You still got it, my Queen!
Hello! I had planned to talk about other topics, but a lovely comment from youtube inspired me to ramble and I think it might help you with your pain of loss. Thank you, Delilah, for the comment!
Note: If you are suffering from grief, this show and post are for you. I hope it helps you find peace and frees you from your pain. Much love, JER.
I was so excited to get home that night. Single and ready to mingle, got some yummy (albeit, naughty) grub in the back seat, gonna get to my swingin' Hermosa Beach bachelor pad for some movies, maybe call that girl who gave me her number, I dunno, and….
Two silly British tourists took an illegal lefthand turn and slammed right into me. Not only did they ruin my night, they ended up suing my insurance company, claiming it was my fault. Of course, my insurance company laughed and all ended well, but boy was I pissed that night, a Friday night. I was gonna eat naughty food but it spoiled. LAME.
And if I could find them today, I'd buy them drinks for life. Okay, maybe just a few rounds, but certainly I'd thank them, even though they (or their insurance company) actually….no I don't care. Without that mistake, no Chloe.
So I walked in and headed to the back, where the wonderful organization, "People and Cats Living Together," was holding cat adoptions. I entered, said hello to the lady (Sweet Lady, as I shall refer to her) running the joint, and had a look around. I came across two cages in particular; one with a Mama kitty named Samantha, and next to it, a cage with her babies. At first, it just looked like one big ball of fur, but upon closer inspection, it was 8 kittens having a nap&snuggle.
And then one little head popped out.
"Oh no, no you don't," I replied, but Sweet Lady AND you both ignored me. Sweet lady opened the cage while you crawled out of the pile hell bent on getting to her future papa.
"You wanna hold her?" Sweet Lady said.
"No, no no no no no," I said, and Sweet Lady ignored me and handed you to me. I felt your little heart racing as you put your head on my shoulder and went to sleep.
"Oh, no no no no no no no no no…oh no…oh no," I said.
"Oh yes," both you and Sweet Lady replied.
That was it. Sweet Lady put a little red bow around your neck (to show that you had found your human) and then took me around Petco to chose supplies. Litter box, litter, bowls, toys, food, ect.
"This is at least a 15 year commitment, you know," Sweet Lady said to me.
Then we went home, little 8-week old you in a cardboard kitty carrier (your officially kitty-carrier from Grandma Laurie would come later). I took you into your first home, set the box on my bed and took a step back.
Did I just adopt a cat?
I stepped forward and opened the box.
Out you jumped and ran right under the bed. Where you stayed. All day. And night.
The next morning, I woke up, and you were nowhere to be found. I looked and looked… no dice. How did you…did you….wait….where is the one place I didn't look?
That's right, my sock drawer. While I was sawing logs that first night in your forever home, you decided to CRAWL UP MY DRESSER AND TAKE A SNOOZE IN THE FRIGGIN' SOCK DRAWER. Sock sock sock sock kitty sock sock sock.
I was impressed. Golf clap, Chlo.
7 months later, I took you home with me for Christmas. Why? Oliver, bless his heart, used to love to open presents under the tree. That was his tradition. Chew chew chew. He last did that in December of 2001. Now it was December 2002. My mother says to me, "Jordan, I just want you know how much I appreciate having a kitty home for XMAS." She points under the tree, and there is you, picking up the baton from Oliver, chewing on presents.
From that moment on, you were duh Chlo. It wasn't always easy, what with living 3000 miles away from the people who cared for me the most, and all I had was my cat, and my friends. I dated, I brought girlfriends home. Some were friendly, some were not. Indeed, one thing I learned is that I needed to find an, "off," switch to the kitty talk. I also was certain to put, "I HAVE A CAT," on my dating profiles to weed out the ladies who were allergic. I was told on more than one occasion that you brought out my tender side.
And as you grew, so did I. I went from wanna-be screenwriter, to bartender and business school student, to cigar seller, podcaster, and back to writer. I found the love of my life and got a dog (Chewbacca!). I found my forever home, friends for life. I matured, made peace with some many elements of my past and figured out where I want to go, and how I want to continue growing (kindness, help others, never give up).
And all the while, you, Madame Bigglesworth yourself, were right by my side.You even ended up on the wonderful, "My Cat From Hell." For the record, folks, Jackson Galaxy is the real deal. He is every bit as sweet as he appears on camera. Him and his crew were lovely and it was a great experience.
All this time, I had it wrong. All this time, I thought you were my baby.
Nope. I was YOUR baby. I hadn't been taking care of you all these years, you have been taking care of me.
You were diagnosed with cancer a year ago. No wait, OVER a year ago. October, 2017. My wife was 7 months in with our son Jack, and the oncologist gave you a month without treatment, maybe two. We decided to do light treatment to go after the tumor on your tail, and the oncologist gave you 6 to 9 months at most. I just wanted you to meet Jack, and pass the baton, just like my mother once passed the baton to you.
As you can see, mission accomplished. Baton passed.
And we've been playing with house money for over a year. Every day was a gift.
Every moment was cherished. That was the final lesson you taught me. You saved the best for last.
Every day above ground is a gift that should never be taken for granted.
The tumor on your tail grew, one showed up in your mouth, they both grew and grew, and last week, when we realized that you could no longer swallow food, it was time.
I had to do the right thing. I had to be in the room when the time came. I would not be a coward, and I would set an example for Jack. Just as my late father, 31 years ago, took our dog Columbo to the vet for his final ride, so too should I do the same for you.
We spent last Tuesday together doing what we always loved to do; watch movies together. "Up," (best film of all time), "Steve Jobs," (underrated and wonderful), and finally, the last film, "The Shining." Why that one? Because we felt like it! It's Kubrick at his creepiest! Amazing picture! You purred during the scary parts. Of course you did.
I stayed awake as we cuddled and while I have no memory of what I said, I know how I felt; feeling peace as you gave me courage to do the right thing.
The right thing by you.
The right thing. To end your suffering.
Do the right thing by you, and I'd evolve.
I gathered you into your kitty carrier, as Jack and Chewbacca said goodbye.
And off we went to the vet. Your final ride.
Once we got to the room, our wonderful vet took you to the back while I recited, "If," followed by the Lord's Prayer. Then the Vet brought you back with the IV in your arm, saying, "She took a slash at one of our techs." That's my girl! A fighter until the end.
As the final injections went in, "Battle Hymn of the Republic," came tumbling out. As the light left your eyes, though tears streamed down mine and the SNGal's faces, your courage gave us love.
And your spirit began its forever watch over my family.
Thank you, Chloe, for everything.
Thank you for being there for me, my furry little family member, when I had no family out here.
Thank you for teaching me that the world does not run on my feelings.
Thank you for the endless purring, meows, hisses (yes hisses!) cuddles, and love.
Thank you for your kindness to the ladies I dated that liked you, and for ignoring the ones who weren't so kind.
Goodbye, my queen. I will never forget you.
Tonight's a wacky one; be warned, I bounce around tone-wise.
I begin with the sad news that my cat Chloe has cancer, then give further thoughts on Hurricane Harvey, Kevin, and Louis CK. After that, I switch gears and talk about the 70's baby book , "Where did I come from?" and then attack morons who think they are entitled to getting autographs from underage celebrities.
As my son comes into this world, my cat prepares to go out. Needless to say, it's been a rough couple of weeks.
Hello folks! Sadly, my cat Ketone died this week, and I dedicate tonight's show to her, as well as all of you. Dealing with loss and pain is an unavoidable part of life, and the sooner you realize that, the better off you'll be. Enjoy!


text:
\section{Introduction}

\section{The piecewise-lognormal model}
We assume that the stock price $S$ follows a lognormal process between dividend dates, and jumps at each dividend ex-date $t_i$ from the cash dividend amount $\alpha_i$. The corresponding stochastic differential equation reads

\begin{equation}\label{eqn:spot_model}
	\begin{cases}
		\diff S = r_R(t)S(t) \diff t + \sigma(t) S(t) \diff W \textmd{, } t_{i} \leq t < t_{i+1}\,,\\
		S(t_{i}) = S(t_{i}^{-}) - \alpha_i\,,
	\end{cases}
\end{equation}
where $(t_i)_i$ denotes the full ordered set of dividend dates, $r_R$ is the stock lending rate (also known as repo rate), and $W$ is a Brownian motion.

The price of a European call option of strike $K$, maturity $T$  on $S$ reads
\begin{align}
	V_C(T) &= B(0,T_p)\mathbb{E}_{Q}\left[ \max(S(T) - K , 0)\right]\,,
\end{align}
where $B(0,T_p)$ is the discount factor to the payment date (typically two business days after the maturity date), calculated using the risk free rate, or the collateral rate. Let $\tilde{V}_C = \frac{V_C}{B(0,T_p)}$ be the undiscounted option price.
Integrating Equation \ref{eqn:spot_model} leads then to
\begin{align}
\tilde{V}_C(T)&=\mathbb{E}_\mathbb{Q}\left[\max\left( 	S(0) e^{\int_{0}^T r_R(s) - \frac{\sigma^2(s)}{2} \diff s + \int_0^{T} \sigma(s) \diff W(s) } - \sum_{i=1}^n \alpha_i e^{ \int_{t_i}^T r_R(s) - \frac{\sigma^2(s)}{2} \diff s + \int_{t_i}^{T} \sigma(s) \diff W(s) } - K,0 \right)\right]\,,
\end{align}
where $n$ is the number of dividends whose ex-date falls between the valuation date and the maturity date.

\section{Recasting the problem in terms of a basket option}
Let
\begin{align}
	\tilde{W}(s) &= W(t) - \int_{0}^t \sigma(s) ds\,,\\
	M(t) &= e^{\int_{0}^{t} \sigma(s) \diff W(s) - \frac{1}{2} \int_{0}^t \sigma^2(s) \diff s }\,.
\end{align}
We have
\begin{equation*}
	\tilde{V}_C(T)=C(0,T)\mathbb{E}_\mathbb{Q}\left[M(T) \max\left( 	S(0)   - \sum_{i=1}^n \frac{\alpha_i e^{ \int_{0}^{t_i}  \frac{\sigma^2(s)}{2} \diff s - \int_{0}^{t_i} \sigma(s) \diff W(s) }}{C(0,t_i)} - \frac{K}{M(T)C(0,T)} ,0 \right)\right]\,,
\end{equation*}
with $C(0,T) = e^{\int_{0}^T r_R(s) \diff s }$.
The Girsanov theorem \cite[Theorem 5.2.3]{Shreve04} tells us that $\tilde{W}$ is a Brownian motion under the probability measure $\tilde{Q}$ defined by $M$. The Radon-Nikodym theorem \cite[Lemma 5.2.2]{Shreve04} leads to
\begin{equation}\label{eqn:cash_basket}
	\tilde{V}_C(T)=C(0,T)\mathbb{E}_{\tilde{Q}}\left[\max\left( 	S(0)   - \sum_{i=1}^n \frac{\alpha_i e^{ -\int_{0}^{t_i}  \frac{\sigma^2(s)}{2} \diff s + \int_{0}^{t_i} \sigma(s) \diff \tilde{W}(s) }}{C(0,t_i)}  - \frac{K e^{-\int_{0}^{T}\frac{\sigma^2(s)}{2} \diff s + \int_0^{T} \diff \tilde{W}(s) }}{C(0,T)} ,0 \right)\right]\,.
\end{equation}

The expectation in Equation \ref{eqn:cash_basket} corresponds to the undiscounted price under the standard Black-Scholes model of a European put option of strike $S(0)$  and maturity $T$ on a basket composed of the lognormal assets $(S_i)$ with drift $\mu_i$ and volatility $\sigma_i$ defined by
\begin{align}
	S_i(0) &= \alpha_i\,, \\
	\mu_i &= -\frac{1}{T}\int_0^{t_i} r_R(s) \diff s\,,\\
	\sigma_i^2  &= \frac{1}{T}\int_0^{t_i} \sigma^2(s) \diff s\,,
\end{align}
for $1 \leq i \leq n $.

If $t_n=T$, we let $S_n = \alpha_n + K$ instead of $S_n = \alpha_n$ and the basket in composed of $n$ assets. Otherwise, we define $S_{n+1} = K, \mu_{n+1} = -\frac{1}{T}\int_0^{T} r_R(s) \diff s, \sigma_{n+1}^2 = -\frac{1}{T}\int_0^{T} \sigma^2(s) \diff s$ and the basket is composed of $n+1$ assets.

Thus, we have shown that any classic basket option approximation may be used to price European options on a stock paying discrete cash dividends, under the piecewise lognormal model.

\section{Remarks}
\subsection{Dividend policy}
In absence of a dividend policy, the piecewise lognormal model allows for negative stock prices, if $\alpha_i > S(t_j^-)$.
\citet{haug2003back} explore two natural choices : the liquidator policy where $S(t_i) = \max(0, S(t_i^-)-\alpha_i)$ and the survivor policy where $S(t_i) = \max(S(t_i^-), S(t_i^-) -\alpha_i)$.

The liquidator dividend policy does not impact the call option price, because we have
\begin{align*}
 \max\left( \max\left(	S(0)   - \sum_{i=1}^n \frac{\alpha_i e^{ \int_{0}^{t_i}  \frac{\sigma^2(s)}{2} \diff s - \int_{0}^{t_i} \sigma(s) \diff W(s) }}{C(0,t_i)},0\right) - \frac{K}{M(T)C(0,T)} ,0 \right) =\\\  \max\left( 	S(0)   - \sum_{i=1}^n \frac{\alpha_i e^{ \int_{0}^{t_i}  \frac{\sigma^2(s)}{2} \diff s - \int_{0}^{t_i} \sigma(s) \diff W(s) }}{C(0,t_i)} - \frac{K}{M(T)C(0,T)} ,0 \right)
	\end{align*}
for $K \geq 0$.

It will however impact the put option price $V_P$, and put options must then be priced using the put-call parity formula $V_C - V_P = B(0,T_p)(F(0,T) - K)$ with forward equal to the undiscounted call option price of strike zero $F(0,T)=\tilde{V}_C(T, K=0)$.

\subsection{Affine dividends}
In addition to cash dividends, we may include proportional dividends where $S$ jumps as $S(t_j^+)= S(t_j^-) - \beta_j S(t_{j}^{-})$. The formulae will not change, except for the definition of $C(0,T)$ which then must include the proportional dividends as follows
\begin{equation}
	C(0,T) = e^{\int_0^T r_R(s) \diff s} \prod_{j: 0 < t_j \leq T} (1-\beta_j)\,.
\end{equation}

\section{Numerical tests}
We assess the accuracy of the basket approach against the modern and accurate cash dividend approximation of \citet{sahel2011matching}, the second-order approximation of \citet{zhang2011fast} and the third-order formula of \citet{lefloch2015more} respectively named "GS", "Zhang-2" and "LL-3". As basket option approximation, we evaluate the one of \citet{ju2002pricing} named "BB-Ju" the more standard Curran based approximation of \citet{deelstra2010moment} named "BB", and the related lower bound approximation named "BB-LB" in the figures and tables.

\citet{deelstra2010moment} present several variations. While those do not significantly change the results, using their notation, we choose $\delta_i = \delta_3 = e^{r(T-j)}$  and $f_s(\Lambda) = f_3(\Lambda) = F\mathbb{G}_F$ as it led to the best results in \cite[Figures 1 and 2]{deelstra2010moment}.

\subsection{Single dividend case}
We consider a European call option of maturity one year on a stock with spot price $S=100$, and a single dividend $\alpha_1 = 7$, varying the ex-date, for three different strikes. To stay in line with the setup of \citet{haug2003back}, we let the interest rate be $r=6\%$ and the volatility $\sigma=30\%$. We look at the error in terms of Black-Scholes implied volatility. This is a good scale to compare
out-of-the-money with at-the-money or in-the-money options as well as to compare options of short maturity with options of long maturity. This is also a very natural measure in the context of the volatility surface construction.

The Ju approximation is very accurate when the dividend ex-date is close to maturity, but exhibits a large error when the ex-date is close the valuation date (Figure \ref{fig:single_div_td}).
\begin{figure}[h]
	\begin{center}

			\includegraphics[width=\textwidth]{single_r6_strike100_td.pdf}
		\caption{Error of the various approximation on the case of the single dividend $\alpha_1=7$, varying the dividend ex-date for strike $K=50, K=100$ and $K=150$.\label{fig:single_div_td}}
	\end{center}
\end{figure}
The error of the Deelstra approximation is much more contained, and is largest when the dividend falls at $t=0.4$. Overall, the error of the basket approach with the Deelstra approximation is found to be the most accurate, more accurate than the third-order method of Le Floc'h. The formula from Sahel and Gocsei is around two orders of magnitudes less accurate on this single dividend example. The lower bound basket approximation is competitive with the formula of Sahel and Gocsei in terms of accuracy.

\subsection{Many dividends case}
We reproduce the example of \citet{sahel2011matching}, of a call option of maturity 10 years, on a stock of price $S=100$, paying dividends of amount $\alpha_i=2$ on a semi-annual schedule, with the first dividend starting one day from the valuation date at $t_1 = 1/365$. The interest rate is taken to be $r=3\%$ and the volatility $\sigma=25\%$.

Figure \ref{fig:gocsei_10y} shows that the basket approach, with a  maximum absolute error of $0.0002$ volatility point, is the most accurate.
\begin{figure}[h]
	\begin{center}

		\includegraphics[width=\textwidth]{gocsei_10y.pdf}
		\caption{Error of the various approximation in the case of semi-annual dividends $\alpha_i=2$, for an option of maturity 10 years, varying the strike price.\label{fig:gocsei_10y}}
	\end{center}
\end{figure}
With a maximum error of 0.0078 volatility point, GS is slightly more accurate than Zhang-2, the basket approach with the Ju formula leads to the largest error and the lower bound approximation leads to a maximum error of 0.0252 volatility points at the lowest strike.

In Table \ref{tbl:vellekoop}, we reproduce the example of a 7-year option, with varying yearly dividend amounts, first presented in \cite{vellekoop2006efficient} and in \cite{etore2012stochastic}. Our reference, named "FDM" is the price obtained by the TR-BDF2 finite difference method using 10,000 space steps and 3,650 time-steps and is accurate to the fifth decimal. We also give the values of the Richardson extrapolated binomial tree from \citet{vellekoop2006efficient}, named "VNRE", and of the third order approximation from \citet{etore2012stochastic}, named "EG-3".
\begin{table}[h]
	\centering{
		\caption{Price of a call option of maturity 7 years, on an asset with spot price $S=100$ paying yearly dividends of respective amounts 6, 6.5, 7, 7.5 8, 8, 8, starting at $t_1=0.9$, with $r=6\%$ and $\sigma=25\%$. \label{tbl:vellekoop}}
	\begin{tabular}{l c c c c c c c c}\toprule
		Strike & FDM & VNRE & EG-3 & LL-3 & GS & BB-Ju & BB & BB-LB\\\midrule
		70 &  27.21395 & 27.21 & 27.20498 & 27.21768 & 27.26457 & 27.18748 & 27.21394 & 27.20683\\
		100 & 19.48229 & 19.48 & 19.47843 & 19.48478 & 19.51519 & 19.47156 & 19.48245 & 19.47511\\
		130 & 4.13026 & 14.13 & 14.12933 & 14.13139 & 14.15233 & 14.13643 & 14.13045 & 14.12143\\ \midrule
		MRE & N/A & N/A & 3E-4 & 1E-4 & 2E-3 & 8E-4 & 1E-5 & 6E-4\\
		\bottomrule
	\end{tabular}}
\end{table}
On this example, the maximum relative error in price (MRE) is largest for GS ($2\cdot10^{-3}$), and smallest for BB (around $1\cdot10^{-5}$, at the limit of our reference price accuracy obtained  by the TR-BDF2 finite difference method).
\subsection{Extreme settings}
We now explore the extreme settings from \cite{zhang2011fast} where the dividend amount is very large, and the volatility is high.
Figure \ref{fig:zhang_extreme} shows the absolute error in the price of a call option of maturity 1 year, on an asset of spot price $S=100$ paying two dividends of size $\alpha_i=25$ at $t_1=0.3$ and $t_2=0.7$. The interest rate is $r=5\%$ and the volatility is $\sigma=80\%$.
\begin{figure}[h]
	\begin{center}
		\includegraphics[width=\textwidth]{zhang_extreme.pdf}
		\caption{Error of the various approximation in the case of two large dividends $\alpha_i=25$ and high volatility $\sigma=80\%$, for an option of maturity 1 year, varying the strike price.\label{fig:zhang_extreme}}
	\end{center}
\end{figure}
Again, the basket approach BB is the most accurate one, and is significantly more accurate than any other approximations. The lower bound approximation BB-LB is slightly more accurate than GS
\subsection{Performance}
The basket approximation from \citet{deelstra2010moment} requires a one-dimensional numerical integration and as such is slower than the alternatives. We use an adaptive Simpson quadrature for the integration, with an error tolerance set to $10^{-7}$, such that the result of the quadrature may be considered exact for all practical purposes.
For a large number of dividends, this basket approximation will however be faster than third-order approximations as the computational complexity is in $O(n^2)$ where $n$ is the number of dividends vs. $O(n^3)$ for third-order methods.

\begin{table}[h]
	\centering{
		\caption{Time to price 1000 vanilla options with 100 dividends yo the option maturity.\label{tbl:cash_perf}}
		\begin{tabular}{l c c c c c c}\toprule
 Approximation & BB-LB &GS & Zhang-2 & BB-Ju & LL-3 & BB\\\midrule
 Time (s)   & 0.10  & 0.12 & 0.15 & 2.08  & 4.74   & 10.20\\\bottomrule
\end{tabular}
}
\end{table}

While the Deelstra-based approximation is around 70 times slower than other second-order methods, it is unlikely to be a real bottleneck in a financial system. Instead of the one-dimensional integration, it is also possible to use the corresponding lower-bound approximation (named "BB-LB" in Table \ref{tbl:cash_perf}), where no numerical integration is required. The method is then the fastest, but its accuracy becomes similar to the least accurate second-order method, GS.

\section{Conclusion}
We have shown that any  basket option approximation for the standard Black-Scholes model may be directly used to price a European option on single aasset under the piecewise-lognormal model.

For a single cash dividend, the Curran based basket approximation leads to prices as accurate as advanced second-order or third-order cash dividend specific approximations. In the context of many dividends, the basket approach is found to be the most accurate one while the computational cost evolves as the square of the number of dividends, in similar fashion as the second-order cash dividend approximations. The need for a numerical integration makes it slower than other existing cash-dividend approximations in general. This is however unlikely to be a real issue in a financial system. The lower bound basket approximation, while less accurate, does not require a numerical integration and was found to be of similar accuracy as the approximation of Sahel and Gocsei, while being faster the the latter.

The technique presented in this paper may be easily extended to to price vanilla basket options under the piecewise lognormal model through the classic Black-Scholes basket option approximations, something that specific discrete dividend approximations typically do not allow.

\externalbibliography{yes}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaArXiv


Sharing is caring, so here I will share with my customers and other breeders what I have designed to keep my dogs happy, healthy and clean.
First of all, I have 2 kennels and 2 nursing rooms with indoor/outdoor access for mommy's when they have babies. The 2 kennels are divided by 3 compartments and a larger outdoor playground area (My whole backyard) so they can run around for a couple of hours every day.
Indoor: where they have air conditioning and heater for cold days.
Outdoor: where they do their restroom needs, this area is has pea gravel on the floor, I like it very much because it's easy to clean and it doesn't smell.
Shaded area: here is where they have some dog houses and the floor it's made of concrete so it can easily be cleaned and sanitized. They play most of the day between these 3 compartments, food and water is always available for them.
This is part of the outdoor with pea gravel for their restroom needs.
This is a lifted dog house I've built so it is easier to clean below.
Here is where we all get together so we can play with my family members and friends when they come.
After a fun and tired day, the adults go to their crates at nights where they sleep until I let them out in the morning.
I made these so the mommy's can nurse their puppies.
I have bought many dog beds through my years of experience and let me tell you that I have been disappointed with their quality. My dogs/puppies will easily rip them off and it was frustrating that after spending from $10 to $25 on each bed they wouldn't last a few months. That being said, I decided to be more creative and tested some materials, and I came to the conclusion that the best and long lasting beds are the ones you make yourself. So I bought different felt fabrics from Walmart, dollar stores, etc and started sewing them. So far they work great, they are easy to wash and feel very comfortable for them. I put 2 of them on each side, and since each yard of fabrics makes 4 layers, they are thick enough to keep them comfortable and relaxed.
They will last longer for sure, give it a try.
Sorry these are not for sale.


text:
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Learning & Values Parshah (Weekly Torah) Bereishit - Genesis Bereishit Parshah Columnists Covenant & Conversation
G-d's Unrelenting Faith in Us
By Rabbi Jonathan Sacks
In stately prose the Torah in its opening chapter describes the unfolding of the universe, the effortless creation of a single creative Force. Repeatedly we read, "And G‑dWho is the "us"? said, Let there be … and there was … and G‑d saw that it was good" – until we come to the creation of humankind. Suddenly the whole tone of the narrative changes:
And G‑d said, "Let us make man in our image, according to our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of heaven, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every moving thing that moves upon the earth."
So G‑d created man in His image,
In the image of G‑d He created him,
Male and female He created them. (Gen. 1: 26-27)
The problems are obvious. First, why the preface, "Let us make…"? In no other case does G‑d verbally reflect on what He is about to create before He creates it. Second, who is the "us"? At that time there was no "us." There was only G‑d.
There are many answers, but here I want to focus only on one given by the Talmud. It is quite extraordinary. The "us" refers to the angels with whom G‑d consulted. He did so because He was faced with a fateful dilemma. By creating Homo sapiens, G‑d was making the one being other than Himself capable of destroying life on earth. Read Jared Diamond's Guns, Germs and Steel or Collapse and you will discover how destructive humans have been wherever they have set foot, creating environmental damage and human devastation on a massive scale. We are still doing so. This is how the Talmud describes what happened before G‑d created humankind:
When the Holy One, blessed be He, came to create man, He created a group of ministering angels and asked them, "Do you agree that we should make man in our image?" They replied, "Sovereign of the Universe, what will be his deeds?"
G‑d showed them the history of mankind. The angels replied, "What is man that You are mindful of him?" [in other words, let man not be created].
G‑d destroyed the angels.
He created a second group, and asked them the same question, and they gave the same answer. G‑d destroyed them.
He created a third group of angels, and they replied, "Sovereign of the Universe, the first and second group of angels told You not to create man, and it did not avail them. You did not listen. What then can we say but this: The universe is Yours. Do with it as You wish."
Then G‑d created man.
When it came to the generation of the Flood, and then to the generation of the builders of Babel, the angels said to G‑d, "Were not the first angels right? See how great is the corruption of mankind."
Then G‑d replied (Isaiah 46:4), "Even to old age I will not change, and even to grey hair, I will still be patient." (Sanhedrin 38b)
This goes to the core of the dilemma even G‑d could not escape. Were He not to create humanity there would be no-one in the universe capable of understanding that he or she wasWithout us it would be as if G‑d created billions of robots created and that G‑d exists. Only with the birth of humanity did the universe become self-conscious. Without us, it would be as if G‑d had created billions of robots mindlessly doing what they been programmed to do for all eternity. So, even though by creating humans G‑d was putting the entire future of creation at risk, G‑d went ahead and made humankind.
This is radical theology indeed. The Talmud is telling us is that the existence of humankind can only be explained by the fact that G‑d had faith in man. As the Sifre explains the phrase in Moses' song, "the G‑d of faith" – this means, "the G‑d who had faith in the universe and created it."1 The real religious mystery, according to Judaism, is not our faith in G‑d. It is G‑d's faith in us.
This is the extraordinary idea that shines through the entire Tanakh. G‑d invests his hopes for the universe in this strange, refractory, cantankerous, ungrateful and sometimes degenerate creature called Homo sapiens, part dust of the earth, part breath of G‑d, whose behavior disappoints and sometimes appalls him. Yet He never gives up.
He tries with Adam, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, Joshua, a string of judges and kings. He tries with women also, and here succeeds much better. They are more faithful, less violent, less obsessed with power. But He refuses to give up on men. He has His most passionate relationship with the prophets. They understand Him and become bearers of His word. Yet most of the prophets end up as disappointed with people as G‑d is.
The real subject of the Torah is not our faith in G‑d, which is often faltering, but His unfailing faith in us. The Torah is not man's book of G‑d. It is G‑d's book of man. He spends a mere 34 verses describing His own creation of the universe, but more than 500 verses describing the Israelites' creation of a tiny, temporary, portable building called the Mishkan, the Sanctuary. G‑d never stops believing in us, loving us, and hoping for the best from us. There are moments when He almost despairs. Our parsha says so.
The L‑rd saw how great the wickedness of the human race had become on the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time. The L‑rd regretted that he had made human beings on the earth, and He was grieved to His very core.
But Noah, good, innocent, upright, consoles Him. For the sake of one good man G‑d was prepared to begin again.
Of course, all of this is a matter of faith – as is all belief in the thoughts and feelings of persons other than myself. Do I really know whether those closest to me – my marriage partner, my children, my companions, my friends – love me or have faith in me, or is that just wishful thinking on my part? Atheists sometimes think that belief in G‑d is irrational while belief in other people is rational. That is simply not so. The proof is the failure of the man who, at the dawn of the Enlightenment, sought to put philosophy on a rational basis: Rene Descartes. Descartes famously said, Cogito ergo sum, "I think, therefore I am." All he was sure of was his own existence. For anything else – the existence of physical objects, let alone other minds – even he had to invoke G‑d.
I for one do not have enough faith to be an atheist.2 To be an atheist you have to have faith, either in humankind as a whole, or in yourself. How anyone can have faith in humankind after the Holocaust defies all reason. The single most calculated, sustained crime of man against man happened not in some benighted third world country but in the heart of a Europe that had given birth to Kant and Hegel, Bach and Beethoven, Goethe and Schiller. Civilization utterly failed to civilize. Humanism did not make men humane.
When I first stood at Auschwitz-Birkenau the question that haunted me was not, "Where was G‑d?" G‑d was in the command, "You shall not murder." G‑d was in the words, "You shall not oppress the stranger." G‑d was saying to humanity, "Your brother's blood is crying to Me from theG‑d does not save us from ourselves ground." G‑d did not stop the first humans eating forbidden fruit. He did not stop Cain committing murder. He did not stop the Egyptians enslaving the Israelites. G‑d does not save us from ourselves. That, according to the Talmud, is why creating man was such a risk that the angels advised against it. The question that haunts me after the Holocaust, as it does today in this new age of chaos, is "Where is man?"
As for believing only in yourself, that is hubris. Every serious thinker since the dawn of history has known that this ends in nemesis.
There are only two serious possibilities to be entertained by serious minds. Either the one put forward by the Torah that we are here because a Force greater than the universe wanted us to be, or the alternative: that the universe exists because of a random fluctuation in the quantum field, and we are here because of a mindless sequence of genetic mutations blindly sifted by natural selection. Either there is or is not meaning to the human condition. The first possibility yields Isaiah, the second, Sophocles, Aeschylus and Greek tragedy. The Greece of antiquity died. The Israel of Abraham and Moses still lives.
I respect those who choose Greek tragedy over Jewish hope. But those who choose Judaism have made space in their minds for the most life-changing idea of all: Whether or not we have faith in G‑d, G‑d has faith in us.
There may be times in our lives – certainly there have been in mine – when the sun disappears and we enter the cloud of black despair. King David knew these feelings well. They areWe may lose heart; G‑d never will theme of several Psalms. People can be brutal to one another. There are some who, having suffered pain themselves, find relief in inflicting it on others. You can lose faith in humanity, or in yourself, or both. At such times, the knowledge that G‑d has faith in us is transformative, redemptive. As David said in Psalm 27:
Even were my father or mother to forsake me,
The L‑rd would still receive me. (Ps. 27: 10)
We may lose heart; G‑d never will. We may despair; G‑d will give us hope. G‑d believes in us even if we don't believe in ourselves. We may sin and disappoint and come short again and again, but G‑d never ceases to forgive us when we fail and lift us when we fall.
Have faith in G‑d's faith in us and you will find the path from darkness to light.
Sifre, Ha'azinu, 307.
Of course an atheist might say – Sigmund Freud came close to saying this – that faith is simply a comforting illusion. That really is not so. It is far more demanding to believe that G‑d summons us to responsibility, that He asks us to fight for justice, equality and human dignity, and that He holds us accountable for what we do, than to believe that there is no meaning to human existence other than ones we invent for ourselves, no ultimate truth, no absolute moral standards, and no one to whom we will have to give an account of our lives. Fifty years of reflection on this issue have led me to conclude that it is atheism that is, morally and existentially, the easy option – and I say this having known and studied with some of the greatest atheists of our time. That is not to say that I am critical of atheists. To the contrary, in a secular age, it is the default option. That is why now, more than at any other time in the past two thousand years, it takes courage to have and live by religious faith.
Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks (1948-2020) was an international religious leader, philosopher, and respected moral voice. The author of over 30 books, Rabbi Sacks received multiple awards in recognition of his work including the 2016 Templeton Prize. He was the recipient of 18 honorary doctorates, was knighted by Her Majesty The Queen in 2005 and made a Life Peer, taking his seat in the House of Lords in October 2009. He served as the Chief Rabbi of the United Hebrew Congregations of the Commonwealth from 1991 to 2013. To read more writings and teachings by Lord Rabbi Jonathan Sacks, please visit www.rabbisacks.org.
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The Genesis of Justice
The Art of Listening
The Faith of G-d
Three Stages of Creation
In G-d's Time - Bereishit
Torah Gems - Parshah Bereishit
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Basic Parshah - Bereishit
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Garden of Eden: Take Two
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Parshah: Bereishit
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redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Question:Diehl Corporation manufactures a variety of parts for use in its product. The company has always...
Diehl Corporation manufactures a variety of parts for use in its product. The company has always...
Diehl Corporation manufactures a variety of parts for use in its product. The company has always produced all of the necessary parts for its product, including all of the electronic circuits. The company sells 20,000 units of its product per year. An outside supplier has offered to sell electronic circuits to the company for a cost of $36 per unit. To evaluate this offer, the company has gathered the following information relating to its own cost of producing the electronic circuits internally:
Per Unit 20,000 Units
Direct materials $ 13 $ 260,000
Direct labor 11 220,000
Variable manufacturing overhead 4 80,000
Fixed manufacturing overhead, traceable 6 * 120,000
Fixed manufacturing overhead, allocated 9 180,000
Total cost $ 43 $ 860,000
*One-third supervisory salary; two-thirds depreciation of special equipment (no resale value).
Suppose that if the electronic circuits were purchased, the division supervisor position could be eliminated. Fixed manufacturing overhead will be allocated to other products made by the company. Also, the company could use the freed production capacity to launch a new product. The segment margin of the new product would be $200,000 per year. Given this new assumption, how much would be the financial advantage of buying 20,000 electronic circuits from the outside supplier?
Cost of Purchase : 20,000 Units @$36 each
= 20,000 * $36 = $720,000
Cost savings if Purchased from outside :
Direct Material : 20,000 * $13 = $260,000
Direct Labor : 20,000 * $11 = $220,000
Variable Manufacturing Overhead : 20,000 * $4 = $80,000
Saving in supervisory salary : 20,000 *1/3 *$6 = $40,000
Additional Contribution margin of new product : $200,000
Total Savings : $260,000 + $220,000 + $80,000 + $40,000 + $200,000 = $800,000
So Net Savings will be = $800,000 - $720,000 = $80,000
For any query please ask in comment box, we are happy to help you. Also please don't forget to provide your valuable feedback. Thanks!
Diehl Corporation manufactures a variety of parts for use in its product. The company has always produced all of the necessary parts for its product, including all of the electronic circuits. The company sells 20,000 units of its product per year. An outside supplier has offered to sell electronic circuits to the company for a cost of $36 per unit. To evaluate this offer, the company has gathered the following information relating to its own cost of producing the electronic...
Benson Corp. manufactures a variety of parts for use in its product. The company has always...
Benson Corp. manufactures a variety of parts for use in its product. The company has always produced all of the necessary parts for its product, including all of the electronic circuits. The company sells 17,000 units of its product per year. An outside supplier has offered to sell electronic circuits to the company for a cost of $35 per unit. To evaluate this offer, the company has gathered the following information relating to its own cost of producing the electronic...
Troy Engines, Ltd., manufactures a variety of engines for use in heavy equipment. The company has...
Troy Engines, Ltd., manufactures a variety of engines for use in heavy equipment. The company has always produced all of the necessary parts for its engines, including all of the carburetors. An outside supplier has offered to sell one type of carburetor to Troy Engines, Ltd., for a cost of $36 per unit. To evaluate this offer, Troy Engines, Ltd., has gathered the following information relating to its own cost of producing the carburetor internally: Per Unit 20,000 Units per...
Using the basic tax equation TB × TR = TL, where TB = tax base, TR...
Looking at an Interest Rate Swap on a 10 year floating rate corporate loan portfolio and...
Date Cash Flow July 13,2008 -1100 Jan 26, 2009 200 March 9, 2010 200 June 25,...
1. Here you have saturated Al(OH)3 solution in water.(Ksp of Al(OH)3 is 4.6x10-33) a) What is...
SAMPLE SIZE = 16 IF IN ADDITION TO THE SAMPLE SUMMARIES (SAMPLE MEAN) = $5,400 AND...
Question no 16 As you recline in a beach chair in the sun, why are you...
Birkner Corporation's flexible budget performance report for last month shows that actual indirect materials cost, a...


The Royal tour itinerary of the Cambridge's New Zealand trip is in! We compare it to the 1986 Royal family tour of the country.
Who could forget this iconic image from the 1986 New Zealand tour by the British Royal family?
It seems like not that long ago when all the eyes of the world were on a bouncing royal baby – Prince William. Now it will be Prince William's son, Prince George, who we will all be vying for a glimpse of.
According to reports from UK media, the 8-month old will make six appearances in the three-week long tour of New Zealand and Australia. Undertaken on behalf of the Queen, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge's antipodean tour with their young son has more than a year in the making. Royal aides have confirmed that much of the tour has been designed with baby George in mind.
A nanny has been hired to assist in taking care of Prince George 24 hours a day and the doting new parents, William and Catherine, will base their young son in three different 'hubs': Wellington, Sydney and Canberra, across the length of the tour. This will ensure that Prince George will see and spend time with his mum and dad every night, with only two exceptions – a stop-over in Queenstown and another at Ayers Rock.
"It's a long way to go and a long time away from their son," the couple's private secretary, Miguel Head, told reporters.
'The tour has been designed with Prince George's consideration and comfort in mind," Head added.
In the past, royal British heirs have tended not to travel with their parents for security reasons. Take Queen Elizabeth; she had to leave her two children at the time, Prince Charles and Princess Anne – aged five and three – for six months when she embarked on a marathon Commonwealth tour in 1953, shortly after her Coronation.
The monarch has reportedly given her permission for the baby George, the third in line to the throne, to join his father and mother on their British Airways flights to and from the Southern Hemisphere.
The Cambridges are notorious for trying to break with formal traditions of royal life and this trip will be no different. Unlike Prince William's visit with his parents, Prince Charles and Princess Diana, in 1983, this tour will be much more casual and informal.
Monday, April 7: Wellington. Public drive to Government House via Oriental Bay.
Thursday, April 10: Blenheim/Wellington, Lay wreath at War Memorial, Seymour Square, and public walk; WWI event and flying day at Omaka Aviation Heritage Centre.
Friday, April 11: Auckland. Public walk/drive along Halsey St to the Viaduct Harbour.
Saturday, April 12: Waikato. Public drive/walk in Cambridge.
Sunday, April 13: Dunedin/Queenstown. Ngai Tahu welcome at airport; service at Catherdral Church of St Paul, The Octagon, then public drive to Forsyth Barr Stadium; Queenstown Airport.
Monday, April 14: Christchurch. Ngai Tahu welcome, Christchurch City Council building; various events around Latimer Square.


Ever wanted to know what happens to milk between the farm and your glass? This lightly edited story from the Gippsland Murray Goulburn newsletter explains it all really well.
Separation of animal milk, be it goat, sheep or cow is a naturally occurring phenomenon, which has been observed and tinkered with by man for many centuries. Indeed, as recently as the mid-1900s, milk was separated on farm and consigned as cream in cans to the dairy processor, with the whey by-product being fed to the farm's pigs (MMM note: We had cream cans until the early 1960s when power finally arrived here and a refrigerated vat took their place).
These days, separation of cream from skim milk is done via multi-level centrifugal force separators in a process refined in 1879…Cream, which is lighter than milk, is driven by centrifugal force (MMM note: the same "spinning" force that pushes water out of clothes during the spin cycle of your washing machine) to the surface of the milk and flows off to a holding vessel. Standardisation of milk involves the adjustment of the fat content by addition of cream or skim milk as appropriate.
Along with correct cooling, pasteurisation is one of the most important processes in the treatment of milk. If carried out correctly, this process will supply milk with a longer shelf life. Simply, the process of pasteurisation is to heat milk to 70-75 degrees C but for only five to seven seconds, upon which most bacteria will be killed.
Like pasteurisation, UHT treatment is heat treating milk for a given time at a given temperature…UHT takes the temperature to 135-140 degrees C but only for five to seven seconds. Importantly, the UHT process for milk is a continuous, aseptic (fully enclosed and sterile) treatment and packaging process. Shelf life of six months or more can be obtained if the milk is of the highest quality.
Homogenisation is a process invented in 1899 to stabilise fat emulsion against gravity separation. Essentially, milk is forced through a small passage at great velocity, causing the fat globules to fracture into much smaller ones. The newly-created fat globules will stay free and more stable and be less likely to separate out. This process will also enhance whiteness, flavour and mouth-feel of the milk. The downside of homogenised milk is its restriction in other processes such as cheese making. Also, the product is more susceptible to light damage.
There's a bit more to the article, including a discussion of ghee, milk powder, casein and yoghurt – topics for other days!


text:
<?php
namespace Omnimessage\Tests\Service;

use Omnimessage\Service\Web;

class WebTest extends \PHPUnit_Framework_TestCase
{
    protected $web;

    public function setUp()
    {
        $this->web = new Web();
    }

    public function testService()
    {
        $this->web
            ->setUrl('url');

        $this->assertInstanceOf('Omnimessage\\Service\\Web', $this->web);
        $this->assertEquals('url', $this->web->getUrl());
    }
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


Why use web designers in London, well thanks to London itself being the number one choice city in the world to live and work in, if not THE best, the web design industry has flourished here. Our team of web designers in London who founded Active Webdezign fifteen years ago have all been able to evolve and grow with the company thanks somewhat to its location.
When we opened our doors in 1999 web development especially eCommerce was quite a technical feat, so we were in the hands of old school software developers who we had used to outsource some of our technical work too. This was never going to be an ideal solution as these programmers had no real experience with website development. Even though some of the concepts of building desktop applications as compared to on-line, shared some of the same principles, but in practice there was enough of a difference to create many issues along the way.
Although our graphic design backgrounds and expertise was second to none, we had already been producing printed matter for our clients. Web design standards and techniques on the other hand were in their infancy and there was a lot of trial and error getting things to look and function correctly across a multitude of computer screens and PC's which as you all know were very badly behaved.
Since London is a world leader in design it did not take long for us to get a grips with the requirements the early internet demanded. Soon after it also became apparent that we could not rely on third party software developers to produce code to the high standard and expectations that London clientele demanded from us. This is when we decided to bring on board some newly qualified web designers and developers who were fresh out of university and very eager to learn and get ahead of the game. In doing so we could offer a complete package of design and development all created in house and to the high standard that we where trying to achieve.
The moral to this story is that if you want to keep customers very happy and coming back regularly for new websites its imperative that you control all aspects of development closely.
By working as a close knit in house team of highly skilled and dedicated designers, programmers, project managers and administrators we can ensure that each project is handled with great care. All this results in much happier clients, state of the art technology provided by our very knowledgeable and experienced team and all from our London web design studio where our clients can come and discuss projects face to face.
We have heard too many bad stories about outsource companies around the globe who try to delve into a clients project via email and basic communications and which mostly end in either a failed and abandoned project or something that does not really stand up to the high level of web design standards required by today's competitive on-line marketplace.
Cheap webdesign is expensive in the long run, web designers in London is therefore by far the best possible choice to get business's up and running in the rapidly growing world of the on-line arena.


text:
Narodowy Uniwersytet Pedagogiczny im. Wołodymyra Hnatiuka w Tarnopolu,  – szkoła wyższa w Tarnopolu.

Historia
Narodowy Uniwersytet Pedagogiczny w Tarnopolu im. Wołodymyra Hnatiuka jest najstarszą szkołą wyższą w tym mieście.

1 października 1805 r. otwarto gimnazjum w Krzemieńcu, które w 1818 r. przekształcono w liceum. W 1831 r. zostało zamknięte, a baza materialna liceum stała się główną bazą do założenia Uniwersytetu św. Włodzimierza w Kijowie (obecnie Kijowski Uniwersytet Narodowy im. Tarasa Szewczenki). W 1920 wznowił pracę.

15 kwietnia 1940 r. otwarto Instytut Nauczycielski w Krzemieńcu, który 4 sierpnia 1950 r. został przekształcony w Instytut Pedagogiczny. W 1969 uczelnia została przeniesiona do Tarnopola. W 1989 r. otwarto liceum o profilu fizycznym i matematycznym, a w 1991 r. studia podyplomowe.

W 1997 r. Instytut Pedagogiczny w Tarnopolu został zreorganizowany w uniwersytet i nazwany na cześć Wołodymyra Hnatiuka. W 2004 roku uniwersytet uzyskał status uczelni państwowej.

Struktura uczelni

Wydziały
 geograficzny;
 inżynieria i pedagogika;
 języki obce;
 historyczny;
 sztuka;
 pedagogika i psychologia;
 fizyczne i matematyczne;
 wychowanie fizyczne;
 filologia i dziennikarstwo;
 chemiczne i biologiczne.

Centra
 Szkolenie Dowyszowa;
 Studia podyplomowe.

Muzeum Dżhereli
W 1995 r. historyk i archeolog Ołeksandr Petrowśkyj założył muzeum jako biuro edukacyjno-metodyczne dotyczące archeologii i pomocniczych dyscyplin historycznych.

Rektorzy
 Iwan Wakuła – 1940-1941, dyrektor Instytutu Nauczycielskiego w Krzemieńcu;
 Uljan Krahłyk – 1944-1950, dyrektor Instytutu Nauczycielskiego w Krzemieńcu;
 Mykoła Bryhineć – 1961-1969 rektor Instytutu Pedagogicznego w Krzemieńcu, 1969-1974 rektor Instytutu Pedagogicznego w Tarnopolu;
 Ołeksandr Jawonenko – 1974-1982;
 Iwan Butnycki – 1982-1984;
 Jurij Iwaszczenko – 1984-1990;
 Wołodymyr Kraweć – 1990-2017;
 Bohdan Bujak – od 2017.

Przypisy

Źródła
 Сеник, А. Тернопільський національний педагогічний університет // Тернопільський енциклопедичний словник: у 4 т. / редкол.: Г. Яворський та ін, Тернопіль: Видавничо-поліграфічний комбінат «Збруч», 2008, Т. 3: П – Я, s. 430–431, .
 15 квітня. 70 років Тернопільському національному педагогічному університету імені Володимира Гнатюка // Література до знаменних і пам'ятних дат Тернопільщини на 2010 рік: бібліогр. покажч. Вип. 20 / Голов. упр. з питань туризму, сім'ї, молоді та спорту Терноп. облдержадмін., Упр. культури Терноп. облдержадмін., Терноп. обл. універс. наук. б-ка; уклад. М. Друневич ; ред. О. Раскіна; відп. за випуск В. Вітенко, Тернопіль: Підручники і посібники, 2009, s. 65–67.
 Перший вищий навчальний заклад Надзбруччя: бібліогр. покажч. / М-во освіти і науки України, Терноп. нац. пед. ун-т ім. В. Гнатюка, наук. б-ка ; уклад.: О. Я. Кульчицька, Т. Р. Матвієшин, Т.: РВВ ТНПУ, 2010, 66 s.
 15 квітня. 75 років із часу заснування Тернопільського національного педагогічного університету імені Володимира Гнатюка // Література до знаменних і пам'ятних дат Тернопільщини на 2015 рік: бібліогр. покажч. Вип. 25 / Департамент культури, релігій та національностей Терноп. облдержадмін., Терноп. обл. універс. наук. б-ка ; уклад. М. Пайонк; ред.: О. Раскіна, Г. Жовтко; кер. проєкту та наук. ред. В. Вітенко, Тернопіль: Навчальна книга – Богдан, 2014, s. 52–56.

Linki zewnętrzne
 Oficjalna strona internetowa TNPU

Oświata w Tarnopolu
Uczelnie pedagogiczne na Ukrainie
Narodowy Uniwersytet Pedagogiczny im. Wołodymyra Hnatiuka w Tarnopolu

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
La Zone administrative 2 est l'une des cinq zones administratives de la région Afar en Éthiopie. Aucune des zones de l'Afar ne porte de nom. Cette zone est entourée de la Zone administrative 4 au sud, la Zone administrative 1 au sud-ouest, la région Amhara à l'ouest et l'Érythrée au nord-est.

La plus grande ville de la zone 2 est Abala. Il faut également citer la ville de Dallol, ancienne exploitation minière, qui a le record de la ville la plus chaude au monde avec une température moyenne de .

La zone est par ailleurs composée de 7 woredas :
 Abala
 Afdera
 Berahle
 Dallol
 Erebti
 Koneba
 Megale

Selon les chiffres de l'Agence Centrale des Statistiques éthiopienne (CSA), en 2005, cette zone comprenait une population totale estimée à , dont  et  femmes. 2,7 % de la population est urbaine.

Notes et références

Articles connexes
 Ahmed Ela

Zone en Éthiopie


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IS YOUR FUEL EQUIPMENT ATEX -CERTIFIED?
Is your fuel equipment ATEX Certified?
Improper practice concerning explosive atmospheres can have disastrous consequences for all concerned. Loss of life, significant damages, serious injuries; all these and more can result if explosive atmospheres are not properly controlled.
According to the Health and Safety Executive, ATEX is the name commonly given to the two European Directives for controlling explosive atmospheres. Explosive atmospheres are often created by the presence of flammable liquids, such as petrol and diesel, which give off vapours that mix with the air. Only a source of ignition provided by a spark, flame or even a static shock is required to cause a potentially devastating explosion.
The ATEX directives set out essential health and safety requirements and certify that equipment is safe and suitable for the purpose for which it is designed. ATEX 95 pertains to the type of equipment that must be used, and the second, known as ATEX 137, covers the minimum workplace requirements to improve the protection of workers.
The directives cover any equipment designed to operate in an explosive atmosphere and is capable of igniting it either when operating normally or in the event of a fault. Anyone installing or using fuel storage tanks and pumps must take safety seriously by investing in ATEX-certified equipment where required.
The Triscan Group offer a comprehensive range of fuel equipment and management systems for any and every requirement. The safety of your operation is a priority for the team at Triscan, which is why conforming to ATEX regulations, is essential requirement in the planning, development and installation of your site.
"Our team of fully trained (PIA, Compex, ATEX, DSEAR) engineers ensure that all installations comply with all the latest regulations and safety measures to ensure the continued safe running of our customers sites and facilities.
As PEIMF and APEA members, and alongside the launch of the new Blue book (by the APEA and the Energy Institute), Triscan are ideally placed to help and advise on all issues regarding fuel management" said Mark Whittaker, Technical Manager, The Triscan Group.
Both the Mono and Twin Pumps from Triscan are ATEX for diesel approved and are accurate to at least 0.25%. Manufactured from stainless steel chassis, the Mono and the range of Twin Pumps are ideal for operators looking to install an accurate, reliable but low-cost fuelling solution for use in medium to heavy-duty environments. These systems are compatible with a range of fuel management units, providing a low-cost integrated fuel pump and monitoring system.
Triscan's C Series Commercial pump is ATEX, MID and Weights and measures approved for the resale of fuel. The C Series commercial pumps and dispensers provide the ultimate in commercial fuelling equipment in heavy-duty environments where speed of fuelling and reliability is vital. From large fleet garages, truck stops, marinas or small airfields, the C Series commercial range provides a robust, accurate and visually attractive fuelling solution.
All C Series pumps are built to the highest specification from long lasting stainless steel and they all incorporate the latest technology. These C Series Commercial pumps are available in either mono or twin models, and in four speeds – 45, 70, 90 and 180 LPM.
Low-cost, long-term cost of ownership is an integral consideration in the design of the C Series range as is speed of fuelling and reliability – vital to commercial fuel operators.
Designed with durability in mind, Triscan's comprehensive range of fuel pumps provide a reliable, accurate and long-lasting fuelling solution.


text:
package net.minidev.ovh.api.dedicatedcloud;

import net.minidev.ovh.api.dedicatedcloud.option.OvhStateEnum;

/**
 * The Private Cloud Hipaa option
 */
public class OvhHipaa {
	/**
	 * State of the option
	 *
	 * canBeNull && readOnly
	 */
	public OvhStateEnum state;
}


text:
> Home / Career Options / Master of Architecture (M.Arch.)
Master of Architecture (M.Arch.)
Colleges Offering Master of Architecture (M.Arch.) in India
Dr Bhanuben Nanavati College of Architecture for Women
Pune, Maharashtra Approved by AICTE and Council of Architecture (CoA), New Delhi
Rs. 2,00,000/- First Year
Bachelor of Architecture (B.Arch)
Kamla Raheja Vidyanidhi Institute of Architecture and Environmental Studies
Smt Manoramabai Mundle College of Architecture
Nagpur, Maharashtra
CEPT University
Ahmedabad, Gujarat AICTE Approved, Affiliated to the Hemachandracharya North Gujarat University at Patan
Rs. 1,89,000/- Per Semester
Master of Planning (M.Plan)
Bachelor of Planning (BPlan)
Amity School of Architecture and Planning
Deenbandhu Chhotu Ram University of Science and Technology
Sonepat, Haryana Established by State Legislative Act No.29 of 2006 & Approved under section 12 (B) of the UGC ACT
Lingayas University
Mumbai, Maharashtra Approved by UGC
SVKM NMIMS University
Mumbai, Maharashtra "Deemed University"
Tiruvananthapuram, Kerala Re-accredited with A-GRADE By NAAC
Chennai, Tamil Nadu NAAC, UGC, ABET
Rs. 1,00,00/- Per Year
School of Planning and Architecture -Vijaywada
Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh An Instutions of National Importance (MHRD, Govt. of India)
Central University of Rajasthan
Jaipur , Rajasthan Established under the central Universities Act, 2009
Sir JJ College of Architecture
MGM University
Aurangabad, Maharashtra
Rs. 1,50,000/- Per Year
Sharda University
Greater Noida, Uttar Pradesh Approved by UGC
Periyar Maniammai Institute of Science and Technology
Thanjavur, Tamil Nadu NAAC ACCREDITED, UNDER SECTION 3, UGC ACT-1956
Rs.74,000/- Per Year
PMIST Department of Architecture
Jamia Millia Islamia University
New Delhi, Delhi Central university in New Delhi
Visvesvaraya Technological University
Karnataka: Rs. 10,440/- Total, Non- Karnataka/SAAR Country: Rs. 11,940/-Total, Foreign/NRI/PIO: Rs. 21,940/- Total
Bharath Institute of Higher Education and Research
Chennai, Tamil Nadu Accreditation NAAC ('A' Grade), Affiliations	UGC AIU
Babu Banarasi Das University
Amritsar, Punjab Established by the State Legislature Act No. 21 of 1969
CMJ University
Shillong, Meghalaya Established by Govt of Meghalaya as per section 2 (f) of UGC Act 1956
Smt Kashibai Navale College of Architecture
Pune, Maharashtra Recognized by the Government of Maharashtra and approved by the Council of Architecture, New Delhi and is a?liated to the Savitribai Phule Pune University, Pune
Malaviya National Institute of Technology
Jaipur , Rajasthan Affiliation: Ministry of Human Resource Development.
Maulana Azad National Institute of Technology
MS Ramaiah Institute of Technology
Bangalore, Karnataka An autonomous Institute Affiliated to VTU, Accredited by National Board of Accreditation


text:
now reading: Ohio's Kasich: From Zero to GOP Debate Stage?
Ohio's Kasich: From Zero to GOP Debate Stage?
By Caitlin Huey-Burns
RCP Staff
Story Stream
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Soon after Ohio Gov. John Kasich wrapped up his presidential announcement speech in Columbus last month, Donald Trump was already upstaging him by giving out Lindsey Graham's cell phone number in South Carolina.
But if that positioning underscored how difficult it would be to gain traction in a crowded field—one led by the attention-getting Trump—the low-polling, relatively unknown Kasich didn't get the message.
Instead, Kasich ignored Trump and his own long odds, and kept his nose to the grindstone in New Hampshire. Kasich has visited the Granite State nine times since announcing his candidacy on July 21, embracing the state's quintessential town hall campaign format. His late start, once thought to be a shortcoming, has turned out to be an advantage, keeping him freshest in the public's eye. All of this, combined most significantly with $3 million worth of ads in the state from his super PAC, have helped the governor move from the bottom to third and fourth place in the state, according to two recent surveys.
Perhaps most striking, however, is that Kasich is now likely to make the prime-time debate stage in Cleveland on Thursday, defying some expectations that the sitting governor of Ohio would be cut from the main event held in his home state. Debate host Fox News will reveal the prime-time roster, determined by an average of the most recent national polls, after 5 p.m. on Tuesday. According to the RCP national average, Kasich is sitting in ninth place. If he makes the cut, it will mark one of the fastest rises so far this cycle.
"With the possible exception of Gov. [Jeb] Bush, John Kasich has created the most traction in shortest period of time. And that's impressive," says Steve Duprey, a Republican National Committee member from New Hampshire who is remaining neutral in the primary because of his committee duties. "It's pretty impressive when he can say, 'I'm the last guy to balance the [federal] budget, and I did it with Bill Clinton as president'… And he can say he's got the best record of any governor, and arguably, he does."
Kasich's campaign believes that in a field full of governors, many of them competing in New Hampshire, his congressional and gubernatorial experience, including turning Ohio's multi-billion-dollar deficit into a surplus, is unmatched.
Kasich announced his campaign three weeks ago and may be seeing a bump from that in polling. But the campaign believes his record and electability can help him sustain the momentum it's starting to see.
"Right now, voters are asking policy questions, but for Republicans who want to win, and want to put a conservative in the White House who knows how to govern, having someone who can win Ohio is pretty damn attractive," says John Weaver, a former McCain adviser who is serving as Kasich's top political strategist. "Florida is always going to be a swing state, but with Ohio we can make Democrats play defense in the Midwest."
The governor's unscripted style and "talk from the heart" is resonating in the first primary state, and the focus on and headway in New Hampshire, a welcome space for underdogs, will start to show in national polls, the campaign believes.
Several candidates this cycle are campaigning as governors who can get things done, speaking to voters who are frustrated or disillusioned by government and the political system. New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, for example, is also driving in the straight-talk-express lane and working hard in New Hampshire. But Kasich, lesser known, may not quite carry the same baggage.
A Monmouth poll of New Hampshire found Kasich tied with Scott Walker for third place at 7 percent. Forty-five percent reported a positive view of the Ohio governor while just 15 percent reported a negative one. Forty percent of voters said they did not yet have an opinion of him. Christie garnered 4 percent in the poll, and 42 percent said they have a favorable view of him while 40 percent didn't. Just 19 percent didn't know enough about him to form an opinion.
A Fox News poll released Monday night found Kasich and Christie rounding out the top 10 candidates nationally, tied with 3 percent of the support. It's not clear which polls the network will use to determine the prime-time roster, other than a combination of five of the most recent national surveys. All of the candidates except Trump participated in a candidate forum in New Hampshire Monday night, sponsored by the Union Leader and broadcast on C-SPAN.
Kasich supporters believe what will help the governor break past Christie and others in the field is the authenticity factor. While some may view Kasich's unscripted speeches and events, including his presidential campaign launch, as meandering and disorganized, the campaign sees its messenger as an asset. "He will be a great president instead of just a great, polished candidate," says Fred Davis, a former McCain adviser and ad man now working for Kasich's super PAC.
Davis said he met Kasich less than four months ago and was immediately "blown away" by him and his ability to connect with people. The chemistry, he says, is natural and organic. And that is what he has focused on in the ads he made on behalf of the governor. Davis says he sat down with Kasich for two hours and simply asked him questions about a variety of subjects as the camera rolled, and he used those clips in the ads. One is introductory, telling voters he is one of them, and the other is a contrast ad, pitting Kasich against President Obama and Hillary Clinton on foreign policy.
The ads have helped propel Kasich in New Hampshire, and perhaps onto the main debate stage. But while the campaign is happy to have defied expectations, it is trying to downplay them when it comes to the debate.
"The debate matters in the sense that it gives encouragement to your army," Weaver says. "But when we look back on this process, the first debate won't be most important thing since the Ben-Hur chariot race. It will be a speed bump on the road to nomination."
Kasich, who has refrained from engaging Trump, as Rick Perry and Lindsey Graham have, isn't likely to take on the New York mogul if he gets to share the stage with him.
"The Donald has added to this circus atmosphere," says Davis. "And I'm expecting everybody except John Kasich to have some well-crafted or witty attack on Trump that will get applause."
Weaver says the campaign would be happy to make the main debate on Thursday night, but if not, "We're doing well in New Hampshire, where they actually pick the candidates."
Caitlin Huey-Burns is a national political reporter for RealClearPolitics. She can be reached at chueyburns@realclearpolitics.com. Follow her on Twitter @CHueyBurnsRCP.
Related Topics: Polls, Donald Trump, GOP Debates, Republican Presidential Candidate, Republican Presidential Race, Election 2016, John Kasich
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text:
LCCI commends Dangote for investing in Nigeria at Lagos Trade Fair
Dangote Industries has been commended for making massive investment, targeted at growing the Nigeria's economy.
The Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) disclosed this while joining others to mark Dangote Day at the on-going Lagos International Trade Fair in Lagos yesterday.
According to a statement obtained by The Daily, the President of the LCCI, Mr. Babatunde Paul Ruwase, said the Dangote Group has added significant value to the economy.
He specifically commended the company's investment in Refinery, Fertilizer, Cement, Flour and every sector and still expanding and going strong.
"The Dangote Group is a Nigerian company managed by Aliko Dangote. We are very proud of this company, which is people oriented."
He said that the activities of the Dangote Group showed high degree of vision, creative thinking, research, innovation, hard work and industry.
However, the Group Managing Director, Olakunle Alake, who spoke through the company's Director, Supply Chain, Dangote Cement, Knut Ulvmoen, said that the group would continue to invest in the Nigeria's economy.
He said that the firm's investment drive is being made manifest by the construction of the 650,000 barrels per day Dangote refinery, a fertilizer plant, rice, and cement, noting that the refinery would on completion become Africa's biggest and the world's biggest single-train facility.
Source – The Daily
Dangote Group Dangote Industries Investment Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry Lagos International Trade Fair LCCi Nigeria Refinery
Fear over cooking gas scarcity as supply drops ACROSS THE COUNTRY
THE PETROLEUM INDUSTRY BILL (PIB) 2021…
THE POLITICS BEHIND THE SKYROCKETING PRICES…
Increase in the Price of Cooking…
THE FIGHT AGAINST VALUE ADDED TAX…


Taz Thornton is a shamanic healer, workshop leader and crafter of sacred ceremonial items, including rattles, medicine bags, dance staffs, medicine jewellery and the 'Shaman Stones' personal guidance system.
Through Firechild, Taz offers training in shamanism and meditation, as well as one to one healing, distance healing and group sessions, as well as space clearing services. She is trained in several aspects of traditional 'soul doctoring', including soul retrieval and extraction, plant spirit medicine, power animal sourcing, light healing, chakra alignment and psychopomp work.
Outside of her healing commitments and workshop programme, Taz can often be found channeling spirit to create 'medicine' jewellery and sacred ceremonial and healing tools, such as rattles, medicine bags and dance staffs.
Taz is a member of the Society of Shamanic Practitioners and has presented at the UK gathering many times.
Outside of shamanism, Taz is trained in NLP and is also a reiki master and certified firewalk instructor and empowerment coach. A member of the International Business and Personal Development Association, she is developing a following as a public speaker and trainer, encouraging people to step into their personal power and become the human being they were meant to be.


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Working mainly with stoneware clay and using oxides to colour, Vicki creates beautifully sculpted ceramic pieces which will bring a smile to your face.
At first, her work appears whimsical and light hearted but with closer inspection you find that a resonance of serenity, poise and expression exude from the sculptures. Her work has a simple honesty which she attributes to everyday observations of human nature, along with a fascination for Greek mythology.
Vicki took her sculpture degree at City and Guilds of London Art School in the late 1980s where the emphasis was on a classical training in life drawing and sculpture. Her work has evolved to take on a lighter, more quirky style which very much reflects her own personality.


We are an Essex based address with mail forwarding solutions which can be tailored around all business needs.
We can provide your business with a real mailing address and forward all your letters to your home, office by scanning & emailing, first class post within 24 hours, or if you prefer to pick up from the address yourself.
We offer two packages, 6 months and 12 months with discount for the 12 month option.
All you need to change your registered address is download an AD01 form from here.


text:
NewsBLOGSIndiaDon't let babus derail OROP, override them with strong political mandate
Don't let babus derail OROP, override them with strong political mandate
September 2, 2015, 8:57 AM IST Sushil Kumar in TOI Edit Page, India, TOI
The writer is a former Indian Navy Chief.
Citizens may have been surprised and even embarrassed by the face-off between government and military veterans seeking the grant of OROP – One Rank, One Pension. It should never have been allowed to happen.
What may not be well known is that OROP had always been accorded to our armed forces but was unilaterally withdrawn by the Central Pay Commission (CPC) in 1973 when Indira Gandhi was the prime minister. Though subsequently re-sanctioned in principle, OROP has never again been re-implemented for the armed forces.
OROP has political consensus and approval of the Parliament, but successive governments have failed to undo the injustice done to our armed forces four decades ago. Even a nod from the Supreme Court has not helped.
When Prime Minister Narendra Modi entered the scene, expectations ran high with our armed forces community. But the breakdown of talks after Independence Day has deepened the crisis.
The impression that has clearly emerged from failed talks with military veterans is that lurking deep within the system is a formidable force with an opposing view. It seems the government is struggling with another constituency – the civilian bureaucracy – that is determined to retain its own OROP: Obdurately Retain Our Precedence.
The country has to contend with the bureaucracy, to whom the political system remains beholden. Regrettably, political indifference has allowed a 'Yes Minister' syndrome to prevail.
With the nation in full support but the bureaucracy out of sync, the only way that OROP for the armed forces can ever be implemented, is through a politically overriding mandate.
Curiously, OROP is going the same way as the attempt to reform our armed forces with a Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) system. The similarity is startling.
In most countries with major armed forces, CDS has been accepted as the greatest reform since World War II. India remains the exception. In some countries such as the US, it had to be enforced through a strong political mandate.
To the bureaucracy, what finally matters is the inter-se equation with other institutions. And the military has always been their main obsession. When opportunity came their way in 1973, the CPC
introduced a devious civil-military fiscal equivalence wherein a combat soldier was placed below a semi-skilled worker.
Further, not only was OROP withdrawn but the scales of military pensions were drastically reduced by almost 25% and that of the civilian bureaucracy increased by a similar amount. Thereafter the bureaucracy contrived a mechanism that linked pay scales to rank structure, acquiring for itself the prima donna status.
No modus vivendi is likely to resolve the impasse with OROP; it requires an overriding political mandate. Hope springs eternal with Modi at the helm; he could well take the bull by the horns.
Sureshi Bai
glad to note that admiral sushil kumar has come out of his narrow prejudiced views of modi and the bjp and has, albeit not very directly, conceded his competence and ability to deliver in an impossible country like india. he is one man at the helm that india needed for a long time with a sound national focus and vision. i cannot but sate a feeling with due respects that people, especially those in high offices, should not easily become careless, impulsive and alarmist, swayed by emotions most likely fanned by vested interests least of which would be the growth, development and betterment of the country and its citizens..... Read More
Blogs by Sushil Kumar
Oil and water: Why senior military officers must not dabble in politics after retirement


Frank Tsutomu Watanabe, 92, of Mililani, a retired Salvation Army maintenance foreman, died in Ewa Beach. He was born in Waipahu. He is survived by son Alan, daughters Joyce Watanabe and Ann Motter, four grandchildren and four great-grandchildren. Visitation: 9 a.m. Saturday at Calvary Chapel Pearl Harbor. Services: 9:30 a.m. Burial: 1 p.m. at Valley of the Temples. Online condolences: www.hawaiifuneralservices.com.


Starbucks Is Bringing Back Its Smoked Butterscotch Latte!
It's time to mount your broomsticks and head to the nearest Starbucks Harry Potter fans!
Starbucks now has a Butterbeer drink, but this time it's on the OFFICIAL menu not the secret one!
The Smoked Butterscotch Latte is made with smoked butterscotch sauce, steamed milk, and espresso.
It can be enjoyed over ice, in frappuccino form, or hot!
The drink actually debuted last winter for a limited run, but it's back now!
There's no news on how long it will stay on the menu so get it while you can!


text:
Should Wu-Tang Sell Its Album to One Man for $5 Million?
Right now, that's the plan, but fans are outraged that the group has agreed to accommodate the requests of its Renaissance-style patron.
Joe Pinsker
RZA of the Wu-Tang Clan performs at Coachella, 2013.Reuters
Everything about acclaimed rap group the Wu-Tang Clan's upcoming album "Once Upon a Time In Shaolin" sounds like a publicity stunt. It's contained in a silver box engraved by a British-Moroccan artist named Yahya. Its website mentions the group in the same sentence as Warhol. It will soon make appearances at museums around the world, where, after a security pat-down, fans and critics alike may listen to it one at a time, before—and this is the important part—the only copy will be auctioned off, secreted in the home of its super-wealthy new owner, and kept insulated from the prying ears of the masses.
The concept of auctioning off a single copy of an album sounds bizarre (after all, don't they want people to hear their music?), but that's what the Wu-Tang Clan is doing, and the group has reportedly already received a bid of $5 million. A statement on the album's sleek website says the plan is patterned on a "400 year old [sic] Renaissance-style approach to music," one in which a wealthy patron commissions a one-of-a-kind piece of private artwork.
The patronage model, of course, cuts a sizable (and sometimes entitled) group out of the deal: fans. Already, two outraged yet committed Wu-Tang fans have launched a Kickstarter project to match the bid of $5 million (they have not yet broken $20,000), in hopes that "the rest of us get to enjoy an epic album instead of some uber-rich bastard keeping it to himself like a collector's item." One man's patron, it seems, is another man's uber-rich bastard.
The (very) limited release of Shaolin has led to conversations about music's value in the digital era—conversations, it should be noted, that masquerade as debates but really boil down to people uniformly arguing that others should make a point of paying for music. Digital holdouts like Radiohead's Thom Yorke have complained about the devaluation of music at the hands of streaming services like Spotify and Rhapsody, and this album's single-unit sale is an attempt—however high-minded and quixotic it may be—to restore music's lost import. "One leak," as the album's producer, Tarik Azzougarh (aka Cilvaringz), puts it, "nullifies the entire concept." (Azzougarh recently hosted a Forbes reporter in Morocco, allowing him to record and distribute 51 seconds of the album, which, theoretically, might amount to about $50,000 worth of music.)
In the coverage of all this, though, Azzougarh's own background—he's studied music management and entertainment law—has taken a back seat to the brazenness of the sales concept. Shaolin may seem like some half-baked one-off, but in fact, Azzougarh claims on the album's website, its release marks the launch of what he calls "the world's first private music service." While such a service could conceivably devolve into an Uber for music, allowing the wealthy to frivolously commission private albums as they please, Azzougarh is hoping it might "save the music album from dying."
The question of whether the private-service model is at all sustainable remains to be answered. Syd Schwartz, founder of the digital marketing and strategy firm Linchpin Digital, points out that this concept is only available to well-established artists. "The Wu-Tang Clan has 20-plus years of multi-platinum success behind them," he says. "Without that, this wouldn't even be a conversation."
Schwartz views the plan as an attempt to gin up the hype that used to accompany record releases. He remembers when, in the 1990s, midnight sales of new releases from Garth Brooks and Pearl Jam would force the Tower Records in Hollywood to hire extra security. "But you can't rally that kind of hype around something that excludes the fans," Schwartz says.
Despite Azzougarh's claims to being "first," his ideas are not without modern precedent. "We already see this type of private music service when we read about a big act doing a private gig for a royal or rich person for a million dollars," explains Catherine Moore, a professor of music business at New York University. "That's not new." That model, of course, comes with its own host of potential landmines: after years of soul-searching, singer Nelly Furtado decided in 2011 to donate to charity the $1 million she received for a private show back in 2007 put on for the family of Muammar Qaddafi.
John Strohm, a music lawyer who advises artists such as Bon Iver and the Civil Wars, is equally unconvinced that this is, at its core, a new idea. "What's new is the way this is being framed," he says. Typically, a record label will purchase an artist's master recordings (and the distribution rights to them), which is different from The Wu-Tang Clan's model only in that the buyer is a company rather than an individual. "It's almost exactly like the kind of deal they might make with Sony," Strohm says.
Even if selling a master recording to a private buyer isn't entirely new, the idea has still produced significant buzz, and will likely attract a supremely wealthy bidder that a Kickstarter campaign will have no hope of matching. All is not lost for the everyman, though: In tandem with "Shaolin," the Wu-Tang Clan is planning on releasing another album, "A Better Tomorrow," through traditional, democratic avenues. It'll probably be available for $10 on iTunes—for the foreseeable future.
Joe Pinsker is a staff writer at The Atlantic, where he covers families and relationships.


20 years ago today, Ethiopian Airlines Flight 961 (ET-AIZ) was a scheduled passenger flight from Bole International Airport, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia to Port Bouet Airport, Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire with stopovers in Nairobi, Kenya; Brazzaville, Republic of the Congo & Lagos, Nigeria. The Boeing 767-260ER was carrying 163 passengers & 12 crew members.
ET-AIZ, the aircraft involved in the hijacking.
The cockpit crew of Ethiopian Airlines Flight 961 consisted of Captain Leul Abate, 42 an experienced pilot with over 11,500 total flight hours, was the pilot-in-command. The First Officer was Yonas Mekuria, 34. He had flown more than 6,500 hours.
Ethiopian Airlines Flight 961 took off at 08:09 UTC at Bole International Airport, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The flight had been delayed in order to allow a connecting flight to feed passengers. Twenty minutes after takeoff, at about 08:29 UTC, one passenger stood up from his seat and ran up the aisle to the cockpit, and the two other passengers followed him heading for the cockpit. While rushing to the cockpit one of the men said "Everyone should be seated, I have a bomb!".
Then they opened the cockpit door and stormed in. They declared to the pilots that there were eleven hijackers on board and beat the First Officer and forced him out of the cockpit. They then grabbed the fire axe and fire extinguisher bottle from their respective stowages and ordered the pilot-in-command (Captain Leul Abate) to change direction and fly to Australia. The Abate explained to the hijackers that he had not enough fuel to reach Australia and demanded to make a refueling stop at Mombassa. The hijackers refused and continued arguing with Abate. They insisted that they had learned from the in-flight magazine that a Boeing 767 could fly 11 hours without refueling.
After passing Dar es Salaam one of the hijackers ordered him to fly away from the coast, head to Australia and indicating to the altimeter not to descend below FL390. Abate turned left towards the Comoros Island. The lead hijacker was sitting in the first officer's seat and was fiddling with the aircraft's controls, kicking the rudder, whilst also drinking whisky. Abate kept on telling them that he was running short of fuel pointing to the fuel quantity indicators, but the hijackers did not listen. The leader continued fiddling with the controls, trying to turn the aileron and pulling the reverse thrust lever at random.
As the flight came over the Comoros Islands the Abate saw the Moroni International Airport runway and circled 15-20 nm south of the field. Then the LOW FUEL CAUTION came on. Abate pleaded to land because of low fuel. The hijackers were unconcerned and only insisted that the pilot not descend below FL390. At about 11:41 UTC the right engine ran down to wind milling speed. Abate showed the red warning message for the right engine on the EICAS to the hijacker.
At this moment, the hijacker left the right seat and went to the cabin door to discuss with the other two hijackers. This gave the captain the opportunity to pick up his microphone and address the passengers: "….ladies and gentlemen this is your pilot, we have run out of fuel and we are losing one engine this time, and we are expecting crash landing and that is all I have to say. we have lost already one engine, and I ask all passengers to react ….. to the hijackers …." The hijacker then came back to the cockpit and hit the microphone out of the pilot's hand. After the right engine failed, the pilot started to descend the aircraft in order to increase speed, but the hijacker again interfered and violently played with the controls which resulted in improper control inputs. As a result the autopilot was disconnected and the flight became erratic with the airspeed varying between 216 and 336 kts.
The first officer, who had earlier been forced out to the First Class cabin, got up and, via the right aisle, went to the rear of the aircraft where he saw that a lot of economy class passengers had their life jackets on and that some had already inflated them. The first officer, along with the cabin crew members, helped the passengers to deflate the life jackets and showed them how the jackets should be re-inflated and how to assume the brace position during impact. While returning to the front of the aircraft, they repeated the same instructions as many times as they could.
About less than 2 minutes before the ditching, the co-pilot forced his way to the cockpit shouting "let me help the pilot …". After adjusting his seat and seat belts the pilot asked him for help since the controls were heavy. The hijackers still kept on struggling with the controls. By now, the aircraft was descending into the Indian Ocean over the Comoros Islands. The aircraft now had only standby instruments and RAT (Ram Air Turbine). The altimeter was indicating 150 feet and the airspeed was 200 kts. By this time the flight crew had been left alone to assume control. They turned the aircraft to the left in order to parallel the waves. However, the aircraft brushed the water in a left-wing-low attitude. It was then held straight and level after which it broke into four sections and came to rest in the sheltered waters 500 m off Le Galawa Beach.
Of the 175 occupants 6 crew members and 119 passengers were fatally injured in the accident. Six crew members and 38 passengers sustained serious injuries, 2 passengers sustained minor injuries and 4 passengers received no injury.


I wrote, directed and edited this Gogglebox parody featuring suspended ex-Labour MPs George Galloway and Ken Livingstone commenting on the Labour conference which they're no longer allowed to attend. We all had a lovely time and no one said anything bonkers.
Here's a feature about it in The Mirror.


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Learning To Listen To Real Music Again
Music plays a major role in my life as I am sure it does in yours. Yes, I grew up in an era of analog recordings real to real tape and vinyl pop's and click's.
Auto-Tune is one of those weird technology's that allow an off key singer to sound like they sing perfectly. Since it was introduced in 1996, this technology has become a standard in he music business and by a majority of major artists.
What is auto-tune?
Auto tune is a dirty little secret that the music industry incorporated into their album (artist) productions back in 1998.
Basically, it allows a singer who can't hold a note to sound like they are on key. More than any other form of music, I have found that the majority of Reggae Bands and artists do not use auto-tune. The reason I love this so much is that some of the tracks we play here at Big Reggae Mix are off key and all I can say is HOW EXCITING!
According to many people who have studied how the music business used to work and what it has become now, seem very upset.
Here is a little background and some commentary on Auto-Tune:
Auto-Tune Module
Auto-Tune was invented by an engineer named Andy Hildebrand in 1996. Hildebrand grew up playing the flute and became a professional studio musician, specializing in symphonic music, by the age of 16. He went on to earn a Ph.D. in digital signal processing, a branch of electrical engineering, and worked as a geophysicist for Exxon Mobil for a number of years, using sound waves to search for fossil fuels. Eventually he returned to his passion and began working in signal processing for music.
A few years into his new career, he was having lunch with a singer who asked if he could make a box that would make her voice in tune. Nobody else at his table seemed drawn to the idea—they were embarrassed for the singer because they assumed it couldn't be done—so he let it go. But Hildebrand knew the math wasn't any different from any other application of signal processing. The trick was to adjust a sound's pitch without changing its playback speed After mulling over the idea while he worked on a different project, he returned to it a year later and spent a month building a prototype that he could present at a trade show. The response was instantaneous.
"People were ripping it out of my hands," he recalled. "Producers wanted it badly."
"It's gotten such a bad name for so long because it's like 'Oh, you use Auto-Tune?' Yeah, of course you use Auto-Tune," he says. "You're singing into six-, seven-thousand-dollar microphones, they didn't have those in the '60s… If technology comes along that improves a sound, that improves workflow or performance or overall feel, then you use it. It doesn't mean you're not talented. It means you're talented and somebody has the foresight to apply some great technology to your project. That's not a bad thing; that's a good thing."
Read the rest here: http://bit.ly/2a8wJhF


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Q: Quarkus LinkageError when importing generated classes I have a Quarkus service, which generates its model classes from an OAS file using the openapi-generator-maven-plugin. I also have a testdata factory in a separate module, which uses the same OAS file to generate the model classes and fill them with randomized data for tests. The packages and naming for the generated classes is identical in both modules.
When I import the testdata factory into my Quarkus app and use it, I get a LinkageError on runtime (class names have been changed):
java.lang.LinkageError: loader constraint violation: when resolving method 'com.factory.buildPerson()' the class loader io.quarkus.bootstrap.classloading.QuarkusClassLoader @ab7ac41 of the current class, com/app/PersonTest, and the class loader 'app' for the method's defining class, com/factory/PersonFactory, have different Class objects for the type com/model/Person used in the signature (com.app.PersonTest is in unnamed module of loader io.quarkus.bootstrap.classloading.QuarkusClassLoader @ab7ac41, parent loader io.quarkus.bootstrap.classloading.QuarkusClassLoader @1bed61d2; com.factory.PersonBuilder is in unnamed module of loader 'app')

I also have a Spring Boot app which also uses the same models and the testdata factory and it has no problems with duplicated classes.
Is there a way to prevent this error? I've tried messing with the Quarkus classloader and to exclude the model classes from the factory jar. One idea i've had is to put the model classes into a separate module and import them via maven.
Thank you for your help.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


The 2nd Annual DFW FREE DAY of YOGA was a huge success with over 2,500 participants! This was a great event that brought the awareness of yoga to a large group of new, and returning students.
This is the kind of event that can really enrich the heart of a community. Yoga is a great way to find inner peace and relaxation, while strengthening the body. One Arts Plaza was happy to be involved in this nourishing and fun endeavor.