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Spiritualitydev.florimont2022-11-28T12:28:25+01:00
Flo spirit
The Flo spirit is our driving force. Being open-minded, altruistic and know when to challenge oneself is what defines our community.
We take it to heart to promote the Flo spirit wherever and whenever we can, through our teaching methods in class, or outside the educational framework during events we organise inside and outside our campus.
The congregation of the missionaries of Saint François de Sales
The first missionaries were priests from the diocese of Annecy, brought together by Father Pierre-Marie MERMIER (1790-1862) in order to go from parish to parish and promote the church's evangelical mission aimed at reviving the faith after the troubles of the French Revolution.
In 1838, this group formed a religious congregation under the patronage of St. François de Sales, a bishop and apostle in this region from 1602 to 1622.
The new congregation was approved both by the bishop of Annecy, Monsignor Pierre-Joseph REY and the King of Sardinia, His Highness Charles Albert. (Savoy was not French until 1860.)
Saint François de Sales was born in 1567, five years after the death of Calvin.
He was ordained as Bishop of Geneva in 1602, three days before the famous Escalade that marked the final independence of the city from Charles-Emmanuel, the Duke of Savoy. He died in 1622 on returning from a diplomatic mission.
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Parenting is already one of the toughest jobs in the world, right? I don't suffer from chronic pain myself but still find parenting my ten year old physically, emotionally and financially exhausting. The idea of adding intolerable and unrelenting pain into that already life-crushingly tough equation is, frankly, horrifying.
My wife, however, does suffer from chronic pain. If you've read her pieces on this blog you'll be familiar with her condition – CRPS in her left foot. I know that when I first met her she feared her illness might be an obstacle for any potential partner. That certainly wasn't the case for me. I knew very early on that this was the woman who I wanted to spend my life with. There were obviously a number of things I was looking for in a partner, but a full set of working and pain-free limbs hadn't made it onto my checklist.
One thing that was on the list, however, was someone who was right for my daughter. When you're a single parent raising a child on your own, it's disingenuous to claim that you're only looking for a partner for yourself. You're also looking for a parent for your child. It was an unavoidable truth of my situation and one that was always at the front of my mind from the very moment I decided to hop aboard the dating bandwagon.
From even before I met my wife in person, I knew that I had to be really certain that she was just as much the right choice for my daughter as she was for me. Did the CRPS complicate this at all? Yes, of course it did. My daughter had already had to cope with her mother leaving home. The idea of introducing anyone new at all was, in all honesty, pretty terrifying. The risk that she could be let down again was almost too much to bear. That my wife had a condition which required certain compromises felt like it upped the stakes. It was a choice I could not afford to get wrong.
As it happened, every one of my instincts told me it was the right thing to do and certainly in the years that have followed I have been proved correct (clever me!). Yes, my wife may not be able to do some things that other non-pain sufferers can, but she also offers a level of love and support to me and my daughter than I'm sure few able bodied people could ever hope to match. She is not her illness, and she is a remarkable wife and mother.
There have of course been a few lessons we have had to learn along the way, though.
All CRPS sufferers are experts at putting on a brave face. When you're in severe pain all of the time you have to learn how to hide it, for your own sanity as well as the sanity of those around you. We tend to view kids as being delicate, so the instinct can be to hide away as much of the pain as possible to protect them. While of course this is necessary to an extent, it can lead to problems. If a parent suddenly switches from being happy and playful to grumpy and absent without warning of explanation, this can potentially confuse or worry a child.
Honesty is the best weapon against this. If a child comprehends your condition and pain levels, and how these things affect you, then they're far better equipped to understand and accept that their actions are not the cause of any mood swings or changes of plan. If you think today is a bad day then tell them. At the same time, if you're feeling good then tell them that too. Kids are far more resilient than they are often given credit for and you can be certain that they'll adapt to any compromises your condition necessitates faster than you will! Trust them to deal with it and they almost certainly will.
That's easy to say, of course. Parenthood is largely a state of permanent guilt. Are we feeding them right? Are they watching too much TV? Are we showing them enough attention? Are we not pushing them enough at school? Or pushing them too much? It therefore becomes that much harder to feel that you're letting your kids down by not participating in a promised activity. But the reality of chronic pain means there will be good days and bad days and it's vital to learn to prioritise. You may have planned two or three activities for the weekend but if playing Minecraft together or doing each other's nails is the thing they'll really love the most, then don't feel bad about backing out of something else to make sure that happens. If your child understands your condition, they'll understand what needs to be done.
Let them help you, too. Seriously, asking them to fetch you a drink or grab a cushion might feel like a burden, but so many of a kids' frustrations stem from powerlessness. The vast majority will relish the chance to help and make a tiny difference. The urge can be to keep them at arm's length and shield them from the impact of your condition, but in my experience the opposite is often best. While you of course don't want them to be your carer, you do want to be friends with your kids, and friends help one another. Letting them in, even if just a bit, makes the world of difference to you and to them.
I know that for a lot of parents with chronic pain, the thing that weighs most heavily on their minds is the guilt associated with worrying that their kids are missing out. "Why can't I just play football in the park like the other dads?", "I just wish I could walk the dog with her like the other mums!" Escaping from these feelings completely is impossible, but the thing you have to remember with kids is that the only thing that is really, genuinely important is that they know that you love them and that you care.
There are plenty of able bodied parents who do a terrible job and there are plenty of disabled parents who do an amazing job. I know for certain that while my daughter is not able to do all of the same activities with her step mum as her friends do with their mums, their relationship is incredible. My daughter loves her very much and would not change her for the world. Get that fundamental thing right and the rest doesn't matter anywhere near as much.
It's hard, especially when first coming to terms with chronic pain, to not think of yourself as lesser. The urge to compare yourself to 'normal' parents (which is a total misnomer) and dwell on the things you cannot do is a very difficult one to resist. The thing to realise is that all parents – able bodied and disabled – are compromised in one way or another. No-one is perfect and it's probably fair to say that every single parent judges themselves harshly. The actually quite sad truth is that providing you always act with love, you're already doing a better job than a lot of people. If what you lack in mobility and activity you make up for with love, care and companionship, you're never going to be resented, and you can definitely be every bit the parent any child wants.


At Build Home Smart, we provide our customers a comprehensive building service which is delivered by our teams to our national and international clients who operate across a wide range of market. Whether there is a completely new development, renovation of an old building or simply a new fit out contract, our skillful team of building contractors in Bangalore has complete expertise and ensure the clients that the contract will be completed on time, within budget and exceed their expectations. We understand the needs of our clients and work closely with them to deliver the contracts with minimal impact on environment.
Our building contractors in Bangalore are one of the top ranked turnkey project implementation experts and building construction contractors for designing and building your independent dream houses, villas and buildings in Bangalore. Our team comprises of highly trained and expert personnels including best architects in Bangalore, engineers, interior designers in Bangalore, exterior landscape designers, consultants, contractors, supervisors, etc. who have years of experience in field of contracting and construction. Our main objective is to deliver projects to our clients with highest level of quality and utmost satisfaction.
At Build Home Smart, our goal is not only to help our customers in building their houses and designing their premises but also make the entire procedure enjoyable. We can help our clients with aspects of new house/ office construction, finding the right place, design, architecture and building their desired project from the ground up. The big list of our customers that we have satisfied over so many years is enough to attest our excellent reputation for perfect craftsmanship, clear communication and unmitigated attention to detail, integrity and honesty.
It does not matter whether you have ever been through the complex process of construction before or not, you will find that our construction services and the way we appropriately manage our work of art is at par with the standard. Our building contractors in Bangalore will take care of your site inspections, house building budgets, comprehensive project schedules, interior designing, etc. We have dedicated professionals for mechanical, electrical as well as landscaping work. Almost all your project work is handled by our building contractors in Bangalore efficiently and under our exacting standards. We assure our clients to accomplish all projects with complete dedication, passion and pride.
For any supply and technical enquiries, our highly trained staff is ready to take your call.


It's no secret that Amazon is at the center of almost every household. There are many different ways to sell things or make money on Amazon, today we're happy to share just a few of those valuable methods with you.
You're able to set up an affiliate account and start promoting products. As your users click on these links you will start to make money! This is an insanely popular option. Especially if you have a website with organic and good engagement already.
For this, you need to create an account with Amazon. You can then send products to Amazon for them to sell on their website. The best part is, they will ship and take care of everything for you! This does, however, come at a cost of around 20%.
Some Amazon products have manual reviews, you need to keep this in mind before attempting to sell these products. However, because of this review process products may be less diluted and higher profit margins.
To start selling on Amazon, you'll need an account which can be created HERE.
You can either choose to ship by Amazon (fulfilled by Amazon) or ship it yourself which is considered third-party selling.
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Back to News Releases
Department of Pesticide Regulation and California Strawberry Commission Announce Research Partnership to Reduce Fumigant Use on Strawberry Fields
Media Contact: Lea Brooks
916-445-3974 | Lea.Brooks@cdpr.ca.gov
March 7, 2012 (12-05)
WATSONVILLE – Today, the Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) and California Strawberry Commission announced a research partnership that will look for alternatives to fumigant pesticides. The $500,000, three-year project will explore ways to grow strawberries in peat or substances other than soil.
"This project shows our commitment to encourage and support development of effective and environmentally friendly ways to control pests," said DPR Director Brian R. Leahy. "Fumigant pesticides are an important tool farmers use to control a wide variety of pests and diseases. The objective of this project is to provide even more tools to safely and economically grow crops in our state."
Leahy made the announcement at the Monterey Bay Academy in Watsonville where research on alternatives to fumigant pesticides has been under way for several years. The project will build on previous research to develop non-chemical alternatives to fumigants and to reduce fumigant emissions that contribute to global warming.
Fumigants are gaseous pesticides injected into the soil of agricultural fields prior to planting. Mounting and costly fumigation restrictions, including buffer zones around fields being treated to protect the public from potential exposure, underscore the urgency to find a replacement.
"Strawberry production is important to the state and local economies, and strawberry producers should have a full spectrum of tools available to maintain the viability of their industry,"Leahy emphasized.
Commission President Mark Murai said, "California strawberry growers have a long history of developing innovative farming practices. We are energized to be partners with the Department of Pesticide Regulation to jointly tackle the challenges farmers face with soil-borne plant diseases."
Dan Legard, Commission research director added, "We initiated research four years ago that started looking at the potential of growing strawberries in substrate. This important partnership helps get these trials out to growers' fields for farm-scale testing."
The Brown Administration's support for developing more environmentally friendly farming practices is reflected in the state's proposed 2012-13 budget that includes a $713,000 annual increase for DPR to support research for fumigant alternatives. If approved, the first funding cycle for this program would be fiscal year 2013-14.
DPR's partnership with the California Strawberry Commission and the proposed fumigant alternatives research grants are in addition to its Pest Management Alliance Grants. Since 1998, DPR has awarded approximately $6 million to more than 60 projects that use integrated pest management (IPM) strategies to reduce pesticide use. IPM combines natural and preventive strategies that focus on long-term pest prevention and pose a low risk to people and the environment. Pesticides are used as a last resort and selected to remove only the target pest.
The research project and grants are subsidized with special funds generated by fees on pesticide sales.
"We're excited to be working with the California Strawberry Commission on this cutting- edge, boots-in-the field research that will be followed by farmers throughout the world," Leahy said. "This project also advances DPR's mission to foster reduced-risk pest management in both agricultural and urban settings through research, grants and recognition."
One of five departments and boards within the California Environmental Protection Agency, DPR regulates the registration, sale and use of pesticides to protect people and the environment. More information about DPR is posted at www.cdpr.ca.gov.
For more information about the California Strawberry Commission, a state government agency that represents 500 growers, please visit: www.calstrawberry.com/ .

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


The Global Life Cell Imaging Market, by Product Type (Instruments and Consumables), by Modality (Portable and Standalone), by End-use Industry (Hospitals, Research Laboratories, Biotechnology Companies and Pharmaceutical Companies) and by Region (North America, Latin America, Europe, Asia Pacific, the Middle East, and Africa) was valued at US$ 4.4 billion in 2016 and is projected to exhibit a CAGR of 8.6% over the forecast period (2017 – 2025), as highlighted in a new report published by Coherent Market Insights. Rapid increase in cancer incidence, in turn creates high demand for development of high-end microscope to understand the structural and functional complexities of the cells. This is expected to be the major factor driving growth of global life cell imaging market over the forecast period.
Cancer is the second-largest cause of death worldwide, inadvertently creating lucrative growth opportunities for development of therapies to treat this chronic disease. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), 8.8 million people died from cancer in 2015, which accounts for 1 in 6 deaths. The data also suggests that 30-50% cases of these deaths could have been prevented with appropriate medication. Development of effective medication for the disease requires in depth study regarding the structure and mechanism of the tumor cells. This study is only possible with the help of imaging instruments such as microscopes and data analyzers and thus, the increasing research in the field of drug development is thus expected to propel the global life cell imaging market.
Furthermore, live cell imaging that has the capability to capture the live movements and functionalities with the use of advanced technologies such as bright field microscopes and multi-photon electron microscopes are being installed in a lot of research laboratories and companies to accelerate the research process as well as help to attain accuracy in data analysis through computer-based software. The cell imaging instruments can also be used to study embryogenesis in the developmental biology studies to observe the phases of the development of an embryo using various animal cell models. The augmented reality imaging in the neurology is also helpful in understanding the electrophysiology of the nerve impulses and signal channel detectors through imaging techniques.
Cell imaging system manufacturers are focused on incorporation of various technologies in order to improve the imaging quality and provide ease and assistance in imaging studies. The imaging companies are using technologies such as Fluorescence Resonance Energy Transfer (FRET), Fluorescent in situ Hybridization (FISH), Reflection Fluorescence Microscopy (TRIF) and Multi-photon Excitation Microscopy for the development of high-end analyzers systems. The Cell imaging analyzer systems is thus expected to be the leading instrument among the product type segment throughout the forecast years. For instance, In January 2017, Olympus launched a 3D laser measuring microscope with 4K scanning that will provide fast and intuitive surface metrology. Various such products coming in the near future are expected to create a competitive scenario among the market players to come up with innovative products.
The global cell imaging Market is expected to exhibit a CAGR of 6% over the forecast period, owing to the technological development in the field of microscopy majorly in North America and Europe.
Some major players operating in the global life cell imaging market are Leica Microsystems, Carl Zeiss Meditec AG, Nikon Instruments, Inc., Thermofisher Scientific, Inc., Olympus Corporation, GE Healthcare, Sigma-Aldrich Corporation, Molecular Devices LLC, PerkinElmer, Inc. and Becton-Dickinson and Company.


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Singer George Hamilton IV (1937-2014) came to national prominence just as Music City was in search of artists who could bridge the gap between the lofty Nashville Sound and the purposefully amateurish '60s Folk revival. He had a charmingly imperfect voice, with an almost conversational style that suited itself well to the folk-country material that was popular at the time. Indeed, there's just something indefinable and appealing about his style, a down-to-earth, plainspoken quality that may win you over, no matter what kind of material he covers. Here's a quick look at his career...
George Hamilton IV "To You And Yours From Me And Mine: 1954-1965" (Bear Family, 1995)
This massive 6-CD set may be overwhelming for the casual listener, but for devoted Hamiltonians, it's a real treasure trove. In addition to his studio work up through '65 (including several of the albums listed below, such as his Ernest Tubb tribute), this also presents early radio appearances, some lively Opry performances and other bonus materials... And, of course, the fine Bear Family label sound quality and scholarship which continues to be the gold standard of country reissues. If you can afford it, and can plow through all the material, this is a great document of Hamilton's early work.
George Hamilton IV "Country Boy: The Best Of George Hamilton IV" (BMG International, 1996)
This European-issue best-of has some pretty unimpressive artwork, but it's a fine selection of Hamilton's best work, with plenty of heartfelt country-folk tunes and novelty songs. Although it doesn't dip much into his later work, it is still probably the best overall single-disc collection of Hamilton's work out there so far. Recommended.
George Hamilton IV "Abilene... Plus Other Great Folk Hits" (RCA/Collectables, 1963/1998)
Singer George Hamilton IV, who came to national prominence just as Music City was in search of artists who could bridge the gap between the lofty Nashville Sound and the purposefully amateurish '60s Folk revival, had a charmingly imperfect voice, with an almost conversational style that suited itself well to folk-country material like the songs on this early album. "Abilene," with its catchy, forlorn chorus, was his biggest career hit and his only #1, but the other songs in his repertoire were often equally charming... Dipping at times into the youth-oriented themes of rock-tinged, pre-Beatles teenpop and at other times into the story-song genre, Hamilton could take on songs that were strained and forced, and make them sound compelling and sincere. He's definitely an acquired taste, and an echo from a much simpler time, but I like him. Definitely worth checking out!
George Hamilton IV "The Best Of" (Sony-BMG, 2006)
George Hamilton IV "To You And Yours" (The Drugstore's Rockin' series) (Bear Family, 2009)
George Hamilton IV "The Best Of George Hamilton IV" (RCA, 1970) (LP)
George Hamilton IV "The Best, v.2" (RCA, 1974) (LP)
George Hamilton IV "Greatest Hits" (RCA, 1974) (LP)
George Hamilton IV "On Campus" (ABC, 1958) (LP)
George Hamilton IV "Sing Me A Sad Song: A Tribute To Hank Williams" (ABC, 1958) (LP & MP3)
(Produced by Don Costa)
A Hank Williams tribute album...
George Hamilton IV "To You And Yours" (RCA, 1961) (LP)
George Hamilton IV "Abilene" (RCA, 1963)
George Hamilton IV "Fort Worth, Dallas Or Houston" (RCA, 1964) (LP)
George Hamilton IV "Mister Sincerity: A Tribute To Ernest Tubb" (RCA Victor, 1965) (LP)
An amiable RCA tribute to the froggy-voiced Texas honkytonk pioneer, Ernest Tubb, longtime star of the rival Decca label. There's nothing wrong with this album... In fact, it's quite nice and a lot of fun to listen to. However, Hamilton's buoyant melodic approach, as informed by late-50s teenybopper pop as by his hard country roots, is quite different from the stark, bare-bones approach that Tubb himself took. Still, I like these traditionalist albums that Hamilton cut in the mid-'60s -- they have a nice, uncomplicated feel, and are more zippy that the slower folk-countrypolitan stuff he later penned and recorded. Recommended!
George Hamilton IV "Coast Country" (RCA Victor, 1966) (LP)
This one's even more fun... WAY more fun! An unabashed homage to the rock-friendly approach being pioneered by Buck Owens and the Bakersfield crowd, this is one of the best examples you'll hear of Nashville studio cats at this time just letting their hair down and playing some fun, rollicking, uptempo material. Plus, GH4 really gets into it and has a blast. Highly recommeded!
George Hamilton IV "Steel Rail Blues" (RCA, 1966) (LP)
George Hamilton IV "Folk Country Classics" (RCA, 1967) (LP)
George Hamilton IV "Folksy" (RCA, 1967) (LP)
George Hamilton IV "The Gentle Country Sound Of..." (RCA, 1968) (LP)
George Hamilton IV "In The 4th Dimension" (RCA, 1968) (LP)
George Hamilton IV "Canadian Pacific" (RCA, 1969) (LP)
George Hamilton IV "Back Where It's At" (RCA, 1970) (LP)
George Hamilton IV "Down Home In The Country" (RCA, 1970) (LP)
George Hamilton IV "Early Morning Rain" (RCA-Camden, 1970) (LP)
A Gordon Lightfoot tribute album, originally released in Canada under the title Lightfoot Country
George Hamilton IV "North Country" (RCA, 1971) (LP)
George Hamilton IV "West Texas Highway" (RCA Victor, 1971) (LP)
Later in his career, Hamilton started delving into a gritter, funkier hard-country sound, perhaps influenced by the "outlaw" movement that was slowly bubbling up in the early '70s. This album has one super-fab nugget on it: the comedic "Plain Old, Three-Chord, Hurtin' Country Song," a gritty novelty gem that screams out for reissue, and several other tunes that have a brooding, backroads intensity to them. It's not as readily digestible as his other albums, but it's still a mighty fine record. Recommended!
George Hamilton IV "Country Music In My Soul" (RCA, 1972) (LP)
George Hamilton IV "Travelin' Light" (RCA Victor, 1972) (LP)
(Produced by Bob Ferguson)
A simple, low-key folk-country offering... Nothing really stands out as particularly memorable, but it's all quite listenable and pleasant. The insider-y liner notes hint at Hamilton's shift towards gospel singing, announcing that he plans to move away from Nashville for a berth in North Carolina, and that he planned to become a regular on the Arthur "Guitar Boogie" Smith's TV show, which apparently centered on Smith's ministry in the Baptist church. Well, who knew...?? Anyway, this is a nice record... not earthshaking, but nice.
George Hamilton IV "International Ambassador" (RCA, 1972) (LP)
George Hamilton IV "Out West Country" (RCA, 1973) (LP)
George Hamilton IV "Trendsetter" (RCA, 1975) (LP)
George Hamilton IV "Back To Down East Country" (RCA, 1975) (LP)
George Hamilton IV "Back Home At The Opry" (RCA, 1976) (LP)
George Hamilton IV "Fine Lace And Homespun Cloth" (ABC/Dot, 1977) (LP)
George Hamilton IV "Feels Like A Million" (Anchor, 1978) (LP)
George Hamilton IV "Forever Young" (MCA, 1977) (LP)
George Hamilton IV "Songs For A Winter's Night" (Ronco, 1982) (LP)
George Hamilton IV & Jiri Brabec "...And Country Beat" (Supraphon, 1983) (LP & MP3)
George Hamilton IV "Music Man's Dream" (Range, 1984)
George Hamilton IV & George Hamilton V "Homegrown" (Lamon, 1990)
George Hamilton IV "Heavenly Spirituals" (Homeland, 1997)
George Hamilton IV "A Blue Ridge Sunday" (Lamon, 2003)
George Hamilton IV "Songs Of Faith And Inspiration" (RGO, 2004)
George Hamilton IV "Heritage And Legacy: 50th Anniversary" (Lamon, 2006)
George Hamilton IV "Tenderly Calling: The Songs Of Fanny Crosby" (Lamon, 2007)
George Hamilton IV "Music And Memories Of Joseph Scriven" (Hillcrest, 2007)
George Hamilton IV "Easter Live In The Country: A Resurrection Celebration" (Hillcrest, 2008)
Wikipedia: George Hamilton IV


Can You Refuse to Hire Smokers?
Employees can't take it with them: But who's getting their money?
Are Your Employees Punching In?
Would you hesitate to hire a pregnant woman?
Since its beginning as a one-man consulting firm in 1953, J. J. Keller & Associates, Inc.® has grown to become the most respected name in safety and regulatory compliance. Now over 1,300 associates strong, J. J. Keller serves over 420,000 customers — including 91% of the Fortune 1000. The company's subject matter expertise spans nearly 1,500 topics and its diverse solutions include mobile technology; training via DVD, online courses or streaming video; online management tools; managed services; advisory services; publications; forms and supplies. J. J. Keller helps HR professionals address core compliance issues, including FMLA, ADA, HIPAA, FLSA, and labor law with an ever-growing array of products and services developed by its subject matter experts. For more information, visit jjkeller.com.


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United we stand: The impact of buying groups on retailer productivity
Inge Geyskens, Katrijn Gielens, Stefan Wuyts
In diverse industries, from grocery retailing to health care, retailers join buying groups to achieve better terms with suppliers. The authors track the buying group membership of Europe's largest grocery retailers over a 15-year period and evaluate why some buying groups are better than others in increasing retailer performance and why different members belonging to the same group do not always benefit equally from their membership. They find that, on average, buying groups indeed generate scale advantages for their members: group scale increases group members' productivity and sales and decreases their cost of goods sold. Still, bigger is not always better. Retailers benefit less from buying group scale when the group is more heterogeneous in terms of member size and when it extends its scope across too many markets. Moreover, the smaller a member is within the group and the more it overlaps with fellow members, the less it benefits.
Journal of Marketing
https://doi.org/10.1509/jm.14.0202
Published - Jul 1 2015
10.1509/jm.14.0202
Dive into the research topics of 'United we stand: The impact of buying groups on retailer productivity'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.
Buying Groups Business & Economics 100%
Retailers Business & Economics 51%
Productivity Business & Economics 43%
Grocery Retailing Business & Economics 21%
Group Membership Business & Economics 19%
Grocery Business & Economics 16%
Join Business & Economics 14%
Healthcare Business & Economics 10%
Geyskens, I., Gielens, K., & Wuyts, S. (2015). United we stand: The impact of buying groups on retailer productivity. Journal of Marketing, 79(4), 16-33. https://doi.org/10.1509/jm.14.0202
Geyskens, Inge ; Gielens, Katrijn ; Wuyts, Stefan. / United we stand : The impact of buying groups on retailer productivity. In: Journal of Marketing. 2015 ; Vol. 79, No. 4. pp. 16-33.
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United we stand : The impact of buying groups on retailer productivity. / Geyskens, Inge; Gielens, Katrijn; Wuyts, Stefan.
In: Journal of Marketing, Vol. 79, No. 4, 01.07.2015, p. 16-33.
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AU - Gielens, Katrijn
AU - Wuyts, Stefan
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N2 - In diverse industries, from grocery retailing to health care, retailers join buying groups to achieve better terms with suppliers. The authors track the buying group membership of Europe's largest grocery retailers over a 15-year period and evaluate why some buying groups are better than others in increasing retailer performance and why different members belonging to the same group do not always benefit equally from their membership. They find that, on average, buying groups indeed generate scale advantages for their members: group scale increases group members' productivity and sales and decreases their cost of goods sold. Still, bigger is not always better. Retailers benefit less from buying group scale when the group is more heterogeneous in terms of member size and when it extends its scope across too many markets. Moreover, the smaller a member is within the group and the more it overlaps with fellow members, the less it benefits.
AB - In diverse industries, from grocery retailing to health care, retailers join buying groups to achieve better terms with suppliers. The authors track the buying group membership of Europe's largest grocery retailers over a 15-year period and evaluate why some buying groups are better than others in increasing retailer performance and why different members belonging to the same group do not always benefit equally from their membership. They find that, on average, buying groups indeed generate scale advantages for their members: group scale increases group members' productivity and sales and decreases their cost of goods sold. Still, bigger is not always better. Retailers benefit less from buying group scale when the group is more heterogeneous in terms of member size and when it extends its scope across too many markets. Moreover, the smaller a member is within the group and the more it overlaps with fellow members, the less it benefits.
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package org.apache.spark.sql.columnar

import java.nio.ByteBuffer

import org.apache.spark.SparkFunSuite
import org.apache.spark.sql.catalyst.expressions.GenericMutableRow
import org.apache.spark.sql.types.{StringType, ArrayType, DataType}

class TestNullableColumnAccessor[JvmType](
    buffer: ByteBuffer,
    columnType: ColumnType[JvmType])
  extends BasicColumnAccessor(buffer, columnType)
  with NullableColumnAccessor

object TestNullableColumnAccessor {
  def apply[JvmType](buffer: ByteBuffer, columnType: ColumnType[JvmType])
    : TestNullableColumnAccessor[JvmType] = {
    // Skips the column type ID
    buffer.getInt()
    new TestNullableColumnAccessor(buffer, columnType)
  }
}

class NullableColumnAccessorSuite extends SparkFunSuite {
  import ColumnarTestUtils._

  Seq(
    BOOLEAN, BYTE, SHORT, INT, DATE, LONG, TIMESTAMP, FLOAT, DOUBLE,
    STRING, BINARY, FIXED_DECIMAL(15, 10), GENERIC(ArrayType(StringType)))
    .foreach {
    testNullableColumnAccessor(_)
  }

  def testNullableColumnAccessor[JvmType](
      columnType: ColumnType[JvmType]): Unit = {

    val typeName = columnType.getClass.getSimpleName.stripSuffix("$")
    val nullRow = makeNullRow(1)

    test(s"Nullable $typeName column accessor: empty column") {
      val builder = TestNullableColumnBuilder(columnType)
      val accessor = TestNullableColumnAccessor(builder.build(), columnType)
      assert(!accessor.hasNext)
    }

    test(s"Nullable $typeName column accessor: access null values") {
      val builder = TestNullableColumnBuilder(columnType)
      val randomRow = makeRandomRow(columnType)

      (0 until 4).foreach { _ =>
        builder.appendFrom(randomRow, 0)
        builder.appendFrom(nullRow, 0)
      }

      val accessor = TestNullableColumnAccessor(builder.build(), columnType)
      val row = new GenericMutableRow(1)

      (0 until 4).foreach { _ =>
        assert(accessor.hasNext)
        accessor.extractTo(row, 0)
        assert(row.get(0, columnType.dataType) === randomRow.get(0, columnType.dataType))

        assert(accessor.hasNext)
        accessor.extractTo(row, 0)
        assert(row.isNullAt(0))
      }

      assert(!accessor.hasNext)
    }
  }
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


text:
Q: Proof about $k$-partite graphs in which all maximal cliques are size $k$ and a way to remove edges so that all maximal cliques remain size $k$ I have written this graph-theoretic proof about certain symmetric $k$-partite graphs, and a way to filter their edges so that all maximal cliques in the graph remain size $k$. The reason why I am not confident the proof is right is because it is a strong implication that $P=NP$ by way of $SAT$'s reduction to the clique problem. I can't find any errors in the proof, but the implication seems too strong for the proof to be correct so I'd appreciate any help pointing out a problem I may have missed. I've tried to use standard terminology as much as possible, but anything I've created is bold and italicized, so please let me know if there is a better term or definition out there
Definition: Given some graph $G$, $V(G)$ is its set of vertices and $E(G)$ is its set of edges. A vertex is an element $v \in V(G)$ and an edge is an element $vw \in E(G)$ with adjacent endpoints $v, w \in V(G)$. Two graphs $G$ and $H$ are called isomorphic if there is a bijection $f: V(G) \rightarrow V(H)$ such that any $vw \in E(G)$ implies $f(v)f(w) \in E(H)$, and are called non-isomorphic otherwise
Definition: A $k$-clique $\Delta$k is a graph on $k$ vertices where all vertices are pairwise adjacent. A clique which is not a proper subset of any other is called maximal
Definition: A $k$-partite graph $G$ is a graph whose vertex set has been partitioned into $k$ independent sets. An independent set is a set of vertices which are all pairwise non-adjacent. If $G$ is complete, then vertices are pairwise adjacent between all partitions. The restoration of $G$ is the set of edges needed to make $G$ complete under this definition. The complete $k$-partite graph formed by adding the restoration to $E(G)$ is defined as $*(G)$
Definition: The clique complex of a graph $G$ is the abstract simplicial complex whose faces are the vertex set of each clique in $G$. A face which is not a proper subset of any other face is called a facet. The dimension of a face $X$ is defined as $|X|-1$. The dimension of the clique complex is equal to the dimension of the largest face. A clique complex is said to be pure if each facet is the same dimension
Theorem 1: If $G$ is a $k$-partite graph with no edges and $\Gamma$k is some subset of all the possible $\Delta$k in $G$, then adding the edge set of each $\Delta$k$ \in \Gamma$k to $G$ will result in a graph which has a pure clique complex of dimension $k-1$

Proof: Assume that $\Delta$m is some maximal clique in $G$ where $m<k$. We know that each vertex in $V(\Delta$m$)$ belongs to at least one $\Delta$k$ \in \Gamma$k. However, since the vertex set can't be a subset due to the clique being maximal, they can't all belong to the same $\Delta$k. If we have some vertex $v \in V(\Delta$m$)$ and $v \notin V(\Delta$k$)$, we know that $v \in V(\Delta$k*$)$ for some $\Delta$k*$ \in \Gamma$k which is non-isomorphic to $\Delta$k. Since we know that $\{vw~|~w \in V(\Delta$k$)\} \subset E(\Delta$k*$)$, the definition of a clique tells us that those vertices $w \in V(\Delta$k$)$ which are connected to $v$ are all in $V(\Delta$k*$)$ as well. This means that $V(\Delta$m$) \subset V(\Delta$k*$)$, therefore it is not a maximal clique and we have arrived at a contradiction. Since no edges will be added between any of the vertices within a partition, we will have no cliques with more than $k$ vertices due to the Pigeon Hole Principle. Therefore, all maximal cliques must have exactly $k$ vertices and $G$ has a pure clique complex of dimension $k-1$

Definition: Given a graph $G$ and a subset of its edges $T \subset E(G)$, a subgraph on $T$ is a new graph whose edges are the set $T$
Definition: Given a graph $G$ and a subset of its vertices $S \subset V(G)$, an induced subgraph on $S$ is a subgraph of $G$ formed by the set of all edges $T \subset E(G)$ whose endpoints are both in $S$
Definition: Given a $k$-partite graph $G$, if for every $\Delta$m in $G$ where $1<m<k$, there exists a vertex $v$ such that the induced subgraph of $G$ on $V(\Delta$m$) \cup \{v\}$ forms a $\Delta$m+1, then $G$ is said to have the clique extension property
Theorem 2: If $G$ is a $k$-partite graph with a pure clique complex of dimension $k-1$, then $G$ has the clique extension property

Proof: If we have a $\Delta$m in $G$, where $1<m<k$, then by the definition of a pure clique complex, $\Delta$m is not a maximal clique as its vertex set does not form a face of dimension $k-1$. Since $\Delta$m is not a maximal clique, it must be a subset of a larger one. Therefore, there must be some vertex $v \notin V(\Delta$m$)$ such that the induced subgraph of $G$ on
$V(\Delta$m$) \cup \{v\}$ forms a $\Delta$m+1

Definition: Given a graph $G$ and its clique complex, as well as two edges $vw, xy \in E(G)$, the edge $vw$ is said to cover $xy$ if every facet containing $\{x, y\}$ also contains $\{v, w\}$. The coverage of an edge is the set of all edges which $vw$ covers
Definition: Given a graph $G$, the neighborhood of a vertex $v \in V(G)$, or $N(v)$, is the set of all vertices adjacent to $v$. The neighborhood of a clique, or $N(\Delta$m$)$, is the intersection of the neighborhoods of each vertex in $V(\Delta$m$)$. The use of square brackets means that the vertices used to define the neighborhood are included in the neighborhood or $N[v] = \{v\} \cup N(v)$
Definition: Given a $k$-partite graph $G$ with a pure clique complex of dimension $k-1$, the tangential of some clique, or $\tau(\Delta$m$)$, is defined as the set of edges in the induced subgraph of $G$ on $N[\Delta$m$]$
Theorem 3: If $G$ is a $k$-partite graph with a pure clique complex of dimension $k-1$ and $vw \in E(G)$, then $\tau(vw)$ is precisely the union of the edge set of each $\Delta$k which contains $vw$

Proof: From the definition of a clique, $V(\Delta$k$) \subset N[vw]$ if it contains some edge $vw$. Following this, the set of potential edges of any such maximal clique can be partitioned into three sets, $\{vw\}$, $\{vx, wx~|~x \in N(vw)\}$,
and $\{xy~|~x, y \in N(vw)\}$. The first partition is the edge which we are using to define the tangential. This is where we get the term tangential from, as all of the maximal cliques represented by the edge set will be "tangent" to this edge. The second partition is the set of all edges connecting $vw$ to any one of its neighbors $x$. We know every edge in this set is a part of some $\Delta$3 formed by the edges $\{vw, vx, wx\}$. Since $G$ has the clique extension property according to theorem 2, each $\Delta$3 can be extended to some $\Delta$$k$, meaning every edge between $vw$ and its neighbors will be in a maximal clique. The third partition is the set of edges which connect any two vertices $x, y \in N(vw)$. If $xy$ exists, we know that $\{vx, wx, vy, wy\} \subset E(G)$ from our definition of the neighborhood of a clique. Therefore, we also know that we can create a $\Delta$$4$ such that $E(\Delta$4$) = \{vw, vx, wx, vy, wy, xy\}$. If $\Delta$$4$ is not already maximal, we can again use theorem 2 to guarantee the clique can be extended to some $\Delta$$k$. Therefore, if $xy$ exists, it will be in a maximal clique. Taken together, the edge set of all maximal cliques which contain $vw$ is precisely all of the edges with both endpoints in $N[vw]$, or the induced subgraph of $G$ on $N[vw]$

Theorem 4: If $G$ is a $k$-partite graph with a pure clique complex of dimension $k-1$, for two edges $vw, xy \in E(G)$, if $vw$ covers $xy$ then $\tau(xy) \subset \tau(vw)$

Proof: According to theorem 3, the set of edges in $\tau(vw)$ are each part of some maximal clique containing $vw$. Therefore, for two edges $vw, xy \in E(G)$, if $\tau(xy) \subset \tau(vw)$, there are no maximal cliques that $xy$ is a part of that $vx$ isn't also a part of and $vw$ covers $xy$ according to our definition. We can also say $\tau(xy)$ represents the edge set of maximal cliques which happen to be tangent to both $vw$ and $xy$

Definition: Given a $k$-partite graph $G$ with a pure clique complex of dimension $k-1$ and an edge $vw \in E(G)$, a facet reduction, or $Red(G, vw)$ is the subgraph $H$ formed from $G$ by removing the edge $vw$ and each edge in its coverage. A facet reduction is also known as reducing $G$ by $vw$
Theorem 5: If $G$ is a $k$-partite graph with a pure clique complex of dimension $k-1$ and $H=Red(G, vw)$, then $H$ is either an independent set or it is a $k$-partite graph with a pure clique complex of dimension $k-1$ containing all of the $\Delta$k in $G$ which do not contain $vw$

Proof: Removing the edge $vw$ removes all $\Delta$k which contain $vw$. If we have some edge $xy$ covered by $vw$, then $xy$ can't be in any remaining $\Delta$k. Therefore, for any maximal clique $\Delta$m which contains $xy$, $m < k$. However, by removing $vw$ and its coverage, any remaining edge is contained in some $\Delta$k which does not contain $vw$. Alternatively, $H$ is formed from the edge set of all $\Delta$k in $G$ which did contain $vw$. Therefore, according to theorem 1, if $E(H) \neq \emptyset$, then $H$ has a pure clique complex of dimension $k-1$. If there are no $\Delta$k without $vw$, then $H$ is an independent set as no edges will remain

Theorem 6: If $G$ is a $k$-partite graph and $R$ is its restoration, then there is some induced $\Delta$k in $G$ if and only if $*(G)$ is not reduced to an independent set after being subjected to the facet reduction with each edge in $R$

Proof: If any $\Delta$k exists in $G$, then $E(\Delta$k$) \subset E(G)$, and as such, cannot contain any edge in $R$. Since $*(G)$ is $k$-partite and formed from the set of all possible $\Delta$k in $G$, it has a pure clique complex of dimension $k-1$ according to
theorem 1. Using theorem 5, reducing $*(G)$ by any $vw \in R$ will either produce another $k$-partite graph with a pure clique complex of dimension $k-1$ or it will produce an independent set. In the first case, we know that the new graph has no $\Delta$k which contain $vw$, but it does contain some other $\Delta$k. To find it, start with any $\Delta$2, add a vertex from its intersection to find a larger clique, then repeat until you have $k$ vertices. Since the new graph still has the clique extension property, we'll always end up with some $\Delta$k with the added property that it does not contain $vw$. Since the new graph also satisfies the conditions needed to perform a facet reduction, we can reduce it again by any remaining edges in $R$. If we reduce the graph by each of the edges in the restoration and it still has a non-empty edge set, then we know that $G$ contains some $\Delta$k which is able to be constructed from $E(G)$. Otherwise, at some point we reduce the graph to an independent set and we can determine that there are no $\Delta$k which can be formed using the edge set of $G$

A: So the errors in the proof are theorem 1 and theorem 5 and 6
Theorem 1 can be shown to be wrong through a counterexample. Take the 4-partite graph where the 4 blocks in the vertex partition are [1, 2, 3], [4, 5, 6], [7, 8, 9], and [10, 11, 12]. If we add the edge set for the $\Delta_4$ with vertices {1, 4, 8, 10}, {1, 5, 7, 11}, and {2, 4, 7, 12}, we get a maximal $\Delta_3$ with vertex set {1, 4, 7}
Theorem 5 is wrong because now it's not guaranteed that the subgraph we create will have a pure clique complex and theorem 6 is wrong because it relies on theorem 5
If we do have a $k$-partite graph with a pure clique complex of dimension $k-1$, theorems 2, 3, and 4 still stand. If we only use two cliques from the above counterexample, we have an example of such a graph

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


News: BT confirms it will retain the EE brand.
Ofcom has weighed into the mobile merger debate with an intervention that will increase the pressure on Hutchinson Whampoa's plans to acquire Telefonica's O2 network as BT's acquisition of EE approaches completion.
The CEO of Ofcom, Sharon White, claimed that the deal could increase prices for consumers and businesses.
"Competition is the lifeblood of today's telecoms market, spurring innovation, better coverage and fair prices," she wrote in the Financial Times.
White wrote that Ofcom's aim was to "maintain…progress through competition".
"So we are concerned that the smallest mobile network, Three proposes to become the biggest by acquiring its rival, O2. The combined group would control more than four in 10 mobile connections," she wrote.
White cited the example of the Austrian market, in which the regulator claims prices have risen 15 percent overall and 30 percent for customers who only make calls and send texts.
She also raised concerns over the effect it would have on network infrastructure; the operators have combined their physical infrastructure into two networks, one shared by EE and Three and the other by O2 and Vodafone, in an arrangement Ofcom believes is effective.
In addition, she claimed that the deal would skew the balance of power away from independent high street retailers.
Kester Mann, Principal Analyst at CCS Insight, said: "Hutchison should be prepared for a testing week as the European Commission is likely to release its "Statement of Objections" to the deal within the next few days. A similar publication concerning the planned merger in Denmark between Telenor and TeliaSonera in 2015 ultimately proved a pre-cursor to its collapse.
"Competition chief Margrethe Vestager argues that mobile tariffs could rise and investment and innovation in the sector will be reduced. Indeed, Three has brought a number of novel initiatives to the UK market such as free roaming and inclusive 4G. Buying O2 could mean that it has less incentive to continue its role as market disruptor.
"A major focus area of the Commission's investigation is likely to have been around the UK's vibrant MVNO market. It is keen to prevent the reduction in potential partner networks harming the prospects for virtual providers."
While the decision is being made by the European Commission for Competition, Ofcom's intervention will be considered carefully.
It comes as BT reveals how it will be structured after it buys out EE, currently the UK's largest mobile operator, in a deal that has proven far less controversial than the O2 and Three deal. It was cleared by the CMA in mid-January 2016.
The company will be split into six lines of business: Consumer, EE, Business and Public Sector, Global Services, Wholesale and Venture and Openreach.
BT emphasised that Openreach would be unaffected by the reorganisation and would continue to operate "at arm's length" from BT.
BT Consumer will continue largely as it has done, as will most of Global Services. The EE brand will be retained, focusing largely on the consumer market and offering mobile, broadband and TV, although the CEO Olaf Swantee will be replaced with Marc Allera.
BT confirmed that the BT Mobile brand will continue to co-exist with EE.
Business and Public Sector is a new division comprised of EE's business division and UK-focused parts of BT Global Services. The Wholesale and Ventures division, which sells to other communication providers, will be expanded to include EE's MVNO business.
All divisions will be supported by Technology, Service and Operations, which runs BT's core networks.
The news comes as BT announces revenue of £4.594 billion, a 3 percent year-on-year increase, and pre-tax profit of £862 million, up 24 percent, for its Q3.


What is the abbreviation for ZHGKOC (Australian Securities Exchange [ASX])?
A: What does ZHGKOC stand for?
ZHGKOC stands for "ZHGKOC (Australian Securities Exchange [ASX])".
A: How to abbreviate "ZHGKOC (Australian Securities Exchange [ASX])"?
"ZHGKOC (Australian Securities Exchange [ASX])" can be abbreviated as ZHGKOC.
A: What is the meaning of ZHGKOC abbreviation?
The meaning of ZHGKOC abbreviation is "ZHGKOC (Australian Securities Exchange [ASX])".
A: What is ZHGKOC abbreviation?
One of the definitions of ZHGKOC is "ZHGKOC (Australian Securities Exchange [ASX])".
A: What does ZHGKOC mean?
ZHGKOC as abbreviation means "ZHGKOC (Australian Securities Exchange [ASX])".
A: What is shorthand of ZHGKOC (Australian Securities Exchange [ASX])?
The most common shorthand of "ZHGKOC (Australian Securities Exchange [ASX])" is ZHGKOC.


text:
Q: PaperClip 3.4: How to regenerate images is _original has been deleted? Does anyone know if it is possible to tell paperclip to use a file other than _original to regenerate thumbnails from?
Our _original files are no longer available and we want to regenerate our thumbnails due to a style size change.
I'm not sure where to even start looking on this one.

A: Alright, I didn't test this out extensively but something like this should work. This is assuming that you're model is defined as:
class Image < ActiveRecord::Base
  has_attached_file :attachment, styles: { small: "300x300>", large: "100x100>" }
end

This is a script that will use open-uri to treat URLs as File streams so you can pull the large style by URL, update the model and then reprocess each image.
require 'open-uri'

Image.find_each do |image|
  large_image = open(image.attachment.url(:large)) {|f| f.read }

  image = large_image
  image.reprocess!
end

Again, I only did some basic testing with this and I'm not 100% that the image = assignment will need more than just the file stream, but I did test it with one image and it seemed to work. It retained all of the existing image data and used the large style when reprocessing all of the existing image and added it as an original.
Hope that helps. Good luck.


Benedict Cumberbatch will make his first appearance as Doctor Strange in the Marvel Cinematic Universe in November's Doctor Strange, but Doctor Strange's appointment book already seems to be filling up.
Rumors have already been circulating suggesting that Doctor Strange will make an appearance in Thor: Ragnarok. That would be Doctor Strange's first Marvel Cinematic Universe crossover appearance. Cumberbatch seemingly just confirmed his second.
Speaking Empire Magazine about Doctor Strange's future in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Cumberbatch the "logistical challenge of aligning his schedule with those of Robert Downey Jr, Chris Hemsworth, Elizabeth Olsen and Paul Bettany".
Downey, Evans, Olsen, and Bettany are, of course, the actors who respectively play Iron Man, Captain America, Scarlet Witch, and Vision of the Avengers. The next film on Marvel's schedule that it would make sense for all four of those characters to appear in Avengers: Infinity War.
It isn't surprising for Doctor Strange to show up in Avengers: Infinity Stone. Doctor Strange's Eye of Agamotto is one of the Infinity Stones that Thanos has been questing after. If Avengers: Infinity War is supposed to be the film that begins bringing that story to its climax, then it makes sense for Doctor Strange to find himself caught up in it.
From Marvel comes Doctor Strange, the story of world-famous neurosurgeon Dr. Stephen Strange whose life changes forever after a horrific car accident robs him of the use of his hands. When traditional medicine fails him, he is forced to look for healing, and hope, in an unlikely place – a mysterious enclave known as Kamar-Taj. He quickly learns that this is not just a center for healing but also the front line of a battle against unseen dark forces bent on destroying our reality. Before long Strange – armed with newly acquired magical powers – is forced to choose whether to return to his life of fortune and status or leave it all behind to defend the world as the most powerful sorcerer in existence.
Doctor Strange is directed by Scott Derrickson, from a screenplay he wrote with C. Robert Cargill. Doctor Strange stars Benedict Cumberbatch, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Rachel McAdams, Benedict Wong, Michael Stuhlbarg, Benjamin Bratt, Scott Adkins, Mads Mikkelsen, and Tilda Swinton.
Doctor Strange opens in theaters in North America on Nov. 4, 2016.


text:
Full Recap
FULL RECAP: Grizzlies drop the Timberwolves 119-112
The Drip N Slime Rise continues
By EdMemphis Jan 8, 2020, 7:00am CST
Share All sharing options for: FULL RECAP: Grizzlies drop the Timberwolves 119-112
Justin Ford-USA TODAY Sports
In a showdown of the 2019 rookie draft class, Jarrett Culver came to boogie as he danced to the tune of 24 points. Dillon Brooks led the Grizzlies in scoring with 28 points, however in the end, Ja rules the battle for the evening between he & fellow classmate Jarrett Culver. "Drip God" Ja served up a 25 piece special with a side of 7 assists as he & Jaren Jackson Jr both closed the game out in true superstar tandem fashion, as the Grizzlies are now 10-6 in their last 16 games.
Jaren especially recovered big time to take over the game in the 4th quarter after struggling throughout the game. As of the start of the 4th, Jaren had only hit on one of his seven attempts with the burner. However when they needed him most, Jaren along with Morant & Dillon Brooks sparked the run that eventually lead to them stealing a game they trailed most of the way.
The fact that Jaren stuck with it after having a rough time shooting most of the game & still finished with a decent 21 points, is a clear sign he continues to develop into a high caliber player. His play on defense as well as offense was the catalyst down the closing stretch. Crazy thing is he doesn't turn 21 until September, as GBB Site Manager Joe Mullinax often points out.
The starting lineup for the game was Ja Morant/Dillon Brooks/Jae Crowder/Jaren Jackson Jr/Jonas Valanciunas. The Timberwolves countered with a starting punch of Shabazz Napier, Jarrett Culver, Andrew Wiggins, Robert Covington, & Gorgui Dieng, who started in place of Karl-Anthony Towns as he missed his 11th straight game due to a knee issue.
The Grizzlies started this game out scoring first as they rebounded a missed attempt from the Timberwolves & Jaren passed it up court to a streaking Ja Morant who scored the first basket of the game 2-0. Ja wasn't the only one looking to make plays for himself & others. Jae Crowder came out assertive on fastbreaks, looking to take it all the way to the rim full court at times and convert. It was him looking to feed guys like Dillon Brooks in rhythm shots, Jae played his part in opening up the offense scoring 14 pojnts on 4-6 shoooting from the field, 1-2 from deep & a perfect 5-5 from the charity stripe. Defensively he was just as good if not better as he had 5 steals & helped limit Andrew Wiggins to just 15 points & kept Wiggins from attacking the basket & making easy transition buckets. As a result, Wiggins was forced to stay outside where he finished 3-8 from three-point territory.
The first quarter featured quite a bit of Dillon Brooks as he looked to get going early & whenever he got the ball, you understood there would be limited passes. Whether it was back down spin fadeways or attacks at the rim with floaters & layups, Brooks has the "Mamba Mentality" if nothing else. His matchup kept up with his high output scoring affair but in the end Dillon's fast start proved to be the straw that broke the camel's back becuase it gave him the green light to spark that late run in the 4th quarter that was capped off with Jaren & Ja looking like a young Marcus & Mike Lowry from the movie Bad Boys.
The Grizzlies went into half-time trailing the Minnesota Gang 5 points 56-51. The Grizzlies bench played solid defense & held the fort down while the starters rested but no one off the bench scored over 6 points this game, although the good thing is 3 different reserves scored at least 6 points for the Grizzlies despite none of them exceeding the 21 minutes. De'Anthony Melton played this game as he was one of the three reserves who scored 6 points & also chipped in 4 rebounds & played some astounding defense as he still had the game high +/- with a +24. His intangibles were crucial in this win.
The Grizzlies outscored the Wolves 37-28 in the final period as the young Memphis core came alive & did their part to keep themselves just a half game back of the 8th & final seed in the Western Conference playoff race to bring them to 16-22 overall on the season.
Jonas Valanciunas had a very pedestrian scoring line in his 22 minutes, but even worse was the fact the Timberwolves small lineup was clearly too much moving for the big fella as he finished with a game low -17 despite his team winning the game.
Brandon Clarke looked overmatched a couple of times in the post serving as the back up center but still had a pretty good showing in his limited 17 minutes finishing with a +9 in the +/- column.
Ja Morant scored what proved to be the game clinching bucket. He took the Wolves to school in an iso play that finished with him creating another highlight at the rim despite essentially the entire Minnesota Timberwolves defense collapsing on him. This put the Grizzlies back up 5 points with less than a minute left to play.
The Wolves make a few last second attempts but the Grizzlies are now less than a game outside of the playoffs if it started today. As a wise man once said in the GBB slack chat yesterday, "I know it's too fast to grasp this all so soon, but the lord works in mysterious ways."


text:
IF(DOWNLOAD)
  ExternalProject_Add(viennacl
    PREFIX viennacl
    GIT_REPOSITORY https://github.com/viennacl/viennacl-dev.git
    GIT_TAG master
    BINARY_DIR "${CMAKE_CURRENT_BINARY_DIR}/viennacl"
    CONFIGURE_COMMAND ""
    BUILD_COMMAND ""
    INSTALL_COMMAND ""
  )
  ExternalProject_Get_Property(viennacl SOURCE_DIR)
ELSE(DOWNLOAD)
  ExternalProject_Add(viennacl
    PREFIX viennacl
    SOURCE_DIR $ENV{VIENNACLPATH}
    BINARY_DIR "${CMAKE_CURRENT_BINARY_DIR}/viennacl"
    CONFIGURE_COMMAND ""
    BUILD_COMMAND ""
    INSTALL_COMMAND ""
  )
  ExternalProject_Get_Property(viennacl SOURCE_DIR)
ENDIF(DOWNLOAD)

SET(VIENNACL_INCLUDE_DIRS ${SOURCE_DIR})


Why take the Awakening Your Practice workshop?
This workshop will spark a renewed interest in your study of yoga and provide tools to help keep you feeling balanced mind, body and spirit. We feel yoga is a holistic health care system that assists in tapping in to your body's intelligence. Yoga not only facilitates keeping you healthy but can also be a guide to help cure and heal injuries and ailments.
This workshop is appropriate for all levels of practitioner. We will have an interactive discussion about the science of yoga and how it relates to your health and wellbeing while breaking down various standing poses and introducing variations and modifications.
We often tell our students yoga can be healing for your joints but it can also be very detrimental depending on how you practice. Alignment is crucial. You will learn how to take care of your body, strengthen muscles to support your joints and safely get the most out of your standing pose practice. We will also explore basic yoga breathing techniques.
The experience will give you the foundation you need to take your yoga practice to any level. Enjoy the Journey!
Fee: $35 pre-registration or $45 at the door. REGISTER TODAY!


text:
As Popular As
Credit — Icon Business Media
"Be persistent and passionate about what you do, it's all about the people."
Introducing Maggie van't Hoff, Head of Balance at Shell UK #FlexAppeal
As part of the #AsPopularAs blog series on female trailblazers, I am proud to introduce Maggie van't Hoff, President of Balance UK at global oil giant, Shell, where a key element of her remit is to highlight the opportunities…
Digital….Ahem and My Rock Star Return To Work
"Do you know what you need to do?
That Digital Mums thing everyone's talking about…… It's for people like you, haven't worked in a while, used to have it — no offence — but, em, don't anymore because, well, em, you know, you missed the 'digital' boat.
It's time we talked about the elephant in the room: #GenderPayGap
It's official — the elephant is in the room and we've even started talking about her. The BBC was forced to report its #GenderPayGap and it was revealed that it pays its male talent way more than its female talent.
The BBC is now being accused of using public money…
5 Things Leaders Can Do To Address Inequality & The #GenderPayGap
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Bold rhetoric from Emmeline Pankhurst during the height of the #suffragettes movement. True to her word, Pankhurst's spirited revolution over 100 years ago, was the defining catalyst for a step change in women's rights throughout the world,
Ever since the suffragette movement first catapulted women's rights…
SHE'S BACK
Interview with Lisa Unwin, Founder, She's Back
One thing's for sure, ex Andersen partner, Lisa Unwin is a force to be reckoned with.
As founder of the boutique consultancy, She's Back, Lisa's own personal career trajectory has been almost star spangled in its ascendance. As a former partner with Arthur…
"That's Why Mums Go To Iceland"
www.aspopularas.co.uk
"That's Why Mums Go To Iceland" goes the infamous advertising strap-line. Turns out it has a more than a ring of truth about it. If you ignore the obvious sexist stereotyping.
In 2016, Iceland followed by Sweden, Norway and Finland were the best places for womens rights in the world…
From Teaching To Twins To Pilates
Meet Rachel, a multi-tasking mum of 3 (including twins) who has successfully changed careers from being a secondary school teacher to an 'in-demand' Pilates Instructor. See for yourself how she managed the transition………#aspopularas #workthatworks
Angela — The Returner
Angela — Successful Career Returner in Advertising
I started working less than a week after I graduated. All bright eyed, bushy tailed and raring to go. It was around the time of 'the new dawn' after Labour had been elected in the summer of '97. I felt like I was going to conquer the marketing world —…
The Full-Timer, Christine
I started my job straight out of Uni in 1997. I've worked for the same company (Euromoney) for 20 years. I started off as an Advertising Production Assistant and am now office manager.
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The Lifestyle Downsizer, Mandy
I'm not sure I ever made a conscious "career choice" so to speak but, in 1989, after three years of studying English and Related Arts, (I still don't know what that means or what I was meant to do with it), and £900 in debt, I found myself in London…
We are a national work and wellbeing campaign aimed primarily at women who want to return to work or retrain and have faced challenges through no fault of their


How do I complete my domain transfer to Dynadot if my domain is locked?
If your domain is locked, your domain transfer cannot be completed until it is unlocked. This is something that you will need to contact your current domain registrar about as we are not familiar with other registrar's systems.
Even if you unlock your domain, the domain may be "transfer locked" because it is a recent (within 60 days) registration or transfer. In this case, even if your domain is unlocked at the registrar level the central registry will not allow your transfer to complete. You must wait for the 60 day period to pass before starting your domain transfer.
Learn more about the domain transfer process.


text:
CITIES REPRESENTED
With a transformational and ambitious vision to be the Global Islamic knowledge centre, Al Balagh Academy provides universal access to the world's best Islamic education, collaborating with leading Islamic experts and evolving Islamic institutions.
Countries REPRESENTED
Al Balagh Academy is a not-for-profit charity that aims to empower and encourage Islamic academia and knowledge in the wider international community with a focus on the development of Muslim scholars, intellectuals, academics, professionals and Muslim women. We aim to become an academic centre of excellence for Islamic research on contemporary topics and issues affecting Muslims, whilst embedding spiritual development into the learning process using diverse pedagogies.
Muslims have remained on the margins of western academia specifically in relation to their religion for far too long and the level of Muslim participation in academic works and debates remains sadly low. Al Balagh seeks to enable Muslims to engage more effectively with contemporary academic literature works and debates and play a greater role in influencing them. This can be achieved by instilling high standards of education, training, confidence, competence and awareness in prospective students. Enhancing and developing mainstream participation in academia by individuals or minority communities that are under- represented in wider academic society, it is an important step towards deepening and strengthening our participation and engaging and influencing the world we live in. Muslims require empowerment and appropriate and relevant Islamic knowledge so that they are able to engage with all aspects of society through their work and lifestyle. This requires education and training which is both relevant and spiritual in its content and delivery.
Al Balagh aims to work at grassroots, by developing and offering tailor made courses for different industries and sectors of Muslim society, whilst embedding spiritual development into the learning process.
Al Balagh aims to equip Muslims through diverse pedagogies, the knowledge, training, skills, resources and materials necessary for them to play a more active role in the academic world and to promote and provide contemporary research in areas relevant to Muslims in western society.
Al Balagh will encourage and promote Muslim academic engagement so that Muslims can actively participate in academic writings, debates and other related academic projects


At the beginning of every client engagement, it's vital to huddle up, dig deep, and elicit discussion. Whether you're an agency working with a client, or an in-house optimisation team yourself, there's no substitution for getting people round a table in an initial optimisation workshop.
WHY RUN AN INITIAL OPTIMISATION WORKSHOP?
Workshops are essential to understanding users and therefore essential to conversion rate optimisation (CRO). They are the first step to unlocking valuable insights into a business, its markets, and its users – usually in that order.
Why? Debunking assumptions begins with listening to people in the business. Proving hunches means deciding which ones to test. Workshops are a structured way to gather opinions and identify the most fruitful routes for further investigation.
The relatively modest investment of time is repaid handsomely down the line when the real work starts.
We've run a lot of initial optimisation workshops in our time – nigh on 50. This is what we've learnt and how you can apply our experience to your own optimisation process.
Conversion rate optimisation is a team sport. There's always too much to know, too many plays and too many permutations. It's pretty daunting for one person, but can be exhilarating when you work together.
Form a huddle and dig in.
Workshops are a joint effort between subject matter experts (optimisation, user experience etc) and product and business experts (customer services, product owners, CEO etc). T-Shaped collaboration at its finest.
Keep the team small (we prefer 5-8). But make it broad. Include as many perspectives, responsibilities and hierarchies as possible. You want a good snapshot of the business.
It's really all about the product owners at this stage. The optimisation and user experience (UX) people are there to give structure to the session and ask the right questions. It's a focus group, but for an internal team, which should be bread and butter for any UX'er or CRO'er.
We always recommend to get someone from customer services. How often do businesses sit with their customer services team and ask them the top three questions they get asked by customers, or the strangest product question that day? This gleans so much insight.
If analytics extract the value from a client's user data, workshops extract the gold in the client's team.
Put the right people in the room and start digging. Unexpected insights have a habit of poking up while you're ticking off the essentials.
Everyone has something to contribute. Even if it's not that important.
Identifying the less pressing stuff means you can confidently prioritise the most important actions.
Start as you mean to go on. Workshops are an opportunity to establish a friendly and productive working relationship from day one.
Which is just as well, because conversion rate optimisation is a long-term commitment.
Users are complex creatures. They take time to understand and have a tendency to defy expectations. That's why optimisation is a continuous process (and why we insist on six month minimum initial contracts for all clients).
"How can this be improved?" That tantalising and infuriating notion of perfection.
Conversion Rate Optimisation is about iterative and incremental efficiency improvements and therefore asking this question in whatever capacity will assist the entire process.
Workshops initiate a culture of continuous enquiry. They are not about immediate answers so much as creating an environment where everyone embraces unknowns as opportunities.
They are invigorating. The best optimisation teams share an infectious enthusiasm. A sense of urgency to learn everything, to try the next thing, to understand the user. Internal teams always respond well to individuals willing to match their own passion and energy for the business. And the funny thing is, give them the opportunity to demonstrate value and initiative and they will provide.
If half a day in a comfortable room with hot drinks and doughnuts sounds like too much commitment, spare a thought for the optimisers who spend feverish hours scrutinising everything in their pursuit of the optimal solution.
An optimisation workshop is the prelude to the main event: understanding users (and what a big and continuous event this is).
The initial session will inform what to do next. Often it reveals more questions than answers. So from here, it should highlight both core opportunities and, indeed, gaps in knowledge. Following this, optimisers will be looking at structuring subsequent user interviews, user surveys and user testing, all validated by an analytics audit… usually.
HOW DO OPTIMISATION WORKSHOPS ACTUALLY WORK?
Often, we undertake a small analytics audit to better understand the wider landscape of the client.
This will help us to understand basic, top level indicators such as top landing pages by sessions and performance, equally the top exit page, the overall funnel and user flow of the site, popular user journeys – and so on and so forth.
Going in with an open mind and waiting to learn more about the business we'll be spending a long time with is essential.
However, there may be smaller nuance-based questions specific to the business. Examples might include: "what was the decision behind [X functionality on the website]".
Keep it cosy. Choose a comfortable environment with no distractions. We'd say phones off, but you often need them to access the mobile site.
We evangelise the Sprint approach of Scrum Agile working, focussing on specifics in short bursts. Each session lasts for 2-4 hours, with the odd break. And a steady supply of refreshments (essential).
A light touch works best. The goal is to elicit as much information from the team as possible by asking the right questions. Often the team will have the various solutions or insights you need to play with – you just need to be clever enough to extract them.


It has been a pleasure to watch Discovery grow over these past 8 years! I am honored to have had the privilege to work with such a dedicated group of people (students, staff, parents, and board members) over these years in efforts to continue to build Discovery into what is truly a unique place for our students! Feel free to browse the information below to learn a little more about me and if at any time please feel free to contact me should you have any questions, comments, or concerns!


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text:
Q: How can I increase the absolute size of my ggplot2 graphs in R Shiny? I have an R Shiny app that takes in user csv files and plots graphs of the csv files.
My R Shiny program is using a tabsetPanel, and this shrinks the graphs more than I'd like.
Is there a property in ggplot() that I can add to increase the size of the graph?
I've also noticed that when I try to plot multiple graphs in a tab, I can only go to 2 rows of graphs because the height of the UI is limited. How can I extend this?
For now I have one tab but I plan to add more later.
Here is my code:
ui.R
dataset <- list('Upload a file'=c(1))

shinyUI(pageWithSidebar(

  headerPanel(''),

  sidebarPanel(

     wellPanel(
        fileInput('file', 'Data file'),
        radioButtons('format', 'Format', c('CSV', 'TSV'))
      ),

     wellPanel(
          selectInput('xMulti', 'X', names(dataset)),
          selectInput('yMulti', 'Y', names(dataset),  multiple=T)

                                                   )

      wellPanel(
          checkboxInput('normalize', 'Normalize y axes', value=TRUE)
      ),

      wellPanel(
          sliderInput("cols",
           "Plots per row",
           min = 1,
           max = 4,
           value = 2
          )
      )
  )

  mainPanel(
      tabsetPanel(
          tabPanel("Multiplot", plotOutput('plotMulti'), value="multi"),
           id="tsp"            #id of tab
           )

  )
))

server.R
library(reshape2)
library(googleVis)
library(ggplot2)

#Increase max upload size
options(shiny.maxRequestSize=-1)

shinyServer(function(input, output, session) {

       data <- reactive({

    if (is.null(input$file))
      return(NULL)
    else if (identical(input$format, 'CSV'))
      return(read.csv(input$file$datapath))
    else
      return(read.delim(input$file$datapath))
  })

  observe({
    df <- data()
    str(names(df))

    if (!is.null(df)) {

      updateSelectInput(session, 'xMulti', choices = names(df))
      updateSelectInput(session, 'yMulti', choices = names(df))

    }
  })

     # Multiple plot function
  #
  # ggplot objects can be passed in ..., or to plotlist (as a list of ggplot objects)
  # - cols:   Number of columns in layout
  # - layout: A matrix specifying the layout. If present, 'cols' is ignored.
  #
  # If the layout is something like matrix(c(1,2,3,3), nrow=2, byrow=TRUE),
  # then plot 1 will go in the upper left, 2 will go in the upper right, and
  # 3 will go all the way across the bottom.
  #
  multiplot <- function(..., plotlist=NULL, file, cols=1, layout=NULL) {
    require(grid)

    # Make a list from the ... arguments and plotlist
    plots <- c(list(...), plotlist)

    numPlots = length(plots)

    # If layout is NULL, then use 'cols' to determine layout
    if (is.null(layout)) {
      # Make the panel
      # ncol: Number of columns of plots
      # nrow: Number of rows needed, calculated from # of cols
      layout <- matrix(seq(1, cols * ceiling(numPlots/cols)),
                       ncol = cols, nrow = ceiling(numPlots/cols))
    }

    if (numPlots==1) {
      print(plots[[1]])

    } else {
      # Set up the page
      grid.newpage()
      pushViewport(viewport(layout = grid.layout(nrow(layout), ncol(layout))))

      # Make each plot, in the correct location
      for (i in 1:numPlots) {
        # Get the i,j matrix positions of the regions that contain this subplot
        matchidx <- as.data.frame(which(layout == i, arr.ind = TRUE))

        print(plots[[i]], vp = viewport(layout.pos.row = matchidx$row,
                                        layout.pos.col = matchidx$col))
      }
    }
  }

  output$plotMulti <- renderPlot({
    if (is.null(data()))
      return(NULL)

    plots <- list() # new empty list
    names <- input$yMulti

    maxVal <- 0

    for (i in 1:length(input$yMulti)) {
      maxVal <- max(maxVal, max(data()[names[i]]))
    }

    for (i in 1:length(input$yMulti)) {
      temp <- input$xMulti

      p <- ggplot(data(), aes_string(x=temp, y=names[i]))
      p <- p + opts(axis.text.x=theme_text(angle=45, hjust=1, vjust=1))
      p <- p + labs(title=paste("",input$xMulti," VS ",input$yMulti,""))
      h <- ggplot(data(), aes_string(x=temp))
      h <- h + opts(axis.text.x=theme_text(angle=45, hjust=1, vjust=1))
      h <- h + labs(title=paste("",input$xMulti," VS ",input$yMulti,""))

      if (input$normalize) {
        p <- p + scale_y_continuous(limits = c(0, maxVal))
        h <- h + scale_y_continuous(limits = c(0, maxVal))
      }

      if (input$type == "Scatter") {
        p <- p + geom_point(size = 3)
        plots[[i]] <- p
      } else if (input$type == "Line"){
        p <- p + geom_line(aes(group=1)) + geom_point()
        plots[[i]] <- p
      } else if (input$type == "Bar") {
        p <- p + geom_bar()
        plots[[i]] <- p
      } else if (input$type == "Histogram") {
        h <- h + geom_histogram(aes(fill = ..count..))
        h <- h + scale_fill_gradient("Count", low = "green", high = "red")
        plots[[i]] <- h
      }

    }

    multiplot(plotlist = plots, cols=input$cols)

  })
})

A: In renderPlot, you can add parameters height and width in pixels.
(Added, and addition corrected in April 2017)
To avoid the scroll bar, use renderPlot({whatever}, height="auto")


text:
The Sleeper (2012) Has Awoken
by Ike
Yell! Magazine's review of The Sleeper:
With his latest film The Sleeper (2012), indie horror director Justin Russell has grabbed the slasher genre by the ankles and dragged it kicking and screaming back to the decade that birthed it. This is a bold claim considering the number of recent stalk-and-slash films that've come out making a similar statements.
Adam Green's Hatchet franchise is built around a similar claim of "Old school American horror," though whether or not those films deliver on the promise is highly questionable. Sure, they get the gory set pieces right (often playing like 90-minute demo reels for John Carl Buechler), but the feel, the ambiance, the suspense of your atypical slasher film is totally lost. The same goes for Laid To Rest, the remakes of My Bloody Valentine, Elm St., Friday the 13th, etc.
What sets Russell's latest film, The Sleeper, apart from the new-wave slasher set? Attention to detail. Russell and his production company, Gamma Knife Films, did their grinhouse and slasher homework. While cherry picking elements from such classics as Slumber Party Massacre, Black Christmas, Girls Nite Out, He Knows You're Alone and House On Sorority Row, Russell avoids haphazard fanboy worship of said films. Instead, he uses them as a kind of visual and structural reference point, crafting a new film in their wake that feels very familiar while also very fresh and new.
He straddles this line on a visual level, using modern, shot-on-digital photography the same way early slashers used cheap film stock. With a bit of post production work, he conjures a similar fuzz-'n-grain guerrilla filmmaking look that made the aforementioned movies nostalgic body count classics. Somewhere in the middle of this tightrope walk of modern techniques and nostalgic cinematic style emerges a horror director with the potential to take the genre and turn it on its ear.
Russell's previous endeavor, Death Stop Holocaust, announced him as a director to watch. That film, about a pair of 20-something gals whose trip to an island summer house devolves into a ritualistic exercise in paranoia, rape, torture, and murder, was also a throwback. Instead of traditional slasher films, Russell's intent was creating a genuine grindhouse-era, poverty-row drive-in film. I'm not talking your usual exploitation fun either. I'm talking the kind that sends audiences away recoiling in profound disgust, burning vivid images of depravity and evil into their cerebral cortex that can't be washed off with a cold shower. Last House On The Left, Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Race With The Devil, Cannibal Holocaust – films that go for the throat and refuse to let go long after the credits rolled.
Such is Death Stop Holocaust. On a purely visual level, the film hits with precise impact. Once watched, you will never forget the masked killers pursuing the film's young heroines, nor will you ever look at a plain white van the same way again. That isn't to say its perfect – the film is hampered by a crude, sometimes overwrought dialogue and amateurish acting. Not only that, but the relentless pacing of the film's first act lags as it enters the second and third narrative laps.
Yet as a no-budget freshmen effort, the film blows away the competition, making similar Hollywood efforts like The Strangers seem downright warm by comparison. It's a relentlessly nihilistic, incredibly well-stylized cinematic appetizer whose attention to authenticity and detail make it very well suited to rub shoulders with exploitation main courses like Grindhouse and Hobo With A Shotgun.
While steeped in a certain nihilistic tone, The Sleeper is a very different experience from Death Stop, going less for the throat than it does for pulse. The premise is a familiar one: In 1981, a hammer-wielding, dead-eyed maniac is harassing and hunting the girls of sorority house Alpha Gamma Theta one by one. With hammer and knife, he submits each one to the big sleep while a local detective endeavors to stop his mad murdering spree.
Yell! Rating (x/5 Skulls):
[rating:4]
31 January 2012 (USA)
Justin Russell
Brittany Belland, Tiffany Arnold, John Bloom, Jessica Cameron, Jason Jay Crabtree, Ali Ferda, Bob Ferrato, Jenna Fournier, and Riana Ballo
The Sleeper
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Founded in May 1977, Empire Airlines has quickly gained a reputation of always delivering on their promises. The company operates out of Hayden, Idaho and is generally an airline that provides top of the line service in charter and cargo. The company is well known to operate around 120 daily flights which are destined to more than 18 states in the US, whereas the company has also recently launched its operations in Canada. The Coeur d'Alene Airport can be called as the operative hub of the Empire Airlines whereas most of its operations are centred at the Spokane International Airport.
The company first established itself in 1977 as a charter company, based at Orofino. The company name has never always been Empire Airlines, in fact it started off under the banner of Clearwater Flying Service and it is due to this that it still runs the CFS tags for all its flights. The Clearwater Flying Service can be remembered to be not your average airlines. In fact, it provided much diverse services to people which included, but are not limited to, fire patrol, air pollution monitoring and even running as an air ambulance.
On the 1st of November in 1980, Empire Airlines actually stepped into the market of aircraft maintenance and sales after it purchased West Aire Inc. In the recent past, Empire Airlines has been consolidating its services in and out of the United States with only just recently the company confirming that it will be now be traversing on routes within the state of Hawaii on a couple of ATR 42 aircrafts. The company prides itself in its unique services offered as both a cargo plane operator whereas a charter service.


text:
August 06 - Church Army
Nightlight is a ministry run by Nottingham community worker Steve Simmonds, that takes over in the binge-drinking capital of England when the soup runs finish...
A team patrol the city centre after closing time to be available for people who need help and support. The focus is on reaching out to those who find themselves on the streets and at risk, often through no fault of their own.
Steve's outreach to alcoholics, drug-users, the homeless and prostitutes, has put him in the frontline, working with people whom most Christians find it difficult to deal with. His approach is deliberately low-key: "Only those we chat to, or have helped, realise what we do. They're often appreciative, and equally surprised about why we do it."
In an interview with BBC Radio Nottingham, Steve said: "I am a Christian who believes passionately that people should treat others as they themselves would like to be treated."
Although it's risky work, Steve hasn't experienced any physical threats, but has plenty to say about the new friends he has made on the streets. "One ex-soldier told his life story - all about the people he'd shot - and yet he said we didn't judge him, but just listened. He'd never had anyone do that for him before. He broke down in tears."
Working in partnership with a number of key agencies and volunteers that link in with drink, drugs and health issues, Steve uses his base at the Malt Cross Café Bar to get a unique insight into the city's thriving night-time culture. He has built links with the workers in the night-time economy who come across homeless people on a regular basis - doormen, club management, burger stall holders, all of whom are able to share ideas about the plight of the city's homeless population.
"It started out with looking at what is happening and building up relationships," says Steve. "One man who had experienced homelessness and debt issues showed me some of the areas where the homeless live - including doorways, car parks and under bridges. He has shown some interest in faith and is now attending a local church."
The work is rewarding. Katrina, a member of a volunteer team comments: "I've learned more about God's characteristics of grace, mercy and forgiveness doing this work. It's great that we are there just to give and not want anything in return. Sometimes it can feel intimidating, but generally after boundaries have been broken, it is surprising how often people are able to tell us some really deep things. At the start, it's hard to tell if you are making a difference. Now, if I don't go out, it's great when they tell you the following week that you were missed."
Men and women are coming to know God in a new light. Some are finding faith for the first time, while others are growing spiritually. Carl, who is homeless, has begun attending church and encourages a group of six others in his shelter to do the same.
Steve, one of the homeless regulars on the streets adds: "These guys are our lifeline. We would be dead without them. They don't give up on us."
What is Nightlight?
Nightlight is about
* Taking over where the soup runs finish.
* Liaising with other networks to offer a wider support structure to those on the streets.
* Advice, a listening ear, mentoring, prayer, signpost ministry and being there for those left vulnerable and alone
Each year Church Army needs over £30,000 for this ministry to help touch the lives of the homeless and vulnerable in Nottingham. To pledge your support, call 020 8309 3519 or e-mail info@churcharmy.org.uk
More on The Malt Cross can be found at www.maltcross.com