Hat Yai International Airport is a major airport serving southern Thailand. Our Hat Yai International Airport guide provides airport contact details, information on the airport terminal, and offers nearby accommodation options.
The airport is undergoing expansion to accept a 4.5 million passenger capacity by 2018 and a 10 million passenger capacity by 2030.
There is an airport information desk on the first floor of the terminal, near the Domestic Arrivals Hall.
From Hat Yai city centre, make your way to Route 2029. Follow Route 2029 and continue onto Route 4135. Follow Route 4135 to Hat Yai International Airport. The drive time is approximately 30 minutes.
Hat Yai International Airport is located approximately 15km (9 miles) from Hat Yai city, Thailand.
Coach: There is a blue public minibus service that runs from Hat Yai International Airport to Hat Yai Bus Station, with several stops in between. Tickets for this service cost between 20 to 30 baht depending on where you want to go within the city.
Taxi: A taxi desk can be found outside the Arrivals Hall of the terminal, between Gate 7 and Gate 8. The journey from Hat Yai International Airport to Hat Yai city centre will cost approximately 250 baht.
ATMs are located on the first floor of the terminal. There is also a currency exchange counter on the first floor, just outside of the International Arrivals Hall.
There are several restaurants at Hat Yai International Airport and a few small shops selling snacks, drinks and coffee. Dairy Queen and Dunkin' Donuts have locations on site, as well.
Hat Yai International Airport has a selection of souvenir shops and two main duty-free shops: one in the International Departures Hall and one in the International Arrivals Hall.
Left-luggage facilities and a lost property service are available within the terminal. Passengers can contact the airport information desk directly for assistance. Alternatively, passengers can contact the Thai Airways International desk on the first floor or the office of the airline they are travelling with.
Hat Yai International Airport has several prayer rooms (Muslim and Buddhist), a Thai Royal Orchid Business Lounge, a VIP room, medical facilities, a smoking room and a spa within the terminal.
Hat Yai International Airport does not provide any conference facilities for passengers. However, you can access such services at Centara Hotel Hat Yai, which is located 20 minutes away from the airport. The hotel offers several meeting rooms that are fully equipped with projectors, screens, TV and video facilities and Wi-Fi access.
Free Wi-Fi access and phone charging ports are available at Hat Yai International Airport. There is a post office located in the terminal of the airport. Public telephones are also available.
Assistance can be arranged by contacting the airport (tel: +66 7422 7000) or your airline directly.
There is a short-term car park at Hat Yai International Airport. The first hour costs 10 baht, the second hour costs 20 baht, and the third hour costs 35 baht. Parking after 4 hours and up to 24 hours costs approximately 100 baht.
There are many car hire companies available at Hat Yai International Airport, including Alamo, Avis, Budget, Europcar, Hertz, Sixt and Thrifty.


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Amazon warehouse workers in Alabama file to hold unionization vote
SEATTLE — Workers at an Amazon warehouse in Alabama have filed a notice to hold a unionization vote, in what could be a major labor battle against a company that has long opposed the unionization of its workforce.
Employees at a newly opened Amazon facility in Bessemer, Ala., notified the National Labor Relations Board that they want to hold an election to create a bargaining unit that would cover 1,500 full-time and part-time workers. The group seeks to be represented by the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union (RWDSU).
While much of Amazon's warehouse staff in Europe belongs to unions, the company has successfully fought off employees at its U.S. facilities. A small group of equipment maintenance and repair technicians at the company's Middletown, Del., warehouse rejected union representation from the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers in 2014, after a hard-fought battle with the company.
Meanwhile, Amazon logistics employees around the world have voiced concerns about their safety during the coronavirus pandemic over the past few months.
Lawyers for the workers didn't return calls or emails seeking comment. And RWDSU spokeswoman Chelsea Connor declined to comment. A website created by the union encourages Bessemer warehouse workers to join the organizing drive to secure not just better pay, but also improved safety standards.
"We face outrageous work quotas that have left many with illnesses and lifetime injuries," the union said on the site. "With a union contract, we can form a worker safety committee, and negotiate the highest safety standards and protocols for our workplace."
Amazon needs its workers more than ever, giving them leverage to push for safer warehouses
Amazon counters that its warehouses are safe and that it pays a minimum wage of $15 an hour, as well as offering such benefits as health care, vision and dental insurance, spokeswoman Rachael Lighty said in an emailed statement. "We don't believe this group represents the majority of our employees' views."
The effort did win immediate support from Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.).
"All workers are entitled to decent wages and working conditions, which is why I stand with the Amazon warehouse workers in Alabama exercising their constitutional right to form a union," Sanders tweeted. "Mr. Bezos, the wealthiest person in America, must not interfere in this election."
Amazon's warehouse workers sound alarms about coronavirus spread
The Bessemer warehouse is among the newer Amazon facilities. It began operating in March and is one of dozens of new logistics sites the company has opened since the pandemic began to address the surge in online buying caused by consumers' reluctance to shop in person.
The notice of the workers' filing with the labor board offers few details about the effort. In addition to listing the location and number of employees that would be part of the bargaining unit, the filing notes that the union would cover "All hourly full-time and regular part-time fulfillment center employees including leads and learning ambassadors." It would exclude truck drivers, clerical, maintenance and engineering employees, and supervisors, among others.
To file the NLRB notice, the union needed to have cards authorizing the RWDSU to represent workers in collective bargaining signed by at least 30 percent of the proposed negotiating unit, said Rebecca Givan, a labor studies professor at Rutgers University. But she noted that very few unions would file for a union vote without "a very strong majority" of cards signed, or support at the Alabama warehouse from well over 750 workers.
And it's particularly notable that the effort is in Alabama, a state that is seen as hostile to organized labor, Givan said.
"That this is happening in a deeply anti-union state is really bold," Givan said.
Amazon can contest the size and composition of the proposed bargaining unit. And it can raise questions over the authorization cards. Givan anticipates Amazon will use all the tools at its disposal to beat back the union drive.
Read the original article.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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Commissioners OK $965K to preserve 2 farms
Anthony DiMattia @dailydimattia
County commissioners unanimously approved the purchase of conservation easements on two properties in Bedminster and Buckingham at the board's final meeting of the year Wednesday at the Bucks County Visitors Center in Bensalem.
Bucks County will spend about $965,000 to preserve more than 160 acres of farmland in the central and upper parts of the county.
County commissioners unanimously approved the purchase of conservation easements on two properties at the board's final meeting of the year Wednesday at the Bucks County Visitors Center in Bensalem.
The approval pushes the total amount of farmland saved by the Bucks County Agricultural Land Preservation Program ahead of the 18,000-acre threshold, said Rich Harvey, the program's executive director.
It makes Blue Rock farm in Bedminster and Lykon farm in Buckingham the 229th and 230th properties preserved by the county since 1988, Harvey said.
The county will pay $541,014 to split the cost to preserve 90.2 acres of the Blue Rock farm at the intersection of Routes 313 and 113 with the state, the Bucks County Heritage Conservancy and Bedminister Township, Harvey said. The easement for the soybean and timber farm will total $1,362,366, with the county and state paying 39.71%, Bedminister 13.24% and the conservancy 7.34%.
Harvey said it was important to save Blue Rock farm with several retail shops being built within the vicinity of the property. It is the ninth farm preserved in Bedminister.
"This is a great project for all these organizations," Harvey said during the meeting.
The county will pay a $424,200 tab to preserve 70.7 acres of the Lykon farm on Lower Mountain Road with a total cost of $938,400 split 44.73% between the county and state each and 10.54% by the conservancy.
The corn and wheat farm will be the 21st property saved in Buckingham.
The two farms were among nine preserved by the county this year, for a total of more than 600 acres.
Harvey said after the meeting that the goal is to preserve as much land and family farms as possible for an industry that adds about $70 million to the economy each year.
About 500 to 600 acres of farmland is targeted each year, Harvey said.
Along with the economic benefits, preserving the farms provides environment assistance through groundwater recharge and beautification as well as a local source for food to residents, Harvey added.
While most of the preserved farms have been in Central and Upper Bucks, the program has saved notable farms in Lower Bucks like the Styer Orchard in Middletown, Patterson Farm in Lower Makefield and Snipes Farm in Falls, Harvey said.


Holy Saviour Church, Radcliffe Road, Hitchin, Hertfordshire SG5 1QG.
Holy Saviour Church is 10 minutes walk from the railway station and 10 minutes walk from the centre of Hitchin.
Radcliffe Road is one-way (S to N). Street parking is controlled and is not always easy. We recommend you park in Woodside car park (Walsworth Road) – a 5-minute walk from the Church.
Holy Saviour District includes the area of Hitchin known as 'The Triangle' and is primarily residential. Within the District are St Andrew's Church of England Primary School, William Ransom County JMI School, and Hitchin Girls School. There is a good tradition of music and drama in the town, and the Benslow Music Trust, North Herts Music School, the Queen Mother Theatre (home of the Bancroft Players) and Woodside Hall (home of the Thespians) are located in this area.


BESCA run a Competent Person Scheme for solid fuel installations. This means that the work that these installers do is considered to be competent and so there is often no need to involve building control. Your Besca installer will notify the installation through the Besca website. Besca automatically send details of the job through to to your Local Authority Building Control and your installer will give you a certificate for your installation.
Here at Stovesonline we put our customers in contact with local installers. If you are an BESCA trained installer and would like to appear on our installer database please use the link to the application form below.


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Schemes for Urban Poor
Urban Development is a State subject. The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs assists the States / Union Territories (UTs) through its Missions / Schemes in urban areas- Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation 2.0 (AMRUT 2.0), Smart Cities Mission, Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban 2.0 (SBM-U 2.0), Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana-Urban (PMAY-U), Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Urban Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NULM), PM Street Vendor's AtmaNirbhar Nidhi (PM SVANidhi) and schemes under urban transport.
Ministry is implementing a Centrally Sponsored Scheme namely "Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana National Urban Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NULM)" in the statutory towns of the country, to reduce poverty and vulnerability of urban poor households on a sustainable basis. Mission, inter-alia, aims to enabling urban poor to access gainful self-employment and skilled wage employment opportunities. Also, financial assistance is provided to individuals/groups / Self Help Groups (SHGs) of urban poor for setting up gainful self-employment ventures or micro-enterprises. Since 2014-15 till 30th November 2022, more than 13 lakh urban poor have been imparted skill training to enhance their employability, out of which more than 6.78 lakh skill trained have been placed under self and /or wage employment. Loans with the provision of interest subvention have been disbursed to more than 7.8 lakh beneficiaries for self-employment through individual or group micro-enterprises. More than 7.8 lakh Self-Help Groups have been formed, more than 5.36 lakh SHGs have been assisted with Revolving fund and 7.17 lakh loans have been disbursed under SHG bank Linkage Programme for taking up activities for improving incomes. Street Vendor Survey has been completed in 3,307 cities and towns, more than 49.93 lakh street vendors identified and more than 28.06 lakh street vendors have been provided ID Cards. 2,457 Shelters for Urban Homeless have been sanctioned under the Scheme and 1788 are operational.
Ministry is also implementing PM Street Vendor's AtmaNirbhar Nidhi (PM SVANidhi) Scheme since June 01, 2020, to facilitate micro-credit to street vendors in urban areas so that they can restart their businesses which were adversely affected during the Covid-19 pandemic. Under this scheme street vendors may avail a working capital loan of up to Rs. 10,000 followed by loans of Rs 20,000 and Rs. 50,000 in the second and third tranches respectively, on repayment of earlier tranche. As on 08.12.2022, over 38 lakh loans amounting to Rs. 4405 cr. have been disbursed to street vendors across the country.
Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban (SBM-U) was launched on 2.10.2014 and continued till 30.9.2021 with the objectives of (i) achieving 100% Open Defecation Free (ODF) status in all States and Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) (ii) 100% scientific processing of all the municipal waste in the country and (iii) behavior change through Jan Andolan in all statutory towns. The outlay for the Mission was Rs.62,009 crores including Government of India share of Rs. 14,623 crores. The Mission achieved significant levels of success against the declared objectives of the Mission, with massive engagement of citizens across all categories of societies. Under SBM-U, the individual households not having access to toilet were identified and 62,79,304 units of Individual House Hold Latrines (IHHL) were completed against the target of 58,99,637 IHHL Units.
Further, Atal Mission for Rejuvenation & Urban Transformation (AMRUT) 2.0 Mission aims to make cities 'water secure' and provide functional water tap connections to all households in all statutory towns across the country. It also targets universal coverage of sewerage & septage management in 500 AMRUT cities. Both AMRUT & AMRUT 2.0 are reducing the strain on urban poor through provision of basic amenities. The Mission through provision of tap connections is mitigating the hardships & reduces burden of poor. Improved sewerage & septage facilities reduce the disease load, health risks, enhancing the quality of their lives.
This information was given by the Minister of State for Housing and Urban Affairs, Shri Kaushal Kishore in a written reply to a question in Rajya Sabha today.
Tagged as: india, PIB, Schemes for Urban Poor
Status of Country's Defence Exports
Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh says, the ultimate litmus test of good governance is that its benefits should reach the remotest citizen living in the remotest village of India


The latest obesity statistics in UK are alarming. According to the BBC 60% of adults and 30% of children in UK are overweight and 30,000 people die annually from obesity-related illnesses. Britain has 1.5 million adults classed as morbidly obese and weight loss operations and obesity-related hospital admissions have soared in recent years.
Extensive research revealed that obesity, a major risk factor for type 2 diabetes, atherosclerosis, cancer and other chronic diseases, is a pro-inflammatory disease.
We don't suddenly get heart disease, type 2 diabetes, arthritis or cancer. By the time it is diagnosed it may have been developing for many years. We can have a "silent" inflammatory state in our bodies that we are unaware of because initially it gives us no symptoms, though left unchecked can lead to a whole host of inflammatory diseases, which are becoming more prevalent. Obesity can be inflammatory related.
Aloe Vera: A dietary Aloe formula reduced percentage body fat.
Cider Vinegar: A specific concentration of ACV induced a reduction in weight gain in animals treated, whereas other concentrations did not.
Cayenne Pepper: Accelerates the rate of fat loss and helps maintain lean muscle tissue combined with exercise and diet. Helps abdominal fat loss. A topical application to obese mice limited fat accumulation. Red pepper with caffeine leads to reduced calorie intake when individuals are given free access to food.
Chilli: may increase energy expenditure and fat metabolism, reducing obesity and related disorders.
Coconut oil: Can decrease fatty tissue gene expression. Larger increases in muscle and smaller increases in fat tissue. Dietary CO does not cause dyslipidemia and seems to promote a reduction in abdominal obesity. Greater energy expenditure with medium-chain fatty acids (MCFAs) rather than long-chain fatty acids (LCFAs) results in less body weight gain and decreases size of fat deposits as well as having a greater satiating effect than LCFAs.
Flax Seeds: Reduce the glycemic index of food items when added to recipes.
Green Tea: Effective in weight loss and weight maintenance.
Vitamin D: Increased circulating levels of 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) directly associated with weight loss in post menopausal women.


Let's get one thing out of the way: Don't call me a homegirl. I can be your friend. Your bestie. Your woman. I'll even accept casual acquaintance. But if we're cool, and you're a guy, you are not to call me your homegirl. That's an irritating slap in the face.
I can already sense some confusion. After all, the term "homegirl" doesn't mean anything more than a girl who you're cool with. A woman who is down to Earth and probably abstains from drama. A laid back woman whose company you enjoy. Chances are, you've known her for a while and your relationship is solid.
All of that is great. By definition, I am a homegirl…when a woman refers to me as such. When a man introduces me as his homegirl, I get a little offended because I know the other connotation behind the term.
Women do the same thing, too; that's not a big secret. What I noticed, though, is that for guys, those women seldom get to be anything other that a smashable friend. It doesn't matter if romantic feelings evolve. Homegirls never get promoted. And why should they? The guy is getting the best of everything without that pesky commitment. He's winning.
I knew about the homegirl rule long before I found myself being one. Yeah, I fell into the role. No clue how it happened. I must have blinked too long at some point in our friendship. Anyway, he always introduced me to people as his homegirl. Even before I was the homegirl. It always annoyed me in the back of my mind whenever he did it, but I could never put my finger on why. Looking back, it's clear to me.
I was already put in the chill-and-smash box.
Hell, I'm sure I had reserved seating.
I'm not taking anything away from him or ignoring the hand I gave myself in that position. We had a good friendship, and we're still cool today (not that cool, though. I'm not a complete glutton for punishment). But for years I was only allowed to be one thing, to have one purpose. I don't like to be pigeonholed.
So do me and the rest of the female populace who share my views. Don't call us your homegirls. We're better than that.
I enjoyed this new perspective. As a new blogger I also enjoyed checking out your layout. It definitely gives me some ideas. Best wishes and happy writing.


There have been lots of proposed answers to the Fermi Parafox, such as the rare earth hypothesis (discovering any other world with life would falsify this one), berserkers, interstellar travel is impossible or hopelessly impractical, and many others. Personally, I think the most likely scenario is simply that intelligent life is very rare, and that the nearest extraterrestrial civilization may be millions light years away. Too far away for any of them to have reached us yet.
Of course, there are more disturbing alternatives. It might be in the nature of intelligent life to destroy itself, we are living on borrowed time, and the possibility of us encountering another intelligent species in our mutually brief existences is remote. Or intelligent life might be pervasive, and we're staring right at it, but like a troupe of monkeys unable to recognize the significance of buildings and machinery, we might be mistaking their technology for natural phenomena.
So, it won't surprise me much if, in the next few decades, we find evidence of life on an exoplanet, or possibly even in our solar system. But I'll be pretty surprised if it attempts to start a conversation with us.
This entry was posted in Zeitgeist and tagged Aliens, Extraterrestrial life, Fermi paradox, Search for extraterrestrial intelligence, Seth Shostak, Space. Bookmark the permalink.
16 Responses to We might find extraterrestrial life soon, but intelligent life?
Imagine if life evolved here in such an abhorrent way that no one wants to visit. Having to steal something/someone else's protein (by killing them) just to survive might just be considered ghastly.
We don't know how universal evolutionary principles are, but I suspect that any intelligent species would have had to fight its way to the top of its food chain. If not for our predators arm race since the Cambrian, it's questionable that we'd be where we are now.
Now, they may have reached the point where they're machine or engineered life, and have no interest in biospheres anymore. But if they're no longer curious, then it seems unlikely they'd cross interstellar space to any large extent. That's a possibility I didn't mention. It might be in the nature of intelligent life to stagnate, lose interest in the outside universe, and simply retreat into virtual fantasies.
Oh, nice theory. Unless there's some way of going seriously faster than light i can see this being a viable option for any species. Generation ships are an odd prospect.
I agree on generation ships. They seem profoundly unlikely.
It's not just intelligent life you need for space travel, it's presumably social, intelligent, recursive* tool-using and tool-creating civilizations. We're only going off of a single example here, but my guess is that that's the key filter there – you don't get a lot of intelligent species that develop "technology" capable of space flight and actually go out and do it, and those that do it are pretty heavily separated in space and time.
* Emphasis on the "recursive", tools-upon-tools creation factor there. Chimpanzees and their immediate ancestors have existed for around a million years or so (back when their common ancestor diverged into what became Chimps and Bonobos), are social creatures, use tools, and appear to pass the knowledge of tools socially to their children, but they do not appear to create tools or seriously improve upon them over time.
Our first evidence of them may be when we stumble on one of their probes on Mars or in the asteroid belt.
If they passed through the solar system, say, ten million years ago, then the asteroid belt seems the most likely place any remnants would be (resources without gravity wells!).
That's a good point. A lot depends on how we define intelligence. I define it, perhaps anthropocentrically, as one capable of producing a technological civilization. Of course, by that measure, we've only qualified for an infinitessimally small time, at least on geological or astronomical time scales.
I agree on the asteroid belt being a more likely location. Given just how vast the belt is, we might never find any probes unless they signal their existence to us, particularly if they're nanoscale. Another possibility is the Kuiper belt, which is dramatically larger, although it's distance from the energy generating sun might make it less likely.
Good points on the tiny probes, which could be all over the solar system and we'd never be the wiser (how would you even detect them if they're not putting off noticeable waste heat and radio signals?). Even a probe that was five meters by five meters in size would be difficult to detect if you weren't doing a dedicated asteroid search if it wasn't putting off a lot of waste heat or broadcasting a detectable radio signal.
I would be happy if extraterrestrial life was even microbial, if it where even small furry creatures so much the better, if it was intelligent life I'd be ecstatic as long as it didn't try to convert me as soon as we made contact, I'd be very disappointed by deists form another world.
Deism might be one thing. One of the ancient Greek philosophers pointed out that if horses had religion, their gods would look like horses. The aliens might try to convert you to worship of the great gorn in the sky.
I always thought the "then why aren't they here?" counter made no sense. I mean, we consider ourselves intelligent, but we haven't gotten very far.
The reasoning of the Fermi Paradox goes something like this. We have only had civilization (using the broadest sense of the term) for about 10,000 years. This is a blip in cosmic time (0.000072% of the age of the universe). Consider where we might be in another 10,000 years (assuming we don't destroy ourselves), or 100,000 years, or a million. Now consider that there are tens of billions of stars in our galaxy older than our sun, where species that started before us would have had millions of years head start.
If there are thousands of civilizations out there, and if even the slowest forms of interstellar travel are possible, then it doesn't make much sense that they aren't here, or been here before.
As for: "if they had evolved, they should have been here long ago." Well, if Magellan and Columbus had already been ethnologists like those pride themselves today on their prowess in leaving the last primordial cultures on earth undisturbed, then no, these even more advanced being might not care to shock us and change the path of our natural development. "Indeed, we should have been colonized many times over." Only, again, if colonization is a category that intelligent aliens really think in after tens of thousands of years of more advancement than we have to our credit. "But there's no evidence of that having happened." … Sorry, but how do YOU know??? You should read about the African Dogon tribe that has an ancient religion about a star system (today known as Sirius) where there is a smaller star circling the big one that we can see. Only in the last forty or so years has modern astronomy ascertained that this star system actually behaves as the Dogon "knew" since centuries (or longer). This is the strongest contender, which is why I refer to it here, for an earlier landing of alien starships. You can dismiss even Greer's Disclosure Project as the work of cranks, but these people know stuff that even Galileo or later Hubble could not yet observe!
The problem with the they-just-don't-want-to-disturb-us arguments is that it only works for one or a few civilizations and then only for a limited period of time. If there are hundreds or thousands of civilizations in the galaxy, the idea that such a rule would hold across all of those civilizations across millions, or even billions of years seems pretty implausible to me.
I'll admit to not being familiar with the tribe you cite, but from what I've read, none of these claims for ancient alien visits have historically borne skeptical scrutiny. I was quite taken with the claims when I was younger (I read Chariots of the Gods in the 70s), but repeated debunking doesn't incline me to spend time and effort looking into them now. You'll probably regard me as closed minded, but it would take a sizable portion of the archaeological field buying into it before I would invest the time and energy.


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West Catholic ties record with 5th straight title, defeats Swan Valley, 34-7, in D5 final
By: Tom Markowski, November 25, 2017, 7:55 pm
Detroit – Move over East Grand Rapids and Farmington Hills Harrison. You've got company.
The program at Grand Rapids West Catholic has become a mini-dynasty recently. The Falcons defeated Saginaw Swan Valley, 34-7, in the Division 5 final on Saturday at Ford Field to become the third team to win five consecutive Michigan High School Athletic Association titles.
Harrison won its five straight title in Class A/Division 3 (1997-2001). East Grand Rapids strung its five titles, all in Division 3, from 2006-10.
West Catholic also won the 2010 Division 5 title and reached the final in 2012.
On the other end, this was the first final for Swan Valley (12-2).
Senior Gaetano Vallone became the first Grand Rapids area quarterfinal to start in three consecutive state championship games. Travis Smith of Ithaca also accomplished this feat (2011-13) in Division 6.
Vallone threw two touchdown passes in the first half, 32 yards to Zack Lee and 28 yards to Jack Schichtel, to lead the Falcons to a 24-0 lead at halftime.
Swan Valley was held to 110 yards in the first half and West Catholic's defense also produced a touchdown as Zaavon Scott returned an interception 28 yards for a touchdown.
"I'm proud of the way our guys came out and seized the moment," West Catholic coach Joe Hyland said. "We're well aware of the history. But I'm happy the (with) the way we came out focused.
"Two things about (the streak). Everyone one of us is proud to be a part of the tradition. Without question we are very proud. At the same time this game is contained. It has nothing to do with last year.
"Experience has been a big advantage for us."
Vallone was on in this game. He was 10-of-14 passing for 197 yards and two touchdowns. He had 17 carries for 60 yards and one touchdown.
West Catholic (12-2) punted twice and gained 296 yards to 265 for Swan Valley.
Turnovers proved to be a factor. West Catholic had none and the Falcons intercepted three passes, tow by Scott.
West Catholic led 34-0 before Brock Leinberger (10 carries, 67 yards) scored on a 10-yard run on the last play of the third quarter.
"That one kind of got away from us a little bit," Swan Valley coach Kevin Gavenda said. "That's not who we are.
"Vallone) can do a little bit of everything. He can run the ball and he can pass the ball. He's been in the system for three years. He knows that system.
"We started six juniors on defense and six on offense. We're excited about our future. This program isn't going anywhere."
Vallone completed a remarkable career at West Catholic and is well aware of what he and his teammates have accomplished.
"We work hard every day," he said. "To be the only Grand Rapids (area) quarterback to accomplish that, I'm very proud of. The experience helped me a lot. Ford Field is a big stage."


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Determining transmission latency in network devices
A method, system and storage medium for determining a transmission latency in a network device. The method includes receiving a plurality of data packets in the network device, determining a packet age value for each received packet, generating at least one latency value from a plurality of the determined packet age values; and determining the transmission latency of the network device based on at least one generated latency value. The system includes a processor subsystem adapted to determine a packet age value for each packet received in the network device, to generate at least one latency value from a plurality of the determined packet age values, and to determine the transmission latency of the network device based on at least one generated latency value. The storage medium provides software that, if executed by a computing device, will cause the computing device to perform the foregoing operations.
Kuc, Zenon (San Jose, CA, US)
H04L12/56
20090046690 HIGH-SPEED DIGITAL INTERFACE TRANSCEIVER AND METHOD OF SUPPLYING BI-DIRECTIONAL COMMUNICATION PROCESS ON HIGH-SPEED DIGITAL INTERFACE DEVICE February, 2009 Hsieh
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20080112362 IP LAYER-HANDOFF USING MOBILITY DOMAINS AND IP CACHING May, 2008 Korus
20090135926 JOINT CONSTELLATION MULTIPLE ACCESS May, 2009 Tsouri et al.
20100067410 METHOD FOR TRANSMITTING UPLINK SOUNDING REFERENCE SIGNAL FOR LTE SYSTEM March, 2010 He et al.
20080198822 Technique for Negotiating on Behalf of a Mobile Ambient Network within a Multi-Operator Wireless Communication System August, 2008 Magnusson et al.
20060233201 Adaptive encoding of digital multimedia information October, 2006 Wiesenthal
20070076635 Mechanism to implement a layer 2 gateway April, 2007 Tallet
20080298386 Polling December, 2008 Fiatal
20070115860 End-to-end test and diagnostic management system May, 2007 Samele et al.
JAROENCHONWANIT, BUNJOB
CHRISTOPHER & WEISBERG, P.A. (Plantation, FL, US)
1. A method for determining a transmission latency in a network device, the method comprising: receiving a plurality of data packets in the network device; determining a packet age value for each received packet; generating at least one latency value from a plurality of the determined packet age values; and determining the transmission latency of the network device based on at least one generated latency value.
2. The method of claim 1, the generating of the at least one latency value further comprising: selecting a plurality of packet age values; and generating the at least one latency value from the selected packet age values.
3. The method of claim 2, wherein the selecting a plurality of packet age values further comprising: selecting a plurality of packet age values corresponding to received packets transmitted by the network device to a remote device.
4. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one latency value comprises a minimum latency value of the plurality of the determined packet age values.
5. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one latency value comprises a maximum latency value of the plurality of the determined packet age values.
6. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one latency value comprises a mean latency value of the plurality of the determined packet age values.
7. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one latency value comprises a median latency value of the plurality of the determined packet age values.
8. The method of claim 1, further comprising: storing the determined transmission latency of the network device.
9. The method of claim 1, further comprising: communicating the determined transmission latency of the network device to a remote source.
10. The method of claim 1, wherein the network device comprise a network switch.
11. A system to determine a transmission latency in a network device, the system comprising: a processor subsystem adapted to determine a packet age value for each packet received in the network device, to generate at least one latency value from a plurality of the determined packet age values, and to determine the transmission latency of the network device based on at least one generated latency value.
12. The system of claim 11, wherein the processor subsystem is further adapted to select a plurality of packet age values, and to generate the at least one latency value from the selected packet values.
13. The system of claim 12, wherein the processor subsystem is further adapted to select a plurality of packet age values corresponding to received packet transmitted by the network device to a remote device.
14. The system of claim 11, wherein the at least one latency value comprises at least one of a minimum latency value, a maximum latency value, a mean latency value and a median latency value of the plurality of the determined packet age values.
15. The system of claim 11, wherein the processor subsystem comprises a processing unit and a memory implemented within the processing unit to store instructions for the processing unit to determine the transmission latency of the network device based on the at least one generated latency value.
16. The system of claim 11, further comprising: a memory subsystem in communication with the processor subsystem and adapted to store the determined transmission latency of the network device.
17. The system of claim 11, further comprising: a communication subsystem adapted to communicate the determined transmission latency of the network device to a remote source.
18. The system of claim 11, wherein the network device comprise a network switch.
19. A storage medium that provides software that, if executed by a computing device of a network device, will cause the computing device to perform the following operations: determining a packet age value for each received packet in the network device; generating at least one latency value from a plurality of the determined packet age values; and determining the transmission latency of the network device based on at least one generated latency value.
20. The storage medium of claim 19, wherein the storage medium is implemented within a processing unit of the computing device.
Embodiments of the invention relate to network devices. More particularly, embodiments of the present invention are directed to a system and method for computing transmission latencies in and between network devices.
Computer networks, such as the Internet, are in wide-spread use today. These networks provide network devices, namely devices connected to the network such as personal computers, servers, or the like, with the ability to communicate with each other. Network devices communicate with each other by converting the data to be communicated into data packets and transmitting the packets across the network. In a typical network, however, a direct physical connection between two devices is often not possible due to the large number of devices using the network. As such, the packets may pass through several intermediate network devices such as routers, switches etc. which direct and help deliver the packets to their intended destination network device.
When large number of network devices are present in a network, at any given time immense numbers of packets may be in transit across the network. As such, the network may become congested at one or more points along the path of the data packets, most often at the switching or routing stations tasked with redirecting the packets. A delay at any given point can result in an overall delay, or latency, in the transmission time of a packet. This problem becomes particularly acute in case of time-sensitive transmissions of data, such as phone conversations or live video telecasts. It is therefore highly desirable for the location of such latencies to be determined quickly so that the latency can be effectively dealt with, such as by fixing the problems at the latency site or seeking alternate routes to bypass the latency site.
Unfortunately, existing methods do not adequately provide a solution to the foregoing problem. One widespread existing method is by use of utility software, such as PING, running on a CPU of a network device. In a typical scenario, the transmitting network device transmits a PING-packet to a recipient network which then returns the packet to the transmitting network device. The transmitting network device then compares the travel time of the PING-packet to a predetermined time threshold to determine if any latencies exits in the path. While methods such as PING are effective in determining the existence of a latency, they do not provide the location of the latency, such as a congested switch or router responsible for the latency so that the congested site(s) can be tended to, or bypassed, to reduce the overall latency in the transmissions.
Accordingly, there is a need to determine locations of transmission latencies for network devices along the transmission path of data packets in a network.
This invention can be regarded as a method for determining transmission latency in a network device. The method includes receiving a plurality of data packets in the network device, determining a packet age value for each received packet, generating at least one latency value from a plurality of the determined packet age values; and determining the transmission latency of the network device based on at least one generated latency value.
This invention can also be regarded as a system to determine transmission latency in a network device. The system includes a processor subsystem adapted to determine a packet age value for each packet received in the network device, to generate at least one latency value from a plurality of the determined packet age values, and to determine the transmission latency of the network device based on at least one generated latency value.
This invention can also be regarded as a storage medium that provides software that, if executed by a computing device, will cause the computing device to perform the following operations: determining a packet age value for each received packet in a network device, generating at least one latency value from a plurality of the determined packet age values; and determining the transmission latency of the network device based on at least one generated latency value.
FIG. 1 is an exemplary network environment in which the present invention may be practiced.
FIG. 2 further illustrates a network device used in exemplary network environment shown in FIG. 1.
FIG. 3 is a flow chart illustrating the operations of an embodiment of the present invention.
FIGS. 4A-B further illustrate the operations of the present invention shown in FIG. 3.
FIG. 5 is a flow chart further illustrating the operations of an embodiment of the present invention shown in FIG. 3.
Embodiments of the invention generally relate to a system and method for computing transmission latencies between network devices. Herein, the invention may be applicable to a variety of wired and/or wireless networks such as a local area network (LAN), wide area network (WAN) such as the Internet and the like.
Certain details are set forth below in order to provide a thorough understanding of various embodiments of the invention, albeit the invention may be practiced through many embodiments other than those illustrated. Well-known logic and operations are not set forth in detail in order to avoid unnecessarily obscuring this description.
In the following description, certain terminology is used to describe features of the invention. For example, the term "network device" includes any device adapted to process data. Examples of network devices include, but are not limited or restricted to a server, computer, personal digital assistant (PDAs), voice-over-IP (VoIP) telephone, or the like. A "switching device" is any device adapted to transfer information received at an ingress port.
The term "software" generally denotes executable code such as an operating system, an application, an applet, a routine or even one or more instructions. The software may be stored in any type of memory, namely suitable storage medium such as a programmable electronic circuit, a semiconductor memory device, a volatile memory (e.g., random access memory, etc.), a non-volatile memory (e.g., read-only memory, flash memory, etc.), a floppy diskette, an optical disk (e.g., compact disk or digital versatile disc "DVD"), a hard drive disk, tape, or any kind of interconnect (defined below).
With reference to FIG. 1, an exemplary network environment 100 is shown in which the present invention may be practiced. As shown in FIG. 1, the network environment 100 includes a transmitting network device 101, such as a personal computer, which communicates with a recipient network device 102 via the network 103. As described above, the network devices 101 and 102 communicate with each other by converting the data to be communicated into data packets 26, such as data packets P-1 through P-N (N>1), and transmitting the data packets 26 across the network 103. In a typical network, such as the exemplary network 103, the data packets 26 may pass through several intermediate network devices such as switching devices 104, which direct and help deliver the packets to their intended destination network device, such as the recipient network device 102. For simplicity, only two network devices 101 and 102, and four switching devices 104 (switching device_1 through switching device_4) are shown in FIG. 1. In a typical network 103, at any given time immense numbers of data packets 26 from various transmitting network devices 101 are in transit across the network 103 and may cause congestion at one or more points along the path of the data packets 26, such as at any of the switching devices 104 tasked with redirecting the data packets 26. A delay at any given point can result in an overall delay, or latency, in the transmission time of a packet 26.
FIG. 2 illustrates an exemplary switching device 104, such as switching device_2 which receives the transmitted data packets 26 from switching device_1 and in turn transmits them to switching device_3 en-route to the recipient network device 102. For simplicity only one ingress path 29a into and one egress path 29b out of each switching device 104 are shown although it is understood that each switching device 104 may have numerous ingress and egress paths from and to numerous switching devices 104. As shown in FIG. 2, each switching device 104 further includes a processor subsystem 20 in communication with a switching fabric 25.
As described in greater detail in conjunction with FIGS. 3-5 below, the switching fabric 25 is adapted to receive data packets 26 via the ingress path 29a and based on instructions received from the processor subsystem 20 to either transmit data packets 26 via egress path 29b or to drop data packets 26, as symbolically represented by drop path 29c. The processor subsystem 20 comprises a processor 21 in communication with a memory 24 and a clock 23. The clock 23 may be external or internal to the processor 21 as shown in FIG. 2. The processor 21 further includes a logic control 22 configured to implement the latency determination functions ascribed to the switching device 104 as described below in conjunction with FIGS. 3-5.
The overall series of operations of the present invention for determining a transmission latency of the switching device 104 will now be discussed in greater detail in conjunction with FIG. 3. As shown, the process begins in block 300 and proceeds to block 310 in which data packets 26 are received in the switching device 104, such as in the switching fabric 25 via path 29a. Next, in block 320, a packet age value is determined for each received data packet 26 as described in greater detail in conjunction with FIGS. 4A-B below. Next, in block 330 at least one latency value is generated from the determined packet age values as described below and in greater detail in conjunction with FIG. 5 below. Next, in block 340, the transmission latency of the switching device 104 is determined based on the latency values generated in block 330. The flow then proceeds to block 350 in which the overall process ends.
FIGS. 4A-B further illustrate the operations of block 320 of FIG. 3 for determining a packet age value for each of the received data packets 26. As shown in FIG. 4A, each of the received data packets 26 is time-stamped with an ingress time 26a by the clock 23, which corresponds to the time when each data packet 26 was received in the switching device 104. Next, as shown in FIG. 4B, when the time comes for each data packet 26 to egress the switching device 104, it is given an egress time 26b by the clock 23. The processor 21 is adapted to then determine an age value 26c for each data packet 26 by determining the time difference between the ingress time 26a and the egress time 26b. Next, if the age value 26c for a data packet 26 is less than a predetermined threshold, then the data packet 26 is transmitted via the egress path 29b, as shown in FIG. 2. If the age value 26c for a data packet 26 is not less than a predetermined threshold, then it is deemed that too long a time period has lapsed during the stay of the data packet 26 in the switching device 104 and therefore the data packet 26 is dropped, as symbolically represented by drop path 29c in FIG. 2. Suitably, the clock 23 used in conjunction with the present invention is adapted to provide a resolution corresponding to a clock having a precision of 32-bits or more when time-stamping the ingress time 26a and egress time 26b for each data packet 26.
FIG. 5 further illustrate the operations of block 330 of FIG. 3 for generating a latency value from the determined packet age values 26c of the data packets 26. As shown, the process begins in block 500 and proceeds to block 510 in which a minimum latency value is determined for the packet age values 26c that were transmitted by the switching device 104 via the egress path 29b. Next, in block 520, a maximum latency value is determined for the packet age values 26c that were transmitted by the switching device 104 via the egress path 29b. Next, in block, 530, a mean latency value is determined for the packet age values 26c that were transmitted by the switching device 104 via the egress path 29b. Next, in block 540, a median latency value is determined for the packet age values 26c that were transmitted by the switching device 104 via the egress path 29b. Next, in block 550, a minimum latency value is determined for the packet age values 26c that were either transmitted via the egress path 29b, or dropped by the switching device 104. Next, in block 560, a maximum latency value is determined for the packet age values 26c that were either transmitted via the egress path 29b, or dropped by the switching device 104. Next, in block 570, a mean latency value is determined for the packet age values 26c that were either transmitted via the egress path 29b, or dropped by the switching device 104. Next, in block 580, a median latency value is determined for the packet age values 26c that were either transmitted via the egress path 29b, or dropped by the switching device 104. The flow then proceeds to block 590 for returning to block 330 of FIG. 3. It should be noted that the foregoing process blocks 510 through 580 were described to provide a list of available process options to be used by the present invention in determining a transmission latency of the switching device 104, and that embodiments of the present invention may utilize all or only a selected subset of the above-described operations in determining a transmission latency of the switching device 104. Suitably, processor subsystem 20 is adapted to select a sample set of packet age values 26c and to perform the generating of a latency value from the selected sample set.
Returning to block 340 of FIG. 3, a transmission latency of the switching device 104 is then determined, such as in the form of a transmission latency value, based on the latency values generated in block 330 as described in conjunction with FIG. 5 above. Suitably, the memory 24 shown in FIG. 2 is adapted to store the transmission latency value associated with the transmission latency of the switching device 104. The switching device 104 is also suitably adapted to communicate the determined transmission latency of the switching device 104 to a remote source, such as to a user or another network device, such as by responding to a polling operation. Suitably, the storage medium of memory 24 provides the necessary software that, if executed by the processor subsystem 20, will cause the processor subsystem 20 to perform the foregoing operations described in conjunction with FIGS. 3-5. The storage medium may also be suitably implemented within the processor 21 of the processor subsystem 20.
One advantage of the foregoing feature of the present invention over the prior art is that by determining locations of transmission latencies for network devices along the transmission path of data packets in a network, more timely and effective approaches can be undertaken to reduce the latency in transmissions to a destination network device. For example, referring to FIG. 1, a transmitting network device 101 in an attempt to communicate with recipient network device 102, first transmits a series of data packets 26 such as P-1 through P-N to the switching device_1. The switching device_1 then determines that perhaps the optimal way to reach recipient network device 102 is through switching device_2 and switching device_3, respectively, and therefore forwards the data packets 26 to the switching device_2. The foregoing path to recipient network device 102, however, has suddenly become congested and using the prior art PING methods does not reveal the exact location of the congestion. By using the embodiments of the present invention, it can be determined that for example the switching device_2 is the source of the latency and efforts can be undertaken immediately to reduce the latency in transmission from the network device 101 to recipient network device 102. These efforts may include a) alleviating the congestion at the switching device_2 such as by notifying a system administrator of the switching device_2, or b) having the switching device_1 select another path that bypasses the switching device_2, such as going through the switching device_4 to reach the switching device_3 and the recipient network device 102.
It should be noted that the various features of the foregoing embodiments were discussed separately for clarity of description only and they can be incorporated in whole or in part into a single embodiment of the invention having all or some of these features.
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text:
By Todd R. Michaelis ('90) in the Fall 2004 Issue
J. Ryan Moody
Despite being born with spina bifida, J. Ryan Moody, '00, has not let the congenital defect intrude on his passion for music. When he began piano lessons at age 7, Moody excelled, even though he used a wheelchair and could not reach the piano pedals.
By the fourth grade he was playing piano for elementary school talent shows and by age 10 had memorized the music to Saturday's Warrior. He also expanded his musical horizons by learning the violin and realizing he had perfect pitch.
"I started tuning the violin to the piano and told my mother the piano was flat," he says. "She was momentarily puzzled, but she stopped playing and told me to turn away from the piano. She played one note and asked me what it was. This was repeated several times, and I got every note correct."
At BYU, Moody's musical attention took two directions: performing and producing. He recently collaborated with Emmy-winning composer Sam Cardon, '93, to create a CD, Sunshine from My Soul,an assortment of Church songs and hymns arranged by Moody.
Read more at jryanmoody.com


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text:
Dolin ist eine kleine, in Nordwest-Südost-Richtung lang gestreckte Insel in der Kvarner-Bucht in Kroatien. Sie liegt an der engsten Stelle nur etwa 300 Meter von der Insel Rab entfernt, von der sie durch den Kanal von Barbat (Barbatski kanal) getrennt ist. Die etwa 9 km lange Insel ist teils bewaldet, teils mit Sträuchern versehen. Am Nordende der Insel steht ein Leuchtturm, der die Einfahrt zum Stadthafen Rab kennzeichnet.

Weblinks

 Insel Dolin auf mein-kroatien.de

Einzelnachweise

Insel (Europa)
Insel (Kroatien)
Insel (Adriatisches Meer)
Geographie (Gespanschaft Primorje-Gorski kotar)

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
New Music. | "Infrared" | Pusha T.
In Audiorotic by Niki Gatewood May 31, 2018 Leave a Comment
Art is meant to elicit an emotional response. Pusha T, is its breathing personification. Recently, the G.O.O.D. Music president dropped his latest effort, Daytona. The seven-track collection — executively produced, in its entirety by Kanye West — made Music stop!
Candid creativity, thrusted forward with a King's pen, caused some rappers to question their inherent validity. On "Infrared," one of Pusha T's poignant tracks, his truth seemingly provoked a scathing response from a Hip-Hop peer. Do, listen:
"…It was written like Nas, but it came from Quentin / At the mercy of a game where the codes is missing / When the CEO's blinded by the glow; it's different / Believe in myself and the Coles and Kendricks / Let the sock puppets play in their roles and gimmicks, shit / Remember Will Smith won the first Grammy? / And they ain't even recognize Hov until "Annie" / So I don't tap dance for the crackers and sing Mammy…" – PUSHA T
Niki Gatewood


Plot: Matias (Colin Woodell) loves his girlfriend, but because she is deaf, he struggles to communicate with her. He tried to learn sign language with little success, so now he is working on an app that translates his speech into sign language videos, for quick and effective online conversations. His progress has been slow, mostly due to his less than up to date equipment, but he recently acquired a new laptop and since then, he has made up a lot of ground. Even so, he and his girlfriend continue to have tension, to the point she skips out on an online game night with their friends, who plan to play some Cards Without Humanity. As the night progresses, it becomes that clear that whoever owned the laptop before Matias was involved in some strange things and now, is determined to reclaim the laptop's contents. But is this just some kind of sick prank or are Matias and his friends in real danger?
Entertainment Value: This sequel continues the gimmick of the first Unfriended, which is to confine most of the movie's duration to a computer screen, while a group of friends cope with some unknown menace. The first movie dealt with a supernatural element, but in Dark Web, the threat is hackers and rich sadists, though the end result is the same, a bland and rather forgettable experience. I think this installment is more kinetic and has some unintentional humor that adds some spice, but otherwise, there's not much here to praise. The narrative is ridiculous, with omnipotent hackers and deep web conspiracies brought to life, all played as sincere and believable, which of course adds some laughs. The highlight has to be when a five second Photoshop session yields a doctored image that is expected to not only scare our lead, but convince us it would hold up in court. This is hilarious stuff and if the entire movie had been this campy, it might have been a fun ride, but instead this is mostly filler and a test to see how many times a username/password entry can be shown on screen. This one is dull for the most part and while some scenes are hilariously awful, Dark Web is just not a fun or scary movie and once again hopes the gimmick will be enough.
No nakedness. This is a rare R rated movie from tween horror empire Blumhouse, but the film does little to earn it. There's some brief bursts of violence and some minor bloodshed, but not much. I did like the concept of one scene that involved a swatting inspired sequence, but even that was toned down here. Even so, there's a little blood involved, which is a surprise from Blumhouse. The dialogue is basic and forgettable, with some fun hacker speak thrown in at times. But aside from hip internet buzzwords, Dark Web is unable to muster much in terms of fun lines or memorable exchanges. The "villain" is a total douche and that is kind of fun, but aside from some whiny moments, even that isn't pushed to the full entertainment potential. As for craziness, a few of the hacker moments are so over the top, it adds some unintentional humor, but otherwise this is a fairly bland teen aimed horror flick. If Dark Web had embraced how ludicrous the hacker elements were and dialed up that aspect, while keeping the serious tone, this would have been a much more memorable picture.
Use this Amazon link to purchase Unfriended: Dark Web (or anything else) and help support my site!


text:
package com.amazonaws.services.elasticmapreduce.model;

import java.io.Serializable;

/**
 *

 * Configuration defining a new instance group.
 *

 */
public class InstanceGroupConfig implements Serializable, Cloneable {

    /**
     *

     * Friendly name given to the instance group.
     *

     */
    private String name;
    /**
     *

     * Market type of the Amazon EC2 instances used to create a cluster node.
     *

     */
    private String market;
    /**
     *

     * The role of the instance group in the cluster.
     *

     */
    private String instanceRole;
    /**
     *

     * Bid price for each Amazon EC2 instance in the instance group when
     * launching nodes as Spot Instances, expressed in USD.
     *

     */
    private String bidPrice;
    /**
     *

     * The Amazon EC2 instance type for all instances in the instance group.
     *

     */
    private String instanceType;
    /**
     *

     * Target number of instances for the instance group.
     *

     */
    private Integer instanceCount;
    /**
     * <note>
     *

     * Amazon EMR releases 4.x or later.
     *

     * </note>
     *

     * The list of configurations supplied for an EMR cluster instance group.
     * You can specify a separate configuration for each instance group (master,
     * core, and task).
     *

     */
    private com.amazonaws.internal.SdkInternalList<Configuration> configurations;
    /**
     *

     * EBS configurations that will be attached to each Amazon EC2 instance in
     * the instance group.
     *

     */
    private EbsConfiguration ebsConfiguration;

    /**
     * Default constructor for InstanceGroupConfig object. Callers should use
     * the setter or fluent setter (with...) methods to initialize the object
     * after creating it.
     */
    public InstanceGroupConfig() {
    }

    /**
     * Constructs a new InstanceGroupConfig object. Callers should use the
     * setter or fluent setter (with...) methods to initialize any additional
     * object members.
     *
     * @param instanceRole
     *        The role of the instance group in the cluster.
     * @param instanceType
     *        The Amazon EC2 instance type for all instances in the instance
     *        group.
     * @param instanceCount
     *        Target number of instances for the instance group.
     */
    public InstanceGroupConfig(String instanceRole, String instanceType,
            Integer instanceCount) {
        setInstanceRole(instanceRole);
        setInstanceType(instanceType);
        setInstanceCount(instanceCount);
    }

    /**
     * Constructs a new InstanceGroupConfig object. Callers should use the
     * setter or fluent setter (with...) methods to initialize any additional
     * object members.
     *
     * @param instanceRole
     *        The role of the instance group in the cluster.
     * @param instanceType
     *        The Amazon EC2 instance type for all instances in the instance
     *        group.
     * @param instanceCount
     *        Target number of instances for the instance group.
     */
    public InstanceGroupConfig(InstanceRoleType instanceRole,
            String instanceType, Integer instanceCount) {
        setInstanceRole(instanceRole.toString());
        setInstanceType(instanceType);
        setInstanceCount(instanceCount);
    }

    /**
     *

     * Friendly name given to the instance group.
     *

     *
     * @param name
     *        Friendly name given to the instance group.
     */

    public void setName(String name) {
        this.name = name;
    }

    /**
     *

     * Friendly name given to the instance group.
     *

     *
     * @return Friendly name given to the instance group.
     */

    public String getName() {
        return this.name;
    }

    /**
     *

     * Friendly name given to the instance group.
     *

     *
     * @param name
     *        Friendly name given to the instance group.
     * @return Returns a reference to this object so that method calls can be
     *         chained together.
     */

    public InstanceGroupConfig withName(String name) {
        setName(name);
        return this;
    }

    /**
     *

     * Market type of the Amazon EC2 instances used to create a cluster node.
     *

     *
     * @param market
     *        Market type of the Amazon EC2 instances used to create a cluster
     *        node.
     * @see MarketType
     */

    public void setMarket(String market) {
        this.market = market;
    }

    /**
     *

     * Market type of the Amazon EC2 instances used to create a cluster node.
     *

     *
     * @return Market type of the Amazon EC2 instances used to create a cluster
     *         node.
     * @see MarketType
     */

    public String getMarket() {
        return this.market;
    }

    /**
     *

     * Market type of the Amazon EC2 instances used to create a cluster node.
     *

     *
     * @param market
     *        Market type of the Amazon EC2 instances used to create a cluster
     *        node.
     * @return Returns a reference to this object so that method calls can be
     *         chained together.
     * @see MarketType
     */

    public InstanceGroupConfig withMarket(String market) {
        setMarket(market);
        return this;
    }

    /**
     *

     * Market type of the Amazon EC2 instances used to create a cluster node.
     *

     *
     * @param market
     *        Market type of the Amazon EC2 instances used to create a cluster
     *        node.
     * @see MarketType
     */

    public void setMarket(MarketType market) {
        this.market = market.toString();
    }

    /**
     *

     * Market type of the Amazon EC2 instances used to create a cluster node.
     *

     *
     * @param market
     *        Market type of the Amazon EC2 instances used to create a cluster
     *        node.
     * @return Returns a reference to this object so that method calls can be
     *         chained together.
     * @see MarketType
     */

    public InstanceGroupConfig withMarket(MarketType market) {
        setMarket(market);
        return this;
    }

    /**
     *

     * The role of the instance group in the cluster.
     *

     *
     * @param instanceRole
     *        The role of the instance group in the cluster.
     * @see InstanceRoleType
     */

    public void setInstanceRole(String instanceRole) {
        this.instanceRole = instanceRole;
    }

    /**
     *

     * The role of the instance group in the cluster.
     *

     *
     * @return The role of the instance group in the cluster.
     * @see InstanceRoleType
     */

    public String getInstanceRole() {
        return this.instanceRole;
    }

    /**
     *

     * The role of the instance group in the cluster.
     *

     *
     * @param instanceRole
     *        The role of the instance group in the cluster.
     * @return Returns a reference to this object so that method calls can be
     *         chained together.
     * @see InstanceRoleType
     */

    public InstanceGroupConfig withInstanceRole(String instanceRole) {
        setInstanceRole(instanceRole);
        return this;
    }

    /**
     *

     * The role of the instance group in the cluster.
     *

     *
     * @param instanceRole
     *        The role of the instance group in the cluster.
     * @see InstanceRoleType
     */

    public void setInstanceRole(InstanceRoleType instanceRole) {
        this.instanceRole = instanceRole.toString();
    }

    /**
     *

     * The role of the instance group in the cluster.
     *

     *
     * @param instanceRole
     *        The role of the instance group in the cluster.
     * @return Returns a reference to this object so that method calls can be
     *         chained together.
     * @see InstanceRoleType
     */

    public InstanceGroupConfig withInstanceRole(InstanceRoleType instanceRole) {
        setInstanceRole(instanceRole);
        return this;
    }

    /**
     *

     * Bid price for each Amazon EC2 instance in the instance group when
     * launching nodes as Spot Instances, expressed in USD.
     *

     *
     * @param bidPrice
     *        Bid price for each Amazon EC2 instance in the instance group when
     *        launching nodes as Spot Instances, expressed in USD.
     */

    public void setBidPrice(String bidPrice) {
        this.bidPrice = bidPrice;
    }

    /**
     *

     * Bid price for each Amazon EC2 instance in the instance group when
     * launching nodes as Spot Instances, expressed in USD.
     *

     *
     * @return Bid price for each Amazon EC2 instance in the instance group when
     *         launching nodes as Spot Instances, expressed in USD.
     */

    public String getBidPrice() {
        return this.bidPrice;
    }

    /**
     *

     * Bid price for each Amazon EC2 instance in the instance group when
     * launching nodes as Spot Instances, expressed in USD.
     *

     *
     * @param bidPrice
     *        Bid price for each Amazon EC2 instance in the instance group when
     *        launching nodes as Spot Instances, expressed in USD.
     * @return Returns a reference to this object so that method calls can be
     *         chained together.
     */

    public InstanceGroupConfig withBidPrice(String bidPrice) {
        setBidPrice(bidPrice);
        return this;
    }

    /**
     *

     * The Amazon EC2 instance type for all instances in the instance group.
     *

     *
     * @param instanceType
     *        The Amazon EC2 instance type for all instances in the instance
     *        group.
     */

    public void setInstanceType(String instanceType) {
        this.instanceType = instanceType;
    }

    /**
     *

     * The Amazon EC2 instance type for all instances in the instance group.
     *

     *
     * @return The Amazon EC2 instance type for all instances in the instance
     *         group.
     */

    public String getInstanceType() {
        return this.instanceType;
    }

    /**
     *

     * The Amazon EC2 instance type for all instances in the instance group.
     *

     *
     * @param instanceType
     *        The Amazon EC2 instance type for all instances in the instance
     *        group.
     * @return Returns a reference to this object so that method calls can be
     *         chained together.
     */

    public InstanceGroupConfig withInstanceType(String instanceType) {
        setInstanceType(instanceType);
        return this;
    }

    /**
     *

     * Target number of instances for the instance group.
     *

     *
     * @param instanceCount
     *        Target number of instances for the instance group.
     */

    public void setInstanceCount(Integer instanceCount) {
        this.instanceCount = instanceCount;
    }

    /**
     *

     * Target number of instances for the instance group.
     *

     *
     * @return Target number of instances for the instance group.
     */

    public Integer getInstanceCount() {
        return this.instanceCount;
    }

    /**
     *

     * Target number of instances for the instance group.
     *

     *
     * @param instanceCount
     *        Target number of instances for the instance group.
     * @return Returns a reference to this object so that method calls can be
     *         chained together.
     */

    public InstanceGroupConfig withInstanceCount(Integer instanceCount) {
        setInstanceCount(instanceCount);
        return this;
    }

    /**
     * <note>
     *

     * Amazon EMR releases 4.x or later.
     *

     * </note>
     *

     * The list of configurations supplied for an EMR cluster instance group.
     * You can specify a separate configuration for each instance group (master,
     * core, and task).
     *

     *
     * @return Amazon EMR releases 4.x or later.
</note>
     */

    public java.util.List<Configuration> getConfigurations() {
        if (configurations == null) {
            configurations = new com.amazonaws.internal.SdkInternalList<Configuration>();
        }
        return configurations;
    }

    /**
     * <note>
     *

     * Amazon EMR releases 4.x or later.
     *

     * </note>
     *

     * The list of configurations supplied for an EMR cluster instance group.
     * You can specify a separate configuration for each instance group (master,
     * core, and task).
     *

     *
     * @param configurations
     *        Amazon EMR releases 4.x or later.
</note>
     */

    public void setConfigurations(
            java.util.Collection<Configuration> configurations) {
        if (configurations == null) {
            this.configurations = null;
            return;
        }

        this.configurations = new com.amazonaws.internal.SdkInternalList<Configuration>(
                configurations);
    }

    /**
     * <note>
     *

     * Amazon EMR releases 4.x or later.
     *

     * </note>
     *

     * The list of configurations supplied for an EMR cluster instance group.
     * You can specify a separate configuration for each instance group (master,
     * core, and task).
     *

     *

     * NOTE: This method appends the values to the existing list (if
     * any). Use {@link #setConfigurations(java.util.Collection)} or
     * {@link #withConfigurations(java.util.Collection)} if you want to override
     * the existing values.
     *

     *
     * @param configurations
     *        Amazon EMR releases 4.x or later.
</note>
     * @return Returns a reference to this object so that method calls can be
     *         chained together.
     */

    public InstanceGroupConfig withConfigurations(
            Configuration... configurations) {
        if (this.configurations == null) {
            setConfigurations(new com.amazonaws.internal.SdkInternalList<Configuration>(
                    configurations.length));
        }
        for (Configuration ele : configurations) {
            this.configurations.add(ele);
        }
        return this;
    }

    /**
     * <note>
     *

     * Amazon EMR releases 4.x or later.
     *

     * </note>
     *

     * The list of configurations supplied for an EMR cluster instance group.
     * You can specify a separate configuration for each instance group (master,
     * core, and task).
     *

     *
     * @param configurations
     *        Amazon EMR releases 4.x or later.
</note>
     * @return Returns a reference to this object so that method calls can be
     *         chained together.
     */

    public InstanceGroupConfig withConfigurations(
            java.util.Collection<Configuration> configurations) {
        setConfigurations(configurations);
        return this;
    }

    /**
     *

     * EBS configurations that will be attached to each Amazon EC2 instance in
     * the instance group.
     *

     *
     * @param ebsConfiguration
     *        EBS configurations that will be attached to each Amazon EC2
     *        instance in the instance group.
     */

    public void setEbsConfiguration(EbsConfiguration ebsConfiguration) {
        this.ebsConfiguration = ebsConfiguration;
    }

    /**
     *

     * EBS configurations that will be attached to each Amazon EC2 instance in
     * the instance group.
     *

     *
     * @return EBS configurations that will be attached to each Amazon EC2
     *         instance in the instance group.
     */

    public EbsConfiguration getEbsConfiguration() {
        return this.ebsConfiguration;
    }

    /**
     *

     * EBS configurations that will be attached to each Amazon EC2 instance in
     * the instance group.
     *

     *
     * @param ebsConfiguration
     *        EBS configurations that will be attached to each Amazon EC2
     *        instance in the instance group.
     * @return Returns a reference to this object so that method calls can be
     *         chained together.
     */

    public InstanceGroupConfig withEbsConfiguration(
            EbsConfiguration ebsConfiguration) {
        setEbsConfiguration(ebsConfiguration);
        return this;
    }

    /**
     * Returns a string representation of this object; useful for testing and
     * debugging.
     *
     * @return A string representation of this object.
     *
     * @see java.lang.Object#toString()
     */
    @Override
    public String toString() {
        StringBuilder sb = new StringBuilder();
        sb.append("{");
        if (getName() != null)
            sb.append("Name: " + getName() + ",");
        if (getMarket() != null)
            sb.append("Market: " + getMarket() + ",");
        if (getInstanceRole() != null)
            sb.append("InstanceRole: " + getInstanceRole() + ",");
        if (getBidPrice() != null)
            sb.append("BidPrice: " + getBidPrice() + ",");
        if (getInstanceType() != null)
            sb.append("InstanceType: " + getInstanceType() + ",");
        if (getInstanceCount() != null)
            sb.append("InstanceCount: " + getInstanceCount() + ",");
        if (getConfigurations() != null)
            sb.append("Configurations: " + getConfigurations() + ",");
        if (getEbsConfiguration() != null)
            sb.append("EbsConfiguration: " + getEbsConfiguration());
        sb.append("}");
        return sb.toString();
    }

    @Override
    public boolean equals(Object obj) {
        if (this == obj)
            return true;
        if (obj == null)
            return false;

        if (obj instanceof InstanceGroupConfig == false)
            return false;
        InstanceGroupConfig other = (InstanceGroupConfig) obj;
        if (other.getName() == null ^ this.getName() == null)
            return false;
        if (other.getName() != null
                && other.getName().equals(this.getName()) == false)
            return false;
        if (other.getMarket() == null ^ this.getMarket() == null)
            return false;
        if (other.getMarket() != null
                && other.getMarket().equals(this.getMarket()) == false)
            return false;
        if (other.getInstanceRole() == null ^ this.getInstanceRole() == null)
            return false;
        if (other.getInstanceRole() != null
                && other.getInstanceRole().equals(this.getInstanceRole()) == false)
            return false;
        if (other.getBidPrice() == null ^ this.getBidPrice() == null)
            return false;
        if (other.getBidPrice() != null
                && other.getBidPrice().equals(this.getBidPrice()) == false)
            return false;
        if (other.getInstanceType() == null ^ this.getInstanceType() == null)
            return false;
        if (other.getInstanceType() != null
                && other.getInstanceType().equals(this.getInstanceType()) == false)
            return false;
        if (other.getInstanceCount() == null ^ this.getInstanceCount() == null)
            return false;
        if (other.getInstanceCount() != null
                && other.getInstanceCount().equals(this.getInstanceCount()) == false)
            return false;
        if (other.getConfigurations() == null
                ^ this.getConfigurations() == null)
            return false;
        if (other.getConfigurations() != null
                && other.getConfigurations().equals(this.getConfigurations()) == false)
            return false;
        if (other.getEbsConfiguration() == null
                ^ this.getEbsConfiguration() == null)
            return false;
        if (other.getEbsConfiguration() != null
                && other.getEbsConfiguration().equals(
                        this.getEbsConfiguration()) == false)
            return false;
        return true;
    }

    @Override
    public int hashCode() {
        final int prime = 31;
        int hashCode = 1;

        hashCode = prime * hashCode
                + ((getName() == null) ? 0 : getName().hashCode());
        hashCode = prime * hashCode
                + ((getMarket() == null) ? 0 : getMarket().hashCode());
        hashCode = prime
                * hashCode
                + ((getInstanceRole() == null) ? 0 : getInstanceRole()
                        .hashCode());
        hashCode = prime * hashCode
                + ((getBidPrice() == null) ? 0 : getBidPrice().hashCode());
        hashCode = prime
                * hashCode
                + ((getInstanceType() == null) ? 0 : getInstanceType()
                        .hashCode());
        hashCode = prime
                * hashCode
                + ((getInstanceCount() == null) ? 0 : getInstanceCount()
                        .hashCode());
        hashCode = prime
                * hashCode
                + ((getConfigurations() == null) ? 0 : getConfigurations()
                        .hashCode());
        hashCode = prime
                * hashCode
                + ((getEbsConfiguration() == null) ? 0 : getEbsConfiguration()
                        .hashCode());
        return hashCode;
    }

    @Override
    public InstanceGroupConfig clone() {
        try {
            return (InstanceGroupConfig) super.clone();
        } catch (CloneNotSupportedException e) {
            throw new IllegalStateException(
                    "Got a CloneNotSupportedException from Object.clone() "
                            + "even though we're Cloneable!", e);
        }
    }
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


text:
KALW
Published January 25, 2012 at 5:34 AM PST
25th Day of 2012 / 341 Remaining
55 Days Until Spring Begins
Sunrise:7:19
Sunset:5:26
Moon Rise:8:25am
Moon Set:8:20pm
Moon's Phase: 7 %
The Next Full Moon
February 7 @ 1:56pm
Full Snow Moon
Full Hunger Moon
Amid the cold and deep snows of midwinter, the wolf packs howled hungrily outside Indian villages. Thus, the name for January's full Moon. Sometimes it was also referred to as the Old Moon, or the Moon After Yule. Some called it the Full Snow Moon, but most tribes applied that name to the next Moon.
High:12:24am/11:39pm
Low:5:52am/6:12pm
This Year:6.06
Last Year:12.35
Normal To Date:11.69
Annual Average: 22.28
National Speak Up and Succeed Day
A Room of One's Own Day
National Irish Coffee Day
Dinner Party Day
Speak up and Succeed Day
Big Rock Day
Mac Day
National Compliment Day
Foundation Day(Sao Paulo)-Brqazil
Bruns Night-Scotland
Kirmeline-Lithuania
On This Day In …
1533 --- England's King Henry VIII secretly married Anne Boleyn, his second wife.
1799 --- Eliakim Spooner patented the seeding machine. The device, like so many that we found while Christmas shopping, proved to be... impractical.
1858 --- Mendelssohn's "Wedding March" was presented for the first time, as the daughter of Queen Victoria married the Crown Prince of Prussia.
1905 --- The Cullinan diamond (3,106 carets) was found north of Pretoria, South Africa. It is the largest gem-quality diamond ever discovered. From this diamond (named after mining company chairman Sir Thomas Cullinan,) 105 stones were cut including the Great Star of Africa, which is now stored in the Tower of London.
1915 --- Alexander Graham Bell in New York spoke to his assistant (Thomas Watson) in San Francisco, inaugurating the first transcontinental telephone service
1924 --- The 1st Winter Olympics take off in style at Chamonix in the French Alps. Spectators were thrilled by the ski jump and bobsled as well as 12 other events involving a total of six sports. The "International Winter Sports Week," as it was known, was a great success, and in 1928 the International Olympic Committee (IOC) officially designated the Winter Games, staged in St. Moritz, Switzerland, as the second Winter Olympics.
1945 --- Grand Rapids, Michigan became the first U.S. city to fluoridate its drinking water, to reduce tooth decay.
1946 -- The United Mine Workers rejoined the American Federation of Labor.
1949 --- The first Emmys, the awards presented each year in recognition of excellence in television performance and production, were presented at the Hollywood Athletic Club.The event was the 1st Annual Los Angeles Emmy Awards (for programming which appeared in 1948) and was presented by the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences. The Academy was also an infant, having formed just three years earlier. Mike Sotkey's Pantomime Quiz Time was selected as the year's top television show. The local L.A. panel show which began in 1947, featured Howard Morris, Stubby Kaye, Rocky Graziano, Hans Conried, Milt Kamen and the orchestra of Frank DeVol and aired on KTLA-TV. Shirley Dinsdale and her puppet, Judy Splinters, took honors as Most Outstanding Television Personality. The Necklace, a film shown on Your Show Time on NBC, took the Best Film Made for Television Award.
1956 --- In a long interview with visiting American attorney Marshall MacDuffie, Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev adopts a friendly attitude toward the United States and indicates that he believes President Dwight Eisenhower is sincere in his desire for peace. The interview was the precursor to Khrushchev's announcement later that same year that he wanted "peaceful coexistence" between the United States and the Soviet Union. MacDuffie, a long-time acquaintance of the Soviet leader and a proponent of closer relations between the U.S. and the Soviet Union, spent three hours conducting the interview. During the discussion, Khrushchev indicated that it was his desire that "We should have disarmament and we should think how to avoid a new war."
1958 --- Elvis Presley's "Jailhouse Rock" became the first single to ever enter the U.K. pop chart at Number One.
1959 --- American Airlines opened the jet age in the U.S. with the first scheduled transcontinental flight of a Boeing 707.
1961 --- John F. Kennedy presented the first live presidential news conference from Washington, DC. The event was carried on radio and television. Kennedy's quick wit made him "an immediate sensation," according to reporters gathered at the scene.
1964 --- The Beatles reached the #1 spot on the music charts, as their hit single, I Want to Hold Your Hand, grabbed the top position in Cash Box magazine, as well as on the list of hits on scores of radio stations. It was the first #1 hit for the Beatles. Billboard listed the song as #1 on February 1. The group's second #1 hit song, She Loves You, was also released this day -- but not on Capitol Records. It was on Swan Records (#4152). Other songs by The Beatles were released on Vee Jay (Please, Please Me), M-G-M (My Bonnie with Tony Sheridan), Tollie (Twist and Shout), Atco (Ain't She Sweet) and the group's own label, Apple Records, as well as Capitol.
1971 --- Maj. Gen. Idi Amin led a coup that deposed Milton Obote and became president of Uganda.
1971 --- In Los Angeles, California, cult leader Charles Manson is convicted, along with followers Susan Atkins, Leslie Van Houten, and Patricia Krenwinkle, of the brutal 1969 murders of actress Sharon Tate and six others.
1980 --- Paul McCartney was released from a Tokyo jail where he had been imprisoned for nine days after trying to carry a half pound of marijuana through customs at the Tokyo airport.
1981 --- Jiang Qing, widow of Mao Zedong , was tried for treason and received a death sentence, which was subsequently commuted to life imprisonment.
1981 --- Super Bowl XV (at New Orleans): Oakland Raiders 27, Philadelphia Eagles 10. The second Super Bowl win for the Raiders (they won Super Bowl XI), this one belonged to Oakland all the way. They led 14-0 after one quarter, 14-3 at the half and 24-3 after three quarters. MVP: Raiders' QB Jim Plunkett. Tickets: $40.00.
1984 --- Apple's Macintosh computer was introduced
2003 --- Serena Williams beat elder sister Venus to win the Australian Open and her fourth straight major championship.
George Pickett
W Somerset Maugham
Edwin Newman
Ernie Halwell
Corazon Aquino
Etta James
Andy Cox(Fine Young Cannibals/English Beat)
Eduard Shevardnadze
China Kantner
Steven Short
Almanac from KALW


Purpose: The aim of this study was to examine real-world differences in health care resource use (HRU) and costs among COPD patients in the USA treated with a dry powder inhaler (DPI) or pressurized metered-dose inhaler (pMDI) following a COPD-related hospitalization.
Methods: This retrospective analysis used the Truven MarketScan® databases. Eligibility criteria included 1) age ≥40 years, 2) COPD diagnosis, 3) inpatient admission with a diagnosis of COPD exacerbation, 4) inhaled corticosteroid (ICS)/long-acting β2-agonist (LABA) prescription within 10 days of hospital discharge (index date), and 5) continuous enrollment for 12 months preindex and 90 days postindex. Outcomes included pre- and postindex HRU and costs. DPI and pMDI groups were compared on postindex outcomes via multivariate models controlling for demographic and baseline characteristics.
Results: The sample included 1,960 DPI and 1,086 pMDI ICS/LABA patients. During the preindex period, pMDI patients were significantly more likely to be prescribed a short-acting β-agonist, experienced more COPD exacerbation-related hospital days, and had a greater number of pulmonologist visits compared to DPI patients (P<0.05), all suggestive of greater disease severity. However, multivariate models revealed that pMDI patients incurred 10% lower all-cause postindex costs (predicted mean costs [2016 US dollars]: $2,673 vs $2,956) and 19% lower COPD-related costs (predicted mean costs: $138 vs $169; P<0.05). Additionally, pMDI patients were 28% less likely to experience a COPD exacerbation-related hospital readmission within 60 days postdischarge compared to the DPI patients (OR: 0.72, 95% CI: 0.52–0.99, P<0.05).
Conclusion: Despite greater COPD-related HRU and costs preceding index hospitalization, US patients using a pMDI after hospital discharge incurred significantly lower all-cause and COPD-related health care costs compared with those using a DPI, in addition to a decreased likelihood of a COPD exacerbation-related hospital readmission. Results suggest that inhaler device type may influence COPD outcomes and that COPD patients may derive greater clinical benefit from treatment delivered via pMDI vs DPI.


text:
Tag - Andrej Kiska
Former Slovak president launches new party
As previously announced in April, former Slovak president Andrej Kiska has launched a new pro-EU political party, aiming to provide an alternative to the ruling Smer party. "This is not a party of one person, this is a team of the best people for...
Zuzana Čaputová sworn in as new Slovak president
Anti-corruption activist and environmental campaigner Zuzana Čaputová has been sworn in as Slovakia's first female president. "I'm not here to rule, I'm here to...
Outgoing Slovak president creates new political party
With his presidential mandate coming to an end, outgoing Slovak president Andrej Kiska has announced the creation of a new political party. "Slovakia wants change. We...
Slovak president to veto controversial anthem law
Outgoing Slovak president Andrej Kiska has promised to veto a bill that would essentially ban foreigners from singing their national anthem unless an official delegation...
Slovakia slaps punitive tax on major food retailers
Overturning a presidential veto, Slovakia's parliament has approved a new law levying a special tax on retail chains in order to support local food production. Under the...
Czech president remains silent as Prague marks 50 years since Soviet invasion
Craig Turp
Czech President Miloš Zeman has again courted controversy by refusing to make any speeches or attend events commemorating the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1968...
Slovak PM Quits, Fails to Prevent New Protests
As widely expected, Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico resigned on March 15, leaving his his deputy Peter Pellegrini to form a new government. Mr Fico is the latest...
Slovakia's Political Crisis Deepens
The fallout from the murder of Slovak investigative journalist Ján Kuciak on February 25 continues to cause huge repercussions after Prime Minister Robert Fico accused...


In practice, in a sports doctor's waiting room, you can meet two types of 40-year-old athletes. The one who has never stopped playing sports does not pose a major problem. It has a trained organism. The only thing not to be transgressed is to constantly adapt your sporting ambitions to your physical possibilities, which are slowly but gradually decreasing from the age of 40.
The second, and most frequent, is the late athlete. There are two distinct specimens of them. The one who has never played sports before. With a little free time in his forties, he is concerned about being physically active.


A total of 1.5 billion baht has been set aside by the government to aid small businesses, who have been affected by the strong baht.
The money is to be made available in the form of loans according to Industry Minister Uttama Savanayana, speaking after a meeting chaired by Deputy Prime Minister Somkid Jatusripitak. The meeting was held to promote small and medium sized business ventures.
The aim is to counterbalance loss of income to those companies whose markets tend to be based on exports to other nations but have been impacted by the strength of the Thai baht.
Around 1.5 billion baht will be allocated in loans to business owners who hope to increase production capacity.
Training facilities are also to be made available to help those business owners affected by unpredictable currency values, so they are better prepared for the future.
The baht has strengthened against many currencies such as the US dollar, which saw the baht gain by up to eight percent. Exporters are concerned that their prices will not be able to compete with international competition as a result of the strong baht.


In the diamond industry, there are two types of black diamonds. The first is called a natural fancy black diamond and the second is just referred to as a black diamond. Although they are both real diamonds, natural fancy black diamonds are found in the rough with their black coloring. The alternate black diamonds are treated with irradiation or heat in order for the diamond to appear darker in color.
The value of natural fancy black diamonds far outpaces its engineered black diamond counterpart.
Arpege Diamonds is proud to present the tale of the Black Orlov diamond. Would you hold in your hands a cursed diamond which boasts an ominous warning of death? Is this story too strange to be true? Or do you believe this diamond is really cursed?
For many years colored diamond heavyweights such as reds, blues, pinks and greens have often overshadowed black diamonds. In recent years however, more and more diamond enthusiasts and investors have been turning their attention towards these captivating black stones and have begun showing them the love that they deserve.