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An investigation into inviscid theory applied to manoeuvring bodies in fluid
Hatam, A 2005, An investigation into inviscid theory applied to manoeuvring bodies in fluid , PhD thesis, Salford : University of Salford.
This thesis focuses on the appropriateness of the inviscid potential flow model for determining the manoeuvring characteristics of a body moving through fluid. This model is widespread in many key applications for ships, submarines, aircraft, rockets, missiles, as well as for the swimming of marine animals and the flying of birds. Despite the widespread use, there are important anomalies in the theory, in particular relating to the lift induced by shed vorticity. These anomalies have been identified in the recent publication by Chadwick which states that the lift has been calculated incorrectly, and apparent agreement in wing theory is fortuitous due to "two wrongs" in the theory giving the right answer. In this thesis, the inviscid flow is further investigated, and the work of Chadwick is extended and developed further. In the first two chapters, careful description of the basic fluid concepts and then derivation of the fluid equations is given. In chapter four, the lift and drag on a wing are considered. The lift evaluation comes out to be half that expected and this is in agreement and essentially repeats the analysis in Chadwick's recent paper [1]. However, the analysis is extended to evaluate the drag, and surprisingly the drag is determined to be infinite. In chapter five, further investigation into the lift on a thin wing is undertaken, and it is seen that there is uncalculated jump in the lift at the trailing edge. This is calculated from the pressure integral across the trailing edge. Finally, in chapter six, inviscid flow slender body theory is investigated. A complete near field expansion is given for a singularity distribution of sources over an infinite line by using the Fourier transform method. In this thesis, this result is extended for the finite line by using the integral splitting technique. By taking the ends to infinity, the result for the infinite line is recovered and the two methods shown to be equivalent for this specific case. The method presented here relies upon allowing a singular wake to exist behind the body. This introduces non-uniqueness in the matching and the implications of this are discussed. Appropriate references to other researchers are given in individual introductions for each chapter.
Chadwick, EA (Supervisor)
Schools > School of Computing, Science and Engineering


Who has Cheap Travel Insurance Rates for Trips to Australia?
No single travel insurance company or policy is the best for everyone. With this in mind, we've researched and analyzed dozens of travel insurance plans for trips to Australia to arrive at a selection of travel insurance plans that stand out for their combination of features and price. Read our research to decide if any are right for you.
Do I Need Travel Insurance to Australia?
How Much is Travel Insurance to Australia?
We gathered pricing data from our comparison partner, Compare Cover, for Single Trip travel insurance to Australia from over 100 policies from dozens of insurance providers. Choosing the best travel insurance for you will depend on factors like price points and features that you might find valuable. For a discussion of major differences between buying direct and buying from a comparison site, please see the individual reviews. Please use the information in this review to help you narrow down your choices.
Travel insurance to Australia can cost from £8 to £100, or more, for a healthy, young traveller. For those on a budget, we've picked six insurance providers that offer cover for 2-week trips to Australia for under £30 yet still provide at least £1,000 of Baggage and £2,000 of Cancellation cover.
Additionally, you get £2,500 of Scheduled Airline Failure (SAFI) and End Supplier Failure (ESF) cover, which again is pretty unique at that price point.
Sainsbury's Bank sells travel insurance plans that represent good value. The top two tiers, Sainsbury's Bank Standard and Premier, provide £1,500 and £2,000 of Baggage and £3,000 and £5,000 of Cancellation, respectively. Both plans include £1,500 of SAFI; top-tier Premier also covers £1,500 of ESF cover. While gadgets aren't covered under standard Valuables, you can buy Optional Gadget cover of £2,000 on the Standard plan and £3,000 on the Premier plan. Catastrophe cover—a relatively high amount of £3k or £5k—is also available through an optional add-on feature called "Travel Disruption Cover".
Consider this if you don't want to pay a lot for travel insurance to Australia.
ERV's Essential policy shone as the cheapest plan to provide at least £1,000 of Baggage and £2,000 of Cancellation cover with prices starting around £12 for a young, healthy individual. For around £6 more you can upgrade to their Premier plan, which provides £2,000 of Baggage and £5,000 of Cancellation protection.
While electronic mobile devices such as smart phones are excluded from Valuables cover, you can buy ERV's optional Gadget cover for £1,000 of Gadget protection (up to £500 for each gadget). As discount plans, there is no SAFI or End Supplier Failure cover, but you do get £1,000 (Essential) or £1,500 (Premier) of Catastrophe cover in case of natural disaster like an earthquake.
Consider this if you want a low-cost option with Catastrophe cover.
Another low-price option, StartTravel.co.uk's Classic plan starts at less than £15 and provides £2,000 of cover for both Cancellation and Baggage. There's no SAFI or ESF protection to protect you against the financial failure of a travel or accommodation provider, which is not really a surprise given the low price point. £1,000 is set aside for Catastrophe cover, however.
Electronic mobile devices such as smart phones or P.D.As, games consoles (including hand held consoles), laptops, iPads/computer tablets or similar are NOT covered, and there's no optional Gadget cover, so you'll need to protect your gadgets another way—perhaps they're covered under your home contents policy.
Providing £2,500 of Cancellation cover and £1,500 of Baggage cover, Explorer Travel Gold Plus plans can insure budget trips to Australia for a starting price of less than £15. Whilst phones and laptops are covered via the Valuables section, there's a pretty low limit of only £200—and there is NOT an optional add-on Gadget feature to top up your cover.
Fit2Travel's Gold and Platinum plans will cover your non-refundable travel and accommodation expenses up to £2,500 or £5,000, plus Baggage up to £2k or £3k, respectively. Whilst still on the cheaper end for travel insurance with policies starting around £15 (Gold) and £24 (Platinum), you'll get SAFI cover of £1k or £1.5k and Catastrophe of £500.
Mobile phones are not covered on Fit2Travel plans, but laptops are covered under the Valuables section up to £500.
Those insuring more expensive holidays worth over £5,000 and/or luggage worth more than £3,000 and Valuables of at least £400 will likely pay in the range of £40 to £65 for sufficient cover.
Economycover.com's Premier Plus plan offers a higher level of cover for financial failure, with £5,000 of SAFI and £2,000 of ESF cover. For a starting price to Australia under £40 you get £8,000 of Cancellation and £5,000 of Baggage—definitely some of the best cover limits in that price range. While there's no extra Gadget add on available, gadgets are covered up to £400 through the Valuables section.
Yes, Boots sells travel insurance. And a look through the 500+ customer reviews on Trustpilot shows they're doing something right—easy-to-use website, simple to declare medical conditions, great customer service and solid value for money. Their top-tier Platinum plan stands out for offering £7,500 of Cancellation cover and £3,500 of Baggage cover for a premium starting under £50 for a 2-week stay in Australia.
In particular, we like that you get £1,000 for Gadgets included on all Platinum policies (separate from the £500 Valuables limit), without needing to pay extra. Plus the standard excess is £0 on the plan.
For those with more pricey travel and accommodation arrangements, FortifyMyTravel offers £10,000 of Cancellation cover—one of the higher limits in our study. Baggage cover is a respectable £3,000 and you get the same amount for Catastrophe cover. Unfortunately, there's no SAFI, ESF or mobile phone cover with FortifyMyTravel.
Consider this if you want higher ESF and SAFI cover, plus the option to buy Gadget cover.
For those worried about losses due to financial failure of a provider, the Spectrum prestige plan offers higher limits of £4k SAFI and £3k ESF cover. With £7,500 of Cancellation and £4,000 of Baggage cover, the Spectrum Prestige plan has some of the highest cover in our study. Additionally, those looking to insure their gadgets can buy optional gadget cover providing £2,000 of protection for phones, tablets, etc.
Travel insurance is a must have for those travelling from the UK to Australia. The right travel insurance plan can lesson the financial burden of a holiday gone wrong, whether due to an accident, a health emergency, lost bags or a myriad of other reasons. Having protection through travel insurance can be even more meaningful when you're so far from home.
Given that return flights to Australia can easily set you back £800 or more, the Cancellation section of a travel insurance plan can be quite valuable should you need to unexpectedly cancel or cut short your trip due to circumstances out of your control, like a medical emergency. Similarly, Repatriation to the UK in the event you've suffered a serious illness or accident while abroad and need to be brought back to the UK under special circumstances would be very costly coming from Australia, and can be a key element of travel insurance to Australia.
Medical cover is equally important. The Australian Government Department of Human Services recommends that all visitors get travel insurance, even when coming from countries with which Australia has a Reciprocal Health Care Agreement (RHCA). For more details on what's covered by the RHCA, please see the DHS website. As a side note, if you do use the RHCA to access health care whilst in Australia, it is recommended to have your passport and NHS card (if you have it) with you—or if you don't have an NHS card (they're not issued anymore) then be sure to carry your NHS number with you.
If you'd like more detailed information on the ins and outs of travel insurance plans, you can read more in our Travel Insurance Guide.
When considering plans you may also want to check features like personal liability, loss or theft of your passport, and Gadget cover (if you want more cover for your mobile phone, tablet, laptop, etc.).
Travel insurance is even more critical for those travelling to Australia with a pre-existing medical condition, as the odds may be higher that you need to cancel or cut short your trip due to illness. Additionally, the cost of medical repatriation from Australia could easily reach tens of thousands of pounds for an air ambulance, since it's so far away. But whether or not your medical condition is minor or serious, those travelling to Australia with pre-existing conditions such as stroke, heart conditions (e.g., cardiomyopathy), cancer, etc. may be best served by a specialist travel insurance company. Either way, you're likely to pay more for travel insurance if you have a medical condition.
Travel insurance companies that specialize in medical conditions include goodtogoinsurance.com, JustTravelcover.com, OK To Travel, Saga or even household name Virgin Money. You may find that these companies have more appetite for providing travel insurance to those with a risky medical history. In particular, Fit2Travel and Free Spirit Travel Insurance are known to offer cover when other companies may not due to serious medical conditions.
There are many reasons a family should take out travel insurance, beyond the norm. Children are often more prone to injury and may require foreign medical treatment. And no matter how easy your children, travelling with them feels like a disaster if your luggage has been lost. And just imagine being trapped with little kids in an airport for over 12 hours due to a delayed flight—you'll need sustenance and all the better if it's paid for by your insurance through Travel Delay cover.
More than other travelling groups, we think travel insurance is critical for a family on the go, to help them ease the stress and burden of a holiday mishap.
Generally speaking, when it comes to travel insurance, children often travel free. That is, travel insurance for a family of 4 (2 adults, 2 kids) costs roughly 2X the cost of an individual, adult traveller. If only the airlines would follow suit! The travel insurance plans mentioned above still stand out for families due to their features, and—so important for families—all offer some level of travel delay and baggage delay cover.
The cost to insure your holiday in Australia ranges widely; a healthy, young adult can expect to pay an average of £27 for a 2-week stay, but the cheapest cover costs as little as £10 or so. A family of four will pay around twice as much.


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Tag Archives: Space Travel
STEAM ENGINE TO THE MOON
Posted on November 27, 2013 by Mark J. Hansen
I'm hopping on a choo-choo
And chugging to the moon
I'll hold my breath until my lungs
Get properly attuned
The train will zoom through Outer Space
Past Mercury and Mars
You can say hi to constellations
From observation cars
I cannot wait to see a comet
And to touch its tail
Which I have heard is made of blubber
Not unlike a whale
The train runs on a special steam
That's made from burning feathers
Of duck-shaped clouds that are corralled
In any inclement weather
And when the engine finally stops
At destination moon
We'll all look down upon the Earth
And feel picayune
But not for long upon the moon
Will you feel that mood deflator
As you dance among the rocks and cheese
And bellow in the craters!
HOT DOGS FROM OUTER SPACE!
Posted on April 5, 2011 by Mark J. Hansen
Way out past the sun, and the moon and the Earth,
Several blocks down from the Milky Way
Was a planet with very unique occupants
Who decided to visit one day.
Now these weren't your little green men from Mars,
Or twelve-tentacled Saturn dwellers.
They had a much more familiar physique
Especially to frankfurter sellers.
Yes these beings were shaped like hot dogs
Long tubes of meat surrounded in buns.
But they had one beady eye and a mouth filled with teeth
And four arms armed with ray guns.
They traveled to Earth to dumb down the planet
Their rays caused our brains some regressin'
But nobody noticed or batted an eye
When they invaded Saul's Delicatessen.
"Put up your hands, Earthling, or taste of my wrath,"
Said the leader to one deli patron.
"I ordered you with mustard relish and onion,"
Said Charlie, thus sealing his fatron.
The flash of the laser was tiny and subtle,
But it pierced right through Charlie's brain.
And it dropped his IQ to sub-mental levels
Which for Charlie was about the same.
"Citizens of Earth!" the lead hot dog announced,
"We're here to take over your world!"
And he ordered his men to raise up their flag
Which two space wieners then unfurled.
Their flag was a picture of the planet Earth
With a humanoid hot dog atop it.
It certainly seemed these frank's plan was fool-proof.
There was only one man who could stop it.
They called him Fat Hank, due to excessive girth,
Not your average villain defeater.
But for this task Fat Hank was especially right,
As he was a World Champion Eater.
Yes, he'd devoured pizzas in mere milliseconds,
Scarfed down pulled pork pulled straight from the hog.
But his real claim to fame and his legendary skill
Was his rapid consumption of hot dogs.
"You messed with the wrong guy," Fat Hank growled
As he hoist himself up from the back stool.
"I've fried bigger fish than the likes of you folk.
You ain't gonna win this duel."
"You dare challenge your new leader, earthling of mass,"
The lead hot dog said, aiming his gun for.
"One more word from your overly active maw,
And believe me, sir, you will be done for."
Fat Hank snorted, which the lead hot dog took as a threat
Approaching him as the others followed.
"You dare question my pow-wha?!" he started
His threat undercut by the fact he was swallowed.
The others, alarmed that their fearless leader
Had been so easily beaten
Were no match for Fat Hank and try as they might
Within seconds all of them were eaten.
The enemy thwarted, the delicatessen erupted
As everyone cheered.
Which Fat Hank waved off. "I don't need your praise,
But I could go for a cold root beer."
EPONYMOUS HIPPOTAMUS, PRESIDENT OF THE MOON
Without doubt, the single highest honor bestoweled upon me in my long, large, loquacious lifetime was my knighthood, presidioed over by Queen Elizabeth, as reward for the slaying of the Big Green Dragon that sat on her doorstep. A close second to my knighthoodlumry would be the time I held office as the President of the Moon.
I had been living on the newly colonized moon a mere matter of milliseconds when I was made aware a new government would need to be establified, and elections would be held to determine the leader of this new world. Immediately, I knew I was the only hippopotamus for this most prestigulous role. I approached the head of the Moon Colonization Committee and announced my intentions to campaign. He scoffed! Scoffed directly across my snout! "What, good sir, is the meaning of your scoff?" I demanded.
"You think you have the guts, the glory, the chutzpah to challenge me as President of the Moon? Hippo, you got a screw loose." The head of the Moon Colonization Committee was a pool cue-thin, Christmas tree-bearded pot-bellied pig-headed fellow named Ulysses F. Snurb. His breath perpetually stank of some strong beverage that could surely be used to strip paint from a silo or fuel a forty-ton tanker. He didn't much care for me. The feeling was mutual. There was no way I was going to let this scruffy little pupstart preside over the Moon Colony. The race was on!
I was encouraged, to put it politely, to withdraw from the race. I found unpleasant and misspelled words painted across my Moon Hut. Muscle-bounders in darkened spectacles and black leather coats ensnatched me from the Tacqueria and tossled me into a nearby crater. And, I found the head of my beloved boyhood rocking horse Rosebud in my bed one morning. But I refused to back down! I would not be intimothated by brute force. I had a vision, a dream, and a driving force behind my Presidential purpose.
My dream was that everyone would be welcome on the Moon, regardless of race, creed or species. Everyone should have the right to a fair trial, be you a petty thief or sketchy hypnotist. I wanted freedom for all, and a sandwich named after me, preferably involving Muenster cheese and pastrami. Also, I wanted a library. But mostly, I wanted peace and happiness all over the moon.
My opponents tried to tarnishake my reputation, claiming I set fire to Siamese kittens in my leisure time, ate infants raw with no vegetable side, stole thousands of simoleons from the destitute simians, and misused and made up words constantly. The unmitripated scawl! Ulysses F. Snurb, meanwhile, promised a kettle in every pot, a hand in every glove and two gulls for every buoy. I knew in my heart of heart of spade of diamonds that he had no intention soeverwhat of keeping these crocodile confidences, but I kept my ivory canine teeth tensed. I knew the people of the Moon Colony would trust me and understand Snurb was crooked.
I was wrong. Snurb won in a landslide, and swiftly took over the moon, ruling with an ironic fist. He forced all the men to wear paper bags over their heads and all the women, even the grandmothers, to give him kisses all day, every day. Every colonist was put to work day and night building a mansion for him and his cronies. After a week of this hard labor, I had had all I could stand, I could stand no more! "Ulysses!" I called out. "I'm calling you out!" Snurb, wielding a musket and wearing a pair of boxer shorts and suspenders, ran out from his half-completed mansion, screaming and waving his fist at me.
"You ingrateful river horse! I'll blast you back to Earth!" He took aim, expecting me to run, to flinch, blufflepate. I stood my ground. He hesitated. I did not. He fired. I fell to the lunar surface, moon dust swirling above my supine frame. He gasped, then, slowly, giggled. As he turned to reenter his halfway home, I rose, bullet trapped betwixt my chompers. Mustering the mastery of my breath control, I expectorated the bullet, firing diaphragmatically directly at Snurb's rumpus. He jumped so high, a cloud of exhaust followed him as he flew toward Earth, landing eventually in an active volcano.
And that, my fellow historians, is how I became President of the Moon. Until I was unfairly ousted by Martian Moderates. But that's another story.
AUGIMUS, THE ASTRO CAT
Posted on June 15, 2010 by Mark J. Hansen
Augimus was no ordinary grey tiger-striped cat. She was a space explorer, a traveler of the stars. Her owner, the astronaut Bucky Raygun, had designed for her a special cat-sized flying saucer, retrofitted with paw-sensitive buttons, allowing her to travel forwards, backwards, even sideways around the galaxy. Being a cat flying saucer, it ran on milk.
When Bucky Raygun first gave it to her, he said, "Now, be careful, Augimus. Space travel can be fun and exciting, but it can be very dangerous, too. Don't let your curiosity get the best of you." Augimus was only half-listening to her owner; mainly she couldn't wait to get in the spacecraft and whiz around the stars. But she purred and nuzzled Bucky's ankles to show her gratitude and ensure she would play it safe.
The next day after a breakfast of tuna treats, she hopped in her saucer and took off immediately. The saucer turned out to be very simple, the buttons were the perfect size and it turned out Augimus was a natural pilot. She flew around aimlessly for a brief while, and then decided to go exploring.
The first planet she landed on was Textilia, whose entire ecosystem consisted of fabric surfaces, such as corduroy trees and wool forests. Augimus drank in her surroundings, claws itching to tear into the whole landscape. There were few pleasures in the world as satisfying as scratching fabrics, and Augimus could hardly wait to get started.
The Tweed mountain range looked especially enticing, and Augimus couldn't help but scratch the sides of the geologic wonders. It was perfect, not too yielding, but not harsh enough that her claws would get caught. Augimus purred contentedly, she could stay here all day.
Twilly, the gruff retired prospector who lived in the mountains was not pleased by Augimus' presence. He awoke from his mid-morning nap when his lean-to began vibrating up and down. When he saw Augimus out the window, he knew she was responsible for his rude awakening. She wasn't the first feline visitor to Textilia. He ran out of his lean-to, determined to shoo this unwanted guest. "This is private property!" he yelled, brandishing a large stick of what looked like Berber carpet. "Go scratch someone else's home!"
Augimus high-tailed it out of there, hissing at Twilly for his rudeness. She then touched down on a planet called Cuto, a small pink planet orbiting a green polka-dotted moon with a lavender bow wrapped around it. Augimus exited the saucer and glanced around, noticing that everything on this planet was teeny-tiny and cutesie-poo. There were pug puppies in porkpie hats and vests handing out ice cream cones from their truck to little duckies. There were baby penguins driving taxi cabs and itty bitty kitten newsies selling papers with headlines like, "Widdle Mice Sooooo Cute!" and the op-ed piece, "Who's a Good Boy? You Are! Yes, You Are!" The streets had names like Awww Avenue and Uhwushwushawushawhoo Boulevard.
Suddenly a crazed cry erupted from the sky. A deep, booming voice shouted, "Kitty! Kitty kitty kitty kitty kitty!" A little girl, who was actually fifty feet tall, reached down from the heavens to grab Augimus from the corner of Aren't You the Cutest Road and Fuzzy Wuzzy Street. Augimus darted around the corner just in time. "Come back, kitty kitty! I think I'll call you Twinkie. My widdle widdle Twinkums kitty kitty!"
Madly, Augimus dashed to her flying saucer, while onlooking bunnies in berets and mice in ascots pleaded with their eyes, "Take us with you!" She didn't dare look back, though and once safely inside the spacecraft, she hit the Light Speed button and blasted home.
Back home on Earth, Augimus snacked on some salmon and parmesan cheese, sat in Bucky's lap and allowed him to pet her and dreamed of traveling to other, more exotic (but safer) worlds.
SPACE POLICE, EPISODE VI: SQUID MAN ESCAPES!
Posted on June 3, 2010 by Mark J. Hansen
Inspired by this Lego set
Screamy, screechy sirens blasted from the First Outer Space National Bank, like a bajillion trumpets fistfighting a bajillion whiny elephants. The racket could be heard a hundred planets away, on Forbishot, where it was 2 AM and the entire population would wake up cranky the next morning. Something terrible must have happened at the First Outer Space National Bank. Something worse than the President of the Galaxy stubbing his toe. Worse than mass interstellar ice cream headaches. Even worse than having to wear a tie.
The doors burst open as if the bank were releasing a ginormous belch, and out flew the most dastardly villain in the galaxy, K. Thulu Squidman IV, aka Squid Man. Part man, part squid, all badditude and greediness and liar-liar pants afire. He had been responsible for the Venusian Dog Kidnapping. He was the mastermind behind the Counterfeit Constellation Crisis. And now, clutched in his slimy squid tentacle was the last one hundred dollar bill the First Outer Space National Bank had in its vault. Poor Mrs. McMartian needed that money to fix the anti-gravity brake shoes in her Ford Galaxy Cruiser starship, or she would miss her grandson's first Space-Tee-Ball game. "Help!" she cried, "Help me, please! Space Police!"
As quick as a greased lightning bolt shot from a greased cannon, Ponsonby Britt of the Space Police arrived on his Raptor. "Police, ma'am, what is the emergency?" he grandly stated, thrusting his heroic chin toward adventure.
"Took you long enough, sonny," Mrs. McMartian said. "He's getting away! Look!" And she pointed at Squid Man, whose escape was already in progress. "Ha, ha! You'll never get me now, Space-Flatfoot!" he shouted, his voice crackling like evil Velcro on a devious pair of shoes. But, curses! His hovercycle was gone. Squid Man had parked in a red zone and Space Law 419-A stated any vehicles parked in red zones were towed immediately. "Blast!" he cursed. "I'll just have to make my escape by tentacled foot."
"Not if I have anything to say about it!" said Ponsonby Britt. "Surrender or I shall be forced to write you up, scathingly."
"Don't just float there; go get him, Space Cop!" Mrs. McMartian yelled, beating his Raptor with her space clutch. Squid Man was several blocks away, and with those words of encouragement, Ponsonby gave chase. Squid Man was fast, however and soon lost the space policeman. He skidded to a tentacled stop and looked left and right. Then he ducked around the corner into an empty alley. He paused, catching his villainous breath.
"I'll just hide in this conspicuous box labeled 'Outer Space Swiss Cheese,' he'll never look for me here," the bank robber said, rubbing his tentacles together with much glee and minimal friction.
When Ponsonby Britt arrived at the alley, his first thought was that Squid Man had somehow escaped through a hole, or by climbing the wall into the courtyard of the Ye Olde Space Tenements of the Future next door. The only other possibility was so ludicrous he dismissed it outright. "He wouldn't hide in that conspicuous box labeled 'Outer Space Swiss Cheese,' not Squid Man. He's too smart for that old trick."
Inside the box, Squid Man, despite his best efforts, couldn't help but guffaw loudly. "I knew I could outsmart that Space Cop!" But he had fallen for Ponsonby's clever ruse. Knowing that Squid Man's biggest weakness was his pride, followed by his loud guffaw, he revealed the mad genius once and for all.
"Come out of there, fiend! K. Thulu Squidman IV, you are under arrest for violating Space Law 57-C, no robbing banks." He pointed his laser roscoe at the box.
"Curses! You win this round, Space Cop, but this is far from over." And he was right, but for now, it was over. Squid Man was sent to Outer Space State Penitentiary and Mrs. McMartian was given her one hundred dollars and fixed her anti-gravity brake shoes just in time to see her grandson's first Space-Tee-Ball game. And though he lost, she was pleased to be in attendance, and even more pleased to chastise and insult him for losing so poorly. Which is why Ponsonby Britt arrested her, too.
Space Law 83-F states no insults are allowed at a Space-Tee-Ball game.
BEHIND EVERY STAR IS A MAN WITH A CIGAR
Posted on October 6, 2009 by Mark J. Hansen
Maxwell Orb's father was a tinkerer, an inventor. When gift-giving holidays rolled around, Sidney Orb would shut himself in the rickety wooden shed in the backyard (his laboratory) and get to work creating the latest exciting innovation in presents. Fiona, Maxwell's mother, worried occasionally that Maxwell would be disappointed in not receiving video games or sporting goods once in a while, but Maxwell loved the unique gifts that cluttered his bedroom. There was his pair of black Trampoline Shoes, which allowed the wearer to bounce up to five feet in the air (though the descent could be treacherous); there was the Pineapple Radio, which looked like an ordinary pineapple but received transmissions from places like Tasmania, Siberia and British Columbia; and there was Smellephant, a stuffed elephant whose trunk could identify over 18,000 individual smells. This year, being Maxwell's tenth birthday, Sidney had been working extra-hard and had disappeared into his laboratory for weeks. When he finally came out, he could hardly contain his smile of anticipation. Neither could Maxwell. Fiona was excited as well, but nervous, given the safety track record of the previous toys.
Finally, the big day arrived and after a delicious meal of hamburgers and roasted broccoli (Maxwell's favorite) he tore into his gift with the abandon, flinging wrapping paper around the room like a wild animal. What he opened was, at first, a bit disappointing. "It's a high-powered telescope," his father said. This seemed to Maxwell to be a rather ordinary gift, practically something he could pick up for himself at a toy store. Besides, it didn't appear to be working. Whenever Maxwell looked through the eyepiece all he could see was blackness. "There's not enough room in here," Sidney explained, "let's go outside."
Outside, Maxwell pointed the telescope to the sky and was able to see what his father meant. It was a high-powered telescope. So high-powered, in fact, Maxwell could make out each and every individual star, in greater detail than he had ever seen them before. Not surprisingly, the stars did not consist of five triangular points, as depicted in the stickers on his homework assignments. They looked more like the white, round lights atop street lamps that you'd see in pictures from the 1920's. Except instead of glass, they seemed to be made of a softer material, like a pillow or a sponge. Strangely, there were also perfect rings of smoke billowing out from behind each star. Maxwell handed the telescope to his father and said, "Look at those smoke rings! What do you suppose causes that?"
Sidney looked through the telescope, then at his wife and smiled. "Let's find out," he said.
Fiona had been a bit of a hard sell on the homemade rocket, especially when Sidney had explained it was fueled by tomato juice, fish bones, banana peels, coffee grounds and old gym socks, but after several assurances that it was safe as safe can be, she agreed to let them go, as long as she could chaperone. Maxwell and Sidney replied that they wouldn't have it any other way. Sidney wheeled the rocket out from the shed and removed the tarp. It was your basic rocket shape, with a base big enough to fit all three members of the Orb family and little else, an engine in back and a pointed tip like a sharpened pencil. The rocket had been built from remnants of Maxwell's exploded tree house (long story) bicycle parts, antique scuba gear and sections of an icebox that had been at the house when the family moved in. The engine was an old vacuum cleaner set on reverse in the rear. Once Sidney had sufficiently fueled the rocket, he had Maxwell count down from ten, and he and Fiona began pedaling furiously. When Maxwell reached one and shouted, "Blast off!" Sidney pulled a cord near his left arm and the rocket lifted up off the ground. "Pull up!" he shouted at Fiona, who was seated in front, behind Maxwell (Sidney insisted on sitting in the back where all the equipment was, and Fiona insisted Maxwell sit in the middle to avoid any danger.) Fiona did as she was told and the rocket shot up into space. Each member of the Orb family had on old-fashioned diving helmets, which were all attached to an oxygen tank located at the base of the rocket, just below their feet. As they exited the Earth's atmosphere, Sidney had Maxwell reach down and open the tank by turning the dial on the tank until it could no longer be turned. This way, the family could breathe in space.
As they shot closer and closer to the stars, they began to see the smoke rings again, and Sidney pulled on the cord slightly, to slow down the rocket's trajectory. When they got close enough to the stars to see behind them, they were shocked. Behind each and every star was a small platform with a brown leather easy chair. Upon the easy chair sat a man, reading a newspaper and smoking a cigar. While each star had the same platform and the same chair, the men were all different. Some were black, some were white, some were bald, some had long hair, some were bearded, some were mustachioed, some had no facial hair, some had blonde hair, some had gray hair, and some had curly hair. Each wore a rumpled brown suit with a forest green tie (Windsor knot) and light-brown loafers. One of them, a short, dark-haired man with a handlebar mustache, looked up and acknowledged the family with a short head nod, then went back to reading his paper, which was called The Celestial Times, and had headlines like, "Mars Talks Tense As Leaders Debate War Merits."
Sidney couldn't understand how, if there was no oxygen in space, the men could smoke. Fiona couldn't understand how, if there were talks of war on Mars, Earth had yet to hear about it. Maxwell couldn't understand how the men were able to blow smoke rings at all, and why they would choose to smoke, which always seemed like a disgusting habit. Before their questions could be answered, the rocket began to emit a high-pitched buzzing, and Sidney began turning his handlebars and pulling the cord more tightly. Fiona and Maxwell turned their handlebars as well, and the rocket made its descent back to Earth.
When they returned home, they each had a slice of chocolate mint cake (Maxwell's favorite) and agreed that next year, if not sooner, they would figure out a way to keep the rocket up for a longer period of time, so they can determine why it is that behind every star is a man with a cigar.
And maybe someday we'll find out if they did.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Are you looking for some ways to learn an American accent quickly? If so, keep reading, because you are in the right place! In this article I'm going to show you three tips that will tremendously help you speak with a better accent. Here they are!
The best podcast for people who want to learn American English is VOA News Special English. The speakers in these podcasts speak very slowly and there's a transcription provided. Just listen to the podcast and repeat after the speaker (read aloud the text).
The best way to quickly improve your accent is to learn its rules. You can search for some lessons online (you can subscribe to my mailing list to get free lessons).
Watch American movies with subtitles and repeat after the actors. Of course do it aloud! Make sure that the actors are native American speakers. Compare your accent to that of a native speaker.
That's it – three ways to learn an American accent quickly. Keep in mind that if you really want to speak with a better accent, you should put these tips to use and practice on a daily basis. Really, work toward your goal every single day. Good luck!


Arthur Hall Insurance provides coverage for wholesalers and distributors across a variety of industries. We partner with insurance companies that understand the unique needs of wholesalers and distributors and have specialized programs that cover your products as they move from manufacturing plant to warehouse to end customer. The specialized programs also include the important coverage for distribution facilities such as accounts receivable, building and business personal property, computers and media, property in transit, delivery vehicles, tenant obligations, workers' compensation, and loss of business income.
The professionals at Arthur Hall Insurance guide you through a risk management process that helps you identify exposures that you may already be aware of and ones that you may not. We identify insurance coverage unique to your industry, and help you make the cost/benefit analysis of those options. We bring a breadth of loss control resources to the table along with our years of experience to help you manage the risk to your property as well as the safety and welfare of your employees and others.
To learn more about how Arthur Hall Insurance can help you manage your risk, please contact one of our insurance professionals.


The simple design of these candles paired with the striking brown glass jar, make them a stylish addition to any room.
The combination of smoky oakwood and musky tobacco is a firm favorite for both men and women, making it a great gift.
Soy wax, made from soya beans, is an eco-friendly and sustainable alternative to traditional petroleum based paraffin candles. It gives a cleaner and healthier burn, making it kinder to everyone in your home and the environment.
Hand poured in Lincolnshire using natural, unbleached cotton wicks and recyclable containers.
Vegan and cruelty free, containing no beeswax and without animal testing.
All candles and diffusers arrive in recyclable gift packaging making them a great ready-made gift!
Medium - 180ml brown glass jar with lid. Up to 35 hours burn time.


Swim up bar, theme parks within minutes, luxury home sleeps 11. Close to family-friendly activities, nightlife, shopping and all services. You'll love my place because of the high ceilings, the ambience, the quiet, the many areas to find your own peace, the swimming pool with swim up bar and Bali hut. My place is good for couples, solo adventurers, business travellers, and families (with kids).


text:
About ICB
Read and Succeed Program
Support ICB
Contact ICB
Shop at the ICB Store
ICB Mission Statement
The purpose of the Illinois Council of the Blind is to promote the general welfare of citizens in Illinois who are blind.
Our goal is to improve the quality of life for all blind and visually impaired citizens in Illinois.
Our objectives include protecting the rights and privileges of visually impaired Illinois citizens by monitoring legislation, agencies, and organizations that provide services for them.
We also provide mutual encouragement and support through social interaction.
The Illinois Council of the Blind (ICB) relies on generous individuals like you to help us raise funds. Funds are needed to:
Maintain our Dots for Tots program, which provides free Braille, Braille/Print and Large Print books to children across Illinois to encourage reading.
Produce and distribute The Illinois Braille Messenger, ICB's quarterly newsletter which provides a wealth of informational and entertaining reading to people who are blind or visually impaired.
Award an annual scholarship to a deserving student who is blind or visually impaired in order to help them pursue their dreams.
Advocate with the Illinois Legislature, Illinois Bureau of Blind Services and other Governmental agencies so they understand how people who are blind or visually impaired are affected by a number of issues, such as changes in state support of rehabilitation programs.
Participate in the work of our parent organization, The American Council of the Blind, and
carry out various programs to meet our objectives which include improving the quality of life for Illinois' citizens who are blind or visually impaired.
There are several ways you can help ICB in its work. These include:
Make a tax deductible donation to ICB. You can send a check to:
Springfield, IL 62705-1336
Click here to donate on-line using PayPal, no PayPal account needed. ICB is a 501(C)(3) tax exempt organization under the Internal Revenue code of the United States.
Join the American Council of the Blind Monthly Monetary Support (MMS) Program. When you join this program, you not only are helping our parent organization, but you can designate up to 50% of your contributions to go to an ACB affiliate of your choice, and we encourage you to choose ICB.
Support ICB through our Go Fund Me page.
Support ICB when shopping at Amazon through smile.amazon.com. Simply select ICB at checkout as the charitable organization you are supporting.
Copyright © 2018 Illinois Council of the Blind inc


Tari Telemnar is a fictive character. Character and gown are inspired by the ancient elves in J.R.R. Tolkien's "The Silmarillion".
The underdress is made of silk crepe georgette and hand dyed in olive. It has princess seams and big, trapezoidal sleeves.
The overdress made of silk velvet and hand dyed in olive. It has a draped collar which slightly overlaps the shoulders and the corset in front and widens in the back so that it looks like a very small cape. The shape of the sleeves is like the sleeves of the underdress trapezoidal. The dress fastens in front with 3 pairs of straps of golden pearl strands (you can see the tail end escape beneath the corset).
The corset is made of silk velvet and of course hand dyed in olive, too. The top layer of the silk velvet is pursed irregularly. It closes in the back with lacing.
The crown and the huge brooch on top of the corset are also self-made by my friend. They're made of tick, golden wire. The brooch is additionally decorated with even more of these golden pearl strands.


Without smearing and indelible Vivid and various red colors.
Herbal Toothpaste helps to eliminate limestone from cigarette, tea, coffee and whitening teeth. Reduced to have a hypersensitive tooth and Anti Bacteria. You have fresh breath for along time.


Many entrepreneurs never really retire at all. There's no need to slow down just because you're getting older, but you might want to shift your focus. You could see the world, pursue a new hobby, or become an angel investor. But how will you fund your new lifestyle? Most of us underestimate the income we need to do the things we want. Start your retirement financial planning now so you're one step ahead.
If you've built a successful career and you're keen to stay busy, retirement can be about fulfilling your dreams or giving something back. Think about what makes you happiest. How do you want to spend your time? How could you focus more on the things and the people you care about?
Have I thought about healthcare?
Average life expectancy at birth in the UK is now above 75. By 2040, it is expected to be above 80.** We're all different, of course, so your retirement fund needs to reflect both your life expectancy and the possibility you will need healthcare.
How will I pass on my wealth?
It can be hard to find the right balance between enjoying your wealth now and setting some aside to pass on to your loved ones. What will your legacy be? How will you make sure wealth transfer happens in the way you want?
*UBS Investor Watch (UK) – Q2 2016 (318 UK respondents with at least £250,000 investible assets).
**Trends in life expectancy and healthy life expectancy, UK Government Office for Science 2015.
*** Wealth X - Family Wealth Transfers Report 2015.


The Missouri State High School Activities Association Girls Volleyball Championships will be held at Cape Girardeau's Show Me Center on November 2-3, 2018.
The Show Me Center is a multipurpose facility located on the campus of Southeast Missouri State University. Since opening its doors in 1987 this joint project between the City of Cape Girardeau and the State of Missouri has matured into a regional facility serving the 250,000 residents of Southeast Missouri, Southern Illinois, and Western Kentucky. The Show Me Center, which annually hosts 250 meeting room and 160 arena events, is an entertainment, meeting, and gathering center.
Consisting of a 7,000-seat arena, three concourses and six meeting rooms, the Show Me Center was designed with flexibility in mind. Telescopic lower level arena seating allows for a wide assortment of arena configurations and ease in changeover from event to event. With its retractable seating, the arena can be transformed into a 32,000 square foot exhibit hall in mere hours. Not only can large arena events take place on successive evenings, but the building's design allows for multiple events to take place simultaneously.
The tournament's format will remain the same, featuring two competition courts for Friday's round-robin semifinals and one playing court for Saturday's championship and third-place matches. All told, 24 matches are played on Friday to determine the matchups for Saturday's four third-place and four championship matches. Sixteen teams -- four teams in each of the MSHSAA's four volleyball classifications -- advance to the championship site each year.


Tea is extremely delicate to Ian Leaf Fraud air light and humidity which is why it is important to retailer it properly from the moment you get the property. In contrast to Sheng Pu-erh, which will get better with time, most other sorts of tea don't age as gracefully. But if you take care to keep it effectively, you can keep most varieties for up to 12 months or a lot more.
Finding a wedding ceremony ring that your girlfriend will really like, at first sight, is both a single of the easiest and the most difficult things to do. To begin with, possessing a diamond Ian Leaf Fraud ring is the safest way to go since there are a handful of girls that will not value one particular on their finger. From there on, you will have to decide the style in which the diamond will be set. Here, it is feasible to get the improper marriage ceremony ring design and style. But there are particular ring styles for females that will by no means lead you wrong. To get them, you will very, first of all, have to get the appropriate ring measurement for her. When you get that, you can go forward.
Turn the jar upside down on your work spot. Spray the glass cookie Ian Leaf Fraud jar with an even coat of Krylon Indoor Outside Primer in All-Function White. Permit the jar to dry for two several hours. Apply two coats of Krylon Make It Suede Paint in Brushed Sienna to the jar, pausing for fifteen minutes amongst coats. Dry right away.
Not only are the leaves entire with natural vitamins, but they are also abundant in important amino acids and protein. On top of that, they are bursting with calcium and iron. Moringa Ian Leaf Fraud powder is what is generally discovered in well-being supplements, which is just a processed kind of the leaves alone. Moringa works wonderfully as a fat reduction dietary supplement, pores and skin care complement, and a natural energy dietary supplement.
Moringa nutritional supplements are identified to improve fat burning capacity, which aids in fat and bodyweight reduction, which is why it can make a wonderful selection for a bodyweight reduction health supplement. It is good for strength supplements simply because it gives you an organic power increase without having sugar, which is also an additional great factor for bodyweight loss.
The 22-year-aged singer got his very first tattoo when he was eighteen and has been inking at any time because. He celebrates his achievements by receiving tattoos in some of the metropolitan areas that he visits even though on tour. Sheeran now has a whole of 27 tattoos.
The fun of this small bundle belies the serious things within below. Sure, if you end and go through the "energy mix" you could find all the potent ingredients, but I am not sure if most folks would. I would be frightened to just take 2 of them together, and then when not enduring factors for the very first 50 percent hour, downing much more. Even though created properly, I would make the layout search a little bit more strong and solemn.
With anything like this, I can totally see why there is no caffeine listing, but I would have cherished to see that together with a listing of how significantly Yohimbe, guggulsterone and other strength boosting ingredients in right here. Although I know it operates and their formulation is propriety, it would nonetheless be nice to know just how a lot hoodia I am getting.
Planting. Pick a clean and plump rhizome with 2 – three buds for every seed piece, and lay them in the germinating tray until finally, the shoots emerge right after 3 months. After exposing your seedlings to gradual daylight, transplant each and every seedling in your prepared plots distanced at 12 – 16 apart amongst row. If planted in containers, established one seedling in each and every pot container.
Teach Your Child by Carrying out. My father has often experienced little aspect firms to provide extra things for my family. Similarly, I've operated many modest firms more than the several years. My son, a senior in college, has already applied for (and received) grants for entrepreneurial assignments that will gain the group. Let your little one see your successes and failures. You'll show him it can be carried out, that educated dangers are well worth getting, if you are unsuccessful at an activity it isn't automatically a failure, and so considerably more.
So sure – tons of energy, but the scariness of the other substances and the jitters seemed to trigger in people – with no warnings of consuming with a meal to counteract provides this down from a nine to an eight. Nonetheless, if you need to remain to notify for a sustained quantity of time, these will do the trick.
How the Increasing Pressure on Emergency Health Services Raise Concern?
Why it is Significant to Have Responsive Website Designing to Stay Ahead?
Hip Replacement Surgery: What Should You Know And Is It Effective?
How Your CIBIL Score Will Help You Get A Machinery Loan Without Security?


Home » Eat this Mozart!
At 5 months Novi already starts rocking out the casa.
Submitted by rene on Sun, 27/01/2013 - 17:56.
Submitted by valentina on Mon, 21/01/2013 - 13:45.
I have a friend that you maybe want to have interaction with.


text:
Bowling Green – Warren County Regional Airport
Bowling Green, Kentucky
Bowling Green. KY
About Bowling Green, KY
Pilot Resources/Services
Airport Updates
Airport Business
Policies/ Procedures
Drones/UAS
BWG Events
Bowling Green Events
There are no upcoming events planned at BWG at this time. Check back at a later date for other events on our airfield. See below events for Bowling Green, Kentucky:
4Yoga virtual yoga classes
Hosted by the pots place gallery and studio
4Yoga is streaming classes daily on its Facebook page. Please visit https://www.facebook.com/4yogaBG/ for more information.
car-toon creatures, kustom kars and corvettes
national corvette museum
When: September 28, 2020 – April 25, 2021, recurring daily 8:00am-5:00pm
Location: National Corvette Museum- 350 Corvette Drive, National Corvette Museum, KY
Price: Included with museum admission
The National Corvette Museum has teamed up with Tom Peters, retired Director of Exterior Design for the 8th Generation Stingray Corvette, to put together a new exhibit: Car-toon Creatures, Kustom Kars and Corvettes: The Art and Influence of Ed "Big Daddy" Roth.
"Ed Roth was one of Tom's biggest artistic influences growing up," said Bob Bubnis, museum historical media coordinator and lead curator of this exhibit. "Back in the 1950s and '60s, kids who liked cars bought hot rod magazines along with t-shirts, models, stickers and toys from Roth Studios. They featured caricatures of cars with giant smoking slicks and fire coming out of the exhaust, with blown engines and cartoon monsters at the wheel. … The most notable one was Rat Fink, who will serve as the mascot throughout this exhibit."
The museum is bringing in cars from builders who were inspired by Ed Roth, such as the Iron Orchid built by Dave Shuten, Gary Reid's Bubble Ray Corvette and a Rat Rod. This part of the exhibit showcases the personal takes enthusiasts have had on Roth's work.
The exhibit will feature other surprises along the way, with the tour ending featuring a re-creation of Tom's studio at the GM Tech Center, along with one of the Corvettes he designed from the Transformers movies. To face off with that Corvette, we're also going to have a special car on loan from Galpin Auto Sports–their new Galpin Ford GTR1 supercar. The cars, together, dramatically show how Ed Roth influenced the automotive world as a whole.
BOWLING GREEN – WARREN COUNTY REGIONAL AIRPORT 2020
1000 WOODHURST DR, SUITE 210 BOWLING GREEN, KY 42103
ThuFri
Weather forecast Bowling Green, Kentucky ▸


I get these tubes when their on sale. I get any tube that's on sale. No slime tubes. What can I say? It's a tube.
It popped pretty quick, but my tires were worn so it wouldn't be fair for me to blame it on the tube.
Durable, good quality tube for commuter use.
I use my bicycle primarily for suburban and city commuting, doing an average of 90 miles per week and replace about one tube every 3-4 months, due to punctures from glass, staples and other sharp objects. I do ride with patched tubes for as long as I can get away with it. Durability depends on the amount of construction and other debris in parking lots and on the roads I ride, which varies seasonally. These tubes have proven more robust than any of the others I have tried.
The tubes are easy to install and I have typically had good results with Conti's tubes but for some reason, had three or four flats in rapid succession with these. It may just be the time of year with lots of extra debris on the roads. I have loved their 700c tubes and don't see any reason why their 650s would be different.
tubes are used on my triathlon bike. Over 1200 miles without a flat on these tubes. Great product.
It's not easy to find 650 tubes anymore! These are lightweight, yet still hold up to everyday use.
Very reliable and most durable under variable road conditions!
Paird with the Gatorbacks and Zipp wheels my confidence grows with each outing.


text:
[![Build Status](https://travis-ci.org/murb/social_linker.svg?branch=master)](https://travis-ci.org/murb/social_linker)

**SocialLinker solves two problems involving social networks (and search engines):
proper meta-headers and proper share links.**

SocialLinker is able to generate the most common share links for you, without depending on JavaScript.
You should use generated links, instead of the share buttons provided by the platforms themselves, to
protect your user's privacy, and this gem makes it easy for you to do so.

And when using Rails, SocialLinker also solves the tedious job of getting the meta tags right.
Because once you've set the SocialLinker::Subject correctly, you've also got the right ingredients
for the perfect meta keywords & description, open graph variables etc.

## Installation

Add this line to your application's Gemfile:

```ruby
gem 'social_linker'
```

And then execute:

    $ bundle

Or install it yourself as:

    $ gem install social_linker

## Usage

### Basics

Initialize the subject with enough material to generate links from, such as the page's url, maybe the image url (mainly for Pinterest type-shares), a description, tags etc.

For example, initialze

```ruby
social_linker_subject = SocialLinker::Subject.new(media: "http://example.com/img.jpg", url: "http://example.com/", title: "Example website", description: "Example.com is the typical URL you would want to use in explanations anyway."
```

You'll get the e-mail share url by calling:

```ruby
social_linker_subject.share_link(:mail)
```

Which will deliver you the following url:

    mailto:emailaddress?subject=Example%20website&body=Example.com%20is%20the%20typical%20URL%20you%20would%20want%20to%20use%20in%20explanations%20anyway.%0A%0Ahttp%3A%2F%2Fexample.com%2F

### Setting up the subject

The supported options are:

* url
* media (media url, e.g. an image (shared only for Pinterest, but also used in OpenGraph headers & Twitter Cards))
* summary
* description
* title
* tags

And of a more site-global nature:

* twitter_username
* facebook_app_id
* language
* site_title_postfix (which can be hidden by setting `render_site_title_postfix` to false)

I've tried to map them as good as possible to the different share tools. Sometimes by combining several values. You may also pass along link-specific parameters such as `:hashtags`, so you can control the 2-tag long string that is generated from the list of tags by default.

For example:

    @subject = SocialLinker::Subject.new(
      title: "title",
      url: "https://murb.nl/blog",
      media: "https://murb.nl/image.jpg",
      media_dimensions: [640, 480],
      summary: "short summary",
      tags: ["key1", "key2", "key3"],
    )

You can also merge details later on. Let's say you want to set the global values:

    @subject = SocialLinker::Subject.new(
      site_title_postfix: ":murb:",
      twitter_username: 'murb',
      facebook_app_id: '123123123',
      tags: ['murb', 'ruby']
    )

You might to set these defaults in a before action in your (Ruby on Rails-speak)
ApplicationController. Later on you can merge details into this subject:

    @subject.merge!({
      title: "title",
      url: "https://murb.nl/blog",
      media: "https://murb.nl/image.jpg",
      media_dimensions: [640, 480],
      summary: "short summary",
      tags: ["key1", "key2", "key3"]
    })

*Hint*, the media_dimensions are 'compatible' with the output of the Dimensions-gem:

    @subject.merge!({
      title: @article.title,
      url: article_url(@article),
      media: @article.image.url(:inline),
      media_dimensions: Dimensions.dimensions(@article.image.path(:inline)),
      summary: @article.description,
      tags: @article.tag_list.to_a
    })

### Creating share links

Currently support is available for the following ways of sharing:

    :email
    :facebook
    :facebook_native
    :twitter
    :twitter_native
    :pinterest
    :google
    :linkedin
    :whatsapp

Or to save you the copy-paste:

[TestMailLink](mailto:emailaddress?subject=Example%20website&body=Example.com%20is%20the%20typical%20URL%20you%20would%20want%20to%20use%20in%20explanations%20anyway.%0A%0Ahttp%3A%2F%2Fexample.com%2F)

#### UTM Campaign parameters

By default [utm campaign parameters](https://support.google.com/analytics/answer/1033863?hl=en) are added when they are not present. You can turn this off by passing the option: `utm_parameters: false`.

#### Link helper with SVG icons (Rails)

Use the following to create a sharelink to Facebook

    social_link_to @subject, :facebook

This results in a simple `<a href>` containing the share link and an svg image.
This SVG image may or may not be found depending on your asset initialization,
make sure that config/initializers/assets.rb contains the following line:

    Rails.application.config.assets.precompile += %w( social_linker/icons.svg )

(if you don't it probably will be suggested to you by Rails)

If you want to change the content of the link, pass a block, e.g.:

    social_link_to @subject, :facebook do
      "Share on Facebook!"
    end

To make sure that the icons align well, make sure to include the styling, include
the following line to the head of your application.ccs file:

    *= require social_linker/icons

### Meta-Headers

When using Ruby on Rails a few helpers have been created.

Just set the following, which should give you a reasonable default.

    header_meta_tags(@subject, {
      site_title_postfix: "your sitename" # optional
    })

Alternatively you can also set the `site_title_post` in the `Subject` directly,
as suggested in an earlier section:

    header_meta_tags(@subject)

## Advanced

### Reuse the SVG icons elsewhere

When integrating social icons into your site, you might also want to include login options
for these social networks, or access the icons for other reasons. Below is 'standard'
example code of how to access image-assets in the icon

    <svg class="icon icon-facebook-official">
      <use xlink:href="<%=image_path('social_linker/icons.svg')%>#icon-facebook"></use>
    </svg>

*Note:* If you just want the SVG icon standalone, you can also use the `social_link_to_image`
view helper:

    social_link_to_image :facebook

Included layers:

* icon-email
* icon-google
* icon-sticky-note-o
* icon-share-square-o
* icon-search
* icon-heart-o
* icon-heart
* icon-twitter
* icon-pinterest
* icon-facebook
* icon-facebook-unofficial
* icon-linkedin
* icon-whatsapp
* icon-tumblr

Icons have been created with the [IcoMoon App](https://icomoon.io/app) and come
from the [Font Awesome](http://scripts.sil.org/OFL)-set (OFL licensed).

## Problem solving

### SVG Icons not showing up in older browsers

When using SVG and serving your pages to older browsers, make sure you use something
like SVG4Everyone. Include in your gemfile:

    source 'https://rails-assets.org' do
     gem 'rails-assets-svg4everybody'
    end

and include the following line to the head of your `application.js` file:

    //= require svg4everybody

## TODO

* Idea: maybe improve share helpers with [javascript timeout workarounds](http://stackoverflow.com/questions/7231085/how-to-fall-back-to-marketplace-when-android-custom-url-scheme-not-handled) for native alternatives (although Twitter and facebook work well)
* More share methods (pull request welcome)

## Development

After checking out the repo, run `bin/setup` to install dependencies. Then, run `rake spec` to run the tests. You can also run `bin/console` for an interactive prompt that will allow you to experiment.

To install this gem onto your local machine, run `bundle exec rake install`. To release a new version, update the version number in `version.rb`, and then run `bundle exec rake release`, which will create a git tag for the version, push git commits and tags, and push the `.gem` file to [rubygems.org](https://rubygems.org).

## Contributing

Bug reports and pull requests are welcome on GitHub at https://github.com/murb/social_linker. This project is intended to be a safe, welcoming space for collaboration, and contributors are expected to adhere to the [Contributor Covenant](http://contributor-covenant.org) code of conduct.

## License

The gem is available as open source under the terms of the [MIT License](http://opensource.org/licenses/MIT).

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


Sonos claims most smart speakers are designed for the kitchen, but the Beam is meant to handle everything you need in your living room.
Besides, if I am looking for an intense, high-quality audio experience, I've always been happy to pay to see a movie in theaters, or watch a band play live.
During an event in San Francisco on June 6, Sonos announced a new product called the Sonos Beam. Sonos seems to have finally listened and has equipped the Beam with HDMI.
This new speaker offers powerful sound in a compact design plus it also features Amazon's Alexa assistant built in which allows you to control your TV via your voice.
The Sonos Beam isn't a replacement for the company's soundbar, as previously rumoured, it's something altogether new. This cross-platform voice control promises to pertain to the Sonos Beam, as well, so anybody will be able to come into your home and control your music or TV using the voice assistant of their choice, either Alexa, Siri or Google Assistant, which sounds pretty neat.
First off, the Beam takes up much less space than Sonos' last soundbar, measuring in at 60% smaller and 28% shorter than the Playbase. Bass has some oomph to it, and can be upgraded with the addition of the Sonos Sub, while the highs peeked through periodically.
While most of the audio demos we heard were very convincing of the speaker's quality, one demo that totally failed to impress was a scene from Westworld in which the speaker introduced a fair bit of delay into the system.
The device will ship globally starting July 17 and is available for pre-order today on the Sonos website. Most TVs older than five years old most likely won't support HDMI-ARC, but you can still connect Beam to your TV via the optical port, however, Alexa voice commands for TV won't work.
Following this comparison, the Sonos Beam - the latest entry in the Sonos device family - is like the Sonos Play:1 for the living room: it's smaller than the mid-tier Sonos Playbase and substantially less powerful than the Sonos Playbar.
While Amazon, Alphabet Inc.'s Google and Apple typically highlight their music and voice-activation services on the companies' individual smart speakers, Sonos uniquely lets users connect to multiple voice assistants and stream music via other companies' services.
James also argued that winning a championship is "way bigger than getting to the White House, especially with [Trump] in there". Olympic Team that competed earlier this year in South Korea did not attend a White House reception. "We watched tape.
Court papers also accuse Person A of making several attempts to influence the witnesses' testimony in February and later in April. Those potential witnesses, said to have been principals of a PR firm, are identified only as D1 and D2 in the court filings.
Mueller will have to decide whether to go ahead with a historic grand jury subpoena of a sitting USA president. Negotiations between Trump's lawyers and the special counsel on a possible interview have continued since.
James scored 51 points in Game 1, making challenging shots few others would even attempt, and it wasn't enough. The Warriors earned a wacky 124-114 overtime win in Game 1 Thursday night - featuring J.R.
Another app demoed-measurements-will allow your iPhone or iPad to measure objects and items with just the camera by scrolling. Other new features include parental controls to limit the time children spend in apps, as well as which apps they can use.
Aziz added that had the attacker penetrated deeper, the casualty numbers could have been significantly higher. The elders also urged peace negotiations between the warring sides, the first time they have done so.
First lady Melania Trump speaks on her initiatives during an event in the Rose Garden of the White House last month. But her silence for nearly one month did not help to silence rumors and conspiracy theories from brewing online.
Sharapova has had her greatest successes this year during clay season. "You know the challenge that is upon you". Word is that the pectoral injury might be serious enough to keep her out of Wimbledon.
But then the disease returned with a vengeance and failed to respond to multiple hormonal and chemotherapy treatments. For decades, chemotherapy has been seen as a necessary evil when it comes to treating most kinds of breast cancer.
L'Equipe journalist Bilel Ghazi posted on Twitter that there has been zero progress between Liverpool and Fekir's representatives. Bayern Munich , who bought Corentin Tolisso from Lyon last summer, are believed to be eyeing Fekir up too.


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Games Features
Street Fighter V's 'Intrusive' In Game Ads May Be Copied by Other Fighting Games: Dreamhack FGC Director
Street Fighter V's 'Intrusive' In-Game Ads May Be Copied by Other Fighting Games: Dreamhack FGC Director
By Rishi Alwani | Updated: 27 December 2018 21:46 IST
Tekken 7 is the most popular fighting game in India
It saw over a hundred registrations at Dreamhack Mumbai
One of the first Smash Bros. Ultimate tournaments was at the event
While most Indian gaming events depend on the likes of Counter-Strike: Global Offensive and PUBG Mobile to bring in the crowds, there's one section of the competitive gaming scene in India that's largely gone under the radar — fighting games. Rather than be restricted to a single title, there are usually multiple tournaments for multiple games in the genre.
At last week's Dreamhack Mumbai, Street Fighter V, Tekken 7, and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate were all present with their own respective tournaments and prize pools. Gadgets 360 spoke to Alex Jebailey, Dreamhack's Global FGC (fighting game community) Director and President of CEO Gaming — the company behind titular CEO (Community Effort Orlando) fighting game event — to find out more.
First up, we noticed that Dreamhack Mumbai 2018 had one of the world's first Super Smash Bros. Ultimate tournaments. It's an interesting addition when you consider that Nintendo doesn't have an official presence in India. We had to ask Jebailey what made him decide on bringing it to India. It turns out there was a community push for the game.
"As an organiser I work with the the community from the ground up and not just with companies that give money to support such events," he says. "Because I do a lot of the Smash events in America — Nitin [Rao] reached out and asked if Smash could be a part of Dreamhack, he knows Smash isn't popular in India because Nintendo is not here, which is weird."
"But they said they would supply everything just to give them a chance of having Smash and we have the space here at Dreamhack," Jebailey continues. "So I figured I'd give it a shot. We don't have to invest any money in it, just a little space which goes a long way."
That said, the turnout for Super Smash Bros. Ultimate was smaller than games. No surprise considering it released a mere two weeks prior to Dreamhack, though Jebailey remains optimistic.
"It's not as big as we would have hoped but it's a good start," he admits."Whether it survives after this, who knows, but just to see those people come together and check it out, I think it's going to get a little bit of interest. I'm going to talk to my Nintendo friends and ask about India."
One of the biggest concerns about having a game like Super Smash Bros. Ultimate at Dreamhack is the number of playable characters. Unlike other fighting games, you'll have to unlock its 70-plus roster while playing the game as they aren't available from the get-go. We wondered how Jebailey and his team got around this.
"It's not as bad as people think," he says. "It just takes two to three hours. I have three Switches. I've traveled across the Atlantic Ocean three times last two weeks so I've been unlocking on the flights to pass the time. I only brought one Switch with me here, but they just they [the rest of the team] spent time unlocking them [on other Switches at the tournament venue] right before Dreamhack. There's easy ways to do it. It's just that it's time consuming."
With Jebailey and his team having spent a ridiculous amount of time on Super Smash Bros. Ultimate simply unlocking characters, was input lag (the delay between pressing a button and seeing the game react) a concern? A detailed report from YouTube channel Gigaboots suggests that input lag in the game is worse than other entries in the series.
"I have not and neither has the rest of the Smash organisers who have been using GameCube adapter controllers," he says. "I've been playing with my Pro Controller when I'm on the plane. And I haven't noticed any lag. There are ways around that by using wired controllers and not connecting a thousand wireless controllers. But so far it's not been a big issue as it has with like PlayStation and Xbox in the past."
Speaking of PlayStation, the PS4 made up most of the hardware at the Dreamhack Mumbai 2018 fighting game section, which was split between Street Fighter V and Tekken 7. We had to ask, which is the most popular fighting game for the competitive scene in region.
"Tekken 7 is very popular in all of Asia," he says. "It's a very easy game to get into Tekken 7 personally. I think is one of the best fighting games the last couple of years with the Tekken World Tour and then Street Fighter V is right behind that. But yeah, Tekken seems to be popular in India too. We're got over a hundred players for it."
And while Tekken 7 and Street Fighter V rule Asia, it's a different scenario on Jebailey's home turf, the US.
"I think Super Smash Bros. is still the number one tournament game," he says. "There's more consistent 500-plus man tournaments year round with Smash than any other fighting game in history. This includes Super Smash Bros. Melee for GameCube, Super Smash Bros. Brawl for Wii, and now Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, which we we've only had one major tournament in Seattle. I think that had like six hundred players."
With some games dwarfing others in popularity, we questioned the logic of catering to the less popular ones to begin with. Fighting game makers it seems, don't have the bandwidth to support their games like Valve does with lax tournament license terms.
"It would be easier on organisers to have just one single game to run an event," Jebailey says."But without the full support like Dota 2 or CS: GO get, it's hard to justify just doing single game events. That's why we bring so many together."
The conversation shifts to the latest controversy in the fighting game community, Street Fighter V's in-game ads. Of late, Capcom has been putting logos advertising its Capcom Pro Tour event on character costumes. Players can keep it on and earn in-game currency or turn it off if they find it too intrusive.
At the time of filing this story, several reports suggest that Capcom has removed them from the game, for now. Which makes sense when you consider the ads focused on the Capcom Pro Tour (a series of international tournaments sponsored by the company) that ended on December 25. Capcom has stated there will be periods when ads won't be available and this is one of them. That said, a vocal section of the Street Fighter V fanbase has derided the move of having ads to begin with, we asked Jebailey what he thought of it.
"I think they're very intrusive and they don't give enough fight money," he says. "I think Capcom is testing a lot of stuff for a future game, like a Street Fighter 6 or something. But right now, it's the best fighting game for e-sports with DLC to bring in money into the community [with select downloadable content revenue used as prize pool money]."
"I just think they are intrusive like Bison, his cape has five CPT [Capcom Pro Tour] logos on it," he continues. "Now, you know, it's not just going be those logos, Red Bull's in there already too. I just think they're throwing it out at us way too fast and too hard. However, I think it will get better. I believe in Capcom to always improve on things and that's just going to take time. And in the meantime, everyone is just going to keep complaining and hopefully they read it."
Despite finding Street Fighter V's ads intrusive, Jebailey is well aware that Capcom needs the revenue from them to keep supporting the game. Although he suggests that there are ways to do it with less friction such as Mortal Kombat X's Sub-Zero costume and Killer Instinct's Shadow Jago fund which he was a part of during his time as community manager at Iron Galaxy, the game's developer. Nevertheless, he believes Capcom's approach could impact how fighting games are made going forward.
"When Capcom did fighting games in the 90s everyone copied Street Fighter," he says. "Watch in five years where everybody's doing the exact same thing the way they're doing their ads now and it kind of changes the game of development."
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Review
Street Fighter V: Arcade Edition Is Out Now, Should You Play It?
Street Fighter 30th Anniversary Collection Nintendo Switch Review
Here's Why Tekken 7 Videos Were Removed From YouTube
Tekken 7 on PC Is the Best and Worst Version of the Game at the Same Time
Five Fighting Games to Play Instead of Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
How Capcom Is Making Street Fighter V for Newbies and Hardcore Fans Alike
Further reading: Dreamhack, Dreamhack 2018, Dreamhack India, Dreamhack Mumbai, Street Fighter V, Street Fighter 5, Super Smash Bros Ultimate, Tekken 7, Alex Jebailey, FGC
Motorola P40 Specifications and Design Leaked, Reveal Punch-Hole for Selfie Camera
Resident Evil 2 PS4, Xbox One, and PC India Price and Release Date Revealed
Was Dreamhack Mumbai 2018 a Repeat of the Indian Gaming Carnival?
Nintendo ROMs Playable at Dreamhack Mumbai 2018, Organiser Responds
Voot to Add Twitch-Like Features Such As Chat, Integrated Gameplay By 2019
Indian E-Sports Players Have Talent but Aren't Mature Yet: HyperX's Vishal Parekh
Dreamhack Is Coming to India, Tickets Start at Rs. 399
Here's How to Make WhatsApp Calls From Your PC or Laptop


The new softball season could be one of many happy returns for Hillsboro.
The Trojans return to Class 3A competition after finishing last year as runners-up in Class 2A to Chase County. Six all-state selections from that squad return this season.
Head coach Stephanie Sinclair has what she termed an "unusual" but fortunate set of returns — two experienced catcher-pitcher pairs.
The catchers, Bradli Nowak and Madison Klein, have signed to play in college. Sinclair said each of the all-staters is capable of calling games for the pitcher they catch.
The two returning all-state pitchers are right-hander Allison Weber and left-hander Julie Sinclair.
"They pretty much shared the mound last year, and they both do a good job," Sinclair said.
The outfield will be solid with the return of all-state fielders Emily Jost and Kennedy Lucero. Jost can play both left and center fields, and will play center when Weber is pitching, Sinclair said.
Lucero handles right field, and smart positioning complements her strong fielding skills, Sinclair said.
In the infield, the picture is not so clear. Shortstop was vacated by the graduation of Danae Bina, and Shannon Heiser will get a shot at playing time there, as well as at first and third bases. Sinclair will play first base, and Savannah Unruh is a possibility at third.
On offense, Sinclair said she mixes up her approach depending on the team the opponent. Whatever team that is, Weber will be her lead-off hitter.
Hillsboro has been to the state tournament five of the past six years, but Sinclair said winning the Central Kansas League title is a more immediate goal.
The state tournament, however, remains the team's ultimate goal.


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Raúl Pedro Sánchez Soya, né le  à Valparaíso et mort le  à Santiago, est un footballeur international chilien, qui évoluait au poste de défenseur.

Biographie

Carrière en club

Avec l'équipe des Santiago Wanderers, il remporte un championnat du Chili et deux Coupes du Chili.

Carrière en sélection

Avec l'équipe du Chili, il joue 33 matchs (pour aucun but inscrit) entre 1959 et 1964.

Il figure dans le groupe des sélectionnés lors de la Coupe du monde de 1962. Lors du mondial organisé dans son pays natal, il est titulaire indiscutable et dispute un total de six matchs. Le Chili se classe troisième de la compétition.

Palmarès
 Santiago Wanderers
 Championnat du Chili (1) :
 Champion : 1958.

 Coupe du Chili (2) :
 Vainqueur : 1959 et 1961.

Notes et références

Liens externes

Footballeur international chilien
Joueur du Santiago Wanderers
Joueur de Colo Colo
Joueur du Club Social de Deportes Rangers
Joueur de l'Everton de Viña del Mar
Naissance en octobre 1933
Naissance à Valparaíso
Décès en février 2016
Décès à Santiago
Décès à 82 ans

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


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The Kasatka class was a class of submarines built for the Imperial Russian Navy. The six boats were built between 1904 and 1905. They were designed by I. G. Bubnov and were based on the . The first boat, , experienced significant problems with stability on trials and had to have extra flotation added. In 1905, four of the class were transferred from Western Russia to Vladivostok with the outbreak of the Russo-Japanese War. Initially powered by a kerosene/electrical system, the boats were re-built around 1910 with a diesel-electric power plant following the end of the war. The class remained in service throughout World War I. Two were captured by the German Empire in 1918 and handed over to the British following the German surrender. They were scuttled by the British in 1919 to prevent their capture by the Soviets. The remaining four were broken up for scrap in 1922.

Design and description
I. G. Bubnov was tasked with producing a submarine design following experience with the , which had been deemed a success. The design was accepted by the Naval Technical Committee on 20 December 1903. As designed the class had a surfaced displacement of  and displaced  when submerged. They were  long with a beam of  with a draught of . The submarines were propelled by one shaft powered by a kerosene engine for travel on the surface rated at  and an electric motor rated at . The Kasatka class had a maximum speed of  on the surface and  submerged. Initially the design called for a three-shaft propulsion system, but due to the increased hostilities with the Empire of Japan, the submarines were completed with only the one shaft-design. They had a range of  at  surfaced and  at  submerged. The class was armed with four torpedoes carried externally in Drzewiecki drop collars and one machine gun. Vessels of the class had a complement of 24.

Modifications
In 1906–1907, new conning towers were installed aboard the submarines to rectify buoyancy issues. In 1910, the Kasatka class were rebuilt with new power plants. They received a diesel-electric system which included a diesel engine rated at . The displacement of the submarines increased to  surfaced and  submerged. Two of the class, Nalim and Skat, were given a  gun in 1915.

Ships

Service history
The first submarine of the class, Kasatka was ordered in the 1903 building programme on 2 January 1904, with the rest ordered as part of the 1904 Emergency Programme, with the next four ordered on 24 February 1904 and Feldmarshal General Sheremetev on 26 March 1904. Feldmarshal General Sheremetev was paid for by public subscription with the Sheremetev family as major donors. Due to the outbreak of the Russo-Japanese War, construction was accelerated on the submarines and only Kasatka ran sea trials. During trials, Kasatka had trouble during operation of the ballast tanks, steering gear and water entered the submarine through the main hatch when submerged. The latter problem was rectified by the addition of two floats attached to the aft casing first on Kasatka and then on the others. Kasatka was then transferred to Vladivostok by rail, followed by the rest between September and December 1904 with the exception of Makrel and Okun. Makrel and Okun remained in the west and were used as evaluation boats for the design. Kasatka and Skat became operational in March 1905, followed by Feldmarshal General Sheremetev and Nalim in May 1905. Completion of Makrel and Okun took until 1907. At Vladivostok, the submarines were used as a deterrent against Japanese warships. They operated out to  from the coast and remained as visible as possible, remaining at sea for up to five days, though some patrols lasted two weeks. Upon completion Makrel and Okun were assigned to the 1st Division of the Baltic Fleet.

During World War I, Nalim and Skat were transferred to the Black Sea in 1915 and joined the Black Sea Fleet. That same year, Feldmarshal General Sheremetev and Kasatka were transferred to the Baltic Sea and joined the Baltic Fleet. In June 1915, Okun and Makrel were among the submarines deployed off the Kurland coast. Okun engaged the German cruiser , but missed. However, the submarine threat led the German command to withdraw their ships from around Windau. In August, the two submarines were ordered to the Gulf of Riga as part of the Russian attempt to defend against the German High Seas Fleet's movements in the area. Following the arrival of British submarine reinforcements, the smaller Russian submarines were deployed on coastal defence missions in the Baltic. After the entry of the Romania into the war on the side of the Allies in 1916, Nalim and Skat were based at Batumi but remained relatively inactive. Kasatka and Feldmarshal General Sheremetev transferred to Arkhangelsk in 1915 and 1916 respectively, arriving via inland waterways. In 1917, the two submarines were sent back to the Baltic for overhaul.

In March 1917, Nalim and Skat were removed from service. In August 1917, Feldmarshal General Sheremetev was renamed Keta. In 1918, Kasatka, Makrel and Okun were transferred to the Caspian Sea. In April 1918, Nalim and Skat were re-activated and used against the Soviets. After the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk was signed ending the Russian participation in World War I, they briefly flew the flag of the Ukrainian State before the Germans seized Nalim and Skat. In November 1918, following the Armistice of 11 November 1918 which ended World War I, the British took over the submarines after the German Empire surrendered. The two subs were later scuttled by the British at Sevastopol to prevent their capture by the Soviets during the Russian Civil War. The surviving boats were broken up for scrap in 1922.

Notes

Citations

References

Submarine classes
Submarines of the Imperial Russian Navy


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Hannon Armstrong invests in 1.6 GW wind, solar, and energy storage portfolio
December 23, 2020 | News
Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital Inc. has announced a preferred equity investment in about 1.6 GW onshore wind and utility-scale solar portfolio which was developed and operated by the Clearway Energy Group in the United States. The portfolio includes 974 MW of onshore wind, 192 MW of solar capacity, and 557 MW of utility-scale solar combined with 395 MW of co-located storage. It covers seven projects in total, located in California, Hawaii, West Virginia, and Texas. The project is expected to create more than 2,500 jobs in the country to build and operate the assets. Another positive outcome will be an increased supply of clean low-power to thousands of households and businesses across the United States.
Hannon Armstrong's investment is also expected to reduce an estimated 703,000 metric tons of CO2 emissions annually. Hannon Armstrong has funded $200 million of its investment till now and is expected to invest the remaining portion by 2022. The total will be approximately $ 663 million, following the terms of the investment. The remaining ownership of the cash equity interests will be held by one of Clearway Energy Group's publicly traded affiliates; Clearway Energy, Inc.
Hannon Armstrong is the first US public company, which is dedicated solely to providing capital to companies in energy efficiency, renewable energy, and other climate solutions. The project will be developed through the partnership of Hannan Armstrong, which is expected to contribute its expertise in providing long-term investment for climate solutions, and Clearway Energy Group, which will offer expertise in the installation and operation of renewable energy capacities.
PreviousEnel Green Power commissions 140 MW wind project in South Africa
NextBenchmarking Africa's Minigrids


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New Service Helps Retailers Avoid Disaster at Peak Times
Article date: Mon, 02 Dec 2019 00:01 GMT
Manchester technology firm UKFast is launching a new Load Testing service to help businesses avoid damaging website failures during periods of peak traffic.
It's the ticket seller or online retailer's worst nightmare: the marketing campaign has gone well, customers are ready to buy, the sale launches and then, suddenly, the website crashes or slows to a standstill under the strain of increased traffic.
UKFast's new service gives businesses the opportunity to test their web infrastructure and optimise performance ahead of sales events like Boxing Day sales, advertising campaigns or event ticket launches.
Recent high-profile failures include cinema websites crashing on the release of Avengers: Endgame tickets and See Tickets' going offline during a Take That pre-sale.
UKFast CTO Neil Lathwood said: "You can build a beautiful website and have the perfect marketing campaign for your event or sale, but none of that matters if customers can't get onto your site, or pages take a long time to load.
"At that point all of your business' hard work and investment is wasted and customers take to Twitter to complain, damaging your reputation.
"Testing your infrastructure ahead of key business events makes perfect sense, and then there's the option to speak to a team of specialists to optimise your performance, if needed."
Web development agency Quinn Creative used UKFast's Load Testing solution to test a client website ahead of a national media campaign.
Calum Quinn, Founder of Quinn Creative, said: "We were being featured in a national newspaper supplement and wanted to make sure we had the infrastructure and resource to deal with a potential surge of web traffic.
"Having not done anything like this before, the Load Testing service provided by UKFast helped us prepare for every eventuality and ensure that our marketing efforts didn't fall at the most critical time.
"The service was simple to use and offered various traffic simulation options to ensure we were covered in the event of a sudden influx as well as a steady increase of traffic. We discussed the results with the team at UKFast who provided us with pointers on where we could improve to ensure the best possible performance and ultimately provide peace of mind for the remainder of the campaign."
Users can test a limited amount of traffic on their website as part of a free trial of the service.
Read our blog to find out how, when and why to conduct a Load Test.
"UKFast is as interested in us as we are in them, which makes it a perfect partnership!"
Shadowfax IT
"Since switching to UKFast the performance of the website has increased and the depth of technical information we receive about our solution helps us keep a finger on the pulse as we scale."
Campsites.co.uk
"We grew 350% in 2014, which we couldn't have done without the help of UKFast."
Jigsaw Medical
"We initially came to UKFast due to its reputation as one of the UK's best hosting companies and it's certainly delivered a stellar service."
Rebellious Fashion


Unfortunately, the page you requested could not be located. This could be the result of the page being removed, the name being changed or the page being temporarily unavailable.
Take a look at our current list of available new or pre-owned vehicles, view our special offers for each of our dealerships. If you still have not found what you are looking for please feel free to contact us directly.


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by Natalie Johnson | Jan 20, 2023 | Authors, Book Publishing
Anthologies: Building a Successful Author Collaboration
by Natalie Johnson | Jan 6, 2023 | Book Publishing, Book Writing
Anthologies can be a great way for writers to get their work published and reach a new audience. They can also be an excellent way for authors to collaborate and learn from each other. An anthology is a collection of works, usually short stories, poems, or essays,...
The Power of Publishing an Audiobook
by Natalie Johnson | Dec 9, 2022 | audiobooks, Authors, Book Writing, Business, How to Publish a Book
Audiobooks are a great way to enjoy a story while commuting or multitasking. But did you know that they can also be a powerful marketing tool? Self-published authors often find it difficult to get their work noticed in a crowded market. But by publishing an audiobook,...
How to Sell Partnerships in Your Book
by Natalie Johnson | Nov 25, 2022 | Business, Sales
You don't have to wait until your book is published before you can start earning from it. Explore the possibility of selling partnerships or advertising space within a dedicated part of the book that is typically called the "Partner Section" or "Affiliate Section."...
Don't Let Procrastination Kill Your Book this Halloween
by Natalie Johnson | Oct 30, 2022 | Blog, Book Writing
Halloween dress up season is here, and many writers revel in the season—it's fantastic inspiration for books and stories. But for some writers, the season isn't enough to inspire them to go back to their books. After months of writing, the true killer of stories and...


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Gameday Menus December 23, 2018 at 6:40 pm By Kate No comments
Washington: The Huskies
Washington plays Ohio State in the Rose Bowl
(January 1, 2019 at 5:00pm Eastern on ESPN)
Side: Sesame Noodle Salad
Main: Authentic Seattle Hot Dog
Dessert: Apple Cinnamon Cake
Cocktail: Coffee Old Fashioned
MEETtheENEMY
The 1909 world's fair, known as the Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition, was instrumental to the development of the University of Washington's campus. Just before the fair, the campus had only three buildings and very little landscaping. Fair organizers were hesitant to use the university as the setting since, at the time, it was a trolley ride from downtown. The state legislature endorsed the site after insisting that state money be used to construct four permanent buildings. Not surprisingly, the AYP Exposition gave the campus just a bit of exposure to the world.
The Seattle world's fair also inspired lumber baron William Boeing to learn how to fly. When parts for his damaged plane took too long to arrive, he built his own airplane—faster and better than his first. Of course, Boeing today is synonymous with flight, as demonstrated by the University's William E. Boeing Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics.
While others claim to have invented "the wave," the ultimate audience-participation cheer, one former Husky cheerleader, Robb Weller, says UW invented a bottom-to-top version in the early 1970s. According to Weller, inebriated students couldn't manage the crowd card stunts, so cheerleaders tried a wave instead. The first official football game wave was years later in 1981, on Halloween at the University of Washington. Husky Stadium also holds the record for the loudest game, 130 decibels in a 1992 game against Nebraska.
The Huskies have a live Malamute mascot as well as a costumed one. The live husky, named Dubs, retires after this season, but a new puppy—Dubs II—is in training for the 2019 season. (Why malamutes instead of huskies? Apparently huskies are harder to control in large crowds.)
The west coast has a long history of Asian influence, and Seattle is no exception, so foods from the Pacific are popular and easy to find. A good Sesame Noodle Salad has just the right balance of flavors. This one, from Seattle's now defunct Larry's Market, is great right away or as a cold refrigerated salad later.
I had never, ever thought to smear cream cheese inside my hot dog bun, but apparently it's a local thing—the Authentic Seattle Hot Dog. Two food cart vendors are credited with adding cream cheese to a hot dog bun sometime in the 1990s, but it wasn't until the Seattle Mariners' record-breaking 2001 season that vendors outside Safeco Field saw the cream cheese dog take off.
According to the Washington Apple Commission, six of every ten apples consumed in the US are grown in Washington. This delicious Apple Cinnamon Cake works for breakfast or dessert —or both. That's what we did!
DRINKtheENEMY
How can we visit Seattle without mentioning coffee? Our "house blend" includes Starbucks, of course, so we added a coffee cocktail to the menu, a Coffee Old Fashioned.
Also seen in enemy territory
Pike Place Market can't be beat for a sensory experience! With a myriad of shops, local artisans, restaurants, and a farmer's market, the PIke Place offers unique gifts and unusual foods . And when it all gets a little overwhelming, step outside to see Puget Sound or the Olympic Mountains … and breathe deeply.
As a UW student, Dale Chihuly studied interior design before going on to become the glass legend he is today. His work is truly mesmerizing. When you visit Chihuly Garden and Glass, make sure to stay for the glass-blowing demonstrations, then head next door to the famous Space Needle for spectacular views of the Emerald City.
More Washington cocktails
Hot Boozy Coffee
Salty Chihuaha
The Schooner
Washington Apple Cocktail
Washington Apple Shot
< Coffee Old Fashioned	Alabama Firecrackers >