Ghar Ghar Kii’ and ‘Kasautii Zindagii Kay’ are continuing to command strong loyalty among Indian audience.
Delivering constant ratings around the 15 TVR mark, these shows generate channel shares of around 50 per cent. While these shows consolidate evening primetime for STAR, the channel has also worked in evolving other dayparts for Indian Television. Considering the immense popularity of the shows, STAR Plus first extended the primetime stretching to 11.30pm and now to midnight.
The channel has also brought in existence afternoon viewership, which too generates high TVRs of almost as much as 12 to 13. While the channel continues to bring in substantial female viewers, it has also proved to be a deliverer for male target as well. Kids programming too came in its present form with STAR initiatives like ‘Sonpari’, ‘Shaka Laka Boom Boom’, ‘Shararat’, ‘Sssshhh…Koi…Hai’ and ‘Hatim’.
The four years that STAR has witnessed post the launch of ‘Kaun Banega Crorepati’ has seen the channel evolve in various ways. What is perhaps the most important aspect of STAR’s growth is that this growth has signified newer heights for the general entertainment and created new benchmarks on Indian television. |
786 F.2d 1163
Unpublished DispositionNOTICE: Sixth Circuit Rule 24(c) states that citation of unpublished dispositions is disfavored except for establishing res judicata, estoppel, or the law of the case and requires service of copies of cited unpublished dispositions of the Sixth Circuit.ESTA M. ADAMS, Plaintiff-Appellant,v.J.C. PENNEY COMPANY, INC., Defendant-Appellee.
85-3810
United States Court of Appeals, Sixth Circuit.
2/13/86
N.D.Ohio
APPEAL DISMISSED
ORDER
BEFORE: MARTIN, KRUPANSKY and GUY, Circuit Judges.
1
This matter is before the Court on the motion to dismiss the appeal filed by the J.C. Penney Company, Inc., on November 20, 1985. The appellant filed a response in opposition on January 13, 1986. The appellant's response is untimely. Rule 8(a), Rules of the Sixth Circuit, allows ten days from service of the motion to respond.
2
The appellant is appealing the district court order granting summary judgment in favor of the appellee. The case was brought pursuant to the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, 29 U.S.C. Sec. 623(A) and the Rehabilitation Act, 29 U.S.C. Secs. 793-94.
3
The motion to dismiss is based on appellee's contention that the notice of appeal was filed late. The judgment from which appellant seeks to appeal was filed on August 27, 1985; the notice of appeal was not filed until September 27, 1985. The notice of appeal was one day late. Pursuant to Rule 4(a)(1), Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure, appellant is required to have filed her notice of appeal within 30 days from entry of judgment. This Court does not have jurisdiction to grant an extension of time. Peake v. First National Bank and Trust Co. of Marquette, 717 F2d 1016 (6th Cir. 1983).
4
A motion for an extension of time must be filed in the district court. Rule 4(a)(5), Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure. The language of Federal Rule of Appellate Procedure 4(a)(5) 'requires that a motion for an extension of time to file a notice of appeal be filed not later than thirty days after the expiration of the original appeal time prescribed by the Rule.' Pryor v. Marshall, 711 F.2d 63, 64 (6th Cir. 1983).
5
For the foregoing reasons, it is ORDERED that the appeal be and hereby is dismissed.
|
1. Introduction {#s1}
===============
This article aims to shed light on how humans judge the relevance of documents. We will, however, take a modern view of what a document is. Nowadays individuals and groups interact with one another in a variety of information environments of ever increasing complexity. They are accessing search engines, sharing messages on Facebook, browsing short messages on their mobile devices from microblog sites like Twitter. In this setting, a document is usually very short, e.g., a Twitter post, or in some cases it is not a document at all, but rather a document surrogate, such as the query-biased summaries (snippets) of documents displayed in rankings produced by search engines.
Document relevance has been carefully studied over more than three decades within the fields of information science usually by identifying or employing known inter-subjective dimensions of relevance (Schamber et al., [@B27]; Barry, [@B4]; Mizzaro, [@B25]; Borlund, [@B9]). For example, Barry and Schamber ([@B5]) identified the dimensions "presentation quality," "currency," "reliability," "verifiability," "geographic proximity," "specificity," "dynamism" and "accessibility" in a comprehensive study. A recent study examined how users determined which list of search results they preferred over another using five dimensions of relevance: "topicality," "freshness" (currency), "authority" (credibility), "caption quality," and "diversity" (Kim et al., [@B23]). Other dimensions have also been identified with respect to a particular genre document. For example, Chu ([@B13]) identified the dimensions "specificity," "ease of use" and "breadth" in the context of legal documents.
Whilst it is widely accepted that there are a variety of dimensions at play when it comes to judging relevance, little is known of how these dimensions may interact. The aim of this article is to adopt a decision theoretic perspective and test a novel cognitive decision model in which potential interactions between dimensions are a consequence of incompatible decision perspectives which impose an order effect on relevance judgments. Incompatible perspectives are a recent development in a field called "quantum cognition" (See, for example, Conte et al., [@B16]; Aerts, [@B1]; Bruza et al., [@B10]; Pothos and Busemeyer, [@B26]; Atmanspacher and Filk, [@B3]; Khrennikov, [@B22]; Busemeyer et al., [@B12]; Conte et al., [@B15]; Trueblood and Busemeyer, [@B28]; beim Graben et al., [@B6]; Busemeyer and Bruza, [@B11]; Conte, [@B14]; Dzhafarov and Kujala, [@B18]; Aerts et al., [@B2]; Blutner et al., [@B7]; Haven and Khrennikov, [@B21]). This field aims to apply the formalism of quantum theory in order to more adequately model cognitive phenemona. For example, decades of research have uncovered a whole spectrum of human judgment that deviates substantially from what would be normatively correct according to logic and probability theory. An example of the latter is the following: "Linda is 31 years old, single, outspoken, and very bright. She majored in philosophy. As a student, she was deeply concerned with issues of discrimination and social justice, and also participated in anti-nuclear demonstrationsÓ. Which is more probable:(a) Linda is a bank teller, or(b) Linda is a bank teller and is active in the feminist movement?"
In this now famous experiment proposed by Tversky and Kahneman ([@B29]), human subjects consistently rate option (b) as more probable than (a). However, according to probability theory, the probability of a conjunction of events must be less than or equal to the probability of a constituent event. Thereofore, according to the axioms of probabilty theory (b) is less probable than (a). Probability judgment errors of this nature have since become known as the "conjunction fallacy."
The key to explaining the conjunction fallacy using a quantum model is the *incompatibility* between the perspective that Linda is a bank teller and her being a feminist. Consider Figure [1A](#F1){ref-type="fig"}. The perspective "Linda is a feminist" is represented as a two dimensional vector space where the basis vector *F* corresponds to the decision "Linda is a feminist" and *F* corresponds to "Linda *not* being a feminist." A similar two dimensional vector space corresponds to the perspective of Linda being a bank teller *B*, or not *B*. Initially, the cognitive state of the subject is represented by the vector Ψ, which is suspended between both sets of basis vectors. This situation represents the subject being undecided about whether Linda is a bank teller or a feminist. Suppose the subject now decides that Linda is a feminist. This decision is modeled by Ψ "collapsing" onto the basis vector labeled *F*. (The probability of the decision corresponds to the square of the length of the projection of the cognitive state Ψ onto the basis vector *F*, denoted ∥**P~F~**ψ∥^2^). Observe how the subject is now necessarily uncertain about Linda being a bank teller because the basis vector *F* is suspended between the two basis vectors *B* and *B* by the angle θ. The hall mark of incompatibility is the state of indecision from one perspective (e.g., the bank teller perspective) when a decision is taken from another (e.g., the feminist perspective). This indecision means the decision maker can\'t form the joint probability of Linda being both a feminist and a bank teller, Pr(*F, B*) (Busemeyer et al., [@B12]). (This is crucially different to the situation in standard probability theory in which events are compatible, and thus the joint probability is always defined).
{#F1}
The consequence of incompatibility is an interference term denoted Int. The partial derivation below shows that this term Int appears when the decision of whether Linda is a feminist is made in relation to the incompatible subspace corresponding to the decision perspective of her being a bank teller (represented by projector **P~B~** and its dual **P~B~**^⊥^): $$p(F) = \ \parallel \mathbf{\text{P}}_{\mathbf{\text{F}}}\psi \parallel^{2}$$ $$= \ \parallel (\mathbf{\text{P}}_{\mathbf{\text{F}}}\ \cdot \mathbf{\text{I}})\psi \parallel^{2}$$ $$= \, \parallel (\mathbf{\text{P}}_{\mathbf{\text{F}}} \cdot (\mathbf{\text{P}}_{\mathbf{\text{B}}} + \mathbf{\text{P}}_{\mathbf{\text{B}}}^{\bot})\psi \parallel^{2}$$ $$= \parallel \mathbf{\text{P}}_{\mathbf{\text{F}}}\mathbf{\text{P}}_{\mathbf{\text{B}}}\psi \parallel^{2} + \ \parallel \mathbf{\text{P}}_{\mathbf{\text{F}}}\mathbf{\text{P}}_{\mathbf{\text{B}}}^{\bot}\psi \parallel^{2} + \text{Int}$$
The intuition behind Equation 4 is that the law of total probability is being modified by the interference term. In probability theory this would be expressed as follows: *p*(*F*) = *p(F, B)* + *p(F, B)* + Int. When the interference term is zero, the law of total probability holds. This happens when the decision perspectives are compatible.
Incompatible decision perspectives are a recent development in cognitive modeling and their striking characteristic is the use of "quantum" probabilities. By quantum probabilities, we mean that the decision event space is modeled as a vector space rather than a Boolean algebra of sets. A key differentiator is the use of the interference term. When this term is non-zero, violations of the law of total probability occur. The interference term has been used in models of the perception of gestalt images (Conte et al., [@B16]; Khrennikov, [@B22]), models of the conjunction and other decision fallacies (Busemeyer et al., [@B12]; Conte et al., [@B15]), modeling violations of rational decison theory (Bordley, [@B8]; Pothos and Busemeyer, [@B26]; Khrennikov, [@B22]), modeling belief dynamics (Trueblood and Busemeyer, [@B28]) and conceptual processing (Gabora and Aerts, [@B19]; Gabora et al., [@B20]; Aerts, [@B1]; Aerts et al., [@B2]; Blutner et al., [@B7]). Broader works relate the formal structures used in quantum theory to cognition and other areas (Bruza et al., [@B10]; Khrennikov, [@B22]; Busemeyer and Bruza, [@B11]; Conte, [@B14]; Haven and Khrennikov, [@B21]).
Consider Figure [1B](#F1){ref-type="fig"} which has the same structure as the Linda problem depicted in Figure [1A](#F1){ref-type="fig"}. This figure comprises two perspectives regarding a decision of document relevance. Assuming that a human subject perceives a document\'s relevance via different perspectives in relation to their given information need, the "topicality" perspective is represented as a two dimensional vector space where the basis vector *T* corresponds to the decision "the information is topically related to the information need" and *T* corresponds to "the information is *not* topically related to the information need." A similar two dimensional vector space corresponds to the perspective of the information being understandable *U*, or not *U*, to the human subject. Initially, the cognitive state of the human subject is represented by the vector Ψ, which is suspended between both sets of basis vectors. This situation represents the subject being undecided about whether the information being perused is topical or understandable. Suppose the subject now decides that the information is topical. This decision is modeled by Ψ "collapsing" onto the basis vector labeled *T*. Once again, the probability of the decision corresponds to the square of the length of the projection of the cognitive state Ψ onto the basis vector *T*, denoted ∥**P**~*T*~ψ∥^2^.
Observe how the subject is now necessarily uncertain about whether the information is understandable because the basis vector *T* is suspended between the two basis vectors *U* and *U* by the angle θ. The intuition behind incompatibility in this case is that the subject may be confident in deciding the information is topically relevant but remain in two minds about whether they understand the information, for example, if the snippet is interspersed with specialized technical vocabulary as in Figure [2](#F2){ref-type="fig"}. An important consequence of incompatible decision perspectives is an order effect. In the context of the example, this means the probability of judging that the information is relevant differs when first considering "topicality" followed by "understandability" compared to when these decisions are reversed. This is because when decision perspectives are incompatible, projections do *not* commute, i.e., ∥**P**~*U*~**P**~*T*~ψ∥^2^ ≠ ∥**P**~*T*~**P**~*U*~ψ∥^2^.
{#F2}
The preceding should not be taken to imply that all relevance judgments are modeled in terms of incompatible decision perspectives. In some cases, the perspectives may be compatible. For example, the subject can make a decision that the document is topically relevant and then also be certain in regard to their decision about the document\'s understandability. In formal terms, compatible decision perspectives entail that the projectors commute, i.e., ∥**P**~*U*~**P**~*T*~ψ∥^2^ = ∥**P**~*T*~**P**~*U*~ψ∥^2^.
The focus is this artice is to explore whether there is evidence for incompatible decision perspectives. The question then becomes how to determine whether the model presented in Figure [1B](#F1){ref-type="fig"} explains decisions of document relevance. Wang and Busemeyer ([@B30]) have recently proposed an innovative solution to this question. They proved that if there is an order effect and a so called *q*−test holds, then a model based on incompatible decision perspectives like those depicted in Figure [1B](#F1){ref-type="fig"} is a valid cognitive decision model. In terms of our example, the *q*−test has the following form based on yes(y)/no(n) answers regarding "topicality" and "understandability": $$p(TyUn) + p(TnUy) = p(UyTn) + p(UnTy)$$
Let *p*~TU~ = *p(TyUn)* + *p(TnUy)* define the probability of different answers when "topicality" *T* is asked first, followed by "understandability" *U*. Conversely, let *p~UT~* = *p(UyTn)* + *p(UnTy)* be the probability of different answers when the order of questions is first "understandability" followed by "topicality." The *q*−test has the following form: $$q = p_{AB} - p_{BA} = 0$$
The advantage of the *q*−test is that it is a parameter free test. It has successfully been applied to motivate a quantum model in relation to order effects in political survey data (Wang and Busemeyer, [@B30]). In this article, we will examine: (1) whether there are order effects in relation to decisions pertaining to specific dimensions of relevance, and (2) whether a quantum model based on incompatible decision perspectives explains these order effects.
2. Materials and methods {#s2}
========================
2.1. Subjects
-------------
Relevance judgments were crowdsourced by the internet based Amazon\'s Mechanical Turk platform. Crowdsourcing is the outsourcing of tasks to an undefined, large group of people. In the case of Amazon\'s Mechanical Turk, crowdsourcing is a means of gathering data from users via "human intelligence tasks" (HITs) which are typically surveys for subjects, or "turkers" to answer. Turkers are paid a nominal fee, in this case between 12 and 20 cents per relevance judgment. If the data from the turker is deemed of sufficient quality, the owner of the HIT approves the payment. The quality of the data can be determined automatically by the system whereby after a set period of time, say an hour, then the data will be approved whereby the turker will be paid. This process can also be done manually before and after approval; thus increasing the quality of data collected. In this experiment, the data were manually approved.
The advantages of crowdsourcing is that data can be collected quickly, on a fairly large scale and at a reasonable price. The disadvantage is the extra effort needed in order to safeguard the quality of the data. As Mechanical Turk is internet based, there is little control over who the turkers are, where they are, and indeed, whether they are even human. For example, "bots," i.e., software programs mimicking humans are known to take part and more or less randomly contribute data to an experiment. As a consequence, the quality of crowdsourced data can vary greatly. To combat this, we purposefully inserted questions in the HITS to collect qualitative data---a technique often used in crowdsoured experiments.
Furthermore, as an additional factor to ensure quality data, both "masters" as well as "normal" turkers were used. Masters have "demonstrated excellence" in performing crowdsourced experiments over an extended period with a required HIT Approval Rate of above 95% over at least one thousand HITs. In contrast to the "masters," nothing much is known of regarding the performance of "normal" turkers. The experiment was timed to primarily source U.S. based turkers, who are thus likely to be proficient in English, however no tests were conducted to verify English proficiency.
2.2. Materials
--------------
The materials comprised queries and information in the form of document snippets.
Five queries were developed for this study, each of which is based around an information need, for example, see Figure [3](#F3){ref-type="fig"}. The query description comprises the name of a query topic, a short description and an accompanying narrative. The narrative is intended to frame the subject\'s perception of relevance. There is a possibility that the turker\'s background may interfere with the narrative around the query. For example, if the turker is a fan of technology, then there is significant likelihood that they will be biased toward specific information or brands of technology. The experimenters viewed that bias is intrinsic to search and therefore did not to try to compensate for it (White, [@B31]). In addition, the background of the turker may hinder their ability to sufficiently engage with the narrative. However there was evidence via the qualitative feedback questions that turkers were able to role-play in a satisfactory way, particularly the "masters." For example, "..a little hard to determine what this is talking about and if I were a beginner I would have no clue." or "...makes \[the\] document highly relevant, since the focus is for emerging technologies in 2013." Finally, the narrative structure of the queries was adopted from long running Text Retrieval Conference Series run yearly by the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology[^1^](#fn0001){ref-type="fn"}. Each query was designed to collect judgments pertaining to two specific dimensions of relevance chosen by the authors. Table [1](#T1){ref-type="table"} details the titles of the queries and the dimensions of relevance which were studied.
{#F3}
######
**Queries and relevance dimensions**.
**Query Title** **Dimension 1** **Dimension 2**
--------------------------------------- ----------------- -------------------
Treatment for arthritis Topicality Understandability
Emerging branding trends Topicality Interest
Emerging technology Topicality Credibility
Causes of global warming Topicality Believability
Influence of media on the Vietnam war Topicality Sentimentality
The relevance dimensions studied are further detailed in Table [2](#T2){ref-type="table"}. "Topicality" has been chosen as a primary dimension to be examined across all queries because this dimension has been consistently identified in previous studies as a primary factor in relevance judgments (e.g., Barry and Schamber, [@B5]; Borlund, [@B9]; Chu, [@B13]). In addition, search engine algorithms are based on queries and finding a match in regards to keywords as a matter or correlating topically related material.
######
**Definition of relevance dimensions**.
**Relevance dimension** **Definition**
------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------------
Topicality How topically related is the information in the snippet to the query
Credibility How credible is the information in the snippet
Understandability How easy is it to understand the information in the snippet
Believability How believable is the information in the snippet
Interest How novel/entertaining/interesting is the information in the snippet
Sentimentality The degree of affective response to the information in the snippet
Secondary dimensions depend on the query. Once the queries had been established, the authors designated likely secondary dimensions. Through pilot studies, the choice for the secondary dimension was refined when other factors began to creep into turker\'s comments. For example, during initial stages of the pilot, one of the first HITs published was the "Emerging Technology" query involving the dimensions of "topicality" and "understandability." Very quickly, it was realized that "credibility" was a factor that was constantly brought up by turkers in qualitative feedback. This was possibly also due to the advancement and ubiquity of technology thus rendering "understandability" as not an issue. Other secondary factors were chosen in a similar fashion while some were heavily dependent on the query topic at hand. For example, the topic of global warming is one involving fixed dichotomous positions e.g., people either believe that this is occuring or they don\'t. Therefore, "believability" seemed likely to be a prominent relevance dimension in this case.
Secondary dimensions that were chosen for study are listed in the column labeled "Dimension 2" of Table [1](#T1){ref-type="table"}. "Understandability" was chosen as snippets can sometimes be full of technical jargon, acronyms or specialized terms that can be challenging for the average person to comprehend. The dimension of "Believability" stems from a subject\'s personal beliefs and biases in relation to the information. A recent study showed that users were subject to their own biases as well as biases inherent in the search engine (White, [@B31]). "Interest" is the dimension of relevance pertaining to how novel or entertaining the information is. "Sentimentality" is a dimension which pertains to emotional responses to information. Sentiment analysis is a very active area of research in relation to internet-based technologies and applications, for example, data mining techniques to identify positive or negative sentiments or opinions in product reviews.
Corresponding to each query was a query-biased summary of a document, which we will refer to as a document "snippet." (See Figure [2](#F2){ref-type="fig"}). Document snippets were used as these are an increasingly prevalent form of information on which decisions of relevance are made in relation to modern information environments. The document snippets used in this study were sourced from the Google search engine.
Snippets were selected based on the likelihood that decisions regarding the two chosen dimensions of relevance were likely to involve some uncertainty. This is because we hypothesize that incompatibility between these dimensions is more likely to occur when such uncertainty was present. Unfortunately, there is no theory to predict which dimensions may be incompatible so a crowsourced pilot study was conducted. This study involved 10 snippets per query with between 8 and 10 master turkers making judgments in each order condition. In order to verify that uncertainty was present a four point rating scale was used to collect decisions. For each query, the snippet for which the *q*− test was closest to zero was selected as being most likely to be subject to incompatibility. None of the subjects in the pilot took part in the experiment presented here. This could easily be verified as each turker has a unique identifier.
2.3. Procedure
--------------
The experiment (i.e., the HIT) consisted of five elements which were presented in sequence. Each element was based around a query, and a subject was required to process all five elements.
Each element comprises the query description followed by a document snippet, two judgments and finally the input of qualitative data. Figure [3](#F3){ref-type="fig"} depicts one such element. In each judgment a subject is asked to rate a dimension of relevance on a four point scale. It was assumed that a subject can make judgments on dimensions within a given query topic independently of other query topics.
A single factor design was employed where the order of the judgments was manipulated. For example, in one condition a given dimension, e.g., "topicality" is rated first (the "non-comparative" context for the decision on topicality), followed by a rating of a the "understability" dimension. In the second condition, the order of the ratings is reversed e.g., the rating on "topicality" is second after the "understandability" dimension is rated (the "comparative" context for the decision on topicality). As each turker has a unique identifier, those turkers who attempted both conditions were removed from the data.
Subsequent to the judgments, subjects were asked to comment on factors that influenced their judgments. This aspect served for both quality control as well as a source of qualitative data to better undertsand the factors involved when turkers make judgments. By doing so, we discarded the data from any turker where the answers were blank, superfluous, e.g., "this is very good and gainful," or didn\'t make sense, e.g., "The sway there marketed with different topics." In the event that qualitative data were borderline acceptable such as "don\'t know," or "not sure" (both of which could be supplied by a bot), the time taken to complete the HIT was also taken into consideration: If the time spent was less than 50 s for the HIT, the data were also discarded as we deemed a minimum of 10 s per query as being required to meaningfully read the query topic, rate two dimensions and supply qualitative feedback.
Finally, the Mechanical Turk interface does not afford the ability to time a turker per query, so the time taken to make judgments in relation to a given query could not be collected for analysis.
3. Results {#s3}
==========
A total of fifty "normal" turkers submitted data for the condition where the "topicality" dimension was presented first (non-comparative context for topicality), of which eighteen were discarded. Conversely, thirty-six "normal" turkers submitted data for the comparative context of "topicality," of which four were discarded. This left *n* = 32 subjects in each condition. Despite repeated attempts to recruit "master" turkers, we failed to secure numbers sufficient for reliable statistical analysis. Therefore, their rating data are not reported but some qualitative responses were retained for illustrative purposes.
The results are presented in yes/no contingency tables in order for the *q*−test to be applied. This was achieved by mapping the four point graded relevance judgments to yes/no decisions in the following way: A grade of 3 or 4 was translated to a "yes," whereas a grade of 1 or 2 was translated to a "no." For example, consider Figure [3](#F3){ref-type="fig"}. Using the proposed mapping, a topical judgment of "4 = Very topically related" and "3 = Topically related" translate into a decision of "yes." After the yes/no mapping, contingency tables can be constructed for each decision and these are presented in Figure [4](#F4){ref-type="fig"} for the "normal" turkers. Some of the queries have data with less than 32 subjects as for these queries a turker rated one dimension, without rating the other. In such cases, the data for that query were omitted.
{#F4}
In order to apply the *q*−test, the presence of an order effect must first be established. An order effect is determined by comparing the agreement rates obtained in a non-comparative vs. a comparative context. An order effect occurs when the proportion of subjects who decided "yes" differs significantly in the comparative vs. non-comparative contexts. A two-tailed χ−square test of equality of proportions between populations was carried out (α = 0.05) and those queries exhibiting an order effect are bolded in Table [3](#T3){ref-type="table"}.
######
**Summary table of *q*-test values**.
**Query title** **Dimension 1** **Dimension 2** ***q***
--------------------------------------- ----------------- ------------------- ---------
**Treatment for arthritis** Topicality Understandability 0.02^†^
**Emerging branding trends** Topicality Interest 0.10
**Emerging technology** Topicality Credibility 0.08
**Causes of global warming** Topicality Believability 0.01^†^
Influence of media of the Vietnam war Topicality Sentimentality 0.08
*Queries with order effect (α = 0.05) are bolded. Queries where *q*-test holds (α = 0.05) are flagged by †*.
Based on the contingency tables presented in Figure [4](#F4){ref-type="fig"}, the *q*− test values for the "normal" turkers were computed using equation (6) and presented in Table [3](#T3){ref-type="table"}.
4. Discussion {#s4}
=============
For the query topics where there is an order effect, the quantum model based on incompatible decision perspectives predicts *q* = 0 (Wang and Busemeyer, [@B30]). Table [3](#T3){ref-type="table"} accords with this prediction for the queries "Treatment for Arthritis" and "Causes of Global Warming." However, there are two other queries exhibiting an order effect but for which *q* ≠ 0. In these cases, the prediction of the quantum model may not actualize due to the quite small sample sizes in both conditions, or that the quantum model is not a valid explanation for these queries. More experimentation with larger sample sizes is needed to resolve this distinction.
Four out of five queries displayed an order effect (α = 0.05). The presence of an order effect means that the subjects\' decision cannot be validly modeled by a joint probability distribution spanning binary variables corresponding to the underlying dimensions of relevance. For example, consider Figures [4A,B](#F4){ref-type="fig"}. In the non-comparative context for a decision on topicality, the marginal probability that the document is topical is summed across understandability: $$p(T = y) = p(T = y,U = y) + p(T = y,U = n)$$ $$\text{~~~~~~~~~~~~~~} = \text{~~}0.4063\ + \ 0.2813\ $$ $$\text{~~~~~~~~~~~~~~} = 0.6876$$
Note that this probability is significantly different (α = 0.05) when understandability provides the comparative context for deciding topicality: *p*(*T* = *y*) = 0.1936 + 0.3871 = 0.5807. It is this difference which identifies an order effect *but* as the marginal probability is not constant, it is not possible to construct a single joint probability distribution *p*(*T, U*) to model the relevance decisions. As a consequence, a common modeling approach is ruled out. This approach assumes *p*(*T, U*) exists whereby the decision in the non-comparative context around topicality is modeled by the marginal probability *p*(*T*) and the decision in the comparative context is modeled by conditioning the distribution based on how understanding was first decided, i.e., *p*(*T*\|*U* = *y*) or *p*(*T*\|*U* = *n*).
In summary, order effects were detected between dimensions of relevance for the majority of queries and some evidence that a quantum model based on incompatible decision perspectives is a valid explanation. However, this evidence is not yet strong. Experiments with larger sample sizes and a larger collection of queries and snippets are required to determine the prevalence of incompatible perspectives in perceptions of document relevance. It should be mentioned, however, that this study differentiates itself from many previous studies in that a much larger number of subjects were involved. For example, nine subjects provided relevance judgments in Chu ([@B13]).
According to Cooper ([@B17]) the concept of relevance comprises both "logical relevance" and "utility." Logical relevance is defined as "whether or not a piece of information is on a subject which has some topical bearing on the information need" and utility has to do with "the ultimate usefulness of the piece of information." It seems that perceptions of utility or usefulness of a particular snippet involves cognitive processing of a variety of factors including those dimensions examined in this study. It became apparent from the qualitative feedback that relevance is a multifaceted, dynamic decision process. For example, in the "Global Warming" query, "reputation," "credibility" and "scientific" were used to describe factors that the turkers themselves ranked highly compared to "believability" which was the chosen secondary dimension. This could suggest that the dimensions of "credibility" and "believability" mentioned as being distinct in previous studies are in fact hardly distinguishable during some relevance decisions. Not only were there more than a few factors at play, but the dimensions of "topicality" and "understandability" were featured in qualitative feedback across all queries. Furthermore, comments mentioning multiple (i.e., greater than two) factors were reasonably common. For example, one turker elegantly wrote "whether it (the search result) is on topic, credible, and goes into sufficient detail." Interestingly, many of these comments noted "topicality" in ways that suggested that even though a snippet was topically related, this did not necessarily translate to the snippet being deemed relevant. This was a shift from the pilot study where turkers would state very clearly in their comments that topicality was nearly always the first factor they considered and if a snippet was topically related, then they would judge it to be relevant. The shift may have been due to the final design in which turkers processed five different queries which exposed them to a broader spectrum of relevance dimensions than was the case in the pilot study. Such qualitative feedback calls the experimental design into question, namely, is it methodologically sound to focus the subjects\' attention on two dimensions when more are at play? In addition, were these extra dimensions coming into play because the subject was learning about relevance as they proceeded through the queries? The experimental design did not control for such a learning effect as it was assumed that each query topic could be judged independently of the others. An alternate design would allow subjects to select the two dimensions they deem most prominent and then rate them, or only allow subjects to rate a singe query topic.
5. Conclusion {#s5}
=============
This article put forward an experimental framework for examining whether dimensions of relevance interact via an order effect. The data collected from a crowdsourced study suggests that in some decisions regarding dimensions of relevance, this interaction can be explained in terms of a quantum model based on incompatible decision perspectives. Assuming that such interactions are fairly prevalent, what are the consequences? Currently in information processing systems, such as search engines, there is a general lack of effective user models. Should the user be making decisions of relevenance based on incompatible decision perspectives, then a model of the user based on standard probability would not be appropriate. The field of quantum cognition has shown that incompatibility implies that the law of total probability does not hold. Current computational systems are founded on standard probability theory. For example, consider the corpus-based computational model proposed by Lin and He ([@B24]). This model takes the dimensions of both "topicality" and "sentiment" into account.
At the heart of the model is the following factorization: *p*(**w, z, s**) = *p*(**w\| z, s**)*p*(**z, s**), where **w** is a random variable over a vocabulary of terms extracted from the corpus, **z** is a random variable over a set of latent topics, and **s** is a random variable over a set of sentiment labels (e.g., a binary variable describing a positive or negative sentiment). Note at its foundation, the model relies on the joint probability *p*(**z, s**), which describes the joint probability over topics and sentiments. In other words, the model assumes that "topicality" and "sentiment" are *compatible*. Should incompatibility manifest in the user\'s cognition, such a joint probability is undefined. This opens the door for dissonance between the relevance decisions made by the system as opposed to those made by the user. In short, the presence of incompatible decision perspectives suggests users can better be modeled by a "non-classical" probability theory like that proposed by the field of quantum cognition.
Conflict of interest statement
------------------------------
The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.
The authors would like to thank Jerome Busemeyer for his advice on the application of the *q*−test as well as the helpful comments of the reviewers.
^1^<http://trec.nist.gov/>
[^1]: Edited by: Chris Fields, New Mexico State University, USA (retired)
[^2]: Reviewed by: Emmanuel Pothos, City University London, UK; Falk Scholer, RMIT University, Australia
[^3]: This article was submitted to Perception Science, a section of the journal Frontiers in Psychology.
|
South Africa according to World Cup adverts: tribes, jeeps and animals
All in the
name of World Cup fever, advertisers around the world have been given the task
of selling this year's host state - South Africa, the Rainbow Nation.
One of our Observers isn't very impressed with the depictions of his home
country.
"The average South African child does not grow up close to a game park"
Sean Jacobs
teaches international affairs at the New
School in New York City. He was born and grew up in South Africa,
and will shortly be on his way home for the World Cup. He runs the blog "Africa is a country".
I know
these ads are tongue-in-cheek and not to be taken too seriously, but as the
World Cup nears and increasingly clichéd ads appear from around the world, I
can't help but get more frustrated. It's so disappointing to think that the
default image of Africa is still children,
jeeps and animals.
The Netherlands - ING bank
What you
see in this ad, produced for Dutch bank ING, is a continent that remains the
same. The veiled woman in the desert, the women collecting water in a stream
with buckets, the Masai [tribal community] ... It's only when you get to Cape Town that you get a sense of urban Africa.
It's as though there are no skyscrapers on the rest of the continent.
Australia - Optus Telecommunications
This one's
produced by Optus Telecommunications [Australia's national team
sponsors]. I think that some people might watch this ad and read from it that
if you go to South Africa
and play football with the locals, well - they're animals. Yes, it's an extreme
reaction, but didn't the Australians think about that before they came up with
this weird scenario? The fact that the little boy is white is also poor taste.
Yes, we have white people in South
Africa, but having the only human South
African in the ad as white, while the rest are animals... Well, that could be
read very badly.
USA - Adidas
This
unofficial Adidas ad, made on spec by director Igor Martinovic, is another
offender. Firstly, it was filmed on Long Island, which is pretty far from South Africa.
Secondly, the ending; the ball ... It's only since a documentary that showed
African kids making footballs from condoms that everyone seems to think it's
the only kind of football we have in South Africa.
Now I grew
up in an urban ghetto, and there was a grass pitch at school and after
apartheid I played in a Saturday league. The referees were dressed in black,
there was a club house. I certainly never saw a ball made from condoms.
Mexico - Televisa TV network
One of our
bloggers, Sonja Uwimana, pointed out to me that Televisa, the TV channel that
aired this ad, said that they produced it in response to marketing surveys
which showed that their audience thought of one big safari when imagining Africa.
The idea
that we all live in a massive gaming park is ridiculous. Most people in South Africa
have to take two planes and a car to a private game park to see the animals you
see in these ads. The average South African child does not grow up close to a
game park ...
It's true
that South Africa
itself it guilty of selling this "safari utopia" idea. That's because we have a
history of white advertising, which depicted the country as somewhere full of
animals and tribal people. It's an image which apartheid South Africa sold to Europe and North America. And now, that image is being sold back to
modern South Africa,
because many foreign companies come here to produce advertisements as
production is so much cheaper.
All bad?
Of course
they're not all bad. A good example of a positive African soccer ad is Puma's beautiful
‘Journey of Football',
which is actually about football and a realistic view of Africa.
If you can get around the idea of a fast-food chain selling sport, then the McDonalds'
‘Four Shadows' is quite realistic too.
The Nike ad
for the World Cup
is also a good one - they're focusing on football itself, which is what all the
others should have done in the first place..."
Comments
Dont know why people take notice of the White broadcasting, and media organisations,They pander to its own ignorant white man in its society.China,Russia ,India,brazil.latin America dont tolerate the westerm media and broadcasters ignorance.
Furthermore as I realized after I posted is that I didn't elaborate. I was speaking specifically of South Africa though I don't believe there's any refugee camps in S.Africa. Yes, as I mentioned they are the wealthiest country in Africa with the largest economy. Many places in Africa are peaceful with largely stable governments and societies. I realize that it is a misunderstood continent that is often neglected in thought among the people of the world. Whether it be from the Maghreb to the southern tip, the continent like all continent has a variety of nations, cultures, and peoples that reflect a range of things from good to bad.
Yes, of course good things happen along with the bad but correct me if I'm wrong but does S. Africa not have the highest rape rate as well as child rape rate in the world? one of the highest HIV rates? The capital for car jacking in the world as well as a nation with one of the highest murder rates in the world. That's a lot for one country. Every country has problems of course, my point was that it's better to have it betrayed positively in the world albeit naively then have a lot of real characteristics about the country portrayed in advertisements around the world. The money spent on the World Cup by the S.African government could be better spent alleviating many of its social problems.
It's not my intent to offend, my point is merely to say that sugar coating the country is not necessarily a bad thing if it draws people to the nation for the World Cup. The World Cup is a great thing that uses sports to bring people together in healthy competition.
Look I can understand your frustrations with a portrayal of Africa that is a little out of line with the 21st century but do you really want to sell the World Cup by showing people playing soccer among shanty towns and slums or in refugee camps. Perhaps have them play a pickup game outside a HIV clinic or while people are smoking crack and getting murdered and raped. Would that be the side of S.Africa that you want them to show in advertisements? Perhaps contrast that with a game being played among ANC supporters singing "Kill the Boers" and showing the skyscrapers that mark Africa's largest economy & wealthiest nation. Very few people would want to go to S.Africa if they were shown images that showed them the reality of the place as opposed to an idealist image of the bush, tribal people, and happy little children running around playing football among the lions and gazelle.
this is exactly what is wrong, with your view of Africa, of south Africa even. it's like yu think that nothing good ever happens in africa. the truth is yes there are bad things that happen every day, but it's not unique to africa, it happens everywhere in the world. you don't see ads depicting the natives raping each other on the american continent do you? no. this is just foolish propaganda being promoted by foolish advertising agencies in the west. when ever you think of Africa yu think AIDS, RAPE, THEFT AND MURDER. it is implausible for you to imagine the possibility that it's not all bad, that there actualy is an urban africa,you think cities are shanty towns made from discarded corrugated tin stuff. ooh please come to africa to see the good, the bad and the not so great for yurself and srop repeating propaganda, because it shows ignorance and stupidity on your part.
there are suburbs, cities,towns and villages all with a level of development. we have local governments, provincial governments that run the buisness of the country. Africa is slow to development its infrastructures. but africans are not daft, stupid savages, that are depicted in these ads. we simply are too dark for other races to think of us as equals!!
the world simply needs to get to know the real Africa and Africans. there is so much that is so unexplored in africa, so much development that is being overlooked. anyways it's all good. One day we will catch up with the world on development.
for now Africa keeps surviving. we will prevail against our struggles.
First of all I want to let you know that I like adverts but what I do like best is to criticize them (in good or bad). These adverts indeed show the African continent as a very primitive continent. It looks like Africa is made out of savanna, wild symbolic animals, poor African children and rich European tourists. It's true that poverty remains an big problem in Africa, but showing stereotypes doesn't help.
Instead of neglecting all the cultural, social and geographical aspects of mother Africa, we should show all the treasures of this "rich" continent: literature, music, traditions, handicraft, architecture, gastronomy, economical development, Nature...
Anyway, we'll always be confronted to intelligent adverts (very few) and comic (but stereotypical) adverts. |
Account
Campbell
This San Jose suburb has long been overshadowed by its immediate neighbors, wealthy Los Gatos and Saratoga as well as Apple-HQ Cupertino. Now it’s coming into its own, with a newly vibrant downtown and the Pruneyard shopping center. Housing prices, while insane anywhere else, are almost reasonable for Silicon Valley. Population: 40,939. Median home price: $1,248,000. |
The effect of excessive dietary vitamin A on performance and vitamin E status in swine fed diets varying in dietary vitamin E.
A study was conducted to evaluate the effects of high dietary vitamin A on vitamin E status and performance of growing-finishing pigs fed diets supplemented with varying levels of vitamin E. Treatments consisted of corn-soybean meal-based diets supplemented with retinyl acetate to provide 2,000 or 20,000 IU of vitamin A/kg of diet and with DL-alpha-tocopheryl acetate to provide 0, 15, or 150 IU of added vitamin E/kg in a 2 x 3 factorial arrangement. The trial involved 84 crossbred pigs (26 kg initial BW) allotted to pens of two pigs each (one gilt, one barrow). Serum was obtained from all pigs on d 0, 3, 7, 21, 35, 63, and 77 of the 83- or 90-d feeding period. Tissue samples (liver, leg, and neck muscle, backfat, and leaf fat) were collected from one pig (barrow) in each pen at the end of the feeding period. Average daily gain and gain:feed were .93 kg and .30, respectively, without treatment differences (P > .10). Serum alpha-tocopherol increased linearly (P < .01) by d 3 with increasing level of dietary vitamin E supplementation. High dietary vitamin A resulted in a small decrease (P < .01) in serum alpha-tocopherol on d 3, but serum alpha-tocopherol concentration was not affected (P > .10) on other days. Tissue alpha-tocopherol increased linearly (P < .001) as dietary vitamin E increased in all tissues examined. No consistent evidence was found to indicate that a high level of dietary vitamin A interfered with performance or with blood serum or tissue alpha-tocopherol concentrations in growing-finishing swine. |
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context("Tuning ModelMultiplexer")
test_that("makeModelMultiplexerParamSet works", {
bls = list(
makeLearner("classif.ksvm"),
makeLearner("classif.randomForest")
)
lrn = makeModelMultiplexer(bls)
ps1 = makeModelMultiplexerParamSet(
lrn,
makeNumericParam("sigma", lower = -10, upper = 10, trafo = function(x) 2^x),
makeIntegerParam("ntree", lower = 1L, upper = 50L)
)
ps2 = makeModelMultiplexerParamSet(lrn,
classif.ksvm = makeParamSet(makeNumericParam("sigma",
lower = -10,
upper = 10, trafo = function(x) 2^x)),
classif.randomForest = makeParamSet(makeIntegerParam("ntree",
lower = 1L,
upper = 50L))
)
ps3 = makeParamSet(
makeDiscreteParam("selected.learner", values = extractSubList(bls, "id")),
makeNumericParam("classif.ksvm.sigma",
lower = -10, upper = 10,
trafo = function(x) 2^x,
requires = quote(selected.learner == "classif.ksvm")),
makeIntegerParam("classif.randomForest.ntree",
lower = 1L, upper = 50L,
requires = quote(selected.learner == "classif.randomForest"))
)
expect_equal(ps1, ps2)
expect_equal(ps2, ps3)
expect_equal(ps1, ps3)
})
# this is more or less a test for BaseEnsemble, that hyperpars work and so on
test_that("ModelMultiplexer basic stuff works", {
lrn = makeModelMultiplexer(c("classif.lda", "classif.rpart"))
expect_equal(class(lrn), c("ModelMultiplexer", "BaseEnsemble", "Learner"))
# check hyper par setting and so on
lrn2 = setHyperPars(lrn,
selected.learner = "classif.rpart",
classif.rpart.minsplit = 10000L)
xs = getHyperPars(lrn2)
expect_true(setequal(names(xs), c(
"selected.learner",
"classif.rpart.minsplit", "classif.rpart.xval")))
expect_equal(xs$classif.rpart.minsplit, 10000L)
mod = train(lrn2, task = binaryclass.task)
expect_equal(
getLearnerModel(mod, more.unwrap = TRUE)$control$minsplit,
10000L)
# check removal
lrn3 = removeHyperPars(lrn2, "classif.rpart.minsplit")
xs = getHyperPars(lrn3)
expect_true(setequal(names(xs), c("selected.learner", "classif.rpart.xval")))
# check predict.type
lrn2 = setPredictType(lrn, "prob")
mod = train(lrn2, task = binaryclass.task)
p = predict(mod, task = binaryclass.task)
expect_numeric(getPredictionProbabilities(p),
any.missing = FALSE, lower = 0,
upper = 1)
})
test_that("FailureModel works", {
lrn = list(
makeLearner("classif.__mlrmocklearners__2",
config = list(on.learner.error = "warn")),
makeLearner("classif.rpart", config = list(on.learner.error = "warn"))
)
lrn = makeModelMultiplexer(lrn)
lrn = setHyperPars(lrn, classif.__mlrmocklearners__2.alpha = 1)
mod = train(lrn, task = iris.task)
expect_false(isFailureModel(mod))
lrn = setHyperPars(lrn, classif.__mlrmocklearners__2.alpha = 0)
expect_warning({
mod = train(lrn, task = iris.task)
}, "foo")
expect_true(isFailureModel(mod))
tmp = getMlrOptions()$on.learner.error
configureMlr(on.learner.error = "warn")
lrn = setHyperPars(lrn, classif.__mlrmocklearners__2.alpha = 1)
lrn = removeHyperPars(lrn, "selected.learner")
expect_warning({
mod = train(lrn, task = iris.task)
})
expect_true(isFailureModel(mod))
configureMlr(on.learner.error = tmp)
})
test_that("ModelMultiplexer tuning", {
lrn = makeModelMultiplexer(c("classif.knn", "classif.rpart"))
rdesc = makeResampleDesc("CV", iters = 2L)
tune.ps = makeModelMultiplexerParamSet(
lrn,
makeIntegerParam("minsplit", lower = 1, upper = 50))
# tune with random
ctrl = makeTuneControlRandom(maxit = 4L)
res = tuneParams(lrn, binaryclass.task, rdesc,
par.set = tune.ps,
control = ctrl)
expect_true(setequal(class(res), c("TuneResult", "OptResult")))
y = getOptPathY(res$opt.path)
expect_true(all(!is.na(y)))
expect_true(all(is.finite(y)))
# tune with irace
task = subsetTask(binaryclass.task, subset = c(1:20, 150:170))
ctrl = makeTuneControlIrace(
maxExperiments = 40L, nbIterations = 2L,
minNbSurvival = 1L)
res = tuneParams(lrn, task, rdesc, par.set = tune.ps, control = ctrl)
expect_true(setequal(class(res), c("TuneResult", "OptResult")))
y = getOptPathY(res$opt.path)
expect_true(all(!is.na(y)))
expect_true(all(is.finite(y)))
})
# we had bug here, see issue #609
test_that("ModelMultiplexer inherits predict.type from base learners", {
base.learners = list(
makeLearner("classif.ksvm", predict.type = "prob"),
makeLearner("classif.randomForest", predict.type = "prob")
)
learner = makeModelMultiplexer(base.learners)
expect_equal(learner$predict.type, "prob")
# now lets see that the next code runs and does not complain about matrix
# output for base learner predict output
r = holdout(learner, binaryclass.task)
# now check that we can tune the threshold
ps = makeModelMultiplexerParamSet(
learner,
makeDiscreteParam("C", 1),
makeDiscreteParam("mtry", c(2, 3))
)
rdesc = makeResampleDesc("Holdout")
ctrl = makeTuneControlGrid(tune.threshold = TRUE)
res = tuneParams(learner, binaryclass.task,
resampling = rdesc, par.set = ps,
control = ctrl)
})
# we had bug here, see issue #647
test_that("ModelMultiplexer passes on hyper pars in predict", {
requirePackagesOrSkip("glmnet")
base.learners = list(
makeLearner("regr.glmnet"),
makeLearner("regr.rpart")
)
learner = makeModelMultiplexer(base.learners)
expect_equal(learner$predict.type, "response")
r = holdout(learner, regr.task)
})
# issue #707
test_that("ModelMultiplexer handles tasks with no features", {
requirePackagesOrSkip("glmnet")
base.learners = list(
makeLearner("regr.glmnet"),
makeLearner("regr.rpart")
)
learner = makeModelMultiplexer(base.learners)
task = subsetTask(bh.task, features = character(0))
m = train(learner, task)
expect_is(m$learner.model, "NoFeaturesModel")
p = predict(m, task)
expect_is(p$data, "data.frame")
expect_true(all(p$data$response == mean(p$data$response)))
})
# issue #760
test_that("ModelMultiplexer passes on hyper pars in predict with both", {
test.ps = makeRLearnerClassif("test.ps", character(0),
makeParamSet(
makeIntegerLearnerParam("tpTRAIN", when = "train"),
makeIntegerLearnerParam("tpPREDICT", when = "predict"),
makeIntegerLearnerParam("tpBOTH", when = "both")),
properties = c("numerics", "twoclass"))
test.ps$fix.factors.prediction = TRUE
opts = NULL
trainLearner.test.ps = function(.learner, .task, .subset, .weights = NULL,
...) {
opts <<- list(...) # nolint
# the following to make the type checking happy
list(dummy = getTaskData(.task, .subset)[[getTaskTargetNames(.task)[1]]][1])
}
registerS3method("trainLearner", "test.ps", trainLearner.test.ps)
predictLearner.test.ps = function(.learner, .model, .newdata, ...) {
opts <<- list(...) # nolint
rep(.model$learner.model$dummy, nrow(.newdata)) # just do something
}
registerS3method("predictLearner", "test.ps", predictLearner.test.ps)
test.ps.mm = makeModelMultiplexer(list(test.ps))
test.ps.mm.args = setHyperPars(test.ps.mm,
test.ps.tpTRAIN = 1,
test.ps.tpPREDICT = 2, test.ps.tpBOTH = 3)
trained = train(test.ps.mm.args, pid.task)
expect_false(is.null(opts$tpBOTH))
expect_false(is.null(opts$tpTRAIN))
expect_true(is.null(opts$tpPREDICT))
predicted = predict(trained, pid.task)
expect_false(is.null(opts$tpBOTH))
expect_true(is.null(opts$tpTRAIN))
expect_false(is.null(opts$tpPREDICT))
})
|
By Jessica Easthope
Many are familiar with the song “On Eagle’s Wings,” but not the man behind it. That man is Father Michael Joncas – and he’s written a lot of songs many Catholics are familiar with.
“Lots of psalms and other pieces for particular times of the year, all together probably about 300 pieces of music,” said Fr. Mike. “The one that everyone knows is On Eagles Wings.'”
In his 40 years as a priest and world-renowned composer, he has never had to look too far for inspiration.
“I know the liturgical texts through and through and I also, as a priest, am trained in scripture so the psalms are the background to nearly everything I do,” he said.
The same goes for his latest piece of music, “Shelter Me.”
“It was just about a month ago. I was awakened by my subconscious at about three in the morning, and there was this little germ of an idea for a song to respond to the coronavirus pandemic that we’re in,” said Fr. Mike.
The lyrics take the listener through the same stages the world has gone through over the last several months.
With lines like “the way ahead is dark and difficult to see,” it’s mirrored in a psalm that’s close to Fr. Mike’s heart.
“The idea was simple, it was basically to take Psalm 23 which I have been praying forever, and adapt and paraphrase it to talk about our present-day experience,” he explained.
The song talks about wanting intimacy with God during this hard time. Fr. Mike says he hopes the song is used as a way of bringing the world together.
“If it’s anything like ‘On Eagle’s Wings,’ it will go beyond the Catholic world and beyond the Christian world, and it will be something that many people of different faith traditions will use during prayer,” he said.
Fr. Mike decided using his gift of music wasn’t enough. He’ll also be waiving a copyright and license fee for the song. It will be free to download and use in church for the next year. |
# _version=1
# HAProxy Technologies
# https://www.haproxy.com/
#
# this file is not meant to be changed directly
# it is under haproxy ingress controller management
#
global
daemon
master-worker
pidfile /var/run/haproxy.pid
server-state-file global
server-state-base /var/state/haproxy/
stats socket /var/run/haproxy-runtime-api.sock level admin expose-fd listeners
stats timeout 1m
tune.ssl.default-dh-param 2048
log 127.0.0.1:514 local0 notice
ssl-default-bind-ciphers ECDHE-RSA-AES128-GCM-SHA256:ECDHE-ECDSA-AES128-GCM-SHA256:ECDHE-RSA-AES256-GCM-SHA384:ECDHE-ECDSA-AES256-GCM-SHA384:DHE-RSA-AES128-GCM-SHA256:DHE-DSS-AES128-GCM-SHA256:kEDH+AESGCM:ECDHE-RSA-AES128-SHA256:ECDHE-ECDSA-AES128-SHA256:ECDHE-RSA-AES128-SHA:ECDHE-ECDSA-AES128-SHA:ECDHE-RSA-AES256-SHA384:ECDHE-ECDSA-AES256-SHA384:ECDHE-RSA-AES256-SHA:ECDHE-ECDSA-AES256-SHA:DHE-RSA-AES128-SHA256:DHE-RSA-AES128-SHA:DHE-DSS-AES128-SHA256:DHE-RSA-AES256-SHA256:DHE-DSS-AES256-SHA:DHE-RSA-AES256-SHA:!aNULL:!eNULL:!EXPORT:!DES:!RC4:!3DES:!MD5:!PSK
ssl-default-bind-options no-sslv3 no-tls-tickets no-tlsv10
defaults
log global
log-format '%ci:%cp [%tr] %ft %b/%s %TR/%Tw/%Tc/%Tr/%Ta %ST %B %CC %CS %tsc %ac/%fc/%bc/%sc/%rc %sq/%bq %hr %hs "%HM %[var(txn.base)] %HV"'
option redispatch
option dontlognull
option http-keep-alive
timeout http-request 5s
timeout connect 5s
timeout client 50s
timeout queue 5s
timeout server 50s
timeout tunnel 1h
timeout http-keep-alive 1m
load-server-state-from-file global
frontend https
mode http
bind 0.0.0.0:443 name bind_1
bind :::443 v4v6 name bind_2
http-request set-var(txn.base) base
http-request set-var(txn.host) req.hdr(Host)
http-request set-header X-Forwarded-Proto https if { ssl_fc }
default_backend default_backend
frontend http
bind 0.0.0.0:80 name bind_1
bind :::80 v4v6 name bind_2
http-request set-var(txn.base) base
http-request set-var(txn.host) req.hdr(Host)
mode http
default_backend default_backend
backend default_backend
mode http
frontend healthz
bind 0.0.0.0:1042 name healtz_1
mode http
monitor-uri /healthz
option dontlog-normal
frontend stats
mode http
bind *:1024
http-request use-service prometheus-exporter if { path /metrics }
stats enable
stats uri /
stats refresh 10s
|
Q:
how to display names in alphabetical groups in Handlebarsjs underscorejs
Hi am New to Handlebarsjs.
I have a collection of contacts with name, email, phone, etc. as below
[
{
"name": "Bob Wolmer",
"email": "bob@wolmer.com",
"phone": "(535) 235-1234",
"address": "301 Cobblestone Wy., Berdrock 00000",
"contactId": "1121",
"labels": {}
},
{
"name": "Wilma Erra",
"email": "wilma@erra.com",
"phone": "(535) 235-3659",
"address": "301 Cobblestone Wy., Berdrock 70777",
"contactId": "1122",
"labels": {}
},
{
"name": "Brad",
"email": "brad@brad.com",
"phone": "(535) 235-3546",
"address": "301 Cobblestone Wy., Redrock 70777",
"contactId": "1123",
"labels": [{"name": "Friends"},{"name": "Family"}]
},
{
"name": "",
"email": "wilson@gmail.com",
"phone": "(535) 235-3657",
"address": "301 Cobblestone Wy., Dedrock 70777",
"contactId": "1124",
"labels": [{"name": "Friends"}]
}
]
I want to display the names as below
B
Bob
Brad
W
Wilma Erra
Can any one suggest me how to achieve this.
Thanks in Advance
A:
Lets just say that you have assigned that JSON to a variable named contacts You can use underscore to group by the first letter of the name property like so:
var groupedContacts = _.groupBy(contacts, function(contact){
return contact.name.substr(0,1);
});
You could then iterate through your groups, maybe sort them and write the content as per your example like this:
_.each(groupedContacts, function (contacts, key) {
console.log(key); // writes the Index letter
// optional sort
var sortedContacts = _.sortBy(contacts, function (contact) {
return contact.name;
});
_.each(sortedContacts, function(contact) {
// Writes the contact name
console.log(contact.name);
});
});
So in a real world application, you would want to replace the console.log lines with Handlebars templates and/or put it in a helper (however be wary of embedding HTML string in JavaScript as a rule), but thats the easy bit. Also, you may wish sort your groupedContacts to get the index in order too. You can do this using the same sortBy method shown in my example above.
|
breaking news:
Rohingyas describe army atrocities to Myanmar team
21 March, 2017 12:00 AM
Cox’s Bazar: The 10-member delegation of the Myanmar government, which arrived here on Sunday to see for themselves the conditions of Rohingyas, visited two more Rohingay camps on Monday, reports UNB.
The team, led by Myanmar Investigation Commission Secretary U Zaw Myint Pe, went to Balukhali Rohingya camp in Ukhiya and Leda camp in Teknaf, and listened to the Myanmar nationals who intruded into Bangladesh being tortured by its military.
Some 35 male and female Rohingyas narrated the brutalities which they underwent in Rakhine state to the delegation from behind a curtain.
Representatives of the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and Office of theUnited Nations High Commissioner for Refugees(UNHCR) acted as coordinators of the meetings.
Abul Fayez, chairman of Poyengshu area of Myanmar who took shelter in the unregistered Balukhali camp, said, “What happened in the Rakhine state before our eyes is heinous. The brutalities of the Myanmar army can in no way be accepted.
I’ve narrated the brutalities to the delegation.”
Describing the army atrocities, he said a team of over 300 army men surrounded their locality and raided every house and their divided their male and female inmates.
Later, they took the comparatively beautiful women to empty houses and violated them in turns, he said. “Three of the rape victims died on the spot,” he said, adding that a rape victim also described the brutality to the visiting delegation.
Several female Rohingyas who were tortured by the Myanmar army said they want to return to their country if they get assurance of security. |
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Friday, August 20, 2010
A quick Google image search ofBento Box style quilts revealed much inspiration, in particular this Flickr Imageof a Bento Box quilt pieced entirely from Katie Jump Rope fabrics. Although I don't have a pattern for this quilt design, it didn't take long to work out my own dimensions and technique.
The overall concept is really quite simple. Piece two the same size blocks in the manner of a square in a square block layout. Reverse the fabric/color combination in the second block.
Carefully cut blocks into quarters and re-arrange. Sew blocks back together again.
My center squares were cut as a 5 inch square, and all the border strips were cut 2.5 inches wide. All seams were pressed away from the solid white fabric which makes piecing the blocks back together again a whole lot easier. The finished block size is 12 inch square.
The quilt top measures 60 inches x 72 inches
For this quilt top I have made 15 sets of blocks - a total of 30 blocks - a lot of piecing, although all very straight forward. My choice of fabrics for this quilt are a selection of Katie Jump Rope, Flea Market Fancy and some Kei Honeycomb Dots in brown, orange/red and yellow; a combination a little outside of my comfort zone.
You can also piece it as a 1/4 (or is it 1/2) of a log cabin. Start with 1 square, add the first 2 logs & then instead of adding two more logs arounf the initial square add the last two logs to the sides as the first 2 logs... That is my plan anyway...
You did it again. A great choice of a quilt pattern for the fabric. Katie Jump Rope is my favorite pattern and I've been scouring the stores looking for it. I think I'll try to do a swap from my large stash. You're quilt looks so clean and crisp and I like you always feel that the white just brightens everything up.
Super cute quilt!!! I recently made a Bento Box out of some Pat Sloan fabrics. I recently found some Katies Jump Rope fabrics in my cabinet. I think it's a fq packet so if you ever find that you need a piece or two, let me know, I'd be happy to share with you :)Peggy in NJ
I saw a quilt at a show here last year that used just those colours in KJR, in a bento box pattern too. But they didn't use the white. This is a totally different look.(It's the last photo in this post.)http://naptimequilter.blogspot.com/2009/06/heritage-park-quilt-show.html |
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Gw
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DQ
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|
By Tom Curry, National Affairs Writer, NBC News
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi said Democrats are not losing confidence in President Barack Obama’s ability to make the Affordable Care Act work and don’t fear Obamacare’s effect on their chances in next year’s elections.
Appearing Sunday on NBC’s Meet the Press, Pelosi said, “I don’t think you can tell what will happen next year” when voters cast ballots in the mid-term elections, but “I will tell you this: Democrats stand tall in support of the Affordable Care Act.”
She said implementation of the health care overhaul “is an issue that has to be dealt with, but it doesn’t mean, ‘oh, this is a political issue so we’re going to run away from it.’”
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi of California talks about the problem of insurers dropping coverage for tens of thousands of Americans.
She said jobs will be the major issue in the 2014 campaign, not Obamacare.
Alluding to the nervousness some congressional Democrats are expressing about the debut of Obamacare, Pelosi said “What I love about health care professionals is that they’re calm. And we must remain calm when we talk about the health of our country.”
She added, “You can’t be knocked for a loop just because somebody is playing politics.”
In an indication of Democratic jitters’ over Obamacare, on Friday 39 of Pelosi’s House Democrats joined with 222 Republicans to vote for a bill sponsored by Rep. Fred Upton, R-Mich., that would allow health insurance firms to continue to sell insurance plans next year that don’t comply with Affordable Care Act (ACA) requirements.
The 39 Democrats included several who are in toss-up races such as Rep. Ron Barber of Arizona and Rep. Carol Shea-Porter of New Hampshire. Explaining why those Democrats voted for the Upton bill, Pelosi said, “When the Republicans put forth a political initiative, people respond to it politically.”
Appearing on CNN's State of the Union, Assistant Democratic Leader Rep. James Clyburn of South Carolina said that “what you saw in those 39 people -- and maybe nine people had real serious concerns -- the fact of the matter is about 30 of them, and I've talked to them, were insulating themselves against sound bites” in next year’s election campaign “and that's part of the problem.”
He said, “One of our big problems in Washington is that we tend to react to sound bites a little bit too often and, therefore, we tend to speak in sound bites.”
The Democrats need a net gain of 17 seats to recapture the majority in the House which they lost in the landslide election of 2010.
The Affordable Care Act (ACA) “is a very important pillar of economic and health security for the American people” and “is right up there with Social Security (and) Medicare, affordable care for all Americans as a right, not a privilege,” Pelosi said.
In states such as Kentucky and her own state of California, she said, “It’s working very well.”
Pelosi said she stands by what she said before the bill passed, “I stand by what I said there: when people see what is in the bill they will like -- and they will.”
The California Democrat said the software problems that plague the enrollment website Healthcare.gov are “terrible,” but “will be fixed.”
“We fumbled the rollout on this health care law,” Obama said at a press conference Thursday. The troubled debut of the enrollment process has not only created problems for tens of thousands of Americans seeking insurance coverage, but has fed a growing sense of unease among congressional Democrats as they look to the 2014 elections and at Obama’s waning popularity.
Obama repeatedly pledged “if you like your health care plan, you can keep your health care plan,” but that pledge turned out to be false for many Americans who bought coverage in the individual market. Their plans don’t comply with the minimum benefit requirements of the ACA and they got cancellation notices.
Obama said Thursday that he knew “how upsetting this can be for a lot of Americans, particularly after assurances they heard from me that if they had a plan that they liked, they could keep it. “
To ease the transition, Obama said he has decided to allow insurers to extend into next year current insurance plans that would otherwise be canceled. “Americans whose plans have been canceled can choose to re-enroll in the same kind of plan,” he said.
But some state insurance commissioners quickly rejected his idea. The National Association of Insurance Commissioners said allowing individual insurance plans that don’t comply with ACA requirements to continue into 2014 “threatens to undermine the new market, and may lead to higher premiums and market disruptions in 2014 and beyond.”
And it’s unclear if insurance companies can un-cancel thousands of policies that they are cancelling due to the ACA requirements. |
Govt decides to hike petrol, diesel prices
NEW DELHI: Government has decided to raise petrol and diesel prices, oil minister Murli Deora said on Friday, as part of a plan to move towards a market-determined fuel price regime.
While petrol prices go up by Rs 3.73 per litre, diesel has been hiked by Rs 2 per litre. LPG also goes up by Rs 35 per cylinder. Kerosene prices, however, will not be market-driven, say sources.
The decision follows a ministerial panel meeting on freeing up petrol prices and cutting subsidies on diesel, kerosene and cooking gas, to help rein in the fiscal deficit, which is projected at 5.5 percent of the gross domestic product in 2010/11 and free up revenues for other programmes.
The move will help boost profits of state-run oil firms that have been losing revenue from government-set lower prices. |
Tumorigenic Xenopus cells express several maternal and early embryonic mRNAs.
Recombinant cDNA libraries were constructed from poly(A)+ RNA isolated from different stages of oogenesis and embryogenesis from the clawed toad Xenopus laevis. Hybridization analyses were used to describe the accumulation of specific RNAs represented by these cDNA clones in oocytes, embryos, adult liver, a cell line derived from Xenopus borealis embryos (Xb693), and a tumorigenic substrain of that cell line (Xb693T). It was found that from 550 cDNA clones analysed, six sequences accumulate to higher titers in poly(A)+ RNA isolated from the tumorigenic cell line compared with the non-tumorigenic cell line. All six sequences were expressed at high levels during oogenesis, and the titers of three of these sequences decreased considerably during oogenesis. DNA sequencing of these three sequences followed by a computer search of protein data banks has identified them as coding for the glycolytic enzyme enolase, the ATP-ADP carrier protein, and a-tubulin. |
Q:
JMeter can JSON path assertion plugin match to an array?
In one of my tests I need to check that the data in an array matches to an expected result.
I send an API call and receive the following JSON response:
{
"sting": "value",
"another string": "value",
"array": ["value1","value2","value3"]
}
Using the JSON Path Assertion plugin I'm able to check each value individually.
$.array[0]
Is there a way to evaluate all the array's values in one assertion?
A:
Looking into Can't check an array with JSONPath Assertion. Update JSONPath to 2.1? currently it is not possible.
You can work it around using Response Assertion instead as follows:
Add JSON Path Extractor as a child of the request which returns above JSON and configure it as follows:
Destination Variable Name: anything meaningful, i.e. array
JSON Path Expression: $.array
Add Response Assertion after the JSON Path Extractor and configure it as follows:
Apply to -> JMeter Variable -> array
Pattern Matching Rules: Equals
Patterns to Test: ["value1","value2","value3"] - make sure there are no trailing spaces, new lines, etc.
Example Test Plan:
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<jmeterTestPlan version="1.2" properties="2.8" jmeter="2.13 r1665067">
<hashTree>
<TestPlan guiclass="TestPlanGui" testclass="TestPlan" testname="Test Plan" enabled="true">
<stringProp name="TestPlan.comments"></stringProp>
<boolProp name="TestPlan.functional_mode">false</boolProp>
<boolProp name="TestPlan.serialize_threadgroups">false</boolProp>
<elementProp name="TestPlan.user_defined_variables" elementType="Arguments" guiclass="ArgumentsPanel" testclass="Arguments" testname="User Defined Variables" enabled="true">
<collectionProp name="Arguments.arguments"/>
</elementProp>
<stringProp name="TestPlan.user_define_classpath"></stringProp>
</TestPlan>
<hashTree>
<ThreadGroup guiclass="ThreadGroupGui" testclass="ThreadGroup" testname="Thread Group" enabled="true">
<stringProp name="ThreadGroup.on_sample_error">continue</stringProp>
<elementProp name="ThreadGroup.main_controller" elementType="LoopController" guiclass="LoopControlPanel" testclass="LoopController" testname="Loop Controller" enabled="true">
<boolProp name="LoopController.continue_forever">false</boolProp>
<stringProp name="LoopController.loops">1</stringProp>
</elementProp>
<stringProp name="ThreadGroup.num_threads">1</stringProp>
<stringProp name="ThreadGroup.ramp_time">1</stringProp>
<longProp name="ThreadGroup.start_time">1456157004000</longProp>
<longProp name="ThreadGroup.end_time">1456157004000</longProp>
<boolProp name="ThreadGroup.scheduler">false</boolProp>
<stringProp name="ThreadGroup.duration"></stringProp>
<stringProp name="ThreadGroup.delay"></stringProp>
</ThreadGroup>
<hashTree>
<kg.apc.jmeter.samplers.DummySampler guiclass="kg.apc.jmeter.samplers.DummySamplerGui" testclass="kg.apc.jmeter.samplers.DummySampler" testname="jp@gc - Dummy Sampler" enabled="true">
<boolProp name="WAITING">true</boolProp>
<boolProp name="SUCCESFULL">true</boolProp>
<stringProp name="RESPONSE_CODE">200</stringProp>
<stringProp name="RESPONSE_MESSAGE">OK</stringProp>
<stringProp name="REQUEST_DATA">Dummy Sampler used to simulate requests and responses
without actual network activity. This helps debugging tests.</stringProp>
<stringProp name="RESPONSE_DATA">{
"sting": "value",
"another string": "value",
"array": ["value1","value2","value3"]
}</stringProp>
<stringProp name="RESPONSE_TIME">${__Random(50,500)}</stringProp>
<stringProp name="LATENCY">${__Random(1,50)}</stringProp>
<stringProp name="CONNECT">${__Random(1,5)}</stringProp>
</kg.apc.jmeter.samplers.DummySampler>
<hashTree>
<com.atlantbh.jmeter.plugins.jsonutils.jsonpathextractor.JSONPathExtractor guiclass="com.atlantbh.jmeter.plugins.jsonutils.jsonpathextractor.gui.JSONPathExtractorGui" testclass="com.atlantbh.jmeter.plugins.jsonutils.jsonpathextractor.JSONPathExtractor" testname="jp@gc - JSON Path Extractor" enabled="true">
<stringProp name="VAR">array</stringProp>
<stringProp name="JSONPATH">$.array</stringProp>
<stringProp name="DEFAULT"></stringProp>
<stringProp name="VARIABLE"></stringProp>
<stringProp name="SUBJECT">BODY</stringProp>
</com.atlantbh.jmeter.plugins.jsonutils.jsonpathextractor.JSONPathExtractor>
<hashTree/>
<ResponseAssertion guiclass="AssertionGui" testclass="ResponseAssertion" testname="Response Assertion" enabled="true">
<collectionProp name="Asserion.test_strings">
<stringProp name="-1728402013">["value1","value2","value3"]</stringProp>
</collectionProp>
<stringProp name="Assertion.test_field">Assertion.response_data</stringProp>
<boolProp name="Assertion.assume_success">false</boolProp>
<intProp name="Assertion.test_type">8</intProp>
<stringProp name="Assertion.scope">variable</stringProp>
<stringProp name="Scope.variable">array</stringProp>
</ResponseAssertion>
<hashTree/>
</hashTree>
</hashTree>
</hashTree>
</hashTree>
</jmeterTestPlan>
If your response may vary, i.e. array members order changes, you might need to consider scripting-based assertion, i.e. JSR223 Assertion instead
See How to Use JMeter Assertions in Three Easy Steps guide for comprehensive information on using JMeter Assertions in your tests.
|
Best Sellers
Tibetan / Vajrayana
Vajrayana Buddhism is most closely associated with Tibet and can be characterized by the figure of the siddha, the master whose spiritual realization is so profound that he or she has power over the phenomenal world, and in whom the profundity and vastness of absolute truth is fully and completely manifested. Many of our most well-known authors come from this tradition of Tibetan Buddhism .
[Note: The tags for the various schools are not definitive as many books span multiple traditions, etc. They are meant to use as a starting point for exploring this collection.]
Jamgön Kongtrul’s encyclopedic Treasury of Knowledge presents a complete account of the major lines of thought and practice that comprise Tibetan Buddhism. Among the ten books that make up this tour de force, Book Six is by far the longest—concisely summarizing the theoretical fields of knowledge to be studied prior to the cultivation of reflection and discriminative awareness. The first two parts of Book Six, contained in this… Read More
In this remarkable contemporary presentation of the theory and practice of Tibetan medicine, Dr. Yeshi Dhonden, twenty years the personal physician of H. H. the Dalai Lama, draws from over fifty years of practicing and teaching this ancient tradition of healing. This volume vividly presents a series of lectures Dr. Dhonden gave before a group of health care professionals at California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco. This lecture… Read More
The Quintessence Tantras of Tibetan Medicine is a thorough, detailed, and systematic analysis of the characteristics of healthy and diseased bodies. Discussed are the diagnostic techniques of pulse and urine analysis, principles of right diet, right lifestyle, and behavioral factors—and a treasury of knowledge about the beneficial applications of herbs, plants, spices, minerals, gems, etc. Also included are the subtle and psychological techniques of therapeutics, and the ethics and conduct… Read More
Tibetan medicine holistically restores and maintains balance of the body's various systems through a variety of treatments, including diet, behavior modification, and the use of medicine and accessory therapy. Tibetan medicine is delicately responsive to patients' complete symptom patterns—no complaint being disregarded. Its wide variety of curative techniques are clearly explained. Dr. Donden's book was seen on NBC's Dateline during a feature on Tibetan medicine and breast cancer. … Read More
This monumental translation—more than twenty-five years in the making—is at last complete. We are delighted to make available this comprehensive collection of the entire range of Buddhist teachings as they have been preserved in Tibet.
In Tibetan religious literature, Jamgön Kongtrül's Treasury of Knowledge in ten books stands out as a unique, encyclopedic masterpiece embodying the entire range of Buddhist teachings as they were preserved in Tibet. In his monumental Treasury… Read More |
Treatment implications of past trauma in borderline personality disorder.
Recent research and clinical experience have shown childhood trauma to be common in the histories of patients with borderline personality disorder. This article reviews the association between borderline personality disorder and early trauma, and how an awareness of the role of trauma may improve the treatment of patients with this disorder. Particularly when early trauma is in the form of childhood abuse, clinicians may be better able to understand the difficulties these patients experience in relational skills, affect tolerance, behavioral control, self-identity, and self-worth. Clinicians may be able to facilitate a stronger therapeutic alliance through acknowledgement of the patient's victimization and empathy with the effects of early trauma on the patient's life. Reframing the patient's experience as a consequence of childhood trauma is essential, especially when making traditional interventions such as interpretation and confrontation. The role of trauma in the development of borderline personality disorder suggests the need for modification of models of individual, family, and group psychotherapies that may allow more productive and successful treatment. |
--TEST--
Bug #71604: Aborted Generators continue after nested finally (3)
--FILE--
<?php
function gen() {
try {
throw new Exception(1);
} finally {
try {
yield;
} finally {
try {
throw new Exception(2);
} finally {
}
}
}
}
try {
gen()->rewind();
} catch (Exception $e) {
echo $e, "\n";
}
?>
--EXPECTF--
Exception: 1 in %s:%d
Stack trace:
#0 [internal function]: gen()
#1 %s(%d): Generator->rewind()
#2 {main}
Next Exception: 2 in %s:%d
Stack trace:
#0 %s(%d): gen()
#1 {main}
|
Q:
Hooking ReadFile WinAPI
Im using mhook C++ lib to hook WinAPI. I have a problem..
This is a hooked func:
BOOL WINAPI HookedReadFile(
_In_ HANDLE hFile,
_Out_ LPVOID lpBuffer,
_In_ DWORD nNumberOfBytesToRead,
_Out_opt_ LPDWORD lpNumberOfBytesRead,
_Inout_opt_ LPOVERLAPPED lpOverlapped)
{
if (inWork && hFile == CryptedFileHandle)
{
DWORD readedCount = 0;
DWORD toReadCount = nNumberOfBytesToRead;
LPBYTE Buf = new BYTE[toReadCount];
BOOL result = OriginalReadFile(hFile, Buf, toReadCount, &readedCount, NULL);
if (result && readedCount > 0)
{
// decryption routine will be here
std::copy(Buf, Buf + readedCount, (LPBYTE)lpBuffer);
}
lpNumberOfBytesRead = &readedCount;
delete[] Buf;
return result;
} else
return OriginalReadFile(hFile, lpBuffer, nNumberOfBytesToRead, lpNumberOfBytesRead, lpOverlapped);
}
This must works simple. If its crypted file app will decrypt bytes on the fly (simple xors).
But it does not works. I think the problem is in std::copy(Buf, Buf + readedCount, (LPBYTE)lpBuffer); becouse program cant read this file normaly.
A:
Here a major problem:
pNumberOfBytesRead = &readedCount;
Here you make pNumberOfBytesRead point to the local variable readedCount. Besides the problem of trying to "return" a pointer to a local variable (which goes out of scope at the next closing brace), you also have forgotten that arguments, even pointers, are passed by value so you only change your local copy of pNumberOfBytesRead.
What you should do instead is to use the dereference operator * and assign to it as a value
*pNumberOfBytesRead = readedCount;
As for the std::copy call, it looks legit. Maybe whatever problem you have is in some code you don't show us? Have you tried stepping through the code in a debugger?
|
1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a table, more particularly to a variable-length table which requires a minimum packaging volume to minimize transport costs.
2. Description of the Related Art
Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, a conventional variable-length table is shown to comprise a leg assembly 1 and a tabletop assembly 2. The leg assembly 1 includes two upright leg units 11. Each leg unit 11 includes two leg posts 110. The tabletop assembly 2 includes two leg mounting boards 20, two guide beams 21, two connecting beam sets, two fixed tabletop units 23 and a removable tabletop unit 24.
Each leg mounting board 20 is mounted on one of the leg units 11 such that the leg posts 110 of the corresponding leg unit 11 are connected to a bottom surface of two end portions of the leg mounting board 20. Each guide beam 21 is mounted to a top surface of one of the end portions of each of the leg mounting boards 20. The guide beams 21 are transverse to the leg mounting boards 20 and are parallel to each other. A pinion 210 is mounted on a top surface of an intermediate portion of each guide beam 21. The connecting beams 22 of each connecting beam set are disposed respectively on two sides of a corresponding one of the guide beams 21 and are mounted slidably thereto. The connecting beams 22 in each of the connecting beam sets are provided with a respective rack 220 that meshes with the pinion 210 on the corresponding one of the guide beams 21. Each of the fixed tabletop units 23 includes a semi-circular board member 231 with a bottom surface mounted on a respective one of the connecting beams 22 of each of the connecting beam sets. The racks 220 on the connecting beams 22 and the pinions 210 on the guide beams 21 ensure simultaneous lateral movement of the connecting beams 22 of the connecting beam sets when the fixed tabletop units 23 are pushed toward each other to obtain a shorter table length or are pulled apart to obtain a longer table length. The removable tabletop unit 24 includes a rectangular board member 241 that is to be disposed removably between the fixed tabletop units 23 when the fixed tabletop units 23 are pulled apart so as to obtain the longer table length. A locking unit 25 is provided on the bottom surfaces of the fixed and removable tabletop units 23, 24 to secure the removable tabletop unit 24 to the fixed tabletop units 23 when the longer table length is obtained (see FIG. 2).
Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, each of the fixed tabletop units 23 further has a curved flange 230 that extends downwardly from the board member 231 for concealing the guide beams 21 and the connecting beams 22 of the connecting beam sets so as to enhance appearance of the table when the shorter table length is obtained. The removable tabletop unit 24 further has an opposite pair of flanges 240 that are mounted fixedly on and that extend downwardly from the board member 241. The flanges 240 cooperate with the flanges 230 of the fixed tabletop units 23 so as to conceal the guide beams 21 and the connecting beams 22 of the connecting beam sets when the longer table length is obtained.
As mentioned beforehand, the removable tabletop unit 24 is removed, and the fixed tabletop units 23 are pushed toward each other to obtain the shorter table length. Albeit a space (T) is formed between the top surface of the leg mounting boards 20 and the bottom surface of the board members 231 of the fixed tabletop units 23, the removable tabletop unit 24 cannot be concealed in the space (T) because the sum of the height of the flanges 240 and the thickness of the board member 241 is greater than the depth (t) of the space (T), thereby arising in a storage problem for the removable tabletop unit 24 when the shorter table length is in use.
As shown in FIG. 3, the conventional variable-length table is usually dismantled during transport to reduce the space occupied thereby. The fixed tabletop units 23 are pushed toward one another to obtain the shorter table length, the removable tabletop unit 24 is disposed on top of the fixed tabletop units 23, and the leg posts 110 are detached from the tabletop assembly 2 and are disposed in a U-shaped space that is confined by the removable tabletop unit 24. If the removable tabletop unit 24 can be concealed within the space (T), the packaging volume of the conventional variable-length table will be further reduced to result in lower transport costs.
It is noted that the height of the flanges 230, 240 may be reduced so that the sum of the height of the flanges 240 and the thickness of the board member 24 is less than or equal to the depth (t) of the space (T) in order to permit concealing of the removable tabletop unit 24 in the space (T). However, doing so would adversely affect the appearance of the table since the flanges 230, 240 will be incapable of concealing fully the guide beams 21 and the connecting beams 22 of the connecting beam sets. Alternatively, the depth (t) of the space (T) may be increased so that the removable tabletop unit 24 can be concealed in the latter. The appearance of the table is not adversely affected since the flanges 230, 240 still conceal fully the guide beams 21 and the connecting beams 22. |
Industrial Sweepers For Warehouse Cleaning
Storage facilities and warehouses should always be clean so that goods remain safe. In order to maintain cleanliness in the area, owners should invest in the right cleaning equipment. Industrial sweepers can make cleanliness possible.
ndustrial sweepers are great for large areas like warehouses. With these quality cleaning machines, business owners can ensure that they can always get the cleanliness they expect. There are many reasons why every business should have this kind of equipment available in their warehouse. One reason is that industrial sweepers comes in a variety of sizes and models to suit various cleaning situations. No matter how big or small the area is, there are always suitable models available. Among the most popular models on the market today, are ride-on and walk-behind sweepers.
Ride-On Sweepers
Ride-on sweepers are ideal for large indoor and outdoor cleaning needs. These are the best tools to use for factories and warehouses. They are very user-friendly as they are designed to provide comfort for operators and save them from injuries and strain. Most models have adjustable seats, and they produce minimal noise.
Ride-on sweepers come with many special functions that allow operators to finish sweeping jobs quickly and easily. Since they can ride on these models, they can work for longer periods of time. They can also finish more work in a shorter amount of time.
The newest ride-on sweepers can utilize three different cleaning functions at the same time. They can sweep, scrub and dry floors. They are also compact and highly durable. Ride-on sweepers can clean a variety of surfaces and can reach even the narrowest areas. They are powered by either battery or gasoline.
Walk-Behind Sweepers
Walk-behind sweepers have the capacity to reach difficult to clean areas. They are portable, and they can be used on any kind of floors. They can even be used on carpets. They have adjustable and easy to manoeuver brooms. These machines never leave dirt behind because their brooms are very flexible. This technology allows operators to tackle the harshest floor and surface conditions.
Walk-behind sweepers produce very minimal noise and do not emit any smells or fumes. These units are designed to effectively filter dust to ensure that warehouses are safe and healthy places to work and store goods. This equipment guarantees excellent cleaning without spots and marks. It can endure daily industrial and commercial cleaning use. These walk-behind cleaners may be run using gas or batteries. Regardless of the power source, this equipment can handle both indoor and outdoor cleaning jobs. Walk-behind machines are very efficient. Just like ride-on units, some models can sweep, scrub and dry at the same time.
Ride-on and walk-behind sweepers provide countless benefits for warehouse owners. They can provide ease and comfort for operators and excellent cleaning results. Their numerous features include efficient filters, high-capacity motors and flexibility to make them a perfect choice for warehouses and factories. |
Thea The Awakening - Launch Trailer!
Thea: The Awakening is a survival game set in a Fantasy world full of mystical creatures from Slavic Mythology. The player discovers the awakening of the world after the great darkness that lasted hundreds of years. In a turn-based strategic gameplay, as one of the Slavic gods, the player takes control over a small group of his believers and tries to bring some light and hope to the world of Thea. |
HUGO BOSS Orange jackets always sell well around the year, with lightweight jackets and windbreakers seeing their success in the summer, and the much thicker padded and quilted coats and gilets keeping people around the world warm in the winter. Then you have your BOSS Orange all year round classics such as the leather jacket offering style and quality whatever the weather, occasion or season. The HUGO BOSS summer ranges see a much thinner style of garment, offering windbreakers, bomber jackets and hooded jackets for the spring showers all proving popular, while carrying the HUGO BOSS Orange branding and obvious quality throughout. With plenty of colour, zip fronts and fold away hoods the spring summer jackets collection doesn't look out of place on the warmest of days, knowing the British weather is certainly changeable. HUGO BOSS for the winter is a completely different style with padded and quilted coats keeping people dry and warm while looking good. Recent times have seen the introduction of almost a puffa style jacket, while the hooded gilet is back and keeping in trend with the latest fashions.
HUGO BOSS not only has a global appeal as being one of the best premium designer brands available, but also has a definitive all year round ability to keep with the trends and give HUGO BOSS Orange fans what their looking for 365 days a year. Authorised stockist of HUGO BOSS clothing Mainline Menswear have an amazing range of BOSS jackets, coats and clothing that will provide seasonal outerwear for fans of the premium designer brand around the world especially in the USA and UK. |
Lupus headaches in childhood-onset systemic lupus erythematosus: relationship to disease activity as measured by the systemic lupus erythematosus disease activity index (SLEDAI) and disease damage.
The Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Disease Activity Index (SLEDAI) is the most commonly used measure of disease activity for children with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). For headaches to be scored in the SLEDAI as a symptom of active disease, they have to be nonresponsive to narcotic analgesia. This may affect the overall estimation of disease activity, especially because headaches are common among children with SLE and narcotic analgesia is rarely used for headache therapy in paediatrics. Moreover, the importance of headaches for the development of damage and their relation to other clinical parameters and outcomes has not been well described for children with SLE. We reviewed the medical charts of an inception cohort of children (n = 63) who were newly diagnosed with SLE. Information on headaches and other disease parameters was obtained. Disease activity and damage were measured using the SLEDAI and the Systemic Lupus International Collaboration Clinics/American College of Rheumatology Damage Index (SDI), respectively. It has been shown that the accumulated burden of active disease as measured by serial SLEDAI scores over time is one of the best predictors of eventual damage to children with SLE. New-onset or significant increase of severe and/or persistent headaches (LHA) were reported in 43% of the patients during a mean follow-up of 3.6 years. LHA occurred preferentially among patients with elevated levels of antiphospholipid antibodies (aPL) (P < 0.02) and only 6% of all LHA episodes were treated with narcotics and thus considered for the measurement of disease activity in the SLEDAI. LHA were unrelated to proxy-measures of disease activity, such as the need to intensify therapies. When used in children, the insensitivity of the SLEDAI to capture LHA did not seem to decrease the responsiveness of the SLEDAI to detect clinically important worsening of disease, or negatively impact on its ability to predict damage. |
Following this month’s launch of the original The Banner Saga, Switch version of The Banner Saga 2 will launch on June 7, publisher Versus Evil and developer Stoic Studio announced.
The Banner Saga 2 first launched for PC in April 2016, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One in July 2016, and iOS and Android in September 2016.
Here is an overview of the game, via its Steam page: |
Foster, William Z.
The bankruptcy of the American labor movement
click to zoom
The Trade Union Educational League, Chicago. [1922], 62p., wraps. Labor Herald library no. 4. "An indictment of the American labor movement for refusal to engage in political activity, for tolerating reactionary and incompetent leadership, and for general 'bankruptcy.' The cause of the backwardness of American workers is found in dual unionism." *Seidman F240 |
Bridging the gap between point-of-care testing and laboratory testing in hemostasis.
Point-of-care (POC) testing within hemostasis is an expanding field, with the most widely used test being POC international normalized ratio (INR). Many of these devices are being used in a nonlaboratory setting by staff with no laboratory training. In the United Kingdom, external quality assessment (EQA) is provided by the organization UK National External Quality Assessment Scheme for Blood Coagulation (UK NEQAS BC). Participants within the UK NEQAS BC POC INR program are largely based in primary care (77%), with the majority of EQA samples and patients tests being performed by nurses (70%). Many of these centers do not have support from the laboratory staff and may, therefore, not understand the requirement for a robust quality control (QC) system comprising both internal quality control (IQC) and EQA. From data acquired through a questionnaire of these UK NEQAS BC users, we observed that 2% of the centers never perform IQC tests, only 29% perform IQC tests when starting a new batch of test strips, and just 15% carry out IQC with each clinic as recommended by the UK guidelines. The imprecision of EQA tests was greater for POC users than in the UK NEQAS BC hospital laboratory program, with average coefficients of variation for a 2-year period of 11.0 and 7.3%, respectively. This may reflect the handling of EQA samples rather than the imprecision of the method, due to the lack of laboratory training amongst POC staff. POC INR in the UK could greatly benefit from more interaction and support from laboratories to these POC testers. |
Uncategorized PayPal on Blockchain: ‘Why Don’t We Just Use a Database?’
If something works, why change it? PayPal’s Harper Reed has dismissed “boring” Blockchain technology, choosing to stick to the traditional databases.
‘Why Don’t We Just Use a Database?’
In the midst of the “chainwashing” trend, some companies seem to be taking the high road and staying clear of Bitcoin’s underlying Blockchain technology. This is the case with PayPal which, despite its ambitions to become the dominant global online payments platform, has distanced itself from this prospect.
When asked about the potential for blockchain technology at the 4YFN conference, Harper Reed, the Director of Software Development for PayPal, dismissed it stating:
Whenever people say why don’t we use the blockchain to do this, I think why don’t we just use a database?
This is, in fact what PayPal has been doing all along with its own centralized online payments app Venmo, which is now processing nearly $20 billion USD per year and is much in vogue among millennials, in particular.
Reed went on to reference Bitcoin’s “dark market” image as the medium of exchange for the deep web economy, suggesting that the technology would benefit from a rebrand:
When I think of blockchain I think of drugs, and I’m not really a drug user so I find it really boring.
PayPal & Bitcoin
However, this comes as a relatively refreshing stance towards Blockchain, despite Reed’s misconception regarding Bitcoin being a “drug currency.”
PayPal seems to be more focused on results and on the user-experience itself, rather than on hype and the technology that works in the background, which was the key point of Harper Reed’s talk at 4YFN, the startup spin-off of Mobile World Congress in Barcelona.
Nevertheless, PayPal has had several “encounters” with blockchain technology and Bitcoin itself. In June 2016, PayPal partnered with the digital asset exchange and wallet Coinbase, allowing users to sell bitcoin and cash out to their PayPal accounts.
Peter Thiel, PayPal co-founder and close adviser to President Donald Trump, has also expressed his interest in the technology, having invested in several Bitcoin startups himself.
He once stated:
PayPal had these goals of creating a new currency. We failed at that, and we just created a new payment system. I think Bitcoin has succeeded on the level of a new currency.
Thiel is becoming an extremely important adviser for Donald Trump, who is increasingly being associated with Bitcoin supporters like 21 Inc. CEO Balaji S. Srinivasan and the recently appointed U.S. Budget Chief Mick Mulvaney, also known as “Bitcoin Congressman.”
Will PayPal retain its competitive edge in the future despite shunning blockchain technology? Share your thoughts below!
Images courtesy of Shutterstock, queerty.com, wikipedia.com |
2nd Caucasus Army Corps
The 2nd Caucasian Army Corps (Russian: 2-й Кавказский армейский корпус) was a division of the military of the Russian Empire which existed from 1879 to 1918, including the time period of World War I.
Composition
51st Infantry Division
Part of
10th Army: 1914
1st Army: 1914–1915
9th Army: 1915
13th Army: 1915
10th Army: 1915–1917
Commanders
General G. J. Berchman: 1914
General Samad bey Mehmandarov: 1914–1917
Lieutenant General G. I. Choglokov: 1917
References
A. K. Zalesskij I mirowaja wojna. Prawitieli i wojennaczalniki. wyd. WECZE Moskwa 2000.
Category:Corps of the Russian Empire |
Image copyright Getty Images Image caption Kaesong is a key source of revenue for Pyongyang
South Korea is to suspend operations at a jointly-run industrial park in North Korea following the North's recent rocket launch and nuclear test.
Seoul said all operations at the complex would halt, to stop the North using its investment "to fund its nuclear and missile development".
Kaesong is one of the last points of co-operation between the two Koreas and a key source of revenue for Pyongyang.
It came as Japan imposed new sanctions against the North following the launch.
They include a ban on North Korean vessels coming into port in Japan and on vessels from other countries that have visited the state,
The US warned on Tuesday that the North could soon have enough plutonium for nuclear weapons.
South Korea, the US, Japan and others see Sunday's rocket launch - ostensibly to put a satellite into space - as cover for a banned test of missile technology.
Read more:
Image copyright Getty Images Image caption In 2013, Kaesong was shut down for five months as ties between the two Koreas deteriorated
Tensions have risen over the past month since North Korea carried out a fourth nuclear test in early January.
"All our support and efforts... were taken advantage of by the North to develop its nuclear weapons and missile programmes," the South's Unification Minister Hong Yong-pyo told reporters.
The announcement came amid reports that the North's military chief, Ri Yong-gil, had been executed on corruption charges.
South Korea's state news agency Yonhap quoted unnamed sources saying the general, who was appointed in 2013, had been deemed guilty of corruption and pursuing personal gains.
There was no confirmation of the report.
Reuters news agency also reported the execution but did not identify its source or how the information had been obtained.
What is Kaesong?
Joint industrial complex located inside North Korea just across from the demilitarised zone
Launched in 2004 - it is a source of badly-needed cash for the North
124 companies operate there from industries including clothing, textiles, car parts and semiconductors
South Korean firms pay about $100m (£69m) a year in wages - about 54,000 North Koreans work there
Last shut down in April 2013 - for four months - after US-South Korean military drills angered North Korea
Read more: What is the Kaesong industrial complex? |
<!DOCTYPE html>
<style>
body { background-color: white; }
#outer
{
width: 100px; height: 100px;
border: 1px solid black;
}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<div id="outer"></div>
</body>
</html> |
/* -*-mode: c; tab-width: 8; indent-tabs-mode: t; c-basic-offset: 8 -*-*/
/*
** Copyright (C) 2008-2013 Dirk-Jan C. Binnema <djcb@djcbsoftware.nl>
**
** 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, 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, write to the Free Software Foundation,
** Inc., 51 Franklin Street, Fifth Floor, Boston, MA 02110-1301, USA.
**
*/
#if HAVE_CONFIG_H
#include "config.h"
#endif /*HAVE_CONFIG_H*/
#include <glib.h>
#include <stdlib.h>
#include <unistd.h>
#include <time.h>
#include <locale.h>
#include "test-mu-common.h"
#include "mu-msg.h"
#include "utils/mu-str.h"
static MuMsg*
get_msg (const char *path)
{
GError *err;
MuMsg *msg;
if (g_test_verbose ())
g_print (">> %s\n", path);
err = NULL;
msg = mu_msg_new_from_file (path, NULL, &err);
if (!msg) {
g_printerr ("failed to load %s: %s\n",
path, err ? err->message : "something went wrong");
g_clear_error (&err);
g_assert (0);
}
return msg;
}
static gboolean
check_contact_01 (MuMsgContact *contact, int *idx)
{
switch (*idx) {
case 0:
g_assert_cmpstr (mu_msg_contact_name (contact),
==, "Mickey Mouse");
g_assert_cmpstr (mu_msg_contact_email (contact),
==, "anon@example.com");
break;
case 1:
g_assert_cmpstr (mu_msg_contact_name (contact),
==, "Donald Duck");
g_assert_cmpstr (mu_msg_contact_email (contact),
==, "gcc-help@gcc.gnu.org");
break;
default:
g_assert_not_reached ();
}
++(*idx);
return TRUE;
}
static void
test_mu_msg_01 (void)
{
MuMsg *msg;
gint i;
msg = get_msg (MU_TESTMAILDIR4 "/1220863042.12663_1.mindcrime!2,S");
g_assert_cmpstr (mu_msg_get_to(msg),
==, "Donald Duck <gcc-help@gcc.gnu.org>");
g_assert_cmpstr (mu_msg_get_subject(msg),
==, "gcc include search order");
g_assert_cmpstr (mu_msg_get_from(msg),
==, "Mickey Mouse <anon@example.com>");
g_assert_cmpstr (mu_msg_get_msgid(msg),
==, "3BE9E6535E3029448670913581E7A1A20D852173@"
"emss35m06.us.lmco.com");
g_assert_cmpstr (mu_msg_get_header(msg, "Mailing-List"),
==,
"contact gcc-help-help@gcc.gnu.org; run by ezmlm");
g_assert_cmpuint (mu_msg_get_prio(msg), /* 'klub' */
==, MU_MSG_PRIO_NORMAL);
g_assert_cmpuint (mu_msg_get_date(msg),
==, 1217530645);
i = 0;
mu_msg_contact_foreach (msg, (MuMsgContactForeachFunc)check_contact_01,
&i);
g_assert_cmpint (i,==,2);
mu_msg_unref (msg);
}
static gboolean
check_contact_02 (MuMsgContact *contact, int *idx)
{
switch (*idx) {
case 0:
g_assert_cmpstr (mu_msg_contact_name (contact),
==, NULL);
g_assert_cmpstr (mu_msg_contact_email (contact),
==, "anon@example.com");
break;
case 1:
g_assert_cmpstr (mu_msg_contact_name (contact),
==, NULL);
g_assert_cmpstr (mu_msg_contact_email (contact),
==, "help-gnu-emacs@gnu.org");
break;
default:
g_assert_not_reached ();
}
++(*idx);
return TRUE;
}
static void
test_mu_msg_02 (void)
{
MuMsg *msg;
int i;
msg = get_msg (MU_TESTMAILDIR4 "/1220863087.12663_19.mindcrime!2,S");
g_assert_cmpstr (mu_msg_get_to(msg),
==, "help-gnu-emacs@gnu.org");
g_assert_cmpstr (mu_msg_get_subject(msg),
==, "Re: Learning LISP; Scheme vs elisp.");
g_assert_cmpstr (mu_msg_get_from(msg),
==, "anon@example.com");
g_assert_cmpstr (mu_msg_get_msgid(msg),
==, "r6bpm5-6n6.ln1@news.ducksburg.com");
g_assert_cmpstr (mu_msg_get_header(msg, "Errors-To"),
==, "help-gnu-emacs-bounces+xxxx.klub=gmail.com@gnu.org");
g_assert_cmpuint (mu_msg_get_prio(msg), /* 'low' */
==, MU_MSG_PRIO_LOW);
g_assert_cmpuint (mu_msg_get_date(msg),
==, 1218051515);
i = 0;
mu_msg_contact_foreach (msg,
(MuMsgContactForeachFunc)check_contact_02,
&i);
g_assert_cmpint (i,==,2);
g_assert_cmpuint (mu_msg_get_flags(msg), ==, MU_FLAG_SEEN|MU_FLAG_LIST);
mu_msg_unref (msg);
}
static void
test_mu_msg_03 (void)
{
MuMsg *msg;
const GSList *params;
msg = get_msg (MU_TESTMAILDIR4 "/1283599333.1840_11.cthulhu!2,");
g_assert_cmpstr (mu_msg_get_to(msg),
==, "Bilbo Baggins <bilbo@anotherexample.com>");
g_assert_cmpstr (mu_msg_get_subject(msg),
==, "Greetings from Lothlórien");
g_assert_cmpstr (mu_msg_get_from(msg),
==, "Frodo Baggins <frodo@example.com>");
g_assert_cmpuint (mu_msg_get_prio(msg), /* 'low' */
==, MU_MSG_PRIO_NORMAL);
g_assert_cmpuint (mu_msg_get_date(msg),
==, 0);
g_assert_cmpstr (mu_msg_get_body_text(msg, MU_MSG_OPTION_NONE),
==,
"\nLet's write some fünkÿ text\nusing umlauts.\n\nFoo.\n");
params = mu_msg_get_body_text_content_type_parameters(
msg, MU_MSG_OPTION_NONE);
g_assert_cmpuint (g_slist_length ((GSList*)params), ==, 2);
g_assert_cmpstr ((char*)params->data,==, "charset");
params = g_slist_next(params);
g_assert_cmpstr ((char*)params->data,==,"UTF-8");
g_assert_cmpuint (mu_msg_get_flags(msg),
==, MU_FLAG_UNREAD); /* not seen => unread */
mu_msg_unref (msg);
}
static void
test_mu_msg_04 (void)
{
MuMsg *msg;
msg = get_msg (MU_TESTMAILDIR4 "/mail5");
g_assert_cmpstr (mu_msg_get_to(msg),
==, "George Custer <gac@example.com>");
g_assert_cmpstr (mu_msg_get_subject(msg),
==, "pics for you");
g_assert_cmpstr (mu_msg_get_from(msg),
==, "Sitting Bull <sb@example.com>");
g_assert_cmpuint (mu_msg_get_prio(msg), /* 'low' */
==, MU_MSG_PRIO_NORMAL);
g_assert_cmpuint (mu_msg_get_date(msg),
==, 0);
g_assert_cmpuint (mu_msg_get_flags(msg),
==, MU_FLAG_HAS_ATTACH|MU_FLAG_UNREAD);
mu_msg_unref (msg);
}
static void
test_mu_msg_multimime (void)
{
MuMsg *msg;
msg = get_msg (MU_TESTMAILDIR4 "/multimime!2,FS");
/* ie., are text parts properly concatenated? */
g_assert_cmpstr (mu_msg_get_subject(msg),
==, "multimime");
g_assert_cmpstr (mu_msg_get_body_text(msg, MU_MSG_OPTION_NONE),
==, "abcdef");
g_assert_cmpuint (mu_msg_get_flags(msg),
==, MU_FLAG_FLAGGED | MU_FLAG_SEEN |
MU_FLAG_HAS_ATTACH);
mu_msg_unref (msg);
}
static void
test_mu_msg_flags (void)
{
unsigned u;
struct {
const char *path;
MuFlags flags;
} msgflags [] = {
{ MU_TESTMAILDIR4 "/multimime!2,FS",
MU_FLAG_FLAGGED | MU_FLAG_SEEN |
MU_FLAG_HAS_ATTACH },
{ MU_TESTMAILDIR4 "/special!2,Sabc",
MU_FLAG_SEEN }
};
for (u = 0; u != G_N_ELEMENTS(msgflags); ++u) {
MuMsg *msg;
MuFlags flags;
g_assert ((msg = get_msg (msgflags[u].path)));
flags = mu_msg_get_flags (msg);
if (g_test_verbose())
g_print ("=> %s [ %s, %u] <=> [ %s, %u]\n",
msgflags[u].path,
mu_flags_to_str_s(msgflags[u].flags,
MU_FLAG_TYPE_ANY),
(unsigned)msgflags[u].flags,
mu_flags_to_str_s(flags, MU_FLAG_TYPE_ANY),
(unsigned)flags);
g_assert_cmpuint (flags ,==, msgflags[u].flags);
mu_msg_unref (msg);
}
}
static void
test_mu_msg_umlaut (void)
{
MuMsg *msg;
msg = get_msg (MU_TESTMAILDIR4 "/1305664394.2171_402.cthulhu!2,");
g_assert_cmpstr (mu_msg_get_to(msg),
==, "Helmut Kröger <hk@testmu.xxx>");
g_assert_cmpstr (mu_msg_get_subject(msg),
==, "Motörhead");
g_assert_cmpstr (mu_msg_get_from(msg),
==, "Mü <testmu@testmu.xx>");
g_assert_cmpuint (mu_msg_get_prio(msg), /* 'low' */
==, MU_MSG_PRIO_NORMAL);
g_assert_cmpuint (mu_msg_get_date(msg),
==, 0);
mu_msg_unref (msg);
}
static void
test_mu_msg_references (void)
{
MuMsg *msg;
const GSList *refs;
msg = get_msg (MU_TESTMAILDIR4 "/1305664394.2171_402.cthulhu!2,");
refs = mu_msg_get_references(msg);
g_assert_cmpuint (g_slist_length ((GSList*)refs), ==, 4);
g_assert_cmpstr ((char*)refs->data,==, "non-exist-01@msg.id");
refs = g_slist_next (refs);
g_assert_cmpstr ((char*)refs->data,==, "non-exist-02@msg.id");
refs = g_slist_next (refs);
g_assert_cmpstr ((char*)refs->data,==, "non-exist-03@msg.id");
refs = g_slist_next (refs);
g_assert_cmpstr ((char*)refs->data,==, "non-exist-04@msg.id");
refs = g_slist_next (refs);
mu_msg_unref (msg);
}
static void
test_mu_msg_references_dups (void)
{
MuMsg *msg;
const GSList *refs;
const char *mlist;
msg = get_msg (MU_TESTMAILDIR4 "/1252168370_3.14675.cthulhu!2,S");
refs = mu_msg_get_references(msg);
/* make sure duplicate msg-ids are filtered out */
g_assert_cmpuint (g_slist_length ((GSList*)refs), ==, 6);
g_assert_cmpstr ((char*)refs->data,==,
"439C1136.90504@euler.org");
refs = g_slist_next (refs);
g_assert_cmpstr ((char*)refs->data,==,
"4399DD94.5070309@euler.org");
refs = g_slist_next (refs);
g_assert_cmpstr ((char*)refs->data,==,
"20051209233303.GA13812@gauss.org");
refs = g_slist_next (refs);
g_assert_cmpstr ((char*)refs->data,==,
"439B41ED.2080402@euler.org");
refs = g_slist_next (refs);
g_assert_cmpstr ((char*)refs->data,==,
"439A1E03.3090604@euler.org");
refs = g_slist_next (refs);
g_assert_cmpstr ((char*)refs->data,==,
"20051211184308.GB13513@gauss.org");
refs = g_slist_next (refs);
mlist = mu_msg_get_mailing_list (msg);
g_assert_cmpstr (mlist ,==, "Example of List Id");
mu_msg_unref (msg);
}
static void
test_mu_msg_references_many (void)
{
MuMsg *msg;
unsigned u;
const GSList *refs, *cur;
const char* expt_refs[] = {
"e9065dac-13c1-4103-9e31-6974ca232a89@t15g2000prt.googlegroups.com",
"87hbblwelr.fsf@sapphire.mobileactivedefense.com",
"pql248-4va.ln1@wilbur.25thandClement.com",
"ikns6r$li3$1@Iltempo.Update.UU.SE",
"8762s0jreh.fsf@sapphire.mobileactivedefense.com",
"ikqqp1$jv0$1@Iltempo.Update.UU.SE",
"87hbbjc5jt.fsf@sapphire.mobileactivedefense.com",
"ikr0na$lru$1@Iltempo.Update.UU.SE",
"tO8cp.1228$GE6.370@news.usenetserver.com",
"ikr6ks$nlf$1@Iltempo.Update.UU.SE",
"8ioh48-8mu.ln1@leafnode-msgid.gclare.org.uk"
};
msg = get_msg (MU_TESTMAILDIR2 "/bar/cur/181736.eml");
refs = mu_msg_get_references(msg);
g_assert_cmpuint (G_N_ELEMENTS(expt_refs), ==,
g_slist_length((GSList*)refs));
for (cur = refs, u = 0; cur; cur = g_slist_next(cur), ++u) {
if (g_test_verbose())
g_print ("%u. '%s' =? '%s'\n",
u, (char*)cur->data,
expt_refs[u]);
g_assert_cmpstr ((char*)cur->data, ==, expt_refs[u]);
}
mu_msg_unref (msg);
}
static void
test_mu_msg_tags (void)
{
MuMsg *msg;
const GSList *tags;
msg = get_msg (MU_TESTMAILDIR4 "/mail1");
g_assert_cmpstr (mu_msg_get_to(msg),
==, "Julius Caesar <jc@example.com>");
g_assert_cmpstr (mu_msg_get_subject(msg),
==, "Fere libenter homines id quod volunt credunt");
g_assert_cmpstr (mu_msg_get_from(msg),
==, "John Milton <jm@example.com>");
g_assert_cmpuint (mu_msg_get_prio(msg), /* 'low' */
==, MU_MSG_PRIO_HIGH);
g_assert_cmpuint (mu_msg_get_date(msg),
==, 1217530645);
tags = mu_msg_get_tags (msg);
g_assert_cmpstr ((char*)tags->data,==,"Paradise");
g_assert_cmpstr ((char*)tags->next->data,==,"losT");
g_assert_cmpstr ((char*)tags->next->next->data,==,"john");
g_assert_cmpstr ((char*)tags->next->next->next->data,==,"milton");
g_assert (!tags->next->next->next->next);
mu_msg_unref (msg);
}
static void
test_mu_msg_comp_unix_programmer (void)
{
MuMsg *msg;
char *refs;
msg = get_msg (MU_TESTMAILDIR4 "/181736.eml");
g_assert_cmpstr (mu_msg_get_to(msg),
==, NULL);
g_assert_cmpstr (mu_msg_get_subject(msg),
==, "Re: Are writes \"atomic\" to readers of the file?");
g_assert_cmpstr (mu_msg_get_from(msg),
==, "Jimbo Foobarcuux <jimbo@slp53.sl.home>");
g_assert_cmpstr (mu_msg_get_msgid(msg),
==, "oktdp.42997$Te.22361@news.usenetserver.com");
refs = mu_str_from_list (mu_msg_get_references(msg), ',');
g_assert_cmpstr (refs, ==,
"e9065dac-13c1-4103-9e31-6974ca232a89@t15g2000prt"
".googlegroups.com,"
"87hbblwelr.fsf@sapphire.mobileactivedefense.com,"
"pql248-4va.ln1@wilbur.25thandClement.com,"
"ikns6r$li3$1@Iltempo.Update.UU.SE,"
"8762s0jreh.fsf@sapphire.mobileactivedefense.com,"
"ikqqp1$jv0$1@Iltempo.Update.UU.SE,"
"87hbbjc5jt.fsf@sapphire.mobileactivedefense.com,"
"ikr0na$lru$1@Iltempo.Update.UU.SE,"
"tO8cp.1228$GE6.370@news.usenetserver.com,"
"ikr6ks$nlf$1@Iltempo.Update.UU.SE,"
"8ioh48-8mu.ln1@leafnode-msgid.gclare.org.uk");
g_free (refs);
//"jimbo@slp53.sl.home (Jimbo Foobarcuux)";
g_assert_cmpuint (mu_msg_get_prio(msg), /* 'low' */
==, MU_MSG_PRIO_NORMAL);
g_assert_cmpuint (mu_msg_get_date(msg),
==, 1299603860);
mu_msg_unref (msg);
}
static void
test_mu_str_prio_01 (void)
{
g_assert_cmpstr(mu_msg_prio_name(MU_MSG_PRIO_LOW), ==, "low");
g_assert_cmpstr(mu_msg_prio_name(MU_MSG_PRIO_NORMAL), ==, "normal");
g_assert_cmpstr(mu_msg_prio_name(MU_MSG_PRIO_HIGH), ==, "high");
}
static gboolean
ignore_error (const char* log_domain, GLogLevelFlags log_level,
const gchar* msg, gpointer user_data)
{
return FALSE; /* don't abort */
}
static void
test_mu_str_prio_02 (void)
{
/* this must fail */
g_test_log_set_fatal_handler ((GTestLogFatalFunc)ignore_error, NULL);
g_assert_cmpstr (mu_msg_prio_name(666), ==, NULL);
}
static void
test_mu_str_display_contact (void)
{
int i;
struct {
const char* word;
const char* disp;
} words [] = {
{ "\"Foo Bar\" <aap@noot.mies>", "Foo Bar"},
{ "Foo Bar <aap@noot.mies>", "Foo Bar" },
{ "<aap@noot.mies>", "aap@noot.mies" },
{ "foo@bar.nl", "foo@bar.nl" }
};
for (i = 0; i != G_N_ELEMENTS(words); ++i)
g_assert_cmpstr (mu_str_display_contact_s (words[i].word), ==,
words[i].disp);
}
int
main (int argc, char *argv[])
{
int rv;
g_test_init (&argc, &argv, NULL);
/* mu_msg_str_date */
g_test_add_func ("/mu-msg/mu-msg-01",
test_mu_msg_01);
g_test_add_func ("/mu-msg/mu-msg-02",
test_mu_msg_02);
g_test_add_func ("/mu-msg/mu-msg-03",
test_mu_msg_03);
g_test_add_func ("/mu-msg/mu-msg-04",
test_mu_msg_04);
g_test_add_func ("/mu-msg/mu-msg-multimime",
test_mu_msg_multimime);
g_test_add_func ("/mu-msg/mu-msg-flags",
test_mu_msg_flags);
g_test_add_func ("/mu-msg/mu-msg-tags",
test_mu_msg_tags);
g_test_add_func ("/mu-msg/mu-msg-references",
test_mu_msg_references);
g_test_add_func ("/mu-msg/mu-msg-references_dups",
test_mu_msg_references_dups);
g_test_add_func ("/mu-msg/mu-msg-references_many",
test_mu_msg_references_many);
g_test_add_func ("/mu-msg/mu-msg-umlaut",
test_mu_msg_umlaut);
g_test_add_func ("/mu-msg/mu-msg-comp-unix-programmer",
test_mu_msg_comp_unix_programmer);
/* mu_str_prio */
g_test_add_func ("/mu-str/mu-str-prio-01",
test_mu_str_prio_01);
g_test_add_func ("/mu-str/mu-str-prio-02",
test_mu_str_prio_02);
g_test_add_func ("/mu-str/mu-str-display_contact",
test_mu_str_display_contact);
g_log_set_handler (NULL,
G_LOG_LEVEL_MASK | G_LOG_FLAG_FATAL|
G_LOG_FLAG_RECURSION,
(GLogFunc)black_hole, NULL);
rv = g_test_run ();
return rv;
}
|
All you heard for the last eight years was Democrats squalling about those irresponsible, reckless Republicans and their threats (sometimes actually followed through on) to shut down the federal government over one point of legislative contention or another. They were called obstructionists and worse. Democrats positioned themselves as the guardians of responsible governing and Republicans were painted to look like a bunch of rootin, tootin cowboys who would put Washington, DC out of business if it meant saving a dime off the federal budget.
Cut to eleven months later…
And look who’s threatening to shut down the federal government! And what’s more shocking? Democrats aren’t making these threats to stand up for some precious domestic program that might get slashed in the budget. They aren’t doing it to save Obamacare. They aren’t even doing it for some pet project like Planned Parenthood! They’re not doing it for ANYTHING that has ANYTHING to do with ANY of their voters! They’re not doing it for U.S. citizens at all! This has to be the first time in history that a political party has threatened to grind DC to a halt, all for the benefit of people who don’t belong in this country in the first place.
Yeah, Democrats, THIS is the hill you really want to die on. Good luck with that.
Democrats and Republicans have until December 8 to reach a deal on the next spending bill or the federal government runs out of money. This is a cliff we’ve come to again and again, and the two parties almost always find a way to make a deal at the last possible moment when all of the political posturing is done. But this time may be different. Democrats (for some reason) believe they have to come through for Obama’s Dreamers and make sure they get amnesty. For a while, it seemed as though President Trump was on board with that as well, but he seems to have realized that he was not elected to turn Obama’s illegal executive orders into law. So we may have a genuine impasse here.
The media is going to try to blame this one on Republicans as they always do, but we really don’t think there is any political danger here. Democrats have to be crazy if they think granting amnesty to illegal immigrants is a winning political issue – especially if they aren’t willing to give away a mountain in border security measures as part of the deal. So far, it seems they are not. Certainly, they’ve signaled they’re not willing to fund the Wall. So what good are they?
We really think this could be political suicide for the Democrats, but ONLY If Trump and the GOP stand firm. If they get soft in the wake of negative media attention – which is going to be an inevitable part of this – then this could turn out to be really bad for Trump’s presidency, to say nothing of our immigration crisis. Let’s hope it doesn’t turn out that way.
About the Author
NO!! YOU’RE SHUTTING IT DOWN OVER RIDICULOUS TAX BILL, MEDICARE AND DOWN THE ROAD SOCIAL SECURITY WILL BE ON CHOPPING BLOCK!!!
cv
It’s already on the chopping block, along with everything else. They’ll keep everything afloat by continued malfeasance as long as they can—borrowing, devaluing the dollar, keeping interest rates close to zero, and other schemes. All the while not making the effort to do their one and most important job: create an annual budget.
gotabgood
Here is the reason if there is going to be a shut down.
Come on folks… your not dumb as rocks….. haven’t you seen the movies where someone was brained washed or lost their memory and something snapped and it all came back….. snap…SNAP…..SNAP….SNAP!!!!
President Trump greets supporters Wednesday in St. Charles, Mo., before his speech on taxes.
Whitney Curtis/Getty Images
President Trump traveled to St. Charles, Mo., on Wednesday to promote the GOP tax plan now facing a possible vote in the Senate by the end of the week. He also spoke more generally about his record during his first year in office. “I will tell you this in a non-braggadocious way,” Trump said. “There has never been a 10-month president that has accomplished what we have accomplished.”
Here’s a closer look at some of the president’s claims.CLAIM: The GOP tax plan is primarily aimed at workers on the lower rungs of the income ladder.“Our focus is on helping the folks who work in the mailrooms and the machine shops of America,” Trump said. “The plumbers, the carpenters, the cops, the teachers, the truck drivers, the pipe fitters. The people that like me best.”
Some elements of the GOP plan would benefit such workers, including a larger standard deduction and an expanded child tax credit. But blue-collar workers are hardly the bill’s main focus. According to the nonpartisan Tax Policy Center,less than 20 percent of the total tax savings in 2019 would go to workers making $87,400 or less (the bottom 60 percent of the income distribution). These workers fare even worse after 2025, when the individual tax cuts in the Senate bill are set to expire. By 2027,people making less than $54,700 would see a tax increase under the Senate bill, while those making between $54,700 and $93,200 would see a modest cut, accounting for less than 3 percent of the bill’s total tax savings.CLAIM: The GOP tax plan is hard on rich people, like President Trump.“This is going to cost me a fortune, this thing, believe me. This is not good for me,” Trump said. “I have some very wealthy friends, not so happy with me. But that’s OK.”
Upper-income taxpayers would be the biggest beneficiaries of the GOP plans to reduce the corporate tax rate to 20 percent from 35 percent and to lower taxes on so-called pass-through companies, which are taxed at the individual rate. They would also benefit from elimination of the alternative minimum tax and their heirs would benefit from a higher threshold on the inheritance tax. According to the Tax Policy Center, 63 percent of the total savings from the Senate bill in 2019 would go to taxpayers earning more than $150,100 (the top 20 percent of earners), while nearly a quarter would go to the top 5 percent — people making upwards of $303,200.
Top earners do even better after 2025, when the individual tax cuts expire but other provisions continue. By 2027, 90 percent of the total tax savings go to people making more than $154,900 (the top 20 percent of earners) and nearly 62 percent go to the top 1 percent — people making more than $912,100.
(He is lying.. another point is this will raise the debt 1.5 trillion dollar!!!! Who will pay for that and HOW??? Medicare, Social Security… They have been after SS since FDR, they want to privatize it….. ask yourself WHY?????? They see money to be made, at the expense of the retirees!)
CLAIM: Job growth has surged under President Trump.
“We’ve created nearly 2 million jobs,” Trump said. “Think of it. We used to lose millions. Now we’ve created 2 million jobs since I won the election.”
The U.S. job market continues to improve, with unemployment in October falling to its lowest level in 17 years. (November job numbers will be out next week.) Since February — Trump’s first full month in office — U.S. employers have added an average of 169,000 jobs each month. This is slightly below the pace of 199,000 jobs per month during the comparable period in 2016.
CLAIM: Economic growth has surged under President Trump.
“The Commerce Department announced this morning that our GDP, that’s the big one, in the third quarter, grew even faster than they reported previously,” Trump said. “Now it comes in at 3.3 percent, which is the largest increase in many years. And if we didn’t have the hurricanes, we would have been at 4 percent.”
Gross domestic product, or GDP, is the broadest estimate of the U.S. economy, and the Commerce Department did say Wednesday that GDP grew at 3.3 percent between July and September — an upward revision from the department’s earlier estimate. The last time GDP grew that rapidly was in 2014. Forecasters anticipate somewhat slower growth in the last three months of the year. Macroeconomic Advisers, for example, is predicting fourth-quarter growth of 2.5 percent.
Analysts originally expected that a spate of hurricanes would temporarily depress growth in the third quarter, but that didn’t happen. In fact, by closing ports, the storms may have slowed imports and temporarily boosted GDP.
CLAIM: Speaking of hurricanes …
President Trump acknowledged that Puerto Rico has not bounced back as quickly from storm damage as Texas and Florida.
“Puerto Rico has been a very tough situation because of the fact that it was in very, very bad shape before the storms ever hit,” the president said. “But they’re doing well there and it’s healing and it’s getting better. And we’re getting them power and all of the things they have to have.”
Conditions in Puerto Rico have slowly improved since Hurricane Maria struck more than two months ago. But 38 percent of the island still lacks electricity and nearly 8 percent is without reliable drinking water.
I have always hated hypocrisy. Sure wish the people that call themselves Democrats would wake up and kick the Elite trash that has taken over their party out to the street. Kind of like what the Republicans are doing to their elites.
mrpoohead
Who owns the government – big business? Are they commies? No!
How can the President “Drain the Swamp”?
How can the President do anything??
Ed Shick
He is having to contend with more than half of the 535 dead beats in Congress ! How many are even concerned with the People back Home , Donald is doing great but he has to many Lazy Do Nothings !
cv
They aren’t lazy do-nothings. If they did nothing, they’d be less toxic. They’re into Ponzi schemes and fraud. 142 trillion dollars in federal liabilities tells us all we need to know.
buffalobob826
If the president can he should make it illegal for Congress to do insider trading and make it retroactive these con artist are stealing from the American people but if anyone else does it they would go to jail and forfeit everything they own
cv
Unfortunately he can’t, because Congress makes the laws. But he should file a lawsuit in the Supreme Court calling them out, The SC dropped the ball on those laws—probably deliberately or due to influence.
Fredsgirl1
I am no constitutional scholar but know that the president does not have the power to remove elected officials, and do not think the SC has either. Only the voters can do that.
Deplorable wizard
You are right, it’s only the voters that can remove them.
However, it is possible for the Executive to write and sign an order which could give more power back to the voters. Such an order might contain provisions to petition the votes of no confidence from voters outside of a congressional district due to the national nature of the business conducted by a congressman. For instance; national voters could remove the duties of conyers or franklin, or mccain because decisions made by the congress effect the nation not just local jurisdictions. A no confidence vote essentially disqualiifies the politicians vote, treating it as an absence not a yea or nay.
Fredsgirl1
Before Trump could do that he would need to break himself from his OWN business interests that he is still making millions from today while in office. And as for laziness. It would be easier to count the weekends that Trump plays GOLF than to count the days he actually WORKS for the country.
Ed Shick
I think about all Obama did was take Vacations and Play Golf , at the taxpayers expense , Now we have Trump working very hard night and day ! , He is doing it for nothing , he gives his wages to the Sept. of interior , He is doing one great job ! Obama doubled our National Debt ,and while working for George Soros , he tried any way to hurt America , and his Adviser Valerie Jarrott was a Communist !, Sure glad that Hilary did not get elected , She should be in Prison for Treason as should many in the Swamp!
Sgt. York
This was the hype on Ovomit only worse. So the Pres plays Golf most CEO’s Anf college grads do as well. College teaches a golf course so it’s a part of their life. As a working stiff I never had the time,24 hr on call or the green fees. My kids came first. Devilcrats play as much golf as the Repubs so your whining is a mute subject.
buffalobob826
These are federal judges that were appointed not elected. And as for vacations and golf obumer beat him on that with our tax money. Now go cry for your girl who lost and may end up in jail
TPhantom1
Hey ! !! Let’s see your proof of that ! ! So he is not entitled to those millions he has earned or the royalties from as he cannot actively participate because he’s President. Oh, that’s right you probably feel entitled to a part of that. Well go ask him he might recommend where you could get a job. The salary would of course be based upon your abilities. The Dems would love that evidence you are obviously in possession of as would the alphabet media sources not to mention Mueller your proof of the Presidents misconduct you as an american citizen it’s your duty to report it! ! ! As for the golf he plays, usually he is doing business or has guests and does Presidential duties while on the course!! How many times where there members of congress etc he played golf with while trying to get an adgenda passed ? ? Oh, that’s right he OWNS the course..,guess he doesn’t have to pay greens fees…..Oh, I didn’t hear but which charity is he donating this quarters salary as President to ? He even while having dinner with the Chinese President took time out of his dinner to authorize a missile strike!! Oh yeah he waists tax payers dollars… Bet you voted for killery too ? ? Rhetorical….think we all know the answer.
The Redhawk
and are BOUGHT like Carcasses by Soros types and BIG Companies and WS ….TER LIMITS are a MUST
Fredsgirl1
Don’t leave the Koch brothers out of the list. They have donated billions to the Republicans and forced a change in proposed legislation by threatening to withdraw funding if changes that they choose are not made. That’s buying a government for you.
It doesn’t matter which party you support, if you work with your hands, or on your feet and earn less that $50,000 a year, or there abouts, you are being robbed of fair and honest government. It’s puzzle to me why anyone pays taxes for the little we get back for them.
David Gearhart
The Koch brothers are 59 th on the list of top political donors. The top donors are all democrats. Such as Hillary’s fund raisers were all for her rich elites.
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
GOOD THOUGHT, We are slave, we start paying taxes to support WWII with the promise, no more after the war. WHICH ONE? LOL.
Federal Reserve is Private, has not Gold Reserve.
Bank lose billions, call Federal Reserve, they print more money, everything is well. Anyone else, You, They and Me, loss our money. No one print for us.
They are above the law.
Nobody Else. Lovefren
The Redhawk
between RINOS and (D) o nothing MORONS we are SCREWED
cv
In a nutshell, no question!
The Redhawk
Well GUN sales are UP gain!
Gerry Costa
I don’t think they are lazy Ed — I think they are spineless, greedy and very corrupt on both sides of the aisle.
he’s probably afraid of ending up like all the other people that were going to rat on the king rat clinton
Ed Shick
The Clinton’s still have a few Body Bags left, Is there one of the ten Commandments tat they have not broke ??
The Redhawk
She is working on O BAMA
bttrap
they did them all
The Redhawk
then he better get a permit to carry.. be locked and Loaded 24/7 and have SS protection or go back home … it is not a job for te feint at heart
Sgt. York
Right on but out the door as he is either a closet RINO or a complete puss.
cv
He can’t do much, of course. Congress makes the laws. And they have made many laws—not bandied about—that protect them from the consequences of their own malfeasance. Trump should file some lawsuits in the SC against some of those practices.
mrpoohead
Name one of these laws.
cv
Do your own homework, guy! It’s a google away…
mrpoohead
A big fat zero – confirming you have the brain capacity of an amoeba. Thanks!
OpusX
lick my ass, libcunt!!!
Fredsgirl1
How to drain the swamp? Don’t appoint a bunch or criminals and sociopaths in the first place like Trump did and is still doing.
Sgt. York
First by cleaning out the swamp,having full backing from the congress and the people. Pres Trump has very little of this as socialism is trying its best thru the Devilcrat party to take America into the happy land of a third world country as in Venezuela.
mrpoohead
Would seem you do not know how the government operates -what socialism?
Sgt. York
After 83 yer in have seen the gov do many things good and bad. Your Not recognizing Socialism is the play th3 liberals are wanting. People who are gullible to what is being slid in. Look around in the libe4al Devilcrat party and th3 thing they are trying to slide in!schools of instance trying to teach our kids Islamic foolishness!ways to pray and th3 libe4al socialists backing this anti American teachings.Open you eyes and your ears it all here if youe Davy enough to see and hear it.
mrpoohead
Democrats are conservative with social responsibility, a far cry from socialism. More like Thatcher’s Tories, a million miles from UK Labour – socialists.
I’m more worldly and experienced than yourself – suggest you join reality and not the sofa and TV news sensationalism.
Islam – get over it. ISIS represent less than 1% of Muslims, who are the one’s mostly fighting them. The rest want what most folk want – money, hospitals, education.
Sgt. York
I’ve been in Six countries and spent years in the AF but to listen to you your a world traveler living in many countries and to me that’s bs. More experience but at what settin behind a desk and eating out? Please no more of your bs as I hate a bragger who cannot back it up. Just sit back and KMCA. No more as I just puked your trash up.
mrpoohead
I was being modest. Jack Kerouac was my inspiration – packed my bags at 22 and worked and hitched my way around the world for the next 14 years. Hitched from Cairo to Cape Town, did jump over Sudan, Hong Kong to Moscow, all over Europe, Far East to the Middle East, Oceania, N America.
Suspect in the AF was more desk sitting. Off you go!
Wayne Olmsted
i CALL Bull Shite!!!
mrpoohead
Never refuted!
OpusX
lick my ass, libcunt!!!!
mrpoohead
Ooooh goody, the ignorant and inbred have arrived. I suggest you take your sexual perversion to Hollywood, am sure you’ll find someone there to fulfil your fantasies. Think the street name is “rimming”, after that you’d best go home to the basement and get spanked by mummy. Naughty boy! Then you can teach her you sad little man.
Wayne Olmsted
Look out! The @s$ has come back to BRAY at us again!
mrpoohead
Educate but most too stupid!
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
YES, We are in Serious Deadly Crisis for the Survival of America and Western Civilization. We have been invaded and our Cities, Government taken by the Enemy. Muslims Religious
Intolerance ia here. We are in danger. They need to leave our country. They will eliminate our way of life. They already are telling in our faces, ISLAM WILL CONTROL THE WORLD. We are letting them do it. This is our wrong. We will pay the price. The enemy is inside of the house. EXPELLED ALL SHARIA LAW MUSLIMS FROM AMERICA. THEY MUST GET OUT OF HERE. DEMOCRACY IS DEAD.
bttrap
don’t expell them SHOOT THEM like you would do to rats in the dump they are just a different breed of rats
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
Dear bttrap, to kill them we need a civil war. we do not want that. We want justice under our Constitutional Law. This is our country, None of the Obama, Clintons. Bushes, No one by the American People own this country. I am very serious. I am afraid in the near future if we do not resolved our problems, we will be in civil war. I do not want this. This is why I expressing my opinion. I love my adoptive country, I should been born here. But I did it anyway. I love all my fellow americans, I do not love the ones who wants to kill us and destroyed our country. I hope my wishes come true. otherwise I know. Civil War is coming to us. Lovefren
bttrap
most of the problem is the muslims that have cells here until we get rid of these muslim cells there might be a civil war
TPhantom1
Cells ? They are just the supporting ground or shock troops. It’s the political faction that is being elected to office by rotating their population to get their candidates elected into political office. IT’s WHAT THEY DO! Look at everywhere else they have invaded and overthrown there is a SOP. They want to be seen as the religion of price. Then there’s the ‘radicals’ that of course the ‘pieceful’ Muslims rebuke their behavior but do nothing to assist in stopping their activities. Why because they follow the same play book. While that is holding your attention the Sunni are moving quietly into political positions of authority. Research it! Look at Michigan, Delaware and other states where this is happening right now! Obviously talking isn’t getting it done. Already you are siding with EFREN …..he doesn’t want civil war BULLSH*T ! ! It’s inevitable by his actions ! ! Not ours ! He, They are the invaders trying to change the USA, I say pack them all up and send them back to Babylon where they came from. Yeah, the Biblical one where they belong.
Edward
Like I said take out the power grid and millions will die without fireing a single shot, well from a Muslim gun anyway. I have seen the can goods empty out of a big grocery store over night here during the last hurricane and the power went out for weeks.
Robert Zraick
there is a difference between civil war and internal war. Ridding the foreign enemies infecting our country is not civil war. But civil war is when we start fighting each other.
We need to stand against all enemies, foreign and domestic.
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
Yes, Domestic first. Our Children will be destroyed by them. The Foreign ones also, to give a safe home for our children. Save them first. Lovefren
sandraleesmith46
I agree with your position, Efren; my family has been here over 10 generations. but your feelings are those of an AMERICAN, not merely an US citizen. There is a difference. I really don’t want to see a civil war, but unless there’s a drastic turn, from the direction in which we are currently headed, I don’t see any other outcome either.
Wayne Olmsted
AMEN! My family has been here since 1638 and I/we fully agree with you!
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
I love America, I will reject my commitment to medicine and become a freedom fighter. I love the innocent of our children, they need to be protected by adults like me.
Ms Sandra you are absolutely right my spirit is in tune with our Constitution. Lovefren
sandraleesmith46
That’s very clear; and I believe you can do both; help the children stay safer and use your medical skills in the doing. These days there are a lot of unhealthy and unconstitutional regulations being pushed as laws. Fight them from within the system. Expose them so parents can make real, honest, healthy decisions and choices for their children as well as themselves. I take my fight to city hall; and act there, regularly.
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
Life, requires dignity, joy, hope for the future. The best gift for tomorrow, are our children. Thank you for your values, they are equal to mine. Love demand Service, no sacrifices.
Lovefren
sandraleesmith46
Thank-you for yours as well, and I agree; life does require all those; which were enumerated in our Declaration and guaranteed under our Constitution, before politicians got to messing with the latter document; I doubt James Madison would recognize much of what is now claimed it says.
Deborah Pratt
OK, this country has been ‘barreling along’ in this direction right through the ‘Bush, Clinton, Obama’ terms! It has gathered up a pretty good ‘head of steam’ by now. Pres Trump is there putting on the ‘brakes’ and trying to ‘correct’ all that! You don’t really think we’ll change direction over-night, do you? Yet, it ‘is’ happening against all odds!! Change is happening faster than the ‘opposition’ ever imagined it could! It has them in a panic and they are resisting with all their might! In fact, they call their ‘group’ The Resistance! Appropriate!! We need to do all we can to help Pres Trump achieve our agenda and get back the country we love!! So, start on a ‘personal’ level and start by supporting or replacing those who need it in our towns, cities and states!! Who-ever, where-ever needed!! Get ‘educated’!! These people we put in government positions need ‘vetting’ every bit as much as the immigrants coming in here!! They may need a bit of ‘re-educating’ as well. Being in a government position does not mean you get to do whatever you ‘please’!! If you do illegal or immoral things–you WILL be prosecuted!!
sandraleesmith46
Preaching to the choir; been attending city council meetings, not just “voting” people in, but then supervising what they do as members of the council, for years. We have good people on our council. I have a friend in my apartment building who styles herself as a “flaming lib from Berkeley”, and even she asked my advice about people running for the city council this last election. She KNOWS I know them and would tell her honestly about them. However, MY oath, has been, and will remain, to the Constitution, not any individual person.
We can change everything overnight, Declare Civil Emergency, call our military, round everyone who is Americaphobic, No Constitutional Rights for These Criminals and send them to FIMA CAMPS, and then expel them all.
Also eliminate the Federal Reserve, CIA, and any other institution outside the law of the land. The Constitution of the United States of America
And restart Constitutional Law. Respecting each other branch of government as intended by our founding fathers and start the Best Human Experience ever Created by Man The United States of America. GOD HELP US ALL. LOVEFREN
Ray Sharer
Sorry to make anyone feel worse, but, I have been predicting a culture war in this country in the very forseeable future and I now believe it is nearer and nearer.
Thus Americans, keep your powder dry and I hope we do not need it and there is no civil war in America again. But, do not, repeat, do not drop your guard for these bastard muslims are predicting the complete takeover of our beloved country for several years.
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
Dear Mr. Sharer, history move by facts, Hitler did rose to power in years, everyone knew, no one did anything. Actually Hitler got all the money helped, needed to do the plan. The same happen now on Our Country. America is not a Democracy. The Federal Reserve was created by signature of the Executive President Wilson, and so on after. President Trump is in danger, right now. He has to arrest everyone who want Him out, He was elected, by us. We need to defend him. America is at risk. Arrest all the Criminals, under Military Court. America is at risk, use the Military, to defend, America. President Trump, arrest all criminals who are against you, to prevent a horrible civil war. Lovefren.
Tasine
I’ve not been predicting civil war, but I have been daily predicting that if something legal is not done SOON to stop this insanity that civil war WILL occur. If our authorities do nothing to stop this insanity, the people will have two choices: do nothing and accept being ruled by tyrants…….OR PHYSICALLY FIGHT. I cannot fathom our elected officials who are worthless and dangerous taking steps to keep our America the shining light it once was……before democrats went rogue.
Edward
It’s as simple as taking out the power grid. Millions will die without fire in a shot
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
YES, I HOPE
MILLIONS CAN SURVIVE, THIS HORRIBLE REALITY.
TPhantom1
No, you don’t. I you come here to abide by our Constitution and laws then you are welcome to live here and enjoy our freedoms. If not, go home to your country of origin and turn in into what you want it to be. We like our country we’ve fought for it’s freedoms and will do so again. Civil war ? I think not at all, it’s called a purge a repelling of unwelcome invaders who have an adjenda to destroy our Republic. You are not welcome if you want to change the Constitution. Did you came here with the intention of turning this nation into the cesspool you left ? You have a choice, go home, or if you want let’s play the game…..roll the dice.
Tasine
What did he say about changing the Constitution? I’m sure you must know that our Constitution has been changed before….depending on what changes are wanted can be bad, but also can be good. There’s a change or two that I wouldn’t mind seeing, and I am a native American and I do not believe the Constitution is PERFECT, but it’s good enough for me.
Since 1787, changes have been made to the United States Constitution 27 times by amendments (changes). The first ten of these amendments are together called the Bill of Rights.
Robert Zraick
Some of the amendments were a big mistake. Stick with the bill of rights and abolition of slavery. While we are at it, get rid of the IRS and the Federal Reserve.
Tasine
I can’t argue about that. I can think of dozens of things within our government that SHOULD BE ELIMINATED.
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
YES, NO PRIVATE ORGANIZATION HAS THE RIGHT TO PRINT OUR MONEY. NO FEDERAL RESERVE. ELIMINATE THIS CRIMINAL INSTITUTION FOR THE SAKE OF AMERICA.
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
The Constitution of the United State of America, got birth from the Spirituality and Wisdom of the Native of this land and the best of Christianity From the souls, heart and minds of the Human American Prophets, Presidents Jefferson and Madison, and Treasure Secrerary Hamilton. Thank you, I love Lakotas. I have a Lakota name, Happy Bird. shinKala
waste. LOVE YOU ALL. MY BEAUTIFUL AMERICANS.
Lovefren
sandraleesmith46
DID you even READ what Efren said???? HE has the spirit that MAKES an American, and isn’t merely an US citizen, with a piece of paper and no spirit for this nation!
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
Thank you Ms Sandra. Lovefren
sandraleesmith46
You’re most welcome, Efren; I really HATE when I see someone do something so mean spirited as that based on lack of comprehension, or intent. Your words were perfectly clear, as is your spirit! And my friends call me Sandy.
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
Sandy, our father is God you are Thy daughter, whom has reached her own goodness. You are a little Goddess. Lovefren
sandraleesmith46
Yes, He is, but I’m just an old retired nurse who cares about America, and the future for all, saved by His Grace.
Actually, no I hadn’t read post you were referring to . If you had looked at the time lines you’d have seen that. Also in your intimate wisdom and bottomless wealth of understanding did you actually read what I’d said in my post ‘prior’ to Sandra post you asked if I’d read. We actually agreed on the adherence to the Constitution and Bill of rights, all of it . Including any people who come here with a doctrine that does not agree with our Constitution and intends to overthrow that Constitution. Even in their doctrine it states they are to lie and agree to be assimilated into the foreigner’s lands to overcome them, convert them when in power or exterminate them if they won’t follow Islam or the Quran . That is an enemy and needs to be deported and in no way catered to. Period. It’s part of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights for a reason ! Don’t believe it ? Look at the places they’ve been relocated to….talk to those residents. Then get back to me after your personal education. Eyes and feet on the ground. We were not in disagreement just know your enemy’s operational procedures and learn from that. Already these ‘ friends ‘ are assuming political office and enforcing sharia law. Not Constitutional law…….explain that. Why is an immigrant intent on immediate entry into political office ? ? By the admission in the post changing laws ? ? Did I miss something? By the way my comprehensive insite was earned fighting for the rights you are so willing to throw away because of your great wisdom. Where’d you get such intelligence ? But please, continue it’s your right…..for now. As is my right to question a person’s motives and voice or write my opinion. Have a Sunni day…..
sandraleesmith46
You commented on a comment you didn’t read and accused a man of something the POLAR opposite of what he actually SAID; it was THAT I criticized! BTW, Efren is almost certainly of Hispanic descent; not Islamic. Most of the Hispanics who come here LEGALLY do so to BE Americans; and make good citizens. So keep your sunni day yourself.
AH! I understand more Italiano than I speak, I did better with French; but grew up in a predominantly Italian area, so picked up a bit. All the romance languages are pretty close, so piecing out bits of them is possible with 1 as a base. My Dad used to fly into Milano back in the late ’40s- early ’70s, pretty often, and brought home home movies of all his stops so we got to be familiar with many of them. It was a beautiful city back then.
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
Cara Mia, Io so no Tanti felice, retornare a la Italia de mio amore. I Canto in Italiano bellisimo. OK. no more italIan. My mother italian descent from Milano.I have a very beautiful tenor italuan voice I call myself Dr Joy.
Kindly, Efren
sandraleesmith46
Like Luciano and Enrico? A couple of Italian tenors I’ve had the delight to hear on occasion. I’m spoiled that way. I keep Met on Demand on my Roku.
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
My mother who is in heaven now, made me sing for her. I can sing Napolitano songs, life has one reason only, Joy. Everything else are window dressing. Lovefren
Edward
You don’t have to worry about a civil war because the blacks don’t have the numbers yet. Not unless they can get the the M’s Muslims and Mexican to join them. A lot of blacks will turn muslin anyway .
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
You got it Sir.
Robert Zraick
When peaceful revolution is made impossible, violent revolution becomes inevitable.
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
YES, Please tweet our President. THE MILITARY CAN ARREST ALL TRAITORS. WE THE PEOPLE SUPPORT OUR PRESIDENT TRUMP.
Fredsgirl1
Be careful what you wish for. What is M.D. stand for, Mad Dumbass? The way I feel about the mess people like you elected to run this country I feel very strongly about wiping out certain people, and they are not Muslims. With the load of hate you are carrying and spewing forth society would be much better off without your kind.
He was very specific about Sharia law Muslims… Do you have an issue with that?
bttrap
the society would be better off if you get the hell out of this country that the voters chose to have. you need to go to the sand box in the middle east and play in your sand box but watch out for the kitty cats they like to crap in the sand box and might cover you along with their crap
Wayne Olmsted
AMEN!
bttrap
thank you
Wayne Olmsted
There are many who would look best as the centerpiece at a funeral…
Most of them are so called Liberals.
TPhantom1
If they don’t leave………as they are an illegal invading force following doctrine that is contrary to the ‘OUR’ this countries Constitution and it’s laws.
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
They want Sharia Law. No Our Constitution. We need to go to their country where they come from.
They will kill us, there And Here They also killed us too.
AMERICANS ARE DEAD EVEN IN OUR OWN COUNTRY. We can not defend ourselves.
Fredsgirl1
Go to the bathroom and find your medication. Then take some. You will feel better when you do. The above is insane rubbish. There have been Muslims in this country for decades and they have made no move to take over, and have no plans to do so. It’s only in the twisted minds like yours that they do.
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
Sharia Law wants to mutilate you, cutting your clitoris, leaving without the pleasure of loving the man of your dreams. so you will be castrated human just to have babies, and the pleasure of sex is only for the man you are lying in bed with. Please stop talking without knowledge, they are using you, educate yourself, for them you are not a human being, only a machine to give babies to them.
Beeotchstewie the deplorable
Islam is the personal army of Satan, they do his bidding. No other religion is okay with rape, murder, slavery, beheading, killing their own children and pedophelia. They consider rape, of women or livestock a right not a crime! The Koranimals need to be sent packing or to hell, there is no grey area. They openly state their goal is to set up a global Islamic caliphate under Sharia. Sharia adherents need to be eradicated in the USA.
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
Yes, you are right. We need to deported them. They have the audacity to tell us in our face, ISLAM WILL CONTROL THE WORLD.
According to them only Islam and Sharia Lawless can exist, any other religion does not. Also our Constitution will be eliminated. Only Sharia Law in America. Wake up, Sharia Law is here to KILL US ALL. I REALLY MEAN IT. THEY WANT US DEAD.
NO MORE CHRISTIANS IN AMERICA. TAKE SHARIA OR DIE. THIS IS REAL. WE HAVE BEEN SERVED. Lovefren
Beeotchstewie the deplorable
Never forget this, we follow the one and only God, and we also know who wins in the end. It’s not Islam. The Koranimals are plain evil, vile murderers, rapists, thieves and pedophiles.
sandraleesmith46
That’s IF they don’t toss acid in your face, cane you unmercifully, and/or bury you up to your chest and STONE you to death for some imagined crime. That’s what sharia means for women too.
James Ratliff
There is no difference between the taliban and christian republicans.
The GOP is a terrorist network. We need to treat them as such. Just to show you what a filthy liar you are again.
Oh well, THERE’s a “source” for you! Keep listening to those hate mongers. It’ll do you well. The Taliban is as apt to remove your head as look at you; Christians don’t do that just for disagreeing with us!
I published no lie. That just says exactly what a filthy POS like you acts like. You are too stupid and so delusional it is no different than being a in a mental hospital. You don’t make sense. You can be a loyal patriotic American human beings. Or you can be the filth that is republican. You cannot be both.!
Wayne Olmsted
Everything you said is a lie!! You wouldn’t know the truth if it jumped up and asked you to dance! This country is just now beginning to turn around and point the right way and you want to see it head back down the Crapper! What is wrong with you???
James Ratliff
Everything you said is based upon stupidity.
Frank Taylor
Clearly you are a Democrat. Republicans freed the slaves , ended segregation. Lincoln was a Republican and Democrats fought the civil rights act and accepting that we all are equal and have the same God given rights, no matter our skin color, national origin or sex, meaning of course male or female. I am a Republican but have not hatred for those who have different views from me.
James Ratliff
Clearly you are a republican. You talk about things your party did 150 years ago as tho it has something to do with today. Today there is no republican with the morals or the intelligence to make sound rational decisions. You like Trump know nothing about your own history or what your party has done. Let me ask you if you can name one piece of republican legislation in the last 30 years or more that has been good for all of America?
Frank Taylor
Reagan tax cuts and the laws and Federal intervention that ended segregation. Both were initiated by Republicans. I liked the John Kennedy philosophy also. Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country. There are a lot of good Republicans and also a lot of good Democrats. When there is compromise of viewpoints, our country gains from that compromise.
James Ratliff
Now there you go. You don’t know history so you are doomed to repeat it. Reagan’s tax cuts doubled the debt. Republicans fought integration like the morons they are.
I told you you could not name anything. What an idiot!
Frank Taylor
A majority of both parties voted for the 1964 civil rights act. This is a great example of two sides coming together to do what is right for our country. Obama is first President in history to double accumulated national debt. My bad, he is a Democrat, so that is ok, but if he was a Republican, he would be evil.
Frank Taylor
Every President has added to accumulated national debt going back to Eisenhower and Kennedy. Reagan did add nearly $2 trillion to national debt. Add up the total debt during any recent president’s service and we see the debt rise. Obama was by far the worst in that department, but that is ok since he was a Democrat.
James Ratliff
I have to hand it to you. Besides being an idiot and a liar, you really hated that n!@@er in the white house didn’t you? What you know about history rivals your understanding of the economy and I’ll bet like O’Reiley you don’t know why the tides come in and out. What a f cking lying POS moron…
James Ratliff
tbone_61 • 25 minutes ago
This was sadly inevitable. The election of Trump showed that a significant portion of our nation is too ignorant to understand the realpolitik of propaganda, manipulation, greed, and cultist fealty that is deconstructing America. And while the continued elevation of the monied class occurs by both parties, only the GOP are so craven about it that literally Nothing. Else. Matters. Integrity, honesty, duty, fidelity, public service, equal justice under law…dead.
The good news is that this is one of the necessary steps on the road away from fascism. In a few years time – when the economics once again reveal trickle-down to be the farce it has always been – the right will have to confront the losses in income equality, social stability and security that will occur. It is only then, when they have been whacked in the head with the board of personal suffering, will this stupid herd start turning slowly away from the slaughterhouse.
Advance apologies to my children and grandchildren that my generation is simply
too weak to stop them.
Frank Taylor
I am really not clear on how serious your mental illness is. You are so negative. Trickle down is or can be defined as a corporation or individual who owns a business, deciding to hire persons to carry out the normal functions of that business. Assuming the business is successful, those working for him continue to get paid for services rendered. The profits or a portion of them are passed down to those who work for the company. Trickle is probably the wrong word for that, but maybe it does apply. If the business fails, the jobs go away, but dollars do get trickled down if business is successful. There are good and bad on both sides of the political arena. Obama administration doubled our national debt, not to mention played a large part in the diminishing of racial relations. He was not supportive of law enforcement nor our military and in fact cut our military. Blaming law enforcement for what happened during an arrest without all of the facts is a major mistake and he did this several times, taking the side of a criminal against our law enforcement.
James Ratliff
That makes sense . Being a CONservative you don’t know sh t to start with.
Tom Pesta
I could reply that all loony leftists are atheists – but that’s not true either. We can only judge individuals based on their behavior. I can evaluate you only based on what you have written here – hence my conclusion is that you are a complete a-whole.
James Ratliff
Takes one to know one. Snowflake.
You can be a loyal patriotic American or you can be a republican. You cannot be both.
Tom Pesta
I am a loyal patriotic American, a lifelong independent conservative, and an enthusiastic supporter of President Trump. I have great disdain for almost every politician in Washington, both sides of the aisle. None of them like the Donald, because they are mostly globalists, who share one agenda, and do not care about the American people.
The DC corruption is on both sides of the aisle. If you believe that either side is pure evil, then you are caught up in the left vs right charade. That “3rd bathroom” nonsense is used to distract we the people, to keep us busy fighting each other. American people are basically good, and we all get along great. The globalists seek to divide, and impoverish, and disarm us all. We are good. They are the evil ones.
James Ratliff
Your first sentence negated everything else you said. You could have just said that you are a hate filled moron.
Tom Pesta
Why are you so bitter? Unless you are part of the globalist ruling elite, I wrote nothing that expressed hate for anyone. I don’t hate leftists, just because I happen to disagree with them philosophically. Their biggest problem is that so many of them will not have civil conversations to debate the issues. We all have the same enemy. Neither side can simply “resist”, or use force (ANTIFA) to make others conform to their views. That didn’t work against Obama, and it won’t work against Trump. Elections should have consequences. But for the past 28 years, elections have not mattered. Both sides have been destroying our country, and ignoring the needs of the people. We finally have a President who cares about us, not the ruling elite. That is why we love Trump. He loves us back. He will help everyone, even those that hate him. And he is not married to one philosophy. He’s a builder, a deal maker, he gets things done. He was a Dem. That doesn’t matter. He gives America hope ! America First ! MAGA !!!
James Ratliff
The white house spokes person said herself, The Truth does not matter… There is nothing else to talk about. Republicans are lying…
Tom Pesta
Everybody in DC is lying. That’s what they do. I spent 30 years defending corrupt Reps, who never did anything to help me or America. I only did it because I opposed the Dems. It was all a waste of my time, and my emotions. Gradually, I noticed that nothing important ever really changed, no matter which side was in power. America did shift slightly to the left, mostly on social issues. But the wars, the economy, … always the poor and the middle class did worse and worse. Finally I realized there was only one agenda, and it favored only the elite globalists – 1/10 of 1% ruling class at the top. Nobody else matters to the decision makers. Peace !!
James Ratliff
Whatever lets you sleep at night!
Robert Zraick
You are off the deep end. You have lost all credibility.
James Ratliff
You are backing people that are destroying your children’s and grandchildren’s future. I hope you die slowly and fully aware of how you and other like you have destroyed everything we have worked so hard to build. You are just following the way of the bigot, and the fascist.http://media.crooksandliars.com/2017/12/37772.mp4_high.mp4
What idiocy. we have many patriotic americans who come from both parties (republican and Democrat) Many from both parties have risked and in some cases given their life so that you can post your hateful vitriol.
James Ratliff
You are an ignorant fool. It is the reason you are republican.
Frank Taylor
Actually, i am a conservative, but I had to choose between registering as a Democrat or as a Republican and found that Republican ideals were closer to mine. I happen to believe that a two party system with candidates who have different ideas is a good thing. You are very closed mind and consider anything that contrasts with your beliefs evil. SO VERY SAD!
Sad individual aren’t you? I believe in this great country and that when push comes to shove, the Republicans and Democrats will come together to do what is best for our country , not their party. When a person has nothing worth while to say, they normally resort to name calling. Oh i forgot that describes perfectly what you just did. You know zip about me and I can guarantee that I would never even think about molesting a child, much less commit that despicable act.
Frank Taylor
Clearly, you have been out in the sun for way too long. You have lost all logic and objectivity. Christ died for our sins and we have him to thank for the opportunity to find salvation and forgiveness of our sins
That comment is sick. I am not a supporter of liberal ideas but certainly do not consider them to be terrorist. To say that Christians and the taliban are the same is ridiculous. This country was founded on Christian beliefs and To paint the GOP as a terrorist ignores the real threat to our way of life by real terrorist like ISIS and the taliban.
James Ratliff
The GOP is Americas and the planets worst enemy. They should all be taken out and hanged.
Sam Lehman
Please give reasons for your dislike, most of you guys (lefties) are just followers, and don’t even know why.
James Ratliff
Watching 50 years of stupid republicans voting for evil traitors. You can lay 95% of our current debt at the feet of republicans. No group of people have ever wasted more tax payer money than republicans. This tax bill will hurt our children and grandchildren and it will come back to hurt you stupid bastards. To think that republicans would line up with the Russian and not care, that you would vote for a filthy pedophile like Roy Moore. I consider republicans to be traitors, idiots, and down right evil.
Sam Lehman
Why do you call me a stupid bastard,? I didn’t call you a name like that, my parents were married a few years before I was conceived, can you say the same?
James Ratliff
Yes plus they were not brother and sister like yours.
Sam Lehman
There you go again, still not giving reasons, and I am not here to get into a pissin contest with you. I just wanted some kind of an intelligent answer to the question I ask of you. You must be about maybe 18 and learning your hate in a CA college or you are younger and just trying to have a good time at someone elses expense.
Point one. I am not a Muslim and am not in a relationship with one. And even if I was, no man is going to force me to do anything against my own best interest. If Arab women aren’t prepared to fight for their freedom, then I would never inter fear with their choices. But a lot of them and the men in their lives are fighting this. and it’s why they are in the US,
Point two. As for being a machine to produce babies? Isn’t that exactly what the GOP is trying to make women in this country. They have been trying for around 40 years to end abortion and have said many times that their next target is birth control If the object isn’t to suppress women into servitude then why are they doing it. And don’t give me the crap of “saving the lives of innocent children” if they cared one thing about children they wouldn’t put their health care in jeopardy, or allow rich pedophiles to roam this country praying on them (poor pedophiles are slammed into jail where they belong while the rich ones live free). Why do you think that the sexist, anti-female worriers and their minions are calling women who do fight back, hoes, dikes, and transvestites? In their warped minds they think that being called these words will beat us into the gutter. Don’t make me laugh. They know how strong we are and that if they have to compete against us in the real world they will lose. We have no intention of being made into baby factories, which is what we will become if the right gets the chance.
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
Great Thoughs, I agree with you. We do not want children we can not feed and love. Everyone who is opposed to justice for all, is everyone enemy.
The Constitution is just a dream legal paper like the Declaration of Independece, but our country is the only country of this planet with Legal.Documents like these one.
We have domestic and foreign enemies.
Here every institution and human against the frame, of the Constitution is our enemy.
OUR ENEMIES ARE BUT NOT ALL INCLUDE.
1 FEDERAL RESERVE.
2 CIA.
3 CHURCHES USING THE INNOCENT OF PEOPLE TO SELL GOD FOR MONEY.
4 MONOPOLIES.
5 BILLIONARES WHOM WITH THEIR MONEY DESTROYED OUR FREEDOM.
XXXXXXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX
FOREIGN ENEMIES TOO.
THANKS YOU, ENJOY YOUR LIFE BY YOUR OWN GOODNESS. RESPECT YOURSELF, BE YOUR BEST FRIEND, NO ONE CAN OCCUPIED YOUR PLACE, NO EVEN GOD.
I AM HONOR TO HAVE MET YOU.
ETERNITY IS WAITING FOR US.
BE YOU, ONLY YOU.ALWAYS YOU.
Lovefren
You are correct, there have been Muslims in this country for decades, and they are wonderful people… They have assimilated to our way of life and are welcome.
Sharia Law and the Constitution do not mix… Those Muslims that have assimilated into America made a choice, those that chose Sharia Law made the wrong choice.
mrpoohead
Since before 1600 actually. Sharia Law is like Biblical Law, it also only exists in one state – nobody wants it. Duh!
kbfallon
You are a Very Naïve ……..!
James Ratliff
There is no need to talk to TPhantom1. He’s an idiot and a bigot.
Rhonda Vieth
Look at the pot calling the kettle black, priceless.
TPhantom1
Fredsgirl, I’ll pay for a round trip ticket for you to go to Dearborn’s Muslim district. All you need to do is dress as you normally do and walk alone through the Muslim district alone and back at dark. Then if you ‘survive’ that and haven’t had a change of heart then I’ll apologise. Until then you are an ignoramus.
Frank Taylor
There is a potential problem with terrorist finding their way here and trying to destroy property and kill innocent men, women and children. Training camps already are here and it is a real problem, whether you wish to accept or reject. If we do not thoroughly vett those coming here and at least minimize the number of radicals slipping through, we and our way of life are in real danger.
I believe the Communists are up to their old tricks of using the liberals/socialists/blacks/LGBT as useful idiots.
And the MUSLIMS are using the Communists as useful idiots… The Muslims seem to be letting the Communists like Hillary do all the dirty work of destroying America, and once the Communists take control, the Muslims will come down and take control from the Communists…
The fact is, if the Communists succeed in making America weak enough to fall to them, America will be week enough to fall to the Sharia Law Muslims as well.
TPhantom1
Exactly.
Sharon Jeanguenat
And, when that happens, the Communists will be executed. Unless they convert. Or they could be made slaves. It will be kind of fun to watch, since Islam teaches against homosexuality, they hate the Hollywood type, women will be nothing, & anything they own, will be taken & given to some man. No more abortions, no more smoking or drinking, for the women anyway. And, NO MORE feminists!
There will be no fun in watching Americans die at the hands of our enemies on our Own soil .Muslims say they are against sodomites .Yet the men violate their sons sexually by the age of 13.A ritual they claim brings them into manhood .Because after that they are violated by females .For every dumb female American will be a sex slave or beheaded .I for one will be ready to shoot the bastards .Freedom is worth fighting for
The ‘female’ Snowflakes, whining about how the illegal immigrants should be allowed into the country. Seems they’re ‘brain-dead’ when it comes to ‘facts’!! A LOT of Muslim men are coming in as well. So, it seems these ‘fem’ Snowflakes are willing to trade their ‘freedom’ for men who think nothing of setting a 15year old girl on fire in the town square, as an ‘example’–stoning to death a woman whose brother-in-law raped her, having their nose cut off because ‘hubby’ wasn’t pleased with her, being beaten, raped and then be-headed because they’re not Muslim!! Shall I go on–‘Snowflake’? Or is it ‘sinking in’ what Sharia Law and the Koran is ‘really’ about?
Tasine
I agree with every word! Filthy dirty money is doing this, coming straight from Soros and Clinton, and possibly other crooks we haven’t gotten to know. I call it TREASON, and in any other decade we would be TRYING people for TREASON, but are too chicken today to do so. Too bad our government is as dirty as Soros.
Deborah Pratt
Money, in itself, has no ‘power’ not given to it by ‘people’!! People make the choice of selling themselves and their moral values–or not!! That our self esteem and morals are so low that we’re willing to do that–is shameful!! It all starts with the individual!!
Yes, time is now. tomorrow too late. Tweet President Trump. Arrest with Military Force. Everyone who want to force you to resigned.
They hate America.
WE WILL BE ON THE STREETS FOR TRUMP.
AMERICA LIVE OUR ENEMIES DIE.
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
mrpoohead
What have they done?
Fredsgirl1
Come on, you left out the vegetarians, orientals (perhaps not, they have nuclear weapons now) the organic farmers, the Quakers, feminists, the charity organizations, the people who can read and write. They are all your enemy’s too, according to people who think like you.
NOT THAT YOUR OPINION MATTERS. You are a Russian Troll trying to stir up the crazies in this country to do YOUR dirty work. I see the same words being used by you and your co-workers in posts every day. Go home and get a real job.
Silly girl…. Denials, deflections, and then accusing your enemy of doing exactly what you are doing…. You are an Alinsky Radical wannabe aren’t you…
Fredsgirl1
Who is Alinsky? A country and western singer with a band called Radical? You should contact him and see if he has a job for you. After all shit kicking music would be just up your ally. Enjoy your day in the sun child of the Right. It will be short. If the Democrats don’t take your power away in 2018 and 2020, then Trump will provoke either NK or Isreal and the Arabs and nuclear war and wipe you out. If none of that happens then expect civil unrest and you won’t be facing women in pink hats this time but pissed off women with guns. We own them too you know.
mrpoohead
Mirror.
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
WHOM ARE YOU THE REFLECTION TO? I RATHER BE MYSELF, THAN JUST THE MIRROR OF SOMEONE ELSE. WE CAN AGREE IN MANY THING, BUT MIRROR.
NO EVEN IDENTICAL TWEEN. LOL, LOVEFREN
mrpoohead
MD I hope not! MAHB001 is the liar, deflector and denier. Get it now? Mirror! I was riposting his own accusations. MD – God help us!
Ahhhh – MD. Me dumb – that you are!
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
GOD IS REAL, THY CAN ONLY HELP THE ONES WHO HELP THEMSELVES.
DO NOT ASK ME WHY? THIS IS THY WILL. I HAVE NOT CONTROL OVER THY.
EVEN IF I DISAGREE WITH MY GOD. THY DOES NOT CARE. THY IS GOD, I AM NOT.
I AM A MEDICAL DOCTOR. I EARNED MY RIGHTS TO WORK AS PHYSICIAN IN ECUADOR WHERE I COME FROM, AND NOW IN MY ADOPTIVE COUNTRY THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, I LOVE YOU ALL. TN MEDICAL LICENSE 27725.
LOVEFREN
mrpoohead
Any proof? No, belief is all you have, you’re welcome to it.
“Caps Lock” on the left, third up – duh!
MD – not mine thankfully.
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
God is real for one reason, You are alive, you have not control, God only give you free air, and the love of yourself give you everything else. I know God, I can tell you jokes no one else can, my favorite one. My God is missing one O to be Good. God’s Will is Ruining my Life. Prophecies, Celestial Terrorist Threats. Worship Love not God. God is so cheap, Churches sell Thy for money. Love demands Service, not Sacrifices.. I have a personal relationship with God. I talk to him as spoil rotten child. I do not make money out of my knowledge of him. I know he love you, because, he loves me. I will recommend to talk to him, like you are talking to yourself, I am going to ask him for inspiration to give you what you need to know about him. I love him so much, even if he is wrong I will still love him. I love to fight with him. He his our father, do not miss Thy, Lovefren
mrpoohead
I’m alive because of my parents- biology.
Earth provides air.
You talk to him – psychiatric help required.
Ask him to fix the surf and my football team and I might believe.
Hey my friend us veterans and bikers will not allow that to happen. We out number them by at least 1000 to 1. We are heavily armed and trained and aren’t afraid to stand up for our country and our oath if enlistment has no expiration.
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
We need each other everyday, every moment, but we are not, Most of our activities have to be pay with paper money, I love capitalism, I am not a communist , I am child of God,
I am waiting for the return of Jesus. You got the picture. I be there with all of you, No one take our country from our hands. We are the loving americans in silence now, but do not make us talk, the whole world will hear our voices of freedom and at the end, freedom for all with Jesus’ Return. Lovefren
mrpoohead
Whoop capitalism – yes it gave us the Great Depression and the Financial Crisis 2008. Thank you America for stuffing up the planet twice!
America sits rather poorly in the Democracy Index – not as free as you think!
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
We humans are a challenged to ourselves and problems to everyone else.
We are needy, we are mortals, we need air,food, shelter. The birds of the sky, are better provide than us, free, can fly, they also die, but they do not pay taxes, fly low or high according to their body designed, we humans, are really pitiful, we come to the world, making our mother suffer in our birth day, they we suck their breast and given pain, we are only a little cute living dolls with a lot of needs. and then we growth we are ungrateful, rude to everyone, become teenagers, what a drag, keep growing now adults, need companion, and we are looking like someone like mam or dad. we got married, then divorce, keep accumulating years, now old. and then we die. I love you all, because I love myself, Keep your self fresh by been kind and laughing everyday, Lovefren
mrpoohead
Weirdo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
I AM 67 Y/O, I SPEAK, ITALIAN, FRENCH, SPANISH, ENGLISH, I PLAY CLASSICAL GUITAR, MADE MY OWN MUSIC FOR MY OWN DELIGHT, MANY OF MY COMPOSITIONS ARE COPYRIGHT. I AM AN ACCOMPLISH INTELLECTUAL HUMAN, NO ONE IMPRESS ME, NO EVEN GOD. I WILL LIKE TO HAVE HIS DIVINE POWER JUST TO UNDERSTAND THE MEANING OF ALL THIS CALL CREATION.
YOU MY DEAR FRIEND HAVE A VERY POWERFUL MIND, BUT COMPLETE DIFFERENT FROM MINE OWN. I LOVE YOU BECAUSE I AM SO CUTE AND ADORABLE, NO ONE QUALIFIED FOR BEING MY ENEMY. I AM MY OWN GOODNESS, I AM RICH IN WHAT I LOVE TO HAVE. ME. GOOD BYE AND GOOD LUCK. LOVEFREN
mrpoohead
Your English is that of a child – suspect you are not 67. Don’t think anyone your enemy – you’re a bit of a buffoon and hate seems like too much effort.
Part of changing that has to come from our gov’t FINALLY recognizing that Islam is an ideology, that it demands the overthrow of our Constitution, and that it CANNOT be “protected” behind 1st A “religious liberties” because it’s not a religion; that’s simply a BEARD behind which it attacks us using our own laws to destroy us!
Tom Pesta
100% correct !! Medieval sharia law has no place in the 2017 civilized world.
Robert Zraick
civilized world? where is that?
Deborah Pratt
‘Civilized’ as in comparison to the ‘world’ the Koran would impose on us!! Civilization is a ‘work in progress’ still.
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
No for Muslim practicing Sharia Lawless, they are brutal abusers of their own mothers, wives, sisters, everyone female and all children are raped. These are not civilized people, But Criminals in the name of their God Allah. Lovefren
sandraleesmith46
It USED to be here, before lawlessness became condoned by rampant illegal invasion and importing of so-called “refugees” who aren’t refugees at all but hijra!
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
AMERICA. WE JUST NEED TO GET OUT DOMESTIC AND FOREING ENEMIES. TO FULLFIL OUR CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS. AMERICA THE PROMISE LAND. LOVEFREN
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
PERFECT SAID. ISLAM AND SHARIA COMBINED ARE A POLITICAL FORCE TO DESTROY OUR CIVILIZATION. EUROPE HAD FALLEN. AMERICA IS NEXT. WE ARE THE LASTING BASTION OF FREEDOM. FIGHT OR DIE.
Shirley
Soros said,…. no bragged,…. that America was the last country holding up this New World Order, and he is determined to bring down America. They have already pretty much taken Europe…. I say F.U. Soros, we will never give up, we will never surrender !! God Bless America !!!!
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
Muslims want to use our Constitution for their right to destroyed America and Kill Americans in our own land.
Americaphobic can not use Our Constitution to destroyed us.
Our Constitution Created America, Protect American and Preserve America.
Americaphobic need to be Expelled out of America.
They have not right to claim Our Constitution to Kill US.
Around them up, Place Then in FIMA Camps and Expel them from our Land. Lovefren
Fredsgirl1
Still haven’t found your medication? Keep looking.
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
Logical statements, do not need explation, dogmas and denial of reality, do.
Sharia Law will mutilate your genitals degraded you life to living object. Human no more. Your destiny is in your hands. I am a male, I have not daughter. The true will send you free, but you have no place to go.
Lovefren
Good does not come from heaven, but from actions of free women and men.
Lovefren
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
Good from heaven is a myth, Prophecies are Divine Revenge on the Innocent. Example. The Flood kill innocent children, not only sinner ones.
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
No good deed goes unpunished. Lovefren
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
No christians, Jesus.
Lovefren
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
The end of the book, Said Amen. But no one will read it. Everyone will be dead.
Lovefren
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
No many Christians loss their soul and go direct to hell. Jesus said, no everyone who call me Lord, Lord, shall enter the Kingdom, but the ones who does the will of my father….so are you a winner.? Lovefren
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
Believing, does not provide true. I accept to be judge, it does not affect me. I am my own goodness. I can live in silence and private joy of myself. Last one Coment. Lovefren
Fredsgirl1
How can you be a Republican supporter and hate hypocrisy. The party is the poster child for hypocrisy.
Perhaps I should make myself clear. The Democrat PARTY is controlled by Elites who are hypocrites and liars.
I believe Elite Democrats = Elite Republicans = Elite MEDIA, The Elites (Politicians & MEDIA) no longer serve the people, they serve their own interests. They have morphed our great country from Of the People, By the People, and For the People, to of the Elites, By the Elites, and for the ELITES… The Elites are Communists, They are hypocrites, and they are evil.
mrpoohead
You are the ignorant hypocrite.
NotJim
That’s why I call them “Democrites”.
Succinct, economy of expression, and all that. Etc.
Tasine
Democrats and HELL have become synonymous. There is no action too low, too barbaric, too indecent for Democrats. They’ve gotten away with it for decades because the right has refused to jump into the gutter with them. They will not stop until they get their way…..they have proven this over and over. Much as I detest gutters, I do believe it is about time we jump into the gutters to clean them up before the dems turn the USA into a third world country so that George Soros, Hillary Clinton, and Barack Hussein Obama will be happy.
War is an ugly thing, unfortunately we are at war.. The Left has found ways using our own morals to stop us from using the tools needed to win this fight.
Political correctness has tied our hands for years, it is only the over use by the Left of words like racism, bigoted, etc that they are now meaningless.
We must all fight this battle, we can no longer assume our elected officials will honor their words. We must watch all of them like a hawk and correct them immediately.
I think the first example will be this new tax law… I suggest we thank them, then Immediately ask for a flat tax… Just like the left does, take what they can get and then ask for more. .
mrpoohead
No war since 1945.
Fredsgirl1
The Republicans don’t have elites just the senile and the incompetent and those left at the end of the day are the worst. We have a government of sycophants and yes men. Anyone who says they are loyal to Trump is in, regardless of their honesty and ability to do the job.
I pity your misguided and bigoted soul. In order for you to get grow personally, you will have to drop the bigotry.
Elites D’s = Elite R’s = Elite MEDIA The Elites are Communists, NOT Republicans, NOT Democrats, NOT Independents, NOT progressive, NOT Liberals. The Elites are Communists.
Trump is NOT a communists.
mrpoohead
Drivel!
The Capatin
They would burn their own mothers at the stake if it got them back in the White House. (They made a deal with Satan when they partnered with the Klan during Reconstruction).
the_better_capatin
i forgot was it the Dems or Republicans that sold the country out to a treasonous sexual predator to get in the white house. please advise.
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
My opinion, everyone there are sexual predators in both political parties. The Worst are Pedophiles. They harm our children. I am very upset with My God Thyself, about this. My father in heaven, No Jesus, Thy is responsible for this abominable crime against the most beautiful and innocent of all humans,
a human child.
I am using my free agency.
Please do not get involved.
Lovefren.
jim_wright
The democrats don’t care about this country at all. They don’t support this country or the U.S. Constitution. These illegal immigrants are just more residents of the plantation to them to preserve their power.
cv
Democrat votes, yes.
pappy450
THAT is correct the DEMOCOMMIES are basically protecting their “voting block” ( you know the one THEY SAY do not have the “right” to vote, BUT encourage and allow them to ANYWAY as long as they vote DEMOCOMMIE)
bttrap
we need voter I.D. to keep the border jumpers from voting
pappy450
Voter ID won’t work here in MY COMMUNIST STATE of N.Y. cuomo and deblasio not only ALLOWED these illegals to vote in the last election, but ENCOURAGED them to do so, and if they were “caught” NOTHING would be done to them. (but who would say anything as long as they voted DEMOCOMMIE) I hear mexifornia (along with many other states,) did the SAME. Even OSCUMBAG got on NATIONAL TV to encourage the same. Some states had “voter drives” at the DMV. THEIR “drivers license” was going to be considered their “voter ID”.
bttrap
they should check the voters out like they do with the censes or with the censes
Labor74
I’ve no use for either!
Mike W
Well they do have to protect their constituents.
bttrap
they can do that by moving to the middle east sand boxes
Mike W
There are not many places in the middle east sand boxes that accept EBT cards.
bttrap
they won’t need the cards all they need is a sand box and the kitty cats can cover them up with their cat crap
Pat Santoro
Elections at state levels will help drain the swamp,the Democrats will be history.
The Redhawk
THERE ARE NO DEMOCRATS in the Soros/OBama/ SCHMUCK/Pelosi ( D) NAZI PARTY
bttrap
they’re not democraps they are the bottom scum of outhouses
The Redhawk
They are the T8rds that clog the Drain of the Congressional DC TOILET
bttrap
A MEN
Jacks are Wild
There is no doubt that the Democrats intend to destroy American & it’s values. Hope everyone is carrying.
The Redhawk
and stay locked AND LOADED my friend..
bttrap
I’m ready !!
The Redhawk
Ooh Rah
RichFromShowMe
The imaginary “Shutdown of government” is a joke as Federal Employees, i.e., those who are deemed “non-essential” get paid while they “vacation on our dollars”.
A Shutdown might just clarify the term, “Drain-the-Swamp”, as those “non-essential” employees may get an early start on searching for new employment.
The Dems don’t have the guts to a shutdown after the Murderer in S.F. Californicate got a free pass . . . . Governor MoonBeam should be proud as this marks another step towards the end of Californicate’s economy when citizens figure out that illegal emigrants are treated much better than taxpayers, in a “kangaroo” court of law . . . and start their evacuation with their dollars and their corporations.
USN Vet 31yrs Svc
I expect tourists to boycott the state of CA. Why put your families life in danger. Citizens have no rights or protection. The State Dept needs to add CA to the list of places not to go.
The Redhawk
Democrats?? THERE ARE NONE LEFT .. They have become the (D) Fascist/Commie party … LET them Shut down the GUMNIT…WE just may find out that we can function with 50% fewer GUMNIT Employees after all…and the “DEPLORABLE” Voters just may decide we can function without ANY OF THEM!!!!
The Redhawk
Computer glitch …Meant to Type FASCIST PARTY………….in addition we may find out that We Deplorable Voters can Survive without ANY OF THEM
The Redhawk
MAY be this time the “deplorable” voters can Decide that we can SURVIVE without any of the (D) Fascists members of the sENATE
Donald Lindsey
This has to be the first time in history that a political party has threatened to grind DC to a halt, all for the benefit of people who don’t belong in this country in the first place.
Yes, Democrats, and if they do they all should be FIRED, all pay stopped/all of their finance’s frozen and tried for TREASON against we the true people of this nation. And I do not care what title they hold or the party they belong to. This is high treason and they should all be sentenced to hard labor in prison busting boulders into small rocks every last one of them. One pissed off VETERAN.
Gerry Costa
How could we tell if the shut it down ????? For 9 years now all they have done is talk talk and more talk and undermine a president who is trying to do what’s good for America. Let congress go home (WITHOUT PAY) and sit on their dead a**es, who cares. Everything that needs to be done will be done . The demoTRASH has become just that — garbage !!!!
Kevin S
The Demon-crats want all illegal aliens to stay, plus import more of them? Okay, then the Demon-crats should have to care for the illegals out of their own filthy-rich pockets.
Alvis Jenkins
A U.S. citizen is a immigrant whether he/she be legal or illegal. A U.S. Citizen is a natural citizen of one of the 50 states. Are you a U.S. citizen who is subject to the federal income tax. Notice the use of the upper and lower case of the letter c in citizen. One type is under federal jurisdiction the other is not.
carla AMERICAN
Congress continues to commit crimes and DEMAND that obama’s admitted crime “INVASION OF AMERICA ” pass or they shut the American tax funded government be shut down leaving America more defenseless, and deny America protection. They should be arrested for TREASON ! CONGRESS, HOUSE, SENATE ALL NEED TO BE SHUT DOWN AND THEIR ASSETS FROZEN TO PAY BACK ERICA ! Let them shut down the government and it will drain the swamp.
HESpecialist
In answer to the basic question, YES. These Democrats in Congress and woven throughout the nation ARE that damned stupid, and WOULD shut down the country over ILLEGALS who should be sent home for violating our Sovereignty. They’ve done NOTHING to fix what they claim is a broken immigration system for DECADES and continue to fund these leeches with our tax dollars. Enough is enough. DC is a septic tank that needs flushed.
dpg01
Illegals are a significant source of fresh new voters for the democrats. They will do what they need to do to preserve this growing base. They have nurtured and protected this
resource for decades .
The Redhawk
and the OUTLAW ( not Sanctuary) Cities / States better get their s*it together…
Mario LoCasto
This is just another stupid ploy by the Democratic Party treating this as a just cause but what they are doing is nothing more than another switch and bet? Maybe we should remember the voter fraud and the dead coming to life and voting and the illegal immigrants who voted for Hillary and the liberal democratics does this bring back memories. Threatening the government with a complete shutdown is another way for them to get illegal voters into the system there is no cavalier meaning behind a shutdown This way they can control the outcome of any election. THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY IS GOING TO STOP THE NOTHING MORE THAN MURDERING ANYONE WHO GETS IN THE WAY? THE TRUTH IS THAT THEY ARE ABOVE THE LAW THE CILINTON’S AND THE OBUMMER ADMINISTRATION ARE LIVING PROOF OF CORRUPTION AT ITS FINEST.
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
AMERICA HAS DREAMS ENCLOSE IN OUR CONSTITUTION FOR US TO LIVE.
LIFE IS WORTH ONLY IN THE BEST REALITY OR DREAMS ABOUT IT.
I WILL NEVER ACCEPT ANYTHING I DO NOT LIKE.
I JUST PUT UP IT WITH IT UNTIL MY TIME COMES.
LOVEFREN
John Williams
Yes, the democrat party is that stupid, yes, the majority of people who vote for the democrat party are that stupid, they will shut down the government for ANY purpose that meets the agenda of the destruction of the country and shoves us toward socialism. Where the real problem lies, is with the leftist lap dog media that will do the biding of the socialist democrats, they will run 24 hour news cycles blaming the Republicans for the debacle and the useful idiots will believe everything they say.
robert sanders
THEY BETTER NOT. REMEMBER 2018 ELECTIONS
Richard Bagenstose
well most of congress was in place under the oboma years and they worshiped the ground he walked on and his plan to destroy america , so why wonder why they hate trump for trying to make america grate again, unless they are all fired nothing will change , trump made his first mistake by signing the first budget they sent to him , that funded all of obomas socialist programs ,and now they think they can get away with it for the next 3 years, unless trump really puts the screws to congress he will be a 1 term president , as you see the left are getting more desperit by the day , and the election will be filled with fraud
Consultant
I would certainly hope so. … . The Democrats are not Democrats at all, these are the same individuals that have for years been against everything good in America. … . The Democrats, feed off the illicit drugs, that flow into our Country, why else would they want Open Borders. … ? Shutting down the Government, will be just the next step in their plot to Resist one of the most successful Presidents in History. … .
Let’s look back at what the Democrat Presidents, since Truman have done for America, we can start with Kennedy, he gave us Vietnam, a war that was with out purpose or cause, but gave us over 60,000 Dead. … . Next we have Lyndon Johnson, this man who inherited Vietnam, his war on Poverty, another Give Away that yielded,
Nothing . … . And let’s not forget Jimmy Carter, now here’s a dandy, let’s take a good look at his administration’s gutting the CIA of Covert Operatives and how he Neutralized that agency, this of course led to the Iran Mullah Revolutionary Movement that overran the US Embassy Takeover in Iran, leading to the Hostage Taking that had to wait for another Republican President to get resolved. … . Oh, soon the Democrats, gained with then Savior Bill Clinton, we soon had another Iraq Problem Solved, but wait; Bill was in the Oval Office, with a young intern, having his Crotch inspected, too busy to Govern, so he let others handle or should I say have them continue to mislead the American People. … . Finally, the Manchurian Candidate, Barack Obama, no man has done more to destroy America, than him. He was Mentored by none other than, Urban Terrorist, Bill Ayers and Bernadette Dhorn. These two known Murderers, responsible for the Death of a Police Officer as well as Bank Robberies,
Fredsgirl1
There you go again. Failing to acknowledge the responsibility for something. The Democrats do not have the power to close down the government. Only the REPUBLICANS can do that. I don’t know why Trump and his supporters keep twisting the truth. The only people they are fooling ARE their supporters. Any voter who changed parties or were not decided who to vote for at the last election are not undecided any longer. The geriatric mess that Trump and the GOP are making of this country almost guarantees that the Republicans will not add to their supporter base until the children of the existing supporters are old enough to vote. And that’s no guarantee either as they will be paying for Trump and the GOP braking their backs with the deficit they are going to build around their tax give away to the 1%.
Candy Clanton
Shut down the government is what I say – it will be hard for the employees of the government, but I hope it is just as hard on Congress! And I don’t want Trump to give in!
Sgt. York
Ofcoursethe dems would shut the gov down for the illegals votes and their backing. The illegals are just that stupid. They think it would be for them but what it’s for is Socialism as in Venezuela where they gobbled it up and now are so deep in the hole they don’t even have toilet paper or food. Illegals,DummyRats both are downright stupid or want America to fall into the Socialist/Communist trap and we will become the third world country with Obama as our Dictator and no freedoms,Guns, money,jobs or healthcareare. Ovomit is at this very moment planning his take over as Dictator by his shadow Gov. and now shadowing Pres Trumps Asian trip by having one of his own. He needs to be nabbed,arrested,tried,convicted and sentenced to life in a Federal Prison as a prisoner in solitary where he cannot push a riot or uprising in the Muslim way as most in prison seem to go over to the Muslim way as it’s told to them Islam will set them free as well as they can stay free as Allah
will stand with them. Some even in Prison are easy and the word free is a Gods send even if it’s a Muslim lie.
Larry Brule
THEY WILL OWN IT. THEY DO NOTHING THAT DOESN’T REFLECT THEIR TWISTED DESIRE FOR POWER. THE DIMOCRATS DON’T GIVE A RAT’S ASS ABOUT THE AMERICAN PEOPLE, JUST POWER!
curmudgeon VN Veteran
The democRATs are actually that stupid. Never underestimate the power of stupid people in large groups like the donkey party.
Robert Kahlcke
It may save taxpayers some money.
Codygunn
20 trillion in debt Social Security broke and Senate and Congress bringing in more people?? These people are under the control of George Soros and are trying to destroy this country. ENOUGH!! We need a new government.
deelight821
If you really think that is why the government may be shut down, you are NOT keeping up with the FACTS!!!!
Why don’t you try to understand exactly what the REPUBLICANS want to do to our country, and see if you really want to live in a country being demolished slowly by the rich and the bigoted!
MichaelZZ
August 24, 2013
PROBLEM: Unauthorized visitors
DEFINITION: Unauthorized visitors are those persons who enter a country without legal authorization and those who overstay their authorized period.
CAUSES, REASONS, AND PROVENANCE: The main reason for unauthorized visitors is that people want and hope to improve their lives and the lives of their families and will gravitate to those situations where the economics provide the incentives to make the change.
DISCUSSION: I think all would stipulate that anyone has the right to attempt to better his or her conditions insofar as those efforts do not infringe upon the rights of others.
Each nation has the right and obligation to establish immigration laws for the orderly and rational assimilation of authorized immigrants.
Do the following comments provide justification for unauthorized immigration?
1. Unauthorized immigrants are looking to better their situations.
2. Unauthorized immigrants provide inexpensive labor and are hard workers.
3. This Nation was built upon immigrants.
4. It is virtually impossible to find and deport 12,000,000 unauthorized immigrants.
The answers to the above four should be an unequivocal “NO”.
If anyone disagrees with that, I will appreciate his or her reasoning for a “yes” response.
RECOMMENDED “COMPREHENSIVE” SOLUTION TO THIS PROBLEM:
A foolproof system must be devised, implemented, with substantial penalties for non-compliance that will verify a person’s legal authorization to work in the United States.
The concept of “anchor babies” should be eliminated, either by a pragmatic interpretation of the 14th Amendment (displaced the disputed Civil Rights legislation of 1866, which was passed by Congress over Andrew Johnson’s veto, and which was proposed by Congress six months after the 13th Amendment had been ratified), by Congressional legislation in accordance with Section 5 of the 14th Amendment, or by a Constitutional Amendment, that could and should be passed by the House and Senate and ratified by the requisite 38 states within a year.
There should be a $4.00 (arbitrary) per gallon increase in the federal excise tax on gasoline and diesel, at the pump.
A tax credit would be allowed any U.S. taxpayer (who possesses a valid driver’s license and submits proof of vehicle registration and proof of insurance) in the amount of $2,000.00 per year (10,000 miles @ 20 MPG = 500 gallons, thus, 500 X $4.00 = $2,000.00).
Ancillary benefits would include that this federal excise tax would be collected from all visitors, authorized and unauthorized, and this would stimulate purchasers of new vehicles to demand more mileage efficiency, i.e., there would be no need for the government to force manufacturers to increase mileage efficiencies. The marketplace would be effective.
Federal legislation should be passed that would eliminate all minimum wage laws. The “minimum wage” concept should be replaced with a massive expansion of the EITC regulations, which would cover all U.S. taxpayers who are older than 25 years of age.
Another benefit would be that labor costs would be shifted from “above-the-line” to “below-the-line”, making our industries, which compete with other nations, more competitive.
CONCLUSION: If the above changes were legislated, a substantial number of unauthorized visitors would conclude that it would be better to end their visits, since the economics of remaining in the United States, without authorization, would be substantially diminished.
After a year, the situation should be reviewed and adjustment should be made to further the resolution of this serious matter.
It is logical that a newborn should assume the nationality of the mother, regardless of the venue of the birth, therefore, the strategy of a mother, who has no authorization to be in the U.S., giving birth in the United States should be of no consequence.
This is a nascent effort at offering a pragmatic and rational solution to this serious matter.
NOTES: This will be a process, i.e., not an overnight solution. I will appreciate all comments, critical as well as supportive, with the former being most appreciated if rational reasons are included.
At a Townhall Meeting a couple months ago, I gave a copy to my Congressman, Brad Sherman. Before I handed it to him, as I walked up to him, he yelled that I want to change how our government functions and that I have 17 different causes. We have had a number of discussions and he has NEVER disagreed with me. At a “coffee”, last year, he came up to me and whispered that he was closer to my ideas than any one else in Congress.
Representative Sherman is possibly one of the most intelligent and knowledgeable people in Congress, but he does not appear to be that for which We, the People are begging, i.e., honest, balanced, and objective leadership.
Representative Sherman is aware of this article, has promised a response and has failed to do so. We, the People are begging for leaders, not pure politicians who have embedded within their DNA the need to withhold the truth.
mz
Last modified – August 24, 2013
David Gearhart
It was Obama and the democrats that shut down the government. The republicans did not have the votes to do it or to stop them. Obama and the democrats with the ALT left fake news lied to us telling us that the republicans were obstructing. When it was all the democrats. Obama and the democrats called the republicans terrorist and refused to negotiate with them. They are still the obstruction and still refusing to negotiate.
sandraleesmith46
Considering how overall ignorant of reality and bent on their agenda Dems are, yes, it’s highly possible! And we should LET them do so; let the people who have been supporting them SEE just how much those do NOT mean to them; that it’s all about those who have NO right to be here and the rest of us can literally “go to hell” for all they care.
dag
I wish we could drown all the malcontents such as Clintons, Obamas, Pelosi, Warren and other is the swamp they swim in!!!
Valor
Actually, they want to replace it with Communism. They are using Islam as an aid, too stupid to realize Islam won’t stop there.
Morton99
Finally the Republican party may have to impeach Trump now that Flynn has agreed to testify about him and Kushner. So the question about immigration is really moot.
Valor
In your dreams, dweeb!
Morton99
You’re right – they may not have the guts to … but in that case the Democrats will sweep the next election and impeach him themselves.
Frank McGriff
The U.S. needs to offer a 30 day amnesty. Then all illegals who have not left voluntarily, will be forcibly removed. Any wishing to return must have a Democrat sponsor. That will end it cause they won’t let any brand of illegal live with them. They only want them for votes. And that bogus crap is ending too. Go Home all of you we don’t want you.
Robalou01
Why not? They let an illegal commit cold blooded murder in San Francisco and acquitted him. these people are the scum of the earth.
cdansreau
OH Please DO! trump will not close national monuments. He will shut down perks for congress. Use of air force private jets, CANCELED! CONGRESSIONAL LIMO SERVICE, drive yourself. Congressional staff members, reduced to 2. Trump to have Pence as President of the senate, keep the senate in session, no christmas vacation. If the house does not cooperate then at least he can have the senate approve court justices, split the 9th circuit, etc.
esqualido
A lot of people thought George Bush (you know, The Compassionate Conservative one), the first Chief Executive to hold an MBA, might set a good business-like example by ditching the enormous Air Force One with its host of flying press parasites in favor of a business jet. Alas, that was not to be- but Trump, who initially took Boeing to task for the nearly BILLION dollars they wanted for an updated Presidential fleet, quietly caved, and we wind up spending more than ever. Michelle Obama belongs in jail for the taxpayer money spent on her Air Force One gallivanting, but the cost of flying Trump’s family and the Secret Service to Mar a Lago every weekend is even worse. He has shown no signs of balancing the budget nor taking a knife to bloated spending bills- the national debt soared last month.
cdansreau
i disagree with much of which you say. However what does anything you said have to do with the democrat threat of a government shutdown over illegal and refugee immigration which this article is about!
Stever
You are right about the vacation lust of the obama’s. It cost a total of 100 million dollars, paid for by us the taxpayers. That paid for all the freeloaders, that were guests and not a sound out of the establishment. obama did the taxpayers, without even a kiss.
barnjoer
Just fire them all!! More whining BS because they are not getting their way. All they want for Christmas is votes !! I vote we the people fire them ALL!!!
🔫🇺🇸🤠🇨🇱
Tom Pesta
Dear Reps in Congress, take a stand for actual AMERICANS – the citizens who you work for. The shameful era of illegal immigration is OVER !!
MIKE6080
its almost time to hit the streets
JC Hoot
You can tell where these idiots have their heads and it is definitely not on the shoulders like usual. The Mexican sanctuary state on the west coast is a prime example. They need those illegal alien killers pulling the slot bars at voter time!
Tinman Jones
The “demon rats” are just trying to secure votes. The immigrant/minority bloc of voters is their go-to constituency, a constituency that has been secured/bought with the necessities of life being provided to them for free by the unfair welfare expansion policies of the “demon rat” party. There is nothing wrong with helping people, but using our taxes to . . . . Well, it’s just ridiculous and asinine. Romans 12:12!
AmericanMan2012
Why are we Americans aborting our children ,and bring in illegal children in to inherit our country.?????
Edward
The only reason Democrats want to give illegals amnesty is to build their voting block. What they are to stupid to realize is once legal they will begain to put their own people in office. All the Democrat fat cats will be replaced with brown skin fat cats. And soon our politics will be no different from the one in Mexico. And we ain’t to far from it now. Especially after the way we saw how Hillary won in California. With lies and the illegals voting unchecked. Heck Obama ran an add here in Texas telling illegals to go down and try to vote . He said all they need was an electric bill. And would get in no trouble for trying.
esqualido
You are absolutely right. But we also need a way to combat the practice of Congressmen bought off by the MIC proving their patriotism by pinning an American flag on their lapel so we can be gouged $1 billion for a single bomber, or $250 million for a single F-35. Lenin was wrong when he said a capitalist would sell you the rope to hang him with- it turns out that a crony capitalist will gladly bankrupt his fellow citizens so that he and his friends can live like kings.
MasterTheDream
The Far Left Dem-on Party members are truly the Walking Dead
tCotUS
Time to put the Democrats in their place. The democrats have shown America just what they stand for. They are not Pro Constitution, Vet, Military, or willing to stand with “We the People”. They must be dissolved as a functioning Party & relabeled as a domestic terrorist group. They are the evil within our Country.
Robert Zraick
If the government shuts down, let them lose their pay and perks. Don’t let them collect on what they lose.
esqualido
It does make you wonder, doesn’t it, if one of them will be brave enough to propose a bill making Taxpayer-Funded-Congressional-Bribery-Slush-Funds, which we now find exist, illegal
kotoc
You know… these commentaries should be aired on public TV. I’ve noticed these newsletters are very biased, yes, but they’re TRUE!! You can NOT evade the truth forever, which is the constant struggle with Democrats. Maybe we could round up all the illegals and dump them in Washington DC, and tell them to go live with wealthy senators and congress politicians, who welcome them with open arms.
dolittle
well the demorats have always been for illegals and foreigners so what do you expect then to change their spots they won’t do that they are just starting to show their true colors and afflilates they are for everyone but america
Victor F
It’s up to the voters to drain the Washington cesspool.
My country
Well when they do .We Americans who are not pansies need to round them all up and send them out of this country with the lives of their lives .The only benefit democrats have I. Destroying America is staying in control of all of us .Well wake up we are not their slaves and they are not our owners .And not one of them has a right to shelter illegals or bring them into our country .This country has gone to hell in a freight train and I for one am waiting on the start of another revolutionary war . That’s all that is going to stop these idiots .A famous quote once said : From time to time the sword must be revisited in order to protect freedom . Freedom is not free and it did come at a cost of white lives not blacks . There was no slaves who fought or gave their blood for the freedom they enjoy . Once we loose it because our people have become a weak nation of pansies who have to have therapy over seeing a name written on concrete . Will they return to their 3 rd world countries ?
tCotUS
Don’t forget these 13 GOP Rhino A holes that jumped sides voting against our tax cut bill. Most of them also support the illegals.
Dan Donovan, New York
John Faso, New York
Rodney Frelinghuysen, New Jersey
Darrell Issa, California
Walter B. Jones Jr., North Carolina
Peter T. King, New York
Leonard Lance, New Jersey
Frank LoBiondo, New Jersey
Tom McClintock, New York
Dana Rohrabacher, California
Chris Smith, New Jersey
Elise Stefanik, New York
Lee Zeldin, New York
Henry Gregg Nash
This country is being run by idiots, Illegals are killing people and getting away with it, Hillary is still free, Warren is having delusion, Franken and Conyers have more than just their hands full, Some politicians are using tax money to pay for fines and lawsuits. Liberals are tearing this country down…. It is time to wake up and take a stand or this won’t be a country fit to stand in!
Deborah Pratt
The fact that many people ‘are’ waking up, making choices and taking a stand against corruption is what the furor is all about!!! Thankfully, people are finding their righteousness and moral values again!! They are finally taking that ‘stand’ and not allowing ‘filth’ to be their way of life!! Our government is in a ‘chaotic’ state because of its ‘cleansing’!! I’m so thankful every day that we have such a strong, moral leader in our government fighting for us. Now ‘we’ need to start making the ‘right’ choices in our private lives as well!! Stop ‘selling out’ our selves and our country!! There is no ‘price’ that makes it worth it in the end!!
Darren Rusty
Nothing that these LibTurd idiots do surprises me anymore. These fools have chosen to be stupid, hate the POTUS and will do anything and everything to make him look like the fool he isn’t.
DJT is trying to MAGA and these idiots are too stupid and ignorant to see it. It has been a year since the election when DJT beat the shit out of lying Killary and they still can’t let go of it.
You can’t fix STUPID!
(Ron White)
rick meek
disgustocrats are the new trash of the world…..
carolskey
When all of your followers see the deception…of course new vicimization must occur with a new batch of lemmings!
Otherwise, how will democrats ever will another national election?
Lord please continue to shine Your Light and expose the evil of liberals!
robert sanders
LET IT SHUT DOWN. WILL BE THE DEMO CRAPS FAULT.
Henry Gregg Nash
Hopefully, since they have their eyes opened now, they will “clean House” and get rid of all the trash, stop wasteful spending, go after criminals and terrorists and close or borders!
Deplorable Lanie
I can see the Dims shutting down the government for NON CITIZENS! what I do not understand is their constituents who are citizens being ok with their bad behaviour. It is beyond me. They say we are being unreasonable yet EVERY country is the same. Non citizens do not EVER get the same privileges that citizens get and rightly so! And in Mexico to vote, they MUST show Id with identity and citizenship. We have let the DUMBOCRATS pull one over for far too long, no more. We must DEMAND voter registration with picture id proving identity and citizenship and voters must show id to vote. No id, no vote!!!
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
PRESIDENT TRUMP CALL OUR MILITARY AND ARREST ALL TRAITORS. AMERICA LIVE, TRAITORS DIED.
WE NEED TO STOP AT ONCE, OUR DESTROCTION IN THE HANDS OF TRAITORS AND
ILEGAL INMIGRANTS.
Henry Gregg Nash
In is time for everyone to wake up, stop fighting against each other and stand up for America!,,,,, We are going to face the biggest challenge of our lives! Keep your eyes open!
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
YES, PRESIDENT TRUMP NEEDS TO ARREST ALL TRAITORS USING MILITARY FORCE. WE WILL BE ON THE STREETS. AMERICA LIVES, TRAITORS DIED.
Henry Gregg Nash
If need be, I will administer cold steel and hot lead in order to cure their ills, if need be!
alegalcitizen
I SO DETEST the term illegal immigrant, they DID NOT immigrate here, they SNUCK in. The Federal Govt. term is illegal alien. They are Documented, just NOT for this country.
Larry Brule
the dimocrats are big enough outlaws, they would.
Shelba Herring
Gather up the illegals and deport them, no matter where they came from or how long they have been here illegal is illegal, especially the muslim community that wants sharia law recognized in the US sharia law cannot be recognized because it is in the constitution that the constitution is the law of the land and no other laws can be practiced in America, what the muslims are trying to do is betraying their oath when they were let come to this country, they said they would honor and convert to American laws, they lied therefore they need to be gathered up and sent back to the country from which they came, where they can practice sharia law with no restrictions
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
Dear Shelba and Photo companion. You are absolutely historical correct. Charles Martel, Cid Campeador are one of the many of our Europeans ancestors who protect our civilization from these ignorants, inbred, sand eaters, who got money because we were stupid enough to pay them instead of kicking their empty skulls and just take all the oil, because, we have the fire power to send them to hell. Now because of miserable deals of the Criminal Nazi Banker the Bushes, The Criminals Killary Rotten Clinton and Barbaric Rapist Killbilly Washing Clinton, and the Mulatto Backward Hustle Homobama, the whole Western Civilization is at risk of been swallow under the Criminal Barbaric Cruel Inhumane Sharia Lawless. We need to get together and we our military power end this stupid take over. Kill everyone who want to destroyed America. I will step aside from my Hipocratic
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
Thank you, The Muslims Sharia Law Practitioners are taken advantage of our own Constitution to exterminate the American way of life. We need to expel them from here. European Civilization needs another Carl Martel or Cid Campeador, to do the same. There is not time to waste is we want to avoid a horrible civil war. Americaphobic, has no Constitutional Right. THE AMERICA CONSTITUTION WAS WRITTEN TO PROTECT AMERICA. THE CONSTITUTION CAN NOT BE USE BY INVADORS CLAIMING
CONSTITUTION PROTECTION TO KILL US. WE THE SAME LAW, THEY WANT TO BE PROTECTED FOR THEIR CRIMES. WE ARE NOT STUPID. EXPELLED THEM ALL.
LOVEFREN
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
Muslims Sharia Lawless Invaders Claim the Constitution of the United States for protection for their criminal act against us in our own land.
Americaphobic can not use the Constitution to destroy America.
The Constitution of the United States of America was Created to Protect and Preserve Our Country. No to be used against us in our own land to kill us.
EXPELLED EVERYONE AMERICAPHOBIC.
NO CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS FOR THE ONES WHO WANT TO KILL US ALL IN OUR OWN LAND. THIS IS STUPID USE OF OUR CONSTITUTION. LOVEFREN.
Ron C
Screw it shut the government down…especially the DOJ…they are nothing but useless anyway.
RAFAEL VALLEJO
imagine, the democrats rather help criminal illegal immigrants than our own people, with that in mind, the rest is obvious, they do not care about us. They care for all their corrupted senators, sexual predators, lairs, their hypocrisy is beyond control, and that has been since Obama took office and he still think he is President, a person elected because the color of his skin rather than for a person with dignity, respect and most of all a real American, that believe in our constitution and faith. his view of Muslim descent are totally against all our principles.
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
Perfectly said it. The only country in this planet, who have a Dreaming Legal Document for Law of Perfect Human Government is the United States of America. Our Constitution is the light of the World, I am depress but hopeful, The Light comes on. Dreams are Dreams. Reality is Worst. Lovefren
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
The Constitution of the United States of America is the only legal documents in the whole world, which allows man to dream of better life with justice for all. LEGAL DOCUMENT, THIS DOCUMENT IS THE LAW OF THE LAND. THE LIGHT IT’S OFF, BUT THE DREAMS GOES ON.
I RATHER DREAM FOR BETTER DAYS, THAN ACCEPT BY FORCE A LIVING NIGHTMARE FOR REALITY
Lovefren
Stever
I have reason to believe that President Trump, will follow through with his promise of “No Amnesty”, He has seen and witnessed, the masses following him and their ability to bring a politician down. He would not fare well, if he went back on his promise. The Left has tried to stop him, since before he took office and at every turn when in office. The Left, could give a flip about “illegals” or “refugees”, they are only concerned about the vote they would garner for their Democrat Hypocrisy, the power it would give them. Build the wall deport those that need to be deported and save the country from the cancerous Left.
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
I Agree with President Trump.
America is a sovereign nation.
Not for Sale to anyone.
America belong to Americans.
No Bushes, Clintons, Obamas, Kennedies, Bill Gates, Federal Reserve, CIA, etc.
America should be rule under our Constitution.
Everyone illegal has no Constitutional Right.
Americaphobic has not Constitutional Right.
Federal and Private Mafias, has not Constitutional Rights.
The only way we can protect America, against all enemies,
is under Constitutional Law.
Otherwise, America belongs to no one, everyone will be homeless. From the Billioners, to the Economical broke.
Human wickedness has cure under the Constitution.
America will die, without Constitutional Law.
I hope, I am capable of expressing myself clear.
I love mysel, I love you all,
I love the innocence of all our children, no social status, no race, I consider all children the most pure and Angelicals of all.
I hope, I am clear to all.
Edward
Yes I believe Democrats will let the government shut down. They have the media on their side and will blame the whole thing on Trump. And all their non thinking snow flakes will believe anything they are told.
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
Yes, they have become anti-american, I really do not understand, what is wrong with them. They are illogical, with deadly robotic behavior, like souls sold to Satan for power and paper money, no Even Gold.
LOL We are doom.
Lorraine E
Shutting down the government means “shutting down non essential” agencies. And the federal employees who are affected by the grand standing politicians will receive their full pay after the politicians have completed their “dog and pony” show which usually includes begging for money to do their job. Big Question is: Why do we, the taxpayers, have to pay taxes for “non essential” government operations? Why not just end all “non essential” programs and agencies?
Avatar
It is all about the ‘almighty’ $. G. Soros should be absent from our USA , not only supporting the Dems, but most likely Muslims and Globalists for world control !!!
markypolo
I didn’t need the Government in 1955, and I sure as helll don’t need them now. Shut er DOWN you worthless lazy, lying, thieving, murdering Democrats!
barbarakelly
Dear God—- are they that stupid———–and they dare calls us stupid. The idiot dems better wake up., we are on to them and their idiocy, and they wonder why they are losing ——they are losers.!!!!!!
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
I know God Lives and Thy is Real, Thy is not a product of my imagination. We are Thy children,
I am a Christian, I am a fervor reader of the Bible in order for me to know God and Love him. I am human I can not love nothing I do not know. For me in order to love God I need to know Thy. This quest and my Physician intellectual mind, make me wonder and ask to Thy… Father, Jesus expressed to you, before his divine death on the cross… forgive them, they do not know what they do. Father, you must be God, How are you going to judge them under Jesus dying expression of love.
BatGuanna
Remember when they wanted to pass Obama Affordable Care; its good we will read it later. Well its been read and not worth a crap! Is this considered responsible caretakers; BS. Shut it down now with your Sanctuary cities and your lack of federal funds for them you incompetent bunch of losers. See how the Red states vote for you later?
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
I am going to write you a joke, the real BS is Bless Shit, Complaint to God. LOL
I agree with you, nobody cares, this is why we are at the end of the rope for life.
Ready to have a Nuclear War, we already had blow up Chernobyl, Fukushima, Nuclear Power Plants.
The insects are been exterminated by the chemical we used. Food Production will decline with risk of planetary starvation. Find Relief in this though, This is not my Creation, This Belong to God.
Complaint to God, Thy will listen to you, I know. Lovefren
mrpoohead
Fingers crossed you’re next for extermination.
BatGuanna
The entire Democratic party should be tried for sexual harassment, for the screwing they have put on us for years,; how do you think we got 20 Trillion dollars in debt? All the give away programs, the free phones jut helped the drug traffic and the other illegal enterprises and their employment.
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
I agree, at the same time, there is nothing we can do as individuals, the problem will be when everyone start acting with collective mind, this act in human history is call, revolution or civil war, then everyone is in trouble, no one escape to even the King, President, Chief of Police, No one is safe. Everyone knows about this fact, but no one wants to care at this time. I am afraid, the time will come, the collective mind will arrive and we will be in civil war. I am a Physician, I am only one voice, even if I want to avoid this horrible historical fact, soon to become a reality, I do not have the power. Take care be your best friend, by been your own goodness. Lovefren
Richard Fox
wake up everyone hates everyone that is what the world is coming to you have to look at all not just so wake up smell the coffee
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
NO, I AM MY OWN GOODNESS. NO HAVE NO ENEMIES. I CAN BE KILL BUT NEVER TAKEN.
I CAN FIGHT FOR WHAT I WANT, THIS IS MY RIGHT AS FREE MAN. (JOKE, EVEN IF I PAY TAXES)
I HAVE CONTROL OVER MY SOUL, HEART AND MIND. I AM MY ONLY MASTER, NO ONE ELSE. LOVEFREN
Richard Fox
no you don’t you will do what the biggest part of the people want you want to be a part of smothing you are only human
Bill Peddie
There is no question in my mind that democrats care more about illegal immigrants than they do for Americans.
That is the saddest part.
There are so many Americans in cities run by democrats who are suffering so bad because they do not care about the citizens. Especially blacks and browns.
Don’t believe what I say.
Check the cities that are doing the poorest and see for yourself.
apzzyk
The problems are that the xenophobes have had their ways since forever. My Ancestors were Quakers who were transported to Pennsylvania because we would not accept the teachings of the Church of England. Being pacifists our only threat to England was by trying to settle disagrements without violence – if we would have had our way, we would have separated from England without a Revolutionary war. I would be all in favor of shutting down government today for almost any reason. The government is totally in default of most of the contracts that it has made with the people of the US. When the government created the National Parks, the representatives of the people at the time, essentially signed a contract that was open ended with the people to maintain and improve these to keep them a national treasure. It is now over $11 Billion behind schedule in just maintaining them, and will have to raise the costs of visiting them from $20 this year to $70 next year, which will make them unaffordable to many of We the people. When compared with the cost of borrowing the money to fund the tax cuts for the wealthy and the corporations, this is chump change. If congress cannot make changes in the law as necessary and fund its obligations first and do the optional later, then we are in big trouble.
With the Dreamers, there has been no data presented to show what Trump claims is that they are all criminals, and there is no data that would support his words. I was born in 1939 in CO, and celebrated my 1st birthday in NE, second in ID, and the 3rd in OR. I had no choice. Neither did these people. Many of them have reached the age where they are in public education and are only guilty of dipping the braids of the girl in front of them into their ink wells. Older ones, due to their status have been able to go on to Colleges and universities and probably able to been able 2 take on student debt to do very dangerous things like teaching, or maybe even being cops. We would do those who have taken on student debt a favor by deporting them to where we could not collect their debts from them, and the government (taxpayers) would have to cover these debts and all other debts. Debt collection for all debts ends at the border. The business community would have to train replacements – if they could be found.
Then there is a little legal problem, called the Constitution, that will make using any information that they gave to give them the temporary green cards to deport them. These applications required them to give information which they would not otherwise provided along with information they gave when they reported to the authorities to keep their status in tact. That would go so far as the use of their names in the deportation process. Right now, with the emphasis on apprehanding illegals, the government has run out of deportation centers, and with no new immigration judges (the swamp?) fewer are being given the hearings that are mandated by law, and if the deportation is appealed the cases can last years and cost the taxpayers a hell of a lot more money. The Immigration Attorneys are in the process of challenging the process by which people are deported. With the severity of the punishment they should get court appointed attorneys too. When I was in the USMC 60 years ago I was in with illegals, and helped them as I could with the preparation for the citizenship test, which Trump could not pass as with most of the Trumpites.
JWH (NRA LIFE)
The Dreamers need to dream of their homeland. because that is where they must go and will go ASAP!! They are real illegals by original federal Law, not some overreach executive order by the “CLOSET MUSLIM” OBAMA!! Obama has tried to destroy America and it’s Society and culture, just as his father did to KENYA when he “RAN WITH JOMO KENYATA to destroy original KENYAA Society!! Obama is a “Mulatto SCUMBAG CLOSET MUSLIM” that hates Christians, Jews, Whites and any other individuals that don’t fit into his vision of the New World Order!! We can’t let that happen at any time!!
Al
They have walkouts. Very anti American. I’m NEVER voting for a damn dem again.
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
Yes, I hope voting for republicans help us all.
The Redhawk
ARE they??? I HOPE SO ……………That just may be the END of the (D) Nazi do nothing PARTY … and If Conyes gets his way it may become the (D) Monarchy party
baitmando
Shut it freaking down you limp wristed Republicans. Show a spine for once retards.
Stephen
Schumer and Pelosi couldn’t negotiate their way out of a wet paper bag. They’ve never had to. That’s why they grandstand instead of sitting down at the table. They’re afraid to try. Trump is W-A-Y out of their league.
judy
If the democraps shut down the government for their SILLY beliefs, then I think they should never get a chance in hell of getting anything they want passed. If they can’t give a little, why should the Republicans.
vinny
I don’t trust those ASSHOLES!!! They would do it out of spite.
Valerie Cuccia Gleason
I think you should put all of the complaining Democrats and the illegal’s onto an Island and see what happens! Just saying!
EFREN VARGAS, M.D.
Good Idea, they will give each other, what they want us to take from them. LOL Welcome to Hell,
Ron C
Why yes…yes they are…after all we all know that their news media will claim it is the republicans that shut down the government…right? They always do, and the republicans are to stupid to claim BS to the lying news stories. |
Q:
CSS Vertical Align Image Right
I am trying to align an image to the right of a div, the div is not set as a specific height and neither is the image, the image is user generated.
Anyway, I tried using the old HTML4 method for aligning an image to the right of a div:
<img src="link" align="right" />
And after some reading I found out that it wasn't supported in HTML5, so I then read on and found out that there is a CSS style called vertical align, I tried adding that to my image like so:
<img src="link" style="vertical-align:right;" />
But that didn't manage to work.
I simply want the image to move to the right of the div.
A:
Another Solution beside of float:
<div id="ParentImg">
<img src="link"/>
</div>
CSS:
#ParentImg {
text-align: right;
}
or:
<div style="text-align:right;">
<img src="link"/>
</div>
|
[Cite as State v. Savage, 2012-Ohio-2276.]
IN THE COURT OF APPEALS OF OHIO
FOURTH APPELLATE DISTRICT
MEIGS COUNTY
STATE OF OHIO, :
:
Plaintiff-Appellee. : Case No: 11CA7
:
v. :
: DECISION AND
JUSTIN SAVAGE, : JUDGMENT ENTRY
:
Defendant-Appellant. : Filed: May 18, 2012
APPEARANCES:
Timothy Young, State Public Defender, and Melissa M. Prendergast, Assistant State
Public Defender, Columbus, Ohio, for Appellant.
Colleen S. Williams, Meigs County Prosecutor, and Amanda Bizub-Franzmann, Meigs
County Assistant Prosecutor, Pomeroy, Ohio, for Appellee.
Kline, J.:
{¶1} Justin Savage (hereinafter “Savage”) appeals the judgment of the Meigs
County Court of Common Pleas, which convicted Savage of theft and ordered him to
pay $25,000 in restitution. On appeal, Savage raises various arguments about the
restitution order and his trial counsel. But we will not address the various arguments
raised by Savage. Instead, for the following reasons, we find that no final appealable
order exists. First, the trial court’s sentencing entry contemplates that further action
must be taken. And second, we cannot create jurisdiction by combining the trial court’s
multiple entries. Accordingly, we dismiss Savage’s appeal for lack of jurisdiction.
I.
Meigs App. No. 11CA7 2
{¶2} As part of a plea agreement, Savage pled guilty to fifth-degree-felony theft.
The trial court sentenced Savage to five years of community control and ordered him “to
pay, jointly and severally with any co-defendants, including any juvenile co-defendants,
to the Clerk of Courts the sum of twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000.00) as and for
restitution to the victim[.]” July 21, 2010 SENTENCING ENTRY at 2. In addition to the
standard terms of community control, the trial court imposed several special conditions.
For example, the trial court ordered Savage “to enter into and successfully complete the
SEPTA program at the SEPTA Correctional Facility in Nelsonville.” Id.
{¶3} Savage appeals and asserts the following three assignments of error: I. “A
contract may not be enforced if the consideration given for it is illegal. Mr. Savage’s
plea agreement was induced upon illegal consideration and as such, is unenforceable
and invalid.” II. “Mr. Savage was ordered to pay restitution to the victim in an amount
that exceeded both the actual economic loss suffered by the victim and the limit of
restitution that could be imposed for a fifth-degree felony theft offense. The court’s
order imposing restitution was erroneous because the amount arrived at was not based
upon credible evidence that established the value of the victim’s actual economic loss to
a reasonable degree of certainty.” And, III. “Mr. Savage’s trial counsel rendered
constitutionally ineffective assistance when counsel advised Mr. Savage to accept the
State’s plea offer, which required him to agree to be sentenced to more than what was
statutorily allowed for a fifth-degree felony theft offense, and when counsel knew that
Mr. Savage was indigent but did not object to the imposition of court costs.”
II.
Meigs App. No. 11CA7 3
{¶4} Before we may consider the merits of Savage’s appeal, we must determine
whether a final appealable order exists. “A court of appeals has no jurisdiction over
orders that are not final and appealable.” State v. Baker, 119 Ohio St.3d 197, 2008-
Ohio-3330, 893 N.E.2d 163, ¶ 6, citing Ohio Constitution, Article IV, Section 3(B)(2); see
also R.C. 2505.02. “If a court’s order is not final and appealable, we have no jurisdiction
to review the matter and must dismiss the appeal.” State v. Darget, 4th Dist. No.
09CA3306, 2010-Ohio-3541, ¶ 4, citing Eddie v. Saunders, 4th Dist. No. 07CA7, 2008-
Ohio-4755, ¶ 11. “If the parties do not raise the jurisdictional issue, we must raise it sua
sponte.” Darget at ¶ 4, citing Sexton v. Conley, 4th Dist. No. 99CA2655, 2000 WL
1137463, *2 (Aug. 7, 2000); Whitaker-Merrell v. Geupel Constr. Co., 29 Ohio St.2d 184,
186, 280 N.E.2d 922 (1972).
{¶5} “‘A judgment that leaves issues unresolved and contemplates that further
action must be taken is not a final appealable order.’” State v. Threatt, 108 Ohio St.3d
277, 2006-Ohio-905, 843 N.E.2d 164, ¶ 20, quoting Bell v. Horton, 142 Ohio App.3d
694, 696, 756 N.E.2d 1241 (4th Dist.2001). And here, the July 21, 2010 SENTENCING
ENTRY states the following: “It is further ORDERED that execution of the Order of
commitment to the SEPTA Correctional Facility in Nelsonville is stayed until August 23,
2010 to permit the Defendant to obtain full-time employment. This sentencing hearing
shall be in recess until August 16, 2010 at 11:15 AM at which time the Court will review
the Defendant’s employment status to determine if the Defendant should be confined at
the SEPTA Correctional Facility in Nelsonville.” Therefore, the July 21, 2010
SENTENCING ENTRY clearly contemplates that further action must be taken on the
issue of Savage’s SEPTA commitment.
Meigs App. No. 11CA7 4
{¶6} The trial court’s September 9, 2010 ENTRY STAYING SEPTA
COMMITMENT addresses the issue left unresolved by the July 21, 2010 SENTENCING
ENTRY. In the September 9, 2010 entry, the trial court stated the following: “Upon[]
due consideration, the Court finds that the Defendant has obtained employment, and
therefore the commitment to SEPTA Correctional Facility is stayed until further Order of
this Court. All other terms and conditions of community control, as contained in the
Sentencing Entry remain as Ordered.” We cannot, however, create a final appealable
order by combining the July 21, 2010 entry and the September 9, 2010 entry. For
crimes that are not capital offenses, the Supreme Court of Ohio has held that “[o]nly one
document can constitute a final appealable order.” Baker at ¶ 17. See generally State
v. Ketterer, 126 Ohio St.3d 448, 2010-Ohio-3831, 935 N.E.2d 9, ¶ 17-18 (distinguishing
Baker and finding that “in aggravated-murder cases subject to R.C. 2929.03(F), the
final, appealable order consists of the combination of the judgment entry and the
sentencing opinion”). Therefore, we cannot combine the trial court’s multiple entries in
an effort to create jurisdiction.
{¶7} In conclusion, we find that no final appealable order exists in the present
case. As a result, we must dismiss Savage’s appeal for lack of jurisdiction.
APPEAL DISMISSED.
Meigs App. No. 11CA7 5
JUDGMENT ENTRY
It is ordered that the APPEAL BE DISMISSED. Appellant shall pay the costs
herein taxed.
The Court finds that there were reasonable grounds for this appeal.
It is ordered that a special mandate issue out of this Court directing the
Meigs County Common Pleas Court to carry this judgment into execution.
A certified copy of this entry shall constitute the mandate pursuant to Rule
27 of the Rules of Appellate Procedure. Exceptions.
McFarland, J.: Concurs in Judgment and Opinion.
Harsha, J.: Dissents.
For the Court
BY:_____________________________
Roger L. Kline, Judge
NOTICE TO COUNSEL
Pursuant to Local Rule No. 14, this document constitutes a final judgment
entry and the time period for further appeal commences from the date of filing
with the clerk.
|
ISTANBUL—Turkey's ruling party, facing the threat of fresh antigovernment demonstrations, is boosting its presence in a sphere long dominated by the opposition: social media.
The Justice and Development Party, led by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, is recruiting a 6,000-member social-media team to woo citizens and fight critics, party officials said.
The AKP is gradually bringing young, tech-savvy party members to Ankara to train them in classrooms to act as volunteer "social-media representatives."
The youth will be charged with sharing news and images, mainly on Twitter and Facebook, but also on Instagram and YouTube, that promote the party perspective and monitor online discussions, a party official said.
"We aim at developing a positive political language which we are teaching to our volunteers," said a senior party official responsible for organizing the campaign. "And when the opposing camp spreads disinformation about the party, we correct them with valid information, always using positive language." |
Nickel Plated Steel Brake Disc
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Though its minority wing is nothing much to talk about, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) never fails to make a vain attempt to reach out to Muslims who are wary of saffron plans.
On the day the BJP lost Karnataka to the Congress rather badly, the party’s minority wing in Uttar
Pradesh held a meeting to appeal to Muslims to rely on the BJP and not fall into the trap of the Congress, Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party.
Rumana Siddiqui, the state chief of the BJP minority wing, claimed the party was all set to reach out to the community in a big way in the state.
Expectedly, the party invoked the name of its tallest leader Atal Bihari Vajpayee to remind the community how several initiatives were undertaken for the welfare of Muslims during the NDA government.
”During our regime, care was taken to ensure that the Muslim pride wasn’t injured and the community’s genuine demands were met promptly,” said party vice president Haridwar Dubey, who was the chief guest at the minority cell meet.
Would these make any real difference in the way the minorities perceive the BJP?
“Very unlikely. The BJP is talking of projecting its hardline leaders ahead of the Lok Sabha elections. Even otherwise, what the party says or does won’t make any difference in the way we see the BJP. Barring stray cases, Muslims would rather prefer not to vote than go with a party which is ideologically opposed to them,” says Etmad Khan, a bank official.
The party is also in the process of appointing its office bearers i n the districts. The district chiefs of Bijnor, Sambhal, Moradabad, Mau and Hapur have been appointed. |
Overview of outcomes of laparoscopic and open Roux-en-Y gastric bypass in the United States.
Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass is the gold standard procedure for weight loss surgery and is the most commonly performed bariatric operation in the United States. Laparoscopic gastric bypass (LGBP) has become the predominantly used technique for weight loss surgery since 2004. The aim of this study was to compare surgical outcomes of LGBP versus open gastric bypass (OGBP) for the treatment of morbid obesity. Using the Nationwide Inpatient Sample database, clinical data of morbidly obese patients who underwent LGBP or OGBP from 2006 to 2008 were analyzed. Outcome measures included patient characteristics, comorbidities, postoperative complications, length of hospital stay (LOS), hospital charges, and in-hospital mortality. A total of 226,043 morbidly obese patients underwent gastric bypass during the three-year period (LGBP: 183,452 [81.16%], OGBP: 42,591[18.84%]). The majority of patients in both groups were female (LGBP: 81.0% vs. OGBP: 78.5%, p < 0.01) and Caucasian (LGBP: 73.9% vs. OGBP: 72.6%, p < 0.01). Most comorbidities were significantly higher in the OGBP group. All specific postoperative complications were significantly higher in the OGBP group (urinary tract infection [UTI], pneumonia, acute renal failure, respiratory failure, myocardial infarction, venous thromboembolism, ileus, gastrointestinal leak, wound infection, and bowel obstruction). LGBP was associated with lower overall postoperative complications (3.5% vs. 10.8%; p < 0.01), shorter LOS (2.4 days vs. 4.2 days; p < 0.01), lower mortality (0.06 vs. 0.52; p < 0.01), and lower hospital costs ($39,570 vs. $45,629; p < 0.01) compared with the OGBP. LGBP was associated with shorter LOS, lower morbidity, lower mortality, and lower hospital costs compared with those of OGBP. The laparoscopic approach to gastric bypass should be considered the gold standard approach for the treatment of morbid obesity. |
I don’t really have any information on this one, other than the Historic District Commission reviewed it at their meeting on March 25th .
You may remember 210 West Exchange from late 2014 when the City Council spot zoned the parcel. When the City last rezoned the Downtown ahead of development in the 195 District, this parcel, west of the highway was included in the D-1-200 Downtown zone. A clear example of spot zoning that the City Council quickly walked back on. As a result, the 17 story proposed Aloft Hotel was never built on this site.
Back in 2014 I liked the idea of height at this location, but wasn’t crazy about the spot zoning. I actually think Downtown zoning should extend west across the highway a bit (thoughtfully to the surrounding build environment). One of the comments on the proposal at the Old Fruit and Produce Warehouse site was that us should be taller, since it is against an elevated highway ramp. I agree, height along the highway mitigates some of the negative of developing space along it.
As it is now, the new part of this building will sit just above the ramp from Route 6 to Route 95.
A better thing about this proposal over the 2014 one, it appears the warehouse building remains and gets an addition growing out of it, the 2014 proposal would have entirely demolished the warehouse building.
If/when, this gets HDC approval, it would then go before the City Plan Commission. |
Spring Feeder calf schedule
NC Cattlemen's FOundation Scholarship
The North Carolina Cattlemen’s Foundation Scholarship seeks to
recognize and provide financial assistance to students with an interest
in agriculture; a background, interest in or career plans with the
cattle industry will receive additional consideration in review of
applications. |
WE ARE CTA
325,000 MEMBERS STRONG
October 2013
David Kirp: Improbable Scholars
Matthew Hardy
David Kirp at UESF Assembly
Over the past several years, UC Berkeley professor and author David Kirp observed firsthand how the people of Union City, N.J., a low-income community with mostly English learner students, turned their school district around. What’s so astounding about this turnaround? It isn’t based on the latest research or policy debated in Washington, D.C., or in state capitals across the country, but on wisdom that most classroom teachers and staff already know.
Kirp shared his findings and his new book, Improbable Scholars: The Rebirth of a Great American School System and a Strategy for America's Schools, with teachers and paraprofessionals of the United Educators of San Francisco (UESF) Assembly last spring. Here are some of his conclusions.
1. The best teaching in the world is great preschool teaching. A community school is a great preschool that is age-appropriate.
2. Evaluation of teachers should contain a focus on grade level achievement, fostering cooperation and mentoring among staff.
3. Professional development works best when it brings mentors and master teachers into the classroom, rather than pulling teachers off-site in a conference style setting.
4. Data can be a valuable tool, if used correctly, to pinpoint the help students need and to discover where teachers need assistance. Instead of focusing on punishment, assessments should be used to boost performance.
5. Stability matters. Low turnover of administrators, principals and teachers makes it possible to build a culture of trust. Stable teaching is the result of people in a school district developing strong relationships.
6. Supporting community and families is essential. Liaisons in schools who know the parents and can offer access to support services to families make it much more likely that parents will get involved.
7. School districts with large low-income and English learner student populations should focus on three main goals: a strong bilingual education program, a focus on literacy and preschool, and a broad and robust curriculum.
8. Though there are local differences, there is consistency among school districts that outperform expectations. All of them have carefully built pillars of support based on a sense of trust between administrators, teachers, staff and parents.
UESF members agree. President Dennis Kelly says, “Kirp’s research validates what we as professionals have known all along.” He adds that it may be a great gift for local administrators. Says elementary teacher Cathy Sullivan, “His push for a developmentally appropriate and word-rich curriculum for elementary school students is exactly on target.” |
The ability to detect and respond to harmful conditions in the environment is a skill essential for survival. As a result, many organisms have specialized systems for accurately detecting variables such as temperature or the presence of noxious chemicals. TRPA1, an ion channel in pain-sensing neurons, is involved in those processes. TRPA1 is activated by a wide range of electrophiles as well as by temperature. TRPA1 is a particularly interesting target for study due to its associations with pain and inflammation. The importance of the N-terminal cytoplasmic region of TRPA1 for temperature and chemical sensing is well established, but relatively little is known about the molecular mechanisms. This project focuses on the temperature-sensing mechanism of insect TRPA1. In insects, two TRPA1 isoforms differ only at a small region at the extreme N-termini, but the channels have very different temperature sensitivities12-13. The overall goal for this project is t understand how the N-termini of those insect TRPA1 isoforms interact with the ankyrin repeat domain to modulate temperature sensitivity. By combining biochemical, biophysical, and structural analyses of TRPA1 N-terminal fragments, I aim to elucidate the molecular mechanism of temperature sensing. The first aim of the project is investigate potential interactions between the isoform specific-regions of insect TRPA1 and the ankyrin repeat domain. This requires pure, soluble fragments of the N-terminal region of TRPA1, so l will put forth a large effort to produce the fragments necessary to search for interactions. Isothermal calorimetry and mutagenesis will be used to measure binding properties and identify regions important for interaction. In addition, pairs of corresponding fragments from the different insect TRPA1 isoforms will be produced for comparison in aim 2. The second aim is to identify biophysical and biochemical differences of the fragments that are responsible for the different temperature sensitivities of insect TRPA1 isoforms. Circular dichroism and limited proteolysis will be used to compare the secondary structure composition and thermal stability of construct pairs. The third and final aim is to solve the structures of TRPA1 N-terminal fragments through X-ray crystallography. By combining the information gained from aims 2 and 3, we aim to determine the role of the N-termini in the molecular mechanism of temperature sensing. Structures of the N-terminal domains of TRPA1 will provide a useful framework for further investigation of TRPA1 temperature sensing through biochemistry and electrophysiology experiments. Structural information will also be useful for rational drug design. TRPA1 antagonists may have analgesic and anti-inflammatory effects. These types of compounds may therefore be useful for treating neuropathic pain or chronic inflammation disorders. |
In addition to the traced cutter ball, Halladay’s display includes, among other artifacts, a Phillies cap he wore when he threw a perfect game in May 2010 and his two Cy Young Awards from 2003 and 2010.
Highlights from Baines’ display include the ball he hit for his 1,000th RBI in 1992 and the Outstanding Designated Hitter Award he was given in 1987.
Martinez’s display features the Roberto Clemente Award he earned in 2004 and a jersey from his final game in the major leagues, among other artifacts.
Some of the artifact highlights commemorating Mussina include a New York Yankees cap from his final game and his Gold Glove Award from 1996.
Rivera’s display features a pair of shoes from the Yankees’ sweep of the Braves in the 1999 World Series as well as his five World Series rings from 1996, 1998, 1999, 2000 and 2009.
Smith’s display includes a glove from 1991, when he led the major leagues with a career-high 47 saves for the Cardinals, among other artifacts.
The exhibit includes artifacts from throughout each inductee’s life, chronicling not just their major league careers but their amateur and minor league careers as well.
“We love having things that go back to Little League if they’ve got it, or high school or college,” Strohl said. “That’s important in terms of the development of these guys, so I think that’s pretty neat.”
The exhibit will be on display until spring 2020, and also features a highlight video that tells the story of the six newest Hall of Famers. Admission to the exhibit is included with regular Museum admission.
“It is one year where they’re going to be the star attractions in terms of individual Hall of Famers’ stories,” Strohl said.
Janey Murray is the 2019 public relations intern in the Hall of Fame’s Frank and Peggy Steele Internship Program for Youth Leadership Development |
Global warming activist and former veep Al Gore likened the battle over climate change to humanity's greatest struggles -- like the fights against slavery, apartheid and nuclear proliferation -- during a speech Thursday in Australia, according to a newly reported transcript.
In a July 13 speech to the EcoCity World Summit in Melbourne, the former vice president argued combating global warming was “in the tradition of all the great moral causes that have improved the circumstances of humanity throughout our history,” according to the website Climate Depot.
“The abolition of slavery, woman’s suffrage and women’s rights, the civil rights movement and the anti-apartheid movement in South Africa, the movement to stop the toxic phase of nuclear arms race and more recently the gay rights movement,” Gore said.
Marc Morano, executive editor for ClimateDepot.com, told Fox News he made an audio recording of Gore’s remarks because summit organizers prevented media from videotaping the event.
Morano, a former communications aide to climate change skeptic Sen. James Inhofe, R-Okla., also confirmed reports that security staff physically prevented people from taking photos with their cell phones.
It is not the first time Gore has drawn the parallel between global warming and civil rights.
“The climate movement should be seen in the context of the great moral causes that have transformed and improved the outlook for humanity,” Gore said at an green energy awards ceremony in June.
“It was wrong to allow slavery to continue, it was wrong to deny women the right to vote, it was wrong to discriminate on the basis of skin color or who you fell in love with,” he continued.
In a 2013 interview with The Washington Post, Gore likened climate change “deniers” to alcoholic fathers who fly off the handle when the issue is mentioned.
“The conversation on global warming has been stalled because a shrinking group of denialists fly into a rage when it’s mentioned. It’s like a family with an alcoholic father who flies into a rage every time a subject is mentioned and so everybody avoids the elephant in the room to keep the peace,” he explained.
Gore has been in Australia as part of a tour promoting the upcoming release of "An Inconvenient Sequel," the follow-up to the 2006 documentary on global warming. |
A pickup processing system for a guitar or other musical instrument. According to one embodiment, a split pickup is employed that separates the sound from the two bass strings from the other four strings. The signal from the bass strings may be provided to an octave divider, which creates a bass sound...http://www.google.com/patents/US8143509?utm_source=gb-gplus-sharePatent US8143509 - System and method for guitar signal processing
A pickup processing system for a guitar or other musical instrument. According to one embodiment, a split pickup is employed that separates the sound from the two bass strings from the other four strings. The signal from the bass strings may be provided to an octave divider, which creates a bass sound to add back into the sound. The octave divider produces sound without discontinuities or other artifacts. Other effects include restored acoustical properties of the guitar body, stereo imaging, reverb and others. The present invention may be fully contained within the body of an acoustic guitar.
Images(7)
Claims(18)
1. A sound processor for a stringed instrument comprising:
a transducer component, configured to be positioned proximate to a defined set of one or more adjacent strings of the stringed instrument, wherein the defined set of one or more adjacent strings is less than a total number of strings on the stringed instrument, the transducer component configured to produce a first transducer signal responsive to vibrations from the defined set of one or more strings and
an octave divider component, configured to receive the first transducer signal, the octave divider component configured to produce a bass signal that is at least one octave below a frequency of the first transducer signal; the octave divider component utilizing a circular buffer wherein values representing the first transducer signal are written to the circular buffer at a predetermined rate, and the values are read out of the circular buffer at one-half the predetermined rate;
wherein the circular buffer includes two output pointers indicating positions in the circular buffer to read out values, and wherein the octave divider component periodically switches between the two output pointers to read values out of the circular buffer.
2. The sound processor of claim 1, further including a combiner component, configured to combine the first transducer signal and the bass signal.
3. The sound processor of claim 1, wherein when the octave divider component switches from a first one of the output pointers to a second one of the output pointers, and the second output pointer is adjusted to be at a location in the circular buffer that substantially matches a phase of the transducer signal pointed to by the first output pointer.
4. The sound processor of claim 3, wherein after the location of the second output pointer is adjusted, the first output point is then adjusted to be at a location in the circular buffer that is half the length of the circular buffer away from the second output pointer.
5. The sound processor of claim 1, further including:
a second transducer, configured to be positioned proximate adjacent strings of the stringed instrument that are not part of the defined set of one or more adjacent strings, the second transducer configured to produce a second transducer signal responsive to vibrations from the proximate adjacent strings.
6. The sound processor of claim 5, wherein the first transducer signal, the second transducer signal, and the bass signal are combined.
7. The sound processor of claim 5, wherein the first transducer signal and the second transducer signal are combined, and the combined signal is digitally processed by performing a convolution utilizing coefficients derived from an impulse response from an acoustic guitar.
8. The sound processor of claim 5 wherein the first transducer and the second transducer are under saddle transducer (UST) piezo elements.
9. The sound processor of claim 1 wherein the sound processor is installed in a guitar.
10. A method for producing an audio signal, comprising:
receiving a first audio signal from a transducer positioned on a stringed instrument, the transducer positioned to sense vibrations from a defined set of at least two lower-pitched strings of the stringed instrument, wherein the defined set is less than a total number of strings on the stringed instrument;
digitizing the first audio signal;
inserting values for digitized first audio signal into a circular buffer utilizing an input pointer that indicates a position in the circular buffer to insert a subsequent value of the digitized first audio signal input signal, the input pointer advancing at a predetermined insertion rate;
utilizing two output pointers positioned a predetermined distance apart from each other, the two output pointers advancing at a rate that is lower than the predetermined insertion rate;
selecting one of the two output pointers, and reading the inserted values for the digitized first audio signal from the circular buffer at the selected output pointer to produce a bass audio signal;
when the input pointer advances to within a predetermined distance of the selected output pointer, adjusting a position of the nonselected output pointer to a location in the circular buffer that substantially matches a phase of the first audio signal as indicated by the selected output pointer; and
selecting the unselected output pointer for reading the inserted values from the circular buffer.
11. The method of claim 10, wherein adjusting a position of the nonselected output pointer includes:
determining an offset amount from the selected output pointer back to a prior position containing a first peak signal value stored in the circular buffer;
determining a new position for the nonselected output pointer, the new position being from a present position of the nonselected output pointer back to a prior position containing a second peak signal value stored in the circular buffer, plus the offset amount; and
moving the nonselected output pointer to the new position, and moving the selected output pointer to a position that is the predetermined distance apart from the nonselected output pointer.
12. The method of claim 10 further including:
after digitizing the first audio signal, low pass filtering the digitized first audio signal.
13. The method of claim 12 wherein digitally processing the combined signal includes performing a convolution utilizing coefficients derived from an impulse response from an acoustic guitar.
14. The method of claim 10 including:
combining the first audio signal and the second audio signal to produce a combined audio signal;
producing an audio reverb signal from the combined audio signal; and
combining the audio reverb signal and the combined audio signal.
15. The method of claim 10 further including:
receiving a second audio signal from a second transducer positioned on the stringed instrument to sense vibrations from strings not part of the defined set of lower-pitched strings; and
combining the first audio signal, the second audio signal, and the bass audio signal.
16. A guitar, comprising:
a transducer component, configured to be positioned proximate to a defined set of one or more adjacent strings of the guitar, wherein the defined set of one or more adjacent strings is less than a total number of strings on the guitar, the transducer component configured to produce a first transducer signal responsive to vibrations from the defined set of one or more strings and
an octave divider component, configured to receive the first transducer signal, the octave divider component configured to produce a bass signal that is at least one octave below a frequency of the first transducer signal; the octave divider component utilizing a circular buffer wherein values representing the first transducer signal are written to the circular buffer at a predetermined rate, and the values are read out of the circular buffer at one-half the predetermined rate to produce the bass signal;
wherein the circular buffer includes two output pointers indicating positions in the circular buffer to read out values, and wherein the octave divider component periodically switches between the two output pointers to read values out of the circular buffer.
17. The guitar of claim 16, wherein when the octave divider component switches from a first one of the output pointers to a second one of the output pointers, and the second output pointer is adjusted to be at a location in the circular buffer that substantially matches a phase of the transducer signal pointed to by the first output pointer.
18. The guitar of claim 17, wherein after the location of the second output pointer is adjusted, the first output point is then adjusted to be at a location in the circular buffer that is half the length of the circular buffer away from the second output pointer.
Description
This application claims priority to provisional U.S. Application Ser. No. 61/021,494 filed on Jan. 16, 2008, which is incorporated herein by reference.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The invention relates generally to signal processing. More specifically, the invention provides a system and method for processing sound for a guitar or similar instrument.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Many types of pickups are available for guitars, ranging from coil pickups for metal strings, microphones, and piezo element pickups. Acoustic guitars typically employ a single piezo element installed under the saddle (UST—under saddle transducer). The monophonic signal from this piezo transducer, comprising the summed signals of all 6 strings, is usually run to an on-board (in the guitar) single-channel analog preamp that typically provides a 3-band EQ prior to sending the signal out of the guitar to be plugged into either an acoustic guitar amp or PA system.
While such a system is inexpensive to implement and minimizes the amplified guitar's tendency to produce feedback at high volumes, the resulting sound is generally considered poor due to the response characteristics of the transducer. In particular, because of the direct coupling of the strings to the piezo element through the saddle, the acoustical effects of the guitar body are all but lost. The sound is generally characterized as thin, brittle and “quacky”, and does not compare favorably with the natural sound of a full body acoustic guitar.
Further, guitar players often want to add bass to their sound. One way for a solo performer to do this is to use bass pedals, which greatly complicate the playing. Other methods include devices that will generate bass accompaniment. These can generally be classified into two categories.
The first category are stand-alone octave pedals that accept a mono input from a guitar, and produce a bass (octave shifted) sound from the input. These devices are only musically useful when the performer plays one string at a time. Playing a chord produces an octave double of all the notes and the result is not desirable. They are generally not used with acoustic guitars.
The other category is octave divider algorithms that are integrated into guitar synthesizer systems. These systems can perform per-note octave shifting, but require hex (6-part) pickup systems, specialized connectors and are expensive because of all their other capabilities. Such systems are beyond the budget and requirements of many performers.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The following presents a simplified summary of the invention in order to provide a basic understanding of some aspects of the invention. This summary is not an extensive overview of the invention. It is not intended to identify key or critical elements of the invention or to delineate the scope of the invention. The following summary merely presents some concepts of the invention in a simplified form as a prelude to the more detailed description provided below.
Embodiments of the present invention can restore the character of the natural acoustic sound to the amplified signal coming from a guitar, and to enhance it in other novel ways that make the experience of playing the guitar through an amplification system more enjoyable to both the player as well as to the listener, and can achieve this in a way that doesn't prohibitively impact the methods or cost for manufacturing.
Embodiments of the present invention may include separate features that together produce a more pleasing amplified acoustic sound. One such feature may include enhanced bass using a novel combination of pickup and signal processing. Other features include restoration of the acoustical properties of the guitar body to the resulting sound, and also stereo imaging. Other features may be added, including reverb (mono or stereo) and EQ.
In some embodiments, instead of using a single guitar pickup, two or more smaller pickups are utilized. Each pickup detects signals from only certain strings, and the signals from each pickup may be processed separately. A signal from a pickup for lower pitch strings may be enhanced for bass sounds, including adding in a bass signal as an accompaniment. The different signals may also undergo different processing, and then be combined or provided as stereo output.
In some embodiments, two separate piezo UST (under saddle transducer) pickups are utilized. Both may be located under the saddle of a guitar, one under the bottom (lowest pitch) 2 strings and the other under the top (highest pitch) 4 strings. The respective signals may then be enhanced with a 2-channel preamp (one channel for each transducer) and then digitally processed.
For an embodiment that utilizes bass enhancement, a signal processor receives the pre-amplified signals from the bottom 2 strings (bass) and the top 4 strings (treble) of the guitar separately. The bass signal is then used as input to an octave divider effect. This effect may utilize an algorithm developed specifically for this application, and outputs a version of the input signal that is exactly one octave lower.
An advantage of this embodiment is that a player can, for the most part, simply play the guitar in a normal fashion and the resulting bass that supplements the output will sound musically correct.
For an embodiment that utilizes an acoustical enhancement effect, the output of one or both piezo pickup elements is summed and then processed by a signal processing effect algorithm. This algorithm restores some of the acoustical response of the body of the guitar to the output, and produces a version of the mixed 6-string signal that is more pleasing and natural than the equivalent EQ'd version of the piezo transducer alone.
For an embodiment that utilizes stereo imaging, because the two piezo transducer elements are picking up different strings of the guitar, a stereo image may be created by mixing levels such that, for example, there is more bass on the left and more treble on the right. Also, strumming the guitar produces a slight delay between the onset of the low 2 strings and the upper 4 strings. When this stereo signal is added to the output, a subtle 3-dimensional presence is created which enhances the feeling that the guitar is being played in physical space.
Other processing elements may be utilized by embodiments. These include, but are not limited to, Reverb, Chorus, Delay, Compression and EQ. All of these elements can potentially benefit from having separate input from the bass and treble strings of the guitar.
The end result produces an amplified sound that is unique, more pleasing, and more fun to play, than can otherwise be achieved with a standard UST system, or other type of pickup.
Embodiments include a sound processor for a stringed instrument comprising a transducer component, configured to be positioned proximate to a defined set of one or more adjacent strings of the stringed instrument, wherein the defined set of one or more adjacent strings is less than a total number of strings on the stringed instrument, the transducer component configured to produce a first transducer signal responsive to vibrations from the defined set of one or more strings. It may also include an octave divider component, configured to receive the first transducer signal, the octave divider component configured to produce a bass signal that is at least one octave below a frequency of the first transducer signal. It may also include a combiner component, configured to combine the first transducer signal and the bass signal.
Some embodiments may include where the first transducer signal is digitized, and the octave divider component utilizes a circular buffer wherein values representing the transducer signal are written to the circular buffer at a predetermined rate, and the values are read out of the circular buffer at one-half the predetermined rate. The circular buffer may include two output pointers indicating positions the circular buffer to read out values, and wherein the octave divider component periodically switches between the two output pointers to read values out of the circular buffer. The octave divider component may switch from a first one of the output pointers to a second one of the output pointers, the second output pointer is adjusted to be at a location in the circular buffer that is substantially matches a phase of the transducer signal pointed to by the first output pointer. After the location of the second output pointer is adjusted, the first output point is then adjusted to be at a location in the circular buffer that is half the length of the circular buffer away from the second output pointer.
A sound processor may include a second transducer, configured to be positioned proximate adjacent strings of the stringed instrument that are not part of the defined set of one or more adjacent strings, the second transducer configured to produce a second transducer signal responsive to vibrations from the proximate adjacent strings. The first transducer signal, the second transducer signal, and the bass signal may be combined. In some embodiments, the first transducer signal and the second transducer signal are combined, and the combined signal is digitally processed to produce a sound similar to a sound obtained from an acoustic guitar body. The first transducer and the second transducer may include are under saddle transducer (UST) piezo elements, and the embodiments of the sound processor may be installed in a guitar.
Embodiments may include a method for producing an audio signal, comprising receiving a first audio signal from a transducer positioned on a stringed instrument, the transducer positioned to sense vibrations from a defined set of at least two lower-pitched strings of the stringed instrument, wherein the defined set is less than a total number of strings on the stringed instrument; processing the first audio signal to produce a bass audio signal that is one octave lower than a frequency of the first audio signal; receiving a second audio signal from a second transducer positioned on the stringed instrument to sense vibrations from strings not part of the defined set of lower-pitched strings; and combining the first audio signal, the second audio signal, and the bass audio signal. Processing the first audio signal may include digitizing the first audio signal; inserting values for digitized first audio signal into a circular buffer at a predetermined insertion rate; and producing the bass audio signal by reading the inserted values for the digitized first audio signal from the circular buffer at a rate that is lower than the predetermined insertion rate.
Some embodiments may comprise wherein processing the first audio signal includes digitizing the first audio signal; possibly low pass filtering the digitized audio signal; inserting values for digitized first audio signal into a circular buffer utilizing an input pointer that indicates a position in the circular buffer to insert a subsequent value of the digitized first audio signal input signal, the input pointer advancing at a predetermined insertion rate; utilizing two output pointers positioned a predetermined distance apart from each other, the two output pointers advancing at a rate that is lower than the predetermined insertion rate; selecting one of the two output pointers, and reading the inserted values for the digitized first audio signal from the circular buffer at the selected output pointer; when the input pointer advances to within a predetermined distance of the selected output pointer, adjusting a position of the nonselected output pointer to a location in the circular buffer that substantially matches a phase of the first audio signal as indicated by the selected output pointer; and selecting the unselected output pointer for reading the inserted values from the circular buffer. Adjusting a position of the nonselected output pointer may include determining an offset amount from the selected output pointer back to a prior position containing a first peak signal value stored in the circular buffer; determining a new position for the nonselected output pointer, the new position being from a present position of the nonselected output pointer back to a prior position containing a second peak signal value stored in the circular buffer, plus the offset amount; and moving the nonselected output pointer to the new position, and moving the selected output pointer to a position that is the predetermined distance apart from the nonselected output pointer.
Embodiments may include combining the first audio signal and the second audio signal to produce a combined audio signal; and digitally processing the combined audio signal to produce a sound similar to a sound obtained from an acoustic guitar body. Digitally processing the combined signal may include performing a convolution utilizing coefficients derived from an impulse response from an acoustic guitar. Other embodiments may include combining the first audio signal and the second audio signal to produce a combined audio signal; producing an audio reverb signal from the combined audio signal; and combining the audio reverb signal and the combined audio signal.
Other embodiments may include receiving a digital input signal; storing values for the digital input signal in a circular buffer, wherein an advancing input pointer indicates a position to write a subsequent value of the digital input signal, and two advancing output pointers, the output pointers positioned a predetermined distance apart from each other, and wherein the output pointers advance at a lower rate than the input pointer; selecting one of the output pointers as an active output pointer, and producing an output signal by reading values from the circular buffer at a position of the active output pointer; and when the input pointer advances to within a predetermined distance of one of the output pointers, determining an offset amount from a present position of the active output pointer back to a prior position containing a first peak signal value stored in the circular buffer; determining a new position for the inactive output pointer, the new position being from a present position of the inactive output pointer back to a prior position containing a second peak signal value stored in the circular buffer, plus the offset amount; moving the inactive output pointer to the new position, and moving the active pointer to a position that is the predetermined distance away from the inactive pointer; and switching which output pointer is active. Such embodiments may have use in audio or general signal processing.
An advantage of some embodiments include a system that will produce a rich sound in real time, with little or no discernable time lag or other sound processing artifacts.
Another advantage is a system, apparatus or method that uses simple, inexpensive guitar pickups. The under saddle piezo pickups used by an embodiment of the invention are inexpensive, robust, and invisible from the face of the guitar or stringed instrument. Such under saddle pickups have other advantages, including excellent isolation from acoustic feedback, and also from electronic interference (hum). A guitar or guitar effect according to an embodiment produces a very rich sound at a minimal cost. A low cost guitar may be manufactured or retrofitted and will produce excellent sound.
Still another advantage includes a self contained sound system for a guitar or other instrument. A guitar fitted with an embodiment of the present invention has a standard mono or stereo output jack used by musical instruments, amplifiers and sound systems throughout the world. A guitar player can simply plug his guitar into any sound system using the standard ¼″ jack and start playing. There is no special cord or adaptors required.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
A more complete understanding of the present invention and the advantages thereof may be acquired by referring to the following description in consideration of the accompanying drawings, in which like reference numbers indicate like features, and wherein:
FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating stringed instrument sound processing for one or more embodiments of the present invention;
FIG. 2 illustrates a block diagram of components for one or more embodiments of the present invention;
FIG. 3 illustrates a sample pre-amp circuit that may be utilized by one or more embodiments of the present invention;
FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating a processing system of one or more embodiments;
FIG. 5 illustrates the processing by an octave divider according to some embodiments;
FIG. 6 is a flow chart illustrating a process performed by one or more embodiments; and
FIG. 7 illustrates analysis of a waveform signal according to some embodiments.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
In the following description of the various embodiments, reference is made to the accompanying drawings, which form a part hereof, and in which is shown by way of illustration various embodiments in which the invention may be practiced. It is to be understood that other embodiments may be utilized and structural and functional modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.
The present invention provides a novel system and method for creating superior acoustic sound to the signal coming from a guitar or other instrument. This can be achieved without prohibitively impacting the methods or cost for manufacturing or retrofitting the guitar.
FIG. 1 illustrates an embodiment according to the present invention. A guitar or other stringed instrument pickup is divided into two parts 22 and 24, each of which extends under a subset of the instrument strings. One embodiment utilizes one pickup 24 that extends under the two bass strings (E and A) of a guitar, and a second pickup 22 that extends under the four treble strings (A D B and E) of the guitar. An example of a split pickup that may be used is the Model PP-402 or PP432 4+2 split bridge pickup produced by Artec Corporation of Korea. This is a UST (under saddle transducer) pickup that is installed under the saddle on a guitar. The only modification to this standard part is to separate and lengthen the coax connecting wires to each section. When mounting it in an acoustic guitar, an additional hole may be drilled beneath the guitar saddle to accommodate installation of the second coax wire into the guitar body. The guitar saddle piece may be split into two separate sections at the point between the pickups in order to help acoustically separate the pickups; however this option is not necessary for proper functioning.
Any other type of piezo pickup may also be used, including taking existing under saddle pickups and physically shortening them so they only extend under the desired instrument strings. Other types of transducers or pickups may also be utilized, including magnetic coil pickups and optical pickups.
The signal from the pickup for the bass strings 24 is provided to an octave divider 26, which may produce a signal that tracks the input signal, but at a lower frequency. For a guitar, the octave divider 26 receives a signal input from only the two lowest strings (E and A) of a guitar, and produces a signal that is one octave below. Because one of these two strings is typically sounding the root note of whatever chord is being played on the guitar, this signal is what would result if a bass guitar player accompanied the guitar. An embodiment may take this signal, determine the main frequency of the signal, and synthesize an appropriate bass signal. In one embodiment, the enhanced bass is produced by octave dividing the note or notes produced by the lower frequency strings. This produces a natural sound unlike other systems that synthesize the bass notes. Further, the additional bass provided by an octave divider for this embodiment is automatic, and in real time. More details regarding a pitch shifter or octave divider will be provided below.
The bass output of the octave divider 26 may be combined 32 with other signals from pickups, which may be combined by a combiner 28 and also undergo other processing 30 (as described below) before being combined and then output. The output may be stereo, as will be described below.
In other embodiments, only a pickup 24 under bass strings may be utilized. The signal produced by this pickup 24 may be used to produce the accompanying bass sound. A separate regular pickup extending under all the strings may be utilized for producing a combined output signal for the instrument, which may undergo other processing. Alternatively, the instrument may include no other “regular” pickup, but have instrument sound picked up by a microphone (inside or outside of the instrument). The bass pickup 24 signal may be processed to produce a bass signal added to the PA, or other mixing devices.
FIG. 2 illustrates components of an embodiment for performing digital signal processing (DSP). Such embodiments may provide real-time processing and output. Signals from the separate pickups 22 and 24 are provided to separate preamp circuits 26. Proper shielding and coax cable may be helpful for all components and connections related to the pickup transducers 22, 24 and preamps 36.
FIG. 3 shows an example a preamp circuit 36. One preamp circuit is used for each input, and is a simple 2 channel discrete FET design. It may be powered from a 9V battery and has a 3 Meg Ohm input impedance appropriate for a piezo transducer. In one embodiment, a small circuit board fits within a standard preamp enclosure typically found in an acoustic guitar. The circuit board may contain the preamps and connectors necessary to derive power from the battery, receive the 2 inputs from the 2 piezo transducer pickup sections, and route the 2-channel output of the preamp to a stereo endpin jack on the guitar.
Returning to FIG. 2, the signals from the preamps are digitized, and then processed by a digital signal processor (DSP) 40. The signals are digitized using an ADC (analog to digital converter) 38. For this embodiment, an AK4552 device performs the stereo analog-to-digital conversion at 48,000 samples per second with 24-bit precision. Higher or lower sampling rates as well as word lengths may be used by the present invention, depending on processing power, price, desired sound quality etc. The AK4552 performs both analog-to-digital and digital-to-analog conversion, however separate components may handle the conversion, such as an AD1871 ADC for the analog to digital conversion, and an AD1854 stereo DAC (digital to analog converter) for converting back to analog (not shown).
The digitized signals are then provided to the DSP 40. For one embodiment a Blackfin DSP produced by Analog Devices is utilized. Some examples of DSPs are the Blackfin BF537 device, or other devices, such as the less expensive BF531, BF532 or BF533 devices.
The DSP 40 receives two channels of digital audio from the ADC 38 using a serial interface port (SPORT). Channel 1 is the real-time data from the low E and A strings of the guitar, and channel 2 is from the D, G, B and high E strings of the guitar. A second SPORT is used to write two channels of processed digital audio to the digital-to-analog converter. The Digital-to-Analog conversion may be performed, for example, by an AD1854 stereo DAC, or utilizing the AK4552 ADC/DAC 38. The conversion is performed at 48,000 samples per second using 24-bit precision. Alternatively, the digital channels may be directly output, for equipment that can process digital audio. The sample rate and precision of the output channels may be selected as appropriate for the desired output signal.
The ADC/DAC 38 provides the output analog signals to output buffers 46 that provide the correct output impedance and signal level for the intended receiver of the stereo output 50 from the guitar. An example output buffering circuit device is an LMV722V two channel low noise operational amplifier, which provides a 2-channel, single-ended line level output.
A flash memory device 42 contains the operating instructions when the power is shut off, and supporting power conditioning and clock circuitry. In this embodiment the DSP boots and loads operating software from a 4 MBit ST Micro M29W320 DB Flash memory device. The DSP 40 will boot and run the application software upon power-up. Other forms of memory may be used, such as removable memory.
The user interface 44 may provide controls that allow a user to adjust parameters, for example bass, body, reverb, stereo separation, equalization and notch filtering. In one embodiment the user interface may run on a computer and a connection to the DSP 40 and/or memory 42 allows a performer to edit and load presets prior to performing. In another embodiment, the user interface is a small panel on the exposed side of the electronics enclosure in the guitar body. The panel may provide controls for adjusting the levels of the various processing elements,
A power source 52 provides power and any necessary power conditioning. A power source may include a 9V battery, or connections to external power source.
In some embodiments, the battery and preamp section are located inside an enclosure in the guitar body, and the remaining components are external, such as in a processing effects box, amplifier, computer, or other devices. In other embodiments, all components are housed within the guitar body, with a standard mono or stereo output cable jack to provide signals to an amplifier.
FIG. 4 illustrates the processing performed by the DSP 40 for an embodiment. This processing is implemented by software running in the DSP. The digital audio input for the bass signal 54 and treble signal 56 is routed to one or more processing elements. These processing elements may include a stereo panner 58, an octave divider 26, and one or more effect chain elements such as an acoustic effects (body) processor 60, and a reverb 62. Other effect elements may be added by implementation in the software. Some processing elements may process only one of the bass signal 54 or treble signal 56, while other processing elements may take both signals, either separately or combined. The output of each the processing elements may be level adjusted and then combined with the other processor element outputs to produce mono or stereo output that becomes the output of the guitar.
Where p is used to adjust the stereo separation of the resulting output, and g is the gain to adjust the output level, as adjusted by gain element 59. The stereo panner 58 thus produces a version of the signal coming from the piezo transducers and preamp in which the separation of the separate signals (bass and treble) can be adjusted in both level and in the amount of stereo separation, from completely stereo to completely mono.
Embodiments may include effects chain elements comprising one or more single-channel input processing elements that operate on one signal from the instrument (e.g. all six strings of the guitar). Therefore, for such elements, the bass signal 54 and treble signal 56 are summed (combined) 64a to a single channel, thus forming a mono signal for the entire instrument. Two effects chain elements are illustrated in FIG. 4: body effect 60, and reverb 62. These effects as illustrated operate in parallel with the output of each element being gain adjusted 66, before being summed to the final stereo output from the guitar. These effects may alternatively be implemented serially, or with the ability for such chains to be dynamically changed or re-ordered at any time.
Regarding body effect 60, a piezo UST pickup typically picks up only vertical vibrations of the strings on the saddle of the guitar. Also, signals produced piezo UST pickups often are not influenced or “colored” by the acoustically resonant body of a guitar. This resonance is responsible for much of the characteristic warm sound of an acoustic guitar, and in comparison, the raw output of piezo transducers sound thin and brittle. Therefore a body effect 60 element may restore some of this resonance for one or more embodiments. This body effect 60 may be accomplished by convolving the piezo derived input signal with the impulse response of an acoustic guitar body. The impulse response may simply be a recorded sound of an acoustic guitar body excited by an impulse, which is then stored as in-line constants in the program source code for the body effect 60. A convolution is performed using an FIR filter with the coefficients derived from the impulse response. Embodiments may store impulse responses of several different acoustic guitar shapes and sizes, thus providing the user with a choice of selectable “body styles”.
The output of the convolution may be multiplied by a user adjustable gain factor 66 to adjust the level before being added equally to both the left and the right channels of the stereo output from the guitar.
Regarding reverb 62, for the embodiment shown in FIG. 4, the reverb effect is a single-channel input, stereo output processor. This allows for stereo reverb that adds warmth and depth to the output. It may be implemented using what is known as a convolution reverb algorithm, as is known in the art. This type of reverb, while computationally more complex than other more common reverb algorithms, is generally considered to produce superior results. Other types of reverb such as models of plate reverb may be utilized, for example to consume less processing power.
As previously mentioned other types of effects chain processes may be added, possibly by downloading additional software to an embodiment.
The octave divider 26 may be a single-channel element, and receives digital audio from only the bass signal 54, which provides a signal for only the low E and A strings of the guitar. The octave divider 26 will output a version of the input signal that is pitch shifted exactly one octave below that of the input.
In order to keep latency to a minimum, the octave divider 26 effect for this embodiment works without having to explicitly detect the frequency of the input signal. It does this by utilizing the fact that a one-octave downward pitch shift can be accomplished by halving the output sample rate. This produces an output that is one octave below the input. However, if one simply outputs digital audio at one half the input sample rate, the output will quickly fall behind the input. Therefore, the octave divider 26 effect for this embodiment will output sections of the input data at half the sample rate, and then splice these sections together in order to keep up in time with the input. In effect, the output skips over sections of the input in order to keep up.
The octave divider 26 for one or more embodiment works by placing digital audio samples into a circular buffer using in input pointer. Digital audio is then read out from this buffer using two output pointers incremented at one half the incoming sample rate. The output pointers are spaced one half buffer length apart, and the embodiment alternately switches between these two pointers.
Like most elements and effects, the octave divider 26 element, processes blocks of audio data at a time, however the following description provides details by considering that the process really works on a sample-by-sample basis. The following description assumes that the octave divider 26 element runs a single iteration for each successive audio sample for the bass signal 54.
FIG. 5 illustrates processing by an embodiment of the octave divider 26. The octave divider is implemented using a 4096 sample circular memory buffer 72 into which the input is placed (at 48,000 samples per second) using an Input Pointer (IP) as an index. This IP is incremented for each sample and wraps back to the start of the buffer when the end of the buffer 72 is reached. The output audio data is taken from the buffer using one of two output pointers (OP1 and OP2). These output pointers are always indexing buffer locations exactly ½ buffer, or 2048 samples from one another. The IP, OP1 and OP2 all increment (move) around the buffer 72 in the same direction, as shown by arrow 74, and wrap back to the start of the buffer when the end of the buffer is reached. However both output pointers increment every other sample.
Since the output pointers are cycling through the buffer half as fast as the IP, the IP will alternately “collide” with each output pointer once per cycle through the buffer 72. The embodiment compensates for this by using OP1 for one cycle and OP2 for the other cycle.
FIGS. 5a-5c illustrates sequential examples of the pointer positions. In FIG. 5a, the IP has just caught up to and passed OP1, and the embodiment is currently reading output from sample pointed to (indexed) by OP2 (therefore OP2 is indicated as “active”). The active output pointer should be switched before the IP catches up to it. The embodiment switches output pointers when the IP is within a predetermined distance 76 of colliding with, or catching up to, the output pointer currently being used. In FIG. 5b, the IP has come within a predetermined distance 76 of active pointer OP2, and it is therefore time to switch to OP1. The predetermined distance 76 for this embodiment is ⅛ the size of the total buffer (in the case of a 4096 sample buffer, the distance 76 would be 512 samples. However, other distances or criteria may also be utilized. A size may be selected to provide time for a proper switching before the IP catches up to the active OP, balanced against having switching operations occur too frequently. In FIG. 5c, OP1 is now the active pointer, and the IP is about to pass OP2. When the IP gets within the predetermined distance to OP1, then OP2 will then become the active pointer again.
As previously described the output signal produced from reading the values from the active output pointer will be a version of the input signal exactly one octave lower in pitch. Other read-out rates from the output pointers may be utilized to produced output signals at other pitches, such as reading output pointers at ¼ the rate of the input pointer which will result in an output signal two octaves lower. One advantage of such an octave divider is that the output accurately tracks the pitch of the input. If an instrument has alternative turnings, or is played using a slide or string bending, the octave divider still correctly tracks the signal.
At the point of switching output pointers, there may be discontinuities in the output signal. Such discontinuities may affect both the output signal level and phase at the switch times. This is because the input signal waveform has no relationship to the buffer length and the splice points will be arbitrary with respect to the input waveform.
Previous implementations of octave dividers address these discontinuities by cross fading the audio over some number of samples. However, because this method does not take into account the phase of the fundamental waveform, the resulting phase shift at the splice points leads to undesirable artifacts in the output audio. Further, this method was tested and found to work poorly, especially with the low strings of a guitar. A vibrating string has a strong fundamental approximating a sine wave. While cross fading removes the discontinuities in the resulting output waveform, each section is likely to not be in phase with the previous section, since the wavelength of the notes fundamental is not related to the length of the buffer. The resulting phase shift in each section may cause an unpleasant “rumbling” sound and distorts the perceived pitch of the resulting bass sound. This might be alleviated by tuning the buffer length to a particular wavelength, but it would only work for that one note.
Instead, an embodiment examines the audio data at each output pointer in order to locate key points in the waveform of the fundamental frequency, and then uses this information to adjust the output pointers so that the waveform sections are substantially lined up according to the wavelength of the fundamental frequency being played. This thereby minimizes discontinuities by preserving the phase of the signal over the splice points.
In more general terms, the embodiment dynamically adjusts the lengths of the output sections according the pitch of the note being played at any moment.
The embodiment continuously analyzes the waveform at both output pointers in order to determine splice points, and when the output pointers are switched, the new active output pointer is adjusted backwards so that it points to a spot in the waveform cycle which is similar to that pointed to by the old output pointer. Finally, the old output pointer is adjusted backwards so that it is exactly ½ the buffer from the new output pointer.
FIG. 6 illustrates this process. The waveform analysis is performed by looking for positive peaks in the waveform, step 200. This may be made simpler by applying a low pass filter to the input of the octave divider before placing the audio data into the buffer. The embodiment implements an IIR (infinite impulse response) low pass pre-filter with a cutoff frequency of 125 Hz and a Q of 2.0. These parameters were chosen after an examination of the waveforms produced by the low E and A strings on a guitar up through the 14th fret. The goal is to filter out all but the fundamental and first harmonic frequencies within that range in order to make the peak detection easier to accomplish.
Each output pointer has the following structure definition:
typedef struct
{
int iPtr;
// Output pointer
Q1_31 qPkVal;
// Last valid peak value
int iPkPtr;
// Last valid peak pointer
Q1_31 qPkTmpVal;
// Temp peak value
int iPkTmpPtr;
// Temp peak pointer
Q1_31 qPkNewVal;
// New peak candidate value
int iPkNewPtr;
// New peak candidate pointer
bool bPkLatch;
// Peak latch flag
int iPosCount;
// Positive phase sample count
int iNegCount;
// Negative phase sample count
} OUT_STRUCTURE;
This data structure is updated each time the corresponding output pointer is incremented, and both OP1 and OP2 are incremented every other input sample, even though only one is being used for the output.
The filtered data at each output pointer is examined to determine if it is more positive than the currently stored maximum. If so, both the value and a pointer to this sample are saved. When the positive portion of the waveform is completed, being determined when a minimum number of negative values are encountered, the highest value found is considered to be the peak in the waveform.
The Boolean pPkLatch (Peak Latch Flag) is used to indicate that we have completed a positive phase of the cycle and latched a new peak value and pointer. It is set when we encounter more than a minimum number (4) of consecutive negative samples and are thus considered to be in the negative phase of the waveform cycle. It is cleared when we encounter a minimum number (4) of positive samples and we thus assume that we have just entered a new positive phase of the waveform cycle.
Each time an output pointer is incremented the following analysis takes place:
If the value of the digital audio at the output pointer is positive, and the Peak Latch Flag is false, then if the value is higher than the previously saved new peak, qPkNewVal, we overwrite qPkNewVal with the new value and save the current output pointer in iPkNewPtr.
If the value of the digital audio at the output pointer is positive, but the Peak Latch Flag is true, and there have been at least a minimum (4) sample of consecutive positive values, then we have just entered the positive phase of the waveform cycle. We clear the Peak Latch Flag and set qPkNewVal equal to 0.
If the value of the digital audio at the output pointer is negative, and the Peak Latch Flag is true, we do nothing.
If the value of the digital audio at the output pointer is negative, but the Peak Latch Flag is false, and there have been at least a minimum (4) sample of consecutive negative values, then we have just entered the negative phase of the waveform cycle. We set the Peak Latch Flag and perform the following analysis:
We first compare the stored peak value qPkNewVal with a value calculated as (r*average signal level). The average signal level is a running average of the absolute value of the input audio. If the value at qPkNewVal is less than this amount, we ignore it—it is probably low-level noise. (It can't be a peak if it's not at least as high as the average signal level.)
If qPkTmpVal (which will be described below) is non-zero, then the larger of the two values, qPkTmpVal or qPkNewVal, is now transferred the final latched peak value qPkVal, and iPkPtr is set to the corresponding pointer of the larger value. We set qPkTmpVal to 0 and consider that we have now found the peak.
If qPkTmpVal is 0, then we compare qPkNewVal to the peak level from the last positive cycle. If it is within a certain percentage of the last peak value, then we consider it a new peak and transfer both the value and its pointer to qPkVal and iPkPtr respectively. If it is lower than this amount, then we save the value and pointer as qPkTmpVal and iPkTmpPtr. This logic derives from the fact that the waveform is generally slow changing when strings are left ringing. That is, unless a new event occurs, each fundamental peak will be close in level to the previous peak—we would not expect a sudden drop in peak level unless the note was either changed or muted.
It was found that qPkTmpVal and iPkTmpPtr are helpful to address the problem of the first harmonic. After the bass string audio has been LP filtered, it contains only the fundamental and the first harmonic. Often, and especially when an open string (non-fretted) note is struck, the first harmonic level becomes a significant component of the waveform over time. Sometimes the first harmonic causes an additional two zero crossings within a single cycle of the fundamental, The first harmonic may cause a complete positive going phase with a corresponding peak, however this peak will not be as high as that of the fundamental. The addition of the qPkTmpVal variable serves to distinguish the smaller peak of the first harmonic from the larger peak of the fundamental, and this embodiment will correctly locate the higher positive peaks as the real peaks of the fundamental frequency.
At some point it will be necessary to switch output pointers, step 202FIG. 6. As previous described, the octave divider switches output pointers based on the position of the IP with respect to the output pointer currently being used (the “active” output pointer). Each time the IP is incremented, the algorithm calculates how many samples the IP trails the currently active output pointer. When this distance is predetermined distance (for this embodiment, ⅛ of the buffer length), an output pointer switch is requested.
In an embodiment, the algorithm also detects when the IP collides with the output pointer that is not currently active. (Note that the IP collides with the inactive output pointer and not with the active output pointer). This is because the inactive output pointer will see discontinuous data at that point (because the IP will writes over the previous data as it passes by) and therefore all of the variables related to peak detection should be reset.
The pointer-switching process determines how many samples the old (active) output pointer is from the last peak, step 204. First we compare the qPkNewVal and qPkVal variables of the old output pointer and take the larger of the two values as the peak. This is necessary because we may be switching before the end of the current positive phase of the waveform. Then we calculate the number of samples between the current active output pointer and the pointer to the peak value and save as an offset.
This offset is then added the peak position for the new OP, step 206. We compare qPkNewVal and qPkVal for the new output pointer and take the larger of the two values as the last peak for that pointer. Then we add the offset to that peak pointer and set the new output pointer to this value.
The old output pointer is now adjusted backwards to be exactly ½ buffer away from the new OP, step 208. Finally, all the variables for both output pointers are reset, step 210. The new active output pointer is now used to read output values, step 212.
FIG. 7 helps illustrates this process. Two sections of an audio waveform 80 are shown, each section showing a part of the wave where the output pointers OP1 and OP2 are “tracking” (i.e. pointing to buffer positions containing a digital representation of that sample of the waveform). For this example, we are switching from OP1 to OP2. The offset 82 is calculated as the distance from OP1 to the previous peak 84. That offset is then added to the previous peak 86 from OP2; and OP2 is adjusted backwards to this point (Indicated as OP2′). Therefore OP2 will begin playing at a similar same phase in the waveform 80 as OP1 was. Any discontinuities, phase changes, or other artifacts in the output signal are minimized. Finally, OP1 will be adjusted to be at pointing at a location ½ the buffer distance from the new position of OP2 (not shown in FIG. 7).
For guitar signals, the waveform tends to change slowly, so that it is possible to locate similar points in the waveform that are separated by ½ of the buffer. Because of the frequencies involved and the relatively simple nature of a waveform of a vibrating guitar string, this algorithm works very well. An embodiment may process the output with an IIR low pass post-filter with a cutoff frequency of 200 Hz and a Q of 1.0, to minimize any small discontinuities at the switch points, caused by the waveform changing over time.
Returning to FIG. 4, output of the octave divider 26 may then be multiplied by an adjustable gain factor 68 that determines the overall volume of the resulting bass signal. This bass signal 69 may then added equally to both the left and right stereo outputs 64b and 64c for the guitar signal. The signals from all the different processing effects may be summed up 64b and 64c in the channels, and a final user adjustable equalization stage 70 may be performed. The signals are then outputted, typically with conversion back into analog signals, as previously described.
One embodiment may take output audio data for the octave divider element directly from the buffer 72 used for the peak detection analysis. As previously described, the audio signal for this buffer may be low pass (LP) filtered in order to remove all but the fundamental and first harmonic for the benefit of the peak detection algorithm. Therefore, the resulting bass signal 69 will contain no upper harmonic information present in the original input; therefore this bass signal may have less higher frequency snap and brightness. However, since this bass signal is then combined with the original string sound, any effect this may have is alleviated.
An embodiment may include a second audio buffer into which unfiltered samples are placed. The peak detection process would continue to use the LP filtered buffer as described above, but the output data will come from the unfiltered buffer. The output from the unfiltered buffer may be passed through the LP post filter with a cutoff frequency selected to minimize any discontinuities but allow many of the harmonics to pass.
Although embodiments of the present invention are described utilizing separate pickups, other embodiments may utilize one instrument signal and perform filtering and/or DSP to determine a fundamental signal with which to produce a bass signal with an octave divider. In this case, a guitar or other instrument may require no changes, and effects according to such embodiments may be external devices (battery-powered or line powered) into which any existing guitar can be plugged.
Although described in terms of an acoustic guitar, embodiments of the present invention are usable by any type of multi-stringed instrument. For example, the present invention can be used for, but not limited to, electric guitars, 12-string guitars, basses, steel guitars, violins, mandolins, banjos, fiddles, pianos, harpsichords, and any other type of stringed instrument whether plucked or bowed. Any type of strings, whether metal, nylon, catgut, etc. will work. Embodiments may be incorporated into guitars and other instruments as they are built. Alternatively, embodiments may be added to existing guitars and instruments with minimal cost, effort, and invasive changes. For guitars with existing built-in piezo transducers and preamp circuit, an embodiment with signal processing abilities as described will fit within the same compartment as the original preamp and EQ circuit, and can be powered from the same 9-volt battery. The hardware cost of adding an embodiment to a guitar may simply be the incremental cost of the 2-piece piezo transducer and the addition of the DSP and support circuitry.
Other embodiments may include a simulation for a 12-string guitar. A 12-string guitar typically has two strings tuned an octave apart for each of the four lower pitch strings, and two strings tuned to the same note for the two higher pitched strings. An embodiment may utilize a six-string guitar and place certain pickups under different sets of strings. For example, a first pickup may be positioned to pick up signals from the lowest four strings on a guitar (E A D G) and a second pickup positioned for the two highest strings on the guitar (B and high E). The signal from the four lower strings may be combined with an pitch shifted signal to produce a sound similar to double strings an octave apart, while the signal from the two higher strings may be processed by a double effect or chorus effect to produce a sound as if from double strings of the same pitch.
Further, the present invention may be implemented in different configurations, such as having various portions of the system located in different components. An example is a guitar or other instrument that only contains a split pickup, and possibly a pre-amp. The signals from the pickup is then sent out through one or more instrument cords (or instrument wireless transmitters) to a processing unit located in an amplifier, stomp box, effects box, or computer system. The present invention may also be implemented as an effect for use with sound editing and production systems, such as digital audio workstations. The present invention may be a stand-alone application, or as a plug-in.
One or more aspects of the invention may be embodied in computer-usable data and computer-executable instructions, such as in one or more program modules, executed by one or more computers or other devices. Generally, program modules include routines, programs, objects, components, data structures, etc. that perform particular tasks or implement particular abstract data types when executed by a processor in a computer or other device. The computer executable instructions may be stored on a computer readable medium such as a hard disk, optical disk, removable storage media, solid state memory, RAM, etc. As will be appreciated by one of skill in the art, the functionality of the program modules may be combined or distributed as desired in various embodiments. In addition, the functionality may be embodied in whole or in part in firmware or hardware equivalents such as integrated circuits, field programmable gate arrays (FPGA), and the like. Particular data structures may be used to more effectively implement one or more aspects of the invention, and such data structures are contemplated within the scope of computer executable instructions and computer-usable data described herein.
Although the subject matter has been described in language specific to structural features and/or methodological acts, it is to be understood that the subject matter defined in the appended claims is not necessarily limited to the specific features or acts described above. Rather, the specific features and acts described above are disclosed as example forms of implementing the claims. |
Q:
does anyone know how to graph $x^2+2y^2+3z^2=12$?
I just can't think of how I should draw this graph in 3 dimensions.
Can anyone draw a graph for this?
A:
As pointed out in the comments, the graph is indeed an ellipsoid. In the event you don't have a 3D graphing program handy, here's one way to think about it: we have the equation
$$x^2+2y^2+3z^2=12.$$
We'll set the coordinates $x,y,z=0$ (one at a time) and this will tell us what the graph looks like in the $yz$, $xz$, and $xy$-planes respectively. For example, if we let $x=0$,
$$0^2+2y^2+3z^2=12\implies \frac{y^2}{6}+\frac{z^2}{4}=1.$$
So in the $yz$-plane, we have an ellipse. Specifically, one that's longer along the $y$ axis than along the $z$ axis. You can check that the other planes look like ellipses too, so graphing one ellipse in each plane and "filling it in" will give a good hand-drawn graph.
|
528 S.E.2d 166 (2000)
32 Va. App. 395
Hurcus Jerome WILLIAMS
v.
COMMONWEALTH of Virginia.
Record No. 2982-97-1.
Court of Appeals of Virginia.
May 2, 2000.
*167 Lenita J. Ellis, Norfolk, for appellant.
Steven A. Witmer, Assistant Attorney General (Mark L. Earley, Attorney General, on brief), for appellee.
Present: FITZPATRICK, C.J., BENTON, COLEMAN, ELDER, BRAY, ANNUNZIATA and BUMGARDNER, JJ., and OVERTON, Senior Judge.
UPON A REHEARING EN BANC
BENTON, Judge.
The trial judge convicted Hurcus Jerome Williams of capital murder, robbery, and two counts of using a firearm in the commission of a felony. Williams contends the trial judge committed reversible error by (1) admitting in evidence a non-testifying accomplice's out-of-court confession to police and (2) refusing to provide the accomplice's confession to Williams' counsel before ruling on its admissibility. A panel of this Court, with one judge dissenting, affirmed the convictions. See Williams v. Commonwealth, 30 Va.App. 378, 517 S.E.2d 246 (1999). Upon *168 rehearing en banc, we reverse the convictions and remand for a new trial.
I.
The grand jury indicted Williams for killing Vareck Griffin in the commission of robbery, see Code § 18.2-31 (capital murder), robbery, see Code § 18.2-58, using a firearm in the commission of capital murder, see Code § 18.2-53.1, and using a firearm in the commission of robbery. See id. The evidence at trial proved that early in the morning on December 1, 1996, someone shot and killed Vareck Griffin in Norfolk, Virginia, in an apartment where Griffin and others sold "crack" cocaine. One of the two men who operated the cocaine enterprise testified that he left Griffin alone in the apartment to sell cocaine to any potential customers.
Five and one-half months after Griffin was killed, the police arrested Damyel Harris for "more than 11 charges." The detective who interrogated Harris was investigating a homicide unrelated to Griffin's killing and had been searching for Harris in connection with that unrelated homicide. The detective testified that "[w]hen we started asking [Harris] about the [unrelated] homicide, [Harris] started talking about a different homicide and started giving details, and that's when [the detective] ... realized that [Harris] wasn't talking about [the unrelated homicide] but another homicide." During the interrogation, Harris gave an extensive statement in which he confessed to participating in the robbery of Griffin and said Williams killed Griffin.
The Commonwealth called Harris as its witness. When Harris asserted his Fifth Amendment privilege and refused to testify, the trial judge admitted in evidence Harris' confession and overruled Williams' objection that use of the confession violated his Sixth Amendment right to confront witnesses against him. In addition to Harris' confession, the Commonwealth proved through the testimony of three witnesses that Williams had made statements, which the Commonwealth contends linked Williams to the murder and robbery of Griffin.
At the conclusion of the evidence, the trial judge convicted Williams of capital murder, robbery, and using a firearm in the commission of both felonies. Williams contends on appeal that the trial judge committed reversible error by admitting Harris' confession in evidence and by refusing to provide Harris' confession to his counsel for review before the judge ruled on its admissibility. In its brief on this rehearing en banc, the Commonwealth concedes that the trial judge's admission of Harris' confession was error, see Lilly v. Virginia, 527 U.S. 116, 139, 119 S.Ct. 1887, 1901, 144 L.Ed.2d 117 (1999) (holding that "[t]he admission of the untested confession of [a codefendant] violated petitioner's Confrontation Clause rights"), and that the judge also erred in refusing to permit Williams' counsel to see the confession before the judge ruled on its admissibility. The Commonwealth contends, however, that both errors were harmless. We hold that the admission of Harris' confession was not harmless error. Because the trial judge's error in refusing to permit Williams' counsel to see Harris' confession will not recur if Williams is retried, we need not address whether that error was harmless.
II.
Although Confrontation Clause error is of constitutional magnitude, it is subject to harmless error analysis. See Delaware v. Van Arsdall, 475 U.S. 673, 684, 106 S.Ct. 1431, 1438, 89 L.Ed.2d 674 (1986). Constitutional error is harmless, however, only if "the beneficiary of the constitutional error ... prove[s] beyond a reasonable doubt that the error complained of did not contribute to the verdict obtained." Chapman v. California, 386 U.S. 18, 24, 87 S.Ct. 824, 828, 17 L.Ed.2d 705 (1967). "The test, therefore, is not whether laying aside the erroneously admitted evidence there was other evidence sufficient to convict beyond a reasonable doubt ..., but, more stringently, `whether there is a reasonable possibility that the evidence complained of might have contributed to the conviction.'" Thompson v. Leeke, 756 F.2d 314, 316 (4th Cir.1985) (citation omitted). In other words, even if "the other evidence amply supports the ... verdicts, [error is not harmless when] the disputed testimony may well have affected the ... *169 decision." Cartera v. Commonwealth, 219 Va. 516, 519, 248 S.E.2d 784, 786 (1978).
An "emphasis and perhaps overemphasis, upon the [concept] of `overwhelming evidence'" has the effect of clouding the relevant question "`whether there is a reasonable possibility that the evidence complained of might have contributed to the conviction.'" Chapman, 386 U.S. at 23, 87 S.Ct. at 827 (footnote and citations omitted). As the Supreme Court has stated, "[t]he correct inquiry is whether, assuming that the damaging potential of the [evidence] were fully realized, a reviewing court might nonetheless say that the error was harmless beyond a reasonable doubt." Van Arsdall, 475 U.S. at 684, 106 S.Ct. at 1438; see also Olden v. Kentucky, 488 U.S. 227, 232, 109 S.Ct. 480, 483, 102 L.Ed.2d 513 (1988). Thus, "a harmless error analysis ... [is not] simply a sufficiency of the evidence analysis." Hooker v. Commonwealth, 14 Va.App. 454, 458, 418 S.E.2d 343, 345 (1992).
Whether such an error is harmless in a particular case depends upon a host of factors.... These factors include the importance of the witness' testimony in the prosecution's case, whether the testimony was cumulative, the presence or absence of evidence corroborating or contradicting the testimony of the witness on material points, the extent of cross-examination otherwise permitted, and, of course, the overall strength of the prosecution's case.
Van Arsdall, 475 U.S. at 684, 106 S.Ct. at 1438. Thus, "Van Arsdall requires a court to consider several specific factorsmore than just sufficiency of the evidencewhen deciding whether the Confrontation Clause error was harmless beyond a reasonable doubt." Howard v. Gavin, 810 F.Supp. 1269, 1275 (S.D.Ga.1993).
Here we apply a more stringent standard against the government. In a sufficiency analysis we review the evidence to determine whether the government has satisfied the minimum required in order for a reasonable juror to find guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. In performing harmless error analysis, however, the standard cuts more sharply against the government: there must be no reasonable possibility that the unconstitutionally obtained evidence contributed to the conviction.
United States v. Khoury, 901 F.2d 948, 960 (11th Cir.1990) (citing Chapman, 386 U.S. at 23, 87 S.Ct. at 827).
Among the verdicts obtained in this case was one finding Williams guilty of capital murder. To support a conviction for capital murder that is predicated upon murder in the commission of robbery, see Code § 18.2-31(4), the Commonwealth must prove beyond a reasonable doubt "a killing which takes place before, during, or after the robbery and is so closely related in time, place, and causal connection as to make the killing part of the same criminal enterprise as the robbery." George v. Commonwealth, 242 Va. 264, 277-78, 411 S.E.2d 12, 20 (1991). In other words, the evidence must "support a conclusion that the killing and theft were interdependent objects of a common criminal design." Quesinberry v. Commonwealth, 241 Va. 364, 374, 402 S.E.2d 218, 224 (1991).
An application of the Van Arsdall factors reveals that the trial judge's error in admitting Harris' confession was not harmless beyond a reasonable doubt. Harris' confession was central to the Commonwealth's case. Cf. Timbers v. Commonwealth, 28 Va. App. 187, 201, 503 S.E.2d 233, 239 (1998) (holding trial judge's error in admitting accused's admission concerning the falsity of her signature was not harmless because it was the most important evidence proving forgery); Watson v. Commonwealth, 19 Va. App. 659, 666, 454 S.E.2d 358, 362-63 (1995) (holding the influence of the inculpatory statements upon the jury was not harmless where those statements constitute the principal evidence establishing his knowledge and control of contraband). Assuming the damaging potential of Harris' confession was realized, it established the essential causal connection linking the killing to the robbery. See Satterwhite v. Texas, 486 U.S. 249, 259, 108 S.Ct. 1792, 1798-99, 100 L.Ed.2d 284 (1988) (holding that expert's testimony on "future dangerousness was critical to the death sentence" and was thus not harmless beyond a reasonable doubt).
*170 In pertinent part, Harris' confession recounted the following events:
[M]e and [Williams] met up one night.... He told me that we could do a hit, get some crack, a little bit of money.... I asked him where was it at. He said Park Place. I said no, I'm too hot out here; I been chilling out. I said, do the guys know me? So he was like, no, they don't know neither one of us. So, we went around to the house, walked up the stairs. I knocked on the door; [Williams] stood on the side.
When the guy opened the door, he had a gun in his hand. [Williams] punched the guy; the gun fell. Both of them went reaching for the gun. I grabbed a bottle and hit the guy in the head. Then [Williams] grabbed the guy. We shut the door; [Williams] grabbed the guy, took him to the back. He told me to look up under the couch and grab the dope and look on the table and grab the scales. So when I was reaching for the scales, I heard a gunshot, one gunshot. And I heard the guy say, please don't kill me. So then I went up under the couch and found the drugs. That's when I heard two more gunshots above five seconds later.
Then [Williams] came running out the door. He went straight out the door and I yelled his name. He told me not to yell his name; he kept running across the street. So I ran over there to him, went up in the hallway and he said, we'll meet ... on the back street and split up everything. So when we got around there on the back street, he counted out ninety some dollars. He said he needed the money for something, like that and told me I could take the high side of the crack and that's what we did. He told me he'll sell the scales and give me some money the next day.
Although the Commonwealth produced at trial three witnesses who testified that Williams made statements implicating himself in a killing, we cannot conclude beyond a reasonable doubt that the improperly admitted testimony did not affect the verdict. Indeed, we cannot even conclude that the testimony of those witnesses and the other circumstantial evidence were sufficient, without Harris' statement, to prove that Williams killed Griffin, that a robbery occurred, or that a robbery bore the essential causal connection to the killing. As to those elements, Harris' confession was crucial, indeed essential, to the Commonwealth's case. "There was no physical evidence such as fingerprints... or human blood evidence to link [Williams to the events that occurred in the apartment]." Lilly v. Commonwealth, 258 Va. 548, 552, 523 S.E.2d 208, 209 (1999).
Harris' confession was not cumulative of the other evidence the Commonwealth presented at trial. Jesse Keene testified that Williams informed him that he had been "lay[ing] low" because, when Williams and Harris went to the apartment, "the other kid that was there got killed in the process." Keene further testified as follows:
Q. Did [Williams] tell you anything else about what happened at [the apartment]?
A. Other than that, no.
Q. Did he tell you how the kid that was at [the apartment] got killed?
A. No.
Keene's testimony clearly is insufficient to prove that Williams shot Griffin or that a robbery occurred. Although the trier of fact arguably might infer from Keene's testimony that Griffin was shot while Williams and Harris were at the apartment and that either Williams or Harris may have committed the murder, it is impossible to determine from Keene's testimony who in fact shot Griffin. It is just as likely that Williams was "lay[ing] low" because he was present at the apartment when Harris or someone else shot Griffin (and, therefore, feared being accused of the murder) as that Williams was "lay[ing] low" because he shot Griffin.
Jason Carter testified that while he and Williams were in jail, he overheard Williams tell another prisoner that Williams was in the apartment when Griffin was shot and killed. In pertinent part, he testified as follows:
Q. What did you hear [Williams] say?
A. I heard him say that he went into the house and ... [Griffin] was the only one there, and he went for the gun and he tussled
*171 Q. Who had the gun originally?
A. [Griffin].
Q. Who went for the gun?
A. [Williams].
Q. Did he say what happened after that?
A. He said he got the gun from him and he was shot.
Q. Who was shot?
A. [Griffin].
Q. Did he say who shot [Griffin]?
A. No. He just say he grabbed the gun from him. I was believing that he had shot him because by the way he was talking.
Q. Did he say why [Griffin] got shot?
A. I guess because he tried to give up the fight.
Q. Did he say why he went to the house where [Griffin] was?
A. No.
Q. Did he say if he went alone or with someone else?
A. It was with someone else.
This testimony does not clearly establish that Williams shot Griffin and clearly fails to prove a robbery occurred. Moreover, because Carter was Griffin's cousin, and Carter testified to being "close" to Griffin, we cannot conclude that the trier of fact would nonetheless have believed Carter's testimony, despite his bias, had Harris' statement been excluded.
Thomas Liggins testified that he met Williams in jail. Liggins admitted to having been convicted of two felonies and of making a false statement. He also testified that other charges were pending against him at the time of Williams' trial. Admitting further that, in return for his testimony, the Commonwealth agreed to a suspended sentence on his pending felony charge and to other consideration, Liggins testified as follows:
Q. What did [Williams] tell you?
A. That he shot somebody.
Q. Did he tell you where he shot this person?
A. No.
Q. Did he tell you who it was?
A. No.
Q. Did he tell you the circumstances of how he shot this person?
A. No. He just say he ain't had no mask on, he had to shoot him....
Q. Did he tell you what was happening when he shot the person?
A. No.
Q. Did he tell you whether he was alone or with someone else when he shot this person?
A. He was with someone.
Q. Did he tell you if it was a man or a woman that he shot?
A. He ain't say.
Q. Did he say whether he did the shooting or the other person did the shooting?
A. He said he did the shooting.
Q. Did he tell you what the other person did?
A. Yeah.
Q. What did he say the other person did?
A. He said he hit him with a bottle.
Q. Did he tell you whether this happened in a house or outside on the street?
A. No, he ain't say.
Q. Did he tell you about any other crimes besides the shooting?
A. No.
Even if the trier of fact believed Liggins, his testimony established neither that Williams was in the apartment where Griffin was killed nor that a robbery occurred.
Simply put, we cannot conclude beyond a reasonable doubt that, had the trial judge not considered Harris' confession, he would nonetheless have convicted Williams of the murder of Griffin in the commission of robbery. The effect of Harris' confession, inculpating Williams, on a trier of fact's view of the entirety of the evidence cannot be overstated. When the issue is "the potential for harm caused by the erroneous admission of evidence which tends to support the [fact finder's] credibility determination[,] ... we must presume that such evidence had the potential to influence the [fact finder] into accepting the properly admitted evidence as more credible and, thus, to taint the [fact *172 finder's] determination of the facts." Lilly, 258 Va. at 553, 523 S.E.2d at 210. Evidence which the trier of fact would normally hold as not credible or inconclusive can suddenly become convincing when corroborated by the accusatory confession of one who was intimately involved in the execution of the crime. Indeed, during the Commonwealth's closing argument, the trial judge noted that after he heard the testimony of Keene, Carter, and Liggins, which occurred before the Commonwealth introduced Harris' confession, the trial judge had written in his notes, "no robbery proved yet." The prejudicial impact of Harris' confession clearly was significant and undermines confidence in the verdict. In view of the generalized nature of the other testimony, we cannot conclude "beyond a reasonable doubt that the [improperly admitted confession] did not contribute to the verdict obtained." Chapman, 386 U.S. at 24, 87 S.Ct. at 827. Thus, the Commonwealth has failed to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the improperly admitted evidence was harmless. Therefore, we reverse the convictions and remand for retrial if the Commonwealth be so advised.
Reversed and remanded.
|
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You Can Now Pay Your Taxes at 7-Eleven
Convenience store 7-Eleven has a history of dropping some crazy collaborations, but its latest might be the most unexpected. Over the years, the chain has teamed up with everyone from Doritos (remember those nacho-cheese filled triangular cheese sticks?), to Faygo (to make the best Slurpee flavor of all time). It’s latest partnership, however, is with the IRS—that’s right, the Internal Revenue Service—to make it easier for people to pay their taxes.
According to Consumerist, taxpayers can now fork over money to the government at participating 7-Eleven locations. While it might seem silly to pay your taxes in a store that has no qualms about selling you lukewarm taquitos and endless Snickers bars, it actually makes a lot of sense. Some people don’t have bank account or credit card to use for their taxes, and so going to a 7-Eleven lets them pay their taxes with cash. You can’t mail an envelope loaded with Benjamins to the government, after all.
Those interested in paying at 7-Eleven just need to follow a simple three-step process (in full here) that involves printing a payment code specific to your taxes and bringing the cash to the 7-Eleven. However, it’s not a great option if you owe thousands in taxes: The chain will only accept up to $1,000 per day, and there is a $3.99 fee per payment. On the plus side, schlepping to a 7-Eleven to pay taxes makes it incredibly easy to drown the loss of half of your bank account to Uncle Sam in a nice, giant Big Gulp.
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Character actor Jon Polito, best known for his roles in Coen Brothers films, including “The Big Lebowski” and “Miller’s Crossing,” died of cancer on Thursday at City of Hope Hospital in Los Angeles. He was 65.
His managers made the announcement on Friday morning after John McNaughton, his friend and a film director, first shared the news on Facebook. “Very sad to learn that my dear friend and collaborator, Jon Polito, has passed away,” McNaughton wrote.
“He appeared in over 100 films, countless TV episodes, and on Broadway,” he added. “Jon was a born actor and will be deeply missed by his legion of friends, fans, family, and of course his long time partner, Darryl Armbruster, to whom I send my condolences. R.I.P. old pal.”
According to TMZ, the actor died after being taken off life support. He reportedly fell into to a coma on Sunday and was diagnosed with multiple myeloma in 2010. TMZ also reports that he suffered from arthritis and an infection from a recent surgery.
Born on Dec. 29, 1950, Polito studied acting at the University of the Arts in Philadelphia. He made his TV debut in the 1981 NBC miniseries “The Gangster Chronicles,” playing Thomas “Three Finger Brown” Lucchese, after first breaking out on stage.
The actor, who has nearly 220 credits on IMDb, portrayed private eye Da Fino in “The Big Lebowski” (1998), Italian gangster Johnny Caspar in “Miller’s Crossing,” (1990), and the studio owner’s right-hand man Lou Breeze in “Barton Fink” (1991). He most recently appeared in “Gangster Squad” and “Locker 13,” and had just nabbed a role in the dramedy “The Maestro.”
He was an original cast member on the NBC crime drama “Homicide: Life on the Street,” and appeared in “Seinfeld” (as the super who wanted to evict Newman), “Modern Family,” “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia,” and “Major Crimes.”
Polito also appeared on Broadway in “American Buffalo” (1977), “Curse of the Aching Heart” (1982), “Total Abandon” (1983), and a revival of “Death of a Salesman” (1984).
He is survived by his husband, Darryl Armbruster. |
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Background {#Sec1}
==========
Acute intermittent porphyria (AIP, MIM \# 176000) is an autosomal dominant disorder caused by a deficiency of hydroxymethylbilane synthase (HMBS; EC 2.5.1.61), which catalyzes the third step of haem biosynthesis. AIP is the most common acute porphyria, with a prevalence of 5.9 cases/million inhabitants in Europe as a whole and 6.3 cases/million inhabitants in Spain \[[@CR1]\].
The main clinical manifestations are episodic acute neurovisceral attacks characterized by abdominal pain, vomiting, tachycardia, hypertension and dark urine.
AIP is a low-penetrant disease, and generally 10--20% of AIP carriers develop acute attacks \[[@CR2]--[@CR4]\], known as manifest AIP (MAIP), as opposed to latent AIP carriers (LAIP) with no attacks. However, studies based on the frequency of pathogenic variants in *HMBS* gene in the general population suggest significantly lower penetrance (\< 1%) \[[@CR5], [@CR6]\]. On the other hand, higher penetrance has been associated with specific mutations, such as R173W and W198X. \[[@CR7]\].
Acute attacks are more frequent in women and rarely occur before puberty \[[@CR8], [@CR9]\]. Such acute attacks are often triggered by precipitating factors, which include several drugs, alcohol, steroid hormones, infection or fasting. Genetic background might be involved in variations in penetrance, although the underlying genes involved are still unknown \[[@CR10]\].
In the liver, free haem exerts negative feedback regulation of ubiquitous 5-aminolevulinic acid synthase (ALAS1; EC 2.3.1.37), the rate-limiting enzyme in haem biosynthesis \[[@CR11]--[@CR13]\]. Acute attacks occur when hepatic haem synthesis is overstimulated. This causes overproduction of the porphyrin precursors 5-aminolevulinic acid (ALA) and porphobilinogen (PBG), which have been associated with clinical manifestation of AIP, and increases in urinary excretion. After acute attack, ALA and PBG gradually decrease, although levels may remain high for time ranging from weeks to years \[[@CR14], [@CR15]\].
Drug-metabolizing cytochrome P450 enzymes (CYP) constitute the main hepatic haemoproteins \[[@CR16]\]. CYP and ALAS1 synthesis is coordinated, while several drugs are transcriptional inducers of both genes \[[@CR17], [@CR18]\]. Since the turnover of CYP is a determining factor in the hepatic induction of haem synthesis, it might influence the penetrance of hepatic porphyrias.
Inter-individual differences in drug metabolism are common, in part due to inherited polymorphisms in *CYP* genes \[[@CR19]\]. A high frequency of two polymorphisms in *CYP1A2* and *CYP1A1* genes has been reported in porphyria cutanea tarda, both polymorphisms being associated with increased enzymatic activity \[[@CR20], [@CR21]\]. In addition, non-functional *CYP2D6\*3* and *\*4* alleles seemed to be less frequent in AIP carriers compared to a control population \[[@CR22]\].
We hypothesized that *CYP* genes might act as modifiers in AIP, and that specific alleles would constitute susceptibility factors for developing acute attacks. Taking advantage of our genetically highly homogeneous population (most AIP cases carry the founder mutation c.669_698del30 in the *HMBS* gene) \[[@CR23]\], we aimed to identify AIP penetrance modifying *CYP* genes that act as risk factors for developing acute attack. The goal of this study was to determine AIP prevalence and penetrance in our region associated with the *HMBS* founder mutation and the frequency of common defective alleles that lead to a disturbance in main hepatic CYP enzymes \[[@CR24]\], as well as to analyse their relationship with the occurrence of acute attacks in AIP. With this aim, *CYP2C9\*2*, *\*3*; *CYP2C19\*2*; *CYP2D \*4*, *\*5*; *CYP3A4\*1B* and *CYP3A5\*3* alleles were studied in a group of AIP carriers with a high prevalence of the aforementioned founder mutation.
Methods {#Sec2}
=======
Patients and clinical assessment {#Sec3}
--------------------------------
Fifty Spanish AIP genetic carriers, from 21 different families in the Region of Murcia (Southern Spain), were included in the study. Informed consent approved by the Research Ethics Board of the Hospital Clínico Universitario Virgen de la Arrixaca was obtained from all patients. Most of them (78%) carried the founder pathogenic variant NC_000011.9 (NM_000190.3):c.669_698del30 in *HMBS* gene responsible for AIP.
To determine the occurrence of acute attacks (MAIP frequency), patients were interviewed and clinical records were revised based on a systematic follow-up of AIP carriers currently carried out by the Medical Genetics Section of our hospital, which is the referral unit in our province. Patients who had history of at least one acute attack with a typical porphyrin precursor excretion profile, requiring hospitalization and treatment with haemin were classified as MAIP.
CYP genotyping {#Sec4}
--------------
DNA was isolated from blood samples with the QIAamp DNA Blood Mini kit (Qiagen, Hilden, Germany). Genotyping of *CYP2C9\*2* (rs1799853; NC_000010.10:g.96702047C \> T), *CYP2C9\*3* (rs1057910; NC_000010.10:g.96741053A \> C); *CYP2C19\*2* (rs4244285; NC_000010.10:g.96541616G \> A); *CYP2D6\*4* (rs3892097; NC_000022.10:g.42524947C \> T), *CYP3A4\*1B* (rs2740574; NC_000007.13:g.99382096C \> T) and *CYP3A5\*3* (rs776746; NC_000007.13:g.99270539C \> T) alleles was performed with TaqMan® Drug Metabolism Genotyping Assays (Applied Biosystems, Foster City, USA). *CYP2D6\*5* allele, entailing *CYP2D6* gene deletion, was analysed with TaqMan® Copy Number Assay (Applied Biosystems). All assays were performed with available commercial pre-designed kits. Assays were run on an ABI® 7500 Fast Real-Time PCR System (Applied Biosystems) and analysed with 7500 Software and CopyCaller (Applied Biosystems).
Individuals carrying none of the analysed defective alleles were predicted to carry normal functional allele since other defective alternative alleles are rare in our population, such as *CYP2C19\*3* which may be frequent in Asian populations as opposed to Caucasian.
Biochemical analyses {#Sec5}
--------------------
First morning urine samples were collected at a symptoms-free stage, at least after 6 months of an acute attack. Samples were available only in 45 patients. Urinary creatinine was analysed with a commercial kit (CREJ2) based on the Jaffé method in a Roche Cobas c system (Roche, Mannheim, Germany). ALA and PBG were measured by spectrophotometry after column chromatography with a commercial kit (code 11017, BioSystems S.A., Barcelona, Spain) following manufacturer's instructions. The results were normalized to urinary creatinine.
Statistical analysis {#Sec6}
--------------------
Continuous variables were summarised with means and standard errors, while qualitative variables were expressed as proportions. A logistic regression model, adjusted for sex and age, was used to test the association between *CYP* genotype and MAIP frequency. To test the association between *CYP* genotype and urinary ALA and PBG levels, a multiple lineal regression analysis was used. This regression model was adjusted for sex, age and history of acute attacks (MAIP) to avoid confusion in the results obtained, since ALA and PBG may remain elevated for many years after an acute attack. A simple test to compare proportions was made to analyse differences in allelic frequencies between MAIP and LAIP. Data were analysed using R software package (3.4.1. version).
Results {#Sec7}
=======
Fifty AIP carriers aged between 16 and 77 years (44 years of mean age), 56% women, were analysed (Table [1](#Tab1){ref-type="table"}). 78% carried the known founder pathogenic variant c.669_698del30 in *HMBS* gene. General penetrance was 52% (frequency of MAIP). Penetrance associated with the founder pathogenic variant was 48.7% (19/39 patients), which is similar to that associated with the pathogenic variant c.76C \> T (50%), the second most frequent pathogenic variant in the studied cohort. Furthermore, based on population the census in our province (1,470,273 inhabitants) and the frequency of MAIP described in this study, the estimated symptomatic AIP prevalence was at least 17.7 cases/million inhabitants.Table 1Characteristics of AIP carriersTotal (*n* = 50)LAIP (*n* = 24; 48%)MAIP (*n* = 26; 52%)Age, years44 ± 15.742 ± 15.847 ± 14.9Women28 (56%)10 (42%)18 (69%)*HMBS* pathogenic variant c.669_698del30, p.(Glu223_Leu232)39 (78%)20 (83%)19 (73%) c.76C \> T, p.Arg26Cys8 (16%)4 (17%)4 (15%) c.275 T \> C, p.(Leu92Pro)1 (2%)--1 (4%) c.750delA, p.(Glu250GlufsTer4)2 (4%)--2 (8%)*LAIP*: Latent AIP; *MAIP*: Manifest AIP. Age shown as mean and standard deviation; sex and *HMBS* variants distribution shown as number of individuals and percentage. *HMBS* variants are referenced to NC_000011.9 (NM_000190.3)
Allele frequencies are shown in Table [2](#Tab2){ref-type="table"} and genotype distributions are summarized in Table [3](#Tab3){ref-type="table"}. All genotype frequencies met the Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium. The frequency of defective *CYP2D6* alleles was 3.5 times higher in LAIP than in MAIP. MAIP was less frequent in defective allele carriers of *CYP2D6* gene (*CYP2D6\*4* or *\*5* alleles), so the possibility that a patient had MAIP was reduced by 80% on average for each additional defective allele (*\*4* or *\*5*) in *CYP2D6* gene (OR 0.2; CI 95% 0.04--0.81; *p* value 0.037).Table 2*CYP* allelic frequenciesGeneAlleleTotal AIPLAIPMAIP*P* value*CYP2C9\*2*0.280.330.230.255*\*3*0.010.020*CYP2C19\*2*0.150.130.170.695*CYP2D6\*4*0.120.190.060.052*\*5*0.010.020*CYP3A4\*1B*0.030.020.041.000CYP3A5*\*3*0.950.960.940.913*MAIP* manifest AIP, *LAIP* latent AIPTable 3*Cytochrome P450* genotype distributions and MAIP frequency by genotypeGeneGenotypeGenotype distributionMAIP frequencyN%%ORCI 95%*P* value*CYP2C9*two normal alleles275455.60.450.17--1.090.092one allele *\*2* or *\*3*173458.8two alleles *\*2* or *\*3*61216.7*CYP2C19*two normal alleles357048.61.750.49--6.810.398one allele *\*2*153060.0two alleles *\*2*00--*CYP2D6*two normal alleles387660.50.20.04--0.810.037one allele *\*4* or *\*5*112227.3two alleles *\*4* or *\*5*120*CYP3A4*two normal alleles479451.11.940.14--49.630.629one allele *\*1B*3666.7two alleles *\*1B*00--*CYP3A5*two normal alleles00--0.670.07--5.020.697one allele *\*3*51060.0two alleles *\*3*459051.1*OR* Odds ratio adjusted for age and sex*, CI 95%* 95% confidence interval for OR, *MAIP* manifest AIP
There was also slight evidence that MAIP was reduced by each additional defective allele (\*2 or 3\*) in *CYP2C9* gene, although not to a statistically significant extent. When a combined *CYP2C9* and *CYP2D6* genotype was considered (data not shown), only 16.7% of individuals carrying at least one defective allele in both genes had MAIP compared with 52.2% of carriers of defective alleles in either one of the genes and with 61.9% of normal allele carriers. Thus, MAIP frequency was reduced by 65% in individuals carrying at least one defective allele in both genes (OR 0.35; CI 95% 0.12--0.89; p value 0.0368). Other different *CYP* combined genotypes were not considered since there was no evidence of individual effect in acute attacks.
The urine PBG-to-creatinine ratio (Table [4](#Tab4){ref-type="table"}) tended to be lower in individuals carrying *CYP2C9\*2* or *\*3* and *CYP2D6\*4* or *\*5* alleles compared with respective normal allele carriers. However, this reduction was not attributed to the *CYP* genotype by itself but was associated with the history of acute attacks (*p* \< 0.01). There were no differences in ALA excretion according to *CYP* genotype.Table 4Urinary ALA and PBG excretion according to genotypeGeneGenotypeU-PBG/CrU-ALA/Crmean (SE)beta (CI 95%)*P* valuemean (SE)beta (CI 95%)*P* value*CYP2C9*two normal alleles12.93 (3.36)−3.82 (−9.25;-1.62)0.1638.48 (1.30)−1.26 (−8.07;5.55)0.711one allele *\*2* or *\*3*5.62 (1.88)12.85 (6.67)two alleles *\*2* or *\*3*1.87 (0.80)4.98 (0.71)*CYP2C19*two normal alleles9.12 (2.34)−1.84 (− 10.11; 6.43)0.65510.58 (3.01)−3.96 (− 14.03;6.11)0.432one allele *\*2*9.32 (4.27)6.39 (1.30)two alleles *\*2*NANA*CYP2D6*two normal alleles10.71 (2.63)−0.67 (−8.60; 7.27)0.86610.45 (2.94)−3.69 (−13.34;5.96)0.444one allele *\*4* or *\*5*5.34 (2.38)5.93 (1.05)two alleles *\*4* or *\*5*0.76 (NA)11.82 (NA)*CYP3A4*two normal alleles9.52 (2.12)−7.11 (−25.30;11.09)0.4359.67 (2.27)−6.72 (−29.08;15.65)0.547one allele *\*1B*1.88 (1.07)2.96 (1.56)two alleles *\*1B*NANA*CYP3A5*two normal allelesNA2.54 (−10.64;15.72)0.699NA5.46 (−10.63;21.54)0.497one allele *\*3*6.45 (5.00)4.33 (1.02)two alleles *\*3*9.45 (2.2)9.86 (2.38)*U-PBG/Cr* Urine PBG-to-creatinine ratio (μmol /mmol), reference range \< 1.5 μmol /mmol, *U-ALA/Cr* Urine ALA-to-creatinine ratio (μmol /mmol), reference range \< 3.8 μmol /mmol, *SE* Standard error; beta: regression analysis coefficient adjusted by age, sex and history of acute attacks; CI 95%: 95% confidence interval of beta; *NA*: Not applicable
Discussion {#Sec8}
==========
Several clinical studies have described a penetrance of around 10--20% in AIP \[[@CR2]\]. Other studies based in the prevalence of pathogenic variants in *HMBS* gene in the general populations have estimated a penetrance of below 1% \[[@CR5], [@CR6]\]. However, there are high-penetrant mutations such as R173W (50%) and W198X (44%) \[[@CR7]\], which are highly frequent in Nova Scotia (Canada) \[[@CR25]\] and Sweden \[[@CR26]\], respectively, due to a founder effect. Here, we describe the high clinical penetrance associated with the founder mutation c.669_698del30 in *HMBS* gene \[[@CR27]\], which is frequent in southern Spain. This penetrance is similar to that of the W198X mutation, which is associated with a high prevalence of AIP in Sweden (23 cases/million inhabitants). In addition, we estimated the prevalence of AIP in the Region of Murcia to be about 3 times higher than that estimated in Spain as a whole (6.3 cases/million inhabitants) \[[@CR1]\]. All the above suggest that, while low-penetrant *HMBS* mutations may be frequent in a healthy population, frequent high-penetrant mutation might be responsible for MAIP in populations with a high prevalence of AIP. High-penetrant AIP mutations may determine the genetic counselling offered to a specific population and carriers should thereby benefit from specific health care planning.
It is also of great interest to recognize how the genetic background may modulate the penetrance, making personalized genetic counselling and health care more feasible. To date, a high prevalence of specific *CYP* alleles in some types of porphyria has been described compared to that observed in a healthy population, suggesting that they might be susceptibility factors \[[@CR20]--[@CR22]\]. The present study provides further evidence that *CYP* genes may constitute penetrance-modifying factors in AIP, since *CYP2D6\*4* and *\*5* were more frequent in LAIP than in MAIP, although their allelic frequencies were similar in whole AIP carriers and the general population \[[@CR27]\]. The differential distribution of *CYP2D6\*4* and *\*5* alleles between MAIP and LAIP supports the hypothesis that *CYP2D6* may be associated with acute clinical manifestation of AIP. Accordingly, MAIP was less frequent in defective *CYP2D6\*4* and *\*5* allele carriers.
Furthermore, for the first time, the frequency of *CYP2C9\*2*, *\*3*; *CYP2C19\*2*; *CYP3A4\*1B* and *CYP3A5\*3* alleles has been determined in an AIP population, in which it was found to be similar to that of the general population and between MAIP and LAIP \[[@CR27]--[@CR29]\]. However, in our opinion, we cannot dismiss a possible relationship of these genes with AIP, which would require larger studies.
Our results suggest that *CYP2D6\*4* and *\*5* defective alleles play a protective role in the clinical onset of AIP, modulating its penetrance. AIP patients with defective *CYP2D6* alleles may be less susceptible to porphyrogenic xenobiotic intermediate metabolites. Another possible explanation is that defective *CYP2D6* alleles might consume less haem than normal alleles, so defective *CYP* allele carriers might be less prone to the overstimulation of haem synthesis. This last hypothesis would be supported if baseline levels of ALA and PBG were lower in defective *CYP2D6* allele carriers. However, we were unable to demonstrate that lower urinary ALA and PBG levels in defective *CYP2D6* allele carriers are directly associated with *CYP* genotype rather than acute attack history.
The strength of this study lies in the high genetic homogeneity in terms of a causal AIP mutation in *HMBS* gene, which eliminates biases due to differences in penetrance associated with various mutations. However, this study is not without limitations. The low allele frequencies of the *CYP* genetics variants and the limited number of patients studied make it necessary to confirm these findings in larger AIP populations. Further studies which include other *CYP* genes, as well as other candidate genes using next generation sequencing, might provide a more comprehensive overview of their possible modulating role in AIP.
Conclusions {#Sec9}
===========
AIP prevalence in the Spanish Region of Murcia is 17.7 cases/million inhabitants, almost 3 times higher than that estimated for the rest of Spain. The penetrance is 52%, similar to other founder mutation AIP populations. *CYP2D6\*4* and *\*5* alleles may be protective factors for acute attacks, and *CYP2D*6 may constitute a penetrance-modifying gene. Further studies are needed to confirm these findings, which would allow a further progress in AIP clinical risk profile assessment.
We highlight the relevance of knowing the prevalence and penetrance of AIP in a given population, especially in that ones with high prevalence of specific *HMBS* mutations, since published data vary among populations and mutations. These results will have a positive impact on AIP carriers genetic counselling and will allow a better planning of health care resources in our population. Furthermore, we emphasize the potential of applying *CYP* genotyping in AIP precision medicine, enabling personalized risk stratification of acute clinical manifestation based on individual *CYP* allelic profile and leading to predictive personalized medicine for each AIP carrier in the future.
AIP
: Acute intermittent porphyria
ALA
: Aminolevulinic acid
ALAS1
: Aminolevulinic acid synthase 1
CYP
: Cytochrome P450
HMBS
: Hydroxymethylbilane synthase
LAIP
: Latent acute intermittent porphyria
MAIP
: Manifest acute intermittent porphyria
PBG
: Porphobilinogen
We wish to acknowledge all the AIP patients and families for their generous participation, BIOBANC-MUR (IMIB-Arrixaca) for their contribution in the isolation and maintenance of DNA samples and PIER (Integral Plan of Rare Diseases in the Región de Murcia 2017-2020) for supporting research.
Funding {#FPar1}
=======
This research was partly founded by UCAM Universidad Católica de Murcia (grant PMAFI/09/14).
Availability of data and materials {#FPar2}
==================================
The datasets used and/or analysed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.
MBS and EGN conceived and planned the experiments; MJBM, VLG, MJS, LR, ATSR and EGN contributed to patient diagnosis. GG and EGN performed molecular characterization of AIP. MBS, EGN, JB, MJBM, VLG, MJS, LR and ATSR contributed to patient recruitment and the acquisition of clinical data; MBS, JB and RG contributed in sample collection (blood and urine); MBS performed genetic analysis in *CYP* genes; GG, MCM and PC supervised genetic analysis design and performance; CC performed statistical analysis; MBS and EGN contributed to the analysis of the results and wrote the manuscript; all authors provided critical feedback of analysis and helped shape the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.
Ethics approval and consent to participate {#FPar3}
==========================================
This study was approved by the Research Ethics Board of the Hospital Clínico Universitario Virgen de la Arrixaca. Informed consent to participate was obtained from all patients.
Consent for publication {#FPar4}
=======================
Not applicable.
Competing interests {#FPar5}
===================
The authors declare that they have no competing interests.
Publisher's Note {#FPar6}
================
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
|
A high-yield double-purification proteomics strategy for the identification of SUMO sites.
The small ubiquitin-like modifier (SUMO) is a protein modifier that is post-translationally coupled to thousands of lysines in more than a thousand proteins. An understanding of which lysines are modified by SUMO is critical in unraveling its function as a master regulator of all nuclear processes, as well as its involvement in diseases such as cancer. Here we describe a protocol for the lysine-deficient (K0) method for efficient identification of SUMOylated lysines by mass spectrometry (MS). To our knowledge, the K0 method is the only currently available method that can routinely identify >1,000 SUMO sites in mammalian cells under standard growth conditions. The K0 strategy relies on introducing a His10-tagged SUMO wherein all lysines have been substituted to arginines. Lysine deficiency renders the SUMO immune to digestion by the endoproteinase Lys-C, which in turn allows for stringent and high-yield tandem purification through the His10 tag. In addition, the His10-tagged SUMO also contains a C-terminal Q87R mutation, which accommodates generation of SUMO-site peptides with a QQTGG mass remnant after digestion with trypsin. This remnant possesses a unique mass signature and readily generates diagnostic ions in the fragment ion scans, which increases SUMO-site identification confidence. The K0 method can be applied in any mammalian cell line or in any model system that allows for integration of the K0-SUMO construct. From the moment of cell lysis, the K0 method takes ∼7 d to perform. |
LIMIT FROM 2000 RETURN 10881
BI-MONTHLY CANADA LIFE CONTRIBUTION 506.25
CANADA LIFE CONTRIBUTION UP TO DEC 31 2001 3590.30
WHAT ABOUT EMPLOYER PENSION PLAN CONTRIBUTIONS?
(2393.91)
CALL BMG
_________________________________________________________________
Get your FREE download of MSN Explorer at http://explorer.msn.com/intl.asp. |
Q:
Which is the proper spelling: "disfunction" or "dysfunction"?
Is this word spelt dysfunction or disfunction?
Are there any correct spellings at all for this word?
The reason I asked is because I've always learned to spell it as "disfunction" until recently, when I realized I'm starting to see more of "dysfunction"
A:
Dysfunction is by far the more common according to Google Ngrams
A:
Hugo found a useful thread at Word Reference.
It points out that dys- is Greek in origin, and means "bad or difficult" and that function is Latin in origin and means "an activity that is natural to or the purpose of a person or thing". It goes on to say that the combination of Greek and Latin is somewhat odd, especially since dys-'s homophone dis- is Latin (but it does not mean the same as dys-).
The dis- prefix doesn't work for dysfunction because its meanings (as explained here) are not the same as dys-, so they would change the meaning of dysfunction.
The correct spelling is dysfunction. It would not surprise me, however, if disfunction became an accepted spelling, because it just seems more normal.
|
Q:
Determine transport method in SignalR Core?
In SignalR 2.0 the transport method can be determined by the transport parameter in the query string.
string transportMethod = queryString["transport"];
This doesn't seem to be the case in SignalR for ASP.NET Core.
The best I can do, it seems, is to use header information.
For WebSocket connections:
Connection = Upgrade
Upgrade = Websocket
And long polling:
Connection = Keep-Alive
And server-sent events:
Connection = Keep-Alive
Accept = text/event-stream
Is there a better/easier way to go about determining the transport method?
A:
You can get the transport type from the HubCallerContext like so
Context.Items[ConnectionMetadataNames.Transport]
|
Time-dependent response theory and nonequilibrium free-energy relations.
The mathematics of time-dependent nonlinear response theory frequently leads to results which although formally exact, are not amenable to experimental application or even to use in computer simulations. Here we give a rigorous derivation of a tractable expression for the thermostatted nonlinear response of classical many body systems to time-dependent dissipative fields. The theory also allows for the concurrent parametric transformation of the system Hamiltonian. Our analysis shows once again the intimate relationship between nonequilibrium free-energy relations such as the Jarzynski equality and nonlinear response theory. We make a few remarks concerning the maximum entropy production approximation. |
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Laurie Kilmartin
Aug 16 - Aug 18
Kilmartin began performing standup in 1987, doing contract comedy gigs in the Pacific Northwest. She has since performed stand-up on Conan, Jimmy Kimmel Live!, Comedy Central's Premium Blend, Showtime, the USO Tour Cuba, for troops in Iraq, Shorties Watchin' Shorties, Verdict with Dan Abrams, Red Eye w/ Greg Gutfeld, and The World Stands Up. She has been featured at comedy festivals in Aspen, Edinburgh, and Montreal.
She also appeared on VH1's Best Week Ever, the Today Show, White Boy.... more |
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to manufacturing of a hollow plastic product and in particular to a method and apparatus for manufacturing a hollow plastic product having an irregular structure, such as a projection which projects outwardly from the outer surface of the product, or to a method of manufacturing a hollow plastic product having a change in composition. More specifically, the present invention relates to a blow molding technique for fabricating a hollow plastic product having a desired shape which cannot be manufactured by the conventional blow molding technology.
2. Description of the Prior Art
If it is desired to manufacture a hollow plastic product 2 having a projection 1 which projects outwardly from the outer surface of a main body 2' in accordance with the typical prior art technique, the main body 2' is first fabricated by blow molding and then the projection, which has been previously fabricated by any appropriate method, such as injection molding, is fixedly attached to the main body 2'. Such an approach is not advantageous because it requires a plurability of separate steps to carry out in manufacture and the connection between the main body 2' and the later-attached projection 1 is not reliable and low in strength. On the other hand, it is true that the projection 1 may be manufactured together with the main body 2' at the same time by blow molding; in this case, however, a significantly large flash is necessarily formed, and, thus it is expensive and time consuming to remove such a large flash, not to mention the production of significant waste of material.
Furthermore, it is sometimes desired that a hollow plastic product differs in composition depending on the location thereby providing different properties. For example, a hollow plastic tube is often desired to have a relatively hard section to be fixedly attached to a metal fitting or the like and another section which is relatively soft for providing an easy bending characteristic. In such a case, a typical prior art approach would be to first form different sections separately and then put them together to form a final product and such an approach is disadvantageous because such a multistep process would be time consuming and expensive and the integrity of the final product is relatively poor. |
Diploma Jobs 2016
Many diploma holders are looking for latest Diploma jobs 2016. It is easy to the candidates to find out suitable jobs for you. The candidates will get diploma jobs according to their qualification. The candidate will get jobs based on their experience in particular field. The candidates who are completed their diploma will get suitable jobs the candidates can visit diploma notification to get more details about the qualification required for the posts. The recruitment board will evaluate your qualification by conducting various tests and all. So that the candidates have prepared well for the examination. It is important to get a job because it will decide their great future. All the diploma holders can select their job based on your skill and capacity. A lot of students are eagerly waiting for getting a good job.
Government Jobs for Diploma Holders 2016
The candidates who have completed their diploma can select suitable government jobs 2016. Many details are available in online the details include an application form, selection procedure, eligibility details and all, The candidates must have to notice that the last date for submitting the application form. Diploma Holders will get jobs in private and government company based on their eligibility. The candidates who have completed Engineering Diploma in recognized institution with minimum qualifying marks Computer Science (CS), Information Technology (IT), Electrical, Electronics and Communication, Mechanical, etc. are now searching for Jobs.
Diploma Holders Jobs 2016
Many Diploma holders are searching for latest diploma jobs 2016, and the candidates need to utilize their knowledge by working in the public and private sector companies. For the technician posts, the eligible candidates can apply in Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited and Vidyut Vitran Nigam Limited. The candidates are still searching for the latest Diploma jobs in 2016. A lot of candidates are waiting for the good option to pick, and the candidates will get consolidated monthly pay scale according to organization norms.
Job vacancies for Diploma Holders
There are many job vacancies for the candidates who have completed their diploma in various fields. The candidates can apply for the post before the closing date. The candidates will get a job according to their qualification. As there are a lot of employment opportunities, it is easy to find Diploma Jobs 2016. The Candidates have to visit the notification and read the notification completely to get more information regarding educational qualification required for the post before applying for the posts.
Jobs After Diploma 2016
Diploma Holders can apply for the Recruitment of community development expert Field. There are many vacancies still available for diploma holders. AEE Civil and Office Assistant recruitment for Diploma holders in various fields. The diploma holders also apply for the post of a stenographer. For the posts, there will be a written examination. The candidates have to pass in the examination for the posts. In India, there are many vacancies for Diploma Holders for water supply and sewerage board. |
Dynamic sympathetic regulation of left ventricular contractility studied in the isolated canine heart.
We investigated the dynamic sympathetic regulation of left ventricular end-systolic elastance (Ees) using an isolated canine ventricular preparation with functioning sympathetic nerves intact. We estimated the transfer function from both stellate ganglion stimulation to Ees and ganglion stimulation to heart rate (HR) for both left and right ganglia by means of the white noise approach and transformed those transfer functions into corresponding step responses. The HR response was much larger with right sympathetic stimulation than with left sympathetic stimulation (4.3 +/- 1.4 vs. 0.7 +/- 0.6 beats . min-1 . Hz-1, P < 0.01). In contrast, the Ees responses without pacing were not significantly different between left and right sympathetic stimulation (0.72 +/- 0.34 vs. 0.76 +/- 0. 42 mmHg . ml-1 . Hz-1). Fixed-rate pacing significantly decreased the Ees response to right sympathetic stimulation (0.53 +/- 0.43 mmHg . ml-1 . Hz-1, P < 0.01), but not to left sympathetic stimulation (0.67 +/- 0.32 mmHg . ml-1 . Hz-1, not significant). Although the mechanism by which the sympathetic nervous system regulates cardiac contractility is different depending on whether the left or right sympathetic nerves are activated, this difference does not affect the apparent response of Ees to dynamic sympathetic stimulation. |
Q:
Why does it enter the same id in the database instead of entering one by one each?
Hy,
I want to ban a user when the admin clicks on "bannir" (this will collect the id of the user and put "banned" at 1 in the database)
to print the user informations I'm using a while loop, but when I try to collect the id of the user where in the html tag with the class "idUser", it is always sending the first id and I don't know why..
image of membership area
<div>
<table class="table">
<thead>
<tr>
<th>#</th>
<th>Prénom</th>
<th>Nom</th>
<th>Email</th>
<th>Admin</th>
<th>Banni</th>
<th>Actions</th>
</tr>
</thead>
<tbody>
<?php while($userInfo = $req->fetch()){?>
<tr>
<td class="idUser"><?= $userInfo['id_user'] ?></td>
<td><?= $userInfo['last_name'] ?></td>
<td><?= $userInfo['first_name'] ?></td>
<td><?= $userInfo['email'] ?></td>
<td><?php if($userInfo['admin'] == 1){ ?>
<img src="../img/ok.png">
<?php } else { ?>
<img src="../img/no.png">
<?php } ?></td>
<td><?php if($userInfo['banned'] == 1){ ?>
<strong style="color:#E04949;">OUI</strong>
<?php } else { ?>
<strong style="color:#6AC259;">NON</strong>
<?php } ?></td>
<td><a href="#">Modifier</a> | <a href="#" class="banMemberJquery"><?php if($userInfo["banned"] == 0){ ?> Bannir <?php }else{ ?> Débannir <?php } ?></a></td>
</tr>
<?php } ?>
</tbody>
</table>
<script type="text/javascript">
$('.banMemberJquery').click(function(){
var idUser = $( ".idUser" ).html();
alert('Utilisateur Numero ' + idUser + ' banni avec succès.');
$.ajax({
url:"banMemberRequest.php",
data:'idUser='+idUser,
}).done(function(data){
$('#result').html(data);
});
});
PS : When I click on "bannir", the request in the file "banMemberRequest.php" is working correctly.
Thank's in advance for helping
A:
The issue is because you're selecting all .idUser elements. Calling html() on that will only read the HTML of the first one in that collection.
To fix this you need to use DOM traversal to find only the .idUser element which is related to the .banMemberJquery element which was clicked. To do that you can use closest() and find(), like this:
$('.banMemberJquery').click(function() {
var idUser = $(this).closest('tr').find('.idUser').text(); // note text(), not html()
$.ajax({
url: 'banMemberRequest.php',
data: { idUser: idUser },
}).done(function(data) {
$('#result').html(data);
});
});
|
Tottenham 17-18 Home Kit
The Nike Tottenham Hotspur 17-18 home kit introduces a clean look for the Swoosh's debut at the club. It was launched at midnight on July 1 due to contract obligations towards previous supplier Under Armour. This image shows the Nike Tottenham 2017-18 shirt.Made by Nike, the Tottenham 2017-2018 home jersey introduces clean and classy look that is based on the 2017 edition of the Nike Vapor Aeroswift template. The Tottenham 17-18 kit features a stripe detail around the back neck, while a blue stripe runs down the sides of it.To go with this understated and traditional design, the Tottenham 17-18 kit boasts a 1950s-inspired take on the Spurs badge with a shield around the original logo.Template-wise, the Tottenham 17-18 home shirt has a mesh knit detail on the sleeves as well as on the front and back (especially in the authentic version).The Nike Tottenham Hotspur 2017-2018 home kit was released at midnight on July 1 2017.Do you like the design of the first-ever Nike Tottenham Hotspur kit? Comment below, and check out all leaked and official 2017-18 Premier League kits in the Kit Overview |
MHC class I recognition by NK receptors in the Ly49 family is strongly influenced by the beta 2-microglobulin subunit.
NK cell recognition of targets is strongly affected by MHC class I specific receptors. The recently published structure of the inhibitory receptor Ly49A in complex with H-2Dd revealed two distinct sites of interaction in the crystal. One of these involves the alpha1, alpha2, alpha3, and beta2-microglobulin (beta2m) domains of the MHC class I complex. The data from the structure, together with discrepancies in earlier studies using MHC class I tetramers, prompted us to study the role of the beta2m subunit in MHC class I-Ly49 interactions. Here we provide, to our knowledge, the first direct evidence that residues in the beta2m subunit affect binding of MHC class I molecules to Ly49 receptors. A change from murine beta2m to human beta2m in three different MHC class I molecules, H-2Db, H-2Kb, and H-2Dd, resulted in a loss of binding to the receptors Ly49A and Ly49C. Analysis of the amino acids involved in the binding of Ly49A to H-2Dd in the published crystal structure, and differing between the mouse and the human beta2m, suggests the cluster formed by residues Lys3, Thr4, Thr28, and Gln29, as a potentially important domain for the Ly49A-H-2Dd interaction. Another possibility is that the change of beta2m indirectly affects the conformation of distal parts of the MHC class I molecule, including the alpha1 and alpha2 domains of the heavy chain. |
#!/usr/bin/env bash
# coding=utf-8
# Author: zhaigy@ucweb.com
# Data: 2012-09
. support/PUB.sh
for s in $NODES; do
ssh $USER@$s " rm -f $HOME/.bash_profile.????????_??????; "
done
|
Jenkins\ Login=Jenkins prisijungimas
Access\ Denied=Prieiga atmesta
|
// Copyright (c) 2012 Google Inc. All rights reserved.
// Use of this source code is governed by a BSD-style license that can be
// found in the LICENSE file.
#include <stdio.h>
int hello2() {
printf("Hello, two!\n");
return 0;
}
|
Q:
How to properly search for data in a MySQL table
I have table in MySQL called movie like this
id movie_name movie_description
1 the godfather The_godfather_description
2 the dark Knight the_dark_knight_description
3 batman begins batman_begins_description
4 Inception Inception_description
When the query comes I am searching like this for each word in query
select movie_name,movie_description from movie where movie_name like(%is%) or movie_description like('%is%')
select movie_name,movie_description from movie where movie_name like(%god%) or movie_description like('%god%')
select movie_name,movie_description from movie where movie_name like(%father%) or movie_description like('%father%')
Can you tell me proper way to search database so that words like 'is' and 'the' get ignored. I also want the most relevant articles on top.
A:
If I have got you correctly; you are searching for MySQL full Text search:
I want to explain you about Boolean Full Text Search; But I advise you to please go through Full Text Search using Query Expansion also.
Let's look at the example table:
mysql> select * from articles;
+----+-----------------------+------------------------------------------+
| id | title | body |
+----+-----------------------+------------------------------------------+
| 1 | PostgreSQL Tutorial | DBMS stands for DataBase ... |
| 2 | How To Use MySQL Well | After you went through a ... |
| 3 | Optimizing MySQL | In this tutorial we will show ... |
| 4 | 1001 MySQL Tricks | 1. Never run mysqld as root. 2. ... |
| 5 | MySQL vs. YourSQL | In the following database comparison ... |
| 6 | MySQL Security | When configured properly, MySQL ... |
+----+-----------------------+------------------------------------------+
mysql> SELECT * FROM articles WHERE MATCH (title,body)
AGAINST ('"database comparison"' IN BOOLEAN MODE);
+----+-------------------+------------------------------------------+
| id | title | body |
+----+-------------------+------------------------------------------+
| 5 | MySQL vs. YourSQL | In the following database comparison ... |
+----+-------------------+------------------------------------------+
Order matters, when the words are quoted:
mysql> SELECT * FROM articles WHERE MATCH (title,body)
AGAINST ('"comparison database"' IN BOOLEAN MODE);
Empty set (0.01 sec)
When we remove the quotes, it will search for rows, containing words "database" or "comparison":
mysql> SELECT * FROM articles WHERE MATCH (title,body)
AGAINST ('database comparison' IN BOOLEAN MODE);
+----+---------------------+------------------------------------------+
| id | title | body |
+----+---------------------+------------------------------------------+
| 1 | PostgreSQL Tutorial | DBMS stands for DataBase ... |
| 5 | MySQL vs. YourSQL | In the following database comparison ... |
+----+---------------------+------------------------------------------+
Order doesn't matter now:
mysql> SELECT * FROM articles WHERE MATCH (title,body)
AGAINST ('comparison database' IN BOOLEAN MODE);
+----+---------------------+------------------------------------------+
| id | title | body |
+----+---------------------+------------------------------------------+
| 1 | PostgreSQL Tutorial | DBMS stands for DataBase ... |
| 5 | MySQL vs. YourSQL | In the following database comparison ... |
+----+---------------------+------------------------------------------+
If we want to get rows, containing either word "PostgreSQL" or phrase "database comparison", we should use this request:
mysql> SELECT * FROM articles WHERE MATCH (title,body)
AGAINST ('PostgreSQL "database comparison"' IN BOOLEAN MODE);
+----+---------------------+------------------------------------------+
| id | title | body |
+----+---------------------+------------------------------------------+
| 1 | PostgreSQL Tutorial | DBMS stands for DataBase ... |
| 5 | MySQL vs. YourSQL | In the following database comparison ... |
+----+---------------------+------------------------------------------+
fiddle
Make sure, that the words, you are searching for, are not in the list of stopwords, that are ignored.
(and obviously words like 'is','the' are stopwords and those are ignored)
I have explained here only about Boolean Full Text Search; But I advise you to please go through Full Text Search using Query Expansion also.
|
Subsets and Splits