text:
Tag: learning languages
House-mine = House-your.
Learning a language is a great way to open a window into a different culture, to understand your mother tongue from a fresh perspective. The words you are presently reading are descendants of an ancient family of languages known as Proto-Indo-European (PIE). My first second language, German, is as ancient a member of PIE as Persian — Persian adopted the Arabic alphabet but it retains heritage in the PIE family. Persian did not adopt the root system, the engine that drives the Afro-Asian family. Farsi looks like Arabic but reads like Gellerese.
Taking a Safari — a post I published more than three years ago, examines how the root system operates in Arabic.
Russian gets along just fine without the aid of a definite article: "the" in English or "der, die, das, den, des… in German, for example. Arabic adds a definite article to noun modifiers as well — a dozen or so diacritical marks provide an absolutely extraordinary level of finesse, making the definite even more specific.
Two indispensable verbs in the PIE family are "to be" and "to have." Arabic uses neither. That does not mean that existence and possession do not occur, the language just uses different means to express them.
Mi casa es su casa / بيتي بيتك (bayti baytik) / House-mine (=) House-your. Possession in Arabic is expressed by adding a suffix to a noun rather than a possessive pronoun.
My house is yours
Arabic nouns take on two genders, masculine and feminine. 99.9% of feminine nouns end in what they call a ta marbuta. German has three genders and four cases. Surprisingly, Arabic grammar is far (about a lightyear) more intuitive and logically structured than German. I became functionally illiterate in Arabic when I failed to realize that much of its grammar is contained in the script itself. English, Latin, and German (I learned them in that order) are members of the PIE family. I now consider Latin a language constructed with a chisel to stone in mind. Roman numerals are even more cumbersome. Fortunately, a marvelous mosque in my area is presently making the language available for recalcitrant learners (such as myself) to reinforce a much crumbling foundation. Zoom meetings allow us to carry on during a pandemic.
Become very familiar with the script and those dozen or so diacritical marks and you are 90% of the way there. IMO anyway.
'Ta' Marbouta' campaign spreads message of female empowerment
Author Bill ZieglerPosted on May 3, 2020 October 26, 2020 Categories arabic, German, languageTags afro-asian languages, arabic script, learning languages, proto-indo-european, settler colonialism14 Comments on House-mine = House-your.


text:
Insights from Quadrant
University, looniversity
Back in 2009, Southern Cross University's Nicole Rogers, a founder of its law school, thought deeply about climate change and what society might be forced to accept as the mercury soars. Her paper, Law and liberty in a time of climate change, came to this conclusion (emphasis added):
I have argued that taking effective action on climate change will impinge upon fundamental freedoms and possibly threaten the rule of law. It may alter the shape and functioning of our democratic institutions. It may require strong, even authoritarian, leadership, rationing and considerable sacrifice. There is, however, no easy way to avoid this.
We have been warned by a large number of the world's most eminent scientists that failing to act, or negotiating only tokenistic emission cuts, will inevitably lead to runaway climate change. A war on climate change may be unpalatable and unacceptable for climate change sceptics, industry, and liberal thinkers but the alternative is much, much worse. It seems highly probable that unless we conduct an effective war on climate change, we will end up at war with each other on an increasingly uninhabitable planet, protecting our borders from a constant influx of desperate refugees while grappling with drought, famine, fires and floods.
And in such a world, in the worst of possible futures, rhetoric about human rights and the rule of law will have little relevance.
A decade later, that yen for green jackboots has not been fulfilled, but love of Gaia remains strong amongst SCU's leaders. While googling information on the university's pro-active climateering, a post on a warmist thread came to light which lauded Vice-Chancellor Adam Shoemaker's latest climate-change alarum. A quick email to the university and the full text, reproduced below, arrived within minutes:
Dear Colleagues
As I write, smoke haze from unseasonably early bushfires around Drake near Tenterfield blankets the sky. Just last week we saw the devastation of Cyclone Dorian, cutting a swathe through the Bahamas and affecting communities as far north as Nova Scotia. Meanwhile, unprecedented floods in Spain are occurring at the same that the Amazon rainforest is still on fire.
The weight of lived and scientific evidence points to the fact that we are facing a global ecological and climate crisis.
For all of these reasons, and together with all members of the executive, we support those participating in the worldwide, global action highlighting and combatting the climate crisis – which takes place on Friday 20 September. As an institution dedicated to freedom of intellectual enquiry (as per our founding Act) we have resolved that any staff member or student who wishes to do so will not be placed at a disadvantage and we will not stand in the way of their attendance. Academic arrangements will be made to cater for any teaching or assessment over that period to ensure that no-one will be adversely impacted.
At the same time, as previously announced, on Friday 27 September we will inaugurate our initial Green Gloves Day – open to all staff, students, and members of the Southern Cross family. It is a tangible example of our voluntary commitment to enhance our beautiful Lismore campus rainforest environment by pruning, removing invasive species of plants, and planting koala-friendly trees in the vicinity of the lake.
Professor Adam Shoemaker
Vice-Chancellor and President
If only Ms Rogers' speculation about the need for "authoritarian leadership" had come to pass, Professor Shoemaker could have ordered staff and students to skip their studies for protesting and planting koala fodder.
Give 'em time, give 'em time.
— roger franklin
Plane wrong
Identifying Turnbull
OzCouncil: Blacklists are fine

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


How are you going to continue the tradition of support for Jackson Prep? Give your time and your energy as well as your support monetarily, and together we can make the future great. We encourage you to support these efforts by giving online using the form below. Thank you!


text:
Elena Barraquer Compte (Barcelona, 30 de mayo de 1954) es una oftalmóloga española especializada en cirugía de catarata y trasplante de córnea. En 2012 fue reconocida con la Medalla de Honor de Barcelona y en 2018 fue reconocida con el premio Queen Sophia Spanish Institute en su categoría de Premios a la excelencia. En 2017 creó la Fundación Elena Barraquer para continuar con las expediciones a África para operar cataratas que venía realizando desde 2004 cuando se creó la Fundación Barraquer.

Biografía
Nacida en Barcelona en el seno de una familia de tradición médica e investigadora, pertenece a la cuarta generación de oftalmólogos. Su padre es el profesor Joaquín Barraquer Moner. Es nieta de Ignacio Barraquer especialmente conocido por sus avances en cirugía de cataratas y bisnieta de José Antonio Barraquer Roviralta, fundador en 1903 de la Sociedad de Oftalmológica de Barcelona y el primer catedrático de oftalmología de España en 1914. Su hermano Rafael Ignacio Barraquer Compte se dedica también a la misma especialidad.

Se licenció en Medicina y Cirugía por la Universidad Autónoma de Barcelona en 1977. Realizó sus prácticas en el Hospital Universitario Vall Hebrón de Barcelona donde logró en 1978 una beca para especializarse en el National Eye Institute perteneciente al National Institutes of Health de Bethesda, Maryland, EE. UU. Durante dos años estuvo trabajando en la investigación de cultivos del epitelio pigmentario de la retina y su aplicación en diversas patologías. Posteriormente se incorporó como Fellow en patología ocular en el Wilmer Eye Institute del Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions de Baltimore. Allí estuvo trabajando en el laboratorio del Profesor W. Richard Green desde 1980 hasta 1983.

Su formación en Estados Unidos continuó, una vez obtenida la convalidación del título de médico (ECFMG) con un año de medicina interna en el Sinai Hospital de Baltimore, de 1983 a 1984. Esto le permitió el acceso a la especialización profesional estadounidense, equivalente al MIR español. Durante tres años, de 1984 a 1987, se formó como médica residente en oftalmología en el Massachusetts Eye & Ear Infirmary, de la Universidad de Harvard en Boston.

Al finalizar su residenció entró como Fellow en el Departamento de Córnea y Superficie Ocular del Bascom Palmer Eye Institute en Miami, donde permaneció desde 1987 hasta 1989, dando por acabado su periodo formativo. En este centro participó activamente en las investigaciones para el desarrollo del láser Excimer LASIK que actualmente se utiliza para la cirugía refractiva de la miopía, hipermetropía y astigmatismo.

Tras once años viviendo en EE. UU. se casó con un oftalmólogo italiano y se trasladó a Turín donde desde 1989 hasta 2002 ejerció de oftalmóloga-cirujana jefe en el Studio Médico Associato Barraquer Bosio.  En 2002 regresó a Barcelona donde asumió el cargo de Directora Médica Adjunta del Centro de Oftalmología Barraquer y coordinadora de atención al paciente.

En 2004 cuando su padre, su hermano y ella crearon la Fundación Barraquer, Elena asumió la dirección ejecutiva del Programa de Cooperación Internacional. Durante más de una década realizó expediciones médicas a África para eliminar la niebla del cristalino a casi un millar de pacientes. En 2016 murió su padre y tras discrepancias con su hermano Rafael Ignacio Barraquer Compte, actual director de la clínica oftalmológica y presidente del patronato de la Fundación Barraquer por el cambio de línea de la fundación decidió crear su propia fundación, la Fundación Elena Barraquer, presentada en septiembre de 2017 para continuar con su empeño de promover y ejecutar expediciones quirúrgicas a países africanos, dedicadas a operar de cataratas a poblaciones con pocos o ningún recurso sanitario.

Su especialidad es la oftalmología clínica de córnea, cristalino y la superficie ocular. En cirugía destaca su labor en la cirugía de la catarata, siendo pionera en la introducción en España de los primeros lentes intraoculares (LIO) en cámara posterior y de la  extracción extracapsular de la catarata. Actualmente lidera la inclusión de lentes intraoculares multifocales.

Premios y reconocimientos

La Clau de Barcelona. Club d´Amics  Clau de Barcelona.2009

Medalla de Plata al Mérito de Barcelona. Ayuntamiento de la Ciudad. Guardia Urbana. 2011

Honorary Degree. ESERP (Barcelona School of Business and Social Sciences). 2012

Cruz al Mérito Policial. 2012

Medalla de Honor de Barcelona 2012. Excmo. Ayuntamiento de Barcelona.

Premio Traveler. Viajero del año 2013. Editorial Conde Nast.

Premio Alegría de Vivir. 2013

Premio Paul Harris-Rotary Club. 2013

Encomienda de Isabel la Católica. 2014

Premios Internacionales Puentes del Mundo, Embajador Social. 2014

Confraria  Gastronòmica del Cargol. Membre Confrare. 2014

Una de las Top 100 Mujeres Líderes en España en la categoría de Tercer Sector.  2013, 2014, 2015 y 2016 (honoraria)

Premio Vogue. Personaje Joya. 2015

Premio FIDEM. Donna Emprendedora. 2015

Premio En Positivo, líder del cambio social. 2015

Reconocimiento del Ministerio de Salud Pública de República Dominicana. 2015

Premio Ciudadano Europeo. 2015.

Dastgheib Pioneer Award in Ocular Innovation. Duke University. 2016

Medalla de Oro de la Cruz Roja. 2017

Premio CODESPA a Pyme Solidaria. 2017

Sophia Award of Excellence 2018

Empresa ZEN Solidaria 2018

Entre las 500 mujeres más influyentes de España. 2017-2018-2019

Ranking Forbes "Mejores Especialistas de España". 2017-2018-2019

The American Society of Cataract and refractive Surgery Foundation award for outstanding honorable efforts, to provide humanitarian eye care in the area of cataract bidness. 2019

Referencias

Enlaces externos
 Centro de Oftalmología Barraquer
 Fundación Elena Barraquer

Alumnos de Medicina de la Universidad Autónoma de Barcelona
Oftalmólogos de España del siglo XX
Médicas de España
Científicas de España del siglo XXI
Nacidos en Barcelona
Médicos de España del siglo XX

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
Authors To Watch
K.D. Alden
Karen Dean Benson
Mary Burton
Melinda Curtis
Barbara Davis
Julia Day
Sue Ward Drake
Jennifer Estep
A.S. Fenichel
Traci Hall
Nancy Herkness
Molly Jebber
Jade Lee
Jodi Linton
Kathy Lyons
Janna MacGregor
Donna Michaels
Jan Moran
Marta Perry
Kwei Quartey
Terri Reed
Gerhardt Roberts
Kym Roberts
Julie Rowe
Laura Joh Rowland
Jeffrey Siger
Jennifer Snow
Mary Ellen Taylor
Rebecca Zanetti
Fresh Fiction Blog
Get to Know Your Favorite Authors
Jennifer Vido | Jen's Jewels: CLEO MCDOUGAL REGRETS NOTHING by Allison Winn Scotch
Cleo McDougal Regrets Nothing
Allison Winn Scotch
On Sale: August 1, 2020
Kindle: B07YCNRCJ5
Paperback / e-Book / audiobook
Also by Allison Winn Scotch:
Cleo McDougal Regrets Nothing, August 2020
Between Me and You, January 2018
In Twenty Years, July 2016
The Theory Of Opposites, November 2013
Jen: What inspired you to write Cleo McDougal Regrets Nothing?
Allison: Well, I wanted to write something that reflected how it feels to be a woman in this particular moment in history and time. I tried a different approach with a different manuscript – I rewrote about 100 pages of that book several times, and it just wasn't working. I knew what I wanted to say, but I wasn't quite sure how to get there. Then, as good ideas often do, the version of Cleo, the Senator, struck me one night, and from there, I looked for an interesting way to examine her life. Not as a politician, but as a human, and I settled on exploring her regrets, which wasn't an approach I'd ever read. And thus, Cleo McDougal, unapologetic Senator, was born.
What role does the word "power" play in relation to the story?
Oh great question! For me, this book is not about politics at all. I worked hard to ensure that. Rather, it is about power in all of its iterations, which is something that I think so many women are considering now too. Who has it, who abuses it, who gives it generously, who takes it selfishly, who never has the chance to grasp it. Power, fundamentally, is what so much of our current unrest is about. And I don't even mean "power" in a political way. There are so many ways to have or yield or abuse your power. In the workplace, sure, but in so many other ways too: in friendships, in love affairs, with your family, and even with yourself. So many of Cleo's choices throughout her life have been because of her relationship with power--if she had it, if she needed it, if she craved it, if she had been stripped of it--and that's really what I wanted to delve into.
How does Cleo McDougal react when her world comes tumbling down?
Ha. . . not well? Actually, because she is a woman who always puts in the work, I think her initial instinct is that of course she can just fix it. But as is true with so many thing in life, not everything has an easy solution, and in fact, many of those solutions are quite messy. With every step she takes to regain control, she steps further into that mess.
How do Cleo's relationships with those she loves most, especially her son, impact the challenges she faces?
Cleo spends a lot of her energy thinking she has built a life protecting her son, but what she has actually done is built a life that protects her. Her intentions are good ones, her execution is terrible. This is probably true for many of her relationships, in fact. She's not really interested in drama and blowing things up, but in her efforts to create the life she wants for herself, she has. I think a lot of us can relate to that, especially on the parenting front. Sometimes we make choices that in the moment seem like the best way to keep our child safe, protected, insulated, whatever, when, in fact, those choices do such things for the parents. The kids are going to be alright outside of the bubbles we put them in.
What do you hope readers will take away from this book?
Well, I'm hearing from early readers that it helped them feel a little bit less alone in their current discontent or more reassured that their current emotional state is one that many of us are feeling. Cleo is meant to represent a modern woman who is allowed to get angry, to be reactive, to stand up for herself, even if that means that she isn't as likeable as society would demand she be. There's power in that decision: to do what you want even if it means someone won't approve. So I hope that readers find their own power through her. I hope readers feel more comfortable no longer apologizing for themselves. I hope that we all learn to take up more space in the world.
What's the best way for readers to stay connected with you?
Twitter and Instagram! I'm on Facebook too but rarely use it, to be honest. But I'm active on Twitter and IG, and you can find me at @aswinn on both sites.
CLEO MCDOUGAL REGRETS NOTHING by Allison Winn Scotch
Politics is a test of wills in a sharp, funny, and emotional novel about truth and consequences by the New York Times bestselling author.
Cleo McDougal is a born politician. From congresswoman to senator, the magnetic, ambitious single mother now has her eye on the White House--always looking forward, never back. Until an estranged childhood friend shreds her in an op-ed hit piece gone viral.
With seven words--"Cleo McDougal is not a good person"--the presidential hopeful has gone from in control to damage control, and not just in Washington but in life.
Enter Cleo's "regrets list" of 233 and counting. Her chief of staff has a brilliant idea: pick the top ten, make amends during a media blitz, and repair her reputation. But there are regrets, and there are regrets: like her broken relationship with her sister, her affair with a law school professor…and the regret too big to even say out loud.
But with risk comes reward, and as Cleo makes both peace and amends with her past, she becomes more empowered than ever to tackle her career, confront the hypocrites out to destroy her, and open her heart to what matters most--one regret at a time.
Contemporary Women's Fiction [Lake Union, On Sale: August 1, 2020, Paperback / e-Book, ISBN: 9781542021227 / ]
Buy CLEO MCDOUGAL REGRETS NOTHING: Amazon.com | Kindle
| BN.com | Powell's Books | Books-A-Million | Indie BookShops | Ripped Bodice | Love's Sweet Arrow | Libro.fm | Audible
| Book Depository | Target.com | Amazon CA | Amazon UK | Amazon DE | Amazon FR
About Allison Winn Scotch
A New York Times bestselling author, Allison Winn Scotch has published Between You and Me, In Twenty Years (a Library Journal Best Books of 2016 selection), The Theory of Opposites, Time of My Life, The Department of Lost and Found, The One That I Want, and The Song Remains the Same. Her novels have been translated into twelve different languages. A freelance writer for many years, Allison has contributed to Brides, Family Circle, Fitness, Glamour, InStyle, Men's Health, Parents, Redbook, Self, Shape, and Women's Health. A cum laude graduate of the University of Pennsylvania, where she studied history and marketing, Winn Scotch now lives in Los Angeles, where she enjoys hiking, reading, running, yoga, and the company of her two dogs. . . when she's not "serving as an Uber service" for her kids. For more about the author, visit www.allisonwinn.com.
WEBSITE | TWITTER | FACEBOOK | GOODREADS | BOOKBUB | AMAZON | INSTAGRAM
About Jennifer Vido
Jennifer Vido is best known for her nationally syndicated Jen's Jewels author interview column. A savvy book blogger she dishes the scoop on the latest happenings in the publishing business. As a national spokesperson for the Arthritis Foundation, she has been featured by Lifetime Television, Redbook, Health Monitor, The New York Times, The Baltimore Sun, Healthguru.com, and Arthritis Today. She is the author of the Piper O'Donnell Mystery series. Currently, she lives in the Baltimore area with her husband and two sons.
WEBSITE | PINTEREST | AMAZON | GOODREADS | TWITTER | INSTAGRAM | BLOG


Human vs. Robot combat area! Balls for shooting are all over the place.
The 'dark room' illuminated with LED lightings to create an outer space feel for the kids while they bounce up and down.
Girly fun! Tall Barbie mansion with a rooftop jacuzzi, a baby doll and her cute lil' crib, mini kitchen and grill set complete with utensils, miniature cleaning set (mop, brush, vacuum cleaner) for domestic goddess in the making!
Parents, opt to chill with fine Italian cuppas at its Ho2T Cuppa House or choose from a variety of snacks and titbits available for purchase at the counter. If you have older kids who may be too 'grown up' for play land, head over to Ho2T Weekend (right next to the play land) for some Art, Invention or Robotic classes available from SG$ 45 - $75 per hour (non-member price).
Great selections of toys for different age groups.
Well organised play areas and divided play sections.
Chill out area for parents to enjoy drinks and snacks at an affordable price.
Relatively small area and cramped up space.
Not enough space to park the strollers inside.
One accompanying adult to one paying child only.
Only 1 staff handling the whole play land.
Labels: Country I live in: Singapore, Reviews: Yay or Nay?


Home » Healthy versus Entorhinal Cortical Atrophy Identification in Asymptomatic APOE4 Carriers at Risk for Alzheimer's Disease.
Healthy versus Entorhinal Cortical Atrophy Identification in Asymptomatic APOE4 Carriers at Risk for Alzheimer's Disease.
Title Healthy versus Entorhinal Cortical Atrophy Identification in Asymptomatic APOE4 Carriers at Risk for Alzheimer's Disease.
Early detection of Alzheimer's disease (AD) has been challenging as current biomarkers are invasive and costly. Strong predictors of future AD diagnosis include lower volume of the hippocampus and entorhinal cortex, as well as the ɛ4 allele of the Apolipoprotein E gene (APOE) gene. Therefore, studying functions that are critically mediated by the hippocampus and entorhinal cortex, such as spatial memory, in APOE ɛ4 allele carriers, may be key to the identification of individuals at risk of AD, prior to the manifestation of cognitive impairments. Using a virtual navigation task developed in-house, specifically designed to assess spatial versus non-spatial strategies, the current study is the first to differentiate functional and structural differences within APOE ɛ4 allele carriers. APOE ɛ4 allele carriers that predominantly use non-spatial strategies have decreased fMRI activity in the hippocampus and increased atrophy in the hippocampus, entorhinal cortex, and fimbria compared to APOE ɛ4 allele carriers who use spatial strategies. In contrast, APOE ɛ4 allele carriers who use spatial strategies have grey matter levels comparable to non-APOE ɛ4 allele carriers. Furthermore, in a leave-one-out analysis, grey matter in the entorhinal cortex could predict navigational strategy with 92% accuracy.


text:
Lynn Johnston's For Better or For Worse, the First and Last Years
For Better or For Worse could be so beautifully good, you'd take it for granted. It was a surety, like Peanuts being enjoyable or chocolate generally tasting good. Smarter than Calvin and Hobbes, better characterization than Mary Worth, cooler soap than Crankshaft or Funky Winkerbean. It was just always there. Lynn Johnston would balance the true to life with the truisms, the real people with the imaginary events, and it all seemed right.
That Your Wagon Over There, Ma'am?
What strikes me, looking a the 1979 strips, is how beautiful they look, how every panel counts, the balance of visuals, the line work. Johnston's avatar in the comic, Elly, looks amazing, whether dressed to the nines, beleaguered after a day of children, housework, and worry, or panicking with a face full of mask when her husband brings home company with no warning. That's a woman I could be. That we all can be, whether woman or man, regardless of race or class. She's such a genuine person, you could find yourself there.
The husband is a broader sketch. He's a broader sketch than the main character or any of the children. The children are individuals, and so too, is he, but he's there as something to bounce off, to react to. They're people.
By 2008, John is a person, too. But, our heroine has become everything. "I look at my flappy arms and my droopy buns, and I say, 'Yes, this is me!'! This is Meee This is Meee" she sings in one strip, dancing barefoot before standing, tummy sticking out, jowly, and thinks, "It still sucks to be me." The very next strip, she's being told that "We've earned our lines." That she was a great mom and is a grandparent now. Then, the series went back to reprinting from the first year again, giving further weight to those old strips, greater gravitas.
2008 For Better or For Worse glows for me, when the new strips' sense of age and passing reverberate new light on some of the earliest '79 strips' anxieties and ideologies. But, the art, too, shifting from the looser, wavy line to the short jaunting strokes and weighted curves of the new stuff, creates a friction that surpasses both. It makes it clear how home '79 strips are, how comforting and reassuring even with their anxiousness, because of the anxiousness, really. 2008, with paunch and optimism, condescension and fatalism, is a different beast. It's not being able to go home again, even if home is in the very next strip and the one the week before where you are.
The magic is lost, but the loss is its own important glamour.
The words, "His doctor thinks it's depression that makes him so… slow. I do what I can. But I can't bring back his ability to speak or to dance or to play guitar… His cup is half full. But he thinks it's empty —"
When someone has to say, "Elvis is not old! Charlie Chaplin is old. Flappers are old —"
When one grandmother says, "The world was on our shoulders," and the other looks down at her widened thighs and says, "Maybe that's why we're shaped like this —"
The comic goes back and forth between strips from both eras, about dishwashing and chores. John, the husband, doing chores in the present, and how Elly, our window and heroine, can't quite process it, intermixed with strips of her saying men and women should share the household duties to friends, and in private, her husband thanking her for "not telling them the truth." She even smiles when he says that, and he holds her. It was sharp back then, but given the weight of decades… maybe I should just drift off here.
Elly's daughter, Elizabeth, has her mother's old smirk. The smile of someone convincing themselves that they're smiling. But, Elizabeth has a real smile, too. A genuine smirk. And, it's climbing up through the artifice for it that strengthens the beauty and intensity of that reality.
The younger daughter, April, never needs that. She's neither her father nor her mother. But, the love and respect she has for her mom is awesome. She's smart, she's responsible. Even more than the little kid characters, April is the endgame. April is the future. Liz is getting a wedding dress, Elly is getting fed up with her husband (and throwing a glove at him in what is a pretty passive-aggressive condemnation), and April is just April. School, friends, family, running errands and most important of all things, she knows when to stay out of the way.
It begins with Elly and John. It ends with Liz and Anthony's marriage and Elly's father, Jim's second wife, Iris, explaining what marriage should mean. There's a coda and then it's over. The son barely shows, the final year, despite dominating the first. His story had gone beyond or gone away. And, Liz is Elly at a new angle, a new model of an old reliable. But, April, born only halfway through the whole run, is the bolt that holds the pageantry and sag of the final year aloft.
Featured In: For Better or For Worse, Lynn Johnston, Pop Medicine
The Importance of Being Frank (Miller), by Alan Mo...
The 80s Cartoon Character Voice Championships, Rou...
Lynn Johnston's For Better or For Worse, the First...
Is Spider-Man Still Marvel's Flagship Character?
EC Comics' Judgment Day - Simultaneously Outdated ...
Archie and The Art of Character Design
Reclaiming History: Len Wein
Mike Baron's The Flash: The Effects of Realism in ...
The Retcon Hall of Fame: Green Lantern Rebirth
They Own Slaves! The Uncomfortable Politics of the...
The Ballad of the Ivory Lass: Music in World-Build...
Having the Same Characters Is Not Enough


text:
Review of 'Walking with Spring' memoir of the first AT thru-hike
Walking with Spring by Earl V. Shaffer
I'm an old guy - Social Security retirement age. Yet Earl Shaffer accomplished what he called his 'Long Cruise' - the very first Appalachian Trail thru-hike - before I was born (but barely - I happened to be a fetus at the time). The year was 1948.
When you're the very first to do something there's a wall of uncertainty surrounding the endeavor that is hard to comprehend. The conventional wisdom among those involved with and knowledgeable about the Appalachian Trail at that time was that what Earl did was impossible. In fact many people refused to believe he had done it until he convinced them via personal interviews, during which he was grilled for trail details that only a hiker would know, and via testimonials of many 'witnesses' he had met along the way.
Earl and a friend had been making plans to hike the entire AT as far back as the 1930's, soon after the whole thing was finished. They lived not far from the trail in York, PA and they had gone on many backpacking trips along the trail near home. But then World War II came along. Earl found himself in combat in the South Pacific, and when he got back home he found the experiences hard to shake off. Worse, his friend did not return.
In the past few years there has been a burgeoning Veteran support group known as "Warrior Hike" that advocates that returning veterans 'Hike off the War' by doing an AT thru-hike. The participants find it very therapeutic--a good way to ease back into civilian life. Earl Shaffer was undoubtedly the first Warrior Hiker. It seems to me that he quietly dedicated his hike to his friend, and I believe this helped steel his resolve to finish, despite having to find his way through sections that had been neglected and unmaintained through the war, others that had been clear cut by loggers, and still others that had been rerouted without adequate marking. There was the 'Missing Link' between the Green Mountains of VT and New Hampshire's White Mountains where the trail barely existed at all.
Some of the early trail's shortcomings probably motivated Earl to want to help make the experience for other hikers better. After his hike, Earl went on to have a long distinguished career of service for the Trail. He knew most of the true legends, including Myron Avery and Benton MacKaye, to whom he dedicated his book. And it's a testimony to him that the publisher who opted to sign him was none other than the Apppalachian Trail Conference itself (now called the Appalachian Trail Conservancy).
Earl didn't write his book right away. It was first published privately in 1981, then picked up by ATC and made public in 1983. But during the 'Lone Expedition' as he also called it, he maintained a diary, and words from his 'Little Black Notebook' make frequent appearances in the final text.
Earl's writing style is down-to-earth, almost quaint in its old-fashioned simplicity, yet it rises to a standard of elegance and sophistication that many more recent trail memoirs are not able to match. Earl is a keen observer with a love for the history of the land, and he's a marvelous pastoral poet. The book is filled with well written verse and with descriptions of the country through which he was traveling. He describes elements of the human history of the land that I had not heard before despite my extensive reading about the trail. He covers the history of the inhabitants from pre-Columbian days, through early settlement, the civil war, to the then modern but now historic encounters with an amiable mountain man tilling his field with two mules and a walk-behind plow, a ride in a Model-A driven by a non-English-speaking Pennsylvania Dutch farmer, and Park Rangers who personally kept tabs on his progress and radioed the news north to their colleagues. His hike was a historic event, yet Earl's humble telling makes it feel personal and real. I especially delighted in his descriptions of places that I personally passed on my thru-hike in 2012--still there, still on the trail route after sixty four years.
As AT hiking memoirs go, this is one of the good ones--a must read.
Labels: Appalachian Trail Journal, Book Reviews
Dan January 15, 2014 at 4:44 AM
Sounds like a good one. I'll have to check it out.
Fe January 22, 2014 at 5:51 AM
There is nothing quite like getting up close and personal with nature to brush away cobwebs of all persuasions. This looks like a book I'll thoroughly enjoy. Thank you for the review...
Five essential elements of a successful novel plot
Review of The Invention of Wings, by Sue Monk Kidd
So you want to be a writer
Review of 'Walking with Spring' memoir of the firs...
Feminism and the Paradox of Free Will
Book Review: A House Near Luccoli, by D.M. Denton


text:
layout: data_model
title: ContributingSourcesType
this_version: 1.2
---

ContributingSourcesTypeSTIX Common Schema

      <form id="nav-version">
        <select>

            <option value="1.2" selected="selected">STIX 1.2</option>

            <option value="1.1.1" >STIX 1.1.1</option>

            <option value="1.1" >STIX 1.1</option>

        </select>
      </form>

        API support

Fields

      Field Name
      Type
      Description

      Source0..n

          InformationSourceType

The Source field contains information describing the identity, resources and timing of involvement for a single contributing Source.

This field is implemented through the xsi:type extension mechanism. The default type is CIQIdentity3.0InstanceType in the http://stix.mitre.org/extensions/Identity#CIQIdentity3.0-1 namespace. This type is defined in the extensions/identity/ciq_identity.xsd file or at the URL http://stix.mitre.org/XMLSchema/extensions/identity/ciq_identity/1.2/ciq_identity.xsd.

Those who wish to express a simple name may also do so by not specifying an xsi:type and using the Name field.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


The Red Brick Cottage brings you a number of primitive home décor items to complete the warm and welcoming atmosphere of your home. The farmhouse décor pieces may bring home the finishing touches you need for any room or help you change up your décor at any time.
Farmhouse and country décor makes your home warm and inviting for you and your family as well as your guests. Colonial antique replicas, patriotic banners, stars, lanterns, baskets and other items give you a versatile array of décor that you can mix and match to create new arrangements out of the same items. Whenever you want to add new pieces you can find everything that you need online at The Red Brick Cottage.
From elegant and simple to cute and loveable, patriotic, antique and more, you can find items to compliment your preferred décor. Click on any item to order online or visit The Red Brick Cottage to see even more.


The 2019 Global Dressage Festival (AGDF) will go on record as another successful season for Dr. Cesar Parra of Performance Farms.
Well known in the international dressage community for always having a stable full of happy talented horses, Parra continued to gracefully dance his way into the winners circle on some of the most willing equine athletes around. Most recently, Parra's success has been with the big, gorgeous Hanoverian gelding, Sir Beckmann (Sir Donnerhall x Witchita).
Bringing this young horse up through the ranks over the last few years has been a joy for Parra, and he feels Sir Beckmann is coming into his own. His outstanding performances in the FEI Tests for 7 year olds during Week 10 of AGDF showed off the pair's hard work.
"The horse felt really fantastic with such amazing gaits," Parra recalls about Sir Beckmann, "He did everything nice and clean overall. I am very, very pleased with him. I love him very much, and I'm looking forward to what he's going to bring in years to come," he adds.
Receiving gait scores of 9 on trot and 9 on canter, Sir Beckmann stepped up and made his rider proud. Parra describes that showing as a 7 year old can be challenging, but his horse was up to the task at hand.
Parra goes on to say that he is looking forward to bringing Sir Beckmann up further through the ranks as he matures.
Parra also says that he's added a little something extra to Sir Beckmann's training program. "I've been taking him on a lot of trail rides, which in the beginning was a little scary, but it's getting better and better!" he smiles.
The extra time, love and attention that Parra gives to all horses in his charge is consistent with his personal philosophy, as well as that of the classical training methods of Performance Farms. Parra's philosophies by which he conducts his life are discipline, courtesy, integrity, perseverance, self-control, sharing, and strength of character. These are the same qualities he tries to pass on to the students and staff who make up his team.
The Classical Training Methods are those taught by the old Masters and perfected by some modern-day riders. These Methods are based on the Training Scale: Relaxation, Rhythm, Contact, Impulsion, Straightness, Collection. (Losgelassenheit, Takt, Anlehnung, Schwung, Geraderichtung, Versammlung). This Training Scale is the foundation of the Classical System and of Parra's training philosophy.


Key West Conch - 14Karat - Neptune Designs - Custom Jeweler & Fine Jewelry Store in Key West, FL.
14 karat gold Key West Conch charm. The majority of our charms are cast and finished in-house by our expert goldsmiths. See scale for size reference.


text:
Turkey – AH-1W SUPER COBRA Attack Helicopters
Turkey_11-31.pdf
WASHINGTON, Oct. 28, 2011 – The Defense Security Cooperation Agency notified Congress today of a possible Foreign Military Sale to the Government of Turkey for three AH-1W SUPER COBRA Attack Helicopters and associated equipment, parts, training and logistical support for an estimated cost of $111 million.
The Government of Turkey has requested a possible sale of three AH-1W SUPER COBRA Attack Helicopters, seven T700-GE-401 engines (six installed and one spare), inspections and modifications, spare and repair parts, personnel training and training equipment, publications and technical documentation, U.S. Government and contractor engineering, technical, and logistics personnel support services, and other related elements of logistics support. The estimated cost is $111 million.
Turkey is a partner of the United States in ensuring peace and stability in the region. It is vital to the U.S. national interest to assist our North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) ally in developing and maintaining a strong and ready self-defense capability that will contribute to an acceptable military balance in the area. This proposed sale is consistent with those objectives.
The proposed sale will improve Turkey's capability for self defense, modernization, regional security, and interoperability with U.S. and other NATO members. AH-1W helicopters are already in the Turkish Land Forces Command inventory and will further enhance Turkey's ground defense capabilities. Turkey will have no difficulty absorbing these helicopters into its armed forces.
The proposed sale of these helicopters will not alter the basic military balance in the region or U.S. efforts to encourage a negotiated settlement in Cyprus.
There will be no prime contractor associated with this proposed sale. There are no known offset agreements proposed in connection with this potential sale.
Implementation of this proposed sale will require the assignment of approximately five contractor representatives to Turkey for a period of up to 90 days for differences training between U.S. and Turkish AH-1Ws helicopters.
These aircraft will be sold from the United States Marine Corps' (USMC) inventory. The effect on USMC readiness will be mitigated by the submission of a reprogramming action to return the sales proceeds from the U.S. Treasury's general receipts account to the USMC's H-1 upgrades program.
AH-1W SUPER COBRA Attack Helicopters
36(b) arms sale


text:
Q: AngularJS Inject Fallback I have a situation where sometimes I have locals passed into the controller and sometimes not.
What I'd like to be able to do is if the "locals" are not available, not throw exception and instead just call the Controller and leave locals == null.
.controller('SomeCtrl', ['$scope', 'locals', function ($scope, locals) {
  if (!locals) // do something
  else // do something else
};

In one case controllers are being created using the $controller service.  $controller('SomeCtrl', { locals: 'some locals');
But in other cases I have no control over how the controller is instantiated and the locals are not available.  I wish Angular would just pass undefined like normal javascript...
THIS ISN'T COOL:
Error: Unknown provider: localsProvider <- locals
    at Error (<anonymous>)
    at http://localhost:1573/Scripts/angular.js:2832:15
    at Object.getService [as get] (http://localhost:1573/Scripts/angular.js:2960:39)
    at http://localhost:1573/Scripts/angular.js:2837:45
    at getService (http://localhost:1573/Scripts/angular.js:2960:39)
    at invoke (http://localhost:1573/Scripts/angular.js:2978:13)
    at Object.instantiate (http://localhost:1573/Scripts/angular.js:3012:23)
    at $get (http://localhost:1573/Scripts/angular.js:4981:24)
    at http://localhost:1573/Scripts/angular.js:4560:17
    at forEach (http://localhost:1573/Scripts/angular.js:137:20)

A: It turns out you can just set 'locals' to undefined and it will use the correct locals if they are available.
angular.module('module').value('locals', undefined)

A: you can use the $injector service to inject dependencies.
.controller('SomeCtrl', ['$scope', '$injector', function ($scope, $injector) {
  try {
    service = $injector.get('locals');
  } catch {}
  if (!service) // do something
  else // do something else
};

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
Q: in prolog, how to remove permutations of a list from a list of lists Suppose I have a list of lists
L= [[1,2,3], [3,2,1],[2,1,2],[3,1,2], [1,2,2]].

as you can see, [1,2,3],[3,2,1] and [3,1,2] are permutations of each other.
[2,1,2] and [1,2,2] are also permutations of each other.
My goal is to remove all permutations of elements in the list.
the result list should be:
L'=[[1,2,3],[2,1,2]].

My idea so far is use member(X,L) to locate an element in the list, then use permutation(X,Xperm) to get a permutation of X, then check if Xperm
   is in L , and if so ,delete it.
However the result turns out not to be what I wanted.
Could anyone help me?

A: Last time I did anything with Prolog was over 20 years ago, so I don't remember anything Prolog specific.
However, if I were to do this in any functional-friendly language, I would sort all the sublists in the big list, and then remove all the duplicates.

A: One way to eliminate the duplicates is to use the standard recursive process for removing duplicates, but rather than checking equality directly through unification, change the code to try unifying sorted lists.
/* This is the regular duplicate elimination
   that sorts the head element before checking for duplicates
*/
remove_dups([],[]).
remove_dups([H|T], TT) :- msort(H,SH), contains_dup(SH,T), remove_dups(T, TT).
remove_dups([H|T], [H|TT]) :- msort(H,SH), \+ contains_dup(SH,T), remove_dups(T, TT).

/* This duplicate checker routine sorts the lists before trying to unify them */
contains_dup(_, []) :- fail.
contains_dup(SH, [H|_]) :- msort(H, SH).
contains_dup(SH, [_|T]) :- contains_dup(SH, T).

The code uses SWI's msort/2 predicate.
Here is a demo on ideone.


text:
Yachts and Airplanes for Me, Scurvy and Death for You
A short history of religious cultism in Maine told through the stories of three Baptist pastors
In 1893, Pastor 1 heard God tell him to start a Kingdom in Maine.
70 years later, Pastor 2 built an empire using Christian call-in radio.
30 years after that, Pastor 3 used a fleet of planes to reach his far-flung flock.
These three Maine pastors built churches, communes, communities, cults and Kingdoms on the backs of pious believers who were easily separated from their money. Through persuasion and fear, they grew their empires while occasionally running afoul of the law.
Faith in Maine through the Years
Currently, Maine is tied with Vermont as the least religious state in the U.S. But it wasn't always that way, and it certainly hasn't kept opportunistic men of faith from trying to amass a following.
Throughout Maine's history, various groups have established faith footholds in Maine. In 1649, the then colony of Maine passed legislation creating religious freedom for all citizens but only on the condition that those of "contrary" religious beliefs behave "acceptably." In the beginning there were Freewill Baptists, Quakers, Methodists, Universalists and Shakers. Today, the list includes Catholics, Protestants, Jehova's Witnesses, Jews, Muslims, Mormans and Hindus.
Some have indeed been able to "behave acceptably" by co-existing with those of different beliefs while others have struggled mightily. The traditional method was to build a church, preach on Sundays, and reach out to convince locals to join and support the new church. But others decided to go big and created entire communities where followers could live, work and pray together, isolated from the distractions (and pesky rules) of regular public life.
Shakers – the first Communes
Starting in the late 1700's, the Shakers established three such Utopian villages in Maine: the Alfred Shaker Village (1782-1931), the Sabbathday Lake Shaker Village in New Gloucester/Poland (1782-present) and the Gorham Shakers (1808-1819). The Sabbathday Lake Shaker Village was the most successful and is actually still in existence.
By 1850, Sabbathday had grown to a size of 1,900 acres comprising 26 large buildings.
Like most Shaker Villages, Sabbathday strove to be as self sufficient as possible and so it needed members proficient in various trades to support its growing membership. Shakers are also celibate and so must recruit new members or the village will slowly empty. It is the last active Shaker village in the country, with two (maybe three) members as of 2019, and you can visit the much smaller village today.
Up the road in Belfast, Phineas Parkhurst Quimby founded "New Thought" which was a quasi-religious cult. Quimby performed "healing" through Mesmerism (hypnotism) and suggestion. In 1862, Mary Baker Eddy was supposedly healed of invalidism through hypnotism by Quimby and she then went on to found Christian Science – which famously promoted prayer over science. Studies have shown that even though they abstain from alcohol and tobacco, Christian Scientists tend to die earlier from preventable diseases.
1: Frank Sandford (1862-1948)
Frank Sandford, cult leader
Frank Sandford, an ordained Baptist Minister, built a chapel and Bible school called Shiloh in Durham in the 1890s. It grew to become "The Kingdom" and attracted hundreds to Durham to live and worship in a self-contained community.
He promoted healing through prayer and simple living, but death and sickness at Shiloh, followed by a series of deadly overseas missionary voyages, caused the conviction and imprisonment of Sandford and the eventual closing of Shiloh.
Click for the full story of Frank Sandford – a Kingdom, racing yachts and scurvy
Frank Weston Sandford was born in 1862 on a sheep farm in Bowdoinham. While working as a teacher at age 16, he attended a revival meeting at his mother's Free Baptist church and was converted. He "threw away his tobacco" and devoted himself to a higher calling and to his education. He attended Bates College on scholarship, played on the baseball team, and gave the commencement address. After graduation, he turned down professional baseball opportunities and enrolled in the Cobb Divinity School. After just his 2nd "student preaching session" at local churches, he was hired by the Freewill Baptists in Topsham and left school.
While building the Topsham church membership quite substantially, he attended various conferences and meetings where he was became enamored with missionary work and would meet his eventual wife, Helen Kinney, a missionary himself. She was working with A.B. Simpson, who ran the Christian and Missionary Alliance out of a compound in Old Orchard Beach and preached passionately about how people can be physically healed through faith.
Divine healing would go on to become a very large part Sandford's teachings.
In 1890, Frank left on his first missionary trip to Japan, China, India, Egypt, and Palestine. In Japan, he met up with Helen Kinney where they fell in love. He returned to the States a changed man and became engaged to Ms. Kinney. In 1891, he performed an exorcism on a woman at the Old Orchard Beach location.
The morning after the exorcism, he was walking through the pines to his morning meeting and heard a whisper "Armageddon."
Shiloh is Built
Then in 1893, he told his church that God told him to "Go" and he resigned from the church to start out on his own. He began preaching throughout the Durham area, eventually working out of various gospel tents setup by loyal followers. He then decided to start a bible school but had no money and no land. Luckily, he was given a barren, sandy hill and commenced building a 7 story chapel called Shiloh. It opened as The Holy Ghost and Us Bible School in 1897.
(you can read about the Shiloh Temple on this page)
Shiloh expanded rapidly eventually becoming an entire complex with multiple, interconnected buildings, rooms for 1,000 people, and the equivalent of a small colonial village around it to support the needs of the growing population. These "Shiloites" were not allowed to sell any of what they produced so they were dependent on money simply "appearing." People came from all over the country (and eventually the world) to live, work and worship as members of "The Kingdom." They arrived, were welcomed by Sandford on the steps of the church, and handed over all of their money and worldly possessions. During services, potential recruits dropped money, wedding rings, brooches, necklaces, watches, and silverware into a large collection plate in front of the pulpit. A jeweler from Brunswick kept track of the estimated value of each offering while Sandford yelled out a running total to the beat of the music.
Sandford believed that God spoke directly to him and he declared himself to be both Elijah and the biblical David.
He claimed that he would be martyred and rise from the dead in Jerusalem before the second coming of Christ's kingdom.
Days at Shiloh were very regulated. Daily prayers, including 6 hours on Thursdays and chores took up most of each day. Sandford got stricter by the day. Members could not leave, children could not have friends and relationships between members was forbidden. Although the Kingdom and its farms produced a lot of food, it often wasn't enough to go around and they weren't allowed to buy additional provisions from outside the community.
Illness was a sign that a soul was sick and was treated not with medicine, but with fasting and prayer. Children were always being disciplined with deprivation and beatings.
Members were encouraged to report each other for various sins to receive punishment by their families or church leaders. He was as strict with his own family as well. One story tells that his seven year old son John had been disobedient. As punishment, he would be put in a room without food and water and whipped. But the twist was that John must "earnestly desire to be whipped" so each day he had to sit in a room with a full glass of water that he couldn't touch.
Then he had to go to his father and ask to be whipped.
Each time, his father refused saying he wasn't ready. On the third day, Sandford deemed him to be ready and whipped him.
Compelled to stretch his influence, Sandford increased outreach. He also established a headquarters in Boston, sent 140 students out to visit every town in Maine (and convert Mainers), and also sent missionaries to setup Kingdom centers in England, Egypt, and Palestine.
Not everyone appreciated the aggressive tactics of the group. In 1899, one of his missionary ministers, George Higgins, was tarred and feathered and ridden out of Levan, Maine on a rail – supposedly the last time such a mob act was done in the New England. In spite of the occasional protests, the rivers of Maine (and beyond) were bubbling with new Shiloites being baptized by Sandford's associates and they continued to pour into Shiloh.
First Brush with Prison
In January 1903, Sandford instituted a "Ninevah Fast" where all food and liquid was forbidden for 36 hours – even for infants, animals, and the sick. During that period fourteen-year-old Leander Bartlett, who had confessed to the most serious sin of planning to run away from Shiloh, died of diphtheria.
Sandford was convicted of manslaughter and cruelty to children.
The case dragged on for years and was eventually reversed by the Maine Supreme Court. News of his mistreatment was being reported in the newspapers as some brave members were secretly sending letters out detailing the hardships. Civil suits were being filed by families, horrified at the conditions of loved ones behind the walls of Shiloh. Sandford decided it was a good time to disappear for a while.
Shiloh Goes to Sea
The Kingdom had been using boats for years to reach various ports and islands along the Maine coast for evangelizing. In 1905, Sandford purchased the 131 foot racing yacht "Coronet" to help with global missionary work. The Coronet was quite the famous and fast ship, having filled the front page of the New York Times on March 28, 1887 for winning a 3,000 mile transatlantic race.
The Coronet, with 30 brave hand-selected souls known as "The Thirty", set sail in 1905 for a global trip – to "circle the world for Christ."
Alongside it was a 2nd ship called "The Kingdom", carrying 60 along with supplies. Over the next five years, they visited Africa, Jerusalem and the Middle East, and many other spots along the way. Sandford feared the authorities who were seeking him to present him with papers related to the accusations of mistreatment. So he steadfastly refused to go into any ports for supplies. Instead, the "Holy Ghosters" would merely anchor offshore and "break the power of hell" by a chain of prayer. Anyone curious enough to come near and offer assistance was threatened over the barrel of a gun.
Various members of the crew perished during these voyages. Some died of illness, some drowned. At one point, the Kingdom ran aground on an island off the coast of Nova Scotia. Refusing help, they sent a telegram to Shiloh for help and a large contingent travelled by land to repair and resupply the ship.
In March 1911, after many years and thousands of grueling miles at sea, the Kingdom ran aground again and was destroyed off the coast of Gambia. Although Sandford blamed the wreck on the spiritual impotence of its passengers and crew, he took everyone aboard the Coronet. As if conditions weren't bad before, they got substantially worse as the Coronet, built to hold thirty, was now overloaded with 67 people and woefully undersupplied with food and water. He forced them to continue towards Greenland to try to open a mission.
Men began to fall ill with scurvy.
Eventually, the "Holy Ghosters" aboard the Coronet, completely exhausted of supplies, limped into the harbor in Portland, Maine. It was reported that while what remained of his crew were dreadfully skinny and ill, Sandford looked healthy and fresh, having deprived himself of nothing in the cozy cabin of the luxury yacht. Scurvy quickly claimed the lives of six crew members. A few days later, Sandford was arrested for being responsible for these scurvy deaths by "unlawfully, knowingly, and willingly" allowing a ship to "proceed on a voyage at sea without sufficient provisions." In court, he represented himself and argued that the sickness and starvation aboard the Coronet was punishment from God for the members not allowing him to proceed to Greenland. Unable to be convicted under civilian law, he was tried under marine law which allowed him to escape a longer sentence. The jury convicted him and he was sentenced to ten years in the federal penitentiary in Atlanta.
The Final Years
While in prison, Sandford continued to run the Kingdom through letters and missives hand delivered by faithful visitors. He tried to appoint his son John as leader in his absence but that failed when members rebelled against his attempts to establish an "inquisatory board to probe the souls of Shiloites." World War I intervened and Shiloh faced even harsher conditions with rampant sickness and starvation. Sandford was released in 1918 on good behavior and returned to Shiloh to rebuild, but the glory days were behind him. Faced with death threats, he moved his family to the Boston location. While he was hiding there, a church member was brought to trial by his wife's family for mistreatment and starvation of his children. The Children's Protection Society in Maine investigated the living conditions of Shiloh and ordered the removal of all minors in Shiloh in 1920. Sandford then heard God whisper "Retire" and so he shut down the Bible School and sent the remaining families away from Durham in an act called "The Scattering."
Almost overnight, Shiloh emptied of its hundreds of residents.
Sandford retired to the Catskill Mountains in New York where he was supported by his followers through tithes up until his death in 1948 at the age of 87. Secretive to the end, Sandford was buried in an undisclosed location by his followers.
His followers and children spread out, some continuing in his footsteps. His son John established a colony called "The Salem Turkey Farm" in Salem, NH. which made headlines when he converted the star quarterback from Dartmouth who left school the day after a big win over rival Yale in 1938
The Kingdom continues to the present day as "The Kingdom Inc" or "Kingdom Ministries" with churches and followers scattered across the country. While their practices differ from their founder's, he is still honored as the founder.
The Shiloh Chapel itself struggled with the speckled past of the Kingdom and the connection to Frank Sandford. It decided to break from the Kingdom and reincorporated as a new, independent, evangelical church in 1998.
Read about the Shiloh Temple
You can learn all about the Shiloh Temple in Durham here.
2: Carl Stevens (1929-2008)
Pastor Stevens and his toupee
Pastor Carl Stevens, born in West Sumner, Maine, started as the Pastor of a church in Woolwich. Success as a fiery preacher necessitated a couple of upgrades, first to South Berwick and then to Lenox, Massachusetts while he also hosted a radio call in show that lasts to this day. While in Lenox, he was sued and had to return the $6.5 million donation from a gullible and very wealthy heiress which forced him to close Bible Speaks and move to a Maryland strip mall to rebuild his empire. At its peak, the Bible Speaks had over 16,000 members in 25 states and 23 countries.
Click for the full story of Pastor Stevens – millionaires and strip malls
Carl H. Stevens was born in West Sumner, Maine in 1929. He was an ordained Baptist Minister and developed a following in central Maine while working with the Gideons and then in Woolwich where he was Pastor of a church. He decided to break from the Bible Baptists and established the Northeast School of the Bible in 1972.
In 1964, Pastor Stevens became co-host of one of the nation's first Christian talk radio shows. The program was broadcast live over WDCS in Portland, Maine, and focused on Bible questions and comments phoned in from the listening audience. From the radio, he moved into television broadcasts, becoming one of the first tele-evangelists. The call-in radio show, originally known as "Telephone Time" was renamed "Grace Hour" and survives to this day.
The Bible Speaks
Success and growth required a move to South Berwick in 1973 to a former Catholic school. He renamed the church "The Bible Speaks" and the school "Stevens School of the Bible." Also in 1973, the Bible Speaks purchased a Norwegian ferry boat which they named La Gracia and renovated to use as a missionary relief vessel in the Caribbean. Churches were planted in El Salvador and Europe. Up to 1,000 people drove up to two hours to hear him preach in South Berwick.
Not everyone acquiesced as the the Federal Aviation Agency denied permission for the group's helicopter to land behind their Maine Street property.
Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, the Bible Speaks grew their Sunday School operations, running a private fleet of retired school buses that brought children from the surrounding area. They also established a network of private K-12 schools throughout Maine and Massachusetts.
Move to the Berkshires
Radio and television broadcasts helped fuel further growth and Stevens soon needed more room for church operations. He was able to buy a former private school in Lenox, Mass and moved The Bible Speaks to the Berkshires. Ever the salesman, Stevens was able to convince a millionairess parishioner, Elizabeth Dayton Dovydenas, to donate a total of $6.5 million to the church. Young and gullible (and reportedly not the brightest bulb), she was the heiress to the Dayton-Hudson department stores out of Minnesota (who founded Target). Dovydenas was entranced and taken by Stevens who at one point had convinced her that her money was needed to free a church minister who was imprisoned in Romania (this was actually true, although the minister had already been freed). After she forked over the money, he used the money to help pay for a freighter that makes missionary sea voyages, a Palm Beach condominium with floor to ceiling mirrors in the bedrooms, antibugging devices for telephones, guns for his pastors, the conversion of a hockey rink in Lenox into a church, and most importantly, he paid off the church's $600,000 mortgage balance on its Lenox complex.
At the time, Bible Speaks boasted 16,000 members in 25 U.S. affiliates and 23 countries.
Lawsuit and 60 Minutes
Dovydenas' husband and father found out about the donations and learned that Stevens had convinced her to write the family completely out of her will and to designate the church as her sole beneficiary. With their guidance, she claimed she had been brainwashed and the family sued to recover her "generous" donations and that they needed to "deprogram" her. The sensational case received widespread media coverage.
NY Times March 29, 1987
The presiding judge said in his 60-page decision that the testimony revealed "an astonishing saga of clerical deceit, avarice, and subjugation" by Stevens, who "has abused the trust of the claimant as well as the trust of many good and devout members of the church."
During the 1987 trial, Diane Sawyer featured The Bible Speaks on 60 Minutes, as it was reminiscent of the Jim Bakker scandal. In one interview with a woman who was lured in by Stevens said:
"Well, he's very affectionate. He hugs and kisses all the girls, and when he takes them in the office he doesn't limit his hugs and kisses, and I mean I don't know how far he goes with every woman, I guess every woman would have to say that to you personally. I'm not proud of it."
After the trial loss, Stevens was forced to return the $6.5 million. He had to close the Lenox campus and subsequently declare bankruptcy. The Dovydenas family gained control of the property, then sold it and it currently houses Shakespeare & Company.
Stevens changed the name of his church from The Bible Speaks to the Greater Grace World Outreach and moved the entire operation to Maryland in 1987 to start the next phase.
Reborn as the Greater Grace World Outreach
The Lenox setback proved to be temporary as the now Greater Grace World Outreach (GGWO) picked up where The Bible Speaks had left off. He started the Greater Grace Christian Academy and the Maryland Bible College and Seminary and continued to perform his radio show. The location wasn't quite as lovely, as his operation was now based in an East Baltimore strip mall that the church purchased.
To build his Maryland church, he sent church members out several nights a week "blitzing" — Stevens' term for winning converts — in shopping malls, at the Inner Harbor and along downtown Baltimore's pornography strip.
The GGWO decided in 2003 that Pastor Stevens was too ill to continue as leader of the church and appointed a successor.
Either that, or they knew what was coming. For in 2004, he once again was in the news when an internet bulletin board started collecting and publishing stories from disenfranchised former members of the GGWO. Hundreds of stories rolled in from former church members including claims such as:
that the church claims the words of Stevens have a special anointing from God, and that God punishes people who question or speak out against the church, sometimes with throat cancer or violent death
the church divided families by teaching members not to discuss the church with outsiders who may be "satanically deceived."
required unusual dedication to The Bible Speaks and to Pastor Stevens, including incidents of having members take tape-recorded vows never to speak against the ministry or Stevens
encourage and solicited families to sell their homes and donate all proceeds to the church under the assumption (which proved false) that they could live rent-free on campus
eavesdropped on members' phone conversations and taped some of them without permission
obtained honorary academic degrees for Stevens and other church leaders from unlicensed institutions
received accreditation for the Stevens School of the Bible from an organization that is not recognized by private or public bodies of higher education
bought off families who accused church leaders of sexual misconduct and child molestation
their marriages and families have been torn apart as a result of following the ministry
Pastor Stevens died in 2008 while the GGWO continued with new leadership. It now boasts over 500 Greater Grace churches in 70 countries. The call-in radio show "Grace Hour" continues its 40+ year run on the airwaves.
3: Todd Bell (1969-)
Todd Bell preaching at the Temple Baptist Church in Knoxville, TN, live-streamed on Oct. 26.
Pastor Todd Bell felt compelled to move to Maine and start a number of independent Baptist churches. Using a fleet of small planes, he flies all over the state and up and down the East Coast, preaching and seeding churches. When COVID-19 hit in 2020, Bell took a very vocal conservative stance against the restrictions placed on church attendance, believing that people should skip masks and just trust in God.
Once church restrictions were lifted, he taunted officials by brazenly holding services for unmasked followers and actively discouraged his Sunday school from following health guidelines. This came to a head in August, 2020 when he officiated the infamous maskless "COVID wedding" at a Millinocket inn that spread the virus all over the state, killed 8, sickened hundreds, and made national news as a "super spreader" event.
Click for the full story (thus far) of Pastor Bell – churches, planes & COVID
In August 2020, a Millinocket wedding made national news by causing an outbreak of COVID-19. The Pastor who officiated it quickly became a large part of the story as it was reported that he was a very vocal "anti-masker." That Pastor, Todd Bell, describes himself in his Twitter profile as "Pilot Preacher and Passionate for Christ!"
Pastor Bell on his flight to the COVID wedding
The Move to Maine
Todd Bell was born in Florida in 1969, the son of fundamental Baptist parents. They moved to North Carolina where Todd went to school and became a machinist. In his early 20s, he made an "exploratory trip" to the Millinocket area with his wife, scouting out towns to "plant" churches. He liked what he saw.
After raising money with the help of his home church in North Carolina, Bell opened his first Independent Fundamentalist Baptist (IFB) church, the Tri Town Baptist Church, in East Millinocket in 1996. He held his first services in an old NAPA auto parts store for 12 people. Among the first church members was David Blaidsdell, who is the current pastor of the Tri Town Baptist church and whose daughter was married by Bell in the famous COVID wedding (see below).
While this first church was successful and growing, Bell wanted more. In his aviation ministry biography, Bell stated "while taking a prayer walk around town, the God of Heaven placed within my heart a burden for the 'next towns'. I began to raise the question in my own personal prayer time, 'what about the other towns of Maine?'" So he embarked on a church planting quest.
"I asked the Lord if He would allow me to get my pilots license and begin to reach out into other towns with the life changing message of the gospel." So he convinced his home church to pay for his pilot's license. He then bought an old Piper Cherokee plane and began a lifetime of flying from Millinocket to distant churches to preach and plant. "I felt like a circuit rider preacher but on a modern 'horse'!," Bell stated.
The Move to Sanford
In 2001, Sandford decided it was time to move on from Millinocket and moved his family to Sanford – which happened to have a nice airport. He and his family went door-to-door trying to get people to come listen to him preach. Eventually, he built up a following which allowed him to buy a hangar for his plane and a vacant building on Main Street for his church. He also started a nonprofit called "Wings with the Word."
He started trading up to larger and faster aircraft. First, a Piper Cherokee 6 in 2005, a Cessna 310 in 2006, a Needham Sportsman in 2007, a Cessna 402 in 2008 (which he reregistered as N128MK in homage to Mark 1:28). Then a newer Piper Cherokee 6 and a Cessna 310. Some were registered in his name, some in the church's name and some in his nonprofit's name. At one point, he nonprofit owned 4 planes, a front-end loader, a Winnebago camper, an excavator, a fuel truck and the airport hangar. That sounds like normal church/nonprofit inventory.
The airplanes allowed Bell to quickly travel all around Maine where he started a number of IFB churches and preached regularly. He could preach in Sanford, hop in his plane, and preach again on Islesboro a few hours later. In 2010, airplane trouble forced him to land in in 3-foot-high hay in a farmer's field in Farmingdale. He and the plane were unharmed.
List of Churches Started by or Affiliated with Pastor Bell
Churches Started by Bell:
Tri Town Baptist Church in East Millinocket 1996
Church Hill Baptist in Augusta 2000
Calvary Baptist Church Sanford 2001
Island Baptist on Islesboro in 2008
First Baptist in Jackman in 2011
Providence Baptist in Fort Kent in 2014
New Vineyard's Gospel Light Baptist in 2015
Churches Bell is Affiliated with:
Maple Grove in Canton
Cornerstone Independent Baptist Church in Houlton
Hope Baptist in Whiting
Boothbay's Barter's Island Baptist
Native American Missionary Fund
Bell founded the Christian Academy in Sanford in 2005 and bought and sold several buildings. The Sanford planning board gave him a lot of leeway as they saw what he was doing as being a positive for the crime-ridden area.
Planes are expensive and buildings aren't free, so Bell needed a substantial income to support himself and his nonprofit. Donations from other churches and church members kept rolling in when he "prayed" they would. When one of his planes needed substantial servicing, he would detail the needs and sufficient funds would roll in. One older Sanford churchgoer donated 95 acres and a house, which he then sold for profit, keeping some of the land for himself to build a house on.
The COVID Wedding
When COVID hit, Bell scoffed at it. He said people would be happy to "stay at home and receive a paycheck from the government." and that "we are trusting in government more than we are trusting in God." When the state shut down all church services, he resisted. Eventually, the local police had to reluctantly tell him he couldn't hold services (the chief of Police was a church member). Once he was allowed to hold services again, he did not require masks and parishioners packed in, shoulder-to-shoulder, in opposition to health guidelines. Bell continued to fly around, including taking trips out of the state and ignoring quarantine requirements.
On August 7, 2020, Pastor Todd Bell flew to Millinocket to officiate a wedding. The ceremony and reception were at the Big Moose Inn and the bride, Mariah Blaisdell was the daughter of David Blaisdell, the current Pastor at the Tri Town Baptist Church – which is the first church that Pastor Bell started after he moved to Maine.
Due to COVID restrictions, the wedding was supposed to be limited to 50 people for the entire Inn, but the attendee list was larger than that. From reports, almost nobody at the wedding wore a mask and the staff were "lax" about wearing them.
Officiant At Superspreader Maine Wedding Is An Anti-Mask Evangelical
The first reports of positive COVID tests came in within a few days of the wedding. Over the next weeks, the virus spread – first among the wedding guests and then across the state as guests went back to their towns and jobs. The CDC estimates that 27 of the 55 wedding reception guests tested positive.
The virus proceeded to travel hundreds of miles away, including to the Maplecrest Rehab and Living Center (long term care) in Madison as well as the York County Jail in Alfred because wedding guests worked in both facilities. Both the jail and long term care facility were put on lockdown, local schools were closed, and the "anti-mask wedding" made national news as a perfect example of a "super spreading event."
By November, 8 were dead and at least 178 others were sick. None of the dead or hospitalized had actually attended the wedding.
Not only did Bell not apologize for his actions, but he continued to defy public health guidelines and Sanford city ordinances. Services continued to be held mask optional at best, the Bible School was mask optional, and Bell's followers and children ranted over social media about it. When he got blowback, he stopped speaking to the media, shut down his live Facebook feed, took his social media accounts offline and hired a lawyer known nationally for defending the religious rights of churches.
Reports are that he told his congregation that "the world wanted us to shut down, go home, and let people get used to that just long enough until we can finally stop the advancing of the Gospel."
Bell and the church also refused to cooperate with the CDC investigation, severely hampering contact tracing efforts. Because of that, the true reach of the wedding COVID "super spreader" event may never be known.
Bell continues to defy recommendations on indoor masking but is allowed to get away with it because the church is private. He ignores protests, pressure, and even death threats and denies any wrongdoing for officiating the wedding. Meanwhile, the Big Moose Inn is getting sued because of the deaths of elderly who didn't even attend the wedding.
In a caption of a picture he posted of himself preaching, he wrote "People tell me, 'Pastor Bell, you're treading on thin ice.' Well, I think the ice is pretty thick under me because I'm standing on the word of God."
4. What's Next?
Will Maine continue to birth the occasional religious cult? Perhaps. Even as recently as 2020, fears of a Manson-like cult taking over St. Agatha caused tremors in that small Northern town. The "leader," Gary Blankenship moved into an abandoned home and began fixing it up (while illegally squatting) and talking on social media about recruiting people from all over the country to join his "family." The townsfolk were very concerned, got him evicted, and drove him out of town before any commune could grow roots.
Shiloh Temple
Frank Sandford
Shiloh, Durham
The original Shilo Ministers. L to R: George Higgins, Charles E. Holland, Almon A. Whittaker, Austin K. Perry, Ralph E. Gleason, Willard N. Gleason, Frank W. Sandford.
"Elim," the Boston headquarters of The Kingdom at 545 and 547 Massachusetts Avenue
Early photo of the Christian Mission Alliance, Sandford stands in the back row, second from right. His wife to be, stands front row, fourth from left. A. B. Simpson stands front row, third from right.
The Bible School and families
The Coronet racing in 1893
Stained glass window on the Coronet
The interior of the Cornet
"The Thirty" who were chosen by Sandford to ride aboard The Coronet.
A map of the voyage of the Coronet 1910-1911
The Kingdom aground on Mud Island off Nova Scotia
Pastor Carl Stevens on his radio call-in show
Pastor Carl Stevens and his magnificent toupee
Pastor Stevens after receiving his honorary degree in theology (he then asked people to call him Dr.)
Bible Speaks, Lenox, MA - former site of Lenox School for Boys, now Shakespeare & Company
A typical GGWO service broadcast over the internet
The current GGWO location in a Baltimore strip mall, Google street view
Todd Bell's hangar at the Sandford regional airport
The cover of Wings with the Word showing Pastor Bell in front of one of his planes
Todd Bell's Facebook post - in the plane on the way to officiate the "COVID wedding"
Big Moose Inn, Millinocket, where the wedding occurred that spread COVID
Entrance to Calvary Baptist Church
Pastor Bell's daughter Elizabeth who said "America, Maine… it's time to wake up and stand together. They've taken so much from you already, will you bow your heads and submit to the tyranny while they strip you of your rights to worship God?"
An anti-mask demonstration in Maine
Todd Bell preaching in Knoxville, TN - after a flight in one of his planes
SOURCES & CREDITS:
Pastor Sandford:
Wikipedia, shilohchapelmaine.org, christianity.com, durhamme.com, patch.com, fwselijah.com, william-branham.org, yarmouthhistory.ca, sunjournal.com
Pastor Stevens:
ggwo.org, carlstevens.org, gracehour.org, greatergracenews.blogspot.com
Pastor Bell:
Wikipedia, pressherald.com, sanfordchristianacademy.org, themainemonitor.org, mainepublic.org
Now that you've read this tale, you MUST read about the accompanying place:


text:
require 'spec_helper'
require 'gemjars/deux/specifications'

include Gemjars::Deux

describe Specifications do
  let(:specifications) { Specifications.new(specs) }
  let(:specs) { [["zzzzzz", Gem::Version.new("0.0.3"), "ruby"]] }

  it "should have number_of_releases" do
    specifications.number_of_releases("zzzzzz").should == 1
  end

  it "should have zero releases" do
    specifications.number_of_releases("foobar").should == 0
  end

  it "should have size" do
    specifications.size.should == 1
  end

  it "should have a single spec" do
    specifications["zzzzzz"].should == Set.new([Specification.new("zzzzzz", "0.0.3", "ruby")])
  end

  it "should be enumerable" do
    specifications.to_enum(:each).to_a.should == [Specification.new("zzzzzz", "0.0.3", "ruby")]
  end

  it "should be a set addition" do
    (specifications + specifications).should == specifications
  end

  it "should allow adding additional specifications" do
    version1 = ["abc", Gem::Version.new("0.0.1"), "ruby"]
    version2 = ["abc", Gem::Version.new("0.0.2"), "ruby"]
    (Specifications.new([version1]) + Specifications.new([version2])).should == Specifications.new([version1, version2])
  end

  context "from channel" do
    let(:specifications) { Specifications.from_channel(Streams.to_channel(Java::JavaIo::ByteArrayInputStream.new(io.to_java_bytes))) }
    let(:io) { Marshal.dump([["zzzzzz", Gem::Version.new("0.0.3"), "ruby"]]) }

    it "should have specifcations" do
      specifications["zzzzzz"].should == Set.new([Specification.new("zzzzzz", "0.0.3", "ruby")])
    end
  end

  context "many versions for gem" do
    let(:specs) { [
      ["zzzzzz", Gem::Version.new("0.3"), "ruby"],
      ["zzzzzz", Gem::Version.new("1.0"), "ruby"],
      ["zzzzzz", Gem::Version.new("0.2"), "ruby"]
    ]}

    it "should return the satisfactory spec for gem" do
      specifications.satisfactory_spec("zzzzzz", "~> 0.1").should == Specification.new("zzzzzz", "0.2", "ruby")
    end

    it "should return nil for unknown gem" do
      specifications.satisfactory_spec("foobar", "~> 0.1").should be_nil
    end

    it "should return nil for unknown gem version" do
      specifications.satisfactory_spec("zzzzzz", "~> 7.0").should be_nil
    end

    it "should have size" do
      specifications.size.should == 3
    end

    it "should be enumerable" do
      specifications.to_enum(:each).to_a.should == [
        Specification.new("zzzzzz", "0.3", "ruby"),
        Specification.new("zzzzzz", "1.0", "ruby"),
        Specification.new("zzzzzz", "0.2", "ruby")
      ]
    end

    it "should have number_of_releases" do
      specifications.number_of_releases("zzzzzz").should == 3
    end
  end

  context "many platforms for the same version" do
    let(:specs) { [
      ["zzzzzz", Gem::Version.new("0.2"), "ruby"],
      ["zzzzzz", Gem::Version.new("0.1"), "ruby"],
      ["zzzzzz", Gem::Version.new("0.1"), "java"],
      ["zzzzzz", Gem::Version.new("0.1"), "x86-mswin32"],
      ["zzzzzz", Gem::Version.new("0.3"), "x86-mswin32"]
    ]}

    it "should not include anything not java or ruby" do
      specifications.should_not include Specification.new("zzzzzz", "0.1", "x86-mswin32")
    end

    it "should not include ruby in the presense of java" do
      specifications.should_not include Specification.new("zzzzzz", "0.1", "ruby")
    end

    it "should include only java" do
      specifications.should include Specification.new("zzzzzz", "0.1", "java")
    end

    it "should include ruby when no java available for that version" do
      specifications.should include Specification.new("zzzzzz", "0.2", "ruby")
    end

    it "should never include non java or ruby even if only one available" do
      specifications.should_not include Specification.new("zzzzzz", "0.3", "x86-mswin32")
    end
  end
end


text:
Q: Cover art of mkv file not being added when converting to mp3 file I have an mkv file, only with audio, and I attached a cover art to it, but when I convert it to mp3 the art is not added to the mp3.
The command I used to attach the cover art was the only one that didn't generate the art as a video stream in mkv, but it seems that this way limits the cover art to mkv only and I can't convert it to mp3, see the process below:
Output of: ffprobe mkv_without_cover.mkv
Input #0, matroska,webm, from 'mkv_without_cover.mkv':
  Metadata:
    title           : Cuidado!
    ARTIST          : Lobão
    ALBUM           : CMG Clássicos Pop Rock Nacionais
    GENRE           : Clássico Pop Rock Nacional
    TKEY            : E m
    DATE            : 1988
    ENCODER         : Lavf59.17.102
  Duration: 00:03:26.63, start: 0.000000, bitrate: 322 kb/s
  Stream #0:0: Audio: mp3, 44100 Hz, stereo, fltp, 320 kb/s
    Metadata:
      ENCODER         : Lavc59.12
      DURATION        : 00:03:26.628000000

Command to Attach cover art in mkv:
ffmpeg -i "mkv_without_cover.mkv" -attach "art_cover.jpeg" -map 0 -c copy -metadata:s:t mimetype="image/jpg" -metadata:s:t:0 filename="cover.jpg" "mkv_with_cover.mkv"

Output of: attach command
Input #0, matroska,webm, from 'mkv_without_cover.mkv':
  Metadata:
    title           : Cuidado!
    ARTIST          : Lobão
    ALBUM           : CMG Clássicos Pop Rock Nacionais
    GENRE           : Clássico Pop Rock Nacional
    TKEY            : E m
    DATE            : 1988
    ENCODER         : Lavf59.17.102
  Duration: 00:03:26.63, start: 0.000000, bitrate: 322 kb/s
  Stream #0:0: Audio: mp3, 44100 Hz, stereo, fltp, 320 kb/s
    Metadata:
      ENCODER         : Lavc59.12
      DURATION        : 00:03:26.628000000
Output #0, matroska, to 'mkv_with_cover.mkv':
  Metadata:
    title           : Cuidado!
    ARTIST          : Lobão
    ALBUM           : CMG Clássicos Pop Rock Nacionais
    GENRE           : Clássico Pop Rock Nacional
    TKEY            : E m
    DATE            : 1988
    encoder         : Lavf59.17.102
  Stream #0:0: Audio: mp3 (U[0][0][0] / 0x0055), 44100 Hz, stereo, fltp, 320 kb/s
    Metadata:
      ENCODER         : Lavc59.12
      DURATION        : 00:03:26.628000000
  Stream #0:1: Attachment: none
    Metadata:
      mimetype        : image/jpg
      filename        : cover.jpg
Stream mapping:
  Stream #0:0 -> #0:0 (copy)
  **art_cover.jpeg -> Stream #0:1**
Press [q] to stop, [?] for help
size=    8398kB time=00:03:26.62 bitrate= 332.9kbits/s speed=3.78e+03x
video:0kB audio:8071kB subtitle:0kB other streams:0kB global headers:0kB muxing overhead: 4.046549%

It seems that the problem is in the way the cover art is attached to the mkv, the attaching does not define a specific codec for the cover art.
The cover art was successfully added to stream #0:1 of the mkv_with_cover file, but ffprobre shows some warning related to the codec of the attachent, see below:
Output of: ffprobe mkv_with_cover.mkv
[matroska,webm @ 0000026d25388d00] Could **not find codec** parameters for **stream 1** (Attachment: none): unknown codec
Consider increasing the value for the 'analyzeduration' (0) and 'probesize' (5000000) options
Input #0, matroska,webm, from 'output_mkv_with_cover.mkv':
  Metadata:
    title           : Cuidado!
    DATE            : 1988
    ARTIST          : Lobão
    ALBUM           : CMG Clássicos Pop Rock Nacionais
    GENRE           : Clássico Pop Rock Nacional
    TKEY            : E m
    ENCODER         : Lavf59.17.102
  Duration: 00:03:26.63, start: 0.000000, bitrate: 332 kb/s
  Stream #0:0: Audio: mp3, 44100 Hz, stereo, fltp, 320 kb/s
    Metadata:
      ENCODER         : Lavc59.12
      DURATION        : 00:03:26.628000000
  Stream #0:1: Attachment: **none**
    Metadata:
      filename        : cover.jpg
      mimetype        : image/jpg
**Unsupported** codec with id 0 for input stream 1

Convert command mkv to mp3:
ffmpeg -i "mkv_with_cover.mkv" -c:a copy "song.mp3"

Output of: converte command
[matroska,webm @ 0000020a74908dc0] Could **not find codec** parameters for **stream 1** (Attachment: none): **unknown codec**
Consider increasing the value for the 'analyzeduration' (0) and 'probesize' (5000000) options
Input #0, matroska,webm, from 'mkv_with_cover.mkv':
  Metadata:
    title           : Cuidado!
    DATE            : 1988
    ARTIST          : Lobão
    ALBUM           : CMG Clássicos Pop Rock Nacionais
    GENRE           : Clássico Pop Rock Nacional
    TKEY            : E m
    ENCODER         : Lavf59.17.102
  Duration: 00:03:26.63, start: 0.000000, bitrate: 332 kb/s
  Stream #0:0: Audio: mp3, 44100 Hz, stereo, fltp, 320 kb/s
    Metadata:
      ENCODER         : Lavc59.12
      DURATION        : 00:03:26.628000000
  Stream #0:1: Attachment: none
    Metadata:
      filename        : cover.jpg
      mimetype        : image/jpg
Output #0, mp3, to 'song.mp3':
  Metadata:
    TIT2            : Cuidado!
    TDRC            : 1988
    TPE1            : Lobão
    TALB            : CMG Clássicos Pop Rock Nacionais
    TCON            : Clássico Pop Rock Nacional
    TKEY            : E m
    TSSE            : Lavf59.17.102
  Stream #0:0: Audio: mp3, 44100 Hz, stereo, fltp, 320 kb/s
    Metadata:
      ENCODER         : Lavc59.12
      DURATION        : 00:03:26.628000000
Stream mapping:
  **Stream #0:0 -> #0:0 (copy)**
Press [q] to stop, [?] for help
size=    8073kB time=00:03:26.62 bitrate= 320.0kbits/s speed=4.22e+03x
video:0kB audio:8071kB subtitle:0kB other streams:0kB global headers:0kB muxing overhead: 0.015027%

Conversion ignores stream #0:1 and cover art is not added to mp3 file output.
I also used the following commands in the conversion, and they all only generated the audio in the output of the mp3 file, see below:
ffmpeg -i "mkv_with_cover.mkv" -map 0:0 -c:v copy -c:a copy "song.mp3"
error message: Could not find codec parameters for stream 1
ffmpeg -i "mkv_with_cover.mkv" -map 0:0 -vcodec copy -c:a copy "song.mp3"
error message: Could not find codec parameters for stream 1
ffmpeg -i "mkv_with_cover.mkv" -vcodec copy -c:a copy "song.mp3"
error message: Could not find codec parameters for stream 1
ffmpeg -i "mkv_with_cover.mkv" -map 0:1 -vcodec copy -c:a copy "song.mp3"
error message:
Only audio streams and pictures are allowed in MP3.
Could not write header for output file #0
How to make the cover art in this mkv file to be included in the conversion to mp3 file?
thank's

A: I managed to find the problem!
In mimetype="image/jpg" field, the jpg, has to be jpeg so that the mjpeg codec can encode the image.
What happens is that the mjpeg codec, looks for information in the command so that it can encode the image correctly, this information
is in the mimetype="image/jpg" field. Note that where is jpg, it has to be jpeg. As in the command I posted this, the field was with jpg,
the codec, despite not giving an error, simply attached the image without any encoding, causing many problems at the time of conversion.
For this reason, the image was being tacked without encoding and had the errors related to the codec I posted above.
the correct command is:
ffmpeg -i "mkv_without_cover.mkv" -attach "art_cover.jpeg" -map 0 -c copy -metadata:s:t mimetype="image/jpeg" -metadata:s:t:0 filename="cover.jpeg" "mkv_with_cover.mkv"

thanks


text:
Steve's Adventure with the Media
My adventures as documented in the News Media
Peace Corps Adventures
SCUBA Diving Adventures
News Media Adventures
About Steve Hunsicker
WPEC news director quits job to join Peace Corps
By MELISSA E. HOLSMAN
melissa.holsman@scripps.comPosted at 1:26 p.m. May 3, 2007
Steve Hunsicker, executive news director for WPEC and WFLX Fox 29, surprised just about everyone in local TV news by announcing that he's resigning his job to become a Peace Corps volunteer — in the South Pacific. "I'm going to be a business advisor there and I am just thrilled," said Hunsicker, 47, who joined WPEC in 2003, but has been with the station's parent company, Freedom Broadcasting, Inc., since 1992.
His last day at WPEC is May 11. The move, he said, fulfills a lifelong dream he's kept on hold while racking up 23 years as a successful TV news executive.
"I finally just said it's time," said Hunsicker, who began the Peace Corps application process in September. He said he opted not to tell the staff at the CBS affiliate until he knew for sure he'd been accepted. "I didn't even tell my parents for about a month," he noted.
And it'll be another month before he learns which of the six South Pacific countries served by the Peace Corps he'll be assigned to. "I'll be working to help either individuals or perhaps a small business, come up with good business practices and educate them about ways to grow their business," he said.
Initially, he'll undergo three months of in-country training to learn the language and become familiar with the country's customs. "Then you learn where you'll be living," he said.
He endured three months of medical screenings and background checks before learning he'd been accepted as a volunteer.
"I had to actually sign a statement that I wasn't applying to work in the CIA, which I thought was kind of bizarre," he recalled.
He said he plans to keep his West Palm Beach home, will pack his dog off to his parents and has enlisted his sister's help to watch over things while he's gone.
"I'm a little nervous," he said. "I'm giving up a career and income to go do this but I feel that I'm not getting any younger and it seemed like the right time to do it and when I got the official word, I was just absolutely thrilled."
Meanwhile, he said WPEC management will launch a search for his replacement.
Story courtesy of and copyrighted by Scripps Treasure Coast Newspapers
Posted by Steve Hunsicker at 4:26 PM
Search Steve's Adventure
Private Cottage near Brickell
Beautifully restored 265 sq ft cottage with full kitchen, full bath, sofabed & free street parking. Located in residential neighborhood close to Brickell, Metrorail, restaurants and stores. 1 bl...
Miami Vacation House Rentals
News Media Clips
Copyright © Steve's Adventure with the Media. Designed for Travel Blogger Templates - Costa Rica Car Rental, Free wordpress themes


Former AFL field umpire and current SANFL Umpires Manager, Shane Harris will head an all star cast of umpires who will take charge of the 2018 E J Whitten match to be played at the Adelaide Oval on Friday August 31.
Shane has been the SANFL Umpires Manager since 1994. He was made a SANFL Life Member in 2016 for his services to SANFL football and umpiring. Shane umpired in the VFL between 1987 – 1992 officiating in 74 games. Shane umpired the VFL Reserves Grand Final in 1988 and the London exhibition match in the same year.
Michael umpired AFL football between 1997-2010. He umpired 179 games including one final. Michael played football for West Adelaide before turning to umpiring. Michael also played cricket for Adelaide Cricket Club and represented SA in under 17 and 19 National Championships.
Richard umpired a record 459 SANFL games between 1987 and 2011. He also umpired 56 AFL games between 1995 and 1999. Richard officiated in 11 SANFL Grand Finals and 4 State games. He won the Golden Whistle award as the best umpire in SA on 6 occasions. He is currently the SANFL umpires assistant coach. He was inducted into the SANFL Hall of Fame in 2012.
Tim officiated in 416 SANFL games between 1991 and 2009. He umpired 44 AFL matches between 1994 and 1997. Tim umpired 10 SANFL Grand Finals and 5 interstate games. Tim was the recipient of the Golden Whistle Award as the best umpire in the SANFL 5 times. Tim was inducted into the SANFL Hall of Fame in 2014.
Darren holds the current record of the most games umpired by a boundary umpire. His tally of 405 AFL games included 48 finals and 12 grand finals. Darren now coaches boundary umpires in the AFLW competition and those in the National under 16 and 18 carnivals.
Jonathan umpired 307 AFL games including 29 finals 4 grand finals. In a stellar career Jonathan was a leader of umpires not only in the SA panel but across Australia. Jonathan retired at the end of 2016.
John has decided to travel to SA to participate in his second EJ Whitten games. John umpired 325 games including 20 finals and retired at the end of the 2017 season.
Randall has remained in peak fitness since his retirement in 1999 after umpiring 76 AFL games. Randall is the current AFL Queensland boundary umpires match day coach. This is Randall's second EJ Whitten game.
Steven Murphy umpired 74 AFL games between 1995 and 2005 whilst Leo Corrieri officiated in 154 AFL games and which included 8 finals.


text:
A corrida de sacos é uma competição geralmente infantil na qual as crianças colocam os pés dentro de um saco ou travesseiro e pulam com a intenção de chegar ao outro lado da rua ou à uma linha de chegada. A primeira criança a alcançar esse objetivo é o vencedor(a) da partida.

A brincadeira também pode ser uma disputa entre duas equipas, e as crianças devem saltar dentro dos sacos, sair do saco e entregar para o próximo competidor, fazendo um revezamento. Os sacos devem ser resistentes, como sacos de estopa, de batatas ou de arroz, desde que cheguem a pelo menos o quadril das crianças.

Jogos infantis
Jogos de habilidade física


"Chazak u'varuch" on this very special day, let the dear one know that no matter where they go, no matter what they do or how old they get you will always be there to wish them on their special day. So show this person how dear they are to you by sending them these blessed Jewish Birthday Wishes.
I pray your day is filled with immense joy and that you are surrounded by family and friends. Yom Huledet Sameach!
Yom Huledet Sameach! Wishing you happiness, joy, and peace on your birthday, my friend. Shalom!
Mazel Tov on your birthday! I hope your day brings an abundance of happiness and love to your life!
May your special day be filled with fulfilled wishes and delicious knishes! Happy Birthday!
Yom Huledet Sameach! May the joy present at your birth be with you today and always!
Wishing you a wonderfully happy birthday filled with blessings, granted wishes and fulfilled dreams. Yom Huledet Sameach!
May God bring you peace, contentment and joy on your birthday, dear friend. Mazel Tov!


text:
5 ways Microsoft has improved SharePoint security
7 things CIOs should know about SharePoint Server 2016
You might be using Office 365 without even knowing it
SharePoint 2013 cheat sheet
What's really new in SharePoint 2016?
With SharePoint 2016, Microsoft is going back to what SharePoint is all about: easy collaboration, team-driven workflows and simple Intranet publishing. Wait, isn't that what SharePoint has been doing all along?
By Mary Branscombe
CIO |
The SharePoint community has reacted with enthusiasm to Microsoft's roadmap for SharePoint 2016, even though much of it is familiar to anyone who's been using SharePoint for a while. It's so confusingly familiar, in fact, that you may find yourself asking whether that wasn't what SharePoint already did or wondering what else SharePoint was trying to do.
What's new in SharePoint 2016
In SharePoint 2016, there's a straightforward way to create new sites and pick whether they're a team site for sharing documents or an Intranet site for publishing information. You can also choose who's a member and mark right away whether the site is for standard documents or more confidential information.
[ Also on CIO.com: 5 ways Microsoft has improved SharePoint security ]
There are mobile apps for iOS and (later in 2016) Android and Windows that show you the sites you're a member of, SharePoint lists (which many customers have used to build custom apps based on SharePoint) and what other people have been doing on those sites. That's a big step up from working with SharePoint in a mobile browser or needing a third-party app.
To continue reading this article register now
Learn More Existing Users Sign In