Ottawa Canada, July 30, 2018 – Telesat announced today that, following a highly rigorous process involving leading satellite manufacturing companies, it has entered into a contract with the consortium of Thales Alenia Space and Maxar Technologies, the owner of SSL, to further develop system designs for Telesat's LEO constellation.
The Thales Alenia Space-Maxar consortium, working in close cooperation with Telesat, submitted a highly innovative approach for maximizing the performance and service capabilities of Telesat's LEO constellation architecture. Thales Alenia Space and Maxar have collaborated on major satellite programs around the world and each brings a broad range of technical skills and experience along with a strong belief in the project and a commitment to its success.
Over the coming months, Thales Alenia Space-Maxar will complete their preliminary design, address key hardware and software development items, and perform a series of technical reviews leading to a firm proposal for manufacture and launch of Telesat's LEO satellites and deployment of the ground system infrastructure. Telesat anticipates deciding by mid-2019 on a prime contractor for Telesat's LEO program – space segment, ground segment and system integration.
Telesat's state-of-the-art LEO constellation will transform global communications by offering an unsurpassed combination of capacity, speed, security, resiliency and low cost with latency that is as good or better than the most advanced terrestrial networks. It will serve the entire globe and become a core component in satisfying many of the world's most challenging communications requirements. Telesat LEO will accelerate 5G expansion, end the digital divide with fiber-like high speed services into rural and remote communities and set new levels of performance for commercial and government broadband on land, sea and in the air.
This news release contains statements that are not based on historical fact and are ''forward-looking statements'' within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. When used in this news release, the words "anticipates", "will", "transform", "further", "coming months", "look forward to", or other variations of these words or other similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements and information. Actual results may differ materially from the expectations expressed or implied in the forward-looking statements as a result of known and unknown risks and uncertainties. Detailed information about some of the known risks and uncertainties is included in the "Risk Factors" section of Telesat Canada's Annual Report on Form 20-F for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2017 which can be obtained on the SEC website at http://www.sec.gov. Known risks and uncertainties include but are not limited to: risks associated with operating satellites and providing satellite services, including satellite construction or launch delays, launch failures, in-orbit failures or impaired satellite performance, the ability to successfully deploy an advanced global LEO satellite constellation, volatility in exchange rates and risks associated with domestic and foreign government regulation. The foregoing list of important factors is not exhaustive. The information contained in this news release reflects Telesat's beliefs, assumptions, intentions, plans and expectations as of the date of this news release. Except as required by law, Telesat disclaims any obligation or undertaking to update or revise the information herein.


Here at LASK Roofing & Siding, Inc., our ultimate goal is to help you improve your home, and we are more concerned about your satisfaction than we are the bottom line. When you hire us for any job on your home in Rockford, you can rest easy knowing that you are working with professionals that are invested in the quality of our work.
We've been in business since 1978, and with over 40 years of experience, we are prepared to take on any job, big or small. Whether you need a roofing repair or want to improve the energy efficiency of your home, come to us first.
We specialize in improving and repairing many parts of your home, and our products are always installed by professionals with years of experience working in the following areas.
We work with commercial and residential buildings to improve roofing processes and we work hard to give back to and improve our community in Rockford. Our goal is to help you rather than sell you, and our solid relationship with our customers shows our commitment to customer service over the last several decades.
When you choose LASK Roofing & Siding, Inc., you can count on receiving the highest quality products, exceptional customer service from every angle and workmanship that stands the test of time. We aren't satisfied until you are completely happy with the changes we've made to your home or business. When you choose us as your roofing company, we are confident you will see why we've been in business and serving customers in the Rockford area for so long.
We offer special discounts and referral programs to save you additional money when you choose LASK Roofing & Siding, Inc.. You can count on us to be honest and transparent with every transaction, and to never perform any work until you know just what you are getting.
Call us today at (815) 788-6699 and see for yourself why our customers come back to us again and again for home improvements and increased energy efficiency.
This homeowner has problems with clogged gutters, she is getting Gutter Helmet installed so she never cleans her gutters again!
These gutters have been clogged causing ground erosion, installing Gutter Helmet so homeowner will never have a clog again!


text:
Het verhaal over bonsaikittens is een broodjeaapverhaal dat op het internet de ronde deed. In feite is het een grap van een aantal studenten. Ze beweerden een kitten vlak na de geboorte in een fles te stoppen waarna het door de zachte botten in de vorm van die fles zou groeien. Door middel van slangetjes werd gezorgd voor voeding en lucht en de afvoer van ontlasting. Eenmaal volwassen zou de kat, zo beweerde men op een website, buiten de fles de vorm van de container behouden.

Oorsprong
Het is bedacht door Amerikaanse studenten die wilden aantonen hoe makkelijk het is om mensen wat wijs te maken.

Het bericht en de bijbehorende website maakte heftige reacties los van kattenliefhebbers en dierenrechtenactivisten.

Externe link
Officiële website

Broodjeaapverhaal
Hoax
Dierenrechten

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
Latest/ September 12, 2021/
The Ultimate Collection –
The Ultimate Collection is a game developed by the company, Ubisoft. It is an open-world action game that offers players many different ways to play and explore. There are three main types of gameplay in this game: story mode, free roam, and multiplayer.
The the ultimate collection cookbook is a book that reviews over 100 of the best recipes from around the world. It also includes a list of ingredients and a step-by-step guide to make each recipe.
Genshin Impact was one of the year's greatest shocks, and it's still one of the most popular games among anime fans and Japanese gamers.
Even if you don't like action RPG gameplay or exploring Teyvat's environment, Genshin Impact's characters are difficult to ignore.
In their own way, they're all attractive.
Some are sultry, some are sophisticated, and yet others are just cute.
The character designs are incredible, and we keep going back to roll for more units.
If you're sick of chasing Boko- I mean, hilichurls all day but can't let go of Genshin Impact's cast, use these amazing custom creations to bring them into your Sims 4 world.
Hairstyle of Lumine (Female MC)
Take a Look At This CC
We'll start at the top, which means we'll be looking at some amazing hairstyles.
The protagonist is a woman. Lumine is renowned for a variety of things, like being a total badass and letting her poker face lead her into strange situations – but the first thing I noticed about her was her hair.
It was her stunning locks.
Who wouldn't like their lovely, fluffy hair to swing in the breeze?
You can even create your own wind if you're attuned to Anemo!
Megukiru made the hairstyle flexible by providing 18 color swatches and keeping hair accessories like flowers and feathers distinct from the hairstyle, enabling you to toggle them on and off in CAS.
Keqing's Hairstyle No. 9
Keqing's Hairstyle by Evoxyr is another amazing hairstyle that brings the finest of Teyvat to TS4.
It's one of the Electro powerhouse's most distinguishing characteristics, due to the two conical buns that resemble cat's ears.
It's only fitting, considering how quickly she jumps about and pounces on opponents.
Yuheng of Liyue's Qixing has a lovely lavender hair color, but you don't have to worry about the specifics.
This set contains 24 swatches from palettes such as EA Colors, Modified Maxis, and The Witching Hours.
Springvale Custom Lot No. 8
Take a Look At This Collection
You have to go large if you truly want a piece of Teyvat in your TS4.
Having a character or a home isn't enough.
If you're serious about it, you should buy a whole town.
Springvale is a small rural hamlet near Mondstadt where few people live in a community centered on an ancient mill.
Pamcat's creation looks precisely like Springvale in the game, replete with Philanemo Mushrooms blooming on every wall and gleaming Seelie shrines aplenty.
7. Xingqiu & Chongyun Cross Room
You need to start decorating your Genshin Impact characters' rooms now that you have a small piece of home for them to dwell in – and you can't start without this bedroom set by DuoDraconis.
DuoDraconis is a 3D game asset studio that focuses in interior design and construction for The Sims 4.
Their Cross Room collection focuses on bedroom sets that reflect the characteristics of the character they're based on – as well as the environment they live in.
This one was created especially for Xingqiu and Chongyun, two extremely different friends who grew up together.
Although the room has an unique Liyue design, there are certain elements that emphasize the contrasts between the two.
There are 24 different things in all, including rugs, nightstands, wall-mounted scrolls, lamps, chairs, tables, and even an ice cream container!
6. Sucrose's Attire
With the Realm of Magic update, The Sims 3's excellent Alchemy talent made a return – and where there's alchemy, there's Sucrose.
This Anemo heroine is a Hufflepuff to the core, but she's a little more anarchic than the typical badger.
She's shy and reserved, but she's also a complete geek.
Nerds have a tendency to get carried away with their passions, and Sucrose's bio-alchemy experiments are no exception.
Everything we need to call the Head Alchemist of the Knights of Favonius into TS4 is included in this set by Vedora-Kingdom, including her hairdo, spectacles, and clothing.
5. Lisa's Look
It's also possible to summon Lisa Minci, the Witch of Purple Rose, due to Realm of Magic (and its author Mary Sims).
This Electro-queen is one of Teyvat's most powerful sorcerers, but she chooses to maintain a low profile as the Knights of Favonius' Librarian.
Lisa would flourish anyplace with a lot of books since she is an academic.
She's also freewheeling and fun-loving, so make sure she's occupied wherever you send her.
Lisa's sultry and exquisite full-body costume, dazzling hat, and stunning hairdo are all included in this CC bundle.
4. Zhongli's Attire
The Geo Archon's vessel is one of the most well-known husbandos in Genshin Impact.
Being a deity may be tedious, so Morax, the Geo Archon, chose to descend and dwell among the people as a human named Zhongli.
The attraction of this figure is somewhere between that of a butler and that of a sexy history teacher, but I'm sure his tremendous strength has had a role in his popularity.
Morax will appreciate visiting Sulani or San Myshuno as a Sim, just as he loves getting to know Liyue from the viewpoint of a human, due to Mary Sims' superb CC package.
3. Venti's Look
Is it a female?
Is it a boy or a girl?
Who knows, it might be Venti! That is, in a sense, the purpose.
Barbatos, everyone's favorite sleepy Anemo deity, may not look it, but this charming musician is really Barbatos.
Venti would rather spend the day sipping Dandelion Wine and wandering about with a sign that reads "would play the lyre for food" than keeping a look out for Mondstadt and performing his duty as an Anemo Archon.
This wayward musician can sell his talents (and enjoy the local nightlife) in Del Sol Valley, Oasis Springs, or anyplace else thanks to this CC pack by Vedora-Kingdom.
2. Xiao's Look
Genshin Impact's version of a Witcher is Xiao.
He's a half-demon fighter that roams the world in quest of demons to kill, as well as a true badass.
Until now, his most recent mission has kept this watchful Yaksha inside Liyue's boundaries – but now, due to Mary Sims' CC, you may bring him to TS4!
Nothing will ever be the same in Forgotten Hollow…
This is one of the best character sets I've seen in a long time.
The devil mask's eyes and his Vision's glow are a fantastic addition.
1. Jean's Look
Jean's Outfit by Lady Moriel is by far my favorite Genshin Impact CC.
The Knights of Favonius' Acting Grand Master is a royal and elegant warrior with a strong sense of duty. Lady Moriel faithfully recreated her attire in The Sims 4 with numerous detailed elements matching her rank.
The hairdo, the short cloak, and the costume itself are split into three sections.
You may simply experiment with various combinations – and it also looks lovely without the cloak.
The the ultimate collection jewelry is a single item that contains all the items in the game.
the ultimate collection black sabbath
the ultimate collection command and conquer
sade the ultimate collection
ultimate collection meaning
ultimate collection magazine
Review – Eldest Souls –
The Ultimate Ranking –
How To Get Leaf-Bladed Swords in OSRS –
Halo Infinite Campaign Skulls Locations Guide – Where to Find All Skulls
Which Iphone 7 Color Should I Get?
How To Keep Spotify Playing?...
Spotify is a key component…
How To Bypass Face Id...
In recent years, the biometrics…
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There are many ways to…
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redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Cars for sale / Lincoln /
Lincoln Continental 1971 (40,488 miles) for sale
Trim: Continental Mark III
VIN: 00000000000
Engine: 460ci 365 hp
Interior color: White
Item location: Saint Ann, Missouri, United States
Description of 1971 Lincoln Continental Mark III | California car | Automatic climate control
A family tradition for over 50 years, selling classic & fine motorcars throughout the world. 1971 LINCOLN CONTINENTAL MARK III Questions? Contact Us
DESIRABLE MARK III CONTINENTAL 2-DOOR COUPE
ONLY 40,488 ACTUAL MILES
DELIVERED NEW TO LOS ANGELES AND SPENT THE MAJORITY OF ITS LIFE IN CALIFORNIA
LAST PRODUCTION YEAR MARK III CONTINENTAL
GORGEOUS, FACTORY CORRECT WHITE ON WHITE COLOR COMBINATION
THE PERFECT CLASSIC CONTINENTAL TO DRIVE AND ENJOY
AM RADIO
15" ALLOY WHEELS (PROFESSIONALLY REFINISHED)
The Continental Mark III made its market debut in April 1968 as an early 1969 model. Created at the request of Ford's Vice President, Lee Iacocca, the Mark III was designed to compete against the newly restyled Cadillac Eldorado. The first Mark series Continental since Mark II production ended in 1957, the Mark III chassis was derived from the Thunderbird and featured new styling that mirrored the Mark II while still paving the shape for future designs and featured a prominent grill similar to that of a Rolls-Royce. Under the long hood was the 460ci V8 that was equipped with a 4-barrel carburetor and was good for 365 horsepower. Lavish luxury and power features were plentiful although automatic climate control air conditioning was available at an additional cost. The Mark III was an instant success with the discerning American public despite its nearly $7,000 dollar price tag. The model was credited as a huge push to the Lincoln division as 1969 was the first year that the Continental outsold the Cadillac Eldorado. Mark III production would end by 1971, though its short production run, iconic style and legendary performance make examples highly sought-after to this day especially in well-kept condition.
The 1971 Lincoln Continental Mark III featured here is finished in classic and desirable all white with an impeccably kept original white interior. This magnificent motorcar was just purchased in Southern California where it was meticulously maintained and has been driven just 40,488 miles since new. It comes equipped with nearly every available option including climate control air conditioning, power windows, power seats and more. This investment grade Lincoln Continental Mark III is accompanied by its owner's manual and more. We're proud to offer what we believe to be one of the very best Lincoln Mark IIIs that can be found on the market today to the true collector or investor who demands the best. Ready to make an investment that you can actually enjoy? Classic cars have proven to be among the most resilient and rewarding investments in recent years with the Historic Automobile Group Index (HAGI) jumping 39% in 2013, 16% in 2014 and 17% in 2015 while posting gains of 467% over the last 10 years. Please contact one of our expert sales consultants concerning pricing or for more information. They will be happy to give you a complete walk-around, supply you with a more detailed description and answer any questions you may have. Buy with confidence; you will not find a nicer example. Year: 1971 Make: Lincoln Model: Mark III Color: White Mileage: 40,488 Stock Number: 406900_MarkIII
Engine: 460CI 365 HP V8 Transmission: 3-Speed Automatic Style: Coupe SHOWROOM PRICE $40,900.00 DISCOUNT $4,000.00 BUY IT NOW PRICE $36,900.00
Daniel Schmitt & Co. Classic Car Gallery3455 N. Lindbergh Blvd, St. Louis, MO 63074Telephone: (314)291-7000
(314)291-7000 or info@schmitt.com Click Here to View Customer FeedbackVisit Our Ebay Store to View More Offerings Financing
Daniel Schmitt & Co. is a proud sponsor of M.A.D.D. Additional Photos Daniel Schmitt & Co. Classic Car Gallery3455 N. Lindbergh Blvd, St. Louis, MO 63074Telephone: (314)291-7000
Transportation/Shipping Door-to-door national and international shipping arrangements are available.
International buyers: Please visit www.shipoverseas.com for a free shipping quote or call (858)578-7943 Shipping Estimator
Alabama $500 Arizona $700 Arkansas $550 California $750 Colorado $700 Connecticut $700 Delaware $700 Florida $700 Georgia $600 Idaho $700 Indiana $400 Iowa $400 Kansas $450 Kentucky $400 Louisiana $550 Maine $700 Maryland $700 Massachusetts $700 Michigan $600 Minnesota $700 Mississippi $600 Montana $700 Nebraska $600 Nevada $700 New Hampshire $800 New Jersey $700 New Mexico $650 New York $650 North Carolina $650 North Dakota $700 Ohio $600 Oklahoma $600 Oregon $800 Pennsylvania $750 Rhode Island $750 South Carolina $650 South Dakota $650 Tennessee $400 Texas $600 Utah $700 Vermont $700 Virginia $600 Washington $750 Washington D.C. $700 West Virginia $700 Wisconsin $600 Wyoming $750 International (U.S. Dollars)
Australia $2275 Austria $2395 Brazil $3495 Canada $2050 Denmark $2075 England $2075 Finland $2395 France $3100 Germany $2095 Ireland $2300 Italy $3100 Johannesburg $3100 Korea $3500 Mexico $3100 New Zealand $3295 Norway $2375 Spain $3100 Switzerland $2395 St. Petersburg $3100 United Arab Emirates (UAE) $2395 Please Read Before Bidding
A FAMILY TRADITION FOR OVER 50 YEARS, SELLING CLASSIC & FINE MOTORCARS THROUGHOUT THE WORLD Whether you are looking to buy a foreign exotic car or a premium American classic car, Daniel Schmitt & Company is ready to help you find the automobile of your dreams. You will find a wide selection of vehicles in our classic car showroom, which is located in the beautiful and historic St. Louis, Missouri. We offer pre-purchase inspections of any car upon request. Call or e-mail us today to arrange a test drive.
More Lincoln cars for sale
Lincoln Continental Mark 3
1971 Lincoln Mark 3
Lincoln Continental Mark IV
Lincoln Continental Mark IV 1976
1956 Continental Mark II
Lompoc, California
1973 Lincoln Continental Mark Four
Ronkonkoma, New York
1983 Lincoln Continental Mark VI Car
Stanton, Nebraska
Lincoln Mark Series
1974 Lincoln Continental Mark IV
Park Ridge, Illinois
Lincoln Continental MARK V
1960 Lincoln Continental Convertible MARK V Super Clean
Boulder Creek, California
1969 Lincoln Continental Mark III - Cartier
Tulare, California
Lincoln Mark Series Mark III
1969 Lincoln Continental: Mark III Coupe V8 Auto 69
Lincoln 460 V-8


Here at CPM building services we have the knowledge and expertise to cover any job. Our building services division covers all aspects of building work from joinery, plumbing and electrical right through to decorating, insulation and roofing. We also undertake insurance repair work as well as full refurbishments. All our operatives are fully trained and accredited so you can be sure that all your building work is in safe, qualified hands.
CPM offer a comprehensive roofing service. CPM can replace or repair roofs using a variety of different materials including: slate, tile and felt.
CPM specialise in the installation, maintenance and repair of: lighting, sockets and switches. We also install and maintain cabling for data and telecommunications.
Our team of expert joiners here at CPM can tackle any job no matter how large or small. We specialise in the refurbishment of offices and shop fitting.
CPM provide a full property refurbishment service. We can completely renovate properties; restoring and plastering walls, re-plumbing and rewiring as well as replacing doors, windows and even roofs.
CPM are well used to working with insurance companies to supply quotations for all types of remedial work.


Would anyone know the type or part number for the cabin forward facing hatch.
a. There are more than one type in use, so take pictures. Most are Lewmar.
b. If it is just the lens or hardware, repair is not difficult. Unless you damaged the hinge or bent the rim, I would fix it.


text:
elmtree
elmtree's Activity (9953)
anmol has joined a book club.
anmol has read this book.
Astrophysicist and Space Advocate Neil Degrasse Tyson (Stem Trailblazer Bios)
By Marne Ventura
Chien-Shiung Wu: Pioneering Physicist and Atomic Researcher (Women Hall of Famers in Mathematics and Science)
By Stephanie Cooperman
Chien-Shiung Wu: Pioneering Nuclear Physicist (Makers of Modern Science)
By Richard Hammond
coolclaire added a news bookmark.
America's Northernmost City Just Witnessed Its Last Sunset For 2019
Not a fan of the increasingly shorter winter days? Then you may want to avoid the town of Utqiagvik, Alaska. That's because the northernmost city in the US just experienced its...
The Origins Of Five Popular Thanksgiving Traditions
Few American holidays are as anticipated as Thanksgiving. Observed annually on the last Thursday of November, the secular holiday, which marks the start of the festive season, i...
Italian Youngsters Flock To Help Clean Up Flood-Stricken Venice
Venice, which is built on 118 small islands in the middle of the Venetian Lagoon at the tip of the Adriatic Sea in Northern Italy, is no stranger to floods. The picturesque cit...
Pristine Copy Of First Marvel Comics Issue Auctions For $1.26 Million
A perfectly-preserved copy of Marvel's first-ever comic book was sold to an anonymous buyer for a record $1.26 million by Dallas-based Heritage Auctions on November 21, 2019. P...
ISS Astronauts May Soon Be Enjoying Freshly-Baked Cookies
Unlike early space travelers, who had to consume mysterious powders, purees, and freeze-dried cubes, today's astronauts enjoy a variety of freeze-dried meals, snacks, and desser...
Adorable Vietnamese Mouse-Deer Rediscovered In The Wild After 30 Years!
Endemic to the forests of south and southeast Asia, the silver-backed chevrotain, or Vietnamese mouse-deer, is one of the world's most elusive animals. The rabbit-sized critter ...
1643 hermione222011 459 points
1644 stormheart2007 458 points
1645 ryanng1letsgopa 458 points
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1648 elmtree 458 points
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text:
Call Of Duty [ Black Ops 4 ] (PS4) Game - NEW
Countrywide Delivery offered at your preferred location at a fee.
tactical and consolidated multiplayer
~call of duty: black ops 4 multiplayer raises the bar and offers the most exciting combat experience to date, with a focus on tactical gameplay and player decision making. The game offers a new level of online action through weaponry, maps, and game modes. For the first time ever, multiplayer mode is at the core of the game's narrative, where players will be able to explore the role of each specialist with their unique playstyles.
The biggest zombies mode in call of duty
~call of duty: black ops 4 includes the largest launch offer in zombies mode with three full experiences:
celebrate the black ops experience
~black ops comes to life in blackout, a massive battle royale experience that includes signature black ops combat with vehicles for moving across land, sea, and air - all on the largest map in call of duty history.
Level Up Techstore
Member Since 6. Mar '20


text:
Punk foi um fanzine criado em 1975 pelo cartunista John Holmstrom, pelo editor Ged Dunn e por Legs McNeil. Ele usou o termo "punk rock", cunhado pelos escritores da revista Creem alguns anos antes, levando essa expressão à popularidade, o que acabou definindo o novo som produzido por bandas que admirava os The Stooges, os New York Dolls, o MC5 e os Ramones. Ele foi também a primeira publicação a popularizar a cena musical do CBGB.

Link Externo
Site oficial da PUNK Magazine

Fanzines sobre cultura punk
Revistas de música dos Estados Unidos


text:
POLL: What's Your Favorite Trace Adkins Song?
The Boot Staff Updated: January 13, 2021
Justin Sullivan, Getty Images
Trace Adkins has built a hugely successful country music career by recording great songs in a variety of different styles.
Adkins had already earned hits such as "I'm Tryin'" and "This Ain't No) Thinkin' Thing" by 2003 -- the year he was inducted into the Grand Ole Opry -- and in the decade-plus since then, he's just kept going, with "Ladies Love Country Boys," "Arlington" and the unforgettable "Honky Tonk Badonkadonk."
Which one of all of Adkins' hits is your favorite? Vote below as often as once an hour, and if you don't see your favorite, add it in the comments section!
See a Photo From Trace Adkins' Football-Playing Days:
WATCH: Country Stars' Unforgettable Near-Death Experiences
NEXT: See Trace Adkins + More Country Stars Then and Now
Source: POLL: What's Your Favorite Trace Adkins Song?
Filed Under: Editor's Picks, trace adkins
Categories: Country Music News, Newsletter KXRB
New 'Monarch' Trailer Reveals Shania Twain, Martina McBride and More as Guest Stars [Watch]
Trace Adkins Sings the National Anthem at Daytona 500 [Watch]
Trace Adkins Can't Get Enough of NASCAR Fans: 'Those Are My People'
Trace Adkins' 'Monarch' Won't Be Coming to Fox This Month, After All
Trace Adkins' First Single From New TV Show 'Monarch' Is a Hank Jr. Classic [Listen]
Top 10 Country Songs About Soldiers
Trace Adkins Concert In Sioux Falls Rescheduled
Trace Adkins Cast in 'Monarch,' New Country Music TV Drama
Trace Adkins Feels 'Guilty' Because 2020 Was 'the Best Year of My Life'


text:
FCPS proposes adding more religious occasions as holidays for students, staff
David Taube January 19, 2022 at 2:00pm
The Fairfax County School Board is looking at adding more holidays, including Diwali and Yom Kippur, to a proposed calendar for the upcoming 2022-2023 school year.
The board reviewed a proposed calendar from Fairfax County Public Schools staff during a work session yesterday (Tuesday), with a vote on the matter scheduled for their next regular meeting on Jan. 27.
The proposed 14-holiday schedule would begin July 1 and have a two-week winter break, one-week spring break, and days off for students through professional work days. It would mirror neighboring school districts' holidays, a staff presentation showed.
FCPS staff recommended adding Diwali and Yom Kippur as full holidays with Rosh Hashanah as a day off for students. Staff would have the option to use it for professional development or also take the day off at their own discretion.
The proposed calendar includes an observance of Eid al-Fitr in 2023, even though it falls outside of school hours. The Muslim holiday marking the end of Ramadan will begin at sundown on Friday, April 21 to sundown on Saturday, April 22 next year.
FCPS is officially observing those four holidays for the first time this academic year, but the school board stopped short of granting students days off.
Last year's calendar development proved unusually tense, with numerous residents voicing concerns about the process and local religious leaders expressing disappointment from a diversity standpoint.
Superintendent Scott Brabrand said yesterday that he accepted responsibility for a calendar process last year that was divisive and hurtful but added that he thought the calendar process this year was enhanced.
"It is complex. There's no perfect calendar process. I think this process was better than the process we had before," Brabrand said.
This time around, FCPS enlisted a calendar committee, consisting of school staff, students, parents and associations, to weigh in on the changes. FCPS Chief Operating Officer Marty Smith said several faith-based groups were invited, but not all chose to participate.
School board members wondered whether staff assigned different weights for priorities identified through a community input process that included surveying staff, students, and families. Brabrand said the proposal wasn't a formula, but the staff's best solution.
Despite a nearly two-hour long work session, school board members called for clearer justification from staff regarding which holidays will be recognized and adding Veterans Day as a day off for students.
"We want for this to not come across as arbitrary to our community, that people can take a look at the same data and kind of come close to the same conclusion," Mason District Representative Ricardy Anderson said.
School board members suggested that the survey feedback wasn't incorporated as well as it could have been.
Guided by U.S. Supreme Court rulings throughout the last century, public school holidays for religious occasions must be justified with a secular reason, such as high absence rates.
Mount Vernon District Representative Karen Corbett-Sanders said the proposed calendar was driven by FCPS' operational needs, not one that reflects community feedback.
"We need to work on this calendar more to ensure that that has that mutual respect and inclusivity of all in it," she said.
Fairfax County Public Schools holiday religion school board student
JUST IN: FCPS will go virtual on Thursday, citing snow in forecastWhen preparing for snow, Fairfax County, VDOT work to limit salt use


Join us on Wednesday, February 20th at 7:00pm for a live performance from Pinegrove to celebrate the release of their latest album Skylight (out on February 15th via Pinegrove).
Please Note: This event is officially sold out online, but there will be a limited number of wristbands available for purchase at the counter in-store only starting Friday, February 15th.
Pinegrove is a band from Montclair, NJ.


text:
Sinn Féin defended the core principles of the Good Friday Agreement
Sinn Féin Assembly Group Leader, Upper Bann MLA John O'Dowd speaking after the Ministerial Code of Conduct and the new Assembly Standing Orders were debated in the Assembly today has said that he is confident that Sinn Fein defended the core principles of the Good Friday Agreement throughout the recent negotiations with the British and Irish governments.
Mr O'Dowd said:
"In these negotiations Sinn Féin had two objectives; to defend the core principles of the Good Friday Agreement and to bring the DUP into a power sharing Executive built upon equality.
"Sinn Fein have defended the core of the agreement particularly in relation to the authority of ministers and full engagement with the all-Ireland strands of the Good Friday Agreement.
"The only question that remains is whether the DUP are prepared at this point to join the rest of us in the power sharing and all Ireland arrangements. I hope they do.
"Sinn Féin opposed the clause in Standing Orders today relating to the IMC and its undemocratic role." ENDS


text:
Sia is a grand-mother!
magictr | July 1, 2020 | Art | No Comments
Sia became a grandmother at age 44. The singer and songwriter who has adopted two boys, 18-year-old last year, just before they get out of the system of foster care, and she revealed that his family is still larger than two people.
"My youngest son just had two babies. I am a fucking great mother. I'm trying to convince them to call me Lovey", said Sia in a discussion with Zane Lowe ofApple Music, explaining that she had stolen the idea of the nickname his girlfriend Kris Jenner, who has ten grandchildren.
And new babies are not the only reason why Sia is happy: one of his son "has been recently coming out, it flourishes and is the light of my life… I love him so much", she told.
If the musician has enjoyed building relationships with his "fantastic" boys, both black, their relationship was a bit tense at the beginning, because she tried to learn more about their difficult lives, a home to the other. "They were in 18 different locations during their 18 years," said Sia, who has insisted on the fact that the system of family placement is "completely corrupt" and that he "let down" those who rely on the service.
Because of the trauma they have suffered over the years, the star australian was forced to have multiple conversations emotional with his son to try to keep them out of trouble with the authorities. "I told them: "I do this because I'm your mother. I love you. I don't want to see you in prison… With your story and the color of your skin, I don't want to see you like these 5% who end up in prison for life. I don't want that for you"", she explained.
The education of two teenage boys has also enabled Sia to become aware more than ever of the importance of the fight against racial injustice, and her new role prompted her to intensify her activism for the movement Black Lives Matter. "I'm embarrassed that I had to adopt two black wires to really understand what they live every day", confessed the artist, admitting that she was "very scared" for her boys.
"Mafia Inc" sold in the United States and Europe
Artist above all
Marco, the hunter of dreams
A great who deserves to be better known


text:
Toni Ionescu (n. 12 ianuarie 1969 în  Urziceni, Ialomița),nume la naștere Ionescu Antonio Aurelian, este un actor român. A fost cooptat în grupul Trăsniții în anul 2003.

Toni și-a început activitatea artistică în emisiunea "Chestiunea zilei" și a continuat cu comedy-show-urile "Tilică, steluță de cinema", "Pitici și tătici" si, nu în ultimul rând, cu serialul "Trăsniți în NATO", unde interpretează rolul unui sergent autoritar, incult și grobian.
Toni este pasionat de filme, printre actorii săi preferați numărându-se Charlie Chaplin, Jerry Lewis și Stan Laurel, iar producția cinematografică pe care ar revedea-o ori de câte ori ar avea ocazia este "Dictatorul".

Filmografie
 Garcea și oltenii (2002) - Zbârcea
 Trăsniții (2003) - Mârlanu sau Sergent Mârlanu
 Pitici și tătici (2003) - Toni Ionescu

Note

Legături externe
  Toni Ionescu pe cinemagia.ro

Nașteri în 1969
Comici români


text:
Is Russia planning to lift sanctions from the West?
13 Jan 2017 in 16:00
Russia may lift the sanctions against the West, the First Russian Deputy Prime Minister, Igor Shuvalov, said in the framework of the Gaidar Forum.
"Perhaps it is time to understand that the sanctions or counter sanctions will cease to have effect soon. Anyway, in my work as a Minister of Agriculture and a Minister of Economy, I should proceed from the fact that the counter sanctions will be lifted," Gazeta.ru cited him as saying.
According to the Deputy Prime Minister, the financial and economic bloc of the government and governors should maximize the benefits for the Russian economy.
In addition, Shuvalov noted that the counter sanctions have significantly changed the landscape of the production of certain types of raw materials, food processing and distribution through retail chains.
The assistant head of Rosselkhoznadzor, Alexey Alexeyenko, speaking with a correspondent of Vestnik Kavkaza, noted that the abolition of the food embargo will not have a negative effect on the Russian agricultural sector.
"You have to understand that even in the case of the abolition of the sanctions in a single step, supplies from those companies, which used to sell products to Russia, will not be resumed immediately. After the abolition of the embargo we must check all of these companies and, therefore, we will have to re-build our relations with colleagues from the countries-suppliers. It will take considerable time, therefore, there will be no a dramatic effect on agriculture," he explained.
Alexeyenko also does not expect a significant impact of the embargo on food prices. "The fact is that the imported products are quite expensive, considering the current exchange rate of the ruble against major foreign currencies. If our business resumes food deliveries from the West, then only on the price categories acceptable for Russia today," the assistant head of Rosselkhoznadzor warned.
IMF calls for Russian sanctions to be lifted
MED: Counter sanctions won't influence inflation anymore
Igor Shuvalov
Russian government
Rosselkhoznadzor
Russian sanctions
Alexey Alekseenko
agriculture in Russia
Georgia and Gazprom drawn line under era
Russian pop star sends fur garment to Melania Trump


text:
\section{Conclusion}

To study the visitors behavior in events, it was proposed a model graph-based to optimize the event structure that considers all visitors patterns; that optimization also considers the geographic location of activities. Furthermore, using that same patterns, it was proposed a recommendation system that suggests the next activity to visit based on previous visits.

The genetic algorithm (G.A) was used to optimize the event structure. To validate results, the random algorithm was applied to compare results. As observed, it is visible that the G.A is better than random algorithm.

The recommendation system was developed using the Naive Bayes and producing promising results, because it achieves $\sim$95\% of accuracy in some scenarios.

For future work, a real database can be applied to compare and validate the results with the artificial database. Using another model with G.A to create a hybrid model, can produce better results.

Using another model also with Naive Bayes can improve the accuracy the recommendation system, maybe a model that consider the semantic of words like LSA, because that model not uses a large database for training.

Finally, the proposed model reached the objectives and can be improved to achieve better results.

\section{Background}

In this section, the concepts that was used in this work will be explained.

\subsection{Genetic Algorithm}
\label{Sec_GACON}

\cite{gendreau2010handbook} affirm, that genetic algorithm is an algorithm based on Neo-Darwinism Theory of evolution; thus, this approach uses concepts like mutation, selection and survival of the strongest individual. Therefore, the author affirms that objective of this algorithm is optimize a solution (hypothesis) based on a fitness function.

A typical genetic algorithm operates following the steps represented in Figure \ref{Fig_AG} \cite{mitchell1997machine}.

\begin{figure}[h]
\centering
\scriptsize
\begin{tikzpicture}
	\draw (0,0)  node (n0) [draw, decision, aspect=2] {Stop condition};
	\draw (0,-3) node (n1) [draw, terminator] {End of process};
	\draw (0,3) node (n2) [rectangle,fill=blue!20,stroke=black,draw] {Generate initial population};
	\draw (0,1.5) node (n3) [block] {Evaluation};
	\draw (-3,-3) node (n4) [block] {Selection};
	\draw (-3,-1.5) node (n5) [block] {Crossover};
	\draw (-3,0) node (n6) [block] {Mutation};
	\draw (-3,1.5) node (n7) [block] {Evaluation};
	\draw (-3,3) node (n8) [block] {Elitism};

	\path[draw, ->] (n0) -> (n1) node [midway, above, sloped] () {Yes};
	\path[draw, ->] (n2) -> (n3);
	\path[draw, ->] (n3) -> (n0);
	\path[draw, ->] (n0) -> (n4) node [midway, above, sloped] () {No};
	\path[draw, ->] (n4) -> (n5);
	\path[draw, ->] (n5) -> (n6);
	\path[draw, ->] (n6) -> (n7);
	\path[draw, ->] (n7) -> (n8);
	\path[draw, ->] (n8) -> (n0);

\end{tikzpicture}
\caption{Operation of a genetic algorithm.}
\label{Fig_AG}
\end{figure}

\subsection{Naive Bayes Model}
\label{Sec_NB}

\begin{comment}
The Bayesian Theory is an equation derived from the junction of two ways in which the product rule may be represented, that ways is illustrated below and the result in the Equation \ref{regraBayes}.

\begin{eqnarray*}
P(a \land b) & = & P(a | b) P(b). \\
P(a \land b) & = & P(b | a) P(a).
\label{regraProdutoGeral}
\end{eqnarray*}

\begin{equation}
P(b | a) = \frac{P(a | b) P(b)}{P(a)}.
\label{regraBayes}
\end{equation}

The Equation \ref{regraBayes} defines the Bayes Rule, but can be represented most generically as Equation \ref{regraBayesGeral}.
\begin{equation}
P(X | Y, a) = \frac{P(Y | X, a) P(X, a)}{P(Y | a)}.
\label{regraBayesGeral}
\end{equation}

The Bayes Rule allow to calculate $P(b|a)$ from the three terms. Mostly times, this generate goods results, because is assumed that property as \emph{effect}, this is, an evidence. Thus, the importance in discover $P(b|a)$ increases, because this represents the \emph{cause}; and when calculated, diagnostics the problem described. \cite{russell2003} affirm, that simple equation is the base for the all modern artificial intelligence (AI) systems which uses probabilistic inference.
\end{comment}

The Naive Bayes model is a bayesian network model and n-gram model very used in the machine learning area \cite{russell2003}. This model is a probabilistic model that correlates variables using fewer computer resources than other n-gram models because these other models require a joint probability table, that table grows exponentially with the addition of new variables.

In this model the variables are separated into \emph{causes} and \emph{effects}; thus, it is proposed that the \emph{effects} are conditionally independents each other, as from \emph{causes}. That is represented in the Equation (\ref{Eq_CECompl}).

\begin{equation}
P(e|c_1, ...,c_n) = \frac {P(e) \prod_{i=1}^{n} P(c_i|e)}{\gamma}
\label{Eq_CECompl}
\end{equation}

Therefore, this model not requires a joint probability table to store the probabilities. The $\gamma$ is a constant factor for all \emph{effects}, thus, it can be removed from inference, resulting in Equation (\ref{Eq_CECompl2}).

\begin{equation}
\varphi = \argmax_{k} (P(e_k) \prod_{i=1}^{n} P(c_i|e_k))
\label{Eq_CECompl2}
\end{equation}
\section{Introduction}

\IEEEPARstart{I}{n} the last decade, the emergence of new hardware technologies has led many scientists to focus their studies on more complex computational models to solve problems to assist people. One well-known problem category in this area is the Recommendation Systems. Basically, a recommendation system uses statistical techniques to infer people's likes and preferences based on previously known data.

In the last decade, the IoT (Internet of Things) area has gained a lot of space in several industrial branches.  Since its creation in 1999 by Kevin Ashton, it has been possible to manage and track products individually, to checkout automatically in supermarkets, to identify people in homes, to control devices in a large company in an orchestrated way, among many other applications.

IoT is a technology that has as a main focus applications involving people \cite{Ashton2009} and electronic devices in an interactive environment.  In addition, this interaction is expected to be done in the most transparent way possible;  e.g. non-invasive.

There are many applications in the IoT area in order to improve the quality of life \cite{Atzori2010}. These include mobile tiketing applications, which allow users to buy tickets for a particular service from their smartphone, and also view the information about the service provided automatically by the application \cite{broll2009perci}.  Other applications can be found in healthcare, which identifies people as patients and doctor, as well as the objects they will use to be located, which involves automatic data collection and an interconnected environment \cite{vilamovska2009rfid}.

Regarding the health area, there is a great interest in the possibility of sensing patients at a distance, which requires the implementation of wireless sensors integrated into a system that provides information about the patient continuously \cite{niyato2009remote}.

Another branch of IoT is the management of energy consumption in houses;  That is, to propose computational models capable of computing the cost of consumption of each internal equipment based on the information supplied online, and how this consumption can be reduced \cite{buckl2009services}.  Related to the same theme, there are studies that find out ways to optimize the food supply in homes from a set of sensors and a computer system to interconnect everything.  Thus, one can suggest new ways of efficient household supply based on measurement of consumption.

Although the numerous applications that already exist in the area, little is said about the incorporation of this technology for the extraction of statistics in closed events composed of several exhibitions or activities (individual entertainment area).

In these types of events, each person can move differently, visiting different exhibitions and in an order of their own.  At this point, a computational model that could store these information, such as the visitation order for each person present in an event, could contribute for profile analysis of visitors as well as the event itself, such as preferences, behaviors, flows,  best exhibitions, best location of the exhibitions, among many others.  Such a computational model is present in an area that has been gaining attention of researchers in recent years, the Complex Networks Theory.  More generally, this area is based on the union of statistical mathematics and graph theory.

One of the main reasons for the advancement of this area is the evolution of the current hardware, since the algorithms involved have asymptotically high times, in the order of $O(n^3) $, where $n$ is the number of nodes.

In this paper we propose a computational model to analyze the behavior of visitors in closed events. This is done thought two steps: data generation/capture; and data analysis.

\input{Naive}

\section{Proposed Model}
\input{Proposal}
\input{Results}
\input{Conclusion}

\section*{Acknowledgment}

The authors would like to thank Telefônica VIVO partnership with Centro Universitário FEI and IIoT Lab Telef\^{o}nica/FEI (Intelligent Internet of Things Lab) by the funding and hardware resources provided.

\ifCLASSOPTIONcaptionsoff
  \newpage
\fi

\bibliographystyle{IEEEtran}

\subsection{Datasets}
\label{Sec_dataset}

For this work, an artificial graph was used to create visits patterns.

Initially, each visitor pattern (visit pattern of a visitor) has only 1 visit (initial visit), so that all activities have the same number of visitors at the beginning. That visitor pattern is modified according to the noise factor, which determines how many random activities will be added (that do not exist) to the pattern, this is represented in the Figure \ref{Fig_VisPatt}.

\begin{figure}[h]
\centering
\begin{tikzpicture}[scale=0.75]

	\draw (-3,0) node (n1) [circle,fill=blue!20,stroke=black,draw]{Activity 3};
	\draw (0,0) node (n2) [circle,fill=green!20,stroke=black,draw]{Activity 2};
	\draw (3,0) node (n3) [circle,fill=green!20,stroke=black,draw]{Activity 5};
	\draw (6,0) node (n4) [circle,fill=green!20,stroke=black,draw]{Activity 1};

	\path[draw,->, -triangle 90] (n1) -> (n2);
	\path[draw,->, -triangle 90] (n2) -> (n3);
	\path[draw,->, -triangle 90] (n3) -> (n4);

\end{tikzpicture}
\caption{Visitor pattern.}
\label{Fig_VisPatt}
\end{figure}

\subsection{Training}

To create the model represented in Figure \ref{Fig_GrafoGeral}, the graph is generated from a junction of all visitors pattern, so that each edge in the graph is weighted according to the number of visitors which visits the activities connected to this edge.

 \begin{figure}[h]
\centering
\begin{tikzpicture}[scale=0.85]

	\draw (0,0) node (n1) [circle,fill=red!20,stroke=black,draw]{Activity 1};
	\draw (-2,3) node (n2) [circle,fill=red!20,stroke=black,draw]{Activity 2};
	\draw (0,6) node (n3) [circle,fill=red!20,stroke=black,draw]{Activity 3};
	\draw (4,6) node (n4) [circle,fill=red!20,stroke=black,draw]{Activity 4};
	\draw (6,3) node (n5) [circle,fill=red!20,stroke=black,draw]{Activity 5};
	\draw (4,0) node (n6) [circle,fill=red!20,stroke=black,draw]{Activity 6};

	\path[draw,->, -triangle 90] (n1) -> (n2);
	\path[draw,->, -triangle 90] (n2) -> (n3);
	\path[draw,->, -triangle 90] (n3) -> (n4);
	\path[draw,->, -triangle 90] (n4) -> (n5);
	\path[draw,->, -triangle 90] (n5) -> (n6);
	\path[draw,->, -triangle 90] (n6) -> (n1);
	\path[draw,->, -triangle 90] (n1) -> (n4);
	\path[draw,->, -triangle 90] (n3) -> (n6);
	\path[draw,->, -triangle 90] (n5) -> (n2);

	\node (a) at (2,6.3) {15};
	\node (b) at (-1.4,4.7) {23};
	\node (c) at (-1.4,1.3) {27};
	\node (d) at (2,-0.4) {9};
	\node (e) at (5.3,4.7) {21};
	\node (f) at (5.3,1.3) {11};
	\node (g) at (-0.5 ,3.3) {8};
	\node (h) at (2.9,1.1) {5};
	\node (i) at (3.4,4.5) {13};

\end{tikzpicture}
\caption{Graph of an event.}
\label{Fig_GrafoGeral}
\end{figure}

For computer model representation, this model should be interpreted as a matrix. The matrix $W$ (\ref{Eq_MatrizPeso}) represents the graph of Figure \ref{Fig_GrafoGeral}.

\begin{equation}
W=\begin{pmatrix}
0&27&0&13&0&0 \\
0&0&23&0&0&0 \\
0&0&0&15&0&5 \\
0&0&0&0&21&0 \\
0&8&0&0&0&11 \\
9&0&0&0&0&0 \\
\end{pmatrix}
\label{Eq_MatrizPeso}
\end{equation}

The Naive Bayes model needs a probabilistic value, then the matrix $W$ should be transformed into a probabilistic matrix $P$ so that in each position it is applied the Equation (\ref{Eq_Norm}).

\begin{equation}
W_{i,j} = \frac{W_{i,j}}{\sum_{i} W_{i,j}}
\label{Eq_Norm}
\end{equation}

Each position on matrix $W$ is incremented by 1, because, if the result is 0, it will be a problem in posterior calculations; the term $sumW_j$ is the sum of all positions of the column $j$ in matrix $W$ (with the positions already incremented). The matrix $P$ is represented below:

\begin{equation}
P=\begin{pmatrix}
0.067&0.7&0.034&0.412&0.037&0.045 \\
0.067&0.025&0.828&0.09&0.037&0.045 \\
0.067&0.025&0.034&0.471&0.037&0.273 \\
0.067&0.025&0.034&0.09&0.815&0.045 \\
0.067&0.225&0.034&0.09&0.037&0.545 \\
0.67&0.025&0.034&0.09&0.037&0.045 \\
\end{pmatrix}
\label{Eq_MatrizProb}
\end{equation}

\subsection{Genetic Algorithm}

As stated in Section \ref{Sec_GACON}, genetic algorithm (G.A) is an algorithm used to optimize some solution to a problem. This work proposes to improve visitor experience, which implies to improve the activities positions in an event using the G.A (using activities positions $(x,y)$ as G.A chromosome).

In crossover step, it was used a 2-point ordered crossover, but as observed in Figure \ref{Fig_Conflito} a usual approach can produce some conflicts, to solve those conflicts it is necessary to replace the duplicated position by the first position that not used in the individual. Moreover, the points used in crossover cannot be the first one of individual, thus the first position is fixed then the G.A must find a solution on this position.

\begin{figure}[h]
\centering
  	\begin{tikzpicture}[
       start chain = going right,
     node distance = 0pt,
MyStyle/.style={draw, minimum width=2em, minimum height=2em,outer sep=0pt, on chain},]

		\node [MyStyle,fill=blue!20] (1) {$(5,0)$};
		\node [MyStyle,fill=blue!20] (2) {$(6,3)$};
		\node [MyStyle,fill=blue!20] (3) {$(1,3)$};
		\node [MyStyle,fill=blue!20] (4) {$(3,7)$};
		\node [MyStyle,fill=blue!20] (5) {$(0,2)$};

	\end{tikzpicture}

	\begin{tikzpicture}[
       start chain = going right,
     node distance = 0pt,
MyStyle/.style={draw, minimum width=2em, minimum height=2em,outer sep=0pt, on chain},]

		\node [MyStyle,fill=red!20] (1) {$(6,6)$};
		\node [MyStyle,fill=red!20] (2) {$(3,4)$};
		\node [MyStyle,fill=red!20] (3) {$(5,0)$};
		\node [MyStyle,fill=red!20] (4) {$(5,8)$};
		\node [MyStyle,fill=red!20] (5) {$(9,0)$};

	\end{tikzpicture}

	\begin{tikzpicture}[
  		>=stealth',
  		pos=.8,
  		photon/.style={decorate,decoration={snake,post length=1mm}}
	]
  		\draw[->] (0,0) -- node[above right] {} (-90:1);
	\end{tikzpicture}

	\begin{tikzpicture}[
       start chain = going right,
     node distance = 0pt,
MyStyle/.style={draw, minimum width=2em, minimum height=2em,outer sep=0pt, on chain},]

		\node [MyStyle,fill=black!100] (1) {\color{white}(5,0)};
		\node [MyStyle,fill=red!20] (2) {$(3,4)$};
		\node [MyStyle,fill=black!100] (3) {\color{white}(5,0)};
		\node [MyStyle,fill=blue!20] (4) {$(3,7)$};
		\node [MyStyle,fill=blue!20] (5) {$(0,2)$};

	\end{tikzpicture}

	\begin{tikzpicture}[
  		>=stealth',
  		pos=.8,
  		photon/.style={decorate,decoration={snake,post length=1mm}}
	]
  		\draw[->] (0,0) -- node[above right] {} (-90:1);
	\end{tikzpicture}

	\begin{tikzpicture}[
       start chain = going right,
     node distance = 0pt,
MyStyle/.style={draw, minimum width=2em, minimum height=2em,outer sep=0pt, on chain},]

		\node [MyStyle,fill=blue!20] (1) {$(5,0)$};
		\node [MyStyle,fill=red!20] (2) {$(3,4)$};
		\node [MyStyle,fill=red!20] (3) {$(6,6)$};
		\node [MyStyle,fill=blue!20] (4) {$(3,7)$};
		\node [MyStyle,fill=blue!20] (5) {$(0,2)$};

	\end{tikzpicture}

\caption{Conflict in crossover and their treatment.}
\label{Fig_Conflito}
\end{figure}

To mutate the individuals, it was applied two types of mutation with the same chance. thus, the maximum probability for mutation is 50\%. One of them swap two positions of individual; and the second, swap one position of the individual with a position not used by individual.

To evaluate each individual the Equation (\ref{Eq_Avaliacao}) was applied. Therefore, it is possible to consider the frequency of visitors in the activity (that information is stored in the edges of graph stated before) and their position regarding others positions.

\begin{equation}
Fitness = \sum\limits_{(n_i,n_j) \in N^2} \frac{W(n_i,n_j)}{d(i,j)}
\label{Eq_Avaliacao}
\end{equation}

\subsection{Recommendation}

As stated in Section \ref{Sec_NB}, to create a recommendation system based on Naive Bayes, it is necessary to subdivide the variables of this work into \emph{causes} and \emph{effects}.

Using the matrix $W$ is possible to separate your lines as \emph{previous activities} and the columns as \emph{next activities}. Thus, the \emph{previous activities} is interpreted as \emph{causes} and \emph{next activities} as \emph{effects}.

Thereby, is possible to establish probabilistically, the best activity to recommend using as \emph{history} ($n$-last) the activities already visited. The Equation (\ref{Eq_AvaliacaoNB}) describe a search of best (\emph{argmax}) activity $k$.

\begin{equation}
\varphi = \argmax_{k} (P(Next_k) \prod_{i=1}^{n} P(Previous_i|Next_k))
\label{Eq_AvaliacaoNB}
\end{equation}

The term $P(Next_k)$ is the \emph{a priori} probability of activity $k$ to be recommended; numerically, is a number of visitors that visit the activity $k$ normalized by the total of visits in the event. The term $P(Previous_i|Next_k)$ is the probability of recommending the activity $k$, given that the activity $i$ was visited; numerically, is the value of the position $(i,k)$ in matrix W.

In order to avoid precision loss in the calculations in Equation (\ref{Eq_AvaliacaoNB}), was used a technique which consists of conveying to \emph{log}. That conveying is described below:

\indent $P(Next_k) \prod_{i=1}^{n} P(Previous_i|Next_k)$ \\
\indent $ = log_{2}(P(Next_k)) + \sum_{i=1}^{n} log_{2}(P(Previous_i|Next_k))$

In this work, it was considered that the last visit has twice the weight compared to the previous.

For modeling that effect, a coefficient $\alpha$ is used on \emph{a posteriori} terms according to Equation (\ref{Eq_NormAlpha}).

\begin{equation}
R = log_{2}(P(Next_k)) + \sum_{i=1}^{n} \alpha_i log_{2}(P(Previous_i|Next_k))
\label{Eq_NormAlpha}
\end{equation}

Thus, the sum guarantees the precision of calculation so that come back to the probabilistic value exponentiating the result $R$: $2^R$.
\section{Results}

In this section, results of experiments applied to the genetic algorithm (G.A) will be showed.

\subsection{Mutation and Crossover}

An experiment was proposed to understand the behavior of G.A in function of crossover chance and mutation parameters. To perform this experiment, it was used a graph (represented in Figure \ref{Fig_GrafoGeral}) composed by 100 activities and 470000 visits in total; and the G.A optimized the solution over 5000 generations.

\begin{figure}[h]
\centering
\includegraphics[width=0.54\textwidth]{crossMut}
\caption{Illustration of the G.A performance in function of mutation and crossover values.}
\label{Fig_Mutacao}
\end{figure}

As illustrated in Figure \ref{Fig_Mutacao}, both parameters is important to evaluation. Therefore, using crossover chance at 10\% and mutation at 40\%, the G.A performed best results.

\subsection{Genetic Algorithm vs Random Algorithm}

In order to compare the performance of G.A with other methods as illustrated in Figure \ref{Fig_NotasBNC}, the Random Algorithm was used as baseline. This method, use an initial individual of G.A and each generation two positions of individual is swapped.

\begin{figure}[h]
\centering
\includegraphics[width=0.5\textwidth]{notasBNC}
\caption{Illustration of performance of G.A compared to Random Algorithm.}
\label{Fig_NotasBNC}
\end{figure}

\subsection{Recommendation}

To perform a validation experiment of the recommendation system proposed, some visits of visitors patterns was removed (cut). Then, the system will recommend visits to reconstruct the visitor, based on previous visits in pattern (history). This experiment is illustrated in Figure \ref{Fig_VisPattTest}, the visit colors represents the following: blue as original pattern, yellow as the history, cyan as the activity to recommend, green as the recommendation and gray as a visit not used.

\begin{figure}[h]
\scalebox{.77}{
\centering

\begin{tabular}{@{}cccc@{}}

\begin{tikzpicture}[scale=0.8]

	\draw (-3,0) node (n1) [circle,fill=blue!20,stroke=black,draw]{Activity 7};
	\draw (0,0) node (n2) [circle,fill=blue!20,stroke=black,draw]{Activity 2};
	\draw (3,0) node (n3) [circle,fill=blue!20,stroke=black,draw]{Activity 3};
	\draw (6,0) node (n4) [circle,fill=blue!20,stroke=black,draw]{Activity 1};
	\draw (9,0) node (n5) [circle,fill=blue!20,stroke=black,draw]{Activity 5};

	\path[draw,->, -triangle 90] (n1) -> (n2);
	\path[draw,->, -triangle 90] (n2) -> (n3);
	\path[draw,->, -triangle 90] (n3) -> (n4);
	\path[draw,->, -triangle 90] (n4) -> (n5);

\end{tikzpicture}

\\

\begin{tabular}{l}
$\Downarrow$
\end{tabular}

\\

\begin{tikzpicture}[scale=0.8]

	\draw (-3,0) node (n1) [circle,fill=yellow!20,stroke=black,draw]{Activity 7};
	\draw (0,0) node (n2) [circle,fill=yellow!20,stroke=black,draw]{Activity 2};
	\draw (3,0) node (n3) [circle,fill=yellow!20,stroke=black,draw]{Activity 3};
	\draw (6,0) node (n4) [circle,fill=cyan!60,stroke=black,draw,dashed,minimum size=1.8cm]{};
	\draw (9,0) node (n5) [circle,fill=cyan!60,stroke=black,draw,dashed,minimum size=1.8cm]{};

	\path[draw,->, -triangle 90] (n1) -> (n2);
	\path[draw,->, -triangle 90] (n2) -> (n3);
	\path[draw,->, -triangle 90] (n3) -> (n4);
	\path[draw,->, -triangle 90] (n4) -> (n5);

\end{tikzpicture}

\\

\begin{tikzpicture}[scale=0.8]

	\draw (-3,0) node (n1) [circle,fill=yellow!20,stroke=black,draw]{Activity 7};
	\draw (0,0) node (n2) [circle,fill=yellow!20,stroke=black,draw]{Activity 2};
	\draw (3,0) node (n3) [circle,fill=yellow!20,stroke=black,draw]{Activity 3};
	\draw (6,0) node (n4) [circle,fill=green!20,stroke=black,draw]{Activity 4};
	\draw (9,0) node (n5) [circle,fill=cyan!60,stroke=black,draw,dashed,minimum size=1.8cm]{};

	\path[draw,->, -triangle 90] (n1) -> (n2);
	\path[draw,->, -triangle 90] (n2) -> (n3);
	\path[draw,->, -triangle 90] (n3) -> (n4);
	\path[draw,->, -triangle 90] (n4) -> (n5);

\end{tikzpicture}

\\

\begin{tikzpicture}[scale=0.8]

	\draw (-3,0) node (n1) [circle,fill=black!40,stroke=black,draw]{Activity 7};
	\draw (0,0) node (n2) [circle,fill=yellow!20,stroke=black,draw]{Activity 2};
	\draw (3,0) node (n3) [circle,fill=yellow!20,stroke=black,draw]{Activity 3};
	\draw (6,0) node (n4) [circle,fill=yellow!20,stroke=black,draw]{Activity 4};
	\draw (9,0) node (n5) [circle,fill=green!20,stroke=black,draw]{Activity 5};

	\path[draw,->, -triangle 90] (n1) -> (n2);
	\path[draw,->, -triangle 90] (n2) -> (n3);
	\path[draw,->, -triangle 90] (n3) -> (n4);
	\path[draw,->, -triangle 90] (n4) -> (n5);

\end{tikzpicture}

\end{tabular}

}
\caption{Experiment to test the recommendation system using 3 previous visits as history and cutting 2 visits.}
\label{Fig_VisPattTest}
\end{figure}

To evaluate the recommendations, it was applied the Equation (\ref{Eq_PV}) in order to compare only the pattern recommended and original ones. Therefore, $a$ is the visit index (e.g. \emph{index of} Activity 5 is 5) of original pattern and $b$ is the recommended ones.

The Figure \ref{Fig_pattcomp} shows which visits will be compared following the previous example, where blue visits are the original, green are the recommended and grey are the visits not used in evaluation.

\begin{equation}
Evaluation~=~\frac{\sum_{i=1}^{x} a_{i}b_{i}}{\sum_{i=1}^{x} min(a_{i},b_{i})^2}
\label{Eq_PV}
\end{equation}

\begin{figure}[h]
\scalebox{.77}{
\centering

\begin{tabular}{@{}cc@{}}

\begin{tikzpicture}[scale=0.8]

	\draw (-3,0) node (n1) [circle,fill=black!40,stroke=black,draw]{Activity 7};
	\draw (0,0) node (n2) [circle,fill=black!40,stroke=black,draw]{Activity 2};
	\draw (3,0) node (n3) [circle,fill=black!40,stroke=black,draw]{Activity 3};
	\draw (6,0) node (n4) [circle,fill=blue!20,stroke=black,draw]{Activity 1};
	\draw (9,0) node (n5) [circle,fill=blue!20,stroke=black,draw]{Activity 5};

	\path[draw,->, -triangle 90] (n1) -> (n2);
	\path[draw,->, -triangle 90] (n2) -> (n3);
	\path[draw,->, -triangle 90] (n3) -> (n4);
	\path[draw,->, -triangle 90] (n4) -> (n5);

\end{tikzpicture}
\\
\begin{tikzpicture}[scale=0.8]

	\draw (-3,0) node (n1) [circle,fill=black!40,stroke=black,draw]{Activity 7};
	\draw (0,0) node (n2) [circle,fill=black!40,stroke=black,draw]{Activity 2};
	\draw (3,0) node (n3) [circle,fill=black!40,stroke=black,draw]{Activity 3};
	\draw (6,0) node (n4) [circle,fill=green!20,stroke=black,draw]{Activity 4};
	\draw (9,0) node (n5) [circle,fill=green!20,stroke=black,draw]{Activity 5};

	\path[draw,->, -triangle 90] (n1) -> (n2);
	\path[draw,->, -triangle 90] (n2) -> (n3);
	\path[draw,->, -triangle 90] (n3) -> (n4);
	\path[draw,->, -triangle 90] (n4) -> (n5);

\end{tikzpicture}

\end{tabular}

}
\caption{Visualization of original pattern and the recommended visits.}
\label{Fig_pattcomp}
\end{figure}

The test is proposed consists to variate the cut parameter and the number of previous visits considered. Thus, is possible to verify how the system works in different scenarios.

\begin{figure}[h]
\centering
\includegraphics[width=0.5\textwidth]{recom3dpart}
\caption{Illustration of recommendation system behavior in different scenarios.}
\label{Fig_Recom3Dpart}
\end{figure}

The Figure \ref{Fig_Recom3Dpart} represents the precision of the recommendation system in different scenarios (i.e. different values for $cut$ and \emph{size of previous} parameters). In this experiment, it was used 20000 visitor patterns and each evaluation is a mean of all these 20000 evaluations. As observed, except for the size of previous equal to zero, all other scenarios have similar results; and the size of previous implies that error of one recommendation interferes with the next, causing a grow of error in inference.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaArXiv


Linda guides and teaches in her writings, sessions, and videos, but she believes that the power to create change and inspire is in connecting with people in face to face. It is for this reason that Linda travels the world reaching people who need assistance and inspiration during their spiritual awakening. Linda delivers her message from the platform to audiences from different walks of life, backgrounds, ages and nationalities. Spiritual awakening does not discriminate or have boundaries, unlike those in the material world.
Your soul and your spirit – what is the difference?
As an inspirational speaker, Linda merges her past experience as a CEO in the corporate arena within the western world, with her work and studies in India and South America, to produce a unique style to her teaching and speaking.
Linda's studies and disciplines have extended to Japanese Reiki where she has a pure lineage to Dr Usui (Founder), Sharmanism from the Amazon, and Yoga and Ancient 3000 year old Hindu Meditation and breathing practices. Such diverse and eclectic experiences has added to the wisdom and understanding that Linda has of humans on this planet, and their struggles as they move from the dense material energy of the old world, into the higher frequency in the new world energy. Linda believes that when opportunities are presented to you, it is the universe that is providing you with experiences that will help you find the purpose of your life.
If you want to book Linda, please register using the form on our Contact page.
only opportunities, so embrace them.
"You have a gift in showing me and so many others how to find the truth of who we are, dispel our fears, and how to manifest our dreams"


The piece is the gear used to drive Mendel's Z axis, with a little clean-up it would probably be good enough for use in a real RepRap.
The quality of the print is nowhere near what I'm ultimately aiming for but this is a huge leap forward regardless. With a working printer it's a lot easier to gauge the effectiveness of modifications I make in future.
Next goal: get it to the point where it can make a water-proof mini-mug for the customary toast.
That is great to see.
Great - now stop making useless cogs and start printing monkey-chains and toy-soldiers!


text:
New immune-stimulating drug, with chemo, shrinks pancreas tumors
The results of an early-stage (phase 1b) clinical trial for pancreatic cancer show that an experimental therapy can control tumors well enough to make some patients eligible for surgery, according to data published in The Lancet Oncology by a Wilmot Cancer Institute investigator.
Since surgery currently provides the best chance for survival of pancreatic cancer, any research that helps to move more patients toward that goal is exciting, said lead author David C. Linehan, director of clinical operations at Wilmot and Chair of Surgery at the University of Rochester Medical Center.
This study is also significant, Linehan said, because there is no consensus on the best way to treat locally advanced pancreatic cancer that cannot immediately be removed. The median five-year survival rate is less than 5 percent. Doctors typically use chemotherapy and combinations of other therapies to try to control the disease.
Linehan's small, phase 1b study enrolled 47 patients with locally advanced pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma, the most common type. Most patients received an experimental immune-stimulating drug (a pill) developed by Pfizer Inc. known as PF-04136309, plus a standard four-drug chemotherapy regimen. A few received chemotherapy alone. The majority of the patients who received the new drug saw their tumors stop growing and some patients experienced a partial response, which means their tumors shrank by more than 30 percent. One patient's tumors completely disappeared, Linehan said.
Investigators had predicted that only 25 percent of the pancreatic cancer patients taking PF-04136309 would respond—but the trial's response rate was nearly double the rate for people treated with chemotherapy alone. The trial results also concluded that the targeted, experimental drug in combination with chemotherapy was safe and tolerable.
Linehan has agreed to partner with Pfizer to lead a larger, phase 2, randomized trial to further test the drug in patients with metastatic disease, whose prognosis is to survive six to 12 months.
Some patients at the Wilmot Cancer Institute will likely be eligible to participate in the new clinical trial, Linehan said.
Most side effects from PF-04136309 were no worse than with standard chemotherapy, although three patients withdrew from the study due to treatment toxicity, the study authors reported.
Pancreatic cancer has a unique characteristic that's the focus of Linehan's research: Approximately 80 percent of a pancreatic tumor is comprised of cells that are not cancer cells. Many of these non-tumor cells, called tumor-assisted macrophages (or TAMs) play a vital role in promoting cancer and preventing the immune system from attacking cancer cells.
Linehan primarily investigates the TAMs in the dense tissues and cells surrounding pancreatic tumors, often referred to as the "microenvironment." He discovered that patients with pancreatic cancer who also have high levels of TAMs in their tumors are more likely to have a recurrence of cancer after surgery. In earlier mouse studies he found that PF-04136309 blocked the mobilization of these cells. The phase 1b trial confirmed those results.
In the clinical study, researchers also wanted to know if PF-04136309 was hitting the intended molecular target, a receptor known as CCR2 on inflammatory monocytes (the precursors of TAMS). Scientists described in Lancet Oncology the mechanisms by which PF-04136309 inhibits CCR2 and also reduces the number of cells critical for sculpting the harmful microenvironment. When used in combination with chemotherapy, the drug also appeared to galvanize a proper immune response in the patients.
The clinical trial results were initially presented at the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) 2015 Gastrointestinal Cancers Symposium. ASCO experts not associated with the study were enthusiastic about PF-04136309's potential as a promising new therapy for pancreatic cancer, Linehan said.
Linehan began working with Pfizer at Washington University in St. Louis before joining the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry in 2014. Study funding was provided by the Washington University/Pfizer Biomedical Collaborative, as well as Linehan's awards from the National Institutes of Health and the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network. Pfizer is also supporting the phase 2 study.


text:
905-628-6412 info@turnerfh.ca
Fraser, William Charles "Bill"
Tragically, after a brief illness, we are saddened to announce Bill's passing on Thursday, July 8, 2021. He was a devoted and loving husband to Lorraine for 46 years; a loving father to Leanne Fraser (Ryan Crossman) and loving grandfather to Aubree Noonan, Owyn Noonan, Grayson Noonan and Cooper Fraser-Crossman. Predeceased by his parents George and Grace and brother Donald. He will be sadly missed by many family and relatives who knew him well and by many friends and neighbours in St. George. He was Lorraine's and Leanne's strength, he knew how to do everything. He loved the outdoors, loved his hobbies and the cottage which was his "happy place". At this time Bill will be cremated and we will bring him back home to rest with Lorraine, Leanne and the family until the time of burial at a later date. If you so wish, donations to the Canadian Mental Health Association would be appreciated by the family.
Shana Ruch on July 13, 2021 at 10:07 am
He will be missed by so many. The love he had for his family will be forever remembered in the memories you shared over the years. Much love to you all.
Lindsay Stopps on July 13, 2021 at 10:52 am
My condolences to the Fraser family, and to Bill's friends and loved ones. Much love to you all during this sorrowful time. May you continue to feel his love and find peace in his memory.
Cherlynn & Chris Grosvold on July 13, 2021 at 2:51 pm
Our hearts are broken. We will very much miss the man who always waved and had time to chat no matter what he was up to. We are sending our love to you Lorraine and Leanne and to your beautiful grandchildren whom our kids also are very fond of. Anything you need we are here for you.
—Chris, Cher, Peyton & Grayson Grosvold
Rosmarie & George Patak on July 13, 2021 at 6:26 pm
Please accept our deepest condolences for the loss of dear Bill. Lorraine, Leanne, Ryan and family, you'll be in our thoughts and prayers.
Stephanie Hill on July 13, 2021 at 7:10 pm
You are all in our thoughts at this time. Bill was such a family man, It showed in everything he did. He will be missed by many. We are so truly sorry for your loss.
Stephanie and Kris❤
Margaret Warner on July 13, 2021 at 8:52 pm
Dear Lorraine, Leanne, and family, Our hearts go out to you at this time. I like the picture of Bill with the fish he had caught. He was so at home in the outdoors. Bill had a great love for you all. He will be greatly missed by all who knew him. Love to you all. Margaret and Dave Warner, Ottawa
Debbie Stevenson on July 13, 2021 at 10:01 pm
Leanne, I am so sorry to hear this very sad news! What an extremely difficult thing to go through. You & your family are in my thoughts & prayers. ❤ Xo
Walt and Mel Bartels on July 14, 2021 at 8:53 am
Lorraine , Leanne, Ryan and kids
Our hearts break for you. Bill was a wonderful neighbour and we will miss seeing him outside tinkering around on things.
We pray that you will find comfort and peace in the days, months and years ahead.
We are here to support and help anyway we can.
Love Walt , Mel and Meghan
Donna and Steve Killman on July 14, 2021 at 7:03 pm
Dear Lorraine, Leanne and family,
We are very sorry to hear of Bill's passing. We will always have fond memories of Bill when he was the manager (and our boss) at Christie Conservation Area. He really was a thoughtful and pleasant person. You are in our thoughts and prayers.
Donna and Steve Killman
Penny Gumbert on July 15, 2021 at 7:34 am
My sincere condolences to you, Lorraine, and your family. I will always remember Bill's smile and his respect for George and Grace. They loved him. As an older brother he was quietly supportive and a mentor. And oh my, did he love the cottage life.
Jan & Gary Field on July 15, 2021 at 10:37 am
I first met Bill at McMaster and we became good friends. We enjoyed numerous outdoor adventures at our parents cottages. Janice invited Bill to our home for supper and asked her sister Lorraine to come as well. Matchmaking worked like magic. When Bill's beloved lady had her first puppies, our son Roy was thrilled to get first pick of the litter. Holly was our children's best friend and lived 16 years. We are heartbroken for your loss. We will miss Bill's big smile and quiet nature. You are in our thoughts and prayers. Love Jan & Gary.
Paul penton on July 15, 2021 at 12:19 pm
We were very saddened to hear of Bill's passing. It is my hope and prayer that the love of family and friends will help to sustain you through this very difficult time. Our thoughts and prayers with you and your family always.
Love cousin Barbara and Paul
Jim Grant on July 16, 2021 at 3:15 am
Bill was a friend and a great role model to Donald and myself. His love out the great outdoors was shown by his professional work and his love of McQuaby Lake. He was always there to help people. He will be greatly missed by his loving family and neighbours.
R.I. P. Bill………
Jim Grant
Audrey Field on July 16, 2021 at 6:20 pm
Offering my deepest sympathies. I have you in my thoughts and prayers.
Love, cousin Audrey
Janice and John Quinn on July 17, 2021 at 11:01 am
So sorry to hear of Bill's passing. We looked upon him as one of the best. Always kind, thoughtful and so professional as the manager of Christie Conservation Area.
Our sincere condolences to Lorraine, Leanne and your family.
David Duffin on July 19, 2021 at 12:36 pm
Lorraine, Leanne and family,
I am so sorry to hear of Bill's passing. I hope fond memories will help you in this difficult time.
When I was 16 years old, Bill was the Superintendent of Christie Conservation Area. He hired me and I worked there from 1986 thru 1991. He played a significant role in my development as a young man similar to what my father had taught me. Be responsible, work hard and have a good attitude. I was rewarded with recognition including additional responsibilities to further myself. And for that, I am grateful.
Bill will be missed.
David Duffin
Mark Shurvin on July 22, 2021 at 10:56 am
I have pleasant memories of working with Bill at Christie and later as an Authority Board member. He always displayed the quiet dedication of someone who truly cared about "his park" and the watershed around it. My condolences to Lorraine and Leanne and his grandchildren. May God bless him.
Rosemary Horsewood on July 23, 2021 at 11:04 pm
Hi Lorraine and Leanne, We are so sorry to hear about Bill passing away so suddenly. He will be missed, but remember all the good times together as they will stay with you. We are keeping you in our thoughts and prayers, Rosemary and Peter Horsewood
John & Linda Oliver on July 29, 2021 at 1:37 pm
Dear "Lady Lorraine" and family…words are not enough, but please know that we are always here for you…to listen, to comfort, to help you in the difficult days and weeks ahead. R.I.P. dear Bill.♥♥♥
Monds Jr., Scott Edward "Scotty"
McFadden, Mary "Lorraine"
Leech, Thelma Gertrude (nee Setterlund)
Geneviève Marianne Janine van Wersch – Syroid
Burgess, Calogera "Lee" (nee Liota)
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When Jed Clampett went to shoot at a critter, he missed his target but tapped into an oil gusher. Old Jed, the lead character in TV's "The Beverly Hillbillies," got rich and moved to the land of swimming pools and movie stars. The "Jed Clampett defense" is what some court pundits are calling the position an oil billionaire took in his recent divorce case, according to an article in The New York Times. The defense is based on the "active versus passive appreciation" concept in divorce law.
Luck versus skill: In some states, if a spouse owns an asset before the marriage, the increase in value of that asset is not subject to division if the increase was due to "passive" appreciation, that is, if the asset's value increases due to factors outside of either spouse's control. But if the value increases due to the efforts or skills of a spouse, it is considered "active" and is thus subject to division in a divorce. So the question comes down to luck versus skill.
Harold G. Hamm, chief executive and founder of Continental Resources, claimed that it was luck that brought him the bulk of his fortune, which amounted to $18 billion at one point. He says his skills and efforts were responsible for less than 10% of his personal and corporate success. His wife claimed it wasn't mostly luck—his skill was responsible for more than 90% of his wealth. The judge in the case, which took place in Oklahoma, largely sided with the husband and awarded the wife about $1 billion. Both sides are appealing.
Trying to quantify active versus passive appreciation can be very challenging. The small amount of academic research on this topic has "often found that broader market forces often have a bigger impact on a company's success than an executive's actions," says the Times article.
Much of the valuation community's attention in the past few months has focused on New York fair value proceedings. Now the Utah Supreme Court adds more fodder to the discussion with a decision that rejects the lower court's reliance on precedent that prohibits deductions for lack of marketability and tax liabilities.
'Everything for sale' strategy: A Utah company involved in land development and other activities ran into financial problems and in 2000 decided to wind down operations by selling its assets. From then on, "everything [was] for sale," a company representative said. Four years later, the company's board approved a share-consolidation transaction that resulted in the buyout of all shareholders, except for the company's president. Based on a fairness opinion, the company offered $5,250 per share. Two "activist" investors dissented. They claimed their shares were worth nearly $32,000 per share. The company asked the court for a fair value determination.
The district court appointed an appraiser who prepared an initial valuation using the asset approach. Besides the real estate, the company also owned oil and gas royalty interests and a minority interest in another realty company. In calculating the value of each asset, the appraiser applied deductions for transaction costs and built-in capital gains (BICG) taxes and discounts for lack of marketability (DLOMs).
The state's high court found that the district court had misapplied state law and also had relied on noncontrolling law from other jurisdictions. In disallowing the deductions, it erroneously relied on Hogle, a case that dealt with shareholder-level discounts, whereas the present case dealt with asset-level discounts. According to the state Supreme Court, the district court's ruling represented an "unwarranted extension" of Hogle, which nowhere addressed asset-level discounts. The rationale that applied in Hogle, but not here, was that it would be unfair to dissenting shareholders who "are unwilling sellers with no bargaining power" to penalize them for their shares' lack of marketability or lack of control.
According to the state Supreme Court, "These concerns are not at issue where a company discounts the value of an asset that it intends to sell for reasonable transaction costs." Here, the company's "undisputed" business strategy—which was in effect long before the triggering event—was to hold and sell its real estate. Therefore, it was appropriate to consider reasonable transaction costs, including broker commissions and closing costs, arising from the sale. Moreover, these costs equally would have affected the majority and minority shareholders.
The state Supreme Court also allowed a BICG deduction given the company's business strategy. "Deductions for trapped-in capital gains are appropriate where the taxes are reasonably foreseeable in the ordinary course of business." Consequently, it vacated the district court's ruling and remanded for new fair value proceedings consistent with its opinion.
Takeaway: In this dense opinion, the Utah Supreme Court rebukes the lower court for its lack of understanding of valuation techniques, forcing an experienced appraiser to perform an erroneous calculation, and applying valuation-related legal principles indiscriminately.
Find an extended discussion of Utah Resources International, Inc. v. Mark Technologies Corp., 2014 Utah LEXIS 216 (Dec. 23, 2014), in the March edition of Business Valuation Update. The court's opinion will appear soon at BVLaw. Note that a digest and the opinion for Hogle v. Zinetics Medical, Inc., 2002 UT 121 (2002), are also available at BVLaw (subscription required).
Uproar: The AICPA, among other groups, sprang into action in 2010 when the DOL proposed the rule that would have included valuation providers in the definition of a fiduciary under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA). In response to the valuation community's concerns, the DOL withdrew the proposed rule in 2011. A new definition of "fiduciary"—absent the inclusion of appraisers—is expected to be released soon.
Buy-sell agreements are an integral element in exit planning, which is now a topic of great interest in the valuation community. However, provisions of buy-sell arrangements can be included in a number of different organizational documents, such as shareholder agreements, operating agreements, partnership agreements, and bylaws.
Sneak peek: Attendees at the February 12 BVR webinar, Buy-Sell Agreements, will receive an advance copy of an article written by the webinar's presenters, Brian D. Burns and Chris Mitchell, both with Dixon Hughes Goodman. The article will appear in the March issue of Business Valuation Update. It provides an overview of the documents that govern the operation of businesses and the importance of buy-sell agreements in valuation services.
During the webinar, Burns and Mitchell will focus on the valuation implications of buy-sell agreements, including factors that influence value and selecting the method to determine the purchase price. The speakers will also discuss how the courts view buy-sell agreement disputes, and they will give practical examples of disputes and eventual outcomes.
For more details on the webinar and how to register, click here.
Oregon's recent passage of Measure 91, which legalized recreational use of marijuana in the state, emphasizes the growing opportunities for businesses of all kinds. Expect to see retail shops open in the state soon after recreational use becomes legal this July.
Canna-do: "Measure 91 is a 'business-friendly piece of legislation,'" attorney Hilary Bricken told a full house at the recent Oregon Marijuana Seminar. "However, being a start-up is difficult, and being a start-up in the canna industry is extremely difficult," she advised. It is imperative to have an accountant and lawyer to be serious in this business.
And, as with other businesses, there is real money to fight over when the owners divorce a spouse, dispute a partnership agreement, gift shares, or sell the enterprise. In terms of valuation, it can be particularly challenging in this industry, which has a short history, a high level of risk, high volatility, and a complex, quickly evolving regulatory structure. These issues—and more—are covered in a recent BVR special report, Marijuana Dispensaries: A Budding Industry Brings Opportunities and Challenges for Business Appraisers.
For more details, click here. You can also contact Andrew Pike, ASA managing director, at +31 (0)70 221 0343; info@beneluxinvestment.nl.
People: Courtney Sparks White, head of the business valuation and forensic team, was named partner at Clarus Partners of Columbus, Ohio … Mark Lechtenberg and Josh Buckingham were promoted to tax principal at TD&T CPAs and Advisors of Iowa … Lee McGee has joined the Atlanta office of Warren Averett as a member and managing director of the firm's Transaction Advisory Group.
Firms: AC Lordi, a firm in Pennsylvania that is a leading provider of accounting and risk management consulting and executive search, is adding valuation to its array of services … The Los Angeles investment bank Houlihan Lokey has opened an office in Sydney, Australia, and will be jointly led by Nicholas Rowe, Oscar Ludwigson, and David Tozer. Initially, operations will focus on advising clients on corporate finance and restructuring matters … KNV Chartered Accountants LLP, the eighth largest accounting firm in British Columbia, Canada, announced its merger with MNP LLP as of Feb. 1, 2015 … Applied Business Strategy, a Cleveland-based consultancy practice, has acquired the Cleveland accounting firm Cohen & Co.'s litigation services and business valuation practice.
Any appraiser who deals with family limited partnerships should tune in to this upcoming webinar, which is devoted to special challenges in this area.
Valuations for Complex FLPs (February 24), featuring Bruce Johnson (Munroe, Park & Johnson Inc.). Once an appraiser adopts a more analytical method for valuing FLPs by using the income and market approaches, certain types of partnerships may be considered complicated. This webinar will focus on valuing complex FLPs, including multiple-asset FLPs, oil and gas FLPs, and non-income-producing FLPs, using case studies. Plus, Johnson will share his opinions on issues such as how to handle FLPs that own privately held stock, other partnership interests, venture capital funds, and promissory notes.
Monte Carlo Simulations for Distressed Companies (March 3), Part 3 of BVR's 2015 Special Series on Financial Modeling, with R. James Alerding (Alerding Consulting LLC) and Matthew Bernstein (Dixon Hughes Goodman).


text:
Iranian president accuses US of 'savagery' after new sanctions | Middle East
Americans have inflicted $150bn of damage on the people of Iran with sanctions, President Rouhani says.
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani has accused the United States of "savagery" for inflicting $150bn of damage on Iran because of sanctions, and said Iranians should direct their anger at the White House.
"With their illegal and inhuman sanctions and terrorist actions, the Americans have inflicted 150 billion dollars of damage on the people of Iran," Rouhani said in televised remarks, his voice shaking with anger, on Saturday.
"We haven't seen such an extent of savagery … The address for Iranian people's curses and hatred is the White House."
Tensions between Washington and Tehran have soared since US President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew in 2018 from the Iran nuclear deal struck by his predecessor and began reimposing sanctions that had been eased under the accord.
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani called the sanctions on his country 'unjust, illegal, and inhuman' [Official President website via Reuters]
Iran, in turn, has gradually breached the central limits in that deal, according to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), including on the size of its stockpile of low-enriched uranium as well as the level of purity to which it was allowed to enrich uranium.
Washington imposed new sanctions on Monday on Iran's defence ministry and others involved in its nuclear and weapons programme.
On Thursday, Washington blacklisted several Iranian officials and entities over alleged gross violations of human rights, including imposing sanctions on a judge it said was involved in the case of an Iranian wrestler sentenced to death.
Rouhani gave no details on the breakdown of the economic damage he said had been incurred because of the sanctions.
"They prevented the purchase of medicines and food by imposing unjust, illegal, and inhuman sanctions," Rouhani said.
While humanitarian supplies such as medicine are theoretically exempt from US sanctions, many companies fear breaking the rules and have avoided transactions with Tehran.
Rouhani saved particular criticism for US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. He called him "a gentleman who presents himself as the minister of foreign affairs but who is [in reality] the minister of crimes".
Washington's partners at the UN Security Council have refused to reimpose sanctions and say the US actions are legally unfounded since it left the deal.
In a letter dated September 23 and made public on Saturday by the UN, US Ambassador Kelly Craft called on the secretariat to "take the steps necessary to re-establish the committee established pursuant to Resolution 1737 (2006) and its Panel of Experts" to monitor compliance with international sanctions.
Tehran and Washington, longtime enemies, have not maintained diplomatic relations for more than 40 years.
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