text:
Harley-Davidson's 2020 LiveWire: Sound and look of the future
The Harley-Davidson 2020 LiveWire is the brand's first production electric motorbike. PHOTO: HARLEY-DAVIDSON MOTORCYCLE
I am a little excited.
On July 11, I will be heading to the US for an up-close look at the Harley-Davidson 2020 LiveWire and ride it.
I am feeling the buzz for this new sporty ride as it is the brand's first production electric motorcycle. Who would have thought that Harley, synonymous with large-capacity motorbikes often seen in Hollywood movies, would be taking the electric route?
Despite the early manifestation of the LiveWire, called Project LiveWire and shown to regional journalists lucky enough to ride it briefly in Sepang, Malaysia, in 2014, I was still not sold on the idea.
I figured it was a marketing exercise. I imagined Harley did not want to break rank with the rest of the industry, so it had to show it was considering making environmentally friendly motorcycles of the future.
Like many enthusiasts who love the masculine Harley motorcycles for their torque-ready engines, as well as the vibration and heat they produce between your legs, I believed Harley's plan to go electric would never happen in my lifetime.
TECH-DRIVEN
But like my 79-year-old father, who had previously vowed never to speak into a small boxy device (a mobile phone), let alone carry it with him in his pocket, I have conceded.
In today's tech-driven world, you will be left behind on the road shoulder if you do not keep up with others in the fast lane. I am glad Harley recognises this. The LiveWire marks the start of exciting two-wheel products from the company.
To inspire more people worldwide to experience the exhilaration of riding a motorcycle, the company shared details of its More Roads to Harley-Davidson growth plan through 2022.
It will be broadening access to its brand by adding new models - street fighter and adventure tourer motorcycles - that do not fall within the traditional cruiser genre Harley-Davidson is known for.
Five years after the Project LiveWire announcement, the specifications for the 2020 LiveWire look impressive. Its electric motor, the Harley-Davidson Revelation electric powertrain, can accelerate from 0 to 96kmh in under 3.5 seconds.
It has anti-lock brakes (ABS), traction control and electronic chassis control - all fully electronic and using the latest inertial measurement unit and ABS sensor tech. On a single charge, the LiveWire can achieve 176km for urban street use.
Said Harley chief executive officer Matt Levatich: "...This next chapter in our history is about creating products and opportunities for existing and aspiring riders of all ages and walks of life."
I foresee I will need to ride the LiveWire with an open mind. I will also need to get used to riding a motorcycle that does not have a clutch lever, let alone that familiar Harley exhaust note. But its designers have assured a comfy ride with minimal vibration, heat and noise, calling the whirring motor sound the LiveWire makes a "new signature Harley-Davidson sound".


text:
Home » Latest News in Nigeria » Civil society gives FG 14-day ultimatum over Sowore
Civil society gives FG 14-day ultimatum over Sowore
A coalition of civil society organisations (CSOs) has asked President Muhammadu Buhari to release Omoyele Sowore within 14 days or face mass action.
Sowore was rearrested by the Department of State Services (DSS) last Friday — less than 24 hours after he was released on bail.
He had spent 125 days in custody before he was briefly released last Thursday.
The pro-democracy activist is accused of insulting the president, treasonable felony and money laundering.
Speaking on behalf of the coalition on Monday, Yemi Ademolekun, convener of Enough is Enough (EIE), said the shrinking of the media and civic space calls for concern, and that there is a need to rise up against any action of the government that will stifle free speech.
While listing five demands, she asked the president to obey all pending court orders and order the release of all those illegally arrested.
"The five demands includes; President Muhammadu Buhari should show accountability as commander-in-chief and address the nation on his commitment to the rule of law and human rights," the EIE convener said.
"The release of all illegally detained persons by Department of State Service (DSS) as reviewed by Amnesty International, Premium Times and Punch newspaper in recent times.
"That the government obey all pending court orders. An investigation of the officer who violated protocols and circumstances leading circumstances leading to the second arrest of Omoyele Sowore.
"Unconditional release of Omoyele Sowore."
She said if these demands are not met within the time given, they would occupy all the offices of National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) nationwide.
"If these five demands are not honoured within 14 days, we call on patriots across Nigerians to join us to join us as we occupy National Human Rights Commission offices across the country as it is legally mandated to protect Nigerians and also report to presidency," Ademolekun said.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Q: Using powershell to merge PDFs in multiple subfolders with pdftk and then delete original PDF files I have a root folder that contains many subfolders, each with multiple PDFs.
I then have a powershell script that goes through the folder structure and creates a merged PDF file (using PDFtk) for each subfolder as follows:

    $pdftk = "C:\Program Files (x86)\PDFtk\bin\pdftk.exe"
    $RootFolder = "path to root folder"
    Get-ChildItem -r -include *.pdf | group DirectoryName | % {& $PDFtk $_.group CAT OUTPUT "$($_.Name | Split-Path -Parent)\$($_.Name | Split-Path -Leaf)_merged.pdf"}

The script works as required, however I will be working with a very large amount of data, and for that reason I need to delete the original PDFs from each folder after the merge is completed.
Basically, i need the script to look in the first folder 4830_2017, create the merged file 4830_2017_merged.pdf and then delete the PDFs located inside the 4830_2017 folder before moving on to the next folder, and doing the same thing.
I am stuggling to find the correct way of deleting the contents of each folder after the merge.
Thanks is advance for your help.

A: In your ForEach-Object script block, $_.Group contains each group's, i.e. each directory's System.IO.FileInfo instances representing the *.pdf files, so you can pipe them to Remove-Item after a successful merge:
(Get-ChildItem -Recurse -Filter *.pdf) |
  Group-Object DirectoryName |
    ForEach-Object {
      & $PDFtk $_.Group.FullName CAT OUTPUT "$($_.Name | Split-Path -Parent)\$($_.Name | Split-Path -Leaf)_merged.pdf"
      if (0 -eq $LASTEXITCODE) { # If the merge succeeded.
        $_.Group | Remove-Item   # Delete.
      }
    }

Note:

*

*The Get-ChildItem command is enclosed in (...) so as to ensure that its output is collected in full before further processing, to rule out side effects from new *.pdf files getting created or old ones getting deleted affecting the recursive enumeration.

*

*-Filter *.pdf is used in lieu of -Include *.pdf, which is functionally equivalent in this case, but performs much better, due to delegating the filtering to the file-system APIs rather, at the source - see this answer.

*& $PDFtk $_.Group was changed to & $PDFtk $_.Group.FullName to ensure that full file paths are passed; note that this is no longer necessary in PowerShell (Core) 7+, where System.IO.FileInfo and System.IO.DirectoryInfo instances consistently stringify to their full paths - see this answer.

*Group-Object outputs Microsoft.PowerShell.Commands.GroupInfo instances.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
Overwhelming leadership success and management failure
September 1, 2018 July 23, 2015 by Jack Dunigan
One of the best examples of overwhelming and comprehensive leadership success and overwhelming and comprehensive management failure can be seen in the career of General George Patton. A brilliant and courageous strategist, his record of success on the field of conflict in two wars is nothing short of phenomenal.
But as bright a star as he was, it faded some at the end of his career when military command put him in charge of administering a designated precinct of conquered territory. In that he didn't do so well. He was a leader, not a manager.
Now, I am not here to do anything other today than draw the distinction between the skills Patton so brilliantly manifested as leader and those he so poorly executed as a manager.
First, leadership and change go hand in hand. Who responds to leaders? Followers! Followers follow someone who is leading them somewhere else. Managers don't. Managers maintain and the word "maintain" means to "cause or enable a condition or state of affairs to continue." Leaders are change agents, managers guard against it.
Second, leadership is a relationship. It is a function of a set of intangibles and nuances that Patton did and people like him do it very well. But management is an assortment of tasks that are done and redone that measure and oversee the processes that maintain things to continue as they are. Leaders make things count, managers count things.
Third, leaders primarily look ahead while managers look behind. Managers find fulfilment and reward in remaining faithful to systems. Leaders are always breakout people. They delight in making a difference and revel in uncertainty. Managers get excited about keeping things steady and certain. Leaders launch into the unknown, managers would rather not.
In effective organizations, both are necessary. And both share some people skills, but their intentions and objectives are different. Not contradictory, effective organizations foster a collaborative relationship because it functions best.
One reason Patton did so poorly as an administrator is that he could not readily or comfortably make the transition from leadership to management. And I suggest that he shouldn't have accepted the job at all. Perhaps he had no choice, but it wasn't long before command made a change. So we can conclude that perhaps one more skill is vital for effective leaders – that of knowing when to quit and move on. Leaders lead and are seldom satisfied doing anything other than that.
Categories Leadership, management Post navigation
Starting a nonprofit – an introduction to the basics
The most important lesson in leadership from the Undercover Boss


text:
The paramilitary forces of China are the military units and formations apart from the People's Liberation Army, the principal military force of the People's Republic of China. They are composed of three main forces, the People's Liberation Army reserve force, the People's Armed Police (PAP), and the Militia, and they act as auxiliaries to the active forces of the People's Liberation Army. They generally perform a wide range of roles. All together, the paramilitary has 20,854,000 troops, as of 2018.

People's Armed Police

The Chinese People's Armed Police Force (PAP) is a paramilitary force primarily responsible for law enforcement, internal security, riot control and counter-terrorism during peacetime. In time of war, the PAP would  be used to support the PLA, especially in counter-insurgency operations. According to the constitution of the PRC, the PAP is one of three integral elements of the Chinese armed forces, along with the People's Liberation Army (PLA) and the militia and reserve forces. The China's National Defence White Paper published in 2006 claimed that the total strength of the PAP was 1.5 million people.

China Coast Guard

Militia

The role of the Militia and the degree of party and PLA control over it have varied over the years. Nowadays, the Militia numbers some 3 million service men and women. During the 1940s the militia served primarily as a PLA support force. After 1949 the party consolidated control over the country and gradually used the militia to maintain order and help the PLA with defense of the borders and coast. In the mid-1950s Minister of National Defense Peng Dehuai attempted to build a reserve system incorporating the militia.

Peng's efforts were thwarted when the party expanded the militia, assigning it duties as a production force and internal security force during the Great Leap Forward. Lin Biao reduced the size of the militia and reemphasized military training in the early 1960s. The militia was fragmented during the early years of the Cultural Revolution, but in the 1970s it was rebuilt and redirected to support the PLA.

The Gang of Four attempted to build up the urban militia as an alternative to the PLA, but the urban militia failed to support the Gang of Four in 1976, when Hua Guofeng and moderate military leaders deposed them. The militia's logistical support of the PLA was essential during the Sino-Vietnamese War of 1979. In the 1980s Chinese leaders undertook to improve the militia's military capabilities by reducing its size and its economic tasks. when China was founded, CPC claimed a militia of 5.5 million.

In 1987 the militia was controlled by the PLA at the military district level and by people's armed forces departments, which devolved to civilian control at the county and city levels as part of the reduction in force. The militia was a smaller force than previously, consisting of 4.3 million basic or primary—armed—militia, and the 6-million-strong general or ordinary militia. The basic militia was made up of men and women aged eighteen to twenty-eight who had served or were expected to serve in the PLA and who received thirty to forty days of military training per year.

The basic militia included naval militia, which operated armed fishing trawlers and coastal defense units, as well as specialized detachments, such as air defense, artillery, communications, antichemical, reconnaissance, and engineering units, which served the PLA. The ordinary militia included men aged eighteen to thirty-five who met the criteria for military service - they received some basic military training but generally were unarmed.

The ordinary militia had some air defense duties and included the urban militia. Efforts were made to streamline militia organization and upgrade militia weaponry. By 1986 militia training bases had been established in over half the counties and cities in the nation.

The militia's principal tasks in the 1980s were to assist in production, to undergo military training, and to defend China's frontiers in peacetime. In wartime, the militia would supply reserves for mobilization, provide logistical support to the PLA, and conduct guerrilla operations behind enemy lines.

People's Liberation Army Reserve Service
The 1984 Military Service Law stipulated the combination of the militia and the reserve service system. Military training for senior middle-school and college and university students commenced in 1984 as China sought to provide additional qualified reserve service officers. The reserve force consisted primarily of the militia and was organized into reserve-service divisions and regiments.

In 1987 China began to make reference to the National Defense Reserve Force, which apparently consisted of reserve soldiers (including all militia, demobilized soldiers, and specialized technical personnel registered for reserve service) and reserve officers (including demobilized officers and soldiers assigned to reserve officer service, college and university graduates, and civilian officials and specialized technicians). The Reserve,  as of 2016, is made up of 510,000 reserve personnel of all ranks.

Production and Construction Corps

Before the Cultural Revolution, the Production and Construction Corps was a paramilitary organization of 3 to 4 million people under joint government, party, and PLA control. The Production and Construction Corps was used in remote and unproductive areas to build roads, reclaim land, construct defense and water works, and operate mines, state farms, and industrial plants. A secondary role was border defense, and some units were armed with light infantry weapons. All received basic military training.

Unlike the militia, Production and Construction Corps personnel were full-time and uniformed. The PLA took over the Production and Construction Corps during the Cultural Revolution, then civilianized it in the 1970s. In the 1980s the corps appeared to have been abolished except in Xinjiang. There it operated under regional party and government organizations, the Xinjiang Military District, and the Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Husbandry, and Fishery.

See also

 Central Military Commission (China)
 List of countries by number of total troops
 Paramilitary forces of India

References

Citations

Sources

Further reading
 Andy Bunk. Forgotten A look at the changing roles of the Chinese militia system in the Communist era from its inception to the present.

External links
 People's Armed Police SinoDefence.com

Military of the People's Republic of China
Paramilitary organizations based in China
Government paramilitary forces

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


As an educator it did my heart good To see all the youth of this country and from around the world take to the streets to voice their displeasure over the way adults are dealing with the crisis of school related violence.
They stood up for something they felt firmly about.
Dr. Martin Luther King once said, "if you don't stand for something, you will fall for anything." For the longest time our younger generation has sat silently on the sidelines and said nothing as issues that concerned them have been handled with little or no results.


Topic: Where Are You From? | Video Games AWESOME!
Home › Forums › Video Games AWESOME! › Where Are You From?
This topic contains 160 replies, has 149 voices, and was last updated by LikkiCurry 3 years, 2 months ago.
I remember one time Fraser said he wished the chatroom could have little flags so he knew where all the Turbos were from. Though we can't do that yet I thought it would be cool to know how many countries watch VGA. So fellas, where are you from. Tell us what country you live in. (You can say what city but that is optional) For example, I live in Yellowknife, Canada. How bout' you guys?


text:
Bušetina (régi magyar neve Busóc) falu Horvátországban Verőce-Drávamente megyében. Közigazgatásilag Bakvához tartozik.

Fekvése
Verőcétől légvonalban 7, közúton 10 km-re északnyugatra, községközpontjától légvonalban 6, közúton 7 km-re északkeletre Nyugat-Szlavóniában, a Drávamenti-síkságon, Rogovac és Turanovac között fekszik.

Története
Az itt talált leletek alapján a település területe már a bronzkorban lakott volt. A Konaki nevű településrészen a lelkes helyi régiségkutató J. Erpačić nagyszámú cseréptöredéket és kőszerszámot talált, melyek a bronzkori urnamezős kultúrához tartoztak. A leletek nagy részét Erpačić a verőcei városi múzeumnak adományozta, míg kisebb része saját gyűjteményében maradt.

A település már a középkorban is ismert volt. 1439-ben Albert király Marczaly István temesi grófnak korábbi, a királynak és a királynénak tett szolgálataiért "Werewcze" királyi várost a hozzá tartozó birtokokkal, köztük a "Bwsowcz" nevű birtokkal adományozta. 1495-ben a csázmai káptalan jelentette Zápolya István nádornak, hogy amikor be akarták iktatni Dorottya asszonyt Bewlchewcz-i Dragffy Bertalan erdélyi vajda és a székelyek ispánjának feleségét a Verőce megyei "Werewche castellum et pallacium" valamint Verőce és "Bwsowcz" oppidumok és a hozzájuk tartozó falvak és possessiók birtokába az iktatásnak Bánffy Miklós nevében ellene mondtak. A falu Imre nevű plébánosát és Balázs nevű képlánját 1501-ben említik "Emericus plebanus de Bwsowcz. Blasius capellanus eiusdem" alakban. Plébániáját ezen kívül 1520-ban is megemlítik. Ekkor a falu a Bánffy család birtoka volt. A török 1552-ben Verőce várának elestekor foglalta el a települést. Területe ezt követően vélhetően a 17. század végéig pusztaság volt.

Miután 1684-ben Verőcét felszabadították a török uralom alól a kihalt területre a 17. század utolsó évtizedétől főként Kapronca, Kőrös és Szentgyörgyvár vidékéről telepítettek be horvát ajkú lakosságot. Az első katonai felmérés térképén "Dorf Buxetina" néven találjuk. Lipszky János 1808-ban Budán kiadott repertóriumában "Busetina" néven szerepel. Nagy Lajos 1829-ben kiadott művében "Busetina" néven 153 házzal és 992 katolikus vallású lakossal találjuk. Verőce vármegye Verőcei járásának része volt.

A településnek 1857-ben 1.099, 1910-ben 1.387 lakosa volt. 1910-ben a népszámlálás adatai szerint lakosságának 89%-a horvát, 6%-a magyar anyanyelvű volt. Az I. világháború után 1918-ban az új szerb-horvát-szlovén állam, majd később (1929-ben) Jugoszlávia része lett. A II. világháború után a település a szocialista Jugoszláviához tartozott. 1991-ben csaknem teljes lakossága (98%) horvát nemzetiségű volt. 2011-ben falunak 815 lakosa volt. Lakói földműveléssel, állattartással foglalkoznak.

Lakossága

Nevezetességei
Szűz Mária tiszteletére szentelt római katolikus plébániatemploma a 19. század elején épült a középkori templom alapjain. Egyhajós, keletelt épület, három oldalú apszissal, az északi oldalon sekrestyével. Harangtornya a főhomlokzat felett áll. Téglából építették, fa nyeregtetővel, melyet hódfarkú cseréppel fedtek, kivéve az apszist, melyet bádoglemez borít. A hajó síkmennyezetű, az apszis boltíves. A szentélyt a hajótól diadalív választja el. A nyugati oldalon áll a fából ácsolt kórus, melyet két falazott oszlop tart. A főhomlokzat egyedi kialakítású, architrávval záródó bejárattal és két félköríves ablakkal. A templomhoz a főutcáról, keletről lehet bemenni, mivel a többi oldalon töltés határolja. A töltés nyugati oldalon a legnagyobb, mivel itt az épület egy meredek falú völggyel határos. A templomban a főoltár mellett található egy kép, mely a régi templomot és környékét ábrázolja. Körülötte régen temető volt, mert 1988-ban J. Erpačić egy hársfa kivételénél 60 cm mélységben melléklet nélküli emberi csontokra bukkant. A mai temető a templomtól északra, kissé odébb fekszik.

Gazdaság
A helyi gazdaság alapja a mezőgazdaság és az állattenyésztés.

Oktatás
A településen a bakvai August Cesarec elemi iskola területi iskolája működik.

Jegyzetek

Források
A község hivatalos honlapja
Az első katonai felmérés térképe (1763-1787)
Bus.hr:Kulturna dobra općine Špišić Bukovica
 Filip Škiljan: Kulturno historijski spomenici Zapadne Slavonije Zagreb, 2010.

További információk
A megye turisztikai irodájának honlapja
Diplomatikai levéltár

Verőce-Drávamente megye települései


text:
© 2019 FNB - Hotel Continental Saigon
132 - 134 Dong Khoi St., Dist 1, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.
Tel: (84.28) 38 299 201 - Fax: (84.28) 38 290 936 - Email: continentalhotel@vnn.vn
Hotel Continental Saigon
The Hotel Continental Saigon is situated on Dong Khoi Street, one of the oldest and most central streets in Saigon. In the old days, Saigon's streets were simply named by ordinal numbers. Starting from the Saigon River bank, Dong Khoi was the Sixth Street. In 1865, the French Commander De La Grandiere renamed these roads and Sixth Street became Rue Catinat, a busy place, especially during the French Colonial Era. "Rue Catinat" at one time was a very bustling and crowded place, especially with the French. Later on, across the street from the Continental the first foundations and floors for factories were built, the first one for Denis Frere. Next was the first drugstore in Saigon, the "Solinere Pharmaceutical," which opened in 1865.
In 1878, Pierre Cazeau, a home-appliance and construction material manufacturer, started building the Hotel Continental with the purpose of providing for the French traveller, a French style of luxury accommodation after a long cruise to the new continent. This project took two years, and in 1880 the "Hotel Continental" was inaugurated.
The same generation that saw the Hotel Continental Saigon being built also saw: Notre Dame Cathedral, under-construction in 1880 (only a 5 minute walk from the hotel), the Postal and Telegraph Office, built in 1886 (which is now the Saigon Central Post Office), and the Hotel de Ville, built in 1898 (which is now the People's Committee of Ho Chi Minh City). The latter was design similar to the Paris City Hall.
In 1911, the Continental was sold to Duke Montpensier. In 1930, the hotel had a new owner, Mathier Francini, a gangster from Corsica, who ran the hotel until 1975. During the 1960s and 1970s, the Saigon Government commanded all signboards be written in the Vietnamese language; therefore the name "Hotel Continental" was changed to "Dai Luc Lu Quan".
However, it is the Continental that holds its place in Saigon history, not its past owners. It continue to hold its fame through out time.
By the beginning of World War II, the Hotel Continental hosted the great Indian poet Rabindranath Tagore (who won the 1913 Nobel Prize for literature), the award-winning writer Andre Malraux, whose "Man's Fate" won the 1933 Prix Goncourt, and then the British writer Graham Greene (long-term guest in room 214) who wrote the well-known novel "The Quiet American" about the transitional period between the French Colonialnist and the United States of America in the Vietnam War. The Continental features prominently in "The Quiet American" in both the film and book. The Continental also is a central locale in the movie "Indochine" which won two Academy Award and one Golden Globe.
The Hotel Continental was frequently referred to by the phrase "Radio Catinat", since this was the rendezvous point where correspondents, journalists, politicians and businessmen talked about politics, the business news, and current events. It's not by coincidence that the phrase, if the walls of the Hotel Continental could speak, they could tell you many stories.
During the American period, Catinat Street was known as Tu Do Street. Following liberation in 1975, the name "Tu Do" was changed to "Dong Khoi". This history turned to a new period, and many outstanding people such as Jacques Chirac (Mayor of Paris during that period), the Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamed, and many other politicians have stayed at the Hotel Continental to exchange views on the future of a new Vietnam.
Nowadays, the Hotel Continental remains nestled among the classical buildings of old Saigon such as the Opera House, Notre Dame Cathedral, Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee, facing the future without forgetting the past. While Dong Khoi Street continues to hustle and bustle, the Hotel Continental Saigon still maintains the charm and majesty of its classical past. Inside this venerable building, a new generation of staff are dedicated to offering travellers a peaceful and relaxing stay in Ho Chi Minh City, one that they will remember fondly for a long time.
On 28/04/2012, the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee issued Decision No. 2210/QD-UBND that recognized Hotel Continental Saigon as Monument Architecture Arts of the City.
According to the Board of Monuments of the city's review, Hotel Continental Saigon was built in 1880, with characteristic architectural features, such as, a tile roof, thick brick walls, spacious bedrooms and public areas, and four-meter high ceilings to avoid the heat of the tropics and to make use of the wind and natural light. The design of hotel is in the form of a rectangle, in the center is a large garden with three frangipanies planted in 1880 and still flourishing today, these features create a unique feeling of peace and quiet in the midst of this dynamic city that can only be found at the Hotel Continental Saigon.
From the very beginning, this three-storey building has always been painted white to minimize heat absorption in summer. The white paint alleviates the heaviness of the building and at the same time emphases the regal and luxuriousness of the hotel. Although a century has passed, the Hotel Continental Saigon has still retained its original architecture.
In terms of harmony in the city's architectural ensemble, along with the Municipal theatre (1898), Notre Dame Cathedral (1880), City Post Office (1891), People's Committee of Ho Chi Minh City (1898), ReunificationPalace (1966) and Ben Thanh Market (1914) the Hotel Continental Saigon is a focal point in the architecture of the downtown area, maintaining the past historical period in the formation and construction of Saigon-Ho Chi Minh City.
Hotel Continental Saigon's environmental policy
The Hotel Continental Saigon is a green hotel that has achieved a certificate for complying with the requirements set by ASEAN Green Hotel Standard (2008-2012). In order to develop a stable green tourism, the Board of Directors of the Hotel Continental Saigon undertake with a commitment:
To fully comply with local environmental laws and stipulations promulgated by the other concerned organizations.
To fully improve the measures in order to reduce harmful risks to people and environment, to deal with any problem or urgent situation as it might arise.
To make use of the energy source at its best, through conscientious practices without affecting customer service in quality as well as to manage harmful wastes to the environment.
To update the new environmental laws, to plan our training and educational programs for the entire staff in order to enhance awareness of environmental protection.
To be determined to maintain and develop the environmental management system of the hotel in accordance with ISO 14001 standards.
You are invited to cooperate with us to protect our environment by saving water, electricity and limiting the use of chemical consumption during your stay at Hotel Continental Saigon. Your participation is highly appreciated.
The Hotel Continental Saigon is conveniently located in the heart of Ho Chi Minh City, near a variety of conveniences for the travellers and businessmen alike, within walking distance of most major attractions, festivals and events.
Municipal theatre (1898),
Notre Dame Cathedral (1880),
City Post Office (1891),
People's Committee of Ho Chi Minh City (1898),
ReunificationPalace (1966),
Ben Thanh Market (1914),
Office buildings, government offices, embassies and consulates.
Airline offices, clinics, shopping malls, theme restaurants & clubs.
A twenty-five minute ride to or from Tan Son Nhat airport by taxi or limo.
A five-minute walk to the central bus station (opposite Ben Thanh Market)
Nearby hydrofoil to Vung Tau, daily train service to Nha Trang…
Close to non-stop buses to the Mekong Delta, Cambodia and other destinations (from De Tham - Pham Ngu Lao area)


text:
Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) in at Times Business School (TBS), Delhi/NCR, Course Fees, Syllabus
Home > MBA Courses in India > Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA)
Times Business School (TBS), Delhi/NCR
info@times.ac.in
Following are the admission and eligibilty details of Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) from Times Business School (TBS). Here you will also find details about this college.
TBS offers a Three-Years Full-Time Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) for 10+2 students. It is designed to give rise to future professionals rather than mere degree holders. The course provides basic understanding about management education. The students are prepared to explore opportunities being newly created in management profession.
Special features about Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA)
EntranceExam :
Placement :
Average Salary :
Fees :
About Times Business School (TBS)
Times business school is one a premier institution for advance learning & research, created to impart management education relevant to professional & entrepreneurial development in India. The founders of tbs include some of the finest brains in academia and industry. They felt the need of center of excellence that would complement of the rising of Indian economy in the backdrop of Asian uprising in the global economic scenario. With this vision,tbs strives to promote internationally recognized management education by aligning academic theory & international business practices. The curriculum, which has the string international perspective, prepares students to manage, lead & succeed in the increasingly competitive business environment.
Tbs is one of the finest Institution for management studies and research. It is the close association with the industry, collaboration with the leading B-Schools of the world, state of the art infrastructure, international faculty, innovative and contemporary programs and other factors that have made the tbs a great place for management education.
TIMES unique and innovative standards of education, are perpetuated by a world class advisory board. The Advisory Board comprises some of the most distinguished names from various industries and academic institutions.
Post Your Comment/Query on Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA)
Symbiosis Part Time MBA
Study abroad MBA in New Zealand
Top BBA Colleges in Delhi
Study abroad MBA in Singapore
MBA in Banking and Finance
MBA Streams Hone Your Managerial Skills To Escalate Your Corporate Persona
Career Options in MBA
AICTE Approved MBA Colleges, Nagpur University MBA Syllabus, Delhi University MBA Syllabus, Jobs for MBA, Quick MBA, MBA Universities in New Zealand , Management Courses in Delhi, BBA Syllabus, Welingkar Part Time MBA, BBA Entrance Exam,


Where but in California could a place of 202,000 population, not in any sense a suburb, be called a town--much less a "small town"?
women who dress up as men dressing up as women.
But here's an extra trivia question for people outside Northern California: What's the largest city in Northern California?
What's the largest city in Northern California?
Permalink Submitted by mdoneil on June 3, 2004 - 3:33am.
Permalink Submitted by Walt on June 3, 2004 - 4:18pm.
Cute. No, that's the largest city in Florida; it's just an older version of Havana and goes by a different name.
Permalink Submitted by madcow on June 4, 2004 - 4:05pm.
Permalink Submitted by Walt on June 6, 2004 - 7:41pm.
Yreka? Really? All 7,290 of 'em?
Now Eureka, pop. 26,000+, I could see--but unless you draw the line VERY far North, I'd say Redding (around 80,000 people) is the largest city for "north of the Central Valley's northern edge" (or "north of the extended Bay Area") as a definition.
Permalink Submitted by madcow on June 7, 2004 - 3:03pm.


A blend of kalamkari and ikat. A cotton scarf/dupatta with kalamkari block print and ikat border on all four sides. Tasseled ends. Works well for all seasons. Wear it over your sweater or jacket. Use as sarong for your summer beach trips.
Black, with tan-rouge kalamkari, black and mustard koburam ikat.
kalamkari scarf with ikat borders - black and mustard has been added to your cart!


Your DGB for today is to utilize or share the ACLU's resource for school walkout participants.
In the aftermath of the 2/14 Parkland, Florida school shooting that left 17 staff and students dead, teenagers have become the activists we should all strive to be. They've organized the March for Our Lives, which will take place this Saturday, 3/24, and a nationwide school walkout, which many young people participated in on 3/14. Some school administrators threatened or carried out punishments for students who walked out of class that day and the ACLU wants student activists to know their rights and share their stories at the link above.


A sculpted, recessed entry defines the finely detailed Spanish eclectic facade of the Martelli plan, and a quatrefoil window confirms a Moorish influence. Inside, an open arrangement of the foyer and the formal rooms permits natural light to flow freely through the space. Walls of glass to the rear of the Martelli plan open the public and private realms to spectacular views, while nearby the gourmet kitchen easily serves planned events both inside and out.
Richly textured amenities such as a stone mantel, highly crafted cabinetry and stepped ceilings, provide a chic arena for formal or casual gatherings. To the rear of the Martelli plan, the leisure room opens from the kitchen, which is geared for crowd-sized events or family movie nights. The living room and leisure room flows through retreating glass walls onto the lanai. A gallery hall runs the width of the plan, linking a cluster of secondary bedrooms to the master retreat.
The entire right wing of the Martelli plan houses the master suite. The master bedroom has a separate sitting area with windows overlooking the rear Lanai. There is a his and hers divided walk-in closet for plenty of extra storage. The master bath has a large corner Whirlpool soaking tub. There are double sinks, a large walk-in shower, separate linen closet, and water closet.
The kitchen is open to the breakfast nook and leisure room. The kitchen has a large island for extra counter space. A large walk-in pantry provides plenty of storage space. A family valet, conveniently located, provides the perfect place to drop your keys and packages.
This lovely Martelli floor plan contains 3497 square feet of living area, and the plan has four bedrooms with three and 1/2 bathrooms.
This plan is designed with a slab/stem wall foundation. Are you interested in having a custom home plan designed just for you? Then please visit Sater Group, Inc. and learn how we can design something just for you.
Total Living: 3497 Sq. Ft.
1st Floor: 3497 sq. ft.
Width of House: 68 ft. 8 in.
Depth of House: 91 ft. 8 in.
Total Area: 4581 Sq. Ft.


text:
Los Angeles Hostile Work Environment Attorneys Kokozian Law Firm Home
Contact West Covina Harassment Attorney Kokozian Law Firm
SEXUAL HARASSMENT CAN ALSO OCCUR AT ALL TYPES OF JOBS.
Below are some possible scenarios and locations of sexual harassment at the workplace. However, every employee's experience is unique. If you feel you have been or are being sexually harassed, contact the Los Angeles employee lawyers at our office.
Sexual Harassment of Employees at a Dentist's or Doctor's Office: Many dental and doctor's offices are small, somewhat intimate workplaces headed by one or two dentists or doctors and staffed by one or two support staff members who may perform multiple roles, such as receptionist, biller, medical assistant, and dental assistant. The dentist or doctor may work closely with the employees over a full day, and, over time, can develop inappropriate interests in and take increased liberties with the staff, beginning with what may seem like casual conversations about their personal lives, in order to get an idea about who may be least resistant to potential sexual advances and ultimately manipulate the assistant to discuss his or her own sexual experiences and sex life at home. The dentist or doctor can claim to be educated about sexuality and human relationships, and to pretend to have the assistant's best interests at heart. The dentist or doctor can talk about personal sexual issues as a way to appear more "normal" in an attempt to open a door to make these inappropriate conversations about sex seem acceptable, since everyone is equal and has personal problems.
These sexual topics of conversation will likely make an assistant feel uncomfortable, but because the dentist or doctor tries to sell it as only conversation and in taking a clinical interest in the assistant's well-being, the assistant may rationalize the harassing behavior and not complain about it at first. In fact, there may be no one to complain to, no human resources department, and no office manager. Or if there is an office manager, that person might not see things as the assistant does and ultimately do nothing about the harassment.
Another result of working at close quarters in a dentist or doctor's office is the increased potential for inadvertent physical contact, both around the dentist's chair or doctor's examination table and in the small office spaces and narrow halls. This can be used as an excuse for the dentist or doctor to "accidentally" bump into or brush up against an assistant, first seemingly innocently and with contact only between non-sexual parts of the body, such as the bumping of shoulders together or the touching of the assistant's arm with an elbow, just to see what the reaction will be. Later, the doctor or dentist can explain away any further contact with other body parts as more of the same. This contact can escalate and ultimately lead to flagrant groping and explicit requests or even demands for sexual favors, especially if the dentist or doctor feels protected from any consequences for this behavior.
In fact, an assistant who decides at some point not to further tolerate unwanted comments and touching and tells the dentist or doctor to stop may be fired for some made-up reason in retaliation for refusing to accept the advances. Each case of sexual harassment is different. If you feel that you have been sexually harassed during your work at a dentist's or doctor's office, contact the Los Angeles employment law firm, for a free consultation.
Sexual Harassment of Employees at a Bar or Restaurant: Working in a restaurant or bar as a server or bartender often involves a struggle for hours. Most servers work part time for at or barely above minimum wage and rely on customers' tips to make up for the limited available hours and low pay rate. This puts a scheduling manager or supervisor in a potentially powerful position, enabling them to make life financially difficult for a server with a stroke of a pen on a calendar. In such situations, a manager or supervisor might imply an increased willingness to provide more hours to the server or bartender in exchange for a date. Or, in an equally insidious manner, the manager could take advantage of the power imbalance and make inappropriate physical contact with the server's body, brushing up against or groping in passing. This contact can escalate to flagrant grabbing of body parts or reaching and groping under the clothing, as the manager or supervisor or owner feels able to get away with just about anything due to the server's dependence on getting enough work hours to make a living. Despite this harassment, the server may feel that quitting is not an option because there are few work opportunities outside the present job.
Often stories are passed around in a workplace about servers who complain about sexual harassment by a manager or supervisor and wind up being fired as a result, and that leaves the server feeling vulnerable and having no choice but to tolerate the harassment. If you are in such a situation and have contemplated quitting the job because of how you are treated on the job, or if you have quit, we invite you to give us a call. Our office has years of experience pursuing sexual harassment cases.
As a work environment, many restaurants, especially large ones with many line cooks, prep cooks, dishwashers, table bussers, servers, hosts, and cashiers, tend to be rowdy. Like a college campus, a work place where a large group of employees working together is a breeding ground for inappropriate talk and behavior. These employees find that the line between slightly off-color joking around, inappropriate topics of conversation and improperly intimate questions blurs during the course of a shift, especially in the down time between meal time rushes. Some employees may joke among themselves about their sexual prowess or discuss the size of their body parts. They may also make no secret of their sexual interest in one or more of their coworkers, or comment on the size and shape of their body parts. They may feel that as long as it's "just talk," employees who hear this talk have no place complaining about it, as no one is making a direct come-on. However, such talk may become vulgar and frequent enough to make coworkers uncomfortable enough to complain to their direct supervisors. Sometimes, though, these direct supervisors may also take part in the inappropriate behavior and therefore either do nothing about it; or they may argue that, since no one has touched anyone inappropriately or made direct comments about anyone, the coworkers need to just accept things as they are or quit. An argument might be made that all coworkers are perceived as part of a team and should understand and accept that people will talk this way just to make the work place more tolerable. A large restaurant may conduct an official investigation if someone complains about sexual harassment to a corporate office or Human Resources, but with no concrete response due to what they consider lack of concrete evidence or lack of willingness of other coworkers to complain about the behavior out of fear of losing hours – and the behavior may continue. If you find yourself in a situation where you have nowhere to turn for help within your workplace and you think the only way to escape this environment is to quit, contact the Los Angeles sexual harassment lawyer as you have rights.
A restaurant's kitchen, food prep areas and dishwashing station also tend to have limited space for the number of employees working in them, so working in those areas can lead to various types of incidental contact as workers move among the various work stations. Harassers can exploit the cramped conditions to "accidentally" grope a coworker in ways they can claim were not deliberate. The harasser may justify grabbing a coworker's hips by claiming they were preventing an accident from occurring. However, repeated contact exposes the inappropriate intent behind it. Yet the employee may feel that proving the sexual harassment is too difficult and therefore not complain until the touching escalates to the groping or squeezing of body parts. In some situations, this conduct is provable, such as when there are surveillance cameras recording these incidents. This is often not the case, however. Habitual harassers know how to keep their actions unobserved and therefore difficult to prove, and this can make it seem like complaining about the harassment will cause more trouble and not improve the situation. If you are being harassed, contact the Los Angeles employee lawyers for a free consultation.
Sexual Harassment of Employees on the Factory or Assembly Line: Another problem arises in workspaces such as factories and assembly lines, where an aggressive environment develops over time among not only the coworkers but also among the ranks of the supervisors. Current employees or supervisors will find a victim, perhaps a new employee whom they perceive as weaker or less aggressive, to harass as a way to assert dominance. They will make mock sexual advances toward their target, take pictures of the coworker's body from behind with their cell phones, grab their own groin areas and leer and smile, or even grab the targeted coworker's body parts and laugh. If the coworker reacts aggressively by shoving or even hitting one of the others, that could lead to termination for allegedly causing the altercation. In response to complaints about this treatment, management might just tell the complaining employee to "deal with it" or "take it," suggesting or stating outright that they all are just joking around, that they are not actually participating in sexual harassment because there is no sexual intent behind their actions. It may be seen as a sort of hazing of the new employee, an indoctrination into a certain way of interacting with the crew.
Management might even imply that the employee's complaints illustrate that he or she is not a "good fit" with this particular employer and that the employee would be happier working elsewhere. Management may find it an inconvenient to deal with the inappropriate behavior of a group of employees, so it is easier to discipline or terminate the one who complains. If you have considered complaining about your situation on the job, or if you have complained about the harassment and have been terminated, contact the Los Angeles employment lawyer.
Sexual Harassment of Employees in a Warehouse: A warehouse is often a huge, maze-like workspace with areas where workers can find themselves quite isolated at times while performing inventory or other tasks that require minimal staff in far-reaching sections of the warehouse. During this time, an employee may be propositioned by a coworker or direct supervisor to meet outside of the workplace. Rejection of the initial proposal sometimes does not mean an end to that type of interaction. In fact, the harassment can escalate to physical contact, such as attempts by the supervisor to hug the employee or stroke the employee's hair and body despite all protests.
During conversations, workers, leads and supervisors in a warehouse may participate in rough, often vulgar conversation. This creates an environment that makes some of their coworkers feel uncomfortable or even unsafe, especially in the more remote, isolated corners of the warehouse, where more aggressive, invasive forms of sexual harassment can occur.
The challenge in this kind of job is to overcome the pressure for employees to create personas for themselves as "just another one of the team," in hopes that by doing so they will gain the respect of coworkers and be protected from being groped, aggressively propositioned, or otherwise sexually harassed by other coworkers when they feel they can do so without be observed. They may also be threatened that, should they complain about the harassment, the harasser can take advantage of connections with management to create some false reason to fire anyone who complains.
In some cases some employees and supervisors and management can create bonds that may take precedence over a company's sexual harassment policy. Supervisors and managers may find it easy to disbelieve someone who complains about being sexually harassed. The most they may do is rearrange the staffing so that the complaining employee no longer works in close quarters with the harasser, yet continues to be forced to interact with that person at other times in the day. Such a situation may lead an employee to want to quit the job. If you are in this position, or if you have already quit or been fired, contact the Los Angeles employee lawyer. Workers in Los Angeles have the right not to be sexually harassed at work.
Sexual Harassment of Employees During Business Outings: Many employers have their employees participate in group corporate outings, retreats, or conventions out of town, and the company will arrange for staff accommodations in a common hotel at or near where the events are scheduled to take place. These occasions frequently involve work-related activities during the day and socializing / networking events in the evenings. The combination of alcohol, the distance from home, and a kind of concentrated, loosened socialization outside the company's corporate structure can cause people to behave in a manner that is significantly different from the office. A tension develops between acknowledging the power differences between management and staff and enjoying the less formal social flow of a gathering with an open bar.
A manager or executive may take advantage of this situation. The manager or executive can invite "select" employees to enjoy a "private party" in the relatively plush offerings of the executive suite, compared to the sparer rooms occupied by – maybe even shared by – the subordinates. The manager may manipulate the situation to be alone with one of the employees, hoping that the consumption of alcohol has lowered the employee's inhibitions and made the employee more receptive to manipulation and seduction by praising the employee's work and implying the possibility of a raise or promotion within the company. The manager may encourage the employee to talk about personal relationships as an indirect way to find out about the employee's sexual life and experiences, or to just broach the topic. The manager may also act drunk during this early stage to use as an excuse for later, more blatant sexual advances. The manager may even attempt to increase the level of emotional intimacy with talk about personal issues before attempting to make the interaction physical through requesting or attempting an "innocent" shoulder massage, an offer that the coworker sleep in the suite rather than return to the employee's room, and ultimately caressing the employee's body.
If the employee rejects the sexual advances and leaves the suite, the employee may fear retaliation at work if the harassment is made public, and there may be concerns about how the events will reflect on the employee's own behavior. There may also be a change in the how the employee is treated at the company in response to a complaint about the harassment. In some cases the employee may be terminated shortly after complaining. You have rights in this situation. Contact the L.A. sexual harassment attorney for a free consultation.
Sexual Harassment of Employees at a Construction Site: Because the working social environment at construction sites has evolved over time into an established setting for rough, frank, and often inappropriate talk, management often finds it difficult – or even unnecessary – to rein in these behaviors, even though workplace demographics have changed in recent years. Construction workers are still notorious for their unabashed, sometimes explicit "cat-calling" toward people walking by the sites. This same attitude certainly exists internally as well, and if a construction worker is subjected to this sort of inappropriate sexual talk on a daily basis and complains to management about the harassment, there could be a backlash. The complaining employee could be identified as a maverick interfering with the daily routine of the majority of the workers on the site. Under such circumstances, if the employee does not just "go along to get along," the management could find some pretext, could make up some criticism of the worker's work performance, and have the complaining employee terminated in order to pull the "bad apple" from the bunch. If this sounds like something that has happened to you or is happening to you, you have rights. Contact the Los Angeles Employment lawyer for a free consultation.
Sexual Harassment of a Personal Assistant: L.A. is a big city for personal assistants. Major film and television actors, producers, authors, studio heads, corporate and other executives will hire an individual to take care of a number of personal tasks, including driving, shopping, scheduling meetings, and social events. Child care sometimes figures into the job as well. This kind of job can generate a close relationship between the employer and the assistant that the employer may take advantage of. The employer can take advantage of having some amount of fame and media-generated charisma and give the impression that an actual emotional bond, such as a close friendship, is being formed over the course of the employment. The employer may begin to treat the assistant like a friend. Or an older employer may convince the assistant that assistance is needed at a more intimate level, such as with bathing or changing clothes, even though it's not actually necessary. Frequently the employer attempts to use the potential for greater opportunities in the future by way of exposing the assistant – who often has aspirations in the industry in which the employer is a major figure – to important, influential people, as leverage, regardless of whether the employer intends to actually provide the assistant with any such an opportunity.
While each situation is different, personal assistants are inherently at risk of sexual harassment due to close interactions with the employer and the lack of oversight often available in more conventional work settings. Fear of termination by the employer and the subsequent loss of opportunities puts the assistant in a position of choosing between allowing the harassment to continue or losing a potential avenue for professional advancement. Personal assistants have rights, including the right not to be sexually exploited or harassed. If you in a similar situation, you have rights. Contact the Los Angeles sex harassment lawyer for a free consultation.
Sexual Harassment of Employees at a Retail Store: Retail stores, including food markets and department stores and large box stores, cover large amounts of territory and employ many people in many different positions, such as cashier, sales associate, shelf stocker, loss prevention officer, food server, and maintenance worker. These workplaces are like small communities. The large number of employees and wide diversity of roles means that the potential for sexual harassment is elevated. In one such situation, a supervisor who has access to the video surveillance room in the store can use the technology to "stalk" a subordinate on the floor by calling the station where the employee works and making sexual comments while observing the subordinate on the screen. The supervisor may feel that the physical distance between them protects the supervisor from getting in trouble for commenting on the employee's body, as are the supervisor's attempts to joke around in attempt to make the employee feel less victimized by the comments and the awareness of being watched. Before the harassment begins in earnest, the supervisor may just call to "be friendly," to talk about personal relationships and other non-work-related matters, just to pass the time when things are slow. Casual conversation is used as a toe in the door to more detailed, and then explicit questions about the employee's personal relationships and sexual experiences. This "friendly" talk can often move from brief phone chats over the store's communication systems to text messages via mobile phone saying things like "I like the view from up here" to repeated requests to spend time together in the monitor booth during a break when they can be alone, or to meet somewhere outside work for drinks or dinner. The supervisor may have convinced the employee to some degree that the supervisor was led on, and may find it difficult to justify complaining about the supervisor's behavior to Human Resources or to a manager. Furthermore, a complaint about the supervisor may lead to questions about the employee's own behavior.
Like many other jobs, retail staff members are "as-needed" employees who work whatever hours the store needs them to work and struggle to get the needed hours and shift start and end times that suit their personal and family schedules – many also have taken on a second job to make a living and need their work hours to be compatible. This means that they are incentivized not to "rock the boat" by complaining about sexual harassment at the risk of losing hours or having their work schedule changed in a way that won't fit their lives. Also, the harasser may be in a position of favor with supervisors or managers, so even if an investigation occurs after the harassed employee complains, unless there is concrete proof of repeated harassment, management might decide in favor of the harasser and "punish" the complainer by reducing or changing their work hours with the pretext of limiting interaction with the harasser. Or, the employer may wait a while and then terminate the complaining employee for an incident, mistake, or write-up that occurred in the past. Employees who have experienced this type of harassment and retaliation for complaining have rights. You can contact the Los Angeles sexual harassment attorney for a free consultation.
If you have experienced sexual harassment at your workplace, contact the renowned sexual harassment lawyers at Kokozian Law Firm, APC. Contact us now. Free Consultation.
Common Sexual Harassment Workplaces | Los Angeles Hostile Work Environment Attorneys


highway QL1. Because of the impending darkness, they should have remained in Quang Ngai.
what sounded like an exploding B40 rocket from the ambush. They sent a patrol to investigate.
up an ambush for any remaining Viet Cong..
have been damaged from explosives.
Surgical Hospital in Chu Lai.
Anyone with additional information about the incident, please contact wr9r@aol.com.


First off, Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!* I hope you got everything you wanted and spent some quality time with your family.
Yes, I watch The Santa Clause simply because I love Bernard the Head Elf. How can you not? He is not the typical, happy-go-lucky elf. He's sarcastic and grumpy, but caring and hardworking. He's also one of the (if not the) tallest elves there. Plus, he's adorable.
I realize you are all going to IMDB to see how old David Krumholtz was in the film and to see how much of a creep I am. Yes, he was 16 in The Santa Clause, but he was 24 in The Santa Clause 2. I know it's a stupid and unrealistic crush. He was born in 1978, making him 14 years older than me. Also, he's married. Still, I regret nothing; just let me be. After the Christmas season I'll go right back to obsessing over Orlando Bloom and Tom Hiddleston, like a normal person. I promise.


text:
Q: Building GMM using SIDEKIT 1.2 I have a 2 dimensional data in the form of a text file. I have to build a GMM based on this data using Sidekit 1.2.
Which function should I use to estimate the parameters of the Gaussian model (Mean, covariance matrix, weighted average etc.)
Can you please provide a small example with your own set of (x,y) data and build a GMM using that ?
Any help would be greatly appreciated.

A: Sidekit is a toolkit built mainly for the task of speaker recognition, and its framework (as other similar toolkits) relies on the training data consisting of audio files in the formats .wav, .sph or raw PCM.
If you're just building a GMM and don't plan to use it for speaker recognition experiments, I would recommend using another toolkit for general statistical purposes (scikit-learn might be a good choice).
If you do plan to do speaker recognition tasks, you will have to some initial work on your data. If your text-data is some form of speaker data, you could convert it to the appropriate format. For example, if the y part is raw audio, convert it to wav-files. If y is cepstral features or other features, store it in h5.-format. After doing this, you can build a GMM for speaker recognition tasks by following the tutorials on the Sidekit homepage.


With summer quickly approaching, there is so much to think about. Kids are being let out of school, families are planning trips to the beach, and the warm weather is making everyone smile. But what if your smile is not as white as you had hoped? If that's the case, Dr. DeFinnis of Wynnewood Dental Arts is here to offer some solutions that will have your teeth looking bright white in no time.
It's the New Year and one of your resolutions might be to stay more active. The cold winter weather can allow for fun outdoor activities. But before you head outside to play, visit Dr. DeFinnis for a mouth guard to protect your teeth.
When your body gets cold, you begin to shiver and your teeth chatter. Chattering is your body's response to the cold temperature and its way of warming up. However, if you find yourself too cold, it's important to go indoors and warm up as soon as possible. Excessive chattering may cause jaw aches, headaches, and tooth aches. In addition, the freezing temperatures outside may make your teeth more sensitive and painful.
There are superstitious beliefs in lucky charms, such as rabbit's feet, four-leaf clovers, and numbers.
You may not have ever thought of a smile as a good luck charm, yet it really does seem to bring good fortune to its bearers. People who smile often are more likely to get a promotion at work. Their general mood is about average. Apparently, they're even lucky enough to not catch many of the viruses and bugs that go around. There are actually scientific explanations for the "good luck effect" of smiling.
The benefits of smiling are astounding. When you smile, it tells your brain that you must be happy, which transforms into a sort of self-fulfilling prophesy; smiles make you happier. It also sends positive a message to the people around you. The signal received is that you're positive, attractive, and capable. Therefore, the "luck" of the smile tends to produce more sociability and higher earning power. Additionally, by easing stress on your body, smiling boosts your immune system.
Do You Have White Lines on Your Teeth?
If you're one of the many people afflicted with bright white, horizontal lines on your teeth, you may have fluorosis. While it sounds like a disease, fluorosis isn't actually harmful. Most likely, as a child, you swallowed toothpaste that contained fluoride. (If you have young children, make sure they use unfluoridated toothpaste.) Your fluorosis stains are intrinsic, meaning they are inside your teeth. Extrensic stains, like coffee and smoking stains, can often be removed with teeth whitening. Intrinsic stains won't respond to whitening.
However, you can whiten your teeth to see if your tooth enamel will lighten to blend with the fluorosis stains. Should whitening not produce the results you want, consider cosmetic bonding or veneers. These two cosmetic dental procedures can make your teeth consistently white and absolutely beautiful.
Call Wynnewood Dental Arts (610) 228-4452 if you have questions about fluorosis, teeth whitening, or cosmetic dental procedures.
Studies show that people with attractive smiles seem more intelligent, successful, and friendly — so, naturally, they're more confident. A smile is the second feature most people notice. For better or worse, it makes a lasting impression at job interviews, first dates, and anytime you meet someone new. If you've never been satisfied with your teeth, porcelain veneers may be the right choice for you.
Veneers are thin, translucent shells that fit over the front surface of teeth. They are made from durable, esthetic dental porcelain and look completely natural. A skilled ceramist hand crafts each dental veneer, using Dr. DeFinnis' design plans and the patient's dental impressions.
Amalgam vs. Composite Resin Fillings–What's the Difference?
For decades, to restore cavities, people had to endure a smile riddled with metal fillings. Fortunately, you have an alternative now. Today we a natural-looking and completely metal-free filling material that's durable – composite resin fillings.
To treat cavities, we must remove tooth decay and fill the "cavity" left behind with a safe dental material that mimics natural tooth structure. Traditionally, dentists used silver amalgam fillings, made from a combination of metals. These fillings contrast with naturally white teeth and look obvious. With amalgam fillings, when you laugh or smile, people see your dental work.
Have you always wanted a bright smile like the stars of the silver screen? Dr. Thomas DeFinnis at Wynnewood Dental Arts can give you a glowing smile with just one in-office whitening session. That's right – one visit!
Typically, teeth are very white during childhood, but as we age, tooth enamel starts to thin, soak up stains, and discolor. Underneath enamel is dentin, a yellowish layer of our teeth. As tooth enamel thins, its translucency increases, which allows the yellowish dentin to show through.


Many web sites offer aid for drafting your resume professionally to get just a small commission. The optimal/optimally issue of the website is you can return back to Resumizer Free Resume Creator Online to edit your file you've created together with them. In the event that you can not track down a complimentary internet portfolio web page that suits your needs, then think about creating your own personal page, or adding your files into your own blog. As soon as you've downloaded the template, you will only have to fill in your own personal info and print off the resume. It is advisable not to kindly embrace any resume template and begin completing the specifics. Our free templates allow you to exhibit your talents and features and also effortlessly convey exactly what the employer is currently hunting for. A template can inform you all the important data you ought to be citing on your CV, with reference to this form of position you're searching for. It's fairly simple for people to discover and finish a restart template, which is strictly why lots of folks decide to utilize it. You'll find 20 free Resume templates that you are ready to download out of Resumetemplates.in. Using the help of this template it's possible to come up with a perfect resume. Accordingly, in case you've got a restart template, then you don't have to worry concerning criteria. Some templates also give advice of which type of lingo for use along with the sort of jargon that ought to be avoided. So it will likely be quite easyto choose from their various templates. In making sure influence on the recruiter, it's crucial that you get a special resume depicting your job particular specifics. Do not publish what you would like inside your work. Job hunting might be quite tough and resume writing is just one of the activities that needs to be achieved when on the lookout for work. During the time you are trying to detect function, among the most useful tools you'll take able to get at your disposal will be an absolutely free printable restart. If you should be requesting to get job and you wanted to make a fresh appearance on your own resume which is fine, presentable and clean, then you came to the proper place. If you are attempting for a fresh job that's distinctive from exactly what it is you are used to, you may want to think about a completely free printable resume which you should have the ability to adopt and change to your own details. Keep in mind, totally free resume templates are created to grab your consideration, perhaps not the interest of those folks who actually matter, including hiring managers and recruiters. At Primer publication , there are just 7 downloadable templates that it is possible to choose from and an additional 1-2 templates they've added lately. You are able to decide on the best template and design your own resume for the particular job. Most free resume writing software will on average permit you to create a synopsis of one's professional work history in minutes with the use of a easy to use wizard or interface. There are lots of free survey templates or samples available online, which make it simple and suitable for someone to alter one based for their own very own needs. There are many complimentary resume creating templates on the web that can aid you with layout etc.. .


My point is that understanding development means understanding it in a context of a global space and new transnational identities - not just as a project 'over there'. The moment one enters this space, e.g. in Ghana you are part of the global development space whether or not you like it.
These enclaves [VIP lounges, the virtual office, computing on the run, standardized international hotels] of the global elite are places where people do not cross cultural boundaries or experience alterity in interaction. Far from being spaces of mixture or openness these are heavily hierarchical spaces' (Crang 2002: 572).
So what do I mean in practical terms?
I would like to focus on two shortcomings of the understanding of a 'development industry' purely driven by white Landcruisers and stories about airports.
First, the moment a volunteer or any other expat aid enthusiast enters a country like Ghana, s/he is already part of the 'industry' s/he so despises. The volunteering/voluntourism industry, the graduate-student-goes-to-Africa industry and the higher-education-boom-in-development-studies industry are all contributing to 'the aid industry'. Motives, remuneration and sometimes impact differ, but in a complex world the capillary system of development comes in many shapes and sizes, but it's almost impossible to escape the dynamics of the industry. The UN person may have a fancy car, blue vest and R&R every six week, but the volunteer has a Western passport, return flight and a diploma from a renowned university in their baggage. The spaces of mobile, global elites are marked by power relations and hierarchies and the only way of not becoming a part of that industry is essentially staying home. It does not mean that you can't or shouldn't get involved at all and even make a small difference, but it happens within the rules of the industry.
The second aspect of the industry is that an important and powerful part of it is often hidden from the view. Those pictures of signs of completed projects, UN offices and white Landcruisers look familiar – but they are also easy targets. The pictures I am missing are those of the KPMG or PwC headquarters in London or of FHI-AED. A quick look at the DevEx website is an important reminder of how comprehensive and pervasive the 'development industry' really is. Behind a simple headline like 'After the Deal: How Staff Reacted to FHI-AED Purchase Agreement' is a long and complex story of how the industry works, changes and has become a small part of a much bigger global aid economy. Many of those consultancy firms do not show up on the radar of blog posts and after-work story-telling, but they are powerful – especially if they are involved in, say, USAID-funded projects, particularly in Afghanistan.
I guess my point is two-fold: First, I would be careful judging the 'industry' as an outsider without carefully considering how much of an 'insider' 'we' really are. Buying Fair Trade chocolate is great, but buying it at Wal-Mart, Tesco etc. will not make the retail industry more sustainable. It is difficult to avoid the pitfalls of the industry once one chose to engage with it. Being open, critical, writing about and discussing it is important and a step towards a reflective engagement with the complexities of development. Sometimes, it's all we can do, but that doesn't necessarily mean that these reflections are vain or useless. Is it better to go out on a Friday night injecting money in the local economy by going out for dinner, drinks and dancing or is it better to stay in front of the laptop and write a blog post using electricity and Internet capacity? It depends, it's a choice and they are not mutually exclusive.
Second, even if there cannot be trade-offs (a bad project is a bad project), I would be more careful to look beyond obvious symbols at the surface. How outrageous is the new project vehicle really (given the road conditions, health and safety requirements or the fact that it consumes less petrol) and how ridiculous are those $300/day consultancy rates for an experienced professional? They may seem or even be over the top – but they also need to put into perspective of global transnationalism and professionalism even if they do have an impact on the local economy. I'd rather have money 'wasted' on a consultancy report that a good-hearted colleague writes and nobody ends up reading than another corporate bubble bursting in Afghanistan when a new school is built for staggering amounts of dollars.
1) Appadurai, A. 1991. Global ethnoscapes: notes and queries for a transnational anthropology. In Recapturing anthropology: working in the present (ed.) R.G. Fox. Santa Fe, NM: School of American Research Press.
2) Crang, M. 2002. Between places. Producing hubs, flows, and networks. Environment and Planning A 34.4.
Great post Tobias. This makes me think of something I have said a few times in this context, the privilege of choice. You capture that well by illustrating how all actors, no matter their affiliation, engage in the industry in one way or another the moment they enter the international space.
Also, I think you are right to point out that some of the spending decisions are made for good reason. I would also add the matter of competition. When private sector pays so well to do the same work, incentives need to be as competitive as possible to get the best of the best. It would be great to imagine that desire to 'do good' is enough, but supporting a family is also very important and being compensated for traveling away from said family should happen.
There is definitely a line where pay and perks go too far. For example there is no need to fly first class. What is ironic, is that many in the 'industry' want to do away with decisions based on anecdotes. Yet they are applied to the industry. It is not perfect, it might even be terrible, but doing international work that is aimed at some sort of poverty alleviation effort falls under the industry.
As Mina's colleague, I can assure you that he is well aware he is part of this system - his post wasn't intended to be a holier-than-thou proclamation about the aid industry. Rather, it asserts the view that even though this is the way things are, things don't have to be this way.
While I'm a proponent of paying people what they're worth and providing adequate resources to do the job, the fact is that most projects that show up in Ghana get the Hilux/office space/allowance based on precedent, not a genuine needs assessment. What are other ways that we could deliver good development projects? Maybe there aren't any, but I think it's a good conversation to start - self-criticism is the key to making improvements, small small.
First of all thanks for reading my blog! And secondly, I think it's amazing that you put up this post in response.
I think many of your insights are very interesting, particularly that about thinking of the development industry in a global context. There is no doubt that in today's world there is no "us" and "them." In fact, we'd be foolish to think that decisions made in the West don't affect development projects, and programs, and developing country policies.
I, somewhat disagree with your comments on the needs for high allowances, the nice offices, and the land cruisers. I think Erin makes a very valid point that these things are now standard. Rarely will you see a development project do a legitimate needs assessment. It's always assumed that you need that vehicle, or that office, or daily allowances. From my observations as an insider in this industry, these perceived "needs" and not true needs.
I think what bothers me most about the industry is that it hides behind the masks of non-profit, social good. It misleads the majority of people to believe that the practitioners of this industry are selfless, sacrificing, do-gooders who's primary concern is poverty reduction. Unfortunately, this is rarely the case. In fact, the industry's primary focus is to hide it's ugly side. The multi-million dollar contracts to for-profit western consultants (like you mention), the bureaucracy that wastes so much resources, the excess shown in the form of those land cruisers and daily allowances, and the lack of efficiency in operations. People in the West who sponsor the functioning of this industry don't see this other side - that would lead to disaster!
In a legitimate industry, like say mobile communications, transparency is paramount to success. In the development industry, it's often not. Failures are not openly recognized, financial details are hard to come across, and "investors" in the west often don't demand results.
As a result the global aid economy often misses the mark in terms of achieving meaningful results – people lifted out of poverty, children receiving good quality education etc. Global aid work is approached with blockers to reality. The fact that western ideals of project design and implementation are meaningless in Ghana for example. The industry often refuses to do things differently based on past experiences. They refuse to accept failure and learn from it. And their accountability structures are skewed. No other industry is NOT accountable to their end-users, their customers. But in development it's ok to not be accountable to the Zambian living in poverty.
I hope that my post allows people to be critical of the development industry in order to make it a more effective agent for positive change.
Thanks for the great post, and sorry for my lengthy comments!
Thanks for your great replies, Tom, Erin and Mina! I am glad that it seemed to be clear that this was no criticism of Mina or any project and I really have to stress the 'we' that obviously extends into academia. I am not sure whether I don't agree with Mina's comments with regards to 'legitimate' industries. I don't think particularly multinational companies, whether they are in the food, pharmaceutical, banking or finance industry have a track record of transparency and they have the potential to cause great damage. But very often their management models are accepted as 'best practice' and are incorporated into aid management and then, surprise, surprise!, they don't really work-especially 'on the ground'.
On a slightly different note: My partner just returned from a conference here in Canada where quite a few Canadian NGOs attended and EWB was mentioned more than once as kind of a 'rising star' in the 'industry'-based on what people perceived as excellent work in the field. Erin's and Mina's blogs are just one example how reflective work and writing can go hand in hand and have an impact in 'the industry'!
Very interesting response to Mina's post, and I'm really enjoying this continued discussion.
As an employee of EWB as well, and graduate of post-secondary studies in "development", I too have a difficult time deciding where my opinions land on these debates around the "system", which I critique yet am fully a part of.
I think one thing, it seems, that could agreed upon here is that there is a need for greater transparency in decision-making throughout the 'industry' - among NGOs, governments and for-profit ventures. It is difficult to suss-out whether the land rover is integral to project success because of road quality, or whether it was purchased because the last project had a land rover. A more transparent process of publicizing these assessments should bring about shifts so that resources allocated reflect actual, not perceived, needs, as decisions can be held to account.
How we actually create such a shift in the industry toward greater transparency and better accountability structures is the key question I see.
Around 5:50min in, he talks about how EWB perceives accountability structures in private, public and aid sectors. I agree with you that large companies with significant market power may not perfectly fit into the framework as always providing the highest value to customers, but I believe the accountability structure in the 'aid industry' is even more skewed, and needs to be addressed.
Thanks for the invigorating read!
Very interesting! You don't know me I don't think but I got the URL of your blog post from being IDS alumni.
During my PhD fieldwork/NGO work in Senegal, and that of my friends also embarking on similar careers and experiences, I am also considering similar questions.
Though I am rather late to this thread, I just wanted to commend Tobias et al; for your thoughtful and articulate commentary. I agree with Tobias about the vital importance of "Being open, critical, writing about and discussing...[the] complexities of development," and to that end, I am glad to have found this blog.


Jofit was developed for female athletes by a female athlete. Style, comfort, color, fit and function make Jofit wearable on and off the course, gym and tennis courts.
Jofit founder Joanne Cloak launched the initial golf line and found that other female athletes were also searching for the Jofit "fit." As Jofit grows, our apparel continues to support the athlete in the female as well as the female in the athlete. Jofit slims, lengthens, flatters and performs.
Jofit is true to a woman's body. Our top garments are longer for a full swing and our bottom garments are fit for comfort and movement with a slimming style. Our fit is generous enough to be comfortable while fitted enough to be flattering.
Jofit technical fabrics include Jo-Dry Jersey and Jo Jacquard, both with moisture wicking, quick dry property. 4 Way Stretch woven bottoms never sag or bag. Jo 4T fabric is soft and lightweight for tough workouts while wicking moisture from the body. Our UV fabrics have a UPF of 30 through 40 washings and 100 hours of light.


text:
Q: Comparing the performance of two classifiers using cross-validation Consider the following excerpt (paraphrased, see sec. 4.6.3 for original wording) from Introduction to Data Mining (free chapter) by Pang-Ning Tan, Michael Steinbach, and Vipin Kumar.

Suppose we use $k$-fold cross validation to compare the performance of two classifiers by splitting the data into $k$ partitions, and then performing the following procedure for $k$ times:

*

*Train two models, $M_{1 j}$ and $M_{2 j}$ on the $j$-th fold (consisting of $k - 1$ partitions); then

*Measure their error rates and denote them as $e_{1 j}$ and $e_{2 j}$ respectively.

  Now, in order to check if the difference $d = e_{1} - e_{2}$ is statistically significant, we can do a $t$-test.  We estimate the variance by
  $$
\begin{equation}
\hat{\sigma}_{d}^2 = \frac{\sum\nolimits_{j = 1}^{k} (d_j - \bar{d})^2}{k (k - 1)}\text{.}
\end{equation}
$$

It is the variance estimate that I do not understand.  More specifically, why do we divide by $k (k - 1)$?  As far as I'm aware, all we're doing is a paired $t$-test -- why don't we divide just by $k - 1$ when estimating the variance?


text: Q: Is it possible create multiple schema and modal in Kendo data source? I am remotely binding kendo grid and kendo multiselect with separate api call. So I was wondering if I can make single call and create multiple schema in order to fill both widget.