Earlier this year, managing editor Eric Degerman paid a visit to Walla Walla and visited the "cheeseheads" at Dusted Valley Vintners - Wine Press Northwest's 2010 Washington Winery of the Year. It made for a two-part series. This week, here is the more outspoken half of the winemaking tandem - Chad Johnson.


text:
<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.01 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/html4/loose.dtd">

<title>BoxJSONException</title>
<meta name="date" content="2014-03-17">
<link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="../../../../stylesheet.css" title="Style">

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com.box.boxjavalibv2.exceptions

Class BoxJSONException

java.lang.Object

java.lang.Throwable

java.lang.Exception

com.box.restclientv2.exceptions.BoxSDKException

com.box.boxjavalibv2.exceptions.BoxJSONException

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java.io.Serializable

public class BoxJSONException
extends BoxSDKException

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getStatusCode

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addSuppressed, fillInStackTrace, getCause, getLocalizedMessage, getMessage, getStackTrace, getSuppressed, initCause, printStackTrace, printStackTrace, printStackTrace, setStackTrace, toString

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clone, equals, finalize, getClass, hashCode, notify, notifyAll, wait, wait, wait

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public BoxJSONException(java.lang.Exception e)

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redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


text:
Q: Control-m email alert for when the job is not triggered by spefic time I'm exploring different options to send email notifications when the job is not started before 11:00 PM .
My job type is OS and it is dependent on other job(not owned by me), some time the source job run for long time and causing my job to wait , in this case I would like get a notification as my job is not started .
I could see there is a option in Actions tab --> Notifications before job completion --> when : Job not submitted by time , have different option to specify the time but in the Send notification section Don't have email as destination .
Could you please help me if we have  options to send email alert .

A: This is a common requirement. It can be solved by creating custom shout destinations on the Control-M server. Any custom shout destination will show up in the list in your screenshot.
Custom shout destinations can be configured to send an email to a hardcoded email address among other things.
See following link for more details:
http://documents.bmc.com/supportu/9.0.18/help/Main_help/en-US/index.htm#ShoutDestManager.htm

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Chinese American Petroleum Association is pleased to announce the 2018 Petroleum and Petrochemical Technical Symposium, which is to be held on Friday, October 19, 2018. This year, the Southwest Section of the Chinese American Chemical Society (SW-CACS) will co-organize the Downstream and Chemicals sessions with CAPA. The Society of Exploration Geophysicists (SEG) will continue to sponsor the student paper contest.
The symposium venue is the Marathon Conference Center, 5555 San Felipe, Houston TX 77056, courtesy of the continuing and generous support from Marathon Oil Corporation.
In recent years, the oil and gas industry has seen significant and critical advancement in data science and technologies derived from data management. Across technical and business functions, Big Data and Artificial Intelligence (AI) are revolutionizing the traditional data analysis, data visualization, and predictive tools. High-speed tech computing could help reduce time and resources for trouble shooting, literature search, and improve reliability in operations. Machine learning, in partnership with human intelligence could expedite alternative screenings and accelerate innovation. In the meantime, the deployment of Big Data and AI-based technologies will require resources, infrastructure and technical support, and many issues such as applicability, reliability, and security are yet to be validated. This technical symposium intends to explore these evolvements from a systematic and big-picture view to better understand the constraints and potential opportunities, and identify areas to assist the integration of these novel tools and technologies in the O&G industry.
We encourage you to submit abstracts on relevant topics as described in the technical sessions below. Student members are also encouraged to submit their papers to the Student Paper Contest session and take this opportunity to share their research results as well as to improve their presentation skills.
Four to five invited keynote speakers from major oil companies and the service sector will discuss high-level, current and future challenges, opportunities and solutions.
· Student paper contest - All student papers will be oral presentations in English. Awards will be given at the end of the session ($500 – 1st place; $300 – 2nd place; $200 – 3rd place).
· Please submit your abstract to Dr. Po Tai via email at capasymposium@gmail.com and indicate the session for your paper in your email subject.
We look forward to seeing you at the 2018 Technical symposium on October 19, 2018.
Hong Jin (Co-Chair), Po-Ching Tai (Program Chair), Mei Yang, Xinli Jia, Kim Shih, Yi Chen, Jiasheng Qin, Lixin You, Meisong Yan, Zhipeng Liu, Tracy Pan, Cecilia Cui, Jing Xiang, Qi Zhang, Annie Hafner, Emma Luo, Shengkai Duan, Tuo Zhang, li Chang, and Jianxiong Chen.


text:
De Comté (ook Gruyère de Comté) is een Franse kaas, afkomstig uit de Jura, uit de Franche-Comté. Hoofdstad van het Comté-gebied is Poligny, waar ook het "Maison du Comté", het Comté-museum, staat. De kaas behoort tot de zogenaamde harde kazen en wordt al eeuwenlang gemaakt. Hij is een van de 44 Franse kazen die het roodgele Europese AOP-keurmerk, dat sinds januari 2012 het AOC-label vervangt, mag voeren.

Keurmerk
De Comté heeft het AOC-keurmerk sinds 1958. Regels die vastleggen wat er moet gebeuren voordat een kaas een Comté is zijn door de INAO bepaald. Die regels omvatten onder meer:
Het gebied waar de melk vandaan moet komen: het Jura massief, in de departementen Jura, een deel van de Doubs en een klein stukje van de Ain.
Het ras koeien dat de melk mag leveren: De rassen Montbéliard, Franse Simmentaler of een mengeling van beide rassen.
De hoeveelheid ruimte voor iedere koe: minstens 1 hectare.
De hoeveelheid te gebruiken kunstmest is zeer beperkt, om de rijkheid van de flora blijvend te waarborgen
De koeien mogen niet bijgevoederd worden met gefermenteerde producten (kuilgras, kuilmaïs)
De melk moet binnen 24 uur na melken tot kaas verwerkt worden, zonder toevoeging van kleurstoffen, conserveermiddelen e.d.

Bereiding
De Comté wordt nog in vele kleine kaasmakerijen (bijna 200), de "fruitière", in de dorpen van de Jura geproduceerd. Dit is de manier waarop het al eeuwenlang gebeurt. Al eeuwenlang worden de grote ronde kazen (die ieder zo'n 500 liter melk vergen) geproduceerd. Juist dit soort kazen waren zeer goed houdbaar voor de lange winters. Dit vereist samenwerking, want een enkele boer kon een dergelijke hoeveelheid niet op één dag leveren. De kaasmakerij was het centrale organisatiepunt binnen de dorpsgemeenschap, en is dat steeds gebleven.

De boerderijen werken nog als vanouds, de veehouderij is extensief , de koeien lopen 's zomers in het berggebied rond en krijgen 's winters uitsluitend voeder dat uit de streek komt.

Bij ontvangst wordt de melk licht aangezuurd met stremsel. Binnen een half uur is de melk gestremd, de wrongel wordt gesneden en tot een temperatuur van 54°C verwarmd. Nadat het in de vormen gebracht is, wordt de kaas geperst om alle wei weg te laten lopen. De kaas wordt al na een paar uur uit de vorm gehaald, en blijft eerst ongeveer een week in de kaasmakerij om te drogen. Vervolgens gaat de kaas naar de rijpingskelders, er zijn er zo'n 10 verspreid over het gehele gebied. In de kelders wordt de kaas regelmatig gezouten en gekeerd. Overigens blijft de kaas relatief zoutarm, een zoutgehalte van slechts zo'n 0,8 % is gangbaar. De rijping duurt minimaal 120 dagen maar rijpingstijden van 8-12 maanden en ook 18-24 maanden zijn gebruikelijk. De rijpingsduur kan oplopen tot 36 en soms zelfs 41 maanden. Het rijpingsproces geeft de kaas zijn eigenheid, de specifieke smaak.

Na rijping volgt nog een controleproces. De Comté wordt beoordeeld op uiterlijk en smaak. Alleen wanneer de kaas een voldoende scoort (minimaal 12 van de 20 punten) mag de kaas als "Comté" geëtiketteerd worden.

Franse kaas
Koeienkaas
Streekproduct met beschermde oorsprongsbenaming
Doubs
Jura (departement)
Cultuur in Bourgogne-Franche-Comté

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
Venue News & Notes: Foul Food at Baseball Stadiums
Tuesday, July 27, 2010 - 11:10 am
A fly ball to the stands might not be the only foul at your local baseball stadium. ESPN's Outside the Lines has compiled and reviewed health-department inspection reports for food and beverage vendors at 107 sports arenas in the U.S. and Canada, and the results are troublesome. Many places were caught with more than 50% of their vendors violating the codes in one way or another. ESPN tallied up each arena's percentages of "critical violations," cases in which vendors sold food that "might pose a serious risk for food-borne illnesses"…
…Major League Baseball officials this week blasted San Jose, CA's plans to place an A's ballpark measure on the ballot, even as city leaders unveiled details of what voters would be asked in November. "We were surprised and disappointed by the news today in San Jose," Commissioner Bud Selig said in a brief statement. He called a stadium referendum "premature" while a panel of experts continues to study whether the team should move to San Jose or stay in Oakland. San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed, who was vacationing, issued his own statement, saying that, with an Aug. 3 deadline for placing the measure on the ballot, the city could no longer wait for Selig to decide. "It's now or never," Reed said…
…D.C. United is awaiting the results of the economic feasibility study being conducted by the Maryland Stadium Authority in regard to a possible project in Baltimore near Ravens football and Orioles baseball facilities. United President Kevin Payne expects the final report to be released in September. "I won't categorize [the stadium effort], but, in Maryland, there is a clearer, tried-and-true process," Payne said Saturday. "It's potentially a fairly clean deal because there is a developer, there is available land, and there's the Maryland Stadium Authority. Once the economic report comes out, then the city and the state will decide if ultimately that is something they want to move forward with"…
…In 2012, the Olympic flame will be lit in a stadium that is now all but finished on a site in east London that is looking more and more as it will in July 2012. This time next year, test events will begin. All of a sudden, there is not much time left. Despite the worst recession in 70 years, the construction of the venues is on track. "We're in a remarkably good place," said Sports and Olympics Minister Hugh Robertson. "As at today, we are marginally ahead of where we ought to be in construction terms and on budget, which is an extraordinarily good position to be in." As confidence grows that the London Olympics will avoid an Athens-style meltdown, attention will turn to the operational issues for which the London organising committee (LOCOG), chaired by Lord Coe, is responsible…
…Emotions fumed and facts emerged with little clarity at the Winchester (NV) Town Advisory Board meeting this week in the first public discussion of a proposed sports arena on the north end of the Las Vegas Strip. Chris Milam, CEO of International Development Management, presented the 200,000-sq.-ft. Silver State Arena to a crowd checkered with folks in yellow "No Silver State Arena" shirts, skeptical of compatibility and traffic problems, and with equally vocal supporters, citing the project's potential for economic growth and employment. The board ultimately continued the item, granting no recommendation for either approval or denial.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


What Does A Freewill Offering Mean?
What does it mean to give a freewill offering in the Bible? Is that something we can do in our day too?
Freewill is the freedom to choose one thing over another or to do something or nothing. Even making no choice becomes a choice…all because of freewill. Jesus said "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life" (John 3:16) so the "whoever" indicates that whoever chooses to believe in Jesus will be saved, although that is not from us. Jesus said that "No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day" (John 6:44) and God's children were not born "of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God" (John 1:13), so does man have freewill or was he predestined to be saved (Eph 1)? The answer is yes…but how they work together, I cannot hope to explain. I don't know how to exactly explain how a car works but that doesn't mean I'm walking to work. We have choices to make, that much we know. In ancient Israel, they were commanded to give certain prescribed offerings but there was one exception. They were free to give God a freewill offering and there was no set amount on the value. So, what does a freewill offering look like? Does this have any application for us today?
In the Law of God, sometimes referred to as the Law of Moses, there were various offerings that must be given and these came at different times of the year, but there was one offering that was set for a designated time but also there was no set amount of the value that was given by God for what they were to offer. Exodus 35:29 says "All the men and women, the people of Israel, whose heart moved them to bring anything for the work that the Lord had commanded by Moses to be done brought it as a freewill offering to the Lord." As it says, whoever's "heart" is "moved" can bring anything they want before the Lord, specifically "for the work that the Lord had commanded Moses." The nation of Israel were obviously behind this work of God and most thought little of themselves and gave generously, so when we think more of God than our own personal needs, God will bless those who make such a pleasing sacrifice to Him, because it is "a pleasing aroma to the Lord" (Num 15:3) out of a generous spirit and with no other motives.
Sometimes the freewill offering is referred to as the "peace offering" as it was recorded in Leviticus 22:21, where it says, "And when anyone offers a sacrifice of peace offerings to the Lord to fulfill a vow or as a freewill offering from the herd or from the flock, to be accepted it must be perfect; there shall be no blemish in it." When Israel gave their "freewill offering or at your appointed feasts, to make a pleasing aroma to the Lord" (Num 15:3) we can read that it pleases God because it's freely given, without obligation, so to give something voluntarily, we are (likely) doing so out of a pure motive…to please God and help His work. When Moses began the construction of the Tabernacle, people flooded Moses with their freewill offerings (Ex 35:29); so much so that in one case, Moses had to tell the people, it was enough (Ex 36:5)! This is not nearly as remarkable as the Son of God, Who voluntarily died to save us and so "how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify our conscience from dead works to serve the living God" (Heb 9:14).
Since Jesus' death on the cross, the sacrificial system is unnecessary but we can still sacrifice to God but not animals, grain, or wine. We can offer God the sacrifice of prayer…but also, as the Psalmist wrote, "With a freewill offering I will sacrifice to you; I will give thanks to your name, O Lord, for it is good" (Psalm 54:6), and he prays to God, "Accept my freewill offerings of praise, O Lord, and teach me your rules" (Psalm 119:108). Let us praise Jesus and "Through him then let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that acknowledge his name" (Heb 13:15), so praise is also a freewill offering so "Offer to God a sacrifice of thanksgiving" (Psalm 50:14), freely and with joy, for we already know, God loves a cheerful giver (2nd Cor 9:7).
The greatest freewill offering ever made and will ever be made was from God the Father Who freely gave His One and only Son, Jesus Christ, and Jesus Christ was in agreement, as They always are. He voluntarily gave His life so that we who have trusted in Him might be saved. Jesus said, "No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from my Father" (John 10:18) because "The good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep" (John 10:11) and again, He says that "just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep" (John 10:15). If you reject Him, then you'll pay for your own sins (Rev 20:12-15; 21:8), and since it's a debt that can never be paid (Rom 6:23), you will be there for all time. Please; I ask you to consider trusting in Christ today because He gave His life so that you too might be saved.
Read more about offerings here: What is The Peace or Fellowship Offering?


text:
'Real character of BJP': Congress after wrestler accuses BJP MP and WFI chairman of sexual harassment
"Those giving the slogans of 'saving girl child' are exploiting the daughters. This is the real character of BJP," the Congress said
Vinesh Phogat (File; via Twitter)
Published: 18 Jan 2023, 10:50 PM
The Congress on Wednesday slammed the BJP, saying its "real character" stands exposed after wrestler Vinesh Phogat accused its MP and Wresting Federation of India (WFI) president Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh of sexually exploiting women wrestlers.
The Congress' attack came after Phogat alleged that Singh has been sexually exploiting women wrestlers for years, a charge vehemently rejected by the sports administrator and the BJP MP.
Those giving slogans of "saving the girl child" are exploiting them, the Congress alleged. "Daughters have to be saved from the BJP," it said.
"Extremely shameful! Women players are being sexually exploited in the wrestling association. Female wrestler Vinesh Phogat has accused wrestling federation president and BJP MP Brij Bhushan Singh of sexual exploitation of players," the Congress tweeted in Hindi.
"Those giving the slogans of 'saving girl child' are exploiting the daughters. This is the real character of BJP," the Congress added.
Congress spokesperson Supriya Shrinate also attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
"These BJP people have crossed the limits. Female wrestler Vinesh Phogat has made serious allegations of sexual exploitation of players and female coaches on wrestling federation president BJP MP Brij Bhushan Singh," she said.
"Daughters have to be saved from the BJP. It is useless to expect anything from PM Modi and Women Development Minister Smriti Irani," the Congress spokesperson said on Twitter.
In a startling revelation, a crying Vinesh Phogat alleged that Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh has been sexually exploiting women wrestlers for years.
Vinesh, who has been at loggerheads with WFI since the Tokyo Olympic Games, also claimed that several coaches at the national camp in Lucknow have exploited women wrestlers, adding that there are a few women at the camp who approach wresters at the behest of the WFI president.
The 28-year-old though clarified that she herself never faced such exploitation but claimed that "one victim" was present at the 'dharna' they began at Jantar Mantar on Wednesday.
Vinesh also claimed that she had received death threats at the behest of WFI President from officials close to him because she dared to draw Prime Minister Narendra Modi's attention to several issues plaguing Indian wrestling when she met him after the Tokyo Games.
The sitting BJP MP from Kaiserganj in Uttar Pradesh rejected all the charges against him and refused to quit his post.
"There is no truth in any of the allegations. Why should I quit? Even if one woman wrestler comes and proves the sexual harassment charge, I am ready to be hanged. There is an industrialist behind it (conspiracy)," said the 66-year-old WFI president, adding that he was open to an investigation by the CBI or police.
Mumbai: TISS students cancel BBC documentary show after BJYM protests


text:
Progression du record de France de natation sportive messieurs pour l'épreuve du 100 mètres papillon en bassin de 50 et 25 mètres.

Bassin de 50 mètres

Bassin de 25 mètres

Notes

Papillon
100


text:
package com.darrensun.spoj.girlsnbs;

import java.io.*;
import java.util.StringTokenizer;

/**
 * SPOJ 7424 - Girls and Boys
 * Created by Darren on 14-7-18.
 * Assuming g > b, the way to minimize the gender regularity is to separate girls with boys as
 * evenly as possible. In this case, the gender regularity would be ceil(g/(b+1))
 */
public class Main {
    BufferedReader in = new BufferedReader(new InputStreamReader(System.in));
    PrintWriter out = new PrintWriter(new BufferedOutputStream(System.out));

    void run() throws Exception {
        while (true) {
            StringTokenizer tokenizer = new StringTokenizer(in.readLine());
            int girls = Integer.parseInt(tokenizer.nextToken());
            int boys = Integer.parseInt(tokenizer.nextToken());
            if (girls == -1 && boys == -1)
                break;
            solve(girls, boys);
        }
        out.flush();
    }

    void solve(int girls, int boys) {
        if (boys > girls) {
            solve(boys, girls);
            return;
        }
        out.println((int) Math.ceil(girls/(boys+1.0)));
    }

    public static void main(String[] args) throws Exception {
        new Main().run();
    }
}


text:
import {EventEmitter} from 'events';
import Dispatcher from '../dispatchers/Dispatcher';

class ResolutionsStore extends EventEmitter{
	constructor(){
		super()

		this.resolutions = [{
				id : 1,
				title : 'Lose weight',
				desc : 'Get on teh balance',
				complete : false
			},{
				id : 2,
				title : 'Imporve vertical jump',
				desc : 'Lorem ipsum sim dolor sit',
				complete : false
			},{
				id : 3,
				title : 'Learn French',
				desc : 'My description',
				complete : false
			},{
				id : 4,
				title : 'Become a basketball coach',
				desc : 'My longer description',
				complete : false
			},{
				id : 5,
				title : 'Lose weight',
				desc : 'Get on teh balance',
				complete : false
			},{
				id : 6,
				title : 'Imporve vertical jump',
				desc : 'Lorem ipsum sim dolor sit',
				complete : false
			},{
				id : 7,
				title : 'Learn French',
				desc : 'My description',
				complete : false
			},{
				id : 8,
				title : 'Something elese to finish',
				desc : 'My longer description',
				complete : false
			}]

	}
	createResolution( title , desc ){
		const id = Date.now()

		this.resolutions.push({
			title,
			desc : desc || '',
			complete : false,
			id
		})

		this.emit('change')

	}

	getAll(){
		return this.resolutions
	}

	handleActions(action){
		switch(action.type){
			case "CREATE_RESOLUTION" : {
				this.createResolution(action.title , action.desc)
			}
		}
	}
}

const resolutionsStore = new ResolutionsStore
Dispatcher.register(resolutionsStore.handleActions.bind(resolutionsStore))
//window.Dispatcher = Dispatcher // for debug
export default resolutionsStore


Teambonding Bubble Games | WHOA! Adventures | Best Malaysia and Borneo Discount Adventure Cheap Travel Deals in Asia!
Participants will slip into zorb like bubble balls to play a game. For large participant groups, we can arrange a little tournament and you can give away your own prizes.
Bubble games is all about strategic and innovative thinking. Fitness is secondary. Lessons learnt from the fun can be brought back to the office.
Is one of the games like football?
Yes, one of the games is Bubble Football. What's so difficult about football or soccer? Everyone knows how to play the game. Just kick the ball to your team-mate or into the goal. Football is about teamwork and strategy - just like any other game. We just make it a little more challenging.
Depending on group size, participants will be divided into teams for a game which will be decided by the facilitators on event date.
Usually in an indoor sports facility in Petaling Jaya.
If you have your own location, we can come to you.
Any availability requires full prepayment to confirm. No walk-in payment.
As early as possible. Usually minimum 2 weeks notice.
Wear quick dry sports apparel and shoes.


text:
Senegal nam deel aan de Olympische Zomerspelen 1976 in Montreal, Canada. Senegal en Ivoorkust waren de enige twee Afrikaanse landen die de Spelen niet boycotten.

Resultaten per onderdeel

Atletiek

Mannen 4x100m estafette
 Christian Dorosario, Momar N'Dao, Barka Sy en Adama Fall
 Serie - 40.40
 Halve finale - 40.37 (→ ging niet verder)
Mannen, verspringen
 Ibrahim Ba
 Kwalificatie - 6.96m (→ ging niet verder)
Mannen, discuswerpen
 Ibrahima Gueye
 Kwalificatie - 52.82m (→ ging niet verder)

Abdoulaye Sarr
Ndew Niang
Julie Gomis
Samba Dièye

Boksen

Mamadou Drame

Judo

Lamine Wade
Assane N'Doye
Papa M'Bengue
Abdoulaye Kote
Abdoulaye Djiba

Worstelen

Ambroise Sarr
Mamadou Sakho
Robert N'Diaye
Arona Mané
Ibrahim Diop

Land op de Olympische Zomerspelen 1976
1976


We are offering the Manrose 200mm / 8" inline centrifugal fan complete with timer and ducting kit for an incredible £24.99 + VAT. We dont list this one on our website it is only available through the trade counters, contact details at the bottom of the advert. Only available for June 2016.


text:
guitarist for R.E.M., songwriter, record producer
Peter Lawrence Buck (born December 6, 1956 in Berkeley, California) is an American guitarist and songwriter. He is best known for being a member of the alternative rock band R.E.M..
Peter Buck on stage with R.E.M. in 2008
Peter Lawrence Buck
(1956-12-06) December 6, 1956 (age 66)
Alternative rock, college rock, jangle pop
Musician, songwriter, producer
Guitar, mandolin, banjo, vocals
In 2007 Peter Buck, along with the other three members of R.E.M., was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
His main instrument that he has used for his entire music career is a back Rickenbacker 360 electric guitar. On September 9, 2008, after a concert in Helsinki, his famous black guitar was stolen. On September 18, 2008 it was given back to him. The name of the person who returned it is not known.[1]
Buck onstage in Naples, 2008
↑ ""Peter Buck's Rickenbacker Returned! "". REM HQ. Archived from the original on 2008-09-24. Retrieved 2008-09-20.
Retrieved from "https://simple.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Peter_Buck&oldid=8201279"
This page was last changed on 2 May 2022, at 00:59.


text:
Q: R plotly subplot share X axis and Share Y axis I am trying to create group bars for a scatter plot on the x-axis and y-axis, eventually, I will embed this in R markdown and hence need the interactivity too.
I have x-axis bar and y-axis bar and want the axis of these bar plots to share the axis on my main scatter plot.
library(ggplot2)
library(plotly)

x <-  sample(1:1000, 10, replace=FALSE)
y <-  sample(1001:2000, 10, replace=FALSE)

#main df
df <- data.frame(pos1 = c(x[1:5], y[1:5]), pos2 =c(x[6:10], y[6:10]), Sample = c(rep("Sample1", 5), rep("Sample2", 5)))

#axis df
df2 <- data.frame(Sample = c("Sample1", "sample2"), pos1 = c(1,1001), pos2 = c(1000,2000))
df2$x_median <- (df2$pos1 + df2$pos2)/2

#Main plot
p <- ggplot(df, aes(x=pos1, y=pos2, fill = Sample)) +
  geom_point() +
  theme_bw() +
  theme(legend.title = element_blank())

# X-axis bar
ann_x <- ggplot(data = df2) +
  geom_rect(aes(xmin = pos1,
                xmax = pos2,
                ymin = 0,
                ymax = 0.4,
                fill = as.factor(Sample)),
            color = "black",
            size = 0.3,
            alpha = 0.2) +
  geom_text(aes(x = x_median, y = .2, label = Sample), vjust = .8, fontface = "bold", color = "black") +
  theme_void() +
  theme(legend.position = "none")

#y-axis bar
ann_y <- ggplot(data = df2) +
  geom_rect(aes(xmin = 0,
                xmax = .4,
                ymin = pos1,
                ymax = pos2,
                fill = as.factor(Sample)),
            color = "black",
            size = 0.3,
            alpha = 0.2) +
  geom_text(aes(x = .2, y = x_median, label = Sample), vjust = .8, fontface = "bold", color = "black", angle = 90) +
  theme_void() +
  theme(legend.position = "none")

Noax <- list(
  title = "",
  zeroline = FALSE,
  showline = FALSE,
  showticklabels = FALSE,
  showgrid = FALSE,
  showlegend = F
)

fig_main <- ggplotly(p)
fig_x <- ggplotly(ann_x) %>%
  layout(xaxis = Noax,
         yaxis = Noax)
fig_y <- ggplotly(ann_y) %>%
  layout(xaxis = Noax,
         yaxis = Noax)

subplot(fig_x, fig_main,  shareX = TRUE, nrows = 2,  heights =  c(0.1, 0.90), which_layout = 1)
subplot(fig_main,fig_y , widths = c(0.9, 0.1), shareY = TRUE)

I am able to share axis for either X or Y, but not both.

I need something like this:

Appreciate any suggestions.

A: I think the easiest way may be to build these shapes in Plotly and attach them to fig_main.
Initially, I added your block labels outside of the plot, but this becomes an issue when you resize the plot (it will cause the text to shift). By adding the shapes to the plot space, resizing will not move the text.
I created vectors to hold the values for the shapes (where the color blocks will come from) and the annotations (where the text in the color blocks will come from). I also changed the x and y axis limits so that these blocks would go into the plot space.
The data in these vectors will create the blocks in the following order: along the right side (aligned with the y-axis), bottom, then top, then along the top (aligned with the x-axis), left side, then right.
First, just with the main plot and extra plot space
fig_m2 <- ggplotly(p)
fig_m2 %>% layout(showlegend = F, xaxis = list(range = c(0, 2000)),
                  yaxis = list(range = c(0, 2000)))

Next, building the blocks of colors—the shapes. In Plotly x0 is equivalent to xmin in ggplot. x1 is xmax.
xs = c(1750, 2000, 1750, 2000, 0, 1000, 1001, 2000) # vals for x-axis
ys = c(0, 1000, 1001, 1750, 1750, 2000, 1750, 2000) # vals for x-axis

cols <- ggplot_build(p)$data[[1]]$fill %>% unique() # get colors from ggplot
# [1] "#F8766D" "#00BFC4"     # red-ish and blue-ish

cols = rep(cols, each = 2) %>% rep(times = 2)       # color vector for shapes

# build shapes
shp <- invisible(lapply(seq(1, 7, by = 2), # count by 2s
                        function(i) {
                          list(type = "rect", opacity = .2,
                               x0 = xs[i], x1 = xs[i + 1],
                               y0 = ys[i], y1 = ys[i + 1],
                               xref = "x", yref = "y",
                               fillcolor = cols[i],
                               line = list(width = 0)) # don't outline*
                        }))

To add this to the plot, you have to pull any shapes already in the plot first. (Since you started with ggplotly, there is at least one shape in the object.)
shp2 <- fig_m2$x$layout$shapes              # collect shapes in plot
fig_m2$x$layout$shapes <- append(shp2, shp) # consolidate & add shapes to plot

There are color blocks but no labels yet. If you wanted to see where we're at, this is what we've got so far:
fig_m2 %>% layout(showlegend = F, xaxis = list(range = c(0, 2000)),
                  yaxis = list(range = c(0, 2000)))

For the text, there is no min and max, just x or y.
# build labels (annotations) inside the shapes
tx = rep(df2$Sample, 2)
xa = c(1875, 1875, 500, 1500)
ya = c(xa[3:4], xa[1:2])
ta = c(90, 90, 0, 0)
annot <- invisible(lapply(1:4,
                          function(k) {
                            list(showarrow = F, text = tx[k],
                                 x = xa[k], y = ya[k],
                                 xref = "x", yref = "y",
                                 align = "middle", valign = "middle",
                                 textangle = ta[k])
                          }))

fig_m2 %>% layout(showlegend = F, xaxis = list(range = c(0, 2000)),
                  yaxis = list(range = c(0, 2000)),
                  annotations = annot)

This is what you've got, now.


text:
Andean Health and Healing
Victor Reyna Pinedo
Victor Reyna Pinedo,
Organic Chemist and Natural Medicine Researcher
Education: Doctorate in Organic Chemistry, University of Paris , Institut Chimie des Substances Naturelles de Gif-Sur-Yvette, Francia.
Professional position: Head Professor, Department of Sciences, Universidad Nacional de Ingeniería, Lima , Peru . vreyna@uni.edu.pe
Isabel Lapeña,
Environmental Lawyer
Education: Isabel Lapeña holds a Masters Degree in Environmental Policy from the London School of Economics and Political Science, and has a law degree from the Universidad Complutense , Madrid , España.
Professional position: Senior Lawyer, Biodiversity Program at the Sociedad Peruana de Derecho Ambiental (SPDA), Lima . Isabel Lapeña's work focuses on the development of policy and norms for biosafety, conservation, sustainable agrobiodiversity, access to genetic resources and the protection of traditional knowledge in Peru . ilapena@spda.org.pe
Christian Noriega
Christian Noriega,
Education: Social Communication with specialization in Environmental Education.
Professional experience: Christian conducts environmental workshops for rural children and adults, organizes and implements ecological events and conferences in Andean rural areas. He was the environmental coordinator of the Municipality of Huari , in Ancash in 2008, and is currently the environmental coordinator of the civic association Nuna Ayni. Christian's interests include clean technologies, permaculture, community-based organization towards change, local knowledge, and sustainable development.
Francisco Egipcio Chauca Enrique
Francisco Egipcio Chauca Enrique,
Natural Medicine Specialist and Trained Midwife
Education: Midwife training (1971), Regional Hospital of Huaraz, Min. of Health. BA in Traditional Medicine (2004) UNASAM (National University of Ancash), Dept. of Medical Sciences.
Positions: Practicing midwife and expert herbalist with private clinic for both in-patient and out-patient treatment.
Aurelio Cadillo Flores,
Education: Trained community health promoter; locally acquired knowledge and practice of herbal remedies in the rural District of Shilla.
Alejandra Reynoso
Alejandra Reynoso,
Education: MA in Project Design UNASAM (National University of Ancash), Dept. of Medical Sciences. BA in Social Work, University of Huamanga, Ayacucho.
Professional position: Coordinator of Social Health Programs, Marcará Health Center, Ministry of Health, Huaraz, Ancash.
Nilda Gonzalez
Nilda Gonzalez,
Education: Certified Nurse, School of Nursing, UNASAM (National University of Ancash), Dept. of Medical Sciences.
Professional position: Support nurse for Social Health Programs, Marcará Health Center, Ministry of Health, Huaraz, Ancash.
Anthropology Field Methods
Gabriela Valenzuela Bejerano
Gabriela Valenzuela Bejerano,
Visual Anthropologist and Photographer
Education: BA Social Communication; MA Anthropology Pont. Univ.Católica del Perú.
Research: Photographic field methods, cultural identity and social transformation. Gabriela interests include examining the role of the photographic image as a fundamental aspect of anthropology field work; she guides students to reflect, analyze and reconsider the photographic process and objective in the research endeavor.
Irma Alicia Gomez,
Anthropologist
Education: BA in Cultural Anthropology, Universidad Nacional de Antioquía, Colombia.
Research: Life History investigations with Peruvian handicraft artists to support Fair Trade efforts nationally and internationally.
Thesis research: The World of Fishing among the Wayuú Culture in the Guajira Penninsula of Colombia.
Chaska Velarde
Chaska Velarde,
Education: BA in Anthropology, Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos; MA in Anthropology, Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú.
Research: Specialist in the development of participatory investigation methods applied among rural and periurban populations in Peru, with particular emphasis on issues of gender, sexual and reproductive health, and the reduction of poverty.
isabella chan
Isabella Chan,
Applied Medical Anthropologist
Education:BA in Anthropology, Georgia State University; MA/MPH Candidate in Applied Anthropology and Global Health Practice at the University of South Florida.
Research: The political economy of health, women's decision-making, pregnancy and birth practices and experiences, social justice, and participatory research methods.
MA Thesis Research: The political economy of maternal health in a medically pluralistic environment: a case study in the Callejón de Huaylas.
Regional Archaeology
Steve Wegner
Steve Wegner,
Education: MA in Anthropology, concentration in Andean Archaeology, University of California at Berkeley.
Professional Positions: Director of the cultural institute, Ancashwain, Huaraz, Ancash; Consultant, Huaraz Museum of Archaeology, Instituto Nacional de Cultura.
Edinson Márquez Trejo
Edinson Márquez Trejo,
Spanish Language Instructor
Professor Edinson Márquez lived in a Quechua speaking village in the Andean countryside until the age of 9, when he went on to secondary and university studies in Huaraz, Ancash. Education: B.A. in Spanish and Literature; Minor degree in Agriculture; Licentiate in Education. Professional Positions: Spanish Professor at the Sierra Verde Spanish School in Huaraz, and English Professor in the Department of Foreign Languages, UNASAM (National University of Ancash).
Fernando de Luque
Fernando de Luque,
Professor Fernando de Luque was born in Lima, where he originally developed his interest and lifelong dedication to the study and teaching of both Spanish and English languages. Professional positions: English Professor, Universidad Los Angeles de Chimbote, Huaraz, Ancash. He also teaches private language classes at his home in Marcará, Carhuaz.
Inés Yanac
Inés Yanac,
Professor Inés Yanac is a native of the Callejón de Huaylas, born in the Quechua speaking village of Olleros . She holds a degree in Spanish Language from the national university in Huaraz, where she currently teaches.
Irene Zuñiga
Irene Zuñiga,
Professor Irene is from the Province of Recuay . She holds university degrees in Education and Communication from the national university, UNASAM in Huaraz. Currently, she teaches English at several vocational institutes in Huaraz.
Alicia Rocha Revilla
Alicia Rocha Revilla,
Alicia was born and educated in Lima. Upon completion of her college degree in primary school language education, she spent several years teaching Spanish in Great Britain. Currently, she teaches theatre and language at the Cambridge school in Villa, Lima. She is also an animal rights activist, dedicated to the well being of abandoned street dogs.
Solio Requena Mena
Solio Requena Mena,
Quechua Grammar Instructor.
Born in the rural community, Tapacocha, Recuay, Professor Requena is Director of the Quechua institute, Hatun Huaylas, based in Huaraz.
Cesar Vargas
Cesar Vargas,
Quechua Song, Musicand Dance Instructor.
Born in the neighboring valley of Conchucos, Professor Vargas is a school teacher affiliated with the Quechua institute, Hatun Huaylas.
Martín Víctor León Huarac
Martín Víctor León Huarac,
Professor Martín was born in the nearby hamlet of Yanaqutu, Pariacaca. He is a school teacher specialized in History and Geography, and member of the Regional Academy of Quechua of the Department of Ancash. He creates the content and conducts the Quechua radio program, "Qichwa Rimay."
Humberto Avelino León Huarac
Humberto Avelino León Huarac,
Quechua Song and Music Instructor.
Professor Humberto (like his brother, Martín, above) was born in the nearby hamlet of Yanaqutu, Pariacaca. He is a primary school music teacher, and member of the Regional Academy of Quechua of the Department of Ancash. He develops the musical content for the local radio program, "Qichwa Rimay."
Yovana Azucena Salazar Rosales
Yovana Azucena Salazar Rosales,
Quechua Dance Instructor.
Professor Yovana was born in Bellavista, Huaraz. She is a school teacher specialized in regional dance traditions, and a member of the folk dance troupe "José María Arguedas" based in Huaraz, Ancash.
Vilma Orellana Mallqui
Vilma Orellana Mallqui,
Quechua Grammar and Conversation Instructor.
Professor Vilma was born in the rural Province of Recuay. She is a primary school teacher and holds a Bachelor's degree in Intercultural Education. As a member of the Regional Academy of Quechua of the Department of Ancash, she organizes and participates in Quechua folk dance and song events throughout the valley.


Ceymed Healthcare Services (Pvt) Ltd is a member of the Ceyline Group of Companies and has been in operation since June 2001 at 132, S. de S. Jayasinghe Mawatha, Nugegoda, Sri Lanka.
A 24 hr outpatient service is managed by Dr Sarath Paranavitane who is a well known specialist family physician.
'Ceymed' has grown to be a brand name synonymous with reliability, efficiency and accuracy. Ceymed has opened smaller laboratories (Ceylabs) in Ragama, Piliyandala, Kalubowila, Panadura, Horana, Trincomalee, Jaffna, Kalmunai and Homagama to meet the increased demand for tests in these areas. In addition to Ceylabs, a large area of the city and outskirts are covered via collecting centres opened in General Practitioner clinics. 'Ceymed' intends opening new collecting centres in remote areas in the future.
'Ceymed' also has a 24 hr. open well-stocked pharmacy managed by a qualified pharmacist. Ceymed also offers x'ray facilities,audiometry, lung function testing and physiotherapy.
All immunisations of children and adults are carried out by a Family Physician.
'Ceymed' has been able to maintain its personal touch throughout these years and prides itself in its professional approach to the medical requirements of both the general public and the medical profession. Our aim is to deliver to the discerning customer, a service that is friendly and personal and also to ensure a speedy and accurate service.


If you, as a public employee or as a member of the public, have concerns about the use of taxpayers' or ratepayers' money which you wish to raise with the NIAO, you are encouraged to contact us. We welcome these approaches and they will, if you wish, be treated in confidence. Contact details are given below.
What concerns can NIAO deal with?
in relation to the provision of centrally funded public services and health services.
in relation to local councils, the Northern Ireland Local Government Officers' Superannuation Committee and the Local Government Staff Commission for Northern Ireland.
How will concerns be evaluated?
whether the concerns indicate serious impropriety, irregularity or value for money issues.
Based on this evaluation, a range of options for further action will be considered, for example additional audit testing, or a decision may be made not to take any further action. The C&AG and LGA are not required to undertake investigations on behalf of individuals.
The Public Interest Disclosure (NI) Order 1998 provides recourse to an employment tribunal if you suffer detriment, such as dismissal or other sanction, as a result of raising concerns which you believe, in good faith, to be true. Your case at tribunal is strengthened if you raise your concerns with your employer in the first instance. Your employer's policy for raising concerns should tell you how you can do this safely. The Public Interest Disclosure Order will also apply if you raise your concerns externally to the relevant "prescribed person".
To speak to someone about a disclosure in relation to central or local government, please telephone (028) 9025 1062 or (028) 9025 1000.


text:
"What happens at Comic-Con, stays at Comic-Con."
Jenny Nguyen repeated the mantra to herself before she adjusted the push-up bra that made her size A breasts look like overflowing C cups. One small pat smoothed her long green wig into place. The Sailor Pluto costume was a little on the immature side, but it was still adult enough to serve her purposes. She snatched the three condoms off the bathroom counter and tucked them under her bra strap before her courage faltered.
It was the last night of the San Diego Comic-Con, and she had only one mission. She was going to go outside her comfort zone. For once in her life, she was not going to be the good girl everyone expected her to be.
She was going to get laid.
Jenny grabbed the silver and garnet staff that completed her costume and ventured out of her hotel room. After enduring the cold, sterile process of artificial insemination ten days ago, she was determined to reclaim her femininity one way or another.
And hot, sweaty sex with a good-looking stranger seemed like just the thing to do it.
The hallway and elevator were empty as she made her way down to the lobby bar. Some of the crowds had thinned, many already on their way home after five days of utter geekdom. A majority of those who lingered were still in costume. She grinned. This was probably one of the few places where she could go out in full cosplay and not be considered a freak.
She scanned the crowd on the way to the bar. Like most cons, there was an overabundance of geeks and dorks she could probably have a great time talking to over a drink, but none of them got her blood pumping. Her limited sexual experience had been disappointing at best. The couple of men she'd dated back in college were about as adept in the bedroom as C3PO. No, tonight, she needed a real man. One who wouldn't blink when she suggested they hook up. One who would kiss her until she had no problem shedding her clothes and hopping into bed. One who would make her feel like a desirable woman.
But first, she needed to work up the nerve to voice that request.
She settled onto an empty bar stool and ordered a soda, wishing it was a shot of tequila instead. There was still a small chance she wasn't pregnant, but not small enough for her risk drinking. She owed her brother that.
As she sipped through the tiny bar straw, she watched the room from under the veil of her false eyelashes. There was a table of Trekkies nearby with one possible candidate. The group of Jedi knights were having too much fun with their fake light sabers to notice her, but a table full of teenage hobbits just outside the bar had no problem ogling her bare legs and overflowing cleavage. A flush stole onto her cheeks when they loudly started placing bets on what she'd be like in the sack. She was thirty, but she wasn't ready to venture into cougar territory.
Time to move to the other side of the bar.
She grabbed her staff and spun around, only to collide with a mass of muscle. Her soda splattered across her breasts, and her staff clattered to the floor. Her ankle twisted in her high-heeled boot, but a pair of steady hands caught her.
"Careful, Sailor Senshi," a deep voice with a hint of suppressed laughter said.
Jenny stilled and drew in a sharp breath. The warm scent of leather filled her nose, followed by notes of a spicy, masculine cologne. Her pulse jumped, and her skin tingled with awareness. She slowly lifted her gaze to look into the face of her rescuer.
Lines crinkled around a pair of bright blue eyes that complemented the amused smile on his face. He was dressed like Mal from Firefly, a true Browncoat down to the last detail, but she doubted Nathan Fillion looked this good in person. Her tongue tripped over itself as she stuttered, "Thank you."
His grin widened, but he made no move to let go of her. His gaze flickered from her chest back to her face. "Trust me when I say the pleasure was all mine."
Bingo! Perfect candidate for a one-night stand found.
Now she just had to gather up her courage to follow through with her plan without sounding like a desperate idiot.
He grabbed a few bar napkins with his free hand. "Sorry about spilling your drink."
Under normal circumstances, she would've taken the napkins and cleaned up the soda herself, but the image of him lowering his lips to her skin to remove the droplets off her breasts popped into her mind. A shiver coursed through her. Would he suck them up with teasing nips, or would he use long, languid licks?
She tore herself away from her fantasy long enough to realize he was still offering her the napkins and wearing that amused grin. As she took them and began dabbing up the soda, she began to worry if she was reading him wrong. Robots and code, she understood and could manipulate with the best of them. Men were an entirely different matter.
Well, at least he gets points for being a gentleman.
And his hand remained possessively planted at the base of her spine.
"If anyone should be apologizing, it's me," she managed to get out. "I was in such a hurry to move to a different spot—"
"I figured as much." His eyes flickered sideways to the table of hobbits. "I overheard what they were saying and was actually coming to rescue you."
Her nerves abated, and a smile tugged at her lips. "And do you think a Sailor Scout needs rescuing?"
"Depends on the Senshi. If memory serves me correctly, though, Tuxedo Mask was always swooping in to rescue Usagi."
"But as you can see, I'm not her." She ran her gloved hand along his brown coat. "And I think you're a little too casually dressed to be him."
"I left the tux and mask at home," he teased with a wink. "But why don't we move to the other side of the bar so I can at least buy you another drink?"
She bit her bottom lip long enough to quiet that little voice in the back of her mind that said good girls didn't hook up with hot guys they just met. She'd listened to that little voice for too long. Tonight, she was going to throw caution to the wind and finally know what it was like to embrace her sexuality. "That sounds like a fine idea."
"This way, then, Sailor Pluto." He took her staff and led her around the bar, his hand still on her back, pausing only a second to cast a threatening glare at the teens who'd been harassing her. That was all the time that was needed to silence them.
"Jameson on the rocks," he ordered as they settled into the new seats. "And what did you have?"
"Just a soda." When his brows furrowed together, she added, "I'm not much of a drinker."
He shrugged. "Fair enough. So, should I call you Trista or Setsuna?"
A giggle broke free from the tightness in her chest. "If I didn't know better, I'd say you were a covert fan of Sailor Moon."
He covered his mouth with an embarrassed cough and leaned in closer. "Shh, don't tell anyone."
"Your secret is safe with me." She crossed her heart and then lowered her eyes to the glass in her hand. "And actually, it's Hue, but you can call me Jenny."
The hard line of his shoulders eased, and he leaned on the bar, his upper body facing her. "Dan."
She peered up through her lashes. Her heart thudded in her chest like the engine to the Millennium Falcon when it was about to give out. This guy was seriously hot, and he seemed to be attracted to her. Normally, she was more of a wallflower than a centerfold.
All hail the effects of the push-up bra.
"Nice to meet you, Dan."
"So, where are the rest of the Sailor Senshi?"
Time to start playing the part of a seductress if she wanted to complete tonight's mission. She lowered her voice to a seductive purr. "They're in bed like good little girls."
He seemed to get her message loud and clear as his gaze flickered down her cleavage and back again. "And I take it you're not a good little girl?"
"Sailor Pluto is the oldest member of the Senshi." She stretched her legs out and lifted her chest. "A woman among girls."
Thankfully, he was looking at her as a woman.
Correction—as a woman he couldn't wait to get his hands on. His fingers blanched around his glass, and he licked his lips before taking a swig of the whiskey. "What are your plans for the evening?"
To ride you until I'm screaming your name when I come.
Jenny's cheeks flamed as the rogue thought ambushed her, and she focused her attention on the bubbles lining the inside of her glass. Being a temptress was harder than she'd expected it to be. Her whole life she'd been told to act modest and demure, to never engage a man for fear he'd assume too much. But tonight was her one chance to try something new and experience how it felt to be a bad girl.
"We'll see how the evening goes," she replied in a vague way that let him know she was open to suggestion without sounding desperate.
But she was getting desperate. Her body hummed like a horny teenager's. She wanted to touch him, to taste him, to run her hands all over him. Maybe it was the carefree con atmosphere. Maybe it was the pregnancy hormones kicking in, even though she had no idea if she actually was pregnant. Hell, maybe it was confidence bestowed upon her by the push-up bra. All she knew was that Dan had her ready to shed her panties faster than any man she'd ever met.
He stared at her for a moment and then nodded as though he'd read her thoughts and understood the turmoil raging inside her. "What was your favorite part of this year's Comic-Con?"
The nervous knot inside her stomach loosened, and the geek took over. She gushed about the costumes, the celebrity sightings, the films and panels. But unlike some other hot guys who'd seemed interested in her before, Dan's eyes didn't glaze over. Instead, he frequently interrupted her to add his own thoughts, sometimes even finishing her sentences. Her pulse quickened with each exchange, and she found herself inching closer to him as the conversation progressed. He didn't flinch when their knees touched, and when his hand grazed her thigh, it seemed as natural as breathing. Before she knew it, their heads were bent low, their lips inches from each other.
He reached up to tuck her hair behind her air, and her breath hitched. His touch was gentle, and yet set every inch of her on edge.
He grew serious, his attention fully focused on her face. "You're something else, Jenny."
"Meaning?"
"Just that. It's not often I meet an attractive woman who can quote Next Gen and give me the episode number it came from."
She gave him a nervous laugh and tried to look away, but his fingers ran along her jaw and guided her gaze back to him. "What can I say? I'm a geek."
"A very sexy geek." He closed the space between them by brushing his lips against hers.
The logical side of her brain tried to classify the kiss. It started out soft and respectful, more of an attempt to gauge how receptive she'd be. When she didn't pull away, the pressure became firmer. He was no longer seeking permission. He was seeking more.
And then all logic flew out the window as her baser instincts seized control. She parted her lips, allowing him to deepen the kiss. Warmth flooded her veins, and a haze of lust blurred her vision. This wasn't a virginal geek hoping to get lucky. This was a man who knew how to make a woman swoon with his tongue.
Jenny yielded even further to him, sliding off the bar stool and into his arms. The heat from his fingers penetrated her costume, practically branding her back through the thin cotton. She grew bolder, sliding her tongue into his mouth and taking her time exploring it while she slipped her hands under his coat and ran them over the hard planes of his chest.
A strangled growl rose from his throat, and he pulled away, as breathless as she was. "We'd better take this somewhere else before we make a spectacle of ourselves."
"Agreed." But that didn't mean she had to move away. If anything, it made her move that much closer to him, pressing her body against him while he hastily paid the check.
"Where do you want to go?" he asked, his voice raw with need.
"I don't care, as long as we're not interrupted."
"My room, then." Dan took her hand and led her to the elevator.
Common sense made one final effort to stop her, warning her that he could be taking her up to his room to murder her or remove both her kidneys for the black market or a hundred other urban myths, but she easily suppressed it when she saw the bulge in his pants. This was good, old-fashioned lust at its finest. With any luck, in an hour, she'd be heading back to her room to sleep off one hell of a sex hangover.
Once the elevator doors closed, he pulled her back into his arms for one more searing kiss that made her toes curl. This was what she'd needed tonight. Even if the sex was subpar, she'd experienced enough heat and passion to remind her she was more than just a uterus.
As the kiss ended, she noticed something hard pressing into her thigh. "What is that?"
Dan gave her a sheepish smile and pulled out a red piece of plastic. "My lucky die. I never leave home without it."
Hot bod, awesome kisser, and a table-top player, too? Dan was everything she could've asked for in a man. She stood on her toes to deliver a kiss that let him know in no uncertain terms how aroused she was, ending it as the elevator dinged. "Now that's sexy."
"You have no idea how turned on I am right now."
She grazed her fingers across the front of his pants. "I have a pretty good idea."
His room was only a few yards away, and she was back in his arms again. Behind closed doors, he didn't hold back. His hands were everywhere. Her ass, her breasts, her neck. She took a cue from him and shoved his coat off his shoulders before working at his belt next. They both had the same objective, and it involved getting naked as quickly as possible.
Dan found the snaps holding her costume together and had it over her head in a flash. He leaned in to sample her newly exposed flesh, but froze. He pulled out the condoms she'd tucked under her bra strap and held them up, one brow raised in a questioning manner.
Jenny crossed her arms across her bare stomach. "A good Sailor Scout is always prepared."
"My God, you're my dream woman."
The glow from his words turned into a raging inferno as he lifted her up into his arms for another kiss and carried her to the bed. A sharp tug on her wig left it in a jade green pool on the floor just before he laid her down on the mattress. Thirty seconds later, he'd stripped down to his underwear and joined her.
But as quickly as he'd removed the main parts of their costumes, he slowed down and took his time removing her gloves and boots. He seemed to want to taste and explore every inch of skin he uncovered. It was quite different than what she'd imagined would happen tonight. She'd pictured picking up some stranger for a quickie in a bathroom stall, not a leisurely love-making session. A mixture of impatience and appreciation rolled through her, for as much as she enjoyed his lavish attention, her body screamed for release.
It wasn't until he got to unhooking her bra that a brief moment of panic rushed through her. She tensed, and he paused to lift his head.
"Is something wrong, Jenny?"
Self-conscious shyness tempered her arousal. "It's just that I—I mean, the bra is a bit of an enhancer and I didn't want you to be disappointed and—"
He silenced her by covering her mouth with his, kissing her until her fears were forgotten. "Do you think I'd be any less turned on than I am now?"
She looked into his eyes and the desire simmering in them as he stared at her face. He wanted her, not her enhanced cleavage. A strange sensation bloomed inside her, one she'd never experienced outside the computer lab.
Confidence.


This paper studies the long-term effect of hedge fund activism on firm productivity using plant-level information from the U.S. Census Bureau. A typical target firm improves production efficiency in the 3 years after intervention, with stronger improvements in business strategy-oriented interventions. Plants sold after intervention improve productivity significantly under new ownership, suggesting that capital redeployment is an important channel for value creation. Employees of target firms experience stagnation in work hours and wages despite an increase in labor productivity. Additional tests refute alternative explanations attributing the improvement to mean reversion, management's voluntary reforms, industry consolidation shocks, or activists' stock-picking abilities.


text:
Morocco seeks to settle issues with Algeria via direct talks
Polisario Front
After six years, Western Sahara talks begin with "ice-breaker" meeting
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As Morocco's king offers to hold direct talks with Algeria, we take a look at the issues that keep the two countries at odds — contentious border issues dating back to French colonisation and the territory of Western Sahara.
Morocco's King Mohammed VI has called for direct talks with Algeria to end long-standing political stalemates between the two countries. The King and his son Crown Prince Moulay leave the Elysee Palace in Paris after attending a World War I Commemoration Ceremony on November 11, 2018. (Christophe Ena / AP)
Morocco has reaffirmed its call to Algeria — which has yet to respond to Rabat's invitation earlier this month — to address both countries' decades-long political issues through bilateral talks.
Morocco and Algeria, neighbours in northwestern Africa, have long had bitter divisions over contentious border issues and the unsettled status of the Western Sahara, a disputed region where the Polisario Front, a secessionist political group backed by Algeria, pursues a UN-approved right to self-determination.
Their political issues can be traced back to the 1960s, when Algeria attained independence from France and the contentious Moroccan-Algerian border was drawn.
However, things further escalated in 1994 when Morocco imposed a visa requirement on Algerian citizens to enter the country following an armed attack in Marrakech, a Moroccan city. Algeria responded by closing its border, which is one of the world's longest borders, to Morocco.
The barrier continues to impact their economic growth and separate families.
In order to revive relations between the two countries, Morocco's King Mohammed VI recently extended one of his warmest reconciliatory statements toward Algeria to date since the 1994 attack.
In his invitation for talks, the king described Algeria as a "sister nation," expressing his readiness "for a direct and frank dialogue."
Morocco's call for bilateral talks with Algeria coincide with a new UN initiative to break the Western Sahara deadlock between the Polisario Front and Rabat. The UN has also invited Mauritania and Algeria in the Sahara talks scheduled for December.
Here is a breakdown of the main problems which impede a settlement between the two countries.
Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika is seen in Algiers, Algeria on April 9, 2018. (Ramzi Boudina / Reuters)
Border disputes
While Morocco had supported the Algerian independence movement against France in the 1950s and 1960s, a colonialist legacy of border problems has left its mark.
Under French occupation, Algeria was a colony — a part of metropolitan France — and Morocco held the less-empowered status of a protectorate. Rabat claims the French favoured Algeria and sliced off some Moroccan territory, giving it to Algiers illegally.
In the decade after 1962, border issues pitted the two militaries against each other on more than one occasion. In 1972, the countries reached a final border agreement.
But with the emergence of the Western Sahara issue following the departure of Spain — another European colonialist power — from the region in 1975, ties between Algeria and Morocco deteriorated.
Since the end of Spanish occupation in the Western Sahara in 1975, the region has been a contentious territory between Morocco and the Polisario Front, which has been backed by Algeria. Sahrawi women hold Polisario Front flags at a refugee camp of Dakhla in Tindouf, Algeria on February 27, 2016. (TRTWorld)
Since the end of Spanish occupation in the Western Sahara, the region has been contested territory between Morocco and the Polisario Front. The Front fought against Spanish occupation until 1975; parts of the Western Sahara were annexed by Morocco and Mauritania in 1976.
The Front has clashed on occasion with both Morocco and Mauritania forces, with Algerian support. Mauritania left the Western Sahara in 1979, but Morocco continues to maintain its presence there. Rabat has direct control over much of the region after building a 2,700-kilometre-long wall in the Sahara in the 1980s. There are UN-monitored buffer zones west of the wall.
In 1976, the Front declared an independent state in the Sahara, the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR), which is not recognised internationally. A UN-brokered ceasefire in 1991 mostly brought clashes between the Front and Morocco to an end.
From the very beginning of the conflict between Morocco and the Front, Algeria has openly supported the latter.
Algeria sees the Sahara dispute as a "decolonisation issue" and finds "a duty of solidarity with the Sahrawi people for the exercise of their legitimate rights."
But Rabat regards the Sahara as part of Moroccan territory, calling the region its southern provinces.
And even though the country has appealed for direct talks with Algeria, the king has reiterated Morocco has not changed its position regarding the Sahara dispute.
"No stone is being left unturned in the pursuit of progress in our southern provinces under the new development model. The aim is to make sure the Moroccan Sahara can once again play its historical role as an effective link between Morocco and its sub-Saharan African roots, be it from the geographical or historical perspective," King Mohammed VI said during his call for reconciliation.
Source: TRT World
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Naval top brass undergo self-punishment
Commander-in-chief, Sattahip base commander pay for subordinate's misconduct
Adm Somprasong Nilsamai (left), the navy chief, and VAdm Narupol Kerdnak (right), commander of the Sattahip Naval Base. (Photo supplied)
The naval chief and the commander of a naval base have undergone self-punishment to uphold discipline and show responsibility after one of their subordinates committed a serious misconduct.
Adm Somprasong Nilsamai, commander-in-chief of the Royal Thai Navy, and VAdm Narupol Kerdnak, commander of the Sattahip Naval Base, on Thursday took the responsibilty for the actions of their subordinate, according to VAdm Pokkrong, director-general of the Naval Civil Affairs Department.
Lt Alongkorn Ploddee, director of the Real Estate Division of the Sattahip Naval Base, has been involved in quarrels and made false claims on various occasions, ruining the reputation of the navy as a whole, VAdm Pokkrong said.
Last Thursday night, he was caught on video verbally abused Sattahip policemen who showed up at a restaurant for a routine inspection, saying they had ruined his happy time.
"You don't give me due honour," he said. He then threw a glass of liquor at them and said he could put them in trouble.
Lt Alongkorn said that the police should have known that Sattahip belongs to the navy and that he was a member of its Seals team of highly trained divers.
In the clip, Lt Alongkorn also claimed he was a friend of "Big Joke", a reference to Pol Lt Gen Surachate Hakparn, the assistant police chief.
VAdm Pokkrong said Lt Alongkorn had been summonsed by the navy for disciplinary action. A committee had been set up to conduct an investigation into his alleged misconduct.
To show responsibility for the misconduct committed by Lt Alongkorn, his bosses of two levels up — VAdm Narupol and Adm Somprasong — had undergone self-punishment for seven and three days, respectively.
The self-punishment includes shaving heads, walking long distances with a backpack, running with weights, doing menial labour and three days in confinement.
Peter Tolhurst December 30, 2021 Reply →
When Australia's top brass take on the chin for a subordinates discretion, Hell will freeze over.


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School soccer star ponders next level
STEADY STAR: Marlo Campbell has been an example of consistency for her club team, the U14 Level 4 Premier league's Leaside Tigers Blue, as well as Northlea Elementary and Middle School. She's setting her sights on joining Bishop Strachan School's soccer squad.
Marlo Campbell is looking to take her soccer game to the next level: high school.
The 14-year-old Leaside Tigers Blue defender, who graduated from Northlea Public School in June, is going to be settling into Bishop Strachan Bobcats territory this month.
On a cool, mid-August day, Campbell was sitting on the bleachers at her alma mater chatting about her immediate future: the club team and its pursuit of the U14 Level 4 Premier League Cup. Mom Valerie and 12-year-old sister Quinn joined the conversation.
"I don't think we know what to expect with BSS soccer, going into it at Grade 9," Valerie said. "Keeping her fit, her skills up and injury free are the goal."
Campbell and Central Girls' Soccer League troupe bounced Darlington B from the bracket, 4-0, on Aug. 14. They will have their work cut out for them come Sept. 20, when they challenge Thornhill.
The biggest obstacle is summer vacation, as plenty of the club team's crew had left.
"We started off really well, but it's vacation season now, so everyone has shorter seasons," Campbell said.
In league play, Leaside sits in sixth with a 3-6-1 record. On the bright side, the troupe is only four points out of third. Unionville and Thornhill are holding fast to the top two spots in the table, and the rest — Etobicoke, Darlington B, Oak Ridges and Leaside Blue.
Team coach Mike Swan said Campbell has been the standout both in playing ability and leadership. Like most teen athletes, she's modest, admitting she still has to hone her skills before trying out for Bishop Strachan's squad, which is coached by Sharon Jameson.
"[I'm] improving my kick," Marlo Campbell said. "There's still room for improvement, and becoming a leader on the team."
Valerie balked at her daughter's reserve, picking out the talents that have helped Leaside Tigers.
"She has a good, strong kick," she said, laughing when "golden boot" was suggested. "[And] she's a good leader on the team."
Oh, and the fact that Marlo makes like a Lou Gehrig of the soccer world.
"We rarely miss anything," Valerie Campbell said. "We come back from the cottage for games.
"In the last two years we've missed one game."
Brian Baker photography Marlo Campbell Soccer Town Crier Leaside-Rosedale
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Soapy has a Master's degree, an honorary doctorate, and forty years of ministry experience to answer questions and offer spiritual counsel. However, he emphasizes basic truths held in common by most believers, reminding listeners that they need their own pastor and church fellowship for finer doctrinal instruction and healthy growth. The "live" interaction has triggered more interest in the text, and right on cue, the music comes up and the "spotlight" returns to the Bible as the reading is repeated to end the night's broadcast.


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The women of Kimsakocha have been the backbone of the defence of the water. Photo credit: Yasunidos Cuenca
6 August 2021, 4.33pm EDT
INV Metals' Loma Larga Project Acquired by Canadian Company with Toxic Environmental Record in Eastern Europe and Africa
Dundee Precious MetalsIAMGOLDINV MetalsArmeniaBulgariaEcuador
Viviana Herrera
Latin America Program Coordinator
On the evening of May 31, 2021, communities in Cuenca, Ecuador were hit with shocking news when it was announced that Vancouver-based mining company INV Metals had been acquired by Toronto-based Dundee Precious Metals. No one saw this coming. INV Metals had been (and still is) running ads promoting its Loma Larga project, in a desperate effort to achieve social licence for the project. Earlier this year, Cuencanos voted overwhelmingly (80%) in favour of water protection and against the mining project.
Dundee, which has a toxic environmental record in eastern Europe and Africa, now plans to settle in Latin America and this has communities in Cuenca, Ecuador, extremely worried.
So, who is Dundee Precious Metals (DPM)?
DPM is a Toronto-based gold mining company with operations and projects in Bulgaria, Namibia, Serbia, and now Ecuador. In the highland páramo wetland ecosystem in southern Ecuador, the Loma Larga project represents the firm's first mining project in Latin America.
This is a significant purchase, as DPM is a larger company with operations in many countries, compared to INV Metals, whose sole project was Loma Larga. While the announcement may have come as a surprise for many, Dundee was very familiar with INV Metals. In fact, DPM was one of INV Metals' strategic shareholders (23.5%) alongside IAMGOLD (35.5%). Similarly, Dundee's current President and Chief Executive Officer, David Rae, is also a director of INV Metals.
Since the announcement, DPM has repeatedly said that Loma Larga "is well-aligned with its proven strengths as an environmentally and socially responsible mining company in Bulgaria and Namibia." Despite such claims, communities in those countries have denounced the company many times in recent years for environmental and social damages.
Dundee's health hazard record in Bulgaria, Namibia, and Armenia
Dundee's Ada Tepe open-pit gold mine in Southern Bulgaria, near the town of Krimovgrad, faced many obstacles before it started operations in 2019. The mine is located in an area designated by the European Union as part of Natura 2000, an ecological network of protected biodiverse areas. In 2007, MiningWatch Canada's Catherine Coumans wrote in A sample of Canadian mining companies operating in developing countries accused of human rights and environmental abuses that "the Municipal Council of Krumovgrad passed a resolution in 2005 rejecting the project on environmental grounds given that the company…planned to extract gold using a cyanide-based method". Communities mobilized, and "nearly 10,000 people, representing close to 90% of eligible voters, endorsed the resolution by signing the document." The project was stalled for several years until 2016 when it received its construction permit. Despite this, local residents remain concerned about the mine's land and water pollution and the impact on agriculture, cattle farming and tourism.
The Chelopech underground copper and gold mine near Sofia, Bulgaria, contains a high concentration of arsenic and sulphur, which pose serious environmental and health hazards. Local environmental regulations prohibit such concentrate from being treated in Bulgaria. Thus, Dundee transfers the hazardous concentrates to its Tsumeb smelter in Namibia for processing. As the Central and Eastern European Bankwatch Network puts it, this has created a situation where the treatment of toxic and hazardous materials is transferred from a community in Europe to another one in Africa, a business strategy that has been denounced for violating the international convention on waste disposal. Local communities in Tsumeb report polluted air due to the smelter emissions, which doctors link to a spike in lung problems among locals.
Likewise, many workers at the Tsumeb smelter have shown high levels of arsenic in their blood and urine and suffered from skin rashes, cancer, blindness, and burned faces. Dundee has been accused of refusing to recognize its responsibility and failing to compensate workers so they can access medication to treat their illnesses.
Another project that Dundee does not name in its press releases but has nevertheless left a damaging socio-environmental impact is its Geghanush tailings dump in southern Armenia. The tailings facility suffered "a series of tailing leaks resulting from poorly constructed pipes" in 2012. From 2008 to 2016, communities demanded compensation and accused the firm of jeopardizing their means of subsistence, agriculture and livestock, by contaminating soil and water sources and exposing animals, flora and communities to health ailments such as allergies, osteoporosis, birth defects, and tumours through letters to the company and meetings with company's representatives. In January 2016, a few months before the company sold the project to a Russian mining company, affected community members voiced their concerns again during a town hall with one of the company's managers. However, the communities quickly became convinced "that the company had no intention to provide any compensation."
Dundee attempts to draw parallels between its operations and Loma Larga
Despite this deplorable and systematic track record of health hazards and lack of accountability in its projects in eastern Europe and Africa, Dundee promotes them as success stories and even compares them to Loma Larga. In a local newspaper in Cuenca, Dundee recently stated that Loma Larga "has similar geology and is expected to have a similar mining method and processing flowsheet to the Chelopech mine." In the same vein, it says that it "intends to further engage with all stakeholders, as it did prior to the development of its Ada Tepe mine, which is now a highly successful DPM operation that enjoys strong support from both local communities and the national government in Bulgaria."
Similarly, INV Metals, former owner of Loma Larga, said in 2019 that "DPM's Tsumeb smelter could potentially be used to process the complex copper/gold concentrate from Loma Larga." Now that DPM is the direct owner of Loma Larga this is even more clearly a worrying possibility.
"DPM's ominous record is a path that we do not accept for our páramos."
For more than 10 years, Canadian mining companies including IAMGOLD, INV Metals, and now Dundee Precious Metals, have been attempting to develop the Loma Larga mining project against the will of the local population. The resistance against the project has led to significant victories, such as the 2021 referendum. Local communities won't be fooled by DPM's attempt to whitewash its current operations. Dundee must know that this opposition to the project won't change and investors must understand that this project doesn't, and won't, have social licence.
Loma Larga is a mining project which will dramatically impact the high-altitude wetlands and water sources of the Kimsakocha páramo. This fragile ecosystem supplies water for domestic use and irrigation to numerous Indigenous communities, whose livelihoods depend on agriculture and livestock. Rural and urban communities alike fear that this mining project will violate their right to water and pollute their land and ecosystems. Paola Granizo, a biologist and member of Yasunidxs Guapondelig and the Cuenca Water Chapter, bluntly puts it: "DPM's ominous record is a path that we do not accept for our páramos, territories, and water. We envision a mega-diverse Ecuador, not a mega-mining one."
News A Ticking Time Bomb: Independent Review Reveals Serious Risks at Proposed Loma Larga Mine 29.09.2022
Blog Entry Key Victory for Water Defenders in Southern Ecuador Against Canadian Mining 14.07.2022
News Canada Pushes More Mining During PDAC 2022, Even as Indigenous Leaders are Detained in Ecuador 14.06.2022
Blog Entry One Year Since Cuenca, Ecuador Voted to Protect Water Over Mining, Communities Demand Their Decision Be Respected 09.02.2022
Blog Entry Ecuador Organizations Condemn Canadian Mining Lobby on Important Public Consultation Decision 27.08.2020


Desirable Hanman Golf Estates just across the street from the Marshfield Country Club and Golf Course. Lot is inside city limits, with access to city sewer and water available.
This home is situated on an oversized lot. There is newer central heat & air which was installed in 2012. Home needs some TLC but it seems to be pretty much just cosmetic. Home is being sold as-is where is.
3.6 Acre Lot with brand new 30 X 40 Shop with concrete floor buil;t on it less than 60 days ago. Come in and build your home on this beautiful site.


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Fox DavidFox David
Vikings Nominate Eric Kendricks for Walter Payton Man of the Year Award
The Minnesota Vikings have made Eric Kendricks their nominee for the Walter Payton Man of The Year award from the NFL.
The Vikings honored Kendricks as their 2020 Community Man of the Year, and put him up for the league's highest off the field honor, the Walter Payton Man of the Year Award. Kendricks is a key member of the Vikings Social Justice Committee and has done a lot of work with a variety of Twin Cities organizations.
Kendricks has previously worked with Every Meal/Sheridan Story, an organization that helps provide meals to kids, and after the death of George Floyd, Kendricks took a lead role in the Vikings Social Justice Committee and started working with All Square, an organization that helps provide work for former prison inmates.
Back in September Kendricks delivered a $250,000 check to All Square as part of the Vikings and Wilf family's $5 million overall commitment to social justice causes, and $1 million of that money will be directly awarded by the Vikings Social Justice Committee.
During that check presentation Kendricks was notified that he was the recipient of the Vikings Community Man of the Year award and would be nominated for the Walter Payton Man of the Year Award. After getting the news and a customized #54 jersey that read WPMOY on the back, Kendricks said, "That's what's up! Hell, yeah."
You can read more about the work that Kendricks has done, and it's a lot, here on the Vikings' official announcement about the nomination. Kyle Rudolph has gotten the nomination the 3 previous years for his work with the U of M Children's Hospital.
NFL Players With Famous Current And Former Wives And Girlfriends
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Duluth Mayor Emily Larson Posts Her Reaction to Inauguration Day


Solar energy is forecasted to become a new source of power to lead the world to a low-carbon future and expectedly, away from a global climate catastrophe. For solar energy to become very cheap that it can compete with coal and oil, its deployments need to be greatly developed.
Solar power can meet wholly the world demand of electricity. It has the capability to provide several times the country's energy demand. The world's covered desert area of 40 percent can supply all of universe electricity. Even the Gobi Desert could supply all of the world's electricity. It has a discontinuous production of supplying electricity and is generally kept by storage or another energy source with the wind, power, and hydropower. Its major problem is with the escalating installation cost. But as time is passing by the cost of solar power installation is decreasing.
Solar energy helps to reduce the release of carbon dioxide on earth and provide beneficial health from the clean air in houses. It reduces deforestation and time of the people who spend a larger time in gathering wood, allowing more time to work on productive and income generating activities. The use of solar energy system increases agriculture and industrial production by creating rich soil and smooth water flows.
Many countries are utilizing solar energy for a wide range of users including cooking, water heating. Solar water heating water is a confirmed technology with hundred of thousand units being used in this world. Utilizing the solar water heating can reduce about 50 to 60 percent domestic water cost. In this context, the gas and electricity saved can be utilized in the industrial sector.
Many developing countries do not have large funds to build huge solar plants, but somehow or another they are solving their problem by introducing small solar application. Solar power works by taking energy from the sun and using solar panels. It is usually installed on the roof, to convert into usable- electricity.
Western countries like Germany and Spain are developing solar energy. In South Asia, Bangladesh and India are quickly deploying this technology already, which is becoming cheaper each year. The Chinese have actually managed to bring down prices in the last few years. It is estimated that in 2011 Photo Voltaic (PV) modules cost 60 percent less than what they did in 2008. China has an abundant of solar panel production and Chinese manufacturers that supply most of the world's solar panels are struggling to expand fast.
Spain has been the forefront of universal efforts to produce solar energy as high as 432MW, hitting the United States by 10MW. It has opened the largest solar power station, overtaking the United States as the biggest solar generator in the world. Spain is one of the countries of Europe with more days of the hour of sunshine. It exports 80 percent of the solar energy to Germany. According to official sources, another 600 MW will be added to the grid. It is anticipated the overall solar capacity to be 2,500 MW. In Spain the world's Biggest Solar Power Tower, Abengo began commercial operation of a 20MW solar plant tower near Seville in the late April 2009, called the PS20.
Israel has successfully introduced solar energy. There is no oil in Israel and it does not maintain a cordial relation with Arab oil producing countries and so in order to maintain its economic stability and security it has given utmost importance to solar energy. With abundant sunshine available in the country, it has made immense use of solar energy for the economic development of its country. The innovative and its advanced research have made the stride in solar energy to such an extent competitive with fossil fuel technology.
India is situated in the Earth's equatorial Sun Belt. It receives abundant solar radiation. It is said that India experiences clear bright weather for 250 to 300 days per annum. India has kept aside 35,000-kilometer region of Thar Desert that could be sufficient in generating 700 to 21,000 gigawatts for the proposed large solar energy projects.
India has disclosed that by 2020 it will be mandatory to use solar- powered applications and equipment in every government buildings, hospitals, and hotels. In regard to the use of solar powered application and equipment in every government buildings, hotels, and hospitals India shared the first position with the United States.
Pakistan is located in a region with ample sun energy that makes it suitable to utilize solar power technologies to overcome the energy crisis. The largest businesses today are effectively making use of solar energy to power their operations. Solar energy can now be an affordable and practical contributor to our country's energy needs. Reduced capital expense has made it really attractive for industrial and corporate users alike. It helps reduce long term operating costs, provides a reasonably predictable supply of electricity and is a complete hedge against market fuel price volatility.
Presently, Pakistan has an installed capacity of around 23,000 megawatts and a demand of only around 16,000 megawatts so we should go quickly developing solar energy. Energy reforms are of no use unless they are long-term and we need to be thinking of the future. Our government should plan for the long-term taking into consideration population growth and the increased demand for electricity into consideration.
Without any doubt, solar energy has a substantial role to play in the country and needs to be actively promoted by the government on a priority basis. However, without some sort of financing, solar installations for now remain expensive and out of reach of the many. If bank finance schemes are made available, a lot more people will install solar systems. The technology is sound, the vendors are ready, and the need is desperate. The government and the banks must jump on to financing the solar energy.
Pakistan is facing a chronic energy problem. It is unfortunate that there is less production of electricity from the hydro power source during hot and dry months and this cannot keep with the increased rise in energy demand. About 80 percent of the population lives in villages scattered all around the country. Their residence is far from the grid station transmission lines of the national grid. Therefore, in this context it is not economically feasible to connect these villages with the transmission lines to the grid.
In spite of all the hurdles, the prospects of solar energy are very bright as Pakistan receives the high level of solar radiation throughout the year. Solar energy systems have already been developed, but more have to be developed and introduced to generate economy and improve the standard of living of the poor people. The solar system meets the necessary requirement of rural areas and reduces the pressure on traditional energy sources in urban areas. The rest can be utilized fruitfully for other domestic and industrial needs.
The solar technology is not so much sophisticated and is likely to be successful from the commercial point of view. Solar Energy Research Centre has been able to set up an up to date facility for the large production of solar geysers and cookers and provide all necessary technical, support, service, and implementation and management services. Already many have shown their interest in obtaining the Solar Energy Research Centre system for cooking and water heating.
For years, Pakistanis have cried through summer power cuts, but now the present government plans to exploit the sun's large heat to tackle the country's chronic energy crisis. The energy crises largely demand that Pakistan should reduce its dependence on costly fossil fuels and make well use of its natural resources like the sunlight or even wind also.
The adoption and utilization of modern solar and geothermal technologies including heat pumps, solar water heater and solar water pumps in Pakistan would lessen dependence on fossil fuel that is extensively imported from UAE and Saudi Arabia. The developed and developing countries have swiftly diversified their energy mix resources and there is no reason why Pakistan blessed by Almighty Allah with a lot of sunlight should adopt solar energy as a first step in the domestic sector.
The 900MW solar project is launched in Pakistan with the investment of US $1.5 billion by Zonergy Company Limited and is so far the largest solar power project in the world. This project is developed with the cutting edge technology and the equipment is being procured from the renowned manufacturers of Europe and China. The 900MW solar project is constructed in three phases and expected to connect to the national grid by the end of 2016. It will be invested by Zonergy Company Limited. First 50MW will be put into the national grid by the end of August 2015, an additional of 250MW by the end of December 2015, thereafter every month 100MW will be added to the national grid. 10 power projects are also being set up in Thar to tap the solar heat for power generation. When completed, Pakistan will stand in the list of top 10 countries to produce more than 1,000MW of solar energy. Energy companies working in Pakistan have said that plans for a 50-megawatt solar power plant would help the country avert a long-term energy crisis.
Pakistan has great potential for exporting solar panels to European and African markets which would boost country economy. Following the European Union granted Technischer Uberwachungs Verein TUV (a German Technical Association) certificate to a Pakistani solar panel manufacturing company Tesla Technologies, a number of European Union and African countries have placed export orders for exporting Pakistani manufactured solar panel to these countries.
German solar energy company Conergy has announced that it has teamed with Hong Kong project developer Ensunt to build a 50-megawatt solar power plant in Pakistan. Conergy described the project as the biggest solar power effort for the country and one of the most ambitious in the region. "With 8-9 hours of the sunshine per day and annual insulation values of more than 1,700-kilowatt hours per square meter, the climatic conditions in Pakistan are ideal (for solar power)," said Conergy.
A Norwegian company signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with a Pakistani company on to establish three solar power plants in Pakistan. Nizam Energy of Sindh and Scatec Solar signed the MoU in Oslo to establish three solar plants to generate 150MW through clean energy in Pakistan. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and his Norwegian counterpart Erna Solberg witnessed the signing ceremony.
A Chinese company has built the power plant in Bahawalpur, in the Punjab province of Pakistan. The Quaid-e-Azam Solar Park is a 229-hectare facility in the Cholistan desert and has been hailed as an early part of China's Silk Road program. According to China Daily, 100-megawatts of capacity have been installed in just three months, at a cost of $215 million.
Amid a worsening energy crisis, Pakistan has approved the use of grid-connected solar energy, rooftop solar installations and mortgage financing for home solar panels to boost uptake of clean energy in the country. The government has also reversed course and eliminated a 32.5 percent tax imposed on imported solar equipment in the country's 2014-2015 budget.
The State Bank of Pakistan and the Alternative Energy Development Board has recently allowed the bank for the first time to finance rooftop solar installation with home mortgages. Pakistan can cut carbon emissions to a significant extent and access international climate financing by promoting solar energy, besides overcoming its energy crisis.
The government should announce major incentives for importing and installing solar systems; make all components of solar system tax-free and not just the solar panels, which currently is the case, and direct banks to significantly reduce their mark-up on loans for renewable energy investors. New constructions should be bound to generate at least 20 to 25 percent of their total energy from solar. The solar business should be regulated by binding the importer to produce a certificate indicting that the products meet the certain international standard.


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Thursday's NHS strike called off after breakthrough in talks
Merseyside hospital appointments were cancelled in anticipation of the industrial action
Joshua Taylor
Ambulance workers picket outside Fazakerley Ambulance Station, Lower Lane, Fazakerley (Image: ANDREW TEEBAY)
Planned industrial action by health workers in a row over pay has been suspended after a breakthrough in talks.
Members of Unison, the GMB and Unite were due to walk out in England and Northern Ireland on Thursday and again next month in protest at the Government's refusal to accept a recommended 1% wage rise for all NHS staff.
Extensive talks between union leaders and officials at the Department of Health led to fresh proposals, which will now be put to workers.
Dozens of hospital appointments across Merseyside were cancelled in anticipation of the strike, although it is understood some procedures will now be moved back to Thursday.
The offer is believed to include a consolidated 1% payment for staff up to senior level, an additional £200 consolidated payment for lower paid staff, the first point on the pay scale to be abolished and the second raised to £15,100.
There is also a commitment from the Government to the NHS Pay Review Body, which will continue to make future recommendations on pay increases for NHS staff in 2016 and 2017.
Unison's head of health, Christina McAnea, said: "The two strike days staged by health workers last year have moved the Government to negotiate with the unions.
"This isn't a great offer but it addresses some of the key concerns unions have about low pay in the NHS.
"In the interest of patients' safety, unions will now consult members. It will be up to members to decide whether to accept or reject the proposals.
"If they choose to reject them we will move to further industrial action."
The Royal College of Midwives and Society of Radiographers were also set to take part in the industrial action.
Unite's assistant general secretary, Gail Cartmail, said: "Following talks we have suspended industrial action and called off Thursday's strike to consult with our members over the coming days.
"The offer moves the NHS towards becoming a living wage employer and begins to address issues around low pay. Members will decide on whether to accept or reject the offer of what we believe is the best that can be achieved by negotiation."
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