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Tag: grizzly horror
Saw 3D
By Franz Patrick on February 15, 2011 • ( Leave a comment )
Saw 3D (2010)
In "Saw 3D," written by Patrick Melton and Marcus Dunstan, the supposed final installment of the commercially (although not artistically) successful "Saw" franchise had three strands. First, Jill Tuck (Betsy Russell), Jigsaw's wife, was on the run from Detective Mark Hoffman (Costas Mandylor) so she took refuge at a police station. In return for protection, she was willing to divulge information about the infamous murders. Meanwhile, Detective Matt Gibson (Chad Donella) was in charge of solving a new crop of grizzly murders. Unlike the ones before him, would he be lucky enough to survive? Lastly, Bobby Dagen (Sean Patrick Flanery) claimed to have been been kidnapped by Jigsaw (Tobin Bell) and was successful at escaping his famous traps designed to teach a macabre lesson through painful irony. He and his entourage benefited from his fame based on untrue information. When he was kidnapped, was he capable of living up to his promise? "Saw 3D" was an excellent example why the series should simply end. I found no redeeming quality in it because every other scene was a flashback to the other six "Saw" pictures. Flashbacks are normally used to enlighten its audiences, not drive us into further confusion (and frustration). When I read reviews from fans of the franchise, they claim that they love the movies because "everything is connected." No, it's not. Just because a flashback makes a reference to a one minute scene from another movie, it does not necessarily mean there is a strong connection between the two. Aside from the first "Saw" movie, the rest lacked logic. Somewhere in the middle the central theme was lost. The victims were led to believe that they could get out of the traps. In reality, the possibility of escape was zero. How can we root for the character if we know she's doomed? But I digress. "Saw 3D," directed by Kevin Greutert, was plagued with clichés. From the cops' arrival three seconds prior to the gruesome kill to a foggy night when something bad would eventually happen, it was one disappointing scene after another. The only comfort I found was to laugh at the ridiculous situations the characters found themselves in. I particularly enjoyed the scene of the woman, equipped with a shrill voice and in charge of public relations, who had a fish hook (along with a key necessary for her escape) stuck in her stomach and Bobby, using a string, had to pull it out of her mouth. It was bloody, flinch-inducing, grimly ironic, and fun to watch. Throughout the years, the franchise earned the label of "torture porn." I thought it was appropriate. The acting was as bad as the ones seen in the very best pornographic films. I had to wonder where the casting directors found the actors. Maybe the actors knew the material was egregious but they just needed a big break. Who could blame them?
Don't Look Up
By Franz Patrick on January 23, 2011 • ( Leave a comment )
Don't Look Up (2009)
I can withstand a lot of bad movies but the really memorable ones are the movies that make me angry during and after I watch them. "Don't Look Up," directed by Fruit Chan, is a prime example. Marcus (Reshad Strik) was an aspiring filmmaker with psychic abilities. When he visited places with bad histories, which often involved a grizzly murder, he would receive visions and he would incorporate what he saw onto his script. While shooting a movie in Transylvania, his crew discovered an old footage of a prior film shot in their set. Soon "accidents" started to happen which led to a series of deaths until the film crew finally called it quits and left Marcus to deal with his demons. Everything about this picture was exaggerated. The acting was shockingly bad, the gore was gratuitous and unconvincing and the CGI was completely unnecessary. It was so bad, the movie tried to scare us with CGI flies. The last time I checked, CGI flies are not scary. It might have worked in Sam Raimi's "Drag Me to Hell" because that particular film had a nice balance of cheekiness and horror but "Don't Look Up" desperately wanted to be taken seriously. Its desperate attempt to be liked left a bitter taste in my mouth. I did not appreciate its references to movies like the Takashi Shimizu's "Ju-on" and Hideo Nakata's "Ringu;" instead of paying homage, I felt like the movie was parasite and was an extremely unsatisfactory leftover. The horror did not work because it acted like it was above trying to tell a story that was interesting, involving and, most importantly, a story that made sense. I didn't understand the connection between Marcus and his ill ex-girlfriend other than to serve as a stupid twist in the end (something along the lines of M. Night Shyamalan's "The Sixth Sense" only lightyears less elegant). Eli Roth playing a director in the 1920s left me scratching my head. And there was no explanation why the girl was murdered back in the day and what the apparitions wanted to accomplish. A "seed" was involved which I thought was metaphorical at first but it turned out to be literal. It was just a mess and the more I thought about it, the more I wanted to burn the DVD so the next person interested in watching it can use his or her precious time doing something else (perhaps read a book or volunteer at a homeless shelter). "Don't Look Up" is a smogasboard of everything bad about modern independent horror movies that heavily rely on special and visual effects. I just don't believe anyone in the world can actually enjoy it. I am at a loss with why it was released in the first place but I suppose connections can go pretty far. If I can prevent at least one person from watching this, I consider it a triumph.


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This program helps marketers understand how salespeople operate and sell, and how marketing can underpin and influence their success. Marketers are given planning tools as well as practice in refining propositions and developing communications that optimize the performance of their sales channels.
Organizational alignment issues: a stronger working relationship between Marketing and Sales will lead to ongoing improvements in performance and effectiveness as information is better shared and opportunities tackled together.


Our success is like a puzzle. Every piece is important and we couldn't do it without the support from all our customers, donors, volunteers and employees. Every person plays such an important role in our helping give homeless pets a second chance at life. If just one piece were missing…we wouldn't be successful.
When you shop at our store, you are shopping for a higher purpose. Not only do you find great treasures at bargain prices, but you also give hope to homeless pets. When you clean out your closets to donate, you make a difference. The quality of the donations continues to amaze us.
The Second Life team is amazing! Our volunteers are truly the heart of our organization. Their dedication helps us grow our mission and many of the great features of our stores are a result of their ideas and commitment. Throughout the years, they have created a shopping experience that we are proud of and can't wait to continue. Our employees allow us to provide a consistent level of service. They go above and beyond to make a difference, and they are always thinking about the animals.
Our main target is to reach the $1 Million Dollar level in giving grants to animal charities! We are well on our way…and you can help us!
Our dreams for the future include figuring out how to help rescues give even more animals a second chance at life. The support of all of you have helped us do things we could not have imagined while sitting in the empty building, wondering what we had just done! We are continuously trying to figure out how to improve your shopping experience, our donation processes and more. We always want to be better.
Our goals and mission are much larger than within our 4 walls. Our dream is to open more stores so we can continue to grow our mission. To continue to educate about shelter animals and what amazing pets they make. We want people to be proud to adopt.
We don't want to be known as just a thrift store. We want to be known as an integral part of the community. We want to help people be a part of the solution to pet overpopulation.
We want to give animals a voice and show that they are amazing creatures that deserve love and kindness. We want to make a difference in the world.


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Q: How to change widget's child layout at runtime using python kivy? How can I change layout of MDBoxLayout, id: body_box in MsgCard, remove MDLabel, id: msg_count then add Checkbox, id: flagged in place at runtime? Here's the kivy file...
<MsgCard@MDBoxLayout>:
  id: msg_container
  adaptive_height: True
  spacing: dp(10)
  padding: (dp(5),)*4

  FitImage:
    id: msg_image
    source: root.avatar
    size_hint: 0.09, None
    height: dp(30)
    pos_hint: {"top": 1}
    radius: (10,)*4

  MDBoxLayout:
    orientation: "vertical"

    MDBoxLayout:

      MDLabel:
        text: root.sender
        font_style: "Subtitle2"

      MDLabel:
        text: root.received
        font_size: "12sp"
        halign: "right"
        size_hint_x: 0.25

    MDBoxLayout:
      id: body_box

      MDLabel:
        text: root.body
        shorten: True
        shorten_from: "right"
        font_style: "Caption"

      MDLabel:
        id: msg_count
        text: root.count
        size_hint: None, None
        post_hint: {"center_y": 0.5}
        size: (dp(17),)*2
        font_size: "12sp"
        halign: "center"
        theme_text_color: "Custom"
        text_color: 1,1,1,1
        opacity: 1 if root.count != "0" else 0

        canvas.before:
          Color:
            rgba: 1,0,0,1
          RoundedRectangle:
            size: self.size
            pos: self.pos
            radius: (dp(3),)*2

<Checkbox@MDCheckbox>
  id: flagged
  size_hint: None, None
  size: (dp(17),)*2

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


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Bothriogenys was a genus of anthracotheres that lived in Eastern Africa during the late Eocene to early Oligocene.  Most fossils have been found in Fayum, Egypt, but one species, B. orientalis, is known from late Eocene deposits in Thailand.

In life, they would have resembled hippopotamuses with small, elongated heads.

Anthracotheres
Oligocene even-toed ungulates
Eocene genus first appearances
Rupelian genus extinctions
Eocene mammals of Africa
Oligocene mammals of Africa
Fossil taxa described in 1913
Prehistoric even-toed ungulate genera

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


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Q: What application domains are CPU bound and will tend to benefit from multi-core technologies? I hear a lot of people talking about the revolution that is coming in programming due to multi-core processors and parallelism, but I can't shake the feeling that for most of us, CPU cycles aren't the bottleneck.  Pretty much all of my programs have been I/O bound in one way or another (database, filesystem, network, user interaction, etc.) for a very long time.
Now I can think of a few areas where CPU cycles are a limiting factor, like code breaking, graphics, sound, some forms of simulation (weather, physics, etc.), and some forms of mathematical research, but they all seem like fairly specialized application domains.  My general impression is that most programs are still I/O bound and that for most of our industry CPUs have been plenty fast for quite a while now.
Am I off my rocker?  What other application domains are CPU bound today?  Do any of them include a large portion of the programming population?  In essence, I'm wondering whether the multi-core CPUs will impact very many of us, and if so, how?

A: Visual effects / rendering.  (Entertainment industry.)
Artificial Intelligence.  (Games and scientific research.)
Biomedical research.
Physical simulations.  (Games and scientific research.)
Database applications including SaaS, most webpages, etc.
As the personal computer becomes more and more a browser-based thin client for web applications, this industry will expand, as well as the need for more, and parallelized processing power on the backend. I could see gaming pushing parallel processing in personal computing.

A: One of the ways to leverage multi core is through a use of remote desktop technologies.
It's much easier to deploy desktop applications to one big Citrix server instead of dozens of user desktops.


I've reclaimed the dining room table. Books have been banished. In their place, bright yellow lemons nestled in a bowl.
Winter clothes, and their heaviness, are stored away.
Many things that clutter our lives are finding new homes, giving us space to breathe.
I delight in little things.
... Lady Susan by dear Jane, written in epistolary style. I love it almost as much as I did The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society .
...Rose bushes bursting with color that greet me each afternoon.
...The sweet aroma of cut grass.
...Leaves shooting forth from the cool soil, the first signs of our garden coming to life.
We are enjoying the simplicity of life, and I still marvel at that.
Next week, we'll mark the one year anniversary of R's final day of employment. I wonder, have I been faithful to share how very good God has been in this past year? Not just in this place, but in my day-to-day living as well. Have I proclaimed His sovereignty and grace and mercy?
I've been quiet around here for a while now. Words often seem to fail me, and I don't know if I'll ever find any to capture things that have been on my heart. Many days find me weary, at best. Yet I feel my heart stirring and waking from its slumber.
Lovely words from a thankful heart, Melissa! How I delight to read what God is doing in the lives of fellow pilgrims. Simple is good, and I appreciate it more and more every day. I don't know the history of what your days have been like for the past year, but I praise God with you for His inexhaustible grace and the daily mercies He pours out on us. Thank you for the blessing of your post today.
The little things of Spring are so delightful! Continue enjoying!


Let us explore using simulation some of the concepts of basic asymptotic theory as presented in Wooldridge 2012, Chapter 3.
Paraphrase: A sequence converges on point a, if you can choose any positive number (any epsilon greater than zero) and you will find some point in the series after which the difference between the series and the point it converges to a will always be smaller than epsilon.
Let us try to make this more concrete.
Does this series converge on a value a?
Let us pick an epsilon, say 100.
We can see that there is no a which could exist for which our series seems to converge within the positive bound epsilon=100.
This concergence might have been obvious. Let us try a different series.
The series g demonstrates a common convergence pattern. That is you can alway pick a epsilon after which the difference between N and the convergence point is less then epsilon. In this case the series converges on pi. Let us play around with a few epsilons to see if our hypothesis that the series converges seems to hold true.
We can see that at N<10 there are some points which are not bounded by |N-pi|<e1. However by the time we get to N>20, all points are easily bound (at least those we have plotted).
How about a harder epsilon?
This epsilon is outside our bounds at 20 but by the time we have reached 40 the series does not reach outside our bounds.
We can see that with e3=.1 there is no point on the graph we have plotted which is bounded by our epsilon. However plotting the graph at a longer series time frame will give us a number N after which g is bounded.
this is true (even if our computers do not have sufficient accuracy to show this to be the case).
is an extreme example in which the series seems to converge at 0 up to N<100 but at N=100 or greater the series now converges on 1.


Photometric redshifts are estimated on the basis of template scenarios with the help of the code ZPEG, an extension of the galaxy evolution model PEGASE.2 and available on the PEGASE web site. The spectral energy distribution (SED) templates are computed for nine spectral types including starburst, irregular, spiral and elliptical. Dust, extinction and metal effects are coherently taken into account, depending on evolution scenarios. The sensitivity of results to adding near-infrared colors and IGM absorption is analyzed. A comparison with results of other models without evolution measures the evolution factor which systematically increases the estimated photometric redshift values by $Delta z$ > 0.2 for z > 1.5. Moreover we systematically check that the evolution scenarios match observational standard templates of nearby galaxies, implying an age constraint of the stellar population at z=0 for each type. The respect of this constraint makes it possible to significantly improve the accuracy of photometric redshifts by decreasing the well-known degeneracy problem. The method is applied to the HDF-N sample. From fits on SED templates by a $chi^2$-minimization procedure, not only is the photometric redshift derived but also the corresponding spectral type and the formation redshift $z_for$ when stars first formed. Early epochs of galaxy formation z > 5 are found from this new method and results are compared to faint galaxy count interpretations.
ZODIPIC synthesizes images of exozodiacal clouds. As a default, ZODIPIC creates an image of the solar zodiacal cloud as seen from 10 pc, but it contains many parameters that are tweakable from the command line, making it a handy general-purpose model for optically-thin debris disks that yields both accurate images and photometric information simultaneously. Written in IDL, ZODIPIC includes dust with real optical constants, user-specified dust maps and can compute images as seen through a linear polarizer.
The cross-correlation function (CCF) is commonly employed in the study of AGN, where it is used to probe the structure of the broad line region by line reverberation, to study the continuum emission mechanism by correlating multi-waveband light curves and to seek correlations between the variability and other AGN properties. The z -transformed discrete correlation function (ZDCF) is a method for estimating the CCF of sparse, unevenly sampled light curves. Unlike the commonly used interpolation method, it does not assume that the light curves are smooth and it does provide errors on its estimates.
yt is an open source, community-developed volumetric analysis and visualization toolkit. Originally designed for handling Enzo's (ascl:1010.072) structure adaptive mesh refinement (AMR) data, yt has been extended to work with numerous simulation methods and simulation codes including Orion, RAMSES (ascl:1011.007), and FLASH (ascl:1010.082). Analysis and visualization with yt are oriented around physically relevant quantities rather than quantities native to data representation on-disk or in-memory. yt can be used for projections, multivariate volume rendering, multi-dimensional histograms, halo finding, light cone generation and topologically-connected isocontour identification.
yt benefits from the contributions of a broad range of community members, and a full list of credits for the code can be found on the yt website or in the source repository.
YODA, implemented in C++, performs object detection, photometry and star-galaxy classification on astronomical images. Developed specifically to cope with the multi-band imaging data common in modern extragalactic imaging surveys, it is modular and therefore easily adaptable to specific needs. YODA works under conditions of inhomogeneous background noise across the detection frame, and performs accurate aperture photometry in image sets not sharing a common coordinate system or pixel scale as is often the case in present-day extragalactic survey work.
YNOGKM (Yun-Nan observatories geodesic in a Kerr-Newman spacetime for massive particles) performs fast calculation of time-like geodesics in the Kerr-Newman (K-N) spacetime; it is a direct extension of YNOGK (Yun-Nan observatories geodesic Kerr) calculating null geodesics in a Kerr spacetime. The four Boyer-Lindquis coordinates and proper time are expressed as functions of a parameter p semi-analytically by using the Weierstrass' and Jacobi's elliptic functions and integrals. The elliptic integrals are computed by Carlson's elliptic integral method, which guarantees the fast speed of the code. The source Fortran file ynogkm.f90 contains three modules: constants, rootfind, ellfunction, and blcoordinates.
XSTAR is a command-driven, interactive, computer program for calculating the physical conditions and emission spectra of photoionized gases. It may be applied in a wide variety of astrophysical contexts. Stripped to essentials, its job may be described simply: A spherical gas shell surrounding a central source of ionizing radiation absorbs some of this radiation and reradiates it in other portions of the spectrum; XSTAR computes the effects on the gas of absorbing this energy, and the spectrum of reradiated light. The user supplies the shape and strength of the incident continuum, the elemental abundances in the gas, its density or pressure, and its thickness; the code can be directed to return any of a large number of derived quantities, including (but not limited to) the ionization balance and temperature, opacity tables, and emitted line and continuum fluxes.
It has been over a decade since the first paper was published containing results determined using the general X-ray spectral-fitting program XSPEC. Since then XSPEC has become the most widely used program for this purpose, being the de facto standard for the ROSAT and the de jure standard for the ASCA and XTE satellites. Probably the most important features of XSPEC are the large number of theoretical models available and the facilities for adding new models.
xSonify maps scientific data to acoustic sequences. Listening to data can help discover patterns in huge amounts of data. Written in Java, xSonify allows visually impaired people to examine numerical data for patterns. The data can be imported from local files or from remote databases via the Internet. Single results of measurements from spacecraft instruments can be selected by their corresponding variables in a specific time frame. The results are transformed into MIDI sequences which can be played with a selection of different instruments from a soundbank. Another software module enables xSonify to convert the sonified data into other sound formats to make it easier to archive and exchange the Sonification results with other scientists.
XPHOT is an IDL implementation of a non-parametric method for estimating the apparent and intrinsic broad-band fluxes and absorbing X-ray column densities of weak X-ray sources. XPHOT is intended for faint sources with greater than ∼5-7 counts but fewer than 100-300 counts where parametric spectral fitting methods will be superior. This method is similar to the long-standing use of color-magnitude diagrams in optical and infrared astronomy, with X-ray median energy replacing color index and X-ray source counts replacing magnitude. Though XPHOT was calibrated for thermal spectra characteristic of stars in young stellar clusters, recalibration should be possible for some other classes of faint X-ray sources such as extragalactic active galactic nuclei.
Bucciantini, N.; Pili, A. G.; Del Zanna, L.
XNS solves for the axisymmetric equilibrium configuration of neutron stars in general relativity. It can model differentially rotating and magnetic fields that are either purely toroidal, purely poloidal or in the mixed twisted torus configuration. Einsten's equations are solved using the XCFC approximation for the metric in spherical coordinates.
Budavari, Tamas; Lee, Matthias A.
Xmatch is a cross-platform, multi-GPU tool which allows for extremely fast cross-matching between two Astronomic catalogs. It is capable of asyncronously managing multiple GPUs, ideal for workstation and cluster environments.
xGDS (Exploration Ground Data Systems) synthesizes real world data (from sensors, robots, ROVs, mobile devices, etc) and human observations into rich, digital maps and displays for analysis, decision making, and collaboration. xGDS processes and maps data (including video) in real-time during operations and uses it to support live role-based geolocated note taking. Notes can be used to search for and display important data. The software enables real-time analysis of data, permitting one to make inferences and plan new data collection operations while still in the field.
XEphem is a scientific-grade interactive astronomical ephemeris package for UNIX-like systems. Written in C, X11 and Motif, it is easily ported to systems. XEphem computes heliocentric, geocentric and topocentric information for all objects and has built-in support for all planets, the moons of Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Earth, central meridian longitude of Mars and Jupiter, Saturn's rings, and Jupiter's Great Red Spot. It allows user-defined objects including stars, deepsky objects, asteroids, comets and Earth satellites, provides special efficient handling of large catalogs including Tycho, Hipparcos, GSC, displays data in configurable tabular formats in conjunction with several interactive graphical views, and displays a night-at-a-glance 24 hour graphic showing when any selected objects are up. It also displays 3-D stereo Solar System views that are particularly well suited for visualizing comet trajectories, quickly finds all close pairs of objects in the sky, and sorts and prints all catalogs with very flexible criteria for creating custom observing lists. Its capabilities are listed more fully in the user manual introduction.
We present a description of the CL-based package XDSPRES, which aims at being a complete reducing facility for cross-dispersed spectra taken with the Ohio State Infrared Imager/Spectrometer, as installed at the SOAR telescope. This instrument provides spectra in the range between 1.2um and 2.35um in a single exposure, with resolving power of R ~ 1200. XDSPRES consists of two tasks, namely xdflat and doosiris. The former is a completely automated code for preparing normalized flat field images from raw flat field exposures. Doosiris was designed to be a complete reduction pipeline, requiring a minimum of user interaction. General steps towards a fully reduced spectrum are explained, as well as the approach adopted by our code.
Möller, T.; Endres, C.; Schilke, P.
XCLASS (eXtended CASA Line Analysis Software Suite) extends CASA (ascl:1107.013) with new functions for modeling interferometric and single dish data. It provides a tool for calculating synthetic spectra by solving the radiative transfer equation for an isothermal object in one dimension, taking into account the finite source size and dust attenuation. It also includes an interface for MAGIX (ascl:1303.009) to find the parameter set that most closely reproduces the data.
XAssist provides automation of X-ray astrophysics, specifically data reprocessing, source detection, and preliminary spatial, temporal and spectral analysis for each source with sufficient counts, with an emphasis on galaxies. It has been used for data from Chandra, ROSAT, XMM-Newton, and other various projects.
Diehl, Steven; Statler, Thomas S.
WVT Binning is a spatially adaptive 2-dimensional binning algorithm designed to bin sparse X-ray data. It can handle background subtracted, exposure corrected data to produce intensity images, hardness ratio maps, or temperature maps. The algorithm is an extension of Cappellari & Copin's (2003) Voronoi binning code and uses Weighted Voronoi Tesselations (WVT) to produce a very compact binning structure with a constant S/N per bin. The bin size adjusts to the required resolution in single-pixel steps, which minimizes the scatter around the target S/N. The code is very versatile and can in principle be applied to any type of data. The user manual contains instructions on how to apply the WVT binning code to X-ray data and how to extend the algorithm to other problems.
Nikolic, Bojan; Graves, Sarah F.; Bolton, Rosie C.; Richer, John S.
wvrgcal is a command line front end to LibAIR, the atmospheric inference library for phase correction of ALMA data using water vapour radiometers, and is the user-facing application for calculating atmospheric phase correction from WVR data. wvrgcal outputs a CASA gain calibration table which can then be applied to the observed data in the usual way.
Meisner, Aaron M.; Finkbeiner, Douglas P.
wssa_utils contains utilities for accessing the full-sky, high-resolution maps of the WSSA 12 micron data release. Implementations in both Python and IDL are included. The code allows users to sample values at (longitude, latitude) coordinates of interest with ease, transparently mapping coordinates to WSSA tiles and performing interpolation. The wssa_utils software also serves to define a unique WSSA 12 micron flux at every location on the sky.
WOLF processes FITS files and generates photometry files, annotated JPGs, opacity maps, background, transient detection and luminance changes detection. This software was used to process data for the Night Sky Live project.
WM-basic is an easy-to-use interface to a program package which models the atmospheres of Hot Stars (and also SN and GN). The release comprises all programs required to calculate model atmospheres which especially yield ionizing fluxes and synthetic spectra. WM-basic is a native 32-bit application, conforming to the Multiple Documents Interface (MDI) standards for Windows XP/2000/NT/9x. All components of the program package have been compiled with Digital Visual Fortran V6.6(Pro) and Microsoft Visual C++.
WISP (Wenger Interferometry Software Package) is a radio interferometry calibration, reduction, imaging, and analysis package. WISP is a collection of Python code implemented through CASA (ascl:1107.013). Its generic and modular framework is designed to handle any continuum or spectral line radio interferometry data.
WiseView renders image blinks of Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE) coadds spanning a multi-year time baseline in a browser. The software allows for easy visual identification of motion and variability for sources far beyond the single-frame detection limit, a key threshold not surmounted by many studies. WiseView transparently gathers small image cutouts drawn from many terabytes of unWISE coadds, facilitating access to this large and unique dataset. Users need only input the coordinates of interest and can interactively tune parameters including the image stretch, colormap and blink rate. WiseView was developed in the context of the Backyard Worlds: Planet 9 citizen science project, and has enabled hundreds of brown dwarf candidate discoveries by citizen scientists and professional astronomers.
Preece, Robert D.; Briggs, Michael S.; Mallozzi, Robert S.; Brock, Martin N.
WINGSPAN is a program written to analyze spectral data from the Burst and Transient Source Experiment (BATSE) on NASA's Compton Gamma-Ray Observatory. Data files in the FITS (BFITS) format are suitable for input into the program. WINGSPAN can be used to view and manipulate event time histories or count spectra, and also has the capability to perform spectral deconvolution via a standard forward folding model fitting technique (Levenberg-Marquardt algorithm). Although WINGSPAN provides many functions for data manipulation, the program was designed to allow users to easily plug in their own external IDL routines. These external routines have access to all data read from the FITS files, as well as selection intervals created in the main part of WINGSPAN (background intervals and model, etc).
Baiotti, Luca; Giacomazzo, Bruno; Hawke, Ian; et al.
Whisky is a code to evolve the equations of general relativistic hydrodynamics (GRHD) and magnetohydrodynamics (GRMHD) in 3D Cartesian coordinates on a curved dynamical background. It was originally developed by and for members of the EU Network on Sources of Gravitational Radiation and is based on the Cactus Computational Toolkit. Whisky can also implement adaptive mesh refinement (AMR) if compiled together with Carpet.
Whisky has grown from earlier codes such as GR3D and GRAstro_Hydro, but has been rewritten to take advantage of some of the latest research performed here in the EU. The motivation behind Whisky is to compute gravitational radiation waveforms for systems that involve matter. Examples would include the merger of a binary system containing a neutron star, which are expected to be reasonably common in the universe and expected to produce substantial amounts of radiation. Other possible sources are given in the projects list.
Bellini, Andrea; Anderson, Jay; Bedin, L.R.
3.) a linear transformation to put the two chips into a convenient master frame.
WeightWatcher is a program that combines weight-maps, flag-maps and polygon data in order to produce control maps which can directly be used in astronomical image-processing packages like Drizzle, SWarp or SExtractor.
This code, which requires HEALPix 2.x, allows you to generate power spectrum estimators from WMAP 5-year maps and generate hybrid cross- and auto- power spectrum and covariance from general foreground-cleaned maps. In addition, it allows you to simulate combined maps or combinations of maps for individual detectors and do MPI spherical transforms of arrays of maps, calculate coupling matrices etc. The code includes all of LensPix - the MPI framework used for doing spherical transforms (based on HealPix).
Weighted EMPCA performs principal component analysis (PCA) on noisy datasets with missing values. Estimates of the measurement error are used to weight the input data such that the resulting eigenvectors, when compared to classic PCA, are more sensitive to the true underlying signal variations rather than being pulled by heteroskedastic measurement noise. Missing data are simply limiting cases of weight = 0. The underlying algorithm is a noise weighted expectation maximization (EM) PCA, which has additional benefits of implementation speed and flexibility for smoothing eigenvectors to reduce the noise contribution.
wdmerger simulates binary white dwarf mergers (and related events) in CASTRO (ascl:1105.010) and provides useful information on the viability of mergers of white dwarfs as a progenitor for Type Ia supernovae.
Bischoff-Kim, Agnès; Montgomery, Michael H.
WDEC (White Dwarf Evolution Code), written in Fortran, offers a fast and fairly easy way to produce models of white dwarfs. The code evolves hot (~100,000 K) input models down to a chosen effective temperature by relaxing the models to be solutions of the equations of stellar structure. The code can also be used to obtain g-mode oscillation modes for the models.
WCSTools is a package of programs and a library of utility subroutines for setting and using the world coordinate systems (WCS) in the headers of the most common astronomical image formats, FITS and IRAF .imh, to relate image pixels to sky coordinates. In addition to dealing with image WCS information, WCSTools has extensive catalog search, image header manipulation, and coordinate and time conversion tasks. This software is all written in very portable C, so it should compile and run on any computer with a C compiler.
Rahner, Daniel; Pellegrini, Eric W.; Glover, Simon C. O.; Klessen, Ralf S.
Warpfield (Winds And Radiation Pressure: Feedback Induced Expansion, colLapse and Dissolution) calculates shell dynamics and shell structure simultaneously for isolated massive clouds (≥105 M☉). This semi-analytic 1D feedback model scans a large range of physical parameters (gas density, star formation efficiency, and metallicity) to estimate escape fractions of ionizing radiation fesc, I, the minimum star formation efficiency ∊min required to drive an outflow, and recollapse time-scales for clouds that are not destroyed by feedback.
Pokorny, Martin; Law, Casey J.
The vysmaw client library facilitates the development of code for processes to tap into the fast visibility stream on the National Radio Astronomy Observatory's Very Large Array correlator back-end InfiniBand network. This uses the vys protocol to allow loose coupling to clients that need to remotely access memory over an Infiniband network.
VStar is a multi-platform, easy-to-use variable star data visualization and analysis tool. Data for a star can be read from the AAVSO (American Association of Variable Star Observers) database or from CSV and TSV files. VStar displays light curves and phase plots, can produce a mean curve, and analyzes time-frequency with Weighted Wavelet Z-Transform. It offers tools for period analysis, filtering, and other functions.
Vplanet simulates planetary system evolution with a focus on habitability. Physical models, typically consisting of ordinary differential equations for stellar, orbital, tidal, rotational, atmospheric, internal, magnetic, climate, and galactic evolution, are coupled together to simulate evolution for the age of a system.
Carswell, R. F.; Webb, J. K.
The VPFIT program fits multiple Voigt profiles (convolved with the instrument profiles) to spectroscopic data that is in FITS or an ASCII file. It requires CFITSIO (ascl:1010.001) and PGPLOT (ascl:1103.002); the tarball includes RDGEN (ascl:1408.017), which can be used with VPFIT to set up the fits, fit the profiles, and examine the result in interactive mode for setting up initial guesses; vpguess (ascl:1408.016) can also be used to set up an initial file.
VOSpec is a multi-wavelength spectral analysis tool with access to spectra, theoretical models and atomic and molecular line databases registered in the VO. The standard tools of VOSpec include line and continuum fitting, redshift and reddening correction, spectral arithmetic and convolution between spectra, equivalent width and flux calculations, and a best fitting algorithm for fitting selected SEDs to a TSAP service. VOSpec offers several display modes (tree vs table) and organising functionalities according to the available metadata for each service, including distance from the observation position.
The Voronoi binning method is an IDL program to bin two-dimensional data to a constant signal-to-noise ratio per bin. It optimally solves the problem of preserving the maximum spatial resolution of general two-dimensional data, given a constraint on the minimum signal-to-noise ratio.
VoigtFit fits Voigt profiles to absorption lines. It fits multiple components for various atomic lines simultaneously, allowing parameters to be tied and fixed, and can automatically fit a polynomial continuum model together with the line profiles. A physical model can be used to constrain thermal and turbulent broadening of absorption lines as well as implementing molecular excitation models. The code uses a χ2 minimization approach to find the best solution and offers interactive features such as manual continuum placement locally around each line, manual masking of undesired fitting regions, and interactive definition of velocity components for various elements, improving the ease of estimating initial guesses.
voevent-parse, written in Python, parses, manipulates, and generates VOEvent XML packets; it is built atop lxml.objectify. Details of transients detected by many projects, including Fermi, Swift, and the Catalina Sky Survey, are currently made available as VOEvents, which is also the standard alert format by future facilities such as LSST and SKA. However, working with XML and adhering to the sometimes lengthy VOEvent schema can be a tricky process. voevent-parse provides convenience routines for common tasks, while allowing the user to utilise the full power of the lxml library when required. An earlier version of voevent-parse was part of the pysovo (ascl:1411.002) library.
Yu, Weixiang; Carrasco-Kind, Matias; Brunner, Robert J.
Vizic is a Python visualization library that builds the connection between images and catalogs through an interactive map of the sky region. The software visualizes catalog data over a custom background canvas using the shape, size and orientation of each object in the catalog and displays interactive and customizable objects in the map. Property values such as redshift and magnitude can be used to filter or apply colormaps, and objects can be selected for further analysis through standard Python functions from inside a Jupyter notebook.
Vizic allows custom overlays to be appended dynamically on top of the sky map; included are Voronoi, Delaunay, Minimum Spanning Tree and HEALPix layers, which are helpful for visualizing large-scale structure. Overlays can be generated, added or removed dynamically with one line of code. Catalog data is kept in a non-relational database. The Jupyter Notebook allows the user to create scripts to analyze and plot the data selected/displayed in the interactive map, making Vizic a powerful and flexible interactive analysis tool. Vizic be used for data inspection, clustering analysis, galaxy alignment studies, outlier identification or simply large-scale visualizations.
Vissage (VISualisation Software for Astronomical Gigantic data cubEs) is a FITS browser primarily targeting FITS data cubes obtained from ALMA. Vissage offers basic functionality for viewing three-dimensional data cubes, integrated intensity map, flipbook, channel map, and P-V diagram. It has several color sets and color scales available, offers panning and zooming, and can connect with the ALMA WebQL system and the JVO Subaru Image Cutout Service.
Loomis, Ryan A.; Oberg, Karin I.; Andrews, Sean M.; Walsh, Catherine; Czekala, Ian; Huang, Jane; Rosenfeld, Katherine A.
VISIBLE applies approximated matched filters to interferometric data, allowing line detection directly in visibility space. The filter can be created from a FITS image or RADMC3D output image, and the weak line data can be a CASA MS or uvfits file. The filter response spectrum can be output either to a .npy file or returned back to the user for scripting.
Roberts, D. Aaron; Boller, Ryan; Rezapkin, V.; Coleman, J.; McGuire, R.; Goldstein, M.; Kalb, V.; Kulkarni, R.; Luckyanova, M.; Byrnes, J.; Kerbel, U.; Candey, R.; Holmes, C.; Chimiak, R.; Harris, B.
ViSBARD interactively visualizes and analyzes space physics data. It provides an interactive integrated 3-D and 2-D environment to determine correlations between measurements across many spacecraft. It supports a variety of spacecraft data products and MHD models and is easily extensible to others. ViSBARD provides a way of visualizing multiple vector and scalar quantities as measured by many spacecraft at once. The data are displayed three-dimesionally along the orbits which may be displayed either as connected lines or as points. The data display allows the rapid determination of vector configurations, correlations between many measurements at multiple points, and global relationships. With the addition of magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) model data, this environment can also be used to validate simulation results with observed data, use simulated data to provide a global context for sparse observed data, and apply feature detection techniques to the simulated data.
VirGO is the next generation Visual Browser for the ESO Science Archive Facility developed by the Virtual Observatory (VO) Systems Department. It is a plug-in for the popular open source software Stellarium adding capabilities for browsing professional astronomical data. VirGO gives astronomers the possibility to easily discover and select data from millions of observations in a new visual and intuitive way. Its main feature is to perform real-time access and graphical display of a large number of observations by showing instrumental footprints and image previews, and to allow their selection and filtering for subsequent download from the ESO SAF web interface. It also allows the loading of external FITS files or VOTables, the superimposition of Digitized Sky Survey (DSS) background images, and the visualization of the sky in a `real life' mode as seen from the main ESO sites. All data interfaces are based on Virtual Observatory standards which allow access to images and spectra from external data centers, and interaction with the ESO SAF web interface or any other VO applications supporting the PLASTIC messaging system.
Levit, Creon; Gazis, Paul R.; Way, Michael J.
Viewpoints is an interactive tool for exploratory visual analysis of large high-dimensional (multivariate) data. It uses linked scatterplots to find relations in a few seconds that can take much longer with other plotting tools. Its features include linked scatter plots with brushing, dynamic histograms, normalization, and outlier detection/removal.
Sutter, P. M.; Lavaux, Guilhem; Hamaus, Nico; Pisani, Alice; Wandelt, Benjamin D.; Warren, Michael S.; Villaescusa-Navarro, Francisco; Zivick, Paul; Mao, Qingqing; Thompson, Benjamin B.
The Void IDentification and Examination toolkit (VIDE) identifies voids using a modified version of the parameter-free void finder ZOBOV (ascl:1304.005); a Voronoi tessellation of the tracer particles is used to estimate the density field followed by a watershed algorithm to group Voronoi cells into zones and subsequently voids. Output is a summary of void properties in plain ASCII; a Python API is provided for analysis tasks, including loading and manipulating void catalogs and particle members, filtering, plotting, computing clustering statistics, stacking, comparing catalogs, and fitting density profiles.
VandenBerg, Don A.; Bergbusch, Peter A.; Dowler, Patrick D.
The Victoria–Regina stellar models are comprised of seventy-two grids of stellar evolutionary tracks accompanied by complementary zero-age horizontal branches and are presented in "equivalent evolutionary phase" (.eep) files. This Fortran 77 software interpolates isochrones, isochrone population functions, luminosity functions, and color functions of stellar evolutionary tracks.
VH-1 is a multidimensional ideal compressible hydrodynamics code written in FORTRAN for use on any computing platform, from desktop workstations to supercomputers. It uses a Lagrangian remap version of the Piecewise Parabolic Method developed by Paul Woodward and Phil Colella in their 1984 paper. VH-1 comes in a variety of versions, from a simple one-dimensional serial variant to a multi-dimensional version scalable to thousands of processors.
Verne calculates the Earth-stopping effect for super-heavy Dark Matter (DM). The code allows you to calculate the speed distribution (and DM signal rate) at an arbitrary detector location on the Earth. The calculation takes into account the full anisotropic DM velocity distribution and the full velocity dependence of the DM-nucleus cross section. Results can be obtained for any DM mass and cross section, though the results are most reliable for very heavy DM particles.
venice reads a mask file (DS9 or fits type) and a catalogue of objects (ascii or fits type) to create a pixelized mask, find objects inside/outside a mask, or generate a random catalogue of objects inside/outside a mask. The program reads the mask file and checks if a point, giving its coordinates, is inside or outside the mask, i.e. inside or outside at least one polygon of the mask.
Spekkens, K. J.; Sellwood, J. A.
High-quality velocity maps of galaxies frequently exhibit signatures of non-circular streaming motions. velfit yields results that are more easily interpreted than the commonly used procedure. It can estimate the magnitudes of forced non-circular motions over a broad range of bar strengths from a strongly barred galaxy, through cases of mild bar-like distortions to placing bounds on the shapes of halos in galaxies having extended rotation curves.
This code is no longer maintained and has been superseded by DiskFit (ascl:1209.011).
Velbin convolves the radial velocity offsets due to binary orbital motions with a Gaussian to model an observed velocity distribution. This can be used to measure the mean velocity and velocity dispersion from an observed radial velocity distribution, corrected for binary orbital motions. Velbin fits single- or multi-epoch data with any arbitrary binary orbital parameter distribution (as long as it can be sampled properly), however it always assumes that the intrinsic velocity distribution (i.e. corrected for binary orbital motions) is a Gaussian. Velbin samples (and edits) a binary orbital parameter distribution, fits an observed radial velocity distribution, and creates a mock radial velocity distribution that can be used to provide the fitted radial velocities in the single_epoch or multi_epoch methods.


text:
Millennials and Chat Apps: Why B2B Marketers Need to Get Snapping
Under : Views
Many tech experts and industry watchers are projecting that 2015 will be the year when messaging apps become just as important for brands looking to connect with consumers as social networks. These messaging apps are not only expected to grow, but could also start syphoning advertising dollars from the traditional leaders in social media.
Messaging apps like Line, WhatsApp, Kik, and Snapchat cater to Millennials, a generation that prefers a decentralized social networking experience, but also gives them the ability to communicate with friends with much more privacy than social networks, like Facebook, afford. For this post, we'll focus on Snapchat as it is the most popular of the chat apps and has a plethora of examples to pull from. Snapchat is a photo messaging app that allows users to take photos, record video, add text and drawings, (called "snaps") and send them to a controlled list of recipients to view for a limited time. The app itself has some pretty impressive stats when it comes to users. Launched nearly four years ago, the app has over 100 million active monthly users sending over 400 million snaps a day. Women make up the majority of Snapchat's demographic at roughly 70 percent and 71 percent of its users are under 25 years old.
While I am a bit older than Snapchat's current audience, I do use Snapchat and see that it has great potential to disrupt the social media landscape that we use today. We are a visual society and Snapchat feeds its users visually compelling images and videos that hold our attention span. When I receive a Snap, I think of it as a mini story. I've got 10 seconds to view the story and take it all in before it is gone. And I have to admit, some of the Snaps that I get from friends and brands are pretty entertaining and tell a good, quick story. In turn, I feel more connected to the friends and brands that send me snaps.
But many marketers are left wondering how they can get in the game and leverage mobile chat apps? It's a great question and one that can be answered by taking a look at some brands who are snapping their way to the top of Snapchat. It's also important to call out three key attributes of successful Snapchats: sharing followers' content, exclusive content, and personalization of content. Here are three examples that use all of these key attributes.
One of Snapchat's rising stars is Taco Bell. They have a striking 80 percent open rate for their snaps – which you cannot get on email or any other social platform. The company is so successful on Snapchat, not just because Millennials like Taco Bell, but because they speak the lingo of their target demographic along with the creative use of emojis. Now you understand why the fast-food chain has been lobbying for a taco emoji. In addition, Taco Bell encourages their social media followers to share photos of themselves at their restaurants or eating Taco Bell food. Taco Bell then shares these photos on Snapchat. Followers whose photos are shared get so excited it is the equivalent of winning the Lotto. OK, not really, but you get the point. By doing this, Taco Bell is connecting with its followers on a personal level and solidifying brand loyalty.
By now, we're used to seeing follow icons for Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest when it comes to advertising of all kinds. But movies and TV are taking it one step further and are including sneak peeks and behind-the-scenes of movies or shows through snaps. "Pitch Perfect 2" can be proud to be the first movie to advertise their Snapchat handle at the end of its trailer. The movie also has a Tumblr page where they store snaps adding more endurance to their short snap clips. Having the Tumblr page also plays into the cross promotion of content mentioned in the Taco Bell case. TV shows like "Girls," "Pretty Little Liars," and "The Voice" have been using Snapchat to promote their shows and provide their fans with special, behind-the-scenes content they are unable to receive on any other social channel. This type of content gives followers a sense of belonging and being connected to the movie or show by receiving the exclusive content.
The NBA is also another great example of leveraging Snapchat for their marketing purposes. Using the Snapchat stories function, NBA teams are able to give their followers unique looks of the players on the court and off, making fans feel that much more connected to their team. The NBA brand itself also had some fun with Snapchat by enlisting the help of former NBA stars. Through the stories function, retired professional basketball player Dikembe Mutombo provided followers with a peek of what daily operations at the NBA offices in New York City are like. While Millennials are the main consumers of Snaps, this series by the NBA engaged an older generation who remember Mutombo's court skills which is a great way to grow their follower base. The NBA increases its presence on Snapchat during the playoffs by sharing first looks at jerseys, behind-the-scenes with players, and real time game updates. The way the NBA is leveraging Snapchat, plays into the personalization of the content being shared – followers feel personally connected to the NBA and fans get involved and excited about the game.
Snapchat and apps like it, are growing increasingly popular and, therefore, important not only for consumers, but for the brands who want to connect with those consumers. But we have to wonder if it is right for every brand to use. The easy answer is no. But that could change. Snapchat is looking to raise $500 million in funding, which indicates they will be expanding their services and growing their global market share. Snapchat is still a relatively young social media platform, and a definite near-term need for the platform is to have a measurement tool that can evaluate ROI. Until that comes about, it will be hard for marketers to embrace Snapchat.
When it comes to Snapchat, most B2C brands have a play with the channel. On the other hand, B2B brands are waiting to see how they might fit into the channel. Think back to when Twitter first entered the scene and how apprehensive marketers were in embracing the channel and investing in it. It was a new frontier for marketers and they were cautious. First we saw the Millennials jump on Twitter and bring popularity and awareness to the channel. B2C brands shortly followed and joined Twitter. The last domino to fall were the B2B brands. Now virtually every B2C and B2B brand is on social media, but it didn't happen overnight. We may just see the same thing being played out here with Snapchat.
While the ways a B2B brand can leverage the channel are less obvious today, now is the time to pay attention to Snapchat and other chat apps with a strategic and creative eye. These apps offer brands a way to speak to maturing generations in a non-threatening, engaging, and personal manner. All B2B and B2C brands should seriously consider embracing the medium now before the competition snaps them up.
For More On Snapchat, Check Out: Is Snapchat an Underutilized PR Tool?
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redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


The Cotton®'s pinstripe cotton blend scarf from Italy features a soft base of brown with pinstripes of white, with orange and grey horizontal line borders at the ends. The scarf has fringing at the ends and its' 71" length ensures enough room for maximum styles and knots. The Cotton® logo tab appears on the reverse side.
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text:
Paris Gourtsoyannis
Corbyn faces emergency meetings next week over anti-semitism storm
The Labour Party will hold a special shadow cabinet meeting next Monday amid mounting anger over its handling of the ongoing anti-semitism scandal, before Jeremy Corbyn addresses as gathering of his MPs.
Boris Johnson and Jeremy Hunt narrow Brexit options over backstop
Both candidates in the Tory leadership race have raised the chances of a no-deal Brexit by ruling out one of the few possible compromises to secure a deal with the EU.
Former Lib Dem leader Ming Campbell says constitutional reform is needed in UK
The UK constitution needs "root and branch" reform to take the antagonism out of the relationship between governments in London and Edinburgh, the former leader of the Liberal Democrats has said.
How SNP and the rest should handle bully-boy Boris Johnson – Paris Gourtsoyannis
Boris Johnson's opponents need to define him as a shambolic bully. They won't do it following the rules, writes Paris Gourtsoyannis.
Columnists 57
Lizz Truss calls for 'simplified' whisky tax in bid to be next Chancellor
The UK's complex system of alcohol duties should be simplified, one of the top candidates to become chancellor under Boris Johnson has said.
The next PM will choose new US ambassador, Boris Johnson's allies say
The next Prime Minister will choose the new ambassador to the US, one of Boris Johnson's closest allies has said, as his supporters put pressure on Theresa May not to make an appointment to the UK's top diplomatic post.
Furious Boris Johnson backlash after US ambassador resigns
Boris Johnson has been blamed for ending the career of one of the UK's top diplomats after the British ambassador to the US resigned over the leaking of confidential cables critical of President Donald Trump's administration.
Mundell says powers will not be at risk from review of devolution
A review of how the UK government is set to up to preserve the Union and respond to devolution will not affect the balance of powers between London and Edinburgh, Scottish Secretary David Mundell has insisted.
British Ambassador to United States resigns after Donald Trump criticism
The UK's Ambassador to the United States, Sir Kim Darroch, has resigned his post after being attacked by President Donald Trump over confidential diplomatic cables leaked to a Sunday newspaper.
Tory leadership: Boris Johnson slammed for dodging questions in fiery TV debate
Boris Johnson was attacked for refusing to answer questions as the two Tory leadership contenders traded attacks in a bad-tempered head-to-head debate.
Historic votes for abortion and equal marriage in Northern Ireland
Same-sex marriage and abortion will be legalised in Northern Ireland if the DUP and Sinn Fein fail to reach agreement on re-establishing a power-sharing executive within three months, following historic votes by MPs last night.
'Significant step forward' as Jeremy Corbyn calls for new EU referendum
Labour supporters of a second EU referendum have hailed a "significant and very welcome step forward" after Jeremy Corbyn called on the government to stage a public vote on any Brexit deal, and confirmed his party would campaign to Remain.
SNP forced into u-turn on equal marriage in Northern Ireland
The SNP has been forced into a u-turn over plans to abstain in a vote on same-sex marriage in Northern Ireland after an outcry from equality campaigners and some of its own MPs.
'Great reluctance' among EU leaders to delay Brexit further
There would be a "great deal of reluctance" amongst European leaders to grant the UK another Brexit extension, the Irish premier has warned.
Jeremy Hunt: 'Don't forget that we're the party of enterprise'
Jeremy Hunt has appealed to Conservative members not to forget their political identity as a pro-enterprise party ahead of the showpiece televised debate of the leadership contest.
Trump says he won't work with UK ambassador after 'inept' leak
Donald Trump has dramatically escalated the transatlantic war of words over the leak of the British ambassador's advice describing his administration as "inept".
MPs step up plans to block no-deal Brexit amid leadership contest
The next prime minister faces a deepening crisis over their Brexit policy, with Tory MPs increasingly vocal about their opposition to a no-deal exit from the EU.
Scotland's population 'half a million short in 20 years', claim SNP
Scotland's population will be half a million smaller by 2040 than it would be if control of immigration policy was devolved, restricting economic growth and harming public services, the SNP has claimed.
Reports of Labour 'civil war' over BBC documentary investigation
Labour has been hit by a fresh outbreak of infighting amid reports of a "civil war" over the future of Jeremy Corbyn's closest aides.
Labour 'civil war' over anti-semitism documentary and Jeremy Corbyn aides
Labour has been hit by a fresh outbreak of infighting amid reports of a "civil war" over the future of Jeremy Corbyn's closest aides.


Fastbase, a global business database, has announced that Google Analytics users will now have full access to the Fastbase database. The company stated that this includes approximately 200 million businesses and the employees' details. Additionally, users will also have access to Fastbase's Web Leads tool, aiming to help businesses search, discover, and engage with prospects.


text:
Q: JQuery Autocomplete JSON empty results Currently autocomplete is firing, returning empty rows under the textbox.
Empty Rows shown under textbox.
How to get return json values into search textbox?
I need to add more details to get this form to submit.
View
<input type="text" class="sicautocomplete" placeholder="search by SIC Code" />

Controller:
public JsonResult SICCodeSearch(string term)
{
    var siccodes = LogicEngineLifetime.Database.SICCodes
        .Where(s => s.Code.ToString()
        .Contains(term))
        .Distinct()
        .Select(x => x.Code)
        .Take(100)
        .ToList();
    return Json(siccodes, JsonRequestBehavior.AllowGet);
}

JS:
$(".sicautocomplete").autocomplete({
    minLength: 2,
    source: function(request, response) {
        jQuery.get(sicCodesURL, { term: request.term }, function (data) {
            // assuming data is a JavaScript array such as
            // ["one@abc.de", "onf@abc.de","ong@abc.de"]
            // and not a string
            response(data);
        });
    },
    focus: function(event, ui) {
        return false;
    },
    change: function(event, ui) {
        if (!ui.item)
            $(this).val('');
    },
    select: function(event, ui) {
        var a = ui.item;
        $(".sicautocomplete").val("");
        return false;
    }
});

//$(".sicautocomplete").autocomplete("instance")._renderItem = function (ul, c) {
//    return $("

")
//  .data("item.autocomplete", c)
//  .append(c)
//  .appendTo(ul);
//};


text:
THE INSIDERS: Toxic mix of demography, geography, politics blights Ukraine's future
By bne IntelliNews July 22, 2014
Mark Adomanis in Washington -
What sort of future awaits Ukraine? Given the horrific violence in Lugansk and Donetsk, violence that has already consumed hundreds of innocent lives and that will likely consume many more, there has been an understandable increase in pessimism. It's really hard to hold out much hope for the country's future when houses are being blown apart by artillery fire, former neighbours are shooting at each other with automatic weapons, and now passenger jets are being blown out of the sky.
However, even before Yanukovych's messy overthrow Ukraine was on a long-term path to ruin, a path that would be difficult to change even under the most favorable circumstances. Why? What are Ukraine's problems? While there are many areas of concern, I would say that the most pressing concerns fall into three main categories: demography, geography and politics.
Russia has attracted a lot of negative attention for its low birthrates and high death rates. It's been called a "dying bear," a "dying nation," and "imploding," among other things. Western experts express broad agreement that its demographic trends will cause serious (and perhaps irreparable) damage to its economy and military. There is also general agreement that the authorities have done little or nothing to address the problem.
However, although you will often hear Russia described as the world's "most swiftly depopulating country" or read articles stating that it is "suffering from the world's worst population crisis," those dubious honours actually go to Ukraine. Since its independence from the Soviet Union, Ukraine has suffered the world's largest absolute population decline, a cumulative loss of almost 7m people.
Unlike in Russia, where the economically active part of the population actually grew throughout the late 1990s and early 2000s, the Ukrainian workforce has already started to shrink. The number of economically active Ukrainians has declined by roughly a million people over the past 14 years, and the country's general demographic trajectory means that, unless there is a dramatic and unprecedented increase in immigration, this decline will continue indefinitely. It might sound a bit overdrawn, but Ukraine's economy will have to rely on an ever-shrinking number of workers forever.
Ukraine's demographics aren't just among the worst in the Europe, they're arguably the worst of any country on earth. Regardless of which course Ukraine chooses, whether it integrated with Europe or the Russian-led Eurasian Union, its demographic trends will exert a strongly negative influence on its economy.
It's not a coincidence that the most economically successful of the "new" EU entrants, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Poland, are all located close to Europe's largest economy. Proximity to Germany and its enormous domestic market gave these countries a realistic opportunity for export-led growth (in many cases led by German firms looking for low-cost manufacturing). The transport challenges associated with pursuing this growth model were real, post-communist countries generally inherited underdeveloped and poorly-maintained infrastructure, but the distances involved were small enough that they could be overcome.
Ukraine is in an entirely different situation. A large percentage of its population and almost all of its heavy industrial base is in the Eastern part of the country. Dnepropetrovsk, Kharkiv, Donetsk, and Lugansk are all several hundred miles away from places like Bratislava and Warsaw, much less major cities in Western Europe. Even if Ukraine's infrastructure were up to par (and it's not, its roadways are widely recognized as some of the worst in the world), the sheer distances involved severely complicated any attempt to pursue an export-led growth model.
Ukraine's geographic position doesn't make integration with Europe impossible, but, unlike the most successful post-Communist countries, it doesn't have any lucrative export markets on its doorstep. Developing Ukrainian exports to Europe will be a much more difficult, expensive and time-consuming process
While many analysts now declare that, thanks to Russian intervention in Crimea, Ukraine's political divisions are a thing of the past, independent polling conducted on behalf of US organizations like the Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG) and the International Republican Institute (IRI) continues to show vast differences in outlook between the country's western and eastern halves.
The BBG found, for example, that more than 35% of eastern Ukrainians agreed that Russia had played a "mostly positive" role in the crisis in Ukraine. The comparable figure for western Ukraine? 1%. An almost equally significant gap emerged when Ukrainians were asked about the US. A substantial 58.8% of western Ukrainians though that the United States has played a "mostly positive" role over the past few months, while in the east the figure was only 17.1%. The single largest gap, however, concerned Crimea. A plurality of eastern Ukrainians (45.8%) thought that the referendum reflected the genuine wishes of Crimeans. A mere 16.8% of western Ukrainians agreed. In other words, Eestern Ukrainians have made peace with the departure of Crimea while western Ukrainians haven't.
The IRI's figures showed similarly vast differences between the two regions. 64% of west Ukrainians expressed support for the idea of joining Nato, while in the east the figure was a mere 14%. Similar gaps were encountered when Ukrainians were asked about joining the EU (90% support in the west, 20% in the east) and on the willingness to suffer temporary economic pain in exchange for long-term benefits (66% support in the west, 17% in the east). There wasn't a single significant issue on which polling showed the two regions in agreement.
It is conceivable that, in the very long term, Ukraine's regional divisions will become less significant. But at the present time they show no sign of diminishing in significance. In the past intense east-west differences, and the political deadlock they inevitably create, have made Ukraine virtually ungovernable, and this will continue to be the case for the foreseeable future.
Compared to the post-Communist countries that have had the greatest success in integration with the EU, Ukraine is in much worse demographic, geographic and political situations. The country's population is in uninterrupted free-fall, it is far away from Europe's economic center of gravity, and its politics continue to be riven with huge regional differences. Given these factors, it's hard to see how the country could make a "European choice" even in the most favourable of circumstances.
Mark Adomanis is an MA/MBA candidate at the Lauder Institute at the University of Pennsylvania. He regularly contributes Russia-related writings to a range of outlets such as True/Slant, Salon, Forbes and The National Interest.
Ukraine's largest PrivatBank faces down nationalisation fears
Graham Stack in Kyiv - Ukraine's largest lender PrivatBank has survived a stormy week of speculation over its future, but there are larger rocks ahead, with some market participants anticipating the ... more
bne:Chart - Russia begins to steady the ship according to latest Despair Index
Henry Kirby in London - Ukraine and Russia's latest "Despair Index" scores suggest that the two struggling economies could finally be turning the corner, following nearly two years of steady ... more
Austria's Erste rides CEE recovery to swing to profit in Jan-Sep
bne IntelliNews - Erste Group Bank saw the continuing economic recovery across Central and Eastern Europe push its January-September financial results back into net profit of €764.2mn, the ... more


Information Rights Management (IRM) enables content creators to centrally control which actions users can take on documents that have been downloaded from document libraries in Microsoft SharePoint Server 2010. IRM encrypts the downloaded files and limits the set of users and programs that are allowed to decrypt these files. IRM can also limit the rights of the users who are allowed to read files, so that they cannot take actions such as print copies of the files or copy text from them.
Before using IRM, you must have a Windows Rights Management Services (RMS) server to connect to. In addition, you must have installed the Windows Rights Management Services Client Service Pack 2 on every front-end Web server in the farm running SharePoint Server 2010.
Do not use IRM on this server Select this option if you do not want to use IRM.
Use the default RMS server specified in Active Directory Select this option if your organization has specified an RMS server in Active Directory Domain Services (AD DS).
Use this RMS server If you select this option, type a URL that includes the protocol and the RMS server name in the corresponding box (for example, type http://rms_server).


text:
South African cricket heroes support WakaWaka
The south-african company In2Brands has launched the 'Swith to Portable Solar Power' campaign which is aimed at offering innovative safe and effective portable power solutions. They want to bring power to Africa end empower its people through the provision of low cost power solutions. In a collaboration with WakaWaka, In2Brands aims at bringing WakaWaka products to the 10 milllion south-african people that still live off-grid.
"It's a harsh reality that as many as 10 million South Africans are not connected to any form of electricity," says Kallis. "Together with the constant fear of Eskom power cuts and load shedding affecting business and communities alike, portable solar power brings with it the promise of eradicating energy poverty and providing a better quality of life for all," he continues.
The Kallis and Steyn endorsement will see both personalities involved in raising awareness for and promoting the benefits of portable solar power across business, lifestyle and community initiatives.
"Life as we know it cannot survive and flourish without access to sustainable power," says Steyn. "We are excited and proud to be involved in an initiative which seeks to eradicate this shortfall across not only South Africa, but the greater African continent as well."


I've been using this moisturizing mist every day since I first tried it and luckily don't have to dread the day I run out because yay for friends in Japan to send me fresh supplies.
The precious dewy liquid is bottled (heads-up to those travelling because it is quite heavy) in the most beautiful packaging and the lilac color really resonates with me.
The bottle is fitted with a fine perfume sprayer which is my favorite on any mist! I love that fine wave of luxury touching my face. It's the same with the Omorovicza Queen of Hungary Mist which is another Annie favorite.
The liquid is incredibly moisturizing because of the hyaluronic acid. It also contains the fancy-sounding Hadasei-3™ Anti-Ageing complex which is a secret blend of Japanese superfoods: green tea, rice and algae. I'm not asking any questions about the eligibility of these ingredients, all I am asking for is ANOTHER BOTTLE IMMEDIATELY!
I've been using it over my make up to give me that dewy, glowing finish aka "The Tori-Tathum glow!" You can also use it on clean skin or on the go. It's the perfect product.
Have to admit, I expected a little more from this mask.
Also containing the Japanese superfood trio, this mask just did not do what I wanted it to do. When I see Vitamin C listed as an ingredient in skincare I always get excited about potential brightening results. I did see an improvement, but nothing too impressive. It may be that the mask is a bit too gentle for my skin as I'm used to dynamic active ingredients daily. The 10% AHA just didn't perform as well as my mighty BR Lotion P50 in terms of cleansing and smoothing my skin texture. The purple is pretty cool but a little unnecessary in my opinion. It contains Carmine, which comes from beetles and are used commonly in the cosmetics and food industries as a colorant. The purple mask isn't any better, and the color does not hold any benefits for my skin so I just find the use of it a little unnecessary.


BREAK OUT THE CHAMPAGNE! You'll pop a cork when you walk into this sparkling clean home that has been meticulously maintained with 2 bedrooms and 2 baths. Covered front and back decks come with a picnic area and fenced veggie garden. A one car garage & a one car/boat port too. It's just minutes from the lake and less than 5 miles from town. All located on .40 acres m/l of unrestricted land that is loaded with deer & turkey.
14' 10"	x	10' 3"
14' 10"	x	13' 5"
14' 10"	x	11' "
Please provide more information about Listing # 116146.


If planting zucchini this month, plant in seed trays and keep undercover. You can plant out the seedlings during November and December. If you want to plant zucchini directly into the garden you'll have to wait until January to do so. Most of the fruits, vegetables and herbs above can be planting next month as well if it's a little overwhelming to get it all done at once, except zucchini – seeds need to be sown now.
Hold off on planting watermelon seedlings until next month – there's still time to grow them and harvest to enjoy during the warmer months.
Enjoyed our September Planting tips? Don't forget to jump over and 'like' the Perth Landscaping & Gardening page.
This planting guide is a general reference intended for home gardeners. We recommend that you take into account your local conditions in making planting decisions. For specific advice, please contact Perth Gardening.


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text:
All categories Footer - FAQs (example) Little Missouri River Crossing - FAQs
Footer - FAQs (example)
Little Missouri River Crossing - FAQs
1. How do I sign up for 911 Citizen Notifications?
To sign up for notifications please fill out the Billings County Notification Signup Form.
2. How do I apply for a marriage license?
Find out how to apply for a marriage license on our Marriage Licenses page.
3. How do I submit a home reappraisal request?
To submit a home reappraisal request, please fill out and submit our Home Reappraisal Request form.
1. Is the Elkhorn Ranch Unit of Theodore Roosevelt National Park included in the study area?
Due to the historical significance of this site, the Elkhorn Ranch Unit of
Theodore Roosevelt National Park is excluded from the project study area. The
exclusion of the property means construction is not, and would not be, proposed
on the Elkhorn Ranch Unit property.
2. When was the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) process initiated?
The EIS was initiated when the Notice of Intent was published in the Federal Register on October 12, 2006, Volume 71, No. 197. A second Notice of Intent was published on December 6, 2010, Volume 75 No. 233 due to a change in the study area.
3. What is the difference between the current project and previous efforts by Billings County to construct a crossing over the Little Missouri River?
current EIS is different than previous environmental studies because it uses an
expanded study area, considers a greater range of alternatives, and follows
procedures contained in Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation
Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU).
4. Has a Coordination Plan been completed in accordance with SAFETEA-LU requirements?
A Coordination Plan was completed in February of 2007, updated in December 2011
and is available under the Public Involvement section of the project website.
5. What is the purpose of the proposed project?
The purpose of the proposed project is to provide for the safe and efficient movement of people and commerce through promotion of a reliable transportation system within Billings County. Specifically, the purpose of the proposed project is to:
the public with a centrally accessible, safe, efficient, and reliable link
between ND Highway 16 and Highway 85 within the study area (system
linkage); while connecting the transportation network on the east side
of the Little Missouri River to the transportation network on the west side of
the Little Missouri River (internal
linkage).
existing roadways and/or create new roadways and construct a river crossing
over the Little Missouri River to best meet roadway and structure design
6. Why is the proposed project needed?
The need for the proposed project is driven by inadequate system linkage within
Billings County, specifically the lack of reliable river crossings, and
increased traffic demands from the oil and gas industry. Historically, Billings
County has seen a need for a new crossing of the Little Missouri River as early
as the 1970s. The County documented concerns that roadways in the area were
unreliable in inclement weather, which made them virtually impassable, while
the ability to cross the river has had to be negotiated with landowners of
private fords. The
County also identified the need for a river crossing to meet socioeconomic
demands within the area, such as industry development.
7. Have alternatives been developed?
A range
of reasonable alternatives were considered during the EIS process, including location alternatives and structure alternatives. Alternatives were developed in collaboration with cooperating and participating agencies using a multiple-step process. The alternatives were developed and analyzed with the intent of avoidance and minimization of impacts in conjunction with meeting the purpose and need of the project. Since the EIS process began in 2006, there have been several modifications to the study area and range of reasonable alternatives due to public and agency input received during the early stages of the EIS. The following alternatives were carried forward for further detailed analysis in this EIS: Alternative A, Alternative K (all options), and Alternative L (no-build).
8. Who is leading the proposed project?
agencies of the proposed project are the Federal Highway Administration,
North Dakota Department of Transportation and Billings County.
9. What other agencies are involved in the proposed project?
with the lead agencies, there are agencies that are considered cooperating and participating agencies.
The "cooperating" and "participating" agency status does not imply support for
the project; rather, these agencies have varying levels of responsibility with
the project planning process. The US Army Corps of Engineers and the US Forest
Service are both cooperating agencies for the project. The participating
agencies for the project are as follows:
National Park Service (Theodore Roosevelt National Park)
US Department of Agriculture – Natural Resources Conservation Service (ND State Office)
US Environmental Protection Agency (Region 8)
US Fish & Wildlife Service (ND Field Office)
ND Department of Emergency Services (Department of Homeland Security)
ND Department of Health
ND Game & Fish Department
ND Parks and Recreation
ND State Water Commission
State Historical Society of ND
Consultation Committee
10. Who will approve the proposed project?
Throughout
this process, agencies and interested parties, including the general public,
will be asked to provide their comments and feedback through various public and
agency meetings. Input and comments from agencies and the public will be a
large part of the decision-making process for the project.
the three lead agencies (Federal Highway Administration, North Dakota
Department of Transportation, and Billings County) and the cooperating
agencies, using agency and public input as well as relying heavily on technical
studies, will decide whether to approve the project.
11. What approval do the decision-makers give?
Ultimately, the Federal Highway Administration will provide the final approval of the Draft EIS and Final EIS, and will issue the Record of Decision. In addition to their approval, the cooperating agencies (US Army Corps of Engineers and US Forest Service) will adopt the EIS, at their discretion, to fulfill their agencies' requirements under NEPA.
Furthermore, a Section 404 permit approval may be required from the US Army Corps of Engineers and approval of right-of-way acquisition may need to be approved by the US Forest Service if right-of-way is needed on their land.
12. Who is funding the proposed project?
County is funding the environmental process and preliminary engineering to meet
NEPA requirements. Possible funding sources for construction of the project may
come from the federal government and Billings County as follows:
County Routes: Federal funding (up to a limited amount) of eligible costs
with the remainder coming from County funds—typically 80 percent federal and 20
percent County.
Highway Routes: Federal funding (up to a limited amount) for eligible costs
with the remainder coming from County funds.
Non-federal Aid Routes: No federal funding. All funds would come from the County.
funding sources reflect user taxes collected and dedicated to these types of
projects. No new taxes are proposed directly as a result of any proposed
13. Who can I direct my concerns to?
Jennifer Turnbow, Project Manager
4585 Coleman Street
jen.turnbow@kljeng.com


Videoconference enables multiple parties in different locations to meet across their network or the Internet. This simple and effective solution uses top-quality audio and HD video for participants to interact, collaborate, and present content to each other over their PCs. This video platform allows you to increase efficiency and productivity while reducing travel costs by empowering your company, customers and business partners to meet and cooperate at any time.
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Videoconference software clients enable popular desktop and mobile devices to support high-quality videoconferencing over the Internet and wireless networks.
BENESTRA provides Videoconference solutions across its entire extensive network footprint covering Slovakia.
The Videoconference configuration can be customized to satisfy your specific requirements and preferences.


Duality. Spiritual ascension and growth of the planet determine the balance of light and dark. A spiritual awakening article channeled.
What is spirituality, personal development and transformation developing spiritual awareness. The art of spirituality by druid priestess Jyoti Eagles.


(IDEX News) – The GIA's sixth International Gemological Symposium, to be held from October 7-9 in Carlsbad, CA, will close with "Futurescape Forum," featuring six prominent leaders from across the trade discussing the industry's trajectory.
These will include rapid advancements in research and technology, changing consumer tastes, shifting norms for miners, manufacturers and retailers, and many other forces that will shape the future of the global gem and jewelry industry, the GIA said.
Moderated by David Ager of the Harvard Business School, the panel discussion will include Bruce Cleaver, chief executive officer of the De Beers Group; Gina Drosos, chief executive officer of Signet Jewelers; Jason Goldberger, chief executive officer of Blue Nile; Andy Johnson, CEO of Diamond Cellar Holdings; Rahul Kadakia, international head of jewelry at Christie's; and Kent Wong, managing director of Chow Tai Fook. These industry leaders will share their views and predictions about what lies over the horizon for the gem and jewelry industry.
Based around the theme "New Challenges. Creating Opportunities," the Symposium will include a research track featuring presentations by leading scientists and academics. Professors from the Harvard Business School (HBS) will lead a track on business concepts and innovations, using the renowned case-study method employed in all HBS programs.
Pictured above from left: Bruce Cleaver, Gina Drosos, Jason Goldberger, Andy Johnson, Rahul Kadakia and Kent Wong.


text:
Deshengmen () eller Deshengporten ('Moraliska segerns port') är en stadsport i Peking i Kina som uppfördes under Mingdynastin. Deshengmen finns i Xichengdistriktet längs norra Andra ringvägen precis norr om sjöarna Xihai och Houhai 5 km nordväst om Himmelska fridens torg.

Efter att Mingdynastin tagit makten över Kina 1368 lät kejsar Hongwu 1371 flytta Khanbaliks norra stadsmur ca 3 km söderut för att koncentrera försvarsresurserna i den nu mindre befolkade staden. Den nya norra stadsmuren, med portarna Andingmen och Deshengmen uppfördes i höjd med dagens norra andra ringväg.

Deshengmens befästa piltorn uppfördes 1439 under kejsar Zhengtong. En storskalig renovering gjordes 1592 under kejsar Wanli. Deshengmen förstördes av en jordbävning 1679 med renoverades. Huvuddelen av porten revs 1969 men det förskansade piltornet lämnades orört. Piltornet förstördes av jordbävningen i Tangshan 1976, och dagens utförande av Deshengmen är från renoveringen 1980.

På en stenpelare på Deshengmen finns en dikt skriven av kejsar Qianlong (r. 1735–1796).

I dag är Deshengmen ett viktigt transportnav för busstrafik, och härifrån utgår bussar mot t ex kinesiska muren.

Se även
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WP:Projekt Kina
Byggnader i Peking
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