text:
Bill Gates Foundation donates $12Million to Boost Yam Production inNigeria and Ghana
April 7, 2012 Business
In one of the most ambitious efforts ever undertaken on behalf of an orphan crop like yam, the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) and a host of partners announced during the week, a new initiative to boost yam productivity and double the incomes of three million yam farmers in West Africa.
The Yam Improvement for Income and Food Security in West Africa (YIIFSWA) project, which is supported by a US$12 million grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, will be led by IITA in collaboration with the governments of Ghana and Nigeria, the UK's Natural Resources Institute (NRI), the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA), and Catholic Relief Services (CRS).
The YIIFSWA project will focus on increasing yields through better seed tuber supply and improving markets for this underground, edible tuber—some of which are as small as a fist, others as tall as a man.
Yams were first domesticated by African farmers 7,000 years ago. Today, 48.1 million tons of yams are produced annually across 4.4 million hectares of land in West Africa's "Yam Belt"—which extends from Cote D'Ivoire to Nigeria, representing over 90 percent of the global production.
Yams provide the most important source of dietary calories in Nigeria and Ghana. And for many people in the region, they rank above meat as a source of protein.
Yams are deeply tied to the lives, livelihoods and cultures in West Africa and among Africans in diasporas, yet their fate hangs in the balance as a variety of pests and diseases have now depressed yields to a mere 14 percent of potential harvests.
But yam scientists at IITA and the national researchers are already developing a host of new yam varieties that can address these challenges and are confident that with additional investments, there is tremendous potential to rapidly boost production and income from yam.
"Right now, most farmers cultivate yams mainly for household consumption, but if we can increase yields, while also improving marketing conditions, then many of these farmers should be able to earn a steady income from growing yams," said IITA's Director General Dr. Nteranya Sanginga.
"Yam prices have been rising in recent years because there is a strong demand for the crop in Africa, and even in places like Europe and the United States, where rapidly growing West African immigrant communities still have a big appetite for their traditionally preferred staple."
The YIIFSWA project is an ambitious, multifaceted five-year effort with a vision of doubling the incomes of three million small-holder farming families. The initial focus of the project is on 200,000 smallholder farm families in Ghana and Nigeria—90 percent of whom cultivate less than two acres.
A key priority is to ensure that affordable pest- and disease-free seed yams are available to farmers, along with storage and handling technologies that can reduce post-harvest loss. Yam breeders will develop and widely disseminate new, higher-yielding, disease-resistant varieties.
The private sector partners are expected to play a key role by providing certified seed and working closely with efforts to link small-holder farmers, particularly those in remote areas, to markets where a strong and steady demand for yams should allow them to realize the economic benefits of increased productivity. This will be coordinated by AGRA's Farmer Organization Support Centre in Africa (FOSCA) program.
Indigenous crops like yams often are referred to as orphan crops because, even though they are vital staples for millions of people in West Africa, little is invested in improving yields, compared to major global "commodity" crops like maize, wheat and rice.
As a result, yam yields fall below potential. However, as an indigenous crop, yams are better adapted to soil and climate conditions in the region than some commodity crops, and are already well-established in local diets. These factors mean successful efforts to boost yields are likely to be more sustainable and have a greater impact on food security by enhancing the preferred crop staple with good untapped potentials.
For example, creating an abundance of a locally produced nutritious staple like yams can provide insurance against crises sparked by a sudden, sharp rise in global food prices.
A Critical Time for Yam Production
The new yam improvement project is coming at a critical time for farmers and consumers in the region. Over the last decade, yam productivity per hectare has been stagnant or declining in the Yam Belt due to a number of factors.
Researchers warn that this trend, coming in the midst of rapid population growth, could be "catastrophic" for the region without efforts to revive the crop.
Today, yam production is under assault from fungal diseases, such as anthracnose that literally turns a field black, along with the yam beetle, nematodes, plant viruses, declining soil fertility and stresses caused by climate change.
Post-harvest diseases such as tuber rot can by themselves claim up to 40 percent of a crop. The cost of seed tubers is one-third of the total cost of producing ware tubers for food. Seed tubers claim about 30 percent of the annual harvest.
When these types of problems occur in mainstream crops like maize, rice or wheat, there is a vast global network of plant breeders available to develop new crop varieties that can withstand such stresses. But today in West Africa there are fewer than six yam breeders and fewer than 50 other researchers across the ECOWAS region.
And despite yam's importance and high commercial value, its relative obscurity (Africa accounts for about 93 percent of global yam production) has limited both the level of breeding and efforts to preserve its diversity.
IITA hosts the world's largest collection of yam varieties. In 2010, it partnered with the Global Crop Diversity Trust and national researchers in the region in an effort to collect yams grown by farmers, some of whom still routinely domesticate wild tubers from the forests of Benin and Nigeria.
At least 5 percent of yam germplasm is lost yearly, but new techniques needed required more funds. Of the six food crops in IITA's mandate, only yam and cowpea originated from Nigeria and need to be zealously conserved so as not to lose this heritage nature has bestowed upon the country.
From this growing diversity, IITA scientists and the National Agricultural Research Systems (NARS) partners are developing new, high-yielding, disease- and pest-resistant yam varieties. Already, IITA has developed new varieties that yield 50 to 100 percent more than existing varieties.
Among these improved yam varieties, 19 were officially released in Nigeria and are yet to be massively multiplied for distribution to growers. Farmers in Southern Nigeria, who like others in the region celebrate yams with elaborate and colorful annual festivals, have dubbed one of these varieties "the Wonder Yam" due to its resistance to yam mosaic virus and yam badnavirus.
So revered is the yam crop—Nigerian novelist Chinua Achebe calls it "the king of crops"—that in Cote d'Ivoire, funerals and burials are sometimes postponed until after the local yam festival has been observed.
"Even some of the cruel overlords of trans-Atlantic slave ships spoke of the importance of provisioning their vessels with large quantities of yams for the voyage to the New World because of their much longer storage than most other fresh root crops. Actually, there is no relation to the sweet potato that Americans call "yams," and the dryer, grainier "true Yam."
Cultivating Success in Both the Field and the Markets.
A key goal of the IITA yam project is to improve not just yield and outputs in the field but also to enhance market access for smallholder farmers. Though smallholder farmers cultivate the majority of yams in the region, IITA research findings show that those benefiting from the domestic, regional and global market for yams are mainly medium to large-scale producers.
IITA and the local partners believe that a combination of higher yields in the fields, reduced production costs through improved seed tuber supply, and better market access for smallholder growers will not only improve incomes for farmers, but also increase the affordability and consumption of yams in both rural and urban areas.
IITA officials note that work by the United Kingdom's Department for International Development (DFID) (a long-time partner to IITA's yam research), has shown that there is a significant potential for YIIFSWA to attract private sector investment in the production of certified yam seed that are clean, healthy, available and much more affordable.
For example, in different parts of Nigeria, anywhere from 66 to 97 percent of households desire to eat yams on a weekly basis. Yet, according to IITA, the domestic price of yams is well above the reach of many such consumers; with low income make them only able to afford to buy slices rather than whole tubers.
"Yams are a very important crop to smallholder farmers in Africa, and if these farmers can grow more, and have better access to markets, it can make a real difference in their lives," said Dr. Regina Kapinga, a program officer for the Agricultural Development initiative at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
"Women will be actively engaged in this project, in part because they play an important role in yam production and marketing. We want to reach a stage where robust yam seed production techniques will use parts of the yam plant other than tubers, thereby releasing an additional 30 percent of the crop to food ware tubers."
In addition, there are lucrative export opportunities to meet the demand of West Africans living abroad. Nigeria, for example, exported US$27.7 million worth of yams to the USA in 2011.
By Jimoh Babatunde with agency reports/Vanguard Newspapers Nigeria


text:
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  ~ distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
  ~ WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
  ~ See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
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  <packaging>pom</packaging>

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redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


Harrowgate Neighborhood.Excellent opportunity for investor to add to their portfolio or ideal opportunity to build. Lot dimensions are 14 X 64.9. This 909 sq ft lot is zoned RSA5 and ready for development! Lot size Walkscore of 93, Transit score of 71 and bike score of 73, This property is just steps away from everything you need, restaurants, grocery stores, coffee shops, parks.


Android Spinner is like the combox box of AWT or Swing. It can be used to display the multiple options to the user in which only one item can be selected by the user.
Android spinner is like the drop down menu with multiple values from which the end user can select only one value.
Android spinner is associated with AdapterView. So you need to use one of the adapter classes with spinner.
Android Spinner class is the subclass of AsbSpinner class.
In this example, we are going to display the country list. You need to use ArrayAdapter class to store the country list.The simple example of spinner in android.
Let's write the code to display item on the spinner and perform event handling.


1857 — National Association of Baseball Players founded, New York.
1927 — The world's first live radio commentary of a soccer match is broadcast.
1951 — Fidel Castro is ejected from a winter league game after beaning batter.
1956 — Canadian Football Council forms.
1960 — Paul Pender beats Sugar Ray Robinson for middleweight boxing title.
1968 — NBA announces it will expand to Milwaukee and Phoenix.
1969 — Roy Campanella and Stan Musial elected to Baseball Hall of Fame.
1973 — George Foreman TKOs Joe Frazier in two rounds for heavyweight boxing title.
1980 — PGA begins a senior golf tour.
1980 — West Indies beat England 2-0 to win first World Series Cup.
1981 — O.A. (Bum) Phillips becomes head coach of the New Orleans Saints.
1982 — Free agent Reggie Jackson signs a four-year, nearly US$4-million contract with the California Angels.
1983 — Björn Borg retires from tennis after winning five consecutive Wimbledon championships.
1984 — Annette Kennedy of SUNY sets women's basketball record with 70 points.
1984 — NFL Super Bowl XVIII: Los Angeles Raiders beat Washington Redskins 38-9 in Tampa, Fla; MVP: Marcus Allen, running back.
1987 — Blizzard in New Jersey, as 334 attend the New Jersey Devils vs. Calgary Flames NHL game. New Jersey wins 7-5.
1988 — Mike Tyson TKOs Larry Holmes in four rounds for heavyweight boxing title.
1989 — Super Bowl XXIII: San Francisco 49ers beat Cincinnati Bengals, 20-16 in Miami; MVP: Jerry Rice, San Francisco, wide receiver.
1990 — Will Clark, National League's Most Valuable Player signs a $15-million, four-year contract with San Francisco Giants.
1993 — Johan Koss skates world record 5 km in 6:38.77.
1998 — NHL's Minnesota franchise selects the nickname Wild.
1998 — Rickey Henderson rejoins Oakland Athletics for fourth time.
2003 — Catcher Ivan Rodriguez signs a one-year deal worth $10 million to play with the Florida Marlins.


text:
Marty Scurll Parts Ways With Ring of Honor
British wrestler Marty Scurll has officially parted ways with Ring of Honor, according to a statement from the promotion.
Ring of Honor confirmed Scurll's departure on social media.
"Marty Scurll and Ring of Honor have mutually decided to part ways," the statement read.
Scurll joined Ring of Honor in 2016, and was made head of the company's booking committee last year.
Allegations were made against Scurll during the Speaking Out movement, and RoH's parent company Sinclair Broadcasting announced that an internal investigation was underway.
This is a developing story. Updates to come.
pic.twitter.com/0PdT5TcgHR
— ROH Wrestling (@ringofhonor) January 4, 2021
Mike Bennett Says Nick Aldis Helped Him Get His Love For Wrestling Back
Bateman Signs New Ring of Honor Deal
Bandido, Tracy Williams And More Sign New Contracts With RoH
Jeff Cobb Explains Brief Stint in AEW, Says All Parties Benefited from the Appearances

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


All in all, it's not a huge update by any means, but users of the device should still appreciate the tweaks. As with any OTA, just sit back and wait for the software to hit your phone. Or keep hitting refresh in the Settings menu until your fingertips go numb. Either way.


In 2007, Johnson County District Attorney (and former Kansas Attorney General) Phill Kline filed 107 charges against Planned Parenthood, alleging, among other things, that Planned Parenthood has continually skirted the state's late-term abortion ban. Thereafter, the already often-targeted former AG was met with a firestorm of criticism.
These 107 counts were filed after current Attorney General Paul Morrison (looking at the same files) concluded that Planned Parenthood had done no wrong.
The tables began turning, however, in late 2007, when current AG Morrison was forced to step down from his position due to not only an affair with a woman in the Johnson County district attorney's office, but also in light of allegations that he had used his power as attorney general to attempt to influence Phill Kline's investigation of Planned Parenthood.
Then on Wednesday, Shawnee County District Judge Richard Anderson entered the picture.
In one of the many ongoing hearings in Kansas state courts, Judge Anderson was called as a witness—and vindicated Phill Kline.
Judge Anderson testified that there are problems with the authenticity of Planned Parenthood's files. The Judge indicated that there was no way that Morrison could have ignored the violations contained in those records.
The Judge went on record stating that Morrison's handling of Planned Parenthood was totally wrong.
This should come as a boost to Phill Kline and his ongoing battle to bring Planned Parenthood to justice. And it should come as a warning to Planned Parenthood affiliates in other states: when you break the law, you will be called to account.


WHY you should employ a Dutch man to bang your wife, Starbucks wants to get you drunk, Obama gets amongst the ferns, how not to raise children & the chicken from hell.
44 year-old Ed Houben first donated sperm to a local fertility clinic in the Netherlands in 2002, which gave him the idea that it might be something he'd like to do full-time, in a slightly more involved way. Houben now runs a website that helps him meet with couples, straight and lesbian, to whom he offers his services free of charge. Describing his process, Houben said, "A married couple came over here for one week after many years of visiting clinics in the USA and the UK. They had tried everything, then they read about me, wrote me and we had a very nice contact. Half a year later they managed to come, stayed for 8 days, she and I slept together four times. After ten years of trying they had their first pregnancy. Last year they came a second time for their second child and it worked almost immediately." Houben has fathered 98 children in the past 12 years.
International coffee franchise Starbucks have this week announced their plan to add evenings of alcohol service to a small number of their 11,000 US stores. The strategy comes as part of the company's attempt to attract sales consistently, after the morning rush. The venture is dubbed Starbucks Evenings and has actually been functioning in around 26 stores for some time now, and will likely occur in an additional 40 by the end of 2014.
So this little piece of information serves no purpose other than to highlight the level of quality human that Barack Obama represents; the President of the United States appeared recently on Zach Galifianakis' parody Q&A show, Between Two Ferns. He perform admirably, taking the piss out of Galifianakis royally, and when questioned about his choice to comically rip into the comedian, he made it feel appropriate, as though it was the only right thing to do. Mister President, I salute you.
Two Indian parents aged 33 and 27 are currently in custody after an inspection of their home revealed the shocking neglect of their three sons aged two, five, and six, who it seems, have never left their apartment. The home had no furniture, with the exception of a few mattresses on the floor. The children were malnourished and had obvious speech and developmental problems. If the parents are charged they face up to seven years in jail.


text:
Datenverteiler-Archetype Bibliothek
===================================

Dieser Archetype erzeugt den Prototyp einer Datenverteilerbibliothek.

---

Dieses Projekt ist nicht Teil des NERZ e.V. Die offizielle Software sowie
weitere Informationen zur bundeseinheitlichen Software für
Verkehrsrechnerzentralen (BSVRZ) finden Sie unter http://www.nerz-ev.de.


Leading Manufacturer of botanical extract as bio insecticides from Nashik.
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text:
Q: Sigma simplification Can someone please help to simplify
$$\sum_{k=2}^{50}k(k-1)\binom{50}{k}\text{?}$$
The answer should be $50\cdot 49\cdot 2^{48}$.

A: By the binomial exapnsion of $(1+x)^{50}$ we get $\displaystyle (1+x)^{50}=\sum_{k=0}^{50}\binom{50}{k}x^k$, so by differentiating both parts of the equation with respect to x, we get $\displaystyle 50 (1+x)^{49}=\sum_{k=1}^{50}k\binom{50}{k}x^{k-1}$. By
differentiating again both parts of the last equation with respect to x, we get $\displaystyle 50\cdot 49\cdot  (1+x)^{48}=\sum_{k=2}^{50}k(k-1)\binom{50}{k}x^{k-2}$ and set $x=1$ to get the desired result $50\cdot 49\cdot 2^{48}$ for your expression.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
La stazione di Stratford-upon-Avon (in inglese Stratford-upon-Avon railway station) è la principale stazione ferroviaria di Stratford-upon-Avon, in Inghilterra.

Altri progetti

Stratford-upon-Avon
Architetture di Stratford-upon-Avon

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


The vacant Draper Corp. building sits at the intersection of Hopedale and Freedom Street in Hopedale.
The owner of a 1-million-square-foot vacant mill in Hopedale is pushing the town against including the property in a proposed historic district, in order to maintain its commercial and redevelopment viability.
The formation of the district -- which has yet to be approved at Town Meeting -- would essentially create another regulatory body and criteria should the former Draper Corp. building ever be sold or redeveloped. Sitting in the center of town, the massive structure has been vacant since the 1970s. The town is considering including the properties -- once the engine of Hopedale and the surrounding area -- in the Blackstone Valley National Historical Park.
The property is owned by First American Realty, a Worcester-based firm. President Philip Swachman has owned the property via various entities for about 30 years.
In a letter to the town via attorney Mary Feeney of Bowditch & Dewey, Shwachman asks the town to remove those properties from the proposed district.
"It is Mr. Shwachman's opinion, in which we concur, that any inclusion of his property in a Local Historic District will result in his inability to sell or develop any of his property," Feeney wrote.
Swachman said in April 2016 the building would be going on the market, but no buyer has come forward and no redevelopment projects have been announced. A reuse committee consisting of local and state officials was organized in 2006, but the effort lasted only two years and the committee eventually stopped meeting.
The Draper Corp., once one of the largest maker of textile looms in the country, operated out of the building for nearly a century.
The factory once employed more than 3,000 people, but it closed in the late 1970s after demand for textile looms ceased and after the building changed ownership to Rockwell International.


text:
Soluble CD14 in cerebrospinal fluid is associated with markers of inflammation and axonal damage in untreated HIV-infected patients: a retrospective cross-sectional study
Sofie Jespersen1,
Karin Kæreby Pedersen1,
Birgitta Anesten2,
Henrik Zetterberg3,4,
Dietmar Fuchs5,
Magnus Gisslén2,
Lars Hagberg2,
Marius Trøseid6 &
Susanne Dam Nielsen1
HIV-associated cognitive impairment has declined since the introduction of combination antiretroviral treatment (cART). However, milder forms of cognitive impairment persist. Inflammation in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) has been associated with cognitive impairment, and CSF neurofilament light chain protein (NFL) and CSF neopterin concentrations are increased in those patients. Microbial translocation in HIV infection has been suggested to contribute to chronic inflammation, and lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and soluble CD14 (sCD14) are markers of microbial translocation and the resulting monocyte activation, respectively. We hypothesised that microbial translocation contributes to inflammation and axonal damage in the central nervous system (CNS) in untreated HIV infection.
We analyzed paired samples of plasma and CSF from 62 HIV-infected, untreated patients without cognitive symptoms from Sahlgrenska University Hospital, Gothenburg, Sweden. Measurements of neopterin and NFL in CSF were available from previous studies. Plasma and CSF sCD14 was measured using ELISA (R&D, Minneapolis, MN), and plasma and CSF LPS was measured using LAL colorimetric assay (Lonza, Walkersville, MD, USA). Univariate and multivariate regression analyses were performed.
LPS in plasma was associated with plasma sCD14 (r = 0.31, P = 0.015), and plasma sCD14 was associated with CSF sCD14 (r = 0.32, P = 0.012). Furthermore, CSF sCD14 was associated with NFL (r = 0.32, P = 0.031) and neopterin (r = 0.32, P = 0.012) in CSF. LPS was not detectable in CSF. In a multivariate regression model CSF sCD14 remained associated with NFL and neopterin after adjusting for age, CD4+ cell count, and HIV RNA in CSF.
In a group of untreated, HIV-infected patients LPS was associated with sCD14 in plasma, and plasma sCD14 was associated CSF sCD14. CSF sCD14 were associated with markers of CNS inflammation and axonal damage. This suggest that microbial translocation might be a driver of systemic and CNS inflammation. However, LPS was not detectable in the CSF, and since sCD14 is a marker of monocyte activation sCD14 may be increased due to other causes than microbial translocation. Further studies regarding cognitive impairment and biomarkers are warranted to fully understand causality.
Prior to introduction of combination antiretroviral treatment (cART) a large proportion of HIV-infected patients developed severe neurocognitive disorders [1, 2]. With the introduction of cART, the incidence of severe HIV-associated neurocognitive disorders decreased, while milder types persists [3, 4].
A number of studies suggest that cognitive impairment may be caused by inflammation in the central nervous system (CNS) [5–8]. Thus, biomarkers of inflammation in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) have been associated with cognitive impairment. One such biomarker is neopterin, a marker of monocyte activation which has been found to be elevated in the CSF of HIV-infected patients. The concentration of neopterin decreases after initiation of cART, although it does not reach the concentrations observed in HIV-uninfected persons [9, 10], hence indicating persistent CNS inflammation [11]. Neurofilament light chain protein (NFL) is a marker of CNS axonal damage that has been associated with CNS inflammation. NFL is increased in HIV-infected patients with cognitive impairment or opportunistic CNS infections [12–17].
Systemic inflammation in HIV-infected patients has been reported repeatedly [18–20] and is believed to be partly caused by microbial translocation. Microbial translocation and immune activation are predictors of disease progression and non-AIDS-related morbidity in HIV infection [21–23]. During acute HIV infection, the gastrointestinal mucosa is depleted of T cells leading to translocation of microbial products such as lipopolysaccharide (LPS) into the systemic circulation [24–28]. LPS activates cells of the innate immune system by binding to Toll-like receptor-4 (TLR-4). CD14 needs to be present in order for LPS to activate the receptor. CD14 is expressed on monocytes, macrophages, and neutrophils, and upon stimulation by LPS, as well as other microbial products, CD14 is secreted and cleaved from the cells as soluble CD14 (sCD14) [29].
We hypothesised that microbial translocation contributes to inflammation in the CNS of HIV-infected patients. We therefore aimed to investigate if markers of microbial translocation (LPS) and monocyte activation (sCD14) were detectable in CSF and to determine possible associations between these markers and markers of inflammation and axonal damage in the CNS (NFL, neopterin) in untreated HIV-infected patients.
Since 1985, HIV-infected patients in Gothenburg, Sweden have been included in a longitudinal study that includes serial sampling of CSF, plasma, and serum. This cohort has previously been described in detail [14]. Lumbar punctures are performed in a standardized manner at least annually and more frequently in connection with antiretroviral treatment initiation or change in treatment. CSF and blood samples are stored at −80 °C in batches. Both asymptomatic and symptomatic patients are included, and as of December 2014 the cohort included 494 patients who had undergone 1805 lumbar punctures. Patients were clinical assessed for neurocognitive function (reporting no challenges in regard to daily living or work).
From this cohort 20 untreated HIV-infected patients without CNS opportunistic infection but with pleocytosis the CSF (>5 cells/μL) indicating HIV-induced inflammation was included in a pilot study in order to determine if it was possible to detect sCD14 and LPS in CSF during HIV infection. The 20 participants from the pilot study did not participate in the following analyses.
Afterwards, 62 untreated, HIV-infected patients without cognitive symptoms or CNS opportunistic infections with samples collected between 2004 and 2014 were selected for further analyses. Untreated patients were selected to avoid confounding effects of cART on microbial translocation and inflammation. 30 patients had pleocytosis.
In order to determine if CD4+ cell count affected either microbial translocation or monocyte activation, patients were selected to have either CD4+ cell count >350 cells/μL (n = 31, CD4+ cell count range 380–1400, median 530 cells/μL) or CD4+ cell count <200 cells/μL (n = 31, CD4+ cell count range 0–190, median 100 cells/μL). Groups were matched on gender, age, and CSF leucocyte count. The selection was done randomly from the list of patients fulfilling the inclusion criteria (Table 1). Five patients with low CD4+ cell count were treated with trimetoprim/sulfametoxazole including four as prophylaxis against Pneumocystis jirovecii, and one patient was treated for Pneumocystis pneumonia. Furthermore, one patient was treated for tuberculosis.
Table 1 Characteristics of the study population
The study was approved by the Regional Ethical Review Board in Gothenburg (Ö 588–01) and was performed in accordance with the Helsinki Declaration. All blood and CSF samples were obtained after informed consent of subjects under the IRB-approved protocol.
Markers of axonal damage, inflammation, and HIV-related factors
CSF NFL was measured using a sensitive sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) (NF-light® ELISA kit, UmanDiagnostics AB, Umeå, Sweden) as previously described [12, 30]. CSF neopterin was measured using a commercially available radioimmunoassay (Henningtest Neopterin, BRAHMS, Berlin, Germany) [15]. HIV-1 RNA in CSF and plasma were quantified with Roche Amplicor Monitor assay version 1.5 (Hoffman La-Roche, Basel, Switzerland) with a detection limit of 20 copies/mL. Furthermore, routine assessments included CSF white blood cell count and peripheral blood CD4+ cell count as previous described [31].
Valid measurement of neopterin in plasma and CSF, NFL and leucocyte count in CSF were available in 60, 61, 46, and 60 patients, respectively.
Markers of microbial translocation and monocyte activation
LPS in plasma and CSF was analysed by the Limulus amebocyte lysate colorimetric assay (Lonza, Walkersville, MD) according to the manufacturer's instructions and with the following modifications: Samples were diluted 10-fold to avoid interference with background colour, and preheated to 68 °C for 12 min prior to analysis to dissolve immune complexes, as previously described [32, 33].
Soluble CD14 in plasma and CSF was analysed using ELISA according to the manufacturer's instructions (R&D, Minneapolis, MN).
Data are given as median (interquartile range (IQR)). A P value ≤0.05 was considered significant. When comparing groups, the Student T-test and Mann Whitney U-test was used as appropriate. Uni- and multivariate linear regression models were used to assess associations and adjusted for possible confounders. When appropriate data were log-transformed (ln). In order to investigate possible associations between microbial translocation and inflammation in the CSF, multivariate linear regression models were performed with NFL and neopterin as the dependent variables, and sCD14 in the CSF was added as an independent variable. The model was adjusted for age, HIV RNA in the CSF, and CD4+ cell count. Since patients were included in two CD4+ cell count groups, CD4+ cell count was added to the model as both a continuous variable and as a nominal variable. Only the continuous variable was significant and therefore used in the final model. The analyses were performed using IBM SPSS 22.0 (Statistics for Windows, IBM Corp., Armonk, NY).
Characteristics of the study population
The pilot study included 20 untreated, asymptomatic, HIV-infected patients with CSF pleocytosis as a sign of HIV-induced inflammation. Both LPS and sCD14 was detectable in all plasma samples. However, LPS was not detectable in any CSF samples whereas CSF-sCD14 was detectable in all CSF samples (data not shown). Hence, only sCD14 was measured in CSF in the subsequent analyses.
Samples from 62 untreated, HIV-infected patients without clinical evidence of impaired cognitive function and with CD4+ cell count either above 350 or below 200 cells/μL were selected for further analysis. Characteristics of the study population are shown in Table 1.
Detection of LPS in plasma and sCD14 in plasma and CSF
Valid measurement of LPS in plasma and sCD14 in plasma was obtained in all 62 participants whereas sCD14 in CSF was obtained in 61 participants.
Patients with plasma sCD14 above median had higher plasma LPS compared to patients with sCD14 below median (91 pg/mL vs. 117 pg/mL, P = 0.042), whereas there were no differences in age, gender, CD4+ cell count, or plasma HIV RNA between these two groups. However, when dividing the patients into two groups with sCD14 in CSF above or below median, no differences were found in regard to age, gender, CD4+ cell count, plasma HIV RNA, plasma LPS, or CFS HIV RNA (all P values >0.05).
Soluble CD14 and immune deficiency
Increased concentrations of sCD14 in plasma was found in patients with CD4+ cell count <200 compared to patients with CD4+ cell count >350 (median of 2579 ng/mL (IQR 2061–3641) vs. 2357 ng/mL (IQR 1174–2959) (P = 0.031)). Furthermore, concentration of sCD14 in CSF was 308 (IQR 196–385) in the group with CD4+ cell count <200 vs. 201 (IQR 90–317) in the group with CD4+ cell count >350 (P = 0.015). Leucocyte cell counts in CSF were median 3 cells/μL (IQR 1–11) and 5 cells/μL (IQR 4–9) (P = 0.406) in the group with CD4+ cell count <200 vs. the group with CD4+ cell count >350. Concentrations of CSF sCD14 was associated with CSF leucocyte cell count in a univariate analysis (r = 0.73, P = 0.049).
Markers of microbial translocation associated with inflammation in the CNS
Univariate analyses demonstrated associations between plasma LPS and plasma sCD14 (r = 0.31, P = 0.015), as well as borderline significant association with CSF sCD14 (r = 0.24, P = 0.059). Furthermore, plasma sCD14 was associated with CSF sCD14 (r = 0.32, P = 0.012, Fig. 1) and tended to correlate with plasma neopterin (r = 0.24, P = 0.060). Importantly, CSF sCD14 was associated with a higher concentration of both NFL (r = 0.32, P = 0.031) and neopterin in the CSF (r = 0.32, P = 0.012, Fig. 1).
Univariate analyses. Markers of microbial translocation (LPS), monocyte activation (sCD14), axonal damage (NFL), and CNS inflammation (neopterin) were measured in paired samples of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and plasma from 62 untreated HIV-infected patients. Univariate analysis were performed after Log(ln) transformation due to skewed data. (a) plasma LPS and plasma sCD14, (b) plasma sCD14 and CSF sCD14, (c) CSF sCD14 and CSF NFL, (d) CSF sCD14 and CSF neopterin. CSF = cerebrospinal fluid, LPS = lipopolysaccharide, NFL = neurofilament light chain, sCD14 = soluble CD14
In a multivariate linear regression model, CSF sCD14 remained associated with NFL (P = 0.039) and neopterin (P = 0.002) when adjusted for age, CD4+ cell count, and HIV RNA in CSF. In line with previous studies, higher age (P = 0.001) and lower CD4+ cell count (P = 0.001) were associated with higher NFL in multivariable analysis [12]. Higher HIV RNA in CSF (P < 0.001) and lower CD4+ cell count (P < 0.001) were associated with higher neopterin. When LPS was added to the model, no association was found with NFL or neopterin.
In this study of untreated, HIV-infected patients, sCD14, a marker of microbial translocation and monocyte activation was detectable in both plasma and CSF. High CSF and plasma sCD14 was not explained by higher HIV RNA or lower CD4+ cell counts, while a significant association between plasma sCD14 and LPS was found. Furthermore, significant associations between CSF sCD14 and markers of inflammation and axonal damage in the CSF were found, independent of age, HIV RNA, and CD4+ cell count. Hence, it is possible that elevated monocyte activation, partly driven by microbial translocation, may contribute to the pathogenesis in CNS by promoting inflammation.
Infection of the CNS occurs early during HIV infection [34, 35]. HIV enters the CNS unassisted or in infected monocytes that cross the blood–brain barrier (BBB) [36–38]. In the CNS, HIV and migrated immune cells lead to the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines and further immune activation. Inflammation in the CNS creates a neurotoxic environment resulting in damage of the neurons [39]. Increased NFL reflects axonal damage [40], and neopterin is a marker of activated monocytes that is used to assess inflammation in the CNS in HIV-infected patients. In pre-cART studies high concentration of HIV RNA in the CSF was associated with severity of cognitive impairment [37, 38]. However, the association between HIV RNA and cognitive impairment in the cART era has not been as strong or consistent, indicating that other factors may also play a role in the development of HIV-associated cognitive impairment [38, 41–43].
Immune activation and inflammation is a hallmark of HIV infection and is caused by several factors including HIV replication, ART toxicity, co-infections, loss of regulatory cells, and microbial translocation [44]. Depletion of immune cells around the gastrointestinal tract leads to increased permeability for microbial products like LPS [45]. LPS is a part of the Gram negative bacterial wall and is frequently used in studies as a marker of microbial translocation. LPS cannot penetrate a normal functioning BBB, however, inflammation caused by LPS may make the BBB more permeable for HIV and activated monocytes [46, 47]. To our knowledge LPS measurements in the CSF have not previously been reported.
The binding of LPS to TLR-4 results in secretion of pro-inflammatory cytokines and sCD14 from activated monocytes. We found significant associations between plasma LPS and plasma sCD14 as well as borderline significant association with CSF sCD14. Activated monocytes that have migrated to the CNS is the most likely source of sCD14 in the CSF, as sCD14 has not been reported to be produced from residing monocytes (microglia and astrocytes) [48]. Neopterin, which also is a marker of monocyte activation, is on the other hand produced by residing monocytes in the CSF [49]. This makes sCD14 an interesting biomarker in the CSF, as it potentially reflects the level of monocyte migration into the CNS supported by a positive correlation between CSF cell count and CSF sCD14. However, CD14 has been shown to possess several other functions besides binding LPS. CD14 also acts as a co-receptor for several other TLRs and microbial products which may explain the lack of consistency in studies investigating LPS in association with CD14 [50, 51].
Several studies have shown that markers of microbial translocation are associated with cognitive impairment in HIV-infected patients [7, 8, 52–54]. Thus, CNS HIV Anti-Retroviral Therapy Effects Research (CHARTER) and The National NeuroAIDS Tissue Consortium (NNTC) groups have shown that LPS and sCD14 in plasma and in the CSF were increased in patients with impaired cognitive function [7, 8, 53]. Furthermore, increased sCD14 persists even after effective cART [55]. We found strong associations between CSF sCD14 and NFL, even after adjustment for age, HIV RNA, and CD4+ cell count, indicating that activated monocytes may contribute to axonal damage in the CNS, albeit this cross sectional study does not allow us to determine causality. Furthermore, our findings are supported by a recent study of CSF sCD14 and NFL in untreated HIV-infected patients [17].
Guidelines to assess cognitive function are based on the use of neuropsychological test [56]. Studies have shown that even in well treated HIV-infected individuals on cART, as many as 50 % have been reported to have neurocognitive disorders [57–59]. However, neuropsychological tests are time consuming, require specialised staff, and are not available in all clinical settings. Furthermore, neuropsychological tests are not able to differentiate between active or residual cognitive impairment [60]. It has been suggested that a combination of biomarkers could be used to assess CNS inflammation and guide in diagnosing HIV-associated CNS damage [61]. sCD14 could be a potential candidate as it has been established that activated monocytes play an important role in the pathogenesis of cognitive impairment in HIV infection [7, 8, 52–54], however in the present study markers of CNS inflammation and axonal damage was associated with CSF sCD14, but not with plasma sCD14. The present study did not include neurocognitive testing and only included naïve HIV-infected individuals. Data on neurocognitive performance as well as individuals on cART could add valuable information in future studies.
This study was limited by limited sample size and the cross-sectional design. Furthermore, measuring microbial translocation using LPS is challenging since the method is sensitive to both time and contamination [62]. However, this method is well established in our laboratory with an inter assay coefficient of variation < 10 %. Also, other microbial products besides LPS, including peptidoglycan, Pam3CSK4, polyI:C, and CpG DNA, cross the gastrointestinal mucosa and may activate the immune system and drive inflammation [50, 51]. Recently it was found that two types of sCD14 exits [63]. A differential measurement of these may have provided additional information. Furthermore, neuropsychological evaluation would have supplied valuable information.
Significant associations between sCD14 in CSF and markers of CNS inflammation and axonal damage were found suggesting that monocyte activation, possibly driven by microbial translocation, may contribute to CNS inflammation. Further investigations into the pathogenesis of cognitive impairment in HIV infection, as well as potential biomarkers are needed, in order to increase the understanding and supply reliable methods of diagnosing these conditions.
All data are available upon request.
acquired immunodeficiency syndrome
BBB:
blood brain barrier
combination antiretroviral treatment
cluster of differentiation
CHARTER:
CNS HIV Anti-Retroviral Therapy Effects Research
enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay
IV:
LAL:
limulus amebocyte lysate
LPS:
lipopolysaccharide
mL:
mm3:
cubic millimetre
subsample size
NFL:
neurofilament light chain protein
ng:
nano gram
nmol:
nano mole
NNTC:
the National NeuroAIDS Tissue Consortium
Pg:
Pico gram
sCD14:
soluble CD14
toll- like receptors
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We gratefully acknowledge patients that participated in this study.
SJ: Financial support from University of Copenhagen: Internationaliseringspuljen.
KKP: Financial support from Rigshospitalets forskningspuljer, Augustinus Foundation, Snedkermester Sophus Jacobsen og hustru Astrid Jacobsens Foundation, Christian Larsen og dommer Ellen Larsens Legat, A.P. Møller, Fonden for lægevidenskabens Fremme, Aase and Ejnar Danielsens Foundation.
BA: Financial support from the Sahlgrenska University Hospital (ALFGBG-430271)
HZ: Financial support from European Research Council (681712), Swedish Research Council (2013–2546), Swedish State Support for Clinical Research (ALFGBG-441051) and the Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation.
DF: No funding to be listed
MG: Financial support from the Sahlgrenska University Hospital (ALFGBG-430271)
LH: Financial support from the Sahlgrenska University Hospital (ALFGBG-430271)
MT: Financial support from Rigshospitalet and Oslo University Hospital
SDN: Financial support from Rigshospitalet, Funding Novo Nordisk Foundation, Åse og Ejnar Danielsens Fondation and Augustinus Foundation.
Department of Infectious Diseases, Viro-immunology Research Unit, Rigshospitalet, University of Copenhagen, Blegdamsvej 9, DK 2100, Copenhagen Ø, Denmark
Sofie Jespersen, Karin Kæreby Pedersen & Susanne Dam Nielsen
Department of Infectious Diseases, Institute of Biomedicine, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden
Birgitta Anesten, Magnus Gisslén & Lars Hagberg
Clinical Neurochemistry Laboratory, Institute of Neuroscience and Physiology, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, Mölndal, Sweden
Department of Molecular Neuroscience, UCL Institute of Neurology, Queen Square, London, UK
Division of Biological Chemistry, Biocenter, Innsbruck Medical University, Innsbruck, Austria
Dietmar Fuchs
Department of Infectious Diseases, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway
Marius Trøseid
Sofie Jespersen
Karin Kæreby Pedersen
Birgitta Anesten
Magnus Gisslén
Lars Hagberg
Susanne Dam Nielsen
Correspondence to Susanne Dam Nielsen.
SJ participated in design of the study, performed statistical analysis, interpreted data, and drafted the manuscript. KKP participated in the design of the study, performed statistical analysis, and interpreted data. BA, MG and LH were responsible for the clinical data of the HIV-cohort. HZ performed the NFL ELISA. DF performed the neopterin immunoassay. MT participated in the design of the study, performed the sCD14 ELISA and LPS LAL colorimetric assay. SDN participated in the design of the study and interpreted data. All authors critically reviewed and approved the final manuscript.
Jespersen, S., Pedersen, K.K., Anesten, B. et al. Soluble CD14 in cerebrospinal fluid is associated with markers of inflammation and axonal damage in untreated HIV-infected patients: a retrospective cross-sectional study. BMC Infect Dis 16, 176 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12879-016-1510-6
CNS inflammation
Microbial translocation
sCD14
Neopterin


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text:
House of Commons Commission rules out Big Ben bonging for Brexit
January 14, 2020 5:04:04 AM
Big Ben will remain hushed for Brexit due to financial and logistical issues, it is reported.
The issue was discussed at a meeting of the House of Commons Commission on Monday, however it was ultimately ruled out after it was revealed that it would cost £500,000 – up from the original estimate of £120,000.
The expanded budget stems from the need to put in and remove a temporary floor in order to ring the bell.
A source told The Daily Telegraph: "No-one in the meeting thought it was worth spending £500,000 on having Big Ben strike the hour on one occasion.
"When you consider what else that money could be spent on, it's very hard to make an argument in favour of it."
Mark Francois said he was "very disappointed" with the decision (Stefan Rousseau/PA)
Another source reportedly said there wasn't enough time to plan for the bell to ring, saying the project team would need "at least two weeks" to prepare.
Conservative MP Mark Francois told the paper he was "very disappointed" with the commission's decision.
"I've already offered to go up Big Ben myself, ably assisted by (European Scrutiny Committee chair) Bill Cash, to ring the bell myself to save money," he said.
"If all else fails, the BBC must have a recording of Big Ben chiming they could play at 11pm at no cost whatsoever to taxpayers."


The 0-18 Philadelphia 76ers are off to one of the worst starts in NBA history.
They're bad, really bad, but they're not alone. Here's a look at some of the worst sports losers of all time.
The '03 Tigers, helmed by first-year manager Alan Trammell, still hold the record for the most losses in a single season in the American League. After going 55-106 the year prior, Detroit somehow sunk to a new low when starter Jeff Weaver, closer Juan Acevedo, second baseman Damion Easley, right fielder Robert Flick and DH Randall Simon left for greener pastures in the offseason. The remaining players, led by DH Dimitri Young, started 2003 with a nine-game losing streak and finished the season 47 games behind the AL Central-winning Minnesota Twins.
Casey Stengel (37) directs his 1962 Mets to the field on first day of spring training.
The Amazin' Mets weren't exactly amazing in their first season, totaling just 40 wins in 1962; their 120 losses remains the major league record. Over 160 games, the "Lovable Losers" accumulated 11-, 13- and 17-game losing streaks; starting pitcher Roger Craig racked up 24 losses of his own. The Mets started 1962 0-9 on their way to a last place finish in the National League, 60.5 games behind the San Francisco Giants.
The 1988 Orioles finished the season 54-107, far from a historic low, but it was their start that puts them in the record books. Baltimore lost 21 straight games to open the season, a record that still stands today, before finally beating the Chicago White Sox 9-0 on April 29.
The inaugural season of the Dallas Cowboys couldn't have gone much worse. After losing close games to the Steelers (Dallas led 14-0 before blowing the game in the fourth quarter) and the Eagles (Cowboys lost 27-25 on two blocked extra points) in their first two games, the Cowboys kept up their losing ways all the way through the season.
Their only highlight was the final game of the season, when they scraped together enough offense to tie the Giants 31-31.
Coming off a 7-9 season, the 2008 Lions were looking to break .500, or even higher. Instead, they broke a different record and went winless for the entire season.
During the Week 4 bye week, team president and CEO Matt Millen was fired after eight years with Detroit, during which the team went 31-84.
The Lions losing streak lasted from Week 16 in 2007 to Week 3 in 2009.
The 1976 Bucs were the first of the worst — the first team to play a full 14-game season without either a win or a tie. The inaugural Tampa Bay season was filled with aging, injured veterans except for rookie Lee Roy Selmon, who would go on to become the first Buc inducted into the Hall of Fame.
Struggling for offense, the Bucs failed to score until their third game and didn't score a touchdown until their fourth. They averaged nine points per game, were shut out five times and finished the year last in the league in points scored, touchdowns, and rushing touchdowns.
It almost takes effort to not win 10 games in an 82-game season, but the 2011-12 Bobcats were able to pull that off - and then some, finishing with a .107 win percentage.
The eight-year-old team finished 43 games behind the first-place Bulls in Michael Jordan's first season as owner. They weren't even able to get the first pick in the draft, missing rising Anthony Davis.
Not far ahead of the Bobcats is the 1972-73 76ers team that compiled an abysmal .110 win percentage.
Fate, as she is wont to do, stabbed the 76ers while they were down. They lost a coin-toss to the Portland Trail Blazers for the first pick in the draft and missed Bill Walton, instead drafting Marvin Barnes who never played a game with the team.
Even a team that started the season with 18 straight losses managed to win ten games, so its obvious how bad those other two are.
Head Coach Lawrence Frank was fired by the 16th loss, but the team eventually got its first win against the Charlotte Bobcats.
Any expansion team's first season should have some bumps in the road, but these San Jose Sharks were all bumps.
They bounced back the next season, with one of the biggest turnarounds in sports history. The 1993-1994 Sharks made the playoffs, beat the Stanley Cup-favorite Detroit Red Wings, but eventually lost to the Toronto Maple Leafs in the next round.
The 1974-1975 Washington Capitals - another expansion team - are the worst team in NHL history.
The team finished the season with 21 points, the Montreal Canadiens, champions of the Capitals' division finished with 113.
When fans go to a home game, they expect their team to have some sort of advantage. But that wasn't the case with these Pittsburgh Penguins.
They put up a downright offensive 14-game home losing streak in the middle of the season.


text:
Future Development of the Eastern Ontario Waste Handling Facility
1. Proposed Future Development of the EOWHF
GFL Environmental Inc., the owner and operator of the existing Eastern Ontario Waste Handling Facility (EOWHF) in Moose Creek, Ontario, has initiated an Environmental Assessment (EA) seeking approval for the future development of the EOWHF. The proposed future development will involve the construction of approximately 15.1 million cubic metres of additional landfill disposal capacity over a 20-year planning period.
GFL has determined that there is a long-term need for the EOWHF to continue providing disposal capacity. By developing the additional disposal capacity, GFL will be able to continue providing customers with economical waste diversion and green bin organic composting services into the future. The EOWHF is also a major employer and financial contributor to the local community, and the development of additional disposal capacity will allow GFL to maintain this type of economic support. No changes to the approved fill rates or site access routes are proposed.
The EOWHF is located within the Township of North Stormont, approximately five kilometres north-northwest of the village of Moose Creek, Ontario, and five kilometres east of the village of Casselman, Ontario. The proposed future development will be on land currently owned by GFL.
2. The EA
The EA has been carried out in accordance with the requirements of the Environmental Assessment Act (EAA), the approved Terms of Reference (ToR), and the conditions of approval. The Minister of the Environment and Climate Change approved the ToR for the project on January 14, 2021. The approved ToR outlines the framework and work plan for addressing the EAA requirements when preparing the EA, including the public consultation and engagement activities that will be carried out. A link to the approved ToR is available below.
A Notice of Commencement for the EA was issued on September 23, 2021 and is provided below (link).
The results of the EA are documented in an EA Study Report. The EA considered two alternative methods for the future development. Studies completed for the EOWHF and future development lands have indicated that, based on the underlying soils, the design alternatives are limited to varying lateral configurations with a consistent height. The development of Stage 5 north of the existing landfill is the same for both alternative methods. Alternative Method 1 involves developing an additional four stages oriented east-west within the future development lands, east of the existing site. Alternative Method 2 involves developing an additional three stages oriented north-south within the future development lands, east of the existing site.
The Draft EA Study Report will be available for review on December 21, 2022. We ask that you provide any questions or comments to the study team using the contact information provided below by February 3, 2023.
The Draft EA Study Report and Supporting Documents can be downloaded using the links provided below.
3. Consultation & Engagement
Members of the public, agencies, Indigenous communities and other interested persons are encouraged to actively participate in the planning process by attending consultation and engagement opportunities or contacting staff directly with comments or questions. Consultation and engagement opportunities are planned throughout the EA planning process and will be advertised in local newspapers, here on the project website, and by direct mail or email.
You are encouraged to participate in helping us identify issues, interests or ideas to be addressed in the EA. To learn more about the project and consultation and engagement opportunities, communicate questions or comments, or to be added to the project mailing list, please contact:
Mr. Greg van Loenen, Environmental Compliance Officer
GFL Environmental Inc.
17125 Laflèche Road, Moose Creek, Ontario K0C 1W0
Email: gvanloenen@gflenv.com
Draft EA Study Report (December 21, 2022)
Notice of Draft EA Study Report Review / Avis d'examen de l'ébauche du rapport d'étude d'évaluation environnementale
Please provide any questions or comments to the study team using the contact information provided above by February 3, 2023.
Draft EA Study Report
Acronyms, Units and Glossary
Section 1. Introduction
Section 2. Overview of the Environmental Assessment Process and Study Organization
Section 3. Overview of the Undertaking
Section 4. Description of the Environment Potentially Affected by the Undertaking
Section 5. Alternative Methods of Carrying Out the Undertaking
Section 6. Net Effects of the Alternative Methods
Section 7. Comparative Evaluation of Net Effects and Identification of the Preferred Alternative
Section 8. Net Effects Assessment of the Preferred Alternative
Section 9. Consultation and Engagement
Section 10. Monitoring and Commitments for the Undertaking
Section 11. Approvals
Section 12. References
Appendix A. Approved Terms of Reference (excluding supporting documents)
Appendix B. Terms of Reference Commitments Table
Supporting Document 1 – Existing Conditions Reports
SD 1-1 – Air Quality and Odour Existing Conditions Report
SD 1-2 – Noise Existing Conditions Report
SD 1-3 – Geology and Hydrogeology Existing Conditions Report
SD 1-4 – Surface Water Quality Existing Conditions Report
SD 1-5 – Surface Water Quantity Existing Conditions Report
SD 1-6 – Ecological Environment Existing Conditions Report
SD 1-7 – Socio-Economic Environment Existing Conditions Report
SD 1-8 – Cultural Heritage Existing Conditions Report
SD 1-9 – Stage 1 Archaeological Assessment
SD 1-10 – Transportation Existing Conditions Report
SD 1-11 – Land Use Existing Conditions Report
SD 1-12 – Agriculture Existing Conditions Report
Supporting Document 2 – Conceptual Design Report
Conceptual Design Report
Supporting Document 3 – Net Effects Assessment Reports
SD 3-1 – Air Quality and Odour Effects Assessment Report
SD 3-2 – Noise Effects Assessment Report
SD 3-3 – Geology and Hydrogeology Effects Assessment Report
SD 3-4 – Surface Water Quality Effects Assessment Report
SD 3-5 – Surface Water Quantity Effects Assessment Report
SD 3-6 – Ecological Environment Effects Assessment Report
SD 3-7 – Socio-Economic Environment Effects Assessment Report
SD 3-8 – Cultural Heritage Effects Assessment Report
SD 3-9 – Archaeological Resources Effects Assessment Report
SD 3-10 – Transportation Effects Assessment Report
SD 3-11 – Land Use Effects Assessment Report
SD 3-12 – Agriculture Effects Assessment Repor
Supporting Document 4 – Draft Record of Consultation and Engagement
Draft Record of Consultation & Engagement
Public Open House #2
GFL hosted Public Open House #2 on July 20, 2022 to provide an update on the project and the assessment of alternative methods, and to present the results of the comparative evaluation that was conducted to identify the preferred alternative for the future development. A copy of the Public Open House Report, including display materials, is available through the following link:
GFL Environmental Inc., Future Development of the Eastern Ontario Waste Handling Facility – Public Open House #2 Summary Report (August 17, 2022)
Public Open House #1 -October 7, 2021
GFL hosted Public Open House #1 for the proposed project on October 7, 2021. A copy of the Public Open House Summary Report, including display materials, is available through the following link:
GFL Environmental Inc., Future Development of the Eastern Ontario Waste Handling Facility – Public Open House #1 Summary Report (December 17, 2021)
Notice of Commencement of Environmental Assessment – September 23, 2021
A copy of the Notice of Commencement for the EA was published on September 23, 2021 and is available here:
Notice of Commencement and Public Open House #1, September 23, 2021 (English)
Avis de commencement pour une évaluation environnementale – Développement futur de l'installation de traitement des déchets de l'Est de l'Ontario – 23 septembre 2021 (français)
Terms of Reference – Approved January 14, 2021
Following review of the terms of reference by members of the public, agencies, indigenous communities, and other interested persons, the Minister of Environment, Conservation and Parks approved the Terms of Reference on January 14, 2021. A copy of the Minister's letter and the Notice of Approval are available at the following links:
Terms of Reference approval letter from Minister Yurek, Ministry of Environment, Conservation and Parks, January 15, 2021
Terms of Reference – Notice of Approval, January 14, 2021
A copy of the ToR and supporting documentation are available at the following links:
Terms of Reference for an Environmental Assessment, Future Development of the Eastern Ontario Waste Handling Facility (September 11, 2020)
Record of Consultation and Engagement Supporting Document, Terms of Reference for an Environmental Assessment, Future Development of the Eastern Ontario Waste Handling Facility (September 11, 2020)
Appendix A – Stakeholder Contact List
Appendix B – Public Notices
Appendix C – Public Open House Summary Report
Appendix D – Project Update Communication Materials
Appendix E – Presentations to Municipal Councils
Appendix F – Indigenous Engagement and Communications
Appendix G – Public Consultation and Communications
Appendix H – Agencies Consultation and Communications
Appendix I – Media Publications
Appendix J – Comment Response Tables


We can add your favorite photo, design or logo's ect to customize your very own cell phone case!
To personalize your phone case please choose a font from our font style chart for name or intials.
Choose a color for your name or personalized initials and send it in a message to seller once you have made your choice with the correct spelling as you would like it to appear on your case.
1) Choose your device case style from the drop down menu in the listing.
2) Include all of your customization requests in the 'Notes to Seller' box during checkout. Please write your name or initials exactly as you'd like them to APPEAR on the case. Monograms are normally written (First, LAST, Middle), but I will make it exactly as you leave them in the notes.
🚚***Item will be shipped from our location within 1-14 business days and delivered by USPS First Class Mail 3-5 business days (with tracking information included).


The McGraw Center for Conservation Leadership is the nation's leading advocate for creative and entrepreneurial thought in conservation. Nonpartisan and not for profit, the Center's work enables informed strategic decisions rooted in economic efficiencies and science. The Center is an incubator and steward for economic efficiencies and entrepreneurial thought in conservation. The Center was born from the realization that more than $20 billion in taxpayer and private sector dollars set aside for conservation each year can be expended more efficiently.
The Center is a natural outgrowth of the Max McGraw Wildlife Foundation, created more than 50 years ago by the visionary conservationist Max McGraw, founder of McGraw-Edison Co. The Foundation, headquartered on 1,250 acres in Dundee, Illinois, aims to secure the future of hunting, fishing and land management through science, demonstration, education and communication.


text:
#ifdef SYMBOL_PREFIX
#define SYMBOL(str)     SYMBOL_PREFIX #str
#else
#define SYMBOL(str)     #str
#endif

static void
foo ()
{}

void
pendfunc2 (int x)
{
  /* `set_point2' is the label where we'll set multiple tracepoints and
     breakpoints at.  The insn at the label must the large enough to
     fit a fast tracepoint jump.  */
  asm ("    .global " SYMBOL(set_point2) "\n"
       SYMBOL(set_point2) ":\n"
#if (defined __x86_64__ || defined __i386__)
       "    call " SYMBOL(foo) "\n"
#endif
       );
}


To simplify the look of the Timeline or Xsheet view, you can expand and collapse some of the layers and columns. If layers are parented to other ones, you can collapse the parent layer to hide its children.
In the Timeline view, select the layer(s) to collapse or expand.
Right-click on the selection and select Collapse/Expand > Collapse/Expand.
Click the Expand Children Arrow button on the parent layer.
Click the Collapse/Expand button (you may have to customize the toolbar to display it).
Press Ctrl + I (Windows/Linux) or ⌘ + I (Mac OS X).
Right-click on the layers and select Collapse/Expand > Expand All or Collapse All.
In the Timeline toolbar, click the Collapse All or Expand All buttons (you may have to customize the toolbar to display them).
In the Xsheet toolbar, click the Show Column List button to display the Functions list.
In the Xsheet view, select the column header of the 3D path or 3D rotation column to collapse or expand.
Right-click on the column's header and select Expand/Collapse > Collapse Selection or Expand Selection.
Right-click on any column's header and select Expand/Collapse > Collapse All or Expand All.


Sticks Nomads are lovingly crafted from bamboo and offer the protection and style that Sticks wooden sunglasses are famous for.
Sunglasses that don't cost the Earth.
If you are not 100% happy with your purchase then just send them back to us in un-used condition and we will give you a refund.


text:
is a former international table tennis player and coach from Japan.

He won a bronze medal at the 2000 World Team Table Tennis Championships in the Swaythling Cup (men's team event) with Seiko Iseki, Kōji Matsushita, Hiroshi Shibutani and Toshio Tasaki for Japan.

He competed in two Olympic Games in 1996 and 2004.

See also
 List of table tennis players
 List of World Table Tennis Championships medalists

References

Japanese male table tennis players
Japanese table tennis coaches
1976 births
Living people
Asian Games medalists in table tennis
Table tennis players at the 1998 Asian Games
Table tennis players at the 2002 Asian Games
Medalists at the 1998 Asian Games
Asian Games bronze medalists for Japan
Olympic table tennis players of Japan
Table tennis players at the 1996 Summer Olympics
Table tennis players at the 2004 Summer Olympics


text:
David Straiton is a Canadian television director.

Career
His directorial debut was a special of the Nickelodeon series Weinerville. Some of his other television credits include: The Secret World of Alex Mack, Dark Angel, Fastlane, The Immortal, Jake 2.0, Heroes, Dollhouse, Star Trek: Enterprise, Standoff, Life, Charmed, Sex, Love & Secrets, House M.D., Mercy, Detroit 1-8-7, Angel, Las Vegas, Defying Gravity, Chaos, The Cape, White Collar, Nikita, The Firm, The Finder, Fringe, Bates Motel, Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Magnum P.I., MacGyver, Stargirl and The Good Doctor.

References

External links

American television directors
Living people
Place of birth missing (living people)
Year of birth missing (living people)


A recent focus of our lab has been making use of Tangible Displays and Body Object Space to develop new assistive technologies. As a test case, we prototyped the Mario side-scrolling game for visually impaired users, using body movement analogies to control Mario in the game. Mario and 2D side scrollers present a particularly interesting case, as they keep the main character location in the center of the display and move the world around the character. The shape display itself provides spatial audio of enemy positions. We make use of the AUFLIP sensor platform to pick up body movements—walking and jumping, causing Mario to do the same in-game. This enables users to keep their hands engaged to understand the game landscape, while using their body to control Mario at the same time.
Super Mario Land is streamed from an emulator and transformed into a pin height map for the tactile TRANSFORM shape display.
The transformed emulator image on the shape display. Mario stays centered on the display, enabling users to maintain a reference point from which to explore the game world.
To play the game, users wear an ankle sensor that captures walking and jumping in place, actions which control the main player in the game world, and leaving the hands free.


text:
AVL announced that it will open a research and development center dedicated to fuel cell technology in Vancouver May 2018. The investment in this new R&D center will extend AVL's leadership in delivering next-generation powertrain engineering solutions.
"Vancouver has one of the world's largest fuel cell tech clusters and a solid base from which to break new ground in these technologies," says AVL CEO Helmut List. "The region is known for its expertise in the field of hydrogen fuel cells. AVL is delighted to open a new technology center in Vancouver."
The objective of the new facility is to complement AVL's existing competencies in powertrain electrification development from electric battery and fuel cell systems to include hydrogen fuel cell stack development. AVL has more than 15 years of experience and numerous engineering teams working globally on fuel cell development for the world's leading automotive OEMs and research organizations.
As a result of AVL´s dedicated investment in R&D and product development, the company is setting its industry standards in many fields of powertrain development and testing.
"With our Vancouver facility, we plan to elevate fuel cell technology development and commercialization," says Urs Gerspach, AVL executive vice president, Instrumentation and Test Systems. "This stack research and development center in Vancouver complements our work in Graz, Austria, where we have developed a fuel cell engine test bed that is state-of-the-art and provides unmatched dynamics for studies in fuel cell systems."
AVL is the world's largest independent company for the development, simulation and testing technology of powertrains (hybrid, combustion engines, transmission, electric drive, batteries and software) for passenger cars, trucks and large engines. AVL has more than 8,600 employees all over the world. In 2016, sales revenues reached EUR 1.4 billion (USD 1.72 billion).


Hands-on workshop that introduces LSA Department personnel to the Adobe Experience Manager system.
Use the website link to navigate to the AEM Training registration form.
Training required to gain access to software.


It is tradition of #HappyBeautifulYear at Watsons. The largest health and beauty retailer in Malaysia and Asia ushers into Chinese New Year with a star-studded campaign video set in an opulent style of 1940s Malaysian Chinese and "East Meet West" culture infusion featuring local celebrities, popular social media influencers, and an original musical score. Of course, the storyline of this video comes with a twist – Watsons style.
The celebrities appearing in this star-studded video include JinnyBoy, Amber Chia, Pink Tan, John Tan, Justin, Han Xiiao Aii, with cameo appearances by Watsons own Malaysia's Top Influencers (Fasiha, Eva and Daniel), Rubini Sambanthan, Eldison Lim and Gary Hau. Styled by renowned fashion designer, Beatrice Looi, the wardrobes drawn the inspiration from Haipai, an avant-garde but "East Meet West" culture from Shanghai back in 20th and 21st centuries. These wardrobes were a hit amongst Malaysian Chinese in the 1940s.
"This year, together with TikTok, the world's leading short-video platform, Watsons launches the TikTok dance challenge with prizes worth of RM20,000 up for grabs. To participate, post a video of you dancing to the tunes of our theme song and include the hashtag #HappyBeautifulYear in TikTok app. Follow Watsons Malaysia TikTok account for more details of participation," Danny added. During the event, Caryn and Danny led all the celebrities that were part of Watsons #HappyBeautifulYear video in a grand Lou Sang session. Later at the event, popular TVB actor Mat Yeung 楊明 held an exclusive meet and greet session with Watsons Elite members. He was recently seen in the highly-acclaimed TVB drama Fist Fight 兄弟.
Watch and laugh along with the latest and biggest #HappyBeautifulYear video on Watsons Malaysia Youtube channel. Stay tune with Watsons Chinese New Year greatest deals and promotions at Watsons Malaysia Facebook page and Instagram.
Love your cheongsam. Very pretty.
Sounds like a great way to bring in the new year. You look stunning.


THE SKINNY: Thymes does make a nice, thick lotion, and this one was no exception. It handled my dry, chapped hands and kept them feeling moisturized for hours.
But it only gets two stars because of the fragrance. Santal smells strongly like men's cologne. The scent lingered for what seemed like forever and overpowered everything else around it.
The advertising calls is a "a lulling hush that smooths the rhythms of the day." I'd say it's anything but.
Ladies, stick with the Naia Body Lotion.
KEEP OR TOSS: Toss. My guy should smell like a guy. Not me.
CHECK IT OUT: Learn more about the fragrances used in this lotion on the Thymes website.


Published on February 17, 2016 February 17, 2016 by T.W.O.
Cheerio London! It took us only a year to get back and this time we were able to see some neighborhoods and sites we didn't get to explore last time. We did revisit a couple favorite spots – Borough Market + Big Ben! (Standard Tourist Photo Op) The Borough Market wasn't in full swing last year since we went between Christmas & New Years. This time we got the real taste of it- Friday lunch hour mayhem. And boy did we have fun! Speaking of boys, there were a lot of them on their lunch hour grabbing a bit to eat with their mates. Good thing it was only an hour because we would have stayed there all day 'shopping' around. (Well at least one of us would have! ) In this post we will highlight some of our favorite moments of the trip. Hotel and Eats will be featured in our next post!
We loved strolling the River Thames and taking some photos in front of The London Eye and Big Ben. Best part – the weather was great…it was sunny!!
The Borough Market is a great place to buy tea, cheese, baked goods and lunch! We sampled some Indian and Mediterranean food. We also couldn't walk out of their without buy cheese to take back to the States as well as a chocolate chip cookie for the road! What were we going to eat on our stroll across the London Bridge (while getting photo bombed by the Tower Bridge) to St. Pauls' Cathedral and Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese.
If we were to live in London, this is the neighborhood we would choose to live in. It's away from the "tourist" areas, yet it's still close enough to the city center. There are great restaurants, shops and parks to hang out in. Be sure to keep your eyes out while walking down Kings Road or having dinner at Cross Keys – you might see a footballer or ruby captain! J More on where to eat in Chelsea in next post!
Last time we were in London, we only got a taste of Notting Hill due to time constraints. This time, we were able to have breakfast and walk through the Portobello Market. The Market was great, but we were overwhelmed by the large crowd and cut out early and headed to Westbourne Grove where there were more boutiques. More our style! Lovely neighborhood!
After crossing the London Bridge, we decided to walk down Cannon Street passed St. Paul's Cathedral on our way to Ye Old Cheshire Cheese. The Cathedral is massive and gorgeous. It also was the location of the longest line of double decker buses we had seen.
Located in the former Bankside Power Station, the Tate Modern holds the national collection of British art from 1900 to the present day. It also is home to international modern and contemporary art. We got to see Andy Wahol's Marilyn Diptych 1962 piece along with other interesting exhibits. Another reason we stopped into the Tate Modern was the view from the café. Unfortunately that was closed, so we didn't get to check that off our list. There is always next time, right?


WADDOUPS Arthur Fred Private 200916 1/5th Bn.
WADE Joseph Private 1552 11th Bn.
WADE Robert George Private 2149 1/7th Bn.
WADESON Harry Ernest Private 70376 17th Bn.
WADKIN John Maurice Private 78262 17th Bn.
WADKIN Joseph Lance Corporal 16729 12th Bn.
WADLEY J W Private 13151 9th Bn.
WADSWORTH A J Lance Corporal 12500 9th Bn.
WADSWORTH Leonard Cecil Private 4198 1/5th Bn.
WADSWORTH Willie Private 260123 2/6th Bn.
WAGG G F Private 242619 1/6th Bn.
WAGG Samuel Private 4758 1/5th Bn.
WAGSTAFF C Private 18963 1/8th Bn.
WAGSTAFF Charles Taylor Private 31481 15th Bn.
WAGSTAFF F Lance Corporal 10101 1st Bn.
WAGSTAFF William Private 11706 2nd Bn.
WAIN A Sergeant 5439 1st Bn.
WAIN Frank Private 2423 5th Bn.
WAIN G Private 30212 1st Garrison Bn.
WAIN H Private 3643 10th Bn.
WAIN M Private 307397 2/8th Bn.
WAIN Sam Regimental Sergeant Major 14200 10th Bn.
WAIN William Private 22219 1st Bn.
WAIND David Randolf Private 67637 9th Bn.
WAINWRIGHT A Private 60059 10th Bn.
WAINWRIGHT D Private 28924 1st (Garr.) Bn.
WAINWRIGHT Frank Private 9554 2nd Bn.
WAINWRIGHT John Private 958 1/5th Bn.
WAITE Allen Private 20829 10th Bn.
WAITE L A Private 203653 1/5th Bn.
WAKEFIELD Albert Joseph Private 203005 1/5th Bn.
WAKEFIELD Albert Henry Private 71418 15th Bn.
WAKEFIELD James Parks Private 12907 9th Bn.
WAKEFIELD Leonard Thomas Corporal 11941 15th Bn.
WAKEFIELD Montague Stephen Lieutenant 3rd Bn., attd. 1st Bn.
WAKEFORD H T Private 70106 16th Bn.
WAKELING Victor Albert Private 4772 11th Bn.
WAKERLY Henry John Private 202881 2/5th Bn.
WAKLEY H Company Sergeant Major 330290 21st Bn.
WALDEN John Alfred Private 70177 16th Bn.
WALDOCK George Private 103482 10th Bn.
WALDRON Frederick Sergeant 10267 17th Bn.
WALDRON I Private 318761 12th Bn.
WALDRON P Private 65015 2nd Bn.
WALES James Colin Lance Corporal 10800 1st Bn.
WALKER A Private 2979 7th Bn.
WALKER A R Private 269345 1/5th Bn.
WALKER Albert Radford Private 978 1/8th Bn.
WALKER Alfred John Private 102649 2/5th Bn.
WALKER Angus Private 76341 11th Bn.
WALKER Arthur Private 28107 10th Bn.
WALKER Charles Private 118547 1/6th Bn.
WALKER Charles Sergeant 24294 15th Bn.
WALKER E Private 6277 12th Bn.
WALKER E Private 3480 2nd Bn.
WALKER Ernest Private 3564 2nd Bn.
WALKER Ernest Private 23041 1/8th Bn.
WALKER F Private 72214 15th Bn.
WALKER Frank Private 73030 11th Bn.
WALKER Fred Private 95971 "A" Coy. 1st Bn.
WALKER Frederick Walter Private 27421 2nd Bn.
WALKER Frederick William Private 242049 2/6th Bn.
WALKER G H Private 9006 16th Bn.
WALKER George Corporal 41295 15th Bn.
WALKER George Private 19288 11th Bn.
WALKER George Fredrick Private 16130 2nd Bn.
WALKER H Private 28881 16th Bn.
WALKER H Private 10521 9th Bn.
WALKER H Private 21227 2/6th Bn.
WALKER H N Private 70537 11th Bn.
WALKER Harold Private 307462 2/6th Bn.
WALKER Harry Private 74246 "A" Coy. 10th Bn.
WALKER Harry Cullis Steele Second Lieutenant 1st Bn.
WALKER Herbert Private 25231 17th Bn.
WALKER Herbert William Captain 7th Bn.
WALKER J Sergeant 21189 9th Bn.
WALKER James Coxon Sergeant 107144 1/6th Bn.
WALKER John Private 23485 2/7th Bn.
WALKER John Private 18508 11th Bn.
WALKER John William Private 19515 10th Bn.
WALKER John William Private 201702 1/5th Bn.
WALKER Joseph Sergeant 14299 10th Bn.
WALKER P Private 31186 15th Bn.
WALKER R Private 43136 15th Bn.
WALKER S Private 81778 1/5th Bn.
WALKER T Private 23738 15th Bn.
WALKER Thomas Private 14467 10th Bn.
WALKER Thomas Henry Private 202032 2/6th Bn.
WALKER W Private 16132 15th Bn.
WALKER W Sergeant 29013 2nd Bn.
WALKER W Private 201263 10th Bn.
WALKER W Private 268007 1/6th Bn.
WALKER W H Sergeant 25795 2nd Bn.
WALKER W H Private 1873 5th Bn.
WALKER William Private 266276 2/5th Bn.
WALKER William Private 20061 10th Bn.
WALKER William Private 14000 1st Bn.
WALKER William Charles Private 9824 2nd Bn.
WALKER William Eaton Guy Captain 7th Bn.
WALKER William H. S. Sergeant 82006 15th Bn.
WALKER William James Private 27606 17th Bn.
WALKER William Thomas Private 103220 1/6th Bn.


Copenhagen's Michael Pedersen took his camera and travelled the world in the past years. Most of the footage was used in his first video "Aventura" which was premiered during Summerclash 2014, but today he released a part with his own skating. Filmed in the USA, Sweden, Poland, Norway, Latvia, Scotland and Denmark, it features very diverse street and park skating and you should give it a watch already!


text:
Q: Android database leak found When i enter another activity to insert new item into the database,return and then go in that activity it gives me an error:
04-03 18:53:26.914: E/Database(18134): Leak found
04-03 18:53:26.914: E/Database(18134): java.lang.IllegalStateException: /data/data/com.app.myapp/databases/BabyApp.db SQLiteDatabase created and never closed
04-03 18:53:26.914: E/Database(18134):  at android.database.sqlite.SQLiteDatabase.<init>(SQLiteDatabase.java:1695)
04-03 18:53:26.914: E/Database(18134):  at android.database.sqlite.SQLiteDatabase.openDatabase(SQLiteDatabase.java:739)
04-03 18:53:26.914: E/Database(18134):  at android.database.sqlite.SQLiteDatabase.openOrCreateDatabase(SQLiteDatabase.java:761)
04-03 18:53:26.914: E/Database(18134):  at android.database.sqlite.SQLiteDatabase.openOrCreateDatabase(SQLiteDatabase.java:754)
04-03 18:53:26.914: E/Database(18134):  at android.app.ApplicationContext.openOrCreateDatabase(ApplicationContext.java:473)
04-03 18:53:26.914: E/Database(18134):  at android.content.ContextWrapper.openOrCreateDatabase(ContextWrapper.java:193)
04-03 18:53:26.914: E/Database(18134):  at android.database.sqlite.SQLiteOpenHelper.getWritableDatabase(SQLiteOpenHelper.java:98)
04-03 18:53:26.914: E/Database(18134):  at com.app.myapp.DatabaseHelper.open(DatabaseHelper.java:121)
04-03 18:53:26.914: E/Database(18134):  at com.app.myapp.SettingsActivity.init(SettingsActivity.java:80)

here is the DatabaseHelper.java:121
database = dbHelper.getWritableDatabase();

here is the SettingsActivity line 80 code:
if (!db.isOpen())
            db.open();

A: Make sure you do execute db.close(); in order to close your database before switching to another activity
@Override
protected void onStop() {
    super.onStop();

    //closing database connection
    if(db != null)
        db.close();
}

A: You should close it too...  Close it when an Exception occurs or in any case it should never be left open since its System resource