My name is Steven Archer I studied at Lagan College Integrated secondary school where I worked towards ICT website design, game making, movie making and maths exams. I have received work experience in retail and also got the opportunity to spend a week at a fire station learning how things worked for example what firemen/firemen technicians do day in day out and got to participate in some fireman training programmes such as testing equipment, repairing equipment and putting out fires. I decided not go onto sixth year as I wanted to focus more on IT and was recommended by a teacher to join Belfast Centre of Learning in Belfast.
At present I'm studying at Belfast Centre of Learning working towards completion of English, Personal Life Skills and Information Communication Technology (ICT). My core subject is ICT which I enjoy, as I have always had a passion for working with computer hardware and software. I would like to pursue a career within one of these fields in the future and currently I am on work placement at Queen's University Belfast within the Centre for Data and Digitalisation and Analysis (CDDA) who specialise in the digitisation of difficult historical material.
Since stating in CDDA I have learnt a lot of new skills in several different areas starting from scanning material using flatbed, bookpage, microfish, map scanners and digital cameras to a high standard whist not damaging historical or fragile material. I have been trained to bring this into professional software packages including Word, Excel, Finereader and Adobe photoshop to enhance the quality. My favourite project at present is 3D scanning and modelling of historical objects such as WWI military uniforms (3d Technologies) . I have worked on several other projects throughout my time within CDDA which also include transcription of Ulster Museum historical records into digital form.
I am also currently completing my ECDL which the centre is kindly encouraging me to pursue to improve my range of skills and hope this will help pave the way for my future in a computer based environment.


text:
Q: How maintain the Silverlight application state aftwer the user press the browser refresh button? I'm learning Silverlight 3 and, in all of my tests, when I press the browser refresh button, the SL application restarts.
Is there any way to avoid this?

A: Isolated Storage. You can save you setting, and application state there...
http://silverlight.net/learn/learnvideo.aspx?video=65677
I would still recommend building your silverlight app in a way that saves enough state that a refresh will bring the user back to a meaningful location.
you might want to look at Silverlight3 Navigation : http://www.davidpoll.com/?p=88
If you are having a huge issue with a user refreshing the application, you could attempt to pop a new browser window that has no menubar and tool bar... but you will run into popup blockers...
http://www.webdevelopersnotes.com/tutorials/javascript/creating_opening_new_window_pop_ups_javascript.php3

A: Afaik you can't cancel an application restart like that.  What you can do is handle the Exit event in your App.xaml.cs and save the settings to IsoStore as suggested above, then load them in the Startup event (same class).  I guess you could make it a seamless transition by taking them back to the state that was present during the Exit event.

A: It's not possible to keep the state 'automatically'. However, using the navigation framework in SL3 you can achieve some level of statefulness: when you click 'Refresh' the application will restart but will navigate to the same page it was before.
Something similar is done in Quince: http://quince.infragistics.com/#/Search/ViewPattern$pattern=Action+Links
The part of the URL after # is read by the application and makes it navigate to the same place always.
This will not work if there's a lot of data to persist, as you need to keep state in the URL. However, has the nice side effect of enabling deep linking.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
What's New on HBO in July
Big Little Lies: Crystal Fox, AKA Bonnie's Mom, Is Even Cooler Than You Think
Big Little Lies Season 2 Director Reportedly "Heartbroken" After Behind-the-Scenes Drama
The 12 Best TV Shows of 2019, So Far
Sonia Saraiya and Richard Lawson
Clearly Upsetting
The 6 Most Disturbing Moments from HBO's Scientology Documentary Going Clear
It's possible that HBO's Scientology documentary, Going Clear: Scientology and the Prison of Belief, didn't show you anything you didn't already know. Based on the high-profile book of a similar name and covering a lot of material that has already been widely reported (including some information from the pages of Vanity Fair), the film wasn't exactly breaking new ground. But what it did do was put very human faces and very memorable images on a peculiar cultural phenomenon.
The documentary (which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year) caught the attention of HBO Sunday-night regulars who had become accustomed to their weekly dose of chills after six episodes of The Jinx. And if it's chills you want, then Going Clear certainly delivered. Here are the six most uncomfortable moments that will be keeping us up for the next few nights.
This Reminder of That Black Turtleneck Tom Cruise Video: If this video of Cruise excitedly talking about "Suppressive Persons" had leaked today instead of back in 2008 when the Internet was still young-ish, do you think it would have done his public image more damage? Either way, his enthusiasm is unsettling to say the least.
This Close-Up of L. Ron Hubbard's Teeth: Hubbard, the founder of the Church of Scientology, is laughing his head off here at the idea that some of his young acolytes aren't obedient enough. We later find out that, according to former SeaOrg member Hana Eltringham, disobedience was met with being tossed overboard, so, yeah, laugh it up, L.R.H.
The Whole Part About Xenu: Now, to be fair, Going Clear ratcheted up the creepiness factor in this section with their own squirm-inducing visuals. But the real creep factor came from the L. Ron Hubbard voice-over narration describing the Scientology creation myth. Which is, with all due respect, completely bonkers. In other words . . .
Well put, Paul Haggis.
That Scientology Music Video: Which part is more disconcerting? The 90s fashion (nice togs, Miscavige!) or the embarrassingly earnest lyrics?
The Nazi Imagery: The documentary is the one to make the connection between the Third Reich and David Miscavige's "We Beat the I.R.S.!" rally, but the visuals speak for themselves.
The Party Game from Hell: Once again, the documentary does some heavy lifting here with the visuals, but having Mike Rinder, Marty Rathbun, and Lawrence Wright all describe an incident where, according to them, Miscavige cranked up Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody" and had his tormented faithful fight each other in a game of musical chairs for the privilege to stay in a prison camp known as "The Hole" is chilling enough without the reenactment. Scaramouche just got a whole lot scarier.
Oprah Winfrey Misses Her Classic Talk Show, Just Like You
In Jumanji 2, The Rock Literally Plays Danny DeVito
Game of Thrones Is Officially Going to Comic-Con for a Victory Lap

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Backchannels
Joe Biden says Egypt's Mubarak no dictator, he shouldn't step down...
By Dan Murphy Staff writer
... and wonders what the Egyptian protesters want.
Vice President Joe Biden spoke to the PBS NewsHour tonight with the most direct US governent comments yet about the gathering Egypt protests against President Hosni Mubarak's 29-year reign.
Mr. Biden's comments are unlikely to be well-received by regime opponents, as they fit a narrative of steadfast US support for a government they want to bring down. About eight protesters and one policeman have died this week as Egypt has sought to bring down the heavy hand of the state against opponents. Since the US provides about $1.3 billion in military aid to Egypt a year, the repressive apparatus of the state is seen by many in Egypt as hand in glove with the US.
Tonight in Cairo, activists said that internet service was being systematically blocked, as was the use of instant messages on local cellphones, despite repeated calls from the US State Department for Egypt to allow social media sites like Facebook and Twitter to remain available to the nation's people. Egypt is bracing for a showdown tomorrow. Organizers have called for massive protests against the regime after noon prayers on Friday, seeking to build on the unprecedented wave of public demonstrations this week calling for an end to Mubarak's rule.
Whether the protests will be as large as democracy activists hope is an open question. Overnight in Egypt, the government was doing everything it could to head them off.
Ahead of a day that could prove decisive, NewsHour host Jim Lehrer asked Biden if the time has "come for President Mubarak of Egypt to go?" Biden answered: "No. I think the time has come for President Mubarak to begin to move in the direction that – to be more responsive to some... of the needs of the people out there."
Asked if he would characterize Mubarak as a dictator Biden responded: "Mubarak has been an ally of ours in a number of things. And he's been very responsible on, relative to geopolitical interest in the region, the Middle East peace efforts; the actions Egypt has taken relative to normalizing relationship with – with Israel. … I would not refer to him as a dictator."
He also appeared to make one of the famous Biden gaffes, in comments that could be interpreted as questioning the legitimacy of protesters' demands. Monitor Cairo correspondent Kristen Chick, other reporters in the country, and activists have generally characterized the main calls of demonstrators as focused on freedom, democracy, an end to police torture, and a more committed government effort to address the poverty that aflicts millions of Egyptians.
Biden urged non-violence from both protesters and the government and said: "We're encouraging the protesters to – as they assemble, do it peacefully. And we're encouraging the government to act responsibly and – and to try to engage in a discussion as to what the legitimate claims being made are, if they are, and try to work them out." He also said: "I think that what we should continue to do is to encourage reasonable... accommodation and discussion to try to resolve peacefully and amicably the concerns and claims made by those who have taken to the street. And those that are legitimate should be responded to because the economic well-being and the stability of Egypt rests upon that middle class buying into the future of Egypt."
Egypt's protesters, if they're paying attention to Biden at all, will certainly be wondering which of their demands thus far have been illegitimate.
Backchannels US State Department response to Egypt uprisings, then and now
Backchannels White House backing away from Morsi in record time
Timeline: Egypt since the revolution


text:
Absent progesterone receptor expression in the lymph node metastases of ER-positive, HER2-negative breast cancer is associated with relapse on tamoxifen
http://orcid.org/0000-0001-7847-3041Cameron E Snell1,2,
Madeline Gough1,2,
Kathryn Middleton3,
Michael Hsieh2,
Lauren Furnas2,
Brenton Seidl3,
Kristen Gibbons4,
Christopher Pyke4,5,
Catherine Shannon3,
Natasha Woodward3,
Jane E Armes2,4
1Breast Cancer Research Group, Mater Research Institute—The University of Queensland, Translational Research Institute, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
2The Department of Anatomical Pathology, Mater Pathology, Mater Hospital Brisbane, Mater Health Services, South Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
3The Department of Medical Oncology, Mater Hospital Brisbane, Mater Health Services, South Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
4Mater Research Institute—The University of Queensland, South Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
5The Department of Breast and Endocrine Surgery, Mater Hospital Brisbane, Mater Health Services, South Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
Correspondence to Dr Cameron E Snell, The Department of Anatomical Pathology, Mater Pathology, Mater Hospital Brisbane, Level 3 Duncombe Building, Raymond Terrace, South Brisbane, QLD 4101, Australia; cameron.snell{at}gmail.com
Aims Progesterone receptor (PR) expression is prognostic in early stage breast cancer. There are several reports of discordant expression between primary tumour and axillary lymph node (ALN) metastasis expression of oestrogen receptor (ER) and PR. We sought to determine whether expression of these biomarkers in the synchronous ALN metastases of ER positive (+), HER2 negative (−) breast cancer could provide more accurate prognostic information.
Methods The retrospective cohort included 229 patients from a single institution with ER+, HER2− breast cancer who had synchronous ALN metastatic disease (2005–2014). PR expression was correlated with relapse-free survival, and subset analysis was performed for patients who received adjuvant tamoxifen or an aromatase inhibitor.
Results One patient had an ER+ primary tumour, which was ER− in the ALN metastasis. 27 (11.3%) were PR− in the primary tumour and 56 (23.6%) in the ALN metastasis. The predominant change was from PR+ in the primary tumour to PR− in the lymph node. Absence of PR expression in the ALN was significantly associated with relapse; however, this was not the case in the primary tumour. In a subset analysis of patients taking adjuvant endocrine therapy, poorer prognosis was limited to those with PR− metastases on tamoxifen (HR=5.203, 95% CI 1.649 to 16.416, p=0.005). No significant prognostic effect of PR− metastases in patients taking aromatase inhibitors was seen (HR=1.519, 95% CI 0.675 to 3.418, p=0.312).
Conclusions Evaluation of PR expression in ALN metastasis may enable prediction of patients who are less likely to benefit from adjuvant tamoxifen. This study should be replicated in other cohorts.
BREAST PATHOLOGY
http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/jclinpath-2016-204304
Handling editor Cheok Soon Lee.
Contributors CES conceived the study. CES, MG, KM, MH, LF, BS and JEA collected the data. MG constructed tissue microarrays and performed immunohistochemistry. CES, KG, CP, CS, NW and JEA analysed and interpreted the data. All authors were involved in writing and approval of the manuscript.
Funding CES is supported by fellowships from the RCPA Foundation (The Royal College of Pathologists of Australasia) and Mater Foundation (Betty McGrath fellowship). The project also has received funding from Mater Foundation. The Translational Research Institute is supported by a grant from the Australian government.
Competing interests KM reports receiving travel expenses from Roche. CS reports receiving compensation for being on advisory boards for Roche and AstraZeneca. NW reports receiving honoraria, consulting and travel expenses from Roche; consulting and travel expenses from Novartis and research funding from Medivation.
Ethics approval The Mater Health Services Human Research Ethics Committee approved the use of archival tumour blocks and patient information for this study (reference number: HREC/15/MHS/123). All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards. For this type of study formal consent is not required.


text:
Q: what is faster to read, ASCII or Binary? I am presently working on a C++ project that involves reading in thousands of small (~20kb) text files which are all in ASCII format.
Will I be able to get a significant performance improvement by converting all of the files into Binary before analyzing them?

A: There is no real difference between "ASCII" and "Binary" if you're handling text.  ASCII is an interpretation of Binary data as text.  So, if I understand your question correctly, the answer is no, there is no conversion that is possible and there is no performance improvement.

A: Storing data in binary format has two advantages:

*

*it occupies less storage (less disk IO)

*it is faster to read (no time-consuming string parsing)

So there will be performance improvements if you convert your textual representation to a tightly-packed binary format, but if they are significant depends on your particular situation.
If data streaming is already a performance bottleneck, switching to a binary format (and possibly even compressed - reading from disks is inherently slow ) can bring a lot.

A: Converting a string to a number, while not cheap in cpu cycles, is a non-issue.  The amount of overhead involved with I/O is always orders of magnitude larger than the conversion.  The size of the file is not much of an issue either, a disk supplies 8KB about as fast as 20KB, it all comes out of the same cluster on the same track.  Having thousands of files is a big issue, opening a file involves moving the disk reader head and that takes forever.
So focus on whittling down the number of files for a real gain.

A: You can get a performance gain on load when the binary format is such that you consequently minimise any requirement for parsing. For example, where the content can be dumped in large chunks that map directly into a 'struct dump'. Every further step beyond this in turn may cost you performance. Whether this ends up being much ahead of the ASCII will in part depend on how complex/inefficient the ASCII is to start with.
Steps which cost you even in binary include:

*

*Compression

*Platform independence

*Variable content

*Changes to the content requiring an update of the binary from the ASCII

If you are sure a large part of the execution time is load and parse, but you only do this once for a fixed data set, an other option might be to use threads. Set up a bunch of parallel workers that load the data and then place it on a queue for analysis.

A: Probably, yes. But then it'll be impossible to verify the input files by inspection, and you'll have to spend time writing code to transcode them, and new code to read them. I'd only do it if you find that I/O time is a significant problem .


text:
Don't Shoot: One Man, a Street Fellowship, and the End of Violence in Inner-City America
David M. Kennedy. Bloomsbury, $26 (320p) ISBN 978-1-60819-264-9
The Boston Miracle: PW Talks with David M. Kennedy
Freedom from Fear: The American People in Depression and War, 1929-1945
In a matter-of-fact, street-smart style, coming from years of working with police officers, gang members, and community workers in some of America's most dangerous neighborhoods, Kennedy, professor at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice, explains his remarkably effective strategies for combating violent crime. When research showed that only a disproportionately small number of criminals commit most of the most serious crimes, Kennedy had the police identify gang members on parole or probation and urge them to come to a meeting. At the gathering were members of the gangs' families, community service providers, and the police, who explained the legal risks the perpetrators faced (most gang members didn't know)—and demanded that shootings stop. If the killings continued, the perpetrators would not receive another chance; instead, they'd be met with severe punishment, and their entire gang would be targeted. When this program, called Operation Ceasefire, was first tried in Boston in the '90s, violence plummeted by almost two-thirds, and Kennedy chronicles the difficulties in implementing the program to meet the needs of 50 other cities. Warning against the country's "orgy" of incarceration, which disproportionately targets black males in America's most vulnerable neighborhoods, this heartfelt book shows what can happen when police, gangs, and communities come together to address some of America's most intractable social problems. (Oct.)
Open Ebook - 978-1-60819-413-1
Open Ebook - 320 pages - 978-1-4088-2889-2
Paperback - 321 pages - 978-1-60819-414-8


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Thank you for visiting Handmade Beaded Jewelry | Handcrafted - Unique. I've been making handmade beaded costume jewelry for nine years now. I was looking for something to make extra money I remembered my mother was very creative and she had made a few handmade necklaces and enjoyed making them, so I decided to do the same.
Necklaces can betray a touch of color or spotlight of vivid colors. Necklaces can add charm and a pendant necklace can make a bold impression. Earrings can hold sway over your look transforming your clothes into a polished outfit, Earrings highlight a hairstyle or complement the frame of your face. Bracelets can dress up an outfit or fit your taste, bracelets can impart elegance to personalize your look.
 My designs are unique one-of-kind sets I add on chain extensions, to add length to your necklace, I use magnet clasp for bracelets to make it easier to fasten, I have created a bracelet tool to help with conventional clasps you can purchase these with your bracelets or you can just purchase one from the Bracelets page, I also like to use the heavy 7 strands stainless steel beading wire because this wire is strong, will help your jewelry to last a lifetime.
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Learn how to make a career change or bounce back from redundancy.
Find out if you need a career change.
Find out what you should say in your resignation letter, and use our resignation letter templates and examples.


text:
News Wages
Displaying items by tag: Wages
South Korean truck drivers end strike
South Korea: A truck driver strike has ended after seven days. The Korea Herald newspaper has reported that the government has agreed to extend a freight rate-based minimum wage system. The total cost to the cement industry was US$70.6m,
South Korean cement truck drivers strike
South Korea: A total of 8200 truck drivers have gone on strike to request higher wages and an extension of the government's freight charge system. The Korea JoongAng Daily newspaper has reported that 50% of the country's 2700 cement truck drivers are unionised. Under the freight charge system, drivers receive minimum monthly payments in order to tackle the problem of overloading.
St Mary's Cement's Port-Daniel-Gascons plant workers vote for strike action
Canada: Workers at St Mary's Cement's Port-Daniel-Gascons cement plant have voted in favour of taking strike action in a dispute over matters including wages and pensions. Local press has reported that workers and the company, a subsidiary of Brazil-based Votorantim Cimentos, will sit in negotiations on 13 and 14 June 2022. Employees previously rejected a 'final and comprehensive' offer from the company earlier in May 2022.
SibCem expects production cost cement to rise by 30% in 2022
Russia: SibCem's first vice president Gennady Rasskazov says that the local production cost of cement is expected to rise by 30% year-on-year in 2022 due to the new 'economic circumstances' the country faces. He added that, due to economic sanctions, the price of coal rose by 76 - 86%, goods and materials by 55%, diesel by 30%, oils and lubricants by 83% and transport and logistics costs by 14 - 24% in the first quarter of 2022. The average growth in worker pay at SibCem will rise by 30% in 2022 as the company has implemented indexed salaries. Rasskazov made the comments at a meeting with cement producers, consumers and local officials at the Novosibirsk State University of Architecture and Civil Engineering.
Cemex expands executive climate target compensation scheme
Mexico: Cemex has expanded its Executive Variable Compensation program, which includes progress on its carbon reduction goals as a variable, to cover over 4500 executives. The initiative is part of the company's Future in Action program, which focuses on reducing the carbon footprint of Cemex's operations and products to become a net-zero CO2 company by 2050. From the start of 2022, the CO2 emissions component will have an impact that will range from -10% to +10% in the total cash payout of the annual executive variable compensation.
Eurocement starts spare parts import substitution programme
Russia: Eurocement has started an initiative to reduce its reliance on spare parts purchased from outside of the country. The programme is designed to start a phased transition to in-house production of components. One of the first examples of the scheme has been the development and installation of a clutch for a mill at the Sengileevsky cement plant.
The cement producer hopes to source at least 90% of the parts it requires domestically. At present it says that around 30% of the equipment used in the local cement sector is imported. The estimated economic effect will be around Euro14m.
The company has also announced an unscheduled indexation of staff wages to over 7000 workers at 16 cement plants. Indexing of wages is typically used to compensate for inflation. Other measures have also included food support. Vyacheslav Shmatov, the general director of Eurocement, said ""We have decided to increase our support measures for our employees during this difficult time in order to strengthen our work teams. Eurocement is, first of all, people, so the company will continue to take care of its employees."
International economic sanctions were implemented upon Russia by European and North American countries in response to its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
Trinidad Cement workers protest outside Claxton Bay plant
Trinidad & Tobago: Current and former employees of Trinidad Cement have held two-day weekly protests since 10 January 2022 outside the company's Claxton Bay plant in Couva–Tabaquite–Talparo Region. Staff from the past 10 years reportedly say that the company owes them their agreed cost of living allowance, gain shares and backpay.
Algerian cement truckers protest loading law change
Algeria: Some cement truck drivers have launched protests against a change in the law which limits their vehicles' loads below the previous maximum weight. The L'Expression newspaper reports that protests include refusals to depart and the establishment of roadblocks. The actions have prevented the export of some Algerian clinker. Lafarge Algérie said that it raised drivers' pay per tonne of goods following the law change. The company stated that the new level of pay ensures that transporters will not lose out as a result.
Algeria is targeting cement and clinker exports of 10Mt in 2022.
Argentine Association of Portland Cement Manufacturers raises cement workers' pay
Argentina: The Association of Portland Cement Manufacturers (AFCP) has agreed with the Argentine Mining Workers Association union to a 48% pay rise for all Argentinean cement workers. The La Voz del Interior newspaper has reported that the union has lifted its nationwide state of alert as a result of the agreement.
Laotian cement plant workers paid back wages in long running dispute
Laos: Workers at the Guestown-Lao cement plant have been paid back wages in a dispute. All 170 employees owed money by the Guestown-Lao company plant in Luang Prabang province's Nam Bak district have now received US$42,000 from the plant's new owner, according to Radio Free Asia. Some of the former employees of the plant have also returned to work under the new management.
Provincial authorities detained the Chinese owner of the Guestown-Lao plant in April 2021, accused him of failing to pay wages to his Lao workers in November 2020 and subsequently filed criminal charges against him. He is now awaiting trial on the charges. The company has since been taken over by China-based Jian Qe.


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Rugby players come in all shapes and sizes – and a University of Stirling study is helping the Scotland under-20 side discover their own perfect proportions.
Scotland under-20 kick-off their 6 Nations Championship campaign in France this weekend, their matches running concurrently with the senior side.
Whilst Head Coach Sean Lineen will be poring over their playing performance, Stirling sport and health research scientists are assessing their height, body mass, body composition and even what they eat.
"Typically, rugby players should have a high lean and low fat mass, which they can achieve through their training and diet," said PhD student Lindsay Macnaughton, who is leading the project.
Pre-tournament measurements of the squad have already been recorded through a combination of traditional methods and state-of-the-art technology.
Skinfold thickness was measured using callipers whilst each athletes' fat and muscle masses were determined using a Dual-Energy X-ray Absorptiometry (DEXA) scanner to produce a full body composition readout.
Food diaries will monitor what the players eat and drink and a repeat of the entire process in March, following the final fixture against Ireland, will feed into a detailed report for the players and national nutritionists to consider the results.
Macnaughton added: "It's an exciting project to be working with the Scotland stars of the future. They are still developing physically and so hopefully we can help them make the small adjustments which can improve their performance levels.
"Some of the younger guys will be trying to increase their muscle mass, whilst others are looking to maintain their size or maybe even lose some weight. It's not a case of one size fits all as different positions require different body shapes.
Richard Chessor, Lead Nutritionist at Scottish Rugby, said: "We are really excited to be involved in this project with the University of Stirling Health and Exercise Research Group. It will provide valuable data to help us better understand our players' physiology and how it changes over the course of our season.
The study is also comparing what happens at elite level with University and Club level players, an area of specific interest to Macnaughton, from Orkney, given her role as captain of the University Ladies' Rugby team and winger for local side Stirling County Ladies.
This builds on previous research at Scotland's University for Sporting Excellence which studied the sweat patterns of the senior Scotland men's team to assist nutritionists in developing tailored hydration plans for each player.


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WD's Personal Cloud Storage devices aimed at home network-attached storage (NAS) users has been steadily growing since the My Cloud was first announced in October 2013. The WD My Cloud EX2 is available in four different storage capacities to help fit the storage criteria of various business and home user capacity needs.
Inside the WD My Cloud EX2 retail box you'll find that the NAS comes securely packaged in thick foam and there is also a card letting you know there is toll-free phone setup help if you need any assistance. Inside the retail box you'll find the two-bay My Cloud EX2, Ethernet cable, the power supply brick (AC Adapter) and the quick install guide.
Since we are looking at the 4TB model it shouldn't come as a shock to anyone that it is populated with two WD Red 2TB hard drives. One of the really nice features of the WD My Cloud EX2 is that all of the hot swappable hard drive bays are trayless! The front of the WD My Cloud EX2 has three blue LED lights on it that show power and the status for each drive.
Can the files be accessed by removing a drive from the enclosure and installing it in a PC? I didn't seen any temperature measurements from the enclosure during various operations. Can the firmware of an installed hard-drive (WD Red or Seagate NAS drive let's say) be updated when in this NAS? There appear to be two power input ports on the rear side of the unit, and if there is support for redundant power supplies, that would be a first in this product category. As expected with any NAS targeting home consumers, the unit is a certified DLNA media server with Twonky 7.2 pre-installed. This is probably going to sound stupid, but I thought that running mechanical drives vertically for a long period of time was a no-no. Today we take a look at Western Digital's My Cloud Personal Cloud Storage, an external hard drive system that connects to your home network and can be access from the internet via a PC, smartphone, or tablet just like a cloud base service.
Most of you are familiar with what a NAS device can do but Western Digital is forcing the market to change the way consumers look at external drives. Western Digital wants consumers to have access to their files from anywhere with minimal fuss. So I installed it using the quick guide and that was easy enough; however it installed a bunch of unneeded software including Apple Bonjour used by a useless utility showing the shares exposed by the drive and I came to realize that the remote access apparently goes through a Western Digital web server. Ok, so I read many horror stories about earlier versions of the Firmware of this device related to the IP address changing through HDCP and the first thing I did was go into my router and assign the WDMyCloud device a permanent IP address through my router's HDCP reservation feature so the IP address won't change. I copied a large library of files to it and got between 10 Mbs to 60 Mbs depending on whether I was copying many small files or fewer large ones, large files appear to copy faster.
The Firmware in the drive is quite "brittle" meaning that it has a number of anomalies and bugs that may need you to reset or reboot the drive at times or to work around at times the Setup Web Pages may stop responding properly.
On my local LAN, I don't care much about security so I have made everything public without any passwords.
Next I tried to set-up the SafePoint feature on the Settings Dashboard to make a backup of the settings and data on the device. Now I do not intend to use it for streaming data to mobile devices so I have not tried any of that. Yes, all computing devices can connect to the My Cloud, including Mac and PC systems (browser and My Cloud desktop app).
Hey friends,TARDIS Box is provides cloud storage services for documents, images, files and videos upto 150GB with nothing of cost. If you had a look in the support forum of WD MyCloud you would have found out that there are a lot of user complaints proving that the firmware of that device is unstable since the first shipments in Oct.
With My Cloud (single bay) each folder has a user control on it that only a particular user has access to it at a time.
For My Cloud Mirror, My Cloud EX2 and My Cloud EX4 there is a document flow management feature – a check-in, check-out feature. WD My Cloud is one of the best cloud storage services out there, and since the service has so many users, there have been countless Windows 10 users complaining of not being able to access their WD My Cloud accounts ever since their upgrade to Windows 10. If you are unable to access your WD My Cloud account on a Windows 10 computer, fear not, as this issue can indeed be fixed.
The simplest and most widely effective fix for this issue is to simply add a Windows Credential for your WD My Cloud account to the credentials list on your Windows 10 computer. Click on the Add a Windows credential link in the top right corner of the list of Windows Credentials. Type the name you gave your WD My Cloud device into the Internet or network address bar, the username of your WD My Cloud account in the Username bar and the password to your WD My Cloud account in the Password. Click on Save.
Restart your computer, and when it boots up, you will be able to seamlessly access your WD My Cloud account. If Method 1 does not work for you, which is highly unlikely, this issue can also be fixed by editing your computer's registry and adding a certain DWORD (32-bit) value to a specific key.
Right-click on an empty space in the right pane, hover over New and click on DWORD (32-bit) value.
Double-click on the new value and, in the dialog that opens up, change its value to 1 and then click on OK. Close the Registry Editor and restart your computer, and when your computer boots up, you will be able to successfully access your WD My Cloud account without any issues.
WD followed that up with a 4-Bay model called the My Cloud EX4 in November 2013 for those that were looking for data redundancy and more storage capacity. All of the cables that are included are color matched, which is nice for those that don't like to have a million different colors. The body of the enclosure is made from plastic and while it has some give, it doesn't feel too cheap or like it will fall apart on you.
WD ships all the models with a standard RAID 1 array (an exact copy of a set of data on two disks.) This means that it has 2TB of usable storage space as one drive is just a mirror of the other. This means that when a drive fails that you just unscrew the top drive plate with your fingers and slide the drive out. There are four rubber feet on the bottom of the WD My Cloud EX2, so it shouldn't slide around or scratch the surface you place it on.
Note that neither side has any ventilation holes located along the top edge and the bottom of the enclosure has thick rubber feet to keep from scratching whatever it will be placed on. Once the device is stopped I don't know how the NAS will behave when you want to rebuild it. Western Digital also indicated that the platform has 512 MB of RAM, and is powered by a 2.0 GHz processor. Western Digital also touts the availability of third-party apps such as aMule, Icecast, Joomla etc. As I understand, in the most general sense it simply means the ability to access your data (and sometimes applications) from any internet-connected device. The WD My Cloud is a personal private cloud at its core and is basically a Network Attached Storage (NAS) device designed to have tons of functionality and extremely an easy to use GUI. If you have seen the WD My Book line of hard drives, the My Cloud line looks very similar just in a different color.
WD suggests 10 people at most, but mentioned to us that some users have told them that they have gone beyond that. However, if an Admin does enable multiple users to access the same file, and the users are both editing a file, there is a potential case that they could overwrite one another.
WD does support applications on those devices such as Joomla for content (CMS) and Git for version control. If it's going to be an online device that's holding your files I need to know how secure is it? The problem has become so severe that some Windows 10 users have even resorted to rolling back to Windows 7 and Windows 8.
In almost all cases, the culprit behind a user not being able to access their WD My Cloud account on a Windows 10 computer is the fact that Windows 10 does not allow users to access certain accounts unless credentials for these accounts are added to the credentials list. It appears under Network in File Manager but does not allow me to access my files on the drive.
The one obvious product that was missing was a 2-bay product, but that all changed with the announcement of the My Cloud EX2 today.
All of the My Cloud EX 2 Personal Cloud Storage servers that come with pre-installed drives feature WD Red hard drives that are optimized for high-performance NAS devices.
To replace the drive you do need a screwdriver though as there are a couple stand-offs and a pull tab that need to be swapped over to the new drive. Overall the WD My Cloud EX2 looks good and has some cool features, so let's take a peek inside and see what it looks like. We will be able to confirm the SoC and other details of the platform once we are able to lay hands on the unit.
Android and iOS apps are available for access to the NAS from anywhere (outside or inside the local network on which the NAS is installed). You can also pull files that you've stored onto public cloud storage such as Dropbox onto My Cloud. The casing around the hard drive is a simple white plastic case with silver edges and accents.
Can all of these devices be connected to one My Cloud drive, or do the Mac and PC devices need separate My Cloud drives?
The My Cloud EX2 is WD's answer to those looking for a fully featured 2-bay NAS device. The diskless solution is aimed at the Do-It-Yourself (DIY) crowd and supports a wide variety of drive brands and models. If you are concerned with drive failures you might want to purchase a spare drive to quickly rebuild the RAID 1 array should a drive failure occur in the years to come.
The user will be able to download (perhaps stream too) files from this NAS if the NAS is connected to Internet. Today we'll be talking a look at the WD My Cloud 2TB that is sold under part number WDBCTL0020HWT-NESN. This slim design takes the shape of a book and operates upright next to any router due to the fact it needs to be hardwired into the router via Ethernet cable. I am a certified MCTS (Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist) with over 10 years of experience.
The My Cloud EX2 uses the same firmware and user interface as the other My Cloud products, but utilizes a different hardware platform and obviously is a different form factor.
I love to address tech issues, and write tech how-to's in a way that it can be followed by everyone. Bowie, if she can detect cancer!She says her german shepherd Bowie began constantly sniffing around the exact area where her tumour was located.Shannen admits she was confused at what the dog was doing, and it wasn't until she was diagnosed that it fell into place.
Those photos through our own maintenance options.
Family and friends, even if they don't have and.
Left with 8 TB is probably way more than enough files uploaded was also.
About cloud computing and its storage if you upgrade point in time, the NIST.


text:
1926 Phyllis 2021
Phyllis Bright
July 5, 1926 — October 2, 2021
Morris, MN
Memorial services for Phyllis Bright will be held Friday, October 8, 2021 at 11:00 a.m. at Trinity Lutheran Church in Cyrus, Minnesota, with Reverend Marlin Mohrman officiating. Visitation will be on hour prior to the service. Burial will be at Scandia East Cemetery, rural Cyrus, Minnesota.
Phyllis Audrey Estensen, daughter of Theodore and Alma (Solvie) Estensen, was born July 5, 1926 on a farm in New Prairie Township, south of Cyrus, Minnesota. Phyllis was baptized and confirmed at Trinity Lutheran Church in Cyrus. She graduated from Cyrus High School Class of 1944. She was united in marriage to Charles Bright June 8, 1946 at Trinity Lutheran Church. Phyllis worked off the farm at several places but farmed together with Chuck, their pride and joy was raising beef cows and calves. Through the years they lived on several different farms around Cyrus and Morris, until they later settled on a farm in Framnas Township in Stevens County for over 50 years until their retirement. On October 19, 2013, Phyllis and Chuck made their home at Grand Arbor in Alexandria, Minnesota where she continued to live until the time of her death.
Phyllis was a lifelong member of Trinity Lutheran Church in Cyrus where she was active in various ladies' groups and taught Sunday school. She was also a 4-H leader for many years. She enjoyed gardening, canning, cooking, playing cards, board games and puzzles. Phyllis was a very faithful woman who loved the Lord. She will be deeply missed by her loving family and friends.
Phyllis passed away Saturday, October 2, 2021 at Grand Arbor in Alexandria, Minnesota. She was 95 years old.
She is survived by her husband: Charles "Chuck" Bright; one son: Carlos (Cheryl) Bright; one daughter: Peggy (Lyle) Christensen; seven grandchildren: Todd (Heidi) Bright, Peter (Melissa) Bright, Ryan (Missy) Bright, Bryan (Jessie) Simon, Michael Simon, Ann (Tom) Reppe and Blair (Lexi) Christensen; 13 great-grandchildren; sisters-in-law: Muriel Bright and Lila Estenson and several nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her parents; son: Daryl Bright; brother: Martin Estensen and sisters: Aloris Pederson, Rachel Olson and Avis Savre.
In lieu of flowers, memorials are preferred to Knute Nelson Hospice or a charity of your choice.
Pedersen Funeral Home in Morris is in charge of the arrangements for Phyllis.
To order memorial trees or send flowers to the family in memory of Phyllis Bright, please visit our flower store.
10:00 - 11:00am (Central time)
200 E Main St, Cyrus, MN 56323


text:
Salvador Alfredo Maciá Carbó (Paraná, Entre Ríos Province, Argentina, 17 March 1855 – Buenos Aires, Argentina, 6 January 1929) was a doctor and politician who served as governor of Entre Ríos Province between 1895 and 1899. He also served as a provincial and national deputy, as a national senator. He was a Minister of Government during the government of Sabá Hernández, his predecessor.

His government was known for its nepotism, particularly with regards to Leonidas Echagüe and Enrique Carbó, two relatives of Maciá Carbó who later became governors of the province. Positive elements of Maciá Carbó's government were promotion of trade, agriculture and ranching.

References

1929 deaths
Governors of Entre Ríos Province
1855 births
People from Paraná, Entre Ríos

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


中国医科大学学报 ›› 2009, Vol. 38 ›› Issue (10): 764–.
measure the frequencies of IL-4,IL-5,IFN-γ,TNFα positive CLA+T cells.
PNCG may treat AD through restoring the immune balance of CLA+T cells.
张丽, 齐瑞群, 孙艳, 陈国红, 任宏伟, 陈洪铎, 高兴华. 卡介菌多糖核酸对特应性皮炎外周血CLA~+T细胞表达不同细胞因子的影响[J]. 中国医科大学学报, 2009, 38(10): 764–.
ZHANG Li, JI Rui-Qun, SUN Yan, CHEN Guo-Hong, REN Hong-Wei, CHEN Hong-Duo, GAO Xin-Hua. Effect of PNCG on the Expression of CLA+T Cell Derived Cytokines in Atopic Dermatitis[J]. Journal of China Medical University, 2009, 38(10): 764–.
 谭文斐,任宏伟,金凤,马虹. 腹横肌平面阻滞对患者外周血 Th1/Th2 比值的影响[J]. 中国医科大学学报, 2016, 45(10): 898-900.
 康笑,隋汝波,张磊,马贺骥. 小脑-下丘脑通路在卒中后抑郁发病机制中的作用[J]. 中国医科大学学报, 2015, 44(5): 389-393.
 刘阳. 树突状细胞联合细胞因子诱导的杀伤细胞免疫治疗恶性肿瘤患者的护理[J]. 中国医科大学学报, 2015, 44(2): 184-185.
 谷高玲,赵国安,孙海燕,李波,王显良,杨萌,武慧敏. 冠心病患者细胞因子信号转导抑制剂1基因多态性的临床意义[J]. 中国医科大学学报, 2013, 42(5): 436-438.
 赵戬,潘春玲,刘俊超,李倩,潘亚萍. TNF-α刺激人牙周膜细胞表达MMP-9的研究[J]. 中国医科大学学报, 2012, 41(6): 524-526.


text:
The preventive effect of atorvastatin on atrial fibrillation: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials
Qian Yang1,
Xiaoyong Qi1 &
Yingxiao Li1
A number of clinical and experimental studies have investigated the effect of atorvastatin on atrial fibrillation (AF), but the results are equivocal. This meta-analysis was performed to evaluate whether atorvastatin can reduce the risk of AF in different populations.
We searched PubMed, EMBASE and the Cochrane Database for all published studies that examined the effect of atorvastatin therapy on AF up to April 2014. A random effects model was used when there was substantial heterogeneity and a fixed effects model when there was negligible heterogeneity.
Eighteen published studies including 9952 patients with sinus rhythm were identified for inclusion in the analysis. Ten studies investigated primary prevention of AF by atorvastatin in patients without AF, seven studies investigated secondary prevention of atorvastatin in patients with AF, and one study investigated mixed populations of patients. Overall, atorvastatin was associated with a decreased risk of AF (odds ratio (OR) 0.51, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.36–0.70, P < 0.0001). However, subgroup analyses showed that in the primary prevention subgroup (OR 0.55, 95% CI 0.38–0.81, P = 0.002), atorvastatin reduced the risk of new-onset AF in patients after coronary surgery (OR 0.44, 95% CI 0.29–0.68, P = 0.0002), but had no beneficial effect in patients without coronary surgery (OR 0.97, 95% CI 0.59–1.58, P = 0.89); in the secondary prevention subgroup, atorvastatin had no beneficial effect on AF recurrence in patients with electrical cardioversion (EC) (OR 0.57, 95% CI 0.25–1.32, P = 0.19) or without EC (OR 0.38, 95% CI 0.14–1.06, P = 0.06).
This meta-analysis suggests that atorvastatin has an overall protective effect against AF. However, this preventive effect was not seen in all types of AF. Atorvastatin was significantly associated with a decreased risk of new-onset AF in patients after coronary surgery. Moreover, atorvastatin did not prove to exert a significant protective effect against the AF recurrences in both patients who had experienced sinus rhythm restoration by means of EC and those who had obtained cardioversion by means of drug therapy. Thus, further prospective studies are warranted.
Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most common arrhythmia in clinical practice and is a major contributor to morbidity and mortality [1, 2]. However, the mechanism of AF remains incompletely understood and treatment is not satisfactory. In recent years, an increasing number of studies have suggested that inflammation and oxidative stress contribute to atrial remodeling and play an important role in AF development [2–4]. It has been suggested that statin medications may be beneficial in protecting against AF, because of their anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties [5]. Recent meta-analyses [6, 7] of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) showed that statin therapy was significantly associated with a decreased risk of AF in different patient populations. Atorvastatin is a highly effective statin medication and is widely used clinically. It is the most studied statin in relation to AF [6, 7], but the results are equivocal. We therefore performed this meta-analysis to evaluate whether atorvastatin can reduce the risk of AF in different populations.
Literature search and inclusion criteria
We searched PubMed, EMBASE and the Cochrane Database for all published studies that examined the effect of atorvastatin therapy on AF up to April 2014. We conducted text searches with the search terms "atorvastatin" and "atrial fibrillation". We also manually searched references from selected clinical trials, recent meta-analyses and review articles.
We included studies that met the following specified criteria: (1) comparison of atorvastatin with placebo or control treatment, regardless of the background therapy; (2) randomized controlled human trials; (3) new-onset AF or recurrent AF in each group as an outcome.
We extracted the following information from each study: (1) study population sample size and characteristics; (2) dose and duration of treatment; (3) outcome measures. One reviewer abstracted the data, and then the other checked the documentation. They finally reached an agreement on the data by consensus. We used the Jadad score [8] to assess the methodological quality of the included studies.
We performed the statistical calculations with RevMan version 5.2 (The Cochrane Collaboration, Oxford, UK) and Stata version 12 (Stata Corp, College Station, TX, USA). We allocated the results of each study as dichotomous frequency data to evaluate the effect of atorvastatin on new-onset AF or recurrence of AF. We calculated the odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) for new-onset or recurrent AF in each trial separately, and for combinations of studies according to fixed-effect and random-effect models. We used the chi-squared test to assess heterogeneity and I 2 to quantify heterogeneity. If the chi-squared test P-value was > 0.10 and I 2 was < 50%, we analyzed the data using a fixed-effect model (the Mantel–Haenszel method), otherwise we used a random-effect model [9, 10]. If the heterogeneity was significant, we attempted to explain the differences based on the patient clinical characteristics of the included studies. The P-value threshold for statistical significance was set at 0.05 for the effect sizes. We also used Begg and Egger tests [11, 12] to assess the presence of publication bias.
Eighteen published studies [13–30] including 9952 patients with sinus rhythm were identified for inclusion in the analysis. The process of study selection is summarized in Figure 1. These studies compared the use of atorvastatin vs. no statins on AF in various populations. Ten studies [15, 17–19, 21–24, 26, 28] investigated the use of atorvastatin in primary prevention of AF in patients after cardiac surgery (n = 8) [15, 17, 19, 21–24, 28] or implantation of a pacemaker (n = 1) [18], or in patients with a prior stroke or transient ischemic attack (n = 1) [26]. Seven studies [14, 16, 20, 25, 27, 29, 30] investigated the use of atorvastatin in secondary prevention of AF in patients who received electrical cardioversion (EC; n = 4) [16, 20, 25, 27], catheter ablation (n = 2) [29, 30] or pharmacological treatment (n = 1) [14]. The MIRACL trial [13] included both AF and non-AF patients, so MIRACL-1 and MIRACL-2 were used to represent the primary and secondary prevention subgroups. These studies were published between 2004 and 2013 and the sample sizes ranged from 40 to 4731. Intervention strategies of atorvastatin and documentation of AF were also variable. The studies received Jadad scores of 2 (n = 5) [16, 18, 21, 27, 30], 3 (n = 3) [14, 19, 24], 4 (n = 3) [15, 23, 29], or 5 (n = 7) [13, 17, 20, 22, 25, 26, 28] points. The characteristics of the studies included in the meta-analysis are shown in Table 1.
Summary of the study selection and exclusion process. AF: atrial fibrillation.
Table 1 Baseline characteristics of the studies included in the meta-analysis
Results of the meta-analysis
The meta-analysis of all included studies indicated that atorvastatin was effective for the prevention of AF (OR 0.51, 95% CI 0.36–0.70, P < 0.0001), but there was substantial heterogeneity (P < 0.00001, I 2 = 72%). The results are shown in Figure 2.
Effect of atorvastatin on atrial fibrillation. ARMYDA-3: atorvastatin for reduction of myocardial dysrhythmia after cardiac surgery study; CI: confidence interval; MIRACL: myocardial ischemia reduction with aggressive cholesterol lowering study; SPARCL: Stroke Prevention by Aggressive Reduction in Cholesterol Levels; SToP AF: statin therapy for the prevention of atrial fibrillation trial.
Subgroup analysis
A subgroup analysis was performed to evaluate the effect of atorvastatin on primary and secondary prevention of AF. The results showed that atorvastatin was effective for both primary prevention (OR 0.55, 95% CI 0.38–0.81, P = 0.002) and secondary prevention (OR 0.47, 95% CI 0.26–0.86, P = 0.01) of AF. However, the heterogeneity remained substantial (primary prevention: P = 0.0004, I 2 = 69%; secondary prevention: P = 0.002, I 2 = 70%) in both groups. The results are shown in Figure 3.
Primary and secondary prevention of AF with atorvastatin. AF: atrial fibrillation; ARMYDA-3: atorvastatin for reduction of myocardial dysrhythmia after cardiac surgery study; CI: confidence interval; MIRACL: myocardial ischemia reduction with aggressive cholesterol lowering study; SPARCL: Stroke Prevention by Aggressive Reduction in Cholesterol Levels; SToP AF: statin therapy for the prevention of atrial fibrillation trial.
Eleven trials [15, 17–19, 21–24, 26, 28] that investigated the use of atorvastatin in primary prevention of AF were divided into two subgroups on the basis of whether patients underwent coronary surgery. The results of subgroup analysis showed that atorvastatin was effective in reducing the risk of AF in patients after coronary surgery (OR 0.44, 95% CI 0.29–0.68, P = 0.0002), although there was heterogeneity (P = 0.07, I 2 = 46%), but showed no beneficial effect in patients without coronary surgery (OR 0.97, 95% CI 0.59–1.58, P = 0.89), again showing heterogeneity (P = 0.12, I 2 = 53%). The results are presented in Figure 4.
Primary prevention of AF with atorvastatin in patients with or without coronary surgery. AF: atrial fibrillation; ARMYDA-3: atorvastatin for reduction of myocardial dysrhythmia after cardiac surgery study; CI: confidence interval; MIRACL: myocardial ischemia reduction with aggressive cholesterol lowering study; SPARCL: Stroke Prevention by Aggressive Reduction in Cholesterol Levels.
Eight trials [14, 16, 20, 25, 27, 29, 30] that investigated the use of atorvastatin in secondary prevention of AF were divided into two subgroups on the basis of whether patients underwent EC. The results of subgroup analysis showed that atorvastatin had no beneficial effect either in patients with EC (OR 0.57, 95% CI 0.25–1.32, P = 0.19) or without EC (OR 0.38, 95% CI 0.14–1.06, P = 0.06). The heterogeneity remained substantial (with EC: P = 0.08, I 2 = 56%; without EC: P = 0.001, I 2 = 81%) in both groups. The results are shown in Figure 5.
Secondary prevention of AF with atorvastatin in patients with or without EC. AF: atrial fibrillation; CI: confidence interval; EC: electrical cardioversion; MIRACL: myocardial ischemia reduction with aggressive cholesterol lowering study; SToP AF: statin therapy for the prevention of atrial fibrillation trial.
Sensitivity analysis and publication bias
The results were similar when studies with Jadad score < 3 [16, 18, 21, 27, 30] were removed from the analysis (OR 0.49, 95% CI 0.32–0.73; P = 0.0004). These studies were also excluded when performing the subgroup analyses and no obvious change in effect size was detected. However, there was little heterogeneity in the coronary surgery subgroup (P = 0.96, I 2 = 41%), so a fixed-effect model was used to analyze the data. The results are shown in Table 2.
Table 2 Sensitivity analysis
Publication bias was evaluated using Begg's and Egger's tests when the subgroup analyses were performed. Publication bias was statistically insignificant in patients with EC (Begg, P = 1.00; Egger, P = 0.81), in patients without EC (Begg, P = 0.73; Egger, P = 0.45), in patients without coronary surgery (Begg, P = 0.30; Egger, P = 0.34), and in patients with coronary surgery when a trial with Jadad score < 3 was excluded [21] (Begg, P = 0.55; Egger, P = 0.18).
To the best of our knowledge, this is the first meta-analysis that excluded bias caused by different types of statins, and only assessed the efficacy of atorvastatin on the prevention of AF in different populations. The meta-analysis suggested that atorvastatin could protect against AF overall. However, subgroup analysis indicated that this preventive effect was not seen in all types of AF. Atorvastatin was significantly associated with a decreased risk of new-onset AF in patients after coronary surgery, while atorvastatin did not prove to exert a significant protective effect against the AF recurrences in both patients who had experienced sinus rhythm restoration by means of EC and those who had obtained cardioversion by means of drug therapy.
Atorvastatin is widely used in clinical practice, and more clinical studies related to AF have been carried out with atorvastatin than with other statins. In the latest meta-analysis [7], 28 RCTs were included to evaluate the preventive effect of statin therapy on AF. Of the 28 trials, atorvastatin was studied in 16, indicating that atorvastatin has the most evidenced-medicine data on AF. The meta-analysis [7] included all types of statins and suggested that statin therapy reduced AF significantly, with an OR of 0.69 (95% CI 0.57–0.83). The present meta-analysis suggests that atorvastatin is a highly effective statin medication in reducing AF, with an overall OR of 0.51 (95% CI 0.36–0.70). Rosuvastatin is another highly effective statin, but only limited data are available about its potential effect on AF. A previous meta-analysis of rosuvastatin [31] only included four RCTs and showed that it reduced the risk of AF by 30% (relative risk 0.70, 95% CI 0.54–0.91).
The preventive effect of atorvastatin against AF did not appear to be dose-dependent, as the trials that used a high dose of atorvastatin (80 mg/day) [13, 20, 25, 26, 29] did not have lower ORs. Trials with different doses of atorvastatin were limited and with significant heterogeneity in the study populations, so subgroup analysis according to different doses was not performed in our meta-analysis. A previous meta-analysis [32] even came to the conclusion that the preventive effect of atorvastatin on AF may be more significant at a lower dose (10–40 mg/day), while a recent study [33] on patients undergoing cardiac surgery suggested that the preventive effect of atorvastatin on postoperative AF was not dose-dependent.
In our meta-analysis, subgroup analyses were performed to evaluate the effect of atorvastatin on AF in different populations. Atorvastatin showed less atrial antiarrhythmic properties than expected in different populations, especially in the prevention of AF recurrence. In the primary prevention subgroup, the results showed that atorvastatin was significantly associated with a decreased risk of new-onset AF in patients after coronary surgery (Figure 4), which was in accord with other recent meta-analyses [7, 34]. However, atorvastatin did not appear to protect against new-onset AF in patients who did not undergo coronary surgery (Figure 4). However, as only three trials were included in this subgroup and there was significant heterogeneity among them, it is inappropriate to come to the conclusion that atorvastatin was ineffective in this population. A recent meta-analysis [7] included nine RCTs and also found a negative result, which the authors suggested may be attributed to a relatively short follow-up time. In our secondary prevention subgroup, when trials were divided into two groups of patients with or without EC, the results showed that atorvastatin had no beneficial effect on the recurrence of AF in either group (Figure 5). These results contrasted with previous meta-analyses [6, 35], which suggested that statin therapy significantly decreased the risk of AF recurrence in patients with or without EC. In our subgroup analysis, because only four trials were included in each subgroup and the study population of each study was relatively small, it is inappropriate to come to the conclusion that atorvastatin is ineffective in the secondary prevention of AF, and further investigation is required.
At present, an increasing amount of evidence suggests that inflammation and oxidative stress may play important roles in the pathogenesis and perpetuation of AF [2, 36, 37]. The mechanism of action of statins in the treatment of AF is suggested to be related to their anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties [4, 38]. The capacity of statins to reduce inflammation is relatively well established. Eight trials [14–17, 22, 24, 25, 28] in our meta-analysis proved that atorvastatin could reduce inflammatory biomarkers, especially in patients after cardiac surgery [15, 17, 22, 24, 28] when there was obvious acute inflammation. Furthermore, the nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate oxidase (NOX) is considered to be a very important cellular source of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in the human body, while excessive production of ROS is likely involved in the structural and electrical remodeling of the heart, and contributes to atrial fibrosis and AF [39]. Atorvastatin could inhibit ROS generation via downregulation of NOX2, thus protecting against AF [40]. In recent years, myeloperoxidase (MPO), a heme enzyme abundantly expressed by neutrophils, was shown to be a crucial prerequisite for atrial fibrosis and AF [2, 41]. Statins could strongly inhibit MPO mRNA expression in human and murine monocyte-macrophages, and consequently reduce MPO protein and enzyme activity [42]. These may be the underlying mechanisms of statin therapy on AF and deserve further investigation.
This meta-analysis indicated that patients who underwent coronary surgery derived more benefit from atorvastatin in the prevention of AF than other populations. The reasons can be summarized as follows. The postoperative course of a coronary surgery is characterized by severe inflammation and oxidative stress resulting from extracorporeal circulation and surgical manipulation of the epicardial coronary vessels. Thus the anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects of atorvastatin as mentioned above may account for its beneficial effects in these patients. AF after coronary surgery is mainly caused by elevations in atrial pressure, autonomic nervous system imbalance, myocardial ischemic damage and so on [43], thus it can regress over time with surgery recovery. However, non-postoperative AF, especially recurrent AF, is often caused by atrial remodeling such as atrial dilation and fibrosis [44]. This remodeling encompasses changes in electrical, contractile, and structural properties of the atria and may be less responsive to atorvastatin compared with postoperative AF.
This meta-analysis has the following limitations. Only published RCTs were included in our meta-analysis, so publication bias was unavoidable. Although subgroup analyses were performed according to different populations, heterogeneity still existed among the trials, such as sample size, the dose and duration of atorvastatin treatment, and documentation of AF. The trials were limited according to the numbers in some subgroups, so the results were less persuasive.
The meta-analysis suggested that atorvastatin has an overall protective effect against AF. However, subgroup analysis indicated that this preventive effect was not seen in all types of AF. Atorvastatin was significantly associated with a decreased risk of new-onset AF in patients after coronary surgery. Moreover, atorvastatin did not prove to exert a significant protective effect against the AF recurrences in both patients who had experienced sinus rhythm restoration by means of EC and those who had obtained cardioversion by means of drug therapy. Thus, more large-scale prospective RCTs are required to investigate whether atorvastatin is an effective medication for the prevention of AF in different populations.
AF:
RCTs:
Randomized clinical trials
EC:
Electrical cardioversion
MIRACL:
Myocardial Ischemia Reduction with Aggressive Cholesterol Lowering study
ARMYDA-3:
Atorvastatin for Reduction of MYocardial Dysrhythmia After cardiac surgery study
SToP AF:
Statin therapy for the prevention of atrial fibrillation trial
SPARCL:
Stroke Prevention by Aggressive Reduction in Cholesterol Levels
NOX:
Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate oxidase
ROS:
MPO:
Myeloperoxidase.
Chugh SS, Havmoeller R, Narayanan K, Singh D, Rienstra M, Benjamin EJ, Gillum RF, Kim YH, McAnulty JH, Zheng ZJ, Forouzanfar MH, Naghavi M, Mensah GA, Ezzati M, Murray CJ: Worldwide epidemiology of atrial fibrillation: a Global Burden of Disease 2010 Study. Circulation. 2014, 129: 837-847.
Rudolph V, Andrie RP, Rudolph TK, Friedrichs K, Klinke A, Hirsch-Hoffmann B, Schwoerer AP, Lau D, Fu X, Klingel K, Sydow K, Didie M, Seniuk A, von Leitner EC, Szoecs K, Schrickel JW, Treede H, Wenzel U, Lewalter T, Nickenig G, Zimmermann WH, Meinertz T, Boger RH, Reichenspurner H, Freeman BA, Eschenhagen T, Ehmke H, Hazen SL, Willems S, Baldus S: Myeloperoxidase acts as a profibrotic mediator of atrial fibrillation. Nat Med. 2010, 16: 470-474.
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Dernellis J, Panaretou M: Effect of C-reactive protein reduction on paroxysmal atrial fibrillation. Am Heart J. 2005, 150: 1064-
Chello M, Patti G, Candura D, Mastrobuoni S, Di Sciascio G, Agro F, Carassiti M, Covino E: Effects of atorvastatin on systemic inflammatory response after coronary bypass surgery. Crit Care Med. 2006, 34: 660-667.
Ozaydin M, Varol E, Aslan SM, Kucuktepe Z, Dogan A, Ozturk M, Altinbas A: Effect of atorvastatin on the recurrence rates of atrial fibrillation after electrical cardioversion. Am J Cardiol. 2006, 97: 1490-1493.
Patti G, Chello M, Candura D, Pasceri V, D'Ambrosio A, Covino E, Di Sciascio G: Randomized trial of atorvastatin for reduction of postoperative atrial fibrillation in patients undergoing cardiac surgery: results of the ARMYDA-3 (Atorvastatin for Reduction of MYocardial Dysrhythmia After cardiac surgery) study. Circulation. 2006, 114: 1455-1461.
Tsai CT, Lai LP, Hwang JJ, Wang YC, Chiang FT, Lin JL: Atorvastatin prevents atrial fibrillation in patients with bradyarrhythmias and implantation of an atrial-based or dual-chamber pacemaker: a prospective randomized trial. Am Heart J. 2008, 156: 65-70.
Song YB, On YK, Kim JH, Shin DH, Kim JS, Sung J, Lee SH, Kim WS, Lee YT: The effects of atorvastatin on the occurrence of postoperative atrial fibrillation after off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting surgery. Am Heart J. 2008, 156: 373 e379-316-
Almroth H, Hoglund N, Boman K, Englund A, Jensen S, Kjellman B, Tornvall P, Rosenqvist M: Atorvastatin and persistent atrial fibrillation following cardioversion: a randomized placebo-controlled multicentre study. Eur Heart J. 2009, 30: 827-833.
Melina G, Angeloni E, Di Nucci G, Benedetto U, Fiorani B, Sclafani G, Comito C, Tonelli E, Refice S, Sinatra R: Preoperative HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors and atrial fibrillation in patients undergoing CABG: A prospective randomised trial. Eur Heart J. 2009, 30 (Suppl 1): 32-
Ji Q, Mei Y, Wang X, Sun Y, Feng J, Cai J, Xie S, Chi L: Effect of preoperative atorvastatin therapy on atrial fibrillation following off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting. Circ J. 2009, 73: 2244-2249.
Spadaccio C, Pollari F, Casacalenda A, Alfano G, Genovese J, Covino E, Chello M: Atorvastatin increases the number of endothelial progenitor cells after cardiac surgery: a randomized control study. J Cardiovasc Pharmacol. 2010, 55: 30-38.
Sun Y, Ji Q, Mei Y, Wang X, Feng J, Cai J, Chi L: Role of preoperative atorvastatin administration in protection against postoperative atrial fibrillation following conventional coronary artery bypass grafting. Int Heart J. 2011, 52: 7-11.
Negi S, Shukrullah I, Veledar E, Bloom HL, Jones DP, Dudley SC: Statin therapy for the prevention of atrial fibrillation trial (SToP AF trial). J Cardiovasc Electrophysiol. 2011, 22: 414-419.
Schwartz GG, Chaitman BR, Goldberger JJ, Messig M: High-dose atorvastatin and risk of atrial fibrillation in patients with prior stroke or transient ischemic attack: analysis of the Stroke Prevention by Aggressive Reduction in Cholesterol Levels (SPARCL) trial. Am Heart J. 2011, 161: 993-999.
Demir K, Can I, Koc F, Vatankulu MA, Ayhan S, Akilli H, Aribas A, Alihanoglu Y, Altunkeser BB: Atorvastatin given prior to electrical cardioversion does not affect the recurrence of atrial fibrillation in patients with persistent atrial fibrillation who are on antiarrhythmic therapy. Med Princ Pract. 2011, 20: 464-469.
Baran C, Durdu S, Dalva K, Zaim C, Dogan A, Ocakoglu G, Gurman G, Arslan O, Akar AR: Effects of preoperative short term use of atorvastatin on endothelial progenitor cells after coronary surgery: a randomized, controlled trial. Stem Cell Rev. 2012, 8: 963-971.
Suleiman M, Koestler C, Lerman A, Lopez-Jimenez F, Herges R, Hodge D, Bradley D, Cha YM, Brady PA, Munger TM, Asirvatham SJ, Packer DL, Friedman PA: Atorvastatin for prevention of atrial fibrillation recurrence following pulmonary vein isolation: a double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized trial. Heart Rhythm. 2012, 9: 172-178.
Jiang F, Wang X, Zeng L, Tu S, Zhang Z: Atorvastatin therapy in patients with atrial fibrillation ablation to maintain sinus rhythm. Heart. 2013, 99 (Suppl 3): A192-
Liu T, Korantzopoulos P, Li L, Li G: Preventive effects of rosuvastatin on atrial fibrillation: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. Int J Cardiol. 2013, 167: 3058-3060.
Wang Z, Zhang Y, Gao M, Wang J, Wang Q, Wang X, Su L, Hou Y: Statin therapy for the prevention of atrial fibrillation: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. Pharmacotherapy. 2011, 31: 1051-1062.
Kourliouros A, Valencia O, Hosseini MT, Mayr M, Sarsam M, Camm J, Jahangiri M: Preoperative high-dose atorvastatin for prevention of atrial fibrillation after cardiac surgery: a randomized controlled trial. J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg. 2011, 141: 244-248.
Kuhn EW, Liakopoulos OJ, Stange S, Deppe AC, Slottosch I, Choi YH, Wahlers T: Preoperative statin therapy in cardiac surgery: a meta-analysis of 90,000 patients. Eur J Cardiothorac Surg. 2014, 45: 17-26.
Loffredo L, Angelico F, Perri L, Violi F: Upstream therapy with statin and recurrence of atrial fibrillation after electrical cardioversion. Review of the literature and meta-analysis. BMC Cardiovasc Disord. 2012, 12: 107-
Negi S, Sovari AA, Dudley SC: Atrial fibrillation: the emerging role of inflammation and oxidative stress. Cardiovasc Hematol Disord Drug Targets. 2010, 10: 262-268.
Patel P, Dokainish H, Tsai P, Lakkis N: Update on the association of inflammation and atrial fibrillation. J Cardiovasc Electrophysiol. 2010, 21: 1064-1070.
Adam O, Laufs U: Rac1-mediated effects of HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors (statins) in cardiovascular disease. Antioxid Redox Signal. 2014, 20: 1238-1250.
Youn JY, Zhang J, Zhang Y, Chen H, Liu D, Ping P, Weiss JN, Cai H: Oxidative stress in atrial fibrillation: an emerging role of NADPH oxidase. J Mol Cell Cardiol. 2013, 62: 72-79.
Reilly SN, Jayaram R, Nahar K, Antoniades C, Verheule S, Channon KM, Alp NJ, Schotten U, Casadei B: Atrial sources of reactive oxygen species vary with the duration and substrate of atrial fibrillation: implications for the antiarrhythmic effect of statins. Circulation. 2011, 124: 1107-1117.
Friedrichs K, Baldus S, Klinke A: Fibrosis in atrial fibrillation - role of reactive species and MPO. Front Physiology. 2012, 3: 214-
Kumar AP, Reynolds WF: Statins downregulate myeloperoxidase gene expression in macrophages. Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 2005, 331: 442-451.
Hogue CW, Creswell LL, Gutterman DD, Fleisher LA: Epidemiology, mechanisms, and risks: American College of Chest Physicians guidelines for the prevention and management of postoperative atrial fibrillation after cardiac surgery. Chest. 2005, 128 (Suppl 2): 9S-16S.
Schotten U, Verheule S, Kirchhof P, Goette A: Pathophysiological mechanisms of atrial fibrillation: a translational appraisal. Physiol Rev. 2011, 91: 265-325.
The pre-publication history for this paper can be accessed here:http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2261/14/99/prepub
Department of Cardiology, Hebei General Hospital, Shijiazhuang, Hebei, People's Republic of China
Qian Yang
, Xiaoyong Qi
& Yingxiao Li
Search for Qian Yang in:
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Correspondence to Xiaoyong Qi.
QY conceived the study, participated in the design, collected the data, performed statistical analyses and drafted the manuscript. XY conceived the study, collected the data, and helped to draft the manuscript. YL performed statistical analyses and helped to draft the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.
Authors' original submitted files for images
Authors' original file for figure 1
https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2261-14-99
Non-coronary artery cardiac disease


The Ohio State University Plant Microbe Genomics Facility, established in 2000, is a center providing DNA sequencing products and services to researchers conducting molecular-based studies and genetics. The facility serves Ohio State and researchers throughout the world by providing resources to study genomes from DNA sequence to protein activities.
The facility can study any organism's DNA, RNA or protein.
PMG is the preferred sequencing facility around the globe because of its ability to access and leverage multidisciplinary expertise from the fields of the arts and sciences, medicine, dentistry, human development and nutrition, consumer sciences, food, agriculture, and environmental sciences and because of its ability to create new uses for equipment that goes beyond technology's original use. If researchers are conducting molecular-based studies, they rely on PMGF to deliver outstanding computer science expertise.
Davlieva, M, et al. 2015. A variable DNA recognition site organization establishes the LiaR-mediated cell envelope stress response of enterococci to daptomycin. Nucl. Acids Res. 43(8): 4758–4773.
Joshi, G, et al. 2013. The Regulatory Twist and the Synergistic Role of Metabolic Coinducer and Response Regulator-Mediated cbbRcbb, Interactions in Rhodopeudomonus palustris CGA010. J. Bacteriol. 195(7):1381-1388.
Logsdon, M, et al. 2011. Analysis of the DNA Sequencing Quality and Efficiency of the Apollo100 Robotic Microcycler in a Core Facility Setting. J Biomol Tech. 22(2): 53–59.
PMGF staff work with undergraduate and graduate students conducting research.
PMGF staff provide educational tours and lectures targeted to high school students with an interest in the sciences.


Care2 Healthy Living | Are You Cooking With the Best Type of Onion? Probably Not.
Are You Cooking With the Best Type of Onion? Probably Not.
All onions are not created equal — which is why it's frustrating when a recipe calls for "an onion." Sure, it's not the end of the world if you use a red onion when the recipe writer had a yellow one in mind, or vice versa, since pretty much every onion will cook the same way. But using the best onion for the job can really add a depth of flavor to your meals that using a subpar type just, well, won't.
For most of the year, you'll find red storage onions at the supermarket, which are pungent and spicy. In the summer months, you'll often find fresh red onions, which are much more mild, and lack a bit of the "onion-y" flavor you'll find in their yellow and white cousins. They do much better raw than cooked. If you find the taste of raw red onions (and really any other type of onion) too sharp, you can soak red onions in water for 30 minutes-1 hour.
Best For: Salads, sandwiches, burgers, pickling, salsas.
The gold standard onion and usually the cheapest one at the market. If you're using a recipe that doesn't specify what type of onion to use, a yellow onion is your best bet. Yellow onions are particularly hardy, and their flavor complex and spicy. They also have more sulfur than other onion varietals, so they're much more pungent, difficult to eat raw, and more likely to make you tear up.
Yellow onions keep for a very long time.
Best For: Dishes that cook for a long time on low heat, like soups, including French onion soup, stocks, risotto, sauces and stews. Anything sautéed, too.
Of all of the main types of onion, white onions are the least common. Sharper than yellow onions, crisp and clean white onions are great raw and cooked. You can cook white onions like you would yellow onions.
White onions have a slightly shorter storage life than yellow onions, but should not be kept in the fridge.
Best For: Mexican food, white sauces, pasta salads, raw in salads, in chili, and potato salads.
They tend to be larger, and have thinner skin, than other types of onions. Some are so sweet that you can actually eat them like an apple. You may have seen sweet onions called Vidalia, Walla Walla, and, less commonly, Texas sweet onions and Maui onions. Sweet onions are much less pungent, and yes, sweeter, than yellow onions. They break down quickly and aren't very complex, so it's best not to use them in lieu of regular yellow onions as an aromatic flavor.
Unlike other onions, sweet onions spoil quickly and should be stored in the fridge.
Best For: Gratins, roasted vegetables, onion rings. They're also great raw on salads and sandwiches. My favorite? On the grill with a little olive oil, salt and pepper!
My onions seem to work just fine for me...Thank you for posting.


text:
Compassionate Living Our Food Factory Farming — Selected Bibliography
Animal Agriculture — Selected Bibliography
Vegetarianism & Veganism
Contaminated Food
Animal Agriculture & the Environment
Animal-based Diets & Human Health
Opposite Trends in Agribusiness
Humane Animal Husbandry: A Myth
Humane Slaughter:
A Contradiction in Terms
Down & Feathers
The Byproduct Myth
In the last five decades a huge body of serious, informative, and thought-provoking material has been published that documents the exploitation of farm animals. The following books, listed in order of publication, are a short selection that demonstrates an unfolding critique of the industrialization of farming.
Harrison, Ruth. Animal Machines: The New Factory Farming Industry. London: Vincent Stuart, Ltd., 1964.
This was a ground-breaking study of the growing mechanization of animal agriculture. It shocked the British public and resulted in the formation of the Brambell Committee, whose subsequent report recognized that animals have a right to five basic freedoms. Harrison's work, and the government recommendations, initiated a reevaluation of husbandry across Europe. (This book is very difficult to locate.)
Singer, Peter. Animal Liberation. New York: New York Review/Random House, 1975; revised edition, 1990; reissued with a new preface, Ecco, 2001.
Singer makes the case that animals have rights that are at a parity to those of humans, and therefore that non-human animals deserve liberation from exploitation and abuse. This discourse on speciesism established the animal liberation movement.
Mason, Jim. Animal Factories. New York: Crown Publishers, 1980; revised edition, 1990.
For his early exposé of the problems of mass-production on factory farms, Mason did thorough fieldwork, visiting intensive farming facilities and research centers. Organized around hard-hitting photographic documentation, Mason's report is shocking and uncompromising.
Eisnitz, Gail A. Slaughterhouse: The Shocking Story of Greed, Neglect, and Inhumane Treatment Inside the U.S. Meat Industry. New York: Prometheus Books, 1997.
Based on an in-depth investigation, Eisnitz reveals that in spite of decades of updated welfare standards for animals at slaughter, the reality is gruesome. She highlights the impact of deregulation, the increasing dangers in the food supply, the worsening treatment of animals, and the dehumanizing effect on workers. Slaughterhouse is one of the most important exposés ever published.
Lyman, Howard F. Mad Cowboy: Plain Truth from the Cattle Rancher Who Won't Eat Meat. New York: Scribner, 1998; revised edition, 2001.
Lyman tells his personal story of why and how he left an industry that was becoming more and more dependent on the dangerous chemical management of land and animals. A powerful indictment of all animal agriculture, including "free range" farming.
Robbins, John. The Food Revolution: How Your Diet Can Help Save Your Life and Our World. Berkeley, California: Conari Press, 2001.
Robbins reviews the overall abuse and suffering inherent in factory farming while emphasizing the wide ecological context. He demonstrates the waste and danger involved in converting grain to human food by way of animal protein. He warns us about serious environmental deterioration in a concise and well-organized presentation.
Patterson, Charles. Eternal Treblinka: Our Treatment of Animals and the Holocaust. New York: Lantern Books, 2002. Now available in Hebrew — Haifa: Pardes Publishing House, 2006.
The core of Eternal Treblinka is the history of two commercial developments: the mass-production assembly-line method and the industrialization of factory farming. Patterson describes the convergence of the production of things and the production of food animals since the industrial revolution of the 19th century. His chilling story shows how the Nazis applied the American and European know-how of manufacturing and animal farming to the slaughter of millions of people.
Druce, Clare and Philip Lymbery. Outlawed in Europe: How America is Falling Behind Europe in Farm Animal Welfare. New York: Archimedean Press (Animal Rights International), 2002.
This book is a short review of the advances in farmed animal welfare over the last few decades, as implemented in Western Europe through legislation. It is a powerful contrast to the opposite trend of deregulation in the Americas and the rest of the world.
Regan, Tom. Empty Cages: Facing the Challenge of Animal Rights. Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc., 2004.
Regan has been advocating for animals for a generation, as an animal rights activist, liberationist, and philosopher. In his most recent book he reminds us why our goal is to free non-human animals entirely from human exploitation and cruelty. Establishing legislation and better welfare regulation still leaves animals in unacceptable conditions of suffering. He suggests we open the cage doors and free non-human animals from being used for food, education, entertainment, and research.
Kemmerer, Lisa. Animals and World Religions. New York: Oxford University Press, 2012.
This book is a comprehensive exploration of moral and ethical considerations in terms of animal exploitation and religion. The Introduction, Conclusion, and Appendix form an excellent and detailed summary of the issues of severe cruelty and suffering that concern animal advocates.
ONLINE REFERENCE RESOURCES
International Agricultural Organizations
WTO: World Trade Organization
OIE: World Organization for Animal Health
FAO: Food and Agriculture Organization
WAICENT Information Finder
European Union — European Commission
European Commission: Food Safety
European Commission: Animal Health and Welfare
Australia Department of Agriculture, Forestry, Fisheries
Agriculture and Agri-Food
Canadian Food Inspection Agency
Ontario: Ministry of Agriculture and Food
Egyptian Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reclamation (site is sometimes unavailable)
India Ministry of Agriculture: Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying
ICAR: Indian Council of Agricultural Research
CINADCO: Centre for International Agricultural Development Cooperation
Israel Veterinary Services and Animal Health
Israel Agriculture Research Organization
Japan Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, Fisheries
New Zealand Ministry of Agriculture
New Zealand Ministry of Fisheries
National Department of Agriculture (site is sometimes unavailable)
DEFRA: Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs
Veterinary Medicines Directorate
APHIS: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
FAS: Foreign Agricultural Service
ARS: Agricultural Research Service
FSIS: Food Safety and Inspection Service
CVM: Center for Veterinary Medicine
CSREES: Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service
USNAL: United States National Agricultural Library
United States Food and Drug Administration
Copyright Privacy Policy


Hello and thank you for visiting my site. My name is Ben Wilkinson and I am the photographer behind Wilkography.
As a proud Nikon enthusiast representing the company as a lecturer and teacher I am self taught with my knowledge and skill acquired through reading, listening, experimenting and a strong desire to improve my craft. Personally, I get a real buzz out of exploring and capturing the amazing Island I call home, Tasmania.
I love photography because alongside my wife, family and friends, photographing and exploring the Tasmanian wilderness gives me a greater appreciation of life. A simple camera takes me away from it all and allows me to just be, it allows me be caught in a moment where nothing else matters, a moment where I can enjoy my surroundings without any other interference from life.
My appreciation of the Tasmanian outdoors began as a youngster where I spent a lot of time on my grandfather's farm in Fern Tree. I developed a love for the amazing wilderness we have here, right at our back door. I can drive for 15 minutes and be completely surrounded by bush on Mt Wellington or take a short drive and be the only person on a Bruny Island beach, within an hour.
I am fascinated by the works of people like Peter Dombrovskis and Olegas Truchanas because I find inspiration in the dedication they showed for the preservation of Tasmania's wilderness. The lengths they went to create images which are iconic and instrumental in Tasmania's story gives me great motivation to contribute to the awareness of how valuable our natural resources are.
People say there are things we miss out on in Tasmania and in some respects I agree. However this is what makes us different and creates an element of magic that is infectious for those who experience Tasmania.. For these reasons and many more its important to protect the Island for future generations, other than the benefit of our own.
I hope you get as much enjoyment looking at my images as I do creating them.
All images are copyright of Wilkography and may not be used without direct written consent from Ben Wilkinson.


text:
The Abbey Art Centre
I lived at the Abbey Art Centre in New Barnet, Hertfordshire in the late 1960s and early 70s, first in a room in the main house ('Remember, no flibbertigibbets,' Ms. Ohly, the landlady, had told me), then a succession of studios in the garden. The communal meals featured in the video had disappeared, but there was still a certain community spirit. Mike Figgis was one resident, at that time involved with the People Show group, and Lotte Reinegger, the animated film pioneer was another. The place hadn't changed much since the early fifties, and I'm pretty sure the abstract painter in the video is working in my first 'garden' studio.
If the video doesn't show up on this page, click here to view it.
Nabokov's tingle
Vladimir Nabokov:
"The seat of artistic delight is between the shoulder blades. That little shiver behind is quite certainly the highest form of emotion that humanity has attained when evolving pure art and pure science. Let us worship the spine and its tingle."
Here's a Matisse that does it for me (despite the cracks):
Franco Moretti and "distant reading"
From an article in the New York Times (October 30, 2017) about the literary critic Franco Moretti and his "distant reading" - the computer-assisted crunching of thousands of texts at a time:
... even modest-seeming results — like the finding that from 1785 to 1900 the language of the British novel steadily shifted away from words relating to moral judgment to words associated with concrete description — unsettle established ideas of literary history.
Ted Underwood, a professor at the University of Illinois who also uses computational analysis, commented:
"We tend to see literary history as a story of movements, periods, sudden revolutions," Mr. Underwood said. "There are also these really broad, slow, massive changes that we haven't described before."
Another way to think about the history of visual art, too.


Following the success of her previous single "Home With You", Independent pop singer-songwriter Madison Beer breaks onto the NewSickMusic pages with visuals for her Offset-assisted single "Hurts Like Hell". Working alongside director Mike Harris, Beer executively produced and co-wrote the creative for the video which was shot in Simi Valley. The video makes it clear that she is in control and has never been more confident as an artist.
Check out the video above and be sure to follow Madison at madisonbeer.com to stay up on all new releases.


Can the Tea Party's "next Ted Cruz" rebound?
In Mississippi, Chris McDaniel, the candidate often called the "next Ted Cruz" was supposed to be the Tea Party's best hope to bring down a GOP incumbent.
But now his campaign is wrapped up in a bizarre scandal.
Dana Bash is OutFront from Biloxi, Mississippi with the story.


In Pakistan, a terror attack targeting the Chinese Consulate situated in Karachi's Clifton area was foiled by security forces today, leaving at least seven people dead.
According to a senior police official, the attackers fired at a check post and then detonated a hand grenade in an attempt to enter the consulate building.
However, Consulate's security guards quickly barricaded the building to stop them from entering the building. According to Sindh Police and the army's media wing, all the three terrorists were killed in the operation by security forces.
Police officials confirmed two policemen and two Pakistani civilians among those killed. The separatist group, Baluch Liberation Army, claimed responsibility for the attack.
In another incident today, at least 25 people were killed and 35 others injured in a blast at a Friday Market in Khyber Pakhtunkhawa province.
Police said a suicide bomber on a motorbike had driven into the crowded Kalaya bazaar of the Aurakzai tribal district.