An airway device for human or animal use comprising an airway tube having a distal end and a proximal end, the distal end of which is surrounded by a laryngeal cuff, wherein the cuff is non-inflatable and is pre-formed in a shape such that a face region of the cuff is adapted to fit snugly over the laryngeal inlet of a patient, and wherein the external profile of the tube is substantially uniform between the distal end of the tube where it starts to meet the cuff and the proximal end of the tube, and wherein the face region of the cuff is formed from a material with a Shore hardness on the A scale of between 0 to 30.
The present invention relates to medical devices and is particularly applicable, but in no way limited, to laryngeal airway devices and to their methods of manufacture.
A wide variety of devices are known and are currently used in spontaneously breathing anaesthetized patients, during recovering after anaesthetics, in weaning of a certain group of patients in intensive care, or during resuscitation to provide a clear and hands-free airway. A number of these devices are listed in the applicant's co-pending earlier application GB2,393,399A (Nasir), the text of which is hereby imported by reference and which is intended to form an integral part of this disclosure. GB2,393,399A describes a new type of airway device which has a soft laryngeal cuff adapted to fit anatomically over and form a seal with the laryngeal structure of a patient. An essential feature of certain embodiments of this device is a so-called buccal cavity stabiliser, located around the airway tube, and which is designed to nest with the anterior aspect of the patient's tongue.
The laryngeal cuffs on these devices are generally non-inflatable, but rather are formed from a soft, deformable material that can adapt to the individual detail of the patient's laryngeal inlet to form a satisfactory seal. It was precisely because of the very soft, deformable nature of these cuffs that it was considered necessary to incorporate some form of stabiliser to locate the cuff during insertion and to maintain a good gas-tight contact with the laryngeal inlet at all times during use. It should be borne in mind that "use" can involve the patient in many hours on the operating table under anaesthesia and can also involve use in accident and emergency situations involving hostile conditions that are non-ideal for such treatments.
It has now unexpectedly been discovered that a stabiliser, whilst still desirable, is not essential to achieve a good gas-tight seal between the cuff and the laryngeal inlet of the patient. Since a buccal cavity stabiliser adds both weight and cost there are positive advantages in eliminating this feature from the design. Weight and cost are both important features, particularly where the item is intended as a single use or disposable item.
It has also been deemed possible to reduce the material in the laryngeal cuff by manufacturing as a preformed/prefilled anatomical cuff, and by potentially removing the gastric channel.
It is an object of the present invention to provide an airway device that is both simple and effective to use and cost-effective to manufacture.
Where a single use item is concerned, cost of manufacture, and minimising this cost, is important. A further objective of the present invention is to provide cost-effective methods for manufacturing airway devices that enable the unit cost per item to be minimised.
It is also an object of this invention to satisfy the requirements of clinical situations where a buccal cavity stabiliser would not enhance, but impede the operation. For example in many opthamalogical, and maxillofacial or dental surgery the use of a reinforced tube are preferable, as the tube can flexibly moved to one side to continue to provide an airway for the patient, whilst not interfering with the operation. In summary, where it might be advantageous to have an airway device with a buccal cavity stabiliser in some applications, we have discovered that there are several applications where this is disadvantageous. In fact there are several applications where it is just not practical to have a buccal cavity stabiliser.
Accordingly, according to a first embodiment there is provided an airway device for human or animal use comprising an airway tube having a distal end and a proximal end, the distal end of which is surrounded by a laryngeal cuff, wherein the cuff is non-inflatable and is pre-formed in a shape such that a face region of the cuff is adapted to fit snugly over the laryngeal inlet of a patient, and wherein the external profile of the tube is substantially uniform between the distal end of the tube where it starts to meet the cuff and the proximal end of the tube, and wherein the face region of the cuff is formed from a material with a Shore hardness on the A scale of between 0 to 30.
Such an airway device is both efficient in operation and cost-effective to manufacture.
Preferably the face region of the cuff is formed from a material of Shore hardness on the A scale of between 0 and 20 and more prefereably 0 to 5.
Preferably the profile of the airway tube is substantially circular.
In an alternative embodiment the profile of the airway tube is substantially elliptical.
Preferably the device further comprises a gastric tube passageway extending from the distal end of the airway tube to the proximal end of the cuff.
Preferably the gastric tube passageway is housed substantially within the body of the device.
Preferably the distal end exit of the gastric tube passageway exits the cuff centrally, that is along the line of the central longitudinal axis of the device.
If the end exit of the gastric tube passageway is displaced it is preferred that the distal end exit of the device is displaced to the right of the central longitudinal axis of the cuff, as viewed from the open face of the cuff, in other words to the right-hand side of the patient when the device is in use. This is for ease of manufacture.
In a particularly preferred embodiment the device further comprises one or more flexible flanges extending around the opening in the face region of the cuff.
Preferably the flexible flanges extend substantially around the entire circumference of the opening in the cuff.
Preferably a plurality of flanges are provided said flanges being spaced apart radially around the opening one from another such that the flanges are substantially concentric.
Advantageously said device further comprises a connector adapted to connect the proximal end of the airway tube to a gas supply.
Preferably said connector extends into said airway tube and at least part way along the length of said airway tube to act as a bite protector to prevent a patient from constricting the airway tube by biting on it.
Preferably said connector fits into an internal annular recess at the proximal end of the airway tube such that the diameter, or internal cross-section of the airway tube where the tube is non-circular internally, remains substantially constant along the length of the tube when the connector is in place.
Preferably the distal end of the connector abuts in use a shoulder in the airway tube to prevent the connector from passing into the airway tube beyond a certain point. This provides a positive fit for the connector which seats on a shoulder or recess within the tube, and results in lower resistance to airflow through the device.
Preferably the face of the laryngeal cuff is adapted to form an anatomical fit over the laryngeal inlet of a patient incorporates protuberances designed to form a good seal with the pyriform fossae and aryepiglottic folds of the laryngeal inlet of the patient.
Preferably the face of the laryngeal cuff adapted to form an anatomical fit over the laryngeal inlet of a patient incorporates protuberances designed to form a good seal with the valleculae, epiglottis, aryepiglottic folds, pyriform fossae and around the anterior aspect of thyroid & cricoid cartilages. The distal tip of the device positions itself into the recess created by the posterior aspect of the lower larynx below the posterior cartilages, above the opening of the oesophagus, not only to help create an airway seal but also to act as a physical wedge to prevent the possibility of regurgitation.
Preferably the face of the laryngeal cuff adapted to fit anatomically over the laryngeal framework of a patient incorporates grooves designed to allow passage of vital arteries, veins and nerves supplying the laryngeal framework.
Preferably the distal tip of the laryngeal cup is so sized and shaped as to remain above the upper oesophageal sphincter in use.
Preferably the distal tip of the laryngeal cup is substantially concave in shape.
Preferably the face of the laryngeal cuff and the airway tube are formed from materials of different Shore hardness.
In an alternative embodiment the face of the laryngeal cuff and the airway tube are formed from material of substantially the same Shore hardness.
Preferably the airway tube together with the back or dorsal part of the cuff are made from material of one Shore hardness and the face of the cuff is made from a material of a different Shore hardness, such that the face of the cuff is made of a softer material than the airway tube and the back or dorsal part of the cuff.
(v) removing the airway device from the mould.
Preferably said method also comprises the step of inserting into said mould a connector suitable for connecting to an anaesthetic gas supply, such that, after the moulding process is complete, the connector becomes attached to the airway device.
(vii) removing the airway device from the mould.
Preferably said airway tube is formed by an extrusion process.
(vii) bonded said airway tube to said laryngeal cuff.
FIG. 11 illustrates a front elevational view of a laryngeal cuff in which the gastric tube passageway exits on the mid-line or centrally from the tip of the cuff.
As used herein, the anatomical terms "anterior" and "posterior," with respect to the human body, refer to locations nearer to the front of and to the back of the body, respectively, relative to other locations. In the context of this description, the term "proximal" means the end of the device, or portion thereof, closest to the connection to the anaesthetic breathing system. The term "distal" means the end of the device, or portion thereof, furthest from the anaesthetic breathing system or alternatively, the cuff end of the device. The term "lateral" refers to a location to the right or left sides of the body, relative to other locations. "Bilateral" refers to locations both to the left and right of the body, relative to other locations. The anatomical term "medial" or "medially" refers to a location toward the centre or midline of the body, relative to locations both to the left and right of the body.
Referring to FIG. 1, this illustrates front, side and rear elevations of an airway device according to a first embodiment of the present invention, generally shown as 10. This comprises an airway tube 11, which at its proximal end 12 terminates in a 15 mm or other connector 18 suitable for connection to an anaesthetic breathing system of conventional type. Formed around the distal end 13 of the airway tube is a laryngeal cuff or cup 14 adapted in its shape and contours to correspond with the laryngeal inlet region of a patient. In this context the terms cuff and cup have an equivalent meaning. They refer to the element of the device at the distal end of the airway tube that is adapted to cover and form a seal with the laryngeal inlet of the patient in use. The anatomy of the laryngeal inlet region of a human is well known to the expert. It is illustrated in some detail in FIG. 1 of GB2,393,399 and the key thereto, both of which are imported herein by reference.
The cuff 14 has an opening 17 in a face or front region of the cuff and the back or dorsal part of the cuff is closed. The opening 17 in the face of the cuff connects directly to the airway tube 11 such that gas is free to flow from the connector 18 through the airway tube and out of the open face of the cuff.
The particular cuff shown in FIG. 1 incorporates in the cuff face pronounced and discernable bulges or protuberances 15, 16 designed to form a good seal with the piriform fossae and aryepiglottic folds. It will be appreciated that the outbulgings in the cuff at 15 and 16 are positioned antero-laterally to the laryngeal framework and give an anatomical seal by fitting into the piriform fossae and aryepiglottic folds and space postero-inferior to the thyroid and cricoid cartilages, and the posterior cartilages (corniculate and cuneiform). Thus, in side elevation, the face of the cuff is not a flat planar surface but includes regions that protrude above the general plane of the cuff face. Additionally, there may optionally be regions which lie below the general plane of the cuff face. These shapings and the general size, shape and configuration of the surface of the cuff face around opening 17 are an important feature of the invention.
Thin, flexible, featherlike flanges 20 and 21 extend substantially around the circumference of the opening 17 in the face region of the cuff. These flanges are preferably formed as an integral part of the moulding of the cuff and, because of the very soft nature of the material used to form the cuff, these flanges are particularly soft and pliable. Their purpose is to make allowance for any individual patient variation in the laryngeal inlet shape and to contribute to forming an efficient and effective seal between the cuff and the laryngeal structures. By this design, and by designing the cuff to be a close anatomical fit, the obtainable seal pressure from experimental trials is well within the range of 12-40 cm H2O, which is sufficient for ventilation.
These flanges need not completely encircle the opening 17 as shown in FIG. 1 but it is preferred that they completely surround the opening circumference, and in doing so they follow the general contours of the front face of the cuff. Flanges 20 and 21 are spaced apart slightly such that each flange is an integral item or unit. The flanges are spaced radially one from another around the opening such that one flange surrounds another. The term "radially" in this context has a broad meaning and refers to the spacing of each flange from an imaginary axis extending out of the opening in a plane substantially perpendicular to the general plane of the cuff face.
In this embodiment two feather flanges are shown. However, there may be no flanges, one flange or two or more than two flanges. In other words there may be none or a plurality of flanges, "plurality" having the meaning one or more in the context of this disclosure.
A further feature of the cuff is the epiglottic rest 30 located at the proximal end of the cuff region. This epiglottic rest is sized and shaped so as to be anatomically positioned against the epiglottis, to ensure a proper seal and to hold the epiglottis back from downfolding towards the laryngeal inlet avoiding obstruction to airflow. This epiglottic rest takes the form of a leaf like structure extending out of the laryngeal cuff and directed back towards the proximal end of the airway tube. Its relative size and shape can be seen from 30A in FIG. 9. The optimum size and shape for this epiglottic rest will be determined by experimentation.
Turning now to the airway tube, this is shown generally as 11 in FIG. 1. This tube, which is in the form of a hollow cylinder of substantially uniform cross-section open at each end, extends from the connector end 12 into the body of cuff 14 to connect with cuff opening 17. The inside diameter of the airway tube will depend on the size of the device, generally larger in adult sizes versus paediatric sizes, and designed in general to accommodate the appropriately sized endotracheal tube for endoscope guided intubation where necessary. The internal diameter of the tube may be substantially uniform along its length, although the internal diameter may vary.
In terms of intubation the airway also has significant benefits over inflatable laryngeal cuffs during retrograde intubation procedures. This is because inflatable cuffs can potentially be punctured and deflated, which could result in lack of seal and problems with ventilation.
The tube is formed from a bendable plastics material that will be described in more detail below. With the exception of the region at the distal end of the tube where it starts to join the cuff, the external profile of the tube is substantially uniform between the distal end of the tube where it starts to meet the cuff and the proximal end of the tube. The term "substantially uniform" means that there is no region of the tube which could act as a buccal cavity stabiliser ie an expanded region extending on either side of the airway tube. Put another way, there is no section of the tube that extends on either side of the tube and which is generally broader in profile than the airway tube itself. The internal diameter of the airway tube will preferably be substantially uniform and circular, whether the tube has a circular or oval exterior profile, and the distal opening of the airway tube into the cuff is a single opening to help reduce the resistance to flow through the device.
The airway tube can be formed with a variety of profiles. In the embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2 the general external profile of the airway tube is substantially circular. This can be seen most clearly in FIG. 2D. In contrast, in the embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 3 and 4, the airway tube has a generally elliptical external profile, although the bore passing through the airway tube is substantially circular in cross-section. These are just two of many profiles that might be selected by the designer.
A connector 118 which fits into the end of the airway tube is shown in more detail in FIG. 10. There are two important features to note from this embodiment. Firstly, the length of the connector is significantly greater than a conventional connector and is such that it extends, in use, into the patient's mouth and beyond his/her teeth. In that way it acts as a bite protector and prevents the patient from inadvertently biting through the relatively soft material of the airway tube. The patient biting down onto the airway device and particularly or completely occluding airflow is a problem in certain procedures and with certain patients. Secondly, the connector fits into a recess formed within the airway tube by the moulding process. In this way, the internal surface of the airway tube 109 is substantially smooth and uniform. The internal diameter of the tube from the proximal opening in the connector to the distal end where it opens out into the cuff is substantially uniform. There is therefore no significant step change in internal diameter at the inner end of the connector, which leads to improved airflow and lower resistance to flow. This arrangement is shown particularly in FIG. 10C being a section along line E-E.
In addition to the airway tube, the embodiments shown in FIGS. 1 to 4 inclusive include a second passageway 40 that extends from an opening 42 in the distal end of the device to an opening 41 in the proximal end of the device. This second, gastric tube passageway, is designed to allow an operator to pass a gastric tube down into the stomach of a patient without interrupting anaesthesia, during EMS or during pre-hospital airway management. This second passageway also allows for detection of any gastric aspirate in the event of passive regurgitation during use. This second passageway must be large enough to allow a small bore gastric tube to pass easily through the device. Typically a gastric tube passageway would be between 6 to 14 French gauge diameter.
The gastric tube passageway 40 and 140 shown in FIGS. 1 and 3 is shown housed substantially within the body of the airway device. However, it is also possible that this passageway could run externally of the new main body, for example laterally or along the dorsal face of the device body.
Another feature of the passageways in these embodiments is that they are displaced to one side of the central longitudinal axis of the device, in this case to the right-hand side of the central longitudinal axis, as viewed from the open face of the cuff. However, the passageway, which is optional, could just as well exit along the mid-line or on the central longitudinal axis of the device as illustrated by 242 in FIG. 11.
A further embodiment is illustrated in FIG. 7. In this example a laryngeal cuff is formed around a pre-formed or pre-cut piece of airway tube. This has the cost advantage that the airway tube may be formed from relatively inexpensive PVC tube or the like with a connector in one end and the cuff moulded over the other end. Once again the airway tube may be circular in profile or elliptical or any other profile as selected by the designer.
FIGS. 1B and 3B and 6B amongst others show the generally curvilinear shape of the device along its longitudinal axis. This shape is designed to correspond with the mouth/throat opening in an anaesthetised patient. Whilst the device is flexible it is resiliently deformable and tends to return to this concave/convex shape in its unstressed state.
In addition to passing tubes or other items through the gastric tube passageway, it is possible to pass items such as a guide wire directly into the trachea through the airway tube. To facilitate this the interior surface 150 of the cuff within the opening is ramped so as to direct a probe into the trachea (see FIG. 8C).
The device may be constructed from any suitable plastics material as selected by the materials specialist. Latex-free medical grade silicone rubber is one preferred material. The cuff should be soft in texture to avoid undue damage to the surrounding tissue. Other suitable materials for construction of this type of device include, but are not limited to, Poly Vinyl Chloride (PVC), Thermoplastic Elastomers such as the styrenic block copolymers (eg Styrene Butadiene Styrene (SBS), Styrene Ethylene Butylene Styrene (SEBS)), and Thermoplastic Olefin Blends (TPO), Thermoplastic PolyUrethanes (TPU), Thermoplastic Vulcanisates (TPV), Copolyester (COPE), Polyether Block Amides (PEBAX), Melt Processable Rubbers, Flexible Co-polymers such as EVA, and foamed versions thereof, where appropriate.
By way of a preferred softness (hardness) range, on the Shore A scale of Hardness, a hardness of less than 30 for the face of the cuff that contacts the laryngeal inlet is optimum. By way of a preferred range, a value on the same scale of between 0 to 20 is preferred, with a particularly preferred range of 0 to 5. The apparent softness of the cuff can be further adapted by forming cavities or channels within the body of the cuff itself.
In a further embodiment the cuff may be pre-filled with a fluid such as air, or other non-toxic gas, or a non-toxic liquid. In this context the term fluid has a broad meaning and includes any suitable gas, liquid, vapour or mixtures or combination thereof and will be determined and designed by an expert in this field of anatomy/anaesthesia in conjunction with the materials specialist. The cuff will be constructed of such a material which will not allow nitrous oxide (anaesthetic gas) to diffuse through the material to any significant amount so that the extra luminal pressure is kept constant. It follows therefore that the cuff should be substantially impermeable to the fluid with which is filled and to anaesthetic gases.
Alternatively, the cuff can be formed from a soft, foamed material or can be foam filled. In either case this provides a soft deformable but shaped surface around the face of the cuff to engage over the anatomy of the laryngeal inlet region. Such a foam filled device will minimise any potential damage to the structures in that region whilst still providing a substantially complete seal.
In the case of embodiments with a substantially circular airway tube and a gastric tube passageway which runs internally along the length of the device (as shown for example in FIGS. 1 and 2), the centre of the bore of the airway tube can be displaced to one side of the central or mid-line axis of the airway tube itself. This displacement provides space for the gastric tube passageway to run alongside the bore of the airway tube. This arrangement is shown most clearly in FIG. 2D. The gastric tube passageway is, in effect, housed within the outer body of the airway tube. This arrangement makes for a neat, streamlined appearance in comparison to the arrangement in which the gastric tube passageway is external to or mounted on the back of the device.
In terms of materials of manufacture and construction of an airway device according to the present invention, it is advantageous to form the front or open face of the cuff from a softer material than the remainder of the device. FIG. 1B shows a so-called "split line" 32 between the softer plastics material on the face of the cuff and slightly firmer material on the dorsal or back part of the cuff 19. The exact position of this split line may vary as determined by the designer. This line is shown in a slightly different position in FIG. 9, where it is shown as feature 132.
By moving this split line towards the dorsal face of the cuff, this ensures that the sides of the cuff 33, 34 are also made of the softer material. The sides are therefore more easily deformed which contributes significantly to the ease of insertion, and removal, of the cuff during use. The cuff squeezes and seals into the space above the laryngeal inlet, cupping the laryngeal inlet to create a good seal for ventilation. As the cuff reduces in width and squeezes into position, the airway opening increases in depth. This increase in depth reduces the likelihood of the epiglottis occluding the airway during ventilation, a problem with prior art devices.
Turning now to methods of manufacturing airway devices generally, and in particular airway devices according to the present invention and airway devices as described in GB2,393,399A, several new and cost-effective methods have been devised. These include injection moulding the device as a single unit using a one-shot or a two-shot process. Such methods also include extruding an airway tube and injection moulding a cuff around the tube in a one-shot or two-shot process.
It follows therefore that the airway tube may be manufactured by extrusion or injection moulding and the cuff portion may be formed by one-shot or two-shot injection moulding.
Accordingly, one method of making an airway device according to the present invention is to provide a mould, the mould including interior walls which define the shape of the airway device, and injecting into said mould a molten thermoplastic compound. Once cooled the item is ejected from the mould. In a further embodiment a two-shot process is used in which molten thermoplastic compound of a first hardness is first injected into the mould, which is retained in a pre-determined position such that only a pre-determined portion of the mould is filled with polymeric material. A second molten thermoplastic compound is then injected into the remaining space in the mould to complete the injection moulding process. In this manner the relatively firmer airway tube and dorsal portion of the cuff can be formed first and the relatively softer face of the cuff can be formed in the second part of the operation. Alternatively the face of the cuff can be formed first and the remainder of the device is formed in the second part of the operation.
In an alternative method an airway tube is formed in a first step, either by extrusion or cutting a pre-determined length from a longer length of tubing. A mould defining a hollow space which will become the cuff region in the finished product is then placed around the airway tube and thermosetting plastic is injected into the mould in a one-step or a two-step process.
In a third manufacturing embodiment a mould defining the cuff region is used to produce a cuff by either a one-step or a two-step injection moulding process. The cuff produced from this mould includes a recess adapted to accept an airway tube. In a separate operation or operations an airway tube is formed by extrusion or in some other manner. The airway tube is then inserted into and bonded to the recess provided in the cuff for that purpose.
According to a further method of manufacture, the moulding process may be used to mould not only the laryngeal cuff on to the end of a pre-formed airway tube, but also a soft coating over the airway tube itself. Whilts this requires a larger mould, and more plastics material, it has the advantage that the finished device has a uniform finish over substantially the whole of its outer surface. It is softer for the patient and more aesthetically appealing for the operator. Having a pre-formed airway tube running most of the length of the device gives a degree of resilience and rigidity which is particularly helpful when using very soft plastics material.
In terms of plastics materials used in these methods of manufacture, these will be determined by the materials specialist and are generally only limited by the ability to bond the chosen materials together. By way of example only, typically PVC can be used to mould the airway tube, the whole of the cuff region, the dorsal portion of the cuff region or any seals between these components. Polyolefins such as polyethylene and polypropylene or a polyurethane can be used to form the airway tube and/or the dorsal portion of the cuff region. A thermoplastic elastomer or a silicone rubber can be used to form the airway tube, the face of the cuff, the dorsal portion of the cuff, the whole of the cuff and any secondary seals therebetween.
In this context the term "bond" has a particularly broad meaning. It encompasses any method or process in which two or more parts are permanently joined together. It includes, but is in no way limited to, molecular bonding, glueing using chemical adhesives, welding, including ultrasonic welding. The preferred method or methods of bonding will be selected by the materials specialist in this area.
1. An airway device for human or animal use comprising an airway tube having a distal end and a proximal end, the distal end of which is surrounded by a laryngeal cuff, wherein the cuff is non-inflatable and is pre-formed in a shape such that a face region of the cuff is adapted to fit snugly over the laryngeal inlet of a patient, and wherein the external profile of the tube is substantially uniform between the distal end of the tube where it starts to meet the cuff and the proximal end of the tube, and wherein the face region of the cuff is formed from a material with a Shore hardness on the A scale of between 0 to 30.
2. An airway device as claimed in claim 1 wherein the face region of the cuff is formed from a material of Shore hardness on the A scale of between 0 and 20.
3. An airway device as claimed in claim 1 wherein the cuff is formed from a material of Shore hardness on the A scale of between 0 and 5.
4. An airway device as claimed in claim 1 wherein the profile of the airway tube is substantially circular.
5. An airway device as claimed in claim 1 wherein the profile of the airway tube is substantially elliptical.
6. An airway device as claimed in claim 1 wherein the device further comprises a gastric tube passageway extending from the distal end of the airway tube to the proximal end of the cuff.
7. An airway device as claimed in claim 6 wherein the gastric tube passageway is housed substantially within the body of the device.
8. An airway device according to claim 6 wherein the distal end exit of the gastric tube passageway exits the cuff centrally, that is along the line of the central longitudinal axis of the device.
9. An airway device according to claim 6 wherein the distal end exit of the gastric tube passageway is displaced to one side of the central longitudinal axis of the device.
10. A device according to claim 1 wherein the device further comprises one or more flexible flanges extending around the opening in the face region of the cuff.
11. A device according to claim 10 wherein the flexible flanges extend substantially around the entire circumference of the opening in the cuff.
12. A device according to claim 10 wherein a plurality of flanges are provided said flanges being space apart radially around the opening one from another such that the flanges are substantially concentric.
13. A device according to claim 1 wherein said device further comprises a connector adapted to connect the proximal end of the airway tube to a gas supply.
14. A device according to claim 13 wherein said connector extends into said airway tube and at least part way along the length of said airway tube to act as a bite protector to prevent a patient from constricting the airway tube by biting on it.
15. A device as claimed in claim 13 wherein said connector fits into an internal annular recess at the proximal end of the airway tube such that the diameter, or internal cross-section of the airway tube where the tube is non-circular internally, remains substantially constant along the length of the tube when the connector is in place.
16. An airway device according to claim 15 wherein the distal end of the connector abuts in use a shoulder in the airway tube to prevent the connector from passing into the airway tube beyond a certain point.
17. An airway device according to claim 1 wherein the face of the laryngeal cuff is adapted to form an anatomical fit over the laryngeal inlet of a patient incorporates protuberances designed to form a good seal with the pyriform fossae and aryepiglottic folds of the laryngeal inlet of the patient.
18. An airway device according to claim 17 wherein the face of the laryngeal cuff adapted to form an anatomical fit over the laryngeal inlet of a patient incorporates protuberances designed to form a good seal with the valleculae, epiglottis, aryepiglottic folds, pyriform fossae and around the thyroid & cricoid cartilages.
19. An airway device according to claim 1 wherein the face of the laryngeal cuff adapted to fit anatomically over the laryngeal framework of a patient incorporates grooves designed to allow passage of vital arteries, veins and nerves supplying the laryngeal framework.
20. An airway device according to claim 1 wherein the distal tip of the laryngeal cup is so sized and shaped as to remain above the upper oesophageal sphincter in use.
21. An airway device according to claim 20 wherein the distal tip of the laryngeal cup is substantially concave in shape.
22. An airway device as claimed in claim 1 wherein the face of the laryngeal cuff and the airway tube are formed from material of substantially the same Shore hardness.
23. An airway device as claimed in claim 1 inclusive wherein the face of the laryngeal cuff and the airway tube are formed from materials of different Shore hardness.
24. An airway device as claimed in claim 1 inclusive wherein the airway tube together with the back or dorsal part of the cuff are made from material of one Shore hardness and the face of the cuff is made from a material of a different Shore hardness, such that the face of the cuff is made of a softer material than the airway tube and the back or dorsal part of the cuff.
27. A method according to claim 26 wherein said method also comprises the step of inserting into said mould a connector suitable for connecting to an anaesthetic gas supply, such that, after the moulding process is complete, the connector becomes attached to the airway device.
29. A method according to claim 28 wherein said airway tube is formed by an extrusion process.
(vii) attaching said airway tube to said laryngeal cuff.
32. A method according to claim 31 wherein the airway tube is formed by an extrusion process.


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Elopements are simple and easy - I like to keep the booking process simple and easy also. We will exchange a few emails or phone calls to iron out the details of your specific needs and wants for your elopement ceremony. Once final decisions on date, location and fee are made we will sign a contract and payment in full will be required to book the date for your elopement ceremony.


Choose Size Above for Pricing.
Additional Rigid Heddles available for the Emilia loom. These are available for both the 13 and 18 inch looms. They are available in 8, 10 and 12 dents.
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BFE will be back in Krakow for this year's edition of the legendary Summer Jazz Festival which takes place at the beautiful Maly Rynek square on July 16. Don't miss this only opportunity to cath the band in Poland this summer.
BFE at the Île Utopie Festival in Lyon.


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Writes Michael Boettcher on February 19, 2018
'THE 100' – 5 MINUTES ON SCREEN THAT CAUSED AN UPROAR
It is no longer unusual to see blood, violence, and gore on TV, as well as a scenes balancing on the verge of porn. Being an avid TV series watcher, I noticed that not all developments are negative, however. An example of a good change is a stronger representation of LGBT community on screen.
I'd like to focus here on The 100 – TV series that has quite strong and well-shaped representation for the LGBT community. Of course, even this show isn't without failures. Portrayed by Eliza Taylor and appearing as one of the leaders of teenage delinquents from space sent to Earth almost 100 years after nuclear apocalypse, the protagonist of the series, Clarke Griffin, is a bisexual character.
Clarke enters into an affair with another character, Lexa (Alycia Debnam Carey), the Commander of the Grounders, indigenous inhabitants of the Earth. For almost the whole season, we can follow the development of the romance of this 'power couple' or 'Clexa' as the couple was called in the internet world of fandom – those who follow and support or 'ship' different on-screen relationships creating the nicknames from the couple's names. Another thing that makes this couple special is a focus on their dynamics in tough times of a looming war, not the sweet romancing and all things involved with it.
Taking off Debnam Carey's character off the show, even if it somehow made sense plot-wise, angered Clexa shippers and many members of the LGBT community. The producers of The 100 were accused of falling into very harmful and detrimental 'Bury Your Gays' trope on TV. 'Bury Your Gays' or 'Dead Lesbian Syndrome' is a long standing trope in films and TV series, which means that gay characters just aren't allowed to have happy endings. Even if they do end up having some kind of relationship, at least one half of the couple, often the one who was more aggressive in pursuing a relationship has to die at the end.
An additional problem is the tendency that gay characters are killed off in a story full of mostly straight characters. Many got reminded of another series called Buffy the Vampire Slayer, which served its fans back in the 90's a very similar situation of a lesbian character being shot and killed just moments after she had sex with Buffy.
After airing the fateful episode, the producers spent a lot of time apologising and trying to appease the fans with moderate success. But that's not the end of the story. Now comes the part which truly made me smile. Alycia Debnam Carey did such a wonderful job in her portrayal of Lexa that a lot of members of LGBT community 'chose' her and the character to be a champion of their cause. A site called We Deserved Better, emerging from a hashtag trending on Twitter 'Lexa Deserved Better', launched into a fundraiser for a US organisation The Trevor Project. The organisation helps depressed teenagers from LGBT community, and the sum they raised amounted to almost 200,000 dollars. Also in March 2017 the first ClexaCon, a media and entertainment convention for LGBTQ community took place in Las Vegas, where apart from having fun, many problems of LGBTQ issues in the public sphere were discussed.
I certainly hope that the result of the uproar will be a positive one for the LGBTQ community. Perhaps the beginning can be such a seemingly insignificant thing as reducing unjust tropes on our TV screens, which is so hurtful to this LGBTQ minority as so many of their favourites are killed off just because they are who they are. An amazing job by Alycia Debnam Carey did something the producers could never intend or predict. It gave people energy to act and they try very hard to have a voice that can be heard. I hope the LGBT community will succeed in changing the attitude towards homosexual or bisexual characters on screen.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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Elias Farrell founded Look Ahead Enterprises—a Cambridge, Massachusetts-based company designed to do the impossible—in 2027.
"Such as?" Jeff prompted him.
It took Elias Farrell ten minutes to ready Healy's viewing room. He explained to Jeff that his look ahead would appear on the screen before him, unfortunately without sound—something his programmers hadn't been able to work out yet. The computer would select what it believed to be the subject's most important future day. The DVD recording would begin as soon as the video appeared on the monitor. The One Look would last approximately a minute and would be date stamped.
The monitor flickered to life: Healy's house. The date stamp was a little over a year from now. The video moved inside the home to show his son and wife. They were talking about something while Trish put papers into her valise. He was nowhere to be seen. To Jeff's shock, the on-screen Alex pulled out a gun and, after some heated arguing, shot Trish twice in the chest. Seconds later, the screen went blank. Healy sat staring at the monitor, slack-jawed. He couldn't believe it. "Can this be changed?" he asked, hoping against hope.
"To the point where that won't happen?" Jeff asked, pointing disdainfully at the screen.
"I promise," Jeff replied eagerly.
Farrell took the deepest breath Jeff had ever seen anyone take. "They do exist," he began.
"So Tomlinson can stop what I saw on that screen?" Healy asked hopefully.
"Huh?" a befuddled Jeff asked.
Seven interminable days later, Jeff's cell phone rang. "This is Tomlinson," he heard.
"The what?" Healy asked the voice on the phone.
"On what?" Jeff asked, confused.
"You haven't shown your boy that DVD, have you?" Tomlinson asked urgently.
"How about the two of us play hooky from work today?" Jeff asked his wife.
"Would ten bucks do?" she asked, zipping up her valise.
"Sit down, old man!" Alex exclaimed, pointing the gun at his dad.
"How much do you need?" Trish asked.
The doorbell rang. "Who's that?" Alex asked Jeff nervously.
Healy stood on the threshold. Behind the open door, Alex held his gun to Trish's right temple. Her cheeks were wet with tears, and she was doing all she could not to weep aloud.
"I'm afraid that now isn't a good time," Jeff informed him.
"Answer the questions and get rid of him," Alex whispered through his teeth.
"Whenever you're ready," Jeff said.
"Good day," Tomlinson said before turning and walking away.
"Let's get m—" Alex uttered before taking a bullet in his right leg, dropping his gun, and falling to the carpet.
Tomlinson called Jeff at the hospital. "Your case is closed," he told his client.
"Didn't you cut that rather fine?" Healy complained.
"The doctors say he'll be fine," Healy told his wife as he walked back into the waiting room.
"I know," Healy replied sadly.
"Where did you get the gun?" his bride asked him.
"Tomlinson gave it to me," he answered her.
"He just happened to show up with a gun right when we needed it?" she said incredulously.
Later that night, Jeff noticed that Tomlinson's app was still on his cell phone. He couldn't resist.
Mike Murphy has had over 150 audio plays produced in the U.S. and overseas. In 2016, he won two Moondance International Film Festival awards. Mike's prose work has appeared in Dime Show Review, Gathering Storm Magazine, Zeroflash, Inwood Indiana Press, Zetetic: A Record of Unusual Inquiry, With Candlelight, Asymmetry Fiction, Lyonesse Fiction, Communicators League, Theme of Absence, Visions With Voices, Fabula Argentea, and The Flash Fiction Press. In 2015, his script The Candy Man was produced as a short film under the title Dark Chocolate. In 2013, Mike won the inaugural Marion Thauer Brown Audio Drama Scriptwriting Competition.
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Culture Tiger
An Eclectic Beast exploring Art, Film, Style and Other Curiosities
Theatre Review - The El. Train at Hoxton Hall
By Natalia - January 05, 2014
The last show I attended in 2013 was The El. Train - three one-act plays by Eugene O'Neill put together for the first time in a single production. The venue was the Victorian grade II listed Hoxton Hall which had been transformed into 1920s New York with a "Hell Hole" saloon bar serving up period-inspired cocktails and blaring out melancholic jazz. The theatre itself was turned into a cramped dark tenement block with the piercing sound of a railway train racing overhead followed by live music and the heart-rending vocals of Nicola Hughes.
The first two plays, Before Breakfast and The Web, were directed by Sam Yates with Ruth Wilson as the female leads. Before Breakfast sees Wilson's embittered Mrs Rowland getting ready for work while talking to her silent husband Alfred of whom one could vaguely make out a silhouette in the curtained off bedroom. As the play progresses, anger rises and falls in Wilson's east coast drawl which also sounds exhausted by everything. Increasingly more is revealed about Mrs Rowland's view of the unhappy marriage - particularly Alfred being an unemployed academic spending time drinking and womanising while she works in a factory and betrays an intellectual inferiority complex. The only sound that comes from Alfred is the drop of his shaving bowl after committing suicide - the bloody aftermath of which is only visible to his wife. Wilson's face of terror and disbelief sets the tone for the rest of the production.
The Web plunges further into woeful darkness with consumption-riddled prostitute Rose battling it out with Zubin Varla's pimp as she tries in vain to stand up for herself and her baby. As violence escalates, neighbour Tim (Simon Coombs) bursts in with a gun and saves Rose. Tim turns out to be a bank robber hiding from the police. After much comfort and reassurance, Tim eventually convinces Rose that she can escape from her dead-end situation, move away and improve her health. Of course, being an O'Neill play, the characters' fates unfairly end in a fatal shooting and an arrest. The chemistry between Wilson and Coombs is tender and passionate as they play two desperate individuals who have (very brief) solace and hope together before being thrown back into inescapable wretchedness.
Third and final play The Dreamy Kid gave Ruth Watson her directorial debut. Dying Mammy Saunders (Nicola Hughes) hopefully waits for her beloved grandson Dreamy (Coombs) to be at her bedside seemingly unaware that he is a gangster and a wanted man for murder. Hughes, who sang between plays, completely transforms from glamorous club singer to frail elderly woman clinging dearly onto her final wish. Coombs' Dreamy initially frightens and intimidates with a particular type of hardness of someone who had fallen deep into the wrong crowd. Dreamy's active reluctance to stay in the apartment gives way to family duty and superstition. As the play finishes with Dreamy and Mammy together and both awaiting their deaths (one of age and the other most likely a criminal sentence), the fear of the unknown portrayed by Hughes and Coombs is overwhelming and builds up in time to the screeching train above.
This triple bill had plenty of emotional rawness which, with good timing, was restrained before delivering yet another shattering blow. I came out of Hoxton Hall feeling that Eugene O'Neill made Strindberg (a major influence) and Ibsen look like Restoration Comedy playwrights. Richard Kent's designs contributed greatly to the dark and claustrophobic feel of time and place settings. Yet with Alex Baranowski's original music there was also an underlying decadence which was a key characteristic of the 1920's before Depression struck. A powerful and sobering production which got many audience members back into the Hell Hole Saloon afterwards for a much needed stiff drink.
Drama Music Theatre
Inspiring Movies: What A Way To Go!
By Natalia - June 03, 2018
Bold and elaborate costume design exhilarates me. When I'm low on energy, I google images of Bob Mackie creations instead of buying chocolate as a little pick-me-up. What A Way To Go!, a star-studded dark comedy from 1964, is the visual equivalent to a freakshake-induced sugar rush. Shirley MacLaine stars as small-town girl Louisa May Foster who desires a simple life. But Louisa ends up marrying men - played by Dick Van Dyke, Paul Newman, Robert Mitchum and Gene Kelly - who become incredibly wealthy overnight. The success, greed and vanity of the husbands kills them in outlandish ways leaving Louisa re-widowed, richer and sadder. With costumes designed by the legendary Edith Head, MacLaine's character is frequently reinvented as she moves from one doomed spouse to another. Before money enters Louisa's world, she is as sweet as apple pie in frills and red polka dots. With each husband comes a different lifestyle as well as a more sophisticated image. Living in bohemian Paris, with Paul
The Category Is...POSE!
POSE is an award-winning U.S TV show with a third season in the pipeline. Yet the series barely gets a mention in workplaces and dinner parties (is the silence just in the UK?). It's not enough that my partner and a few queer friends and acquaintances have watched POSE. This is a must for everybody to learn about an often ignored part of LGBTQ+ history and culture that's not whitewashed. It's also packed with great performances. So I'm going to keep promoting the hell out of POSE. Created by Ryan Murphy, POSE is a drama centred around the New York ballroom culture in the 1980s and early 90s. Marginalised black, latin, gay and trans competitors dance and walk for trophies in multiple categories. This is an underground scene that influenced Madonna (which season 2 touches on) and is frequently referenced in Rupaul's Drag Race. The pilot bursts open with a thrilling break-in. Ran by the glamorous and domineering Elektra (Dominique Jackson), the House of Abundance wil
Living Deliciously: Robert Eggers' The VVitch
By Natalia - May 25, 2020
One of the small blessings of lockdown, has been the opportunity to watch even more films than usual. Supernatural horror has become more prominent in my viewing choices - there had always been affinity with the genre's outsiders but this time it is also a brief escape from reality. The VVitch, which premiered at the 2015 Sundance festival, had been on my list for a while. The VVitch follows a family of 17th century English settlers who, banished from their New England colony over a religious dispute, set up a new home in an isolated clearing next to a dense forest. Tragedy begins when the baby vanishes while the adolescent daughter Thomasin (Anna Taylor-Joy) plays peek-a-boo with him. Somewhere in the forest, an elderly woman rubs herself with an ointment of bodily remains. Secrets and paranoia suffocate the family. Thomasin increasingly receives accusations from both parents and siblings, over thefts and unholy activity, as unexplained misfortune strikes again - her verge of ad
Dance Review: English National Ballet's Le Corsair...


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Zakir Naik's Peace TV is now BANNED in Bangladesh
Bangladesh government on Sunday banned the broadcasting of India-based controversial preacher Zakir Naik's Peace TV channel after reports that his "provocative" speeches inspired some of the militants who carried out the country's worst terror attack at a cafe.
The decision to ban the Mumbai-based preacher's 'Peace TV Bangla' was taken during a special meeting of Cabinet Committee on Law and Order, Industry Minister Amir Hossain Amu, who chaired the meeting said.
In the meeting, attended by senior ministers and top security officials, it was also decided to monitor the sermons given during the Friday prayers to check whether any provocative lectures are delivered, Amu told reporters.
Naik's speeches are believed to have inspired some of the Bangladeshi militants, who killed 22 people, mostly foreigners, at an upscale restaurant in Dhaka on July 1.
The government also appealed to the Imams in the country to deliver lectures in line with real Islamic ideology of denouncing terorism and extremism, the minister said.
Besides senior ministers, the meeting was attended by chief of police and head of the elite Rapid Action Battalion (RAB), paramilitary border guards and top officials of different security agencies.
Deployment of additional security forces at export processing zone was also ordered.
Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan on Saturday said that Bangladesh's intelligence agencies were investigating the Islamic preacher Naik.
"He is on our security scanner… Our intelligence agencies are investigating his activities as his lectures appeared provocative," Khan had told reporters.
Khan said the investigators were also probing Naik's financial transactions in Bangladesh.
One of the slain attackers of the terrorist attack in Dhaka's high-security Gulshan area, the 22-year-old Rohan Imtiaz quoted Naik in a Facebook post in January this year where he urged "all Muslims to be terrorists."
Twenty-two people, including 17 foreigners, were killed in the brutal late-night attack. Six days later, militants attacked police guarding the largest Eid gathering in Bangladesh and killed three more people.
The activities of Naik's Mumbai-based Islamic Research Foundation are also under the scanner of Indian Home Ministry amid allegations that funds from abroad received by it have been spent on political activities and inspiring people towards radical views.
The Maharashtra government has also ordered a probe into the sermons by the 50-year-old televangelist that has kicked up a storm.
Britain and Canada have banned Naik from visiting the two countries several years ago while Malaysia banned his lectures fearing that they could instigate inter-racial tensions.
Experts said Naik could not be accused of openly inciting terror but his preaching were a heady mix of ingredients which could abet radicalisation of the extreme kinds.
TagsBangladesh Hate Preacher Hate Speech India Islamic Terror Islamic Terrorism Terror News Terrorism Wahhabism
Kurds abandoning Islam and going back to Zoroastrianism
UK: Bristol Muslim leader backs ending anti-terrorism scheme which enable teachers and social workers to identify potential terrorists
Cyber warfare: ISI spying on Indian security through rigged music mobile apps
Germany: 7,000 Muslim Refugees Sue Germany For Being Too SLOW To Process Asylum Papers
CIA chief (former) who presided over 2011 Osama raid 'poisoned' by ISI?
Indian Mujahideen terrorist held in Mumbai for 2011 serial blasts
EUROPE: Turkey and Brussels 'secretly' agreed to migrate 250,000 people into EU every year
UK: Turkish Muslim, 66, fatally stabs four women in supermarket parking lot
Bangladesh: Catholic Nurse Doused With Gasoline and burnt alive


As Earth orbits the sun at supersonic speed, it cuts a path through the solar wind. This fast stream of charged particles, or plasma, launched from the sun's outer layers would bombard Earth's atmosphere if not for the protection of Earth's magnetic field.
Just as a motorboat creates a bow-shaped wave ahead of itself as the hull pushes through the water, Earth creates a similar effect—called a bow shock—as it pushes through the solar wind. Scientists have sought to explain how Earth's magnetic field can shove aside the powerful solar wind without unleashing calamity. They have known part of the answer for a long time: the bow shock converts energy from the solar wind to heat stored in electrons and ions. But now, researchers have important new clues about how this process occurs.
A University of Maryland-led study describes the first observations of the process of electron heating in Earth's bow shock. The researchers found that when the electrons in the solar wind encounter the bow shock, they momentarily accelerate to such a high speed that the electron stream becomes unstable and breaks down. This breakdown process robs the electrons of their high speed and converts the energy to heat.
The results add an important new dimension to scientists' understanding of Earth's magnetic field and its ability to protect the planet from harmful particles and radiation. The research paper was published in the journal Physical Review Letters on May 31, 2018.
The scientists obtained their data from NASA's Magnetospheric Multiscale (MMS) mission. The MMS mission consists of four identical satellites that carry instruments to study the physics of Earth's magnetic field as it interacts with the solar wind. The satellites obtained three-dimensional measurements every 30 milliseconds, resulting in hundreds of measurements within the bow shock layer. These high-frequency, precise measurements from the MMS mission were critical to the study.
Scientists have known for some time that the bow shock is somehow able to convert the energy in electrons to heat without any direct collisions between the electrons. This means that friction—a common way to generate heat here on Earth—is not responsible for electron heating in the bow shock.
"The new observations of electron acceleration at the bow shock rewrite the current understanding of electron heating," said Chen, who is also a research scientist at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center. "For example, researchers didn't expect that the bow shock could accelerate the solar wind electron stream to the speeds that we observed."
In an earlier phase of the MMS mission, the satellites typically orbited much closer to Earth, so they usually missed the bow shock. However, an unexpected outburst of solar wind pushed the bow shock closer to Earth, allowing the satellites to capture rare and informative data.
Seizing on this advantage, the researchers observed the solar wind's electron stream before, during and after meeting with the bow shock. The electron stream accelerated by the shock only took 90 milliseconds to destabilize and fully break down.
"The study of electron heating is important not just for understanding how the bow shock protects Earth, but potentially for satellites, space travel and maybe exploring other planets in the future," Chen said.
By giving the first clear picture of what electrons at the bow shock are doing, Chen and her collaborators hope to encourage other scientists to perform computer simulations, further space observations and laboratory experiments on electron heating. Chen also looks forward to delving further into the mechanisms by which the bow shock accelerates the electron stream.
"Typically, scientists have simulations or theories to predict what is happening and then they design experiments to measure it," Chen said. "This time it's the opposite: the measurement came first. The simulation and theory will have to catch up."


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Sonic Underground groups, Freedom Fighters, Heroes, Hedgehogs
Sonic Underground (group)
This group exists primarily within the Sonic Underground continuity.
Information in this article may not be canonical to the storyline of the games or any other Sonic continuity.
The Sonic Underground from left to right: Sonia, Sonic and Manic
"Wedding Bell Blues"
Overview and statistics
Sonic the Hedgehog (leader)
Manic the Hedgehog
Sonia the Hedgehog
The Royal Hedgehogs
Resident location and/or bases
Safehouse in Robotropolis
Associations and equipment
Equipment and/or weaponry
Queen Aleena Hedgehog
Oracle of Delphius
Doctor Robotnik
The Sonic Underground[1] are the main protagonists of Sonic Underground. They are an underground resistance movement and band who leads the Resistance against Dr. Robotnik and his tyrannical rule over Mobius. Born as triplets to Queen Aleena Hedgehog, the Sonic Underground are the true heirs to the throne of Mobius. Each member also wields a medallion which doubles as a music instrument and a weapon.
Not long after the birth of Queen Aleena Hedgehog's children Sonic, Manic and Sonia, Dr. Robotnik dethroned the royal hedgehog family and conquering most of Mobius. However, the Oracle of Delphius fortold that Aleena and her children, as the Sonic Underground, would one day form the Council of Four and overthrow Robotnik. But for the prophecy to come to pass, Aleena had to abandon her children.[2]
Years later, Sonic Underground was formed when the siblings were reunited and set on their quest by the Oracle of Delphius.[2] After getting to know each other and mastering their skills, the group set out to find their mother and bring an end to the Robotnik Empire. At the same time, the group would constantly be trailed by Robotnik's top bounty hunters, Sleet and Dingo.[3][4]
According to the Oracle of Delphius and other prophecies, the Sonic Underground will eventually find their mother and defeat Robotnik once and for all.
The Sonic Underground, from Sonic Super Special #10.
When Queen Aleena Hedgehog's children Sonic, Manic and Sonia were still very young, Aleena was contacted by the Oracle of Delphius who warned her of Dr. Robotnik's rise to power, but also how she and her children, as the Sonic Underground, would one day assemble as the Council of Four and bring justice back to Mobius. Aleena hid her children away and went into hiding when Robotnik attacked.[1][5]
Years later, the children were reunited and set out on their quest by Oracle of Delphius, working together as the Sonic Underground movement. While searching for their mother, Sonic Underground would constantly be trailed by Robotnik's top bounty hunters, Sleet and Dingo. In addition, the Sonic Underground would also play free charity concerts to raise the oppressed people of the world and rally them against Dr. Robotnik.[1][5]
When Sonic Prime came to their Zone, the Sonic Underground teamed up with him and Zonic the Zone Cop to stop Dr. Robotnik, who had used Evil Sonic to rebuild the Giant Borg suit.[5]
Since the series discontinued, it is unconcluded if the Sonic Underground found their mother or if the prophecy came to be.
Each episode of Sonic Underground had the band sing at least one song (which last roughly over a minute). The songs are either performed by themselves or, on one occasion, with a guest singer.
Original concept art
↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Sonic the Hedgehog: The Complete Sonic Comic Encyclopedia, "Sonic Underground"
↑ 2.0 2.1 Hurst, Ben; Allee, Pat (30 August 1999). "Beginnings". Sonic Underground. Season 1. Episode 26. First-run syndication.
↑ Hurst, Ben; Allee, Pat (6 October 1999). "Getting to Know You". Sonic Underground. Season 1. Episode 28. First-run syndication.
↑ Hurst, Ben; Allee, Pat (8 October 1999). "Harmony or Something". Sonic Underground. Season 1. Episode 30. First-run syndication.
↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Sonic Super Special #10, "Zone Wars: A Tale of Two Hedgehogs"
Retrieved from "https://sonic.fandom.com/wiki/Sonic_Underground_(group)?oldid=2140541"
Sonic Underground groups


A mother is accused of taking her two children with her to abduct and kill a neighbour's puppy, police said.
Maria Furtado, 40, shot the dog dead in an apparent revenge attack after it killed two of her ducklings, KSNV News3LV reported.
Furtado, from Pahrump, Nevada, faces two counts of neglects and child abuse; one count of animal cruelty; and one count of larceny, Nye County Sheriff's Office said.
Police say Furtado pulled up to her neighbour's home on Sunday, walked onto their property, took the puppy from its rope and put it into her car.
She then drove to the desert near Front Sight with her sons, aged three and 15.
When she reached the desert, she took the puppy out of the car and shot it repeatedly.
Furtado then made her teenage son shoot the puppy a number of times, police say.
She is currently being held at Nye County Detention Center on $25,000 bond.
She is due in court again August 19th.


L1 Linear 2-Sided Series fireplace shown with Long Beach Driftwood, Fluted Black Liner and 1" Finishing Trim in Black.
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Your L1 Linear 2-Sided contemporary gas fireplace comes with your choice of stylish fronts, as well as your choice of logs or beaded glass kits. See our Options page or contact us for more information.
Use the form below to request more information on L1 Linear Series 2-Sided, and a Kastle sales rep will get back to you as soon as possible. Fields in red are required.


The CSD 200, 3M Cogent's single-digit optical fingerprint scanner, is housed in a durable and compact casing and captures high quality flat impressions in a fast, reliable, and easy-to-learn way. Its advanced optical system enhances ambient light rejection.
The standard power USB 2.0 connection allows for easy integration with new or existing applications while eliminating excess cables and the need for an image-capture board. The durable, lightweight, and ergonomic design allows the CSD 200 to be portable without compromising image quality. The CSD 200 is also available in an OEM version. It can be combined with the Cogent SA-4 Secure ASIC OEM module to facilitate integration of a biometric component into existing or new products.
The CSD 200 is FBI PIV-071006 and FIPS 201 PIV certified. The CSD 200 driver includes auto capture, adjustable brightness, contrast, and gain capabilities. This robust and cost-effective solution has low maintenance requirements and a large active platen area, which make it ideal for network biometric authentication, authenticating biometric travel documents, and identity verification.


John, whose faith towards Jacque and the order was second to none, held a special place within the society. He adored Jacques and loved him dearly but was afraid to confront him with these feelings. They were taboo and the thought of sharing such thoughts scared him to think what consequences they may bring. Little did he know that there were others with the same communal behavior? A handsome man who stood six foot one, eyes the colour of the ocean and a teacher of the wonders of history. He spoke clearly and full of meaning and made certain that his words became a permanent fixture in one's mind. He wanted his pupils to understand the world's history and make them appreciate how the changes in life through the teachings of the worlds past would assist in learning and helping to live a better and brighter life.
All admired John; not just for his wisdom but the energy that he emitted was one of love and peace. He cared and made the attempt to show this emotion but some of the men in the order had warned that it would get him in a dilemma one day and should take better care in which he confronted and trusted.
It so happened that one did take advantage of these characteristics and little did the Knight know that this was going to get him in a dilemma. The rule was to never get involved with any outsiders; physically or mentally but John couldn't help the sentiment that overcame him when he met Julius, a blacksmith after visiting the wounded at the local hospital in Valetta. The stranger's appearance outside the hospital front doors had told him that the man had been involved in some battle and the signs of pain that showed in his eyes told John that the incident was current. The limp also proved that the injury was not taken care of, as there were fresh traces of blood seeping through the garment.
The Blacksmith's face was pale though the smile he courageously conjured to John was one of politeness and only then did the Blacksmith lose all strength in his legs and collapsed on the cold ground. Immediately John ran to the hospital foyer and acquired help, led the medics to where the Blacksmith lay and assisted with support as the hospital staff applied their expertise in eliminating the infection that was slowly eating away at him.
"You don't have a surname?"
"Surnames are not mandatory. They are only used as titles and to differentiate individuals."
There was a warm smile from the Blacksmith as he held out an opened hand to John. "My name is Julius. It is a great pleasure."
John took hold of the hand, finding it a little difficult to let go. But he also sensed that Julius too kept a firm grip and intended to keep it there.
Throughout the next couple of days, John found out a great deal about Julius and the more he learned, the more he felt closer to the man. The Blacksmith was outcasted because of his sexual preference and the Catholics in Sicily; especially the Order of Genesis didn't want homosexuality as part of their daily life. A gay man was a bringer of evil! The Order of Genesis was a religious sect that was governed by a priest, followed the bible and lived its beliefs. They had caught one of their own in explicit sexual acts. Though Julius was also part of this act, the order never got to see who else was responsible for such devilish activity.
Julius was working as a Blacksmith for the Order and in the last eight months was having an affair with one of the monks. The risk involved was great for if a member of the order was found guilty of homosexuality; the punishment was to be trialed as a witch and burnt at the stake.
The Eve of the burning, Julius was caught sneaking into the rectory making his way to the room where the destined monk awaited the fateful morning.
"It was you all along, am I right?" It was one of the senior ministers that had sighted him though his tone didn't hold any accusation and was just audible for Julius to hear. "No matter how many times we questioned him, he would never utter your name."
"I understand you have laws but can I see him?"
There was an unsettling silence before the minister fished for his keys and without a word led Julius to his lover. "You have not seen me and you enter this room at your accord." He unlocked the door, placed the key back into his pocket and watched as Julius stepped into the room and waited until the door closed before quietly disappearing down the corridor.
They didn't have much time together but the little time they did have was spent adoring one another, touching each others face, their lips tenderly kissing. No words wore uttered for their eyes said everything. Julius took his lover tenderly from behind, his arms wrapped around his chest, holding him and not wanting to let him go. He held his enflamed shaft inside him though the urge to erupt was more than he can control, he exploded his juices inside him and it was then the tears came.
They were coming for him!
It was that final tender kiss, the final stroke of a finger across the cheek and the last Julius saw of his lover. He swiftly ran out the door only to be confronted by four men, henchmen as he thought of them, not monastery monks. One suddenly brought a fist to his face, knocking him back to the wall while another grabbed hold of his arms and spun him around to push his face to the wall. Julius wasn't going to give up without a fight.
He gathered his strength, freed one arm and with a fist struck with all his might. Little did the monks know that Julius had a knife secretly hidden and quickly he pulled it out and attacked without any thought. The one that first struck him felt the blade enter the side of his stomach and bewildered stepped back and looked at the bleeding that seeped from the wound. The others stopped in awe. Nothing like this had ever happened within the congregation!
Julius took this moment to flee.
"The devil is amongst us!" one shouted.
He was running now, out the main doors and towards the gates. Unfortunately the exit was nine feet high and another two feet of barbed wire. He would also be burned at the stake if caught. He found ways to climb the timbered gates and fumbled through the rustic barbed wire, which caught his skin and tore it like paper. Another pierced his thigh not realising how deep the metal bore into his skin.
Julius jumped, possibly fracturing his ankle as he landed on the rough earth but the moment of worry to any body injuries was not the time to concern oneself about. He needed to flee as far as could, away from this civilization and somewhere where he was not known and start afresh. He knew though he was now out of danger once over the gates. The Genesis Order never stepped foot outside their own surroundings for the ground he now walked on was not blessed and birthed much evil.
He took once last look at this rural community, still able to hear the warning tones that were being hollered and Julius couldn't help but smile at their stupidity. How quickly it came that the smile was replaced by an excessive surge of hurt, a sadness that suddenly filled his whole body. He could see the fires of hell eating away at an innocent body, a man who only wanted the truth, to believe he was a man, to accept that he was no different than the next human being.
He fought the tears, an emotion he could not remember having since he was a child but they were far too strong for him to hold back. He cried, limped further away and cried more. It was hours later he reached the shores of Sicily and not far from the shore was a trading boat, which he would stow away.
It was days later he arrived in Malta.
John had already over welcomed his stay but he couldn't leave Julius and if he did stay, there could be a possible magical catastrophe.
"I must leave," he said.
Julius looked at him, nodded, understanding what one must do. "The cross you bare is unlike any other I have seen. It is a Knights' cross, one that the King despises."
"You know of us?" John was taken by surprised.
"Working in a Monastery, you learn a lot of things. Where will you go?"
John turned to leave then paused, "In life one gets a chance to meet a holy being." He said this, staring straight ahead of him but never looking around to face Julius. "My calling is to save another soul," and left.
Julius never saw him again.


Who said you have to have meat to have protein?
I feel like the "where do you get your protein?" question is becoming almost comedic these days, as so many of us of all dietary labels are trying to eat more plant-y foods, and we know good and well (thank you, internet) that there are plenty of ways to cut down on meat without becoming protein deficient. My annoyance has transformed into giggles now when I see the commercials for milk or those snack wrap things, so desperately pushing that you might die of a protein deficiency were it not for eating all the animals.
Especially of late, I'll be the last person to label myself a vegan or vegetarian. I've satisfied a couple summer cravings for a good burger or a really delicious grilled chicken wing, but I've also been taking much more careful inventory than usual of what I eat. I preach balance all day long, but with the hot weather sapping all my energy, I've been curious: am I really getting a balanced range of protein, iron, calcium, and those million and one (or maybe just 26-ish) letter vitamins? Plus leaving room for a few treats?
One of my biggest revelations in tracking what I eat is that empty calories add up. Perhaps it's easier for athletes with a bigger daily calorie allowance, but most of the time I'm doing yoga or going for walks, with a little light lifting thrown in. Not your biggest calorie burner. So if I'm aiming to take in around, say, 2000 calories in a day, then every meal matters. It might not kill my waistline, or even my energy level, to have a homemade breakfast sandwich, but, that's like a third of my calories for the day that I could upgrade by swapping it out for a smoothie and fruit. Even though the breakfast sandwich boasts a decent amount of protein and tastes AMAZING, it might also rank high on refined flour, fat, and sodium.
As hard as it can be, that's the thought process I'm trying to focus on when planning meals. For instance, instead of popping that bag of salt and vinegar chips in the pantry, right now I'm snacking on some raw veggies (not my thing at all) made palatable by a mixture of tahini and a generous squirt of Frank's.
By now, maybe you're wondering how a recipe for stuffed shells can possibly abide by this principle. First, I guarantee you'll eat less pasta in a portion of even six stuffed shells than you would if it was spaghetti for dinner. Next, instead of a more traditional ricotta/meat/sauce combo, the filling for these shells gets bulk from white beans that you can't even taste (making you more likely to eat four than six for dinner). We're going green with the filling, adding plenty of brightly colored spinach (or greens of your choice), and finally, instead of dumping in a huge handful of parmesan cheese, pesto adds more green color and replaces some of that cheese with arguably more preferable olive oil (healthy fats!). Pesto is such a magical ingredient in dinners. You can make it yourself, with any herbs and nuts you have on hand (expensive pine nots are not required), or buy some at the grocery store, which has often been made fresh on site, so it's basically like you made it? Either way, you swap four or five items on an ingredient list for just ONE. I think that's what they call a dinner win.
The recipe for these stuffed shells is adapted from one of my favorite dinner idea sources, the NYT cooking app. Their recipes can be a little involved (justifiably so, because the results are spectacular), but I streamlined it as much as I could. Frozen spinach saves you trimming and chopping fresh greens, and, like I said before, the pesto stands in for lots of grating cheese and chopping herbs. If you have homemade marinara in the freezer, it will shine in this recipe, but to be honest, I grabbed a decent jar of organic sauce and I'm not sure even your Italian grandmother would be the wiser. Boiling and stuffing the shells does require a bit of cookware and patience, but the recipe serves at least six, justifying the effort, I think. If you really want to make it worth your while, double the recipe and freeze extras in dinner size, oven-safe pans. I would (and did) bake them before freezing because raw frozen egg freaks me out. Finally, to really speed things along, and avoid cleaning the food processor, you can just stir all the filling ingredients together in a bowl, using a potato masher to crush those beans. The only downside is you won't get such a uniformly green, pretty filling.
Bring at least 5 quarts of water to a boil in a large pot (or work in two smaller batches). Add a tablespoon of salt, a splash of olive oil, and the shells. Boil about 9 minutes (or until very al dente), stirring occasionally to keep the shells separated. Gently drain the shells in a colander, or scoop from the water with a slotted spoon. Rinse briefly with cool water. Line a rimmed baking sheet with plastic wrap. When the shells are cool enough to handle, separate them by hand, dumping out additional water and placing opening up in a single layer on the sheet pan. Cover with more plastic wrap once almost cool.
Bring a few quarts of water (or use remaining pasta water, if you didn't dump it out) to a boil in the same pot. Add frozen spinach and cook three minutes on high, until tender. Line the colander with damp paper towels if the holes are large, then drain the spinach. Set colander over a bowl to drain more while you start the filling.
Add just the garlic to a food processor and run until it's finely chopped and sticking to the sides. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, then add the ricotta, eggs, beans, pesto, 1½ teaspoons salt, and several grinds of pepper (a big pinch). Squeeze the spinach in your hands to drain well of remaining water, then add to the other ingredients in the food processor. Run until almost smooth, with a few small bits of spinach still visible. I prefer not to taste after adding the raw egg, but if you find it necessary taste a little and adjust seasoning to taste.
Preheat the oven to 350 (F) and spray or lightly oil a 9 x 13" pan, plus another smaller casserole dish (about 8 to 10 of the shells won't fit in the 9 x 13). To fill the shells, pick up one shell at a time, holding it open with thumb and pointer finger of your non-dominant hand. Scoop 3 to 4 tablespoons filling with your other hand and scrape into the shell. Most of them won't look perfect, which is okay! Place filled shells close together in the prepared pans. Spoon sauce over the shells, leaving bits of the green filling visible. Cover pans with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Increase heat to 375 (F), sprinkle shells with some grated parmesan (if using), and bake uncovered for another 5 to 10 minutes until cheese is melted and excess moisture is reduced.
Cool 5 to 10 minutes, then serve alone or with a crispy salad on the side!
If you like LOTS of sauce, heat up another cup or two and serve at the table with the shells. I don't recommend adding it before baking, as it will cover up that pretty filling and also produce excess moisture in the dish.
I had trouble finding jumbo shells in several grocery stores. Use the link in the ingredient list to order them on Amazon, if need be.
Note: This page contains affiliate links. It does NOT contain sponsored content. Affiliate links (to products I recommend, on Amazon) offset my ingredient and website maintenance costs, so I can keep bringing you cozy recipes like this one. Thanks!


text:
Wilhelm Ferdinand Arndt, född 27 september 1838 i Lobsens i provinsen Posen, död 10 januari 1895 i Leipzig, var en tysk historiker.

Arndt studerade historia i Göttingen under Georg Waitz. Han blev 1875 docent och 1876 extra ordinarie professor i historia vid Leipzigs universitet samt 1894 professor i historiska hjälpvetenskaper där. Sedan 1862 var han medarbetare i "Monumenta Germaniæ Historica" och utgav i denna urkundssamling bland annat Gregorius av Tours verk.

En frukt av hans paleografiska studier är två häften mycket använda Schrifttafeln zur Erlernung der lateinischen Paläographie (1874–1878; tredje upplagan 1897–1898). Han bedrev även forskning i Sverige. Arndt var också kännare av Johann Wolfgang von Goethe.

Källor

Externa länkar
Leipzigs universitet: Arndt, Wilhelm

Paleografer
Tyska professorer i historia
Personer verksamma vid Leipzigs universitet
Alumner från Göttingens universitet
Historiker under 1800-talet
Tyska forskare under 1800-talet
Personer från provinsen Posen
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Födda 1838
Avlidna 1895
Män
Ugglan

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text:
The Mythology of Lance Armstrong
Sport is different from life, but it is also a part of life. It's this tension that makes the whole Lance issue so difficult.
We can pretend that sport is its own pure realm, a kind of fantasy place where rules ensure fairness, where hard effort and teamwork leads directly to victory, a sort of pure meritocracy of talent and physical genius. This is the ideal of sport. It's a kind of false reality that we construct. If we construct it well, then winning and competing mean something -- because the rules of the game ensure a relative degree of fairness.
We build this reality because life is decidedly unlike the realm of sport. The rules of life are vague and shifting. Success is open to interpretation. One of the very first things we learn as children is that life is simply not fair. The goal in life, therefore, is not to win or compete, but to survive and, with luck, flourish.
Let's put it this way. When something goes wrong in sport, you lose. When something goes wrong in life, something worse than losing can happen.
The difficulty in judging Lance comes from the fact that in his case the lines between sport and life became so muddied that they are almost indistinguishable. If this were a pure sporting issue, then we could just say Lance broke the rules of the game and so therefore he is no longer a winner. It would be as trivial as catching someone illegally moving pieces in a chess match. The match would be thrown, and the title awarded to someone else.
But at some point the fantasy world of sport touches that other reality of life, where things larger and weightier than winning and losing take place. In the Lance case -- and this is the case in almost all sports now that they have become fully professionalized -- the fantasy is all mixed up with the reality.
First, doping. The reason doping is illegal is not simply that it is unfair. It's that it's dangerous. Doping is not just against the rules of sport; it also runs up against the reality of life. Doping not only wrongs the others playing the game, but it creates a culture in which the only path to success in sport is also the path to debilitating physical conditions or even death. What Lance did was wrong not just because it created an unfair competitive situation (and it could even be argued that he doped to CREATE a fair competitive situation) but primarily because his doping and trafficking of drugs, as well as the encouragement of his team to do so, contributed to a culture of doping that was dangerous to cyclists as human beings. His violations were not just at the level of sport -- they were ethical violations at the level of life.
Second, cancer. Lance was not just a great cyclist. He was a cancer survivor and philanthropist. Here again, Lance consciously blurred the boundary of sport and life. When Lance rode, he wasn't just scoring a victory for himself. He was doing it for those who have struggled with and succumbed to cancer. His victories didn't look like winning a game. They looked more like the deeper moments of success in life. In this sense, Lance was not just a winner. He was a hero. His wins were not just about individual glory, but about the possibility of fighting through sickness and tragedy. This was not about a cyclist winning stages, but about a man winning back his life.
Third, country. Sport is political from the outset, and Lance Armstrong represented American triumph. At a time when America's possibilities seemed endless; the beginning of this new century, Lance Armstrong emerged with that All-American name, that Texas-burnt face, and in the middle of our opulence and superpower lethargy, Lance was a symbol that America deserved our position in the world. Lance basically went over to Europe year after year and whupped ass--at a European sport. Americans who knew nothing about cycling and who wouldn't really even watch the sport loved the guy because he was the perfect image of us. Bold, arrogant, hard working, straightforward, talented -- basically a superpower on a bicycle. He was everything George Bush turned out not to be. Here the fantasy of sport got all wrapped up in the fantasy of America. We needed to believe -- and perhaps still need to believe -- that we truly are exceptional. That we have the one guy in the world who can beat everyone else even though they are all doped up. In this way Lance funded this myth of American exceptionalism, and that's why we loved him and wanted to believe that he was clean.
In the end, Lance was not just an athlete. He was more like a Homeric hero--the parallels with Achilles are quite incredible. He was a mythology. The role of mythology is to bridge fantasy with reality, and this is why, in the end, all myths must be exposed. Reality always proves to be too much. We end up trying to piece back together the broken shards of fantasy. This is the nature of tragedy.
Myths always fail because to be a truly mythological character, you can't be truly alive. You aren't a person -- complex, growing, and eventually dying. You are an idea -- cold, permanent, representative. After the idea of Lance has broken apart (athletic careers never last forever), we will be left only with a person. Lance himself will be forced to come to terms with the reality of his life. I imagine some day soon, he will.
But the American public? Will we come to terms with the myth that was broken? See the human, all-too-human side of it? It's doubtful. In the next week or so, that myth will simply be forgotten in the mad rush to create new fantasies. After all, football season is starting. Reality be damned.
Ethics Lance Armstrong Mythology PEDs
Zach VanderVeen August 24, 2012 at 7:20 PM
Awesome post!
Scott Bennett August 24, 2012 at 9:01 PM
Lance cheated his way into yellow. Fine. If he hadn't, the seven others who finished behind him in 2001 tried to. It's been a horrible two decades plus for integrity in sport. BUT... The actions of the USADA have been nothing short of Orwellian. Secret witnesses, back room deals, threats, and coercion. I'm all for busting cheaters, but if you can't do it on the up and up... If you have to break the rules society is trusting you to protect, we're better off just watching the cheaters ride their bikes. Right now, I don't trust USADA. They are just as corrupt as those they are supposedly saving us from. It's lose lose and if I had a choice, I'd just prefer to lose.
ace August 24, 2012 at 9:05 PM
sitting here watching giants v bears and at halftime there's a discussion of the saints bounty scandal. know what i am talking about? where the players got bonuses for taking other players out. boomer esiason (sp??) and bill cowart are going on about the brotherhood and whatnot, but all i am seeing is that the sport, commercialism, money, profits, livelihoods, are all mixed up. and, just like that, i am thinking about this post of yours which is of course light years more eloquent than what i am sputtering on about here, but i am certain you get me, man.
hey, look -- i got esiason right and cowher wrong. but still, the point is the point!
This is the same story as Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens and now Lance. Have any of them ever failed a drug test? NO. Just because of hearsay years later, all of a sudden they are guilty until proven innocent?? You are so wrong. I am sure you were one of the first people on the disband Men's Duke Lacrosse when they were falsely accused by that one girl. So quick to judge. Put the real evidence out there, Lance passed over 500 tests. He is the 7 time Tour de France winner and will always be it. Shame on you!
Old Man August 25, 2012 at 5:09 AM
Most sports I couldn't give a rat's ass about. (partly because of the doping and larger than life status placed on the athletes) I don't know why I got pulled into the world of cycling. The Lance myth was a big part of it.
Awesome write up.
Time for a long ride in the country.
I really don't understand USADAs motivation here. He never tested positive and he never admitted to anything he just said that he is done with this BS. There isn't a drug out there that one can take to make them Lance. He was definitely on something, on his bike everyday training his but off. He has an incredible work ethic and determination, that is what made him successful not some drug. If he was doping and never had a positive test then there obviously wasn't enough drugs in his system to help.
Jeff Edmonds August 25, 2012 at 1:50 PM
Thanks for the comments, positive and negative. I am happy to address any criticisms that are relevant to the piece. It's true that this piece assumes that Lance both doped and trafficked drugs, as the USADA claims. He has never admitted to these charges, but I have followed the Lance conversation closely for years, and I believe that the assumptions this piece makes are justified.
KarenA August 25, 2012 at 7:14 PM
Good write-up. I agree that something dies for each of us when this happens. I am still a Lance fan and don't think he deserves to lose the victories.
Norm August 25, 2012 at 8:27 PM
Well done Jeff. Lance really was the Achilles of late and no Greek could write a tragedy as great as the one we saw unfold in real life. Pretty soon I'm going to read that Joey Chestnut is using PEDs too.
Kira August 26, 2012 at 8:06 AM
Nice post. I posted a link to New York Magazine entitled "Ten Contradictory Thoughts You're Allowed to Have on Lance Armstrong this Morning." (http://nymag.com/daily/sports/2012/08/ten-contradictory-thoughts-on-lance-armstrong.html) To me, your post really addresses WHY we have these contradictory thoughts - the butting of heads between the reality and the mythology that was constructed around him (and around sports in general).
Grief, anger (towards Lance, cycling, the USADA, etc.), disbelief, disappointment are all reactions to the unveiling of the myth a lot of us believed in.
Terzah August 26, 2012 at 4:46 PM
Sometimes you get asked who your heroes are. I always have trouble answering that question for the reasons you outline here. People like Lance Armstrong who are set up on very public pedestals will almost always tumble off. There are countless politicians, actors and athletes who have taken this fall before him. We should all let Lance go be human (he always was anyway), and then work on fixing our own flaws.
Ewen September 8, 2012 at 3:34 AM
I believe the assumptions of the piece are correct too. I'd say Lance's mythology was much greater in the U.S. as we didn't really get the whole 'country' thing (whipping European ass in a European sport). When Cadel won he wasn't regarded as a Homeric hero, just a sporting hero. But Cadel hadn't overcome cancer or become a great philanthropist.
I think Lance is in damage control in order to deflect negative publicity from the Livestrong brand. And perhaps to make a comeback in low-key 'amateur' sport (just not in the Chicago Marathon).
There was an interesting TV show on the PR of Lance - worth a look: http://www.abc.net.au/tv/gruenplanet/pages/s3583424.htm
Push the Tempo -- Another Long's Peak FKT
Interview: Andy Anderson on his Grand Teton Speed ...
Lydiard, Thoreau, and Training as Vision


text:
Q: Removing duplicate rows? Does anyone know how I might go about removing duplicate rows in the following data, where the duplicate rows are those with the same name? The catch is that I want to keep the phone numbers, emails, etc that are different in a duplicate entry.
This data is a tab-delimited text file.
Thx!
name    phone   email   website
Diane Grant Albrecht M.S.
Lannister G. Cersei M.A.T., CEP 111-222-3333    cersei@got.com  www.got.com
Argle D. Bargle Ed.M.
Sam D. Man Ed.M.    000-000-1111    dman123@gmail.com   www.daManWithThePlan.com
Sam D. Man Ed.M.
Sam D. Man Ed.M.    111-222-333     dman123@gmail.com   www.daManWithThePlan.com
D G Bamf M.S.
Amy Tramy Lamy Ph.D.

Ideal output:
name    phone   email   website
Diane Grant Albrecht M.S.
Lannister G. Cersei M.A.T., CEP 111-222-3333    cersei@got.com  www.got.com
Argle D. Bargle Ed.M.
Sam D. Man Ed.M.    000-000-1111, 111-222-333   dman123@gmail.com   www.daManWithThePlan.com
D G Bamf M.S.
Amy Tramy Lamy Ph.D.

FOLLOW-UP:
Thoughts on this:
from collections import defaultdict
import csv
import re

input = open('ieca_first_col_fake_text.txt', 'rU')

for row in input:
    row.split('\t')
    print row

# default to empty set for phone, email, website, area, degrees
extracted_data = defaultdict(lambda: [set(), set(), set()])

data_set = {}

for entry in input:

    for index, value in enumerate(entry):
        if index == 0:
            data_set = extracted_data[name]
        elif value:
            data_set[index - 1].add(value)

print data_set

data_set is empty ('{}')

A: When you parse the data, use a dictionary where the names are the keys and each value is a list for each additional value, each of which is in turn a set.  This will work fine as long as you don't need to maintain any associations between the data by row.
from collections import defaultdict
extracted_data = defaultdict(lambda: [set(), set(), set()])
# Splitting of data depends upon your input format
for entry in input:
    # Assume split() returns a 4-length iterable containing name,
    # phone, email, and url where the value is falsy if not present
    for index, value in enumerate(split(entry)):
        if index == 0:
            data_set = extracted_data[name]
        elif value:
            data_set[index - 1].add(value)

A: Use a collections.defaultdict() object to track what you already have seen:
from collections import defaultdict

data_so_far = defaultdict(list)

for line in inputlines:
    name = # magic to get a name

    data = data_so_far[name].add(line)

Now data_so_far contains all the data you've seen, keyed on name, each value a list of matching lines. Instead of adding a line, you can store parsed information in the list.
This groups your data into a structure per name.

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