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CIWA Quarterly Bulletin
Welcome to CIWA's Quarterly BULLETIN!
We are pleased to share the seventh quarterly edition of the Cooperation in International Waters in Africa Program (CIWA) Bulletin.
In an era characterized by climate change; fragility, conflict, and violence; and other multi-dimensional crises, our work is more important than ever. In this edition, discover the newly released Annual Report 2022 available in English et de French, which chronicles CIWA's efforts to strengthen resilience, water security, and economic growth and development in the 2022 fiscal year, which ended June 30, 2022.
As we are closing the year, we would like to thank our partners, donors, and colleagues that help advance the work supported by the Programme CIWA!
Happy Reading and Happy Holidays!
Anders Jägerskog and Ai-Ju Huang
CIWA Program Managers
IN THE NILE BASIN, THE NEXT GENERATION OF WATER PROFESSIONALS WORKING TOWARDS A NEW ERA OF COOPERATION
Since 2011, as part of the Initiative du bassin du Nil (IBN) the Eastern Nile Technical Regional Office (ENTRO) in partnership with CIWA has run an internship program for the next generation of talented water professionals with a primary focus on enabling an environment for transboundary water cooperation and a commitment to assembling an innovative, collaborative, and forward-thinking forum of young experts.
What's making a splash
A VIEW FROM THE FIELD: TRAINING THE NEXT GENERATION OF GROUNDWATER SPECIALISTS IN THE SAHEL
In the Sahel, a global hotspot for climate change and one of the poorest regions in the world, limited knowledge about groundwater resources hampers efforts to develop strategies to cope with water scarcity. Nor are there enough hydrogeologists trained in the sustainable management of this resource: a homegrown master's degree program could reverse that trend and build up regional expertise.
SEMINAR: TRANSBOUNDARY WATER COOPERATION IN THE AFRICAN CONTEXT, KEY TO ADVANCE DEVELOPMENT
Un séminaire au Centre de droit comparé et transnational (CCTL) – Groupe du droit de l'environnement, de l'énergie et du climat, à l'Université chinoise de Hong Kong, s'est tenu le 10 novembre. Anders Jägerskog, responsable du programme CIWA et point focal pour les eaux transfrontalières de la Banque mondiale, a présenté un exposé sur la coopération transfrontalière dans le contexte africain.
REGIONAL NILE BASIN HYDROMET PROJECT: NBI ADDRESSES WATER QUALITY CHALLENGES IN THE NILE BASIN
In recognition of the transboundary nature of these water quality challenges, the CIWA-funded Nile Cooperation for Climate Resilience (NCCR) project is aimed at supporting riparian countries in addressing water quality challenges through the improvement of national water quality monitoring and information systems using a coordinated approach.
WATER: AN ACCELERATOR FOR GREEN, INCLUSIVE, AND RESILIENT GROWTH
Effectively managing water resources is a key driver of our ability to cope with the effects of climate change and reduce emissions. Saroj Kumar Jha, Global Director, World Bank's Water Global Practice, walks us on how the World Bank, the largest water sector funder in the world, is working with governments, businesses, and civil society towards a water-secure world.
SIWI WORLD WATER WEEK 2022: RECAP AND HIGHLIGHTS FROM CIWA PROGRAM MANAGER
The theme of this 2022 edition of the World Water Week was "Seeing the Unseen: The Value of Water", with a focus on topics ranging from food security and health to agriculture, technology, biodiversity, and the climate crisis. Anders Jagerskog, Program Manager for the CIWA Program, participated in the World Water Week event and shares with us some of his insights.
A JOINT MASTER'S DEGREE IN GROUNDWATER FOR SAHELIAN UNIVERSITIES
This podcast discusses how the World Bank through CIWA Program is exploring ways to offer a joint master's degree in groundwater in the Sahel through a conversation with Dr. Seynabou Cisse Faye, working in Dakar's Cheikh-Anta-Diop University as Associate Professor. She is well recognized for her professional qualifications in Science, her outstanding achievements in this field.
What's new in transboundary waters cooperation
Putting Africans at the heart of food security and climate resilience
Countries in Eastern and Southern Africa are implementing a range of short, medium, and long term actions with World Bank support, to cushion the blow of the current crisis on the poorest households and set African food systems on a more resilient and productive pathway.
Tackling fragility and promoting integration in the Horn of Africa through 'development diplomacy'
Forums for regional dialogue and development cooperation, such as the Horn of Africa Initiative, are essential. Launched in 2019 by ministers of finance from across the region, the initiative aims to promote concerted action to face common development challenges which are hampering economic growth and poverty eradication efforts.
Strengthened cooperation between countries key to successful climate change actions and ensuring water security
Speaking at two events on water security at COP27 in Sharm el-Sheikh, UNECE Executive Secretary Olga Algayerova stressed the importance of cooperation between countries for successful climate change policies and actions, especially when it comes to addressing water security.
IGRAC's new regional transboundary aquifer map of Africa identifies 106 TBAs
A new regional transboundary aquifer map for the African region has been released. It is based on the Transboundary Aquifers of the World Map (TBA Map) that was updated in 2021 and showcases the occurrence and extent of Transboundary Aquifers across the African continent. Globally there are now 468 transboundary aquifers and aquifer systems identified, underlying almost every nation.
CIWA LAUNCHED ITS 10TH ANNUAL REPORT
In the 2022 fiscal year (FY22), the Cooperation in International Waters in Africa (CIWA) worked to mitigate Africa's immense needs. These formidable challenges only strengthen our resolve to help countries collaborate over transboundary waters to share costs and benefits of building resilience, to address drivers of fragility, conflict, and violence (FCV), and to foster green, resilient, and inclusive development (GRID) and recovery from the pandemic.
CIWA works with the government of riparian countries to shore-up their capacities to co-operatively manage water resources and prepare for, adapt to, and recover from shocks. Its projects are at the forefront of local, national, and regional efforts to fuel sustainable, inclusive, climate-resilient growth. The just-released Annual Report 2022 chronicles CIWA's efforts to strengthen resilience, water security, and economic development in the 2022 fiscal year. It is available in English and in French.
Save the date for these upcoming events
UN 2023 Water Conference || 22-24 March 2023 || New York, USA
Le UN 2023 Water Conference with the theme of 'Water for Sustainable Development', will take place in March 2023 to coincide with World Water Day and will focus on the objectives of the Decade as laid out in the Secretary-General's Plan: Water Action Decade 2018-2028.
International Conference on Climate Risk, Vulnerability and Resilience Building || 19-21 April 2023 || UNESCO Headquarters and Online
Le Conference aims at bridging the gap between science, policy and decision-making to support effective resilience building. This solution-oriented event will follow up on the discussions held at the 2023 United Nations Water Conference, by linking scientists, practitioners and decision-makers to support the development of resilient water management policies.
CIWA's social media engagement
Today 📢 in an online seminar with @CUHKLaw, Program Manager @AndersJagerskog shares how lessons from @ciwaprogram can inform global perspectives on #transboundary #water management 💧🫱🏿🫲🏼
🗓 10 November 2022
🕠 12:30pm (EEST)
Join here 👉🏿 https://t.co/Ot7T51H9hP@WorldBankWater pic.twitter.com/A1bpUMnc9y
— Cooperation in International Waters in Africa (@ciwaprogram) November 10, 2022
Delighted to be part of the @ciwaprogram's Advisory Council Meeting in Kigali today. #Climate resilience growth through cooperation in transboundary waters is possible thanks to @CIWAProgram's #investments & #initiatives. @AyatSoliman7 @AndersJagerskog @UAndren @maartengischler https://t.co/t0RWP9l9ZT
— Catherine Tovey (@ToveyCatherine) November 2, 2022
Talented hydrogeologist & professor, Dr Seynabou Cissé Faye advocates for training opportunities for #women ♀ in #science 🧪 at the forefront of fields such as #groundwater 💧 research.
Listen to @ciwaprogram's Podcast "Across the Pond: [in French] 👉🏿https://t.co/bhtQOmmrKV pic.twitter.com/Pul8Tzu2ur
— World Bank Water (@WorldBankWater) December 4, 2022
Impressive switchyard that will distribute power to Rwanda, Burundi and Tanzania by Rusumo Power Company Ltd, owned by the three countries. @SweinEthiopia and @Sida glad to support regional cooperation through @ciwaprogram pic.twitter.com/hNK9VPpfrl
— Ulla Andren (@UAndren) November 4, 2022
ABOUT CIWA
CIWA, a multi-donor partnership, continues to support riparian governments in West, East, Central, and Southern Africa and their path toward more sustainable, data-driven, community-focused, and collaborative management of transboundary waters.
Learn more about our program activities on our English et de French Websites. And do follow us on Twitter @CIWAProgram. To subscribe to the CIWA Podcast, copy and paste the URL from the address bar into the podcast app of your choice: https://feeds.buzzsprout.com/1734582.rss
A special thank you to our editorial team, partners, reviewers and authors.
Photo Credits: Shutterstock and Unsplash Images, World Bank/ Flickr


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2.0.0
 * Moved the MongoDB sink from its [original location](https://github.com/serilog/serilog)

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


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Summary of the annual updates to the ISS and Glass Lewis proxy voting guidelines
ILIRJAN PIPA, CHRISTOPHER RILEY BUSINESS INSIGHTS DEC 09, 2016
As the new year approaches, Institutional Shareholder Services Inc. ("ISS") and Glass, Lewis & Co. ("Glass Lewis") have released their annual updates to their respective proxy voting guidelines. The recommendations made by these two heavyweights of the proxy advisory market have significant consequences on the makeup of the board of directors of publicly traded companies throughout the world, and this year's updates reflect an effort to increase the power of institutional shareholders while focusing on holding directors accountable for proper governance. Below, this article summarizes the key policy changes proposed by ISS and Glass Lewis for the 2017 proxy season.
ISS Updates
The following revisions to ISS's proxy voting guidelines will take affect for annual meetings held on or after February 17, 2017:
Restricting binding shareholder proposals
Through this new policy, ISS will advocate generally voting against or withholding votes from directors if the company's charter imposes undue restrictions on shareholders' ability to amend provisions of the bylaws of company that (1) include an outright prohibition on the submission of binding shareholder proposals or (2) provisions for such proposals that include share ownership or time holding requirements. ISS rationalizes this update by stating that the ability to amend such bylaw provisions is a fundamental shareholder right. As a result, any restrictions on the exercise of that right constitute a material diminution of shareholders' rights.
Multi-class capital structures in newly public companies
ISS recommends, in order to protect shareholders of newly public company, generally vote against or withhold vote from directors if, prior to or in connection with a newly public company's initial public offering, the company or its board amends the charter to implement a multi-class capital structure with unequal voting rights between the classes of shares.
Director overboarding
This new policy announced by ISS in 2015 will first apply in 2017. Under the policy, ISS recommends voting against (1) a director who serves as CEO of a publicly traded company while serving on more than three public company boards (including the board of the company in question); and (2) any other director who serves on more than five total public company boards.
Evaluating non-employee director compensation
ISS recommends evaluating management proposals seeking approval of non-employee director compensation on a case-by-case basis, focusing on the following factors:
The relative magnitude of the director's compensation as compared to similar companies;
The presence of problematic pay practices relating to director compensation;
Director stock ownership guidelines and holding requirements;
Equity award vesting schedules;
The mix of cash and equity-base compensation;
Meaningful limits on director compensation
The availability of retirement benefits or perquisites; and
The quality of the disclosure surrounding director compensation.
This approach moves away from a minimum criteria approach and more towards a holistic look at the compensation scheme.
Evaluating equity plans
While the general approach to evaluating equity plans has not changed, ISS will not grant full points during an evaluation of an equity plan unless the plan expressly prohibits the payment of dividends before the underlying award vests for all award types. Previously, a commitment to not paying such dividends was sufficient.
Additionally, in order to receive full points under this approach, an equity plan must have a vesting period of at least one year for all award types. No points will be awarded for plans that allow for one-off award agreements that reduce or eliminate this vesting requirement.
Glass Lewis updates
The following revisions to Glass Lewis's proxy voting guidelines will take affect for annual meetings held on or after January 1, 2017:
Governance following an IPO or spinoff
If an evaluation of a company's governing documents reveal that the board approved provisions significantly restricting the shareholders' ability to effectuate change, Glass Lewis will consider adverse recommendations against the director or the governance committee members that approved such restrictions. When making this determination, Glass Lewis will review the following areas of governance:
Anti-takeover mechanisms;
Supermajority vote requirements to amend governing documents;
Exclusive forum or fee-shifting provisions;
Shareholders' ability to call special meetings or act by written consent;
Voting standards for the election of directors;
Shareholders' ability to remove a director without cause; and
Evergreen provisions in compensation documents.
Glass Lewis will generally recommend voting against (1) a director serving as an executive officer of any public company while serving on more than two public company boards; and (2) any director who serves on more than five total public company boards. These recommendations, however, come with multiple caveats.
First, Glass Lewis generally does not recommend voting against a "overcommitted" director at the companies where such director serves as an executive. Instead, evaluating whether such an executive director is "overcommitted" requires the consideration of (1) the size and location of the other companies; (2) the director's board roles; (3) whether the director serves on the board of any large privately-held companies; (4) the director's overall tenure with such company; and (5) the director's attendance record.
Second, Glass Lewis would not recommend voting against a director as described above if (1) the director provides sufficient rationale for his/her board service; or (2) the director in question serves (a) on an excessive number of boards within a consolidated group of companies or (b) as a private equity or hedge fund designee, i.e. represents a firm that manages a portfolio of investments that include the company, which would require special consideration.
Glass Lewis has significantly altered its approach to evaluating a board's performance and planning for succession or refreshment. Instead of imposing inflexible rules regarding age or term limits, Glass Lewis recommends taking a holistic approach, considering each director's areas of expertise, the overall ranges of skillsets within the board, the board's overall approach to governance, and the board's role in the company's performance.
Use of non-GAAP metrics
To facilitate shareholder evaluation, Glass Lewis recommends that if a Company uses non-GAAP financial measures in their incentive compensation disclosures, the Company should provide clear reconciliations to GAAP for ease of evaluation purposes and an explanation of the rationale behind using non-GAAP measures.
ILIRJAN PIPA
CHRISTOPHER RILEY
TAGS: PROXY
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McDonald Hopkins' Leaders in Education Series
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2019 Business Outlook
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FAQs About the End of LIBOR
The impact of representation and warranty insurance in indemnification provisions of M&A purchase agreements

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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It's been twelve days since my shoulder surgery so I thought I'd post a summary of what I've been up to.
In the first 24 hours there was an issue that cropped up at work. The problem was caused by an update to some software released by another group in the company, and, as frequently happens, I had warned the responsible group several months in advance that this was a potential problem. Nevertheless, in the first 24 hours after surgery I was remotely troubleshooting and releasing an update to my software to work around the issue.
I then spent the rest of the week writing my own static website generator. The purpose is explicitly to learn about some technologies that I haven't had a reason to learn about in my professional work, like virtualenv, blinker, and jinja2. After a week I had a pretty solid, extensible architecture and the beginnings of a website theme. This may grow beyond a simple learning exercise.
This week I picked up feedparser development again. The virtualenv exposure from last week helped a lot, and I finally learned how to handle remote git repositories. Then I packaged up a new feedparser release and published it.
As one of my friends joked last night, "Even crippled and high you're still more productive than half of the people on my team," a tongue-in-cheek reference to having one arm immobilized and taking narcotic painkillers they give you when they modify what your bicep attaches to.
Throughout the first week I found it difficult to focus: the oxycodone regimen afforded me only a few hours of lucidity each day. I don't enjoy that. This second week I've been skipping the painkillers as much as possible and have been sober now for about 36 hours. Unfortunately, I'm now experiencing frequent dull headaches. Ah well.
Oh! And I'm going for walks now when I manage to tie my shoelaces. Recovery's going well, and life is good.


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Welcome to the Kool Kat Weekly New Release Update. Kool Kat are distributed in the UK and Europe by I Don't Hear A Single as part of our aim to keep CDs available and affordable. The Kool Kat Links with each album take you to further details on each release..
Peter Case - The Midnight Broadcast (Bandaloop Records 2021) $16
"The Midnight Broadcast" is the most unusual entry in Peter Case's extensive and eminently admirable career. The sixteen tracks see him in fine voice and interweaving music, sound effects, and spoken word segments to create a simulation of that quasi-mystical sensation that's inspired so many music lovers and musicians since the invention of radio.
The Chickenbackers - Yeh Right, YEAH! (Kool Kat Musik 2021) $14
Meet Madrid's newest hitmakers The Chickenbackers!! They nail that 60's Merseybeat sound perfectly with their catchy melodies, tight surfy guitars and great harmonies! Previously only available on vinyl/download, Fourteen catchy, instantly memorable tunes with a lot of true hit potential!
Death By Unga Bunga - Heavy Male Insecurity (Jansen Records 2021) $12
The Norway five offer up their latest album. The perfect mix of punk/garage rock, so far, and already a strong contender for my number 1 album of 2021!"
The Forty Nineteens - New Roaring Twenties (Big Stir Records 2021) $12
Only The Forty Nineteens could offer such a positive and energetic take on our new decade, and the irresistible energy of their latest offering - radio-ready and full of propulsive guitars and indelible melodies. It's a master class in compact songwriting and stage-ready guitar sonics drawing on the whole history of tuneful, muscular rock and roll.
The Forty Nineteens - Good Fortune (Kool Kat Musik 2017) $14
The Forty Nineteens can be described as Garage Rock, Power Pop, with a Motor City power plant and good-time raucousness. Their sound was forged in LA's underground alternative scene and continues to grab you now.
Psychotic Youth/Tommy and The Rockets - Scandanavian Flavor (Snap!! Records Spain 2021) $16
"Scandanavian Flavor" features two of the finest bands from Northern Europe's power pop/punk/garage scene covering old favourites in their signature styles. You have Sweden's legendary magnificent Psychotic Youth and Denmark's Tommy and the Rockets, who inhabit a magical world where the Ramones and Beach Boys rule the airwaves forever.
The Freddie Steady 5 - Tex Pop (Original Recordings From 2007) (Steadyboy Records 2021) $16
An expanded reissue of The Freddie Steady 5 album that was originally released in 2007, a record that garnered great reviews world-wide and ended up on several "Best Releases of the Year" lists. "Tex Pop" is a little bit Beatles, a little bit Sir Doug and a whole lot of Texas Pop, Freddie Steady style! Five bonus tracks are now tacked on along with new cover art created by Flamin' Groovies leader Cyril Jordan.
Anything Should Happen at 21:40


FREDERICKSBURG, Va. (WTVR) – Icy conditions are slowing traffic on Interstate 95 between Richmond and Washington, D.C.
VDOT has icy road warnings flashing on signs as far south as mile marker 122 near Fredericksburg.
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Spotsylvania, Fluvanna, Buckingham and Orange County schools opened two hours late. Louisa County schools delayed opening by one hour.


660V AC contactors rated up to 95A and 50 or 60Hz. Suitable for making, breaking and frequently starting AC motors.
Combined with the auxiliary contact block, timer delay & machine-interlocking device, it becomes the delay contactor, mechanical interlocking contactor and star-delta starter.
With the thermal relay, it combines into the electromagnetic starter.
Available in 25, 32, 40, 50, 60, 75, 80 & 125Amp.
Also available is a CONT/D2508 which has 2 N/0, 2 N/C contactors.
AC3 Contactor Rating is shown in the code , For Example : CONT/D0910. The D09 in the code represents AC3 9amps.
For Example CONT/D1210. The D12 in the code represents AC3 12amps.


AKK, this picture is taken specially for you. Now would you do us the honour of singing your Jee Bah Ban song again?
Now Seventh month, also got a lot of ji pah ban all over the island sia!
Hahaha.. I like that Jee Bah Ban song! Sometimes we'll purposely play in KTV and have a gd laugh at it! Hahhaa..
Akk: Yes! Bring the house down, baby!!
Sibeh Sian: You damn jialat.... Cannot be lah. Hell Money where got so small denomination one?
Jaslyn: Quick help me persuade AKK to do an encore!!
Lynne: This was taken in Paris Hotel where I am staying. It is located at the connecting path leading to Bally's.
what is that Jee Bah Ban song?? Got lyrics? Got actual song?
Anna: Jee Bah Ban is an actually Hokkien song which AKK posted her unplugged version that launched her to national fame in the papers.
I will look for it when I get back. Hopefully, I have a copy somewhere.


So you like to play Minecraft? Perhaps you are an avid fan of the game, but your girlfriend (or boyfriend) can't see the appeal behind the pixels. I know from personal experience that Minecraft may not seem fun or modern compared to the first-person shooter or role-playing games out today. The graphics are blocky, for one thing, and the premise of the game isn't attractive to everyone; mining for iron, gold and diamonds isn't on everyone's gaming list. Here are a few tips that can change your significant other's mind about your favorite computer game.
The default Minecraft texture pack can be a bit bland, but you don't have to use it; there are many websites where you can download neater, scarier or fantasy-like textures to use instead. So, if your girlfriend doesn't think the game looks "pretty" enough, or your boyfriend doesn't think the graphics look "creepy" enough, this can be changed! Websites that feature texture packs include PlanetMinecraft.com, if you want more personalization. A change of scenery can refresh the game from time to time.
There is more than one way to play Minecraft. When you spawn into a random world, you may come across a cave system first, a village first, or just a forest in the middle of nowhere. In either case, the options available in the game are endless. If you are more of a casual player who enjoys games like Harvest Moon or Farmville, then you can play Minecraft! Building a farm is very doable once you set up shop in a house or, even easier, take over a house in a village. If you prefer slaying monsters, all you need to do is craft up a sword and armor and wait for nightfall. If you like art or design, you can spend your time mining and crafting materials that help build attractive buildings or unique works of art. Whether it's growing crops, looting zombies or building a city, anyone can enjoy Minecraft.
If you need a little more excitement and enjoy plots and objectives, then websites like MinecraftMaps.com and Minecraftdl.com can help you. There are members of the Minecraft player base that make maps and worlds for others to download and enjoy, such as puzzle maps, survival maps and adventures. The creators will often leave notes on signs in the world where you begin the game, setting the rules and identifying your objectives. Some gamers even post videos on sites like YouTube of a play-through of their favorite maps. Digging around can help you find the worlds where you will have the most fun.
There are a plethora of mods that you can use to enhance your gaming experience. Mods can add more materials into the game, like magic wands and an endless supply of items to build with, to name a few. Installing mods can seem daunting, but pages like Minecraft Wiki can help walk you through the process if you need help. Some mods introduce more creatures, items or weapons. If you'd the world of Minecraft seems to be missing something, a few mods may be what you need. If you can think of it, chances are a mod exists to enhance your game.
How often do you play Minecraft?
I play it all the time!
Just a few times a week.
I manage a couple of times a month.
I have never played it before!
There are four switchable game difficulties in the options – easy, normal, hard and peaceful. If you are leery about facing monsters just yet, turning on peaceful mode (or simply starting off in it) would prevent them from appearing. The other modes are self-explanatory, but are outlined in detail at Minecraft Wiki. If you aren't interested in killing zombies and skeletons at all, you never have to leave peaceful mode; if you want more of a challenge, however, easy, normal or hard difficulty could keep the game exciting. Protecting your village from a mob of monsters at night can be quite the task, if you are up to it.
So show your significant other your shiny Minecraft game, and don't lose heart if they don't seem interested at first. As long as you know what games they prefer, chances are you can find something for them to enjoy, be it conquering monsters, growing crops, raising animals or fortifying villages. Show them some videos or some scenarios in your own world that might appeal to them, or some mods and texture packs. The sooner you can make a Minecraft fan out of them, the sooner you can share your new hobby.
Minecraft is a very simple game but that's what is great about it. Aside from the survival aspect from the zombies it's a really relaxing game that let's you set your own objectives and goals. Not many games really let you go at your own pace and do what you want, this game does and literally you can build and create anything you want. It's unique, simple and tons of fun in an open world environment.
I agree - too much of it can turn you away after a while, but a decent amount, mixed with fun projects and adventures to do, is very fun. Thanks for the feedback!
Good article. I try to play Minecraft when I can find time in-between other activities, however, it is a fun game to play when you're bored and sat at the PC.
It's more fun than you might think! It's also just been updated - now zombies can infect villagers!


In a new column in The Detroit News, I set authentic environmental stewardship against the goings-on at the recently concluded UN Copenhagen conference. A slightly longer version of this commentary will be published tomorrow in the weekly Acton News & Commentary. Merry Christmas to all!
The not-so-subtle politicizing of science revealed by the Climategate affair, along with the alarmist and at times downright silly antics of some proponents of environmentalism (a word that has acquired numerous shades of creedal commitment), ought not drive reasonable people to abandon a sense of moral and civil obligation for the care and well-being of the planet.
The point of conjecture now, however, is often over whether this world is indeed a garden — to be cultivated and tended, with care, reason and even love — or whether, as some of those gathered at the UN climate change conference in Copenhagen demonstrated last week, the world is best seen as a jungle, to be left wild, untouched by human hands and thereby preserved unsullied and uncontaminated.
In the vocabulary of too many environmentalists, humans appear as the greatest threat to creation, at times leaving the impression that the human family is the most unnatural thing in nature.
The world and the people who inhabit it are at the center of the concern and love celebrated at Christmas. The controlling anthropology of the Nativity says that the human person, created in the image of the Creator, and the environment humans live in, is of such importance to their Creator that He chose to insinuate Himself into this world so as to rectify the effects of the disorder of creation brought about by human rebellion against the natural order and their origin.
This anthropology and cosmology presupposes that the creation has a purpose and was designed by a rational mind that imbued it with meaning. Ask yourself, which provides more protection for the environment: this view of the natural world that contends the order of the universe reflects the intentionality of a Creator who, in turn entrusts beings created in His image to care for and bring forth from creation its flourishing through a kind of environmental stewardship; or, the belief that the world is a chance collision of inanimate material forces that somehow produced being with no intrinsic dignity much less an august vocation to tend and perfect creation?
If you can grasp the disparate approaches to life of these two ideas, then you can understand why the rejection of a secularism hostile to the transcendent is so critical, not merely for some kind of abstract "spiritual" reason, but for the concrete care of our world and for the construction of a civilization based not on some assemblage of facts, but on the meaning behind and underneath the facts.
Christmas is precisely that. In the narratives we will hear and read in our homes and in our churches, we will be reminded of a world of infinite value to God, created with love and care, and entrusted to the human family to be tended and brought to its proper fruition. This is the message of God's entrance into human history in the form of a vulnerable baby, born at a particular time and in a particular place, through the agency of a particular woman. It is the story of the Word who created the world, and who was rejected by that world.
The incarnation of Christ in human form offers hope to all "who dwell in darkness and the power of death." It is this belief that protects, sustains and gives meaning — to our environment, and to much, much more.
How sad that message did not seem to be heard in Copenhagen.


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Fiction > Modern & contemporary fiction
The House at the Edge of Night (Hardback)
Catherine Banner (author)
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On a tiny island off the coast of Italy, Amedeo Esposito, a foundling from Florence, thinks he has found a place where, finally, he can belong. Intrigued by a building the locals believe to be cursed, Amedeo restores the crumbling walls, replaces sagging doors and sweeps floors before proudly opening the bar he names the `House at the Edge of Night'. Surrounded by the sound of the sea and the scent of bougainvillea, he and the beautiful, fiercely intelligent Pina begin their lives together. Home to the spirited, chaotic Esposito family for generations, the island withstands a century of turmoil - transformed in ways both big and small by war, tourism and recession. It's a place alive with stories, legends and, sometimes, miracles. And while regimes change, betrayals are discovered and unexpected friendships nurtured, the House at the Edge of Night remains: the backdrop for long-running feuds and the stage for great love affairs.
Publisher: Cornerstone
"Sensual attention to detail builds a world of bougainvillea terraces serving limoncello - to say it's atmospheric would be an understatement. Ten years ago, my top holiday read was Victoria Hislop's The Island; this summer's great escape belongs to Catherine Banner - utterly mesmerising from start to finish, even if you're nowhere near a sun lounger." * The Pool *
"Whether you're off on a romantic couple's holiday or a relaxing day with your partner in the park - this will have you more loved up than ever. Set in a bar on an idyllic island off the coast of Italy - this tale comes with friendships, betrayals, relationships and affairs" * The Sun - Summer Reads *
"Readers, prepare to be captivated. This is an evocatively written, enchanting tale filled with richly depicted characters. The House at the End of Night has been compared to Joanne Harris's Chocolat and Captain Corelli's Mandolin by Louis de Bernieres and Banner's tale can confidently take its place on the bookshelves alongside those novels as it, too, transports us to a magical, enthralling world" * Irish Independent *
"Catherine Banner's debut novel is a spellbinding summer saga... expect ancient legends, superstitions, friendships, feuds and love affairs in this gorgeously evocative Mediterranean tale that's reminiscent of Louis de Bernier's Captain Corelli's Mandolin" * Culturefly *
"A luminous homage to the Italian tradition of storytelling ... a lusty page-turner that weaves romance, rivalry and the intricacies of family expectations into one glorious tale. There are echoes of Italo Calvino in Banner's writing-echoes of admiration and love. Reading The House at the Edge of Night is like falling into a fantastical world where time stands still, yet change happens at an unimaginable pace." * Minneapolis Star Tribune *
Jeffrey Eugenides
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Old Babes in the Wood
Cleopatra and Frankenstein
The Island of Missing Trees
Before the Coffee Gets Cold
Small Things Like These
The Man Who Died Twice
The Bullet That Missed
Beautiful World, Where Are You
Klara and the Sun
The Secret History
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I loved the way in which this book was written. Catherine Banner has written a wonderful story. It is a family tale spanning a few generations on a remote island. You will not be disappointed!
Hardback edition
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"Brought the island to life"
This was evocative of beautiful coastal Italy and the way of life that the islanders are living. I felt literally transported from my living room in gloomy, rainy England; into the busy pace of life on a Mediterranean... More
KatieB @ Tenterden


Nick Hallett's "To Music [Scene 1]" was performed by Experiments in Opera Wednesday night at Roulette.
The three composers collectively known as Experiments in Opera are undertaking the biggest production of their five-year association this week. Recent projects have included a jointly composed re-imagining of the Sisyphus myth and an evening of seasonally appropriate Halloween operettas.
Now, Jason Cady, Aaron Siegel and Matthew Welch are mounting seven new works over two consecutive nights at Roulette. The short run, under the banner "Story Binge," kicked off Wednesday with premieres of works by Welch, Sam Hillmer (leader of the remarkable band Zs) and Nick Hallett (music director of the Joshua Light Show).
The night began with Hillmer's That Was Soon, and That Was the Web This is Going to Be. In the composer's video introduction, he describes the work as an attempt to submerge wholly into the psyche of a protagonist—in this case, a perplexing melange of electronic drones, clicks, white noise, and altered voices (the primary one sounding like Apple's Siri). There is also sign language interpretation before a projection of a digitally animated jungle.
If singing is a requisite for opera, it was present in a sort of subway-gospel aria by a male tenor. The rest was a descent into a cacophonous mind, a demon seeding and harvesting paranoia. The dense soundscape made following what story there might have been difficult; words and phrases such as "frenemies," "YouTube" and "take a shower" pushed through the din. Still, non-linear narrative has been a hallmark of contemporary opera since Robert Ashley reclaimed the term for the mass-media age some fifty years ago. Hillmer created a convincing, if largely impenetrable, reality.
Welch's And Here We Are followed, a more overtly sentimental path based on the memoirs of the composer's great uncle, an opera singer imprisoned in the wartime Philippines. The piece circled with a jazzy flair provided by the small ensemble (trumpet, piano, vibraphone, bass guitar and drums, conducted by the composer). Baritone and librettist Daniel Neer intoned reminiscences of Welch's elder in a half-spoken vibrato. Reflections of a life's hardships, joys and yearning were pushed by an ever-modulating piano and round-robin repetitions moving across the band. The music ascended and descended, always moving while refusing to mold to the emotional impulses of the fragmented story.
Hallett's To Music [Scene 1] was the most linear and the most engaging work of the night – and was, in fact, the only one to get more than one distinct character on the stage. The work delivered a cynical comedic view of contemporary music, taking as its hero a film soundtrack composer in a state of post-awards-show, self-inflicted agony and including a contrived hit song by an imagined pop band. The tale was told in part by means of email messages and social network interactions (projected on screen) and cell phone interruptions, with a rather lonely happy ending in the form of a blossoming instant-message romance.
Peter Alex Stewart was marvelous as the protagonist, glowering at his laptop while a trio of violin, viola and piano alternately supported the dialogues and online communication. Hallett, who also appeared as the composer's attorney, craftily worked ringtones into the score and scripted a glitching and stalling streaming internet ad for soprano Amelia Watkins.


Here's a look at yesterday's local sports. MyFM is the home to High School Sports, New Englands Patriots, Red Sox, Bruins, PawSox, BC Basketball and Football. Read more.
The Consulate General of Greece in Boston, along with the Alpha Omega Council, a non-profit organization that promotes the ideals of Hellenism in the United States, will host the 36th Annual Boston Marathon Wreath Ceremony in the Great Hall of the Massachusetts State... Read more.
By MyFM's John Wilbur - All of the Questions have been answered about the 2018 New England Patriots and whether or not they were a championship quality team? Is Tom Brady too old or has Rob Gronkowski lost a step will Julian Edleman would recover from last years torn ACL... Read more.
By MyFM's John Wilbur - The Patriots are gearing up for their final game of the season and as it has been for the last three years in a row and for four of the last five years their final game is the biggest of the year, it's the Super Bowl. The Patriots answered all the... Read more.
How sweet it is! As the Patriots head to their third straight Super Bowl, Patriots Nation celebrates! But, apparently, no celebration matches that of a Patriots locker room celebration. The team recently gave a fans a quick glimpse of the events that unfolded in the... Read more.
The State Of The New England Patriots Heading Into The Final Week Of The Regular Season!
By MyFM'S John Wilbur - The New England Patriots will have to overcome some regular season woes if the plan is to play in that first and only game in February. Right now looking at week 17 just a few days away, the talk is about the weapons that Tom Brady doesn't have... Read more.
To say "thank you" to its Life Members, the Hopedale High School Alumni Association will provide free admission to all girls' and boys' Blue Raider home basketball games for the 2018- 2019 season. Association members who present their Life Member cards will be admitted... Read more.
Tonights matchup determines who will walk away with the TVL Large title. Holliston and Ashland last met up in 2012 and the result was a Holliston 49-7 win. This season Ashland moved back to the TVL large which means this could be a new yearly rivalry in the making. These... Read more.
By MyFM's John Wilbur - Three games in and the New England Patriots are not looking like a team that will be playing in February again, now I know it's only three games and the Patriots tend to figure these things out eventually. But this season seems different this... Read more.
By MyFM's John Wilbur - The New England Patriots are taking a chance on another troubled wide receiver but this time it isn't attitude that has kept Josh Gordon on the side lines it's his substance abuse issues. The Patriots are well versed in team and silencing the noise... Read more.
Blackstone Valley Tech is proud to share the following schedule for fall 2018 varsity sports. Student-athletes, families, and fans are reminded all team schedules are subject to change. Regularly updated team schedules for varsity, junior varsity, and freshmen sports can... Read more.
By Myfm's John Wilbur - J.P. Pyne the former stand out baseball player at Milford High School from the class of '97, has done well for himself in America's game with the former player now coaching. Pyne was recently awarded the head coaching job at Amherst College a... Read more.
By MyFM's John Wilbur - It's been rumored for months, even years that the Pawtucket Red Sox were looking for a new home. Several sources are reporting that the City of Worcester will make an announcement on Friday morning about bringing the team to the Wootown. The Vacant... Read more.
By MyFM's John Wilbur - The New England Patriots returned to the turf at Gillette Stadium Thursday night. They did it without their starting quarterback Tom Brady or the top tight-end in the league Rob Gronkowski. There were several other starters who were noticeable... Read more.
Sammy Morris, a 12-year National Football League (NFL) veteran who played for four different organizations, including four seasons with the New England Patriots, has been named the running backs coach at Dean College. Morris has been an assistant stength and conditioning... Read more.
By MyFM's John Wilbur- The New England Patriots are just days away from reporting for training camp and kicking off the 2018 season. But this New England Patriots team looks much different than it did when we last saw the team leaving the field in Minnesota after a hard... Read more.
The Uxbridge Baseball Association is proud to announce that the Uxbridge 10U Cal Ripken All Star Team won the New England Regional Championship on July 20, 2018 in Hebron, CT, and are now headed to Vincennes, Indiana to compete in the Cal Ripken 10U World... Read more.
By MyFM's John Wilbur- The Milford American legion post 59 will get back on the field tonight after an xtra day of rest, thanks to mother nature and her thunderstorms that ran through all of Massachusetts yesterday. The local guys (Milford) will play Cherry Valley with... Read more.
Top of Zone Milford Legion Post 59 finished the first half of the season with an 8-4 record driven by strong starting pitching and persisting hitting that has worked to overcome early-season slumps... Read more.
By MyFM's John Wilbur- It's going to cost more to play sports at Nipmuc High School Next year. The Price went up after a unanimous decision by the School Committee on June 18th to raise the fees by twenty dollars per athlete per sport... Read more.
The Uxbridge Baseball Association is proud to announce that the Uxbridge 10U Cal Ripken All Star Team won the Western Massachusetts State Title on Monday July 2, 2018. The Uxbridge 10U team won the Western Massachusetts District 4 Championship in Northbridge in June 2018... Read more.
By MyFM's Jake Archer - Technically, I could make this the shortest article that I have ever written on this website. There isn't a whole lot to this series, and boy I'd love to just leave it at Read more.
By MyFM's Jake Archer - Okay, enough wallowing you miserable, Scary Terry t-shirt wearing, LeBron James hating, basketball fan. It's been almost four days, so it's time to address a few things and move on to the Boston Celtics offseason and look ahead a bit. Read more.
By MyFM's Jake Archer - The Celtics positioned themselves to be on the brink of a trip to the NBA Finals. All they had to do was win one out of two games against LeBron James to earn that right, which was a difficult but doable task. Read more.


Laugh with us and at us, as we play with rules that govern polite behaviour. Only Speak When Spoken To is a bright and bold dance theatre show; an exploration into social etiquette with wigs and wit.
Tackling social and political themes in a vibrant and witty way and using the body as a storytelling device, Meraki Collective create intriguing, meaningful and socially-engaged shows.
Want to know more about Meraki Collective?


There's a new maintenance software update coming for Apple Watch today. watchOS 5.1.1 follows the rocky release of the previous watchOS software update that caused Apple Watch bricking after failing to successfully complete the installation for some customers.
Apple's release notes for watchOS 5.1.1 don't specifically mention the issue with bricking devices, but presumably Apple has sorted out the issue with this version and won't be making it worse. We'll update after the update is available and report back if any issues are discovered.
watchOS 5.1 didn't brick all Apple Watches, but enough customers reported issues that Apple pulled the release for several days. Today's release gives customers a chance to receive the same software fixes, but bricked Apple Watches require servicing from Apple due to the limitations of how software is loaded and updated.
Apple Watch Series 4 customers in the United States should receive another big software update before the end of the year. Apple has promised the new ECG app will arrive later this year for the new model, and Series 1 and later will receive more heart rate alerts as well.
Today's watchOS 5.1.1 release should be available shortly.


Computational science and engineering. There are numerous application areas in physics and astronomy. The school has existing expertise in large-scale data analysis of both gravitational wave and astronomical data, particularly for the Herschel satellite. In these areas, there is expertise in performance engineering, particularly in statistical methods for extracting signals from data streams, pattern recognition and machine learning. In this field, there will be future challenges of a much larger scale with the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) will produce Petabytes of data and require the equivalent of 100 million PCs to process it. Additionally, there is expertise in large-scale astronomical simulations: from the formation of stars to the merging of black holes.
These simulations involve large scale high-performance computing and the analysis of the large output data sets.
Many problems in engineering require analysis and reduction of large data sets to facilitate manufacturing, sustainable and climate friendly development, as well as to provide secure manufacturing environments and prevent digital crime. Data forms the backbone of all Digital Manufacturing technologies, which will be the centrepiece of the stratew for advancing Manufacturing in the 21st century. A critical success factor for Industry 4.0 is Big Data analytics.
designs, 3D printing, and CAD models.
The appendices contain full descriptions of many research areas within these three broad categories where existing research groups in the University want to work 1,Nith the D12.


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EMOPractices
Arrival of the "Southern Barbarians", detail. The Cleveland Museum of Art
Project Team Contacts
Emotions as Practice in the early modern Jesuit missions in the Asia-Pacific
The project "Emotions as Practice in the early modern Jesuit missions in the Asia-Pacific" (EMOPractices) approaches the XVI-XVIII century Asian enterprises of the Society of Jesus through the lens of emotions, with the aim to analyse the role of Jesuit emotional practices and their impact on the Western creation of the image of peoples of the Asia-Pacific region. EMOPractices operates at the junction of history and anthropology; it is supervised by Prof. Giovanni Bulian of Ca' Foscari University Venice and by Prof. Susan Broomhall of the Australian Catholic University, while Prof. Monique Scheer and Prof. Renate Dürr oversee the secondment at the University of Tübingen.
Research on emotions has been an effervescent, developing field for the past twenty years now, so that it is possible to speak of an "emotional turn" in the social sciences and humanities.
The perceived ahistorical nature of emotions has long been refuted, and tracing through time the genealogy of the concept of "emotion" itself has allowed the critical analysis of the category.
While the connections existing between religion and feelings have received discreet attention, Catholic missions and the roles of feelings in the processes of evangelization have yet to be thoroughly explored.
Madonna of the Thumb, detail. Edited from ColBase https://colbase.nich.go.jp/
Peter Paul Rubens, Portrait of Nicolas Trigault in Chinese Costume, detail. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, Purchase, Carl Selden Trust, several members of The Chairman's Council, Gail and Parker Gilbert, and Lila Acheson Wallace Gifts, 1999
EMOPractices considers, as primary sources, missionary literature by the members of the Society of Jesus in Asia and in the Pacific, between the 16th and the 18th century.
Jesuit missionaries were often found at the forefront of early modern intercultural contacts and created letters and reports where the visual elements of foreign cultures appeared described with a wealth of details, for the eager consumption of the European public.
However, a close reading of these documents also reveals the centrality of emotions in the Jesuit evangelization practices.
Feelings were a key component of the "motions of the soul" that Ignatius Loyola, founder of the Society of Jesus, identified as a central tool to discern spirits, and, therefore, to understand to live according to God's will.
Just as most Jesuits showed to find emotions important in their spiritual lives, they considered them a key aspect of any process of conversion too. Moreover, as emotions were considered universal, they appeared to enable a direct, non-verbal communication across humankind, that in turn could support the verbal transmission of the religious message, that is, the final aim of the Jesuit missionaries.
Thus, although the Jesuits generally called attention to the purported higher rationality of the Christian message, the emotional dimensions of evangelization were not less essential and could sensibly impact missionary policies and the image of the Other produced by missionary literature.
Maria Kannon. Edited from ColBase https://colbase.nich.go.jp/
Marinus Robyn van der Goes (after Peter Paul Rubens), H. Franciscus Xaverius wekt een dode tot leven, detail. Rijksmuseum
EMOPractices analyses Jesuit writings by considering emotions as practices, following a Bourdieuian approach theorized by Monique Scheer (2012).
It will therefore identify the emotional typologies used by the missionaries to classify different Asian people; the practices that characterized the new emotional communities, together with their hierarchies, rules and control systems; and the mechanisms of the discursive creation of the "emotional Other," as part of the changes in the early modern European understanding of the world and humankind.
Dr. Linda Zampol D'Ortia
Marie Skłodowska Curie Global fellow
Department of Asian and North African Studies
Prof. Giovanni Bulian
Prof. Susan Broomhall
Gender and Women's History Research Centre
Institute for Humanities and Social Sciences
Department of Asian and North African Studies (DSAAM)
 Palazzo Vendramin, Dorsoduro 3462, 30123 Venice
Linda Zampol D'Ortia
This project has received funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie grant agreement No 101028277 (MSCA-IF-GF)


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Home/Gaming software/After Bloodhunt, where do battle royale games go next?
After Bloodhunt, where do battle royale games go next?
Fox May 20, 2022 Gaming software Leave a comment 56 Views
I have a friend who's a big Call of Duty: Warzone player, or so it seems at first glance. Sure, he's technically racking up hours on the "time-played" counter, but what he actually plays more than anything else is Rebirth Island. It's a specific, separate mode in Warzone, where you have a much smaller map that results in more frequent combat encounters, and also provides the ability to automatically respawn if at least one of your teammates is still alive. It's like some kind of… team deathmatch, if you can imagine such a thing. I asked some other friends, and while the vast majority of them abandoned Warzone months ago, those who haven't are, likewise, playing Rebirth Island, shunning the larger maps and finite lives for something more efficiently violent. They've essentially come full circle in the spectrum of online multiplayer games.
Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodhunt has made me think about the current state of Battle Royale, digging its fangs into my thoughts and refusing to let go. Because it's a gothic vampire game with complex lore and themes, about running around a big map and shooting people while at the same time, for some reason, the playing area contracts around you. Fun, sure, but it seems like the unique identity of the Vampire: The Masquerade franchise is straining to meet the standard model of the battle royale genre halfway, rather than building something new based on its strengths and ideas. A chance for experimentation was missed, at least in part, and that's a shame. Meanwhile, turn your eye to the wider industry, and it seems like we're now at this strange, transitional point where the long-established battle royales are working out where to go next.
Looking down on things
(Image credit: Activision)
Inside Bloodhunt: How the architects of The Division are building a better battle royale
Let's take stock. What info we have to work with indicates Warzone has had a pretty meaningful drop in players recently. Apex Legends hasn't really taken the blueprint anywhere new, maintaining a cautious holding pattern so as not to risk putting a foot wrong – an understandable, albeit reserved approach. Contrarily, Fortnite's biggest innovation in recent memory was to amputate one of its own mechanics in a bid for broader appeal.
None of which really screams progress, does it? It seems that's going to have to come from other games in the genre. But the problem is, the other hopefuls trying to break into the big battle royale club are finding mixed success at best, even if they are trying something new. Fall Guys started magnificently but has since dipped, Naraka Bladepoint didn't even get that initial spike, and Bloodhunt – a game I do enjoy – hasn't convinced me it has the endurance to last going forward. Even Fallout 76 tried a battle royale, but it welcomed so few players that Bethesda quietly shut it down not long afterwards.
Clearly, battle royale as a concept isn't going anywhere soon, but that assertion plays both ways – it really doesn't seem to be going, well, anywhere. Since PUBG: Battlegrounds popularised the genre in 2017, we've seen no real change or advancement in what people expect from its last-person-standing purview. Nearly all of these games – certainly the big ones – are shooters where you freefall into a large map, scoop up equipment, and shoot at people while the battle arena tightens around you. That's a very specific format for an idea that's actually as broad as "lots of people competing". How long before people get bored of this model? On a smaller scale, it might've already started.
(Image credit: Epic)
"New maps might be not interesting, new weapons might be unbalanced… but dare to keep things as is, and risk players getting bored and wandering off."
Part of the issue is that publishers appear wary about how they handle updates and changes, keen to avoid tinkering too much with the games-as-service model the industry has taken to. Service games are designed to evolve over time, so as to keep players engaged – because the obvious downside of a subscription being that it can be cancelled if a paying customer loses interest. No more battle passes bought, no more cosmetic skins sold, no more loot boxes unboxed. And battle royale games are all games-as-service now, forcing that constant evolution lest they risk dying on the vine. In turn, publishers want them to be profitable for years – but that requires years of work and attention.
The other big factor is that the market for this genre has become fiercely competitive. A good unique selling point is necessary (hence why PUBG almost feels overshadowed by the Fortnite/Apex/Warzone holy trinity, despite preempting them), but you also have to promise regular twists or risk becoming yesterday's news. That's where difficult choices come in. Shaking up a big online game is a massive task, and simply adding new things isn't a guaranteed path to success. New maps might be not interesting, new weapons might be unbalanced, events might be overhyped or new mechanics might be broken. But dare to keep things as is, and risk players getting bored and wandering off.
So where are we dropping?
"The opportunity for smaller battle royale games to reach the top can be dependent on what's always been key to smaller games – to provide a unique experience that bigger names aren't."
Looking to the future, I suspect we'll see three different strategies, the most obvious one being more big-name franchises putting out BR spin-off games. It worked for Call of Duty with Warzone, it somehow worked for Tetris with the excellent Tetris 99, and, come to think of it, it worked for Fortnite itself, a game that started as a co-op zombie survival experience called Save the World that might have otherwise flown under the radar.
Expect to see more big names specifically going to BR in the future, leveraging a franchise's goodwill as a booster. Halo's been gunning for it, Rocket League just did something similar, and, for me, other plausible contenders include: Gears of War, Star Wars Battlefront, Overwatch, another attempt from Battlefield (even despite Firestorm's failings), Borderlands, any other Bethesda property, or even Nintendo with something Splatoon or Metroid-leaning. The more well-established the franchise, the less likely the game is to take the risk of unique gameplay, instead resting on brand recognition.
I think we'll also see the established big names relying more on what they're doing now, with strange gimmicks that rest on the core experience as opposed to fundamentally changing it. For example: taking out building mechanics, adding Godzilla, introducing new weapons and items and locations, but completely leaving the core gameplay alone unless actively demanded by players. It's a dangerous move – you're basically delaying stagnation with a string of flashy distractions, right up until one fails to entertain – but it's the only option for them at this point.
That's why Bloodhunt started me thinking about all this. It's cute, and fun, and splattery in all the right ways, but I worry it's not unique enough to last in an industry where everybody is doing this, precisely because it's clearly trying to do what everybody else is already doing. It's the ancient contradiction of the entertainment industry – trying to stand out, while also being just like everybody else.
(Image credit: PUBG Corp)
But it doesn't have to be that way. The opportunity for smaller battle royale games to reach the top tiers can be dependent on what's always been key to smaller games – the chance to provide a unique experience that the bigger names aren't. God knows what the next trend will be though. Maybe spaceship combat, maybe higher-power superhero gimmicks, maybe greater use of NPC enemies like Hunt: Showdown, or maybe a Cooking Mama battle royale called Too Many Cooks? Taking shooting off the table altogether might be a good place to start, rethinking things from the ground up.
When we look at the big gaming trends that came before – survival-crafting, district-liberating sandbox games, etc – these things still exist, they're just not as all-encompassing as they once were. I think the reality is that once the dust has settled five years or so from now, there'll only be a few big battle royale games in the public eye (probably Fortnite and a couple of other long-lived contenders), with the genre waning as oversaturation takes its toll and the new Big Thing, whatever it is, steps forward to replace it.
If battle royale games want to prevent this, if they want to survive the eternally-shifting nature of video game trends, they need to start showing ingenuity, and a willingness to try new things. Otherwise they risk the circle closing on them for good.
How many of the best battle royale games have you played?
Tags Battle Royale Call of Duty: Warzone Category: Feature Category: Gaming software channel_gaming_software feature games serversidehawk type_opinion Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodhunt
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Avengers: Endgame star Josh Brolin opens up about Thanos future in the MCU
Netflix teases a David Fincher announcement, and some fans think its Mindhunter season 3
New Obi-Wan Kenobi action figure shows how much life sucks for the Jedi now
How to be a superhero the Hawkeye way (according to Kate Bishop #1 preview)


Aci Sivri – Source: Seed Savers Exchange. Sweet, mild to medium hot chile. Good drier. 24" plant, fruit 7 x .75", pendant, wrinkled, tapers to point. 80 days – good yield of slender 8" driers with curl at tip, origin Turkey.
Bolivian Tepin – Small, 3/4" long chile pepper starts purple and then goes to yellow, orange and red. Fairly hot. Very attractive in the landscape.
Louisiana Hot Chile – This chile pepper variety grows in clumps of 6 to 12 or more peppers, or "rooster spur" style as they call it. These chiles are about 2" long and are of a medium heat level. Great driers.
Rocoto – Round chile pepper that goes from G>R. Fairly hot. Black seeds. Leaves are fuzzy and fruits are preceded by purple flowers.
Yellow Peru – Source: Ron's Rare Plants and Seeds. 130 days--2-2.5" bright yellow crisp fruit that grows on vine-line bush, some limbs over 5' long. Hot but tasty yellow peppers from Peru. Stake this pepper and watch it take off!
Yellow Cherry Tomato – This yellow cherry tomato is sweet and small and I acquired it at a friend's house. It grows in clumps of 4 to 7. I recently saw a picture of a "Broad Ripple Yellow Currant" variety in the Seed Savers 2000 catalog and the yellow cherry tomato I am familiar with looks exactly like the one featured. They might indeed be one and the same.
Uvilla Grande – Source: Ron's Rare Plants and Seeds. Small (1/2" to 3/4" long) G>Y chile pepper with sweet undertones, mildly hot. Pleasant and perky little pepper. Doesn't "Grande" mean large in Spanish? Was this pepper named by someone with a sense of humor?
The Seed Savers Exchange is an organization dedicated to preserving the genetic diversity of vegetables, fruits and grains. By saving old-time food crops from extinction, the Seed Savers Exchange is able to establish a genetic arsenal to combat disease and pests, in addition to providing more people with improved food choice capabilities.


What are GO EXPRESS ship details?
GO EXPRESS (IMO: 8208268) is a Container Ship registered and sailing under the flag of Saint Kitts and Nevis. Her gross tonnage is 32444 and deadweight is 33997. GO EXPRESS was built in 1984 by SAMSUNG SHIPBUILDING & HEAVY INDUSTRIES. GO EXPRESS length overall (LOA) is 206 m, beam is 32.3 m and maximum draught is 11.7 m. Her container capacity is 2181 TEU. The ship is operated by HAPAG-LLOYD AG.
Where is GO EXPRESS current position?
GO EXPRESS current position is received by AIS and displayed on next chart by using of VesselFinder services.
All details and current position are for informational purposes and VesselTracking is not responsible for the accuracy and reliability of GO EXPRESS data values.


text:
Q: Quiz - removing nodes Why does the current question reappear once it is removed? The aim is to load the next question once the current quesion has been answered. Heres the full jsfiddle.
function nextquestion(){
   var parentDiv = document.getElementById('myForm');
   var formGroup = document.getElementById('form-group');
   var removedNode = parentDiv.removeChild(formGroup);
   alert(removedNode.id);
}

A: Because will reload the page.
<form id="myForm">
    <input id="submit" type="submit" value="next question"/>
</form>

Change to
<button onclick=nextQuestion()>next question</button>

and hande it without page reloading.
I suggest this approach: http://jsfiddle.net/vda85aub/108/
You delete the old question simplu by calling question.innerHTML = ''

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
Q: Engineering external implementation of application behavior I want to do the following behavior in one delphi application.(10.3+)
I want a user to have the possibility to implement his own logical behavior of a program "saved in options".
Very similar with an arduino logical/program.
For example
I create a program that is keep tracking values about 10 heat sensors. But it can be anything.
The program has a timer and in the on timer event the following actions are taking places.

*

*read the values from sensors

*take action if needed

there are 2 types of info saved in this class.
Non Changing informations like ID name etc, and permanent changing (DATA).
here is the example of the base class that hold all the info from one sensor.
type TXXX = class
  private
  public
    // info that are not changing ever
    property ID                         : Integer ...
    property SENSOR_NAME : String   ...
// info that are constantly changing
    property READ_TIMESTAMP : TDateTime ...
    property CURRENT_VALUE   : Double ...
    property VALUE_SUPREMUM  : Double    ...
    property VALUE_INFIMUM       : Double   ...
end

I need to create some sort of options of the program when a user can define his own logical that the program should respond if condition are meet.
for example a user want to say:
if CURRENT_VALUE > 5 and  VALUE_INFIMUM > 0.5 then begin
  "take action 1"
end

and so on...
"take action x" and all the actions are hardcoded. for example close/open a valve.
now these properties are more than 4 are like 50 or so.
anyone can point me some directions?
Regards
Razvan

A: There are 2 ways how you can solve your problem.
1st: You can use some of scripting engines. That's the direct purpose of this components. You can use something like Pascal Script For Delphi (https://www.remobjects.com/ps.aspx), Fast script (https://www.fast-report.com/en/product/fast-script/), TMS Scripter (https://www.tmssoftware.com/site/scriptstudiopro.asp), etc.
2nd: If you have limited actions and condition – you can write your own parser and GUI for it for handle all this staff.
Make expressions parser, declare operants (numbers or allowed properties of your sensors, or other expression), declare mathematical operations (plus, mines...) and logical operation (Lower, higer, equal, and, not, or). It's can take a while to implement it, but you can build very user-friendly wizard to manage it.


Christmas is always a special time at Sai Baba's ashram in Southern India. Hundreds, if not thousands of volunteers join forces to help those visiting Prasanthi Nilayam to celebrate the birth of Christ as they pay tribute to Holy Man and Teacher, Sri Sathya Sai Baba. This video includes the sounds and the excitement of Christmas, 2009.


Safari Free is available here at Fileopal.com for free download. It just got you to the Internet. Yet, from the day it was discharged, Safari set the bar higher for internet browsers. It presented complex plan components that made perusing a delight. Simple to utilize, Safari remained out of your way and let you easily explore from site to site.
Safari Download is intended to stress the perusing, not the program. The program outline is a solitary pixel wide. You see a parchment bar just when required. Naturally, there's no status bar. Rather, an advance pointer turns as your page loads. Selected perusing implies you'll discover tabs at the specific best of the program, opening an even more extensive window for review sites. An awesome program, Safari lets you just appreciate the web.
Download Safari Free Latest Version For PC > It is very to install this software on your windows/ other devices like mobile/PCs/Ipad etc. You need to install it as the normal easy software's installation method is. Download its exe file from our website, double-click the file and allow the software to make changes on your PC, it will show a new window to start the installation process. You need to click on next to start the installation process, it will now ask for the path where the software needs to be installed, it will show a default C drive (System drive) to be installed the software on. You can freely check and post software's reviews.
If you have the cool space on the C device then simply click on Next to start the installation process, otherwise, you can choose any other drive for any reason like memory/space or for any reason you can choose other drive and let it start the installation. It will take some moments to be installed on your device and will be ready to use as the software is installed. The installation of the devices having the OS, which support Stores, it is very easy for them to install the software. Simple search software name on store > Install > Open > All done. You can download Safari offline installer with a setup file for windows.
Safari Offline Installer For Windows 32bit and 64bit > Safari Windows Free offers you all the best options that a burning software has like burning files from CD/DVD or BlueRay discs, can make standard and bootable discs and many more best tools. We are also offering to download the Safari Premium Version and Safari Professional Version.
We don't have any change log information yet for version 5.1.7 of " Safari ". Sometimes publishers take a little while to make this information available, so please check back in a few days to see if it has been updated.


text:
Q: How do I add a background image to the QMainWindow? Hi I am new to QT creator. I have tried a bunch of things to set my background image for the Q mainwindow. I added a resource folder with my image. I tried to add the by using setstylesheet in the UI and tried coding it. When I use the UI I can see the image, but when I run it nothing shows. I want put an image of a poker table that I have as the background and be able to put pushbuttons, etc on top.
main.cpp:
#include "mainwindow.h"
#include <QApplication>

int main(int argc, char *argv[])
{
    QApplication a(argc, argv);
    MainWindow w;
    w.show();

    return a.exec();
}

mainwindow.cpp
#include "mainwindow.h"
#include "ui_mainwindow.h"

MainWindow::MainWindow(QWidget *parent) :
    QMainWindow(parent),
    ui(new Ui::MainWindow)
{
    ui->setupUi(this);
    this->setStyleSheet("{background-image: url(:/images/images/PokerTableBackground.jpg);}");
}

MainWindow::~MainWindow()
{
    delete ui;
}

Like I said I tried doing this, and putting the image through the UI and neither one of them work. I want the image set as the background for the whole thing.
I also tried using this:
QWidget *pic = new QWidget(ui->tab);
    pic->setStyleSheet("background-image: url(:/images/images/PokerTableBackground.jpg)");
    pic->setGeometry(QRect(10,10,220,48)); // your location and size.

A: The CSS style background will be inherited in the child widgets and thus create weird looking windows. A possible solution is to limit the background to MainWindow or #centralWidget. If, additionally, you want to stretch the image to cover the full widget, use this kind of CSS
this->setStyleSheet(
            "#centralWidget { "
            " border-image: url(:/background.png) 0 0 0 0 stretch stretch;"
            "}");

A: You can add a background image to your MainWindow by doing the following:

*

*create a QPixmap and give it the path to your image.

*create a QPalette and set it's QBrush with your pixmap and it's ColorRole to QPalette::Background.

*set your MainWindow palette to the palette you created.

as an example you can add this lines to the constructor of your MainWindow class:
MainWindow::MainWindow(QWidget *parent) :
    QMainWindow(parent),
    ui(new Ui::MainWindow)
{
    ui->setupUi(this);
    QPixmap bkgnd("/home/user/Pictures/background.png");
    bkgnd = bkgnd.scaled(this->size(), Qt::IgnoreAspectRatio);
    QPalette palette;
    palette.setBrush(QPalette::Background, bkgnd);
    this->setPalette(palette);
}

the advantage with this one is that you have the ability of modifying/changing your background image programmatically without having to use or learn any css stylesheet syntaxes.

A: You can set background style sheet of central window,
this->centralWidget()->setStyleSheet("background-image:url(\"bkg.jpg\"); background-position: center; ");

In the constructor it would be something like this:
MainWindow::MainWindow(QWidget *parent) :
    QMainWindow(parent),
    ui(new Ui::MainWindow)
{
    ui->setupUi(this);

    this->centralWidget()->setStyleSheet(
         "background-image:url(\"bkg.jpg\"); background-position: center;" );
}


Description Real photographic postcard showing gas, mud and water gushing from the ground in White Point, Texas.
Notes Date refers to postmark. Place obtained from Handbook of Texas History. Source: https://tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/hvwac Recto: [inscribed on negative] No. 3938. Gutty Gas Gusher. 100,000,000 cubic feet of Gas escapes each Day... White Point Texas, Well No. 2. Swafford Phot. Copyright. Verso: [stamped] Actual photo made and printed by Swafford, the Photo Man, Aransas Pass, Texas. Retails 5 cts. Send for list.


$160, look for this women s Nike Air More Uptempo Hot Punch at select Nike stores and online in April. Always keep it locked to KicksOnFire for the latest in sneaker news and release dates.The Nike Air More Money is dropping in another new colorway this week in University Red. Basically featuring a combination of white, black and university red, white leather covers most of the upper, while the university red accent is seen along the tongue, collar area, branding on the shroud, inside the Air cushioning and outsole.
running shoe that is expected to make big waves in 2018.
heel unit. A white midsole, visible Air Max cushioning in the heel and black rubber outsole completes the design altogether.
Look for this colorway of the Nike Air Max 1 at select Nike stores overseas and online today for $120. A stateside release is coming soon. Always keep it locked to KicksOnFire for the latest in sneaker news and release dates.This colorful iteration of the Nike Air Max 98 is a brand new theme of the silhouette in celebration of its 20th anniversary. Covered in a mixture of Cone, Tour Yellow and Hyper Grape hues, the runner basically features a suede/mesh and leather upper, while the bright style is contrasted with a white midsole, Air Max cushioning with a green interior and black rubber outsole to complete the design altogether.
colorway of dark russet/blue-nebula across its leather and mesh upper.


Started this discussion. Last reply by Melissa Fulkerson Aug 23, 2010.
"And Chapter 7, to conclude the updated STAR section. The revised version of the book is getting great feedback. Hope you all enjoy! To purchase the full book, visit one of the following: Amazon:…"
"OK looks like that worked. I'll be uploading 1 chapter at a time in individual responses to this thread."
"Trying to upload Chapter 1 here- let's see how this goes!"
"Cant wait, all i need now is amazon to get my book to me lol"


Not that long ago, the US was engaged in a staredown with Russia over launching an attack Syria to punish it for allegedly using chemical weapons to kill civilians. Russia refused to back down and made some strong counterpoints to the US' supposedly solid evidence. I don't want to be callous but I'd strongly advise against accepting the Western "evidence" about the chemical attacks and to be skeptical of the reporting done on that attack and on the conflict so far, which in my view has been skewed towards the anti-regime rebels.
This LRB article takes a wider look and gives a sound criticism of war reporting especially in the last few major conflicts. What's especially pertinent and harmful is the simplification of these conflicts by media, often describing conflicts as between oppressive evil regimes/dictators and heroic opposition rebels. What's also relevant is how Western powers (US, Britain, France etc) have been involved in these conflicts and taken advantage of faulty media reporting to influence public perceptions. In addition, the opposition in Libya or Egypt (anti-Mubarak protesters) has often been rather media-savvy, taking advantage of social media like Youtube videos and Twitter to press their cause, which often generates sympathetic coverage and propagation from Western media -sometimes along the lines of "these people use Twitter, they're just like us, they're the good guys blah blah." Hence when the general public, for instance you and me, reads and views these reports, it's easy to be taken in and believe the general simplified narrative of the conflicts.
What's been happening in Syria for the past two years is terrible, but the US has been right to not intervene. Let's hope it stays that way.
There's been an epidemic of public shootings in the US recently, with the latest being a gunman who was shot dead in the middle of New York City by police (who also shot 8 bystanders by accident) after having killed a former colleague (not to mention a rash of murder-butcheries in Canada recently). So does this really mean that the United States is full of guncrazy lunatics who love to buy and use weapons without any shred of responsibility or accountability, and idiots who fully support these rights even if it means crimes like the one above and the Colorado Batman cinema massacre are easier to commit? Probably there are quite a lot of people in the US like that, but it still wouldn't be just to accuse all Americans of being gun nuts. The US is a nation of 300 million, the fourth biggest in the world, and it's kind of pointless to paint it with simple stereotypes.
This goes the same for China, a nation of one point three billion (1,300,000,000), and the world's third largest nation, and with subregions and subidentities. A lot of media coverage and public perceptions of China portray it as a giant, monolithic entity with articles proclaiming bold statements like China's in trouble, China is booming, China is a land of great opportunity, China is a ticking time bomb, foreigners are all leaving China, and so on. Foreign Policy magazine has a new article on China in which Minxin Pei declares that "everything you know about China is wrong." What if China isn't rising, but is falling, Pei states and warns about the danger to the US of overestimating China. The article might be interesting to some people (so do take a look at it), but one problem with this is that it's not just the US government who might be overestimating China, but the media, who often hype anything about China and in the process paint China as a single broad monochrome canvas.
On slightly more upbeat news about China's global relations, here's Der Spiegel about China's positive relationship with Germany. Trade is booming between these two economic giants, though not everything is rosy. Still, the Germans seem to have a pragmatic approach that bodes well for future relations. Germany's leader Angela Merkel knows that it's essential to have a strong economic relationship with China, who is Europe's main trading partner and vice versa. Also to avoid a unipolar US-dominated or a bipolar US-China world, it's necessary to have China on board, who would be a much more reliable partner than Russia as Merkel seems to realize, from what the article says. Conversely for China, it's smart to boost relations with Europe's top power and ensure this relationship grows stronger.
On to football, while Japan's Shinji Kagawa has played very well for Manchester United as the new season begins, it's sad to remember at one point United had signed a young Chinese star. It's quite obvious that Dong Fangzhuo wasn't quite ready for the opportunity and that he was mainly signed to give United a presence in the Chinese market, in other words, to sell shirts and win fans.
Finally, if there's one really charming historical place in Taiwan, that would be the old capital of Tainan. I only went there once but the southern city has a number of interesting and well-preserved historical sights and still has a laidback atmosphere to it. One could liken it to Nanjing, China's southern former capital city, which also has a nice charm and peaceful atmosphere. Of course Nanjing is not as sleepy and its historical sights have a more rugged and damaged condition due to the wars it's suffered.
I might not read most of these but I'm sure anyone would find something good here in this (near) Top 100 list of American nonfiction for 2010. You can never go wrong with long nonfiction journalism.
One of these reads like Apocalypse Now meets National Geographic – a New Yorker investigative piece on a wildlife activist couple who may have gone over the edge in protecting elephants in Zambia. Having written books and been featured on American TV, the couple (both Americans) created a program in a remote area in Zambia to train rangers to patrol and capture poachers. The allegations are they crossed the line by directing their rangers to kill poachers, among other things. It would not be a surprise if they did, when I was in South Africa last year, I heard about how rangers do this in Zimbabwe and SA – kill poachers on sight and leave their bodies in the wild- and there wasn't much sympathy for the poachers. It's a tough issue because on one hand, are animals' lives worth more than human's but on the other hand, when humans purposefully and illegally hunt and kill magnificent creatures, do they deserve much sympathy if they die? I don't think I can give a clear answer but I definitely find poaching of large rare animals reprehensible, especially for non-food purposes. The article comes with a dark twist towards the end, pertaining towards a controversial event during a live ABC broadcast.
Michael Hastings is the reporter who wrote a Rolling Stone article that featured then-US Afghanistan military head Stanley McChrystal dissing his own president, who not surprisingly, got sacked for that. Guernica has an interview with him where he dishes out some interesting takes on the dirty side of the US military leadership including conducting psy-ops on the public and even US senators, the futility of the war in Afghanistan and whether military intervention for humanitarian purposes in countries is really feasible. Hastings, who will have a book out on Afghanistan later this year , takes an admirable stance on the journalistic questions of war reporting.