Hire Sweet Harmony for a beautiful wedding violinist, cellist, pianist, or ensemble that will make your wedding day even more special. We love to play warm live music that lifts you up and helps to create your individual style. And for corporate events, we'll make a great impression on your clients with class and professionalism. Please explore our website to learn how we can share our gift of music with you!
What makes us different? Owner Tara Buzash sets a standard of excellence for everything her company does. We genuinely care, and we know that live music is vitally important. As a musician and businessperson, Tara has 20 years of experience connecting her customers with musicians and making sure the details are done well. Sweet Harmony musicians are highly accomplished professionals, teachers, and members of orchestras and bands.
We also have a network of classical and jazz vocalists.
4/16/19: Sweet Harmony's owner Tara Buzash was just interviewed for a USA Today podcast on small businesses called GrowthLab! It will air in July — we'll announce it!
Our 2019 Song List is out! Check the new and cool songs we have for DUOS and SOME TRIOS!
Sweet Harmony is now serving all parts of the United States! Our headquarters is in New Jersey, but you can experience Sweet Harmony's personal service anywhere.
Check out Unveil Events' interview of Tara for their 9/8/17 blog post on "How To Hire the Right Wedding Musicians"!
New Jersey Bride Magazine interviewed Tara for their March 2017 story on modern wedding music!
We had a lot of logistical rearranging due to some uncooperative weather and they were the only vendors who were completely adaptive. It made a huge difference.
Sweet Harmony delivered on everything we asked for and more!
My wife has always wanted a cocktail party with a cellist and violinist and we couldn't have asked for better.
We hired Sweet Harmony's string trio to play during our ceremony and cocktail hour. Honestly, it was one of the best choices we made... nothing can compare to walking down the aisle to a beautiful accompaniment.
Thank you Flip and Tara for helping me select the music for my daughter's wedding ceremony. The violin and classical guitar music was just what we were looking for. With all the worries involved with planning a wedding... thankfully this wasn't one of them.
My husband and I got married yesterday.... WOW is all I can say. I had a vision in my head and Sweet Harmony made it reality. Thank you so much!
I cannot say enough good things about Sweet Harmony! They were my favorite vendor on my wedding day. They received rave reviews from my guests and I felt like I walked down the aisle to an angel singing.
A year later, we still talk about the music. It was so fitting and just perfect.
Music was incredible - the soundtrack to our beginning.
You can watch more videos on our Ensemble pages.
For more recordings, please visit our Ensemble pages.
Discounts for military active duty members. Thank you for your service.
10% off weddings in January, February, and March (not including New Year's Day, Valentine's Day, or Valentine's weekend).


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Home » Marty's Spinner Rack » Reviews » You are reading »
The Swords They Carry … Sword Daughter #1
by Martin Boruta on April 10, 2018 The Swords They Carry … Sword Daughter #12018-04-15T06:20:31-07:00 - Marty's Spinner Rack, Reviews
One of my favourite Vertigo comics of the last 10 years was a book done by Brian Wood called Northlanders. Brian wrote several story arcs featuring different tales of Viking Age characters. Each arc, while fictional, gave you a historical glance at what life was like for the Vikings. The real history and not helmet horned oafs landing on a beach yelling "Wunderbar", although I do love Wunderbars. Eventually, Northlanders was cancelled but there are a solid 50 issues in that run.
Sword Daughter #1 Cover
So I can't say I am surprised to see Brian Wood return to the Viking Age in his new ongoing comic book series from Dark Horse Comics called Sword Daughter.
"I find endless inspiration in history, and specifically Norse history, the struggle of men and women to survive amidst violence and forbidding landscapes," said Brian Wood. "In Sword Daughter, Mack [Artist Mack Chater] and I are bringing in very relatable themes of protecting your kids, preparing them for survival in an uncaring world, and the guilt that comes with knowing there's only so much you can do. The father, Dag, has effectively abandoned his infant daughter for ten years, and now that he's back he's realizing that his daughter had gotten along without him, despite him. Having a place in her life and in her heart is not automatic. He has to atone for his past and earn her trust."
Sword Daughter is a tale of Viking revenge which showcases "the power of redemption and the resiliency of family, and a visually stunning tribute to samurai cinema." Samurai Cinema? Vikings? How can you not want to read this comic? The story's origin is that a deadly group named the Forty Swords raided a sleepy village and murdered all but two people in the dead of the night. Survivor Dag and his infant daughter, Elsbeth, must struggle through grief and quench the burning flame of revenge that scars Dag's heart.
Sword Daughter #1 Interior Page
"I've always loved European comics, Bande Dessinee," said artist Mack Chater, an acclaimed graphic novel artist "I grew up reading them and loved how they used the visual narrative of a book to tell a story. The colour palette could reflect both the landscape and the tonal feel of the book, to elicit an emotional response from the reader. As soon as Brian and I started talking about Sword Daughter, we both realised that we had similar loves, from those classic Bande Dessinee to the old samurai movies like Sanjuro or Harakiri, and that this would be the perfect book to show these influences and loves visually."
Brian really goes deep into the samurai cinema-style with his dialogue. Elsbeth speaks little but her narration tells the story of how she was left with nuns after the murder of her whole village. How her father grieved for 10 years at the loss of his family. Now, reunited, they set off on their quest. It's a nice little storytelling technique made more effective with letterer Nate Piekos' expressive symbols for what seems to be Elsbeth's mute vocalizations. Mack Chater has a sketchy style that suits the tone of the book and is well coloured by Jose Villarrubia. Really nice panel layout and quite cinematic. One page shows Dag's pursuit of a suspected member of Forty Swords with a three panel, static backdrop which works brilliantly.
Given my love of Northlanders and this fantastic introduction issue I'm definitely going to be adding this series to my pull-list. Great stuff and each issue are promised to be 8 pages longer than most regular comic book stories. The first issue hits your Local Comic Shop June 6th, 2018.
Issue: Sword Daughter #1 | Publisher: Dark Horse Comics
Writer: Brian Wood | Artists: Mack Chater & Jose Villarrubia
Lettering: Nate Piekos | Editor: TBD
Price: $4.99 – 32 pages
https://www.firstcomicsnews.com/the-swords-they-carry-sword-daughter-1/https://www.firstcomicsnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/Sword-Daughter-Logo-600x257.jpghttps://www.firstcomicsnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/Sword-Daughter-Logo-150x64.jpg 2018-04-15T06:20:31-07:00 Martin BorutaMarty's Spinner RackReviewsBrian Wood,Dark Horse,Jose Villarrubia,Mack Chater,Nate Piekos,Sword Daughter
One of my favourite Vertigo comics of the last 10 years was a book done by Brian Wood called Northlanders. Brian wrote several story arcs featuring different tales of Viking Age characters. Each arc, while fictional, gave you a historical glance at what life was like for the Vikings....
Martin Borutamartin@boruta.caAuthorMartin Boruta has been reading and collecting comics for over 40 years. A life long fan of Captain Canuck, Martin is the curator of The Unofficial Yet Definitive Captain Canuck Comicography website. Since 2016, Martin has been reviewing comic books and highlighting great new Kickstarter projects at First Comics News. For kicks Martin enjoys teaming up with his pals and sharing hosting duties on The Hey Kids Comics Radio Show broadcast on Trent Radio 92.7 CFFF FM in lovely Peterborough, ON Canada and available at First Comics News & The Hey Kids Comics Radio Show website. Martin is an active member of the Canadian Comic Book Alliance and can be found participating in the lively conversations on the Peterborough Comic Book Collectors (Canada) Facebook group. Recently Martin has been honoured to contribute to the inaugural issue of Sequential Magazine, Canada's Premier comic book publication. In his various adventures, Martin has demonstrated an innate ability to spell "Erik Larsen" incorrectly.First Comics News
Brian WoodDark HorseJose VillarrubiaMack ChaterNate PiekosSword Daughter
About Martin Boruta
Martin Boruta has been reading and collecting comics for over 40 years. A life long fan of Captain Canuck, Martin is the curator of The Unofficial Yet Definitive Captain Canuck Comicography website. Since 2016, Martin has been reviewing comic books and highlighting great new Kickstarter projects at First Comics News. For kicks Martin enjoys teaming up with his pals and sharing hosting duties on The Hey Kids Comics Radio Show broadcast on Trent Radio 92.7 CFFF FM in lovely Peterborough, ON Canada and available at First Comics News & The Hey Kids Comics Radio Show website. Martin is an active member of the Canadian Comic Book Alliance and can be found participating in the lively conversations on the Peterborough Comic Book Collectors (Canada) Facebook group. Recently Martin has been honoured to contribute to the inaugural issue of Sequential Magazine, Canada's Premier comic book publication. In his various adventures, Martin has demonstrated an innate ability to spell "Erik Larsen" incorrectly.
View all posts by Martin Boruta »
Wayne's Worlds: Comics Companies Crave Capital!
Wayne's Worlds: The Indie Explosion
Crush Your Enemies. See Them Driven Before You. Hear the Lamentations of … Groo Fray of the Gods #1
She's got style, she's got grace, she's a … Lady Killer 2 #1

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Srinivasan Raghavan
Expired Michael Burden
Sustainability Coordinator
MU Sustainability
Does the institution have any building space certified under the following green building rating systems for existing buildings?:
LEED for Existing Buildings or another 4-tier rating system used by an Established Green Building Council (GBC) No
The DGNB system, Green Star Performance, or another 3-tier GBC rating system No
BREEAM-In Use, CASBEE for Existing Building, or another 5-tier GBC rating system No
Other non-GBC rating systems (e.g. BOMA BESt, Green Globes) No
A brief description of the green building rating system(s) used and/or a list or sample of certified buildings and ratings:
Total floor area of eligible building space (operations and maintenance):
14178920 Square Feet
Floor area of building space that is certified at each level under a 4-tier rating system for existing buildings used by an Established Green Building Council::
Certified Floor Area
Minimum Level (e.g. LEED Certified) 0 Square Feet
3rd Highest Level (e.g. LEED Silver) 0 Square Feet
2nd Highest Level (e.g. LEED Gold) 0 Square Feet
Highest Achievable Level (e.g. LEED Platinum) 0 Square Feet
Minimum Level 0 Square Feet
Mid-Level 0 Square Feet
Highest Achievable Level 0 Square Feet
Minimum Level ---
4th Highest Level ---
Mid-Level ---
2nd Highest Level ---
Highest Achievable Level ---
Floor area of building space that is certified at any level under other green building rating systems for existing buildings:
0 Square Feet
Floor area of building space that is maintained in accordance with formally adopted sustainable building operations and maintenance guidelines or policies, but NOT certified:
A copy of the sustainable building operations and maintenance guidelines or policies:
The date the guidelines or policies were formally adopted:
A brief description of the sustainable building operations and maintenance program and/or a list or sample of buildings covered:
All buildings maintained by central campus funds are administered with stewardship of materials and resources in mind. Equipment is identified for Preventative Maintenance planning to promote long life of equipment and building comfort, building automation systems (where installed) provide the ability to manage energy usage. Cleaning processes are reviewed for safety to staff and the environment and to prolong the life of the materials cleaned.
A brief description of how the institution ensures compliance with sustainable building operation and maintenance guidelines and policies:
Enforcement for the individual standards is part Facility Operations, part EH&S, part PD&C, part Energy Management. Along with the responsible parties in each respective Auxiliary. This is something I plan on working on in the coming months in an attempt to meet the standards of LEED for Existing Buildings Operations and Maintenance.
The campus has a full-time manager for sustainable design and construction who works with Campus Facilities Departments to build consensus and affect change in Campus Facilities Operations as related to sustainability. This manager also develops project-by-project sustainability targets and solutions with design teams while assisting in development of specifications and progress trackers for all new construction and major renovation projects.
The website URL where information about the institution's certified buildings and/or sustainable operations and maintenance guidelines or policies is available:
http://www.cf.missouri.edu/pdc/sustainabledesignpolicy.html


Home / Forgiveness Guidebook— 36 p.
Forgiveness is a skill. It's one of the qualities we develop and it is inseparable from growth and change in purpose, mission and happiness.
Forgiveness usually finalizes the letting go and acceptance stages which complete the grieving and healing process of transformation. That means permanent growth and change.
Achieving forgiveness is often all that is necessary when you are in need of assistance with releasing a loss, a complex injury, a stubborn defense or an unrelenting guilt. When we can forgive, we can turn towards what's next and better.
Forgiveness usually finalizes the letting go and acceptance stages which complete the grieving and healing process.
Learn the five different languages of apology. When your style of apologizing mismatches the other person's style, the forgiveness you both need may be just out of reach.
You will complete the self-scored assessment from Heather Carlile's "Forgiveness Guide" which shows your readiness to forgive and to work through the five stages of deep forgiveness. It helps you to look for the steps you need to take when you don't yet feel ready to forgive.
Forgiveness is a skill. It's one of the qualities we can develop at will and it is inseparable from our growth in purpose, mission and happiness.
We may watch, with wise eyes, those who sabotage the honor of their own lives with betrayal of self and others.
And, through the courage of our own integrity, we can accept what we see with a tolerance of the mistakes. Such tolerance is born of our ability to have respect for life in all its forms both appealing and unfortunate or faulty.


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Join the Punks for Positivity, Yorkers (YDR opinion)
York can easily be the tidy community that former city residents who have fled to the suburbs reminisce about. But...
Join the Punks for Positivity, Yorkers (YDR opinion) York can easily be the tidy community that former city residents who have fled to the suburbs reminisce about. But... Check out this story on ydr.com: https://www.ydr.com/story/opinion/2015/06/05/join-punks-positivity-yorkers-ydr-opinion/72194290/
YorkDailyRecord Published 1:30 p.m. ET June 5, 2015
Catie Myers and Steve Klinedinst clean trash out between two steps during a Punks for Positivity clean up Sunday May 24, 2015 in the area of South Belvidere and West Princess Street in York. Paul Kuehnel - Daily Record/Sunday News(Photo: Paul Kuehnel)
When YDR started its "Fixing York PA" Facebook group and our reporters fanned out to do profiles of city neighborhoods, we had some ideas of what residents might say most "needs fixed" — to put it in Yorkese.
Illegal drug dealing, we guessed, would be a big concern — and it is. Crime in general seemed likely to be a major issue.
High property taxes.
Potholed roads and other crumbling infrastructure.
Struggling schools.
Too few good employment opportunities for city residents.
All those issues were mentioned to one degree or another.
But the No. 1 concern came as a surprise:
Litter.
Trash.
Junk-strewn properties that attract varmints.
In a way, this is a good thing because it's easily fixable — that is, if residents are willing to do something about it rather than just complain.
Spend a little time picking up litter around your house or apartment.
Drum it into your kids' heads not to throw their soda bottles and potato chip bags on the sidewalk.
Organize regular community cleanups.
Join efforts to clean up the Codorus Creek, which many people seem to think is their own personal Dumpster.
York can easily be the tidy community that former city residents who have fled to the suburbs reminisce about.
But you have to get off your butt and do something about it.
So let's highlight the efforts of those who do.
A few years ago, Mateo Maldonado made headlines by organizing community cleanups — many in the city.
He was 7 years old!
More recently, a YDR story focused on a group called Punks for Positivity.
What a great name!
And what a great service this group is performing for city residents.
The effort started with Steve Klinedinst and Dustin Hildebrand. They formed a grassroots coalition of friends to clean up various city neighborhoods — and they don't even live in the city.
Mateo's Litter Critters and the Punks for Positivity recently teamed up to collect more than 28 bags of litter in areas of North Queen, Arch and Market streets.
Klinedinst said actions speak much louder than complaints.
That, essentially, is what York public works director Jim Gross wrote in a guest column a few weeks ago.
Instead of complaining, do something. Instead of political infighting over the Neighborhood Improvement Ordinance aimed at cracking down on litterers and owners of junk-strewn properties, just take it upon yourself to clean up what you can.
Your efforts will inspire others to do the same.
Join the Punks for Positivity (www.facebook.com/punksforpositivity or www.twitter.com/punk4positivity).
You don't even have to be a "punk." You just have to give a damn.
This is one York problem that is eminently fixable.
Read or Share this story: https://www.ydr.com/story/opinion/2015/06/05/join-punks-positivity-yorkers-ydr-opinion/72194290/
Logos Academy to expand
A closer look at Codorus Furnace
Remember the heroic exploits of York militia
Tom Kelley: Trump undermines democratic principles
Start of a broken budget process
Christmas Emergency Fund raises $21,304


was patient under his own sufferings. To those, who smote his right cheek, he offered his left; and, in the true spirit of christianity, he indulged no rancour against the worst of his oppressors. He made use occasionally of a rough expression towards them; but he would never have hurt any of them, if he had had them in his power.
He possessed the most undaunted courage; for he was afraid of no earthly power. He was never deterred from going to meetings for worship, though he knew the officers would be there, who were to seize his person. In his personal conversations with Oliver Cromwell, or in his letters to him as protector, or in his letters to the parliament, or to king Charles the second, or to any other personage, he discovered his usual boldness of character, and never lost, by means of any degrading flattery, his dignity as a man.
But his perseverance was equal to his courage; for he was no sooner out of gaol, than he repeated the very acts, believing them to be right, for which he had been confined. When he was forced also out of the meeting-houses by the officers of justice, he preached at the very doors. In short, he was never hindered but by sickness, or imprisonments, from persevering in his religious pursuits.
Of the integrity of his own character, as a christian, he was so scrupulously tenacious, that, when he might have been sometimes set at liberty by making trifling acknowledgements, he would make none, least it should imply a conviction, that he had been confined for that which was wrong; and, at one time in particular, king Charles the second was so touched with the hardship of his case, that he offered to discharge him from prison by a pardon. But George Fox declined it on the idea, that, as pardon implied guilt, his innocence would be called in question by his acceptance of it. The king, however, replied, that "he need not scruple being released by a pardon, for many a man who was as innocent as a child, had had a pardon granted him." But still he chose to decline it. And he lay in gaol, till, upon a trial of the errors in his indictment, he was discharged in an honourable way.
As a minister of the gospel, he was singularly eminent. He had a wonderful gift in expounding the scriptures. He was particularly impressive in his preaching; but he excelled most in prayer.
Here it was, that he is described by William Penn, as possessing the most awful and reverend frame he ever beheld. His presence, says the same author, expressed "a religious majesty." That there must have been something more than usually striking either in his manner, or in his language, or in his arguments, or in all of them combined, or that he spoke "in the _demonstration_ of the spirit and with power," we are warranted in pronouncing from the general and powerful effects produced. In the year 1648, when he had but once before spoken in public, it was observed of him at Mansfield, at the end of his prayer, _"that it was then, as in the days of the apostles, when the house was shaken where they were."_ In the same manner he appears to have gone on, making a deep impression upon his hearers, whenever he was fully and fairly heard. Many clergymen, as I observed before, in consequence of his powerful preaching, gave up their livings; and constables, who attended the meetings, in order to apprehend him, felt themselves disarmed, so that they went away without attempting to secure his person.


text:
London [UK], Oct 13 (ANI): The Charity Commission has said that it is looking into 'potential financial concerns' at Wakefield charity Penny Appeal.
The Charity Commission registers and regulates charities in England and Wales.
Pakistan based Geo News reported that the government department's confirmation comes after a senior figure at the charity attempted a 'coup' while the organisation's founder, Adeem Younis, was on a visit to Pakistan.
Penny Appeal claims to be a charity organisation and is endorsed by celebrities such as British-Pakistani boxer Amir Khan and Pakistani model and actor Mehwish Hayat.
Its website says it was set up in 2009 to provide poverty relief across Asia, the Middle East, and Africa by offering water solutions, organising mass feedings, supporting orphan care and providing emergency food and medical aid.
Geo News in its report quoted sources as saying that one executive sacked another and that not only locks inside the charity's headquarters were changed but expensive items were taken away by one of the executives. Younis after returning from Pakistan, learnt that he had been suspended from his role in an unconstitutional manner.
It quoted a spokesman of the charity commission as saying, "We are currently assessing this information and have contacted the trustees for further information. While this is ongoing, we are unable to comment further."
A spokesman for the Penny Appeal dismissed reports that its headquarter at Wakefield was raided. (ANI)
Donald Trump exits!
Leaked Whatsapp chats expose TRP games!
Donald Trump says he deployed National Guard to secure Capitol building!
Our Top 10 Cartoons from 2020
Controversy over Corona vaccine!


text:
Reconstructive Hand Surgery In Tetraplegia
Reconstructive hand surgery and upper extremity surgery, assessment, rehabilitation and outcome in tetraplegia after spinal cord injury by Professor Jan Fridén, MD, PhD and his team.
How the procedures work
Surgical Training
Observerships
SAID & DONE
Sverrir's sophisticated work
Sverrir Ingólfsson from Ystafell in Iceland sustained serious bleeding due to a vascular malformation. He was left paralyzed in legs and left arm. In 2008 he had major reconstruction of the left hand's function and after surgery he went back to his work and hobby – running the Transport Museum in Ystafell. He used to work alongside his father for years rebuilding and maintaining cars and machines. Despite the severe disease and its effect, Sverrir is now back as the curator and in charge of the continuing organization and growth of the museum in addition to rebuilding and maintaining its artifacts.
The main role of the Transport Museum is to collect and preserve machinery for transportation as well as information and photographs from Iceland's history of transportation. Sverrir is working hard and work has certainly proven the most successful rehabilitation tool for Sverrir to gain independence. An example of his recovered skill is demonstrated in the picture above showing Sverrir maneuvering his excavator. Note that he has sufficient function of his left hand to control lever arm.
We are currently conducting a survey of patients who have had reconstructive upper limb surgery. We would like to know how you judge the result of the operations."Click here to take survey".
Welcome to the homepage of the Swedish National Center for Reconstructive Hand Surgery in Tetraplegia. This homepage provides information about current strategies to improve hand and upper extremity function by surgery and postoperative training. With more than thirty years of history and nearly 800 operations in the field of reconstructive hand surgery in tetraplegia… [read more]
The 12th Tetrahand World Congress was held at the Swiss Paraplegic Centre in Nottwil, Switzerland on 28-31 of August 2019.
Muscle of the month
The Deltoid muscle is important for positioning of the arm and particularly moving it outward i.e., moving the arm away from the body. In C5-C6 spinal cord injuries, triceps function is frequently lost or weak. Triceps function can then be restored by transferring a portion of the Deltoid into the Triceps with little or no loss of Deltoid function. This is a well-established and secure operation to restore extension of the elbow.
What are feeds?
The contributors of this web page have no commercial interest or finanical support to declare. All patients indentifiable on this web site have given their consent to appear by name or on photo.


text:
using AutoMapper;

using entities = STAR.Originations.MRC.DataAccess;
using contracts = STAR.Originations.MegaRunbook.Contracts.Data;

namespace STAR.Originations.MRC.DataAccess
{
    internal static class AutoMapperConfiguration
    {
        public static void Configure()
        {
            Mapper.Initialize(cfg =>
            {
                cfg.CreateMap<entities::ApplicationGroup,  contracts::ApplicationGroup>();
                cfg.CreateMap<entities::ApplicationGroup,  contracts::ApplicationGroup>();
                cfg.CreateMap<entities::ApplicationLink,   contracts::ApplicationLink>();
                cfg.CreateMap<entities::ApplicationType,   contracts::ApplicationType>();
                cfg.CreateMap<entities::Contact,           contracts::Contact>();
                cfg.CreateMap<entities::Environment,       contracts::Environment>();
                cfg.CreateMap<entities::EnvironmentLink,   contracts::EnvironmentLink>();
                cfg.CreateMap<entities::RunbookStep,       contracts::RunbookStep>();
                cfg.CreateMap<entities::RunbookStepPbi,    contracts::RunbookStepPbi>();
                cfg.CreateMap<entities::RunbookStepType,   contracts::RunbookStepType>();
                cfg.CreateMap<entities::RunbookTemplate,   contracts::RunbookTemplate>();
                cfg.CreateMap<entities::Server,            contracts::Server>();
                cfg.CreateMap<entities::ServiceLink,       contracts::ServiceLink>();
                cfg.CreateMap<entities::Team,              contracts::Team>();
                cfg.CreateMap<entities::ApplicationType,   contracts::Lookup>();
                cfg.CreateMap<entities::RunbookStepStatus, contracts::Lookup>();
                cfg.CreateMap<entities::RunbookStepType,   contracts::Lookup>();
                cfg.CreateMap<entities::Rfc,               contracts::Rfc>();

                cfg.CreateMap<contracts::Rfc,              entities::Rfc>();
                cfg.CreateMap<contracts::Contact,          entities::Contact>();
                cfg.CreateMap<contracts::RunbookStep,      entities::RunbookStep>();
                cfg.CreateMap<contracts::RunbookTemplate,  entities::RunbookTemplate>();
                cfg.CreateMap<contracts::RunbookStepPbi,   entities::RunbookStepPbi>();
                cfg.CreateMap<contracts::Team,             entities::Team>();

                cfg.CreateMap<entities::ApplicationGroup, contracts::Lookup>()
                    .ForMember(dest => dest.Code, opt => opt.MapFrom(src => src.Id))
                    .ForMember(dest => dest.Description, opt => opt.MapFrom(src => src.Name));

            });
        }
    }
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


text:
/**
 * Autogenerated by Thrift Compiler (0.12.0)
 *
 * DO NOT EDIT UNLESS YOU ARE SURE THAT YOU KNOW WHAT YOU ARE DOING
 *  @generated
 */
package org.apache.accumulo.core.dataImpl.thrift;

public enum TCMStatus implements org.apache.thrift.TEnum {
  ACCEPTED(0),
  REJECTED(1),
  VIOLATED(2),
  IGNORED(3);

  private final int value;

  private TCMStatus(int value) {
    this.value = value;
  }

  /**
   * Get the integer value of this enum value, as defined in the Thrift IDL.
   */
  public int getValue() {
    return value;
  }

  /**
   * Find a the enum type by its integer value, as defined in the Thrift IDL.
   * @return null if the value is not found.
   */
  @org.apache.thrift.annotation.Nullable
  public static TCMStatus findByValue(int value) {
    switch (value) {
      case 0:
        return ACCEPTED;
      case 1:
        return REJECTED;
      case 2:
        return VIOLATED;
      case 3:
        return IGNORED;
      default:
        return null;
    }
  }
}


After using Messenger to speak with Rogers, my internet provider in Canada, I believe the new service and others like it could have positive effects on customer service. What it also demonstrates is that small changes can have a potentially large impact, especially when a company like Facebook is behind them.
First, a provider like Rogers could implement Messenger quickly and easily. When I used the service, Facebook had just announced its service the day before. Consider, for a moment, how difficult it usually is to put in place new customer service options. For Messenger to show up as an option, so soon after launch, shows Facebook's reach inside large organizations; in other words, it's the secret sauce of enterprise software combined with the ubiquity of mobile devices.
Here's my interaction with Rogers (with private bits blurred out).
As you see, the interaction was quick and to the point. I didn't have to sit and wait for a reply because I received notifications. And, after 10 words, the agent had enough information to find out what I needed. This is stunning efficiency. This is the second big feature of Messenger. It works like Messenger. I used as I would any of my friends and that is how the interaction felt. This is a small change but, consider this, if Messenger were everywhere all of my interactions with technical support and customer service – regardless what for – would be familiar. This is a potentially large network effect.
As an aside, because of all the talk about AI, I was curious as to whether Alicia was a person. So I asked. She claimed she was human and the interaction was pleasant.
Compared to the tired and unemotional phone-based customer support I'm used to, Alica's emoji use seemed natural and pleasant. Once again, building customer service right into familiar forms of communication allows us to act with familiarity.
This may not seem out of the ordinary to many of us. I had a simple problem that didn't require much back and forth. But Messenger's strengths became clear as my internet issues continued. The next time I wanted to talk to customer support, I just opened the Messenger app and continued the interaction. I didn't speak with Alicia but the new rep saw my history and so I didn't have to repeat what I had told Alicia. There was no ticket and no closed ticket. It felt like Rogers was "always" there for me. Once again, by having a small change towards the familiar, I am able to interact with Rogers – a large company – as I would with a person.
My internet issues have to do with some broader issues in my neighborhood. So over the last few days I have interacted with a number of Rogers agents. Each one has been able to answer my questions without a long exchange.
One good customer service experience does not make a revolution. But let's think about what Facebook has done here.
Second, a messaging app is a very quick and convenient form of communication. You don't have to sit there while someone works out how to resolve your issue. At one point, I just asked the rep to message me when there was news, and she did. If I were using email, I'd have no way of knowing if my problem was being dealt with. Messenger tells you how long it usually takes for a response (for Rogers it is within minutes, and that has been true in my experience).
Finally, the people using the Messenger service at the moment are users who like to message or at least know how to do so. This is a neat pathway to scale. Rogers can probably handle the load right now since there aren't a lot of users. But as more people use Messenger, Rogers will have to work out ways to meet the demand. But the fact that those interactions are conveniently and efficiently passed from rep to rep is very important, and it highly likely those interactions are forming the training for artificial intelligence to handle much of this. Or at least the initial interaction.
And all of this is happening for Facebook. Suffice it to say, this has the markings of a larger communications movement as corporations become more and more socialized.


text:
Herausgeber: NOTUS energy Plan GmbH & Co. KG
NOTUS energy Commissions First Solar Park in Mexico
© NOTUS energyPotsdam (renewablepress) - The "Autódromo 1" solar park in Mexico will sell its electricity directly via day-ahead trading on the Mexican electricity exchange. State-of-the-art solar technology with trackers and bifacial, monocrystalline panels ensure a high annual electricity yield for the 0.5 megawatt plant.
"For Notus, the "Autódromo 1" solar farm is an important pilot project in a country where we see good prospects for the construction of further solar plants and wind farms," says Heiner Röger, managing director of NOTUS energy, an independent power producer based in Potsdam.
The plant's electricity is sold directly on the Mexican power exchange by the energy trading company E2M Energy to Market (Mexico City). This is because there is no subsidy or guaranteed government compensation in the Latin American country.
"Thanks to the excellent natural conditions for solar and wind in Mexico, renewables are already the cheapest form of power generation in Mexico," Röger explains. At more than 2,100 kWh/m2, solar radiation in the region exceeds the best locations in Europe.
State-of-the-Art Solar Technology, High Yields
The park went online on March 19, 2021, after a construction period of just two months. NOTUS used state-of-the-art technology to achieve this: a tracker system constantly aligns the solar modules optimally with the position of the sun, thus guaranteeing the greatest possible solar irradiation.
The cell type used is monocrystalline, bifacial cells. These "bifacial" cells can also convert the light that is reflected from the ground onto their rear side into electricity. To do this, the back of the cells is made of glass instead of a layer that does not transmit light, such as metal.
NOTUS has been active in Mexico since 2010 and built the "Autódromo 1" solar park together with Goldbeck Solar from Baden-Württemberg. The park occupies an area of 1.5 hectares in the municipality of Villa de Zaragoza and is located right next to a car race track - hence the name "Autódromo". There is space for a second solar park at the site. The nearest city is San Luis Potosí, about 350 kilometers north of Mexico City. The Bajio region is also known as the location of many companies in the automotive and aviation industries.
Download press photo:
https://www.iwrpressedienst.de/bild/notus/33e51_IB_Autodromo-2.jpg
© NOTUS energy
Potsdam, 12 April 2021
Publication and Reprint free of charge; please send a voucher copy to NOTUS energy Plan GmbH & Co. KG.
Attention editorial offices - For further questions please contact:
NOTUS energy Group
CEO Heiner Röger
Tel: +49 (0)331 62043-40
E-Mail: windkraft@notus.de
Peggy Weyland
E-Mail: peggy.weyland@notus.de
NOTUS energy Plan GmbH & Co. KG
Parkstraße 1
Internet: https://www.notus.de
Online-Pressemappe - alle Pressemitteilungen der NOTUS energy Plan GmbH & Co. KG | RSS-Feed abonnieren


text:
Q: .Net to Java to .Net Interprocess Communication using Java I create .Net client (executable) which uses group of local services.
These services are 6 local services (out of process logger service, system diagnostic service, UI identification service etc.).
This pattern is mandatory.
The idea is to create group of local machine SOA's communicate with each other (on local machine domain only!). The most important aspect of the services layer is to provide best interprocess communication.
Since those services are valuable I don't want to limit my self to .Net/Windows world (I know Mono is good enough but don't want to rely on it at this point as solution).
Goggling around I could not find any real WCF equivalent in Java - all java frameworks lack the abstraction model WCF provides.
I would be happy to hear from the community how safe is interprocess communication (.Net-JVM-.Net) based on Java in Windows world.
And off course to hear about communication frameworks for Java

A: if you want a SOA that is language agnostic then I would suggest using RESTful SOA, for .NET WepAPI would suffice, for JAVA consider JAX-RS http://www.vogella.com/articles/REST/article.html
However for single domain only communication, TCP/IP Sockets is the simplest, easiest way to go.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Activa Capital (France), ECM (Germany), Graphite Capital (UK) and MCH (Spain) have launched the Private Equity Network, (PEN), a pan-European network of four leading mid-market private equity firms.
With more than 120 investments realised by approx. 30 Partners and their teams, and over 500 years of combined private equity experience, the Private Equity Network will allow each of its members to develop the mid-market private equity model internationally. It will help the portfolio companies grow overseas and become European and global champions in their sectors, while preserving the local strengths.


Shell syntax and command language. Special builtins such as cd and exec are defined.
Utilities to be called by shell scripts and applications (sed, tr, and awk), shell builtins (test, kill) An expansion of this section's scope, termed the User Portability Extension has standardized interactive programs such as vi and mailx.
Functional interfaces to services provided by the shell, shell word expansions, filename expansion (globbing), POSIX.2 system configuration variables, retrieve environment variables.
A suite of "development" utilities such as c89 (the POSIX.2 version of cc), and yacc.
Information grepped and paraphrased from "Bash - The GNU shell" by Chet Ramey (version 2.03) and from the GLIBC manual (v0.02). Errors in this are mine, so give me a holler to fix it, or add and expand it.


Latour Pilates is me, Jacqueline Latour, San Francisco based classical Pilates instructor. Pilates has opened my eyes and changed my life in many ways and it is my honor to share my Pilates knowledge with you. I invite you to come learn about Pilates with me, enhance what you already know and gain greater strength, flexibility and length in your body. Discover what true core strength can do for your whole body. You'll feel better in your body and it all starts with you.


Want To Take On This Workout?
Enjoy the look of this workout? Download the workout sheet and try it for yourself! And don't forget to let us know how you went! Best of luck!
Like The Look Of This Workout? Get New Workouts Every Single Week!
If you're looking for quick and super effective workouts like this one, you can get new workouts every single week for home, a home gym or the gym on our 10-week women's weight loss program.


As with most adventures that involve money leaving my pocket these days, Cassie brought up the idea of going to Jaybee Beach Camp to spend a night camping on the beach, having fun by a bonfire and just generally forgetting the daily struggle that comes with living in Lagos.
It didn't fit into my budget at the time so we decided to shift the staycation to August. Come August, we started calculating the cost of the staycation and it didn't fit into both our budgets so we decided to throw it open like we did The Lakehouse Vacation and after a few back and forths, increasing our original number of 5 because quite a number of people were interested, we had more women join us to share the cost and fun.
Jaybee Beach Camp is located on Tarkwa Bay and is accessible by boats from various locations, each with its own price point. We paid 1 000 Naira each for a boat from Bonny Jetty also known as Checking Point, it is right at the back of the American Embassy and a few meters away from Bonny Cantonment.
Locating it was a struggle for most people but after sharing live locations on WhatsApp a couple of times, everyone made it to the Jetty and we were on our way. The boat takes a maximum of 8 people so we had to use two.
We rented two cabins for two nights at 100 000 Naira per cabin. On the Jaybee Beach Camp website, they indicated that a cabin is suitable for 6 people but there's a sleeping arrangement to fit 9.
There are 2 beds for 4 people to share, 2 convertible couches, 2 roll out mattresses and an inflatable bed. The cabin has a very rustic feel to it and is built on stilts with the bathroom/toilet located below.
The view was a bit disappointing as I expected it to overlook the ocean as stated on their website but in reality, most of the view is an ongoing construction site and expanse of sand. There is a mini garden surrounding the cabins with sturdy swings and benches.
There is the Tarkwa Cafe to cater to food and drinks at Jaybee Beach Camp but that didn't stop us from bringing our own cereal and drinks to cut down on food expenses.
Breakfast was a disaster consisting of a rude Chef, misplaced orders and terrible food. The "full English breakfast" was tagged at 3 500 Naira per person but we ended up paying 3 000 Naira each to make up for the bad service. We opted to eat dinner from a vendor on the beach and it was also a letdown.
If you can, carry instant meals or foodstuff to make simple meals, there's a grill and cooker to use to prepare your meals, you could even have a picnic on the beach and buy the coconuts to complete your beach vibes.
During the day, we went to the beach to relax, take in the sights and play in the water. The beach wasn't crowded and littered like other easily accessible beaches in Lagos. There are a number of activities to partake in while on the beach like volleyball, surfing, football, quad bike, and horse riding.
At night, it got really cold while we were having dinner and the nice caretaker helped us light the fireplace. We gathered round to exchange stories, play truth or dare, dance, and engage in our own makeshift karaoke.
The highlight of the Jaybee Beach Camp staycation has to be the group of people we went with. We played games, exchanged stories, had 1a.m karaoke sessions, talked finances, patronized each other's businesses and generally just had a good time! The cabins are perfect for group tours and bonding trips, there are two single rooms away from the Cabin area that admits 2 people each if you would like to go alone for a retreat or in a smaller group.
For a night, How much would it be to rent a cabin?
For a night, How much would it be to get a single room for two?
If you spend more than one night during the weekend, you'll pay 50 000 Naira per night.
Unfortunately I don't have pricing info for the single room but if you contact the number in the post, the rep, Eniola would be glad to assist.
Please is thst N100,000 per cabin? On their website I saw different. Anyway you girls sure had lots of fun. I watched a couple of insta stories. Niceee.
Yes, N100 000 per cabin for 2 nights. Thank you, we sure did!
Currently planning a weeks staycation there.
Quick questions; which of the two cabins did you rent? Plus what's security like? And we're there mosquitoes?
Awesome enlightening post as usual.


Ryan was reachable every time I needed him, persistent, and promptly and carefully took care of everything necessary for us to close on the purchase. Very professional.
Ryan was great to work with. He did everything we asked of him and was even able to provide local contractors to get our house ready for sale. Highly recommended.
Ryan was fantastic. All phases of the process were handled with sensitivity and expertise. My brother and I were highly impressed with the way he handled my mother's estate and he had to deal with me in Chicago and my brother in San Diego. He offered valuable suggestions and only brought us serious buyers. I would recommend Ryan without reservation.
Ryan was very cordial and professional when he showed me several homes. He was very prepared and showed many listings and comparables. I highly recommend Ryan. He is honest, reliable and efficient.
With a tremendous amount of knowledge in Real Estate, Stafford is the perfect person to help you navigate buying or selling a home. He speaks in simple terms and makes the process simple. I would refer him to anyone of my family or friends.


A new park is coming to Union Park! In 2018, we worked with the Trust for Public Land and other organizations to gather community input on the name and design for the new park, Midway Peace Park.
For more information on the park, visit the City's website. Construction is anticipated to begin in late Spring 2019.
Merriam Park has a new path connecting the recreation center and playground with Prior Avenue. This path will allow the park and recreation center to be more accessible for everyone!


text:
Phnom Penh Post - Cambodia's central bank mulls blockchain technology implementation
Cambodia's central bank mulls blockchain technology implementation
Kali Kotoski | Publication date 21 June 2017 | 14:37 ICT
Blockchain-based technology can be used for reducing costs associated with interbank lending, in addition to facilitating digital assets and cryptocurrencies. Photo supplied
Kali Kotoski
The National Bank of Cambodia (NBC) hopes to launch the testing phase of a closed loop blockchain-based technology by the fourth quarter of this year, a technology that if proven successful would greatly enhance the central bank's ability to facilitate and monitor interbank lending and transactions, the director-general of the NBC has confirmed.
The central bank's decision to study the implementation of blockchain technology was first announced last April when the NBC signed a partnership agreement with Japan's Soramitsu Co., a company that uses open-development software known as Hyperledger Iroha. The product is backed by US-based company Linux Foundation, which is distributing the ledger technology program.
A distributed ledger, also known as a blockchain, provides greater verification for transmitting digital assets and currencies. And by being based on open-source software, the technology can also prevent against cyber attacks by creating a shared ledger safeguard mechanism that is recorded by all individuals or institutions that access the network.
While the technology also allows for the use of cryptocurrencies, such as bitcoin, NBC director-general Chea Serey was quick to point out that the technology would not be used to support any type of cryptocurrency at this time. Rather, it would be used to reduce costs associated with interbank lending.
"We expect the new technology to provide smooth, efficient, safe and affordable interbank transactions which will ultimately benefit end users," Serey told Post Supplement in an email. "At this stage we will focus on the operational functionality of the system, but we believe the system can further be customized with application development to benefit the [central] bank's monetary policy, including the use of the local currency."
She added that while the NBC is not aiming to be a leader or pioneer in the adoption of blockchain technology, it is exploring every possible strategy to give it greater control over the Kingdom's monetary policy that is heavily constrained by the dependence on the US dollar.
"[This] technology moves very fast and we are open to explore any platforms suitable for Cambodia's situation," she said, adding that the Hyperledger Iroha cashless system seems to be the right one at this early stage.
"A cashless system is less costly and more transparent for the whole economy," she said. "This has always been on our agenda, but we needed time to study the different platforms available [before making a decision]."
Martin Kendrik, the founder of the Cambodian Cryptocurrency, Bitcoin and Blockchain Community, said that there are a myriad of reasons why central banks are exploring the use of this technology.
One of the reasons, he explained, is that if regulatory bodies do not adopt blockchain technology, it threatens to replace the traditional banking industry.
"Banks can either try to kill blockchain, which they did try to do, but have now realised they can't kill it so are desperately trying to catch up and convert everything onto blockchain," he said.
Another reason, he said, was that the current debt-based economics of the global economy can collapse the global financial system, and central banks are trying to find ways to protect themselves from instability.
Kendrik advocated that it should pursue blockchain technology beyond the NBC's current scope and adopt cryptocurrencies because it would allow the Kingdom to insulate itself from external economic shocks.
Regardless of the apocalyptic forecasts associated with cryptocurrency enthusiasts, Kendrik said that Cambodia was well-positioned for the use of blockchain technology given that it is already using a multi-currency system.
However, Rithy Ray, an independent IT and payment consultant, said that the use of a blockchain could help financial institutions to lower high operating costs.
"While financial institutions would have to invest in this technology, with the NBC being the first mover it is a very positive sign that they have the intention to actually see how it can be used to cut costs," he said.
"The commercial implementation of blockchain technology has proven in the end to be a cost savings investment," he added, explaining that it would allow financial institutions to better monitor know-your-customer operations.
"For example it could allow financial institutions to confirm their customers' identities and know how many current loans they have taken out to help reduce risk of over-indebtedness," he said.
Nevertheless, he added that because the technology decentralizes operations, it could be a tough sell for the government as it would have to give up some of its regulatory authority to oversee financial operations.
Brenn Hill, CTO of Peerity, an upcoming blockchain powered social and activity network, said that while the technology is always difficult to implement on a cultural, legal, and institutional level, "strong government and private support for a blockchain and interoperability standard is key."
Additionally, he said that with blockchains being "faster, easier, cheaper, and impossible to hack" it also makes financial reporting more transparent and easier to track.
"So not only is blockchain technology good for technical reasons, it is also capable in helping to fight financial corruption," he said.
Contact author: Kali Kotoski
Singapore blockchain ecosystem to get boost
Blockchain tech heating up after Beijing's backing
NBC set to lead blockchain use
Cambodia's blockchain social media app rewards creativity
Laos hosts summit on blockchain technology
Uncertainty over future of cryptocurrencies in Cambodia
On Wednesday, Deputy Prime Minister Men Sam An stood in front of a conference hall in Phnom Penh to give the opening remarks for the
Blockchain event fails to deliver on title
NBC disavows Cambodia-based digital currency
Cambodia's Uber of logistics primed to shake up sector


text:
Q: Ping from computer when USB plugs in? Find my USB? I lost my USB stick recently, I was just wondering whether it was possible in any way to have it run a program when plugged in to push the computer's IP adress/Coords up to some server anywhere.
Find my iPhone style...
Pure curiosity...

A: No. Autostart isn't around any more. Good riddance! An iPhone is very different because it communicates with the network itself. A USB drive is just storage.
Of course you could theoretically put a whole computer inside the case that could then also communicate via mobile networks. But, let's face it: No.
If you want others to return your drive, write your address on it. If you don't want other to be able to see what's on the drive, encrypt it.

A:
I was just wondering whether it was possible in any way to have it run
  a program when plugged in to push the computer's IP address/Coords up
  to some server anywhere.

Yes it's possible to make a program send the external IP address by e-mail.
But I couldn't find away to run my program automatically!

According to a biannual Security Intelligence Report from Microsoft,    It appears that a viruses is using the "AutoRun" feature in Windows to    spread itself. Whenever a USB drive is inserted.
But they disable it only for USB flash sticks, It's still working on DVD, External Hard drivers.
Back in the days a company called U3 made smart USB sticks, when you plug it into any computer it will run any program you want, They manage to do that by making the flash stick contain two partitions, the first one contain their program and act like CD player the second as a memory stick.
It's only a program not hardware trick!
So it's still possible somehow.
There is other method Viruses use to run itself by something called Windows Metafile vulnerability
Windows will try to extract information from the file to display the icon and preview when looking at the folder inside explorer which could be exploited only by previewing the file in explorer.
Or you can hide .exe file into an Image or PDF file and wait the thieve..


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Crashlytics currently processes more than 3 billion events per day for our developers and distills them into an opinionated and actionable set of issues in our dashboard. We've heard thousands of requests over the years to let you explore further into your crash data, and that's why today we're extremely excited to offer the ability to export your Firebase Crashlytics data into BigQuery for deeper analysis!
With just a few clicks from the Firebase Crashlytics dashboard you can enable daily exports of all raw crash data on a per-app or per-project basis. This includes your stack traces, logs, keys and any other crash data.
The Crashlytics dashboard currently retains data for 90 days. With BigQuery you own the retention and deletion policies, making it much simpler for your team to track year-over-year trends in stability data.
BigQuery also offers the ability to export your data in CSV, JSON, or Avro format. This should help to streamline any GDPR data takeout requests you may receive.
We hope this improvement makes it even easier for you to dig into your crash reporting data and efficiently debug your app! As always, if you have any questions, you can find us on Twitter and on Stack Overflow. Happy debugging!
Better Arrays in Cloud Firestore!


Sixteen Cornell College students have been elected to Phi Beta Kappa, the country's oldest academic honor society. The students will be inducted at 1:30 p.m. Saturday, May 11, in Cole Library during Commencement weekend.
Elissa Karim '18 and her family enjoy a photo opportunity at the Phi Beta Kappa plaque on Commencement weekend 2018.
Seniors elected were David Berger, Elizabeth Coghlan, Julia Eastham, Nicola Etter, Tim Haynes, Aidan Litt, Annika Leitch Lodge, Alexandra Lewyn, Talitha McGuire, Jessica Meis, Orgho Neogi, Anhia Nguyen, Salem Ozaki, Rachel Renaud, Jamie Rhoads, and Elisabeth Sage.
Samantha Nadel and Jillian Schulte were elected in 2018 as juniors.
Phi Beta Kappa is often described as the country's most prestigious honor society, due to its long history and academic selectivity. Members at Cornell are chosen by Phi Beta Kappa faculty members from among the top 15 percent of the senior class and the top five percent of the junior class. Election is based upon good character and a distinguished record of performance in courses that demonstrate a broad exposure to the liberal arts, as well as substantive work in areas outside the major.
The students' names will be added to the permanent plaque in Cole Library listing all members elected to Cornell's Delta of Iowa chapter of Phi Beta Kappa, founded in 1922.


text:
For most investors, 2018 was both an eventful and frustrating year.
Between the looming threat of trade wars and growing geopolitical uncertainty, the market also skipped a beat. Volatility took center stage, and the S&P 500 finished in negative territory for the first time in 10 years.
Although many asset classes finished in negative territory, a look at fund flows – essentially where investors put their money – helps paint a more intricate picture of the year for investors.
Visualizing 2018 Fund Flows
Today's infographic comes to us from New York Life Investments, and it visualizes the flows in and out of U.S. funds for 2018.
It not only shows when investors poured money into mutual funds or ETFs, but it also breaks down these funds by various categorizations. For example, when did people buy funds that held U.S. equities, and when did they buy funds that primarily held money market securities?
Let's dive into the data, to take a deeper look.
Mutual Funds vs. ETFs
For another year in a row, ETFs gained ground on mutual funds:
Type of Fund
2018 Fund Flows
Total Assets (End of Year)
ETFs +$238.4 billion $3.4 trillion (17.2%)
Mutual Funds -$91.3 billion $16.3 trillion (82.8%)
However, despite growing for another year, ETFs still make up a smaller part of the overall fund universe.
Flows by Asset Class Group
Every fund gets classified by Morningstar based on the types of assets it holds.
For example, a fund that focuses on holding fast-growing, large tech companies in the U.S. would be classified broadly as "U.S. Equity", and more specifically as "U.S. Equity – Large Growth".
Here's how flows went, within these broader groups:
Fund Category Group
Total Assets ($mm)
Growth in 2018
Allocation $ 1,171,166 -5.9%
Alternative $ 203,343 -5.7%
Commodities $ 88,939 2.4%
International Equity $ 2,787,400 3.1%
Money Market $ 2,879,510 6.2%
Municipal Bonds $ 795,132 0.9%
Sector Equity $ 816,149 -3.7%
Taxable Bonds $ 3,747,268 3.5%
U.S. Equity $ 7,173,902 0.0%
Investors pulled money from Allocation, Alternative, and Sector Equity funds, while rotating into Money Market and Taxable Bonds categories. These latter assets are considered safer, and this shift is not surprising considering the market volatility towards the end of the year.
Also interesting here is that U.S. Equity – the biggest category overall by total assets – saw equal amounts of inflows and outflows, ending with a 0.0% change on the year.
U.S. Equity: A Closer Look
U.S. Equity ended the year with zero change, but it's also the biggest and broadest category.
Let's break it down further – first, we'll look at what happened to flows by market capitalization (small, mid, and large cap stocks):
Growth (2018)
Large Caps $5.6 trillion 0.2%
Mid Caps $884 billion -2.5%
Small Caps $672 billion 1.7%
Investment in funds that held large cap stocks increased by 0.2%, while the money allocated to small caps rose by 1.7% over 2018. Interestingly, investors pulled money out of mid caps (-2.5%).
Now, let's look at U.S. Equity by type of strategy:
Growth $2.0 trillion -2.1%
Value $1.4 trillion -2.8%
Blend $3.8 trillion 2.2%
According to these flows, investors pulled money from funds focused solely on value or growth, while instead preferring funds that were a blend of the two strategies.
Finally, let's see the types of international funds that investors bought and sold over 2018.
China 35.5%
Diversified Emerging Markets 4.9%
Latin America 4.3%
Foreign/World 3.9%
Diversified Asia/Pacific -5.6%
Pacific/Asia ex-Japan -7.1%
Japan -9.0%
India -11.3%
Europe -23.4%
Investors eschewed funds that had a primary focus on European, Indian, and Japanese markets, while piling into funds that held Chinese equities. Meanwhile, Latin America and emerging markets also got some love from investors.
While 2018 was an eventful year for markets, this recap shows that investors are adjusting their portfolios accordingly.
Where will investors put their money in 2019?
Related Topics:2018etfsfeaturedflowsfundsinvestingmarketmutual fundsstocks
Visualizing 150 Years of U.S. Employment History
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More than $6 trillion of U.S. debt is owned by foreign governments such as China or Japan. See how it all breaks down, and what it means.
The Foreign Countries Holding the Most U.S. Debt
In the international finance system, U.S. debt can be bought and held by virtually anyone.
In fact, if you hold a U.S. Treasury bond or a T-Bill in your portfolio right now, you are already a creditor to the United States government.
And as you can see in today's chart from HowMuch.net, foreign countries like China and Japan can also accumulate large positions in U.S. Treasurys, making them significant players in the overall United States debt pie.
U.S. Debt: The Big Picture
The United States federal debt currently sits at $22 trillion, and it's held by a range of domestic and foreign investors.
Debt Holdings
Share of Total
$21.97 trillion
U.S. Government and Federal Reserve $8.1 trillion 36.8%
Foreign and international $6.3 trillion 28.5%
Mutual funds $2.06 trillion 9.4%
Pension funds $0.92 trillion 4.2%
Banks $0.77 trillion 3.5%
State and local governments $0.69 trillion 3.1%
Other investors $3.18 trillion 14.5%
As you can see, about $8.1 trillion of debt is held by departments of the U.S. government or the Federal Reserve. This number would include securities sitting in retirement accounts of federal employees, social security trust funds, or any of the Treasurys sitting on the Fed's balance sheet.
Next, another $7.6 trillion of debt is held by domestic investors. These are marketable securities held by banks, mutual funds, pension funds, insurance companies, and other investors.
While debt held domestically is mostly uninteresting, a bigger question mark is the $6.3 trillion of debt that is owned by foreign countries. After all, couldn't a country like China "weaponize" its large holdings of Treasury securities as a form of retaliation in the ongoing trade war?
Foreign Owners of the Debt
Internationally, the biggest owners of debt include China and Japan, each with over $1 trillion.
U.S. Debt Holdings
Percentage of Foreign U.S. Debt Held (%)
#1 🇨🇳 China $1.11 trillion 17.3%
#2 🇯🇵 Japan $1.06 trillion 16.5%
#3 🇧🇷 Brazil $307 billion 4.8%
#4 🇬🇧 United Kingdom $301 billion 4.7%
#5 🇮🇪 Ireland $270 billion 4.2%
#6 🇨🇭 Switzerland $227 billion 3.5%
#7 🇱🇺 Luxembourg $224 billion 3.5%
#8 🇰🇾 Cayman Islands $217 billion 3.4%
#9 🇭🇰 Hong Kong $206 billion 3.2%
#10 🇧🇪 Belgium $180 billion 2.8%
#11 🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia $177 billion 2.8%
#12 🇹🇼 Taiwan $171 billion 2.7%
Why does China hold so much of the foreign-owned U.S. debt?
China has accumulated Treasury securities over decades, as part of its strategy to keep its domestic currency from strengthening. Interestingly, the export-heavy nation has reduced its swath of Treasurys in recent months, selling off close to $200 billion of them.
Although China has $1.11 trillion of Treasurys left in reserve, the general consensus is that dumping all of them at once would destabilize the global financial system, having an equally negative effect on China as well.
That said, with foreign nations holding U.S. debt, such a risk will always exist.
While it's not surprising to see countries like China, Japan, or Brazil on the list of top foreign debt holders, what are places like the Cayman Islands, Luxembourg, or Ireland doing on the list?
Two simple facts help to explain these anomalies.
Firstly, despite having a population of just 60,000 people, the Cayman Islands is a hedge fund capital with over 10,000 funds domiciled there. Luxembourg makes the list for similar reasons, given that it is the European-based tax shelter equivalent.
Ireland, on the other hand, is the overseas headquarters for many U.S.-based tech giants like Facebook or Alphabet. Apparently, these corporations like to hold their overseas profits in highly-liquid Treasurys, rather than paying a repatriation tax to bring the cash back to American soil.


Posted on Saturday, May 30th, 2015 at 5:44 am.
A certified and professional company : This will help you choose the honest company that will ensure quality cleaning of your offices as well as your homes according to your needs.
An insured and bonded company : Choosing an insured and a bonded company will help in protecting you from cases of theft and accidents that involves the janitors and your properties.
A firm that uses individuals rather than teams : You should also consider a firm that uses individuals rather than teams. This is important because an individual will reduces cases of theft and there will be no blame games rather than when it's a team.
The equipment used : You need to choose a company that uses standard equipment and chemical products that are environmental friendly and have no effects on your home. The company should also be producing their own equipment and the supplies.
In conclusion, when you consider these tips then you will get the best janitorial services in San Mateo that will ensure your satisfaction in their professional cleaning services.


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Ethiopian government officially announces that the withdrawal of Eritrean forces from Tigray has commenced
June 3, 2021 Eritrea Hub Ethiopia, News, Tigray
Source: Office of the Prime Minister – Ethiopia Live Stream
[At approximately 27 minutes into the press conference]
Ethiopian Government Spokeswoman: "With regards to the withdrawal of Eritrean forces: a request for the withdrawal of Eritrean forces has been put in place by the relevant authority and per the ministry of defence reports, withdrawal has commenced, so we need to let that process play out according to the agreements with the stakeholders." [highlight added]
Eritrean forcesEthiopiaWithdrawal
Previous Post:UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Eritrea report
Next Post:Abiy promised Ethiopia's democratization but is delivering its disintegration
Amanuel Mehari says:
Well, it is very hard to believe unless the withdrawal is verified by independent body. According to credible sources, Eritrean forces (EF) are present in every corner of Ethiopia. They are positioned in regions such as Tigray, Oromia, Amhara etc and the size of the foreign troops involved in the Ethiopian civil war is enormous.
The Ethiopian Government (EG) Spokeswoman talked on the withdrawal of EF in
the press conference just only for PR and to avoid extra sanction on her government. If the EG wants to be trusted, it must allow the Independent bodies (e.g. UN or NATO) to enter and verify the pull out of Eritrean and other foreign forces from Ethiopian soil.
At present, the EG has failed to protect and defend the sovereignty of the country. Nonetheless, sovereignty is a collective responsibility ; you peoples, nations and nationalities of Ethiopia must stand now and claim to not only the sovereignty of your country, but also your right for your self determination.
Victory to peoples, nations and nationalities of Ethiopia !!!!
Hagos H says:
Another joke from the showman who has humiliated a great country. There is no way Eritreans will leave Ethiopian territory without force now they have conquered the country.
In Isaias words," there would have been no Ethiopia without Eritrean forces". On Abiy " he is a child who cannot run such a large countr0.
Keep dreaming but there is no way Isaias will leave Ethiopia on his own accord.
Mr. Ferenji says:
great, after always lying about it (really everything), now Abiy/PP/Eritrea is obviously just trying to buy more time to starve Tigray people to death and try to crush their rebellion, exactly the same a
how Eritrea/Abiy denied Eritrea involvement and said many times Eritrea pulled out, Eritrea not there, Eritrea will leave now, Eritrea will leave later. Obviously, they are just despotic dictators both prosecuting crimes against humanity against their own peoples, so malicious, pathological lying to others is really par for their course, and should be stiffly punished by Western powers (given the Eastern powers love/support such despotic authoritarian states, in their own image).
Unbreakable Abiye says:
Eritrean military should be allowed to stay as long as the Federal government allowed them to stay. It is no body is business.
Are you concerned about Abiy or your people and the sovereignty your country?
First of all, Abiy is not an elected leader and this implies that he has no legitimacy to rule the country. Moreover, he betrayed the people and the country by inviting foreign forces to invade the the country and allow them to humiliate his own people. So, I do not understand why you supporting Abiy and his government? Could not you imagine the legacy of of Abiy 's government? Ethiopia is on a cross road. For the sake of Ethiopia and the people, Abiy must resign.
Abiy is the first leader in the history of the country who has compromised the sovereignty of Ethiopia with his stay on power. So, I do understand why you are defending him? Do not you feel the pain Abiy and Issaias caused to the people of Oromia, Tigray, Afar, Somalia, Benshangul and Gumuz etc? Many credible source have reported on the genocidal and war crimes committed in Tigray, Oromia and Benshangul and Gumuz by Ethiopian and Eritrean forces. Probably, you are not belonging to the nations and nationalities that are directly affected by the war Abiy and Issaias declared on them. But, you are a human. As humans, we must come out and condemn the evil action of these both dictators and atrocities committed on these people of Ethiopia.
Without Abiy, Ethiopia will be a better place to live. Therefore, Abiy must go. We must raise our voice for the unconditional and immediate withdrawal of foreign troops from Ethiopian territory. We must also demand for an independent investigation on genocidal and war crimes, and all type of war atrocities committed in Tigray, Oromia, Benshangul and Gumuz etc. Sharing the pain of others and to be a voice for the voiceless is one way that can hold the Federal Republic of Ethiopia together.
Ethiopians must call for a cease fire and an all inclusive political dialog. Otherwise, the fate of Ethiopia may not be different than that of former Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. To save Ethiopia and bring peace to the region of Horn Africa, we need to call the removal of Issias and Abiy from power and struggle not only to remove, but also bring them to court for their war atrocities and depriving their people of democratic rule and the right for self determination.
Victory to the peoples, nations and nationalities of Ethiopia !!! Victory to peoples of Eritrea!!
First of all, Abiy is not an elected leader and this implies that he has no legitimacy to rule the country. Moreover, he betrayed the people and the country by inviting foreign forces to invade the country and allow them to humiliate his own people. So, I do not understand why you supporting Abiy and his government? Could not you imagine the legacy of of Abiy 's rule? Ethiopia is on a cross road. For the sake of Ethiopia and the people, Abiy must resign.
Abiy is the first leader in the history of the country who has compromised the sovereignty of Ethiopia with his stay on power. So, I do not understand why you are defending him? Do not you feel the pain Abiy and Issaias caused to the people of Oromia, Tigray, Afar, Somalia, Benshangul and Gumuz etc?
Many credible source have reported on the genocidal and war crimes committed in Tigray, Oromia and Benshangul and Gumuz by Ethiopian and Eritrean forces. Probably, you are not belonging to the nations and nationalities that are directly affected by the war Abiy and Issaias declared on them. But, you are a human. As humans, we must come out and condemn the evil action of these both dictators and atrocities they committed on these people of Ethiopia.
Currently, the World agrees that Ethiopia will be a better place to live without Abiy. Therefore, Abiy must go. Further, we must raise our voice for the unconditional and immediate withdrawal of foreign troops from Ethiopian territory. We must also demand for an independent investigation on genocidal and war crimes, and all type of war atrocities committed in Tigray, Oromia, Benshangul and Gumuz etc. Remember, sharing the pain of others and to be a voice for the voiceless is one way that can help hold the Federal Republic of Ethiopia together.
Ethiopians must call for a cease fire and an all inclusive political dialog. Otherwise, the fate of Ethiopia may not be different than that of former Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. To save Ethiopia and bring peace to the region of Horn Africa, we need to call the removal of Issias and Abiy from power and struggle not only to remove, but also bring them to court for war atrocities they committed, and depriving their people of democratic rule and their right for self determination.
Araale Harbi says:
Eritrea troops will never ever with draw
Ethiopia.The leader of Ethiopia is Isays Afawork not Abiye Ahmed.
Bl says:
This a big news coming from the mouth of Government spokes person. As such should be reported as it is . " we report , you decide ".
wadani1 says:
I can't beleive. Must be usual lie. Verifiable end result will decide
Alex Jemas says:
There is no way out for the Eritrean troops to leave out the country peacefully. TDF will destroy them soon.


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9.05-Orf467F20FinalReport-020521
by Alain Kornhauser | Feb 7, 2021 | newsletter | 0 comments
;widows: 2;-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;background-color:rgb(255, 255, 255);text-decoration-thickness: initial;text-decoration-style: initial;text-decoration-color: initial;word-spacing:0px"> Here's the top 10 list of the best-selling EVs in the world:
Place in 2019
Wuling HongGuang Mini EV
Hyundai Kona EV
Baojun E-Series
GW ORA R1/ Black Cat
…" Read more Hmmmm… With numerous Chinese Tesla knock-offs entering the market, what will the 2021 table look like??? Alain
A closer look at Tesla's latest semi electric truck prototype
F. Lambert, Feb.4, ".As we reported earlier this week, a new Tesla Semi prototype was spotted being transported in Sacramento. It's the first time we have seen a new Tesla Semi prototype since the electric truck was unveiled in 2017…" Read more Hmmmm… Video almost implies that we are looking at a "Nikola" rather than a real truck. Maybe we'll see it move by itself. Alain
Elon Musk's Boring Company moves forward with new 'Loop' project with Tesla cars near LA
F. Lambert, Feb. 5, ".Last year, the Boring Company submitted a Loop project to link Rancho Cucamonga with Ontario International Airport in the greater Los Angeles region. San Bernardino County, which is overseeing the project, has been so impressed by the company's proposal that they have dropped studies about other transportation options and instead focused on the Loop.
Elon Musk's transportation startup became the only bidder on the project, which would consist of a 2.8-mile tunnel system that would link the airport to a station in Rancho Cucamonga, and it would transport people in electric vehicles inside the tunnels…." Read more Hmmmm… Maybe??? Alain
4th Annual Princeton SmartDrivingCar Summit 7th Episode at noon on Feb. 11, 2021 TO BE followed by 9 more weekly episodes through to April15, 2021. Each episode starting Live on Zoom @ noon Eastern (Princeton Time) and lasting for 1.5 hours or until Discussion with audience ends.
A. Kornhauser, Feb 6, "The focus of the Summit this year will be moving beyond the AI and the Sensors to addressing the challenges of Commercialization and the delivery of tangible value to communities. We've made enormous progress with the technology. We're doing the investment; however, this investment delivers value only if is commercialized: made available and is used by consumers in large numbers. Demos and one-offs are "great", but to deliver value that is anywhere near commensurate with the magnitude of the investment made to date, initial deployments need to scale. We can't just have "Morgantown PRT Systems" whose initial deployment has been nothing but enormously successful for 45 years (an essentially perfect safety record, an excellent availability record and customer valued mobility). Unfortunately, the system was never expanded or duplicated anywhere. It didn't scale. It is a one-off.
Tests, demos and one-offs are nice niche deployments; however, what one really needs are initial deployments that have the opportunity to grow, be replicated and scale. In 1888, Frank Sprague, successfully deployed a small electric street railway system in Richmond, Va. which became the reference for many other cites. "… By 1889 110 electric railways incorporating Sprague's equipment had been begun or planned on several continents…" Substantial scaled societal benefits emerged virally from this technology. It was eventually supplanted by the conventional automobile but for more than 30 years it delivered substantial improvements to the quality-of-life for many.
In part, the 4th Summit will focus on defining the "Richmond" of Affordable Shared-ride On-demand Mobility-as-a-Service. The initial Operational Design Domain (ODD) that safely accommodates Driverless Mobility Machines that people actually choose to use and becomes the envy of communities throughout the country. " Read more Hmmmm… Draft Program is in flux. Consider all named individuals as "Invited yet to be confirmed". Alain
Calendar of Upcoming Events:s
7th Live Episode: Live on Zoom
Finally Doing It
Making the Big Decision:
It is worth the risk to deploy Driverless Mobility for ALL in an Operational Design Domain
noon ET, Thursday, Feb. 11
Video Summary of 1st Session: Setting the Stage


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[[Archivo:Les Monts-Dôme juillet 2006.jpg|thumb|200px|Vista de Chaîne des Puys.]]

La cadena de los Puys (), también llamada montes Dôme''' (), es un conjunto de aproximadamente 80 volcanes de Francia que se extienden a lo largo de   en la meseta de los Dômes en el norte del Macizo Central, en Francia. Está situada al oeste de Clermont-Ferrand, en el departamento de Puy-de-Dôme en la región de Auvernia-Ródano-Alpes.

Este conjunto forma parte de los volcanes de Auvernia, que a su vez forman parte del parque natural regional de los Volcanes de Auvernia, que puede atravesarse por un sendero de gran recorrido, el GR-4, que va desde el Atlántico hasta el Mediterráneo.

Asociada con la falla de Limagne, la cadena de los Puys fue inscrita el    en la lista de sitios naturales del Patrimonio de la Humanidad de la Unesco por la 42.ª sesión del Comité del Patrimonio Mundial, en tanto que «importante lugar tectónico»..

 Geografía
Orientada norte-sur corre paralela a la falla costera que limita el valle de Limagne al oeste; la cadena comprende un centenar de volcanes llamados puys.

Estos volcanes datan de la era cuaternaria; las primeras erupciones se produjeron hace unos 70.000 años aproximadamente, las más recientes se produjeron hace unos 8.000 años. Algunos de estos volcanes tienen cráteres, otros no.

Se encuentran tres tipos de volcanes:

 el tipo Estrómboli, el más frecuente de la cadena: el cono está formado por la acumulación de las escorias arrojadas (llamadas en la región pouzolane), en la cima se forma el cráter cuando la presión es excesiva: las coladas de lava son emitidas en forma de burbuja. Estas coladas pueden ser muy largas, dependiendo de la fluidez de la lava, algunas forman diques que entorpecen el discurrir de un río dando paso a la formación de lagos como, por ejemplo, el lago Aydat.

 el tipo peleano, se forma por la extrusión progresiva de una lava muy viscosa que se acumula en forma de cúpula. La cúpula puede explotar brutalmente liberando los gases: las fumarolas ardientes que se expanden por el horizonte rápidamente destruyéndolo todo a su paso. Algún cráter no es visible ya que, prácticamente, no hay coladas de lava que son, generalmente, muy viscosas. El Puy-de-Dôme es la cúpula más conocida de este tipo, aunque se encuentran otros, como el Puy Chopine o el Grand-Sarcouy.

 los maar que son unas depresiones en las que se ha formado un lago, son el resultado del hundimiento de una meseta a causa de una erupción freática, como por ejemplo, el gour de Tazenat.

En 1752, Jean-Étienne Guettard (1715-1786) determinó la naturaleza de estos montes con forma de toperas. Tras muchas controversias, Guillaume-Chrétien de Lamoignon de Malesherbes atribuyó, definitivamente, la paternidad de este descubrimiento a Jean-Étienne.

En el centro, dominando a todos sus compañeros, se halla el Puy-de-Dôme, con 1464 m de altitud, elevándose unos 600 metros por encima de la meseta (de unos 800 m de altitud) sobre la que se encuentran todos los demás (los otros no superan los 200 metros de altura). Los otros picos son, de norte a sur:

El lago-cráter de gour de Tazenat, el pico de Montiroir, pico de Chalard, pico de Beaunit, pico de Verrière, pico de Paugnat, pico de la Goulie, pico de Lespinasse, pico de la Nugère, pico de Louchardière, pico de Jumes, los puys des Gouttes y Chopine, puy de Lempteguy, pico de la Coquille, pico de Chaumont, Petit-Sarcouy, el Grand-Sarcouy, pico des Goules, pico de Pariou, Cliersou, pico de Côme, el Grand Suchet , el petit Suchet, petit puy de Dôme, pico Besace, pico Grosmanaux, pico Montchier, pico de Barme, pico de Larchamps, pico Mercœur, los picos de Lassolas y la Vache, pico de Charmont, pico de la Rodde, pico de Monténard...

Un poco más al Este, cerca de Royat se encuentra el pico de Gravenoire, justo al borde la falla.

El Centro Europeo del Volcanismo Vulcania es una iniciativa llevada a cabo en el 2002 por Valéry Giscard d'Estaing, mientras fue presidente de la región de Auvernia. Esta decisión fue muy criticada, especialmente por los ecologistas, debido al lugar escogido: el centro mismo de la cadena de montañas, así como el coste de la fundación. Vulcania'' atrajo, en 2004, a unos 420.000 visitantes, pero es una cifra ridícula teniendo en cuenta que el déficit neto de la explotación se eleva a 1.707 M€.

Al sudoeste de esta cadena de montañas de volcanes que data de la era cuaternaria, se puede ver, a lo lejos, otro macizo volcánico: la cadena de los Montes Dore y los montes del Cantal que datan de la era terciaria

Referencias

Enlaces externos

 (en francés)  Les Volcans d'Auvergne
 (en francés) Página oficial de la chaîne des Puys

Macizo Central Francia
Geografía de Auvernia-Ródano-Alpes
Geografía del departamento de Puy-de-Dôme
Patrimonio de la Humanidad en Francia

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


The Melbourne International Comedy Festival began on a small scale in 1987 but over the following three decades has grown to include more than 500 events, more than 7000 performances in more than 150 venues across the city.
Along with its peers in Edinburgh and Montreal, the Melbourne International Comedy Festival is one of the biggest comedy events in the world and has now spread internationally with regular touring shows in Asia. We spoke to the executive director Damien Hodgkinson about the major growth factors that have taken the festival to such heights.
Once the festival started it was evident that there were not enough affordable venues in Melbourne. Taking inspiration from the festival in Edinburgh, the organisers developed a string of non-traditional performance spaces.
Then and now, there is a wide range of venues available, some with as few as 30 seats and others with almost 1500. Some of these venues are long established on the festival scene and much of that is because of comedy. The Melbourne Town Hall, for instance, is one of the major spaces that has been used for decades by the event organisers and acts as a hub for the festival.
The difference between the Melbourne International Comedy Festival and other festivals is that important word 'international'. While other cities might be incredibly proud of their own shows and festivals, few have the appeal of Melbourne's festival outside their own borders.
From early on, the festival has worked with Australian broadcasters which has helped promote its reputation. This has helped attract leading comedians which drives attendance.
Nowadays, these broadcasts go out on social media to help audiences keep up to date more easily.
Obviously, the better the shows the more likely people are to buy tickets. With no national program for comedians to hone their skills, Melbourne International Comedy Festival has played an active role in developing Australia's comedy industry and supports emerging talent.
Almost all of the major names in Australian comedy have been involved with Melbourne International Comedy Festival's development programs at some point, and the results are that the industry and the festival have benefited.
As well as this, the festival has created programs to help develop new talent. RAW Comedy is the country's largest comedy open mic competition, Class Clowns aims to help school students get an experience on the big stage and Deadly Funny is a competition for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Australians.
As the festival has grown, it's moved into new areas. At first, it put on a roadshow across Australia, but then it looked to go overseas and started putting on tours in Asia.
It isn't unusual for the large festivals to go outside their own cities, but Melbourne took a different approach to where it spread than others. Looking at the makeup of Melbourne's population, the organisers have pushed out to Singapore, China (Hong Kong), Malaysia and India to reflect those communities in the city. There is a growing program to present comedians from across the region as part of the annual Melbourne International Comedy Festival. There are more than 350,000 members in Melbourne's Chinese community, 34% of Australian's Malaysian migrants live in Melbourne and 3% of Melbourne's population is of Indian descent.


I'm crouching in the dark. I have a flashlight, but I dare not turn it on. I'm trying to keep quiet, and huddle close to my inadequate cover. I can hear the creature growl softly as it gets closer. Will it see me? I don't dare look, because I know I'll panic and it will be on me in an instant. I steal quick glances at it, then huddle behind the crate to calm down, like a kid hiding under a blanket from the monster under the bed.
Is it a dog? It's might be some kind of a dog. I dare not face it. Maybe it was a dog … once. I don't know what it is now.
I don't dare move. The sound of its feet stops. It sniffs the air and growls softly, a bit like a dog, but something is very… wrong about the sound. It snuffles and I think I hear it move away. I steal a terrified glance. It's moving away from me now. I creep as fast as I dare into a cross tunnel, and head for where I think the store-rooms are. Anywhere is better than here, right?


Hugh Young studied politics at the University of Exeter before entering the investment industry. He first worked at MGM Assurance and Fidelity before joining Aberdeen Investment Management in 1985. In 1988, he was put in charge of the Aberdeen Global Asia Pacific Equity Fund, which he still runs. Four years later, he moved to Singapore to set up Aberdeen's Asian office, and has stayed there ever since.
Young looks for high-quality companies with a sustainable competitive advantage. He places a great deal of emphasis on good corporate governance and the fair treatment of minority shareholders – these are often bigger problems in emerging markets than developed ones. He avoids strategically overambitious or heavily indebted firms.
A $1,000 sum invested in the Aberdeen Global Asia Pacific Equity fund at its inception in April 1988 would now be worth $17,200 – an annual return of almost exactly 10%. By contrast, the MSCI Asia Pacific Equity index (excluding Japan) has risen 1,038% in three decades, a yearly return of 8.5%. Aberdeen's Asian assets under management rose 200-fold to $75.5bn between 1992 and 2016.
What were his best trades?
In the late 1990s, Young bought into the Indonesian subsidiary of the global goods company Unilever. Over the past two decades, the investment has returned over 12,284% compared with only 770% (both in US dollar terms) for the Jakarta Composite Index. This works out to an annual return of 27.6% for Unilever, as opposed to 11.6% for the Indonesian market. Samsung Electonics, the Korea consumer-goods giant, is another of his winners. It shares have returned a total of 11,162% (also measured in dollar terms) during the same period.
Young says that investors need to assess whether a company has the culture and ethos to be a long-term success, instead of just focusing on the numbers. Effective companies are about people working well together, not just assets. Avoid firms that you don't understand or that look too good to be true.


About The Story: The plan was for Sonia and Jack to meet at Belinda's house so that they could take their relationship to the next level. Belinda was okay with it as her father was going to be away for the evening. The plans were set and Sonia went to her friend's house as planned. Jack showed up on time as well and they got things started.
Everything changed when Mr. Carter returned home early. She and Jack were in deep trouble. Mr. Carter had other things in mind. Would she accept his proposal or face the consequences of her actions when he phoned her parents.


text:
News On Iran & Its NeighboursIraqUS to allow families to see Iranians held in...
US to allow families to see Iranians held in Iraq
AFP: The US military will allow family members to visit seven suspected Iranian agents who have been detained in Iraq, spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Chris Garver said Sunday.
BAGHDAD, May 6, 2007 (AFP) – The US military will allow family members to visit seven suspected Iranian agents who have been detained in Iraq, spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Chris Garver said Sunday.
He would not say when the visit would take place, although an Iranian spokesman had earlier said that this could be before the end of the week.
After talking with the Iraqi government and the International Committee of the Red Cross, the military "agreed to allow the family members to see the seven Qods Force members in detention," Garver said.
The Qods Force is a covert arm of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard which has been accused by US commanders of supplying weapons and training to extremist groups involved in the Iraqi conflict.
Tehran insists the detainees are diplomats and has demanded their release.
In January, American commandos arrested five Iranians who were working at an Iranian office in the northern Iraqi city of Arbil. It is still not clear where and when the two other Iranians were captured.
Previous articleIran minimises brief US encounter
Next articleIran nuclear talks "very difficult" -EU's Solana
Iran General News September 2, 2008
Al-Arabiya bureau chief says told to leave Iran
AFP: The head of the Tehran bureau of pan-Arab...
Iran General News January 4, 2011
Iran: Scientist tortured after return, web site says
New York Times: An Iranian nuclear scientist who said...


text:
Things to DoGuides
Family Labor Day Events in Metro Detroit and Ann Arbor
Ring in the school year and kiss summer goodbye at one of these Labor Day events happening in Macomb, Oakland, Washtenaw and Wayne counties in 2021.
By Christina Clark
Photo credit: Fifth Third Michigan State Fair
In just a few more weeks, your kids will be running down the street after a yellow cheese wagon that will take them into the next school year.
But before you send your kids off into the world of early mornings, books and busses that is the school year, get in one more summertime celebration.
This Labor Day weekend, Macomb, Oakland, Washtenaw and Wayne counties offer tons of festivals, fairs, parades, concerts and carnivals that will really end your summer with a bang.
Check out this list of summer kiss-offs and choose one or two Labor Day events to hit up before the school year kicks back in and don't forget to check our roundup of September festivals to find family fun through the end of the month.
Michigan Renaissance Festival
Aug. 21-Oct. 3, 2021
Address: Hollygrove Grounds, 12600 Dixie Highway, Holly
Times: 10 a.m.-7 p.m. (Saturdays-Sundays; plus, Labor Day on Sept. 6 and Festival Friday on Oct. 1)
The 16th century comes to life, from the scenery to the clothing, at this annual festival. Each weekend features a different theme, in addition to the traditional jousting competitions, costumed characters, puppet performances and other events that this fest is known for.
Saline Community Fair
Sept. 1-6, 2021
Address: Washtenaw Farm Council Grounds, 5055 Ann Arbor-Saline Road, Saline
Times: 10 a.m.-7:30 p.m. Wednesday-Thursday, 9 a.m.-8 p.m. Friday, 10 a.m.-9 p.m. Saturday, 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Sunday
Bring your kiddos for a day full of fun rides, entertainment and healthy activities; plus car and tractor shows, live animals on display and more.
Michigan State Fair
Sept.2-6, 2021
Address: Suburban Collection Showplace, 46100 Grand River Ave., Novi
Times: 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Thursday-Friday, 10 a.m.-10 p.m. Saturday-Sunday and 10 a.m.-9 p.m. Monday
This Michigan tradition has been bringing families together for more than 160 years, and features circus performances under the big top along with family-favorite events like livestock exhibits, vendor booths, live entertainment, a midway full of games and rides, yummy carnival food, shopping, art on display and much more.
Romeo Peach Festival
Address: Romeo Lions Field, 269 E. Washington St., Romeo
Times: 10 a.m.-11 p.m. Thursday, 10 a.m.-midnight Friday, 8 a.m.-midnight Saturday, 7:45 a.m.-midnight Sunday and 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday
This annual Macomb County fest has carnival rides, craft shows, peach treats and more.
Arts, Beats & Eats
Address: Downtown Royal Oak area
Times: 11 a.m.-11 p.m. Friday-Sunday and 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Monday
This annual event features all of the best art, music and food that southeast Michigan has to offer; plus games, carnival rides a kids' area and more.
Detroit Jazz Festival
Address: Virtual event
Times: Varies, check ahead
This annual fest spans four days and will be virtual again this year. It features hundreds of jazz performances, jazz talks and jam sessions. Watch on their website, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
Franklin's Art in the Village
Address: Downtown Franklin area
Times: 10 a.m.-5 p.m.
This annual art fair features tons of pottery, glass, jewelry and other artwork by more than 75 artists on display and runs as part of the annual Franklin Labor Day Roundup.
Labor Day Roundup in Downtown Franklin
Time: 10 a.m.-4 p.m.
This annual offers a parade (at noon), art fair, midway games, inflatables, petting zoo, a magician, a car show and more.
New Baltimore Art on the Bay
Address: Walter & Mary Burke Park, 36300 Front St., New Baltimore
Times: 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday-Sunday
This annual two-day fine arts and craft show sets up on the banks of Lake St. Clair and features tons of paintings, drawings, sculptures, candles and other artwork on display, plus music and more.
Hamtramck Labor Day Festival
Address: Downtown Hamtramck area
Times: Noon-10 p.m. daily
This annual festival is back after a year hiatus. Enjoy a carnival, music, food, wrestling and canoe races.
Labor Day Bridge Walk
Sept. 6-12, 2021
Times: Varies
Go at your own pace for this annual event that is virtual this year. Fun for all ages. Register online for a free t-shirt.
This post was originally published in 2017 and is updated regularly.
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Free Kid-Friendly Events in Metro Detroit and Ann Arbor
Metro Parent Editorial - January 19, 2022
Searching for free things to do in southeast Michigan? Find great budget-friendly family fun in Livingston, Oakland, Macomb, Washtenaw and Wayne counties.
Lunar New Year Celebrations in Metro Detroit and Ann Arbor
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Looking to introduce your kids to this cultural event? This year, the Spring festival falls on Feb. 1, 2022, and there are many celebrations to enjoy.