text:
\section{Introduction \label{sec:intro}}

The asymptotic iteration method (AIM) is an iterative algorithm for the
solution of Sturm--Liouville equations~\cite{CHS03,F04}. Although this
method does not seem to be better than other existing approaches, it has
been applied to quantum--mechanical~\cite{B05,B06,CHS05} as well as
mathematical problems~\cite{B05b}. For example, the AIM has proved suitable
for obtaining both accurate approximate and exact eigenvalues~\cite
{CHS03,F04,B05,B05b,B06,CHS05} and it has also been applied to the
calculation of Rayleigh--Schr\"{o}dinger perturbation coefficients~\cite
{B06,CHS05b}.

Recently, Barakat applied the AIM to a Coulomb potential with a radial
polynomial perturbation~\cite{B06}. By means of a well--known transformation
he converted the perturbed Coulomb problem into an anharmonic oscillator.
Since straightforward application of the AIM exhibited considerable
oscillations and did not appear to converge Barakat resorted to perturbation
theory in order to obtain acceptable results \cite{B06}.

It is most surprising that the straightforward application of the AIM failed
for the anharmonic oscillator studied by Barakat~\cite{B06} since it had
been found earlier that the approach should be accurate in such cases~\cite
{F04}.

The main purpose of this paper is to verify whether the AIM gives accurate
eigenvalues of the perturbed Coulomb model or if its sequences are
oscillatory divergent as mentioned above. We also discuss the application of
perturbation theory to that model.

In Sec.~\ref{sec:model} we present the model and discuss useful scaling
relations for the potential parameters. In Sec.~\ref{sec:AIM} we apply the
AIM to the perturbed Coulomb model directly; that is to say we do not
convert it into an anharmonic oscillator. In Sec.~\ref{sec:PT} we outline
alternative perturbation approaches, and in Sec.~\ref{sec:concl} we
interpret our results and draw conclusions.

\section{The model \label{sec:model}}

The problem studied by Barakat~\cite{B06} is given by the following radial
Schr\"{o}dinger equation
\begin{eqnarray}
\hat{H}\Psi &=&E\Psi ,  \nonumber \\
\hat{H} &=&-\frac{1}{2}\frac{d^{2}}{dr^{2}}+\frac{l(l+1)}{2r^{2}}+V(r)
\nonumber \\
V(r) &=&-\frac{Z}{r}+gr+\lambda r^{2},  \label{eq:Schro}
\end{eqnarray}
where $l=0,1,2,\ldots $ is the angular--momentum quantum number, and the
boundary conditions are $\Psi (0)=\Psi (\infty )=0$. We restrict to the case
$\lambda >0$ in order to have only bound states; on the other hand, $Z$ and $%
g$ can take any finite real value.

It is most useful to take into account the scaling relations
\begin{eqnarray}
E(Z,g,\lambda ) &=&Z^{2}E(1,gZ^{-3},\lambda
Z^{-4})=|g|^{2/3}E(Z|g|^{-1/3},g|g|^{-1},\lambda |g|^{-4/3})  \nonumber \\
&=&\lambda ^{1/2}E(Z\lambda ^{-1/4},g\lambda ^{-3/4},1).  \label{eq:scaling}
\end{eqnarray}
Notice that we can set either $Z$ or $\lambda $ equal to unity without loss
of generality, and that, for example, $E(1,-g,\lambda )=E(-1,g,\lambda )$.
Following Barakat~\cite{B06} we choose $n=0,1,\ldots $ to be the radial
quantum number, and we may define a ``principal '' quantum number $\nu
=n+l+1=1,2,\ldots $.

\section{Direct application of the AIM\label{sec:AIM}}

Barakat mentions that straightforward application of the AIM does not give
reasonable results because the sequences oscillate when the number of
iteration is greater than $30$ approximately~\cite{B06}. This conclusion is
surprising because it has been shown that the AIM yields accurate results
for anharmonic oscillators~\cite{F04}, and Barakat converted the perturbed
Coulomb model into one of them\cite{B06}. In this section we apply the AIM
directly to the original radial Schr\"{o}dinger equation (\ref{eq:Schro}).

By means of the transformation $\psi (r)=\phi (r)y(r)$ we convert the
perturbed Coulomb model (\ref{eq:Schro}) into a Sturm--Liouville equation
for $y(r)$:
\begin{eqnarray}
y^{\prime \prime }(r) &=&Q(r)y^{\prime }(r)+R(r)y(r)  \nonumber \\
Q(r) &=&-\frac{2\phi ^{\prime }(r)}{\phi (r)}  \nonumber \\
R(r) &=&\left\{ 2[V(r)-E]-\frac{\phi ^{\prime \prime }(r)}{\phi (r)}\right\}
,  \label{eq:St_Li_gen}
\end{eqnarray}
where $\phi (r)$ is arbitrary. It seems reasonable to choose
\begin{equation}
\phi (r)=r^{l+1}e^{-\beta r-\alpha r^{2}}  \label{eq:phi(r)}
\end{equation}
that resembles the asymptotic behaviour of the eigenfunction for a harmonic
oscillator when $\beta =0$ or for a Coulomb interaction when $\alpha =0$. It
leads to
\begin{eqnarray}
Q(r) &=&4\alpha r-\frac{2(l+1)}{r}+2\beta  \nonumber \\
R(r) &=&\left( 2\lambda -4\alpha ^{2}\right) r^{2}+(2g-4\alpha \beta )r+%
\frac{2\beta (l+1)-2Z}{r}  \nonumber \\
&&+2\alpha (2l+3)-2E-\beta ^{2}.  \label{eq:P(r)_Q(r)}
\end{eqnarray}
We can set the values of the two free parameters $\alpha $ and $\beta $ to
obtain the greatest rate of convergence of the AIM sequences. From now on we
call asymptotic values of $\alpha $ and $\beta $ to such values of those
parameters that remove the terms of $R(r)$ that dominate at large $r$; that
is to say: $\beta =g/(2\alpha )$ and $\alpha =\sqrt{\lambda /2}$. Since the
asymptotic values of the free parameters do not necessarily lead to the
greatest convergence rate\cite{F04}, in what follows we will also look for
optimal values of $\alpha $.

The Sturm--Liouville equation (\ref{eq:St_Li_gen}) with the functions $Q(r)$
and $R(r)$ (\ref{eq:P(r)_Q(r)}) is suitable for the application of the AIM.
We do not show the AIM equations here because they have been developed and
discussed elsewhere\cite{CHS03,F04}. Since the AIM quantization condition
depends not only on the energy but also on the variable $r$ for non--exactly
solvable problems, we have to choose a convenient value for the latter\cite
{CHS03,F04}. Later on we will discuss the effect of the value of $r$ on the
convergence of the method; for the time being we follow Barakat~\cite{B06}
and select the positive root of $\phi ^{\prime }(r)=0$:
\begin{equation}
r_{0}=\frac{\sqrt{8\alpha (l+1)+\beta ^{2}}-\beta }{4\alpha }  \label{eq:r_0}
\end{equation}

For concreteness we restrict to $Z=\lambda =1$ and $n=l=0$, and select $%
g=-2,-1,1,2$ from Barakat's paper\cite{B06}. As expected from earlier
calculations on anharmonic oscillators~\cite{F04}, the rate of convergence
of the AIM depends on the value of $\alpha $. In order to investigate this
point we choose $g=-2$ because it is the most difficult of all the cases
considered here. More precisely, we focus on the behaviour of the
logarithmic error $L_{N}=\log |E^{(N)}-E^{exact}|$, where $E^{(N)}$ is the
AIM energy at iteration $N$ and $E^{exact}=-1.1716735847196510437987056$ was
obtained by means of the rapidly converging Riccati--Pad\'{e} Method (RPM)~%
\cite{F95,F96} from sequences of determinants of dimension $D=2$ through $%
D=22$.

We first consider the asymptotic value $\alpha =1/\sqrt{2}$.
Fig.~\ref
{fig:asympt} shows that $L_{N}$ decreases rapidly with $N$ when $%
N<\approx 20$ and then more slowly but more smoothly for $N>20$.
In the transition region about $N\approx 20$ we observe
oscillations that can mislead one into believing that the AIM
starts to diverge.

Fig.~\ref{fig:optimal} shows that the behaviour of $L_{N}$ for a
nearly optimal value $\alpha =1/2$ is similar to the previous
case, except that the transition takes place at a larger value of
$N$ and the convergence rate is
greater. More precisely, $L_{N}$ decreases rapidly with $N$ when $%
N<\approx 50$ approximately as $L_{N}\approx
0.22-0.064N-0.0029N^{2}$ and more slowly and smoothly for $N>50$
as $L_{N}\approx -6.5-0.068N$. Again, the transition region
exhibits oscillations.

Table~\ref{tab:Table2} shows the ground--state energies for
$g=-2,-1,1,2$ and the corresponding nearly optimal values of
$\alpha $. We estimated those eigenvalues from the sequences of
AIM roots for $N=10$ through $N=80$. Notice that the optimal
values of $\alpha $ in Table~\ref{tab:Table2} depend on $g$ and do
not agree with the asymptotic value $\alpha =\sqrt{1/2}$.
Table~\ref{tab:Table2} also shows that the AIM eigenvalues agree
with those calculated by means of the RPM~\cite{F95,F96} from
sequences of determinants of dimension $D=2$ through $D=15$.

The rate of convergence also depends on the chosen value of $r$. The
calculation of $L_{N}$ as a function of $\xi =r/r_{0}$ shows that $L_{N}(\xi
)$ exhibits a minimum at $\xi _{N}$ and that $\xi _{N}$ increases with $N$
approximately as $\xi _{N}=0.435+0.005N$ (for $g=-2$). However, in order to
keep the application of the AIM as simple as possible we just choose $%
r=r_{0} $ for all the calculations.

\section{Alternative perturbation approaches\label{sec:PT}}

Barakat~\cite{B06} first converted the radial Schr\"{o}dinger equation (\ref
{eq:Schro}) into another one for an anharmonic oscillator by means of the
standard transformations $r=u^{2}$ and $\Phi (u)=u^{-1/2}\Psi (u^{2})$.
Finally, he derived the Sturm--Liouville problem
\begin{equation}
f^{^{\prime \prime }}(u)+2\left( \frac{L+1}{u}-\alpha u^{3}\right) f^{\prime
}(u)+\left( \epsilon u^{2}-8gu^{4}+8Z\right) f(u)=0,  \label{eq:SL_u}
\end{equation}
where $L=2l+1/2$ and $\epsilon =8E-(2L+5)\alpha $, through factorization of
the asymptotic behaviour of the solution:
\begin{equation}
\Phi (u)=u^{L+1}e^{-\alpha u^{2}/4}f(u),\;\alpha =\sqrt{8\lambda }.
\label{eq:factor1}
\end{equation}
Notice that present $\alpha $ and Barakat's $\alpha $ are not exactly the
same but they have a close meaning and are related by $\alpha
_{asymptotic}^{present}=\alpha _{Barakat}/4$. Since Barakat's application of
the AIM to Eq. (\ref{eq:SL_u}) did not appear to converge~\cite{B06} he
opted for a perturbation approach that consists of rewriting Eq. (\ref
{eq:SL_u}) as
\begin{equation}
f^{^{\prime \prime }}(u)+2\left( \frac{L+1}{u}-\alpha u^{3}\right) f^{\prime
}(u)+\left[ \epsilon u^{2}+\gamma \left( -8gu^{4}+8Z\right) \right] f(u)=0
\label{eq:SL_u_PT}
\end{equation}
and expanding the solutions in powers of $\gamma $:
\begin{equation}
f(u)=\sum_{j=0}^{\infty }f^{(j)}(u)\gamma ^{j},\;\epsilon
=\sum_{j=0}^{\infty }\epsilon ^{(j)}\gamma ^{j}  \label{eq:AIM_PT_series_u}
\end{equation}
The perturbation parameter $\gamma $ is set equal to unity at the end of the
calculation. The series for the energy exhibits considerable convergence
rate and consequently Barakat obtained quite accurate results with just two
to five perturbation corrections~\cite{B06}. Barakat calculated the
coefficient $\epsilon ^{(0)}$ exactly and all the others approximately~\cite
{B06}.

The model (\ref{eq:Schro}) is suitable for several alternative
implementations of perturbation theory in which we simply write $%
V(r)=V_{0}(r)+\gamma V_{1}(r)$ and expand the solutions in powers of $\gamma
$.

If we choose $V_{0}(r)=-Z/r$ (when $Z>0$) and $V_{1}(r)=gr+\lambda r^{2}$
then we can calculate all the perturbation coefficients exactly by means of
well known algorithms~\cite{F00}. One easily realizes that the perturbation
series can be rearranged as
\begin{equation}
E=Z^{2}\sum_{i=0}^{\infty }\sum_{j=0}^{\infty }d_{ij}g^{i}\lambda
^{j}Z^{-(3i+4j)}.  \label{eq:E_series_Z}
\end{equation}
It is well known that this series is asymptotic divergent for all values of
the potential parameters.

The other reasonable perturbation split of the potential energy is $%
V_{0}(r)=\lambda r^{2}$, $V_{1}(r)=-Z/r+gr$. In this case we can rearrange
the series as
\begin{equation}
E=\lambda ^{1/2}\sum_{i=0}^{\infty }\sum_{j=0}^{\infty
}c_{ij}Z^{i}g^{j}\lambda ^{-(i+3j)/4}.  \label{eq:E_series_lambda}
\end{equation}
One expects that this series has a finite radius of convergence. This is
exactly the series obtained by Barakat~\cite{B06} by means of the AIM and,
consequently, it is not surprising that he derived accurate results from it.
In this case one can obtain exact perturbation corrections at least for the
first two energy coefficients.

For simplicity we concentrate on the states with $n=0$. The eigenfunctions
and eigenvalues of order zero are
\begin{eqnarray}
\Psi _{0l}^{(0)}(r) &=&\frac{\sqrt{2}(2\lambda )^{(2l+3)/8}}{\Gamma (l+3/2)}%
r^{l+1}e^{-\sqrt{2\lambda }r^{2}/2}  \nonumber \\
E_{0l}^{(0)} &=&\frac{\sqrt{2\lambda }}{2}(2l+3)  \label{eq:E^(0)}
\end{eqnarray}
respectively. With the unperturbed eigenfunctions one easily obtains the
perturbation correction of first order to the energy
\begin{equation}
E_{0l}^{(1)}=\frac{(l+1)!g}{(2\lambda )^{1/4}\Gamma (l+3/2)}-\frac{%
l!Z(2\lambda )^{1/4}}{\Gamma (l+3/2)}  \label{eq:E^(1)}
\end{equation}
that is the term of the series (\ref{eq:E_series_lambda}) with $i+j=1$. One
can easily carry out the same calculation for the states with $n>0$ using
the appropriate eigenfunctions of the harmonic oscillator.

Equation (\ref{eq:E^(1)}) yields all the numerical results for $\epsilon
_{0l}^{(1)}$ in Tables 1-3 of Barakat's paper~\cite{B06}. In particular, $%
E_{0l}^{(1)}=0$ when $g=\sqrt{2\lambda }Z/(l+1)$ as in Table 1 of Barakat's
paper~\cite{B06}. This particular relationship between the potential
parameters also leads to exact solutions of the eigenvalue equation (\ref
{eq:Schro}). Some of them are given by
\begin{eqnarray}
\Psi _{0l}^{exact}(r) &=&N_{l}r^{l+1}e^{-\alpha r^{2}-\beta r},\;\alpha =%
\sqrt{\frac{\lambda }{2}},\;\beta =\frac{Z}{l+1},  \nonumber \\
E_{0l}^{exact} &=&\alpha (2l+3)-\frac{Z^{2}}{2(l+1)^{2}},\;g=\frac{\sqrt{%
2\lambda }Z}{l+1},  \label{eq:QES}
\end{eqnarray}
where $N_{l}$ is a normalization constant.

\section{Conclusions \label{sec:concl}}

We have shown that the AIM converges for the perturbed Coulomb
model if the values of the free parameters in the factor function
that converts the Schr\"{o}dinger equation into a Sturm--Liouville
one are not too far from optimal. It is clear that it is not
necessary to transform the perturbed Coulomb model into an
anharmonic oscillator for a successful application of the AIM. Our
results do not exhibit the oscillatory divergence reported by
Barakat\cite{B06} even when choosing the asymptotic value of
$\alpha$.

The perturbation approach proposed by Barakat~\cite{B06} is equivalent to
choosing the harmonic oscillator as unperturbed or reference Hamiltonian,
and if we apply perturbation theory to the original radial Schr\"{o}dinger
equation we easily obtain two energy coefficients exactly instead of just
only one. It is worth mentioning that the coefficients calculated by Barakat~%
\cite{B06} are quite accurate and, consequently, the resulting series
provide a suitable approach for the eigenvalues of the perturbed Coulomb
potential. This application of the AIM to perturbation theory is certainly
much more practical than the calculation of exact perturbation corrections
proposed earlier~\cite{CHS05b} that can certainly be carried out more
efficiently by other approaches~\cite{F00}.

\noindent \textbf{Acknowledgements}

\noindent P.A. acknowledges support from Conacyt grant
C01-40633/A-1

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaArXiv


text:
Twelve things you need to know about Brexit
Opinion piece (Prospect)
Simon Tilford Twitter, John Springford Twitter
The referendum on whether the UK will leave the European Union is likely to turn, in the end, on whether its interest in free trade with the continent will outweigh public hostility to unimpeded immigration from there. It may be a close call.
Britain's political elite has long prided itself on its embrace of globalisation, but that consensus is fraying. The Conservatives remain rhetorically committed to free trade, but the party is increasingly hostile to the EU for overriding British law. Many Labour politicians—especially the current leadership—are suspicious of free trade, thinking rules are written for the benefit of global corporations and at the expense of workers' rights, public services and the environment. Both parties seek to soothe hostility to immigration by promising to restrict flows of people or curbing access to welfare, but the rise of immigration from eastern Europe, the surge of refugees across the EU's borders and the eurozone's manifest failings all combine to make Brexit a real possibility.
Yet even if these are the strongest impulses within the "yes" and "no" camps, the arguments will—and should—turn as well on the impact that withdrawal will have on many different aspects of life in the UK. Very little is yet spelled out about some of these. Here, we set out 12 things that voters in the UK really need to know about Brexit before the day of the vote.
1: How much money would Britain save?
The UK handed over £19.2bn to the EU last year. But with the EU's payments to British farmers, regional development funding and the British rebate, its net contribution to the EU budget was £9.8bn, equivalent to around 0.6 per cent of GDP, and hence a little less than the foreign aid budget (which is now 0.7 per cent of GDP).
If Britain were to quit the EU entirely, and settled for the same access to EU markets as, say, the United States, it would save 0.6 per cent of its GDP. But the EU would demand budget contributions if Britain wanted more than that. For example, if the UK were to withdraw to the European Economic Area (EEA) and pay into the EU budget on the same basis as Norway, it would reduce its net contribution by around a tenth. If it succeeded in negotiating a series of bilateral agreements with the EU similar to Switzerland's, Britain's budget contribution would fall by a little over a half. In short, the more unimpeded its access to the single market, the more the UK would have to pay.
2: How would Britain trade with the EU?
One option would be EEA membership—the so-called Norway option—which would give Britain trade with the EU almost as unfettered as it has now, but with next to no say over EU regulation. Another might be a more limited set of bilateral agreements, like those agreed between Switzerland and the EU. The Swiss goods trade is unimpeded with the EU, in exchange for signing up to the relevant EU rules, but it has more limited access to those areas of the single market whose rules it cannot stomach, such as financial services—which would pose a threat to the City of London. But the Swiss can negotiate their own trade agreements, unlike EU members—or, in fact, Turkey, which has a customs union with the EU. Such an arrangement would give the UK access to the EU's goods markets, but not those in services, in return for signing up to all of the relevant rules and abiding by EU trade policies with non-EU countries.
A fourth option would be a free trade agreement such as those that the EU has with South Korea or South Africa. Most trade with the EU would be tariff-free, but the big barriers to trade caused by "behind the scenes" protectionism—discrimination against foreign companies' bids for public contracts, for example—would go largely untackled. Britain would be free to determine its own trade policies with non-European countries. But the more comprehensive the trade agreement, the more EU regulation the UK would have to abide by.
And finally, the UK could trade with the EU under World Trade Organisation (WTO) rules in order to regain as much sovereignty as possible. But our exporters would face EU tariffs, and would have to comply with EU product standards if they wanted to sell their wares on the continent.
In short, if Britain leaves the EU, it will face a difficult choice: access to the single market, but less influence over the rules that govern it; or freedom from the rules, but loss of access to the market.
3: Would Britain curb immigration?
The impact of Brexit on immigration would depend on the trade arrangement Britain negotiated with the EU. EEA membership would require Britain to remain open to immigrants from the EU, as would a Swiss-type agreement. As a big reason for leaving the EU would be to curb immigration, it seems unlikely that Britain would opt for either of these two arrangements. The Swiss and Turks have similar market access—in goods, but not services—but Turks are not automatically allowed to work in the EU, while Switzerland, a rich country, must comply with free movement rules. Therefore the EU would probably insist that a customs union with Britain came at the price of continued free movement. (And it is unlikely that Britain would want such a customs union in any case, since it would have to abide by the "acquis communautaire," the accumulated legislation that makes up the body of European law, and would want the freedom to negotiate its own trade deals with non-EU countries.) If Britain were to opt for a free trade agreement it might have some scope to control immigration from the EU. But the more comprehensive the free trade deal, the less scope the UK would have to cap migrant numbers.
The only situation in which Britain would certainly be free to limit immigration is if it opted to trade under WTO rules, which would maximise economically damaging trade barriers with the EU. Britain would face an invidious choice: damage its economy by leaving the single market entirely, or allow free movement to continue.
4: Would Britain be freer to trade with the rest of the world?
Assuming it rejected the EEA or a customs union, the UK would be free to negotiate trade agreements with countries outside the EU. But it would not inherit the EU's existing bilateral trade deals: it would have to negotiate new ones. And it is far from clear that the UK would find it easy to forge new deals, let alone on as good terms. True, it would not have to compromise with 27 other member states, which have varying degrees of enthusiasm for free trade. But Britain's economy is far smaller than the EU's—and would be less of a priority for the US or China. What's more, Britain is already very open to imports and inward investment, so it would have little to offer in return for its demand that other countries reduce tariffs and other trade barriers. It is hard to believe that the UK would have more success prising open India's services market, for example, on its own than as part of the EU.
5: Would global companies invest elsewhere?
Britain is by far the EU's largest recipient of foreign investment. A large proportion of inward investment into the EU comes from the US, and the UK is its principal host. And other EU countries now account for half of the stock of foreign investment in Britain, up from 30 per cent 20 years ago.
Some Eurosceptics argue that Brexit would enhance Britain's attractiveness to foreign investors, because it would be freed from cumbersome EU regulation. However, despite its EU membership, Britain's markets are freer of red tape than
anywhere else in the rich world bar the Netherlands, according to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Regulation of Britain's labour market is also far closer to the Anglo-Saxon norm than the Continental norm.
Leaving the EU would probably reduce Britain's attractiveness. After all, many firms from outside the EU are seeking a European base to avoid the barriers they face when exporting from their home markets. Investors face similar issues: without unimpeded access to the EU's single market, they might expand operations in other countries.
6: Would the City of London suffer?
Advocates of Brexit believe that even outside the EU, the City's deep and liquid capital markets, legal regime, time zone, language and historic trading ties would give it a formidable advantage. This is probably true, at least in the short-term. Much of the City's business is global, rather than merely regional. For example, it is the world's largest centre for foreign exchange trading. And, like New York and Tokyo, London is a hub for trade in securities for firms from all over the world.
On leaving, the UK could try to bolster the competitiveness of the City by lightening regulation on the financial services sector. However, if it did, banks might move to Paris or Frankfurt. The EU insists that, in exchange for access to EU markets, countries outside the club must have regulation and supervision of their financial sectors equivalent to the EU.
7: Would farmers suffer?
The EU's Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), despite recent reforms, is still a wasteful anachronism. The wine lakes and wheat mountains have gone, but Europe's farmers still shelter behind tariff walls and receive cash handouts, which amount to two-fifths of the EU's budget. If Britain left the EU, it could get rid of agricultural tariffs and cut subsidies, and the 99 per cent of Britons who do not work the land would benefit from lower supermarket bills (in 2008, the OECD estimated that the CAP raised European agricultural prices by 13 per cent). This would be welcome. Supermarkets could import more food from productive farms overseas, and some poorer countries would be free to sell more produce to Britain. Outside the EU, Britain could abandon the EU's wrongheaded ban on most genetically modified crops, which would shrink the farm land needed by raising yields, and reduce environmental damage from pesticides. More of the British countryside could be turned into national parks.
But there are good reasons to question whether this would happen. Britain's farmers hold sway over Westminster, through powerful lobbies like the National Farmers' Union, and would aggressively campaign to retain tariffs and subsidies.
8: Which regions might lose out?
Around 40 per cent of the EU's budget is spent on developing the infrastructure and industries of the Union's poorer regions. Most of this money is now spent in central and eastern Europe, but some still flows to Britain. Wales receives the most per head—£83 per year (£254m per year in total)—while Northern Ireland receives £30. Together with agricultural subsidies, this is enough to make these regions net beneficiaries of the EU's budget, while England is a big net contributor; Scotland pays in pretty much what it gets out. These regions would probably demand more Westminster spending to make up the shortfall after Brexit.
But some regions have more to lose from Brexit than others. For example, thanks to Nissan, 15 per cent of private sector sales in the northeast of England are exports to the EU. If Britain leaves the EU and fails to agree a free trade deal in goods, the northeast and other manufacturing regions will face EU tariffs, weakening their economies. Meanwhile, if Britain makes a deal on goods trade with the EU but no services agreement is struck, London would be more badly hit, because 8 per cent of London's private sector activity comprises export of services, largely financial, to the EU.
9: Universities and science: does Brexit matter?
Britain's universities receive a disproportionate share of European research funds (20 per cent, or £1bn per year, while Britain contributes 11 per cent of the EU's budget), but after withdrawal Westminster could simply distribute some of the savings from its EU budget contributions to academic research. It could, that is—but it might not. Or the UK might continue to participate in EU research programmes; Norway and Israel do so despite being outside the club.
The biggest risk from Brexit to British universities is not financial. Academics now participate in a global labour market—and migration is crucial to the sector's success. Italy's universities have fallen down the world rankings in part because of discrimination against foreign academics. Theresa May, Home Secretary, has tightened immigration rules for dons and students from outside Europe—the latter now must have over £11,000 in their bank account to get a visa—in pursuit of a net immigration target of less than 100,000 per year. Universities are complaining that it is hard to recruit the most able people. If Britain leaves the EU and refuses to allow free movement to continue, tighter restrictions on European students and academics can be expected, to universities' detriment.
10: Would Britain emit more carbon?
The EU has already met its 2020 target to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 20 per cent. But this is largely down to economic slump and deindustrialisation, with carbon emissions being outsourced to China and other emerging economies that make carbon-intensive goods for export to Europe. In recent years, the US has been reducing carbon emissions more quickly than the EU—admittedly from a higher level—by switching from coal to gas made cheaper by the fracking boom. Meanwhile, Germany and other EU countries have been burning more coal as nuclear power plants are decommissioned and industry protests against high energy prices, partly caused by subsidies for renewables.
Outside the EU, however, it seems unlikely that Britain's energy policy would change much. The reason is that the EU's policies lack teeth, and so energy policy is still largely set by national governments. Britain is likely to miss its EU renewable energy target of 15 per cent of the energy mix by 2020, and the Conservatives will end subsidies for onshore wind farms next year—a sop to the party's rural voters.
Electricity from coal is on the rise, as it is in Germany. And, while the European Court of Justice might hand out a fine, the likelihood that the EU would punish Britain for missing its renewables target is small.
11: Would Britain be less secure?
Simple theory tells us that when states' interests are aligned, co-operation will ensue. This should lead one to hope that Brexit would not have a major impact on justice, security and foreign policy co-operation with the EU. Norway and Iceland, for example, have agreed to arrest and extradite suspects to EU member-states—they are members of the "European arrest warrant" system in all but name. Norway, Iceland and Switzerland also use the EU's criminal databases—although, as members of the Schengen passport-free zone, they are more closely involved with the EU's justice and migration policies than Britain. And foreign policy remains largely in the hands of the member-states: a European army remains a federalist dream.
However, Brexit poses some risks to Britain's foreign and security interests. The EU's main foreign policy weapon is sanctions. The UK has been a driving force behind sanctions against Iran, and, at least behind the scenes, Russia—as well as two former British colonies, Zimbabwe and Burma, whose behaviour the EU may have ignored without British pressure. And the EU's economic size means that its sanctions inflict more pain than unilateral action by Britain.
Outside the EU, the UK could join in with EU foreign policy missions, which include military training in Somalia, and police and army reform in Ukraine. But other non-EU countries that do so are excluded from EU decision-making about missions' aims and operations.
12: Would Brexit lead to Scoxit?
The biggest Brexit unknown is over the future of the British Isles. Nicola Sturgeon, the SNP leader, has promised another referendum if Britain votes to leave the EU against the wishes of Scots. But would Scots really want an EU border with their largest trade partner, England? Would they be willing to join the euro, which might be the EU's condition for membership—and so leave a stable currency union for one which is beset by problems?
Meanwhile, Brexit might further strain the triangular relationship between Northern Ireland, Britain and the Irish Republic. An EU border between the Republic and Northern Ireland may not do as much economic damage as is commonly supposed, because both do much more trade with Britain than they do with each other. But Sinn Fein might argue that such a border would invalidate the British-Irish Agreement Act which established devolved government at Stormont, and renew its campaign for a United Ireland.
After four decades of EU membership, Britain's formal relationships with the rest of Europe are governed by a tangle of treaties, institutions and laws. The reach of the EU into British life is so far-reaching that Brexit would require a renegotiation of most of Britain's international obligations. A new trade agreement would have to be signed with the EU—and more than 50 with other countries outside Europe, to make up for those annulled by Brexit. Customs officials, border guards and trade negotiators would have to be hired to regulate and police trade and migration flows. New laws would have to be passed to replace EU regulations. Treaties between Britain and Ireland might have to be rewritten. And Scotland might—probably against its economic interest—leave the UK, which would lead to another round of political and economic turmoil. Given Brexit's lack of obvious economic benefits, all this might prompt Britons to ask whether it is worth the bother.
Simon Tilford is deputy director and John Springford is senior research fellow at the Centre for European Reform.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Ermengol Vinaixa i Gaig (Esplugues de Llobregat, 18 de març de 1886 – Granollers, 6 de novembre de 1954) fou un dibuixant, fotògraf i pintor. Els seus dibuixos els podem trobar a revistes com Sigronet i Pulgarcito de l'editorial Gato Negro, que posteriorment seria Editorial Bruguera. Artista molt vinculat a la ciutat de Granollers, a on viuria gran part de la seva vida, dibuixaria també per la publicació vallesana La Gralla. Les seves col·laboracions amb la publicació Orientaciones nuevas, de tendències anarquistes, el portaria a la presó durant dos anys a la fi de la Guerra Civil.

Referències

Enllaços externs
 Romanço de Jaume Arnella dedicat a la vida de Vinaixa
 Un viatge a la lluna, Vinaixa
 El dibuix de Vinaixa a Sigronet
 Grafópata, Vinaixa
 Tebeosfera, Vinaixa

Artistes d'Esplugues de Llobregat
Dibuixants catalans del sud contemporanis
Fotògrafs catalans del sud
Pintors catalans del sud contemporanis
Morts a Granollers

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
Russian banks to face risk due to a cancellation of support for Windows 7
Termination of technical support for Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 operating systems (OS) can become a serious problem for Russian banks. According to the architect of the Microsoft technology center in Russia, Ivan Budylin, now, banks are required to quickly switch to Windows 10, since working without technical support is contrary to information security requirements. He added that the lack of updates can lead to significant risks of data loss.
At the same time, according to the survey, credit institutions are not yet ready to completely abandon the old OS.
Some banks reported that they had signed an agreement with Microsoft for paid additional support for Windows 7 (EAS). However, the expert noted that paid support is not an alternative to updating the operating system, but a temporary measure.
A similar situation was already with the Windows XP operating system, which was not supported in 2017 but continued to be used. During WannaCry ransomware virus epidemic, some XP users faced a situation where the malware appeared on the computer, was blocked and deleted by the antivirus.
However, then the virus repeatedly tried to get into the computer again and was blocked again. This caused a huge load on the network, processor, and disk. The devices started working so slowly that it was almost impossible to do anything on them.
Therefore, experts recommended updating Windows 7 as soon as possible, even though antiviruses can protect an already unsupported system.
Yuri Brisov, a member of the Commission on legal support of the digital economy, said that by denying the ability to regularly and timely update systems, banks put their customers at risk, which is unacceptable.
According to Boris Yedidin, a lawyer and co-founder of Moscow Digital School, for using outdated programs and operating systems, banks can bring to administrative responsibility under the article "Violation of information protection rules".
Recall that Microsoft has refused to support the Windows 7 operating system since January 14. The computer will work with the old OS, but the company does not provide technical support for any software updates, as well as security updates and fixes.
banksCancellationDuefaceRisk
A look at the mysterious world of Windows malware developers
Cloud Security Threats Healthcare Companies May Face
Users Might be Under Risk of DNS Vulnerability


A few days ago a player told me about a problem with his character.
He has a crusader with a shield and a weapon. In his cabal he wanted to play a tank. (all in defense and health) to play in a group.Unfortunately he feels unhelpful because his character does not damage and can never have "aggro" because there is nothing planned for that.
He can aggro enemies and can stay alive by using Deflect builds. Once he catches the focus of the enemies, his fellows can clear the area faster.
I would suggest a couple of perks like the Burnished Weaponry along with the Feint Mastery (which provides a great deal of damage so he doesn't have to be on the passive during the combat) and maybe Crisis Management which lessen the suffered damage by 40% if your HP is less than half. Naturally there are more perks suitable for such a build apart from the mentioned ones so others may prove to be more useful to you.
I also suggest to put points on the Defense tree as well as points on the Warfare attributes. Using the Hit points skill tree can be a good option too!
Hope this will help. You can find other builds on our Steam forum or ask around on our Discord channel for more!


text:
package com.siyeh.igtest.encapsulation;

import java.util.Set;
import java.util.HashSet;

public class PackageVisibleFieldInspection
{
    int m_barargus = -1;

}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


text:
Free shipping reminder
Yesterday our "free shipping for blog readers" campaign got underway. The offer is good until next Friday.
—Mellow Monk
Go to the Mellow Monk tea page
Bookmark this blog
Subscribe to the blog feed (RSS)
Booze-making monks
Some monks make chocolate, and others make hooch.
Japan's new prime minister
The Economist has a concise summary of the challenges facing Japan's new prime minister, Shinzo Abe.
Free shipping for blog readers!
As a way of thanking the readers of this blog, we're offering free shipping on all orders of Mellow Monk green tea.
This offer is good for one week only—starting right now and ending next Friday, October 6, at 2 p.m.
To order, simply click on the "Go to the Mellow Monk tea page" link below and order as you normally would. When you arrive at the order confirmation page, you'll see that shipping charges are zero. Nada. Zip. (There's just one catch—this offer is for U.S. orders only.)
Payments are processed through PayPal, which delivers industry-leading security. What's more, our tea is 100% guaranteed, so if you're not happy with your purchase for any reason, you can return the unused portion for a full refund—no questions asked.
Anyone can take advantage of this free shipping offer, but we're publicizing it only on this blog.
See? Who said reading a blog never pays off?
How green tea can help you lose weight
From WebMD: "Drinking Green Tea May Help You Lose Weight."
Pop star's mom caught with cash
The mother of Japan's biggest pop singer, Hikaru Utada, was recently caught trying to board a plane with over $400,000 in cash. Probably for the in-flight duty-free shopping, no doubt.
From the "No, it couldn't be!" files
[I wouldn't ordinarily post something like this, but the humor potential was just too great to ignore.]
Most ladies will undoutedly think "They needed an expensive study to figure that out?" upon reading the headline to this story.
Tiger Tanaka and Tokyo Rose, R.I.P.
Two obits today:
Japanese actor Tetsuro Tamba, who played Tiger Tanaka in the James Bond flick "You Only Live Twice," has passed away. If you're into samurai flicks, you'll also know him for the huge legacy of films of that genre that he leaves behind.
Also, Iva Toguri D'Aquino, who became notorious as "Tokyo Rose," has passed away at 90.
From H to green tea
These days, the former bad-boy author who wrote "Trainspotting" has replaced drugs with green tea.
Green tea as a home remedy
From MSNBC.com:
Minor burns — whether you fell asleep in the sun or grabbed the wrong end of a curling iron — can be treated with a cold compress of black or green tea, says Marie Savard, MD, a lecturer at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. "Soak a dish towel in cold tea. The phytonutrients will reduce inflamed blood vessels."
Harvard Women's Health Watch on green tea
The proof is in: drinking tea is healthy, says Harvard Women's Health Watch.
Japan's addictive arcades
Japan's video game arcades are positively addictive, says one writer.
Attention-grabbing clouds
View pictures of unusual cloud formations, like the one below.
The French press, a simple solution for brewing loose green tea
French presses such as the Aerobie Aeropress coffeemaker are popular for coffee, but they're also great for brewing loose green tea, too. For instance, the water in the brewing chamber of a French press stays in there until you press down the plunger, allowing you to fine-tune the brewing time.
Lining up for American beef
Now that the ban has been lifted, Japanese fans of American beef are lining up for gyuudon made with imported U.S. beef.
Japan's princess war
Drowned out by the nation's cacaphonic celebration of the newborn royal heir is a low-level conflict between supporters of the two pricesses: Kiko and Masako.
Stress-busting belly breathing
Belly breathing is a basic deep-breathing technique and an excellent way to relax. It's something that comes naturally to us, but as we get older we forget how. You can (re-)learn the basics from infants.
Japanese lockers lock!
Yo, check out these homies from Japan, yo! These boys know how to lock.
(What did you think I meant by "lockers"—the things you put gym clothes into?)
Tea bag baby stroller
From Yahoo! Japan: a picture of a baby stroller covered with tea bags. In commissioning this piece of "art" (their term, not mine), baby goods manufacturer Aprica says its message is that as infants grow and develop they need stimulation in all five sense.
Makes perfect sense, no?
Besides, if you have a lot of tea bags on your hands, you have to do something with them. After all, you can't drink the stuff.
Pair o' sumo suits
Speaking of sumo, you can buy your very own pair of inflatable sumo suits, if you so desire.
Thanks to Helen for the link.
Rock 'em sock 'em sumo
One of the basic rules of Japanese sumo wrestling is: No punching, and especially no punching in the face.
Kotokanyu, a 19-year veteran of sumo, broke that rule in spectacular fashion this weekend when he punched his opponent in the face. Needless to say, there have been repercussions.
Catechins in green tea and chocolate
Catechins are present in tea and chocolate, among other foods, but green tea is especially loaded with these disease-fighting compounds:
One cup of green tea provides 10-40 mg of polyphenol bioflavinoids and provides more antioxidants than a serving of broccoli, spinach, carrots, or strawberries.
Turning un-Japanese
According to some observers, Japan is becoming more modern and less alien to outsiders in many ways. One upshot: An American professor living in Japan and teaching a course on the 1950s films of famed Japanese director Yasujiro Ozu has to explain to his Japanese students the intricacies of the traditional Japanese family system.
A good day's sleep
When you work nights, sleeping during the day isn't always easy. But there are a few basic rules for making sure you get the restful sleep you need when it's light outside.
Behind the organic label
From the L.A. Times, via the American Council on Science and Health website:
[A]s organic products — and their claims to superiority — have grown more common, scientists, policy analysts and some consumers have begun to ask for proof. Where's the evidence, they ask, for the widespread belief that organic foods are safer and more nutritious than those raised by conventional farming methods?
The short answer, food safety and nutrition scientists say, is that such proof does not exist.
New PlayStation to support research
Be prepared, parents. Your kids may soon waylay you with yet another reason why should get a PlayStation 3 console: to help eradicate disease.
Taiko and shamisen
Taiko are traditional Japanese drums; one internationally known taiko artist is Joji Hirota.
The shamisen is a traditional stringed instrument. The Yoshida Brothers have attracted much attention with their own unique fast-paced, modern style of playing shamisen.
Drink green tea and get some me time
(I decided to post this on Monday, so readers could have a chance to read it before getting too caught up in the week.)
The message in this story is in perfect synch with Mellow Monk's Philosophy of the Green Tea Break:
Taking a break will actually make you discharge your responsibilities better. Galinsky's surveys show that people who are happiest at work are those who take time for themselves. "If you shift your focus, you go back to the other areas of life with more energy," she says. "You're less stressed, more satisfied with life in general."
(If the above link doesn't work, try this one.)
Labels: health, philosophy of tea, stress relief
After Einstein's brain
Here's part one of "After Einstein's Brain," a documentary about Japanese mathematician Kenji Sugimoto's obsession with tracking down Albert Einstein's brain.
Sound weird? It is.
Dr. Oshimi on the benefits of catechins
Dr. T. Oshimi of Hokkaido explains the many health benefits of green tea catechins.
Incidentally, the reason that the good doctor doesn't list tamaryokucha as one of the four types of green tea is that tamaryokucha is a type of sencha—grown and harvested in the same way and processed identically with one exception: at the end of processing, the leaves are curled instead of straightened, hence the name "tamaryokucha" (curled green tea).
Green tea protects against dioxin
Research shows that compounds in green tea prevent dioxin from causing cancer.
Paper robots
No matter what the latest toy sensation in Japan is, it always involves robots. But now geeks are putting aside traditional mold-injected plastic figurines in favor of Kami-robo (paper robots), which players assemble themselves.
Top Leaf and Hojicha have arrived!
We just received a shipment of Top Leaf and Hojicha (Roasted Green Tea) from the Nagatas in Japan, and the "Buy tea" buttons for those two teas have been re-activated.
Our most profuse apologies for the stockout, but that's unfortunately what happens when having the tea shipped to us in small batches for freshness's sake.
Locally grown, locally eaten
Japan's chisan chishou movement is about consumers actively seeking out locally grown produce.
Ultramodern tea bags
As green tea grows in popularity, do-it-yourself teabags are going high-tech.
Tea pouches (also called tea filters) like these are a good solution for enjoying loose-leaf green tea on the road, but at one dollar a pop, using them regularly at home or at the office would get expensive if you're a five-cups-a-day person like me.
As for pre-bagged tea, the problem remains that manufacturers spend more on the bag and the bagging process than they do on the tea inside. In other words, just as great coffee is whole-bean, great tea is loose-leaf.
Incidentally, Mellow Monk's Green Teas offers imported Japanese tea filters as part of our Green Tea Starter Kit (scroll to the bottom of the destination page).
Labels: teaware
Photographer Norman Rich has an online collection of nature photos, including a gallery of raven photos like the one shown below.
About that sudoku brain-ache
From Australia's ABC News:
No wonder Sudoku puzzles give your brain a good work-out. Scientists say solving them depends on neural pathways that even the most powerful computers can't replicate.
Drink green tea, live longer
From ABC News, U.S.:
A study published in this week's Journal of the American Medical Association has associated drinking lots of green tea with decreased early death, from all causes, including cardiovascular disease. This effect was found to be stronger in women.
More Top Leaf Green Tea and Hojicha is on the way!
Unfortunately, we just ran out of both Top Leaf Green Tea and Hojicha (Roasted Green Tea). But have no fear—more is on the way!
I apologize to those who wanted to order but couldn't, but as you know, we import our tea in small batches for the sake of freshness. Those who know and appreciate our tea's fresh taste will undoubtedly agree that it's worth putting up with the occasional wait.
However, please also understand that as soon as we run out of any tea, we immediately disable the ordering button for that product. We will never take your money for a tea that isn't in stock!
'80s synchronized stunt-driving Suzuki commerical
From a blog reader in San Antonio, Texas: a 1980s Suzuki Gemini commercial with some pretty amazing stunt driving. As an added bonus, there's also a spiffy '80s soundtrack.
How green tea makes you mellow
Psychology Today has a great article about how the polyphenols, tannins, and other important compounds in green tea help makes us mellow.
A study from the University of San Francisco found that the polyphenols in green tea can boost availability of the important brain substance dopamine in the areas where it's needed. Dopamine is a signaling substance in brain circuits that are crucial to creating positive mood states.
His diaper-wearing highness has a name
Japan's little prince has a name: Hisahito.
Japan's magic mushroom shops
That a loophole in Japanese law effectively makes magic mushrooms and other psychoactive plants legal isn't very well known even among the Japanese themselves. But if use of such hallucinogens spreads, I wouldn't be surprised if the loophole got pulled shut very quickly.
Japan's earthquake-warning system
Japan is beginning to equip office buildings with an earthquake warning system that can provide building occupants with a warning up to 30 seconds before earthquake shock waves arrive.
Eat waffles and sausages, live to 112
Is it just me, or have there been a lot of stories lately about people who live to a ripe old ages?
Well, here is one about a sausage-and-waffle-eating World War I veteran who lived to be a 112.
Said one of the doctors who autopsied his body: "All of his organs were extremely youthful. They could have been the organs of someone who was 50 or 60, not 112. Clearly his genes had some secrets."
The doc continues: "A lot of people think or imagine that your good habits and bad habits contribute to your longevity," Coles said. "But we often find it is in the genes rather than lifestyle."
But those of not blessed will longevity genes need a little extra help (hint, hint).
Deep sleep in the deep blue sea
Speaking of deep sleep, here's the world's first underwater hotel.
We have Starbucks to thank
This article claims that we have Starbucks to thank for the explosion in popularity of green tea: "Starbucks choosing green tea for their menus [was comparable] to Oprah choosing a new author for her book club."
Starbucks didn't just jump on the green tea bandwagon—they helped get it rolling in the first place.
Barley tea in the U.S.
An Associated Press writer wonders whether barley tea (mugicha) could be the next trendy drink.
Will Japan's Internet big shot end up in the big house?
When Takafumi Horie showed up for the first day of his trial on September 4, a lot of waiting reporters and spectators probably didn't recognize the now-notorious Internet entrepreneur at first: He was wearing a suit and tie.
Let's sing it together: "Every girl's crazy 'bout a sharp-dressed man."
Japan's stores revamp to attract seniors
With Japan's population aging rapidly, stores there are retrofitting to be more senior-friendly.
Green tea fights Huntington's disease
Yet another disease against which green tea appears to be effective: Huntington's disease.
Green tea can apparently inhibit the formation of the lethal protein aggregates that are a characteristic feature of Huntington's disease (HD). This finding was reported by Dagmar E. Ehrnhoefer, a member of the research group of Dr. Erich Wanker of the Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine Berlin-Buch (MDC), Germany, at the international conference "Neurodegenerative Diseases: Molecular Mechanisms in a Functional Genomics Framework" in Berlin.
Japan's littlest prince
Here is a good summary of the politics surrounding the birth of the Japanese royal family's newest prince, who, even though the little tyke is too young to know it yet, has diffused what could have been an ugly national showdown over who should succeed the throne after the current crown prince.
Go ahead, I dare you: Go to Japan and try to find something else on TV right now.
Nine rules for better sleep
From Canada.com come these nine rules to beat insomnia.
For me, the hardest rule to follow is number 2, "Get up at the same time each morning, including weekends." Even weekends? But isn't sleeping in what weekends are all about?
The rule that helped me the most in the past when I was having trouble sleeping is number 7, "Exercise regularly." When I started walking a couple of miles each day, I found I fell asleep much more quickly.
A gaijin gives birth in Japan
From an American woman's memoir about life in Kyushu is this excerpt about giving birth in a Japanese hospital.
The chrysanthemum throne gets a male heir
Japan breathes a collective sigh of relief: Princess Kiko has given birth to a boy.
By automatically becoming third in line for the throne, the newborn lad, who won't be named until next week, forestalls any succession concerns for another generation. Previously, the absence of a male heir had been the cause of a highly charged debate over whether to allow a princess to ascend to the throne for the first time in a thousand years, or to re-royalize a branch of the imperial family that had been de-royalized after the war.
Hooray! We avoid what could have been an ugly national showdown!
Prince or princess?
If Japan's Princess Kiko has a boy, he'll be third in line for the throne. If it's a girl, then Japan's constitution may have to be amended.
We'll know which soon, as the princess is scheduled to deliver by caesarian section tonight U.S. time.
What it takes to live to 92
A 92-year-old retired reporter offers up his advice on how to live to a ripe old age.
Review of competitors' teas
These sometimes scathing reviews of mass-market green teas give you an idea of some of the stuff you can run across out there if you're not careful.
Then again, bad experiences like that will only make a person appreciate authentic green tea like Mellow Monk Green Tea that much more!
Make your own green tea dip & green tea ice cream
A couple of recipes: green tea dip and green tea ice cream, which you can make with one of those new-fangled ice cream makers.
Live to be 100
A centenarian in New York State talks about the secret to long life.
Green tea shaved ice
The picture below, from the Kochi Shinbun, is of shaved ice made with tamaryokucha green tea. The creator of this treat won't say what his secret is. To get just the right green-tea taste and aroma, he says that he used neither hot-steeped nor cold-brewed tea. He says only that he came up with his secret method of preparation after much trial and error.
Photo: red rice
From Asahi Shinbun: a photo of "red rice," a variety of rice that takes on a reddish-brown hue in late August and early September. This rice was planted as part of a local program to preserve old local varieties of rice. The folks in the picture were part of a crowd drawn on "red rice appreciation day," held to teach locals about the rice.
Japanese sand dunes under attack
The famous sand dunes of Japan's Tottori coast are under attack by weeds.
In the last five years, the sand dunes are estimated to have shrunk by tens of thousands of cubic yards. New seawalls nearby have changed the currents that long carried sand to the dunes, and the lack of fresh sand appears to have made it easier for rainfall to accumulate and previously unseen weeds to grow.
In response, the prefectural government has sent out a call for volunteers to help with the weeding, and many have answered. One volunteer says the combination of the dunes and the weeding is an ideal stress-buster:
"My stress level goes up when I'm busy working or when I'm dealing with people," he said. "When my work increases, I feel stressed. Weeding — I can do at my own pace. The sand dunes soothe my soul."
Suitcases take off in Japan
Sales of new suitcases are soaring in Japan. Click here to learn why.
(Don't worry—it has nothing to do with earthquakes, tsunami, or Godzilla.)
Green is for tea, not envy
This book review has nothing to do with green tea or Japan but does have everything to do with emotional well-being. The book's message essentially is: "Don't be so envious about how much money others seem to be making—because, first of all, everyone struggles with money problems, even the ones who seem to be living the good life."
"We convince ourselves that our problems are ours alone, and we spend so much of our time hiding our angst, which causes more stress," says Boss. "What I learned is that everybody struggles with issues around money, nobody is completely happy and comfortable -- and knowing that is a huge relief. We feel less alone."
Monk's Friends
Blessings Enterprises
CoachArt
EcoGreenOffice
Japan Dave
Love Is Bald
Wild Tea Qi
The French press, a simple solution for brewing lo...
More Top Leaf Green Tea and Hojicha is on the way!...
Will Japan's Internet big shot end up in the big h...
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Paul Kotta
© 2011 Mellow Monk, LLC. Picture Window theme. Powered by Blogger.


British negotiators need to better articulate their position on Britain's departure from the European Union, a German industry leader stressed Friday, echoing the frustrations of EU Brexit negotiators.
Dieter Kempf, president of the Federation of German Industries (BDI), said that he was still concerned by Brexit, citing the U.K. as Germany's most important trading partner in Europe.
"Of course we are concerned because the U.K. is one of our most important trade partners – or the most important trade partner in Europe for the German industry," he told CNBC Friday.
Kempf said that he would rather see a solution whereby Britain either remained a full member or a close partner of the EU.
Various EU officials have said that the pace of Brexit negotiations needs to pick up.
Guy Verhofstadt, who represents the European Parliament in the Brexit process, told CNBC last month that he was "pessimistic" about discussions between negotiators.
Verhofstadt told CNBC that British negotiators need to agree on a methodology to work out outstanding financial commitments the U.K. owes to the EU before discussing a future relationship between the two.
"It's like in a divorce and in a divorce when you go away you don't let all the bills with the rest of the family," he said.


text:
class="shows-tickets-template-default single single-shows-tickets postid-31281 tribe-no-js"
Storytellers Series: Pamela Mordecai
By Pamela Mordecai
Online Presentations:
April 7, 14, 21, 2021
Recommended for Ages 4-8 (SK-Gr. 2)
Premiering in October, this brand new Storytellers Series spotlights oral storytelling traditions across cultures. The series will be made available to schools with options pre- and post-show workshops.
Sign up for our e-letter today and get all the latest news on the Storyteller Series and more, plus full access to YPT's 20.21 season!
Pamela Mordecai
Pamela Mordecai's debut novel, Red Jacket (2015), was shortlisted for the Rogers Writers' Trust Fiction award. Her short story collection, Pink Icing (2006), was recently released as an audiobook, read by herself, in ECW's Bespeak Audio Editions. Her children's poetry is widely anthologized and used in language arts curricula in the US, UK, Africa, India, the Caribbean and the Far East. A former award-winning thespian, she was one of four guest storytellers at the 25th Anniversary Ibby Conference. Her play, El Numero Uno or the Pig from Lopinot had its world premiere in 2010 at YPT in Toronto and its Caribbean premiere at the School of Drama, Edna Manley College of the Performing Arts in Kingston, Jamaica, in 2016. She has published two crossover collections of poetry, de Man: a performance poem and de book of Mary: a performance poem. Her seventh poetry collection, A Fierce Green Place: New and Selected Poems is forthcoming from New Directions in NYC. She and her husband live in Toronto.
Program & Study Guide
School and Groups


Designed to improve exam performance and increase language competence for success in the KET examination. Students can practise exam-style questions paper-by-paper.
Full range of KET task types; Paper-specific excercises in the test; Practice activities improve exam technique.
"KET Testbuilder Student's Book without Key"
"KET Testbuilder Student's Book with Key"


The Golden State of California is place to find online singles from Match.com. We have several examples of Match.com successes in California. Search Match.com for Rancho Park, California singles today. Back in the saddle again? Start dating online in [$CITY]. Select your dream date from thousands of Rancho Park online personal ads with photos.


text:
<!DOCTYPE html>

	<meta charset="utf-8">

	<title>Class ODataSchemeEntityAssociation | PhpOData</title>

	<link rel="stylesheet" href="resources/style.css?c2f33731c1948fbed7c333554678bfa68d4817da">

		Overview

Namespaces

						None

						PHP

Classes

OData

ODataContext

ODataCrypt

ODataDBAdapter

ODataFilterParser

ODataFilterToken

ODataMysql

ODataOptions

ODataQuery

ODataQueryExand

ODataQueryFilterAggregator

ODataQueryFilterBase

ODataQueryFilterComparator

ODataQueryFilterOperation

ODataQueryOrderBy

ODataQueryOrderByList

ODataRequest

ODataRequestHTTP

ODataRequestORM

ODataResponse

ODataResponseHTTP

ODataScheme

ODataSchemeEntity

ODataSchemeEntityAssociation

ODataSchemeEntityAssociationRelationField

ODataSchemeEntityField

ODataSchemeEntityGeneralTools

ODataSchemePrimitive

Purchase

PurchaseProduct

User

Functions

delete

get

patch

post

	<form id="search">
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		<input type="hidden" name="ie" value="UTF-8">
		<input type="text" name="q" class="text" placeholder="Search">
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				Overview

				Namespace

Class

				Tree

						Todo

Class ODataSchemeEntityAssociation

Description of ODataSchemeEntityAssociation

				Author:
				ilausuch

			Located at src/scheme/ODataSchemeEntityAssociation.php

Methods summary

			 public

		#
		__construct( string <var>$associated</var>, string <var>$field</var>, string <var>$relationType</var>, ODataSchemeEntityAssociationRelationField[] <var>$relationFields</var> )

Create a new association

Create a new association

Parameters

<var>$associated</var>

<var>$field</var>

<var>$relationType</var>

<var>$relationFields</var>

			 public static

		#
		parse(  <var>$field</var>,  <var>$config</var> )

			 public

		#
		getAssociated( )

			 public

		#
		getField( )

			 public

		#
		getRelationType( )

			 public

		#
		getRelationFields( )

			 public

		#
		isMultiple( )

			 public

		#
		isSingle( )

Constants summary

		string

				MULTIPLE

				#
				"multiple"

		string

				SINGLE

				#
				"single"

		PhpOData API documentation generated by ApiGen


text:
Greater Victoria is ranked fourth out of 27 Canadian cities for the best places for youth to work in, according to a RBC report. (Black Press Media file photo)
Greater Victoria among best Canadian cities for youth to work in, says RBC report
Region ranked fourth out of 27, behind Vancouver, Hamilton and Edmonton
The nation's youth have spoken and Greater Victoria has been dubbed the fourth-best Canadian city for young people to work in.
The Urban Work Index, funded by RBC, analyzed 27 cities across 76 urban work indicators to determine the best places for those aged 15 to 29 to be. It also conducted surveys and interviews with over 3,000 youth.
The resulting data gave Greater Victoria a score of 538.38 out of 956, just below Edmonton, Alta. at 538.96, Hamilton, Ont. at 541.23 and Vancouver at 623.66. Greater Victoria did particularly well in City Economy, ranking first, and Good Youth Jobs, ranking second. It also finished in the top seven for Public Health, Climate Change and Public Transportation.
READ ALSO: CRD aims to be zero waste national leader, reduce enough to curb landfill expansion
The other six topics representing the 76 indicators were Income Generation, Diversity and Inclusion, Cost of Living, Education and Training, Equity and Inclusion, Digital Access, and Entrepreneurial Spirit.
At the bottom of the pool were London, Ont. at 434.16, Moncton, N.B. at 411.74 and Fredericton, N.B. at 395.27.
An online tool informing youth on the best city for them based on the data can be found at rbc.com.
READ ALSO: Sidney service club raises funds for people with disabilities to have some summer fun
Saanich quilting group nabs first prize in Volunteer BC photo contest
Custom owl homes coming to Esquimalt parks this month


Born in Singapore and current base in Bali. DJ experience for over a decade. Started off with the influence of Trance and Progressive sound. Along the way underground creative sound and production got me him involved . A Professional DJ ,with a unique sound and style that is filled with colours and creativity .
Progressive sound filled with synth, melody & groove with huge bass lines. House and Tech House beats is the weapon of choice with a twist of Techno to set the adrenalin at its peak . Always hunger for new sounds and technical strategy to take the dancefloor wild meter to maximum . Versatile to situation of venues and anticipative from small room to big room.
*DJ time's are subject to change without notice.


Your next ride in a PickMe could be cashless. Sri Lanka's most popular mobile app for transportation has picked the country's largest private sector bank, HNB, as their payment solutions provider for Visa and MasterCard debit and credit cards.
As Sri Lanka's largest acquirer of Visa and MasterCard, having 44% market share, HNB is now also the first and only bank in Sri Lanka to facilitate an in-app (mobile) payment gateway which allows Visa or MasterCard credit and debit cardholders to pay for their taxi rides within a mobile application.
"HNB has commenced a very ambitious program to bring superior digital capability to its customers. Conducting a seamless financial transaction in a highly convenient and secure manner at the end of a journey is a key driver for this initiative, which is on par with similar global solutions. During the year, HNB intends to launch many such consumer focused solutions in engagement with Fintech companies and this is the first step in that journey. HNB's digital vision goes beyond its own customer base and is focused on leveraging on the available electronic payment and transacting platforms of the country," commented HNB Chief Digital Officer Sidath Wijeratne.
Going forward commuters could avail themselves of this facility by doing a one-time registration. The credit or debit card details have to be entered once into the app. The platform allows for card details to be stored in a secure environment. Once the card information is entered and stored, payment will be automatically deducted once the commuter has reached the destination and the hire is over.
The new service was designed using the most up-to-date security protocols and is PCI DSS compliant (Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards) thus ensuring that any user's personal information pertaining to the cards stays safely encrypted at all times.
PickMe Chairman Ajit Gunewardene added that he sees technology as the future of business and is not surprised that the concept was accepted by the market as rapidly and as successfully as it was.
"Efficiency is the key," he said. "I took immediate interest in the concept when it was proposed to me by Jiffry and I'm pleased that the business continues to attract valuable partnerships such as that with HNB. We have had three successful rounds of funding to date. We have a list of blue chips and business savvy investors who have supported the company in the multiple rounds of fundraising. We would have a fourth round once we have achieved our key performance indicators. Based on the performance of the company several existing and new investors have already indicated their interest in investing in the company.
"Seeing the current performance of PickMe I am confident that in three years PickMe will be catering to up to 500,000 rides a day," he added.
HNB Managing Director and CEO Jonathan Alles said the bank was thrilled to partner PickMe in facilitating hassle-free mobility. "Through this alliance with our country's most preferred mobility platform, we are proud to bring increased convenience to the citizens of Sri Lanka. Our effort and support in the drive to cashless transactions is very much a part of our commitment towards digitalisation, technology enhancement and accessibility," he stated.
HNB Card Centre Senior Manager Roshantha Jayatunge said that the cashless era had arrived in Sri Lanka and HNB was at the helm of digitalising banking. There are over 12 million debit cardholders and 1.2 million credit cardholders in Sri Lanka who could easily convert to a cashless system," he explained.
In order to promote this convenient option amongst the bank's sizeable card user base, HNB announced a limited time offer to commence with the launch of its cashless facility. Through the promotion, HNB credit cardholders will enjoy Rs. 300 off their first three rides with PickMe, when they register and pay with their HNB credit card, from 1 February to 15 February 2017.
The bank for its part has gone ahead with the digital drive by introducing the innovative Momo point of sale device which is portable and can accept debit and credit card payments. This, together with their new world banking offering of enhanced ATM's through which any utility payment and electronic fund transfer to any bank can be made, has propelled HNB towards its goal of digitally transforming the banking and financial sphere in the country.


Ashley Donat (left) and Angela Bartlett (right) received their first NEAC Women's Soccer weekly awards of the season.
GANSEVOORT, N.Y. - The North Eastern Athletic Conference (NEAC) has announced Ashley Donat and Angela Bartlett as its Student-Athlete of the Week selections in women's soccer for the week ending Oct. 15.
Ashley Donat (Lehartsville, Pa.) from Penn College was selected as the NEAC Women's Soccer Offensive Player of the Week after recording 11 points in two games last week. In a 6-1 non-conference win over Clarks Summit, Donat netted a hat trick and an assist for seven points. Over the weekend, Penn College's rookie forward scored of the Wildcats' goals in a 2-2 draw against Morrisville State College.
Angela Bartlett (West Winfield, N.Y.) from SUNY Poly has been named NEAC Women's Soccer Defensive Player of the Week with two victories for the Wildcats last week. Bartlett made five saves in a double-overtime win at SUNY Canton on Oct. 12 before making five more stops in a 2-0 victory at Cazenovia College on Oct. 14. She leads the NEAC with eight wins and a 0.57 goals-against average in 11 games played.