In addition to training we highly recommend that you attempt the sample questions and take a practice exam prior to taking your exam.
Best Value Packages: For some of our Certification options we offer a best value package which bundles together the relevant Training courses together with an Exam voucher and Post-Class Extended Learning.
Practice Exams: Practice exams for select exams are available for purchase through SAS and Pearson VUE.
Click here to view a listing of all available practice exams.
Awarded to candidates who have passed all three of the following exams.
Note: The SAS Certified Advanced Analytics Professional credential is included as part of the SAS Academy for Data Science.
Taken together with the SAS Certified Big Data Professional credential you will be provided with in-depth training and exam preparation to become a SAS Certified Data Scientist.
Awarded to candidates who have passed both of the following exams.
Note: SAS Certified Big Data Professional is included as part of the SAS Academy for Data Science.
Taken together with the SAS Certified Advanced Analytics credential you will be provided with in-depth training and exam preparation to become a SAS Certified Data Scientist.
To qualify for this credential you have the option of taking either of two exams.
Option 2 is only available if you already hold the SAS Certified Base Programmer for SAS®9 credential.
With this option there is no requirement to take SAS Programming 1 or SAS Programming 2.
* Note: The fast track course does not cover all material to prepare for the exam. Candidates who take the fast track course can supplement their studies by visiting the extended learning pages and by reviewing supplemental documentation.
Awarded to candidates who have earned both of the following credentials.
Note: For in-depth training and exam preparation to become a SAS Certified Data Scientist why not join the SAS Academy for Data Science.
The academy includes both the SAS Certified Big Data Professional credential and SAS Certified Advanced Analytics Professional Credential.
Once you have both credentials you will be recognized as a SAS Certified Data Scientist.
For candidates with considerable experience in predictive modeling with SAS Enterprise Miner, this book provides a solid overview of the types of concepts and skills found in the exam.


Section 508 compliance seems tricky and confusing, but its implementation on content management systems is vital for many organizations. According to the United States Census Bureau, about one in five Americans are impaired with some sort of disability. That is a rather large number of people that you do not want to ignore.
All federal and state agencies of the U.S. government are required to meet section 508 standards for accessibility. This law was established in 1998 to require that all technology used by the federal government to be accessible to those with disabilities. This includes those with visual, audible, physical or cognitive impairment.
Those with disabilities often use assistive technology. This would include things like screen readers for the visually impaired user. Jaws and Microsoft Narrator are a couple of popular software titles that are used for these purposes.
There were 16 standards developed to make information and technology accessible to users with disabilities. These standards are the core requirements to making your content section 508 compliant with the federal government. There is no one automated solution that will magically make your site compliant, unfortunately.
These days, it is still a mix of manual and automated processes that drive a site's compliance. Below are the 16 standards. Sites must be accessible by keyboard only (without a mouse). All screens should be readable by screen readers that can also display alt tags and descriptions of images. Closed captioning should be available (or transcripts of audio/video). Online forms should be able to completed using assistive technology (or only the keyboard).
Good technology applies great user experience, user interaction and design principles. This is often referred to as UX/UI in the creative and IT industries. The two terms evolved from the guidance involved in usability principles, an area of expertise that has grown over several decades.
Good usability means the user is able to quickly perform a task with little to no difficulty. This often involves employing sensible and logical navigation, understandable required action items, well defined terms, clean design and smooth workflows. There are other options to consider that vary from project to project, but these are the most basic caveats to understand when dealing with usability as it pertains to section 508 compliance.
The software and technology fundamentals here are designed to make computing life a bit easier for those with a disability. Your CMS should follow these guidelines and tips. Remember that all things should be executable from the computer keyboard, without a mouse. Some people can't use a mouse. This should include shortcuts, object/image manipulation and dropdown list operation to name a few on the computer keyboard side. StickyKeys, FilterKeys, MouseKeys and High Contrast are some useful functions for this.
Your organization should also maintain a well-defined on-screen solution for focusing. An indicator that moves with the other interface elements is the preferred method for your CMS. Assistive technology should help with focus controls.
Web browsing comes natural to most of us that can use all five senses, but someone with impairment will have trouble. That is why it is important to have sufficient information about the user interface, such as identity, operation and state of the elements, available to the assistive technology. An image that represents a program element (icons) should also display text to define that process. Meaning should also be consistent with icons or bitmap images that are used to define elements of an application.
Textual information should be provided through the operating system's (OS) functionality for text display. Text content, text input caret location and text attributes are the minimum textual information that should be displayed in the CMS.
Display options also need to be tweaked for this with vision impairment. For example, applications should never override a user's selected contrast levels or color selections on the screen. Display functions should accommodate those with a disability. When there is animation, it should also be available to users as non-animated content or information. The user should also be able to choose the presentation mode of this content prior to viewing or consuming it.
Organization is also key for some. For instance, for section 508 compliance in the CMS, it is important to label items clearly so they may be easily understood. Color coding or highlighting items should not be the sole way to handle the process of conveying information, indicating an action, prompting a response or distinguishing a visual element. A large range of color and contrast items also helps users stay organized with large loads of information that may need to be categorized and organized in a certain fashion within folders, directories, etc.
There are also some key elements to avoid. One good example is blinking or flashing elements. Not only can they be annoying and distracting, but they can also be problematic for the end user. The frequency should be somewhere between 2 Hz and 55 Hz.
Assistive technology should also be available to users who are filling out digital forms. It should be able to assist with accessing information, modifying information and submitting information.
Contextual information is also very important. Users with all five senses may take certain elements for granted, but these items should be accessible to those with disabilities too. Items in color should also be available without it, like markup or context clues for the user. Documents should be readable without a style sheet. Redundant text links should be there for each active region of a server-side image map (replacement of image elements with text elements). Table data should be clearly defined, including row or column headers. Even frames should be clearly defined as an element.
There are many other standards and compliance rules of thumb to follow. It is best to consult with an expert on maintaining section 508 compliance.


Ever notice that most car specs focus on acceleration, not braking? It's more fun to focus on getting fast than it is on getting slow.
How would you manage or market differently if you knew that you had to hit the brakes, and hard? Slowing one thing and speeding up something else.
Prediction: there will be no significant newspapers printed on newsprint in the US by 2012. So, you've got two and a half years before the newspaper industry is going to be doing something else with the news and the ads, or not be there at all. Does that change what you do today if you work in this business?
Insight! The newspaper industry is in trouble, but news is not going to go away, just the paper part. Those who are working hard to preserve the paper part are asking the wrong questions and are doomed to fail.
Prediction: 90% of your sales will come from word of mouth or digital promotion by 2011. How do you change what you're doing today to be ready for that?
Question: how come the Stanford Publishing Course special week on digital media isn't sold out yet? It seems to me that if you know the old world is about to end, you'd run like crazy to master the new one.
Going fast, doing your best and then slamming into a cliff works best for Wile E. Coyote, not humans.


text:
Q: jQuery .on('click') duplicate ajax calls I have a problem with duplicate ajax calls in my app.
Here is my jQuery code:
$(document.body).on('click', 'a.sample', function(event) {
   event.preventDefault();

   $('#UniqueFormId').submit(function(event) {
      event.preventDefault();

      // HERE IS AJAX CALL //

      return false;
   });
});

The problem appears when I click a few times on a.sample button without submit a #UniqueFormId form. And next click button with submit form make duplicate ajax calls.
I use $(document.body) because I wont use it globaly after ajax calls.
How I can avoid duplicate ajax calls?

A: You could disable the button after click event then enable it after success/error callback of ajax request :
$('#UniqueFormId').submit(function(event) {
      event.preventDefault();

      var _this = $(this);
      _this.attr('disabled', 'disabled'); //disable the button

      // IN AJAX CALLBACK
      _this.removeAttr('disabled'); //enable the button again

      return false;
});

$(document.body).on('click', 'a.sample', function(event) {
   event.preventDefault();

   //Load your Modal here
});

Hope this helps.

A: You can 1 use a simple flag that doesn't rely on any DOM interaction, and then also 2 refactor the submit handler to be set outside of the click event. You just want the click event to fire the ajax submit, not set the handler.
In this case, is_sending will force the submit function to back off if it is set to true. You can see that this is set in the beforeSend callback, and cleared in the complete callback (called on both success and error, so it will always allow a retry. Mod this to your liking...)
Hope this helps and makes sense! This pattern should ensure that only one ajax request is active at any given time for this particular form.
var is_sending = false; // Default to false, then set to true when ajax request starts...

$(document.body).on('click', 'a.sample', function(event) {
   event.preventDefault();
   $('#UniqueFormId').submit();
});

$('#UniqueFormId').submit(function(event) {
    event.preventDefault();
    if (is_sending) return false;
    $.ajax({
      ...
      beforeSend: function () {
        is_sending = true;
      },
      complete: function () {
        is_sending = false;
      },
      success: function (response) {
        // Do whatever...
      }
    });
 });

A: Just separate your submit() and click() functions
$('#UniqueFormId').submit(function(event) {
  event.preventDefault();

       // HERE IS AJAX CALL //

       return false;
   });

$(document.body).on('click', 'a.sample', function(event) {
    event.preventDefault();
   $('#UniqueFormId').submit();
 });

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Work Together, Love to Learn, Reach for the Stars!
Here are some SATS practice papers to help your child with their SATS in May . We have included the answer sheets to help, along with advice to help your child .
© 2019 Newport Primary School.


text:
Phnom Penh Post - CPP big winner in local seat reallocation
CPP big winner in local seat reallocation
Leonie Kijewski and Khouth Sophak Chakrya | Publication date 04 December 2017 | 06:38 ICT
A woman casts her vote at a polling station during the commune elections in June in Phnom Penh. Hong Menea
Leonie Kijewski and Khouth Sophak Chakrya
The ruling Cambodian People's Party will now hold over 95 percent of seats at the commune level following the dissolution of the Cambodia National Rescue Party last month, according to figures released on Friday by the National Election Committee (NEC).
The Supreme Court's November 16 decision to dissolve the party and ban its officials was widely condemned both internationally and locally as a power grab by the CPP, and will be felt acutely at the local level.
Of the CNRP's 5,007 seats the CPP will now claim 4,548, with 239 positions going to Funcinpec, 201 to the Khmer National United Party and 10 to the Cambodian Nationality Party. Three were distributed to the Cambodian Youth Party, which – along with Funcinpec – filed the initial complaints to dissolve the CNRP. The remaining three seats will be determined by drawing lots.
In nationwide local elections just six months ago, the CNRP won more than one-third of the country's communes – an unprecedented showing for any opposition party – and more than 43 percent of commune council positions.
Thanks to the redistribution, the CPP will soon hold 11,051 seats, a staggering 95.5 percent. None of the other parties accepting CNRP seats were able to muster enough support to win any communes – with the exception of the KNUP, which won one.
A senior NEC official, who requested anonymity due to the electoral body's press policy, said the NEC would send the new list of seats by party to the Interior Ministry on December 11 or 12, so long as no party eligible in the commune elections, excluding the CNRP, files a complaint.
After seeing his party's seat total increase from 28 to 267, Funcinpec party spokesman Nheb Bun Chin said he was satisfied. He added that he expected to receive mostly first or second deputy chief positions.
A review by The Post of the Kingdom's hastily amended election laws suggests that the CPP will hold the commune chief spot in every commune in the country, save the one taken by the KNUP in June.
Ear Sophal, associate professor of diplomacy at Occidental College, condemned the redistribution in an email, lamenting that "everyone just wasted their time going to vote".
Amending a quote attributed to Stalin, Sophal called Cambodia's elections meaningless. "Those who vote decide nothing. Those who count the vote decide nothing. Those who reallocate the votes six months after the election decide everything," he said.
Political analyst Ou Virak, meanwhile, called for the structure of commune councils to change by making them entirely nonpartisan, while Ali Al-Nasani, country director of the Heinrich Boell Foundation, said the seats should be allocated democratically. "Instead of redistributing mandates to other parties it would have been more appropriate to conduct new elections," he said.
According to separate numbers published on Friday, the CPP also received 78 of the CNRP's 86 provincial council seats, with Funcinpec taking the remainder. All but 40 of the CNRP's 679 town and district council seats will also go to the CPP, with the remainder 40 again going to Funcinpec.
Phil Robertson, deputy Asia director of Human Rights Watch, said in an email that the redistribution was further evidence of a CPP power grab.
"These new seat totals clearly reveal this whole exercise for what it is: a looting of democracy, with the CPP seizing the spoils of the illegitimate dissolution of the CNRP and distributing a few spare seats here and there for its accomplices," he said.
Contact authors: Leonie Kijewski and Khouth Sophak Chakrya
Research key to Kanitha's rep for expertise
Sok Kanitha is used to weighing in on controversial issues using a confident approach that signals expertise and authority, and a recent video she made was no exception. Her "Episode 342: The History of NATO" video went live on January 16, 2023 and immediately shot to 30,000 likes and 3,500
Cambodia maintains 'Kun Khmer' stance despite Thailand's boycott threat
Cambodia has taken the position that it will use the term "Kun Khmer" to refer to the sport of kickboxing at the upcoming Southeast Asian (SEA) Games, and has removed the term Muay from all references to the sport. Despite strong reactions from the Thai
Knockout! Kun Khmer replaces 'Muay' for Phnom Penh Games
Cambodia has decided to officially remove the word Muay from the programme of the 32nd Southeast Asian (SEA) Games 2023 in May. "Kun Khmer" will instead be used to represent the Southeast Asian sport of kickboxing, in accordance with the wishes of the Cambodian people. Vath
Artificial insemination takes herd from 7 to 700
Some farms breed local cows or even import bulls from a broad for the purpose of breeding heavier livestock for meat production. One Tbong Khnum farmer has found a more efficient way. Hout Leang employs artificial insemination to fertilise local cows. Thanks to imported "straws"
New int'l airport nearly half complete as travel industry returns to life
Construction of a new airport that is slated to serve the capital has passed the 43 per cent completion mark, raising prospects for a proper recovery in the civil aviation and tourism sectors as international travellers return to the Kingdom in increasingly large numbers. The figure
Chinese group tours return to Cambodia starting Feb 6
Cambodia is among 20 countries selected by Beijing for a pilot programme allowing travel agencies to provide international group tours as well as flight and hotel packages to Chinese citizens, following a three-year ban. As the days tick down until the programme kicks off on February 6,
CPP extraordinary convention underway
CPP: Retract slanderous statement or face court
PM warns against 'insults' at CPP
PM lauds 44 years of stability under CPP
PM tells CPP to focus on settling land, labour rows
Two senior GDP officials defect to CPP
Two senior officials of the Grassroots Democratic Party (GDP) have asked to join the Cambodian People's Party (CPP), after apparently failing to forge a
PM addresses CPP conference of 3,000 members
CPP convenes Central Committee meeting
CPP welcomes 2,000 new members ahead of 2023 nat'l election
PM to remain CPP president even after step-down

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Have Coached 5000+ Students In Last 5 Years Through Career Coaching.
Investment Banking Courses Training 2018: What Do You Need to Know?
Avadhut is an excellent Finance Career Coach. It's amazing how easily and how well he connects with his students. The best part of his coaching is his practical approach to all aspects. His coaching sessions truly result in inspiration and self-introspection. He is dedicated to help people who have talent and intent.
is one of the best knowledgable persons I have come across. He is very charming and enthusiastic. He knows well about the Financial Careers field. He has acquired a lot of good practices which come from various duties that he has practiced in several organizations.
Avadhut has in-depth expertise in career coaching and offers expert guidance. His suggestions for my profile was really helpful. I wish him all the very best and I am sure with his wide variety of knowledge in career coaching, he will achieve great things in his career.
Career Coaching is completely FREE.


Graduate programs in international affairs are taking the lead in a variety of different ways, from cultivating strategic, innovative thinkers to putting policy research to work through practical application, and much more.
Some schools, for example, offer unprecedented opportunities to work with faculty on cutting-edge research. Some focus on helping students acquire powerful new quantitative tools for careers in global policy. And some schools are paving the way for encouraging more undergraduates from different socioeconomic backgrounds to pursue graduate studies leading to careers in public service.
Behind these and other initiatives is a wealth of faculty and administrative leaders. We take a look at some of today's leaders in higher education who are developing tomorrow's leaders in government, businesses, nonprofits, and multinational organizations around the world.


WORCESTER, Mass. – With a strong outing by the Beacons pitching staff baseball (8-5) notched their second win of the week as they handed Worcester State University (4-13) a 9-2 loss Thursday afternoon at Rockwood Park.
Combined the three Beacons pitchers recorded 10 strikeouts respectively and only walked batters. Getting the start in Thursday's non-conference game was Will Barrack (Lancaster, Va.), who went the first four innings. From there it was Ryan Augustine (Burlington, Conn.) who went the next four frames on his way to earning his first win of the season. Patrick Austin (Torrington, Conn.) closed out the win in the ninth with two strikeouts while only surrendering one hit.
At the dish it was multi-hit day for Collin Keefer (Charlotte, N.C.), Mark McCormack (Shelton, Conn.), and Jamill Moquette (Boston, Mass.). Moquette who continues to swing one of the hottest bats in all of Division III baseball, recorded three RBI on his team-leading fourth double of the season.
For Keefer and McCormack they also recorded two hits on the afternoon, with Keefer notching his first triple and McCormack his first double of the season. The two also combined for five runs scored, with Keefer driving in a pair of runs as well.
After two scoreless innings, the Beacons got on the scoreboard in the top of the third following a bases clearing double from Moquette that put UMass up 3-0 on the scoreboard. Touching home plate on the extra base hit was Jack DeBiase (Prospect, Conn.), Keefer and McCormack.
In the fourth the Beacons took advantage of two errors by Worcester State which allowed two runs to cross home plate. That along with an RBI single from McCormack extended the Beacons lead to six.
Worcester State's only runs of the afternoon would come in the bottom half of the fourth on an RBI double. Following a scoreless fifth, McCormack made it a five-run ball game on his RBI double to right center. Worcester State would walk in UMass' eighth run of the night, and Luke Fischetti (Liverpool, N.Y.) would cap off the victory with an RBI double in the ninth secure the seven-run victory.
Baseball returns to action tomorrow when they travel to St. Joseph College (ME) for a 3 p.m. non-conference game, which was rescheduled from earlier this week.


Shane Burcaw is a 22 year old with Spinal Muscular Atrophy. Contrary to popular public belief, that's not his family member or his nurse . It's his girlfriend, Anna.
1. This is 22 year old Shane Burcaw. He has a disease called Spinal Muscular Atrophy that will eventually end his life. And that lovely lady on the left? Contrary to popular public belief, that's not his family member or his nurse. It's his girlfriend, Anna.
2. Shane's outlook on life is more positive and humorous than most people you will meet in a lifetime. On his blog, Laughing At My Nightmare, he keeps an open conversation on his day to day life. Currently, having his first relationship is quite the hot topic, and this is how they are approaching it, with hilarious documentation!
3. Shane encourages open dialog on his blog covering just about any topic or question anyone can think of.
5. Did I mention Shane is also a published author? The pages of his book are filled with meeting adversity with honest humor.
6. This is one of the chapters of the book…not kidding.
7. His social media accounts layer in even more laughs on a daily basis.
11. LAMN= Laughing at my nightmare.
13. He has some pretty badass new artwork which is also his logo.
16. Rainn Wilson and his company, Soul Pancake, did a short documentary on Shane. It's brilliant.
This is 22 year old Shane Burcaw. He has a disease called Spinal Muscular Atrophy that will eventually end his life. And that lovely lady on the left? Contrary to popular public belief, that's not his family member or his nurse. It's his girlfriend, Anna.


Zen Cart Tips – #102 – Is Your Shipping Weight Wrong?
A lot of people ask us why the shipping weight for an order is noticeably greater than it should be. And this can impact adversely impact your business because the shipping charges being quoted to the customer, either on the Shipping Estimator or on Step 1 of the Checkout may be considerably higher than they should be and consequently deter a customer from placing an order.
To edit the default weight added to the cart, click on Configuration->Shipping and change Package Tare Small to Medium – added percentage:weight from 0:3, where the first figure relates to a percentage to add to the order – in this case 0% and the second figure relates to actual weight in pounds to add to the order – in this case 3 lbs, to 0:0 – meaning – no addition for % or actual extra weight.


David graduated from Durham University with a 2:1 in Law, with modules focusing on bioethics, legal philosophy, and intellectual property. In 2015, David received a Monbukagakusho (MEXT) Scholarship to complete an LL.M. at Kyushu University, Japan, in international economic and business law - producing a thesis that focused on an analysis of Japanese intellectual property rights and their relationship to advanced technologies. Whilst in Japan, David also taught English with a private language school in Fukuoka and worked with both students and legal professionals.
After returning to England, he volunteered in the local branch of a national charity to assist with general maintenance and the training of new volunteers. In 2016, David joined the Department for Work and Pensions as a case worker, focusing on the national transition of claims from DLA to PIP. In the latter half of the year, David acted as part of a group of case workers that mentored newer teams entering the department.
David joined the Department of Legal Studies as an S.J.D. student in 2017, where his research focuses on a comparative analysis of patent rights in developing and developed nations - investigating in particular, access to medicine in developing countries and the impact of harmonisation on global patent discourse.


President Trump and Kim Jong-un's handshake heard around the world also happened to take place on some pretty pricey rug -- and it was all footed by the U.S. Government -- TMZ has learned.
According to federal docs -- obtained by TMZ -- that document lodging and other expenses for the trip ... the American Embassy in Singapore is on the hook for about $162k. About $151k of that pertains to costs incurred at the Shangri-La Hotel, where the U.S. delegation, including the Prez, stayed leading up to the face-to-face.
An additional $12,000 was charged to cover the carpets used for Trump's meeting with Kim at the Capella Hotel.
Unclear how much Trump himself was charged specifically to stay at the Shangri-La Hotel ... he was only there for 2 days, after all. But, the receipts do show that Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's team was singled out for a bit more than $8k of the grand total.


text:
QUESTIONS? CALL: +94 (0)11 436 9781
RTIWATCH - Product of Transparency International Sri Lanka
T (94) 11 436 9781
Transparency International Sri Lanka
366, Nawala road, Nawala, Rajagiriya
HOW TO USE RTI
WHAT IS RTI
INFORMATION OFFICER
DESIGNATED OFFICER
SUCCESSFUL REQUEST
RTI NEWS LETTER
COMMISSION DECISIONS
PRIVACY & PUBLISHING
What has the RTI Commission ordered on common issues people have asked about?
Click here to read simple summaries
WHAT IS RIGHT TO INFORMATION?
Public Authorities have a lot of information that is held in trust for the citizens of the country. As citizens, you now have a fundamental right to access this information. The Right to Information Act No. 12 of 2016, passed on 4th August 2016, sets out the process that citizens can use to access information. It's is a simple process of lodging a request at the relevant Public Authority. With the normal process, you should get the information within a maximum of 28 days (if the information is a lot, or has to be obtained from a different location, it can take upto 21 days more). See more on that here.
WATCH VIDEOFAQ
TISL RTI NEWS LETTER
READ NEWS LETTERS
KADATHURA HERA
The first Sri Lankan film on the Right to Information showing how RTI is used through the narrative of three citizens. It will only take 30 minutes to watch this short film.
RTI used to fight bribery and corruption
Wednesday, 08 August 2018 by admin
A staff member at the hospital forced a patient at the Vavuniya General Hospital, and the patient's wife to pay Rs. 150,000/- as a bribe in order to speed up the medical process of the patient. After the bribe was paid, the wife reported the incident to the police, who ordered the hospital to hold
Published in Success Stories
Garbage clearance due to an Information Request
Residents of Akkaraipaththu made a complaint to the Medical Officer of Health, Akkaraipaththu in May 2017, about garbage accumulation affecting 10 families and a school. The issue also went to the President via "Tell the President" in July 2017 but no action was taken. In January 2018, a RTI was filed, requesting information on the
RTI for road repairs
TISL's Vavuniya office is situated on the Vairavar Kovil road on the 2nd cross street of Vavuniya. Renovation of this road commenced in October 2017 but was stalled ever since. This severely hampered the clients' accessibility to the office as side canals were open and debris was around the road and in front of the
A RTI request filed on facilitating RTIs – another success in Vavuniya
TISL made an Information Request from the Vavuniya Divisional Secretariat to obtain information about the lack of updates to the Secretariat's website and regarding their internet speed. The site in question had not been updated since 2015. Information was also requested about the steps the Divisional Secretariat had taken to help and facilitate members of
RTI Press Conference, RTI One Year On: Citizens' Perspective
Tuesday, 13 February 2018 by admin
The 3rd of February 2018 marked one year of the implementation of the RTI Act. Recognising the achievements of the past year TISL held a press conference on the 2nd of February 2018 at the Sri Lanka Foundation at 3.00p.m. The panellists for the conference were Sankhitha Gunaratne, Tushani Kandilpana, Nishantha Preethiraja, Vinodini Balasubramanium, Sellan
RTI Street Drama in Trinco
On the 28th of September the RTI campaign team took to the streets of Trincomalee to raise awareness on RTI. The campaign saw a drama group performing a short skit on RTI gathering a large audience. The drama took on the form of a short and comedic narration of several individuals' quest to receive information
Press Release on One Year of RTI
Friday, 02 February 2018 by admin
Tomorrow (3rd February 2018) marks one year since the Right to Information (RTI) Act became operational in Sri Lanka. While there remain challenges to overcome, the engagement of citizens in using RTI to hold authorities accountable as well as to resolve problems of a personal nature has been extremely encouraging. Both uses have resulted in
RTI Awareness Campaign – Colombo (2nd Day)
Tuesday, 31 October 2017 by admin
Priya, Navodhanie, Hiran and Sanjit constituted the team for the day. The locations covered were Colpetty market Fort Railway Station Wellawatte On the final day, the team had to overcome bad weather and heavy traffic throughout the day, which forced a reevaluation of the day's target locations. The team's first stop was the Colpetty market,
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© 2016. All rights reserved. Transparency International Sri Lanka.


The Old Mission (Mission of the Sacred Heart) is the oldest standing building in Idaho built 1850-1853. A living landmark, Old Mission stands serenely on a hilltop 24 miles east of Coeur d'Alene along I-90. The Mission has been many different things for many different people and will always have a place in history. Now the church remains as a monument to the past, one of the most remarkable buildings in Idaho.
The permanent exhibition of Sacred Encounters: Father DeSmet and the Indians of the Rocky Mountain West is located at the Visitor Center which tells the story of the "Blackrobes" and Coeur d'Alene Tribe. This Smithsonian quality display unfolds in nine dramatic scenes, augmented by video and music. The centerpiece of the exhibition is a dream-like re-creation of the first Sacred Heart Mission built in 1842.
Coeur d'Alene's Old Mission State Park's natural beauty and historic significance combine to make the site a perfect setting for weddings, celebrations and special events that connect the present generation with the past. These include the Historic Skills Fair held the second weekend of July where historic skills and crafts are demonstrated along with music; and the annual Feast of the Assumption Pilgrimage of the Coeur d'Alene Tribe held every August 15th with an outdoor Mass and celebration.
Many items including items made by the Coeur d'Alene Tribe and on loan from the Smithsonian are on display at the Old Mission in Cataldo.


text:
Be Our Guest at Disneyland Paris
When you're some of the biggest Disney fans, you've seen 2 of their 6 international locations, and you're an hour away, what do you do? You go,of course!
But how does Disneyland Paris stack up to the stateside parks? And how do you make the most of your time visiting a place that has to compete with the majestic history you're surrounded with in Europe.
Here's our take on getting the most of your Disneyland Paris visit!
We chose to stay at a Disney hotel to capitalize on the on-site perks - proximity and Extra Magic Time. Disney has a plethora of properties, including 6 Disney hotels within walking distance of the parks and 2 Disney Nature hotels which are set further out and require a car to access. Disney also has a variety of Partner Hotels in the area that provide shuttle buses to the parks and may offer a little lower price per night of your stay.
We wanted some place that we could maximize our time at the resort and at the same time feel like we were getting an experience worth the price. We chose to stay at Disney's Newport Bay Club, a hotel right onsite and walking distance to Disney Village. Anyone familiar with the Walt Disney World set of hotels, Newport Bay is the equivalent of Yacht & Beach or Boardwalk, taking you back to a time of living on the water and enjoying the luxuries of full scale seaside resorts. The hotel is beautiful, just as her sister properties here in Orlando; and massive - we stayed on a wing that was quite a hike to get to, but that was located directly next to the indoor pool.
Deciding what you want out of a hotel is what works for your family. All Disneyland Paris hotels offer all-you-can-eat buffets and adult lounges on property, but not all have a quick service option for dining. We would have loved to have some of those conveniences, like an on-site restaurant for snacks on-the-go and a fridge in the room to store leftovers (or in our case, milk). Closest proximity to the park is the Disneyland Hotel, which would allow easiest access to the two parks and Disney Village. If you rather skip on big meals and have a fast option for food, then Disney's Hotel Cheyenne and Disney's Hotel Santa Fe both offer Starbucks on property, but are a little further out from the parks. Hotels with moderate pricing but with proximity to entertainment, Disney Sequoia Lodge & Disney's Hotel New York (currently rebranding to the Art of Marvel) should be considered. And if neither of those are in your price range, there are a host of offsite options, but you lose the perks that Disney gives you, like Extra Magic Time to enjoy attractions before the general public.
Disneyland Paris has also already started to implement extra security measures like scanning all bags (and people) before entering the hotel, which I applaud. It was our first touch of reality with the world we live in today; but it was welcome to see a proactive approach to make sure the magic isn't compromised.
Amount of Time?
This is all up to how much you want to do. We wanted the experience so we chose to end our trip here and wind down with some fun Disney days. We booked two nights because we wanted to enjoy two full days in the park. We arrived early enough to enjoy one park, leaving our bags with the porter and able to get settled in to our room after we finished our day.
The parks are located a walk away from the hotel, passing through Disney Village complex and then with a fork in the road to decide which way to go. The set up is very similar to Disneyland California and very convenient for anyone wanting to experience everything in one day. They have some of the big name restaurants they do stateside, like Rainforest Cafe, Planet Hollywood and McDonald's, but also have unique concepts like Annette's Diner (ode to the original Mouseketeer) and a character filled Wild West stage show at Buffalo's Bills.
If you want to spend any time checking out the night-time entertainment, there warrants an extra night just to enjoy a dinner show - and use that extra day to book an excursion to the surrounding area. Disney offers tours to chateaus and small countryside villages to get a taste of the beautiful region outside Paris that hosts their parks.
Disneyland Paris also offers great package deals that may also be worth skipping a stay in Paris and opting to make the commute to the city instead. We had considered this option when we found a package that would allow us to stay on property for 5 nights for the price of 3. The package also included tickets and granted children free admission - so ultimately we'd be getting a 5-day ticket & 5-night hotel stay for the whole family for the price of two adults on a 3-day package. One rate also included club level room, which would give you exclusive check-in and access to the club lounge, with refreshments and light appetizers served all day. In hindsight, the offer was too incredible to pass up - but we did, because we also knew we wanted to indulge in our first time in Paris. But someone wanting to shop savvy, it is every bit worth searching for a package like this!
Which Ticket to Get?
Absolutely buy tickets ahead of time and snag them on a deal, as they'll also be cheaper online than at the park. We had pre-purchased tickets off the Disneyland Paris site as they were running a deal that got Adults in for the price of Children tickets and we couldn't pass that up!
There are two parks to choose from, Disneyland Paris and Walt Disney Studios. We opted to purchase a 1 Day Ticket for each park and completely immerse ourselves in that park. And personally, we felt like a day in each park was more than enough time!
The tickets are sold on an attendance calendar so depending on when you visit, the cheaper it is (weekdays early in summer run cheaper than weekends or late summer). The parks also operate on hours depending on season, with Walt Disney Studios Park closing earlier than the original. During our stay, Walt Disney Studios closed at 8pm on weekends and 6pm on weekdays, so we opted to do the newer park first to maximize our weekend day at the park. Disneyland Park remained open until midnight either day. Since we had one park tickets and we wanted to capitalize on our energy and the late hours, we opted to save Disneyland for last.
Walt Disney Studios Park
Walt Disney Studios is the newer park, and reminiscent of Hollywood Studios in Orlando. It houses two of the newer attractions, Crush's Coaster and Ratatouille, which were our main objectives to see. Just like Disneyland, Paris still has the old FastPass distribution system - you don't have a limit to how many you get in a day and you can get your next one after the distribution window on your ticket opens up (which is usually at the ride time). So if you're lucky and get a FastPass for the exact hour you're in (which is possible), you can also get another pass within a few minutes and ride back to back line-free rides.
We made our way in and went directly for Ratatouille since we wanted to all get on a ride together and this one was it. We got our FP and proceeded to ride other attractions in Pixar Place, an ode to Disney-Pixar films like Cars and Toy Story. There we spun on Luigi, had a Slinky Dog Dash and then made it back over to experience Ratatouille. The ride took us on a 3-D adventure in a mouse's point-of-view through the restaurant featured in the movie and the streets of Paris - it was adorable and left the kids squealing!
We caught a few other attractions we didn't have back home, including Disney Junior Live which had different cartoons featured than they do in Orlando, which was exciting for the kids to see! We also rode the underwhelming attractions of Armageddon and the Backstage Tour. The one thing we had high on our list to see before we left for the day was the coveted Mickey and Magician show, which was fantastic! Housed in a theater, this is a production including live singing and stage effects - it was amazing to see the caliber of show that Europe delivers and really can speak to the level of performance this culture relishes in.
The park itself is overshadowed by the Disneyland Hotel, so upon approaching it, you see the beautiful grounds of their flagship property, but no sign of the iconic castle. You pass under the hotel into the ticket turnstiles and only after crossing the official entry of the railroad station do you see Sleeping Beauty's castle.
The park is very reminiscent of Disneyland California, in its simplicity, attention to detail and accessiblity of attractions. It goes back to a simpler time when things weren't as rushed and the experience was greater than the exposure. It had all the classic rides you expect at any of the flagship parks, with enhancements like HyperSpace Mountain (which was unfortunately closed for maintenance during our visit). The park had also just celebrated its 25th anniversary, so it had a sense of grandeur still in the air to celebrate such an event.
The details are so clean and crisp, but it did lack a little of the magic you find back home. We tried to pinpoint what, and couldn't place our fingers on it until after we left - atmosphere music. We're so used to having music ushering us along and making the pace for our walk, that we failed to notice that the parks didn't have much. You heard the faint music from the attractions as you passed by, but as you walk between lands, taking in the park and existing in the moment, there's no soundtrack to live by. Us spoiled Disney kids really fail to see how wonderful something so simple as this is.
The parks also operate on the classic FastPass distribution system, much like Disneyland California. They do have limited attractions offering passes so waiting in lines may be inevitable. But the parks do not nearly have the waits that the stateside parks do, outside the more popular attractions which beckon visitors. It's absolutely worth waiting in line for those, and even more so for waiting for the shows. The performances here are all live and it is incredible to see the magic of that experience come to life. It is also worth noting that all shows are done in a mix of English and French dialogue, so it makes for a truly memorable experience to get a bit of each culture combined.
I could go on for days about our trip there, but I will let the pictures do the talking instead. If you ever have the opportunity and are even a bit of a Disney fan, take the day trip out here. You can take a metro from central Paris which will drop you off at the end of Disney Village and within a two minute walk to either park.
Any other tips?
A day trip out here is absolutely feasible from Paris. The Marne-la-Vallée/Chessy train stops right outside Disney Village's gates, making it for the most accessible route to the parks. You can do both parks in one day, granted skipping some attractions, but if you don't want to see everything this is the route for you!
Disney Village starts to open up roughly at 730 in the morning and not a minute earlier. There were only two quick service options there, so we opted for Starbucks just to ensure we had some conveniences the kids craved (like chocolate milk).
Buy food in Paris to bring with you, especially if you won't have access to a car here. We didn't find a huge variety of options for the kids who love to snack - we ended up having to feed them chocolate and pastries on-the-go (of course, they didn't mind). Just having the convenience of apple sauce, some fruits, and MILK (especially) on us would have made a difference in planning meals.
Disneyland Paris' Extra Magic Time hosts limited rides per park, which we failed to see prior to arrival. Walt Disney Studios includes the two new rides, whereas Disneyland itself is limited to a princess meet and greet and attractions in Fantasyland, all of which we have stateside. Crush's Coaster had an endless line and constant breaks (it seemed to always be on a delay for maintenance), so unfortunately we never made it on. So major tip going in, if you don't get a two park ticket (like us) and don't have two full mornings, make it a point to get into the park you prefer the Extra Magic Time.
If your budget allows, splurge and stay at the Disneyland Hotel. There's something to be said about a once in a lifetime experience and this kind of trip feels like it. Plus, even though we weren't far, the proximity of this hotel to park is worth the extra. It'll also save on the exhausted traveler walking AND you can have breakfast in the park; we were not told the park would have venues open for breakfast, so had we known we would've dined there!
We were in the park before its early park opening time of 8 and on a rainy Monday, which meant we got a unique experience as they dropped the ropes to open the attractions - we had the park (almost) to ourselves. It was eerie and magical all at once, to relish in the streets and see the details without the crowds, an overwhelming experience to think of the exclusive access we had that so many covet. We absolutely realize how blessed & fortunate we were to be right here, right now. So if you can, stay at least one night, even if it is just to get pictures like this ...
Any Disney fan will agree, it is definitely worth the experience to see how cultures influence each of their parks worldwide. The parks are very similar but yet so unique in their own way. It brought us so much perspective to ride the Small World an ocean away and listen to the words with true relativity to our time here.
There is just one moon
And one golden sun
And a smile means
Friendship to ev'ryone
Though the mountains divide
And the oceans are wide
It's a small world after all
If visiting Disney is on your bucket list, make a stop here, its worth it. It's incredible to see what one man with a vision was able to create, all with one little mouse - that has changed the way the world experiences happiness.


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Immunomodulatory Regimen Provides Long-term Tolerance to ERT in Children With Pompe, Study Shows
by Marta Figueiredo
Adding a preventive short-course immunomodulatory regimen — rituximab, methotrexate, and intravenous immunoglobulins (IVIG) — to enzyme replacement therapy (ERT) safely provides long-term protection from antibodies that can block ERT's effectiveness in children with classic infantile Pompe disease, a study found.
These findings highlight that the benefits of adding this immune tolerance induction (ITI) regimen to ERT outweigh the risks in the youngest group of Pompe patients reported so far, regardless of their cross-reactive immunologic material (CRIM) status. CRIM status determines a patient's risk to develop high and sustained levels of neutralizing antibodies against ERT.
The study, "Benefits of Prophylactic Short-Course Immune Tolerance Induction in Patients With Infantile Pompe Disease: Demonstration of Long-Term Safety and Efficacy in an Expanded Cohort," was published in the journal Frontiers in Immunology.
Alglucosidase alfa, an ERT that delivers a lab-made version of the enzyme missing in people with Pompe disease, is the only approved treatment for this condition. It is marketed by Sanofi Genzyme as Lumizyme in the U.S., and Myozyme in the European Union.
While ERT has led to significant clinical benefits in these patients, not all respond equally well. This is determined by several factors, including the development of antibodies against ERT, neutralizing its effect.
Notably, patients classified as CRIM-negative carry the highest risk of producing high levels of neutralizing antibodies and subsequently responding poorly to treatment.
To prevent or lessen this immune response and provide tolerance to ERT, several immunomodulatory approaches have been combined with ERT.
A previous study showed that a five-week course of rituximab, low-dose methotrexate, with or without IVIG successfully induced tolerance to ERT in CRIM-negative patients with infantile Pompe disease, the most severe form of the disease.
Rituximab and methotrexate are intended to target several immune cells (B-cells and T-cells), preventing the development of anti-ERT antibodies, while IVIG provides passive immunity until the pool of B-cells is reconstituted after treatment.
However, the long-term safety of this strategy has not been evaluated, and safety results of immunomodulation with rituximab are limited.
Importantly, data from several disease settings suggest that rituximab can cause long-term impairment of the immune system (particularly B-cells) and adversely impact vaccine responses.
Here, a team of researchers at Duke University Health System, in North Carolina, along with a colleague at the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, evaluated the long-term safety and effectiveness of this preventive immunomodulatory regimen in the largest and youngest group of CRIM-positive and CRIM-negative children with Pompe disease reported to date.
The study, supported by Sanofi Genzyme and the Lysosomal Disease Network, included participants enrolled in a larger Duke-sponsored observational clinical trial (NCT01665326), which is assessing ERT responses, with or without immunomodulatory treatment, in children with Pompe disease. Recruitment in this trial is still open; more details are available here.
The ITI regimen included four doses of weekly rituximab of 375 mg/m2 (milligrams per square meter) into the bloodstream and three cycles of low-dose methotrexate (0.4 mg/kg), with or without monthly IVIG, at 500 mg/kg.
The team analyzed data from 34 participants — 25 CRIM-negative and nine CRIM-positive — treated with ERT and the immunomodulatory regimen at a median age of 3.5 months and with at least six months of follow-up. As of the study's completion, patients' median age was nearly 6 years (maximum age 12 years).
Results showed that most (88%) patients either did not develop (16 children) or maintained low levels of anti-ERT antibodies (14 participants). As the researchers had no explanation for the poor responses seen in the remaining four CRIM-negative patients, they hypothesized that it may be due to a resistance to rituximab.
In addition, the combined treatment led to meaningful clinical improvements, including a reduced need for mechanical ventilation, a trend toward heart size normalization, improved motor ability, and prolonged survival.
Notably, three CRIM-negative children became free of invasive ventilation at the most recent follow-up, a benefit rarely seen in this patient population. In addition, the team noted that CRIM-negative participants lived significantly longer than those who received ERT only in previous clinical trials. Yet, seven CRIM-negative patients had died by study completion.
All patients showed complete B-cell reconstitution after rituximab discontinuation within a median of 17 weeks, which was maintained for at least four years. Most evaluable patients were able to receive routine vaccinations and showed mostly adequate vaccine responses.
The immunomodulatory regimen was well-tolerated, without any major side effects or treatment-related deaths. Infections were reported in five CRIM-negative patients, but were all resolved with antibiotics and did not lead to treatment discontinuation.
"To our knowledge, this [is] the largest cohort of patients with IPD [infantile Pompe disease] treated with ITI in ERT-naïve settings and the largest cohort of pediatric patients under a year of age evaluated for the safety of rituximab," the researchers wrote.
"The addition of this ITI regimen to ERT is life-saving and our data show that the benefits of adding immune modulation (ITI regimen) outweigh the risks in this setting," the team concluded.
Marta Figueiredo
Marta Figueiredo holds a BSc in Biology and a MSc in Evolutionary and Developmental Biology from the University of Lisbon, Portugal. She is currently finishing her PhD in Biomedical Sciences at the University of Lisbon, where she focused her research on the role of several signalling pathways in thymus and parathyroid glands embryonic development.
Tagged anti-GAA antibodies, B-cells, classic infantile-onset Pompe disease, CRIM status, ERT, immunomodulatory therapy, intravenous immunoglobulins, methotrexate, rituximab, vaccine.
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Dedicated to providing information and a forum for those interested in book self-publishing and print-on-demand (POD) technology.
Writing a book is a challenge, and selecting the right book idea is the first issue you need to deal with. To test how "right" your book idea is, here are ten questions you need to answer before you begin your bookwriting project.
1. Why are you writing this book? In other words, what do you hope to achieve?
2. What is your book about? Before you go any further, it's a question you must answer - and be able to do it in one or two sentences.
3. How are you qualified to write this book? This is actually your bio as it pertains to your book's subject. The answer to this question will demonstrate your knowledge, experience and expertise.
4. Why is this an appropriate and timely topic? What is the big picture? The content? The political or social environment? And why this book, now?
5. Who is your ideal reader? Describe this person demographically and by interests. What do you know about him or her?
6. How will your readers benefit? Why should they read your book? What will they learn or what problem will it solve for them?
7. How will you reach your ideal readers? What do they read and do? Where are likely to buy your book? Amazon.com? A bookstore? A grocery store? From your website?
8. How big is the market? How many potential readers are there? And where are they?
9. What else is out there on this subject? How is your book unique/special/important? How do the competition's books compare to yours.
10. How will you help to promote your book? This is an extremely important question if you are seeking a book publisher. Delineate specific plans. You'll need a plan that allows publishers to assess your willingness and cooperation in promoting your book.
What marketing questions should you be asking as a self-publisher?


The restaurant of the House of Refosco .... A splendid combination of high-quality wines and exquisite culinary delights.
For pleasant continuation of a visit with banquets of various flavours of Istria and Mediterranean food.
Private experiences in Vinakoper's cellar may be made more interesting by hiring various musical bands of all music types. Being at home in Slovenian Istria, we wish to maintain the treasures of folk songs of Slovenian Istria. Musicians from Šavrini will be pleased to present you the songs from our history and tradition – the music of Slovenian Istria.


Jay Schroeder has given birth to, and nurtured, this training system for more than 30 years. Jay develops, perfects, and implements highly sophisticated and very unique training protocols which are used with any type of athlete and/or individual seeking to maximize on his/her quality of life. The top training systems in the history of athletics and typical training genres have been studied and gleaned from in order to create this elite training system. Extensive research and studies have been analyzed and tested thus, "no stone has been left uncovered".
This system and its methodologies have been developed, researched and refined for more than 40 years. EVO UltraFit Training is a system of high intensity to supra-intensity (high-speed, high load, high volume) training routines which target specific physiological traits; those associated with efficient athletic and/or human performance. These training routines are arranged according to their importance for the specific individual being trained. Once entering the EVO UltraFit System, the athlete/client proceeds in a specific order through each of these traits as his or her physiology indicates. This is the only system that utilizes this specific method of progression.


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8 sent to hospitals after fumes on Spirit Airlines flight in Las Vegas
May 8, 2019 / 6:26 PM / CBS/AP
Las Vegas — Eight people were taken to hospitals after a Spirit Airlines flight returned to a Las Vegas airport gate because of fumes or an odor in the cabin, authorities said. The plane had not taken off.
Airline spokesman Derek Dombrowski said 174 passengers and seven crew members aboard Spirit flight 170 returned a little before 9 a.m. Wednesday to a terminal at McCarran International Airport.
The plane had been set to take off for Minneapolis.
Airport spokeswoman Christine Crews said paramedics checked 15 people.
She says one passenger, six aircraft crew members and one medical responder went to hospitals. The medic's health issues were believed to be unrelated to the smell aboard the Airbus A321, which Dombrowski said resembled oil.
The aircraft was taken out of service to be checked by maintenance crews, CBS Las Vegas affiliate KLAS reported.
Spirit Airlines said passengers will be accommodated on other flights and given meals and full refunds or future travel vouchers.
Dombrowski also noted that a Spirit flight from Las Vegas to Tampa, Florida, diverted Sunday to Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport. He says it was because of a sick passenger.
First published on May 8, 2019 / 6:26 PM


DreamFect™ Transfection Reagent uses TEE (Triggered Endosomal Escape) technology to achieve efficient nucleic acid delivery into cells. It contains both a lipidic portion and a cationic portion, allowing the association of nucleic acids with the reagent and permitting nucleic acid delivery into cells. Due to its unique properties, DreamFect™ releases large amounts of DNA into the cytosol, increasing DNA nuclear delivery. Consequently, DreamFect™ is highly efficient at low doses of nucleic acids. Fewer cationic lipids are used and the potential secondary effects are avoided.
Figure 2: DreamFect transfection efficiency in various cell lines. 1x105 cells were transfected with 0.5 μg / well of pEGFP plasmid DNA in 24-well plates. Percentage of transfected cells was measured 24h post transfection by flow cytometry.
Figure 3: Comparison of DreamFect efficiency with other transfection reagents. Cell lines (1x105 cells / well) were transfected with 1 μg of pLuc plasmid DNA and 3 μl of DreamFect Gold reagent per well in a 24-well plate. The other transfection reagents were assayed according to the manufacturer's instructions.


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Five weeks at the top for Dance Monkey
Dance Monkey remains at number one for a fifth week. Stereophonics have their seventh number one album.
Tones & I dances on at the top of the singles chart. Stereophonics get their seventh number one album.
Tones & I holds on for a fifth week at number one with Dance Monkey. She has now matched the five week run of the lsat debut single by an Australian teenager to top the chart, Kylie Minogue's I Should Be So Lucky.
Regard's Ride It is at number two for the fourth time in the last five weeks.
For a long time two new entries in the top ten would have sparked cries of "Why so few?". Since streaming became dominant, it is rare to get as many as two songs going straight into the top ten. This is one of those weeks. The higher of the two comes from Selena Gomez. Lose You To Love Me was released on Wednesday of last week and gained enough sales and streams in two days to enter the chart at number 65. This week, with a full seven days' data, it soars to number three to give Gomez her first top five (and fifth top ten) hit. She has a second new entry with Look At Her Now at number 26.
Post Malone's Circles slips back to number four and Ed Sheeran Camila Cabello and Cardi B are at number five with South Of The Border. Sheeran was named this week as the UK's richest celebrity under thirty. The title was held last year by Adele, but she is now 31 so no longer qualifies. SHe's still stinking rich though.
Fans of Kanye West (and they do exist) have long been promised a new album but were left waiting for an actual release date. As happens fairly frequently now, the wait ended not just with a date but also the release of the album itself. Inevitably, three songs (the maximum number allowed in the chart by a single artist) from the album enter the top forty. The highest of the three is the second song to burst straight into the top ten as Follow God enters at number six. It is joined by Selah at number 19 and Closed On Sunday at 20.
One way for acts to get some free or cheap publicity for a new release is to turn it into a news story. Coldplay found a cheap way of doing that this week by advertising in a local newspaper and making sure the national press got to hear about it. The band released two tracks from their forthcoming album - Orphans, a fairly standard Coldplay song and Arabesque, something a little less mainstream. There are no prizes for guessing which of them has entered the chart. Orphans is at number 27, giving the band their 24th top forty hit.
So, that's six new entries done and we're not finished yet. THe next newcomer comes from three artists I'd gladly never hear from again - AJ Tracey, Not3s and MoStack enter at number 22 with Floss. I assume the title refers to the dance rather than the dental hygiene product. It's rubbish anyway.
While Harry Styles' new song went straight into the upper reaches of the chart last month, his erstwhile bandmate Niall Horan has had to be rather more patient for renewed success. His latest offering, Nice To Meet Ya, enters at number 34 after three weeks outside the top forty. It breaks a two-year absence from the chart for Horan.
Among the challenges often posed to chart watchers is to list all the Welsh acts to have had a number one single, the point being that there are surprisingly few of them. Stereophonics joined that short list in 2005 when Dakota topped the chart for a week almost exactly eight years after their first hit. As with most bands of their ilk, the hit singles dried up years ago but they continue to enjoy success with their albums. That success continues as Kind becomes their seventh number one album.
Stereophonics have now spent a total of eleven weeks at the top of the albums chart. Just 55 acts have spent longer at number one. None of them are Welsh.
Stereophonics lead a crop of new entries at the very top of the chart. As the titles of two of the Kanye West tracks in the singles chart might suggest, his new release Jesus Is King is an overtly Christian album. Whether his UK fans care is another matter. He might have hoped to go to number one but has to be content with an opening position of number two.
Two of the week's new albums come from singers who have been the butt of many jokes - James Blunt and Rick Astley. Blunt has managed to expand his Twitter following beyond fans of his music by gaining a reputation for his sharp wit. He is well aware that many people loathe his music but doesn't really care. There are enough people who do like his music to send his sixth album, Once Upon A Mind, to number three.
Rick Astley achieved his first chart success as part of the Stock, Aitken and Waterman stable whose horrors polluted the chart for so long in the 1980s. His career staged a revival after unwitting internet users had his debut single Never Gonna Give You Up inflicted on them. He enters at number four with a compilation The Best Of Me. It includes his version of When I Fall In Love which was released in 1987 in the expectation that it would be the Christmas number one. Its chances were scuppered when the vastly superior Nat King Cole version was rereleased, thereby depriving the Astley version of some sales.
Despite his choice of stage name, Rex Orange County hails from the Surrey village of Grayshott rather than Florida. He makes his albums chart debut at number five with his third release, Pony.
Foals crash to number 23 after a week at number one with Everything Not Saved Will Be Lost Part II.
Back in June Bruce Springsteen scored his eleventh UK number one album with Western Stars, a collection of songs which featured in his film of the same name. He has now released an album of live versions of those songs and it enters at number eleven.
As well as Bruce Springsteen, three other veteran acts have new albums in the chart. Neil Young, whose chart career began in 1970, enters at number seventeen with Colorado, his 39th studio album. Van Morrison, whose solo career also started in 1970, is at number thirteen with Three Chords And The Truth, studio album number 41. It is the 46th of his albums (including various compilations) to chart higher than his Astral Weeks, widely regarded as one of the best albums of all-time by a British or Irish act. Hawkwind, best known for their single Silver Machine with Lemmy on vocals, are at number 34 with All Aboard The Skylark.
This year has seen a string of releases from various acts under the title Gold. In general, they have missed out on a top forty place. The Bay City Rollers collections is an exception. One of the first boybands to appeal almost exclusively to teenage girls are at number 20, their first top forty appearance since an earlier Greatest Hits set in 2010.
Editors, one of several bands to emerge in the mid-2010s having clearly been listening to Joy Division, enter at number 28 with a Best Of collection entitled Black Gold.
Harry Connick Jr enters at number 29 with a collection of Cole Porter songs. Josh Homme, best known as frontman of Queens Of The Stone Age is at number 33 with Volumes 11 and 12 from his side project Desert Sessions.
CIgarettes After Sex enter at number 36 with their second album, Cry. Australian rock band Airbourne are at number 39 with Boneshaker. For any Australian readers who don't know, England are in the rugby WOrld Cup final tomorrow. Australia aren't.
Published on: 2019-11-01 by BuzzJack.com Suedehead2 || 13702 Views
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What is the rationale for the Torah to mandate animal sacrifice?
Why are there so many types of sacrifices?
What are the parameters of "love your neighbor as yourself"?
Why did Nadab and Abihu deserve to lose their lives?
Why do we have laws of purity and impurity?
What is the nature of holiness?
Why does God legislate family laws and the nature of marriage?
Why do we need the Sabbath and holidays?
What is the purpose of shemittah and Jubilee years?
Why does the Torah need to give tochachah?


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MENA Stocks Could Double By 2014
Arqaam Capital says that the regional corporate bond market will also grow substantially by 2014.
by Meghna Pant
Amidst growing investor concern about the Eurozone, geopolitical tension in the Middle East and a slowdown in India's growth, Riad Meliti, the CEO of Arqaam Capital, an emerging markets specialist investment bank, remains firmly bullish.
In an exclusive interview to Gulf Business, Meliti expressed his optimism about the bounce back of global markets, while revealing what investment classes will perform well in the Middle East.
Meliti believes that we could be at the back-end of the Euro crisis, if the last remaining issues of the Eurozone are resolved, otherwise it could cause bigger problems. "But four years are enough. The Euro resolution in whatever format needs to be put behind us," he says. He anticipates that if the European Central Bank (ECB) becomes more proactive it could hasten the deleveraging of banks, while reducing the refinancing risks of companies around the world.
He adds that although the Arab spring had led to risk aversion in the short-term, the long-term prospects of implementing a consensus government will be significant, since "democracy breeds stability" and is an easier sell on a global market platform.
Slowing growth in emerging markets is also something he's not concerned about. "Even if growth rates fall one per cent, these markets are still growing substantially."
Instead of focussing on the problems, Meliti is looking at the opportunities. "The MENA market has over 1,000 publicly listed stocks, of which there is active research on only around 130. With such depressed valuations, bottom-up fundamental analysis has tremendous scope." He says that despite equity volumes collapsing by 80 per cent in the last three years, the stock market in the region could double investor equity within a 24-month horizon.
Meliti is also of the opinion that regional development of the corporate bond market will present great investment opportunities to foreign institutional investors (FIIs) and high net worth individuals (HNIs). "This market will grow significantly by 2014."
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text:
Experts call on NICE to review TAVI guidelines for aortic stenosis
Leading experts have urged the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) to review its guidelines on the use of transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) for aortic stenosis to include intermediate-risk patients.
Speaking at a plenary session of the PCR–London Valves conference, experts delivered a focused summary of the new European Society of Cardiology (ESC)/European Association for Cardio-Thoracic Surgery (EACTS) guidelines on valvular heart disease (Baumgartner et al, 2017). This included details of how the guidelines have been updated to lower the threshold for intervention with TAVI to patients at intermediate-risk of surgery. Previous guidance stipulated that TAVI should only be considered for those patients with symptomatic aortic stenosis at high risk of surgery (Vahanian et al, 2017).
Dr Helmut Baumgartner, chair of the taskforce for the European Guidelines, has said the new recommendations mark a profound change to the 2012 guidelines. This is largely owing to the number of randomised controlled trials comparing surgical and transcatheter treatments in the last 5 years. These have looked at intermediate- and low-risk patients treat-ed, not just elderly high-risk patients (Leon et al, 2016). He said:
'There is much controversy right now over who should undergo surgery and who should undergo per-cutaneous valve implantation, and this is an area in which we have profound changes in what we recommend and have consequently dedicated a large part of the guide-lines to the choice of intervention in symptomatic aortic stenosis.
'We are now recommending that surgical valve replacement remains the first line of therapy in low-risk patients, and low risk should not only be defined by risk scores, because these have several limitations, but by the lack of frailty and other specific risks for surgery not included in risk scores such as porcelain aorta or sequelae of chest radiation. There are numerous issues that need to be considered before we speak of low-risk patients.'
How NICE guidelines differ
An updated version of NICE's Interventional Procedures Guidelines (IPG), which considers whether procedures are safe and work well enough for wider use in the NHS, was published a month before the ESC/EACTS guidelines (NICE, 2017). At first glance, it appears not to have revised the indication for TAVI beyond the high-risk patient population, unlike the European guidelines. According to a press advisory from Edwards Lifesciences (2017), NICE said additional trials are needed before TAVI could be considered in patients at inter-mediate risk for surgery:
'Based on current data, TAVI is recommended in patients with severe symptomatic aortic stenosis who are, according to the heart team considered unsuitable for conventional surgery because of severe comorbidities.
Should NICE guidelines change?
Approximately 1.5 million people in the UK over 65 years suffer from heart valve disease with aortic stenosis (d'Arcy et al, 2016). This represents 2–7% of those over 65 years (Spaccarotella et al, 2011) and 13% of those over 75 years (Nkomo et al, 2006). For many cardiologists, it is believed that expanding the use of TAVI would enable more patients in the UK to have access to the minimally-invasive therapy, rather than have to undergo open-heart surgery.
According to Dr Bernard Prendergast, Consultant Cardiologist at Guy's and St Thomas Hospital and Course Director/Board Member of PCR London Valves, recent evidence increasingly supports the use of TAVI for intermediate-risk patients. Speaking at the PCR–London Valves conference, he said:
'There is growing evidence in favour of the use of TAVI for the treatment of intermediate-risk patients with severe symptomatic aortic stenosis. This expanded indication in the ESC/EACTS guidelines paves the way for more patients to receive a true alter-native to open-heart surgery.'
As a result, Prendergast emphasised why NICE should update their guidelines to be in line with the rest of Europe:
'We are calling for NICE to review their recent IPG in light of these new ESC guidelines in order to address current inequalities in treatment across the UK, and between the UK and most of Europe.'
There is concern that the NICE guidelines leave UK patients at a disadvantage in the treatment of aortic stenosis com-pared with the rest of Europe. Currently, the UK performs far fewer aortic valve implantations than Germany, France, Norway and Sweden.
Clearing up misconceptions
It was hoped in light of the new ESC/EACTS guidelines that this disadvantage would change. However, when NICE was asked if they will be looking into revising their guidelines to recommend TAVI for aortic stenosis for intermediate-risk patients for the writing of this article, they clarified that their guidelines have actually already been extended beyond the high-risk population.
In response to the expert calls for revision and the critical comments quoted in this article, a spokesperson from NICE requested a correction, stating:
'The new guidance gives standard arrangements for TAVI and does not any longer differentiate between different risk groups. The decision as to which patients are suitable is left to risk assessment by clinicians and the MDT [multidisciplinary team].'
Baumgartner H, Falk V, Bax JJ et al. 2017 ESC/EACTS Guidelines for the management of valvular heart disease. Eur Heart J. 2017;38(36):2739–2791.
d'Arcy JL, Coffey S, Loudon MA et al. Large-scale community echocardiographic screening reveals a major burden of undiagnosed valvular heart disease in older people: The OxVALVE Population Cohort Study. Eur Heart J. 2016;37(47):3515-3522.
Edwards Lifesciences Ltd. Leading Experts Call for Adoption of New ESC/EACTS Guidelines on the Management of Valvular Heart Disease to include Intermediate-Risk Patients in National Protocols [Press Advisory]. Berkshire: Edwards Lifesciences Ltd.
Leon MB, Smith CR, Mack MJ et al. Transcatheter or surgical aortic-valve replacement in intermediate risk patients. N Engl J Med. 2016;374(17):1609-20.
National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. Transcatheter aortic valve implantation for aortic stenosis. Interventional procedures guidance [IPG586]. London: NICE; 2017.
Nkomo VT, Gardin JM, Skelton TN, Gottdiener JS, Scott CG, Enriquez-Sarano M. Burden of valvular heart disease: a population-based study. Lancet. 2006;368:1005-11.
Spaccarotella C, Mongiardo A, Indolfi C. Pathophysiology of aortic stenosis and approach to treatment with percutaneous valve implantation. Circ J. 2011;75(1):11-19.
Vahanian A, Alfieri O, Andreotti F, et al. Guidelines on the management of valvular heart disease (version 2012). Eur Heart J. 2012;33(19):2451-96.
Taken from British Journal of Cardiac Nursing, published October 2017.
Filed under News Tagged with Aortic stenosis, Bernard Prendergast, BJCA, British Journal of Cardiac Nursing, European Association for Cardio-Thoracic Surgery, European Society of Cardiology, Helmut Baumgartner, Interventional Procedures Guidelines, National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, NICE, PCR–London Valves conference, TAVI, Transcatheter aortic valve implantation


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PLEASE NOTE: On August 1, 2014, This Exquisite Forest was closed to new submissions. We hope you continue to enjoy the existing animations. Thank you.
What is This Exquisite Forest?
How does the project relate to exquisite corpse?
What technology was used to build this site?
How do I find my animations?
Why does this site include a Creative Commons license?
Why do only some trees have music?
What does it mean if a tree is "curated"?
What is Tate's involvement in this project?
When and where was the physical installation?
Was my animation be in Tate Modern?
Why doesn't this site work in my browser?
This Exquisite Forest is an online collaborative animation project. From 2012 - 2014, visitors to this site could use an online drawing tool to create a short animation. Other visitors could then build off of that animation, resulting in branching, ever-evolving narratives resembling trees. Chris Milk, Aaron Koblin and Google's Data Arts Team produced the project with Tate.
Exquisite corpse is a creative exercise in Surrealism in which several people compose a sentence or drawing by contributing one word or section at a time. It inspired the name This Exquisite Forest.
There is a difference however, between this project and exquisite corpse. In the latter, people don't know what others have contributed, whereas in this project contributors explicitly know what others are doing and even follow specific instructions from the creator of each tree.
If you contributed an animation before August 1, 2014, you can find it by logging in with your Google account and clicking on your user name at the top right corner of the site.
In the spirit of collaborative creation, work submitted to this site falls under a Creative Commons 3.0 license (Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike). This allows other users to share and adapt your work freely.
Tree creators determined whether or not their tree includes music. As a result, some trees will have music and others do not.
All submissions to curated trees are reviewed by the tree curators, who include the tree creator and anyone whom they have nominated to curate their tree. The curators accept submissions entirely at their own discretion.
Curators will be looking at the quality of the submission, how closely the submitter followed the artist's instructions, and how closely the submission fits with the tree's existing animations. All of the trees in the Tate Modern are curated. Submissions with offensive content will be removed.
Tate approached Chris Milk and Aaron Koblin to devise a collaborative drawing project that could bring artists, Tate audiences, and the wider arts community together to co-create. Artists from Tate's collection started the site's initial trees, and at Tate Modern, the project was presented from July 2012 - July 2013 as a physical experience with large-scale projections of the trees and drawing stations for visitors to make their own contributions.
The physical installation was located in the collection galleries on Level 3 at Tate Modern, and was open for one year beginning on July 23, 2012. Digital drawing stations with Wacom Cintiq24 tablets were open to visitors who wished to contribute near the Level 3 cafe.
Was my animation in Tate Modern?
Over the course of the 12 month installation, Tate Modern featured the trees started by Tate artists. If you contributed to one of these trees, your work did appear on the walls at Tate Modern.
The project was created for the latest Google Chrome browser. For the best experience of the site, you can download it here. A fast computer and broadband internet connection are also recommended.


Take a look at the beer aisle in just about any supermarket and one thing becomes clear, Americans love craft beer! While overall beer sales remained static in 2016, according to the Brewers Association, craft beer sales continue to grow, especially for microbreweries.
The proliferation of new breweries, beer bars, brewpubs and beverage selection is a great thing for beer lovers, but the choices can be overwhelming.
10Best is making it a bit easier by setting out to find our readers' favorites from across the country. To do so, we enlisted the help of a panel of beer industry experts to nominate their favorites in seven different categories.
Now we need you to help crown the winners by voting daily for your favorites now through Monday, March 19 at noon ET. The 10 best winners in each category will be announced on Friday, March 23.
According to the Brewers Association, more than 900 new breweries opened in the United States between mid-2016 and mid-2017, bringing the total to 5,562 with some 2,700 more in planning. With so many new faces in the lineup in the last couple of years, narrowing down the field to just 20 seems a difficult task, but that's just what our panel of beer experts did.
These 20 nominees opened since the beginning of 2016 and are already making a name for themselves in a very competitive industry. Which is your favorite?
Craft beer and good food go together like milk and cookies, a fact that many craft breweries have capitalized on by serving up tasty bites (alongside excellent house-brewed beer) to their hungry fans. These 20 nominees for Best Brewpub had to excel in three areas to make the cut: beer, food and atmosphere.
Another notable trend in the world of craft beer is that consumers are drinking more beer at the very locations where it's brewed. Microbreweries open to visitors tend to grow faster than others, perhaps because beer drinkers love to see how the sausage is made. Which of these 20 breweries offers the best tour experience? Tell us with your vote.
California, the state with the most craft breweries, has 623. Mississippi, ranked 50th, has nine. That's not counting the beer bars, bottle shops, festivals and homebrewing communities popping up all over the nation. What does this mean? It means that no matter where you are in the U.S., good craft beer is likely nearby.
But some destinations excel more than others when it comes to their offerings for fans of the brewski.
It's said we eat with our eyes first, and the same could be said of drinking craft beer. With so many choices on the shelves of beer aisles from coast to coast, it's often the label that determines which beers end up in the shopping cart, and which stay on the shelf. Which of these 20 creative labels would have you reaching for a six pack?
One of the best ways to try new beers and challenge your palate is to attend a beer festival. The number of such festivals on offer grows at seemingly the same rate as the number of breweries, with new options popping up on the calendar each year. These 20 events represent the best of the best.
Unlike a brewery or brewpub, beer bars often boast menus of hundreds of different beers, including dozens of taps and even hard-to-come-by bottles. Many of our 20 nominees focus on local and regional beers, allowing visitors to put their finger on the pulse of the local beer scene without leaving their bar stool.


Address by Prof Russel Botman at the farewell dinner for Prof Edna van Harte, Dean of Military Science, Stellenbosch University.
Address on the role of alumni in the Stellenbosch University Hope Project.
Address delivered before Stellenbosch University Alumni and Friends in the Netherlands on occasion of the launch of the HOPE Project in Amsterdam, 30 October 2010.
Introduction of the Stellenbosch University Hope Project to alumni, Port Elizabeth, 9 October 2010.
Introduction of the Stellenbosch University Hope Project to alumni by the Rector and Vice-Chancellor, 21 August 2010.
Launch of the Hope Project to alumni and friends in Windhoek. The background to the Hope project is explained and reference is made to practical examples of this initiative.
Introduction of the Stellenbosch University HOPE Project to alumni by the Rector and Vice-Chancellor, Durban, 13 November 2010.
Address at the opening of the Stellenbosch University Water Institute, 22 March 2011.