text:
\section{Introduction}

New laser facilities, such as the Extreme Light Infrastructure (ELI)\cite{ELI2017} or multi-PW Apollon facility\cite{APOLLON.2017}, are expected to deliver laser pulses of unprecedented intensities~\cite{HABSELI}, making it possible to experimentally access the regime of laser-matter interactions with intensities approaching $10^{23}$ watt/cm$^2$. This prospect has generated a surge of interest in ultra-short laser-matter interactions because of the potential for fundamental physics research and radiation source applications\cite{Nature.4.130133} at these elevated field strengths.

The key features of these interactions at extreme laser intensities are that electron dynamics in the target become ultra-relativistic and that quantum electrodynamic processes become relevant to the electron motion and energy distribution.
Effectively, the laser-matter interaction in this case is more precisely a laser-plasma interaction, since the irradiated material becomes ionized long before the laser pulse reaches its peak intensity.
The relativistic energies of the electrons in these strong fields result in high radiative rates that play an integral role in altering the electron dynamics~\cite{PhysRevLett.113.134801}; as the laser intensity increases, so does the acceleration experienced by electrons in the irradiated plasma. This increase ultimately causes the classical picture of the emission and electron trajectories to break down, making the inclusion of quantum effects a necessity for the models~\cite{0741-3335-55-12-124018, PhysRevE.92.023305}.

Previous work in this area of laser-plasma interactions at extreme intensities has shown that the efficiency of photon emissions can be surprisingly high due to the violent acceleration experienced by electrons in the target~\cite{PhysRevLett.108.165006,PhysRevLett.108.195001,Ji2014}. This acceleration can be induced not just by the laser pulse, but by plasma fields generated in the interaction as well~\cite{PhysRevLett.116.185003}. In this paper we examine how plasma fields that are driven by the irradiating laser pulse can be leveraged to enhance the rate of photon emissions, specifically showing that a laser pulse of extreme intensity tends to drive a strong plasma magnetic field rather than a strong plasma electric field. This magnetic field stimulates emission by laser-irradiated electrons, causing them to generate a directed and dense beam of multi-MeV gamma-rays.

Multiple applications specifically require beams of gamma-rays or can directly benefit from laser-driven gamma-ray sources~\cite{Nature.4.447}. Furthermore, these sources have the potential to open up new avenues of fundamental research that have been previously inaccessible in the laboratory. In particular, our understanding of the activity in the early Universe and high-energy astrophysics firmly relies on a so-called linear Breit-Wheeler process~\cite{PhysRev.46.1087}, in which a collision of two energetic photons creates an electron-positron pair. Even though this process has a significant impact on astrophysical phenomena~\cite{RevModPhys.76.1143,RUFFINI20101, NIKISHOV1962}, it has not been observed in laboratory conditions. Experiments thus far\cite{PhysRevLett.79.1626} have instead aimed at harnessing the non-linear Breit-Wheeler process, which utilizes more than two photons per collision. The difficulty in achieving the linear process stems from a low cross-section and a high energy threshold, which translates into needing a source that can supply dense beams of multi-MeV photons. We show that the laser-driven gamma-ray sources based on strong plasma magnetic fields can resolve this difficulty by delivering such a desired beam of photons. Our simulations indicate that a collision of two gamma-ray beams driven by a laser pulse with parameters similar to that of the Apollon facility in France can produce more than $10^3$ electron-positron pairs through the linear Breit-Wheeler process in a single shot even when the interaction region is significantly removed from the gamma-ray sources.

The rest of the paper is organized in the following way. In Sec.~\ref{Sec-2} we examine the dynamics of a single electron irradiated by a plane electromagnetic wave and estimate the threshold for a plasma magnetic field  above which the field significantly influences the photon emission by the electron. The fully self-consistent particle-in-cell simulations in Sec.~\ref{Sec-3} demonstrate that such a field can be achieved in laser-plasma interactions at extreme intensities by employing the effect of relativistically induced transparency. We calculate the resulting collimated photon beam and we then use two such beams in Sec.~\ref{Sec-4} to examine pair-creation via the linear Breit-Wheeler process. Finally, we summarize our findings and provide concluding remarks in Sec.~\ref{Sec-5}.

\section{Emission of a Single electron} \label{Sec-2}

It is known from classical electrodynamics that an electron accelerated by electric, $\bf{E}$, and magnetic, $\bf{B}$, fields emits electromagnetic radiation. The emitted power, $P$, is determined by the acceleration in an instantaneous rest frame. It is convenient to quantify this acceleration using a dimensionless parameter (\cite{LLclassicfields.1975,RIDGERS2014273} p.194)
\begin{equation} \label{eq:Eta}
\eta \equiv \frac{\gamma}{E_S} \sqrt{ \left({\bf E} + \frac{1}{c}\left[{\bf v}\times{\bf B}\right]\right)^2 - \frac{1}{c^2}\left({\bf E}\cdot{\bf v}\right)^2},
\end{equation}
where $\gamma$ and $\bf{v}$ are the relativistic factor and velocity of the electron, $c$ is the speed of light, and $E_S \approx 1.3 \times 10^{18}$ V/m is the Schwinger limit. The radiated power scales as $P \propto \eta^2$.

It is evident from Eq.~(\ref{eq:Eta}) that $\eta$, and thus the emission rate, increase with the amplitude of the fields acting on the electron. However, the field configuration and its orientation with respect to the electron velocity play a very important role as well\cite{JETP.35079708}. This becomes particularly apparent when considering an electron irradiated by a plane electromagnetic wave. In what follows, we consider several simple yet insightful examples with an increasing degree of sophistication.

In all of the examples, we consider a plane linearly-polarized electromagnetic wave with wavelength $\lambda$ propagating along the $x$-axis. Without any loss of generality, we assume that ${\bf{E}}_{wave} = E {\bf{e}}_y$ and ${\bf{B}}_{wave} = B {\bf{e}}_z$, where ${\bf{e}}_y$ and ${\bf{e}}_z$ are unit vectors. Here we invoke the well-known result that $E = B$ for a wave propagating in the positive direction along the $x$-axis.

Our first example is an ultra-relativistic electron colliding head-on with the wave without any appreciable transverse motion, such that ${\bf v} = -v {\bf{e}}_x$. It readily follows from Eq.~(\ref{eq:Eta}) that
\begin{equation} \label{eq:Eta2}
	\eta_{counter} \approx 2\gamma \frac{E}{E_S},
\end{equation}
where $\gamma = 1 / \sqrt{1 - v^2}$. This result is what one might expect based on the structure of the expression for the parameter $\eta$, where both the field amplitude and the $\gamma$-factor enter the numerator. This notably permits considerable enhancement of the emission rate due to the relativistic factor, which we will observe is not the case for alternate orientations.

Let us now consider an ultra-relativistic electron that is co-moving with the wave, so that ${\bf v} = v {\bf{e}}_x$. It follows from Eq.~(\ref{eq:Eta}) that the value of $\eta$ is now greatly reduced:
\begin{equation}
\label{eq:Eta1}
	\eta_{co} \approx \frac{1}{2\gamma} \frac{E}{E_S},
\end{equation}
An important aspect here is that $\eta$ is inversely proportional to the $\gamma$-factor. This is because for a co-moving ultra-relativistic electron the acceleration induced by the electric field of the wave is strongly compensated by the acceleration induced by the magnetic field of the wave. The reduction of the parameter $\eta$ indicates that the emitted power is strongly suppressed in this case.

These two examples clearly articulate why colliding relativistic electrons with an intense laser pulse is one of the more promising avenues of generating intense radiation and even of examining the effects of radiation reaction~\cite{PhysRevLett.113.134801,PHUOC101038}. However, it is worth pointing out that colliding setups typically require two laser pulses, and this severely constrains most facilities' capabilities of employing this technique. An additional laser pulse is needed to accelerate electrons and generate an ultra-relativistic bunch for the collision.

In contrast to the colliding setup, the co-propagating setup can be achieved using just a single laser pulse. This is because an intense laser pulse can accelerate an electron in the direction of the pulse propagation through so-called direct laser acceleration. If the normalized laser amplitude, $a_0 \equiv |e| E_0 / m_e c \omega$, is large, $a_0 \gg 1$, then the laser field induces relativistic electron motion which in turn leads to preferentially forward acceleration. Here $m_e$ and $e$ are the electron mass and charge, while $E_0$ and $\omega$ are the pulse electric field amplitude and its frequency. However, transverse electron oscillations are essential for this mechanism of acceleration, and our previous estimates neglected such oscillations and the resulting increase of the longitudinal momentum that can be substantial~\cite{PhysRevLett.111.065002,arefiev_robinson_khudik_2015,PhyoPlas056704}, essentially implicitly assuming that $a_0 \ll 1$. We thus have to revise the estimates for $\eta$ by taking transverse oscillations into account.

We now briefly overview the direct laser acceleration mechanism in order to provide the context for the result that will follow. Electron acceleration by an intense laser pulse can be conveniently described using the normalized vector potential ${\bf{a}}$. This potential specifies the laser fields:
\begin{eqnarray}
&& {\bf{E}}_{wave} = -\frac{m_e c}{|e|} \frac{\partial {\bf{a}}}{\partial t}, \\
&& {\bf{B}}_{wave} = \frac{m_e c^2}{|e|} \nabla \times {\bf{a}},
\end{eqnarray}
where $m_e$ and $e$ are the electron mass and charge respectively. In our case the potential is only a function of a normalized phase
\begin{equation}
\xi \equiv \frac{2 \pi}{\lambda} \left(x - ct \right),
\end{equation}
so that ${\bf a} = a(\xi) {\bf{e}}_y$. For simplicity, let us assume that the amplitude gradually increases and then remains constant, such that $a(\xi) = a_0 \sin(\xi)$.
The momentum components of an initially static electron that is irradiated by such a wave are then prescribed by\cite{PhyoPlas056704}
\begin{eqnarray}
	&& p_x / m_e c = a^2 / 2, \label{EQ-px}\\
	&& p_y / m_e c = a. \label{EQ-py}
\end{eqnarray}
We see that in addition to oscillating with the electric field, the electron also moves forward along the propagation direction. The electron motion is strongly relativistic for wave amplitudes $a_0 \gg 1$, and that is why such amplitudes are called relativistic. The $\gamma$-factor strongly oscillates at these amplitudes,
\begin{equation} \label{EQ-gamma}
\gamma = 1 + a^2 /2,
\end{equation}
and the electron motion is predominantly directed forward with an angle to the $x$-axis that can be estimated as $p_y/p_x \sim 1/a$.

We are now well-equipped to calculate the normalized acceleration $\eta$ for the electron that undergoes the direct laser acceleration at relativistic wave amplitudes. It follows directly from Eq.~(\ref{eq:Eta}) and Eqs.~(\ref{EQ-px}) and (\ref{EQ-py}) for the electron momentum that
\begin{equation} \label{eta-DLA}
	\eta = \frac{E}{E_S} \left( \gamma - \frac{p_x}{m_e c} \right)\rightarrow \eta_{DLA} = \frac{E}{E_S}.
\end{equation}
The left equality assumes nothing about the transverse electron oscillations and it can thus be used to calculate $\eta$ both for the already considered co-propagating case without the transverse motion and for the electrons accelerated using the direct laser acceleration mechanism (see right equality). By only assuming that $|p_x| \gg |p_y|$, we find that for an ultrarelativistic electron
\begin{equation}
\gamma - \frac{p_x}{m_e c} \approx \frac{1}{2 \gamma} \left( 1 + \frac{p_y^2}{m_e^2 c^2} \right).
\end{equation}
This result directly shows how even a relatively small but relativistic transverse momentum can significantly enhance the value of $\eta$, which explains the difference between $\eta_{DLA}$ and $\eta_{co}$ given by Eqs.~(\ref{eta-DLA}) and (\ref{eq:Eta1}).

\begin{figure} [H]
   \begin{center}
      \includegraphics[width=\columnwidth] {Figure1_pure_laser_normalized_fields_and_eta_color5.png}
      \caption{\label{fig:EtaVacuum} Electron trajectory in a plane wave with a normalized amplitude $a_0 = 100$. The background color represents the wave electric and magnetic fields acting on the electron, normalized to their maximum amplitudes. The relative size of the markers along the trajectory represents the changing $\gamma$-factor, while the color-coding represents the value of $\eta$.}
   \end{center}
\end{figure}

Despite the substantial increase of $\eta$, and thus the emission, in the direct laser acceleration regime, compared to the co-propagating case, the emitted power is still significantly lower than in the case where the electron collides with the laser pulse. In order to gain further insight and understand what limits the emission during the direct laser acceleration, we examine a corresponding electron trajectory. Figure~\ref{fig:EtaVacuum} provides comprehensive information about an electron accelerated from rest by a laser pulse that is gradually ramped up in amplitude to $a_0 = 100$ by showing both the electric and magnetic fields acting on the electron (after the pulse reaches its peak) as well as the electron $\eta$ and its relativistic $\gamma$-factor. One striking feature is that the electron trajectory has stopping points when the laser fields reach their peak amplitude. It then immediately follows from Eq.~(\ref{eta-DLA}) that the parameter $\eta$ also peaks in the vicinity of the stopping points. At these points, the electron halts its motion and its $\gamma$-factor drops. We therefore arrive at an important conclusion that most of the radiated emission during the direct laser acceleration occurs when the electron energy is relatively low.

The observed phase shift or phase mismatch between the $\gamma$-factor and the laser electric field $E$ is characteristic of the direct laser acceleration. It necessarily reduces the value of $\eta$, as evident from Eq.~(\ref{eq:Eta}). Since the laser electric and magnetic fields drop as the electron reaches its maximum energy, the energy increase cannot be efficiently utilized to increase the emitted power. Moreover, the counter-synchronism also suppresses emission of high energy photons. The maximum energy of emitted photons is limited by the electron energy, so the photons emitted near the turning points where most of the emissions occur would have the lowest energy of all the emitted photons.

While the counter-synchronism is a major downside of the direct laser acceleration, it can be successfully negated by introducing quasi-static plasma fields. At this stage, let us assume that the forward propagating laser pulse drives a longitudinal electron current that sustains a slowly-evolving azimuthal magnetic field coiled around the axis of the laser pulse. The details of the magnetic field generation will be carefully examined in the following section. In order to provide a simple estimate for the effect of this field on $\eta$, we set ${\bf{E}} = E {\bf{e}}_y$ and ${\bf{B}} = (B + B_*) {\bf{e}}_z$, where $E$ and $B$ are the fields of a plane wave, while $B_*$ is the static plasma magnetic field.

We now assume that the plasma field $B_*$ is so weak that its effect on the electron trajectory in the direct laser acceleration regime is negligible. We are looking for the threshold value of $B_*$ where it begins to affect our estimates for $\eta_{DLA}$. Using expressions~(\ref{EQ-px}) - (\ref{EQ-gamma}) for the electron momentum and its $\gamma$-factor, we find that
\begin{equation} \label{EQ-12}
\eta \approx \frac{E}{E_S} \sqrt{1 + \kappa + \kappa^2},
\end{equation}
where for compactness we introduce a dimensionless quantity
\begin{equation}
\kappa \equiv \gamma B_* / E.
\end{equation}
If $|\kappa|$ is small, then the expression (\ref{EQ-12}) reduces to $\eta \approx \eta_{DLA}$. However, the expression for $\eta$ changes as $|\kappa|$ approaches unity. We can therefore set $|\kappa| \approx 1$ as the defining criterion for critical value $B_{*cr}$. It is notable that according to these estimates the magnetic field of the plasma should increase $\eta$ --- and, as a result, the emission --- even at amplitudes that are still well below the amplitude of the laser magnetic field:
\begin{equation}
B_{*cr} \approx B / a_0^2 \ll B.
\end{equation}
Here we once again take into account that in a plane wave the amplitudes of the electric and magnetic fields are the same, $E = B$, and that the $\gamma$-factor  at highly-relativistic laser amplitudes scales approximately as $\gamma \approx a_0^2$.

Our estimates clearly indicate that even a plasma magnetic field of relatively moderate strength can significantly boost the photon emission during an electron's direct laser acceleration. If the required magnetic field can be generated by driving an intense laser pulse through a plasma, then this would make this concept a very promising method for creating significant numbers of high-energy photons with just a single laser pulse. Note that we assumed the energy gain by the electron remains unaffected by this plasma field, but it is plausible that this magnetic field can enhance the energy gain by changing the frequency of the transverse momentum oscillations. A somewhat similar effect has been observed for relatively weak transverse static plasma electric fields in laser-generated channels~\cite{Phy_Plas103108,PhysRevLett.108.145004}, albeit at significantly lower intensities than the ones we are considering here.

\section{Emission enhanced by plasma magnetic fields} \label{Sec-3}

The estimates presented in the previous section indicate that magnetic fields driven in a plasma can prove advantageous for the photon emission from laser-accelerated electrons. Motivated by these estimates, we here examine this scenario using fully self-consistent particle-in-cell simulations in order to characterize the generated photon beam when using a laser pulse with parameters similar to the constructed Apollon laser in France.

\begin{figure} [H]
   \begin{center}
      \includegraphics[width=\columnwidth]{Figure3_fields_and_density_log4.png}
      \caption{\label{fig:ChannelMovIons} Snapshots taken at $t \approx 27$ fs of a structured target irradiated by a laser pulse with $a_0 \approx 257$. The gray-scale shows the relativistically adjusted electron density. The red and blue color-scale shows the $z$ component of the magnetic field, the total field in the upper panel and the time-averaged field (over two laser cycles) in the lower panel.}
      \end{center}
\end{figure}

It is intuitively clear that using a dense plasma would be beneficial for driving strong magnetic fields, because the current that sustains the field scales linearly with the plasma electron density. The laser can only drive such a current, though, as long as it can propagate through the plasma. At non-relativistic laser amplitudes, $a_0 \ll 1$, the cutoff electron density above which the plasma becomes opaque is determined only by the frequency of the incoming laser pulse through $n_{cr}=m\omega^2/(4\pi e^2)$. This is often referred to as the classical critical density.

In contrast, a high-intensity laser pulse with $a_0 \gg 1$ can make an otherwise opaque plasma with a classically over-critical electron density $n_e \gg n_{cr}$ transparent. As the laser electric field accelerates plasma electrons to relativistic energies, it changes the optical properties of the plasma. A simplistic view is to treat this as an effective mass increase by a factor of $\gamma$, where $\gamma$ is the characteristic relativistic factor of the electron population. Even though this qualitative analogy to predict a $\gamma$ factor enhancement to the critical density is helpful, it should be pointed out that it has limited applicability~\cite{PhysRevLett.115.025002}. The effect described above  has been termed as the relativistically induced transparency.

This phenomenon of relativistic transparency offers an attractive possibility of driving very strong plasma currents in classically over-critical plasmas with intense laser pulses.  The plasma becomes opaque at $n_e / \gamma \approx n_{cr}$ and, taking into account that the $\gamma$-factor is driven by the laser to $\gamma \approx a_0$, the relativistically adjusted critical density $n_*$ can be estimated as $n_* \approx a_0 n_{cr}$. Driving plasma currents in plasmas with $n_e$ close to the relativistically adjusted critical density, however, presents a challenge, because the laser pulse propagation becomes extremely unstable.

\begin{figure} [H]
   \begin{center}
      \includegraphics[width=\columnwidth]{Figure2_fields_and_density_log4.png}
      \caption{\label{fig:ChannelStatIons} Snapshots taken at $t \approx 27$ fs of a structured target with immobile ions irradiated by a laser pulse with $a_0 \approx 257$. The gray-scale shows the relativistically adjusted electron density. The red and blue color-scale shows the $z$ component of the magnetic field, the total field in the upper panel and the time-averaged field (over two laser cycles) in the lower panel.}
      \end{center}
\end{figure}

Structured targets allow one to overcome the laser stability issues while taking full advantage of working with $n_e \gg n_{cr}$ to generate strong magnetic fields~\cite{PhysRevLett.116.185003}. The basic idea is to use a target with a channel that becomes relativistically transparent when irradiated by the laser pulse. The bulk of the target has a higher electron density than that in the channel, which allows for optical guiding of the laser pulse. The upper panel in Fig.~\ref{fig:ChannelMovIons} illustrates such guiding in a two-dimensional PIC simulation.

In the simulation whose results are shown in Fig.~\ref{fig:ChannelMovIons}, we use a linearly-polarized 800 nm laser pulse with a peak intensity of $7 \times 10^{22}$ W/cm$^2$, as mentioned before, similar to the Apollon facility. The pulse propagates in the positive direction along the $x$-axis with its electric field polarized in the plane of the simulation [the $(x,y)$-plane]. The pulse is 90 fs long and has a focal spot of 1.1 $\mu$m (full-width at half maximum in regard to the intensity), focusing at normal incidence onto the entrance of the channel.

For simplicity, we use a target that consists only of electrons and protons. The bulk target density is $n_e = 100 n_{cr}$, which makes it relativistically near-critical for the considered laser pulse with a peak normalized intensity of $a_0 \approx 257$. The channel electron density is set at $n_e = 10 n_{cr}$. This choice was guided by target manufacturing considerations~\footnote{Private communication with Dr. Mingsheng Wei and Dr. Jarrod Williams at General Atomics}, as availability of materials and techniques required for the considered target are critical for the implementation of the discussed concept. The initial radius of the channel is $R = 0.9$ $\mu$m to provide good coupling of the laser energy into the channel. We use 20 macro-particles per cell to represent electrons and 20 macro-particles per cell to represent protons. The spatial resolution is 50 cells per $\mu$m along the $x$-axis and 100 cells per $\mu$m along the $y$-axis. The simulation is performed using EPOCH\cite{Epoch}.

\begin{figure} [H]
   \begin{center}
      \includegraphics[width=\columnwidth,trim={0.2cm 0.5cm 0 0.4cm},clip]{Figure4_new_Bz_Ey_6.png}
      \caption{\label{fig:EBcomparison} Snapshots of time-averaged electric and magnetic fields taken at $t \approx 107$ fs. The top two panels correspond to the simulation with mobile ions, while the lower panel corresponds to the simulation with immobile ions. }
      \end{center}
\end{figure}

The change in optical properties of the plasma induced by the laser pulse is depicted in Fig.~\ref{fig:ChannelMovIons} by plotting the normalized relativistically adjusted electron density $n_e / \gamma n_{cr}$, where $\gamma$ is the cell-averaged electron relativistic $\gamma$-factor. The channel becomes ``lighter'' in the presence of the laser pulse, which signifies that it is optically transparent. The snapshots are taken at $t \approx 27$ fs, with $t = 0$ fs defined as the time when the laser pulse would reach its peak amplitude in the focal plane at $x = 0$ $\mu$m in the absence of the target.

In line with our expectations, the laser pulse drives a strong slowly-evolving magnetic field as it propagates along the relativistically transparent channel. As evident from the lower panel of Fig.~\ref{fig:ChannelMovIons}, the amplitude of the time-averaged magnetic field is comparable to the instantaneous values dictated by the oscillating laser field. The averaging is performed over two laser cycles, and the field is normalized to $B_0 \approx 1.7$ MT, which is the peak amplitude of the magnetic field in the focal plane at $x = 0$ $\mu$m in the absence of the target. For reference, the similarly defined peak amplitude of the  electric field is $E_0 \approx 5.13 \times 10^{14}$ V/m.

\begin{figure} [H]
   \begin{center}
      \includegraphics[width=\columnwidth]{Figure4_eta_5colors_new2.png}
      \caption{\label{fig:EtaOfFields}
      Scatterplot of emitting electrons in terms of the transverse electric and magnetic fields that they experience at the timestep of emission. Each circle represents an emission event, and they are color-coded by the characterizing $\eta$ value. The data set was downsized by only selecting electrons with energies above 250 MeV that emit photons with energies above 20 MeV.
      }
      \end{center}
\end{figure}

Also of note from this simulation is that the channel in Fig.~\ref{fig:ChannelMovIons} is significantly wider than it was prior to being irradiated by the pulse. This clearly indicates that there is non-negligible transverse ion movement, which then raises a question of the role that the ion mobility plays in the considered setup. In order to gain more insight, we have performed another simulation where the ions are immobile while all other parameters remain unchanged. Snapshots of the instantaneous and time-averaged magnetic fields from this simulation are shown in Fig.~\ref{fig:ChannelStatIons}. Taking transverse lineouts at $x = 10$ $\mu$m, we find from Figs.~\ref{fig:ChannelStatIons} and \ref{fig:ChannelMovIons} that the peak value of the time-averaged magnetic field decreases from roughly 0.75 MT to 0.5 MT by switching from immobile to mobile ions. The reduction in the case of mobile ions is possibly caused by the electron current being distributed over a larger channel cross-section. Nevertheless, the quasi-static magnetic field remains very strong and it has an unprecedented amplitude that is roughly 25\% of the oscillating magnetic field in the laser pulse.

We can therefore conclude that the generation of a strong quasi-static magnetic field is a robust process with respect to the ion mobility. The situation is very different, however, for quasi-static transverse electric fields that are also generated in the channel due to charge separation caused by the laser pulse. Figure~\ref{fig:EBcomparison} shows snapshots of time-averaged electric fields from the simulations with mobile (middle panel) and immobile (lower panel) ions. Clearly, the ion mobility dramatically reduces the electric field, as its peak value drops by more than an order of magnitude from $E_y/E_0 \approx 0.3$ to $E_y/E_0 \approx 0.03$ in the cross-section at $x = 20$ $\mu$m.

It must be emphasized that in the case of immobile ions the relative strengths of the time-averaged electric and magnetic fields are comparable: $B_z / B_0 \sim E_y / E_0$. In contrast to that, we have $B_z / B_0 \gg E_y / E_0$ if the ions are mobile. This feature is clearly noticeable when comparing the top two panels in Fig.~\ref{fig:EBcomparison}. This result justifies our earlier focus on the slowly-evolving plasma magnetic field as the primary mechanism for enhancing the electron emission. From here onwards we restrict our discussion to the simulation with mobile ions.

\begin{figure} [H]
   \begin{center}
      \includegraphics[width=\columnwidth]{Figure6_angle_rotation_number_6colors_new4.png}
      \caption{\label{fig:PhotAnglHist} Angular distribution of the photons emitted in a structured target irradiated by a laser pulse with $a_0 \approx 257$ as shown in Fig.~\ref{fig:ChannelMovIons}. These are all of the emissions that have occurred by  $t \approx 107$ fs. A large number of high energy photons is emitted forward into an opening angle of $\pm 30^\circ$.}
      \end{center}
\end{figure}

A direct way to quantify the impact of the plasma magnetic field on the emission is to examine the value of the parameter $\eta$ for emitting electrons. The emission process in our simulation is a discrete process where individual photons are probabilistically emitted by accelerated electrons. The corresponding algorithm implemented in EPOCH has been discussed in detail in Ref.~\cite{0741-3335-53-1-015009}. We have recorded the data for all of the photon emissions during the simulation shown in Fig.~\ref{fig:ChannelMovIons} for post-processing, including the electric and magnetic fields acting on each electron during the timestep of emission.

We are primarily interested in high-energy electrons with $\gamma \gg a_0$ due to their potential to radiate multi-MeV photons. During the direct laser acceleration in a vacuum, the value of $\eta$ drops with the increase of the $\gamma$-factor because of the counter-synchronism in oscillations of $\gamma$ and of the laser electric field. In other words, high-energy electron emission is deemed to be inefficient in the absence of plasma fields (see Sec.~\ref{Sec-2}). Motivated by this observation, we now isolate the emissions by electrons with energies above 250 MeV during our simulation. We further restrict the dataset to photon emissions with energies above 20 MeV. Remarkably, the parameter $\eta$ reaches values as high as 0.2 (see Figure~\ref{fig:EtaOfFields}), which validates our conjecture that the emission by energetic electrons becomes significantly more efficient in the presence of the plasma magnetic field.

The profound difference between the emission in a plasma channel and in a vacuum becomes more apparent when examining the local fields experienced by the selected electrons at their moments of emission. In Figure \ref{fig:EtaOfFields} we present a scatterplot showing the perpendicular (to its instanenous momentum) electric and magnetic fields for each electron when emitting, each value color-coded by the corresponding $\eta$ of the particle. Here we observe that a significant number of emissions occur where there is a discrepancy between the local $E_\perp$ and $B_\perp$ field strengths.
It is important to point out that the emissions further away from the central axis $E_\perp/E_0 = B_\perp/B_0$ show a higher value of $\eta$ than the emissions on-axis where particles oscillating in vacuum would reside. These highest $\eta$ values can be found at an offset of about $B_\perp/(3B_0)$ from the central diagonal, which is roughly the strength of the magnetic field at the edge of the channel. Therefore, the strong plasma magnetic field generated by the laser-driven current can account for the elevated emission rates of the ultra-relativistic electrons that are observed in the simulations.

This enhancement of the emission from high energy electrons in strong magnetic fields has the additional benefit of corresponding with strongly collimated emission. Since the opening cone of the emission angle is inversely proportional to the Lorentz-factor of the emitting electron, $\Delta \alpha \sim 1/\gamma$, the ultra-relativistic electrons will essentially emit parallel to their trajectories. Figure \ref{fig:PhotAnglHist} plots the angular distribution (with respect to the laser propagation direction) of the emitted photons across the observed energy range, showing that the emission of the highest energy photons is limited to a range of approximately $\pm 30^\circ$. These photon yields are calculated by assuming that the generated beam of photons from the 2D simulation has a transverse (out-of-plane in the $z$-direction) dimension of 1 $\mu$m, comparable with the focal spot size. As the magnetic field can tightly constrain the electron motion in the channel~\cite{PhysRevLett.116.185003}, this narrow angular spread is expected. It is this combination of the enhanced gamma-ray production and the high degree of collimation, both facilitated by the quasi-static magnetic field, that opens up exciting avenues of application for gamma-ray sources. In the next section we demonstrate how this technique can be exploited for one such prospect.

\section{Pair production via Photon-Photon Collisions} \label{Sec-4}

In Sec.~\ref{Sec-3}, we demonstrated how relativistic transparency and strong quasi-static magnetic fields can be leveraged to generate a well-directed beam of energetic photons (gamma-rays). The directivity of the beam opens up the exciting possibility of colliding two such beams away from the target in a vacuum to generate electron-positron pairs through a linear Breit-Wheeler process~\cite{PhysRev.46.1087}. The corresponding setup is schematically shown in Fig.~\ref{fig:BWexperiment}.

As already mentioned in the introduction, the linear Breit-Wheeler process plays a fundamental role in astrophysical phenomena, but it has not yet been directly observed  in laboratory conditions.  The cross-section for pair production by two photons with energies $\epsilon_{\gamma_1}$ and $\epsilon_{\gamma_2}$ colliding at an angle $\Phi$ is given by~\cite{BERESTESKII.1982}
\begin{equation} \label{BWcross}
	\sigma_{\gamma \gamma} = \frac{\pi}{2}r_e^2(1-\zeta^2)\left[ -2\zeta(2-\zeta^2) + (3-\zeta^4)\ln\frac{1+\zeta}{1-\zeta}\right],
\end{equation}
where $r_e \approx 2.8 \times 10^{-15}$ m is the classical electron radius and $\zeta \equiv \sqrt{1-1/s}$, with
\begin{equation}
s = \frac{\epsilon_{\gamma_1} \epsilon_{\gamma_2}}{2m_e^2c^4} \left(1-\cos\Phi \right).
\end{equation}
This cross-section has a threshold, $s > 1$, dictated by the energy conservation, which translates into the following requirement for the energies of colliding photons:
\begin{equation} \label{eq.Cond}
	 \epsilon_{\gamma 1} \epsilon_{\gamma 2} > \frac{2 m_e^2 c^4}{1 - \cos \Phi}.
\end{equation}
In order to recreate the necessary conditions for observing this process, not only high photon densities, but also high photon energies are required.

Two different approaches have been proposed that rely on high-power lasers for overcoming these challenges. One approach is to fire a gamma-ray beam into the high-temperature radiation field of a laser-heated hohlraum~\cite{Nature.8.434436}, whereas the other approach is to actually collide two gamma-ray beams~\cite{PhysRevE.93.013201}. In what follows, we explore the second approach of using two gamma-ray beams, each like the one obtained from the PIC simulation in the previous section of the paper. These beams are particularly suited for this approach, since they have a large concentration of energetic photons~\cite{PhysRevLett.116.185003}.

\begin{figure} [H]
   \begin{center}
      \includegraphics[width=0.6\columnwidth]{BW_Alex.pdf}
      \caption{\label{fig:BWexperiment} Schematic setup for pair production via two-photon collisions by employing two $\gamma$-ray beams.}
      \end{center}
\end{figure}

We consider two scenarios where these two beams collide at an angle of $\Phi = 15^\circ$ and at an angle of $\Phi = 90^\circ$. In both cases, the collisions occur roughly 5 mm away from the laser-irradiated targets that produced the gamma-ray beams. The collision location is deliberately removed from the original targets in order to reduce possible interference from particles and photons other than the gamma-rays of interest. Because of the large distance to the interaction volume compared to the source size itself, we only consider photons that were emitted into an opening angle of $3^\circ$ from the laser axis for each beam. Our goal is to evaluate the pair production rate under such restrictive conditions, which can pave the way for designing experimental setups in the future.

In the case of the $\Phi = 15^\circ$ collision angle, only photons that satisfy the condition
\begin{equation}
	\frac{\epsilon_{\gamma 1} \epsilon_{\gamma 2}}{m_e^2 c^4} > 59
\end{equation}
will contribute to the pair-creation. This condition follows directly from Eq.~(\ref{eq.Cond}). The cross-section peaks at
\begin{equation} \label{EQ-19}
	\frac{\epsilon_{\gamma 1} \epsilon_{\gamma 2}}{m_e^2 c^4} \approx 100
\end{equation}
with a value of
\begin{equation}
\sigma_{\gamma \gamma}^{\max} \approx 0.75 \pi r_e^2
\end{equation}
and then slowly decreases for higher values of $\epsilon_{\gamma 1} \epsilon_{\gamma 2}$. These estimates indicate that multi-MeV photons will be the major contributors to the pair-production. It is worth pointing out that the photon numbers produced by the source considered in Sec.~\ref{Sec-3} dramatically increase as we decrease the photon energies. Guided by these considerations and the intention of making the pair production simulation feasible, we retain only photons with energies above 1 MeV in the two beams.

\begin{figure} [H]
   \begin{center}
      \includegraphics[width=\columnwidth,trim={0.2cm 5cm 0 5cm},clip]{Momenta_3D_90deg_new2.png} \\
      \includegraphics[width=\columnwidth,,trim={0.2cm 5cm 0 5cm},clip]{Momenta_3D_15deg_new.png}
      \caption{\label{fig:PosLasMomenta_90} Scatterplot of positrons (represented by macro-particles) based on the direction of their momentum. The blue markers represent photons in the incoming gamma-ray beams, with the momentum inverted (with respect to the origin shown by a green marker) to prevent an overlap with positron markers. The collision angles for the beams are $\Phi = 90^\circ$ (upper) and $\Phi = 15^\circ$ (lower).}
      \end{center}
\end{figure}

Simulating the photon-photon collisions in two colliding photon beams presents a serious computational challenge. Even after applying the criteria described above, we are left with over $10^5$ macro-particles representing the photon spectrum shown in Fig.~\ref{fig:PhotAnglHist}. This would then require at least $10^{10}$ binary collision tests in order to check for all of the macro-particles whether or not collisions have occurred. Even for the simplest collision tests, this would lead to unacceptable computation times.

In order to overcome this difficulty, we use the TrI-LEns code~\cite{JANSEN2018582} that was specifically designed for swift collision detection amongst large numbers of particles. Unlike a PIC code, TrI-LEns does not use a mesh of cells; particles move freely in space and are managed in a tree-hierarchy. To dramatically reduce the number of binary collision tests, TrI-LEns uses a modern collision detection algorithm based on bounding volumes that operates with little computational effort and without sacrificing accuracy.

We initialize the photon collision simulation by importing photon macro-particle data generated during the PIC simulation. In TrI-LEns, each macro-particle is interpreted as a rectangular prism (hereafter ``box'') uniformly filled with photons. To translate the PIC data to this format, we uniformly subdivide each cell defined in the PIC code by the number of macro-particles assigned to each cell to make one box for each macroparticle. In order to perform a 3D simulation, we assign to each box a height of 1 $\mu$m, which is roughly the transverse size of the channel in which the photons are generated. The subdivision is only performed in the plane of the PIC simulation, and all photons in one box have the same momentum as the original macro-particle. The described procedure of distributing photons in space is essential to provide the necessary input for the collision detection in the simulation.

\begin{figure} [H]
   \begin{center}
      \includegraphics[width=\columnwidth]{PhotonEnergyHist_both_new2.png}
      \caption{\label{fig:PhotEnergyHist} Energy distribution of photons in the two colliding photon beams prior to the collision. The upper curve is generated by a source with a bulk target density of $n_e = 200 n_{cr}$. The lower curve is generated by a source with a bulk target density of $n_e = 100 n_{cr}$. The corresponding angle resolved distribution is shown in Fig.~\ref{fig:PhotAnglHist}.}
      \end{center}
\end{figure}

Once the photon boxes have been initialized in space with their appropriate densities and momenta, TrI-LEns can evolve their motion forward in time to check for collisions. Time steps consist of testing for collisions and then pushing the virtual photon boxes. The code currently does not involve any propagating fields and has no mesh, so there is no stability condition that typically severely limits the time step in PIC simulations. This allows for a significant speed up of our calculations. The only aspect that is impacted by the time-step is the chronological order of the collisions. Even with our code, it is computationally demanding to recover the exact chronological order of all of the photon collisions~\cite{JANSEN2018582}.

The collision algorithm implemented in TrI-LEns first checks for the overlap between the rectangular boxes filled with photons. Once an overlap is detected between two boxes, the code calculates an actual interaction volume between the photons. It then uses the cross-section given by Eq. (\ref{BWcross}) and the interaction volume to calculate how many electron-positron pairs are produced in total by the colliding photons from the two boxes. Note that the cross-section is the same for all of the collisions in one such event, because all photons in one box have the same momentum.

An electron and a positron are emitted from each of these pair production events as two macro-particles. The emission is calculated in a frame of reference where the two boxes of photons collide head-on. The direction of emission in this frame of reference is isotropic and it is therefore chosen randomly, but the momenta of the emitted macro-particles are constrained by the energy and momenta conservation requirements. Note that the angular distribution of the emitted pairs is no longer isotropic when transformed back to the laboratory frame of reference if the photon boxes collide at an angle. Once two boxes of photons have collided, the code reduces the number of photons in each box by the number of emitted electron-positron pairs to account for the photon annihilation. The photons are again assumed to be uniformly distributed, so the code effectively reduces the photon density in each box. The pair creation in our algorithm has a threshold, with a pair being produced in a collision of two virtual boxes only if the calculated number is greater than unity.

Figure~\ref{fig:PosLasMomenta_90} shows  the positron yields from the collisions between two gamma-ray beams that we simulated. The upper panel is for a $\Phi = 90^\circ$ collision between the beams that produces a total of 1153 positrons, whereas the lower panel is for a $\Phi = 15^\circ$ collision that results in 173 positrons. All incoming photons are moving in the $(x,y)$-plane shown with color in both panels. In these scatter plots, the markers are macro-particles representing generated positrons. Since the events are relatively rare, one macro-particle roughly corresponds to one positron.

It must be pointed out that two different photon sources are required to simulate the collision. Taking two identical sources would cause for an artificially high number of photons to collide, which is a geometrical effect. Instead of introducing additional randomization, we decided to use two sources that were produced by targets with different bulk densities. One source is from the exact setup described in the previous section that had a bulk density of $n_e = 100 n_{cr}$. The second source was instead calculated using a bulk density of $n_e = 200 n_{cr}$ but with the same parameters for the laser pulse. The photon spectra that were used for the photon collision simulations are shown in Fig.~\ref{fig:PhotEnergyHist}.

The difference in the photon spectra causes the emitted positron beam to be slightly asymmetric. Angular distributions of the positrons in the plane of the colliding photon beams are plotted in Fig.~\ref{fig:PosAngleHist} for the two collision angles that we have considered. The colliding photon beams are centered around $\phi = 0^{\circ}$, so the resulting positron beams would be symmetric for photon beams with the same energy distribution.

We can then conclude that, despite the fact that the interaction region is significantly removed from the laser-irradiated targets that generate the photons, we are able to generate on the order of $10^3$ pairs. The collimation of the generated positrons can be improved by reducing the collision angle, as clearly shown in the lower panel of Fig.~\ref{fig:PosLasMomenta_90}. However, improved collimation comes at the expense of the positron yield. It remains to be determined whether such a trade-off is beneficial in the context of the schematic setup shown in Fig.~\ref{fig:BWexperiment}.

\begin{figure} [H]
   \begin{center}
      \includegraphics[width=\columnwidth]{PositronAngleHist_both_new2.png}
      \caption{\label{fig:PosAngleHist} Histogram of the azimuthal angle $\phi$ representing the direction of the positron momentum in the plane of the colliding photon beams. The narrow distribution is for $\Phi = 15^\circ$ (red) and the wider distribution is for  $\Phi = 90^\circ$ (green).}
      \end{center}
\end{figure}

\section{Summary and Conclusions} \label{Sec-5}

We have examined the role of a plasma magnetic field driven in a classically over-critical plasma by a high-intensity laser pulse. Specifically, PIC simulations demonstrate the potential of such setups to exploit the phenomenon of relativistic transparency, which enables a laser-driven current capable of generating magnetic fields of unprecedented strength. This magnetic field, in turn, is shown to significantly enhance the emission rates of ultra-relativistic electrons traversing the field. An analysis of various kinds of electron motion in a laser field, including the direct laser acceleration mechanism, highlight the non-trivial change that a background magnetic field induces in electron motion and radiation rates. PIC simulations corroborate this analysis by showing that a classically over-critical channel embedded in a near-critical bulk target facilitates the emission of large quantities of multi-MeV gamma-rays into a narrow angular cone, promoted by the large magnetic field at the channel edges.

A host of potential applications arises from this type of gamma-ray generation capability, but we focused here on the exciting prospect of observing the linear Breit-Wheeler process of pair production. By colliding two such dense, collimated gamma-ray beams that can be created through our laser-target setup, the TrI-LEns tree code demonstrates positron production of varying yield (up to $\sim 10^3$) and directionality based on the angle of incidence. Therefore, this technique of gamma-ray production opens a new door into fundamental physics research and gamma-ray applications that can be realized with today's technology.

\section*{Acknowledgements}
This research was supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. 1632777 and the US Air Force project AFOSR No. FA9550-17-1-0382. Simulations were performed using the EPOCH code (developed under UK EPSRC Grants No. EP/G054940/1, No. EP/G055165/1, and No. EP/G056803/1) using HPC resources provided by the TACC at the University of Texas and the Comet cluster at the SDSC at the University of California at San Diego.

\section*{References}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaArXiv


text:
Curaçao og Sint Maartens centralbank (, , tidligere Nederlandske Antillers bank) er centralbanken for det tidligere Nederlandske Antiller. Den er ansvarlig for udgivelsen af antillianske gylden.

Centralbankens nuværende navn blev vedtaget efter opløsningen af De Nederlandske Antiller i oktober 2010, eftersom BES-øerne er en del af Nederland og dermed styret af De Nederlandsche Bank, men som indførte den amerikanske dollar den 1. januar 2011. Centralbanken er derfor kun ansvarlig for Curaçao og Sint Maarten og vil, i 2013, afløse den antillianske gylden med den karibiske gylden.

Banken blev etableret februar 1828 og har hovedkontor i Willemstad på Curaçao.

Eksterne henvisninger
 Officiel hjemmeside

Centralbanker
Curaçao
Sint Maarten
Etableret i 1828

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


• How does meditation work, and what is the goal?
• Is enlightenment really possible?
This course includes guided meditations, insightful teachings, and time for questions. Open to everyone, regardless of previous experience.
Online registration is closed. Please arrive early to register at the door.


text:
// Copyright (c) 2017 The Chromium Authors. All rights reserved.
// Use of this source code is governed by a BSD-style license that can be
// found in the LICENSE file.

#include "net/third_party/quic/core/crypto/aes_128_gcm_encrypter.h"

#include "third_party/boringssl/src/include/openssl/evp.h"

namespace quic {

namespace {

const size_t kKeySize = 16;
const size_t kNonceSize = 12;

}  // namespace

Aes128GcmEncrypter::Aes128GcmEncrypter()
    : AeadBaseEncrypter(EVP_aead_aes_128_gcm,
                        kKeySize,
                        kAuthTagSize,
                        kNonceSize,
                        /* use_ietf_nonce_construction */ true) {
  static_assert(kKeySize <= kMaxKeySize, "key size too big");
  static_assert(kNonceSize <= kMaxNonceSize, "nonce size too big");
}

Aes128GcmEncrypter::~Aes128GcmEncrypter() {}

}  // namespace quic

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


The 5 Plus Reel is the latest version of the original Hatch Outdoors model 56, the reel upon which Hatch built its reputation. Billed as the workhorse of the Hatch line, the 5+ is true to that moniker in every way. It's versatile enough to be most anglers' only reel, capable of running after baby trout without snapping your tippet, then jumping up to 7-weight line for saltwater without breaking a sweat. Hatch's sealed multi-disc synthetic drag is smooth and silky at low pressure, but can and will stop a mature bonefish like a brick wall when you need it to. At 6.5 ounces, it's a light reel, although admittedly not as feathery as some other top-end 5-to-6-weight reels. That said, the 5 Plus is not a 5-6, it's a 5-7..and we can say with certainty that this reel will work and keep working when everyone around you seems to be suffering from gear malfunctions. We'll happily trade an ounce or so of extra material for a worry-free mind (and a trouble-free day on the water) anytime. Frame and spool machined from solid aluminum Reel seat and frame are one piece for weight reduction, strength, and corrosion resistance Sealed multi-disc synthetic drag cassette for reliability 5-to-7-weight capacity for wide-range versatility Made in the USA.
Copyright © 2018 Best Fishing Brands.


text:
Home » Blog » Automated Enforcement System (AES) – Now in operation to enhance your safety!
Automated Enforcement System (AES) – Now in operation to enhance your safety!
Posted By Saimatkong on Sep 26, 2012 | 0 comments
Automated Enforcement System (AES) will begin operating at 14 "blackspots" to nab drivers who break the speed limit and jump traffic lights. So less corruption right? Awesome!
So peeps , drive safe and slow! Don't against the law! 🙂
PENGESAHAN LOKASI PROJEK AUTOMATED ENFORCEMENT SYSTEM (AES) – BAGI FASA PERCUBAAN (PILOT STAGE)
Fixed Speed camera locations for Automated Enforcement System (AES):
– KM 376, PLUS North-South Highway – Slim River
– KM 85.5, Jalan Ipoh, Kuala Lumpur
– KM 205.6, North Taiping
– KM 301.9, PLUS Kajang Highway
– Jalan Lebuh Sentosa, Putrajaya
– KM 6.6, Kajang/Puchong Highway (SKVE)
Fixed Traffic Light camera locations for Automated Enforcement System (AES):
– KM26, Jalan Ipoh, Kuala Lumpur
– Jalan Pasir Putih, Ipoh
– Old Klang Road, Kuala Lumpur
– Jalan Ipoh, Kuala Lumpur
Mobile Speed camera locations for Automated Enforcement System (AES):
– KM 7 , Jalan Maharajalela, Teluk Intan
– KM91, Jalan Ipoh – Butterworth, Krian, Perak
– KM D7.7 Sungai Besi, Kuala Lumpur
– Jalan Persiaran Timur, Putrajaya
Automated Enforcement System
Automated traffic law enforcement
AES to nab errant road users begins today
PETALING JAYA: Errant road users be warned; from today the Automated Enforcement System will begin operating at 14 "blackspots" to nab drivers who break the speed limit and jump traffic lights.
For the first phase of the AES, 14 cameras have been installed in Perak, Selangor, Putrajaya and Kuala Lumpur. Ten are to catch speed limit breakers and four to catch those who jump traffic lights.
More cameras will be installed at 817 "blackspots" in the second phase, completing a nationwide implementation of the AES.
Road Transport Department (JPJ) director-general Datuk Solah Mat Hassan said the implementation of the AES was "a serious move" by the Government to reduce the number of road fatalities.
"Hence, the AES cameras are installed at locations identified as accident-prone areas," said Solah in a press statement.
He said the public could check where the AES cameras are on www.jpj.gov.my, adding that road users would also be able to know when they are at AES operation zones through signboards.
"By knowing the location, road users will be more careful at these spots and will drive according to the law. It will reduce the number of deaths and our objectives to ensure the safety of road users will also be met," he said. "The public should see the implementation as a way to educate road users, not as a means to give JPJ extra power to issue summons."
He said AES camera warning signs for no-speeding areas would be visible two to three kilometres before the cameras.
For cameras that record offences of people who jump traffic lights, the signs are located 50m to 500m of the traffic lights.
Solah said images captured by the AES cameras would be sent automatically to the AES control centre and the vehicle registration numbers of the alleged offenders would be cross checked with JPJ's database, before a summons notice is sent to the vehicle owner.
"If the captured images do not match with the vehicle registration details on JPJ's database, further investigations will be carried out. Offenders will receive their summons notices within five days of the date they violate traffic rules.
"However, if the registered owner is not the driver of the vehicle at the time of offence, they can submit the driver's details to JPJ 30 days from receiving the summons notice," Solah said. "If they choose to be present in court, they can do so at the time and date specified on the notice."
Solah said those who have received the notice can call the AES Control Centre for enquiries at 03-7846 4400 for offences committed in Perak and 03-7628 8268 for offences in Selangor, Putrajaya and Kuala Lumpur.
Leeway given to drivers under Automated Enforcement System
PETALING JAYA: When the light turns amber, you have just two seconds before it turns red and the cameras catch you committing a traffic offence under the Automated Enforcement System.
This allowance is given in consideration of the "human element" in the event that you are not able to stop immediately when the light turns amber.
Under the AES, you are also given a leeway of 10kph beyond the speed limit, according to Road Transport Department director-general Datuk Solah Mat Hassan.
For example, if the speed limit is 110kph, you will only be "captured" on AES camera if you exceed 120kph, he told a media briefing here yesterday.
"Thus, offenders can no longer argue they only drove a couple of kilometres over the speed limit or that the traffic light turned red halfway."
Solah also said the system started on Sunday with 14 cameras installed at accident-prone areas in Perak, Selangor, Putrajaya and Kuala Lumpur 10 to catch speed limit breakers and four to nab those who beat the red light.
In those two days, 2,952 offenders were caught on camera 809 for speeding and 2,143 for beating the red light, he added.
Solah said that cameras would be installed at 817 blackspots nationwide in the next one year.
He said the cameras, with an 11 megapixel resolution, could capture clear images of vehicles even when they were moving at high speed.
"The images captured will be sent automatically to the AES control centre and the vehicle registration numbers of the offenders will be cross-checked with the database of the Road Transport Department before a summons notice is mailed to the vehicle owner.
"Offenders will receive their summons notice within five days of the date they violated traffic rules. They are given two months to pay their RM300 compounds. They can be hauled to court if they refuse to pay up," he said.
Solah stressed that the AES was not aimed at issuing summonses, but to educate people to be good road users and reduce the number of deaths due to accidents in the country.
As such, he said, signages were put up to give ample warning on the presence of cameras.
Two concessionaire companies, ATES Sdn Bhd and Beta Tegap Sdn Bhd, operate AES, each investing between RM300mil and RM400mil.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
FString GetWorkDir(const NWorkDir::CInfo &workDirInfo, const FString &path, FString &fileName);

class CWorkDirTempFile
{
  FString _originalPath;
  NWindows::NFile::NDir::CTempFile _tempFile;
  COutFileStream *_outStreamSpec;
public:
  CMyComPtr<IOutStream> OutStream;

  HRESULT CreateTempFile(const FString &originalPath);
  HRESULT MoveToOriginal(bool deleteOriginal);
};

#endif


How much snow did Horseshoe Resort get this season? Check out the ski resort historical snowfall using the graph, Horseshoe Resort snow stats—such as Total Snowfall, Max Base Depth, Biggest Snowfall, Total Snowfall Days and Average Base Depth—or the calendar below that shows daily snowfall data for the current ski season. To see how much snow Horseshoe Resort got last ski season or any ski season dating back to 2009, click the corresponding tab. Click Compare at the top left to see a season-over-season comparison of Horseshoe Resort snowfall. In addition to snow history, you can also view the mountain's Base Depth by selecting it at the top right dropdown.
2017 Holiday Gift Guide: OnTheSnow has compiled its list of favorite gifts for those mountain-bounders this season.


text:
La Falange africana (francese: Phalange africaine) in seguito ribattezzata "Legione dei Volontari francesi di Tunisia" (francese: Légion des Volontaires Française de Tunisie) è stato l'unico battaglione della Legione Imperiale delle forze della Francia di Vichy. Fu creato nel novembre del 1942 in Nord Africa.

Storia
Nel corso della seconda guerra mondiale, la Francia di Vichy in seguito allo sbarco sbarco angloamericano in Marocco e in Algeria nel novembre del 1942, ordinò dal territorio metropolitano la creazione di una unità militare costituita da volontari a sostegno delle forze dell'Asse in Tunisia, conosciuta come la "Falange africana".

L'invasione alleata creò indignazione in Francia. Jacques Doriot, capo del Partito Popolare Francese esortò le autorità di Vichy in occasione di un raduno di massa, di dare una risposta forte ad un simile affronto. Il maresciallo Pétain il 19 dicembre 1942, ottenuta l'approvazione di Berlino, autorizzò la formazione di un'unità di volontari progettata per difendere la Tunisia, l'ultima colonia africana rimasta sotto il controllo del governo di Vichy.

La formazione adottò il nome di "Phalange africaine" o "Falange Frankonia" o "Falange imperiale", a imitazione della Falange spagnola, il partito fondato da José Antonio Primo de Rivera in Spagna. Inizialmente vennero reclutati 450 volontari, di cui 435 erano francesi che si erano stabiliti in Tunisia e altri 15 provenienti dal territorio francese, ma ben presto la metà di loro sarebbe stata scartata e solo 210 di loro, tra i quali alcuni francesi di etnia araba, ne entrarono a far parte.

Gli organici della Falange africana era costituito da 7 ufficiali, 42 sottufficiali, 35 graduati e 126 soldati.

Al comando della Phalange africaine l'ufficiale corso Petru Simon Cristofini, che intrapresa la carriera militare aveva raggiunto il grado di tenente colonnello dell'esercito coloniale francese, che subito dopo lo sbarco statunitense nell'Algeria francese, si trasferì allora in Tunisia per lavorare alla creazione della Phalange africaine, a difesa delle colonie della Francia di Vichy.

Il loro addestramento ebbe inizio il 23 gennaio 1943 a Camp Bordj-Cedria, una foresta di pini in mezzo al deserto del Sahara a pochi chilometri da Tunisi, dove ricevettero le uniformi dell'esercito francese, anche se con l'elmo dell'Esercito tedesco decorato con la bandiera francese e il simbolo dorato della Francia di Vichy sul petto.

Il 18 marzo 1943 ebbe luogo la cerimonia ufficiale della sua costituzione, alla quale prese parte una compagnia di paracadutisti tedeschi, e gli uomini della Phalange africaine, che in quel momento aveva raggiunto il numero di 450 militari tra 300 francesi e 150 musulmani tra algerini e tunisini, prestarono giuramento prima a Philippe Pétain come capo dello Stato e poi ad Adolf Hitler come comandante supremo delle forze armate tedesche.

Inquadrata nell'Heeresgruppe Afrika la Phalange africaine venne assegnata alla 334ª divisione fanteria tedesca del generale Friedrich Weber.

Schierata nel settore di Medjez-el-Bab, la Falange africana venne sottoposta a un costante fuoco di artiglieria da parte della 1ª Armata britannica e ai bombardamenti dei velivoli della Royal Air Force.

Il 14 aprile 1943, la Falange africana registrò la sua prima vittima , che i suoi commilitoni avrebbero vendicato il giorno successivo, quando nella notte tra il 15 e il 16 aprile, una pattuglia francese intercettata una pattuglia britannica ingaggiò uno scontro a fuoco nel quale caddero dieci britannici e un francese che venne decapitato. Dopo questo successo, i tedeschi assegnarono quattro croci di ferro a coloro che si erano maggiormente distinti nello scontro.

Tra il 20 e il 22 aprile Medjez el-Bab venne fatta oggetto di un pesante bombardamento aereo e di artiglieria, che scompaginò le linee difensive italo-tedesche e della Phalange africaine. Il giorno successivo, 23 aprile, gli inglesi andati all'attacco costrinsero ad evacuare dalle loro posizioni i francesi, che, trinceratisi sulle alture a quota 119, resistettero eroicamente più di tre giorni causando gravi perdite agli inglesi, finché il 27 aprile furono costretti a ritirarsisi.
Riorganizzate le fila nella capitale Tunisi il 6 maggio 1943, i francesi decisero di svolgere l'ultima difesa della piazzaforte accanto ai tedeschi, agli italiani e ai tunisini, ma quando un ufficiale tedesco informò dell'imminente crollo, molti di loro cominciarono a cercare il modo migliore per lasciare la Tunisia, ma solo tre ufficiali francesi furono in grado di lasciare l'Africa a bordo di un aereo tedesco che li trasportò in Sicilia, mentre il resto rimase sul continente africano in attesa di un destino incerto.

La Falange africana si arrese alle forze alleate a Capo Bon l'8 maggio 1943, precedendo di pochi giorni la resa delle restanti truppe dell'Asse in Tunisia avvenuta il 13 maggio 1943.

Nel corso della campagna di Tunisia, le perdite della Falange africana furono di 6 morti, 7 feriti e 57 dispersi, anche se 20 di questi sarebbero stati catturati in seguito. Per quanto riguarda i 400 prigionieri, un buon numero venne rilasciato, altri sono stati condannati a pene detentive, e 14 di loro (12 francesi e 2 musulmani) accusati di tradimento vennero processati da un tribunale della Francia Libera e fucilati.

Molto importante è stata la rilevanza storica della Falange africana, perché i francesi di questa unità militare furono gli unici volontari europei dell'esercito tedesco che hanno combattuto sul fronte africano e inoltre sono stati anche i primi soldati francesi, dai tempi della campagna d'Egitto condotta da Napoleone tra il 1798 e il 1801, ad affrontare sul suolo africano come nemici dei soldati britannici.

Note

Bibliografia
 Fabrizio Carloni, L'occupazione italiana della Corsica, Mursia, Milano, 2016.
 Carlos Caballero Jurado, ¿Hitler o Napoleón?. "La Legión de Voluntarios Franceses en Túnez", García Hispán Editor (2000), p. 293-327
 Jean François Borsarello, Wehrmacht & SS Caucasian, Muslim and Asian Troops, "The African Phalange", Heimdal (2007), p. 89-90
 Carlos Caballero Jurado, Foreign Volunteers of the Wehrmacht 1941-1945, "The Phalange Africaine", Osprey Publishing (1983), p. 7

Collegamenti esterni
  Falange Africana

Regime di Vichy
Wehrmacht
Unità straniere


text:
The April Fool Archive
Long services to be fined (April Fool's Day - 2019)
At a crematorium in York, England, a notice appeared on the bulletin board warning that ministers, celebrants and funeral directors would now face fines of up to £200 if their services ran over by even a few seconds. The announcement was lent credibility by a recent case in Grimsby in which a grieving family had been fined when its service went longer than its allotted slot. However, when contacted by the press, the City of York Council insisted that no such policy was planned, describing the announcement as a prank "in poor taste".
More content from the Hoax Museum:
The Society for Indecency to Naked Animals, 1959
The Nazi Air Marker Hoax, 1942
Can a bar of soap between your sheets ease muscle cramps?


Objective: To investigate whether the discharge destination for older adults can be predicted using functional mobility as measured by the Modified Elderly Mobility Scale (MEMS), associated with demographic and primary reason for admission variables. Methods: A retrospective cohort population audit of 257 patients admitted and discharged from four tertiary older adult rehabilitation wards in a three-month period. A number of predictor variables were considered alongside the discharge destination. Results: Multinomial statistical modelling established that MEMS prior to (P < 0.001), MEMS on completion (P = 0.009) of rehabilitation physiotherapy and primary reason for admission (P = 0.002) were significant variables to predict discharge destination. The model correctly predicted 71% of observed patient discharge destinations. Conclusion: The MEMS in conjunction with primary reason for admission was able to predict discharge destination with 71% accuracy in a heterogeneous population of older adults following rehabilitation.
© 2017 The Authors. Australasian Journal on Ageing published by John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd on behalf of AJA Inc. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.


text:
Queen Elizabeth II funeral: Meghan Markle like 'fish out of water' as body language expert analyzes royal ties
Leave a Comment / Entertainment / By admin
NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
Queen Elizabeth II was laid to rest Monday by the royal family during a funeral at Westminster Abbey followed by a burial at St. George's Chapel on the grounds of Windsor Castle outside central London.
Her state funeral marked the culmination of 10 days of mourning for Her Majesty following her death on Sept. 8 at the age of 96.
The queen's ceremony was attended by dignitaries from around the world, including President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden, but royals (current and former) were watched with a strict eye as body language experts revealed Meghan Markle showed signs of "disconnect" from the family and was forced to grieve on her own.
Psychotherapist and human behavior expert Dr. Robi Ludwig explained to Fox News Digital that Meghan seemed like a "fish out of water" and may have even used fashion as her own personal shield by wearing an oversized black hat to help her disengage entirely from the somber event.
QUEEN ELIZABETH II BURIED WITH BELOVED PRINCE PHILIP: KING CHARLES III TO HOLD PRIVATE FUNERAL
Meghan Markle and royal family body language explained during Queen Elizabeth II funeral.
Prince Harry and Meghan departed from royal duties in 2020 and moved to the United States due to what they described as the British media's intrusion and racist demeanor towards their family.
They've rarely returned to the United Kingdom but most recently attended the queen's Platinum Jubilee in June, when they were present for one royal obligation during the five-day event before celebrating daughter Lilibet's first birthday at Frogmore Cottage.
PRINCE HARRY APPEARED 'TRAUMATIZED' AT QUEEN ELIZABETH II'S FUNERAL WHILE SEATED BEHIND KING CHARLES III
As the Duchess of Sussex waited to be seated, she kept her hands clutched together, indicating "she is closed off to her environment and trying to comfort herself at the same time."
Ludwig added, "I don't think this is what she anticipated. Meghan Markle did not consider the cause and effect of her actions and how this could come to harm her."
King Charles III, Harry, the Duke of Sussex, Camilla, the Queen Consort, and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, look on as the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II arrives at Wellington Arch following her state funeral at Westminster Abbey.
(Jane Barlow/PA Images)
Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, arrives at Westminster Abbey for the state funeral of Queen Elizabeth II.
(Christopher Furlong/Getty Images)
In one image from the sovereign's ceremony at Westminster Abbey, Ludwig described Prince Harry's protective nature over his wife as he appeared to comfort her.
"Harry has to focus on his wife, indicated by his body language of holding her hand and leaning towards her," Ludwig said.
"Meghan is using the hat to hide, a very different presentation style than she's exhibited in the past. She is looking down because she feels the disapproval and is out of her element."
Although Markle may have felt "disapproval," one royal expert previously told Fox News Digital that he believes Markle did "really well" over the past week.
"She hasn't appeared like she's trying to come over and muscle in on anything. She's just basically gone and done whatever was required," royal expert Duncan Larcombe said, adding that she's even won over some in the UK
QUEEN ELIZABETH II INSIGNIA MISSING FROM PRINCE HARRY'S UNIFORM, WORN BY PRINCE WILLIAM, PRINCE ANDREW
Meanwhile, Prince Harry was seated behind his father, King Charles III, and Queen Consort Camilla. Prince William and Kate Middleton were positioned on the opposite side of the row with their two oldest children, Prince George, 9, and Princess Charlotte, 7.
"Harry looks sad about the day and one can imagine feels like a man between two worlds," said Ludwig. "He's given up a lot and his contemplative face is showing the pain for everything that has happened over the years. I don't think Harry ever anticipated that his actions would cause this type of lasting strife. If the queen was his anchor to the family, that, too, has been lost."
While leaving the funeral, Meghan walked behind Queen Consort Camilla, Prince George, Princess Charlotte, Kate Middleton and Sophie, Countess of Wessex.
Catherine, Princess of Wales, Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, Prince George and Princess Charlotte arrive for the state funeral of Queen Elizabeth II at Westminster Abbey on Sept. 19, 2022.
(Phil Noble)
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle sit behind King Charles III and Queen Consort Camilla at Queen Elizabeth II's funeral on Sept. 19, 2022.
(Dominic Lipinski)
Ludwig said Markle's stance stood out as there was an "in syncness" with the royal family while she was still "solemn but looking forward, indicating a presence in the moment."
She added: "Meghan, with her head tilted down, covering her face, indicating feelings of shame and victimization. There is a sense that she is upset and uncomfortable. Her body language indicates a disconnection with the other family members and a discomfort with her current status among the working royals. She is definitely feeling the coldness and is very uncomfortable about it. She is like a fish out of water, and it's obvious."
PRINCE WILLIAM, KATE'S BODY LANGUAGE IS 'GIGANTIC DIFFERENCE' FROM 'AFFECTIONATE' PRINCE HARRY, MEGHAN; EXPERT
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex remained close together throughout the 10-day mourning period and were regularly seen holding hands as they greeted mourners or attended engagements in honor of the queen, an unlikely move for working members of the royal family.
"As we've seen throughout this funeral, Harry and Meghan consistently stay close and touch whenever possible — they seem to be like two magnets drawn to each other," body language expert Tonya Reiman said.
She noted the differences between the brothers as Harry appeared shell-shocked while William looked moved throughout the proceedings.
"Throughout the ceremony, you could clearly see that although William was the picture of what the royal family is meant to convey, he was clearly emotional," Reiman said.
Queen Consort Camilla, left, walks with Meghan Markle, Prince George, Kate Middleton, Princess Charlotte and Sophie, Countess of Wessex, during the state funeral of Queen Elizabeth II at Westminster Abbey.
(Karwai Tang)
Prince William, Prince of Wales, and Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, are shown during the state funeral of Queen Elizabeth II at Westminster Abbey.
(Patrick van Katwijk)
"This is a moment where you see true grief on William's face. Note his eyebrows going up and pulling together, the lines going downward between his eyes and the sorrow demonstrated by the anxiety in his forehead."
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Reiman agreed the newly appointed Princess of Wales conveyed the "royal face," saying, "We don't know what she is truly feeling with the face veil, the proper posture and the arms down by her sides. She is the picture of a woman who needs to be strong and is fully holding it together."
She added, "Kate looks so regal. She has stepped into the role of Princess of Wales seamlessly. It's very easy to see why William fell in love with her. She couldn't be more suited for the role or more warm as a mother ."
Royal expert Shannon Spence believed that the distance from the Duchess of Sussex was "to be expected" following years of turmoil from within the family.
Prince George, Camilla, Queen Consort, and Catherine, Princess of Wales, are shown during the state funeral of Queen Elizabeth II.
(Samir Hussein/WireImage)
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry held hands while walking at Windsor Castle last week with Prince William and Kate Middleton to view flowers and tributes to Queen Elizabeth II.
(Chris Jackson)
"I think this distance we are seeing between the Duchess of Sussex is to be expected," Spence told Fox News Digital.
"Over the past two years, she has not held back in the public forum how she feels about the institution and how she feels she was treated by her in-laws. The sense of isolation is palpable and would be natural given all that's occurred. "
Tracy Wright is an entertainment writer for Fox News Digital. Send story tips to tracy.wright@fox.com.
Inside Fedor Emelianenko's last hurrah in MMA


My special night care routine for tomorrow's makeup.
The nighttime skincare is the key to flawless skin. It allows the skin to heal, breathe and restore while you're sleeping.
Here are my easy skincare tips with Klairs Skincare Products you might want to follow at night before heading to bed so that you can have a healthy glowing and well-hydrated skin in the next morning.
My unboxing video of KLAIRS' Skincare products.
Let's get started - My night care and makeup routine!
I would start off with Klairs Gentle Black Deep Cleansing Oil after a tiring day and long wear of makeup/without makeup. It cleans out my pores and removes all the makeup, dirt and impurities on my skin. My skin feels clean and it does not cause any trouble on my skin. Besides that, the aromatic smell of the cleansing oil is soothing and relaxing.
I would do a double cleansing if I'm wearing makeup especially sunblock/bb cream.
Gentle Black Deep Cleansing Oil has the combination of natural black grains ingredients extracted from the nature that will gently take care of your skin. It contains Black Bean Oil to control sebum and increases skin elasticity, Black Sesame Oil to prevents dehydration and skin aging and Blackcurrant Seed Oil to strengthen the skins protective layer and skin cell regeneration. This is why it is recommended for people who have dry and sensitive skin, rough skin by blackheads and dead skin cells, want the skin care effect while cleansing.
Klairs Gentle Black Deep Cleansing Oil may leave a slightly oily feeling after washing. For people who do not like the oily feeling, you may wash off with normal cleanser.
After cleansing, it's best to apply toner before applying Klairs Freshly Juiced Vitamin E Mask.
*Try out Klairs toner, it works better for using the same range of product, or use your own favorite brand toner will be fine too.
Klairs Freshly Juiced Vitamin E Mask provides strong moisturizing power that maintains the moisture for at least 8 hours even for dry skin. This is because vitamin E is an oil that is great for moisturizing.
It can be used as a day and night moisturizer.
I love how it moisturizes my skin and doesn't give me a flaky and cakey makeup skin in the next morning. Honestly, I love all Klairs skincare product that has this aromatic smell, it's so relaxing after applying.
Start out by using only a small amount at first and find the amount that works for you. Using large amount may increase the stickiness due to the nature of vitamin E. For me, I'll only apply 1/2 or 1/3 scoop depending on my skin condition.
The texture is jelly-like but it blends well with the skin.
Klairs Freshly Juiced Vitamin E Mask can be upgraded by mixing with additional brightening, wrinkle repairing and moisturizing with the antioxidant power. The moisturizing effects increase when mixed with a cream or essence. You can mix Vitamin drop + vitamin mask / soothing cream + vitamin mask and use as a sleeping pack when your skin feels extra dry.
Small and handy, comes with a dropper.
This is the super upgrade serum, new & improved formula with fewer ingredients for more effects By Wishtrend Pure Vitamin C21.5 Advanced Serum. It restores balance to replenish and retain moisture in the skin with the optimal 21.5% of a pure vitamin. The serum gives great hydration and absorption without the stickiness. Stingy feeling on the skin is normal due to the natural vitamin C.
This serum is very good for reducing blemishes and acne scars.
The very last step of my night care routine with Klairs skincare products. Squeeze half to one drop on each part of my face (forehead, cheeks, and chin) only at night before I go to bed, apply it after Klairs Freshly Juiced Vitamin E Mask slightly reduce the stinging feeling on my skin.
Step 4: SLEEP!! Get your beauty sleep!
Yes. Have your beauty sleep and let the Klairs skincare products do the job.
Thumbs up for the exclusive cute packaging. It doesn't just come with my favorite colour-Blue but it looks so adorable. It's a cute version of mochi! I'm so in love with it.
Look at the puff, it's a mochi too!
The Klairs all-time bestseller Mochi BB Cushion has been improved with a light finish, long-lasting coverage that fights sweat and oil all day but it comes in only one tone which is apricot-beige tone that complements both yellow and red skin in a natural way, it neutralizes the redness of the skin for a comfortable and healthy look while colour-correcting and brightening dull, discoloured skin tone. My skin tone is more to light-medium. It works well and looks really natural on my skin!
Mochi BB Cushion has a refreshing finish like a powder because it is designed as a balm-type product rather than a liquid. Therefore, it fills in the pores for the silky smooth finish. Besides that, it has 40 SPF, it's excellent as a sunblock or when fixing makeup.
Mochi BB Cushion has a natural color and glows to give our skin a lively finish. My skin looks smooth. Say goodbye to my dull, uneven skin tone and most importantly, say bye to beauty cam hahaha!
I usually have my basic skin care routine in the morning before applying makeup. I wouldn't want heavy skin care products on my skin during the day due to our hot weather, it's best to keep it light so I don't feel the stickiness on my skin. Another thing that I would recommend the Mochi BB Cushion is that it acts as a sunblock too. I hate applying liquid sunblock on my face because of the stickiness that it creates especially when I'm exposed to hot sun. Hence, Mochi BB Cushion works best that it comes in 2-in-1 to leave my skin smooth and protect my skin from the UV rays.
Wow you got sponsored from hermo?


Content creators seemingly write this in as if it adds some sort of enhanced characteristic to the person they are referring to. If the story is about a parenting related article, or maybe about kids' education, then maybe it makes sense to identify the subject as such. We live in a natalist society where the population treats parenthood as some sort of advantage. Maybe it is considered a status symbol by some. You never see someone without children as being identified as such when they become subjects in those kinds of stories.
Childfree persons make the choice not to have children because they see not having children as being an advantage all to itself. It is one of the many reasons people make this well-informed decision. I'm happy to not contribute to a world which I view as very overpopulated. Nature is under siege from decades of steady population growth that only recently is starting to slow in developed countries. In North America, nature has paid a heavy price already for the world's population growth. There are massive reductions in green spaces in major urban centres. In Canada, wildlife that one might not expect to see are wandering in closer to heavily populated areas. They are being chased from their own habitats by urban sprawl.
Like many other childfree persons, I see having children as excessively costly. Not just from a financial perspective. It costs time that I am just not willing to invest. That time is much better spent on me and my passions. I echo comedian Jen Kirkman's words where she wisely says in her book title "I can barely take care of myself." There are plenty of days where I am left feeling that way. How in my right mind could I even think about being a parent? Having pets is more than enough work as it is. Arguably, it is significantly less costly than raising children.
If I am going to spend money on anything other than necessities, it makes me happy to devote it to animal rescue causes. English father of zero, actor, comedian, writer, musician, producer and director Ricky Gervais, and his partner Jane Fallon, mother of none and author, are two people who dedicate significant time and resources to animal rescue and other causes.
International Childfree Day has become a reminder to the world. Those of us who do not have children by choice or no choice, are equal to the Jane and John Does of the world. Our opinions, ideas, accomplishments and stories are just as important. They are just as vital to the constant writing of history.
Dann Alexander is a writer, an parent of two adopted dogs and two adopted cats.


text:
Home About us Links Photos with Teddy
Another tooth out
Elizabeth lost another tooth. It got to the point where she could flip it almost inside out but she didn't want to twist it. There was much drama. Finally she yanked on it a couple of times and it came out. There was a LOT of blood.
1 photos / videos
Orchestra from planet X
Erika and Elizabeth decided they needed a sleepover after Greek Night. Erika came with us to church and was super helpful wrangling many small children while Elizabeth and Daddy went to a climbing birthday party. Daddy would like to point out that he didn't go to the party; he spent much time driving nearly 100km to go to and from Gatineau.
After church we dropped Michael and Erika off at Sunnyside and the rest of us headed to the NAC for a show about aliens. Specifically we saw Orchestra from planet X, which had a couple of mimes as aliens. We enjoyed it very much and the kids have all agreed that we should do this music subscription thing again next year. The kids had the chance to try out wind instruments before the show. Amelia was too shy to try any but Matthew and Elizabeth were coaxed into trying the bassoon, oboe, clarinet, and trumpet. Elizabeth really enjoyed the clarinet. Neither of them were able to get any kind of sound out of the trumpet so they had new respect for the trumpet players they heard later!
Auntie Yukiko had to work and Uncle Chris had to drive Maria to and from a birthday party that afternoon so hardworking Erika watched Michael by herself for a short time and even managed to convince him to have a nap!
After we'd retrieved Michael, we were lucky enough to be invited out for a wonderful dinner at the neighbours.
We went to the museum of science and tech to get a birthday present before karate and managed to squeeze in a little playtime while we were at it.
Then Matthew invited Amelia to come with him to be his karate "buddy" as all of his friends that he wanted to invite were busy with hockey. Amelia had great fun!
In the evening we invited Lorianne and Oliver, Grandma J and Erika, Maria, Chris and Yukiko over for greek night. Opa!
15 photos / videos
Bus stop fan club
Now that it is spring(ish) we've started letting Michael come to the bus stop to see off his siblings. He's much happier about being outdoors now that we aren't insisting on snowsuit and now that he can walk around by himself. Somehow it didn't seem worth getting smaller boots since he was constantly taking them off anyway, so we ended up just tying off the bottoms of his too-big snowsuit and calling it good enough. Strangely that was not conducive to wandering around in the snow. In any case, his fan club was very excited to see him.
Elizabeth decided to have a sleepover party again this year, but Daddy was in charge of the guest list and it was strictly limited to ten girls, including herself. There was much agonizing over guest list and promises extracted to arrange play dates but eventually she decided that she'd invite mainly kids from school, plus Ruici and Mila (who knows many of them from last year). Most of the girls speak French at home, so it was a very French party, aside from the movie (Freaky Friday - 2003 edition). Olivia couldn't make it and Elizabeth thought she should be allowed to invite an alternate but in the end Daddy held firm.
A couple of the girls came late (hockey and Disney on Ice) and one girl had to leave in the evening (dance competition) so we actually only had eight girls including Elizabeth except for about half an hour or so after 9pm. So that's when we did cake and presents!
Matthew is buddies with Bianca's little brother and got himself invited for a sleepover at Nico's. There were waffles! Treats during Lent! Plus he got to "escape the house full of girls" as he put it. He was quite pleased with himself. From the sounds of things his first sleepover went well.
Previous Posts / Following Posts
-Snowshoeing
-Birthday party
-Epiphany Back to School
-Twelfth night
-Auntie Janice party


text:
require "rubygems"
require 'optparse'

require "common/constants"
require "utils/general"
require "utils/senddata"
require "search/ldap_queries"

module Search
  class ManageSearch
    def initialize
      @options = {}
      @fileXml = WriteXmlFile.new
    end

    def getCliParams
      opt_parser = OptionParser.new do |opt|
      opt.banner = "Usage: ldap2ssm_run [OPTIONS]"

      @options[:verbose] = false
      opt.on( '-v', '--verbose', 'Output more information') do
        @options[:verbose] = true
      end

      @options[:conf] = nil
      opt.on( '-C', '--Conf conf', 'Path to configuration file dir') do |conf|
        @options[:conf] = conf
      end

      opt.on( '-h', '--help', 'Print this screen') do
        puts opt
        exit
      end
    end

    opt_parser.parse!
    end

    def queries
      puts $CONF_DIR
      self.getCliParams
      setVariables(@options)
      puts $CONF_DIR
      siteList = GeneralUtils.LoadCleanFileData($SITES_FILE)
      siteList.each do |site|
        querySite = ManageQueries.new($TOP_BDII,site)
        allRecords = querySite.getGlueOneInfo
        if !allRecords.nil? && allRecords.size != 0
          writeFile($MAX_FILERECORDS.to_i, allRecords)
        end
        allRecords = nil
        querySite = nil
      end

    end

    private
    def writeFile(iMaxSize, allRecords)
      if allRecords.size > iMaxSize
        iCount = 0
        recordTmp = {}
        recordKeys = Array.new
        recordTmp.each do |key,value|
          recordTmp[key] = value
          iCount += 1
          if iCount >= iMax
            @fileXml.writeFile($MAX_DIRFILES,recordTmp)
            iCount = 0
            recordTmp = nil
          end
        end
      if !recordTmp.nil?
        @fileXml.writeFile($MAX_DIRFILES,allRecords)
      end

    else
      @fileXml.writeFile($MAX_DIRFILES,allRecords)
     end

    end
  end
end


Sodexo Campus Services operates the College's food outlets. Our dining programs are geared toward the preferences and lifestyles of today's student. These programs are designed to promote the mission of the institution, our commitment to improving quality of life spans and the entire campus dining experience.
In addition to meal plans designed for both Residence Hall students and commuters, there are several places on campus to purchase a quick meal. Whether it is a quick breakfast, lunch, or cup of coffee, Sodexo dining services provide its customers with variety of services. Vending machines are also available on both campuses allowing students to have a grab and go option during busy schedule times. To learn more about our dining services, visit mvcc.sodexomyway.com.
Residence Hall students are required to purchase one of the meal plans listed on the Room and Board Agreement including: Platinum (19 meals), Gold (14 meals), Silver (10 meals) or Bronze (10 meals) per week. the Bronze meal plan is limited to 50 participants. The Meal Plan Agreement is listed in its entirety on page 4 of the Room and Board Agreement.
Each Plan includes a varying amount of Hawk Dollars.
Hawk Dollars are monies placed into an account accessed with an I.D. card, which is used like a debit card for purchasing food in any of the retail locations on campus. Additional Hawk Dollars can be added at any time during the semester.
The Bronze plan is 10 meals per week, but with no Hawk Dollars. We encourage all students who select this meal plan to evaluate their daily meal usage before selecting this plan. We do not recommend this plan for students who do not plan on going home every weekend.
All plans except Bronze have a "plus" option, which allows for any amount of Hawk Dollars at the beginning of each semester.
Commuter students may purchase plans offering 30, 45 or 60 meals throughout a semester plus an allotted amount of Hawk Dollars. There is two "Hawk only" commuter meal plans available. Meal plans may be purchased with financial aid.
Tres Habañeros- offers up a delicious selection of tacos, burritos, nachos, and burrito bowls. Customize them with your favorite toppings and add a little extra spice to your life. Enjoy this new dining destination located in The Snack Bar. Meal plan holders – enjoy the benefits of saving time and money with your Hawk Dollars!
The Pizza Spot- Our new and improved Pizza Spot is a place student's miss from back home, or the "mom and pop" shop they've discovered just a few blocks off campus. It is nothing fancy - just the best place to find some serious homemade, hand tossed pizza from fresh, quality ingredients.
NEW Oodles -Made to order, made to satisfy! Pick the perfect noodles. Choose from a selection of fresh, colorful vegetables. Add lean pork, chicken, shrimp, or tofu and finish with a flavorful Asian sauce or broth and toppings. It all adds up to a bowl bursting with nutrients and just 550 calories or less.
Sammie's Deli- is a fantastic location to create your own sandwich or sub with a variety of meats, cheeses, breads and toppings. Sammie's has signature soups and sandwiches daily and the countless options will provide endless opportunity.
Resident Dining Hall- is open to residents, commuters and faculty/staff. Serving up your favorites like home-style meals, full service deli, grill, homemade pizza, fresh salad bar, desserts, beverages and much more.
NOTE: Commuter Plans roll over from the Fall to Spring semesters, but DO NOT roll over from Spring to Fall semester. Resident Meal Plan week runs from Friday to Thursday.
Sick trays are available to meal plan participants. If a student is unable to make it to the Resident Dining Hall due to illness, a friend may bring a sick tray to their room if they have a signed sick tray card and their Student I.D. card. Residents can obtain sick tray passes from the College nurse or from a Resident Director in Bellamy Hall Office.
Mindful by Sodexo is making the healthy choice the easy choice by providing menu items that balance nutrition and indulgent flavors. With these menu items, you won't feel like you're sacrificing flavor or taste. Look for the following nutrition icons on the foods being served on your campus to help you meet your dietary needs or desires.
• (V) Vegan offerings contain no meat, fish, eggs, milk or other animal-derived products such as honey. Look for the menu icon to find vegan items daily.
• (VG) Vegetarian Menu items with the vegetarian icon do not contain meat, fish or poultry, or meat products (i.e. soup bases). Our vegetarian offerings meet the needs of lacto-ovo vegetarians, and may include eggs and/or dairy products. Vegan items are also offered for those vegetarians who avoid all animal products.
• (L) Local- We work closely with local produce distributors to maximize the fruits and vegetables purchased from local farms. We also purchase from local dairies, and participate in farm to school initiatives.
• (O) Organic food is produced by farmers, who focus on using renewable resources and conserving soil and water to preserve the environment for future generations. Organic meat, poultry, eggs, and dairy products come from antibiotic-free and hormone-free animals.
• (GF) Gluten Free Gluten-free diets are necessary for individuals who are unable to digest a protein called gluten found in wheat, rye, barley, and possibly oats. Gluten intolerance or inability to digest gluten–is commonly referred to as celiac disease, or gluten sensitive enteropathy. Individuals who have gluten intolerance suffer damage to their intestines when they eat foods that contain gluten. Sodexo keeps all gluten free products in its own separate pantry and labeled accordingly.
If you need additional assistance finding the right types of foods for you, please reach out to your Sodexo manager or chef.
Mo Money-Similar to Hawk Dollars, Mo Money is an all in one debit card account which works with your ID card. When you're hungry stop by one of the locations, swipe your card and you're on your way. No searching for change or worrying about where you left your wallet. Unlike Hawk Dollars it isn't tax exempt, so it's just an easier way for our faculty, staff and students without meal plans to purchase their morning coffee, or to come in for lunch. No need to fumble with loose change before you've had your morning cup.
Please bus your plates and disposables from your table when you have finished dining.
Please refrain from taking food, dishes or utensils from the dining area.
Remember that Meal Cards are non-transferable. Meal Cards cannot be used by anyone but the purchaser.
Book bags are not allowed in the Dining Hall. Please return them to your room or place them in the lockers provided at the entrance. Sodexo is not responsible for lost or stolen book bags.
ID cards are required to enter the Dining Hall. Students without an ID card will be asked to pay for their meal.
Please refrain from foul and abusive language or disruptive behavior while in the dining hall.
Help keep the dining room clean by refraining from throwing food or any other objects while in the dining hall.
Failure to comply with the above policies will result in disciplinary action.


Dave Itzkoff is a culture writer for The New York Times and the author of Robin, the new bestselling biography of comic icon Robin Willams.
On this episode, we talk about how Itzkoff landed the job, the process of researching and writing such a weighty book (it's 250,000 words) while working full-time at the newspaper and fathering a newborn, and the surprising things he learned about Williams along the way.
We also delve into Itzkoff's fascinating backstory, which has resulted in two poignant memoirs, Lads and Cocaine's Son. If you're looking for a little inspiration, this podcast will do you a whole lot of good.