Sesion byte for server and code memory.
and add memory code and add coding memory as it does blizzard. Eliminate in this way 90% hack, then create Anticheat detect attempts to change the server session which will allow elminacje 99.9% hackers.
They will have to create your own anticheat, but if good complicate the code and the code will not has drained to the Internet is soldat will be protected for many years.
You know, i'll give you a hint: every time you use google translate, try to translate english text back to polish and see what it looks like. If it doesn't make any sense, don't paste it. It's a hint it actually doesn't make any sense and google failed terribly.
For long time Im helping translating apps and games via crowdin.com(it have build in bing help) and I can say that even if google translate is nice for simple one word stuff, bing is better at translating string of words. Its not perfect but good.
Even if I understood correctly this suggestion it will not work in long term. The most important thing to fight cheaters for now is better server controlled game state.


The air force that defends one of the world's oldest civilizations soon will be adding some of the most advanced Boeing [NYSE: BA] transport helicopters to its fleet.
Boeing is modernizing six CH-47C Egyptian Air Force Chinooks to the U.S. Army CH-47D standard. The first delivery is planned by the end of 2002, followed by five deliveries in 2003.
Boeing will complete contract negotiations for modernization of six more Egyptian Chinooks by the end of 2002. This will enable completion of two additional D-model upgrades in 2003, followed by four more in 2004. These modernized Chinooks will join four newly built CH-47Ds delivered to Egypt in 1999.
Egypt originally purchased 15 CH-47C Chinooks in 1980. Three CH-47Cs remain in the Egyptian fleet and will not be modernized. These aircraft may eventually be converted into maintenance trainers.
"Modernization of the Egyptian Air Force Chinooks means that nearly the entire worldwide CH-47 inventory will be D-models or later configuration," said Pat Shanahan, vice president and general manager, Boeing Army Programs and Rotorcraft. "The fact that nearly all our customers have upgraded their Chinook fleets demonstrates clearly the high value they place on the CH-47's operational capabilities across the military and civil mission spectrum."
Boeing Army Programs and Rotorcraft is a business unit of Boeing Integrated Defense Systems, and produces and develops military rotorcraft, including the CH-47 Chinook, V-22 Osprey and the RAH-66 Comanche for the U.S. Armed Forces and allied military services around the world.
A unit of The Boeing Company, Boeing Integrated Defense Systems, or IDS, is one of the world's largest space and defense businesses. Headquartered in St. Louis, Boeing Integrated Defense Systems is a $23 billion business. It provides systems solutions to its global military, government and commercial customers. It is a leading provider of intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance; the world's largest military aircraft manufacturer; the world's largest satellite manufacturer and a leading provider of space-based communications; the primary systems integrator for U.S. missile defense; NASA's largest contractor; and a global leader in launch services.


According to numerous and consistent press reports, the Saudi government has change import regulations for steel rebar. From January 2010, imports of steel rebar are subject to an import duty of 5 percent. The import duty will not be levied on imports from members of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC).


Clinical Cardiac Electrophysiology Residency Program. A residency training program, within the subspecialty of cardiovascular disease, which prepares physicians in intricate technical procedures to evaluate heart rhythms and determine appropriate treatment. Requires prior completion of a program in internal medicine.


text:
Historical Ecology for Risk Management 2014
A view of the beach from downtown Barrow, Alaska
Applied Research in Environmental Sciences Nonprofit, Inc., ARIES, the Barrow Arctic Science Consortium, BASC, the North Slope Borough of Risk Management, and Cooperative Extension of Ilisgavik College are collaborating to plan, develop and implement a historical ecology model for the North Slope Coastal Region of Alaska. Historical ecology is an applied research program that focuses on interactions of people and their environments. Research applications involve studying and understanding this relationship in both time and space to gain a full picture of all of its accumulated effects. The research program can be applied to understanding changes among community landscapes that can assist strategies for the future. For this proposal the emphases align with the ARIES mission of research, education and community engagement, the Inupiaq Learning Framework of the North Slope School District, and the eco-heritage indicator of the CRIOS model (Cumulative Regional Integrated Operability Scores). Read more at the project website here.
The project emphases are 1) a bibliographic database of relevant historical resources, 2) an examination of the shoreline to provide a long time-series baseline, 3) simulation models to demonstrate socio-natural cycles of change for the North Slope shoreline, 4) the historical ecology study of the shoreline, interactive mapping and database available as a web based resource to assist academia, industry, regional government and local communities for socio-natural risk management (e.g., Barrow Area Information Database, 5) an integrated team of researchers, corporations, community planners, and Risk Management of the North Slope Borough to extract data and provide simulation models that apply to current studies and hazards of the region, especially mitigation tools for community decisions, and 6) provide a variety of eco-heritage opportunities that include community participation in research, educational products, age level appropriate activities and outreaches for community service learning, such as Teen CERT for the Next Generations and PolarTREC.
Welcome to Barrow, Alaska
The team was in Barrow, Alaska on the North Slope Borough Coast. Barrow is the economic, transportation and administrative center for the North Slope Borough. Located on the Chukchi Sea coast, Barrow is the northernmost community in the United States. The community is traditionally known as Ukpeagvik, "place where snowy owls are hunted". Learn more from the City of Barrow Website
The land is vast and remote; and while seemingly rugged, is remarkably fragile. The ancient cultural traditions practiced today by Iñupiat Eskimos have survived in one of the world's harshest climates through their ability to adapt. They adapted to the discovery of oil in their traditional homeland by forming the North Slope Borough which offers residents a chance to help manage the lands, participate in the benefits of the oil boom while at the same time protect subsistence values, especially whaling. Learn more about the North Slope of Alaska.
10 August 2014 Goodbye Barrow
Goodbye everyone, After a month in Barrow it is time for me to say goodbye and to thank the people who helped me on my expedition. Graduate student Mike Brady, and my researchers Dr. Anne Garland and Dr. Kathleen Fischer who taught me about historical ecology, risk management, coastal erosion…
Read Journal 0
8 August 2014 Arctic Climate Monitoring
Hello Everyone, Did you know that NOAA has an Earth System Research Laboratory (ESRL), part of the Global Monitoring Division, just outside of Barrow, Alaska? The Global Monitoring Division conducts observations and research related to the ozone layer, air quality, and climate change. Barrow is…
6 August 2014 Arctic Weather
Hello Everyone, Understanding the weather is important no matter where you are. But up in the Arctic it can be life or death. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) National Weather Service (NWS) Alaska Region provides weather, hydrologic, climate forecasts and volcanic ash…
4 August 2014 Arctic Beaches
Hello everyone, Beaches are fun to visit no matter where you are in the world, including the Arctic. So I hit the Barrow beach with oceanographer Dr. Kathleen Fischer to see what we could learn. Barrow's beach is very different from the tan colored, sandy beaches I am use to back home. The beach…
14 July 2014 - 9 August 2014
Barrow, AK
Project Funded Title
Historical Ecology for Risk Management: Youth Sustainability (HERMYS)
Related Expeditions
Historical Ecology for Risk Management
-- Select -- 10 February 2014 PolarTREC 201 11 February 2014 Why Throw Hot 13 February 2014 A Diverse and 28 June 2014 From Phoenix, Ari 29 June 2014 First Wildlife Si 13 July 2014 Aviation History 13 July 2014 I'm off to B 14 July 2014 Landing in Barrow 15 July 2014 Arriving to Barro 17 July 2014 The Arctic Tundra 18 July 2014 Arctic Bloom 19 July 2014 Foundations - Thi 20 July 2014 Legends from the 21 July 2014 Arctic STEM 23 July 2014 The price is...Ar 26 July 2014 Arctic Foundation 26 July 2014 Arctic Disaster W 28 July 2014 Arctic Ice 29 July 2014 Coastal Erosion 30 July 2014 The Barrow Utilid 31 July 2014 Arctic First Reso 1 August 2014 Arctic Archealog 2 August 2014 Arctic Storm Sur 4 August 2014 Arctic Beaches 6 August 2014 Arctic Weather 8 August 2014 Arctic Climate M 10 August 2014 Goodbye Barrow
Sian Proctor - Teacher
South Mountain Community College
Sian Proctor is a geology professor at South Mountain Community College in Phoenix, Arizona. Throughout her adult life she has pushed herself to take on new challenges and to learn new things that she can bring back to her students. She has a BS in environmental science, MS in geology, and a PhD in science education. Both her master's and doctoral research involved the use of technology to understand how individuals learn. She is continually developing new ways to engage her students and to present scientific information. She has a strong curriculum development background, teaches both hybrid and online classes, and has traveled and taught around the world. She was a finalist for the 2009 NASA Astronaut Program, was on the Discovery Channel reality TV show called The Colony, and was the Education Outreach Officer on the 4-month NASA funded Hawaii Space Exploration Analog and Simulation 2013 Mission (hi-seas.org). Sian's experiences on The Colony and the HI-SEAS mission have taught her how to live in unique environments. She believes in life-long learning and tries to encourage this philosophy with her students. She loves traveling, playing sports, photography, and cooking.
Anne Garland - Researcher
Applied Research in Environmental Sciences Nonprofit, Inc.
Anne is interested in applying natural science and social science research to assist community based decision making in the areas of Historical Ecology, Public Archaeology, Museum Education, Culture Contact Studies, Applied Anthropology for Disaster Preparedness and Mitigation. You can see her ARIES website here.
Kathleen Fischer - Treasurer
Following completion of her B.S. in Chemistry at the University of Illinois - Chicago, Kathleen worked in industry as an engineer and research chemist prior to attending graduate school. After completing her Ph.D. in oceanography (geochemistry) at Oregon State University, she worked for the Navy as a civilian scientist (oceanographer). Kathleen also completed a J.D. degree at Willamette University College of Law. She taught marine science and coastal management full time at Elizabeth City State University in North Carolina. She has been the Corporate Treasurer of Applied Research in Environmental Sciences Nonprofit, Inc. for the past 6 years, also teaching earth science and oceanography courses as an adjunct at a community college until a few years ago. Her interests are in coastal management, both regulatory, policy, and scientific aspects, and near-shore processes affecting coastal erosion. She is the author or co-author of several published papers.
Historical Ecology for Risk Management 2014 Resources
Ocean Literacy and Coastal Geology Online Activity
Main Link
Access the Online Activity Here
High school and Up
Download, Share, and Remix
Weather Principles & Climate Literacy Online Activity
STEM Experience Report - Sian Proctor
The report is written by teacher participants upon return from their field expedition portion of the PolarTREC program. It summarizes the benefit of the expedition to the teacher, a description of activities, and a summary of how teachers plan to link this experience in classrooms and communities.
All Aged
2014 Arctic Expedition Wrap-Up
This one hour webinar is a great look at the PolarTREC 2014 Arctic expeditions. Each teacher presents a little about the research projects, implementation in the classroom, and outreach into communities.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Q: Calculate slope, length and angle of a specific part / side / line on a contour?
I got two detected contours in an image and need the diameter between the two vertical-edges of the top contour and the diameter between the vertical-edges of the lower contour. I achieved this with this code.
import cv2
import numpy as np
import math, os
import imutils

img = cv2.imread("1.jpg")
gray = cv2.cvtColor(img, cv2.COLOR_RGB2GRAY)
gray = cv2.GaussianBlur(gray, (7, 7), 0)
edges = cv2.Canny(gray, 200, 100)
edges = cv2.dilate(edges, None, iterations=1)
edges = cv2.erode(edges, None, iterations=1)

cnts = cv2.findContours(edges.copy(), cv2.RETR_EXTERNAL, cv2.CHAIN_APPROX_SIMPLE)
cnts = imutils.grab_contours(cnts)

# sorting the contours to find the largest and smallest one
c1 = max(cnts, key=cv2.contourArea)
c2 = min(cnts, key=cv2.contourArea)

# determine the most extreme points along the contours
extLeft1 = tuple(c1[c1[:, :, 0].argmin()][0])
extRight1 = tuple(c1[c1[:, :, 0].argmax()][0])
extLeft2 = tuple(c2[c2[:, :, 0].argmin()][0])
extRight2 = tuple(c2[c2[:, :, 0].argmax()][0])

# show contour
cimg = cv2.drawContours(img, cnts, -1, (0,200,0), 2)

# set y of left point to y of right point
lst1 = list(extLeft1)
lst1[1] = extRight1[1]
extLeft1 = tuple(lst1)

lst2 = list(extLeft2)
lst2[1] = extRight2[1]
extLeft2= tuple(lst2)

# compute the distance between the points (x1, y1) and (x2, y2)
dist1 = math.sqrt( ((extLeft1[0]-extRight1[0])**2)+((extLeft1[1]-extRight1[1])**2) )
dist2 = math.sqrt( ((extLeft2[0]-extRight2[0])**2)+((extLeft2[1]-extRight2[1])**2) )

# draw lines
cv2.line(cimg, extLeft1, extRight1, (255,0,0), 1)
cv2.line(cimg, extLeft2, extRight2, (255,0,0), 1)

# draw the distance text
font = cv2.FONT_HERSHEY_SIMPLEX
fontScale = 0.5
fontColor = (255,0,0)
lineType = 1
cv2.putText(cimg,str(dist1),(155,100),font, fontScale, fontColor, lineType)
cv2.putText(cimg,str(dist2),(155,280),font, fontScale, fontColor, lineType)

# show image
cv2.imshow("Image", img)
cv2.waitKey(0)

Now I would also need the angle of the slope lines on the bottom side of the upper contour.

Any ideas how I can get this? Is it possible using contours?
Or is it necessary to use HoughLinesP and sort the regarding lines somehow?
And continued question: Maybe its also possible to get function which describes parabola slope of that sides ?

Thanks alot for any help!

A: There are several ways to obtain just the slopes. In order to know the slope, we can can use cv2.HoughLines to detect the bottom horizontal line, detect to end points of that line and from those, obtain the slopes. As an illustration,
lines = cv2.HoughLines(edges, rho=1, theta=np.pi/180, threshold=int(dist2*0.66) )

on edges in your code gives 4 lines, and if we force the angle to be horizontal
for line in lines:
    rho, theta = line[0]

    # here we filter out non-horizontal lines
    if abs(theta - np.pi/2) > np.pi/180:
        continue

    a = np.cos(theta)
    b = np.sin(theta)
    x0 = a*rho
    y0 = b*rho
    x1 = int(x0 + 1000*(-b))
    y1 = int(y0 + 1000*(a))
    x2 = int(x0 - 1000*(-b))
    y2 = int(y0 - 1000*(a))

    cv2.line(img_lines,(x1,y1),(x2,y2),(0,0,255),1)

we get:

For the extended question concerns with the parabolas, we first compose a function that returns the left and right points:
def horizontal_scan(gray_img, thresh=50, start=50):
    '''
    scan horizontally for left and right points until we met an all-background line
    @param thresh: threshold for background pixel
    @param start: y coordinate to start scanning
    '''

    ret = []
    thickness = 0
    for i in range(start,len(gray_img)):
        row = gray_img[i]

        # scan for left:
        left = 0
        while left < len(row) and row[left]<thresh:
            left += 1

        if left==len(row):
            break;
        # scan for right:
        right = left
        while right < len(row) and row[right] >= thresh:
            right+=1

        if thickness == 0:
            thickness = right - left

        # prevent sudden drop, error/noise
        if (right-left) < thickness//5:
            continue
        else:
            thickness = right - left

        ret.append((i,left,right))
    return ret

# we start scanning from extLeft1 down until we see a blank line
# with some tweaks, we can make horizontal_scan run on edges,
# which would be simpler and faster
horizontal_lines = horizontal_scan(gray, start = extLeft1[1])

# check if horizontal_line[0] are closed to extLeft1 and extRight1
print(horizontal_lines[0], extLeft1, extRight1[0])

Note that we can use this function to find the end points of the horizontal line returned by HoughLines.
# last line of horizontal_lines would be the points we need:
upper_lowest_y, upper_lowest_left, upper_lowest_right = horizontal_lines[-1]

img_lines = img.copy()
cv2.line(img_lines, (upper_lowest_left, upper_lowest_y), extLeft1, (0,0,255), 1)
cv2.line(img_lines, (upper_lowest_right, upper_lowest_y), extRight1, (0,0,255),1)

and that gives:

Let's return to the extended question, where we have those left and right points:
left_points = [(x,y) for y,x,_ in horizontal_lines]
right_points = [(x,y) for y,_,x in horizontal_lines]

Obviously, they would not fit perfectly in a parabola, so we need some sort of approximation/fitting here. For that, we can build a LinearRegression model:
from sklearn.linear_model import LinearRegression
class BestParabola:
    def __init__(self, points):
        x_x2 = np.array([(x**2,x) for x,_ in points])
        ys = np.array([y for _,y in points])

        self.lr = LinearRegression()
        self.lr.fit(x_x2,ys)
        self.a, self.b = self.lr.coef_
        self.c = self.lr.intercept_
        self.coef_ = (self.c,self.b,self.a)

    def transform(self,points):
        x_x2 = np.array([(x**2,x) for x,_ in points])
        ys = self.lr.predict(x_x2)

        return np.array([(x,y) for (_,x),y in zip(x_x2,ys)])

And then, we can fit the given left_points, right_points to get the desired parabolas:
# construct the approximate parabola
# the parabollas' coefficients are accessible by BestParabola.coef_
left_parabola = BestParabola(left_points)
right_parabola = BestParabola(right_points)

# get points for rendering
left_parabola_points = left_parabola.transform(left_points)
right_parabola_points = right_parabola.transform(right_points)

# render with matplotlib, cv2.drawContours would work
plt.figure(figsize=(8,8))
plt.imshow(cv2.cvtColor(img,cv2.COLOR_BGR2RGB))
plt.plot(left_parabola_points[:,0], left_parabola_points[:,1], linewidth=3)
plt.plot(right_parabola_points[:,0], right_parabola_points[:,1], linewidth=3, color='r')
plt.show()

Which gives:

The left parabola is not perfect, but you should work out that if need be :-)

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Buyers looking for an affordable coastal city are finding Tampa hits the mark. Water-lovers can enjoy the Hillsborough River, Tampa Bay, and the Gulf of Mexico. It's easy to find a place to golf, shop, and enjoy professional sports. The New York Yankees and their competitors come to town in the spring for pre-season baseball.
The Tampa Bay metro area stretches from the rural farmlands of Ruskin and Plant City all the way to beach towns like Clearwater and New Port Richey. The median price for a home in Tampa is $210,000, which is a 10 percent increase over the last year. Plenty of options exist for buyers who desire a property under $150k, especially those hoping to find a home in an active adult community.
Several single-family and attached homes at or below the $150k range are available at Timber Pines in Spring Hill, a suburb to the northwest of Tampa. Available homes in this price range typically have two bedrooms and two bathrooms and range in size from 1,160 to 1,350 square feet. This gated community for 55+ residents has four golf courses at different levels of difficulty so beginners are just as comfortable playing like pros. There's a driving range and a putting green as well as two pro shops.
The community covers 1,400 acres and has 3,452 homes. The Lodge houses many amenities at Timber Pines, including a ballroom, a library, meeting rooms, pools, shuffleboard and bocce ball courts, as well as space for pickleball and tennis. In the Recreation Center, residents can enjoy a fitness center and a woodworking shop. There's also a performing arts center and a country club which has restaurants and party rooms.
Beautiful homes in just the right price range can be found at Village on the Green in Clearwater. This is a 55+ community of single-family homes, attached villas, and condos surrounded by gorgeous landscaping, natural scenery, and tropical plants. One-bedroom condos with two bathrooms are available below the $150k price range, as are villas with two bedrooms and more than 1,000 square feet of living space.
There's plenty to do at the clubhouse, including an exercise room and a library. Residents play billiards, swim in the outdoor pool, and meet up at the shuffleboard courts for a friendly (or competitive) game. Arts and crafts classes happen frequently in the multi-purpose room and you'll have the opportunity to get together with your neighbors for a barbecue on the pool patio. There's also plenty to enjoy in the Clearwater community. Be sure to check out Sunsets at Pier 60, a nightly ritual where people gather to watch the sun go down over the ocean. There are musicians, artists, and food trucks on hand to help with the celebration.
Dozens of properties below $150k are available in the popular Sun City Center community of Kings Point. Buyers 55+ can select from single-family and attached homes that range in size from one bedroom to three bedrooms. Most properties in this price range have between 1,000 square feet and 1,500 square feet. Smaller units with around 800 square feet can be purchased for less than $100k.
Kings Point is known for keeping residents active. There are two clubhouses, fitness centers and cafés, pools, spas, and shuffleboard courts. Unique amenities include a pottery studio, a cyberspace room, and a heated indoor lap pool. There are courts for lawn bowling, handball, volleyball, and pickleball. Kings Point offers classes and club activities for residents interested in music, books, quilting, and finance. There are social clubs and singles groups. Sun City Center is about half an hour south of Tampa, right off Interstate 75, making travel easy.
All of the homes available for sale at Heather Ridge in Dunedin are within or below the 150k price range. Stay on budget while living just off the Gulf of Mexico in this 55+ community of attached villas and condos. Dunedin is ideally located between Tampa and St. Petersburg and has a thriving art scene. It's also where the Toronto Blue Jays have their spring training baseball stadium.
Heather Ridge homes are low-maintenance and lovely. They come in one or two-bedroom models and most are just less than 1,000 square feet. While living at Heather Ridge, you'll enjoy three outdoor pools as well as outdoor patios and kitchens. Shuffleboard is huge, and walking and biking trails surround a beautiful pond in the middle of the property.
Gorgeous landscaping surrounds Summertree, a 55+ community in New Port Richey where several homes are available below the $150k price range. It's a neighborhood of 800 single-family and attached homes coming in a variety of styles. Choose a two- or three-bedroom home with two bathrooms, a garage, and around 1,400 square feet of living space.
This is an amenity-rich community, with a golf club as well as the Summertree Recreation Center. Residents enjoy an exercise room, an aerobics studio, and several pools, tennis courts, and shuffleboard courts. There's a library, an activity center, horseshoe pits, and lush trails for biking or walking through the community's natural beauty. New Port Richey is less than an hour from Tampa and close to all the Gulf Coast beaches.


(Daylily) Add a little summer flavor to your garden with RAINBOW RHYTHM® 'Orange Smoothie'. This garden treat features stunning 4 inch blooms. 'Orange Smoothie' has heavily ruffled, tropical orange blooms with a large peachy eye. Early to mid summer the heavily budded, sturdy scapes explode with color, and watch for reliable midsummer rebloom. Standing 20-24 inches tall and 18-20 wide, 'Orange Smoothie' is a great daylily to plant in mass. Planted in full sun to part shade locations, 'Orange Smoothie' is drought and salt tolerant. A great perennial for erosion control. Hardy in zone 3-9, daylilies attract the butterflies to the garden. 'Orange Smoothie' is brought to us by the same hybridizer that introduced one of our top selling daylilies, 'Going Bananas'. Great for borders, planted in mass for a long season burst of color, or for you collectors, this is a must have. RAINBOW RHYTHM® 'Orange Smoothie' is a PROVEN WINNERS® Perennial.
Learn more about growing tips and how to care for your RAINBOW RHYTHM® 'Orange Smoothie' Hemerocallis and other Daylilies. See How to care for Daylilies.


Find professional bathroom contractors in Eagle Rock.
Get matched to local bathroom remodeling contractors in Eagle Rock. Receive free price estimates on remodeling your bathroom from local bathroom professionals Eagle Rock.


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text:
Orthotic Management of Low-Tone Children
The Earlier the Better
Home > Articles > Orthotic Management of Low-Tone Children
By Susan Glairon
¡En Español!
Children with low tone need early orthotic intervention to prevent gait problems down the road.
When Ting Cusick arrived in the United States in 1998, the newly adopted one-year-old had nonfunctioning lax hips and feet. But despite these early setbacks, Ting began walking at 14 months, four months earlier than the average Chinese infant, according to her mother, Beverly Cusick, MS, PT, BOC COF.
Ting is now 13 years old and excels in soccer, skiing, gymnastics, and cheerleading. Her mother, a pediatric physical therapist, attributes some of her daughter's athletic success to wearing heel seats in canvas shoes with laces, flat soles, and deep heel boxes, beginning when she was 12 months old.
Photographs of Ting Cusick courtesy of Beverly Cusick.
Although many pediatricians and orthopedic surgeons won't recommend foot orthotics for pronated feet in patients younger than five—saying that children undergo significant developmental changes during their first five years—many orthotists and physical therapists, such as Cusick, argue that it's important to intervene much earlier. These practitioners recommend intervening anywhere from 18 months to two years of age; however, some recommend orthotic intervention as early as when a child begins to stand, and for some infants born prematurely intervention can occur before the child's due date.
"The physician's 'party line' on pronated feet seems to be, 'Don't worry, she'll outgrow it,'" Cusick says, adding that only pronation occurring in a "sound pediatric foot" corrects without intervention. According to Cusick, "children with feet that will not improve over time are dismissed, and they will load their pronated feet two-million times per foot per year in pathomechanical alignment that communicates up the leg to the torso." Muscle fatigue while walking and increasingly stiff leg muscles are common complaints in children, adolescents, and adults who have retained persistent foot pronation, she says.
Challenging Conventional Wisdom
Strobach
"When infants show excessive foot pronation at the time they begin to pull to stand and cruise—around age seven to nine months—the fragile ligaments and underdeveloped foot muscles are at risk for enduring deforming strains that will not recover spontaneously," Cusick says. "The goal is to capture and tip the excessively tilted heel back into a more appropriate alignment for taking body weight while leaving the forefoot active and operative."
Debbie Strobach, PT, MA, is a pediatric splinting specialist at St. John's Mercy Medical Center, St. Louis, Missouri, and has been creating AFO-type splints using low-temperature thermoplastic for low-tone infants in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) for 20 years. She puts splints on infants with low muscle tone before they start standing—anywhere from birth to 12 months—including infants with trisomy 21, congenital myopathy, benign hypotonia, prematurity with muscle imbalance, and other conditions. Strobach says early splinting allows her to minimize the ankle-foot deformity before babies begin to pull to standing independently or begin standing in therapy with assistance. Once the child can stand, Strobach will use an AFO, SMO, or UCBL that is appropriate for the child's alignment to prevent and/or correct the deformity.
"When you first see the deformity, why wait and let the deformity get worse?" she asks. "If you have an infant that you know has low muscle tone, those children are probably not going to improve their alignment without help."
Left: Ting competes in a regional gymnastics event. Her balance is no longer affected by her low tone. Right: Ting "has always been a fearless and aggressive soccer player," says her mother, Beverly Cusick, PT.
Premature infants may have a developmental imbalance in the strength of the peroneus longus and peroneus brevis muscles, Strobach says. This imbalance overpowers the anterior and posterior tibialis, which translates to ankle eversion posturing and later pronation deformities once the child begins standing. Without taping and splinting interventions in the NICU, these infants may show excessive calcaneal valgus in their initial standing posture as they reach the end of their first year. If, on the other hand, the hypotonic baby is splinted in the NICU, the child will most likely require splints for several months, Strobach says. If splinting commences when standing is initiated, the child will usually need splints until age two or three, with the splints being discontinued when the child begins to show age-appropriate alignment and gait, Strobach notes. Without early splinting or foot orthotics, these children may require orthotic intervention to correct their alignment until they are seven- or eight-years old.
"If we can get them early during the first year, we can usually totally correct this before they are standing," Strobach asserts, adding that the goal is to minimize the deformity before the child starts walking.
By age four, Ting had progressed to wearing prefabricated plantar-level insoles to optimize her functioning foot-joint alignment and weight-load distribution, as well as her developing knee and hip-joint alignment. Ting continues to wear the plantar shoe inserts, as "her Asian heritage dictates that her foot joints are more lax than those of Caucasians," Cusick says.
When to Intervene
Children with low muscle tone can develop lax ligaments, which inhibit joint stability in the foot and ankle complex. In hypotonic patients, the heel tilts into valgus, and the weight line shifts medially, causing the midfoot to collapse. Once the feet are pronated, the knees and hips also become misaligned. This means the muscles that move those joints no longer work efficiently, and it takes more energy for these children to do the same work as their non-pronated peers.
Orthotists typically do not intervene before a child starts to pull to standing, but many say they begin orthotic intervention soon after, especially if a child is diagnosed with a developmental disability, such as Down syndrome, where it's known that the child's low-tone condition will be lifelong.
"These are the children you want to brace early, right as they show signs of pulling to stand," says Curt Bertram, CO, who works at the Hanger Prosthetics & Orthotics patient care facility in Hartland, Wisconsin. He adds that children with low tone have ligamentous laxity, which causes hypermobility of the joints and results in pronation of the feet and ankles, which will worsen as the child progresses into adulthood. Bracing early will help these children's bones grow normally, he adds.
"We need to work with our pediatricians to show them that early orthotic intervention with children diagnosed with Down syndrome is needed to prevent abnormal growth due to poor position from ligamentous laxity and hypermobility," Bertram urges. "These low-tone kids fall into pronation, so it's our job as orthotists to hold them in good biomechanical alignment. Don't play the waiting game with these patients. We don't want to create permanent deformities."
Kevin Matthews, CO, LO, owner of Advanced Orthopedic Designs, San Antonio, Texas, agrees. "I have seen many incidences where bracing was definitely indicated, but the pediatrician said these deviations were within normal limits," he says.
Even if the pronation might have self-corrected over time, it's better to err on caution's side and intervene early, Matthews advises, adding that he's more aggressive than some orthotists. He typically recommends orthotic intervention if the patient's talocalcaneal valgus angle is five degrees or greater. His patients are as young as 18 months old.
Bernie Veldman, CO, owner of SureStep and Midwest Orthotic Services, South Bend, Indiana, agrees that the degree of heel valgus is the best determinant for early intervention. The heels of most children with low tone will fall into the 10-to-20-degree range, he says.
"If the orthoses are made correctly, I feel there are no significant negatives associated with early intervention," Matthews says, but he cautions that waiting can result in significant foot deformities. "Hypotonic kids left unbraced will invariably end up with equinus contractures, requiring surgery to bring the foot-ankle complex into normal alignment," he explains.
Matthews has seen eight-year-old hypotonic children with Down syndrome who have "terrible bunions," because they never wore corrective orthoses. Children with hypotonia have true triplanar instability, he explains, where the tibia internally rotates on the talus, the talus will externally rotate, the heel slides off into valgus, and the midfoot collapses into pronation or flat-footedness and the forefoot slides into abduction which leads to bunions, where the big toe deviates medially toward second toe.
Pronated foot. Photograph courtesy of SureStep.
"I believe that of the kids who have five degrees or less of valgus at the heel, 50 to 80 percent will outgrow it without intervention, but we don't know which ones will and which ones won't," Matthews says. "So why not brace? All we are doing is giving the child structural support. We are not taking away from the musculature. We are not making the muscles weak. Why wait until age five because by five the malalignment may well be more severe, especially for those who have accompanying diagnoses like Down syndrome."
For a child who has low tone and flat feet but doesn't have heel involvement, Matthews usually recommends foot orthotics such as pre-made shoe inserts.
Leavitt
"Any time I can provide a child with a better static stance or a noticeably higher level of functional ambulation, I see this as an opportunity that shouldn't be passed by," says Ethan Leavitt, CPO, from Mary Free Bed Rehabilitation Hospital, Grand Rapids, Michigan, who notes that he once casted a six-week-old premature baby a week before the baby's due date. "It's not a matter of age. It's a matter of whether or not I can improve their posture in weight bearing, their pattern of ambulation, and even their quality of life in a small way. I have seen many, many kids stand up and walk so much better—even run for the first time—after being fit with lower-extremity orthoses."
Leavitt says that whether a child needs an orthosis depends on whether there are joint deformities and whether the patient's condition has worsened over time. For children who are walking, he also looks at the quality of the child's gait and if there is a varus or valgus deformity.
Buethorn
When deciding whether or not to intervene, Don Buethorn, CPO, owner of Cascade Dafo, Ferndale, Washington, looks at whether developmental concerns are present, and if so, he typically recommends bracing as soon as the child begins standing.
"When the foot is visibly pronated, when...they are [assessed as being] behind in their motor skills, then I advise using appropriate orthotic intervention," Buethorn notes. "I believe the daily practice of enhanced balance and movement in conjunction with a richer sensory experience supports the best development of the patient's motor-skill potential."
For children with mild low-tone pronation without a neurological deficit, Buethorn recommends a shoe insert. "Research shows that shoe inserts work," he says.
The Goal Is in the Gait
Children with low tone tend to walk late because their feet and ankles are in poor alignment and their toes often claw at the ground for stability, causing their feet to tire, Veldman says. Pronation resulting from lax ligaments in children with low tone usually cannot be improved, but what can be improved is the way children learn to walk, he notes.
Hypermobile baby feet in excess pronation. Photograph courtesy of Debbie Strobach.
"Children learn all gross motor skills in the first seven or eight years of life," he maintains. "That is the ingrained gait pattern. If we can get these kids at 12 months, or when they show an interest in standing, and stabilize their feet while they are developing these skills, then they have the opportunity to develop these skills properly."
The idea, Veldman explains, is to create stability, initially by stabilizing the heel in a midline position. He says flexible, dynamic SMOs "program" a child's gait while improving alignment. With enough repetitions, the child will carry that gait pattern into adulthood. Gait quality determines how much energy is used with each step; those whose feet have not been stabilized will tire easily and likely become sedentary. These children often gain weight, and it becomes difficult to get them active again. Often, these children will also be less coordinated and fall frequently.
Matthews agrees that the goal of bracing is to improve the structural alignment of the muscles so that kids don't tire as easily, and their balance, endurance, and coordination improve. Orthotic intervention includes maintaining the heel in vertical alignment, providing mild support for the arch, and using a long lateral or extended lateral trim to capture the fifth metatarsal head to prevent the forefoot abduction.
Problems with Bracing
Overbracing or underbracing can cause problems, according to Veldman. Overbracing with rigid plastics tends to immobilize the foot so the foot can't function normally, he says. "If you put the foot against a hard piece of plastic and take away its movement, it will cease to function, and the muscles will atrophy," he adds. "In order to stabilize the foot and allow it to behave normally, [the brace] needs to be [made from] a plastic that's firm enough to stabilize the foot in a normal position and flexible enough to allow the foot to move naturally through the gait cycle."
For example, John Izak, CPO, co-owner of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania-based Orthologix, says he prefers flexible SMOs over the more rigid designs that have been traditionally used to manage the hypotonic foot. The devices are manufactured with thin plastic and specific trim lines that terminate medially behind the first metatarsal and laterally to the toe sulcus. These trimlines, coupled with a neutral heel and compression created by the plastic, stabilizes the foot. This in turn normalizes the distribution of forces from rearfoot to forefoot in weight bearing.
"If we as orthotists balance these feet and manage them correctly, we are giving the knees and the hips a stable base," Izak says. "These influences on maturing bones and joint alignment are critical for healthy skeletal alignment."
Izak says that by using this type of orthosis, he has seen younger children attain their developmental milestones sooner, and older children run, jump, and play with their age-matched peers.
Underbracing with foot orthoses tends to create more problems than it helps, Veldman asserts, partially because calluses and sores can develop, and then children won't want to wear them. "Underbracing with a foot orthotic doesn't...do much good," he says. "It's trying to address the arch, and the arch isn't the problem. It's all about the heel."
Cusick says that children should wear foot-alignment assistive devices during all waking hours, as long as the devices were chosen appropriately and the child is comfortable and fully functional in them. She adds, however, that no one can predict the length of wear time needed to optimize bodyweight distribution through the feet. The number of repetitions of ideal weight shifts onto and loading through the feet—together with the physiologic adaptation of the bones, joints, muscles, connective tissues, and brain—determines the duration of wear.
Susan Glairon is a freelance writer who lives in Longmont, Colorado.
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Wells Fargo has invested more than $442 million in 67 NeighborhoodLIFT® program launches in support of sustainable housing, making it the single largest corporate philanthropic effort of its kind in the company's history.
With the creation of more than 3,900 homeowners in 2018, the Wells Fargo NeighborhoodLIFT® program has now assisted nearly 20,000 total homeowners since 2012. NeighborWorks® America research indicates that in that time, LIFT homeowners have purchased more than $2 billion in real estate nationally.
In 2012, Wells Fargo and NeighborWorks America created the NeighborhoodLIFT program to support local economic development and advance sustainable homeownership. NeighborWorks America and its local network members administer the program, determine eligibility, and provide the required homebuyer education.
The program was enhanced in 2018 with the introduction of NeighborhoodLIFT Home Ownership Counseling grants and a $2 million contribution from Wells Fargo to NeighborWorks to provide free, in-person credit counseling to homebuyers with a participating Department of Housing and Urban Development-approved housing counselor in local NeighborhoodLIFT program communities.
To date, Wells Fargo has invested more than $442 million in 67 LIFT program launches in support of sustainable housing, making it the single largest corporate philanthropic effort of its kind in the company's history.


The Impressionist and Chiara Parlagreco on the way to victory in the $250,000 HITS Junior/Amateur Hunter Prix.
The Impressionist and Chiara Parlagreco won the $250,000 HITS Hunter Prix on September 9, 2012, in Saugerties, New York, taking home the richest purse in the country for Junior and Amateur hunter riders!
Check out their beautiful rounds here, here and here!
Skyland Farm spent the summer showing at the Upperville Colt & Horse Show, HITS Culpeper and Warrenton, to name a few. Here are some of our favorite photos!
Ainsley Treptow and The Impressionist earned top ribbons at the Warrenton Horse Show.
Ainsley Treptow and The Impressionist in sync at the Warrenton Horse Show.
Ainsley Treptow at the Warrenton Horse Show.
Chiara Parlagreco and Brighton won the Open Warm Up at the Warrenton Horse Show.
Elizabeth Wiley and Marvalust trotted to great ribbons at the Warrenton Horse Show.
Skyland Farm spent the winter on the FTI Consulting Winter Equestrian Festival circuit in Wellington, Florida, with ribbons from the pony hunters to the open jumpers!
Copperman and Denice DeRisio Perry in the 1.40 meter division.
North C and Jaime Steinhaus scored wins in the Amateur-Owner, 18-35, Hunter section, during World Championship Hunter Rider week at WEF.
Chiara Parlagreco and Belle Grey Farm's Secret Amore jumped to ribbons in the Adult Amateur 3'3″section.
Joy Erikson rode Roy W. Perry's Placido to blues and great ribbons in the Adult Amateur, 51 and over, section.
Czolitude was a star for owners Dorli and Ashley Burke. With Ashley (pictured) he jumped to ribbons in the Small Junior Hunter, 16-17, section, and also carried Dorli to great performances in the Amateur-Owner, 36 and over, section.
ClanFair Madison Avenue, owned by Ponies and Palms of Boca Raton, Florida, collected the Small/Medium Children's Pony championship with Danielle DeRisio during Week 4. Congratulations!


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Wealthsimple has had one incredible year.
The online investment management service, which was co-founded in 2014, won a second Webby award in April, while CEO Michael Katchen took home Entrepreneur of the Year at the Canadian Startup Awards in March—not too shabby for a cofounder who has yet to see his 30th birthday. Today, the Toronto company has more than 30,000 clients and $1 billion (CAD) in assets under management.
Wealthsimple's investment platform seeks to simplify an often complex investment landscape for young people. The company's product innovation has been matched by the ingenuity of their promotional campaigns, such as the 2017 Super Bowl ad, which remains revered for its strategy, tone, and execution.
Rapid growth can be challenging, but through the office moves and expansion, the Wealthsimple team has managed to maintain their core cultural values, which are reinforced by the spaces they occupy. The company has offices in New York and London, though headquarters remain in Toronto—specifically the city's hip West End, where on a sleepy side street, in an unassuming brick-and-beam walk-up, serious work gets done.
The 9,000-square-foot space was designed in collaboration with Hariri Pontarini Architects. For Wealthsimple, it's a new space; the team moved last spring. Design goals included maintaining the building's industrial character and retaining the openness and natural light it provided.
More than 80 employees work from this office, including designers, developers, and operations staff. And they are looking for more. The entire team works from customized wooden workstations in an open concept space; there are no individual offices here–not even for Katchen.
Furry office companions are welcome at Wealthsimple.
Standing desks, pairing stations, and several meeting rooms are readily available for use. Even so, the kitchen area—located in the center of the office—is where you'll find several staffers finding space to work.
The central kitchen and event space was designed specifically to join two ends of the office. It is here that the entire staff enjoys healthy catered lunches, snacks, drinks, and an impressive selection of gadgets brewing Pilot Coffee.
Wealthsimple's benefits are centered around four pillars: inclusivity, health, financial wellness, and learning. The company's product revolves around financial wellness, which begins with education—something Wealthsimple supports internally with access to complimentary financial advice. This is backed up by RSP contribution matching—in a Wealthsimple account, naturally.
The education perks extend into other areas of wellness, too. For example, each employee has access to a conference and education budget. Internally there is a collaborative library, which any employee can order a business book to add. There are also lunch-and-learn events for which the topics are varied—like last month's on overcoming unconscious bias.
The company's previous office was flooded. The only thing to survive was this area rug proudly displayed in the office library.
These prop headphones were featured in the company's 2016 Super Bowl ad and remain proudly displayed in the library.
Financial health is central to the brand—but so is personal health. Beyond health benefits and a $500 fitness credit, staffers enjoy access to Dialogue, which connects employees and their families to doctors via chat and video.
Inclusivity is top of mind at Wealthsimple. This is demonstrated by a generous parental leave, the "Ladies at Wealthsimple" (LAW) club, as well as diversity training in onboarding and interviewer training.
The obligatory startup ping pong table gets a lot of traffic, but the most highly coveted perk might just be the nearby Trinity Bell Woods park: a perfect place for a morning run, a peaceful lunch, or a stroll with a furry friend. (Yes, this is a dog-friendly office.)
This is Oreo appreciating the open concept.
This is Jasper showing off his deep blue and buttery brown eyes–one of each.
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Joseph (Jandieri) the Wonderworker
Our father among the saints Joseph (Jandieri) the Wonderworker, (Georgian: იოსებ - Ioseb) was the Catholicos-Patriarch of the Church of Georgia from 1756 to 1763. He is commemorated on October 30.
His life is unknown before he began his spiritual education at the David Gareja (Davit-Gareji) Monastery in the Kakheti region of Eastern Georgia. As a monk, Joseph led a ascetic life and was endowed by the Lord with the gift of wonder-working. Through his prayers many were healed who were sick, blind, terminally ill, and possessed of the demon. His wisdom and virtuous life led him to be elected a bishop and enthronement as Bishop of Rustavi.
In 1755, he was elected to succeed Catholicos Anton I (Didi) as the leader of the Church of Georgia and he was enthroned, in 1756, as Catholicos-Patriarch of Georgia. Even as a hierarch, Catholicos Joseph lived the life of a ascetic monk.
In 1764, Catholicos Joseph stepped down in humility as Catholicos-Patriarch and retired to Akhmeta in northeastern Georgia where he cultivated a vineyard the fruit of which he gave to the poor. While the climate of the area was capricious, subject to drought and hail that devastated fragile crops, the region suffered neither drought nor hail while he labored in it. Those who lived near him loved him deeply and put their hope in him.
In 1770, Catholicos Joseph reposed in peace, having lived a godly life to an old age.
? Bishop of Rustavi
17xx-1756 Succeeded by:
Anton I (Didi) Catholicos-Patriarchs of Georgia
1756-1764 Succeeded by:
Anton I (Didi)
Venerable Ioseb the Wonderworker(†1770)
List of Katholicos-Patriarchs of Georgia
Retrieved from "https://orthodoxwiki.org/index.php?title=Joseph_(Jandieri)_the_Wonderworker&oldid=112123"
Last edited on October 24, 2012, at 16:09


I went to Munich 14 days before Christmas. I decided I would immerse myself in my studies, because I did not know whether I would stay at the university until I graduated, or whether I would stop studying so I could become a librarian. I actually was counting on studying [in Munich] only that one semester.
I came here. The city and the surroundings were all strange to me. I did not know anyone else there [Note 1]. The first few days, I was completely alone.
Note 1: Dort, not hier.


Hunting the Muse: Creative Writing Podcast: The New Internet Dilemma and Writing.
The New Internet Dilemma and Writing.
It's been boiling to the surface over the last few years, this new internet dilemma. The world wide web has been known as a place for both spiders and flies for well over a decade now, with problems ranging from copyright theft and infringement, piracy, and of course the no-holds-barred realm of the electronic red light district with any palette satisfied, yet left darkly desiring more, legal or otherwise -- to name just a few. But I've recently realized another problem, one that even I have participated in and will likely perpetuate for some time to come.
Do you ever stop and take a good look at the people around you? What do you see? What is your impression of what and how people learn in the post-educational environment of work forces and every day life? Newspapers, Radio, Television, and even libraries have long been major sources of information - some truth and some propaganda most assuredly.
One observation, felt personally by many writers and the industry that currently supports the majority of the professionals in the sector, is that print medias are waning in today's society. Less people take the newspaper, visit libraries, and/or buy books. Therefore, the ever-evolving writer, and publisher, must look to new electronic means of publication: the internet.
I was just thinking to myself the other day that I really need to write more Triond, Helium, and Hubpages articles. So far I think I've done the best with Triond's passive article income generation, as it doesn't require star ratings for writing and rating other articles nor does it necessitate massive promotion or social networking in-site. All that aside, I started thinking about the nature of the articles on these sites and how it all comes together. I blame Helium the most for this, since they make you rate articles in order to get paid your share of the advertising revenue, and thus exposed me to a lot of the content that gets posted that I wouldn't normally read.
Ladies and gentlemen, this may or may not come as a big surprise to you, but there is a large amount of utter crap that gets published on the internet and passed off as an information resource these days. Anyone can be an expert on anything, regardless of their actual expertise. This kind of bothers me. Not in a holier-than-thou kind of way, because I know I'm guilty of perpetuating it as well, but as a conceptual whole. It's one thing if you take what you read with a grain of salt, but it just seems like so many people take things at face value and that's just plain dangerous.
While rating some of those Helium articles, I just couldn't stop myself from feeling a great sense of loss. Now, theoretically these articles would be rated down by the masses, but in truth, I've started to wonder just how accurate the ratings system is. Either something is amiss on some of these articles (usually submitted by channel stewards) or people are really starting to get dumber. But it isn't just Helium. Everyone these days has to have a voice, and the internet is humming with conversation. Ppl tlk lk dis on da w3b nd smehw it ok. That just makes my brain hurt... I spend more time trying to decipher what the heck that says and by the time I put it together I really don't care about what you may or may not have meant by it. Can we blame cell phones and texting for that? Probably. But the thing is that many of those people don't shift gears when they sit in front of a keyboard. Nope, it the sme ol gme ya no?
The sad thing is that I start to wonder, if people are growing too lazy to check facts when they write or too lazy to write in actual words, what does that mean for the effort it takes to read? How long will it be before there is no more intellectual reading, only opinions expressed in quasi-syllables and grunts?
I don't have much time for the kind of sites you mention. I do write the odd article for Qondio for the backlink and to get my mind off all things literary for a few minutes but I wholeheartedly agree with you. It's why I hate a site like Answers.com. Although the principle is fine – ask a question and wait for an 'expert' to answer it – in reality it doesn't work like that. When I first discovered it I did exactly that, asked my question, sat back and waited. It was a serious question, one I hadn't been able to find an answer to myself, but the 'answers' I got back were from (and I know I'm generalising here) a bunch of kids who weren't even trying to answer the question, they were just taking the mickey. I never asked a second question.
There are a lot of good ideas online – Entrecard was one (I see you've switched to CMF Ads) – but if there's a way to ruin something then people will. The fact is that the (and again I'm generalising here) the unwashed masses make up the bulk of people online and they just want to have fun. There are pockets of resistance – in a time of war there is always a Resistance – but you have to work to find them. Once you do you'll find yourself in a chain of sites kicking against the traces.
Time is valuable. You have less than many. So make the most of the time you have. There's no money involved but you still have to invest your time wisely. You're a writer, you want to be read, so how are you promoting your site? Considering the time you put into these other sites what are your returns like? I wrote a blog a while ago about what I do for every post I write. Doing this nets me 3000 – 4000 readers a month. It take an hour a week (a half-hour per post) and I think that is time well spent. I'm writing a post for Qondio just now which will probably take me an hour and I'll be lucky if I get a single visit out of that, just a backlink. Backlinks are important too. How much time do you spend making comments on other people's sites? You need to do more. The search engines like that, the more the better, likewise outbound links. You'll see my site has plenty of them. Why? Because it helps my readers but mainly because it helps my rankings and attracts new readers a small percentage of which become regular readers.
Lastly, you need to post regularly – even if it's only once a week – and consistently. What is your blog about? Decide what the parameters and stick to it. When I walk into Boots the Chemits I know what they sell – I don't expect pastries, white goods, computer accessories or the girl behind the counter to grumble about how sad her love life is. You get my drift?
Don't mean to lecture, just a few thoughts that came to mind and happened to spill out on the page. Hope they help.


The Hum of Desperation: Free Bicycle Touring Magazine!
The Adventure Cycling Association (ACA) recently asked members to spread the word about the free sample copies of Adventure Cyclist magazine available from their Web site. Adventure Cyclist is the only magazine dedicated to bicycle touring, and it caters to every definition -- whether you enjoy group tours with a SAG wagon, solo cross-country journeys, or weekend trips with friends -- on every continent (well, I haven't read about Antarctica... yet). Each issue has several stories about tours and a few columns offering advice on everything from bikes to gear to riding skills. What I really like about Adventure Cyclist is what it doesn't have -- no "attitude" (unlike Mountain Bike) and no obsession with going fast and/or losing weight (unlike Bicycling). You won't find reviews of overpriced, lightweight components in Adventure Cyclist.
To get a free copy of Adventure Cyclist, go to the ACA homepage and look for the "Grab it" button in the right column next to the miniature magazine cover. You can also order their catalogs, which sell touring gear and detailed maps of biking routes all over the country. So go "grab it" -- and let me know how you like it.
I knew there was something I forgot to do... Thanks for passing this along!


Veteran actress Jaya Bachchan, who attended the Jio MAMI 18th Mumbai Film Festival with Star on Tuesday, said the movies today are 'more about numbers and business' rather than 'a time when Indian filmmakers used to create art'.
The actress, who is also member of Rajya Sabha, said, "Everything is thrown at our face. People have forgotten subtlety. Open display of affection is considered smart… sharam naam ki toh cheese hee nahi hai (people are no longer ashamed). Now, it's about big collections at the box office, Rs 100 crore films, first weekend collection…It's all Greek to me." The actress is known for her movies like Guddi, Abhiman, Zanjeer, Mili and Sholay.
Bachchans are one of the most influential families of Bollywood. "People like 'Aligarh' and 'Masaan' because they show the real India and real problems of India," Jaya Bachchan said talking about how she thinks very few films these days represent the Indian culture.
"I get stressed out when I see this kind of cinema. I need to run away to some quiet place," said the actress who has been associated to movies like Kabhie Khushi Kabhie Gham and Fiza.
Do you think she is indirectly hinting at the steamy scenes between Ranbir Kapoor and her daughter-in-law Aishwarya Rai Bachchan in Karan Johar's Ae Dil Hai Mushkil?


Internal shell topography measurement. Kiln number 2.
Motor base layout and leveling. Cement mill. Line 1.
Measurement to check burner's slabs position. Line 2.
Axis alignment, cold measurement, due to shims replacement. Kiln number 2.
Burner axis alignment measurement and assistance for alignment. Line 2.
Tyre migration measurement and shims replacement calculation. Kiln number 2.
Assistance for roller movement to align the kiln's axis and improve roller's thrust. Kiln number 2.
Kiln axis alignment. Cold measurement. Line number 2.
Technical plans for tyre and rollers surface grinding. Tyre 1, 2, and 3. Roller of pier number 3.
Roller shaft bending. Analysis. Kiln number 2.
Analysis. Girth gear wobbling and run out measurement after shell cutting. Kiln number 2.
Rollers of piers number 1, 2 and 4. tyre number 1. Kiln number 2.
Cold axis alignment measurement. Kiln number 2.
Pier number 3. Internal shell topography measurement. Kiln number 2.
Pinion, girth gear, and thrust rollers replacement. Kiln number 2.
FEM to calculate the rollers stress and calculation of the possibility to down size the thickness during surface grinding. Kiln number 2.
For the parts construction for the in site rollers and tyres surfaces grinding.
To analyze the alternatives to extract alkalis from the kiln and transport it to the Clinker park.
Project to change the old auxiliary combustion motor. Kiln number 2.
Project to change girth gear and rotation direction of kiln number 2.
Project for emergency rotation of kiln number 2.
Design of the modification of the cooler dust extractor. Kiln number 2.
Engineering execution to incorporate an auxiliary motor.
Analysis of all the available motors of Holcim Group to replace the kiln main motor.
Coverage design for the Clinker extraction system.


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Entertainment Music
Common Vs. Drake: No Winners, Only Losers
R. L'Heureux Lewis-McCoy, PhD
First things first, I am a fan of Common and I am not a fan of Drake. With that being said, with each passing day I lose more respect for Drake and Common. No, not because their beef is faker than McDonald's hamburgers; my gripes are with the ways in which their battle has reminded me that Hip-Hop and the Black community continue to carry fragile and narrow definitions of what it means to be a man.
Common is not new to battling, as he's 20 years deep in the rap game, (yes, his first album did come out in 1992; if you thought otherwise, you may want to think twice before weighing in on this one) and cut his teeth in an era long before pre-written "freestyles", back when emcees had to battle. Over the years, I've felt a kinship with the Chicago native. As I grappled with religion, relationships, and Black culture at each turn Common's songs were with me. His maturation was the soundtrack to my coming of age.
I remember vividly in 1996 when Common dropped "The B*tch in Yoo": a scathing critique of Ice Cube's contradictions from advocating Islam to hawking malt liquor. It cut so deep because the diss called Cube out on his own immaturity and inconsistencies. Common earned a reputation not simply as a rapper with braggadocio skills but one who could go for the jugular when provoked. Yet it wasn't his calling card. Common's catalog ranges from songs about the imprisonment of political prisoner Assata Shakur to soulful party anthems like "Go." As a veteran rapper he parlayed his stardom into an acting career and has been romantically tied to Serena Williams. And apparently that's one of Common's sources of beef with Drake.
Drake, Hip-Pop's new golden boy, has remain largely unchallenged in his rise to super stardom until Common dropped the single "Sweet" which he claims was directed at Drake. I was excited to hear Common spitting fire, until I listened to the song's hook and I heard him berating an unnamed rapper for singing, being sweet, and being a "ho". While I'm a fan of battling and I'm a fan of someone challenging Drake's meteoric rise, I'm disappointed that their war or words boils down to attacking each other's manhood and feminization.
Drake's responses to Common have been no better. On Rick Ross's "Stay Schemin'" with the opening line of "It bothers me when the Gods be acting like broads." Drake digs up Five Percenter rhetoric which refers to the Black man as God and suggests that Common acts like a woman. This is meant to be an insult and is insulting to women. Throughout this undercooked beef, the two continually attack each other using 'you act like a chick'-style attacks. Like many rap battles, the terms of engagement have devolved into name-calling and schoolyard jabs. When I was in junior high that's what I expected of Hip-Hop, but not now.
Due to their willingness to express their emotions and good looks, both Common and Drake are both extremely popular with female fans. Yet this adoration of the rappers has not been returned to their fans as both rappers have habitually used the word bitch. And now in this war of words, the women who keep these men employed must also suffer through their gender being considered a slur.
For better or worst, Drake and Common represent some of the most progressive voices in Hip-Hop but their battle should remind us that when faced with challenge, to prove their manhood, men often try to make their opponent less than a man. This misogynistic impulse devalues women and many times same gender loving men. C.J. Pascoe in her book "Dude You're a Fag" traces how adolescent boys work hard to emasculate other boys by suggesting they're "fags", "sweet" or other epithets. While these labels are tied to homophobia, they are not always about sexuality; instead, they're usually indictments of males for not living up to manhood roles.
As a Hip-Hop head, I want to see the 30-year-old tradition of battling grow up as I have. As someone who is concerned about the health and welfare of Black people, I yearn to see men like Common and Drake come to understand what's still juvenile about the methods we use to establish manhood. Black masculinity is thorny terrain. As Black men, we battle masses of stereotypes that encourage us to be hyper-physical, sexual and sometimes violent. While both Common and Drake have escaped these traps in the rap world, their beef shows us there are still miles to go when it comes to diversifying black masculinity in the Rap world.
Dr. R. L'Heureux Lewis is an Assistant Professor of Sociology and Black Studies at the City College of New York – CUNY. His work concentrates on race, education and gender. You can follow him on twitter at @dumilewis or on the web at www.professorlewis.com
In this article:common, drake, hip hop, rap beef, rap music
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Knowing how to properly sew on a button is perhaps one of the most useful clothes-related skills you can pick up. Buttons occasionally fall off even the best of garments, and need replacing, or sometimes we wish to swap out the manufacturer's buttons for something else. A mid-tier cardigan, for example, can be made much better looking if you change out the plastic buttons for some horn ones.
There are many good instructional guides online that'll show you how to sew on a button. I like these by Nicola Donati and Savile Row tailor Matthew Farnes. Valet also has a nice "toothpick trick" for coats. The things you'll need before practicing with these guides are quite basic: some button thread, a sewing needle, some scissors, and, of course, your new buttons. You may also want to have a seam ripper to take off your old buttons, and a thimble if you're trying to sew through tough cloth. All these things should be available at your local supermarket for two or three bucks each. Once you have what you need, it takes about ten minutes to learn how to sew on your first button, and maybe a few tries before you get the technique down.
As to where you can score some nice buttons, I recommend Britex if you're in San Francisco. They hold sales twice a year, which you can find out about by signing up for their newsletter in-store. In Los Angeles, there's B. Black & Sons, and in New York City there's Tender Buttons (arguably the most famous button store in America). For online sources, you can turn to Isles Textile Group, Hwa Seng Textile, and MJ Trimming. I personally prefer buying things in a brick-and-mortar store, especially with things that can have so much visual variation such as horn or mother-of-pearl buttons, but if you don't have a good button store near you, you still have options.
For something truly affordable, try checking thrift stores. Something made by a reputable company such as Oxxford, for example, might be damaged and can be had for under $20. These will have all the manufacturer's original buttons, which should be made from high-quality horn or metal. A smart way to pick up nice buttons for a fraction of the cost you'd spend otherwise.


Huawei Switch Vs Cisco Switch– Which One is the better Choice?
Cisco, as the big brother in the telecom industry, has dominated the market of networking devices (like routers and switches) for a long time. No one can compete with him. Huawei, however, is the rising star in the Chinese market. It ranked 83rd in the latest Fortune 500 list on July 23, 2017. Many people assume that in the near future, Huawei will lead the world instead of Cisco. Thus, in this article, we are going to analyze the strength of Cisco switch and Huawei switch, along with the differences between Cisco and Huawei switches.
Both Cisco and Huawei are the relatively young enterprises, which are founded in the 1980s. With 30 years' development, Cisco was at the top of respondent edge/core router and CES manufacturer leadership scores. Cisco systems mainly offer networking devices, networking management, Cisco IoS/NX-OS software, storage area networks, wireless equipment, data center devices, and interface & modules, etc.
According to Fortune 2017, Huawei, with the revenues of $78.5108 billion rank No.83 in Fortune 500 List, which is also the first time in the top hundred. Huawei is famous for mobile and fixed broadband networks. Recently, their optical switches, multimedia technology, tablet computers also win the heart of customers. Ren zhengfei, founder of the Huawei Technology, once said Huawei's secret of success is our focus and dedication to our customers. Huawei will embrace a better future.
In the 2016 study, Cisco along with Juniper, Huawei, and Nokia (including Alcatel-Lucent), form a top-tier clearly separated by a wide margin from the other manufacturers. There was a big gap between these four and their competitors, with the sole exception being the price-to-performance ratio.
And for the above table, we can see Cisco drops share in the router market; Huawei, Juniper gain & market is rising.
The popular series of Cisco switches are the enterprise switches, Catalyst series, and Nexus switches. Cisco Catalyst series includes 2960 series, 3650 series, 3850 series, 4500E series, etc. Cisco Nexus series includes 9000 series, 7000 series, 6000 series, 5000 series, 3000 series, 2000 series, etc. Cisco Catalyst switches are designed for core layers in the campus network, while the Nexus is mainly for data centers. Nexus series switches can support Ethernet, Fibre Channel and FCoE all in the same chassis but the catalyst doesn't. The catalyst switches support only Ethernet.
Huawei switches also have various series, such as data center switches, campus switches, and SOHO & SMB switches. The popular one is the campus switches. In all the campus switches, the S5700 series is the hottest switch. To have a further understanding, the following part will briefly compare Cisco WS-C3850-24T-L and Huawei S5700-28X-LI-AC switches.
To sum up, each Cisco Catalyst 3850 model, is similar to a S5700 model or is equivalent to one of Huawei S5700 models, which will not be listed here.
FS 40G/100G Ethernet switches provide high performance, increased availability, low latency and better serviceability for next-generation data centers and enterprise networks in different applications. And they also support spine-leaf network topology that leverage commoditized hardware for the best price/performance, just as shown below.
Besides the 40G/100G white box data center switches, we also provide a full series of compatible transceiver modules including the SFP, SFP+, QSFP+, SFP28, QSFP28, CFP, etc, which are compliant with the major brand. Custom service is also available.
Cisco switch Vs Huawei switch, we can't say which one is better than the other. To be considered the No.1 choice for your network, Cisco switches meet the needs of organizations and offices of all sizes and sorts. As for Huawei, it has several product lines that are similar to Cisco devices but have their own network hardware lines and IT solutions for different network demands. Besides Cisco and Huawei, there are other brands that are also effective and reliable, such as FS enterprise Ethernet switches. For more detailed information, please direct visit fs.com.
This entry was posted in 40/100G Ethernet and tagged cisco switches, Cisco Vs Huawei, Huawei switches, S5700 Series switches, White Box switches. Bookmark the permalink.


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One can say that robotic therapy is an emerging field because robots aiding the recovery process aren't an often seen sight yet. However, the idea seems pretty promising particularly because we can make robots specifically suited for the task at hand.
As far as I'm aware, there are two directions in robotic therapy. The first direction is to make robots that could be used the same way animals are used in animal therapy. The second direction is to design robots specifically tailored for specific treatments that can then be used by qualified doctors as tools.
While it is proven that animal therapy is successful, there are places and situations where it can't be used. It doesn't matter how well trained animals are they still can be hard to predict at some situations. Also issues regarding hygiene, allergies and others can arise.
A picture by Ms. President, released under a Creative Commons license.
PARO is a robotic baby-seal designed specifically to be used in robotic therapy. The design started in 1993 but it was shown to general public in year 2001. The robot responds to petting and can express different moods.
It is said that a baby-seal rather than a dog or a cat was chosen as a prototype because people are not familiar with these animals. This means that people don't have an opinion on how a baby seal should act or feel like. In case of familiar animals, people can be disappointed when they discover that the robot does not feel like a real thing.
Although people probably have seen baby seals on TV they are not familiar with the way they act. So, when encountering a robotic one no prejudice can disrupt the feeling of something cute, fuzzy and alive if the level of artificial intelligence is high enough.It is proven that this approach works good enough. When people encounter the PARO they tend to pet it, talk with it and do other things they would normally do if a live animal was presented to them. This way the animal therapy can be applied without the negative issues associated with it.
Also, I'd like to mention that every PARO is hand-made. The manufacturer states that every one of them has a different face. When called repeatedly in one name they will learn to respond to it. This way every PARO is slightly different than others.
Cosmobot is used for entirely different approach on robotic therapy. In this case robot is not used to substitute an animal. Cosmobot is more like a tool in hands of a doctor. Cosmobot, just like PARO, was designed with therapy in mind.
It is intended to be used by doctors to enhance the therapy of developmentally disabled children aged 5-12 years. It is said that by using a robot the therapy can be made more interesting for a child. This way long term success and achievement of therapy goals is more likely.
One more thing should be noted. CosmoBot is made in a way that enables data collection about the performance of the child. This way the therapist can evaluate how successful the therapy is.
Besides these specifically designed robots, there are some successful attempts to use other robots for therapy purposes. This time the idea is the same as in PARO's case. Robots such as Sony's AIBO or a robotic cat - NeCoRo is tested to be used this way.
Maybe other robots such as WowWee's "alive cub" series' robots that mimic animals can also be used this way. In my opinion, though, some research should be carried out to find out what level of artificial intelligence is needed for a therapy to be successful.
On one hand, a robotic therapy seems like a good idea. Now people that are unable to fully take care of a pet can enjoy the benefits of owning one. Also, robots can be used in environments where pets should not be allowed such as hospitals.
On the other hand, the idea of people bonding emotionally with robots can seem a bit disturbing. Science fiction long ago predicted the problems that could emerge in such cases. However, don't say that you don't have a nickname for your car. Or maybe I'm the only weirdo out there?
Go back from "Robotic therapy" to "Medical robots".


I recently addressed the Humanist Association of Greater Philadelphia's 2016 Winter Solstice gathering offering short remarks about Humanism drawing on Stoic Philosophy encouraging people to think about the new year, reflect on 2016, and find meaning in life.
Thanks to everyone for attending this event and spending your time with fellow humanists. Thanks to the Humanist Association of Greater Philadelphia for inviting me to speak encouraging me to offer short thoughts about Humanism this season of the Winter Solstice.
Living well and fully, what does that mean? Might you reflect on job satisfaction? Pleasure? Contentment? Happiness? The quality of your relationships with friends, family, or significant others? Physical health? Education? A combination of these things and more? What is it that you value?
How can you help make the world a better place and improve your quality of life? Might you be able to, in guiding your life by reason as the Humanist Manifesto III suggests, reduce stress in your life by making better decisions?
With the new year approaching, many people consider New Year's Resolutions, reflect on the current year, and plan for the future. How might you look forward, reflect on the past, and improve your life? Perhaps reflection about Humanism and the Humanist Manifesto III can help.
Perhaps it can be alluring to be cynical, lament relationships which have failed and isolate oneself from others. Occasionally, it may be good to take a break from extended social interactions and focus on yourself, your hobbies, and gain a new perspective, but it's important to have meaningful relationships with others which allow us to gain feedback, be listened to, share concerns, and have fun. What else can we reflect on?
Clinical Psychologist Jordan B Peterson from the University of Toronto recently released 100 items he thinks everyone should know. Among them, he encouraged people to be grateful in spite of suffering. It may be easy to point to the setbacks in our lives, complain about things we do not like, and have a negative attitude, but it may be best to take a more balanced perspective of thinking about positives in our lives and our ability to overcome difficulties.
The Ancient Greek Philosopher Epictetus, in his Discourses on Stoic Philosophy, frequently mentioned our ability to endure hardships and encouraged us to be grateful for our valuable ability to use reason to align our judgments about the world in a fitting way to achieve contentment and not create misery for ourselves – quite similar to what is suggested in the Humanist Manifesto III.
We can find meaning, be engaged with others in the world around us, and embrace the lifestance of Humanism to enrich our lives looking forward to a new year and reflecting on this one even when we face inevitable hardship and suffering.
I invite you to join me at 2PM on Sunday, January 8 at the Upper Moreland Library in Willow Grove for further discussion of finding meaning in life through the perspective of Stoic Philosophy. More details are on the Humanist Association of Greater Philadelphia meetup page.
Have a great time today, thanks for your attention, and have a great holiday season!


(WHNT) - Numerous groups are helping people suffering from tornado devastation in Oklahoma. Now, animal lovers in the Tennessee Valley are stepping forward to collect supplies for pets.
The effort is called 'Alabama for Oklahoma Animals' and local groups will collect pet supplies through Saturday morning.
Donations will be accepted at the Greater Huntsville Humane Society until Saturday at 11 a.m. They will also be accepted at The Ark until 12 p.m. Saturday. The deadlines are firm so a Huntsville driver can get them to a larger truck in Birmingham on time.
-Wet and/or dry pet food for adult cat/dog, etc.
The Greater Huntsville Humane Society is located at 2812 Johnson Road SW, Huntsville, AL 35805.
The Ark is at 129 Bo Cole Road NW, Huntsville AL 35806.
The coordinators are also collecting supplies in Tuscaloosa and Birmingham. 'Alabama for Oklahoma Animals' has set up this Facebook page. You can make a donation online through Have A Heart Animal Rescue.