The research groups of David Minh, assistant professor of chemistry, and Oscar Juarez, assistant professor of biology, have received an award from the National Institutes of Health (NIH/1R01GM127712-01A1) entitled "Entropy for End-Point and FFT-Based Binding Free Energy Calculations." The award is for $331,629 in the first year and anticipated to total $1.3 million over four years.
The main objective of this project is to develop better ways to account for entropy in two popular techniques for studying molecular interactions. Specifically, new ways to analyze calculation results will be derived, implemented, assessed, and optimized. The methods will be combined with enhanced sampling techniques.
Minh will also work with Juarez to assess the methods in a drug discovery project. They will use established methods and these new methods to virtually screen a chemical library against a pair of structurally similar bacterial metabolic enzymes; one enzyme is relevant to active and the other to dormant bacteria. Compounds predicted to selectively bind the bacterial (opposed to human) enzymes will be experimentally tested in biochemical assays. The researchers anticipate that their improved methods will be significantly more accurate than established approaches.


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My brother and I decided to go on a spontaneous day trip to Sydney, with a plan to go on a food adventure and… CLIMB THE SYDNEY HARBOUR BRIDGE! Woop!
I was luckily enough to obtain some leather scraps from Craftsman Chin, he makes beautiful leather products and other handmade goodies, you guys should check him out!
Where the opportunity only happens once a year, I couldn't resist doing this fun little illustration on this very special day.
Welcome to the world of Happi Happu!


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We maybe short in height but never short in knowledge. Think positive!
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"Đi đường có chi lạ?
Có nhớ nhà không đó?
Em nhớ chị quá nha!"
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text:
In a Sea of Purple Stars
By: Sydney Ho
from left to right: Yoon Sanha, MJ, Moonbin, Cha Eunwoo, JinJin, and Rocky. (credit to KPOPME Entertainment)
from left to right: Yoon Sanha, MJ, Moonbin, Cha Eunwoo, JinJin, and Rocky. (credit to the Astro Official YouTube Channel)
Purple is the first color I see. Then, I hear the cheering. And then, the lines: all the way down the block, crowding the sidewalk so full that regular pedestrians could barely make it through. A group of thousands of people stand in a sort-of-neat line, eagerly waiting for 6:00 to arrive, watching the sun set over a horizon of skyscrapers. I'm lost as to where I should even start. Where even is the end of the line? Before I can find an employee to ask for directions, I'm handed a photocard and mini poster, both sporting my favorite member of the group, Cha Eunwoo. "What's even happening here?" I hear a passerby say, pushing herself out of a bundle of AROHAs. I almost find myself laughing. Oh, poor sidewalk pedestrian, this isn't even the beginning.
(credits to: AROHA Instagram)
Aroha: love in Maori. But it's also the name designated to the fans of the six member K-Pop group ASTRO. AstRO Hearts All fans in English, but in Korean, the ARO comes from ASTRO and the HA comes from the word "hana" meaning "one" or "only". In short, it's supposed to be interpreted as "To ASTRO, the fans are their ONE and ONLY." Sweet, isn't it? I can confidently say that they love their fans, getting to see them live in concert. Every Aroha in The Novo on February 4th would agree; those six boys truly made it the best birthday ever.
Looking back on that day, it may very well have been one of the best days of my life so far. As I walked to the inside of the building, I was getting high-fives and the brightest smiles I've ever seen from strangers that I'd never met before. Bright purple lightsticks in the shapes of stars greeted me as I took my seat, seeing the empty stage. Music from all of ASTRO's mini albums played, and we were all singing the fanchants (in which the fans began cheering the names of the members of the groups, then singing little parts of the lyrics of the song) before they had even come on stage. Suddenly, the lights go dark. And, within the shadows, you can see the faint outline of a white sweatshirt. Madness ensues.
The thing is with the ASTRO concert was that they can only perform so many songs in a row; with full dance choreographies and singing live, it gets tiring. Luckily, that meant that in between every pair of songs performed, the boys actually got to sit down, do a Q&A, play some games, and talk to us. Really, even though I wasn't right up against the stage, it was incredible being able to interact with them. Seeing Sanha tease the older members, hearing Eunwoo's English, going crazy at MJ's vocals, laughing at Moonbin's commentary, and watching JinJin and Rocky dance together? There will never be an experience that matches up to that.
요 요우 ><👍👍 😎최초공개 할게요#라키가 #올렸다요 ..#그냥 #알았음 #해서 #히힛 pic.twitter.com/1tXKVduKvT
— 아스트로 (@offclASTRO) February 13, 2018
Surprisingly, it got even better. Because of my tickets we had bought, there was actually a included bonus: I got to do a hi-touch! Let me explain: A hi-touch is one of the ways that fans can very quickly get to interact with the group. The members of the group stand in a line on one side of a table while a line of fans walks past, and each fan gets to high-five each member. Almost no words are exchanged except for "thank you so much!" or "I love you!", and every fan is given the most sincere smile. As I approached the line, with Rocky in front, my heart was about to explode out of my chest. I smiled, mumbled out a flustered "todaywasamazingthankyousomuch" and high-fived him, only to blank out. Completely. As soon as my hand touched his, I remembered nothing else. And suddenly, I was in the stairwell. I must have just been that excited; hilariously enough, I can't recall anything from those ten seconds.
(credit to @offclASTRO on Twitter)
ASTRO was the first K-Pop group that I ever became a fan of, and seeing them in concert was really special. The fact that I was so lucky to live so close to Los Angeles amazes me; idol groups don't usually tour in the United States, and if they do, they go to huge cities like LA and New York City. I may have only spent around three hours in The Novo, surrounded by fans just like me, but it felt like a lifetime. For me, I think this closed the gap between fan and artist: like any celebrity, it's easy to forget that they're also human. Watching them onstage, seeing them mess around and react to the fans just gave me a sense of familiarity. I think any fandom can agree that being around people that like the same thing as you is like being surrounded by family, and I'd like to thank ASTRO for bringing us together.
TeamKME has a present for everyone who attended the #ASTROinUSA ! Produced, Filmed, & Edited by #KPOPME we present you all with a short after movie with all the precious memories from our 2018...
Editor's Picks, TrendingSydney Ho March 29, 2018
Grilling it Up at Kang Ho-dong Baekjeong
TrendingJennellee Samkhem April 12, 2018
Sydney Ho March 26, 2018

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Each week, we ask a different area innovator to share the meet-ups, talks, and other must-see events happening in their world. This week, C.A. Webb shares where she's heading on the Social Circuit.
C.A. Webb is Executive Director of the New England Venture Capital Association, which represents more than 90 venture capital firms in the Boston area, which she describes as "the best place in the world to start and grow companies.'' Her work at the NEVCA focuses on promoting the ecosystem, creating a community of entrepreneurs and investors, and engaging students in the startup community.
Apple's Secrets: The Inner Workings of the App Store: July 16, 6 to 7:30 p.m. at Intelligent.ly. Tickets are $25.
House party for Michelle Wu for Boston City Council: July 17, invitation only.
Get Your (Financial) House in Order: July 18, 12 to 2 p.m. at Wolf and Company. Tickets are $40.
Startup Myths: There Is No Great Startup Marketing Talent in Boston.: July 18, 9:30 a.m. at the Cambridge Innovation Center.


text:
By Sher Spooner
Staff spotlight: Erin Agboola on seeing students succeed
Erin works with high school senior Aliyah while tutor Andrew Reed looks on.
Erin Agboola likes working with students of all ages, so it's no surprise that she enjoys helping students do tasks they didn't think they could do before.
In her role as program coordinator of Project Next Step, Cluster Tutoring program for high school students, she helps those students decide what steps to take after high school graduation, whether that's applying to colleges, exploring options for trade schools, or finding a different alternative route.
"This is my first experience working with high schoolers," said Erin, who is in her second year at Project Next Step. "I'm really enjoying it."
During the day, Erin works at Hephzibah with kids up to 3 years old in the early Head Start program as well as connecting with their families. "I'm sort of a parent coach," she said.
Erin started tutoring fellow students in high school and tutored both elementary and college students while at Lawrence University. She spent a few years as a Cluster tutor, tutoring two different students. But she knew she wanted to get more involved with the program, so when the job of Project Next Step coordinator opened up, she was happy to apply.
While Erin concentrates most of her time on juniors and seniors, she also spends time with freshmen and sophomores.
"I introduce myself to students in their first year of high school," she said. "I try to get a 'light feel' about what they're interested in." She asks about extracurricular activities as well as classes and tries to connect them with summer activities.
With sophomores, she helps students prepare for standardized tests such as the SAT and ACT. "We steer them toward possible resources," she said.
By the time students are juniors, two other tutoring volunteers join the effort. Marcia Hubbuch, who spent her career counseling high school students about colleges, works with students to explore choices, finding possible fits with their interests, grades, and test scores. Patty Jacobs works with students as they think about topics for college essays — and how to structure those essays.
When it's time for Cluster students who are high school seniors to start applying for college, Erin, Marcia, and Patty all help with their applications. "I edit their applications," Erin said, just to help catch errors and make sure they're complete. She also makes sure students file FAFSA forms to maximize the chances of financial aid.
The Cluster students who are seniors in 2019-20 are pretty independent and responsible, Erin said. "They really did their college applications on their own!" But the students still ask her to read over their applications and essays.
College finances are always a stumbling block. "We want to do a better job of that this year — helping students find more scholarships," Erin said.
Erin also has found a way to keep Cluster Tutoring all in the family. Her husband, Ekerin Agboola, became a Cluster tutor last year.
Filed Under: Home, News, Uncategorized Tagged With: Erin Agboola, high school, Project Next Step


On a recent Friday afternoon, my friend Jessica and I headed off to our tiny neighbor, Portugal, for a weekend visit to the city of Lisbon. This was my first trip out of Spain since I arrived in August, and I have to admit, when I went to the Barcelona airport, I had absolutely no recollection of ever being there before! That's what happens when you step off a long red-eye flight into a new country, and traipse through with multiple luggage and ski bags draped all over you, trying to get to your new home.
In Lisbon, we parted Saturday morning from the little apartment we rented outside the city center, and took the train to Sintra.
Sintra is a hilly, forested town 28 km northwest of Lisbon, and has an interesting history. Its historic center is a Unesco World Heritage site due to the relationship between architecture and landscape. It has been a popular getaway for Lisbon residents since early Iberians made it a center of cult worship, the Moors built a castle in the Middle Ages, the notorious Lisbon earthquake of 1755 brought monasteries, and in the 19th century, nobility moved to its hills. Lord Byron even praised Sintra in Child Harold's Pilgrimage: "Lo! Sintra's glorious Eden intervenes, in variegated maze of mount and glen."
Our first adventure was to hike 4km up the road from the historic center to the Moorish Castle (Castelo Dos Mouros). The windy road took us through a mixture of tropical and deciduous flora, and at every vantage point, there seemed to be a little castle tucked into the woods. Were these actually people's private castles?
I think I take this same picture everywhere I go. I call it, "Autumn Ivy Clinging to a Stucco Wall Somewhere in Europe." Look for it in my upcoming Girona blog, too!
The Moorish Castle snakes like a dragon tale on the highest hill overlooking Sintra and the Atlantic Ocean. It was first built by the Moors, then captured by the Christians, and by the 15th century was no longer in use. If my parents had taken me here as a child, I would have played pretend in it for hours.
In the distance is the Palacio Nacional de Pena, our next destination.
The Palacio Nacional de Pena had been a convent in the 16th century, and then in 1840, when the artist-husband of Queen Maria II, commissioned an architect to renovate and restore it, it turned into a kind of Bavarian-and-something-else style castle. Trippy.
The Moorish influence of geometrically-patterned tiles could be seen throughout it, too.
The cafe had a stunning view of the Atlantic.
Even beautiful tiles at the train station!
Once back in Lisbon, we hopped the famous yellow tram up to Bairrio Alto, an old neighborhood, for a sunset vista.
Sunset complete with a glass of wine, and great music coming out of our cafe.
We ate at a traditional Fado restaurant that night. Fado is Portuguese for 'fate,' and it is their famous style of music. It's a series of sad chants performed as a set of three songs, each lasting one minute. We ate a traditional Portuguese meal, while the musicians came on and performed their sets of three, and then took breaks. They are sung by one singer who is accompanied by a 12-string Portuguese guitarra. It emerged in the 18th century in Lisbon's working class districts. It was beautiful! Good food, and an intimate setting to hear this music.
On Sunday morning, Lisbon was asleep very much like Barcelona would be.
This is the main plaza by the river, originally a center for markets. Note the color yellow is the theme of Lisbon; that, and the blue blue color of the sky.
We walked up to Alfama, another old district in the city.
A random ball of steel wool hanging in a courtyard. Some kind of modern art?!
Another Moorish castle, overlooking the city.
I loved Lisbon. Compared to Barcelona, it felt unpeopled, relaxed, quaint, a bit run-down, a bit more raw, and people were friendly and full of smiles. Can't wait to go back!


Modo de acción Induces the accumulation of tetrapyroles which attack plant cells. Inhibition of protoporphyrinogen oxidase (PPO).
Formulation and application details Usually supplied as an emulsifiable concentrate and wettable powder.


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Mohamed Hubail (* 23. Juni 1983) ist ein bahrainischer Fußballspieler.

Von 2002 bis 2004 spielte Hubail bei Al-Ahli in Manama. Nachdem der offensive Mittelfeldspieler ein Jahr lang bei Al-Gharafa in Katar spielte, wechselte er zur neuen Saison zum Ligakonkurrenten Qatar Sports Club. Er ist Stammspieler der bahrainischen Nationalmannschaft. Bekannter als Mohamed ist sein älterer Bruder A'ala Hubail vom al Kuwait SC. 2011 wurde er zu zwei Jahren Gefängnis verurteilt, weil er an Protesten gegen die Regierung teilgenommen hatte.

Einzelnachweise

Fußballnationalspieler (Bahrain)
Geboren 1983
Mann
Bahrainer

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
The Raid of the Branch Davidians Cult Compound in Waco, Texas
Fads & Fashions
Ancient History and Culture
Medieval & Renaissance History
Humanities › History & Culture
Gregory Smith/Contributor/Corbis Historical
by Jennifer Rosenberg
Jennifer Rosenberg is a historian, history fact-checker, and freelance writer who writes about 20th-century history topics.
On April 19, 1993, after a 51-day siege, the ATF and the FBI attempted to force David Koresh and the other remaining Branch Davidians out of their Waco, Texas compound. However, when the cult members refused to leave the buildings after being tear gassed, the buildings went up in a blaze and all but nine died in the fire.
Preparing to Enter the Compound
There were a number of reports that 33-year-old, Branch Davidian cult leader David Koresh had been abusing children. He reportedly would punish children by hitting them with a wooden spoon until they bled or be depriving them of food for an entire day. Also, Koresh had many wives, some of whom were as young as 12.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF) also discovered that Koresh was stockpiling a cache of weapons and explosives.
The ATF gathered resources and planned to raid the Branch Davidian compound, known as the Mount Carmel Center, located just outside of Waco, Texas.
With a warrant to search for illegal firearms in hand, the ATF attempted to enter the compound on February 28, 1993.
The Shootout and Stand-Off
A gunfight ensued (debate continues over which side fired the first shot). The shooting lasted nearly two hours, leaving four ATF agents and five Branch Davidians dead.
For 51 days, the ATF and the FBI waited outside the compound, using negotiators to try to end the stand-off peacefully. (There has been much criticism as to how the government handled the negotiations.)
Although a number of children and a few adults were released during this period, 84 men, women, and children stayed in the compound.
Storming the Waco Compound
On April 19, 1993, the ATF and FBI attempted to end the siege by using a form of tear gas called CS gas (chlorobenzylidenemalononitrile), a decision approved by US Attorney General Janet Reno.
Early in the morning, specialized tank-like vehicles (Combat Engineering Vehicles) punctured holes in the compound's walls and inserted CS gas. The government was hoping that the gas would safely push the Branch Davidians out of the compound.
In response to the gas, the Branch Davidians shot back. Just after noon, the wooden compound caught on fire.
While nine people escaped the blaze, 76 perished either by gunshot, fire or collapsed rubble inside the compound. Twenty-three of the dead were children. Koresh was also found dead, from a gunshot wound to the head.
Who Started the Fire?
Nearly immediately, questions were raised as to how the fire was started and who was responsible. For years, many people blamed the FBI and ATF for the catastrophe, believing that the government officials had knowingly used flammable tear gas or shot into the compound to keep survivors from leaving the fiery compound.
Further investigations have shown that the fire was purposely set by the Davidians themselves.
Of the nine survivors of the fire, all nine were charged and sentenced to some jail time. Eight were found guilty of either voluntary manslaughter or illegal firearms -- or both. The ninth survivor, Kathy Schroeder, was convicted of resisting arrest.
Although some of the survivors were sentenced to up to 40 years in prison, appeals ended up shortening their prison terms. As of 2007, all nine were out of prison.
David Koresh and the Branch Davidians: Leader of a Deadly Cult
A Brief Timeline of the 1990s
Famous Criminals' Last Words
Who Was Behind the 1995 Oklahoma City Bombing?
Operation Ivory Coast Raid on Son Tay
What Is Gun Ownership Like on a State by State Basis?
What You Need To Know About Tear Gas
See a Timeline of Gun Control in the U.S. from 1791 to the Present
These Are the Reasons You Can Fail a Firearm Transfer Background Check
Stonewall Riots: History and Legacy
What Political Extremism Looks Like in America
Homophone Corner: Flair and Flare
MOVE Philadelphia Bombing History and Fallout
The Brady Bill and Background Checks for Gun Buyers
Akagi: Japan's Red Castle at Sea
US Mass Shootings Are Increasing in Terms of Events and Victims


We support people in Devon who are in the criminal justice system to reintegrate into the community.
Participants who have complex levels of need voluntarily join the programme both in custody and in the community.
This programme is part of a UK-wide government programme funded by the European Social Fund until 2020. We deliver it in Devon on behalf of Shaw Trust.


text:
East Texas may see next Confederate monument battle
Campaign to remove monument in Marshall
By Jeff Ferrell | June 25, 2020 at 12:32 AM CDT - Updated June 25 at 12:32 AM
(KSLA) — Confederate monuments have been coming down throughout the country. And now there could be a push to remove one in East Texas.
Some local leaders say this is the first time they're hearing a request to have it removed.
The Confederate monument is the subject of a petition signed by more than 1,000 people in Marshall, Texas.
It asks for the statue to be removed from the grounds of the historic Harrison County Courthouse.
"We're not asking them to destroy the statue. We're just asking them to move it," explained community activist Demetria McFarland explained.
She is perhaps best known for her efforts with Marshall Against Violence.
McFarland also is the force behind the petition to move the monument off the east end of the courthouse yard.
And, depending on who you ask, it's a structure that evokes far different feelings.
"That's a reminder of the torture and hell that my ancestors went through," McFarland said.
She delivered her message about the statue's future to Harrison County commissioners Wednesday morning.
And Harrison County Judge Chad Sims said none of this likely will happen fast. "This court would probably take a look at having public approval to do that, not just our five votes to do it."
But also said it would likely take a groundswell of public support to ever get it to the ballot box.
McFarland said if or when that happens, there are many places where this statue could be moved.
"In a historic cemetery. Put it in a museum. Put it in Memorial City Hall. Those that want to embrace it, put it in your backyard; just out of sight, out of mind."
Lifelong Marshall resident and monument supporter Dal Smith wanted to make one thing perfectly clear about the Confederate structure. "Better stay. Ain't no need to take it down. It don't have nothing to do with nothing."
Smith described losing his patience with what he sees as political correctness consistently chipping away at Southern culture and history.
"I'm sick of hearing all this (bleep) from all over the country. And I'm certainly sick of it. And here in Marshall, Texas, it ain't going to happen."
McFarland said there's one thing she knows for sure about the controversial statue. "It doesn't stand for the values and beliefs of black Americans. And it's just a constant reminder to me of racial division."
Her petition to have the statue removed is online at change.org. Also there is a petition to keep the statue right where it is.
"It's not going to change anything," Candy Johnson said after lunch near the historic courthouse. "And it's just gonna be like everybody started out saying, start out now doing that and next thing you know they're going to take down any statue of Jesus or knock all the stained glass windows out or what have you."
Dal Smith agrees with many others in Marshall, especially since expectations are being set so high. "You can't change history. None of us standing right here had a thing to do with what happened way back then."
Smith and others bristle at the idea of moving the statue to a museum, cemetery or another location where it won't evoke controversy.
Smith also told people not to expect the statue to be removed at any time.
"No. You're in East Texas now, brother. It needs to stay right where it is. And I believe that's where it's gonna stay."
Since McFarland's proposal was not on commissioners' agenda Wednesday, the officials could only listen. And there are no plans yet for them to hear anything more about it.
Harrison County Judge Chad Sims said this is just the beginning of the process that may or may not move forward from here.
"Oh, it's very early. Sure, very early. This is, it's brand-new to us. We've not been through anything like this. We're learning how to proceed through it right now."


Inspiracja dla Canvas Corp Brands z niesamowitymi mgiełkami Tattered Angels. Zaprszam po więcej na blog CCB.
My inspiration for Canvas Corp Brands with amaizing Tattered Angels. More you can find on the blog CCB.


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Jugosławię na Zimowych Igrzyskach Olimpijskich 1972 reprezentowało 26 zawodników (sami mężczyźni). Był to dziewiąty start reprezentacji Jugosławii na zimowych igrzyskach olimpijskich.

Skład kadry

Hokej na lodzie

Reprezentacja mężczyzn

Reprezentacja Jugosławii w rundzie kwalifikacyjnej przegrała z reprezentacją Szwecji 1:8 i wzięła udział w rozgrywkach grupy "pocieszania" turnieju olimpijskiego, w której zajęła 5. miejsce. Ostatecznie reprezentacja Jugosławii została sklasyfikowana na 11. miejscu.

Runda kwalifikacyjna

Grupa pocieszenia

Wyniki

Kombinacja norweska

Mężczyźni

Narciarstwo alpejskie

Mężczyźni

Skoki narciarskie

Mężczyźni

Bibliografia

Państwa uczestniczące w Zimowych Igrzyskach Olimpijskich 1972
Jugosławia na igrzyskach olimpijskich


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Whitehouse-Murkowski Bill to Further Understanding of Oceans, Great Lakes, and Coasts Advances Out of Committee
BLUE GLOBE Act would support innovation, accelerate development of marine technologies, and improve monitoring of important bodies of water
U.S. Senators Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), co-chairs of the bipartisan Senate Oceans Caucus, have announced that their legislation to advance data collection and monitoring of the Great Lakes, oceans, bays, estuaries, and coasts was approved by the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee by voice vote yesterday. The Bolstering Long-Term Understanding and Exploration of the Great Lakes, Oceans, Bays, and Estuaries Act, or the BLUE GLOBE Act, would accelerate technology innovation, plan for a stronger maritime workforce, and develop a better understanding of the Blue Economy.
"I'm pleased that our BLUE GLOBE Act passed out of committee with bipartisan support," said Senator Whitehouse. "There's still so much we don't know about our oceans. We need more high-quality research and data to guide investments in the Blue Economy and our marine workforce."
"I'm proud that our bill, the BLUE GLOBE Act, prioritizes innovation and development of technology. New and improved data sources will allow us to strategically link economic growth and stewardship of our oceans, bays, Great Lakes, and estuaries. For Alaskans, investing in ocean science will help provide greater opportunities in national security, tourism, fishing, shipping, and other marine activities," said Senator Murkowski. "Improvements to ocean monitoring, exploration, and innovation will pave the way for increasing Alaska's sustainable seafood production, support our coastal communities and residents, and develop stronger transportation, recreation, and energy production—all part of Alaska's vibrant blue economy."
The BLUE GLOBE Act would accelerate ocean data and monitoring innovation by giving NOAA Cooperative Institutes a stronger focus on technology advancement. It creates a new ocean innovation prize, and tasks the National Academy of Sciences with assessing the potential for an Advanced Research Project Agency–Oceans (ARPA-O). The legislation would also add innovative technology components to the 2020 NDAA's Maritime SAFE Act to better address Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated (IUU) fishing. This measure follows on successful work of the Oceans Caucus to support the passage of four international agreements aimed at combatting IUU fishing and the related enabling legislation.
The BLUE GLOBE Act reauthorizes a number of NOAA's hydrographic activities, including nautical mapping and charting, hydrographic surveys, and the operation of hydrographic survey vessels, and directs heads of relevant federal agencies to more accurately measure the value of the Blue Economy. The bill also calls for the National Academies of Science to conduct a study on the oceanic scientific workforce and steps the Federal government can take to improve workforce diversity, remove barriers to transitioning scientists into federal careers, and develop a workforce program and plan.
The bipartisan Senate Oceans Caucus works to find common ground in responding to issues facing the oceans and coasts, which support millions of jobs in America. The Oceans Caucus has focused on ending illegal fishing, reducing marine debris, and improving ocean data and monitoring. Whitehouse and Murkowski founded the Caucus in 2011. It currently has 41 members.
Related Issues: Alaska's Fisheries


LADY LIBERTY PEST CONTROL is one of the premier full service pest control companies in the Johnson County and surrounding areas. Our services include pest control (residential/commercial), lawn fertilization and weed control. Our experienced technicians guarantee prompt, quality service.
LADY LIBERTY PEST CONTROL is a licensed, professional pest and lawn care company that serves the Johnson County and surrounding areas. We serve both residential and commercial properties.
Don't trust your pest control and lawn care service to anyone with a that owns a sprayer. LADY LIBERTY PEST CONTROL is licensed and insured. We offer a wealth of experience and expertise, with our technicians.
Content copyright . Lady Liberty Pest Control. All rights reserved.


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Effects of Exenatide vs. Metformin on endothelial function in obese patients with pre-diabetes: a randomized trial
Aaron S Kelly1,
Richard M Bergenstal2,
J Michael Gonzalez-Campoy3,
Harold Katz4 &
Alan J Bank5
Glucagon like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonist treatment may improve endothelial function via direct and indirect mechanisms. We compared the acute and chronic effects of the GLP-1 receptor agonist exenatide vs. metformin on endothelial function in patients with obesity and pre-diabetes.
We performed a randomized, open-label, clinical trial in 50 non-diabetic individuals (mean age 58.5 ± 10.0; 38 females) with abdominal obesity and either impaired fasting glucose, elevated HbA1c, or impaired glucose tolerance (IGT) who were randomized to receive 3-months of exenatide or metformin. Microvascular endothelial function, assessed by digital reactive hyperemia (reactive hyperemic index: RHI), C-reactive protein (CRP), circulating oxidized LDL (oxLDL), and vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 (VCAM-1) were measured at baseline and 3-months. Seven subjects with IGT participated in a sub-study comparing the effects of pre-administration of exenatide and metformin on postprandial endothelial function.
There were no differences for the change in RHI (Δ exenatide: 0.01 ± 0.68 vs. Δ metformin: -0.17 ± 0.72, P = 0.348), CRP, oxLDL, or VCAM-1 between exenatide and metformin treatment. Triglycerides were reduced more with exenatide compared to metformin (Δ exenatide: -25.5 ± 45.7 mg/dL vs. Δ metformin: -2.9 ± 22.8 mg/dL, P = 0.032). In the sub-study, there was no difference in postprandial RHI between exenatide and metformin.
Three months of exenatide therapy had similar effects on microvascular endothelial function, markers of inflammation, oxidative stress, and vascular activation, as metformin, in patients with obesity and pre-diabetes.
Clinical trials registration
This study is registered on http://www.clinicaltrials.gov/:NCT00546728
The term pre-diabetes is used to describe individuals with either impaired fasting glucose (IFG), elevated glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c), or impaired glucose tolerance (IGT). In parallel with the increase in the prevalence of obesity, the number of individuals with pre-diabetes is growing rapidly [1]. In addition to being predictive of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), pre-diabetes is associated with increased risk for developing cardiovascular disease (CVD) [2, 3]. The preferred treatment approach for pre-diabetes is lifestyle modification emphasizing healthier eating habits and increased levels of physical activity, ideally leading to weight-loss. However, drug therapy is also used to treat pre-diabetes with the goal of preventing the onset of frank T2DM. Most prominently, metformin and the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ agonists pioglitazone and rosiglitazone have been shown to attenuate the transition from pre-diabetes to T2DM [4–6]. Metformin is perhaps the most widely-used medication to treat pre-diabetes because of its generally well-accepted safety profile and tendency to help patients maintain or reduce body weight [5].
The potential cardio-protective effects of medications should be an important consideration when choosing drug therapy for pre-diabetes given its association with CVD. Medications that attenuate postprandial glucose spikes may be particularly attractive since these glucose excursions are associated with endothelial dysfunction, inflammation, oxidative stress, and atherosclerosis in individuals with pre-diabetes [7–12]. In this regard, the glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonist class may be an ideal candidate due to its primary mechanisms of action: reduction of postprandial glucose via increasing insulin secretion, decreasing glucagon secretion, and slowing gastric emptying [13], which leads to improved chronic glycemic control even when used in combination with other diabetes medications [14, 15]. Moreover, evidence suggests that GLP-1 may act directly on the endothelium to improve endothelial function and inhibit atherosclerosis [16–21] and may have additional beneficial cardiovascular effects [22, 23].
The effect of GLP-1 receptor agonist treatment on endothelial function has not been well-described in humans. Therefore, we performed a randomized, head-to-head clinical trial comparing the acute and chronic effects of the GLP-1 receptor agonist exenatide vs. metformin on microvascular endothelial function in patients with obesity and either IFG, elevated HbA1c, or IGT. We chose metformin as the comparator since it is generally viewed as a first-line drug therapy in the context of pre-diabetes and has a strong evidence-base supporting its use in this condition [5].
Patient population
Fifty non-diabetic individuals (waist circumference ≥102 cm for men and ≥88 cm for women) with abdominal obesity and either IFG (fasting glucose ≥100 mg/dL), elevated HbA1c (≥5.7%), or IGT (2-hour glucose ≥140 mg/dL), were enrolled at two sites from 2007–2010: the United Heart and Vascular Clinic and the International Diabetes Center at Park Nicollet. Patients were excluded if they had T2DM, were not on a stable (≥ 1-month) cardiovascular medication regimen (e.g., anti-hypertensive therapy, statins, etc.), had used medications for glycemic control within 1-month, had previous bariatric surgery, or had a history of severe gastrointestinal disease, unstable angina or heart failure. Patients were recruited from local medical clinics and through advertisements. The study protocol was approved by the institutional review board at Copernicus Group IRB, the University of Minnesota, and the International Diabetes Center at Park Nicollet and written consent was obtained from all participants.
We performed a 3-month, randomized (1:1), open-label, head-to-head (exenatide vs. metformin) clinical trial. Following baseline testing, patients were randomly assigned (blocked randomization to ensure an equal number per treatment group by site) to treatment with exenatide or metformin for 3-months. Measurements of study variables were made at baseline and 3-months. All testing was performed in the morning after patients had been fasting for at least 12 hours. A sub-study was performed in seven patients with IGT to evaluate the acute postprandial (acute glucose challenge) effects of exenatide and metformin on endothelial function. All participants in the sub-study underwent testing with pre-administration of both medications and served as their own control. The sub-study included two extra visits, each requiring a standard oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) with pre-administration of exenatide (10 mcg, 30-minutes prior to glucose ingestion) during one visit and metformin (1000 mg, 60-minutes prior to glucose ingestion) during the other visit. The order of the conditions (exenatide and metformin) was randomized. The control condition (no drug pre-administration to establish a baseline) was performed during a third visit (the main-study baseline visit since all sub-study subjects also participated in the main study).
Exenatide and metformin treatment protocol
Exenatide was initiated at a dose of 5 mcg, BID for 1-month and up-titrated to 10 mcg, BID for the remaining 2-months. Metformin was initiated at a dose of 500 mg, BID for 1-month and up-titrated to 1000 mg, BID for the remaining 2-months. Individuals who did not tolerate the higher doses of exenatide and metformin were allowed to continue the study on the lower doses. Study medications were withheld on the mornings of the study visits (except for sub-study visits).
Measurement of clinical variables
Height and weight were obtained using a standard stadiometer and electronic scale, respectively. Body mass index (BMI) was calculated as weight in kilograms divided by height in meters squared. Waist circumference was obtained at end-expiration and measured midway between the base of the rib cage and the superior iliac crest. The study was performed at two sites, each with different technologies to measure body fat. At one site, total body fat was measured with dual energy x-ray absorptiometry (N = 35) (Hologic Discovery, Hologic, Inc., Bedford, MA, USA), and at the other, abdominal visceral/subcutaneous fat was measured by computed tomography using the average of slices obtained at L1/L2 and L4/L5 (N = 14) (Siemens SOMATOM Definition, Siemens Healthcare, Malvern, PA, USA). Sitting blood pressure measurements were obtained manually on the same arm using the same cuff size and equipment after the patient had been resting quietly for 10 minutes. Fasting lipid profile, glucose, and insulin assays were conducted with standard procedures by Quest Diagnostics (Minneapolis, Minnesota). Homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR), a surrogate measure of insulin resistance, was calculated using previously described methods [24].
Plasma biomarkers
Blood plasma for biomarker analysis was stored at −80°C until the end of the study at which time all samples were assayed together. C-reactive protein (CRP) (ALPCO Diagnostics, Salem, NH, USA), circulating oxidized LDL (oxLDL) (Mercodia, Inc., Winston-Salem, NC, USA), and vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 (VCAM-1) (R&D Systems, Inc., Minneapolis, MN, USA) were measured by ELISA in the University of Minnesota Cytokine Reference Laboratory (CLIA licensed).
Endothelial function assessment
Microvascular endothelial function was measured by digital reactive hyperemia (EndoPAT 2000, Itamar Medical, Caesarea, Israel), an operator-independent method of quantifying endothelial function. Digital reactive hyperemia is nitric oxide-dependent [25], associated with coronary artery blood flow [26] and multiple cardiovascular risk factors [27], and independently predicts future cardiovascular events [28]. Following 10 minutes of quiet rest in the supine position, finger probes were placed on the index fingers of both hands to measure baseline and reactive hyperemic pulse amplitude. The probes applied a uniform pressure (10 mmHg less than DBP) on the fingers, which allowed for the detection of small pulse volume changes throughout the cardiac cycle. Following the collection of five minutes of baseline data, a blood pressure cuff on the upper arm was inflated to a suprasystolic level for five minutes. Following cuff release, the change in pulse amplitude during reactive hyperemia was measured for five minutes. The ratio of the hyperemic and the baseline pulse amplitude (corrected for the same ratio on the control finger) was calculated and expressed as the reactive hyperemic index (RHI). For the sub-study, RHI was measured at baseline (pre-OGTT) and 1- and 2-hours during the OGTT.
Baseline variables were compared between the exenatide and metformin groups using independent samples t-tests. For the main study, 2 X 2 (group X time) analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to compare changes in variables between groups before and after the 3-month treatment period. The ANOVA interaction term was the pre-specified analysis of interest. For descriptive purposes, within-group treatment effects were analyzed with paired samples t-tests. For the sub-study, the area under the curve (AUC) for glucose, insulin, and RHI was calculated for each of the three conditions (control, exenatide, and metformin) and compared by ANOVA. An alpha value of 0.05 was used to determine statistical significance. Data are presented as mean ± standard deviation. GraphPad Prism version 5.0 (GraphPad Software, Inc., La Jolla, CA, USA) was used for statistical analyses.
Fifty patients with abdominal obesity and pre-diabetes were enrolled. All participants were white. There were no Hispanic individuals in the exenatide group and two in the metformin group, which did not differ significantly (P = 0.490). As shown in Table 1, variables at baseline were similar between the groups. All but three tolerated the maximal dose of metformin (1000 mg, BID) and all but three tolerated the maximal dose of exenatide (10 mcg, BID). Medication compliance for both groups was excellent (metformin = 96 ± 5%; exenatide = 97 ± 4%).
Table 1 Baseline Characteristics
Table 2 shows the treatment effects by group. There were no differences in the changes from baseline for RHI (Δ exenatide: 0.01 ± 0.68 vs. Δ metformin: -0.17 ± 0.72, P = 0.348) (Figure 1), CRP (Δ exenatide: -0.4 ± 2.2 mg/L vs. Δ metformin: -0.4 ± 2.2 mg/L, P = 0.987), oxLDL (Δ exenatide: -0.1 ± 41.5 U/L vs. Δ metformin: -16.5 ± 30.4 U/L, P = 0.123), or VCAM-1 (Δ exenatide: 10.4 ± 83.2 ng/mL vs. Δ metformin: -15.3 ± 101.3 ng/mL, P = 0.336) between exenatide and metformin groups. Triglycerides were reduced more with exenatide compared to metformin (Δ exenatide: -25.5 ± 45.7 mg/dL vs. Δ metformin: -2.9 ± 22.8 mg/dL, P = 0.032). There were no differences in any of the other variables including visceral (pre- and post-exenatide: 201.2 ± 44.4 cm2 to 206.3 ± 44.3 cm2, respectively vs. pre- and post-metformin: 286.6 ± 114.4 cm2 to 278.3 ± 122.8 cm2, P = 0.208) and subcutaneous (pre- and post-exenatide: 473.9 ± 152.5 cm2 to 457.8 ± 143.1 cm2, respectively vs. pre- and post-metformin: 352.6 ± 148.4 cm2 to 349.6 ± 131.4 cm2, P = 0.448) fat in the subset with computed tomography data (not presented in Table 2).
Table 2 Treatment Effects by Group
Endothelial function before and after 3-months of treatment with either exenatide or metformin.
Sub-study
All participants (mean age 47.6 ± 12.8; 4 females, 3 males) in the sub-study had IGT. There was a trend toward a difference in glucose AUC during the OGTT among the three conditions (control AUC: 7,691 ± 2,925 units, vs. exenatide AUC: 4,382 ± 2,421 units, vs. metformin AUC: 5,859 ± 2,210 units, ANOVA P = 0.076) and no statistically significant difference in insulin AUC (control AUC: 5,535 ± 1,838 units, vs. exenatide AUC: 4,543 ± 2,389 units, vs. metformin AUC: 4,084 ± 1,800 units, ANOVA P = 0.410). There was no statistically significant difference in postprandial RHI AUC among the three conditions (control AUC: -10.0 ± 50.5 units, vs. exenatide AUC: 37.8 ± 51.1 units, vs. metformin AUC: 20.5 ± 47.5 units, ANOVA P = 0.203) (Figure 2).
Serial endothelial function during the OGTT for control (no drug pre-administration) and pre-administration of either exenatide or metformin.
Little is known about the effect of chronic GLP-1 receptor agonist treatment on endothelial function in humans. The primary finding of the current study is that chronic treatment with exenatide in patients with obesity and pre-diabetes has similar effects on microvascular endothelial function, inflammation, oxidative stress, and vascular activation as treatment with metformin. These results are in line with a recent pilot study we conducted in non-diabetic youth with severe obesity, which demonstrated no change in endothelial function with 3-months of exenatide treatment [29]. In regard to inflammation and oxidative stress, our results are in contrast to a recent study that demonstrated a rapid anti-inflammatory and reactive oxygen species suppression effect of exenatide in patients with T2DM [30]. The contradictory findings between these studies may be explained by the different patient populations examined (pre-diabetes vs. T2DM) and the methods by which inflammation and oxidative stress were measured (systemic vs. cellular/molecular). Two other studies have evaluated the effects of acute, one-time, GLP-1 administration on endothelial function in patients with IGT and T2DM [9, 19]. Nystrom et al. [19] reported that infusion of GLP-1 in a small number (N = 12) of patients with T2DM and stable coronary artery disease improved brachial artery flow-mediated dilation while no improvement was observed in healthy controls. Koska et al. [9] demonstrated improved postprandial (high-fat meal) RHI with pre-administration of exenatide (10 mcg) in patients with either IGT or T2DM. Taken together, these findings suggest that improvements in endothelial function with GLP-1 receptor agonists may be limited to the postprandial setting.
There are many potential explanations for the findings in this study - the most obvious being that GLP-1 receptor agonists may have minimal or no appreciable effect on endothelial function and blood flow in individuals with obesity and pre-diabetes. The lack of improvement in endothelial function may be related to the relatively short half-life of exenatide (approximately 2.4 hours) and the fact that its metabolic effects occur predominantly in the postprandial setting. Alternatively, the treatment period may not have been long enough in this study to elicit an improvement in endothelial function. Some studies have shown that weight loss and glycemic control continue to improve well beyond 3-months with exenatide therapy [31–33]. Another potential explanation for the lack of improvement in endothelial function is that, despite the high baseline BMI, body fat, CRP, and other risk factor levels, the baseline RHI values in these patients were relatively high (2.03 in both groups), which may have limited the ability of exenatide to exert a beneficial effect. Therefore, it is possible that results may differ in other patient populations, such as those with T2DM who often have significant endothelial dysfunction. Finally, it is possible that the effects of exenatide on endothelial function may differ by vascular bed, and that the microvasculature, which was measured in this study, is less responsive compared to the conduit arteries.
Evidence exists supporting a role for GLP-1 receptor agonists having a beneficial effect on postprandial endothelial function. Koska et al. recently reported that pre-administration of exenatide significantly enhanced endothelial function following a high-fat meal in individuals with IGT or newly-diagnosed T2DM [9]. Reductions in postprandial triglycerides explained over 60% of the effect of exenatide on endothelial function improvement, suggesting that the beneficial postprandial vascular effects of GLP-1 receptor agonists are likely mediated via the lowering of triglycerides [9, 34]. This may explain the lack of effect in postprandial endothelial function with exenatide observed in our study. Instead of a high-fat meal, which would be expected to raise postprandial triglycerides, we utilized a glucose-only meal. Although we did not measure postprandial triglycerides in the current study, it is unlikely that levels increased very much following the glucose load. Therefore, the current state of the evidence suggests that improvements in endothelial function with GLP-1 receptor agonists may be limited to the postprandial period (0–3 hours) primarily in relation to a high-fat meal.
Strengths of this study included the randomized/controlled design, the similarities between the exenatide and metformin groups at baseline, and the fact that subjects were not using any T2DM medications. Limitations included the non-blinded design, the lack of a non-treatment control group, and the small sample size for the sub-study. Because the mean improvement in postprandial endothelial function was higher with exenatide compared to metformin and control (albeit non-significantly), it is possible that significant differences may have been observed with a larger sample size.
In conclusion, 3-months of exenatide therapy had similar effects on microvascular endothelial function, markers of inflammation, oxidative stress, and vascular activation, as treatment with metformin, in patients with obesity and pre-diabetes. Improvements in endothelial function with GLP-1 receptor agonists may be limited to the postprandial setting, particularly following the consumption of a high-fat meal. Future studies should examine the vascular effects of combined treatment with a GLP-1 receptor agonist and metformin, evaluate the effects in patients with T2DM, utilize treatment periods longer than 3-months, and evaluate the other vascular beds (e.g., conduit arteries).
A.S.K. has received research support from GlaxoSmithKline and Amylin/Eli Lilly and is a consultant (clinical trials advisory board) for Novo Nordisk. R.M.B. receives research support from Amylin, Eli Lilly, Novo Nordisk, Sanofi, Boehringer Ingelheim, Merck, Roche and Takeda; consults with Amylin, Eli Lilly, Novo Nordisk, Sanofi, Roche and Takeda; he receives no personal income from any of these activities. J.M.G.C. receives research support from Novartis, Pfizer, Sanofi-Aventis, Novo Nordisk, Leptos, Takeda, Amylin, Astra-Zeneca, Boehringer Ingelheim, and Ipsen; is a member of the speaker's bureau for Merck, Pfizer, Boehringer Ingelheim, Forest, and GlaxoSmithKline; and is a consultant for Merck, Pfizer, Leptos, and Roche. H.K. is a member of the speaker's bureau for Eli Lilly, Novo Nordisk, and Amylin. A.J.B. is a member of the speaker's bureau for Forest Pharmaceuticals and receives research support from GlaxoSmithKline and Amylin/Eli Lilly.
Funding was provided by an investigator-initiated grant (awarded to A.S.K.) from Amylin Pharmaceuticals and Eli Lilly and Company. The funders were not involved in the data analysis or manuscript preparation.
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The authors appreciate the assistance of Kari Thomas, Deanna Rohde, Andrea Metzig, Melissa Thalin, Nan Hoerr, and Ryan Gauge from the United Heart and Vascular Clinic, St. Paul, MN; and Kathleen McCann and Charlotte Ashanti from the International Diabetes Center at Park Nicollet, St. Louis Park, MN. We are grateful to the participants who donated their time to this study. Dr. Kelly is the guarantor of this work and, as such, had full access to all the data in the study and takes responsibility for the integrity of the data and the accuracy of the data analysis.
Department of Pediatrics, University of Minnesota Medical School, Minneapolis, MN, USA
Aaron S Kelly
International Diabetes Center at Park Nicollet, St. Louis Park, MN, USA
Richard M Bergenstal
Minnesota Center for Obesity, Metabolism and Endocrinology, Eagan, MN, USA
J Michael Gonzalez-Campoy
Allina Hospitals and Clinics, St. Paul, MN, USA
Harold Katz
United Heart and Vascular Clinic, St. Paul, MN, USA
Alan J Bank
Correspondence to Aaron S Kelly.
A.S.K. participated in study design, data collection, data analysis and interpretation, and drafted the manuscript; R.M.B. participated in data collection, data interpretation, and edited the manuscript; J.M.G.C. participated in data interpretation and edited the manuscript; H.K. participated in data interpretation and edited the manuscript; A.J.B. participated study design, data collection, data interpretation, and edited the manuscript.
Kelly, A.S., Bergenstal, R.M., Gonzalez-Campoy, J.M. et al. Effects of Exenatide vs. Metformin on endothelial function in obese patients with pre-diabetes: a randomized trial. Cardiovasc Diabetol 11, 64 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1186/1475-2840-11-64
Exenatide
Endothelial function


text:
package graphie

/*
type Node struct {
	G      *Graph
	Labels []string

	Id    string
	Attrs Attrs
}

func (n *Node) Link(other *Node, attrs Attrs) (*Link, error) {
	return n.G.s.Link(n.Labels, n, other, attrs)
}
*/

/*
Starting points:
.V([name], [fuzzyness]) returns all vertexes with name (name can be nil for ALL vertexes in the graph)
.M()					starts a morphism (not finalizable)

Path traversals:
.In(type, [Attrs])		returns all vertexes pointing TOWARDS the subject
.Out(type, [Attrs])		returns all vertexes in the opposite direction
.Both()					both directions (in+out)
.Is(name...)			returns (filters) all paths with the given vertexes with name...

Joining:
.Intersect(q)
.Union(q)

Applying morphisms:
.Follow(m)

Finalizers:
.Count()				count the resulting vertexes
.Get(n)					return n vertexes from the resulting set in no particular order
.All()					return all resulting vertexes
.ForEach(...) ?
*/

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


Try to be loud about your brand. Creating a brand means creating an identity, but what use is that identity if no one knows it? Use the various areas of brand development to let it show and let them know.
In our next episode we will be looking at the various areas of brand development.
I hope you got an edge today! Stay on top of business, and look out for the next tip on Monday!
Ready for Business? We are!
A giant selfie stick for your MacBook — just what you've always wanted!


> This is a clarification request for the "table:default-cell-style-name"
> these default cell style."
> in the document, and makes no assumptions for others.
visibility. The @dcsn should be treated the same way.
>  > would also increase the readability.
> the sentence that starts with "All other applications typically".
> application. I therefore propose to not change this.
be obvious, that there has to be a difference to other kind of applications.
And this difference is IMHO the dimension of the table.
>  > 3. The spec should be extended to make use of the brevity approach. E.g.
>  > by introducing two cell attributes "style-columns-repeated"
>  > arbitrary cell instead of being fixed to columns or rows.
row/column (style) element and things will get messed up.
attribute makes not much sense.
stored in a cell (often the first) instead of in the column/row element.
regions, separately from the cell instances, will benefit from this approach.
discussed/accepted in the telecon on 2006-08-28.


text:
Goose Bay YYR
19-year-old hoping to be youngest woman to fly solo around the globe lands in N.L.
25 August 2021 Canadian Aviation News
From CTV News – link to source story and VIDEO
By Sarah Smellie, The Canadian Press Staff | Tuesday, August 24, 2021
Zara Rutherford
HAPPY VALLEY-GOOSE BAY, N.L. — A teenage pilot hoping to be the youngest woman to fly solo around the world landed in Labrador Monday, proud to have finished her first transatlantic flight and the hardest part of her journey.
Nineteen-year-old Zara Rutherford began her adventure on Aug. 18 in Belgium, where she was born. She aims to end it sometime in November, when she'll land on the exact spot from which she took off, thus closing her circular path around the Earth.
She said she knew the long hours looking at nothing but the vast, grey Atlantic Ocean would be difficult, adding that she's glad she tackled it at the beginning of her trip.
"It's kind of freaky, it's weird — you start getting optical illusions," Rutherford said in an interview Tuesday. "When you're in the air like that for three, four hours, you start thinking you're seeing land ΓǪ and then you start struggling to differentiate between the water and the sky, or the water and the clouds."
Flying over Greenland was also a towering challenge, she said, with the high terrain and ferocious winds. "I think now I've really got the confidence to get me going."
Rutherford has always wanted to be a pilot, but she said she had found it disappointing so few pilots were women. She's hoping her efforts to break the world record for the youngest woman to fly solo around the world will inspire more girls to get into aviation and to explore science, mathematics and engineering.
The inspiration for the quest came easy to the young aviator: "Flying around the world is the ultimate thing you can do," she said.
Her plane of choice is a Shark.Aero two-seat, tandem, ultralight single-engine aircraft. The plane is just under seven metres long, with a wingspan of nearly eight metres, according to the manufacturer's website. It weighs about 300 kilograms when empty.
Rutherford made stops in the United Kingdom, Iceland and Greenland before arriving in Labrador on Monday evening to a large, welcoming crowd at the Happy Valley-Goose Bay airport.
"I had a lot of pressure on the landing; I had to make sure that the landing was good," she joked.
She had intended to leave Labrador on Tuesday, but unfavourable weather kept her on the ground. Instead, she'll leave Wednesday morning, she said, en route for Montreal and then New York City.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 24, 2021.
Goose Bay YYRGoose Bay YYR
Air Canada updates from Gander, Goose Bay, Kamloops & Winnipeg
1 July 2021 Canadian Aviation News
It's good to be back in Gander, a city we have served for several decades. It's time to reconnect communities across Canada and reunite friends and families.
Today was the first day in 156 days that @AirCanada flew to Gander.
There were epic hugs for the ages in the parking lot.
The sun on your shoulders.
Something in the air – new promise, perhaps?
Summer lies ahead, an open road.
This feels like a beginning.
Originally tweeted by Gander Airport (@GanderAirport) on 28 June 2021.
Originally tweeted by Air Canada (@AirCanada) on 28 June 2021.
It's wonderful to return to @C_YYR and we are thrilled to welcome back our customers on board.
Fantastic day in the Big Land as Air Canada and their crew rev their engines once again !!! Good news for our passengers as we launch into the new world 🙂 Bring on the travel!!!
Originally tweeted by Goose Bay Airport (@C_YYR) on 29 June 2021.
We are thrilled to be back to @KamloopsAirport! We have safely restarted and we look forward to welcoming customers on our flights. ✈
Welcome Back @AirCanada! Now servicing @FlyYYC & @yvrairport. #flyyka #kamloopsairport
Originally tweeted by Kamloops Airport (@KamloopsAirport) on 29 June 2021.
Starting out the week with blue skies and added service at #YWG as @AirCanada brings back direct service from Winnipeg to @FlyYYC. As vaccination levels continue to climb, this familiar route will play a vital role in serving our community in the months ahead.
Originally tweeted by Winnipeg Airport (@YWGairport) on 28 June 2021.
Air Canada, Gander YQX, Goose Bay YYR, Kamloops YKA, Winnipeg YWGAir Canada, Gander YQX, Goose Bay YYR, Kamloops YKA, Winnipeg YWG
Details of Financial Support to Air Canada
12 April 2021 Canadian Aviation News
From: Department of Finance Canada | 12 April 2021
The government's financial support to Air Canada is being provided under the Large Employer Emergency Financing Facility (LEEFF). The Canada Enterprise Emergency Funding Corporation (CEEFC) has committed to provide $4 billion in repayable loans and an equity investment in Air Canada of $500 million in newly-issued Class B Voting Shares at a 15 per cent discount to their recent trading price. CEEFC will also receive warrants on Air Canada stock in an amount equal to 10 per cent of the loan commitments (CEEFC's news release contains detailed information regarding the warrants).
As a condition of its agreement with CEEFC, Air Canada has made a number of commitments as outlined below.
Refunds for Canadians
The agreement with Air Canada ensures that customers who had their flights cancelled, or took action to cancel a flight because of the pandemic, are not financially disadvantaged. Under the terms of the financing agreement, Air Canada has committed to offer refunds to any passenger who wants a refund for certain pandemic-related cancelations by the carrier that CEEFC will finance. Air Canada has committed to providing customers with their refunds as soon as possible – beginning April 30, 2021 at the latest. CEEFC will provide additional loan financing of up to $1.4 billion for Air Canada to provide these refunds. Travel agents may assist in the processing of refunds for tickets the travel agents sold but will not be required to refund their commission to Air Canada.
Protecting Jobs
As a condition of the agreement with CEEFC, Air Canada has committed to maintain jobs at current levels, to respect collective bargaining agreements, and protect workers' pensions. Air Canada currently has 14,859 active Canadian employees.
As required more generally under LEEFF, Air Canada has also agreed to restrictions on dividends, buying back shares, and executive compensation. The company will also provide climate-related financial disclosures, including how its future operations will support environmental sustainability and national climate goals.
Restarting Vital Domestic Air Services
The terms of the financial support will ensure that Canadians and communities retain air connections to the rest of Canada, through the restart of service at airports temporarily suspended by Air Canada. For seven airports where Air Canada had permanently canceled service, the airline will seek interline agreements with other carriers with a view to ensure those Canadians continue to have convenient access to their preferred airports and the flights they need.
Service will resume by no later than June 1, 2021, at the following suspended airports based on public health advice:
Supporting Jobs in Canada's Aerospace Industry
The aerospace industry supported 235,000 Canadian jobs and contributed over $28 billion in gross domestic product to the Canadian economy in 2019.
This financing agreement will allow Air Canada to continue to be a vital customer of the Canadian aerospace industry by completing its planned purchase of aircraft as set out in its business plan, which includes aircraft built in Canada, such as the Airbus A220. Aerospace is one of the most innovative and export-driven industries in Canada. The negative impact of the pandemic on the bottom line of airlines has put the relationship between airlines and the aerospace industry at risk, threatening job security in the sector. Ensuring that Air Canada maintains its status as a key customer of Canada's aerospace industry is important to ensuring the long term success of the sector and the thousands of jobs it supports.
Air Canada, Comox YQQ, Fredericton YFC, Gander YQX, Kamloops YKA, North Bay YYB, Saint John YSJ, Sydney NS YQY, Yellowknife YZFAir Canada, Airbus A220, Bathurst ZBF, Comox YQQ, Fredericton YFC, Gander YQX, Goose Bay YYR, Kamloops YKA, North Bay YYB, Penticton YYF, Prince Rupert YPR, Saint John YSJ, Sandspit YZP, Sydney NS YQY, Yellowknife YZF


text:
Q: Why compiler throws the error Type Mismatch The following function is to be done using this code snippet.
    ' If [b9] = "#N/A" Then
    ' If Range("B9").Value = "#N/A" Then
    ' If Range("B9") = #N/A Then
    Range("A9").Select
    With Selection.Interior
    .Color = -16776961
    End With

If the value in the cell B9 has #N/A then the cell A9 must be made red in colour.
The first three lines are the syntaxes that I have tried. None of them seem to work and the error Type Mismatch comes.

A: Try,
If WorksheetFunction.IsNA(Range("B9").Value) Then
    Range("A9").Interior.Color = -16776961
End If

A: A bit shorter than of BigBen's answer:
If [ISNA(B9)] Then...

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


ORLANDO, Fla. - Two counties in Central Florida have been issued rabies alerts after finding animals with the disease, some after attacks.
In early January, several people near Maitland were attacked by a rabid otter.
"I was trying to get it off, and I couldn't get it off," Ann-Christine Langselis said. "I wasn't even aware I was screaming."
A stray kitten in Brevard County also tested positive for rabies.
And earlier this week, several people in and around Emerald Island Resort near Kissimmee were attacked by a coyote with rabies. One man even fought a rabid coyote off by kicking it.
Robin O'Donnell was bitten by the same coyote with rabies while she was outside gardening. That coyote was eventually killed by animal control officers.
"And before I could move, this thing pounced on me," she said. "It just kept clamping down on my thigh."
As a result, both Brevard and Osceola counties have issued rabies alerts, warning citizens that wild or domestic animals could have the disease.
Over the last three years, Florida has seen the number of rabies cases rise from about 59 to 110, according to the Florida Department of Health.
However, that increase still doesn't come close to the more than 200 cases in 1998, 2004 and 2005.
If you happen to stumble on an animal and you're not sure if it has rabies, animal experts say the best thing you can do is just try to get away.
It's part of Bob Cross' job with Critter Capture Services to encounter all kinds of animals. Cross said he's had two close calls over the years when he was bitten by two different raccoons, but thankfully, both ended up not having rabies.
"If it's rabid, it's gonna be acting strange, I mean, not just walking past you," Cross said. "Rabid animals are gonna act very different -- very weird, and you'll say, 'What is that?' That's just, I mean, he might be turning circles, he might be frothing at the mouth, laying down ... just something abnormal."
If you are bitten by an animal you think might have rabies, experts recommend seeking medical attention immediately.


text:
Filters: Author is Collins, Scott L. [Clear All Filters]
Cleland EE, Clark CM, Collins SL, et al. Patterns of trait convergence and divergence among native and exotic species in herbaceous plant communities are not modified by nitrogen enrichment. Journal of Ecology. 2011;99:1327 -1338. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2745.2011.01860.x.
Koerner SE, Burkepile DE, Fynn RWS, et al. Plant community response to loss of large herbivores differs between North American and South African savanna grasslands. Ecology. 2014;95:808 -816. doi:10.1890/13-1828.1.
Baer SG, Blair JM, Collins SL, Knapp AK. Plant community responses to resource availability and heterogeneity during restoration. Oecologia. 2004;139:617 -629. doi:10.1007/s00442-004-1541-3.
Hartnett DC, Fay PA. Plant populations: Patterns and processes. In: Knapp AK, Briggs JM, Hartnett DC, Collins SL Grassland Dynamics: Long-Term Ecological Research in Tallgrass Prairie. Grassland Dynamics: Long-Term Ecological Research in Tallgrass Prairie. New York: Oxford University Press; 1998:81 -100.
Adler P, Seabloom EW, Borer ET, et al. Productivity is a poor predictor of plant species richness. Science. 2011;333:1750 -1753. doi:10.1126/science.1204498.
Fay P, Carlisle JD, Knapp AK, Blair JM, Collins SL. Productivity responses to altered rainfall patterns in a C4-dominated grassland. Oecologia. 2003;137:245 -251. doi:10.1007/s00442-003-1331-3.
Knapp AK, Avolio ML, Beier C, et al. Pushing precipitation to the extremes in distributed experiments: recommendations for simulating wet and dry years. Global Change Biology. 2017;23(5):1774-1782. doi:10.1111/gcb.13504.
Knapp AK, Fay PA, Blair JM, et al. Rainfall variability, carbon cycling and plant species diversity in a mesic grassland. Science. 2002;298:2202 -2205. doi:10.1126/science.1076347.
Koerner SE, Collins SL, Blair JM, Knapp AK, Smith MD. Rainfall variability has minimal effects on grassland recovery from repeated grazing. Journal of Vegetation Science. 2014;25:36 -44. doi:10.1111/jvs.12065.
Collins SL, Suding KN, Cleland EE, et al. Rank clocks and plant community dynamics. Ecology. 2008;89:3534 -3541. doi:10.1890/07-1646.1.
Hayden BP. Regional climate and the distribution of tallgrass prairie. In: Knapp AK, Briggs JM, Hartnett DC, Collins SL Grassland Dynamics: Long-Term Ecological Research in Tallgrass Prairie. Grassland Dynamics: Long-Term Ecological Research in Tallgrass Prairie. New York: Oxford University Press; 1998:19 -34. Available at: http://www.colostate.edu/Depts/GDPE/Distinguished_Ecologists/2005/Hayden/grassland%20dynamics%20ch2.pdf.
Petrie MD, Peters DPC, Yao J, et al. Regional grassland productivity responses to precipitation during multiyear above- and below-average rainfall periods. Global Change Biology. 2018;24(5):1935 - 1951. doi:10.1111/gcb.2018.24.issue-510.1111/gcb.14024.
Kirkman K, Collins SL, Smith MD, et al. Responses to fire differ between South African and North American grassland communities. Journal of Vegetation Science. 2014;25:793 -804. doi:10.1111/jvs.12130.
Collins SL, Smith MD. Scale-dependent interaction of fire andgrazing on community heterogeneity in tallgrass prairie. Ecology. 2006;87:2058 -2067. doi:10.1890/0012-9658(2006)87[2058:SIOFAG]2.0.CO;2.
Petrie MD, Brunsell N, Vargas R, et al. The sensitivity of carbon exchanges in Great Plains grasslands to precipitation variability. Journal of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences. 2016;121:280-294. doi:10.1002/2015JG003205.
Cleland EE, Collins SL, Dickson TL, et al. Sensitivity of grassland plant community composition to spatial vs. temporal variation in precipitation. Ecology. 2013;94:1687 -1696. doi:10.1890/12-1006.1.
Smith MD, Knapp AK, Collins SL, et al. Shared drivers but divergent ecological responses: Insights from long-term experiments in mesic savanna grasslands. BioScience. 2016;66(8):666 - 682. doi:10.1093/biosci/biw077.
Griffin-Nolan RJ, Blumenthal DM, Collins SL, et al. Shifts in plant functional composition following long-term drought in grasslands. Jones H. Journal of Ecology. 2019;107(5):2133 - 2148. doi:10.1111/1365-2745.13252.
Griffin-Nolan RJ, Blumenthal DM, Collins SL, et al. Shifts in plant functional composition following long‐term drought in grasslands. Journal of Ecology. 2019;107(5):2133-2148. Available at: https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/1365-2745.13252.
Knapp AK, Briggs JM, Collins SL, et al. Shrub encroachment in North American grasslands: Shifts in growth form dominance rapidly alters control of ecosystem carbon inputs. Global Change Biology. 2008;14:615 -623. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2486.2007.01512.x.
Koerner SE, Collins SL. Small-scale patch structure in North American and South African grasslands responds differently to grazing and fire. Landscape Ecology. 2013;28:1293 -1306. doi:10.1007/s10980-013-9866-0.
Baer SG, Collins SL, Blair JM, Fiedler A, Knapp AK. Soil heterogeneity effects on tallgrass prairie community heterogeneity: anapplication of ecological theory to restoration ecology. Restoration Ecology. 2005;13:413 -424. doi:10.1111/j.1526-100X.2005.00051.x.
Baer SG, Adams T, Scott DA, Blair JM, Collins SL. Soil heterogeneity increases plant diversity after twenty years of manipulation during grassland restoration. Ecological Applications. 2020;30(1):e02014.
Risch AC, Zimmermann S, Ochoa-Hueso R, et al. Soil net nitrogen mineralisation across global grasslands. Nature Communications. 2019;10(4981). doi:10.1038/s41467-019-12948-2.
Baer SG, Blair JM, Knapp AK, Collins SL. Soil resources regulate productivity and diversity in newly established tallgrass prairie. Ecology. 2003;84:724 -735. doi:10.1890/0012-9658(2003)084[0724:SRRPAD]2.0.CO;2.
Ransom MD, Rice CW, Todd TC, Wehmueller WA. Soils and soil biota. In: Knapp AK, Briggs JM, Hartnett DC, Collins SL Grassland Dynamics: Long-Term Ecological Research in Tallgrass Prairie. Grassland Dynamics: Long-Term Ecological Research in Tallgrass Prairie. New York: Oxford University Press; 1998:48 -66.
Jones SK, Ripplinger J, Collins SL. Species reordering, not changes in richness, drives long-term dynamics in grassland communities. Coulson T. Ecology Letters. 2017;20(12):1565. doi:10.1111/ele.12864.
Cleland EE, Clark CM, Collins SL, et al. Species responses to nitrogen fertilization in herbaceous plant communities, and associated species traits. Ecology. 2008;89:1175 -. doi:10.1890/07-1104.1.
Collins SL, Koerner SE, Plaut JA, et al. Stability of tallgrass prairie during a 19-year increase in growing season precipitation. Functional Ecology. 2012;26:1450 -1459. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2435.2012.01995.x.
Heatherly T, Whiles MR, Gibson DJ, et al. Stream insect occupancy-frequency patterns and metapopulation structure. Oecologia. 2007;151:313 -321. doi:10.1007/s00442-006-0596-8.
Knapp AK, Hoover DL, Blair JM, et al. A test of two mechanisms proposed to optimize grassland aboveground primary productivity in response to grazing. Journal of Plant Ecology. 2012;5:357 -365. doi:10.1093/jpe/rts020.
Ratajczak Z, Nippert JB, Collins SL. Woody encroachment decreases diversity across North American grasslands and savannas. Ecology. 2012;93:697 -703. doi:10.1890/11-1199.1.
Dodds WK, Collins SL, Hamilton SK, et al. You are not always what we think you eat: selective assimilation across multiple whole-stream isotopic tracer studies. Ecology. 2014;95:2757 -2767. doi:10.1890/13-2276.1.


text:
American Cancer Society's Relay for Life Celebrates 25 Years in White Bear Lake
White Bear Lake celebrated 25 years of hosting the Relay for Life—the second largest event in the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network—on July 26.
Donald Pawlik
By: Claire Swenson
"For one night our big suburb of White Bear Lake feels like a small town, where everyone knows and reaches out to support each other through our common bond of fighting this disease," says Donald Pawlik, one of the event chairs for the Relay for Life of White Bear Lake area.
Hosted at the south campus of White Bear Lake Area High School, the Relay is an all-night walk, in which teams from the community have someone walking the track for a total of 12 hours, beginning at 6 p.m. This year, the festivities were interrupted by thunderstorms, but not before the opening ceremony and Survivor's Lap.
Typically, the ceremony would be followed by a team lap, where the teams receive recognition, and continuing to walk the track lit by luminaries throughout the night. The night ends with closing ceremonies, called Messages to Heaven, and consist of speakers and a time in which participants release messages for loved ones lost to cancer in biodegradable balloons.
White Bear Lake's community has been committed to supporting the American Cancer Society. "[A] very strong community of individuals who are dedicated to fight against cancer have allowed for our event to continue to be one of the largest in the entire state of Minnesota," says Pawlik. "These individuals are people who have been impacted by cancer, either as a survivor or impacted by a loved one and feel we need to rid the world of cancer."
Pawlik reports that at the event, there are 389 registered participants on 45 teams, 150-200 survivors and 200 unregistered people or people who come not on a team. The funds raised by the Relay support the American Cancer Society's cancer research at the University of Minnesota, advocacy and patient care.
Outside of the event, Pawlik says that volunteers talk about the services that the American Cancer Society provides and continue raising awareness for individuals in need of support.
"Our community is passionate about letting legislature know where we stand when it comes to cancer support, funding and also smart legislation that will help prevent cancer," Pawlik says. "We have very strong community of individuals who are dedicated to fight against cancer."
[Sports]
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Naturally Well White Bear Wellness Collective is 'Self-Care Central'
This website is about you and your community. Help keep your neighbors informed with random musings around town.
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Jason Schmitt, May 9, 2014. My own property nightmare.
Disaster can strike at any time, so it is vital that you and your property are prepared. Jason Schmitt owner of Real Property Management in Coeur d'Alene provided his advice on ways property owners can prevent damage and how Real Property Management can help you recover from the aftermath of a disaster. Our own home burned down in October of 2009. The fire struck with unbelievable speed and devastation.
How can property owners prepare for natural disasters like earthquakes, fires and floods?
Knowledge is the key to minimizing potential damage to your home. The first step is identifying which potential disasters are prevalent in the area of your property. In the deserts of California, owners have various concerns including earthquakes, fire and mudslides.
In the Southeast, hurricanes are an issue, while the Midwest faces tornadoes. Your local Real Property Management office can assist you in determining the threat level and provide options to help.
How does Real Property Management help owners prepare for disasters?
A typical disaster strikes without notice, so making sure you have the proper insurance and customer contact information, mitigation on site (retaining walls, weed clearance, etc.) and a good support team are all keys to being prepared. Dealing with the insurance company alone can itself be traumatic. Make sure you have pictures/videos of everything within the home, especially the cabinets, flooring, and appliances. (We always take pictures/videos of the home prior to listing it). Trying to remember after your home is destroyed/damaged is hard, especially when you are still basically in shock. Insurance companies are notorious for wanting a list "as soon as possible" after the event.
Real Property Management can help you create an action plan that addresses the common threats in your area. It could be as simple as clearing brush, checking rafter vents or upgrading retaining walls, but a plan helps owners address issues and have peace of mind.
How does Real Property Management help owners recover from disasters?
Dealing with insurance companies, inspections and contractors (and ensuring they are properly licensed and insured), on top of dealing with tenants, possible relocation and all the other issues that come with recovering from a disaster can be very overwhelming.
Since we have also been through a natural disaster we are well aware of the emotional toll it can take. Your Real Property Management office takes the load off your shoulders by meeting inspectors and contractors, coordinating with the insurance companies and assisting tenants.
When it comes to protecting your rental property and assets, Real Property Management is your first line of defense. In the event of a natural disaster, we allow you to focus on the aftermath in your personal life without the added stress of recovering your property from damage.


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Stormtech is a member of the Standards Australia Committee and has been involved in the writing of the code covering linear drainage.


Think about the last big content asset you created. Maybe it was a whitepaper or an eBook.
For digital marketers, it's become a requirement to be able to explain how well that content performed. You probably start out by sharing how much traffic the asset pulled in and where that traffic came from. Hopefully, you can easily tell how many leads it generated.
What if I asked you how much sales revenue that specific asset drove? That's likely where you'll get stumped. Tracking how your sales team shares content and which assets help move the needle is easier said than done.
Understanding which assets help generate revenue should be a primary goal of your content marketing efforts. Bring in new leads, turn them into sales opportunities, close the deal and bring money to your business – it's the ultimate marketing and sales relationship achievement.
With the right content and sales analytics tools, you have the potential to unleash a whole new world of marketing ROI.
Which content are salespeople using? Is it up-to-date? On message? Aligned with the brand?
Which are salespeople not using? Is there new, approved content just sitting on the shelf? Is this content valuable?
When is content being used? Are certain assets shared and presented regularly at different stages of the selling cycle?
Which assets are helping to drive revenue, and which are not? Which deals have closed, and how has content contributed to those results?
Marketers don't always know these answers, which makes tracking the true value of sales content next to impossible.
In our new whitepaper, The New Marketing ROI: Content Analytics Meets Sales Enablement we consider how companies are using sales enablement technology to better understand content performance – and bottom-line value.
Download your free copy to learn how marketing and sales alignment results in more deals closed, and ultimately, more business success.