Work stress part 4 – welcome back to part 4 of my series on how to relieve or manage stress at work. In this article we consider the impact of company culture on stress. What is it, and what can you do about it?
What is company culture and what can I do about it, Veronica?
The culture is about what it is like to work somewhere. How people are treated and treat each other.
Are the working hours long and punishing, or is everyone quite relaxed and laisse-faire?
Are achievements genuinely celebrated, or is praise sparse and blame frequent?
Are the pay and perks generous, or stingy?
Is the company supportive and nurturing, or cynical and exploitative?
These are all extremes, and of course many places have a mix of features, but these are the kinds of questions to explore.
How long have you worked at your present company, and how well do you think you understand the culture?
Some companies are genuinely schizophrenic about themselves – they think they act one way, or aspire to act one way, but the reality on the ground is at total odds. You usually have to be at a place a while to really get to the heart of it – 6 months plus.
Warning signs are if people who have been there a lot longer than you see a different version of the truth (they may be jaded, but they may have a point), or if certain phrases are used over-emphatically with very little evidence to support ("we tell it how it is", "we work together").
Look hard at upper management – what kind of people get promoted in this environment? Find out the reality first.
2. What are you in conflict with?
Which aspect of the company culture is grating? And why? Is it one thing, or lots? More importantly what do you like about it? Make a list of likes and dislikes. How do the things you like serve you (i.e. what aspects of your life or goals do they support?) Why do the things you don't like conflict with your needs or wants?
3. Can you get more of what you do like, and less of what you don't?
This question is important, because there is some extent to which engaging with the culture of a company is a choice. It is also certainly possible to emphasise more bits of it than others.
Here's an example. Say the company is very good about putting it's staff through lots of training, but you don't like the gossipy culture, which feels hostile and back-stabbing. Can you get yourself put on lots of training courses to serve your own goals of personal development, and choose to avoid some of the gossip situations for a while, maybe by being too busy training (!) You don't have to let yourself get collared round the water cooler.
4. Can you change the culture?
This one is tougher. Culture is hard to define and hard to change. Even CEO's struggle to change the culture of their own companies. Where do you sit in the organisation? Are you part of a team, or do you manage one? Can you nudge things in the direction you would like? Can you change your little corner? A lot of companies have consultations, or campaigns about values, or even recruit value ambassadors to work as change agents within themselves. Are any opportunities like this available to you? Managers may be hostile to suggestions, or they may be very open to creative and positive ideas.
If you love the job and hate the culture of the company you work for, then it often seems like the answer is to move companies. After all – why go in every day to somewhere you are at odds with. It can feel like choosing to drop yourself into a pit of snakes every day. Insanity!
BUT – approach with caution. First go through the steps above – if you can make what you have work that is often the best option. Moving for some will be just the solution, but you need a way to evaluate carefully what you are moving too. As above – some companies present themselves in a very different light to the reality. You cannot do enough research. You should also bear in mind your longer term goals. If your job is just perfect FOR NOW, stick with it FOR NOW, but evaluate often to see if what you need and want now has changed.
Good luck in your quest to beat cultural misfit! What are your biggest problems at work? Let me know, and post below.
I really love the notion of making adjustments at work to make it better as in #3 above.
Veronica, your article describes various aspects of a work culture and how the worker can maneuver to use the culture in productive ways to achieve their goals. So important to consider and explore.
When I have approached stress from the perspective of what I can control vs. thinking the control is outside of myself…that someone else has the answer, I've been happier. But I still find find myself wishing there was a magical answer, the secret pill to take, I just haven't discovered yet.
#5 is especially meaningful. Once again, important considerations. Some of us stay around in a job too long while others not long enough.
Thanks for the thoughtful inspiration.
I think this is great. tons of great ideas!


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Dariusz of LowGravity provided the New York Knicks with graphic designs that were shared to 4 million+ fans spanning Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. Dariusz was professional, punctual, came to the table with great ideas and his design creativity is second to none.
I've been working with LowGravity for a year & a half now & we been doing a lot of work together in that short span! They are very great in their work! Everything is good & I'm very pleased with all the work we do together! Looking for wallpapers, logos, websites etc. I suggest you go to best & that's LowGravity! Thank you for all the work you do for me now & future!
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Kamil has a wonderful understanding about the pros and cons of various development frameworks and how to best utilize available specific technologies to achieve the specific goals of a custom project. He is certainly a WordPress expert, but more importantly has great programming insights that translate across individual applications. He is also a very hard worker and exceeds time and quality expectations with coding deliverables. We will continue to utilize his services.
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I confirm that I have dealt with Kamil Grzegorczyk since September 2009, during which time he has provided KICKZ.com with excellent support in the areas of website engineering and site submission. Their work has been a major factor in our website's success, helping it to become one of the most visited resources of its kind on the Internet.
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It was a pleasure to work such a high quality website creator team as LowGravity. Everything went smoothly and fast, their website building skills are amazing. I will definitely work with them again! Thank you!
I am very satisfied with the work LowGravity did for me. Their customer service was excellent as they were always available, answered all my questions, and even considered some of my input for the project. Their work speaks for itself. The project they did for me was creative, stylish, and full of details. I would recommend their talents to anyone and everyone.
The folks at LowGravity are a pleasure to work with. They took the time to fully understand our business, were communicating constantly during design and development, actually took the time to explain things to us as well as write a professional user manual. They have been always easy to reach. In addition to being professional and effective web designers and developers, they also have an extensive basketball knowledge. They are specialists in designing basketball related websites. We enthusiastically recommend LowGravity for any web site work you need.
Working with Kamil at LowGravity I always receive exceptional service with regular updates and Kamil is always available to answer any questions and offer suggestions. His attention to detailwhile being considerate of project budget constraints is greatly appreciated. I have had the opportunity to get to know Kamil on a personal and professional level while being located on opposite sides of the world making it easier to complete projects.
If you've never built a website before but want one that is dynamic, creative & professional – choose LowGravity. Dariusz and his team patiently guided JoLi Academy through the process of creating a site that fits our company's culture and goals in a timely manner. Their guidance was clear, supportive and grounded in years of experience. LowGravity created a look and feel that reflects who JoLi Academy is and the direction we want to grow in. It was almost like having our own in-house web development team. JoLi Academy highly recommends adding LowGravity to your professional family.
Developing a website sounds easy but it is very complex. Lowgravity takes you step by step into the process of creating a website. They have a great combination of passion and professionalism. I am extremely happy to work with Lowgravity and the quality of work speaks volumes about their company!
We are very satisfied with the logo design 'Life is Basketball'. Our charity project improved its image in Slovenia; therefore we are so thankful to the LowGravity for their product. The logo design presents what we are looking for and our partners gave extra special credits for this unique idea by LowGravity.
It's been a pleasure working with Lowgravity in creating my website. Their expertise and professionalism has made a daunting task achievable. Lowgravity gave me the step-by-step guidance I needed to create a professional website that I could be very proud of. Their dedication to this task, along with their incredible passion for what they do, brought it all together incredibly fast, and is validation to everyone involved, that they are the best in the business!
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It is a true pleasure working with Kamil at LowGravity. He is not only extremely knowledgeable about building effective websites on WordPress, he also has a deep knowledge of building websites on other platforms and can work with a number of different programming languages and database platforms. Kamil also has an excellent understanding of effective website design and delivers creative and visually pleasing layouts with usability in mind. Most of all, I have enjoyed working with Kamil because he is responsive, committed and clearly explains recommendations and the development schedule of all my projects. Kamil delivers value and gets the job done. I plan on working with Kamil on numerous future projects.
LowGravity.pl is a great web designing company that has high quality work. The guys of LowGravity have exceptional knowledge of web design and creating websites. They are very passionate about their work and are not just in it for the money. Even after the start of my official website (MarshallTime.com), they have beenl there for me whenever I might need help with my website. I definitely recommend LowGravity to anyone who wants to have a greater web presence. The guys of LowGravity also go out of their way to help people with not only their websites, but also ideas for marketing and gaining more internet attention. LowGravity is the company to go with because the greatest results come from people that are passionate about what they do. This is Curtis Marshall and God Bless!!!!
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Working with LowGravity was the best choice I could have made when searching for someone to build me a professional web presence. Their experience, attention to detail, customer service, innovative thinking, graphic design, and ease to work with makes them a juggernaut in the web design arena. Their work speaks for itself as each website they build is as amazing as the next!
Working with the guys at LowGravity was amazing. Not only did it seem as if what I wanted mattered most, but they took the time to make sure that I was satisfied with every single element of their work product before moving on to the next step. Dariusz and Kamil took the time and put in the effort by making themselves available nearly around the clock to answer my questions and incorporate my alterations along the way which resulted in a finished product that is superb!
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text:
KNOW YOUR DRUGS
SAM EFERARO THIS WEEK
UBTH confirms 3 COVID-19 cases, 1 death
April 6, 2020	Comments 0 NHO Admin
25 doctors go into isolation
Country now has 232 confirmed cases
The Management of University of Benin Teaching Hospital (UBTH) says one of the three patients, who was confirmed to have tested positive for COVID-19, has died just as the number of confirmed cases in the country rose to 232 by 9.30 pm on April 5.
A statement by the Chief Medical Director of UBTH, Prof. Darlington Obaseki, on Sunday April 5 in Benin said the dead patient was one of the three cases currently being managed in the hospital.
"The two surviving patients are currently being cared for by our dedicated staff in an isolation ward, with restricted access.
"Prior to the confirmation of their COVID-19 status, some of our healthcare staffers were exposed to these patients whilst using only personal protection equipment, such as surgical face-masks and gloves.
"Currently all the members of staff, who are exposed to these patients, are asymptomatic and they are being monitored closely, according to the current guidelines.
"Further measures have been put in place to ensure that our staffers are not unduly exposed to risks of infection with COVID-19 in the course of their providing care for patients who come to the hospital for various reasons.
"Healthcare workers are on the frontline during this pandemic and are, therefore, at higher risk of being exposed than the general public", Obaseki said.
He said the management and staff of UBTH had been observing standard precautions at all times to prevent the spread of the disease.
"I crave the support and understanding of the general public, as we fight this raging battle to contain and curb COVID-19", he said.
Meanwhile, the Association of Residents Doctor (ARD), UBTH chapter, in a statement, said that 25 medical doctors, who had contact with the patients, had gone on mandatory self-isolation.
The association said that 13 of the 25 doctors were house officers, while about 12 were resident doctors.
ARD, however, expressed displeasure with the hospital's management over what it described as poor handling of Coronavirus in the hospital.
According to the association, many of the health workers have complained of lack of personal protective equipment, like face masks and hand sanitisers.
A medical source, who pleaded anonymity, said that the Coronavirus crisis in the hospital started when three patients, who had earlier tested negative for the virus, were declared positive after further test.
Meanwhile, a breakdown of cases by state as provided by NCDC shows that Lagos now has 120 confirmed cases, FCT- 47, Osun – 20, Oyo – 9, Edo – 9, Bauchi – 6, Akwa Ibom – 5, Kaduna – 5, Ogun – 4, Enugu – 2, Ekiti – 2 and one case each in Rivers, Benue and Ondo.
Tags CoronavirusCOVID-19isolationProf. Darlington ObasekiUBTH
NHO Admin	184 posts
WACDI commences second medical outreach
War against Chronic Disease Initiative 2.0 (WACDI) a new non-governmental organization based in Lagos will, on Saturday, April 28, begin its second medical outreach at Ifako LGA with the theme:
Tobacco use is falling, but not fast enough, new WHO report reveals on World No Tobacco Day
Tobacco use has declined markedly since 2000, according to a new WHO report, but the reduction is insufficient to meet globally agreed targets aimed at protecting people from death and
WORLD HEALTH	0 Comments
Sepsis kills 11 million yearly – WHO
WHO calls for global action New studies by the World Health Organization (WHI) has revealed that sepsis, a potentially life-threatening condition caused by the body's response to an infection, kills
Nigerian lanchesHIV/AIDS indicator and impact survey results
President Muhammadu Buhari today, March 14, at the State House, Abuja, launched the result of the largest ever population-based HIV survey - The Nigeria HIV/AIDS Indicator and Impact Survey Results (NAIIS).
The survey is designed to examine the distribution of HIV disease in the country, to assess the coverage and impact of HIV services on the population level and to measure HIV-related risk behaviours.
Lack of information hinders access to famiy planning in Nigeria
The 5th Nigeria Family Planning Conference currently holding in Abuja enters second day December 5 amid revelation that lack of information has continued to hinder access to family planning by Nigerians..
Delegates from the states are currently discussing the challenges and sub- National innovations for expanded FP service delivery at the side event organised by PACFaH.
Shocker: TB kills 420 Nigerians everyday!
The 2-day Public Private Mix (PPM) Summit for Tuberculosis Control in Nigeria organised by the World Health Organisation (WHO) in collaboration with the Federal ministry of Health and other stakeholders kicked off an hour ago with revealations that no fewer than 420 Nigerians die from TB each day.
It is also estimated that about 300, 000 TB cases in Nigeria remain undetected with each of the undetected cases having the potential of infecting between 10 and 15 others.
Sanofi Diabetes Summit kicks off
The maiden edition of Sanofi Diabetes Summit kicked off this morning (October 18) in Lagos with experts from Cameroon, Nigeria and Ghana presenting scientific papers on the theme: "DIABETES: New Trends towards improving Outcomes."
Welcoming guests to the Forum being attended by General practitioners, endocrinologists and other professionals involved in the management of diabetes, the General Manager/Country Chair, Sanofi-Ghana, Ms Folake Odediran said the summits is being proposed to be an annual event to always bring together some of the finest and brightest professionals in the field.
"The theme for this epic event underpins the imperatives for a new awakening and paradigm shift in diabetes care as well as the necessity to re-kit the healthcare persinnel who is a critical partner in the patient's health journey," she said.
Ag NAFDAC DG dispels rumour on 42 '"banned" antimalarials
The Acting Director General of National Agency for Drugs Administration and Control (NAFDAC), Mrs Yetunde Oni has just ended a media briefing to dispel rumour that 42 banned anti-malaria medicines were circulating in the country.
Mrs Oni announced that the alleged banned drugs are oral monotherapies which are not recommended for treatment of malaria in Nigeria.
Biden restores America's ties with WHO
WHO secures 2 billion doses of Covid-19 vaccines
We have not approved Covid vaccine for use in Nigeria – NAFDAC
Africa CDC secures 270 million vaccine doses for African countries
Nigeria records highest ever COVID-19 infections
Covid-19: Lagos PLWDs lament media neglect in highlighting plights
UNICEF calls for an end to abduction of school children
Gov. Sanwo-Olu tests positive for COVID-19
Lagos threatens to sanction international travellers evading COVID-19 testing
ISN rewards 'Lab Scientists of The Year' with N1m
WAAW: Nigeria must implement laws to curb antibiotic resistance – Experts
African Health Ministers reaffirm joint determination to regain impact on TB
Delta State, Sanofi commission diabetes, hypertension clinics
WDD: Subsidise cost of diabetic care, healthcare professionals tell government
Lagos confirms 181 COVID-19 positive cases in private school
African Press Release

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Competing in the 3D category? You're in the right place. Competing in the 2D category? This way.
This is THE image to display your character in all its glory. The character has to be 100% 3D, but the background can be whatever you want.
Use our Marmoset embedded viewer to show off your character or embed your Sketchfab model - this will be used for judging. The .mview for Marmoset file has a 20mb size limit.
If you are not uploading your model using the Marmoset viewer or the Sketchfab embed, include this sheet in your final submission. This should include both the front and back of your character in a T-pose as well as close-ups of interesting details and areas we can't see well with the Final Image alone. Squeeze everything you have into this one sheet.
Woo!! My Kind of War!!! I'm going Dark for this one..
Would it be ok to depict my 3D character sitting on a 3D throne as I see it important for the overall feel and understanding of my character?
@matteo yes it would Props and backgrounds are fully up to you!
Excuse me, I know you have asked a lot of that but I would like to be totally sure. I am not entering from an eligible region but I have a family member close to Nashville. So would it be fine?
@luis2art if they are willing to receive the prizes for you if you win, then yes, it's all good.
It´s enough to upload the final image AND the marmoset toolbag file? So in that case we don´t have to show the character standing in a A/T-Pose from front and behind, right?
@matteo yes, that is correct.
Good evening. I have an odd question. For my final image, could it be a picture of a 3d print of my model? Its technically 100% 3D just in a 3d print. Thanks for your time.
that is the name of your topic. You have to make your own topic with that as it's tittle top enter and post your progress in.
Negative, part of the challenge is how you handle textures, render/post effects and polycount to create the final image.
Yes, as long as the companion doesn't take the spotlight away from your main champion in the piece.
It would be better to post this image in your own topic. Also, just because the beast is big, it doesn't mean the main character can't have the spot light in the final. It all depends on how you compose the final shot. The contrast of details will be important. The main character will have to be more defined than the companion.
Too not flood this topic, we could continue this in your own created topic. Best of luck on everything.
I joined Artwar on dec8, 2017. This is one month since I haven't posted anything due to my illness. And my post is at the bottom of the list (I think). Should I start a new topic? Should I start posting my WIP on the previous post??


Good morning! Welcome to my audio podcast. This is just a fun, casual, and weekly podcast of me doing the headlines, weather, traffic and some variety things. Perhaps a good way to kick off your week.
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Meet the Flemington House team who'll answer all your questions, help you move in and manage day-to-day maintenance.
Marketing/Admin Manager Kathleen has been with us since 2005 and she'll be the one to show you around Abbey Mill. She'll explain how it all works, answer your questions and liaise with external suppliers when you move in.
Accounts Manager /HR Coordinator Denise has been handling our tenant accounts since 2011, working closely with the marketing team and bookkeeper. She's the Go-To manager for day-to-day operations.
Facilities Manager Ian joined us from the electronics industry in 2009 and is the key person in Flemington. Ian keeps the building running smoothly and is the first person to contact in the event of any problems or special requests. Ian's knowledge of the building is extensive and he is on site to ensure all repairs are dealt with promptly.


Mr Simon Edmonds, Gynaecological Surgeon is a UK trained gynaecologist with a special interest in laparoscopic surgery, including hysterectomy and the treatment of severe endometriosis.
His initial training was undertaken at St Thomas's Hospital in London, followed by five years as a consultant in the South East of England.
He moved to Auckland in 2010 where he is now the Lead for Gynaecology at Middlemore Hospital.


Why partner with libraries? With increasing costs of providing legal reference resources and often limited library budgets, libraries are collaborating together and with courts to provide services to pro se litigants. Because libraries typically allow access to public computers and because library staff are already trained in assisting the public with research issues, they are a natural partner for providing self help services. A well designed self help website, online forms, and informational videos become even more effective with the assistance of trained library staff.
Song, Chi Hyon Joan Bellistri, Sara Galligan. Law Libraries Serving Self-Represented Litigants. National Center for State Courts, Trends in State Courts 2015. This article discusses the unique role of law libraries in providing services to self-represented litigants and how these services can be expanded through collaborations with the courts and other organizations.
Lawson, Joseph D. Collaborating with the public library system on legal resource programs for public librarians. AALL Spectrum, Volume 17, No. 7 (May 2013). This article discusses the benefits of sharing information about legal research tools with public librarians as a method of increasing access to legal research.
The Probono.net Libraries and Access to Justice Webinar Series provides information to librarians and community stakeholders about online access to justice resources that are available to them, how librarians can access and utilize those resources to better educate and assist their patrons with legal needs, and models for legal aid-library collaborations to connect people with legal information.
Richard Zorza. Public Libraries and Access to Justice. (2010). National Center for State Courts, Future Trends in State Courts 2010. Courts are working with public libraries to provide court-related information to self-represented litigants. The Internet is a key component of this effort.
Self-Represented Litigation Network, Law Librarians' Working Group. Directory of Library-Based Self-Help Programs. (Feburary 2009).
Fritschel, Barbara L. Trends in Library Collaboration to Provide Access to Legal Information. (2007). National Center for State Courts, Future Trends in State Courts.
American Association of Law Libraries . This site provides a number of publications on the topic of assisting the self-represented litigant.
Just Ask a Law Librarian . 20th National Legal Research Teach-In. The National Legal Research Teach-In is an annual campaign to give law librarians the opportunity to share materials and ideas for legal research instruction.
Standards for Appellate Court Libraries and State Law Libraries. American Association of Law Libraries. (2005). This report discusses the state law library's unique role in providing access to justice for all litigants and provides standards for governance, collection policies, personnel, and service to the public.
Sacramento Public Law Library Online resources include guides to the Law Library's resources, authoritative websites by topic, step-by-step instructions for common procedures, and downloadable forms.
Connecticut's Law Libraries The mission of the Law Library Services Unit is to provide the courts and the public with access to comprehensive and current legal materials and resources in an efficient and timely manner.
The Peoples Law Library of Maryland The People's Law Library (PLL) is a legal information and self-help website maintained by the Maryland State Law Library, a court-related agency of the Maryland Judiciary, and supported by Maryland's non-profit legal services providers.
The Travis County Law Library in Austin Texas has a self-help center that provides online information and forms and appointments with a library reference attorney who can look over paperwork and explain the basic steps in an uncontested family law case. The attorney is also available in the courtroom to assist in complex situations.


Ultimate versatility in a fabric shading - Our Pirouette® shadings feature soft fabric vanes attached to a sheer backing that appear to be floating, drawing natural light into your room. When closed, they look just like a contemporary shade. Uniquely designed with soft, horizontal fabric vanes attached to a single sheer backing, Pirouette® window shadings control light in an entirely new way. Gently pull on the operating cord and the fabric vanes expand, beautifully filtering the natural light. Pull again and the vanes contract, providing a clear outside view.
Vane Size: 4" or 5"


for the continuation of the living spirit.
inseperable from a willingness to care about others and about the next generations.
loyalty, fairness and reciprocity among groups and individuals.
As families, we understand our lives in light of our dreams and hopes.
the place of healing and hope for damaged relationships to be restored.


Simplicity is what we have tried to achieve with the Three6five, designed to be a low maintenance all year-round city bike we have equipped the 6061-heat treated aluminium frame and aluminium fork with mudguard eyelets to allow you to fit the bike with full length guards to protect you and the bike from the elements. To maximise gearing and minimise maintenance we have given the Three6five a 1 x 10 Shimano drive which offers a huge range of gearing with the 11-42 cassette combined with the 44t chainring upfront and allows us to discard the front mech as well. Braking is taken care of by powerful Shimano MT200 hydraulic disc brakes and when these are combined with the puncture resistant Schwalbe Citizen K-guard tyres it means you will have controlled braking in any weather.


The Consumer Goods sector as a whole closed the day up 0.1% versus the S&P 500, which was up 0.3%. Laggards within the Consumer Goods sector included Virco Manufacturing ( VIRC), down 2.7%, DS Healthcare Group ( DSKX), down 7.0%, SkyPeople Fruit Juice ( SPU), down 3.4%, Koss ( KOSS), down 4.3% and American Lorain ( ALN), down 2.8%.
SkyPeople Fruit Juice ( SPU) is one of the companies that pushed the Consumer Goods sector lower today. SkyPeople Fruit Juice was down $0.03 (3.4%) to $0.93 on average volume. Throughout the day, 28,409 shares of SkyPeople Fruit Juice exchanged hands as compared to its average daily volume of 32,300 shares. The stock ranged in price between $0.85-$0.97 after having opened the day at $0.95 as compared to the previous trading day's close of $0.96.
SkyPeople Fruit Juice, Inc., through its subsidiaries, produces and sells fruit juice concentrates, fruit beverages, and other fruit-related products in the People's Republic of China and internationally. SkyPeople Fruit Juice has a market cap of $25.6 million and is part of the consumer non-durables industry. Shares are down 45.3% year-to-date as of the close of trading on Friday.
TheStreet Ratings rates SkyPeople Fruit Juice as a hold. The company's strengths can be seen in multiple areas, such as its revenue growth, largely solid financial position with reasonable debt levels by most measures and attractive valuation levels. However, as a counter to these strengths, we also find weaknesses including feeble growth in the company's earnings per share, deteriorating net income and disappointing return on equity.
The revenue growth came in higher than the industry average of 0.5%. Since the same quarter one year prior, revenues rose by 15.7%. This growth in revenue does not appear to have trickled down to the company's bottom line, displayed by a decline in earnings per share.
The current debt-to-equity ratio, 0.44, is low and is below the industry average, implying that there has been successful management of debt levels. To add to this, SPU has a quick ratio of 1.81, which demonstrates the ability of the company to cover short-term liquidity needs.
43.28% is the gross profit margin for SKYPEOPLE FRUIT JUICE INC which we consider to be strong. It has increased significantly from the same period last year. Despite the strong results of the gross profit margin, SPU's net profit margin of 0.40% significantly trails the industry average.
Net operating cash flow has significantly decreased to $7.49 million or 54.97% when compared to the same quarter last year. In addition, when comparing to the industry average, the firm's growth rate is much lower.
At the close, DS Healthcare Group ( DSKX) was down $0.06 (7.0%) to $0.80 on heavy volume. Throughout the day, 60,469 shares of DS Healthcare Group exchanged hands as compared to its average daily volume of 26,400 shares. The stock ranged in price between $0.78-$0.88 after having opened the day at $0.78 as compared to the previous trading day's close of $0.86.
DS Healthcare Group has a market cap of $14.2 million and is part of the consumer non-durables industry. Shares are down 64.9% year-to-date as of the close of trading on Friday.
Virco Manufacturing ( VIRC) was another company that pushed the Consumer Goods sector lower today. Virco Manufacturing was down $0.07 (2.7%) to $2.51 on light volume. Throughout the day, 298 shares of Virco Manufacturing exchanged hands as compared to its average daily volume of 6,800 shares. The stock ranged in price between $2.51-$2.51 after having opened the day at $2.51 as compared to the previous trading day's close of $2.58.
Virco Mfg. Corporation is engaged in the design, production, and distribution of furniture for the commercial and education markets in the United States. Virco Manufacturing has a market cap of $37.9 million and is part of the consumer non-durables industry. Shares are up 11.2% year-to-date as of the close of trading on Friday. Currently there are no analysts who rate Virco Manufacturing a buy, no analysts rate it a sell, and 1 rates it a hold.
TheStreet Ratings rates Virco Manufacturing as a hold. The company's strengths can be seen in multiple areas, such as its expanding profit margins, solid stock price performance and notable return on equity. However, as a counter to these strengths, we also find weaknesses including unimpressive growth in net income, weak operating cash flow and generally higher debt management risk.
41.25% is the gross profit margin for VIRCO MFG. CORP which we consider to be strong. It has increased from the same quarter the previous year. Regardless of the strong results of the gross profit margin, the net profit margin of 9.78% trails the industry average.
The company, on the basis of change in net income from the same quarter one year ago, has significantly underperformed when compared to that of the S&P 500 and the Commercial Services & Supplies industry. The net income has decreased by 16.2% when compared to the same quarter one year ago, dropping from $6.21 million to $5.20 million.
Net operating cash flow has significantly decreased to -$11.93 million or 60.95% when compared to the same quarter last year. In addition, when comparing the cash generation rate to the industry average, the firm's growth is significantly lower.


Dexamethasone is commonly used as an adjuvant to local anesthetics for peripheral nerve blockade; however, uncertainty persists regarding its optimal route of administration and safety. A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized-controlled trials (RCTs) was conducted to compare the incremental benefits of intravenous (IV) vs perineural (PN) dexamethasone when used as adjuvants for peripheral nerve blockade to improve analgesia.
A search strategy was developed to identify eligible articles from the Cochrane and National Library of Medicine databases from inception until June 2017. The National Center for Biotechnology Information Medical Subject Headings browser thesaurus was used to identify search terms and combinations of keywords. Any clinical trial that randomly allocated adult patients (≥ 18 yr old) to receive either IV or PN dexamethasone for peripheral nerve blockade was considered for inclusion.
After full-text screening of potentially eligible articles, 14 RCTs were included in this review. Overall, the use of PN dexamethasone did not provide a significant incremental benefit to the duration of analgesia [ratio of means (ROM), 1.23; Hartung-Knapp-Sidik-Jonkman (HKSJ) 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.85 to 1.85; P = 0.23] or to motor block duration (ROM, 1.14; HKSJ 95% CI, 0.98 to 1.31; P = 0.07). Also, at 24-hr follow-up, there was no significant difference between the two groups regarding pain scores (standardized mean difference, 0.36; HKSJ 95% CI, -0.08 to 0.80; I2 = 75%; P = 0.09) and cumulative opioid consumption (mean difference, 5.23 mg; HKSJ 95% CI, -4.60 to 15.06; P = 0.15). Lastly, no long-term nerve-related complications were observed with the use of PN dexamethasone.
The results of our meta-analysis suggest that PN and IV dexamethasone provide equivalent analgesic benefits and have similar safety profiles, when used as adjuvants, for peripheral nerve blockade.
The online version of this article ( https://doi.org/10.1007/s12630-017-1008-8) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
La dexaméthasone est fréquemment utilisée comme adjuvant aux anesthésiques locaux pour compléter les blocs nerveux périphériques; toutefois, sa voie d'administration optimale et son innocuité demeurent inconnues. Une revue systématique et une méta-analyse des études randomisées contrôlées (ERC) ont été réalisées afin de comparer les avantages distinctifs de la dexaméthasone administrée par voie intraveineuse (IV) vs périnerveuse (PN) lorsque ces modalités sont utilisées comme adjuvants à un bloc nerveux périphérique pour améliorer l'analgésie.
Une stratégie de recherche a été mise au point afin d'identifier les articles éligibles dans les bases de données Cochrane et de la National Library of Medicine depuis leur création et jusqu'au mois de juin 2017. Le thésaurus du navigateur de descripteurs médicaux (termes MeSH) du Centre national pour les renseignements biotechnologiques américain (National Center for Biotechnology Information) a été utilisé afin d'identifier les termes de recherche et les combinaisons de mots-clés. Le critère d'inclusion de notre étude était tout essai clinique ayant alloué aléatoirement des patients adultes (âgés de 18 ans ou plus) à recevoir de la dexaméthasone IV ou PN pour un bloc nerveux périphérique.
Après une lecture du texte intégral des articles potentiellement éligibles, 14 ERC ont été incluses dans cette revue. Globalement, l'utilisation de dexaméthasone PN n'a pas procuré d'avantage supplémentaire significatif en matière de durée de l'analgésie [rapport de moyennes (RM), 1,23; intervalle de confiance (IC) 95 % de Hartung-Knapp-Sidik-Jonkman (HKSJ), 0,85 à 1,85; P = 0,23] ou de durée du bloc moteur (RM, 1,14; IC 95 % HKSJ, 0,98 à 1,31; P = 0,07). En outre, au suivi de 24 h, il n'y avait aucune différence significative entre les deux groupes en matière de scores de douleur (différence moyenne standardisée, 0,36; IC 95 % HKSJ, -0,08 à 0,80; I2 = 75 %; P = 0,09) et de consommation d'opioïdes cumulée (différence moyenne, 5,23 mg; IC 95 % HKSJ, -4,60 à 15,06; P = 0,15). Enfin, aucune complication neurologique n'a été observée à long terme avec l'utilisation de dexaméthasone PN.
Les résultats de notre méta-analyse suggèrent que la dexaméthasone PN et IV procurent des bienfaits analgésiques équivalents et affichent des profils d'innocuité semblables lors de leur utilisation pour un bloc nerveux périphérique.
Due to the uncertainty surrounding the use of PN vs IV dexamethasone for prolonging the duration of analgesia, the optimal method to administer the drug remains a topic of debate. Thus, the primary objective of this meta-analysis was to evaluate the incremental benefit of PN vs IV dexamethasone for improving the duration of analgesia in adult patients (>18 yr of age) undergoing peripheral nerve blockade. The secondary objectives were to compare the effectiveness of their routes of administration for motor block duration, improving pain control, decreasing postoperative opioid consumption, and limiting overall adverse events.
Any clinical trial that randomly allocated adult patients (≥18 yr old) to receive either PN or IV dexamethasone for peripheral nerve blockade was considered for inclusion. Trials were excluded if they evaluated the efficacy of dexamethasone as an adjunct to local anesthesia vs the use of local anesthesia alone. Studies were also excluded if continuous catheter-based nerve blocks were used. No language restrictions were placed on inclusion and non-English articles were translated using an online translator.
A librarian (T.R.S.) versed in evidence-based medicine created a search strategy for the Cochrane and National Library of Medicine databases from inception until June 20, 2017. The full search strategy can be viewed in Appendix A (available as Electronic Supplemental Material). The National Center for Biotechnology Information Medical Subject Headings browser thesaurus was used to identify search terms and combinations of keywords. All keywords were used as single search terms and in combination. Two independent reviewers (C.S. and T.V.D.L.) screened all abstracts that were retrieved through the electronic search strategy. Following this initial screening, the full-text versions of potentially eligible articles were retrieved and further evaluated for inclusion. In the case of disagreement, the two reviewers evaluated the full article and deliberated until a consensus was reached. When consensus could not be reached, a third reviewer (N.H.) assessed the article for eligibility. The reference lists of all eligible articles were hand-searched to help ensure that no clinical trial was missed. Intra-observer agreement between the two independent reviewers for full-text eligibility was assessed by calculating an unweighted kappa (κ).
The primary outcome of this meta-analysis was the assessment of any difference in incremental benefit in the duration of analgesia from PN vs IV dexamethasone when used as adjuvants for peripheral nerve blockade. Secondary outcomes included motor block duration, postoperative pain at 24-hr follow-up, postoperative opioid consumption at ≥ 24-hr follow-up, and the following adverse events: nausea, vomiting, hyperglycemic episodes, and nerve-related complications.
An independent reviewer (C.S.) created and initially piloted a data extraction form. Two independent reviewers (N.H. and C.S.) performed data extraction to minimize the risk of error and to ensure accuracy. The following study-specific data were extracted: type of surgery; regional block and injection technique; dose of dexamethasone; type, concentration, and volume of local anesthetic; duration of analgesia as time from injection; motor block duration; sensory block duration; opioid consumption/morphine opioid equivalents (including follow-up time); postoperative pain score (including scale used to assess pain and follow-up time); and adverse events. Data reported in graphical form was extracted from a graph digitizer software (GraphClick, Arizona Software). The corresponding authors of all included studies were contacted as needed for additional data or summary statistics. Specifically, when data were reported as median [interquartile range (IQR)], further information was sought for mean (standard deviation [SD]). If no response was obtained, statistical conversions were made to a mean (SD) using the methods described by Wan et al. 13 Data were excluded from analysis if the conversion could not be made.
Two independent reviewers (N.H. and C.S.) used the Cochrane Tool for Risk of Bias questionnaire to assess the methodological quality of all included randomized trials.14 In the case of disagreement between the two independent reviewers, a third reviewer (A.V.) assessed the study in question. Studies were evaluated based on their randomization techniques, blinding of study personnel/patients, incomplete outcome data, and selective outcome reporting. For each question in the tool, the study was classified as having a low, unclear, or high risk of bias. With regard to incomplete outcome data, studies were classified as low risk of bias if the follow-up rate was ≥ 80%.14 For bias from selective outcome reporting, studies were classified as low risk of bias if trials were preregistered and their protocols were available for full review.14 The intra-observer agreement between the two independent reviewers on the risk of bias assessment was evaluated by calculating an unweighted κ.
A funnel plot was created and visually inspected to assess publication bias in the primary outcome. In the absence of significant bias, the plot should generally take the shape of a symmetrical inverted funnel.
When necessary, all time measurements were converted to hours to ensure consistent units between studies. To determine the overall effect size for all time-to-event outcomes (duration of analgesia and motor block duration), a ratio of means (ROM) with a 95% confidence interval (CI) was calculated.
For analysis of postoperative pain, a standard mean difference (SMD) with a 95% CI was calculated, and for total opioid consumption (mg) and change in postoperative glucose level (mg·dL−1), a mean difference (MD) with a 95% CI was calculated. Nausea/vomiting and nerve-related complications were analyzed categorically and reported as a risk ratio (RR) with a 95% CI.
Statistical pooling of data was performed only when there were two or more studies for a given outcome. All outcome data were initially pooled using the DerSimonian and Laird random effects model; however, due to expected heterogeneity and the limited number of studies, we conducted further post hoc analysis using the Hartung-Knapp-Sidik-Jonkman (HKSJ) method for random effects, as described by IntHout et al.15 Studies have found the HKSJ method to be better suited than the DerSimonian and Laird random effects model for meta-analyses with a limited number of studies due to its conservative estimates of between-study variance.15,16 Furthermore, error rates (i.e., the percentage of statistically significant meta-analyses when the overall mean treatment difference is zero) have been found to be lower with the HSJK method when substantial heterogeneity (I2 = 90%) is present.15 The 95% CIs from the HKSJ method have been reported in this review.
An I2 threshold of 40% was used for conducting subgroup analysis.14 If heterogeneity was present, a priori subgroup analysis was performed on the basis of dexamethasone dose, which was stratified as being low (4-5 mg) or high (8-10 mg). It has been thought that IV administration of dexamethasone requires higher doses to achieve analgesia, whereas lower PN doses are needed to achieve similar effects.17-21 Subgroup analyses were performed only if each subgroup had ≥ two studies present.
Review Manager software (RevMan version 5.2; Nordic Cochrane Centre, Cochrane Collaboration) was used to generate the forest and funnel plots presented in this review. Intra-observer agreement between independent reviewers, as assessed through the unweighted κ, was calculated using SPSS® software version 21.0 (SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL, USA). All tests of significance were two-tailed, and P values < 0.05 were considered significant.
The primary literature search initially identified 570 articles. After the initial title and abstract review, 550 articles were excluded because of the inclusion of animals, incorrect group comparison, or non-randomization. Subsequently, 20 articles were assessed for full-text eligibility. Six of these were excluded because they either assessed the role of dexamethasone as an adjuvant for peripheral nerve blockade without comparing the routes of administration or were commentaries. Thus, 147-10,22-31 randomized-controlled trials (RCTs) satisfied the full inclusion criteria. The unweighted κ, as calculated for the level of agreement between the two independent reviewers, was found to be 0.77. A full flow diagram of study inclusion can be viewed in Fig. 1.
All 14 studies included in this review were conducted at various centres in the United States, Canada, Europe, Asia, and South America. In all, 501 and 506 subjects were randomized to receive IV dexamethasone or PN dexamethasone, respectively. Eight of the trials evaluated the efficacy of IV vs PN dexamethasone on prolonging the duration of analgesia for upper extremity procedures,7-10,22,24,27,29 while six analyzed the comparison for lower extremity procedures.23,25,26,28,30,31 The type of peripheral nerve blocks performed included interscalene,7-9,27,30 sciatic,26,28 supraclavicular,10 axillary,22 infraclavicular,24 femoral,25 ankle,23 combined lumbar plexus and sciatic,29 and combined femoral and sciatic.31 The local anesthetic used for the peripheral nerve block also varied across the studies, with seven utilizing bupivacaine10,22,24,26,28,29,31 and seven utilizing ropivacaine.7-9,23,25,27,30 One study28 also added IV or PN buprenorphine to the mixture of local anesthetics and dexamethasone. The studies also differed on the dose of dexamethasone used; these included 10 mg,9 8 mg,10,22,23,25-27,29,31 5 mg,8,24 and 4 mg.7,28,30 Table 1 shows characteristics of all included studies, and Appendix B (available as Electronic Supplementary Material) contains the individual results of these studies.
The corresponding authors of select studies were contacted to obtain additional data that would allow for the generation of a more accurate estimate of effect. Three studies9,26,27 provided their complete dataset. One10 study responded to our requests and provided us with mean and SDs for the outcomes reported as median and IQR.
Across all included studies, most methodological quality parameters were classified as "low" risk of bias. It is noteworthy that six of the trials were preregistered with clinical trial registries and had associated protocols available for review.8,9,24,26,28,30 The unweighted κ between the two independent reviewers assessing the risk of bias of all included studies was 0.72. A diagram depicting the final risk of bias assessment across all parameters can be seen in Fig. 2. Visual inspection of the funnel plot for the primary outcome, duration of analgesia, did not suggest publication bias (Appendix C; available as Electronic Supplementary Material).
Duration of analgesia was assessed in 11 studies, with five10,22,24,26,28 defining the outcome as time to first sensation of pain and six7-9,25,27,31 defining the outcome as time to first analgesic request. Two studies8,28 reported the outcome with measures that were not amenable to statistical pooling, and one study7 had their data converted to a mean and SD. As such, data from nine studies7,9,10,22,24-27,31 including 679 patients (PN 342, IV 337) were analyzed. Overall, PN dexamethasone appeared to prolong the duration of analgesia by an additional 23%; however, the difference was not statistically significant (ROM, 1.23; HSJK 95% CI, 0.85 to 1.85; I2 = 90%, P = 0.23, Fig. 3).
Subgroup analysis was performed as per our a priori hypothesis since heterogeneity was above the predefined cut-off. No significant difference was found between PN and IV dexamethasone regardless of using low (4-5 mg)7,24 (ROM, 1.21; HSJK 95% CI, 0.98 to 1.49; I2 = 0%; P = 0.05) or high (8-10 mg)9,10,22,25-27,31 (ROM, 1.27; HSJK 95% CI, 0.76 to 2.13; I2 = 92%; P = 0.30) doses (Fig. 3).
Eight studies10,22-24,26,29-31 assessed motor block duration. The data from one23 of these studies were excluded from analysis since the authors reported overall block duration and did not stratify their data based on either sensory or motor block durations. As such, seven studies10,22,24,26,29-31 including 525 patients (PN 263, IV 262) were analyzed. Perineural dexamethasone appeared to prolong motor block duration by an additional 14%; however, the difference was not statistically significant (ROM, 1.14; HSJK 95% CI, 0.98 to 1.31; I2 = 91%; P = 0.07, Fig. 4).
Subgroup analysis was performed as per our a priori hypothesis since heterogeneity was above the predefined cut-off. No significant difference was found between PN and IV dexamethasone regardless of using low (4-5 mg)24,30 (ROM, 1.23; HSJK 95% CI, 0.92 to 1.64; I2 = 0%; P = 0.06) or high (8-10 mg)10,22,26,29,31 (ROM, 1.10; HSJK 95% CI, 0.88 to 1.37; I2 = 93%; P = 0.29) doses (Fig. 4).
Nine studies assessed postoperative pain at 24-hr follow-up.8-10,25-30 Five of these studies10,25,27,29,30 used the visual analogue scale, while three8,26,28 used the numeric rating scale, and one9 utilized the verbal rating scale. Two studies8,29 had their data converted to mean and SD. As such, nine studies8-10,25-30 including 560 patients (PN 281, IV 279) were analyzed. Overall, no significant difference was observed in pain scores at 24-hr follow-up between patients receiving PN vs IV dexamethasone (SMD, 0.36; HSJK 95% CI, -0.08 to 0.80; I2 = 75%; P = 0.09, Fig. 5).
Subgroup analysis as per our a priori hypothesis was carried out since the heterogeneity was above the predefined cut-off. No significant difference in postoperative pain at 24-hr follow-up was found between PN and IV dexamethasone regardless of using low (4-5 mg)8,28,29 (SMD, −0.06; HSJK 95% CI, -0.38 to 0.26; I2 = 0%; P = 0.49) or high (8-10 mg)9,10,25, 26, 27,30 (SMD, 0.58; HSJK 95% CI, −0.04 to 1.20; I2 = 78%; P = 0.06) doses (Fig. 5).
Ten studies8-10,23,25-28,30,31 assessed opioid consumption at ≥ 24-hr follow-up. Three studies8,28,30 did not report cumulative opioid use at ≥ 24-hr follow-up but rather reported the total number of patients requiring opioids. One study9 did not report mean values for opioid consumption since only seven patients required opioids, and one study31 prescribed opioid rescue analgesics for postoperative pain but did not report the cumulative mean amount given. Thus, five studies10,23,25-27 including 294 patients (PN 150, IV 144) evaluating postoperative opioid consumption at ≥ 24-hr follow-up were included in the analysis. Perineural dexamethasone appeared to reduce postoperative opioid consumption at ≥ 24-hr follow-up by 5.23 mg; however, the difference was not statistically significant (MD, 5.23 mg; HSJK 95% CI, -4.60 to 15.06; I2 = 72%; P = 0.21, Fig. 6). Although heterogeneity was above our predefined cut-off, subgroup analysis was not performed since each subgroup did not contain ≥ two studies.
The most commonly reported adverse event was nausea and vomiting. Eight studies7,8,10,23,25,27,28,30 assessed nausea and vomiting postoperatively in 452 patients (PN 229, IV 223). Although the risk of postoperative nausea and vomiting was increased by 1.57 times with IV dexamethasone administration, the difference between the groups was not statistically significant (RR, 1.57; HSJK 95% CI, 0.8 to 3.0.7; I2 = 0%; P = 0.15, Fig. 7). Subgroup analysis was not performed since the heterogeneity did not meet our predefined threshold.
Three studies assessed perioperative glucose levels.8,9,25 One study25 reported that three patients who received IV dexamethasone suffered from hyperglycemia, whereas no occurrences were seen in the PN group. Two studies8,9 reported a change in glucose levels from baseline (n = 197). Although both studies8,9 reported a mean increase in blood glucose values regardless of route of administration, no significant difference was observed between the two groups (MD, 1.43 mg·dL−1; HSJK 95% CI, −2.55 to 5.41; I2 = 0%; P = 0.13). Due to the limited number of studies included in this outcome, subgroup and sensitivity analysis was not performed.
Ten studies7-10,22,24-28 (n = 763) assessed nerve-related complications at several different follow-up times, with six 8,9,22,26-28 reporting nerve palsies, paresthesias, and numbness (Table 2). In four of these studies,8,9,22,27 nerve injuries were transient and resolved by one month follow-up. On the other hand, two studies26,28 reported numbness that persisted beyond one month. In both studies,26,28 the numbness resolved at a later follow-up time. In the IV group, 40/378 patients experienced a neurological complication vs 47/385 patients in the PN group. Overall, no significant difference in the risk of developing postoperative nerve-related complications was found between the two groups (RR, 0.87; HSJK 95% CI, 0.71 to 1.06; I2 = 0%; P = 0.13).
In summary, the results of this meta-analysis suggest that, irrespective of dose, the use of PN dexamethasone does not appear to provide a significant incremental benefit to the duration of analgesia or motor blockade when compared with the use of IV dexamethasone. Furthermore, our findings suggest that, irrespective of dose, PN dexamethasone does not appear to provide a significant incremental benefit to postoperative pain and cumulative opioid consumption at ≥ 24-hr follow-up. Finally, PN dexamethasone does not appear to lead to long-term neurologic complications.
As with its mechanism of action, the optimal dose of dexamethasone for peripheral nerve blockade also remains to be resolved. Woo et al.21 compared the effectiveness of differing doses of PN dexamethasone for prolonging the duration of analgesia and reported that 5 mg of PN dexamethasone provided 24.2 hr of analgesia, while larger doses offered no additional benefit.21 Indeed, our findings also show a comparable incremental prolongation of analgesia between low-dose and higher dose dexamethasone when administered perineurally. There are also intriguing reports suggesting that the 95% effective dose may be even as low as 1-2 mg for PN dexamethasone and higher than 0.1 mg·kg−1 for its IV use.17,18 A meta-analysis conducted by De Oliveira et al.19 found that systemic dexamethasone achieves optimal analgesic effects when the dose is greater than 0.1 mg·kg−1; in contrast, higher doses (8-10 mg) of dexamethasone provide no additional benefit. Future studies should focus on evaluating the dose-dependent analgesic effects of PN and IV dexamethasone administration.
Finally, it is extremely important to determine whether PN dexamethasone causes neuronal injury. Several investigators have addressed this. Williams et al. 44 evaluated in vitro toxicity of PN adjuvants to ropivacaine in a rat model. In their study, the administration of supratherapeutic doses of dexamethasone (667 µg·mL−1) for two hours did not result in detectable neuronal cell death.44 Similarly, the addition of dexamethasone to ropivacaine did not increase neuronal cell death compared with ropivacaine alone.44 Williams et al.45 also evaluated in vivo local tissue effects of dexamethasone (66 µg·mL−1) and reported no evidence of behavioural changes in their rat model at one or 15 days.45 Furthermore, histopathological examination in these animals revealed no changes in the neuronal architecture.45 Although it is difficult to translate animal studies to humans, the results from our meta-analysis are consistent with these findings since no persistent neurological deficits were reported by any of the included RCTs.
Our meta-analysis comes with several notable strengths. First, we evaluated and compared the use of PN vs IV dexamethasone for peripheral nerve blockade on a variety of outcomes. In addition, we incorporated the HSJK random effects model into our analysis and generated novel results that are potentially more accurate than those previously reported. Another strength of this meta-analysis is that we obtained additional data from the authors of included studies which were not previously made available to readers. This allowed us to provide larger estimates of effects; however, the confidence intervals for some of our point estimates remained large, which limits external validity and a true differentiation between PN and IV dexamethasone.
Our review has several limitations. First, our subgroup analysis did not show a reduction in heterogeneity to levels below those of our predefined threshold values. This may have been due to factors such as the formulation of dexamethasone, amount/types of local anesthetics, inclusion of adjuvants to nerve blocks, and the sites used for the peripheral nerve blocks. Furthermore, the definition of outcomes and the methods used for their measurement varied across the studies. Additionally, several data points were converted from median and IQR to a mean and SD. Median and IQR are often reported for data that do not follow a normal distribution. As a result, this conversion may have skewed the data in a way that reduced accuracy. Finally, there may be an inadequate number of patients studied to determine the true incidence of rare adverse effects of PN dexamethasone.
Clinical consensus is lacking with regard to the optimal route of administration and dosage of dexamethasone for enhancing peripheral nerve blockade. The results of this meta-analysis suggest that, irrespective of dose, the use of PN dexamethasone does not appear to provide a significant incremental benefit to the duration of analgesia or motor blockade when compared with the use of IV dexamethasone. Similarly, PN dexamethasone does not appear to provide a significant incremental benefit in terms of pain control at 24-hr follow-up and opioid consumption at > 24-hr follow-up, regardless of dose. Furthermore, our analysis did not reveal any long-term neurological adverse events related to the use of PN dexamethasone. Taken together, the results of our meta-analysis suggest that PN and IV dexamethasone provide equivalent analgesic benefits and have similar safety profiles when used as adjuvants for peripheral nerve blockade.
We sincerely thank all the corresponding authors who graciously provided us with their data for this meta-analysis. The authors also thank Aamir Ahmed for his contributions to the manuscript.
Nasir Hussain and Amaresh Vydyanathan were involved in concept development. Nasir Hussain, Tom Van den Langenbergh, Corey Sermer, Manuel L Fontes, Amit Atrey, Naum Shaparin, and Amaresh Vydyanathan were involved in manuscript preparation. Nasir Hussain, Tom Van den Langenbergh, Corey Sermer, and Tamara R. Sawyer were involved in methods development. Nasir Hussain was involved in data collection and statistical analyses.


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text:
package org.kie.remote.services.ws.sei.process;

import javax.jws.WebMethod;
import javax.jws.WebParam;
import javax.jws.WebResult;
import javax.jws.WebService;
import javax.xml.ws.RequestWrapper;
import javax.xml.ws.ResponseWrapper;

import org.kie.remote.services.ws.common.KieRemoteWebServiceException;
import org.kie.remote.services.ws.sei.ServicesVersion;

/**
 * Only used for initial WSDL generation
 */
@WebService(name = "ProcessService", targetNamespace = ProcessWebService.NAMESPACE)
public interface ProcessWebService {

    static final String NAMESPACE = "http://services.remote.kie.org/" + ServicesVersion.VERSION + "/process";

    @WebMethod(action = "urn:ManageProcess")
    @WebResult(targetNamespace = "")
    @RequestWrapper(localName = "manageProcess", targetNamespace = ProcessWebService.NAMESPACE, className = "org.kie.remote.services.ws.wsdl.generated.WrapperManageProcessInstanceRequest")
    @ResponseWrapper(localName = "manageProcessResponse", targetNamespace = ProcessWebService.NAMESPACE, className = "org.kie.remote.services.ws.wsdl.generated.WrapperProcessInstanceResponse")
    public ProcessInstanceResponse manageProcess(@WebParam(name = "request", targetNamespace = "") ManageProcessInstanceRequest processInstanceRequest) throws KieRemoteWebServiceException;

    @WebMethod(action = "urn:ManageWorkItem")
    @WebResult(targetNamespace = "")
    @RequestWrapper(localName = "manageWorkItem", targetNamespace = ProcessWebService.NAMESPACE, className = "org.kie.remote.services.ws.wsdl.generated.WrapperManageWorkItem")
    @ResponseWrapper(localName = "manageWorkItemResponse", targetNamespace = ProcessWebService.NAMESPACE, className = "org.kie.remote.services.ws.wsdl.generated.WrapperVoidResponse")
    public void manageWorkItem(@WebParam(name = "request", targetNamespace = "") ManageWorkItemRequest workItemRequest) throws KieRemoteWebServiceException;

    @WebMethod(action = "urn:QueryProcess")
    @WebResult(targetNamespace = "")
    @RequestWrapper(localName = "queryProcess", targetNamespace = ProcessWebService.NAMESPACE, className = "org.kie.remote.services.ws.wsdl.generated.WrapperQueryProcessRequest")
    @ResponseWrapper(localName = "queryProcessResponse", targetNamespace = ProcessWebService.NAMESPACE, className = "org.kie.remote.services.ws.wsdl.generated.WrapperProcessInstanceResponse")
    public Jaxb query(@WebParam(name = "request", targetNamespace = "") QueryProcessRequest processQueryRequest) throws KieRemoteWebServiceException;

}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


text:
El Señor de los Anillos: la Comunidad del Anillo es un videojuego de acción publicado en 2002 por Universal Interactive Studios para PC, PlayStation 2 y Xbox. El videojuego es una adaptación con licencia oficial de la novela de J. R. R. Tolkien, La Comunidad del Anillo, primera entrega de la trilogía fantástica de El Señor de los Anillos. El juego fue lanzado más o menos un año después de que Peter Jackson estrenara la adaptación cinematográfica de la misma entrega, y varias semanas antes del lanzamiento en salas de Las dos torres. En el momento de su difusión, Vivendi, en asociación con Tolkien Enterprises, tenía los derechos para adaptar al videojuego la obra literaria de Tolkien, mientras que Electronic Arts contaba con los derechos para adaptar las películas basadas en los libros. Electronic Arts decidió, ante esta situación, no publicar un videojuego de la primera entrega, sino lanzar El Señor de los Anillos: las dos torres e incluir en él algunas tramas de La Comunidad del Anillo.

La Comunidad del Anillo recibió críticas mixtas, con críticos que elogiaban la fidelidad al material de origen, pero encontraban el combate rudimentario y repetitivo, y los gráficos bastante pobres. Otros críticos compararon la representación del juego de la Tierra Media de manera desfavorable con la representación más oscura que se veía en las películas. El juego fue un éxito financiero, vendiendo más de un millón de unidades en todas las plataformas. Vivendi inicialmente planeó hacer dos secuelas para el juego, que abarca los tres libros de la trilogía, pero la primera secuela, llamada El señor de los anillos: La traición de Isengard, desarrollado por Surreal Software y programado para su lanzamiento a finales de 2003, fue cancelado mientras se desarrollaba.

Jugabilidad
Es un juego de acción y aventura jugado desde una perspectiva en tercera persona. El jugador controla a lo largo de la trama a tres personajes: Frodo Bolsón, Aragorn y Gandalf, contando cada uno con sus propias habilidades, técnicas y armas. Frodo es el único personaje que puede saltar, deslizarse por las repisas y escabullirse. Sólo Frodo y Gandalf pueden empujar y tirar objetos. Gandalf es el único personaje que tiene acceso a la magia. Aragorn tiene mayor barra de vida, es físicamente el personaje más fuerte y tiene más movimientos de combate cuerpo a cuerpo.

Cuando se juega como Frodo, en la pantalla hay dos medidores: uno representa la salud y otra la "pureza", que cambia cuando Frodo se pone el Anillo Único, lo que permite que sea visto por enemigos como los Nazgûl. Si esta barra acaba, es atraído por Sauron. Una vez que retire el Anillo, el medidor comenzará a llenarse nuevamente. Gandalf también tiene dos medidores: uno para salud y otro para su carga mágica. A medida que lanza hechizos, esta se agota, quedando en un momento dado vacía. Para recargarla, Gandalf debe beber miruvor. Sin embargo, Aragorn es el único personaje que tiene una sola barra cuando se juega con él.

El juego presenta una serie de artículos coleccionables. A menudo, son elementos de misión necesarios para progresar en la historia, pero ocasionalmente, el jugador puede encontrar artículos de salud como setas para la salud de Frodo, pan de lembas para Aragorn y Gandalf, así como el brebaje mágico para Gandalf y sus habilidades mágicas. La versión de Xbox del juego presenta áreas secretas en muchos niveles, donde se pueden encontrar objetos especiales. El anillo en sí ayuda a guiar al jugador a estas ubicaciones ya que su imagen en pantalla comienza a rotar cuando un jugador está cerca de dicha área; cuanto más rápida sea la rotación, más cerca estará el jugador de la ubicación secreta. La versión de Xbox también presenta numerosas misiones secundarias ausentes en las otras versiones del juego.

La versión de Game Boy Advance es diferente de las otras tres versiones en la medida en que se basa más en rol, y se juega desde una vista isométrica de tres cuartos desde arriba hacia abajo. El juego se centra en el combate por turnos, y en varios puntos, los nueve miembros de la confraternidad (Frodo, Sam, Pippin, Merry, Aragorn, Gandalf, Legolas, Gimli y Boromir) son controlables, cada uno con sus propias fortalezas, debilidades y tablas de crecimiento. Durante el combate, el jugador tiene la opción de controlar por completo a cada miembro de su grupo activo (hasta cuatro) o, en su lugar, controlar solo el personaje principal del jugador, y dejar a los otros tres controlados por la máquina.

Se desarrolla en unos pocos escenarios, en los cuales se presentan diversos objetivos que el jugador ha de cumplir. Pese a estar catalogado como videojuego de acción, está muy lejos del género hack and slash en el cual serán orientados los posteriores de la saga, acercándose más al concepto de videojuego de aventuras. Por otro lado, la Inteligencia Artificial está poco desarrollada, permitiendo atravesar los escenarios sin luchar contra los enemigos o cayendo estos fácilmente sin plantear ningún tipo de reto. Igualmente el videojuego presenta un progreso excesivamente lineal y carente de misiones alternativas, desarrollo del personaje o retos más allá del principal, es decir, llegar de un punto a otro o buscar algunos elementos en el escenario.

Historia

Contexto del juego
El juego se presenta en el contexto de la historia del Anillo Único. En los albores de la Segunda Edad, después de la derrota del Señor Oscuro Melkor, los elfos de Eregion forjaron los diecinueve Anillos de Poder para ayudarse a sí mismos, a los enanos y a los hombres, para que gobernaran la Tierra Media. Sin embargo, los elfos no sabían que Sauron, el aliado más cercano de Morgoth, había sobrevivido a la derrota de su maestro, y bajo la apariencia de Annatar había sido quien había enseñado a los herreros de los elfos, dirigidos por Celebrimbor, a forjar los anillos, mientras que, en secreto, forjó su propio Anillo Único en los fuegos de Orodruin, un anillo mucho más poderoso que cualquiera de los demás. Sin embargo, para que el Anillo Único fuera lo suficientemente poderoso como para controlar los otros Anillos, Sauron tuvo que transferir la mayor parte de su poder a él. Tan pronto como se lo puso, los elfos se dieron cuenta de su estratagema, quitando y escondiendo sus Tres Anillos, que Celebrimbor había forjado sin la ayuda de Sauron. Sauron libró una guerra contra los elfos, conquistando gran parte de la Tierra Media y matando a Celebrimbor. Así comenzaron los años oscuros, cuando Sauron tomó posesión de los dieciséis anillos restantes, dando siete a los enanos y nueve a los hombres en un esfuerzo por corromperlos. Los enanos demostraron ser relativamente inmunes a los poderes de los Anillos, adquiriendo sólo una codicia por el oro y despreocupados con los eventos en el mundo en general. Los hombres, sin embargo, demostraron ser menos resistentes, y los nueve reyes que recibieron los Anillos se convierten en los nueve Espectros del Anillo, o Nazgûl, liderados por el Rey Brujo de Angmar.

En sus continuos esfuerzos por conquistar la Tierra Media, Sauron recuperó la lealtad de muchos de los sirvientes de Melkor de la Primera Edad, corrompiendo con éxito a Númenor. Sin embargo, al hacerlo, gastó gran parte de su poder y perdió la capacidad de volver a asumir un disfraz agradable. Volviendo a Mordor, recuperó su fuerza y eventualmente capturó Minas Ithil. Sin embargo, al darse cuenta de que si no se unían, Sauron destruiría a hombres y elfos, Elendil, el Rey Supremo de Arnor, y Gil-galad, Rey Supremo de Noldor, formaron la Última Alianza de Hombres y Elfos, atacando a Sauron en las lomas del Monte del Destino, cerca de su fortaleza de Barad-dûr. La alianza fue victoriosa, con Isildur cortando el Anillo Único de la mano de Sauron. Sin embargo, aunque se le presentó la oportunidad de destruir el Anillo para siempre, Isildur, que ya comenzaba a sucumbir a su corrupción, optó por no hacerlo. Como tal, aunque la forma física de Sauron fue vencida, su espíritu, unido al Anillo, sobrevivió. Algún tiempo después, Isildur fue atacada y asesinada por una banda de orcos , y el Anillo se perdió en el río Anduin durante más de dos mil años.

Mientras tanto, durante la Tercera Edad, un todavía debilitado Sauron estableció secretamente una fortaleza en Dol Guldur. En respuesta a este mal indeterminado, los Valar enviaron cinco Maiar a la Tierra Media, que tomaron la forma de magos, liderados por Saruman. Inseguro del origen del malvado poder en Dol Guldur, el mago Gandalf fue enviado para investigar el asunto. Sin embargo, Sauron se ocultó de Gandalf, esperando cuatrocientos años antes de regresar. Por la misma época, el Anillo Único fue encontrado por un Hobbit llamado Sméagol, que se corrompió por completo, viviendo en las cuevas de las Montañas Nubladas y transformándose físicamente en una criatura conocida como Gollum. Durante quinientos años, Gollum fue consumido y corrompido por el Anillo. Eventualmente, Gandalf fue capaz de determinar que la presencia del mal en Dol Guldur era Sauron.

Gandalf informó al Consejo Blanco, pero Saruman los disuadió de moverse contra Sauron. Solo cuando supo que el Anillo Único podría estar en las cercanías de los Campos Gladios, Saruman aceptó atacar a Sauron, esperando encontrar el Anillo él mismo. El Consejo expulsó a Sauron de Dol Guldur, sin saber que sabía que habían encontrado el Anillo. Justo antes de la partida de Sauron, el Anillo pasó a otro hobbit, Bilbo Bolsón, que lo usó para ayudar en la victoria de elfos, hombres y enanos en la batalla de los Cinco Ejércitos. Sesenta años más tarde, Gollum fue capturado por los orcos, y llevado a Mordor, donde fue torturado para revelar el dueño y la ubicación del Anillo. Mientras tanto, Bilbo había dejado la Comarca para vivir en Rivendel, y por consejo de Gandalf (muy a regañadientes) le había dado el Anillo a su sobrino, Frodo Bolsón.

Sinopsis del juego
El juego comienza con Gandalf visitando a Frodo y explicándole el significado y la historia del Anillo Único. Frodo sugiere que sea destruido, y Gandalf explica que solo los fuegos que lo crearon son lo suficientemente poderosos como para hacerlo; los fuegos del Monte del Destino, en lo profundo de Mordor. Como Gandalf no puede tomar el Anillo él mismo, por temor a que lo corrompa, Frodo se ofrece como voluntario para hacerlo. Un amigo de Frodo, Samsagaz Gamyi, quien solía cortar el césped de Bolsón Cerrado para Bilbo, y que está escuchando la conversación, acaba por unirse, como castigo a tal osadía, a la aventura de Frodo. Ambos deben dirigirse a Rivendel, donde se encontrarán con el elfo Elrond. Gandalf le pide a Frodo que no use el Anillo, pues empezará a corromperlo y llamará la atención de Sauron y de los nueve Nazgûl. La noche de la partida de Frodo, un Nazgûl llega a La Comarca en busca de la casa de los Bolsón. Frodo es capaz de evadir la partida de los Nazgûl y se dirige a encontrarse con Sam, a quien encuentra acompañado por Peregrin Tuk y Meriadoc "Merry" Brandigamo. Para sorpresa de Frodo, ellos deciden unírseles, aun conociendo la historia del Anillo y la figura Sauron, ya que han estado espiando a Bilbo, Frodo y Gandalf durante años.

Con los Nazgûl persiguiéndoles, los hobbits deben adentrarse en los terrenos del Bosque Viejo. Al llegar se encuentran con el Viejo Hombre-Sauce, bajo el que quedan dormidos y posteriormente son atacados. Frodo es abordado por el enigmático personaje Tom Bombadil, quien les rescata del Sauce y les acompaña hasta su casa, donde conocen a su mujer, Baya de Oro. Los hobbits pasan con ellos la noche, antes de dirigirse a las Quebradas de los Túmulos, donde Sam, Pippin y Merry son capturados por un tumulario. Nuevamente, Bombadil llega para salvarles y los lleva a la ciudad de Bree, donde les aconseja que se resguarden en la posada de El Póney Pisador.

En la posada, Pippin empieza a beber y se va de la lengua, contando a los huéspedes historias de la Comarca, de Bilbo y de la leyenda del Anillo. Temeroso de que revele demasiados datos, por miedo a que hubiera espías del Señor tenebroso, tal como temía por Gandalf, Frodo se sube a una mesa y comienza a cantar y a bailar para distraer a la multitud. Sin embargo, él se resbala, y el Anillo aterriza en su dedo, volviéndolo invisible. Un montaraz, enojado, se lleva a los hobbits a otra habitación, advirtiéndoles que están atrayendo demasiada atención hacia ellos mismos. Se presenta como Trasgos. En ese punto, el posadero, Cebadilla Mantecona, llega con una carta que Gandalf le dejó, en la que el mago les informa a los hobbtis que confíen en un hombre que se hará llamar Trasgos, y que esconde en realidad a Aragorn, un amigo de confianza de Gandalf.

El uso indebido del Anillo en la posada despertó el ansia de los Nazgûl, que marcharon hacia Bree para hacerse con él. Tras tenderles una trampa, el pequeño grupo decide abandonar la ciudad y marchar rumbo a Rivendel. Hacen parada en la cima Amon Sûl, en la que llegaron a ver al comienzo de la marcha destellos de luz, como de una pelea. Durante la guardia nocturna, los Nazgûl, que perseguían al grupo tras la huida de Bree, atacan a Frodo, quien llegó a ponerse el Anillo para intentar evadirlos, sin saber que hacía el poder contrario. El Rey Brujo le apuñala con una espada morgul, con lo que se convertiría en uno de ellos. Aragorn intenta frenarles con el fuego. Tras hacerles huir, Aragorn y Sam se lanzan en la búsqueda de la Hoja de Reyes, que conseguirá frenar la hemorragia de Frodo. El grupo consigue huir rumbo a Rivendel, donde son recibidos por Glorfindel, quien les da su caballo. Después de cruzar el río Bruinen, con los nazgûl siguiéndoles, los elfos lanzan un hechizo que provoca que el curso del río se lance como caballos a por ellos, arrastrándoles la corriente. En ese punto, Frodo se desmaya.

El hobbit se despierta jornadas más adelante en Rivendel por fin. Al despertarse, Frodo se encuentra a Gandalf a su lado. El mago le dice que Saruman se ha unido a Sauron, y que Aragorn no es solo un montaraz, sino también el último descendiente superviviente de Isildur y el heredero legítimo del trono de Gondor. Ambos se dirigen a las Cámaras del consejo, donde Elrond preside un debate sobre qué hacer con el Anillo. Aragorn dice que debe ser destruido, pero Boromir, un hombre de Minas Tirith, no está de acuerdo, argumentando que deberían usarlo como arma contra Sauron. Gandalf dice que esto no puede ser así, ya que cualquier persona lo suficientemente poderosa como para manejar el Anillo se volvería tan aterradora como Sauron. A medida que el debate se calienta, Frodo se ofrece voluntario para llevar el Anillo a Mordor y arrojarlo al fuego del Monte del Destino, y Elrond está de acuerdo, formando una compañía de nueve; Frodo, Sam, Pippin, Merry, Gandalf, Aragorn, Boromir, el elfo Legolas y el enano Gimli.

Se disponen e intentan cruzar el paso de Caradhras, pero una tormenta de nieve causa una avalancha, cerrando al grupo el paso. De mala gana deciden que la única forma de pasar las Montañas Nubladas es por debajo, adentrándose en las minas de Moria. En dichas minas, construidas por los enanos, el grupo debe luchar con los orcos cuando pasan por las cámaras. Cerca de la salida, son atacados por un balrog. Gandalf se enfrenta a él para que el resto del grupo gane tiempo y pueda huir de la mina. Sin embargo, durante el combate, en el último puente de la mina, el mago cae a consecuencia del látigo que el balrog tira hacia él. El grupo se marcha consternado de Moria y entran en Lothlórien, donde se encuentran con Galadriel, quien muestra a Frodo en el espejo sagrado de Lothlórien imágenes de una futurible Guerra del Anillo. Frodo le ofrece el Anillo Único y, aunque se siente tentada, lo rechaza y le explica que su resistencia al mal es porque nunca ha intentado usarlo para controlar a los demás.

La Compañía sale de Lothlórien por el río Anduin. Boromir trata de convencer a Frodo de llevar el Anillo a Gondor para usarlo como arma contra Sauron, pero Frodo se niega. Mientras viajan en el río, un Nazgûl montando una bestia alada se apodera de Sam. El grupo lo persigue, y en la colina de Amon Hen, Aragorn y Legolas consiguen matar a la criatura y rescatan a Sam. El juego termina con Galadriel mirando en el espejo, señalando que aunque la Comunidad ha logrado acercar a Frodo a Mordor, ella los ve a él y a Sam solos en el futuro, con Gollum siguiéndolos de cerca.

Desarrollo
El juego fue anunciado el 15 de mayo de 2001, cuando los desarrolladores de Sierra Entertainment revelaron que sería un juego en exclusiva para la consola Xbox, pudiendo mostrarse los primeros avances en un evento de la conferencia del E3 de dicho año. Sierra estaba interesado en enfatizar que el juego se basaría por completo en la novela de JRR Tolkien La Comunidad del Anillo, siendo completamente independiente de la adaptación cinematográfica que estaba por aquel entonces desarrollando el cineasta Peter Jackson. Esto fue porque Vivendi Games, el holding de Sierra, poseía los derechos de adaptaciones de videojuegos de las obras literarias de Tolkien, pero Electronic Arts poseía los derechos sobre las adaptaciones de los videojuegos de la serie de películas que producía New Line Cinema. El juego pensado por Sierra Entertainment estaba programado para ser lanzado a comienzos de 2002, siendo seguido por una adaptación de El Hobbit, y estando en mente el lanzamiento de las dos secuelas posteriores: Las dos torres y El retorno del Rey, acontecimientos que no sucederían.

Originalmente, WXP planeó que La Comunidad del Anillo fuese un juego de rol, pero pronto llegaron a sentir que esto podría alienar a los jugadores potenciales, y como querían atraer al mayor número de personas posible al título, incluidas las personas que nunca habían leído los libros, decidieron desarrollar el juego como una aventura de acción en tercera persona. En ese momento, Frodo era el único personaje controlable, con los otros miembros de la confraternidad presentando como NPC, aunque el jugador tenía que elegir con qué personaje pelear en cada punto del juego. Los desarrolladores también estaban trabajando estrechamente con Tolkien Enterprises para garantizar que cualquier secuencia de acción o enemigos que se movieran más allá de los eventos inmediatos de la novela se mantuviera con el tono general de la narración y fueran fieles al espíritu del legendario de Tolkien.

El 21 de diciembre, Vivendi anunció que también se lanzaría una versión para Game Boy Advance, que estaría desarrollado por Pocket Studios. En febrero de 2002, Vivendi anunció que la versión para Xbox del juego ahora incluiría tres personajes jugables; Frodo, Aragorn y Gandalf, así como múltiples aliados NPC y veintiocho tipos de enemigos. También anunciaron que la fecha de lanzamiento había sido retrasada a fines de 2002. También en febrero, Vivendi reveló más sobre el Señor de los Anillos de GBA, explicando que presentaría combates por turnos y los nueve miembros de la Compañía serían controlables en algún punto del juego. Durante el combate, el jugador tendría la opción de controlar completamente a cada miembro de su grupo, o en su lugar, controlar solo al personaje principal del jugador, y hacer que sus aliados sean controlados por inteligencia artificial.

En el E3 de mayo de 2002, Vivendi anunció que el juego, anteriormente exclusivo para Xbox, también se estaba desarrollando para PlayStation 2 y Microsoft Windows. Ambas versiones estaban siendo desarrolladas por Surreal Software. Sin embargo, al igual que con la versión Xbox, Surreal trabajaba en estrecha colaboración con Tolkien Enterprisers para garantizar que el juego se mantuviera dentro de los parámetros del medio ficticio de Tolkien. Una demo E3 no jugable de la versión de PlayStation 2 presentaba combates desde los niveles de Amon-Sul y Moria, mostrando el combate y los gráficos del juego. En junio, Vivendi continuó impulsando la fidelidad del juego en todas las plataformas al revelar que los actores de la voz recitarían más de 5000 líneas de diálogo tomadas textualmente de la novela. También explicaron que, como en la novela se menciona, hay 200 escalones en la entrada de Moria, por lo que en el juego hay exactamente 200 pasos.

Referencias

Videojuegos de 2002
Videojuegos de acción-aventura
Comunidad del Anillo
Videojuegos para PC
Videojuegos de un jugador
Videojuegos basados en obras literarias

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
package sample.undertow.web;

import java.util.concurrent.Callable;

import org.springframework.web.bind.annotation.GetMapping;
import org.springframework.web.bind.annotation.RestController;

@RestController
public class SampleController {

	@GetMapping("/")
	public String helloWorld() {
		return "Hello World";
	}

	@GetMapping("/async")
	public Callable<String> helloWorldAsync() {
		return () -> "async: Hello World";
	}

}


text:
Is the Withdrawal Agreement Legal?
Nigel Moore Posted On February 26, 2019
Doubts have recently been expressed about the legality under EU laws of the backstop in the Withdrawal Agreement (WA). Could this be the 'tip of the legal iceberg' and much more of the Agreement be unlawful or illegal? Significantly, the Withdrawal Agreement does not appear to have been independently reviewed for veracity, fitness for purpose and compliance with the treaties and laws of the EU, nor with international law. Consequently, the extent of any illegality is unknown. But as the WA is such a complex, politically-charged document with potentially wide-ranging ramifications, it would be reasonable to have cautionary misgivings.
The Withdrawal Agreement appears to conflict with EU Treaties and law
Article 8 of the Consolidated Treaties of the EU states:
The Union shall develop a special relationship with neighbouring countries, aiming to establish an area of prosperity and good neighbourliness, founded on the values of the Union and characterised by close and peaceful relations based on cooperation.
For the purposes of paragraph 1, the Union may conclude specific agreements with the countries concerned. These agreements may contain reciprocal rights and obligations as well as the possibility of undertaking activities jointly. Their implementation shall be the subject of periodic consultation.
The above can be seen as complementary to other treaty obligations relating to human rights, in particular those concerning commitments to full employment (Article 3 (3)). So how well has the EU done in complying with these principled treaty requirements for peace, prosperity and political stability?
Any reasonable person would likely conclude that the EU's behaviour in 'negotiating' the Withdrawal Agreement was more akin to that of a hostile power, determined to permanently subjugate a friendly neighbour into a powerless vassal state. Perhaps that was the intention all along – 'might is right'? There are plenty of reports, including from British ministers, that at least some of the EU officials negotiating the draft Withdrawal Agreement were acting in bad faith, seeking to 'punish' the UK for leaving rather than seeking a cooperative and mutually beneficial agreement.
The Backstop and other WA content breaches Article 50
There is also evidence that the scope of negotiations went far beyond the intentions of Article 50. Ambassador (rtd) Leonidas Chrysanthopoulos, Former Secretary General of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation Organization, was on the inside of the negotiations to include Article 50 in the Lisbon Treaty. He has revealed that Article 50 was only intended to cover financial arrangements for a Member State leaving the EU. The rest of the Withdrawal Agreement, including the backstop, is outside the intended Article 50 scope.
Article 50 of the Consolidated Treaties of the EU states:
A Member State which decides to withdraw shall notify the European Council of its intention. In the light of the guidelines provided by the European Council, the Union shall negotiate and conclude an agreement with that State, setting out the arrangements for its withdrawal, taking account of the framework for its future relationship with the Union. That agreement shall be negotiated in accordance with Article 218.
At most, the backstop could have been included, as non-binding, in the Political Declaration which accompanies the Withdrawal Agreement. This applies to other content of the Withdrawal Agreement which covers arrangements for after the UK's legal departure from the EU. This additional complex, confusing, ambiguous and unworkable content can only be present to pressurise us; to exact a heavy 'price' for leaving; and to coerce others into not leaving the EU.
Keeping Us in the Dark
The Withdrawal Agreement includes extensive cross-references to EU legislation, apparently without a clear order of precedence if there is a conflict or contradiction. The full ramifications are thus uncertain. This is similar to secret clauses in treaties, with the added problems that the EU can continue to add more potentially unlawful requirements. And of course, once the backstop is triggered, the UK cannot unilaterally leave.
In addition to the lack of an independent review of the Withdrawal Agreement's legality, there does not appear to have been any risk or impact assessment. Such assessments would normally include potential mitigation measures. Impact assessments are required by the European Commission's own guidelines for developing new laws. If such assessments had been carried out and acted upon, the Withdrawal Agreement might look very different.
Independent and Authoritative Review of the WA
Even at this late stage, the Withdrawal Agreement should be independently, authoritatively and transparently reviewed for veracity, fitness for purpose and compliance with the treaties and laws of the EU, and with international law. Subsequently, the WA should be redrawn to incorporate the conclusions of the review. However, given the EU's track record of ignoring its own laws when it suits it this is unlikely. During any review and redrafting some sort of 'temporary' measures would be required in order to comply with the Consolidated Treaties of the EU. To be lawful, these measures (possibly through the use of legal fictions) would need to be intended to maintain peace, prosperity (including full employment), and political stability.
So, if the EU were to lawfully comply with its own treaties and laws, the UK could be enjoying frictionless trade as at present, minimum disruption in leaving the EU on 29th March 2019, and be asserting its national sovereignty, following a democratic political agenda as a free country.
The Irish Backstop: a fake Europhile distraction
Analysing statements on the Irish border is an exercise in futility
The Backstop Trap: A view from Ireland
The students fighting for Brexit
As Steven Woolfe MEP mentions: There have been trips to Brussels by Mrs May and others, of course. But there have been no negotiations. The deal, a deal exactly to suit the EU, was agreed last year, and done. What Mrs May and the others do in their meetings at the Commission is nothing but a pantomime of a negotiation. There are no negotiations going on now over the Withdrawal Agreement. A two-month Article 50 extension would continue the same level of negotiations, which is, exactly level zero. One could say even that there have never been any negotiations, not negotiations as anyone British would understand the term.
As Yanis Varoufakis, the former Greek finance minister who was politically mauled when he tried to negotiate changes to eurozone demands on Greece in 20015, told the BBC last November: "Once the European Union presents a deal on the table, there is no way that it can be unpicked. It is take it or leave it. Nobody negotiates with the European Union…
Today we hear of Nigel Farage revealed Saviour plan to snatch 'SOFTEST landing' from EU
NIGEL Farage insisted the British Government could outmanoeuvre the European Union and choose to trigger a no deal Brexit scenario to snatch a "very soft landing" for British businesses.
Nigel Farage suggested the British Government should agree to end Brexit negotiations without a deal to seek external brokering support.
The architect of Brexit insisted the United Kingdom and the European can take up WTO article 24 and with the intervention of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) to help mediate future negotiations on trade during a two-year transition period regulated by Article 24 of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) which sets out the rules under which countries can make free trade deals.
So has Nigel Farage got the answer to the way forward out of the maze. Lets go for it.
It is possible that the many decent warm hearted southern Irish citizens could turn on their leaders when they realise they are being use as pawns by the EU to block our way out.
Any MP of all parties especially the Conservative Brexiteers please wise up and remove Theresa May and her fellow Remainers. She cannot be allowed to blackmail this Country with her unacceptable threat of her deal or no Brexit. And thank god Soubry and Co have left the Party, now for Grieve Rudd Clark Gauke to join them losing their seats at the next election.