text:
Oaths, Deals, and Life-Debts, Oh My!
The Witch of Elphame 25 days ago
"If you really want to upset a witch, do her a favor which she has no means of repaying. The unfulfilled obligation will nag at her like a hangnail."
-Terry Pratchett, Lord's and Ladies
"A knight is sworn to valor,
His heart knows only virtue,
His blade defends the helpless,
His might upholds the weak,
His word speaks only truth,
His wrath undoes the wicked."
-The Dragon Heart
When we're young, a promise is a sacred thing. Even at that age we understand how important a promise really is. A pinky promise is a holy pact made to us only by those we love most in the world. Perhaps children understand the gravity of the act even more than we do as adults, because after awhile the power of a promise slowly looses the wonder it holds on us.
The people we relied on to keep their word, occasionally break it, whether on purpose or accident, and we slowly begin to realize there is no real power in a promise, besides the faith we put into the person who made it. So, we forget about the sacred power in promises, and slowly we too begin to use them flippantly, which is sad because a promise can hold great magic when we hold ourselves true and accountable for our words and actions.
In fact, oaths, vows, and deals make sure we do just that. These old pieces of magic hold us accountable. You may be able to break the promise you made to your little brother or sister, but break a deal to a witch or faery, and you could not pay me a thousand dollars to switch places with you. When you step within a magic circle, or onto a sacred threshold like a crossroads, our words have a magical binding effect. There's no going back, there's no wiggling your way out of it, and there's definitely no breaking it.
Oaths and vows are spread liberally throughout our history as a human race. Ever since we could speak, we've been making them. They've become deeply ingrained in our society. Although nowadays promises are made more casually this was not always the case.
Perhaps a perfect example of oaths and vows, are those sworn by knights during the medieval and renaissance period. The European knights had to undergo strict codes of conduct, and swore oaths of fealty to their lords and king. Knights were known for their impeccable bloodline and their chivalry. These oaths and vows were not to be taken lightly. A knight pledged his sword in service to their lord, and by doing so they pledged their undying loyalty, and if need be, their life. However, knights did not always served a lord, as eventually we see in the crusades, knights also swore oaths to the abrahamic God and served the Christian church.
Within the Japanese culture, even to this day there is no higher pledge than that of making an oath or vow to another. In fact, honor is deeply ingrained into their very society. A custom called katame-no-sakazuki is undergone in many different social situations where oaths are made. This custom is known as the exchanging of sake, and is held with the deepest of respect. There are many different versions of this ceremony. It is done during weddings between the bride and groom. It is also done to tie two people together that are not related by blood.
By doing this ceremony a sacred pact is made between the two people. This custom is also popularized by the Yakuza, a crime syndicate in Japan which is similar to the Italian mafia. Sakazuki is used traditionally to formalize deals and promises. When a new member wishes to join, Sakazuki is ritually performed between oyabun (the boss,) and the kobun, (the new underling.) This is done in a formal setting and is very in-depth. First the yuban drinks, and then the sake is offered to the kobun, by doing this the bonds they have created are strengthened and cemented. As you can imagine, breaking such an oath would have devastating consequences.
Within the pagan community oaths and vows are predominate as well, and are used among multiple different traditions. One common example is that of traditional coven work. When new initiates are inducted into a coven many different rituals are performed. One small piece of this ritual is where the "measure" of the initiate is taken with red thread. This is done by measuring the initiate with red twine from feet to head. The reasoning behind this differs from coven to coven, but hair and nail clippings are also collected so I'm sure you can use your imagination.
Once this is done oaths and vows are recited before the coven and the old gods. Normally the price for breaking said vows are made very clear. Similar oaths and vows are often taken by solitary practitioners as well. During dedication the witch will often recite various vows, sometimes these are to a God and Goddess, although this is not always the case. Many secular witches perform dedications to nature, and the powers that be in general.
The handfasting, is another ritual followed by many witches and pagans. This is an old Celtic marriage/union ceremony. During a handfasting a cord is used to bind the bride and brooms hand. After they have been bound together by the cord the they take oaths and vows to each other. This ceremony is meant to tie the couple together, both physically and spiritually. If ever they are to separate, there is another ceremony that must be performed to unbind the couple.
Oaths and vows are not only done by witches for coven work, and solitary reasons, but is also done between two witches to solidify their bonds. Blood pacts are common between brother and sister witches. There are few things more intimate than than a blood bonding ritual. I must note, that sharing blood with another person is not only dangerous because of the magical connotations, but also for general health reasons as well. When using and performing blood magic always use great caution. Know the medical status of the person you're doing blood magic with, be sterile, and always be safe and use common sense and discretion.
Deals are a binding contract between two entities. I say entities because it can be between two people, but it can also be between a person and a supernatural creature. Deals are similar to oaths and vows. While at the same time being drastically different. Oaths and vows are a sort of pledge or promise. Deals are closer to a bargain that you enter into. In this situation you get something you want, and in return for giving it to you, the other person gets something they want. Normally in these situations the price is high, and as mentioned before, you can't get out of a deal, the only way to be free of it, is to complete the terms of your contract.
When most people think of deals, they think of demons, faeries and witches. There's a reason for this. These creatures are masters at creating magical contracts. I recommend never making a deal with a magical person or creature if you can avoid it. If you must enter into one, I recommend having several magical years of experience under your belt, and know exactly what your agreeing to before you sign on the dotted line.
I could go on and on about how dangerous deals can be, but at the same time, my job is also to present you with information and examples. Still, I cannot press upon you enough, the possible implications and gravity of entering into a deal. If you think you're good at proof reading, reading between the lines, and seeing loopholes, just know that these creatures are better, they have had centuries to master their craft, and they are just waiting for you to slip up. That being said, let us continue.
It's interesting how prevalent magical deals are within our culture. In fact, they can even be found riddled throughout the fairytales we tell our children. Almost everyone has heard the story of The Little Mermaid. In this story Ariel gives up her voice to be able to have the chance to live on land like a human, and fall in love. The price should she fail to make the prince fall for her, is that the Sea Witch gets to keep her soul. In the Disney portrayal Ariel beats the evil witch, keeps her soul, and gets the man. The original 1837 version by Hans Christian Andersen is not so happy. I wont spoil it in case you haven't read the story, but needless to say, Ariel doesn't get the man, deals rarely work out the way we planned. (I linked the original story in the cited sources down below if you wish to read it.)
Another popular story depicting the perils of entering into magical deals is, The Picture of Dorian Gray, by Oscar Wilde. In this tale Dorian Gray enters into a deal with the devil himself, his soul, for eternal youth. This is an interesting story because it teaches us to be mindful of our words, even things we say in passing. Dorian is a gorgeous young man who is also a narcissist. Women and men alike are obsessed with Dorian and would give anything to bed him.
One day Dorian makes a comment to another gentlemen, that if he had the chance, he would give the devil his soul, if it meant he could be young forever. The devil hears this statement and obliges. Dorian gets his wish, at the same time that he is granted eternal youth, an artist also makes a portrait of him capturing him in his prime, and gives it as a gift to Dorian.
As the years go on, Dorian notices that the portrait starts to age. It begins to drive Dorian mad to see what is happening to the portrait, and so he covers it up, and hides it away. However, this does not help, because he can not help peaking at the portrait, and being disgusted by how dark and sinister the portrait looks. The Portrait is Dorians greatest weakness, he can not bare to let anyone look upon it, to see him for the truly grotesque creature he has become. It slowly drives Dorian more and more insane as the story goes on.
The crossroads is also tied intimately to deal making. Perhaps the origins to this belief is tied directly to the blues player Robert Johnson. Robert Johnson always had a love for playing the blues, especially on his harmonica that he was described as being decent at. He would play at Juke joints on Saturday nights, and talked about wanting to be bigger and famous. It's said that Robert Johnson disappeared for a couple weeks and when he returned, he was able to play the guitar like a legend.
It's believed that Robert sold his soul at a Mississippi crossroads for his ability to play the guitar and to be famous. Whether or not this is true we can't really confirm. However, we can confirm that he recorded 29 songs between 1937-1938, and he became a legend although he never seemed to have much of a talent before. Robert Johnson died in 1938 at the age of 27 years old. When he died, he kind of just disappeared, and his cause of death to this day, is still unknown.
While deals with demons and witches are a popular trope, so are deals done between mortals and the fae. These creatures have a gift for drawing mortals in through enchantments, and then giving the mortal their greatest desire, always with some kind of trickery and deceit involved. According to Irish folklore, faeries can not lie, but faeries prey upon this knowledge. The fae lead humans into a false sense of security, and then twist truths so that they can come out on top in any given situation. Faeries are a complex species, and I don't reccomend entering into a bargain with one of your own volition. There is always a price when dealing with the fae, don't be fooled, there is no such thing as a free meal when dealing with magical creatures.
One of my favorite songs is called Changeling Child, by Heather Dale. This song is about a couple that try as they might, could not conceive a child. So, the woman goes to the standing stones and makes a deal with the Faery Queen. The Faery Queen demands her price, and then sends the woman home with a baby. At first the couple is ecstatic about finally having a child of their own but, as the years go on, they realize that the babe will not grow. Devastated, the woman returns to the standing stones to speak with the Faery Queen, but the fae ignore her and her pleas. According to the faeries, there was nothing more to discuss. "A babe was all she'd asked for, their promises they'd kept."
Life Debts
Life debts are similar to oaths, vows and deals, but they are still their own thing entirely. In fact, many life debts include oaths, vows and deals within them , yet the nature of them makes them separate. Life debts are more commonly seen in fiction nowadays. They are a pledge one makes in service of another, in return for saving their life. However, just as with anything else, this is not always the case.
In Asian history these had multiple implications. Because china was run via a caste system, the social status you were born into was how you would die. If your family was born noble then so were you. However, if you were born into debt and poverty, you inherited this as well. If your family was in debt to a lord, it was not uncommon for them to seize your property in order to settle the debt. Many times, this included children, who were taken as servants when the family had nothing else of worth to offer. The children were taken and put into unpaid servitude until the debt had been settled. By being a slave, the child would work until the lord had judged that the debt had been payed in full. Sometimes this would be a few years of servitude, sometimes this meant generations of servitude.
A similar situation can be seen depicted in Game of thrones. After the failed revolt of the Iron Islands led by Balon Greyjoy, Lord of the Iron Islands. His son and Heir Theon Greyjoy is taken by Lord Eddard Stark of Winterfell as his hostage/ward. Theon is raised by the Starks, taught, and treated as one of their own. This is however because Eddard is a just and kind man. Had Eddard been a cruel lord, Theon might've been treated very different. Regardless, Theon is indentured to the Starks. Later on, in order to redeem himself for his crimes against the family. Theon swears his life to Bran Stark, Lord of Winterfell. A beautiful depiction of a life debt.
Much like the how knights of Europe swore featly to their lords through oaths and vows. So did the Samurai of Japan. The samurai were honor bond by codes to serve their lords, even if this meant death, which many times it did. Also, so important is honor within this culture, that if a samurai brought dishonor and shame to his own family or his lord, his life was often asked for in recompense. Should a samurai believe that he had brought dishonor, he would use his wakizashi blade to perform seppuku, which was a ritual suicide through disembowelment. It was believed that in extreme cases, only this act could restore the samurais honor, and to have to do so was seen as a privilege.
Whether it's oaths, vows, deals or life debts we're undertaking, they should be treated with the utmost respect, and seen out in full. A witch should not undergo these contacts lightly, and I think the reasoning behind that is clear. Perhaps to the everyday man a promise is not a big deal anymore, but we are not mundane, we are witches. As witches our words and actions have great powers and consequences. Rarely is something we do within our sacred space not steeped in history and meaning. It is our duty to understand the meanings behind the rituals we perform, and to do so with humility and reverence. "A promise made, is a debt unpaid." -Robert W. Service
All pictures from Pinterest.
https://yakuzahistory.wordpress.com/sakazuki/
http://www.talkativeman.com/sake-and-japanese-culture/?fbclid=IwAR00qCZUJIrqiIKTqo2bOYK7b5jg-dtrtMUUwJa52a266Hxm244CZhBtBHA
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knight'
https://pentacle.swankivy.com/selfinit.html
https://andersen.sdu.dk/moocfiles/littlemermaid.pdf
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Johnson
https://www.britannica.com/topic/seppuku
https://www.britannica.com/topic/The-Picture-of-Dorian-Gray-novel-by-Wilde
RodentMonarch
What a great read! Super interesting, thank you for posting 🖤 Blessed be ✭
wilhelminatook
This is an INCREDIBLE post. Dorian Grey was a favourite book of my childhood, and I loved the movie Crossroads with Steve Vai based on Robert Johnson legend (I feel so old now, lol). And I love that song, the Changeling Child. Yes, promises matter so much, and it's very hard for me to communicate with those who break them over and over....the trust is gone. Thank you for this.
The Witch of Elphame Author
I've actually never seen that movie so now I've got to watch it! I'm glad you enjoyed it, I wanted to give some really good examples. Now I've got to listen to changeling child again!
:virgo: 🦄Cameron 🦄 :virgo:
I couldn't agree more or say itany better. I still take my promises very seriously and dont make a promise I cant keep
That's a good Moto to have, thank you for your support!
Morgan LeFey
I couldn't agree more. It is so sad that people cant just do what they said they would in the first place. I take my promises very seriously just wish others would. Great posts!
You're always so kind when you come on here, and I love your feedback. It's makes me happy that so many people on here have a respect for concepts like this.
Great post! Vows, oaths, promises, etc are not taken seriously anymore in everyday society. I get so mad when someone breaks a promise (within reason) and they get so confused why I'm mad at them. Side note, I went off on some fellow students who were joking about seppuku. It's not funny, its serious!
I couldn't agree more, it baffles me at times the things that come out of some people's mouth. Don't break a deal to the wrong person/thing, it could have serious consiquences. Here recently I've been doing more research into Japanese culture because of my own heritage. Such a rich culture, in such awe of them.
Reply to: The Witch of Elphame
I studied the language and culture for a few years. I loved it. I admit by personal philosophy I'll never curse someone but I will push them out of my life and never wish them happiness/fortune.
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text:
Xing Huina (Chinees 邢慧娜; Weifang, Shandong, 25 februari 1984) is een Chinees atlete en langeafstandsloopster. Haar stijl wordt gekenmerkt door haar ongewone, ongebogen armen tijdens het lopen.

Xing groeide op bij een boerenfamilie op het platte land. Haar atletiektraining begon ze op de sportacademie in de stad Weifang. Ze werd geselecteerd voor de Chinese ploeg in 2002, nadat ze 4.10,43 liep op de 1500 meter en 14.56,15 op de 5000 meter op de Chinese Spelen in 2001. In deze ploeg werd ze getraind door Wang Dexian.

In 2002 won ze een bronzen medaille op de Aziatische Spelen met een tijd van 31.42,58. In 2003 werd ze zevende en brak het wereldrecord bij de junioren met een tijd van 30.31,55.

Op de Olympische Spelen van 2004 in Athene won Xing onverwachts een gouden medaille op de 10.000 meter in 30.24,36 voor de Ethiopische Ejegayehu Dibaba (zilver) en Derartu Tulu (brons), nadat de Engelse, door ziekte verzwakte, favoriete Paula Radcliffe met nog acht ronde te gaan op moest geven. Op de wereldkampioenschappen atletiek 2005 in Helsinki behaalde ze een vierde plaats op de 10.000 meter (30.27,18) achter drie Ethiopiërs, en werd ze vijfde op de 5000 meter (14.43,64).

In 2006 werd haar nieuwe trainer, Yin Yanqin omdat Wang Dexian voor twee jaar werd geschorst in verband met een positieve dopingtest van zijn pupil Sun Yingjie in oktober 2005.

Persoonlijke records

Ze liep reeds eerder 4.03,00 op de 1500 meter, maar deze tijd is niet erkend. Dit omdat haar tegenstander Liu Qing een klacht indiende, waarbij ze claimde dat ze bij het inhalen met opzet geblokkeerd werd door Xing.

Titels
 Chinees kampioene 5000 m - 2004
 Olympisch kampioene 10.000 m - 2004

Palmares

5000 m
 2001:  Chinese kamp. - 15.56,47
 2001:  Chinese National Games - 14.56,15
 2002:  Chinese kamp. - 16.11,71
 2002: 4e Aziatische Spelen - 15.47,52
 2003: 12e in serie WK - 15.13,50
 2004:  Chinese kamp. - 15.23,20
 2004: 9e OS - 15.07,41
 2005: 5e WK - 14.43,64

10.000 m
 2002:  Chinese kamp. - 33.14,49
 2002:  Aziatische Spelen - 31.42,58
 2003:  Chinese Intercity Games - 32.36,24
 2003: 7e WK - 30.31,55
 2004:  Chinese kamp. - 32.48,28
 2004:  OS - 30.24,36
 2005: 4e WK - 30.27,18

Chinees atleet
Chinees olympisch kampioen
Langeafstandsloper

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


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In the 5th part of his series he shows how to use the PHP gcov site to locate lines of code in the PHP language core that aren't tested yet, how to create a new test to cover it and generating a code coverage report to see how much you've tested. In Part 6 he shows you how to take what you've created and submit it back to the PHP project on GitHub as a Pull Request (no RFC needed) based on changes from your own forked repository.
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Ben the provides the details of the planned Testfest that will run for four months and can be worked on from anywhere, not just one single event. The plan is to have it run from September through December of 2017 and there's plenty of support to help out. Organizers can email for more help getting started. There's also a website, Google Group and IRC channel as well as tools and resources to help bring you up to speed on testing the PHP language with phpt tests.
On the QaFoo.com site Manuel Pichler has posted a new tutorial about using unit testing, specifically with PHPUnit (really ending up on phpt) to test and be sure that your file upload handling is working correctly.
He shows how to use a custom $_FILES superglobal to mimic the upload process noting, however, that this won't work due to possible file handling on the backend. His alternative is to use a phpt test to push a raw posted file to the application and then check the results. He then shows how to take these functioning tests and drop them back into PHPUnit via it's "PhpTestCase" handling. You can find full code examples here.
If you've ever wanted to give back to the PHP project, but weren't sure quite how, Rafael Dohms has written up a post to make one of the options much easier to get into - writing PHPT tests for the PHP language.
The beauty about PHPT is that you need to know very little other than writing PHP code. A little knowledge into the inner workings of PHP will of course help you in finding areas of code that need testing, and how best to test them, but just knowing PHP is enough to start.
He leads you through a five step process that'll have you up and writing tests in no time - setting up your environment, looking for something to test, writing and executing a test and submitting the results back to the PHP project. He sprinkles in a few code bits and screenshots to help point you in the right direction.
In this new post to her blog Lorna Mitchell talks a bit about the upcoming TestFest event happening in Manchester next weekend and what she's learned about testing PHP to make things flow a bit smoother for her while there (and you, should you want to write tests in the future).
In preparation I decided it was high time to sit down and figure out what testing PHP is all about. People kept telling me it was easy but I had no clear picture of how all the pieces went together - there are different ways of doing the same thing and although I have been keen to get involved with testing for some time, I haven't been able to get started until now.
She looks at the automated tests as a part of the build ("make test") and some of the screens from the lcov testing results. She also recommends reading up on the phpt documentation to help you get going.


text:
The Cincinnati Wire
Latest News Everyday
James Gunn speaks out about Batman's future role in the new DC universe
Asley Simon December 16, 2022 in Entertainment - 2 Minutes
Warner Bros. Discovery has received a lot of criticism for their decisions regarding their DC Comics movie projects since their cancellation of bat girl. They recently announced that James Gunn and Peter Safran will be the new co-CEOs of their new DC Studios arm, and they're making some big changes. Last month, Henry Cavill was thought to be returning as Superman after a cameo appearance Black Adam, but it turns out he isn't. Gunn revealed that he is working on a new Superman movie that will focus on a younger Superman when he first arrives in Metropolis, and that Cavill will not star in that movie. Gunn also debunked a recent report claiming that he and Safran were working on ways to merge Matt Reeves and Robert Pattinson's Batman into their DC Universe. Now, in a recent interaction with a fan, the director revealed that Batman will play an important role in the future of the DC Universe.
An enthusiastic fan took to the DC Studios co-CEO's mentions to ask him about Batman's future. "Is Batman going to be a big part of the dcu going forward or is he just being saved for Matt Reeves?" To which Gunn replied, "He's a huge part of the DCU". You can watch the interaction below!
He's a big part of the DCU.
— James Gunn (@JamesGunn) December 15, 2022
Gunn and Safran started as co-CEOs of DC Studios at the beginning of the month, and it's safe to say DC's future looks bright. When the duo was announced by the new boss of Warner Bros. Discovery, they released a statement about their enthusiasm for the job.
"We are honored to be the stewards of these DC characters that we've loved since we were kids," Gunn and Safran added in a joint statement. "We look forward to working with the most talented writers, directors and actors in the world to create an integrated, multi-layered universe that still allows for the individual expression of the artists involved. Our commitment to Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Harley Quinn and the rest of DC's stable of characters is matched only by our dedication to the wonder of human possibility that these characters represent. We are excited to revive the theater experience around the world while we have some of the greatest, greatest, and greatest stories ever told."
Are you excited to see another Batman? Let us know in the comments below or by email hitting our writer @NateBrail on Twitter!
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DCU Fan Art depicts David Corenswet as Superman for James Gunn's movie
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The Cincinnati Wire is an independent online journal. All writers are fully independent and represent their own point of view and not necessarily the point of view of any other writer, administrator or entity.


text:
A low-key, pleasing account of finding home—the place, "perhaps, where I will end my days"—by an accomplished storyteller.
BIRD CLOUD
A MEMOIR
by Annie Proulx ‧ RELEASE DATE: Jan. 4, 2011
Novelist Proulx (Fine Just the Way It Is: Wyoming Stories 3, 2008, etc.), the laureate of the Wyoming outback and the Canadian shore, returns to familiar haunts—this time in real life.
French Canada figures as a point of origin in the author's lightly written memoir, in which a great-grandfather speaks: "I know I have feefteen child leeveing, how many more in Minnesota, Canada, y'odder place, O do not know." So do Rhode Island and a few other points on Proulx's personal map. Most of the book, however, concerns the section of land along the North Platte River that came into her possession a few years ago, and where she has since made her home. The "cow-speckled" land, by her description, is rugged, marked by gullies, dust and a dramatic cliff that marks a geological fault—good cause for a meditation on the Rio Grand Rift, a massive fault system that "has made not only the Rio Grande River gorge near Taos but some of the West's most beautiful valleys." Proulx also finds resemblances to contemplate between her eponymous ranch and Uluru, or Ayers Rock, the great Australian monolith that seems weirdly bathed in interior light. Her depictions of the Wyoming landscape in all its moods are in keeping with the best of the Western nature-writing tradition, full of celebration and evocation. But oddly, the narrative contains fewer reveries about the land than one might expect, and a lot of what might be considered helpful hints for would-be bookish homesteaders, ranging from the proper design of an office (with lots of surfaces for laying out maps and piling up paper) and bookcases (to hold thousands of books) to how to relax in a Japanese soak tub ("The long soak was wonderful," Proulx writes, "but an hour later, I discovered a terrible flood in the library").
Pub Date: Jan. 4, 2011
Publisher: Scribner
Review Posted Online: Aug. 30, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2010
Categories: GENERAL BIOGRAPHY & MEMOIR | BIOGRAPHY & MEMOIR | NATURE
More by Annie Proulx
by Annie Proulx
FINE JUST THE WAY IT IS
BAD DIRT


Sincrobox is a method of training based on synchronized pedaling with martial arts (SPMA)and numerous sports, created in 2012 by the athlete Clara Santiago.
Clara is a physical trainer, trainer with certification of professional fitness, karate sports technician and practitioner of various sports and martial disciplines. Clara is also a former competitor and medalist in the kumite modality, she is 3er Dan of karate and, in turn, a graduate in Communication Sciences, a researcher from the University of Málaga and a researcher of her own method.
Sincrobox unites the upper and lower limps during pedaling on a indoor bicycle with a strong based on martial arts, numerous sports and fitness. This method is totally different from other methods. the synchronization between arms and legs to the rhythm of pedaling, make possible the method in which toning exercises are performed with natural body movements and modified exercises based on the differents martial arts and numerous sports. Many elements are incorporated: balls, weights, rubber bands, bars, etc., the element will vary depending on the level in which each student is.
Clara started her career as an entrepreneur in 2012 and manages to extend her method to other Andalusian provinces with the training of monitors who manage to activate the activity and obtain favorable opinions that lead to further positioning the brand in the field of physical exercise and health with an important media impact.
When she manages to start as an entrepreneur, three years later she realizes that her method, at her level I, can help women with breast cancer surgery because of her close experience with the disease with her family. This reason makes him brake, without hesitation, his expansion and his business career where the human factor won the battle.
Then, he travels heaven and earth to ask for collaboration to carry out a scientific study that is coordinated by the sports area of the Malaga City Council. Different health and sports professionals collaborate on a voluntary and non-profit basis, scientifically demonstrating the effectiveness of a method adapted to women operated on for breast cancer to improve their quality of life in general. This path leads her to live limit situations that only know the people closest to her experience. Clara assumes these situations as life experiences that make you stronger and make you value even more what you have. Clara achieves her goal in 2016, improves the quality of life of her sister cousin who participated in the scientific study and of many women who participated with her.
The study has been considered a pioneer in Spain because it is the first time that weights have been used to perform exercises in women who have suffered from this disease. In addition, it is new because it is a method of sports training adapted to women who have undergone breast cancer surgery, based on martial arts and fitness exercises on indoor bicycle in collective classes obtaining excellent results.
In addition, Sincrobox is part of the Málaga European Capital of Sport 2020 program, awarding points to the city to obtain the same by contributing its small grain of sand to this candidacy.
Currently, Clara continues the path she started in 2012 and teaches Sincrobox as a sport training method divided into three levels.
If a person suffers or has suffered any pathology should consult their doctor or physiotherapist before starting Sincrobox since it is currently taught as a sports training for all audiences taught by monitors and sports coaches.


text:
7 Engineering Wonders: Structural — How to keep it all working after the BIG ONE
The Emergency Operations Center is one of the few buildings in the state to use base isolation technology to ride out earthquakes.
By CRAIG OLSON
KPFF Consulting Engineers
Image courtesy of KPFF Consulting Engineers
Isolators had to be analyzed as part of the design for the state's Emergency Operations Center near Olympia.
Owners ranging from public agencies to financial institutions and research facilities have a need for buildings that can both survive earthquakes and protect valuable contents from destructive shaking. Providing new technologies for a local critical emergency facility proved to be one of KPFF's most interesting technical challenges and important responsibilities.
KPFF was approached in 1995 to design the state's Emergency Operations Center (EOC) near Olympia. As the focal point for state responses to emergencies and disasters, the ability of the facility to remain operational throughout a major earthquake directly affects the lives of all Washington residents. We proposed to evaluate the use of base isolation technology to satisfy Washington's need to have the EOC operational throughout a major earthquake.
Base isolation was pioneered in the 1980s in California as a system to isolate a building from the ground using a mechanical device. KPFF entered the field with the design of the University of Southern California Teaching Hospital, which was completed in 1991. This hospital was the seventh base-isolated building in the U.S. and the first hospital in the world to use this technology.
There were several challenges to overcome to bring this technology to the EOC project. These included:
• Evaluating the need. We worked with the owner and architect to develop an understanding of the need and cost of implementing the system. Considerations included the type and amount of damage a conventional building would sustain in an earthquake, critical building systems, and the ability of contents (i.e. computers) to operate after an earthquake. Costs associated with the isolator system were balanced against the owner's tolerance of down time in making the decision to isolate the building.
• Designing for infrequent earthquakes. No two earthquakes are identical and regional differences create a huge variation in how the ground surface moves in an earthquake. Base isolation design relies on the ability of the design team to understand reasonably accurately the expected actual earthquake for each site. While base-isolated buildings had already been built in California using its records from frequent earthquakes, the geotechnical engineer for the EOC had to determine probable earthquakes for our region from historic information on Washington's infrequent large earthquakes.
• Adopting different design procedures. Conventional mid-1990s structural engineering computer analysis software was not suitable for base isolation design. Specialized software was used to predict how the isolators would react to simulated earthquakes. The output of those specialized programs was then used to design the building's beams and columns in a conventional manner.
• Working with regulatory officials. As the first base-isolated building in Washington, it was understandable that those governing the permitting of such structures would have questions. We worked to develop an understanding of how isolated buildings differed from conventional buildings so that the appropriate approvals could be obtained. Ultimately, the building above the isolators was very similar to conventional buildings.
• Peer reviewing. Base-isolated structures were not a codified building type by the Uniform Building Code then in force. Therefore, to satisfy regulatory officials with the EOC's design, a peer review process was selected to check the design. Since the peer reviewer had not designed such a building, that person had to be educated in the applicable design procedures.
• Integrating utility systems. In typical buildings, all utility connections (electric, water, sewer, etc.) are simple rigid pipes and wires running through or under the building's foundation to outside services. In a base-isolated building, those utility connections must allow the building to move relative to the ground outside. We worked with the mechanical and electrical engineers to develop details that would allow their systems to survive the building's movement.
• Procuring isolators. Regardless of the few companies that make isolators, the EOC, as a public project, was required to follow competitive procurement procedures. To further complicate the process, base isolation building design requires that the actual isolator product be analyzed in the design of the building. A procurement process was created that allowed the state to meet its legal requirements by developing an early bid package.
• Construction issues. No contractor in the state had built an isolated building. We worked closely with the contractor to identify and resolve unique detail issues. By working together, the EOC opened in 1998 to provide a survivable home for the state to direct disaster recovery operation.
On Feb. 28, 2001, the EOC easily survived the magnitude 6.8 Nisqually earthquake, even though it was just 10 miles from the epicenter. Since the completion of the EOC, KPFF has assisted several other local owners with the evaluation and implementation of base-isolated buildings for their critical facilities. Buildings with extremely valuable contents — such as financial institutions, research facilities, communication/command centers and historic structures — have been successfully isolated from destructive earthquakes, providing owners with the ability to function during and after a major earthquake.
Craig Olson, SE, is the managing principal of the structural engineering group for KPFF Consulting Engineers' Washington Division. He has 23 years of experience in the design of commercial, industrial, educational and public-use facilities.
A beautiful tomorrow for structural engineering?
What a difference 50 years make
Infrastructure: out of sight, out of mind?
Engineering a sea change at the aquarium
ACEC says 'yes' to roads and 'no' to lawsuits
Engineers, architects join forces on public policy
Is our engineering rank slipping in the world?
7 Engineering Wonders: Electrical/Communications — Engineering a hospital to save lives
7 Engineering Wonders: Mechanical — EMP: an experience unlike any other
7 Engineering Wonders: Environmental — Brightwater planning raises awareness, not eyebrows
7 Engineering Wonders: Transportation/Infrastructure — Tunnels keep traffic flowing out of sight
7 Engineering Wonders: Civil — Making the grade for a road separation
7 Engineering Wonders: Geotechnical — A firm foundation for the new Narrows Bridge
Geotechnical engineering gets a tech boost
Finding workers may be engineering's biggest challenge
ACEC members pick the best of 50 years
What makes engineers tick?


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Game that promised never to add paid DLC is adding paid DLC: 'We need a way to continue to fund the development'
PCG Article AI artist who won competition says art world is 'in denial' about the tech
Page 2 - Love gaming? Join the PC Gamer community to share that passion with gamers all around the world!
PC Gaming Discussions
Zimbaly
I have nothing against the use of AI or AI created items, but entering an art competition like that is a slimy move.
It would be like entering a song writing competition and every person bust their balls to make stuff and someone just has an AI create the song and wins.
Just a slap in the face.
Reactions: redmark_
ZedClampet
Sarafan said:
I tried and here are the results: https://forums.pcgamer.com/threads/coconut-monkey-cornerclub.5741/post-318708. It's quite impressive. I think that we're on the road of replacing real concept artist by AI.
Even after subbing to them, do you still have to use that horrible Discord setup?
Reactions: Pifanjr
ToxicOffender
Slasken said:
Anyone here tried making AI art?
You mean...making "AI art" or making make AI making art....like.....telling AI to make art and the AI is doing it then like....a regular artist?
My point is.......this artificial AI art thing making art or "ai-art" and who at the end is really making anything here at all.....either the ai or the ai-artist or......bwwwaaaaah!!! WTF am i talking about?
Brian Boru said:
Fun fact: Vincent Van Gogh sole one painting in his lifetime, that's how much "value" his work had—until some influencer decided to pump and dump.
Funnier fact: Vincent Van Gogh cut off his ear due to drinking too much Absinthe.
...that´s actually all i can remember whenever i think of VAN GOGH, so i have no clue what he was painting and how his paintings look like, all i can think of with that name is.....him cutting off his ear.
Sarafan
ZedClampet said:
I didn't buy a subscription unfortunately (this is still an option though!), but from what I know even paid accounts use Discord to generate the images.
Reactions: Brian Boru, Pifanjr and ZedClampet
Slasken
I use this one. With the latest update, it's pretty good.
starryai - AI Art Generator App - AI Art Maker
Simply enter a prompt and our AI transforms your words into works of art.
www.starryai.com
Reactions: Brian Boru, Pifanjr, ZedClampet and 1 other person
redmark_
A.I. "Artist".
I am sorry, but if you use A.I to create art, you are not an artist, as it is the A.I. that creates the art.
well, that's actually debatable, as novel writing, wordcrafting and programming can be also called "art" 🤔
redmark_ said:
If I tell an artist to paint me a picture of say, a haunted house from his imagination, who's the artist? This is exactly how you make AI make art.
Let's take it further. If I tell an architect to draw me a house. I give him instructions on how many rooms, bathrooms etc. Who's the architect?
Why stop there? You take a taxi and you tell the driver the destination. Are you the driver?
Reactions: Brian Boru, redmark_ and Pifanjr
Johnway
Art has no intrinsic "value" beyond a generous $10 for materials and $X/hour for however long the artist spent making it. So a slow apprentice work might be 'worth' say $250, while an experienced expert's work would have a "value" of around $100.
Price—now, that's different. Price is how much someone will pay, and in the art world is almost totally dependent on expected future pricing. This was most vividly illustrated in the 1990 art market crash when works suddenly became 90% less "valuable".
What do 'Sunflowers', 'Irises', and 'Portrait of Dr Gachet' have in common? They are 3 of Van Gogh's works which set successive world records for art prices back before '90 crash. Note, there was no mention of "value", it was all about price.
Actually i was more going through the human angle not the resources themselves. if i had a factory produce wooden sculptures rather then an artisan painstakingly crafting them laboriously hand over days/months it would be a cheaper product. Hell, kick in production /manufacture efficiency and you could knock the price of the products further and get more profit.
i don't really know how some artists become legends tbh. Van gogh wasn't successful and yet he is today. I'm sure someone will tell me why/how, but honestly i don't care. presumably decent marketing. but concerning pricing for art i don't really know how that works either. I mean, sure its the amount of time, effort and materials, but even so i would feel personally guilty selling personal artwork let alone for high prices. Its probably why i would opt for a steady corporate role or do it as a hobby.
Railing against tools and tech is a losing proposition. They will be fully accepted in the future, just like textile machinery and language don't merit a second glance today. Embrace it, employ it, encourage it.
i think that's a very depressing end for a creative endeavor. especially as a hobby there is a sense of reward from using your own 2 hands to build and create something from nothing. But use a machine to produce something that doesn't understand the flawed concept of creativity/style is sad. If in the far future if we could just type into a box in natural language what i wanted, walked away and picked up the print out, i think i would be hard pressed to call myself the artist. Again like my example, if i reheated factory produced frozen pizzas and served them in a restaurant, does that make me a professional chef? But back to my point, can you call yourself the artist if you didn't do any of the work? for most people using AI as a "tool" is a serious hard sell as art requires a modicum of creativity/intelligence to do it.
Then again its probably happening right now with how the AAA is prepared to shovel the same brand games rather then push new Ips and broaden their games. People churning out artwork in patreons etc. Or posters of memes fewer artists needed etc.
Reactions: Brian Boru and Pifanjr
Why stop there? You take a taxi, and you tell the driver the destination. Are you the driver?
Nice, I like that, we're getting into the realm of logic and/or philosophy.
Sort of like the argument the boss gets the credit, but everyone does the work (mostly).
But anyway... I'm all for integrating AI into workflows to improve technology itself.
Even Nvidia is using their AI as a workhorse to stress test their new GPU designs or something. 😉
Reactions: Pifanjr and Brian Boru
Zimbaly said:
agreed, reminds me of the quote,
Your scientists were so preoccupied with whether or not they could, they didn't stop to think if they should.
From Jurassic Park. 😀
Also, I read a book about weird sports stories, and as it turns out, many things in any sports rulebook were technically "legal" before someone got smart and "did a thing" and won.
So after that, it will be added to the books, get revised and anti-cheating rules would get updated lol.
Now art competitions will probably be more picky with submissions after this fiasco, lol. 😅
uhhh, is this one free? (probably not) or a freemium? like Dalle and midjourney?
Reactions: WoodenSaucer, Pifanjr and Brian Boru
Free enough.
You get 5 daily credits, 2 more of if you watch 30 seconds of advertising. Depending on how you create your image, it costs 1 or 2 credits.
If you got 10GB+ Vram, you can download Stable Diffusion and run the AI locally on your PC, but there's no GUI.
Johnway said:
i think that's a very depressing end for a creative endeavor. especially as a hobby there is a sense of reward from using your own 2 hands to build and create something from nothing
Oh absolutely, as a hobby anything goes—you decide whether a painting of a scene is preferable to a photo or a description, and you can argue about it over a beer with the hobbyist photographer and travel writer
There are still the equivalent of cave paintings made every day, millions of 'em—you'll find 'em mostly stuck to fridges. So advances in methods and tools doesn't kill off any hobbies.
i would be hard pressed to call myself the artist
Is that a problem? Why?
I create lots of stuff, mostly little solutions to little problems. I have in the past been paid for writing, crossword compiling and photography—again, little stuff for little outlets. But I've never felt a need to call myself an artist—or anything else for that matter.
if i reheated factory produced frozen pizzas and served them in a restaurant, does that make me a professional chef?
It's like many in this thread failing to distinguish between process or outcome as the required content for the art competition in the OP. "Professional" has nothing to do with how you made the pizza you served me, and everything to do with whether or not I pay you for your service.
If you go otherwise, it gets ridiculous. Because I didn't grow the grain required for the flour, or build and operate the mill to make the flour, or… or… or…
if we could just type into a box in natural language what i wanted, walked away and picked up the print out, i think i would be hard pressed to call myself the artist
You go to a clinic for an X-Ray. Doc slaps you in a machine, presses a button, and walks over to pick up the printout. Does that make hir less of a doc, or entitled to call hirself a doc?
Docs in the BODs used to have to poke around, harrumph a bit, and come up with a diagnosis. Undoubtedly more creative, and also undoubtedly more fatal.
Where I live, those are not called doctors. They are called radiographers here.
nitpicking, I know. Sorry about that.
I like that this one allows you to upload a reference picture, although I haven't tried it yet.
In America, radiographers are nurses of the radiologists, which are just specialist doctors, so there's no reason not to call them "doctor". Radiologists will often, in rural hospital settings, actually do the x-ray themselves, particularly after hours during low staff times. At least that's the way it used to be. My childhood best friend's father was a radiologist who usually had at least one funny story to tell about patients he x-rayed, and he wasn't even in a rural hospital by any stretch of the imagination.
Reactions: Pifanjr, Brian Boru and Slasken
Yeah, it's like that here too, but I have yet to have a radiologist take my x-ray or MRI. I got artrosis in my knees, so I have had a fair share of x-rays and MRIs. They always tell me that they will give the images to the radiologist.
Norway here, btw 😊
i think we're going down to semantics/whatabout /False equivalence at this point (my fault. sorry) and going round circles. but the point i'm making is that most people have expectations/standards for things. They're not completely irrational to believe them either. its not about the word artist, its more a question of ownership in this case. We're using the term artist in this context a person who creates paintings or drawings as a profession or hobby.
The argument/justification is that in a commercial money making environment anything goes, the final results are what matters. I am not disagreeing with you on that point. I also agree that Ai can be a useful tool for art and should be explored (so the original article I'm all in favor of).
Except, this was an art competition, non commercial environment. we're judging the skill and creativity of the person who submitted the art. People were expecting everyone to make their artwork from their own creative input and skills to execute it. Again not irrational, most people still expect the standard method of the manual method like the days of using oil paints or at least photoshop to physically do the work.
So its pretty brazen to say that you used an artificial intelligence. Most people have a preconception of computers and AI, they know/respect/aware the potential power of it (we have movies to thank for that)* and some people are having a hard time to understand where the human creativity and skill and what is the AIs. if there is a concern or actual imbalance, people will call it out.
*or misunderstanding.
You could sweep it all under the rug and say "i don't need to justify anything losers! just look at the results! that's all that matters!" That's not answering the question and people will call you out on it. Of course, the articles might be inflaming/inciting feelings (as they usually do) and the best way to address this is see the step by step process, understand in detail where it was used. if there was a huge difference/transformative enough then most people will accept it. Incidentally where can i see the step by step process of the picture?
incidentally, how did you get the job making crosswords and writing?
Edit: sorry didn't answer your question (probably still haven't). In a creative endeavor where its MY ideas and MY skills and that would make me the artist. it feels like a hollow experience/wrong if AI does ALL the work. That's the whole point of AI in work these days, remove the human from the process to maximize accuracy and performance.
@Brian Boru I think i need to review and understand where we are in disagreement and understand your points.
1. AI for commercial purposes is here and should be used. - We both agree yes.
2. in the art competition the artist won with the use of Ai. Is that acceptable?
brian boru - yes, there were no rules that forbade the use of AI to make the entry. The ends justify the means.
Me - yes to a point. No rules forbade it (the competition's fault) provided i consider that it was transformative enough from the AIs work. That said, he did submit in the digital arts digitally maniupulated photography so probably acceptable.
3. An AI conceptualized, developed and finished a painting based on worded criteria defined by the human user, who can be considered the artist? ( artist definition being the person who created the painting.)
Brian Boru - The user. The Ai is just a tool at the end of the day. User does not need to do anything to justify they are the artist. In all intents and purposes they did the work as if they physically/personally conceptualized, developed and finished the painting themselves.
Me: The Ai. The user can justify that they're the owner of the painting, but cannot justify that they painted, made the picture. The user is far too disconnected from the process to justify that they personally/physically did the work in a traditional sense.
My belief is probably from the lack of understanding of it. I'm sure its not so simple as: i say something and out comes a painting. It needs manipulation - like a tool - to get the best results. Photography is considered a fine art these days so i guess the compromise would be to set its own category set in the art world and have a non ai one.
A pretty good article on the arguements on both sides.
AI Ethics Left Hanging When AI Wins Art Contest And Human Artists Are Fuming
A recent viral news story involved an AI system that purportedly won an art contest, raising all sorts of AI Ethics questions about AI versus human endeavors. We unpack the matter and showcase the real issues and the true facts of the case.
www.forbes.com
You do realize you answered each of those questions within each question, right? As in:
an artist … who's the artist?
an architect … Who's the architect?
the driver … Are you the driver?
i think we're going down to semantics/whatabout /False equivalence at this point (my fault. sorry) and going round circles
I agree—but don't try to hog the blame, I demand my share!
not irrational, most people still expect the standard method of the manual method like the days of using oil paints or at least photoshop to physically do the work
I agree, a very rational expectation. This will probably be a one-off situation in this context, but will occur again and again in other areas as AI continues to advance and encroach.
In a creative endeavor where its MY ideas and MY skills and that would make me the artist. it feels like a hollow experience/wrong if AI does ALL the work.
Oh agreed, as I said earlier "as a hobby anything goes". In this situation, the process is the point of it all, the outcome very much secondary.
how did you get the job making crosswords and writing?
The writing were bits and pieces about industries I was involved in. In pre-internet days, I used to write up accounts of events run by a local professional body I was an officer in and send them to the local paper. In internet days, I ran a bunch of newsletters for a few years about an aspect of Internet Marketing I was involved in—this resulted in a few requests for articles for related websites.
The Xword was just a close friend knew the people starting up a local free sheet, and recommended me for it—lasted about 6 months before the paper folded
review and understand where we are in disagreement
I appreciate the effort you're making, thanks for that Re #3, I think our difference boils down to:
did the work in a traditional sense
I see your point, but as a former boss of mine used to say, tradition can change Let's agree to disagree on this point, and enjoy the fruitful discussion
Reactions: Pifanjr and Johnway
Yeah, they were rethorical.
WoodenSaucer
I just tried it out, and I thought it was pretty lame. I typed in "Dog eating pizza on the beach." It just gave me 4 different stock photos of dogs on the beach with a pizza superimposed in the picture.
Reactions: Pifanjr, Brian Boru and Kaamos_Llama
Kaamos_Llama
WoodenSaucer said:
Thats because you're a terrible artist.
Reactions: Pifanjr, Brian Boru and WoodenSaucer
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Estimate member count: around 200.
Primary rackets: Narcotics trafficking, loan sharking, gambling, extortion, car theft, union corruption, construction, internet fraud, waste hauling industry.
Did Serial Killer Frame Mob Rat Gravano For Cop's Murder?


This worksheet can be can be used for practice, review, assessment, homework, and test preparation.
An exoplanet is a planet that orbits a star other than the Sun.
What is the model of the solar system in which the Sun and other planets revolve around Earth?
The path an object takes around the Sun is called .
This is a large body in space that orbits a star and does not produce light.
A small body, either man-made or natural, revolving around a larger body is called a .
The shape of a planet's orbit.
The four planets that are closest to the Sun are called the planets.
The Moon moves in a line directly between Earth and the Sun, casting a shadow on Earth.
Earth spins on its axis. What does the term axis mean?
A metal bar that connects the North and South Pole.
The path that Earth takes as it revolves around the Sun.
An imaginary line around the middle of Earth.
An imaginary line which runs through the center of Earth.
What Earth does every 24 hours on its axis.
A small chuck of rock or metal in space.
What is a loose collection of ice, dust, and small rocky particles, typically with a long, narrow orbit?
A meteor that has landed on Earth's surface.
What is the name of the region beyond Neptune's orbit where icy bodies lie?
What is the name given to an area between Mars and Jupiter?
These planets are also known as gas giants.
What day is it when the Sun is at its lowest elevation in the sky all year and we experience the shortest day of the year?
The phase of the Moon in which the entire lit half is facing away from Earth is called a moon.
When the sunlit side of the Moon seen from Earth gets smaller, we say it is .
What Moon phase is larger than a semi-circle, but smaller than when all the Moon is illuminated?
Streams of protons and electrons ejected at high speed from the solar corona.
Which science includes the study of stars?
A is a large group of stars held together by gravity.
A collection of stars, dust, and gas bound together by gravity are called a .
What is a group of stars that make up a pattern in the sky called?
What object produces its own light energy?
Our Sun is a star.
What term do astronomers use to describe a galaxy that has a jumbled scattering of stars?
The Theory is the prevailing cosmological model for the birth of the universe.
What is all of space?
What is the force that tends to pull together the matter in stars and planets?
Extremely distant, bright, energetic object located in the core of some active galaxies.
What is the actual brightness of a star called?
What is a spectroscope used for?
This is the type of telescope that uses both lenses and mirrors to gather light.
What unit of measurement is approximately equal to the distance between the Sun and Earth?
To fly beyond a planet's gravitational pull, a spacecraft must reach .


EuroAsia Interconnector, the ambitious 1500km long subsea cable that will link the electricity grids of Israel, Cyprus and Greece, has received the go-ahead from the regulators of both Cyprus and Greece, with construction expected to begin in the first quarter of next year.
The project, that will have a capacity of 2000MW and will be completed in 2022, will end the energy isolation of Cyprus and Crete, both islands that depend heavily on fuel imports to run their national power stations.
As an indication, total electricity consumption in Cyprus, including power produced from renewable energy sources (RES) does not exceed 1,200MW.
The energy regulatory authorities of Cyprus and Greece have issued a joint decision for the cross-border cost allocation of the electricity interconnection between Cyprus and Greece, as provided by the European Regulation 347/2013 for Projects of Common Interest (PCIs).
"This is a historic moment for Cyprus as it ends the electricity isolation of the last European Union member state that remains energy isolated," the company said in a statement.
The EuroAsia Interconnector, as the official Project Promoter from the European Commission, added that it expresses its warmest appreciation to all the competent authorities in Cyprus and Greece, the European Commission for their continuing support and especially the Energy Regulatory Authorities of Cyprus and Greece.
Nasos Ktorides, Chairman and CEO of the EuroAsia Interconnector, was quoted by the Associated Press on Monday (Oct. 16) as saying that Israeli regulators are expected to give their approval next month.
Work on the 1,519-kilometer undersea cable is expected to last until 2022 and its first phase will have an estimated cost of around 3.5 bln euros, the AP reported.
The project emerged amid improved relations between the three countries, coupled with the discovery of gas deposits in the east Mediterranean that could be used to generate electricity, the news agency concluded.
The EuroAsia Interconnector as a leading Project of Common Interest (PCI) of the European Union, falls within the EU energy policy and contributes to the energy targets of ending the energy isolation of Cyprus and Crete. Furthermore, it ensures the security of energy of supply of the three countries and of the EU system altogether, through the integration of the isolated small systems of Cyprus and Crete with the Israeli and European Network and the uninterrupted – multidirectional flow of energy.
It also promotes the substantial development of RES and contributes to the reduction of CO2 emissions, and contributes to the EU target for 10% of electricity interconnection between member states by 2020. The whole project is estimated to have socio-economic benefits of 10 bln euros.
The first, 329km interconnection will be between Hadera (Israel) and Kofinou (Cyprus), delivery in 2019; the second, 310km interconnection will be an internal line between Korakia, Crete and Attica region (Greece), delivery 2020; the third, 879km interconnection will be between Kofinou (Cyprus) and Korakia, Crete (Greece), delivery 2022.
Stage I of the project is expected to cost EUR 1.5 bln, with the cost rising to 3 bln at Stage II. It is privately funded and received EU/EC funding for pre-works studies, as it will contribute to the completion of the European Internal Market. Two Italian companies (GAS S.r.l and CESI S.p.A.) were contracted for three studies for the technical design, the reconnaissance study for the optimum route and an environmental impact study.


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We have now reached Chapter 24 of the Mysterious Disappearance of Melania, who was last seen in corporeal form on May 10. Melania has been missing for so long I've almost forgotten what she looks like (which, if certain rumors are true, is possibly the point? IDK!) Today's Melania update: FLOTUS will not be attending this week's G7 summit in Quebec, or the Singapore summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on June 12, though in all fairness, I'm unconvinced anyone will attend the latter, surgery for a "benign kidney condition" or not.
But seriously, WHERE IS SHE???
This past weekend, Melania skipped out on traveling to Camp David with Donald Trump, though she, like the rest of his subjects, was able to experience it vicariously via his James Comey tweet diarrhea, assuming she even has current access to the outside world. She also missed a Memorial Day wreathing at Arlington Cemetery last week. And now, she is missing the G7 summit, an event she enjoyed so much last year she nearly let Donald touch her hand at it.
FLOTUS's spokesperson, Stephanie Grisham, has repeatedly assured reporters that Melania is "doing really well" and is very busy having "internal meetings" with staffers and planning a picnic. CNBC reporter Eamon Javers claims to have spotted Melania "walking with her aides in the West Wing" last week, but without photographic evidence, I don't know what to believe.
Stay tuned for updates on this increasingly odd game of Carmen Sandiego, which will probably end with at least one person stealing the U.S. Constitution and selling it for gold.
Update 9:36 p.m.: We have here a new development.


text:
Épagny, település Franciaországban, Aisne megyében
Épagny, település Franciaországban, Côte-d'Or megyében
Épagny, település Franciaországban, Haute-Savoie megyében


Need to de-noise data so clinicians can focus.
Rasu Shrestha, MD, VP of Medical Information Technology at UPMC, presented the following graphic to demonstrate how interoperability fits into the overall picture of care.
in the pyramid, which leads to patient-centered accountable care, semantic interoperability is the glue between raw data and the applications which need to use the data and present it to clinicians in a meaningful way. the pyramid emphasizes the additional challenges that present itself as data begins to flow from facility to facility.
first there is the identification layer, which includes not only the patient but also provider and facility identification as well. then comes the semantic layer, which requires applications across facilities to use consistent structure coding to represent the clinical events. dr. shrestha talked in detail about the painstaking efforts that took place to map the coding systems across all facilities. upmc had to contend with 18 different coding systems just for problems. once that semantic mapping takes place, the data can be stored into a central data repository and made available to the applications for data mining, decision support, and an episodic view of clinical events for a single patient.
as described by dr. shrestha, the end goals for achieving this semantic interoperability were to seamlessly exchange and integrate information in a meaningful way that the data can be contextually understood, accurately interpreted, and be actionable.
sounds like perfect job for an interface engine to me!


text:
/*
 * Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
 * you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
 * You may obtain a copy of the License at
 *
 *     http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
 *
 * Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
 * distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
 * WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
 * See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
 * limitations under the License.
 */
package com.facebook.presto.sql;

import com.facebook.presto.sql.tree.AliasedRelation;
import com.facebook.presto.sql.tree.AllColumns;
import com.facebook.presto.sql.tree.CoalesceExpression;
import com.facebook.presto.sql.tree.ComparisonExpression;
import com.facebook.presto.sql.tree.ComparisonExpressionType;
import com.facebook.presto.sql.tree.Expression;
import com.facebook.presto.sql.tree.FunctionCall;
import com.facebook.presto.sql.tree.GroupBy;
import com.facebook.presto.sql.tree.Identifier;
import com.facebook.presto.sql.tree.LogicalBinaryExpression;
import com.facebook.presto.sql.tree.OrderBy;
import com.facebook.presto.sql.tree.QualifiedName;
import com.facebook.presto.sql.tree.Query;
import com.facebook.presto.sql.tree.QueryBody;
import com.facebook.presto.sql.tree.QuerySpecification;
import com.facebook.presto.sql.tree.Relation;
import com.facebook.presto.sql.tree.Row;
import com.facebook.presto.sql.tree.SearchedCaseExpression;
import com.facebook.presto.sql.tree.Select;
import com.facebook.presto.sql.tree.SelectItem;
import com.facebook.presto.sql.tree.SingleColumn;
import com.facebook.presto.sql.tree.SortItem;
import com.facebook.presto.sql.tree.StringLiteral;
import com.facebook.presto.sql.tree.Table;
import com.facebook.presto.sql.tree.TableSubquery;
import com.facebook.presto.sql.tree.Values;
import com.facebook.presto.sql.tree.WhenClause;
import com.google.common.collect.ImmutableList;

import java.util.List;
import java.util.Optional;
import java.util.stream.Collectors;

import static com.facebook.presto.sql.tree.BooleanLiteral.FALSE_LITERAL;
import static com.facebook.presto.sql.tree.BooleanLiteral.TRUE_LITERAL;
import static java.util.Arrays.asList;

public final class QueryUtil
{
    private QueryUtil() {}

    public static Identifier identifier(String name)
    {
        return new Identifier(name);
    }

    public static Identifier quotedIdentifier(String name)
    {
        return new Identifier(name, true);
    }

    public static SelectItem unaliasedName(String name)
    {
        return new SingleColumn(identifier(name));
    }

    public static SelectItem aliasedName(String name, String alias)
    {
        return new SingleColumn(identifier(name), identifier(alias));
    }

    public static Select selectList(Expression... expressions)
    {
        return selectList(asList(expressions));
    }

    public static Select selectList(List<Expression> expressions)
    {
        ImmutableList.Builder<SelectItem> items = ImmutableList.builder();
        for (Expression expression : expressions) {
            items.add(new SingleColumn(expression));
        }
        return new Select(false, items.build());
    }

    public static Select selectList(SelectItem... items)
    {
        return new Select(false, ImmutableList.copyOf(items));
    }

    public static Select selectAll(List<SelectItem> items)
    {
        return new Select(false, items);
    }

    public static Table table(QualifiedName name)
    {
        return new Table(name);
    }

    public static Relation subquery(Query query)
    {
        return new TableSubquery(query);
    }

    public static SortItem ascending(String name)
    {
        return new SortItem(identifier(name), SortItem.Ordering.ASCENDING, SortItem.NullOrdering.UNDEFINED);
    }

    public static Expression logicalAnd(Expression left, Expression right)
    {
        return new LogicalBinaryExpression(LogicalBinaryExpression.Type.AND, left, right);
    }

    public static Expression equal(Expression left, Expression right)
    {
        return new ComparisonExpression(ComparisonExpressionType.EQUAL, left, right);
    }

    public static Expression caseWhen(Expression operand, Expression result)
    {
        return new SearchedCaseExpression(ImmutableList.of(new WhenClause(operand, result)), Optional.empty());
    }

    public static Expression functionCall(String name, Expression... arguments)
    {
        return new FunctionCall(QualifiedName.of(name), ImmutableList.copyOf(arguments));
    }

    public static Values values(Row... row)
    {
        return new Values(ImmutableList.copyOf(row));
    }

    public static Row row(Expression... values)
    {
        return new Row(ImmutableList.copyOf(values));
    }

    public static Relation aliased(Relation relation, String alias, List<String> columnAliases)
    {
        return new AliasedRelation(
                relation,
                identifier(alias),
                columnAliases.stream()
                        .map(QueryUtil::identifier)
                        .collect(Collectors.toList()));
    }

    public static SelectItem aliasedNullToEmpty(String column, String alias)
    {
        return new SingleColumn(new CoalesceExpression(identifier(column), new StringLiteral("")), identifier(alias));
    }

    public static OrderBy ordering(SortItem... items)
    {
        return new OrderBy(ImmutableList.copyOf(items));
    }

    public static Query simpleQuery(Select select)
    {
        return query(new QuerySpecification(
                select,
                Optional.empty(),
                Optional.empty(),
                Optional.empty(),
                Optional.empty(),
                Optional.empty(),
                Optional.empty()));
    }

    public static Query simpleQuery(Select select, Relation from)
    {
        return simpleQuery(select, from, Optional.empty(), Optional.empty());
    }

    public static Query simpleQuery(Select select, Relation from, OrderBy orderBy)
    {
        return simpleQuery(select, from, Optional.empty(), Optional.of(orderBy));
    }

    public static Query simpleQuery(Select select, Relation from, Expression where)
    {
        return simpleQuery(select, from, Optional.of(where), Optional.empty());
    }

    public static Query simpleQuery(Select select, Relation from, Expression where, OrderBy orderBy)
    {
        return simpleQuery(select, from, Optional.of(where), Optional.of(orderBy));
    }

    public static Query simpleQuery(Select select, Relation from, Optional<Expression> where, Optional<OrderBy> orderBy)
    {
        return simpleQuery(select, from, where, Optional.empty(), Optional.empty(), orderBy, Optional.empty());
    }

    public static Query simpleQuery(Select select, Relation from, Optional<Expression> where, Optional<GroupBy> groupBy, Optional<Expression> having, Optional<OrderBy> orderBy, Optional<String> limit)
    {
        return query(new QuerySpecification(
                select,
                Optional.of(from),
                where,
                groupBy,
                having,
                orderBy,
                limit));
    }

    public static Query singleValueQuery(String columnName, String value)
    {
        Relation values = values(row(new StringLiteral((value))));
        return simpleQuery(
                selectList(new AllColumns()),
                aliased(values, "t", ImmutableList.of(columnName)));
    }

    public static Query singleValueQuery(String columnName, boolean value)
    {
        Relation values = values(row(value ? TRUE_LITERAL : FALSE_LITERAL));
        return simpleQuery(
                selectList(new AllColumns()),
                aliased(values, "t", ImmutableList.of(columnName)));
    }

    public static Query query(QueryBody body)
    {
        return new Query(
                Optional.empty(),
                body,
                Optional.empty(),
                Optional.empty());
    }
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


text:
Lyndon Dykes: I will never forget Scotland's celebrations in Belgrade
November 13 2020, 12.24pm
Lyndon Dykes, centre, bullied the Serbia defence (Novak Djurovic/PA)
Lyndon Dykes admits he will cherish Scotland's Belgrade party for the rest of his life.
The Gold Coast-born striker played a key role to end 22 years of hurt with qualification for Euro 2020 – yet he only nailed his colours to the tartan mast back in August.
The former Australia schoolboy international was left with a major decision as he toyed with the dilemma of representing the land of his birth against pulling on a dark blue jersey in tribute to his Dumfriesshire parents.
But it was Scotland boss Steve Clarke who was left smiling as the QPR striker opted to turn out for his side.
🎶 David Marshall 🎶#NoScotlandNoParty pic.twitter.com/8amIKiTWrF
— Scotland National Team (@ScotlandNT) November 13, 2020
From that point Dykes wasted little time establishing himself as the perfect man to spearhead Clarke's attack, netting two goals in his first five games while his all-action performance in Thursday night's play-off showdown with Serbia ensured the Scots dominated the hosts for the 83 minutes before he was replaced.
The former Livingston frontman was forced to watch through the cracks in his fingers as Luka Jovic snatched a late equaliser to send the game into extra-time.
David Marshall's crucial save from Aleksandar Mitrovic in the shoot-out got the celebrations started, however, and Dykes admits he will not be forgetting a special night in a hurry.
The 25-year-old said in a Scottish Football Association interview: "It's a special moment, one of the best in my career and I'm always going to remember it. I can't get rid of this smile.
David Marshall celebrates saving from Serbia's Aleksandar Mitrovic (Novak Djurovic/PA)
"It's amazing. Obviously this is what I dreamt to do when I came to Scotland and now we're here, now we've done it so I'm actually buzzing.
"We made it hard for ourselves. Obviously I'd been subbed off at the time but I was just so nervous, just hoping we'd go through.
"But big Marshy pulled off the save at the end and the boys' penalties were the same as last time (against Israel in the play-off semi-final).
"I thought that from the get-go we played well. Like I said when I first came here, I want to win games and get Scotland back to where it was and now we've done it, so I guess it's on to the Euros. We have to do well at the Euros now."
Gareth Southgate admits European Championship preparations are a challenge
Dundee band Spare Snare celebrate late DJ legend John Peel with launch of The Complete BBC Radio Sessions 1995 – 2018
Leonard calls for Covid-19 'heroes' to get free Scotland Euro 2020 tickets
Lyndon Dykes


text:
Validity of Service Tax Audit – June 2016
In the past there have been a lot of disputes with quashing of Rule on audit [5A(2)], leading to questioning of legality of service tax audit. When self assessment came the power of the revenue to scrutinise records was supposed to diassapear. CAs were however empowered under the law to be appointed by the revenue. A backdoor entry was adopted for continuing the assessment in the name of the audit in Central and State legislations. This is what was challenged.
In this article we look at the implications of recent decision of High Court which has held audit by department to be invalid. This article examines the validity of audit by department in light of latest decision.
In a latest development in Mega Cabs (2016-TIOL-1061-HC-DEL-ST) service tax audit by department has been held to be ultra vires service tax law. We would recall the provisions enabling service tax audit and its legality in this regards before examining implication of latest decision.
The rule making power under service tax is conferred upon executive in Section 94 of the Finance Act. Section 72A of the FA only prescribes a special audit to be got done by the Assessee on the direction of the Commissioner, by a Cost Accountant or a Chartered Accountant. A special audit could be undertaken if the circumstances outlined in Section 72A are fulfilled. Section 72A empowers an audit of an assessee's records only in special circumstances, namely, when there is a failure to declare or compute the value of the taxable service correctly, when the utilization of CENVAT credit in excessive of the limit permissible or by fraud etc., or when the business operations of the assessee are dispersed across multiple locations.
The fact that Section 72A prescribes the conditions meriting such special audit leads to the inference that there was no intend to provide for a general audit that "every assessee" may be subjected to, "on demand".
At the same time, as per erstwhile Rule 5A(2)[before amendment in December 2014] of Service Tax Rules, 1994 every assessee was required to make available on demand specified documents to the authorized officer or audit party deputed by the Commissioner or C&AG within 15 days from date of demand or such extended period allowed.
The Finance Act which is the parent statute under service tax does not authorize a general audit of type covered in Rule 5A(2) of ST Rules There was no other substantive provision which justified a probe into the records of the assessee, under conditions akin to those contemplated by Rule 5A(2)
In ACL Education Centre Private Limited v. UOI (2014-TIOL-120-HC-ALL-ST), the Allahabad High Court held that Rule 5A(2) only empowers the officers, as duly authorized by the Commissioner to ask for and collect records from the assessee. The audit can only be undertaken by an authorized Chartered Accountant or Cost Accountant, as provided in Section 72A.
The Calcutta High Court in SKP Securities Limited v. Deputy Director –(2013-TIOL-38-HC-KOL-ST). In this case, the High Court held that Chapter V of the Finance Act, 1994 or the CAG Act, 1971 does not empower the CAG to undertake audit of accounts of a non-governmental assessee as these assessees are not in the receipt of any aid or grant from the government.
In terms of HC decision in Travelite (India) Vs. UOI &Ors. (2014-TIOL-1304-HC-DEL-ST) on the Service Tax Audit issue it is held that: Rule 5A(2) of the Service tax Rules is ultra vires the provisions of the Finance Act and the rule has been struck down.The Court had held the opinion that any attempt to include provision for such a general audit through the back-door, such as through the impugned rule, is ultra-vires the rule making power conferred under Section 94(1). Rule 5A(2) must consequently be struck down. By order dated 18th December 2014, the Supreme Court while directing notice in the SLP directed that there would be a stay of the operation of the decision of this Court in Travelite (India) v. Union of India (supra).
The CBEC circular no.137/26/2007-CX 4 which sought to put in place a mechanism for department of audit and scrutiny of documents, was not only an attempt to widen the scope of the law impermissibly but also contrary to the statute. The said circular, to the extent it provides clarifications on a Rule 5A(2) audit, was also quashed by the Delhi High Court in the Travelite decision (2014-TIOL-1304-HC-DEL-ST).
Impact of amendment in Section 94
In this backdrop it is pertinent to note that the FA (No.2)Act, 2014 amended the provisions of rule-making powers under Section 94(2) to insert (k) as follows:
(1) The Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make rules for carrying out the provisions of this Chapter.
(2) In particular, and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing power, such rules may provide for all or any of the following matters, namely(a)…………………………….
The substituted provision now reads as under:
(J) in section 94, in sub-section (2), for clause (k), the following clauses shall be substituted, namely:-
"(k) imposition, on persons liable to pay service tax,for the proper levy and collection of the tax, of duty of furnishing information, keeping records and the manner in which such records shall be verified,'………………………..
Similarly, an amendment was also made to the ST Rules by replacing Rule 5 A (2) with a new Rule 5A(2) by notification no. 23/2014-ST dated 5th December 2014. The amended rule read as under:
Rule 5A(1) An officer authorised by the Commissioner shall have access to any registered premises for carrying out any scrutiny, verification and checks to safeguard the interest of revenue.
audit party deputed by the Commissioner or the C&AG, or a cost accountant or chartered accountant nominated under section 72 under sub-rule (1) or the officer authorized by Commissioner, make available to the on demand(2) Every assessee shall,
A of the FA, 1994
(i) the records maintained or prepared by him in terms of sub-rule (2) of rule 5;
(ii) the cost audit reports, under Section 148 of the Companies Act, 2013; and
(iii) the income-tax audit report, under Section 44 AB of the Income-tax Act, 1961,
for the scrutiny of the officer or the audit party, or the cost accountant or chartered accountant, within the time limit specified by the said officer or the audit party or the cost accountant or chartered accountant.
It maybe noted Rule 5(2) requires the Assessee to furnish to the Superintendent of CE at the time of filing of first time return a list in duplicate of all the records prepared or maintained for accounting of transactions, of providing any service receipt or procurement of anybody's service and payment of such service.
Paper writers comments:
In view of paper writers though inserted clause in Section 94(2) fixed a responsibility on the tax payer in relation to his obligation for furnishing of information, keeping records and the manner in which the records shall be verified. It did not specify who the records shall be verified by, and circumstances in which such verification is to be done.
Under substituted Rule 5A(1) officer authorised by the Commissioner can in terms of Rule 5A(2) demand the production of such documents by demanding for same. Rule 5A(2) envisages that even the CAG can require production of documents from an individual service tax Assessee 'on demand'. This appears to have no rational basis
In absence of any power given in the Act permitting same, the paper writer is of the view that cost audit and the Tax Audit report are not required to be produced under Rule 5(2) nor under any of the provisions of the FA. The substituted rule 5A(2) is going beyond the FA itself.
There is no provision in the FA to give unrestricted access to the books of accounts etc. of an Assessee to the CAG or any officer of the Department. The amended Rule 5A was going beyond the Act.
181/7/2014-ST was issued by the CBEC clarifying that in view of the insertion of Section 94 (2) (k), the officers of the Service Tax Departments could proceed with conducting audits as before. It was stated that that expression 'verified' used in Section 94 (2) (k) of the FA was of wide import and would include within its scope audit by the departmental officers.
In view of paper writer, the verification of the records can take place by the officers of the Department provided such officers are authorised to undertake an assessment of a return or of adjudication for the purposes of Section 73 of the FA. The expression 'verify' is cannot permit the audit of the accounts of the Assessee by any officer of the Service Tax Department.
Thereafter Circular No. 995/2/2015-CX dated 27th February 2015 issued by the CBEC on the subject contemplated the Department's officers themselves undertaking audits. The entire instruction appears to be without any reference to the applicable provisions in the FA or the Rules.
Latest decision and its impact
The challenge in this petition by Mega Cabs supra was as follows:
i. Challenge to Rule 5A(2) of the ST Rules as amended to the extent that the amended Rule 5A(2) empowers deputing departmental officers or officers from 'CAG' to 'demand' documents mentioned therein. It is contended that this is in conflict with Section 72A of the FA and beyond the rule making power of the Central Government.
ii. Challenge to the constitutional validity of Section 94(2)(k) of the FA on the ground that it gives -plainly unguided and uncontrolled" delegated powers to the Central Government for framing rules.
iii. Challenged the Circular No. 181/7/2014-ST dated 10th December 2014 issued by the Central Board of Excise and Customs ('CBEC').
High Court held as follows:
(i) Rule 5A(2) as amended to the extent that it authorises the officers of the Service Tax Department, the audit party deputed by a Commissioner or the CAG to seek production of the documents mentioned therein on demand is ultra vires the FA and, therefore, stuck down;
(ii) Expression 'verify' in Section 94 (2) (k) of the FA cannot be construed as audit of the accounts of an Assessee and, therefore, Rule 5A(2) cannot be sustained with reference to Section 94(2)(k) of the FA.
(iii) Circular No. 181/7/2014-ST dated 10th December 2014 is ultra vires the FA and is struck down.
(v) CBEC Circular No.995/2/2015-CX dated 27.02.2015 and the Central Excise and Service Tax Audit Manual 2015 issued by the Directorate General of Audit of the CBEC are ultra vires the FA, does not have any statutory backing and cannot be relied upon to legally justify the audit undertaken by officers of the Service Tax Department.
In view of paper writer as of date the powers of conducting service tax audit has been quashed. Citing this decision the assesses who have got intimation letters by service tax dept could defer audit. There is a possibility that audit could be enabled by an amendment in Section 94(2) empowering the officers of the Service Tax Department, the audit party deputed by a Commissioner or the CAG to seek production of the documents on demand.
Further based on the decision, the question about validity of past periods audits and consequent demands raised based on soley on such audits done could be lgeally challenged assesses.
The assesses who are served audit notices can question the power to do the audit and seek clarity in writing. If forced on them they can lodge a letter of protest and then co operate with the audit exercise. In the reply to audit note agin the legality of the audit maybe questioned.
In this article the paper writers have sought to examine the legality of service tax audit in light of recent decision.
VAT on Service Tax- a myth or reality
KRISHI KALYAN CESS
Service Tax on Real Estate or Construction Services
Service provided to Business Entity by Government
This entry was posted in Excise & Custom and tagged Services.
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