text:
Azobenzene-Containing Liquid Crystalline Composites for Robust Ultraviolet Detectors Based on Conversion of Illuminance-Mechanical Stress-Electric Signals
Xiaoxiong Zheng, Yining Jia, Aihua Chen
https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-294746/v1
published 12 Aug, 2021
Read the published version in Nature Communications →
posted 12 Mar, 2021
Wearable ultraviolet (UV) detectors have attracted considerable interest in the military and civilian realms. However, semiconductor-based UV detectors are easily interfered by elongation due to the elastic modulus incompatibility between rigid semiconductors and polymer matrix. Polymer detectors containing UV responsive moieties seriously suffer from slow response time. Herein, a novel UV illuminance-mechanical stress-electric signal conversion has been proposed based on well-defined ionic liquid (IL)-containing liquid crystalline polymer (ILCP) and highly elastic polyurethane (TPU) composite fabrics, to achieve a robust UV monitoring and shielding device with a fast response time of 5 s. Due to the electrostatic interactions and hydrogen bonds between ILs and LC networks, the ILCP-based device can effectively prevent the exudation of ILs and maintain stable performance upon stretching, bending, washing and 1000 testing cycles upon 365 nm UV irradiation. This work provides a generalizable approach toward the development of full polymer-based wearable electronics and soft robots.
Electronic Materials and Devices
wearable ultraviolet (UV) detectors
liquid crystalline composites
For the past decade, wearable electronics have been rapidly developed for envisioned applications in a wide range of areas such as healthcare devices,1 environmental monitors,2 power supplies,3 and Internet of Things technologies,4 because of their multiple sensing capabilities, unique flexibility, and portability.5 Among the versatile wearable electronics, ultraviolet (UV) detectors have garnered extensive attention in recent years for their significant applications in the military and civilian realms, such as defense warning systems,6 photochemical synthesis,7 medical treatments,8 security communication,9 etc. However, due to the strong penetrating ability, excess UV exposure can reach deep skin layers, leading to serious health hazards such as skin ageing and skin cancer.10 In this regard, it is highly desired to achieve a wearable all-in-one UV monitoring and shielding device for daily life and industrial production under UV irradiation.11 Previous works have reported wearable UV detectors by geometrically patterning rigid photoelectric semiconductors (such as zinc oxide) on a flexible polymer matrix, featuring superior sensitivity.12, 13 However, the devices are prone to occur delamination under elongation because of the elastic modulus incompatibility between rigid semiconductors and flexible matrix, resulting in a serious decrease in performance. In addition, due to the poor conformability and processing capability of rigid semiconductors, more suitable UV shielding materials are desired for wearable devices.
Based on polymer chemistry, functional polymer materials have realized the integration of skin-inspired properties in electronics, such as stretchability, conformability, adhesion, self-healing and degradability.14, 15 To fabricate polymer-based UV detectors, photoisomerizable moieties (e.g., azobenzene, spiropyran and diarylethene) are generally introduced into polymers.16 Under UV irradiation, the photoisomerizable moieties will induce physical and chemical property changes of polymers, such as color or polarity. To date, reported flexible polymer-based UV detectors mainly exhibit visual color changes without electric signal output, which hinders the integration and application in sensor systems.17, 18 The UV induced physical and chemical property changes can be converted to electric (capacitance or current) signals via incorporating conductive fillers into the polymer matrix, such as carbon nanotubes, silver nanowires and ionic liquids (ILs).19, 20 Among these, ILs are attracting growing attention because of their high ionic conductivity, chemical and thermal stability, nonvolatility, and low flammability.21, 22 For instance, Watanabe and coworkers reported a reversible ion-conducting switch by mixing azobenzene molecules into poly(N-isopropyl acrylamide) (PNIPAm) IL gels.19 Due to the trans-to-cis isomerization under UV light, the increased polarity of azobenzene triggers the macroscopic sol-gel transition of IL gels, resulting in the increase of ionic conductivity. However, physically crosslinked PNIPAm IL gels suffer from poor mechanical properties, exudation of ILs, and a slow response time of 6 min. Alaniz and coworkers designed poly(ethylene oxide) films covalently grafted diarylethene-containing ILs, using for the light-modulation of ionic conductivity.20 Diarylethene rings reversibly switch between open-close state under alternative UV/visible light, leading to the charge differences and thus the change of ionic conductivity. Nevertheless, the films exhibited a long response time of 15 min. Till now, the reported works mainly concentrated on the polarity modulation of photoisomerizable moieties via illumination to control the ionic conductivity. Generally, it will take some time for photoisomerizable moiety-containing polymers to reach the photostationary state upon illumination.19, 20, 23 The response time is substantially decided by the polymer selection and composite structures. Therefore, an elaborate polymer composite of UV responsive polymers effectively integrated with ILs is highly desired for sensitive UV detectors.
Liquid crystalline elastomers (LCEs), or crosslinked liquid crystalline polymers (CLCPs), are highly sensitive to environmental stimuli owing to the synergistic effect of liquid crystalline (LC) alignment and polymer networks.24, 25 Azobenzene moieties are always functionalized into LC networks to achieve light-driven deformation of CLCPs. Based on the trans-cis isomerization of azobenzene mesogens under alternative UV and visible light or heating, the azobenzene-containing (Azo) CLCPs undergo a reversible phase transition between an LC phase and an isotropic state, generating internal stress and leading to reversible shape changes.26 It is reported that based on reasonably designed structures, as long as 1 mol% of azobenzene mesogens reach to the photostationary state upon illumination, the generated energy can lead to the phase transition of the whole systems, featuring a fast response time of several seconds for Azo-CLCPs.27, 28 If integrated with ILs by feasible structural designs, the stress induced by phase transition has the potential to directly facilitate the ion migration of ILs, and rapidly transform to current or resistance signals. Thus, CLCPs can be utilized as wearable electronics, benefiting from the rapid response ability and robust mechanical properties. However, CLCPs are conventionally fabricated by one-pot copolymerization of LC monomers and crosslinkers in LC cells.24 Thus, CLCPs generally exhibit poor processability because of the insoluble and infusible crosslinked networks. To date, CLCPs used as wearable UV detectors have not been reported yet.
We previously reported a solution-processable CLCPs consisting of azobenzene-containing block copolymers (Azo-BCPs) and branched polyethyleneimine (PEI), as shown in Fig. 1a.29 CLCPs can be fabricated by a two-step post-crosslinking method, which involves the molding of non-crosslinked LCPs and the subsequent crosslinking in PEI solution. Herein, we demonstrate novel IL-containing liquid crystalline polymers (ILCPs) via introducing hydrophobic ILs into the aforementioned Azo-CLCP matrix for intrinsically flexible and highly sensitive UV detectors. To improve the mechanical property, thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) is selected to mix with Azo-BCPs to fabricate LCP-TPU fabrics through electrospinning (Fig. 1b), benefiting from their solution-processabilities. Then, the CLCP-TPU fabrics are obtained by the post-crosslinking of LCP-TPU fabrics in PEI solution, capable of portability and air permeability.30 The high porosity and large surface area of fabrics also accelerate the penetration of ILs for preparing ILCP fabrics. Benefiting from the cooperative effects of Azo-LC alignment and polymer networks, the ILCP-based device constructs a rapid conversion of UV illuminance-mechanical stress-electric signals, which substantially facilitates the sensitivity of UV detectors (Fig. 1c). In addition, the abundant amino groups in PEI and urethane groups in TPU make the device easily adhere to skins by multiple hydrogen bonds (Movie S1). Moreover, the exudation of ILs is effectively suppressed by the strong electrostatic interactions between amino groups and ions. Thus, the ILCP fabrics can be utilized as a flexible, stretchable, and washable UV monitoring and shielding materials. The ILCP-based device demonstrates an illuminance detection range of 10 ~ 270 mW cm-2, stability of 1000 testing cycles and especially a response time of 5 s under 365 nm UV light. Owing to the electric signal output, we have designed the wearable ILCP-based on-demand information encoding electronics for UV security unlock and input via Internet of Things technologies.
Fabrication of ILCP fabrics
In the fabrication process, firstly, the LCP-TPU fabrics were prepared by electrospinning mixture solution of Azo-BCPs and TPU onto an aluminum foil collector in large scale (Figure 1d). Secondly, the obtained LCP-TPU fabrics were immersed in an ethanol solution of PEI for 6 h to complete the post-crosslinking reaction to form CLCP-TPU fabrics, and then dried in vacuum at 50 oC overnight. The average diameter of obtained CLCP-TPU fibers is ~ 1.5 μm (Figure 1e). Subsequently, the CLCP-TPU fabrics were swollen in pure ILs for 12 h. Herein, the ILs are hydrophobic 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium bis-(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide ([EMIm][TFSI]), which possess high voltage stability, humidity resistance and strong self-adhesion stability.31 After being dried in vacuum at room temperature for 6 h, the free-standing ILCP fabrics were finally obtained with the fibers swollen up to ~ 2.0 μm in diameter (Figure 1f). The ILCP fabrics exhibit the mechanical properties of 240% elongation and 5.2 MPa tensile strength (Figure S2), profiting from the elasticity of TPU and plasticization of ILs, fulfilling the needs of electronic skins.32
Performance of the ILCP-based device
The IL content and ionic conductivity of ILCPs are affected by the immersion time (Figure 2a). After immersion in ILs for 12 hours, the IL content increased to 69% and the conductivity reached to 0.855 mS cm-1, meeting the needs of electronics.33 In general, flowable ILs within the polymer matrix are liable to exude under heating or vacuum, seriously losing the performance of devices.34 Figure 2b compares the changes of IL content of CLCP-TPU fabrics and non-crosslinked LCP-TPU fabrics with time. The samples were treated under vacuum at room temperature for 24 h and subsequently at 50 oC for another 24 h. It is clear that the IL content of CLCP-TPU fabrics slightly decreased from 76% to 64% in the initial 3 hours and then maintained at the platform. In contrast, for non-crosslinked LCP-TPU fabrics, the IL content was severely falling to 22% without a platform. Therefore, the crosslinked networks and PEI complexation effectively restrain the exudation of ILs. The response to UV illuminance of ILCP-based device is illustrated in Figure 2c, d. The device exhibited an increased current signal in response to UV light (Figure S3). When the weight ratio of Azo-BCP/TPU was 1:3, the fitted relationship between relative current changes and UV power density was calculated by linear regression method, as shown below:
Where ΔI/I0 is the relative current change and P represents UV power density. The slope of the fitting curve stands for the responsivity of ILCP-based device.
The device demonstrated an illuminance detection range of 10 ~ 270 mW cm-2, a response time of 5 s, and a linear correlation coefficient of 0.998. The responsivity of ILCP-based device reduced with the decrease of Azo-BCP content. When the weight ratio of Azo-BCP/TPU increased to 1:1, the linear detection range reduced because of macroscopical bending deformation of ILCPs under strong UV illuminance. Upon 90 mW cm-2 UV light, the relative current change (ΔI/I0) was constantly stable in static testing, undergoing 1000 testing cycles, 30% strain stretching and 90o bending, due to the intrinsical flexibility of ILCPs (Figure 2e, f). Especially, the device can sustain 50 dipping cycles in water because of the great humidity resistance of ILs. The performance almost remained unchanged after 30 days at room temperature (Figure S4). Compared with other reported wearable photodetectors, the comprehensive performance (such as flexibility and response time) of the ILCP-based device is excellent (Table S1). Furthermore, the device exhibited a decreased current signal during dynamic stretching and bending, because of the increase in resistance (Figure S5). The negative current shift can be facilely distinguished from the positive ones upon UV response, extending the practical applications of the device.
Working mechanism of the ILCP-based device
To further investigate the working mechanism of the ILCP-based device, the optical microscopic (OM), polarizing optical microscopic (POM) and mechanical testing were conducted to illustrate the in-situ characterizations of ILCP fibers upon UV light (Figure 3a-c and Figure S6, 7). The POM images reflect the orientation of LC alignments through electrostatic fields of electrospinning. Because of contraction of the single fiber upon UV light, the fiber networks deform microscopically and generate contraction stress macroscopically (Movie S2). When turning off UV light, the contraction stress is immediately released due to the excellent elasticity of TPU. To analyze the effect of elasticity, we compared the response and recovery time of TPU-based ILCPs with those of low-elastic polyacrylonitrile (PAN)-based ILCPs (Figure S8). The response and recovery time of TPU-based ILCPs are 5 s and 4 s, respectively, much faster than those of PAN-based ILCPs (11 s and 22 s, respectively). It is reasonable that the elastic TPU matrix can effectively transfer the UV induced contraction stress to ILs and then accelerate ions migrating, converting to electric signals rapidly. On the other hand, it is reported that the mechanical stretch tends to align the LC mesogens along the stretching direction, referred as mechano-alignment.35 Here, the recovery stress of TPU can dominate the mechano-alignment of CLCPs, endowing a fast cyclic operation of the device without visible light or heating. The combination of CLCPs, ILs and TPU constructs an effective conversion mechanism of UV illuminance-mechanical stress-electric signals, bringing in rapid response time for ILCP-based devices. Additionally, the increased polarity of cis-azobenzene may contribute to the light-modulated ionic conductivity alternations.19
UV shielding ability of composite fabrics
The LCP-TPU, CLCP-TPU and ILCP fabrics have a similar UV shielding ability, because they have almost the same UV transmittance spectrum. To simplify the fabrication process, the as-electrospun LCP-TPU fabrics can be directly utilized as recyclable UV shielding materials (Figure 3d). A handheld electrospinning device is used to prepare conformal UV shielding fabrics facilely (Figure S9).36 Moreover, the LCP-TPU fabrics can redissolve in DMF/THF solutions for the recycling fabrication. To evaluate the UV shielding property, the ultraviolet protection factor (UPF) was calculated based on the GB/T 18830-2009 evaluation method, detailed in Section S3 (Supplementary Information). When UPF > 50 and UV-A light transmittance < 5%, the sample can be identified as UV protective textiles. The calculated UPF of LCP-TPU fabrics (20 μm thick) was initially 25040. Considering of the practical working conditions, the UPF decreased to 13851 at 100% strain and was almost unchanged upon washing. The UV shielding property and stability of LCP-TPU fabrics is much better than those of commercial products of UV protection clothing, nitrile gloves and previously reported UV shielding materials (Figure 3e, f).11, 37 However, the calculation parameters of UPF are based on solar UV irradiation (up to ~ 3 mW cm-2) in daily life. Under some conditions such as lithography and photocuring, the UV illumination can reach to or higher than 20 mW cm-2. Thus, spiropyran was selected as a sensitive photochromic indicator to evaluate the UV shielding property of LCP-TPU fabrics via spectrophotometry (Figure 3g and Figure S10). Upon 20 mW cm-2 UV light, the LCP-TPU fabrics exhibited the long-time shielding ability of 120 min, while the nitrile gloves lost efficacy within 1 min. Furthermore, the LCP-TPU fabrics can be reused after irradiation with 520 nm visible light (200 mW cm-2) for 10 min. For practical applications, the LCP-TPU fabrics can be applied to prevent the UV ageing of nitrile gloves or skins (Figure S11).
Applications of UV security encoding
As discussed above, the electric signal output of the ILCP-based device allows it for the facile integration into the Internet of Things system. The ILCP-based device can not only record the real-time UV illuminance on liquid crystal display (LCD) screen, but also transfer data to smartphones through Bluetooth for remote monitoring (Figure S12, 13 and Movie S3). Furthermore, UV light can avoid being intercepted and interfered because of its short wavelength, which can be used for security communication. Under various extreme environments in the military field, it is highly desired for a portable and robust UV detector to guarantee communication quality. Thus, we have designed wearable information encoding and encryption applications based on ILCP fabrics, such as UV unlock and UV input. As illustrated in Figure 4a, the UV coding system is consisted of an ILCP-based encoding part and an Arduino singlechip-based decoding part.
The physical connection diagram and encoding logic of UV security unlock are displayed in Figure 4b, c. If the ILCP array composed of three ILCP-based devices is irradiated with the UV illuminance of "20, 30, 40" mW cm-2 in right sequence, the green LED will be turned on, indicating a unlock command. Otherwise, the red LED will be turned on, indicating a lock command (Figure 4f and Movie S4). We also conducted the application of UV security input (Figure 4d, e). When the alphabets of A~Z are critically corresponded to the determined UV illuminance, the UV illuminance information can be recognized and read out by a smartphone, resulting in the input of "BUAA" on the screen (Figure 4g and Movie S5). Moreover, the information can be reprogrammed and transformed by simply adjusting the code. The present work opens up a new paradigm for UV security information storage and communication based on wearable and robust UV responsive moiety-containing polymer detectors.
In summary, we demonstrate a robust ILCP-based UV monitoring and shielding device via the combination of electrospun CLCP-TPU fabrics and hydrophobic ILs. The novel signal conversion, that is UV illuminance-mechanical stress-electric signals, significantly improves the sensitivity of flexible UV detectors, benefiting from the cooperative effects of Azo-LC alignment and polymer networks. The excellent elasticity of TPU facilitates the fast cyclic operation of the device without visible light or heating. The device exhibits a wide UV illuminance detection range of 10 ~ 270 mW cm-2, a response time of 5 s and a recovery time of 4 s. In addition, the abundant amino groups in PEI and urethane groups in TPU make the device easily adhere to skins by multiple hydrogen bonds. The strong electrostatic interactions between amino groups and ions effectively restrain the exudation of ILs. Thus, the device maintains stable upon 1000 UV on/off testing cycles, 30% strain stretching, 90o bending, and especially 50 dipping cycles in water. Furthermore, the as-electrospun recyclable LCP-TPU fabrics have the long-time shielding ability of 120 min upon 20 mW cm-2 UV light, with a high UPF of 25040. The LCP fabrics can be reused after irradiation with 520 nm visible light (200 mW cm-2) for 10 min, applying to prevent the UV ageing of skins or other materials. For practical applications in various extreme environments, demonstrations of information encoding and encryption based on wearable ILCPs are successfully realized for UV unlock and UV input via the Internet of Things technologies, benefiting from the portability and robustness of ILCPs. The performance of ILCPs is expected to be further enhanced through the improvement of the device structure and testing circuit. The well-defined composites of ILCPs and novel signal conversion mechanism provide brand-new opportunities for functional polymer-based sensors to fabricate various sensitive wearable electronics.
Tetrahydrofuran (THF, 99.5%, Aladdin), N, N-dimethylformamide (DMF, 99.9%, Aladdin), Ethanol (EtOH, 99.8%, Aladdin), Branched polyethyleneimine (PEI, Mw=1×104 g/mol, 99%, Aladdin), Thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU, 1190A, Elastollan), and 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium bis-(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide ([EMIm][TFSI], 99%, Adamas) were used as received. The block copolymers (PEO45-b-PMA(Az)28, Mn=1.82×104 g/mol, Mw/Mn=1.13), were synthesized by atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP), detailed in Section S1 and Figure S1 (Supplementary Information).29, 38, 39
Fabrication of the ILCP-based device
Firstly, Azo-BCPs (80 mg) and TPU (240 mg) were dissolved in DMF and THF mixture (1 mL, volume ratio 1:1) through stirring for 12 h at room temperature. A self-assembly electrospinning device was used to produce fibers with a positive DC voltage of 15 kV and a feed rate of 1 mL/h. The distance between the extrusion nozzle and the roller was set at 15 cm. The LCP-TPU fabrics of 20 µm thick were collected on aluminum foil wrapped around a rotating roller. The LCP-TPU fabrics were immersed in an ethanol solution of PEI (2 mg/mL) for 6 h and then dried in vacuum overnight. Subsequently, the obtained CLCP-TPU fabrics were swollen in pure ILs for 12 h. The fabrics were sandwiched in filter papers, clamped by two glass sheets, and then dried in vacuum (0.02 Mpa) at room temperature for 6 h. The free-standing ILCP fabrics were finally obtained. For the UV response testing of ILCP fabrics (5 × 15 mm2), copper wires were attached at the opposite sides of the ILCP fabrics by silver paste.
Characterization and Measurements
Scanning electron microscope (SEM) images were obtained on a TESCAN VEGA3 microscope. UV light at 365 nm was obtained from Omron (ZUV-C30H) LED irradiator. Visible light at 520 nm was obtained from CCS (HLV-22GR-3W) LED irradiator. The IL content is defined as the ratio of (w-w0)/w, where w0 and w denote the measured weights of CLCPs before and after immersion in ILs, respectively. The weights of CLCPs were measured by an analytical balance (METTLER TOLEDO ME104E). The current response was monitored by an electrometer (Keithley 6517B) with an applied voltage of 0.1 V. The tensile properties were measured in a stretch mode at a strain rate of 3 mm/min at room temperature on Xieqiang CTM2050 mechanical analyser. Optical microscopic (OM) and polarizing optical microscopic (POM) experiments were conducted by Shang Guang 59XF microscope. The recyclable UV shielding fabrics were prepared by a handheld electrospinning device (Junada MPEG-1). The UV shielding properties were evaluated by UV-vis transmittance spectra (Shimadzu UV-2600 spectrophotometer). The commercial UV protection clothing was purchased from Decathlon (90 µm). The Android application of UV encoding was made by MIT App Inventor 2. All the photos and movies were recorded on a SONY HDR-CX450 digital video camera.
The authors declare no competing interests.
This work was financially supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 51472018), the Natural Science Foundation of Beijing Municipality (No. 2202024), and the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities.
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Additional Declarations
There is NO Competing Interest.
Supplementaryinformation.docx
MOVIES1.mp4
Supplementary MOVIE S1


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Ecommerce Marketing Strategy #2 - Use Social Proof to Show What Sets Your Business Apart.
To put it simply, social proof is a way to influence consumers through the behaviors of their peers or influencers. Online brands can use this phenomenon to their advantage by providing social proof of the value of their products. Consumers want to buy products that will make them feel good about themselves, and providing social proof is one way to help consumers make a purchasing decision and feel confident about the choice they've made.
When it comes to social proof, a little goes a long way. By showing visitors what others are saying about your products online, you can help them better understand what makes your products worthwhile. One of the best ways to show social proof is by gathering reviews and testimonials from your best customers.
Notice that visitors can filter the reviews based on their own concerns, such as "comfort" or "body pain." This feature allows consumers to see the social proof they need to make a decision quickly and effectively.
By showcasing sparkling reviews from trusted industry sites, Fitbit is able to build authority among their customer base. Visitors can read for themselves about what makes Fitbit so special straight from industry experts who know a thing or two about smart wearable devices. Providing a mix of expert testimony and customer reviews may be just what your brand needs to influence a sale.
Ecommerce Marketing Strategy #3 - Show How Your Customers Are Shopping And Using Products.
Reviews and testimonials aren't the only way to provide social proof. Another way that you can show visitors how popular your products are is by showing in real-time how customers are shopping on your page. This tactic is easy to employ when you use a social proof customer interaction tool on your site.
Here, Bizzy Cold Brew is able to highlight interactions that other consumers are having with their business in real time. Any consumer who visits the site will see these notifications pop up while they are browsing the page. These live interactions help build credibility for the business and show visitors how popular the brand and its products are.
If you don't want to include a pop-up that shows visitors who is buying in real time, there are still other ways of introducing this form of social proof to show how popular and dependable your products are. Sometimes a simple counter to show how many consumers have purchased your products is enough to show consumers that there is value in what your brand provides.
In addition to showing how your customers are shopping on your website, you can also help visitors see how other consumers are using your products. Showing visitors how consumers use your products can help them better visualize themselves using your products.
Social media is a great channel for gathering user generated content that shows your products in action. However, the content doesn't have to just stay on social sites like Instagram and Facebook. You can highlight these social media images directly on your product page. That way, visitors can see how your products work right as they are making a decision to buy.
Not only does the brand often share customer images on their own social media pages, but they bring these photos directly to the product page to show how consumers in real-time how others are using (and loving!) their products.
Ecommerce Marketing Strategy #4 - Use Exit Intent Popups for Your Online Store.
Growing your brand is about more than just getting consumers to your website. Once consumers are there, you need to find ways to influence conversions before they leave your site. One of the best online store marketing tactics for getting the attention of visitors before they leave your site is the exit intent popup.
Exit intent popups are popup messages that appear just before a consumer is about to leave your site. The goal of these targeted messages is to help change the consumer's mind before they click off your page. You can do this by offering a discount on your products, providing additional content that will help in the purchasing decision, or just getting their email address before they leave so that you can contact them later.
This online retailer offers a 10% off coupon while also asking for the visitor's email address. That way, they are not only providing immediate value for the interaction but they will also have the consumer's email address to contact them later.
This popup also provides the visitor with two options. The "right" option stands out as a black button with white text – "Get my coupon." While the "wrong" option is hidden below ("No thanks, just let me shop"). Giving the visitor two options, one of which is clearly highlighted helps guide them to the next step in the sales funnel.
To get started with your exit intent popup, you'll want to first find a tool that makes it quick and easy to add the popup to your website. For more tips, we've put together a comprehensive guide to designing a high converting exit intent popup to help you get the most out one of the most popular ecommerce marketing strategies.
Ecommerce Marketing Strategy #5 - Start a Conversation With a Messaging App.
Online store marketing doesn't have to be a one-way street. In fact, consumers want to have a conversation with you to make sure your brand is right for them. Conversational commerce involves communicating with consumers through messaging apps like Facebook Messenger or a chat bot on their website. And it's a great way to get consumers more engaged.
When it comes to current customers, you can use chat apps to automate customer service, provide specific product recommendations, and send out order confirmations or shipping updates. But when it comes to engaging with leads, you'll need to get a little more creative.
Whether you're sending consumers surveys that will help them make a more informed purchasing decision or just providing tips on how to get more out of their products, conversational commerce is a great way to get leads and customers engaged with your brand. It also helps you offer the personalization that many other ecommerce marketing strategies just don't provide.
When it comes to online store marketing, if you want better results, you've got to try new things. Not every strategy will be effective for every brand. That's why testing is so important. It allows you to find out what works well for your business and what you still need to work on.
Try out some of the ecommerce marketing strategies above to see which tactics best help you reach and engage your target audience online. The more strategic you are with your online store marketing, the faster you will grow with a better return on investment.


https://www.ezrapenland.com/recruiters : Ezra Penland Actuarial Recruitment Welcomes Ryan Cashman and Brendan McElhaney as our Newest Actuarial Recruiters.
By Ezra Penland | Also posted in -Press Releases | Comments Off on Ezra Penland Rocks the House at #CASRPM13 with @CASact –> Go Go #Actuaries !
Gamma Iota Sigma thanks Jacob Galecki for speaking to California State University, Fullerton on Sept. 25, 2012. See more pictures.
Sally Ezra, Claude Penland, Margaret Dobie and Kevin Elliott will see you in Washington, D.C.!


text:
Swamp Water is een Amerikaanse dramafilm uit 1941 onder regie van Jean Renoir. Het scenario is gebaseerd op de gelijknamige roman uit 1940 van de Amerikaanse auteur Vereen Bell. Destijds werd de film in Nederland uitgebracht onder de titel Vlucht in het moeras.

Verhaal

De pelsjager Ben Ragan raakt zijn jachthond kwijt in het uitgestrekte Okefenokeemoeras. Tijdens zijn zoektocht stoot hij op de schuilplaats van de onterecht ter dood veroordeelde Tom Keefer. Ze raken bevriend en besluiten om samen pelzen te verhandelen. Ben belooft de schuilplaats van Tom nooit te verraden. Als hij per ongeluk uit de school klapt, verraadt zijn jaloerse vriendin zijn grote geheim. Er volgt een klopjacht en Tom voelt zich in de steek gelaten door Ben.

Rolverdeling
 Walter Brennan: Tom Keefer
 Walter Huston: Thursday Ragan
 Anne Baxter: Julie
 Dana Andrews: Ben
 Virginia Gilmore: Mabel MacKenzie
 John Carradine: Jesse Wick
 Mary Howard: Hannah
 Eugene Pallette: Sheriff Jeb McKane
 Ward Bond: Tim Dorson
 Guinn Williams: Bud Dorson
 Russell Simpson: Marty McCord
 Joe Sawyer: Hardy Ragan
 Paul E. Burns: Tulle McKenzie
 Dave Morris: Barbier
 Frank Austin: Fred Ulm

Externe link

Film uit 1941
Amerikaanse film
Dramafilm
Film van Jean Renoir

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
The Alamo Recaptured
If you want to visit the relic itself, you must go to San Antonio. But to get the feel of what it was like for Crockett and Travis and the rest, you should drive west into the Texas prairie.
Paul G. Labadie
You can tell the difference with a single touch. The stone wall of the actual Alamo, in the center of downtown San Antonio, has a cool, clammy feel, due mostly to the surrounding skyscrapers and tourist attractions casting mountainous shadows over their new dominion. But the Brackettville "Alamo," facing steady sun and wind-driven sand, is warm and gritty to the touch, and its solitude in the sandy prairie of South Texas gives a flavor that matches our expectations.
The Alamo movie set created for John Wayne's 1960 epic west of San Antonio attracts visitors year-round.
The original chapel building, the visual image most often associated with the Alamo, still stands on Crockett Street in downtown San Antonio, an American shrine preserved and protected by the Daughters of the Republic of Texas since 1905. The chapel turned fortress receives more than three million visitors a year. Inside, even on the busiest tourist days, the scene is hushed. No running children, no flashbulbs popping off (taking photographs of the chapel interior is strictly forbidden), but only quiet conversation and soft footfalls, as if in recognition of the 189 men who gave their lives for Texas independence.
Step outside the main chapel, however, and the sense of serenity is shattered. The chapel stands not far from a clamorous commercial street, and leaving it is like walking from a confessional into a casino. Picturing this building as the lonely outpost that in 1836 held out for thirteen days against General Santa Anna's force of at least twenty-five hundred troops requires a stupendous effort of the imagination.
For the main chapel building, measurements were taken to the inch from the original, assuring an almost flawless replica.
Some 125 miles to the west, however, 7 miles north of the small Texas town of Brackettville, the feel of the past remains easily attainable. The original movie set created for John Wayne's 1960 epic The Alamo attracts visitors year-round. Brackettville's "Alamo Village" contains not just the chapel building but the entire mission compound, constructed true to size as it stood during the fight, complete with adobe brick walls and massive fortified gates.
The Alamo Village cost more than one and a half million 1958 dollars and covers four hundred acres of the nineteen-thousand-acre ranch of J. P. ("Happy") Shahan, a Texas cattleman who took an active part in recruiting Wayne to build and film his Alamo project on this site. More than two years in the making, the re-creation of the Alamo fortress exactly as it appeared during the 1836 engagement was done with scrupulous accuracy. Striving for authenticity, Wayne and his art director, Al Ybrarra, insisted on using adobe bricks for most of the construction, necessitating the employment of artisans from Mexico who still knew how to make them. Almost a million bricks eventually went into the village. For the main chapel building, measurements were taken to the inch from the original, and cut stone put in place piece by piece assured an almost flawless replica.
Nearby, Wayne also built a small town to play the part of a dusty 1836 San Antonio. Not merely typical Hollywood set facades, this is a village of twenty-nine complete buildings, including saloons, general stores, churches, and other carefully reconstructed period structures. Numerous movies, commercials, and television shows, among them Lonesome Dove , have been shot in this secluded location.
Getting to the Alamo Village is an experience in itself. The two-and-a-half-hour drive west on Highway 90 from San Antonio offers little to see but Texas desert sand patrolled by the occasional tumbleweed. Not a sightseer's dream, perhaps, but to anyone even remotely interested in this piece of American history, the rewards are well worth the trip. From the rusty hinges on the main gate to the roving cattle that sometimes get up close and personal with visitors, the Alamo Village is a definitive Old West experience for the interested traveler.
For here in the desolate Southwest Texas prairie one can easily imagine the desperation of the battle: the steadily advancing Mexican troops, their endless columns kicking up dust storms that cloud the horizon, while the small garrison distributes its meager forces and awaits the inevitable. All that's absent is the crack of Tennessee muskets and the deafening cannonade of Santa Anna's guns. That, and the honking horns and tour buses that now keep the original Alamo under perpetual siege.
¡Recuerda El Alamo!?
by José Enrique De La Peña
Remembering the Alamo
by William E. Green
Struggle for the Alamo
by Jim Donovan
The untrained soldiers who fought at the Alamo believed freedom and the struggle for a better life were worth dying for.
Rendering The Alamo
The Storming of the Alamo
by Charles Ramsdell Jr.
None of its defenders survived, so that legends obscure their fate. But the facts do no dishonor to these beleaguered men, sworn to fight on until the end "at the peril of our lives, liberties and fortunes"
The Ballad Of Cynthia Ann
by Donald Culross Peattie
Both grimness and beauty touch this haunting fragment of America's past
Texas Faces The Camera
by William Broyles, Jr.
The Lone Star state as it once was—proud, isolated, independent, the undiluted essence of America forever inventing itself out of the hardscrabble reality of the frontier
Among The Cowboys
by Alex Shoumatoff
Polk's Peace
by Michael De Sapio
By war-making and shrewd negotiating, the 11th president expanded U.S. territory by a third.
Border Warrior
by Edward S. Wallace
Spare, frail, and plagued by old wounds, Ranald Mackenzie was still "the finest Indian-fighting cavalryman of them all"

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Over the last few years, the Indian bicycle industry has been hit hard mainly by two factors; one being the influence of Chinese market and second being the high import duties raised by the Indian government about two years ago. At present, the demand for bicycles in India is not at the expected level. However, lifestyle bicycle has seen a growth but, there is a decline in the standard cycle market.
Likewise, Hero Cycles Ltd, India's largest bicycle maker, has also lost ground to several Chinese and Taiwanese manufacturers. The growth rates have been in single digits for five of the past 10 years, and the market actually shrank 3.24 per cent in 2012-13, says latest reports.
The Indian players in the bicycle industry have been lobbying for government incentives and against an excise duty that will make bicycles more expensive.
Expressing his serious concerns in this business, Hemant Shah, who runs six Firefox Bikes franchise stores in Bangalore, quips, "There are a lot of brands in the bicycle industry. You need good money, man and space power to run a cycle outlet. Space is one of the main concerns as you need a big space to store these cycles but real estate cost is so high. The government should bring down import duties to drive the business otherwise it is very tough to remain present in the market." "Import duties were raised about two years ago by the government and it is a major hurdle in hi-end biking," points out Gandhi.
All leading Indian and foreign bicycle brands are expanding via the franchise route in the country. "A business like ours is an owner intensive business. The owner needs to be involved in cycling to be a successful franchise owner. The passion towards cycling is given utmost priority. We believe that the youth today have immense entrepreneurial skills. However, it is the dedication towards cycling that will help them make Starkenn a successful brand," says Patil whose brand has franchise outlets in as many as 48 cities of India.
The franchise model has suited so well to the cycle companies that many of them are also offering franchisees in manufacturing. "Other than our retail franchise model, we also offer franchisees in manufacturing in which we train franchisees in all aspects and help them manufacture cycles with the latter investing in the business," shares Goenka.
= Two kinds of units are there in the Indian bicycle industry-unit manufacturing bicycle parts, components and accessories and units manufacturing complete bicycles. Bulk of the parts and components are manufactured in the small-scale sector and complete bicycles are manufactured in the organised sector.


No, The Bureau of Linguistical Reality is not something dreamed up by Borges, or the Firesign Theatre. It actually exists, or at least it exists in the same state of electronic virtual actuality as Language Log, YouTube, and the Wayback Machine.
The American Dialect Society gets a nice shout-out in Tuesday's New York Times crossword. More than a shout-out, in fact: the puzzle is actually ADS-themed.
Wordplay also quotes Greg Poulos, the crossword's creator (making his debut in the Times), who revealed that he came up with the theme while reading Language Log. Great to see, especially after Tom McCoy's grammatical-diversity-themed puzzle back in March. Linguisticky crosswords are all the rage!
I must admit to having enjoyed the series of savage similes about quality of computer program code presented in three xkcd comic strips. They show a female character, known to aficionados as Ponytail, reluctantly agreeing to take a critical look at some code that the male character Cueball has written. Almost at first sight, she begins to describe it using utterly brutal similes. In the first strip (at http://xkcd.com/1513) she announces that reading it is "like being in a house built by a child using nothing but a hatchet and a picture of a house." But Ponytail is not done: there is more bile and contempt where that came from.
Yáo Shùn Yǔ 尧舜禹 (the names of three ancient, wise, Chinese rulers) || sānmíngzhì 三明治 ("three wise rulers"), the Chinese transcription of English "sandwich".
Thus, if we wished to ask each other, "Do you want to eat a sandwich?", we might say "Nǐ yào bùyào chī yī ge Yáo Shùn Yǔ? 你要不要吃一个尧舜禹?". That sort of word play was usually just for fun or to avoid a word that was transcribed into Mandarin from some other language.
The best moment of the day!
In "Hybrid writing in East Village, New York" (9/1/16), we looked at the playful combination of a Chinese character with Roman letters in the name of a Korean-Japanese restaurant, 木hursday, and we expanded our field of vision to encompass the names of the days of the week in languages across Eurasia.
Now Nathan Hopson takes us to Nagoya, Japan, where he spotted this fascinating take on the days of the week at Uni Mall, one of Nagoya's underground malls radiating off from the railway station.


Just two hours outside of futuristic Silicon Valley, the county of Fresno, California, looks like a time capsule from the 1970s. Beyond the prom dress shops with their cartoonish window paintings, the vacant lots, and the brutalist AT&T building that seems to lack windows, you'll find the Parc Grove Commons housing projects. Inside the community room, 45 adult students are learning about the internet. On this sunny summertime Thursday, every single student has shown up to class.
Today, they're learning about email. "Instead of putting mail in an envelope and waiting a couple of days, you can send a message instantly," explains the teacher, John Gonzalez. An older student responds with delight: "Oooooh." At the end of the nine-week class—organized by the Fresno Housing Authority and California State University (CSU), Fresno's Office of Community & Economic Development—students with perfect attendance will earn an HP laptop.
Racheale Mitchell, who lives in the apartments, is attending because she had once lost a job offer as a result of her limited access to the internet. The 28-year-old had been driving 10 minutes to her cousin's house to use his computer. Sometimes, she would drive to the library, but she was often given a numbered ticket and told to wait. Since then, she's landed a job with the public school district working as an attendance clerk, and she wants to be able to update students' files from home.


Side Street Deli Are you hungry in Brooklyn? Welcome to Side Street Deli, where you can find great Sandwiches food available for delivery or takeout. Check out our online menu and place an order from our site. Don't want to order now? Visit us at 187 State St.


text:
Paolo Oreni, was defined by Süddeutsche Zeitung "A Young Italian Artist, very talented, a real Miracle of Technique with a never reached Precision. Great expectations are obviously posed into him".
Born in Treviglio in 1979, Paolo Oreni started his Musical studies with Organ when he was just 11, with Walter Zaramella at Gaetano Donizetti Musical Institute. In 2000 he earned a Scholarship, donated him by Ministry of Culture of Luxemburg and Cooperative Credit Bank of Treviglio, and moved to Luxembourg. Here, in 2002, he gained the First Place Award at the International Competition "Prix Interrégional-Diplôme de Concert", prestigious European Degree.
He studied with remarkable Musicians like Jean-Paul Imbert and Lydia Baldecchi Arcuri. Thanks their suggestions he might earn improvements in his Organ Background. With Lydia Baldecchi Arcuri he also deepened Pianistic repertory.
An important and really crucial step for his Musical Background was his Musical Encounter and Musical Connection with Jean Guillou, during several Masterclasses followed at St. Eustache Church in Paris and Tonhalle in Zurich (Stiftung für Internationale Meisterkurse für Musik).
He gained victories and awards in several International Competitions. In 2004 he reached the final stage at the International Competition "Ville de Paris", where he obtained a special Mention. This Competition was attended by 60 Organ Players coming from all around the World.
He performed Concerts with Solo parts of Scala Theatre of Milan, he played into Chamber Groups and Symphonic Orchestra (Gruppo Fiati Musica Aperta and Chamber Orchestra of Donizetti Theater of Bergamo, Carlo Marino Orchestra in Albino (Bergamo), LaVerdi Symphonic Orchestra of Milan, Jeune Orchestre of Paris, Chamber orchestra of Bolzano, Symphonisches Orchester Zürich, Bochumer Symphoniker and so on).
He's now performing an intense Activity either as a Soloist or with Orchestra of in Chamber ensembles, with an average of more than 100 Concert every Year, playing in some of the most important Musical Environments in Italy (Trento Philarmonic Concert Hall, Alfredo Piatti Concert Hall of Bergamo, Sala Bossi Concert Hall – Bologna's Conservatory, Settimane Musicali Mahleriane di Dobbiaco, Gioventù Musicale d'Italia, Istituto Franz Liszt; Bergamo, Bolzano, Cremona, Cuneo, Firenze, Genova, Messina, Milano, Napoli, Padova…); Switzerland (Bern, Lugano, Tonhalle – Zürich…); France (Cathedrals of Albi , Alpe d'Huez, Bordeaux, Carcassonne, La Ciotat, Lavaur, Le Havre, Marseille, Roquevaire, Talence, Abbaziale d'Issoire, Route des Orgues in Lorraine…), in Paris (Cathedral of Notre-Dame, American Church, Eglise des Billettes, La Madeleine, Notre-dame des Blancs-manteaux, St. Clothilde, St. Eustache, Auditorium Olivier Alain…), Luxembourg (Cathedral, Conservatory Concert Hall, Dudelange, Esch…), Germany (Audimax – Bochum, Konzerthaus – Dortmund, Cattedrali di Bamberg, Berlin, St. Joseph – Bonn-Beuel, Dresden, St. Lambertus and Johanneskirche in Düsseldorf, Essen, Frankfurt, Fulda, Himmerod, Köln, München, Passau, Stuttgart, Ottobeuren…), Austria (Bregenz, Graz, Bruckner's Organ in St. Florian-Linz, Salzburg, Wien…), England (Cathedrals of Birmingham, Edinburgh, London, Ripon, Southwell…), Holland (Den Haag…), Denmark (Aalborg's Cathedral, Randers, Skagen…), Sweden (Stokholm, Tyresö…) Spain (Toledo…), Finland (Lathi Festival), Albany, Poland, Israel (Nazareth, inauguration of the three new Rieger organs – 2012) and Russia (St. Petersburg, Penza, Saratov and Moscow).
Since 2006 he's regularly invited, by the Diocese of Munich, Duomo di Modena, the Basilica in Ottobeuren and at Altemberg Cathedral, to hold Masterclasses focused on Improvisation and Organ Repertory raising from Bach to contemporary Music.


text:
Thomas Hare
The Election Of Representatives, Parliamentary And Municipal: A Treatise
HARE,Thomas. The election of representatives, parliamentary and municipal: A Treatise. London, Longman, Brown 1859
Octavo, half green morocco and marbled boards, spine lettered gilt, pp.xxxiv, 338, 24 adverts, outer margin of 2 leaves strengthened.
Rare First edition. The classic treatise on the single transferable vote. 'This great practical and philosophical idea' J.S.Mill
"It was soon after the publication of Thoughts on Parliamentary Reform that I became acquainted with Mr Hare's admirable system of Personal Representation...I saw in this great practical and philosophical idea, the greatest improvement of which the system of representative government is susceptible; an improvement which, in the most felicitous manner, exactly meets and cures, and what before seemed the inherent, defect of the representative system; that of giving to a numerical majority all power, instead of only a power proportional to its numbers, and enabling the strongest party to exclude all weaker parties from making their opinions heard in the assembly of the nation...Mr Hare's system affords a radical cure. This great discovery, for it is no less, in the political art, inspired me, as I believe it has inspired all thoughtful persons who have adopted it...Had I met Mr Hare's system before the publication of my pamphlet, I should have given an account of it there..." J.S.Mill, An Autobiography, pp.258-260.
Candfield,E. Proportional Representation. A bibliography 1990. p.19. Richard Reeves, John Stuart Mill, pp.310-314.


• Rørtykkelse på bro: 50mm.
Er varen på lager kan den ses i vores showroom.
The Mobile DJ Truss Stand is a compact and lightweight solution to create a decorative stand for lighting. It's made of 50mm tube 290mm step truss parts which makes this stand heavy duty. The stand contains 8 parts and is quick and easy to build. With the optional flightcase (D7598) it is the ideal solution for mobile dj's and musicians.


text:
Rugby L
5 Live Sport
Sports Personality
Sport on the BBC
Manchester City Home
Manchester City could send youngsters to New York City FC
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/28600216
New York City will play at Yankee Stadium until a new custom-built venue has been finished
Manchester City are planning to send young players to develop at their Major League Soccer franchise in the USA.
New York City FC, who signed England midfielder Frank Lampard from Chelsea in July, are owned by Man City and baseball giants New York Yankees.
"We have some bright players. We might ask them to come to New York before they play at Manchester," City chief executive Ferran Soriano told ESPN.
"This is a team that's going to play beautiful soccer in New York."
Manchester City chief executive Ferran Soriano:
"We have a new right-back, a new holding midfielder, and we will have a new central defender and that's it. We don't need to sign new players for the sake of it."
The former Barcelona vice-president added: "We are building a truly authentic New York team. This is not a Manchester City team, or a brand play or a marketing trick. This is real."
New York City's capture of Lampard and Spain international David Villa were regarded as a coup for the club, who will start life in next season's MLS in March 2015.
Soriano added that both players were attracted by the club's vision for the future.
"One of reasons David Villa and Frank Lampard decided to come to New York is because they know who manages and who owns the club," he said.
England midfielder Frank Lampard said he rejected offers from elsewhere to sign for New York City FC
Man City, who have signed right-back Bacary Sagna from Arsenal and Porto midfielder Fernando this summer, have also been linked with Eliaquim Mangala, who featured in a video inadvertently released on the club's website which claimed the Porto defender had already signed.
"We knew one year ago the positions we wanted to reinforce in the team and we did it, " said Soriano. "We have a new right-back, a new holding midfielder, and we will have a new central defender and that's it. We don't need to sign new players for the sake of it."
City won the Premier League and League Cup last season but Soriano believes the club can have a more successful campaign this time around.
"Our squad is very strong and it's the second year they play coached by Manuel Pellegrini, so they'll do much better," he said.
Blue Tuesday on BBC Radio Manchester
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Saracens to be relegated from Premiership
From the section Rugby Union
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Sportsday - Friday 1 August as it happened
Read more on Football transfers, Vermaelen, Commonwealth Games, Women's Rugby World Cup
Man City form New York MLS franchise
Read more on Manchester City form MLS franchise with New York Yankees
Lampard joins MLS side New York City
From the section Chelsea
Read more on Frank Lampard: New York City FC sign ex-Chelsea midfielder
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Okay so, we all know drones are floating in other nations thanks to our military, and CIA surveillance, but did you know fortunately they are flying drones around in the US too? In fact, a dozen approximately agencies are flying this stuff, as well as defense contractors doing the testing for your military. Unfortunately, seems like no one is apparently conscious of who or what agencies are flying them around currently?
About the Indoors flight: This is when the Parrot AR Drone excels. Push just one button, along with the propellers spin up, then adjust into high-speed for your clean and stable lift off. After that it hovers at three feet, expecting further instructions. In beginner mode (right button), you possibly can rotate and fall and rise. In the pilot mode (left button), it is possible to fly forwards and backward and right and left. Put together both, and you essentially have total control.
Common sources for leaks will be the seams, round the stocks, or perhaps the stocks themselves. If you'll be able to't hear or notice the leak, use a water and soap treatment for check. If the leaks are from the seam with a hide bag, a great seasoning may correct it. If the leaks are over the seam on the synthetic bag, it likely needs replacing. Re- tie within the stock for leaks around the stocks on the hide bag. On a synthetic bag, if the leak is relating to the rubber grommet and also the bag, it has being replaced. If the leak is involving the stock and grommet, you can wrap some plumber's tape throughout the stock at the top of the grommet, or take away the stock and build in the diameter with the tie in groove with the tape. If the leak is with the stock, there exists a crack in the wood. These cracks are most popular under the stock ferrules, but could also occur lower down. If this is the case, you simply must possess the stock repaired with a bagpipe maker/repairer.
While flying and gaming, there isn't any momentary stop in the feeling enjoyed as the Parrot AR Drone switches to autopilot mode if you take your hands off the Apple device controller. If left for a longer period, the machine will gently glide into a height pretty much four metres off the ground. Games may also be better enjoyed with all the Inertial Guidance Systems and embedded safety measures. For instance, the propellers have safety rotor guards to stop foreign objects from sticking into its blades and also the controller device interface posseses an emergency button to stop the motors if necessary. Thus, there isnrrrt stopping the fun except regarding an urgent situation.


There will be many 2019 trends that last well beyond the year. With Tableau now being a household name, Salesforce being a workhorse for analytics, SAS continuing to grow through jmp, and small players such as Panoply acquiring funding, one hot 2019 trend in technology will be data engineering.
This underlies a massive problem in the field of data. Data management tools and frameworks are severely deficient. Many merely perform materialization.
That is changing this year, and it means that data engineering will be an important term over the next few years. Automation will become a reality.
Data engineers create pipelines. This means automating the handling of data from aggregation and ingestion to the modeling and reporting process. These professionals handle big data or even small data loads with streaming playing an important role in their work.
As they cover the entire pipeline for your data and often implement analytics in a repeatable manner, data engineering is a broad task. Terms such as ETL, ELT, verification, testing, reporting, materialization, standardization, normalization, distributed programming, crontab, Kubernetes, microservices, Docker, Akka, Spark, AWS, REST, Postgres, Kafka, and statistics are commonly slung with ease by data engineers.
Until 2019, integrating systems often meant combing a variety of tools into a cluttered wreck. A company might deploy python scripts for visualization, Vantara (formerly Pentaho) for ETL, use a variety of aggregation tools combined in Kafka, have data warehouses in PostgreSQL, and may even still use Microsoft Excel to Store data.
The typical company spends $4000 – $8000 per employ providing these pipelines. This cost is unacceptable and can be avoided in the coming years.
Why won't ELT kill data engineers?
This means that ETL will continue to be an major part of a data engineers job.
Of course, since data engineers translate business analyst requirements into reality, the job will continue to be secure. Coding may become less important as new products are released but will never go away in the most efficient organizations.
Why is Python Likely to become less popular?
Many people point to Python as a means for making data engineers redundant. This is simply false.
Python is limited. This means that jvm will rise in popularity with data scientist and even analysts as companies want to make money on the backs of their algorithms. This benefits data engineers who are typically proficient in at least Java, Go, or Scala.
Python works for developers, analysts, and data scientists who want to control tools written in a more powerful language such as C++ or Java. Pentaho experimented with the language being bought by Hitachi. However, being 60 times slower than the JVM and often requiring three times the resources, it is not an enterprise-grade language.
Python does not provide power. It is not great at parallelism and is single threaded. Any language can achieve parallelism. Python uses heavy OS threads to perform anything asynchronously. This is horrendous.
Consider the case of using Python's Celery versus Akka, a Scala and Java-based tool. Celery and Akka perform the same tasks across a distributed system.
Parsing millions of records in celery can quickly eat up more than fifty percent of typical server resources with a mere ten processes. RabbitMQ, the messaging framework behind Celery, can only parse 50 million messages per second on a cluster. Depending on the use case, Celery may also require Redis to run effectively. This means that an 18 logical core server with 31 gigabytes of RAM can be severely bogged down processing tasks.
Akka, on the other hand, is the basis for Apache Spark. It is lightweight and all inclusive. 50 million messages per second are attainable with 10 million actors running concurrently at much less than fifty percent of typical servers resources. With not every use case requiring spark, even in data engineering, this is an outstanding difference. Not needing a message routing and results backend means that less skill is required for deployment as well.
Will Scala become popular again?
When I started programming in Scala, the language was fairly unheard of. Many co-workers merely looked at this potent language as a curiosity. Eventually, Scala's popularity started to wain as java developers were still focused on websites and ignored creating the same frameworks for Scala that exist in Python.
That is changing. With the rise of R, whose syntax is incredibly similar to Scala, mathematicians and analysts are gaining skill in increasingly complex languages.
Perhaps due to this, Scala is making it back into the lexicon of developers. The power of Python was greatly reduced in 2017 as non-existent or previously non-production level tools were released for the JVM.
Many of these frameworks are available in Java. Since Scala runs any Java programs, the languages are interoperable. Scala is cleaner, functional, highly modular, and requires much less code than Java which puts these tools in the reach of analysts.
What do new tools mean for a data engineer?
The new Java, Scala, and Go tools and frameworks mean that attaining 1000 times the speed on a single machine with significant cost reduction over Python is possible. It also means chaining millions of moving parts to a solid microservices architecture system instead of a cluttered monolithic wreck.
The result is clear. My own company is switching off of Python everywhere except for our responsive and front end heavy web application for a fifty percent cost reduction in hardware.
How will new tools help data engineers?
With everything that Scala and the JVM offers, Data Engineers now have a potent tool for automation. These valuable employees may not be creating the algorithms, but they will be transforming data in smart ways that produce real value.
Companies no longer have to rely on archaic languages to produce messy systems, and this will translate directly into value. Data engineers will be behind this increase in value as they can more easily combine tools into a coherent and flexible whole.
The continued rise of JVM backed tools starting in 2018 will make data pipeline automation a significant part of a company's IT cost. Data engineers will be behind the evolution of data pipelines from disparate systems to a streamlined whole backed by custom code and new products.
Data engineering will be a hot 2019 trend. After this year, we may just be seeing the creation of Skynet.
Cities are heading towards bankruptcy. The credit rating of Stockton, CA was downgraded. Harrisburg, PA is actually bankrupt. It is only a matter of time before Chicago implodes. Since 1995, city debt rose by between $1.3 and $1.8 trillion. While a large chunk of this cost is from waste, more is the result of using intuition over data when tackling infrastructure and new projects. Think of your city government as the boss who likes football more than his job so he builds a football stadium despite your company being in the submarine industry.
This is not an unsolvable nightmare.
Take an effective use case where technologies and government processes were outsourced. As costs rose in Sandy Sprints, GA, the city outsourced and achieved more streamlined processes, better technology, and lower costs. Today, without raising taxes, the city is in the green. While Sandy Springs residents are wealth, even poorer cities can learn from this experience.
Cities run projects in an extremely scientific manner and require an immense amount of clean, quality, well-managed data isolated into individual projects to run appropriately. With an average of $8000 spent per employee on technology each year and with an immense effort spent in acquiring analysts and modernizing infrastructure, cities are struggling to modernize.
It is my opinion, one I am basing a company on, that the provision of quality data management, sharing and collaboration tools, IT infrastructure, and powerful project and statistical management systems in a single SAAS tool can greatly reduce the $8000 per employee cost and improve budgets. These systems can even reduce the amount of administrative staff, allowing money to flow to where it is needed most.
Tools such as ours significantly reduce the cost of IT by as much as 65%. We eliminate much of the waste in the data science pipeline while trying to be as simple as possible.
We should consider empowering and streamlining the companies, non-profits, and government entities such as schools and planning departments that perform vital services before our own lives are greatly effected. Debt and credit are not solutions to complex problems.
Take a look, or don't. This is a fluff piece on something I am passionately building. Contact us if you are interested in a beta test.
There are a ton of ETL tools in the world. Alteryx, Tableau, Pentaho. This list goes on. Out of each, only Pentaho offers a quality free version. Alteryx prices can reach as high as $100,000 per year for a six person company and it is awful and awfully slow. Pentaho is not the greatest solution for streaming ETL either as it is not reactive but is a solid choice over the competitors.
How then, is it possible to ETL large datasets, stream on the same system from a TCP socket, or run flexible computations at speed. Surprisingly, this article will describe how to do just that using Celery and a tool which I am currently working on, CeleryETL.
Python is clearly an easy language to learn over others such as Scala, Java, and, of course, C++. These languages handle the vast majority of tasks for data science, AI, and mathematics outside of specialized languages such as R. They are likely the front runners in building production grade systems.
In place of the actor model popular with other languages, Python, being more arcane and outdated than any of the popular languages, requires task queues. My own foray into actor systems in Python led to a design which was, in fact, Celery backed by Python's Thespian.
Celery handles tasks through RabbitMQ or other brokers claiming that the former can achieve up to 50 million messages per second. That is beyond the scope of this article but would theoretically cause my test case to outstrip the capacity of my database to write records. I only hazard to guess at what that would do to my file system.
Task queues are clunky, just like Python. Still, especially with modern hardware, they get the job done fast, blazingly fast. A task is queued with a module name specified as modules are loaded into a registry at run time. The queues, processed by a distributed set of workers running much like an actor in Akka, can be managed externally.
Celery allows for task streaming through chains and chords. The technical documentation is quite extensive and requires a decent chunk of time to get through.
Processing in Python at speed requires little more than properly chunking operations, batching record processing appropriately to remove latency, and performing other simple tasks as described in the Akka streams documentation. In fact, I wrote my layer on Celery using the Akka streams play book.
The only truly important operation, chunk your records. When streaming over TCP, this may not be necessary unless TCP connections happen extremely rapidly. Thresholding in this case may be an appropriate solution. If there are more connection attempts than can be completed at once, buffer requests and empty the buffer appropriately upon completion of each chain. I personally found that a maximum bucket size of 1000 for typical records was appropriate and 100 for large records including those containing text blobs was appropriate.
Take a look at my tool for implementation. However, I was able to remap, split fields to rows, perform string operations, and write to my Neo4J graph database at anywhere from 80,000 to 120,000 records per second.
While this article is shorter than my others, it is something I felt necessary to write in the short time I have to write it. This discovery allows me to write a single language system through Celery, Neo4J, Django, PyQt, and PyTorch for an entire company. That, is phenomenal and only rivaled by Scala which is, sadly, dying despite being a far superior, faster, and less arcane language. By all measures, Scala should have won over the data science community but people detest the JVM. Until this changes, there is Celery.


We are an independent small tour operator well established in the travel industry since 2003. We only provide service to the countries that we have in-depth knowledge of, which are China, Japan, Korea, Vietnam, Cambodia and Lao.
We believe our expert know-how is the strength and our knowledge of touring these countries have evolved with the tourism changes over the years. These experiences enable us to create tours that are authentic and unique, not easily replicated by an off-the-shelf standard tour and/or non-specialised tour providers.
We aim to provide a truly enriching tour experience for our guests. Below are some of the exclusive elements which are standard in our Small Group tours, just to give you an idea of why our tours are unique.
Authentic Chinese/Japanese Inn experience with traditional seasonal dinner.
No shopping trips - you deserve to have all the time possible to explore!
Many places in the Far East provide unmissable World Heritage Sites, a longer stay/extra time sometimes is necessary to capture a truly enjoyable experience.
Our programmes stay longer such as Beijing for 4 nights, Chengdu 3 nights, Tokyo 3 nights, Kyoto 4 nights etc, to allow landmarks such as the Great Wall (full day), Leshan Buddha (not only boat ride but a close walk), Giant Panda volunteer programme, to be taken with great enjoyment. Some other places have the natural beauty that must be appreciated in your own time, such as temples and gardens in Kyoto, new tech in Tokyo etc.
Food plays an important part of a holiday experience so wherever we go, we will sample some renowned seasonal speciality cuisine. Details will be in the specific itinerary.
For your great comfort without paying a luxury price tag, our hotel choice is a combination of high standard international hotels in major cities, and top authentic boutique hotels in ancient towns. In China, we will have a night stay in the traditional Chinese boutique hotel with meals. In Japan, a traditional ryokan is always available either in the standard programme or adding on as an extra. We also provide selected choices of shows for guests to enjoy.
We only run programmes that we would love to do ourselves and every guest of ours is special! Not only our tours are provided in small groups to allow a blissful way of travel, your experience can be personalised easily because of the flexibility of how our tours are provided. Whatever your expectations are, and the level of budget you need to stick to, we will deliver the best recommendations possible.
Adding special excursions to complete your own interests.
Whether you decided to just stay with our Golden Routes, or adding on extensions, they all have the right ingredients for a fantastic holiday.
Our typical small group tour is about 10 people. Private tour starts from 2. Independent tour is a combination of private arrangement with joining a bigger group in order to keep the cost down.
Ours is private transfer based on your flight arrival time.
All our hotels are conveniently located. In smaller cities, it will be one of the best. We also provide 2 categories to suit your individual budget.
What to expect in between tour activities each day.
Ours guide will try to take guests back to hotel to rest and change. We only do leisurely paced tour to allow time to re-charge and refresh before the next exciting adventure. For places such as Beijing that have a lot to explore, we will stay for 4nights.
Travelling time in between places.
We use bullet train wherever possible, if the journey is between 2 and 5 hours. The train stations are normally in city centre, easy and quick to travel to, and there is no lengthy luggage check-in.
Travel to the Far East is a once in a lifetime journey and what makes the experience special must be in the details. Our tours are created with solid contents and magical moments.
Last but not least, we are in Manchester so only a phone call/email away. You are very welcome to get in touch and we'd be delighted to have a chat with you - We are sure you will be inspired!


* The concept of the helicopter goes back hundreds of years, and at the dawn of powered flight at the start of the 20th century, aviation pioneers believed that rotary-wing aircraft were right around the corner. In fact, while fixed-wing aircraft were quickly refined and improved, it wasn't until the mid-1930s that the helicopter began to emerge as a practical flying machine. This document outlines the early history of the helicopter, with a particular focus on early Sikorsky helicopters.