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Temenos Country Model Bank Solution to Provide Full Front-To-Back System Replacement for DNB Luxembourg
New signing of T24 and internet banking solutions extends Temenos' reach in Luxembourg
Press Releases, January 29, 2015
GENEVA, Switzerland – 29 January 2015 – Temenos (SIX: TEMN), the market-leading provider of mission-critical solutions to the financial services industry, today announces that it has been selected to provide DNB Luxembourg (DNB) with T24, its award-winning core banking system and Temenos Connect, its multi-channel internet banking solution.
DNB has chosen a comprehensive, integrated front to back solution that will completely replace the current legacy environment which has been running for many years within the bank. This "out of the box" solution provided by Temenos and its partners offers not only a cost effective and seamless solution but also secures a predictable transformation project to deliver the underlying business case.
DNB's decision to replace its core banking system was based on a number of key business drivers. First, the existing system was becoming obsolete, failing to meet the current requirements of the bank and not allowing it to efficiently manage the assets of its increasing number of new and existing customers. Second, DNB recognised that having a modern core banking system in place is essential for it to be able to offer new products to its customers quickly. Third, the cost of maintaining the existing system was high. Deploying T24 will enable DNB to focus its expenditure on driving profitability in the bank, rather than directing it to maintenance of the core. Fourth, DNB wanted to provide its customers with a better user experience by offering enhanced access to banking services through the device of their choosing. Therefore, DNB required the fully-integrated, multi-channel capabilities offered by Temenos Connect.
DNB Luxembourg is the local subsidiary of DNB Group headquartered in Norway. It offers premium private wealth banking and mortgage lending services to affluent and high-net-worth customers. Temenos will be supporting both its private wealth and credit services.
The implementation will be based on a partnership model, with Luxembourg services partner Syncordis managing the delivery of the project, In addition, Temenos' extended complementary solution providers will be providing document management and regulatory reporting services.
Jean-Michel Hilsenkopf, Managing Director EMEA at Temenos, said:
"We are delighted to have been selected by DNB Luxembourg to replace its existing banking software with T24 and Temenos Connect. Our software provides a complete front-to-back office solution, offering advanced, multi-channel capabilities, specifically configured to the needs of the local market, through our country Model Bank. Luxembourg is a very important market for us, demonstrated by our strong track record in the region with 25 existing customers and we are very pleased to continue to gain market share. We are encouraged that our solutions are fully aligned with the needs of the Luxembourg banking market,"
Håkon Hansen, CEO at DNB Luxembourg, said:
"We are very pleased to have selected Temenos to provide us with a complete front-to-back banking software renovation. Our choice of Temenos was based to a large extent on its country Model Bank, offering a fast, cost-effective deployment, with the peace of mind that our software enables us to meet all local regulatory requirements. We were also very impressed by Temenos' strong track record in the region. Furthermore, the partnership model that Temenos offers, with local partner Syncordis managing the project, also ensured that our country-specific requirements were being sufficiently catered to."
Temenos Press Contacts
Jessica Wolfe & Grace Collins
Temenos Global Public Relations
+1 610 232 2793 / +44 20 7423 3969
Alistair Kellie & Andrew Adie
Newgate Communications for Temenos
Core Banking Digital Front Office IT & Architecture Strategy & Innovation
Temenos Reaches Major Milestone With the Roll-Out of Temenos Transact Microservices Architecture
Larger banks can now renovate their core banking applications component by component without compromising their end goal of a full system transformation to a cloud-agnostic, cloud-native architecture.
AxiomSL brings intelligent regulatory reporting and risk solutions to the Temenos MarketPlace
Temenos customers will be able to quickly adapt to change, improve efficiency ratios, and solve critical regulatory reporting & risk requirements.
CWB Financial Group partners with Temenos to deliver personalized, world-class digital experience for business owners
CWB Financial Group (TSX:CWB) takes another step forward as a disruptive force in Canadian financial services today with the selection of Temenos (SIX:TEMN), the leader in banking software, to deliver a seamless end-to-end digital banking experience for small- to medium-sized business owners. CWB will be the first bank in Canada to offer a differentiated digital banking experience powered by Temenos Data Lake with Explainable AI (XAI) capabilities. The combination of Temenos Data Lake and industry-leading, cloud-native, cloud-agnostic Temenos Infinity, also selected by CWB, will give the bank's core business-owner clients an intuitive world-class digital experience. CWB's clients will also benefit from valuable, transparent and fully-informed insights into their financial activities gleaned from AI automated decisions.
Middle East Banking Innovation Summit 2019 Dubai
We will be participating in the 9th Annual Middle East Banking Innivation Summit, taking place at Jumeirah Emirates Towers Hotel in Dubai, UAE on 3-4 September 2019 as proud Gold sponsors.
white-paper
Temenos T24 Transact Brochure
Temenos T24 Transact is the market-leading core banking solution which incorporates the broadest and deepest set of functionality available.
11th Annual Temenos Survey Results
From regulatory compliance to shifting customer loyalties and the increasing digitization of banking, banks have faced a number of changes and challenges over the years. In order to prosper and…


Pawsitive Pooches | TRAINING METHODS/TECHNIQUES..
I use positive reinforcement which is also known as; reward-based training, science-based training, force/pain-free training where a dog learns that good things come to them when they do what you like/want. The good things are rewards such as praise, play, food, toys, going for a walk etc etc. Meaning the behaviour you wanted is more likely to happen again.
Punishment or 'pack leader' training methods are more based on fear, intimidation, pain and discomfort, so your dog won't want to repeat the behaviour you don't want based on these consequences. Despite what you may see on TV these methods have nothing at all to do with dogs being pack animals and you needing to be the leader of the pack, if you watch closely and break the behaviour down correctly, it is simply the dog (in most cases) avoiding pain/discomfort/fear etc. It does not deal with the underlying issues the dog has.
For example say a dog is reactive towards other dogs and barks and lunges, a kick to its side or a yank on the lead may well stop the dog from barking at that time as it will learn that barking causes pain/discomfort from you, but what about the 'WHY', why is the dog barking/lunging? If you don't understand and solve the underlying issue then it will never go away, 'results' will be short lived or you will be forever yanking on your dogs lead. Not only that but if you look at the dogs body language closely you will see a very unhappy dog, which is often mislabelled as being 'submissive', this isn't so, the dog is tense, unhappy and shut down (shows very little if any other behaviours) this is the kind of relationship I DO NOT want with my dog!
Positive reinforcement modifies and changes a dogs behaviour by giving your dog the ability to learn and feel differently, this is extremely important when it comes to reactive dogs. Every single undesirable behaviour cannot be down to you not being a good enough pack leader, there is no one size fits all reason behind undesirable behaviour. Not allowing your dog to sit on the sofa, eat first, go through doors first, walk in front of you ,and all the other misconception we so often hear, are nonsense! Not allowing your dog on the sofa or to walk through doorways ahead of you WILL NOT solve behavioural issues. After all, how many doorways and sofa's have you seen in the wild? Dogs are not wolves, the same as we are not chimps therefore attempting to replicate more than basic body language or pretending to 'bite' them with your hand is quiet frankly ludicrous and insulting to these wonderful pet dogs we share so much of our lives with and who give us so much more in return.
However what we do KNOW is that learning theory applies to all species of animals and studies have shown that they ALL learn quicker, longer, and more efficiently using positive reinforcement. Think about your work life...how would you feel if you had just started a new job and instead of someone showing you HOW to do the job and giving verbal praise and encouragement when you do it right, they sat you in front of the computer and every time you pressed the wrong button they smacked you around the head, again and again, you have to guess what is the right thing to do but after 20 minutes and a sore head you would probably be on the verge of tears or have walked out, would that make you feel good? or put you off wanting to work ever again? or make you angry? Take a minute to think about how you would feel in this situation. We don't appreciate this kind of method being used on us so why should we use it on dogs! A lot of people say that positive reinforcement is bribery and 'why should a dog do something for something, they should do it because I said so', again, how would you feel living in that kind of environment, you work for a paycheck, so do dogs. If done correctly then no it is not bribery and your dog WILL still behave despite the lack of food on your person.
Dogs that are taught using positive reinforcement methods are more tolerant, self-controlled, confident, happy and behave much more predictably in different situations.
In my opinion a good dog trainer is one who isn't set in their ways and continues to use the old fashioned, old school techniques but one who continually educates themselves. Science is advancing and this gives us a much better insight into dog behaviour and how they learn, this should be utilised to its fullest and any opportunity to be kinder to our best friends, understand them better and move away from forceful/old fashioned techniques, should be leapt upon.


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An illusion of clarity – the new Rule 28(2) EPC
The European Patent Office has amended its rules in relation to the patentability of products derived from essentially biological processes.
In December 2016, we reported on events at the EU and at the EPO in relation to the subject matter of plants or animals obtained by an "essentially biological process".
To summarise:
08 November 2016 – The European Commission issued its comments inter alia on how they believed Article 4 of the "Biotech Directive" 98/44/EC should be interpreted (see link, right); their interpretation went against to that decided on by the Enlarged Board of Appeals in G2/12 and G2/13 (the "Tomato" and "Broccoli" cases)
12 December 2016 – The EPO stayed all pending proceedings in respect of patents and applications directed to plants or animals obtained by an "essentially biological process"
Changes to Rules 27 and 28 EPC
The Administrative Council of the EPO on 29 June 2017 amended Rules 27 and 28 EPC, with effect from 01 July 2017.
Essentially, Rule 28 EPC gained a new paragraph (2):
Rule 28(2) EPC: "(2) Under Article 53(b), European patents shall not be granted in respect of plants or animals exclusively obtained by means of an essentially biological process.
Rule 27 EPC has been amended to simply reflect the change to Rule 28:
Rule 27(b) EPC: "(b) without prejudice to Rule 28, paragraph 2, plants or animals if the technical feasibility of the invention is not confined to a particular plant or animal variety;
The intention is quite clear – these changes essentially bring the interpretation of the Biotech Directive (which is itself implemented into the EPC) into line with that suggested by the European Commission.
As a result, the stay of proceedings at the EPO has been lifted, and pending examination and opposition proceedings will continue in light of the new rules.
An uncertain future
Prior to the decision of the Administrative Council, CIPA had already submitted their own comments on the proposed changes (http://www.cipa.org.uk). A key issue discussed is the fact the uncertainty over Article 4 of the Biotech Directive – which is at its heart a piece of EU legislation applicable to EU member states – has not been settled by the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU). However, its interpretation under new Rule 28(2) EPC can lead to the denial of a right (a patent) to individuals filing within an EU member state by a body which has no competency to refer a question to the CJEU. This can be seen as a contravention of Article 267 TFEU.
There is also the possibility of challenges to the applicability of Rule 28 EPC under the EPC.
The decision of the Administrative Council does not make any reference to G2/12 or G2/13. Under Article 112 EPC, decisions of the Enlarged Board of Appeal are binding, and thus in theory "Tomato" and "Broccoli" remain binding for the interpretation of Article 53(b) EPC. As Article 53(b) EPC itself has not changed, and Article 164(2) EPC states that the Articles prevail over the Rules of the EPC upon conflict, questions will remain over the ultimate effect of the present change.
There is no doubt that this subject will remain in the spotlight for years to come as both examination and opposition cases finds their way to the Boards of Appeal.
Future applications
Notwithstanding the ongoing discussion around the legality of patents directed to plants and animals produced through "essentially biological processes", it should be expected that applications and patents with claims towards such matters still in pending proceedings before the EPO will likely be refused or revoked respectively unless the offending claims are removed. Despite this, it is still important to highlight that the new rule only relates in a broad sense to products made through classical breeding and selection (see decisions G2/07 and G1/08 for previous interpretations of "essentially biological process").
Transgenic plants and animals with a particular trait characteristic which are not defined by a particular variety or species remain eligible for patent protection, provided the requirements for patentability are met. Similarly, the biotechnological processes used to make them are also eligible.
If plants and animals created through breeding remain commercially important, it may still be relevant to include passages pertaining to such products in the claims and/or the description, as different national laws exist on the matter.
Plant variety rights can also be important to protect varieties generated through plant breeding.
We remain committed to protecting your commercial interests so please do not hesitate to get in contact with us if you have any further questions in light of this rule change.
The patentability of plants in Europe.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Getting extra exposure online is always hard to achieve on a global level. Still, if you'd like to gain more exposure in Taiwan, Aasa Studio web hosting can help you with this. We offer .IDV.TW domains for just €27.66 a year. With a .IDV.TW domain name, not only will your website rank higher in local search results, but also more people will visit it, as sites with country-code TLDs tend to be visited more frequently. In addition, you'll be able to take full advantage of our all-encompassing domain management services.
Our feature-rich, yet easy-to-use Domain Manager is used by both experienced web masters and hosting novices. It features all that you might need in order to manage different domains at once from the exact same place. Your domain names' DNS and WHOIS settings are totally under your control.
The Domain Manager is, actually, an integral part of our Web Hosting Control Panel. Which means that you will be able to control not just your domain names, but also your web sites, without the need of actually leaving the Control Panel, on the single condition that you have a hosting account here.


Do you know these Social Security facts?
Clients nearing retirement have lots of questions around Social Security. How well can you answer them?
If you're an advisor selling to the boomer and senior markets, Social Security is probably a topic you entertain often. Clients are curious about which claiming strategy is best for them, how long their benefits will last, and how their individual situation (work history, marital status, annual income) impacts this income stream. Knowing your Social Security stuff is a good way to earn trust quickly. Take our quiz to see where you rank.


Lineage societies offer their members a number of advantages. Along with the opportunity to meet and socialize with people of common ancestry, members may enjoy access to extensive collections of genealogical and historical material.
Many societies maintain their own libraries, museums, and archives; some of these resources are available to non-members and may be available online. The list below includes selected lineage and hereditary societies that have strong connections to New York. A more comprehensive listing of many dozens of lineage and hereditary societies of all kinds across the United States can found through the Hereditary Society Community of the United States of America, a community of historians, genealogists, educators, and patriots dedicated to the compilation of American historical and genealogical material for the use of the public. Their website includes guidelines for research, information about heraldry, and links to a number of different American hereditary societies.
An international organization of women whose ancestors held positions of leadership in the original thirteen North American colonies. The website includes information on their national headquarters and museum located in midtown Manhattan, descriptions of their activities (including preservation, scholarship, and commemoration), and links to regional chapters. This organization is different from the National Society of Colonial Dames (see below).
A society of men and women whose ancestors held feudal rights in the original thirteen colonies. They do not have an online presence.
A society of women whose ancestors performed military, civil, or patriotic service for the future United States during the American Revolution. The website includes an extensive genealogy database and library catalog, information on education and scholarships, and links to regional chapters. There are many chapters in New York City and State, including some that hold regular meetings at the New York Genealogical and Biographical Society's offices.
A society of women whose ancestors were officers in the American Revolution. The link below provides information on academic scholarships offered by the society and contact information; they do not have a general website. Their headquarters is in midtown Manhattan.
A society of men and women who can trace their ancestry to inhabitants of New Netherland before or during 1675. "Members" are men who can trace their ancestry through their direct male lines. "Friends" are men and women who share an interest in the society's mission. The website includes descriptions of their activities, a list of their publications, their library catalog, and links to regional chapters. Their headquarters is in midtown Manhattan.
A society of men and women descended from French Protestants who fled from their home country in the wake of religious persecution. The website includes an index of members' ancestors, information on the library and academic scholarships, and a list of upcoming events. Their headquarters is in midtown Manhattan.
A society of men and women descended from Mayflower passengers. The website includes information on their library and museum; a list of books, insignia, and educational materials; and instructions for subscribing to their publication, The Mayflower Quarterly. The New York Chapter is located in midtown Manhattan.
An association of forty-five individual societies and a self-described "leader in the field of historic preservation, restoration, and the interpretation of historic sites." The website includes descriptions of current and past projects, a list of museum properties, and information on scholarships. The National Society of Colonial Dames has its headquarters in Washington, DC and maintains an office and museum in Manhattan; the organization also manages the Van Cortlandt House, a museum in Van Cortlandt Park, New York City. This is a different organization from the Colonial Dames of America (see above).
A society of men and women associated with New England through their education, residence, or ancestry. The website includes information on scholarships and events and a list of resources.
A society founded after the Revolution by officers who served under Washington and sustained into the present by their male descendants. Since its inception it has expanded to include the male descendants of all the officers who served during the war. The website includes descriptions of their activities, projects, and publications and information on the Mount Gulian Historic Site, the reconstructed 18th-century residence of merchant Gulian Verplanck. See also Society of the Cincinnati below.
A national society of men -- with a New York chapter and office in midtown Manhattan -- whose ancestors played noteworthy roles in the foundation and development of the North American colonies from the settling of Jamestown to the Battle of Lexington. The website includes descriptions of their activities, including preservation and commemoration, a list of officers, and links to online resources.
A society of women descended from the early Dutch settlers of New Netherland. The website includes a list of members' ancestors, an activity calendar, and a list of online resources. Selected records from the organization are available online to NYG&BS members through the eLibrary.
A national organization of men, comprised of fourteen individual societies, whose members are descended from Revolutionary War officers. The website includes information on their library, their collections and exhibitions, and the Anderson House, the early 20th-century mansion that serves as the Society's headquarters.
A society of men whose ancestors served in the American Revolution, signed the Declaration of Independence, or supported the struggle for independence in some other manner. The website includes a timeline of the Revolution, information on the Fraunces Tavern Museum and restaurant, and a list of upcoming events.
A society of native-born Scottish persons and persons of Scottish descent, founded in 1756. The website includes full access to their publication, Two Hundred Fifty Years (1756-2006): The History of Saint Andrew's Society of the State of New York; information on scholarships and events; and a list of online resources.
A charitable organization and fellowship society established in 1770 for the purpose of helping needy Englishmen in New York. The website includes a history of the organization and a list of projects and events. Though not a heritage or lineage society per se, it provides cultural connections to the United Kingdon.
A society of men descended from a person who resided in New York State prior to 1785; founders included Washington Irving. The website provides access to past issues of their publication, The Weathercock; a description of activities and events; and a list of resources.


We are looking to fill multiple positions in our consulting line of business. They include Consultants, Senior Consultants and Managing Consultants. The candidates are expected to possess university-level qualifications with above-average grades and prior experience working in the financial services industry. The average years of experience include 2-4 years for Consultant, 5-7 years for Senior Consultant and 8-10 years for Managing Consultant. We are looking for candidates with specific experience in the Capital Markets and Risk Management domains.


NATICK, Mass. – October 18, 2013 – /BackupReview.info/ — Nasuni®, a provider of enterprise storage to large, distributed organizations, today announced another record quarter, driven by Nasuni's complete cloud-integrated storage solution to the enterprise.
Overall, 2013 is shaping up to be an exceptional year, with bookings for the first three quarters of this year at 150 percent of bookings for the full year of 2012. The third quarter of 2013 was especially outstanding, however, breaking all company records for revenue. Nasuni's bookings revenue grew 175 percent over Q3 2012, while the terabytes of storage that Nasuni has under management grew by 144 percent over the same period.
The average deal size continued to increase, growing by 128 percent over Q3 2012, and sales are increasingly international, with 20 percent of hardware shipments going outside of the United States.
In addition, Nasuni strengthened its position in key verticals, adding new accounts and growing established accounts with market leaders in both the architecture and legal industries. Building relationships with top 10 firms in each industry puts Nasuni in a strong position to solve similar challenges across each vertical.
Nasuni provides a simple, unified storage service via on-premises hardware that looks and feels like a traditional storage controller, but gains the advantages of the cloud by incorporating cloud storage in much the same way that a traditional storage array uses commodity disk drives.
During the third quarter, Nasuni also released a major new feature: Cloud Mirroring. With this capability, customer data resides in a primary cloud, while a copy of their data resides on a secondary cloud to which the customer can fail over in case of a primary cloud outage. The entire process is managed by the Nasuni service behind the scenes, with synchronization of customer data between clouds without any additional data management work for the customer. Cloud Mirroring is delivered seamlessly to users, allowing them to focus on managing their data while Nasuni manages the back-end.


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The World's Newest Economic Superpower?
CAMP 2018 Equity Scholarships
Published by Luisa at May 9, 2018
In the May 2018 issue of Company Director Magazine, CEO Andrea Myles explains how directors should be incorporating the thinking and perspective of not only Chinese but Chinese millennials into their business.
How to make the most of China,
the growing opportunity?
CAMPx2018 is a 100-day cross-border innovation training program that brings together 100 young Chinese and Australian leaders to learn design-thinking, up-skill cross-cultural leadership and create solutions to global issues. We began CAMP (now in its third year) because we could see the Australian market had not tweaked to the elephant in the room — the rise of innovative China. According to the International Monetary Fund, Australia's economy is approximately five per cent the size of China's. With the Chinese economy growing at three times the rate of Australia's, the key to future prosperity is to have our bright young minds deeply networked with their Chinese peers.
The smart money is on the 415 million Chinese millennials, and the astute company director will incorporate the thinking and perspective of not only Chinese but Chinese millennials into their business. After all, one in every five people on the planet is Chinese and one in 15 is Chinese and millennial.
When we started, people said we were "crazy-brave" for even attempting this. We were testing whether we could get 100 people aged 18–40 for 100 days into a part-time online and offline innovation accelerator program. We wanted them to be 50/50 Chinese and Australian nationals, and 50/50 female and male, and from all different industries. We wanted to test what could happen if we collide these bright minds. Could we not only avoid a major diplomatic incident but create functional, global businesses and startups?
Wide-eyed, we were testing the thesis, "What would happen if you got Alibaba's Jack Ma and Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg in a room together at age 25 and invited them to collaborate and build a startup over 100 days? What innovation would they come up with?"
So far, 300 people have graduated through the program and created a new movement of supporters across borders, without diplomatic faux pas. Shortly, we will be launching a tech platform to expand CAMP's reach to connect a network of 100,000 Australians and Chinese. We're also launching a global tasking platform to help corporates globally surf the tsunami of a disrupted century by engaging the brain power of Chinese millennials via feedback on new products, marketing campaigns, and more.
They also create a new movement, a resilient, trusted network that is able to problem solve, wrangle with ideas and challenge each other with a twinkle in their eye.
It turns out the CAMPers don't just start brilliant startups like Elumin8 — an IoT smart lamp that tells you how much energy your household is using — or CityQuest, a "Groupon meets Pokémon GO" app that increases foot traffic across smart cities. They also create a new movement, a resilient, trusted network able to problem-solve, wrangle with ideas and challenge each other with a twinkle in their eye. We've gone from butcher's paper on a wall in Surry Hills to a multimillion-dollar business with four pillars aimed at expanding business opportunities with China.
Aside from CAMP, which networks leaders under 40 with their counterparts in China and gives them an innovation and entrepreneurship toolkit, we have an insights arm that does a yearly national survey of the two million Chinese millennial customers in Australia.
We also do community- and customer-led engagement and pop-up events to test new ideas in market, and CAMPLab helps Fortune 500/ASX 200 companies find fresh approaches to engage in future-focused business with China.
CAMP's four-person advisory board comprises Liz Jakubowski (CSIRO, Data61, ribit.net), Christopher Kong (Danone Nutricia China), Clement Tsang (Cadreon) and design creative Yiying Lu.
Chinese millennials in focus
If Chinese millennials were a country unto themselves, they would be the world's third-largest and the most digitally engaged.
Goldman Sachs describes millennials as the most influential generation on the planet.
The rising Chinese middle class is also a millennial story hungry for Australian products, which they view as clean, green and safe.
China is Australia's largest trading partner, but it is also the largest trading partner of 127 other nations.
Australia is China's seventh-largest trading partner and the third-largest seller to China behind the US and Japan (China Internet Watch).
Chinese millennials spent 35 per cent of their income on travel last year (Finder).
In 2016, Chinese millennials accounted for 60 per cent of the country's foreign travel and spent more than $US150b (Bloomberg).
Diversity as the engine of innovation
In Australia, we view diversity as "nice to have", neglecting the opportunity to use it as the engine of innovation.
Australian businesses large enough to have an innovation arm as well as a diversity strategy can gain by colliding these initiatives and placing the results at the heart of business as usual.
Establishing what matters
We don't begin by focusing on differences as, in fact, we are far more alike than we are different. Everyone is at a similar life stage; we're digital natives and from there we establish shared value. The counterpoints of shared value and diversity are our secret sauces. It sounds counter-intuitive, but like Vegemite and avocado, when we get the mix right, weirdly, it just works.
We ask CAMP delegates to select an industry project in which they hold deep interest. They choose this from 15 different verticals, determined by the overlap of China's 13th five-year plan (where innovation and global industry collaboration feature heavily) and Australia's national strengths such as education, tourism, retail, food, SME's ageing population management and so on.
Tools to get stuff done
CAMP is powered by a team of bilingual multicultural leaders all under 40. Our partners include Alibaba, Macquarie University, EY, Wesfarmers, Country Garden Australia, David Jones, Austrade and an army of supporters who share a bold vision of the China-Australia relationship.
The team is remotely based, with staff in our Beijing, Sydney, Canberra and Brisbane offices.
On a daily basis, I'm switching between digital platforms and complete 80 per cent of my CEO work on my mobile phone, largely on the WeChat, Trello-esque platform Teambition and Zoom (like Skype, but better I think).
We find that Zoom's ability to host group video calls, even in low bandwidth conditions, is an essential part of maintaining team cohesion, rapport and empathy, especially when we're under the pump and working hard across borders.
As with everything in China, nothing can be understood as a monolith, and nuance is key. There is not one Chinese millennial but several hundred different personas one could identify, based on class, location, education, urban/regional divide and so on. It is safe to say that Chinese millennials will disrupt your business. The question is when, and will you choose to collaborate with them early or hesitate and bear the brunt?
Brand reputation goes up by the stairs and down by the lift, and political controversy has recently seen Australia descend a few floors. I would love to see Australia engage in the 21st century with our eyes wide open and be bolder when it comes to engaging with this educated, upwardly mobile world-shaping demographic.
This is a republication of Andrea Myles, co-founder and CEO of the China Australia Millennial Project (CAMP), last article for Company Director. You can find a link to the article at the end of this page.
date of publication: 30 April 2018
You can find the article on the website of Company Director here.
BOOK your sit for the Sydney Week finale evening!!
Join us for the culmination of 100 days of blood, sweat and innovation at The Concourse in Chatswood.
The cross-border innovation program CAMPx2018 sprints towards the finish line on 15th June 2018 with the final pitches up on stage at the gorgeous premiere venue, The Concourse.
RSVP required, place limited
more info at info@australiachina.org
Tips on funding your participation in CAMP
CAMP Alumni Thomas Tang – read his story!


The Kunstraum in Mayrhofen guarantees unforgettable experiences.
It's not only the fascinating architecture and location that make this 56-meters long, almost self-supporting viewing platform so unique. Inside, the cozy Café-Bistro Kunstraum offers fascinating panoramas.


Formula hybridae: Narcissus pseudonarcissus L. × Narcissus triandrus L.
Narcissus × johnstonii (Baker) Pugsley, J. Roy. Hort. Soc. 58: 37. 1933.
Narcissus × johnstonii var. mirabilis Pugsley, J. Roy. Hort. Soc. 58: 38. 1933.
Narcissus pseudonarcissus var. johnstonii Baker, Gard. Chron., n.s., 25: 590. 1886.
Govaerts, R. et al. 2012. Narcissus × taitii in World Checklist of Selected Plant Families. The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Published on the internet. Accessed: 2012 Aug 25.
Henriques, J.A. 1887. Boletim da Sociedade Broteriana 5: 170.
USDA, ARS, Germplasm Resources Information Network. Narcissus × taitii in the Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN), U.S. Department of Agriculture Agricultural Research Service. Accessed on 07-Oct-06.


CARITAS WEEKEND - The St. Louis Parish Social Ministry will again collect Food for Caritas, the weekend of December 7th & 8th. Any canned good or non-perishable such as cereal, peanut butter or other staples is welcome. Thanks for helping! Your generosity helps families who are now struggling in this economy.


2013 Kia pro_cee'd will make its world premiere at the Paris Motor Show which will take place on 27th of September. This model is actually the third installment of the second-generation cee'd family.
The all-new pro_cee'd will debut as a three-door hatchback, and is expected to be available at dealerships in the Spring of 2013. In addition, the sophisticated new Kia includes all the enhancements made to the cee'd five-door and cee'd Sportswagon.
However, it dramatically adds enhanced sporty appearance and more powerful stance. In few words, this car embodies emotion and energy. Kia offers a distinctive design adventure and the new pro-cee'd will embark upon this journey.


It's been said that one should not judge a book by its cover, though if one is to judge anything of an author by his book's cover, Jose Canseco is pretty impressed with himself. The cover of Juiced : Wild Times, Rampant 'Roids, Smash Hits and How Baseball Got Big, (Regan Books, $24.95, though you should never pay that much) besides somehow managing to fit the longest baseball title since "The Bingo Long Traveling All-Stars and Motor Kings," also includes not one, but two pictures of Canseco, his #33, his position (RF/DH) and his career statistics, and that's just on the front. The back cover has yet another picture of the author, a beefcake shot of him flexing his bicep while holding a bat, with the title "The Chemist" above it, and a self-quote below. Not bad, if he does say so himself, and he does. Several times.
One of the first things I discovered as I read Jose Canseco's new book was that most of the reviews I had seen had not done the book justice. For one thing, 90% of the quotes they used had come right out of the introduction. I doubt most reviewers had read much farther. Another problem was that the articles I had seen about the book had seemed to discuss only the steroid-related topics in the book, whereas I found the book to be much more comprehensive than that. I hope that this thorough review will offer you a much clearer picture of Canseco and his book.
Don't get me wrong: Juiced is about steroids and other performance-enhancing drugs. It's got that title for a reason. But the story doesn't start there, and Canseco knew enough as he wrote the book to know that he couldn't keep most sports fans interested for almost 300 pages if all he discussed were drugs, dosages and dropped names. Canseco spends several chapters discussing his family history and upbringing, breaking into the big leagues, and becoming an MVP. He also spends a chapter on women (plus an entire chapter on his relationship with Madonna...hint: it was pretty tame), a chapter on cars, one on dealing with the press, fatherhood, the 1994 strike, and several chapters on the twilight of his career.
I should say, "Jose's perceived reasons for the extended twilight and premature end of his career", but that comes later. The book starts with his parents' reasonably successful life in Cuba, and their flight to Miami upon Fidel Castro's takeover. Jose and his siblings grew up in Miami, and Jose maintains that he was something of a runt as a youngster. He and his twin brother Ozzie learned to play from thier father when they were little, though his father wasn't always as encouraging as he would have liked.
Much of what Canseco writes must be taken with a grain of salt, in my opinion, as the book is clearly written with an agenda in mind, namely to prove that Jose Canseco's career as a professional baseball player is almost entirely due to his usage of anabolic steroids and human growth hormone. "I was always a scrawny kid, not very athletic, and in my wildest dreams I couldn't see myself playing at the major league level," he tells you, and then he tries to play down the fact that he was the MVP of both his JV and Varsity baseball teams in high school.
Harrumph, I say. There aren't that many kids drafted out of high school by Major League Baseball teams, fewer still as low as the 15th round. The dude must have had some talent, right? He might not have had such a prolific and prolonged career without the aid of steroids, but he certainly could have been a major leaguer for some time. His brother Ozzie had essentially the same genes, and he made it to the majors, albeit briefly, without much help from steroids, though Jose attests that his twin dabbled a little in the juice as well.
Other names he mentions in the book, besides the big names like Mark McGwire, Juan Gonzales, Rafael Palmiero and Ivan Rodriguez, include Wilson Alvarez, Dave Martinez and Tony Saunders. For all of these players he purports to know first-hand of their steroid use. Canseco also discusses his suspicions about Sammy Sosa, Barry Bonds, Brady Anderson, Bret Boone and Roger Clemens (though he does say that the Rocket never "touched down" in any woman's bed besides his wife's, as far as Jose knew).
The 2001 spring training conversation he "recalls" with Boone has already been debunked by ESPN.com's Jeff Merron here, along with a few other of Jose's fuzzy recollections. Some of these are details, like whether he pinch hit for David Cone in Game 4 or Game 6 of the 2000 World Series. Others are pretty substantial mistakes, like his account of a monster home run he hit off Walt Terrell in Detroit in 1986, which was actually hit in 1987. By Mark McGwire. Small detail.
Here's one that Merron didn't discuss: In Chapter 19, "The Godfather of Steroids", The Don discusses a home run derby in which he participated in February of 2000, along with other sluggers like McGuire, Palmiero, and Bonds. He says that Bonds was amazed by his physique, as well as the fact that he won the contest, hitting at least one blast that landed "maybe 550 or 600 feet from home plate."
"So what did Barry Bonds do that next off-season? He showed up in spring 2001 with forty pounds of added muscle. As soon as he set foot on a field in Scottsdale that spring, he was all anyone could talk about."
Well, the evidence does not support Canseco's inference that this experience led Bonds to steroid use. Bonds had missed a third of the 1999 season with injuries, but managed to hit 34 homers in 355 at-bats despite that, and was in fact, invited with other elite sluggers to the aforementioned home run derby. Bonds bounced back nicely from those injuriesin 2000, though, hitting .306, tying his career high with 129 runs scored (in 143 games) and setting new personal bests with 49 homers and a .688 slugging percentage, all at age 35. It seems more likely that Bonds' steroid use was a response to the 1999 injuries he suffered, and that the wheels were in motion well before he traveled to Las Vegas that February.
Canseco's opinions on his status as a Latino, and the influence it had on his young career, is also a bit suspect. While I don't doubt that racism existed at that time in MLB organizations, and that it still does in some forms, I don't see how the major leagues were as "closed" as he contends. In 1985 alone over 100 players, nearly 10% of all major leaguers, hailed from a predominantly Spanish-speaking country, according to Baseball-Reference.com.
Latinos had played and played well in the majors for decades before Canseco came along, with MVP winners such as Roberto Clemente, Orlando Cepeda, and Willie Hernandez, as well as fellow Cuban Zoilo Versailles. Hernandez and another Cuban, Mike Cuellar, hasd also won Cy Young Awards, and practically countless Latinos had won Gold Gloves, Silver Slugges, and other acclaim in major league baseball. A few narrow-minded hicks who happened to manage minor league franchises may have been rotten, especially towards someone they perceived as a "hot dog" or a "goof-off" like Jose. That, however, hardly spoils the whole bunch of major league owner-apples, and is far from the pervasive conspiracy to keep the Latinos down that Canseco describes.
Sketchy recollections and thinly-veiled agendas aside, the book isn't bad. Canseco's smart enough to know that someone else should write his books for them, and Steve Kettmann, his ghost writer, does a good job of putting Jose's words into, well, Jose's words. It's not eloquent or elaborate, but it's not Hemingway either. It's just plain talk, easy to read (unlike some of my stuff) and reasonably interesting. It's part revisionist history, part biased biography, and part "how To" guid, both for how to become a major leaguer (HINT: there are needles involved) and how to act when you get there (HINT: Don't date Madonna; DO be nice to the Press).
Despite my criticisms, I actually do recommend reading this book. Just try to do it with some access to the record books nearby, just in case. For all its flaws, Juiced really was interesting. Imperfect, with some big holes and lots of unanswered questions, but a fun ride nonetheless.
Kind of like it's author.
It's McGwire ... not McGuire.


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Campsidium Seem., es un género monotípico  de árboles pertenecientes a la familia Bignoniaceae. Su única especie, Campsidium valdivianum, es originaria de Chile, donde se la conoce como boqui (o voqui) de canasta, ya que se usa principalmente como materia prima para confección de cestería artesanal.

Descripción
Es un bejuco, sin zarcillos. Hojas pinnadas compuestas, con 4 a 7 pares de folíolos, de hasta 3,5 cm de largo, elípticos, glabros, margen denticulado. Las inflorescencias se presentan  en racimos terminales, con pedicelos de hasta 2 cm de longitud. Cáliz campanulado, de color verde-purpúreo. Corola tubulosa, de color rojo. El fruto es una cápsula elipsoide, comprimida, de alrededor de 10 cm de largo, con semillas aladas, elípticas.

Taxonomía
Campsidium valdivianum fue descrito por (Phil.) W.Bull  y publicado en Retail List of Beautiful & Rare Plants, London 59: 4. 1871.
Sinonimia
 Campsidium chilense Reissek & Seem.
 Campsidium valdivianum (Phil.) Skottsb.
 Gelseminum valdivianum (Phil.) Kuntze
 Tecoma chilensis (Reissek & Seem.) N.E.Br.
 Tecoma mirabilis Van Houtte
 Tecoma valdiviana Phil.	basónimo
 Tecomaria valdiviana (Phil.) Kranzlin

Referencias

Tecomeae

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


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Being Cheated on Showed Me the Toxic Masculinity Within the Gay Community
I was a feminine boy in a school dominated by the worst kind of masculinity, and repression became my go-to coping mechanism. Perhaps the best representation of this is my experience of coming to terms with my sexuality.
I'd repressed so much of myself that I was barely a fully functional human when it came to my emotions. It wasn't until I met a boy who opened my eyes to something I didn't actually know existed – myself – that I got comfortable with my emotions.
Most queer people agree that the internet is where we first found out about the queer community, but he was the first person I ever knew in real life who identified on the spectrum. This interaction was the first time I realised that there were other gay people in social circles not so far away from my own. This boy made me feel so amazingly confident in myself that I came out to someone within a couple weeks of meeting him.
We didn't only come out to ourselves, we watched each other come out to friends, and accepted that our love was something that demanded to be cherished. A couple months, two adrenaline-powered 'I love you's' and a first kiss under a table later, we were together in something that felt like it would last forever.
It's only now that I understand how skewed the power dynamic was. He would go on power trips, gloat about how he could ruin lives. He knew I was blindly high on my first love, but he was more experienced. He knew which words would throw me into bouts of anxiety, and when he could use them to his advantage.
We inadvertently became the token gay people within our circles – representatives of a community we didn't know much about and hadn't fully immersed ourselves in yet. As the 'gay best friend' for so many female friends, I was used to this tokenisation. It was the first inkling I had of the fetishisation of the queer community.
My boyfriend moved to another city a couple months into our relationship, and that's when it all went downhill. Despite the light I've painted him in, I know there was a part of him that cared for me as he could tell I was becoming a shell of myself without him. This was maybe the largest indication of my dependence on him. I was repeatedly questioning my decision to attempt a long distance relationship when it clearly wasn't working.
The final nail in the coffin was a late night call when he said, "I can't do this anymore. Something happened, I kissed __". I was in shock, or rather passive disbelief, as I said, "It's okay, mistakes happen, let's give it another shot." I know now that mistakes don't happen on one drink and cigarettes, and they don't last for as long as this one did. It took a few days, supportive friendships and alcohol for it to actually sink in: I had been cheated on.
I ultimately ended things a week later, coming out of it feeling like our friendship could survive. We both knew it was the right step to take. But then, a phone call from a friend revealed a whole other secret. "A friend told me about a boy who was unhappy in his relationship and wanted to end it, and so he cheated on his boyfriend but still wasn't being broken up with."
By now, we were deeply immersed in the community, and I knew how small it was and how fast word travelled. I was hearing stories of how quickly he'd moved on, without knowing if they were true or not. But I did learn that my relationship was far less monogamous than I was led to believe.
As I developed more friendships within the community, I understood I couldn't trust everything people were telling me. I realised that he succumbed to the attention he was receiving, and the cheating was intentional. Men were sliding into my DM's too, but they were most likely attempts to take advantage of me. Entering the community was exciting, and thanks to our, admittedly, highly-public social media profiles, we were often looked at as 'fresh meat'.
Within the community, the lack of sensitivity towards newly-out men is shocking and scary. Screenshots from Tinder and Grindr are shared regularly, and discussions on deflowering new entries are common.
Coming out is never easy; it's a deeply nerve-wracking and emotional process. You don't know how the person on the other side is going to react and you internalise discrimination and homophobia on a regular basis. Given how many people go through this mental exhaustion, I don't understand the lack of empathy in the community, especially one that's often seen as liberal and warm. To feel that you're being taken advantage of by the very people who you thought would accept you – when you feared no one would – is a harsh and disconcerting reality.
I don't mean to drag the entire community; it's not all bad. I've found and lost love again within it, made irreplaceable friendships and gained the confidence to take charge of my queer expression. I've realised the power of my sexuality – and the responsibility I bear to challenge the fetishisation we face every day. The way I interact with or behave around people, who are only just learning about the multiplicity of sexual identities, shapes their impression of the queer community as a whole. This is why watching other people taking advantage of our minority status makes my blood boil.
Being cheated on made me realise that there's quicksand in the most unexpected of forests. It also taught me what love is and how powerful it can be. I realise now that my actions are looked at through a microscope, and the way I emotionally and sexually express myself can influence new people within this community. It can reinforce the fact that there's immense power in saying 'no', of shaping how we look at and understand consent, while we navigate a community that's isn't exempt from its own version of toxic masculinity.
The author has chosen to remain anonymous.
How Do You Know That a Woman Won't Falsely Accuse You of Rape?
In Defence of Dating (Much) Older Men


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Sake, Tea and Holy Mountains by Train
Exploring mountains, tea and sake around Kyoto
A 2-day trip by Keihan Railway to Hieizan, Uji and Fushimi
Raina Ong Staff Writer,
japan-guide.com
Day 1: Hieizan, a sacred mountain
Day 2: Uji and Fushimi, tea and sake culture
Located in the mountains northeast of central Kyoto, Hieizan is a deeply revered mountain on which Enryakuji Temple was built over 1200 years ago. As the head temple of the influential Japanese Tendai Buddhist sect, both the mountain and the temple have become synonymous with one another over the millennium. Hieizan is a place with a long history, and its location provides a conducive environment for those who wish to reflect and contemplate. Over in the south of central Kyoto, Uji and Fushimi are two areas that are known for their quality tea and sake respectively. Visitors to these two places can enjoy the contrasting flavours and drinking styles of the two beverages.
On this trip, I spent two days in Hieizan, Uji and Fushimi. The first day was spent entirely on Hieizan with an overnight stay on the mountain, and the second day was spent visiting the sights and attractions in Uji and Fushimi. Luggage forwarding services are available at the airport, and I sent my luggage to my hotel in Kyoto where I stayed after this trip. Doing that allowed me to travel hands-free and not worry about having to handle a bulky suitcase.
I began my trip from Kansai Airport and headed straight for Hieizan. Much of the mountain is covered in forest, and there are walking trails that crisscross the mountain and lead to the temple buildings as well as connect to the neighbouring mountain ranges. The plan was to go on a hike and visit the temple buildings along the way, ending the day with an overnight stay at the temple lodging on the mountain.
About 1200 years ago, Saicho, a local Buddhist priest, returned to his home town in nearby Otsu on the other side of Hieizan after being ordained at Nara's Todaiji Temple. Saicho went to China to study more about Tendai Buddhism, and upon his return, introduced the school to Japan and established Enryakuji Temple on Hieizan. Since its establishment, Hieizan has been visited by some founding members of other Buddhist sects, including Zen and Pure Land Buddhism, who initially studied there.
There are three main areas that make up Enryakuji Temple: Yokawa in the north, Saito in the west and Todo in the east. All three areas are connected by road and hiking trails, and I started my hike at Yokawa, continued to Saito before ending at Todo. The hike passed through forest and mountain ridges, providing panoramic views along the way, and it was a good time to reflect as I made my way towards the temple buildings. My hike from start to finish took about three hours, which included visiting the temple buildings.
Along the hiking path on Hieizan in Otsu-shi near Kyoto
Sign posts point the way
The Gyokutaisugi cedar tree stands about midway between Yokawa and Saito
We're not far from Kyoto, and the view of the city from the hiking path is great!
Still walking in the forest
The scenery changes slightly inside
Saito is the west area of Enryakuji Temple, and it is centered around the Shakado. The Shakado hall dates back to 1595, and it is the oldest structure on Hieizan. I walked through the serene grounds and entered the hall to pay my respects to the main object of worship inside, the Shaka Buddha. Not far from the Shakado is Jodoin, Saicho's simple and unassuming mausoleum, that has a rock garden around it.
Centuries old Shakado in the Saito area of Enryakuji in Otsu-shi near Kyoto
Inside the Shakado. The Shaka Buddha is placed behind those doors and cannot be seen
Looking back at the hall on the way out
These two buildings connected by a corridor are known as the Ninaido and are said to have been lifted here by a monk
At the very quiet and peaceful Jodoin with its rock garden
Todo is the east area, and the location where Enryakuji and Japanese Tendai Buddhism were founded. By far the largest of the three areas, Todo also has the most number of temple buildings. It is centered around the Konpon Chudo, the main hall of Enryakuji Temple. The building houses a statue of the Yakushi Buddha, which is said to be carved by Saicho himself. The lamp that is placed before the statue has been kept burning since Saicho lit it in dedication to the Yakushi Buddha over 1200 years ago.
The Konpon Chudo is currently undergoing major renovations, an event that happens once every 60 years, and construction is expected to be finished by spring 2026. During this period, the building will be covered up in parts, but visitors will still be able to enter the building as well as view the ongoing renovation process.
I walked around checking out the Konpon Chudo as well as the Hokke So Ji-in area where the Amidado Hall and Todo Pagoda can be found. The Todo area was the most well visited area, but that liveliness outside did not impact nor distract from the respectful mood inside the various halls.
Bellfry where visitors are welcome to ring the bell for a small fee
Views in the Todo area of Enryakuji in Otsu-shi near Kyoto
Renovation works are currently on going at the Konpon Chudo hall, and visitors can see the roof construction from the viewing platforms
The main altar inside the Konpon Chudo
Todo Pagoda on the left and Amida Hall on the right
As the sun started to set, I made my way to Enryakuji Kaikan, the temple lodging on Hieizan located in the Todo area. The well equipped facility provides basic accommodation and vegetarian meals. The most important point for me was its proximity to the Konpon Chudo, which would come in handy for me the following morning.
Twilight and city lights around Lake Biwa near Kyoto
Joining in the temple's morning prayers is an activity that can be participated in when you stay at a temple. For Enryakuji, the morning prayers are conducted at the Konpon Chudo, which is less than five minutes on foot from Enryakuji Kaikan. I woke up at dawn and made my way to the main hall to take part in the activity. Morning prayers are a great way to set the mood for the rest of the day as well as to experience Buddhist culture, and the one at Enryakuji Temple also included a small talk in Japanese at the end by one of the priests.
Pre-prayer sunrise over the lake
Morning prayers inside Konpon Chudo
A small lecture after the prayers
After breakfast back at the temple lodging, I checked out and made my way down and out of Hieizan by Keihan Railway. My first stop was Mampukuji, the head temple of the Obaku Zen temple, which was established about 350 years ago by a Chinese Zen master. The Obaku Zen religion is one of the three big Zen sects in Japan, the other two being the Rinzai and Soto sects.
Mampukuji Temple was founded by a Chinese Zen master in the mid 17th century, and as such, the temple designs have a more Chinese influence than Japanese. The main object of worship at the Daiohoden main hall is a massive statue of the Shaka Buddha flanked by two of his disciples, and surrounded by 18 arhats. I had a very pleasant visit to Mampukuji, and it was definitely very different compared to Hieizan yesterday.
Hotei deity at Mampukuji Temple in Uji-shi near Kyoto
The Daihoden main hall is the largest historical structure made of teak in Japan
Lanterns along the corridors
Spot the Buddhist manju designs in the fence
From there, I got back on the Keihan Line and made my way to Uji, a few minutes away. Uji is known for many things, and amongst them, Uji tea, Uji Bridge and Byodoin Temple are the most famous. From Uji Station, I crossed the iconic Uji Bridge and onwards to the main approach to Byodoin Temple. The approach is lined with many restaurants and businesses selling local Uji tea and its related products. It was clear that green tea is a local product, and I left that tea experience for later.
Crossing the Uji Bridge and looking at Uji River
A statue of Murasaki Shikibu, the author of The Tale of Genji, one of the oldest novels in the world, which mentions Uji and Uji Bridge
Main approach to Byodoin Temple
Byodoin Temple has almost 1000 years of history, and the Hoodo, also known as the Phoenix Hall, located at the heart of the temple grounds, is its central focus. The Hoodo stands on an island in the garden's pond, and the garden dates back to the 11th century and is modeled after the Buddhist Pure Land paradise.
A typical visit route starting at the main entrance takes one through the temple garden to the Phoenix Hall and ends with a visit to the excellent museum where the temple's treasures can be seen up close. Entering the Hoodo (additional fee required) and the museum are not to be missed when visiting Byodoin Temple, and I learned a lot more and had a better understanding and appreciation for Buddhist culture and history.
The Hoodo, Phoenix Hall, is the centerpiece at Byodoin. It is also featured on the back of the 10 yen coin ⒸByodoin Temple
This wooden statue of Buddha was carved almost a thousand years ago and sits inside the Phoenix Hall ⒸByodoin Temple
The museum at Byodoin is not to be missed. Pictured here are the Bodhisvattas that surround the Buddha inside the Phoenix Hall ⒸByodoin Temple
A closeup of the phoenix that can be seen on the roof of the Hoodo as well as on the back of the 10,000 yen note ⒸByodoin Temple
Next on my agenda was to finally get to sampling the famous Uji tea. I headed to Nakamura Tokichi, a tea shop that has been around for generations and had a full Japanese green tea experience. I started with lunch at their restaurant and had the green tea soba noodles, and finished my meal with a green tea parfait.
Following that, I proceeded to a separate tea room for a tea experience in which I had the opportunity to grind tea leaves into powder and participate in a tea ceremony. It was a very unique and utterly enjoyable time led by the English speaking resident tea practitioner, John, who explained the history of Nakamura Tokichi and the design and architecture of the place before the tea ceremony. The entire tea session typically takes about 60-90 minutes, and time just flew by for me as I was having too much fun.
Green tea parfait in a bamboo cup? Say no more
It's all about the small touches
The room where I would grind the tea leaves
First time grinding tea leaves into powder using a stone mill
My English-speaking tea instructor, John, explaining about the tea house
Tea ceremony in session
Koicha or thick tea is a very viscous green tea. This was a cup of koicha in a beautiful tea bowl
To close my trip, I got back on the Keihan Line and headed to Fushimi, a well-established sake district in Kyoto. My last stop for the day was the Fushimi Sakagura Koji, a collection of eight food stalls and one sake bar under one roof. The draw of this place is the opportunity to sample the local brew from about 20 Fushimi sake breweries in one location. I ordered a tasting flight of sake, which contained a sample from 18 sake breweries. Then, I also ordered from the food stalls, and the food was delivered to my table. This unusual dining experience brought my day and the trip to a perfect end, and asking for more would just be greedy.
Fushimi Sakagura Koji
Sake bar
My amazing spread to end the trip
Keihan Railway provides access from central Kyoto to Hieizan, Uji and Fushimi.
How to get to and around Hieizan from KIX
From Kansai Airport (KIX), take a Nankai train bound for Namba and transfer at Tengachaya to the Sakaisuji Line on the Osaka Metro to Kitahama. Change at Kitahama to the Keihan Railway and get off at Demachiyanagi Station. From there, the Eizan Line provides the connection on the train from Demachiyanagi to Yase-Hieizanguchi, then cable car from Yase to Hiei, and finally the ropeway from Hiei to Hiei-Sancho at the top of the mountain. The one way trip from KIX to the top of the mountain takes about 2.5-3 hours with good connections and costs 2810-3330 yen depending on train category.
2-3 buses per hour depart from Hiei-Sancho to the main areas of Enryakuji Temple: Todo, Enryakuji Bus Center, Saito and Yokawa. The one way bus ride from Hiei-Sancho to Yokawa, the starting point of my hike, takes about 20 minutes and costs 760 yen. A one day pass is available for 1000 yen.
How to get to and around Uji from Hieizan
Backtrack down the mountain to Demachiyanagi Station. From there, take the Keihan Line with a transfer at Chushojima to the Keihan Uji Line to Obaku Station (about 30 minutes, 400 yen one way). From there, it is about a five minute walk to Mampukuji Temple.
From Obaku Station, take the Keihan Uji Line bound for Uji and get off at the terminus (4 minutes, 160 yen one way). Central Uji, where Uji Bridge, Byodoin Temple and Nakamura Tokichi are located, is relatively compact, and all these spots are within a 10-minute walk from Uji Station.
How to get to and around Fushimi from Uji
From Uji Station, take the Keihan Uji Line to Chushojima and change to the Keihan Line and get off at Fushimi-Momoyama Station. The one way trip from Uji to Fushimi-Momoyama takes about 20 minutes and costs 270 yen. Fushimi Sakagura Koji is less than a ten minute walk from the station through the covered shopping arcade.
Ride Keihan, discover Kyoto (Keihan Electric Railway)
Uji City Tourist Association
Biwako Otsu Travel Guide
2-day trip to Koyasan and Sakai


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Stealing The Empire State Building
Richardson To Get Commerce Post
Hotter = Safer?
Openly Lesbian Mary Beth Maxwell Up for Secretary ...
Jeb Bush In The Senate?
Prop 8 - The Musical
The Princess Diana Bible
Bringing Saxby Back
Shallowest Post Of The Week
Prisoner Abuse Charges Dismissed For Cheney, Gonzales
AIDS Link Goes Back Millions Of Years
New research suggests that an ancestor to HIV may have existed millions of years ago.
An ancient predecessor to the virus that causes Aids evolved in wild primates many millions of years earlier than previously believed, according to research published yesterday by the Stanford University School of Medicine. The findings open a critical new avenue in the quest to understand the origins of the human immunodeficiency virus, or HIV, which unleashed a pandemic that since 1981 has claimed more than 25 million lives worldwide, and threatens millions more.
The discovery also bolsters scientific hunches that HIV-like viruses may be more broadly distributed among primates and other wildlife than previously thought, posing a potential risk for humans in close contact with these animals. Primates in Africa passed on the two strains of HIV circulating among humans, scientists are convinced.
"It points to the direction for future research, that we need to establish how widespread these viruses are," said Robert Gifford, an infectious disease researcher with Stanford, and lead author of the study. Gifford and his colleagues studied gray mouse lemurs, squirrel-sized, saucer-eyed primates found in Madagascar. They found that the lemur genomes they studied carried lentiviruses, which are among a family of viruses that include HIV. Lentiviruses have been intensely studied since the emergence of Aids. While the discovery of lentiviruses in lemurs surprised the researchers, what especially stunned them was the realisation that lemurs must have carried the virus for at least 14m years.
Scientists hope this discovery may help prevent other animal viruses from entering the human population. Further research may also discover "fixed features" of the ancient virus that could be the target of new AIDS drugs.
Labels: "celibacy", HIV/AIDS, science


ORANGE, Calif., June 27, 2017 — John Kabashima, Ph.D., noted horticulturalist, researcher, and expert on pest control and water use, will be bringing 40 years of knowledge to the Village Nurseries Summer 2017 Lunch-and-Learn Event for landscape professionals on Wednesday, July 12, 2017 at the company's Orange and Huntington Beach Landscape Centers.
Continuing the company's ongoing focus on education and outreach to the industry, Dr. Kabashima's "Lessons from Forty Years in Horticultural and What to Expect Going Forward" will discuss many of the issues facing the landscape industry today, including a snapshot of where the horticultural industry stands today. This will include landscape design, pestilence and disease, the water situation and more. He will also offer his view of the industry's direction going forward while commenting on the direction he believes it should be going in.
Events will be held from 9:30am-10:30am at Village Nurseries Orange, 1582 N. Tustin St., Orange and from 11:30am-12:30pm at Village Nurseries Huntington Beach, 10500 Garfield Ave., Huntington Beach. Future Lunch-and-Learn events are scheduled through Q4 2017.
Dr. Kabashima earned his MBA at Pepperdine University in 1986 while managing the Ornamental Horticulture Division at Target Specialty Products. In 1987, the UC Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources recruited him to become a UC Cooperative Extension environmental horticulture advisor in Orange and Los Angeles counties. He received his Ph.D. in Entomology from UC Riverside in 2005.
Over the years, he has studied the management of insects, diseases and weeds in horticulture production systems, biological control of exotic pests, and water-related problems in landscapes, golf courses, nurseries, municipalities and watersheds.
In 1998 Dr. Kabashima took over the fledgling UC Master Gardener Program in Orange County, which as of now has trained more than 300 UC Master Gardener volunteers to extend research-based information on gardening and horticulture to the public.
The UCCE environmental horticulture advisor has also served as director of UC Cooperative Extension in Orange County and interim director of the UC ANR South Coast Research and Extension Center.
Dr. Kabashima belongs to many professional organizations including the Entomological Society of America, California Association of Nurseries and Garden Centers, Nursery Growers Association, Western Chapter of the International Society of Arboriculture, United Agribusiness League, and San Diego Flower and Plant Association. The scientist has served on numerous government and industry advisory committees.
Founded in 1976, Village Nurseries currently has major wholesale sales offices in Orange and Sacramento, California and more than 900 acres under cultivation in growing facilities located strategically throughout Northern and Southern California. It serves markets throughout the western United States while maintaining four specialty Landscape Center locations to serve landscape professionals. For more information, visit https://www.villagenurseries.com.


Write an essay in which you interpret the overall meaning (or message) of a single poem in MLA Format. Choose a poem which you feel provide enough depth and material for your essay. Make sure to express the meaning or the message in a clear thesis statement. The best way to approach this essay would be to ask yourself: "What's the single message, or lesson, the poet is trying to get across?" If you can answer that question, you will be on your way to developing an arguable thesis. A thesis statement will look something like this: "In the poem [ insert name of poem], the author [name the author] suggests that [insert a claim that is arguable]. For example: " In the poem, "The Vigil", the poet Rumi suggest that human beings have an innate need for spiritual companionship that ultimately finds us.
This poem is by Bronislaw Maj tells about a moment lived long ago, when he was four. The intensity of perception was so great that it remains forced in memory a forever present, as if it had just taken place. He was the present tense, and perhaps for the best, because the past tense might be somewhat sentimental.
the rush of the glittering Raba.
is seen distinctly as if it grew in our garden.
There will be the attached file below.


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Q: webservice referer It's possible to get the webservice caller url referer? If yes how?

A: The following answer is for Microsoft non-WCF webservices. I am sure there is something equivalent for WCF as well.
When your webservice is invoked, you can get a handle to the Context. The context will give you access to the HttpRequest object from which you can query any header.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Attended by over 1,500 faithful devotees, Sri Vraja Mandala Parikrama was successfully completed under the expert guidance of Srila Bhaktivedanta Narayana Gosvami Maharaja. After two days of rest, on November 15, 2008, Srila Maharaja departed from his bhajana kutir in Sri Giridhari Gaudiya Math, Govardhana, bound for Delhi. A two-day program was then held in Sri Ramana-Bihari Gaudiya Matha in Delhi, to commemorate the installation of the Deities there a few years before.
Early on the morning of the 17th, Srila Maharaja left Delhi and flew to Calcutta on his way to Sri Navadvipa Dhama. He arrived at Sri Kesavaji Gaudiya Matha in Navadvipa on the morning of the 18th and at his own request took up residence in the newly completed guest house instead of his usual off-site accommodation.
Srila Maharaja's room had the advantage of a small balcony providing an excellent vantage point from which to view the entire construction site, from which he happily observed his temple slowly manifesting.
He spent time touring the construction site and discussing with the architects, developers, sannyasis, and senior devotees. He was shown the massive temple and its partially built domes, the new kitchen located behind the temple, the site for his own bhajana kutir which will be built on part of the adjacent lake, the third phase of the guest house development, and a new level currently being built on top of the first guest house.
Sripad Madhava Maharaja commented that Srila Maharaja was so happily absorbed in the manifestation of his Navadvipa project that he even left aside his writing.
On the morning of the 20th Srila Maharaja walked to the Ganga at Panca-veni, and offered arati and prayers to Ganga-devi. He recited Sri Yamunastakam, thus reminding the devotees present that at this holy place the Ganga flows on one bank and the Yamuna at the other.
He also stressed the importance of following very closely the order of Sri Guru and completely avoiding independent activity.
["Lord Krsna's holy name, which is the sweetest of sweet things, the most auspicious of auspicious things, and the transcendental fruit of the vine of all Vedic literature, delivers, O best of the Bhrgus, anyone who, either with faith or contempt, chants it even once."
Srila Maharaja mentioned that although we cannot see Krsna, we can chant His name, which has the power to attract Him directly into the heart. He said that Ajamila chanted the name of Narayana at the time of death, and due to the name's independent and transcendental nature, it delivered him from the clutches of the constables of death (the Yamadutas).
Srila Maharaja's visit to Navadvipa coincided with the beginning of his Bengal preaching, headed by Sripad Tirtha Maharaja. After receiving his kind instructions, around fifty brahmacaris and several sannyasis divided into groups and began preaching in the West Bengal area - their mission being to attract thousands of pilgrims to attend the Navadvipa Parikrama in March and to simultaneously collect thousands of kilos of rice, vegetables, and dahl for the Parikrama. He gave his blessings as each party left for their assigned areas.
On the 22nd morning, Srila Maharaja departed for Calcutta. There he began the construction of a new building on the site of Srila Vamana Gosvami Gaudiya Matha, by performing vitti-sthapan or laying of the corner stone. That evening he left Calcutta on his way to the Philippines for a two month writing retreat.


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Q: Number of concurrent events per username in Pandas I have a table like the following but approximately 7 million rows. What I am trying to find out is how many cases is each user working on simultaneously? I would like to groupby the username and then get an average count of how many references are open concurrently between the two times.

Reference
starttime
stoptime
Username

1
2020-07-28 06:41:56.000
2020-07-28 07:11:25.000
Arthur

2
2020-07-18 13:24:02.000
2020-07-18 13:38:42.000
Arthur

3
2020-07-03 09:27:03.000
2020-07-03 10:35:24.000
Arthur

4
2020-07-05 19:42:38.000
2020-07-05 20:07:52.000
Bob

5
2020-07-04 10:22:48.000
2020-07-04 10:24:32.000
Bob

Any ideas?

A: Someone asked a similar question just yesterday so here it is:
ends = df['starttime'].values < df['endtime'].values[:, None]
starts = df['starttime'].values > df['starttime'].values[:, None]
same_name = (df['Username'].values == df['Username'].values[:, None])

# check for rows where all three conditions are met
# count the nubmer of matches by sum across axis=1 !!!
df['overlap'] = (ends & starts & same_name).sum(1)

df

To answer your final question for the mean value you would then run:
df['overlap'].mean()

A: I would use Pandas groupby function as you suggested in your tag already, by username. Let me describe the general workflow below per grouped user:

*

*Collect all start times and stop times as 'moments of change in activities'.

*Loop over all of them in your grouped dataframe

*Use e.g. Pandas.DataFrame.loc to check how many cases are 'active' at moments of changes.

*Save these in a list to compute the average count of cases

I don't have your code, but in pseudo-code it would look something like:
df = ...  # your raw df
grouped = df.groupby(by='Username')

for user, user_df in grouped:
    cases = []
    user_starts_cases = user_df['starttime'].to_numpy()
    user_stops_cases = user_df['stoptime'].to_numpy()
    times_of_activity_changes = np.concatenate(user_starts_cases, user_stops_cases)

    for xs in times_of_activity_changes:
        num_activities = len(user_df.loc[(user_df['starttime'] <= xs) & (user_df['stoptime'] >= xs)])  # mind the brackets
        active_cases.append(num_activities)

    print(sum(active_cases)/len(active_cases))

It depends a bit what you would call 'on average' but with this you could sample the amount of active cases at the times of your interest and compute an average.


The beaches of Zanzibar are well suited for yoga. Unless dogs are involved.
History cuts its way through modern cities, the Valens aquaduct being one such example.
Working with the conservation team on Koh Tao was broadening with never a boring moment.
Finding yourself lost in Seoul is quite simple.
Dipping my toes into the scientific side of Project Iko, I discuss the nature of an echo.
Diving around Koh Tao, Thailand leaves the most beautiful memories. The deeper gone, the more untouched.
Beset by an ever-engulfing sea of jungle, the temples in Cambodia lead those who visit into an almost forgotten past.


If you've been researching about online marketing for awhile now, you most probably noticed that there are a lot of internet marketers out there blogging and you've been thinking to yourself why you need a blog right?
You could say that a blog is like your very own online journal where you write about your thoughts, ideas, and opinions on a particular matter, or to share your knowledge about something with others.
There are many reasons why people have their own blog. For some it's a means of expressing themselves, to entertain, attract a following and create a name for themselves, or to make money.
As the title says, I'll be giving you 7 reasons why you need a blog if you want to stop being one of the many sheep online who can't differentiate themselves from one another even if their life depended on it.
Now if I were to continue on from the sheep example, the reason why you need a blog if you want any form of success in building you business online because the most important thing you should be doing is branding yourself.
Not your company, your products (ok well yes, you do need to promote your products but that's for another aritcle xD), but you, yourself.
The major perk for branding yourself is that you instantaneously eliminate yourself from having any competition…and I do mean all!
Think about it, there's only one you and you might not believe me when I say this, it doesn't matter to me one way or the other, but when it comes to network marketing, people join people not the company, its compensation plan or product line.
So when you focus on making yourself likeable and someone others trust and would want to work with, that's how you get the sales and sign ups happening regardless of what you're selling, or the company you're promoting.
If you're new to online marketing, most likely you're not going to have a clue about what I'm about to say next so do yourself a favour and bookmark this website so you can refer back to it when you're more in the loop about how things work.
Google, Yahoo, or any other search engine (pretty much any site where you type in something that you want to know about, hit enter, and search results come up) loves blogs.
Blogs are, or can be, a great source for information if the writer knows what they're doing. And if your content is super duper helpful and has attracted a hefty crowd of readers, then Google will boost your rankings up in the search engines.
Have you noticed how all the big names in the network marketing profession have their own website/blog?
Well having your own website automatically makes you a public/authority figure. People tend to trust others more if they can see that you are someone with good standing.
It's like asking do you trust your doctor lol.
Having your own blog just automatically grants you boss status in my opinion so by this point, there should be no doubt about why you need a blog. Don't you want to tell others you have attained boss status?!?
Let's not forget credibility here. This one is a biggie because if you're a fraud, liar, or a slimy scumbag who plans on tricking people into buying things, don't expect to get rich anytime soon.
One way to get credibility is to leverage your blog and add in testimonials of people who have bought from you, or who are working/have worked with you when you have built up a steady list of clients.
Your blog is your number one asset. It's yours. You own it. No one can take it away from you (unless you decide to sell it).
And in business, your assets are everything!
Why did you decide to build your own online business? To make money of course… duh!
Your blog can/will rake in a crap load of money from sales and sign ups… if you work hard at creating it into a money producing monster that is.
#7. Free Lead Generation Source Anybody?
Who here likes to pay for leads?
If promote your articles correctly, you can be damn sure that there will be a massive flood of traffic to your site. Best of all, every lead and visitor you get for your site will be FREE!
It's not instantaneous because you have to build up a following. So it takes patience.
I think by now it's fairly obvious why you need a blog of your own. So if you are ready to take your business to the next step and finally stop banging your head against the wall due to frustration click here to blog your way to success with this tech free marketing system.
And that's why you need a blog if you want to ramp your business up to the next level.


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