text:
How Code.org Load Tested its Site for Over 25 Million Users
ABOUT CODE.ORG®
Code.org® was launched in 2013 with a simple vision: that every student in every school, regardless of race, sex or color, would have the chance to learn computer science. This non-profit organization works tirelessly to make Computer Science available in schools everywhere, and its supporters range from the President of the United States to celebrities like Dwight Howard and Angela Bassett.
"Running these tests on BlazeMeter proved to be invaluable in preparing us for this huge event. It was especially useful for testing the database on the backend, I don't know how we'd have simulated this in any other way. We use Amazon for all of our hosting and we learned that we needed to scale up a number of servers and increase database capacity. Running the stress tests helped us understand how much to provision each server type."
Brendan Reville, Software Engineer, Code.org
THE CHALLENGE: LOAD TESTING FOR TENS OF MILLIONS OF STUDENTS
Towards the end of 2013, Code.org launched The Hour of Code - an online event offering a one-hour introduction to code during Computer Science Education Week. With tutorials in more than 30 languages, this was a huge global movement capable of reaching tens of millions of students in more than 180 countries.
Global interest skyrocketed when well-known figures like Bill Gates and even President Obama made videos endorsing the event. At the time, this non-profit organization consisted of just 20 people - and only half of these were developers.
As the event drew nearer and tens of thousands of teachers signed up their entire classrooms, it became clear that it was going to be bigger than the team ever imagined.
THE SOLUTION: TEST, TEST, AND TEST SOME MORE
They had to be sure that the site could cope under the extremely high traffic loads this event was bound to bring. And they needed a solution that would allow them to find this out in less than two weeks.
After evaluating their options, BlazeMeter was the obvious choice as it allowed them to test for 100,000 or even 1 million concurrent users from multiple geographical locations. Plus, as its self-service platform was extremely quick and easy to use, they didn't need to put aside time for setup or training.
They started by running a series of tests on BlazeMeter, increasing the scale each time. When they hit a bottleneck on the first test, they fixed the issue and then ran another test with a higher number of concurrent users. The team repeated this procedure a number of times, each time discovering new issues, until they were able to successfully run tests for around 100,000 concurrent users.
COUNTDOWN TO 9AM EST
The night before the week started, the team saw traffic starting to build up. But it really peaked at 9am EST - when schools on the American East Coast started for the day. And, as it was a global event, traffic was consistently high at all hours during the entire week.
Around 15 million people logged on to the site during the week-long event. Despite the huge amount of website traffic, Code.org enjoyed good uptime throughout the event. Thanks to BlazeMeter, the team knew how much they needed to scale up their infrastructure and had already provisioned the extra service necessary. They were also fully prepared to slip over to a 'read only' site if necessary.
PREPARING THE SITE FOR 2014, 2015 & BEYOND
For the rest of the year, everything went back to normal - until Code.org decided to run another 'Hour of Code' in December 2014. Aware that they were likely to get even more traffic this time, the IT team got in touch with BlazeMeter once more.
The team was right to be prepared. More than 25 million users worldwide joined in - meaning Code.org engaged more people in just five days than Facebook in three years.
Once again, the event ran successfully and the team's only regret was that they didn't start load testing with BlazeMeter earlier this time.
Due to its phenomenal success, The Hour of Code is now an annual event for Code.org - and the company plans to continue running pre-event testing with BlazeMeter as part of the preparations.
"We knew that we were facing a traffic spike unlike anything we'd ever seen before. At this point, we had just two weeks to go."--Brendan Reville, Software Engineer, Code.org
Why Performance Testing Is Important
How to Do Desktop Performance Testing
Performance Testing Microservices with JMeter


In the aftermath of Bangladesh's bloody war of independence in 1971, as thousands of migrants from the countryside flood the capital, journalist Khaleque Biswas begins to feel the stirrings of disillusionment. The revolutionary spirit that had filled the air and united the people under the leadership of Sheikh Mujib, the "Father of the Nation", seems to be dissipating. TheIn the aftermath of Bangladesh's bloody war of independence in 1971, as thousands of migrants from the countryside flood the capital, journalist Khaleque Biswas begins to feel the stirrings of disillusionment. The revolutionary spirit that had filled the air and united the people under the leadership of Sheikh Mujib, the "Father of the Nation", seems to be dissipating. The government's response to the crisis is inadequate, and the country's slow slide into political corruption seems inevitable. Uncompromising and undiplomatic, Khaleque soon loses his job. Then Nur Hussain turns up: a simple young man from a remote village, his welfare has been entrusted to Khaleque by a passing acquaintance. Unable to turn Nur away, Khaleque sets out to secure him a job, but discovers that the placid fellow has no skills whatsoever, nor much ambition. He seems adept only at impersonating Sheikh Mujib, to whom he bears some resemblance. When the masses begin flocking to him, the authorities take notice - with shocking results. Neamat Imam's debut is an intense tale told by a born storyteller, animated by humour as dark as the iconic outerwear that gives the novel its title. The tortured origins of modern Bangladesh are brought to life vividly, and provide a poignant backdrop to a central drama that Dostoyevsky and Kafka would have applauded.


Look to the sky and what do you see? Do you imagine something looking back at you? Do you see various scenes playing out and actors on a stage. Are the sight of these floating bits of water enough to interest your imagination or do you see white fluffy indications of weather? Each person relates to abstract images in their own way. I have this really intense imagination that makes images out of random shapes and colors. I can lay on my back and look at the sky for hours imagining so many things. This is why I enjoy artwork so much. I get to try and interpret what I see and bring it into a new realm and present my imaginings of the natural world in a visual way.


Because the days of building and constructions in the old times, human beings have been trying out a range of building materials. Leaves, straws as well as mud were amongst the commonly utilized materials for constructing houses lots of centuries ago. Soon, people found using rock and also wood in creating much better living locations.
With the rise and also popularity of various architectural designs, many new and also qualified materials started including in the list. Exploration of steels as well as alloys even more boosted the procedure of creating strong building layouts.
Today, numerous modern-day building products are made use of by the styles. Both residential as well as commercial constructions are sustained by these materials. If you are intending to have a building material supply service, find out about the materials you ought to use to earn preferred revenues.
Bricks, concrete and also concrete are amongst the most essential building materials that are made use of for creating roofs and also wall surfaces. Additionally, these buildings are reinforced by adding materials like iron and steel. These 2 materials make certain long life of the construction and also make building capable of standing up to damage triggered due to various variables. Columns are other components of building constructions that take advantage of these materials ahead out as solid frameworks. It is additionally worth mentioning that paints as well as solutions ought to be counted among the materials that take part in finishing these building and constructions.
Earlier, blocks and also concrete were used for the building and construction of floorings also. Nevertheless, the remarkable type of all-natural rocks and also ceramic tiles entered into being and also it laid the foundation for stunning as well as astonishing flooring. Marble, granite, sedimentary rock and also a variety of other materials remain in use nowadays for laying captivating floor coverings. Going even more, these all-natural materials are additionally being used for creating stairs and counter tops for kitchens and also various other areas of various types of buildings. Exterior areas, consisting of outdoor patios, driveways and also swimming pools too take advantage of these cosmetically enticing building materials.
A building is incomplete up until and also unless it has stipulations for doors and windows. It goes without saying, various varieties of timber have actually been one of the most popular materials for building these parts. Mahogany, oak, maple and several other wood ranges make plans for these constructions. On top of that, glass is a commonly made use of material for building windows and doors. The material is additionally readily available in different ranges to fulfill various tastes and also choices. Iron and steel are made use of for building items like grilles as well as scrolls that are affixed to home windows.
In addition to the building materials gone over over, another category is that of materials used for plumbing and shower room installations. Stainless-steel, chromium, nickel, brass and also lots of such materials are readily available for various styles of shower room installations. Porcelain and also ceramic are other two materials that have actually acquired recognition in this direction. As for plumbing needs are concerned various selections of plastics are useful for the exact same. PVC, as an example, is among the prominent selections amongst the building professionals.
With the existence of building material vendor on the web, it is easy for the stores to acquire top quality materials from various components of the world. Online business directory sites could assist you to keep the stock of top quality building materials.


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Home » Sausage du jour
Sausage du jour
By Bruce Aidells
Culinary experts create innovative recipes to dress up sausage on menus.
KANSAS CITY — Sausage plays a popular role at high-end restaurants throughout the U.S. Not only is it occasionally featured on the center of the plate, but more often it is used as a flavor ingredient or component of both appetizers and entrées. Sausage is used to provide textural contrast and interest to the other ingredients on plates and menus.
While very few high-end restaurants purchase sausage from outside vendors, there is a glaring sales opportunity for sausage processors who understand restaurant operators' culinary needs and are able to address their challenges.
Hitting on the trends
Many food trends begin at restaurants and trickle down through the food chain to retail shoppers. This is how my own business began more than 30 years ago when I began selling authentic Louisiana-style andouille sausage to a few of my chef friends who wanted to reproduce the very popular Louisiana dishes they were reading about in the national press. Andouille started appearing in dishes such as gumbo and jambalaya, and more creative dishes such as stuffed fish and sauces for fish and poultry.
At the time, andouille was mostly produced in Louisiana in state-inspected processing plants, which were prohibited to sell out of state. My andouille was made locally in San Francisco in a U.S. Dept. of Agriculture-inspected facility, so I could legally sell it anywhere. At that time, many food service customers were making their fresh sausage in house, but few had the facility or wherewithal to cold smoke, which is an essential step in the production of authentic andouille. Soon, I was selling to many of the high-end restaurants in the San Francisco Bay Area. Many of these restaurants received a lot of media attention, and often the andouille was mentioned as well.
Furthermore, as more diners learned about and enjoyed the andouille they ate, they often asked where it could be purchased. So as I began to sell it to retailers, I already had an enthusiastic audience, especially when we offered tastes to shoppers. Eventually andouille became a recognized flavor nationally, and today it is found in many grocery stores and is produced by many companies around the country.
Food trends that begin at a restaurant and trickle down to become well known don't always begin as a sausage flavor. Buffalo chicken wings, which originated at the Anchor Bar in Buffalo, N.Y., was a chicken wing preparation served with blue cheese dressing. Several sausage companies have adapted this flavor profile (hot peppers, vinegar and spices) to produce Buffalo-style flavored sausage. Some companies, such as Bilinski's in Cohoes, N.Y., have even added blue cheese to the blend. Several years ago my former company, Aidells Sausage, introduced a Buffalo-style sausage as well, but it was not enthusiastically accepted and was terminated. I don't believe the Buffalo-style sausage will find a market with high-end restaurant chefs.
Some ingredients that have gained traction at high-end restaurants have a Korean origin. Black garlic and Korean chili paste (Gochujang) have worked their way into some house-produced sausages in the last year. Peruvian herbs, called Black Mint (Huchatay), have a uniquely sharp and fruity flavor and could also find their way into sausage.
Chefs and sausage
Many high-end restaurants produce their own sausage and don't buy from vendors. A reason for that is economics, considering the restaurants often have trim or underused cuts that need to find a home to contribute to profits and not end up in the trash. This is particularly important if the restaurant is purchasing expensive meats like heirloom pork, game meats and expensive poultry like duck, quail and squab.
Another reason chefs make their own sausages is that many have become very interested in charcuterie and have a passion to learn about sausage making. The result is a desire to experiment and produce their own sausage as a fun activity, providing these would-be sausage makers with pride and a sense of joy as well as bragging fodder when chefs gather with other chefs. Finally, the idea of house-made sausage fits well with the current trend of farm to table that many high-end restaurants endorse and practice.
Artisan meats and handcrafted sausages made in-house are appealing to chefs but challenging to execute.
My biggest challenge 33 years ago when selling my sausage to chefs was the chefs who made their own sausage. But there was a paradox to house-made sausage that occasionally provided me with an opportunity. Sometimes these house-made sausages became so popular that instead of just making 10-30 lbs a week with trim or under-used cuts, the demand had grown to hundreds of lbs a week.
The chefs often found that the time required to produce these took away from more critical cooking duties so that the task of making sausage was turned over to less-skilled workers such as a prep cook or even a dishwasher. Sometimes that individual lacked the culinary experience needed to make adjustments to the recipe, such as the amount of fat or adjusting the flavor of fresh herbs when it varied from batch to batch.
The result was that quality and consistency suffered. Sometimes restaurants turned their sausage production over to me or simply replaced their house-made products with one of mine realizing that in the long run it was cheaper and more efficient. When MacArthur Park, a high-volume San Francisco restaurant, could no longer keep up with the demand for its popular whiskey fennel sausage, it turned the production over to me. In return, the restaurant received a consistent, quality product, and I added a new flavor to my offerings. Processors and distributors may not convince every restaurant to stop making their own sausage, but they could end up with a sale if they are confident they can sell them a replacement that meets their high-quality needs.
What chefs want
Many high-end restaurants are looking for ingredients that are special. Many are committed to buying heirloom breeds of pork and will even buy whole animals if that is what is needed to get what they want. Chefs may also be looking for game meats such as wild boar, elk, or venison and expensive meats such as rabbit, quail, duck or squab. Often expensive ingredients such as foie gras, truffles, porcini mushrooms or morels are used in house-made sausage.
Restaurants that may not even be Italian are often looking for artisan quality Italian meats (salumi) comparable to what is offered in Italy. Some even incorporate high-quality cured meats such as pancetta, lardo, coppa and prosciutto into their own fresh sausage recipes.
A few companies have responded to the growing need for artisanal Italian meats. Nduja Artisan of Chicago provides a very authentic Calabrian Nduja (a soft spreadable cured sausage) from a family recipe that is purchased by Boulevard Restaurant in San Francisco.
Salumaria Bielese in New York produces a full line of Italian sausages and makes custom sausages from recipes provided by various well-known New York restaurants. La Quercia in Norwalk, Iowa, best known for its superb prosciutto, also makes some Italian sausages. Framani in Berkeley, Calif., provides cooked sausage and cured Italian meats used at some Bay Area restaurants. D'Artagnan in Union, N.J., sells game sausage and others made with rabbit, duck or wild mushrooms suitable for high-end restaurants and French restaurants. Fabrique Delice in the Bay Area provides French-style sausages such as Boudin Noir, Boudin Blanc and Toulouse.
Sausage on the boulevard
Boulevard Restaurant in San Francisco has been a top-rated restaurant for its 22 years of operation. It received a James Beard award for best restaurant in the country in 2012. Since chef/owner Nancy Oakes is also my wife and one of my first customers, sausage has always been an essential element of her cuisine. The andouille that she purchased from me long ago played a vital role in her food, but she has always produced house-made sausages as well.
San Francisco's Boulevard Restaurant served a sausage-stuffed roasted, boneless quail.
Because the Boulevard sells 70 to 80 Berkshire pork rib racks a week, it always has a lot of great trim, which finds its way into sausage, according to Dana Younkin, Boulevard's chef du cuisine. There are several young chefs in the kitchen who are anxious to learn from Boulevard's long-standing sausage-making tradition and have taken on the task of sausage making. Since the amounts are relatively small, these chefs make the sausage themselves, and it is not relegated to prep cooks.
Philosophically, making its own sausage fits well into the Boulevard's farm-to-table concepts. Over the years the sausage often incorporates local foraged ingredients such as porcinis, morels, wild herbs and local greens.
Ms. Younkin said Boulevard is currently producing a Mexican-inspired green chorizo and a quail sausage made from the legs and stuffed into boneless roasted quail. The green chorizo is made with fresh cilantro, parsley, ground pecans, pumpkin seeds, hazel nuts and fresh green chilis. It is not stuffed into casings, but instead placed into a vacuum-sealed bag and cooked in a 140° F water bath (called sous vide, many restaurants use this method to gently cook proteins and vegetables). Once cooked, the sausage is diced and used in an appetizer dish with roasted octopus, pumpkin seeds and Huitlacoche (a corn fungus). While I wouldn't categorize this dish as "Mexican," it does have a distinct Southwest profile.
Boulevard also serves a composed salad of diced green chorizo with roasted pumpkin seeds, using the sous vide cooking method.
The sausage stuffed quail is made with the legs and thighs, fat from diced foie gras and fresh herbs. It is stuffed directly into the quail cavity.
Nduja is a spreadable soft Calabrian salami used in Calabria as a flavor component for pastas, sauces and other dishes, and is popular at Boulevard as well. The kitchen attempted to make its own version, which was satisfactory, but it now buys from Nduja Artisan in Chicago because it is superior and does not take up valuable space needed to age. It has been used in many dishes including risotto, steamed mussels, vegetables, scallops, beans and even bread.
Ms. Younkin, like many other creative chefs of her generation, is always looking for new and exciting ingredients to inspire new dishes and ideas. When asked what it would take to get her to buy other sausages that meet her criteria, she said she would be open to trying different meats in her recipes such as heirloom pork breeds like Red Wattle, American Guinea or Mule Foot as well as game meats such as wild boar, elk or rabbit.
Bruce Aidells founded Aidells Sausage Co. in 1983. He left the company in 2002 and is a food writer for consumer publications and the author of 12 cookbooks.
Food Products Trends Red Meat
Soup – The millennials' meal du jour
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Sausage category in transition
Taking sausage to the next level
Klement Sausage acquired by private investment firm
Trends and Innovations Web Series

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Q: Visual Studio 2022 Find All in Entire Solution is not working properly I've just started to use Visual Studio 2022 and I'm trying to search something via ctrl+F and 'Find All' function but it is not finding the key that I'm searching for, even though I know there is such a key in a file in one of my projects in the solution. Do I miss a configuration step after a clean installation?
Note: I am able to find the key when I search in 'Current Document'

A: Visual Studio currently has a bug that is fixed and pending release.
I assume that you are using Turkish region format settings, based on your username. This bug affects users with Turkish regional settings. You may have experiencing the same problem.
Source: Find in entire solution (Ctrl + Shift + F) cannot match queries containing lowercase 'i' with Turkish region format settings
Edit:
The fix has been released.

A: There seems to be a bug in the caching mechanism. I find I have to use all sorts of stupid tricks to force it to clear its cache and run the search properly, e.g. adding a nonsense word to one of my files, running the find in files for that word (which will succeed), removing it and then running my original query again (which will now succeed). It's very annoying.

A: After closing visual studio, then deleting the hidden .vs folder in the folder where the solution file lives, and deleting everything in %TEMP% folder (enter %TEMP% in Run or Windows File explored address bar) the search started working correctly for me again. Not sure which one of the 2 fixed it but it is now working.
This is my general fix for most issues in Visual studio, and it often solves the problems

A: Thanks guys
Changed the "Look in" setting to the root folder path of my solution instead of selecting the "Entire Solution" option. (Use the three dots button.) This returned the results i was expecting.
This worked!!!

A: In the "Find in Files" tab of the "Find and Replace" window i did the following:
Changed the "Look in" setting to the root folder path of my solution instead of selecting the "Entire Solution" option. (Use the three dots button.) This returned the results i was expecting.
If your solution setup is particularly complicated you can search multiple folder paths at once using a semi colon as a separator.
That search seems to take a moment to return every time I search that way. So I'm guessing this kind of search does not cache it's results in VS.

A: VS2022 v17.4.3
I was having a similar issue and tracked it down to the selected file types in the Find in Files tab. It was originally set to file types that I don't work with, e.g. *.c, *.cpp. Once I set the File Types to the ones I do work with - e.g. *.cs, *.cshtml - the find worked as expected.

A: And, I still have this issue with the latest Visual Studio 2022 (17.4.2). For me, it seems to be related to using the "Show All Files" view for each of the projects in the Solution. If I disable that for all of the projects, Find in Files seems to work as expected. It continues to work for some time if I switch back to "Show All Files" view, until it doesn't.
I have all of my projects setup using "Show All Files" though, so my overall experience is that at least once a day "Find In Files" just stops working.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Township 05S, Range 28E, Section 4.
Commercial property owned by BARTRAM SPRINGS CENTER LLC.
Miscellaneous property owned by BARTRAM SPRINGS CDD.
Residential property owned by DESHAY KENNETH W,SANDRA L.
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Residential property owned by NORTH BYRON R,VALARIE.
Residential property owned by NORTH BETTY REVOCABLE TRUST.
Miscellaneous property owned by ST JOHNS MORTGAGE MANAGEMENT I.
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Commercial property owned by BAYARD RACEWAY INC.
Agricultural property owned by RACETRACK INVESTORS LLC.
Commercial property owned by SANDLER AT BARTRAM LAKES LLC.


The AON Design and Implementation (ADI) Task Force provides guidance to NSF, the scientific community, and others on how to achieve a well-designed and effective interagency Arctic Observing Network.
Synthesize information on existing observing system components and design studies.
More information about the ADI effort is available at: http://www.arcus.org/search/aon/adi.


Horseshoe Bend National Military Park is located in Daviston, Alabama. In the spring of 1814, General Andrew Jackson and an army of 3,300 men massacred 1,000 Upper Creeks on the Tallapoosa River. Over 800 Upper Creeks died defending their homeland. Never before or since in the history of our country have so many American Indians lost their lives in a single battle. This 2040-acre park preserves the site of the battle.
This page was last modified on 27 June 2016, at 01:13.


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Q: Extracting file/page names under the hierarchy of url Given I have an link how do I extract file/page names under the hierarchy,
For example in this stackoverflow exchange,
https://stackoverflow.com/questions/
There are many links that go after this.
stackoverflow.com/questions/31236312
stackoverflow.com/questions/31235818
...
Etc
I know "stackoverflow.com/questions/" and wish to find out these numbers, names that go after this.
Is there anyway to do this?
The websites I am looking into uses CSS and
it does not allow access to, for example, stackoverflow.com/questions/ (I get Error 403--Forbidden)
but only allows specfic pages that goes under it.
These file names consists of mixture of numbers and alphabet character I.e. 72304, or A1103457 etc.
There are over 100 files under that hierarchy and I wish to find out all of its names/url.
Many thanks in advance.

A: In short, you can't.There is no way to just grab every page under a given url/domain path.
In longer... You could use a spider like
https://github.com/mvdbos/php-spider
To follow links and do a breadth depth search, looking for all links it can find under that given url. It will however load every single page it finds, searches it for links and then continues. So it will be very slow on large sites and may result in locking of accounts and breaking terms of service.


text:
Wondery Names Declan Moore Head Of International, Completes $10 Million Financing Round
June 27, 2019 at 7:16 AM (PT)
New Exec, More Financing
Podcast network WONDERY has named former NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC PARTNERS CEO DECLAN MOORE as Head of International, with the announcement coming as the company completed placement of its $10 million Series B financing round.
The financing round was led by WAVERLEY CAPITAL with returning Series A investors LERER HIPPEAU, GREYCROFT, BDMI, ADVANCIT, and WATER TOWER VENTURES, along with POWERHOUSE VENTURES, in on the Series B round. The proceeds will be used by WONDERY for "IP development, content acquisition, technology investment, and global growth," the company said in a press release.
WONDERY Founder/CEO HERNAN LOPEZ said, "Consumers all over the world are flocking to podcasts, yet they can't find enough of the high-quality, immersive series the WONDERY brand is known for. We're beyond excited to partner with WAVERLEY and our existing investors in our next phase, and thrilled to welcome my former colleague DECLAN MOORE to our executive team."
MOORE, who spent 20 years with NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC, including stints as Chief Media Officer and EVP, said, "I am thrilled to join the team at WONDERY, having long been an admirer of HERNAN's executive accomplishments and an avid consumer of the shows WONDERY produces. HERNAN has assembled a world class team and I look forward to growing our international business and firmly establishing WONDERY as the global leader in immersive storytelling."
"WAVERLEY CAPITAL invests in category-defining media companies, and there is no better example in the audio space than WONDERY," WAVERLEY CAPITAL General Partners EDGAR BRONFMAN JR. and DANIEL LEFF said in a joint statement.


Not right now I don't. I broke my install..... Again..... So I grabbed the efi image and formatted my hard drive as got and ran the installer once I got it booted up.
For some reason grub errors though (like it always seems to on this machine).
Thanks VastOne I'll read it now. I'm learning this as I go so thanks for the patience and help guys.
I just installed another distro with uefi and it said I'm not on a uefi system which must mean for whatever reason the installer isn't seeing that its an efi board.
I wanted to replace this board anyway so now I have a reason. Ordering one tonight and will continue this in a day or so.
Wow, I need a board too!!!
BTW, lwfitz, we still exist in the IRC as well!!! See you there soon maybe?
Hahaha yep you'll see me soon.... Maybe tonight!
OK, so I have done this successfully, however; I have since fubar'd my grub. I still haven't got it fixed. I'm really tired, been fighting with it for to long. Putting the MSI away for a while. Not sure when I'll get back to it, and if/when I do it may be to just sell it.
I can't in good conscious advocate for them.
Yes I have a separate vfat partition that is mounted as /boot/efi. Yes it is set to boot and as the ESP. (this is /dev/nvme0n1p1, or /boot/efi) The root OS (VSIDO of course) is installed at /dev/nvme0n1p3. And onward to the /home partition which is at /dev/nvme0n1p4. This is the new naming scheme for the new PCIe (not so new anymore) NVMe solid state drives.
I just want to be able to boot normally. I know it will, nothing is broken, something is just 'confused'. I need to be able to issue the command in the cli that tells the system/kernel/OS? how to identify the devices in /dev. i.e. /dev/disk/by-id/ or /dev/disk/by-uuid/. I have all the correct UUID's setup and still it hoses on boot with the minute thirty second BS.
This install is installed using the ISO you created for the nvm_only for me. Works great.
Since jedi can apparently install from the VSIDO_nvm iso, then has trouble with booting, maybe install it first, then on it's own small partition install the Manjaro, minimal net addition -. After the install of Manjaro, he can edit the /etc/default/grub file to make VSIDO the default. Use the minimal Manjaro install as a rescue OS. Might need to put a hold on grub in the VSIDO apt so it doesn't whack anything.
Well, looks like I'm not the only one having issues getting installed.
Along with a new chassis and got everything transfered over. In doing so I dropped my CPU and bent a pin..... Sigh.
Now that I have replacement parts and I have my helmet on I've been working on getting installed.
I've got uefi boot on, secure boot off, a fat partition for boot/grub and have even had a couple good installs with no errors and still can't boot.


If you are an entrant, registration forms can be found here.
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Complete our online form, shoot us an email, or give us a call at (806) 763-2833.
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The Panhandle South Plains Fair is a non-profit, tax-exempt 501(c)5 organization.
© 2018 South Plains Fair. All rights reserved.


text:
Sarcos Robotics Plans SPAC Deal for $1.3 Billion Value
Crystal Tse
10:30 AM IST, 06 Apr 2021 6:16 PM IST, 06 Apr 2021 10:30 AM IST, 06 Apr 2021 6:16 PM IST, 06 Apr 2021
(Bloomberg) -- Sarcos Robotics is planning to go public through a reverse merger with blank-check company Rotor Acquisition Corp.
The Salt Lake City-based robot maker and the special purpose acquisition company, or SPAC, will have a combined valuation of $1.3 billion including debt, the company said in a statement on Tuesday, confirming an earlier Bloomberg News report. The deal includes a potential earnout of an additional $281 million based on the performance of the stock after the merger.
To help fund the transaction, the companies have raised about $220 million in a private investment in public equity, or PIPE, from investors including BlackRock Inc., Millennium Management, Palantir Technologies Inc., Caterpillar Venture Capital Inc. and Schlumberger, as well as from their own executives.
Sarcos develops robotic systems for non-repetitive tasks that are designed to increase productivity among industrial and military workers. Its wearable devices help people move heavy objects with mechanical limbs and support, reducing workplace injuries and allowing employees less capable of strenuous labor to carry out tasks such as lifting airport baggage and manufacturing components without assistance.
Led by Chief Executive Officer Ben Wolff, Sarcos will receive as much as $496 million in proceeds from the SPAC transaction, the company said in the statement. Wolff was a co-founder of Clearwire Corp., which was acquired by Sprint Corp. in 2013.
The company will lease its exoskeleton, wearable device starting at $100,000 a year, similar to the total cost of hiring a worker for $25 an hour in the U.S., Wolff said in an interview.
"Our value proposition is," he said, "to deliver the productivity of three, four or five workers, depending on the use cases, industry and the job etc."
Initial versions of the devices cost "Hundreds of thousands of dollars" to make, Wolff said. He projects that cost will shrink to $65,000 once Sarcos achieves full-scale production in five years. Currently, the company's only product in the market is an inspection and surveillance robot, which Wolff said will account for a small portion of its revenue once bigger and more expensive, products are commercialized.
Rotor raised $276 million in its initial public offering in January. Its CEO is former Credit Suisse First Boston President Brian Finn, while its chairman is Stefan Selig, a former Bank of America Corp. executive and a U.S. Commerce Department official during the Obama administration.
When the combined company's stock price reaches $15 and $20, there are 1 million shares, representing $280 million, that are structured in an earnout, Selig said.
"We did that so everybody is incentivized and aligned to do what we are hoping and expecting to happen here, which is to create significant long-term value," he said.


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Grenlight Capital, the hedge fund of billionaire David Einhorn, sold its remaining Apple shares.
Sold on Aug. 31 at $228 a share, the remaining shares were worth about $40 million.
Einhorn said Greenlight's Apple position earned clients over $1 billion since its first purchase of the stock in May 2010.
David Einhorn's Greenlight Capital sold its remaining shares of Apple due to its heightened valuation and his growing fear of Chinese retaliation in response to U.S. tariffs, according to the billionaire's third quarter letter to investors.
"We ultimately sold because our differentiated thesis from 2011 has become consensus," Einhorn said. "We are somewhat worried about Chinese retaliation against America's trade policies."
Greenlight cut its stake in Apple by 77 percent in the previous quarter, or 486,000. Einhorn's firm sold the remaining Apple stock on Aug. 31 at $228 a share, the letter said, offloading about $40 million.
Since Greenlight's first purchase of Apple in May 2010, the firm said its investment earned clients over $1 billion.
Apple shares skidded after his announcement, down 2.4 percent.
Greenlight has had a painful year and that did not slow down in the third quarter. The firm lost an additional 9.1 percent in the most recent quarter – bringing Greenlight's total losses for the year to 25.7 percent, the letter said.
Einhorn pointed to the firm's bet on Apple in 2013, when the stock was dragging on Greenlight's portfolio, as reminiscent of Greenlight's situation this year.
"It basically feels the same today – but now the market appears to be rejecting our entire strategy of value investing," Einhorn said. "Just like with [Apple] in 2013, few agree with us on most of our positions."
Greenlight also bought stock in cable TV provider Altice USA and British telecommunications company BT Group, the letter revealed. Einhorn said Altice shares trade at a discount with "better new investment opportunities" compared to other cable companies like Charter Communications and Cable One. BT Group "shares were cheap," Einhorn said, with potential value unlocked if the British telecom spins off last mile network Openreach.


text:
Water issues are important to Whitsett
Doug Whitsett, a retired veterinarian, will face two Republicans and one Democrat in a race for the Oregon Senate in the May 18 primary election. Whitsett has gained early momentum in his campaign through fundraising and an endorsement from incumbent, Sen. Steve Harper.
http://www.heraldandnews.com/articles/2004/04/23/news/community_news/cit1.txt
By BROOK REINHARD
Doug Whitsett, a retired veterinarian and landowner, has spent considerable time in Salem as a water rights lobbyist.
Now he's facing two other Republicans and one Democrat in a battle to represent Southeastern Oregon as the area's next state senator.
Whitsett built early momentum in the Senate race. He had raised $19,500 in campaign funds by April 1. He secured the endorsement of the incumbent senator for District No. 28. And he sides with agriculture on water rights issues, which could resonate with voters in the rural five-county district, which includes Klamath, Lake, Crook and parts of Jackson and Deschutes counties.
"We've strayed away from the economic base that has helped establish and create this Basin," Whitsett said in February, when he filed for office. "Farmers are spending one-third of their time in meetings to protect the right to irrigate their fields."
But the water lobbyist is facing his first test as a politician - a different role for a man who was straightforward enough to admit in February he wished the incumbent, Steve Harper, would just seek another term so he wouldn't have to run.
Whitsett, a soft-spoken man who takes his time when answering questions or considering issues, has been a strong presence at state meetings concerning the proposed Cob Energy Facility. He delivers science-based observations, rather than speaking from the gut.
While his speeches at political candidate forums seem to have been geared more for water rights experts than prospective voters, he's steadily been building financial support in the community. Whitsett raised $19,500 in less than two months, and loaned himself $10,000 as well. By the April 1 deadline for campaign reports, he had spent more than $24,000 on his campaign.
Born in Carmel, Calif., Whitsett didn't arrive in the Klamath Basin until 1968, when he graduated with a degree in veterinary medicine from Washington State University and took a job at Klamath Animal Clinic. He became principal owner of the clinic in 1986, and sold the business in 1994.
As president of non-profit group Water for Life, Whitsett is involved in lobbying in favor of irrigators' rights and against projects like the proposed Cob Energy Facility that would be built in Langell Valley. He said he hasn't made a decision whether he would remain in his unpaid position of president of the non-profit group, if elected senator.
Whitsett is a past president of the Oregon Veterinary Medical Association, past president of the Klamath County Cattlemen's Association, member of Oregonians in Action, Oregonians for Food and Shelter, the Oregon Rental Housing Association, the Oregon Retired Teachers Association, National Rifle Association and Stewards of the Range.
Whitsett and his wife, Gail, own 40 acres in Poe Valley, where she has been raising horses for more than 10 years. At least 165 foals have been sold during that time, at roughly $10,000 to $15,000 each.
The Whitsetts also own 5 acres near Eagle Point, and 160 acres in Plum Valley, which is north of Klamath Falls, off Old Fort Road.
The couple lives off North Poe Valley Road, east of Klamath Falls. They have three daughters.
Doug Whitsett's views on the issues ...
1) To what extent should Oregon rely on lottery revenues?
The Oregon lottery produces a little more than $600 million of the more than $10 billion combined General Fund and Lottery Fund annual state expenditures. Lottery revenues are currently allocated to the Education Endowment Fund, the Parks and Natural Resources Fund, Gambling Addiction, debt service, and economic development. In fact, very little of the lottery revenue is available for discretionary spending. In addition, during recession lottery revenues have declined due to less available discretionary income for our citizens. Although the Oregon Lottery is an important source of revenue for our state, we must not rely on it to solve our state budget problems.
2) What are your views on gay marriage?
I oppose gay marriage. Marriage has been defined as the union between a man and a woman since recorded history began. That definition need not, and must not, be changed.
3) What are the most vital services offered by state government?
Community safety, education, senior health care, and state infrastructure maintenance are the most vital services offered by state government.
Community safety is the primary role of government. No other issue is more important than a safe community and the sanctity of a secure home.
About half of our state's combined General Fund and Lottery Fund are spent on education. These combined funds have more than doubled over the past decade, far outpacing inflation. Improved management of our school systems is vital to our state's future.
Oregon's seniors are largely responsible for having built the infrastructure, and the basis for the economy that sustains us. We must insure that these "veterans of Oregon" receive appropriate care as they age.
Maintenance of our highways, bridges, airports, ports, utilities, public buildings, etc., is certainly a core service of government. As with any well-managed business, our state's physical assets must be adequately maintained. Most capital improvements should be delayed until revenues not required for core services are available.
4) What are three big issues in your district that you'd address in Salem?
Job creation, education, and private property rights protection are three important issues in our district.
Job creation in the private sector must be job one. Oregon is among the nation's leaders in unemployment and poverty. Almost all of rural Oregon is experiencing 10 percent, 15 percent, or even higher rates of poverty. We must change the strangling regulations, the oppressive tort liability, the crushing income tax and unemployment insurance premiums, and the entry level wage structure that make Oregon one of the most business unfriendly states in the nation. We can bring good jobs to Oregon by establishing an economic environment where businesses are able to thrive.
Oregon ranks among the top third in our nation for both dollars spent per student per year, as well as teaching salaries and benefits. We need to refocus our school budgets on more teachers and teaching, and less administration and process. We need to encourage more community involvement in, and more local control over, our schools. Competition must be increased in our state education system to foster innovation, accountability, and improved student services. In short, our school system requires better management.
Small businesses, farms, and ranches are the economic engine that drives Oregon's economy. Collectively, they represent Oregon's largest sector of employment and largest generator of revenue. From land use planning, to building code permitting, to reallocation of irrigation water rights, these owners are under intense, and ever increasing regulatory pressures that restrict the use and productivity of their privately owned property. Our private property rights must be secured if Oregon is to prosper.
Doug Whitsett


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World Even amid boycott, IOC still hit with Peng Shuai questions
Even amid boycott, IOC still hit with Peng Shuai questions
IOC President Thomas Bach can't escape repeated questions about Peng Shuai and issues raised by two video calls the IOC has had with her.
The calls were aimed at conveying a message that Peng was safe despite being absent from public view after the three-time Olympic tennis player accused a top Chinese politician of sexual assault almost six weeks ago.
The questions keep coming, even overshadowing a diplomatic boycott of the Beijing Winter Olympics called by the United States, Britain, Canada, Australia, and Lithuania.
Bach has acknowledged that Peng's situation is "fragile." He is in the midst of three days of executive board meetings in Switzerland focused on the opening of the Games in Beijing on Feb. 4. But many of the questions at the daily press briefings are about Peng.
"You have to respect this human being," Bach said Wednesday. "And in such a fragile situation (that) Peng Shuai is in, you have to make all the efforts to build trust. To engage in a human relationship. And this, as you can appreciate, is not easy in a video call."
Bach said the IOC initiated both calls with Chinese sports officials. He said the IOC was open to more calls and did not rule out an "independent" party being involved. Tennis legend Martina Navratilova was suggested to Bach.
Bach said Peng's wishes had to be respected, and he said she has asked for privacy.
No transcript of the calls was provided by the IOC, and Bach has never mentioned her sexual assault allegations against former Politburo Standing Committee member Zhang Gaoli.
"Why don't you respect Peng Shuai in this and let her decide where her priorities are," Bach said. He said that other parties were involved in the first two calls including what he termed a "native Chinese on the call."
He was thought to be referring to IOC member from China, Li Lingwei,
"In the running of the calls we all were having the same impression that we could not feel her being under pressure," Bach said. "For the rest we can only report what she reported in the call."
"Many people are saying there are suspicions here and there," Bach added. "It's very easy to have suspicions. Suspicions you can have always and about everything."
Teng Biao, a China-born human rights lawyer living in the United States, said it's clear that Peng is not free to speak.
"Of course, Peng Shuai is not safe," Teng said in a recent interview on CNN. "What we know (through videos) is she's still alive, she's still in China. But she is definitely not safe, not well, and she's totally controlled by the Chinese authorities and nobody knows where she is being detained.
"And so the athletes, if they go to China – nobody can guarantee their safety. Beijing doesn't care about sports, what they care (about) — it's political monopoly. So the No. 1 priority for Beijing is to maintain its one-party rule."
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text:
Madeleine Cobb (Violet Madeleine Cobb, geb. Weston; * 3. Juli 1940 in London) ist eine ehemalige britische Sprinterin.

1958 gewann sie bei den British Empire and Commonwealth Games in Cardiff Bronze über 100 Yards und Gold mit der englischen Mannschaft in der 4-mal-110-Yards-Staffel. Bei den Leichtathletik-Europameisterschaften in Stockholm wurde sie Vierte über 100 m und holte mit der britischen Mannschaft Silber in der 4-mal-100-Meter-Staffel.

Bei den Olympischen Spielen 1964 in Tokio schied sie über 100 m im Vorlauf aus.

1969 gewann sie bei den Europäischen Hallenspielen in Belgrad Bronze über 50 m und wurde bei den EM in Athen Achte über 200 m. Bei den British Commonwealth Games 1970 in Edinburgh gewann sie Silber mit der englischen 4-mal-100-Meter-Stafette, und bei den EM 1971 in Helsinki kam sie mit der britischen 4-mal-100-Meter-Stafette auf den sechsten Platz.

1958 wurde sie Englische Meisterin über 100 Yards und 1969 sowie 1972 Englische Hallenmeisterin über 60 m.

Persönliche Bestzeiten

 50 m (Halle): 6,47 s, 12. März 1972, Grenoble
 60 m (Halle): 7,4 s, 22. Februar 1969, Cosford
 100 m: 11,5 s, 24. Juni 1972, Edinburgh
 200 m: 24,16 s, 19. September 1969, Athen

Weblinks

100-Meter-Läufer (Vereinigtes Königreich)
200-Meter-Läufer (Vereinigtes Königreich)
4-mal-100-Meter-Staffel-Läufer (Vereinigtes Königreich)
Olympiateilnehmer (Vereinigtes Königreich)
Teilnehmer der Olympischen Sommerspiele 1964
Sieger bei den Commonwealth Games (Leichtathletik)
Teilnehmer an den Commonwealth Games (England)
Brite
Frau
Geboren 1940

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
Phase 3 Clinical Trials' Data on Oral CGRP Presented at AHS
By Editorial Team · July 2, 2018
The American Headache Society (AHS) hosted its Annual Scientific Meeting this past week, which included several late-breaking presentations from Biohaven Pharmaceutical Holding Company Ltd. Biohaven is in the process of testing their new, orally-administered CGRP receptor antagonist, rimegepant, and presented some promising results on the drug's ability to provide individuals living with migraine with relief. Data from two Phase 3 clinical trials were presented, as well as additional data on rimegepant's effect on vasoconstriction and its ability to be manufactured as an orally dissolving tablet (ODT).1
What is a CGRP receptor antagonist?
CGRP (calcitonin gene-related peptide) is a protein thought to be involved in several pain response pathways within the brain and body. It acts as a chemical messenger within the body and transmits signals on sensations like pain. CGRP is considered a neurotransmitter. It also impacts blood vessels and is found in high levels during a migraine attack. New medications have been in development to block CGRP and its receptors, called receptor antagonists, in order to potentially stop migraine attacks related to this protein and its related processes in the body. The first FDA approved CGRP inhibitor, Aimovig, was approved this past May and is administered as a once-monthly self-injection.1,2
What do the data from the clinical trials show?
The two Phase 3 clinical trials of rimegepant included over 1,000 individuals with migraine each, and tested the effects of rimegepant against a placebo. Both studies met their co-primary endpoints of freedom from the most bothersome migraine symptom and pain freedom two hours after taking rimegepant. These effects were tested longer-term, and were found to still be present between two to 24 hours and two to 48 hours post-administration of rimegepant. Functional disability was also decreased two hours after taking rimegepant, and continued to be present when compared to placebo across the 24 and 48 hour periods. Significant relief from migraine related symptoms, such as nausea, light sensitivity, and sound sensitivity, was also found when compared to placebo in the first eight hours after treatment with rimegepant.
The safety profile of rimegepant was found to be similar to placebo, and the most common adverse effect of the medication was nausea, with less than 2% of individuals experiencing this side-effect. It was also found that those taking a single dosage of rimegepant were less likely to need to use an additional rescue medication when compared to their placebo-receiving counterparts.1,3,4
Other results presented
In addition to the results from the Phase 3 clinical trials presented, Biohaven also delivered two other presentations related to rimegepant. The first of these investigated rimegepant's effect on the blood vessels. A common treatment for migraine, triptans, constrict the body's blood vessels, and thus, are not indicated for everyone, especially those with cardiovascular conditions or who are at high risk of developing a cardiovascular complication. Biohaven tested rimegepant's effect on the body's blood vessels to determine if it is safe for individuals with cardiovascular issues to use rimegepant. Rimegepant did not show any evidence of vasoconstriction (constriction of the blood vessels), whereas sumatriptan (a triptan medication) did constrict the blood vessels. These results may indicate that individuals who previously could not take triptans due to cardiovascular concerns may be able to take rimegepant.5
The final study presented was a Phase 1 study on the administration of rimegepant. The current CGRP antagonist on the market is injectable, and rimegepant is orally administered, meaning it may be easier or more convenient to take. Additionally, Biohaven used data on the preferences of individuals with migraine and determined that these individuals may be interested in having an orally dissolving tablet (ODT) that is even more convenient to take and that may have a more rapid onset of action. Biohaven tested if a new orally dissolving version of rimegepant was equivalent to the orally administered non-dissolving tablet, and if the dissolving version had a faster time to peak blood concentration of rimegepant. Their study showed that at the Phase 1 level, both types of rimegepant were found to be bioequivalent and that the rimegepant ODT may have a faster onset of action. Currently, a Phase 3 clinical trial on the rimegepant ODT is underway.6
Biohaven is also initiating a Phase 3 clinical trial before the end of 2018 that will investigate rimegepant's use as a potential preventative treatment of migraine in addition to being an acute treatment of the disease.1
These results and announcements indicate that the orally-administered CGRP antagonist rimegepant may be a promising migraine treatment option in the near future.
Biohaven Expands Rimegepant Development Program to Include New Prevention of Migraine Phase 3 Trial and Highlights Key Late-Breaking Presentations at American Headache Society (AHS) Annual Scientific Meeting. PR Newswire. https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/biohaven-expands-rimegepant-development-program-to-include-new-prevention-of-migraine-phase-3-trial-and-highlights-key-late-breaking-presentations-at-american-headache-society-ahs-annual-scientific-meeting-300673582.html. Published June 28, 2018. Accessed July 1, 2018.
CGRP: A New Era for Migraine Treatment. Harvard Medical School: Harvard Health Publishing. https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/cgrp-new-era-migraine-treatment-2018030513315. Published March 5, 2018. Accessed July 1, 2018.
Lipton RB, Coric V, et al. Efficacy, Safety and Tolerability of Rimegepant 75 mg, an Oral CGRP Receptor Antagonist, for the Acute Treatment of Migraine: Results from a Phase 3, Double-Blind, Randomized, Placebo-Controlled Trial, Study 302. Presentation available from: http://biohavenpharma.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Rimegepant-Phase-3-Study-302_AHS-2018-Late-Breaking-Platform-Presentation-1.pdf. Accessed July 1, 2018.
Lipton RB, Conway CM, et al. Efficacy, Safety and Tolerability of Rimegepant 75 mg, an Oral CGRP Receptor Antagonist, for the Acute Treatment of Migraine: Results from a Phase 3, Double-Blind, Randomized, Placebo-Controlled Trial, Study 301. Presentation available from: http://biohavenpharma.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Rimegepant-Phase-3-Study-301_AHS-2018-Late-Breaking-Poster-Presentation-1.pdf. Accessed July 1, 2018.
Conway CM, Dubowchik GM, Coric V. Rimegepant and BHV-3500, Small Molecule CGRP Receptor Antagonists, Exhibit No Active Vasoconstrictive Properties in Ex Vivo Human Coronary or Cerebral Arteries. Presentation available from: http://biohavenpharma.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Rimegepant-and-BHV-3500-Ex-Vivo-Vessel-ASSAY-FINAL_for-website_3.pdf. Accessed July 1, 2018.
Croop R, Ivans A, et al. A Phase 1 Study to Evaluate the Bioequivalence of Oral Tablet and Orally Dissolving Tablet Formulations of Rimegepant in Healthy Adult Subjects Under Fasting Conditions. Presentation available from: http://biohavenpharma.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Rimegepant-Zydis-ODT-Bioequivalence-Phase-1-Study_AHS-2018-Late-Breaking-Poster-Presentation-1.pdf. Accessed July 1, 2018.


text:
Q: Visualforce IF Statement The code below is a section in a VF email template that should conditionally output a link to all the Legal Request records where Request Type == Sales AND Service Type == New Business, but something is wrong with the syntax, because I keep getting errors on Save.  Can someone please tell me what I am doing wrong?
Thanks in advance.

                        Legal Request Number

                <apex:repeat value="{!relatedTo.Legal_Requests__r}" var="legalRequest">

                                {!IF(AND(legalRequest.Request_Type__c == 'Sales', legalRequest.Service_Type__c == 'New Business'), {!legalRequest.Name} , false)}

                </apex:repeat>

A: You aren't allowed to use angle-brackets inside a merge expression. Why not just use an apex:outputLink?
<apex:outputLink value="/{!legalRequest.Id}" rendered={!AND(legalRequest.Request_Type__c == 'Sales', legalRequest.Service_Type__c == 'New Business')} >
     {!legalRequest.Name}
</apex:outputLink>


text:
De Renault 4CV was een kleine personenauto, geproduceerd tussen 1947 en 1961 door de Franse autoconstructeur Renault.

Geschiedenis
De 4CV, de eerste wagen van de genationaliseerde Régie Nationale des Usines Renault, was de populairste Franse wagen van net na de oorlog. De auto werd het symbool van de Franse industriële heropleving en van een nieuwe levenskunst. Het concept was bedacht terwijl het rijk van Louis Renault onder de voogdij van de bezetter viel en de studie van en het onderzoek naar nieuwe wagens ten strengste verboden was. Niettemin wisselden Fernand Picard en Edmond Serre, twee ingenieurs bij Renault, vanaf 1940 hun ideeën uit over hoe de wagen er na de oorlog uit moest komen te zien: deze zou klein en zuinig zijn en naar het voorbeeld van de Volkswagen Kever kwam de motor achterin.

Bij de bevrijding op 4 oktober 1944 waren de Renault-fabrieken in bezit genomen door de voorlopige Franse regering, en twee dagen later werd Pierre Lefaucheux aangesteld als beheerder. Hij werd de directeur van de Régie Nationale des Usines Renault, wat op 16 januari 1945 officieel werd door een beschikking van generaal De Gaulle. Het project 4CV kreeg nieuw elan en de stylist Berthaud tekende een carrosserie met vier deuren. De auto werd eind 1946 aan het publiek gepresenteerd.

4CV


text:
The Buffalo Common Council - Through the Years
From its incorporation on April 20, 1832 until December 31, 1927 - The City of Buffalo operated under a series of charters issued by New York State. The series of charters facilitated what was known as a Commission for Government, whereby all powers of the city were vested in a single body identified as The City of Buffalo Common Council. A charter issued in 1914 established a council that consisted of five council members and the mayor.
At that time, the mayor presided over all council sessions and could vote on issues, but lacked the power to veto items. The Council enacted all of the laws and ordinances of The City in addition to exercising all executive and administrative functions of The City's daily operations. The mayor and council members essentially served in a dual role as council member and commissioner, whereby each lead a department, established departmental policy and appointed all of the department's officers and employees.
Writing Charters
It was not until the spring of 1924 that New York State authorized its cities to write their own charters. Two years later, on November 2, 1926, the voters of The City of Buffalo empowered then Mayor Frank X. Schwab to appoint a seven member body to create a new charter for The City, which became known as the Kenefick Commission after the last name of the commission's chairman. The most significant recommendation that came from this commission was the need to establish a municipal government under which legislative and executive powers would be separated.
Legislative Powers
Under the commission's proposal, The Common Council would be vested with all legislative powers of The City and the power to confirm the mayoral administrative appointments. The mayor would be charged with all executive and administrative functions and control the day-to-day affairs of The City. Under this proposal, the mayor would largely be divorced from the legislative process of government, but would be given the power to veto actions taken by The Council. On August 29, 1927 the Kenefick Commission's proposal were submitted to the voters at a special election, and on January 1, 1928 The City's new charter officially took effect.
In 1983 and 2002, significant revisions were made to the Charter that reduced the number of members serving on The Council. A 1983 revision eliminated two at-large seats thereby reducing the number of members on The Council to thirteen; three members and a council president to be elected from The City at large, and one member to be elected from each of the nine council districts. Redistricting associated with the 2000 census led to all remaining at-large seats on The Council being eliminated in 2002, including the separately elected position of council president. Despite these changes, the commission's vision of a municipal government where legislative and executive powers would be vested in separate branches of government has endured, and the Charter remains at its core essentially the same instrument that has guided the operation of The City since 1928.
Today, The City of Buffalo Common Council is organized as a representative assembly with one member being elected from each of the nine Common Council Districts. At an organizational meeting held on January 2nd of each even-numbered year, the district council members vote from among their ranks to designate which members will serve a two-year term as council president, president pro tempore, majority leader and minority leader.
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WASHINGTON (Reuters) - At the end of a week rocked by allegations of mismanagement and cover-ups at the Department of Veterans Affairs, President Barack Obama used his weekly address on Saturday to vow again to make sure veterans get the necessary medical care.
"Let's keep working to make sure that our country upholds our sacred trust to all who've served," Obama said in his address, which aired on Memorial Day holiday weekend, when Americans honor their war dead.
"In recent weeks, we've seen again how much more our nation has to do to make sure all our veterans get the care they deserve," he said.
The VA said on Saturday it is taking steps nationally and locally to ensure veterans receive timely care, including providing access to private facilities when necessary.
"Each of our facilities is either enhancing their clinic capacity to help veterans get care sooner, or where we cannot increase capacity, increasing the care we acquire in the community through non-VA care," the agency said in a statement.
Obama responded personally this week to a growing furor that veterans had suffered long delays in receiving healthcare, making clear that Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki's job could be on the line.
Shinseki is slated to give Obama the preliminary results of a review of the scope of the problems next week. Obama has assigned Rob Nabors, one of his top aides, to conduct his own look into what happened. Nabors' review is due next month.
The agency's inspector general, an independent watchdog, is also investigating the allegations. Its review is due in August.
Republican lawmakers are planning investigations and have criticized Obama for being slow to respond.
"Now that we've ended the war in Iraq, and as our war in Afghanistan ends as well, we have to work even harder as a nation to make sure all our veterans get the benefits and opportunities they've earned," Obama said.


Disclosure: I received a free copy of this product to review. I was not required to write a positive review nor was I compensated in any other way. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the FTC Regulations. I am part of The CWA Review Crew.
Reading God's Word is like breathing air to me. On the days when I don't have it, I feel as if I'm suffocating underneath the weight of the chaos that surrounds me. As a busy wife and mom, it is imperative that I spend time in God's Word daily. At the beginning of the year, I was looking for a new bible to use during my morning devotions. I was excited for the chance to review the Everyday Matters Bible for Women by Hendrickson.
At first impression, this bible is beautiful! The cover is soft and inviting, and made me want to dive right into God's Word! Another plus is that it is in my favorite translation – the New Living Translation, which is contemporary and very easy to understand. The only down side of this bible for me was that it is bulky and a little on the heavy side. Although I wouldn't want to carry it with me anywhere, it is a great bible to use at home for consistent, personal study time.
Each discipline is represented by a colorful icon whose illustration is a reminder of its meaning.
My favorite features in this bible are the Everyday Reflections, practical illustrations which helped me to apply God's Word to situations in my own life, as well as the over 300 articles and features by more than 140 of today's most well-known Christian leaders and writers, including: Kay Warren, Priscilla Shirer, Elisa Morgan, Nancy & John Ortberg, Richard Foster, Liz Curtis Higgs, and Lauren Winner. There is just something about reading through the testimony of other women that makes me want to keep trudging through to the finish line.
This beautiful bible can be purchased online at: Amazon, Christianbook.com, or at your local retailers.
Yay! Let me know if you get it. I love reading this bible, and will enjoy it ever more once I get glasses! The font is just normal font, hard for my aging eye balls!
AMEN! Hope you have a blessed weekend.
Oh I like this – This would make an awesome gift as well 🙂 The 24 spiritual practices are awesome. Thank you for a great review 🙂 Have a wonderful day!
Have a blessed weekend Kathleen and thanks for stopping by!
Barbie, thanks for this review! I especially like the 24 spiritual practices and icons. I'm always on the lookout for effective ways to absorb God's word. I'll keep this in mind.


style name: thompson ii.5 low.
materials: leather upper, knit collar, microfiber footbed, rubber outsole.
dual elastic goring panels at tongue for easy slip on.
microfiber footbed provides ultimate comfort.
split moc stitched toe design.
croslite midsole for lightweight comfort.
soft knit collar for comfort.
flex grooves in forefoot & heel.
rubber outsole pods provide traction & durability.
platform height measures approximately 34".


Okja' director, South Korean director Bong Joon-ho and actress Tilda Swinton defended Netflix on Friday (May 19) after heckles at an advance press screening at the 70th Cannes film festival. When the Netflix logo appeared in the credit at the beginning, some boos were heard. The film halted five minutes in after what the festival called "a technical incident". Speaking at a news conference after, director Bong said he was unfazed by the technical difficulties. "Okja" is one of the hottest movies at this year's festival but is divisive because U.S. video-on-demand company Netflix has refused to screen it in French cinemas. Jury president Pedro Almodovar said films should always be seen on the big screen and he was "concerned" about the issue. The festival has also tightened its rules so that in future any in-competition film will have to get a theatre release - effectively barring Netflix after this year. "Okja" tells the story of a giant pig raised in part by a young South Korean girl, Mija. Their idyllic life is threatened when a TV zoologist, played by Jake Gyllenhaal, turns up to reclaim the animal for a company called Mirando, whose CEO is played by Tilda Swinton. A total of 19 films are in contention for the Palme d'Or at the 70th Cannes film festival which ends on May 28.


Kitchener-Waterloo is best accessed via the 401 expressway that connects Detroit-Windsor and Toronto, which is about 45 minutes to the east. From there, take exit 278 onto Highway 8 north to Kitchener-Waterloo, this highway extends southeast through Cambridge to Hamilton, or exit 295 to Highway 6 noirth to Guelph.
Highway 7 goes roughly east-west from Guelph through Kitchener-Waterloo to Stratford (Highway 7, incidentally, is an interesting rural route connecting Sarnia to the west and Ottawa to the east).
Also of note in Kitchener-Waterloo are King Street and Weber Street, the two main north-south arteries which intersect at three points. In Kitchener, streets extending northeast of King are designated "North" and streets southwest of King are designated "South", which in Waterloo streets northeast of King are designated "East" and streets south and west of King are designated "West".
Likewise in Kitchener, roads northwest and southeast of Queen Street are designated "West" and "East", respectively. In Waterloo, roads north and south of Bridgeport Road and Erb Street are designated "north" and south".


In the beginning, there was nothing. Nothing roamed the great plains of the North. Nothing inhabited the swamps and mountains of the East. The Deserts of the South was barren of all life.
Out of the Night it formed. Swirling and congealing into vague shapes. Never holding solid form for very long. We can only now guess about the origin of the mist. Some say it was the breath of one of the great gods. Or even the creating of JLH, the high god of all. But whatever the origins, the mist brought life.
Coming out of the great plains of the North, the mist created wolves, bears, magic creatures, and all sorts of good things. Traveling throughout the lands, it deposited good creatures in its wake. From the North, to the East, travelling South, eventually settling in the West, the mist created.
After it settled in the West, the mist grew, day by day, it grew soon becoming so thick, the animals could no longer walk in and out of it. Than, on the 4th night, a new set of creatures walked forth from the mist. The adventurers of the land had been born. But the mist wasn't done yet. Slowly it allowed itself to form into great buildings, and streets. Finally, the mist was gone, all that remained was a great town, beckoning new travelers and adventurers.
Life prospered in the town, adventurers came, than left. The town was dubbed Nightmist by the people, naming it after its origins. As life went on, the people began to spread out. Rangers and Druids foraged ahead into the wilderness, the Knights, Paladins, and Clerics civilizing the land behind it. Soon the towns of Cloud City and Northkeep popped up on the maps. Trade flourished, and the good people were happy for many years.
But not all the people were honest and happy. Along with the expansions of the new communities, the dark underside of the world showed forth. Assassins started killing people on their ways from the towns, and thiefs took gold from traveling merchants. But the people counteracted and posted guards, and soon things fell into a balance. Until one assassin went to far.
Along with good, always comes bad. So is true in medicinal discoveries. Along with healing potions, came poisons. Most were essentially harmless, used just to stun unwary prey so they were easier to rob, but one fellow decided to take things to far. He created a potion tainted with his own evil essence, though, not being powerful enough, and not naturally gifted with magical powers, could do nothing to amplify it. But, in order to try it out, he went and waited in ambush one day. As luck would have it, a powerful druid, Norinth, and his bride to be SilverFyre were walking down the road, and Norinth was wounded from behind by the tainted dagger of the assassin. As he fell to the ground, he called forth the power of lightning to kill the assassin, not realizing the antidote would die with him.
SilverFyre, being the naturally gifted healer she was, tried her hardest to remove the poison, but the taint was so strong, it had soon blended with the heart of the good druid. As he died, a change happened. His skin turned grey, his hair grew wilder, and he arose. No longer a powerful and good druid, but now an undead Druid, with a power seemingly amplified by evil.
Norinth unleashed havoc, killing many people, creating horrors like goblins, and ogres to terrorize the good people. Soon, once good citizens began to defect, turning their lives into evil rampages with only greed and evil itself to keep them going. Many battles were fought between the forces of good and evil. Brother fought Brother, Mother fought Son, Sister fought Father. None were exempted by the all out assault upon the lands.
During one battle, the forces of good were under siege in the city of Northkeep. The mages had a protective shield placed against the stones, and lightnings from the sky, and the paladins and knights fought the undead outside the city. The battle raged for days, until the Druid Norinth appeared at the head of his forces, protected by a barrier of pure evil. Calling forth a swarm of deadly drones, he charged at the city, but was suddenly blasted back by a beam of light. From the gates of Northkeep, a mage stepped forward. In a booming voice, he announced,"Evil shall not corrupt this world, I may not be able to kill you, but I will die trying!"
With those words, the mage Ewin unleashed a magical assault never seen by anyone before. Norinth countered blow after blow, but was losing, and losing fast. In a desperate attempt, he sent his general Kalados in to try to assassinate this new threat, along with his pet Ssilx, and evil dragon of great bloodthirst. Seeing the danger to their protector, the defenders of Northkeep rallied out onto the fields. Combining their powers, they let loose a great Flame of Fire upon the evil forces.
When the smoke cleared, they found Norinth had magically teleported himself, and his generals away from the battlefield. The evil had fled, good had prevailed. The price was heavy however. In defeating Norinth, Ewin and his allies had burnt half of the plains into a dismal waste, where fire twisted creatures roamed, looking for someone, or something, to put them out of their misery.
That wasn't always the case in all the battles however. Memorable battles in places like Pern Valley were fought where evil dominated, and soon overran the place.
But, soon, balance was restored. The lands were still in a constant conflict, good forces against evil, but no more great battles were fought, no more major victories for either side have been won.
But there is no end to the age old story. Plots are being formed every day, adventurers trying their skills against the evil, and the evil against the good. Perhaps good will once again embrace the entire land, healing the scars, or maybe evil will succeed in destroying everything. Only time will tell.
For farmer Jebediah, it was a normal morning; as usual, he woke up before sunrise to milk his cows and collect the eggs from his chickens. It was a simple life, just as he liked it; he preferred not to get involved with petty battles or go loot a cave on the outskirts of his village - in fact, if he didn't go to church on a Sunday, he would never leave his farm, having more than enough food to feed himself and his family and to supply the village. He inhaled a lungful of fresh morning air and faced the East to enjoy the sun rising above the horizon, and closed his eyes and let himself be bathed in its warmth. It was the last thing he did before a massive black dragon swooped over the mountain and bathed farmer Jebediah in his own warmth. With most of the population still in their beds, Kyriarchia razed the entire village before anyone could even look out of their windows.
"They dare defile our land," Kyriarchia growled to his lieutenant as he touched down outside a mountain cave. "I don't understand why the dragon queen doesn't teach them manners herself," his lieutenant added, equally disgusted at the behaviour of such lesser species; "not only do they pillage our loot, but they fight amongst themselves when they have it. They have no fear, no respect for the dragons, or nature." "Worry not, Icewing," Kyriarchia grinned, stretching his legs and tail; "the realm will be cleansed of the lesser species in due course." "What of the dragons that don't see it your way?" Icewing queried, "There are many that do, but I have my ways to persuade those unsure of our crusade; but those who still wish to side with the lesser species will be treated as equals to them, as are all traitors to dragon blood." Icewing knew exactly what this meant and bared grime-covered, sword-length teeth in anticipation.
Elsewhere, the noble purple dragon queen, Borealis, brooded over Kyriarchia's extremism. She could understand a retaliatory strike against a group of pillagers or dragonslayers and, like her predecessors, was willing to turn a blind eye, but she was becoming more and more troubled by the frequency of Kyriarchia's indiscriminate attacks. Both Borealis and Australis had an element of respect for the humanoid races, despite their apparent barbarianism, due to their ability to adapt to so many different environments and situations, often using ingenious methods. One thing that really made Australis smile in particular were Druids and Shamans who took good care of Mother Nature and all of Her creations when utilising what She had to offer. Indeed, Australis stumbled upon a group of Druids once willing to share information about their culture, and he felt obliged to return the favour. Humanoids are so misunderstood, he thought.
She was discussing with Australis, feeling bitter because she kept ruling out a direct confrontation, how to deal with this angry dragon, when Borealis' messenger, a young green dragon, arrived to announce that Kyriarchia had attacked another settlement - this time, an Elven village in a deeply rural valley. Coincidentally, it was near to where Australis had met those Druids, and he knew it! "First the human farming community and now an innocent Elven village; mother, they respected the dragons, you can't turn a blind eye to this," he growled furiously. "Remember your place, Australis; don't you dare challenge your queen," she snapped her jaws on Australis' tail, causing him to yelp and back down with drooped ears. Despite being fully-grown, he did not wish to try fighting his mother.
"Legatus," she called to her messenger. "My queen," the green dragon lowered his head. "Find Kyriarchia - tell him that his queen demands he stop attacking and his presence is requested immediately." "Yes, my queen," Legatus bowed again and took to flight. "Australis," she turned to her son, nuzzling a bruised tail; he looked at her worried, but Borealis simply helped nurse the tender scales. "You may be right, son... Kyriarchia is becoming dangerous." "I loved those Elves," Australis said sadly, almost crying like a humanoid, thinking of the Druids he met.
A few days had passed, and other messenger dragons were reporting that Kyriarchia and his tatsu were still attacking humanoid settlements. Borealis figured that Legatus had been unsuccessful in convincing him to stop, but he should have arrived back by now. Just then, a deafening roar echoed around their home and Icewing swooped overhead, dropping something that bounced and rolled to Borealis' feet - it was the severed head of Legatus. She let out a shriek of horror and animosity, causing the other dragons to back away from their queen in fear.
"Summon all of the dragons that have not been turned by Kyriarchia," she ordered her nearest lieutenant. As he bowed and took to flight, Australis looked upon his mother and queen apprehensively. "The dragons are at war," she growled, snorting smoke and flexing her purple wings angrily.
Only a few thousand dragons came to Borealis' call; too many had been corrupted by Kyriarchia or were simply unable to fight for one reason or another. Borealis tried not to show her dismay, but it was seen by Australis, who bravely marched up to the tatsu of dragons and stood at their side.
"No, you won't fight, Australis," Borealis attempted to discourage her son from joining them in battle. "You must survive this war to continue our bloodline." "Mother, forgive me for talking against you... if you want to save the realm and ensure the continuation of our noble blood, you need every willing dragon at your side, including this one. The females will fight for their queen to the death, so I cannot continue our bloodline while the battle rages." Though Borealis saw plenty of loopholes in his argument that could be exploited, she knew too well that the odds were not in their favour and a powerful red dragon like her son would be a great asset for them. "Just don't die, my son," Borealis looked upon him admirably but fearfully. "I won't, my queen," he replied.
With a synchronised battle-roar, the dragons took to flight, lead by the dragon queen Borealis, flanked by Australis and other lieutenants as they flew in formation to the mountains where Kyriarchia and his own tatsu awaited. A number of young humanoid children laughed and pointed up excitedly at the huge formation, and so did some adults, although most of them knew something very bad was about to happen and immediately started making preparations to leave.
As Borealis approached Kyriarchia's dwelling, the chaotic evil dragon's own tatsu revealed itself from the shadow of the mountain, outnumbering Borealis at least three to one. Both leaders faced each other off for what seemed like an eternity, hovering in mid-air and probing each other for weaknesses. It was Borealis who first broke the silence, trying one last act of diplomacy. "This can't go on, Kyriarchia; dictatorship and fear over the realm will not bring it peace." "And neither will leaving it rot under its own corruption," he rebuffed, unmoved. "The humanoids have their quarrels, but it is not our place to interfere with their affairs. We can still teach them without dominating over them." "Humans, Elves, Dwarves... they raid our caves, pillage our loot, and then fight over it, and any of those rare individuals that try to bring order to their species either get silenced or become corrupted themselves. The untouchable creators could bring order to the species, but the fools choose not to." "Who are we to question our creators, Kyriarchia?" "I don't question them, I show them how it is done, and nothing, not even the revered dragon queen, will stand in my way." Realising it was hopeless to convince Kyriarchia otherwise, there was no choice but to fight fire with fire; Borealis and Kyriarchia both attacked each other with fireballs almost at the same time, and that was the cue for all the other dragons to engage each other.
Those people who had not seen the dragons, Elves and humans alike, were puzzled at the exceptionally active aurora that was colouring their skies, unaware of the epic battle several hundred miles away that was forming it. Soon though, an aurora would be the least of their worries, for the combined might of several thousand dragons locked in mortal combat with no restraint on the energies they wielded started to have side-effects. A constant rain of fire fell upon the land, already torn to pieces by the earth dragons, slowly breaking the crust until jets of lava erupted from the exposed mantle and consumed large chunks of land in an instant. These sudden volcanic blasts took many of the warring dragons by surprise and killed a great number of them; Borealis and what was left of her tatsu were reluctant to continue fighting and were prepared to surrender to save what was left of the land they had sworn to protect, but Kyriarchia was taking no prisoners, forcing the demoralised dragons to fight on.
As the days wore on, more and more of the land was being destroyed, not by dragons, but by the spreading lava fields and the depressurisation of the planet. Most of the humanoid races had been killed in the process or had managed to evacuate to a neighbouring land mass, although it won't be long before that one is consumed too. One brave group of humanoids of all races, including natural enemies like Drow and High Elf, ventured across the lava fields to the edge of the battle zone. A single Elven Druid stepped forward, her face charred and her lungs heavily damaged from the fumes, and called out to the dragons using mostly psychic means, begging for them to stop fighting. Icewing, previously engaged with Australis, decided to use the group as target practice, launching a fireball in their direction. Australis dived in front of the group and took the full force of the attack, collapsing out of the sky and landing on his back nearby, breaking the small island that they stood upon. Too injured to pick himself up, he looked towards the Druid and her group and shed a dragon tear. "I'm so sorry for this," his voice echoed in their minds, before the island broke apart completely and all were consumed, but not before the Druid cried out "Mother Goddess".
Borealis, seeing the fall of her son, flew into a rage and immediately attacked Icewing, not bothering to use her fire-flack, but more content to simply tear him to shreds with her bare claws, which she did effortlessly, keeping him alive long enough to feel the pain of Australis and the rest of their brethren. Not satisfied with just slaying Icewing, she charged head-long into Kyriarchia's army with no regards to own well-being. All was lost now, but she sure would not let Kyriarchia rule over what was left. In the end though, despite the valiant effort portrayed by Borealis and her tatsu, even a pyrrhic victory was looking unlikely, for now only the two great leaders themselves were still airborne.
The very battle to save the realm was destroying it, inciting the gods themselves to intervene. With almost the entire continent now an uninhabitable wasteland, a new storm began to form in the stratosphere, one of creation and destruction, one that would soon be known as the Second Mist. Borealis, exhausted with her purple scales blackened by volcanic ash, knew what was coming, being a hatchling during the closing days of the First Mist; while she was willing to accept her fate to save the realm, Kyriarchia would have none of it.
Just when Borealis thought she had seen all that Kyriarchia had to show, he unleashed a terrifying shriek and sprouted a second pair of wings, white and celestial in stark contrast to his jet-black corporeal pair. His body crackled with lightning and Borealis got a very brief glimpse of not the Kyriarchia she knew, but of something skeletal and demonic. His four wings flapped in unison and he snorted a stream of blue flame towards the descending mist. Initially, the mist around them started to disperse, but it soon clouded over them again as the gods fought back against this powerful entity. Somehow sharing his fire-flack between both his nostrils and his mouth, three jets of blue flame now converged on the mist, dispersing it again momentarily. The mist everywhere else had descended below their altitude now, and only Kyriarchia's sheer power was preventing the abyss below him from being cleansed with the rest of the land. As the mist started to gain the upper hand once more, his flame turned as black as the void and tainted the resisting mist, colouring it crimson. Borealis, who up until now could only watch in horror, suddenly found an urge to help her creators, and she charged him; concentrating so much on the new celestial threat, Kyriarchia could not retaliate against his nemesis. Borealis clasped her body around him and the pair plummeted into the great fiery chasm below as the red mist finally drew level with the untainted green mist to terraform the realm once more. The Second Mist had come.
Australis stirred and felt his wing spasm. He was dazed and his senses were confused, but he knew that he was not dead. As his vision cleared, he found himself on his back looking up at a clear blue sky with song-birds circling above him, singing their melody; that was when he felt the soft grass against his scales, and the delicate Elven hand rubbing him tenderly. He rolled away from the touch onto his paws a bit more abruptly than he intended, but the Elf was not scared by his movement. Instead, she looked on curiously. It was the same Elven Druid that he saved.
"I owe you a life debt, great one," she spoke sincerely, kneeling before him. Australis was still a bit puzzled though. "Why are we still alive?" he asked her. "We perished in the earthly fires, great one, and were reborn from the Mist." "What is this place?" "We call this place simply the meadow, great one, and the city to the sun is the new human capital of the realm, Nightmist." she answered. It was just then that Australis saw construction work in the distance behind a line of trees. "Most knew better than to disturb you, great one," the Druid went on. "I'm no great one, not like my mother," Australis wasn't sure how he knew of Borealis plunging Kyriarchia into the depths of hell. "My name is Australis. What is yours?" "The humans simply call me 'Elf'." Australis smiled at the simplicity and beauty of her name. "Your mother, Borealis, made a great sacrifice to save our realm, but I fear it is not the end. Both are trapped in the underworld, and I'm sure Kyriarchia will try again to rule what is not his." "Make sure our story is not forgotten, Elf." "It won't be, Australis," she reassured, "the great scholar, Bishop Dragontongue, has already written about it. Everyone in the group who ventured to the battle were blessed with the dragons' memories as well as another chance, but Mr. Dragontongue has unparalleled knowledge and respect of the great ones." Australis sniffed the fresh air and smiled, glad that such a battle had brought on a victory in its own right.
"I must see the new realm, but there is one thing I would like you to do for me, Elf," he asked her. "Anything, great one," she eagerly listened; Australis chose not to react to being called 'great one' again. "Ensure that the humans do not desecrate this meadow; it is a beautiful place." "I guarantee it... Australis."
Australis stood fully upright and flexed his gigantic wings, ready to take off. Elf ran and hugged his right forepaw affectionately; he gently nuzzled her head in response then took to flight. Elf looked on, smiling, before picking up an acorn that was underneath Australis when he was unconscious, she looked it, then reburied it and summoned a small sprinkling of water over it.
"Grow strong, little acorn, for you will be the Oak Tree of Australis," she blessed the acorn.


Democrat Barack Obama is calling for sharply reducing U.S. greenhouse gas emissions and forcing power companies and other businesses to pay for all of their pollution.
He said Monday that he would get results, unlike those whom he said are bound by the unwritten rules and timidity of Washington politics.
"Our energy problem has become an energy crisis because no matter how well-intentioned the promise, no matter how bold the proposal, they all fall victim to the same Washington politics," Obama said.
He spoke at the new, energy-efficient Portsmouth Public Library, where about 100 invited guests watched a short video featuring every president since Gerald Ford promising to curb the use of fossil fuels - contrasted with a graphic illustrating the nation's increasing dependence on foreign oil. Obama suggested his rivals for the Democratic nomination would provide more of the same.
"There are some in this race who actually make the argument that the more time you spend immersed in the broken politics of Washington, the more likely you are to change it," he said. "I find this a little amusing."
Obama, who has been working to overcome suggestions that he's too inexperienced to be president, said those with long Washington careers have failed to act on issues such as higher fuel economy standards for cars and trucks.
"When they had the chance to stand up and require automakers to raise their fuel standards, they refused. When they had multiple chances to reduce our dependence on foreign oil by investing in renewable fuels that we can literally grow right here in America, they said no," he said.
"As president, I will set a hard cap on all carbon emissions at a level that scientists say is necessary to curb global warming, an 80 percent reduction by 2050," he said.
He proposed a modified "cap and trade" approach to reduce emissions, requiring businesses to buy allowances if they pollute, creating an incentive to reduce energy usage.
"No business will be allowed to emit any greenhouse gases for free," he said. "Businesses don't own the sky, the public does, and if we want them to stop polluting it, we have to put a price on all pollution."
Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., has said she is intrigued by the carbon auction system but has stopped short of endorsing it. Sen. Chris Dodd of Connecticut has proposed taxing polluters for their carbon emissions.
Separate from the energy proposal, Obama joined rival John Edwards Monday in criticizing Clinton for voting for a Senate resolution that urges the State Department to designate Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps a terrorist organization.
Edwards has said the resolution, which won overwhelming bipartisan support late last month, could give President Bush the authority to take the first step to war with Iran. New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson also has criticized Clinton's vote.
"Senator Clinton and others should have learned from 2002 that if you give President George Bush a blank check that he'll cash it," the Illinois senator told The Associated Press after a campaign stop in Nashua. The reference was to the vote in Congress authorizing the use of force against Iraq.
"You've got to be very cautious and very sober regarding any kind of language or rationale that leads him to make more disastrous foreign policy decisions," said Obama. He did not vote on the Iran resolution because he was campaigning in New Hampshire.
Kathleen Strand, a spokeswoman for Clinton's campaign, responded: "It's unfortunate that Senator Obama is abandoning the politics of hope and embracing the same old attack politics as his poll numbers start falling."
On energy, Obama proposed using $150 billion from the sale of allowances to stimulate climate-friendly energy and economic development. Included would be developing the next generation of biofuels and fuel delivery infrastructure, accelerating commercial production of plug-in hybrid vehicles, promoting larger-scale renewable energy projects and low-emission coal plants, and making the electricity grid digital.
He also called for making government, businesses and homes 50 percent more energy efficient by 2030, with all federal government buildings carbon neutral by 2025. Incandescent light bulbs would be phased out by 2014, a measure Obama estimates would save consumers $6 billion a year on their electric bills.
"We are glad to see Senator Obama join this critical debate about how we keep our planet clean for generations to come," said Kate Bedingfield, a spokeswoman for Edwards, who several months ago released his plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions at least 80 percent by 2050. Edwards would auction off a portion of the pollution permits and invest the proceeds on renewable energy technology and new jobs, while other permits would be sold or given away.