text:
The Feedback Between Volatiles and Mantle Dynamics
Lead Research Organisation: University College London
Department Name: Earth Sciences
In 2011, NERC began a scoping exercise to develop a research programme based around deep Earth controls on the habitable planet. The result of this exercise was for NERC to commit substantial funding to support a programme entitled "Volatiles, Geodynamics and Solid Earth Controls on the Habitable Planet". This proposal is a direct response to that call.
It is widely and generally accepted that volatiles - in particular water - strongly affect the properties that control the flow of rocks and minerals (their rheological properties). Indeed, experiments on low-pressure minerals such as quartz and olivine show that even small amounts of water can weaken a mineral - allowing it to flow faster - by as much as several orders of magnitude. This effect is known as hydrolytic weakening, and has been used to explain a wide range of fundamental Earth questions - including the origin of plate tectonics and why Earth and Venus are different.
The effect of water and volatiles on the properties of mantle rocks and minerals is a central component of this NERC research programme. Indeed it forms the basis for one of the three main questions posed by the UK academic community, and supported by a number of international experts during the scoping process. The question is "What are the feedbacks between volatile fluxes and mantle convection through time?"
Intuitively, one expects feedbacks between volatiles and mantle convection. For instance, one might envisage a scenario whereby the more water is subducted into the lower mantle, the more the mantle should weaken, allowing faster convection, which in turn results in even more water passing into the lower mantle, and so on. Of course this is a simplification since faster convection cools the mantle, slowing convection, and also increases the amount of volatiles removed from the mantle at mid-ocean ridges. Nevertheless, one can imagine many important feedbacks, some of which have been examined via simple models. In particular these models indicate a feedback between volatiles and convection that controls the distribution of water between the oceans and the mantle, and the amount topography created by the vertical movement of the mantle (known as dynamic topography). The scientists involved in the scoping exercise recognized this as a major scientific question, and one having potentially far reaching consequences for the Earth's surface and habitability.
However, as is discussed in detail in the proposal, our understanding of how mantle rocks deform as a function of water content is remarkably limited, and in fact the effect of water on the majority of mantle minerals has never been measured. The effect of water on the flow properties of most mantle minerals is simply inferred from experiments on low-pressure minerals (olivine, pyroxenes and quartz). As argued in the proposal, one cannot simply extrapolate between different minerals and rocks because different minerals may react quite differently to water. Moreover, current research is now calling into question even the experimental results on olivine, making the issue even more pressing.
We propose, therefore, a comprehensive campaign to quantify the effect of water on the rheological properties of all the major mantle minerals and rocks using a combination of new experiments and multi-physics simulation. In conjunction with 3D mantle convection models, this information will allow us to understand how the feedback between volatiles and mantle convection impacts on problems of Earth habitability, such as how ocean volumes and large-scale dynamic topography vary over time. This research thus addresses the aims and ambitions of the research programme head on, and indeed, is required for the success of the entire programme.
Impact will be organized though a separate Programme Grant to be submitted after the decision on the successful consortia is taken. Following the NERC guidelines, we therefore simply suggest here various avenues for impact which may be combined into a single cross-consortia Impact Plan. These ideas are:
a) An outreach bus similar to the GeoBus run out of the University of St. Andrews. This bus is available to visit all secondary schools in Scotland. We suggest a slightly different emphasis and to target primary schools. This is often the age at which children become enthused by science, and moreover, primary schools almost never have a dedicated science space.
b) Employing an outreach officer to develop undergraduate modules whereby undergraduates spend a significant amount of time in primary schools. This exposes primary school age children to enthusiastic science undergraduates, while also offering undergraduates with an early taste of teaching in schools. This is modeled after a successful program currently being run at the University of Durham.
c) Further develop and liaise with industry contacts (Rolls Royce, Superform, etc) to identify specific problems in manufacturing and metallurgy research where the developments and insights from this proposal can have practical applications.
d) Develop plans with BHP-Biliton to understand the properties of ore-forming fluids.
e) Engage with industry to investigate the transport properties of high-pressure perovskites for possible industrial uses (e.g. solid-oxide fuel cells, catalytic membranes, etc).
NE/M00046X/1
John Peter Brodholt
Geosciences (100%)
Mantle & Core Processes (60%)
Properties Of Earth Materials (40%)
University College London, United Kingdom (Lead Research Organisation)
Stony Brook University (Project Partner)
Yale University, United States (Project Partner)
University of Lille 1 (Project Partner)
Macquarie University, Australia (Project Partner)
Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH), Zurich (Project Partner)
University of Minnesota, United States (Project Partner)
University of Bayreuth, Germany (Project Partner)
John Peter Brodholt (Principal Investigator)
Carolina Raquel Lithgow-Bertelloni (Co-Investigator)
Lars Stixrude (Co-Investigator)
David Dobson (Co-Investigator)
Ian George Wood (Co-Investigator)
Lidunka Vocadlo (Co-Investigator)
Anzellini S (2020) Phase transitions and equation of state of zirconium under high pressure in Physical Review B
Badro J (2014) A seismologically consistent compositional model of Earth's core. in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
Badro J (2015) Core formation and core composition from coupled geochemical and geophysical constraints. in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
Brodholt J (2017) Composition of the low seismic velocity E ' layer at the top of Earth's core Composition of the E ' Layer in Geophysical Research Letters
Chotalia K (2020) The coupled effects of mantle mixing and a water-dependent viscosity on the surface ocean in Earth and Planetary Science Letters
Hernández E (2015) Structural, vibrational and thermodynamic properties of Mg 2 SiO 4 and MgSiO 3 minerals from first-principles simulations in Physics of the Earth and Planetary Interiors
Huang D (2019) Ab Initio Molecular Dynamics Investigation of Molten Fe-Si-O in Earth's Core in Geophysical Research Letters
Louvel M (2020) The HXD95: a modified Bassett-type hydrothermal diamond-anvil cell for in situ XRD experiments up to 5 GPa and 1300 K. in Journal of synchrotron radiation
Muir J (2016) Ferrous iron partitioning in the lower mantle in Physics of the Earth and Planetary Interiors
Muir J (2018) Water distribution in the lower mantle: Implications for hydrolytic weakening in Earth and Planetary Science Letters
Description One interesting outcome is that water may not weaken the lower mantle phase bridgmanite.
Exploitation Route Too early to say.
Sectors Environment


text:
World briefs
Dec. 3, 2011 Updated: Dec. 3, 2011 11:59 p.m.
WWII bomb forces evacuation
Officials in the western city of Koblenz say 45,000 residents have to be evacuated as officials try to defuse a World War II era bomb discovered in the Rhine.
City officials said Saturday the British 1.8-ton bomb will be defused today, requiring all residents within a radius of 1.2 miles from the site to leave their homes. Officials say seven nursing homes, two hospitals and a prison are also being evacuated.
The bomb was found last week alongside a 275-pound bomb dropped by U.S. forces during the war.
Embassy staff leaving Tehran
The nation is temporarily downsizing its embassy in Iran and will bring some employees and their families home, a French official said Saturday. The move is the latest fallout from protesters' storming of the British embassy in Tehran and adds to the international pressure on the Iranian government.
The French diplomatic official described the decision as a security measure and acknowledged it was a response to the attack on the U.K. mission. But he stressed the French embassy will remain open and declined to specify how many staffers will be sent home.
33 laborers killed in crash
Authorities say a tractor-trailer slammed into a bus carrying sugarcane cutters, killing at least 33 people and injuring 13.
A police spokesman said the truck driver lost control as he was rounding a corner and heading down a hill Saturday near Milagres, or Miracles, a town in the northeastern state of Bahia. The truck was carrying a load of construction materials, which also slammed into the bus.
The truck driver survived and is in a local hospital. Some of the injured are in grave condition.
— Associated Press

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Q: How does this asyncHandler function work? I'm talking about this function:
const asyncHandler = (fn) => (req, res, next) => Promise.resolve(fn(req, res, next)).catch(next);

I am keen to understand step by step what is going on when we pass it this function:
getBootcamps = asyncHandler(async (req, res, next) => {
  const bootcamps = await Bootcamp.find();
  res.status(200).json({ success: true, count: bootcamps.length, data: bootcamps });
});

A: It generates a new function, based on existing function fn, with the signature:
(req, res, next)

This generated function's body is:
return Promise.resolve(fn(req, res, next)).catch(next)

What it does is:

*

*call the fn (the underlying handler) with arguments (req, res, next)

*pass the return value of that fn call to Promise.resolve() - this converts it to a Promise if it wasn't one already

*register a callback (next) for when the promise rejects

The code that you've posted seems to be an Adapter that converts an async function to work with next(err)-based error handling (most likely for the express framework). Notably, however, it only seems to care about the error case - it is still the async function's responsibility to send the response, thus ending the request processing.
Some other Web frameworks exist that make this step unnecessary - for instance, fastify can just use async functions as handlers directly and simply return the response object instead of doing an explicit .json() call (which does res.end() under the hood).

A: A combinator is a higher-order function that uses only function application and earlier defined combinators to define a result from its arguments.
So we have a combinator, asyncHandler -
const asyncHandler = (fn) => (req, res, next) => Promise.resolve(fn(req, res, next)).catch(next)

And we have getBootcamps -
const getBootcamps = asyncHandler(...)

So we fill in the definition of asyncHandler -
const getBootcamps = (fn) => (req, res, next) =>
  Promise.resolve(fn(req, res, next)).catch(next)

Where the first argument, fn, is equal to -
async (req, res, next) => {
  const bootcamps = await Bootcamp.find();
  res.status(200).json({ success: true, count: bootcamps.length, data: bootcamps });
}

So that becomes -
const getBootcamps = (req, res, next) =>
  Promise.resolve((async (req, res, next) => {
    const bootcamps = await Bootcamp.find();
    res.status(200).json({ success: true, count: bootcamps.length, data: bootcamps });
  })(req, res, next)).catch(next)

So as asyncHandler's name implies, it accepts a fn which is treated as an async handler. fn can return a promise and asyncHandler will properly wrap it and automatically connect the next callback to properly handle errors. Related: What do multiple arrow functions mean in JavaScript?
This is an effective combinator because it prevents you from having to write this try-catch boilerplate for every async handler you would need -
// without asyncHandler

async function  getBootcamps (req, res, next) {
  try {
    const bootcamps = await Bootcamp.find()
    res.status(200).json({ success: true, count: bootcamps.length, data: bootcamps })
  }
  catch (err) {
    next(err)
  }
}

Instead asyncHandler allows you to focus on "success" path and automatically handles the "error" path for you -
// with asyncHandler

const getBootcamps = asyncHandler(async (req, res, next) => {
  const bootcamps = await Bootcamp.find()
  res.status(200).json({ success: true, count: bootcamps.length, data: bootcamps })
})

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Last night I went on a date with a younger man. Much younger. Like 32 years younger. Robbie and I went to the St. Lawrence Fall Festival. I won ride and food tickets from an Indy with Kids giveaway hosted by Rebeca at The Average Parent. If there is one thing Robbie loves, its amusement rides. Unfortunately, we didn't make it to Holiday World this year, so I thought this might be a small consolation. Plus, while we spend a lot of time in the car together driving people from place to place, it had been a while since Robbie and I had done something fun, just the two of us.
So we headed to the Fall Festival. Once we were there, we circled the carny rides one, kind of getting the lay of the land. Then Robbie decided he wanted to try the Fun House. Although I hadn't planned to do any of the rides, the Fun House wasn't really a ride and I thought he might have more fun if I went with him. It was pretty lame. But we made the most of it.
Then he went on that roulette wheel ride where you stand up against the sides and it spins around, the raises to an upright position, still standing. I couldn't even watch without getting queasy.
By then, we had 1 ride ticket left. Although I had told myself I wasn't going to buy anything while we were there, I did shell out $5 for another 5 tickets so he could ride two more rides. We circled the area once again, when he stopped in front of the Ferris wheel. He pointed and said, "I want to go on that."
"Ok. You get in line and I'll wait right here."
"But Mom, I think it says you have to have a parent with you."
It didn't. But it was sweet that he wanted me to go with him. Clearly he was unaware how I feel about being high in the air with my feet dangling over the edge of my seat. "I don't think it says that," I said, trying to weasel out of the experience.
He was unconvinced. So I tried to touch his compassionate side. "Robbie, I am REALLY afraid of heights. I don't like to be way up there," pointing to the top of the wheel.
"It'll be ok, Mom," he assured me. "Just think of it like there are Peppermint Patties all around you."
He's no dummy. Knowing that Peppermint Patties are one of my favorite candies, he was trying his best confectionary psychology on me. Who could say no to that?
Not me...which is how I ended up sitting next to him in an orange bucket on the Ferris wheel. I really must love that kid a lot.
My hands gripped the bar like a baby grabs your hoop earring in the middle of church. Locked in tight, the guy running the wheel sent us backwards on our way. I was ok for 20 seconds until we got higher than 10 feet in the air.
That is the point at which Robbie's lesson in fear-induced colorful language began.
Because this is a family-friendly blog, I won't repeat here what I repeated with insistence up in that death trap Ferris wheel bench. For his part, Robbie kept saying "Open your eyes, Mom. Think of Peppermint Patties."
What I was thinking about was trying to get the attention of the ride operator. "Stop this thing!" I yelled as we spun by. Unfortuntely he didn't hear me, so we were on the way up again. Cue the colorful language.
When we came around again, I got the guy's attention, having let go of the death grip I had on the lock bar so I could wave my arms at him.
"Can I get off and let him keep riding?"
"Well, I have to keep the weight balanced," he said. "Areyoufreakingkiddingme," I thought. I wasn't going to let my very real fear stand in the way of Robbie having fun. Lucky for me, just as I was settling in to the idea that I was going to have to stay on the ride, two boys walked up and the ride operator decided it would work for them to sit with Robbie for the rest of the ride.
I stood close by and waved big at him every time that orange bucket came around, which was about 10 more times. I honestly am not sure I would have survived that!
Once his turn on the Ferris wheel was over, I apologized for bailing early. "That's ok, Mom," he said. "Let's get something to eat."
Now there was a festival activity I could get behind.


text:
Catalina Devandas Aguilar est une avocate costaricaine et la rapporteure spéciale des Nations unies sur les droits des personnes handicapées. Elle occupe ce poste depuis sa création en 2014. Elle a travaillé auparavant pour la Banque mondiale et a participé à l'établissement de la Convention relative aux droits des personnes handicapées avec le Secrétariat des Nations unies. Elle souffre de spina bifida et utilise un fauteuil roulant.

Carrière
Catalina Devandas Aguilar a commencé sa carrière d'avocate en 1993 et a travaillé comme juriste jusqu'en 1999.

Elle a déjà été consultante pour la Banque mondiale et a fait partie du Secrétariat des Nations unies qui a établi la Convention relative aux droits des personnes handicapées. En 2009, Catalina Devandas Aguilar a commencé à travailler pour le Disability Rights Advocacy Fund et le Disability Rights Fund. En 2014, elle a été nommée première Rapporteure spéciale des Nations Unies sur les droits des personnes handicapées.

Pendant son mandat de rapporteur spécial, elle a voyagé dans de nombreux pays pour déterminer la situation des personnes handicapées. En 2016, Catalina Devandas Aguilar a analysé la situation des personnes handicapées en Zambie Après sa visite, elle a recommandé à la Zambie d'investir dans les droits des personnes handicapées et de prévenir la violence contre les personnes handicapées.

En 2017, elle est devenue le premier membre des Nations unies à se voir accorder une visite en Corée du Nord. Après son voyage en Corée du Nord, elle a signalé qu'elle avait été empêchée de rencontrer plusieurs ministères nord-coréens. Ses recommandations à la Corée du Nord comprenaient l'arrêt du langage discriminatoire contre les Nord-Coréens handicapés et la création de méthodes plus accessibles pour les Nord-Coréens sourds et aveugles.

Elle a également fait partie des experts mandatés par l'Organisation mondiale de la santé pour la formation sur les droits humains en santé mentale, Quality Rights 2019.

Depuis le 15 octobre 2020, elle est ambassadrice du Costa Rica auprès des Nations unies.

Visite en France
Du 3 au 17 octobre 2017, Devandas-Aguilar a effectué une visite en France métropolitaine et déposé un rapport devant l'Organisation des Nations-Unies, relativement à la situation en rapport avec le respect des droits humains.

Notes et références

Diplomate costaricien
Femme diplomate
Rapporteur spécial des Nations unies
Personnalité handicapée

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


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redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


The Coalition's support could evaporate in an instant if it seems inadequate to the economic challenge, writes Matthew d'Ancona.
Andrew Rawnsley says that at all of the party gatherings none of the politicians could find the words to match the scale of the challenges.
In the absence of real rifts in the Conservative party, speculation about a contest between Osborne and Johnson is the court gossip, writes Martin Ivens.
The only way to stimulate the economy is to return real money to the people who control the purse strings, argues Janet Daley.
The Nobel committee has an unparalleled record for ignoring the true giants of literature, writes William Skidelsky.
Despite the Tea Party's energy and radicalism, the Republicans appear doomed to pick a dull phoney after Palin pulls out, says Andrew Sullivan.
The Prime Minister and Chancellor are determined to stick to their guns - but some of their party have other ideas, says Tim Montgomerie.
The chancellor must encourage demand and must stimulate banking lending, argues Will Hutton.
Dominic Lawson finds that the erudite Sir Tom Stoppard has been gripped by the first sessions of the Leveson public investigation into press ethics.
The big beast among passed-over Conservative leaders poses more danger to George Osborne than to Theresa May, writes John Rentoul.


text:
SPORTS | MEN'S BASKETBALL
5 observations from Duke men's basketball's first half against Virginia Tech
Jeremy Roach (3) dribbles during the first half of Duke's battle at Virginia Tech.
Photo by Samantha Owusu | The Chronicle
By Max Rego | @maxrego_
January 23, 2023 | 7:47pm EST
BLACKSBURG, Va.—Just two days after a resume-boosting home victory against Miami, Duke made the trek to take on Virginia Tech for the first time since the Hokies knocked off the Blue Devils in last season's ACC tournament title game. Duke started hot, but Virginia Tech quickly clawed back into it, taking control of the opening period from there. Heading into the locker room, the Hokies lead 45-38.
Virginia Tech does not have much of a men's basketball pedigree, with only one Sweet 16 appearance (2019) in its history. Despite that, Cassell Coliseum is one of the more unique and raucous venues in the ACC, and it has proven to be a house of horrors for Duke in recent years. In their last five trips to Blacksburg, the Blue Devils are 1-4, with an average margin of defeat of just under seven in that quartet of losses.
Nearly an hour before tipoff, the student section was ready to roll, and the pregame festivities were only beginning. A team hype video, set to "Separate Ways" by Journey, coincided with a light show that led straight into the Virginia Tech staple of "Enter Sandman" by Metallica—with fans and even Hokie forward Justyn Mutts bouncing along before tip.
This contest, ultimately, will be determined by what goes on between the 10 guys on the floor. But this has been, without question, a challenging atmosphere for a young Duke bunch to navigate, with Virginia Tech's early 25-12 run a clue into how this crowd can get going.
Cattoor hunting
Well hello there, Hunter Cattoor. Last March, the sweet-shooting Floridian exploded against the Blue Devils in the ACC tournament championship game, ripping nylon all night long en route to seven triples, 31 points and tournament MVP honors (with Virginia Tech snagging an 82-67 upset in the process).
In the first two minutes, Cattoor got a pair of excellent looks from the wing, but failed to connect on either. But he was not going to be quiet for too long, nailing a three from the top of the key to cut the Blue Devil lead to 13-12 before the first TV timeout. Cattoor then one-upped himself a few possessions later, hitting a corner trey plus the foul—but missed the ensuing free-throw. For the half, Cattoor finished 4-of-6 from downtown with 12 points, another reminder of his perimeter marksmanship.
Road Roach
The captain is back from his toe injury, but has not re-entered the starting lineup just yet. Coming off a three-game hiatus against Miami Saturday, the junior was terrific off the bench, with 14 points, four assists and a combo of timely steals and midrange jumpers in the second half of Duke's 68-66 win.
Returning to his home state, Roach entered the contest with just under 14 minutes remaining before halftime. He was once again effective, finishing at the rack to bring Duke within a deuce and hitting a difficult step up over Virginia Tech forward Grant Basile roughly four minutes later.
Toe injuries are often tough to deal with, particularly for a point guard, but Roach looks comfortable for the second-straight outing. He finished the half with four points on 2-of-6 shooting from the field, but head coach Jon Scheyer needs more from his on-court leader if Duke is to take this one down to the wire.
Efficiency city
Both teams got off to scorching hot starts, as at the under-12 timeout, Virginia Tech was shooting 75% from the field, while Duke sat at 60% from the floor. Cattoor and point guard Sean Pedulla led the way early for the Hokies, combining for 16 of their team's first 25 points. On Duke's side, Kyle Filipowski, Dariq Whitehead and Ryan Young were extremely proficient offensively from the outset.
Naturally, both groups cooled down offensively, but only slightly. Virginia Tech finished the half shooting 68% from the floor (and 7-of-10 from three), while the Blue Devils finished at 50%.
Player of the half: Dariq Whitehead
Confident and aggressive, the New Jersey native was a spark from midrange and beyond the arc in the opening 20 minutes. At the under-four timeout, Whitehead was 2-of-2 from the land of plenty, and Duke as a team was 2-of-8. That trend continued (somewhat) to the end of the half, as besides Whitehead, only Filipowski—whose triple ended the half—has connected from outside.
Virginia Tech looks likely to keep up its impressive scoring pace in the second half. In that case, Whitehead will have to keep it going and double down on his 10-point first half.
Prop bets for Duke men's basketball vs. Wake Forest
X-Factor: Roach's playmaking, 3-point shooting can help Duke men's basketball take down Wake Forest
Duke football's 2023 schedule announced on ACC Network
Max Rego
Max Rego is a Trinity senior and an associate sports editor for The Chronicle's 118th volume. He was previously sports managing editor for Volume 117.
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'Better than we were': Duke men's basketball benefits from making each other better in blowout win at Georgia Tech
By Leah Boyd | 01/28/2023
And one: Kyle Filipowski leads Duke men's basketball's rout of Georgia Tech
By Caleb Dudley | 01/29/2023
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Can you catch COVID-19 twice? What we still don't know about the novel coronavirus
After months of battling the novel coronavirus, a lot is still unknown — how it spreads, its symptoms and more — and it continues to kill Canadians everyday.
That's why researchers like Dr. Matthew Cheng, a professor of medicine at McGill University in Montreal, have been working hard to find out as much as possible about COVID-19.
"We're learning new information every day," Cheng told Global News.
Below, Cheng and other experts explain what we know — and what we're still trying to figure out — about COVID-19.
How many people in Canada have actually been infected with COVID-19?
Global News has a coronavirus tracker which is updated every time a province or territory announces new case numbers for that jurisdiction.
However, these numbers do not reflect the total number of cases in COVID-19 because "not everyone with the virus develops symptoms, and even if they did, not every case is serious enough to warrant testing or hospitalization," Cheng said.
This presents a number of problems for not only tracking the virus, but also for preventing the spread of the virus and making decisions about reopening various parts of the economy.
"This is critical information to guide current and future public health policy, because we know that the proportion of individuals who are susceptible is a major factor in our calculations for reopening the country," Cheng said.
If it's true that having previously had the virus provides a person some level of protection, it would really help the government to know where those people are in making safe decisions about reopening.
Are children less likely to catch the virus than adults?
There have been fewer cases of the novel coronavirus in children than in adults, Cheng said.
"We do know that all children seem to be at a lower risk of infection, and that's despite the fact that if and when they become infected, they seem to show the same quantity of virus in respiratory specimens as adults," he explained.
"The second thing we know is that if they are infected, they seem to have a dramatically less risk of adverse health effects, compared to adults."
1:05 Coronavirus outbreak: WHO releases scientific brief on links between multisystem inflammatory syndrome and COVID-19
Coronavirus outbreak: WHO releases scientific brief on links between multisystem inflammatory syndrome and COVID-19
The exact reasons are unclear, Cheng said, but it could have to do with the fact that adults are, on average, more likely to have other medical issues.
"Things like hypertension (and) cardiovascular disease may predispose them to worse outcomes," Cheng said.
"We do know that age alone seems to be a factor, (but) we're not exactly sure why that is."
This is all part of Cheng's research. He's currently exploring the possibility of "epigenetic" changes — or changes around the genome that may occur when one ages, which could lead adults to have a higher risk of adverse effects caused by COVID-19.
However, doctors have warned that a mysterious illness possibly related to COVID-19 is bringing children to hospitals with symptoms ranging from reddened tongues to rashes and enlarged coronary arteries.
Symptoms associated with Kawasaki disease, a rare blood vessel disorder, have appeared to cluster in COVID-19 hot spots, including New York City and the United Kingdom, and now, some Montreal doctors are seeing slightly more cases, too.
Can you develop immunity to the virus?
Whether someone can get the virus again is the "million-dollar question," Cheng said.
"What we do know is that people can and do develop immunity against the virus, (but) the duration of that immune response is not known."
There has been discussion in the medical community about the possibility of people who tested positive for COVID-19 developing "protective antibodies" in their blood after the fact.
A study published in May — whose findings should be interpreted with caution as it has not yet been peer-reviewed or published in a medical journal — followed a group of 160 hospital staff in France who had tested positive for COVID-19 but did not require hospitalization.
The researchers found that nearly all the patients had measurable amounts of antibodies — material produced by the body as it fights off an infection — and that these antibodies were somewhat able to neutralize the virus.
The neutralization appeared to increase over time, though how that translates to immunity isn't clear.
5:41 Coronavirus outbreak: Could immunity passports become the new normal?
Coronavirus outbreak: Could immunity passports become the new normal?
Dr. Isaac Bogoch, an infectious disease specialist at Toronto General Hospital, agrees with Cheng.
"We know there is mounting evidence that people who get infected mount an immune response," Bogoch previously told Global News.
"There's very likely to be some degree of immunity to this infection for some period of time. It's just not clear what the duration of time is."
It's also important that note that a positive antibody response "doesn't necessarily equate to immunity," Cheng said. "We need to research to try and correlate both of these factors together."
When is someone with the virus no longer infectious?
With the new coronavirus, the period of infection is likely related to "the person's ability to shed live virus," Cheng said.
According to recent research, a person is likely to shed live virus (or be able to give the virus to someone else) for about eight days after symptoms start.
"The cumulative infectivity is probably one to two weeks maximum after symptom onset," Cheng said.
"Although there are cases of people continually shedding the virus at very low levels (beyond that time), we don't necessarily believe that they're capable of transmitting the infection to someone else."
Health Canada says while most people experience symptoms five to six days after infection, the incubation period can be up to 14 days.
For those who don't have symptoms but have tested positive for the virus, it's important to start counting your isolation period from the date of your first positive test, Dr. Brett Belchetz, a Toronto-based emergency room physician, previously told Global News.
Fourteen days after you test positive or begin your self-isolation period, you can "stop isolating if you no longer have a fever and your symptoms have improved," Toronto Public Health says.
However, the health agency warns you should continue with COVID-19 prevention measures, like physical distancing and handwashing.
4:06 The Spanish flu had a deadly second wave. Could it happen with COVID-19?
The Spanish flu had a deadly second wave. Could it happen with COVID-19?
If you are still unwell after those two weeks, you should contact Telehealth or your health-care provider, it adds. Health Canada says two "consecutive negative laboratory test results, at least 24 hours apart," can be used to determine the end of your infectious period.
Even if you're less likely to be infectious after 14 days, a person with COVID-19 can still experience symptoms, Belchetz said.
"Research is still evolving in this space, but we're seeing many patients who have continued to feel symptomatic while repeatedly testing negative for ongoing infection," Belchetz said.
Why are some areas in Canada affected by the virus more than others?
There is ample evidence to show that COVID-19 has disproportionately affected some areas in Canada more than others.
For starters, more than 80 per cent of the country's total confirmed cases have been reported in Quebec and Ontario.
And, of the areas with the highest number of cases, there are more Black people living in those neighbourhoods — indicating that there are health inequities impacting those communities due to anti-Black racism, experts previously told Global News.
Global News analyzed Toronto demographic data alongside new data about which neighbourhoods in Canada's most populous city have the most coronavirus cases.
The analysis found a strong association between high coronavirus rates and low income, conditions of work, visible minority status and low levels of education. There was an even stronger association between neighbourhoods with a high number of coronavirus cases and those with a higher population of Black people.
The findings for Toronto mirror similar findings for neighbourhoods in Montreal. Data published by the City of Montreal showed that immigrants, refugees and lower-income people live in the hardest-hit regions.
1:13 Coronavirus outbreak: WHO warns threat of resurgence is 'very real'
Coronavirus outbreak: WHO warns threat of resurgence is 'very real'
And these demographic characteristics are not limited to Canada. New York, one of the most severely impacted cities globally by COVID-19, has higher death rates in poorer neighbourhoods. Black and Hispanic people living in New York City are also twice as likely to die from the virus, compared to white people, according to data from the city.
When asked why some areas are disproportionately affected, Cheng says there isn't a single explanation.
"It's probably a combination of many things relating to the at-risk population, recent trial, the timing of public health mitigation strategies," Cheng said.
Questions about COVID-19? Here are some things you need to know:
Symptoms can include fever, cough and difficulty breathing — very similar to a cold or flu. Some people can develop a more severe illness. People most at risk of this include older adults and people with severe chronic medical conditions like heart, lung or kidney disease. If you develop symptoms, contact public health authorities.
To prevent the virus from spreading, experts recommend frequent handwashing and coughing into your sleeve. They also recommend minimizing contact with others, staying home as much as possible and maintaining a distance of two metres from other people if you go out. In situations where you can't keep a safe distance from others, public health officials recommend the use of a non-medical face mask or covering to prevent spreading the respiratory droplets that can carry the virus.
In situations where you can't keep a safe distance from others, public health officials recommend the use of a non-medical face mask or covering to prevent spreading the respiratory droplets that can carry the virus.
For full COVID-19 coverage from Global News, click here.
— With files from Global News' Laura Hensley, Leslie Young, Olivia Bowden & Patrick Cain
Meghan.Collie@globalnews.ca


text:
The Christian Witness to the State (Mennonite Church, 1961)
1 The Christian Witness to the State
2.1 Reaffirmation
2.2 The Obligation to Witness
2.3 Biblical Foundations
2.4 The Church Accepts the Lordship of Christ
2.5 The World Denies the Lordship of Christ
2.6 The Ministry of Reconciliation and the Witness to the State
3 The Twofold Character of the State
3.1 The State as a Minister of God for Good
3.2 The State as an Agent of the Powers
3.3 The Twofold Character of the Ancient State
3.4 The Twofold Character of the Modern State
4.1 Evangel and Witness
4.2 Concern for the State
4.3 The Example of the Apostles and the Fathers
4.4 The Task for Today
4.5 The Means of the Witness
5 Our Commitment
5.1 Context of this Statement
The Christian Witness to the State
A Statement Adopted by Mennonite General Conference, August 25, 1961.
The obligation to witness
Biblical Foundations
The Church accepts the Lordship of Christ
The World denies the Lordship of Christ
The Ministry of Reconciliation and the witness to the State
The Twofold Character of the State
The State as a minister of God for good
The State as an agent of the powers
The twofold character of the ancient state
The twofold character of the modern state
Evangel and witness
Concern for the State
The example of the Apostles and the Fathers
The task for today
The means of witness
[[|Our Commitment
]]Context of this Statement
We, the representatives of the Mennonite Church, assembled as the Mennonite General Conference at Johnstown, Pennsylvania, August 22-25, 1961, herewith reaffirm "A Declaration of Christian Faith and Commitment with Respect to Peace, War and Nonresistance," as adopted by this body at Goshen, Indiana, in 1951.
We believe this statement of a decade ago to be in harmony with the Anabaptist-Mennonite vision which speaks of civil government as ordained of God, and of resistance by the sword as forbidden to the disciple of Christ. It is our conviction that this declaration and this vision are a true expression of the teaching of the New Testament. the whole tenor of which is epitomized in the statement that "Christ ... suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps ... who, when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not" (1 Peter 2:21-23).
At this time we would give special attention and further expression to that portion of section C-8 of the 1951 Declaration in which "we acknowledge our obligation to witness to the powers-that-be of the righteousness which God requires of all men, even in government, and beyond this to continue in earnest intercession to God on their behalf."
The decade since these words were spoken has been given to search for a fuller understanding of the meaning of this obligation. What is the basis of the Christian witness to the state? What is the character of that witness? And in what manner is it to be given? In addition to its reaffirmation of our historic nonresistant faith, therefore, the present statement seeks to find helpful answers to these questions and to set forth certain positive convictions concerning the Christian obligation to witness to the state.
This obligation we believe to be rooted both in the nature of the church itself and in the nature of the world to which the church is called to witness.
The church is the body of Christ, the community of believers, the gathered company, identified with the stream of forces issuing from the redemptive work of Christ, whom she acknowledges as the Lord of history and as her own supreme head, and under whose lordship she walks in obedient commitment and discipleship. The believers accept the new life in Christ as a binding imperative, as a glorious possibility, and as a blessed reality in which they live. They are laborers together with God for the redemption of the world which knows Him not. The meaning of history is to be found in the redemptive work of Christ and of His redemptive community which is the church.
Romans 8:18-23; 1 Corinthians 15:24; 2 Corinthians 5:17-20; Ephesians 1:20-23; Philippians 2:9-11; Colossians 1:11-20; Colossians 2:10; Colossians 3:1; Hebrews 1:3; Revelation 21:1-6 .
Outside the body of Christ are those who reject Christ and who stand in rebellion against God. The Scriptures speak of this non-Christian company as "the world," which is under the rule of principalities, of powers, of thrones, and of dominions. These terms suggest not only a degree of structure within the fallen social order, but also a degree of conflict among the units of the structure, and a certain rebellion against the will of God.
This world does not recognize the lordship of Christ. In His death the powers even sought to destroy Him. His victory over the powers, however, is a demonstration of that lordship to which every knee shall bow and which every tongue shall confess. Thus Christ is Lord both over the church which recognizes His lordship, and over the world which denies it.
Psalms 110; Matthew 22:44; Mark 12:36; Luke 20:42, 43; Acts 2:34, 35; Acts 13:27; Romans 13:1; 1 Corinthians 2:8; 1 Corinthians 15:25; Galatians 4:3, 9; Ephesians 3:10; Ephesians 6:12; Colossians 2:15; Hebrews 1:3; Hebrews 2:8; Hebrews 10:13; 1 Peter 3:22; Revelation 3:21.
The love of Christ constrains us to a ministry of reconciliation which extends to all men, including those in government. This ministry includes a fourfold witness: (1) concerning saving faith in Him, that whosoever will may come; (2) concerning the meaning of true discipleship which even the nominal Christian may have failed to grasp; (3) concerning the love of God for all men, even for those who resist His will; and (4) in the case of those who continue to reject the Great Invitation, a witness which reasons with them "of righteousness, of temperance, and of judgment" to which all men, whether saint or sinner, must answer before Him who is Lord over church and world.
Matthew 28:18-20; Acts 1:8; Acts 24:25; Acts 26; 1 Timothy 2:1, 2.
The Scriptural view of the state is a twofold one. On the one hand it is a minister of God for good, whose function is the maintenance of order in this present world. Its ultimate source of power is the God of history Himself. As such, the Christian owes the state respect, obedience, and cooperation, with prayers for its rulers to the end that the people of God may "lead a quiet and peaceable life in a godliness and honesty." The primary function of the state is the maintenance of a stable society enabling the church to pursue her divine ministry of reconciliation and of prophetic witness under the lordship of Christ.
Romans 13:1-7; Titus 3:1; 1 Peter 2:13-17.
It is clear, on the other hand, that the state is also an institution of this present evil world, and that as such it is at times an agent of the forces arrayed against the Lord of history. For this reason the Christian cannot always submit to the demands of the state. On the contrary, he must needs on occasion be in opposition to the state, as individual rulers or their acts come under the domination of the principalities, the powers, and the spiritual hosts of wickedness who are in rebellion against the lordship of Christ.
1 Corinthians 2:8; 1 Corinthians 6:1-3; 1 Corinthians 8:5; 1 Corinthians 15:24, 25; Ephesians 6:12; Revelation 13.
When the Scriptures speak of the state as a minister of God, and of the world rulers of this present darkness, they do not speak of democratic as opposed to totalitarian states, even though democracy is preferable to totalitarianism. Every state, even the most evil, is some sense a minister of God for good. And every state; even the best, is at the same time also in some sense an agent of the rebellious powers. Because of the ambiguous and conflicting workings of these powers, and of its alignment with them, the state at its best can achieve only a partial and fragmentary order in the society of this world. In the final analysis no state is committed to Christ and His lordship, not even those states who profess a support of the Christian religion.
The demonic state of Revelation 13, making war on the saints, which calls for endurance, faith, and obedience on the part of every Christian, is the same as that of Romans 13, which merits respect and submission because it is being used of God for providing a social structure in which the church can freely work, and for the achievement in history of the purpose of the state's unaccepted Lord.
The influence of Christendom upon modern society has been great. This is true even of the state, which is often characterized by relative toleration and even by encouragement of the Christian faith, by outstanding morality on the part of many statesmen, by programs of human welfare, and by democracy which recognizes the worth of the individual citizen. These values, however, are only relative, a given state being in a real sense, nevertheless, at times consciously or unconsciously an agent of the principalities and the powers of darkness, as well as a minister of God for good. The friendly state protecting the church today can tomorrow be the beast of the Revelation seeking to destroy the church.
In its labors together with God for the redemption of the world, the church is at the same time a messenger of God's grace for the salvation of men for Christian discipleship and life eternal, a witness to God's love and concern for the well-being of all men (even for those who resist His will), and a prophet proclaiming the impending doom of a world in rebellion against the Lord to whom it must bow, if not in this day of grace, then surely in the day of judgment.
Although the church is not responsible for policies of state and ought not assume to dictate the same, Christians do have a concern for the good of the state and for the welfare of all who are affected by its policies. Therefore, they pray that the state may be wisely administered and used of God for His purposes in history. They pray for the salvation of all leaders of states and for the blessing of God upon them. Their witness to the state is motivated by the same love that motivates their prayer. Finding their frame of reference in the holiness, the righteousness, the peace, and the justice of God, they speak in their message to men of the state, concerning both of the need for faith in Christ, and the obligation to follow righteousness in policies and acts.
According to the Scriptures the Apostle Paul proclaimed his faith in Jesus Christ, and the hope of the resurrection, before Roman officials; and witnessed prophetically concerning righteousness and temperance and the judgment which is to come. Menno Simons, moreover, gave witness to rulers of his time, both of repentance and of righteousness and justice, admonishing them to "take heed wisely, rightly to execute your responsible and dangerous office according to the will of God."
Christians in our day must also witness to the state. The invitation to faith, including its full meaning in true discipleship, must he extended to all men, including government officials. On the other hand, ever mindful that God abandons neither the state nor its rulers, even in their rebellion against Him, the Christian must, when the response is something less than Christian faith and discipleship, hold forth the claims of Christ's lordship, even upon the sub-Christian and the pagan state.
Acts 1:8; Acts 4:23; Acts 24:25; Acts 26; 2 Corinthians 5:17-20; Ephesians 3:8-10; 1 Timothy 2:14.
No list of specific claims which we might formulate could be adequately complete or final. Even if it were such for today, the needs of tomorrow and the changing priorities of time and talent would require a continuous revision of the list. As illustrations of what is meant, however, we would mention the following as particularly significant for the day in which we live and worthy of being undertaken to the extent that priorities permit.
1. Statesmen must continually be challenged to seek the highest meanings of such values and concepts as justice, equality, freedom, and peace.
2. Even though they may reject the highest good in favor of relative and lesser values, statesmen must nevertheless be challenged to find the highest possible values within their own relative frames of reference. In so doing, the Christian may and can rightfully speak to decisions which the Christian ethic will not permit him to assist in carrying out.
3. The evils of war, particularly in this nuclear age, must ever be pressed upon the consciences of statesmen. Our previous declarations to this end need continually to be renewed.
4. Social attitudes, conditions, and practices out of harmony with the righteousness of God, and which contribute to injustice, to suffering, to weakening of mind, of body, and of character, or to the growth of crime, need ever to be witnessed against. Likewise, Christians may avail themselves of opportunities to suggest positive ways in which the state can assist in meeting social needs, as well as to warn of limits to its rightful sphere of action.
5. The church's primary task is to be the church. This itself has implications for the state. In the course of her own work, the church creates institutions, procedural patterns, and value judgments which the state can and does imitate to a degree. In emphasizing the importance of the church, Christians may rightly regard the creation of these precedents as a significant contribution of the church to the state and to the welfare of the world which is served by the state.
The Means of the Witness
The witness herein described may be carried on by word of mouth, through oral or written conversation with officials of state, whether national or local; by means of the printed page; through works of mercy, such as feeding the hungry and clothing the naked; by a ministry of reconciliation in areas of tension, whether these be racial or social tensions in our own land, or colonial, nationalistic, or political tensions abroad; or by other means consistent with New Testament teaching and the historic Anabaptist-Mennonite vision.
Deeply conscious of the inadequacy of our own past efforts, and confessing our failure to give witness in the measure of our obligation, we nevertheless have faith to believe that Christian missions and Voluntary Service at home and abroad, and other similar ministries, have been used of God for such a witness; and that through them the church has functioned as a challenge to the conscience of the state, inspiring it to useful service of its own as a minister of God for good.
Inasmuch as we have been reconciled unto God through Christ, and a ministry of reconciliation has been given unto us as a charge to keep, we would renew our commitment as ambassadors for Christ, that we may truly be used as a means for bringing the divine appeal to the hearts of men, including officials of state.
Strengthened by the firm conviction that more than ever before the world stands in need of the Gospel which we preach and that witness of peace which the Gospel enjoins, we would give ourselves anew to the task of a more effective witness to the nations of the holiness, the righteousness, and the justice of God, and of the way of peace which has been given by Christ, who in His resurrection has triumphed over all powers and principalities and whom we acknowledge as Lord of the church and of the world.
Finally, we would appeal to all Christians, particularly to those of our own congregations, that each examine his own life in view of the command, "Ye shall be [my] witnesses," and that each give himself to prayer and thought to the end that the opportunity which lies before us may be grasped with effectiveness, and that this great responsibility may be discharged as by true soldiers of Jesus Christ.
Context of this Statement
This statement, approved by the delegates to the Mennonite Church's General Conference in 1961, responded to increasing pressure within the Mennonite Church, especially in the United States, for a stronger witness to government on matters of race relations and U.S. foreign policy in Southeast Asia. The same 1961 conference sessions that approved the "Christian Witness" statement also approved statements on civil defense in the context of the Cold War, a resolution on relief aid for China, a resolution on communism and anti-communism, and formulated a letter to U.S. President John F. Kennedy on these issues after earlier responding with thanks to a congratulatory telegram received from Kennedy at the beginning of the sessions. The moderator for the 1961 conference sessions was Jesse B. Martin of Waterloo, Ontario.
This statement was considered to be "Part II" of the earlier statement, "A Declaration of Christian Faith and Commitment with Respect to Peace, War and Nonresistance," approved in 1951, and an expansion of that statement's reference to the Christian's witness to the state.
The Peace Problems Committee was a standing committee of the Mennonite Church from 1919 until 1965 when it was merged with the Committee on Economic and Social Relations to form the Committee on Peace and Social Concerns. During the time this statement was prepared, the committee was composed of seven members -- six from the United States and one from Canada. The Canadian member was Jesse B. Martin from Ontario. Martin remained from the committee that composed the 1951 statement. There was several "co-opted" members on the committee, including Edgar Metzler who served as pastor at First Mennonite Church in Kitchener, Ontario during the years this statement was drafted. Harold S. Bender chaired the committee and Guy F. Hershberger served as its staff person.
Unlike the 1937 "Statement of Position--Peace, War, and Military Service," and the 1951 peace statement, the 1961 statement responded particularly to the environment in the United States. The much-reduced Canadian influence on the committee likely contributed to this shift.
Context written 1999 by Sam Steiner
Thirty-second Mennonite General Conference, Johnstown, Pennsylvania, August 22-25, 1961. Scottdale, PA: Mennonite Publishing House, 1961: 43-60.
Retrieved from "https://anabaptistwiki.org/mediawiki/index.php?title=The_Christian_Witness_to_the_State_(Mennonite_Church,_1961)&oldid=12432"


text:
Q: How fast does Java's JIT compiler work? I've heard a lot about how JIT compilation makes code run faster than precompiled one when talking about "long-running" applications. But how long does it take to completely optimise your application?
Just for interest's sake, I'll show you example. I have some method, let's call it mySlowMethod(). It performs some matrix calculations such as rotation, multiplication and so on a few hundred times per second. I've measured a time of each call and got these results:
long time = System.nanoTime();
mySlowMethod();
System.out.println(System.nanoTime()-time);

//first call
1577187 (1.6 ms)
//next 2 seconds
~60000 (0.06 ms)
//later
less than 10000 (0.01 ms)

A: The JIT actually operates in multiple smaller steps to minimize the performance impact on application start-up. These steps include:

*

*Multiple modes.

*

*A baseline JIT compiler is used to perform a [relatively] simple direct conversion of bytecode to machine code for immediate execution of individual methods.

*An optimizing compiler is used to perform many advanced optimizations for code that is executed many times, and/or is consuming a significant amount of computational resources.

*Incremental compilation.

*

*While the JVM loads the bytecode of entire modules up front, the actual compilation process is often deferred until methods are actually executed for the first time. For large applications, such as an IDE, it's clear that not all features of the IDE are in use right when the application is launched, so this incremental compilation ability spreads out the JIT process over a much longer duration of application runtime to the point that it is often not even noticable.

Overall, the application is probably never "fully optimized", but you'd never know this because the parts you actually cared about were optimized early.


If you remember, first I removed the blue wallpaper with gusto, then the room was painted a soft greige to help the existing elements (70s beige counter, bisque toilet and sink) blend in. A new light fixture helped modernize the space. Then we ran out of money. To save a buck, I snagged the 1970s hardware from the en-suite powder room (that was fully renovated), and applied a little leftover black spray paint. Apologies for the horrendous photo – it was taken pre-blog (with a 2.0 megapixel potato apparently)!
We obviously kept the toilet (it's made in Canada, I couldn't toss it!), tile (because it runs through the adjacent halls as well) and vanity (good condition, plus the tile runs up to but not under it, so we left it in place and painted it to match the walls). With all this un-jazzed stuff, we needed something to jazz up the space. A simple mirror was a practical change. Next we upgraded the counter with the same grey laminate we have in the kitchen, and added a chic black faucet (see here for similar). The glass vessel sink (see here for similar), the jewel of the room, has been a hit with everyone.
sink with a blanket in case anything was dropped on it. Then I primed the trouble areas with a stain-blocking primer.
Enter Dad, painter-extraordinaire (despite being colour-blind) and now the room is a soft turquoise (CIL Tropical Paradise, from Canadian Tire). Although a bit brighter and much more intensely aqua than I originally intended (I was hoping for something like this), the turquoise paint makes the space seem airier, fresher and newer. It also complements the green glass sink nicely. I wanted to add more white (like a big white picture frame with a colourful photo from Hungary blown up) but anything white in here turns green from the reflection. A black-framed print (the original, which I feel privileged to have seen, is by Tamara de Lempicka) works in a pinch and ties in the emerald green from the vintage kitchen posters and dining room painting.
Let's take a look at the before once again. If not for pictures, I would barely remember what the house looked like when we bought it.
Hey Tanya! This new look is a definite improvement on the original! Did your realtor have any comments about painting it a non-neutral colour before sale? As pretty as this colour is, I always thought people neutralize their houses (paint, furniture, etc) before listing.
I was worried she wouldn't like it because this turned out brighter than planned! The swatch looked like a subtle grey/aqua. But she LOVED it. I think because the rest of the house has white walls and the basement has griege walls, a tiny bit of colour is permissible. Plus, it ties in the teal accent tiles the former owners added amongst the cream/beige tile in the adjacent halls so it makes that "touch" (I think they ran out of beige, honestly). And without a window, a neutral colour looks drab and dirty in there. But I guess we'll see from feedback from viewings – I'll keep you posted.
What an paint job !!
Thanks! I guess I really have to move, so I don't fuss with this room anymore, lol.
Awww, thanks! Doing it for me (and friends) keeps it fun! Although that was a career choice I wanted to pursue, a long time ago.
It looks great! And sure neutrals help potential buyers see themselves in a space but this is so much more complimentary that it sells (unintended pun) the room. If the colour improves the space then it makes sense. People can easily paint a small space so it wouldn't be a significant deterrent if the person was an aqua-hater.The blue makes it seem fresher/cleaner- crucial for a bathroom.I'm in the middle of a bathroom spruce, too- colouring/sealing grout. Our entire bathroom is white tile, floor to ceiling- more grout than any one person should have in their life. The original grout was never sealed. I've tried everything to clean it but have since discovered coloured sealer. Life-saver! Next project will be the shower wall grout and then caulking- yuck!Love your bathroom!
Thanks!! I think an aqua hater would have a hard time seeing past the aqua in the hall tile and the laundry room floor anyway, plus every accessory in the house is turquoise and people can have a hard time visualizing past the current owner's stuff. I think whoever buys this house, will likely not mind blues and aquas. But you're right: painting this room will be a breeze. For right now, it look sparkly fresh and that counts a lot for a space with the original cabinet and toilet!!That is a lot of grout!! Ours is not sealed but we don't have much trouble with it. Good tip to know for our next place, where I think the well water might be touch on the grout (once we replace the space portal). Good luck with your sprucing!!
more minty goodness!! ok i know it's tiffany blue, but it's in the mint family!
I'm on a minty roll! It's somewhat similar to the mint table – definitely in the same family.
Love the blue! It looks great!
Thanks! It's definitely a cheery colour.
Thanks Amy! I found it at Home Hardware but I saw it online first. I liked the squared off shape because it was different than the typical vessel sink. But then the only store that had it in stock was in a small town a half hour away, so we took a scenic drive! Every time I drive past/through that town all I can think of is if that Home Hardware has anything special the one by my house doesn't, lol.
HUGE improvement! Too funny, my dad is a great painter and yet color-blind too!
What a coincidence! For my Dad, it's because he doesn't cue on colour, he looks where it's wet and so he's really good at painting good coverage even with really similar shades. Also, he sees better in the dark than colour-sighted people, he claims, but I can't so there's really no way to verify that, lol.
Hi Tanya,I discovered your blog and l am so happy. My husband and l have bought a vacation house in Romania that l hope soon it will become our permanent vacation house. In a hew months my husband retires and we will move there. You gave me the courage to use my imagination and let my artistic side to shine. I am your bigest fan. I forgot, my name is Silvia and l am Romanian.
Hi Silvia! Thanks so much for your comment. Congrats on your new vacation home! What an absolute dream – you must be so excited to decorate and enjoy the space.


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Lee Iacocca Fast Facts
Here's a look at the life of Lee Iacocca, American ...
Here's a look at the life of Lee Iacocca, American automotive executive.
Chrysler LLC
Business and industry sectors
Business, economy and trade
Birth place: Allentown, Pennsylvania
Birth name: Lido Anthony Iacocca
Father: Nicola Iacocca, restaurant owner
Mother: Antoinette (Perrotto) Iacocca
Marriages: Darrien (Earle) Iacocca (1991-1995, divorced); Peggy (Johnson) Iacocca (1986-1987, divorced); Mary (McCleary) Iacocca (1956-1983, her death)
Children: with Mary (McCleary) Iacocca: Kathryn and Lia
Education: Lehigh University, B.S., 1945; Princeton University, M.S., 1946
Other Facts:
His parents immigrated to the United States from Italy.
Is credited with saving Chrysler from bankruptcy.
Starred in a series of Chrysler television commercials, making famous the line "If you can find a better car, buy it."
Serves as chairman of the board of The Iacocca Family Foundation.
1946 - Begins working at Ford Motor Company as an engineer.
1970-1978 - President of Ford Motor Company.
1978 - Is fired as president of Ford by Henry Ford II.
1978 - Is hired by Chrysler Corp.
1979 - Becomes CEO of Chrysler Corp.
1982-1986 - President Ronald Reagan appoints Iacocca chairman of the Statue of Liberty-Ellis Island Centennial Commission, which raises money to restore the Statue of Liberty.
1984 - Releases "Iacocca: An Autobiography."
1984 - Establishes The Iacocca Family Foundation, to raise money for diabetes research, after his wife, Mary, passes away due to complications from diabetes. The foundation has funded more than $45 million in research projects.
1992 - Retires from Chrysler.
November 1995 - Iacocca files a lawsuit against Chrysler, accusing the company of illegally preventing him from exercising his stock options.
December 1995 - Chrysler files a lawsuit against Iacocca, claiming he gave confidential information to Kirk Kerkorian, who tried to take over Chrysler.
1996 - Iacocca and Chrysler settle their lawsuits against one another.
2007 - Releases the book "Where Have All the Leaders Gone?," co-written with Catherine Whitney.
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1. Dearly Beloved, each word and deed of Our Saviour Jesus Christ is for us a lesson in virtue and piety. For this end also did He assume our nature, so that every man and every woman, contemplating as in a picture the practice of all virtue and piety, might strive with all their hearts to imitate His example. For this He bore our body, so that as far as we could we might repeat within us the manner of His Life. And so therefore, when you hear mention of some word or deed of His, take care not to receive it simply as something that incidentally happened, but raise your mind upwards towards the sublimity of what He is teaching, and strive to see what has been mystically handed down to us.
Martha did indeed welcome the Lord; but Mary sat at His feet. In each sister was an earnest good will. Yet note what each does. Martha served Him by preparing what would be needed for the refreshment of His Body; Mary, seated at His feet, listened to His words. The one ministered to the visible man; the other bowed down before the Invisible. And the Lord Who was there as both God and Man was pleased with the good dispositions of both women.
But Martha, busy with her task, cried out to the Lord to speak for her to her sister, that she should come and help her. Speak to her therefore, she says, that she may get up and help me. But the Lord said to her: Martha, Martha, thou art careful, and art troubled about many things. But one thing is necessary. Mary hath chosen the best part, which shall not be taken away from her (Lk. x. 38-42). We have not come here for this purpose, to sit at ease at the table, to fill our stomachs. We are here to nourish you, with the word of truth, and by the contemplation of heavenly mysteries. Yet though He did not turn the one away from her task, He praised the other because of that to which she had devoted herself.
Here we see the two states placed before us by means of the two women; the lower, choosing to serve Him in corporeal ministrations which also is most profitable, and that which, ascending to the contemplation of the sacred mysteries, is the more spiritual. Take these things spiritually, you who listen, and choose that which you wish. And should you choose the way of service, render your service in the Name of Christ. For He said: As long as you did it to one of these my least brethren, you did it unto me (Mt. xxv. 40). And so whether you receive the stranger, or feed the poor, or comfort the afflicted, or give help to those who are in need and in pain, or take care of the sick Christ receives your service as bestowed on Him. But should you choose to imitate Mary, who, putting aside the service of bodily need, ascended to the contemplation of the divine glories, seek truly to do this. Leave the body, leave the tilling of the earth, and the preparation of what is eaten with bread. Sit at the feet of the Lord, and give your mind to His words, that you may become a sharer of the mysteries of the divine nature which Christ reveals. For to contemplate that which Christ teaches is a work above the service of corporal need.
2. You have then, Beloved, received both divine teaching and an example of life. Strive for whichever you will, and be either a servant of the needy of this world, or a zealous lover of the words of Christ. And if it be that you strive after both, then from both gather the fruit of salvation. But the spiritual motive is the first, all the rest come second; For Mary, He says, has chosen the better part. If then you would enter in to the mysteries of Christ, let you sit by His feet, and receive His Gospel, and abandoning your way of life let you live apart from men and free from all concern; let you have no further thought for your body, and then you will be enabled to enter into mystic converse with Him in contemplation of His truth, and so imitate Mary, and gain the highest glory.
And when you pray, see that you ask not for what is alien to your life, and provoke the Lord. Ask not for money, nor for human glory, nor power, nor for any of the things that pass away. But seek for the kingdom of God, and all that is needed for your body will be provided; as the Lord Himself has said: Seek ye the kingdom of God, and his justice, and all these things will be added unto you (Mt. vi. 33).
Twofold, Beloved, are the methods of prayer. One is to give praise to God from a humble heart; the other, the lower, is the prayer of petition. Therefore, when you pray, do not immediately begin with petitions; otherwise you may then be accused of praying to God only when in need. So when you come to pray, leave self behind, leave wife and children. Let the earth go, and rise up to heaven. Leave behind every creature, the visible and the invisible, and begin with the praise and glory of Him Who has made all things. And as often as you offer Him praise be not wandering here and there in your mind. And choose not your words from fables, like the Greeks, but from the holy Scriptures, and say: O Lord, patient and forbearing, I praise Thee because Thou hast spared me who offend Thee daily; giving to all a season for repentance; and because of this Thou art silent, and art patient with us, O Lord, that we may offer glory and praise to Thee who hast care for the salvation of all men. Thou dost help us, now by fear, now by counsel, now through the prophets, and last of all through the coming of Thy Anointed; For thou hast made us, and not we ourselves (Ps. xcix. 3).
3. And when you have praised and glorified God from the Scriptures, with all your heart, then begin with humility to say: Lord, I am not worthy to praise Thee, for I have sinned most grievously. And though you may not be conscious of any fault, yet so must you speak to Him. For save God alone there is no one without sin. We commit many sins, and the greater part of them we forget. Because of this the Apostle said: I am not conscious to myself of anything, yet I am not thereby justified (I Cor. iv. 4); that is, I have committed many sins, and taken no notice of them. And because of this the prophet also says: Who can understand sins? (Ps. xviii. 13). So you do not speak falsely when you say you are a sinner. And if you do know that you are one, you also sin when you say: I am not a sinner. Say rather: I have sinned more than other sinners, for I have broken the commandment which says: When you have done all things commanded of you, say: we are unprofitable servants; we have done that which we ought to do (Lk. xvii. 10). So must you think to yourself: I am a profitless servant.
And again: In humility let each esteem others better than himself (Phil. ii. 3). Pray to the Lord therefore with fear and with humility. And when you pray to Him from a humble heart let you say: I give Thee thanks, O Lord, because Thou hast borne with my sins in patience, and hast left me even till now without chastisement. For I have long deserved to suffer many afflictions; and to be banished from Thy sight; but Thy most clement mercy has borne with me in patience. I thank Thee again, although I am unable to render Thee such thanks as are due Thy mercy.
And when you have fulfilled in turn the duty of praise and of humility, then ask for what you ought to ask for; not for riches, as I said, not for the glory of this earth, not for health of body: for He made you and your health is His care, and He knows which state is profitable to each one, to be healthy or to be infirm. But let you seek, as He has told us, for the kingdom of heaven. For, as I said before, He will provide for your body's needs. For our King is of infinite dignity, and it is unfitting that anyone should ask of Him what is not becoming. Be mindful therefore when you pray that you do not bring upon yourself the anger of God; but seek from Him the things that are worthy of God our King. And when you pray for the things that are worthy of being asked of God, cease not from praying till you receive them. For the Lord has intimated this to us where He says in the Gospel: Which of you shall have a friend, and shall go to him at midnight, and shall say to him: friend, lend me three loaves, because a friend of mine is come off his journey to me, and I have not what to set before him. And he from within should answer, and say: Trouble me not, the door is now set shut, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot rise and give thee. Yet if he shall continue knocking, I say to you, although he will not rise and give him, because he is his friend; yet because of his importunity, he will rise, and give him as many as he needeth (Lk. xi. 5-8).
4. Our Lord puts this example before us to teach us that we should be strong and persistent in faith. He takes the example of one man's prayer to another man, that you may learn never to be discouraged, so that when you pray and do not receive the answer to your prayer, you should not cease from praying till you do receive it; provided that, as I said, you ask for what God wishes you to ask. And do not say: I am a sinner, and therefore He does not listen to me. That you may not lose heart on this account He says to us: Although he will not give him, because he is a friend; yet because of his importunity he will give him as many as he needs.
So henceforth, if a month goes by, or a year, or three years, or four, or many years, do not give up praying till you receive what you ask for; but ask on in faith, and be at the same time steadfast in doing good. It will happen often that someone in his youth strives earnestly for chastity. Then pleasure begins to undermine his resolution, desires awaken his nature, he grows weak in prayer, wine overcomes his youth, modesty perishes, and the man becomes another man. So we change because we have not with high courage of soul stood firm against our passions. It behoves us therefore to resist all things, yet we must cry out to God, that He may bring us aid.
For if a man through folly gives way to evil desires, and betrays himself to his enemies, God will not aid him, nor hear him, because through sin he has turned away from God. He who hopes to be helped by God should have no part with what is unworthy. But he who does not betray what he owes to God will never be in want of the divine aid. It is just and fitting that in nothing should we be condemned by our own conscience. Only then may we cry out for divine aid and cry earnestly, and not with minds wandering here and there. For one who so prays, not alone shall he continue unheard by God, but he will also provoke the Lord yet more. For if a man stands in the presence of a king, and speaks with him, he will stand there with great trepidation of mind, careful not to let either his eyes or his mind go wandering. With what greater fear and trembling should we stand in the presence of God, having our whole mind intent on Him alone, and on nothing else whatsoever? For He beholds our inward life; not merely the outward one which men see.
Standing then in God's Presence, in a manner truly worthy, and laying before Him all the desires of your heart, cease not to pray till you receive what you ask for. But should your conscience tell you that you are praying unworthily, and should you stand in prayer while your mind goes wandering when you could well pray with recollection, then venture not to stand thus in the presence of the Lord for fear your prayer becomes an offence. Should it be however that your soul has become weak through sin, and that you are unable to pray without distraction, strive with yourself as best you can, striving manfully before the Lord, having your mind steadfast on Him, and calling upon Him, and God will have compassion on you, since it is not because of indifference but through infirmity that you cannot pray as you ought when you kneel before God. Let him who so strives with himself in every good work cease not to pray till he obtains what he asks for; but in making his request let him knock patiently at the door: For everyone, He says, that asketh, receiveth; and he that seeketh, findeth; and to him that knocketh, it shall be opened; for that which you desire to obtain, what is it but salvation in God?
Imitate the faith of Abraham. After his nature had withered, and its powers were at an end, then the promise of the Lord took life. Let us consider ourselves, for example. We pray earnestly for a year; and then we cease. We fast for two years; and then we cease to fast. Let us not grow faint in face of the promise of God. For He Who promised this man that his seed would be multiplied has promised us that He will give us what we ask for. For He says: Come to me, all you that labour, and are burthened, and I will refresh you (Mt. xi. 28). For when you were far from Him He pitied you as you toiled under the weary burthen of your sins, and called you and relieved you of it, and then gave you rest. And you, have you no faith in Him? Even should we keep silence our conscience would not suffer us. For we do not doubt that He has power to relieve us; but we care not to take upon us His yoke, which is light and sweet; nor enter by the narrow way to the kingdom of heaven; but prefer rather to carry the burthen of our sins, and to walk by the broad way of the pleasures of the senses, and to enter in at the wide gate that leads to destruction.
But, you will say, how often have I prayed, and I have not been answered? Because you have always prayed badly; either without faith, or with a distracted mind, or for the things that were not expedient for you. And if at times you prayed for what was expedient for you, you did not persevere. For it is written: In patience shall you possess your souls (Lk. xxi. 19), and again: He that shall persevere unto the end, he shall be saved (Mt. x. 22).
6. God sees into the hearts of those who pray. What need then, someone will say, that we should ask God for what we need? Does He not know already what we need? Why then should we pray? God does indeed know what things we need, and with generosity provides all we need for the refreshment of our bodies, and since He is good He sends down His rains upon the just and the unjust alike, and causes His sun to shine upon the good and the bad (Mt. v. 45), even before we ask Him. But faith, and the power of virtue, and the kingdom of heaven, these you will not receive unless you ask for them in labouring and steadfastness.
We must first long for these things. Then when you desire them, you must strive with all your heart to obtain them, seeking them with a sincere heart, with patience, and with faith, not being condemned by your conscience, as praying without attention or without reverence, and so in time, when God wills, you will obtain your request. For He knows better than you when these things are expedient for you. And perhaps He is delaying in giving them to you, designing to keep your attention fixed upon Him; and also that you may know that this is a gift of God, and may safeguard with fear what is given to you. For what we come by with much labour we are zealous to defend; as losing it we lose also our labour; and treating lightly the gift of God we become unworthy of life eternal. For what did it profit Solomon so quickly to receive the gift of wisdom and then lose it?
7. Do not then lose heart if you do not speedily obtain your request. For if it were known to Our Good Master that were you at once to receive this favour that you would not lose it, He would have been prepared to give it to you unasked. But being concerned for you, He does not do this. For if he who received a single talent, and hid it safely, was condemned because he did not put it to profit, how much more would he have been condemned had he lost it? Keeping this in mind, let us continue to give thanks to the Lord whether we receive speedily or slowly that which we pray for. For all things whatsoever the Lord may do He orders all to the end of our salvation; only let us not through faintheartedness cease from our prayers. It was because of this the Lord spoke the parable of the Widow who persuaded the judge through her steadfastness (Lk. xviii. 2-5): that we also through our steadfastness in prayer may obtain what we ask for.
By this we also show our faith, and our love of God, since though we do not quickly receive what we ask for, yet we remain steadfast in praising Him and giving thanks. Then let us give Him thanks at all times, so that we may be found worthy of receiving His everlasting gifts; since to Him all praise and glory is due for ever and ever. Amen.