text:
Youth Affairs
Thousands of Medicos May Miss NEET-PG Entrance 2023
SRINAGAR: The National Board of Examination cut off date of March 31, 2023 for completion of internship for MBBS students to be eligible to apply for NEET-PG 2023 will render several thousand final year MBBS students ineligible to appear for the examination scheduled for March 5.
Lt Governor addressing first batch of MBBS students of GMC Doda
Students in many medical colleges in many states will be completing their internships between April and June, as postings for the year-long internships were given late in 2022 due to the Covid19 pandemic.
While many students in deemed universities such as SRM University will complete their internship in April, those in state-run medical colleges will complete the same in April.
NEET PG is an entrance test for students who have completed 4.5 years of MBBS and a year of internship. Upon the qualification, the students become eligible for admission in MS and MD and PG Diploma courses.
The Federation of Resident Doctors' Association (FORDA) expressed their concern about the issue in a series of tweets. They mentioned that fifty per cent of the interns are ineligible for the upcoming NEET PG and it is putting their career on stake. They put focus on resolving the issue and saving the future of students.
Across India, batch 2017 is pursuing their internship and they have to appear in NEET PG this year. In Jammu and Kashmir, batch 2017 is undergoing their final examinations currently. Batch 2016 is yet to complete their internship. It will be ended on March 7, 2023, which makes them eligible for NEET PG. "The delay is due to conditions in 2016, delay of results and late conduct of exams," said a student of batch 2016 who is preparing for NEET PG.
It is the same situation in various other states outside Jammu and Kashmir.
"No medico studying in the regular batch will be eligible to write NEET-PG 2023. In many state most colleges will be eligible only if the last date is fixed on June 15 2023," said state Medical Council in Punjab. "The National Board of Examination seeking change in the deadline for completion of internship." In Punjab, the state health department has also received representations from heads of colleges, students and parents,
The information bulletin released by the National Board of Examination, a body which conducts NEET-PG – an eligibility-cum-ranking examination prescribed as the single entrance examination for admission to MD/MS and PG diploma courses .
"Requests for appearing in NEET-PG 2023 from candidates completing internship after 31st March 2023 or having qualifications that are not recognized as per the NMC Act, 2019 and the repealed IMC Act, 1956 shall be summarily rejected. Candidates are further advised not to canvass for the same."
The deadline for submitting applications for the exams ends by January 27, and the National Board of Examination will issue admit cards for the exam by February 27. Medical students and professors at medical college in many states say the Centre's rule is unfair.
"The entire batch will be affected if the rule is not revised. They will have to waste one year for no fault of theirs. Their classes were disturbed, exams were postponed and postings were delayed due to Covid. Why should we students who worked so hard, be punished?" asked a student from the state-run government medical college in Punjab
(Vijay Garg and Maleeha Sofi contributed to this report)
Government Medical College (GMC)
Kashmir Doctors
Kashmir Students
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All About Cross Country Mountain Biking!
Cross country mountain biking is cross country at its finest.
Where free riders and downhill bikers use four wheel bikes and ski lifts to get them to their destination, cross country bikers get to the top of the mountain by the ride.
Though free riding is very popular, the life vein of the sport has always been cross country biking.
Cross country bikes
Just as cross country riders are a different breed, the bikes they ride are as well. The cross country bike is completely different in many ways from other types of mountain riding bikes. The premise for cross country riders is speed. Everything about their bikes revolves with the idea of making the bikes faster and faster.
Bikes used in cross country mountain biking can be fully rigid frame, hard tails, or even full suspension frames. Through the years, the crossover to full suspension has become very popular.
The weight difference between free ride bikes and cross country bikes are considerable. You'll be extremely hard pressed to find a bike that weighs more than 24 pounds, and even that weight can be heavy. Free ride bikes weigh close to 40 pounds, which makes the difference in weight pretty close.
If you've never tried cross country mountain biking, you'll probably find it to be a break from the ordinary. Even though cross country mountain biking involves trails, it's normally the type of terrain that beginners wouldn't want to ride. Involving hills and rough terrain, cross country mountain biking offers quite the rush.
For mountain bikers everywhere, cross country is the way to go. It offers you a new assortment of bikes, new areas to bike, and a new twist to mountain biking as you know it. If you've been looking for a mountain biking rush, cross country mountain biking is what you need to be experiencing.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


HIMSS19 will take place in Orlando, FL and will be located at the Orange County Convention Center, West Building.
Monday, December 3, 2018 (11:59 pm CST).
I registered, but have not received a confirmation. How do I get another one sent to me?
Please request by email to himss@compusystems.com. You may also call the HIMSS registrar, CompuSystems, at (855) 326-8342 to request a confirmation letter.
I registered, but I'd like to add additional events to my registration. How can I do that?
You can return directly to the registration website to edit your current registration by using the email address and log in you designated. You may also email CompuSystems at himss@compusystems.com or call at (855) 326-8342 to update your registration.
Is there an age limit at the HIMSS conference or events?
Yes. All registrants, including spouses or guests, must be 21 years of age or older to attend any portion of the HIMSS conference and events.
What is the address to mail checks to?
* Please reference your registration confirmation number on your payment.
I'm a first-time attendee; do you have any tips for me?
Plan to join in on our complimentary preconference webinar this winter, dates and times to be determined.
You may also sit in on one of our First-Time Conference Orientation Sessions onsite at HIMSS19. These sessions will take place on Monday, February 11 from 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm EST and Tuesday, February 12 from 10:30 am – 11:30 am EST.
Learn about these tips and more for first-time attendees here.
I need a letter in order to obtain a Visa. Whom do I contact?
You may request a Visa during the online registration process, and will be prompted after your enter your country.
Is the Awards Gala included in the fee for conference?
No. The Awards Gala is not included with the registration fee and is a paid optional networking event.
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No. Hotels can be booked at the HIMSS rate before registering for the convention. We encourage booking in advance as hotel rooms fill up fast. Book your hotel now.
OnPeak is the official HIMSS Housing Bureau. All reservations should be made directly through onPeak.
What do I need to do to qualify for the student rate?
Individuals requesting the student rate may not hold a full-time equivalent (FTE) position in the fields of healthcare information and management systems. Individuals must also be formally enrolled in, but not limited to, a: certificate, associate, undergraduate, graduate, postdoc or fellowship, or residency program.
Please note, your badge will state "Student" at the bottom.
I registered as a Speaker, what happens next?
Your registration will be placed in a Pending status until approval is received by HIMSS Staff for verification. You will hear from the HIMSS Professional Development staff if more information is needed to process your request. Once your status has been verified you will receive a separate notice of confirmation. Your registration is not complete until you receive a verified confirmation email.
May I register for the education and exhibit hall separately?
Yes. You may opt for a single day registration, which allows access to all education sessions and the exhibit hall on Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday. You may also register for an exhibit hall pass that includes admittance to the exhibit hall on Thursday only. Please note: the HIMSS exhibition floor is not open on Friday.
Does my HIMSS conference registration include admittance to Monday educational programs?
No. There is an additional fee for all Monday programs.
Can I register for an optional educational program and/or symposium and NOT the HIMSS Conference?
Yes. These selections are available on their own under Optional Events on the registration site by selecting "Events Only" as your registration type.
Yes. However, guests and spouses must be at least 21 years old and must register for the full conference, daily registration or optional events only in order to attend any functions at HIMSS19.
Is there a special guest category for spouses in advance or onsite?
No. Spouses/guests have to register as full conference, daily registrants or exhibit hall only to gain access. No exceptions. Additional tickets can be purchased for special events, such as the Awards Gala or Thursday Night Event.
What is the cancellation policy for full conference registrations, exhibit hall only passes, single day registrations, events only and preconference symposia and workshops?
On or Before Monday, January 14, 2019: These registrations, less a $100 cancellation fee, are refundable only if submitted in writing to himss@compusystems.com.
After Monday, January14, 2019: Registrations and cancellations received after January 14 are not refundable.
You cannot reinstate a registration after you cancel it.
HIMSS membership fees are non-refundable and non-transferable.
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If you cancel and are entitled to a refund, expect the refund within 3 to 5 business days. Registrations must be charged to Visa, MasterCard, American Express or Discover. Wire payments and checks are also accepted. No purchase orders are accepted. All refunds will be issued back to the original payment type.
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We will accept any checks received up to a week after the published cut-off date at the previous price. After that, they will be keyed as a balance due at the current rate.
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HIMSS does not allow cancelled registrants to reinstate their original registration. They must re-register again at the rate for that time and provide new payment.
I can no longer attend the conference. Can I send a substitute?
Yes. However, the substitute must pay any difference in registration rate based on membership status. Your substitute must first register themselves and pay the fee associated with their registration. Once this is complete, please send the substitute's registration ID to the HIMSS registrar, CompuSystems, at himss@compusystems.com. Your account will be cancelled and your fee refunded. If the substitution takes place on-site, the substitute must bring a letter on company letterhead verifying the substitution.
What is the cut-off for the CPHIMS and CAHIMS Exam registration? How is the Exam registration handled after the cut-off has passed?
CPHIMS and CAHIMS Exam registrations will be accepted through the HIMSS19 online registration until Friday, February 8, 2019. Exam fees are outlined in the table below. Exam fees are non-refundable and non-transferable to another person or another administration. No Exam registrations will be accepted after Friday, February 8, 2019.
How many CME credits are provided and for what courses?
For information about continuing education credit hours, including CME, please visit the Continuing Education page. Questions can be directed to Jan Lugibihl at jlugibihl@himss.org.


text:
The genius of Zhuge Liang
By bhchao, November 14, 2004 in Chinese History
skylee 1,912
香港分舵舵主
Chinese: 高不成低不就
Location: 852
guys, it is 演義/演义, not 演藝 ...
Outofin 45
I thought Cao Cao was already portrayed as a bad guy by the time of the Ming dynasty (although I could be wrong).
One of the reasons why Cao Cao was portrayed as a bad guy is because he was perceived as an usurper' date=' having toppled the Eastern Han dynasty. But the dynasty was already defunct by then.[/quote']
Wasn't it a political reality that anyone who attempted to usurp Han's throne would be damned by people "under heaven"? Cao Cao himself dared not to declare his new empire. He could only set up a foundation for his son to be an emperor. Some not-smart officials proposed to abandon Han, and they were immediately killed by Cao Cao. By that, Cao Cao pretended loyalty to Han dynasty. The loyalty was like "political correctness" nowadays.
I think it might because, given Han was the second dynasty in history following Qin that was not supported by most people, at that time people believed the royal Liu family was designated by the heaven. But after Han, people learned from history that everyone could overthrow an old dynasty and build his own, if he was strong enough.
Ian_Lee 6
Actually according to Cao Cao himself, there would be many non-Liu Emperors if he had not presided in the Han Court.
Technically Cao lengthened the duration of Han Dynasty.
In modern day political jargon, Cao should be credited for restoring political and economic stability in the Northern China region.
And there are many events that are related to Cao Cao which are worth praised:
(1) Cao Cao emerged in the way as an underdog without an aristocratic background. When he engaged in the make-it or break-it war with the Warlord Yuan, many of Cao's retainers secretly corresponded with Yuan to beg for clemency if Cao suffered a semmingly certain defeat. But when Cao won a surprising war, most of Cao's retainers dreaded to death. But what did Cao do? After Cao searched Yuan's camp and raided all those letters, he didn't open them but burned them all. Cao sighed: "When the war was at its difficult moment, even I wanted to correspond with Yuan to beg for clemency. Why should I blame those whom really had?"
Judged by this incident, Cao was so broad-minded that hardly any politicians in the subsequent generations could.
(2) Even in the turbulent time, Cao Cao remembered to pay ransom and got back the consort Wen from the XiongNu tribes.
(3) Cao Cao had many famous stories. The proverb "Looking at plum to quench one's thirst" shows that Cao had wit.
On the other hand, what is Liu Bei?
A very-very-very distant relative of the royal family who had degraded as a jobless wanderer even at the "old" age of 28 when the book first mentioned him. He was lousy in martial art, knew nothing about military skill, nor any talent in literature. The only talent Liu knew was "crying".
Claiming that he was a part of the royal family, somehow he stole the Sichuan region from his distant Liu cousin. And even though the book is ambivalent, I bet his young Liu nephew who was leigitmate heir to Hubei was poisoned by him too.
Liu is just another Song Jiang -- faked kindness and faked righteousness!
On the other hand' date=' what is Liu Bei?
Liu is just another Song Jiang -- faked kindness and faked righteousness![/quote']
I agree with you. I'm not a fan of Liu Bei neither. But I'd like to say he did have a strong point, which made him successful: leadership.
The kingdom of Shu, shouldn't have existed at all.
His subordinates did wonderful jobs and those victories should give credits to their leader, Liu Bei. There were many who had more lands and troops, who were smarter, stronger, more treacherous, and more charismatic than Liu Bei. But he turned out to be a king. There must be some reasons.
At his lowest point, he was a warlord with no land. At the same time, Cao Cao had defeated Yuan Shao and had great advantages over all other warlords. Cao Cao saw Liu Bei as the biggest threat and sent out an army to chase him. Since then, Liu Bei's troop made a series of stunning military successes, used diplomatic means to change Wu's policy, allied with Wu, thwart Cao Cao's unprecedented assault at Red Cliff (the credit belonged to Zhou Yu) and finally took the land of Shu. That was so unbelievable.
Once again, these come from ROTK (Romance of Three Kingdoms), which was a mix of history and tales. But I think the major events shouldn't be false.
Add a side note, Shu's generals appeared to be the strongest in general. I use "appeared" because Wei's generals didn't get so many opportunities to fight desperately and show their muscles and martial arts.
bhchao 24
Location: 費城
I find Liu Bei the most boring character in the Three Kingdoms history. There is something intriguing about Cao Cao's character; enigmatic, strategically brilliant, and cunning.
Liu Bei once defected from Cao Cao to Yuan Shao. The smart move would have been to stay on Cao Cao's side rather than establish his own separate kingdom because in the end, which one of the Three Kingdoms prevailed over all the rest? It is a little silly for Luo Guanzhong to portray Liu Bei in a very positive light when in fact, Liu was only a very distant relative to the Han family.
If Zhuge Liang offered his service to Wei, that would have been a formidable combination. Against Zhuge Liang's advice, Liu Bei launched an invasion of Wu in revenge when Wu killed Guan Yu. Liu Bei ended up being defeated.
Since then, Liu Bei's troop made a series of stunning military successes, used diplomatic means to change Wu's policy, allied with Wu, thwart Cao Cao's unprecedented assault at Red Cliff (the credit belonged to Zhou Yu)
Wasn't Zhuge Liang the mastermind of the 赤壁之戰 victory? He had a subordinate infiltrate the Wei camp disguised as a military adviser to Cao Cao. This subordinate suggested to Cao Cao that he chain all his ships together during the battle. Surprisingly Cao Cao took this advice and did just that. At that time Cao Cao was not an expert in naval warfare, and was primarily skilled in infantry and cavalry. He had all his infantrymen and cavalrymen converted into a naval personnel despite their lack of experience on the water.
Zhuge Liang had counted on a wind to blow towards the northwestern direction, from the southeast to the northwest. Cao Cao's fleet was stationed in the northwest while the combined Shu and Wu fleets were stationed in the southeast.
Just as Zhuge Liang predicted, the wind blew towards the northwest direction, causing Cao Cao's fleet to sail against the wind while advancing on the Shu-Wu fleets. As a result, all the arrows launched by Wei towards Shu-Wu fell into disarray due to the wind disadvantage. The Wei navy panicked and began to retreat, but the chaining of the boats prevented a hasty retreat. Shu-Wu took this opportunity and fired a barrage of flaming arrows at the Wei boats, with the wind advantage aiding the speed and accuracy of their arrows.
As we all know, Cao Cao lost that battle despite outnumbering the Wu and Shu navies. So even if you have numerical superiority, if you don't know yourself (in Cao Cao's case, not knowing how to fight a naval battle) and don't know your enemy, guaranteed you will lose.
Wasn't Zhuge Liang the mastermind of the 赤壁之戰 victory?
Sorry I just missed the interesting post. I didn't find other things I could talk about but came across this when I dig the forum.
I think ROTK exaggerated the role of Zhuge in the battle. Zhou Yu was the chief commander and he planned as a whole. Zhuge, as the most, worked as a strategist. He didn't command the army. Pang Tong did equally important job as Zhuge in this scheme, which downgraded Zhuge's role even further.
The grace and talent of Zhou Yu is best described in Su Shi's 赤壁怀古
念奴娇 赤壁怀古
大江东去,浪淘尽,千古风流人物。
故垒西边,人道是,三国周郎赤壁。
乱石崩云,惊涛裂岸,卷起千堆雪;
江山如画,一时多少豪杰。
遥想公瑾当年,小乔初嫁了,
雄姿英发,羽扇纶巾,谈笑间,强虏灰飞烟灭。
故国神游,多情应笑我,早生华发。
人生如梦,一尊还酹江月。
You see, you got a chance to make the whole world as your own stage, you did one thing in your life, put all your engergy in it. Thousands of years later, people will still admire you. What a remarkable person he was!
And regarding Cao Cao, I find it amusing to see his failure here. He was a great man, and, all right, he could affort the loss. So, let's kick his ass. People will remember for his poem 短歌行, which was written right before the battle. Cao Cao, he felt the world was right in his hands and he was going to take it! Suddenly, he ended up in muddy 华容道. Oh, poor Cao Cao.
Sima Old Bandit 6
Most of the great stuff about ZL in the novel is fake. Well it was real but it was not him.
The empty city ruse did occur but it did not involve him. The borrowing arrows scheme was from a general of Wu who was defending against an attack from Wei. Probably Zhu Ran but i forget. They fired so many arrows at his ships they were going to topple so he had to turn around and the arrows fired on the other side rebalanced it.
While i dislike Liu Bei you cannot dismiss his skill as a leader. He had nothing. If his imperial connections were fake then he is even better imo. There were plenty of Liu's still around. How many of them could go around the warlords and get help from them? He went from one to the other and they all respected him. No one else was capable of that. He had nothing as everyone else was building up and somehow right under their noses he forms the third kingdom. That was no easy feat given that Cao Cao had 2/3 of the empire already and the remainder was split between Liu Bei and Wu.
After the loss of Jing, Liu Bei's campaign against Wu was disastrous. He left everything to ZL. ZL was able to maintain the state without it imploding - without him that regime would not have survived for long. Liu Bei and his 2 brothers had died in quick succession. Zhao Yun was fast aging and just a glorified bodyguard. Wei Yan was the last big name general left. And yet somehow ZL was able to come out of Hanzhong and conquer a huge swathe of Wei before they could react. The Wei court was in panic, if it was not for ZL's mistake of appointing Ma Su and his defeat, taking Changan would have been a decisive turning point.
Of course he failed and had to retreat but aside from that he was able to come and go as he pleased, they didn't even dare engage him. Apart from the first time he always retreated intact. That this one man made a one province state a credible threat to Wei says volumes. By contrast, when Wei attacked, they got owned.
To me, the magical stuff is an injustice to him. He was enormously skilled in managing the state. He was probably one of the best when it came to organizing the army but his downfall was that Wei had men to at least match him in every aspect. As a conqueror he was not the best, he wouldn't take risks but that is understandable because one defeat would end the state but at the same time even people like Cao Cao had to take great risks and he did suffer some huge defeats. But by doing so he also gained some great victories.
The historian said it best when he said that while he was alive the people did not notice how great he was but once he passed the difference he had made was clear to them. It is no small feat to make the people of Sichuan love you when you are foreign invaders and forcing them to fight wars you don't give a crap about.
He did take 2 prefectures from Wei and permanently kept them. Doesn't sound like much but once the stalemate was set up, that was probably one of the biggest transfers of territory.
If you compare him to his successors, once he passed, what slim chance they had evaporated. Jiang Wan and Fei Yi were sufficient to defend and the latter was actually a skilled general too as he calmly owned Wei when they invaded. But once they and the last guy that ZL left died, the Emperor appointed his own men and that was disastrous. It was not hard to maintain their independence given the natural barriers but the emperor and his mismanaged commander were attrocious and handed their kingdom over as much as the opponent was skilled.
The thing i think ZL is remembered for is his single minded devotion and hard work. He literally worked himself to death to fulfil the dream of his lord. The memorial he presented to the Emperor prior to his campaign against Wei is probably one of the most moving. I think even if we disagree with what he was doing or didn't particularly like him, he deserves respect for that spirit.
Similarly i highly admire Sima Yi's restraint and patience before he seized the reins of power even if it was a disloyal action.
mandel1luke 29
Chinese: Good enough to read fiction
In addition to the fact that 三国演义 was intended as historical fiction, the text we now have was heavily edited by Qing Dynasty scholars 毛宗岗 and 毛纶. 罗贯中 himself was certainly not that anti-Cao and pro-Liu.


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text:
Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2020-21: Hardik Pandya reveals his Test status
First Published Dec 9, 2020, 4:33 PM IST
Indian all-rounder Hardik Pandya is coming off a terrific outing in the limited-overs campaign against Australia. He finished as the highest run-scorer in the One-Day Internationals and the second-highest in Twenty20 Internationals, while he was adjudged Man of the Series for the latter.
Indian all-rounder Hardik Pandya is getting regular at making headlines of late, both on and off the field. As for his on-field success, he is coming off an impressive outing in the just-concluded limited-overs campaign, in Australia, while his status for Test remains to be unknown.
Pandya finished as the highest run-scorer in the One-Day Internationals (ODI), which India lost 1-2, and the second-highest in Twenty20 Internationals, that was won 2-1. Furthermore, he was also adjudged Man of the Series for the latter.
Following the limited-overs campaign, India would now switch focus to the longest format, as they take on the Aussies in a four-Test series, for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, starting December 17. India are the defending champions, having won it during their last visit, in 2018-19.
Meanwhile, Pandya has not been selected for the Tests, owing to workload management. Notably, he is coming off a just-recovered back, for which he had to undergo a surgery in London last year, as he made a triumphant and impressive return in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2020, with Mumbai Indians (MI).
Following his impressive outing in the limited-overs, Pandya had stated that he would love to feature in the longest format and would also stay back if the team management wanted him to. Nonetheless, following Tuesday's match, he had something else to say.
"I think I should head back home and spend some quality time with my family. I haven't seen my child for four months, so I'd like to spend some time with family right no. Maybe, in the future. I don't know, maybe," said Pandya, on being asked if he would like to play the Tests.
Nonetheless, he expressed his delight at his performance, earning him the MoS recognition. "I'm quite pleased, and wouldn't mind getting the Man of the Series award, but it was a team effort. We all decided after the second ODI that we'll treat this as a four-match series now and we were hoping that we would win three of four and that's what we got, so happy with that," he added.


Savory Biscuits (Bakery & Cereals) Market in China - Outlook to 2022: Market Size, Growth and Forecast Analytics is a broad level market review of Savory Biscuits market in China.
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The research handbook acts as an essential tool for companies active or planning to venture in to China's Savory Biscuits (Bakery & Cereals) market. The comprehensive statistics within the research handbook provides insight into the operating environment of the market and also ensures right business decision making based on historical trends and industry model based forecasting.


Resumen: Mel frequency cepstral coefficients (MFCCs) are a standard tool for automatic speech recognition (ASR), but they fail to capture part of the dynamics of speech. The nonlinear nature of speech suggests that extra information provided by some nonlinear features could be especially useful when training data are scarce or when the ASR task is very complex. In this paper, the Fractal Dimension of the observed time series is combined with the traditional MFCCs in the feature vector in order to enhance the performance of two different ASR systems. The first is a simple system of digit recognition in Chinese, with very few training examples, and the second is a large vocabulary ASR system for Broadcast News in Spanish.
Resumen: The work presented here is part of a larger study to identify novel technologies and biomarkers for early Alzheimer disease (AD) detection and it focuses on evaluating the suitability of a new approach for early AD diagnosis by non-invasive methods. The purpose is to examine in a pilot study the potential of applying intelligent algorithms to speech features obtained from suspected patients in order to contribute to the improvement of diagnosis of AD and its degree of severity. In this sense, Artificial Neural Networks (ANN) have been used for the automatic classification of the two classes (AD and control subjects). Two human issues have been analyzed for feature selection: Spontaneous Speech and Emotional Response. Not only linear features but also non-linear ones, such as Fractal Dimension, have been explored. The approach is non invasive, low cost and without any side effects. Obtained experimental results were very satisfactory and promising for early diagnosis and classification of AD patients.
Resumen:: Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most prevalent form of progressive degenerative dementia; it has a high socioeconomic impact in Western countries. Therefore, it is one of the most active research areas today. Alzheimer's disease is sometimes diagnosed by excluding other dementias, and definitive confirmation is only obtained through a postmortem study of the brain tissue of the patient. The work presented here is part of a larger study that aims to identify novel technologies and biomarkers for early AD detection, and it focuses on evaluating the suitability of a new approach for early diagnosis of AD by noninvasive methods. The purpose is to examine, in a pilot study, the potential of applying machine learning algorithms to speech features obtained from suspected Alzheimer's disease sufferers in order to help diagnose this disease and determine its degree of severity. Two human capabilities relevant in communication have been analyzed for feature selection: spontaneous speech and emotional response. The experimental results obtained were very satisfactory and promising for the early diagnosis and classification of AD patients.
Resumen:: The present work describes the development of an LID system suited for handling security tasks in the Internet. The development context was the Infozazpi Internet digital radio, and the task presented substantial complexity due to the trilingual environment and the scarcity of language resources for Basque. In order to overcome previous difficulties, we propose a hybrid system based on the selection of subword units by SVMs, MLP classifiers, and discriminant analysis improved with robust regularized covariance matrix estimation methods and stochastic methods for ASR tasks (SC-HMM and n-grams). Our new subword unit proposals and the use of triphones and cross-lingual approaches considerably improve the system performance, achieving an optimal and stable LID recognition rate despite the complexity of the problem.
Resumen: The long term goal of our project is the development of robust ASR systems in the Basque context where coexist French, Spanish and Basque (a minority language). The development of ASR systems involves dealing with issues such as Acoustic Phonetic Decoding (APD), Language Modelling (LM) or the development of appropriate Language Resources (LR). Thus, these applications are generally very language-dependent and require very large resources. This work is focused on the selection of appropriate sub-word units with under-resourced and noisy conditions. Nowadays, in particular, the work is oriented to Basque Broadcast News (BN) due to the interest of digital mass-media as the trilingual Infozazpi radio (situated in French Basque Country). Thus, in order to decrease the negative impact that the lack of resources has in this issue we apply several data optimization methodologies based on Matrix Covariance Estimation and Ontology-based approaches.
Resumen:: This work, divided into Part I and II, describes the development of GorUP a Semantic Speech Recognition System in the Basque context. Part I analyses cross-lingual approaches oriented to under-resourced languages and Part II the development of the Language Identification system. During the development, data optimization methods and Soft Computing methodologies oriented to complex environment are used in order to overcome the lack of resources. Moreover, in this context three languages coexist: French, Spanish and Basque. Indeed our main goal is the development of robust Automatic Speech Recognition (ASR) systems for Basque, but all language variability has to be analyzed. In this regard, Basque speakers mix during the speech not only sounds but also words of the three languages which results in a strong presence of cross-lingual elements. Besides, Basque is an agglutinative language with a special morpho-syntactic structure inside the words that may lead to intractable vocabularies. Nowadays, our work is oriented to Information Retrieval and mainly to small internet mass-media. In these cases the available resources for Basque in general, and for this task in particular, are very few and complex to process because of the noisy environment. Thus, the methods employed in this development (ontology-based approach or cross-lingual methodologies oriented to profit from more powerful languages) could suit the requirements of many under-resourced languages.
Resumen:: This paper describes the development of a Language Identification (LID) system oriented to robust Multilingual Speech Recognition in the Basque context where LID system is integrated in GorUP, a Semantic Speech Recognition system for industrial complex environments described in Part I. The work presents hybrid strategies for LID, based on the selection of system elements by several classifiers (Support Vector Machines and Multilayer Perceptron) and Discriminant Analysis improved with robust regularized covariance matrix estimation methods oriented to under-resourced languages and stochastic methods for speech recognition tasks (Hidden Markov Models and n-grams). The LID tool manages the main elements of the Automatic Speech Recognition system (Acoustic Phonetic Decoder, Language Model and Lexicons).


The 2017 KIA Picanto is a bit special. You think ho-hum, another tiny Korean car, and though the 2011 Picanto looked attractive it didn't exactly get your pulse racing. The Hyundai i10 was always better to drive.
It took just a few kilometres of twisting Italian roads to realise, from the passenger seat, that this one is a bit different.
No need to ask the driver what the steering 'feel' was like as he flung the car into yet another switchback, grinning maniacally, having the time of his life. You can't do that if the steering is dead and tyres don't hang on like Gorilla glue. He was chucking it into the bends at ridiculous speeds, tyres screeching, utterly confident of what it was going to do.
And this was the 69HP 998cc next-up-from base version on 14-inch wheels with 175/65 R14 tyres. Not supposed to be as much fun as a Mini Cooper was back in the 1960s. KIA has clearly turned a corner.
So what have they done to make the car so good? Partly a new electric motor assisted steering that replaces the rather dead and wooden system in the previous Picanto. And partly some clever rear suspension work.
All little hatcbacks use variations of the ubiquitous trailing arms on coil springs connected by a twist beam. But what KIA seems to have done is extended the length of the training arms, giving the rear suspension more travel. So it steers better, it handles better, and it rides better.
Why have I dwelled on this as if it's the most important attribute of the car? Because it is. It transforms a practical little hatchback into a car that's a pleasure to drive. Nothing else in the class comes close. Not the FIAT 500. Not the VW Up, SEAT Mii or Skoda Citigo. Not the Citroen C1, Peugeot 108 and Toyota Aygo. Not the Renault Twingo and Smart ForFour. And certainly not the Suzuki Celario and Vauxhall Viva. The little car that's by far the most fun to drive is the 2017 KIA Picanto.
It's more practical, too. A longer wheelbase means more cabin space and a bigger boot that will now happily take two flight bags side by side.
It has better seats, with plenty of support that give a decent driving position. The dash is clearly laid out, whether you go for the high spec GT Line S with integrated touch-screen Tom Tom satnav or the baser versions with just a radio.
The door bins and bottle holders are a decent size. The glovebox is big enough to take the driver's manual and plenty of other stuff. Everything works intuitively, leaving you to concentrate on your driving.
As well as the 1.0 litre 3-cylinder little screamer there's also a 1.25 4-cylinder boasting a whopping 85HP and slightly longer gearing in 5th. It doesn't have the character of the 1.0 litre three, but it's undoubtedly smoother with more torque and would be the choice if you regularly have distances to cover.
The two 1.25s we drove were on 16-inch wheels with 195/45 R16 tyres that could have ruined it, but didn't, even on some bumpy, broken surfaced Italian roads. Obviously a little less comfortable than the 175/65 R14s, but all right. The in-between choice is a Picanto '3' spec on 185/55 R15 tyres.
All 2017 Picantos from '3' spec up have an Advanced Driver Assistance Pack that includes autonomous emergency braking to stop you crashing into the backs of trucks or running over pedestrians. It's an optional extra on '1' specs and '2' specs at £350.
You can still get a 4-speed torque converter automatic if you need one. And, from late in 2017, you'll be able to buy a Picanto with the same 100PS 998cc three-cylinder turbocharged engine that brightens up the KIA Rio.
Grumbles? Not many, really. The rear seats don't fold flat like they did on the original 2004 Picanto. (The seatbacks simply fold onto the cushions.) There's no spare wheel: just a useless 'tyre repair kit', so best to join the AA and call them out with their universal emergency spare wheels if you get a puncture. The driver's seat does not adjust for height, but that's a temporary aberration that will be sorted out in production.
All Picantos sold in the UK come with KIA's seven-year, 100,000-mile warranty.
It can't have escaped KIA's attention that in the UK at least, most young people considered the previous Picanto to be an oldies car. Not any longer once word starts to get around on Twitter, Facebook and You Tube.
They're gonna have fun, fun, fun 'til their daddies take the keyfobs away.


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Rapota: Belarus-Russia visa recognition agreement ready, awaits political decision
Society 10.07.2019 | 10:54
MINSK, 10 July (BelTA) - The agreement on mutual recognition of visas is technically ready, awaits a political decision, State Secretary of the Belarus-Russia Union State Grigory Rapota said in an interview with the Belarus 1 TV channel on 9 July, BelTA has learned.
"The document has been drawn up. It just needs signatures," Grigory Rapota said.
According to him, Russia has already expressed its readiness to sign the agreement. "As far as I know, the document is in the process of final coordination in Belarus. Technically we did everything. We are waiting for a political decision," he noted.
The Belarusian Ministry of Foreign Affairs gave a detailed account of the progress and of the content of the agreement in April in response to questions sent to The Big Conversation with the President.
The agreement provides for the full mutual recognition of visas (temporary residence permits and residence permits) and allows opening the joint border to foreigners, removing barriers to transit to Russia via Belarus. However, Russia will retain border control on its territory near the border. This principled position of Russia is reflected in the agreement, according to which the parties have the right to take measures to verify the compliance by foreign citizens and persons without citizenship with the rules for entry, exit, transit or stay in their territories according to the laws of their states.
Belarus and Russia were planning to sign the agreement on mutual recognition of visas at a meeting of the Union State Council of Ministers in Brest in December in 2018. However, Belarus did not have time to finish all the domestic procedures.
More about Society
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Belarusian, Russian military reconnoitering ahead of joint army exercise


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Republicans roar back, defending Texas House hopefuls with seven-figure wads of cash
12 GOP candidates raised more than $1M apiece over the past 31 days. In races for state representative, that's big money.
In about half of the 25 most competitive races for the Texas House, Republicans raised at least $1 million each in the past month, erasing the surprise money advantage Democrats enjoyed earlier, reports showed Tuesday.(Ashley Landis / Staff Photographer)
By Robert T. Garrett, James Barragán and Allie Morris
6:59 PM on Oct 27, 2020 CDT
AUSTIN — In about half of the 25 most competitive races for the Texas House, Republicans raised at least $1 million each in the past month, erasing the surprise money advantage Democrats enjoyed earlier, reports to the Texas Ethics Commission showed on Tuesday.
While two Democrats also took in seven-figure amounts in the latest reporting period, including Brandy K. Chambers of Dallas, the eye-popping display of financial firepower by Republican-leaning groups enabled a dozen GOP candidates to eclipse $1 million each in contributions.
That sent a clear message to Texas Democrats: Not so fast. Maybe you've become more competitive as fundraisers this cycle, but we do not intend to go quietly.
With coordination from Gov. Greg Abbott's political team, as well as money from his campaign fund, the GOP effort to save the House marshaled funds from Texans for Lawsuit Reform, a group trying to curb civil lawsuits against business; traditional GOP group Associated Republicans of Texas; Speaker Dennis Bonnen's political arm; and a new PAC created by House incumbents and Republican strategist Karl Rove.
Texans for Lawsuit Reform chipped in about $6.7 million to GOP contenders in the top 25 races between Sept. 25 and Monday, the reports showed.
The Republican State Leadership Committee, a national group that recently received $5 million from Las Vegas gambling mogul Sheldon Adelson, poured $5.4 million into Texas House races during the period.
The Washington-based leadership committee has spent $9 million this cycle, trying to fend off an unprecedented Democratic bid to regain a toehold in Austin, spokeswoman Lenze Morris said.
A "constellation" of Democratic groups, including former New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg's gun-control group Everytown and Democratic super PAC Forward Majority, which is spending $12 million, are trying to flip the Texas House, Morris noted.
"Liberal billionaires are dumping unprecedented sums of money to buy state Democrats the majority in Texas," she said.
At risk are the GOP's "common sense solutions" that "provide a better future," she said.
Also at stake is the Texas GOP's ability to pull off a third, consecutive one-party redrawing of political boundaries.
Democrats seek control
Democrats need a net gain of only nine seats to seize a majority in the 150-seat chamber for the first time since 2001. Redistricting, which happens once a decade, probably will happen next summer, because the coronavirus pandemic and court battles have delayed the usual April delivery to the Legislature of results of the 2020 census.
Republicans would love to lock in majorities in Austin for much of the next decade — and redistrict in ways that might help them recapture the U.S. House.
Democrats have their eyes on forcing a congressional remap into the courts, which, provided they seize the Texas House, they could do. That way, they could prevent as many as a half-dozen currently Democratic or newly apportioned seats from going red. Texas is likely to gain as many as three U.S. House seats.
Related: Democratic super PAC targets North Texas GOP legislative hopefuls in TV ads on health care, schools
Though it has occasionally supported Democrats, the Texans for Lawsuit Reform PAC in the latest period sank $6.7 million in the top House races — all on the Republican side.
Spokeswoman Lucy Nashed said the lawsuit-limiting group "is focused on electing and retaining legislators … who share our philosophy on keeping Texas courts fair, efficient and accessible."
In addition, also playing on the GOP side in the top 25 House contests were Associated Republicans of Texas, giving $2.6 million; Abbott, shelling out about $1.7 million; and Leading Texas Forward, the PAC formed by Rove and several incumbents after Bonnen's political fall from grace last year, about $508,000.
Bonnen contributions
Last October, Bonnen announced he would step down from the House in 2021. He did so after conservative activist and Empower Texans leader Michael Quinn Sullivan secretly recorded their Capitol huddle of June 2019. In the audio, which Sullivan later released, Bonnen disparaged individual House members and violated his own rule against meddling in other members' reelection bids.
Over the past 31 days, Bonnen's Texas Leads PAC, which he formed shortly before the scandal broke, gave $365,000 to fellow Republicans in the most contested House races, reports showed.
While Empower Texans mostly seeks to sway GOP primaries, its prime benefactor, Midland oilman Tim Dunn, gave $350,000 to Republican Jeff Cason, who is running for the Mid Cities seat being vacated by Bedford GOP Rep. Jonathan Stickland, and $250,000 to Arlington GOP Rep. Tony Tinderholt.
On the Democratic side, the House Democratic Campaign Committee spent $3.6 million in the top 25 races over the past 31 days.
Related: Democrats raise big cash in push to take Texas House but GOP candidates also ramping up
In trying to defend three of the 12 seats Democrats picked up in 2018, it dropped money or in-kind contributions of services on Reps. Gina Calanni of Katy ($176,750), Vikki Goodwin of Austin ($103,750) and Erin Zwiener of Driftwood ($249,500).
At the same time, the political arm of House Democrats played offense, giving nearly $267,000 worth of ads and polling in the period to Harris County lawyer Akilah Bacy, who faces parental rights activist Lacey Hull for the seat being vacated by Houston GOP Rep. Dwayne Bohac.
Democratic strategist Matt Angle insisted he's not daunted by the Republican money wave reflected on the reports the ethics commission requires eight days before an election.
It showed Republicans had to counter big fundraising numbers from Democrats, said Angle, who said he was "thrilled" over the "panicky" GOP response.
"For the first time in anybody's recent memory, you've got Democrats going toe to toe with Republicans not just in terms of tactics, but also in spending," he said.
Angle, director of the Lone Star Project, which works to elect Democrats, brushed off Republican gripes that Democrats were being fueled by out-of-state interests. National groups only get interested when a local party has done the work to make races competitive, which Texas Democrats have done, he said.
"They don't come in to till the field, they come to reap the harvest," he said. "Republicans, they know they're in trouble here."
Competitive races
Here are side-by side comparisons of money raised by candidates in some of North Texas' most competitive Texas House races. Except in open seats, incumbents are listed first.
Ana-Maria Ramos (D) $121,595
Linda Koop (R) $425,145
Morgan Meyer (R) $701,100
Joanna Cattanach (D) $672,744
Angie Chen Button (R) $1,514,896
Brandy K. Chambers (D) $1,035,493
Rhetta Bowers (D) $366,298
Will Douglas (R) $1,313,162
John Turner (D) $173,372
Luisa del Rosal (R) $438,437
HD 92 (open seat)
Jeff Cason (R) $392,535
Jeff Whitfield (D) $461,839
Matt Krause (R) $559,874
Lydia Bean (D) $643,993
Tony Tinderholt (R) $525,416
Alisa Simmons (D) $451,047
David Cook (R) $1,162,525
Joe Drago (D) $566,641
Craig Goldman (R) $1,217,474
Elizabeth Beck (D) $921,831
Lynn Stucky (R) $525,201
Angela Brewer (D) $444,095
Michelle Beckley (D) $483,933
Kronda Thimesch (R) $891,291
Matt Shaheen (R) $864,188
Sharon Hirsch (D) $470,984
Jeff Leach (R) $1,708,914
Lorenzo Sanchez (D) $1,247,666
Source: Texas Ethics Commission/Dallas Morning News research.
Robert T. Garrett, Austin Bureau Chief. Bob has covered state government and politics for The Dallas Morning News since 2002. Earlier, he was a statehouse reporter for three newspapers, including the Dallas Times Herald. A fifth-generation Texan, Bob earned a bachelor's degree from Harvard University. He covers Gov. Greg Abbott, the state budget and CPS and foster care.
rtgarrett@dallasnews.com /bob.garrett.39 @RobertTGarrett
James Barragán. James Barragán covers Texas politics for The Dallas Morning News. He has covered immigration, public safety and voting rights and has traveled on assignment to the U.S. Supreme Court and Houston during Hurricane Harvey. Before joining The News in 2017, he worked for the Austin American-Statesman and The Los Angeles Times.
jbarragan@dallasnews.com /JamesBarraganNews James_Barragan
Allie Morris, Austin Bureau Correspondent . Allie has covered Texas politics since 2017 and written about everything from tax policy to child protection. She previously worked for the San Antonio Express-News and in New Hampshire, as the statehouse reporter for the Concord Monitor.
allie.morris@dallasnews.com @MorrisReports
Get the latest breaking news from North Texas and beyond.


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Home Page › WWII History › January › World War II Today: January 30
World War II Today: January 30
Hitler becomes Chancellor of Germany
Hitler threatens Jews during Reichstag speech.
Australian troops capture Derna as the Italians begin to withdraw towards Benghazi. The 1st South African Division launches a feint attack against Mega in southern Abyssinia, in order to prevent the Italians from sending troops to reinforce their hard pressed forces in Somaliland.
Hitler, speaking at the Berlin Sports Palace, reaffirms his prewar prophecy concerning the Jews; once again telling an audience that "the result of this war will be the complete annihilation of the Jews."
The 4th Indian Division continues to withdraw along the coast road towards Derna.
The Japanese capture Moulmein and its airfield in Burma as the British forces evacuate and withdraw across the river Salween.
The British withdraw to Singapore Island with the Japanese only 8 miles away.
Japanese forces capture the important naval base of Amboina between Celebes and New Guinea.
US Army awards contract to Northrop to develop a night fighter. Resulting in the Northrop P-61C Black Widow.
With the German Sixth Army in its death throes at Stalingrad, Hitler does the seemingly unthinkable and allows the 10th anniversary of the Nazi seizure of power to pass without speaking to the nation. It is the first unmistakable evidence of Hitler's retreat from public appearances as the tide of the war turns.
Ernst Kaltenbrunner succeeds Heydrich as head of RSHA.
The Russians attack towards Nikopol on the southern Dnieper.
A U.S. Ranger battalion is wiped out at Anzio.
British attacks on the 'Golden Fortress' in the Arakan, Burma cease.
In the Baltic Sea, 7000 refugees drown when the Soviet submarine S-13 sinks the German liner Wilhelm Gustloff. The incident the largest single naval disaster in history.
On the twelfth anniversary of his coming to power, Hitler, calls for fanatical resistance by soldiers and civilians and predicts that "…in this struggle for survival it will not be inner Asia that will conquer, but the people that has defended Europe for centuries against the onslaughts from the East, the German nation…"
WWII Today: April 21
WWII Today: February 6
WWII Today: March 2
In:January, WWII History
Tags: ww2 history, ww2 today, WWII January


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Home / Slots / All Aboard
All Aboard Slot Machine
All Aboard is an online casino slot machine that takes you back to the early days of the steam train, featuring many symbols associated with this much loved form of travel. These include bells, horns, boxcars, handcars, the train driver, the station master and level crossing signs. The opening credits set the scene where you'll find a comedy animation featuring a handcar and a train in a close shave, the same scenario as you might have seen in many black and white movies. This slot has two distinct features in a free spins round and a bonus game featuring boxcars and countless chickens!
The slot is set against a green, slatted, wooden backdrop representing as carriage of a train. Either side of the reels you'll find a number of lamps, these showing the win line indicators in a variety of colours, giving the slot added vibrancy. The symbols have the same humorous feel found in the opening sequence and each features animation when forming part of a win line. The two standout symbols are the train driver and the station master, the latter looking somewhat uptight standing in front of a clock, as the clearly late driver smokes away happily on his pipe. Each spin at this slot sees the reels move particularly quickly, which makes the game more impressive somehow and the added sound effects of the train only improve the slot further.
Costa del Cash
Age of the Gods: Goddess of Wisdom
At the Station – Setup for All Aboard
You'll find 20 win lines on this video slot, which can be adjusted downwards. Expanding wilds generate the most wins with the maximum number of lines in play – so I recommend that you adjust your coin size and number of coins for each line instead. Together this will give you your total stake for each spin from 20c and up.
A golden rail spike is the highest paying symbol at the game and should you manage to hit this five times in a row you'll win a sizable 1,600 coins. The station master comes next at 480 coins and the fact that he is valued three times less than a rail spike might add to his mood! The other standard symbols on the reels pay out between 360 and 80 coins, the horn of the train being the lowest of all.
An old fashioned grey steam train with distinctive red wheels acts as the wild symbol and will substitute for any other on the reels apart from the bonus and the scatter symbols. However there are two added bonuses with this symbol. Firstly, every time you gain a win with this wild you'll win double due to the 2x multiplier in place. Secondly, every time this symbol appears it will expand to take up an entire reel – tracks now running the length of the reel.
Full Steam Ahead - All Aboard Features
All aboard has two features, each activated by landing the relevant symbol three or more times across any of the reels.
Casey Jones Free Spins – This free spins round is named after the American railroader who famously stayed on his train, the Cannonball Express, braking hard to avoid a serious collision with another train, the only casualty being the heroic Casey Jones himself. In this round you'll have 10 free spins with a 2x multiplier if activating the feature with 3 scatters, 20 spins at 3x with 4 scatters, rising to a maximum of 40 spins and a 4x multiplier for 5 scatters.
Boxcar Bonus Game – This feature is activated by the bonus bell scatter. You'll find 9 cars and each will contain some kind of animal, including cows, horses or slightly maniacal looking chickens. Each boxcar that you open which contains an animal will award you a cash prize. Keep picking the boxcars and winning prizes until you reach a boxcar that contains no animals, at which point the feature round will be over.
Epic Journey, or Leaves on the Line? All Aboard Slot Conclusion
From the moment you first load this Rival game, you'll know you're in for a treat. The humour of the slot is evident from the opening sequence and the visuals only enhance this aspect of the game. The accompanying sound is excellent too, making for a base game that is highly playable by itself. However, both of the features raise the game to an even higher level. The free spins round can be particularly profitable, especially if landing more than the minimum 3 scatters, while the Boxcar bonus game is certainly funny. This all makes for a game that will be enjoyed by all – a great place to let off some steam!
All Aboard written by Garry Edgards average rating 4/5 - 2 user ratings


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Where Does a Leopard Hide Her Cubs?
James Tyrrell November 5, 2017 10 3
The history of the Nhlanguleni female leopard is a bit of an up-and-down one, with long periods of no sightings, then a sudden spate of viewing as she appears on a kill, and then another lull when no one sees her for a few weeks.
It is likely, however, that we will be seeing far more of her in the coming weeks and hopefully months, as all signs indicate that she is denning a litter of cubs somewhere in the Sand River, which means that this seldom-seen female will become far more sought-after.
The Nhlanguleni female looks out from the canopy of a Sausage tree. The fact that she controls a thickly vegetated area of the Sand River means hunting opportunities are rife for this leopard, and there are more than enough trees to hoist kills safely into.
Nhlanguleni 3:2 Female
Born to the Tutlwa female in early-mid 2011, the Nhlanguleni female spent her formative months (and years) in and around the Sand River.
Spotted this leopard?
You've seen this leopard
28 sightings by Members
Card 36 of 73
Sunsetbend
2 known
Her last litter (which was also her first) was looking set to be a wonderful success – two out of an initial three cubs were roughly a year old and regularly being taken to kills by their mother – until the untimely death of the 4:4 male, their father and dominant male of the area.
The late 4:4 male. His death opened the way for the Flat Rock male, who killed the last litter of the Nhlanguleni female.
Robson's 4:4 Male
This rangy male was an enigma, arriving on Londolozi in the mid to latter parts of 2014 and staying mainly in the western areas.
6 sightings by Members
Flat Rock 3:2 Male
A leopard who took advantage of the death of the 4:4 male in 2016 to grab territory to the west of the Londolozi camps.
Card 5 of 73
With a blank space on the map, it was only a matter of time before a new male arrived, and it did in the form of the Flat Rock male. Within a few months he had taken over the area west of the Londolozi camps and killed both the Nhlanguleni female's cubs (as well as the Mashaba female's new litter). This, sadly, was only to be expected. Although there are recorded cases of a female leopard keeping her offspring out of harm's way when a new male moves in, just long enough for them to gain independence, it was not to be in this case. Males will try and kill cubs that aren't theirs, both to bring the female back into oestrus and because they don't want to contribute to the survival of non-related offspring.
Anyway, that's in the past. The fact now is that after being seen mating with the Flat Rock male on numerous occasions, as well as with the Anderson male who controls the northern side of the Sand River, the Nhlanguleni female has given birth, as evidenced by suckle marks seen in a recent sighting of her.
It was roughly two months after the birth of the last litter that we first caught sight of the three cubs, but we're hoping this time we might see them sooner.
The Nhlanguleni female repositions an impala kill she had brought her cubs to. Her last litter was very skittish, having grown up hardly seeing Land Rovers, and despite waiting for a couple of hours on this afternoon, the only view we had of them was a few brief glimpses as they skulked in the bushes nearby.
Trackers Equalizer Ndlovu and Bennet Mathonsi trailed what they suspected was the Nhlanguleni female upstream in the Sand River yesterday morning, but the tracks disappeared into an impenetrable section, at which point they deemed it prudent to discontinue the search. A female leopard with tiny cubs in thick cover is your worst nightmare to walk into on foot. What the two trackers are pretty convinced of is that it is somewhere in the rocky section of the River that the cubs are being stashed.
The pink area denotes the rough extent of the Nhlanguleni female's territory. The blue dot is the densite where the last litter was first discovered and the black dots represent the trail of the female that the trackers followed yesterday morning.
Age-wise we suspect them to be anything up to a month, which means that it will still be a month or more before they are brought to kills, but the female is likely to move them every now and then, as dens become a liability if used for too long. This means that she may bring them out of the river, to a densite that a vehicle might be able to access, and we can get our first view of the latest additions to the Leopards of Londolozi…
Filed under Leopards
Involved Leopards
James Tyrrell
Photographic Guide/Media Team
James had hardly touched a camera when he came to Londolozi, but his writing skills that complemented his Honours degree in Zoology meant that he was quickly snapped up by the Londolozi blog team. An environment rich in photographers helped him develop the ...
View James's profile
Lions, Wildlife
How Old is That Lion? Part 3
Nick SimsJan 11, 2021 15
on Where Does a Leopard Hide Her Cubs?
Marinda Drake
Wonderful news. The Flat rock male seems to have taken over a sizeble portion of the Sand river. Looking forward to viewing the cubs at the end of November. (If we are in luck, holding thumbs.)
5th November 2017 at 13:36
Darlene Knott
Oh, how exciting! Keep us up to date on the sightings. I cannot wait to see photos!
Denise Vouri
Good luck on finding and photographing her new cubs. I'm sure they will bring much joy to all of you and your guests as there's nothing cuter than a baby animal. Fingers crossed that the dominant males will leave them be.
Callum Evans
Fantastic! Looking forward to finding out more about these cubs! It's interesting how they were born at roughly the same time that the Mashaba's last litter was just killed. Hopefully these new cubs will have a better chance now considering the Flat Rock Male is their father
Mary Beth Wheeler
Some good news about leopard cubs – wonderful! Fingers crossed that they stay safe and grow up healthy and secure!
Judith Guffey
Hoping to see them in early December.
Thomas Weder
excellent news! hope to see more cubs when we will be back in August 2018! can't wait to come to Londolozi a second time!
Jane Thomson
We were so blessed to be out with Alex and Bennet on this beautiful morning in this most lovely of locations when Bennet and Equalizer went off trailing her tracks. Secretly I was glad we didn't see the cubs that morning, when the three lionesses emerged out of the bush a little way upstream a very short time afterwards. May the Nhlanguleni female keep her cubs safe for a while longer. We look forward to seeing photos of them when they are eventually seen.
We're looking forward to it as well, believe me!
Alessandra Cuccato
First sighting of the cub this morning!
1st December 2017 at 09:59
Ntsevu Pride UpdateNext


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Blood of a Poet
Jean Cocteau, film, France, 1930
I`ve never quite understand what lies behind my choice of films. It seems quite unreasonable to consider it a strategy, a much better description for it will probably be the word "random". For example, although "Blood of a poet" is considered a classic I am absolutely convinced that it`s almost impossible to enjoy a silent film nowadays. But no, I still decided to watch this film. As if I cared about how influential Jean Cocteau is. No, I don`t. Anyhow this film is somewhat crazy, of course, just like most films of surrealism are. The only similar film to it which I`ve seen so far is "The Andalusian dog". Blood of a poet is considered to be a perfect description of the way an artists mind works. Which is just another proof that I stand absolutely no chance of ever becoming a true artist. To me it was just visually interesting (especially considering the year the film was made and how little special effects were available at the time) but in terms of content empty film. The film starts off with a man drawing a face on paper when suddenly the mouth on the face becomes alive, as the "poet" wants to close the mouth with his hand the mouth moves on to his palm. The last place where the mouth stays its location is on a sculpture which also comes alive. Then the poet smashes the sculpture. Apart from that you`ll see buildings collapsing, a woman being connected to wall and lots of other senseless stuff.


All rooms have a bathroom / shower, toilet, TV, hairdryer, telephone, safe and WLAN.
The tourist tax of € 1.90 per person and day is applied on persons starting from 14 years old. (Please note, that from 01/01/2020 the tourist tax will be of € 2.10 per person/day). The tax is not included in the price and should be paid apart directly in Hotel.
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Reserved rooms would be fully charged in case of late arrival or early departure, in case of not being able to rent them to others.


The Mission is owned and managed by Helen Cunningham.
You can ask a question or make a booking request directly with Helen Cunningham.
"Cool, quirky and oh-so retro, this converted tabernacle church is the perfect one-of-a-kind base for your next trip to the Isle of Wight"
Garden tables, a BBQ and an Indian inspired "sit-outerie" continue to glorious vintage theme outside, where you can breathe in the fresh sea air or capture the stunning countryside views.
The Mission is dog friendly at a slight added cost of £30.
Take a step back in time in this cosy and quirky converted tabernacle, situated in a truly magical location on Blythe Shute, just outside the village of Chale. Hidden away in a designated area of outstanding natural beauty, you and yours can breathe in the fresh sea air and take in the stunning country vistas that surround this wonderful vintage hideaway.
Once a community tabernacle, The Mission dates back to the late 1800's, and has been beautifully converted to offer one-of-a-kind accommodation, that will be a sure-fire hit with those who have a passion for all things retro.
Step inside and you'll be met with an open-plan design that has totally transformed the original and unusual design features. With the building's original purpose very much in mind, the decor is full of kitsch nods to religious icons and wonderful post-modern furnishings.
Cleverly reconfigured from a church hall into a funky holiday home, the giant white cube that sits in the middle of the building creates a fabulous "home within a home" and offers extra sleeping accommodation on a wonderful mezzanine level that compliments the open plan living arrangements perfectly.
The large living area has plenty of space for you to kick off your sandals and relax on the red velvet swivel chairs or the black leather sofas. Run you toes across the soft fluffy rug, or warm your hands on the wood burning stove that will keep you feeling cosy and snug all year round.
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When it comes to resting you head, climb up inside the cube to either of the mezzanine bedrooms that are full of more vintage furnishings, soft old school blankets and plenty of retro-cool accessories.
For extra accommodation, the old 'Sunday School Annex' which is attached to the property offers a further two bedrooms that can be used as doubles or twins, and another beautiful shower room. The versatile sleeping arrangements at The Mission should sway you if you are considering a place to stay as a family or group of friends, and want an original and interesting base from which to explore the Isle of Wight.
Outside the old tin tabernacle is a decked courtyard area with shabby chic seating, perfect for enjoying something nice and cold on a hot summers evening. Send the kids off to play on the grass or explore the raised wilderness garden to the side of the property, while you cook up a storm on the BBQ, or read a book in the Indian Summer inspired 'sit-outerie'. Whatever you have come for, the Mission offers retro perfection on the beautiful Isle of Wight.
Have you stayed at The Mission?


text:
Grace Jones Confirmed To Curate Meltdown Festival 2020
The disco icon will follow in footsteps of Patti Smith, Scott Walker, Nick Cave, David Bowie and Robert Smith as curator of the London music festival.
Nile Rodgers Appointed Chairman Of Songwriters Hall Of Fame
The Chic legend will succeed Philly soul architects Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff.
Listen: New Nile Rodgers & Chic Song, 'Till The World Falls'
It's the lead song from the first all-new studio album in 25 years by the funk-soul trailblazers.
Chic & Nile Rodgers To Release New Album 'It's About Time' In September
The funk and soul trendsetters return with their first all-new studio album in 25 years.
Elvis Costello, Nile Rodgers Confirmed For 2018 Nocturne Live At Blenheim Palace
This year's star-studded event also features Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds, Gary Barlow and The Waterboys.
Watch Coachella 2018 Performance Highlights
Watch all the best performances from the festival from home.
The Roots, Aloe Blacc Confirmed For 2018 North Sea Jazz Festival
The Roots and Aloe Blacc have been added to the star-studded bill for the 2018 North Sea Jazz Festival which also includes Emeli Sande and Chic.
Nile Rodgers Appointed Chief Creative Advisor At London's Abbey Road Studios
Legendary producer and Chic mainstay Nile Rodgers has been appointed as the new Chief Creative Advisor at London's world-famous Abbey Road Studios.
When Diana Ross Got A Chic Makeover With 'Upside Down'
The superstar vocalist's career was transformed by producers Bernard Edwards and Nile Rodgers.
Phil Collins, Blondie, Emeli Sande Among Recipients Of 2017 Nordoff Robins O2 Silver Clef Awards
Phil Coliins, Blondie and Emeli Sande are among the recipients of awards at the 2017 Nordoff Robins O2 Silver Clef Awards on 30 June 2017
Good Times In Boogie Wonderland, As Earth, Wind & Fire & Chic Tour Together
Two of the most-loved groups of the disco era, Earth, Wind & Fire and Chic featuring Nile Rodgers, will tour North American arenas together in summer 2017.
New Releases3 years ago
Diana Ross's Landmark 'diana' Chic Mix Lands On Vinyl
Now for the first time, diana – original Chic mix will make its debut on vinyl on 21 April 2017, giving a whole new flavour to Diana Ross's landmark album.
Lenny Kravitz To Honour Prince & Dhani Harrison Inducts ELO At Rock Hall Of Fame
Lenny Kravitz will perform a tribute to Prince at the Rock Hall of Fame, along with other guests Alicia Keys, Pharrell and Dhani Harrison.
Joni Sledge, Of Disco Figureheads Sister Sledge, Dies At 60
Joni was the second oldest of the sisters from Philadelphia who will forever be associated with their role in the "Chic sound" of the late 1970s.
Jazz Singer, Al Jarreau RIP
Born in Milwaukee in 1940, the vocal stylist passed away on 12 February, 2017, having given his life to jazz. Al Jarreau RIP
Yoko, Ringo & Many More Say 'We Are Not Afraid'
Yoko Ono, Ringo Starr, Keith Richards, Sting and Bruce Springsteen are among the major stars appearing in the video for the fundraising 'We Are Not Afraid.'
More Nile Rodgers


And as as disclaimer, there is absolutely nothing wrong if that is your normal pace. I'm by no means fast so I hope no one gets the wrong idea. Definitely not trying to put anyone down.
I got up and was planning on trying to start the run by 7:15 at the latest. I was having some tummy troubles that delayed me just a bit. So I got started at 7:35. Not a huge time difference, but when it's hot, every minute you can get in before the sun is up and blazing, the better.
It was about 80 degrees when I started the run. But the humidity was low and there was a very nice breeze blowing. It really didn't feel that bad. And it was a bit hazy or overcast, so that helped too. I had a general route in mind that I assumed would put me at my 10 mile goal.
The only problem is that part of the route is new so I can't really map it. I am going to have to get Jason to ride the route and check the mileage for me. Anyway, I got going and was just really in a good mood. I made it a point to slow my pace down, trying to gauge based on my heart rate because I don't know any mile markers this particular direction. Anyway, this route puts you running through a very shaded, path. Lovely and relaxing.
Today was one of those days when everything seemed to be clicking. I had a stupid smile plastered on my face the majority of the run. I was waving and saying hi to anyone and everyone. I planned the route to get back to my car at about an hour in so that I could refill my water and take my GU (and wipe off the sweat). I swear, if I got paid to sweat, I'd be one rich lady.
I was now headed down my usual path where I do know the mile points. I checked and I was doing about a 9:30 minute/mile. So I was indeed going slower than normal, and it was a very comfortable pace for me. I could have held a conversation fairly easily (I think). So I bebopped my way on for another 4 miles to complete the run.
Because I really didn't know the mileage, I went for time. Even though I know I was going faster than the prescribed 10 min/mile, I rounded it out for sake of ease - I ran 1 hour and 40 minutes because that would be 10 miles at that pace. So I probably got in just a little over 10, but nothing dramatic.
I will say that today I felt like I could have pulled out 13 miles. Just one of those awesome days I guess. Going into the run, I had a very positive attitude. I wasn't nervous about the mileage, I wasn't dreading it, I was actually very proud knowing I was going to accomplish my goal ahead.
So, officially back in the double-digit club!
I got home and stretched and rolled on my Triggerpoint Therapy Kit for about 30 minutes. I really wanted to make sure to roll out any kinks from the run. I really feel like I've finally figured out post-run recovery for MY body.
I remember the first few 10-mile runs left me absolutely wiped out and slightly gimped up feeling too. Now my recovery is so much different. I feel more like I ran 6 miles not 10.
My sister is on her way up to stay the night. We're going for a late lunch then over to some friends' house to watch the Razorbacks play their first game of the season. Not really a sports fan, but it's only pay-per-view and I know Jason wants to watch it. So, that's what the day ahead will be for me.
I hope you all have a fantastic Saturday!


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The historical attachments between China and Bangladesh can be traced back to two thousand years. A number of factors, including trade relationship through the southern Silk route, the exchange between these ancient cultures, and their knowledge and technologies have historically fostered this relationship. The two countries have persistently promoted and deepened their political, economic, diplomatic and military relations over the years. The year 2018 marks the 43 rd anniversary of the diplomatic ties between China and Bangladesh. Experts say that the China-Bangladesh friendship is growing from strength to strength.