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Articles lacking sources, Authors
Brian R. James
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Brian R. James (second from right, in white shirt) with other authors.
Seattle, Washington[1]
Brian R. James is a senior software developer by day. In the evenings, he is an active member of the Forgotten Realms online community and an eager student of Realmslore. Brian lives in Washington State with his high school sweetheart Toni and their four children.
Brian got his first big break with the creation of his Grand History of the Realms timeline compilation that started in the late 90s. Utilizing his website at the time, he created vast tomes of knowledge in the form of PDFs that allowed fans to reference each of his entries. This eventually caught the eye of senior Wizards of the Coast developers and was adapted to a print form: The Grand History of the Realms. Since then, Brian has gone on to co-author (and contribute) to many 4th Edition products and releases. He continues to contribute to Dragon Magazine as well as Dungeon Magazine; providing exclusive Forgotten Realms content for 4th Edition D&D.
Recently Brian and his younger brother Matt James have teamed up to produce additional content for the Forgotten Realms as well as D&D as a whole. They can be found at http://www.loremaster.org, a website used for the advancement of gaming ideas and the nurturing of creativity.
1.1 Sourcebooks
1.2 Dungeon magazine
Works[edit | edit source]
Sourcebooks[edit | edit source]
The Grand History of the Realms (September 2007)
Dungeon magazine[edit | edit source]
Monument of the Ancients, Dungeon #170 (September 2009)[citation template]
Category:Works by Brian R. James
Realmspace Geonomicon Brian's D&D website
Loremaster Brian's brother's (Matt James) website that he frequents often.
Spotlight Interview with Brian R. James regarding the Grand History of the Realms
Questions for Brian R. James message board thread hosted by Candlekeep.com
↑ Brian James (August 2012). "The Ecology of the Modron". In Steve Winter ed. Dragon #414 (Wizards of the Coast), pp. 7–15.
Retrieved from "https://forgottenrealms.fandom.com/wiki/Brian_R._James?oldid=610257"
Articles lacking sources


What will cities look like in 2062?
To launch the metal engineering brand Arconic, we assembled the world's top futurists, metal engineers and sci-fi filmmakers. Their task: to imagine what the cartoon world of The Jetsons might look in real life, 100 years after the 1962 series debut.
Viewers of the 2014 Masters Tournament witnessed something bold, unprecedented and slightly insane. Rather than filling its weeklong schedule with another blanket three-spot campaign, IBM ran 64 individual spots that ran just once. This continuous stream of content would make sticking around for the marathon of IBM commercials almost as interesting as the golf.
The Clio Awards wanted to stand out from other awards shows as they introduced a new suite of nontraditional categories. So we parodied this emerging trend by uncovering an elaborate multichannel ruse of our own—a clandestine operation that was keeping surveillance on advertising creativity.
Instead of running boring ad banners about IBM's software solutions for mid-sized businesses, this comic series with Gizmodo took the opposite approach.
Wired, Time, Forbes, The Verge, PSFK, Adweek, Boing Boing, The Independent.
This global print, airport and outdoor campaign married existential business questions with striking in-camera Smarter Planet illustrations to stop and grab disruption-worn business executives by the lapels.
When a coalition of environmental groups wanted to rally the youth vote for climate reform, CO2sequence was born. We blanketed college campuses with stickers, posters and newspaper ads that would encourage environmentally-minded students to rise up in in support of clean energy legislation.
Earthstock used social media APIs and a playful physics engine to remove the barriers of time and distance in attending a political rally. Anyone with a Facebook or Twitter account could gather at the foot of the virtual U.S. Capitol building with a simple post or a tweet—and together put pressure on Congress to pass climate legislation.
To expand the "I'm Just Here for the Bud Light" campaign beyond TV, this national photo-sharing competition rewarded public displays of affection for Bud Light.
YELLOW TAIL / HAVE YOU SPOTTED IT?
To help a new quirky wine label named Yellow Tail catch the eye of young, trend-spotting urbanites, we paired simple rebuses with a quizzical headline, "Have you spotted it?" and placed them in stylish magazines and around cool New York neighborhoods. Sales took off and the Australian wine would become the #1 import in the US.
With a win at the AICP Show, this spec project became part of MoMA's permanent film archive.
Before the iPod changed music, and when Amazon was only for books, CDNOW.com was the go-to-place for hard-to-find music. To make the point, our ads shined a spotlight on the most obscure, absurd and irritating music selections we could find from their inventory of 50,000 albums.
"Top 10 lists that no one is ever, ever going to ask for."
Way back when analog cell phones were a thing, this interactive billboard concept promoted a novel feature on Omnipoint's digital network: texting.
The Mining Company didn't stand a chance against Google, but my first digital ad was also my first work to make it into the One Show.
Student work celebrating Jeep's iconic place in world history.


2019 CCHS Knowledge Bowl team. Submitted photo.
The Cook County High School Knowledge is headed to Cragun's Resort in Brainerd this week to compete at the state Knowledge Bowl meet. The state competition is held Wednesday and Thursday, April 10 and 11.
WTIP's Sterling Anderson caught up with the team on the road on Wednesday morning to find out their thoughts just before the meet.


Some Series are scored using the High-Point Rinderle B table to determine "Best Overall".
A8.1 If there is a series-score tie between two or more boats, each boat's race scores shall be listed in order of best to worst, and at the first point(s) where there is a difference the tie shall be broken in favor of the boat(s) with the best score(s). No excluded scores shall be used.
A8.2 If a tie remains between two or more boats, they shall be ranked in order of their scores in the last race. Any remaining ties shall be broken by using the tied boats' scores in the next-to-last race and so on until all ties are broken. These scores shall be used even if some of them are excluded scores.


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BILLCS Top 30 #395 – December 31/12
We interrupt our year end countdown with this less flashy post to bring you my last personal chart of 2012 and the first that will count towards year end for 2013. Three performers return to the chart after long absences.
After a mediocre start with "Feel Again", the second single from One Republic's upcoming third album Native is a stunner. "If I Lose Myself" (#26) is a sleeping slice of soft electronica that returns to the familiar sound of recent hits such as "Good Life". Since singer/songwriter Ryan Tedder has been involved in a lot of dance/EDM projects recently, it's no surprise for the influence to spill over to One Republic. But overall "If I Lose Myself" is a better song, which returns the band to my chart since 2008 after three Top 10 hits, including the #1 "Apologize".
With even a longer gap on the chart, The Wallflowers are back for the first time since 2005 with the funky "Reboot The Mission" (#28), which was originally made available as a free download. With guitarist Mick Jones from The Clash and Big Audio Dynamite successes on board, you can hear the distinct presence of songs like "This Is Radio Clash" or "Rush" in the music. The video (above) is also filled with great, seemingly impossible choreography too. The Wallflowers had my favourite song of 1997, the equally rhythmic "One Headlight".
Shiny Toy Guns were Grammy nominees back in 2007 and with their new album III they are now among the better known indie scene. Making their first appearance since their Top 10's ("You Are The One" and "Le Disko"), the band returns with the highly engaging "Somewhere To Hide" at #30.
The fourth debut on the chart could actually be a re-entry if it wasn't re-recorded. Aiming at a younger market by including top notch vocalist Ariana Grande (from TV's "Victorious"), Mika's "Popular Song" is back on the chart at #29. The original version got to #18; I expect this new one will do better.
Highlighting key moves on the chart, "Yeah Yeah" by Willy Moon moves to #2 to attempt to dethrone "Parachute" by Matthew Koma, which is #1 again for a second appearance. Matthew is also right behind at #3 with album track "1998", while Tao Hypah's supremely catchy "Play The Girl" becomes his second Top 5 hit at #5. "Time Bomb (Walk Away)" by Chris Wallace soars into the Top 10 at #6, with other new entries to the Top 10 by Kid Massive & DATABOY "Good Girlfriend" at #9 and "Burn" by Bim at #10.
River Tiber's "What Are You Afraid Of" is the fastest riser, gliding 22-14, with other big moves from songs by Daniel Bedingfield, FrankMusik, Passion Pit, Chris Wallace (with "Keep Me Crazy"), Ne-Yo, and The Presets.
You can view the full chart using the link under ***BILL'S PERSONAL CHART*** to the right, or you can click right here. You can hear all of the songs on the chart or watch their videos by clicking on the pics on the chart page. Any free downloads that are identified are sanctioned by the performer. There's always a tiny place at the bottom of the blog post with tags and the statement "Leave A Comment" – please feel free to do so
on December 31, 2012 at 12:04 am Leave a Comment
Tags: Ariana Grande, Bim, Chris Wallace, Dance, Daniel Bedingfield, Databoy, EDM, electronica, Frankmusik, Kid Massive, Matthew Koma, Mick Jones, Mika, Music, Ne-Yo, One Republic, Personal Charts, Pop, River Tiber, Rock, Shiny Toy Guns, Tao Hypah, The Presets, The Wallflowers, Willy Moon
Autumn Popervescence #3 featuring JMSN, Passion Pit, Shiny Toy Guns, Parralox, Krewella, Evanpony, and Mark Hildreth
JMSN "Fallin'"
As 2012 comes to a close, it ends almost the way we started, with a new, magnetic video from JMSN's independent album †Priscilla† which was released back in January. Some of the videos have been difficult to watch with the bleak and unnerving images the singer chose to employ to explain his songs. "Fallin'" is perhaps the most accessible of the lot, with JMSN as an innocent in the centre of a world which too often requires us to make the wrong choices. Throughout the year JMSN has also released numerous remixes of the songs from †Priscilla† which you can hunt down, including a Slim K "Chopped and Screwed" slowdown rework of the entire album which still boggles me. Watch the video of "Fallin'" below.
Passion Pit "Take A Walk"
Some people may say I'm late to the game on Passion Pit, but to me you're never too late when someone's music warms up to you. After listening to various songs from the Massachusetts quintet's sophomore album Gossamer this year, their performance on Saturday Night Live and in particular the highly watchable guess-what's-next video for "Take A Walk" drew me in. It helps that Michael Angelakos vocally reminds me a lot of Michael Penn circa "No Myth"! Now I think their tour with Matt & Kim next year will be high on my list to see. Watch "Take A Walk" below.
Shiny Toy Guns "Somewhere To Hide"
If "Somewhere To Hide" is any indication, the return of vocalist Carah Faye Charnow may have been the best thing to happen to the California quartet since its mid-80's successes with "You Are The One" and "Le Disko", which appeared in the Grammy-nominated We Are Pilots album. With new album III on release, "Somewhere To Hide" is unpretentious and gleaming electronica complemented by a video telling a tale of love in some futuristic world. Watch the video using the Vimeo link below.
Parralox "Sharper Than A Knife"
Never let it be said that recycling an older song can't work. In fact Aussie duo Parralox have done just that with "Sharper Than A Knife", which appeared on their 2008 release Electricity. After more recent success stemming from the appearance of the song "Hotter" on the year's best dance compilation This Beat Is….Poptronik Volume One, Amii and John have created a video that looks alternately like The Donna Reed Show and an Alfred Hitchcock movie, with Madonna-esque performance shots interspersed. "Sharper Than A Knife" is inspired electronic pop candy. Watch below.
Krewella "Killin' It"
Chicago electronica trio Krewella return after being touted these past few years by the likes of Grammys blogger Arjan Writes for songs like "Gameplan", and producing remixes for artists such as Skrillex. "Killin' It" (video below) was actually released earlier this year as a part of the Play Hard EP, but the band has reinvented the song in a multitude of remixes in the form of the new Play Harder, which you can hear on their Soundcloud page. Oodles of freebies can be had for download on their Facebook page. Fans of BT, Deadmau5, FrankMusik and more should keep Krewella on their radar.
Evanpony "Just Rock With Me"
One of the most entertaining videos I've seen recently is "Just Rock With Me", which is actually a pairing of Japanese girl group Stereopony (which I believe has since disbanded) and fave L.A.-based singer/songwriter Evan Taubenfeld (yes, he of Welcome To The Blacklist Club, featuring "Cheater Of The Year" (a #1 on my chart), "Boy Meets Girl", and "Pumpkin Pie"(both Top 5)). Just takes me back to when I was a kid viewing Japanese monster movies for the first time – albeit with a modern twist. I'm hoping Evanpony will record more, and perhaps in English 🙂 Watch using the Vimeo link below and have fun.
Mark Hildreth "Magic Spell"
Canadian actor Mark Hildreth, whom you may have seen recently in TV's The Tutors or heard as a voice in many a cartoon (or know as boyfriend to Smallville and Beauty & The Beast's Kristen Kreuk) is also a most capable vocalist, as his silky mid-tempo dance song "Magic Spell" reveals. It's from his upcoming album Signs Of Life, due for release next year. And as some of you may notice, there's an interesting connection to my personal chart – he also starred in the 2009 reboot of TV's sci-fi show V alongside none other than Jane Badler (#8 on my chart with her "Yesterday's Tomorrows"). Watch "Magic Spell" below.
on December 11, 2012 at 12:35 am Comments (4)
Tags: Dance, EDM, electronica, Evan Taubenfeld, Evanpony, JMSN, Krewella, Mark Hildreth, Parallox, Passion Pit, Pop, R&B, Rock, Shiny Toy Guns, soul, Stereopony
Tuned-On! Top 300 of the 2000's, Part 2 (250-201)
From big worldwide hits ("Yeah", "Naughty Girl", "Can't Get You Out of My Head") to more localized hits ("That Girl", "The Way (Put Your Hand In My Hand)", "Alone In The Universe"), to club smashes ("Planets of the Universe", "My My My") to rock tracks ("Sometimes", "Load Me Up") to first timers ("There You Go"), to CD only tracks ("I'll Do Anything", "Hot Mess") – you'll likely find something you like a lot on this list.
You can find the updated list right here – don't forget to leave your comments! 🙂
Lists on BILLCS Music Blog
Tags: 3 Doors Down, Angels and Airwaves, Armand Van Helden, Best of 2000's, Beyonce, Calvin Harris, Craig David, Dance, David Usher, Duncan Sheik, Evanescence, Feeder, George, George Michael, Howie Day, Jason Mraz, Jesse McCartney, Kardinal Offishall, Keane, Kevin Rudolf, Kylie Minogue, Maroon 5, Matthew Good Band, McFly, MGMT, Mobile, Music, My Chemical Romance, Orson, Patrick Wolf, Paul Van Dyk, Pink, Pop, R&B, Regina Spektor, Robbie Williams, Rock, Sam Sparro, Shiny Toy Guns, soulDecision, Stevie Nicks, Usher

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Today's guest blog is written by Michael Brooks. Michael is an author, journalist, and broadcaster with a PhD in quantum physics and lives in Sussex, England.
No matter how many academics give inspirational TED talks or publish papers on innovative pedagogy, no matter how much blood, sweat and tears teachers donate to the cause, there is a hidden barrier to meaningful, large-scale improvement in education: zero-sum thinking.
I came to this conclusion after completing a crash course in education reform. Fourteen months ago I was asked to curate a summit on the global future of secondary education, then produce a set of recommendations based on the summit findings. On Wednesday, I presented those recommendations at the World Literacy Summit in Oxford. Though I am reluctant to admit it, they are unlikely to achieve anything unless we stop scoring educational innovation in terms of winners and losers.
It is most obvious at the highest levels. My experience of meetings with education ministry personnel in Canada, for instance, is that a mention of another jurisdiction's success is received like a stab in the back. Whether the success is in increasing engagement with learners from poorer backgrounds, or in stripping away the tyranny of the high-stakes exam, any successful innovation in education seems to rile those who weren't involved. No one celebrates; they batten down the hatches and wait for their superiors to thunder in, demanding why the opposition - for that is how they are seen - is surging ahead.
Zero-sum thinking is endemic at grass roots level, too, however. At my children's school in Lewes, Sussex, the senior leadership team came across research findings suggesting that teaching English in "streamed" sets is a bad idea. Mixed ability classes improve the achievements of lower ability students without affecting the performance of higher achievers. The research caused the head to abandon streaming in English classes, but parents of the high ability students couldn't make sense of it. How can this be good for someone else's child, and yet not be bad for mine?
I have seen it in Singapore, where an innovative school principal moved his students away from rote learning. The principals in neighbouring schools, rather than questioning whether they should engage with their colleague's ideas, circled like vultures. They knew that parents, who generally prefer the familiarity of a failing system to the risk that an innovation might fall short of its goals, would divert the flow of students - and money - towards them.
One of my go-to experts, Susan Opok (who co-presented our findings in Oxford), manages an innovative network of schools in rural Uganda. She frequently faces the ire of parents who hear of students working together in groups with no direct, continuous input from the teacher. The teacher is roaming around the groups, making suggestions, offering encouragements, pointing out areas of the project that need work. The zero-sum mentality tells the parents that a teacher who gains such freedom inevitably costs their children opportunities to learn. That is why they complain, threatening to withdraw their child.
Even within a school, it can be divisive: I have spoken with teachers embracing innovations whose only regret is that they are now resented by their colleagues who aren't - and somehow feel they are now second class educators.
The same zero-sum mentality lies behind the refusal to accept that standards of education are improving; every year, we and other nations have a conversation about whether improving results in major exams are a sign that tests are getting easier. Few are the voices celebrating the possibility that our teachers and headteachers are getting even better at their jobs. It's as if it doesn't occur to anyone that, when it comes to education, everyone can get better at once.
It's not hard to see where the corrosive zero-sum mindset comes from. Education has become a political punching bag on the national and international stage. As a result, it has absorbed the language and ethos of adversarial politics. Your competitors' losses are your gains; their failures are your successes. But education is not like politics, and it should not frame its discourse in the same way. Education is not a zero-sum game.
There are plenty of win-win opportunities for improving education. Last month, I met a group of teachers from the Surrey school district of British Columbia, Canada, which is experimenting with removing letter-grades in several pilot schools. Instead, the students have portfolios of work and detailed teachers' reports on student skills, abilities and aptitudes. Initially, local colleges were horrified at the prospect of applicants from the district approaching their admissions personnel without an easy alphabetical way to pick between them. But employers and higher education institutions are realizing that this can be a win-win.
Experiments in the United States are showing that the no-score system is beneficial to students - especially those who aren't great in formal tests, and those from traditionally low-achieving groups such as ethnic minorities. But it is also proving beneficial to colleges and employers, who find the new assessment methods help them pick out exactly the kinds of students that will rise to their challenges.
Perhaps the worst zero-sum illusion of all is the OECD's PISA scores. As one nation celebrates rising up the rankings, another nation implodes in its - that is the nature of ranking. But if you believe the PISA scores mean anything, they could be seen as a reason for celebration. Raising achievement in education is good for everybody, no matter where it happens. If the next Einstein comes out of Africa, who would consider that a bad thing? If a Chinese student invents an efficient process that pulls carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere, who would be churlish enough to complain the innovation that solved global warming didn't come out of Europe or America?
Until we stamp out the zero-sum mentality, it will be near-impossible to implement the kinds of large-scale reform the world's education systems so desperately need. The first step towards higher global achievement, then, is to create an atmosphere of collaboration between all players. Ironically, when we move away from scoring points, everyone's a winner.
Michael Brooks is a consultant at New Scientist and writes a weekly column for New Statesman. He is the author of the bestselling 13 Things That Don't Make Sense and Free Radicals: The Secret Anarchy of Science. Michael is leading the team charged with assessing promising learning pathways for the decades ahead and reporting recommendations in the Equinox Blueprint. On April 14, Brooks presented Learning 2030: A Blueprint for Ethical Learning Provision at the World Literacy Summit in Oxford. Click here to download the blueprint free of charge.


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Recently, the project of accounting for the normativity of law – traditionally regarded as one of the two main projects of analytical general jurisprudence – has come under distinct pressure. Several writers – including David Enoch and Brian Bix – claim that although the law often gives reasons for action, it doesn't necessarily do so, and when it does, there is nothing mysterious about it – law just triggers a variety of conditional reasons that people already have and does so by manipulating the non-normative aspect of the world, such as by issuing certain kinds of pronouncements.
Enoch leaves open the possibility that law necessarily creates legal reasons, in the same way that chess creates chess-reasons, etiquette creates etiquette-reasons, etc., and some authors think that the project of explaining the normativity of law also requires an account of what such "purely" legal reasons consist in. In a recent paper, however, Scott Hershovitz has proposed that we abandon this project, arguing that purely legal reasons don't have any significant place in our theorizing about law. It only serves to confuse, he says, and what matters in anyone's theorizing is simply how certain activities have certain genuine normative upshots, some more systematic than others.
Taken together, the arguments by Hershovitz and Enoch constitute quite a challenge for the traditional project of explaining the normativity of law, and both have garnered a significant set of responses. The proposed workshop would serve both as an opportunity to take stock of where we are, relative to this rapidly developing topic, and as a platform for discussing cutting-edge work that promises to significantly advance the debate.


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P-M Donald MacLeod, M.B.E. Collection of Piobaireachd $39.95 CAD
Fixing holes
Every top pipe band needs a composer and, ideally, it has two. I've been reading Lennon: The Man, the Myth, the Music-The Definitive Life by Tim Riley. My mother was a big fan of The Beatles, and some of my first musical memories are (along with my dad's fondness for Jimmy Shand records) listening repeatedly to Rubber Soul and Revolver on our green wool living room rug. One of the first movies I saw in an actual theater was Yellow Submarine. I would have been five.
I know my Beatles, but Riley's book opened my eyes wider to the Lennon-McCartney composing dynamic. The two were supreme collaborators and, more importantly, they were big-time rivals. Outdoing one another with musical originality was implicit.
Lennon showed McCartney his trippy "Strawberry Fields Forever," and McCartney answered back within days with his nostalgic Liverpool memory with "Penny Lane." McCartney's maudlin 4/4 "Michelle" received a quick caustic 6/8 comeback from Lennon in "Norwegian Wood."
At least until Magical Mystery Tour, they injected themselves into each other's compositions. But from then on they drifted apart musically and emotionally. Almost all of the songs were still fantastic, but they lacked that certain Beatles brilliance when they worked collaboratively – for example, compare the collaborative "A Day in the Life" with the Lennon-only "Revolution." (Incidentally, apparently McCartney's "Fixing a Hole" is about him solving the gap in Lennon's "A Day in the Life," with the "woke up, fell out of bed" section.)
You can see a similar dynamic with other great composing partnerships in their heydays: Jagger & Richards; Simon & Garfunkel; Page & Plant. When they worked well together, they challenged one another with different thinking, and made otherwise predictable songs incredibly distinctive compositions. Their compositional styles pretty much mirror their very different personalities. The competitive and personal friction between them paid off.
Bands in the top grades are under pressure to be original. Just about every band with a distinct musical identity has a composer/arranger either in the ranks or on the outside funneling pieces to them. Bands that have two or more composers and arrangers who collaboratively debate, prod and critique each other's works I would think have an advantage.
But that sort of constructive collaboration is usually stoked by a rivalry and competitive spirit. Goodness knows, pipers and drummers are driven by competition. But rivals often eventually fall out. They stop collaborating. They stop caring what the other thinks. They go their separate musical ways.
But as long as competitive composers can appreciate each other's input, they and their bands should make the most of it. Great things happen when opposites attract.
Scott Heney says:
Some interesting ideas in the blog – perhaps there are similarities in the stories of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson which helped propel them to such popularity. But just how does one consistently " weave a love story into a proposition of Euclid "? Without having the two tear apart irrevocably, even were they to reconcile their essential imissibilty?
Can you imagine having Jeremy Brett as your Pipe Major? Without Edward Hardwicke as P/S to counteract his edges?
Bagpipermann says:
I would put it to you that every pipe band has at least one, if not two composers….What about the drummers? Overlooked again! More about that later…
In my experience, I've found that most of the tension (if there was any) wasn't between the 3-4 piping composers/arrangers within the band, but rather between them and the rest of the band. For example, the group would get together and sketch an outline or structure for a medley around one or two key compositions and then fill the blanks. Sometimes it would come down, say, needing an intro tune and at that point trying to create one. Once the medley was created, it would be presented to the band for evaluation. It was at that point that people would "intefere" and try to change a tune that didn't spark their interest, suggesting something that didn't fit with the flow. Or someone felt that there was perhaps too much harmony in a particular piece and end up ruining the tune by changing it. However, between the composers/arrangers, there was more or less harmony and a common direction/understanding as to what was being created.
As far as the drum scores, the pipe tune composition group or a member from it would spend time working with the snare section composers (the lead tip shared these duties with one or two others) to fine tune the scores to fit the compositions.
Again, not much tension there, but more of a mutual collaboration to emphasize the right notes and themes via rythms and dynamics, etc.
Now back to the drum section composers in general. Think about this, pipe section tune composers…Imagine if you had to write the entire band repetoire…I mean everything. 2 sets, 2 medleys, 2/4s, 3/4s, 6/8s, jig sets, hornpipe sets, suites, etc.
That's what the lead tip and tenor leader is responsible for! Why do we always overlook that? That has to be source of some tension. Next time you see your drummers, thank them for all that work and complement them when they write a particularly good score. I'm sure that they'd appreciate it.
Do not be frightened to throw out synthetic reeds. Like everything else they have a shelf life and you can hang on to them for too long. If your drones start to become unsteady – bite the bullet.
− Euan Anderson, Edinburgh


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Japan's Shinzo Abe triggers snap election amid North Korea crisis
The prime minister did not give a date for the election but it will reportedly be on October 22.
world Updated: Sep 25, 2017 15:13 IST
AFP, Tokyo
Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe speaks to media after North Korea's missile launch, at his official residence in Tokyo, Japan, September 15.(REUTERS)
Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Monday called a snap election , seeking a fresh term at the helm of the world's third-largest economy as tensions with nearby North Korea reach fever pitch.
Abe hopes to capitalise on a weak and fractured opposition to sweep back into power, as polls show him regaining ground after a series of scandals.
"I will dissolve the House of Representatives on the 28th" of September, Abe told reporters, a precursor to a general election. The prime minister did not give a date for the election but it will reportedly be on October 22.
Surveys suggest voters approve of the hardline stance taken by the nationalist Abe on North Korea, which fired two missiles over the country in the space of a month and has threatened to "sink" Japan.
According to a weekend poll in business daily Nikkei, 44 percent of voters plan to vote for Abe's conservative LDP party, while only eight percent said they would side with the main opposition Democratic Party.
Nevertheless, one fifth of those polled said they were still undecided, potentially opening the door for gains by a new party formed by allies of the popular mayor of Tokyo Yuriko Koike, which will field dozens of candidates.
Koike's Tomin First no Kai (Tokyo Residents First) party humiliated Abe and the LDP in local elections in July, but analysts say the new grouping has not had time to lay national foundations to mount a serious challenge to the prime minister.
"There is no opposition worthy of the name in Japan. The LDP is a giant among dwarves. It would take a major scandal to derail the Abe express," said Jeff Kingston, Director of Asian Studies at Temple University, Japan.
'Political vacuum'
The winner of the expected snap election faces a daunting in-tray of challenges ranging from an unprecedented crisis with North Korea to reviving the once world-beating Japanese economy.
Pyongyang has threatened to "sink" Japan into the sea and fired two missiles over the northern island of Hokkaido in the space of less than a month.
Surveys suggest voters approve of nationalist Abe's firm line on North Korea and the crisis appears to have given him a welcome boost in the polls following a series of scandals, including allegations he improperly favoured a friend in a business deal.
Despite a recent run of growth, the election winner will also have to contend with a sluggish economy, as the heavily indebted country grapples with low birthrates and a shrinking labour force.
At a news conference planned for 6:00pm (0900 GMT), Abe is reportedly set to announce that proceeds from a planned sales tax hike in 2019 will be ploughed into education spending rather than paying down the country's enormous debt.
Although Abe is expected to triumph in the vote, there are question marks over whether he will retain a two-thirds parliamentary majority needed to reform the constitution to strengthen Japan's military, a stated priority of his.
"Despite the seemingly favourable backdrop for Abe, there are risks in calling a snap election," said Yoel Sano, an analyst at BMI research.
At a time of national crisis over North Korea, Japanese voters may see it as a "cynical and opportunistic move" designed to divert attention from a series of scandals that weighed on Abe's popularity, warned Sano.
Commentator Masao Yora said the election will "create a political vacuum" just when the country needs strong leadership in the face of the threat from Pyongyang.
This "may seem normal in Japan but from abroad, it is difficult to understand," Yora told AFP.
If re-elected, it would be Abe's fourth term at the helm of the world's third top economy.
The third-generation of powerful politicians, Abe appeared to be groomed for power from an early age and he was the country's youngest prime minister when he first won the top job.
He was the first world leader to cultivate close relations with US President Donald Trump, meeting the tycoon in Trump Towers even before he was inaugurated.
First Published: Sep 25, 2017 12:10 IST
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text:
CALL FOR CHAPTERS
Deadline for submission of proposals: July 15, 2006
Student Plagiarism in an Online World: Cases and Solutions
A book edited by Tim S Roberts, Faculty of Business and Informatics,
Overall objectives of the book
Twenty years ago, plagiarism was seen as an isolated misdemeanour,
restricted to a small group of dishonest students.  Today, it is widely
recognised as a ubiquitous, systemic problem.  Some 90% of students
admit to cheating of some form during their academic careers.  Some 70%
admit to copying material directly from the Internet.
This is a major concern to educators in all fields and at all levels.
How can students be assessed fairly, when the problem of plagiarism is
so widespread?  This book will address the issue of student plagiarism
directly.  What is the scale of the problem?  Why should it be taken
seriously?  What tools and techniques can be used to combat the problem?
These questions will be answered using as exemplars cases and solutions
from real-life situations.
Professionals working in the area of online teaching and learning;
researchers from a wide variety of backgrounds including
educationalists, psychologists, sociologists, cognitive theorists,
computer scientists, etc, teachers, particularly those in colleges and
universities, instructional designers, web developers, and undergraduate
and postgraduate students.
The editor has previously edited three books in related areas, Online
Collaborative Learning: Theory and Practice (2003), Computer-Supported
Collaborative Learning in Higher Education (2004), and Self, Peer, and
Group Assessment in E-Learning (2006), all available through amazon.com,
and maintains the Online Collaborative Learning website at
http://clp.cqu.edu.au <http://clp.cqu.edu.au/> , and the Assessment in
Higher Education web site at http://ahe.cqu.edu.au
<http://ahe.cqu.edu.au/> .
Researchers and practitioners are invited to submit on or before July
15, 2006, a 2 to 5 page proposal clearly explaining the mission and
concerns of their proposed chapter.  Authors of accepted proposals will
be notified by August 8, 2006 about the status of their proposals and
sent chapter organizational guidelines.  Full chapters will be expected
to be submitted by October 15, 2006. All submitted chapters will be
reviewed by at least three reviewers on a double- blind review basis.
Authors of accepted chapters will then have a further opportunity to
refine their work, based upon the comments of the reviewers and the
editor.  The book is scheduled to be published by Idea Group, Inc.,
www.idea-group.com <http://www.idea-group.com/> , publisher of the Idea
Group Publishing, Information Science Publishing, IRM Press, CyberTech
Publishing and Idea Group Reference imprints, in 2007.
Inquiries and submissions should be forwarded electronically (Word
document preferred) to:
Tim S Roberts
Faculty of Business and Informatics
Bundaberg  Queensland 4670  Australia
phone  +61 7 4150 7057   fax  +61 7 4150 7090
email [log in to unmask] <outbind:[log in to unmask]>
To access the LRNASST-L archives or User Guide, or to change your
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text:
Dr Nilüfer Oral
cilhead@nus.edu.sg
Dr Nilüfer Oral is Director of the Centre for International Law. Dr Oral has over 20 years of experience in the study, teaching and practice of international law. She has been a member of the Law Faculty at Istanbul Bilgi University since 1998. In 2016, she was elected by the UN General Assembly to the International Law Commission where she is co-chair of the study group on sea level rise in relation to international law. She has been nominated by Turkey to the International Law Commission (2022–2027). She has advised the Foreign Ministry of the Republic of Turkey on matters related to the law of the sea and climate change, and served as a climate change negotiator between 2009 and 2016, and attended meetings held by the International Maritime Organization. She has also appeared before the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea.
Dr Oral has worked with the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). She was elected as a member to the IUCN Council (2012–2016) and was co-chair of the Specialist Group on Oceans, Coasts and Coral Reefs (2006–2016). She has also served as chair of the IUCN Academy of Environmental Law (2013–2016). She is currently a member of the governing board of the International Council on Environmental Law (ICEL) and the steering committee of the IUCN World Commission on Environmental Law.
Dr Oral is distinguished senior scholar at the Law of the Sea Institute at the University of California, Berkeley's Law School. She was scholar-in-residence at the University of Virginia's Law School in 2005 and has lectured on several occasions at the Rhodes Academy of Oceans Law and Policy. Dr Oral has been a guest lecturer at the CIL Distinguished Speakers Series and a research consultant to the CIL Ocean Law and Policy programme. Dr Oral has also been involved as a legal expert on a number of projects with the EU, UNEP, UNDP and the Turkish Science Council on marine environmental and climate change issues.
Dr Oral is the series editor of the International Straits of the World series (Brill), a member of the board of editors of the European Society of International Law, associate editor for Brill Research Perspectives in the Law of the Sea, a member of the Advisory Board of the AALCO Journal of International Law, a member of the International Advisory Board of the Chinese Journal of Environmental Law, and a member of the editorial board of The International Journal of Marine and Coastal Law (as of 2020).
Dr Oral has published extensively in recognised academic publications and has spoken at numerous international fora. She speaks Turkish, English and French.


text:
Twit and wisdom
On January 22, 2010 January 22, 2010 By Laura MorganIn Internet, Small pleasures
On Twitter, Friday is the day when you recommend some of the people you follow to the people who follow you, in the hope that they will start to follow them too, and the tweeting goodness will be spread still wider.
The problem with this is the 140 character limit. In the day-to-day run of things it's fun and interesting to compose whichever thought you want to convey in such a way that it will fit into a single tweet, but it's almost impossible to persuade someone to follow someone they've never heard of in the same amount of space.
So here, extended for as many characters as I need to explain them, are my Follow Friday recommendations for today. The only thing they have in common is that they're all prolific tweeters: it's no good being hilarious and insighful if you only do it once a month.
If you're on Twitter, follow these people immediately, and if you're not you can sign up here.
Richard Madely has only been on Twitter for a couple of months, but has already posted more times than I have. And every post is so boundlessly, enthusiastically, Tiggerishly Richard that it's a constant charm. He is genuinely interested in everything!
Sample tweet:
Newsflash (now THAT takes some of us back) – Soy Sauce in gravy works! Big time! Makes it more savoury with nice backtaste. Just a teaspoon.
I don't really know who Sali Hughes is, except that she's a writer, and I can't remember how I found her, but she's witty and self-deprecating, and was very funny about her family Christmas. She also chats a lot, so she's a good way of finding even more people to follow.
I've just noticed someone's put me on a twitter list entitled CARBS. I didn't come here to be insulted. *puts down baked potato sandwich*
Richard Wiseman is a psychologist and magician who uses Twitter more creatively and ingeniously than anyone else I've come across. He uses his audience as a giant research panel, constantly asking questions and setting challenges and suggesting things for people to try and report back to him on. He also sets a weekly logic puzzle, and for that alone he makes the list.
Starting new book today. Will open with the best sentence submitted on Twitter.
Julia Irving is a Geordie mother of two who enjoys food, reality TV and travel. She also has a terminal cancer diagnosis, but you'd rarely know that from her tweets. She is relentlessly upbeat, has a good word for everyone (even Heather Mills!) and finds joy in the smallest of things. If I ever start to feel weedy and sorry for myself, a healthy dose of Jools brings me back to my senses.
OMG this new dessert I have made for tonight is just WOW FABBY DELISH :o) Its honeycomb and chocolate mouse pots YUMMMMYYYYYYY
Finally, I am giving a joint spot to Adam Kay and Suman Biswas, the singing doctors of London Underground fame, because their funniest tweets are often to each other. Pleasingly, the element of "he didn't really just say that, did he?" which is so prevalent in their songs is also present in their tweets, though I've deliberately chosen mild examples here to put you off your guard.
Sample tweet (Adam):
Ever since Alistair Cooke stopped presenting Letter from America and died I'm nervous when he's mooted to captain England.
Sample tweet (Suman):
Am teaching my cat about Communism. (I assume he wants to learn, he's always asking about Mao).
And really truly finally, I wouldn't give them a Follow Friday mention because there can't be anyone left on Twitter who doesn't already, but if you're new to it then you must make sure to follow David Schneider, Mrs Stephen Fry, Samuel Johnson, Derren Brown, Phillip Schofield and shitmydadsays; especially that last one.
Another post about my hair


text:
Petition: Increase the fines for breaking electoral law
Let's deter cheating in elections, and protect our democracy
Palace of privilege: new figures reveal Lords becoming even less representative
It's time for an overhaul of this private members club – and our democracy more widely.
Lynn Henderson
Peers take their seats in the House of Lords before the state opening of parliament
Carl Court/PA Archive/PA Images
Turn on the news and you can see the signs of a growing antipathy towards those who occupy the highest levels of politics, business and the media.
The phrase 'establishment' gets kicked around a lot now. But just who makes up the governing class – and how different are 'they' to the rest of us?
New research by the Sutton Trust and the Social Mobility Commission has looked at the background of around 5000 people across a range of high-ranking positions in British society – providing a unique insight into who is at the top in Britain in 2019.
The report shows that we still live in a society where power is held by a narrow few, a group dominated by a small section of the population: the 7% who went to private schools and the 1% of people who graduated from Oxford or Cambridge.
And nowhere is this narrow establishment background more prevalent than in our politics. But one part of the Palace of Westminster stands out in particular.
The sheer spectacle of the House of Lords is one of an outdated and out of touch elite. Whether it's the golden throne that sits at the top of the chamber, the ermine robes that members wear to the state opening of parliament or the fact that the chamber still guarantees representation to aristocrats through hereditary peerages – this is a place that values birth and titles over the populace.
But the exclusivity of the chamber goes far beyond the plush robes and fancy fretwork.
As it stands 57% of the second chamber were privately educated. Not only is this grossly unrepresentative of the wider public – the figure is actually going up.
In the past five years the number of privately educated peers has increased 8% - a result of the system of patronage used to pack out the upper house.
Peers are more likely to have attended a leading Russell Group University than general population (60%), with 38% having attended Oxford or Cambridge – again, two universities that produce just 1% of all university graduates.
Of the professions looked at in the research only two groups – Senior Judges and Civil Service Permanent Secretaries have a higher proportion of privately educated members than the House of Lords. It is telling that these are civil servants. Lords are legislators: they literally vote on the issues that affect all of us.
The educational background of members of the Lords is very different even to those of MPs in the Commons. A much larger proportion of peers attended elite schools and universities than their parliamentary colleagues in the Commons.
Over half of MPs attended a comprehensive school (up 12 points since 2014) compared to 29% of MPs were privately educated (down 4 points since 2014). Whilst these figures are still out of line with the national average, they represent a chamber slowly moving in the right direction.
But this crisis or representation goes far beyond just educational background. Research by the Electoral Reform Society in 2017 showed that just 26 percent of peers are women, lower than any other political institution in the country. Nearly a fifth (18%) of members of the Lords are over 80 years old – compared with just 6.6% of the UK's adult population.
It's time we had a politics that properly represented the people of this country. One where those who make our laws need to look like the people who live under them – and that includes people from all backgrounds, nations and regions. It will be a key focus of Politics for the Many's "This Is What Democracy Looks Like" conference this August – marking 200 years since the Peterloo Massacre which saw many die fighting to a say in our politics.
When the Lords are appointed based on 'who you know', party donations and big business interests it's no surprise that it fails to reflect the society we live in. And whilst the House of Commons is slowly changing for the better the Lords is becoming more out of touch every year.
For too long, Westminster's political system has been for the few, and by the few. It's time to build a politics for the many with a new upper house – elected, accountable and representative of the people it serves.
Sign up here for Politics for the Many's "This Is What Democracy Looks Like: Building a Politics For The Many" conference and find out more about Politics for the Many, the trade union campaign for political reform.
Expose the 'dark money' bankrolling our politics
US Christian 'fundamentalists', some linked to Donald Trump and Steve Bannon, have poured at least $50m of 'dark money' into Europe over the past decade – boosting the far right.
That's just the tip of the iceberg: we've got many more leads to chase down. Find out more and support our work here.


As part of its diversification plan, Norwegian oil major Statoil has decided to change its name to Equinor after almost 50 years.
The rebranding move comes in line with Statoil's ever greater involvement in the renewables market as part of the global effort to reduce carbon footprint.
"Equinor is a powerful expression of who we are, where we come from and what we aspire to be. We are a values-based company, and equality describes how we want to approach people and the societies where we operate. The Norwegian continental shelf will remain the backbone of our company, and we will use our Norwegian heritage in our positioning as we continue growing internationally within both oil, gas and renewable energy," Statoil's President and CEO Eldar Sætre said.
The new name will be proposed to shareholders in a resolution to the Annual General Meeting on 15 May. The Norwegian government, as majority shareholder, supports the proposal and will vote in favour of the resolution. In addition, all the five unions organizing Statoil employees – Industri Energi, SAFE, NITO, Tekna and Lederne – support the proposal.
Posted on March 15, 2018 with tags Equinor, Statoil.


Select 4 Cold-pressed Raw Juices and 1 Hand-crafted Milk.
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text:
Disney's Port Orleans Resort - French Quarter est l'une des deux parties du complexe hôtelier Disney's Port Orleans Resort à Walt Disney World Resort, un hôtel à prix modéré. Il a ouvert le  sous le nom de Disney's Port Orleans Resort mais quand en 2001 le Dixie Landings lui fut associé, cette partie est devenue French Quarter tandis que le Dixie a été renommé Disney's Port Orleans Resort Riverside.

L'hôtel, qui compte de 1 008 chambres, est situé le long de la Sassagoula River qui coule jusqu'au Lake Buena Vista. Un système de ferry dessert le Downtown Disney.

Le thème

Le thème de cet hôtel est le carnaval du Mardi-Gras de La Nouvelle-Orléans qui se déroule dans le quartier historique français de la ville (Voir le Vieux carré). C'est le quartier entier qui est évoqué ici avec des bâtiments, des rues et même des squares. Le tout aboutit sur les rives de la Sassagoula River.

Les bâtiments
L'hôtel compte sept bâtiments de chambres et un bâtiment principal à l'entrée avec un hall qui se poursuit par une rue. Au bout de la rue qui sépare l'hôtel en deux quartiers, se trouve l'embarcadère du ferry mais, juste avant, l'espace du Doublon Lagoon offre ses activités ludiques dont une piscine.

Le bâtiment principal situé à l'entrée de l'hôtel s'organise en deux ailes séparées par une rue :
l'aile nord est appelée The Mint, elle héberge plusieurs restaurants et bars.
l'aile sud est appelée Port Orleans Square, elle héberge la réception, la boutique et divers services.

Le quartier sud compte trois bâtiments tandis que le quartier nord en compte quatre. Ils sont simplement numérotés de 1 à 7 en partant du plus au sud. Chaque bâtiment de chambres compte trois étages (reliés par des ascenseurs à l'intérieur) et est une juxtaposition de trois "maisons" identiques mais de couleurs totalement différentes. Ainsi les couleurs crème, rose, bleu, mauve, jaune et rouge sont utilisées. Les façades des maisons arborent des balcons en ferronnerie et des jardinières fleuries mais elles aussi de forme et couleurs différentes.

La disposition des maisons forme de nombreuses places et cours qui sont plantées d'arbres ou engazonnées, les rues étant toutes bordées d'arbres de chaque côté.

Les services de l'hôtel

Les chambres

Les chambres sont légèrement plus petites que celles des autres hôtels à prix modérés mais la qualité du décor justifie selon Disney cette différence. Elles sont décorées de riches motifs aux couleurs du carnaval de Mardi Gras. Elles contiennent toutes deux lits pour accueillir au maximum 4 personnes. La salle de bains est de taille normale avec sèche-cheveux et miroirs de maquillage ainsi qu'un fer et une table à repasser. La chambre contient aussi une machine à café et un réfrigérateur intégré sans supplément de prix. Un service de livraison de repas ou de pizzas est disponible dans l'hôtel.

Les prix en 2005, d'après le site officiel, pour une nuit débutent à partir de
148 $ pour les chambres avec vue sur la piscine ou la rivière
133 $ pour les chambres avec vue normale

Les restaurants et bars
Ils sont principalement situés à l'entrée de l'hôtel dans The Mint, l'aile nord du bâtiment principal.

Sassagoula Floatworks and Food Factory Food Court est un gros entrepôt converti en salle de repas commune dans laquelle on fête le carnaval tous les jours. Ce restaurant propose des pizzas, des pâtes, des hamburgers, du poulet rôti à la broche, du porc au barbecue, des spécialités cadiennes et créole, ainsi que des grands sandwichs. En dessert on trouve aussi des glaces.
Scat Cat's Club est un bar de jazz servant boissons et repas légers, avec des musiciens sur place certains soirs.
Mardi Grogs est le bar de la piscine du Doublon Lagoon

Un établissement semble avoir fermé depuis 2002 à la suite de la jonction des deux hôtels. Il était situé dans The Mint :
Bonfamille's Cafe d'après le nom d'un personnage du film Les Aristochats, qui dans un décor rappelant le film proposait des viandes, poissons et autres plats de la cuisine créole.

La boutique
Jackson Square Gifts & Desires est située dans Port Orleans Square. Elle propose des souvenirs Disney et des articles aux couleurs de l'hôtel.

Les activités possibles
Disney essaye aussi de favoriser l'utilisation des activités du Disney's Port Orleans Resort Riverside situé juste à côté.

Doublon Lagoon est un mini-parc aquatique construit comme s'il était entouré d'un serpent de mer chevauché par Neptune. La tête du serpent et surtout sa langue sert de toboggan. Un alligator sert de douche tandis qu'une coquille de clam entouré du reste de la bande de sauriens fait office de fontaine à l'entrée. Un bain bouillonnant est situé juste à droite de l'entrée. La rivière s'étale juste derrière le bassin de la piscine.
Le South Quarter Games est une salle de jeux vidéo située dans Port Orleans Square
Entre le bâtiment principal de l'entrée et le Doublon Lagoon une aire de jeu pour les enfants permet aux plus jeunes de s'amuser.
La marina est située le long de la rivière et permet de louer des embarcations.
Des vélos sont en location près de la marina.

Notes et références

Port Orleans Resort French Quarter
Édifice construit en 1991

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


Ramble of the day: On days I don't feel creative at all I always find myself wearing an outfit like this. It was almost too easy to put together, you know? To some ladies an outfit like this would be taking a risk, but to me it's just the opposite. If I could dress like Rihanna or Rita Ora everyday of my life I totally would. The problem with living in a small town is that I already get enough weird looks for the things I do wear. It's like I can never win. Don't get me wrong, I love this town, I was born and raised in New Mexico but for a girl whose dreams are to style celebrities, uuh, it really does nothing for me. Does anyone else have this problem?I think it's time to move to a city where people appreciate creativity and I can finally dress like I've always dreamed…like Lady Gaga.
Just kidding. Too far. Sorry for the ramble but it's been on my mind a lot lately. I really think it's time for me to move somewhere that will help me grow as a person and a stylist. I shouldn't have to dull down my style just because other people don't like to take risks themselves. Agree?
They stare because they're jealous 🙂 You look awesome!
Nice red lips! Where did you get that lipstick?


West Brom have agreed an undisclosed fee with Dundee United for midfielder Scott Allan.
Head coach Roy Hodgson confirmed the Baggies have been in discussions with United for the 20-year-old but Albion face competition from other clubs north of the border with Rangers and Celtic interested in the Scotland Under-21 international.
Hodgson also stressed Allan was a player for the future and not for his imminent first-team plans. He said: "I know Dan Ashworth (Albion technical and sporting director) has been in talks with Dundee United and we have followed the player."
He added: "We are talking about a 20-year-old. It is not outside of my responsibilities but it is something I've left Dan to pretty much get on with.
"Last I heard talks are going well. Dan likes the player and thinks he has got an interesting future.
"You always as a coach have got to be happy when the club is looking to sign talented players who can be something for you in the future.
"He is not a player we've discussed in first team terms, to improve the first team straight away. He will need some time."
Allan's current deal with United expires next summer.
He made his debut in a Europa League qualifier against Slask Wroclaw and has played in six Scottish Premier League games but has not featured in the starting line-up in recent weeks.


text:
Huang is one of the most prominent figures in artificial intelligence because Nvidia's chips are widely used in the field, including in a supercomputer that Microsoft Corp built for startup OpenAI, in which Microsoft said Monday it was making a multibillion-dollar investment.
Huang was speaking at an event in Stockholm, where officials said Tuesday they were upgrading Sweden's fastest supercomputer using tools from Nvidia to, among other things, develop what is known as a large language model that will be fluent in Swedish.
"Remember, if you take a step back and think about all of the things in life that are either convenient, enabling or wonderful for society, it also has probably some potential harm," Huang said.
Lawmakers such as Ted Lieu, a Democratic from California in the U.S. House of Representatives, have called for the creation of a U.S. federal agency that would regulate AI. In an opinion piece in the New York Times on Monday, Lieu argued that systems such as facial recognition used by law enforcement agencies possibly can misidentify innocent people from minority groups.
Huang said engineering standards bodies would need to establish standards for building safe AI systems, similar to how medical bodies set rules for the safe practice of medicine. But he also said laws and social norms would play a key role for AI.
"What is the social norm for using it? What the legal norms (are) for using it have to be developed," Huang said. "Everything is evolving right now. The fact that we're all talking about it puts us in a much better place to eventually end up at a good place." Reuters
MediaPlatform announces MediaPlatform Autocaster® preproduction & automated webcast replay platform
EditShare implements two highly resilient storage networks in the UAE


text:
The Irish Comedy Tour
Presented by The Palladium & Robert L. Burr
HomeComedy / Palladium Presents / Side DoorThe Irish Comedy Tour
Sunday, Mar. 15, 7p
RESERVED: $35.
GENERAL ADMISSION: $25.
The Irish Comedy Tour takes the party atmosphere of a Dublin pub and combines it with a boisterous, belly-laugh band of hooligans
The clover — make that clever — comedians, whose ancestors hail from the Emerald Isle, include Detroit native Derek Richards; Boston-born Mike McCarthy; Nova Scotia's Damon Leibert; and from Inchicore, a suburb of Dublin, Ireland Derrick Keane.
Audiences howl at Richards' tales about his mom's dog, the holidays and dating a stripper. He has appeared on The Bob & Tom Show, XM and Sirius, and The Weather Channel's Top 10.
McCarthy's no-holds-barred humor has landed him on Comedy Central and Showtime. The "comedy barbarian," as he calls himself, takes no prisoners when it comes to poking fun at society's most sensitive topics.
Leibert's unique and energetic style of fiddle playing lies somewhere between the driving dance beat of Cape Breton, and the lyrical music of Ireland. His power packed performance adds an incredible dimension to the show.
And finally Keane, originally from Inchicore, Derrick first distinguished himself musically when the duo in which he sang and played swept the All Ireland Talent Competition. His band, Inchicore, sets the gold standard for the Irish music scene in New England and across North America.
Don't miss these hilarious Irish American comedians as they tear apart as well as validate all of the Irish myths and stereotypes.
The Palladium's Side Door Cabaret is Tampa Bay's critically-acclaimed listening room offering the best in blues, jazz, acoustic, Celtic and more! This award-winning space of only 175-seats gives audiences the rare opportunity to see established and emerging artists up close in the intimate atmosphere of a nightclub, complete with linen-draped, candlelit tables where the performers are the focal point. Adding to the Side Door experience, audiences can enjoy beer, wine, soft drinks, snacks, and if the spirit moves, get up and dance! Advance Reserved Prime Seating Now Available for Selected Side Door Shows!


As I write this, it is snowing, pelting ice and soon it will begin to rain. School buses are canceled and many offices have closed for the day. As a child when this happened, it was a day off. People played games, made snow people, read, told stories and were together as a family. It became a day of rest – until we had to go and shovel snow! Today, with the advent of technology, my kids continue to communicate with their teachers, I am able to meet by phone with people, have video conference calls and respond to email. We live in a different world.
We communicate by email, social media, video calls, direct messaging and sometimes by a letter on a plain piece of paper. In a recent study it was determined that, in 2018, over 280 billion emails were sent in North America, of which about 34% were actually opened and read. In 2019 it is expected that, worldwide, people will send each other over 8 trillion instant messages. A stunning fact is that the typical Canadian will spend approximately 5 years and 4 months of their lives utilizing social media.
This world is remarkable with its technology, speed and the ability to communicate ideas, facts and falsehoods at incredible speeds. What can be accomplished and the ways people's lives can be enhanced is, in many ways, unmatched in history, At the same time, I observe that, for many, the ability to slow down and rest to experience true Sabbath is increasingly difficult. We have friendships around the world, people are more mobile and our ability to travel anywhere is freeing. Our drive to do more and to accomplish more is unmatched. At all hours of the day and night we can be "fully" engaged and doing. Emailing, texting and working from an office, a couch, a bed or the backyard.
Over the last few months, my life has had to slow down a bit. I had no choice in this slow down. In this season of slowing down God has been teaching me what it means to be a person of patience, to depend on others, to give up control and the value of creating regular space to allow my mind to wander, God to speak and my soul to catch up with my dreams, my schedule and my to do list. I've been reminded that taking a Sabbath rest isn't simply going to church and then getting back to the rest of my weekend to do list. No, a Sabbath rest is carving out the space in the routine of life to give God the freedom and ability to be heard deep within our soul. A Sabbath creates the space where I realize I am dependent upon God. I am reminded that my life isn't really mine. It's on loan to me from God and it's my role to steward it.
We all have lists of things we need to do and this is not a new phenomenon. What changes is how we create space to regenerate the soul, to commune with Jesus through his Word, connect with others and to discover what it means to be humans made in the image of the divine.
We all seek these Sabbath moments differently. For me one thing (among others) it means rising in the morning early enough to pray, to commune with Jesus through the scriptures, to read and journal. It takes time, effort and somedays it means rising earlier then I want, but it is a time that has become a blessing and necessity in my life.
— Doug Sider is the Executive Director at Be In Christ Church of Canada.


text:
Q: Matlab beginner median , mode and binning I am a beginner with MATLAB and I am struggling with this assignment. Can anyone guide me through it?
Consider the data given below:
x = [ 1 , 48 , 81 , 2 , 10 , 25 , ,14 , 18 , 53 , 41, 56, 89,0, 1000, , ...
      34, 47, 455, 21, , 22, 100 ];

Once the data is loaded, see if you can find any:

*

*Outliers or

*Missing data in the data file

Correct the missing values using median, mode and noisy data using median binning, mean binning and bin boundaries.

A: This isn't so bad.  First off, take a look at the distribution of your data.  You can see that the majority of your data has double digits.  The outliers are those with single digits, or those that are way larger than double digits.  Mind you, this is totally subjective so someone else may tell you that the single digits are part of your data too.  Also, the missing data are those numbers that are spaces in between the commas.  Let's write some MATLAB code and change these to NaN (or not-a-number), because if you try copying and pasting this code directly into MATLAB, it will give you a syntax error because if you are explicitly defining numbers this way, you have to be sure all of them are there.
To do this, use regexprep so that any parts of this string that have a comma, space, then another comma, put a NaN in between.  To do this, we need to put this statement as a string first.  We then use eval to convert this string to an actual MATLAB statement:
x = '[ 1 , 48 , 81 , 2 , 10 , 25 , ,14 , 18 , 53 , 41, 56, 89,0, 1000, , 34, 47, 455, 21, , 22, 100 ];'
y = eval(regexprep(x, ', ,', ', NaN, '));

If we display this data, we get:
y =

Columns 1 through 6

       1          48          81           2          10          25

Columns 7 through 12

     NaN          14          18          53          41          56

Columns 13 through 18

      89           0        1000         NaN          34          47

Columns 19 through 23

     455          21         NaN          22         100

As such, to answer our first question, any values that are missing are denoted as NaN and those numbers that are bigger than double digits are outliers.

For the next question, we simply extract those values that are not missing, calculate the mean and median of what is not missing, and fill in those NaN values with the mean and median.  For the bin boundaries, this is the same thing as using the values to the left (or right... depends on your definition, but let's use left) of the missing value and fill those in.  As such:
yMissing = isnan(y); %// Which values are missing?
y_noNaN = y(~yMissing); %// Extract the non-missing values
meanY = mean(y_noNaN); %// Get the mean
medianY = median(y_noNaN); %// Get the median

%// Output - Fill in missing values with median
yMedian = y;
yMedian(yMissing) = medianY;
%// Same for mean
yMean = y;
yMean(yMissing) = meanY;
%// Bin boundaries
yBinBound = y;
yBinBound(yMissing) = y(find(yMissing)-1);

The mean and median for the data of the non-missing values is:
meanY =

105.8500

medianY =

37.5000

The outputs for each of these, in addition to the original data with the missing values looks like:
format bank; %// Do this to show just the first two decimal places for compact output
format compact;

y =
Columns 1 through 5
         1          48          81           2          10
Columns 6 through 10
        25         NaN          14          18          53
Columns 11 through 15
        41          56          89           0        1000
Columns 16 through 20
       NaN          34          47         455          21
Columns 21 through 23
       NaN          22         100

yMean =
Columns 1 through 5
        1.00         48.00         81.00          2.00         10.00
Columns 6 through 10
       25.00        105.85         14.00         18.00         53.00
Columns 11 through 15
       41.00         56.00         89.00             0       1000.00
Columns 16 through 20
      105.85         34.00         47.00        455.00         21.00
Columns 21 through 23
      105.85         22.00        100.00

yMedian =
Columns 1 through 5
        1.00         48.00         81.00          2.00         10.00
Columns 6 through 10
       25.00         37.50         14.00         18.00         53.00
Columns 11 through 15
       41.00         56.00         89.00             0       1000.00
Columns 16 through 20
       37.50         34.00         47.00        455.00         21.00
Columns 21 through 23
       37.50         22.00        100.00

yBinBound =
Columns 1 through 5
        1.00         48.00         81.00          2.00         10.00
Columns 6 through 10
       25.00         25.00         14.00         18.00         53.00
Columns 11 through 15
       41.00         56.00         89.00             0       1000.00
Columns 16 through 20
     1000.00         34.00         47.00        455.00         21.00
Columns 21 through 23
       21.00         22.00        100.00

If you take a look at each of the output values, this fills in our data with the mean, median and also the bin boundaries as per the question.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
FDA gives emergency authorization to drug that can keep COVID-19 patients out of the hospital
Elizabeth Weise Karen Weintraub
In more good news for the fight against COVID-19, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration late Monday authorized use of a drug that appears to protect infected people at high risk from getting very sick.
The FDA issued an emergency use authorization to drug-maker Lilly for bamlanivimab, a monoclonal antibody that mimics the immune system's response to infection with the virus that causes COVID-19.
"The data is very solid," said Dr. Daniel Griffin, head of Infectious Disease at ProHEALTH, an independent, physician-led health care organization
The drug is similar to a pair of antibodies made by Regeneron that President Donald Trump has said "cured" him of COVID-19.
Regeneron has also applied for FDA authorization for its drug, REGN-COV2.
The FDA's emergency authorization was based on data from a study of the drug in 465 people who had COVID-19 but weren't hospitalized. Some patients got the drug, some got a placebo.
Most patients in both groups had cleared the virus from their system within 11 days.
However, in people who were at high risk of severe COVID-19 disease, only 3% of those who got the drug went to the emergency room or were hospitalized. Among people who got the placebo, 10% ended up hospitalized or visiting the ER.
A clinical trial of the same drug in COVID-19 patients who were hospitalized was stopped because the drug didn't help those patients recover from a more advanced stage of their disease.
"If you're a hospital administration, you look at the number of hospital bed and ventilators and you think that 3% hospitalization versus 10% hospitalization could make a difference," said John Scott, a professor in the Department of Pharmacology at the University of Washington School of Medicine in Seattle.
As case numbers rise around the country, "Everything is going to help at the right point in time," he said. "But it's not going to help nearly as much as people wearing masks and socially distancing."
COVID-19 NEWS:US surpasses 10 million cases; President-elect Joe Biden announces task force
EARLY FINDINGS:Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine candidate found to be 90% effective
The federal government has already agreed to spend $375 million to provide 300,000 doses of bamlanivimab for high-risk patients, who will not have to pay out-of-pocket costs for the medication.
According to the FDA's authorization, bamlanivimab is allowed to be used to treat recently diagnosed, mild to moderate COVID-19 in high-risk patients.
Delivered via a single dose infusion, the medication should be given as soon as possible after diagnosis and within 10 days of symptom onset, according to the company.
The FDA did not license the drug but instead granted it an emergency use authorization. This is a fast-tracked approval process that differs from a regular drug license application in several ways, though the company still must prove to the FDA the drug is safe and effective.


text:
ERIN FOLEY
Erin Foley, native from Rhode Island, started her comedy career three years ago. Now she performs at clubs and colleges across the country. During her college years at Dickinson College.
Erin majored in Theatre were she was apart of over a dozen theatre Productions. After graduation Erin took her talents into the world of Improv where she studied with Chicago City Limits and performed with two different Improvisation groups called "Grownup's Playground" and "Run with It".
At the age of 23 she moved to New York City so she could develop her comedic talents as a respectful stand-up. Erin soon booked her first television pilot for MTV called "This is Ray". She recently performed in New York City's Toyota Comedy Festival with Joy Behar, Judy Gold, and Susie Essman.


Who: Foresters Financial™, an international financial services provider committed to doing more for families and communities, is offering assistance to its members affected by the tornado in North Carolina.
What:	Eligible members living in the affected area who are experiencing significant personal hardship as a result of the tornado can receive grants to help with immediate needs. Disaster relief assistance is one payment per household.
Members who are directly affected by the tornado can contact Foresters toll-free at 800 828 1540 between the hours of 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. EST, Monday to Friday, or e-mail Foresters at service@foresters.com.


text:
Filed under: Weekly Wraps — Tags: Liverpool, Manchester City — dannymcginlay @ 2:12 pm
Filed under: Weekly Wraps — Tags: Atletico Madrid, Brisbane Roar, Champions League Final, Grand Final, Liverpool, Manchester City, Real Madrid, Western Sydney Wanderers — dannymcginlay @ 12:07 pm
So, being a new Dad takes up a lot of time! Thankfully there's only one more week of club football for the season. So I'll attempt to write an update for you all.
Brisbane Roar defeated Western Sydney Wanderers to win the A-League Grand Final. The Wanderers went 1-0 up in the second half but Besart Berisha equalized with minutes to spare. Then, in injury time, Henrique put the Queenslanders in front 2-1. Berisha is now hated by all clubs, as he is leaving Brisbane to join Melbourne Victory, where he and Kevin Muscat will battle it out for the title of most despised man in Australian soccer. Events include punching kittens, climate change denying and writing more "I bought a Jeep" commercials.
In England it all boils down to the last week. Manchester City and Liverpool are both locked in equal first place with 80 points each with two matches to spare.
If they both win, then City claim the title as they have a superior goal difference [unless of course Liverpool wins one of it's matches 10-0]. It's extremely tense: Manchester v Liverpool. Money vs History. Blue vs Red. We hate United vs We hate United more…
Tomorrow Morning 5am EST – Crystal Palace v Liverpool
Wednesday Morning 4.45am EST – Manchester City v Aston Villa
Sunday night midnight [technically Monday morning, don't be a pedant] – Liverpool v Newcastle, Manchester City v West Ham United.
There's other matches on as well but trust me, nobody really cares. Sunderland, West Brom & Norwich are trying to avoid relegation… yeah I thought so.
Oh – the Champions League final is Real Madrid v Atletico Madrid. The Aristocrats vs The Rebels! Go Atletico! Even though Real does stuff like this: [Goal of the Week]
7th April, 2014
Filed under: Weekly Wraps — Tags: A-League Finals, Liverpool, Manchester City, Raith Rovers — dannymcginlay @ 12:43 pm
The A-League has one week left of the regular season. In a league of 10 teams it is a bit daft to have 6 finals places but that's what we have. I'll do my best explain the best and worst case scenarios for all the clubs.
Brisbane Roar – Guaranteed a week off and a place in the semi finals, no matter what else happens. So their situation is as dull as their defence tactics.
Western Sydney Wanderers – If they beat Melbourne Heart they will secure 2nd place and a week's rest. If they lose and Victory, Mariners, Adelaide and Sydney all win they could drop down to 6th. Pretty insane, huh?
Central Coast Mariners – Similar to the Wanderers, if they win and the Wanderers don't that's 2nd place stitched up for them! If they lose and Victory, Adelaide and Sydney all win they could drop to 6th.
Adelaide United – Could finish second if the results go their way… actually this is getting repetitive. Now that I think about it all the teams could finish 2nd and 6th. Newcastle could sneak into 6th if they slaughter Adelaide and Sydney loses to Perth. But that's probably unlikely.
This is one of the most exciting season finishes in A-League history. The mainstream media might even report on it, unless of course James Hird gets a haircut then obviously that takes precedence.
Here's how the A-League Finals work.
Week One – Elimination Finals
3rd v 6th, 4th v 5th,
1st and 2nd get a week off.
1st vs winners of one of the Elimination Finals
2nd vs the other winner
Grand Final
Good luck to your team! Unless of course your team is Brisbane, Western Sydney, Central Coast, Adelaide or Sydney. Then I hope you lose.
Things in England are equally exciting! Each team has about five matches left and it's down to a three horse race! Liverpool, Chelsea and Manchester City. Next Sunday, 10.30pm Eastern Australian time is what could be the title decider – Liverpool v Manchester City. I try to avoid hyperbole [even thought I am better at hyperbole than everyone else in the world!] but this is the biggest match of the year!
Which means it will probably be a disappointing 0-0 draw.
But the greatest 0-0 draw in the history of the universe!
Goal of the Week
Filed under: Weekly Wraps — Tags: Alessandro Del Piero, Asian Cup, Bayern Munich, Celtic, Del Piero, Juventus, Liverpool, Marcos Flores, Mile Sterjovski — dannymcginlay @ 11:32 am
Liverpool are top of the league with eight matches remaining! All the results went the way of the Reds over the weekend with Chelsea losing to Crystal Palace, and Arsenal and Manchester City drawing. Liverpool haven't won the English league since 1990. After the defeating Tottenham 4-0 last night Reds manager Brendan Rodgers claimed it was an honour to be in charge of such a big club as Liverpool has "an army of 533 million supporters throughout the world". Meaning 1 in 13 people globally supports the Merseyside team. So if you notice your neighbourhood getting a bit jittery, it's only because about 8% of the entire planet is so excited about Liverpool. Seems unlikely, maybe he's banking on anecdotal evidence that all dogs support Liverpool.
There were some big name departures in the A-League this week, notably the retirement of Harry Kewell, but also Marcos Flores and Mile Sterjovski who is retiring to focus on finding a consensus on how to pronounce his surname. Alessandro Del Piero's future at Sydney FC is still up in the air. When questioned about whether he'd be at the club next year Del Piero merely mumbled something about being to too tired and would give an answer after he had slept on his solid gold futon.
The Asian Cup Finals were drawn on Wednesday night – Australia will be taking on traditional rivals Kuwait, South Korea and Oman. There is one final spot up for grabs remaining in the tournament. The eligible teams are: Maldives, Afghanistan, Myanmar, Palestine, Laos, Kyrgyzstan, Philippines and Turkmenistan. Already Rupert Murdoch is using his influence to ensure Laos get through so News Limited's sub-editors can have a field day with Laos-sy headlines.
Germany and Scotland have their rather predictable champions!! Bayern Munich and Celtic have won the respective silverware in both countries and both celebrated with their trademark cuisines. In Bayern the beer flowed and schnitzels, sausages and pretzels were enjoyed by all, and in Scotland the Celtic fans got wasted on cheap whisky then deep fried the trophy.
Juventus are about to win the Italian league. A nice man has informed me this is a good thing, he was so happy about it he didn't have time to tell me in person, just attached it to a brick and threw it through the window of my bedroom.
Goal of the Week from the Superclasico!!! {Boca Juniors v River Plate}
St Patrick's Day, 2014
Filed under: Weekly Wraps — Tags: Arsenal, Barcelona, Besart Berisha, David Moyes, Liverpool, Manchester United, Osasuna, Tottenham, West Ham — dannymcginlay @ 12:23 pm
Even though we are coming to the very pointy end of the A-League season, with finals places still up for grabs, the talk is all about one man and one incident – Besart Berisha. The Albanian striker opened up the scoring in Brisbane Roar's 1-1 draw with Sydney. That's not the issue, that's what he's paid for. The issue came twenty minutes later when he ninja kicked Seb Ryall. Seriously, he jumped with both heels up in a very dangerous tackle, then writhed in agony on the ground in a performance that even Ashton Kutcher would have deemed terrible. Brisbane fans don't have to worry though, as Berisha is on his way to Melbourne Victory next year, where his dangerous tackles and horrible personality will make him Kevin Muscat's favourite.
Leo Messi was his usual amazing self, scoring a hat trick for Barcelona in their 7-0 thrashing of Osasuna. Barca are still trailing both the Madrid teams in La Liga but if Messi continues this run of form then Barca will be back on top Osasuna rather than later.
[I'm really sorry]
Last night Liverpool beat Manchester United 3-0. Arsenal beat Tottenham 1-0. For both United and Spurs it was classic nightmare stuff. David Moyes was seen checking if he was wearing clothes. He was. It was all too real – the loss to their rivals, Alex Ferguson scowling from the stands, and of course the fact that he is one of the most hated men in football at the moment. Thankfully he is living in Manchester so he won't actually meet many United fans.
The Premier League is really a four horse race now. Chelsea, Liverpool, Arsenal and Manchester City could all claim the title. Who do you want to win? Check the poll below! Personally I have no allegiance in the EPL* [I support Celtic] so I'm curious as to whom the general public wants to win.
*I used to live near West Ham so officially that's my team, but I'm not that passionate about them. As an Australian with Scottish and Irish parents it's against my DNA to cheer an English sports team.
Filed under: Weekly Wraps — Tags: Arsenal, Barcelona, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City, Melbourne Heart, Sheffield United, Sheffield Wednesday, Socceroos — dannymcginlay @ 1:50 pm
It was FA Cup weekend in England so only a sixteen teams played but it included some big familiar names. Arsenal got a small amount of revenge on Liverpool defeating them 2-1 at Emirates Stadium. Manchester City knocked out fellow cash cow Chelsea, proving that Arabian oil is stronger than Russian gas. The interesting thing is we could have a Steel City Derby in the quarter finals. Sheffield United will play the winner of Charlton Athletic vs Sheffield Wednesday. This blogger doesn't know any Sheffield fans of either team but my research has shown me that a famous Sheffield United supporter is Sean Bean, which means somehow they must be the villains of the piece. Go Wednesday!
Melbourne Heart continued their run of great form, recording their highest ever win, thumping Wellington Phoenix 5-0! David Williams scored a hat trick, which is another first for Heart. The A-League's cashed up underdogs have won four of their last five matches which has seen them climb up the ladder to… remain in last place. They could leapfrog Perth if they defeat ladder leaders Brisbane next Sunday. But that's highly unlikely.
The Socceroos launched their world cup kit this morning – here it is:
http://www.footballaustralia.com.au/news-display/2014-socceroos-team-kit-revealed/86266
The logic clearly being the more we look like Brazil the more chance we will play like them. Or perhaps we're hoping short sighted football fans will watch us thinking we're Brazil so we get more ratings? Who knows? I know I'm not a fan of a collar on a football strip. Unless we play one match with ties, then thats fine.
This Wednesday Barcelona v Manchester City promises to be a very entertaining match. Cashed up English vs The soul of Catalonia. Is it enough for me to get up at 6.30am to watch? Hell no, I've got a baby coming in two months, I need all the sleep I can get. I'll tape it and watch when I get up. What are you mental?
Goal of the week – from Saturday night's Asian Champions League. Despite this amazing goal Melbourne Victory won!
Filed under: Weekly Wraps — Tags: Bournemouth, Liverpool, Manchester City, Melbourne Heart, Melbourne Victory, Perth Glory — dannymcginlay @ 9:48 am
As I wait to board a plane to Perth for a week of gigs, I remember that I've not updated you all with what's happened in the world of the round ball.
Frankly it's been a shitty week. Melbourne Victory got thumped 5-0 again, local rivals Heart got bought by Manchester City with their bottomless pits of money and because the FA Cup was on the most interesting match in England was Liverpool beat Bournemouth.
This week should be better with top placed Brisbane playing 3rd placed Mariners in the A-league and a Merseyside derby in England plus Juve v Inter Milan in Italy.
I myself will be in the away support at Perth Glory v Melbourne Victory crossing every appendage that Kevin Muscat learns how to coach a side.
Tune in Monday for my reports on all of these! Gotta fly!
Filed under: Weekly Wraps — Tags: Andres Villas boas, Arsenal, Brisbane Roar, Liverpool, Manchester City, Tottenham Hotspur, West Bromwich Albion — dannymcginlay @ 1:12 pm
As the majority of teams in the A-League go about the business of confusing the shite out of punters by losing games they should win and vice-versa. Brisbane Roar has been grinding out solid wins over the past month and suddenly have a five point gap on second place Western Sydney Wanderers. The majority of these matches have been won by a solitary goal. Positive football fans would say that Roar is implementing inspired Mourinho style tactics to achieve victory, but most of us would agree they're boring the other teams to sleep.
The big match overnight was Liverpool thumping Tottenham Hotspur 5-0, putting the Reds in second place on the EPL ladder and placing Spurs manager Andres Villas-Boas under intense pressure to resign. Tottenham fans took to social media demanding @AVB leave the club immediately. Sadly @AVB is the twitter handle of Ashley Van Buren, a musical theatre fan from New York City. Ashley responded to angry Spurs fans with musical lyrics. Including a certain song from Carousel that Liverpool fans know quite well.
Andres Villas Boas could go for the job of manager of West Bromwich Albion after they sacked Steve Clarke after four straight losses. Australia's West Brom fans were shocked until they remembered they were actually West Ham fans and went back to checking facebook.
Saturday night saw one of the matches of the season when Manchester City defeated Arsenal 6-3. Gunners fans are claiming that the referee got several offside decisions wrong. This blogger has watched several replays using slow motion and a protractor and I can honestly say they have a case and should have lost 6-4. Maintain the rage!
Goal of the Week – Gary Hooper from Norwich
Filed under: Weekly Wraps — Tags: Brisbane Roar, Everton, Liverpool, Manchester City, Socceroos, Tottenham Hotspur, Western Sydney Wanderers — dannymcginlay @ 12:45 pm
The Football Bluff is back after a two week hiatus due to me being off mainland Australia, which makes it hard to watch football and get a decent coffee.
It was a good week for the lazy journalists of Australia. Firstly, Lucas Neill abused the Socceroos fans who booed him in the friendly against Costa Rica, which meant the media could re-hash the standard is-he-fit-for-captaincy malarkey. Secondly, the top two teams in the A-League played each other on Friday night, meaning they could constantly call it a "Grand Final Preview". Brisbane Roar defeated Western Sydney Wanderers 3-1 with some pretty sweet goals. I guess that means the A-League is wrapped up then? Hand the trophy to Roar and we can focus on The Ashes and how great Tony Abbott is?
If you're a Tottenham fan you might be keen for all football to disappear for the rest of forever. Spurs were smashed 6-0 by a clinical Manchester City last night. The first goal came within fifteen seconds, and the sixth came with fifteen seconds to go. So if you don't count those 30 seconds it's only a 4-0 loss. That's something right? Sadly for Spurs, it is.
The Merseyside Derby on Saturday night was an absolute classic. Liverpool led 1-0, then Everton equalised. Liverpool led 2-1, Everton equalised again, then Everton took the lead 3-2 with a minute to go, then Liverpool equalised with seconds to spare. I realize this match report is a little simple, but I'm hoping to cover next year's World Cup for the Herald Sun.
Speaking of the World Cup – this is who's playing and why Australia will beat all of them:
Uruguay – We beat them seven years ago.
Mexico – They just played New Zealand and will think we're as bad as them.
France – Beat us 6-0. But that was pre-Ange. We're a much better side now. Seven goals better.
Portugal – Cristiano Ronaldo has never scored against Australia. He's our bunny.
Croatia – They're still scared of us after 2006 World Cup.
Greece – We can bribe them to lose as long as we pay cash.
Algeria – Teams that come before us alphabetically are always overconfident.
Ghana – Could only draw with us in last world cup and that was with a horrible ref.
Cameroon – Their oldest player is 32. Our oldest player is 34. Mere children.
Ivory Coast – Beyond mismanagement. They keep some loser called Didier Drogba in the squad but not Melbourne Victory legend Adama Traore.
Nigeria – Conceded a goal against Tahiti during Confederation's Cup.
Honduras – National team's nickname is "La H" which means, "The H" – a slang term for heroin.
Ecuador – This country can't even decide which hemisphere it's in, let alone how to play Australia.
Chile – Their captain is named Claudio Bravo. Clearly a fake name to try and throw us. Desperate tactics mean they must be rubbish.
Spain – They won last time. They're bored by winning.
England – All we have to do is bring Mitchell Johnson and they'll panic
Bosnia & Herzegovina – Their first major tournament. It's rude to win first go.
Russia – Are hosting the next one. They're focusing on that one.
Colombia – Only care about beating Ecuador and Argentina. Will not mind Australia defeating them.
Germany – According to the USA government Angela Merkel reckons they won't do as well.
Switzerland – Will be too busy watching the clocks. Their fans are quite neutral.
Belgium – Only got one vote at Eurovision this year. They are a broken country.
Argentina – The tournament is in Brazil. Someone will give them food poisoning.
USA – The Americans are down on their team as nobody has scored a touchdown this year.
Costa Rica – We beat them on Tuesday.
Italy – We will want revenge for the diving cheat Fabio Grosso in 2006.
Netherlands – Haven't recovered from losing the 2010 final.
South Korea – We beat them in the Asian Cup.
Iran – Lost to Uzbekistan, which is like losing to Narnia.
Japan – They beat us in Asian Cups, we beat them in World Cups. That's the deal.
Brazil – As host nation they haven't played any qualifiers. Will be unfit.
So there you have it folks – Australia 2014 World Cup Champions!!
Filed under: Weekly Wraps — Tags: Arsenal, Atletico Madrid, Benfica, Chelsea, Fc Twente, Inverness Caledonian Thistle, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United, Monaco, Porto, PSV Eindhoven, Real Madrid, Roma, Tottenham Hotspur — dannymcginlay @ 12:36 pm
With the oval shaped football season finishing in Australia, people will slowly be realizing that the round ball game is happening in Europe, and things are certainly getting interesting over that side of the planet. In England, both Manchester teams are playing really badly with United losing to West Brom at home on Saturday night. Normally that would be cause for great celebration for Man City, but they were beaten 3-2 by Aston Villa. Now it's easy to pick on the struggling teams, not to mention fun, but who's playing well?
Tottenham – who bought a cavalcade of great player on the off season.
Arsenal – who only bought one.
Chelsea – who bought in some great kids and of course, Bond villain manager Jose Mourinho.
And finally Liverpool – who are setting themselves up for their traditional good start to a season then choking magnificently against the struggling clubs. Sadly for Liverpool though, it looks like the struggling club this year will be their arch rivals from Manchester.
In Scotland the ladder is topped by Inverness Caledonian Thistle, usually only famous for being the home of Scotland's biggest celebrities, Nessie and James Bond.
In Italy, perennial underachievers Roma sit at the top of the table, what's next? A Pope that embraces homosexuality? Oh.
In Spain the Madrid derby was played out on Saturday night and Atletico upset Real 1-0! In the French leagues, Monaco are playing exciting attacking football, FC Twente and PSV Eindhoven are making the Dutch league a great contest, Porto and Benfica are taking the Portuguese title down to the wire it is all happening! Such a pity daylight savings starts this week and now all games will be played at stupid o'clock and Australians will lose all interest.


This week, Savvy Psychologist Dr. Ellen Hendriksen explains what news overload is doing to us and how to take control.
I'm giving away my non-millennial age here, but remember when the internet was new and experts crowed about how much less time we'd spend searching out information and how much more time we'd spend, say, relaxing at the beach with our families? Easy access to news and information was supposed to save our time and sanity. Turns out… not so much.
Instead, the internet, a 24-hour news cycle, smartphones, and an unprecedented political climate are all conspiring to make us feel lousy. This week, regardless of your political leanings, we'll break down four problems with today's news and three things you can do to save your sanity.


Matt Yardley, Partner at Analysys Mason, will present on 'Options for the future of the UK's broadband infrastructure – an overview of responses to the consultation' at the Westminster eForum on 28 June 2018.
This seminar will be a timely opportunity to discuss the future of UK telecoms infrastructure in light of the UK Government's Future Telecoms Infrastructure Review.
Delegates will assess key perspectives brought out in response to the Review, with discussion expected to revolve around the best route to ultrafast broadband, what are the optimal market structures and investment models to support delivery, the roles of different providers, and how might the regulatory framework need to develop.
The agenda includes an overview of progress and next steps for the UK's broadband infrastructure and of responses to the consultation; assessment of the models for investment in UK digital infrastructure; discussion on the framework for regulation to deliver the UK's broadband infrastructure of the future; and a session on implications for policy.
For more information about the event go to the Westminster eForum website.