52 percent of Americans plan on visiting another city in the U.S. during the summer. But why travel by air when you can travel by RV? You can conveniently pack up an RV and head out to your dream summer destination with your family!
The U.S. boasts several natural wonders, amusement parks, beaches, and other incredible destinations. It's hard to narrow down your options. Don't worry — we found the best U.S. summer destinations that are perfect for RV travel.
Here are 10 seasonal RV sites to visit this summer.
From Alaska to Maine, the U.S. has some of the most incredible RV destinations. Here are a few to add to your RV bucket list!
If you prefer a mountain adventure over a beach getaway, Mount Rainier National Park in Washington State should be your choice.
This park is located in the Rocky Mountain chain, providing some stunning views and some incredible climbing opportunities.
Mount Rainier itself is famous because it's an active volcano!
If you and your family want to take in the breathtaking nature, Mount Rainier National Park hosts a plethora of trails that overlook the forests, mountains, and lakes.
You can also reserve at a campsite at Mount Rainier National Park. So be sure to pack your RV camping accessories!
If you prefer a New England getaway, choose Acadia National Park. This nature haven in Maine is perfect for those who want natural scenery with a quiet beach.
There are many relaxing activities you and your family can do, including birdwatching and biking.
It's also recommended you rent a canoe and venture into the water. Acadia National Park is located on the Atlantic Ocean coastline, perfect for getting into an off-land adventure.
Don't think Acadia National Park isn't all resting and relaxation. This park also offers intense trails and climbing. Be sure to bring an RV travel trailer filled with plenty of hiking and climbing gear.
Over 7,000 years ago, Mount Mazama erupted and the eruption destroyed this volcano. Its remains still exist in Oregon, at Crater Lake National Park. It is the fifth oldest park in the United States.
Today, Mount Mazama is now Crater Lake, whose stunning blue waters draw in guests from all over the country.
Crater Lake National Park offers many hiking opportunities in the vast forests. If you and your family want to relax, a scenic drive in the RV will be enough to keep you all entertained.
Want to stay the whole weekend? The Mazama Village Campground offers RV camping, so be sure to bring all of your RV camping accessories!
If you're not ready for the snow to stop falling, visit Rocky Mountain National Park. You can expect snowfall and glacier-topped mountains even into the early summer months.
Right outside of Denver, Rocky Mountain National Park is a beautiful destination for those who want to hike and for both who want to take an RV trip.
In addition to its scenic hikes and natural beauty, you can spot lots of wildlife!
Expect to see some moose, elk, and deer.
Rocky Mountain National Park offers several RV amenities. It's still recommended you bring your own RV accessories, to ensure you're comfortable.
In Minnesota's Superior National Forest, there are over one million acres of untouched forests and a beautiful lake. This area is called Boundary Waters Canoe Area.
The preferred activity is obviously canoeing, but anyone can hike and bike throughout the vast forests.
Boundary Waters Canoe Area is also a popular spot for fishing enthusiasts. It's home to a variety of fish species such as lake trout, walleye, northern pike, smallmouth bass, and yellow perch.
There are many RV campsites at the park that offer water, electricity, and even sewage. But it's still recommended you bring your own RV accessories, such as an RV sewage hose.
We're not forgetting the beach destinations! The gulf coast of Florida is an ideal summer choice for the whole family. Florida offers a variety of beaches, history, nature, wildlife, sports, and cultural adventures.
The beach is obviously Florida's most famous destination. Whether you decide to go to Sarasota or Clearwater, Florida's Gulf of Mexico hosts some of the most famous beaches in the world.
Siesta Key in Sarasota is the number 1 beach in the US!
Keep in mind, Florida gets extremely hot over the summer! Be sure to bring extra sunscreen. It's a good idea to ensure your RV shower is working properly and to bring RV shower accessories such as extra showerheads.
If a Disney Florida trip sounds more exciting than beach tourism, look no further than Central Florida! This area boasts some of the best theme parks in the world.
Other than Disney, you can find Islands of Adventure, Sea World, and many water parks.
Make sure you visit the city of Orlando. Orlando offers many fun nighttime activities for adults and family-fun destinations such as the Florida Mall.
Keep in mind, Orlando is a huge city and it's easy to get lost. Keep helpful RV navigational accessories such as a GPS.
If you're looking for the ultimate adventure, there's no better RV destination than Alaska.
Alaska offers some of the most epic landscapes in the U.S. You'll see staggering mountains and icebergs. Alaska is also home to some of the biggest and most unique wildlife species.
While eyeing the natural beauty is mesmerizing, be sure to visit one of Alaska's towns such as Ketchikan and Alaska's capital Anchorage.
Some of the remote areas of Alaska may not have the best mobile coverage.
Bring some RV communication accessories, such as a signal booster and even walkie-talkies.
Need a New RV, Parts, or Services?
Now that you know the best seasonal RV sites for the summer, you should start buying an RV or prepping yours for summer travel. Shop our RVs or contact us for parts and servicing.


Schreckbichl Colterenzio: Schreckbichl Weisshaus Pinot Bianco The Schreckbichl Weisshaus Pinot Bianco has a bright yellow colour with green nuances; attractive ripe orchard fruits on the nose. Elegant and multi-faceted, yeasty with hints of honeydew melon and citrus fruits supported by a firm acidity, typical of the vintage and leading to a flinty aftertaste. https://www.weinbaule.de/white-wine-italy-schreckbichl-weisshaus-pinot-bianco-p-2198.html?osCsid=782651d9df45810b2bac087b381c623c"> Wine 13.99 8009219030015 WeinBaule.de | The Home of Wine Schreckbichl Colterenzio New In stock!


This is a very chunky heavy vintage Mexican sterling silver bracelet made by Rosi in excellent ready to wear or display condition. It has a large highly detailed 1 1/2″ figural charm wearing poncho, sombrero and sandals. Bracelet is marked Hecho en Mexico, Rosi, Sterling 925 with an old eagle marking. The figure has an old circle mark but I can only read DF in the center. This charm is all HAND MADE and the poncho is separately hand applied to the figure thereby obstructing the rest of the marking. Bracelet size is 7 1/2″ by 1/4″ wide. It has a very broad rounded chunky chain. Weight is 48.8 grams. Condition is excellent. This is a beautiful vintage bracelet for your Mexican jewelry collection. Very showy and noticeable. The charm is big; can't miss it!
This is a beautiful fancy BA Suarti Balinese sterling silver wheat chain and hook bracelet with 8 evenly spaced sterling wrap around lugs. Marked 925 BA for BA Suarti. No damage. Unpolished. Size is 8 1/4" long. Width is 5mm wide across. Weight is 25 grams. This is a showy well made fashion bracelet for your collection.
Native American or Southwestern sterling silver bear, fetish and turquoise toggle bracelet for watch or centerpiece. Marked 925, double circle and dollar sign marking. No damage. It has beautifully grained bright natural turquoise nuggets and sterling silver animal fetish charms. Size is 6.5" long end to end with the toggle clasped as you see in the photo. Width is 7/8" across the bead ends and 1/2" across the double turquoise strands. A lovely sterling fetish bracelet for your Native American or Southwestern watch or centerpiece.


text:
Doncic scores 34, Mavs get defensive in 115-90 win over Heat
DALLAS (AP)Luka Doncic had 34 points and 12 rebounds, and the Dallas Mavericks turned up the defensive intensity in a 115-90 victory over the Miami Heat on Friday night.
The Mavericks were without No. 2 scorer Christian Wood, who missed the first of what will be multiple games with a broken left thumb.
They responded two nights after blistering criticism of their defense from coach Jason Kidd by holding the Heat to 33% shooting in the first and third quarters combined while outscoring Miami 63-35.
Dallas gave up 40 points in the first quarter of a 130-122 loss to Atlanta, a third consecutive defeat in which the Mavs allowed at least 130 points. Miami's total was a season low for a Mavericks opponent.
"It wasn't me calling them out or saying we had a walkthrough, shootaround during the game against Atlanta," Kidd said. "I just think you could see they were flying around. So now we've got to hold them to that standard."
Victor Oladipo scored 20 points and Bam Adebayo had 18 points and 11 rebounds for the Heat, who came to Dallas on a 4-1 roll that had them a season-high four games over .500.
Spencer Dinwiddie scored 19 for the Mavericks, and Reggie Bullock added 15 on 5-of-6 shooting from 3-point range. Doncic was 5 of 8 from deep as the Mavericks finished at 47% (18 of 38).
Miami cut a 17-point first-half deficit to six early in the third quarter but ended up getting outscored 32-16 in the period while shooting just 32%. Dallas led 92-67 after three.
"I don't think we brought a great motor and level of detail to our offense," Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. "And I know that was a big point of emphasis for them to really get after us. They'd been giving up a lot of points, so you knew you were going to get their best defensive effort."
Doncic capped the solid defensive first quarter for Dallas with a 3-pointer at the buzzer for a 31-19 lead. The NBA scoring leader had matching 11-point totals in the first and third.
Heat: It was the last road game of the season against a Western Conference team. The Heat dropped to 15-9 against the West, including 7-7 on the road with a victory over San Antonio in Mexico City. … Tyler Herro had 16 points but a game-high four turnovers. … Jimmy Butler was limited to seven shots and scored 12 points.
Mavericks: Dorian Finney-Smith scored 10 points before getting into foul trouble in his second game after missing 14 with a right adductor strain. He picked up his fifth foul late in the third quarter. … It was also the second game back for Josh Green after missing 20 with a right elbow sprain. He scored 12, including an alley-oop dunk on Doncic's seventh and final assist in the fourth quarter.
3-POINT SURGE
Bullock is 19 of 29 from 3-point territory (66%) over his past four games to bring his season percentage up from 31%, the lowest since his rookie season in 2013-14, to 36%. The current percentage is almost exactly where he was in 2021-22 in helping Dallas reach the Western Conference finals.
"Just continue to just keep believing in my shot," Bullock said. "I believe in the work that I continue to keep putting in. It was a very slow start for me, but the organization, the team, every day they're telling me, `Shoot the ball, shoot the ball."'
Heat: At home against New Orleans on Sunday for the second meeting in five days. Miami ended the Pelicans' 32-game streak of scoring at least 100 points in a 124-98 victory Wednesday.
Mavericks: The Clippers visit Sunday two weeks after Los Angeles won 113-101 at home in the first meeting of the season.
Wisconsin engine manufacturer announces layoff plan …

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


It's my 40th birthday today. A good time to reflect. Excuse the self-indulgence.
I guess when you get to 40 it's easy to start thinking that you're about half way through (given a fair wind). I'm not seeing it like that.
I've kind of packed up my childhood, adolescence and education – incredibly enjoyable as it all was – and filed it under 'formative years' (or something like that). I started my professional life just 16 years ago; so as far as I see it that's when responsible, independent adulthood really started. On that basis, therefore, I'm maybe only about a third of the way through (with that fair wind). Sounds better, no?
I'm starting a new phase in my professional life and I'm hugely excited about it. I've got more working years to complete than I've already been through, so I should be able to get quite a lot done, particularly as I should be learning less and doing more (though I hope I never stop learning). And that bodes well, because I'm pretty happy with what I've achieved in the last 16 years.
I've formed a career in a stimulating industry and met loads of interesting and inspiring people along the way. I've made a decent living, manage to put some away for the future and spent a fair bit on some brilliant experiences and things. I've met a girl, moved in with her, bought property, married and had two brilliant, vibrant and healthy kids. We've moved to a beautiful part of France, live in a nice house and have created a successful little holiday business.
I have some simply fantastic friends. Really, they're the best.
I get to ride my bike in some stunning scenery with good mates and raise cash for very worthy charities. I've enjoyed good health so far (touch wood) and I'm not in bad shape for a 40 year old. I've still got most of my own hair.
I'm happy. I'm really very happy.
The future is full of opportunity. Sure, there are things that I'm concerned about and there'll be ups and downs, but I feel able to meet the challenges ahead. I hope you do too.
Thanks Melissa. it's not bad at all.
You're in denial. You're 40 for God's sake – at least have the decdency to be a little bit depressed!
Damn you and your ceaseless optimism.
Lovely blog post Mark. Nicely put.
Coming from you Dawn..? You're my optiminspiration.
However, you fail to take account of the fact that responsible adulthood doesn't technically start until at least a couple of years after you start working – surely the first year or so is all about blowing your newfound wealth (or so it seems in comparison to a student grant) on expensive holidays and imported beer?
It's a good point Sally. In fact, I think it lasted for more than a year or two. But I also think I always knew that I'd need to pay for it all eventually, somehow!
Knew you'd see straight through it Warren. Damn.
Prick happens to be one of my favourite words at the moment. And with you using it I know I'm at the cutting edge of curse trends…or 'fashionswear', as I like to call it.
James just insisted that we open ANOTHER bottle of wine in honour of your very special birthday. Rose and all, despite the fact that it's about 10 degrees and p***ing down and school starts tomorrow. He said it all really, other than you've got lovely parents too..
I'm glad you mentioned my folks Heather as I was worried that I hadn't and they are rather good. And my brother's a nice man too.
And thank you. I'm honoured that you're staying up late drinking in my name. I haven't drunk nearly enough this evening but as I'm 'between parties' I think it's probably not a bad thing. Friday night's mojito night. Uh-oh.
It's first day back for ours too tomorrow. Champagne breakfast I reckon.
Happy Birthday and here's to many many many more!
I suppose with all that cycling and despite the vast quantities of wine consumption, you'll be avoiding middle age spread too!?
Hoping so Robert, hoping so.
Tom – you're not as old as me?! Thanks chum.
Gone on yer, Pinny. I applaud the sentiment. At 46 I can safely say that life gets better and better, apart of course that getting out of bed hurts a bit more and artificial joints are no longer entirely out of the question. My only issue is that you talk a bit about work and how you hope to do more of it. I think post-40 the goal should be to do less of it. Work to Live, and all that, rather than the other way round. Now's the time to enjoy life as much as possible, while all the bits still function more or less the way they are supposed to. Sod work. It's a means to an end, that's all.
I reckon I've already got the 'work to live' mantra sorted, but let's face it, we're all probably going to have to work that much longer. And anyway, I'm really enjoying what I do for a living right now and have rarely been this excited about my prospects, so make hay while the sun shines I say! And after all, what else am I going to do with my time…mow the lawn? I think not.
Bit late on this one but best blog post I've read in ages. Contentedness, that's where I (we all) want to be. Not (ahem) quite there yet but you've got a few years on me.
Thanks Stephen. I think you're a man heading in the right direction.
I'd like to concur with Mr Davies; what a thoroughly vitalising post – although i must admit to chuckling heartily at the 'yeah whatever, still a prick' comment in the same way i probably would have done if i was, say, eleven. base humour. it's the future. FACT.


This dispatch concerns the ongoing football World Cup in Brazil.
However, following Iran's unexpectedly strong performance against World Cup giants Argentina, large numbers of Iranians took to the streets in celebration, until the authorities dispatched plainclothes security agents on motorbikes to disperse the crowds.
Iran's official IRNA news agency reports that the Iranian regime has arrested three 23-year-olds for appearing in a music video supporting the Iranian team. They are thought to have been taken to one of the "moderate" regime's notorious detention centers where they may be severely punished for their "crime".
Police chief Col. Rahmatollah Taheri called the video "vulgar" and urged youth not to take part in such activities.
Of course, the New York Times and BBC are too busy bashing Israel and trying to persuade people that the Iranian regime is "moderate" to pay much notice to this kind of story, but the Associated Press covered it here.
In May, Iranians were arrested for making a "Happy" video.
On June 18, the "News From Elsewhere" section of the BBC website reported that football fans in southern Lebanon are watching the World Cup on Israeli TV, because over the border in Israel the matches are shown for free, whereas viewers have to subscribe to Pay TV in Lebanon.
This slur, the BBC failed to tell us, is a complete lie.
This video, made as the World Cup began, is unfair given the fact TV viewing figures for the tournament in the U.S. broke all records after tens of millions of people there have followed the games, and the U.S. team put on a brave performance, narrowly being eliminated yesterday by a very good Belgium team.
Nevertheless it is quite amusing, and spot on about FIFA, the corrupt mafia-like organization that runs the World Cup.
"Why Americans should love soccer," on "Last Week Tonight" with British-born comedian John Oliver.
I attach two articles below. The first, from the Wall Street Journal, charts the fact that thousands of Israelis have been supporting Iran at the World Cup.
This kind of warm friendship might be contrasted with the situation in Nigeria, Kenya and Somalia were Islamists have bombed and murdered scores of people in the last two weeks to "punish" them for watching the World Cup in public places.
The second article focuses on the difficulties for Muslim players of keeping the Ramadan fast. Ramadan started early this year and overlaps with the World Cup. Several leading players on teams such as France and Germany are Muslim.
Such is the power of football that it was also reported in France -- where many said they were supporting the Algerian team -- that imams gave special permission to Muslims to delay the evening Ramadan call to prayer until after the Germany-Algeria match.
TEL AVIV—Down by a goal and on the verge of elimination from World Cup, Iran's footballers struggled to compose an attack. Thousands of miles away in unlikely corner of the Middle East, a chant of encouragement went up: Ee-ran! Ee-ran! Eran!
The soccer fans weren't in Tehran but in Tel Aviv, where a group of some two dozen young Israelis at a downtown bar put aside the political divide between the countries to wave Iranian flags and nibble on 'nogal' wedding sweets while they cheered on the Iranian side in its must-win match against Bosnia.
Mr. Calif was referring to the Israeli government's drumbeat of criticism in recent years against Iran's nuclear program and the regime's ties to Islamist militant groups like Hezbollah that have fired rockets on Israeli towns and sought to target Israeli tourists abroad.
But that hasn't snuffed out the affinity of some 90,000 Iranian Jews who immigrated to Israel and descendants like Mr. Calif to the country and the Iranian people.
Motai, who spoke by phone before the game, said that most Iranian soccer fans in Israel watch games at home rather than coming together in public places. The bar meet up Wednesday for the Bosnia-Herzegovina game was conceived as a media event by peace activists who have sought to foster ties between the two countries with the Israel-Loves-Iran Facebook page.
Some Israelis support the team because they believe the players disagree with the policies of the Iranian government. "The team has a special representative of the government to ensure they don't defect. I know, I'm involved," said David Dariush, a 43-year-old Tehran native who said he has special satellite that lets him see the team games.
Chatting in Persian with Mr. Dariush was a boyhood friend from Tehran, Meir Javedanfar, now of Tel Aviv, offered some match analysis: "I think there's a better chance for a nuclear agreement than of Iran advancing in this tournament," he said.
Finally, an Iranian goal with eight minutes remaining in regular time triggered celebration in Tel Aviv, but it was quickly ended by a Bosnian retaliatory strike, sealing Iran's exit from tournament play.
The World Cup is set to become a whole lot more complicated this weekend for many of the Muslim players still in competition, with Ramadan – a month-long period of fasting – beginning Saturday night.
Dozens of Muslim players on teams such as France, Germany and Algeria will be faced with the difficult decision of whether or not to observe the holy month as the tournament enters the knockout stage.
Ramadan, one of the five pillars of Islam, is meant to be a time of increased spiritual reflection and prayer. Muslims are obligated to give up all food and liquids from dawn until dusk, rising early to eat before the start of the day, and then breaking the fast after sunset. This often means changing the body's schedule.
Yet for Muslim players competing at the World Cup, the physical demands imposed by the holiday could put them at a disadvantage. Not only do they need food for fuel, but the humidity and heat in Brazil make it all the more important to stay hydrated.
Some players may opt to forgo fasting under a tenet that exempts travelers – as well as those who are sick or pregnant – from observing Ramadan. Mesut Özil, who plays midfield for Germany, has already decided that he will not be observing.
Not everyone, however, shares Özil's point of view. The majority of Algeria's players have already planned to fast, despite the dangers it could pose to their health.
The issue can be a tricky one for coaches to navigate, according Claude Leroy, who once managed both Senegal and Ghana at the international level.
"It seems very complicated to strictly respect Ramadan during the World Cup," said Leroy, who currently coaches Oman's national team, which did not qualify for this year's tournament. "What do you do during matches that take place at 1 p.m. or 5 p.m., especially for hydration? It's impossible and even dangerous".
France coach Didier Deschamps, however, said he has left it up to his players to make up their own mind.
"It's a very sensitive and delicate subject. There's nothing for me to dictate," he said. "We respect everyone's religion. Today is not the first time we're discovering this situation. I am not in the least bit worried and everyone will adapt to the situation".
As Deschamps pointed out, it is far from the first time in recent years that Ramadan has fallen during a major international competition, and, as a precaution, many Muslim athletes have sought medical advice to make sure they are in the best shape possible.
Hakim Chalabi, a former doctor for French club Paris Saint-Germain, has worked with many fasting football players in the past, and has become FIFA's expert on the matter.
"It's a time when the risk of injury increases, particularly at the lumbar, joint and muscle level," he said. These injuries are mostly due to dehydration, rather than lack of food.
"The level of nutrition needs to change. The quality of food must also be modified in order to adapt to the exercise. Players must better hydrated. What's more, we advise them to take longer naps during the afternoon to recover some of what they've lost in sleep," Chalabi added.
Madjid Bougherra, a veteran player and captain of Algeria's national team, has followed these guidelines to a T for the past many years. Despite that, he said everything depends on his physical well-being.
"The hardest is staying hydrated. But it's okay, the weather is good. Some players postpone [Ramadan]. Personally, I'm going to see what my physical state is, but I think I can do it," Bougherra said.


Which? is calling for the regulator to act on unarranged overdraft fees after new research finds charges from big high street banks could cost up to 180% of the amount borrowed.
Which? research finds that consumers needing as little as £100 could be charged up to £156 more by some major high street banks than the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) allows payday loan companies to charge, when borrowing the same amount for the same period.
We compared the cost of borrowing £100 for 30 days and found that unarranged overdraft charges at some high street banks were as much as 7.5 times higher than the maximum charge of £24 on a payday loan. Because bank overdraft charges apply to their monthly billing period, not the number of days the money is borrowed for, consumers who need £100 could pay up to £180 in fees if they borrow across two billing periods.
Which? is calling on the FCA to use its High-Cost Short-Term Credit Review to crack down on punitive unarranged overdraft charges. Banks, which set their own monthly maximum charges for overdraft borrowing, should not be able to charge more for unarranged overdrafts than they do for arranged overdrafts.
"It's not right that people with a financial shortfall can be charged so much more by the big high street banks than they would by a payday loan company – especially if the money is borrowed over two monthly charging periods. If banks can continue to set their own charges, then consumers will continue to be hit by exorbitant fees.
Research: We reviewed the unplanned overdraft charges levied by the named banks in January 2017, on fee-free accounts with no minimum monthly payment. We assumed the customer had already used up a £1,000 planned overdraft facility, and included all additional daily or monthly charges that applied as a result of the the emergency borrowing. We did not include charges for the planned overdraft, interest, or charges that relate to specific account usage, such as paid or unpaid item charges.
The research shows the cost of borrowing within a single bank monthly charging period and across two bank charging periods with 15 days spent overdrawn in each charging period.
The CMA has set out several remedies targeted at overdrafts. One of these is to require personal current account providers to introduce a monthly maximum charge (MMC) covering all unarranged overdraft charges (including debit interest). Disclosure of the MMC should be no less prominent than other overdraft charges, but the level of the MMC will be set by each PCA provider and may be different for each of its PCAs. The monthly maximum charge will also apply per bank charging period, not for a 30 day period.


text:
Behavioural creative
info@corporateculture.co.uk
Or fill in our Contact Form
Sustainability 2021: what have we learnt from the Covid-19 dry run?
DIGITAL SESSION – 1 October 2020
The Discovery Session, which is free of charge, will be held digitally via Zoom from 9.30am to 11.30am on Thursday, 1 October.
In many ways, the Covid-19 crisis can be seen as a proxy for the sustainability challenges ahead of us. The current emergency is an opportunity for companies to assess how effectively they tackle an ever- growing range of environmental, social and governance challenges. The risk of a pandemic was known, and yet the crisis has exposed a lack of adaptability and resilience across many businesses. As such, it helped shed light on the gap between aspirational commitment and true preparedness.
As we approach the end of a year of unprecedented challenges, we reflect on what we've learnt from the Covid-19 emergency and how we can apply this newfound knowledge to drive business sustainability and resilience.
Led by Caroline Leroi and Tim Parr and building on How on Earth's decades-long experience, the session will focus on practical ways to drive sustainability after Covid-19. We will share our thoughts on what the future holds, and introduce attendees to concepts, case studies, and do's and don'ts to unlock change. The session will be interactive and will provide an opportunity for attendees to explore their own challenges with a like-minded group of senior professionals.
Caroline Leroi has more than 20 years' experience of delivering insight-led strategic consultancy for organisations focused on sustainable and social change. Caroline has delivered large-scale projects for some of the world's most ambitious companies, such as Unilever, Marks & Spencer, adidas, Nike, H&M and P&G. Since 2010, Caroline's focus has been first on education-led sustainable change and since 2017 behaviour and culture led change at Corporate Culture. In recent years, she has worked on sustainability strategies and communications for organisations such as SSE, Southern Water, the Alliance, Willmott Dixon, Wrap and Ofwat.
Joining Caroline will be Tim Parr, who has more than 25 years' experience delivering compelling programmes that bring strategies to life for organisations seeking to inspire sustainable change and action. Tim has helped clients such as Royal DSM, The Co-op, KPMG and WWF frame narratives, create communications strategies and imagine initiatives to engage employees and other stakeholders. He has also worked on sustainability strategies and communications with Barratt Developments, British Land, Anglian Water, RICS (Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors) and CISL (Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership).
It promises to be an invaluable session for senior professionals wanting to learn how to more effectively implement sustainable change that drives action.
To join us on Thursday 1 October, 9:30am-11:30am, please e-mail Elaine.Smith@corporateculture.co.uk or sign up using the form below.
Please note: we will be running this session digitally via Zoom.
This form collects your details so that we can get back to you regarding details of the event. Details on how we manage and protect your data can be found in our privacy policy
Back to see more events
Sign-up to receive our quarterly Corporate Culture newsletter
Keep informed of our latest news and events by email. We manage your data in line with our privacy policy and never spam (we promise).
Behavioural science Behaviour change Brand Campaigns Communications Creative Delivery Culture Design Digital Discovery Session Employee Engagement Event Future trends Insight Inspiration Narrative Opinion Organisational Change Reports Roundtable Social Stakeholder Engagement Strategy User experience UX We like
Click to see details
Shared Wisdom: Remote behavioural design sprint
DIGITAL SESSION: 21 January 2021
Discovery Session: How purpose and beliefs can help organisations respond to the pandemic
DIGITAL SESSION - 28 January 2021
Discovery Session: COVID19 – How to use behavioural insights to improve public compliance
DIGITAL SESSION - 4 February 2021
Corporate Culture Group
7 De Havilland Drive, Estuary Commerce Park,
Liverpool L24 8RN
Jubilee House, 213 Oxford Street,
London W1D 2LF
©Corporate Culture Group 2021


There's a fake Angry Birds Space app in the Android Market available on Android phones that infests your phone with malware.
According to Sophos, a digital security firm, the malware hides its "payload" deep inside two .JPEG files. Once installed, it downloads additional malware to your phone, and enlists your phone as part of a botnet. From there, your phone can be used as muscle for any number of hacker ops.
The easy way to avoid getting nailed by fake app malware is to always be sure to check the developer on any app you download. If you've already downloaded Angry Birds Space, take a second to make sure that you've got the right one, and if not, consider securely wiping your phone once you've backed up important data.
Update: We originally posted that the fake app was available through the Android Market. That's incorrect. It is only available through third party stores, so if you go through official Android channels for your apps, you shouldn't have any problems.


text:
Rating the first ladies
Tony Blankley
This is not a book review column, but I have read a book that justifies more national comment than it has yet received. "Rating the First Ladies" (Citadel Press, 2003) by John B. Roberts II, is an absorbing book that accomplishes something never before attempted: assessing, in one book, the explicitly political contributions of each of the 37 first ladies to the presidents of the United States -- from Martha Washington to Laura Bush. Of course there have been many books that describe the social duties of first ladies. But by focusing on their political contributions (or lack thereof), Roberts has painted fascinating parallel histories of both presidential politics and the evolving role of women in America. Although I like to think that I am reasonably well read on America's political history, I learned something interesting, often revelatory, about those histories on almost every page.
While the scholarship of the book is impeccable, I found value in the book because of the sophisticated political insights of the author, who has been a major behind-the-scenes political operative in Washington's presidential politics since the early 1980s. Roberts was a senior member of Ronald Reagan's political office in the White House and in his re-election campaign. He was also a senior strategist in the Republican Congressional campaigns of the 1990s. (Disclaimer: I know the author well from my political years with President Reagan and Newt Gingrich.) The readers get the same astute analysis from Roberts that President Reagan received from him. Imagine reading a hard-eyed Robert Novak column ripping into President Grant's crooked first lady Julia Dent Grant, and you will have some sense of how these chapters can read -- when the first ladies deserve it. Roberts is very smart.
He is also very well connected. His chapters on Reagan and George H.W. Bush break new ground on behind-the-scenes political decision-making in those presidencies. For example, his chapter on Barbara Bush makes news (not yet reported as of this writing) that it was Barbara Bush not the campaign manager Lee Atwater who made the decisive case for use of the controversial Willy Horton ads that won Bush the presidency. According to Robert's inside account, Atwater and George W. Bush first had to convince Barbara, who then made the case to the reluctant President Bush. There are other newly revealed items about the behind-the-scenes operations that took down Geraldine Ferraro in that campaign. I thought I was behind the scenes of that campaign -- but apparently not as deeply behind the scenes as Roberts was. Very interesting.
Although Roberts is a former professional Republican operative, he is at least as hard on the Republican as he is on the Democratic first ladies. For example, he gives a decidedly uncomplimentary account of how Barbara Bush chose literacy as her charitable endeavor, and he was coolly impartial in contrasting the political acumen of Herbert Hoover's first lady -- Lou Henry Hoover -- unfavorably with that of FDR's Eleanor. But he also quotes from surprisingly vivid private correspondence of Eleanor Roosevelt to support his explicit characterization of her as a lesbian.
Particularly in the earlier chapters on the 19th-century first ladies, Roberts brings to bear his Oxford-trained art history knowledge to assess the political implications that flowed from furniture and fashion decisions by first ladies. Redecorating the White House has been causing political problems for presidents for 200 years now. It didn't start with Nancy Reagan, as the reader learns throughout this book. Nor did negative campaigning start recently. It may surprise many readers to learn from this book that first ladies have been both the victims and the instigators of negative campaign operations for most of our history.
"Rating First Ladies" is not all hard-edged political analysis. Each chapter is an astute -- and sometimes enchanting -- invocation of a full personality. Male readers would have to have a heart of stone not to wish they could share a dance with the blond, violet-eyed pixie, Harriet Lane -- the bachelor President James Buchanan's niece, who served as his first lady. Roberts brings to life the mischievous charm of this young lady, who captured the hearts of all who met her -- from Queen Victoria to the gimlet-eyed wives of United States senators. We meet "Sahara Sarah" Polk, so called in her time because she barred liquor from the White House -- thus keeping it dry as the Sahara. We also encounter darkly the mentally ill Ida McKinley, whose husband President William McKinley would suddenly throw a large handkerchief over her head at state dinners when she started having fits. All those 19th century presidencies will never merge in your mind again, after reading this book. And the 20th century first ladies you thought you knew something about emerge as both stronger and much more interesting than you could possibly imagine. "Rating the First Ladies" is a first-rate book.
Head-Scratcher: Pelosi Argues Trump Was 'Self-Impeaching'
Conservative Street Artist Mocks Ex-Royals Meghan and Harry in Latest Hit


text:
Angela Davis visits VCU, reflects on 50 years of activism, calls for a more inclusive, intersectional feminism
Angela Davis. (Photo by Julia Rendleman)
Angela Davis, a leading activist on behalf of women's rights, racial justice, prisoners' rights and more since the 1960s, spoke before a sold-out crowd in University Student Commons on Friday, reflecting on her 50 years of activism, calling for a more intersectional, anti-racist form of feminism, and striking an optimistic note for the future of the country.
Davis, whose visit was sponsored by the Office of Multicultural Student Affairs and the Afrikana Independent Film Festival, spoke as part of a month-long series of events at Virginia Commonwealth University celebrating Black History Month.
Last fall marked the 50th anniversary of the founding of the Black Panther Party. Davis said she recently has been thinking about how the party's 10-point program — which called for, among other goals, full employment for black people, decent housing, and an end to police brutality — remains as relevant today as it did half a century ago.
"The agenda for struggle 50 years ago is not that different from the agenda for the larger struggle for democracy today," she said. " … Think about the intervening 50 years. The span of history made me feel as if, in a sense that we're addressing the same injustices. The more things change, the more they stay the same."
At the same time, Davis said, much progress has been made, and the unfolding of black history over the past 50 years has pushed the nation in a progressive direction generally.
"A lot of times people ask me if I feel that I'd made all these sacrifices for naught. They say, 'Things are still the same that they were 50 years ago. How do you continue?'" she said. "And my response is that, yes, they are the same, but at the same time, they are not the same. A great deal has changed."
The Black Panther Party
Davis told the crowd how she was inspired to join the Black Panther Party while studying philosophy in Europe and when she saw TV footage of Black Panther Party members carrying guns and policing their communities. She returned home to join, taking part as a member of the Black Panthers and SNCC (the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee) and joining other women that were the backbone of the organizations, she said.
If you ask who does the fundamental work of building movements, you will discover almost always that it's women.
"If you ask who does the fundamental work of building movements, you will discover almost always that it's women," Davis said. "There we were in SNCC … doing most of the work for the organization. And I should tell you if you look at the Black Panther Party, the majority of the members were women. They were the ones who were doing the work. However, when it came to being leaders and spokespeople and so forth, the men assumed it was their prerogative. Not all of the men. I'm not indicting men as men. I'm indicting the system of gender superiority to which some men did not assent."
SNCC ultimately fell apart, she said, because "some of the guys just couldn't deal with the fact that women were insisting on assuming leadership."
"I always point out that this was not a struggle between women and men. It was not a gender struggle — gender in the way that we conceptualized it in that time, in its binary structure. But it was a struggle over the meaning of gender," she said. "Because there were some women who felt we should be in the background. We were supposed to do the teaching … One of the leaders of the organization said we should wear long African dresses and convince rich men to donate. You're hearing some of the aspects of the movement from that period that you probably don't want to hear because you want to think that it was all so revolutionary and exciting. But it was difficult. It was very difficult."
Davis discussed how although the Black Panther Party in the civil rights era and Black Lives Matter today share the goal of confronting police violence against people of color, the strategies are different. While Black Panther Party members were armed and sought to "police the police," Black Lives Matter does not.
"Audre Lorde said something like the master's tools will not dismantle the master's house. And so I started thinking about the approach that we took then and that the Black Panther Party took toward police violence using guns to combat the violent, racist occupation of the black community," she said. "It may have been dramatic at the moment, but it did not succeed in eradicating police violence. Because we're still experiencing every day basically the same kinds of violent, racist assaults in communities of color, poor communities of color."
Black Lives Matter, she said, instead has sought to demilitarize the police.
"What was the strategy that was used by the Black Lives Matter movement? Do you remember seeing those images of police confronting the protesters in Ferguson? Do you remember the military vehicles, the tanks? Do you remember the military garb? And so, immediately instead of simply saying that what we need to do is fight the police with the same weapons that they have — and, I'm sorry, but we don't have any tanks — [Black Lives Matter] … takes a very different approach."
"And so one of the first demands that emerged out of that struggle was the demilitarization of the police," she continued. "And the recognition of the fact that racist police violence directed against young black people — young black men, women and trans people — young people of color, especially trans people of color, especially trans women who are unable to pass, who are the target of the most consistent violence in this country — both institutional violence, state violence and violence enacted by individuals. And so we began to understand … it's not just about bringing the perpetrator of police violence to justice. We could arrest every single police officer who has engaged in that violence and the problem would still be with us."
When critics of Black Lives Matter respond with "all lives matter," Davis said, they are using the "logic of racism" that has resulted from the 50 years of struggle for equality.
"The logic of racism that conflates the individual and the generic, you might say," she said. "When you say 'black lives matter,' then you're actually talking about individual black people's lives mattering. But of course historically we know that the way in which the universal has been deployed has resulted in the complete erasure of black lives and the lives of people of color."
Democracy in the United States, she said, has historically served only the elite, primarily affluent white men.
["Democracy is] grounded in a very specific, very particular population — white, male, rich population. This is really what 'Make America Great Again' means. It's when rich, male supremacy prevailed," she said. "Then on the other hand, if you say that 'black lives matter,' if you're looking at those who are the most subjugated, who are the most consistently being marginalized, when you recognize when those lives start to matter, that will mean that 'all lives matter.'"
Photo by Julia Rendleman.
Feminism, Davis said, should be embraced by everyone who believes in creating a better, more just world. The feminism she advocated, however, is not the feminism that she says is often described in popular discourse today.
"I'm not talking about Hillary Clinton feminism," she said. "I'm not talking about a penetrate-the-glass-ceiling feminism. Metaphors really matter. And we often don't take the time to engage critically with the metaphors that we use. And it seems to me that someone like Hillary Clinton should have recognized that when she talked about penetrating the glass ceiling, she was representing herself as already on the very top. She had to be on the top in order to already reach the ceiling. What about all those beneath her?"
Davis called for the embrace of a feminism that is anti-racist, anti-capitalist, internationalist and intersectional.
"I'm suggesting that this is the feminism we need during this period," she said. "This feminism is not defined by gender identity. It's not feminism that somehow gets attached to human beings who have bodies that are constructed as females. It's a feminism that is a powerful methodology. It teaches us how to work with contradictions. How, as Audre Lorde said, to make contradictions productive. Not to run away because we're asked to choose one thing or another. But how do we inhabit that contradiction and live there and make something wonderful and great?"
A more inclusive feminism, she said, would lay the groundwork for a better world, even if it only occurs generations from now.
I want us to commit to doing the work that will allow our labors, our imaginations to be spiritually present 100 years from now.
"It's a feminism that urges us to think of ourselves as members of communities whose span takes us to the past and to the future," she said. "And I know that slaves who were struggling for their freedom in the 18th century and the 19th century imagined a future something like the present that we're living today. They may not have gotten all the specifics, but they imagined possibilities that we are living today only because of the work that they did 100 years ago, 200 years ago."
"I want us to commit to doing the work that will allow our labors, our imaginations to be spiritually present 100 years from now," she added. "I want people who inhabit that future, the future we're dreaming about, to be able to give thanks to all of us who did what we needed to do in order to guarantee that we could continue the quest for liberation."
Davis said challenges associated with the Trump presidency will revitalize movements and activists.
"I think that we have one of those moments where the future that appears to be most dreadful compels you to reach deep down and discover reservoirs of strength that you did not know you had," she said. "The next period is going to be extremely exciting … Be a part of that. Figure out how to build the kinds of movements that will sustain our collective passions and allow us to move toward a more habitable future."
Subscribe for free to the VCU News email newsletter at http://newsletter.news.vcu.edu/ and receive a selection of stories, videos, photos, news clips and event listings in your inbox every Monday and Thursday.
Christine Darden, a scientist featured in 'Hidden Figures,' to speak at VCU
Colson Whitehead tells the story behind the 'Underground Railroad'


text:
First Drive: 2012 Cadillac SRX
An Exercise in the Exorcism of Gargoyles
Kirill Ougarovwriter
My fellow editors weren't too kind to the Cadillac SRX when they first sampled the crossover in 2009, dinging the 2.8-liter turbo-six's lackluster performance and the suspension's jittery ride. Customers apparently felt the same way -- at least about the 2.8-liter -- which is gone and won't be missed. Despite the early hiccups, the SRX was Cadillac's best-selling model in 2010 and only slightly behind the CTS so far in 2011. We're betting the soon-to-arrive 2012 Cadillac SRX we just took for a spin will push it back to the top in no time.
On the engine side, the 3.0-liter six is also gone, at least in the U.S. (it remains in export models due to displacement-related taxes in several overseas markets). Taking over as the SRX's only motivating force is the 3.6-liter direct-injected V-6 we've seen for years in the CTS and other GM models, with 308 horsepower and 265 pound-feet on tap in the SRX. But the numbers aren't everything - the power curve is smooth and linear, while the torque curve is almost as flat as Ford's EcoBoost V-6, with peak torque available from 2400 to 5300 rpm. The 6T70 six-speed automatic transmission is the only one offered and it can route power to either the front or all four wheels, depending on configuration. An eco button remaps shift points and increases the time that fuel is cut off during deceleration, slightly improving fuel economy. The optional all-wheel-drive system is no slouch, by the way. Equipped with an electronic limited-slip differential, it can route as much as 85 percent of the power to the rear wheels and can even send power individually to the left or right wheels, similar to Acura's SH-AWD system. And it adds just 176 pounds to the total curb weight to boot.
Meanwhile, a number of suspension tweaks have smoothed out the ride considerably. It is still on the sporty side for the segment -- Cadillac is trying to be more BMW than Lexus, after all -- but definitely luxurious. Two suspension setups are offered, a softer setup under the technical designation "FE2" and the sportier "FE3" setup that also comes with variable-effort, speed-sensitive power steering. These were definitely more fun to throw around the rough, twisty backroads during our test drive near Santa Barbara, California.
Given that the overwhelming majority of SRX miles will be on freeways and smooth suburban boulevards, we're betting the extra handling ability will be used extremely sparingly -- but it's nice to know it's there. Another sporty touch on the SRX is the non-eco transmission programming. In manual mode, it will hold a gear all the way to redline, even if it means bouncing off the limiter. Steering -- variable-input and fixed-input alike -- is quick and responsive, though feedback is somewhat lacking. Only the spongy-feeling brakes deserve any real criticism.
The cabin is nicely isolated from the outside world, with wind noise almost non-existent and tire noise absent except on horrid pavement like the sort that lines large segments of coastal U.S. 101. Inside, there aren't any changes for the 2012 SRX. The dash still features Cadillac's familiar pop-up navigation, the cargo area still has the funky U-Rack storage system, and the sound system is still an eight-speaker Bose setup.
Despite the extra power, fuel economy is comparable to that of the 2011 with the 3.0-liter and slightly better than that of the 2.8-liter. Front-drive models are rated at 17/24 mpg city/highway and all-wheel drive models slightly lower at 16/23 mpg city/highway. Not exactly miserly, but fuel-economy isn't a big concern in the luxury segment.
Batch number one of the 2012 SRX just got loaded onto a train and the updated crossovers are on their way to dealerships worldwide. The first units should show up on American dealer lots sometime in mid-August. Pricing starts at $36,060 including destination and goes up to just north of $50,000, though the complete pricing breakdown has not yet been announced. With the new engine and suspension tweaks, the only obstacle standing in the way of the SRX's mission to take down the Lexus RX is inconsistent levels of service at Cadillac dealers, something the brand's brass is working hard to fix. Once that's sorted, production capacity at the Ramos Arizpe, Mexico, plant where the SRX is built will be the limit. Fortunately for GM, there are plenty of plants here in the States -- and plenty of willing workers -- that can be used to help meet demand should that become a necessity.
Base price	 $36,060
Vehicle layout	 Front-engine, FWD/AWD, 5-pass, 4-door SUV
Engine	 3.6L/308-hp/265-lb-ft DOHC 24-valve V-6
Curb weight	 4300-4450 lb (mfr)
Length x width x height	 190.3 x 75.2 x 65.7 in
EPA city/hwy fuel econ	 16-17/23-24 mpg
CO2 emissions	 0.99-1.05 lb/mile
Energy consumption, city/hwy	 198-211/140-147 kW-hrs/100 miles
On sale in U.S.	 August 2011
Motor Trend Staff| Apr 2, 2012
2012 Cadillac SRX Receives Standard 3.6-Liter DI V-6, $36,935 Price Tag
Donny Nordlicht| Jul 26, 2011
GM OnStar Glitch Affects 60,000 Vehicles Including 2013 Chevy Cruze, Equinox
Erick Ayapana| Sep 10, 2012


text:
Akın Özyürek (* 5. Januar 1999) ist ein türkischer Sprinter, der sich auf den 400-Meter-Lauf spezialisiert hat.

Sportliche Laufbahn
Erste internationale Erfahrungen sammelte Akın Özyürek im Jahr 2017, als er bei den Balkan-Hallenmeisterschaften in Belgrad mit der türkischen 4-mal-400-Meter-Staffel in 3:16,26 min die Goldmedaille gewann. Anschließend belegte er bei den Halleneuropameisterschaften ebendort in 3:15,97 min den sechsten Platz. Ende Juli klassierte er sich bei den U20-Europameisterschaften in Grosseto nach :09,45 min auf dem vierten Platz. Im Jahr darauf schied er bei den U20-Weltmeisterschaften in Tampere mit 3:09,87 min im Vorlauf aus und verpasste anschließend auch bei den Europameisterschaften in Berlin mit 3:07,83 min den Finaleinzug. 2019 belegte er bei den Balkan-Hallenmeisterschaften in Istanbul in 48,16 s den zweiten Platz im Bl-Lauf über 400 Meter und anschließend schied er bei den U23-Europameisterschaften im schwedischen Gävle mit 47,48 s im Halbfinale aus und schied auch mit der Staffel mit 3:09,66 min im Vorlauf aus. Daraufhin siegte er bei den Balkan-Meisterschaften in Prawez mit der Staffel in 3:05,85 min. 2020 gewann er bei den Balkan-Hallenmeisterschaften in Istanbul in 3:12,25 min die Silbermedaille mit der Staffel und im Jahr darauf siegte er dann bei den Balkan-Hallenmeisterschaften ebendort in 3:13,70 min. Im Juli startete er mit der Staffel bei den U23-Europameisterschaften in Tallinn und belegte dort in 3:06,57 min den vierten Platz.

2018 wurde Özyürek türkischer Meister im 400-Meter-Lauf im Freien sowie 2019 in der Halle.

Persönliche Bestleistungen
 400 Meter: 46,81 s, 24. Juli 2019 in Erzurum
 400 Meter (Halle): 48,00 s, 9. Januar 2021 in Istanbul

Weblinks

400-Meter-Läufer (Türkei)
4-mal-400-Meter-Staffel-Läufer (Türkei)
Türkischer Meister (Leichtathletik)
Türke
Geboren 1999
Mann

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


Dr. Jeanetta du Plessis, earned her Ph.D. in Pharmaceutics and started her career as Senior Assistant in the Department of Pharmaceutics in 1984. At present, she is a professor of Pharmaceutics and the Director of the Centre of Excellence for Pharmaceutical Sciences (Pharmacen). She has gained International experience as a visiting scientist at the University of Michigan, USA, and as a visiting research fellow at the University of Cardiff, UK. She is an active scientist with a strong research-, innovation- and postgraduate student output Trajectory. Her Research mainly focuses on the optimization of topical and transdermal drug delivery. She is an author/co-author of numerous patents, chapters in books, and more than 81 International peer-reviewed research papers and has participated extensively at national and international conferences. She has been a National Research Foundation-rated scientist since 1995 and an established researcher and according to Google scholar, her total number of citations is 1355, her H-index is 20 and i10-index is 33. Her research findings were published in high impact pharmaceutical journals with impact factors of well over 3.
She is an expert in transdermal and topical drug delivery research and her novelty of research has reflected by international patents on her research. She has contributed to science, both in national and international, and reviewed numerous scientific manuscripts on transdermal delivery research for international peer reviewed journals.
Presently she is the member of the Department of Science and Technology, Nanotechnology, Health and Safety Executive advisory committee, the Controlled Release Society, the South African Pharmaceutical Society, the South African Academy of Pharmaceutical Sciences, the South African Society of Cosmetic Chemists, the South African Academy of Science and Arts, the Academy of Science of South Africa (ASSAf) and the Organization for Women in Science for the Developing World (OWSD).


text:
The pandemic has forced companies to work differently. Here are 5 ways leaders can extend those innovations to create a new work paradigm.
In mid-March 2020, my house suddenly transformed into Grand Central Station.
All 12,000 ServiceNow employees had left our offices and started working from home, and my days became a parade of colleagues on Zoom, cats on keyboards, newborn cuddle cameos, and even the occasional quiet of someone's closet.
If you'd asked me then whether I thought innovation would slow down or speed up over the coming months, I would've bet on the slow side. Back then, the idea of pivoting so quickly and thoroughly to meet the unknown challenges posed by a global pandemic seemed unlikely.
The good news is, I would have been wrong! Especially as it pertains to large enterprises with more than 500 employees that already have digital infrastructures in place. (Sadly, smaller businesses and industries like entertainment and travel continue to struggle.) Still, according to The Work Survey, a comprehensive global study by ServiceNow of COVID-19's impact on work and the opportunities ahead, the pandemic has sparked new forms of innovation in organizations everywhere.
Say goodbye to the old normal
COVID-19 has forced radical change in how enterprise-sized companies operate and go to market. That's what happens when the alternative to innovation is going out of business. In fact, The Work Survey found 92% of executives say the pandemic made their company rethink how they work.
According to 87% of employees surveyed, those new ways of working are an improvement. The benefits they cite include time savings, better work-life balance, greater flexibility, and better use of technology.
Still, 47% of executives would prefer to go back to the old ways of doing things.
Here's the hard truth: The 20th century, office-based business model is over. That includes how we work. The future of work is longer "remote" versus "return"—it's an entirely new way of working, one where digital workflows support work at home, in physical offices, and anywhere else your employees happen to be.
5 principles of innovation
What does that mean for business leaders who want to stay at the forefront of innovation and be ready for whatever comes next? I suggest focusing on these five principles to ensure your company is set up to thrive no matter what crises may arise.
1. Put people first
I can't stress it enough: You must put people first if you want to build a successful, enduring business. Recruiting and retaining top talent is always critical for business continuity, especially when you can't bring folks together in one place.
Listen to your people and know they are likely experiencing the challenges and benefits of remote work differently. I'm especially focused on the disproportionate toll that women are bearing as a result of trying to balance care for families with commitment to work.
The Work Survey found that executives are most worried about delays in product or service delivery (54%) while employees are most concerned about reduced collaboration across business units (48%).
I understand both perspectives. ServiceNow wouldn't stay in business long if we didn't continually evolve our products. Yet endless video calls can feel like the opposite of innovation. Find ways to empathize with and support both ends of the spectrum.
2. Focus on safety
Employee safety should be at the heart of any future workforce plan. So it's alarming that 60% of employees in The Work Survey believe their company will prioritize business continuity over workplace safety. Stunningly, 44% of executives believe this as well!
Reassure your employees that their safety is your priority and then make that reassurance a reality. For tips on where to start, check out our Guide to Going Back ebook and this Returning to the Workplace guide.
3. Digitize offline workflows
Digital transformation was important pre-COVID; it's now a business imperative. And while our survey showed COVID accelerated digital transformation across enterprises around the world, there is plenty of runway left.
Months into working from home, 60% of executives and 59% of employees surveyed say their companies still don't have a fully integrated system to manage digital workflows. And 91% of executives admit they still have offline workflows, including seemingly simple document approvals (51%) and more complex IT workflows such as security incident reports (45%) and technology support requests or processing (42%).
It's time to leave behind the tech drag of 20th century software for a fully integrated workflow platform that connects people and processes across your organization.
4. Prioritize digital transformation investments
According to The Work Survey, the pandemic will likely reduce operating expenses for 88% of businesses surveyed, freeing up resources for innovation, resilience, recovery, and growth.
Business travel, in-person events, and other operating expenses may be temporarily on hold. But the distributed way of working and serving customers will remain even when the pandemic is behind us. If you're in the majority of businesses that have found cost savings during COVID, reinvest them into the digital infrastructure and processes that help create new business models and create great digital experiences for employees and customers.
5. Eliminate silos
Even though COVID allowed for an environment of innovation to happen, repeatable success is not guaranteed. Survey respondents had little confidence that departments in their organization beyond IT could adapt and implement new workflows within 30 days of another major business disruption.
It's fair to say that IT leads because of its familiarity with digital systems and relative ease of automation. But if you're in customer service, HR, finance, or sales and marketing, you don't have to get left behind just because you can't code. Reach out to your IT team and other digitally advanced peers and figure out how to adapt their operating models for your functional needs.
One day the pandemic will be behind us. You can prepare for that day by applying the lessons of COVID-19 to build a digitally transformed organization that can thrive in any weather.
Laura Caimi, Forbes, October 12, 2020


text:
Corpe () is a commune of the Vendée department in the Pays de la Loire region in western France.

History
The name Corpe is derived from an old French word for a crow 'Corp'. Corpe is part of the canton of Mareuil-sur-Lay and was originally an agricultural community. It is recorded in the rolls of the Battle of Agincort that Monsegnior de Corpe was captured by the English and held ransom at the sum of 200,000 billets. The price of his ransom reflects the fact that he was a major player in the war as the ransom for a Man at Arms was 1,000 billets. There is no record of any such ransom ever being paid.

More recently as the number of people employed in farming declined due to mechanisation, Corpe grew to accommodate people working in the businesses in and around Luçon due to the good communications. The wealth of shops and businesses in nearby Luçon and Mareuil-sur-Lay means that there are few facilities in Corpe, only a church  and a cafe. A new Zone Artisanale is planned at La Frise to accommodate local tradesmen and is due to start construction in 2013.

Geography
The river Smagne forms most of the commune's northern border.

Transportation
The main road from Luçon to La Roche sur Yon (D746) passes very close to the village, the A83 motorway is only 12 km away and the beaches of south Vendée are less than 30 minutes by car. The village is entirely surrounded by farmland and provides a tranquil location which is however well connected.

See also
Communes of the Vendée department

References

Communes of Vendée


One Italian bank sends year-end balances to the IRS under FATCA, and he and/or a lawyer decide that he should enter streamlined and potentially cost himself millions? Dumb move.
Gone Soon. In your first post you laid out a plan and asked if there was anything else you needed to know. The answer is no there is nothing else you need to know. Your first plan is fine the way it is.
one of his italian banks gave him to the irs(although they said they never would) ,no attorney told him to enter the streamline program before that….
This harping on what a dumb move it was or that they shouldn't have done it serves no purpose. Once to warn others not to, OK, but repeating the message, no purpose. It has been done and it can not be undone.
I suspect that there is more to the story that we do not know, and given the public nature of this forum, should not know. There may be very good reasons to do given the reality of their situation.
But what we do know needs to be pointed out. A bank has done something that it said it would not do, reported one of their clients to the IRS.
What else might this bank and others do fir the IRS? We do not KNOW but better consider the possibilities and the probabilities.
Nononymous, it may be that the Italian bank did more than that. They may have wanted proof that he's US tax compliant otherwise they'd /freeze/close the account. PostFinance wanted to know I was when they checked their records and found I was a US citizen. And I've read some reports that even before FATCA came into force Credit Suiisse was wanting to see 5 years of tax filings before they'd be satisfied.
Banks in Switzerland (IGA Model 2) are at risk of FATCA withholding; banks in Italy (IGA Model 1) are not.
Doesn't mean they're not playing it safe plaxy.
The Model 1 IGAs are quite benign, compared to the Model 2 IGAs. In IGA 1 countries, local customers born in the US are reported on and discriminated against and may have trouble opening accounts, but banks can't require copies of FBARs, 1040s, etc, and banks don't report directly to the IRS. So it's a big difference.
I do feel for USCs in IGA 2 countries. It sounds pretty horrible, having to not just file, but actually share copies with a bank.
Safe from what? The banks in Model 1 countries aren't at risk of withholding.
From the ever changing regulatory landscape.
Banks certainly need to be aware of changing regulations, and as far as I'm concerned they thoroughly deserve everything they've got coming to them; but the IGAs can't be changed unilaterally by either side, so USCs (in Model 1 jurisdictions like Italy) don't have to worry that their bank might suddenly shop them to the IRS.
As FATCA is a unilateral event and Italy was either fooled or extorted into signing an IGA along with every other nation on earth, as long as the bank does businesx in the US or uses the SWIFT system to move money around, they are at risk.
The only question is how much risk at any point of time.
The banks are at risk from sudden changes to US regulations, yes; but they're not (in IGA 1 jurisdictions) at risk of FATCA withholding for failing to report accounts of local residents who have US citizenship. The banks report the accounts to the local tax agency so they're safe. They just don't like having to do the due diligence because it costs them money.
The US reneges on tax treaties by making unilateral legislation or court rulings and using the "last in time" rule. How do IGAs get to be more reliable than treaties?
For instance? What scenario are you hypothesising?
IGAs can be changed unilaterally by the US.
FATCA itself is a treaty over ride.
The US does what it likes. Iirc FACTA IGAs are supposed to work both ways, i.e. US banks are supposed to report on foreigners holding US accounts. I wonder how many US banks have done so? Duh – none? Why? Because it would be too expensive for US banks to implement so they were told not to bother.
The US can disregard the IGA – failing to honour its commitments – but it already does that.
The US could withdraw altogether from the IGA, but so could the other side; unilateral withdrawal is one of the provisions. And if the US did choose to withdraw, that would be great news for USCs in Model 1 jurisdictions, would it not?
No IGA, hello 30% noncompliance fee.
Yep, that'll be good for USCs abroad.
US banks all report to the IRS any account that has made over $10 of interest on a 1042-S for non resident alien accounts. The IRS is meant to then send this to the relevant tax authority. Whether this happens or not I doubt but I was informed by a credit union account I still have in the US that they would be sending a 1042S) which shows an interest payment of around 40) to my home tax authority. Only interst is reported as is the interest of homelanders on a 1040s to the IRS. There is not much extra work for the US banks except to compute the address of the various foreign tax authorities.
Only interest is reported not balance ( FATCA reports both) . Accounts that generate no interest are not reported.
Yes, compliance with FATCA rules would presumably once again be a problem for the banks, if the US withdrew from the IGAs.
Yes. Banks in jurisdictions which have "Wider Approach" CRS legislation would presumably carry on with the due diligence and the reporting, but with no IGA obligations, the reports would not be sent to the IRS by the local tax agency.
Why would the US withdraw?
All they have to do is what they have always been doing, their banks generate their 1042 & 1042s, which goes to the IRS. All the IRS has to do is mail the 1042s on to foreign tax authorities. It seems that foreign govs have all rolled over and accepted this arrangement as it has enabled them to implement CRS.
To an earlier point, how did an Italian bank "do something it said it wouldn't" if we are only talking about FATCA reporting? In that case having account balances reported (to the national tax authority, not directly to the IRS) is to be expected, once a customer is identified as a US person.
Otherwise yes, we know very little about this case and should probably stop speculating. Someone with $30 million in play and US citizenship would be well advised to pay a serious professional (i.e. Phil Hodgen) who won't rush them into compliance without first considering the best options for expatriation.


text:
President's Message | May 2017
Minding your P's and M's
In medicine, internists need to mind not just their "P's and Q's" but their "P's and M's," that is, evidence-based practice and evidence-based medicine.
By Jack Ende, MD, MACP
Explanations abound for the origin of the expression "Mind your P's and Q's." One is that these letters, in lowercase, easily could be confused by 19th-century typesetters; "p" and "q" look so much alike. Another is that "P's" sounds like "please" and "Q's" sounds enough like rapidly and repeatedly spoken "thank you's" to have "mind your P's and Q's" stand in for "mind your manners." My favorite explanation, of course, traces the expression back to 17th-century English pubs where, by the end of the night (or would it be the next morning?), customers would have to settle up and pay for their consumed pints and quarts. Let's go with that one.
In medicine, we need to mind not just our "P's and Q's" but our "P's and M's," that is, evidence-based practice (EBP) and evidence-based medicine (EBM). No one was more aware of this distinction than the late David L. Sackett, MD, whom we lost two years ago. An American by birth but a Canadian (and Englishman) by choice, Dr. Sackett taught us all about evidence-based medicine. That he disavowed credit for popularizing it, pointing out instead that it was an old concept, was typical of him, modest to a fault. He was wrong, of course. Along with his colleague Gordon H. Guyatt, MD, FACP, Dr. Sackett deserves credit for so much of what is now embraced within evidence-based medicine, including:
1. basing diagnoses on the best possible evidence, typically well-crafted randomized controlled trials (RCTs) or better still, meta-analyses of multiple RCTs organized into systematic reviews;
2. critically interpreting the medical literature to allow for appraisal of the worth of diagnostic tests and treatments; and, finally,
3. shining light on hidden biases in research.
This was all being worked out in the '70s and '80s, just as my formal training was completed. I had to learn this—so I could teach this—on my own, in an environment that was not always welcoming to evidence-based medicine. I recall one of internal medicine's leading figures referring to those "EBM guys" as "evidence-based police." But this particular luminary did not understand what Dr. Sackett understood and what he clarified in his later writings: that there is a difference between evidence-based medicine and evidence-based practice.
In a personal conversation that I had with Neil J. Stone, MD, MACP, who led the American Heart Association/American College of Cardiology (AHA/ACC) panel that wrote the recent evidence-based "Guidelines on the Treatment of Blood Cholesterol to Reduce Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Risk in Adults," he credited Dr. Sackett for the model that places evidence-based practice, not evidence-based medicine, at the center of the medical decision-making process. This process is informed by best research and evidence, but also by clinical expertise—that is, a physician's knowledge, experience, and judgment—and by a third series of factors, the patients' values and preferences. So the AHA/ACC guidelines recommend not treating individuals with hypercholesterolemia to target but, rather, selecting them based on risk-benefit groups, as this is what the scientific evidence showed. However, especially when statin therapy is being considered for primary prevention, this should be done only if it is consistent with the physician's clinical expertise, which accounts for the particularities of the patient, and the patient's values and preferences, the latter typically elicited by discussion.
As Dr. Sackett and his coauthors wrote in a 1996 editorial published in the BMJ, "Evidence-based medicine is not 'cookbook' medicine. Because it requires a bottom-up approach that integrates the best external evidence with individual clinical expertise and patients' choice, it cannot result in slavish, cookbook approaches to individual patient care. External clinical evidence can inform, but can never replace, individual clinical expertise, and it is this expertise that decides whether the external evidence applies to the individual patient at all and, if so, how it should be integrated into a clinical decision. Similarly, any external guideline must be integrated with individual clinical expertise in deciding whether and how it matches the patient's clinical state, predicament, and preferences, and thus whether it should be applied. Clinicians who fear top-down cookbooks will find the advocates of evidence-based medicine joining them at the barricades."
And probably, they would have found Sir William Osler right there with them. After all, it was he who said, "The good physician treats the disease; the great physician treats the patient who has the disease."
The College is committed to evidence-based practice, not just evidence-based medicine. While ACP guidelines represent the College's (and organized medicine's) best efforts in evidence-based medicine, they, like all guidelines, point to where the decision-making process starts, not necessarily where it ends. ACP guidelines now include a statement that clinical practice guidelines should be taken as "guides" and may not apply to all patients and all clinical situations.
Moreover, College guidelines emphasize the importance of eliciting the patient's preference. Just as the AHA/ACC guideline on the treatment of blood cholesterol recommended that decisions related to initiating statin therapy for primary prevention in a nondiabetic patient between ages 40 and 75 years be determined by a discussion between patient and doctor, even when that patient's 10-year risk of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease exceeds 7.5%, so too do the College's recent guidelines for management of hypertension in patients over age 60, for example, advocate for that same type of discussion. ACP's Center for Patient Partnership in Healthcare is dedicated to ensuring that patients' values and preferences are central to the decision-making process and that their voices are heard. Finally, in the "Beyond the Guidelines" section of Annals of Internal Medicine, readers can find important examples of how clinical expertise can be brought to bear on research-based guidelines. All of this illuminates the important difference, but also the interdependence, between evidence-based medicine and evidence-based practice. I believe former ACP member Dr. Sackett would be pleased.
It is an honor to serve as your President this year and express my views in this column. Please let me hear from you.
Prepping IM residents for primary care
What now for health care reform after a first try fails?
Helping older patients 'age in place'
By Amy Karon


text:
////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
//
//  Utility Functions
//
//  Copyright (c) 2009 Jon Thompson
//
////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
//
/// \file Util.js
/// \brief Misc utility functions
/// \author Jon Thompson
/// \created January 25, 2009
//
////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

String.prototype.isAlpha = function()
{
	return (this>='a'&&this<='z\uffff')||(this>='A'&&this<='Z\uffff');
};

String.prototype.isDigit = function()
{
	return (this >= '0' && this <= '9');
};

String.prototype.isAlphaNum = function()
{
	return this.isAlpha() || this.isDigit();
};

String.prototype.trim = function()
{
	var s = this;

	// Remove leading spaces and carriage returns
	while ((s.substring(0,1) == ' ') || (s.substring(0,1) == '\n') || (s.substring(0,1) == '\r'))
	{ s = s.substring(1,s.length); }

	// Remove trailing spaces and carriage returns
	while ((s.substring(s.length-1,s.length) == ' ') || (s.substring(s.length-1,s.length) == '\n') || (s.substring(s.length-1,s.length) == '\r'))
	{ s = s.substring(0,s.length-1); }

	return s;
};

//Replace all instances of one string with another
String.prototype.replaceAll = function( a_sOld, a_sNew )
{
	var sReturn = this;

	while( sReturn.indexOf( a_sOld ) != -1 )
	{
		sReturn = sReturn.replace( a_sOld, a_sNew );
	}

	return sReturn.toString();
};

// Parses an int, always base 10, and returning 0 on bad int (instead of NaN)
function SafeParseInt(a_sString)
{
    var nResult = parseInt(a_sString, 10);
    if (isNaN (nResult))
    {
        return 0;
    }

    return nResult;
}

// Gets a unique ID
function GetUniqueID()
{
    return ++g_nNextUniqueID;
}
var g_nNextUniqueID = 0;

// Delays an action
function Delay(a_fn)
{
    setTimeout(a_fn, 50);
}

// Shows or hides all elements in a list
function ShowElements (a_lstElements, a_bShow)
{
    for (var iEl = 0; iEl < a_lstElements.length; ++iEl)
    {
        a_lstElements[iEl].style.display = a_bShow ? "" : "none";
    }
}

// Deletes all child nodes of an HTML DOM node
function DeleteAllChildNodes(a_ndParent)
{
    if (a_ndParent.hasChildNodes())
    {
        while (a_ndParent.childNodes.length >= 1)
        {
            a_ndParent.removeChild(a_ndParent.firstChild);
        }
    }
}

// Stops an event from propagating
function StopEvent(a_eEvent)
{
    var eEvent = a_eEvent || window.event;
    if (eEvent.stopPropagation)
    {
        eEvent.stopPropagation();
    }
    else
    {
        eEvent.cancelBubble = true;
    }
}

// Randomness
function Uniform( nMin, nMax ){ return Math.floor( Math.random() * ( nMax - nMin + 1 ) ) + nMin; }
function Die( a_nFaces ){ return Uniform( 1, a_nFaces ); }

function d2(){ return Die( 2 ); }
function d3(){ return Die( 3 ); }
function d4(){ return Die( 4 ); }
function d6(){ return Die( 6 ); }
function d8(){ return Die( 8 ); }
function d10(){ return Die( 10 ); }
function d12(){ return Die( 12 ); }
function d20(){ return Die( 20 ); }
function d100(){ return Die( 100 ); }

function Dice( a_nNum, a_nFaces )
{
	var nTotal = 0;

	for( var i = 0; i < a_nNum; i += 1 )
	{
		nTotal += Die( a_nFaces );
	}

	return nTotal;
} // Dice

// Validates a display name and displays a popup if it fails
function ValidateDisplayNameWithPopup(a_sKey)
{
    if (!ValidateDisplayName(a_sKey))
    {
        alert("\"" + a_sKey + "\" is not a valid saved name.  " +
            "Names must be 1 to 50 characters long and can only " +
            "contain letters, numbers, and spaces.");
        return false;
    }
    return true;
}

// Validates a display name
function ValidateDisplayName(a_sKey)
{
    a_sKey = a_sKey.trim();

    // If the key is null or empty string, it fails
    if (!a_sKey)
    {
        return false;
    }

    // Impose an arbitrary limit of 50 chars, in case some storage provider
    // does have some limit
    if (a_sKey.length > 50)
    {
        return false;
    }

    // Make sure all characters are alphanum + space
    if (!a_sKey.match(/^[a-zA-Z0-9 ]+$/))
    {
        return false;
    }

    // Validation passed
    return true;
}

// Converts a display name to storage key
function DisplayNameToStorageKey (a_sUser)
{
    return a_sUser.trim().replaceAll(" ", "_");
}

// Converts a key to a display name
function StorageKeyToDisplayName (a_sKey)
{
    return a_sKey.replaceAll("_", " ");
}

// Toolbar newline

dojo.subscribe(dijit._scopeName+".Editor.getPlugin",null,
function(o)
{
    if(o.plugin)
    {
        return;
    }

    switch(o.args.name)
    {
    case "-":
        o.plugin = new dijit._editor._Plugin({button:new ToolbarNewline()});
    }
});

dojo.declare("ToolbarNewline",  [dijit._Widget,dijit._Templated],
{
templateString:"<br>",

postCreate: function()
{
    dojo.setSelectable(this.domNode,false);
},

isFocusable: function()
{
    return false;
}
});

// Editor Toolbar
var TOOLBAR_PLUGINS =
[
    {name:"dijit._editor.plugins.FontChoice", command:"fontName", generic:true},
    "fontSize",
    "-",
    "bold",
    "italic",
    "underline",
    "strikethrough",
    "subscript",
    "superscript",
    "removeFormat",
    "|",
    "foreColor",
    "hiliteColor",
    "|",
    "indent",
    "outdent",
    "|",
    "justifyLeft",
    "justifyCenter",
    "justifyRight",
    "justifyFull",
    "|",
    "insertOrderedList",
    "insertUnorderedList",
    "|",
    "undo",
    "redo"
];

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


The Wave Port SLX5 PWC (Personal Watercraft) port is designed to integrate with our Wave Dock Floating Dock System and can also be installed as a stand alone system or connect together to other floating dock brands and structures. SLX personal watercraft ports are available in two widths to meet the specific needs of both waterfront home owners and marinas.
The SLX5 (5 Ft. Wide) Port is designed to allow two Ports side-by-side, fitting perfectly into a 10-Foot Slip.


text:
Q: Gradient-based interpretation of the simplex algorithm The simplex algorithm iterates from vertex to vertex of the convex polytope that bounds the feasible region of the constrained optimization problem, such that each iteration of the algorithm moves from vertex to vertex of the polytope and minimizes the objective function.
I am trying to determine a "gradient based" interpretation of the Simplex Algorithm, where given some vertex of the convex polytope defined by the constraints of the optimization problem, the gradient method "points" at the adjacent vertex that most minimizes the objective function.
Does such a gradient method exist?  How would I go about deriving it?

A: The Simplex method is already a "gradient descent" method, in the sense that it follows some descent direction. I wouldn't call it gradient descent, since the gradient does not exist at the basic solutions, but rather a local search or hill descent.
Seen as a local search, the neighbors of the current basic solution are all basic solutions that can be obtained by a single pivot. A pivoting rule will choose one of the improving neighbors. Since linear programming is convex a local minimum will be a global minimum, so any pivoting rule that chooses some improving pivot will lead to an optimal solution.
The pivoting rule that goes into the direction of the gradient is called steepest edge, see e.g. Steepest-edge simplex algorithms for linear programming.
As far as I know, the best neighbor pivoting rule, i.e. choosing the entering variable that leads to the largest improvement of the objective, is not used in practice, because finding that variable is too costly.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
Yield-stress fluid deposition in circular channels
Benoît Laborie, Florence Rouyer, Dan E. Angelescu, Elise Lorenceau
Journal: Journal of Fluid Mechanics / Volume 818 / 10 May 2017
Since the pioneering works of Taylor and Bretherton, the thickness $h$ of the film deposited behind a long bubble invading a Newtonian fluid is known to increase with the capillary number power $2/3$ ( $h\sim RCa^{2/3}$ ), where $R$ is the radius of the circular tube and $Ca$ is the capillary number, comparing the viscous and capillary effects. This law, known as Bretherton's law, is valid only in the limit of $Ca<0.01$ and negligible inertia and gravity. We revisit this classical problem when the fluid is a yield-stress fluid (YSF) exhibiting both a yield stress and a shear-thinning behaviour. First, we provide quantitative measurement of the thickness of the deposited layer for Carbopol, a Herschel–Bulkley fluid, in the limit where the yield stress is of a similar order of magnitude to the capillary pressure and for $0.1<Ca<1$ . To understand our observations, we use scaling arguments to extend the analytical expression of Bretherton's law to YSFs in circular tubes. In the limit of $Ca<0.1$ , our scaling law, in which the adjustable parameters are set using previous results concerning non-Newtonian fluids, successfully retrieves several features of the literature. First, it shows that (i) the thickness deposited behind a Bingham YSF (exhibiting a yield stress only) is larger than for a Newtonian fluid and (ii) the deposited layer increases with the amplitude of the yield stress. This is in quantitative agreement with previous numerical results concerning Bingham fluids. It also agrees with results concerning pure shear-thinning fluids in the absence of yield stress: the shear-thinning behaviour of the fluid reduces the deposited thickness as previously observed. Last, in the limit of vanishing velocity, our scaling law predicts that the thickness of the deposited YSF converges towards a finite value, which presumably depends on the microstructure of the YSF, in agreement with previous research on the topic performed in different geometries. For $0.1<Ca<1$ , the scaling law fails to describe the data. In this limit, nonlinear effects must be taken into account.
Study of a new multi channel foam and emulsion generator
Maximilien Stoffel, Sebastian Wahl, Elise Lorenceau, Reinhard Hohler, Bruno Mercier, Dan Angelescu
Journal: MRS Online Proceedings Library Archive / Volume 1425 / 2012
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 03 February 2012, mrsf11-1425-uu03-06
This work describes the design and operation of two microfluidic emulsion and foam generators. The difference between the two devices consists in the geometry of the output channel - in one case, we used a straight microchannel, whereas in the second case we implemented a fractal channel output geometry. While both devices can produce highly monodisperse foams and emulsions at high throughput (coefficient of variation CV≈1.5% and production frequency of up to 2.5kHz per channel with a total of 256 micro channels capable, in theory, of operating in parallel), the actual CV at the exit of the device was significantly higher due to interactions between adjacent droplets or bubbles. Using a combination of high-viscosity continuous phase liquid and low-solubility gas phase resulted in improved monodispersity. In these conditions, the fractal output channel geometry resulted in the lowest overall CV (≈3%) at the exit of the device for both foam and emulsion production, due to an inhibition of aging and coalescence phenomena as compared to the straight channel.
Binary collisions of drops of immiscible liquids
Ilia V. Roisman, Carole Planchette, Elise Lorenceau, Günter Brenn
Journal: Journal of Fluid Mechanics / Volume 690 / 10 January 2012
Print publication: 10 January 2012
This experimental and theoretical study is devoted to the investigation of head-on collisions of two drops of immiscible liquids. In the experiments, pairs of drops are made to collide at well-defined kinetic and geometric conditions. The sizes and relative velocity of the colliding drops close to the point of impact are measured by means of image processing. The deformed states after the impact, their evolution with time, and their stability are studied by visualization. The theory considers the dynamics of the rim formed at the edge of a radially spreading lamella due to capillary forces at the free surfaces of the lamella and at the liquid/liquid interface. The equations of the rim formation and motion are obtained from the volume, mass and momentum balance equations which account for the inertial, viscous and capillary effects. The theory predicts the evolution of the main geometrical parameters of the liquid mass formed by the drop collision: thickness of the lamella, diameter, and size of the rim cross-section. The theoretical predictions agree well with the experimental data, although no adjustable parameters are used in the model.
Drops on a conical wire
ÉLISE LORENCEAU, DAVID QUÉRÉ
Journal: Journal of Fluid Mechanics / Volume 510 / 10 July 2004
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 23 June 2004, pp. 29-45
We study experimentally the behaviour of a drop deposited on a conical fibre. It is shown that for wetting liquids, such a drop spontaneously moves towards the region of lower curvature. The driving force is measured and shown to be a gradient of Laplace pressure, which allows us to characterize the dynamics of these self-propelling drops. We conclude by discussing the efficiency of this device for drying a solid initially coated with a liquid film.