text:
Author: Laxman Burdak, IFS (R).
Map of Anatolia ancient regions
Ionia was an ancient region on the central part of the western coast of Anatolia in present-day Turkey, the region nearest İzmir, which was historically Smyrna. It consisted of the northernmost territories of the Ionian League of Greek settlements. Never a unified state, it was named after the Ionian tribe who, in the Archaic Period (600–480 BC), settled mainly the shores and islands of the Aegean Sea. Ionian states were identified by tradition and by their use of Eastern Greek.
1 Variants of name
3 Demography
5 Jat History
6 पारस
Variants of name
Ionia/Ionía (Ancient Greek: Ἰωνία)
Ioníe/Ioníe (Ancient Greek: Ἰωνίη)
Ion[1]
Ionian (Greek)
Ionic (Arrian:1.18)
Ionians
Iāones (Homer)
Iāwones (older)
Yavana (Panini in Sanskrit)
Ionia proper comprised a narrow coastal strip from Phocaea in the north near the mouth of the river Hermus (now the Gediz), to Miletus in the south near the mouth of the river Maeander, and included the islands of Chios and Samos. It was bounded by Aeolia to the north, Lydia to the east and Caria to the south. The cities within the region figured large in the strife between the Persian Empire and the Greeks.
Ancient demographics are available only from literary sources. Herodotus states that in Asia the Ionians kept the division into twelve cities that had prevailed in Ionian lands of the north Peloponnese, their former homeland, which became Achaea after they left.[2] These Asian cities were (from south to north) Miletus, Myus, Priene, Ephesus, Colophon, Lebedos, Teos, Erythrae, Clazomenae and Phocaea, together with Samos and Chios.[3] Smyrna, originally an Aeolic colony, was afterwards occupied by Ionians from Colophon, and became an Ionian city — an event which had taken place before the time of Herodotus.[4]
These cities do not match those of Achaea. Moreover, the Achaea of Herodotus' time spoke Doric (Corinthian), but in Homer it is portrayed as being in the kingdom of Mycenae, which most likely spoke Mycenaean Greek, which is not Doric. If the Ionians came from Achaea, they departed during or after the change from East Greek to West Greek there. Mycenaean continued to evolve in the mountainous region of Arcadia.
From the 18th century BC the region was a part of the Hittite Empire with possible name Arzawa, which was destroyed by invaders during the 12th century BC together with the collapse of the Empire. Ionia was settled by the Greeks probably during the 11th century BC. The most important city was Miletus (the Millawanda/Milawata of Hittites). Several centuries later Ionia was the place where western philosophy began and was the homeland of Thales, Anaximander, Anaximenes and Heraclitus. They were natural-philosophers of the Ionian school of philosophy and tried to explain the phenomena according to no-supernatural laws. They also searched a simple material-form behind the appearances of things (origin) and this conception had a great influence on the early archaic art in Greece.
According to Greek tradition, the cities of Ionia were founded by colonists from the other side of the Aegean. Their settlement was connected with the legendary history of the Ionic people in Attica, which asserts that the colonists were led by Neleus and Androclus, sons of Codrus, the last king of Athens. In accordance with this view the "Ionic migration", as it was called by later chronologers, was dated by them one hundred and forty years after the Trojan War, or sixty years after the return of the Heracleidae into the Peloponnese.[5][6]
There is no record of any people named Ionians in Late Bronze Age Anatolia but Hittite texts record the Achaeans of Ahhiyawa, of location not completely certain, but in touch with the Hittites of that time. Miletus and some other cities founded earlier by non-Greeks received populations of Mycenaean Greeks probably under the name of Achaeans. The tradition of Ionian colonizers from Achaea suggests that they may have been known by both names even then. In the absence of archaeological evidence of discontinuity at Miletus the Achaean population whatever their name appears to have descended to archaic Ionia, which does not exclude the possibility of another colonizing and founding event from Athens.
In the Indian (e.g.: Tamil) historic literary texts, the Ionians are referred to as "yavanar" or "yona", and are described as wearing leather and wielding whips. In modern Turkish, the people of that region were called "yunan" (plural "yunanlar") and the country that is now Greece is known as "Yunanistan".
Herodotus expresses some impatience at the ethnic views of his countrymen concerning Ionia: "for it would be foolishness to say that these are more truly Ionian or better born ...."[7] He lists other ethnic populations among the settlers: Abantes from Euboea, Minyans from Orchomenus, Cadmeians, Dryopians, Phocians, Molossians, Arcadian Pelasgians, Dorians of Epidaurus, and others. The presence of Doric Ionians is somewhat contradictory, but Herodotus himself, a major author of the Ionic dialect, was from a Doric city, Halicarnassus. Even " the best born of the Ionians", the Athenians, married girls from Caria. "Yet since they set more store by the name than the rest of the Ionians, let it be granted that those of pure birth are Ionians."[8]
During the late 13th century BC the peoples of the Aegean Sea took to marauding and resettling as a way of life and were called by the Egyptians the Sea Peoples.[citation needed] Mycenaean Greeks must have been among them. They settled lightly on the shores of Luwian Anatolia often by invitation. In the background was the stabilizing influence of the Hittites, who monitored maritime movement and suppressed piracy. When that power was gone the Luwian people remained in the vacuum as a number of coastal splinter states that were scarcely able now to defend themselves. Ionian Greeks took advantage of opportunities for coastal raiding: an inscription of Sargon II (ca 709–07,recording a naval expedition of 715) boasts "in the midst of the sea" he had "caught the Ionians like fish and brought peace to the land of Que Cilicia and the city of Tyre". For a full generation earlier Assyrian inscriptions had recorded troubles with the Ionians, who escaped on their boats.[9]
Caria and Lycia came to the attention of Athens, most powerful state remaining in Greece, which also had lost its central government ruling from Mycenae, now burned and nearly vacant. Ionians had been expelled from the Peloponnesus by the Dorians and had sought refuge in Athens. The Athenian kings decided to relieve the crowding by resettling the coast of Lydia with Ionians from the Peloponnesus under native Athenian leadership.
They were not the only Greeks to have such a perception and reach such a decision. The Aeolians of Boeotia contemporaneously settled the coast to the north of the Ionians and the newly arrived Dorians of Crete and the islands the coast of Caria. The Greeks descended on the Luwians of the Anatolian coast in the 10th century BC. The descent was not peaceful and the Luwians were not willing.
Pausanias gives a thumbnail sketch of the resettlement.[10] Miletus was the first city attacked, where there had been some Mycenaean Greeks apparently under the rule of Cretans. After overthrowing the Cretan government and settling there the Ionians widened their attack to Ephesus, Samos and Priene. Combining with Aeolians from Thebes they founded Myus. Colophon was already in the hands of Aeolians who had arrived via Crete in Mycenaean times. The Ionians "swore a treaty of union" with them. They took Lebedos driving out the Carians and augmented the Aeolian population of Teos. They settled on Chios, took Erythrae from the Carians, Pamphylians (both Luwian) and Cretans. Clazomenae and Phocaea were settled from Colophon. Somewhat later they took Smyrna from the Aeolians.
About 700 BC Gyges, first Mermnad king of Lydia, invaded the territories of Smyrna and Miletus, and is said to have taken Colophon as his son Ardys did Priene. The first event in the history of Ionia for which there is a trustworthy account is the inroad of the Cimmerii, who ravaged a great part of Asia Minor, including Lydia, and sacked Magnesia on the Maeander, but were foiled in their attack upon Ephesus. This event may be referred to the middle of the 7th century BC. It was not until the reign of Croesus (560–545 BC) that the cities of Ionia fell completely under Lydian rule.
The defeat of Croesus by Cyrus the Great was followed by the conquest of all the Ionian cities in 547 BC.[11] These became subject to the Persian monarchy with the other Greek cities of Asia. In this position they enjoyed a considerable amount of autonomy, but were for the most part subject to local despots, most of whom were creatures of the Persian king. It was at the instigation of one of these despots, Histiaeus of Miletus, that in about 500 BC the principal cities ignited the Ionian Revolt against Persia. They were at first assisted by the Athenians and Eretria, with whose aid they penetrated into the interior and burnt Sardis, an event which ultimately led to the Persian invasion of Greece. But the fleet of the Ionians was defeated off the island of Lade, and the destruction of Miletus after a protracted siege was followed by the reconquest of all the Asiatic Greeks, insular as well as continental.
The victories of the Greeks during the great Persian war and the liberation of Thrace, Macedon, and Ionia from the Persian Empire had the effect of enfranchising their kinsmen on the other side of the Aegean; and the Battle of Mycale (479 BC), in which the defeat of the Persians was in great measure owing to the Ionians, secured their emancipation. They henceforth became the dependent allies of Athens (see Delian League), though still retaining their autonomy, which they preserved until the Peace of Antalcidas in 387 BC once more placed them as well as the other Greek cities in Asia under the nominal dominion of Persia.
Ionian cities appear to have retained a considerable amount of freedom until the liberation of Asia Minor by Alexander the Great.
After the battle of the Granicus most of the Ionian cities submitted to the rule of Alexander III of Macedon and his Diadochi. As such Ionia enjoyed a great prosperity during the Hellenistic times with the notable exception of Miletus, which, being the only city of the Ionian League to deny to pay homage to Alexander, was finally leveled after a long siege at 334 BC, and never restored to its previous splendor.
Ionia became part of the Roman province of Asia.
Jat History
V. S. Agrawala[12] writes that Panini's reference to the Yavana Yavanānī writing, possesses distinct value for his date. The term Yauna (=Sanskrit Yavana) for Ionia and the
[p.466]: the Ionian Greeks is first used in inscriptions of Darius I (516 BC). It must have been after this that the term Yavana came into circulation in parts of India which also formed part of the Achaemenian empire. It would not be right to suppose that the Macedonian Greeks who first came into India with Alexander about two centuries later first became known as Yavanas. In fact the Yavanas had been known much before Alexander who already found in the Kabul Valley a colony of Nysian Greeks. In the old-persian Inscriptions of Darius (521-485 BC) we find the term Yauna denoting Ionia and an Ionian, and Yaunā, Ionians corresponding to Sanskrit Yavanaḥ and Yavanāḥ (Sukumar, Old Persian Inscriptions, p.223).
Both Ionia and Gandhara, the home of Panini, formed part of the empire of Darius and also continued under the reign of Xerxes, who recruited to his army a contingent of Indians from Gandhara in his expedition against Greece about the year 479 BC. Thus was furnished a first hand opportunity for the Indians to become acquainted with the Greeks even before Alexander. As Prof Keith has observed : 'If it is born in mind that Panini was a native of Gandhara according to Xuanzang, a view confirmed by the references in his grammar, it will not seem far fetched to consider that it was most probably from the older tradition that the name Yavanani was derived'. The word lipi borrowed from the Achaemenian dipi meaning edict is conspicuous by absence in the Buddhist canonical works and seems to have been borrowed from Achaemenian Iran. It may further be assumed that the Yavanani lipi was known only in Gandhara and the north-west at that time (ante, p.312).
Joon (जूण) Zun (जून) is a gotra of Jats found in Haryana and Uttar Pradesh in India. They are Ionian of Greek writers. [13]
पारस
विजयेन्द्र कुमार माथुर[14] ने लेख किया है ...पारस (AS, p.549) ईरान या फारस का प्राचीन भारतीय नाम है. पारस निवासियों को संस्कृत [p.550]: साहित्य में पारसीक कहा गया है. रघुवंश 4,60 और अनुवर्ती श्लोकों में कालिदास ने पारसीकों और रघु के युद्ध और रघु की उन पर विजय का चित्रात्मक वर्णन किया है, 'भल्लापवर्जितैस्तेषां शिरोभिः श्मश्रुलैर्महीं। तस्तार सरघाव्याप्तैः स क्षौद्रपटलैरिव (4.63) आदि. इसमें पारसीकों के श्मश्रुल शिरों का वर्णन है जिस पर टीका लिखते हुए चरित्रवर्धन ने कहा है--'पाश्चात्या: श्मश्रूणि स्थापियित्वा केशान्वपन्तीति तद्देशाचारोक्ति:'अर्थात ये पाश्चात्य लोग सिर के बालों का मुंडन करके दाढ़ीमूछ रखते हैं. यह प्राचीन ईरानियों का रिवाज था जिसे हूणों ने भी अपना लिया था.
कालिदास को भारत से पारस देश को जाने के लिए स्थलमार्ग तथा जलमार्ग दोनों का ही पता था--'पारसीकांस्ततो जेतुं प्रतस्थे स्थलवर्त्मना । इन्द्रियाख्यानिव रिपूंस्तत्त्वज्ञानेन संयमी' (4.60)
पारसीक स्त्रियों को कालिदास ने यवनी कहा है--'यवनीमुखपद्मानां सेहे मधुमदं न सः । बालातपं इवाब्जानां अकालजलदोदयः (4.61)
यवन प्राचीन भारत में सभी पाश्चात्य विदेशियों के लिए प्रयुक्त होता था यद्यपि आद्यत: यह आयोनिया (Ionia) के ग्रीकों की संज्ञा थी. कालिदास ने 'संग्रामस्तुमुलस्तस्य पाश्चात्यैरश्वसाधनैः । शार्ङ्गकूजितविज्ञेयप्रतियोधे रजस्यभूथ् (4.62) में पारसीकों को पाश्चात्य भी कहा है. इस पद्य की टीका करते हुए टीकाकार, सुमिति विजय ने पारसीकों को 'सिंधुतट वसिनो मलेच्छराजान्' कहा है जो ठीक नहीं जान पड़ता क्योंकि रघु. 4,60 में (देखें ऊपर) रघु का, पारसीकों की विजय के लिए स्थलवर्त्म से जाना लिखा है जिससे निश्चित है कि इनके देश में जाने के लिए समुद्रमार्ग भी था. पारसीकों को को कालिदास ने 4,62 (देखें ऊपर) में अश्वसाधन अथवा अश्वसेना से संपन्न बताया है.
मुद्राराक्षस 1,20 में 'मेधाक्ष: पंचमो-अश्मिन् पृथुतुरगबलपारसीकाधिराज:' लिखकर, विशाखदत्त ने पारसियों के सुदृढ़ अश्वबल की ओर संकेत किया है. कालिदास ने प्राचीन ईरान के प्रसिद्ध अंगूरों के उद्यानों का भी उल्लेख किया है--'विनयन्ते स्म तद्योधा मधुभिर्विजयश्रमं । आस्तीर्णाजिनरत्नासु द्राक्षावलयभूमिषु (4.65).
विष्णु पुराण 2,3,17 में पारसीकों का उल्लेख इस प्रकार है-- 'मद्रारामास्तथाम्बाष्ठा:, पारसीका दयास्तथा'.
ईरान और भारत के संबंध अति प्राचीन हैं. ईरान के सम्राट दारा ने छठी सदी ईसा पूर्व में पश्चिमी पंजाब पर आक्रमण करके कुछ समय के लिए वहां से कर वसूल किया था. उसके नक्शे-रुस्तम तथा बहिस्तां से प्राप्त अभिलेखों में पंजाब को दारा के साम्राज्य का सबसे धनी प्रदेश बताया गया है. संभव है गुप्त काल के राष्ट्रीय कवि कालिदास ने इसी प्राचीन कटु ऐतिहासिक स्मृति के निराकरण के लिए रघु को पारसीकों पर
[p.551] विजय का वर्णन किया है. वैसे भी यह ऐतिहासिक तथ्य है कि गुप्त सम्राट महाराज समुद्रगुप्त को पारस तथा भारत के पश्चिमोत्तर अन्य प्रदेशों से संबद्ध कई राजा और सामंत कर देते थे तथा उन्होंने समुद्रगुप्त से वैवाहिक संबंध भी स्थापित किए थे. आठवीं सदी ई. के प्राकृत ग्रंथ गौडवहो (गौडवध) नामक काव्य में कान्यकुब्ज नरेश यशोवर्मन की पारसीकों पर विजय का उल्लेख है.
↑ Arrian:The Anabasis of Alexander/7a, Ch.9, f.n.9
↑ Herodotus, 1.145.
↑ Herodotus, 1.143, 1.149–150.
↑ Smith, William (1857). Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography: Volume II Iabadius-Zymethus. London: Walton and Maberly. pp. Ionia pages 60–61.
↑ "Ionia". Encyclopædia Britannica. 1911.
↑ Sargon's inscription in A. Fuchs, Die Inschriften Sargons II aus Khorsabad (1994:40) noted in Robin Lane Fox, Travelling Heroes in the Epic Age of Homer, 2008:29f.
↑ Guide to Greece Book 7 Sections 5–7.
↑ "Encyclopedia of Ancient Greece".
↑ V. S. Agrawala: India as Known to Panini, 1953, p.465-466
↑ An Inquiry Into the Ethnography of Afghanistan:H. W. Bellew, p.55
↑ Aitihasik Sthanavali by Vijayendra Kumar Mathur, p.549-551
Retrieved from "http://www.jatland.com/w/index.php?title=Ionia&oldid=445397"
Greek History


Hey everyone! I have developed a daily Jackpot system, in replace of the redundant /jp command!
opportunities (out of a possible 150) to win the pot! Additionally, when you purchase a number of tickets, the total you paid goes into the pot (minus a 2.5% processing fee). So, if there was 100B in the pot, and you purchased 50B worth of tickets, the pot would now be 148.75B, which is the 50B added minus the 2.5% fee. Each pot is spun every 24 hours at 3:00AM EST. The winner of each pot will be posted on the plot, along with your prize money being reserved.
Each ticket costs 500M each. Maximum 100 tickets per person.
Each ticket costs 2.5B each. Maximum 200 tickets per person.
Each ticket costs 20B each. Maximum 250 tickets per person.
Each ticket costs 25B each. No maximum amount of tickets per person. Go nuts!
There is no claim time for your prize. Please note that if you are AFK, but online, your prize may be paid to you during your AFK session. If you do not respond to my messages prior to sending you the money while AFK, I will screenshot the payment to provide evidence that I have paid. If I am unable to provide this screenshot should you decide to question me, I will be forced to pay you again. If I do provide the screenshot, but it was someone impersonating you, your prize will be delivered once a report on the player has been made under impersonation. If I do provide the screenshot, but it was to someone who had a different name to yours and was not an obvious impersonation, your prize will be given to you as soon as possible. If I do provide the screenshot, and it is indeed sent to you, the winner, then all accusations and further questioning must be dropped. Failure to do so will result in you being barred from participating in the jackpot ever again.


Daniela Bognolo is currently considered a "single author." If one or more works are by a distinct, homonymous authors, go ahead and split the author.
Daniela Bognolo is composed of 2 names. You can examine and separate out names.


Pittsboro was established in 1785. I love Pittsboro. I visit the farmer's markets. I do the farm tour of the sustainable agriculture. I shop at the businesses in historic downtown Pittsboro. I am not a photographer but I do play with HDR photos. I thought it would be neat to create a resource of Pittsboro in HDR and photograph some of the landmarks and businesses here. So here it is, Pittsboro NC in HDR in 2014 (and 2015).
Note: This post is a work in progress. Pittsboro is going to change drastically over the decades to come, from being a tiny town to one of the largest technology hubs in the USA. I paused work on this post in August 2014. Finally, in February 2015, I am publishing it the way it sits. I will update this post as time allows. If you have input on things I should add please feel free to email me or comment below.
Also, this is just one person's view of Pittsboro. The filters and HDR software I use alters original images, but then again every camera does.
Above: The Chatham County Courthouse. When people think of Pittsboro, one of the first things that pops into mind is the historic courthouse. The court house was built in 1881. It caught fire March 25, 2010. I happened to be in town this day and watched as it burned. 11 Fire Departments responded to the blaze. The clock tower and upper floors were destroyed but the courthouse was rebuilt. In 2013 it reopened as a museum.
The Chatham County Justice Center.
Above: The Chatham County Justice Center. The Justice Center opened in December 2012. It is a whopping 90,000sf building . If you ask me it is this huge to serve the future needs of Chatham County as Chatham Park takes shape and drastically increases the size of Pittsboro. The Justice Center is located at 200 Sanford Road.
Above: The Pittsboro Post Office is located at 916 East St.
There are several businesses in Pittsboro North Carolina. Among them are the "unique shops". And, unique they are. There is also a brewery, auto dealerships, and many other companies which are an asset to the community. This list is not all inclusive but features several of the businesses in Pittsboro.
Above: The Haw River. This picture was taken from the boat ramp off of Hanks Chapel Road near Carolina Tiger Rescue.
Above: The old Pittsboro fire tower located at the top of Fire Tower Rd.
Dang, been following your blog and this is crazy, been seeing your PBO pix used for a while around town and by major companies, do you sell them or something.


Josh has been working with high net worth UK and oversea investor clients since 2014. Dealing with all aspects of UK property Investment from advising clients on the best areas to invest in right up to assisting in finding tenants from the property.
London born and Educated Josh has detailed understanding of London and the surrounding areas with up to date market knowledge as well as other Metropolitan Cites Such as Manchester, where he lived for a year.
With a positive and friendly demonor Josh prides himself on maintaining strong and long lasting relationships with all Investors, Landlords and tenants alike.


Hello everyone and happy birthday to the clown princess of crime herself, Harley Quinn! Yes, in honor of Harley's first debut in Batman: The Animated Series I am going to be doing a look back and review some of her most iconic looks through various animated TV appearances, comics, video games, and live action media. Now obviously I can't hit on all of these looks so I will just be touching on those that are the major ones throughout the years. So sit back and rev up your Harley's because here we go!
Well we first can't talk about Harley Quinn without first seeing her before The Joker twisted her mind and made her into the lovable clown we all know. We first get to see Harley Quinn as Dr. Harleen Quinzel of Arkham Asylum. Here she has a simple white lab coat, her blonde hair in a bun, thick black rimmed glasses, and a red shirt and black tie. (Classic Harley colors) A simple doctors outfit but still keeping to the color scheme of what the classic Harley look would be with the red and black colors. Very simple and classy.
Now of course after The Joker twists her mind she ditches the doctors garb along with her real name and takes on the new name of Harley Quinn along with an appropriate matching outfit. This outfit harkens back to the renaissance days with a court jester feel with diamond patters all over the costume. This costume is the classic red and black jester outfit that artist Bruce Timm created in 1992 and that most if not all of the Harley fans have come to know and love. It has the red and black alternating colors along with the white collar and wrist cuffs, red and black gloves, a simple black domino mask, white clown makeup with black lipstick, and red and black diamonds placed on her legs and arms. Her red and black jester hood is accented with two white balls on the ends of them, and one red shoe and one black shoe to alternate. This is what many fans refer to as "the classic look." This is also one of the most cosplayed and beloved versions of the character out there. This is how many fans were introduced to this now very popular DC character. To me this just screams Harley Quinn…not booty shorts, stockings, a corse,t and mini cape… (I'm looking at you New 52!) She kept that classic look for most of her animated appearances in the original Batman series, Justice League cartoons, and various cartoon spinoffs in the late 90's and early 2000's.
Now jump ahead to the mid 2000's and we have a new Batman animated series. With all new character designs and look to the series it was natural for Harley to get a new look to fit the tone and look of this new animated series. Season 4 introduced us to the new Harley Quinn. This marked the first time in an animated series that Harley looked and sounded different. Her outfit kept the red and black color scheme but drastically altered the head piece, mask, and body suit. Her jester hood was now much larger and seemed to swoop back and then come out to the sides. Also attached were one red ball and one black on corresponding ends. Her mask also concealed her eyes fully so we couldn't see her blue eyes anymore, just big white circles and had a thin black rim around the mask. Her white collar was lengthened so it would droop down to her chest, and taken from three points to just two. Also noticeable were the lack of diamonds anywhere on her body and finger-less gloves. Her form was slimmed down a lot and the suit seemed to be one big piece, instead of several pieces like before. For a reboot of the character I actually enjoyed this look. It was the first time anyone had seen a different animated Harley and fans reacted strongly with positive praise for the design. Sadly the show only lasted one more season after they introduced her so we didn't get to see all that much of Harley after that. But what we did get to see I liked.
Jump ahead four more years and we have yet another Batman animated series titled Batman: The Brave and the Bold. Harley Quinn only appeared once in this series towards the end of its run with a drastic change to her appearance. She became black and white! Her design for this series harkened back to the silent film days with her not being in color and wearing a black flapper dress and pearls. Honestly my least favorite look of hers in any of the animated series. Not too sure what the creative team were doing for this look but it just didn't hit any of the classic Harley looks or feels to me. But since it was such a drastic change I thought i'd at least give it a small mention.
Harley has appeared in many Batman and DC video games. Most of them consisted of her in her classic look or a look from a different animated series. That is until the 2009 game Batman: Arkham Asylum. This was the first time fans have seen a design of Harley Quinn that was this drastic and a complete 180 of what she normally looks like. I am of course talking about her nurses outfit! In this game Harley wears nurses attire while helping The Joker take over Arkham and make Batman's night a living hell. In this any hint of her jesters outfit or original look are out the window. She has free flowing blonde pigtails, a purple domino mask, a nurses hat, a white nurses shirt with an exposed red and purple bra, a corset that is cinched down tight to show off her figure, a red and purple color scheme instead of red and black, a white mini skirt that is stained with blood, fishnets, and knee high red and purple boots. This was the first time we ever saw Harley in any thing like this, and for fans of the classic look this came to a complete shock to us. Even with the original voice actress Arleen Sorkin coming back to voice her, this didn't seem like Harley at all. However this outfit grew on me and I came to realize that perhaps its one of her main themed outfits, as in, her and The Joker pull off many crimes and some have themes so she would dress of the part. So thats how I see this as she is dressing for the part of the asylum nurse.
2011 marked the release to the sequel to Arkham Asylum titled Batman: Arkham City.
In this game Harley's red and black look are back but fully reimagined and revamped in the form of a leather ensemble. Her blonde hair is now dipped with red and black tips, she looses the domino mask in favor of heavy dark smokey eyes, bright red lips, red and black arm sleeves, her bra shows again behind a red and black sleeveless shirt, silver and black wrist bands with studs, fingerless gloves with a diamond design, tattoos on her left arm and right hip, the same corset from the first game just red and black now, red and black leather pants with diamonds on them and the same boots as well from the first game but just changed to fir the red and black colors. In the DLC Harley's Revenge her outfit changes yet again. After mourning the death of The Joker (whoops, spoilers) her outfit changes to primarily black with a black veil, black hair, darkened lips and makeup, and white ruffles on her wrist cuffs. Both of these outfits saw a drastic change in Harley with her taking on more responsibilities in the gang as Joker got sicker and eventually leading Jokers men after his death. Both of these outfits are considered the darkest out of the series because of those reasons. She still retains the classic Harley mannerisms and personality from before, but these outfits are considered more militant than her themed outfit from Arkham Asylum.
In 2013 the game Injustice: Gods among Us was released with critical praise. This game was developed by the team behind Mortal Kombat. So naturally certain characters would look totally different. As was the case for Harley Quinn. Her look was very in that "Mortal Kombat" style of thinking, with a red and purple color scheme and red and purple dyed hair with a green streak added assuming in honor of the Joker, she had one of those looks that made fans go huh? Luckily she had another costume called the Insurgency costume that fans took to liking more than her base outfit. Also released for DLC were costume packs that showcased some of Harley's looks through other games or comics. Released were her classic look, the Arkham City outfit, and her look in the Ame-Comi comic series. 2013 also debuted Harley's first time in a video game as Dr. Harleen Quinzel in the game Batman: Arkham Origins. Though in there briefly she does have her classic look from the Animated Series when she was a doctor. A nice nod to Harley fans to put in the game, just with a little Christmas twist.
2015 debuted the presumably final time we would see Harley in the Arkham games with the release of Arkham Knight. In this she keeps her red and black dyed hair and makeup from Arkham City but yet again the outfit changes. Her outfit is comprised of what look's like a french maid skirt, a white blouse that is reminiscent from the first game, a black corset that covers her mid drift from the previous two games, her red and black bra shows with harness straps that go around her waist and chest and up to a connecting piece on a neck collar, red and black sleeves with white lace around the wrists, red and black leather pants with the diamonds on the thighs, and red and black boots with metal studs in the back of them. This outfit seems to take a little piece from the first two games and combine them into one thing. They also seemed to have added some unused concept art from previous games and incorporated it into her final design. I actually really do like this outfit. It is cute but not overly sexed up like the previous ones. She is covering up her waist and seems to be a little bit more conservative with this look seeing as how she is the full leader of Jokers gang. In a recent DLC released for the game she is finally shown in her classic jester look as her and Joker kidnap the commissioner and Batgirl and Robin must go and save him.
In the comics Harley has had many outfits, most keep to the traditional outfit from the 90's or variations on them, but none more drastic and changing than in 2011's debut with the New 52's version of The Suicide Squad. This look has gotten the most controversy with Harley fans and DC fans alike. In this universe Harley has permanently dyed red and blue hair and chalk white skin. Curtesy of The Joker throwing her into the same vat of chemicals he was thrown into during his fight with Batman. She wears an extremely tight red and blue corset that shows off her waist and pushes up her breasts and makes them look fuller. The corset also has a set of throwing knives on each side, a mini cape that is attached to a white victorian era collar, red and blue arm gauntlets with diamond patterns on them, black eye makeup that makes her look like a member of the band KISS, red and blue booty shorts, and red and blue knee high stockings and boots to match. When I first saw this outfit I was flabbergasted and confused. I kept asking where the harlequin style came into play. After all thats what her name is, a play on word of harlequin. That's who she was, Harley Quinn dressed as a harlequin. This outfit got rid of it all, the playfulness of it, the cute, the funny. This made her look ruthless, very slutty, and like a cold blooded killer. I was so angry for what they did to my favorite character out of the whole DC universe, not only with her outfit but her personality and backstory as well I stopped reading The Suicide Squad after her new origin story debut. I just couldn't read anymore, or look at what they did to her.
After her stint in The Suicide Squad Harley got her own series in 2013. In this she looses the red and blue colors and reverts to the red and black colors. Her skin is still bleached and hair dyed. But she no longer wears her getup from the Suicide Squad comics. On the debut cover she is wearing a roller derby outfit. Red and black color scheme with diamonds, cute roller skates, dark eye makeup (not nearly as drastic as the Suicide Squad style), and various knee and elbow pads. Now to be fair I haven't really read a whole lot of her new series. I have heard mixed reviews. but what I have heard is that its a nice departure from the Suicide Squad stuff and it gets to showcase Harley on her own and doing what she does best. Be Harley Quinn. I have seen a few outfits from the series and what I've seen I've liked a hell of a lot better that the stuff before. Now is it perfect and what I truly wanna see? Of course not. But for now its better than nothing I guess.
Now as for live action stuff. Harley Quinn as only ever appeared in two forms of live action media. One being the short lived show in 2002 called The Birds of Prey where she was played by Mia Sara, and in the 2016 movie Suicide Squad played by Margot Robbie. In the TV show Birds of Prey we don't actually get to see Harley Quinn in all her glory until the final episode of the series. Here she is shown to have a long sleeved red sweater with black diamonds cut out on the chest, red gloves, a black skirt and red and black shoes. Absent are her mask, clown makeup, and jester hood. For her first live action debut I wish they would have done a little more to her, but it was an OK outfit for the first time on a campy TV show like that.
Now on to the new Suicide Squad movie. This is the first time we get to see Harley Quinn on the big screen so of course they choose to do the Suicide Squad version of her. In this she has the red and blue colors back yet again (although her hair is dyed pink and blue for the tips) booty shorts, a red and blue jacket, fishnets, high heel sneakers, tattoos everywhere, a t-shirt, and "puddin" choker. This version seems to borrow little bits and pieces from many of the previous looks that Harley has had in the past. Now rumors did surface online that she would be getting multiple costumes in the film and from the recent trailer that dropped that rumor seems to be confirmed. People have asked me if I am still going to see the film. Of course I am! It's Harley's first big screen debut!! I may not like the look as a whole, but I love the actress Margot Robbie and I think she will do a fantastic job as Harley Quinn. And I am sure as with a majority of her outfits this one will grown on me too. Just gotta give it time is all.
So which version of Harley Quinn do you like the most or least? Was there an outfit or look I missed that should have been mentioned? Sound off on the comments below and let us know which Harley you absolutely love.


text:
Movies like Acapulco 12-22
Top 10 awesome movies like Acapulco 12-22 that you will enjoy watching
You just finished watching Acapulco 12-22 and you can't get over how good this movie was. Now you want to watch more of such masterpieces. We have curated a list of similar movies which are created by the likes of Aldo Monti, Jorge Rivero and Alfredo Leal . Here goes the list -
The Legend of the Mask
Apuesta contra la muerte
Acoso prohibido
Mujeres salvajes
Contrabando y traición
Lo que vendrá
Los Debutantes
A sports journalist is assigned to discover the truth behind the mask of "El Angel Enmascarado" (The Masked Angel), a very popular and recently deceased wrestler.
This movie, created by José Buil, Héctor Bonilla and Héctor Ortega, scores 6.0 on IMDb.
Lolo (nickname for Dolores, used in Mexico as femenine or masculine name) is an outcast boy who lives in the suburbs of Mexico City. He accidentaly kills the local moneylender (an old woman) when trying to rob his mother's golden watch (that she pawned). Lolo is then hunted and blackmailed by everybody but his girlfriend. The dialogs are in a very particular Mexico City slang.
This movie, created by Francisco Athié, Roberto Sosa and Esperanza Mozo, scores 6.8 on IMDb.
A young man with a dysfunctional family becomes the bodyguard of his best friend, a rich, hot headed, young man who lives in excess, he will soon find himself immerse in a life of sex, crime, sleaze and deadly bets.
This movie, created by Ismael Rodríguez Jr., Mario Almada and Edgardo Gazcón, scores 4.9 on IMDb.
A shocking story where sex, blackmail and lies will lead viewer to a tragic outcome of a passionate triangle.
This movie, created by Amado Portillo, Harry Geithner and Roberto Ballesteros, scores 5.0 on IMDb.
Six women murderers escape from prison to dug out a gold treasure buried in the woods, but six male campers are sitting on it. Birds get shot, women and men get shot, and the prize goes to the surviving few.
This movie, created by Gabriel Retes, Tina Romero and Jorge Santoyo, scores 5.6 on IMDb.
Two criminals, Emilio and Camelia try to smuggle drugs into the USA.
This movie, created by Arturo Martínez, Ana Luisa Peluffo and Valentín Trujillo, scores 6.8 on IMDb.
At the end of the milennium, a murderer psychopath, Gabriel (Antonio Drija) is chased by the police of a major Latin metropolis. He finds refuge in the house of a woman Gloria (Amparo Grisales) who has just been abandoned by her lover Armando (Gustavo Rodríguez), an unscrupulous politician. Something starts to develop between them, who should be antagonistic towards each other. However a bond of violence and abandonment unite them. The local police couple Nicomedis (Honorato Magaloni) and Miranda (Ruddy Rodríguez) follow the murderer's trail, and start to surround the besieged house, but Armando move them away to kill Gloria and Gabriel by the help of a special operations group, because Gloria knows too much about his dirty business. The drama then really unfolds.
This movie, created by Philippe Toledano, Amparo Grisales and Antonio Drija, scores 6.1 on IMDb.
Against the backdrop of an increasingly-powerful police state, Miguel returns to Buenos Aires. An innocent bystander, he's shot by a rogue cop, Morea, at a political demonstration. To avoid scandal, the police place Miguel in the hospital as a John Doe, where nurses are drawn to his bedside. A tipster notifies the press and Miguel's father and also phones Morea with threats to expose and even kill him. Meanwhile, Miguel is in a coma, able to hear but not speak. Eventually he rouses himself and begins his own hunt for Morea, who remains calm, cool, and lethal. After the drama of cop, victim, and vigilante plays out, there may be worse times to come.
This movie, created by Gustavo Mosquera R., Hugo Soto and Juan Leyrado, scores 6.7 on IMDb.
Genres - Sci-Fi | Crime | Drama
Catalina is a young, beautiful girl living in extreme poverty with her brother Byron and her mother Hilda. She becomes obsessed with getting breast implants to get social status and money. She leaves her boyfriend Albeira and becomes a prostitute for drug dealers. In this way she will enjoy all the luxuries that she lacks. Meanwhile, her ex-boyfriend Albeira and her mother Hilda begin a relationship behind her back.
This movie, created by Gustavo Bolívar Moreno, Isabel Cristina Cadavid and Linda Lucía Callejas, scores 5.1 on IMDb.
You can watch this on Directv.
The story of two brothers who get involved with a sexy stripper and her boss, the nightclub king of Santiago, as told from three perspectives. Sexy, gritty, emotional.
This movie, created by Andrés Waissbluth, Antonella Ríos and Néstor Cantillana, scores 6.0 on IMDb.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
%
%  [L,D,E,pneg]=mchol(G)
%
%  Given a symmetric matrix G, find a matrix E of "small" norm and c
%  L, and D such that  G+E is Positive Definite, and
%
%      G+E = L*D*L'
%
%  Also, calculate a direction pneg, such that if G is not PD, then
%
%      pneg'*G*pneg < 0
%
%  Note that if G is PD, then the routine will return pneg=[].
%
%  Reference: Gill, Murray, and Wright, "Practical Optimization", p111.
%  Author: Brian Borchers (borchers@nmt.edu)
%
%  Copyright (c) 2009, Brian Borchers
%  All rights reserved.
%
%  Redistribution and use in source and binary forms, with or without
%  modification, are permitted provided that the following conditions are
%  met:
%
%    * Redistributions of source code must retain the above copyright
%      notice, this list of conditions and the following disclaimer.
%    * Redistributions in binary form must reproduce the above copyright
%      notice, this list of conditions and the following disclaimer in
%      the documentation and/or other materials provided with the distribution
%    * Neither the name of the New Mexico Inst of Mining & Tech nor the names
%      of its contributors may be used to endorse or promote products derived
%      from this software without specific prior written permission.
%
% THIS SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED BY THE COPYRIGHT HOLDERS AND CONTRIBUTORS "AS IS"
% AND ANY EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE
% IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE
% ARE DISCLAIMED. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE COPYRIGHT OWNER OR CONTRIBUTORS BE
% LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, EXEMPLARY, OR
% CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES (INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, PROCUREMENT OF
% SUBSTITUTE GOODS OR SERVICES; LOSS OF USE, DATA, OR PROFITS; OR BUSINESS
% INTERRUPTION) HOWEVER CAUSED AND ON ANY THEORY OF LIABILITY, WHETHER IN
% CONTRACT, STRICT LIABILITY, OR TORT (INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE OR OTHERWISE)
% ARISING IN ANY WAY OUT OF THE USE OF THIS SOFTWARE, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE
% POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE.

function [L,D,E,pneg]=mchol(G)
%
%  n gives the size of the matrix.
%
n=size(G,1);
%
%  gamma, zi, nu, and beta2 are quantities used by the algorithm.
%
gamma=max(diag(G));
zi=max(max(G-diag(diag(G))));
nu=max([1,sqrt(n^2-1)]);
beta2=max([gamma, zi/nu, 1.0E-15]);
%
%  Initialize diag(C) to diag(G).
%
C=diag(diag(G));
%
%  Loop through, calculating column j of L for j=1:n
%

L=zeros(n);
D=zeros(n);
E=zeros(n);

for j=1:n,
    bb=[1:j-1];
    ee=[j+1:n];

    %
    %  Calculate the jth row of L.
    %
    if (j > 1),
        L(j,bb)=C(j,bb)./diag(D(bb,bb))';
    end;
    %
    %  Update the jth column of C.
    %
    if (j >= 2),
        if (j < n),
            C(ee,j)=G(ee,j)-(L(j,bb)*C(ee,bb)')';
        end;
    else
        C(ee,j)=G(ee,j);
    end;
    %
    % Update theta.
    %
    if (j == n)
        theta(j)=0;
    else
        theta(j)=max(abs(C(ee,j)));
    end;
    %
    %  Update D
    %
    D(j,j)=max([eps,abs(C(j,j)),theta(j)^2/beta2]');
    %
    % Update E.
    %
    E(j,j)=D(j,j)-C(j,j);

    %
    %  Update C again...
    %
    %%%%%%%% M.Zibulevsky: begin of changes, old version is commented %%%%%%%%%%%%%

    %for i=j+1:n,
    %    C(i,i)=C(i,i)-C(i,j)^2/D(j,j);
    %end;

    ind=[j*(n+1)+1 : n+1 : n*n]';
    C(ind)=C(ind)-(1/D(j,j))*C(ee,j).^2;

end;

%
% Put 1's on the diagonal of L
%
%for j=1:n,
%    L(j,j)=1;
%end;

ind=[1 : n+1 : n*n]';
L(ind)=1;

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% M.Zibulevsky: end of changes %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

%
%  if needed, find a descent direction.
%
if ((nargout == 4) & (min(diag(C)) < 0.0))
    [m,col]=min(diag(C));
    rhs=zeros(n,1);
    rhs(col)=1;
    pneg=L'\rhs;
else
  pneg=[];
end;

return

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


This is a dynamic and vibrant original abstract piece in my series of PMS Micro Paintings, where I paint unique mini artworks on antique and unique miniature frames. This is my most popular series to date and this piece is the 93rd in the series. Unlike a normal painting where the frame is bought afterwards, I let the unique frame inspire each individual and unique PMS Micro Painting in the series. This painting was painted on a 14" x 11" glass surface and antique miniature frame (15" x 12"), utilizing an abstract technique that I have been working on over the years. This piece is a bit more subtle in texture and has an intense, vibrant level of colors streaking, or racing past the viewer eye, leaving traces and wonderful tidbits of texture behind. This painting has a fiery beauty to its arrangement and is a unique miniature painting and frame like no other. It is on the larger side of my Micro Paintings.


After winning Business of the Year at the Regina & District Chamber of Commerce's Paragon Awards in April, Rachel Mielke, founder and CEO of Hillberg & Berk, has achieved yet another distinction. Mielke was named one of the top 10 of Profit Guide's list of influential and successful women entrepreneurs, earning sixth spot on this list of 100 women, the online magazine announced in a press release this week.
Rachel Mielke, founder and CEO of Hillberg & Berk of Regina , was recently named to Profit Guide's top 100 women entrepreneurs, ranking sixth overall.
After winning Business of the Year at the Regina & District Chamber of Commerce's Paragon Awards in April, Rachel Mielke, founder and CEO of Hillberg & Berk, has achieved yet another distinction.
Mielke was named one of the top 10 of Profit Guide's list of influential and successful women entrepreneurs, earning sixth spot on the list of 100 women, the online magazine announced in a press release this week.
"The company, in its ninth year, has gone from strength to strength winning many awards and generating impressive revenue," the release said.
Other milestones of the company's success include receiving a $200,000 investment from Brett Wilson on CBC's Dragons' Den in 2008 and being commissioned to design a brooch as a gift for Queen Elizabeth II in 2013.
She also designed emerald-coloured 'sparkle ball' earrings for the Saskatchewan Roughriders and signed a two-year contract to produce and sell a jewelry collection designed by Canadian 2010 Olympic gold medal figure skater Tessa Virtue.
Last year, Mielke was named to the EY Entrepreneurial Winning Women Class of 2015 at the EY Strategic Growth Forum in Palm Springs, Calif., one of only four Canadians named to the 2015 class.
The EY Entrepreneurial Winning Women program identifies up to 12 women entrepreneurs from across Canada and the U.S., whose businesses show potential for large-scale success.
The company also raised more than $500,000 for organizations that support women, both in Saskatchewan and globally. In 2014, Mielke formed the Hillberg & Berk Foundation to support causes of influential women working for change.


Over the next couple of days, before we announce the winners, I will show you some random images - in random order - from the entries to Witchy's contest.
A poem that came in with an entry!
Fun stuff and such great ideas, I'll be back tomorrow with some more random photos to show you.
Thank you to everyone who entered, it has been so much fun receiving the emails, the notes, the poems, and the photos. Witchy applauds you!


text:
Investment Management Update – April 2015
30. April 2015 – Review and outlook, Risk Regime Investing
«You can force someone to close their eyes, but you cannot force them to sleep.» (Danish proverb)
The central banks know no boundaries. Using all their resources albeit with slightly different priorities, they attempt to stimulate the economy, stoke the stock exchange, weaken their own currencies and fend off the feared phenomenon of inflation. Ideally, these objectives should all be met at the same time.
Japan's central bank takes a particularly direct approach. To increase the monetary base by more than EUR 500 billion a year, the Bank of Japan (BoJ) has been buying equity traded funds (ETF) and real-estate investment trusts (REIT) directly since last October, rather than taking the longer route through the bond markets. Europe is taking a slightly more conservative approach. On 22 January 2015, the European Central Bank (ECB) announced its intention to purchase bonds on the secondary market, with the aim of taking stronger action to kickstart growth and increase inflation in the eurozone. Between March 2015 and September 2016, it will purchase securities worth more than EUR 1.1 trillion.
Why the central banks are choosing to drag their governments out of the mire is a mystery to us. They are aiming to solve the debt crisis with low interest rates while stimulating the economy at the same time. We are particularly puzzled as to why this excessive quantitative easing is being performed indirectly, i.e. by buying vastly over-valued bonds on the stock exchange. While we are still waiting for economic recovery to arrive, there is a growing danger that bubbles will begin to form on the financial markets – and sooner or later these bubbles will burst. You can force investors to close their eyes, but you cannot force them to sleep.
«Evil cannot be conquered if it is more attractive than good» (Ernst Reinhardt, Swiss publicist and aphorist)
No one has ever developed an instrument that can reliably predict a financial crisis. However, the physician Didier Sornette and his working group at ETH Zurich are now looking to change this. At his Financial Crisis Observatory (FCO), Sornette is simulating and testing the formation of bubbles and determining whether it is possible to predict when they will burst. In his Global Bubble Status Report published in March, he argues that clear warning signals can be seen in 56% of all European equity sectors and 85% of all global bond indexes. Sornette believes that the ECB's aforementioned impending quantitative easing program is the reason behind the stark increase in signals as compared to the previous month.
Equity World MSCI World Net USD 2.31% 6.03%
Equity Switzerland Swiss Performance Index 3.16% 11.40%
Bonds World JPM GBI Global Traded TR USD -1.79% -3.73%
Bonds Switzerland Swiss Bond Index AAA-BBB TR 1.98% 6.85%
Commodities Thomson Reuters/Jefferies CRB TR USD -7.86% 30.44%
Real estate Switerzland SXI Real Estate® TR 8.16% 19.94%
Exchange rate EUR/CHF -13.21% -14.31%
Exchange rate USD/CHF -1.70% 9.95%
Our risk indicators in the first quarter of 2015 were the same as in the previous quarter. For our investment strategy, we are sticking with target portfolio 1 and continuing to invest defensively. Investments in real assets make up 20 to 25% of the portfolio's resources. In light of the current environment, we want to keep the level of risk low, which is also reflected in the nominal value of our investments. The proportion of bonds is neutral compared with our benchmark, but the duration is considerably shorter.
The central banks' behavior is one of the main considerations for market participants. However, it is one of the main causes of an unstable market: If indexes are only driven by a small number of factors, they are less able to absorb negative news. In addition, investors are now behaving in the way described by Daniel Kahneman in his "Prospect Theory", the work which won him the Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences in 2002. Instead of accepting a safe, limited loss of liquidity in a negative interest rate environment, they are choosing the more uncertain route of making risky investments in the hope of generating a profit. However, we believe that the opportunity to make a profit is becoming smaller from one month to the next. The constant search for risk is the only way to explain the way that investors are behaving and the prices of their investments:
Money market funds have become much less attractive since 1998. Back then, the resources invested in these safe, interest-yielding instruments still made up 25% of Switzerland's total fund volume. Today, fund investors have to pay for this safety as a result of the negative interest rates. As a result, money market funds now make up just 6%. Despite strong growth in the corresponding fund volumes since then, only CHF 53 billion is currently invested in money market funds, some CHF 30 billion less than in 1998.
Previously conservative investors are having to take a new approach in today's zero interest rate environment, with many favoring real-estate investments that offer a positive return in the form of a dividend. These investors are willing to pay a high price for such investments. At the end of March, the premium (agio) of all Swiss real-estate funds was 35% higher than the net asset value (NAV), compared with the long-term average of 15%. The potential for corrective action has risen considerably over the past three months.
A lack of alternatives is causing investors to make risky investments. At the end of February 2015, shares made up 39% of Switzerland's total fund volume, exceeding the record high set in 2000. Over the past 15 years, the Swiss Performance Index (SPI) has only generated a positive annual yield once, when shares made up more than 36% of the total volume. In all other years, the performance has been negative.
Unlike with the euphoria surrounding dot.com shares 15 years ago or the rush for mortgage-backed securities eight years ago, we do not believe that investors are now searching for the hottest monetary investment voluntarily. Instead, the central banks' current approach is almost forcing them to depart from safe, interest-bearing investments. The investors' natural inclination to avoid certain losses at all costs is being exploited. The "evil" of assuming more risk cannot be conquered if it appears more attractive than the "good" of certain loss.
(Vergleiche vorgehende Tabelle)
The European stock markets caught up well in the first quarter of 2015. After a decent performance of 3% in 2014, shares in Germany's benchmark DAX index rose by 22% in the first three months. In the same period, the Euro Stoxx 50 advanced by 18% after a lackluster performance in the previous year. This more than compensated for the decline on the global stock markets. In the USA, for example, the S&P 500 finished the first quarter unchanged after climbing by more than 11% in 2014. The Nikkei is also in good condition: The monetary policy and interventions by the central bank helped Japanese shares to rise by a further 10% by the end of March after already increasing by 7% the year before.
Against the backdrop of negative interest rates, bonds are see-sawing. The yields for Swiss government bonds are fluctuating between positive and negative on an almost daily basis, and the corresponding yield curves are turning from flat to inverted. In the eurozone, 30% of government bonds are now generating a negative yield. After the global bond rally began to show signs of fatigue, the value of the global bond index fell by 2% (calculated in dollars) in the first quarter. Swiss franc bonds performed better, finishing 2% up.
In terms of risk, commodities enjoyed mixed fortunes between January and March. While the fluctuation margin for monthly returns from crude oil grew wider, the corresponding volatility indicator for precious metals continued to shrink. The volatility of gold prices reached its lowest level in four years at the end of March 2015.
The investment crisis for bond investors intensified in the first quarter of 2015. As a result, real estate provided an alternative outlet for funds that were not (yet) intended for equity investments due to risk considerations. This is the only way to explain the further increase in the agio (the premium to the net asset value) for Swiss real-estate funds. This premium has now reached 35%. Accordingly, real-estate funds generated a return of 8% in the first quarter and a return of 20% in the past 12 months.
Fundamental changes in monetary policy put the Swiss National Bank (SNB) under so much pressure that it unexpectedly abolished the minimum CHF/EUR exchange rate on 15 January 2015. At the same time, it pushed interest rates even further into negative territory, after already introducing negative interest rates on deposit accounts for commercial banks in December 2014. By the end of the quarter, only the dollar had managed to recover somewhat from this shock. Although its value fell by 2% against the Swiss franc, it has still risen by 10% over the past 12 months.


text:
Snowden: NSA Is 'Setting Fire' to Future of the Web
Edward Snowden called on the tech community to create secure tools that will prevent mass surveillance.
By Chloe Albanesius
Chloe Albanesius
Executive Editor for News
I started out covering tech policy in Washington, D.C. for The National Journal's Technology Daily, where my beat included state-level tech news and all the congressional hearings and FCC meetings I could handle. After a move to New York City, I covered Wall Street trading tech at Incisive Media before switching gears to consumer tech and PCMag. I now lead PCMag's news coverage and manage our how-to content.
https://www.pcmag.com/news/snowden-nsa-is-setting-fire-to-future-of-the-web
Former NSA contractor Edward Snowden appeared via webcast at Austin's SXSW conference on Monday, and called on the tech community to create secure tools that will prevent mass surveillance by agencies like the National Security Agency.
"The people who are in the room in Austin, they're the folks who can really fix things, who can enforce our rights through technical standards" when Congress is unable or unwilling to do so, Snowden said.
"The NSA, the global mass surveillance that's occurring in all these countries ... they're setting fire to the future of the Internet," Snowden charged. "The people who are in this room right now, you guys are all the fire fighters and we need you to help us fix this."
Snowden turned over a number of classified documents to journalists last year before fleeing to Hong Kong and later, Russia. He resides there now, and appeared remotely at SXSW today via seven proxies in front of a green screen that displayed the Constitution. The information he provided brought to light a number of NSA surveillance programs, as well as mass requests for data from popular tech companies.
Snowden argued that "there's a policy response that needs to occur." While President Obama has pledged to make changes to surveillance programs - particularly as it relates to phone data metadata collection - Congress is divided on the issue. Snowden supporters generally back the USA FREEDOM Act(Opens in a new window) from Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., and Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner, a Wisconsin Republican, but are critical(Opens in a new window) of a bill from Sen. Dianne Feinstein, which detractors say will just bolster existing programs.
As a result, Snowden backed "a technical response," from "thinkers" and developers who "can really craft those solutions and make sure we're safe."
Ideally, that would include end-to-end encryption, Snowden said. But he acknowledged that that can be complicated, in part because free email services like Gmail make their money by email scanning that serves up targeted ads. Google started encrypting Gmail by default in 2010, but it's encryption in pieces, so to speak, rather than end-to-end.
ACLU principal technologist Christopher Soghoian, who also appeared on today's panel, agreed that truly secure solutions are often too complicated for the average tech user. "Tools that are designed with security as the first goal [are] made by geeks, for geeks," he said.
As a result, "a lot of our work goes into pressuring" major services like Facebook, Google, and Skype to secure their products, Soghoian said. That doesn't mean that small developers can't play a role, he said. "What I want is for the next WhatsApp or Twitter to use end-to-end encryption."
Snowden described encryption as "protection for the dark arts of the digital realm." He called on the grad students of today and tomorrow to actively research and improve cryptography on the academic level to inform the technology of tomorrow.
Ultimately, Soghoian said truly secure solutions will not be free. He speculated that people would likely be willing to pay $5 per month for a user-friendly, truly secure solution.
Questions at the event were fielded via Twitter and were largely supportive of Snowden's efforts. Tim Berners-Lee, known as the father of the Internet, even wrote in to say that Snowden's actions were "profoundly in the public interest."
But not everyone is a fan. Rep. Mike Pompeo, a Kansas Republican, asked SXSW organizers to cancel the Snowden event, arguing that Snowden's appearance would "stamp the imprimatur of your fine organization on a man who ill deserves such accolades." Pompeo's request was referenced during today's event, but was obviously not honored.
Moderator Ben Wizner asked Snowden if he regretted turning over the documents, but he said no. "Would I do this again? Absolutely yes," he said. "Regardless of what happens to me, this is something we had a right to know."
For more, check out The 10 Most Disturbing Snowden Revelations, as well as all the news from SXSW and the slideshow above.
Also watch PCMag Live in the video below, which discusses Snowden's SXSW appearance.
UPDATE: Watch Snowden's full appearance in the video above.
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More from Chloe Albanesius


text:
Q: How to get the redirect URI from a 303 error I'm sending a dojo xhrPost request to a server I can't control, which gives me a 303 redirect as response. The problem is, the server redirect URI is wrong (going through some reverse proxy or bug and changing it) and leads to an error.
I want to fetch the 303 redirect URI, parse it and do a GET Request with the correct URL. The problem is, I only get the error from my xhrPost and can't get the redirect URL from it. Any way to do this?
Example code:
      var xhrArgs = {
        url: "https://sometestdomain.com/",
        postData: formData,
        handleAs: "json",
        headers: {
          'Authorization': 'Basic 321123123something2313123'
        load: function (data) {
          console.log(data);
        },
        error: function (error) {
          console.log(error);
        },
        handle: function (error, ioargs) {
          console.log(ioargs);
          console.log(error);
        }
      }
      var test = dojo.xhrPost(xhrArgs);

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
Q: Understanding DNSSEC So I've been trying to understand how DNS and DNSSEC works by reading the RFCs and also other various help pages around the internet, but I'm not sure if I understand completely, so i was wondering if anyone could help me out.
Here's a synopses of what I have so far:

DNSSEC does not actually encrypt any data, so as to keep the system efficient enough to function properly, but serves to verify the integrity and authenticity of the RRsets that a server receives.

The DNSKEY RR is what holds the public key that a zone can use to authenticate the signature     that comes in the RRSIG RR.

A zone will also have a DNSKEY in the zone apex, which can act as an entry point for the zone. There will be a DS RR on the other side of the zone cut that points to this DNSKEY.

I am having a bit of trouble with the NSEC RR.
It says it holds all of the resource record types associated with a RR owner name and then points to the next name.
What does owner name mean here? Does it mean the name of the zone? name of a host?

Another question I have has to do with packet interception. since nothings encrypted, anyone could still intercept packets, right?
If this is the case, then I'm guessing that's the point of the NSEC records, so if a resolver sees something that the NSEC says it shouldnt, it knows that packet was altered?
But I still don't exactly see how the DS and the DNSKEY in the apex come into play here, because I'm assuming thats the role they play somehow, so I have to be missing something fundamental here.
Any help is appreciated.

A: Owner name means the left-hand side name.  This is the fully-qualified domain name of the record you are talking about, in this case, an NSEC record.
Anyone can intercept the packets and see the records in them.  NSEC (or NSEC3) records are there so something exists to actually create a signature over for non-existent names.  In regular DNS, a flag in the header (NXDOMAIN) indicates that a name doesn't exist.  That can be spoofed of course.  The NSEC (or NSEC3) record basically says "no names exist between these two names, and only these RRs exist for the first name".
The DS record is just a hash of a DNSKEY.  The DNSKEY goes in the child zone and the DS record in the parent zone.  The parent then signs the DS record with the parent's zone DNSKEY.  This establishes a chain of trust between the parent and the child.


Pledging to continue serving as an independent voice for Maryland taxpayers, small businesses and often-sideline communities, Comptroller Peter Franchot took the oath of office to begin his fourth term as Maryland's 33rd Comptroller. First elected to the office in 2006, Franchot chose to be sworn in at the University of Baltimore, breaking from the traditional location of the State House in Annapolis.
Gov. Larry Hogan administered the oath of office, following remarks from elected leaders throughout Maryland. The capacity crowd included members of the Maryland General Assembly, county and municipal officials and school board members, as well as community and business leaders from Ocean City to Cumberland.
Prior to becoming Comptroller, Mr. Franchot served 20 years as a member of the Maryland House of Delegates representing District 20 in Montgomery County. In the November 2016 election, Comptroller Franchot received more than 1.6 million votes — the most ever recorded for a state elected office — and won 21 of Maryland's 24 jurisdictions.
During his tenure as Comptroller, Mr. Franchot has been an independent voice and fiscal watchdog for the taxpayers of Maryland. He has demanded accountability in state procurements, promoted businesses that create jobs and grow the state's economy, protected Maryland's open spaces, advocated for modern school environments that give all students the opportunity to succeed, and has delivered respectful, responsive results for Maryland taxpayers.
Comptroller Franchot thanked the event's speakers, recognizing their shared commitment to transparent, responsive government and maintaining independence from hyper-partisan politics.
In his remarks, Comptroller Franchot reaffirmed his commitment to ensure that every student is able to learn in safe and comfortable classrooms. He thanked school advocates for their vigilant efforts to hold elected officials accountable.
Comptroller Franchot recognized Deputy Comptroller Sharonne Bonrdi and her team for making the Maryland Comptroller's Office the best in the entire nation, one that works to benefit Maryland taxpayers, who, on average, receive their state refunds within three business days. Under Bonardi's leadership and through the use of state-of-the-art technology, the agency has prevented $6 billion from falling into the hands of tax cheats and is preparing to implement in the coming years a next-generation tax system that will fundamentally transform the way in which Marylanders pay their taxes.
Underscoring Franchot's support of the faith community, the swearing-in ceremony included an invocation by Reverend Dr. Alvin Hathaway, Sr. of Union Baptist Church in Baltimore and benediction by Rabbi Peter E. Hyman of Temple B'nai Israel in Easton.
Over the next four years, the Comptroller pledged to safeguard taxpayers' money, advocate for the environment, support independent redistricting efforts, reduce the state's reliance on standardized testing, and champion financial literacy goals for Maryland students.
"Too many of our public school students earn a diploma without the ability to balance a checkbook, establish a personal budget, or appreciate the difference between good credit and bad – in other words, those basic skills they will need for a lifetime of success and security," said Comptroller Franchot.
The Comptroller ended his remarks by invoking the spirit of the founding fathers of our state and country, as well as his strong belief in a government that works for the people it serves.


Just as exquisite jewels are a sign of status and sophistication, so, too, glass cabinet hardware dresses up cabinets and drawers and adds unparalleled elegance to every room. Like the finest jewels, both glass handles and glass pulls are available in a variety of styles and colors, making them a lovely addition to rooms of all sizes and designs. From glass drawer pulls to pink glass knobs, glass cabinet hardware will make your cabinets shine like never before.
Glass knobs and pulls are graceful enough for use on bedroom cabinets and classic enough for use in many traditionally-styled kitchens. Since many glass-style knobs are actually crafted from Lucite or acrylic, they will not chip or crack. Additionally, because colored glass cabinet hardware is tinted throughout, the color will not fade or diminish, even after years of use. Finally, glass cabinet pulls and more are smooth to the touch, making each use comfortable.
Colored glass hardware is the perfect way to add a splash of color to a kitchen or bathroom without overpowering the room. Green glass knobs have just a hint of decorative flair while still maintaining a stately and subdued look. Many fine hardware companies, such as Liberty hardware, produce these subtle and yet appealing glass knobs. Adding even a hint of color to an otherwise plain room can transform the space and add a lively appeal.
Homeowners looking to revamp the look of their bathrooms without undergoing a full construction can choose glass cabinet hardware to give an instant face-lift to old or dull cabinet surfaces. Likewise, combining glass cabinet handles and glass drawer knobs creates an interesting look for any kitchen or bedroom, much like earrings and necklaces that complement each other make a fabulous fashion statement. Consider glass pulls for drawers and clear glass knobs for cabinets to combine the class of glass with a modern look. Consider glass cabinet hardware the most elegant type of jewelry for your cabinets - you'll be glad that you did!


text:
Gelatin particles show promise in gene therapy for kidney disease
December 16, 2002 ScienceBlog.com
Researchers have successfully tested micro-sized gelatin particles that may one day deliver therapeutic genes to treat a type of kidney disease. The biodegradable gelatin particles are so small that at least 10 would fit on the period at the end of this sentence. Researchers believe such particles could carry therapeutic genes to the glomerulus, a tiny cluster of capillaries within the kidney that filters toxins from the blood. This filtration system becomes blocked when patients develop glomerular disease.From Ohio State University :BIODEGRADABLE GELATIN PARTICLES SHOW PROMISE FOR DELIVERING THERAPEUTIC GENES IN TREATMENT OF KIDNEY DISEASE
COLUMBUS, Ohio ? Researchers at Ohio State University have successfully tested micro-sized gelatin particles that may one day deliver therapeutic genes to treat a type of kidney disease.
The biodegradable gelatin particles are so small that at least 10 would fit on the period at the end of this sentence. Researchers believe such particles could carry therapeutic genes to the glomerulus, a tiny cluster of capillaries within the kidney that filters toxins from the blood. This filtration system becomes blocked when patients develop glomerular disease.
The researchers injected these extremely small, biodegradable particles into arteries that led to an animal subject's kidneys. This study was designed to only test the gelatin delivery system, so the particles didn't carry any genetic material.
"Gene therapy is a new approach to treating kidney disease," said N. Stanley Nahman Jr., the study's senior author and a professor of nephrology at Ohio State. "Ours is a preliminary study ? we have at least five to 10 years to go before this kind of treatment might become a reality for patients.
"But gelatin appears to be a good choice for delivering potentially therapeutic genetic material to the glomerulus."
Glomerular disease is the most common cause of kidney failure in the United States. In 1997, more than half of the 304,000 people on dialysis had some form of glomerular disease, according to a report by the U.S. Renal Data System.
The study appears in a recent issue of the journal Biomedical Microdevices.
The researchers found that it took about 10 hours for the gelatin particles, or particles, to dissolve enough to pass through the glomerulus of a piglet. Ten hours is a short enough period for a gene to be released and to begin replicating in the tissue, Nahman said.
The scientists injected perhaps a million biodegradable gelatin particles into the renal artery of a piglet. (Each kidney has about a million glomeruli.)
The particles were tagged with radioactive material prior to being injected into the animals. After injection, the researchers used a gamma camera to take pictures of the particles while they were inside the piglet's body. This camera, which detects radioactivity inside the body, was placed over the kidneys.
The researchers measured the distribution of particles based on the level of radioactivity observed in the piglet's kidney at various points in time.
They took two sets of pictures of the particles between 30 minutes and six hours following injection, and again at 24 hours after the injection.
"The level of radioactivity declined rather rapidly in the kidney," said Nahman, who is also an investigator with Ohio State's Heart and Lung Research Institute. "This suggests that the gelatin dissolved enough to pass through the glomerulus, and it did so in a short amount of time. So it should be useful in transferring genes to tissues."
The gelatin material that the researchers used in this study is similar in composition to that of gelatin capsules found in over-the-counter medications, Nahman said. But size is one issue; getting the genetic material to stick to a biodegradable particle is another issue.
"Gelatin used in medications is mixed with the medication," Nahman said. "We can't mix the genetic material in a gelatin microparticle, simply because the particle is so small. We're currently working on ways to get the genetic material to stick to these particles."
While the gelatin particles quickly dissolved, they were still quite large ? about 64 micrometers in diameter. Capillaries range in diameter from five to 10 micrometers. However, the gelatin particles did eventually make it to the glomeruli.
The particle needs to be large enough to stay inside the capillary long enough for the genetic material to be released, but small enough to make it to the capillary. Previous work by these researchers showed that a 16-micrometer particle is the right size to lodge in the glomerulus of a rat.
"A particle of this size can get into the glomerulus, but it can't get out," Nahman said. "But the particle doesn't stay its original size for long. We saw dissolution as soon as 30 minutes after the injection of the particles in our study.
"We wouldn't want to use particles as large as the gelatin particles used in this study in a real gene therapy treatment program," he said. "For one, the particles may get stuck in a blood vessel near the capillary and never make it to the glomerulus. But as the research continues, the gelatin particles should become much smaller.
Using biodegradable material may also reduce the risk of ischemia ? poor circulation due to a blockage in the blood vessel ? in the glomerulus.
"Overall, though, the gelatin particles are superior simply because they pass through the body and won't cause long-term blockage of blood flow. The results mean a great deal for organs other than the kidney, too."
While the architecture of the glomerulus allows the filter to withstand some degree of blood vessel blockage ? it is a mass of interconnected capillaries ? other organs, such as the heart, don't have the same sort of network.
"Circulation in the glomerulus is redundant, so the chances of tissue in this tiny filter dying due to lack of blood and oxygen are slim," Nahman said. "That's not the case with most other organs. So having a substance that will begin to dissolve quickly and pass through the organ is desirable in gene therapy."
The research was supported by grants from the National Institutes of Health; the William H. Davis Foundation of Ohio State; the National Kidney Foundation of Ohio; the American Heart Association and Battelle Memorial Institute.
Nahman co-authored the paper with Ohio State researchers Udayan Bhatt, Amy Johnson, Christopher Hickey, Jonathan Ellison, Abigail Mansfield, Scott Shie and Na Shen, all with the department of internal medicine; William Tod Drost and John Bonagura, of the department of veterinary clinical sciences; Thomas Sferra, of the department of pediatrics; Pablo Gamboa, George Hinkle and Aaron Haynam, of the department of radiology; Valerie Bergdall of the department of veterinary preventive medicine; and Lisa Brannon-Peppas, of the University of Texas at Austin.
Contact: N. Stanley Nahman, (614) 293 4997; Nahman.1@osu.edu
Written by Holly Wagner, (614) 292-8310; Wagner.235@osu.edu
Categories Blog Entry, Health Tags disease researchers, ohio researchers, ohio state university
Study Finds Blood Cells Able to Switch Identity
NASA observatory reveals pileup on cosmic speedway


Climate and Weather of Maldives, weather, monsoons, rainy season, best season to go to Maldives.
Their climate is tropical equatorial, generally humid and warm with 2 seasons called Monsoons.
With a distance of 800 km from North to South and the Equator crossing the country, the weather conditions will vary according to your location in the archipelago.
As a consequence, standard weather forecast* for Male ( center North Maldives ) will not be valid for the entire archipelago and the most Southern part, under the Equator, will require forecasts for Gan.
The below weather patterns are a general trend based on previous forecasts and Maldives local weather observations.
This said, let's discover Maldives Weather Patterns and Seasons !
It is usually advised to choose the so-called "dry" season, from October / November until April. September is in theory (and in theory only) a little less "risky" than June / July / August months when the rainy monsoon can still be (very) active to very active. It sometimes goes on until October.
However, beautiful September months have been also seen, with a few showers only quickly replaced by a beautiful sun. We saw, for example, in the past years, an early and powerful rainy season that heavily started in May ( strong winds and rains are usually happening later on ) to extend itself until December.
The Sun will always shine in Maldives. So, relax.
Predicting the weather in the Maldives is like forecasting the weather in Europe or in NYC in the summer ( yes, Maldives climate is also changing ).
Forecasts and reality can be very confusing.
November is theoretically safer. But again, perhaps will the weather be a little moody at this period too. In any case, nevertheless, you can leave with light heart as you surely will have some beautiful days during your stay.
The year is divided into 2 monsoons in Maldives : the summer monsoon and the winter monsoon.
Although global temperatures do not fluctuate much along the year, each monsoon brings very different weather conditions in term of rain, sunshine and winds.
Hot and dry, the winter monsoon in Maldives, named "Iruvai" in Dhivehi (Maldivian language), generally begin around October/November.
This monsoon brings calm seas, clear skies with less frequent rains thoughout the archipelago. The weather gets drier and sunnier. During this months, few showers and winds are expected and the sea can be extremely flat.
This period of the year brings a lot of sunny days, completely blue skies with sometimes gorgeous cloud formations.
Iruval season is usually the best time to go to Maldives.
Rainy and Windy, the summer monsoon in Maldives often starts around May to reach its peak around July / August.
Maldives summer monsoon is considered as the strongest Maldives season.
The summer monsoon in Maldives, named "Halhangu" in Dhivehi ( Maldivian language), often starts in May and reaches its peak around July / August to slowly disappear in October/November in favor of the sunny and dry winter monsoon.
Considered as Maldives winter, Halhangu brings versatile weather that can change in a few minutes.
Stay POSITIVE, the Rainy season is the best period to witness the most spectacular Maldives Sunsets !
During this period, Maldives can be exposed to heavy rains, rough seas and strong winds and you will often experience strong to very strong rain showers.
In summer times, Maldives weather becomes very versatile and can change in a few minutes. Skies become dark, strong rains can follow a beautiful sunny morning and wind gusts can reach up to 50 Knts ( app. 90 Km/h) for hours.
Winds are generally stable and strong and blow West/ South-West.
Halhangu season is usually not the best time to go to Maldives but can be beautiful too.
The summer monsoon is considered as the rainiest Maldives season.


We create custom mosaic art panels and architectural installation from salvaged stained glass and tile for homes and businesses. Our mosaics are colorful, vibrant, and add a unique touch to any environment. Some designs are created on glass and illuminated, projecting warmth and light into the space. Products and services include backsplashes, fireplace surrounds, entryways, stair risers, garden art, window treatments, pillars and other decorative elements for homes, businesses and public spaces.


text:
#include "Locale.h"
#include "util/Util.h"

#include <algorithm>
#include <ctype.h>
#include <string>
#include <vector>

namespace aapt {

using android::ResTable_config;

void LocaleValue::setLanguage(const char* languageChars) {
     size_t i = 0;
     while ((*languageChars) != '\0') {
          language[i++] = ::tolower(*languageChars);
          languageChars++;
     }
}

void LocaleValue::setRegion(const char* regionChars) {
    size_t i = 0;
    while ((*regionChars) != '\0') {
         region[i++] = ::toupper(*regionChars);
         regionChars++;
    }
}

void LocaleValue::setScript(const char* scriptChars) {
    size_t i = 0;
    while ((*scriptChars) != '\0') {
         if (i == 0) {
             script[i++] = ::toupper(*scriptChars);
         } else {
             script[i++] = ::tolower(*scriptChars);
         }
         scriptChars++;
    }
}

void LocaleValue::setVariant(const char* variantChars) {
     size_t i = 0;
     while ((*variantChars) != '\0') {
          variant[i++] = *variantChars;
          variantChars++;
     }
}

static inline bool isAlpha(const std::string& str) {
    return std::all_of(std::begin(str), std::end(str), ::isalpha);
}

static inline bool isNumber(const std::string& str) {
    return std::all_of(std::begin(str), std::end(str), ::isdigit);
}

bool LocaleValue::initFromFilterString(const StringPiece& str) {
     // A locale (as specified in the filter) is an underscore separated name such
     // as "en_US", "en_Latn_US", or "en_US_POSIX".
     std::vector<std::string> parts = util::splitAndLowercase(str, '_');

     const int numTags = parts.size();
     bool valid = false;
     if (numTags >= 1) {
         const std::string& lang = parts[0];
         if (isAlpha(lang) && (lang.length() == 2 || lang.length() == 3)) {
             setLanguage(lang.c_str());
             valid = true;
         }
     }

     if (!valid || numTags == 1) {
         return valid;
     }

     // At this point, valid == true && numTags > 1.
     const std::string& part2 = parts[1];
     if ((part2.length() == 2 && isAlpha(part2)) ||
         (part2.length() == 3 && isNumber(part2))) {
         setRegion(part2.c_str());
     } else if (part2.length() == 4 && isAlpha(part2)) {
         setScript(part2.c_str());
     } else if (part2.length() >= 4 && part2.length() <= 8) {
         setVariant(part2.c_str());
     } else {
         valid = false;
     }

     if (!valid || numTags == 2) {
         return valid;
     }

     // At this point, valid == true && numTags > 1.
     const std::string& part3 = parts[2];
     if (((part3.length() == 2 && isAlpha(part3)) ||
         (part3.length() == 3 && isNumber(part3))) && script[0]) {
         setRegion(part3.c_str());
     } else if (part3.length() >= 4 && part3.length() <= 8) {
         setVariant(part3.c_str());
     } else {
         valid = false;
     }

     if (!valid || numTags == 3) {
         return valid;
     }

     const std::string& part4 = parts[3];
     if (part4.length() >= 4 && part4.length() <= 8) {
         setVariant(part4.c_str());
     } else {
         valid = false;
     }

     if (!valid || numTags > 4) {
         return false;
     }

     return true;
}

ssize_t LocaleValue::initFromParts(std::vector<std::string>::iterator iter,
        std::vector<std::string>::iterator end) {
    const std::vector<std::string>::iterator startIter = iter;

    std::string& part = *iter;
    if (part[0] == 'b' && part[1] == '+') {
        // This is a "modified" BCP 47 language tag. Same semantics as BCP 47 tags,
        // except that the separator is "+" and not "-".
        std::vector<std::string> subtags = util::splitAndLowercase(part, '+');
        subtags.erase(subtags.begin());
        if (subtags.size() == 1) {
            setLanguage(subtags[0].c_str());
        } else if (subtags.size() == 2) {
            setLanguage(subtags[0].c_str());

            // The second tag can either be a region, a variant or a script.
            switch (subtags[1].size()) {
                case 2:
                case 3:
                    setRegion(subtags[1].c_str());
                    break;
                case 4:
                    if ('0' <= subtags[1][0] && subtags[1][0] <= '9') {
                        // This is a variant: fall through
                    } else {
                        setScript(subtags[1].c_str());
                        break;
                    }
                case 5:
                case 6:
                case 7:
                case 8:
                    setVariant(subtags[1].c_str());
                    break;
                default:
                    return -1;
            }
        } else if (subtags.size() == 3) {
            // The language is always the first subtag.
            setLanguage(subtags[0].c_str());

            // The second subtag can either be a script or a region code.
            // If its size is 4, it's a script code, else it's a region code.
            if (subtags[1].size() == 4) {
                setScript(subtags[1].c_str());
            } else if (subtags[1].size() == 2 || subtags[1].size() == 3) {
                setRegion(subtags[1].c_str());
            } else {
                return -1;
            }

            // The third tag can either be a region code (if the second tag was
            // a script), else a variant code.
            if (subtags[2].size() >= 4) {
                setVariant(subtags[2].c_str());
            } else {
                setRegion(subtags[2].c_str());
            }
        } else if (subtags.size() == 4) {
            setLanguage(subtags[0].c_str());
            setScript(subtags[1].c_str());
            setRegion(subtags[2].c_str());
            setVariant(subtags[3].c_str());
        } else {
            return -1;
        }

        ++iter;

    } else {
        if ((part.length() == 2 || part.length() == 3)
                && isAlpha(part) && part != "car") {
            setLanguage(part.c_str());
            ++iter;

            if (iter != end) {
                const std::string& regionPart = *iter;
                if (regionPart.c_str()[0] == 'r' && regionPart.length() == 3) {
                    setRegion(regionPart.c_str() + 1);
                    ++iter;
                }
            }
        }
    }

    return static_cast<ssize_t>(iter - startIter);
}

std::string LocaleValue::toDirName() const {
    std::string dirName;
    if (language[0]) {
        dirName += language;
    } else {
        return dirName;
    }

    if (script[0]) {
        dirName += "-s";
        dirName += script;
    }

    if (region[0]) {
        dirName += "-r";
        dirName += region;
    }

    if (variant[0]) {
        dirName += "-v";
        dirName += variant;
    }

    return dirName;
}

void LocaleValue::initFromResTable(const ResTable_config& config) {
    config.unpackLanguage(language);
    config.unpackRegion(region);
    if (config.localeScript[0] && !config.localeScriptWasComputed) {
        memcpy(script, config.localeScript, sizeof(config.localeScript));
    }

    if (config.localeVariant[0]) {
        memcpy(variant, config.localeVariant, sizeof(config.localeVariant));
    }
}

void LocaleValue::writeTo(ResTable_config* out) const {
    out->packLanguage(language);
    out->packRegion(region);

    if (script[0]) {
        memcpy(out->localeScript, script, sizeof(out->localeScript));
    }

    if (variant[0]) {
        memcpy(out->localeVariant, variant, sizeof(out->localeVariant));
    }
}

} // namespace aapt


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text:
<!DOCTYPE html>

    <meta charset="utf-8">
    <meta http-equiv="X-UA-Compatible" content="IE=edge">
    <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1">
	  <meta name="author" content="Chris Turner" />
    <meta name="description" content="Personal blog and resume">
    <link rel="favicon" href="/sustain/static/img/favicon.ico">

      <title>Hello World!</title>

    <link href="https://maxcdn.bootstrapcdn.com/bootstrap/3.3.5/css/bootstrap.min.css" rel="stylesheet"
    integrity="sha256-MfvZlkHCEqatNoGiOXveE8FIwMzZg4W85qfrfIFBfYc= sha512-dTfge/zgoMYpP7QbHy4gWMEGsbsdZeCXz7irItjcC3sPUFtf0kuFbDz/ixG7ArTxmDjLXDmezHubeNikyKGVyQ=="
    crossorigin="anonymous">

    <link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="/sustain/static/css/main.css" />
	<link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="https://fonts.googleapis.com/css?family=Source+Sans+Pro:200,400,200bold,400old" />
	<link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="https://maxcdn.bootstrapcdn.com/font-awesome/4.4.0/css/font-awesome.min.css" />
  <link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="/sustain/static/css/syntax.css" />

BLOG

PROJECTS

RESUME

Read Jekyll Quick Start

Complete usage and documentation available at: Jekyll Bootstrap

Update Author Attributes

In _config.yml remember to specify your own data:

title : My Blog =)

author :
  name : Name Lastname
  email : blah@email.test
  github : username
  twitter : username

The theme should reference these variables whenever needed.

Sample Posts

This blog contains sample posts which help stage pages and blog data.
When you don’t need the samples anymore just delete the _posts/core-samples folder.

$ rm -rf _posts/core-samples

Here’s a sample “posts list”.

05 Jun 2013 » A Full and Comprehensive Style Test (HTML)

27 May 2013 » Another markdown full cheatsheet demo (Markdown)

02 Apr 2013 » Now some lorem ipsum

15 Mar 2013 » Continued...

10 Feb 2013 » Now seriously something real

24 Jan 2013 » I have a dream <3

04 Nov 2012 » Nice sticky footer down there ↓ ↓

29 Dec 2011 » Jekyll Introduction

To-Do

This theme is still unfinished. If you’d like to be added as a contributor, please fork!
We need to clean up the themes, make theme usage guides with theme-specific markup examples.

© All rights reserved. Powered by Jekyll and
            sustain with ♥


Just moments ago, at 9:12 p.m. ET, Governor Sarah Palin's Facebook page reached a milestone of 4 million likes. Palin calls it as she sees it and her clear message of faith, freedom, and smaller government resonates with many.
Happy 4 million Guv and here's to acquiring many more supporters.


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Thank you for joining me here at Britishproducts.com, a website and hub forum celebrating all things British. Let me introduce myself, my name is Eilidh Fraser and I am an aspiring writer. During the course of my blog, I will be taking a look at British literature, past and present.
In the weeks leading up to Christmas, in keeping with our Christmas competition, -good luck everybody, by the way, I hope you have liked and shared on our facebook page to have a change of winning the diamond. –I am going to focus on Christmas stories. The first of these, one of my favourites is ' The Happy Prince' by Oscar Fingal O'Flaherte Wills Wilde to give him his full title.
Wilde, a social reformer, Irish nationalist, playwright, novelist, essayist and poet was born in Ireland on 16th October 1954. He died, at age of 46, in France on 30th November 1900.
'The Happy Prince and other stories' are published as a Collins Classic. The collection was first published in 1888 and was written by Wilde, in the first instance, as stories for his two sons, Cyril born 1885 and Vyvyan born 1886 following Wilde's marriage to Constance Lloyd on 29th May 1884.
'The Happy Prince' is the story of a statue erected in a city to the memory of it's prince. A prince who had lived his life within a palace, sheltered from sorrow and suffering. A swallow strikes a friendship with the statue and delays returning to Egypt with its flock. The prince, from his high position above the city, witnesses the suffering around him of the poorest occupants of the city. He is so moved by the torment of his subjects, he begs the swallow to pluck a ruby from his belt to give to a citizen, to use to relieve their suffering. The prince repeatedly warns the swallow that winter is coming, and that the bird must leave before the cold weather arrives. The swallow delays and at the prince's behest plucks sapphires from the statues' eyes to give to suffering souls in the city below. Although the winds grow colder, the swallow still refuses to leave the prince, and at the prince's behest tears the gold leaf covering the statue, to give to the poorest subjects in order to relieve their depravation.
Finally, the swallow dies of cold and exhaustion. The prince's heart breaks as he witnesses the death of his friend. The statue, bare of jewels and gold leaf is no longer perceived as beautiful and is taken down and burned in a furnace. The broken leaden heart does not burn. An angel sent to find the most valuable things in the city, finds the broken leaden heart of the prince and dead swallow and takes them to heaven.
There are many messages in Wilde's poignant fairy tale, but one of the most tragic events in Wilde's live, must surely be, that after his conviction and sentence of two years hard labour, which were served in Wandsworth and Reading Prison, was that immediately following his release, he fled Britain, and despite pleas to his wife Constance, he was refused access to his sons.