Hello, and welcome to the inside of my e-portfolio. It is filled with opinions and facts all bunched into one. For instance, when I was born in Brooklyn, New York, I thought it was the best place ever. Little did I know that I would want to explore worlds beyond where I live and grew up.
I enjoy socializing with close friends on hot topics that I feel will actually affect what we do in our lives. This includes but is not limited to; politics, religion, science, social status, personal finance, family values, and networking.
Now with the Internet becoming what it is, these things become even closer than before. What we do with the knowledge based on these real life topics and opinions creates a deeper, morale compass that can effect your very core.
I hope you enjoy what you see and read and hope you come out of this with deeper satisfaction that you've learned about one person's dreams and ambitions. Thank you!


text:
O Condado de Texas é um dos 77 condados do estado americano do Oklahoma. A sede do condado é Guymon, que é também a sua maior cidade.

O condado tem uma área de 5306 km² (dos quais 30 km² estão cobertos por água), uma população de  habitantes, e uma densidade populacional de 3,8 hab/km² (segundo o censo nacional de 2000). Foi fundado em 1907 e situa-se no panhandle do Oklahoma.

Texas

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


Have you ever had those words popping up from your mouth when visiting a touristic place? You felt like, arghh, no no, it's waaay too mainstream for me, half of the world visited this place, I am an exclusive traveler, I won't do what ordinary traveler with an ordinary though will do.
Take an example, what's on your mind when hearing Kuta beach? Petronas Twin Tower? Eiffel Tower? Taj Mahal? One word, for sure, to describe all those sites, "TOURISTY!" And other words to explain "TOURISTY word", crowded! And the worst definition I ever got from some people, by saying "TOURISTY", the place must have been very ordinary, nothing really special, or maybe it supposed to be special until thousands people come and pay a visit.
Some people may say, why visiting tower of Pisa and doing the tradition "as if you hold the tower in order not to get it fallen" photo session? Or, does it worth to pay USD 20 one day tour ticket to Angkor Wat, Cambodia. Or, will you visit "a must visit iconic tourism site" to show people that you've been to a country?
Petronas Twin Tower, how Mainstream this site is?
The next question comes up. What if we ever did all those "MAINSTREAM" things, is it taboo? Does it turn you to become an average level of traveler who has a very lame sense of deciding what epic tourism site should be visited? Does it mean that by visiting an undiscovered site, you become more special than the one who could just spend their time in touristy destination?
Most of the reason why people avoid touristy destination is because they don't want to be equated. Yeah, it's natural when person want to be differed and treated exclusively. For travelers too, they feel that visiting an ordinary place, doing the common thing which most traveler will do is not so special and will not leave such perfect impression. Therefore they'd rather visit Sungei Road Thieves Market than greeting Merlion in Singapore, or maybe they will go to the Ancient Observatory than spending the whole day climbing Great Wall in Beijing.
Also, mostly people who avoid touristy destination have more time compared to the other. They have more time to google unique/ weird/ unusual/ non-mainstream places, they have more time to explore even the corner of the city to find something hidden. Meanwhile some who doesn't really have much time should be satisfied by just visiting the popular sites.
Then again, back to the question, what if we don't have opportunity to be a non-mainstream traveler? is our trip boring? Aren't we allowed to be proud of our ordinary travel records?


text:
<?php

namespace Homie\Expression;

use BrainExe\Core\Annotations\Service;
use BrainExe\Core\Traits\EventDispatcherTrait;
use BrainExe\Core\Traits\IdGeneratorTrait;
use BrainExe\Core\Traits\RedisTrait;
use Homie\Expression\Listener\RebuildExpressionCache;

/**
 * @Service
 */
class Gateway
{
    use RedisTrait;
    use IdGeneratorTrait;
    use EventDispatcherTrait;

    const REDIS_KEY = 'expressions';

    /**
     * @var Language
     */
    private $language;

    /**
     * @param Language $language
     */
    public function __construct(Language $language)
    {
        $this->language = $language;
    }

    /**
     * @param Entity $entity
     * @param bool $updateCache
     */
    public function save(Entity $entity, bool $updateCache = true)
    {
        $entity->expressionId = $entity->expressionId ?: $this->generateUniqueId('expressionid');

        $entity->compiledCondition = $this->language->compile(
            implode(' && ', $entity->conditions),
            $this->language->getParameterNames()
        );

        $this->getRedis()->hset(
            self::REDIS_KEY,
            $entity->expressionId,
            serialize($entity)
        );

        if ($updateCache) {
            $this->updateCache();
        }
    }

    /**
     * @return Entity[]
     */
    public function getAll() : array
    {
        return array_map(
            function ($string) {
                return unserialize($string);
            },
            $this->getRedis()->hgetall(self::REDIS_KEY)
        );
    }

    /**
     * @param string[] $entityIds
     * @return Entity[]
     */
    public function getEntities(array $entityIds) : array
    {
        return array_map(
            function ($string) : Entity {
                return unserialize($string);
            },
            $this->getRedis()->hmget(self::REDIS_KEY, $entityIds)
        );
    }

    /**
     * @param string $expressionId
     * @return bool
     */
    public function delete(string $expressionId) : bool
    {
        $result = $this->getRedis()->hdel(self::REDIS_KEY, [$expressionId]);
        if ($result) {
            $this->updateCache();
        }

        return (bool)$result;
    }

    public function updateCache()
    {
        $event = new RebuildExpressionCache();
        $this->dispatchEvent($event);
    }
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


Summer programing has begun but it's not too late to register or just drop in to see a class in action.
ASTROCAMP is every Thursday, now through August 16th. Morning sessions (9:30-12:00) or afternoon sessions (12:30-3:00) are $15 each, or stay the full day for $25, lunch included! Pre-arranged late pickup is also available. Check the website for a complete listing for the summer.
Summer LEGO ROBOTICS sessions are available on Tuesday mornings (10:00-12:00) July 24, 31, and August 7, 14, 21, 28; $10 per session or $30 for any 4 sessions. Thursday afternoon (12:30-2:30) sessions are also available, July 19, 26, August 2, 9, 16; $10 per session.
Keep an eye out for announcements concerning our upcoming SPACE DAYS in August!
We continue to run space missions for students and community groups from WNY. If you know of anyone who would like more information on our school or community group programs, please ask them to contact us. Groups of at least 8 or up to 30, that would be interested in running a mission, can contact the center at (716) 434-3196.
August will kick-off of the new First Lego League (FLL) tournament season. The focus topic is Into Orbit. The team is open to new members, age 9 and up, for the up-coming competition season. Participants do not need to be students at Lockport schools to join. The team will meet during Tuesday morning robotics sessions through August, then during the Tuesday after school robotics program thereafter.
The Challenger Learning Center of Lockport is is a community-based, learning-oriented organization geared towards enriching the minds of our youth and adults alike.


The Object Recognition module provides a way to identify specific trained objects within the current image. Once the module is trained with sample template images it will identify those objects within the current image depending on the filtered parameters of confidence, size, rotation, etc.
Serveral of the techniques will account for different object sizes, location and in plane rotation (roll) of the object aswell as variations in lighting and contrast. It will NOT account for significant rotation of the object in the X and Y (pan and tilt) directions. Should you need to identify a 3D object in any orientation you will need to include template examples of each orientation.
Templates are created by including images into a folder that is used as the training samples for this module. Thus you can use any image editing application to edit and manage those templates as needed. Note, it is always best just to include the object to be identified without any background parts of the image. Only one folder at a time can be selected into a single object Recognition module. By changing the folder you change those objects that are to be identified. Note that you can also use more than one Object Recognition module within the pipeline.
It is recommended to use as large a template image as possible that will appear in the scene. One that encompasses as much of the image size as possible is best. This is because the Object Recognition module will only seek out objects from the template size down to a minimum of 1/3th the template size. Thus having the template contain the most amount of detail will provide the best results. If you specify too large an object then smaller versions of the objects may not be recognized as they may fall below the 30% size limit.
Several recognition methods are provided. As many objects/environments differ in task the module provides various methods that can be switched between in order to determine the best technique for your use. Note that while you can switch between the techniques by selecting the appropriate radio button the module will NOT update the template database when you switch to that method. Thus if you add a new image and want to experiment with all techniques you will have to switch to each method and you MUST press the Train button in order to ensure that the template database is up-to-date.
This method will identify interesting points within the template using a modified fast Harris feature detector and match those points with those detected within the current image. The identified points are typically corner-like points that exhibit restraining forces in each direction (i.e. the highest edge signal in both X and Y directions will be maximal at the point's position). This helps to stabilize point choices in both the template and image such that most (but not all) points will be detected between the template and image. Once this correlation has been done the most likely template is then tested for at that location using a slower cross correlation technique. This technique is a good standard technique assuming there is enough internal texture within the object (think of a book cover) and is fast enough for most purposes.
Keep in mind that as this technique mainly uses corners as features motion blur will cause all those features to disappear and therefore not match correctly. Thus if you have a lot of motion blur within images you wish to match against you may need to decide on an alternative technique.
Objects to be detected MUST have internal texture as this module relies in inner feature points as the primary object identification technique. If you are interested in just the shape of an object the Shape Matching module will be of better use or the Shape method mentioned below.
This method will check for translation, scale and orientation.
The shape matching method is similar to the Shape Matching module but this method works on intensity images contrary to the Shape Matching module which uses binary (Black&White) images. The shape method will analyze the template and current image for correspondences in shape and determine which parts of the image best contain a particular template.
Due to its reliance on shape the shape matching method can determine any size and orientation (including X and Y location) of the template image within the current image in about the same time as the cross correlation method does just X and Y location. Its speed and flexibility make the shape matching method very useful when limited internal template texture is available. For example, labels, street signs, text, logos, fiducials, etc. are all ideal templates for the shape matching method as they consist of non-textured areas and rely on shape as their primary form of identification.
It is recommended to use templates that are as large as possible with regards to what may be seen in the current image. If small templates are used and matching to larger possible targets in the current image is attempted a mismatch will occur as more detail will be in the current image than what is contained within the template. Thus it is important to use a template by cropping the largest size seen of the template in any test or production images.
A very popular face recognition technique uses Haar like filters to determine a set of pixels comparisons that best represents the concept of a face. While this has its uses the Haar technique can also be applied to specific object recognition. In this scenario many high intensity versus low intensity checks are created that when run in sequence will identify a template with a high probability. These checks can be run across the image very quickly and even adapt to size differences but they cannot be quickly rotated and thus are restricted to a single orientation.
Note that contrary to typical Haar training this method only requires ONE sample image to recognize the image and does NOT create a generic class based on that image. Thus if you want to recognize a class of objects you will need to include a couple images to best represent that class.
This method will check for translation and scale.
This method uses a well known and established technique for object recognition. The normalized cross correlation method has been widely used in many applications and can be one of the more stable techniques to use. The algorithm behind the cross correlation technique is, unfortunately, very CPU intensive and therefore should be used with care otherwise significant time may be spent on searching for objects within an image.
The cross correlation algorithm will use the template as saved in the trained folder and compare the template pixel by pixel at each pixel location within the current image. For example, if your template is 50x50 pixels large and your current image is 320x240 large this will mean there are approximately 2500x76800 = 192,000,000 pixel comparisons to make. This brute force method is entirely too slow for reasonable usage so tradeoffs between the size of the template versus the size of the image is made in order to speed up comparisons. While this does significantly speed up the algorithm some accuracy is forfeited as a result of that speed.
While normalized cross correlation does attempt to best deal with lighting changes between the template and the current image it is not performed within the image itself, thus while the template and current test image can be overall darker or lighter if a shadow is cast across the template that is not also within the current image the recognition process will fail.
To further reduce performance requirements the cross correlation method ONLY checks for templates of the same size AND orientation. Thus a template is only searched in the X and Y direction. If the current image contains the template at a different size it will NOT be recognized (but can still be tracked). If this is a requirement for your project and you decide to use cross correlation you will need to add the template in different sizes to the training folder. We recommend changing template sizes in increments of 10% which typically will provide adequate coverage.
If orientation is required you may attempt to use the Orient Image module prior to cross correlation which will help to specify a standard orientation prior to matching. Note that you will need to add the 180deg rotated template within the training folder if you decide on this direction as the Orient Image will most likely have a 180deg symmetry and therefore not always align to the same 180 direction.
For comparisons that are image to image (meaning NO change in X or Y) the cross correlation technique can be one of the fastest. Thus if you goal is to find an image that exists within a known database without any size, orientation, horizontal or vertical shifts the cross correlation technique is a good technique to attempt.
1. Train - Press the train button and enter the full path to the templates folder that you want to train on. Press the START button to start training. After it is complete press the ok button.
2. Display - You should now notice the objects being recognized in the main RoboRealm window. Matches are displayed as green boxes. Note that the 'name' of a object is the name of the template image filename without the extension. So you can change the names by changing the filenames and re-train. Note that size is based on the size of the trained template where 100% is the same size as the trained template.
By default the Filename and Confidence are displayed. You can add or remove information from being displayed by changing the checkboxes in the Display area. Note if too much information is displayed you might want to change the Font size to a smaller size.
Filename - the name of the object.
Confidence - how strongly the module believes this object matches one in the database folder.
Coordinates - the location of the matched object.
X Translation - the X location with respect to the center of the screen of the object.
Y Translation - the Y location with respect to the center of the screen of the object.
Size - the size of the object relative to that in the database.
3. Box Color - You can change the match box color by changing the Box Color.
4. Check - If you want to restrict where the module will search for a template you can restrict the search space by un-checking the appropriate checkboxes. For example, if you know the template will always appear in the same size you can uncheck the Scale checkbox. Removing search requirements will help to speed up the search. Note that if you remove X then the module will search along the vertical center of the image for the template, likewise with removing Y will cause the search in the horizontal direction. If you remove both X and Y then the center of the image will be checked for the presence of the template.
5. Tracking - Recognizing objects can be a very taxing process on your CPU. To remove some of this load you can chose to have tracking enabled which will quickly look for the recognized object in the previous image in its immediate area and adjust for any movement. Tracking is much faster than recognition and can also track in more dimensions than the original recognition method. For example, if you use the Cross Correlation technique to recognize an object and have tracking turned on, once recognized the template can now be scaled and rotated and still be identified even though Cross Correlation does not support scale or orientation changes!
6. Tracking Confidence - Once an object is recognized the actual tracking (recognizing from one image to the next) can use a lower confidence since the movement of an object can cause temporary distortions or highlights/shadows within the image. You can use the Tracking Confidence threshold to be lower than the recognition threshold to ensure that once objects are recognized they will still be tracked under harsher image conditions.
7. Filter Confidence - Many candidate objects do pass the basic match requirements but do not match with a known object very well. You can remove those unwanted matches by increasing the Min Confidence. This removes bad matches from being made.
8. Filter Scale - Each recognized object has a scale associated with it that can be used to remove larger or smaller matches.
9. Filter Orientation - by default objects are recognized in any orientation. You can use the Filter Orientation to remove those objects outside of your desired orientation. For example, 15, 345 would remove any object +=15 degrees from that what is in the database.
10. Stabilization - When moving the camera motion blur can cause incorrect low confidence matches to appear. By increasing the "Present After" you are requiring a object to appear for a set number of frames before being reported as a match. This essentially removes the "flickering" of low matched objects that can cause noise in the results. Note that if you are working with static images you will need to set this to zero! In the same way the "Absent After" number will only remove an object from being tracked after the specified number of frames. This will help prevent the momentary disappearance of the object due to pixel noise.
11. Filter Matching - If you know you only want to track a single object you can specify a 1 in the top matches box which will only return a single best recognized template from the current image. Likewise, if you know that you will never have more than 3 recognized objects you can specify 3 in the same box. This helps to remove lower matching templates without having to adjust the confidence threshold.
12. Overlap - Specifies the amount of allowed overlap between objects. Often similar objects may be detected in a similar location which may not be desirable. The amount of overlap will remove those less confident objects to result in a single dominant recognition. You can use this (default setting of 20%) to ensure that no objects overlap by more than 20% or by whatever percentage you use.
13. Variables - To use the results of the object module in your own application or in other RoboRealm modules you can select that the object array be created. This array has all the collected information about a detect object. See below for the array format.
14. Treat black as mask - Select if your templates contain pure black areas that should NOT be used in matching a template with a potential match. This helps to eliminate parts of a non-square template and create a higher confidence match result.
Inverted - displays everything else but the object (which is blacked out).
Recognition of a basic shape. As the object becomes less planar the match confidence will decrease.
Scale invariant recognition of the same object. Notice significant lighting change.
180 degree rotated objects are still recognized.
These recognition methods are useful for parts identification and verification. But try to keep a perpendicular view without too much camera distortions.
These techniques can work on 3D objects but not if the view angle (X&Y) changes significantly. Taking images of far away objects will normally work better as you'd have to move quite a bit to change the view angle.
Different techniques will work better on different objects. In this case there are not enough feature points to detect the object ... but the Shape technique has plenty to work with.
These techniques are good for specific object identification but do NOT work as a general classifier for objects. In this case while very similar the open window is different enough to fail as being identified as a window. You can always include more templates but there is a limit.
OBJECTS - contains an array of detected objects.
OBJECTS_PATH - string that contains the names of the objects.
by #13 and #14 below to extract out the actual name.
If you wanted to write the COG to a file you can VBScript to format and write it to a file.


text:
We respect and acknowledge the individual and unique needs of companies. However, we also know how to deliver on what is needed while creating an unparalleled and smart design. These projects demonstrate that two-pronged ability.
Multiple / Chevy Chase, Maryland
Architecture, Corporate Interiors, Interiors, Workplace
Featured Awards
Silver Award -- Commercial Over 100,000 SF
Illuminating Engineering Society (IES) -- Illumination Award of Merit, 2015, 2012 and 2011
SmithGroup has been working with Microsoft since 2009 and has completed over 50 projects totaling over 800,000 SF across North America.
We design spaces that balance brand, function, and product, our team uses Microsoft-produced guidelines to ensure the company's operations will be properly serviced.
Microsoft Chevy Chase Office
As one of the largest and most revered technology companies in the world, Microsoft has reached success by establishing diligent and specific processes to accommodate its workflows and products.
Determining the best design decisions for their offices was no exception. Microsoft has a specific set of standards for all their workplaces. After all, the technology company needs spaces that complement its practices, and allow for the type of creative collaboration that it's so widely known for.
When it came to Microsoft's Chevy Chase location, the tech company wanted something different. It was its first joint sales and development office, meaning the space would serve both the regional DC sales team as well as the Amalga product development center, a health system designed to collect and display patient information.
Enhancing Microsoft's existing campus design guidelines, our team worked to create a design that would reflect the company's mission to encourage spontaneous interaction and progressive thinking. The space would also be modern and vibrant, and would allow the company to showcase its products, while simultaneously reflecting its core values of openness, integrity, passion, commitment, and accountability.
To express Microsoft's brand and creative process, the design elements incorporate both digital and analog. High tech surfaces of bronze, polished glass, and steel juxtapose with natural and reclaimed materials to convey a timeless space indicative of Microsoft's commitment to sustainability. Custom-designed workstations, overhead lighting fixtures, and a reception desk create a one-of-a-kind environment, while floor plans leverage maximum access to daylight and views. Flat screens and changeable product roll-out materials accent the open corridors, which lead to a variety of meeting areas and touch-down spaces.
The Changing Workplace: What's Your Strategy?
Marc Schneiderman
Principal, Interior Designer
eBay Customer Service Center
The Rise of Human Capital and Engagement
Ford Motor Company Campus Workplace Master Plan
Lori James
Re-Thinking the Office: Lessons Learned in Office Design
Juhee Cho
Principal, Workplace Studio Leader

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Q: If $m$ divides $n$ then a cyclic group of order $n$ contains $(\mathbb{Z}/m\mathbb{Z})^\times$ elements of order $m$ In a solution to some problem, the writer uses the following claim:

If $m$ divides $n$ then a cyclic group of order $n$ contains $(\mathbb{Z}/m\mathbb{Z})^\times$ elements of order $m$.

Is there some known theorem that this is based on? (ideally a reference to a relevant theorem or two from a book). I've tried looking at Hestein's Topics in Algebra but nothing there seems relevant.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
Home › Irish Literature › Analysis of William Trevor's Stories
Analysis of William Trevor's Stories
By NASRULLAH MAMBROL on June 24, 2020 • ( 0 )
Like his novels, William Trevor's (24 May 1928 – 20 November 2016) short stories generally take place in either England or the Republic of Ireland. For the most part, Trevor focuses on middle-class or lower-middle-class figures whose lives have been characterized by loneliness, disappointment, and pain. His stories feature tight organization and lean but detailed prose. Their very "average" characters are made interesting by Trevor's careful attention to the traits and quirks that make them individuals, to the memories and regrets they have of the past. Trevor, often wry and always detached, refuses to sentimentalize any of them; he does not, however, subject them to ridicule. Their struggles reveal the author's deep curiosity about the manifold means by which people foil themselves or, more rarely, manage not to do so. Many of Trevor's characters are trapped in jobs or familial circumstances that are dull or oppressive or both; many retreat frequently to fond memories or romantic fantasies. Trevor rarely mocks the men and women who inhabit his fiction, nor does he treat them as mere ciphers or automatons. In fact, like James Joyce, to whom he is often compared, Trevor assumes a detached authorial stance, but occasionally and subtly he makes it clear that he is highly sympathetic to the plight of underdogs, self-deluders, and the victims of abuse and deceit. Invariably, his principal characters are carefully and completely drawn—and so are the worlds they inhabit. Few contemporary writers of short fiction can render atmosphere and the subtleties of personality as precisely and as tellingly as William Trevor. Few can capture so accurately and wittily the rhythms and nuances of everyday speech. Though its themes can be somber and settings quite bleak, Trevor's brilliantly paced and carefully sculpted fiction consistently moves, amuses, and invigorates.
The General's Day
One of Trevor's earliest stories, "The General's Day," illustrates with particular clarity the darkest side of his artistic vision. Contained in The Day We Got Drunk on Cake, and Other Stories, "The General's Day" centers on a decorated and now-retired military man who, at the age of seventy-eight, has never quite come to grips with his retirement and so spends his days wandering around the local village looking for something to do. On the day of the story, a sunny Saturday in June, General Suffolk greets the day with energy and resolution but ends by simply killing time in the local tea shop, where he musters what is left of his once-celebrated charm and manages to persuade a woman—"a thin, middle-aged person with a face like a faded photograph"—to join him for drinks at the local hotel. There, fueled by gin, General Suffolk flirts so blatantly and clumsily with the woman that she flees, "her face like a beetroot." Fueled by more gin, the lonely man becomes increasingly obnoxious. After suffering a few more rejections and humiliations, he finally stumbles back home, where he is mocked further by his "unreliable servant," Mrs. Hinch, a crude woman who habitually cuts corners and treats herself to secretive swigs of the general's expensive South African sherry. In the story's final scene, General Suffolk, "the hero of Roeux and Monchy-le-Preux," is shown leaning and weeping on his cleaning woman's fat arm as she laughingly helps him back to his cottage. "My God Almighty," General Suffolk, deflated, mutters, "I could live for twenty years."
An Evening with John Joe Dempsey
Trevor often portrays older men and women who make stoic adjustments to the present while living principally in the past. He also sometimes focuses on children and adolescents who use vividly constructed daydreams as a means of escaping dreary surroundings or obtuse parents who are themselves sunk in the deadness of their cramped and predictable lives. In "An Evening with John Joe Dempsey," from The Ballroom of Romance, and Other Stories, Trevor's central figure is a boy of fifteen who lives in a small house in a small Irish town where, daily, he sits in a dull classroom in preparation for a dead-end job at the nearby sawmills. John Joe lives with his widowed mother, a wiry, chronically worried woman, whose principal interest in life is to hover protectively about her only son. John Joe escapes his mother's smothering solicitations by wandering about the town with Quigley, a rather elderly dwarf reputed to be, as one local puts it, "away in the head." Quigley likes to fire John Joe's already active imagination by regaling the boy with detailed descriptions of the sexual vignettes he claims to have witnessed while peeping through area windows. In his own daydreams, John Joe dallies with many of the same sizable matrons whom Quigley likes to portray in compromising positions. One of them, Mrs. Taggart, "the wife of a postman," is a tall, "well-built" woman who in John Joe's fantasies requires repeated rescuing from a locked bathroom in which she stands unblushingly nude. Like many of Trevor's characters, John Joe is thus a convincing mix of the comic and the pathetic. If his incongruous sexual fantasies are humorous, the rest of his life looks decidedly grim. In the story's particularly effective closing scene, Trevor portrays John Joe in his bed, in the dark, thinking again of impossible erotic romps with wholly unobtainable women, feeling
more alive than ever he was at the Christian Brothers' School . . . or his mother's kitchen, more alive than ever he would be at the sawmills. In his bed he entered a paradise: it was grand being alone.
"Nice Day at School"
In "Nice Day at School," from the same collection, Trevor's principal character is a girl of fourteen, Eleanor, who lives on a housing estate with her cranky, chain-smoking mother and her father, a former professional wrestler who now works as a nightclub bouncer and likes to claim that his work has made him the trusted friend of many celebrities, including Rex Harrison, Mia Farrow, Princess Margaret, and Anthony Armstrong-Jones. Though Eleanor is embarrassed by her father's obviously exaggerated accounts of his encounters with the rich and famous, she is much given to vivid imaginings of her own. Bombarded daily by saccharine pop songs and the more blatantly sexual chatter of her friends, Eleanor thinks obsessively of her ideal lover:
a man whose fingers were long and thin and gentle, who'd hold her hand in the aeroplane. Air France to Biarritz. And afterwards she'd come back to a flat where the curtains were the colour of lavender, the same as the walls, where gas fires glowed and there were rugs on natural-wood floors, and the telephone was pale blue.
Subtly, however, Trevor indicates that Eleanor is not likely to find a lover so wealthy and suave. Like her friends and most girls of the same social class, this daughter of a bloated bouncer and a bored, gin-sipping housewife will instead settle for someone like Denny Price, the young butcher's apprentice with "blubbery" lips, who once moved his rough hand up and down her body "like an animal, a rat gnawing at her, prodding her and poking."
Office Romances
Trevor often focuses on women who find themselves pursued by or entangled with insensitive or calculating men. In "Office Romances," from Angels at the Ritz, and Other Stories, Trevor's central character is Angela Hosford, a typist who works quite anonymously in a large London office appointed with "steel-framed reproductions" and "ersatz leather" sofas and chairs. At the age of twenty-six, Angela is pleasant but plain and myopic: She wears contact lenses that give her eyes a slightly "bulgy look." Her pursuer, Gordon Spelle, is, at thirty-eight, tall and "sleek," but his left eyelid droops a bit, and the eye it covers is badly glazed. While watching old films on television when she was fourteen, Angela developed a crush on the American actor Don Ameche and had imagined "a life with him in a cliff-top home she'd invented, in California." Now, she finds herself drawn to the deliberately "old fashioned" Spelle and at one point imagines herself "stroking his face and comforting him because of his bad eye." One day, after his flatteries succeed in rendering Angela both "generous and euphoric," Spelle manages to lure her into a dark and empty office, where—muttering "I love you," repeatedly—he makes love to her, inelegantly, on the floor. Angela finds this experience "not even momentarily pleasurable, not once," but afterward she basks in the memory of Spelle's heated professions of love. Angela eventually takes a job elsewhere, convinced that Spelle's passion for her "put him under a strain, he being married to a wife who was ill." Like many of Trevor's characters, she understandably decides not to look past her comforting delusions; she refuses to accept the well-known fact that Spelle was "notorious" and "chose girls who were unattractive because he believed such girls, deprived of sex for long periods of time, were an easier bet."
Lovers of Their Time
The vast gulf that often separates romantic fantasy from unsavory fact is similarly revealed in the title story of Lovers of Their Time, and Other Stories. In this piece, set in the 1960's, Trevor's lovers are Norman Britt, a mildmannered travel agent with "a David Niven moustache," and a young woman, Marie, who tends the counter at Green's the Chemist's. Norman and Marie meet regularly in one of Trevor's favorite fictional locations—a dark pub filled with a wide array of drinkers, talkers, and dreamers.
The Drummer Boy
In that same place, in "The Drummer Boy," the two listen to Beatles songs and talk of running away with each other to some romantic foreign country—an event they realize is not likely to materialize. Marie is single, but Norman is married to the loud and bawdy Hilda, who spends the better part of her life sipping cheap wine and watching police dramas on the television and who has previously hinted that she is quite content in the odd marital arrangement that Norman loathes. Thus, at Norman's instigation, the two lovers begin to rendezvous more intimately at the nearby hotel, the Great Western Royal. More specifically, they begin to sneak into a large, infrequently used bathroom, "done up in marble," on the hotel's second floor. Here, luxuriating in an enormous tub, they talk hopefully of happier days that, unfortunately, never arrive. Hilda dismisses her husband's request for a divorce by telling him, "You've gone barmy, Norman"; Marie, tired of waiting, weds "a man in a brewery." Thus, as the years pass, Norman is left with a nostalgic longing not only for Marie but also for that brief period in the 1960's when playful risk-taking was much in the air. Often, while riding "the tube" to work, Norman
would close his eyes and with the greatest pleasure that remained to him he would recall the delicately veined marble and the great brass taps, and the bath that was big enough for two. And now and again he heard what happened to be the sound of distant music, and the voices of the Beatles celebrating a bathroom love, as they had celebrated Eleanor Rigby and other people of that time.
This allusion to a popular and bittersweet Beatles song is especially appropriate in yet another Trevor story about two thoroughly average and lonely people whose lives have not often been marked by episodes of great passion. In "Flights of Fancy," also from Lovers of Their Time, and Other Stories, Trevor's principal character, Sarah Machaen, is yet another Rigby-like character destined, one assumes, to spend the rest of her life uneasily alone. Sarah, a clergyman's daughter, is an executive secretary in a large London firmthat manufactures lamps; she visits museums, sings in a Bach choir, and is "a popular choice as a godmother."Well into middle age, Sarah is quite content with the externals of her life and gradually has become "reconciled to the fact that her plainness wasn't going to go away." Sometimes, however, she gets lonely enough to daydream of marriage—perhaps to an elderly widower or a blind man. Ironically, the one person who does express a romantic interest in Sarah is another woman, a young and pretty but unschooled factory worker called Sandra Pond. Sarah is shocked at the very idea of lesbianism, yet she cannot stop her mind from "throwing up flights of fancy" in which she pictures herself sharing her flat with Sandra and introducing her to London's many cultural delights. Though her shyness and acute sense of propriety prompt her to reject Sandra's clumsy but clearly genuine professions of love, Sarah is haunted by the sense that she has perhaps passed up her last chance for passion and romance.
Broken Homes
"Broken Homes," also from Lovers of Their Time, and Other Stories, is one of Trevor's most powerful stories. Its principal character, Mrs. Malby, lives with her two budgerigars in a little flat that is scrupulously neat and prettily painted. Mrs. Malby, a widow, lost both of her sons thirty years earlier during World War II; now, at the age of eighty-seven, she has come to terms with her own impending death and wants nothing more than to spend her remaining days in familiar surroundings, her faculties intact. Unfortunately, Mrs. Malby's flat is destroyed and her serenity threatened by a squad of loud and insensitive teenagers from a nearby comprehensive school—"an ugly sprawl of glass and concrete buildings," Mrs. Malby recalls, full of "children swinging along the pavements, shouting obscenities." As part of a community relations scheme, the teenagers have been equipped with mops and sponges and brushes and sent out into the neighborhood in search of good deeds to perform. Mrs. Malby politely asks these obnoxious adolescents to do nothing more than wash her walls, but they treat her with condescension and contempt, and while she is out, they proceed to make a complete mess of her apartment, splattering its walls and floors with bright yellow paint. The students' "teacher," an obtuse and "untidily dressed" bureaucrat, patronizingly assures Mrs. Malby that the damage is slight. He reminds her that, in any event, one must make allowances for the children of "broken homes."
Perhaps more than any of his other stories, "Broken Homes" reveals Trevor's sympathy for the plight of the elderly and his acute awareness of the infirmities and insecurities that accompany old age. The story certainly reveals a strong suspicion that, by the mid-1970's, the British welfare state had become both inefficient and rudely intrusive. Indeed, "Broken Homes" is informed by the subtly expressed sense—not uncommon in Trevor's later fiction—that contemporary Great Britain and Ireland have grown increasingly crass and tacky and that the old social fabric is rapidly unraveling.
The Paradise Lounge
Arguably, "The Paradise Lounge," from Beyond the Pale, and Other Stories, is Trevor's most representative story. Set principally in the small bar of Keegan's Railway hotel, in "a hilly provincial town" in the Republic of Ireland, "The Paradise Lounge" shifts its focus between two recognizably Trevoresque figures. One of them, Beatrice, is thirty-two; the other, Miss Doheny, is in her eighties. Beatrice—who wanted to be an actor once—drives often to Keegan's and its adjoining Paradise Lounge to rendezvous with her lover, a middle-aged businessman already married. Miss Doheny, one of the locals, goes regularly to the lounge for a bit of company and several good, stiff drinks. The two have never formally met. Yet Beatrice—observing Miss Doheny from across the room—is convinced that the old woman is an intriguing figure with a fascinating and no doubt satisfyingly romantic past; she does not realize that Miss Doheny is not only lonely but also full of anger and regret. Miss Doheny, in turn, envies Beatrice's freedom—her ability, in a more liberated and enlightened age, to enter into a friendly sexual affair without running the risk of paralyzing guilt and ostracism. She does not realize that the younger woman's affair has grown stale and mechanical and that by her own estimation Beatrice is about to engage in nothing more than a "mess of deception and lies."
The twelve stories of After Rain concern how marriage and family ties constrain, bewilder, confound, or, occasionally, help their characters. For instance, a woman's attempt to invigorate the life of her best friend by encouraging an affair ends the friendship; a young man refuses to visit his parents for his birthday because he is jealous of their deep love for each other; a pregnant young woman is forced to marry a man she hardly knows to save the family reputation; a barren wife spends her days drinking herself insensate while fantasizing about her husband's mistress; a Protestant family shrinks in shame when one son claims that a dead Roman Catholic saint has visited him; a retired couple is helpless and dismayed when an old friend, a hopeless reprobate, courts their daughter. As in Trevor's earlier volumes, the central characters, however muddled in their behavior, usually learn some truth about themselves or recognize a fundamental change in their lives. The tone is taut but not judgmental; the reader is invited to share their emotions rather than laugh at or deplore their plight. The imagery of home, religion, and occupation frequently invests commonplace dramas with broad moral power.
In "The Piano Tuner's Wife," the opening story, a blind piano tuner remarries after his first wife dies. Violet, the second wife, was rejected decades earlier when the piano tuner married her rival, Belle. Now Violet at last succeeds but finds that Belle's memory and style of managing the husband's affairs haunts the marriage at every turn. Violet sets out to efface Belle by contradicting many of the things the first wife told their husband about the countryside and people around them. The piano tuner recognizes her conduct for what it is, self-assertion, and accepts it calmly. In his marriages, as in his work, he seeks harmony. In the title story, "After Rain," Harriet has fled to an Italian resort because of a failed love affair, the same resort that her parents took her to as a child. In the sweltering heat, she feels oppressed by her life. The reader learns of her astonished shock, still disturbing her more than a decade later, at her parents' divorce; she has had previous promising love affairs that all fizzled inexplicably; she cannot be other than distant to her fellow vacationers. To relieve her tedium, she visits a nearby church. There a painting of the Annunciation, vividly colored and showing a rain-swept landscape in the background, lifts her out of her selfabsorption. Meanwhile, a hard rain has broken the afternoon heat. Returning to the resort in the refreshing coolness, she suddenly sees her life in a new light, as if she has had an annunciation of her own. She realizes that she has frightened away her lovers by needing too much from love, a reaction to her parents' failed marriage. The annunciation is of her own solitude.
Plays: The Elephant's Foot, pr. 1965; The Girl, pr. 1967 (televised), pr., pb. 1968 (staged); A Night Mrs. da Tanka, pr. 1968 (televised), pr., pb. 1972 (staged); Going Home, pr. 1970 (radio play), pr., pb. 1972 (staged); The Old Boys, pr., pb. 1971; A Perfect Relationship, pr. 1973; Marriages, pr. 1973; The Fifty-seventh Saturday, pr. 1973; Scenes from an Album, pr. 1975 (radio play), pr., pb. 1981 (staged).
Anthology: The Oxford Book of Irish Short Stories, 1989.
Novels: A Standard of Behaviour, 1958; The Old Boys, 1964; The Boarding-House, 1965; The Love Department, 1966; Mrs. Eckdorf in O'Neil's Hotel, 1969; Miss Gomez and the Brethren, 1971; Elizabeth Alone, 1973; The Children of Dynmouth, 1976; Other People's Worlds, 1980; Fools of Fortune, 1983; Nights at the Alexandra, 1987; The Silence in the Garden, 1988; Juliet's Story, 1991; Two Lives, 1991; Felicia's Journey, 1994; Death in Summer, 1998; The Story of Lucy Gault, 2002; My House in Umbria, 2003.
Nonfiction: A Writer's Ireland: Landscape in Literature, 1984; Excursions in the Real World, 1993.
Radio plays: Beyond the Pale, 1980; Autumn Sunshine, 1982.
Bonaccorso, Richard. "William Trevor's Martyrs for Truth." Studies in Short Fiction 34 (Winter, 1997): 113-118.
Gitzen, Julian. "The Truth-Tellers of William Trevor." Critique: Studies in Modern Fiction 21, no. 1 (1979): 59-72.
Haughey, Jim. "Joyce and Trevor's Dubliners: The Legacy of Colonialism." Studies in Short Fiction 32 (Summer, 1995): 355-365.
MacKenna, Dolores. William Trevor: The Writer and His Work. Dublin: New Island, 1999.
May, Charles E., ed. Masterplots II: Short Story Series, Revised Edition. 8 vols. Pasadena, Calif.: Salem Press, 2004.
Morrison, Kristin. William Trevor. New York: Twayne, 1993.
Paulson, Suzanne Morrow. William Trevor: A Study of the Short Fiction. New York: Twayne, 1993.
Schiff, Stephen. "The Shadows of William Trevor." The New Yorker 68, no. 45 (December 28, 1992/January 4, 1993): 158-163.
Schirmer, Gregory A. William Trevor: A Study in His Fiction. London: Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1990.
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Categories: Irish Literature, Literary Theory
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Jacques Derrida's Structure, Sign and Play


External domes are usually installed in exterior locations and have some level of weather protection. This models comes with the ability to display 600TVL (Television Lines), this provides the detail that is displayed during playback. It also comes with a 720x480 level of effective pixels. This means that it is able to provide a high level of details during playback and recording.
This model comes with Hikvision's own 1/3" DIS, digital image system. This increases image and video quality, system stability and power consumption. External domes are usually installed in exterior locations and have some level of weather protection. This models comes with the ability to display 600TVL (Television Lines), this provides the detail that is displayed during playback. It also comes with a 720x480 level of effective pixels. This means that it is able to provide a high level of details during playback and recording. This model is able to provide a 0-360 degree tilt, 0-90 degree tilt and a full 0-360 degree rotation.


text:
Calls for Uber to be investigated over 'greyball' tactics to evade authorities
By Bianca Hall and James Robertson
Updated March 4, 2017 — 6.44pm first published at 10.48am
There are calls for popular ride-sharing service Uber to be formally investigated, after it admitted deliberately evading authorities in Australia and overseas trying to catch out its drivers before the service was legalised.
It sounds like the plot line of a cheap airport thriller: to counteract authorities trying to book Uber rides to build a case against the service, the fledgling company created software to identify them, and then sent them fake versions of its app populated with "phantom" cars that would never arrive.
Key to its efforts was the so-called "greyball" program, designed to evade authorities trying to build cases against Uber, by identifying the accounts of state authorities – based on data collected from its app and other techniques.
Uber has become famous for disrupting the markets it enters, particularly regulated taxi industries.
Uber has been trialling self-driving cars. Credit:Dominic Lorrimer
But news of the greyballing tactics go much further, showing that before Victoria and NSW decided to legalise the service, Uber was not just operating outside the law, it was actively combating efforts to bring it into line.
NSW Taxi Council chief executive Roy Wakelin-King called for an investigation into whether Uber attempted to frustrate or block a government investigation.
"We are disturbed by the allegations," Mr Wakelin-King said. "Compliance with the law is a fundamental part of doing business in Australia.
"Anyone impeding a lawful investigation should be properly investigated and if found guilty be prosecuted."
The entry of Uber has led to widespread protests by taxi drivers. Credit:Penny Stephens
Australian Taxi Industry Association chief executive Blair Davies said there had long been suspicions that Uber was engaging in black ops-style techniques.
"In 2014, Victorian authorities cracked down on Uber, and they were successful for about 24 hours," he said.
The New York Times last week reported on Uber's use of video-game techniques to keep drivers driving (and the company's revenues growing). Credit:AP
"Queensland enforcement officers were complaining they'd been black-banned off the [Uber] system.
"Quite frankly, the state governments and the regulatory authorities didn't do their homework and what we've seen overnight are revelations that are absolutely outrageous."
The Victorian government introduced legislation to legalise Uber last month.
Public Transport Minister Jacinta Allan did not respond to questions about the state's efforts to sting Uber drivers before the decision was taken to legislate, and regulate, ride-sharing, and whether authorities' efforts to enforce the law had been frustrated.
She said the government had moved to legalised Uber to create a "level playing field" between the app and taxis.
"Not only will this reduce fares and improve services, safety and choice for passengers – it will regulate Uber and make them more accountable for their actions," she said.
"That's why it is so critical the legislation is passed and these safeguards are brought into place as soon as possible."
In July 2015, 24 Uber drivers had prosecutions brought against them by the NSW government, but NSW Roads and Maritime Services said it had to drop the prosecutions because its investigation had been hampered by what it called "evidentiary issues".
Mr Wakelin-King says the Taxi Council was advised by Road and Maritime Services that a number of Uber accounts held by government officers had been cancelled between 2014 and 2015 when the ride-sharing service remained illegal in NSW.
Uber was only made legal in NSW after the passage of new laws in December 2015.
Documents released under freedom-of-information laws show that Queensland public servants believed covert investigations of Uber were frustrated by the company's blocking technology.
Internationally, there have been multiple examples of taxi drivers harassing or even assaulting Uber drivers, and an Uber spokesman told Fairfax its greyball program also protected drivers from physical harm.
"This program denies ride requests to users who are violating our terms of service – whether that's people aiming to physically harm drivers, competitors looking to disrupt our operations, or opponents who collude with officials on secret stings meant to entrap drivers," he said.
"State and territory governments right across Australia have recognised that ride-sharing has a rightful place as part of our nation's transport mix."
Bianca Hall is a senior writer and co-host of The Age and Sydney Morning Herald's national podcast Please Explain. She has previously worked in a range of roles including city editor, senior reporter, and in the Canberra federal politics bureau.Connect via Twitter, Facebook or email.
James Robertson was a reporter for The Sydney Morning Herald.Connect via Twitter or email.


text:
Joint research project furthers understanding of important CO2 reservoir
This image of a small marine dissolved organic carbon molecule was obtained by UCI, IBM Research-Zurich, University of Zurich and UC Santa Cruz researchers using atomic force microscopy, a technique developed by IBM in 2009. IBM Research-Zurich
Irvine, Calif., June 5, 2018 – In a first, researchers from the University of California, Irvine – as well as Switzerland's University of Zurich, IBM Research-Zurich and UC Santa Cruz – have obtained direct images of dissolved organic carbon molecules from the ocean, allowing better analysis and characterization of compounds that play an important role in the Earth's changing climate.
Using an atomic force microscopy technique developed by IBM, the team was able to visualize individual atoms and bonds, yielding clues about their persistence in the marine environment. Findings were published today in the American Geophysical Union journal Geophysical Research Letters.
"To understand processes happening on the scale of ocean basins, it is sometimes necessary to view objects that are orders of magnitude smaller," said study co-author Ellen Druffel, professor and Fred Kavli Chair of Earth System Science at UCI. "By seeing with our own eyes the double bonds and rings of dissolved organic carbon molecules, we are better equipped to explain how they remain in the ocean for tens of thousands of years."
The molecules that were imaged were collected by UC Santa Cruz researchers from waters in the northern central Pacific Ocean.
The marine dissolved organic carbon pool, comparable in size to the atmospheric CO2 reservoir, is about 200 times larger than the amount of carbon contained in all the plants and animals on the planet. Because of its complexity, diverse origins and varied reactions to environmental conditions, only about 10 percent of DOC has been characterized.
This image of a small marine dissolved organic carbon molecule shows a flat ring of six-carbon atoms that is very stable and does not break apart easily. It includes aromatic carbon-carbon bonds (white) and two attached methyl groups (green). IBM Research-Zurich
"We are still trying to figure out how the vast majority of this substance is going to be impacted by the ongoing addition of new CO2 from fossil fuel burning and from increasing temperatures due to global climate change," said co-author Brett Walker, a UCI assistant researcher in Earth system science.
Most DOC near the ocean surface is derived from the remains of recently living phytoplankton. However, radiocarbon dating of DOC in the deep ocean shows it to be much older than expected – by as much as 4,500 years – indicating that a portion of this DOC survives multiple ocean mixing cycles.
Researchers have suggested that the chemical structure of DOC is responsible for its endurance in the environment, and through the atomic force microscopy technique, scientists are now able to see real-space images of the bound atoms in these compounds. The team has found that molecules from the deep ocean frequently exhibit aromaticity, meaning they're flat rings of atoms that are very stable and do not break apart easily.
"These atom-scale visualizations help demonstrate that the old age of small DOC molecules in the deep ocean has to do with their chemical structure, which bacteria do not seem to utilize," Walker said. "This is a crucial finding that will help researchers better understand the cycling of carbon in the oceans and the overall health of our planet's marine environments."
The work was funded by the University of Zurich, IBM Research-Zurich, the National Science Foundation and the American Chemical Society.
Social sciences dean Bill Maurer is awarded grant to study use of AI in financial services
From research to reel
UCI study: Reduced Sierra Nevada snowmelt runoff to threaten California agriculture
Weighing the Earth's fate
Brian Bell
bpbell@uci.edu
UCI School of Physical Sciences
http://ps.uci.edu
UCI Department of Earth System Science
http://ess.uci.edu
Earth system science


A bold fire engine red and white cross paths time and again on The Cherry Gingham Shirt. This light-weight cotton shirt is perfect for the man on the go. Pair with darker colours like navy, charcoal, and black.


Life insurance is an important planning tool for many Canadians. For some the protection required is temporary in nature– simply replacing income or protecting a mortgage. For others, life insurance proves invaluable in the long-term, allowing people to meet their estate planning and business succession needs.
Permanent life insurance in Canada has the added benefit of a tax-sheltered savings element. This element has been providing Canadians with flexibility in funding their plans, thus becoming an essential wealth accumulation vehicle.


text:
Q: Draw marker using locate in Leaflet I'm trying to use locate function from Leaflet in R, I'd like a marker to show up after clicking on locate button but the following code only centers and zooms the view on the user's geolocation. I'm new to JS, and I thought passing the drawMarkers: true, from the manual  would map markers:
library(sf)
library(dplyr)
library(leaflet)
library(htmlwidgets)
library(htmltools)
library(leaflet.extras)

punto = st_sfc(st_point(c(-96.951239, 19.4600523))) %>% st_set_crs(4326)
punto_b = punto %>% st_transform(32614) %>% st_buffer(50000) %>% st_transform(4326)  %>% st_as_sf

leafIcons <- icons(
  iconUrl = "https://gitlab.com/datamarindo/anps/-/raw/master/logo_prona.png",
  iconWidth = 100, iconHeight = 100)

l <- leaflet(data = punto) %>% addTiles() %>%
      addMarkers(dat = punto, icon = leafIcons) %>%
      addPolygons(data = punto_b, fillColor = "yellow", weight = 4) %>%
      addMeasure() %>%
      addMiniMap() %>%
      addEasyButton(easyButton(
         icon="fa-crosshairs", title="Locate Me",
         onClick=JS("function(btn, map){ map.locate({setView: true, drawMarker: true});}")))

A: I found it easier to do using direct Javascript; besides that, the html that leaflet in R produces is heavy and has some binaries that make it really difficult to read, html in JS is as plain as this:

    <title>Pronatura Ver 50 km</title>
    <meta charset="utf-8" />
    <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0">
    <link rel="shortcut icon" type="image/x-icon" href="docs/images/favicon.ico" />
    <link rel="stylesheet" href="https://unpkg.com/leaflet@1.7.1/dist/leaflet.css" integrity="sha512-xodZBNTC5n17Xt2atTPuE1HxjVMSvLVW9ocqUKLsCC5CXdbqCmblAshOMAS6/keqq/sMZMZ19scR4PsZChSR7A==" crossorigin=""/>

   <input type="button" value="Mostrar mi ubicación!" onClick="javascript:getLocationLeaflet();">


Why not shake your wedding bands up a little? We make these textured rings to size from scratch in our workshop, and the filing is the final and individual detailing – the icing on the cake! Priced here in 9ct gold, but also available in other metals and at different widths!


One of Egypt's richest men has offered to buy an island and set up infrastructure for Syria's displaced.
One of Egypt's richest men, Naguid Sawiris, has made known his attempts to solve the Syrian refugee crisis by expressing interest in purchasing an island.
Last week, Sawiris made his intentions known over twitter, imploring the Greek and Italian governments to sell off one of their islands for purchase.
Worth an estimated $2.9 billion dollars, Sawiris' plans could come to fruition given the right support.
Sawiris has noted that he is actively seeking an appropriate island, where after the initial cost of anything from $10 – $100 million, he would supply addition funds for infrastructural spending and aid for the settled refugees. The imaginary island has also been given a name by the billionaire – Ilan, the young child found on the Turkish shore after drowning in an attempt to find safety away from war-torn Syria.
Whilst many are dismissing Sawiris' 'pipe dream' island as impractical and ill-advised, political commentators and experts have been quick to stand to his defence.
"The proposal for a Refugee Nation should not be totally dismissed," said Alexander Betts, University of Oxford refugee and forces migration expert in The Guardian. "First trusteeship offers a historical precedent…during the inter-war period the League of Nations manages territories in the collective interest and such an idea might be used today to host and protect refugees.
The civil war in Syria is continuing to displace millions of terrified peoples. Nearly half of the country's population, according to the UN, have already fled the war-torn country, attempting to escape from the atrocities committed by Bashar al-Assad, as well as IS and the various militant groups that control parts of the country.
More than 11 million people are now without home or safety.


Donald Trump was heard off camera saying "get me out of here" to an aide as he left the G20 summit in Buenos Aires, leaving the president of Argentina standing alone on stage.
The US president had been due to pose for a photo opportunity with President Mauricio Macri and other world leaders as the G20 Summit drew to a close.
Mr Trump shook hands with Mr Macri, and the two leaders were supposed to remain in place for the group shot.
But the US president simply wandered off chased by an aide.
He is then heard off camera saying: "Get me out of here."
Mr Trump did eventually pose for the group photo with other world leaders.
It is not the first time Mr Trump has wandered off. In Israel in May 2017, Trump began walking out of a photo opportunity with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
On October 12, 2017 Trump gathered a number of officials in the Oval Office to sign an executive order on the Affordable Care Act.
Mr Trump shook hands with the assembled guests, and then wandered off, apparently forgetting to sign the document.
Vice President Mike Pence told him it needed a signature. Mr President, you need to sign it,' Mr Pence said.
At the end of the G20 summit Theresa May said she will be the Prime Minister to take the UK out of the European Union.
She indicated she does not believe her premiership will end with Brexit, insisting "there's a lot more for me still to do".
She said that world leaders had expressed their desire for "certainty" about the UK's future position.
She arrives back in the UK on Sunday, ahead of an intense week of efforts to shore up support in Parliament for her Brexit deal ahead of the crucial December 11 vote.
"The next nine days are a really important time for our country, leading up to the vote on this deal," she told a press conference in Buenos Aires.
"I will be talking with Members of Parliament obviously and explaining to them why I believe this is a good deal for the UK, why it is a deal that delivers on Brexit but it is also a deal that protects jobs and the economy, and why passing this deal in the vote that takes place in the House of the Commons will take us to certainty for the future, and that failure to do that would only lead to uncertainty.
"I think what people want, and what I've been hearing here at the G20 is the importance of that certainty for the future."
Asked what she would like her legacy to be if she is forced out of her job as a result of Conservative divisions over Brexit, Mrs May replied: "There is a lot more for me still to do, not least delivering on Brexit and being the Prime Minister that does take the United Kingdom out of the European Union."
Opportunities for trade in the wake of Brexit were at the top of Mrs May's agenda for the two-day summit in which she held face-to-face talks with leaders of key targets for deals, including Australia, Canada, Japan, Turkey and Chile.
The Prime Minister said the summit had been "productive", with "friends and partners making clear that they are keen to sign and implement ambitious free trade agreements with us as soon as possible."
Japanese PM Shinzo Abe issued an appeal to avoid a no-deal withdrawal from the EU, urging her to "ensure transparency, predictability as well as legal stability in the Brexit process".
Asked whether she had been able to reassure Mr Abe that she would not allow no-deal to happen, Mrs May said only that she believed she had negotiated a good deal which would allow UK-based Japanese firms to maintain trade relations with Europe.
She said she had spoken with Japanese investors in the UK, adding: "One of the key messages they have given is about the importance of being able to maintain a good trade relationship with the EU when we have left.
"That's what the deal that has been negotiated delivers."
Earlier in the day, Mrs May used a meeting with Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan to discuss Ankara's investigation into the death of journalist Jamal Khashoggi at Saudi Arabia's consulate in Istanbul in October.
On Friday, Mrs May shook hands with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman before delivering what she described as a "robust" message on the importance of a "credible and transparent" investigation into Mr Khashoggi's death.