At MEDICA 2018, Professor Billy Sperlich will give a lecture titled "High-performance sports and point-of-care testing". In the run-up to the trade fair, he sat down with MEDICA-tradefair.com for an interview and talked about the many applications of point-of-care testing in high-performance sports and the importance of this type of diagnostic testing for athletes.
Professor Sperlich, you will give a lecture about high-performance sports and point-of-care testing at the MEDICA LABMED FORUM. How is one connected to the other?
Prof. Billy Sperlich: We presently have two ways to monitor the strain on athletes and avoid potential overload that both allow us to initiate interventions. One option is wearable sensors or wearables. They allow us to measure certain stress markers and then quickly make changes to the training process. The other option is point-of-care testing (POCT). Even though the monitoring process is not as tight as that of sensor-based systems, POCT still facilitates other rapid – typically blood or saliva-based –results, enabling coaches or athletes to quickly take action.
Typical laboratory diagnostics work differently. You usually take a blood sample from the veins and send it in for analysis. We don't get the result that can prompt training changes until much later with this process. The fact that monitoring with POCT and wearables enables prompt intervention makes this process so exciting.
Point-of-care tests are often carried out in the form of blood tests, in which even a small drop – taken from the fingertip – is sufficient.
What measurements can you make with point-of-care diagnostic testing?
Sperlich: They differ and depend on the type of sport. For instance, in the case of runners, we can analyze markers that impact cardiovascular values, muscle strain or immune function. The type of tissue we take the sample from also plays a role. We prefer capillary blood samples obtained from the earlobe or the side of the fingertip. We also repeatedly track the resting heart rate in tests. This shows the resilience and strength of the athlete. In addition to the aforementioned blood tests, we also increasingly analyze saliva. This allows us to measure the standard stress hormones including testosterone, cortisol, or amylase, which give us clues about how stress affects the athlete's immune response. Yet the most important marker in everyday training is the tympanic (ear) temperature, because it allows us to detect fever conditions and subsequently change the training schedule. Not only are these options straightforward and minimally invasive, but they are also more accepted by the athletes. Meanwhile, continuous venous blood monitoring simply doesn't work by comparison.
High-performance athletes train 25 hours or more a week before a competition. To do this, they not only need to be permanently fit, but also know whether their training is successful. In both cases, point-of-care tests are a useful tool.
Why is rapid diagnostic testing so important, especially when it comes to high-performance sports?
Sperlich: It's crucial because the training period of high-performance athletes - especially in endurance sports training - is very limited. Some sports require net training times of 25 hours per week or more. This translates into increasingly shorter recovery times, making it essential for the athlete or coach to know as soon as possible whether the athlete experiences chronic overstrain, whether a training session should be canceled or modified and whether the training is ultimately able to achieve the desired results.
This is especially significant for sports where athletes reach the limits of feasible training in terms of time. Examples of this are runners, triathletes, swimmers, cross-country skiers or cyclists. Having said that, team sports like soccer also increasingly want to track muscle stress with the help of POCT to avoid chronic overstrain and injuries. Chronic overuse of muscles prompts frequent injuries, especially in expensive team sports. This makes POCT a great tool to optimize training and ultimately also critical to the prevention of injuries or infection.
In addition to point-of-care tests, wearables are also helpful for monitoring. These allow permanent measurements of the heart rate, for example.
What challenges does POCT have to overcome?
Sperlich: The main challenge pertains to the frequency of measurements. The athlete has to participate and appreciate why he/she does it. Athletes tend to not participate until they are hurt or once they realize that they suffer from recurrent infections or injuries. That's when they are usually willing to use a monitoring system. Or the athletes are in intense training at training camps or embark on altitude training, where they want to determine the actual effectiveness of the training.
How important is point-of-care diagnostic testing right now in high-performance sports?
Sperlich: Training and exercise science is not quite familiar with this concept yet. Usually, we are more likely to refer to blood or salivary diagnostics, regardless of the analytical method. Even though point-of-care testing is not a familiar concept quite yet, the technology itself is actually becoming increasingly popular. Since the huge advantage of POCT is that it delivers rapid test results, I expect its increased importance and rising popularity in the future.
When it comes to diagnosing infectious diseases, myocardial infarction or diabetes, physicians resort to point-of-care tests or send a sample to a trusted lab. But what happens to the sample they send? What is state-of-the-art in laboratory technology today and what new analytical methods are being researched? What are the new trends in exciting fields such as microbiome analysis, continuous glucose monitoring and cardiac risk assessment? These are questions whose answers you will receive at MEDICA 2018 in Halls 3, 3a and 18.
"Dr. Algorithm suggests the best treatment option"


The Canon s90 has a larger sensor and faster lens than many compact digital cameras, making it an excellent good choice for photographers who do a lot of shooting in low light.
100% crop of photo taken at ISO 400. Click for larger view.
Many photo enthusiasts like me eventually move to a digital single lens reflex camera for one primary reason: they excel at high ISO performance. Yes, there are other important reasons to buy a DSLR, but I'll stick to the topic of sensitivity.
Until recently, few compact digital cameras could come close to producing the clean images with little or no noise like a DSLR. Fortunately, that's changing.
Among a handful of compact cameras that do very well at higher ISO numbers is the Canon Powershot s90. To be fair, the images are still not on par with those produced by a DSLR but they are definitely outstanding compared to many other compact cameras.
100% crop of photo taken at ISO 800. Click for larger view.
In recent years, many compact digital cameras offer both an Auto ISO and High Auto ISO mode. Unfortunately, the s90 only has an Auto ISO mode. When in this mode, the camera automatically selects from a large range of ISO numbers: ISO 80, 100, ISO 125, 160, 200, 250, 320, 400, 500, 640, 800, 1000, 1250, 1600, 2000, 2500, 3200.
You'd think a camera that has goes to ISO 32000 in Auto ISO would have a way to set the maximum sensitivity. Or at least offer a High Auto ISO mode. It doesn't.
Auto ISO mode may select an ISO number higher than I prefer. Because of this, I rarely set the camera to Auto ISO when photographing in low light. Instead, I manually set the ISO number.
The s90 offers a Low Light scene mode, which is not the same as the Auto High ISO mentioned above.
In Low Light mode there is no way to select the focus point. The camera uses multi-point focus AiAF or AiAF face detection. As a result, the photographer has little control over where the camera focuses.
In Low Light mode, there is also no choice of the recording image size. Instead the size is arbitrarily fixed at 1824 x 1368 pixels. This reduced size helps somewhat in reducing image noise.
More importantly, as can be seen in the crops captured at very high ISO numbers, there is a loss of detail and a lot of smearing.
The auto ISO range in the Low Light scene mode is ISO 320 to an incredible 12,800. Canon suggests switching to this mode when taking photos in candle light level lighting.
Of course, getting a shot is better than not getting it. However when the camera selects an extremely high ISO, poor image quality may be barely suitable for even small prints.
A much better way to obtain high quality images in very low light is to use a camera support and shoot at low ISO numbers. If this is not an option, just remember to keep your expectations low when using Low Light scene mode.
If you're looking for the best high ISO performance between the two, there is no doubt that the s90 will do better than the SD980. It has a larger sensor and a faster lens at wider angles (F2.8 – F5.9 vs F2.0 – F4.9). It does have an Auto ISO mode. I keep my s90 set to Auto ISO for most shots.
i'm trying to decide between the S90 and SD980IS. The SD980IS, according to Canon's website, has a new auto ISO mode where the "camera automatically sets the optical ISO speed according to the shooting mode and subject brightness. The ISO speed also varies according to subject movement and camera shake when the shooting mode is set in auto". Canon's website doesn't use that text to describe the S90. Which seems odd. Do you know if the two are really different, or did Canon just omit the text in the description of the S90?
I love your website. I can sit here and read all day. Many thanks.


Eduardo Martínez Arvilla was born in Cartagena, Colombia, a city rich with African, Spanish, and aboriginal cultures and traditions. His studies in Afro-Colombian drumming began as a young boy, immersed in his city's oral history and music, learning drumming and gaita from some of the most respected and famous masters of the tradition, including Paulino Salgado (aka, Batata III) and Encarnación Tovar (aka, El Diablo). Eduardo continued his studies in music at the Institute of Fine Arts in Cartagena, practicing and refining his skills in Afro-Colombian music performance. As a workshop leader, he traveled around the world representing his country and culture, and has toured with many groups including Totó La Momposina, Petrona Martínez and Chelito de Castro. Eduardo is a current Master Artist for Alliance for California Traditional Arts.


Hoopla are working to improve the numbers of black, asian and minority ethnic people in improv and comedy, following our diversity and accessibility policy.
To help this we run a free monthly show for black, asian and minority ethnic improvisers. It's run by Tai Campbell, Athena Kugblenu, Monica Gaga and team. They also run a free workshop before the show to help support new people into improv.
We then work with the team to help us cast our other shows, and people from the Do The Right Scene night also perform across all our other nights. The show bonds people together, and from this we help improve the diversity of the rest of the improv scene.
It's more than a show, they have built an entire community of improvisers and have recently started connecting to the TV industry too with TV writers and producers now coming to see the show to help recruit BAME talent for their productions. Many of the performers at Do The Right Scene have credits writing and performing on BBC1, BBC3, Radio 4, The Guilty Feminist and TED talks.
Dates: Wednesdays once a month. Check out exact dates at our comedy club page.
Times: Doors open 7:30pm, show 8pm – 10pm.
Venue: Hoopla at The Miller, 96 Snowsfields Road, London Bridge, SE1 3SS.
Your improv or other performing experience.
She will then introduce you to the team who can let you know how to get involved.
We are very open to feedback about how we could improve the diversity of the UK improv scene, so if you have any suggestions please get in touch.


I had to pause and consider the person who asked the NUMBER of stash a stitcher might have. That thought made me shudder a bit...I've never counted my stash but I think it's a good exercise to know how much you have.
I have 7 current WIPs...I love finishing more than starting projects so this number is always low. As for patterns I'd guess I have about 20-25 in my stash at this moment. I do go through it about once a year and donate any patterns or WIPS that just don't thrill me anymore. If I did not cull them on a regular basis I'm sure I'd get up to about 75, maybe more.
The thing that frustrates is that my tastes are constantly changing and sometimes what I buy with great enthusiasm doesn't stand the test of time...I REFUSE to stitch something I only feel ho-hum about. To combat this and try to save some money and space in my closet, I usually make myself wait several months before I buy a new pattern (since there are no stitchy shops in my area I don't have to be worried about impulse buying in person). Lately I've also made the rule that I can't kit something up until I'm ready to stitch it, so as not to waste the money if I decide never to do it.
So come clean ladies...how big is your stash? Any tips for keeping it manageable?


text:
Seven Surprising Ways Brain Asymmetries Affect Your Daily Life
There are many subtle ways how brain asymmetries affect your behavior.
About 10 percent of people are left-handers, while about 90 percent are right-handers. Pretty much anybody knows whether they are left-handed, right-handed, or (in very rare cases) ambidextrous. Handedness is determined by our brains. The left part of the brain controls the right part of the body, while the right part of the brain controls the left part of the body. In left-handers, the motor areas on the right side of the brain are dominant for activities that require a high level of motor skills such as writing. Interestingly, handedness is not the only example of how such brain asymmetries affect our everyday lives. Here is a list of seven surprising ways brain asymmetries our everyday lives.
1. In addition to handedness, there is also footedness
While most people are aware of whether they are left- or right-handed, fewer people think about whether they are left- or right-footed. A recent large-scale meta-analysis (Packheiser et al., 2020) reported that about 12.1 percent of people are left-footed. There was a large overlap with handedness, but it was not 100 percent perfect. While only 3.2 percent of right-handers were left-footed, about 60.1 percent of left-handers were left-footed. Thus, the chance of being left-footed is considerably higher for a left-hander than for a right-hander.
2. We have a favorite side for hugging
When we embrace someone else, we typically lead the hug with one arm. A recent study (in which I was part of the research team) analyzed whether people preferentially hug with their left or their right arm (Packheiser et al., 2019). In the study, hugging couples were observed at the arrivals or departure lounges at international airports. Moreover, videos of people who blindfold themselves and let strangers hug them on the street were analyzed.
Overall, people preferred to use their right arm for hugging. In the emotionally neutral situation in which strangers hugged a blindfolded person, 92 percent hugged to the right. However, when people hugged their friends or partners at the airport, only about 81 percent of people hugged to the right. Thus, emotions seem to affect hugging side preferences. The left hemisphere of the brain controls the right half of the body and vice versa. Therefore, it is likely that this leftward shift in hugging is due to greater involvement of the right hemisphere of the brain for emotional processes during hugging in these situations.
3. People are either left-kissers or right-kissers
When kissing someone, do you turn your head to the left side or the right side?
Research shows that people have a preferred side to turn their head to when kissing and rarely turn to the other side. In a 2003 study, the author observed kissing couples in public places such as international airports, large railway stations, beaches, and parks in the United States, Germany, and Turkey (Güntürkün, 2003). The result? Most of us are right-sided kissers. Overall, 64.5 percent of couples turned their heads to the right and 35.5 percent turned their heads to the left.
4. We have a preferred side for chewing
Do you have a favorite side to chew your food on while eating?
A 2016 study from Spain and Mexico in 146 young adults found that 56 percent of people consistently chew on one side, with 77 percent of them preferring the right side of their mouth and only 23 percent on the left side (Rovira-Lastra et al., 2016). The remaining 44 percent of people chewed alternating on the left and the right side.
5. We have a favorite cheek to turn when posing for selfies
When posing for pictures, do you have a side of your face that you consider your "good side"?
Interestingly, most of us have a clear preference to put one cheek forward when posing for a picture that is supposed to be posted on social media. A study in which 2000 selfies on Instagram were analyzed regarding the pose of the photographed person (Lindell, 2017) revealed that 41 percent of people show a preference for the left cheek, while 31.5 percent showed a preference for the right cheek. The rest did not show a clear preference for the left or the right cheek. Altogether, 72.5 percent of people had a clear preference for one cheek over the other.
6. Most people cradle a baby on their left side
If you cradle a baby, which arm do you use?
Despite the fact that most people are right-handers, research shows that we show a leftward bias for cradling a baby. A recent large-scale meta-analysis (Packheiser et al., 2020) shows that about 66 percent of people cradling a baby on their left side, while only about 34 percent cradle a baby on their right side.
7. We also have a favorite eye
We do not only a favorite hand and foot, but side preferences can also be observed for sensory organs like the eyes. In a study from 2009, my research team and I determined peoples' dominant eyes, by asking them which eye they would use to look through a keyhole, down a telescope, and down a monocular microscope (Ocklenburg and Güntürkün, 2009).
About 75 percent of people showed a preference for the right eye, while about 25 percent preferred the left eye for these activities.
Sebastian Ocklenburg, Ph.D. is a lecturer in biopsychology at Ruhr University's Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience in Bochum, Germany. His research focuses on hemispheric asymmetries in the language and motor systems.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Rare resale in Stoneybrook Estates! Enjoy the benefits of a neighborhood setting while enjoying the privacy of a nearly 360 degree wooded lot just shy of an acre. This 3 bedroom, 2 bath home was built in 2003 and offers hardwood floors throughout, a sun filled living room, new kitchen with granite counters/stainless steel appliances, a formal dining room with slider leading to a large deck, master bedroom with private bath, two additional bedrooms with great closet space and the main full bath renovated this year. There is a 2 car garage and unfinished basement with large windows offering expansion potential. If you enjoy privacy and love nature this is the home for you. Open House Sunday 10/21 11-1.


text:
Mediterranean Escape plus 4 Day Cruise(Standard inside cabin without porthole,Start Rome, End Athens)
Arrive Rome
See the Colosseum, the Roman Forum, Piazza Venezia, The Vatican, Trevi Fountain, Pantheon & Piazza Navona
See St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican City
Guided tour of the Vatican
Learn about the birthplace of modern society on a guided tour of Athens & the Acropolis
Cruising to Rhodes
See the fortified town of Rhodes
Turkey is a huge nation straddling eastern Europe and western Asia with cultural connections to ancient Greek, Persian, Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman empires. It offers a wealth of destination varieties to travellers; there is something for everyone's taste—whether they be travelling on an extreme budget by hitchhiking or by a multi-million yacht!
Greece, also known since ancient times as Hellas, is a country located in southeastern Europe. The country has one of the longest histories of any country, and is considered the cradle of Western civilization, having been the birthplace of democracy, Western philosophy, the Olympic Games, Western literature, historiography, political science, major scientific and mathematical principles, and Western drama, including both tragedy and comedy. Athens, its busy capital, retains ancient landmarks including the 5th-century-B.C.E. Acropolis citadel and Parthenon temple. Greece is also known for its beaches, from the black sands of Santorini to the party resorts of Mykonos. Furthermore it's a geographically appealing place to visit, with a mountainous mainland and idyllic island beaches!
Italy is a country in Southern Europe. It is home to the greatest number of UNESCO World Heritage Sites in the world. Much like its food, this country is an endless feast of experiences. It is famous worldwide for its delicious cuisine, its trendy fashion industry, luxury sports cars and motorcycles, diverse regional cultures and dialects, as well as for its beautiful coast, alpine lakes and mountain ranges (the Alps and Apennines). There is also the country's enormous cultural legacy: Tuscany alone has more classified historical monuments than any country in the world; there are considerable remnants of the Roman Empire all over the country, notably in Rome itself; and every region retains its own relics of an artistic tradition generally acknowledged to be among the world's richest.
Vatican City, officially Vatican City State or the State of Vatican City, is a walled enclave within the city of Rome. With an area of approximately 44 hectares (110acres), and a population of 842, it is the smallest state in the world by both area and population. Within Vatican City are religious and cultural sites such as St. Peter's Basilica, the Sistine Chapel and the Vatican Museums. They feature some of the world's most famous paintings and sculptures. An independent state, you can enjoy a wonderful view and the amazing things it offer.
Waikiki Explorer (2 nights)
The Latin Quest (With Inca Trail Trek...
European Discovery (Winter)
Spotlight on Greece plus 3 day Greek ...
Best of Balkans (Start Split) (Start ...
London Explorer (4 nights) (Imperial ...
The Northern Trek
New Year in Paris (Start London, end ...


This Artist's Grade shrink plastic is supplied in packs of 8 sheets, measuring 8" x 10½". Once heated, the plastic shrinks to just 45% of it's original size.
Great for personalised embellishments for your scrapbooking and cardmaking projects.


text:
package org.zaproxy.zap.extension.pscanrulesAlpha;

import static org.hamcrest.MatcherAssert.assertThat;
import static org.hamcrest.Matchers.equalTo;

import org.junit.jupiter.api.Test;
import org.parosproxy.paros.network.HttpMalformedHeaderException;
import org.parosproxy.paros.network.HttpMessage;
import org.zaproxy.zap.utils.ZapXmlConfiguration;

public class SubResourceIntegrityAttributeScanRuleUnitTest
        extends PassiveScannerTest<SubResourceIntegrityAttributeScanRule> {

    @Override
    protected SubResourceIntegrityAttributeScanRule createScanner() {
        SubResourceIntegrityAttributeScanRule rule = new SubResourceIntegrityAttributeScanRule();
        rule.setConfig(new ZapXmlConfiguration());
        return rule;
    }

    @Test
    public void shouldNotRaiseAlertGivenIntegrityAttributeIsPresentInLinkElement()
            throws HttpMalformedHeaderException {
        // Given
        // From https://www.w3.org/TR/SRI/#use-casesexamples
        HttpMessage msg =
                buildMessage(
                        "<link href=\"https://site53.example.net/style.css\"\n"
                                + "      integrity=\"sha384-+/M6kredJcxdsqkczBUjMLvqyHb1K/JThDXWsBVxMEeZHEaMKEOEct339VItX1zB\"\n"
                                + "      >");

        // When
        scanHttpResponseReceive(msg);

        // Then
        assertThat(alertsRaised.size(), equalTo(0));
    }

    @Test
    public void shouldNotRaiseAlertGivenIntegrityAttributeIsPresentInScriptElement()
            throws HttpMalformedHeaderException {
        // Given
        // From https://www.w3.org/TR/SRI/#use-casesexamples
        HttpMessage msg =
                buildMessage(
                        "");

        // When
        scanHttpResponseReceive(msg);

        // Then
        assertThat(alertsRaised.size(), equalTo(0));
    }

    @Test
    public void shouldRaiseAlertGivenIntegrityAttributeIsMissingForSupportedElement()
            throws HttpMalformedHeaderException {
        // Given
        HttpMessage msg =
                buildMessage(
                        ""
                                + ""
                                + "");

        // When
        scanHttpResponseReceive(msg);

        // Then
        assertThat(alertsRaised.get(0).getPluginId(), equalTo(rule.getPluginId()));
    }

    @Test
    public void shouldIndicateElementWithoutIntegrityAttribute()
            throws HttpMalformedHeaderException {
        // Given
        HttpMessage msg =
                buildMessage(
                        ""
                                + ""
                                + "");

        // When
        scanHttpResponseReceive(msg);

        // Then
        assertThat(
                alertsRaised.get(0).getEvidence(),
                equalTo(""));
    }

    @Test
    public void shouldNotRaiseAlertGivenElementIsServedByCurrentDomain()
            throws HttpMalformedHeaderException {
        // Given
        HttpMessage msg =
                buildMessage(
                        ""
                                + ""
                                + "<link href=\"http://example.com/v1.0/style.css\"></script>"
                                + "");

        // When
        scanHttpResponseReceive(msg);

        // Then
        assertThat(alertsRaised.size(), equalTo(0));
    }

    @Test
    public void shouldRaiseAlertGivenElementIsServedBySubDomain()
            throws HttpMalformedHeaderException {
        // Given
        HttpMessage msg =
                buildMessage(
                        ""
                                + ""
                                + "");

        // When
        scanHttpResponseReceive(msg);

        // Then
        assertThat(alertsRaised.size(), equalTo(1));
    }

    @Test
    public void shouldNotRaiseAlertGivenElementIsServedRelatively()
            throws HttpMalformedHeaderException {
        // Given
        HttpMessage msg =
                buildMessage(
                        "<!doctype html>\n"
                                + "\n"
                                + "  \n"
                                + "    <link href=\"/dashboard/stylesheets/normalize.css\" rel=\"stylesheet\" type=\"text/css\" />\n"
                                + "  \n"
                                + "  \n"
                                + "  \n"
                                + "");

        // When
        scanHttpResponseReceive(msg);

        // Then
        assertThat(alertsRaised.size(), equalTo(0));
    }

    @Test
    public void shouldNotRaiseAlertGivenElementIsInline() throws HttpMalformedHeaderException {
        // Given
        HttpMessage msg =
                buildMessage(
                        "<!doctype html>\n"
                                + "\n"
                                + "  \n"
                                + "

\n"
                                + "    "
                                + "  \n"
                                + "");

        // When
        scanHttpResponseReceive(msg);

        // Then
        assertThat(alertsRaised.size(), equalTo(0));
    }

    @Test
    public void shouldIgnoreInvalidFormattedHostname() throws HttpMalformedHeaderException {
        // Given
        HttpMessage msg =
                buildMessage(
                        ""
                                + ""
                                + "");

        // When
        scanHttpResponseReceive(msg);

        // Then
        assertThat(alertsRaised.size(), equalTo(1));
    }

    @Test
    public void shouldNotRaiseAlertGivenHtmlAssetIsInline() throws HttpMalformedHeaderException {
        // Given
        HttpMessage msg =
                buildMessage(
                        ""
                                + ""
                                + "<link href=\"data:,\">"
                                + "");

        // When
        scanHttpResponseReceive(msg);

        // Then
        assertThat(alertsRaised.size(), equalTo(0));
    }

    private static HttpMessage buildMessage(String body) throws HttpMalformedHeaderException {
        HttpMessage msg = new HttpMessage();
        msg.setRequestHeader("GET http://example.com/ HTTP/1.1");
        msg.setResponseBody(body);
        return msg;
    }
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


text:
Like driving a DTM car on the street.
There are those at Audi who take offense to BMW's claim of producing the "ultimate driving machine," especially those who work within quattro GmbH, Audi's little-known performance arm. The general manager of quattro, Stephen Reil, is among those who feel that title is more indicative of his cars from Ingolstadt than anything from Munich. After driving the company's latest creation, the RS 6, it's difficult not to agree with him.
Developed by quattro GmbH, the RS 6 breaks virtually all barriers in the luxury sedan realm. Despite looking like a spacious five-passenger luxury sedan on the outside (albeit with flared fenders and 18-in. alloy wheels), there's something truly wicked lurking underneath, namely a twin-turbo-charged 4.2-liter V-8 that produces a whopping 450 bhp from 5700 to 6400 rpm. Torque is rated at 415 lb.-ft. peaking from 1950 to 5600.
Twin turbos and Quattro all-wheel drive make the Audi RS 6 a car for all seasons — and high excitement.
Aside from the addition of twin turbochargers and twin intercoolers, Audi's V-8 block was heavily massaged and fitted with newly developed cylinder heads that have sodium-cooled exhaust valves. The powerplant comes mated to a smooth shifting 5-speed automatic transmission, the same one developed for the forthcoming A8 W-12. This transmission allows you to select gears via paddles behind the steering wheel, just like in a Formula 1 car. Shifts were amazingly quick, though not up to par with the paddle-shifted manual gearboxes found in the Ferrari 360 Modena and BMW M3.
Audi claims that the RS 6 runs from zero to 100 km/h (62 mph) in 4.7 seconds, with an estimated sub-13.0-sec. quarter-mile time. Not bad for a car weighing 4025 lb.
As soon as I grabbed the keys to our test car in Germany, I naturally headed for the Autobahn. When the road ahead looked clear, I dropped the throttle. The RS 6 blasted forward with all four tires grabbing the road. Accompanied by a vicious-sounding engine growl, the RS 6 rocketed to 125 mph in about 17 seconds. The sensation was not unlike that of a genuine race car, and before I knew it the speedometer needle had reached 257 km/h (160 mph). I came upon traffic ahead, so I eased off, but it still had plenty left. The brakes, upgraded as well with 8-piston front calipers, provided ample stopping power with no hint of fade. Unfortunately, we Americans won't get a chance to experience the RS 6 in this way because the cars slated for North America will have a top speed governed at 155 mph. We also won't see the wagon version, which will be sold only in Europe.
The handling of the RS 6 is also first rate. The car's suspension — upper and lower A-arms front and rear — has been tuned to provide the ideal balance between sport and ride. What's notable about this system is that it features Dynamic Ride Control (DRC), an automatic pitch and roll compensation system that's unlike anything the company has produced before. DRC utilizes hydraulics to control the car's body roll, and limit squat and dive characteristics during braking and accelerating. DRC connects the shock absorbers at the opposite corners of the vehicle via a hydraulic system incorporating a central hydraulic reservoir. As the hydraulic pressure on the shock on the inside of a corner is reduced, it is transferred through the reservoir to increase pressure to the diagonally linked shock on the outside of the corner, thus reducing body roll. Combine this system with the Quattro all-wheel-drive system, and you have a car that corners with confidence-inspiring assuredness and agility. Understeer is noticeable through sharp corners, but the car remains relatively neutral on most other types of turns.
The RS 6 will be sold in limited numbers throughout the world. Of the 6000 total, the U.S. gets 860 of them. The car doesn't come cheap at $85,000, but if you want to be among the few to own this amazingly potent luxury sedan, hurry to your Audi dealer and get your name on the list. If it's already full, don't fret — Audi tells us there will be more RS conversions in the future.
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The 2020 Audi SQ8 Is an Everyday Muscle Truck
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The McLaren 620R Is the Son of Senna
The DBX SUV Is a Proper Aston Martin
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The Honda E Is a Lovable Hoot to Drive
The 2021 Porsche Cayenne GTS Is a Discount Turbo


Pesthelp Limited, suppliers of professional standard pest control products and supplies, door and window fly screens and electric fly killers. Our pest control products to buy online are effective for the eradication and elimination of all household and garden insect or animal pests. 40 years experience in the pest control service industry and 12 years as online distributors, enables us to offer only the best and most effective pest control supplies, each chosen for their effectiveness to give a quick and easy solution to your pest problems or infestations. All of our products have been tried and tested before being offered for sale.


Vintage Cowboy Boot Cufflinks. Gold Tone Vintage Cufflinks.
Interesting set of vintage cowboy boot cufflinks. Take them to your next rodeo or, barn dance. Take them to a country bar. Dang it, take "em anywhere. Very nice detailing on the boot. Small spurs set off the look. Great condition with little to no wear. Dark areas are reflection. Just a nice clean set. The tie clip didn't fare so well and although it is not included or pictured in this listing, I will send it along anyway. Fine looking set for the country crowd. Tops on these gold tone vintage cufflinks measure just over 1/2 inch either way.


text:
{{Infobox television
| image              =
| caption            =
| alt_name           =
| genre              = News programme
| creator            =
| writer             =
| director           =
| creative_director  =
| developer          =
| presenter          =
| starring           =
| voices             =
| narrated           =
| country            = Germany
| language           = GermanEnglishSpanishArabic
| num_seasons        =
| num_episodes       =
| list_episodes      =
| executive_producer =
| producer           = DW
| editor             =
| location           = Berlin
| cinematography     =
| camera             =
| runtime            = 30 minutes
| network            = DW
| picture_format     =
| audio_format       =
| first_aired        =
| last_aired         =
| preceded_by        =
| followed_by        = DW NewsDW NachrichtenDW Noticias
| related            = NHK NewslineBBC World News
}}

The Journal was a TV newsprogram on Deutsche Welle, broadcast from its studios in Berlin, Germany. It aired daily, usually on the hour, and was available in English, German, Spanish, and Arabic. These were broadcast via satellite to different parts of the world, but all were available DW's website and were often relayed via local broadcasters/channels.

The Journal was first broadcast on April 1, 1992 when RIAS-TV became DW. Major rebrands of the Journal took place in 1994, 1999, 2002, and 2006.

The Journal ended on June 22, 2015 after DW-TV reorganized and the program was replaced by DW News (German: DW Nachrichten, Spanish: DW Noticias).

Editions
There were 3-, 15-, and 30-minute editions of the Journal.

Weekdays
The 30-minute broadcast had two anchors. These editions included a business news segment with a ticker showing European and German stock prices and commodity prices.

The English-language Journal was broadcast on weekdays at 0100, 1400, and 1900 UTC. The Spanish-language Journal was broadcast at 2200 and 0100 UTC (prime time for Latin American viewers). The 30-minute Journal in German was broadcast at 1300 and 2100 UTC.

Weekends
At weekends, sports news replaced the business news segment. The last 15-minute segment of each program consisted of one of the following:
 Journal - Interview (German Interview, Spanish: Entrevista)
 Journal - Reporters (German and Spanish: Reporter)
 Journal - The Week (German: Die Woche, Spanish: La Semana)
 Journal - Business Review (German: Wirtschaftsbilanz, Spanish: Semana de Economia)

2006 Revamp
The Journal was revamped in June 2006. This included moving to a new studio, new theme music, and new lower-third graphics.

2009 new look
The program was revamped again in 2009. On weekdays, Journal With Business (Journal mit Wirtschaft in German), aired alongside Journal with In Depth (in German: Journal mit Tagesthema). A new edition, Journal with Business Review or in German, Journal mit Wirtschaftsbilanz broadcast along with three editions such as Journal with Interview or Journal mit Interview in German, was broadcast on weekends. Journal with The Week (in German: Journal mit Die Woche) and Journal with Reporters (in German:Journal mit Reportern'').

2012 new look
Changes were made to the program following DW-TV becoming DW in February 2012. Spanish-language programming, which had been limited to two hours a day, was increased to 24-hours a day. Arabic-language output was also increased.  Most commonly the program had three-minute summaries but there was also 15-minute editions and full 30-minute programs.

References

External links
 Official website of Journal Deutsche Welle

1992 German television series debuts
2015 German television series endings
1990s German television series
2000s German television series
2010s German television series
Arabic-language television shows
English-language television shows
German television news shows
German-language television shows
Spanish-language television shows

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


MBT Lighting is a leading manufacturer and wholesaler of lighting. We do not sell directly to consumers. Find your local MBT Lighting dealer below.
To view our comprehensive dealer list in pdf format, click here.
Or search by US, International or Online Dealers below.


text:
Home 2017 August 29 (Page 3)
Bilic to remain Hammers boss
West Ham United manager, Slaven Bilic, will be allowed to stay on as the Hammers' boss, at least for now.…
Weightlifting: Team Nigeria's participation at Oceania Championship in jeopardy
Less than 7 days to the 2017 Commonwealth and Oceania Weightlifting Championships for Senior, Junior and Youth in Australia, Team…
'Do current players know of the Cameroon rivalry'? Olofinjana asks
Calvin Emeka Onwuka
"How many of our current players understand the rivalry between Nigeria and Cameroon?" asks former Super Eagles midfielder Seyi Olofinjana.…
Liverpool's Lemar bids rejected
French champions, AS Monaco have reportedly rejected two Liverpool bids for their wide forward, Thomas Lemar. The Reds' latest offer…


By Road: Kharsali is the last village before you start your trek to Yamunotri Temple. The road from Rishikesh/Dehradun via Barkot and Janki chatti connects you to the Yamunotri Cottages. Options of ponies, porters and palanquins (palkis) are available for those who are unable to cope up with trek physically.
By Air: The resort is the only place in Yamunotri which is connected by a Helipad next door. One can take a flight to Dehradun and then take a helicopter to Kharsali (just 30 min Flying time from Sahastradhara helipad).


Click the Update button and wait until the process finishes. If you keep your program up to date, then update process will go quickly, because patches usually take no more than 1 Mb.
Important! When you use both desktop and web versions, upon releasing of a new update your version of web-application will be immediately updated. This means that desktop version will stop working until you update it as well. This happens because database version is increased with each release, and application may work only when application version and database version are identical.


Page recently took the time to answer some questions for us about her work.
As someone who embroiders, what's your take on the whole art vs. craft debate?
It can be a way for one group of people to alienate another. As art or craft evolve in one's work, they eventually demand each other.
How do you choose to identify yourself within those worlds?
I don't choose to identify with either world. If someone wants to place my work in a typical art setting and title the show Craft, I figure it is all entertaining. Relating craft to skill, the closer I can define a work depends on the skill and the development of that skill. The ideal situation in my work is to be able to choose to call upon a skill, and to have the talent of ignoring another.
How do you choose the photographs that you work with?
The photographs start as a lost, discarded, or mortal identity. They choose me as I find them attractive in some way or another. It is the beginning of a relationship so naturally I want someone usually quite healthy and engaging.
What's the relationship between the people in the photographs and the creatures that you adorn them with?
It can come from naturally occurring conflicts. One example would be the inner versus outer being. This conflict entails simple observations one might have about themselves regarding fashion, status, ego, and avatar.
Do you feel like you're creating specific characters in response to the photographs, or are you drawing from a set pantheon that already exists for you?
Ideally I prefer a direct response or conversation with each photograph, and there is evidence of this throughout my work. However, I cannot ignore my mood and truths that are created and recreated throughout bodies of works.
Is the scale of your work a deliberate choice, or more a natural byproduct of medium and convenience?
The scale is convenient and it is rewarding. It is difficult for me to know when to stop with a work, and so larger is a lot more time consuming. I also generally feel that smaller work travels, hangs, and moves well with the creator and collector.
Have you ever worked on a larger scale?
I do work on a larger scale and currently it is an experiment.
What other mediums have you worked with?
I have worked with paint, clay, and wood.
Why have you settled on thread?
Thread is such an accessible medium. It isn't too dangerous and I enjoy the portability with such little prep and clean time.


text:
Home > News > Unsolved Cases > Richard Clarke
Richard Clarke – Operation Dahlia
Richard Clarke, aged 73, died after being found collapsed on his driveway in Cranley Green Road in Eye on Saturday 22 August 2009.
It is suspected that Mr Clarke was the victim of an assault, which resulted in him receiving a fatal head injury.
On the afternoon of Friday 21 August 2009 Richard went to The Horseshoes Public House in Billingford and left in a taxi. He stopped to pick up a Chinese meal in Eye at about 7pm and he arrived at his home, Park Dale, at about 7.15 pm.
It is thought that Richard consumed part of his meal in the driveway of his home. A witness saw a male, believed to be Richard, apparently sat in his driveway holding his head just after 8pm. It is possible he had sustained his head injury by this time. The next time he was seen was when he was discovered seriously injured in the early hours of Saturday morning, 22 August 2009.
The Norfolk and Suffolk Joint Major Investigation Team carried-out extensive inquiries into Richard's death, but were not able to establish any motive for this attack and the killer has not been identified.
Since that time, the case has been subject to regular reviews and further media coverage, but the case remains unsolved.
Why has this case been looked at again?
In line with Suffolk Police's commitment to solving crime, this case has been one of a number which have been subject to regular review. This case now forms part the unsolved case review process and is subject of continual review for lines of investigation that can progress this case.
There may also be witnesses who might, for any number of reasons, have been unable or unwilling to provide Police with information they hold. With the passage of time, those witnesses may now be in a better position to come forward in order to assist.
A review of the forensic evidence has been carried out and the findings are subject of analysis to help provide direction to take the case forward.
Major Crime Review & Unsolved Case Manager: Mr Andy Guy


text:
Result Briefs November 7, 2017
Results: Making Progress in The Gambia's Tourism and Horticulture Industries
A farmer participating in the Growth & Competitiveness Project.
The introduction of an online business registration system reduced cost to register a business significantly and the average time to register reduced from 27 to 3 days.
Small scale farmers saw their sales of produce increase by 463% from 2011 to 2015;
A hospitality training center trained 1,235 students and helped increase arrivals by tourists from non-traditional markets by 71% between 2011 and 2015.
Washington, November 7, 2017 - Claudette Sarr-Krook was struggling to connect her natural products company in The Gambia with customers. As CEO of Care for Natural, she wanted to increase sales of her locally-produced yogurts, aloe vera, and jam, but had hit a stumbling block.
"We wanted to get our finger on the pulse of the industry in order to better price our products and be more competitive," said Sarr-Krook. "But doing so required expertise which was simply not available at an affordable cost in The Gambia. We worked with the World Bank Group to professionalize our business and gain credibility in the eyes of potential customers."
A World Bank Group project completed in 2015, The Growth & Competitiveness Project, aimed to improve the business environment for entrepreneurs like Claudette. The project was funded through a $12 million grant from the International Development Association, the Bank Group's fund for the poorest countries, and was executed by the Trade & Competitiveness Global Practice.
Sarr-Krook says that as a result of the project, her company benefited from improved quality and predictability from her suppliers. But the company also gained a great deal from the training aspect of the project. As a result, Care for Natural was able to introduce new product labels that included logos, nutritional value, and ingredients; calculate the prices of its products more accurately; develop a marketing system; and forge links with new buyers in Sweden and elsewhere in Europe. Claudette expanded the business, and by the project's end, Care for Natural had increased its sales from $1.3 million per year to $3.4 million.
"The Growth & Competitiveness Project greatly changed the way we do business," said Sarr-Krook. "We are able to give potential customers information faster, we gained a better grip on price and cost, our products look better, and our profits are easier to predict. This helps us decide which investments we dare to make and which not."
"We have gone through hard times in The Gambia where business is concerned," Sarr-Krook added. "It was difficult to grow given the political situation. However, we are now well prepared for any opportunity that may arise from a new Gambia."
Achieving positive results in The Gambia, designated a country affected by fragility, conflict and violence (FCV) by the OECD in 2016, required a tailored approach. For that reason, the project had multiple elements: addressing overarching challenges in the business environment to pave the way for local entrepreneurs and then honing in on two of The Gambia's largest industries – small-scale agriculture and tourism.
In 2010 when the project launched, starting a business in The Gambia was difficult and expensive. It took, on average, 27 days to receive a business license and the license cost entrepreneurs roughly 215% of their annual income (measured by GNI per capita).
The Growth and Competitiveness Project helped establish an online business registration system and abolish extraneous taxes and regulations that prevented entrepreneurs from formalizing their businesses. The Gambia saw significant improvement. By the project's close in 2015, the days required to receive a business license had been shaved from 27 to three, and business registration costs decreased from 215% to 141% of average annual income.
These improvements opened the door for new entrepreneurs to get their businesses off the ground. By the end of the project, more than 10,000 new enterprises had registered.
"Projects like this that support business environment reform are critical to our development," said Naffie Barry, chairperson of the project's steering committee and Permanent Secretary at The Gambia's Ministry of Trade, Industry, Regional Integration and Employment. "Business environment reforms enhance the competitiveness of our economy, help attract more private investment, and thus create growth, employment, and wealth accumulation. With a vibrant private sector, unemployment is usually kept to a controllable level which ensures peace and stability."
"This project has provided a new lease on life for our agribusiness company. We were able to grow the company and make it highly competitive in international trade."
Momodou Ceesay
Managing Director, Gambia Horticultural Enterprises Limited
In addition to helping to improve the enabling environment for business owners, the Growth & Competitiveness project, in partnership with the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID), helped to rebuild and revitalize The Gambia Tourism and Hospitality Institute.
According to Kofi Boateng-Agyen, Senior Private Sector Specialist at The World Bank Group and project lead, this funding provided much-needed teachers, books, equipment, and facilities at the institute.
Students at the Gambia Tourism and Hospitality Institute participate in a training session.
By November 2015, 1,235 full-time students had graduated from the institute, ready for careers at local hotels in The Gambia or on cruise ships. Students were also trained to set up their own enterprises.
Armed with this additional training, hospitality professionals became better equipped to serve tourists from diverse locations. Tourism services have improved as a result. The Gambia is also saw the number of tourists arriving in The Gambia from non-traditional markets increase by 71% between 2011 and 2015.
Small-scale farming
Like tourism, horticulture, or small-scale agriculture, remains one of The Gambia's most important industries, with farmers typically relying on traditional techniques and rainfall to grow their crops. The Growth & Competitiveness project established a contract farming program, which equipped small-scale mango farmers in The Gambia with new farming techniques, basic irrigation capabilities, and support from agricultural extension officers. As the quality of their produce improved, the program linked farmers with larger enterprises who purchased and exported the mangoes to places like the United Kingdom and the Netherlands.
Mango farmers prepare their produce for shipment.
This arrangement directly benefited 311 farmers, who increased their sales of mangoes by 463%, from about $80 per year in 2010 to $436 dollars per year in 2015.
"We are grateful for having the opportunities to gain expertise on advance farming techniques in export quality production through this program," said Mamady Jassey, president of the Mango Out-Growers Cooperative. "This gives us further opportunity to be able to convert our farms into a sustainable source of income for our family members."
Mango farmers receive training and information on new growing techniques.
"This aspect of the project really exceeded our expectations," said Boateng-Agyen. "Originally, we thought that getting 10 famers to sign on with the program would be a success. But the program and techniques spread much further."
As volumes improved, so did the ability to export.
"This project has provided a new lease on life for our agribusiness company," said Momodou Ceesay, Managing Director of Gambia Horticultural Enterprises Limited (GHE). "We were able to grow the company and make it highly competitive in international trade. As a result of the Growth and Competitiveness Project, GHE is now contributing to poverty reduction, employment creation, capacity building, sustainable and socio-economic developments in The Gambia, giving hope to the dreams of coming generations."
Growth & Competitiveness Project Documents
The World Bank in The Gambia
The World Bank & Agriculture
The World Bank & Competitiveness
The World Bank Group & Trade


Deborah Gera. Warrior Women: The Anonymous Tractatus De Mulieribus. Leiden and New York: Brill, 1997. xi + 252 pp. Nlg 151.00 US $95.50 (cloth), ISBN 978-90-04-10665-9.
Joyce Tyldesley. Hatchepsut: The Female Pharaoh. New York: Viking, 1996. xvii + 270 pp. $27.95 (cloth), ISBN 978-0-670-85976-4.
Although these are both fine books, neither has a great deal to say about women and war, nor indeed about ancient military institutions and warfare in general. Because the available literature on women and war in the ancient world is so scanty, however, even relatively marginal scholarly treatments are not to be ignored.
Deborah Gera holds an Oxford doctorate in classics and currently lectures at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Warrior Women: The Anonymous Tractatus De Mulieribus contains brief notices of fourteen Greek and barbarian women of the fifth and fourth centuries BCE. The book has two major parts. The first is an introduction to the treatise as a whole, including the Greek text and its translation in parallel columns ("Text and translation," pp. 5-11). In the second section, Gera analyzes the anonymous notices in exhaustive (and exhausting) detail, drawing upon the full array of classical sources and an extensive bibliography of modern commentary. This is a monograph clearly intended for classical scholars and not for very many of the rest of us.
Notwithstanding its meticulous scholarship, Warrior Women is badly mistitled. It contains little about its titular subject or even, for that matter, about war, which appears largely as a more or less incidental activity of the states these women ruled. There are two modest exceptions. a section of the introduction called "War, weaving, and wiles: gender roles" briefly discusses "Women at war" and "Plato's female guardians" (pp. 24-26). In the book's second part, the section on Zarinaea, a Scythian queen, examines the ancient identification of the Scythians as a race of warrior women along with Zarinaea's battlefield exploits and the links between Scythians and Amazons (pp. 88-95).
Joyce Tyldesley has a different problem in reconciling title and subject in Hatchepsut: The Female Pharaoh. As a pharaoh, Hatchepsut (or Hatshepsut, the U.S. spelling) adopted a male persona and reigned for two decades, but too little is known about her/him for a real biography. Tyldesley therefore gives us a life and times woven into three main strands: the king and her/his immediate family (the Tuthmosides), how she/he was remembered after her/his death, and the latter-day study and interpretation of her/his life and reign. She does this very well. An Oxford-trained archaeologist, Tyldesley wears her erudition lightly, offering her intended general audience a fascinating word-and-picture glimpse into Egypt at the middle of the second millennium BCE.
Hatchepsut's aggressively militaristic family founded the Eighteenth Dynasty, inaugurating the New Kingdom. While accepting the traditional pharaonic role as head of the armed forces, Hatchepsut maintained a relatively peaceful twenty-year reign. Accordingly, military matters form only a small part of Tyldesley's story. Her second chapter, on the Tuthmosides, devotes several pages (pp. 21-29) to the organization of the New Kingdom Egyptian army without mentioning women. Chapter Eight, "War and peace," does discuss Hatchepsut's military exploits and policies (pp. 137-45) but devotes equal space both to her/his male persona and to the country's foreign trade.
Both these works touch on the topic of women and war; in neither is it a major topic. Although they address quite different audiences, both provide solid scholarship within their chosen spheres. Each may offer interested readers reliable (if small) pieces of the puzzle of women's relation to war in the ancient world.
This review was commissioned by Reina Pennington for H-Minerva.
Citation: Barton C. Hacker. Review of Gera, Deborah, Warrior Women: The Anonymous Tractatus De Mulieribus and Tyldesley, Joyce, Hatchepsut: The Female Pharaoh. H-Minerva, H-Net Reviews. November, 1998.


text:
cowboyron.com
news,history,odd thinks ,politics news
How Bad is It?
baptist News
Happy Trails of the East
Happy Trails of the West
QUOTES BY COWBOYRON
MY FAVORITE HERO
COWBOYS AND SIDEKICKS
So want to build a ?
Thing that still make my day
TV show that still make my day
speeches that still make my day
Commercial That still make my day
Movie Preview that still make my day
Music that still make my day
sign that still make my day
AND THAT THE WAY I SEE IT. MY opinions
Wildfires in Portugal, Spain kill 39
October 17, 2017 cowboyrons@gmail.com News, political news 0
Republican feud rumbles on despite show of party unity
4:05 am, October 18, 2017
WASHINGTON (Reuters) — Like the deal-maker he says he is, U.S. President Donald Trump appears to be keeping his options open as his Republican Party threatens to erupt into full-scale war. On Monda…
LISBON/MADRID (Reuters) — At least 36 people died in wildfires raging through parched farmlands and forests in Portugal and another three in neighboring northwestern Spain on Sunday and Monday. Fir…
Anti-graft blogger dies in Malta car bombing
VALLETTA (Reuters) — Daphne Caruana Galizia, Malta's best-known investigative journalist, was killed on Monday when a powerful bomb blew up her car, police said, in a case that stunned the small M…
Venezuela faces more sanctions after contested vote
CARACAS (AFP-Jiji) — The United States condemned closely watched regional elections in Venezuela as neither free nor fair Monday, as European countries weighed imposing sanctions, leaving President …
Israeli strikes target anti-aircraft battery in Syria
JERUSALEM (AP) — The Israeli military said it struck and destroyed an anti-aircraft battery deep in Syria on Monday after it had opened fire on Israeli jets flying over Lebanon — a rare incident o…
Duterte declares Marawi 'liberated' from ISIL
MARAWI, Philippines (AP) — Gunfire rang out sporadically and explosions thudded as Philippine soldiers fought Tuesday to gain control of the last pocket of Marawi controlled by Islamic militants as…
North Korea says 'a nuclear war may break out any moment'
UNITED NATIONS (AP) — North Korea's deputy U.N. ambassador warned Monday that the situation on the Korean peninsula "has reached the touch-and-go point and a nuclear war may break out any moment…
Trump denies harassment claims
WASHINGTON (AFP-Jiji) — U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday dubbed all sexual assault allegations against him "fake news" after his campaign was subpoenaed as part of a defamation suit brought…
Trump: Predecessors didn't honor fallen
WASHINGTON (AP) — For U.S. presidents, meeting the families of military personnel killed in war is about as wrenching as the presidency gets. U.S. President Donald Trump's suggestion Monday that h…
Gravitational waves detected from neutron star crash
10:25 pm, October 17, 2017
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (Reuters) — Scientists in the United States and Europe have for the first time paired the detection of gravitational waves, the ripples in space and time predicted by Albert Einste…
Iraqi forces capture major oil city Kirkuk from Kurds
9:55 pm, October 17, 2017
BAGHDAD/KIRKUK, Iraq (Reuters) — Iraqi government forces captured the major Kurdish-held oil city of Kirkuk on Monday, responding to a Kurdish referendum on independence with a bold lightning strik…
Xi to extend power at Communist Party congress
BEIJING (AP) — Having bested his rivals, Chinese President Xi Jinping is primed to consolidate his already considerable power as the ruling Communist Party begins its twice-a-decade national congre…
May, Juncker agree to make efforts for faster Brexit talks
BRUSSELS (Reuters) — British Prime Minister Theresa May and European Commission chief Jean-Claude Juncker agreed over dinner in Brussels on Monday that the pace of negotiations over Britain's dep…
U.S. takes aim at ISIL in Yemen for 1st time
DUBAI (Reuters) — The United States said it launched its first attack on the Islamic St
wildfires in portugal spain kill
MORE ABOUT Meridian Idaho Temple The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
Wells Fargo closing Lehigh Valley call center, cutting 460 jobs
China is preparing for WAR – Xi Jinping in terrifying alert after global backlash
The problem with having a sense of humor is
The Long National Nightmare is Over
Speedskater Ben Thornock put an LDS Church mission ahead of Olympic aspirations. Now he's changed focus.
Michigan Gov. Whitmer caught in Memorial Day lockdown controversy over husband's reported boat request


text:
CARICOM Reparations Commission to boost online presence
Editor Aug 4, 2016 0
CARICOM Secretariat- Press Release The CARICOM Reparations Commission (CRC) will soon become more accessible online as it seeks to boost its presence by rolling out a new website and new social media platforms via Facebook,…
Region six RDC to take full responsibility for Amerindian Hostel following allegations of illegal…
By Royan Abrams The Regional Democratic Council (RDC) in region six has taken a decision to resume full responsibility of the Amerindian Hostel situated in Stanleytown New Amsterdam following allegations of wrong doings by…
New Deadline set for Kitty market completion- M&CC still collecting stall rentals
A new deadline is set for the completion of the once dilapidated Kitty Market which should have been completed months ago. Despite vendors being moved from the Kitty Market structure to facilitate rehabilitation works and are…
Gov't clarifies position on UG loan debtors
State Minister Joseph Harmon says there will be no blacklisting or preventing of travel of former or present University of Guyana (UG) students who would have taken a loan from the government. During the opening of the new…
Visa free travel to Colombia on the horizon; discussions to begin shortly
Guyanese will no longer need visas to travel to the South American, Spanish-speaking country of Colombia once negotiations, which will begin shortly are successful between the Foreign Affairs Minister and his Colombian counterparts in this…
New secondary school to be constructed at Waramuri, Region One
Cabinet has approved the construction of a Secondary School at Waramuri, Region One. This will cost the government over 15 million dollars and will benefit some 265 students from Waramuri and surrounding villages.…
Millions in items reduced to ashes as City store gutted by fire
By Leroy Smith A mid-morning fire on Thursday disrupted operations and services in the downtown Georgetown area, after a fire of unknown origin gutted a three-storey building at the corners of //…
Alleged serial robber shot by police
By Leroy Smith An alleged serial robber was this morning shot by the police in 'C' Division after he opened fire on ranks who were approaching him to carry out a search on his person. Hospitalised, under police…
Reports show that there is nothing illegal about parking meter system
Minister of State Joseph Harmon today confirmed that two reports were presented to the cabinet with regards to the Parking Meter System and the conclusion is that the contract is legal. Attorney General and Minister of Legal…
National Border Institute to be established to protect country's territorial integrity –…
The Government will be establishing a National Border Institute that will conduct research to allow the protection of Guyana's territorial integrity and deal with matters regarding the country's air space and continental shelf, however, the…


text:
Q: Perl sendmail to list is truncated I am working with a perl based cgi pages for a webproject. I am encountering a strange problem with sendmail module which happens randomly.
Problem:
 Sendmail would truncate the emails of the users appended at last. But not always, it happens randomly. I log the email list right before sending email and I don't see anything wrong.
Example Image (See Karl's last name is truncated at '.' after his first name.)

Headers for the email.
  Message-ID: <201305221503.r4MF3dYf022792@pazmo.internal.company.com>
  Subject: < ...>
  MIME-Version: 1.0
  Content-Type: text/plain
  To: <biradavolu.ln@company.com>, <dessimira.ln@company.com>,
  <yun.ln@company.com>, karl.
 Date: Wed, 22 May 2013 10:03:39 -0500
 From: <tool@company.com>
 Return-Path: tool@company.com
 X-MS-Exchange-Organization-AuthSource: eusaamw0712.domain.company.com
 X-MS-Exchange-Organization-AuthAs: Internal
 X-MS-Exchange-Organization-AuthMechanism: 10
 X-MS-Exchange-Organization-AVStamp-Mailbox: MSFTFF;1;0;0 0 0

The logged input before sending email: ( I don't see anything wrong with the format)
        biradavolu.ln@company.com;dessimira.ln@company.com;yun.lastName@company.com;karl.LastName@company.com;
use Mail::Sendmail;

# Step 1: Declare the mail variable
%mail = (
    from => 'test@company.com',
    to => 'user1FN.user1LN@company.com;user2FN.user2LN@company.com;user3FN.user3LN@company.com;' . "$requester_email; $responsible_email",
    subject => ... ,
    'content-type' => "multipart/alternative; "
);

my $toList='user1FN.user1LN@company.com;user2FN.user2LN@company.com;user3FN.user3LN@company.com;' . "$requester_email;";

# Step 2: Add members to toList based on different conditions
if(condition1)
    $toList= $toList.'user4FN.user4LN@company.com;';
if(condition2)
    $toList= $toList.'user5FN.user5LN@company.com;';

... # few other similar condition statement
...

# Step 3: Assign toList based on different conditions
$mail{ 'to' } = $toList;

# Step 4: Set Body of the $mail
if(sendmail(%mail)){
    print LOGFILE "Mail send successfully to $mail{\"to\"}:  ";
}else{
    print LOGFILE "Mail was not send : Mail list was $mail{\"to\"}  : ";
}

A: Wild guess here.  You're hiding the actual lastnames of your users (which is fine), but it could be possible that the "random" truncating is always happening on a user with a space in the last name?  Like "St. Pierre".  Your string might get truncated right at the space.
Let me know if that's possible!

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
Ethanol, 2,2'-iminobis-, N-C12-18-alkyl derivs.
Currently viewing: S-01 | Summary001 Key | Read-across (Category)002 Supporting | Read-across (Category)003 No specified study adequacy | No specified result type004 No specified study adequacy | No specified result type
ased on the available studies on biodegradation, the substances are estimated to be readily biodegradable. The 10-days-window criterion should not be evaluated for a UVCB thus there is no requirement for performing a soil biodegradation test (Annex IX. 9.2.1.3). No simulation tests for degradation rates under environmental conditions are available for primary fatty amine ethoxylates but for a very similar substance (hexadecyl amine) and these results will be used for read-across to primary fatty amine ethoxylates (2EO). For soil and aerobic sediment this is a half-life value of 17 days at 12 °C.
In addition a waste water treatment simulation test was performed with 2,2'(octadec-9-enylimino)-bisethanol (25307-17-9). More than 99.999% removal was observed using specific chemical analyses (LCMS/MS) of the effluent during day 44 to 48 (n=5). Also the sorption to sludge was measured and this accounted for 0.16 % of the total removal which means that 99.83% is removed by biodegradation.
Half-life in freshwater:
Half-life in freshwater sediment:
Biodegradation in a sewage treatment simulation test:
More than 99.999% removal is observed for 2,2'(octadec-9-enylimino)-bisethanol (25307-17-9) in waste water treatment simulation test. From this removal 99.83% is removed via biodegradation and 0.16 % via sorption. The test result can be used for the other primary fatty amine ethoxylates as a worst-case because all primary fatty amine ethoxylates
The removal ofoctadecenyl bis(2-hydroxyethyl)amine in biological treatment plants was simulated in a continuously-fed activated sludge (CAS) unit fed with domestic wastewater spiked with octadecenyl bis(2-hydroxyethyl)amine (AkzoNobel, 2010). Octadecenyl bis(2-hydroxyethyl)amine was exposed to micro-organisms maintained by addition of domestic wastewater in the CAS test. Octadecenyl bis(2-hydroxyethyl)amine was spiked at a nominal influent concentration of 50 mg/L (37.0 mg/L carbon; calculated) for a period of 48 days and included a control fed with domestic wastewater only.
The immediate high removal percentages can be attributed to adsorption and probably biodegradation. The mean removal percentage of octadecenyl bis(2-hydroxyethyl)amine calculated over 15 measurements obtained from day 34 to 48 of the test was 102±0.8% (95% confidence interval). These high removal percentages strongly indicate that octadecenyl bis(2-hydroxyethyl)amine is biodegraded completely. Formation of water soluble compounds during biological treatment of octadecenyl bis(2-hydroxyethyl)amine can be excluded. An accurate assessment of the removal of octadecenyl bis(2-hydroxyethyl)amine was established with specific analyses. The mean removal percentage of octadecenyl bis(2-hydroxyethyl)amine in the test unit was quantified from day 44 to 48 and was more than 99.999% usingoctadecenyl bis(2-hydroxyethyl) amineas representative component as a worst-case. These analyses demonstrate that the removal of octadecenyl bis(2-hydroxyethyl)amine is complete. Octadecenyl bis(2-hydroxyethyl)amine concentrations in the mixed liquid suspended solids (activated sludge) of the reactor sampled on days 47 and 48 were 3.2 mg/L. Mean removal percentages of octadecenyl bis(2-hydroxyethyl)amine from the influent through adsorption onto sludge assessed in two samples was therefore 0.16% demonstrating that octadecenyl bis(2-hydroxyethyl)amine is primarily removed by biodegradation.
In conclusion, the CAS test demonstrates thatoctadecenyl bis(2-hydroxyethyl)amine isalmost completely removed from the wastewater in conventional biological wastewater treatment plants.Octadecenyl bis(2-hydroxyethyl)amineis primarily removed by biodegradation.
Biodegradation in sediment:
Default half-life's
For the derivation of the default half-life's the bioavailability is taken into account via the sorption properties of the substance. This is realistic for soluble non-toxic substances. For poorly soluble/strongly sorbing substances however, the degradation rate in a standard ready test is limited by the dissolution rate and in many cases not 60% degradation is achieved within 28 days but in a slightly longer time frame. Such a substance is in fact completely degraded to CO2and H2O and thus completely biodegradable. The bioavailable fraction is readily biodegradable but the due to the stringency of the test setup the substance this cannot be observed.
The Kpsoil was determined as 4526 L/kg. The suggested maximum half-life for a readily degradable substance with a Kpsoil in the range >1000 and < 10000 L/kg is 3000 days for soil (at 12 ºC). These values are considered as extremely conservative but in the absence of measured data can be used in the exposure assessment as a worst-case. The half-life of the bioavailable fraction of primary fatty amine ethoxylates in the water phase of soils is expected to be in the order of a few days, which is based on experiments with dialkyldimethylammonium salts (van Ginkel et al, 2003).
Read across from primary alkyl amines
For hexadecylamine[1-14C] a substance which isvery similar to 2,2'-(C12-18 evennumbered alkyl imino) diethanol (CAS no 71786-60-2) there is an OECD 307 aerobic soil transformation study available and the results of this study will be used for read across to the primary alkyl amine ethoxylates for both the soil and sediment compartment. Although this C16 amine is strongly sorbing to soil (median Kp soil of 3875 L/kg at lowest measured concentration) the following half-life's at 20 °C were determined for three soils: Soil 1 t1/2 = 9.0 d; Soil 2 t1/2 = 8.1 d; Soil 3 t1/2 = 8.9 d.
The median Half-life of 8.9 d at 20 °C corresponds to a median Half-life of 16.9 d at an environmental temperature of 12 °C (see REACH Guidance). This study demonstrates that 1-Hexadecanamine (C16 amine) is rapidly degraded in various soils and the results indicate that the assumption of low degradation rates for strongly sorbing substances could be unjustified.


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Photos: Black Friday shopping at Fleet Farm in Rochester
By Joe Ahlquist
Shoppers searched for Black Friday deals at Fleet Farm in Rochester on Friday, Nov. 25, 2022.
Dawn Deyo, of New Richland, Minnesota, and her son Dustin Barry, of Rochester, look through the Fleet Farm ad while shopping on Black Friday, Nov. 25, 2022, in Rochester. "He's bringing me to the good deals," said Deyo. The mother and son he's been shopping for Black Friday deals with his mom since he was 7. "I used to go with my mom," added Deyo of their family tradition.
Joe Ahlquist / Post Bulletin
Keegan Schmidt, right, shops browses the toy aisle while shopping for Toys for Tots with his children Grayson, left, 4, and Avery, 1, on Black Friday, Nov. 25, 2022, in Rochester.
Customers wait in line at the checkout at Fleet Farm on Black Friday, Nov. 25, 2022, in Rochester.
Katie Morgan, of Zumbrota, and her daughter, Olivia, laugh while browsing the LEGO aisle at Fleet Farm on Black Friday, Nov. 25, 2022, in Rochester. The mother and daughter were out Black Friday shopping for the first time. "My goal is to make it more of a tradition," Katie said.
Lisa Roney, of Decorah, Iowa, and her grandson Brenton Cole, 7, browse the puzzles on Black Friday, Nov. 25, 2022, in Rochester.
Marcia Wagoner and her daughter Tara Jirak, both of New Hampton, Iowa, look at Christmas decorations at Fleet Farm on Black Friday, Nov. 25, 2022, in Rochester.
Fleet Farm employees help customers at the checkout on Black Friday, Nov. 25, 2022, in Rochester.
Related Topics: PHOTO GALLERIESVISUAL STORYTELLINGROCHESTER
Joe Ahlquist is the photo editor at the Post Bulletin. Joe is a 2013 graduate of Winona State University and previously worked at the Winona (Minn.) Daily News and the Sioux Falls (S.D.) Argus Leader before arriving at the Post Bulletin in July of 2017. Readers can reach Joe at 507-285-7624 or jahlquist@postbulletin.com.
The City of Rochester is applying for the Minnesota Investment Fund grant "to assist with the start-up of Nucleus RadioPharma," which is a Mayo Clinic firm.
By Jeff Kiger
In a special election in May, voters will pass or fail a $400,000 municipal bond to finance the city's purchase of the former bank building, which would become the new city hall.
By Dené K. Dryden
Driver injured in Stockton collision Monday morning
The driver had non-life threatening injuries.
MnDOT to hold information meeting on Austin bridge replacement project Tuesday
The public meeting will go over MnDOT's plan to replace or repair six bridges along I-90 by 2026.
A retired Mayo Clinic physician's last literary hurrah


This is something that has always bugged me on SAP Projects. You send somebody an important email, or reply to an email, only to discover several days later, that they never bothered to open it. How do you get them to open your email?
I decided to start observing myself. I get about 100 email's a day (about 65% is spam and goes to my spam folder). Why do I open some email's and why do I ignore others? Let use practical example to examine these questions.
Here is a snapshot of my personal mailbox for the last 40 minutes.
I wanna get Off !!!
Productivity and Thinking on Paper – A key to your success?


Why is the Grey Cup Game like Your Retirement? | Wernham Wealth Management Inc.
Why is the Grey Cup Game like Your Retirement?
Some Brokers and Bankers bet on your retirement score using your money ….
Our clients relax and enjoy the game, knowing that they win!


On Saturday, 25th August 2018, Rev. Duncan Murchison was ordained and inducted as assistant minister to Portree and Bracadale Free Church.
This was a hugely significant occasion and a real landmark in the history of the congregation, and we give thanks to God for his marvellous provision. Almost two hundred gathered to observe and celebrate this noteworthy day, drawing people from the local community as well as family and friends from across Scotland.
The service was held in the Parish Church, where Rev. Marcos Florit, Moderator of the Skye and Wester Ross Presbytery, preached from Numbers chapter 2. His sermon was an appropriate reminder of the mission of the church and its purpose to glorify God as a united body. He spoke of God's very real presence with his people, and his perfect authority and sovereignty which we should lovingly and obediently submit to.
Duncan was addressed by Rev. Gordon Matheson who spoke on the theme of loyalty, emphasising the importance of loyalty to the congregation, loyalty to his colleague(s) and chiefly, loyalty to Christ. His words gave very practical advice and encouragement which will surely serve Duncan well as he begins his ministry in Portree and Bracadale. Rev. David Miller then addressed the congregation, focusing on our responsibility to our ministers and our individual service. His address was encouraging yet challenging, a reminder that God equips all of us for service, and we are each unique in our personhood, circumstances and gifting.
The service was concluded with presentations to both Lydia and Duncan, where Rev. Donnie G. MacDonald presented a book and a Bible to Duncan, and Ann Gillies presented an impressive bouquet of flowers to Lydia.
Following the service, a reception was held at Portree Primary School. In addition to greetings from those who were unable to attend, messages from Stirling Free Church and Partick Free Church were read out by Rev. D. G. MacDonald, who then went on to speak about Portree and Bracadale's needs as a congregation, pointing out how Duncan's arrival would help meet its need for help, its need for change and above all, the community's need for Christ.
Duncan then thanked everyone, and his words of thanks were followed by a speech from his long-term friend, David Smith, who spoke excellently, with humour and sincerity. The day came to an end with emotive singing of Psalm 23.
We praise God for bringing Duncan and Lydia to us and pray that Duncan's ministry will be deeply blessed, and have a real impact on the congregation and the wider community.


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Media Amazon 21st Century Fox
Amazon bids for Fox regional sports networks
By Andrew Blustein | Reporter
Amazon has put in a bid for the 22 regional sports Disney acquired from 21st Century Fox, according to CNBC.
Amazon bids for 22 regional sports networks
Apollo Global Management, KKR & Co, The Blackstone Group, Sinclair Broadcast Group and Tegna also made bids for the networks, according to CNBC.
Amazon's bid includes the Yes Network. Blackstone and the New York Yankees also bid for the tri-state area network, according to CNBC.
Yes is considered the 'crown jewel' of the bundle. Fox bought a 49% stake in the network for $3.8bn from the Yankees in 2012, and increased its stake to 80% in 2014 at a similar valuation, according to the Wall Street Journal.
The Journal also reported Disney is putting a tag of $5bn to $6bn on Yes.
The Department of Justice is requiring Disney, which owns ESPN, to sell off the regional networks.
The second round of bidding is said to begin before the end of 2018.
This bid marks an apparent push for live sports content. In 2017, Amazon paid $50m to stream Thursday Night Football games in America. This year, it secured rights to stream exclusive Premier League matches.
More from Media


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State of the Unions Week
2 Reasons Why We Should Invest in Women in Agriculture
Gender equality and world hunger.
Sarah Sloat
(PHOTO: CIAT/FLICKR)
Two of the U.N. Millennium Development Goals, the promotion of gender equality and the eradication of extreme poverty and hunger, could come to fruition in the same solution: an investment in women within agriculture.
Empowering women supports a basic human right, but the advancement of female agricultural workers can also lead to improved agricultural productivity, food security, and nutrition. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations states that equalizing access to productive resources between female and male farmers can increase agricultural output in developing countries by 2.5 to four percent. With studies forecasting a 100- to 110-percent increase in global crop demand from 2005 to 2050, the additional impact of female farmers could play an important role in serving a hungry world.
The advancement of female agricultural workers can also lead to improved agricultural productivity, food security, and nutrition.
Women represent 43 percent of the world's agricultural workforce, yet in their estimated yields, women fall behind men between 20 to 30 percent. This isn't because women are worse farmers, but due to a gender gap in access to resources such as seeds, fertilizer, and technology. The 2012 World Development Report states that in agriculture, gender differences in productivity almost always disappear when access to land and productive inputs are taken into account. Women are also disadvantaged when it comes to owning land. Divorces and widowhood cause many women to become landless and lose their assets—an issue made worse by lower wages. In her remarks to the U.S. Department of State, former U.S. Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women's Issues Melanie Verveer reported that if women were provided the same resources as men, they could increase their individual yields by 20 to 30 percent. This, in turn, would improve agricultural production in the developing world and reduce the number of undernourished people by 100 to 150 million globally.
The 2012 Global Food Policy Report states that although a focus on gender in agriculture is not new, it has been constrained to "gender-blind programs that ignore gender differences" or limited specialized programs that target women. Gender blind programs, they claim, "may even make matters worse by encumbering women with additional uncompensated duties or depriving them of control resources in a manner detrimental to their welfare." What is necessary are more gender-aware programs that recognize the different needs of men and women, engagement with women's groups as real partners in development, and further projects that look to find evidence to identify the range of agricultural challenges women face—such as the Women's Empowerment in Agricultural Index, a tool used by the U.S. government in their Feed the Future initiative.
Removing the barriers women face professionally can generate productive gains, which would make their home nations more competitive in a global market and hopefully accelerate development. As Verveer says, "Unleashing women's potential by closing the gender gap in the agricultural sector is a win-win strategy."
WomenGenderEconomyAgricultureEquality
Gender Equality Increases by 1 Percent in California
Despite some recent high-profile hirings, the gender balance in high-level business positions hasn't changed much.
The Next Civil Rights Issue: Why Women Aren't Welcome on the Internet
"Ignore the barrage of violent threats and harassing messages that confront you online every day." That's what women are told. But these relentless messages are an assault on women's careers, their psychological bandwidth, and their freedom to live online. We have been thinking about Internet harassment all wrong.
Why Female Extremists Perplex Us
What makes women join the Islamic State? It's a complicated question that challenges our notion of feminism, culture, and religion, but it's crucial if we are going to defeat ISIS.
Women Should Lead the Way Against Climate Change
They tend to invest significantly more in the future of our children.
Four Ways Climate Change Affects Women More Than Men
Plus: Five ways women have led, or might lead, climate-change adaptations that narrow the gender gap.
5 Reasons Why Pointlessly Gendered Products Are a Problem
Gendered products aren't just a gag. They're a ubiquitous and aggressive ideological force, shaping how we think, what we do, and how much money we have.


Question: How much responsibility lies with the citizen when consuming media?
Arrianna Huffington: The citizen, the consumer, has a responsibility, and they need to be much more vigilant and alert, but at the same time, I don't really buy this idea that the media are kind of like Pontius Pilate, you know, washing their hands of responsibility, presenting both sides of the argument and letting the viewer or the user make up their minds. I mean, of course, there are many issues when that is the case, but some of the critical issues of our time are beyond that. You know, the media have a responsibility to tell a story of what happened, and to do it when it could still matter. I mean, look at how the way the media, again, missed the big story on deregulation and the impact that deregulation would have on our economy, including the mortgage crisis, the housing crisis, millions of people losing their homes. So, I think the media need to look very closely at the way they're failing the American people, because that's their responsibility. That's our responsibility, and now, with the growth of the online media, I clearly believe that we have the responsibility which you are exercising to hold the mainstream media's feet to the fire and hold them accountable.


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Rent our 1800′s birdcage for your next event. Great as a card holder or a centerpiece.


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We cannot guarantee that donuts will not be damaged during transport, but will pack them as best as we can. We've shipped to Hawaii, Maryland, Connecticut, New York, Florida, and more!


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Die Abkürzung USSR steht für:

 Ukrainische Sozialistische Sowjetrepublik (ukrainisch Українська Радянська Соціалістична Республіка, УРСР; russisch Украинская Советская Социалистическая Республика, УССР) 1919 bis 1991
 Sowjetunion (englisch Union of Soviet Socialist Republics), 1922 bis 1991
 Name der Zeitschrift Soviet Life von 1956 bis 1964.

Siehe auch:
 Usbekische Sozialistische Sowjetrepublik (Abkürzung UsSSR), 1925 bis 1991

USSR


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ROBERT COOVER
The Chicago Interview
What makes tales endure? For one thing, they respond to raw human needs and appetites—the desire for happy endings in an unhappy world, for justice where there is none, for fairness, love, comedy, for the playful exercising of the imagination. But of course the tale also plays to the baser instincts, to racism, sexism, greed, fear, to the appetite for revenge, for bringing down, as cruelly as possible, not only the high and mighty, but also misfits and fools. The very earliest tales we have, creation stories, religious fantasies, nation-building myths—the ancient Sumerian tales, for example, from which the Akkadian Gilgamesh epic was stitched—all tend to exhibit these same characteristics, emerging as if irresistibly from the pooled mess we call human nature. Their parts are interchangeable and can be constructed and reconstructed to tell a vast range of stories that can migrate through diverse cultures, the morals changing from one telling to the next. They provide a universal commonality of language, of discourse, of narrative. The opportunity for a ceaseless remythologization. And they enjoy a kind of immortality that we, the tellers, lack. They may disappear for a long time—we don't hear the tales of Little Black Sambo anymore, or some of the more gross misogynist tales; Sut Lovingood has largely dropped out of the curriculum—but they linger under the surface and return in new guises from generation to generation, century to century. We are, for example, an allegedly democratic society that has thrown off royalty and the naive awe of bloodlines, yet we flock to see something as blatantly royalist as "The Lion King" and grovel before political and commercial dynasties, as though somehow their seed might be magical, able to save us all only if we give them what they want. These grand patriotic, religious, and cultural myths and tales have been a personal target all my writing life. They are not truths, though they may contain truths, and they need to be told and retold, over and over, played with, reinvented, moved into strange places, so that what's valuable in them for our own times can be celebrated, what's wicked or stifling mocked.
How did fairy tales become a part of your work? The summer before starting grad school at Chicago, I holed up in a remote cabin on an island in Minnesota with the intention of trying to understand this vocation of writing. I'd thought of myself as a writer since I was about three years old, but my notions about it were vague and ambivalent. I was working my way at the time through all the fairy tales I'd been brought up with, including the patriotic and religious ones, and consequently was reading a lot by historians and theologians. I ran into an argument between the theologian Rudolf Bultmann and the philosopher Karl Jaspers. Basically, Bultmann wanted to de-mythologize Christianity, to rid the Bible of the folk and fairy tales and its dubious histories, and reduce the Christian story to its so-called facts, its indisputable essence, its indispensable dogmas. Jaspers felt that was a kind of false rationalism, that the stories that Bultmann wanted to keep had no more validity than those he wanted to throw out, but each had equal mythic or tale-telling value. Bultmann's way of critiquing the tales from the outside with a set of orthodox standards was the very opposite to that of Jaspers' notion of living inside stories to search out their potential insights, free of any dogma. This notion of invading stories experientially on their own turf appealed to me, if Jaspers' transcendental aims perhaps did not, and I began that summer to work my way into the kind of writing I've been doing ever since.
How do you find a place to grasp a tale from within and retell it? Usually the tale takes hold of me. I often don't understand myself why I'm suddenly attracted to a certain element. I tend to launch forth by way of a particular image or phrase or curious metaphor. This seed of a tale often sits germinating in a file drawer for years before it begins to open itself up to me. For example: Briar Rose. One day many, many years ago, I had a passing thought about a sleeping beauty who never woke up and an aspiring hero who never escaped the briars, and who somehow dreamt into being their lives together. I wrote a couple of paragraphs, but that was as far as it went. Years went by, though I attempted several times to return to it. And then one day I found myself thinking about the bad fairy who put Beauty to sleep: why did she do that? She did not appear because I thought her into being, she simply popped up and made a wiseass remark which I chanced to overhear. And suddenly I had my story. When she intruded upon the tale, it took off and was done within weeks.
The characters in your books and stories often seem frustrated with their traditional fairy tale roles. Each of these characters is trapped in a story not entirely their own that they're struggling against, and that's meant to be a kind of metaphor for everyone's personal existence. We are all caught up in tales dreamt up by others long dead. Most people accept these imposed narratives, it's easier to get through life that way. But that mindless surrender to one's mythic environment is what these characters are resisting, and they might show the way for readers to recognize and resist their own entrapments. Thus my book The Adventures of Lucky Pierre. Lucky is a pornographic film hero who has no life outside the footage that he's in. He has no continuity beyond that provided by montage, no memory unless a flashback is given him, no "character" beyond that scripted for him. Yet, within that fixed rigid role in life, he strives for freedom and understanding, a comic effort to be sure, like all our strivings, but hopefully an exemplary one.
So many of your stories resist a clear resolution, let alone a happy ending. Briar Rose will never awaken, the Stepmother will always try to save another daughter from the Reaper. But they have another kind of ending, if not always a conventionally happy one, and that's one in which the whole—including the sources and the inventive transformations of those sources—becomes apparent to the attentive and absorptive reader. This accession of the whole by the assembly, not necessarily linear, of the parts and their variations, their potential, is characteristic of much electronic or computer writing. Take, for example, the famous sonnet by Raymond Queneau, Cent Mille Milliards de Poèmes, in which each of the fourteen lines has ten variations. In its original form, ten bound pages of poems were sliced between each line, allowing the reader to create variations by turning lines instead of pages. This cumbersome procedure was upgraded on the computer by way of random selection generators, providing the reader with potentially 100,000,000,000,000 different sonnets simply by hitting a replay or reshuffle button. It is probably impossible, in one lifetime, to read this poem in all its combinations. But in actuality there are only 140 lines arranged in fourteen sets of ten lines each, and the reader can grasp something of the sonnet's (or sonnets') entirety, its intentions, its content, by reading these lines and sorting them mentally into their sets. Then, calling up any randomly shuffled version, the reader is in effect rereading and listening to the particular music of that version, but with the whole of the poem more or less in mind. It's similar to complex narratives that resist linear interpretations and have no easy or singular conclusions. The very arbitrariness of bringing a story to a clean ending—this happened and then that happened and here's the inevitable result—can be reassuring and momentarily delightful, but it's too unlike life itself to be ultimately satisfying. Being left, instead, with a larger vision of the whole, with all its paradoxes and potential, is or can be more fulfilling.
More interviews can be found online with:
Sean P. Carroll in Bookslut
Hari Kunzru in The Guardian
Jonathan Derbyshire in The New Statesman
Michael Heitkemper-Yates in Wave Composition
Gabe Hudson in McSweeney's Internet Tendency