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Single Riders: Solving the capacity problem?
Park Operations
We love the magic of Disneyland Paris; the moments shared in Europe's number one tourist destination last a lifetime. But being the most popular tourist destination comes at a price – Queues! Capacity has long been a problem for Disneyland Paris, just how do you fill capacity when the numbers just don't add up? For a long time the answer was to shout down the queue line "Une personne seule?" (One Person). This works to a limited extent, firstly you are hoping the Cast Member can project their voice enough so that the one person can hear them; secondly you are hoping the person understands French as this request is rarely repeated in other languages and finally you hope that they are willing to "skip" the queue. Does this work? Undoubtedly not.
Since 2011 and the launch of Toy Story Playland's Single Rider lines, Disneyland Paris have seemingly found a way to solve the problem. Single Rider Lines. Disneyland Paris was not the Disney park to use this style of queue. In fact it was in each Disney resort in the world before heading to Disneyland Paris. The single rider phenomenon is certainly not unique to Disney either, all the major theme park brands in the world use it; and why not? It works. In Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, single rider lines were launched upon the reopening of the Splash Mountain attraction after a refurbishment in May 2002. The refurbishment changed logs from a traditional log flume to a series of five individual seats. It was around the same time that several other attractions in the resort upgraded to include these alternative queues. The advantage is simple – A family of four queues for Splash Mountain; you could either send the boat off with four people, or you could send it off full and hit capacity goals. The response was simple and guests can enjoy, what is usually, a shorter wait. Single Rider queues also exist in Walt Disney World in Test Track (both the old and newer versions) at Epcot and upon the 2006 launch of Expedition Everest in the Animal Kingdom and for Rock 'n' Roller Coaster in Disney's Hollywood Studios.
"Expedition Everest" by Benjamin D. Esham (bdesham) – Taken by bdesham with a Canon PowerShot S3.. Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0-us via Wikimedia Commons
Over in the Asian Parks, Hong Kong Disneyland became the first Magic Kingdom park to include single rider lines on its opening day and was (and still is!) the only Space Mountain attraction to feature a queue for single riders. The park currently has single rider queue lines for Space Mountain, Toy Soldiers Parachute Drop and Big Grizzly Runaway Mine Cars. Its Asian cousin: Tokyo Disney Resort has three Single Rider enabled attractions: Splash Mountain, Indiana Jones Adventure: Temple of the Crystal Skull and Raging Spirits. In reality here, Disneyland Paris was over ten years behind on launching these new queue lines. But the future is bright as park management have committed to adding a single rider queue line to one attraction each year – this could co-incide with the rumoured ride updates that we will receive between now and 2017.
2010 and the Walt Disney Studios Park had a brand new addition; Toy Story Playland. This out-of-the-box fairground experience has won guests over with its enchanting theming and fun rides. But little did we know that what was just around the corner would usher in something brand new and exciting. 2011 and it had arrived. Single Rider queue lines. Disneyland Paris had finally opened up the chance to unlock full capacity riders and guests lapped up the chance to slash their waiting times simply by experiencing the ride alone. 2013 and Crush Coaster, which for a long time had run failed FastPass experiments, joined the party with a trial of the Single Rider scheme. It was a success. Crush's Coaster is the single most problematic ride concerning capacity in the resort, FastPass ended up extending queue times for everybody; what the single rider queue achieves here is maximising that capacity. A family of three joins the queue, for a four person shell, the single rider takes up the extra space. Simple? Wrong – the problem with Crush's issue is almost the opposite to that previously mentioned of Splash Mountain in Disneyland Resort. A common European family size is four. There lies the problem and that is why Crush's Coaster, whilst needs to be applauded for the single rider queue, has a long queue with not many people in it. Ratatouille: L'Aventure Totalement Toquée de Rémy is the turning point for Disneyland Paris on this topic, the first attraction where Single Riders have not just been an after thought, but part of the design. What's more, it's working perfectly. The high-capacity of the ride mixed with the number of people per Ratmobile has seen single rider queue times, even at the busiest points of the day rarely hit over forty minutes, and is often at five minutes. A real success for people who just want to get on it and quickly.
The big question is: Do Single-Rider queues solve the capacity problem? Undoubtedly, yes. Do guests enjoy shorter waits? In most circumstances, yes. There are exceptions however. Earlier this Summer, Disneyland Paris introduced a single rider queue to Crush Coaster – has this been a success? Yes, but queue times are still rather higher, shaving only around 10 minutes off the standby queue. Elsewhere the system has been a success, Toy Soldiers Parachute Drop sees a drastic saving of time – up to thirty minutes – and RC Racer sees a shorter queue as well. The big success at Disneyland Paris is Ratatouille where up to 80-90 minutes can be shaved from the standby wait. In every case the capacity issue is solved as attractions can run to as close to 100% capacity as possible.
Single Rider queues have revolutionised the Disney theme park experience, not just for guests, but from a business sense. A ride that runs at near 100% capacity makes business sense and costs less, parks may also market these single rider queues as taking less time indicating a win-win situation for the parks. I look forward to seeing more of these queues entering Disneyland Paris in the years to come.
Since writing this article, Disneyland Paris have shown some members of the fan media a game which will be playable in the Queue line of Crush Coaster. This game will be activated via a special WiFi network in the queue and will allow guests to explore 5 levels of a game allowing guests to have a more pleasant queue experience. This could be the future for attractions with longer queues and allow for a more agreeable queue for all with guests being distracted on their phones.
[expand title="Bibliography" tag="p"]
http://micechat.com/forums/disneyland-resort/14771-quick-question-what-rides-have-single-rider-lines-dl-dca.html
http://www.themeparkinsider.com/news/response.cfm?ID=500
http://mousepad.mouseplanet.com/archive/index.php/t-66964.html
http://www.themeparkreview.com/hkdl/hkdl2.htm
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Why has the neuter gender disappeared from almost all the modern Roman languages?
Why has the neuter gender disappeared from almost all the modern Roman languages? It was completely common in Latin.
And when exactly did this happen? Did it happen in Latin itself, or only after Latin split into multiple languages and the phenomenon occurred in each of the languages separately and independently?
romance-languages evolution gender
Honza Zidek
Honza ZidekHonza Zidek
The same is observable in Germanic.
– Adam Bittlingmayer
@AdamBittlingmayer Which Germanic languages do you mean? Dutch and Danish both lost feminine. Maybe you meant Celtic, where Scots Gaelic and Welsh both lost neuter somewhere along the way and so are like French in this regard.
– OmarL
@Wilson There's also English. And many dialects of Yiddish. And Afrikaans. But I wasn't commenting on which arbitrary noun class collapsed into which, the point is 3 => 2.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vulgar_Latin#Loss_of_neuter_gender
I've read that even in Latin, we see some variability in the declension of words as neuter or masculine. Sometimes the use of the masculine where neuter would be expected is attributed to "personification". So the fall of the neuter seems to have been a long and at least somewhat gradual process. I will update this post if I find more detailed information.
There are some reasons to think of the neuter gender in Latin as being less robustly distinguished formally and semantically than the masculine and feminine genders, although this might just be hindsight.
I would guess that form was more important than semantics, since in some Germanic languages we can see a different tendency to go from three to two genders by merging the former masculine and feminine into a "common" gender and maintaining a distinction between "common" and neuter gender.
The neuter as a distinct form (and its loss)
As Arnaud Fournet said, neuter gender nouns in Latin were in most grammatical cases declined the same way as masculine nouns. The neuter-masculine distinction was made in:
a) the nominative and accusative plural, where neuters had a characteristic -a ending. Because -a was also used as a feminine singular ending, Latin neuter plurals in -a could end up as feminine nouns in Romance languages, as mentioned in Fournet's answer. I know of two ways this happened. As Fournet said, neuter plural nouns ending in -a could be reinterpreted as feminine singular nouns. Additionally, there is still a remnant of -a as a plural ending in some Romance languages, such as Italian; the examples given on this page are il dito, il uovo, il lenzuolo with the plurals le dita, le uova, le lenzuola. You can see that plural -a nouns in Italian take feminine plural agreement.
b) the nominative singular, where masculine nouns mostly ended in -s while neuter nouns mostly did not. In most Romance languages, Latin nominative singular forms were either mostly lost or heavily remodeled in a way that caused the distinction between masculine and neuter nominative singular nouns to become less relevant. Sound changes like the loss of word-final -m, or often of -s, and the addition or loss of word-final -e after consonants played a role here. There are a few Romance languages that have a distinction between -u and -o-final words, but their distribution is different from that of Latin masculine and neuter nouns.
c) the accusative singular for a few kinds of words, such as third-declension nouns ending in -alem m. vs. -ale n. But with the loss of word-final -m, those forms would have merged as -ale.
And in the accusative singular of o-stems, a very common category of masculine or neuter nouns, the masculine and neuter forms were identical already in Classical Latin, both ending in -um.
The semantics of the neuter overlapped substantially with the other two genders
The masculine and feminine genders in Latin both had clear semantic "cores" of male and female animates, respectively. While many nouns were masculine and feminine without belonging to these semantic categories, the association was productive and has been maintained to the present day in Romance languages with gender (we can see the continued relevance of semantics to gender assignation most clearly when dealing with gender agreement for proper names or pronouns that refer to human beings).
The neuter gender, in contrast, wasn't associated with any one particular semantic domain. It included some, but by no means all, nouns that were neither semantically male nor female. The lack of a clear distinction in meaning corresponding to the distinction in form between masculine and neuter nouns may have contributed to the eventual loss of the neuter.
In the Romance languages with an -u vs. -o distinction that I mentioned above, words fall into one category or the other not on the basis of their gender in Latin, but rather based on semantic criteria, like being a mass noun vs. a count noun.
brass tacksbrass tacks
What do you mean by "Romance languages that have a distinction between -u and -o-final words"? Could you place there some example(s) please?
– Honza Zidek
@HonzaZidek: It's complicated. Here is a book that talks about it: books.google.com/…
Neuter in Latin differed from Masculine only for Nominative and Accusative cases. When case-endings began to collapse in early Proto-Romance, Neuter singular was reassigned to masculine and some Neuter plural ending in -a became feminine singular.
Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged romance-languages evolution gender or ask your own question.
Why in most (all?) languages don't adjectives have gender independently of the nouns they modify?
Why did Latin fragment so much?
Why did English "man" and Latin "homo" take both the senses "gender-neutral human" and "male adult"?
How can all languages be considered equally "good" at expressing ideas when language had to evolve from something more primitive?
Why there is a neuter gender in some Indo-European languages, and others apparently dropped it?
Why is the word "war" in Romance languages predominantly of Germanic origin instead of Latin?

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


RISMEDIA, July 7, 2011"When it comes to seller contributions, the real estate and mortgage industries are well overdue for a new way of thinking. That™s because the majority of agents (and buyers and loan officers, too) simply think the only use for seller contributions is to cover closing costs, and that means you™re missing out on a tremendous opportunity to help your buyer.Many don™t realize seller contributions can be used in a variety of ways that can increase a buyer™s purchasing power or help them lower their monthly payments.
In the following scenarios, if a buyer with a 760 FICO score and 5% downpayment had opted for a 30-year fixed rate conventional loan with mortgage insurance (MI) and used the seller contribution to either buy down the interest rate or pay the MI premium in cash as a one-time fee at closing, they would have gained more than $50,000 in purchasing power for the exact same monthly payment.
In this example, the buyer opts to use the seller contribution to buy down the interest rate to 4.75% and gains $55,105 in purchasing power.
In this example, the buyer opts to use the seller contribution to pay the MI premium in cash as a one-time fee at closing and gains $52,315 in purchasing power.
In this limited and very competitive market, it™s important to find a way to differentiate yourself. Being a knowledgeable resource for your buyers on all aspects of the home-buying process can help you accomplish that more successfully. Just by outlining the opportunities to better leverage seller contributions and pointing your buyer to their loan officer to discuss the options, you can increase your value, your sales and your referral business.
Brien McMahon is chief franchise officer of Radian Guaranty Inc. More information may be found at www.radian.biz.


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FAA nominee OK'd retaliation against pilot whistleblower, lawsuit says
A Senate committee is investigating President Donald Trump's nominee to lead the Federal Aviation Administration, Stephen Dickson , for his involvement in a case in which a Delta Air Lines pilot alleged the company retaliated against her -- including sending her to a psychiatrist -- after she shared safety concerns with him.
The case, which has not been previously reported, involves Dickson's time as a senior vice president at Delta Air Lines and a Delta pilot who argues the company retaliated against her after she met with him in 2016.
Dickson did not disclose the case on his nomination questionnaire to the Senate Commerce Committee.
As Delta's then-head of flight operations, Dickson approved sending the pilot, Karlene Petitt, to a psychiatrist weeks after she gave him and another flight operations manager a report that listed what she described as FAA violations by Delta, according to documents.
The psychiatrist diagnosed Petitt with bipolar disorder and the company grounded her for more than a year. Two subsequent examinations found that she does not have that disorder, and she is currently flying for Delta.
Petitt is suing Delta in a Department of Labor administrative case that remains pending.
In a deposition, Dickson said he had ultimate responsibility over the decision to refer Petitt for a mental evaluation and called it a "sound course of action." Dickson retired from Delta last year.
Petitt's attorney, Lee Seham, told that CNN Dickson allowed what amounted to retaliation against his client.
"This was all a terrible mistake, but it was a terrible mistake that went on for a year and a half because of the lack of diligence that Captain Dickson accepted," Seham said.
Commerce committee staffers are currently examining the case, which they learned of after Dickson's confirmation hearing on May 15, according to two committee aides.
RELATED: FAA officials in hot seat as world awaits Boeing 737 Max fix
"Since holding the nomination hearing with Mr. Dickson, new information has come to the committee's attention that merits further examination. The committee has been reviewing this information and I have asked the Department of Transportation and the White House to do the same," said Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Mississippi, the committee's chairman.
A Democratic committee aide described the case as concerning, particularly because it was omitted from Dickson's questionnaire.
CNN made repeated attempts to contact Dickson but could not reach him for comment. The White House has not responded to request for comments.
On his Senate questionnaire , Dickson stated, "During my Delta employment, from time to time and in the ordinary course of business, Delta was involved in various judicial, administrative or regulatory proceedings relating to its business, although I was not a named party in any such actions."
On another section that asked for "additional information, favorable or unfavorable, which you feel should be disclosed in connection with your nomination," Dickson responded: "None."
Delta denies that the company retaliated against Petitt by referring her to a medical examination after she raised concerns.
"Our utmost responsibility is to provide safe and secure travel for our customers and our employees. The very core of our safety program is employee reporting. Every single Delta employee is encouraged and empowered to report potential concerns and we do not tolerate retaliation against employees who raise concerns," Delta spokesperson Catherine Simmons said.
Dickson, who is poised to lead the FAA in the midst of controversy surrounding the agency's prior certification of the Boeing 737 Max, has decades of aviation experience as a former Air Force and Delta pilot who became a senior Delta manager responsible for flight safety and pilot training until his retirement last year.
Initial complaint and bipolar-disorder diagnosis
Petitt's ordeal began more than three years ago when she compiled a list of concerns about Delta. In addition to being a pilot for decades, Petitt has a PhD in aviation.
Petitt had witnessed a variety of events and practices involving Delta employees, training and scheduling practices that she believed violated FAA standards.
She compiled her concerns into a report that described "numerous areas where safety culture and ... compliance conflict with the FAA's (2013) outlined requirements and the airline's core values," which she presented to Dickson and Delta's then-vice president of flying operations, Jim Graham, in January 2016.
In a deposition, Petitt said that Dickson said during that meeting, "Some people like to sit in the back of the room and throw spit wads," which she interpreted as dismissive of her claims. Dickson said in a deposition he did not remember making that statement.
A Delta employee-relations manager then conducted an interview with Petitt in March 2016 about some of her claims, during which Petitt became frustrated, and her eyes filled with tears, according to her attorney. That manager reported that Petitt believed "something bad eventually will happen either to her or to a Delta flight," according to documents.
Graham held a teleconference with that manager and others and decided to ground Petitt and mandate that she receive a psychiatric evaluation, with Dickson's approval, according to court documents and Petitt's attorney.
The mental health evaluation by a Delta-hired psychiatrist resulted in Petitt's bipolar-disorder diagnosis, which rendered her unable to fly.
During this time, the FAA sent Petitt a letter in September 2016 that notified her an investigation had substantiated one of her safety concerns. The FAA determined Delta had failed to count employee "deadheading," where the airline provides an employee with a flight to another location, as flight time for computing daily and weekly flight limits, which Petitt said could affect pilot fatigue. The FAA did not substantiate three of her other allegations.
While Petitt remained grounded, a panel of doctors from the Mayo Clinic rejected Delta's psychiatric evaluation. Due to the disagreement, Delta's psychiatrist and the Mayo Clinic doctors selected a neutral medical examiner who in turn determined Petitt was medically fit. She began flying for Delta again in 2017.
Petitt's attorney Seham said he has no doubt that the decision to ground Petitt, overseen by Dickson, was linked to the safety report she shared, which he said amounts to retaliation by Delta and sends a troubling message to the company's pilots.
"What's the impact of safety in terms of the message to 12,000 pilots that after you submit a safety report you're off to a psychiatrist?" Seham said. "Captain Dickson did nothing in terms of stopping what happened."
Seham added that he questions the thoroughness with which Dickson and Delta as a whole investigated Petitt's safety concerns.
During a deposition, Dickson said he took Petitt's safety allegations "very seriously" and that he appointed his colleague Graham to follow-up and oversee a review of her claims.
Dickson also said that his meeting with Petitt served as a catalyst for a company safety audit, though when asked during that deposition about specific determinations reached on some of Petitt's claims, Dickson said he did not remember or was not aware.
Delta said a third-party auditor reviewed the company's safety processes in 2016 and provided positive feedback, and that the issue raised by Petitt of not properly counting deadhead time toward flight limits had been addressed and corrected by the time the FAA investigated it.
A senior White House adviser tells CNN that Dickson has been cooperating with the committee.
"President Trump chose Steve Dickson to head the FAA because of his almost three decades of experience at Delta where he oversaw global flight operations," White House spokesman Judd Deere said in a statement. "The White House has complete confidence in his nomination and expects him to be confirmed."


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Slavoj Žižek (ur. 21 marca 1949 w Lublanie) – słoweński uczony: filozof, socjolog i kulturoznawca, marksista.

Życiorys
Slavoj Žižek studiował filozofię i socjologię na Uniwersytecie w Lublanie. W 1981 doktoryzował się tam. W 1986 uzyskał drugi doktorat – na .

Jest profesorem w Instytucie Socjologii Uniwersytetu w Lublanie, wykłada także w European Graduate School i na uniwersytetach amerykańskich. Wprowadza do współczesnej filozofii dorobek psychoanalizy, przede wszystkim na pole analiz zjawisk społecznych, jest także komentatorem myśli francuskiego psychoanalityka Jacques'a Lacana. Inspiruje się również niemieckim idealizmem oraz marksizmem.

Cechą charakterystyczną jego książek są częste odwołania do kina, literatury i sztuk wizualnych, a także kultury masowej. Znawca i komentator współczesnej kinematografii. W 2006 wystąpił w filmie dokumentalnym Sophie Fiennes Z-Boczona historia kina (The Pervert's Guide to Cinema), do którego sam napisał scenariusz. Komentuje w nim filmy – od tych z lat 30., po hollywoodzkie produkcje – Frankenstein (1931), Ptaki (1963), Matrix (1999) i wiele innych. Bohater pełnometrażowego filmu dokumentalnego Žižek! w reżyserii Astry Taylor, wyprodukowanego przez Documentary Campaign w 2005. W 2012 ponownie współpracował z Sophie Fiennes realizując film dokumentalny Perwersyjny przewodnik po ideologiach (The Pervert's Guide to Ideology).

W latach osiemdziesiątych należał do . W 1990 był jednym z kandydatów do stanowiska prezydenta Republiki Słowenii.

W Polsce książki Žižka wydaje m.in. Korporacja Ha!art i Wydawnictwo Krytyki Politycznej. Drukowany w polskiej prasie, głównie w "Dzienniku", "Le Monde diplomatique" i "Gazecie Wyborczej".

Czterokrotnie żonaty, m.in. z , Analią Hounie (ślub w 2005) i  (ślub w 2013). Ojciec Tima i Kostji.

Poglądy

Mimo swoich przekonań lewicowych ogłosił w 2016 przed wyborami prezydenckimi w USA, że gdyby był Amerykaninem, oddałby głos na kandydata Partii Republikańskiej Donalda Trumpa, uważając liberalną kontrkandydatkę Partii Demokratycznej Hillary Clinton za większe zagrożenie ze względu na usunięcie przez nią w cień innego, lewicowego kandydata Demokratów, Berniego Sandersa:Gniew ludu, który zrodził Trumpa, zrodził również Sandersa, i choć obaj wyrażają powszechne społeczne i polityczne niezadowolenie, robią to w przeciwnym sensie, jeden angażując się w prawicowy populizm, a drugi wybierając lewicowe wezwanie do sprawiedliwości. I tu pojawia się podstęp: lewicowe wezwanie do sprawiedliwości zwykle łączy się z walką o prawa kobiet i gejów, o wielokulturowość i przeciwko dyskryminacji, w tym rasizmowi. Strategicznym celem konsensusu Clinton jest odcięcie tych wszystkich zmagań od lewicowego wezwania do sprawiedliwości, dlatego żywym symbolem tego konsensusu jest Tim Cook, dyrektor generalny Apple, który z dumą podpisał list z poparciem dla LGBT i który może teraz łatwo zapomnieć o setkach tysięcy pracowników Foxconn w Chinach, montujących produkty Apple w niewolniczych warunkach – wykonał swój wielki gest solidarności z nieuprzywilejowanymi, żądając zniesienia segregacji płciowej.Swoje stanowisko w tej sprawie potwierdził w 2019. Žižek wyrażał również sprzeciw wobec liberalnego indywidualizmu, którego dominacja w społeczeństwach zachodnich przy porzuceniu wsparcia dla osób wykluczonych materialnie przyczyniła się do rozwoju ideologii alt-right:Zachodnia poprawność polityczna ("wokeness") zastąpiła dawną walkę klas, tworząc w efekcie liberalną elitę, która twierdzi, że chroni zagrożone mniejszości rasowe i seksualne, co ma na celu odwrócenie uwagi od jej własnej uprzywilejowanej pozycji ekonomicznej i politycznej. To kłamstwo pozwala z kolei populistycznej altprawicy przedstawiać siebie jako tych, którzy bronią "zwykłych" ludzi przed wielkimi korporacjami i "trzymającymi władzę" elitami, nawet jeśli sama również zajmuje wysoką pozycję w ekonomicznej i politycznej hierarchii.Krytykował narastający terror prawicowych reżimów w Rosji, Iranie i Izraelu, widząc w nich "wyraźne oznaki rozkładu etycznego, w którym czyny kiedyś uznawane za niewyobrażalne mogą w bardzo krótkim czasie stać się możliwe i akceptowalne". Analogicznie kierował swoje zarzuty wobec uniwersyteckiej "woke lewicy" w Stanach Zjednoczonych i Francji, gdzie jego zdaniem zaczął panować podobnie opresyjny system wymierzony przeciwko cispłciowym mężczyznom: "nigdy nie wiemy, czy ktoś z nas skończy jako »skancelowany« za coś, co zrobił lub powiedział […], czy za sam fakt urodzenia się w niewłaściwej kategorii". Twierdził też, że z powodu erozji silnej państwowości na rzecz gwałtownego rozwoju kapitalizmu kulturowy Zachód oddala się od demokracji, na rzecz porządku "postkapitalistycznego, postliberalnego i dystopijnego".

Tłumaczenia prac na język polski
 Wzniosły obiekt ideologii, Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Wrocławskiego, Wrocław 2001,  (The Sublime Object of Ideology 1989)
 Patrząc z ukosa. Do Lacana przez kulturę popularną, Warszawa 2003, Wydawnictwo KR,  (Looking Awry: an introduction to Jacques Lacan through popular culture 1991)
 Przekleństwo fantazji, Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Wrocławskiego, Wrocław 2001,  (The Plague of Fantasies 1997)
 Kruchy absolut, czyli Dlaczego warto walczyć o chrześcijańskie dziedzictwo, Warszawa 2009, Wydawnictwo Krytyki Politycznej, seria Idee (t. XV), s. 177,  (The Fragile Absolute: Or, Why is the Christian Legacy Worth Fighting For? 2000)
 (z Dolarem Mladenem) Druga śmierć opery, Warszawa 2008, Wydawnictwo Sic!, s 322,  (Opera's Second Death 2001)
 Lacrimae rerum. Kieślowski, Hitchcock, Tarkowski, Lynch, Warszawa 2007, Wydawnictwo Krytyki Politycznej, Seria Idee (t. IV),  (The Fright of Real Tears: Krzysztof Kieślowski Between Theory and Post-Theory 2001)
 O wierze, Warszawa 2008, Wydawnictwo Aletheia, s. 253,  (On Belief 2001)
 Rewolucja u bram, Warszawa 2006, 2007 Wydawnictwo Krytyki Politycznej, Seria Idee (t. I),  (Revolution at the Gates. Žižek on Lenin, the 1917 Writings 2002)
 Kukła i karzeł. Perwersyjny rdzeń chrzescijaństwa, Bydgoszcz 2006, Wydawnictwo Branta,  (Puppet and the Dwarf. The Perverse Core of Christianity 2003)
 Lacan. Przewodnik Krytyki Politycznej, Warszawa 2008, Wydawnictwo Krytyki Politycznej, Seria Przewodniki Krytyki Politycznej (t. III),  (How to Read Lacan 2006)
 W obronie przegranych spraw, Warszawa 2008, Wydawnictwo Krytyki Politycznej,  (In Defense of Lost Causes 2008)
 Przemoc: sześć spojrzeń z ukosa, Warszawa 2010, Warszawskie Wydawnictwo Literackie Muza,  (Violence: Big Ideas/Small Books, 2008)
 Od tragedii do farsy, czyli jak historia się powtarza, Warszawa 2011, Wydawnictwo Krytyki Politycznej,  (First As Tragedy, Then As Farce, 2009)
 Metastazy rozkoszy: sześć esejów o kobietach i przyczynowości, przeł. Marek J. Mosakowski, Warszawa 2013, Wydawnictwo Krytyki Politycznej,  (Metastases of enjoyment: six essays on woman and causality, 1994)
 Żądanie niemożliwego, oprac. Yong-june Park, przeł. Bogdan Baran, Warszawa 2014, Wydawnictwo Aletheia,  (Demanding the impossible, 2013)
 Rok niebezpiecznych marzeń, przeł. Maciej Kropiwnicki i Barbara Szelewa, Warszawa 2014, Wydawnictwo Krytyki Politycznej,  (Year of dreaming dangerously, 2012)
 Pandemia! Covid-19 trzęsie światem, przeł. Jowita Maksymowicz-Hamann, Warszawa 2020, Relacja (wydawnictwo)
 Kłopoty w raju. Od końca historii do końca kapitalizmu, przeł. Tomasz Markiewka, Warszawa 2021, Wydawnictwo Czarna Owca,
 Hegel i mózg podłączony, Wydawnictwo Krytyki Politycznej, Warszawa 2021.

Opracowania
 Tony Meyers, Slavoj Žižek Žižek. Przewodnik Krytyki Politycznej, red. i wybór tekstów Julian Kutyła, Maciej Kropiwnicki, Sławomir Sierakowski, Warszawa 2009, Wydawnictwo Krytyki Politycznej, Seria Przewodniki Krytyki Politycznej (t. X),
 Kuba Mikurda, Nie-całość. Žižek, Dolar, Zupančič. Państwowy Instytut Wydawniczy, Warszawa 2015

Wybór innych prac w oryginale
 For They Do Not Know What They Do. Enjoyment as a Political Factor, 1991
 Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Lacan But Were Afraid to Ask Hitchcock, 1992
 Enjoy Your Symptom!, 1992
 Metastases of Enjoyment. Six Essays on Women and Causality, 1994
 The Indivisible Remainder. An Essay on Schelling and Related Matters, 1996

Przypisy

Linki zewnętrzne

 Žižek na stronach Lacan.com
 Slavoj Žižek, "Is It Still Possible to Be a Hegelian Today?" (Czy to Wciąż Możliwe Być Współcześnie Heglistą), Hegel-Lecture 2011, filmowe nagrania wykładu, Dahlem Humanities Center, Freie Universität Berlin, 2011. (YouTube, j.ang.)

Absolwenci Uniwersytetu Lublańskiego
Filozofowie i teoretycy marksistowscy
Filozofowie współcześni
Filozofowie XX wieku
Filozofowie XXI wieku
Freudomarksizm
Słoweńscy filozofowie
Słoweńscy socjolodzy
Ludzie urodzeni w Lublanie
Teoretycy kultury
Urodzeni w 1949
Wykładowcy uczelni w Słowenii
Słoweńscy komuniści

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
Q: Error executing matplotlib.pyplot.subplots() I have a script that creates png images from log data. It works fine on a production machine, but now spits errors on a new box while processing this line:
    fig, ax = plt.subplots(1,1, figsize=(20,14))

AttributeError: 'module' object has no attribute 'subplots'

I suspect issues in version differences in various modules. Any insights?

A: Latest version of Ipython does not have this issue. Putting it as answer as suggested by @Jay Bosamiya to make this question closed.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Imagine you live at some point in the past in which you didn't have electricity, refrigeration, or grocery stores as we know them today. When fresh foods were the things you picked out of your own growing plot or found in the wild around you. Right about now (depending on where you live) you'd probably be celebrating the coming of spring. There's the warming weather, the longer days, the twittering birds and bright flowers around, and color and life is coming back into the world. But if I lived in that time, I think my most favorite part of spring would be…..food!
Spring is a time for setting out new plants and putting seeds in the ground. It is just the beginning of the growing season for most. But I say, why wait? The early days of spring bring with them a whole smorgasborg of delights to pull you out of the winter blahs. Spring tonics abound!
An agent, such as a medication, that is supposed to restore or improve health or well-being.
In that time we imagined earlier, where there was no refrigeration or grocery stores with shipments of food from all over the planet, during the winter, people mostly sustained on preserved meats, dry beans, and root crops. Read: salt, starch, carbohydrates, sugar. Yes, today those four things are the stuff of food cravings, but going for months and months (depending on how long the winter lasted) on only salted meat and turnips? That first sprig of green in the spring wouldn't stand a chance with me around!
Traditionally, spring tonics were a tea or infusion made with the early spring greens. What those greens are depend on locale, but generally things like dandelion, dock, nettle, violet, chickweed, henbit, wood sorrel…basically anything edible and green that comes up early spring.
Ironically, these are also usually the things that lawn-growers despise, so this is a perfect time to do like my mom did this year: harvest the neighbor's weeds "as a favor to them" before they start mowing and spraying and doing all that lawn-care stuff, and save your own weeds for later in the season!
Looks like a mess….but everything green in this picture is edible and a possible spring tonic ingredient!
A close up…are you starting to see it?
There's also some chickweed and wild garlic/onion in there.
The idea behind a spring tonic is that it helps to kickstart digestion and clean out all the "heavy" food that's been eaten all winter. Spring tonics are also full of nutrients and minerals that have been lacking most of the winter which help energize and build up the system for the coming chores of spring and summer.
I believe that these first plant foods, the ones that begin their growth in frozen ground, that push their way up through snow and ice, whose tender leaves still survive the late winter frosts and hard freezes have a little something extra in them that I want in me. That vitality, that energy, that sheer will to survive, that strength and vigor. Who doesn't need a little of all that in their day?
I also believe (I'm no nutritionist, so this is all just my personal thoughts here) that those survivor plants must be simply loaded with nutrients. Just as a conventionally-farmed, GMO crop in a climate controlled, well fertilized, regularly watered, pampered environment doesn't have the same nutrient (or flavor) density as anything that grows in the wild, or the way conventionally-raised beef can't compete in any way to grass-fed; I believe these early plants that have to endure, not just the perils and fickleness of nature, but ice and snow and freezing temperatures on top of it must have even more in them to offer us in terms of nutrition.
The kale in the picture is from my garden, which overwintered beautifully! The rest was also gathered from my overgrown raised beds which haven't been prepped yet, and the areas around them. The onion/garlics are leftover from our wild violet salad day.
I chopped up the bulbs of the onion/garlic and sautéed them lightly in some oil in a pan on medium heat.
I chopped up everything else, including stems, flowers, and the greens from the onion/garlic and added them to the pot.
I let everything wilt just a bit before adding some leftover bone broth (about 2 cups) and an additional 2 cups of water. Water alone does just fine. I just happened to have some leftover broth that needed to be used, so thought, what the heck!
I threw in a little bit of salt and pepper (to taste) and a dash of apple cider vinegar as I've heard it helps to draw out minerals….but mostly because I like that little twang of a taste with my greens!
I then reduced the heat to super-low, covered the pot, and let it sit for what probably ended up being 4 hours (you could also do this in a crock pot). The greens were tender enough to eat within 30 minutes, but I really wanted to get all I could out of them into the broth/water/tea for my tonic.
Traditionally, the plant stuffs were strained and discarded, and the remaining "tea" was drunk as the "tonic," however, not being one to waste, we all drank the tea/broth and I reserved the greens for a side with dinner.
In our world today, we have electricity and refrigeration, and grocery stores that sell oranges and strawberries in Alaska in the dead of winter. But just as Spring itself brings about a brightness and energy to the world, the "spring tonic" helps me bring some of that feeling into my body and makes me all the more ready for the seasons ahead.


Look around your office. Do you see sticky notes hanging from desktops, laptops and white boards?
It turns out the sticky note habit is a surprisingly hard one to break.
Heavy users even stuff color-coded sticky notes into labeled boxes to keep track of activities. Many will tell you they just don't know a better way to manage tasks. Many more will say they tried different tools but didn't find them user-friendly. Some people still use sticky notes even months after SharePoint or Office 365 has been deployed in their company. You can help them break their sticky note habit by convincing them to adopt a digital option, SharePoint Tasks List feature.
The SharePoint Tasks List feature is simple enough for typical sticky note tasks and sophisticated enough for most collaborative daily tasks.
Remember: sticky notes have their place. They're great as a reminder to buy a birthday gift for a friend. But for business-related tasks, there's a better way. Help your colleagues make the transition to SharePoint Tasks List with the three steps below.
Start by finding out how and why the person use sticky notes. Use this information to create a demo as a display of solutions to their problems.
Whether it's a one-person tasks list or a team project, SharePoint Tasks List capability helps users manage their to-do lists with much more flexibility and scalability. Adding tasks, allocating resources to tasks, delegating tasks, tracking completion progress and more are easy with this feature.
Below are more of the benefits you can highlight.
Whereas your sticky notes tend to stay where you leave them, your SharePoint Tasks documents are available anywhere there is an internet connection. They are not location-bound and they are not device-bound (and they won't blow away). They are accessible on any device at home, office or the coffee shop.
Sticky notes inherently come with a lot of limitations. SharePoint Tasks Lists provide more options.
Scheduling: Every time you add a task, you are prompted to add start date, due date, and priority level.
Delegating: With a tiny configuration, notification emails are sent to different individuals to whom you assign different tasks.
Resourcing: Easily attach needed resources to each task on the list.
Collaborating: Your team members can get access to your tasks, participate and help out if and when needed.
Tracking: Intuitively change the status of your tasks and preview the visual representation of your progress. This is especially helpful when a list includes many tasks.
With time, you will discover even more ways to use this capability for better management of your daily tasks.
The SharePoint Tasks List feature integrates well with Microsoft Project, which can either be Project Online or Project Server.
When a tasks list grows in magnitude and duration, you may want to import it into Microsoft Project for more robust management. Once the connection is complete, the tasks list in SharePoint and the one in Project are synchronized. Every update to your action items in SharePoint is reflected in Project.
In many cases, Project is used by project managers and SharePoint is used by everyone else on a team. This is because Microsoft Project helps project managers have control over several projects in one centralized workspace.
Now that you've convinced your team that SharePoint Tasks List feature can serve them better than sticky notes, it's time to encourage adoption. Start with a daily-tips campaign so they know how to use the feature and then, as with any new software, reward your early adopters.
A daily tips campaign breaks down new features into micro-training sessions. Broadcast a short tutorial to your SharePoint users on a daily basis for a period of seven, 14 or 28 days. By breaking down the tutorials into bite-sized pieces, it makes them easy to consume and easier to remember. A tutorial can be a tip-sheet, an annotated screenshot, a screen-capture video, or a step-by-step walk through.
Make the campaign time-sensitive with a well-defined deadline. This gives everyone a reason to prioritize action.
Sending out daily tips is not enough. To make the campaign successful, ensure recipients interact with every tutorial they receive. For example, add a challenge to every tutorial that you send. Bellow the tutorial, add a call-to-action: ask them to complete a certain task after watching the tutorial. This drives users to thoroughly absorb what they learn and helps them put the newly acquired knowledge into practice.
To encourage the interactions even more, give away prizes to quick action-takers.
If you reward a behavior, you get more of it. Everyone is more motivated if they stand to gain something valuable. Consider shopping vouchers, event tickets, gift cards, etc. — anything that has value and can be personalized.
Let them know that learning and practicing comes with perks. Create several prizes to award winners at different levels. And remember to publicly declare and praise the winners. This may sound over the top, but it's proven to inspire others to put in effort.
Most importantly, measure results. With a well-deployed communication campaign, a thoroughly executed training campaign, and a well designed award program, you should be able to see your team members breaking the habit of using sticky notes for their daily tasks. Like any other campaign, results may not be as quick or as successful as you would expect. If this is the case, you may need to roll out another daily-tips campaign with a new award program and possibly repeat this effort three times throughout a year.
Help your team members dump their sticky note habit. Using the SharePoint Tasks List feature is much smarter and much more productive. Changing the habit is worth the effort.


text:
Lesley Dill
Panelist - Experimental Junctures in Typography: Expanding the Canon
Lesley Dill is an American artist working at the intersection of language and fine art in printmaking, sculpture, installation and performance, exploring the power of words to cloak and reveal the psyche. Dill transforms the emotions of the writings of Emily Dickinson, Salvador Espriu, Tom Sleigh, Franz Kafka, and Rainer Maria Rilke, among others, into works of paper, wire, horsehair, foil, bronze and music—works that awaken the viewer to the physical intimacy and power of language itself.
Dill has had over one hundred solo exhibitions. Her artworks are in the collections of many major museums, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Museum of Modern Art New York, and the Whitney Museum of American Art. In 2017 she was named a fellow of The John Simon Guggenheim Foundation and is a Joan Mitchell Foundation Creating A Living Legacy artist and grant recipient. Her opera, "Divide Light," based on the poems of Emily Dickinson, was performed in San Jose in 2008. In April of 2018 the New Camerata Opera Company performed a re-staged version in New York City which was captured in a full-length film by Ed Robbins.
In November 2019, Arthur Roger Gallery in New Orleans presented a collection of her work titled "Drawings: Some Early Visionary Americans." In 2021, the Figge Art Museum in Davenport, Iowa will stage her exhibit "Wilderness: Light Sizzles Around Me," which amplifies voices of the North American past as they wrestle with divinity, deviltry, and freedom.
The artist is represented by Nohra Haime Gallery in New York and Arthur Roger Gallery in New Orleans. Lesley Dill lives and works in Brooklyn, New York.
Matilde Argentero
Rebecca Chamlee
Mick Clayton
Sophie Hawkey-Edwards
Jen Farrell
Gabriele Fumero
Cynthia Marsh
Radha Pandey
Bob Richardson
Alice Savoie
Rúben Dias
Nick Loaring
Partners in Print


A beautiful flow pouring off of a cliff band above Deer Creek campground. The route starts steep and eases as you climb higher. There was a nice, sheltered belay cave on the right side of the route. It's a long hike for a short pitch but something to do on a foul weather day or a day when you sleep in and don't want to drive from the CG.
The flow can be seen 1/4 mile upstream of the Deer Creek Campground on the North side of the road. Hike straight up the ridge east of the route's drainage. It's a lot of elevation gain.
Screws. A V thread anchor can be made near the top of the flow. One 70 meter rope allows for an easy descent and top roping. A 60 would probably work also.


(FORT ALBANY, ON – Wednesday, 01 February 2012) – Canadian legends The Tragically Hip, along with celebrated novelist Joseph Boyden, will be participating in this year's Great Moon Gathering. The annual event, held on the west coast of James Bay in Ontario's pristine Arctic lowlands, will gather in Fort Albany, February 15-17, and include the Cree First Nations of Attawapiskat, Peawanuck, Kashechewan, Moose Factory, and Fort Albany. With a focus on both traditional and contemporary aboriginal education, the Great Moon Gathering celebrates the strengths and diversity of the Cree Nation. Over forty workshops will be offered, and are as varied as Cree language, sweat lodge, moccasin and hand drum making, classroom management, and early education.
The Tragically Hip's performance on Thursday night, will be webcast live on their website, so check out www.thehip.com for more details.


text:
Q: Entityframework core where condition, sql string that executed and its result I implemented an api and I used EF core.
I have a complex structure that its core entity is an entity that I called it Project.
i should say that i used EF Core as DB First. Then I created my database at first and after that I used "Scaffold-Database" to create my Model in code.
The Project's model is:
using System;
using System.Collections.Generic;
using System.ComponentModel.DataAnnotations.Schema;

namespace myProj_Model.Entities
{
    public partial class Projects
    {
        public Projects()
        {
            Boreholes = new HashSet<Boreholes>();
            ProjectsWorkAmounts = new HashSet<ProjectsWorkAmount>();
            Zones = new HashSet<Zones>();
        }

        public long Id { get; set; }
        public string Number { get; set; }
        public string Name { get; set; }
        public string Description { get; set; }
        public string ClientName { get; set; }
        public int? NoOfRecord { get; set; }
        public byte[] Logo { get; set; }
        public int? LogoWidth { get; set; }
        public int? LogoHeight { get; set; }
        public string Version { get; set; }
        public byte? Revision { get; set; }
        public byte? WorkValueIsLimit { get; set; }
        public long? CreatedBy { get; set; }
        public DateTime? CreatedDate { get; set; }
        public long? ModifiedBy { get; set; }
        public DateTime? ModifiedDate { get; set; }

        public virtual Users CreatedBy_User { get; set; }
        public virtual Users ModifiedBy_User { get; set; }
        public virtual ProjectsDrillingLog ProjectsDrillingLog { get; set; }
        public virtual ProjectsDutchCone ProjectsDutchCone { get; set; }
        public virtual ProjectsGap ProjectsGap { get; set; }
        //public virtual ProjectsLogDrafting ProjectsLogDrafting { get; set; }
        public virtual ProjectsRole ProjectsRole { get; set; }
        public virtual ProjectsUnc ProjectsUnc { get; set; }
        public virtual ICollection<Boreholes> Boreholes { get; set; }
        public virtual ICollection<ProjectsWorkAmount> ProjectsWorkAmounts { get; set; }
        public virtual ICollection<Zones> Zones { get; set; }
    }
}

I mentioned again that the model was created by "Scaffold" command.
CRUD operation were handled by GenericRepository:
using geotech_Tests_Model.Entities;
using geotech_Tests_Model.Interfaces;
using Microsoft.EntityFrameworkCore;
using Microsoft.EntityFrameworkCore.Query.Internal;
using Newtonsoft.Json;
using System;
using System.Collections.Generic;
using System.Linq;
using System.Linq.Expressions;

namespace myProj_Model.Repositories
{
    public class GenericRepository<T> : IGenericRepository<T> where T : class
    {
        protected geotechContext _context { get; set; }
        public GenericRepository(geotechContext context)
        {
            this._context = context;
        }

        public void Add(T entity)
        {
            try
            {
                _context.Set<T>().Add(entity);
                _context.SaveChanges();
            }
            catch (Exception eXp)
            {
                string Myname = eXp.Message;
            }
        }

        public void AddRange(IEnumerable<T> entities)
        {
            try
            {
                _context.Set<T>().AddRange(entities);
                _context.SaveChanges();
            }
            catch (Exception eXp)
            {
                string Myname = eXp.Message;
            }
        }

        public void Update(T entity)
        {
            try
            {
                _context.Set<T>().Update(entity);
                _context.SaveChanges();
            }
            catch (Exception eXp)
            {
                string Myname = eXp.Message;
            }
        }

        public void UpdateRange(IEnumerable<T> entities)
        {
            try
            {
                _context.Set<T>().UpdateRange(entities);
                _context.SaveChanges();
            }
            catch (Exception eXp)
            {
                string Myname = eXp.Message;
            }
        }

        public IQueryable<T> Find()
        {
            return _context.Set<T>().AsQueryable();
        }

        public List<T> Find(FilterStruct filterstruct)
        {
            Expression<Func<T, bool>> myExpresion = Expresion(filterstruct);

            return _context.Set<T>().AsQueryable().IgnoreAutoIncludes().Where(myExpresion).ToList ();
        }

        public T GetById(long id)
        {
            return _context.Set<T>().Find(id);
        }

        public void Remove(T entity)
        {
            try
            {
                _context.Set<T>().Remove(entity);
                _context.SaveChanges();
            }
            catch (Exception eXp)
            {
                string Myname = eXp.Message;
            }
        }

        public void RemoveRange(IEnumerable<T> entities)
        {
            try
            {
                _context.Set<T>().RemoveRange(entities);
                _context.SaveChanges();
            }
            catch (Exception eXp)
            {
                string Myname = eXp.Message;
            }
        }

        public Expression< Func<T, bool>> Expresion(FilterStruct filters)
        {

            //IQueryable<T> myQry = _context.Set<T>().AsQueryable<T>();
            //IQueryable<T> myQryFilter = _context.Set<T>().AsQueryable<T>();

            List<QueryStruct> queries = filters.Queries;

            Expression predicateBody = null;

            ParameterExpression myExp = Expression.Parameter(typeof(T), typeof(T).Name);

            if (queries != null)
            {
                foreach (QueryStruct query in queries)
                {
                    Expression e1 = null;
                    Expression left = Expression.Property(myExp, typeof(T).GetProperty(query.columnName));
                    Type actualType = Type.GetType(left.Type.FullName);
                    var myValue = Convert.ChangeType(query.value, actualType);

                    Expression right = Expression.Constant(myValue);

                    e1 = ApplyOperand(left, right, query.operatorName);

                    if (predicateBody == null)
                        predicateBody = e1;
                    else
                    {
                        predicateBody = ApplyAndOr(predicateBody, e1, query.AndOr);
                    }

                }
            }

            //var p = Expression.Parameter(typeof(T), typeof(T).Name);
            //if (predicateBody == null) predicateBody = Expression.Constant(true);
            //MethodCallExpression whereCallExpression = Expression.Call(
            //typeof(Queryable),
            //"Where", new Type[] { myQryFilter.ElementType },
            //myQryFilter.Expression, Expression.Lambda<Func<T>, bool> > (predicateBody, myExp));

            var Lambda = Expression.Lambda <Func<T, bool>>(predicateBody, myExp);
            return Lambda;
        }

        public static Expression ApplyOperand(Expression Left, Expression Rigth, OperandEnum Operand)
        {
            Expression result = null;
            switch (Operand)
            {
                case (OperandEnum.Equal):
                    {
                        result = Expression.Equal(Left, Rigth);
                        break;
                    }
                case (OperandEnum.NotEqual):
                    {
                        result = Expression.NotEqual(Left, Rigth);
                        break;
                    }
                case (OperandEnum.GreaterThan):
                    {
                        result = Expression.GreaterThan(Left, Rigth);
                        break;
                    }
                case (OperandEnum.GreaterThanOrEqual):
                    {
                        result = Expression.GreaterThanOrEqual(Left, Rigth);
                        break;
                    }
                case (OperandEnum.LessThan):
                    {
                        result = Expression.LessThan(Left, Rigth);
                        break;
                    }
                case (OperandEnum.LessThanOrEqual):
                    {
                        result = Expression.LessThanOrEqual(Left, Rigth);
                        break;
                    }
            }

            return result;

        }

        public static Expression ApplyAndOr(Expression Left, Expression Rigth, AndOrEnum AndOr)
        {
            Expression result = null;
            switch (AndOr)
            {
                case (AndOrEnum.And):
                    {
                        result = Expression.And(Left, Rigth);
                        break;
                    }
                case (AndOrEnum.AndAlso):
                    {
                        result = Expression.AndAlso(Left, Rigth);
                        break;
                    }
                case (AndOrEnum.AndAssign):
                    {
                        result = Expression.AndAssign(Left, Rigth);
                        break;
                    }
                case (AndOrEnum.Or):
                    {
                        result = Expression.Or(Left, Rigth);
                        break;
                    }
                case (AndOrEnum.OrAssign):
                    {
                        result = Expression.OrAssign(Left, Rigth);
                        break;
                    }
                case (AndOrEnum.OrElse):
                    {
                        result = Expression.OrElse(Left, Rigth);
                        break;
                    }
            }

            return result;

        }

    }
}

and I have ConfigureServices like this in my Startup.cs:
    public void ConfigureServices(IServiceCollection services)
{

    services.AddCors(options =>
    {
        options.AddPolicy(_appCorsPolicy,
            builder =>
            {
                builder.WithOrigins("http://127.0.0.1:23243")
                .AllowAnyHeader();
                //.AllowAnyMethod();
            });
    });

    //****************************************************************************************
    services.AddControllers();

    services.AddControllersWithViews().AddNewtonsoftJson(options => options.SerializerSettings.ReferenceLoopHandling = Newtonsoft.Json.ReferenceLoopHandling.Ignore);

    services.Configure<IISOptions>(options =>
    {
    });
    services.AddAutoMapper(typeof(Startup));
    // Register the Swagger generator, defining 1 or more Swagger documents
    services.AddSwaggerGen(c =>
    {
        c.SwaggerDoc("v1", new OpenApiInfo { Title = "Organization, .Net Core", Version = "V 01" });

        // Set the comments path for the Swagger JSON and UI.
        var xmlFile = $"{Assembly.GetExecutingAssembly().GetName().Name}.xml";
        var xmlPath = Path.Combine(AppContext.BaseDirectory, xmlFile);

        c.IncludeXmlComments(xmlPath);
    });

    string connectionStr = Configuration.GetConnectionString("DefaultConnection");

    services.AddDbContext<geotechContext>(options => options.UseLazyLoadingProxies().UseSqlServer(connectionStr));

    //Farzin
    services.Add(new ServiceDescriptor(typeof(IProjectsService), typeof(ProjectsService), ServiceLifetime.Scoped));

    //  {AddServicesHere}

}

After that I have a service class for my Project's entity. GetById is one of the several functoin's that I have in Service class.
    public EventResult GetById(long id)
{
    EventResult result = new EventResult();
    //result.Data = service.GetById (id);
    result.Data = service.Find().IgnoreAutoIncludes().Where(a => (a.Id == id)).FirstOrDefault();
    return result;
}

Now main problem is, Respond time is considerably high. I trace every line of code and even the sql command that executed. Sql profiler show's the sql command that sent to SqlServer. The command is:
    exec sp_executesql N'SELECT TOP(1) [g].[Id], [g].[gtp_ClientName], [g].[CreatedBy], [g].[CreatedDate], [g].[gtP_Description], [g].[gtp_Logo], [g].[gtp_LogoHeight], [g].[gtp_LogoWidth], [g].[ModifiedBy], [g].[ModifiedDate], [g].[gtP_Name], [g].[gtp_NoOfRecord], [g].[gtP_ProjectNumber], [g].[gtp_Revision], [g].[gtp_Version], [g].[gtp_WorkValueIsLimit]
FROM [gt_Projects] AS [g]
WHERE [g].[Id] = @__id_0',N'@__id_0 bigint',@__id_0=1

there is no any relationship and result of executing of this sql is a simple row without any additional data. But something that I get as answer in swagger is a complex record with all related data.
Result of query
and I expect that result in swagger be something like this
Expected Result
But result is something like this:
    {
  "errorNumber": 0,
  "errorMessage": "",
  "eventId": 0,
  "data": {
    "createdBy_User": {
      "projectsRoleId1": null,
      "boreholeCreatedByNavigations": [],
      "boreholeModifiedByNavigations": [],
      "boreholeTypeCreatedByNavigations": [
        {
          "boreholes": [],
          "id": 1,
          "abbriviation": "P",
          "name": "Primary",
          "description": "Primary Boreholes",
          "order": 1,
          "color": null,
          "createdBy": 1,
          "createdDate": "1400-05-27T00:00:00",
          "modifiedBy": 1,
          "modifiedDate": "1400-05-27T00:00:00"
        }
      ],
      "boreholeTypeModifiedByNavigations": [
        {
          "boreholes": [],
          "id": 1,
          "abbriviation": "P",
          "name": "Primary",
          "description": "Primary Boreholes",
          "order": 1,
          "color": null,
          "createdBy": 1,
          "createdDate": "1400-05-27T00:00:00",
          "modifiedBy": 1,
          "modifiedDate": "1400-05-27T00:00:00"
        }
      ],
      "boreholesWorkAmountCreatedByNavigations": [],
      "boreholesWorkAmountModifiedByNavigations": [],
      "dailyActivityDaCoSupervisorNavigations": [],
      "dailyActivityDaSpecialistNavigations": [],
      "dailyActivityDaSupervisorNavigations": [],
      "dailyActivityDaTechnision01Navigations": [],
      "dailyActivityDaTechnision02Navigations": [],
      "created_Projects": [
        {
          "projectsDrillingLog": null,
          "projectsDutchCone": null,
          "projectsGap": null,
          "projectsRole": null,
          "projectsUnc": null,
          "boreholes": [],
          "projectsWorkAmounts": [],
          "zones": [],
          "id": 2,
          "number": "001",
          "name": "Yes",
          "description": "ss",
          "clientName": "ss",
          "noOfRecord": 1,
          "logo": null,

.........
.........
        "id": 5,
        "workActivity": 6,
        "project": 1,
        "activityPredicted": 5,
        "activityActual": null,
        "startDatePredicted": null,
        "endDatePredicted": null,
        "startDateActual": null,
        "endDateActual": null,
        "createdBy": null,
        "createdDate": null,
        "modifiedBy": null,
        "modifiedDate": null
      }
    ],
    "zones": [],
    "id": 1,
    "number": "001",
    "name": "No",
    "description": "ss",
    "clientName": "ss",
    "noOfRecord": 1,
    "logo": null,
    "logoWidth": 11,
    "logoHeight": 11,
    "version": "1",
    "revision": 1,
    "workValueIsLimit": 1,
    "createdBy": 1,
    "createdDate": "1400-06-01T00:00:00",
    "modifiedBy": 1,
    "modifiedDate": "1400-06-01T00:00:00"
  }
}

The answer contains near  4700 line of data, and this happened when my db is almost empty.
i don't know why and what I should do, to get my expected result as answer.

A: I note you have .UseLazyLoadingProxies() which means you can load some data from a DB and then trigger loading some more data just by accessing the property; for example you download just the one Project but as soon as you try and access its Boreholes collection, that access will trigger another query like SELECT * FROM Boreholes WHERE projectId = (whatever the current project id is) to fill the boreholes collection before returning it..
This means when the serializer is enumerating your starting Project's properties, looking for data it can serialize instead of getting a "null" or "empty" when it accesses the navigation proeprty to some related data, it's the serializer that is triggering a db lookup of every related entity... and then it serializes all those related entities and enumerating their props triggers even more lookups.
What starts out as just one Project, snowballs into loading every related entity up and down the tree, maybe even the whole database, just because you've asked the serializer to turn the Project object into json..

Removing the lazy loading proxies feature will stop that, but then other parts of the project won't auto load data upon access; what you do about this is perhaps a wider design decision over how you should load related data..


Blackjack is an simple casino game and it's easy to figure out how to play and learn the basics of this cards game very quickly. You have to collect 21 point and beat the Dealer. If you get more than 21 - you lose. Check game rules before you play to know all possible combination.
Your objective is to come as close as possible to 21 point without going over and still having a higher total than the Dealer. You begin the game with two cards. If Your total goes over 21 - you lose. Place Your bets and beat your AI opponent. Here is the classic blackjack game that you can find in any bitcoin casino. Blackjack is the most well-known casino card game in the world. The goal of the game is to beat the dealer which can be done in several ways.
Blackjack (a.k.a. 21 or twenty-one) is the most popular casino card game. The aim of the game is to obtain a total card point sum higher than the dealer has without exceeding 21. Play this game by using common blackjack rules or check instructions to learn how to play.
Blackjack is perhaps is the most recognized casino game in the whole world. Sometimes it is also called "Twenty One" in honor of its predecessor game the origins of which are unknown. Blackjack is a comparing card game involving a dealer and a player. The players compete against the dealer and not against other participants. Blackjack is played with one or more decks of fifty two cards. The purpose of the game is to collect twenty one points or to achieve a score higher than that of the dealer without exceeding twenty one at the same time.
Many variations of blackjack rules exist. Since the 1960s, blackjack has been a high profile target of advantage players,card counters in particular. They tracked the profile of cards dealt and adapted their wagers and playing strategies accordingly. Blackjack has caused the advent of some other casino games like Spanish 21 and pontoon.
We have collected wonderful blackjack games on our website. A great deal of them are in 3D that makes gaming even more exiting.
For example, you will love the game "Blackjack pays 3-to-2" from the first sight. This is an interesting blackjack game that mimics the real gambling experience. You must first choose a bet and the machine will automatically deal the cards. You can see your points and have to guess how many points your rival has - if your score is the highest you win the game. If you think it is too risky to beat your rival, you can stand and wait for a better chance. Use your brain to increase your fortune!
If you are a beginner and want to improve your playing skills our "Blackjack Trainer" is a perfect tool for this task. Blackjack is a straightforward game, once you know the rules. This excellent blackjack trainer allows you to optimize your chances against а bank. Your task is to reach 21 points. You have two cards. You can choose between: "Stay" - keep your hand hoping that the dealer does not have better cards, "Hit" - Take another card. Also you can Split and Double. Values: Figures - 10 points, Point Cards - value worth, Ace - 1 or 11.
In case you are a professional "Big Bomb Blackjack" is exactly what you have been looking for. This game is played with one or more standard decks of cards containing 52 cards. The value of each card in the game is straightforward: the royal cards of the Queen, King and Jacks are all valued at 10, and the other cards are at face value, so a 2 is worth 2 points. The Aces, however, are slightly different; they can either be 11 or 1 depending upon how they will best suit the player.
We can talk for a long time but as the proverb runs: "Better to see once than to hear twice". So don't waste your time, visit our website and see... sorry, play, as many times as you wish!


These Adidas by Stella McCartney 'Alayta' sneakers combine fashion with functionality. Ventilated and super-comfortable, they come in a multicoloured design which will go with almost anything. Wear with leggings, or why not try styling them with a leather skirt?


text:
Is New Zealand Prepared For The Rise In Cyber-attacks?
Tuesday, 3 August 2021, 9:50 am
Press Release: Advantage
By Steve Smith, Auckland Manager of Advantage Limited
Supply chain risk is a hot topic today.
Some of the most significant cybersecurity breaches this year have been supply chain related. SolarWinds, Accellion, Hafnium, and most recently - the Kaseya attack.
Why now? Supply chain risk = third-party risk.
The COVID-19 pandemic forced companies to transition to a remote workforce, where security and IT teams could not do their 'usual' due diligence - particularly around onboarding third-parties. As a result, nefarious actors (aka – hackers) took full advantage. In the U.S., the FBI reported a 500% increase in cyber-attacks in the first months of the lockdown in 2020.
New Zealand is ripe for cyber-attacks.
Some of the recently reported cyber breaches are the largest in New Zealand's history - and almost all of them are related to third-party breaches.
The combination of these events is forcing security and IT teams in New Zealand through a "maturity curve" - particularly around third-party risk and cybersecurity.
The "It won't happen here; I've got bigger business priorities" attitude must change.
A shift in focus.
If you look back two or three years, companies typically had just a few dozen third-parties in their ecosystem. But today, according to the Ponemon Institute, enterprises are averaging thousands, often up to 6000 third-party vendors – that's a lot of third-party risk to manage.
Assessing whether every third-party is fit for purpose is an enormous amount of work, especially for small IT teams.
That's where CyberGRX comes in.
CyberGRX has the world's largest cyber risk Exchange with over 100,000 participants. It has automated and standardized the previously heavily time-intensive manual process of assessing third-parties.
We were introduced to CyberGRX through venture capital firm, Telstra Ventures, who has made some significant investments in the cyber security space.
CyberGRX has taken on the mission of reaching every CISO in the New Zealand market. Their goal is to help them reduce their cyber-risk, and part of that is choosing to work with local partners, like Advantage, whose goal is to understand the local market better than anyone:
"We are very deliberate about the partners we choose to work with. They need to bring a level of governance, risk, and compliance skill to the conversation. Telstra Ventures introduced us to Advantage, and they certainly have the reputation and credibility in market to help us achieve our mission to reduce supply chain risk in the market," said Anthony Panuccio, Director at CyberGRX.
The human factor on security posture.
Everyone on your team can affect your company's security posture— not just the IT team, especially if they're informed.
We work with Cofense who provide phishing detection and response solutions, that help organization's stop phishing attacks faster, and importantly - educate on how to detect phishing attempts.
All it takes is one phish to wreak havoc on your network and bottom line.
According to Marcus Bartram, General Partner at Telstra Ventures, another pressure for security teams is mobile.
"For most of us, using your mobile for work and connectivity is instinctual. But is it secure? Or, more realistically - is mobile even part of your company's cyber defense strategy?
Zimperium, a Telstra Ventures' portfolio company and arguably the world's leader in mobile threat detection and security, has created the world's first machine learning-based security engine for mobile. It allows remote workers to access sensitive data and mission-critical systems safely and securely.
According to the firm, the number of reported cyber-attacks targeting mobile devices has more than doubled every six months for the last three years. And with remote work and bring your own device (BYOD) practices becoming a permanent fixture, the attack surface for an enterprise is on pace to grow exponentially," said Marcus.
CyberGRX is not alone in its New Zealand focus.
Marcus also observed that the VC firm has seen an uptick in the number of Telstra Ventures' portfolio companies headquartered out of the U.S., look to the Asia Pacific region to address the growing cybersecurity market.
"AttackIQ, another portfolio company that just announced $44 Million in Series C funding, is also expanding their reach in a bid to reduce the pressure on security professionals and help them prepare for cyber-attacks.
AttackIQ helps organizations continuously validate the effectiveness of their security controls at scale. Importantly, CISOs in New Zealand, or anywhere, can verify that their cyber defenses work as expected and validate against the latest threats," said Marcus.
According to CyberGRX, these three critical actions can reduce your supply chain risk today.
1- Know who's part of your third-party ecosystem.
You need to know the extent of which third-parties are in your ecosystem. You'd be surprised at how many enterprises wouldn't be able to answer this question today because it hasn't been a focus.
2 - Understand your exposure through third-parties.
Now you know your third-party ecosystem, if they have experienced a cyber event today, what would be the impact on your business? We've seen a lot of attacks recently where a third-party has impacted an organization, but it's the client of that third-party that cops the bad press.
3 - Manage your risk!
Cybersecurity is no longer simply a compliance exercise. The pivot from compliance to risk management is key. If you recognize that your third-parties are posing a risk to you, work with them quickly to close those control gaps, and build your cyber defense to reduce your risk.
About Advantage
Advantage designs and builds scalable and secure solutions for customers that rely on highly connected IT services, helping you eliminate risks to your IT infrastructure and systems to minimise problems and maximise your uptime.
With over 35 years of experience in the New Zealand IT market, Advantage provides enterprise-class solutions across almost all market segments, including government, medical, retail, financial and legal.
For more information on Advantage, visit https://advantage.nz or https://www.linkedin.com/company/advantagenz/.
Find more from Advantage on InfoPages.


What diet can help with IBS?
I have irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), and I hear there is a diet to help that. Can you tell me about it?
Unfortunately, IBS is pretty common. Symptoms include cramping, diarrhea, gas and bloating. But you are right: Research has identified certain foods that tend to trigger IBS, and avoiding these foods can help you reduce your symptoms.
Research has found that certain carbohydrates increase the amount of fluid in the bowel and create more gas. This leads to bloating and changes the speed at which food is digested. The result is gas, pain and diarrhea. Avoiding these foods reduces IBS symptoms in most people with IBS.
DAIRY: cow's milk, yogurt, pudding, ice cream, cottage cheese and ricotta cheese.
FRUITS: apples, apricots, blackberries, cherries, nectarines, pears, peaches, cherries, mangoes and watermelon.
VEGETABLES: artichokes, asparagus, Brussels sprouts, broccoli, beetroot, cauliflower, garlic, mushrooms, onions and snow peas.
LEGUMES: chickpeas, lentils, kidney beans and soy products.
SWEETENERS such as honey, agave nectar, sorbitol, mannitol, xylitol, maltitol and isomalt found in sugar-free gum and mints.
DAIRY: lactose-free milk; rice, almond and coconut milk; lactose-free yogurt; hard cheeses.
FRUIT: bananas, blueberries, cantaloupe, grapefruit, honeydew, kiwi, lemon, lime, oranges and strawberries.
VEGETABLES: bamboo shoots, bean sprouts, bok choy, carrots, cucumbers, eggplant, ginger, lettuce, olives, parsnips, potatoes, spring onions and turnips.
PROTEIN: beef, pork, chicken, fish, eggs and tofu.
NUTS/SEEDS: almonds, macadamia nuts, peanuts, pine nuts and walnuts.
GRAINS: oat, oat bran, rice bran, gluten-free pasta, white rice, corn flour and quinoa.
Don't misunderstand me: People are different, including people with IBS. Not all of the foods I advise you to eat less of will negatively affect your IBS. Some will, some won't. And some that will make your symptoms worse will not do so for another person with IBS. Likewise, eating only the foods I advise you to eat more of won't guarantee you freedom from IBS. But they are a good place to start in reducing the symptoms of IBS.
You need to limit only those foods that you know are problematic for you. And if you're not sure about some, try what's called an elimination diet. That involves removing all foods from the "eat less" list from your diet, and then reintroducing one food at a time, noting whether it worsens your symptoms. If not, add it back to your diet. The IBS diet really can help you.


The National Security Agency took over program management of the Defense Department's software-based, medium-assurance computer security program last month from the Defense Information Systems Agency, a key task as the Pentagon rolls out software-based security systems throughout DOD.
Richard Hale, chief engineering executive for information assurance at the DISA, said that while NSA has assumed program management responsibility for a medium-assurance public-key infrastructure, DISA still would have responsibility for centrally managing the issuance of all PKI certificates for DOD.
Hale added that while the DOD PKI program still has "pilot status," he added that "everyone in the department uses it." DOD plans to broaden the role of medium-assurance PKI beyond its initial mission to protect unclassified but sensitive information, Hale said.
Hale said DOD will start using PKI "even within communities operating on protected networks," providing yet another level of protection within systems already protected with bulk encryption.


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CARSON, Calif. (March 2, 2019) – Despite a crazy final week before the start of the season, the LA Galaxy win their first match of 2019. In Head Coach Guillermo Barros Schelotto's debut, the Galaxy overcame a 1-0 deficit to Chicago Fire. Thanks to goals from Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Daniel Steres.
The Galaxy were the better side in the first half but found themselves down a goal. They got off to a good start with header chances from Daniel Steres and Romain Alessandrini.
In his Chicago debut, forward C.J. Sapong opened the scoring. He attacked the ball on a lazy back pass by Uriel Antuna. He found himself in on goal alone, rounded goalkeeper David Bingham and scored. Przemyslaw Frankowski nearly doubled the advantage minutes later with a shot that went off the post and was cleared.
Steres leveled the match with a goal in the 68th minute with a thumping header off a cross from teenager Efrain Álvarez. The teams traded chances as the game opened up with both going for a winner.
Finally, the Galaxy found a winner in the 80th minute. Chris Pontius made a great run into the box and chipped a ball off the post. Unmarked, Ibahimovic headed it towards goal near post, appearing to bounce off goalkeeper David Ousted and in. The match ended 2-1.
Zlatan is King: It wasn't his most spectacular goal nor one where he was the one who initiated the goal. Still he was dangerous all night all while being the main focus of the Fire defense.
Fire capitalize on mistake: The Fire had several good scoring chances in this game, most of which involved them being aggressive when the Galaxy were being passive. Sapong capitalized on a mistake to score. Their other best chances came from taking shots when the Galaxy gave them space to work.
Both teams still a work in progress: Both of these teams still have issues to work on after missing the playoffs last year. In particular, the defenses have to improve.


text:
Priyanka Chopra, who is in London to promote a beauty brand, stepped out in a strapless golden dress with a thigh-showing slit.
As the pictures surfaced online, impressed fans took to social media to react to pictures and videos of Priyanka's latest look in London.
One fan page on Instagram shared Priyanka's video from London and wrote:
"Pretty is a small word, compared with how gorgeous she is looking tonight. How pretty she is."
A fan also praised Priyanka's gilded look that showed off her curves, and wrote: "Our desi Cleopatra."
"Absolutely gorgeous and that pretty smile."
Priyanka Chopra, who is very much active on Instagram, has been giving fans a peek inside her fun-filled London trip.
She has been documenting everything on her Instagram stories.
The actor was recently joined by entrepreneur and socialite Natasha Poonawalla.
In a recent picture shared on Instagram, Priyanka can be seen wearing a purple outfit with black heels, while Natasha wears a floral ensemble during an outing.
In one of the videos that Natasha shared on her Instagram story, the two can be seen posing together on a street.
Natasha captioned it: "Casual Monday nights when PC (Priyanka Chopra) is in town!
"To many more butter binges, cocktails and laughs…"
Priyanka also shared a series of images and videos on her Instagram story from her London trip with her fans with whom she posed for selfies and signed autographs.
She also shared a solo picture of herself in a sleek black outfit, the actor wrote:
"Thank you so much to everyone who came out!!! Was so nice to see all of you!"
The Sky is Pink actor also shared a glimpse of her outing at London's Piccadilly Circus, where she posed in front of a giant billboard featuring her in an ad.
Meanwhile, a mirror selfie of herself from inside an elevator was doing the rounds recently.
The actor shared the picture on her Instagram story on January 10.
She was seen in a purple dress, a matching coat, and heels. She also carried a small bag. Priyanka geo-tagged the location as London, UK.
On the work front, Priyanka will soon be seen in It's All Coming Back To Me, and the series Citadel.
It's All Coming Back to Me will release in the U.S. on February 10, 2023.
Priyanka is also expected to start shooting for Farhan Akhtar's directorial Jee Le Zaraa in 2023


This is the sale of a very unique F&B model comprising of a cafe selling high qulaity hand crafted coffee and tea with Malaysian cuisine plus 6 food stalls specialising in Singapore's own Hainanese chicken rice made from a famous and old family recipe and food stalls selling local snacks specialising particularly in Indian snacks made from a 18yr old fmaily recipe and very much sought after by all races. The seller is looking for a buyer with the vision to grow and expand this business both locally and overseas with the possibility of introducing a Franchise model.
The business are fully set up and operational and have a distinctive Singapore quality - dealing with dying heritage food of which there is now a growing appreciation for.
Due to the uniqueness of the products and old family recipes there is very little compettion.
Preferably a visionary with plans to grow a Food and Beverage business in singapore and overseas with Franchise opportunities.


text:
First look: Mylius M 72 – latest Carkeek stunner
Shaun Carkeek's recent raceboats – including Niklas Zennström's Fast 40 Ran, Richard Matthews' CF520 Oystercatcher XXXV and the fully foiling Carkeek Persico F70 – are some of the stand-out designs…
Skiing Arctic ice by yacht
A single walrus raised its frosted head, eyeing Firebird as we dropped anchor at Tynarebukta on the Isfjorden. Rugged mountains were enveloped by a glacier that spilled out onto the…
Recluta – Germán Frers' new, old yacht
The Frers dynasty is responsible for more than 1,300 yacht designs. Germán Frers, having last year celebrated his 80th birthday, remains one of the most prolific and sought after designers…
Outside in: 3 Stunning superyacht designs
A priority with any new superyacht design should be of providing the owners with the ability to enjoy their surroundings to the absolute fullest while giving them the means and…
Second hand yachts: Buying a high latitudes yacht
Merf Owen, of Owen Clarke Yacht Design, has designed many a high latitudes yacht for cruising, while his wife Ashley Perrin is a professional ice pilot, formerly working for the…
First look: Owen Clarke 15m expedition yacht
The Owen Clarke 15m is an aluminium lifting keel expedition yacht, which builds on the success of the Owen Clarke-designed 20m (66ft) Qilak, one of the most notable vessels of…
J/45 tested: Fast cruiser with timeless appeal
We're close-hauled, sailing the new J/45 at 7.5 knots and catching up with a modern 55-footer, but slowly falling into her lee. Winding on a little mainsheet tightens the leech,…
First look: SW 105 Taniwha
Following her delivery voyage to Europe, Southern Wind's fourth 105, SW 105 Taniwha has been revealed in all her glory. Yachting World has covered details of her lightweight build before.…
First look: Southern Wind Hybrid 108
Cape Town's Southern Wind shipyard has unveiled more details of its new 108ft hybrid sloop the Southern Wind Hybrid 108, which is already well into the moulding phase. Penned by…
First look: Velarca 135 – eco-friendly superyacht
Billed as the 'next generation' yacht for eco-conscious cruisers, the Velarca 135 combines a motoryacht-style hull and superstructure with a rather original rig. Finns Sami Lehtonen and Sanna-Kaisa Koivisto are…
5 best special yachts of 2022
Often one of the most interesting categories in the European Yacht of the Year Awards, the special yachts category once again comprises a wonderfully eclectic mix in 2022, which bring…
37th America's Cup to be raced in Barcelona
Barcelona has been selected as the venue to host the 37th America's Cup in 2024, it has been announced today, Tuesday 29th March 2022 by the Cup Defender, Emirates Team…
4 best bluewater cruisers of 2022
The results are in from the European Yacht of the Year Awards as the judges have announced their top four bluewater cruisers of 2022. The European Yacht of the Year…
Boat test: X-56 The Xtra mile
Large cruising yachts are enormously appealing, but it's imperative that they're easy to tame in deteriorating weather. Yet if this is achieved through making the boat underpowered it will be…
World's coolest yachts: Kuka Light
"Kuka Light is the most extreme keelboat I have ever sailed," explains Mitch Booth. "At 42ft and built in an autoclave she is VERY light and stiff. But when you…
Coolest Yachts: Volvo Open 70 Camper
"I've been fortunate to race on board and race against a great many boats I could nominate for my Coolest Yacht, but for me it would have to be the…
Atlantic divide in the 2021 ARC
When the 2021 Atlantic Rally for Cruisers (ARC) set off from Gran Canaria on November 21, there was one early sign this would be an unusual crossing: the 143 yachts…
First look: Oceanis Yacht 60 – new bluewater flagship
Beneteau's new flagship, the Oceanis Yacht 60, is the yard's third model to come out of the collaboration with Lorenzo Argento and Roberto Biscontini that started with the First Yacht…
Burling to skipper New Zealand America's Cup defence
Pete Burling, who has twice helmed Emirates Team New Zealand to victory in the past two America's Cup's is confirmed as skipper of theb Kiwi defence of the Cup in…
Clarionet: famous yacht meticulously restored
At just 36ft 9in, the Sparkman & Stephens sloop Clarionet is an unassuming yacht, often dwarfed by larger competitors on the UK classic racing circuit. Yet Clarionet helped change the…


Bouteflika's dismissal of intelligence chief General Mohamed "Toufik" Mediene, who held the post for 25 years, marked the beginning of a well prepared and well executed reform in the powerful security and intelligence offices in the country. Although – and quite rightly so – various branches of the intelligence community in Algeria will remain very powerful, powers of the office of the president grew proportionally with these changes.
The long-established Department of Intelligence and Security (DRS), also known as the State Intelligence Agency, had been dissolved and replaced by three departments under the direct supervision of the president: the General Directorate of Internal Security, General Directorate of External Security and Documentation, and General Directorate of Technical Information. The Technical Information Service will deal with cyber warfare and other technical issues related to advanced intelligence and military technologies. Algeria has placed over 120,000 soldiers along its border, which is still far from well protected. ISIS and other terrorist groups' infiltration into Algeria are a daily occurrence. So are the frequent contraband smuggling gasoline and other commodities to Morocco, Mali, Tunisia, and Libya. The strong military and intelligence apparatus is repelling threats successfully.
International media outlets substantially covered news on the constitutional amendments in Algeria endorsed late January this year. Arguments by some political analysts that changes are meant to reinforce the "same old" and to strengthen those military elites around the Presidency (or according to some, around Said Bouteflika, the president's influential brother who supposedly created new oligarchs in the country) are weak, simply because the changes made are inevitably going to change Algeria with a new political class of post-independence leaders. They will potentially emerge before the end of President Bouteflika's term as he wished for, already in 2014, in his famous speech in Setif. They are equally good for all political parties, and for the people of Algeria. For example, parity in employment between men and women is now guaranteed by the State; freedom of speech, freedom of gatherings, and legally-mandated TV and radio time for political parties to support pluralism, including financial support for political parties by the State according to parliamentary representation. In addition, the right to peaceful demonstrations is guaranteed as is press freedom without any censorship within the limits of human dignity and liberty for all. Respecting religious, moral, and ethical values are but a few milestone achievements setting a solid foundation for improved democracy and equal rights in Algeria.
Algerian Prime Minister Abdulmalek Sellal arriving at St. Andrew?s Base to participate at the Nuclear Security Summit in Washington D.C.
We should wholeheartedly support the idea for Maghreb Economic Union to be created. This market of 115 million people has double digit growth potential, but only if Maghreb countries will work more closely together. Reforms are key. In Algeria, constitutional amendments also addressed the fight against corruption and need for any publicly exposed person (political and military) to fully disclose his or her property prior to and after taking office. Freedom of investment and trade is guaranteed by the law as well, with the government in charge to regulate the market and protect consumers and forbidding monopolies and unfair competition. The State also encourages women to take on high level responsibility jobs either in government or in the business sector. Privacy of life of the citizens is guaranteed and no incursion or violation is admissible unless strictly through legal authority. The implementation and interpretation of the law will still be a challenge, along with forming a justice system truly independent from political or military influence or pressure, in order to ensure impartial justice for all citizens regardless of their position, status, or role in society. Nobody argues that with oil prices so low, Algeria – heavily dependent on oil and gas export – needs to diversify its economy and enhance education.
Awareness of this is growing day by day in Algeria. But people tend to forget that this nation, after a long struggle to become an independent country from colonial French rule, just after proclaiming independence on July 5th 1962 had but only several hundred university students. What a daunting task to build a new country that was thirty years later ravaged by a civil war. It is much easier to criticize then to praise and there is plenty of room for (constructive) criticism on Algeria. But we should applaud recent reforms and encourage Algerians to continue developing international cooperation and transatlantic relations. A testament to that: in December last year, Algeria's ambassador to the United States Madjid Bouguerra and the Assistant Secretary for Near Eastern Affairs at the U.S. Department of State, Anne W. Patterson, signed an agreement to create an American International School in Algiers. That brings yet another new bright dawn emerging on Algeria's horizon.