text:
The Irish Economy
Commentary, information, and intelligent discourse about the Irish economy
Arithmetic Manoeuvres in the Dark at the Irish Times
In a week when the Irish Times carried reports complaining about the dumbing down of Leaving Cert maths the paper itself provided us with some beauties. An article yesterday by a former head of the School of Education at UCD informs us that "nine per cent of academics at professor level were male and 2 per cent were female". What about the other 89 (or 77 or 61 or whatever it is)?
Last Saturday's paper carried a report on ESRI work on overqualified workers. The author revealed himself to hold a masters degree from UCD. The piece (clearly not quoting directly from the ESRI) tells us that "adults whose highest educational attainment is the Leaving Cert earn 31 per cent less on average than those with a higher certificate or ordinary degree, and 100 per cent less than graduates with an honours degree". I'm sure we all sympathise with how tough it must be to make ends meet on the latter salary.
Even some of their commentators on economics seem to think that a 200 per cent increase means that the thing has doubled. But it could be worse: imagine a 200 per cent decrease.
Author Frank BarryPosted on June 9, 2015 June 9, 2015 Categories Uncategorized
16 thoughts on "Arithmetic Manoeuvres in the Dark at the Irish Times"
JohnTheOptimist says:
Ireland's Paper of Record Lies puts so much effort into fiddling statistics to support its liberal agenda that those working for it have lost whatever little genuine statistical ability they may once have had. On the issue of the 9 per cent male/2 per cent female, I'd guess this is not entirely due to statistical incompetence, but a manifestation of gender theory, now all the rage in liberal circles. The Paper of Record Lies probably thought it presumptuous to describe the other 89 per cent as male of female, as it would view this as a matter of choice, rather than being determined by physical attributes.
Colm McCarthy says:
My favourite is 'growth increased by 0.6%' and similar.
Michael Hennigan - Finfacts says:
"adults whose highest educational attainment is the Leaving Cert earn 31 per cent less on average than those with a higher certificate or ordinary degree, and 100 per cent less than graduates with an honours degree".
Before and after..
"Adults with an honours degree in Ireland earn 100 per cent more than those whose highest educational attainment is the Leaving Certificate. Adults with a higher certificate or ordinary degree earn 31 per cent more, according to OECD data.
Proofreaders did serve a purpose.
It's not clear when The Irish Times corrected the error. The New York Times for example notes a correction at the bottom of a piece.
On the content I pulled together some data yesterday that show quantity and quality diverge at third level in Europe.
http://www.finfacts.ie/irishfinancenews/article_1028878.shtml
Sporthog says:
The Paper of Record!!…….nuff said!!
If there are not enough women professors, then the criteria for professorships will have to be changed, to encourage more entrants.
Move the goal posts!
@Frank Barry
OK, o.k. Presumably they meant 98% v. 2% in respect of the ratio of male-to-female professorships? Does it matter if they get the numbers wrong on this,or on other issues?
The reality for most young Irish people is that, right now, the best place to be in Ireland is out of Ireland. The great cities of the world – London and New York in particular – offer opportunities for professional development that simply do not exist in Dublin. The UK, US, EU, Australia, Japan; that's where they are going – and Canada too – seeking fulfilment and opportunity and ,dare I say it, a bit of fun in their lives as well
I don't know if any economists have looked at this, but the urban destinations of our emigrants might tell us something of importance in terms of future policy choices. This applies both to our education system and its products, as well as to a keener appreciation of the reality of what a small state like Ireland has to offer in terms of career opportunties to highly qualified and ambitious young people.
The IT figures may be daft. But who cares? Most of those who should care have left, and have no intention of cever oming back. As for the rest of us, we gave up believing anything we read in the media about the irish economy, and its incipient fortunes, or malaises, a long time ago.
David O'Donnell says:
Methought I heard A Minister today state that negligible risk means no risk.
The states are in safe hands!
And in academia 'minor plagiarism' runs to a quarter million. Wonder what a serious one would run for?
Then again, Rubert CEO of FOXyNewz is retiring …
Prob again, the most odiously dodgy number is Sixty Four Billion …. 64 Billion … wow!
kevin denny says:
Chill Frank, its only a newspaper. A headline in The Conversation recently said the number of hedgehogs in Britain declined by 3,600% no less. In fact it was 97%.
Liam Delaney says:
Getting row and column percentages mixed up happens so often that I am sure you could write a decent book on real world consequences if you had enough time.
Also distinguishing between percent and percentage point differences is confusing for the vast majority of people including experts. Many medical journals now have concrete guidelines forcing authors to give the base percentage and the comparison percentage rather than just expressing percentage changes. The conventions across science are not applied very well and some journals still have reporting conventions that will cause obvious confusion. It is even worse in the policy world. In discussions of tax this issue creates havoc. A Minister moving a tax rate from 40% to 42% is rapidly reported as moving a tax by 5 per cent which is true but not surprising people will then think the tax is moving to 45%. Finance professionals use basis points to avoid confusion with percentage changes which has the added advantage of creating terminology confusing to outsiders.
With respect to earning 200% less than someone, our brain probably feels indignantly that given someone making 100k can be said to earn 200% of someone earning 50k (or 100% more) why can't the person on 50k say they earn 100% less rather than having to put up with the less emphatic half as much!
There are many of these and I am not aware of a decent book that summarises them.
Frank Barry says:
@ Veronica, I don't think they meant 98% versus 2%. It wasn't a simple typo. It was something much more convoluted. Maybe the ratio of male to female profs is 9 to 2, or maybe 9% of male lecturers are profs while 2% of female lecturers are (though the first sounds more likely to me than the second). My point is that the language used communicates nothing whatsoever.
unfeasiblycharming says:
The numerically literate might also be interested in observations on:
http://www.irishtimes.com/news/social-affairs/repossession-orders-rise-by-more-than-500-1.2199869
http://www.thepropertypin.com/viewtopic.php?f=10&t=44532&start=3090
et seq
DOCM says:
The topic of the fall in the standards of numeracy is certainly worth a thread.
But there are others e.g. the likely course of events with regard to Greece this weekend. At least, the topic made the lead in the newspaper of record today!
An interesting party game would be to allot the roles of the various Greek players to possible Irish counterparts, the role of Varoufakis in particular, in the event of the AAA, and various associated parties, making a breakthrough in the next election.
As one commentator put it, you wait for years for a new political party and three arrive at one time.
@ Michael H: the language I quoted was from the print version.
Niall Ó Ciosáin says:
This is from an article on grade inflation in the Irish Times 2 March 2010:
"There has been a 180 per cent decrease in the number of [pass] degrees awarded by Trinity in the period from 2005-2008."
I wondered at the time what the writer might have meant.
Die Welt has a very incisive article with regard to the role of the IMF, on German insistence, in the euro crisis.
http://www.welt.de/wirtschaft/article142422706/Griechen-Hilfe-des-IWF-kann-teuer-fuer-Europa-werden.html
The implication is clear i.e. the countries of the EU should never have embarked upon the creation of a single currency if they, collectively, and Germany in particular, were unwilling to stand behind it.
John Sheehan says:
Headline in the Sunday Times (June 14th): "Irish Buyers burnt by sun cream price hikes"
Thinking that this was about some large price increases, I read on and came across the following: "Irish consumers are paying up to 260% more for a bottle of sun cream than their counterparts in Britain".
Fine, but the devil is in the detail: "One product … costs €14.99 … on Irish shelves. However the same product (at a conversion rate of 1.369) retails at €4.15in Britain, 261% cheaper than in Ireland".
This piece is by Siobhan Maguire, who should get a special prize for (a) mixing up > and < , (b) the old 100% + lesser-than fallacy and ( c) confusing levels with rates of change (a.k.a. "hikes" in the tabloid press). All in a few lines!
Dan McLaughlin says:
Greek maths are still the cause of disagreement. The Blog below, by the IMF, summarises the issues from the Fund's perspective. The previous medium term target for Greece's primary surplus has been reduced to 3.5% (from 4.5%) with a lower figure over the next two years, including 1% in 2015.The Fund's view is that pay and pensions have to be cut as they account for 75% of primary spending.
The conclusion is that additional funding from creditors will be required and some debt relief, via term extensions and lower rates, although any further downward adjustment to the primary surplus target would imply debt haircuts.
http://blog-imfdirect.imf.org/2015/06/14/greece-a-credible-deal-will-require-difficult-decisions-by-all-sides/
Previous Previous post: What is economics good for? Event with Dan Ariely and Mark Blyth
Next Next post: African Demographic Trends and European Policy Responses
Follow/Discuss
Dublin Economics Workshop – 2019 conference
Economic and Social Review – Summer 2019
Are lower airport charges consistent with a larger investment budget? Actually, under exceptional demand growth, they're unavoidable.
129th Barrington Medal, 2019/2020
IPECE 2019 Programme
John Sheehan on Are lower airport charges consistent with a larger investment budget? Actually, under exceptional demand growth, they're unavoidable.
Dan McLaughlin on Characterising the Financial Cycle in Ireland
Dave O'Donnell on Economic and Social Review new edition
Dave O'Donnell on 19th-century Markets and Fairs as Imperial Economics
Dave O'Donnell on Congratulations to Philip Lane
Banking Crisis
Crisis Conference
Knowledge economy
Lisbon Treaty
The Irish Economy Proudly powered by WordPress


BIG SKY – An event that supports wounded veterans by bringing them to Montana for outdoor recreation and adventure is returning to Big Sky for a second straight year.
The Sports, Afield and Stream project (SAS) this year will be in the summer. So instead of skiing, ice climbing and dog sledding, which the warrior guests took part in last winter, they will take on summer activities.
The weeklong lineup includes rock climbing, horseback riding, rafting, fly fishing, zip lining, archery, mountain biking, golfing, a rodeo, time at the Grizzly and Wolf Discovery Center and a hiking trip in Yellowstone National Park with a pack string of llamas. Veterans will also win trips for hunting, fishing, backcountry horse packing, a cattle ranch vacation and a hot air balloon flight.
Several wounded warrior guests will return from the previous year, this time as volunteers and mentors.
One of the six evenings, on July 20, will be open to the public. Speakers will include comedian Mark Sweeney, David Philipps (author of Lethal Warriors), and Staff Sergeant Mike Mills, a veteran who suffered near fatal burns from an explosion.
The SAS Project is supported by Operation Never Forgotten, a nonprofit, which works to create awareness for wounded warriors, deployed troops, fallen heroes and military families on a national level. ONF is an all-volunteer organization.
"We saw what a great impact our first SAS event made for wounded warriors that we had to keep bringing well- deserved veterans back to Big Sky," said vice president of ONF and veteran, John Kinzinger.
SAS also teaches the veterans about wildlife, hunting, fishing and wilderness, something ONF President Linda Kelly says is important.
"Too many of our combat veterans are struggling with invisible wounds or stress injury and are falling into high rates of crime, broken marriages, substance abuse and even suicide," Kelly said.
"We introduce new hope and passion in life through new adaptive skills," Kelly said.
Without having a friend or family member in the military, it's hard to comprehend the importance of supporting veterans and their caregivers, said Kelly, whose son and husband served in Iraq simultaneously.
To donate or get involved, visit sasproject.org.


Home > Tyres & Tubes > Tyres 16"
Used on children's bikes for around 4 to 7 years old, and on BOB trailers - Ibex & Yak.
Innova tyres are well made and inexpensive.
ETRTO: 47-305. Maximum Recommended Pressure: 35psi.
ETRTO: 57-305. Maximum Pressure: 35psi. Made in China.
Kenda tyres are well made and inexpensive.
ETRTO: 57-305. Inflation Pressure: 35psi. Tread Pattern: Comp 3. Weight: 550g.
Although this fast and sporty slick tyre weighs only 228g, it still has a RaceGuard protection belt. This tyre now has reflective labels!
ETRTO: 32-349. Wire bead. Pressure Range: 70 to 115psi. Performance Line tyre.
This BMX tyre is sure to help you bust out some sweet tricks!


text:
Disney+ is coming
Starting 24 March, you'll be able to stream new Originals and more from the 5 wonderful worlds of Disney+ including The Mandalorian, the first ever live-action Star Wars series, High School Musical: The Musical: The Series which takes us back to East High and a timeless live action retelling of the 1955 animated classic, Lady and the Tramp. You'll also have unprecedented access to an incredible library of hit movies, new series, blasts from the past, documentaries from all over the world and Disney Channel episodes.
To get you excited and counting down the days, here's a sneak peek of what's to come from March 24.
After the stories of Jango and Boba Fett, another warrior emerges in the Star Wars universe. "The Mandalorian" is set after the fall of the Empire and before the emergence of the First Order. We follow the travails of a lone gunfighter in the outer reaches of the galaxy far from the authority of the New Republic.
In Disney+'s "Lady and the Tramp", a timeless re-telling of the 1955 animated classic, a pampered house dog and a tough but lovable stray embark on an unexpected adventure and, despite their differences, grow closer and come to understand the value of home.
The 10-episode scripted series, set at the real-life East High, where the original movie was filmed, follows a group of students as they countdown to opening night of their school's first-ever production of "High School Musical". With meta references and some docu-style elements, it's a modern take on the "classic" from 15 years ago. Show-mances blossom; friendships are tested, while new ones are made; rivalries flare; songs are sung; and lives are changed forever as these young people discover the transformative power that only high school theater can provide.
"Togo" is the untold true story set in the winter of 1925 of champion dogsled trainer Leonhard Seppala and his lead sled dog, Togo. Together, they embark on an exhilarating and uplifting adventure across the treacherous terrain of the Alaskan tundra to help transport an antitoxin serum to a small town, and it is a journey that will test his strength, courage and determination.
Elena Cañero-Reed will one day become President of the United States, but for now, she's navigating her first year in the jungle that is middle school. As a sixth grader in Miami, Florida with her family by her side, Elena documents the pivotal highs and lows of her journey in her trusty diary.
Timmy Failure: Mistakes Were Made
Directed by award-winning filmmaker Tom McCarthy, Disney+'s "Timmy Failure: Mistakes Were Made," based on the best-selling book of the same name, follows the hilarious exploits of our quirky, deadpan hero, Timmy Failure, who, along with his 1,500-pound polar bear partner Total, operates Total Failure Inc., a Portland detective agency.
Given unprecedented access, Academy Award-nominated filmmaker, Leslie Iwerks, leads the viewer on a journey behind the curtains of Walt Disney Imagineering, the little known design and development center of The Walt Disney Company, to discover what it takes to create and build Disney theme parks around the world.
Forky Asks a Question
Forky asks important questions about how the world works, such as: What is love? What is time? And of course, the deepest question of all, What is cheese?
Star Wars: Clone Wars: The Final Season
The ground-breaking Emmy-winning animated series draws to a close. In the conflict's final days, clone troopers specialize for the missions ahead, Ahsoka confronts life outside of the Jedi Order, and a familiar menace returns to wreak havoc. The timeless battle between good and evil builds to a spectacular finale in the last great conflict before the rise of the Galactic Empire.
"Stargirl" from Disney+ is a tender and offbeat coming-of-age story based on the critically-acclaimed, New York Times' best-selling young adult novel about an unassuming high schooler who finds himself inexplicably drawn to the free-spirited new girl, whose unconventional ways change how they see themselves… and each other.
START STREAMING NOW

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


will congress finally fix federal flood insurance program so important to N.j.?
As a lifelong New Jersey resident and an Insurance Broker in this state, for all my adult life, I realize how important the Federal Flood Insurance Program is to New Jersey residents.
The current program expired Sept. 30, 2017, and Congress has passed several short-term extensions since. The National Flood Insurance Program now will next expire May 31.
WASHINGTON — After more than a year of kicking the can downfield, Congress may finally be ready to extend and overhaul the federal flood insurance program so important to New Jersey.
At a hearing Wednesday, the new House Financial Services Committee chairwoman, Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif., backed changes to the program championed by U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez, D-N.J.
The plan includes steps to hold down premiums, invest in construction projects designed to reduce the impact of the next storm, forgive a $20 billion debt that ballooned after Hurricane Katrina and then after Sandy, and develop new maps that accurately identify areas in danger of flooding.
Federal flood insurance is one of the few federal programs that benefits New Jersey more than other states. FEMA has paid $6 billion to property owners in the state from Jan. 1, 1978, through Sept. 30, 2018, behind only Louisiana and Texas, agency statistics show.
About 227,000 New Jerseyans have federal flood insurance. The Garden State bore the brunt of Hurricane Sandy.
Menendez said he would work with Waters on legislation, unlike in the last Congress where he found no support among most House Republicans for his measure.
His plan would have held down increases in flood insurance premiums, allocated funds to protect properties against water damage rather than just paying claims, and changed procedures in response to problems that surfaced when Hurricane Sandy homeowners sought to be compensated for damages.
Suburban Brokers has called Fair Lawn, New Jersey home for over 60 years. We are proud to be part of the Fair Lawn and Bergen County Communities. We are also proud of our hard-earned reputation in the insurance industry. Whether it's Homeowners, Car Insurance, Business, Life or Health, or any other insurance you may need, Suburban can find the best solution for you.


I wrote in my notes that I used a sun-dried tomato-and-herb version of the pie crust–I remember that I was learning to make pasta from scratch at that point, and had been doing a lot of sun-dried-tomato pasta doughs. If you're interested in doing it that way, I'd suggest making the dough in the food processor and chopping the tomatoes up in there first.
I also noted that I added Worcestershire sauce and mushrooms to the meat. If I weren't trying to adhere to the original recipe, I'd probably do that again–those flavors always make ground meat taste much more flavorful and savory.
Ingredients. Everything's there except the milk (which I did use, I just forgot to put it in the photo). Only substitution is panko breadcrumbs for regular ones, which is mostly just because that's what I have (and prefer). I used ground beef instead of pork, but you can use either (or even ground turkey too).
Making the dough in the food processor. If you do it this way, you know it's ready when the dough starts pulling off the side of the bowl and rolls together in a ball on the blade. Add your water slowly (not all at once) while the processor's running and stop it when you get to that ball stage.
Here's where it hits that ball stage. There's still a bit left on the sides, but you can use a bowl scraper to pull that up easily. Too much water and it'll get gummy and sticky–too much flour and it gets tough, especially when it bakes.
Balled, wrapped, and refrigerated for an hour. Since this isn't a yeast dough, it doesn't really need to proof or expand. The chilling is to get the butter in the dough cold, which allows for air pockets in your dough when it bakes, leading to a flakier, lighter pastry.
While the dough chills, I start chopping onion for the filling.
I cheated and add a bit of brown sugar to my onion–I usually can't resist caramelizing my onions a bit. They just taste so much better.
After the onions get to the right stage, I add in my garlic. If Cooking Mama taught me anything, it's that if you start your onion and garlic at the same time, you're gonna burn your garlic.
Browned my meat in the same pan (gotta get those residual pan flavors). This is a wide enough pan that the meat can brown quick enough without burning my already-cooked onions and garlic. Pan crowding is not your friend.
Added my egg. Doesn't say anything about beating it first, but it probably wouldn't have been a terrible idea.
Post-egg addition–I was trying to mimic their second process shot with the wooden spoon/spatula.
Rolling out my now chilled and bisected dough.
Half of the dough is pressed into my pie pan, and panko's sprinkled on the bottom.
Pie is filled with meaty goodness.
I decided to get a bit fancy with the crust and cut stars into it with some cutters I got for Christmas last year.
Brushed the top with egg wash–this'll get it golden and shiny when it bakes.
After baking. Some of the stars look a little strange, but overall it's not the worst thing ever.
Comes pretty easily out of the pan, and the crust looks pretty solid and even.
Final plated shot. It was delicious, filling, and kept well in the fridge. I highly suggest you make a meat pie–and make it however you want.


text:
Get QuoteCompany ProfileMajor ShareholdersAnnouncementsNewsInvestors DiaryInsider TradingFundamentalsHistorical PricesFin. StatementsAdjustmentsNAVs
Cyprus Economy
Quotes and Research
CSE Online
Related party trans.
Investors Diary
Selected Securities
Historical Indices
ASE Online
CSE 70.54 -0.32% €267,527 17:25
ASE 870.58 0.30% €91,367,314 17:25
Home » News » Government Lute's proposal on four-party conference "unbalanced"
Government Lute's proposal on four-party conference "unbalanced"
Government Spokesman Prodromos Prodromos said Monday that Special Envoy of the UN Secretary General Jane Hall Lute, conveyed to the President of the Republic Nicos Anastasides an unbalanced proposal for a four-party conference, which as he said "obviously must have been made by the Turkish side".
"It is well known that in the past there was this idea (of a four-party conference) which, of course, is not balanced. The balance of the sides is not ensured by a meeting between the two guarantors and both communities in Cyprus, " said Prodromou, speaking after a meeting between President Anastasiades and heads of parliamentary parties.
What it would be helpful, as he pointed out, would be a meeting of the two leaders in Cyprus with Mrs. Lute, in order to clarify some issues.
During the meeting on Monday, President Anastasiades briefed political leaders on his last meeting with UN special envoy Special Envoy and the efforts made for an agreement on the terms of reference for a resumption of the Cyprus talks.
"In particular, the President pointed out that, for his part, he made every effort in a positive way, proposing to Mrs Lute that it would be constructive to have a position on the parameters that the Secretary General had tabled, which would not be binding but subject to a final decision " said the Spokesman.
He added that if there were similar positions on part of the Turkish Cypriot side, Mrs Lute`s process and mission would be facilitated, and if there was a joint meeting of the two leaders with Mrs Lute the communication could be more immediate and more productive.
Saying that in view of the fact that the Turkish side refers only to the parameter of participation and political equality of the Turkish Cypriots, the President stressed to Mrs Lute that the terms of reference must concern all the six parameters with which Antonio Guterres wanted to assist the process in Crans – Montana.
Prodromou also said that in view of the Turkish claim for an ever-widening concept of political equality, the President referred to an earlier proposal he had tabled, the concept of a parliamentary system with a symbolic presidency
He also said that the Government was expecting the Secretary-General`s report on 15 April and the continuation of Mrs Lute`s effort."
Asked whether the government had any doubts about Mrs Lute and her handling so far, the Spokesman replied: "No, of course. As the President of the Republic had said yesterday, he had a very good meeting and a productive conversation with Mrs. Lute. "
Asked to say how close or how far was the agreement on the terms of reference, the Spokesman said that the President of the Republic was making efforts in order to have references to all the parameters raised by the Secretary - General and to find a way to overcome the difficulties.
Replying to another question, Prodromou said that despite the fact that the Turkish side has rejected the parliamentary system, as well as some of the non-binding positions on Guterres framework, the President of the Republic continued to insist on showing a positive attitude, "because the Greek Cypriot side is the one who wants to see the end of the occupation with an agreement that can give a functioning state. "
Cyprus has been divided since 1974, when Turkey invaded and occupied its northern third. Repeated rounds of UN-led peace talks have so far failed to yield results. The latest round of negotiations, in July 2017 at the Swiss resort of Crans-Montana ended inconclusively.
Tourist arrivals decreased in June
Council of political leaders rejects Akinci's proposal for natural resources
gogordian.com – The real estate website of Gordian Holdings
The EU28 adopted measures against Turkey
G/c and T/c issues, Energy
House condemns 1974 coup and Turkish invasion against Cyprus
Parliamentary Issues, G/c and T/c issues
President: We will not allow again disruption of constitutional order in Cyprus
G/c and T/c issues, People
Leaders make first call after launching CBM on mobile interoperability
G/c and T/c issues
President ready to meet the Turkish Cypriot leader
Moody's: Amendments to foreclosure framework hamper banks' efforts to reduce problem loans
Greek Minister Says Country Will be Most Pro-Business in EU
MPs prepare to vote on bid to hamper no-deal Brexit
Iran's Revolutionary Guards seize foreign tanker
MARKETS: CSE
MARKETS: ASE
MARKETS: ForexWatch


The Eindhoven Raptors are our local American Football Club and they are looking for new players.
They are having three try-out days which will focus on the basics and training those who are new to the sport. Juniors from 12 years old and seniors from 18 years are welcome, and it is open for both men and women.
Wear/Bring: Sports clothes, sports shoes, and a mouth-guard. Everything else is supplied by the club.


Is it time to go outside your traditional ways of studying your recruiting performance?
The traditional approach to check recruitment performance is to survey applicants or students.
But, whether you survey applicants who declined, those who received an offer or students who actually registered -- you're always looking inside the process.
What's attractive about this particular study is its ability to help you look outside the classic recruitment process and see how what is happening there affects what goes on inside the process.
You won't make an offer to a student who didn't apply.
It's hard to convince a student to consider you when they already have their eye on your competitor.
You can't fix the misconceptions or market gaps around your school unless you know what they are and where they occur.
The research mimics the decision gateways a prospect passes through on their way to choosing a school to attend.
It's really 5 studies in one: a multi-faceted look at your performance at every step of the recruitment funnel.
Cross-Application Analysis: where the prospects who say they will definitely apply to your school will also definitely apply.
Study was very helpful on a number of dimensions – confirming our thinking regarding our positioning & our competitors & providing insight to some areas in particular to review for improvement or to be mindful of in terms of competitive positioning.
Really appreciate the work; you gave us interesting insights about needed changes that we will benefit us.
It's great to have this report. It will change how we approach our work.
Thank you for today's presentation (& research). Lots to chew on as well as some clear messaging about how we present ourselves to prospects.


Between March and June 1996, Don Robb and Jarrett Teague created the film: John Dean's Sacred Trust. The initial plan was to celebrate the parks 75th anniversary; however the priority message needed to focus on the proposed down-loading from the province to the region.
Don wrote the script; attained and worked with Shaw staff, Larraine Scollan and John Carswell who conducted the filming and editing phases. Jarrett assembled key personalities from the Saanich Pioneer Society: Edo Nyland, Moran Brethour, Cill Bethell, Bessie Roberts, Kathleen Macfarland and Wally de Temple.
Thank-you Don Robb (1922-2003), I truly savoured our conversations.


Scientists working in the southwest Indian Ocean have described six new bizarre deep-sea creatures – unfortunately, in an area slated for mining operations.
A group of hairy-chested Hoff Crabs. Image credits: University of Southampton.
In 2009, researchers from the University of Southampton used a robotic submersible known as a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) to explore an area about the size of a football field, on the bottom of the sea, around a place called Longqi ('Dragon's Breath'), 2000 kilometres southeast of Madagascar. There, they found more than a dozen mineral spires known as 'vent chimneys'. Now, these vent chimneys have long been associated some of the world's oddest and most bizarre creatures so biologists were expecting to find something spectacular – and they did. At least six new species have been discovered, including a kind of hairy-chested crab, two species of snail, and new species of limpet, a scaleworm, and a deep-sea worm.
"We can be certain that the new species we've found also live elsewhere in the southwest Indian Ocean, as they will have migrated here from other sites, but at the moment no one really knows where, or how well-connected their populations are with those at Longqi," study leader Jon Copley says in a statement.
A mineral chimney – a trove of nutrients for sea creatures, but also a point of interest for mining operations. Image credits: University of Southampton.
The team, which includes researchers at the Natural History Museum in London and Newcastle University, carried out genetic comparisons with other species to prove that they are new to science. They also found several other studies, including two species which have been previously discovered in completely different parts of the world: a species of scaleworm which lives at vents on the East Scotia Ridge in the Antarctic, 6,000 kilometres away, and a species of ragworm which was previously at vents in the eastern Pacific, more than 10,000 km away. We don't know exactly how these creatures spread so far away.
"Our results highlight the need to explore other hydrothermal vents in the southwest Indian Ocean and investigate the connectivity of their populations, before any impacts from mineral exploration activities and future deep-sea mining can be assessed," Copley says in a statement.
A stalked barnacle. Image credits: David Shale / University of Southampton.
However, he too acknowledges that the odds of dissuading the miners from starting operations are very small. The underwater mining industry is expected to grow significantly in future years, and sites like these seem simply doomed – along with the creatures which inhabit them.


Finding Nemo is one of the most popular and charming Disney movies. Who wouldn't love the magically colourful underwater world where Nemo and his friends get a lift to school on an Eagle Ray? But is this imagery causing some visitors to be disappointed by the real thing?
People travel from all over the world to go diving and snorkelling on the Great Barrier Reef. There's no doubt it is one of the best places in the world to do these activities since it is still relatively healthy with good coral cover and plenty of marine life.
However one of the comments sometimes heard by visitors is that it's not as colourful as they were expecting.
This is understandable if they came expecting Nemo or what they see in magazines and TV documentaries. Instead of an amazing array of colourful corals and fish, in real life, everything on the Great Barrier Reef can seem quite murky.
Probably the most important factor is that sunlight doesn't penetrate through water very effectively so the deeper you go underwater the greener everything looks.
The hardest colours to see underwater are reds, oranges and yellows so all the fish and corals in this colour spectrum will look green.
By contrast you will see that bright blue fish and purple corals really stand out.
When camera crews film the Great Barrier Reef they use very high tech camera equipment and strobe lighting. Only by lighting up the coral can you really see its true colour.
Just to show you the difference, this is a professional shot (courtesy of Tourism & Events Queensland).
See what difference lighting makes compared to a photo we took below.
We took this photo on a recent trip to Paradise Reef near Cairns.
It is an accurate representation of what we actually saw when we were snorkelling on that day with overcast and windy weather.
So the lesson here is if you really want to see the true colours of the reef, take an underwater torch with you.
We are blessed with many beautiful sunny days in North Queensland but if you happen to travel to the reef on a cloudy day, the reef will not look as bright.
Visibility is also affected by wind, especially when there's been a cyclone, because it stirs up particles in the water that takes a few days to settle.
If you choose to go snorkelling off an island rather than out in the ocean on the outer reef, the variety of corals you will see will be less colourful.
The soft corals more often found around the islands are not as colourful as the hard coral further out to sea.
The other thing to bear in mind is that the Great Barrier Reef is thousands of kilometres long and when film crews come to film the reef they scout the best locations.
The most pristine parts of the reef that are often seen in documentaries are well away from where all the crowds of snorkellers and divers go.
Tourism clearly has an impact on the reef. You don't need to see very many amateur snorkellers bashing the coral with their fins by accident to realise this.
The Great Barrier Reef is precious and it needs to be protected and so for that reason, it's probably for the best that most of us are kept well away from the best parts.
Snorkelling the Great Barrier Reef is amazing whatever the weather. You will see lots of fish, possibly turtles and rays, and lots of coral but adjust your expectations of how it will look if the weather isn't great.
If you are prone to seasickness, take a Kwell tablet before you go just in case (available at pharmacies). It will make your day much more pleasant if it's windy.
Most dive operators will provide a torch for night dives but not for daytime dives.
All snorkel tour operators on the Great Barrier Reef provide equipment.
Kids & The Reef: Is the Great Barrier Reef Child Friendly?


That second foul by Bowman wasn't a smart play.
is that guy duany duany's kid?
That run to end the first half gave them a bit more confidence. Good to see they didn't fold like a cheap table to start the second half.
jarius settling in too...is he supposed to be a threat from 3?
Hitting their 3's tonight. That's been the difference.
FU to all the Debdows who doubted the Fort Myers Express.
Chatman looks a lot better without the receding afro.
I am looking forward to hanging the Fort Myers Tip Off Championship Banner in the rafters at Conte next to our NIT participation banners.
In all seriousness, if they played this way most of the time I would actually give a crap and not loathe Christian.
This was a nice win, one of those nights when Chatman was hitting and it makes a big difference when he hits instead of relying on Bowman for everything. Defense was good but was also aided by Loyola missing open shots. Hamilton showed more flashes of what made him such a big recruit, he's still far from where I expect him to get because of some bad defensive rotations and bad jumpers but I think he'll be one of the top 5 by the end of the season.
The troubling thing is their lack of depth, the 8th man is Herren, who although I root for him isn't an ACC level player at this point. Too many guys who left early or project players that haven't improved enough, it's this frustrating cycle where we have mediocre senior classes every year because almost no one makes it through their senior year. Hopefully the some of the lower guys on the depth chart step up before the conference schedule begins.
Los wrote: Hitting their 3's tonight. That's been the difference.
1. popovic, he offers way more than reyes, can defend someone backing him down (not well but better), he can actually back someone down (has 3-4 post moves that are decent). He also handles the ball, passes, and rebounds 2x better than Reyes. Still too many turnovers but if he takes care of the ball and plays smart on D he's an asset.
Everyone was on Reyes for having a good game and we should be happy for him, but he's a dunker and shot blocker against smaller opponents at best.
2. Chatman actually finding his groove and making shots, best game he's had so far this year.
3. Jairus getting the inside game going and not depending on long jump shots. 5/5 inside the arc and just one 12 footer i think?
4. winning the rebounding battle 37-29.
watched every second of that game. that was without a doubt, the best college basketball game played anywhere, on any court, this season. I thought at the end (when Gonzaga missed their last 4 free throws) that Duke would win, but they didn't.


Very easy to book an appointment and the teacher was prompt and professional. Excellent!
My son took an online driver's education class and then took 3 driving lessons from Brad at Roadrunner. Brad was extremely knowledgeable, professional and patient. He prepared my son very well for his road test and instilled habits in him that made him a very good and safe driver. I will now enroll my younger son in Roadrunner's driver's ed class and will have him take his lessons from Brad as well.My friend's son had an instructor from another school that had the student run errands for him and had other students in the car at the same time. Choose your driving instructor wisely.
I recommend Roadrunner to everyone who wants QUALITY driving instruction. I asked 3 people who to go to for driver's training and all 3 said "Roadrunner." My friends took the classroom driver ed and loved it! All the driving instructors from what I heard are patient and knowledgeable, I know this because most the students in my classes use Roadrunner and we all talk about our experiences.Their online course was very accurate to the classroom version. I compared it to other online driver ed sites and it had twice as much curriculum to it. Yes, more to read and watch but I also felt more prepared when I got behind the wheel. I had Leslie for driver's training, and while I was expecting to learn something I wasn't expecting to enjoy it as much as I did - Thanks Roadrunner!!!!!
After an awkward and uncomfortable experience for my daughter with behind the wheel driver training at another local school, we were thrilled to find Leslie and Roadrunner. What an amazing difference! They genuinely care about what they do and my daughter learned SO much more in 2 hours with them than the other school, without going to drive-through fast food to feed the instructor and experiencing other inappropriate behavior. Be careful who you choose for behind the wheel training, especially if you have a daughter. Thank you, Roadrunner!
I just got back from my two hour driving lesson with Leslie and I have already learned so much. She was professional, patient and easy going. She taught me about lane changing, when to signal, checking my blind spots and driving on the freeway. The prices are very reasonable. I feel so much more confident and I can't wait for my next lesson! Thank you for putting my mind and ease and helping me realize driving isn't as hard as I thought it was. I would definitely recommend Leslie!
My daughter passed her road test today and we are so grateful for the patience and instruction from Lupita her behind the wheel driving instructor. We went with Roadrunner based on a friend's recommendation and we too will recommend Roadrunner to our friends based on our positive experience all around.
Today I took my Drive Test at the Petaluma DMV and passed with flying colors! I didn't miss a single point. Thank you so much for the preparation and practice. It was so helpful and I will recommend your services to any and all of my friends. Special thanks to Brad for all of the instruction.
My experience with RoadRunner Driving School was fantastic. The fees were reasonable and easy to pay as you go. Scheduling the driving lessons were easy and they picked my son up from school and brought him home after, that was convenient. But...the best of all is he passed! BOTH DRIVING AND PERMIT SCORES WERE 100%~ Okay, I just bragged, but now I can also share my experience with other parents of teen age drivers. It can be havoc at first with a new driver, but I immediately felt more comfortable after the first lesson. There is an online version on " learning to drive " but, the behind the wheel with an instructor, is just SO valuable and RoadRunner Driving School made it....PERFECT...get it?
comments which gave my son confidence.


text:
Ро́берт Уи́лсон или Вильсон (Robert Wilson):
 Уилсон, Роберт (Боб, Бобби) — шотландский кёрлингист.
 Уилсон, Роберт (род. 1941) — американский режиссёр, театральный деятель.
  (род. 1957) — британский автор детективных романов.
 Уилсон, Роберт Антон (1931—2007) — американский писатель, философ, автор работы «Квантовая психология».
 Уилсон, Роберт Б. (род. 1937) — американский экономист.
 Вильсон, Роберт Вудро (род. 1936) — американский физик, лауреат Нобелевской премии по физике (1978).
 Уилсон, Роберт Ратбун (1914—2000) — американский физик, основатель Фермилаб.
 Вильсон, Роберт Романович (около 1740—1819) — англичанин на русской службе, Георгиевский кавалер, вице-адмирал.
 Вильсон, Роберт Томас (1777—1849) — английский генерал, военный писатель, губернатор Гибралтара.
 Уилсон, Роберт Чарльз (род. 1953) — канадский писатель-фантаст.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


When researching bakeries for our office dinner, my assistant came across San Diego Desserts on 60th and El Cajon Boulevard. What intrigued us even more was that Bistro Sixty is an extension of San Diego Desserts. The food photography on Bistro Sixty's website is amazing so I knew I had to visit.
I met my good friend/college roomie, P, here for lunch on a Thursday. Bistro Sixty opens at 11:00am for lunch. I arrived before P did at 11:30am and I was the only guest there. Parking was convenient; right on the street in front of the restaurant/bakery. I had the option to sit anywhere so I picked the outside patio, which clearly was the new addition to the bakery.
This was my view from the table... looking at the inside of the bakery.
To the left of where I was sitting was a stage. My server told me that it gets pretty packed in the evenings, especially when they have live music.
I browsed through the menu as I waited for P. The prices are very, very reasonable. The entrees are all $10 or less and they come with either french fries or a side salad. For lunch, sandwiches, pasta, salads and quiche are served.. very simple.
Because the bistro is also a dessert place, I wanted to try the chicken pot pie for a good, flaky, buttery crust. I had a feeling that it would be awesome because of that fact. I love quiche too, but it wasn't speaking to me that day.
I ordered the chicken pot pie ($8.00) with a side salad. The pie was petite and very cute. The outside was perfectly baked. The salad consisted of romaine hearts, chopped tomatoes, sliced cucumbers, and dressed in a balsamic vinaigrette. It was simple and fresh.
The crust of the pie was perfect. It was buttery and flaky. The pie filling had chicken, tomatoes, celery, and spices -- it was so delicious!
My friend ordered the turkey burger ($9.00) with a side salad. The turkey burger is a mixture of ground turkey and mushroom duxelle -- genius! Seriously, we all know that ground turkey can be dry and if it is not seasoned correctly, can be flavorless... but this patty was SO GOOD. I was a bit jealous of her dish. The addition of the sun dried tomato pesto made it even more flavorful.
I could not leave the place without ordering a dessert so I browsed through the dessert case inside the restaurant and chose my favorite.... carrot cake ($5.25). Our server put it in a plastic container, like so, and the entire cake was protected by a plastic rim since there were three lovely layers of cake here. I was excited to share it with the office.
The cake moved around in the car so by the time I opened it in the office, it moved to the corner of the plastic container. Haha. This is a view of the cake with the plastic rim removed.
The cake was very sweet in flavor because of decadent cream cheese frosting. It was heavenly. I absolutely love carrot cake and I always want to try it anywhere that serves it. This version did not have nuts or raisins. It was cute and a perfect finish to a nice lunch at a new place. Thumbs up for me!
All in all, I am happy to have found a new lunch spot. I really, REALLY want to go back for the turkey burger. An older gentleman inside ordered french fries with his sandwich and they looked crispy and delicious too. Yeah, definitely... I will be back!
FINALLY. I *finally* physically made it to Carnitas' Snack Shack. After having their wonderfully braised pork belly app that I received as a to-go treat from my friend, I just had to visit the land of 'everything pork.' I visited with my good friends, J and J, for an early dinner on a Saturday evening.
When deciding what I should order, I had an inner debate with myself whether to order the pork belly app again (because it's SO delicious), trying something on their regular menu, OR trying one of their menu specials (something they do not serve every day). I ordered my dinner with a bottled soda.
Carnitas Snack Shack does not have fountain sodas; instead they carry cool bottles of soda, like the Sprecher Gourmet Soda I ordered (root beer), Coca-Cola bottles, and bottled beers. They do offer fresh brewed iced tea (you can see one in the background) and complimentary water in the seating area. I have loved root beer every since I can remember. The taste was bold, frosty and sweet. I loved every sip of it.
I ordered one of the menu specials.... BBQ brisket sandwich ($8.00). Here are my reasons: #1) I love BBQ brisket and since I don't see it in enough menus here in San Diego, I order it. #2) I love beef. The hubby doesn't eat beef anymore so we don't have it at home... so, beef is pretty much what I order at restaurants. And, lastly... #3) it's a menu special. I can come back to Carnitas and try their pork sandwich anytime but it may be rare to see their brisket on the menu again.
The brisket was moist and amazing. It had enough spice but it was not "spicy". The brioche bun was nice and soft, and it still held the sandwich very well. The coleslaw was primary made up of shredded carrots, but I loved the crunch and how the slaw toned down the overall robust flavor of the meat.
Every dish comes with their corn relish. It was creamy, crunchy and delicious. J and J gave me theirs so I had three to eat. I only made through two of them. I am guessing that extra crunch is diced jicama they put in the corn salad. Does anyone know?
Both J and J ordered the Snack Shack BLT ($8.00). What can I say? Bacon, bacon, BACON. They gave me some of their bacon. J told me, "You're never going back to turkey bacon after eating this." I could have eaten a basket of that bacon.
We split two orders of the seasoned fries ($2.50). The fries were really seasoned well. The homemade ketchup was sweet and good.
For dessert, we shared the caramel chocolate cupcakes (2 for $5.00). They were tiny in size but they satisfied the palate after a savory dinner. The cake was chocolately and moist, surprisingly not too sweet. The sweetness, of course, came from the gooey caramel and the vanilla frosting.
I could not wait to see what goodness was inside this paper bag o' yummy.
Ta-da! The bacon crunch bar ($5.00) was the finale. Bacon bits, chocolate, caramel layers on a rectangular cookie. It was really, really good. At the first bite, my palate said, "Wow, SWEET"... then as I kept eating, the savoriness of the bacon hit me at the end. This was awesome!
The Carnitas' Snack Shack experience definitely lives up to the hype. Their food is delicious and the menu is small and simple. I saw on Instagram that the Travel Channel was there with Troy Johnson recently. I predict longer lines in the future!
Date night in Phoenix means delicious food at a new restaurant. Phoenix is a city full of so many "non-chain" restaurants, like Rokerij.
The hubby's parents had recently went to Rokerij and loved it. We followed in their footsteps and went there for an early dinner for date night.
Rokerij is one of three restaurants in the Richardson's of New Mexico restaurant group. The 'J' is silent in the restaurant name and it's pronounced "row-ker-ree," meaning 'smokehouse'. Looking at all three menus, they all offer the same type of New Mexican type of cuisine -- a combination of Mexican, Tex-Mex, and "Cowboy Chuckwagon".
We started off with the mushroom toast ($9.00) based off the rec from the in-laws. They were crostini topped with sauteed button mushrooms and French brie cheese. The tips of the crostini were burned, which was very disappointing. Boo on the kitchen! Once we got passed the burned part, the toast was really good - savory, creamy and delicious.
We both ordered the Caesar salad ($10.00). It was a standard Caesar - romaine lettuce, shaved parmesan, and croutons - on a cool, chilled medieval looking plate.
For my entree, I chose one of specials on written on the chalkboard: the Rokerij New York strip ($38.00). Are you ready for this combination? It is a grilled New York strip steak topped with dungeness crab, jalapeno hollandaise, and a spicy hot sauce. Talk about rich and succulent! The steak was cooked to perfection and the flavors of the sweet crab and rich hollandaise was such a treat for my tummy. It was really delicious. For my two side dishes, I chose the "lighter" sauteed brussel sprouts and the mashed potatoes.
Again, the top of my mashed potatoes (in this cute cast iron skillet) was slightly burned. And, again... once I got passed the burned portion, the mashed potatoes were okay. Not as creamy, as I would have liked it, but it was good.
The hubby and I always joke around that we always order the same thing because we like the same flavors. We really do; and we don't take the time to think of a plan of how we will share different items for more flavors. We just want what we want! Then, after we are full, we always laugh how we should have split the same item and get something else.
With that said, the hubby ordered the Rokerij New York steak too, but with their signature mashed potatoes in a green chile and sauteed broccoli rabe.
Between the mushroom toast, salad and our humongous entrees -- we definitely ordered way too much, but we left with our tummies happy AND a doggy bag.
We are unsure if we will be back to Rokerij, but we are glad to have had the experience.


text:
Article Downloads Media Contact
Borealis starts off the challenging year 2010 with a positive result
Borealis recorded a net profit of EUR 54 million in the first quarter of 2010 in a stabilising market
Continued focus on cost competitiveness, commercial and operational excellence
New LDPE-plant for wire & cable in Sweden in final start-up phase
Borouge 2 on track for completion in mid 2010, good progress in Borouge 3
Key figures and ratios
(Quarter ending March 31, 2010)
Q1-4
Sales revenue EUR Million 1,412 1,025 1,267 4,714
Operating profit / (loss) EUR Million 61 (72) 11 24
Net profit / (loss) after tax EUR Million 54 (56) 13 38
Reduction / (increase) in
net interest- bearing debt EUR Million (214) 98 91 55
Gearing % 49% 43% 43% 43%
Borealis, a leading provider of chemical and innovative plastics solutions, announces a net profit of EUR 54 million for the first quarter of 2010, compared to a net loss of EUR 56 million in the first quarter of 2009. Despite an increase in net debt, the company's financial position remains solid with a gearing ratio of 49% at the end of Q1, compared to 43% in Q1 2009, within Borealis' target range of 40-60%.
In line with the general market trend, both feedstock prices and polyolefin market prices continue to increase. Due to this development as well as some delays in expansion projects in the Middle East, industry margins improved during the first quarter of 2010. Borealis' positive result was also driven by an increase in sales of value added products within the company's portfolio.
In the base chemicals business group, Borealis saw some recovery with sales volumes in melamine and plant nutrients as well as in phenol. The results of Borealis' joint venture Borouge also contributed positively to the results of the first quarter.
In an effort to stay competitive, Borealis closed, as planned, its high-density polyethylene plant in Beringen, Belgium on March 31.
Borealis' major investment in a new 350,000 tonnes per year LDPE plant in Stenungsund, Sweden is in the final start-up phase and will be inaugurated in June 2010. In the Middle East, the Borouge 2 project is preparing to start up in the middle of this year and Borouge 3, which will add another 2.5 million tonnes of polyolefin capacity by 2013, is in the FEED (front-end engineering and design) phase with site preparations ongoing. The preparations for the groundbreaking of the Innovation Centre in Abu Dhabi, Borouge's world-scale innovation facility as well as the inauguration of the Compound Manufacturing Unit (CMU) and Shanghai logistics hub proceeded with the events taking place end of April.
As part of its strategy to further diversify its financing sources, Borealis prepared its inaugural bond issue for launch in Austria in late April. The bond was very successfully placed with a final volume of EUR 200 million at attractive terms.
"The positive result in the first quarter of 2010 is the outcome of some stabilisation that we can see in the international polyolefins industry as well as our continuous efforts in cost competitiveness and efficiency," says Borealis Chief Executive Mark Garrett. "But we cannot expect the positive upward trend to continue throughout 2010. We need to remain alert and cautious as we expect the second half of the year to be more difficult with additional capacities coming on stream in the Middle East and our results will be impacted by two major start-ups. We will continue on the path that has taken us successfully through this storm so far – sticking to our strategy of Value Creation through Innovation and focusing on efficiency improvement, cost and operational excellence while never compromising on safety."
Kerstin Meckler, Head of Communications,
Email: kerstin.meckler@borealisgroup.com
Borealis is a leading provider of chemical and innovative plastics solutions that create value for society. With sales of EUR 4.7 billion in 2009, customers in over 120 countries, and 5,200 employees worldwide, Borealis is owned 64% by the International Petroleum Investment Company (IPIC) of Abu
Dhabi and 36% by OMV, the leading energy group in the European growth belt. Borealis is headquartered in Vienna, Austria, and has production locations, innovation centers and customer service centers across Europe and the Americas. Through Borouge, a joint venture between Borealis and the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC), one of the world's major oil companies, the company's footprint reaches out to the Middle East, Asia Pacific, the Indian sub-continent and Africa. Established in 1998, Borouge employs approximately 1,400 people, has customers in more than 50 countries and its headquarters are in Abu Dhabi in the UAE and Singapore.
Building on the unique Borstar® technology and their experience in polyolefins for more than 50 years, Borealis and Borouge provide innovative, value creating plastics solutions for the infrastructure (pipe systems and power and communication cables), automotive and advanced packaging markets. In addition, Borealis offers a wide range of base chemicals from melamine and plant nutrients to phenol and acetone.
Today Borealis and Borouge manufacture over 4 million tonnes of polyolefins (polyethylene and polypropylene) per year. Borouge is currently tripling its polyolefins manufacturing capacity to 2 million tonnes per year (t/y) by mid-2010 and an additional 2.5 million t/y is scheduled for 2013. The companies continue to invest to ensure that their customers throughout the value chain, across the globe, can always rely on product quality, consistency and security of supply.
Borouge and Borealis are committed to the principles of Responsible Care® and proactively contribute to addressing the world's water and sanitation challenges through their Water for the World™ initiative.
Borealis: www.borealisgroup.com
Borouge: www.borouge.com
Water for the World: www.waterfortheworld.net
Borealis Starts Off The Challenging Year 2010 With A Positive Result English, Dutch, Finnish, German, Swedish
Virginia Mesicek
Senior Manager External Communications
virginia.mesicek@borealisgroup.com
Borealis starts off the challenging year...


High-energy jets powered by supermassive black holes can blast away a galaxy's star-forming fuel — resulting in so-called "red and dead" galaxies: those brimming with ancient red stars yet little or no hydrogen gas available to create new ones.
Now astronomers using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) have discovered that black holes don't have to be nearly so powerful to shut down star formation. By observing the dust and gas at the center NGC 1266, a nearby lenticular galaxy with a relatively modest central black hole, the astronomers have detected a "perfect storm" of turbulence that is squelching star formation in a region that would otherwise be an ideal star factory.
"Like an unstoppable force meeting an immovable object, the molecules in these jets meet so much resistance when they hit the surrounding dense gas that they are almost completely stopped in their tracks," said Katherine Alatalo, an astronomer with the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena and lead author on a paper published in the Astrophysical Journal. This energetic collision produces powerful turbulence in the surrounding gas, disrupting the first critical stage of star formation. "So what we see is the most intense suppression of star formation ever observed," noted Alatalo.
The region observed by ALMA contains about 400 million times the mass of our Sun in star-forming gas, which is 100 times more than is found in giant star-forming molecular clouds in our own Milky Way. Normally, gas this concentrated should be producing stars at a rate at least 50 times faster than the astronomers observed in this galaxy.
To make this discovery, the astronomers first pinpointed the location of the far-infrared light being emitted by the galaxy. Normally, this light is associated with star formation and enables astronomers to detect regions where new stars are forming. In the case of NGC 1266, however, this light was coming from an extremely confined region of the galaxy. "This very small area was almost too small for the infrared light to be coming from star formation," noted Alatalo.


text:
Dentists Targeted for Recklessly Polluting Water with Mercury Waste
Dry Skin Brushing: Benefits and How To
More Americans Are Saying "No" to Water Fluoridation While Toxic Fluorinated Pesticides Are Still Allowed
Dentists still using mercury fillings (wrongly called "silver fillings") are the leading source of mercury in America's wastewater entering publicly-owned treatment works
The EPA is on the verge of giving those dentists a free pass to pollute; it is withdrawing a rule that would order dentists to buy amalgam separators. The costs will be passed on to American taxpayers and families.
By creating unfair profits for pro-mercury dentists, EPA will increase amalgam use in America's children and put their very health at risk.
In November the United States signed the Minamata Convention on Mercury, which binds signing nations to reduce many uses of mercury, including amalgam. Just 100 days later, the U.S. is about to break its promise to the world.
Did you know that dentist offices are the largest source of mercury in wastewater entering publicly-owned treatment works?
Once there, dental mercury converts to methylmercury, a highly toxic form of mercury known to be hazardous to brain and nervous system function, particularly in fetuses and young children.
Mercury is extremely tenacious once in the air, water, and soil; levels gradually increase over time, as it accumulates. It's no wonder then that contaminated fish and other seafood are the largest dietary source of mercury in the US, courtesy of polluted waterways.
In 2010, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced it would create a rule requiring dentists who use dental amalgam to conduct best management practices and install amalgam separators.
An amalgam separator is a wastewater treatment device installed at the source, in the dental office, that removes 95-99 percent of the mercury in the wastewater. As originally proposed, EPA said the regulation would be finalized by 2012.1 Such a rule would be a step toward making dentists accountable for future environmental damage caused by their archaic pro-amalgam stance. Amalgam is primitive polluting pre-Civil War product; an invasive process that damages and removes good tooth matter.
The alternatives are minimally-invasive, requiring no such draconian process. Plainly, 21st-century dentistry is mercury-free dentistry.
Why Is the EPA's Mercury Rule at a Stand-Still?
It appeared in 2010 that EPA would move forward to draft a rule, but in fact the rule continues to suffer from a long string of delays and excuses for not being brought forth.
At least 11 states—including Massachusetts, Connecticut, Maine, New Hampshire, Washington, Vermont, New York, Rhode Island, New Jersey, Oregon, and Michigan—require dentists to use amalgam separators to reduce mercury discharges. There, the system works fine; it does not raise the cost of dental care, but it does lower environmental pollution.
Do pro-mercury dentists in the other 39 states buy separators? Hardly. If they are putting mercury into children's mouths, and calling them silver fillings, why would they act responsibly toward the environment?
That's why we need a ruling by the EPA -- to apply to all states and territories.
Even the otherwise pro-mercury American Dental Association (ADA) amended its best management practices (BMPs) in 2007 to endorse amalgam separators as an effective tool to reduce mercury discharges in dental offices in November 2013, the US government became the first country to both sign and accept the United Nations Minamata Convention on Mercury, which covers dental amalgam. (The ADA actually fought hard to keep amalgam out of Annex C, the part of the treaty that will be regularly reviewed and can be easily amended, but they didn't succeed. The Convention thus has a path to a full amalgam phase-out, a point well-known to both sides.)
Internal documents now reveal that EPA will announce it has no intention of ever proposing its amalgam rule. This abandonment of the public trust has ADA footprints all over it... Thus:
You, and other members of the public, will not have the chance to comment on the EPA's mercury rule
Dentists will not be held accountable for their mercury dumping
Our children will suffer the consequences
Tell EPA to Release Its Mercury Amalgam Rule!
This is unconscionable. Charlie Brown and Consumers for Dental Choice have created a petition demanding the EPA immediately release its mercury amalgam rule for public comment. I hope you will take a moment to sign this petition right now.
Abandoning the long-promised separator rule is a horrid decision. It hands American dentists carte blanche to pollute without accountability, passing the costs onto not only taxpayers to clean it up, but to families whose children are affected by dental mercury in the water (and hence fish), air (via cremation), and soil (and hence, our vegetables).
Furthermore, based on the EPA's promise to act, the environmental protection community stopped pushing for individual state mandates, of which there were about a dozen in the works. By backing off and relying on the EPA to move forward, years have been wasted waiting for what might never happen.
Just what kind of message is the US sending to the international community when, just 90 days after being the first to accept the Minamata Convention, it tosses in the towel and reneges on a four-year old promise to address dental mercury wastewater pollution?
Indiana Department of Environmental Management Calls for Action Against Polluting Dentists
According to the featured article,2 the Indiana Department of Environmental Management sent a letter to the city of Elkhart on December 31, 2013, alerting it to mercury levels in its treatment plant exceeding the allowable limit of 1.6 nanograms per liter (ng/L). The limit had been exceeded in June, August, and October that year. The highest reading measured in at 4.4 ng/L. As reported in the article:
"Laura Kolo, utility services manager for the Elkhart public Works and Utilities Department, said the city must act on the violation... and will focus on dentists' offices because Elkhart doesn't have any industrial operations that could be behind the mercury. She noted in a response letter to IDEM that a 2002 report had found dental clinics are the primary source of mercury emissions at public wastewater treatment plants."
Kolo estimates the draft for a voluntary amalgam separator program in Elkhart will be finished by late June. If program compliance ends up being low, the program could become mandatory.
Today, dentists make a higher income than physicians. The cost to them of a separator? About what they make in a single chair in a single day.
Dental Amalgam Is the Leading Intentional Use of Mercury in US
Dental amalgam, a tooth filling material that is 50 percent mercury, is the leading intentional use of mercury in the US (this despite the fact that 52 percent of American dentists have stopped using amalgams). Dental offices generate a variety of amalgam waste3 that gets flushed down the drain, unless dentists implement best management practices and dentists install and properly maintain amalgam separators. Such practices will collect:
Scrap amalgam
Used, leaking, or unusable amalgam capsules
Amalgam captured in chairside traps and vacuum pump screens
"Contact amalgam," including teeth with amalgam restorations
There's a growing global consensus that dental amalgams is a considerable source of environmental mercury pollution. Several studies show that about 50 percent of the mercury entering municipal wastewater treatment plants can be traced back to dental amalgam waste.
This mercury waste amounts to about 3.7 TONS each year! An estimated 90 percent is captured by the treatment plants generally via sewage sludge4 -- some of which ends up in landfills, while other portions are incinerated (thereby pollution the air) or applied as agricultural fertilizer (polluting your food), or seep into waterways (polluting fish and wildlife).
Amalgam is far more costly for taxpayers than the alternative tooth-colored material, when the external costs to the environment and society are factored in. A recent study details how society pays for dental mercury through additional pollution control costs, deterioration of public resources, and the health effects associated with mercury. It shows that when these costs are considered, amalgam is more costly than composite as a filling material, by at least $41 more per filling.5
So EPA inaction means our government is enriching the dentists who use amalgam in the 39 states that don't require separators. The polluter does not pay. With costs lower, it is more profitable to place mercury amalgam -- and amalgam use will grow, not shrink. More American children, not fewer, will receive mercury in their mouths because our government takes sides -- in favor of the polluters.
One would think EPA would look kindly toward dentists who do not use mercury, who are not creating a toxic workplace, who are not dumping mercury into the environment, and most of all are not putting mercury into their patients' teeth.
Embed this infographic on your website:

Discover interesting facts about avocado, including its uses and benefits, through the infographic "Mercury Dental Fillings: By the Numbers". Use the embed code to share it on your website or visit our infographic page for the high-res version.

<img src="https://media.mercola.com/assets/images/infographic/dental-fillings.jpg" alt="dental fillings infographic" border="0" style="max-width:100%; min-width:300px; margin: 0 auto 20px auto; display:block;"><p style="max-width:800px; min-width:300px; margin:0 auto; text-align:center;">Discover more about mercury and how you can get this toxic, bioaccumulative substance from your dentist through our infographic <a href="https://www.mercola.com/infographics/mercury-dental-fillings.htm">Mercury Dental Fillings: By the Numbers</a> Use the embed code to share it on your website or visit our infographic page for the high-res version.</p>

Click on the code area and press CTRL + C (for Windows) / CMD + C (for Macintosh) to copy the code.
Why should we be forced to pay when irresponsible dentists who still use mercury could easily and relatively inexpensively install amalgam separators, which catch most of the mercury before it goes down the drain? At present, the EPA is letting them get away with it, and it's high time for that to change.
I urge you to take a stand with us and tell the EPA not to let polluting dentists off the hook: It's time to stop dental mercury dumping.
The mystery here is the position of EPA Administrator, Gina McCarthy. A few years ago, she was the hard-charging environmental commissioner in Connecticut, and before that a deputy in Massachusetts. Back in her days in state government, she clamped down on dentists, requiring not only separators, but posted disclosures in dental offices advising parents and consumers that amalgam is mainly mercury, that it is a health risk, and that alternatives are available. But now the question for the new EPA Administrator is, will she do what she believes it right, based on her experience as a state regular, or will she succumb to the inside game in Washington? With your help maybe McCarthy will return to being as tough on dental mercury -- as she when posted in Hartford and Boston. To learn more about dental mercury and its risks, as well as keep abreast of the latest news on the EPA's mercury rule, please see the following sources:
Midnight Deal on Dental Mercury
Join Consumers for Dental Choice on Facebook
1 EPA.gov
2 Kansas City Star February 8, 2014
3 Baywise.org, Dental Offices and Water Pollution Control (PDF)
4 Freedrinkingwater.com, Water Contamination Removal: Mercury
5 New Economics Report: The Real Costs of Dental Mercury
Previous Article Dry Skin Brushing: Benefits and How To
Next Article More Americans Are Saying "No" to Water Fluoridation While Toxic Fluorinated Pesticides Are Still Allowed
Delegates Pay Tribute to Hundreds Killed by Mercury Dumping
Revised Protocol for Detoxifying Your Body from Mercury Exposure
Dr. Oz Investigates the Hazards of Dental Amalgams


text:
Stair Quest is a non-commercial "adventure" game serving as an homage to Sierra's King's Quest series and similar games, originally released in 2016.

Development
Stair Quest was originally developed in two weeks as an entry in the 2016 Adventure Jam. A Special Edition, with added rooms, improved animation, and fixed bugs was released on 9 January 2017.

Reception
Stair Quest was nominated for five AGS Awards for 2016, including Best Gameplay and Best Short Game.
Luke Plunkett of Kotaku described it as an "80s gaming nightmare".
William Hughes of The A.V. Club coined the term "frustalgia" to characterize Stair Quest and said "there are worse ways to spend 10 minutes of your life".
For Siliconera, Joel Couture said that Stair Quest had "a humorous, if vicious, focus on how frustrating" parts of the old-school adventure games could be, and calls it a "maddening, yet lighthearted adventure of stairs and gaming history".

References

External links
GameJolt page
YouTube trailer
AGS Game Profile

2016 video games
Adventure games
Adventure Game Studio games
Indie video games
Linux games
MacOS games
Windows games


Start training your pup with these Turkey Trainers! With guaranteed levels of DHA and Omega-3 fatty acids, our Trainers are perfect for puppies that are learning and growing with you.
Made with a single animal protein, our training treats also pack a superfood boost with honey, cherries and blueberries – all-around nutrition for your developing pup!
90% beef and 3% coconut to give your pup the nutrition he or she needs to live Healthier Together with you, for years to come.
Sit, down, stay – good dog! Duck, sweet potatoes and plums make up this Duck with Plum Jerky Strips recipe. These functional jerky strips contain no added sugars or cane molasses because your Nulo dog deserves the best.
Tear these soft treats into pieces or reward whole when your pup deserves the occasional treat!


text:
Сельсоветы и поссоветы выделялись в Ставропольском крае после распада СССР до 2020 года.

История

Ставропольский край сохранял после распада СССР систему сельсоветов и поссоветов до 2020 года, причём в течение 1990-х имели место случаи образования новых сельсоветов.

Согласно Закону № 1-КЗ от 29 февраля 1996 года, сельсоветы и поссоветы выделялись в составе как районов, так и городов краевого значения, официальное определение звучало так:

Сельсовет (поссовет) является административно-территориальным образованием, объединяющим в своих границах территории нескольких населённых пунктов (кроме городов краевого и районного значения), а также земли, находящиеся в ведении этих населённых пунктов, необходимые для хозяйственной деятельности и отдыха населения, проживающего в данных населённых пунктах.

Несмотря на указанное определение, существовали сельсоветы и поссоветы, состоящие из единственного населённого пункта.

В конце 1998 года село Шпаковское Шпаковского района было преобразовано в город Михайловск, соответственно, Шпаковский сельсовет был преобразован в город районного значения Михайловск с подчинёнными сельскими населёнными пунктами.

13 декабря 2001 года Краснокумский сельсовет, находившийся в подчинении города краевого значения Георгиевска, был передан в состав Георгиевского района.

Реформа 2004—2006 годов

В 2004 году была проведена муниципальная и, в соответствии с ней, в 2005—2006 годах административно-территориальная реформа, в результате которой сельсоветы были сохранены только в составе районов.

На уровне муниципального устройства сельсоветы и поссоветы были переосмыслены как сельские и, соответственно, городские поселения.

В результате Анджиевский поссовет, подчинявшийся городу краевого значения Минеральные Воды, был передан в состав Минераловодского района, остальные сельсоветы и поссоветы городов краевого значения упразднены.

Название сельсоветов сохраняли муниципальные образования и административно-территориальные единицы, образованные двумя и более населёнными пунктами (ряд сельсоветов был переименован). На уровне административно-территориального устройства до 2016 года соответствующие сельсоветы упоминались отдельно. Сельские поселения, образованные единственным населённым пунктом, как правило, получали названия вида «аул (посёлок, село, станица, хутор) + собственное имя» (исключения: Винсадский сельсовет, Дон-Балковский сельсовет, Просянский сельсовет, с 2009 Штурмовский сельсовет). В Реестре им соответствовали сельские населённые пункты из общего списка.

Образованные на основе поссоветов городские поселения получили названия вида «посёлок + собственное имя».

При этом в Законе об административно-территориальном устройстве непосредственно не указывались, как и сельские и городские поселения в целом, но в главе IV, посвящённой административному устройству (ст. 11), было прописано, что:
Органы местного самоуправления муниципальных образований Ставропольского края осуществляют свои полномочия по решению вопросов местного значения на территориях соответствующих муниципальных образований, образованных в соответствии с законодательством Ставропольского края.

Все указанные преобразования, как и последовавшие, не получили отражения в ОКАТО. Административно-территориальное устройство Ставропольского края в ОКАТО указывается в основном по состоянию до 2004 года.

В 2010 году появилось следующее определение сельсовета:
сельсовет — административно-территориальная единица в границах территории района Ставропольского края, состоящая из одного или нескольких территориально и экономически связанных между собой сельских населённых пунктов и имеющая единый административный центр.

Преобразования 2015—2017 годов

В июне 2015 года Минераловодский муниципальный район был преобразован в городской округ.

В июне 2016 года вышли поправки в Закон об административно-территориальном устройстве, согласно которым как административно-территориальные единицы были введены городские и сельские поселения, сельсоветы, в частности, были определены как сельские поселения:

сельсовет — сельское поселение в границах территории района Ставропольского края, состоящее из одного или нескольких экономически и территориально связанных между собой сельских населённых пунктов и имеющее единый административный центр.

Фактически после такой поправки поссоветам соответствовали городские поселения категории «посёлок».

В 2017 году были преобразованы в городские округа Благодарненский, Изобильненский, Ипатовский, Кировский, Нефтекумский, Новоалександровский, Петровский, Советский муниципальные районы, Георгиевский муниципальный район объединён с городским округом Георгиевском в Георгиевский городской округ. Сельсоветы и городские поселения в посёлках Изобильненского, Минераловодского и Нефтекумского районов как административно-территориальные единицы были упразднены в конце 2017 года. Городских поселений на территории поссоветов в составе Ставропольского края не осталось.

Преобразования 2020 года

В марте 2020 года оставшиеся муниципальные районы были преобразованы в муниципальные округа, на уровне административно-территориального устройства сельсоветы были упразднены в конце 2020 года.

Исключение из ОКАТО

С 1 января 2022 года сельсоветы Ставропольского края были исключены из ОКАТО.

Список сельсоветов и поссоветов

 Сокращения

Сельсовет, преобразованный в город районного значения, выделен светло-серым цветом.

Поссоветы выделены оранжевым цветом.

Учитывается весь период функционирования административно-территориальных единиц, в том числе как городских и сельских поселений.

См. также
 Административно-территориальное деление Ставропольского края
 Населённые пункты Ставропольского края
 Городские населённые пункты Ставропольского края

Примечания

Списки:Ставропольский край
География Ставропольского края
Ставропольского края
Ставропольского края
Сельские администрации России
Поселковые администрации России


text:
<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=ISO-8859-1">
<title>The Program Execution Monitor implementation</title>
<link rel="stylesheet" href="../../style/style.css" type="text/css">
<meta name="generator" content="DocBook XSL Stylesheets V1.74.0">
<link rel="home" href="../index.html" title="Boost Test Library">
<link rel="up" href="../prg-exec-monitor.html" title="Part II. Boost Test Library: The Program Execution Monitor">
<link rel="prev" href="../prg-exec-monitor.html" title="Part II. Boost Test Library: The Program Execution Monitor">
<link rel="next" href="compilation.html" title="The Program Execution Monitor compilation">

 > The Program Execution Monitor
      >
      Implementation

The Program Execution Monitor implementation

   To monitor execution of user supplied function cpp_main() the Program Execution Monitor relies on the Boost.Test's
   Execution Monitor. Also the Program Execution Monitor supplies the function main() to facilitate
   uniform error reporting. Following files constitute the Program Execution Monitor implementation:

<col align="left" valign="top">

libs/test/execution_monitor.cpp

      provides Execution Monitor implementation for all supported
      configurations.

libs/test/cpp_main.cpp

supplies function main() for static library build

boost/test/included/prg_exec_monitor.hpp

combines all implementation files into single header to be use as inlined version of component

boost/test/prg_exec_monitor.hpp

      contains definitions for main() function for dynamic library build and pragmas for auto-linking feature support.

   The Program Execution Monitor implementation wraps several system headers and is intended to be used as standalone library. While there
   exist an alternative variant to include the whole implementation
   directly into your program, for the long term usage the preferable solution is to
   build library once and reuse it.

Copyright © 2001-2007 Gennadiy Rozental

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


text:
Q: Windows Phone 8 Text Selection options Good day, I'm trying to develop and app that adds a new option to the "text selection" menu on windows phone 8, right next to the "Copy" option normally displayed hovering above the selected text. This button is meant to simply execute an action over the selection that is specified by the user on another page, but should be available through the entire system, every time this menu is called by selecting text. What I need to know is: How is this menu, or element of the OS, refereed to? Can it be accessed? Can It be modified or customized?

A: You can't access or modify this because this is built into the system keyboard.
But you could create a popup-like control and listen for the Holding event on your TextBox which then displays the popup. I think this would be very difficult to accomplish because the system copy option would be displayed too and you can't disable this. One thing you can try is to position your popup right next to the system one, but you would need to check whether the system copy option is displayed always on the same position relative to the selected text.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Serve a memorable cheese plate with Calphalon. The Calphalon Contemporary 3 piece Cheese Knife Set includes a rounded spreader for spreading creamy cheeses on baguette slices or crackers, while the soft cheese knife features holes to help prevent soft or semi-soft cheeses from adhering to the blade when slicing. The set comes complete with a sturdy wood cutting board with channel and Calphalon logo.


Beats Grind and Life is an interview based podcast for urban music producers like yourself. Each week a different inspirational producer comes on to chat with Syren, to provide valuable lessons, tips and advise so that you can take your music career to the next level.
Ski Beatz is a Hip-Hop Music Producer from Greensboro, NC now representing Brooklyn, NY. He started off as a rapper and was discovered by the legendary DJ Clark Kent. The former Original Flavor rapper is now a legendary Producer that has crafted beats for Jay-Z, Camp-Lo, Fat Joe, Sporty Thievz, Lil Kim, Foxy Brown, Ras Kass, Curren$y, Mos Def and many more.


Renowned as the industry leader for the production of their chainrings every Specialites T.A. chainring is a work of art. The Specialites T.A. Chain Ring Compac Tooth 4 Arm is constructed from Zircal 7075 T6, an alloy more commonly found in the aeronautical industry.


Mareah is having a great time in fifth grade and sang a solo in the Veteran's Day musical at school.
Kelly made Master Company in dance this year and is training to run a half marathon.
Andrew is working on the tech team at school and helped run production for the musical Beauty and the Beast. He also was once again in marching band this fall.
Stephen had a great time marching at the football games this fall while playing the trumpet and was also on the tech team running production for Beauty and the Beast.
Josh got one of the lead roles in the musical at school and loved his summer on staff at Camp Lurecrest.
Carol has been seeing a dream realized as she has been helping to get Giving Orphans Hope off the ground and reaching orphans in our community through this ministry.
Brett is thrilled about getting back to traveling and speaking and is really enjoying mentoring young couples with Carol.


text:
Tom McEwan
Design Bookbinder
Tom McEwan's career path has taken him through the diverse worlds of bookselling, book collecting, art and design, sculpture, diesinking, mechanical engineering, tool-making and, finally, bookbinding.
On graduating from Glasgow School of Art with a degree in Fine Art (Sculpture) in 1980, he trained as a diesinker with a London-based firm before going on to set up his own diesinking business in Scotland in 1994.
Tom began training as a bookbinder in 2004 at the Glasgow College of Building and Printing. Thereafter, he enjoyed a string of competition successes including the student prize in the National Library of Scotland's Soutar Competition in 2006 and the overall top prize in the same competition just one year later. There were also prize-winning bindings in the 2009, 2011 and 2013 Society of Bookbinders International Competitions and in the Designer Bookbinders (DB) Competitions of 2009, 2010, 2012 and 2013.
His greatest successes to date are winning the DB Mansfield Medal in 2012 and 2013. He was elected Fellow of Designer Bookbinders in 2014. Tom was commissioned to bind one of the Man Booker shortlisted books in 2014, 2017 and 2019. In 2017 he was a 'Distinguished Silver Prize Winner' at the 3rd Designer Bookbinders International Competition, an event held every 4 years.
PROFESSIONAL:
2019 Man Booker Prize binding for Lucy Ellmann's 'Ducks Newburyport'.
2018 Exhibitor at Collect 2018, Sattchi Gallery, London.
2017 Man Booker Prize binding for Ali Smith's 'Autumn'.
2017 Distinguished winner Designer Bookbinders International Competition.
2017 Exhibitor at 'Collect 2017', Saatchi Gallery, London.
2016 Judging panel member of NLS 'Elizabeth Soutar' Bookbinding Competition.
2014 Man Booker Prize binding for Neel Mukherjee's 'The Lives of Others'.
2014 Elected Fellow of Designer Bookbinders.
2013 BBC Radio Scotland 'The Book Cafe'.
2013 Overall winner Designer Bookbinders Annual Competition, awarded Mansfield Medal.
2013 Society of Bookbinders International Biennial Competition – best book by non-professional binder.
2013 Craft bindery opened at Courtyard Studios, Irvine.
2012 BBC Radio Scotland News
2012 Overall winner Designer Bookbinders Annual Competition, awarded Mansfield Medal
2011 John Coleman Perpetual Award for Fine Bookbinding
2011 Overall Winner in Society of Bookbinders International Biennial Competition
2010 Elected Licentiate Member of Designer Bookbinders
2010 Runner-up in 'Set Book' category of Designer Bookbinders Annual Competition
2009 Winner of 'Impact' category in Society of Bookbinders International Biennial Competition
2007 Overall winner of the National Library of Scotland's Soutar Bookbinding Competition
2006 Student entry winner in the National Library of Scotland's Soutar Bookbinding Competition
Examples of Tom's work are held in private and public collections in the UK, Europe and USA.
His bindings have been exhibited Internationally, including: National Library of Scotland, Edinburgh; the John Rylands Library, Manchester; Liverpool Central Library; Birmingham Central Library; the Bodleian Library, Oxford; the Victoria and Albert Museum, London; Saatchi Gallery, London; St Bride Foundation, London; Library of the Bauhaus University, Weimar; Bibliotheca Wittockiana , Brussels; Imprenta Municipal, Madrid; National Library of Estonia, Tallinn; The Grolier Club, New York; Houghton Library, Harvard; Bonhams, New York; Nerima Art Museum, Tokyo; Museum of Modern Art, Shiga, Japan .