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Hog Bend
Rustic Seclusion
About Hog Bend
Lastly there's Hog Bend - a rustic community secluded with water access only. Seriously. Hog Bend has a charm all its own and is located on PK's southern side just west of Possum Kingdom Lake's famous landmark, Hell's Gate. Forget about people stopping by uninvited!
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The Grade II listed building is nothing short of grandeur and the perfect place for those wanting a romantic wedding or a debaucherous weekend away from prying eyes.
Just two hours from London lies a stunning wedding venue come country retreat that is increasingly becoming the go-to for brides who want the ultimate discretion on their big day.
Tucked away in the rolling countryside of Tiverton, Devon, boasts Huntsham Court a sprawling Victorian estate that houses up to 80 guests across 40 bedrooms.
Accessed only through a private driveway, the Grade II listed building is nothing short of grandeur and the perfect place for those wanting a romantic wedding or a debaucherous weekend away from prying eyes.
Owners Damian and Chris bought Huntsham Court after failing to find their dream venue for their wedding day, and following a costly renovation, blood sweat and tears; the property now functions as both their home and wedding venue.
With a chapel and a priest just a stone's throw away, a dry bar, and no corkage fee, it's no wonder the venue has already seen 50 percent of it's 2020 availability snapped up already.
The interiors are nothing short of impressive, and upon entering you are immediately transported back in time, with the couple restoring some of the property's original features.
One of the many bedrooms even features wallpaper that's stood the test of time from when the estate was originally built 150 years ago.
Majestic halls with lofty ceilings guide you through the property, while tall windows flood each of the bedrooms with natural light, and views that overlook the stunning gardens.
The Great Hall is a place for socialising around the log fire, under the gaze of Victorian portraits and the huge stag head mounted on the wall.
Meanwhile, the Drawing Room makes a perfect spot for afternoon tea or a cocktail reception, while the library is also a place to relax with one of the antique books lining its shelves.
Other places to explore include a gentlemen's club-style bar decorated with taxidermy on the walls adorned in a bottle green, plus a garden with croquet lawn, children's play area and tennis courts.
The grand dining room seats 40 people around a long table quite comfortably for an intimate dinner - while some of the other spaces are available to use for a larger wedding reception.
When it comes to the bedrooms there are no short straws to be drawn here, as each bedroom is large in size and has it's own unique characteristic.
The first floor features traditional period rooms with names such as The Duke and Duchess, Beryl's Boudoir and Lady Susan. Some featuring dark mahogany furniture and four poster beds, supersize king beds or twin beds.
What's more, all rooms - bar two - are ensuite featuring at most a stand alone bath tub in addition to a power shower.
The Douglas room's twin baths makes it perfect for honeymooner's, while the huge loft room has enough beds to fit your groomsmen or bridesmaids.
Huntsham Court is hired on a self-catering basis, with many guests opting for local caterers The Devon Pantry and Peter Mundy catering to rustle up dishes using locally sourced ingredients.
However, with access to a large kitchen and a pantry, it's easy enough to make you're own homemade dishes like you would at home.
As far as activities go, it's whatever your budget can afford with options ranging from floristry lessons from the local Miranda Hackett Flowers and wine tasting from Bray Valley Wines.
Huntsham Court costs from £14,920 for two nights' exclusive weekend hire (on a self-catering basis) with 19 of 34 bedrooms (sleeping 44 plus six infants) available for use. While that might seem steep it actually works out as £105pp per night.
So if you're looking to do things in your own way - and without any noise complaints if you're wedding party is rowdy, then Huntsham Court is a must.


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text:
Technology assessment of automated atlas based segmentation in prostate bed contouring
Jeremiah Hwee1,
Alexander V Louie2,
Stewart Gaede3,
Glenn Bauman2,
David D'Souza2,
Tracy Sexton2,
Michael Lock2,
Belal Ahmad2 &
George Rodrigues1,2
Prostate bed (PB) contouring is time consuming and associated with inter-observer variability. We evaluated an automated atlas-based segmentation (AABS) engine in its potential to reduce contouring time and inter-observer variability.
An atlas builder (AB) manually contoured the prostate bed, rectum, left femoral head (LFH), right femoral head (RFH), bladder, and penile bulb of 75 post-prostatectomy cases to create an atlas according to the recent RTOG guidelines. 5 other Radiation Oncologists (RO) and the AABS contoured 5 new cases. A STAPLE contour for each of the 5 patients was generated. All contours were anonymized and sent back to the 5 RO to be edited as clinically necessary. All contouring times were recorded. The dice similarity coefficient (DSC) was used to evaluate the unedited- and edited- AABS and inter-observer variability among the RO. Descriptive statistics, paired t-tests and a Pearson correlation were performed. ANOVA analysis using logit transformations of DSC values was calculated to assess inter-observer variability.
The mean time for manual contours and AABS was 17.5- and 14.1 minutes respectively (p = 0.003). The DSC results (mean, SD) for the comparison of the unedited-AABS versus STAPLE contours for the PB (0.48, 0.17), bladder (0.67, 0.19), LFH (0.92, 0.01), RFH (0.92, 0.01), penile bulb (0.33, 0.25) and rectum (0.59, 0.11). The DSC results (mean, SD) for the comparison of the edited-AABS versus STAPLE contours for the PB (0.67, 0.19), bladder (0.88, 0.13), LFH (0.93, 0.01), RFH (0.92, 0.01), penile bulb (0.54, 0.21) and rectum (0.78, 0.12). The DSC results (mean, SD) for the comparison of the edited-AABS versus the expert panel for the PB (0.47, 0.16), bladder (0.67, 0.18), LFH (0.83, 0.18), RFH (0.83, 0.17), penile bulb (0.31, 0.23) and rectum (0.58, 0.09). The DSC results (mean, SD) for the comparison of the STAPLE contours and the 5 RO are PB (0.78, 0.15), bladder (0.96, 0.02), left femoral head (0.87, 0.19), right femoral head (0.87, 0.19), penile bulb (0.70, 0.17) and the rectum (0.89, 0.06). The ANOVA analysis suggests inter-observer variability among at least one of the 5 RO (p value = 0.002).
The AABS tool results in a time savings, and when used to generate auto-contours for the femoral heads, bladder and rectum had superior to good spatial overlap. However, the generated auto-contours for the prostate bed and penile bulb need improvement.
Radiotherapy as an adjunct to radical prostatectomy for prostate cancer with adverse features such as pT3 and margin positive disease has established benefits of reduced disease recurrence and improved clinical outcomes [1]. Increasingly, prostate bed radiotherapy is being delivered with intensity modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) and/or image-guided radiotherapy (IGRT) which have both facilitated dose escalation to target tissues while sparing adjacent normal structures. This has improved the therapeutic ratio. However, these advanced technologies require the radiation oncologist to have a comprehensive understanding of cross sectional anatomy as compared to conventionally planned treatment (based on skeletal landmarks) for the accurate delineation and dose coverage of target volumes and organs at risk (OARs) [2]. Inadequate coverage of the prostate bed has been demonstrated to lead to an increased risk of local recurrence [3].
Significant levels of inter- and intra-observer variability in target volume delineation (TVD) has been repeatedly demonstrated in prostate cancer radiotherapy [4–7]. In fact, it has been argued that inter-observer TVD variability is the most significant contributor to uncertainty in radiation treatment planning [8]. A recent development in Radiation Oncology is the use of automated atlas-based segmentation (AABS) algorithms to aid in TVD. AABS is a computer-assisted tool that utilizes an algorithm that resamples local data to automatically outline the structures of interest to be irradiated. AABS algorithms have the potential to address the variability and time-intensive problems associated with manual contouring.
As with most technologies that are rapidly being introduced into Radiation Oncology practice, the evaluation of AABS in the form of traditional clinical trials can be costly and is likely unfeasible [9]. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the accuracy, reliability and potential time-savings of an AABS. Secondly, we assessed inter- and intra-observer variability in the delineation of the post-prostatectomy clinical target volume (CTV) (prostate bed) and relevant organs at risk (OARs).
Eighty post-prostatectomy patients planned for adjuvant or salvage radiotherapy from January to December 2009 were randomly selected as part of this University of Western Ontario Research Ethics Board approved study. All patients were scanned in the supine position, from L4 to the ischial tuberosities. The computed tomography (CT) images were saved according to the Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine (DICOM) standards of practice. For all three stages of this protocol, physicians were asked to contour the prostate bed and OARs (bladder, rectum, penile bulb, bilateral femora) according to the recently published Radiation Therapy Oncology Group (RTOG) guidelines for post-prostatectomy radiotherapy [2].
In the first stage of the protocol (Figure 1), 75 patients were randomly selected to be the sample for the atlas building process. A multi-atlas segmentation approach was utilized (MIM Version 5.2, MIMVista Corp, Cleveland, Ohio) as opposed to a single-atlas segmentation approach. In a single atlas approach, only one patient is inserted into the atlas and therefore the algorithm extracts information from one subject to generate the automated contour. In a multi-atlas method, a database of pre-contoured medical images is scanned to select the most similar atlas subject based on the shape of the specified anatomical sites. Multi-atlas methods are typically used over the single atlas approach because of the improved ability to account for the large variability of anatomical regions among patients [10].
Stage I-Atlas Building Process Map.
The atlas builder (GR) manually contoured an index case and inserted the contoured CT image into the atlas. A second patient was randomly selected to have the MIM atlas-based segmentation engine generate an automated contour. Since the index case was the only possible match in the atlas, the algorithm selected the index case as the best match. The pre-contoured CT image is then deformably registered onto the patient's empty CT image. The atlas pre-contoured CTV and the five OARs were warped and transformed onto the CT to create a tailored automated contour. The elapsed time for these first three steps was recorded. The auto-contour for the prostate bed, bladder, left and right femoral head, penile bulb and rectum was edited by the atlas builder according to the RTOG guidelines. The time required to edit the CTV and each of the five OARs was recorded. The final contours were then added to the atlas database, totaling two atlas subjects. The atlas builder repeated these steps for the remaining 73 patients that were selected at random. Once the atlas was completed, a second investigator (AVL) audited the final contours to ensure all contours complied with the RTOG consensus guidelines for the delineation of the prostate bed. Thus at the completion of stage I, the AABS engine had 75 reference cases with RTOG compliant segmentation for the generation of automated contours in stages II and III.
In stage two of the protocol (Figure 2), five Genitourinary Radiation Oncologists that routinely delineate prostate bed cases at our institution (institutional "expert panel") contoured the remaining 5 cases. Each member from the expert panel was instructed to delineate according to the RTOG guidelines and to record the total contouring time from de novo to completion. OARs were pre-labeled on the Philips Pinnacle planning system with a fixed zoom and a standardized window/level setting was applied to decrease the chance of bias and incorrect contouring. Data were gathered from the expert panel to create the simultaneous truth and performance level estimation (STAPLE) contours for each prostate bed CTV and OAR. STAPLE is an expected maximization algorithm that computes a probabilistic estimate of the true segmentation by weighing each segmentation on its estimated performance level and can be used to generate reference ("gold standard") or consensus volumes among multi-observer datasets for comparison purposes where a true gold standard may be difficult or impossible to define otherwise [11]. In parallel with creating STAPLE contours, AABS were generated for the prostate bed CTV and the five OARs in the remaining five patients. Inter-observer variability (see statistical analysis below) was assessed and baseline measurements were established to assess intra-observer variability for the third and final stage of this investigation.
Stage II-Assessment of the automated atlas-based segmentations and inter-observer variability.
In stage three of this protocol (Figure 3), a set of 20 anonymized contours consisting of a strategic sample of the physician's own, the atlas builder's, AABS, and STAPLE contours (gathered from stage two) were sent to each member of the expert panel for review four weeks after the completion of stage two. They were each instructed to 1) identify the source of each contour (own, other physician, STAPLE, AABS), 2) determine if the contours were clinically acceptable or unacceptable, and 3) record the time required to edit the contours.
Stage III: Validation of the automated atlas-based segmentation process.
The SAS (SAS Institute Inc, North Carolina, USA) and StructSure (Standard Imaging Inc, Wisconsin, USA) were used to perform all the statistical analyses. The dice similarity coefficient (DSC) is a simple spatial overlap index that is defined as:
V 1 , V 2 = 2 V 1 ∩ V 2 ∕ V 1 + V 2
where V1 and V2 represent the volumes of the first and the second contours respectively and ∩ is the intersection. As the DSC in contouring studies generally do not follow a normal distribution, a logit transformation was performed to allow for appropriate statistical inferences.
Statistical Analysis Stage One: Atlas Building
Descriptive statistics and Pearson correlation coefficients were calculated to explore the performance and efficiency of the AABS tool (DSC and contour generation time as a function of number of patients in the atlas). The calculated DSC compared the initial, unedited-AABS to the version edited by the atlas builder to gain insights on the performance of the AABS. One-way quintile ANOVA assessed the contouring time in relation to the number of patients in the atlas. Shapiro-Wilk test for normal distribution was performed on the calculated DSC. Quintile ANOVA using logit(DSC) assessed the performance of the AABS engine to generate RTOG compliant segmentations for every 15 patients added to the atlas. Bonferroni correction was used to adjust for multiplicity in the quintile comparisons.
Statistical Analysis Stage Two: Assessment of the AABS and Inter-observer Variability
The DSC was calculated to compare the AABS, expert panel members ("observers") and the atlas builder. Descriptive statistics were calculated to illustrate overall inter-observer variability. Shapiro-Wilk test for normal distribution was performed on the calculated DSC. One-way analysis of variance was performed using logit(DSC) to test for inter-observer variability in the delineation of the CTV and five OARs among the expert panel. Two-way analysis of variance was performed modeling the effects of the observer and patient on logit(DSC) values for the CTV and five OARs, and the effects of the observer and patient on the contouring time.
Statistical Analysis Stage Three: Validation of the Automated Atlas-Based Segmentations
The DSC was calculated for a number of spatial overlap comparisons to determine the convergence of the edited automated contours towards the gold standard and intra-observer variability in the delineation of the CTV and five OARs. Descriptive statistics was calculated to describe the performance of the AABS engine using DSC and the total contouring time for human observers and non-human raters. A paired t-test was performed to assess differences in the time required to edit the auto-contours and the de novo manual contouring time.
Attempts to Minimize Bias
Four measures were taken to minimize bias. The first attempt to eliminate bias occurred at the construction of the RTOG atlas stage through the appraisal of the edited contours by a second radiation oncology expert to ensure compliance. Calculating the DSC between the atlas builder and STAPLE generated consensus contours at stage two to evaluate the appropriateness of that particular radiation oncologist as the atlas builder was the second attempt to minimize bias. Sending the expert panel the anonymized blinded dataset to be assessed in stage three was used as another attempt to minimize bias. In stage three the expert panel was blinded as to the source of the contours in assessing intra-observer variability to hopefully prevent any bias the expert panel may have had if they knew the creator of the contour. Finally, waiting four weeks after the expert panel finished stage two before sending the anonymized data set to the expert panel to be reviewed was designed to prevent the members from recalling their own contours.
In stage one, generating AABS for the 75 patients took an average of 108 seconds per patient (standard deviation, SD = 25 seconds, range 68 to 200 seconds). ANOVA suggested no improvements in auto-contouring time as the number of subjects increased in the atlas (p value = 0.28). The mean (SD) for the auto-contouring time for quintile 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 were 103 (37), 97 (11), 109 (27), 114 (23) and 115 (22) seconds, respectively (p = 0.282 between quintiles).
The mean (SD) time for the atlas builder to edit the automated contours were: 154 seconds (71 seconds) for the prostate bed, 156 seconds (79 seconds) for the bladder, 125 seconds (80 seconds) for the left femoral head, 97 seconds (61 seconds) for the right femoral head, 19 seconds (9 seconds) for the penile bulb and 149 seconds (65 seconds) for the rectum. The DSC was calculated to compare the edited auto-contours by the atlas builder to the initial auto-contours generated by the AABS tool. The mean (SD) DSC for the CTV and the OARs was 0.65 (0.16) for the prostate bed, 0.73 (0.18) for the bladder, 0.95 (0.04) for the left femoral head, 0.96 (0.04) for the right femoral head, 0.60 (0.28) for the penile bulb and 0.68 (0.13) for the rectum. Table 1 illustrates the descriptive statistics for the quintile analysis (n = 15 per group) for every 15 patients added to the atlas for each OAR and the CTV to evaluate the performance of the AABS as more subjects are added.
Table 1 The ability of the automated atlas-based segmentation tool to generate segmentations compliant with the consensus guidelines as more subjects are added to the atlas
In stage two, five new subjects were used to test the performance of the atlas and inter-observer variability (Figure 4). Table 2 illustrates the DSCs evaluating the MIM generated auto-contours against STAPLE (estimated truth) and the expert panel as well as inter-observer variability among the Radiation Oncologists. The MIM AABS tool had higher mean DSC when compared to the STAPLE than compared to the observers for the CTV and all OAR. The variability in the DSC seen in the comparisons between the auto-contours versus STAPLE and the auto-contours versus the expert panel for the prostate bed, bladder, penile bulb and the rectum regions are comparable.
Axial and Sagittal Computed Tomography Image Demonstrating Individual Contours From the Expert Panel. Colors: red represents the contours for the prostate bed; green represents the contours for the bladder; pink represents the contours for the left femoral head; yellow represents the contours for the right femoral head; royal blue represents the contours for the rectum; and teal represents the contours for the penile bulb.
Table 2 DSCs of the CTV and ROIs, assessing auto-contours and inter-observer variability
The spatial overlap between the atlas builder and STAPLE was calculated to determine if the atlas builder contours the CTV and ROI as the community of radiation oncologists would contour these regions. The mean DSC (SD, range) was 0.93 (0.03, 0.90-0.96) for the prostate bed, 0.97 (0.01, 0.95-0.99) for the bladder, 0.96 (0.01, 0.95-0.98) for the left femoral head, 0.97 (0.01, 0.95-0.98) for the right femoral head, 0.84 (0.07, 0.75-0.94) for the penile bulb and 0.94 (0.02, 0.92-0.96) for the rectum.
One-way ANOVA on DSC between Radiation Oncologists was performed to evaluate inter-observer variability. At least one observer significantly differed from the other observers when contouring the prostate bed (p value = 0.002), left femoral head (p value < 0.001) and right femoral head (p value < 0.001). There was no significant difference among observers when contouring the bladder, penile bulb and the rectum. Two-way ANOVA modeling the effects of the observer and patient on the DSC was performed. This revealed significant differences in the delineation of the prostate bed, (p < 0.001). Observer and patient differences significantly predicted for variability in DSC for prostate bed (p < 0.001, p = 0.006) and bladder (p = 0.002, p < 0.001). Variability in right and left femoral heads DSC was significantly dependent on the observer only (both p < 0.001), while variability in rectum and penile bulb delineation was dependent on patient factors (p < 0.001). Another two-way ANOVA analysis modeling the effects of the observers and patients on the contouring time was performed. The full two-way model for the contouring time was significant (p < 0.001) with both the observers (p < 0.001) and the patients (p < 0.001) having a significant effect on the contouring time.
With regards to stage three, Table 2 displays the results of the DSC comparing the edited-auto-contours by the expert panel to the STAPLE. The highest spatial overlap was seen in the left femoral head and the right femoral head, while the lowest spatial overlap was seen in the penile bulb. The second lowest spatial overlap was seen in the prostate bed. These results are consistent with those seen in stage two that compared the unedited auto-contours to STAPLE.
The expert panel was sent an anonymized representative contour sets generated by another expert panel member, the AABS, the STAPLE algorithm. Prior to any editing of the stage two contours by the observers, the observers were asked if the contours were acceptable. Of the 100 cases distributed, 78% of the human contours, 96% of the STAPLE contours, and 12% of the MIM auto-contours were considered clinically acceptable. The expert panel was also asked to identify the source of the contours. Out of the 50 non-human contours, 54% were correctly identified while out of the 50 human contours, 70% was correctly identified. The probability that a Radiation Oncologist was able to properly identify his own contours was 56%.
The panel members were asked to edit the contours as clinically necessary. There appeared to be little intra-observer variability among the edited contours among the expert panel. The penile bulb had the lowest mean DSC at 0.89 (0.04, 0.84-0.98) which is still considered to be good spatial overlap. The remaining OARs intra-observer variability DSC were: prostate bed 0.94 (0.04, 0.84-0.98), bladder 0.98 (0.01, 0.96-0.99), left femoral head 0.97 (0.01, 0.96-0.99), right femoral head 0.97 (0.01, 0.95-0.99), and rectum 0.94 (0.04, 0.80-0.98).
The mean (SD) contouring time for all five cases for the edited auto-contouring time and the manual contouring time was 14.1 minutes (8.4 minutes) and 17.5 minutes (5.4 minutes) respectively, equating to an average 24% time reduction when using the AABS tool. A paired t-test comparing the times of the edited auto-contouring to the manual contouring time showed significant difference in contouring times (p value = 0.003).
Inter-observer variability in segmentation (targets and organs at risk) may be the most significant contributor to uncertainty in radiation treatment planning [8]. We have shown that even with the use of consensus guidelines, inter-observer variability still exists. With these findings, it is important to continue to address the variability challenges. Computerized contouring aids can potentially reduce this variability and increase efficiency in the segmentation workflow and AABS is one such tool. This was the first study to evaluate automated atlas based segmentations for the prostate bed. In this study we evaluated and validated contours created by atlas-based segmentation engines in the context of segmentation of post-prostatectomy radiotherapy planning CT datasets. In the context of this study, only 12% of the unedited contours generated by the AABS were found to be clinically acceptable by the expert panel. Specifically, while the AABS tool appears to reasonably delineate the femoral heads, bladder and rectum, the delineation of the prostate bed and penile bulb were unacceptable. The edited-auto-contours for the femoral heads, bladder and rectum had superior to good spatial overlap when compared to the gold standard. However, the edited-auto-contours for the prostate bed and the penile bulb require improvement when compared to the gold standard. The penile bulb represents a small volume, and thus small variations in its contouring will result in a large change in DSC. In terms of the prostate bed our findings are not surprising given that AABS algorithms are typically developed to detect and segment intact structures and the prostate bed is a "virtual" target defined by boundaries of surrounding normal tissues based on known patterns of recurrence and expert opinion rather than a discrete structure.
The inherent difficulty in defining the "virtual" prostate bed target is reflected in the presence of inter-observer variability in the delineation of the prostate bed and has been repeatedly demonstrated in the literature [2–4, 12, 13]. This variability appears to persist even despite the use of rigorous contouring protocols and guidelines [12, 14–16]. Symon et al., in their study of prostate bed contouring variability, defined a high-risk volume, which on average is missed in 27.5% (range, 2.3%-78.7%) of cases. At least 25% of the high-risk volume at the bladder neck anastomosis and the retro-vesical space was excluded in 11 out of 38 CTVs [13]. Our study found that intra-observer variability was a smaller source of TVD error than inter-observer variability, consistent with the literature [3, 17]. Wiltshire et al. quantified TVD variability using a distance-based approach, and found consistent inter-observer variability within the anterioposterior and superioinferior dimensions measuring a mean (SD) distance between contours of 3.8 mm (2.2 mm) and 1.2 mm (2.3 mm) respectively. The main source of the intra-observer variability in this study was in the anterior-posterior dimension measuring a mean (SD) distance between contours of 0.4 mm (1.2 mm).
The use of AABS tools to delineate OARs for other cancer disease sites including head and neck [10], breast [18], and endometrium [19] have been shown to reduce TVD variability and the total time required to contour; in our study the main benefit of the AABS was in decreasing the amount of time for contouring through editing of the auto contours rather than requiring de novo generation of contours.
The conclusions of this study need to be considered in the context of its limitations. The 80 post-prostatectomy cases used from our institution may limit the applicability of the atlas to other practice groups. Incorporating all available patients into the atlas building process does have a drawback. While increasing the number of patients added to the atlas increases the potential to account for differences in anatomy post surgery, it is at the cost of computational time. The larger the atlas, the longer it will take the tool to search through the atlas to select the best match. Other studies used 10 patients [10] and one study that assessed the same AABS tool included 15 patients in their atlas [19]. We found no improvement in performance of the AABS when analyzed by quintile; suggesting a dataset of 15 patients may be sufficient to provide auto contours that are useful for subsequent editing/refinement.
This study's methodology builds on the available literature to improve the methodological strength. The strengths of the methodology include the use of consensus guidelines, anonymized datasets, the blinding of observers, the creation of a ground truth, and our specific measures to limit bias, especially with the comparison of the atlas builder to the ground truth. Except for our attempts to limit bias, this methodology is similar to that used in another study [20]. The differences are in the attempts to limit bias and the statistical analyses.
We recommend that the MIM AABS tool can be adopted for routine clinical use to generate auto-contours for the bilateral femoral heads with no editing required. For the bladder and rectum, the auto-contours require some editing by a Radiation Oncologist. Clinical use of the atlas requires a Radiation Oncologist to review and edit the auto-contours, in particular for OARs where the AABS underperforms such as the penile bulb and prostate bed CTV. The automated contouring workflow from a clinical perspective was shown to be significantly shorter than the manual contouring process. The methodology highlights the strengths and areas of improvement for AABS and systematically assesses the presence and amount of inter- and intra-observer variability. If contouring practices for CTVs and OARs converge with the adoption of contouring guidelines, AABS algorithms may be programmed in parallel with these guidelines to optimize how Radiation Oncologists delineate targets. Performing these tasks in a systematic manner through technological assessment as demonstrated in this paper is crucial to ensure the appropriate use of such tools in clinical practice. As the field of AABS advances, it becomes increasingly important to evaluate the accuracy and reliability of the atlas-based segmentations to garner empirical evidence to support the decision-making process prior to its adoption for routine clinical use.
Bolla M, Collette L: pT3N0M0 prostate cancer: a plea for adjuvant radiation. Nat Rev Urol. 2009, 6 (8): 410-412. 10.1038/nrurol.2009.103.
Michalski JM, Lawton C, El Naqa I, Ritter M, O'Meara E, Seider MJ, Lee WR, Rosenthal SA, Pisansky T, Catton C, et al: Development of RTOG consensus guidelines for the definition of the clinical target volume for postoperative conformal radiation therapy for prostate cancer. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. 2010, 76 (2): 361-368. 10.1016/j.ijrobp.2009.02.006.
Wiltshire KL, Brock KK, Haider MA, Zwahlen D, Kong V, Chan E, Moseley J, Bayley A, Catton C, Chung PW, et al: Anatomic boundaries of the clinical target volume (prostate bed) after radical prostatectomy. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. 2007, 69 (4): 1090-1099. 10.1016/j.ijrobp.2007.04.068.
Mitchell DM, Perry L, Smith S, Elliott T, Wylie JP, Cowan RA, Livsey JE, Logue JP: Assessing the effect of a contouring protocol on postprostatectomy radiotherapy clinical target volumes and interphysician variation. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. 2009, 75 (4): 990-993. 10.1016/j.ijrobp.2008.12.042.
Lawton CA, Michalski J, El-Naqa I, Kuban D, Lee WR, Rosenthal SA, Zietman A, Sandler H, Shipley W, Ritter M, et al: Variation in the definition of clinical target volumes for pelvic nodal conformal radiation therapy for prostate cancer. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. 2009, 74 (2): 377-382. 10.1016/j.ijrobp.2008.08.003.
Lawton CA, Michalski J, El-Naqa I, Buyyounouski MK, Lee WR, Menard C, O'Meara E, Rosenthal SA, Ritter M, Seider M: RTOG GU Radiation oncology specialists reach consensus on pelvic lymph node volumes for high-risk prostate cancer. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. 2009, 74 (2): 383-387. 10.1016/j.ijrobp.2008.08.002.
Livsey JE, Wylie JP, Swindell R, Khoo VS, Cowan RA, Logue JP: Do differences in target volume definition in prostate cancer lead to clinically relevant differences in normal tissue toxicity?. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. 2004, 60 (4): 1076-1081. 10.1016/j.ijrobp.2004.05.005.
Jameson MG, Holloway LC, Vial PJ, Vinod SK, Metcalfe PE: A review of methods of analysis in contouring studies for radiation oncology. J Med Imaging Radiat Oncol. 2010, 54 (5): 401-410. 10.1111/j.1754-9485.2010.02192.x.
Zietman A, Goitein M, Tepper JE: Technology evolution: is it survival of the fittest?. J Clin Oncol. 2010, 28 (27): 4275-4279. 10.1200/JCO.2010.29.4645.
Piper JW: Evaluation of An Intensity-Based Free-form Deformable Registration Algorithm. Medical Physics. 2007, 34 (6): 2353-2354.
Warfield SK, Zou KH, Wells WM: Simultaneous truth and performance level estimation (STAPLE): an algorithm for the validation of image segmentation. IEEE Trans Med Imaging. 2004, 23 (7): 903-921. 10.1109/TMI.2004.828354.
Ost P, De Meerleer G, Vercauteren T, De Gersem W, Veldeman L, Vandecasteele K, Fonteyne V, Villeirs G: Delineation of the Postprostatectomy Prostate Bed Using Computed Tomography: Interobserver Variability Following the EORTC Delineation Guidelines. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. 2011
Symon Z, Tsvang L, Wygoda M, Ben-Yoseph R, Corn BW, Poortmans P, Portnoy O, Pfeffer MR: An interobserver study of prostatic fossa clinical target volume delineation in clinical practice: are regions of recurrence adequately targeted?. Am J Clin Oncol. 2011, 34 (2): 145-149.
Miralbell R, Vees H, Lozano J, Khan H, Molla M, Hidalgo A, Linero D, Rouzaud M: Endorectal MRI assessment of local relapse after surgery for prostate cancer: A model to define treatment field guidelines for adjuvant radiotherapy in patients at high risk for local failure. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. 2007, 67 (2): 356-361. 10.1016/j.ijrobp.2006.08.079.
Poortmans P, Bossi A, Vandeputte K, Bosset M, Miralbell R, Maingon P, Boehmer D, Budiharto T, Symon Z, van den Bergh AC, et al: Guidelines for target volume definition in post-operative radiotherapy for prostate cancer, on behalf of the EORTC Radiation Oncology Group. Radiother Oncol. 2007, 84 (2): 121-127. 10.1016/j.radonc.2007.07.017.
Sidhom MA, Kneebone AB, Lehman M, Wiltshire KL, Millar JL, Mukherjee RK, Shakespeare TP, Tai KH: Post-prostatectomy radiation therapy: consensus guidelines of the Australian and New Zealand Radiation Oncology Genito-Urinary Group. Radiother Oncol. 2008, 88 (1): 10-19. 10.1016/j.radonc.2008.05.006.
Louie AV, Rodrigues G, Olsthoorn J, Palma D, Yu E, Yaremko B, Ahmad B, Aivas I, Gaede S: Inter-observer and intra-observer reliability for lung cancer target volume delineation in the 4D-CT era. Radiother Oncol. 2010, 95 (2): 166-171. 10.1016/j.radonc.2009.12.028.
Reed VK, Woodward WA, Zhang L, Strom EA, Perkins GH, Tereffe W, Oh JL, Yu TK, Bedrosian I, Whitman GJ, et al: Automatic segmentation of whole breast using atlas approach and deformable image registration. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. 2009, 73 (5): 1493-1500. 10.1016/j.ijrobp.2008.07.001.
Young AV, Wortham A, Wernick I, Evans A, Ennis RD: Atlas-based segmentation improves consistency and decreases time required for contouring postoperative endometrial cancer nodal volumes. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. 2011, 79 (3): 943-947. 10.1016/j.ijrobp.2010.04.063.
Stapleford LJ, Lawson JD, Perkins C, Edelman S, Davis L, McDonald MW, Waller A, Schreibmann E, Fox T: Evaluation of automatic atlas-based lymph node segmentation for head-and-neck cancer. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. 2010, 77 (3): 959-966. 10.1016/j.ijrobp.2009.09.023.
Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada
Jeremiah Hwee
& George Rodrigues
Department of Radiation Oncology, London Regional Cancer Program, London, Ontario, Canada
Alexander V Louie
, Glenn Bauman
, David D'Souza
, Tracy Sexton
, Michael Lock
, Belal Ahmad
Department of Medical Biophysics, University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada
Stewart Gaede
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Correspondence to George Rodrigues.
JH drafted the manuscript and performed the statistical calculations. AL coordinated participation in the study and assisted in manuscript preparation and drafting. GB, TS, DD, ML, and BA participated in the study. GR and SG conceived and coordinated the design of the study. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.
Hwee, J., Louie, A.V., Gaede, S. et al. Technology assessment of automated atlas based segmentation in prostate bed contouring. Radiat Oncol 6, 110 (2011) doi:10.1186/1748-717X-6-110
prostate bed
target volume delineation
contouring atlas


Being a police officer in the state of Oklahoma is one of the most rewarding careers anyone can have. Everyone respects police officers for many reasons, but the most well-known reason is the fact that everyday police officers put their lives on the line to protect and serve so many citizens in their community. So if you're interested in a job in law enforcement, we can definitely understand why. But there is plenty of things to consider when making a career choice.
This article will go over a few of things you can expect throughout the journey of becoming a police officer in the state of Oklahoma. Also, for more info, we suggest downloading Prepare For The Police Academy for in-depth guides on becoming a police officer.
Here some good news for those of you who want to become a police officer. Law enforcement is one of the most popular careers in demand right now, especially in the state of Oklahoma.
Also, while the demand is high right now, it's expected to grow over the next decade at a steady rate of nearly 15% each year. So that means that the state will be adding 100s of new police officers to the force over the next decade. And for those wondering about how much the starting salary is, well we have more good news.
The starting salary for new police officers in Oklahoma is $42,000. Now that may not seem like much to some people, but keep in mind that this is way more money than what most recent college graduates are making right out of college. Also, since the cost of living is relatively low in Oklahoma, most people would be able to live very comfortably with that salary.
Then for those of you who want to make even more money, one of the best things about being a police officer in the state of Utah means that there will always be plenty of opportunities to make more money by working overtime. There are plenty of cities in Utah that holds plenty of conventions and other functions that require some type of security presence.
Every year, there are thousands of people who apply to become police officers in the state of Oklahoma, but out of those thousands, only a few hundred actually make it through training. And some can't apply at all because of the minimum requirements set by the department.
The minimum requirements for applying are: First, the applicant has to be either 21 years old or older. Secondly, the applicant has to be an actual citizen of the United States of America. Third, the applicant must have graduated high school, or at least have a GED. For those people with college credits or a college degree, this can be used as an advantage because it helps make them stand out of the crowd of thousands of applicants.
As for the second phase of requirements, all applicant must not have anything on their background history. Things such as prior felony convictions and high-level misdemeanors will automatically disqualify you from being able to become a police officer int he state of Oklahoma. The only exceptions are those who low level misdemeanors. Then after confirming your criminal history, the second part of the background check takes place.
This includes several interviews with people such as your family members, close friends, and even neighbors. This may seem a little over-the-top, but they want to be absolutely sure that the person they are about to hire are worthy of becoming a police officer.
Once you're done with all of the necessary interviews and exams, you will then be able to graduate and start your career as a police officer in the state of Oklahoma. Getting hired ofter graduations usually doesn't take long at all, especially if you were able to pass all of your exams without any problems.
So now that you have a general idea of what to expect, we suggest visiting PrepareForThePoliceAcademy.com for more in-depth guides on everything you need to know to be fully prepared to pass all of the police officer training, exams and interviews.


Beaman, Glenda Marie (2012) Effects of heat shock, hypoxia, post-mortem interval and glioma disease state on heat shock gene HSPA expression. Doctoral thesis, University of Central Lancashire.
Heat shock protein 70 (HSPA/HSP70) gene expression is induced by a wide range of cellular stress conditions. This study investigated HSPA/HSP70 expression in human cell lines exposed to hypoxic conditions, in cancerous and non-cancerous brain tissue specimens from 18 patients (gliomas and normal conditions), and in post mortem rat brain samples exposed to heat shock.
Three human glioma cell lines were chosen for this study, each representing various types of glioma: (astrocytoma, oligodendroglioma and glioblastoma), with a normal human astrocyte cell line used as a control. In addition, 18 clinical brain tissue samples were also examined. HSPA RNA transcripts and proteins were examined in these samples using qRT-PCR, immunofluorescence and flow cytometry techniques.
The average HSPA mRNA copy numbers detected in glioblastoma tissue were 1.8 and 8.8 fold higher respectively than in lower grade glioma and control tissues, which is suggestive of a grade related transcription profile. Similar patterns of grade related expression were also observed in corresponding cell lines. The percentage of cells showing positive for HSPA protein in normal cell lines increased from 0 to 33% immediately after exposure to hypoxia, and gradually declined to 11% 24 h after treatment. However, the effects of hypoxia were marginal in glioma cells, due to the already elevated levels of HSPA. Although hypoxia induced HSPA expression in normal cells, it did not achieve the same level of induction in cancer cells, suggesting that there are other factors which contribute to the induction of HSPA. These results suggest that HSPA is induced in cancer cells, not only by hypoxia, but also by other factors. In addition, this study indicated for the first time that HSPA expression in glioma cells may possibly be grade related, and thus may have value as a prognostic marker. However a greater sample size is needed to validate such findings.
This study showed that HSPA is expressed at low levels in normal brain tissue, but was more highly expressed in brain tissue subjected to mild heat shock. The levels of HSPA transcripts in heat shocked post mortem brain tissue showed a marked increase in HSPA expression.
GAPDH was used as a control gene for these studies, and exhibited a consistent level of expression in normal and tumourous cell lines and tissue samples under normal and hypoxic conditions, and also in post mortem tissues exposed to heat shock. For Homo sapiens GAPDH, the average transcript numbers for normal and tumourous cell lines and brain tissue samples were approximately 145,000 copies per sample. For Rattus norvegicus GAPDH, levels were higher than for human samples, at an average of 268,300 copies per sample. The consistency of these results confirms that GAPDH was a suitable candidate gene for the purpose of this study.
Early in the post-mortem period, HSPA is expressed more highly in tissues subjected to single and multiple heat shocks compared to controls. However, later post-mortem intervals of between 3 - 24 h demonstrated inconsistent and irregular results, with no predictive or reproducible patterns. Therefore, although there is demonstrable de novo expression of HSPA in post mortem brain tissue in response to heat shock, it is difficult to predict the full parameters of this induction, probably as a result of other forms of cellular stress affecting these tissues under our experimental methodology. These initial studies indicate that the use of HSPA with the methodologies employed here are not suitable as an accurate indicator of post-mortem interval.


Charles Finn is equal parts woodsmith and wordsmith, a quite inspiring combination. As a self-taught woodworker, author, and freelance writer, he is known for his work with the High Desert Journal and contribution to Lloyd Kahn's "Tiny Homes, Simple Shelter" book. However, we are not here for his literary accomplishments – Finn is also known around the world for his tiny microhomes inspired by Japanese tea houses.
He is now building custom tiny homes out of a combination of reclaimed and new materials. Costs typically start around $14,000, and something similar to the Potomac Cabin will cost around $22,000.
For more information and photos, visit finncharles.wix.com.
I wonder if the construction of a small home is feasiable for a family? Myself I have 3 people living in my house along with 3 dogs and 2 cats. I wish I could put my life in a 9×12 but it doesn't seem possible. It would make a great studio however. I love the designs.


I cant get reshade to work this game, the game not picking up reshade .dll, no log or anything.
A pity. I remember that I always suffered to make SFX work with this game. Way back then, I think I had to split the files in it's folders or I used the Boulotaur's stuff, I can't remember now... But it DID work before, although we could have some trouble making it work. But now it doesn't, or so it seems.
Forgot to mention that I am using windows 10 now.
Last Edit: 3 years 8 months ago by Wicked Sick.


text:
BOERS-LI GALLERY (NEW YORK)
is a gallery.
24 East 81st Street, 4th Floor, New York, 10028, New York City, NY, United States
Related Space
About Boers-Li Gallery (New York)
Boers-Li Gallery is run by Waling Boers (owner) and Jia Wei (managing partner)
An MBA graduate of Georgia University, Jia Wei has worked in Beijing as the representative of the London-based Red Mansion Foundation, a non-profit organization that supports cultural exchange between Great Britain and China. In 2009, she joined Beijing's auction house Poly as Head of the Department of Modern and Contemporary Art. Since 2016, she has been the managing partner of
Boers-Li Gallery.
Waling Boers made his debut in the professional art world as a curator for the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam with the exhibition Foreigners in Amsterdam (1982), including artists such as Ulay and Marina, Johannes Gachnang, Stanley Brouwn and Laurence Weiner. In 1996, he founded "BueroFriedrich", an independent art institution located in the former East Berlin, showcasing various western conceptual propositions from the 1960s-70s in parallel with younger-generation artists from across the globe. Projects were realized by juxtaposing artists' positions such as those of Bas Jan Ader, Lee Lozano, William Emmetts with the younger ones by Johan Grimonprez, Monica Bonvicini, Martin Creed, Yael Bartana and Yang Fudong, and included collaborations with curators Seth Siegelaub, Jörg Heiser, and Hou Hanru. In 2001, Boers was co-curator of the Berlin Biennial with Chinese curator Pi Li. In 2005, he opened Universal Studio-Beijing, an art initiative that has operated as a gallery from 2007 to the present supporting predominantly Chinese arts.
ARTISTS(32)


When working with animals of all shapes and sizes, veterinary surgical exam lights are extremely important. Intricate operations require a high level of visibility in hard-to-reach places, which is why MDSNQ provide quality lighting fixtures for Australian veterinary practices. Whether needed for a regular medical examination or an operation, veterinary surgical exam lights should offer both superior lighting and flexibility.
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text:
Michele Fanelli (* 14. September 1907 in Orta Nova; † 13. Dezember 1989) war ein italienischer Marathonläufer.

1932 siegte er beim italienischen Ausscheidungsrennen für die Olympischen Spiele in Los Angeles, bei denen er in 2:49:09 h auf den 13. Platz kam, und wurde italienischer Meister.

1934 wurde er italienischer Meister und Achter bei den Leichtathletik-Europameisterschaften in Turin.

Am 19. Oktober 1941 stellte er als Zweiter bei einem Marathon in Padua mit 2:33:30 h seine persönliche Bestzeit auf.

Weblinks

Marathonläufer (Italien)
Olympiateilnehmer (Italien)
Teilnehmer der Olympischen Sommerspiele 1932
Italienischer Meister (Leichtathletik)
Italiener
Mann
Geboren 1907
Gestorben 1989

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
E.D. Hill To Leave Fox News Channel
NEXT:Greta Response to Kurtz Stays Unpublished
PREVIOUS:Sean Hannity Doesn't Wear Suit Pants, And Other Things We Learned From Facebook
By Chris Ariens on Nov. 17, 2008 - 4:59 PM Comment
Exclusive: TVNewser has learned veteran Fox News Channel anchor E.D. Hill will not be renewed when her current contract expires. Hill, who has been with Fox News for more than 10 years, will continue with the network for the next few months until her current deal expires.
SVP of Programming Bill Shine tells TVNewser that he "chose not to renew E.D.'s latest contract" but noted that "Hill has been a valued contributor to the success of FNC over the years, and we wish her all the best."
Hill has been without a regular Fox News program since June 16, when America's Pulse was replaced by two hours of Live Desk. Ten days earlier Hill used the term terrorist fist jab when promoting an upcoming body language segment that was going to look into the primary night fist bump shared by Barack and Michelle Obama.
For most of her nearly 11 years at FNC Hill anchored Fox & Friends. In 2006 she moved to a late morning program then to the afternoons where, in the months leading up to the election, she'd been filling in on America's Election HQ.
Chief Financial OfficerLevLanePhiladelphia, Pennsylvania
Director, Subscription Growth and Lifecycle MarketingADWEEKNY, New York


The Australian Maritime Safety Authority is inviting everyone in the maritime sector to join the NAV18 – Navigation safety symposium from 1 to 3 May 2018.
NAV18 aims to explore the future of safe navigation as emerging technologies gain momentum across the maritime sector. During the symposium, participants are invited to learn how technology will affect modern aids to navigation, vessel systems and people working in the industry.
"Technology is driving changes to the way people and businesses operate in the maritime sector," said AMSA's Chief Executive Officer Mick Kinley.
"Advances such as e-navigation and real time vessel tracking systems are streamlining the way maritime authorities and shipboard teams gather and exchange information – presenting both opportunities and challenges for safety and performance outcomes.
"At the NAV18 symposium we will provide participants with an opportunity to engage and share information and to hear from experts across the sector on advances in navigation systems and aids to navigation," he said.
NAV18 will be held at the Sofitel Broadbeach on the Gold Coast. More information is available on www.nav18.com.
The post NAV18 – Navigation safety symposium in May 2018 appeared first on OHS News.


Our Soccer Camps are a progressive effort to keep up with the demands of the game and the need to offer quality instruction to the developing player. Campers will be exposed to functional training focusing on the key technical skills of the game such as dribbling, passing, receiving, shooting and finishing. The functional training will also focus on the tactical aspect of the game, including principles of attacking and defending. This camp is for ages 8 - 14.


text:
'Tyrannical': Ontario bans therapy for teens with unwanted gay attractions
Ontario's three political parties quietly collaborated to pass the bill Thursday.
Fri Jun 5, 2015 - 11:41 am EST
By Steve Weatherbe
TORONTO, June 5, 2015 (LifeSiteNews.coms) – Not with a bang but a whisper, Ontario's three political parties quietly collaborated to pass a bill abolishing the right of teenagers with unwanted homosexual or transgendered feelings from seeking psychotherapy.
Though it was framed as a human rights measure by its mover, Ontario New Democrat MPP Cheri DiNovo, Bill 77 is a "restrictive tyrannical bill that prevents children from getting the help they need and want with feelings and desires that are not welcome," Clinton Somerton of Campaign Life Coalition said. CLC made a last-minute effort to get members to lobby their MPPs against it.
The Affirming Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Act passed through the Ontario legislature like a knife through butter, with opponents either absenting themselves or sitting on their hands as it was approved on third (and final) reading on Thursday.
The bill makes it illegal to provide psychotherapy to minors for either homosexuality or gender dysphoria, and prevents the government from making such therapy for adults fundable by the Ontario Health Insurance Plan.
Though sexual orientation is immutable, according to DiNovo, and gender identity is fluid, the bill makes it illegal to "carry out any practice that seeks to change or direct the sexual orientation or gender identity of a patient under 18 years of age."
Two days before, National Post columnist Barbara Kay called the bill a "dangerous overreach" because politicians were deciding for psychiatrists what was treatable and what wasn't. Demonstrating some symptoms of political correctness herself, Kay said that gender dysphoria was an illness often treatable when caught early, but efforts to treat homosexuality were "acknowledged by most mental-health professionals, including those at the GIS, to be ineffective and unethical" and could justifiably be banned.
DiNovo and proponents of a similar law passed in California claim they are banning "Conversion Therapy," a treatment devised for sex offenders and homosexuals based on negative reinforcement such as electroshock, abandoned decades ago. But "Sexual Orientation Change Efforts" (SOCE) do not employ such primitive, invasive methods, but rely instead on conventional "talk" or cognitive therapy. Following this approach, the therapist helps the client understand the psychological roots of his unwanted behavior or thoughts, which makes it easier for him or her to change them, if they wish.
Dr. Joseph Berger, an eminent Toronto psychiatrist, told LifeSiteNews when the bill was introduced several months ago that he had successfully treated several people seeking to overcome homosexual feelings. "One of them is now a grandfather. … I'm not saying they won't have some homosexual feelings. But they have been able to live successfully as heterosexuals. And they are very upset and angry with those who claim they cannot change and have not changed."
Berger called the bill "ill-advised." Transgenderism is a classic delusion, he said, and society ought to help a deluded person see reality, not try to change reality (through mutilation of the genitalia) to fit the delusion.
Both sides in the debate cite the high suicide rates of homosexuals and transgendered: those advocating for trans and gay rights blame social hostility and push for laws suppressing it; those opposing Bill 77 claim the conditions themselves lead to suicide.
The Post's Barbara Kay believes the issue as far as transgendered people goes is resolved by a Swedish longitudinal study showing suicide rates among post-operative trans people to be 20 times higher than the general population. She reasoned: "If depression persists in so many people who have surmounted the only perceived obstacle in the way of their happiness," then surgery is not the cure and being born in the wrong body is not really the disease.
What bothers Campaign Life Coalition vice president Jeff Gunnarson is that the bill passed without opposition. "Is this how democracy is supposed to work? I'm baffled," he told LifeSiteNews, after watching the bill pass third reading. "If there are Conservatives who voted against it I didn't see any." On second reading, the bill passed unanimously, with a majority of the Progressive Conservative caucus absent from the Legislative Assembly.
Gunnarson noted that CLC urged members to support Patrick Brown's successful campaign for the Conservative leadership. "He should have had his caucus oppose this bill as a way of affirming all that support he got from social conservatives."
Dr. Berger told LifeSiteNews that LGBT advocates want to prevent others from overcoming their homosexual or transgendered feelings because this would imply such feelings were wrong. But banning SOCE is a mistake because "between 20 and 40 percent say they have homosexual feelings in their teens, but only 1-2 percent say so later. So I would avoid doing anything with a teenager that suggests his homosexual feelings are fixed."
cheri dinovo, sexual orientation change efforts
Major study: changing sexual orientation is possible
Leading Toronto psychiatrist slams 'extremists and fanatics' who want to ban gay change therapy
'Tyrannical': Ontario bans therapy for teens with unwanted gay attractions 'Tyrannical': Ontario bans therapy for teens with unwanted gay attractions News By Steve Weatherbe


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Customer support chatbots have the innate ability to improve customer-brand interaction. Their affordability and ease of implementation, coupled with their round-the-clock availability and AI-driven learning skills, make them irreplaceable for businesses that communicate with their customers online. The field of customer support in particular has seen some rapid transformations on account of customer support chatbot development. Organizations that have opted to create a chatbot for customer support have noted significant reductions in the number of support calls and emails that they receive. The following are some key ways in which these businesses have improved customer satisfaction with the help of customer support chatbots.
Ecommerce companies, electronics manufacturers, travel agencies, banks, and a variety of other entities that interact with a large user base on a daily basis, have a shared problem – their customer support departments tend to be inundated with repetitive queries and complaints. Most of these issues have quick and basic solutions that users can implement on their own. However, they need to be pointed to the right source of information in order to resolve the issue.
Before customer support chatbots became mainstream for these organizations, their customer support agents would spend the bulk of their billable hours handling these low-priority support tasks. Customer support chatbot development has revolutionized this process, enabling businesses to automate their responses to simple queries. The AI bots can be programmed to dispense on-demand information about product troubleshooting, login or password reset problems, payment procedures, shipping updates, and so on.
Meanwhile, employees of the customer support department now have the bandwidth to focus on complex issues that require human judgment.
Customer support accounts for a significant percentage of an organization's operating costs. Hiring competent employees who can provide quick and quality customer service on a consistent basis is an expensive exercise, not only in terms of staffing costs but also in terms of the time and manpower requirements of training, guidance and supervision. Building customer support chatbot is a viable alternative for businesses operating at all scales.
Requiring negligible investment of time and resources, chatbot development allows new organizations to offer high-quality customer support right at the outset, and more established entities to maintain their customer service standards while channeling their resources towards other areas of their business. Raising existing standards of customer support is also a straightforward exercise when working with chatbots, requiring only the occasional update to the bot's script.
Organizations that create a chatbot for customer support acquire a sophisticated customer interaction tool that lends itself to their existing workflow. The best customer support chatbots are able to function within the framework of a pre-existing help desk, email provider, or customer relationship management system. Organizations that implement them are thus placed at a vantage point from which they can view and assess the performance of their customer support system. The analytics suite created in the process is among the most advanced in the industry.
One of the biggest advantages of building customer support chatbots for a business website is the fact that these AI bots keep collecting and assimilating customer feedback. Business often task their chatbots with user surveys that can facilitate the identification of gaps in their offerings and services. Even without these dedicated surveys, the transcripts of a chatbot's interaction with users serve as exhaustive sources of information on website performance, user experience, inventory of products and services, pricing, and various other public facets of a business.
Visit the VirtualSpirits website or blog for more articles and guides on customer support chatbot development and implementation. If you wish to create a chatbot for your own website, feel free to contact us with your requirements or queries.


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Since one of the oldest forms of making money is in cash lending, it really is a fact that you can do that with cryptocurrency. Most of the lending websites now focus on Bitcoin, some of those websites you are required fill in a captcha after a particular time frame and are rewarded with a small quantity of coins for visiting them. You can see the www.cryptofunds.co web site to locate some lists of of these websites to tap into the money of your choice. Unlike forex, stocks and options, etc., altcoin markets have quite different dynamics. New ones are always popping up which means they don't have a lot of market data and historical view for you to backtest against. Most altcoins have somewhat inferior liquidity as well and it is hard to develop a reasonable investment strategy.
Only a fraction of bitcoins issued so far are available on the exchange markets. Bitcoin markets are competitive, this means the price a bitcoin will rise or fall depending on supply and demand. Many people hoard them for long term savings and investment. This restricts the quantity of bitcoins that are truly circulating in the exchanges. Moreover, new bitcoins will continue to be issued for decades to come. Consequently, even the most diligent buyer couldn't buy all existing bitcoins. This scenario is just not to suggest that markets will not be vulnerable to price exploitation, yet there's no need for big sums of cash to move market prices up or down. The slightest occasions on earth market can change the price of Bitcoin, This can make Bitcoin and any other cryptocurrency volatile.
Cryptocurrency is freeing people to transact money and do business on their terms. Each user can send and receive payments in an identical way, but in addition they get involved in more sophisticated smart contracts. Multiple signatures enable a trade to be supported by the network, but where a particular number of a defined group of people agree to sign the deal, blockchain technology makes this possible. This permits innovative dispute arbitration services to be developed in the foreseeable future. These services could enable a third party to approve or reject a trade in the event of disagreement between the other parties without checking their money. Unlike cash and other payment procedures, the blockchain always leaves public proof that the transaction happened. This can be possibly used in a appeal against businesses with deceptive practices.
Bitcoin is the chief cryptocurrency of the web: a digital money standard by which all other coins are compared to. Cryptocurrencies are distributed, global, and decentralized. Unlike traditional fiat currencies, there is no authorities, banks, or another regulatory agencies. As such, it truly is more resistant to wild inflation and corrupt banks. The benefits of using cryptocurrencies as your method of transacting money online outweigh the protection and privacy risks. Security and seclusion can easily be realized by just being bright, and following some basic guidelines. You'dn't set your entire bank ledger online for the word to see, but my nature, your cryptocurrency ledger is publicized. This can be secured by removing any identity of ownership from the wallets and thus keeping you anonymous.
This mining action validates and records the transactions across the whole network. So if you're attempting to do something prohibited, it is not recommended because everything is recorded in the public register for the remainder of the world to see forever.
It's definitely possible, but it must have the ability to comprehend opportunities no matter market behavior. The market moves in relation to cost BTC … So even if it's in a BTC tendency down can make money by buying the altcoins which are altcoin oversold trading ratios-BTC. Sure, your purchasing power in DOLLARS may be lower, but as long as your purchasing power in BTC is still growing you will be fine.
It should be challenging to get more little increases (~ 10%) throughout the day. Study how to read these Candlestick charts! And I found these two rules to be accurate: having little increases is more lucrative than trying to fight up to the peak. Most day traders follow Candlestick, so it's better to take a look at novels than wait for order confirmation when you think the price is going down. Second, there is more volatility and compensation in monies that have not made it to the profitableness of websites like Coinwarz.
technology because of the many advantages associated with that. This is why the new technology is about to alter the world from the way we view it now. Bitcoins opened the door through use of Blockchains as the first cryptocurency. Ethereum is extending the horizon in the field of smart contracts.
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In the case of a fully functioning cryptocurrency, it may perhaps be exchanged being a commodity. Proponents of cryptocurrencies proclaim that this sort of virtual income is not handled with a fundamental banking system and is not therefore susceptible to the vagaries of its inflation. Since there are a limited variety of items, this cash's benefit is dependant on market forces, enabling entrepreneurs to business over cryptocurrency deals.
Cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, LiteCoin, Ether, YOCoin, and many others have now been designed as a non-fiat currency. In other words, its backers argue that there's actual value, even through there is no physical representation of that value. The value rises due to computing power, that's, is the lone way to create new coins distributed by allocating CPU power via computer programs called miners. Miners create a block after a period of time which is worth an ever decreasing amount of money or some type of reward in order to ensure the shortage. Each coin includes many smaller components. For Bitcoin, each component is called a satoshi. Operations that take place during mining are exactly to authenticate other transactions, such that both creates and authenticates itself, a simple and elegant solution, which will be one of the appealing aspects of the coin. The person who has mined the coin holds the address, and transfers it to some value is provided by another address, which is a wallet file saved on a computer. The blockchain is where the public record of transactions resides. Most all cryptocurrencies function as Bitcoin does.
The fact that there's little evidence of any growth in the use of virtual money as a currency may be the reason why there are minimal efforts to control it. The reason for this could be simply that the market is too small for cryptocurrencies to justify any regulatory attempt. Additionally it is possible the regulators simply do not understand the technology and its consequences, anticipating any developments to act.
Here is the coolest thing about cryptocurrencies; they usually do not physically exist anywhere, not even on a hard drive. When you look at a particular address for a wallet containing a cryptocurrency, there's no digital information held in it, like in precisely the same manner that a bank could hold dollars in a bank account. It really is only a representation of worth, but there is no real palpable form of that worth. Cryptocurrency wallets may not be confiscated or frozen or audited by the banks and the law. They would not have spending limits and withdrawal constraints enforced on them. No one but the person who owns the crypto wallet can decide how their riches will be managed.
The wonder of the cryptocurrencies is the fact that scam was proved an impossibility: because of the nature of the process in which it's transacted. All deals over a crypto-currency blockchain are irreversible. As soon as youare paid, you get paid. This isn't something short-term where your customers can challenge or demand a discounts, or use unethical sleight of hand. Used, many merchants could be wise to make use of a transaction processor, because of the irreversible nature of crypto-currency dealings, you need to ensure that stability is hard. With any type of crypto-currency whether a bitcoin, ether, litecoin, or any of the numerous different altcoins, thieves and hackers may potentially gain access to your personal secrets and therefore take your cash. Unfortunately, you almost certainly will never have it back. It is quite crucial for you to adopt some excellent safe and secure routines when coping with any cryptocurrency. This will protect you from many of these unfavorable events.
Mining cryptocurrencies is how new coins are placed into circulation. Because there's no government control and crypto coins are digital, they cannot be printed or minted to make more. The mining process is what makes more of the coin. It may be useful to think of the mining as joining a lottery group, the pros and cons are precisely the same. Mining crypto coins means you will really get to keep the full benefits of your efforts, but this reduces your odds of being successful. Instead, joining a pool means that, overall, members will have a much higher chance of solving a block, but the reward will be divided between all members of the pool, depending on the amount of shares won.
If you are thinking about going it alone, it really is worth noting that the software configuration for solo mining can be more complex than with a pool, and beginners would be probably better take the latter route. This option also creates a stable flow of earnings, even if each payment is small compared to fully block the wages.
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Ethereum is an unbelievable cryptocurrency platform, however, if growth is too fast, there may be some issues. If the platform is adopted immediately, Ethereum requests could grow drastically, and at a rate that exceeds the rate with which the miners can create new coins. Under such a scenario, the whole platform of Ethereum could become destabilized because of the raising costs of running distributed programs. In turn, this could dampen interest Ethereum platform and ether. Uncertainty of demand for ether may result in a negative change in the economical parameters of an Ethereum based company which could lead to company being unable to continue to operate or to stop operation.
Many individuals prefer to use a money deflation, notably those who desire to save. Despite the criticism and disbelief, a cryptocurrency coin may be better suited for some applications than others. Financial seclusion, for example, is great for political activists, but more problematic when it comes to political campaign financing. We need a stable cryptocurrency for use in commerce; If you are living pay check to pay check, it'd take place as part of your wealth, with the rest earmarked for other currencies.
Ethereum is an unbelievable cryptocurrency platform, nevertheless, if growth is too quickly, there may be some difficulties. If the platform is adopted fast, Ethereum requests could grow drastically, and at a rate that exceeds the rate with which the miners can create new coins. Under such a scenario, the whole stage of Ethereum could become destabilized due to the increasing costs of running distributed applications. In turn, this could dampen interest Ethereum stage and ether. Uncertainty of demand for ether may result in an adverse change in the economical parameters of an Ethereum based business which could result in business being unable to continue to manage or to cease operation.


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Members of Interpol, the Walkmen, Bonny Light Horseman Unite as Muzz
Listen to their new single "Bad Feeling"
Members of Interpol, the Walkmen and Bonny Light Horseman have joined forces to create a new supergroup called Muzz.
Interpol frontman Paul Banks is joined by multi-instrumentalist Josh Kaufman (member of the recently formed BLH), and drummer Matt Barrick of the Walkmen and Fleet Foxes. All of their influences come together on this new project — one that is still somewhat shrouded in mystery.
So far, the new band have yet to announce plans for a record. But they have shared one lonely single titled "Bad Feeling." News of their formation comes today from the band's new Instagram account, which is already gaining followers.
Stay tuned for updates as we learn more about what "something Muzzy this way comes" means, and listen to their debut track "Bad Feeling" below, where you can also take a look at pictures of the newly formed band.
something Muzzy this way comes...
A post shared by Muzz (@muzztheband) on Feb 27, 2020 at 2:07pm PST
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Dokument #2004013
Tajikistan: Abducted opposition activist allowed to leave country
In a striking departure from custom, Tajikistan allowed an opposition activist whose abduction it engineered two weeks ago to leave the country and return to the Netherlands, where he enjoys political asylum.
Sharofiddin Gadoyev's arrival on March 2 in Frankfurt, from where he was expected to travel to Amsterdam, followed two weeks of vocal public appeals from colleagues and rights activists for his release.
Gadoyev flew out of Dushanbe with Somon Air, a carrier known to be controlled by a close relative by marriage of President Emomali Rahmon. He was accompanied on the flight by his mother and sister, as well as former companions in the Group 24 opposition movement he helped found.
On arrival at Frankfurt Airport, Gadoyev thanked his supporters in a video appeal uploaded live to the internet.
"It is thanks to you that I am able to speak in a free and calm atmosphere," he said.
Gadoyev said he would soon make a further statement to explain how he came to be in Tajikistan in the first place.
The circumstances that led to Gadoyev's sudden appearance in the Tajik capital, Dushanbe, on February 15 are still shrouded in mystery. The most detailed accounts have been collaborated by international rights groups, who spoke with the activist's colleagues and other informed sources.
In a statement issued on February 24, a coalition of organizations composed of the Association of Central Asian Migrants, the Association for Human Rights in Central Asia, Human Rights Watch and the Norwegian Helsinki Committee explained how Gadoyev was abducted during an assignation in Moscow.
What is known is that Gadoyev traveled on February 13 to Moscow, where he had expected to hold meetings with Russian security officials. The rights groups say he was met by Russian intelligence officers at his hotel the next day and then driven to what he believed was to be an appointment. But unnamed sources told the rights groups that during the drive Gadoyev's car was stopped by another car, also occupied by Russian security services personnel. He was bundled into the second car and then driven to Moscow's Domodedovo airport and placed on a Somon Air flight to Dushanbe.
The Russian security service officers were allegedly able to sweep past passport control, which suggests they may have been affiliated with the Federal Security Services, the agency with oversight over border enforcement.
Once Gadoyev was transported to Tajikistan, he issued a series of seemingly choreographed statements to camera. He claimed he had returned willingly and lambasted his colleagues among the exiled opposition. Evidence later emerged strongly indicating he had been pressured into making the statements.
Appeals for assurances about Gadoyev's wellbeing came from multiple sources.
Deputies in the European parliament, the Dutch parliament and representatives of the Dutch government made representations on his behalf. U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary for South and Central Asian Affairs Alice Wells, who traveled to Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan this week, told Eurasianet that Washington was concerned about Gadoyev's case and was "following the situation closely."
Amnesty International published a petition online and urged the public to register its concerns with Tajikistan's Prosecutor General, Yusuf Rahmon.
It is just as likely that some more explicit behind the scenes pressure had just as much of an effect. The head of Tajikistan's state committee for investments, Farukh Hamralizoda met with the European Union's envoy to Dushanbe, Marilyn Josefson.
Topics for discussion included Tajikistan's pending inclusion in the Generalized Scheme of Preferences Plus, or GSP+, an arrangement that allows for participant nations from the developing world to be exempted from duties on their exports to the EU. Admission to GSP+ would enable more than 6,000 individuals items of tradable goods from Tajikistan to qualify for tariff exemptions.
As a condition for qualification, however, the EU is demanding that Dushanbe adhere to a long list of international conventions and protocols, including some provisions touching on human rights.
The Foreign Minister of Luxembourg is expected to travel to Dushanbe on March 4 to hold more talks on GSP+. Some commentators following the Gadoyev saga have speculated that his case would likely have been raised during those negotiations, inescapably to Tajikistan's embarrassment.
Gadoyev should count himself the lucky one who got away. Tajikistan's government is not new to abducting its exiled opponents, and Russia has readily assisted Dushanbe in perpetuating the practice.
Mahmadruzi Iskandarov, who was in the ranks of the opposition during the civil war in the 1990s, had sought refuge in Russia in 2004, but was kidnapped in April the following year and spirited away to Tajikistan. In October 2005, he was sentenced to 23 years in prison on terrorism and corruption charges.
Another Rahmon opponent, Nizomkhon Jurayev, likewise disappeared around March or April 2012 while living in Russia, where he had been battling extradition campaigns waged by Dushanbe. Some days after vanishing, he resurfaced in Tajikistan and claimed, as Gadoyev did on this occasion, that he had returned of his own accord. In an odd development, however, Jurayev gave testimony in 2014 in the criminal trial of yet another opposition politician. He then reportedly somehow fled the country and has been variously reported as being in hiding in Kyrgyzstan and Ukraine.
Maksud Ibragimov, a young Russia-based opposition activist, was stabbed in Moscow in late 2014. Weeks later, he was forcibly deported to Tajikistan, where he was charged with extremism and imprisoned for 17 years.
Originally published by EurasiaNet.org.
Copyright (c) Open Society Institute. Reprinted with the permission of the Open Society Institute, 400 West 59th Street, New York, NY 10019 USA, www.EurasiaNet.org or www.soros.org.
ecoi.net-Zusammenfassung:
Oppositionellem Aktivisten Scharofiddin Gadojew wurde Ausreise in die Niederlande gestattet; Gadojew war zuvor in Russland festgenommen und an tadschikische Behörden ausgeliefert worden
Originallink:
https://eurasianet.org/tajikistan-abducted-opposition-activist-allowed-to-leave-country
Dokumenttyp:
Dokument-ID:


text:
New UK Maritime Initiative Fails The Technology Acid Test
FreightWaves , FreightWaves.com
January 24, 2019 2:56pm 934 Comments
Britain's Department for Transport today launched a bid to become what it calls "a pre-eminent global test bed of emerging technology," announcing investment in a technology hub and in the training of mariners.
The launch of Maritime 2050 Navigating the Future took place at the headquarters of the International Maritime Organisation in London. The Maritime 2050 strategy sets out the country's ambitions to "remain a world-leader in the maritime industry for the next 30 years."
However, the initial view of the strategy was that it was too little too late, with no specific funding attributed to the policy and claims that were centered around Britain's former glories as a maritime nation.
Neither the Secretary of State for Transport, Chris Grayling, or Nusrat Ghani, the Minister for Maritime Affairs, were available for comment, but a spokesman at the Department for Transport told FreightWaves that no extra money was available to support the policy. He said, "All current work is funded from existing budgets. The route maps will identify any new work and if they demand funding, approvals for this [it] (sic) will be sought through the usual channels."
Furthermore, it was difficult to marry the government's view that the new strategy will "set the UK as a pre-eminent global test bed of emerging technology, enabling the country to capitalize on the economic potential of maritime innovations," with the reality that many countries are already significantly further along this path than Britain.
In the field of digitalization and smart or autonomous shipping the strategy paper says, "The UK will be a vibrant hub of research and development."
Asked why the UK has been slow to establish a testing area for autonomous vessels, the Department for Transport spokesman said, "It hasn't. The UK is one of the first to look at legislation to set up a framework for the safe testing of autonomous vessels and we will continue to enhance this through Maritime 2050 and the technology route maps published today. This will set the country ahead of others when companies are looking for areas to develop emerging technologies."
With Scandinavian countries already operating autonomous testing areas, the development of an autonomous container vessel (Norway's Yara Birkeland) and the launch of autonomous ferry by Rolls-Royce Marine in early December, it is difficult to see how the government can substantiate the claim that it will lead the way in this important technological field.
The claim from the Department for Transport that, "We're not lagging behind. We have companies, such as Artemis Technologies, which are years ahead of the competition and making great strides in this sphere," shows that the government is clutching at straws.
Government makes many claims about Britain being a world leader and that "Maritime 2050 is built on seven high-level themes – the UK's competitive advantage, environment, infrastructure, people, security, technology and trade."
However, when asked by FreightWaves about what effect the sale of Rolls-Royce Marine, a leader in maritime automation, to the Norwegian company Kongsberg has had on its strategy, it was difficult not to feel that the ministry is in denial.
The Department for Transport claimed, "this is a long-term strategy which will help the UK continue to be a world leader in maritime for the next 30 years and beyond."
Another element of the policy is to establish a port as an "innovation hub." It is unclear exactly what this will be, but the hub will be set up by 2030, 11 years in the future.
The Department for Transport said, "We need to go through a competitive bidding process, which will look at which technologies will be trialed and developed. The ambition is to set up a hub by 2030. This time out to 2030 will not be lost – we will continue to support the existing maritime technology expertise around ports where we already see excellent commercial outcomes from industry and ports working together."
Maersk, the leading Danish ship and terminal operator, believes that maritime technological developments must move far more quickly. Soren Toft, Maersk's COO said, ""The next five to 10 years are going to be crucial. We will invest significant resources for innovation and fleet technology."
It seems that the urgency at Maersk and the reality of the developments in other parts of the world have passed the British Government by. Perhaps it has been too focused on Brexit to apply itself fully to the challenges of the maritime sector.
Transport Secretary Grayling said in a statement, "This strategy is a clear message to the world – we will continue to be a leading maritime nation for the next 30 years and beyond.
"We will be at the forefront of emerging technology and seafarer training and will capitalize on selling this expertise to companies across the world."
But at first glance this policy appears to be a set of ambitions and high-minded values without any substantial backing from Government.
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