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Few things make people cringe like a bad sequel. Unfortunately, most sequels do not live up to the original. Every once in a while, the sequel equals or surpasses that first attempt, whether we're talking movies or guns.
Ruger recently announced the LCP II. As the name suggests, this is a redesign of the original LCP pistol. So what makes the new gun different from its predecessor, and is it a worthy sequel? Let's take a look at the guns and find out.
Sights. The first Ruger LCP pistols had very small sights that were almost useless. Ruger quickly updated that pistol so the sights were still small but actually usable. The LCP II increases the size of the sights even more, and that has made a huge difference in the ability to see and use them.
The sights remain very low profile, but are large enough to be useable in even tense situations. Ruger also now serrates the sight face so that you are less likely to get any glare from it in bright or changing light conditions.
Slide Stop. Original LCP pistols had a slide stop to hold the slide open. However, you had to manually engage the stop; the slide would not lock back on an empty magazine. New LCP II pistols will lock open on an empty magazine. To me, this is another big improvement in the pistol design.
Grip. I never found any problems with the original LCP grip, but I like what Ruger has done with it on the new pistol. Though still very flat and thin, the grip was widened slightly to spread out felt recoil across a broader section of the hand.
Additionally, the frame texture has been changed to be something closer to a skateboard-tape type surface. It isn't as rough as real skateboard tape, but it is grippy. Between the extra width and new surface treatment, the gun has less jump when shooting.
Trigger. This may be the single biggest improvement over the original gun. Ruger moved to a single-action (SA) trigger with a trigger safety. It's not a hair trigger, nor does it feel like a 1911-style pistol, but it is still technically an SA trigger. The benefit to the shooter is a much shorter trigger stroke. This is a night-and-day difference.
Size & Weight. Let's face it: most people interested in the LCP line of handguns are attracted to the size and weight of the guns. With all of the new changes, one might wonder if they affect the dimensions of the gun. They do, but not by very much.
First, the LCP II is slightly heavier than the older gun: exactly one ounce heavier at 10.6 oz.
Second, the overall length is up a negligible 0.01", and the height increased 0.11".
The width is also up: On the old gun, I measure the grip width to be about 0.78". On the new gun, I measured the width to be 0.90".
I've carried the new LCP II for a little more than a week now. I notice no difference from the original when carried in a DeSantis Nemesis pocket holster. But with the extra size and modifications, I get a gun that I am more likely to wield effectively for self-defense.
Should AR Owners Give in to the Temptation?
I once had a firearms instructor share his dirty little secret with me. We were in the middle of an AR-15 class, and he couldn't contain his private obsession any longer: he liked bullpup rifles.
Having an AR instructor declare a fascination with a bullpup may be something worthy of a grand-jury investigation. The reality is that bullpup-style rifles are battle-proven designs with certain benefits over the more-traditional AR-15 design.
Possibly one of the best bullpup rifles on the market right now is the Tavor X95. This rifle cut its teeth in the service of the Israel Defense Forces, where it has seen plenty of use. A semi-automatic version of the rifle has now been made available to U.S. citizens. Let's take a look at a few of the features that might make you consider adding one to your own inventory.
Size. The most obvious benefit of any bullpup is the reduced length of the gun. With a 16" barrel, the X95 is just a hair over 26". An AR-15 typically runs around 32.5" – 36.5" with an M4-style stock. To chop an AR down to get close to the same size as an X95, you would need to run a 10.5" barrel and accept the reduced bullet performance and significantly increased muzzle blast.
For anyone wanting a rifle that can be maneuvered around a house or boat, the X95 makes a lot of sense just on its size. For a police officer or nuclear-security officer, the guns can be a significant tactical advantage when searching confined areas.
Balance. Although the X95 is slightly heavier than the typical AR-15, the gun is balanced much closer to the body. This makes the gun easier to hold on target for long periods of time.
For anyone that does not have an abundance of upper-body strength, the balance of the Tavor X95 can be a real boon. My wife prefers to shoot the X95 more than a typical AR rifle solely because of the balance of the firearm.
Controls. The X95 uses a non-reciprocating charging handle mounted on the side of the rifle. This allows the shooter to operate the handle without having to unmount the gun.
I was pleasantly surprised by how quickly my body adapted to the magazine location. I've learned that the human body likes to pull things in close when working on them. The closer to the body, the more control we can have over an object.
With the magazine well located behind the pistol grip, my mind readily adapted to magazine changes and I became quite fast with them. It was as if the gun became part of my body.
Is the X95 destined to be part of your collection? You're the judge and jury. Rest assured, however, that you will not be alone if you do pick one up.
Just be prepared to love it more than you thought you would.
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Users can start, stop or pause downloads, set bandwith limitations, auto-extract archives and much more. It's an easy-to-extend framework that can save hours of your valuable time every day!
JDownloader is written completely in Java. It can import CCF, RSDF and the new DLC files. The addon called "RemoteControl" allows you to control remotely your JDownloader-client by doing so-called HTTP-requests.
In doing so you execute commands which are nothing else than URLs that will be called over the network protocol HTTP. This can be done by simply typing them into the address-bar of a webbrowser or by (and that's why this addon was made) other applications and scripts that can handle HTTP-requests.
JDownloader simplifies downloading files from One-Click-Hosters – not only for users with a premium account but also for users who don't pay. It offers downloading in multiple parallel streams, captcha recognition, automated file extraction, and much more. Additionally, many "link encryption" sites are supported – so you just paste the "encrypted" links and JD does the rest.
It supports Firefox, you have to install install/activate its plugins. & Don't compare it with IDM, both have their own strenghthens. JDownloader downloads from the sharing servers, don't you see the features? and this is the main purpose to use. You can download its Portable Version, in order to not clash with IDM, as I do.


text:
Наиль Кабирович Миначёв (4 апреля 1964, Ставрополь-на-Волге, Куйбышевская область) — советский и российский футболист, полузащитник.

Биография
Воспитанник спортивного клуба «Труд» (Тольятти). Во взрослом футболе дебютировал в 1981 году во второй лиге в тольяттинском «Торпедо» и провёл в его составе три сезона. В 1984—1985 годах проходил военную службу, в этот период выступал за куйбышевский СКА в соревнованиях КФК.

В ходе сезона 1985 года перешёл в куйбышевские «Крылья Советов» и выступал за этот клуб в течение трёх с половиной сезонов, сыграв более 100 матчей в первой и второй лигах. Победитель зонального турнира второй лиги 1986 года.

В дальнейшем выступал во второй лиге СССР за «Старт» (Ульяновск), в первой и второй лигах России за «Ладу» (Димитровград), за каждый из этих клубов сыграл более ста матчей. В 1993 году стал лучшим бомбардиром димитровградского клуба в сезоне (14 голов). Позднее снова возвращался в клуб из Ульяновска (переименованный в «Волгу») и Тольятти (переименованный в «Ладу»), а также в Димитровград. Завершил профессиональную карьеру в 2000 году.

Всего за карьеру сыграл в первенствах СССР и России на уровне профессионалов (мастеров) 484 матча и забил 66 голов, в том числе в первой лиге — 109 матчей, во второй — более 350. В Кубках СССР и России участвовал в играх стадии 1/16 финала против клубов высшего дивизиона — ленинградского «Зенита» (1988) и самарских «Крыльев Советов» (1997).

По состоянию на 2002 год входил в тренерский штаб «Лады-2», выступавшей в первенстве КФК. По состоянию на 2010 год — в тренерском штабе клуба «Академия» (Приморский). Также много лет работал детским тренером по футболу и мини-футболу в Академии им. Юрия Коноплёва.

Личная жизнь
Братья Камиль (род. 1959) и Джамиль (род. 1972) тоже были футболистами, выступали за клубы Тольятти в соревнованиях мастеров и на любительском уровне.

Примечания

Ссылки

Футболисты СССР
Футболисты России
Игроки ФК «Лада-Тольятти»
Игроки ФК «Крылья Советов»
Игроки ФК «Волга» Ульяновск
Игроки ФК «Академия»
Футбольные тренеры России

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
#include "routing/geometry.hpp"

#include "routing/city_roads.hpp"
#include "routing/maxspeeds.hpp"
#include "routing/routing_exceptions.hpp"
#include "routing/routing_options.hpp"

#include "indexer/altitude_loader.hpp"
#include "indexer/classificator.hpp"
#include "indexer/data_source.hpp"
#include "indexer/ftypes_matcher.hpp"

#include "geometry/mercator.hpp"

#include "base/assert.hpp"
#include "base/string_utils.hpp"

#include <algorithm>
#include <string>

using namespace routing;
using namespace std;

namespace
{
// @TODO(bykoianko) Consider setting cache size based on available memory.
// Maximum road geometry cache size in items.
size_t constexpr kRoadsCacheSize = 5000;

double CalcFerryDurationHours(string const & durationHours, double roadLenKm)
{
  // Look for more info: https://confluence.mail.ru/display/MAPSME/Ferries
  // Shortly: the coefs were received from statistic about ferries with durations in OSM.
  double constexpr kIntercept = 0.2490726747447476;
  double constexpr kSlope = 0.02078913;

  if (durationHours.empty())
    return kIntercept + kSlope * roadLenKm;

  double durationH = 0.0;
  CHECK(strings::to_double(durationHours.c_str(), durationH), (durationHours));

  // See: https://confluence.mail.ru/download/attachments/249123157/image2019-8-22_16-15-53.png
  // Shortly: we drop some points: (x: lengthKm, y: durationH), that are upper or lower these two lines.
  double constexpr kUpperBoundIntercept = 4.0;
  double constexpr kUpperBoundSlope = 0.037;
  if (kUpperBoundIntercept + kUpperBoundSlope * roadLenKm - durationH < 0)
    return kIntercept + kSlope * roadLenKm;

  double constexpr kLowerBoundIntercept = -2.0;
  double constexpr kLowerBoundSlope = 0.015;
  if (kLowerBoundIntercept + kLowerBoundSlope * roadLenKm - durationH > 0)
    return kIntercept + kSlope * roadLenKm;

  return durationH;
}

// GeometryLoaderImpl ------------------------------------------------------------------------------
class GeometryLoaderImpl final : public GeometryLoader
{
public:
  GeometryLoaderImpl(DataSource const & dataSource, MwmSet::MwmHandle const & handle,
                     shared_ptr<VehicleModelInterface> vehicleModel,
                     AttrLoader attrLoader, bool loadAltitudes);

  // GeometryLoader overrides:
  void Load(uint32_t featureId, RoadGeometry & road) override;

private:
  shared_ptr<VehicleModelInterface> m_vehicleModel;
  AttrLoader m_attrLoader;
  FeaturesLoaderGuard m_guard;
  string const m_country;
  feature::AltitudeLoader m_altitudeLoader;
  bool const m_loadAltitudes;
};

GeometryLoaderImpl::GeometryLoaderImpl(DataSource const & dataSource,
                                       MwmSet::MwmHandle const & handle,
                                       shared_ptr<VehicleModelInterface> vehicleModel,
                                       AttrLoader attrLoader, bool loadAltitudes)
  : m_vehicleModel(move(vehicleModel))
  , m_attrLoader(move(attrLoader))
  , m_guard(dataSource, handle.GetId())
  , m_country(handle.GetInfo()->GetCountryName())
  , m_altitudeLoader(dataSource, handle.GetId())
  , m_loadAltitudes(loadAltitudes)
{
  CHECK(handle.IsAlive(), ());
  CHECK(m_vehicleModel, ());
  CHECK(m_attrLoader.m_cityRoads, ());
  CHECK(m_attrLoader.m_maxspeeds, ());
}

void GeometryLoaderImpl::Load(uint32_t featureId, RoadGeometry & road)
{
  auto feature = m_guard.GetFeatureByIndex(featureId);
  if (!feature)
    MYTHROW(RoutingException, ("Feature", featureId, "not found in ", m_country));

  feature->ParseGeometry(FeatureType::BEST_GEOMETRY);

  feature::TAltitudes const * altitudes = nullptr;
  if (m_loadAltitudes)
    altitudes = &(m_altitudeLoader.GetAltitudes(featureId, feature->GetPointsCount()));

  road.Load(*m_vehicleModel, *feature, altitudes, m_attrLoader.m_cityRoads->IsCityRoad(featureId),
            m_attrLoader.m_maxspeeds->GetMaxspeed(featureId));
  m_altitudeLoader.ClearCache();
}

// FileGeometryLoader ------------------------------------------------------------------------------
class FileGeometryLoader final : public GeometryLoader
{
public:
  FileGeometryLoader(string const & fileName, shared_ptr<VehicleModelInterface> vehicleModel);

  // GeometryLoader overrides:
  void Load(uint32_t featureId, RoadGeometry & road) override;

private:
  FeaturesVectorTest m_featuresVector;
  CityRoads m_cityRoads;
  Maxspeeds m_maxspeeds;
  shared_ptr<VehicleModelInterface> m_vehicleModel;
};

FileGeometryLoader::FileGeometryLoader(string const & fileName,
                                       shared_ptr<VehicleModelInterface> vehicleModel)
  : m_featuresVector(FilesContainerR(make_unique<FileReader>(fileName)))
  , m_vehicleModel(vehicleModel)
{
  auto const cont = FilesContainerR(make_unique<FileReader>(fileName));

  try
  {
    if (cont.IsExist(CITY_ROADS_FILE_TAG))
      LoadCityRoads(fileName, cont.GetReader(CITY_ROADS_FILE_TAG), m_cityRoads);

    if (cont.IsExist(MAXSPEEDS_FILE_TAG))
      LoadMaxspeeds(cont.GetReader(MAXSPEEDS_FILE_TAG), m_maxspeeds);
  }
  catch (Reader::OpenException const & e)
  {
    LOG(LERROR, ("File", cont.GetFileName(), "Error while reading", CITY_ROADS_FILE_TAG, "or",
                 MAXSPEEDS_FILE_TAG, "section.", e.Msg()));
  }

  CHECK(m_vehicleModel, ());
}

void FileGeometryLoader::Load(uint32_t featureId, RoadGeometry & road)
{
  auto feature = m_featuresVector.GetVector().GetByIndex(featureId);
  CHECK(feature, ());
  feature->ParseGeometry(FeatureType::BEST_GEOMETRY);
  // Note. If FileGeometryLoader is used for generation cross mwm section for bicycle or
  // pedestrian routing |altitudes| should be used here.
  road.Load(*m_vehicleModel, *feature, nullptr /* altitudes */, m_cityRoads.IsCityRoad(featureId),
            m_maxspeeds.GetMaxspeed(featureId));
}
}  // namespace

namespace routing
{
// RoadGeometry ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
RoadGeometry::RoadGeometry(bool oneWay, double weightSpeedKMpH, double etaSpeedKMpH,
                           Points const & points)
  : m_forwardSpeed{weightSpeedKMpH, etaSpeedKMpH}
  , m_backwardSpeed(m_forwardSpeed)
  , m_isOneWay(oneWay)
  , m_valid(true)
{
  ASSERT_GREATER(weightSpeedKMpH, 0.0, ());
  ASSERT_GREATER(etaSpeedKMpH, 0.0, ());

  m_junctions.reserve(points.size());
  for (auto const & point : points)
    m_junctions.emplace_back(point, feature::kDefaultAltitudeMeters);
}

void RoadGeometry::Load(VehicleModelInterface const & vehicleModel, FeatureType & feature,
                        feature::TAltitudes const * altitudes, bool inCity, Maxspeed const & maxspeed)
{
  CHECK(altitudes == nullptr || altitudes->size() == feature.GetPointsCount(), ());

  m_valid = vehicleModel.IsRoad(feature);
  m_isOneWay = vehicleModel.IsOneWay(feature);
  m_forwardSpeed = vehicleModel.GetSpeed(feature, {true /* forward */, inCity, maxspeed});
  m_backwardSpeed = vehicleModel.GetSpeed(feature, {false /* forward */, inCity, maxspeed});
  m_highwayType = vehicleModel.GetHighwayType(feature);
  m_isPassThroughAllowed = vehicleModel.IsPassThroughAllowed(feature);

  feature::TypesHolder types(feature);
  auto const & optionsClassfier = RoutingOptionsClassifier::Instance();
  for (uint32_t type : types)
  {
    if (auto const it = optionsClassfier.Get(type))
      m_routingOptions.Add(*it);
  }

  m_junctions.clear();
  m_junctions.reserve(feature.GetPointsCount());
  for (size_t i = 0; i < feature.GetPointsCount(); ++i)
  {
    m_junctions.emplace_back(feature.GetPoint(i),
                             altitudes ? (*altitudes)[i] : feature::kDefaultAltitudeMeters);
  }

  if (m_routingOptions.Has(RoutingOptions::Road::Ferry))
  {
    auto const durationHours = feature.GetMetadata().Get(feature::Metadata::FMD_DURATION);
    auto const roadLenKm = GetRoadLengthM() / 1000.0;
    double const durationH = CalcFerryDurationHours(durationHours, roadLenKm);

    CHECK(!base::AlmostEqualAbs(durationH, 0.0, 1e-5), (durationH));

    if (roadLenKm != 0.0)
    {
      m_forwardSpeed = m_backwardSpeed =
          SpeedKMpH(std::min(vehicleModel.GetMaxWeightSpeed(), roadLenKm / durationH));
    }
  }

  if (m_valid && (!m_forwardSpeed.IsValid() || !m_backwardSpeed.IsValid()))
  {
    auto const & id = feature.GetID();
    CHECK(!m_junctions.empty(), ("mwm:", id.GetMwmName(), ", featureId:", id.m_index));
    auto const begin = MercatorBounds::ToLatLon(m_junctions.front().GetPoint());
    auto const end = MercatorBounds::ToLatLon(m_junctions.back().GetPoint());
    LOG(LERROR,
        ("Invalid speed m_forwardSpeed:", m_forwardSpeed, "m_backwardSpeed:", m_backwardSpeed,
         "mwm:", id.GetMwmName(), ", featureId:", id.m_index, ", begin:", begin, "end:", end));
    m_valid = false;
  }
}

SpeedKMpH const & RoadGeometry::GetSpeed(bool forward) const
{
  return forward ? m_forwardSpeed : m_backwardSpeed;
}

double RoadGeometry::GetRoadLengthM() const
{
  double lenM = 0.0;
  for (size_t i = 1; i < GetPointsCount(); ++i)
  {
    lenM +=
        MercatorBounds::DistanceOnEarth(m_junctions[i - 1].GetPoint(), m_junctions[i].GetPoint());
  }

  return lenM;
}

// Geometry ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Geometry::Geometry(unique_ptr<GeometryLoader> loader)
    : m_loader(move(loader))
    , m_featureIdToRoad(make_unique<FifoCache<uint32_t, RoadGeometry>>(
        kRoadsCacheSize,
        [this](uint32_t featureId, RoadGeometry & road) { m_loader->Load(featureId, road); }))
{
  CHECK(m_loader, ());
}

RoadGeometry const & Geometry::GetRoad(uint32_t featureId)
{
  ASSERT(m_featureIdToRoad, ());
  ASSERT(m_loader, ());

  return m_featureIdToRoad->GetValue(featureId);
}

// static
unique_ptr<GeometryLoader> GeometryLoader::Create(DataSource const & dataSource,
                                                  MwmSet::MwmHandle const & handle,
                                                  shared_ptr<VehicleModelInterface> vehicleModel,
                                                  AttrLoader && attrLoader,
                                                  bool loadAltitudes)
{
  CHECK(handle.IsAlive(), ());
  return make_unique<GeometryLoaderImpl>(dataSource, handle, vehicleModel, move(attrLoader),
                                         loadAltitudes);
}

// static
unique_ptr<GeometryLoader> GeometryLoader::CreateFromFile(string const & fileName,
                                                          shared_ptr<VehicleModelInterface> vehicleModel)
{
  return make_unique<FileGeometryLoader>(fileName, vehicleModel);
}
}  // namespace routing

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


Yesterday I found a small, very delicate, flask shaped wasp's nest made out of grey paper. When I looked through the hole at one end, I could see seven hexagonal brood cells, a central one surrounded by six.
Did the Chinese discover paper by observing wasps removing bark and macerating it with their saliva, or did they hit upon the idea independently?
I'd love to see some documentaries like this from tahir. But there are already a lot of them out there. The only thing is, the only people who buy or rent them or tune into them on TV, are pretty much already the choir who knows this stuff. How do you get Sarah Palin to tune into a documentary like this, and why would she think it was anything other than an al-Qaeda plot. That's what we're dealing with here in the US.
'From antiquity to Darwin's time, however, not much information is available on earthworms.' This is a quotation from 'Earthworm Ecology', a highly regarded key text edited by Clive Edwards.
Earthworms were considered important maintainers of soil fertility during the Egyptian empire and by the early philosophers. Aristotle called them the 'earth's entrails'. Can it really be true that they were ignored by Arab scientists?
Sarah Palin is the best example of the pervasive illiteracy in the world that you mentioned in a comment in a previous post.
Back in 1988 very few people would have thought it possible the crumbling of the Soviet empire. One year later we all saw in astonishment those angry Germans demolishing the Berlin wall (for whatever it may have been worth).
What's happening (and going to happen) in the US and Europe in the immediate future will amount to the demolishing of the Berlin wall –only this time for the capitalist world (no better or worse than the other model, just as ineffective).
I'l tack that above my mirror so I can be reminded every time I see my Barbarian in the mirror.
🙂 why the barbarian has no beard?
🙂 or a time for a shave. hmmmm… but if he shaves, he is not really a barbarian, is he?
hahahaha a lady….thought so. well, luckily the spirit / essence has no gender.
🙂 well, at least it cannot be used as an excuse for any kind of inhumane behaviour. "adam….male and female created them." ciain't that lucky?
Let's settle for spirit/essence having no beard.
Let's settle for spirit/essence having no beard.
More than fair. One of the reasons why Islam was such a tight fit back in the '70s when I came on board, was that there were no physical representations of Allah, no bearded old man. And the use of the male pronoun is more a reference to the ultimate Generative aspect of His nature compared to that of Creation and a convenience that eliminates the highly inappropriate "It" for the deity.


text:
Professor Frank Bonsall
Independent obituary
Obituaries Index
Leading mathematician of the post-war years who led research into functional analysis
Frank Bonsall was a distinguished mathematician and a significant figure in the mathematical life of the United Kingdom in the post-war years. His particular interest was functional analysis, a subject that unifies different parts of mathematical analysis within a single more abstract framework, and he was instrumental in raising its profile, particularly in Scotland and the north of England. His research work was characterised by its aesthetic simplicity, and his ability to focus on key ideas and strip out unnecessary complications.
Frank Featherstone Bonsall was born in north London to Wilfred Cook Bonsall and his wife Sarah, from Derbyshire and North Yorkshire respectively. Frank was the younger of their two sons; his brother, Arthur Wilfred, was to serve as director of GCHQ from 1973 to 1978 and was knighted in 1977. In 1923 the family moved to Welwyn Garden City.
Bonsall attended Fretherne House preparatory school, then Bishops Stortford College in 1933. Although he did not particularly enjoy boarding-school life, he excelled academically and in 1938 he went up to Merton College, Oxford, to read mathematics. Later, he recalled how much he enjoyed the freedom of university life, as well as his first encounters with rigorous analysis, the area of mathematics that was to become his speciality.
In 1940 his studies were interrupted by the war, and he was called up to the Royal Engineers, serving for six years. The final two years were spent in India and he took EC Titchmarsh's Theory of Functions with him, thereby keeping his interest in analysis alive. He returned to Oxford in 1946 and graduated with first class honours. During that year he met Gillian (Jill) Patrick, a fellow mathematics undergraduate who became his wife in 1947.
Bonsall then accepted a one-year lectureship at the University ofEdinburgh. The year was a very happy one, during which he met WWRogosinski, a distinguished analyst who had recently been appointed to the chair of mathematics at Newcastle. The next year Bonsall followed him there, taking up a lectureship.
As a self-taught research mathematician, he benefited greatly from Rogosinski's influence and thoughhis early research was along fairly classical lines, he was soon attracted to more abstract analysis. This interest was reinforced by the time he spent with a strong research group atStillwater, Oklahoma in 1950-51. There, he made his first serious study offunctional analysis, which was to be the focus of his research for the rest of his life. After returning to Newcastle, Bonsall became an influential figure in the field and he was appointed to the chair at Newcastle in 1959 when Rogosinski retired.
In 1963, the University of Edinburgh instituted a second chair of mathematics, the McLaurin chair. Bonsall applied and was interviewed by a committee chaired by the principal, Sir Edward Appleton, who immediately wrote to offer him the position. This was one of Appleton's last acts ashe died suddenly that night. Bonsall took up the chair in 1965 but spentthe following academic year at Yale, where he was already committed to a visiting professorship. On his return he did much to strengthen the position of functional analysis. Along with John Ringrose and Barry Johnson at Newcastle, he founded the North British Functional Analysis Seminar, one of the first inter-university seminars in mathematics, and a model for many others.
He made significant contributions to the theory of Banach algebrasand in 1973, in collaboration with John Duncan, one of his former research students, he published Complete Normed Algebras, which was the definitive work of the period. He was elected to the Royal Society of Edinburgh in 1966 and to the Royal Society in 1970.
He was awarded the Senior Berwick Prize of the London Mathematical Society in 1966 and was President of the Edinburgh Mathematical Society in 1976-77. Over the years, he servedon the Council of the London Mathematical Society, committees of the Royal Society and the Science Research Council and on numerous editorial boards.
Outside mathematics, Bonsallhad a great interest in mountain climbing and in his CV he records hisascent in 1977 of his 280th Munro;the Munros are the mountains in Scotland at least 3,000 feet high. Theoriginal list, compiled by Sir Hugh Munro in 1891, has always been the subject of some controversy (when do two close tops count as separate Munros, for example) and the list has seen various revisions.
In two articles in the Scottish Mountaineering Club Journal in 1973 and 1974, Bonsall developed a rule for determining what should be considered asseparate mountains. Application of this rule yields a list very close to Munro's original and influenced some subsequent revisions of SMC's definitive list.
When Bonsall retired in 1984 he and Jill moved to Harrogate, where he was able to enjoy walking the Yorkshire hills and dales and tending his garden, with particular attention to thecultivation of fruit and vegetables. But he maintained his interest in mathematics, and the flow of research papers continued for some years, the last appearing in 2000, just two years before he and Jill moved into a retirement home.
Alastair Gillespie
Frank Featherstone Bonsall, mathematician: born London 31 March 1920; Professor of Mathematics, University of Edinburgh 1965 84, then Emeritus; married 1947 Gillian Patrick; died Harrogate 22 February 2011.
Monday, 4 April 2011 © Independent

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Democrats Paid a Steep Price For Ignoring the CBO. Republicans Will Too.
Mar 21, 2017 • 8
By KIP SULLIVAN
Eight years ago it was Democrats who were criticizing the Congressional Budget Office. Now it's Republicans who are bashing the CBO for estimating that 14 million Americans will lose their health insurance next year if the House Republicans' "repeal and replace" bill becomes law.
The media and the blogosphere have done a reasonably good job of debunking the Republicans' criticisms of the CBO. Any citizen paying attention can discover that although fewer people enrolled in the Obamacare exchanges in 2014 than the CBO predicted in 2010, the CBO correctly forecast that the uninsured rate would fall by about half and that employers would not stop offering health insurance. The attentive citizen can also discover that the CBO's predictions were more accurate than those of many other experts.
The media has also reported that Democrats leveled their own unfair criticisms against the CBO back in 2009 and 2010. Obama, Nancy Pelosi, and Max Baucus, to name just a few prominent Democrats, criticized the CBO for not giving the alleged cost-containment provisions in the Affordable Care Act more credit.
I want to make three points here that I have not seen made elsewhere:
(1) The criticism that both Democrats and Republicans make of the CBO consists almost exclusively of raw opinion, usually delivered in a huff, and almost never cites or discusses research;
(2) The CBO may have been off in predicting how many people would enroll in Obamacare and Medicaid, but it was accurate in predicting the failure of the managed care fads written into the ACA to cut costs; and
(3) Today, more than ever, America needs the CBO because the CBO adheres to the quaint principle that evidence should trump ideology.
Democracy thrives on rational debate, not whining and dodging
What I find offensive about the Democrats' criticism of the CBO in 2009 and 2010, and Republicans' criticism now, is the near-total absence in their critiques of any discussion of the evidence the CBO relied on to make its predictions. It's one thing to engage in a civil dialogue about evidence; it's totally another just to sit back and bitch. When, for example, in 2009 Senator Max Baucus badgered then-CBO director Doug Elmendorf about the CBO's estimates of the non-existent savings in what would become the ACA, Baucus did not seek to engage Elmendorf in a discussion of the evidence behind ACOs and the other managed care fads the Democrats were counting on to cut costs. No, Baucus demanded that Elmendorf not play "God," whatever that meant, and to be "creative" in his calculations of the ACA's ability to cut costs.
Today Republicans are doing exactly what Democrats did eight years ago – they're whining rather than telling the public what it is about the CBO's methodology they disagree with. The closest Republicans have come to discussing methodology is to accuse the CBO of overestimating the coercive effect of the ACA's individual mandate (the penalty for not buying health insurance) while carefully dodging the fact that the House bill substantially reduces the subsidies available to lower-income people that make health insurance more affordable. Ok, so you think the Obamacare mandate was less effective than the CBO thought it would be? Fine. Tell us why. Republicans won't do that. [1]
CBO never drank the managed care Kool Aid
We all know now that the CBO, like every other agency, think tank and human being, failed to estimate accurately in 2010 how many Americans would buy insurance through the exchanges come 2014 despite an intelligent and good-faith effort. But almost no one has given the CBO credit for accurately predicting that the managed care cost-containment nostrums written into the ACA (including ACOs, "medical homes," penalties for "excess" hospital readmissions, and lower out-of-pocket costs for preventive services) would save little money and might even raise costs. CBO's only reward for that prediction was criticism from Democrats in 2009 and 2010.
Since at least the early 1990s when the CBO issued several reports on how it would score any legislation relying on managed care proposals, the CBO has never succumbed to managed care hype. There have been a few near exceptions (the CBO was a bit too optimistic about staff model HMOs in the 1990s), but by and large the CBO has been immune to the groupthink that propelled managed care theology to dominance in the American health policy debate four decades ago. The CBO has never said, for example, that prevention or "coordination" or ACOs will cut costs. They have refused to make such statements despite enormous pressure – both direct pressure from politicians and the indirect pressure of groupthink – to do so. They have refused because they insist on basing their decisions on evidence.
The CBO's reliance on evidence has placed them on a collision course with the managed care movement and all the politicians who listen to managed care advocates. Since the earliest days of the managed care movement, managed care advocates have given high priority to their own opinions and low priority to evidence. (For a discussion of the managed care culture and its low regard for evidence, see my comment here )
Let me illustrate how different the culture of the managed care movement is from CBO's culture by quoting statements made by President Obama and Doug Elmendorf, the CBO's director from 2009 to 2015, about the myth that prevention saves money. According to a 2009 Politifact article , Obama asserted, "Insurance companies will be required [by the ACA] to cover, with no extra charge, routine checkups and preventive care, like mammograms and colonoscopies…. That makes sense, it saves money…." Elmendorf replied: "The evidence suggests that for most preventive services, expanded utilization leads to higher, not lower, medical spending overall." Note which of those two men used the word "evidence." It wasn't Obama. [2]
And what does the research say? A review of the literature by Joshua Cohen et al., published in the New England Journal of Medicine, concluded, "Although some preventive measures do save money, the vast majority reviewed in the health economics literature do not." Cohen et al. noted that the "prevention saves money" myth was fueled in part by what I have called the "free lunch syndrome" – the pretense that the proposed managed care intervention is free.
Precisely because the CBO relied on research while the liberal critics of the CBO relied on managed care folklore, the CBO's predictions of how the managed care fads in the ACA would perform were far more accurate than those of Obama, Baucus, Nancy Pelosi, Barbara Boxer, Peter Orszag, et al. The CBO's December 2008 report estimated ACOs would cut Medicare's costs by a tenth of a percent (see my discussion of this report in this THCB post ). That was remarkably accurate. Today (almost a decade later) we know CMS's Pioneer ACOs have cut Medicare's costs by a magnificent one-tenth to seven-tenths of a percent over their first four years (that's not counting the costs the ACOs incurred) while the much larger MSSP ACO program has raised Medicare's costs by about two-tenths of a percent (again, not counting the costs the ACOs incurred) over the same period.
As Republicans gnash their teeth about the CBO's failure to estimate exactly how many Americans would enroll in the exchanges, let us not forget how accurately the CBO predicted the performance of the managed care programs in the ACA. That was impressive. It is further evidence that the CBO's loyalty is first and foremost to evidence, not groupthink, not Democrats, not Republicans.
Democrats and Republicans should celebrate an independent CBO
The health policy debate, like the debate about virtually everything else, has become even hotter and more polarized than it was a decade ago. We need the CBO's independent, evidence-based judgment now more than ever. But like democracy and trust in institutions, the CBO's independence cannot be assumed. It must be nourished – diligently and always. CBO's 200 employees are human. We should not assume they can resist any and all groupthink no matter how suffocating, and any and all political pressure no matter how threatening.
If we are to retain an independent CBO, leaders of both parties must stop bashing the CBO and start celebrating its commitment to evidence-based health policy. I am not equating intelligent, evidence-based disagreement with "bashing." I have had my own disagreements with the CBO (for example, I thought the CBO's conclusion that somewhere between zero and 10 million Americans would be insured by the over-hyped "public option" was too generous). By "bashing" I mean accusing the CBO of "playing God," of being "socialist," or otherwise attacking the good faith or intelligence of CBO's staff while simultaneously refusing to engage in a debate about the research the CBO relied on.
Donald Trump poses a new threat to the CBO. Trump has demonstrated repeatedly that he is willing to sabotage institution after institution (the national intelligence agencies, the Department of Justice, NATO, the media, and the courts). With the release of his budget, it's now clear he is willing to destroy or cripple any government agency he doesn't like. This does not bode well for the CBO.
To give you some idea of what it feels like inside the CBO when the threat level rises to uncomfortable levels, let me relate to you a disturbing tale told by Haynes Johnson and David Broder in The System, their book about the rise and fall of the Clintons' Health Security Act. The year is 1994. Robert Reischauer, a Democrat, is the CBO director. The CBO is preparing an analysis of the Health Security Act, the Clintons' ponderous "managed competition" bill. One of the issues the CBO must decide is whether the expenditures on insurance by alliances of employers the Clintons call "health insurance purchasing coalitions" should be considered private or public spending. The Democrats want the CBO to declare the expenditures to be private and therefore off-budget. Republicans argue the expenditures would be mandated by federal law and should therefore be treated as on-budget spending. The pressure on Reischauer from both sides has reached white hot intensity over the last few weeks.
Here's how Johnson and Broder described the pressure and how badly it rattled Reischauer and his staff.
"I received numerous phone calls," Reischauer said…, "from people of great fame and with common household names telling me what they thought the right answer to the question was and questioning why I would have the audacity to decide otherwise. I also got probably a quarter as many phone calls from the other side [Republicans] who said they were sure we had caved in to the administration, and that our institution was going to be marked for its entire life because of this."
Some who called accused him of trying to destroy a president. Others angrily warned him that if health reform died because of an unfavorable CBO verdict, children would suffer, and some would die. That's going to be on your conscience, he was told…. For Reischauer, the worst moment came at nine o'clock on a Sunday morning, shortly before his report was to be released.… The phone rang. His wife answered. It was Ted Kennedy.
Kennedy was furious…. For nearly half an hour, Kennedy assailed Reischauer, bellowing his outrage. Reischauer was going to bring down the Clinton administration. Here was a president with a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to do something as historic as health reform, and you, a minor staff official, are taking it upon yourself to thwart the will of the American people…. You aren't elected….. Who are you to say this isn't private insurance? Who are you to say whether this is on budget or off budget?….
Reischauer was shaken. He had never experienced such a tongue-lashing….
As the time for the decision neared, Reischauer summoned his executives to a meeting at seven o'clock at night in his office. Panic had set in at the White House….
Reischauer spelled it out for his executive staff. This is such a controversial issue, he said,… with such high political overtones that there almost certainly will be institutional repercussions. The political environment was so highly charged, he told them, that there was a good chance CBO could see its budget eliminated or slashed to a point where none present would be interested in working there. He wanted to make sure they understood the stakes; and be certain, also, that they fully discussed the most controversial part of their report and came to a decision about it: the chapter in their projected seventy-seven-page report that described the proposed health alliances as governmental activities financed with government funds.
For an hour and a half that night the CBO executives discussed the issue. Then Reischauer gave each a piece of paper. "I want you to vote yes or no," he said.
Every person voted yes. There were no dissenters. They voted to include the chapter in the report even if it destroyed their agency and their jobs.
This triumph of principle over politics was never reported; their deliberations, and their vote, remained private. (Haynes Johnson and David S. Broder, The System: The American Way of Politics at the Breaking Point, 1996, pp. 285-86)
Could such abuse occur today? Of course it could. In today's environment, would the outcome be the same? Would "principle prevail over politics" if the bullying were accompanied by a bona fide threat to cut the CBO's budget?
I'll settle for self-interest
In today's environment, I realize it's asking a lot of elected officials to stop bashing the CBO and to start promoting an evidence-based discussion. But if politicians and others with access to the media cannot find it within themselves to act altruistically, then I beg them to act in their own self-interest. It is not in the self-interest of either party to reject the CBO's findings and then enact legislation that cannot do what its proponents claim it can do.
Democrats should have thanked the CBO for warning them that the managed care fads in the ACA would not cut costs. Instead they grossly exaggerated the cost containment in the ACA and crammed the ACA through Congress. Voters were not fooled. Voters handed Democrats their rear ends on a platter, in large part because they were not happy with the ACA. [3]
Similarly, Republicans should be grateful to the CBO for warning them the House "repeal and replace" bill will throw tens of millions of Americans to the wolves. Republicans can bash the CBO all they want, but voters will not be fooled. And when they discover Republicans tried to fool them, they will hand Republicans their rear ends on a platter.
Democrats and Republicans should make a vow now to swear off abusive remarks about the CBO and to pay close attention to the CBO's findings. If they can't bring themselves to do that for the love of truth and love of their country, they should do it for love of their own rear ends.
[1] In order to predict in 2010 how many people would be insured through the Obamacare exchanges come 2014, CBO staff had to familiarize themselves with research on (1) compliance with mandates (such as laws requiring the purchase of automobile insurance), (2) what economists call the "price elasticity of demand" for health insurance, and (3) economic models that predict multiple economic variables such as recovery from the Great Recession, employment levels and household incomes.
Do Newt Gingrich or Paul Ryan have a different interpretation of that research? Do they think the CBO ignored variables they should have included in their analysis? Who knows?
[2] Here is an example of how the CBO discussed another of the enduring myths peddled by managed care proponents (as well as advocates of vouchers, health savings accounts, and of "price transparency"), namely, the myth that risk-adjustment is both accurate and inexpensive. "Mechanisms to adjust for risk selection in an accurate and unbiased way are essential but not yet available," stated the CBO in one of several reports to Congress on how it would score managed care fads. "Those under development would not work unless applied to large groups of insured individuals. Even then, they could be expected, at best, to adjust partially and imperfectly for the effects of selection on costs and to do so in a way that improved fairness among providers only on average and over time. Thus, some organizations that enrolled a disproportionate number of high-cost individuals might experience poor financial outcomes for essentially random reasons. In short, where risk adjustment is concerned, it is unclear how good is 'good enough' and whether adjustments that are good enough could be achieved in the near term."(Managed Competition and Its Potential to Reduce Health Spending, CBO, May 1993, p. 25).
Although accurate risk-adjustment that does not cost a king's ransom is essential to managed care solutions, it is extremely rare to find a matter-of-fact, honest assessment like this in managed care manifestos and in peer-reviewed analyses of managed care proposals.
[3] Trump's claim that he would replace Obamacare with something "terrific" inexplicably influenced the views of some voters. But Republican hype about Obamacare and their own "repeal and replace" plans was a secondary factor. The public saw with their own eyes the contrast between the Democrats' hype about the ACA and its actual performance. They will also see the gap between Republican hype about "repeal and replace" legislation and its actual performance.
Value-Based Purchasing and "Free Lunch Syndrome"
Simulated ACOs vs Real-World ACOs
Making the Physician-Patient Relationship Great Again
Trump and the "Public Option"
The Law of Diminishing Returns of Ethicism
Register for Free Live Webinar Health 2.0 Is Hosting This Thursday
Kip, yet another wonderful post. Politicians and their urgent promises come and go. Perhaps it is asking too much of them to tolerate a scientific approach to policy where forecasts, inherently fragile and vulnerable to assumptions, are at least based on what we do know, and our degree of confidence in the assumptions.
I had my own quibbles in this space about CBO's past forecasts about selection effects in the Exchanges (Dec 2009). They have not done an awesome job forecasting policy effects on our now more than trillion dollar private insurance risk pool. https://thehealthcareblog.com/blog/2009/12/14/there-be-dragons-the-fiscal-risk-of-premium-subsidies-in-health-reform/ The CBO missed the surge in individual and small group rates that damaged the Exchange and small group marketplace because it believed that the new enrollees would be less expensive and less costly to take care of than those already in the market. Not death spiral material, to be certain, but the cause of a lot of the Obamacare backlash.
But CBO's analyses are always an excellent starting point for an intelligent conversation about what to do. And we have had a string of excellent CBO heads, notably Reischauer, Orszag, Elmendorf and Holtz-Eakin, all of whom took healthcare issues seriously. It is an institution worth protecting.
Kip Sullivan says:
Jeff Goldsmith, thank you very much for your kind remarks about this post and my last one on the free lunch syndrome. You're one of the few other writers I'm aware of that expresses amazement at how indifferent lawmakers and CMS are to the costs managed care interventions impose on docs and hospitals.
Steve2 says:
Being a CBO fan of sorts (mostly a data guy) I think you mostly get this right. As I recall, I don't think it was so much that the CBO correctly predicted the lack of effectiveness of the ACA cost cutting attempts, but rather that they refused to make estimates for most of them since there was no evidence to suggest they would work. Also, I don't remember anyone suggesting that CBO be eliminated during the attempt to pass the Clinton bill or when the ACA was passed. To be fair to the GOP, I think the suggestion to eliminate it has mostly come from right wing media and Gingrich. I am not sure how serious this is, but given that they eliminated the OTA, I guess we can't ignore it.
Steve 2, I didn't state or imply that anyone has proposed eliminating the CBO. I did ask at the end of my post whether the outcome of Ted Kennedy's angry call to Reischauer would be the same today IF it were accompanied by a threat to slash CBO's budget. I hadn't heard that right-wing Republicans are demanding the elimination of the CBO. That wouldn't surprise me, but I haven't heard that.
John.Morrow says:
Thanks for the reminders Kip, Einstein said "We can not solve our problems with the same level of thinking that created them." It is time to find a moral center to the American problem of health care for all of us.
TomW says:
I mostly agree – except for this:
"Today Republicans are doing exactly what Democrats did eight years ago – they're whining rather than telling the public what it is about the CBO's methodology they disagree with."
IIRC, eight years ago, Democrats complained about the CBO methodology for scoring some specific proposals … but ultimately accepted them & shaped the legislation around them & didn't ask members to vote without having a CBO score of the bill they were voting on. What Republicans are doing is entirely different – they're not just complaining or challenging the CBO methodology, they're bypassing the whole scoring process (having first made the budget committee vote on the first version of the AHCA without a score, and now bound to make the whole congress vote on an amended version of it without a score).
I also think it's outrageous & novel that the GOP leaders aren't just critiquing CBO's assumptions about the impact of specific changes, they're faulting CBO for not scoring provisions that aren't actually in the bill (that's the argument that CBO's score is invalid because it doesn't reflect the "three-step approach"). This is either lunacy or intellectual dishonesty.
Basically, i think the handful of people like Mr. Sullivan who care about whether the law actually works or not should be coming down hard & loudly on the Republicans at this point, whether they support the ACA or favor some sort of repeal & replace. The crap that the GOP leadership are trying to get away with right now won't get noticed otherwise.
I completely agree Democrats had the integrity to wait for the CBO's numbers before pushing the ACA through Congress. But I don't agree that Democrats "ultimately accepted" the CBO's numbers and then "shaped the legislation around them." The Democrats did just the reverse — both immediately after the CBO's reports were released and for years after the ACA was enacted. Democrats (a) kvetched about the CBO's refusal to accept Democratic hype about the power of ACOs, "medical homes," electronic medical records, prevention, disease management etc. to cut costs; they (b) did NOT remove any of the multiple managed care proposals from their draft legislation (the ACA contained virtually every silly and not so silly managed care proposal out there); and worst of all, Democrats (c) continued to promote loudly and aggressively their faith-based fantasies about what ACOs etc were going to do to health care costs long after the ACA was enacted.
I'll give you just one example I discussed in a previous post. Obama advisors Orszag and Emanuel wrote a puff piece for the New England Journal of Medicine http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMp1006571#t=article
months after Obama signed the ACA making the very claims they knew the CBO had debunked. If you read the article, you'll see that early in the article they even acknowledged the CBO disagreed with them. If you acknowledge the CBO disagrees with your hype, and then you repeat your hype anyway, you are definitely not "accepting" the CBO's conclusions.
I really hope both parties do an honest examination of how they contributed to the election of a man as ignorant and vulgar as Donald Trump. Among the truths Democrats must acknowledge is that they made a terrible mistake advertising the managed care fads in the ACA and the exchanges as instruments of cost containment. They not only gave health care reform a bad name, they contributed to their own devastating defeats in elections beginning in 2010, most especially 2016.
Similarly, I hope the Republicans understands they paved the way for Trump by promising "repeal and replace" for six years and never once stopping to think what that promise entailed.
Thank you all for reading my stuff and taking the time to comment.
pjnelson says:
Parkinson's Law continues to control the cost of our nation's healthcare.


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The NRA raised more money in March than any month in the past 15 years
bySummer Meza
Alex Wong/Getty Images
The fierce debate on gun control has led people on both sides to put money where their mouths are.
The NRA raised more money in March 2018 than any other month in the past 15 years, Federal Elections Commission records reported by the Miami Herald show.
The organization's Victory Fund, used for backing political campaigns, raised $2.4 million last month, and the majority came from small donors who gave less than $200. The boom in fundraising coincided with student-led March for Our Lives protests, which followed a February school shooting in Parkland, Florida, that killed 17 people. The March for Our Lives Action Fund, meanwhile, has raised $3.5 million since Feb. 18, just four days after the shooting.
In March 2017, the NRA Victory Fund raised $884,000, while February 2018 brought in just $800,000. The major jump in last month's donations follows a pattern — the organization also saw a rise in fundraising after a 2012 shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School.
The Herald reports that the NRA spends money from its Victory Fund on political campaigns for candidates who oppose stricter gun control laws, but is often limited by state and federal campaign finance laws. The organization spends many millions more through its lobbying arm: For example, it spent $31 million to oppose Hillary Clinton and support President Trump in the 2016 election. Read more at the Miami Herald.


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Medical worker accused of sexually assaulting woman at Queensland practice
Police fear there could be more victims after a man was charged with sexually assaulting a woman at a medical practice in Queensland.A Queensland medical worker is accused of sexually assaulting two women while treating them at a practice in Brisbane's south. The 41-year-old man from Calamvale was working at a medical practice on Grand…
Police fear there could be more victims after a man was charged with sexually assaulting a woman at a medical practice in Queensland.
A Queensland medical worker is accused of sexually assaulting two women while treating them at a practice in Brisbane's south.
The 41-year-old man from Calamvale was working at a medical practice on Grand Plaza Drive in Brown Plains when he assaulted two women on separate occasions between April and November this year, police will allege.
Police are urging women who have visited the practice and may have been assaulted to come forward, with officers concerned there could be more victims.
The man has since been charged with six counts of sexual assault.
He is due to appear in the Beenleigh Magistrates Court in January.
Mum's hack for removing price stickers floors internet
Ed Kavalee 'secret' six-pack sends fans wild


It is going to be repeat of 1986 World Cup match. Will Messi do what Diego Armando Maradona did in 1986 against the same team?
Messi is good but is he non stoppable as Deigo Maradona was in the summer of 1978 in Mexico?
I go with Argentina 2-1 Belgium.


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2003-09-15 22:13 UTC You may now sacrifice virgins to ensure there are no last call comments
This past weekend was quite a significant weekend for personal reasons, but of more interest to you, is the fact that The CSS2.1 Last Call Working Draft has been published! (announcement)
Some of the major changes to look at:
The "computed value" of many properties has changed. For example, percentages on most properties now inherit as percentages, not lengths. Inheritance always uses the computed value now. All properties now have a line in their property definition that specifies exactly what the computed value for that property is.
Margin collapsing is now well defined. As part of this, we redefined how clear works.
The definition of containing block has been reworked to be much more well defined (amongst other things, it removes the very confusing contradictions that snuck into CSS2).
There is now an entire appendix devoted to explaining in what order things should paint.
There is now a well defined white-space processing model that defines exactly which spaces should go where, even in bidirectional contexts.
The inline box model has been tuned, and now explicitly mentions struts in two places, in order to explain how 'line-height' works on blocks.
We've added some new values: orange, pre-wrap and pre-line, inline-block.
Backgrounds are better defined (or more explicitly undefined in the case, for example, of background images on inline elements).
The first-line and first-letter pseudo-elements are now very much better defined.
The :before and :after pseudo-elements are now much more flexible. (This is setting the way for the CSS3 Generated and Replaced Content module, which makes them even more flexible.)
We revamped the way overflow and clip work to be better defined and more useful.
All the many errata for CSS2 (there were hundreds) have been merged into the text.
For those of you who doubt that there have been many changes between CSS2 and CSS2.1, and think that the working group was just slow, it may be educational to look at the diff marked version. Look at chapter 9, for instance.
Oh, and GwieF was most amused that I managed to get his name into the spec. Tee-hee!
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Screaming fast solid state storage. The Dell 17YT6 342-3356 has a capacity of 200GB and serial ATA SSD interface. Dell 17YT6 342-3356 hard drives have a 2.5" form factor and ship with a hot swap tray. This drive has a 3Gbps transfer rate. An open hard drive slot in a compatible system is required to install and use the Dell 17YT6 342-3356 200GB SATA SSD hot swap hard drive. Compatible Dell Systems: PowerEdge M610, M710, M710HD, M910, R320, R410, R420, R610, R620, R710, R720, R810, R815, R820, R910, T610, T620 and PowerEdge T710 servers.


text:
Q: Django how to pass basic authorization headers in requests? I'm totally beginner at Django (from a Node/Express background). I need to to make a call to an API that uses basic authorization.
To make requests i'm using the requests module but I don't know where to pass the auth headers. In Axios I normally set the default headers like this:
import axios from 'axios'
const token = `Basic ${Buffer.from(`${process.env.API_USERNAME}:${process.env.API_PASSWORD}`).toString('base64')}`;
axios.defaults.baseURL = process.env.API_URL;
axios.defaults.headers.common['Authorization'] = token;

My service in Django:
from base64 import b64encode
import requests
import environ
environ.Env.read_env()

endpoint = 'some url'
credentials = f"{env('API_USERNAME')}:{env('API_PASSWORD')}"
encodedCredentials = str(b64encode(credentials.encode("utf-8")), "utf-8")
auth = f'"Authorization": "Basic {encodedCredentials}"'

def get_api_data():
    return requests.get(endpoint).json()

How should I pass the headers?

A: If api using token authentication you can use headers argument to pass token with request header:
return requests.get(endpoint, headers={"Authorization": f"Basic {encodedCredentials}"}).json()

Or you can pass login and password directly with auth argument:
return requests.get(endpoint, auth=("login", "password")).json()

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The various galleries accessible via the menu on the left show 1st, 2nd and 3rd placed entries for the previous year. The current year's results are entered once the competitions have taken place. Competition dates can be found under Club Calendar.
We hold seven competitions for projected images (slides and digital images) which are judged by visiting judges.
The Eddie Spence Trophy - Four images for each entry to show the all round ability of the Competitor.
"In house competitions�- these are judged by members' votes. Varying subjects are chosen annually.


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Myeloablative and Reduced-Intensity Conditioned Allogeneic Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation in Myelofibrosis: A Retrospective Study by the Chronic Malignancies Working Party of the European Society for Blood and Marrow Transplantation
Donal McLornan, Richard Szydlo, Linda Koster, Yves Chalandon, Marie Robin, Christine Wolschke, Dietrich Beelen, Gerard Socié, Martin Bornhäuser, Emanuele Angelucci, Dietger Niederwieser, Arnim Gerbitz, Jürgen Finke, Antonin Vitek, Maija Itälä-Remes, Aleksandar Radujkovic, Lothar Kanz, Victoria Potter, Patrice Chevallier, Matthias Stelljes
Eefke Petersen, Stephen Robinson, Xavier Poiré, Evgeny Klyuchnikov, Juan Carlos Hernández-Boluda, Tomasz Czerw, Patrick Hayden, Nicolaus Kröger, Ibrahim Yakoub-Agha
A.O.U. San Martino - IST, Istituto Nazionale Ricerca sul Cancro (GENOVA)
This retrospective study by the European Society for Blood and Marrow Transplantation analyzed the outcome of 2224 patients with myelofibrosis (MF) who underwent allogeneic stem cell transplantation (allo-SCT) between 2000 and 2014; 781 (35%) underwent myeloablative conditioning (MAC) and 1443 (65%) reduced-intensity conditioning (RIC). Median patient age was 52.9 years (range, 18 to 74 years) and 57.5 years (range, 21 to 76 years) in the MAC and RIC cohorts, respectively. Donor type was similar: matched sibling donors (MAC, 317 [41%]; RIC, 552 [38%]) and unrelated donors (MAC, 464 [59%]; RIC, 891 [62%]). Median time to both neutrophil and platelet (>20 × 109/L) engraftment did not differ between cohorts. Rates of grade II to IV acute GVHD were 28% (MAC) and 31% (RIC; P = NS). Cumulative chronic GVHD rates (limited/extensive) were 22%/27% (MAC) and 19%/31% (RIC; P =.10). Cumulative incidences of nonrelapse mortality (NRM) at 1, 3, and 5 years were 25.5%, 32.2%, and 34.6% (MAC) and 26.3%, 32.8%, and 34.4% (RIC), respectively. There was a trend toward a higher relapse rate with RIC regimens compared with MAC (P =.08); rates at 1, 3, and 5 years were 10.9%, 17.2%, and 20.1% (MAC) and 14%, 19.7%, and 23.2% (RIC), respectively. No significant difference in 5-year probabilities of overall survival (OS) was noted: MAC (53.0%; 95% confidence interval [CI], 49.1% to 56.9%) and RIC (51.0%; 95% CI, 48.3% to 53.7%); P =.78. Regarding the composite end point of GVHD-free/relapse-free survival (GRFS), the unadjusted Kaplan-Meier estimate of 5-year GRFS was 32.4% (95% CI, 29.0% to 36.1%) in the MAC group and 26.1% (95% CI, 23.9% to 28.2%) in the RIC group (P =.001). In the MAC cohort, multivariable analysis confirmed worse OS and NRM with older age (>50 years), using an unrelated donor and a Karnofsky Performance Status of 80 or less. For the RIC cohort, worse OS and NRM were associated with age 60 to 70 years compared with younger recipients, use of a mismatched donor, and poor performance status. In conclusion, although similar OS rates existed for both cohorts overall, this study suggests that MAC should still be used for younger individuals suitable for such an approach due to a trend toward less relapse and an overall suggested advantage of improved GRFS, albeit this should be examined in a more homogeneous cohort. RIC allo-SCT still offers significant survival advantage in the older, fitter MF allograft patient, and optimization to reduce significant relapse and NRM rates is required.
Biology of Blood and Marrow Transplantation
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bbmt.2019.06.034
Myeloablative
Myeloproliferative
Reduced intensity
10.1016/j.bbmt.2019.06.034
Fingerprint Dive into the research topics of 'Myeloablative and Reduced-Intensity Conditioned Allogeneic Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation in Myelofibrosis: A Retrospective Study by the Chronic Malignancies Working Party of the European Society for Blood and Marrow Transplantation'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.
Primary Myelofibrosis Medicine & Life Sciences
Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation Medicine & Life Sciences
Conditioning (Psychology) Medicine & Life Sciences
Transplantation Medicine & Life Sciences
Retrospective Studies Medicine & Life Sciences
McLornan, D., Szydlo, R., Koster, L., Chalandon, Y., Robin, M., Wolschke, C., Beelen, D., Socié, G., Bornhäuser, M., Angelucci, E., Niederwieser, D., Gerbitz, A., Finke, J., Vitek, A., Itälä-Remes, M., Radujkovic, A., Kanz, L., Potter, V., Chevallier, P., ... Yakoub-Agha, I. (2019). Myeloablative and Reduced-Intensity Conditioned Allogeneic Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation in Myelofibrosis: A Retrospective Study by the Chronic Malignancies Working Party of the European Society for Blood and Marrow Transplantation. Biology of Blood and Marrow Transplantation. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bbmt.2019.06.034
Myeloablative and Reduced-Intensity Conditioned Allogeneic Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation in Myelofibrosis : A Retrospective Study by the Chronic Malignancies Working Party of the European Society for Blood and Marrow Transplantation. / McLornan, Donal; Szydlo, Richard; Koster, Linda; Chalandon, Yves; Robin, Marie; Wolschke, Christine; Beelen, Dietrich; Socié, Gerard; Bornhäuser, Martin; Angelucci, Emanuele; Niederwieser, Dietger; Gerbitz, Arnim; Finke, Jürgen; Vitek, Antonin; Itälä-Remes, Maija; Radujkovic, Aleksandar; Kanz, Lothar; Potter, Victoria; Chevallier, Patrice; Stelljes, Matthias; Petersen, Eefke; Robinson, Stephen; Poiré, Xavier; Klyuchnikov, Evgeny; Hernández-Boluda, Juan Carlos; Czerw, Tomasz; Hayden, Patrick; Kröger, Nicolaus; Yakoub-Agha, Ibrahim.
In: Biology of Blood and Marrow Transplantation, 01.01.2019.
McLornan, D, Szydlo, R, Koster, L, Chalandon, Y, Robin, M, Wolschke, C, Beelen, D, Socié, G, Bornhäuser, M, Angelucci, E, Niederwieser, D, Gerbitz, A, Finke, J, Vitek, A, Itälä-Remes, M, Radujkovic, A, Kanz, L, Potter, V, Chevallier, P, Stelljes, M, Petersen, E, Robinson, S, Poiré, X, Klyuchnikov, E, Hernández-Boluda, JC, Czerw, T, Hayden, P, Kröger, N & Yakoub-Agha, I 2019, 'Myeloablative and Reduced-Intensity Conditioned Allogeneic Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation in Myelofibrosis: A Retrospective Study by the Chronic Malignancies Working Party of the European Society for Blood and Marrow Transplantation', Biology of Blood and Marrow Transplantation. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bbmt.2019.06.034
McLornan D, Szydlo R, Koster L, Chalandon Y, Robin M, Wolschke C et al. Myeloablative and Reduced-Intensity Conditioned Allogeneic Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation in Myelofibrosis: A Retrospective Study by the Chronic Malignancies Working Party of the European Society for Blood and Marrow Transplantation. Biology of Blood and Marrow Transplantation. 2019 Jan 1. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bbmt.2019.06.034
McLornan, Donal ; Szydlo, Richard ; Koster, Linda ; Chalandon, Yves ; Robin, Marie ; Wolschke, Christine ; Beelen, Dietrich ; Socié, Gerard ; Bornhäuser, Martin ; Angelucci, Emanuele ; Niederwieser, Dietger ; Gerbitz, Arnim ; Finke, Jürgen ; Vitek, Antonin ; Itälä-Remes, Maija ; Radujkovic, Aleksandar ; Kanz, Lothar ; Potter, Victoria ; Chevallier, Patrice ; Stelljes, Matthias ; Petersen, Eefke ; Robinson, Stephen ; Poiré, Xavier ; Klyuchnikov, Evgeny ; Hernández-Boluda, Juan Carlos ; Czerw, Tomasz ; Hayden, Patrick ; Kröger, Nicolaus ; Yakoub-Agha, Ibrahim. / Myeloablative and Reduced-Intensity Conditioned Allogeneic Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation in Myelofibrosis : A Retrospective Study by the Chronic Malignancies Working Party of the European Society for Blood and Marrow Transplantation. In: Biology of Blood and Marrow Transplantation. 2019.
@article{732214d5e38e4f4cb30846f9c93c24c5,
title = "Myeloablative and Reduced-Intensity Conditioned Allogeneic Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation in Myelofibrosis: A Retrospective Study by the Chronic Malignancies Working Party of the European Society for Blood and Marrow Transplantation",
abstract = "This retrospective study by the European Society for Blood and Marrow Transplantation analyzed the outcome of 2224 patients with myelofibrosis (MF) who underwent allogeneic stem cell transplantation (allo-SCT) between 2000 and 2014; 781 (35%) underwent myeloablative conditioning (MAC) and 1443 (65%) reduced-intensity conditioning (RIC). Median patient age was 52.9 years (range, 18 to 74 years) and 57.5 years (range, 21 to 76 years) in the MAC and RIC cohorts, respectively. Donor type was similar: matched sibling donors (MAC, 317 [41%]; RIC, 552 [38%]) and unrelated donors (MAC, 464 [59%]; RIC, 891 [62%]). Median time to both neutrophil and platelet (>20 × 109/L) engraftment did not differ between cohorts. Rates of grade II to IV acute GVHD were 28% (MAC) and 31% (RIC; P = NS). Cumulative chronic GVHD rates (limited/extensive) were 22%/27% (MAC) and 19%/31% (RIC; P =.10). Cumulative incidences of nonrelapse mortality (NRM) at 1, 3, and 5 years were 25.5%, 32.2%, and 34.6% (MAC) and 26.3%, 32.8%, and 34.4% (RIC), respectively. There was a trend toward a higher relapse rate with RIC regimens compared with MAC (P =.08); rates at 1, 3, and 5 years were 10.9%, 17.2%, and 20.1% (MAC) and 14%, 19.7%, and 23.2% (RIC), respectively. No significant difference in 5-year probabilities of overall survival (OS) was noted: MAC (53.0%; 95% confidence interval [CI], 49.1% to 56.9%) and RIC (51.0%; 95% CI, 48.3% to 53.7%); P =.78. Regarding the composite end point of GVHD-free/relapse-free survival (GRFS), the unadjusted Kaplan-Meier estimate of 5-year GRFS was 32.4% (95% CI, 29.0% to 36.1%) in the MAC group and 26.1% (95% CI, 23.9% to 28.2%) in the RIC group (P =.001). In the MAC cohort, multivariable analysis confirmed worse OS and NRM with older age (>50 years), using an unrelated donor and a Karnofsky Performance Status of 80 or less. For the RIC cohort, worse OS and NRM were associated with age 60 to 70 years compared with younger recipients, use of a mismatched donor, and poor performance status. In conclusion, although similar OS rates existed for both cohorts overall, this study suggests that MAC should still be used for younger individuals suitable for such an approach due to a trend toward less relapse and an overall suggested advantage of improved GRFS, albeit this should be examined in a more homogeneous cohort. RIC allo-SCT still offers significant survival advantage in the older, fitter MF allograft patient, and optimization to reduce significant relapse and NRM rates is required.",
keywords = "Myeloablative, Myeloproliferative, Reduced intensity, Stem cell transplantation",
author = "Donal McLornan and Richard Szydlo and Linda Koster and Yves Chalandon and Marie Robin and Christine Wolschke and Dietrich Beelen and Gerard Soci{\'e} and Martin Bornh{\"a}user and Emanuele Angelucci and Dietger Niederwieser and Arnim Gerbitz and J{\"u}rgen Finke and Antonin Vitek and Maija It{\"a}l{\"a}-Remes and Aleksandar Radujkovic and Lothar Kanz and Victoria Potter and Patrice Chevallier and Matthias Stelljes and Eefke Petersen and Stephen Robinson and Xavier Poir{\'e} and Evgeny Klyuchnikov and Hern{\'a}ndez-Boluda, {Juan Carlos} and Tomasz Czerw and Patrick Hayden and Nicolaus Kr{\"o}ger and Ibrahim Yakoub-Agha",
doi = "10.1016/j.bbmt.2019.06.034",
journal = "Biology of Blood and Marrow Transplantation",
T1 - Myeloablative and Reduced-Intensity Conditioned Allogeneic Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation in Myelofibrosis
T2 - A Retrospective Study by the Chronic Malignancies Working Party of the European Society for Blood and Marrow Transplantation
AU - McLornan, Donal
AU - Szydlo, Richard
AU - Koster, Linda
AU - Chalandon, Yves
AU - Robin, Marie
AU - Wolschke, Christine
AU - Beelen, Dietrich
AU - Socié, Gerard
AU - Bornhäuser, Martin
AU - Angelucci, Emanuele
AU - Niederwieser, Dietger
AU - Gerbitz, Arnim
AU - Finke, Jürgen
AU - Vitek, Antonin
AU - Itälä-Remes, Maija
AU - Radujkovic, Aleksandar
AU - Kanz, Lothar
AU - Potter, Victoria
AU - Chevallier, Patrice
AU - Stelljes, Matthias
AU - Petersen, Eefke
AU - Robinson, Stephen
AU - Poiré, Xavier
AU - Klyuchnikov, Evgeny
AU - Hernández-Boluda, Juan Carlos
AU - Czerw, Tomasz
AU - Hayden, Patrick
AU - Kröger, Nicolaus
AU - Yakoub-Agha, Ibrahim
N2 - This retrospective study by the European Society for Blood and Marrow Transplantation analyzed the outcome of 2224 patients with myelofibrosis (MF) who underwent allogeneic stem cell transplantation (allo-SCT) between 2000 and 2014; 781 (35%) underwent myeloablative conditioning (MAC) and 1443 (65%) reduced-intensity conditioning (RIC). Median patient age was 52.9 years (range, 18 to 74 years) and 57.5 years (range, 21 to 76 years) in the MAC and RIC cohorts, respectively. Donor type was similar: matched sibling donors (MAC, 317 [41%]; RIC, 552 [38%]) and unrelated donors (MAC, 464 [59%]; RIC, 891 [62%]). Median time to both neutrophil and platelet (>20 × 109/L) engraftment did not differ between cohorts. Rates of grade II to IV acute GVHD were 28% (MAC) and 31% (RIC; P = NS). Cumulative chronic GVHD rates (limited/extensive) were 22%/27% (MAC) and 19%/31% (RIC; P =.10). Cumulative incidences of nonrelapse mortality (NRM) at 1, 3, and 5 years were 25.5%, 32.2%, and 34.6% (MAC) and 26.3%, 32.8%, and 34.4% (RIC), respectively. There was a trend toward a higher relapse rate with RIC regimens compared with MAC (P =.08); rates at 1, 3, and 5 years were 10.9%, 17.2%, and 20.1% (MAC) and 14%, 19.7%, and 23.2% (RIC), respectively. No significant difference in 5-year probabilities of overall survival (OS) was noted: MAC (53.0%; 95% confidence interval [CI], 49.1% to 56.9%) and RIC (51.0%; 95% CI, 48.3% to 53.7%); P =.78. Regarding the composite end point of GVHD-free/relapse-free survival (GRFS), the unadjusted Kaplan-Meier estimate of 5-year GRFS was 32.4% (95% CI, 29.0% to 36.1%) in the MAC group and 26.1% (95% CI, 23.9% to 28.2%) in the RIC group (P =.001). In the MAC cohort, multivariable analysis confirmed worse OS and NRM with older age (>50 years), using an unrelated donor and a Karnofsky Performance Status of 80 or less. For the RIC cohort, worse OS and NRM were associated with age 60 to 70 years compared with younger recipients, use of a mismatched donor, and poor performance status. In conclusion, although similar OS rates existed for both cohorts overall, this study suggests that MAC should still be used for younger individuals suitable for such an approach due to a trend toward less relapse and an overall suggested advantage of improved GRFS, albeit this should be examined in a more homogeneous cohort. RIC allo-SCT still offers significant survival advantage in the older, fitter MF allograft patient, and optimization to reduce significant relapse and NRM rates is required.
AB - This retrospective study by the European Society for Blood and Marrow Transplantation analyzed the outcome of 2224 patients with myelofibrosis (MF) who underwent allogeneic stem cell transplantation (allo-SCT) between 2000 and 2014; 781 (35%) underwent myeloablative conditioning (MAC) and 1443 (65%) reduced-intensity conditioning (RIC). Median patient age was 52.9 years (range, 18 to 74 years) and 57.5 years (range, 21 to 76 years) in the MAC and RIC cohorts, respectively. Donor type was similar: matched sibling donors (MAC, 317 [41%]; RIC, 552 [38%]) and unrelated donors (MAC, 464 [59%]; RIC, 891 [62%]). Median time to both neutrophil and platelet (>20 × 109/L) engraftment did not differ between cohorts. Rates of grade II to IV acute GVHD were 28% (MAC) and 31% (RIC; P = NS). Cumulative chronic GVHD rates (limited/extensive) were 22%/27% (MAC) and 19%/31% (RIC; P =.10). Cumulative incidences of nonrelapse mortality (NRM) at 1, 3, and 5 years were 25.5%, 32.2%, and 34.6% (MAC) and 26.3%, 32.8%, and 34.4% (RIC), respectively. There was a trend toward a higher relapse rate with RIC regimens compared with MAC (P =.08); rates at 1, 3, and 5 years were 10.9%, 17.2%, and 20.1% (MAC) and 14%, 19.7%, and 23.2% (RIC), respectively. No significant difference in 5-year probabilities of overall survival (OS) was noted: MAC (53.0%; 95% confidence interval [CI], 49.1% to 56.9%) and RIC (51.0%; 95% CI, 48.3% to 53.7%); P =.78. Regarding the composite end point of GVHD-free/relapse-free survival (GRFS), the unadjusted Kaplan-Meier estimate of 5-year GRFS was 32.4% (95% CI, 29.0% to 36.1%) in the MAC group and 26.1% (95% CI, 23.9% to 28.2%) in the RIC group (P =.001). In the MAC cohort, multivariable analysis confirmed worse OS and NRM with older age (>50 years), using an unrelated donor and a Karnofsky Performance Status of 80 or less. For the RIC cohort, worse OS and NRM were associated with age 60 to 70 years compared with younger recipients, use of a mismatched donor, and poor performance status. In conclusion, although similar OS rates existed for both cohorts overall, this study suggests that MAC should still be used for younger individuals suitable for such an approach due to a trend toward less relapse and an overall suggested advantage of improved GRFS, albeit this should be examined in a more homogeneous cohort. RIC allo-SCT still offers significant survival advantage in the older, fitter MF allograft patient, and optimization to reduce significant relapse and NRM rates is required.
KW - Myeloablative
KW - Myeloproliferative
KW - Reduced intensity
KW - Stem cell transplantation
U2 - 10.1016/j.bbmt.2019.06.034
DO - 10.1016/j.bbmt.2019.06.034
JO - Biology of Blood and Marrow Transplantation
JF - Biology of Blood and Marrow Transplantation


text:
TURKEY: Ankara suspicious that Israel's security behind U.S. push for regional missile shield
October 25, 2010 | 10:31 am
Is the United States using NATO to protect its special friend in the Middle East: Israel?
That's what Turkey suspects may be behind a U.S.-led push for an anti-missile defense system in Turkey, intended to ward off an Iranian attack.
According to a report published Monday in the Turkish newspaper Today's Zaman, Ankara has sought and reportedly received explicit assurances from the U.S. that intelligence gathered using the missile shield's sensors will not be shared with Israel.
American officials have not been shy about fingering Israel's enemy, Iran, as the major reason for deploying the system, citing Iranian threats to Europe. But the article in Today's Zaman was rife with skepticism, pointing out that as a non-member, Israel is not eligible for protection from the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.
"In fact, given the unpredictability of the security situation across the globe, it is possible that the missile defense system could even be used against Israel some day in the future," the article said. "NATO is an organization that operates on the principle of collective defense and an attack on an ally is considered an attack on the entire alliance."
It wouldn't be the first time that the U.Ss. was torn between its allegiance to NATO and its historic friendship with Israel. When Israeli forces stormed a Turkish aid ship off Gaza in June, resulting in the death of nine Turkish activists, Turkey threatened to invoke the NATO Treaty, which could have obligated the U.S. to become involved militarily.
A recent United Nations report found that several of the Turks aboard the aid ship had been killed "execution-style" at close range, further souring Turkey on Israel just before the scheduled Nov. 19 NATO summit in Lisbon, during which Turkey is expected to make a decision on whether to allow elements of the the missile system to be deployed on its territory.
Steven Pifer, a senior fellow specializing in security at the Brooking Institution in Washington, said that any benefit to Israel from such a system was likely incidental.
"Certainly a radar site that looks from Turkey toward Iran would benefit Israel, but the Israelis are advanced in terms of their own missile defense system," Pifer told Babylon and Beyond. "I think that because of their position in the region, [the Turks] are nervous about singling out the Iranians as a threat."
In the recent past, Turkey has pursued an independent policy in the Middle East, maintaining good relations with Israel, its Arab neighbors and Iran. That position has come under strain as Turkish-Israeli relations deteriorate and Ankara strengthens its ties with Syria and Iran. Turkey has come under fire recently for continuing its booming trade with Iran despite sanctions that should be binding for all U.N. member states.
The proposed ballistic missile defense system would be rolled out in two phases. The first would entail the deployment of U.S. Navy ships equipped with Standard Missile-3 interceptors in the eastern Mediterranean sometime in the next two years. The second would see the erection of a land-based radar site in Turkey by 2015.
Turkey initially objected to the new missile shield on grounds that the wording of the agreement singled out Iran as a threat. Not only does Turkey wish to maintain its friendship with Iran, but Iranian hostilities toward the West are increasingly seen as having roots in American and European support for Israel.
An editorial in the Turkish newspaper Hurriyet Daily News slammed both the Turkish and American sides for being disingenuous in their political games, accusing Turkey of trying to gloss over the "inconvenient truth" about Iran while the U.S. plays the Armenian-genocide card in an effort to pressure Ankara.
"Multi-billion dollar missile defense systems may be much loved by military planners, engineers and defense contractors ... but as a defense in the age of terrorism, these technologically dubious designs are worthless," the article concluded. "We need a believable defense against 21st-century threats."
-- Meris Lutz in Beirut
Photo: A Standard Missile-3 is launched from the U.S. cruiser Lake Erie. Credit: U.S. Navy via Wikimedia Commons


This is I. Now I know that is not gramtatically correct but hey, blame Withnail. I always wanted to own a boat and now I do, and its great. Expensive. But great. Unfortunatly the aquisition of the boat also signalled the departure of my girlfriend (not related) so now the sailboat has become my home. That's great too, not the departure of my girlfiend – that was devastating – but living on a boat, it's good fun. It's also small and cold and located three hundred meters offshore next to a busy shipping lane but I figure, so what, nobody's perfect. So there we have it, that's me. I am single, I live on a boat, I love using commas and I am generally well disposed to life.


People's resources, goals and needs will change over the course of time and older adults cannot and should not be viewed as "one size fits all".
There are many factors to consider when choosing where you want to live as you age; not only your physical needs, but also your financial resources.
Understanding what options you have and the needs they fulfill, will be the first step in making the best choice for you.


Last night, after all things were right with my world again because my blackberry was mysteriously able to reconnect with my email, I was spending some random time in God's Word just following some "rabbit trails" through the cross-references in my bible. I love it when I have the time to do this, because inevitably after some prayer and relaxed rambling, God gives me a treasure that really speaks to me. Last night, my treasure was the verse above, Hebrews 13:15.
I was in a thankful mood yesterday, even though my connections were a bit awry with my email. I was thankful for several new friends I've made within the past year that I had never known before. They are gifts from God, and I think they know who they are. I was thankful for the CBS bible study in which I've participated in that has provided me some small group bible study and continuity in my life while I search for a new church. I was even thankful for my job, which although it is not very challenging for me at times, it provides me with the flexibility to do more of the things I love to do.
But am I thankful continually, always giving a sacrifice of praise to God through my words and actions? Is anyone? Who even knows what kind of "grade" I would get on the curve of God's grading scale on this one. That is irrelevant anyway, because God "grades" us all individually anyway, doesn't He?
By Him- One of these days I'm going to start relying on God's power more than I rely on my own. I'm getting better every day with this, but still have a long, long, way to go.
The sacrifice of praise, giving thanks… - I want to be thankful today, for everything, even the things that I'm not always thankful for. For the traffic, for the inevitable slow checkout person at Office Max, for everything.
I'll close with the following prayer today before I get back to the job I love. :) Won't you pray with me?
Dear Father in heaven, I thank You for all of the blessings you bestow on me each and every day. I know that I don't even notice half of them because I'm tend to not always be content with what I have but want something more. Forgive me for that. Show me how to love and appreciate You completely and continually. Make the words of my lips and thoughts of my heart be acceptable to you, my Lord. Help me to rely on You, because it by You only that I can be pleasing to You. Amen.
What have you given up for your faith? Think about that for a minute. As I finished Beth Moore's Patriarchs study last night with my small group I was reminded once again of how much the patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob gave up to follow God. Abraham gave up his life as he knew it for a God he really didn't know very well at the time in order to play a part in a grand story of which he would never see the ending. Abraham never saw the promises of God fulfilled in his lifetime. Now that is faith.
So was it a coincidence that upon finishing the Beth Moore study that I came to the Hebrews "hall of faith" in my daily reading? In my bible I have notes taken from a sermon years ago that mention what each of the main "hall" members gave up for their faith. But first of all, what is faith?
Now that is a sentence worth mulling over, isn't it? I find it interesting that in order to have real faith, we must give up something in our lives. Let's look at the famous ones, shall we?
Abel (v4) - Gave up the best of his flock.
Noah - Gave up pride and reputation. (v 7) How foolish must he have looked to his fellow man?
That is quite a list isn't it? Quite a list of sacrifices as well.
So my question for us today is: What am I hanging on to for dear life that if I gave it up might change my life in the way I live it for God?


text:
Orleans moving ahead with exciting work on Nitrogen Removing Oysters
This article outlines the discussion around Orleans funding of a project on studying oysters as a tool for nitrogen removal. Despite discussion, the project was funded for another year.
You can see the original article here.
Selectmen Digest Report On Nitrogen-Removing Oysters 22 March 2017
By: Ed Maroney
ORLEANS, MA — He who pays the piper should call the tune – even if it's the sewer piper. But some feel the piper – the regulators and consultants – are making the town dance instead.
Things aren't that simple, however.
In recent years, Orleans has explored alternatives to widespread sewering to meet nitrogen reduction goals for its waters. Among the alternatives outside of downtown have been low-tech and less expensive options such as oyster filtration. But the town is still hearing "prove it" from the state Department of Environmental Protection, and that proof comes at a cost.
At last week's board meeting, Selectman Mark Mathison voiced concern about the town's role as banker for experiments that may also benefit many other parties. He spoke March 15 after a presentation by AECOM environmental scientist Paula Winchell about results of the oyster pilot project in Lonnies Pond and its proposed second phase.
Winchell said testing of oysters from last year's experiment showed that 10.3 percent of dry tissue weight was nitrogen, a finding comparable to similar work done in Pleasant Bay. Almost 26 kilograms of nitrogen was removed via the oysters. The experiment deployed 200,000 oysters in 800 bags; about 127,000 were two-inch and the remainder one-inch.
The town's target for nitrogen reduction in Lonnies Pond is approximately 300 kilograms a year, and the total maximum daily load allowed is about 0.82 kilograms a day. The proposed second phase of the project would ramp things up with 3,000 bags holding 600 one-year oysters each and 4,500 bags with 250 two-year oysters each. There would be four one-acre "plot" floats of oysters: two over deeper water and softer bottom than last year's experiment, one in a location similar to last year's, and another over the same area used last year. This last would continue to add deposits to the bottom area where the initial study took a first look at denitrification.
Mathison asked if the town was committing significant money to an aquaculture project that would not provide solutions for all the town's ponds and that might not win the approval of state regulators.
"Why are we asking the taxpayers of Orleans to fund these scientific investigations?" he said. "They should be done in the research field."
To Mathison's point that last year's study had confirmed what was already known – that oysters can aid in denitrification of ponds – the town's water quality consultant, Mike Domenica, said that the question is whether such a program can be managed over time so "DEP can bet on it." More work is needed, he said, to determine whether the process is cost-effective per kilogram removed. "We can't put all the burden on one technology," he cautioned.
Mathison called for more details on aquaculture plans. "What's the impact on moorings, boating, swimming?" he asked. "Not only do we need something demonstrated to DEP, but to the taxpayers of the town."
"All of us," Domenica said, "are aware of the elephant in the room, the long-term impact, the acceptability to abutters, growers" and marketing the grown shellfish. "This is what Year 2 will be," he said, a look at those concerns.
"I think DEP should be paying for some of this," Selectman Jon Fuller said. "Orleans is paying for everything." Even so, he was reluctant not to proceed with Year 2 and lose the progress already made.
The board was to vote on releasing funds for further work in Lonnies Pond at its meeting last night, after the paper's deadline.
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University Illinois Student Volunteers Enjoyed Oys...
Work with Oysters in the Vacationland of Maine