The Ravenscroft Crystal Barolo Magnum Wine Decanter is beautifully designed with presentation and function in mind, serve wine with pride in this brilliant lead-free decanter. This hand-made, mouth-blown brilliant lead-free crystal Ravenscroft Decanter makes the perfect addition to any home entertaining collection. Made in Europe.


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Early this year I did 3 prop hats for a florist named Interflora. This Hat was used in a series of promotional events.
It was made by carving the shapes out of "model board" and then sealed and sprayed in gold.


text:
T. Rowe Price outsources 200 jobs in asset servicing deal
Jun 03, 2015 By Steve Dimitrov
Asset manager T. Rowe Price has selected BNY Mellon's asset servicing business to provide portfolio and fund accounting services in a major strategic agreement that will see many job transfers.
About 220 T. Rowe Price workers – mainly based in Baltimore, US –are expected to become BNY Mellon employees.
T. Rowe Price, which had $770 billion (€699 billion) of assets under management at March 31, is based in Baltimore but has operations in Europe.
T. Rowe Price's portfolio accounting services will be supported by BNY Mellon's Eagle/OnCore platform.
Samir Pandiri, global chief executive officer of asset servicing at BNY Mellon, says the deal with T. Rowe Price is a "historic milestone" for BNY Mellon.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Classifieds in The Peak. Free classifieds in The Peak at Localmart.hk.
Localmart is introducing unique classified advertising in The Peak and throughout Hong Kong.
Regardless of whether that you are advertising rental property, or getting a laptop, the revolutionary Localmart classified user-friendly promotion program assists you efficiently and quickly!
Having reviews, advice and video clips guide you to profitable deals and offers you beneficial information on products. Stemming from the main categories helps in placing your ads and looking for the specific goods you need, from anywhere.
Our classifieds in The Peak or maybe Aberdeen present you with exposure worldwide, as Localmart is introducing their service in 30 countries. Various other benefits to help in your classified post promotion are research graph together with recognized data aggregators. By simply placing a single classified post, it may be viewed on many websites.
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Your usage is made easier with a search bar, enabling you to shift rapidly between different categories.
Our user-friendly companies throughout Hong Kong all deliver uncomplicated and effortless contact between buyers and sellers, with added space for Skype and ICQ usernames.


Muscles, stemming from the forearm and place, manages the function of hands and feet. These muscles end up in long strong tendons, which runs past the hand and ankle joint, and booklets on hand or finger, respectively. feet or toes. Via senerne can muscles as a tovspil manage the movement of the limbs.
Postponed Monday for severe injuries or cuts in these areas can be so unfortunate, in whole or in part to cut more than a tendon. Aside from the wound can be dramatic, and may have damaged other structures, as will a complete over diced or jumped late (seneruptur) result in the loss of its function.
Partial surface tendons can, if they remain in use, develop into full seneruptur.
It is very clear for the individual, if a late burst. There will bepainAndimmediate loss of function, For example. it may be impossible to bend or sterilization a finger fully. The muscle that draws in the tendon, will creep same, since there is no longer any response, and it will be seen as a muscular bulge. If the large upper muscle (biceps) burst viewed it as a "skipper horror-arm".
A partially broken late addition to pain will give areduced functionof muscle. By some late than drawing injuries, the strong tendon pulling a piece of the bone, as it sits on (a afsprængning). The tendon is still intact, but there has been a fracture, and senens function has been lifted.
The diagnosis is made relatively simple by the physician in the emergency room. Late damage will often be accompanied by a wound cut by accident, and will often be possible to see a part of diced late in the wound. In a seneruptur will be lifted function, and you have to possibly exclude a fracture, if it is not about cutting accident, but a afsprængning.
If a tendon is completely broken into pieces, you will often choose to sew the two late-ends together. It requires a greater or lesser surgery, depending on senens size. Then follow the plaster or shine treatment, the tendon fixed, so there are no features on it.
A part of diced late, and get complete rupture, can be treated by side or plaster treatment, which ends placed so that they have contact with each other, and therefore has the opportunity to grow together. However, you may need to sew part of crack tendons together.
Plaster or rail-reading is a lengthy process, because senevæv grows slowly.
Most rump ready tendons grow easily together. However, healed take a long time. If the late fixing is closed too early, there is a risk that injury break up. It may happen that a damaged tendon can lead to subsequent stiffness and loss of movement, for example. a finger.


Ivy Guest Cottage is available for 1 week stays, Saturday to Saturday (or Tuesday to Tuesday). Short breaks of 3 or 4 days are also available (arriving Saturday, departing Tuesday; or arriving Tuesday, departing Saturday).
The Bothy is available for 1 week stays, Friday to Friday (or Monday to Monday). Short breaks of 3 or 4 days are also available (arriving Friday, departing Monday or arriving Monday departing Friday).
Included in the price of the accommodation is the use of towels and bed linen, and reasonable use of electricity, central heating and initial supply of logs for the wood burning stove.
During winter, shorter stays of minimum 2 nights may be possible. Please see the Availability/Booking Calendar for details of length of stay available and pricing.
Please click on the Availability Calendar against the relevant accommodation to show prices for the dates you are interested in and holiday lengths available.
Thank you for choosing to book your stay at Ivy Guest Cottage or The Bothy. We look forward to welcoming you and making your stay a pleasant one. When you make a booking you are entering a legal agreement with us, therefore please read our terms and conditions of booking below. The legal agreement commences on the date we receive your deposit.
This agreement confers on You a right to occupy the accommodation for the purposes of a holiday only. We regret we are no longer able to offer accommodation for the purpose of attending a wedding. Only registered guests are permitted on the premises at any time (maximum of two guests per accommodation). Sorry, Our accommodation is not suitable for infants.
The prices for accommodation include taxes where applicable. The prices include the use of towels and bed linen, and reasonable use of electricity, oil-fired central heating and initial supply of logs for the wood burning stove.
To secure Your Booking, a non-refundable deposit equal to 25% of the total price of the accommodation is payable at the time of booking. The balance is due not less than eight weeks prior to the arrival date. We will send You advance notification that the balance is due. If the balance of payment is not received by the stated date, the Booking will be treated as cancelled, the dates will be marketed again and the deposit forfeited.
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Please let Us know if You need to cancel Your booking. The deposit is non-refundable. For cancellations made between eight and four weeks prior to the arrival date, 60% of the booking fee will be forfeit. For cancellations made between four weeks and one week prior to the arrival date, 80% of the booking fee will be forfeit. For cancellations made one week or less prior to the arrival date, 100% of the booking fee will be forfeit. As We are unable to judge reasons for cancellation We respectfully remind You that a Booking constitutes a legal agreement and therefore recommend that you take out an appropriate holiday insurance policy.
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Please take care with Our accommodation. You will be given an inventory and We will ask you to note any deficiency on arrival. You are liable for any damages or breakages which You cause to the accommodation or its contents. Please report these as soon as they occur. We reserve the right to charge You for the repair or making good, particularly if the damage or breakage is significant and caused by negligence or a wilful act.
Ivy Guest Cottage is arranged over two floors. We do not have a lift. The Bothy offers single-storey accommodation. Unfortunately due to the layout of the buildings We are unable to provide wheelchair accessible accommodation.
We reserve the right to enter the accommodation at any reasonable time for the purpose of inspection, repair work etc.


text:
Time to kill the rooster
By Steph Larsen on Nov 12, 2010
Cock blocking: This mean rooster must be stopped before he hurts someone. Photo: Steph LarsenThere's a chore I've been putting off for some time, that I know will be one of the more unpleasant things I've encountered so far on our little farm.
It's time to cull some chickens.
I have only killed a chicken once in my life. I'd just graduated from college and was visiting my cousins in the Peace Corp in Guatemala. In honor of our visit, some very nice Mayan women decided to have chicken for dinner, and I was the one left holding the machete.
This situation is a little different though, because while dinner may be the eventual outcome of these chickens, that's not my primary intent. Rather, I'm culling them because they aren't contributing to the farm.
I feel sorry for one of them — my poor sick Buff Orpington that I wrote about back in September. She has a blockage in her digestive system, and none of the non-surgical methods to fix it have worked. I've watched as her health has deteriorated, and at this point I think the humane thing to do is let her die quickly instead of drawing out her unhappy life because I keep hoping she'll perk up.
The other target of my culling I don't feel sorry for — he's a mean, aggressive rooster that has a habit of attacking me when I have my back turned. We have four roosters, in part because they protect the hens and keep the flock balanced. Three of them behave like gentlemen, and I don't want them learning any bad habits. This fourth rooster gets his feathers ruffled easily, and it won't be long before his spurs could cause some serious damage to me, our dog, or worse, a visiting child.
He's a liability I neither need nor want.
Culling is a part of having a profitable farm, though not the most enjoyable. In the garden, we thin the sickly seedlings so there's room for the strong ones to grow. We save seeds from the best fruits to plant next year. By culling certain individuals, I can make sure that my flocks stay healthy and that I'm not wasting limited resources on an animal that isn't earning its keep.
I've been putting off this task not only because it's unpleasant — I'm not looking forward to ending a life — but because I don't exactly know how to do it. I want it to be as fast and as painless as possible, and I'm nervous that I'll make a mistake the first few times and cause more pain than necessary.
And after the bloody part is over, I also don't exactly know how to process the chicken. We're not big chicken eaters at our house, but it seems to me that if I've invested time and energy into raising an animal, I should make use of it if I can. I understand the theory of it — dip it in scalding water to loosen the feathers before picking them off, removing the parts that aren't good to eat — but never having done it, I'm a little skeptical that I'll do it properly.
But then again, mistakes teach me more than successes, and the dog will think any mistakes I make in chicken processing are quite tasty.
Culling a chicken is not a small matter, but culling a sheep takes even more careful observation and consideration. There are a number of traits that lambs inherit from their mothers, like their resistance to internal parasites, rate of weight gain, overall temperament, and twinning rates. It will take more time to determine whether there are ewes we need to cull, and I'll look forward to that day even less. But it's unlikely we'll cull any ewes soon, not until after we see how they do with their lambs next spring.
I find no joy in playing goddess, deciding who lives and who dies. But livestock aren't pets and our farm isn't a hobby. It's a business. But it won't be a very successful one unless I cut out the parts that drag the rest down.
At the very least, I hope the rooster is tasty. Coq au vin, anyone?
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a case of the meatless mondays
Vegetarianism used to be lonely. Now, it's a family affair.


Tonight Oh What a Lovely War could be said to be coming home. The current Theatre Royal, Stratford East revival is being broadcast on BBC Radio 2. And that seems appropriate since it was Charles Chilton's radio collection of first world war songs that was one of the key inspirations for Joan Littlewood's original 1963 stage production.
Chilton, an assiduous anthologist, was holidaying in France in 1958 and went to look for the grave of his father who had been killed in the battle of Arras. He never found the grave: simply the inscription of his father's name on a wall listing the 35,942 officers and men who died in the battle. That led Chilton to speculate on the horror that provoked such mass slaughter. Out of that came his collection of soldiers' songs – which Gerry Raffles, Littlewood's partner and manager of Theatre Workshop, heard and which became the source of the famous stage production.
But, while it's good to find BBC radio moving fast to air the current production, it also raises a big question: why is there such a tenuous connection between theatre and the broadcast media? To be fair, BBC radio is good at picking up recent stage shows. It is not uncommon to find Radio 3 on Sunday nights assembling the original cast of new stage plays and giving them a second life. Radio 4's Front Row and Radio 2's Arts Show with Claudia Winkleman, on which I often appear, are also adept at keeping listeners abreast of new theatre.
TV, on the other hand, does little to acknowledge the existence of theatre. You might get the occasional news report if there is a startling controversy or the opening of a big musical. The Review Show has been shunted on to a little-seen monthly Sunday-evening slot on BBC4. But, although I'm told there is a second season of Shakespeare history plays being planned for BBC2, it is rare to find a play from the theatrical canon being televised. And none of the big companies, such as the National or the RSC, has established the kind of link with television that they have with cinemas that allows their work to be seen not just around the UK but across the world.
So hats off to Radio 2 for giving us Oh What a Lovely War tonight. I just wish it didn't feel, in terms of the broadcast media's relationship with theatre, quite such a special event.


Well, creds for the thinking Peter.
Lol this is really cute! You should look at my page sometime. I like to draw to some manga comics and panel comics.
im new to manga and i would like your opinions.
Admin: is it bad that i did this as a kid to my dad because i didn't want to sleep early.
When I get married I would love to hear my husband say this cute story to me like it happened to him. I really love this it's to cute!
is Swedens eyes crossing…..its creepy…..
He will be a good lawyer someday.
haha! Wish I was that smart to come up with things like that! You go Peter!
That expression he has at the end with the glasses is adorable.
I love daddy!Sweden! It's just too cute!
*LOL* I love how Berwald's all like "Tino? Need some help here..." xDDD Like "He's making trouble. YOUR kid from now on."


text:
Denfield Roosevelt McNab (born 4 May 1943) is a former Belizean cyclist. He competed in the individual pursuit at the 1968 Summer Olympics.

References

1943 births
Living people
People from Punta Gorda
Belizean male cyclists
Commonwealth Games competitors for British Honduras
Cyclists at the 1966 British Empire and Commonwealth Games
Olympic cyclists of British Honduras
Cyclists at the 1968 Summer Olympics

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


Why was Jesus male? Why was He born of a woman?
The simplistic answer to the second question would be because that is the way that all humans come into the world. But since it is God who made us, why did He make us male and female, and give the feminine the capacity for birth?
Christians believe that God became man and dwelt among us, and who as Man sits enthroned in Heaven from whence He will come to bring forth the resurrection of bodies and the judgment. Therefore, we know that our bodies matter eternally.
If you are a Christian who is squeamish about sexual metaphor, I can only tell you to get over it and continue reading. The world has gone quite mad, and the Church needs to bring to it a counter-sexual-revolution. The ultimate reality is supra-physical and our souls are more important than our bodies, certainly, but our bodies have something to say about our souls.
In "The Theology of the Body," John Paul II argues that "the human body has a specific meaning, making visible an invisible reality, and is capable of revealing answers regarding fundamental questions about us and our lives." He asserts that humans were made spousal, male and female, in order to hardwire into our minds and bodies a theology of Himself – to give us an inner experience and an embodied knowledge of what it means to love and to be in a relationship which is free, life-giving, and penetrating into our souls.
This God-created and blessed sexuality is, again, truly understood as a "spousal meaning" of the body. This knowledge and desire to become one flesh is a powerful force in our lives and throughout history. Like a rocketship which, when directed toward heaven will reach the stars, it is designed to propel us to a greater understanding of God's love for us and the nature of our relationship with Him. But turned inward on itself, this rocketship will only self-immolate and destroy everyone around it. Turned to heaven, we can see that our sexuality draws us to reach out to another, to pledge ourselves to another even to death, to give ourselves fully, to create new life. Male and female, as biological realities, have distinct roles within this drama which God designed to literally continue the existence of the human race.
God created us in this "very good" way for a reason. Surely the fact God created humans to create new life this way embodies something of the Ultimate meaning of life. "Sexuality" means binary. This binary reproductive reality, along with the manner in which human cultures have instinctively made promises and bind themselves until death to one another to protect and enshrine sexuality in marriage, when pointed heavenward shows us something of the God who is Other than us but desires to be united with us in a relationship of mutual, devoted-unto-death, life-producing relationship.
CS Lewis aptly observed that one of the reasons God created gender "was to symbolize to us the hidden things of God." What hidden things? One of them, Lewis contends, is that in relation to God we are all essentially feminine – He is the one who seeks to enter into us and bestow His new life within our being. Certainly the spiritual reality is on another plane altogether from the earthly reality. God is not a sexual being. Before the Incarnation He did not have a body. But we humans are embodied spirits, or inspirited bodies, not just mere meat which has no spiritual connotations. God Himself is the one who makes the comparison between a husband and wife and Christ and the Church in Ephesians 5. John Paul II says in effect our bodies are a sacrament – an embodiment of a spiritual reality.
God is revealed to us in Scripture in masculine terms. He is our "Father", Christ is our "Husband." He is the one who gives life to us as Creator, and gives a new life to us as our Husband. Some people complain about over-emotional Jesus-is-My-Boyfriend style songs in worship, but certainly it would make far less sense to have Jesus-is-My-Girlfriend type songs! Jesus is not the Bride of the church. God is not our "Mother" (though He does say that His care for us exceeds even the nurturing embrace of a mother).
God is revealed to us in masculine terms. But the Church is revealed to us in feminine terms. She is the Bride of Christ. In this sense, Mary is the "icon" or representative embodiment of the church, as she was the first person to say "Yes" to Jesus entering into her and subsequently bringing Him forth to the world. The Church is by definition those who have said "Yes" to Jesus entering into them and then sharing Him with the world. As Jesus' embryonic body was literally nourished and given form by the flesh of Mary, the church now embodies Christ to a fallen world. The metaphors become entangled, though: Christ enters into Mary by the Holy Spirit and is made man, yet she enfleshes Him; the Church receives Christ's body in the Communion meal, and embodies Him – who is yet embodied in Heaven – to the world, as we are "members of His body." A mysterious "one flesh" union has taken and continues to take place between the Church and Christ. The analogies are not perfect, but they are powerful at the very root of our being, and the roles cannot be reversed.
Ultimately, God's fatherhood and Christ's role as Husband are the manifestations of God's pure love for us. His love is not a grotesque domineering desire for self-glorification at the expense of His bride. Everything He does is to bring His bride into further glory and benefit. Our role is to yield to the blessings God wishes to bestow.
So why must Jesus have been a male? Only by being a male human could Jesus fully represent everything His incarnation was intended for, and to represent both men and women.
Without being impious, I think I may say that as human, Jesus is the true Icon of the yieldedness of which CS Lewis spoke and called "feminine", for He was a human being fully in loving surrender to God [see endnote]. He embodies this surrender perfectly regardless of whether male or female. Yet only as male could He also be the Icon of the Father to us: "If you have seen me, you have seen the Father." Jesus is both the representative human who yields perfectly and completely to God, being the front runner of the Bride made of men and women who yield to God, and He is also the Son of God who is the perfect masculine to be the Husband of the church.
When the Church ascends to eternal glorification in Heaven with Christ, the shadow of human sexuality will be replaced – enveloped and reborn, really – with the true urge of the human heart: to be perfectly united with God. Those who live in this world in devoted celibacy do not reject the spousal meaning of the body but point us to the heavenly reality of what sexuality really means.
"The Sacramental worldview comes to its fullness in the human person where our human sexuality is seen as an icon of the very interior life of the Holy Trinity. It is precisely through our sexuality that we are able to enter into the "Spousal Mystery" to love as God loves." Indeed – God hardwired into our bodies and souls an intrinsic awareness of the desire to enter into communion with Himself.
All this has profound implications for how we view ourselves. It has profound implications for worship and the pastoral office. The current ethos that gender does not have a material basis and that "matter" does not matter is deeply flawed. Jesus is our ultimate hermeneutic, and by His very existence the Son of God and son of Mary has something to say to all the revolutionaries who would destroy the fabric of humanity and the sacrament of our sexuality.
Note: Jesus Christ was the eternal Son of God, begotten of the Father before all ages. It is in this sense that He is in union with the Father – not as "feminine," but as Son, begotten of the Father's own essence, as light from flame or as a stream from the spring. It is only the human aspect of Jesus Christ which can be conceptualized as representing the "feminine" quality to which C.S. Lewis refers. Humanity is archetypal "feminine" compared to God, the Church being the "Bride of Christ," yet God also performs the miracle of making us "sons of God" (1 John); we do not merely receive Him but we are brought into His eternal life by union with Jesus Christ. YieldToGod.org strongly disagrees with any of the modern attempts to conflate, confuse, or deny biological male and female attributes.
Note: Many of the quotes in this article are from Roman Catholic sources. YieldToGod.org is not a "Roman Catholic" site.


What does the baby name Auden mean? Learn about what Auden means, its history & origin, popularity in our random name database, pronunciation, similar names, nicknames & spelling variations.
A-U-D-E-N, is a 5-letter male given name.
Old friend, half danish, ancient friend.
Auden currently has 26 likes, and is in the top 7% of liked boy's names. The name Bertram is slightly more popular than Auden.


text:
Effect of the first-order mode in access waveguides on the performance of unbalanced MMI couplers
E.A. Patent, J.J.G.M. Tol, van der, F. Karouta, J.J.M. Binsma, M.K. Smit
Photonic Integration
Unbalanced multimode interference (MMI) couplers are optical integrated components widely used in photonic integrated circuits. Couplers with two fixed coupling ratios: 85/15 and 15/85 are studied in this paper. Low-loss MMI couplers are designed and fabricated. Excitation of the first-order mode in access waveguides of MMI couplers can influence the excess losses and the coupling ratio of these components. The effect of the first-order mode excitation was simulated and confirmed by the experimental results, which are presented in this paper.
IEEE Photonics Technology Letters
https://doi.org/10.1109/LPT.2004.831061
10.1109/LPT.2004.831061
Dive into the research topics of 'Effect of the first-order mode in access waveguides on the performance of unbalanced MMI couplers'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.
Coupler Engineering 100%
Interference Engineering 40%
Multimode Engineering 40%
Waveguide Engineering 20%
Coupling Ratio Engineering 20%
Performance Engineering 10%
Experimental Result Engineering 10%
Photonics Engineering 10%
Patent, E. A., Tol, van der, J. J. G. M., Karouta, F., Binsma, J. J. M., & Smit, M. K. (2004). Effect of the first-order mode in access waveguides on the performance of unbalanced MMI couplers. IEEE Photonics Technology Letters, 16(8), 1882-1884. https://doi.org/10.1109/LPT.2004.831061
Patent, E.A. ; Tol, van der, J.J.G.M. ; Karouta, F. et al. / Effect of the first-order mode in access waveguides on the performance of unbalanced MMI couplers. In: IEEE Photonics Technology Letters. 2004 ; Vol. 16, No. 8. pp. 1882-1884.
@article{00428da1675f4bcd8e2725113f7b6156,
title = "Effect of the first-order mode in access waveguides on the performance of unbalanced MMI couplers",
abstract = "Unbalanced multimode interference (MMI) couplers are optical integrated components widely used in photonic integrated circuits. Couplers with two fixed coupling ratios: 85/15 and 15/85 are studied in this paper. Low-loss MMI couplers are designed and fabricated. Excitation of the first-order mode in access waveguides of MMI couplers can influence the excess losses and the coupling ratio of these components. The effect of the first-order mode excitation was simulated and confirmed by the experimental results, which are presented in this paper.",
author = "E.A. Patent and {Tol, van der}, J.J.G.M. and F. Karouta and J.J.M. Binsma and M.K. Smit",
doi = "10.1109/LPT.2004.831061",
journal = "IEEE Photonics Technology Letters",
publisher = "Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers",
Patent, EA, Tol, van der, JJGM, Karouta, F, Binsma, JJM & Smit, MK 2004, 'Effect of the first-order mode in access waveguides on the performance of unbalanced MMI couplers', IEEE Photonics Technology Letters, vol. 16, no. 8, pp. 1882-1884. https://doi.org/10.1109/LPT.2004.831061
Effect of the first-order mode in access waveguides on the performance of unbalanced MMI couplers. / Patent, E.A.; Tol, van der, J.J.G.M.; Karouta, F. et al.
In: IEEE Photonics Technology Letters, Vol. 16, No. 8, 2004, p. 1882-1884.
T1 - Effect of the first-order mode in access waveguides on the performance of unbalanced MMI couplers
AU - Patent, E.A.
AU - Tol, van der, J.J.G.M.
AU - Karouta, F.
AU - Binsma, J.J.M.
AU - Smit, M.K.
N2 - Unbalanced multimode interference (MMI) couplers are optical integrated components widely used in photonic integrated circuits. Couplers with two fixed coupling ratios: 85/15 and 15/85 are studied in this paper. Low-loss MMI couplers are designed and fabricated. Excitation of the first-order mode in access waveguides of MMI couplers can influence the excess losses and the coupling ratio of these components. The effect of the first-order mode excitation was simulated and confirmed by the experimental results, which are presented in this paper.
AB - Unbalanced multimode interference (MMI) couplers are optical integrated components widely used in photonic integrated circuits. Couplers with two fixed coupling ratios: 85/15 and 15/85 are studied in this paper. Low-loss MMI couplers are designed and fabricated. Excitation of the first-order mode in access waveguides of MMI couplers can influence the excess losses and the coupling ratio of these components. The effect of the first-order mode excitation was simulated and confirmed by the experimental results, which are presented in this paper.
U2 - 10.1109/LPT.2004.831061
DO - 10.1109/LPT.2004.831061
JO - IEEE Photonics Technology Letters
JF - IEEE Photonics Technology Letters
Patent EA, Tol, van der JJGM, Karouta F, Binsma JJM, Smit MK. Effect of the first-order mode in access waveguides on the performance of unbalanced MMI couplers. IEEE Photonics Technology Letters. 2004;16(8):1882-1884. doi: 10.1109/LPT.2004.831061


text:
How will climate change affect hailstorms?
Diane Nazaroff
Expected effects of climate change on hailstorms vary markedly by region, says a new international review involving UNSW.
Hail is expected to be more severe when it does occur, because there will be more instability in the atmosphere which can lead to the formation of much larger hailstones. Image: Shutterstock.
Hail severity may increase in most regions of the world while Australia and Europe are expected to experience more hailstorms as a result of climate change, an international review led by a UNSW Sydney researcher has found.
The review study, published in Nature Reviews Earth & Environment, examined the effects climate change will have on hail in the future.
It shows a global summary of hail trends from past observations and projected future trends from simulations and models.
The review led to the general expectation that hailstorm frequency will decrease in East Asia and North America, while increasing in Australia and Europe, and that hailstorm severity will increase in most regions.
Researchers from University of Bern, Central Michigan University, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, University of Illinois, Colorado State University and Peking University took part in the study.
"We came to the conclusion that on balance, the hail threat is likely to increase in Australia, especially in Australia's south-east including the Sydney area," lead author and postdoctoral researcher at UNSW Sydney's Climate Change Research Centre, Tim Raupach said.
But the researchers say current and future climate change effects on hailstorms remain highly uncertain, in part due to a lack of long-term observations and limited modelling studies.
"There's very high uncertainty when it comes to these predictions and Australia is particularly of high uncertainty because there are very few studies that have actually looked at Australia.
"We need to do further study to find out exactly what we expect to happen, not only in Australia but across the world."
Changing atmospheric conditions
The study examined the general expectation that atmospheric ingredients that affect hail – an unstable atmosphere, the amount of melting of falling hailstones, and wind shear or differences in wind by height – would change with a warming climate and lead to less frequent but more intense hailstorms.
"We know with climate change that we are going to have more moisture in the atmosphere and that leads to more instability in the atmosphere, so we expect there will be more tendency for thunderstorms to occur because of this unstable atmosphere," Dr Raupach said.
Dr Tim Raupach. Image: Supplied.
Because the atmosphere will be warmer, the melting level – which is the height in the atmosphere below which ice begins to melt – will get higher, he said.
"So as a melting level gets higher, hail that forms high in the atmosphere and falls towards the ground has more time to melt and may indeed melt entirely before it gets to the ground, and you end up with no hail at the surface."
Overall wind shear – a process that "organises" storms and makes them more severe – is expected to decrease, he said, but hail storms will be more affected by the other two factors.
"The changes you can expect of these three properties of the atmosphere lead us to expect that hail will be less frequent, because there's more melting essentially in the future," Dr Raupach said.
"But the hail will be more severe when it does occur, because there will be more instability in the atmosphere which can lead to the formation of much larger hailstones.
"So when the hail does survive this extra melting, it will be larger and more severe when it does actually hit the surface."
The review showed, however, that this general expectation was not applicable everywhere, with reported hail changes differing in different parts of the world.
"Regional variability in the atmospheric changes leads to varying hail responses, which is why studies show increasing hail frequency in Europe but decreasing hail frequency in East Asia, for example", said Dr Raupach.
Hail is difficult to measure
The study looked at trends in hailstorms from past observations, such as from meteorological stations, hail pads (sheets that record hail impacts), and crowdsourced or media reports.
Dr Raupach said there was high uncertainty in these trends because hailstorms are very difficult to measure due to their small scale and rarity.
"If you put out an instrument to capture [or] measure hail, even in a place where you might expect a lot of hail, you might only get one or two hits on that instrument in a year," he said.
"If you are trying to look at climate change and long-term trends where you want decades of information, it's very difficult to collect that kind of information about hail."
The review also summarised results from simulations and model studies that project what the effects of climate change will be on hail in the future.
"You can see whether the model actually produces more hailstorms or less hailstorms in the future when you change the properties of the model, such as making the temperature higher or increasing the melting level height," Dr Raupach said.
Because hailstorms are a small-scale phenomenon, they are difficult to model with regular weather models.
"You need to have a very high-resolution model to actually be able to resolve the size of the hailstorm," Dr Raupach said. "There have been a few of these studies but they are relatively rare and we need more of them to be able to understand how hail will change in the future with climate change."
Recommendations 'to reduce uncertainty'
To reduce the uncertainty about hailstorms and climate change, the researchers recommended recording long term observations with instruments such as hail pads in uncovered hail hotspots.
They also recommended improving so-called proxy relationships, which scientists use to try to statistically relate large-scale hailstorm "ingredients" in the atmosphere to the formation of hail that hits the surface.
"The problem we have with [these] proxy relationship[s] is that even when the atmosphere is thought to be prone to hail forming, it's still relatively rare that hail actually forms," Dr Raupach said.
Process-oriented studies which look at the details of how hail forms in clouds and then grows into large hail were also recommended to close current knowledge gaps.
"For example, a topic of current research is whether an increase of aerosols leads to an increase in hail formation or a decrease in hail formation," Dr Raupach said.
The changing economic impacts of hail should also be studied, since changes to building materials, population growth, and crop cycles also change hail exposure.
"We expect the damages that can be caused by hail to also change in the future," Dr Raupach said.
More high-resolution computer models, run at high-performance facilities such as the National Computational Infrastructure in Canberra, should be used in further research.
"As these systems come online, we are able to do high resolution studies that were previously too computationally expensive to actually run," he said. "These models are going to be extremely useful for understanding how hail will change in a warming climate."
The next steps in Dr Raupach's research focus on using such high-resolution weather models to examine the effects of climate change on convective storms and to better understand hailstorm proxy relationships.
Read the study in Nature Reviews Earth & Environment.
UNSW Science
Think storms are getting worse? Rapid rain bursts in Sydney are 40% more intense in last 2 decades
Rapid rain bursts are intensifying, and climate variability can't explain it
A huge Atlantic ocean current is slowing down. If it collapses, La Niña could become the norm for Australia
La Niña has been declared. Why should we care?
How climate scientists talk to their kids about climate change
Tim Raupach
Climate Change Research Centre


 What essay topic shall I choose?
It is not easy to answer the question, "How do you choose a topic sentence?" Just think of this – you have one sentence (or two at maximum) to express the general idea/topic of your essay. It is no wonder you have to be very precise in this. Every word matters! Your essay topic sentence should give readers a very clear idea of what it will focus on. Do not deceive readers by using intriguing essay topics if your essay will refer to different problems and issues.
Also, needing nine out thirteen votes from the states to pass a law made it almost nearly impossible to get anything done. Tags: American Constitution 1036 words (3 pages better Essays preview, the U.S. Common argumentative essay narrative Narrative Essay Topics For Grade 8 topics include issues such as euthanasia, capital punishment, abortions and animal testing. An argumentative essay should not narrative Narrative Essay Topics For Grade 8 be a unilateral rant. It should address counter-arguments and should be able refute them with evidence in support of its message. Is the development of a common language for team leadership and leadership amongst directors and managers the answer for enhanced teamwork on an organisational-wide basis?. An examination of the impact of organisational culture on leadership decision for organisational reinvention: The case of Nokia. What exactly is an argumentative essay? Maybe an argumentative essay outline will help you in understanding the core of the topic. Read the following article to understand what an argumentative essay should be like.
The most persuasive material is always the kind with the most passion behind it – it's hard to disagree. Why do you think Martin Luther King Jr. was such a successful speech writer? He was passionate about his topic – passionate about civil rights. If you want to come up with ideas for compare and contras essays, reflective essay topics and, perhaps most significantly, good persuasive essay topics, then you need to focus on what you love to write about – and the ideals your passionate about. Do any of these possible topics spark your interest?
4. Research on details of the essay topic.
Browse through our wide variety of interesting research topics available at . Regardless of the type of academic paper you are writing, topics are always going to be your focal point. This is true with even the simplest type of essay that you may need to write. There are many factors that must be considered if you want to choose a workable and interesting essay topic. These factors usually depend on the type of essay. suggests that you make sure that the topic you have chosen has valid points that will allow you to discuss its similarities and differences.
Evaluation essays are very important because they could be the deciding factor for your success, whether it Is for scholarships, jobs, contracts, etc. The reason is that a self assessment essay may be required to be written, which may turn out to be the decider for eventual success of the applicant; apart from this scenario, students are often given a specific evaluation essay topic, there is, therefore, the need to be proficient in writing evaluation essay.
So, your assignment is to choose an argumentative and persuasive essay topic, the main point of which is to make your audience agree with your thoughts even if the theme is too controversial. Sounds difficult? Don't worry you don't have to be an expert to write a brilliant essay, simply continue reading this article, and you'll find out how to effectively structure your arguments and help people correctly understand your message.
The right essay topic is only half the battle, since even the best writer cannot product interesting text on an irrelevant or simply boring issue. So, you have to devote some time to choosing an essay topic, as it usually happens that students who have chosen an essay topic in haste, later regret it.


Fire Safety Week's message is STOP!
Fire Safety Week 2016 runs from October 3 to October 10, and it's to spread a simple message – STOP!
S – Smoke Alarms. Make sure you have at least one on every floor.
T – Test them weekly, or have somebody else check them.
O – Obvious dangers. Look for fire risks throughout your premises.
P – Plan your escape route. Know how to get out if fire occurs.
You can find out more about National Fire Safety Week, along with fire safety tips and advice on how to maintain smoke alarms, on the main .
This Fire Safety Week, consider our Home Safety Kit to help make your home or that of a family member or friend all the safer.
The kit could make all the difference if fire breaks out. It's available for just €99 (including VAT).
For further details, or to order, call (049) 437 1482, e-mail us at info@apexfire.ie, or use our Contact Us form.


text:
Brood, The
The Brood (1979)
Director: David Cronenberg
Writers: David Cronenberg
Starring: Oliver Reed, Samantha Eggar, and Art Hindle
The Plot: The Brood tells the story of a husband and wife slowly being driven apart and going through the process of divorce. Frank Carveth (Art Hindle) is a loving husband who has recently seen his wife, Nola (Samantha Eggar), driven from him by the psychotherapist Hal Raglan (Oliver Reed). Raglan runs the Somafree Institute, a psychological community that is formed around "psychoplasmics," which is a form of psychotherapy that encourages patients to let go of suppressed emotions by enduring physiological changes. As Nola becomes more distant from her regular life, Frank finds himself fighting for custody of their child after his daughter came to him with some very unusual bruises on her body. Although Frank believes that he is going through a very ordinary breakup, things become more intense as his wife goes through numerous "breakthroughs" and at the same time, strange child-like monsters begin to show up and murder civilians. Frank doesn't want to believe it at first, but it appears that these beasts are somehow tied to the Somafree Institute. Can he save his wife and child before things have gone too far?
The Brood stands out as one of the last notable Cronenberg films from this early era that I had not seen. This is a bit of a surprise even for me, since he is a filmmaker that I have a tremendous amount of respect for. His earlier works in particular are the reason that I formed such a favorable opinion of the man. Shivers and Scanners are both genre films that had a tremendous impact on me as a younger viewer. Unfortunately, my video store had a variety of VHS tapes when I was a kid, but The Brood was not amongst their catalog. As Cronenberg left the seventies behind and ventured into the eighties, a time period that would give him universal acclaim, he left one last film to commemorate this decade. The Brood, even at this early stage in his career, acts as a "greatest hits" compilation for David Cronenber. Featuring body modification, heavy psychology, political intrigue, and science fiction, this is a vintage collection of his observations. Yet, at the same time, this familiarity also becomes new, because the movie also stands out as one of Cronenberg's most personal films. While it is a little rough around the edges, The Brood is easily one of the best films from Cronenberg's early filmography.
Before I go into the drama or the hidden subtext of the movie, I might as well start with the "superficial" areas of the movie. The music in the film certainly deserves a special mention. The Brood is notable for being Howard Shore's first attempt at scoring a soundtrack, but it would not be the last time that Shore would team up with Cronenberg. Indeed, the two would team up throughout most of Cronenberg's career. This first score however shows the infatuation with film and genre expectations that Cronenberg had. With a score that is reminiscent of both Alfred Hitchcock's work as well as music found in classical horror films, the spooky soundtrack tries to elicit a reaction from the audience. While I personally didn't find the movie to be frightening, the soundtrack does emit an atmosphere that can not be denied. Sure, it can be seen as going a bit over-the-top at certain moments, but for the most part, the music does everything that it needs to do.
The performances have to be up next when discussing any technical aspects of the movie. While I believe that every performer in the movie does a splendid job, I have to loudly proclaim that Oliver Reed should have starred in every single movie ever made. Of course, this wouldn't have been possible with his drinking and partying, but while watching The Brood, audiences are reminded just how amazing he was as an actor. A man who could convey almost any necessary emotion with his face, this giant of a man was everything that cinema needed him to be. In The Brood, he is the personification of strength and mental prowess. During the first few scenes of the film, the audience has a hard time trying to gauge just what his intentions are. Is he a man of logic, a man of science, or is he simply a con artist? Reed doesn't play the role in a way that is easy to decipher at first, but he personifies strength. Our leading man is ill prepared to go head-to-head with a man of this intellect, and his unorthodox methods make him seem that much more out of control.
Standing out as both a positive and a negative, I must admit that there is some very awkward pacing within The Brood. It is neither fast, nor slow, but it instead seems to follow its own very distinct tempo. It is as if Cronenberg is chaste with his narrative devices and concepts. His film is meticulous in what it chooses to reveal to the audience. Even after one hour of viewing time, there are still infinitely more questions at play within the main plot than answers. The strange ideas are revealed with complete patience, and even after the one hour mark, viewers may not realize just what sort of movie this is going to be. Cronenberg teases legitimate horror devices, but he also shows adoration for the feverish paranoia and hidden conspiracies that would later be seen in Videodrome. The Brood isn't nearly as surreal as something like Videodrome, but it does seem to have similar influences. Cronenberg rolls out the strange ideas, bit by bit, but doesn't deftly throw logic to the side as he would with his next feature. While the conclusion to the movie is a confusing mix of dream-logic and pseudoscience, it remains absorbing and mind blowing.
At its core, there seems to be a lot that is said about The Brood and its relationship with the women's liberation movement. Some writers have accused it of being Cronenberg's wagging finger that is pointed directly at all empowered women. Granted, this is a movie written from a paranoid state of mind. Written by Cronenberg as he was going through his own divorce and dealing with his own custody trials, there is no doubt in my mind that Cronenberg was at a point in his life where he was low on trust and high on anger, but I think The Brood is less about writing blanket statements about women as it is expressing the anger, fear, grief, and paranoia of a father who is put into a dire situation. I'm sure that Cronenberg saw himself falling in line with his main character, despite the fact that his wife likely never broached these levels of insanity or anatomy-defying abnormalities, and I think this sense of anger comes across well and should not be misunderstood as a generality. That is why his story is so over-the-top. We are meant to understand this character and his fears by the supplementation of emotional hurt with the threat of true life physical hurt.
The Brood is not an easy movie. Some will watch it with feverish anger brought upon by the very absurd nature of its storytelling, but there are others who will enjoy its nightmarish qualities set within the context of a very ordinary horror movie. I give it a high four out of five. With more time to think, it may even crawl into my alltime favorites list. Definitely check it out if you have not already.
Watcher in the Attic
Private Duty Nurses
Exorcist III, The
Crazies, The
Legendary Amazons


Rhu Hentian Island, Pulau Rhu Hentianr, Kuala Besut, Terenggan, Malaysia.
Perhaps Pulau Perhentian, Pulau Redang and some other pulau are too famous and 'over heated' to many people, Pulau Rhu Hentian which is only 15 nautical miles from offshore Kuala Besut is not known to most people. It is indeed a new discovered and developing island in the tourism industry in East Coast.
Because it is so close to the mainland, Pulau Rhu Hentian is accessible through Kuala Besut 20 to 30 minutes by boat. The island is not resident at the moment. This no doubt is an added value advantage for holiday seekers. The ecology system on the island and the marine life remain unspoiled due to this reason.
Though Pulau Rhu Hentian is a new born baby in the tourism industry in the country, some water activities such as swimming, snorkeling and diving are possible to be arranged through some travel agencies. Apart from this, due to the tiny size of this island enable visitor to make a 2 hours 'orientation' trek as a 'get to know you' activity.
News gathered from the state government that a resort, the Rhu Hentian Resort is being planned by the Fisheries Association of Kuala Besut as the first step to develop this little beautiful island. Perhaps by then you can add this new alternative to your itinery when planning your holiday.


I tend to buy strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, and blackberries quite often. I find myself buying those wonderful berries in the grocery store telling myself I am going to make something with these only to find myself throwing them away because they went bad. Do you ever do that? I hate to think how much money was wasted throwing them in the trash. My fridge needed some major cleaning out. I grabbed these berries thinking I had another day or so. To my dismay, the blackberries were all bad and had to be thrown out. I had to act fast to do something before they all went bad.
What is a girl to do with all those berries? Make a cobbler of course! I just purchased this huge cast iron skillet and thought that would be perfect. I went through all the berries, rinsed them, and cut up the strawberries into smaller pieces. Placed them into the skillet and splashed a little lemon juice on them ( I had to do something with that too) Spooned the topping on and into the oven it went. This came out of the oven just as we were finishing up dinner. I just so happened to have some vanilla ice cream on hand.. The cold ice cream and the warm cobbler was perfect. The berries made a wonderful sauce to spoon over the ice cream too.
Now I need to buy more berries.
Go through all the berries carefully making sure there are no bad berries. Rinse them off, I placed them all into a colander and rinsed them at the same time. Cut the strawberries into smaller pieces so the berries all cook the same. Place into the skillet squeeze the lemon juice over the berries. Combine in a separate bowl, flour, baking powder, and salt. Beat butter, brown sugar, and vanilla with a mixer until well blended. Add in the dry ingredients until mixture resembles course crumbs. Drop dough evenly on top of berries. Bake at 375 degrees for 30 minutes or until bubbly and brown. Serve warm with a scoop or two of vanilla ice cream.
I love that you include brown sugar.


text:
Ten Things Sarah Butler and Tessa Nicholson Love About Each Other
Published on February 15, 2014 September 24, 2015 by emmaclairesweeney
When novelist, Sarah Butler, and screen writer, Tessa Nicholson, posted up pictures of their beautiful letters on Twitter, we were delighted to discover that they were following Something Rhymed and joining us in dedicating 2014 to friendship. Since each chapter of Sarah's début novel, Ten Things I've Learnt About Love, begins with a list, we asked them to share the lists they wrote in response to February's challenge in this month's guest blog.
We met, aged 19, at University: both reading English, both slightly overawed by the academia of Cambridge. We were friends from the off – easy in each other's company, interested in each other's lives, encouraging of each other's dreams.
Fifteen years on, we are still firm friends, and now we are both writers. Something Rhymed's letter writing activity for January helped us to forge another, written aspect of our friendship – which has been especially delightful now that we live in different cities.
Following the example of Ten Things I've Learnt About Love, we decided to write a list of ten things we admire about each other.
Ten Things I admire about Tessa
Sarah: It felt like a treat to take the time to really think about what makes Tessa such a great person and friend. As I wrote, certain words jumped out at me: wise, fun, generous, honest, so I decided to make a simple list which emphasised these words. I thought about which colours I associate with Tessa, which, it turns out, are muted pinks, greens and greys, so I used these colours for each key word, using images of tree bark, flowers, leaves and stone. The list's title is 'cut out' of a photo of the college at Cambridge where we first met.
Tessa: Reading Sar's list made me realise how lucky I am to have her as a friend. It is very fitting that this exercise was Sar's suggestion – from our early days at university I was struck by her discipline and work ethic. Living beside her from the day we were able to choose rooms, I strove to work as hard and as productively as she did – and definitely failed. Today she continues to inspire me – doggedly carving a name for herself among the literati! Am so proud of her. And of our friendship. Her list felt like a big reassuring hug and an encouraging hand on my back pushing me up the hill.
Ten Things I Admire About Sarah
Tessa: There are many things to admire in Sar, so I had to be selective when putting it down on paper. First of all, I thought I would write my list by hand – but my writing is messy and difficult to read. So then I had what I thought was a better idea, to cut the letters out of the paper (the Guardian and Grazia Magazine to be precise). I now have a lot of respect for kidnappers because ransom notes really take forever. I berated a lot of journalists during the process but am now up to date on current affairs and Victoria Beckham's rise from Spice Girl to haute couture.
Sarah: I want a wall-sized version of Tessa's list in my office! It's funny – I was half-hoping Tess would handwrite the list because I love her handwriting so much, but I love the ransom note – beautiful, colourful, quirky, just like her. I was touched by all of it, but especially number 3: 'you make me feel at home' – which links so beautifully to Maya Angelou's essay 'Home' in Letter to my Daughter.
Sarah Butler's novel, Ten Things I've Learnt About Love, was first published by Picador in 2013 and is just out in paperback.
Tessa Nicholson writes for PORT Magazine and the culture-vulture digital site Nowness.
We'd love to hear about the things you admire in your friend. And if, like Tessa and Sarah, you'd like to send us a picture of your response to February's challenge, then please email it to somethingrhymed@gmail.com or post it on Twitter along with #SomethingRhymed.
We're on the look out for famous female writer pals to feature next month, so do let us know who you'd like to see profiled.
Categories Guest posts, Maya Angelou and Toni Morrison•Tags Home, Letter to my Daughter, Lists, Maya Angelou, Nowness, PORT Magazine, Sarah Butler, Ten Things I've Learnt About Love, Tessa Nicholson, Toni Morrison
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6 thoughts on "Ten Things Sarah Butler and Tessa Nicholson Love About Each Other"
I think this is a nice idea for a gift for holidays, friends, whenever, where ever. It feels like this should be a trend! Thanks for the share 🙂
Emily Midorikawa says:
We're really glad this idea spoke to you, Lani. As you may have seen if you read our earlier posts too, Emma Claire and I decided to use the lists we compiled this month to create a collection of 'books' and a poem. But what I like about Tessa and Sarah's responses to the challenge is that they make a case for the value of lists themselves.
Thinking about list making, and how effective it can be as a literary form in its own right, reminded me of the Japanese text The Pillow of Sei Shonagon – one of my all-time favourites. It's a book I have returned to often, and Sei Shonagon's many evocative and witty lists are one of its definite highlights.
We recently had a couple more recommendations of author friends that we could consider profiling on Something Rhymed.
Penny got in touch to tell us about the friendship between George Eliot and Barbara Bodichon, 19th century champion of women's rights and education, and the author of several pamphlets, including Women and Work (1857), which spoke in favour of paid work for women.
Susan Lanigan wrote to us about Vera Brittain and Winifred Holtby, a duo who quite a number of you have mentioned to us, either via this website or on Twitter. Emma Claire and I have long been interested in the supportive relationship of these two writers and so we have been enjoying doing further research into this pair.
Do please keep those suggestions coming in. We look forward to hearing more of your ideas.
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